Romans 8:28-29
Is God involved in everything that happens throughout the world? How you answer that question is important. What people believe about the Lord’s sovereignty affects both their trust in Him and their reactions to struggles. Moreover, believers’ thoughts on God’s dominion influences their compliance with His requirements. For instance, “in everything give thanks” (1 Thess. 5:18) would be an impossible standard if God were only partially in control of what’s going on.

Believing God is present in the positive aspects of our lives is easy. Reconciling hardship to His promises of provision and love is tougher. But think about this: If the Lord has reason to provide a job promotion, might He not also have reason to orchestrate a job loss? If He gives good health, might He not also allow sickness,
as He permitted in Job’s life (Job 2:6-7)?

The Bible says that the Lord’s ways are not like our ways (Isa. 55:8).  He has a master purpose for involving Himself in every aspect of believers’ lives—namely, conforming them to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29). Jesus’ life was not easy or sweet. He suffered shame, abuse, ill will, and persecution even before He faced the cross. If we are to be like Him, then we must expect that God’s loving hand will sometimes hold a tool for reshaping us.

Every believer is encircled by God’s protection (Psalm 34:7), so nothing touches our lives unless He permits or directs it. Bitterness and blame cannot take root if we accept that every good and bad thing comes with God’s knowledge and permission. We can trust Him to do right by us (Rom. 8:28).

Proverbs 3:5-6
Too often we let our circumstances determine our attitude. If life is going smoothly, then we feel good about ourselves; when it gets hard, our mood drops. But we don’t have to live this way. Like the apostle Paul, we can learn and practice the secret of being content.

Contentment means accepting things the way they are—in other words, not wanting anything more or different. This requires developing an “I can through Christ” attitude. It means learning to bring God’s power into our weakness so we can accept and adapt to changing circumstances.

When we respond to life with that kind of thinking, we move beyond our feelings to living by faith (2 Cor. 5:7).

Submission and trust are needed for such a lifestyle. First, we must surrender our will to God’s: in every situation, we are to yield what we want and accept whatever He allows. Our desire to control events is replaced by reliance on Him. This option becomes more appealing when we realize that the alternative—fighting against our circumstances—brings anxiety and distress. The second step is to trust God to oversee our specific situation. If we believe He is working out His perfect plan for us, then we will experience the joy that comes from trusting Him. Contentment will be ours.

Paul submitted his life to God and trusted Him. He faced insults, rejection, and many difficult trials but was still content. When we surrender control to the Lord and believe He has our best interest at heart, we will experience contentment too. Who is in charge of your life?

Philippians 4:10-13
After his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, Paul had much to learn about salvation and following Christ. Throughout his life, the apostle shared what he was discovering. In his letter to the church at Philippi, he wrote about a very important life lesson—the secret of being content.

What kind of life do you think brings contentment? You might assume it is one with few troubles or great success. You may want good health, financial security, and a loving family. Paul’s life was not at all like this. He was in danger from both his own countryman and the opposition (2 Cor. 11:23-26). Sometimes the people listened, but more often, they were hostile to his message. He also had a “thorn in the flesh” which God refused to remove (2 Cor. 12:7-9). And Paul even spent considerable time in prison, chained to a guard. Yet he boldly wrote, ” I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation” (Phil. 4:12 niv).

The secret he discovered was to live on the basis of his position in the Lord, not his feelings. As God’s child, Paul knew he was spiritually rich—”blessed . . . with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3) because he had a loving Father and the Holy Spirit’s guidance.

Contentment in our media-driven age is hard to find and harder to keep. There’s always something newer, bigger, or better to buy and someone else who has what you want. When you feel unsatisfied, try basing your response on your position as a co-heir with Christ (Rom. 8:17) rather than feelings.

Eating organic food is a big health craze right now.  No one wants to eat the stuff that’s been sprayed with pesticides or pumped full of steroids and preservatives.  Why?  Because it’s a proven fact that the extra stuff will contaminate our bodies and make us sick.  When we eat food that man has messed with, we keep our bodies from functioning as God intended.

The same principle applies to our hearts.  When we feed our hearts what the world dishes out, we keep them from doing what they were meant to do.

But when we focus our hearts on God’s Word and worship God with our thoughts and actions, He will keep our hearts pure.  Only then will our hearts be capable of doing what they were meant to do – help us see God.

Scripture Reading: Exodus 33:18-19; Matthew 5:8; 2 Corinthians 4:1-6,16; 7:1

Dr. Tony Evans

All of us have had to carry heavy circumstances that weigh us down, and we needed something to lift the burden off our shoulders.  We need mercy.  Mercy reduces, removes or relieves someone’s distress.  It is simply compassion in action.

The Bible says in Ephesians 2:4, God is rich in mercy.  In other words, God is rich in blessing us with divine favor and compassion, releasing us from distress, discouragement, brokenness, pain and problems.  Mercy is in fact God’s reaction to our misery.

Mercy is asking God to not let us bear the full weight of our burdens.  Everyone needs mercy.  Lamentations 3 states that God’s mercies are new every morning.  Every day you wake up, you wake up to mercy.  You got up today with new life, and guess what?  New life means new opportunities.  That’s another day and a new opportunity to praise Him.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 5:1-12

Dr. Tony Evans

Everyone makes mistakes, right?  Be assured that God, our Creator, has never made a mistake.  Deuteronomy 32:4 says His work is perfect, and you and I are some of His greatest works.  Believe me, there are no failures or flaws in His plan for you.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1).  Those who believe that the Earth and everything on it evolved by chance or luck into what they are today are incorrect.  God purposefully and supernaturally created each and every one of us and continues to sustain us.

There is no room for chance or luck if you believe God is the Creator and Sustainer.  God’s power allows all things to happen in our lives for His purpose.  We are not the coming together of random forces in the universe.  We are the creation of God’s power and perfect work . . . never a mistake.

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 32:4; Matthew

Dr. Tony Evans

Purpose is a popular topic that many of us find fascinating.  We all want to be validated and know that we are here on earth for a specific reason.  We may have never learned about our purpose while growing up and may still have a difficult time understanding it.

The good news is that God wants us to realize our purpose.  He didn’t create us to live with no direction, just wandering aimlessly through life.  Too many times, we complicate God’s plan for our lives.  As believers, God’s highest purpose is for us to walk in a close relationship with Him and to reach others with His love.

As we walk in obedience to these basic principles outlined in His Word, God begins to reveal to us a very specific purpose that matches our DNA.  Acts 13:36 tells of David, who lived a purposeful life for the Lord in his generation.  What a great legacy to leave behind!

Scripture Reading: Genesis 1:27-28; Philippians 3:8

Dr. Tony Evans

“Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” James 4:17

Are you one of those people who believes, “Put off until tomorrow what you could be doing today”? This is one of those times when the fingers pointing back at me outnumber the one that’s pointing to you!  What am I talking about? Procrastination.

Did you know that procrastination is a sin?

I say that because sin is not merely doing wrong, it is failing to do what you ought to do. Procrastination and disobedience are just different shades of the same sin.

I heard a quote once that said it well:

When you have a job to do, begin this very hour.
You supply the will, God supplies the power.
That is the will power we need to instantly obey!

Has a certain task been hounding you? Confess your procrastination as sin. And act now; don’t hesitate.

Yesterday is gone.
Tomorrow may never come.
Today is the day!

“The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth.” Psalm 29:3

Some people think it’s a waste of time to simply sit at God’s feet and listen. It is not a waste of time to wait on God any more than a woodchopper is wasting time when he sharpens his axe.

Charles Hummel wrote a booklet titled “Tyranny of the Urgent.” In it he said:

When we fail to wait prayerfully for God’s guidance and strength, we are saying, with our actions if not our lips, that we do not need Him….
Prayerful waiting on God is indispensable to effective service. Like the time-out in a football game, it enables us to catch our breath and fix new strategy…
The need is not the call. The call must come from the Lord who knows our limitations.
Read Psalm 29. Count how many times the phrase, the “voice of the Lord” is repeated. Spend at least that many minutes listening for His voice and trusting He will speak His will to you.

“Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.” Matthew 6:34

In the crucible of His wisdom and in the ecology of His grace, God has ordered some trouble for you today and everyday of your life.

We’ve been blessed with difficulties. Yes, you read that right—blessed!

The worst thing that could happen to us would be not to have any difficulties. If that were the case, we’d never know our need of the Lord.

So God, in essence, says, “I’m going to give you sufficient difficulty for the day.” God gives you enough difficulty to draw you close to Him, but then God gives you enough grace to meet those difficulties every day.

Is there a difficult circumstance in your life? If so, thank God that He’s sending it your way to make you more like Jesus. Now ask for His grace to be victorious through it!