“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 (NIV)

Too often I’m enchanted into thinking that life should be easy. I want it to hum ahead. I want the days to flow beautifully without sticking and clunking and crashing. I once imagined life to be perfect only when my house looked like a magazine and I didn’t get frazzled by the demands and surprises of everyday life.

Hello, real world. Hello, my frail humanity.

I keep thinking, Life is kind of difficult right now and, honestly God, I’m not liking it and I don’t understand it. But I love how God speaks and births Divinity into my very humanity. Most times it’s in the hard times, the questions, the longing, where Jesus wants to be birthed. I am reminded that today, God wants to meet me in my struggle and my discomfort. If I make room—welcome Him in—I have a Savior who offers a Kingdom of Peace. This Kingdom needs to come—not some day in a perfect heaven, but right now, today, on earth, in my broken humanity.

Jesus, please meet me today in the center of my struggles and questions. Meet me in pain and loneliness. Meet me in discomfort and anger. Wherever I’m at, please come and meet me. May Your Kingdom of Love, Peace, Patience and Humility come in me, even now. Amen.

by Idelette McVicker
Used by Permission

FURTHER READING

Hard Life Journey

A Hard Road Ahead?

Why Our Walk with Jesus Seems so Hard Some Days

The post When Life Isn’t Easy appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“In heaven I have only you, and on this earth you are all I want.” Psalm 73:25 (CEV)

Give God your unfair situations of life. Ask Him for wisdom with the troubles and injustice of your life. Ask God to help you understand the end result, and rejoice you have God on your side.  Memorize Psalm 73: 11, 25.

Crime rises, people are financially cheated, divorce settlements are unfair, abuse is rampant, and words hurt.

Injustice has affected us all and people seemly get away with it. So where is justice?

God is behind the scenes and He is on it!  When we take things into our own hands, without God’s help, we are doing ‘what feels good’.  Let God rule knowing ‘you are all I want’ for in that you will have peace even though it doesn’t make sense. Let the God of Justice deal with your injustice.

God of Justice, fill us with Your peace. We do not understand when unfairness falls at our feet and hurts us. We are asking for Your work in these situations. Give us wisdom, direction and patience. Thank you that You are all we need and help us to rest and trust in You. In the All-Powerful Name of Jesus, amen.

By Linda McCutcheon
used by permission

FURTHER READING

The post Then I Understood appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. You heard that I said to you, `I go away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. John 14:26-28

We’ve been living in difficult times lately, and the more tumultuous life becomes, the easier it is to be self-centered. Even though the future is uncertain, we can’t afford to let ourselves be consumed with fear and anxiety regarding how we might be affected.

God wants us to get our mind off ourselves and onto Him because He is our rock and refuge in trouble. When we rely on our own limited perspective, confusion and hopelessness are the likely outcome. Instead, we must look at the greatness, promises, and purposes of our God as revealed in His Word, because divine truth is our anchor in the storms of life.

Think about how the early church responded to their turbulent time. They went forward boldly—even willing to lose their life—because they knew the gospel was the only hope for a lost world. When persecution broke out against them in Jerusalem, they scattered and took the gospel wherever they went Acts 8:1-4

“Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death. And on that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Some devout men buried Stephen, and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison. Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.”

God doesn’t want us to retreat from the world and focus on ourselves in times of crisis or instability. This is our opportunity to give hope to others through the message of salvation in Jesus Christ

By Dr. Charles Stanley
Used by Permission

FURTHER READING

•  Did You Know that You are Someone Special?
•  A Poem of Hope

Learn more about knowing Jesus at: https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/four-laws/

Follow Us On:

The post Our Calling in Troubled Times appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering” Philippians 3:10

What is suffering? Elisabeth Elliot describes suffering as

“wanting what you don’t have and having what you don’t want.”

That definition pretty well covers all the little and big “troubles” we go through during our lifetime. It could be a broken hairdryer or a disease. We will have problems. Maybe you don’t have any today, but you probably will tomorrow. And – think about it – you could even be someone else’s problem!

Our reactions or responses to these problems are the key to our inner peace.

Recently, a very positive acquaintance told us about deep waters he had gone through. He said a dear friend and author, Philip Keller, had given him the following spiritual principles to meditate on and apply to his life. He said they had made a big difference in his perspective on problems.

Acknowledge – God is my Father – He knows what is best for me, so I must acknowledge He arranges all my affairs.

Accept all that comes to me as His arrangement. In acceptance comes peace.

Approve of what He does and how He does it. Thanking Him for sincerely releases Him to do great things for you (no more controversy).

I encourage you to make a copy of the three steps, keep them in a handy place, review, and apply them to your situation whenever you have a problem. It will change your perspective.

Suffering is not for nothing.

Father, You know we get far too independent if we don’t have problems. So I thank You for problems. Enable us to acknowledge, accept, and approve that You know what is best for us. Amen.

By Katherine Kehler
Used by Permission

Comments: If you don’t see our response form, please go to https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/blog/katherine-kehler_suffering/

Learn more about knowing Jesus at: https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/four-laws/

SUBSCRIBE BY EMAIL: FOLLOW THIS LINK

Follow Us On:

The post Suffering appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:11

It takes wisdom to lift your head above the deep waters of life. It doesn’t always mean having a head full of knowledge. Knowing what to do when you’re in the deep waters is the key.

The deep waters of life can drown someone. Oh yeah, if you’re not careful, you may drown. However, if you know how to swim, you become like a fish in deep water. The water’s depth may not change, but once you know how to navigate in it, you can swim instead of panic. You can float and rise above that water. That’s wisdom.

When you feel afflicted by something, you need help. The Spirit of God is willing to help you by giving you wisdom. You don’t need to know why you’re in this deep water. What you need to know is how to move about comfortably so you can rise above it. That’s wisdom.

So, ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom. Ask him what you should do and how to proceed. He will guide you. He’s prepared to show you the thoughts of God.

Wisdom takes practice, just like learning to swim. God never promised that we wouldn’t face the deep waters of life. However, if you rely on the Holy Spirit, he’ll be there for you. Applying God’s wisdom to a situation will help you move comfortably. You’ll swim and maybe even explore this new facet of life.

Father God, I ask you to give me wisdom through the Holy Spirit and help me to apply it to my daily life. Help me float in your grace and not drown in the deep waters washing over my life. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

By Fab Batsakis
Used by Permission

Comments: If you don’t see our response form, please go to https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/blog/fab-batsakis_deep-waters/

Learn more about knowing Jesus at: https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/four-laws/

SUBSCRIBE BY EMAIL: FOLLOW THIS LINK

Follow Us On:

The post Wisdom for Deep Waters appeared first on Thoughts About God.