September 30, 2021                               LIVING  IN  THE  LIGHT
Ephesians 5:8 “for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light.”
Romans 13:12 “The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.”
Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
1 John 1:7 “But if you are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.”
 Even though we live in a dark world where evil abounds, we can live in the light. Not only can we live, or walk in the light, we are light. Ephesians 5:8. We have a mandate from the Lord to let our shine: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under a peck-measure, but on a lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Mathew 5:14-16.  There are regrets for the things done as a result of living in the darkness; but no regrets for the things done as a result of living in the light. When we live according to the ways of God and according to our true identity in Him, we enjoy a peace of mind and spirit. It is quite simple-just be the person God calls us to be and do the things that are pleasing to Him. The truth that we must know is that we have the power to make choices; we choose our thoughts and we choose our actions. When I am wronged or someone does something that aggravates me, I have a choice to make; either stay aggravated, repay evil with evil, or take on the attitude that Jesus would have in that situation. Walking in the light is taking the ‘high road;’ it is responding to the circumstances and the ‘happenings’ in life out of the new heart and the new mind that God has given us. Our words and our actions can be and should be light; we can be the conduit that God uses to bring life, hope, blessings, wisdom, and peace to those who are hurting, to those who have lost their way, and to those who are discouraged. Let our light not be dim, but let the light of God shine brightly through the life we live.
Colossians 1:13-14 “For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
John 8:1 “When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
September 28, 2021                            THE  NECESSITY OF VISION
Genesis 1:26 “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:”
Ephesians 2:10 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
Proverbs 29:18a “Where there is no vision, the people perish:”
Acts 20:35 “In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
In the kingdom of God, there is no boredom, aimlessness, despondency, or any such thing. We must be alert to the fact that it is possible for us as believers to be more influenced by the ways of the world than we are by the kingdom of God. The fruit of living according to this world is obvious; all one has to do is listen to the news to see the results of life without God. We may need to remind ourselves that we are created in the image of God-and that is amazing to say the least! We know that God is creative, that He has purpose, and that He acts. Because we are made in His image and because we have been given a new nature like His, we are to live lives of purpose, and to be creative, and to act-to be about what God has put before us. God has already prepared good works for each of us to walk in; we have a job to do! We are ambassadors of God; we are light in the darkness; we have the Spirit of God living in us; we have been made new (not refurbished); and we have been made overcomers in this world. We can speak the words of God to those who need to hear; we can bring comfort to the hurting; we can encourage those we are discouraged; we can help someone who is need; we can listen to others; and we can be living expressions of the love of God. One sure way of not fulfilling our calling is to focus on ourselves; that leads to discouragement, disappointment, and a general sense of aimlessness. When we are about the things of God, when we are walking in His ways, we find energy for life; we can sleep well at night and can begin each day with the awareness that ‘this is the day that the Lord has made; and we can experience His peace and joy even in the difficult times. If you realize that you are lacking vision and have been just living on auto pilot, read God’s word and ask the Holy Spirt to make His word alive; and most importantly, act on His word-do what you read-be about what God has for you.
Colossians 3:17 “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
John 15:16 “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give it to you.”
Blessings,
Buddy  

 
September 26, 2021                              SWALLOWED  UP  BY  LIFE
2 Corinthians 5:1-10 “For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven; inasmuch as we, having put it on, shall not be found naked. For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed, but to be clothed, in order that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge. Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord-for we walk by faith, not by sight-we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. Therefore also we have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”
We may have the belief that death is our great enemy and we may live in fear of death. Our fear of death is likely an indicator of us being tied to life in this world rather than seeing ourselves as a pilgrim who is passing through this life on earth. (Do not misunderstand; hardly anyone wants to die, and there is a sadness when one dies-that is normal.) Also, having a fear of death is a result of not understanding or not believing what the scriptures say about death. It may sound amazing to us, but Paul said that he would rather die so that he could be present with the Lord; but he also wanted to continue his life on earth that he might fulfill the purposes God had for him. It is simple; while we live in this mortal body, we are not at home with the Lord. Think about this: inside this mortal body of ours, lives the immortal Spirit of God-the super-natural living in the natural; we are spiritual beings living in a natural body.  The Holy Spirit has been given to us as a pledge that one day, this mortal body of ours will be swallowed up in life and we will forever be with the Lord.  Because the Holy Spirit of God dwells in us, we have this groaning deep within because we know that there is more-something greater than the life we experience in this mortal life. Like Paul, we can always be of good courage because we know that God’s plan is for this mortal body of ours to be made immortal. WOW! We face trials and difficulties now, but they are temporary. If we walk by sight, we will be discouraged; but by walking by faith-by believing the plans God has for us, we are always of good courage. Our focus must shift form a fear or dread of death, to having an ambition to live our lives in a way that pleases Him; one day we will see Him face-to-face and at that time we will be “recompensed for our deeds in the body, according to what we have done, whether good or bad.” Our desire to be pleasing to Him comes out of our love for Him-not out of an unholy fear of Him. So, if we fear death, let us replace that fear with the realization that we are destined to put on immortality-and that happens when this mortal body dies.
1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 53-55, 58 “So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.”      “For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’”    “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
September 24, 2021                                 EAGERLY  AWAITING
1 Corinthians 1:5-8 “that in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge, even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you, so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
There is a tendency for us to live for the now, giving little thought to the return of Christ. We can become so focused on this present life, we lose sight of the tremendous blessings that are yet to come. We live in a fleshly body that is doomed to die, and we live in a fallen world where trials are the norm-but it will not always be this way; there is a new day coming! The word of God gives us much instruction for living in the here and now, and we are to live in a way that is pleasing to Him and honors Him. Pleasing Him with the way we live and walking in His ways certainly blesses us in the present; however, there is even a greater reason to live according to His ways, as there are future blessings for doing so. The Lord will return at any time, when we least expect it. “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” Matthew 25:13. When He returns, we will have one of two responses; either we will feel ‘not ready’ and embarrassed or ashamed because of the life we are living when He returns, OR we will rejoice at His return. How we will respond when He returns is determined by the life we live today. To anticipate His return and to be ‘eagerly awaiting’ His return is to insure that we will rejoice at His sudden return. It is a subject for another blog, but we have a great inheritance that we will receive when He returns; anticipating all that will happen to us at His return is more than enough reason to live as unto Him in this present life. Let us not be guilty of living in any way that is not pleasing to Him; let us not live according to the ways of this world. Instead, let our hearts be fully turned to the Lord and all He has for us and let us be learning more of Him as we read and embrace His word; and let us adjust our thinking and our actions in any way we need to do so in order that we may be ready for His return.
Matthew 24:27, 42-44 “For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be.”       “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.”
Hebrews 9:28 “So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him.”
Revelation 22:12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with Me, to repay everyone for what he has done.”
Blessings,
Buddy
​

 
September 22, 2021                                    ONLY  THE  LOVE  OF  GOD
Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
1 Corinthians 13:13, 16:14 “But now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”       “Let all that you do be done in love.”
Mark 12:30-31 “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this; you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other greater commandment greater than these.”
Sometimes I think that we view human love and the love of God as the same-if we do, we are wrong. If we live and operate out of human love, we live beneath what God has for us. Human love is insufficient and human love fails. Once we look closely at human love, we find that it is a selfish love; human love is based on the desire for self-fulfillment. (One may even be about good deeds because doing good deeds makes them feel good about themselves.) The good news for us is that God has poured out His love into our hearts-and His love is a super-natural love. Romans 5:5. We are no longer limited or restrained by mere human love. If and when we find ourselves getting frustrated, or angry, or being impatient with others, it’s a sure sign that we are not operating out of the love of God. (We do not have to feel condemned when realize that we are not operating out of His love-but use that realization to turn us back to the love of God.)  Once we know and experience the love that God has poured into our hearts, we take on a new view of others, and of life itself; it is like getting a new ‘operating system’-we are changed at the core of our being. With the love of God, we can love the unlovely, the inconsiderate, and even the guy that cuts in front of us in traffic-lol. Living out of the love of God does away with our ‘trying’ to love, or ‘trying’ to have the right response-expressing His love becomes natural-and that is freedom. It takes a lot of energy to be frustrated or angry, or to be irritated; His love liberates us from the self-life. His love introduces us to a much bigger world where we discover that we can live our lives as ambassadors of Christ, expressing the love of God wherever we go; we can live on a higher plane. Following are a few descriptions of love from 1 Corinthians 13 that give a good picture of what the love of God is like.
“If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging symbol.”    “Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant.”     “does not seek its own”    “does not take into account a wrong suffered”     “does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with truth”      “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things”     “Love never fails” 
Ephesians 5:1-2 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”
1 John 4:7-8 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
September 19, 2021                                       REAL  LIFE
Romans 8:11-14 “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus form the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Sprit who indwells you. So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh-for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God.”
The single most important issue for each of us is that of what our mind set on.  Verse 6 of Romans 8 tells us “For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.” Who does not want ‘life and peace?’ Dying to self and to the flesh is absolutely necessary if we are to experience life and peace. The absolute ‘bottom line,’ the core issue, is that of who are what is directing my life, or what is motivating me to do what I do. There are only two options; self, (also referred to as the flesh) or the Spirit of God. Naturally, by human nature, we focus on self-preservation and self-fulfillment, so the instruction to die to self does not seem logical or the right thing to do. As believers, we have been made new creatures and have been given new hearts, new minds, new natures, and a new Spirit; however, our ‘old’ self has not been annihilated; it is possible to let the old self be the chief influencer of our lives. The battle lines are clear; we war against the flesh. We win this war by ‘considering’ ourselves dead to sin. See Romans 6:1-13. To consider here means ‘to count it as so’. It may sound contradictory, but it is true that our old self was crucified with Christ (Romans 6:6), and it is true that we are called to die to self. Christ broke the power of sin; now we are able to say no to sin and yes to God. Christ has won the victory and sin has been defeated, but we must make the choice to claim His victory in our lives. We have been freed to walk according to the Spirit-and not according to the flesh-who we use to be. The verse above tells us that if we are living according to the flesh, we must die-not a physical death, but dying to self. A lot more could be said here, but the point is that Jesus dwells in us and He gladly gives life to our mortal bodies through His Spirit. The greatest deed we can do, and the most fulfilling thing we can do is to die to ourselves and live as unto God. Living as unto God means that I desire to do the things that please Him; that I read His word so that I may gain more knowledge of Him; that I say no to the desires of my flesh-the selfish part of me; and it means that I live and respond out of the new creature that God has made me. God did not make us robots; He has given us the power of choice. If we choose to lay aside our ways, and walk according to the Spirit which He has given us, only then will we experience real life.
Romans 6:2b, 4, 6-7, 11 “How shall we who died to sin still live in it?”    “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”    “knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.”  “Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”
Galatians 5:16-17 “But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”
Blessings, Buddy

 
September 17, 20201                           A  ROADMAP  FOR  LIFE
1 Thessalonians 5:14-24 “And we urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men. See that no one pays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all men. Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may you spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He will also bring it to pass.”
It’s not complicated. Man tends to complicate everything. God is the giver and sustainer of life and His intention was, and is, that we as His created ones live in fellowship and in harmony with Him. The relationship that Adam and Eve and God enjoyed was God’s desire for mankind. Even though Adam and Eve sinned against God and the fellowship that they had was marred, God made a way for the redemption of man and a way for the fellowship and enjoyment to be restored. Even though we live in a fallen world that has not yet been fully redeemed, we must cling to the fact that the life that Adam and Eve lived in the garden before they sinned, is the life that God still desires and still makes available. Jesus came that our sins might be forgiven and fellowship with our heavenly Father restored. With all of that being said, the point is that God takes no pleasure in us living complicated and unfulfilled lives; He came to give us life to the fullest. In His word, we discover the keys to life; and these ‘keys’ are contrary to the ways of the world. As we read His word, we should do so with the mindset that His word is the blue print or roadmap that leads to life; His word is not up for debate-it is THE way to life. When we accept His word as the authority on life and we adjust our thinking and our actions according to His word, we are blessed and we find that we can enjoy fellowship with God! In His word we find that He is not against us, but for us, and that He supplies all we need. The verses above are a good snapshot of the life that God has for us; and these verses are doable because the Holy Spirit living in us gives us the desire and power to do what God commands. (The ‘commands’ that God gives are not burdensome, but life-giving.) Let us not be guilty of reading and forgetting; read the verses above again and find ways to implement today what God has said. It’s quiet simple; today-encourage someone; be patient with others; seek what is good; rejoice; give thanks; pray to your heavenly Father; be sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit; and abstain from evil. The major thing is for us is to lay our will and our ways aside, and make the choice to walk in the ways of the Lord; He has given us a roadmap to life-and that roadmap is the word of God.
Colossians 3:1-4 “If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on the earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
September 15, 2021                                    BOTH  AND
Luke 14:28 “For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it?”
Matthew 6:25 “Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; not yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?’
1 Timothy 5:8 “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
2 Corinthians 11:3 “But I fear lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve in his craftiness, your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity and purity that is toward Christ.”
I assure you that I do not have all the answers on today’s subject; however, I believe it is an important to gain understanding in this issue. We read verses like the ones above, and at a casual glance, we might conclude that they are contradictory. On the one hand, we see it is a part of life to plan and to build, and we see that we are called to provide-and you might say, to be about the normal things of life. At the same time we are to ‘take no thought for what we will eat or what we will wear,’ and we are admonished not to lose or turn away from the simplicity that is in Christ. It sounds logical to say that in the work place, and in this fallen world in which we live, where difficulties seem to be the norm, life is not simple. Is it really possible for believers to go through life with all of its difficulties and challenges and yet live ‘stress-free’ with a simplistic view of living under the Lordship of Christ? I believe so. Do not misunderstand; we will face difficulties, but it is all about how we view difficulties and how we respond to them. (Another subject-but if we are expecting a trouble-free life, we are in for a big disappointment.) I think it boils down to love and trust; do we love God and do we trust Him as our Lord and Savior. Do we trust that God is working out His purposes even in the most difficult circumstances. It must be said that to love God, is to keep His commandments; if we chose to walk according to our ways, then we cease to live the life that God has for us-and we lose the ‘simplicity in Christ,’ and life becomes complicated. So, yes we are to be about life and be about doing the things that need to be done-but we are to do what we do with a mind-set of being followers of Christ, living as unto Him in the good times and in the difficult times, and having our full trust in Him. A key verse dealing with this issue is Colossians 3:17 “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Having our minds focused on the simplicity found in Christ does not mean that we never face major issues and complicated issues, but it does mean that we do so trusting Him for wisdom and then moving ahead.) Let us know that the life God gives is unlike the life that the world promotes; the life God gives is a life of purpose, peace, simplicity, and confidence that God is our Father and He is guiding our steps and equipping us and making us sufficient for whatever we face in life.
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”
Blessings,  Buddy

 
September 13, 2021                                 THE  PEACE  OF  GOD
John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.”
Colossians 3:15 “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.”
Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpassed all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Having the peace of God in the heart and mind is one of the hallmarks of Christianity. Yet, peace of mind and heart is a rare quality, or reality for many, even for professing believers. We act as though if we can just get to a certain place in life-a bigger income-a certain promotion- a nicer home-better health-being free of problems and trails-and whatever, we will finally be at peace. However, peace is not arrived at by personal effort and pursuit; peace (the peace of God) is a gift from God; the peace He gives is not affected by circumstances, but is constant. We do need to understand that even though we cannot attain peace by self effort, we can lose the sense of peace by not walking according to the ways of God. Note that in Colossians 3:15 we are admonished to “let” the peace of God rule in our hearts. The peace of God is just that-the peace of God; it is a gift to us, BUT we must let it rule-that is the crux of the whole issue. Do we let our thoughts and viewpoints rule and set the tone of our life, or do we die to our ways-our thoughts and our ways, and let the ways of God rule in our hearts and minds. The word of God-what He says-is to be our foundation; our thought patterns and our actions are to be directed and formed by the word of God. There are times when we know that God is directing us to do a certain thing, but we do not want to do it or do not ‘feel’ like doing it. THAT IS THE BATTLE GROUND. Our way or His way? For example, if we need to forgive someone and we do not, we lose the peace of God; if and when we forgive, we immediately sense the peace of God once again ruling. We can also lose a sense of peace by having a world view that is not in keeping with the plans and purposes of God; we may fret over all the turmoil and all that is wrong and we may conclude that the world ‘is going to hell in a hand-basket.’ Letting ‘all that’s wrong’ mold our emotions and our thoughts is a sure way to not let the peace of God rule. Seeing life, and the world as a whole, as God sees it, is a necessary component of peace. It is a fact-we live in a fallen world where things are broken, and we face our personal trials, and circumstances are not always like we like. However, we must know (we may not understand) in the deepest part of our being-not just in the mind-that God IS ruling and His purposes are being fulfilled, and He is using even the ‘bad things’ for good. That is where faith comes into play; and we are to live by faith-not by feelings or how we see things; having a sure and unwavering faith in God and His faithfulness is to have the peace of God. So, even though things may not be what we want, and even if we do not understand why things are the way they are, let us let the peace of God rule in our hearts and minds. He is watching over us.
Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep in perfect peace those whose mind is stayed on You, because he trust in you.”
Romans 8:6 “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
Blessings, Buddy

 
September 11, 2021                             HE  WILL  DELIVER  US
Psalm 71:2, 46:1 “In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me!” “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
Hebrews 4:15-16 “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
I want to share with you how the Lord gave me great encouragement just two days ago. Sure, we are surrounded by trials and difficulties and there seems to be trouble on every hand; things are not like we would like them to be. It seems that corruption in high places is the norm rather than the exception; the moral foundation is crumbling; addictions are common; broken relationships, sicknesses and viruses plague many; and there are wars and rumors of wars. We cannot deny that we live in difficult times. Here is the good news: God is a God who delivers and rescues His people! God delivers us from all that besets us-when He deems it is time to do so. God’s timing is perfect; we want immediate deliverance, but God has a better plan. (God does often deliver us in the present as well.) He is doing a work in us while we wait for His deliverance. It may be today, next month, or whenever-but He will deliver us from all that is not right; His deliverance is a sure thing. We can find joy as we await and anticipate His deliverance; in a small way, it’s like a child counting the days to Christmas. God is a wonderful God who does sympathize with our weaknesses and who knows the trials we face-but He does more than sympathize; He gives us grace and mercy in our times of need, and Him ultimate plan is to deliver us from all trials and difficulties. So, let us know that the days of dealing with the difficulties are numbered; our God is ruling and His deliverance is certain.
Psalm 32:7, 40:17  “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”     “As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God.”
Blessings,
Buddy