Sound Mind Set

Today in our focus on placing our confidence in God, we’ll look at the Book of Hebrews. Again, we see the promises of God that offers us an eternal hope we can fully rely upon. We don’t trust in a story or a fairy tale but in a Person who delivered a plan for all humankind.Listen to Hebrews 6:16-20 …Now when people take an oath, they call on someone greater than themselves to hold them to it. And without any question that oath is binding. God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. Jesus has already gone in there for us. (NLT) It’s tough for us to believe the concept of never changing your mind, right?It’s hard for us to imagine the idea of it being impossible to lie, isn’t it?But doesn’t the hope of a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls sound amazing?All made possible by Jesus who went first to lead us into a relationship with the Father.Listen once again to today’s passage in The Message Bible … When people make promises, they guarantee them by appeal to some authority above them so that if there is any question that they’ll make good on the promise, the authority will back them up. When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee—God can’t break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up his permanent post … Of the Scriptures we have read this week, including this powerful passage today, what have you heard that assures and reassures you that God is 100% confidence-worthy?Why would placing all your confidence in God and God alone be the best decision you could ever make?What do you need to do to do, or let go of, to place all your trust in Him?Let’s pray together: “Father, thank You that You will not and cannot break Your promises. Thank You that You are truth and therefore cannot and will not lie. Thank You that your hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for my soul. As above, so below.”

One of the greatest barriers to salvation itself can be mistakenly believing that we are somehow better than others, and that somehow guarantees Heaven. How many times have we heard someone say, “Well, I’m a good person”? But even after salvation, comparison to others and placing confidence in our ability to do good works can quickly get us off-track in our faith.In Luke 18, Jesus used a parable to show us how God feels about confidence in our own righteousness.Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (vv. 9-14 NLT) The Pharisees were considered the mega-church pastors of the day, looked up to and revered for their spirituality. Tax collectors were looked at like we view sleazy, ambulance-chasing attorneys. For Jesus to flip this paradigm on its head was very controversial. Both men prayed but one focused on others’ sin, while the other man focused on his own sin. One didn’t think he needed God and the other desperately did.Being honest, don’t many of us go back and forth between feeling really good about ourselves and flirting with the thinking of the Pharisee or being very convicted and relating to the tax collector?One of the many paradoxes of the Gospel is that true confidence can only be found in humility. In knowing God, we discover who we are and find our identity in surrender to Him.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, thank You for Jesus’ teaching, as controversial as it was then and now. Thank You that Your truth is a paradox to this world. Help me to discover my confidence as I humble myself before You. As above, so below.”

This week our focus is on placing our confidence in God, which of course means increasing our faith in Him. The Bible is filled with promises to us, offering the great consequences of a life of trusting Him. Listen to Jeremiah 17:7-8 … “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. (NLT) Trust … Hope … Confidence. Several times in Scripture the authors used a tree planted by a river as a metaphor for our lives. For the weary traveler, a large, healthy tree beside a river meant protection from the elements and provision for thirst. The very reason the tree could provide shelter is because its roots were not reliant on the changing weather but on the constant flow of the river. Such a great analogy for our lives rooted in God.Using this metaphor, is there heat or drought that is causing you to struggle, to wither? What’s the source of that issue?What places in your life would you connect to blessing, as in having green leaves and lasting fruit? What’s the source of that blessing?How can you get your roots into the river and not be so reliant on the weather? How can you go deeper with God and place less confidence in the things of the world?Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, thank You for all Your promises. Thank You that You clearly tell us how life can be when we trust You. Help me to grow deep roots in my faith and place more and more of my confidence in You. As above, so below.”

As we get started on our topic for this week, let me ask: how many times have you sensed you are starting to build up confidence in who you are and how you are doing, only for someone to do something or say something that rips the rug right out of from under you? In a heartbeat, we feel like all our confidence is gone. That is exactly why understanding this week’s truth as a believer is so crucial to our spiritual and emotional health.Listen to Psalm 146, verses 3 through 10 … Don’t put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there. When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them. But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God. He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He keeps every promise forever. He gives justice to the oppressed and food to the hungry. The Lord frees the prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down. The Lord loves the godly. The Lord protects the foreigners among us. He cares for the orphans and widows, but he frustrates the plans of the wicked. The Lord will reign forever. He will be your God, O Jerusalem, throughout the generations. Praise the Lord! (NLT) For many of us, a great deal of our personal pain and emotional baggage has come from placing too much confidence in other people. And certainly the wrong people. Others did something or failed to do something that negatively affected our trust. Today’s passage warns us to be cautious and gives us so many amazing reasons to get our confidence from our Creator.Listen once again to this passage in The Message Bible … Don’t put your life in the hands of experts who know nothing of life, of salvation life. Mere humans don’t have what it takes; when they die, their projects die with them. Instead, get help from the God of Jacob, put your hope in God and know real blessing! God made sky and soil, sea and all the fish in it. He always does what he says—he defends the wronged, he feeds the hungry. God frees prisoners—he gives sight to the blind, he lifts up the fallen. God loves good people, protects strangers, takes the side of orphans and widows, but makes short work of the wicked. God’s in charge—always. Zion’s God is God for good! Hallelujah!As you think through your life right now, is there anywhere you are “putting your life in the hands of experts” when your trust and confidence really needs to be handed over to God? It’s actually amazing how trusting Him can bring us wisdom and discernment that will also improve our relationship with others.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, heal my hurts where I have placed my trust and confidence in the wrong people. Increase my faith and trust in You and lead me to the right relationships in Your community. As above, so below.”

Wholeness was our state in the Garden but then the enemy of God came along and, through disobedience, robbed us all of that God-given state. The spiritual battle for us every day is choosing God over that same enemy, just as everyone in the Bible had to deal with as well.Listen to 1 Peter 5:6-11 …So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are. In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever! Amen. (NLT) Listen for two things: the commands and the promises.Did you catch them? Let’s review, all under the concept of wholeness and holiness.The command? Humble yourself. … The promise? God will lift you up in His time.The command: Give your worries to God. … The promise: God will care for you.The command: Stand firm against the enemy. … The promise: God’s calling will bring you into His eternal glory.The command: Endure suffering. … The promise: God will restore, support, and strengthen you.Wholeness is found on the firm foundation only God can provide.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, thank You for offering wholeness through holiness. Thank You for Your commands for my obedience and Your promises giving me hope. As above, so below.”

Colossians 2:6-10 …And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him.  Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority. (NLT) Paul encouraged us in our maturity, then he warned us against those things in the world that lead us away from that growth. saying - Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. Lastly, he told us the truth about who we are and what we have through Christ.What words, phrases, or verses stood out to you?Is there a truth here you didn’t know or didn’t yet fully understand?The final two sentences use the words “fullness” and “complete,” meaning filled up with nothing lacking. That, my friend, is the offer of true wholeness.Would you take a moment and speak that declaration of truth with me: “I am complete through my union with Christ.” Focus on the words: “I am complete through my union with Christ.” “I am complete through my union with Christ.” “I am complete through my union with Christ.”Let’s pray together: “Lord Jesus, I believe that You are the fullness of God, shown to us in a human body like mine. I believe I am complete through my union with You. Help me to receive that truth deeper today than ever before. As above, so below.”

Today’s passage is Romans 6:21-23 in The Message Bible … As long as you did what you felt like doing, ignoring God, you didn’t have to bother with right thinking or right living, or right anything for that matter. But do you call that a free life? What did you get out of it? Nothing you’re proud of now. Where did it get you? A dead end. But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.The path to spiritual wholeness—holiness—is what Paul described here as “finding you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do.” Christ gives us a new life, a new path, a new way to live. Christ gives us a choice to not choose sin.Wholeness is a great word, one we chose to focus on this week, but let’s turn the corner now to understanding that holiness is the complete wholeness that God offers us in Christ.Have you ever really grasped that Christ has given you the constant choice to not sin?Is there a sin in your life that you feel is not a choice, one that you keep repeating, even though you don’t want to? Identify that, confess it and ask God to give you the strength choose not to sin.God’s on-going gift is real life here and eternal life to come delivered by Jesus, our Master.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, thank You that You offer me a free life. Thank You that I don’t have to listen to sin anymore but can choose You. Thank You for Your gift of wholeness and holiness. As above, so below.”

So much of our Christian lives is spent trying to get rid of things, things we hold onto and struggle with, all while knowing we need to let them go. From attitudes to toxic behaviors to unhealthy relationships. Today, we read a crucial concept for this process. It’s called the Principle of Replacement. Listen to Ephesians 4:31-32 … Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (NIV) If you decide to get rid of bitterness today, that’s going to be tough, right? But what if instead, you placed your focus and energy on being kind? What if day by day, you started to make the intentional choice to replace bitterness with kindness? If something triggers bitterness to come up into your throat and the feelings are overwhelming, then you do something kind. Text a friend a thank you. Find a way to encourage the very next person you encounter.Paul’s teaching was always practical. Bitterness can be replaced with kindness. Rage and anger can be replaced with choosing compassion. Slander and malice can be replaced with forgiveness. If we only focus on getting rid of things, we can easily set ourselves up for failure. But when we instead find a positive and healthy replacement for what we must get rid of, we have a far better shot at success, as well as just creating a better experience.What is one ‘replacement principle’ I will commit to practicing this week? Kindness? Compassion? Forgiveness?We all have things we need to rid ourselves of… let’s remember The Principle of Replacement … whatever you’re trying to get rid of to be whole again, ask God to give you something good to replace it with.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, help me to take the toxic things I have held onto and replace them with the good gifts You offer me, gifts like kindness, compassion, and forgiveness. As above, so below.”

To get serious about wholeness and total health, we have to take a hard look at ourselves. Today is a tough Scripture passage from Jesus, but also a reminder that there is freedom on the other side of our battles. Listen closely … Jesus is not angry here, just being honest … “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others.  The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. (Matthew 7:1-5 NLT) As humans, a fact we have to deal with throughout life is the less whole we are in any given season, the more we tend to find fault in others. Whether wanting to justify our own behavior or just being negative about people, we can look around and see the “speck in other’s eyes,” to use Jesus’ words. But notice the important counsel here: “First, get rid of the log in your own eye …”Listen once again to this passage in The Message Bible … Buckle up, this version hits even more closer to home ….“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.The goal of Jesus’ teaching here is not to produce guilt, shame, or self-hatred, but rather getting honest about personal evaluation. Facing our own stuff.Is there an area of your life that is a ‘speck or log in my own eye’? Can you think of one area to surrender and repent of right now?Getting real about what we need to surrender to God before we can truly begin the journey toward wholeness.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, I always love the mercy and grace verses in Your Word, but I know I have to embrace ones like this too. Today, I need to hand over the logs and the specks to You. I want to be whole, so I know some surgery on my heart and work on my attitude are what I need to allow You to do right now. As above, so below.”

On our final day of focusing on stability in a season of instability, we will once again take a look at our available place within a solid and supportive community.The original Body of Christ should always be our model for our current Body of Christ. God always has one way and what we find in Acts 2 is His way for and to community.All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity — all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved. (v. 42-47) What do we see and hear the Body of Christ was all about?They met together devoted to worship, teaching, fellowship, eating together, and praying. Just brothers and sisters gathering with the common bond of growing in Christ and encouraging one another. Sounds really simple, doesn’t it? Sounds pretty cool too, right?If you desire to get rid of as much instability in your life as possible and secure yourself more and more in your relationship with Christ, the template in today’s passage is the key to true community. Merging your life with other believers who have your same heart, mind, and goals is crucial to finding health and maturity in every way, but most especially spiritually.Let’s pray together: “Heavenly Father, life among the believers in the early church was pretty straightforward. Not much frills. Help me to find that. Help me to find my place in Your Body. I know my security and my kids’ security can be found in You and those who love You. As above, so below.”