“I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh unto thee.”

We will be safe from traps, from terror in the night, from horrible diseases, and from projectiles. We will be safe when 11,000 people die on either side. This protection doesn’t come from lounging inside of God’s armor plated car with bullet proof glass and oxygen supplies. It comes from being covered by his feathers and under his wings. Feathers aren’t known as tactical weapons. I haven’t heard of any battles being won because of the clever use of feathers. I’ve never seen a war movie that includes the phrase “Don’t worry about bringing more bullets, we need more feathers here!” While feathers must be useful in some situations, I’ve yet to hear about the need to pack feathers along with your greasepaint and ghillie suit before a dangerous mission.

“Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings from the wicked who are out to destroy me, from my mortal enemies who surround me”.  — Psalm 17:8-9 (NIV)

He’s faced with wicked people surrounding him and ready to destroy him, and he asks to stand in a shadow? If I was in his shoes, I wouldn’t be interested in the shadow. If I wrote that Psalm, it would be talking a bit more about being safe from my enemies in a castle with a moat and several very large body guards, not hiding in a shadow. But God’s shadow is the safest place to be. Even though you may be surrounded by mortal enemies ready to destroy you, the shadow of God is safer than any underground bunker or armored car. We aren’t invisible in the shadow; the enemy can see us there. We aren’t immune, but we are protected. To be in the shadow implies a close connection. To stay in the shadow we must walk in step with God, as close to His side as we can get.

Armored cars run out of gas. Castles and moats can be captured. But who can lift a shadow? The shadow is invincible. A shelter of feathers in the face of terror, diseases, and arrows sounds about as practical as a pair of scissors made of glitter. We can’t just recline in the backseat of God’s armored car. In the bad times we need to stay huddled under his wing like a baby bird following its mother. We are active participants. We need to walk to stay under that protection. But in those feathers, in that shadow, there is peace and perfect rest. Even though you can see the enemies all around you, and they can see you, as long as you are in the shadow of the Almighty you are safe. No one can lift His shadow to get to you.

Christianity is a lifestyle of self-denial and discipline: one of total surrender and obedience to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Some view this as a constraining, boring, and old fashioned way of life. But we only have one life to live. We can seek to find our own way of life, or we can give our life back to God and discover true abundance.

“Bless the Lord, o my soul, and forget not all His benefits”  — Psalm 103:2

These words were spoken by King David of Israel. He knew God and followed after the heart of God. He was a frail, flawed human like all of us, but because he kept God first on the throne of his heart, he experienced a life full of God’s presence and intervention. I would like to mention several of the benefits of living the Christian life in an effort to persuade some and challenge others:

God gives me lasting peace in a tumultuous world. It guards my heart and mind from fear, worry and anxiety. It is not fragile and fleeting, but beyond my understanding and stronger than life’s storms and uncertainties. He gives rest for the weary soul.

His joy is my strength – not just physical strength, but the part of me which will outlast this aging body. Jesus delivers from depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. He renews my mind, which can be so easily polluted with all the things I see and hear. He gives a sound mind that is not tormented with suicidal thoughts.

God gives wonderful counsel free of charge in His Word. When I apply it to my life, the result is that I live a more abundant life. I have great help in my relationships, such as marriage, children, parents, co-workers, friends, and yes, even enemies. That’s what life is really made up of – relationships – and having a personal one with Jesus makes all earthly ones even better. His office is always open, and He is never on vacation.

Jesus is ready, willing, and able to give all types of healing – physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. I don’t need a psychic, medium, or holistic therapist to overcharge me for their services. I can activate my God-given faith and access His healing power.

God has knowledge of and provides for all of my needs. He supplies them from His great resources and riches. Most of the time I am unaware of how He is constantly doing this, and often I have to trade my worries in for a whole-hearted trust in Him.

I choose to indulge in good, clean fun. There may be many other self-indulging options available that offer unrestrained but temporary pleasures, but God lets me choose – and when I choose, I also live with the consequences. Consequently, I’ve chosen to live a life free of regrets, guilt, hurt relationships, or punishment. When I also confess and turn from wickedness, I will be given an escape from God’s judgment against sin.

I experience pure love from its very source, which is God. Love that never fails and is so deep, so wide, and so forgiving that it’s difficult to understand, because there is nothing like it anywhere else in life. I know God as my heavenly father, which makes me one of His sons. Even if your father was abusive, neglectful or absent from the home, God is a kind and everlasting Father whose family is always growing because He keeps adopting more children.

Jesus has empowered me to live a lifestyle free from self-destructive addictions like smoking, alcohol, drugs, pornography, gossip, and complaining. I reap the benefits of a moral lifestyle with no regrets. God has cleaned the proverbial skeletons out of the closet of my life. And when new ones die and want to make their grave in my heart, Jesus comes with resurrection power over past hurts, pain, guilt, and shame.

There are many more examples, but perhaps this sampling will give you an idea of why I am convinced that being a Christian, not just claiming the title, is the best life possible!

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”  — Hebrews 11:1-6

The above is an excerpt from what many people call the “faith chapter” of the Bible. It inspires us to read about the exploits of the “heroes of faith”. We have examples laid out for us to see the amazing interplay between God and man as He uses His servants to accomplish a mighty work on the Earth.

When I read this chapter, my heart longs to be there with these giants of faith and experience the power of God for myself. These are true stories of cataclysmic, world-changing, physics-defying supernatural occurrences that directed the course of the human race over the span of recorded history. Those who possessed great faith saw beyond the present and often beyond their own lifetime into the glorious plan of God and acted in accordance with His will to produce mighty works. Can we help but be stirred when we read Hebrews 11?

But we do ourselves a disservice if we look only at the great works that were accomplished by faith. While I imagine that most readers have the desire to see great works, or even a desire to possess great faith, simply recounting the works God has done through others is usually not enough to produce the same faith in us. Too often I am inspired about greatness instead of to it. So how did these “heroes of faith” get great faith?

“For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”  — 2 Timothy 1:12

Paul describes it exactly, and if you were to examine the lives of those mentioned in Hebrews 11 in detail, I believe you would find that every one of them possessed the faith they displayed not because they were inspired to it and not because they had some innate confidence or divine advantage, but because they set aside their life and pursued relationship with God that could eclipse every other element of their lives. As they grew close to God and began to understand His character and methods, faith in His word and actions in their lives grew as a matter of course. Great faith comes from great relationship with God.

Do you want to see spiritual revival in your town? Do you want miracles to happen in your family, workplace, or school? Do you want the divine manifestation of God? All of those great things are byproducts of great relationship. It begins with a prayer. Maybe it’s a prayer of repentance so that you’re no longer at odds with Him. Maybe it’s a prayer of commitment so that God can bring you to another level of relationship. Maybe it’s just a prayer of spending time with God and letting Him talk to you – letting that relationship grow.

Regardless of it starts today, there is only one way to get from where we live – the mundane, the ordinary, the carnal – to the powerful, extraordinary, God-designed, God-inspired, God-directed realms of earth-shaking faith. It is a byproduct of vibrant relationship with the Creator. My prayer is that you will take time today to engage in a deep, heartfelt relationship with Him.

As she rounded the bend and climbed over one more rotting downed tree, she entered the most beautiful of clearings. As she sighed in relief and happiness, she took out the paper held in the bag slung over her shoulder. Then she quickly yet gently took out the paint that had been jostling around. As she put her brush gently to the canvas, a blast of color formed. Instead of dead trees and rocks, a blast of color flowed over that page. The picture that came into full focus that day was a beautiful masterpiece.

Will you let that story speak to your heart right now? Have you felt like you were that young lady traveling through the dark and dismal forest? There was no soul in sight or any color in the world. All you see is everything dark in your life, as though everything is dismal and destroyed. You feel like there is no one there for you. You need to break free.

Jesus is making you into a masterpiece. You need to stop looking at the journey God has you on as something disgusting. You need to see this as a process. I will admit to being a victim of this thinking: so many times I look at my situation from the eyes of someone watching that girl going into the forest. I would ask God why. “Why am I going into something so rough? Why is _ _ _ _ _ (you fill in the blank) going through that? Why can’t you just help them through it? They shouldn’t have to endure that.” My friend, you are sadly mistaken. It’s not the enemy taking them through those woods. Jesus is bringing them through in order to make them into something beautiful. We need to stop questioning our creator. We need to stop questioning the author and the finisher of our paintings.

Whenever I find myself asking these questions, Jesus has to throw me right back down and explain to me all over again that it’s not about me or my will, but it’s about what He wants! Do you really trust Him? I know that sometime I have a hard time trusting him completely. But what it truly comes down to is whether you trust Him fully or you’re just trying to look good for the people watching you disappear into to the woods. Jesus knows what He’s doing. We can confidently rely on and trust in Him. Allow Jesus to finish the painting He’s doing in your life. I guarantee that if you do that you will find out you’re better off than you could ever imagine. Your painting will be beautiful – but only if you trust Him with the paintbrush!

I have been wrestling with my own personal deep seated fear. I didn’t realize it at first. I thought I was a little bit sad, perhaps. Maybe a bit under the weather, just a little bit restless, or so I told my friends. But that wasn’t the problem. I am deeply afraid that what I want to happen in my life – what God has promised me – won’t happen.

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”  — I John 4:18

My fear is a lack of trust, probably the worst (and easiest) thing for me to do. It almost feels good, thinking that I’m not good enough for God to do what He has promised me through His word and through the words of the authorities God has placed in my life. It feels like some kind of perverse modesty or humility, thinking that I am too evil to be used by God.

But that’s incorrect thinking. I’m not big enough or bad enough to interfere with God’s will. That certainly does not mean that I can do anything I like and expect to have the ministry or life that I want. It doesn’t mean that my free will doesn’t matter. It doesn’t mean that I am predestined to greatness or ruin regardless of my actions. It means that God, my Father, knows His kid is going to mess up. He also knows the plans He has for me, plans to prosper me and not to harm me, plans He has had since before He formed me. What I have to do is trust my Father, walk in the path He has laid out, and trust some more.

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.”  — Psalm 91

“In your patience possess ye your souls.”  — Luke 21:19

We read the verse aloud in our small group. Most of us had little or no history with the passage, so when the group leader asked us to venture a guess at what it meant, our answers followed path-of-least-resistance logic: “It means we should be patient, I guess?”

True as far as it goes. What does it mean to possess one’s soul? Don’t I already possess one? Sure, but it’s like owning a pet: maybe you brought them home, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to stay. Some animals want to wander. My soul — the part of me that is ‘deep’, or central to who I am — doesn’t want to be patient. I have to take an active part in directing my soul. I have to possess it. But that’s not the only thing my path-of-least-resistance thinking missed. The statement is also out of context. It was part of an answer Jesus was giving to some people concerning the end of the world. He is describing false messiahs, wars, earthquakes, famine, pestilence… His mention of patience seems out of place at first glance:

“But when ye shall hear of wars and sommotions, be not terrified: for these things must come to pass; but the end is not by and by. …

“Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: …

“And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake. But there shall not an hair of your head perish.

“In your patience possess ye your souls.”  – Luke 21:9,14,16-19

Jesus is describing patience, yes, but also something beyond patience: the ability to disregard the chaos around us and trust Him from the quiet, still places of our hearts. He is describing the ability to live in a world devoid of understanding or tolerance without becoming bitter or sectarian. When you are rejected solely because of what you believe, it is the ability to return love for hate. It is the ability to enter into His unfathomable peace, beyond the influence of the raging storms outside, be they physical, political, social, religious, familial, emotional, or any other kind of conflict. The  patience Jesus talks about is steadfastness. It is growing ‘like a tree planted by the rivers of water’ (Psalm 1:3), sending our roots out to the Source of life and gaining from His vast reserves the ability to stand firm — for ‘whatsoever [w]e [do] shall prosper’.

Be not terrified. Settle it in your hearts. In patience possess. Stand! Do not back down just because there is chaos around you. Do not back down because the loud voices in your school or workplace are those who are bigoted against the Truth… these things must come to pass. Remain faithful to the One who called you, trusting that He sees you in the midst of it all and He knows what He is doing.
Possess your soul in patience.

Late! If there is one thing that I can’t stand, it’s being late. I usually leave early so that doesn’t happen. But then I worry I am too early, and whoever I am meeting won’t be ready for me. Isn’t that as rude as being late? Well, that’s not a concern today. No sir, today I am good and late. I try to subdue the panic rising in me as I drive. “What if I get in trouble? I’ll say that I was… oh! I’ll say I was helping an old lady cross the road. Yeah, can’t get in trouble if I’m late because of that! That is awful, though, shame on me for planning to lie like that.” I finally convince my other eye to open and equipped with two bloodshot eyes I realize my socks don’t match. “Great! Just great.” I save everyone else the trouble and yell at myself as I sit at a red light. “Come on, Amanda! Why can’t you get your act together?” I drum my palms against the steering wheel; I feel a little shaky as panic starts to get the best of me.

Wait! Life has a tendency to put us through the wringer. Yet in the midst of my panic in the car, I realized God doesn’t ask us to beat ourselves up for our mistakes. Our God is a God of peace, trust, and perfect love. I don’t propose being totally still in the presence of God when you are supposed to be driving. But we have the option to calm our spirits in His presence and remember that He is God. He has control of our lives and He knows what is going on. It’s a bit like a boat ride that Jesus and his disciples took. While Jesus was asleep in the back of the boat, a storm arose of such severe degree that even the experienced fishermen were sure they were going to die. Their boat was full of water, so they woke Jesus up:

“And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?”  –Mark 4:38-40

It may seem to us like our ship is sinking and God is sleeping on the job. But we don’t need to be afraid! We can have perfect peace, even in the midst of all the troubles that life can throw at us. With just a word from His mouth or a touch of His hand, Jesus can restore the peace in your heart. No matter what storms may rage around us, Jesus has the power to calm the turmoil, inside and out.

The most deadly symptom of Independence is pride. It fosters division and ultimately eliminates all chances of being unified in humbleness. As God asked the Pharaoh, “How long wilt thy refuse to humble thyself before me?” (Exodus 10:3). God is looking for people, families, and churches to work as a unit, not as an independent faction from the body. Jesus works in networks. If there is power when men of the world come together, think of the impact believers could make if they came together as well. This entails setting aside things of this world, “For we have brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (I Timothy 6:7).

All children are tested and all children are tried; it should be the desire of our hearts to pass these tests. When I sincerely dedicated my life to God’s purpose, the Holy Ghost began to strongly lead me. Out of childish doubt and fear I couldn’t bring myself to complete what He had asked of me. I noticed that each time I refused what God was leading me to do, the direction would come less often. As I was in prayer I had the revelation that if I kept refusing God’s call, He would eventually stop providing me with tasks that could be my answer. I fell into fervent repentance and now act the moment I am given a task. For those that are timid to move when Jesus asks you to move, don’t think of all the things that could go wrong. Instead, think of all the things that could go right. God knows what He is doing and it is none of our business to warp His plan for it to make us feel comfortable. “That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.” Children are often reluctant to hear their parents advice, but who is better to advise us than our parents? Than our Lord? As children we are dependent on not only our earthly father, but our heavenly Father as well. I pray that we stay dependent on God and His direction. How can we fault if we do this?

“Follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” (I Timothy 6:11-12) We are only given one life on earth, one day at a time. Make today the day you rely on Him. Can you count on tomorrow?

Even focusing on things such as the path that God wanted me to take would break my attention away from God. This in itself didn’t catch my attention until I started seeing myself worry about what I was supposed to do, who I was supposed to be, or what I was being made into. I had to realize that those things weren’t for me to control or think about. So many times we worry about where we’re going, who we’re going to marry, where we’re going to work, what kind of ministry we will have, or how we will buy a new car — instead of focusing on Jesus. That’s what this article is truly about: Jesus becoming our main focus. Why do we constantly worry about who we’re going to be with for the rest of our lives when Jesus is making us into who we need to be for the rest of our lives? Why do we worry about our job when God is molding us into a better worker?

When Jesus becomes the very center of our lives, everything else can fall into place because we’re not trying to doing it in our own power. And why would we try to do these things in our own power? When we try to do that we just mess things up.

I believe that Jesus will become the center of our lives when we can be fully stripped of all our “strengths” hopes and desires. So many times people tell us to “be strong” or “toughen up,” when Jesus really wants us to become broken before Him. When we become broken before Him we become pliable. And what better time for God to mold our lives into the way that he wants us to be than at that time? To let Jesus become the center of our lives we first need to become broken. At that time we lay every fear, every doubt, and every dream down at His feet. At that point we are showing God “we trust you with everything in our lives and we’re not going to worry about any of it because it’s all in your hands”. That is perfect trust, and I guarantee that is when you will see your life unfold.

So stop worrying about your life. Stop letting “that special someone,” where you will work, or who you are becoming be the center of your life and try and let God become the very center. Who better to revolve your world around? He’s God. And I know He is able to take care of you. Let God be God.

“Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.” – John Maxwell

Reading that quote it helped me realize the cause and effects of every decision I made. I found myself blaming the circumstances that were coming up for my world being shaken and didn’t realize that the way I reacted to these circumstances was causing it! Also, as a great child of God, I wasn’t allowing myself to see what He expected me to do in these situations. Instead, I threw myself a pity party until He spoke to me in His gentle way.

Life isn’t exactly what we dream it to be. But it’s not because God is out to get us. It’s because He allows things to come into our lives to mold our attitudes and reactions to something more like His. It doesn’t matter what happens in our lives; it’s all a matter of how we handle the things that come our way. Grasping onto the fact that God still loves us even though life is happening is a great outlook. The Bible does say that He will never bring more to us than we can bear. God does and will make a way for you and I to get through anything we’re facing. We just have to remember to keep a great attitude through it all. Our reaction will bring about the effect later on. We may not see it right away, but it sets the precedent for more decisions down our road.

I find myself wishing for the big picture of it all, just so I could know what decision I should make for the now. But in doing so, I may be squandering the precious life lessons of now. I go for the easy, instead of the challenge of being tried. So, I’m learning now, and I hope you do too, to keep an open attitude no matter what you’re facing. Your reactions will make the difference about how it operates. You just have to remember to let God once again hold your world in His hand.