Patience and Hope

Pastor Mike has some wise words in this post Patience and Hope – A look at Job through new eyes.

From “The Word For You Today” by Bruce Christian

PURPOSE

There’s an old saying: “If you love your job you’ll never work a day in your life.”  That’s not quite true.  Most people work hard.  But even when they love their job they still have to do things they don’t like to do.  They give effort above and beyond what’s comfortable.  It’s probably more accurate to say that if you’re doing something you believe in, the hard work you do will bring you deep satisfaction.  Novelist Ursula K. Le Guin stated, “It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.”  Some folks suffer from “destination disease.”  They think that arriving at a certain place in the life will bring them happiness.  What a shame.  Because the reality is that many times when we arrive, we discover that it wasn’t what we expected.  If you become fixated on a destination you can miss the great things that happen along the way.  You miss the joy of today.  If you’re convinced that “someday” is going to be your best day, you won’t put enough into today-or get enough out of it.  If you’re not doing something significant with your life, it doesn’t mater how long it is.  It’s not enough just to survive you need a reason to live.  This is where Christ comes in: He will give you new life, and add purpose to your life-plus the power to fulfill that purpose.  D.L. Moody once said, “Let God have your life; He can do more with it than you can.

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From “Rylisms” by James Ryle

Glory Just Around the Corner

“Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.” (1 Peter 4:12-13. The Message).

Sometimes things can get so difficult that even the most ardent believers look heavenward with serious questions about whether or not God is involved in our affairs anymore. Even Jesus Himself cried out on the cross, “My God, why have you forsaken me?”

Sometimes God pulls just far enough away to awaken and alarm us by His absence. Perhaps we may have grown so accustomed to His blessings and benefits, that we inadvertently began taking them for granted; failing to humbly acknowledge His presence and His provisions in our daily lives. Living presumptuously, without showing our gratitude to God for who He is and what He does.

Nothing snaps us out of that indifferent daze more quickly that a good dose of real difficulty, with a side order of God’s perceived absence. When all hell breaks loose, and heaven is no where to be found — that will get your attention!

But, God is not absent, nor is He distant. He’s just silent; watching and waiting for how we handle the situation. Will be bellow in unbelief like those who know not God at all? Or will we, like Job of old, trust Him though He slay us.

The truth is that the difficulty you are facing is a spiritual refining process; God is separating the gold from the dross in your life. And if you will quietly trust Him through the ordeal you will soon discover it was worth it all — for glory is just around the corner.

From “The Word For You Today” by Bruce Christian

TAKE CONTROL OF YOU TIME (2)

Gordon MacDonald gives us some of the traits of a disorganized life.  See if you recognize any: “(1) Appointments/messages/deadlines missed.  I know I’m disorganized when there are a series of forgotten appointments, telephone messages to which I have failed to respond, and deadlines which I have begun to miss.  The day becomes filled with broken commitments and lame excuses.  (2) Unproductive tasks.  If I am disorganized I tend to invest my energies in unproductive tasks…There is a tendency to daydreaming, and avoidance of decisions that have to be made, and procrastination.  (3) Lack of intimacy with God.  Disorganized Christians rarely enjoy intimacy with God.  No one has to tell them that time must be set aside for the purpose of Bible study and reflection, for intercession, for worship.  They know all of that.  They simply are not doing it.  They excuse themselves, saying there is no time.  But they know it is more a matter of organization and personal will than anything else.  (4)  Shallow personal relationships. Days pass without a significant  conversation with my son or daughter.  My wife and I will be in contact but our conversations may be shallow.  I may become irritable, resenting any attempt on her part to call attention to things I have left undone or people I appear to have let down.  (5)  Lack of self-esteem.  When we our disorganized in our control of time we just don’t like ourselves, our jobs, or much else about our worlds.  And it is difficult to break the destructive pattern that settles in.  This terrible habit pattern of disorganization must be broken, or our private worlds will quickly fall into total disorder.

From “The Word For You Today” by Bruce Christian

If you’re struggling with job and debt issues, read this, do what it says, and believe.  It does work….

WEATHERING THE FINANCIAL SHAKEUP (2)

If you’re in debt and worried about your job: (1)  Don’t panic.  Turn to the source of all wisdom and read these words: “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.”  Repeat it to yourself throughout the day.  Tape it to your bathroom mirror where you’ll see it first thing each morning.  (2)  Take inventory.  Know the condition of your flocks [finances]” (Pr 27:23 NIV).  Many people don’t know how much they owe or what their expenses are.  List your debts and fixed expenses, set a goal to live on what you earn, and put some toward debt reduction.  (3)  Be disciplined.  Head off problems before they arise by conquering the demon of instant gratification.  When you don’t know the state of your finances you’re less likely to apply the brakes, and end up spending money you don’t have.  (4)  Be creative.  When God created Paradise He watered it with four different rivers, so start looking for other streams of income.  Walt Disney was fired by a big newspaper for lack of ideas.  After auditioning him, MGM told Fred Astaire that he couldn’t act and wasn’t much of a dancer.  Beethoven’s violin teacher declared him hopeless as a composer.  It takes faith to see the opportunities, and courage to overcome the obstacles.  (5)  Be a giver.  Hard times are the wrong time to stop giving to God.  During a famine a widow gave what little food she had to God’s servant, Elijah.  The result?  “There was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family” (1 Ki 17:15 NIV).  It’s hard to explain rationally, but your giving turns on the tap of God’s supply.