Finding Courage

Where do we find courage when the earth changes?



"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change
And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea"
(Psalm 46:1-2 NASB)

It can be a stressful and fearful thing to see the world around you change. People throughout the ages have lived through uncertain times in which it felt as though the mountains had crumbled into the seas, and that which was stable had given way to instability. Such times force the question: What can I depend on? Where is the unchanging ground on which I can stand? God is the only immovable and unchangeable reality in our world. This is why He can truly be our refuge and strength in times of trouble. His stability is our salvation.

This is our constant resource for courage in times of trouble: that God is safety, strength and help for anyone who would come to Him. And having come to Him by faith, He explicitly tells us not to be afraid. He knows all your fears and anxieties, and by His word He is calling you to lay those down and place your trust in Him. Be fixated upon His perfect character, meditate upon His goodness and remember His faithfulness.

When I am afraid, it is because I have lost sight of God's goodness and forgotten His faithfulness. The secret weapon against my fears is primarily knowing and remembering who God is. A heart fixed on the Lord, the everlasting refuge for weak and fearful sinners like me, is the antidote to anxiety. Look at who He is! Look at what He has done! He loved us and gave Himself up for us. He did not count our failures and crimes against us, but He willingly took our shame upon Himself.

Look to Jesus, God in the flesh, the perfect representation of God's love and grace. And having beheld this glory, you will find yourself resting safely in a refuge that cannot be shaken. For Jesus does not change. He is "the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 3:8). And because He does not change, you are safe. "For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you... are not consumed." (Malachi 3:6 NASB).

Spend some time confessing your fears to Jesus today and thank Him that He is a safe refuge for you, even when all else fails.

Not Afraid – Jesus Culture

A Very Present Help

I invite you to read Psalm 46 and consider what it means today that God is a VERY PRESENT HELP.

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1 NASB)

In times of trouble, we naturally feel that God is distant. But He is not far off in times of distress, He is near. Sometimes we must assume His nearness by faith, though our emotions tell us otherwise. We assume the presence of God must always be accompanied by a tangible sense of peace and safety. And while God's presence certainly does bring peace and safety, our hearts are not always able to grab hold of those emotions. This is where faith comes in. The Lord is calling you today to believe Him and trust He is near, even though your emotions may tell you otherwise. The tangible sense of his presence will come in due time as we wait for Him, but you must also lean into His promises when peace seems elusive. 

The nature of troubling times is to experience circumstances so troubling that it causes you to question whether God is present or whether He is going to take care of you. This is what makes a trial trying! If you experienced a perfect and uninterrupted sense of joy and peace during a trial, well then it wouldn't be much of a trial would it? A trial is something that tests our faith, which causes us to ask: "Where is God?" God's answer in His word is: "I'm right here".

Not only is God here, not only is He very present in your trouble, but He is here to help you in your time of greatest need. Through Christ, He carries you in your distress. His help is available, accessible, not to satisfy your cravings but to meet the deepest needs of your soul. Bring your fears and needs to Him today, and trust Him to be your very present help in trouble. He has already met your deepest and most profound need in abundance. Your greatest crisis has already been solved: The need for reconciliation and redemption. He responded to your worst sin and most offensive defiance by sending the ultimate help, His only Son Jesus the Messiah. 

"If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?" (Romans 8:31-32 NASB)

If God would go to such great lengths to help you with your most urgent need, even giving His beloved Son to die, will He not help you today with the troubles you face? How do need the Lord's help today? What are the deepest needs of your soul? Bring your concerns to Him in prayer, and trust Him to be a very present help in trouble.

O God – Dustin Kensrue

God is Our Refuge

I invite you to read Psalm 46 and consider what it means today that God is our REFUGE.

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1 NASB)

We all need safety. We long to feel safe in the depths of our being and we look for it in so many places, but true safety is found only in God. HE is our refuge. He is a mighty fortress that stands secure. Where are you looking for security today?

We may think if only our circumstances changed, we would feel safe. But safety outside of God won't last. Only God is strong enough to keep us secure. And not only is God our refuge, but He invites us in. He desires that we would come and find safety and Him. What hinders you from resting in the security of God's refuge today?

Remember you have an enemy that does not want you to rest in God. Satan would fill you with fear and tempt you to doubt that God will be good enough, strong enough and gracious enough to give you the safety you long for. But the truth is, God is enough. Come to Him seeking shelter for your weary heart and He will receive you. Remember the words of Jesus: "The one who comes to me I will certainly not cast out" (John 6:37 NASB). The security of God is like a stronghold, but it is also a person. Refuge is found in the arms of Christ.

In the chaos of the storm with wind and waves raging, Jesus stands before you with outstretched arms, calling you to come and find refuge in Him. He sees you in your struggle and your fears with compassion in His eyes. All around you is danger, but standing in front of you is true safety. The search for security is over, it's Jesus. It was always, only Jesus. Today come to Him and don't look back. As you look to Jesus by faith you are accepted, you are loved, and you are safe.

God wants you to come to Him as your only refuge today. Your trials may be hard, but they can teach you the all-important truth that God is the only truly safe and secure place to rest your soul. He is strong enough, good enough and gracious enough to be your refuge. So come to Him as your refuge! Come to Him humbly, come to Him needy, come to Him today. Don't miss the opportunity to embrace humility and experience the profound need we all have for safety in the presence of God.

Glorious Ruins – Hillsong Worship

Getting to Know God

So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord.
His going forth is as certain as the dawn;
And He will come to us like the rain,
Like the spring rain watering the earth.
Hosea 6:3 NASB

There will be times in your spiritual life when you feel far from God. A once intimate and vibrant relationship may give way to a distant and dry relationship with the Lord in which you hardly know Him, or at least it feels that way. This relational drift may have been years in the making without you even realizing when or how it happened. Or it could be more sudden and tied up with particular failures in your life. Either way, the distance you may feel as a Christian is not because God is angry with you, Jesus has already absorbed that on your behalf. And it's not because God is unwilling to draw near to you, rather the opposite is true. God is willing to draw near to us and embrace us. As a father to a prodigal son, and as a shepherd to a wandering sheep, God will pursue us and meet us in our weakness just as surely as the sun will rise at dawn and the rain will come in spring. 

It is because of God's gracious character and reliable nature that we are encouraged to seek God and know Him, no matter how distant we may feel from Him. And yes we are called to pursue God with all our heart, but it is He who first pursued us and welcomed us into His arms. This is why Jesus came, lived and died: to bring us to God. 

Today you are probably not as close to God as you'd like to be. You may have drifted a little or a lot, but His call to you is the same: keep pursuing, don't lose heart, for He will come.

Unfailing Help for a Failing Heart

Whom have I in heaven but You?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Psalm 73:25-26 NASB

Your heart and your flesh will fail you. You may feel strong for a time, maybe for many years, as though you are invincible both physically and emotionally. But your strength will fade. Your body, your mind, your heart may be broken and ruined by a thousand unforeseen circumstances. And there is nothing you can do to protect yourself from these disasters. Sickness, tragedy and depression do not discriminate. We are all equally vulnerable to such trials. But here also is unforeseen grace: in such agony we are made ripe for faith. For only when we see our helplessness will we turn to the Helper. When we recognize that we have no strength in ourselves then we see reality as it is, and God as our only hope and strength.

When Marriage is about God

"Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him." (Genesis 2:18)

With these words God brought into existence the second human being: woman. She was created in the image of God like the man to help him in fulfilling his God-given task of cultivating and keeping creation. Miraculously made from the body of the man himself, she is "bone of [his] bone, and flesh of [his] flesh". And so it is said, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." (Genesis 2:24) Thus the first man and the first woman enjoyed the first marriage. This relationship was designed by God for our good, and to this day countless men and women in in every country and culture benefit from God's gift of marriage. When a man and a woman are united in marriage as one flesh according to the design of God, we flourish and God's kindness and wisdom are displayed for all to see.

Marriage is also the means through which mankind would fill and subdue the earth, covering the planet with the glory of God we were made to reflect. Yet our first parents did not fulfill their God-given task and they did not reflect God's glory when they chose to disobey and sin against Him. Their dishonoring of God brought the punishment of death and separation from their Creator. And so mankind fell into rebellion and reproach, and the core of his being turned away from God. The first marriage also was devastated by sin, and the relationship of the woman to the man made bitter. "Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." (Genesis 3:16)

In both the Biblical records and present day experience marriage is both a hopeful and painful institution. Marriage has such potential for blessing, yet so many of us have experienced either firsthand or with someone close the devastation of a broken marriage. While a solid, loving marriage may bring immeasurable benefits for generations, a broken marriage breaks the heart and home. And as much as a married couple is hurt by divorce, God is affected even more. God created us in His image, and He designed marriage as a means for us to reflect that image. Therefore God cares deeply about the state of our marriages.

Marriage is for us but it is not mainly about us. Marriage is most profoundly about God and His glory and grace. With perfect wisdom, God designed marriage to reflect His relationship with His chosen people. God came to us in Christ, like a faithful and long-suffering husband to his adulterous wife, and at great cost to Himself purchased us out of the slavery, made us clean, forgave all of our sins, and took us as His bride. This is the Biblical picture of God's great love for His church, a love so great that "He gave His one and only Son" (John 3:16) and "while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) This is the picture which are marriages are made to reflect.

They do so by the way the husband and wife relate to each other. The husband leading, loving and serving his wife as Christ does the church (Ephesians 5:25-29), and the wife respecting and submitting to her husband as the church does to Christ (Ephesians 5:22-24). The church is called the body of Christ for we are united with our savior by faith through His grace. And just as the church is forever united to Christ as His body and bride, so the wife is forever united to her husband as his body and bride. For this reason the scripture says: "Husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body." (Ephesians 5:28-30)

This is why marriage is to be permanent, until "death do us part", because God's relationship to His church is permanent. This is why a husband must never leave his wife, because Christ will never leave His church. "This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:32). Marriage therefore depicts an eternal reality far beyond all comprehension: the covenant relationship between Christ and His church. Marriage is about God and His glory and grace!

For this reason God says "'Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal treacherously against the wife of your youth. For I hate divorce,' says the Lord, the God of Israel" (Malachi 2:15,16) Because marriage is for our good and God's glory, God is passionately against divorce for it communicates a lie about who He is. God does not deal treacherously against His wife the church, but He is faithful to the end. Therefore the people of God are warned in the strongest language possible not to divorce and not to find another spouse in the tragic event of a divorce. Jesus said, "I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery." (Matthew 19:9) Marriage is such a sacred picture of the glory and grace of God that the disciples reply to Jesus with shock, "It is better not to marry". (Matthew 19:10) They are frightened by the responsibility of marriage! We would also do well to stand in awe of the meaning of marriage.

We respond to God's word about marriage from four primary positions: single, married, divorced or remarried. To the single person, a word of encouragement and a warning. First, singleness is in no way inferior to marriage. You are not an incomplete person waiting to get married. Jesus Himself, the only perfect person who ever lived, was not married and lacked nothing. And neither do you for being single! In fact, your singeless is a gift from God which allows you to more freely to devote yourself to His service, if you will receive it as such. Jesus spoke of singleness and said, "Not all men can accept this statement, but only those to whom it has been given....He who is able to accept this, let him accept it." (Matthew 19:11,12) The unmarried apostle Paul likewise said, "But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I [single]. But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion." (1 Corinthians 7:8-9) Don't forget the God-given benefit of being single, for "I want you to be free from concern. One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord...This I say for your own benefit; not to put a restraint upon you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord." (1 Corinthians 7:32,35) All this to say, do not despise your singleness but embrace it as a gift from God, even if only for a season.

Second, consider the immense responsibility of marriage before rushing into a relationship. Men, are you ready to lay down your lives for a wife? Are you ready to permanently commit yourself to lead, love and serve the woman God gives you? Are you prepared to accept responsibility before God for the well-being of your family? If you are to lay down your life for this calling, know that there will be sacrifice. You will forfeit hobbies, pleasures and privaleges, but be assured that the payoff of such commitment will bring great blessing and reward, for "it is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35).

To the married person, there is likewise a word of encouragement and a warning. First, remember that your marriage is designed by God for your good and His glory! You have the royal privalege of displaying to the world the covenant keeping love of Christ for His church. Therefore keep the gospel at the center of your marriage. Men, you are to be a picture of Christ to your wife. When wronged, you must be quick to forgive. When divided, you must be first to reconcile. When cold, you must initiate warm affection. You are responsible before God to lead, love and serve your wife. This is what Christ has done for you, so go and do likewise. If you neglect her well-being, you neglect yourself, for the two of you are one in God's sight. Therefore be dilligent to preserve the unity of your marriage and utilize your God-given family to bless others! Bring single people into your lives and display the love of Jesus to them. Invite the lost and the poor in to taste and see the goodness of God in your marriage.

Second, maintain reverence for the sanctity of your marriage. Christian couples, remember that your marriage is a witness of the Lord you call upon. What kind of message are you sending to your neighbors and friends? If your marriage is struggling, and all marriages will struggle at times in varying degree, I plead with you to do whatever it takes to make things right. Confess sin, find accountability within godly community, seek wise counsel, and for the love of Jesus take divorce off the table. Remember the covenant made on your wedding day. Remember that God sovereignly brought the two of you together: "What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate." (Matthew 19:6)

To the divorced person, the word of God offers much hope and promise to you. Whatever the reason for your divorce, whether you have sinned or been sinned against, forgiveness and restoration are available in the arms of Jesus Christ. Are you grieving? Jesus came to bear your grief. Are you overwhelmed by sorrow? Jesus came to carry you. (Isaiah 53:4) Are you guilty? Jesus came to bear your guilt. Have you "dealt treacherously against the wife of your youth"? Jesus came to pay the price for your sin. Come to Jesus, all you who are weary and heavy-laden with broken marriages, and He will give you rest. Even if your marriage seems to have failed, your God has not failed. He can work good even through sin and devastation, and He has an eternally significant life ahead of you in the fellowship of His service if you will have Christ as your savior an Lord.

If you will follow Him through this valley of shadow and death, know that your Heavenly Father desires reconciliation with your spouse above all else. "If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men", epsecially your spouse. (Romans 12:18) The Lord instructs us "that the wife should not leave her husband (but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband)" (1 Corinthians 7:10,11) And if reconciliation is not possible, receive this new chapter of your life with all its pain as a new beginning of undivided devotion to the Lord. Please do not go the way of the culture which has no love for God and would urge you to start over with someone else. No, "do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2) Few can accept this good and perfect will, yet you will be blessed if you do. For a person is bound by covenant to their spouse as long as they live, (1 Corinthians 7:39) and commits adultery if they marry another, except in the case of adultery (Matthew 19:9) or being left by an unbelieving spouse. (1 Corinthians 7:15) Remember that Jesus spoke everything He did for our joy (John 15:11) and "His commandments are not burdensome." (1 John 5:3) Jesus did not come to give burdens and take away joy, but to take away burdens and give joy.

Finally, to the remarried person, there is grace for you as much as any one else. Even if you have remarried without Biblical grounds and commited adultery in doing so, remember for whom Christ died. "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) That means Christ died for adulterers like you and I. You do not get a finger pointed in your face, for we are all guilty. For "everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:28) We will not however help ourselves or anyone else by glossing over adultery. Rather, God calls us to repentance. "Only acknowledge your iniquity, that you have transgressed against the Lord your God" (Jeremiah 3:13) and "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9) Take heart, there is grace for us all.

Remember the woman at the well, considered to be an unclean Samaritan by the Jews, married and divorced five times and living with the sixth man out of wedlock...and loved by Jesus. He did not come to condemn her already devastated soul, but to offer her living water. "Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life." (John 4:14) This is the God we serve, and this is the gospel we preach. Salvation for us who believe in Christ, no matter what we've done or where we've been! Having repented and believed in this good news, glorify God in your remarriage. "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her...Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord." (Ephesians 5:25,22)

God's grace is sufficient for us to endure and even thrive in whatever unique challenges our marital status brings. Wherever we are, we desparately need Jesus. Praise God, He is available to us! May He be glorified in our singleness, our marriage, our divorce or our remarriage and may we not reject His word but receive it as the life-giving treasure it is.

(5/29/2013)

He is Risen!

After Jesus had risen from death... "the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.'” (Matthew 28:16-20)

It's that time of year when we are again reminded, even confronted, with the historical reality that Jesus died on a tree, was buried for three days, and then came out of the grave. The Biblical authors could appeal to more than 500 witnesses who had seen the risen Jesus, (1 Corinthians 15:6) but we need not only take their word for it. We can come to the risen Lord Jesus ourselves and see Him by faith. We can open our Bibles and pray with Moses, “Lord, show me your glory!” (Exodus 33:18) We can see the Lord seated on a throne in Isaiah 6 (John 12:41), high and exalted, filling His temple with splendor and majesty. We can witness the strange and mighty living creatures flying about His throne and calling out 'Holy, holy, holy!' with voices that shake the temple. They hide their eyes, for they cannot even look upon Him who continually upholds the universe by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3). And then, as we despair at the impossible distance between His holiness and our sinfulness, we can see this Almighty King leave the glory of His throne and descend into our world as a humble servant (Philippians 2:3-8).


He came and found wretched, sinful us and He did the unthinkable: He treated us as more important than Himself. See the Lord as He stoops down and washes our feet, as a slave would his master (John 13). See Him lifted up on a cross, a mangled, bloody mess, dying in our place. See the perfect, righteous Lord taking all of our guilt and shame upon Himself, crying out “It is finished!” (2 Corinthians 5:21, John 19:30) Who could resist this love? Who could resist this King? See the empty tomb and let us run with the disciples to the resurrected Savior! Like the disciples, we come to Him with a range of emotions. Sometimes worshipful, sometimes doubtful, yet Jesus comes to every one of us with a truth we can rest our short and fragile lives upon: All authority is His. There is no man, woman or child who does not belong to Him. So go and make disciples. Go and rescue the perishing. The Lord has died so that they may live, and He is worthy of their praise! Believers, our lives or not our own, we have been bought with a price (1 Corinthians 6:20). So let us go in His authority to neighbors and nations, because He will be with us always, even to the end of the age.