Confident and Competent

Last night I watched a stage filled with students performing a musical. They were terrific! They hit their cues, delivered their lines, and sang their hearts out on some really difficult music. I loved their confidence and because I know one of the cast members well, I knew that performance was shaped by hours of training and a director who coached them to competence. They were convinced before they set foot on that stage that they were ready, that they could do it!

Are you a Christian who lives with a holy confidence, who is prepared to meet the challenges of life as a joyful person? Or, perhaps, do you feel confused, or lost, or alone?  When you pray do you “approach the Throne of grace with confidence… finding grace in time of need” as the writer of Hebrews says?

We need not wander or wander! We need not struggle to find our footing each day as a Christian IF we know the core of our hope, secure in the love and goodness of God through Christ Jesus. Paul wrote to us urging us to look beyond the approval of others, to find our security in a place higher than the commendation of people. 

“Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. … Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.” (2 Corinthians 3:4-12 NIV)

Our Christian hope rests squarely on Jesus’ death and Resurrection. He has provided complete reconciliation with our Creator God. His gift to us is the Holy Spirit, who lives in us and makes us ‘competent as minister (servants)” of a whole new way of life based in God’s promises. This, dear friend, is transformational truth!

Moses, the one-time prince of Egypt, left the palace after killing a man, ran off to the wilderness and disappeared into obscurity, tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, for 40 years! Then, at the time when the people of Israel needed a leader God knew the right man for the job. He met Moses at a “burning bush” in the desert.  Moses’ attention was captured because though the bush was aflame, it was not burning up.

God spoke to that failed prince, now an obscure shepherd, and called him to return to Egypt and deliver his people from slavery, leading them to the land of promise. 

So did Moses say, "Great! When do I start?"   That is not the way it went. He grasped the apparent impossibility of the job, looked at his resume which included murder and flight to avoid prosecution, and asked God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”(Exodus 3:11, NIV)   In the dialogue with the Lord he points out his inability and God answers, not by reminding him of his charisma, intelligence, education, or court access. 

 God says to Moses -I'll be with you! … "The LORD said to him, “Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say." (Exodus 4:12, NIV) 

News flash! God has a calling for you and me, too.

Paul says that we are ministers of grace, given a message of reconciliation, and ambassadors of the Kingdom of God. We bring God’s light to dark places. We lead those who are captives under Satan's deception into truth. Yes, like Paul, we say, "Follow me as I follow Christ." (1Corinthians 11:1) Sounds like a job that is bigger than me or you, doesn’t it? It is! That is why Paul’s words from that text we read a moment ago ring so true – “Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves.”

If we look only to our training or our natural abilities as a qualification for living the Christian life, if we try to find confidence in our own goodness, if we attempt to gain boldness through degrees, titles, or accomplishment- we will falter, feeling fearful.

That is why we look to Christ Jesus, putting our full faith in His work on our behalf, accepting the gift of grace that we could never earn, and opening our mind and heart to the Spirit who will make us competent as ministers of a new covenant!

He is what we can never be on our own.”
He loves us where we are, as we are, and invites us to find the purposes of God.
In Him there is ‘life to the full!’ (John 10.10)

Here is a word from Word. Pray it. Own it. Secure yourself in this truth and then go live in holy boldness today!   "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. . ..   who is equal to such a task? . . . Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. … Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.”  (2 Corinthians 2,3)

Humbly thank God, the Holy Spirit, for empowering you for the task, then just do it. 
I have walked with Him, served Him for many years, and I am still filled with wonder about what He has done in my life. I pray you know that wonder, too!

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Video of this blog

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Living, not just Existing!

 
Just a couple of miles from my house, there is place to which I often return along the banks of the Delaware River. Whenever I walk that trail that meanders along the river, I am renewed by the sounds of the water tumbling over rocks, the rustle of the breeze in the branches, and the songs of birds. It is a place that is alive! Particularly now in the months of Spring it is a delight to see the green emerging, new life bursting even in the smallest flowers on the forest floor.

In my spiritual life I turn often to another Source of life, taking time to renew my hope in the Lord, fed by the water of the Spirit. The stress of daily life, the hot dry winds of anxiety, the uncertainties that are the common human experience all combine to sap my strength. Without that renewal, life can become hard, seemingly futile.

Jeremiah, the ancient preacher, was inspired to write the people of God during a time when they were under threat of attack from a great foreign power. Their future was dark, hope almost non-existent. Their whole way of life was in peril. Where could they turn to find renewal?

This is what the Lord says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”  (Jeremiah 17)

In what or whom have you centered your life’s hope?

If you are hoping that a political party will secure your future, you are sadly duped!
If you think that a charismatic leader will make your life richer and fuller, you are destined for disappointment.
If you have made your job or wealth your anchor in life, you will find yourself worried by every fluctuation in the economy.

We choose to “trust in the LORD,” to make Him the Source of our confidence.

Let me be authentic at this moment. Trusting Him does not mean that you will be exempted from the difficulties of life. Good and devout people of faith still get cancer, still grow old and infirm, still find life touched by the meanness of people with whom they live. The faithful find themselves confused, hurt, and even sometimes doubtful. The question “why?” is one that we all ask in the inevitable dark days.

I have found solace many times in the words of the 73^rd Psalm. The writer finds his faith under assault and says “I almost lost my footing. My feet were slipping, and I was almost gone. For I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness. … These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for!”  Has life been like that for you? Have you ever wondered why God seems to have forgotten you?

That song continues with this point of change. “I tried to understand why the wicked prosper. But what a difficult task it is! Then I went into your sanctuary, O God … “I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.”

Simply said, we choose to trust. We choose faith. We grasp the truth, supported by the Scripture and the long experience of those who walk with God, that there is purpose, that there is Eternity; that we are ‘held by His hand!’

In that faith, our lives are watered by the Spirit, finding refreshing and renewal. There is a kind of lasting beauty in the one who does not wither even in times of drought. They do not turn into grumpy old cynics. They are not full of regrets. They are not locked into some time of glory that happened decades ago. They are not hateful.

Instead, they are marked by real joy, anticipating the goodness of God, and filled with a godly compassion for others.

Will you continue to make Him your Source?
Will you trust Him in the darkest moment, steady and faith-filled?
Choose to live by the River of Life!

Take this word from the Word with you today and meditate on the promise of Jesus. “Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him.)”  (John 7)

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Video of this blog https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

 

But, What If?

Do you ever get caught in the ‘what if’ kind of thoughts, the ones that create one script of dread or doom after another? What if I get cancer? What if my son gets called to war? What if the economy collapses? What if …   It happens to me occasionally around 2 am. In the darkness, my mind goes into high gear with anxious thoughts about the possibilities of tomorrow.

Most of us become fearful or anxious every now and then, but for some anxiety is a daily curse. Some feel it so acutely that they are caught in a panic that paralyzes. For others, it is nagging worry that robs their energy, like carrying a heavy weight through life. Sometimes that anxiety creates a sense of inadequacy that makes the person retreat from life.

If you are one of those who wrestles with anxiety, know that it is not because you are weak or flawed in character. I want to encourage you NOT to just ‘learn to live with it’ for there are choices that can defeat those thoughts.

We are a combination of “Thoughts-Feelings-Behaviors.”  How we live is shaped by what we think, from what we are taught to believe, or even from values we absorb without conscious thought.

What are you feeding to your thoughts? What kind of stories do you believe? If we are often in the grip of anxiety, we do well to examine our thoughts, perhaps with the help of a skilled counselor. We may become aware of thoughts not based on truth, exaggerated fears, assumptions unsupported by facts.

Christians go a step further! God, by His Spirit, enters me and the Word informs me. There is a wonderful promise in the Scripture, a key to a changed life. We learn that the Spirit will direct us and we can “be transformed by the renewing of our mind.” (Romans 12)

Another inspired passage points to the way to ‘peace.’ "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." (Philippians 4:6-10, NIV)

How do we get control of anxiety?

First, that passage urges us to pray! Real prayer is not a rote set of words we offer sleepily right before we go to bed. We engage our mind with God; we take our genuine concerns to Him. We ask for wisdom, insight, and provision. We can pray by choosing a place alone, in silence, focusing our thoughts on the Presence of God, breathing slowly, letting our thoughts become quiet so we can ‘hear’ the voice of Holy Spirit.

Next, we are told to “give thanks!”  Yes, friend, gratitude is more than a response to pleasant situations. It is sometimes a ‘sacrifice’ offered with conscious choice. We look away from our need to see the good, what God has provided. Thankfulness elevates God over Self in our minds. It helps us to see His work in our lives.

Then, that passage tells us to choose to redirect our thoughts!

“If anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
A Psalm of praise helps reshape them.
Turning all the stream of negative news that makes us feel as though the whole world is on fire will help us to better thoughts.
Setting aside the endless distraction of social media will give us clarity.

Yes, we may need to speak to ourselves to break a cycle of negative reactions. “Stop! Lord, come near and own my mind!”  It is a simple prayer that can be powerful.

That Word we read a moment ago reminds us that “you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.”

There will be times, in every life, when fatigue comes after major effort, or when illness depletes us, or when many pressures come from all side, or when disappointment finds us and won’t let go. God is still God those times. Isaiah invites us to enter the promised peace of God. "Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you." (Isaiah 54:10, NIV) The peace of which that Scripture speaks is a state of being. “Shalom” is the Hebrew word, rich in meaning – including being whole, complete, and living with a tranquil mind, as we know God’s full provision for life!

So, let me ask it again – are you entering into the promise of God, living in His holy peace, the ‘shalom’ promised to people who are embraced by His great love?

Defeat anxiety with simple prayer, by choosing gratitude (to God and others), and by redirecting your thoughts. The ‘peace of God’ is real, but we must own it! When we build our hope around money, reputation, or even the acceptance of other people – we will turn into unsettled, confused, and anxious people.

I pray that the “peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”   Amen

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Video of this blog

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