Sunday, May 01, 2005
Chapter 5
Chapter Five
We Cannot do This Alone
In Jeremiah 1:6, we find Jeremiah speaking to the Lord. Jeremiah says, “Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” I find it somewhat humorous the way that Jeremiah speaks to the Lord. “Behold” he says, as if he were going to reveal something new to God, something God didn’t already know. Jeremiah goes on to say “I cannot speak, for I am a child.” Jeremiah realized that he could not do what God had called him to do, alone; he realized the he needed God’s help. So, he went to the Helper.
Remember, God never asks us to do anything or go through anything that He will not empower us to do or give us the grace to endure. We also must recognize and remember that we cannot handle things on our own and that we need help from God. That is what God wants, He wants people who are able to recognize and admit that THEY cannot do it alone. He wants people who want His help, and realize that they need Him. God can do more through a person who realizes that THEY can not do it without His help than He can through a person (no matter how diligent they are) that thinks they can handle life on their own.
We read in Philippians 4:13, that “I can do all things (even recover from emotional pain) through Christ which strengtheneth me.” We ALL need His strength! All the works of His hands need His strength. Aren’t you so glad it’s available? All we have to do is to realize and admit that we cannot do it in our own strength.
Moses too, like Jeremiah, said that he could not do what God called him to do without help from God. So God sent Aaron to help Moses. God uses people who cannot do it alone.
We cannot do it alone, He is our only hope. Laminations 3:21-26 says, ‘’This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him…’’
His compassions fail not.
His mercies are new EVERY single morning!
I remember after my sister’s death, when I finally got to the point where I was able to sleep at night. I would wake up in the morning to the realization of her death and it would hit me all over again. It was not a dream, not a nightmare, it was real, it had really happened. That is when I claimed this passage. “…therefore have I hope…His compassions fail not. They are new (to me) every (single) morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion…therefore will I hope in Him…”
He is our only hope and only by His grace are we able to make it through, only by His grace are we what we are. In I Corinthians 15:10, Paul says, ''But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I (put your name in here), but the grace of God which was with me.'' He has bestowed on me His grace, and that is what makes me able to be what I am. That is what makes me able to do what I do, to endure what I endure. Now, it is my job to make sure that His grace is not bestowed on me in vain. Paul says, “I laboured more abundantly” I did all of this “more abundantly that they all…” but not alone “yet not I (did it), but the grace of God which was with me.” (I Corinthians 15:10)
You see, He is our only hope and only by His grace can we do what we do. Only by His grace can I cast my burden, only by His grace can I bear the burden of others. We cannot do it alone – but we CAN do it by His grace.
Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” We could turn this around a bit and paraphrase it to make it a little simpler to understand and it would say, “And we that love God KNOW that all things work together for good.”
TRUST
LOVE
MORE TRUSTWhen I read this I asked myself, that “KNOWING that all things work together for good to them that love God”, does that control me or do I allow my emotions to control me? Do I trust God enough to let that “KNOWING” control me? And what about the part that says, “…to them that love God?”
You know, we do not easily trust those that we do not properly love. I had to ask myself, “Do I really love God? Do I really love Him enough to trust Him?” We must first step out by faith and trust, and when we do, our love for Him grows. When our love for Him grows, so grows our trust in Him and we more readily place our trust in Him as we see His goodness.
At first, it is difficult for us to cast our burdens upon Him because there is a limited amount of TRUST. But as we begin to cast our burdens, we grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as it says in II Peter 3:18, “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ…” Along with growing in grace and in knowledge, we grow in LOVE for Him too. As a result, we are able to place MORE TRUST in Him. It becomes easier for us to cast our burdens, we TRUST more then we LOVE more, trust more, love more, trust, love… It is through this process that we really learn to love God wholly. The result is the knowledge we gain of His faithfulness to work all things out for our good and for His purpose.
It think it may be possible that sometimes this verse, Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” is overused or maybe not used in the correct context or situations. It seems cold and uncaring if we flippantly say “…all things work together for good…” to someone who is hurting or in emotional pain. Many times I think we quote the first part of the verse and forget about the second part of that says, “…to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.” Loving God, being called according to His purpose, that is the most important part of the verse. If we have those things right in our lives then we can be assured that “…all things (will) work together for good…”
Most all of us at one time or another have watched as children participate in the relay race called the three legged race. In case you haven’t seen it in action or have forgotten what it is like, I’ll refresh your memory. Each team is made up of two individuals whose legs (one leg of each person’s) are tied together. The race usually goes along very well as long as the two people, whose legs are tied together, keep their rhythm in sync, are going the same direction, and have the same goal and purpose.
Some time ago I witnessed such a race in which four teams participated. The race was run around a circle with four cones that were equally spaced along the circle and one cone in the center of the circle. Each team started at a certain cone, had to complete a certain number of laps around the circle, pass their starting cone, and go to the center of the circle to grab the winning cone. In this particular race one of the rules was that if you tag the opponent in front of you, they are disqualified. As I watched in amazement wondering how any two people could be so coordinated to pull this off, the team that was leading was rounding the last cone. They had only to round the cone, head for the middle of the circle, and pick up the winning cone. However, I could see that something was terribly wrong. The girl on the right had her eyes set on the team in front of them, she was reaching and could almost tag them – her goal was to tag and disqualify that team. At the same time, however, the girl on the left had her eyes set on the winning cone, she was headed to victory – her goal was to grab the winning cone and to win the race. Because they did not have the same goal or purpose, they lost the race.
Do you REALLY love God – are you living your life according to His purpose? Do you and God have the same goals and purpose or are you and God like the two girls that I watched loose the three legged race – different goals, different purposes?
God works out all things for our good. However, that does not mean that all things that happen to us are going to be good things. There is still evil present in this fallen, present world and we are still a part of it.
Late, on a cold, December night, down a long, straight, narrow, Florida highway, Ginger was headed home from work. Headed in the opposite direction was a man in a large, heavy, work truck. He was headed home from a bar. His headlights danced into my sister’s lane. As they came closer, and closer, approaching rapidly, she chose to leave the highway and pulled her car onto the shoulder of the road. She hung onto the steering wheel, maneuvering the car on the rough shoulder of the road. He pulled his big truck onto the same shoulder and did the same. Her last words where frantic screams of “What do I do now, what do I do now?” The two vehicles met and my sister was immediately ushered in the arms of a loving, almighty, all-knowing, compassionate God.
Yes, there is evil in this present world, and we are not going to be able to escape being a part of that evil just because we are Christians. But we have the assurance that the One who created this world (not in its present condition – but in a perfect condition) is the One who has overcome this world, and He is able to turn that evil around for our good and for His ultimate, long-range purpose.
Do you really love God? Do you have your mind set on His purpose and His goal for your life? Remember, we were created for His glory and for His honor.
Have you ever wondered, “Does Jesus really care”? Does He really care about me? Let me assure you, He does! I came across this old song that says it better than I ever could.
Does Jesus Care?
Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
To deeply for mirth and song;
As the burdens press, and cares distress,
And the way grows weary and long?
Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight faces into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?
Does Jesus care when I’ve tried and failed
To resist some temptation strong;
When for my deep grief I find no relief,
Though my tears flow all the night long?
Does Jesus care when I’ve said goodbye
To the dearest on earth to me,
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks Is it aught to Him?
Does He see?
O yes, He cares – I know He cares! His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, The long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.
John W. Peterson. Great Hymns of the Faith. Grand Rapids, MI:
Singspiration Music, a division of Zondervan Corporation; 1974. p. 289words by Frank E. Graeff, 1860-1919
Of course He cares. Isaiah 53:3 says, that “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief…” He is a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief; His own grief on that cruel cross of Calvary and your grief too, and yes, He cares for you.
There is another song that says, “When you can’t see His hand, trust His heart”. There has been many times when I could not see His hand and I had to trust His heart. You may be in a situation like that today. You may be in a difficult place where you can’t see His hand, can’t understand the “why” of what you are going through. Can you trust His heart? Because you know, you can’t do it alone.
We Cannot do This Alone
In Jeremiah 1:6, we find Jeremiah speaking to the Lord. Jeremiah says, “Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” I find it somewhat humorous the way that Jeremiah speaks to the Lord. “Behold” he says, as if he were going to reveal something new to God, something God didn’t already know. Jeremiah goes on to say “I cannot speak, for I am a child.” Jeremiah realized that he could not do what God had called him to do, alone; he realized the he needed God’s help. So, he went to the Helper.
Remember, God never asks us to do anything or go through anything that He will not empower us to do or give us the grace to endure. We also must recognize and remember that we cannot handle things on our own and that we need help from God. That is what God wants, He wants people who are able to recognize and admit that THEY cannot do it alone. He wants people who want His help, and realize that they need Him. God can do more through a person who realizes that THEY can not do it without His help than He can through a person (no matter how diligent they are) that thinks they can handle life on their own.
We read in Philippians 4:13, that “I can do all things (even recover from emotional pain) through Christ which strengtheneth me.” We ALL need His strength! All the works of His hands need His strength. Aren’t you so glad it’s available? All we have to do is to realize and admit that we cannot do it in our own strength.
Moses too, like Jeremiah, said that he could not do what God called him to do without help from God. So God sent Aaron to help Moses. God uses people who cannot do it alone.
We cannot do it alone, He is our only hope. Laminations 3:21-26 says, ‘’This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him…’’
His compassions fail not.
His mercies are new EVERY single morning!
I remember after my sister’s death, when I finally got to the point where I was able to sleep at night. I would wake up in the morning to the realization of her death and it would hit me all over again. It was not a dream, not a nightmare, it was real, it had really happened. That is when I claimed this passage. “…therefore have I hope…His compassions fail not. They are new (to me) every (single) morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion…therefore will I hope in Him…”
He is our only hope and only by His grace are we able to make it through, only by His grace are we what we are. In I Corinthians 15:10, Paul says, ''But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I (put your name in here), but the grace of God which was with me.'' He has bestowed on me His grace, and that is what makes me able to be what I am. That is what makes me able to do what I do, to endure what I endure. Now, it is my job to make sure that His grace is not bestowed on me in vain. Paul says, “I laboured more abundantly” I did all of this “more abundantly that they all…” but not alone “yet not I (did it), but the grace of God which was with me.” (I Corinthians 15:10)
You see, He is our only hope and only by His grace can we do what we do. Only by His grace can I cast my burden, only by His grace can I bear the burden of others. We cannot do it alone – but we CAN do it by His grace.
Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” We could turn this around a bit and paraphrase it to make it a little simpler to understand and it would say, “And we that love God KNOW that all things work together for good.”
TRUST
LOVE
MORE TRUSTWhen I read this I asked myself, that “KNOWING that all things work together for good to them that love God”, does that control me or do I allow my emotions to control me? Do I trust God enough to let that “KNOWING” control me? And what about the part that says, “…to them that love God?”
You know, we do not easily trust those that we do not properly love. I had to ask myself, “Do I really love God? Do I really love Him enough to trust Him?” We must first step out by faith and trust, and when we do, our love for Him grows. When our love for Him grows, so grows our trust in Him and we more readily place our trust in Him as we see His goodness.
At first, it is difficult for us to cast our burdens upon Him because there is a limited amount of TRUST. But as we begin to cast our burdens, we grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as it says in II Peter 3:18, “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ…” Along with growing in grace and in knowledge, we grow in LOVE for Him too. As a result, we are able to place MORE TRUST in Him. It becomes easier for us to cast our burdens, we TRUST more then we LOVE more, trust more, love more, trust, love… It is through this process that we really learn to love God wholly. The result is the knowledge we gain of His faithfulness to work all things out for our good and for His purpose.
It think it may be possible that sometimes this verse, Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” is overused or maybe not used in the correct context or situations. It seems cold and uncaring if we flippantly say “…all things work together for good…” to someone who is hurting or in emotional pain. Many times I think we quote the first part of the verse and forget about the second part of that says, “…to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.” Loving God, being called according to His purpose, that is the most important part of the verse. If we have those things right in our lives then we can be assured that “…all things (will) work together for good…”
Most all of us at one time or another have watched as children participate in the relay race called the three legged race. In case you haven’t seen it in action or have forgotten what it is like, I’ll refresh your memory. Each team is made up of two individuals whose legs (one leg of each person’s) are tied together. The race usually goes along very well as long as the two people, whose legs are tied together, keep their rhythm in sync, are going the same direction, and have the same goal and purpose.
Some time ago I witnessed such a race in which four teams participated. The race was run around a circle with four cones that were equally spaced along the circle and one cone in the center of the circle. Each team started at a certain cone, had to complete a certain number of laps around the circle, pass their starting cone, and go to the center of the circle to grab the winning cone. In this particular race one of the rules was that if you tag the opponent in front of you, they are disqualified. As I watched in amazement wondering how any two people could be so coordinated to pull this off, the team that was leading was rounding the last cone. They had only to round the cone, head for the middle of the circle, and pick up the winning cone. However, I could see that something was terribly wrong. The girl on the right had her eyes set on the team in front of them, she was reaching and could almost tag them – her goal was to tag and disqualify that team. At the same time, however, the girl on the left had her eyes set on the winning cone, she was headed to victory – her goal was to grab the winning cone and to win the race. Because they did not have the same goal or purpose, they lost the race.
Do you REALLY love God – are you living your life according to His purpose? Do you and God have the same goals and purpose or are you and God like the two girls that I watched loose the three legged race – different goals, different purposes?
God works out all things for our good. However, that does not mean that all things that happen to us are going to be good things. There is still evil present in this fallen, present world and we are still a part of it.
Late, on a cold, December night, down a long, straight, narrow, Florida highway, Ginger was headed home from work. Headed in the opposite direction was a man in a large, heavy, work truck. He was headed home from a bar. His headlights danced into my sister’s lane. As they came closer, and closer, approaching rapidly, she chose to leave the highway and pulled her car onto the shoulder of the road. She hung onto the steering wheel, maneuvering the car on the rough shoulder of the road. He pulled his big truck onto the same shoulder and did the same. Her last words where frantic screams of “What do I do now, what do I do now?” The two vehicles met and my sister was immediately ushered in the arms of a loving, almighty, all-knowing, compassionate God.
Yes, there is evil in this present world, and we are not going to be able to escape being a part of that evil just because we are Christians. But we have the assurance that the One who created this world (not in its present condition – but in a perfect condition) is the One who has overcome this world, and He is able to turn that evil around for our good and for His ultimate, long-range purpose.
Do you really love God? Do you have your mind set on His purpose and His goal for your life? Remember, we were created for His glory and for His honor.
Have you ever wondered, “Does Jesus really care”? Does He really care about me? Let me assure you, He does! I came across this old song that says it better than I ever could.
Does Jesus Care?
Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
To deeply for mirth and song;
As the burdens press, and cares distress,
And the way grows weary and long?
Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight faces into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?
Does Jesus care when I’ve tried and failed
To resist some temptation strong;
When for my deep grief I find no relief,
Though my tears flow all the night long?
Does Jesus care when I’ve said goodbye
To the dearest on earth to me,
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks Is it aught to Him?
Does He see?
O yes, He cares – I know He cares! His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, The long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.
John W. Peterson. Great Hymns of the Faith. Grand Rapids, MI:
Singspiration Music, a division of Zondervan Corporation; 1974. p. 289words by Frank E. Graeff, 1860-1919
Of course He cares. Isaiah 53:3 says, that “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief…” He is a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief; His own grief on that cruel cross of Calvary and your grief too, and yes, He cares for you.
There is another song that says, “When you can’t see His hand, trust His heart”. There has been many times when I could not see His hand and I had to trust His heart. You may be in a situation like that today. You may be in a difficult place where you can’t see His hand, can’t understand the “why” of what you are going through. Can you trust His heart? Because you know, you can’t do it alone.
