God's in His heaven, All's right with the world

One of the greatest gifts God has given believers is peace. "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John 14:27). While the rest of the world worries about the future, we’re told, "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things" (Matthew 6:34). While the world frets over all the evil it causes itself, God says, "Do not fret because of evildoers nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass and wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord..." (Psalm 37:1-3). But perhaps one of the most vivid pictures of peace comes from Psalm 2:1-4
Why do the nations rage,
And the people plot a vain thing?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together,
Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying,
"Let us break Their bonds in pieces
And cast away Their cords from us."
He who sits in the heavens shall laugh;
The Lord shall hold them in derision.

God laughs at man’s "vain" plans. He’s in control of everything! Don’t worry about tomorrow–why? Because God is sovereign. Nations raging and people plotting don’t take Him by surprise. He who sees when a sparrow falls knows the outcome of the battle before it happens. When we look around our world and shake our heads over the mess we’re in–the evil, ungodly, iniquitous mess–we can still have confidence that God is in control; yesterday, today, and forever. The world we’re in has a problem. It’s not taxes, government, or war. It’s sin. And it’s not going to leave until God re-creates the world and restores it to perfection. We don’t have to despair of sin (or its results), though, because God is still here, and He’s still in control. He still sits in the heavens and laughs. Man can’t plot anything against God–He had the first word, and He’ll have the last word, because He is the Word.

Psalm 2:10-12–Now therefore, be wise, O kings;
Be instructed, you judges of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear,
And rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the Son, lest He be angry,
And you perish in the way,
When His wrath is kindled but a little.
Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.

Are you willing to trust the Lord even when the nations rage and everything seems hopeless from our perspective?

Be still

Have you ever made yourself a schedule and told yourself that you were going to follow it? Occasionally, I find myself writing them in fifteen-minute increments in notebooks to make sure a single minute isn’t wasted. I stick them on my bookshelf. My message board has lists of friends I want to email and phone numbers I need to call. My booklist is a large stack of dusty books sitting under the list on my bookshelf. There is so much to do and so little time!

Be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10).

Be still...be still...be still...

Quiet your heart and seek His presence in the still. Don’t be so worried about putting in enough hours studying Bible Bee that you forget to listen to His voice. Have you ever waken up while it’s still dark and begun to pray? Sometimes God speaks in the smoke and earthquake (Exodus 19), but other times it’s the still, small voice you hear only when you are still and listening (1 Kings 19:12). When you are the only one awake in your house, and the only other noise you can hear is the gentle pattering of summer rain on the roof, can you quiet your heart enough to hear Him? Are you so busy studying that you forget to listen?

Some days, studying feels like a complete mental exercise. I feel burned out and overwhelmed. I quickly flip through every card in the stack and say them till the words jumble together. I’m not listening. Slow down and be still.

Mark 1:35 “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.”

Jesus knew to seek God in the quiet solitude and there commune with Him. We need to follow His example. Quiet your heart and be still. Know that He is God.

Giving back to God

On Saturday, my sister and I competed in our biggest piano competition of the year–as did several thousand other kids. The fine arts building and nearby theater building were both crowded with people rushing back and forth, hurrying to get to the next practice or event before the doors closed. Stress levels were high.

That morning, I prayed that I could play to the best of my ability and that I could glorify God. This last year, my heart has changed so much–instead of separating my music from God and being driven by success, I am trying to give God the glory through my music. Although I have been a Christian for well over a decade, it wasn’t until recently that I began to understand what it really means to give my life entirely to God. In giving my life to God, I have found fulfilment and purpose. For every disappointment I have in life, He shows me a higher and better way. Piano has been no exception. It was one of the last things I could give over to Him, one of the things that meant the most to me. Yet now that I have given it to Him, He has given it back to me tenfold. I never had so much fun playing piano in my life! When I gave my music to God, He showed me how to use it to glorify Him. How much more fulfilling is life when its purpose is to glorify God!

Matthew 25:20-22 So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

Has God given you a talent that you gave back to Him? What happened?

I Am Your Shield

When her family was going through some difficult times, Rachel Wissmann wrote this song to encourage them. The words are a beautiful reminder of God's loving care for His children. This song has encouraged my family a lot--I hope it is a blessing to you all!

I AM YOUR SHIELD

My child, are you discouraged by the sorrows of the day?
Does it seem that life is crumbling? The skies have turned to gray.
Don't forget I gave you promises to guide you every hour
In the moments of you heart break, let me show you My great Pow'r!

And I will be your Shield when the battle rages on.
And I will be your Light when the way ahead is dark.
I will be your Strong Tower and guide you every hour,
just place your life completely in My hands.

I know it won't be easy. I never said it would;
but My grace will always be there; My plans for you are good.
Remember that your weaknesses are perfect in My sight.
Only when you yield them to Me can I turn them into Might!


And I will be your Shield when the battle rages on.
And I will be your Light when the way ahead is dark.
I will be your Strong Tower and guide you every hour,
just place your life completely in My hands.

And someday you will understand why I sent this trial.
And someday you will see the end and know it's all worthwhile.

And I will be your Shield when the battle rages on.
And I will be your Light when the way ahead is dark.
I will be your Strong Tower and guide you every hour,
just place your life completely in My hands.

( check out the Wissmann's website at http://wissmannfamily.com/ for more songs )

Resting in the arms of the all-able God

Isn't that a great thought - I am resting the arms of the all-able God. I don't know about you, but that thought sends shivers down my spine and gives me a peace, a indescribable peace. To think that although the circumstances of life aren't going well, although everything looks like it will fall apart, although I might be hurt and confused, God is able to to work in and through the bad and the good alike.

When we come to Him with our requests, we need to come to Him with the spirit that Jeremiah came to Him with in Jeremiah 32:17, where it says, "Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. THERE IS NOTHING TOO HARD FOR YOU." Come to Him, focused on His goodness, power, and strength. I think that a lot of times we can ask God to work in a situation, but we don't truly have faith that He really can work. When I get my focus on how great our God is, how able and strong He is, how powerful and in control He is, God gives me a peace, a stillness, which springs from a faith that believes that God is able. Like it says in Psalms 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God." I need to simply rest in His all-able, all-powerful hands and be still.

I am reminded about the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in Daniel. They were faced with a extremely difficult trial. I mean, it doesn't get much harder then to be about to be thrown into a fiery furnace! And yet look at how they answered King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 3:17-18, "If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from you hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up." You see, we need to believe that God is able to answer our prayers, but we need to realize that God doesn't have to answer our requests in the ways that we want. But, NO MATTER WHAT, we need do what we know He wants us to do and leave the results up to Him. I don't know anyone else better or more capable to handle a situation, can you? When we surrender a problem to the Lord with full faith in His capability, we can find true rest and peace in His arms.