Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Scripture- “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” – Matthew 6:24
Insight: The Christian life is nothing if not a continuous learning experience. We are never standing still in our faith walk, we are either moving forward or falling back. Many times, God needs to remind us of valuable lessons, which even though we think we have learned or been through before, we still need refreshing. His purposes are never to stunt us or damage us in our faith, but to grow us. One such lesson has been ongoing for me, and that is to realize that I don’t get to make deals with God about how things should go, or what the outcomes of prayers should look like, but He alone dictates based on my obedience and faithfulness in not only learning the required lessons but in putting them into practice. Isaiah 64:8 reminds us “Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
Recently I have been going through a painful trial that I thought I had already learned about not being able to “serve two masters,” as Matthew 6:24 above teaches. But upon recent prayer and reflection, it has become apparent that I was trying to be the Master and I was treating God like the clay in the subtle actions of my time spent. In other words, I was spending more time worrying about or trying to find security in money than I was in God. Not in an overtly obvious way, but subtly in my heart. This revelation has left me depressed and dejected to see how far I have slid back from a painful lesson I was previously taught years ago. Worrying by its very nature is showing a lack of trust in God’s ability to provide. Faith by its very nature is believing in what we cannot yet see, according to Hebrews 11:1 I guess sometimes we just need so much more on the job training than we think. Our actions must align with our words and professions of faith or they are meaningless. Thank God He is long suffering, patient, forgiving and kind, or my foolishness would require even harsher measures. As it is, I have lost a good deal of sleep and focus as He seared into me that I can’t serve him effectively while also being so concerned about something that is as unstable and insecure as money. Trying to find security in a certain number, or amount of wealth, is fool’s gold. The pain of this trial has literally led me to my knees, but that has become a very good thing indeed, as I learn all over again how to surrender every part of my life to Him. 1 Corinthians 3:11 is a good reminder about what is really secure and important: “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” I have literally been crying out in my despair and frustration at my lack of discipline in this area and it has humbled me. I thought I had conquered this area of my faith, but I have come to realize that was not so, it was only in words and not in thoughts and deeds. These lessons are real and they are hard, but they are necessary to become the people Christ needs us to be so that others can see His reflection in us. When we are worried about and focused on loss of worldly possessions, we are focused on lack and we are weak witnesses for Christ. It is only when we are fully surrendered, trusting in Him for all things in our life, that we can shine His light through us. “The Lord is my Sheppard, I lack nothing,” as Psalm 23:1 says, should instead be our daily prayer and focus.
Prayer: Father God, help us to learn the lessons we need to learn and through your strength and courage, to not forget them We cannot serve two masters. We must put you first above all else, plain and simple. Our actions must align with our words and professions of faith or they are meaningless. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
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