A Firm Foundation
I never liked to exercise when I was growing up. Actually, I never did make it to the gym in college. It wasn’t until I was desparate when I started making it part of my life. It was after my first pregnancy, realizing the daily rice crispy treats got the best of me. Gaining more weight that I would like to mention, I knew I needed to make a change. Just like anything in life, when you start something new it takes time to see the change. However, the more I exercised, the more my body started to feel and look different. I started to experience the importance of making it part of my daily routine. I knew I wanted to have more children and I knew what was to come. So I needed to be prepared and get my body in the best shape to undergo was to come.
Just as our physical bodies need to be exercised and strengthened, so does our spiritual bodies. It is crucial to have firm foundation for your faith. Just as we build muscles when we exercise, we need to build our spiritual muscles for what is to come. We need to be prepared…
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Jesus himself told His disciples (and us) that we will have trouble in this world. He didn’t say we might… He said we will. If we know that we live in a world that is broken and sinful, it makes sense that we would experience hardship in this world. So how can we prepare ourselves? How can we have the needed spiritual muscles when our circumstances are overwhelming? It begins with teaching and feeding ourselves the truths about God: who God says He is and what He says about us, as His children.
Throughout this lesson, we were asked to write down the character traits of God….focusing on WHO God is. One thing we learned is God is sovereign. That means He has the final say. He rules over ALL. He is the King of all Kings; no one is greater than He. He doesn’t change His mind, His character or His promises. God is always trustworthy and true. He is the only thing in this world that is solid and complete.
However, there are times in our lives when the storms do come. Some of them are so violent they sweep us off of our feet. We become disoriented, not knowing which way is up. If we are not prepared and our spiritual muscles are not strengthened, our circumstances can start to cloud our understanding of who God says He is. Satan will whisper lies which will tempt us to question the goodness of God. Satan’s tactic is always the same, He main goal is for us to turn away from Jesus and be disconnected from God. So he tries to blur our vision, whispering in our ears “If He is a good God then why…” If we are not careful we will grab hold of that question and allow the “why” to fester. Fester in places that will create more space for doubt and keep us locked into a downward spiral. This is called the “Why Syndrome”.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding” Proverbs 3:5
There has been many times in my life where I didn’t understand what was happening. I couldn’t wrap my head around why God allowed certain things. When I don’t know why, all I can do is turn my heart toward what is certain and true. When I grapple with the harshness of this world, at the same time I choose to cling onto the promises of God. God knows we try to understand things in our human reasoning, that is why He tells us to not to lean on our own understanding but trust HIM instead. It is in those moments of trust where we realize that we are standing on solid ground. Our foundation is firm, no matter what comes our way. When we choose to trust in the midst of chaos, we will soon begin to realize the true definition of meekness. It is the meek who is able to stand on the firm foundation of faith, bowing their knee to a sovereign God. The meek are the ones who are strong enough to weather the storm. Their eyes are fixed on Him, remembering who He says He is, with their arms opened wide saying “Lord, not my will but Yours be done.”
XO,
K
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