Out with the Bad — In with the Good

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. - Philippians 4:8 ESV

You have to fight for your peace.

Every day, negative, hurtful, harmful thoughts plague our minds, unbidden. You don’t wake up and think, I will have an awful day today. I will dig up the worst, most terrible, painful things to think about. No, the bad thoughts just come on their own. There you are in the middle of your day, just doing your thing, when all of a sudden a negative thought invades your mind. Where did that come from? you might wonder. I don’t want to think about that. I thought I was past that, but out of nowhere it shows up to haunt me again.

Because bad thoughts bombard us, we have to fight for our peace of mind. We must become disciplined in consciously choosing our thoughts. The bad thoughts come on their own; the good thoughts have to be chosen, selected, embraced, pursued. They have to be fought for.

Out with the bad—in with the good. Out with unresolved conflict, negativity, ungratefulness, dividing cares, past hurts, disappointments, anxieties. But after you’ve emptied the trash we often travail over, what will fill your mind?

Paul gives us eight categories: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” In with the good:

1. True thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this objectively, factually true?” Preach to yourself constantly. Tell yourself how to view, think about, and handle something, what to do with it, why it matters (or doesn’t), how to respond.

2. Honorable thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this the highest possible opinion?” Honorable means worthy of respect. How do you think about others—your family, co-workers, people who are least like you, those who have hurt you? Honorable thoughts are neither foolish nor naïve; they are just the highest possible opinion, charitably seeing potential for God to change someone. Dishonorable thoughts are the lowest opinion of a person, the worst conclusion, and there is no peace in that.

3. Just thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this the right thing to do?” Just means righteous. Peace is forfeited when we contemplate doing wrong. When you’re wronged, do you fixate on how to get even or set the record straight? If you entertain thoughts about doing wrong because of wrong done to you, you forfeit peace.

4. Pure thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this morally faithful?” Peace is lost in a dirty mind. Pure primarily refers to sexual propriety consistent with God’s design for healthy sexuality: one man with one woman for life. Anything in your mind outside God’s design—places to go, websites to visit, pictures to ogle, flirtations to entertain—is to your own ruin.

5. Lovely thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this attractive?” Lovely is that which attracts through its acceptable, pleasing quality. Cultivate the vision to see past the outward, perishable shells of the people around you to the growing, increasing beauty of Christ within. Look at your spouse and see in the wrinkles of the years the beauty of an enduring love. Peace flees the fault-finding mind. Peace finds, feeds, and focuses upon true beauty.

6. Commendable thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this friendly?” The word commendable is translated in the nkjv as whatever is “of good report” and refers to kindness. It’s the concept of friendliness: are these the thoughts of a true friend?

7. Excellent thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this majority thinking?” The excellence refers to virtue, that which the human race consistently regards as good. If those in your family and church family who are in their right minds would chorus together and recommend something to you as good and virtuous—think on that.

8. Praiseworthy thoughts. Ask yourself, “Is this vertical?” Does this thought honor God? Fuel worship? Elevate His name? Focus your thoughts on praiseworthy things—God’s Word, God’s Son, God’s people.

After giving us eight categories of good thoughts to fill our minds, Paul tells us to “think about these things.”

Peace of mind is not passivity. It is actively replacing contaminants and dividing cares with peace and thoughts that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy. Because the battle for your mind rages today.

© James MacDonald

God Can Use Your Messy Life for Good

We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God. - Romans 8:28 NLT

One of God’s great promises in the Bible is Romans 8:28: “We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God” (NLT). It’s one of the most well-known verses in the Bible. It’s also one of the most misunderstood.

What does this verse promise to us about recovery and growth?

First it says, “We know.” In other words, we’re not guessing, we’re not hoping, we’re not wishing, we’re not desiring. We know for certain. We can be confident. We can stake our lives on it.

What do we know? “We know God causes ...” That means your life is not an accident. There’s no such thing as random chance. There’s no such thing as bad luck. Our lives are not a result of fate. There is a grand design behind everything.

“We know that God causes everything ...” If we just stopped there, that would make God the author of evil, and God is not the author of evil. Nothing that is evil in the world was caused by God. So what is he saying?

“We know that God causes all things to work together for the good ...” Notice that the verse does not say all things are good. They’re not! There’s a lot of evil in the world. When children are stolen from their parents and sold into sex trafficking, that’s evil. When world leaders take money and store it in Swiss bank accounts while their people starve to death, that’s evil. When people betray each other, that’s evil. When people torture each other, that’s evil. There’s a lot of evil in the world.

Can God really bring good out of bad? Oh, yes he can. How about the Crucifixion? The death of his Son was bad. They tortured him, they spit on him, they beat him, and then they crucified him. Did God bring good out of that? Just the salvation of the world! God specializes in bringing good out of bad.

This promise, however, is not for everybody. “We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God.” This promise is only for those who are willing to give God the pieces of a broken life and say, “God, I love you, and I believe you can use the mess of my life for something good. Please take the pieces of my life and put them back together.”

© Rick Warren

Enough for Today

So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. - Matthew 6:34

Have you ever been gripped by fear? You know the feeling. Your blood goes cold. You get that shiver down your spine. Your hair stands on end. Your stomach sinks. Your mouth goes dry.

Then there is the other emotion that is often coupled with fear, and that is worry. There are a lot of things people can worry about today. The state of our country. Our economy. Terrorism. The threat of a war. We are a nation filled with worry.

But there is nothing productive about it. In fact, the word worry comes from an old German word that means “to choke” or “to strangle.” And that is exactly what worry does. It chokes you spiritually. It creates an emotional and mental stranglehold on your life. It doesn’t ever make anything better. In fact, it makes things worse. That is why Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:34).

Paul tackled this problem in Philippians 4 when he wrote, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done” (verse 6). Where was Paul when he wrote those words? He was incarcerated in Rome. He didn’t know what was going to happen to him. So there was Paul in a difficult situation, and what did he say? “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.”

What happens with worry is that our hopes pull us in one direction while our fears pull us in another. When you worry about the future, you cripple yourself in the present. Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow; it empties today of its strength.

© Greg Laurie

Don’t Look Back

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. - Isaiah 43:18-19 ESV

So much time is wasted by looking back.

In the world around us, voices for personal growth and well-being are almost unanimous, calling us to dig up our past so we can do better in the future. But God’s Word through Isaiah is clear: “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.” Apart from the lessons we’ve learned, there is nothing of profit gained by staring in the rearview mirror.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” God wants us on His newness program! This shouldn’t come as a surprise; the Creator of the universe is constantly in creation mode. And His resurrection power can change every circumstance He touches.

Can you perceive the “new thing” God is doing in your life? Are you discerning the opportunities and open doors that “spring forth” from His hand? Sadly, not everyone who follows Christ has eyes to see His newness. If you’re busy looking over your shoulder in regret or fixating on If only, you’ll be blindsided by a new thing—or miss it altogether.

We have all made choices we’d like to change. But no amount of remorse can rewind that clock. It’s far better to repent where we haven’t and lay hold of God’s new things.The apostle Paul got this. Look at how he handled his past: “One thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal . . .” (Philippians 3:13–14a). Paul essentially knew, If I’m going to lay hold of the purpose for which Christ laid hold of me, I’m going to have to forget some things.

God wants you to do the same. He is faithfully working all things together for good. Everything that’s happened in your life—every forward step and backward stumble—is being used by God to form His Son in you and prepare you for what He wants to do right now (Romans 8:28–29).

Perhaps there is a pattern of sin in your life or an addiction you’re battling. Maybe you’re trapped in fearful anxiety or a relational heartbreak that just doesn’t seem to get to a better place. Stare too long and you may feel like it’s hopeless. There’s no way out of this, God. My life isn’t what I thought it would be . . . and I’ve only made it worse with my choices. I’m too far gone for a ‘new thing.’

Listen, loved one. Your situation is no surprise to the One who made you. God is patient with you. He’s not keeping tabs on how many times you mess up a relationship or fall into a particular sin. Whoa, that’s six times she’s done that. One more slip-up and I’m through with her. He knows everything about you. He is acutely aware of how you are stuck and your utter inability to pull yourself out.

Check this: “I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” God is basically saying, “No wilderness is a match for Me—I make rivers in the most impossible places. I will lift you out of that mire and pour new life into your parched spirit. Trust Me.”

God will make a way where there is no way. He can transform a lifeless desert into life-giving opportunity. We serve a living Savior—and everything He touches is new.

The same power that raised Jesus from the dead can work His newness in your circumstances. Bring that dry, difficult, despair-inducing place to the Lord. Invite Him to make a way in your wilderness with His living newness—and don’t look back.

© James MacDonald

An Essential for Spiritual Growth

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. - Joshua 1:8

Billy Sunday was a professional baseball player when he accepted Christ in 1886. At the time, an older believer told Sunday that if he followed this advice, they would never write the word backslider after his name: Take fifteen minutes every day to let God talk to you. Take fifteen minutes every day to talk to God. And take fifteen minutes every day to tell others about the Savior. Sunday followed that advice and became one of the greatest evangelists in history, reaching thousands and thousands of people.

If you want to be a growing Christian, you must read, study, and love the Word of God. Why? Because one of the first things that a young Christian will face is doubt. When I became a believer, I didn’t feel anything emotionally, but I could see changes in my life. And right away I started doubting. I thought, Oh man. What if this isn’t true?

I went and told a Christian friend what was happening, and he said, “Oh, you are going through a trial.”

I said, “What? I’m on trial?”

“No,” he said. “You are going through a trial.”

He went on to explain that I was being tested by the Devil. And that was true.

When the Devil came to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, what did he say? He challenged the Word of God: “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” (Genesis 3:1). He was saying, in effect, “Did God really say what you thought He said?”

If you know the Word of God, you can defend yourself against the Enemy’s attacks. It’s nice to carry a Bible in your purse, briefcase, or on your smartphone, but the best place to carry God’s Word is in your heart.

© Greg Laurie

The Power to Disarm Fear

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you” - John 20:19-21 ESV

The word phobia could have a thousand different prefixes. There’s acrophobia—the fear of heights. Agoraphobia, the fear of open spaces or crowds, and its opposite, claustrophobia. Or anthropophobia, aquaphobia, astraphobia, arachnephobia. There is even a fear of gold, aurophobia. And these barely scratch the surface of the phobias that start with A.

We live in a world consumed by fear, because we live in a world without Jesus.

The absence of Jesus means fear—and fear can be paralyzing. Just look at the disciples. Hiding behind locked doors and shaking in their sandals, they were terrified in the aftermath of Jesus’ death. If they killed the one we were following, maybe they’re planning to kill us too! In the face of the unknown, the disciples should have been drawing upon God’s strength. But their fear froze their capacity to trust by faith and distorted their view of the future.

Then suddenly, “Jesus came.” And the first words out of His mouth were “Peace be with you.” Not admonishment for their fearful state, not chastising for their disbelief. Jesus spoke encouragement into their deepest need.

Stretching out His scarred hands, revealing His pierced side, Jesus was with his disciples once again. Intersecting their point of fear, He disarmed it with His presence. Picture the flood of relief and recognition . . . It’s really Him?! Jesus is alive!! This changes everything!

To the fearful heart, Christ’s presence and peace are His answer. God is tender toward our proneness to fear. He understands our inclination to walk by sight and not by faith. “He knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103:14).

If you have the privilege of being a parent, imagine coming home to find one of your children in their most vulnerable moment. Your four-year-old is weeping on his bed and rushing to comfort him, you ask what’s wrong. “Oh, Mommy! Oh, Daddy! What are we going to eat? Where are we going to live? Who will take care of us??”

Far from anger or annoyance, your heart would be grieved to see your child in such fearful anxiety. Yet how often does your heavenly Father find you in that very state? How much of your emotional health do you willingly give over to fear? The Lord knows your every need. He provides for the birds, “Are you not of more value than they?” He clothes the flowers, “Will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 6:26b, 30b).

God is immensely concerned about the condition of your heart, and you are never farther from His desires for you than when your heart is filled with anxious fear. The answer to fear is peace—and the access to peace is Jesus.

But proximity to the Lord doesn’t equal provision. You must draw upon His strength. As you scan the horizon of your future, if you are fearful about anything, let Jesus Christ speak peace to you. He is every bit as much “in the room” with you as He was with the disciples.

Only Jesus can disarm your fear and replace it with His peace.

© James MacDonald

Power Over Discouragement

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” - John 20:11-13 ESV

There were six Marys in the New Testament. The one in this passage was not Jesus’ mother. It wasn’t the Mary who sat at His feet (Luke 10:39) or the prostitute who experienced His mercy and grace (John 8). Wailing in front of Jesus’ empty tomb was Mary Magdelene. Aside from a mention of His rescuing her from seven demons (Luke 8:1–2), we know little about this Mary.

But it isn’t difficult to imagine how important Jesus had become to Mary Magdelene. Through Jesus Christ her demonic torture was ended and her life was restored—and her love for Him was immense. Trying to cope with her Savior’s death left her deeply discouraged. Rising in her grief to visit His tomb and finding it empty pushed Mary to the brink of despair.

That is the danger of discouragement, because if it continues unattended it can lead to the far more dangerous condition called despair. Lacking courage in life or a particular circumstance; a loss of confidence about the future—discouragement isn’t just a bad day or two. But beware, the progression from discouragement to despair can happen quickly, with devastating consequences.

Think of all the places Mary could have gone that morning with her discouragement. She could have gotten lost in her work or consumed with her family. She could have just stayed in bed. I am not getting up. I can’t face anyone today. Any of those choices would have been understandable.

Instead, Mary rose at dawn and went to the last place she had seen Jesus. Sometimes the most profound things in God’s Word are the simplest things: Mary was discouraged, so she went to find Jesus.

“She turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?’ ” (vv. 14–15a). Even more amazing, and just as instructive, Jesus was there. Newly resurrected, no doubt He had a fairly lengthy to-do list over the next forty days. But first He paused to care for His discouraged friend.

“Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned and said to him in Aramaic,‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher)” (vv. 15b–16).

Jesus’ presence gave Mary power over her discouragement. And when you take your discouragements to Him, He will do the same for you. But doesn’t God already know I’m discouraged? Absolutely. He knows all about it. And He wants you to know that He knows. How?

Pray. Get alone, kneel down, and pray out loud with a list. Unburden your heart before the Lord.

Journal. Write down what you’re praying about, or write out your prayers. And watch your journal become a chronicle of God’s faithfulness.

Get in your Bible. If you’re discouraged, you probably have not been spending a lot of time in God’s Word. Immerse yourself in His Book.

Worship. The Lord is enthroned on the praises of His people (see Psalm 22:3). Draw near to Him in worship and let Him be the lifter of your head.

Fellowship. A godly friend is God’s provision—share what you’re walking through with someone who loves Him. Being alone is what a discouraged person may want the most and need the least.

Often what we desperately need is right in front of us, yet in our distress we fail to reach for it. Your discouragement matters to God. Take it to Him. Allow Jesus to reveal Himself to you as He did to Mary—tenderly, lovingly, patiently—and to give you His power over discouragement.

Discouraged today? Go directly to Jesus—He is risen and waiting for you right now!

© James MacDonald

This post was edited by BigMooker on Mar 18 2015 08:42am

The Power of Grace

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. - 1 Timothy 2:1-6

One of the most humbling aspects of the Lord’s love is His desire for everyone to know Him personally. The same God who created the universe—and who interacted with Abraham, Moses, and Paul—wants us to know Him intimately.

How tragic it is that so many ignore Him or look the other way, distracted by friends, family, celebrities, sports, careers, and the endless details of day-to-day life. But the good news is, no matter how distant we may have been until now, the door is open to a relationship with the Father.

First Timothy 2:4 says that the Lord “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Notice the writer doesn’t say God wants “some” or a certain number to know Him. Rather, He wants everyone on earth to be saved. It’s not His desire that any perish; rather, He longs for all of mankind to know Him (2 Peter 3:9). And that includes you.

Unbelievers sometimes look at their sins and assume there’s no way God could grant them forgiveness. But the moment a person is willing to acknowledge his wrongdoing, the Lord is there to accept the sinner as His child. Regardless of what you’ve done, whom you’ve hurt, or where you’ve been in life, God is ready and willing to forgive you.

Even for those of us who have been Christians a long time, it’s humbling to reflect on God’s goodness. The same grace that saved us is available on every step of our faith journey. Each day, we can move forward, safe in the knowledge that no mistake can ever put us beyond the reach of God’s love for His children.

© Charles Stanley

Ready, Set — Wait

The Lord is good to everyone who trusts in him, so it is best for us to wait in patience — to wait for him to save us. - Lamentations 3:25-26 GNT

When life seems to be falling apart, your most “spiritual” decision may be a surprise: Get alone with God, and wait.

The Bible tells us this in Lamentations 3:28, “When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions: Wait for hope to appear. Don’t run from trouble. Take it full-face. The ‘worst’ is never the worst” (Lamentations 3:28 MSG).

Most of us don’t know how to “enter the silence.” We’re always anxious. We don’t like to wait on God because it stresses us out. We like to be in control.

What does it mean to wait on God? You sit down, close your mouth, and just listen to God. You may read your Bible. You may pray. But most all, you’re quiet in front of God.

Anxiety comes when we’re not “waiting for hope to appear,” as Jeremiah tells us. God wants to talk to us. He wants to give us the hope we crave. But we’re way too busy. All of our circuits are busy! When he calls, we’re on a different line.

If we want to listen to God and experience the hope he has for us, we have to get alone with him. We must “enter the silence” and be ready to hear him.

Jesus also said this in Matthew 6:6: “Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace” (MSG).

Get honest with God, and your focus will shift from just seeing your problems — no matter how overwhelming they seem — to the grace of God.

Lamentations 3:25-26 says, “The Lord is good to everyone who trusts in him, so it is best for us to wait in patience — to wait for him to save us” (GNT).

Before you go out and try to solve your problem on your own, let God save you. It’s like in those war movies when the enemy is marching toward the hero’s army — which is usually an inferior, ragtag group. The hero tells his men to wait until he gives the order to shoot. Then, at the last possible moment, he yells, “Shoot!” Firing at the right moment means success.

The same is true for us. No matter what obstacle you’re facing, you’ve got to wait for God’s timing. He’ll time your next move perfectly.

So wait and listen.

© Rick Warren

The Problem of Pride

The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you. - 1 Samuel 10:6-7

Pride is a condition that’s common to all mankind. Poverty won’t protect us from it. Neither will age, ability, or experience.

Consider Saul, whom the prophet Samuel revealed was God’s chosen leader for the nation of Israel. Scripture describes Saul as an impressive and handsome young man without equal among the Israelites (1 Sam. 9:2). This description seems fitting for the nation’s first royal leader. In his new position, Saul was to follow the Lord’s instructions for that role. He was promised that the Holy Spirit would come upon him and powerfully provide help (10:6-7).

Our Father treats us in a similar way. He’s chosen us to belong to His family, and He has a plan for our lives, with special work for each of us to do (Eph. 2:10). The Holy Spirit dwells within us so He can guide and empower us to carry out divine plans. Our part is to obey.

To be successful, Saul needed to remember several things. First, any authority he had came from God. In addition, his responsibilities included executing the Lord’s plan, leading the people by example, and obeying divine commands. Like so many of us today, Saul acted as if he were in charge rather than the Lord. He allowed the pressure of the situation to take precedence over obedience. Because of pride, he broke God’s law and exercised priestly responsibilities that were not rightly his.

Our Father wants us to deal with our pride by humbling ourselves before Him, confessing our sin, and seeking His help in overcoming it.

© Charles Stanley