Why worry about what Jesus has already overcome?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
(Matthew 6:25 (NIV))

The pressures of society sure have had an impact on our lives. We worry about having the right education. We worry about having a stable future. We worry about being able to afford the latest and greatest designer clothes or electronic gadgets. We worry far too much! Don’t misunderstand me. There are some things that we should be concerned about, but when we see people standing in line because they are worried that they won’t be the first ones to be able to purchase the latest smart phone, our society has a problem. When we see groups of people in a panic because they are worried about who gets elected, or who got elected, our society has a problem.

Humanity, for the most part, worries about trivial matters.

What is the one thing at this very moment that concerns you the most?

What would be the ramifications if your concerns came to pass?

Would God still be on His throne?

Would Jesus still be your personal Lord and Savior?

Would all of God’s promises still be true?

If something is of concern, do not worry. Pray!

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
(Matthew 6:34 (NIV))

I find it intriguing that the words written in Matthew tell us that each day has enough trouble. It is human nature to not like trouble, to not like conflict. Is that why we worry? Are we simply afraid of the troubles that we think will come?

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 (NIV))

Why worry about what Jesus has already overcome?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Have you surrendered authority to whom it belongs?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
(Luke 6:5 (NIV))

It is human nature to try and put God in a box. We try to twist words based on our limited understanding. We try to put limitations on God simply because we fail to understand that He has no limitations. We fail to realize that the limitations that have been given to us are the same type of limitations that a parent would put on a child. They are there for our protection, for our education and they are not there for the person who placed the limitations. A good example of this is the bedtime for a small child. That does not mean that the parents go to bed at the same time!

When God sets boundaries and establishes rules, He is fulfilling His role as God the Father. He is guiding us. He is keeping us from harm. In much the same way as a parent telling a child that he or she cannot have ice cream because it is bedtime, God established things that we must live by. One of those is the command to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. We are to rest. We are to be reverent in our attitudes. We are to spend time in God’s presence. We are to slow down.

Be still, and know that I am God…
(Psalms 46:10a (NIV))

When we spend time in God’s presence, we begin to realize that we do have a tendency to place God in a box. If you want a modern day translation of the words that Jesus spoke in Luke 6:5, perhaps something like this makes sense, although it may sound condescending. “I created the world and I created the Sabbath. I can do what I deem as appropriate because I made the rules for you and not for myself!”

We have a big problem with realizing that God makes the rules and not us!

We need to surrender Lordship of our lives!

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Is there a difference between wisdom and education?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?
(Job 28:12 (NIV))

Do you believe that there is a difference between wisdom and education?

If you believe as the world believes, then that answer is a resounding no. The world believes that the more education, the more degrees that someone has makes them wise. Is that necessarily the truth? What if someone spends all of their adult life seeking education in something that has no merit. They will be well educated, but that education does not make them wise. It just means that they have wasted time being taught something that has no value or they have been taught lies. Is that wisdom?

I can educate myself on the finer points of believing that I am a millionaire, but does that make it so? I can educate myself on the complexities of the biology of insects, but does that make me wise? No! It just means that I know a lot about insects.

Wisdom is so much more than education. All that you have to do to understand this is to look at the college campuses today. These are supposed to be places of higher education, but when someone presents an idea contrary to what they want to hear, they protest and demand safe places. Wisdom is being able to discern the truth even when the truth contradicts what you want to believe. Wisdom is admitting that you don’t have all of the answers and that you just may actually be wrong.

And he said to man,
`The fear of the Lord–that is wisdom,
and to shun evil is understanding.’ ”
(Job 28:28 (NIV))

Satan and his followers are capable of giving you an education. That education will not be a good one. It will lead to death. Only God can give you wisdom!

Are you educated or are you wise?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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School has started!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Train a child in the way he should go,
and when he is old he will not turn from it.
(Proverbs 22:6 (NIV))

School has started in many places. The sad thing is that far too many people rely on the schools to train their children. Most don’t even know what is being taught in schools anymore?

There is more to training, more to an education, than simply being feed worldly knowledge. Worldly knowledge changes as society changes. History is rewritten and basic principles that once held true are obsolete.

Do we want to rely on someone else to instill within our children the concepts of right and wrong when they are doing wrong themselves? Why do we allow our education system to have control over what is taught without so much as asking what is being taught?

Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.
(James 3:1 (NIV))

I know that this passage is referring to teachers of God’s Word, but it does not take any stretch of the imagination to realize that those who are teaching falsehoods will pay a high price for their actions.

And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck.
(Mark 9:42 (NIV))

Do you see the correlation? We must be very careful to teach the children according to God’s Word or we will be held accountable. I pray for teachers in the public school systems. I pray for the students in the public school systems. I pray for all teachers and students in hope that God’s Word will go forth even in the midst of societal pressures.

Also, I pray for the parents that they may have the strength and the courage to teach their children and to stand up for what is righteous and godly in the midst of all the world is becoming.

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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