God Uses All Things For Our Good And His Purposes

In summary of Romans 8:28 it says,

“We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

Bottom Line:

God will use everything to work toward the good of those who love him, he will work them into his purpose.

What this means to me:

This verse reminds me that everything I go through and experience in life will be used by God, whether I consider it good or bad.  God has a purpose for everything and uses it to further his kingdom and grow me.  So in this I can be sure that every detail in my life of love for God will be worked into something good.  As I look at this this morning, I’m reminded of several folks in my life who are facing difficult situations (sickness, job stability, illness in a family member.) For them those pills are bitter going down, but all of them have peace in knowing that God is working regardless of the outcome.  I too have experienced similar issues in the past, but I have come to realize (like my friends) that God is up to something good, even if we can’t always see it. He is actively working to bring good out of whatever happens in life. To hold on to hope in the midst of tough times, it’s important to grab a hold of this truth on hold onto it always.  

This verse, tells us that when you put your whole life together, every piece of it works together for good. It’s similar to making a cake in which I might not like the taste of each ingredient, but when it’s all put together, its hard for me to keep my hands off of it. God wants to bake an amazingly tasty cake with my life, and he wants to use even the distasteful and bitter elements to do it.  It’s important to note that God doesn’t say that everything works together “like we want it to” or that every story will have a happy ending. The reality is not every decision I make will be a success.

The verse also reminds me that since I’m a believer I can have absolute confidence that the Master Designer of the universe causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God.  Hope isn’t the same as optimism. It isn’t the belief that something bad will turn out well. It’s the absolute confidence that every part of your life ultimately makes sense regardless of how it turns out this side of eternity.  

From my vantage point, my life look like a mess at times, but God’s view from Heaven isn’t the same as ours.  You can’t even imagine the good that God has in store for your future. In Jeremiah 29:11 God says, “I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future” (NCV).  My future is in his hands — and there’s no better place for it to be.

There Is Always Hope

In summary of Romans 15:13 it says,

“May God, the source of hope, fill you with joy and peace through your faith in him. Then you will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Bottom Line:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

What this means to me:

This passage reminds me that God is to be my ultimate source of hope.  He will fill me with all the joy and peace.  This is a result that comes from trusting and believing in him.  He provides his Spirit living within me, He is never far away.  There have been darker times in my past when I have asked myself, “Is there hope” and “Is this life worth living?”  These were some dark times when long struggles had been present and I was not walking daily with Him.  I believe it is extremely difficult to go on without hope.  Hope is an essential part of life.  Real hope is in such short supply in our society today, people tend to fall for all kinds of scams. Instead of turning to God, they trust in false hopes, like psychic hotlines, palm readings, astrology, fake healers, and quack cures. Inevitably, those false hopes disappoint.  Real hope in this life is found by turning to God.  Romans 15:13 says, “May God, the source of hope, fill you with joy and peace through your faith in him. Then you will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (GWT).  God is the only source of hope that has never disappointed me. When I place my faith in him, he provides joy, peace, and hope that overflows.  God is everywhere. And I am never, ever alone.  And where God is, If find hope is present.

God's Shield of Faith Provides Protection

In summary of Ephesians 6:16 it says,

“At all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the Evil One.”

Bottom Line:

Use the shield of faith, it can stop all the burning arrows of the Evil One.

What this means to me

The enemy will do all he can to distract me, cast doubts, and cast burning arrows my way.  This verse reminds me to always carry with me and use the shield of faith, as it can extinguish and stop what the enemy casts my way.  Because I have decided to be a follower of Jesus, I have fiery darts coming at me all the time (I’m a target.). His fiery darts are items Satan implants into the thoughts of my mind such as:

• Doubt. asking myself, “Did God really say? Can I really trust God? Isn’t that just your interpretation?”
• Discouragement. Satan tells me, “I’m never going to get any better. My life won’t change. I shouldn’t even try.
• Delay. I start asking myself, “Why is this taking so long?”
• Difficulty. I ask myself, “Why is this so hard? Why is it so hard to make _______ work? Why is it so hard to do ______?”
• Depression. I tell myself, “It’s not worth it.”
• All these darts can come my way on a regular basis. They create uncertainty in my life. In times of great uncertainty these fiery darts will fly even faster. My best action is to just be ready for them.

Paul provides me with a proper antidote to these fiery darts: the Shield of Faith. The Bible says, “At all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the Evil One” (Ephesians 6:16 GNT). The Shield of Faith is my only protection against doubt, discouragement, delay, difficulty, and depression. I need to Trust God, no matter what I see, hear, or feel about the world around me. I need the certainty of God when I face the uncertainty of Satan’s fiery darts.  In short, I’ll need to learn how to doubt my doubts and believe my beliefs. Most other normally do the opposite. They doubt their beliefs and believe their doubts. The truth I need to hold onto is, “God said it, and that settles it.” God’s truth isn’t based on whether I believe it or not. It’s still true even if when I don’t believe it, because God can’t lie.  It is the certainty that God’s promises are true even when they don’t appear to currently be true in my life.  Whenever I start believing my doubts and doubting my beliefs, Satan cracks a door open in my life, and he’ll use that door to attack me on many levels.  I can’t ever take off the Shield of Faith, either. Paul tells me to wear it “at all times.” Satan will never stop throwing his fiery darts at me. I am to stay on my guard. Trust God and his Word, no matter what’s going on in life.

Faith, Not Feelings, Please God

In summary of Job 1:21, it says,

“He said, ‘I was born with nothing, and I will die with nothing. The Lord gave, and now he has taken away. May his name be praised!’”

Bottom Line:

We bring nothing into this world, we take nothing when we leave.  The Lord gives and the Lord takes away.  Praise God.

What this means to me:

This passage reminds me that I brought nothing physically into this world.  When I leave I will take nothing physically with me.  In my life the Lord has given me what I have and there are times when the Lord may take it away.  What I need to learn and rely on is that regardless of what happens, God should always be praised.  What His word tells me is that God will always be present in my life, even when I’m unaware of him and his presence.  God is more concerned that I learn to trust him rather than feel him.  It is faith, not feelings that please God.  Situations which stretch my faith most will be those times when life seems to be falling apart and God seems nowhere to be found.  This is what happened to Job.  On a single day he lost everything: his family, his business, his health, and everything he owned. Most discouraging - for thirty-seven chapters, God said nothing to him!  So the question comes, how do I praise God when I don't understand what's happening in life and God appears silent?  How do I stay connected to him in a crisis without communication? How do I keep my eyes on Jesus when they're full of tears?  I can only do what Job did: "Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.'" (Job 1:20-21 NIV)  The key is to tell God exactly how I feel. Pour out my heart to God. Unload every emotion that I’m feeling.  God will be able to handle my doubt, anger, fear, grief, confusion, and questions.

Satan Is A Real Enemy

In summary of Ephesians 6:12 it says,

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Bottom Line:

Our fight (struggle) is not against people here on earth, rather its a battle against wicked rulers and powers of the unseen darkness, the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly realms.

What this means to me:

I have an enemy and it’s not one I can see like other people in my life.  This enemy isn’t flesh and blood at all.  This battle is with Satan, the enemy himself.  At times I feel discouraged, defeated and often think it’s the economy, a political action, a segment of people, or those I disagree with.  I blame things on these instead of the one whom the Bible calls a thief and a liar.  Satan is one who is out to destroy anyone who loves and follows Jesus.  On my own, I’m no match for battling him and his influence in my life (it's sort of like shooting a rubber band against a battleship.).  To find victory in these feelings, I need to start attacking the right enemy (Satan.).  I need Jesus and his power to help me.  Satan uses everyone, putting thoughts into my mind as well as other Christians, making us all pawns in his realm.  I need to learn that not everything that is spiritual is good.  There is spiritual light and spiritual darkness.  Satan does not fight fair.  He may not slug me, but he will insert discouraging and depressing ideas into my mind.  I need to protect myself with the armor of God. I need to learn to catch him in the act, let him know I know where that idea comes from, and ask Jesus for help.  Satan is a real enemy who disrupts life.  But there is good news, he doesn’t have a chance against Jesus.  

Learning To Let Go Of The Eternally Useless

In summary of 2 Corinthians 4:18 it says,

“So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever”

Bottom Line:

Don’t focus on things or problems we currently see, rather focus on the those things that cannot be seen.  For what we see today will not last.  Things that we don’t see will last forever.

What this means to me:

This passage reminds me that there is far more in life than meets the eye.  I should not focus and give attention to the things and troubles I currently see.  As they will not last.  Rather I should focus on things that cannot be seen as they are the ones really matter and will last forever.  It is vitally important for me to remember that life on earth is only a temporary assignment.  With this perspective in mind I can adjust my values and what I fix my attention to on the eternally important things.  "All that is not eternal is eternally useless. - C. S. Lewis"   It would be a fatal mistake for me to assume that God’s purpose for me was only material or just popular success (what the world usually values.)  In God’s perspective an abundant life has nothing to do with material abundance at all.   Faithfulness to God will not always guarantee success in a career or even in my ministry.  I should never focus on the temporary crowns of this life.  Examples in scripture; Paul was faithful - yet he ended up in prison,. John the Baptist was faithful - but he was beheaded, help illustrate this.  But the end of this life is not the end at all!  So I need to remember that when life gets tough for me, when I’m feeling overwhelmed with doubt, or even wondering if living for Christ is worth the effort, I only need to remember that I’m not home yet.  Upon my death I won't be leaving home - i’ll actually be going home.

Learning To Never Give Up On What God Has Asked!

In summary of 2 Chronicles 16:9a it says, "

The Lord keeps close watch over the whole world, to give strength to those whose hearts are loyal to him. "

Bottom Line:

The Lord searches the the whole earth, he looks to give strength to those committed to him.

What This means to me:

God is keeping close watch, he provides strength to me as I fully commit my heart and life to him.  Delays, difficulties, detours and dead ends are all part of everyday life.  I can’t always predict when they will happen, and often things can take much longer than what I want.  In the story of Noah I find that it took 120 years for him to build the ark (this is a really long time of day after day after day activity.).  In all that time Noah trusted God and believed what God had told him to do.  In all of this, Noah did not give up.  So when I face issues accomplishing what God has communicated to me, I too should not give up.  I need to realize that God is in control and is always on the alert / lookout for those who are totally committed to him."  Overall God is looking to bless those who are committed to him. So when I face trouble, I’ll recommit myself and not give up on what God has asked me to do.