CARRIED
CARRIED
“The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31
When she awoke, she didn't need to check her calendar. She knew what day it was. For over a month she'd been preparing her home and scouring every place to find empty moving boxes. Yesterday they were finally all filled with her family's belongings. Now she just needed the movers to arrive. Without their help, should be up a Creek -- without any of her stuff. She was a smart and strong woman, but she knew her limitations. When the load was too much for her, she let someone stronger take over and handle the rest.
It's a great strategy, the very kind our Savior says works in his Kingdom, when we strike the right balance. Whenever God calls us to move from where we are, we may feel uncertain at first period how can we know God's will, and what's the best way to get there? Certainly, anxieties often lessen with a semblance of order, so putting a good plan in place may be the perfect solution for some of the stress!
But the secret to real rest lies in relying on someone who's strongest. While God has given us physical bodies to think and brainstorm, plan and plot, He alone has the understanding and strength we need for life to work. More than that, He infuses our earthly efforts with supernatural power, wielding impact beyond this life into eternity.
Today don't wear yourself out, trying to wing it on your own. Let your Father do the heavy lifting as you lay your needs before Him in prayer.
+++
Can you imagine literally packing and moving more than a dozen times in your lifetime? I have personally moved more times than that, and we know it's not fun. It's not just the work of packing and unpacking but the stress of moving to a new place with new people and new opportunities as well as challenges. But such is life for some of us.
I hear people talk about growing up in the same house and living in the same town for their entire lives, and it just does not register with me. In my wildest dreams I could not imagine having lifelong connections like some people have. In some ways I envy them, the certainty and the concrete nature have a lifelong connection to one place and one people.
Life is different for all of us but one thing remains the same, our life is always moving. We may not be physically moving, but we're on the move all the time facing the challenges of life that come at us which are common to everyone. The unbeliever faces relationship problems, problems with children, problems with parents. There are challenges at work and challenges at school. Life is hard for the unbeliever and for the Christian. There is nothing that the unbeliever faces in this world that the Christian does not face as well. But there is a difference!
The difference is that while we face the same challenges as those who do not know God, because we know God we do not face them alone. Jesus promises that he will be with us and that he will help us carry the load that comes to bear up on our lives.
Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:29
“For I am gentle and humble in heart” Jesus does not come into our lives like a bull in the China closet ripping things up and changing everything. He comes as our friend, and as our companion. He walks with us on the journey of life as we face the brokenness of this world to enable us to endure and ultimately to overcome.
The image of a yoke is the joining of two individuals into one as they face the challenge together. Jesus promises he will share the load with us so that we are never alone as we face the challenges of life. And it is because of this that he says we can find rest for our souls.
When Jesus speaks of souls he's not talking about eternity and the eternal nature of our spirits, but of our soul or our hearts. The word soul in the New Testament has to do with our mind, our wills, our emotions. It has to do with how we think and feel about ourselves and others, as well as every situation we will face. To have rest for our souls means we will have peace in our hearts.
As I said, this does not have anything to do with our eternity, but with our life in this world today. The key point is that Jesus himself has secured our eternal life through his cross an empty tomb, therefore we do not have to worry about the future and we can focus our attention on the everyday challenges we face. But even in this we do not face them alone because he promises to be with us on the journey of life until we enter into eternity.
When Solomon wrote these words, they were words of wisdom. “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31
We do the best we can, in Solomon’s words making a horse ready for battle. But being prepared does not assure the victory. Only the Lord can do this!
The wisdom of Solomon is that he understood it is the Lord who fights for us. We may believe we are standing there facing the battle alone but that is not true. As prepared as we may be, the real victory comes from the intervention of God in our lives.
Knowing this, and trusting in God, provides a victory for us over every circumstance we face in this world. This is what brings assurance to our souls and peace in our lives.
To quote those who are smarter than myself remember this; “As you walk on the journey of life you will find the footprints of Jesus both in front of you and beside you.”
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
“The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31
When she awoke, she didn't need to check her calendar. She knew what day it was. For over a month she'd been preparing her home and scouring every place to find empty moving boxes. Yesterday they were finally all filled with her family's belongings. Now she just needed the movers to arrive. Without their help, should be up a Creek -- without any of her stuff. She was a smart and strong woman, but she knew her limitations. When the load was too much for her, she let someone stronger take over and handle the rest.
It's a great strategy, the very kind our Savior says works in his Kingdom, when we strike the right balance. Whenever God calls us to move from where we are, we may feel uncertain at first period how can we know God's will, and what's the best way to get there? Certainly, anxieties often lessen with a semblance of order, so putting a good plan in place may be the perfect solution for some of the stress!
But the secret to real rest lies in relying on someone who's strongest. While God has given us physical bodies to think and brainstorm, plan and plot, He alone has the understanding and strength we need for life to work. More than that, He infuses our earthly efforts with supernatural power, wielding impact beyond this life into eternity.
Today don't wear yourself out, trying to wing it on your own. Let your Father do the heavy lifting as you lay your needs before Him in prayer.
+++
Can you imagine literally packing and moving more than a dozen times in your lifetime? I have personally moved more times than that, and we know it's not fun. It's not just the work of packing and unpacking but the stress of moving to a new place with new people and new opportunities as well as challenges. But such is life for some of us.
I hear people talk about growing up in the same house and living in the same town for their entire lives, and it just does not register with me. In my wildest dreams I could not imagine having lifelong connections like some people have. In some ways I envy them, the certainty and the concrete nature have a lifelong connection to one place and one people.
Life is different for all of us but one thing remains the same, our life is always moving. We may not be physically moving, but we're on the move all the time facing the challenges of life that come at us which are common to everyone. The unbeliever faces relationship problems, problems with children, problems with parents. There are challenges at work and challenges at school. Life is hard for the unbeliever and for the Christian. There is nothing that the unbeliever faces in this world that the Christian does not face as well. But there is a difference!
The difference is that while we face the same challenges as those who do not know God, because we know God we do not face them alone. Jesus promises that he will be with us and that he will help us carry the load that comes to bear up on our lives.
Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:29
“For I am gentle and humble in heart” Jesus does not come into our lives like a bull in the China closet ripping things up and changing everything. He comes as our friend, and as our companion. He walks with us on the journey of life as we face the brokenness of this world to enable us to endure and ultimately to overcome.
The image of a yoke is the joining of two individuals into one as they face the challenge together. Jesus promises he will share the load with us so that we are never alone as we face the challenges of life. And it is because of this that he says we can find rest for our souls.
When Jesus speaks of souls he's not talking about eternity and the eternal nature of our spirits, but of our soul or our hearts. The word soul in the New Testament has to do with our mind, our wills, our emotions. It has to do with how we think and feel about ourselves and others, as well as every situation we will face. To have rest for our souls means we will have peace in our hearts.
As I said, this does not have anything to do with our eternity, but with our life in this world today. The key point is that Jesus himself has secured our eternal life through his cross an empty tomb, therefore we do not have to worry about the future and we can focus our attention on the everyday challenges we face. But even in this we do not face them alone because he promises to be with us on the journey of life until we enter into eternity.
When Solomon wrote these words, they were words of wisdom. “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31
We do the best we can, in Solomon’s words making a horse ready for battle. But being prepared does not assure the victory. Only the Lord can do this!
The wisdom of Solomon is that he understood it is the Lord who fights for us. We may believe we are standing there facing the battle alone but that is not true. As prepared as we may be, the real victory comes from the intervention of God in our lives.
Knowing this, and trusting in God, provides a victory for us over every circumstance we face in this world. This is what brings assurance to our souls and peace in our lives.
To quote those who are smarter than myself remember this; “As you walk on the journey of life you will find the footprints of Jesus both in front of you and beside you.”
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
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