by David Brenneman
"Job...was blameless, upright, fearing God" Job 1:1
Job knew what it meant to be caught off guard by disaster. He
lost family, property, and wealth all in a matter of moments. Yet somehow he managed to honor God with affirmations of trust.
How? We know that Job was a godly and upright man and that he
made sacrifices to the Lord. But here is the key to why Job was able
to endure: "This was Job's regular practice" (Job 1:5 NLT).
Certainly, Job had questions about his losses, but ultimately,
he trusted in God's goodness and sovereignty to the end because
he had a solid relationship with the Lord in the day-to-day. In this we see a valuable principle: never underestimate the value of a
God-honoring routine. Our daily times alone with the Father build
strength within us that sustains us when we're thrown headlong
into adversity.
So don't wait until times of trouble hit to get ready spiritually-
that only leads to a more difficult battle. Train for those seasons
now by safeguarding your quiet times with the Lord. Because every
day that you enjoy His presence, delve into His Word, and pray
about what concerns you, He strengthens your soul. You may not
see the benefits immediately, but when the trials come, you`ll be
surprised at how He's prepared you.
Jesus, I love meeting with You daily. Thank You for strengthening my soul. Amen.
-Trusting God with Today. Dr. Charles Stanley.
One sure thing caught my attention in reading this last night.
A year ago tomorrow marks a time in my life where the unexpected happened. But in reading this: "So don't wait until times of trouble hit to get ready spiritually-
that only leads to a more difficult battle. Train for those seasons
now by safeguarding your quiet times with the Lord. Because every
day that you enjoy His presence, delve into His Word, and pray
about what concerns you, He strengthens your soul. You may not
see the benefits immediately, but when the trials come, you`ll be
surprised at how He's prepared you." I have a greater appreciation for these valley's and mountain tops that Jesus lead me through.
He taught me to safeguard my quiet times with Him. He taught me to run to Him first, not after trying other things.
I still remember being outside the building sitting in my truck wondering what in the world was going on. Reviewing everything, every word spoken, every choice, every decision. Not seeing anything amiss. So prayer began because I certainly needed my Savior to save once again.
It's been my practice to daily be spending time in my Bible every morning and every evening. Even if I lost some sleep in doing so.
My Dear Reader you too must guard, safeguard, your time with Jesus. There's nothing that will satisfy when things aren't going the way you're expecting than knowing you've got Jesus in your corner.
All too often people sacrifice this precious time with Jesus and long ago that was me.
How can we live lives that are full of grace and truth if we don't even know what God means by it?
Everything you have, have had, or ever will have or experience, is a fleeting vapor in time. All will become a memory either for you or those whom you know. All physical things will be consumed by the fires that will eventually come to this universe at the end of the thousand year reign of Jesus Christ.
What survives is what we know and have come to learn about our Savior Jesus Christ. What survives is our transformed life in Christ. What lives on in eternity after the final judgment at the end of that thousand year reign of Jesus Christ is the lives of those who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone for salvation.
All these things we spend, or rather expend, money on to keep or restore or to possess for a season are all going to turn to ashes.
What we do, what we learn, what we have in Christ is the only thing that's worth protecting. Job's integrity stayed intact during his tribulation. He lost practically everything in his life and clung to His Savior and Lord.
As Dr. Stanley pointed out, "as was his practice". Fast forward to Daniel. Those who died for their attempt to kill Daniel knew of his practice of prayer 3 times a day no matter what was going on in his life. It was his practice.
We have things that are our practice that by no means should be a part of our lives because Jesus is not honored in them. We follow the world in many practices that we should not. Excusing such things by referring to them by other names.
Protect your time with Jesus.
Safeguard your heart in Christ Jesus.
"Give of your best to the Master, give of your best to the King." as a line from a hymn says.
Jesus is ready to return to call His own to Himself. Will He find you as a very close friend or will He find you as one who really didn't try all that hard to get to know Him?
How you live your life shows your answer.
How well you guard your time with Jesus speaks volumes.
All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation.
A corporation not for profit.
La Habra, CA All rights reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment