Living In The Presence Of Jesus

 

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. Psalm 16:11 (KJV) 

    The Covid-19 virus magnified many problems we have culturally. One problem was there all along, but became greatly magnified. Loneliness. 

  Widows and widowers, the aged, individuals who otherwise would be with friends and family suddenly found themselves at home staring at four walls. 

  Being ill and suffering from affliction also magnifies loneliness. What is intolerable in the best of times can feel like a catastrophe during days of endless warnings and bad news. With the news media focusing upon the worst-case scenarios, and everyone forced into a state of germaphobia.  

  During decades of affliction, I had to come to terms with loneliness. Despite loved ones around, suffering always makes us feel alone as no one can fully understand our dilemma. Even if yours is a chronic illness, flare ups of your condition can bring isolation and misunderstanding from friends and family who expect you to be as you were on the “better days”. 

  Many years ago, the Lord brought me a revelation of the fact that He is always with me through the presence of His Holy Spirit. 

  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. Luke 17:21 (KJV) 

  Once you get a revelation of the fact that it is impossible for you to be entirely alone if you are a Christian, the fear that creeps inside due to loneliness will find you have a Companion within and loneliness has no place to dwell. 

  The Stoic philosopher Epictetus said that when we are alone, we should consider it tranquility and being like God, and when in the company of others consider it a celebration. 

  Those with strong spiritual roots and a conviction that the Lord is always with them fair the best during trying times. Once you understand, child of God, that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are within you, peace can replace fear, and joy can drive away loneliness. 

  You should reach out to friends and family, and seek the fellowship of others. But when you are alone, and especially when you are hurting, call upon Jesus, allow Him to bring comfort and peace to your troubled soul. 

  Prayer: Dear Lord, troubles beset us, fear seeks to fill our hearts and minds. We need Your Presence to remind us that we are never without help, nor are we ever truly alone. Amen. 

 

The Things That bite Us

 

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Genesis 3:15 

  I was at a Third Day concert, listening to their great music. But earlier that day I had been to the doctor, hearing a rather dismal prognosis of one of my ailments. As I listened to the music that night I prayed: Lord, help me kick the devil in the teeth because I’m tired of him biting at my heels. 

  Later I wondered if that prayer of frustration over the continual irritations with my health was a “biblical prayer,” and I remembered the book of Genesis. Of course, it is biblical. It is pretty much the state we live in, trying to get through the things in life that continually bite us. 

  Whether we face a new infirmity, an increase in symptoms, family stress and fighting, or financial challenges, there seems no end to the biting circumstances of life. 

  Today you may find yourself sidestepping the biting circumstances in your life. You may feel there is no end to the pain and frustration that is biting you. Yet we need to remember that because of Jesus we can crush the head of the biter no matter what form it takes. We need not be put on the run by the challenges and difficulties that trouble our lives. 

  Jesus can crush the head of the biting serpents in your life. You do not need to live in fear over the pain and hardship that strikes you. We have an Advocate, someone much greater than our enemy. One who is more than capable of empowering us through His grace to crush the enemy serpents that bite us with affliction and suffering. 

  Do not despair at the biting things of life. Ask the Lord to help you break the teeth of the enemy called Affliction. Let Jesus lift you up when the stinging pain of life brings you down. We overcome because He overcame death, hell, and the grave. He has already crushed the head of the serpent. 

  Prayer: Dear Lord, the enemy tries to bite and scare us, yet we are more than conquerors through You. Help us to never forget that fact. Amen. 

Keeping Track Of Time

 

“For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, though a person may be weighed down by misery.” Ecclesiastes 8:6 

   Mechanical clocks are wonderful devices. With gears, springs, and weights their motion measures seconds, minutes, and hours. We live by clocks, they tell us when to get up in the morning, and when to go to bed at night. We use them to keep appointments, and to tell us when to eat. We could hardly live without our clocks keeping track of time. 

  Time is a powerful thing. The Bible tells us God knows when we are formed in our mother’s womb and God knows the day we will die. We mark off points in our life by dates and times. Time brings order into our disordered world. 

  The stoic philosophers believed we should be ready at any moment of time to accept the fact that God might take back our children, our spouse, family members and friends. The stoics believed these people in our lives were only on loan to us from God, and we should accept the reality that those people in our lives could return to God at any time. 

  And we must know that truth applies to ourselves as well. We could be called home to be with the Lord at any time. 

  One should not become gloomy about keeping track of time regarding these realities and how the clock is ticking down for everyone we know, and ourselves. Instead become motivated by the fact that our time is so short. Live in such a way that you get as much out of life as possible. 

  You will not be willing to waste time, to hold grudges, or to spend your days in bitterness, resentment, and envy if you could only imagine a clock ticking somewhere with your name on it. 

   Consider your days, and know that this day will not come around again. I know that our illnesses often rob us of time and limit our abilities, but we cannot afford to let our time be wasted by complaining over our lot in life and our lack of abilities. 

  Instead we need to consider what we can do. Remember that the clock is ticking. And make the most of every day and each moment of our lives. 

  Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to remember that our days are numbered, and help us not to waste the precious time You have given to us. Amen. 

 

Removing The Dross

 

Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord. Lamentations 3:40 

  

  I like to periodically examine my life and living space and remove what is useless, take away the waste material or unnecessary--the dross from my life. 

  There is clutter that can build up in our garage, closets, and throughout our homes. And there is also mental clutter that clogs up the arteries of our thinking. Relationships, habits, activities that are unhealthy should also be regularly examined and the dross removed. 

  I always feel much better when I remove needless clutter and free up my living space inside my home. It takes so little time to let useless things accumulate, and requires much effort to remove them. 

  Yet once I remove the unhealthy, the useless, the waste material from affecting body, mind and soul, the cleansing effect is wonderful. 

  Water that is unmoving can quickly become stagnant and unhealthy. It is the same with clutter, unhealthy habits, and harmful relationships. We must be willing to remove the dross, and let go of those things that needlessly get in our path, keeping us stagnant and from moving forward. 

  When we clean out the closets in our house and in our mind, we not only have a sense of accomplishment, it frees up our living space and allows us to think and see things clearly. No more junk hiding out of sight but still in fact taking up space, no more thinking fogged up by worry and dread over things beyond our control and solely belonging to God’s provision and prerogative alone. 

  I encourage you to examine your life, both inside and out, and ask God to help you let go of worthless things that have been holding you down and clogging up your life. Whether material things, old hates and grudges, or long held habits that must go, let the dross fall away and find your life purer within and without. 

  Prayer: Dear Lord, we hold onto things too long, and place too much importance on the useless instead of what’s truly important. Remove the dross from our lives in whatever form it takes. Amen.