“May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy” (Colossians 1:11).

Can you identify a time in your life when you were tired, really tired? You know what I mean. I’m speaking of more than a lack of sleep but rather the type of tiredness that springs from physical, spiritual and emotional fatigue. I’ve been there on more than one occasion; that’s why Paul’s words to the Colossians speak to me.  

I note several things in Paul’s words that serve to encourage us during our times of fatigue. First, he notes that our strength is to be with “all power according to his glorious might.” The literal meaning of Paul’s words suggests that the measure of strength available to us is in comparison to God’s glory and might. When is the last time you tried to measure God’s glory and might? You get my point. What Paul is telling us is that God’s resources are available to us in proportion to his power and glory. Wow! 

The second thing he tells us is that the purpose of God’s power granted unto us is so that we might endure our present circumstances. Paul wants us to rely on God for however long our tiring circumstances last. Finally, the patience we display during tiring times is to be flavored with joy that flows from the certainty that it is God’s power that enables us to endure. I see in that a wonderful formula for survival during tiring times, don’t you? 

Now let’s make this practical. Are you tired? How tired are you? What circumstances have conspired to make you tired? Do you see any relief on the way? With these questions in mind there are several things to consider. 

Certainly one thing to take into consideration during tiring times is to seek ways to restore your strength. The gospels have several references to Jesus and his followers getting away for the purpose of restoring their strength. If such a season of rest is possible, by all means take advantage of it! 

Yet we have all knows times when such rest isn’t possible, at least not in the short term. This is where Paul’s words become applicable. Here’s how it works. Simply do the next thing that must be done, whatever it might be, in the power of God. Do it with joy as you rely on his strength. It’s amazing how ready God is to empower you to “do the next thing”. As we engage in our activities, while seeking a time to rest, we’ll begin to feel God’s strength and power working in us. The result is joy. Paul learned this lesson. You can also!

“Fight the good fight of faith.” (I Timothy 6:12)

No one typically goes looking for a fight. Yet I am certain that each of us at one time or another has found ourselves in a fight. Perhaps it was a fight of wills or maybe a fight to prove ourselves right. Power struggles often dissolve into fights. Family members fight, nations fight, cultures fight, and good and evil fight every minute of every day.

If you were raised as I was, you were taught that fighting is wrong. In fact, the Bible tells us that we are to be gentle with one another; not to let the sun go down on our anger. Further, we are told that God’s leaders must not be contentious or quarrelsome. So what does Paul mean when he tells Timothy to “fight the good fight of faith”?

There are at least two things to keep in mind if we want to take Paul’s instructions to heart. First, we must understand that Satan’s chief target will always be our faith. He may use various tactics, yet it will always be our faith that will be at the center of his attacks. Why? Well, listen to a sampling of the things that are linked to faith: we have forgiveness and sanctification through faith (Acts 26:18); we are justified by faith (Romans 5:1); we walk by faith (II Corinthians 5:7); our blessings come by faith (Galatians 3:9); the Holy Spirit is ours by faith (Galatians 3:14); we are sons of God by faith (Galatians 3:26); we have access to God by faith (Ephesians 3:12); and we are saved by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Do you get the picture? Everything we have from God is ours by faith. In fact, Habakkuk said, “The righteous shall live by his faith” and the writer of Hebrews said that without faith “it is impossible to please God.” Satan hates our faith.

But there is another reason why Paul told Timothy to fight the good fight of faith, and that is because it is truly a fight. You see, when the bottom falls out of our lives through sickness, family strife, financial threat, loneliness, persecution, overwhelming fear, rejection, or any number of other things, the easiest thing to do is waver in faith. We have all experienced this, have we not? Yet what God longs to hear, what brings him the greatest glory, is when we can tell him in the midst of Satan’s attack that we trust him, showing that our faith is steady.

Some of us are in the fight of our lives right now. Am I right? Paul said it would be a fight. Yet God longs to hear us tell him that we trust him. Can you do it? We are never in a stronger position that when we tell God that we trust him. Yes, it is a fight. Yes, it takes faith. And yes, God is pleased when we exercise faith in him because he is our exceeding joy. Let’s fight the fight of faith together!!

“All things are possible for one who believes” (Mark 9:23).

Preaching through Mark 9 this past Sunday on the issue of faith raised some very practical questions for myself and for others. I received an email that expresses questions that I think many of us wrestle with regarding prayer and our faith. This person wrote: “I have NO problem believing and saying the statement, ‘Nothing is impossible with God, He CAN do anything.’  The thing is; I just don't know if he WILL do it. He isn't predictable.  I don't know when he'll answer a prayer and when he won't (in the way that I hope he will).  Is that not having faith?  Or is that just being realistic? This comes into play in prayer a lot. Sometimes I don't ask, not because I don't think he can or is incapable of doing it, but because I just don't think he will.  Or the things I have been praying for that haven't happened (like my mom's health, for example) have further confirmed these thoughts that while, yes, God can heal her, he just isn't.  I’m not sure if that is weak faith or not.”

While I realize this is a very difficult question, it is legimitate to ask and important to wrestle with. I have to admit that I have had very similar feelings regarding prayer and what exactly I am supposed to believe in. At times I have seen myself slip into a fatalistic mindset of thinking that God will do whatever he is going to do whether I pray or not. After clearly confessing these misunderstandings, I need to bring my complex and skeptical thoughts back to Scripture to see the simple, clear commands.

The parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8 teaches us to be absolutely persistent, to the point of being obnoxious in our asking. It was after the woman repeatedly asked that the Judge granted her requests. James says in James 4:2 that “you have not because you ask not.” Because Scripture is so clear about the fact that we are to ask no matter what, we cannot allow ourselves to begin disobeying Scripture by not asking!

We often get confused into thinking that we have to believe a certain way for our prayers to be effective, but let me tell you that I think the faith that we are to have is not faith in ourselves or faith in our ability to believe, but in God himself. Jesus taught us in the Garden of Gethsemane that our faith isn’t to be in HOW we pray, but in WHO we pray to. He prayed for God’s will to be done. That is faith - faith in God’s sovereignty, wisdom, justice, goodness, and providence! Personally I find a lot of freedom in knowing that I am to trust in WHO God is and not WHO I am and how I believe!

When we pray in faith, we tell God that we believe that he can do all things. To most of us, that isn’t where we have difficulty. That’s why in some ways the exercising of faith happens more after we ask than before! We exercise faith when we see God answer our prayers in ways that we wouldn’t necessarily prefer! The question we wrestle with then is this: Do we have the faith to just ask?!

Pastor Greg

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged…” (Joshua 8:1)

What are you discouraged by today? What are you afraid of? The word “discouraged” appears 15 times in the Bible. In ten of those occurrences it is linked with the word “afraid.” So, it appears that fear in our lives often results in discouragement. I know that happens to me, and I assume it is present in your life as well.  

There are many things that we fear and that lead us to become discouraged. We fear death, health issues, financial problems, relational difficulties, failure, disaster, and being alone. I speak with people almost daily that are struggling with fear and discouragement. Yet when I hear God’s simple command to Joshua, I realize anew that ultimately it is God who is in the position to deal with our fears and discouragement. 

Joshua chapter 8 describes God’s command to Joshua following the nation’s defeat at Ai, which was due to the sin of one man. Of course they were fearful and discouraged; who wouldn’t be? Yet in a few simple words, God tells Joshua, “Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged… for I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai…” Many of us read that and think, “It can’t be that easy, can it?” 

As I consider the sovereignty of God, his purposes in our lives, and his desire that we bring our needs to him for his supply, I see in a fresh way that it truly is that easy. We are never in a stronger place than when we realize that it is God and God alone who can handle our fears and encourage us with his power and presence during our times of discouragement. The Bible tells us that God keeps his promises, and that he will not allow us to be tested beyond our ability to remain strong. The Bible tells us that at the time of our fear and discouragement, God will give us the strength to endure, as well as provide us a way out.

Can we learn to trust in a powerful and loving God during fearful and discouraging times, which we will all face? God does his best work when we are at our weakest point. What are your fears today? Release them to a faithful God and get ready to see the demonstration of his power in your life.