Happy Monday, in a week of time change, full moons and Friday the 13th!
Isn’t it great that our faith is in someone SO much more powerful than superstition!
Happy Monday in a world of turmoil, health crisis and political dysfunction.
Isn’t it great that our faith is in Someone So much bigger than the turmoil, is fully aware of every “crisis” and has continued to reign, despite political dysfunction since the world began.
What a wonderful God we serve!
The turmoil and politics are continuous, so we need to continuously pray. For all of our present and future leaders, even.if.you.don’t.like.them. The Bible doesn’t tell us to pray for those we like, approve of or agree with. It tells us to pray for all of those in authority, whether we like them or not.
And then, there’s “the virus”. PLEASE don’t misunderstand me. This is a serious situation. Unfortunately, because of modern media techniques, this is all we hear about, to the point of panic. There are shortages of all kinds of products that may or may not help to prevent it and they are even (gasp!) telling us to wash our hands! It seems the biggest and best preventative is also suffering from a shortage. It’s called common sense. We know we need to wash our hands, a lot! If we don’t feel well or are running a temperature, stay home! If you end up around someone who didn’t stay home, or didn’t know, disinfect everything you touch, including you. Keep your hands away from your face.
The absolute most important thing you can do though is place your faith, not in the media hype or what’s around us, but in the One who created us!
Put on the full armor of God and be ready for battle!
Thank you, Lord for your saving grace, mercy and love.
Pray Unceasingly!!
Lois
God says there’s a purpose in your trials
Pastor Rick Warren
God says when you run into troubles, it’s an opportunity to experience joy. That doesn’t make much sense, unless you understand the supernatural power of God.
He uses the problems in your life to help you mature spiritually as you become more like Christ. That means none of your problems are arbitrary or outside the power and grace of God. He can take any difficulty you face and turn it toward his purpose.
God uses your troubles to strengthen your faith. It’s similar to the way you strengthen your muscles. If you were lifting weights, each time you added more weight, the stronger your muscles would become.
In the same way, God uses problems to help you grow spiritually, building your character through a series of tests that strengthen your patience, your persistence, and many other traits he wants to
develop in you.
Ultimately, he’s transforming you into a living image of Jesus. As you trust God in the midst of your troubles, you will grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
So how do you pass these tests? The good news is you get to use the textbook to check out the answers. They’re all right there in the Bible.
Here’s a good verse to remember: “When troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy” (James 1:2 NLT).
Why is it an opportunity for “great joy”? Because this year, as you face trials, you can trust God is at work, using them for your good. And as you lean into him, you’ll experience more of his supernatural strength and joy lifting you up, even in a difficult situation.