Did you ever discover your way of thinking on a particular issue was wrong? Or maybe someone else’s thinking wasn’t necessarily wrong, just because it was different from yours. That’s why our standard should be the Bible to discern right or wrong on the things that come up in our life.
When our thinking is wrong, where do these thoughts usually come from? We know Satan likes to plant seeds of doubt…..some things come from how we were raised……some things come from dramatic events in our life or influences from the society we live in……and even just from our indwelling sin nature.
In my “BC days (before Christ)” I developed some thinking that was definitely not right. Like in my thinking, if my good out-weighed my bad, I just might possibly get into Heaven and escape Hell. But looking in God’s Word I learned… “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation……For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” -- Romans 10:9,10 & 13.
Another example of my wrong thinking was that God was out to punish us if we did the slightest things wrong. Looking at scripture again showed me… “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” -- Romans 5:8 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” -- John 3:16-17. God loves mankind whom He created in His image. God is not waiting to condemn us or squash us like a bug.
You know, even though I’ve been saved a long time I’m still realizing I have some wrong thinking like with the problems, trials and battles we face in our daily life. Job’s friends had thinking like I used to have – that I must have sinned and was being punished for it.
I have learned that kind of thinking is wrong. Trials and battles that we have, are for our good. Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” This was the first verse I learned and it started to change my thinking. I saw a reason but still wasn’t seeing the need for trials in my life and I still struggled with living through the process of the trial. When I learned about the comfort in which I could possibly help someone else from the experience of my trials as explained in II Corinthians 1:2-6. That gave me better acceptance of some of the trials I went through. But let me be honest, I still hated problems, trials and battles. Some are just so painful and I have often cried “WHY?”
Knowing these things helps me through my trials to some degree. I have been a slow learner about the greater purpose of trials. In changing my thinking I have to seek my understanding from God’s perspective. Although these trials are still really hard I must realize it’s about God not about me.
From Pastor’s message Sunday morning this statement really got my attention. “God showed man that the battle was about Him not about man” and then he explanation from God’s Word. I’m going WOW! And trying to write stuff down and my mind was stripping gears with so many thoughts. I knew God was trying to tell me something and my brain wasn’t having time to wrap around the thoughts. So as I’m writing here, I’m asking God for understanding. I know it’s one of those gems I want to save and remember.
Looking at God’s Word the O.T. is full of examples to show us these battles/trials are God’s. Such as—Abraham is to sacrifice Isaac—How is Abraham to be the father of all nations if he must kill his only son? the Israelites trapped by the Red Sea with the Egyptian army coming for them—Where can they possibly go to escape? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—It’s impossible to survive in the flames of the fiery furnace; Jehoshophat faces a great multitude in battle and God instructs them to only watch and sing praises. –OR- Gideon with only 300 men and instructions to carry fire torches covered with water pitchers. What kind of battle strategies are these? The examples go on and on--Daniel and the Lion’s den, the walls of Jericho, David and Goliath. All these are impossible circumstances where God delivered faithful people who did things GOD’S WAY! God is repeatedly demonstrating HIS love, deliverance, provision – all these battles were GOD’S BATTLES not theirs, not ours. God is not UNCHANGING! But we are so busy being overwhelmed by our circumstances and trying to do things our own way. We are not even seeing that God simply wants us to trust Him and He will show us His love and the power of His might. Through impossible situations, through impossible odds, with the most unlikely methods God delivers those who trust and commit their faith in obedience to God’s way without leaning on their own understanding. God's purpose for problems, trials, battles are truly for my good and for His glory.
When our thinking is wrong, where do these thoughts usually come from? We know Satan likes to plant seeds of doubt…..some things come from how we were raised……some things come from dramatic events in our life or influences from the society we live in……and even just from our indwelling sin nature.
In my “BC days (before Christ)” I developed some thinking that was definitely not right. Like in my thinking, if my good out-weighed my bad, I just might possibly get into Heaven and escape Hell. But looking in God’s Word I learned… “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation……For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” -- Romans 10:9,10 & 13.
Another example of my wrong thinking was that God was out to punish us if we did the slightest things wrong. Looking at scripture again showed me… “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” -- Romans 5:8 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” -- John 3:16-17. God loves mankind whom He created in His image. God is not waiting to condemn us or squash us like a bug.
You know, even though I’ve been saved a long time I’m still realizing I have some wrong thinking like with the problems, trials and battles we face in our daily life. Job’s friends had thinking like I used to have – that I must have sinned and was being punished for it.
I have learned that kind of thinking is wrong. Trials and battles that we have, are for our good. Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” This was the first verse I learned and it started to change my thinking. I saw a reason but still wasn’t seeing the need for trials in my life and I still struggled with living through the process of the trial. When I learned about the comfort in which I could possibly help someone else from the experience of my trials as explained in II Corinthians 1:2-6. That gave me better acceptance of some of the trials I went through. But let me be honest, I still hated problems, trials and battles. Some are just so painful and I have often cried “WHY?”
Knowing these things helps me through my trials to some degree. I have been a slow learner about the greater purpose of trials. In changing my thinking I have to seek my understanding from God’s perspective. Although these trials are still really hard I must realize it’s about God not about me.
From Pastor’s message Sunday morning this statement really got my attention. “God showed man that the battle was about Him not about man” and then he explanation from God’s Word. I’m going WOW! And trying to write stuff down and my mind was stripping gears with so many thoughts. I knew God was trying to tell me something and my brain wasn’t having time to wrap around the thoughts. So as I’m writing here, I’m asking God for understanding. I know it’s one of those gems I want to save and remember.
Looking at God’s Word the O.T. is full of examples to show us these battles/trials are God’s. Such as—Abraham is to sacrifice Isaac—How is Abraham to be the father of all nations if he must kill his only son? the Israelites trapped by the Red Sea with the Egyptian army coming for them—Where can they possibly go to escape? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—It’s impossible to survive in the flames of the fiery furnace; Jehoshophat faces a great multitude in battle and God instructs them to only watch and sing praises. –OR- Gideon with only 300 men and instructions to carry fire torches covered with water pitchers. What kind of battle strategies are these? The examples go on and on--Daniel and the Lion’s den, the walls of Jericho, David and Goliath. All these are impossible circumstances where God delivered faithful people who did things GOD’S WAY! God is repeatedly demonstrating HIS love, deliverance, provision – all these battles were GOD’S BATTLES not theirs, not ours. God is not UNCHANGING! But we are so busy being overwhelmed by our circumstances and trying to do things our own way. We are not even seeing that God simply wants us to trust Him and He will show us His love and the power of His might. Through impossible situations, through impossible odds, with the most unlikely methods God delivers those who trust and commit their faith in obedience to God’s way without leaning on their own understanding. God's purpose for problems, trials, battles are truly for my good and for His glory.
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