There's a lot of turmoil in the world - that's not news to anyone that doesn't have their head in the sand. There are so many things going on that are disturbing, disheartening and even potentially threatening to people with good hearts and a desire for good. For those raising children in a world of uncertainty, it's even more so as they consider the future prospects of their young ones facing a world seemingly more ominous than the one they themselves were raised in. So there are a lot of fears out there to be had if you want them. Not everyone is sharing them, but many have them just the same. I don't.
Recently a number of people were present in a group chat while a few of us were discussing the current state of things - the seeming rise of evil, the decline of security and of good as a societal goal. These things and so many others are concerning to many right now and the comments in that chat touched on the need for preparations and the defense of home and family. Those are reasonable and good things to think about in reasonable measure, but in that chat I made a comment that I think may have either been missed or misinterpreted because the conversation went on in the vein of human home defense capabilities.
My comment was this:
I should have pinned attention in the conversation to that comment and expounded on it. I didn't and I regret not having done so, but thinking about it brought about the idea of sharing it here so that others considering the same concerns might find some solace and confidence in the source of my comment. I meant what I said in that comment, but I didn't press it, assuming those present understood what I meant. I'm not sure they did and I wish I had said more, so here we are.
Things have been in turmoil in the world for as long as the world has had humans on it. That's just a fact. It's also a fact that we in the US have had it pretty good for the most part for quite a while. Are there reasons that we could be concerned about the current unrest and seemingly unchecked evil that seems to be rising? Of course there are, but it doesn't change or shake the confidence I have in my own future ... because of what I know unshakably.
"God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?" Numbers 23:19 (NLT)
We might know that God has made promises - most of them to His own people, but there are at least a couple of questions that arise from that reality: "Who are His people?" and "Are there conditions to those promises getting carried out in my own life?" The answers to those questions and so many more are all found in the bible, but today our God's faced with so many accusations, so many discouraged people and people that have walked away from Him - not because He failed ... but because they did.
"This is what I told them: ‘Obey me, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. Do everything as I say, and all will be well! But my people would not listen to me. They kept doing whatever they wanted, following the stubborn desires of their evil hearts. They went backward instead of forward." Jeremiah 7:23-24 (NLT)
"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." John 10:27 (NLT)
"But God’s truth stands firm like a foundation stone with this inscription: “The LORD knows those who are his,” and “All who belong to the LORD must turn away from evil.”" 2 Timothy 2:20 (NLT)
There's a lot in the bible to give a reader a good understanding of who God's people are and whether or not we can be counted in that number, but it has to be read in order to glean that understanding. To be His requires obedience to what He's said - including accepting and obeying Christ, His son. If we don't know the entirety of what He's said, we can't know the whole picture. And relying on snippets or only what others might tell us might help to make us look good to some, but won't necessarily give us full and real understanding of the truth - a dangerous and potentially unfulfilling game.
As for the second question, I've said it before and I'll keep on saying it - every promise of God has a precondition that has to be met in order for us to receive the fulfillment of the promise He's made. If we don't fulfill the precondition, we deserve to be disappointed. Here's a well known promise that I offer as a classic example:
"Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NLT)
You notice I emboldened the word "if". It's the key word included with the promise. The precondition is: "if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways".The conditions to the fulfillment of each promise aren't hidden, but can be found easily because the Lord wants us to receive what He's offering. The problem for some is that they tend to get more excited about the promise than about the condition and skip over the condition that would allow them to even receive it.
I've gotten long winded here and I've drifted from where I started, but in reality, it's all relative to my confidence in the future despite what's falling apart around us in the world. The Lord Himself told us that bad things would happen, so that's no real surprise, but He's also made promises to His people. I've read the book - not only read it, but I keep reading it until I understand. And because I've done that I've been able to conclude so many things with absolute certainty. Among those ... "For myself, I recognized long ago that I'm no force to be reckoned with and that if this is the Master's timing, nothing will overcome it. It has to come according to prophecy. I'm not afraid of it because I'm not counting on my own frail human abilities." I'm paying attention to God's conditions and doing my best to make my life conform to comply with them and I'm trusting my God to do what He's promised and what I can't do for myself, against what He's foretold. I'm not afraid - my trust won't allow it. My God is my protection, my defense, my provisioner and my champion. I know about His promises and their conditions and He does not lie.
"The LORD is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?" Psalm 118:6 (NLT) - Being able to know that to be a truth for me is a stress relieving gift. If you don't have it, my advice to you - Get serious about your actual relationship with God and your knowledge of what He's said while you still have time.
"No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8 (NLT)
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