Who wants humility? It’s not a trait that’s of value anymore. There is a nice “definition” of humility in the Bible:

“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” (Colossians 3:12-13).

Example
The example given in this verse is a tough act to follow. The words “as the Lord has forgiven you” brings up thoughts of our own sins and failures. But Christ is our benchmark.

Training
We’ve got to train ourselves to Forgive since that is not the natural human inclination. Whenever someone offends you, remind yourself of Christ’s example. Though you may not always react as Christ did, continue reminding yourself at the moment of offense.

You’ll struggle with your responses, but persist anyway. Allow the example of Christ to gradually change your thoughts, emotions, and actions.

NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to like, comment, and share.

Believers are often divided by various philosophical and political leanings. Each group claims their perspective is the only correct way, and all others are wrong. 

God has something to say to us as we “gloat” in the idea that we are right and all others are wrong. In the midst of our political and philosophical pursuits, we may have forgotten God and what He wants. 

The psalmist Asaph ends the 50th Psalm with the words of God: “The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to the one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!” (v.23)

This last verse comes after a long discourse about the majesty of God followed by a disclaimer regarding their worship. Basically, God said that the beneficiary of their worship is not really God — as if God needed anything from them. They just need to be thankful for what they have received and be obedient.

The final sentence in the Psalm identifies the crux of the message: “To one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!” 

The people who are called by God’s name are expected to order their lives according to His ways. For the Israelites, they did good with their religious expressions of worship. But their lives did not reflect God’s principles of love, justice, and mercy. 

Our good religious practices are often a veneer that covers up and blinds us from seeing things within us that displeases God. Those things can be disturbing to outright evil — either in thought or deed. God wants us to remove the “religious veil” and look within and remove all that displeases him. Then he will show his salvation. There flows healing, peace, joy, and true fredom. 

It is better to be confident than to be fearful. But there is something called foolish confidence. Such people are confident but their confidence has no foundation. The Psalmist calls it “foolish confidence”.

“This is the path of those who have foolish confidence; yet after them people approve of their boasts” (Psa 49:13).

Those with foolish confidence can look bold, courageous, and determined. Such people will be highly regarded in church and society. They will be esteemed as great. Surely, they will enjoy much popularity due to their flamboyance. But the reality is that all their pomp will crumble as the weight of life increases and the burdens become too much to bear.

But when your confidence is in the Lord, He will sustain you. Life may be full of troubles, but God will uphold you.

In Psalm 49:13, the foolish confidence of people seems to invite a following. No matter how foolish, there will be many to follow that path. This following makes it even more palatable. The numbers seem to give notoriety to their foolish boasts.

True confidence is confidence in the Lord’s ability to sustain you, to uphold you, and lead you in the path that is best for you.

You thought you were safe. You were in your area of safety and thought everything was perfectly in order. In such a situation, you have no fear of things going bad. You are in your safety zone.

For the Israelites, Jerusalem was their zone of safety. They had nothing to fear. The walls of the city were large, strong, and secure. But in the first verse of Jeremiah 6, the people are encouraged to flee from Jerusalem for safety. Their “safety zone” was no longer safe.

But even as this terrible judgment is pronounced, God wants to speak to his people, but no one was willing to listen. Here is what God says about his people’s response.

To whom shall I speak and give warning,
that they may hear?
Behold, their ears are uncircumcised,
they cannot listen;
behold, the word of the LORD is to them an object of scorn;
they take no pleasure in it. (Jer 6:10 ESV)

God’s desire for his people was to live in safety and in plenty. That’s why he brought them into the “land flowing with milk and honey.” But for that to remain a reality, they needed to “find rest” in God’s ways. But they refused. You can notice God’s heart for his people in the following words.

Thus says the LORD:
“Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’ (Jer 6:16 ESV)

Nothing more needs to be spoken. The next step is for us to take.

What if the Israelites had cried out to the Lord in repentance? What if they had returned to Yahweh in sackcloth and ashes? What if they had turned from their wicked ways? 

If their repentance began with kings and priests, then the people might have followed that pattern. That would have changed the entire trajectory of the land. The Lord would have been pleased with their behavior. The response of their leaders might have been accepted as the repentance of the nation. 

But they didn’t. They somehow believed the narrative that God would ignore their wickedness. They somehow managed to compartmentalize their faith and life. As their Father, He desired nothing more from his children than to return to him in love and obedience. 

“If you return, O Israel, declares the Lord, to me you should return…” (Jer 4:1) But where else can they return but to the one who created them and appointed them for a higher purpose? That purpose was for them to be a light to the nations. (Jer 49:6) 

If they had pursued their calling to be a light to the nations, their future might have been different. Instead of focusing on themselves, they would have been focused on God and his plans for them and the rest of the world.

Identify your purpose and calling in life. Then stick to it.

When the struggles of life become greater than our expectations, we begin to wonder if God has forgotten us. We cry out to God in our distress, but he seems so far away. We cry louder and longer, but there’s no response from God. He must be asleep! This is what the Psalmist felt. 

Now, is this even possible? I thought God “will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:4). This was God’s promise to the Israelites, showing how he will diligently care for his people. 

    The Bible is clear, that God doesn’t sleep. God is Spirit and dwells outside the physical realm and does not need physical rest as we do. Only those who have bodies need rest. When God came down and dwelt among us as a human, he needed rest. But God as the divine being doesn’t sleep, nor does he need rest. 

    Yet when God doesn’t respond or when he doesn’t act according to our timeframe, we wonder if he is asleep; we wonder if he cares. Otherwise, he would have responded when we first cried out to him. 

The psalmist said:

“Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever! Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly clings to the ground. Rise up; come to our help! Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love! (Psa 44:22-26)

    God views our life from an entirely different timeframe. We see our lives from our day-to-day experiences. All we see is turmoil and agony. But God sees a broader timeframe and has no fear of the daily fluctuations. He is confident he can bring us through victoriously. He has already seen our lives from beginning to end. 

    As we struggle with our limited perspectives, let’s hold on to God. He has promised to bring us through victoriously. He has the broader timeframe of our entire lives and he is faithful to accomplish all that he promised. 

– – –➤

* Join the conversation and share your thoughts in the comments on yourBarnabas.com and share this post with others. 

The power of words. Who would have imagined? Words have the power to “pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” (Jer 1:10) This reality began with creation, where words spoken by God brought the world into existence. Now his words continue to create through our words. 

The prophet Jeremiah didn’t think that he was up to the task of speaking God’s words. In modern times, we have reduced the power of words to simply “speeches” of eloquent verbosity. But God’s plan was that our words should tear down, repair, restore, and build that which God wants to do here on this earth through us – through our words. 

But making this concept personal is not always easy because our situation is quite real to us. The pain is raw. The agony is intense, and It’s difficult to speak with faith. But God wants us to be his voice. Not only in society but also in our personal lives. He wants to speak words of faith into our lives. 

Maybe like me, you don’t have much faith. You may feel insignificant like Jeremiah. You might even be fearful like him, but all of these things really don’t matter. 

As your creator, God is more interested in your success than you or others. Even as Jeremiah objected, God takes the initiative to touch his mouth and to put God’s words into his mouth. God didn’t walk away because of Jeremiah’s lack of faith and boldness. 

But even before touching his mouth, God told him: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.” You see, speaking God’s words was really not a choice. It was something placed on Jeremiah from before his birth. 

Your words clearly have power. They have the power to bring God’s purpose into reality in your life and community. Will you step up and speak God’s words to tear down what is displeasing to God in your own life? Then speak words of faith that will build you up into the person God has always wanted you to be. 

– – –➤

* Join the conversation and share your thoughts in the comments on yourBarnabas.com and share this post with others. 

When things go out of control, your situation may seem hopeless. As you dwell on the situation, your perception may gradually degenerate. Your feeling of hopelessness may go even deeper. 

But in the midst of our hopelessness, even when we see no solution, God is our solution. The psalmist experienced lots of turmoil and heartache, but he held on to God as his hope. His words show the depth of his trust in God. 

“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” (Psalm 43:5)

First, he questions his emotional condition. He doesn’t ignore the physical reality but simply recognizes it for what it is. But he clearly questions his response. “Why are you cast down?” and “Why are you in turmoil?” These are the two questions he asks himself. Both are meant to evaluate his emotions. 

Second, he refocuses his emotions. He tells himself to hope in God. The words have the force of a command: “Hope in God.” When his soul was “cast down,” he told it to hope in God. His emotions were in turmoil, but he redirects it to hope in God. 

Third, there is a clear reason for “commanding” himself to refocus and hope in God. He recognizes God as his salvation. He has a history with God as his savior, the one who has rescued him from his troubles. 

In the midst of his troubles, it sure seemed like God wasn’t with him, or that God wasn’t for him. But he quickly reassures himself with hope in God as his only source of salvation. 

Wow! What a reality. How often have I looked at my circumstances instead of God who is my salvation? It’s time for some better self-talk for myself. “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and God.” (Psalm 43:5) 

– – –➤

* Join the conversation and share your thoughts in the comments on yourBarnabas.com and share this post with others. 

* You might like to watch videos I post on Youtube. 

* Partner with me as I continue to help people Live Well, Lead Well. Become my patron using Patreon. 

* What’s a Patron? https://youtu.be/wYq_3ttgU4s

When you are in real and immediate danger, fear is inevitable. Not only is fear a real part of our experience, but we can also easily be controlled by fear. But as a child of God, we are to be in control, not fear. 

As the Israelites were about to enter their promised land, they were filled with fear. This entire generation grew up in the wilderness and never learned war. Everything was new and fear of the unknown can have a paralyzing effect. 

Joshua was appointed as the leader, but he also was in the same predicament as the rest of the people. He was not trained for war and was in no way capable of leading in the situation. 

Yet he was instructed to “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:6).

In this instruction, I see a threefold pattern. There is a view of yourself, others, and God. We often look at ourselves and others but fail to look at God. But even the way we look at God is certainly skewed. 

First, we’re to see ourselves apart from how we feel. Take the stance of someone who overcomes. Even before entering the conflict, learn to be strong and courageous. 

Second, learn to take a predetermined stance of fearlessness. Dread and fear often arise in the midst of conflict. Yet even before the situation, set your mind on fearlessness. It’s more of a mental state rather than a physical reality. 

Third, accept God’s promise of presence as a reality. That promise was evident in the garden of Edan when Adam and Eve sinned. Later, it was repeated by Jesus to his disciples as he gave them the great commission. 

These three steps will keep us from being controlled by our emotions. Emotions are real, but they don’t need to control us. Situations can be dangerous, but they don’t need to have the upper hand. Stay in control because God is with you. 

– – –➤

* Join the conversation and share your thoughts in the comments on yourBarnabas.com and share this post with others. 

* You might like to watch videos I post on Youtube. 

* Partner with me as I continue to help people Live Well, Lead Well. Become my patron using Patreon. 

* What’s a Patron? https://youtu.be/wYq_3ttgU4s