Trust in the Lord With All Your Heart

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones." (Proverbs 3:5-8)

Trust in the Lord! He is always trustworthy, faithful, and unchangeable. His Word is forever true. His love is perfect. He is good all the time. Trust is a choice, not a feeling. "Trust" encompasses allegiance & submission, confidence & conviction, expectation & hope, faith & reliance.

God wants us to trust Him with all our heart (wholehearted commitment)! Total trust and complete confidence in God lead to perfect peace! "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal." (Isaiah 26:3-4) Do you trust God to meet all of your needs? Do you trust God when you're afraid, afflicted, confused, or overwhelmed? Do you trust God when your health is failing, your heart is hurting, or your loved ones are dying? Trust God at all times...in good times and in bad times. Even when you don't see God's hand, trust His heart.  

Do not lean (depend) on your own understanding (limited, unreliable human understanding which usually operates in ignorance without God's counsel). Remember that God sees the whole picture while we only see what's here and now. Lean on Him and His infinite wisdom. Moreover, He is the One who has all the power and strength to help us.

Acknowledge Him in all your ways. Do we recognize His presence, guidance, and grace in our everyday lives? Do we gratefully acknowledge His grace, mercy, and blessings as we receive them? Give God all the glory. Acknowledge that all we have come from Him and surrender all to Him. "Remember that, as sinful creatures, being criminals and traitors--we have no 'rights'. Consequently, everything short of hell--is a mercy! Everything but eternal punishment--is a favor! How many favors and mercies you receive--and how few praises you render! How many mercies are given you--and how few acknowledgments you make!" (James Smith)

He will make your paths straight. It doesn't say, "He will make your paths easy or smooth" :). God loves us and wants the best for our lives. He knows the best way to accomplish His plan and purpose for our lives. He will direct our paths. God will guide us to make the right decisions as we trust Him, submit to Him, and acknowledge Him.
"Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun." (Psalm 37:5)

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans." (Proverbs 16:3)

We must not be arrogant or conceited about our own wisdom. It's foolish to think that we can rely on our wisdom alone without guidance from God or without advice from others. It's indeed folly to believe we're so wise that we don't need God's help and direction. "The great hindrance to all true wisdom is the thought that we have already attained it." (Plumptre) Instead, we are to fear (reverence) the Lord and His wisdom (which includes shunning evil). A truly wiser person reveres the Lord and stays away from evil. Doing so will promote not only the health of the soul but also the health of the body because it would prevent many ills that are caused by sins and lusts.

"Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." (Jeremiah 17:7-8) No fire/heat or drought (or any crisis) in life can destroy those who are rooted in the Living Water! Let your faith repel fear and worries. Trust God in the storm; trust God despite silence. He's always there and He always cares! Keep trusting God and relying on Him completely. 

Prayer: Lord, thank You for being my mighty Rock and Fortress Whom I can always rely upon and trust in! Thank You for being my Shelter and Refuge in Whom I can always find rest! Please help me lean not on my own understanding and strength but on Your perfect wisdom and strength. When I am afraid or worried, please help me lay all my burdens down at Your feet and trust You totally. Thank You for never forsaking me! Your presence gives me comfort and joy, peace and courage. Lead me, Lord, to do Your will each day. May my life honor & glorify You and magnify Your Name!  

"If we can trust God for our eternal salvation, how can we not trust Him to provide for the 'little' things of life?" (M.E.Howard)

Do What God's Word Says

Be doers of the Word, not just hearers. When we only listen to God's teaching but do not obey, we're fooling ourselves (deceiving ourselves by false reasoning; being blind to the reality of our spiritual state; thinking we're just fine/right with God when we really are not). This reminds me of Matthew 7:21-23 and 24-27 ("I never knew you" and the wise and foolish builders). Obedience/fruit is the proof of transformed lives...the tangible evidence of our faith. "The best evidence of our having the truth is our walking in the truth." (Matthew Henry) Obedience to God's Word does not save us but shows that we're genuinely saved and that we truly belong to Christ. Hearing without doing is useless. Doing without hearing is dangerous. Both are vital just like breathing in (spending time with God in prayer and in His Word) and breathing out (doing what God's Word says/putting what we know into practice). Just knowing God's Word is not enough. Even Satan knows God's Word. It's not how much Scripture we know; it's how much Scripture we live. We must humbly accept His Word to transform our hearts, renew our minds, and guide our actions & reactions (including how we respond to crisis).
"James says such a man is like one who looks in a mirror--ancient mirrors were made, not of glass, but of highly polished metal--sees the smuts which disfigure his face and the dishevelment of his hair, and goes away and forgets what he looks like, and so omits to do anything about it. In his listening to the true word a man has revealed to him that which he is and that which he ought to be. He sees what is wrong and what must be done to put it right; but, if he is only a hearer, he remains just as he is, and all his hearing has gone for nothing." (Barclay)

"A true believer will not be inwardly satisfied with merely knowing the Word. His conscience and the prompting of the indwelling Holy Spirit will keep convicting him of his failure until he becomes obedient." (John MacArthur)

"Mere hearing is no better than unbelief or outright rejection. In fact, it’s worse! The hearer-only is enlightened but unregenerate." (John MacArthur)

"If a profession of faith in Christ does not result in a changed life that hungers and thirsts for God’s Word and desires to obey that Word, the profession is only that - a mere profession. Satan, of course, loves such professions, because they give church members the damning notion that they are saved when they are not! They still belong to him, not God." (John MacArthur)

"It is sad to be deceived, most miserable to be self-deceived. Many still determine their godliness by the quality of hearing (for instance sermons) or reading (even God's word) instead of action and obedience." (Heibert)

Prayer: Father, thank You for Your Word which is a lamp to my feet and light to my path! Please empower me to apply Your Word in my daily life and in my response to crisis & changes. Guide me to trust and obey what Your Word says, regardless of how I feel. Please help me to use my time, talents, and treasure wisely for Your glory and for Your kingdom. In Jesus's Name, I pray. Amen.

Overcome Evil With Good

"Don't let evil get the best of you, but conquer evil by doing good." (Romans 12:21 NLT)

This is a command. Do not let yourselves be conquered or overwhelmed by any evil/wicked person or thing done to you. Do not allow yourselves be overcome by your own evil responses (fleshly reaction). It is a battle. To win over evil, we must use the weapon of goodness and kindness. We cannot do this with our own strength. We need the Holy Spirit to empower our heart, mind, soul, spirit to respond the right way that will bring glory and honor to God.

"To render evil for evil, is to let evil have the victory... The true victory over evil consists in transforming a hostile relation into one of love by the magnanimity of the benefits bestowed. Thereby it is that good has the last word, that evil itself serves it as an instrument: such is the masterpiece of love." (Godet) 

Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Do not take revenge. "To repress the desire for revenge is to gain a victory over self." (Ellicott) Forgive as the Lord forgave you. "By forgiving another, I am trusting that God is a better justice-maker than I am." (Yancey) If we respond to our offenders with hostility and/or revenge, we are no different than them; we'd be displaying exactly the same character which we dislike in them. Don't let hurts and pains caused by others rob you of peace, joy, love, and benevolence! "If my bad temper puts you in a bad temper, you have been overcome of evil." (Darby) “I will never let another man ruin my life by making me hate him.” (George Washington Carver)

Ways to Overcome Evil: "Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse." (Romans 12:14) "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in Heaven." (Matthew 5:44-45a) "When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly." (1 Corinthians 4:12b-13a) Shine your light when you meet darkness. Share God's love when you face hatred. Do good when evil is done to you. As a result, evil is disarmed; it has neither control nor influence over you whatsoever. It's been totally defeated! You and I are called to live by Biblical principles, reflecting the character of Christ so that others may see what a Gospel-transformed living is like and be drawn to Christ. May we be living proofs of God's love!

"Overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth, and hatred with love. The message isn't new, but we haven't learned to live it yet." (Peace Pilgrim)

"As children of God, we must live on the highest level—returning good for evil. Anyone can return good for good and evil for evil. The only way to overcome evil is with good. If we return evil for evil, we only add fuel to the fire. And even if our enemy is not converted, we have still experienced the love of God in our own hearts and have grown in grace." (Wiersbe)