“You have done many good things for me, Lord, just as you promised. I believe in your commands; now teach me good judgment and knowledge. I used to wander off until you disciplined me; but now I closely follow your word. You are good and do only good; teach me your decrees. Arrogant people smear me with lies, but in truth I obey your commandments with all my heart. Their hearts are dull and stupid, but I delight in your instructions. My suffering was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees. Your instructions are more valuable to me than millions in gold and silver.” (Psalm 119:65-72)
After I lost my job, it was like one thing after another was happening and I was feeling overwhelmed and helpless. I started to become frustrated and bitter because at the time, It seemed like absolutely nothing was going the way that I would like it to. My circumstances caused me to think that it was never going to get better. Right then and there, I was choosing to believe a lie. God has promised that he has a purpose and a plan for me, that he loves me, he will be with me, and he will provide for me, but at that moment, I was choosing to overlook the truth and instead embrace the lie that the whole world was trying to mess up my life and that God was part of that. How did I get out of that frame of mind? By turning to his Word and by having people in my life who actually did care about me and who loved me and encouraged me on a daily basis. Even if I didn’t have those people to encourage me, I could find encouragement in the Word. God always keeps his promises (see Ps 18:30) and he always provides just what I need. I had to take my circumstances and choose to look at the positive in them. During that time, God provided a place for me to live. He provided food for me to eat and even though it took a while, he did eventually provide for me a job. God is good and he only does good. It is not in his character to not be good. Just because my circumstances may not be ideal, doesn’t mean that God doesn’t care and that he loves me any less than he did when my circumstances were better. God is never out to ruin me or my life, but rather, to make me more like Christ. This means that I need to surrender to God, set aside the foolish ways of the flesh and choose to follow the ways of God. This also means allowing God to transform me into who he has created me to be in Christ. If I am choosing to ignore the truth that is sitting right in front of me, then I am choosing the flesh. If I am hearing, receiving, seeking, and loving the Word, then I will know the truth and I will believe it as the truth, and then I will obey it as the truth and walk in the truth! If I know the truth, then I will be more likely to recognize the lies that come at me from every direction. This is why the Word of God hidden in my heart (and yours) is of great value! God’s Word is far more valuable than anything this world could possibly offer. It provides a firm foundation in which I can stand upon, rest upon and draw strength from. Think about this for a moment. Have you allowed your circumstances to dictate to you the truth? Or have you allowed the Word of God to shed light into your circumstances and show you the truth? God loves you greatly and he has provided his Word as a great blessing to each one of us. Much like salvation is a gift from him, so is his Word. Have you unwrapped that gift or is it sitting on a shelf collecting dust?
“Father God, thank you for the gift that is your Word. Thank you for the life and the truth that I can find in it. Help me to see just how valuable it really is so that I cherish it and examine my life in light of the truth. Thank you for providing me with the truth and with the encouragement I need to continually stay on the path that you have laid out for me. Keep me on that path all of my days so that I may life to glorify and honor you in all that I do. In Jesus Name I pray. Amen.”
After I lost my job, it was like one thing after another was happening and I was feeling overwhelmed and helpless. I started to become frustrated and bitter because at the time, It seemed like absolutely nothing was going the way that I would like it to. My circumstances caused me to think that it was never going to get better. Right then and there, I was choosing to believe a lie. God has promised that he has a purpose and a plan for me, that he loves me, he will be with me, and he will provide for me, but at that moment, I was choosing to overlook the truth and instead embrace the lie that the whole world was trying to mess up my life and that God was part of that. How did I get out of that frame of mind? By turning to his Word and by having people in my life who actually did care about me and who loved me and encouraged me on a daily basis. Even if I didn’t have those people to encourage me, I could find encouragement in the Word. God always keeps his promises (see Ps 18:30) and he always provides just what I need. I had to take my circumstances and choose to look at the positive in them. During that time, God provided a place for me to live. He provided food for me to eat and even though it took a while, he did eventually provide for me a job. God is good and he only does good. It is not in his character to not be good. Just because my circumstances may not be ideal, doesn’t mean that God doesn’t care and that he loves me any less than he did when my circumstances were better. God is never out to ruin me or my life, but rather, to make me more like Christ. This means that I need to surrender to God, set aside the foolish ways of the flesh and choose to follow the ways of God. This also means allowing God to transform me into who he has created me to be in Christ. If I am choosing to ignore the truth that is sitting right in front of me, then I am choosing the flesh. If I am hearing, receiving, seeking, and loving the Word, then I will know the truth and I will believe it as the truth, and then I will obey it as the truth and walk in the truth! If I know the truth, then I will be more likely to recognize the lies that come at me from every direction. This is why the Word of God hidden in my heart (and yours) is of great value! God’s Word is far more valuable than anything this world could possibly offer. It provides a firm foundation in which I can stand upon, rest upon and draw strength from. Think about this for a moment. Have you allowed your circumstances to dictate to you the truth? Or have you allowed the Word of God to shed light into your circumstances and show you the truth? God loves you greatly and he has provided his Word as a great blessing to each one of us. Much like salvation is a gift from him, so is his Word. Have you unwrapped that gift or is it sitting on a shelf collecting dust?
“Father God, thank you for the gift that is your Word. Thank you for the life and the truth that I can find in it. Help me to see just how valuable it really is so that I cherish it and examine my life in light of the truth. Thank you for providing me with the truth and with the encouragement I need to continually stay on the path that you have laid out for me. Keep me on that path all of my days so that I may life to glorify and honor you in all that I do. In Jesus Name I pray. Amen.”
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