Be Guided By His Light

One day last week I was talking with a lady who was telling me, that the night before our conversation,  there was a terrible storm in her city. The storm was so bad that they lost their power.  Although her children are approximately sixteen to over twenty years old, they came straight to her bedroom when the lights went out.  She told me, that she finally told them,” just go get your blankets and sleep in here tonight”.

My first thought was that we simply are not created to be comfortable living in the darkness of any kind.  Living in darkness should make us just as uncomfortable, as my friend’s children were when the lights went out due to the storm..   

There are times when Satan tries to lure us away from the Light,  and drag us into his sin-filled dark world.  Those are the times that we should turn, and run back to God, just as these young people ran to their mom and dad’s bedroom for comfort and safety.

The more time that we spend in God’s presence and in His word, the more we will realize the truth of Psalm 119:105 Your word is like a lamp that shows me the way.  It is like a light that guides me.  Psalm !!9:114 You are my place of safety.  You are like a shield that keeps me safe.  I have put my hope in your word.

We should never have a reason to worry or fret because, when our hope is in God, even the darkest moments in our lives will be guided by His light.  Praise God, that the God that we serve is the Light Of The World!

John 8:12
¹² When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Acts 26:17-18
¹⁷ I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them ¹⁸ to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
1 John 1:5
⁵ This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
John 12:35-36
³⁵ Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. ³⁶ Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.
John 12:44-46
⁴⁴ Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. ⁴⁵ The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me. ⁴⁶ I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.
John 3:19-20
¹⁹ This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. ²⁰ Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.
1 John 1:7
⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[a] sin.
Revelation 21:23
²³ The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.

A Change In Perspective 

I am going to physical therapy treatments, for some issues dealing with my sciatic nerve.  My sessions are actually in an Oncology center, right across from where patients are receiving their chemotherapy treatments.

A few days ago, after I had finished one of my sessions, I was waiting for the doors to an elevator to open, when I saw an older gentleman approach to catch the elevator as well.  He looked like he was exhausted from his chemo treatments.  He walked with a cane, and it was clear that he was ready to go home to rest. We spoke briefly and he was quite kind.

Finally, the elevator doors opened, and we got on.  As the door to the elevator was about to close, a woman hurried to catch a ride down with us.  When she got on, I cheerfully spoke and said, “How are you doing today”?
Oh, my goodness why did I even ask?   Her response to me was “I can’t be doing too good if I am here, can I?”.   She did not smile, and there was quite a bit of bitterness in her tone.  When that was the response that I got, I noticed the older gentleman lift his head slightly, and looked at me in disbelief at her response.   

I responded to her by saying, “I think that we are all doing good.  We woke up this morning, and so many people didn’t”.   I also told her that we were blessed to be able to receive the healthcare that we needed.  Her response back to my comment actually surprised me.   She said, “ma’am you are right”.   I need to change my perspective.  I need to look at things differently”.

I am sharing this story because, we all have been guilty at one time or another of forgetting that even when we are going through challenging or difficult times, we still have so much to be thankful for.

I don’t know what you may be facing today but trust, that no matter how hard things may be, someone, somewhere, is dealing with something that will make your situation pale in comparison to theirs.

One way to combat the feeling of despair and hopelessness is to take a few minutes at the end of each day and write down the things that you are most grateful, for that day.  When your focus shifts to a place of gratitude, it is amazing how much better you will feel about your situation, even though nothing has really changed.

God is blessed when we are grateful and when we sincerely express our gratitude to Him no matter our circumstances.

Remember when our attitudes change our perspectives change, and the secret to all of this is gratitude.  

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Chronicles 16:34
³⁴ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Psalm 50:20
²⁰ You sit and testify against your brother and slander your own mother’s son.
Philippians 4:6
⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Psalm 107
¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

Let’s Be Givers

Mark 12:41-44
⁴¹ Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. ⁴² But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.
⁴³ Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. ⁴⁴ They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”
1st. King 17:12-16
¹² “As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.”
¹³ Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. ¹⁴ For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’”
¹⁵ She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. ¹⁶ For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah.

On a scale of one to ten, with ten being the highest, how would you rank your giving?  Most of us would probably feel that we give adequately.  Some would probably admit that they don’t give nearly enough.  And even fewer would say that they have ever given sacrificially.

I have come to realize over the years, that my level of giving is in direct correlation to my view of who God is. When I finally wrapped my head around the fact, that I own nothing, and God owns everything, I was able to release that which He had loaned to me more freely.  I am not the source of my provision, but God is.

It is one thing to be a good steward of that which God has entrusted to us, and it is totally another to be stingy. When I looked up the definition of the word stingy it said; unwilling to give or spend, to be ungenerous.  I personally would not like to have that label associated with my name.  What about you?

Could it be that those who are stingy, think that they are the source of what they have been blessed with.  With this thought pattern, it is easy to become a person who starts to worship and hoard their possessions instead of worshipping the God who is the source of everything.   We should always be mindful to worship the Giver instead of the gifts.

In Mark 12:41-43 Jesus speaks of the sacrificial gift that a poor widow gave.  She only had two small copper coins to give, which were only worth a few cents.  Jesus told His disciples that the widow had put more into the treasury than all of the others, because they gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty,  put in everything- all that she had to live on.  This would definitely be considered sacrificial giving.

In 1st King 17  the widow at Zarephath had only a handful of oil and a little olive oil in a jug. She made Elijah a loaf of bread with all that she had, even before feeding herself and her son.  Although the widow initially thought that after she and her son ate what little they had, that she would lay down and die.God honored her  generosity by promising that; “The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends the rain on the land”.  What incredible faith she had, sharing when she didn’t even know where her next meal would come from.

Giving is absolutely an act of faith.   It’s trusting that  some way, some how God will continue to provide more.

Please be clear,  I am not referring only to our financial gifts, but also your time, gifts and talents.  Any resource that God has given to us is to be generously shared with others.  Why not start today looking for more opportunities in which you can serve God by giving to others.  When you feel hesitant to share just be mindful to remember that you can’t beat God giving, no matter how hard you try!

Other Scriptures On Giving

Acts 20:35
³⁵ In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
2nd Corinthians 9:7
⁷ Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Luke 6:38
³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Hebrews 13:16
¹⁶ And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
Proverbs 19:17
Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord,  and he will reward them for what they have done.
Proverbs 22:9
The generous will themselves be blessed,    for they share their food with the poor.
Proverbs 28:27
Those who give to the poor will lack nothing,   but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.