THROUGH FIRE AND THROUGH WATER

"...We went through fire and through water: but Thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place."

Psalm 66:12

Let's face it, life is tough!  There are things we all go through and face which feels so overwhelming at times.  Sometimes you may even wonder if you'll make it through especially when things look so hopeless and bleak.

At times you may feel you're going through FIRE 

       Fire is the trials and situations which you feel like are going to destroy you
            But remember the 3 Hebrew children!  (Daniel 3)
                 He's with you in the midst of the fiery trials and will not allow it to destroy you!

Other times you'll go through WATER 

       Water is the trials or things in life you feel are going to drown you

             But did you know the LORD is sitting upon the flood?  

"The LORD sitteth upon the flood; yea, the LORD sitteth King for ever."
Psalm 29:10

Everything that comes at you to try to drown you...He's sitting right on top of it!  NOTHING can drown or overtake you because God is in control of it all!  He may let those storms rage and those waves crash around you for a while, but don't lose heart!  Have faith, because He's going to come walking on the waters and say, "It's enough!  Peace, be still!"  (Psalm 107:29)

God has given us assurance in Isaiah 43:2-3 that...

"When thou passest through the water, I (the LORD) will be with you!

and through the rivers, they shall NOT overflow you!

When you walk through the fire, you shall NOT be burned,

Neither shall the flame kindle upon you!"

For I AM the LORD thy God...!"

The I AM has promised!  He'll walk with you through every situation you go through!  He will be with you!  You are not alone!  

He is your protector IN the fire...remember the 3 Hebrew boys had to go into the fire but God brought them out UNHARMED! 

He's your shelter IN the storm!  You are going to have to go through storms sometimes.  You can't go around it.  Jesus actually sent His disciples out in a boat knowing a storm was in their path.  (Matthew 14:22-33) They had to go INTO the storm but He kept His eye on them the whole time and brought them THROUGH it safely!

I love the promise at the end of Psalm 66:12, "...Thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place."

Hold on, He's going to bring you out and you will be blessed! 

Forgiveness

Mat 18:21-22 

Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?

Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.



Have you ever had someone hurt you so deeply that you had trouble forgiving them?
     You've tried.
          You think you have the victory over it.
Then something brings all the hurt and resentment flooding back into your mind.  

My mind began to ponder on this...
Why do we have so much trouble forgiving others...letting go of hurts...and bitterness?

When someone does us wrong, it's easy to see the 'twig' sticking of their eye (the wrong they've done), but we don't notice the huge beam protruding from our own (the wrongs we've done).

If you can, picture this: 
One person has a small stick that they are swinging around and out of their carelessness (and sometimes deliberate jabs) they occasionally hit and cause injury to others.
Another person is walking around with a huge beam which they are carrying on their shoulder.  This protruding beam can injure others as they turn and move if the other person doesn't see it coming giving them opportunity to duck and get out of it's way.

Who's piece of wood (sin) do you think will do more damage?
That 'beam' may be a grudge, or bitterness, or gossip just to name a few.
While the 'stick' could be unkind words.
That 'beam' can cause far more damage than their little 'stick'.


God has forgiven our every sin...many, many sins...sins that nailed Him to the cross.  Some are worse than others but all are sin.  If God is willing to forgive us of every sin, we need to be willing to forgive others even if they haven't asked.

They may not realize they've done wrong.
They may be so bound by sin they can't do anything else but follow what has control of them.
     They are slaves to sin. (Romans 6:16-20) 
They may feel justified in their actions.
They may not realize they are walking in the flesh and not in the Spirit.

That's why the Bible says to 'pray for those who spitefully use you' and to 'love your enemies', 'do good', 'bless and curse not.'   Your prayers can make a difference...if not in their life, it will in you.

If someone does us wrong, we need to release it to God, forgive, and love them.
Anger, bitterness, and hurt will only fester in our heart and mind making us (and others around us) miserable.
It will block us from hearing God's voice. (Psalm 66:18)
If not let go of, it can even cost us our soul.
Unforgiveness affects more than self - it festers and agitates causing the person to spread gossip and slander as well as a bad attitude.  (Attitudes ARE contagious...but that's another thought for another day) 

Forgiveness releases not just the offender but it also releases you.
Forgiveness displays the heart of God ~ mercy and love.
Forgiveness makes you more Christ-like!  (Luke 23:34)

I HATE SPIDERS!

    Yesterday, was a hot day so I decided to take my son to the water park.  I'd forgotten towels so we stopped at Target to pick one up.  We quickly made our purchase then headed back to the van.  I started to open the front door then thought it better to just put the sack directly into the back (rather than passing it between the seats in the front).  So, I closed the front door and opened the slider.  To my horror, there was a big, fuzzy black spider with white dots skittering around under my seat. I HATE SPIDERS!!! 

      How was I going to get this furtive thing that can scurry into dark, obscure spaces and be gone quicker than I could move to catch it (as if that thought wasn't bad enough) out of the van???   I was trying to figure out what to do until I saw it climb onto a book.   I gently pulled the book out (all the while praying the thing would not climb on me - ugh!) and dropped it quickly onto the ground causing the spider to fall off.  Later, I found out it was merely (merely? ha!) a jumping spider which is supposed to be harmless for the most part.  Harmless or not, it could have caused an accident had it crawled out from under my seat and onto my feet...or bitten me...or my children.  I can only speculate as to what could have happened, but one thing I do know, God was protecting us!   Love those little nudges that turn out to be God!

BRIDLE THE TONGUE

Have you ever had one of those “bite your tongue” days?  I definitely have, and I’m sure you have to.   What I would have said may have been truth, but it would not have been kind.

The Bible says to “speak the Truth IN LOVE” (Eph 4:15). Some words may be truth, but if they’re not spoken in love they should not be spoken at all.   The wisest man who ever lived wrote, “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Prov 15:1).  You can either place wood or water on the fire.  Wood feeds the flame and makes it burn higher and hotter while water helps to douse and put out the flame of anger.  If you choose to put wood (harsh words) on the fire (an argument), you may find yourself getting burnt.

The Bible tells us, “…he who restrains his lips is wise.”  (Prov 10:19) and “…a man of understanding holds his peace.”  (Prov 11:12) “He who guards his mouth preserves his life, but he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.”  (Prov 13:3).  Your words can get you in more trouble than the things you’ve done.   

“He that will love life, and see good days, 
let him refrain his tongue from evil (speaking injurious words), 
and his lips that they speak no guile (deceitful words):”   
1Peter 3:10  

When I choose to bridle my tongue, I will not have regrets today for what I said yesterday.  

  

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, 

be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, 

my strength, and my redeemer.”   

Psalm 19:14