Tuesday, September 12, 2017, 1:10 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Lord, Move Me.” Speak, Lord, your words
to my heart. I read Philippians 4:4-13
(NASB).
Always Rejoice
(vv. 4-7)
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for
nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all
comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
As I read this passage of
scripture this morning, my heart goes out to all those in the USA who have
these past few days suffered either death of a loved one or destruction to
property as a result of high winds, rain and flooding in Florida, South
Carolina and Georgia, in particular. My heart also goes out to all people of
any country who were in the path of this destruction, and who have suffered
loss of loved ones and/or personal property, and who are without electric
power, water, shelter and life’s necessities. You are in my thoughts and in my
prayers at this time.
For those, in particular, who
are going through such times of suffering, these words in this passage of
scripture may be a “hard pill to swallow,” and yet this must be our attitude if
we are to survive the onslaughts of pain and suffering which this life on this
earth will sometimes deliver to us. It will only make matters worse if all we
do is gripe and complain about our lot in life. Plus, if we decide to grumble
and/or to get angry over our circumstances, it reveals lack of faith in God and
in his sovereignty over our lives now existing within our hearts. For, whatever
comes our way, God is still in control. And, none of this has caught him by surprise.
So, we must yield to his control.
When we choose to rejoice in
our circumstances, no matter what comes our way, the peace of God sweeps over
us like a flood. Yet, it isn’t as though we don’t cry, or that these trials are
not difficult for us. They are! The Apostle Paul expressed that often in his
letters to the churches. Yet, God allowed us to go through these trials for a
reason, so we need him to let him teach us what we need to learn through our
times of difficulty. Sometimes he allows us to go through hardships because we
have wandered from the faith, and we need to be brought back to God in purity
of heart, and other times it is for our spiritual maturity, to learn perseverance,
to share in God’s holiness, and that our lives might yield the peaceful fruit
of God’s righteousness.
Dwell on These
(vv. 8-9)
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is
honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is
of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise,
dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and
seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
At all times, we should think
(dwell) on what is pure, righteous, honorable, worthy of praise and true. But,
not all that is true is worthy to dwell on, for we should not dwell on what is
unrighteous, dishonorable or impure, even though it may be true. We should fill
our minds with truth, though, and not with lies, deceptions, and manipulations.
In fact, how we think or what we think on has a lot to do with what we fill our
minds with day in and day out. So, if we are going to think pure thoughts, for
example, we need to not take into our minds what is impure, especially willfully,
and so to be entertained.
I live in the USA, so this is
what I know, so I can’t speak for other countries and what the people there do,
because I am not familiar with other countries. I have never even been outside
the USA, not even to Canada. But, in America, I know that the vast majority of
homes have televisions, and perhaps more than one TV, and it seems most
Americans also have home computers, smart phones and/or tablets (like an I
Pad). So, we are inundated with technology and all that that technology has to
offer us in the way of bringing the world into our lives and into our homes.
There have been good things
that have come from all this technology, such as the gospel of Jesus Christ has
been able to go throughout most of the world via TV and the internet. Yet, TV and
the internet has also been the downfall of many people professing faith in
Jesus Christ. Many Christians take in daily doses of immorality, sexual
perversion, lies, deceptions, manipulations, cheating, murders, thefts, and the
like, and all in the name of entertainment, and they have become desensitized
to all the evil contained within, as they make compromise after compromise with
the world of sin. This should not be! So, we need to test everything we take
into our minds, and what we put before our eyes, against Philippians 4:8-9, and
then cut out of our lives what is leading us to think and to do what is sinful.
Instead of practicing sin, or
being entertained by others’ sins, we need to practice what is holy, righteous
and pure. And, we ought to do what God’s Word says, and not just read it and
then walk away and forget what we read. And, we need to be holy, separate (unlike,
different) from the world, because we are being made into the image of Christ.
Amen!
Content in Whatever (vv. 10-13)
But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last
you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but
you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be
content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble
means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance
I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having
abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens
me.
Lately, in my devotions with
my Lord, the Lord has been impressing on my heart to gladly forfeit all of
earth’s treasures so that Jesus’ perfect likeness I would bear (“Oh, To Be Like
Thee, Blessed Redeemer”), and to rather have Jesus than silver or gold, etc. I
believe he has been preparing my heart for a time when we will not have much in
the way of material wealth on this earth, but we will be rich in faith. And, we
may be getting much closer to that time here in America, as we experience more
and more in the way of destruction of property and loss of fortune, but all for
the glory of God, that he may be our ONLY GOD and LORD. So, I must hold lightly
the things of this life, and be willing to walk away from them all, at any
time, in order to follow Jesus with my life in service to him and to his will
for my life.
The point of all this, I
believe, is that we learn to be content in whatever circumstances God places
us, not that we have to enjoy our trials and tribulations, but that we are to
be resolved to rejoice in the Lord despite our circumstances, and to praise him
in good times and in bad times, too. We need to be ok in good times and in bad,
and with sufficient accommodations, and with less than to be desired shelter,
food, and circumstances, too. And, we must rejoice in the Lord through it all,
give him all the praise and glory, and submit our lives over to him for him to
accomplish his will and his purposes in our lives through it all. And, he will
give us all we need to survive and to thrive, by his grace, and in his strength
and power.
Lord, Move Me / An
Original Work / October 16, 2011
Be my desire, my heart set on fire,
Lord, move me to worship You only, I
pray.
Fill with Your Spirit, my heart
overflow.
Lord, may I long for You; Your word to
know.
Teach me to walk with You, Lord, in
Your power,
And may I serve You, Lord, right now in
this hour.
Lord, how I want to obey You forever.
Help me to hear You, Lord, so I will
not stray.
Teach me to love You; adore You always.
Envelope me, Lord, with Your grace
today.
Meet me in my need, and show me Your mercy.
Forgive me for all things, as I humbly
pray.
Counsel me, lead me, direct me, and
guide me,
So I follow You, Lord, where’er You
lead now.
I love to hear You speak Your words to
me.
I am so grateful that You set me free.
Wash me, and cleanse me, and make me
like You, Lord,
And I will live with You for eternity.
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