It is well with my soul....
Today's sermon was good. The title was 'Wisdom vs. Lies'. There were a few things that were said that hit close to home. Things that Phil and I have talked about as we've gone through this journey of having our faith and trust in God challenged more then any other time in our life. Why we do the things we do. Why we make choices not to do other things. Standards we have set in our life. It has been something that has been challenging to me my whole life. I've been excluded from plenty. At times it hurt, other times I didn't care. But back to the sermon.....
Our pastor talked about the peace and happiness that only God can give and how it is manifested in people's lives. Jesus is that source, and it's different that what the world can offer. It reaches much deeper and fills much fuller. Now that doesn't mean life wont have troubles. That there wont be great pain. He shared a story I've known for quite some time. A story about Horatio Spafford, the guy who wrote the song, It Is Well With My Soul. (if you don't know the story look here and here). It is a story of great loss, yet great strength and trust in God. Now, we as believers have many crossroads. Like we were reminded today, satan wants to steal away the peace and happiness and plant lies in our hearts. He tries to offer us things that the world says will make us happy. Here's where wisdom comes in to play. If we as followers of Christ are seeking His face, by reading the Bible, and searching out the wisdom that it has to offer we will be less likely swayed by satan's lies. The problem is (quoted from the sermon notes) that all too often we view God's commands (especially against sin) as a burden and as something that ruins our fun. While the solution is, seeing wisdom as our best friend - knowing that God's commands are all about his glory and our thriving.
Proverbs 3:13-18 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold...her ways are pleasant ways and her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who embrace her, those who lay hold of her will be blessed.
Now here's the thing. I see this as so true in my life. Our circumstances suck. People have said we are handling it well. We have our moments. We're human. But in general, our trust in God has not wavered Phil and I are closer than ever. Even while grieving differently. We cry. We laugh. We get out of bed in the morning. I don't feel we have turned to anything unwise as a crutch during this time. It doesn't mean that we need to let our guard down, that it's smooth sailing ahead. But what I do see it meaning is, that all the wisdom that we have brought into our life, choices that we make, things we decide, straight from the Bible have in a sense, have 'paid off'. In a time where more turmoil and trouble could easily come, we have a solid foundation/rock, that we are standing on.
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed. Perplexed, but not in despair. Persecuted, but not abandoned. Struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9
Choosing to follow God's wisdom isn't always easy, and it isn't often the most popular. Saying 'no' is hard. But the foundation that it builds far outweighs those things.
That being said. I have to keep another area in my life in check. Pride. It can be quite the pitfall also. And that, is being very honest.
Our pastor talked about the peace and happiness that only God can give and how it is manifested in people's lives. Jesus is that source, and it's different that what the world can offer. It reaches much deeper and fills much fuller. Now that doesn't mean life wont have troubles. That there wont be great pain. He shared a story I've known for quite some time. A story about Horatio Spafford, the guy who wrote the song, It Is Well With My Soul. (if you don't know the story look here and here). It is a story of great loss, yet great strength and trust in God. Now, we as believers have many crossroads. Like we were reminded today, satan wants to steal away the peace and happiness and plant lies in our hearts. He tries to offer us things that the world says will make us happy. Here's where wisdom comes in to play. If we as followers of Christ are seeking His face, by reading the Bible, and searching out the wisdom that it has to offer we will be less likely swayed by satan's lies. The problem is (quoted from the sermon notes) that all too often we view God's commands (especially against sin) as a burden and as something that ruins our fun. While the solution is, seeing wisdom as our best friend - knowing that God's commands are all about his glory and our thriving.
Proverbs 3:13-18 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold...her ways are pleasant ways and her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who embrace her, those who lay hold of her will be blessed.
Now here's the thing. I see this as so true in my life. Our circumstances suck. People have said we are handling it well. We have our moments. We're human. But in general, our trust in God has not wavered Phil and I are closer than ever. Even while grieving differently. We cry. We laugh. We get out of bed in the morning. I don't feel we have turned to anything unwise as a crutch during this time. It doesn't mean that we need to let our guard down, that it's smooth sailing ahead. But what I do see it meaning is, that all the wisdom that we have brought into our life, choices that we make, things we decide, straight from the Bible have in a sense, have 'paid off'. In a time where more turmoil and trouble could easily come, we have a solid foundation/rock, that we are standing on.
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed. Perplexed, but not in despair. Persecuted, but not abandoned. Struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9
Choosing to follow God's wisdom isn't always easy, and it isn't often the most popular. Saying 'no' is hard. But the foundation that it builds far outweighs those things.
That being said. I have to keep another area in my life in check. Pride. It can be quite the pitfall also. And that, is being very honest.
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