O Lord, how my adversaries have increased! Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, "There is no deliverance for him in God." Selah. But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head. Psalm 3:1-3 By encouraging himself in God's faithfulness, David stepped out of a fear mode and into a faith mode. We need this same attitude. Though many rise against us, we will look to God as our shield. When adverse circumstances hit our lives, we have two options: Worry about it or trust God. There is no middle ground.

Our intellect needs to get transformed by the renewing of our minds. When we are presented with a challenge, we can either drift into the nebulous world of freak-out, or we can get hold of the Word of God and use it like a battering ram to go in and renew our minds. In Psalms, David writes that the one who meditates on the Word constantly "will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers" (Psalm 1:2-3). David got the victory by making the Word his strength.

Some of you have been through recent trials that have been embarrassing. They have numbed your mind, and you have even felt hurt before the Lord. Like Martha, you think if God had only come sooner, Lazarus wouldn't have died (John 11:21). Yet, Jesus' response was that "if you believe, you will see the glory of God" (John 11:40). Even if you have had troubles that have lasted twenty years, don't give up on believing. Even if certain concerns have plagued you your whole life, God can turn them around. With people it may be impossible, but not with God! (Luke 18:27).

Even in the midst of hardship you can help others. Some of you who have had the enemy breathing down on you time and again are gaining sensitivity to others' troubles. Every time the trials of life hit you, your credibility to help others rises. When a trial comes, you can either go into self-pity mode or become tenacious, filling up on God's promises. "This is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith" (1 John 5:4b). Let's not belly up and quit, but flat out trust Him.

Have faith in God,
Pastor Jeff




© 2007 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.