God Always Finishes What He Starts

God’s purposes are being accomplished. He is not the “lame duck” God some people make him out to be. He is in control and things are going as he has planned. There is never a time when the will of God is not being done. People may not always prove faithful to the tasks he gives them, but God’s plans are not subject to the plans and actions of man. He has never been out of control. People may say, “Where is your God? He has no say in what I do?” Think again, God is bringing humanity to a completion point. As the Bible says, “He always achieves his purpose” (Isaiah 55:11). People tend to dismiss God’s part in their lives, and ignore him and think they control their own destiny, but in reality God is working out his plan in the backgrounds of their lives. He is ever the wise and caring Father looking after his children. A verse in the Bible states, “Now unto him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” (Jude 1:24).
God finishes what he starts. The prophecies he made thousands of years ago are still in the process of working themselves out under his direction. When Jesus died on the cross, it looked like his plan had failed, but it was all part of the plan of mankind’s salvation. Jesus said, “It is finished.” He also said, “I have done everything the Father has asked me to do.” Jesus was successful in what he did. The missionary Paul wrote centuries ago, “I have finished the race.” He was a winner. Paul accomplished what God asked him to do. Likewise, as God’s children, we are part of the winner’s circle. We too will have a successful outcome for our lives. All God’s children succeed in life. As the Bible says, “We are more than victors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). It is nice to know that no matter what happens to you in life; you will be a winner. God wants us to know this. He does not want us to live life with a defeated attitude. He wants us to rise above the circumstances and declare ourselves winners in him. Even death cannot hinder our walk to the victory circle. God says, “I have begun a good work in you, and I will bring it to completion” (Philippians 1:6). We march through life to victory. The prize of eternal life awaits us, and nothing can change our destiny. We are destined to win! This is the positive attitude of faith: God accomplishes what he sets out to do. He will save us and give us eternal life. What a destiny awaits us!

God is Approachable

Many people are afraid of God. They see themselves as unworthy or too sinful to be in his presence, but the Bible tells us to “draw near to God with a sincere heart full of assurance of faith” (Hebrews 10:22). If there is one thing we can be sure of in life, God does not turn away people who earnestly seek him. What stops people from seeking after God? Mostly, I think it is that they are not sure whether God will accept them or not.
The Bible states, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). God is the source of mercy and grace. He has forgiveness and love ready to give. Take the courage and approach him in prayer. He will listen to you and receive you into his presence. Seek him and he will be found. This is the starting ground of faith; the belief that God is willing to become your Father and accept you. All you have to do is to start turning your attention to him, and start listening to what he has to say to you. You can start today by picking up a Bible and start reading it. I would recommend reading the Gospel according to Mark. Just read it with an open mind and ask God to help you understand what you are reading. If you do not have a Bible, read one online. That's all that is required of you at the starting point of your quest to find God. It is the Word of God - the Bible - that brings you to faith, for “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). Faith basically means believing what God has said. If you read the Bible and believe what it says, you will find God. It is that simple; just believe what you read, “for it is with your heart that you believe and are accepted by God” (Romans 10:10). God takes care of all the details. All you have to do is seek him and believe his word. As you read the Bible, things will become clearer and you will begin to understand what is required of you. It will not be easy. The Bible can be a hard book to understand, but anything worthwhile takes time and effort. Are you willing to start your journey to faith? Are you willing to take a step of faith towards God?

God likes Us More than We like Him

Faith is trusting in the goodness and kindness of God towards us (Hebrews 11:6). We do not need to worry about what God thinks about us. He calls us his beloved children. He is gracious to us and likes to be in our presence. Many people accuse God of never being around, being angry with them for their failures, and say he is an absentee Father. But, in reality, God never leaves our side. This is the greatest truth we can ever know – God loves us and is always with us. We are the ones who get so busy in life that we do not spend time with him. We are the negligent children. We are the ones that ignore God. The Bible clearly tells us that God likes us and wants to be part of our lives. He is not far away. God is right here beside us. He wants to be involved in our lives.
He wants us to talk to him and interact with him daily. He is not some abstract concept. He is a living caring person. We need to acknowledge this and treat him like a real person. How would you feel if your family members were in the same house every day, and they never spoke to you nor acknowledged your presence? Now, God does not get hurt feelings or feel lonely. He is self-existent and has billion of angels around to keep him company; as well as all his children who have died over the centuries. God has a pretty big family. Yet, he values each child as if they were the only child. God always has room for one more child to come to him. His love can never be exhausted, and he never tires of us. It is strange that in many ways God wants to spend eternity with us more than we do with him. Most people want eternal life, and if they could have it without God that would be acceptable. However, God does not feel this way. He has no obligation or some benefit to gain from us. He makes all the effort to build relationships with us. All God wants from us is to be with him. God wants to share his glory with us. He wants us to live in an eternal blessed state. He will never tire of showering us with his blessing and love. God loves us because of who he is; not for who we are. In the Book of James in the Bible, it is written, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17-18). After a billion years, he will love us as much as he loves us today. He never changes. God does everything for his children. He did not create the earth and people for his needs, but for our needs. In God’s mind, it is all about us.

What do you want out of Life?

If God asked you, “Ask what I shall give to you.” What would you answer him? Would you ask for a long life, a healthy life or great riches? How about a great partner to share your long healthy rich life? However, you only get one wish. Would you ask something for yourself or for someone else? You may say, “You’ve got to be kidding. I can ask for whatever I want, and you want me to give it away to someone else. This is my one chance in life to get whatever I want.” This is indeed the big question; would you ask for someone else’s benefit. What if your neighbor’s spouse was dying from cancer? Would you ask for the cancer to disappear? What would you ask for? You only have one request!
This was the question God put to King Solomon in ancient times. Solomon answered, “Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil” (1 Kings 3:9). He did not ask for a long life or great riches. He asked for wisdom to be a great king for the people’s welfare. He wanted to be a just and caring king. His answer pleased the Lord, and his request was granted. Solomon is recorded in history as being the wisest person that ever lived. He did not ask for honor, but centuries later people still know of his great achievements and his wise sayings in the Book of Proverbs.
Now, we know that God will not ask us this question, but we can ask ourselves, “What will I do with my life?” You do have a choice here. You only have one life to live. Will you use it for your own good, or will you use it to serve others. Are you willing to stand in God’s place and ask people, “What can I do for you?” How can I help?
One of the writers of the Bible wrote, “But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Dear ones, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth” (1 John 3:17-18). What kind of person does God ask us to be? It is not easy to give of ourselves, and to think about others. We are lured and tempted in life to fulfill our own needs and desires. But, what kind of life pleases God? It pleases him when we focus on the needs of others, and ask him to help them. Selfish people do not please God!

Be a Good Neighbor

God said in the Bible, “Walk in the ways of the Lord, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements . . . that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go” (1 Kings 2:3). These were words that King David spoke to his son Solomon. He reminded him that a life of blessing requires that one take the word of the Lord seriously. Solomon later in his life, despite all his wisdom, turned away from the Lord and his ways. As a result, the Kingdom was split in two and his son did not follow the ways of God either. This lead the whole nation into sin. When a nation turns away from God, it is not long until that nation falls into disarray and chaos. If we want a strong community and a strong nation, people need to put God first, others second, and themselves last. When we focus on the well-being of others, our lives prosper and wherever we go things work out for our good. The good life leads to a good life for us! If we want God’s blessing, we need to become a channel of God’s grace to others. Help your neighbor and build your community, and you will live in a good community. Make your place of work a place of sharing and caring, and you will have the right job and great co-workers. If you want the good life, you need to be good to others.
We create our own environment by our own actions. If we are angry and hateful toward others, then our lives will have many angry and hateful people in it. Bless others and the blessing will be on us as well. Help someone; and someone will help us. We need to take the responsibility for making our world a better place for others, and it will be a better place for ourselves. No sacrifice is wasted; every person who makes the effort to build up their family and neighbors will reap the benefits of their labor. Fear and bitterness only destroys relationships, so be brave and do good to others. We usually know what needs to be done! We just need the courage to follow through with it. Trust God and take the step of faith. Change how we act today. Have the courage to stand up for what you believe. Be the neighbor you wish you had next door. God said, “I know the plans I have for you, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). What will make heaven such a great place? Everyone will be making it a heavenly place to live! Even God is busy making it the best place in the universe to live. He is preparing a new eternal home for us right now.

A Prayer of Faith

“Praise be to you, O LORD,
God of our father,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power
and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,
for everything in heaven and earth is yours.
Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom;
you are exalted as head over all.
Wealth and honor come from you;
you are the ruler of all things.
In your hands are strength and power
to exalt and give strength to all.
Now, our God, we give you thanks,
and praise your glorious name” (1 Chronicles 29:10-13).

Let us never forget the goodness of God. He has blessed us with an everlasting blessing. God has not kept any provision back from us. It seems that we chose to live a life below our full potential. We do not grasp and use what God has made available for us. Why do we not see the possibilities of faith that surround us? I think it is because we do not trust God to back up what he said to us. We do not take hold of the promises of God, and use them. God will do as he promised. We need to believe and live out the power of God in our lives. In the book of Hebrews chapter 11, we read, “By faith . . . ,” and examples of people acting out their faith are listed. What will you do “by faith” today? Take a risk of faith and step outside your confort zone!

Everything is Okay

The Lord is our strong fortress in our time of need, for our walls of protection are not made with rock and mortar. The strength of our fortress is the character of God. He is able and willing to put his protective arms around us and watch over us. While we sleep in the night, God is watching over us. His power and love surround us. In Him, we are secure and can find rest. As David the songwriter wrote many years ago, “I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold” (Psalm 18:1-2). God is the foundation of our hope and trust in times of distress and sorrow. He provides an immovable foundation that is firm and steadfast. His character is faithful and trustworthy. He will never fail us. As a mother holds her helpless child to her breasts, so the Father in heaven stands guard over his children. He has billions of angels standing ready at his command to shield us.
We can rejoice in hard times, for we know that they will not last. Like happy playful children, he builds a fence of protection around us. The storms may blow, but we are sheltered by his care. In the midst of trouble, we are like watchers in a warm secure castle watching the storm outside through a windows pane. We can put our faith in him at all times. He is not only the foundation of our hope and the protector of our souls, but also our commanding general. We stand within the strong fortress dressed for battle in the finest of armor. The armor of faith covers our weak unprotected skin. Without Him, we are helpless against the forces of darkness and evil, but God in Christ has put impenetrable armor around us. We are shielded against the forces of wickedness that would harm and torture our souls. He puts his protective arms of love around us, and gives us a simile and a hug of assurance.
As the great missionary Paul wrote, “No, in all things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present age nor the future, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:37-39). Nothing can break through the protection God has given us. Not pain, sickness, poverty, hunger, depression, fear nor death can harm us. The sufferings of this world may assail us, but we stand firm on the power and character of God. As his children, we are eternally safe in his strong fatherly arms. He says to us, "I am here; do not worry. Everything is okay."

Believe it or Not - Judgment Day is Coming

People are afraid of global catastrophe. Many movies have been made about an asteroid crashing into the planet and destroying all life. They say we should be ready for it, and build a defense system to stop it. However, the Bible says the true destroyer of this planet will be God. The Bible states, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first had passed away” (Revelation 21:1). You see our futures are not in the hands of man or controlled by chance encounters with destruction. It is God himself who will destroy this planet and reconstruct a new one. The old one will be purged with fire to destroy all the environmental disasters and sinfulness of man. We need to be on the alert for his return and be ready. He continually reminds us that Jesus Christ will return to this earth and hold men accountable, but many will not be ready and face the wrath of God.
The warning is clear, “for you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night” (1 Thessalonians 5:2). The first time Christ came as a suffering servant to die on the cross for our sins. It has been people’s responsibility to believe this and escape the coming judgment of God, for this time when Christ returns he will be a conquering warrior. All governments and peoples of the earth will be held accountable to him. No one will escape his judgment. For non-believers this is a scary time, but for believers it is a blessed time of restoration and new life. “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). People just think that life will continue on as it always has, and God will just leave people alone. Well, the truth is that there is Day of Judgment coming for non-believers, but for the believer it will be a time of great blessing.
Many people say, “Come on stop all this doom and gloom stuff. You Christians are all the same. You talk about the “lake of fire” and eternal punishment of the wicked. There is no such place as Hell.” This denial does no change the coming events in the future. The Word of God will be accomplished, and prophecy will be fulfilled. People will be held accountable for what they have done or not done. Are you ready for this day? It can be a day of punishment or a day of freedom. The choice is yours. You can face God on your own merit, or be forgiven through faith in Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin” (Romans 4:7).

The Way to a Better Life

Living to please God is the best way to live, for in pleasing Him we do the things that are best for us. God does not give us commands to enslave us, but in order to live a life that benefits us and those around us. God does not have an ego that demands us to be servants, nor does He need us to follow his commands for his benefit. He is quite capable of doing what needs to be done by himself. If it was not for his great love for us, he could quite happily exist without giving us a second thought.
However, because he is a God of love, he cannot leave us to our own destructive ways. Many people are like willful teenagers or stubborn toddlers. They rebel against any advice or direction from their parents. Now, I will admit that some parents are not very good at parenting and give bad advice, but God will never give us bad advice or direct us in a way of harm (Romans 8:28). If fact, the Bible says that God has lavished his love upon us, but mostly we want to do our own thing and not follow his ways. A life without God does not have a good track record. God will always show us the right way. Life is short don’t waste it on yourself. Life can be full of purpose and great satisfaction.
God instructs us in the best ways of life. He never makes mistakes, nor does He have self-serving motives. God wants us to have a successful and abundant happy life, so do not shun his commands or be suspicious of his purposes for you. He does not want obedient robots. God gave us free-will to demonstrate that He wants people to follow him by their own free choice. If you ignore him long enough, he may ignore you and leave you to your own ways. Many people have a thing about following good advice. They think they know better. It is sad that we have an all loving God who knows about everything and loves us with an unfailing love, and people just ignore what He has to say to them. He gives us advice like: “No one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him” (1 Thessalonians 4:6). God could force you to do his will, but He does not do you any wrong or try to take advantage of you. Why? Because he loves you and cares about you. He wants you to live life to its fullest and experience the greatest happiness. Turn to Him. Trust Him. Obey Him. Then, get ready to live the most exciting and most adventurous life possible. As Jesus Christ said, “I have come so that you can have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).

God is Wonderful Beyond Comprehension

Why do people get so angry, when you talk about God? The people who complain the loudest seem to have the least understanding of who God really is. They get so upset, but their mouths show that they do not have the slightest idea of who God is. They have preconceived ideas that cloud their thinking. They blame God for everything from their own personal failings to global catastrophes. Even Insurance companies, when some great disaster strikes, say it was an act of God. In reality, they are just looking for a way not to pay an insurance claim. Likewise, people deny God, because acknowledging Him brings responsibilities into their lives. Their blaming and complaining is only a way to escape their duties to God and to others.
Charles Stanley wrote, "When you and I comprehend the heart of our Father—who He is and how He operates—we will never live our lives the same way again. In fact, it is impossible to lead mundane, passionless lives once we begin to discover the fullness of God's nature." To see and know God is to change who we are and what we do, for God reveals the purpose for our existence. It does beyond self-interest and self-love. It means loving God and those around us. We see the needs of others as more important than our own. We want to live a life of loving service to others. Why? It is by faith that we get a glimpse of the glory of God and see the wonder of who He is, and we are challenged to live life on a higher plain. To see God is to love Him, and to love him is to love others. When we love God and love others, we then start to love ourselves in a proper way. We see ourselves as the children of God, who are capable of living a sacrificial life of love towards other people.
The Bible proclaims, "Who is like you, Lord, majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders. In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling" (Exodus 15:11-13). In reality, God is the good guy. He is not out to harm or enslave us. He just wants us to live together in a loving safe family. He is a powerful heavenly Father, who looks after his children with kindness and understanding. Praise to his holy name.

Faith has an Action Plan

Many people say that trusting God means leaving everything in God’s hands and waiting for his answer. To coin a phrase, “Let go and let God.” This is not the faith asked for in the Bible. A Bible based faith has human and divine action involved in it. We do not just sit back and wait for God to do something. We get busy and prepare ourselves for what God wants us to do. The Bible states, “Be ready for you know not when the Lord returns,” and readiness involves planning.
King David of ancient Israel wanted to build a temple for God, but God would not let him. God told David he was involved in to many wars to build a house for Him. Instead God told David that his son Solomon would build the temple. Does this mean that David said, “Oh well, it is not my job anymore, so I’ll leave it all up to my son to look after all the details.” No, he did not do this. When he asked his son to build the temple, he had the money put aside, building supplies ready to be used, and skilled craftsmen trained. All he needed to do was put God’s man of choice in charge of the project. David had faith the temple would be built, but he also got everything ready for construction. He had the project already finished in his mind, before the project was even started. He said to his son, “I have provided for that purpose.” David’s vision and faith had substance and commitment to make the project successful. All the praise and honor would go to another, yet he gave it all he had and fully supported his son’s oversight of the project.
David said to Solomon, “Now begin the work, and the Lord be with you” (1 Chronicles 22:16). He had looked after the details, but he charged his son to stay focused on the Lord, and to keep the project God centered. He delegated the job of his heart to another. David said to Solomon, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged” (1 Chronicles 22:13). This was a project of huge proportion, and Solomon no doubt felt overwhelmed. I am also sure that David made sure his son was trained for the task. He left nothing to chance; he backed up his vision with hard work. David knew how to get the job of faith done! His faith had an action plan, and a tenacity to stick with it throughout the years needed for preparation. His faith had a work schedule attached to it. What about your faith? Do you have a plan? Are you preparing yourself to fulfill the promptings of your faith? What spiritual goals and plans are you working on today? Faith without a working plan is not a true faith at all (James 2:14-26). Faith gets the job done!

Developing a Community Spirit

One of the things we so often ignore is that we are part of a community. We have responsibilities to the community we live in, for things we do and don’t do. Our involvement can have both negative and positive effects on the community we live in. Some Christians think that they have no responsibility to the world around them, and only have a responsibility to the church, but the truth is that we live in a global community and we are responsible for our neighbor’s situation. God cares about the entire world; not just our little corner of it. We need both a local and global perspective. It is difficult to know much about our neighbors unless we get to know them. As a society, I think we have become too isolationist and ignore the needs of the people around us. We see the pain and suffering around us on the news, but mostly people do nothing about it. We need to do an audit on our time and finances, and see what we are doing for others. Or, to see if we spend everything we have on ourselves.
Television has made us voyageurs of the world’s problems. We spend time looking, but make no personal commitment to actually doing something about it. If I may be so bold, may I ask you, “What percentage of your personal resources are spent to help others outside of your family circle?” Do you care that the cost of a cup of coffee could save someone’s life?” Not that you should not buy the coffee, but how about symbolically buying a second cup for your poor global neighbor. We need to share our resources with the entire world, not just greedily consume all we can for ourselves.
I do not write this to make people guilty, for guilt does nothing but make people feel bad. I am writing this to motivate you and myself to get more actively involved in the community around us. It is sad to lead an entire life that is only focused on ourselves and our needs. Let’s really love the people around us and sacrifice for them. We are all children of God, and our neighbors are our brothers and sisters. Let’s not be negligent toward our extended family. As it is written in the Bible, “As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people” (Galatians 6:10).

Living a Meaningful Life

Paul, who wrote a major part of the New Testament Bible, wrote, “You know how we lived among you for your sake” (1Thessalonians 1:5). When we live our lives for others, we build a strong foundation for having a meaningful life. A life of selfish interest may be temporarily self-pleasing and satisfying, but it does not have lasting purpose. To live our lives for others, leads to a satisfying life. And, the character we build into the people we help continues on for generations. People are the true lasting monuments we build.
If we do not have a strong faith in God and the surety of everlasting life, it is difficult to surrender much of our valuable life resources for others. Too many people today, live their lives for only themselves. They forget that they are part of a community, and have responsibility to those around them; especially the poor and needy.
God gave us the example of being there for others. God gave us the resources to build meaningful lives, but we need to build on the foundation He gave us – Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. “For God so loved the world he gave his one and only Son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). If we want to have a purposeful life, we need to focus our energies and resources on God’s example of helping others. We must learn and focus our lives “for the sake of others.” Thereby, we fulfill the greatest rule in life; “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

God is Trustworthy

Life can be a scary thing. We just never know what is around the corner. Will we get sick? Will we be badly hurt in a car accident? Will something happen to a family member? If I die, then what? Life is full of questions, worries and fears. The joy of being a Christian is that I can trust in God no matter what happens! It does not mean that unpleasant things will not happen, but it does mean that I can believe that there is a good purpose behind them. For example, take the story of Job in the Bible; he lost everything except his life and his wife. One day he was the wealthiest man in the region, and the next day everything is gone, and he was covered with skin sores. If anyone had the right to curse God, it was Job.
However, he did not curse God, for he knew that God loved him, and whatever was happening to him had a reason. He was not aware that he was the victim of a universal war between God and Satan. He just trusted God. Job said, “Though he slays me, yet will I hope in him” (Job 1315). It is true that Job wanted to know why, but he could trust God even if he did not understand his dismal situation. In fact, God never did tell him. We may never know why apparently bad things happen to us.
One thing we can count on is that we can trust God and his goodness. He always does the right thing. We never need to fear his intentions toward us. As the song writer David wrote, “Have no fear of God” (Psalm 55:19). Jesus Christ also told us, “Do not be afraid” (Matthew 28:10). It is not God who wishes to destroy us. It is Satan and the powers of darkness. Now, if you are one of Satan’s agents, then you do need to fear the wrath of God. If you are a seeker after God and desire to do what is right, you will have his protection and love. As the missionary Paul wrote, “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
This is the essence of faith; trusting God when things get tough. It’s easy to have a strong faith when things are going well for you, but when life gets tough that’s when true faith surfaces. We say, “I will trust God no matter what comes my way.” The bottom line is who’s side are you on; the side of good and God, or the side of evil and Satan. Today, choose who you will serve. If we choose God, we can say as the song writer David said in the Bible, “I call to God, and the Lord saves me” (Psalm 55:16).

Turn to God. He will deliver you!

Many years ago in the times of King David, the king was going through a very hard time. His son stole the kingdom from him, and the king had to flee for his life. In the battle that followed, the armies of the son were defeated, and the son was killed. David was extremely upset about loosing his son. Even if the son had tried to kill him, David still greatly loved him. Parents can take a lot from the children they love!
After the great victory in battle, King David wept, and he was very despondent and heart broken over his son’s death at the hands of his general Joab. He said, “O my son Absolom, my son, my son Absolom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absolom, my son, my son!” (2 Samuel 18:33). Sorrow totally consumed him. In fact, his army rather than rejoicing in the victory started to feel bad that they had won the battle, for it had created such sorrow for their king. The Bible says that the soldiers “stole into the city that day as people steal in who are ashamed when they fee in battle.” The situation in ancient Israel was not good.
The great general Joab came to David, and told him what he was doing was wrong. He got the kind of advice we love when we are depressed and sick of life: “You are blowing it buddy. Get with the program, and smarten up! Get your act together, and talk to the people.” Well, maybe not in those word, but that was basically the message.
King David, for the sake of the nation, pulled himself together and took his seat of honor before the people. Later, he wrote in a song about this time, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid” (Psalm 56:3-4). It is in our times of fear and failure that we need to listen to the Word of God; only then can we turn around and praise him and overcome our sorrow. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice . . . . The Lord is at hand. Do not be anxious about anything, 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 understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7). God gives us a peace, when we see no hope. He gives us a peace that passes understanding in our times of difficulty. Are you downcast and angry at life? Does your life bring weeping to your soul. Trust in God. He will deliver you, and lift your spirit up to times of joy and peace. Do not let sorrow overshadow you life. There is hope. There is life after and during the dark times. Trust in God and He will lift you up! Praise and laughter are just around the corner. Take the turn to a better life! Trust in God. He is the uplifter of your soul. He will not disappoint you. Praise be to his holy name.

Thoughts of Today

The goodness of God is endless. It may not seem that way when we are going through hardships and pain, but in spite of all the problems we may face today - God is trustworthy and we can put our faith in him. God has an eternity of blessing waiting for us. When we compare our difficulties here, they do not compare with the eternal happiness awaiting us. Too often, we focus all our thoughts on what is happening to us today, and fear of what may happen to us tomorrow. However, with a faith in God, it is easier to get through today's troubles and have hope left over for tomorrow.
The Bible says, "For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth" (Psalm 71:5). As I look back over my life, God has never failed me. There has been times when I have been very ticked off with God and my situation in life, but over the years I have learned that God is faithful and trustworthy. He never lets me down or disappoints me. A verse of a song in the Bible says, "My praise is continually of you" (Psalm 71:6). Everyday I can say, "Thank you Lord. You are fantastic!" He is wonderful to me and cares for me continually. He is a great heavenly Father. So, like the song writer David wrote, "My tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long" (Psalm 71:24). My friends what more can I say. Trust in the Lord, and forget not his never ending goodness and loving-kindness to us. Praise be to his holy name!