Casting all your anxieties

1 Peter 5:7 casting all your anxieties on him because he cares for you.

Do you have something that constantly concerns you? Is there an aspect of your life, or that of a family member, that worries you?  Is there something going on that causes you to be distracted? If you answered yes to any of the above questions, then welcome to the Worriers Club.

If I had a nickel for every time someone told me to “give it up to God” I would be a rich man. After a while that phrase can grow to be very tiresome, and even irritating.  After all how do you really go about giving something up to God?  Do you try to hand it to him?  If so, where are his hands?  ;-) Do you try to tell him about it? Have you ever really given it serious thought? So, how do you go about “giving it up to God” or cast all your anxieties on him? It can be an easy thing to do. But in my experience it has been tough to let God keep it without trying to wrestle it back.

First of all there is a little matter of remembering who is really in charge of our lives. If you answer that question with “I am in charge of my life” then I wish you the best in all of your future endeavors and the many worries you have to look forward to.  If however you answered “God is in charge of my life” then congratulations. You remembered the most important aspect of being a believer.  We need only look a few more versus in at 1 Peter 5 to see the correct answer. “To Him be the dominion forever and ever, Amen.” The key word there is dominion. He is in charge of all things. Another clear example of this comes from Matthew 26: 38-39. Then He said to them,"My soul is sorrowful, even to death; remain here and watch with me. ” And going a little farther He fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, it if be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”  These two scriptural references give us excellent guidance on the order of things in our lives. 

Rule number one. God is in charge. Rule number two. Refer to rule number one.  Armed with this knowledge we have the tools we need to come before our Lord in prayer. We give it up to God in prayer. We turn our troubles, our worries, all our anxieties over to the Lord. For is it by His will all things are accomplished. The one who breathed life into Adam, and spoke creation into existence is capable of all things. When we surrender our will to the will of God we know that all is well. We are comforted that it will be to His plan, not ours.  And when we are tempted to take our problems back so that we can worry about them some more or try to fix them, we have to remember about rule number one. Give it up in prayer and keep giving it up in prayer. It is a nice way to be reminded that God is the source of all of our hope. We know from 1 Peter 5: 10 “the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." Amen.

PRAYER: Blessed are You God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. You have dominion over all things on earth and in heaven. We ask that You comfort us with Your peace that surpasses all understanding. We ask that Your will be done in our lives and not our will. We ask, dear Lord, that You would guide our steps along the path that You have laid before us. Let there be more of You and less of us in all that we are and all that we do. We ask this in the name of Your Son, who gave Himself on the cross for all mankind. Amen.

Seeking Someone To Devour

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober-minded;  be watchful. Your  adversary the devil  prowls around  like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

I have a very good friend, a strong Christian whom I greatly admire, who has for as long as I have known him referred to the devil as the roaring lion. The analogy is a very fitting one I have to agree.

How quickly can one go from all is well to being in very serious trouble.  Recently I witnessed the telling of an experience that clearly demonstrated how quickly this can happen. The young man, my son, was presented with a choice of following an order and shooting, or choosing not to shoot. To say the blink of an eye is all the time it takes might be about right. Or, that may actually be too long of an example of the duration of the time to make a decision. the situation can come upon you so quickly, and leave you just as quickly. The problem is that the after effects can be devastating for the rest of your life. They can truly be life changing. They can be truly life changing for your time here on earth. Beyond this mortal coil is another matter entirely.

We should take the counsel offered by the Apostle Peter to heart my friends.  Being of sober mind is not just a condition of not drinking alcohol or taking drugs. It is truly a state of mind in which we consistently use good judgement. We carefully and conscientiously stay connected with God in prayer and study of the Word. We practice living the will of God in our lives day-to-day, hour-to-hour, minute-to-minute, second-to-second. It is a life skill to be constantly practiced, or it can be lost, or lapse in ability to implement on a moments notice.  Satan is constantly on the prowl much like a hungry lion seeking to devour someone. We must stay in a state of constant vigilance, lest we are devoured. We must earnestly seek the wisdom of God, the love of Christ, the discernment of the Holy Spirit in all that we do. Check the words of Amos 5:12-15 "For I know how many are your transgressions and how great are your sins--you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and  turn aside the needy  in the gate. Therefore he who is prudent will  keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time. Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you,  as you have said. Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the  Lord , the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph." It is truly an evil time. Some times more so than other. Keep up your guard and be constantly vigilant.

Next time, we will explore more of what is offered in 1 Peter 5 and learn how to endure the trials set before us in love.


PRAYER: Almighty and everlasting God you are the source of all wisdom. Your creation stands in stark contrast in majesty and fullness to the simple things created by mankind. Your wisdom is unquestionable and your love unshakable. Guide us Father in our daily lives. Reveal Your will to us that we live in obedience and not in variance to Your wishes. Let our lives be a tribute to Your Son. This we ask in the name of Jesus whose love for all saves all. Amen

The Aftermath

Matthew 5:21 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.'

All that could be said at the trial, has been said.  The ruling by the judge has been rendered. The trial is over. It has been a week and one day since we all parted ways in great sadness, despair, and yet with a sense of hope for a brighter future. It is a hope that is only possible through faith in Jesus Christ.

I have waited to write this devotional for a week and a day because I needed time for healing. I needed time for God in His Holy Spirit to bring peace to my soul. I needed time for prayer, contemplation, study of the Word to work within me. I needed to put the whole ordeal, in all its' horrific detail, into proper perspective. Hearing the words from the Judge stating my son's plea to unpremeditated murder was accepted was shattering. The finality of the judgement was delivered along with a reminder to my son that the judge was confident Andy can put this situation behind him and be successful in his future. Many tears were shed on that day. A very difficult media interview, that documented for all posterity the worst day of my life, was given.  Firmly in the grip of grace I was able to stay composed. I was not just leaning on Jesus, he was holding me up.  By myself, I could not have done what needed to be done. By himself, Andy could not have done what he knew needed to be done to take responsibility for his actions and to move forward with his life.  Jesus was. and still is, holding Andy and each of us up to endure whatever hardships may befall us. The weight of the sentence passed on Andy is tremendous. Seven years are to be served.  For some people that would be the end. There would be seven long and difficult years without hope. It could be completely devastating and lead to a pitiful existence.

But how can it be for a believer?  How will time pass for a follower of Jesus Christ?  In reality it can be a time of deep reflection, study of the Word, and long hours in prayer.  The tremendous difference be between the believer and the nonbeliever is that there is HOPE!  Romans 3:22-25 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as  a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.  This is the basis of our hope. We are sinners, we are judged on this earth for the sins which break earthly law, and we are forgiven of our sins by the One who is not bound by the earth. We are saved by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that day on the cross. The divine forbearance of God the Father passed over former sins and cast them as far as the east is from the west.  The aftermath of that day for Andy, for me, and for all of us is not one of despair and emptiness. The aftermath is of a bright hope, a glorious future awaits us all. We have to cast off the despair which can weigh us down in a destructive cycle of self pity and doubt.  We must embrace the glorious future that can be found in the path illuminated by walking in faith with Jesus. My friends, the aftermath is not of ruin and wreckage. It is bright as the dawn of a new day after the storm has passed.

PRAYER: Lord God, Heavenly Father you bring the dawn of a new day to us each and every day. You illuminate for all to see the brilliance of Your creation. You help us to put into perspective our troubles, our sorrows and our pain. Your peace, that surpasses all understanding, comforts us when it seems we are beyond consolation. For this Lord, we are eternally grateful. We stand humbled before you. We give thanks for the blessing of Your Son Jesus Christ in our lives and our salvation. Praise be to The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit. One God, now and forever. Amen