Reminding myself is probably the hardest part of my core beliefs. I could understand Job much better now after reading so many times.
In my office, I have this cute cartoon that my mother gave me as a reminder of life in this world. It is showing a cute person wearing the Armor of God and shooting arrows (devil's schemes). A quote under the cartoon states:
"Look at it this way...... Without these trials, testing of your faith, working of patience, and fighting a good fight.......LIFE COULD BE BORING." (see 1 Peter 1:7)Through the Sword of the Spirit, we have the power to overcome any evil that we face in this world. God is VERY ACTIVE in His moment-by-moment control over everything He has made to ensure that everything He has created are going according to His will. He is active in every detail of it. He’s active at every moment. He doesn’t stand back and let things happen because He decides to intervene if something or someone is not going according to His will. He governs the world moment-by-moment through providence, so that everything that happens, every detail of our life occurs by God's divine providence or by God’s express permission. He is in control of everything. Even the bad things that happen to us are circumscribed by a loving providence and God promises to use them all for our ultimate good. There is a verse in the Bible that God promises that there won’t be anything so bad happen to us that we’re not able to bear it.
God constantly intervenes in our lives through providence. If you read the main stories in the Old Testament relating to God's providence, God providentially led Joseph, Ruth, Esther, Job and others to accomplish great things in His eternal plan.
We do have a freewill however we need to understand God's Sovereign of His plan according to His will. Jesus said in Matthew 10:29: Are not two sparrows sold for a penny ? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.
This is directly from the Word of God. God governs the world (Isa. 40:22-24), the nations (Isa. 40:15-17), and us (Proverbs 16:9).We have to understand that God controls everything including our freewill. The "freewill" is always subject to God's sovereignty and His divine freewill. God is absolutely powerful, that God is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, that God is immutable, never changes, that God is all wise, perfectly just, holy, righteous. God is ruling all things to work together for our good and His purpose. Romans 8:28-29 "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them."
Proverbs 20:24 A man's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand his own way?
Proverbs 21:1 The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases.
Jeremiah 10:23 [ Jeremiah's Prayer ] I know, O LORD, that a man's life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.
The potter (God) is working with this soft, yielding clay (us). If this clay does not submit, the potter may not be able to do what I should do according to His will. The potter still could make anything except for useful and beautiful (spiritual fruitful) out of an unyielding blob of clay. If God is going to make those kinds of vessels out of clay (us), however, we are going to have to yield to the spiritual law of surrender. Give ourselves to God as a living sacrifice and let Him have us--all of us. Of course at the same time, I understand that God, just because He is almighty, needs no support from me and He is still able to do what He wills to do. Often I noticed that the providential of God leads me to what I call "coincidences" in my life which perhaps God will make sure that His wills will be done at His right time and place. There are two worlds, set over against each other, dominated by two wills, the will of man (me) and the will of God, respectively.
God is always making provisions for my future according to His will by providing and guiding for His glory. God is very concerned about my life and He is always ready for my future. How many providence in my life that I failed to recognized in the past? I have recognized some big ones but missed the little ones. God leads me to my destiny according to His will and glory. No matter what I do, God is always guiding me through my circumstances. Nothing is impossible for Him. No matter what I do, God will direct me if I aware of it or not. I am learning that God will always lead me to His providential circumstances for my own good, in His will and for His glory. I am to turn my heart, my life, my health, my mind, my time, my money and my talents to God. God knows me so well that He will do His providential actions at the very moment of my need according to His will. For the longest time, I thought I have planned and executed my life all by myself but really never aware that my life have always been guided by God. The real issue that I have been learning recently is that the real hindrance to my spiritual progress is not fully submitting to the Holy Spirit. Nothing holy and genuine will be done in my life until my will is surrendered in active obedience to the Holy Spirit. I need to focus on my own true prayer so that I am not making efforts to persuade God to do our will; but rather to make myself submit to the Holy Spirit so that God can guide me according to His will. When I pray, I need to transfer my will to God's will. My personal destiny is depended on my response to the Holy Spirit and God's words.
I have posted this in the past and this is my REMINDER for this week after struggling last week.
1 comment:
What was it Mother Theresa said, "I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish that He didn't trust me so much."
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