Worry, worry, worry.

There is an old curse that goes something like this: May you live in interesting times. 

Well, we are living in interesting times and that can cause anxiety, worry, a troubled heart, how ever you want to phrase it, it comes down to trust issues. 

 Who are you going to trust? 

God? 

9 remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ Is 46:9-10 

 Or perhaps yourself: 

I was borne a few years ago and I can’t remember what I had for breakfast let alone tell you what will happen tomorrow. 

God who created life, the universe and everything (Gen. 1:1; 2:7) said: 

 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Mt 6:34 

 And: 

 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? Lk 12:25-26

 (Notice that adding time to one’s lifespan is considered a small thing.) 

Worry partly comes from us not understanding what is going on. In the book of Job his complaints come from why? 

 Why is this happening? Why isn’t this other thing happening? Why am I sick? Why am I poor? Why an I… fill in the blank. 

(By the way, as far as we know God never told Job the why of it.) 

I would suggest that we replace the why with: what (what can I learn from this), how (how can I grow/trust God more) and thank you (thank you for being there for me in this).

Triggers

It has been a long time since I have written anything. Years actually. Life happens, sometimes it’s not gentle. Someone that I know ask how to handle it when someone does or says something the triggers his PTSD. (We are both working through PTSD issues.) That’s a difficult thing. It’s easier to avoid situations or things that trigger PTSD that you know will set you off. Not so much for things that just happen. For example, a few years ago I got off at a bus stop that was near some road construction and just as I walked away from the bus BOOM! There was an explosion. They were blasting some rock or some such at the construction site. Only in my mind I was taking rocket fire. Only all around me it was a city street on the outskirts of town not a road in Iraq. Cannot really plan for that. Life happens. So what to do? I went to someone that I trust and talked about what happened. How I felt, what I saw both in my mind and outside of it. That person listened, gave some words of encouragement. Not platitudes. Just a “You can get through this." kind of thing. What helped the most was an ear to unburden myself on. I don’t even remember the words of encouragement, but I do remember the willingness to listen. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. (Gal 6:2) If one does not share their burden then no one can help them bear it. It is a blessing to have someone share a burden with you and it is a blessing to help someone bear that burden. If someone shares their burden with you, be careful not to add to that persons burden.

The Living God

3 For His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. 4 By these He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desires.^[1] 

God’s power is infinite and all encompassing.  He has the power to do anything that He has chosen to do.  One of the things that He has chosen to do is give us:

1.      Everything required for life.  Not necessarily our wants and desires, but what is necessary for us to live.  Food, air, water, it is speaking of general revelation here.  Some call this common grace.  God causes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust so to speak. 

2.      And godliness, He has provided His Son, His Holy Spirit and His Word to accomplish our Godliness.  But He has also provided Himself.  Sometimes we overlook this. 

This is provided to us “through” the knowledge of Him who called us.  This begins with salvation, but it continues through life as we pray and read His Word.  As we learn Him, we act on the knowledge gained and express that to others.  The majority of this action comes in the form of how we live our lives.  As others see Christ in us they are drawn to Him and we have opportunities to witness to them. 

It is interesting that He called us “by” His own glory and goodness.  As Christians we not only reflect His glory and goodness, but we prove it. 

It is also interesting that by His glory and goodness He has given us very great and precious promises. The interesting part is that we tend to only see and claim the “good” promises.  The “I will never leave or forsake you” kind of promises and we “overlook” the “Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows he will also reap^[2]”.  We forget that each of these is a promise and each promise will be kept in God’s own time. 

These promises accomplish two objectives.

1.      As we grow we become partakers in the divine nature.  We become more Christ like. 

2.      We escape the corruption of the world.  Our evil desires are overcome with good, and in the end we are able to say as Paul did “to live is Christ, to die is gain”. 

If we choose not to follow Gods path for us then we get to reap the benefits of another of His promises.  “It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God!^[3]”

---

^[1] The Holy Bible : Holman Christian standard version. 2003 (2 Pe 1:3–4). Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.

^[2] The Holy Bible : Holman Christian standard version. 2003 (Ga 6:7). Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.

^[3] The Holy Bible : Holman Christian standard version. 2003 (Heb 10:31). Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.

Lessons learned

Well 2010 has come to an end. With all of the trials and testing, all of the lessons learned, all of the lessons not learned, all of the hopes and fears, joys and, well, not joy; when I think back over all that I faced and still face, it all boils down to this.

My mouse died.

Her name was Rincewind and she helped me cope with a very trying time in my life. You know that life is tuff when your best friend is a mouse. (A gerbil really, but who cares about semantics)

Good things happened also. I have two new mice (gerbils really) Ben and Mort. Both are just as entertaining and as stupid as Rincewind.

 

God allowed me to complete two semesters of college.

I almost never worry about IEDs or VBEDs anymore or about rockets falling on me while I sleep or while I am awake for that matter.

God has provided me and my family with additional testing to provide for our growth.

My daughter finished the first semester of college; so long old major (Opera), hello new major (English).

Through it all God has been faithful and provided exceedingly abundantly for our needs, good measure, pressed down shaken together, running over. Not necessarily for our wants, but some of them too.

After all is said and done all I can say is "praise for God from whom all blessings flow".

2011 will be more of the same only different; same God, different test. Some will be passed some will not.

He will do what He thinks is good

18 So Samuel told him everything and did not hide anything from him. Eli responded, "He is the Lord. He will do what He thinks is good." (1 Sam. 3:18)



The night before Samuel had received a message from God telling him what God was going to do to Eli and his family for defiling God's temple. The verse above is Eli's response to that message.

At first glance the response seems strange. Here Eli had been told that God was going to destroy his house forever and nothing could stop it. Eli's response gives us a glimpse of a man who, after living in sin and allowing his sons to live in sin, for so long is not capable of repentance. Compare that to David's response when confronted with his sin of adultery (2Sam. 12:13). We see, here, a contrast between repentance and resignation. Eli's response was not an acknowledgement of God's sovereignty; it was a resignation to his fate. It was also his last chance to choose God over sin.

In both cases God's judgment was pronounced against believers who had sinned. Each sinner responded differently to that pronouncement. And God's judgment was carried out against each of them. God's punishment of David humbled him and was turned into suffering for blessing. Because of it we now have certain Psalms and Proverbs and Israel as a nation received Salomon as king. God's punishment of Eli resulted in the death of Eli and his sons and Israel's loss of the Ark of the Covenant in battle.

Two different men each facing the sin unto death, each responded differently. One's response turned cursing into blessing, the other's response led to judgment and death. Both outcomes did not happen overnight, it took time for the results of sin to work its way out. In one case the discipline intensified, in the other case discipline was not intensified, but the natural results of sin had to run its course. In other words it was self-induced misery, a reaping of what was sowed. God, who is faithful, turned that misery into blessing and David grew. Not only was he blessed but generations after him were blessed because of his repentance.