trouble | Revelations From The Road

Fear Not!

September 9, 2013 by Bill Leave a Comment

Given November 2008

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1: 7.

Timothy is telling us here of another promise of God; that we don’t have to be afraid. Now wait, what about, “the fear of God”, (Ecclesiastes 12:13 and others). That kind of fear means reverence, honor, awe; not being afraid of God. Timothy is telling us that God has not given us the “spirit of fear”. Do you know anybody who is afraid of everything? Someone who sees the negative side of every situation? Someone who rarely steps out in faith because they’re afraid of what might happen? Is that you? That’s the spirit of fear and God didn’t give us that. You know where that comes from!

But God did promise us another Spirit, (notice the capital “S”). We have inside us the Holy Spirit of God, “…how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? Luke 11:13”. That Spirit is the Spirit of POWER, LOVE, and a SOUND MIND, (good judgment). That Spirit gives us power over the spirit of fear. That Spirit gives us love which overcomes the spirit of “what if”. That Spirit gives us a sound mind to make good choices, see right from wrong, have insight into situations, and discipline ourselves to do the right thing.

But all this doesn’t just come on us when we get saved. The Spirit of God within us needs developing just like our muscles. We have God’s Spirit in us, (God promised), but we have to exercise It to the point where our Godly Spirit takes over that fleshly spirit that we were born with. We have the Spirit of Power, Love, and a Sound Mind but we must use it. When we do, It will become stronger and stronger to the point where that spirit of fear won’t even raise it’s ugly head! God promised!

Sometimes You’ve Got To Go Through Stuff

August 24, 2013 by Bill Leave a Comment

Given August 24, 2013

There’s no question about it, “In this world you will have trouble,” (says Jesus), but be encouraged by His next words, “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” And, “I am with you always,” and, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Do you get the concept here? IF you have committed to follow Jesus, He will be with you in the good times and the bad. So why doesn’t He just keep us from having any trouble? Sometimes you have to go through stuff to get to the reward down the road.

You don’t get an education without going through school. You don’t get in physical shape without exercising and eating right. You don’t get spiritually strong without going through some testing. You can’t be promoted in the Kingdom without being proved.

Look at Joseph, (beginning in Genesis 37), he had trouble with his brothers, his boss’s wife, and in prison; he went through some stuff, but God was with him and he fulfilled his purpose in the end. Abraham was told by God to sacrifice his son, (see Genesis 22), as a test to see if he would really do what God said. God had a great plan for Abraham and his descendants but he had to go through this test first.

Then there’s Jesus. What he had to go through to complete God’s plan. We can’t imagine how hard it was but he was doing it for us. And like us, Jesus asked God if there was any other way but then he said, “yet, not my will but yours be done.”, (Luke 22:42). Jesus went through some stuff to get the reward…FOR US!

If you’re going through something right now or are facing something, realize this: 1) God will be with you in it. 2) You can learn and be stronger through the thing. 3) You can help people along the way and when you come through it. It may not seem fair, it may not be your fault, or it may be a mistake you made and you may have to suffer but “suffer successfully” and come out victorious. Get into your Bible, pray daily, seek good spiritual counsel, and seek out ways to help others.

Three Ways God Handles Storms in Your Life

August 3, 2013 by Bill Leave a Comment

Given July 19, 2013

Many of you are going through a storm right now. Sickness, addictions, a relationship, financial, job related, fallout from a bad decision, you can name it. I’ve heard it said that we will always be in a trial, going into one or coming out of one. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). So we need to be ready for trouble, a trial, a storm. Since we all experience them, let’s look at three ways God works in our storm.

One – He will go through the storm with you. “I am with you always,” (Matthew 28:20), “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5). God said He would be with us always, even in the storm, and He knows what He’s doing so we must trust Him to go through it with us. “Ye though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thou art with me,” (Psalm 23:4).

Two – He will keep you safe until it passes. “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge;” (Psalm 91:4). Just like a mother hen protects her chicks in dangerous times. He protected Moses from His powerful glory so He will protect us from the enemy’s harm. “When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by.” (Exodus 33:22). Hang on, God is sheltering you.

Three – He will tell it to stop. “And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” (Mark 4:39). There will be times when Jesus will, at your request, just tell your storm to stop. But we have to remember He will choose which option He will use. We can’t demand He do what we ask. Maybe God choosing to have you go through the storm is for your strengthening or for a purpose He has planned for you in the future. (See the story of Joseph beginning in Genesis 37.)

In your storm, thank God for being there with you, for keeping you safe, and for the future outcome. You will make it if you trust and don’t give up!

Higher

June 15, 2013 by Bill Leave a Comment

Given May 15, 2013

“So that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” (Ephesians 4:14).

I was waiting at a traffic light on a four-lane highway on the way home from work recently and saw a butterfly trying to cross the highway just above the vehicles. As it flew, the wind of the moving traffic, even slow moving ones, caused so much turbulence that it altered the course of the butterfly drastically. So much so that it could not continue on its desired path; even being turned around so as to fly in the opposite direction. It made me think of the above verse and how we can be tossed by the winds and seas of this world. That poor butterfly was at the mercy of the turbulence on the path it was trying to fly. So what’s the solution and how does it apply to us?

I thought, if that butterfly was just ten feet higher, it would not be affected by the wind. Higher… When there is a flood, where are you supposed to go? To higher ground. When there is bad weather near the ground, where does an airplane go? Above the clouds, higher, where the sky is clear and the sun is shining. Are you getting the understanding? Where did Moses go to meet God? On the mountain. So where should we look and go when we are in the turbulence of life? “He who dwells in the secret place of the MOST HIGH…” (Psalms 91:1).

If you’re in a place of turbulence now and life on earth is tossing you all over, turn your eyes upon Jesus; look up, begin praising Him, and rise above the storm. Now, I will say that you probably won’t get up above the storm right away but God is your refuge, and He will be with you, (Psalm 23:4). You may even be on the wrong path and He might have you to turn around. Hold on to His steady hand and let Him lead you up and out of the mess. He will do it. Let’s go! Please share with us a time when you did this and got up above the storm. Be blessed!

What Are You Full Of?

April 20, 2013 by Bill Leave a Comment

Repost from 2006

”A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” (Luke 6:45). This verse is pretty clear. What is in your heart is usually what you’re going to be talking about and thinking about. But, some people are good at saying the right things according to who they’re around. You know anybody like that? They cover up what’s in their heart pretty well. But sometimes it comes out.

I heard this analogy the other day that made it clearer to me. A preacher said, “Whatever you’re full of is going to spill over when you get bumped.” Now I can see that! If a glass is full of water and you bump it or shake it, it’s going to spill over the side and everyone around will know it and may even get wet. When we, as Christians, are bumped, jostled, hit, jolted or in some way tested, whatever we’re full of is going to dictate the reaction we’ll display. If we’re full of God, we’ll react correctly, we’ll be a good witness to those around us and God will be pleased. If we’re full of something else, we’ll probably embarrass ourselves, be a bad witness and have to repent.

Think about it; how do you react when someone doesn’t move right away when the light turns green? Or when you hit your toe on the couch leg? Or when someone falsely accuses you or wrongly mistreats you? What about when if the ref or umpire makes a bad call? If we’re sloshing junk over on those around us, we need to repent and ask God to empty our dirty vessel, clean it up and refill it to overflowing with Himself. And we may even have to apologize to someone. If you can identify with any of this, you need to repent today and get your vessel updated. Then start filling it every day with God’s Word, prayer, and the practice of speaking good things from your heart. What’s in your heart?

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