Power Thought #6

I trust God completely; 

there is no need to worry!

[Unlabeled quotes are taken from the book Power Thoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

Hello Bloggy friends!  I found a lot of value in this chapter.  Truth be known, I am a recovering "worrier", on the road to trusting God completely.  Here is the "quick meal" version, for those of you following along and wanting to get the gist of each chapter without having to read the whole book.  God is certainly worthy of our trust...may He give us all the desire and grace to trust Him more completely each day, and a distaste for worry.

“I have heard many people say, ‘I just can’t help it; I am a worrier.’ The truth is that they chose to worry because they did not know how to trust God.  We become good at worrying because we practice it and we can also become good at trusting God if we practice it.  Let your first response in any situation be to trust God, not to worry.  Speak out loud and say, ‘I trust God completely; there is no need to worry!’”

“Trust requires some unanswered questions, and being satisfied to know that God knows what we don’t know.  We know in part, but God knows everything.  He is never surprised or without a solution.”

“It is one thing to know that we should not worry, but it is quite another to stop worrying.  One of the things that helped me let go of worry was finally realizing how utterly useless it was.  Let me ask you some questions: How many problems have you solved by worrying?  How much time have you sent worrying about things that never even happened? Has anything ever gotten any better as a result of your worrying about it?  Of course not!  The Bible is full of sound, proven advice for dealing with worry.  For example the apostle Paul teaches us to be anxious for nothing, but in all circumstances to let our prayer requests be made known to God with thanksgiving (see Philippians 4:6).  He then encourages us by saying that the peace of God will fill our hearts and minds (see Philippians 4:7).  The instant you begin to worry or feel anxious, give your concern to God in prayer.  Release the weight of it and totally trust Him to either show you what to do or to take care of it Himself.”

“Filling my mind with good thoughts is easier than trying to empty it of negative ones.”

Some verses that relate:

Matthew 6:25-34/Luke 12:22-31

Hebrews 13:5

Philippians 4:6-9

Proverbs 3:5

Matthew 11:28

Galatians 5:16

1 Peter 5:6-7

Blessings,

Connie

PS: I read a post by Greg Lucas this morning that certainly relates and is well worth reading...you can find it here.

Fun Quote Day

It's "fun quote" day!  Here are a few I've liked over the years:

"Where the heart is willing, it will find a thousand ways. Where it is unwilling, it will find a thousand excuses."

~ Arlen Price

"Will you look back on life and say, "I wish I had," or "I'm glad I did"?"

~ Zig Ziglar 

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

~ Lao Tzu 

"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."

~ Theodore Roosevelt 

"Those who wish to sing, always find a song."
~ Swedish proverb

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
~ unknown

"Some people walk in the rain... others just get wet... " 
~ Roger Miller

"A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition."
~ William Arthur Ward

Power Thought #5

I love people and I enjoy helping them.

[Unlabeled quotes are taken from the book Power Thoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

In this chapter we are reminded of the generosity of God toward us.  The Bible tells us that we love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). God has put His love into the hearts of His children, and the point of this chapter is that we are designed by Him as He makes us new in Christ to be dispensers of His love.

The author contrasts stingy folks with generous ones.  A stingy person characteristically looks out only for himself and his own interests, does not like to share, only gives when he feels he must (reluctantly or grudgingly), and his focus is often “what about me?”  Contrast this with someone characterized by generosity – he looks and listens for opportunities to help or encourage others and cheerfully takes initiative to meet the needs when able, his focus/desire is to be a blessing to others.

“I encourage you to begin to think on purpose about how you can be a blessing to the people around you...it does not have to cost money although at times it may; it does not always have to take much time; and it does not have to take an enormous amount of energy.  Blessing people can be quick and easy, but it won’t just happen.  You have to do it deliberately.  At times what God asks us to do may be more costly to us in time, effort, or finances than at other times, but either way we need to be ready to be God’s ambassador on Earth.  Use what you have in the service of God and man...I am not talking about only putting money into an offering at church on Sundays.  I am talking about doing things for people in your daily life – people you work with, people in your family, people you like and people you may not particularly like, people you know and people you don’t know, and those you think deserve it as well as those you don’t think deserve it."

I'm a very visual and symbolic sort of soul so I really liked this word picture:  “I am reminded of a bottle of hand lotion I have, one that has a pump on it.  When I press the pump, it dispenses hand lotion.  That’s the way I want to be with blessings.  When people come near me, I want to dispense something good, something that will benefit them.”

She offered some inventory questions to help us see where we might need to grow a more generous spirit:

*   How well do I tip?  If I were a waiter or waitress, would I want to wait on myself, based on the way I tip?

*   What kinds of gifts do I give?  Do I give the cheapest things I can find?  Do I get anything just to meet an obligation or do I sincerely look for what I believe the person receiving the gift would enjoy?

*   Do I freely and frequently encourage and compliment other people?

*   Am I willing to share what I have?

*   Do I hoard possessions or do I give away what I’m not using?

*   When I have opportunities to give to those less fortunate than I am, do I give generously?  Do I do as much as I can or as little as I can?

*   If I’m with someone who has a cold and runny nose, and I have been carrying around a package of tissues for weeks, do I give that person only one tissue, or do I offer the entire package so they will have plenty?

*   Do I give someone else the best-looking steak at dinner or do I keep that one for myself?

We could ask all kinds of questions to “help us locate our level of generosity.”  But really, if we’re honest, we know we all have room to grow in this arena and that the opportunities to practice abound.  “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity to express love.”  So let’s practice!  Let's think intentionally of others.  Let's look and listen for ways to be a blessing dispenser and be one.  If we become aware of areas where we are stingy, let's repent and move forward in grace.  As Hebrews 10:24 puts it, “let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.”

“Think and say, ‘I love people and I enjoy helping them.’”  Here are some passages that relate:

Gal. 6:10

Mark 8:34

1 John 3:16-18

Matt. 5:44-48

Heb. 13:16

2 Cor. 9:5

Prov. 11:24

Acts 28:10

Hebrews 13:5

My husband read Hebrews 13:5 to us tonight at dinner, which says: "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have.  For He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'"  He went on to share some mighty good words with us about the centrality of Jesus in our lives.  Words I needed to hear once more!

The kids and I went to stay with a friend for the first few days of this week and guess what verse my friend had plastered in her kitchen?  Hebrews 13:5 (well, the second part of it anyway!).  She had it written in an amplified version and I loved it so much I copied it down in my Bible:  "I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless, nor forsake you, nor relax my hold on you assuredly not."  This was the very message I needed to have poured over my frazzled soul, and my gracious Father hugged me with it at my friends house, and then again tonight through my sweet husband.

He will not relax His hold.  Amen!