by Gail Gritts
There are times when God and Israel get along fine, and there are other times when they are at odds with each other, but God’s love for them never changed. And God’s love for us never changes either. He never falls out of love with us.
I have always found that the more I pour my heart out to Him, the calmer and more assured I become. He creates within me a desire and ability to understand others better, but mostly to see them as people He loves, and people He wants me to love.
Forgiveness re-joins two who were at odds and allows them to reach back to each other in love. It is that healing balm that binds broken things.
Don’t be ignorant of the devices of Satan. He wants you to feel like a victim. He wants you to lose your patience, to say hateful words to your family and lose control. He wants you to become so frustrated you explode and want to run and hide. Don’t give him that pleasure. Arm yourself with God’s Word.
I think sometimes we are tempted or maybe taught to believe that if we question God, that shows a lack of faith. The example of Job shows the exact opposite. We can question, we can wonder, and we can still have faith. It is searching for truth that brings us to a greater understanding of God. God even invites us to prove Him, to test Him, to call to Him, and He will give us the answers. He holds all knowledge. Where else would we need go, but to the source?
No matter how far we fall, that anchor is still there for us. The bottom is secure, for underneath are the everlasting arms. We are anchored in Jesus.
The other night I got to thinking about what God is doing while I’m stuck at home. You know, He stated telling me! So, I got up and jotted it down. The first thing He reminded me was – He is NOT sleeping. Psalm 121:3,4 tells us, “He that keepeth thee will not slumber.” He is always on call. He is ever-present. Because He is on call all night, I can lay my head down and sleep.
Worry is a breeding ground for anxiety. It uses the same parts of our brans that work when we are planning or problem-solving. If we are worrying, that inhibits our ability to focus on the task at hand or connect appropriately with others because the brain isn’t as effective trying to do two things at the same time using the same parts.
Virtually every person you read about in the Bible, except for our Lord, had negatives of one kind or the other. God wasn’t afraid to share them with us. We still draw strength from the humanity of the Bible characters. So, why would be believer that our weaknesses could not encourage others?