Listening And Obeying As We Trust The Lord
What a blessing it is to start out the day by finding that one of our ladies has written something so awesome and shared it on the FAM Fellowship website, just as I did this morning! And how wonderfully it ties into the recent post about being “doers” of the word and not hearers only! Thank you so much for sharing this with us, Jenn, and for your permission to share it with all of the visitors to FaithAndMarriage.com!
However, before sharing what Jenn wrote, I want to share two verses that came to my mind as I read what the Lord put on her heart this morning. The first was Philippians 4:6, the meaning of which Jenn certainly makes an excellent point of as she shares how she had to literally walk it out, because it says Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the other was Jeremiah 33:3 (NKJV), which says ‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ And I can’t help thinking of how much more peace we’d all have if we’d learn to rely on the counsel and promise of these awesome verses! Now here’s what the Lord placed on Jenn’s heart this morning:
Listening and obeying. I know for a fact that for me, that was an area that was especially hard early in my stand. However, God laid it on my heart this morning to share from Proverbs 1 (which by the way, if you are not already doing so, I really suggest that you read a Proverbs every day. It’s very simple, if it’s the 10th day of the month, you read proverbs 10). While reading Proverbs 1 this morning, the passage from verses 24-33 really spoke to me and immediately put fear in my heart for what God will and won’t do if we are not obedient to him. It says:
24 But since you refuse to listen when I call and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand,
25 since you disregard all my advice and do not accept my rebuke,
26 I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you—
27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you.
28 “Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me,
29 since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD.
30 Since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke,
31 they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.
32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; 33 but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”
I personally want God to be there in my storms. I NEED him in time of distress and trouble. I know that I would not be where I am today, had it not been that I finally put my life in God’s hands. I could not imagine now not having Him in my life. Just as verse 33 states, if we listen to him we will be at ease and without fear of harm. He wants to protect us. God does not want us to be anxious about anything.
If we are trying to control our husbands; if we are not obeying the scriptures and not letting go of the circumstances, then we are not listening to what God is telling us. Let me give you an example. The other day, I was falling into the flesh. I had received an email from my spouse that seemed very discouraging to me. I could not stop thinking about it and it was tearing my insides up. I was feeling sick. This went on for about 3 or 4 hours. All of a sudden, God laid it on my heart that I was not being obedient by getting down on my knees and praying. I grabbed my bible and hugged it tight as I called out to God. Then after praying and giving it to God, I asked God to show me in his word that the circumstance was ok. He led me to Galatians 6:1 where in the NIV, God told me “if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. “ I immediately received God’s peace for being obedient in prayer and listening to him. Then just a couple days later, I was again attacked by Satan and my flesh was anxious about not hearing from my spouse that day. While driving with my son, I was praying silently and all of a sudden on a road that is not normally traveled by many semi trucks, what drives right in front of me at an intersection, but a Covenant Transport truck! I have only seen one of these trucks in my entire stand and the first one was in Florida while on a trip visiting my oldest son. I immediately started to smile, giggle and thank God. My son was trying to find out why I was laughing. I told him it was between me and God. Do you see how the obedience of going into prayer really does work? I honestly fear NOT having God be there for me. I called on God and he listened. Call on him, ladies, in everything you need, say and do. We need to Fear God, because that means we are putting him first in our lives and that is exactly where He wants to be.
Have a blessed day. Jenn
In addition to the above message from Jenn, I hope today’s Small Straws message from Marsha Burns will bless someone as well since it really ties into the message God placed in Jenn’s heart this morning!
“December 1, 2006: As you draw close to Me, says the Lord, I will release a joy that only comes when you know Me and trust Me to bring you through every situation in victory. Do not fear or be dismayed at the things that seem to work against you. All things indeed work together for your ultimate good. I say again, do not be afraid, and do not worry. There is nothing that I do not know about your circumstances. There is no reason for you to feel alone or abandoned, for I am with you, and I am for you.
Psalm 139:7-14 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, but the night shines as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to You. For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.”
You can read Small Straws by Marsha Burns (including archived messages) at this link, where you can also sign up to receive her daily messages by email. Be blessed and encouraged!