Image from slideplayer.com
Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute! Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4: 4-7 The Message)
I pray this is a wonderful day for you filled with joy and abundant blessings!
Has worry become a constant visitor to your life? Can you remember your childhood when most of us lived life without a care in the world? How in the world did we let worry come in? We were not well off and we thought nothing of it. Were my parents making the payments on time and in the full amount? I don't know; that was not my area. My area was to be outside most of the day. My best friend was a boy from two door down named Alex. He and I spent all day at the creek which in those days flowed with water. We caught crawdads, tadpoles, skimmed rocks, talked about life and worried about not one thing. The Lord blessed us in that we never saw any snakes or things that might harm us; one day a javelina chased us up a tree and we thought it was the funniest thing. We waited until he walked away, we scampered down the tree and ran all the way home.
Today's graphic shows the serious side of worry. It can and sometimes does "pull us in different directions." And that makes going forward and upward a bit difficult. And how about the root word of worry? "To strangle?" Gulp. It does do that if we're not careful. And worry does affect our thinking (what can we think about if we're just thinking on the challenge or problem we have?). And how can we not have a troubled tummy if we're just anxious about everything. And that dizzy feeling we sometimes have, could be from worry.
And yet, here is Paul writing with faith and strong confidence: "Celebrate God all day, every day, I mean, revel in Him!" Yes. If we think about the goodness, love, power, presence and joy of God, that leaves little room for worry to take root. We can invite God to bring peace into our hearts and minds! And our peaceful and joyful attitude towards life translates into how we view and interact with others; with peace! "We're on the same side; let's work together!" We cannot let divisions tear us apart. This is Advent and so as Paul said, We need to help others (and us, of course) see that the Master is about two arrive. "He could show up any minute!" And what does Paul recommend, "Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray." Turn over all things to God. Share everything with God! Remember having a hard time sharing things with your Mom or Dad? You worried about what they might say or how they might react, but once they knew, they took our side and we felt better that we were no longer alone in our battle or challenge? In the same way, God does that too and with more power and authority!
So, as the scripture says, "settle down." And I've always wondered why we tall our kids that when they were just learning to talk? ha ha. But they understood and so should we! "It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life."
PRAYER: Loving God, as this dear reader and I pray, displace the worry in our minds and hearts with the joy and peace of Your loving presence. Defeat our enemies and make us more than conquerors through He who is Lord and Savior of my life. And it's in His name, Jesus my Lord, that I pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! And tell someone today, that you're on their side. They may just need that strong message today!
Eradio Valverde
Here is chapter two of Mark from my YouTube channel. Again, pray for those who view this that they may be blessed and may make a decision for Jesus. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tITlfIQ59l8
