WFW: The Answer to all of Life's Problems
This week, I'm taking a small detour from my series on the fear of the Lord. I've had a rather crazy and stressful week (hence my lateness in getting to WFW; and my apologies for missing my meme), so I wanted to talk about trusting in the Lord. So often, we look at circumstances instead of looking to God. Here are some of my favorite Scriptures on trusting in the Lord. (This post is inspired by the Brickster, by the way.) All of the Scriptures are self-explanatory, so I haven't done much commenting... Let the Scriptures speak for themselves!
Deut 31:8 "And the LORD, He is the one who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed."
Ps 46 1-3, 10 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.... 'Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.'"
Ps 62:6 He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved.
1 Peter 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. [Psalm 55:22 Cast your burden on the LORD, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.]
Ps 121:1-3 I will lift up my eyes to the hills-From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.
Ps 91:2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."
Ps 18:2 The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Isaiah 12:2 Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; 'For YAH, the LORD, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation.'"
Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'
2 Chronicles 20:15,17 ...Thus says the LORD to you: 'Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God's.... You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you... Do not be fear or be dismayed..." [Eph 6:13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to STAND.]
Prov 3:5-6 "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths."
Something that I find interesting about the above Scripture is that it says, "In ALL your ways acknowledge Him." All means "all," so that would include the bad situations, not just the good ones. We are to trust God, whether or not things are going right; if everything is going smoothly, trust God. If everything is going badly, trust God.
When we trust God, and therefore, are unafraid, we have peace...
Isaiah 30:15 For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: "In returning and rest you shall be saved; In QUIETNESS and confidence shall be your strength."
Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. [see Php 4:6 -- His peace will guard your heart and mind; interestingly, those are the two places where all the "turmoil" of thoughts and objections begins -- those that are contrary to God's Word, causing anxiety]
Psalm 46, quoted earlier makes this statement: "Be STILL and know that I am God..."
And this one, applies very broadly to any situation, but I learned recently that it still CAN apply to ANY situation that we are facing (in other words, it's not limited to just one situation) so I thought I'd mention it here...
Isaiah 54:17 "No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their righteousness is from Me," Says the LORD.
It is imperative that, in order to trust in the Lord, we don't live in fear. The Scriptures say, "God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound, disciplined mind" (2 Tim 1:7). I would like to point out a few Scriptures that clarify this verse: First, Philippians 4:13 -- "I can do all things through Christ who STRENGTHENS me." That is our power! Second, Romans 5:5, which states, "Now hope does not disappoint, because the LOVE of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us." We know that perfect love casts out fear, and here we see that this love is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Third, "But we have the mind of Christ," and "let the peace of God rule in your hearts" (1Cor 2:16 and Col 3:15). And also, "Be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2 ; see Philippians 4:6). From these Scriptures, we learn that God's peace guards our mind; that's how we renew it. In addition, we have the mind of Christ, and that is certainly a sound mind. So we have nothing to fear! And when we act on these Scriptures, believing that God is going to take care of everything, we are placing our trust in Him! What then are we afraid of?
"The answer to all of life's questions is, 'Trust Me.'" ~ Dr. D. James Kennedy
For more Word For Wednesdays, visit Jean's blog.
Nice post.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy knowing we are protected as was Elisha in 2 Kings 6:13-18. I tend to believe the LORD helps us in ways we don't even know about sometimes.
Oh, what a great collection of verses! Hard to pick a favorite, but I think maybe this one sums it all up:
ReplyDeleteBe still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
Thanks for posting, and thanks for the link to the Brickster. Somehow I've missed him all these weeks!