| Large companies and small businesses alike, spend significant amounts of money to protect their assets. Not only do companies need physical security but increasing money is spent on digital security. When you have something valuable, you need to protect it from danger. Our faith, as Christians, is precious and to be treasured. We are encouraged throughout scripture to be on our guard and to protect our spiritual life from danger and destruction, from thieves who will try to steal from us. Over the years I have noticed three problems that can pose danger to our faith and trust in God. 1. Looking at your problems instead of Jesus. We can be consumed by the problems and challenges of everyday life. A ‘to-do’ list can be overwhelming enough but when we add in those extra ‘issues’ we become paralyzed. When we focus on what is wrong, or what our problems are, we lose perspective. Problems become bigger than they really are. We have to keep looking to Jesus and asking him to give us perspective over all matters in life. “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” Hebrews 12:1-2 2. Listening to lies rather than believing the truth. If you repeat something often enough people will start to believe it. We have an enemy of our soul who is called the ‘Father of lies.’ He is an expert at getting you to believe lies about yourself or about the gospel. When you listen to him, you become discouraged about your own status and fearful of other people – thinking that they are only out to hurt you. Our enemy comes along and lies to us about how much God loves us, who we are in Christ and what Jesus can do to help us today. We need to get God’s truth into our hearts to drown out the lies. “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:21,22 3. Living without rest. We live in a very ‘driven’ society. We are on the go all the time. Many of us thrive on that kind of living – go, go, go. But when we are always on the go, we have no margin in our lives and no space for anything to happen out of the ordinary. That usually means we aren’t getting enough rest or spending enough time with our loved ones. Above all, it is an indicator that we are not feeding and nurturing our spiritual life. Without rest, really stopping and just sitting in the presence of God, we are in danger of becoming a wreck. We run the risk of becoming disoriented and burned out. We must learn to build margin into every area of life, especially to feed our souls. “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28,29 Take a moment and make sure your faith is safe and secure! See you Sunday, Pastor David |
