Fear Not!

Fear is running rampart across the United States. The economy is a mess. I hear "I'm scared I will lose my job", or, "I think my retirement money is going down the drain". And then there's this swine flu. "What should we do?!?!?" people are saying. What a mess. Everywhere I look there is fear. Honestly, I think fear is what we need to address right now, especially for Christians.

What does our bible tell us? Isaiah 41:10 commands "do not be afraid", and reminds us that God is with us. Psalm 91 says if the Lord is the Lord of our life, He will send His angels to watch over us. Proverbs 1:33 says "whoever listens to me will live in safety". Well, PRAISE GOD! This is some good medicine for the fear epidemic.

Now, this is not to say we should ignore what is going on in our world today. The bible also says we should plan well. We should do the right thing to save for retirement. We should also do the right things to make sure we stay away from the swine flu. We should do what we can, and then pray about the rest. Philippians 4:6-7 reminds us to pray about everything and don't worry. If we do this, we will have peace...godly peace.

Jesus said He did not give us a spirit of fear.

Satan uses fear to rob us from joy, to steal our happiness.

What will we do when we are afraid? What will we do if all our savings are depleted and this flu shows up in our home? We'll I'm certain I'm going to keep trusting Jesus. I'm going to see investment specialist or doctors, whatever is needed. And I'm going to pray!

Jesus, help me to keep my eyes focused on YOU and Your Word and not what the world is telling me!

Believing God

I am so encouraged. I love reading stories about atheist that start trying to disprove Christ and Christianity, and then in the process become Christians. While doing my Bible study this week, I read about John Clayton who is a scientist and former second-generation atheists. He came to believe in God while attemptiong to disprove the Bible. I love hearing these stories of people searching to discredit Christianity but then realizing the only rational thing to do after studying history is to believe in Christ. So cool. This is the same thing that happened to former atheist, Lee Strobel. Lee has actually the author of 2 of my most favorite books, The Case for Christ and The Case for Faith. These are must read books for people that are Christians, and for those that are not. It's really neat information.

One thing I picked up from John Clayton's story was that he was taught by his parents that Christians weren't rational and church was silly. I couldn't help but wonder that what if Christian parents taught not only the Bible to their kids, but also taught their kids about the history that backs the bible. What if Christian kids going into college and leaving their homes for the first time knew that Jesus was Lord, not just because they were born again (which is very important!!), but also because it was simply historically accurate. How much stronger would their faith be when they were tested in the world? How many would turn from their faith? How many would tell others about their faith?

He is risen!

Matthew 28:5The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.

1 Cor. 15:55 O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?

This is an excellent week for me to be celebrating Easter. It seems as though I'm surrounded by the thoughts of death. As I type these words, 2 of my uncles lay on what appears to be at this time their death beds. My heart breaks for my aunts and my cousins.

And there's been illness in my family. My mother in law is having more problems with her liver. Bless her. She's never experienced serious health issues and this has us all wondering what the Lord has for us next.

And then there's Oakley. Oakley is our 13 year old lab. I became his mom when I married Dean over 10 years ago. He has liver cancer and is not doing well. He's such a wonderful pet. He's smart and loves us all so much. It tough to watch him go through this.

It would be so easy for me to be down this week. But God keeps reminding me what this week is all about. CHRIST ROSE FROM THE DEAD! He did. He really, really did. He paid for our sins. For my sins. For my uncle's sins. For everyone's sins. All we have to do is accept His GIFT to us and follow Him. Isn't that amazing?!?!?! And he doesn't care when you accept the gift....as a child or on your death bed...it doesn't matter. You just have to accept it. Amazing. Amazing love. Amazing grace.

Death, where is your sting? Oh, I believe my Savior took it away!!!!

Praise you Father!