BE AWARE, UNDERSTAND, TAKE ACTION

BE AWARE, UNDERSTAND, TAKE ACTION

By Dwight Cunkle

When a person decides to know; love God and do his will they experience both resistance and help. Discerning the enemy’s tactics help us resist him and go further on with Jesus.

Examples of enemy resistance from the world, flesh and devil include the following:

-Unsettling anxieties, diminishing peace
- Diminishing energy and strength to do the good
-Sadness and discouragement without knowing why
-Dullness, hardness or lack of motivation to pray, lack of interest in spiritual life, losing heart
-Obstacles and difficulties in daily life and temptations which add up to come against us with negative self-talk; “How can I continue to do good?” or, “Look what you are giving up or won’t be able to do.”
-False reasonings bring confusion, hopelessness, failure: “It’s my fault that I am not better because I should be”
-Feelings of division, unresolved hurts, critical spirit, judgments, negative interpretations of what others think, loneliness or feelings of being misunderstood.
-Fears: of failure, of rejection, of the devil or more resistance, or even fear of success and the responsibility



Examples of how God’s grace and good spirits help us overcome: 

-Experience God’s love uplifting us in faith, hope, joy, peace (even if only briefly)
-Courage to face the enemy’s resistance and continue God’s will
-Strength of God’s love lifting the heart
-Consolations of God’s love giving a new ease and increase in love for others which also uplifts us
-Tears of comfort from the movement of God’s love and closeness or overwhelming gratitude for his love in Jesus
-Inspirations, illuminations and spiritual clarity to see and overcome confusion
-Quiet Strength and peace of heart even in activity
-Grace removes obstacles, inspires an gives hope
-Faith and joy uprising in the midst of the enemy’s taunts

Go further on with the resurrected Christ and resist

the desolations of our enemy whom he has defeated.

On Resting
By Richard Lineberry

Come to me and I will give you rest.
Jesus, Matthew 11:28

In these stressful days, rest is often on people’s mind, but not so much part of their experience.  The Bible, however, has a lot to say about it.  First, a Sabbath Day was required from ancient times to cease from work and rest.  It had a physical side whereas the body wasn’t made to never slow down.  The spiritual side concerned letting God have a chance to bless and increase the work that people had done without our help or involvement.

The writer of Hebrews uses the idea of REST to describe how salvation is a total work of God rather than the results of our laboring to be good people.  Our job is to believe and open our hearts’ doors for Christ to do His work.  “For the one who has entered into His rest has himself also rested from his works as God did from His.  Let us therefore be diligent to enter into that rest,”  (Heb. 4:10-11a)

Even believers who have known Christ for years can struggle with trying to get closer to God by trusting in their own good behavior.  But the resting place for Christians is in our knowing that God has already achieved our right standing with Himself for us.  It is so easy to condemn ourselves that we are not DOING enough to earn God’s favor.  It has already been purchased for us by Jesus on the cross.  We must, however, believe it and make up our minds to trust what He has done for us rather than what we can do to impress Him.

This morning, as we worship and allow His Spirit to move in us, we can enter deeper into this rest.  Let it be a time of remembering and recalling what Jesus has done.  When we abide in Him, we are abiding in the REST that God has provided that brings peace of mind and heart.  When our trust is completely in what His power can do, we can REST from self improvement attempts.  The Prince of Peace loves to demonstrate His power, love and wisdom.  We need to love receiving it.

Jesus was once asked, “What must we do to work the works of God?”  This was a valid question but the answer given was probably not what the man expected to hear.  “This is the work of God…” Jesus began,  “that you believe in Him whom He has sent,”  (John 6:28-29)