I wanted to post some of the message I heard this morning from Chip Ingram on his daily radio show. I find his insight to be intellectually stimulating and certainly thought provoking and that causes me to think past the usual recesses of my mind and delve into areas I often neglect..Often times things that seem so simple can also be very profound..The idea that certain thoughts can trigger an avalanche of "light bulb" moments or those moments that cause you to say to yourself.."wow" that is big.. That is my reaction to today's message..not something that was truly brand new but delivered in such a way that all the circles came together..
Faith..What is genuine faith? How do we know? Most of say we have Faith but when faced with very difficult situations or problems we "project"...ie..we say to ourselves..OMG..how am I going to handle this..Oh no, I will be ___________. something along these lines..Now I am not saying everyone, but this is often true for me..I find myself worrying(worrying is anti Faith)..feeling anxiety over looming issues and simply getting out of sync with God because of earthly issues..jobs, money, illness, debt, deadlines, appointments,relationships, political issues, etc..this list is just to name a few..
I would submit that Genuine Faith does not project..Does not worry..feels no anxiety..Now as I write this I am saying to myself..Is it possible to work our way thru life and not worry, not feel anxiety and not project..but when you really think about this, and you ponder the possibility of being able, you are limiting a HOLY, ALL POWERFUL GOD..Who is capable of whatever He desires..Genuine Faith is a Belief in that which is NOT SEEN but to the degree that doubt has no room..Doubt is the enemy against faith and tries to crumble the Faith we have..
God allows "life" to happen as it does to strengthen us..To refine us..to mold us
1. What can I control? My attitude..My attitude is all I can really control and that means how I choose to view any given circumstance or situation, trial or triumph..
2. What do I do? Endure..God calls us to endure..Paul says to run the race as to win the prize..Endurance is built..You can run a marathon unless you train for it..Endurance for God requires training as well..Real life training..Tribulation produces perseverance, perseverance character, character hope and Hope does not disappoint..
3. What Hope do I have for tomorrow? If you cooperate wit God, He will take the worse part of life and use it for good, for His glory..but you must cooperate..That means when being refined by God's hand, you allow that process to be. You are not to try and circumvent the Sovereign Hand of God.. God is performing a work in us..with one goal in mind..To make us Christ Like..James 1:3-4 says "3for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
See...God is perfecting you as you endure the trials of life, into a more perfect creation until the day He calls you home and completes that work into perfection..
4. How does it work? First, this forces a greater dependence on God to new levels..Second it slowly weens us from the world. It helps us to evaluate our priorities and values in life..slowly things that once mattered just do not matter anymore..If the stock market crashes, or the economy falls into a recession, or a job is lost..Your focus moves away from the earthly ideals and narrows itself on the eternal perspective.. Thirdly, trials allows us to witness 1st hand the power and grace of God. We experience Him more and begin to get closer and closer to Him because we can see and feel the saving Grace and His provision for our lives..If you can just imagine that time after time, God's faithfulness shines thru what that does to your Faith..How endurance is built up..by simply allowing God's provisions and sovereignty to play out..as He so wills..and lastly...adversities serve as testimonies to the unbelieving world..Our reactions and attitudes toward life circumstances depict our TRUST and FAITH in Christ..The most inspiring thing for me to see even as a believer is another believer enduring in Christ, Trusting in Christ amidst some of the most horrific situations one can imagine..ie..Cancer stricken bodies, loss of children suddenly and unexpectedly, loss of loved ones....When this is in plain view for me to see and experience, I say to myself..I want Faith like that..I want to Trust so explicitly that my life is constantly praising the Holy Sovereign Lord I claim to follow, no matter the storm, no matter the season..even unto my last breathe here in this world..
So..the meaning behind all this was to say..ENDURE..Let the Refiner refine..the Molder mold..be the clay in the Potter's hand..and allow the work in you that Christ has started to be perfected so that you "lack nothing." Faith in this process is the real deal..Genuine..
Eddie
(Chip Ingram)
How He Loves _ Dave Crowders Band
He is jealous for me, Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree, Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy. When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory, And I realise just how beautiful You are, And how great Your affections are for me. And oh, how He loves us so, Oh how He loves us, How He loves us all Yeah, He loves us, Oh! how He loves us, Oh! how He loves us, Oh! how He loves. We are His portion and He is our prize, Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes, If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking. And Heaven meets earth like an unforseen kiss, And my heart turns violently inside of my chest, I don’t have time to maintain these regrets, When I think about, the way…
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