I'm BACCKKKK!!
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C. S. Lewis wrote, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: It is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."
We generally want to avoid pain at all costs. Yet is impossible to live a pain-free life. And as C. S. Lewis suggested, God will use pain in our lives to get our attention.
Perhaps something has happened in your life recently that is waking you to the reality that you need to get right with God. It may have been the death of a close friend or perhaps your own recent close brush with death. Maybe some other kind of crisis has hit, showing you your need for God.
The Bible tells the story of a proud, young man who didn't think that he needed God. This was in spite of the fact that his grandfather, King Nebuchadnezzar, had come to faith in God. In his day, Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful man on the planet. He had at his disposal the treasures of the world, with thousands of slaves to do his work, day and night. This was reflected in the glory of Babylon, with its high, broad walls and hanging gardens, which were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Nebuchadnezzar once stood on the balcony of his palace, looked out across the city and remarked, "Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?" (Daniel 4:30 NIV) He was saying, "I'm king of the world!" –and he was.
We can feel that way, too. The bills are paid, our health is good, and the skies are blue. We begin to take credit for all that we possess and have accomplished. But this is when we need to be careful, because everything we have is a gift from God: our health, our family, our possessions, our career and even our very breath.
We might be like Nebuchadnezzar and think, "Who needs, or even wants, God?" But then the bottom drops out. That is what happened to Nebuchadnezzar. God told him, "Your royal authority has been taken from you. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes" (Daniel 4:31 NIV).
Nebuchadnezzar suffered from some type of mental illness for a time, but then he came to his senses and believed in God. Yet his grandson Belshazzar couldn't have cared less about Grandpa Neb – in spite of the fact that he had heard of the great miracles God had performed, like predicting the future and delivering Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the fiery furnace. Not only did Belshazzar not believe in God, but he went out of his way to insult and mock God. And that, by the way, is a really bad idea.
As Jim Croce used to sing, "You don't tug on Superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, you don't pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger, and you don't mess around with Jim." I would add that you don't mock God either, because the Bible says, "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows" (Galatians 6:7 NIV).
I once laughed at Christians. I thought Christianity was all a joke, and meanwhile, my life was empty and lame. I had tried partying, drinking and drugs, and I was searching. And one day, instead of mocking Christians, I actually listened to their message, and my life changed as a result.
Belshazzar, however, didn't listen to God's message. He ignored it, and he did so to his own peril. He had inherited everything he had from his grandfather, who had been humbled and later restored, but like many young people, Belshazzar didn't learn from his elders. Sitting in security and splendor, young Belshazzar decided it was party time. He gave a great feast for 1,000 of his lords, no doubt in honor of some pagan god or gods. But while all this was happening, judgment was at the door. God, with his own finger, scrawled some heavenly graffiti on the wall: "Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin" (Daniel 5:25 NIV).
A terrified Belshazzar called in his astrologers, who could not help him. Then his grandmother told him about an old prophet named Daniel, who had helped his grandfather come to faith in God. The 90-year-old Daniel walked into the presence of the terrified young king, told him about his grandfather's conversion, and reminded him that he knew better. Then he interpreted God's handwriting for the young king: "Mene" meant "numbered"; "tekel" meant "weighed"; and "parsin" meant "divided."
To loosely paraphrase, God had numbered the days of Belshazzar's life, and the party was over. He had weighed Belshazzar's life on the balances, and he failed the test. His kingdom had been divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Belshazzar's number was up. The writing was on the wall.
In the same way, the Bible tells us our days are numbered (see Psalm 90:10). We don't know when our lives will end. But rather than be depressed by this fact, it should motivate us to want to make each day count and glorify the God who made us.
So don't waste your life and find this out the hard way. Don't put off getting right with God like Belshazzar did. Because one day we all will be weighed on God's divine scales.
Posted in Food4ThoughT
Are your circumstances weighing you down? Do you feel trapped in your present situation? If so, you may be searching for a way out of your suffering. You may be vainly trying to find relief and solace in the flawed solutions of this world. Yet as we learn from the apostle Paul, God is the only solution to our struggles.
For years, Paul struggled with what he called "a thorn in my flesh" (2 Corinthians 12:7). Scholars have theorized about what this might have been, but no one knows for sure what Paul faced. We do, however, know that it was mentally and physically exhausting for Paul. Perhaps because we aren't certain what it was, we can relate more to Paul's struggle as we compare it to our own.
In the midst of his pain and suffering, Jesus spoke directly to Paul, reassuring him of His watchcare. "Three times," says Paul, "I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness'" (2 Corinthians 12:8-9).
Few of us like to think of ourselves as being weak. We like to think of ourselves as self-sufficient, even in our spirituality. We think we need to be strong in our Christian walk, so when sorrow comes, we strike out against it. When faced with discouragement, we draw back in fear. In the face of disappointments, we become angry, wondering if God has forgotten us. But He hasn't, and He won't.
God didn't forget nor dismiss Paul's thorn, and He won't overlook ours. He uses life's stresses-physical and emotional-to draw us closer to Him. He can speak to us and show us how and where His grace is most efficient.
God could have eliminated Paul's struggle in a moment. But He knew that Paul would receive the greater blessing and the greater lesson by learning to rely on God's perfect strength through his difficulties. God knew that His grace would not manifest nor shine in a strong and self-sufficient person like it would in a man who suffered in weakness.
Rather than removing Paul's distress, God used it to strengthen His servant and teach him about His faithfulness in all circumstances. By trusting the Savior, Paul learned so much about mercy and grace. He discovered that no matter what he faced, God's power and grace were available to him-nothing is more powerful than these.
Paul wrote, "I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).
Do you find yourself stretched to the breaking point today? Even if you believe "I can't take another day of this. I just need to leave, to escape, to begin again,"-you can't outrun God. When you are faced with hardship, you need to run toward Him, not away from His love.
Some people, even Christians, have been running from God their whole lives. When the storms of life come, instead of leaning on the everlasting arms of Christ, they choose to run to false shelters, attempting to escape His reach. In the Psalms, King David had a realization about the wonder of God's grace and forgiveness, rather than running.
He wrote, "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast" (Psalm 139:7-10).
People who run from God miss some of His greatest joys and blessings by failing to turn to Christ for grace and power in times of weakness. God's supernatural strength is a surge of hope and encouragement when we face difficulty or feel trapped by our circumstances. He brings an embrace of love when we suffer rejection or betrayal.
Without a doubt, you can know that no matter what life menaces you with, God will pull you to safety if you call on Him. He is the One that can save you from certain defeat and give you the hope you need. You will also find that when you pray to Him, He will deliver you from the sin that threatens your fellowship with Him.
An eternal sense of peace and security is readily available to us through prayer. Panic and anxiety are no match for God's grace. He goes before us into life's battles. The victory is ours, though it does not come through our efforts or strength. It comes from His hands and His grace. No one is more committed to our success than Christ.
No matter what you face, God's grace is sufficient. His power is revealed and made perfect through your weakness. Never be ashamed to cry out to the Lord. He listens for you and will come to you, fulfilling the promise of His matchless, perfect grace.
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