Finding Safety in an Unsteady World - Martin Wiles

As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Exodus 33:22 NLT

She had been abused and needed a safe place. No one ever said finding safety in an unsteady world was easy.

Johnnie was in a situation of her own making. For thirteen years, she had endured an abusive marriage—one she entered to escape the harsh atmosphere of her upbringing.

When the opportunity came for Johnnie to move out, she took it. Jim seemed like a good guy when she dated him, but his true identity revealed itself shortly after she said, “I do.” Abusive words, demeaning remarks, bruises. They all became the norm. Johnnie tried to fend them off but had to admit they were taking their toll on her self-esteem.

Eventually, Johnnie decided she’d had enough, but she needed a safe place. She didn’t turn to a home for abused women but rather contacted her parents. By this time, her dad had mellowed. She thought she could endure life with them until she could make other arrangements.

Moses needed a safe place, too. While he was on the mountain receiving the Ten Commandments from God, the people were below, partying as if they had no God to whom they were accountable. When God told Moses to leave the mountain and take the people with him, but that he wouldn’t be tagging along, the declaration was more than Moses could stand. God decided to give them another chance, but Moses needed reassurance. So God placed Moses in a crevice and let him glance at his presence as he passed by.

Life is tough and filled with many experiences we’d rather not repeat. Wallowing in self-pity or in the memory of the event only keeps us smelling the toxic nature of what we have experienced. A better course is asking God to put us in his safe place.

When God places us in His safe place, he reassures us of his presence. If separation has taken place, it’s because we left him—not because he left us. He promises never to abandon his children. In God’s safe places, we’re also reminded of who he is and who we’re not. He is the all-powerful Creator, qualified to lead us through any and every circumstance and protect us in the process.

Moses had nothing to fear; nor do we. When life gets tough, ask God to put you in his safe place where you can find grace, reassurance, and peace.

Father, thank you for the safe places you provide when life is more than we can handle.

 

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Put the Past to Rest - Martin Wiles

Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT

She ran from her past, but she couldn’t put the past to rest. 

Frances and her sister lived with an abusive father. Their mother died when they were both very young. Their father molested them sexually and drank continuously. Finally, child welfare intervened and placed them with an aunt.

Frances’ restless spirit wouldn’t rest. She joined the hippie movement and all the accompanying activities when she was old enough. She drank to excess, experimented with all types of hallucinogenic drugs, and traveled the country trying to find herself. Occasionally, she showed up to visit her old childhood sweetheart, who still loved her dearly. He wanted to marry her, but she wouldn’t commit. She didn’t know it, but she was still running from her past, trying to make it disappear through unhealthy relationships and habits. 

One day, Frances decided to put her restless spirit to bed. She called up her childhood sweetheart and proposed to him. They married, but there wasn’t any happily ever after—just happy. Drugs and numerous sexual relationships had presented her with a sexually transmitted disease for which there was no cure. She died shortly after taking her vows. 

The apostle Paul gave the formula for putting our pasts to rest. It doesn’t happen through free sex, addictive substances, financial security, or through the hundreds of other ways we might try. We lay our past to rest through a relationship with Christ. Frances’ childhood sweetheart knew that, but he could never convince her until it was too late. 

Knowing Christ through faith doesn’t erase our past, but He gives us a different perspective. The baggage of past mistakes—self-inflicted or not--will always follow us, but it doesn’t have to haunt us. Christ forgives our past, present, and future mistakes and sins immediately when we ask. 

Who we are in Christ presently isn’t who we once were. Others may label us addicts, abusers, gamblers, or criminals. Christ labels us forgiven children. We may remember how terrible our past was, but Christ forgets it and gives us the ability to tell it goodnight. 

If you’re in Christ, put your past to rest so that you can get on with the present and future. 

Father, thank you for forgiving our past and giving us a bright future. 

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Not My Body - Martin Wiles

And the church is his body; it is filled by Christ, who fills everything everywhere with his presence. Ephesians 1:23 NLT

It’s not my body after all.

“It’s my body. I can do whatever I want with it” is an argument often used by advocates of particular causes or those with habits that can potentially ruin their health—even kill them. On the surface, the argument appears valid. It is my body, and I do have power over it. If I want to go into the kitchen, work outside, attend church, or drive somewhere, I can make my body obey. Whatever messages enter my mind that require bodily movement, my body will obey unless it’s physically incapacitated, or I ignore the message.

The Bible says God is spirit, but he showed up in bodily form in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ body moved according to the Father’s plan. He went where God told him and spoke the words the Father whispered in his ear. But that body was mangled, crucified, placed in a tomb, raised to life three days later, and eventually received back into heaven.

God’s body is now represented in every believer’s body. And if it belongs to God, then it doesn’t belong to us. While we still have control over it and can ignore God, we’ll only be blessed and rewarded when we make our bodies follow the messages God puts in our minds. We receive those messages as we daily read his Word, pray, and pay attention to the still small voice of his Spirit.

God expected his Son’s body to follow his directives when he was on earth, and he wants his church body to do the same.

Let God direct your body to accomplish his perfect will. You’ll be glad you obeyed.

Prayer: Father, direct our bodies so that we may accomplish Your kingdom’s work in this world. 

Tweetable: Are you following God's directives for your body? 

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Those Dreaded Decisions - Martin Wiles

If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. James 1:5 NLT

“You made your bed. Now lie on it.” Ah, those dreaded decisions.

She had a plan, but it required being eighteen, which she wasn’t. Jonesy loved her parents but hated their rules. Even more, she hated the rules of the private religious school her parents had her enrolled in. Their rules seemed to mimic her parents’ rules. She and her friends always came up with some plan to disobey the rules and then see how long it would take before someone reported them to the principal.

But Jonesy could see graduation in her future, and she didn’t plan to live with her parents any longer than she had to after that. She started her search for a man to marry. Any man would do. And she found one. Seemingly, a nice fella. He proposed, they married, and her misery began all over again. Physical abuse. Emotional abuse. He even abused her cats and the dogs they raised.

Jonesy needed another escape plan, but knew she couldn’t go home. She had made her bed, and now she was lying on it. For thirteen years, she lay in her hard bed before she decided to get off it and find something better . . . someone who would love her and treat her as she deserved.

Jonesy didn’t do what James told his readers to do: ask God for wisdom. Had she, she would never have married the man she did, nor lay on the hard bed she did for so long.

Asking God for wisdom in our decisions is important because we can’t undo many of our choices. And some come with consequences we didn’t think about or plan. God can provide forgiveness for foolish and sinful decisions, but He often lets us wallow in our consequences so that we won’t make the same mistake again. Like a parent who lets their child feel the heat of their bad decisions.

Since we are human and don’t have perfect wisdom, asking God for advice before we make decisions only makes sense. This requires a degree of humility and intentionality because we’re prone to think we know it all, and we’re also quick to decide without thinking or asking first. 

When faced with decisions, the correct order is God, others, and then trusted resources.

And when possible, we should always avoid spur-of-the-moment decisions. They rarely provide anything beneficial for us and often lead to debt, anger, regret, and addictions.

Map out a godly plan for how you will make decisions.

Prayer: Father, give us the wisdom we need for our daily decisions. 

Tweetable: Who do you consult before making those dreaded decisions? 

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Meandering Monday - Peace in Turmoil - Martin Wiles

Welcome to Meandering Monday, where we take a trip back to an earlier post and enjoy it again.

“It is all right,” the Lord replied. “Do not be afraid. You will not die.” Judges 6:23 NLT

Elsie and Connie grew up in a home with little peace.

Their father was a stern man who desperately tried to eke out a living on a small farm with less than one hundred acres of open farmland. With only one small tractor, he struggled to tend his crops through their various stages of growth. Finding money to hire workers challenged him even more. If this wasn’t enough, he had to hire wealthier farmers with larger equipment when the time came to harvest his crops.

Unfortunately, his manner of dealing with his lot was unsettling. Through late nights of whiskey drinking, he attempted to forget his difficult situation. With gambling, he hoped to win the money necessary to transform his circumstances.

Elsie, Connie, and their mother would run and hide when they saw his truck pulling into the driveway. They knew he was drunk—and perhaps mad if he had lost at cards—but couldn’t ever determine what his reaction might be when he entered the door. Peace in his presence was rare for the small country family.

Gideon wasn’t feeling much tranquility either. An angel of the Lord appeared to him, telling him God was going to use him to defeat a formidable enemy of his people: the Midianites. After offering a sacrifice and watching the angel evaporate into the flames, Gideon realized he had been in God’s presence. Fear inflamed him, but God assured him he wouldn’t die. He managed to unearth peace in God’s presence.

Finding peace in God’s presence is simple when we understand forgiveness, acknowledge his power, and accept his love. Forgiveness removes the fear of condemnation, giving us freedom to serve him. Our past is immaterial; the future is bright. Realizing we serve in his power removes all fear of failure. We can do all things through the indwelling power of his Spirit. And accepting his love gives peace regardless of life’s situations.

Nothing can ever separate you from the love of Christ. Let God’s presence bring you peace.

Prayer: Father, thank You for the peace we can find in Your presence.

Tweetable: Have you discovered peace in your turmoil? 

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Ditching Discouragement - Martin Wiles

I will boast only in the Lord; let all who are discouraged take heart. Psalm 34:2 NLT

After thirteen years of marriage, her discouragement had reached a new low.

Michelle married as soon as she could. She was looking for a way out and found one in a relationship with a young man her parents disliked. She wasn’t interested in their opinions; she wanted to escape. As soon as she could, she married.

Soon after the wedding, Michelle discovered her mistake. She had married a loser. He migrated from one job to another. Had it not been for her job and her parent’s help, they would have drowned financially. Worse yet, he was an abuser: physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Throwing objects at Michelle and hitting her in places where the bruises wouldn’t show was her husband’s normal pattern. He topped this off with a continual barrage of insulting remarks, belittling her while building himself up. And he never supported her spiritual pursuits.

After thirteen years of misery, Michelle was depressed and discouraged. She feared he’d kill her if she left, but she didn’t see how she could stay. Finally, she mustered the courage to leave. While he was at work, she packed her things and headed to her parents’ home. One year later, her divorce was final and she soon married a man who gave her the love and respect she deserved.

According to the psalmist, Michelle went to the right place with her discouragement: the Lord. Now she boasts in what God did for her. She tells people she married the devil the first time but an angel the second time. I don’t feel like an angel, but I’ll take the compliment.

Instances that can lead to discouragement are the bane of living in a sinful world. While there have been a number of occasions when I’ve slipped into discouragement, I choose not to live there. Because I believe God controls my circumstances, I choose to see them differently than I would have had I no one to turn to.

God never allows us to enter potentially discouraging times without a purpose in mind. What could discourage me can also mold me more into God’s image as well as prepare me for something He has in mind for me. Facing tough times also gives me ammunition to help others who may be passing through similar experiences as I have faced.

Don’t waste your discouragement—but don’t live with it either. Ditch it.

Tweetable: Don't waste your discouragement. 

Prayer: Father, thank You for giving us the power to overcome discouragement. 

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God’s Safe Place - Martin Wiles

As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Exodus 33:22 NLT

She had been abused and needed a safe place.

Johnnie was in a situation of her own making. For 13 years, she had endured an abusive marriage—one she entered to escape the harsh atmosphere of her upbringing.

When the opportunity came for Johnnie to move out, she took it. Jim seemed like a good guy when she dated him, but his true identity revealed itself shortly after she said, “I do.” Abusive words, demeaning remarks, bruises. They all became the norm. Johnnie tried to fend them off but had to admit they were taking their toll on her self-esteem.

Eventually, Johnnie decided she’d had enough, but she needed a safe place. She didn’t turn to a home for abusive women but rather contacted her parents. By this time, her dad had mellowed. She thought she could endure life with them until she could make other arrangements.

Moses needed a safe place too. While he was on the mountain receiving the Ten Commandments from God, the people were below partying as if they had no God they were accountable to. When God told Moses to leave the mountain and take the people with him—but that He wouldn’t be tagging along, it was more than Moses could stand. God decided to give them another chance, but Moses needed reassurance. So God placed Moses in a crevice and let him glance at His presence as He passed by.

Life is tough and filled with many experiences I’d rather not repeat. Wallowing in self-pity or in the memory of the event only keeps me smelling the toxic nature of what I have experienced. A better course is asking God to put me in His safe place.

When God places me in His safe place, He reassures me of His presence. 

If separation has taken place, it’s because I left Him—not because He left me. He promises never to abandon His children. In God’s safe places, I’m also reminded of who He is and who I’m not. He is the all-powerful Creator who is qualified to lead me through any and every circumstance, protecting me in the process.

Moses had nothing to fear; nor do I. And neither do you. When life gets tough, ask God to put you in His safe place where you can find grace, reassurance, and peace.

Prayer: Father, thank You for the safe places You provide when life is more than we can handle. 

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Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.