Archive for the ‘Praise’ Category

Good Kinds of Fear!

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Gospel, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 17, 2008| 1 Comment »

Mourning Dove

March2008 008

In my last post we looked at different kinds of fears.  We saw that they were the fear of man, the fear of death, and the fear of the future.  A lot of our fears fall under these groupings.  These are all sinful fears. 

Today I want to address some good kinds of fears.  Yes, there are good fears!  Our goals should not be to eliminate all fear but to distinguish between what are the good kinds and what are the sinful ones.  After all, God made us with the ability to fear. 

Natural Fear:

Proverbs 22:3 NASB The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it.

This shows that man sees the danger ahead and takes steps to avoid it.

The fear of falling off a cliff, for example, is a natural kind of fear.  It is healthy to prevent us from taking that next step when we come up to the edge of the cliff.  Also, the fear of a wild animal is a natural good kind of fear.  It helps our bodies rev up so that we can run and escape. 

However, when we have  a panic attack our bodies go into this kind of fear when there is no real danger. This is not healthy. There could be many reasons why this happens the first time.  I’ve talked about that in a previous message where we talked about the physical side of panic disorder.  The problem is that our bodies get sensitized when we continue to have panic attacks and it is easy for us to slip into this kind of fear at the drop of a hat.  The way out of having panic attacks is to make more time between the attacks, by not pushing ourselves, resting, and let our bodies readjust.

Isaiah 7:25 NASB As for all the hills which used to be cultivated with the hoe, you will not go there for fear of briars and thorns;

This is saying one would fear the briars and thorns as they will cut and scrape you and be painful.  That is natural fear.

Wayne Mack says in his book, The Fear Factor, “The problem is, our sinful nature takes this good, helpful emotion and twists, perverts and distorts it.  As a result, it’s no longer productive but paralyzing, no longer natural but sinful.”

Holy Fear:

Proverbs 1:7 NASB The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 14:27 NASB The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, That one may avoid the snares of death.

Psalms 31:19 NASB How great is Your goodness, Which You have stored up for those who fear You, Which You have wrought for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of men!

Again I would like to quote from Wayne Mack because this is so good.  Here he shows the differences.

“Holy fear and sinful fear are opposites.  Sinful fear destroys; holy fear enlivens.  Sinful fear is a terrible affliction; holy fear is a great benefit.  Sinful fear shortens our days; holy fear lengthens them.  Sinful fear is a source of misery; holy fear is a spring of joy.  Sinful fear leads men astray; holy fear puts men on the right path.  They only way to overcome sinful fear is to replace it with holy fear.”

There you go.  We are back to “put-offs,” and “put-ons.”  We have to put off the bad fear and put on the good kind of fear. 

You may ask, what is this holy fear you are talking about?  It is the fear of God.  There are many scriptures that talk about the fear of God.   

Results of Holy Fear:

1.  It produces a fear of sin.

Philippians 2:12 NASB So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;

Working out our salvation with fear and trembling means that it is a serious business.  We shouldn’t take it for granted.  We need to keep studying the Word and learn how we can obey what God says.  We should not take sin lightly.  We recognize it for what it is and repent and get right with God.

2.  It produces a fear of God’s Word.

Proverbs 16:6 NASB  And by the fear of the LORD one keeps away from evil.

The only way we can know God and know what he expects of us is to read and study the Bible.  As we do we will realize many things that God wants us to change or do in our lives.  We obey out of high respect and honor to God.  He first loved us, and now we love Him.  We should have a heart attitude of pleasing Him.  When we do this we will not fall into sin.

3. It produces knowledge and wisdom.

Proverbs 1:7  NASB “The fear of he Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” 

Proverbs 15:33  NASB “The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom.

True wisdom and knowledge are found in the Word of God.  We learn what the Bible says and then wisdom gives us the ability to apply it to our lives.

Psalms 119:11 NASB Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.

That is wisdom.

4.  It produces joy and contentment.

Proverbs 15:16 NASB  Better is a little with the fear of the LORD Than great treasure and turmoil with it.

Isn’t that the truth?  I’d much rather have little of this world’s wealth then be rich and have all the problems that it entails.  People talk about winning the lottery and they’d be happy.  I don’t think so.

As you can see the Bible is where we need to turn to discover how to live our lives in a healthy and blessed way. 

The Fear Factor: What Satan Doesn’t Want You to Know by Wayne and Joshua Mack can be found here:

www.mackministeries.org. 

Read Full Post »

Kinds of Fear!

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 10, 2008| 3 Comments »

 

Pretty Bird!

March2008 006

In my last post in this series we talked about the fact that we can change bad habits.  When we become a Christian we are literally changed as the Bible says we are  new creations in Christ.

But, we still seem to have a backpack full of old habits that we carry around.  We saw from the Bible that we have to “put-off” off bad habits and “put-on” new acceptable ones.  Hopefully you made a list of the things you need to “put-off” and what you need to replace them with, and are working on them.

I’ve been reading a wonderful book by Wayne and Joshua Mack called, The Fear Factor, What Satan Doesn’t Want You to Know.  Now that I’ve finished it I can highly recommend it to you.  It isn’t about panic attacks specifically, but is about how fear can cripple anyone even if they don’t have panic disorder. So, even when we are overcomers of panic attacks we need to know how fear can still control us.  This book is loaded with good mental health and is truly biblical.

If you are interested in purchasing it you can go here:  www.mackministeries.org

2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Our bad fear habits do not come from God.  I used to think that Satan causes them, but I am now of the opinion that even though Satan likes us to be fearful, he doesn’t keep us that way. We cannot blame him.  If you think about it, there is only one devil and he cannot be everywhere at once like God can, and he doesn’t know everything like God does, and he is not all powerful like God is. I believe he has bigger fish to fry than us, like the leaders of enemy nations, for example.  So, what causes us to continue to fear in an unhealthy way?  I believe it is those old fear habits that we have carried over in our way of thinking.

Today, I’d like to talk a bit about the different types of fears we encounter.  We made a list of them awhile back.

When I had panic attacks I had many fears.  In fact, in my book, Panic Buster, I had a list of 28 different fears. Those were the ones I could think of at the time, there were most likely more.

I want to try to put some of those fears and some of the ones you gave me in categories so that we can see more clearly what is behind our fears.

Fear of the future, fear of death, and fear of man are some of the main categories of fear.  I looked over our lists and come up with the following: 

Fear of the future:

Isaiah 41:10 ‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

So many of our fears can come under the heading of “fear of the future.”  If you think about it any fear that has to do with the future even if it is a few hours away can come under that heading.  For instance: fear of going to the store, fear of leaving the house, fear of the weather, fear of losing control, fear of going crazy, the next panic attack. dying and leaving children without a mother (this is also fear of death), stroke, heart attack, blood clots, (health problems),  feeling disconnected from yourself,  fear of the unknown, fear of aging. Any time we put off doing something because we are fearful it could be the fear of the future.

Why should we be anxious and fearful of things in the future when we have God on our side?  We don’t realize that He is big enough to handle all of our anxiety. 

1 Peter 5:7 casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

Psalms 32:7 You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

Psalms 143:9 Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies; I take refuge in You.

Why are we afraid of the future?  We shouldn’t be.  After all we are in God’s hands.  This is sinful fear.  And, we must repent of it and then go on with God.

Fear of death:

Hebrews 2:15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Many of our fears also come under the heading of fear of death.  Some are: passing out, driving, bees, crossing the street, someone in the house, the dark, losing control, bathtub water, gas fumes, tornados and blizzards, flying. 

The “bathtub water,” one was one of mine.   You might ask why that?  Well, to me it felt like I might go under the water and drown.  It was especially fearful if I was alone.  I know that was in irrational fear.  So many of them were.  Also, if a bee came around I took off in my own flight.  I was so afraid that it would sting me and I would die.  But, I’m not even allergic to them.  

It seems strange now that I could have been so afraid of such things.  I thank God that he has erased most of this from my memory.  I don’t think about all this usually, only when I’m trying to write.   Crossing the street was another big one for me.  I had to cross to get the mail.  I’d wait and wait then suddenly dash across when I thought the way was clear.  I lived in the country so there wasn’t really much traffic.

That was another irrational fear.   

Fear of man:

Proverbs 29:25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.

Wayne Mack says, “The fear of man is a broad biblical category for many specific sins.”

Dr. Ed Welch says speaking of fear of man, “it includes being afraid of someone, but it extends to holding someone in awe, being controlled or mastered by people, worshiping other people, putting your trust in people.”

We might not recognize this fear as much, but it is there.  Fear of people, crowds, witnessing for Christ, doctors, dentists, talking to people, being honest, telling about our fears.  I remember hiding my fears from my family and doctor.  I did not know what they would think of me.  I also became very dependent on other people instead of God.   I had the fear of man.  That was behind my fears in this area.  Do you sometimes not do something or say something because you are afraid of what others would think of you?  We’ve all done it.  If this is one of your habits you need to work on replacing it with good ones. 

Fear of God:

Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Someone  said “fear of God, seeing and hearing Him.”  Guess what?  That is a good fear.

There are both holy fears and sinful fears.  We have to distinguish between the two.

Blessings,
Bonnie

Read Full Post »

Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners!

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, Hymns, inspirational, Praise, Religion, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 5, 2008| 1 Comment »

J. Wilbur Chapman (1859-1918)

Words: J. Wil­bur Chap­man, 1910.

Music: Hy­fry­dol, Row­land H. Prich­ard, 1830 (MI­DI, score).

Rowland H. Prichard (1811-1887)

This past Sunday we sang this song in church.  This song was written almost 100 years ago and yet these words are so pertinent for today. God never changes!  Each line is loaded with great theology.  I’m thankful for those dedicated Christians of long ago who left us with such wonderful insights into the Word and put them in song.  I hope this encourages you as much as it has me.  – Bonnie

Jesus! what a Friend for sinners!
Jesus! Lover of my soul;
Friends may fail me, foes assail me,
He, my Savior, makes me whole.

Refrain

Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Hallelujah! what a Friend!
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
He is with me to the end.

Jesus! what a Strength in weakness!
Let me hide myself in Him.
Tempted, tried, and sometimes failing,
He, my Strength, my victory wins.

Refrain

Jesus! what a Help in sorrow!
While the billows over me roll,
Even when my heart is breaking,
He, my Comfort, helps my soul.

Refrain

Jesus! what a Guide and Keeper!
While the tempest still is high,
Storms about me, night overtakes me,
He, my Pilot, hears my cry.

Refrain

Jesus! I do now receive Him,
[or Jesus! I do now adore Him,]
More than all in Him I find.
He hath granted me forgiveness,
I am His, and He is mine.

Refrain

Read Full Post »

You Can Change Bad Habits!

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Gospel, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Testimonies, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 3, 2008| 3 Comments »

 Wintry Blast of Ice and Snow!

February2008 034

We’ve been looking at the spiritual side of our lives.  We have seen that once we are saved we are a new creation.  God gives us a new heart and the ability to change.  Isn’t that wonderful?  What I like about this is that God makes it possible for us to change.

We have many old habits that tag along with us and keep right on popping up in our lives.  We have to get rid of them.  The Bible tells us that the way to do it is to put-off the old habits and for every one we put off, we are to put-on new habits. It out with the old and in with the new!

As we study the Bible we need to evaluate all that we think, say, and do, and see if it lines up with scripture.  When it doesn’t then need to change.

Romans 6:12-14 NASB Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Isn’t it great that God has made a way for us to change?  We do not have to be a slave to sin again. 

Let’s take a look at some of the “put-offs.”

Ephesians 4:25-31 NASB Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another. BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity. He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.  Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.  Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

Colossians 3:8 NASB But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,

When we notice a habit that we need to change. We must confess our sinful behavior to God.

1 John 1:9 NSAB  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

In order to change from our old bad habits, we not only have to put off the old habits, but we must replace them with good habits.

Romans 6:19 NASB  I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

Now let’s take a look at some of the “put-ons.”

Colossians 3:10 NASB  and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him–

Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another.

Ephesians 4:28-29 NASB He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.

Ephesians 4:32 NASB Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

Colossians 3:12 -17 NASB So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

2 Peter 1:5-8 NASB Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Study these lists of put-offs and put-ons.  Then, you could make a list for yourself.  On one side write the “put-offs” and opposite of that write down the thing you need to “put-on” in place of the old bad habit.  When we replace bad habits that are not Biblical with good habits that are Biblical we will see a lot of growth in our Christian life, and God will bless us for it.

Yes, we can live as believers and not as unbelievers.  Our Lord is  gracious in that He gave us His Word so that we can really get down to where the rubber meets the road and make changes that He desires for us.  He made us and knows how we should live.  We came into this world and got caught up in it.  It has influenced all of us in a negative way.  We all have things we need to work on and I pray that is study will help you change your habits.  

Blessings,

Bonnie

Read Full Post »

Prescription For Health & Happiness

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Health, inspirational, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 31, 2007| 2 Comments »

           Our Cardinal Friend

                      100_0102

 

Proverbs 4:20-27 (NIV)

My son pay attention to what I say;
listen closely to my words.
Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;
for they are life to the those who find them
and health to a man’s whole body.
  Above all else, guard your heart,
for it is the wellspring of life.
  Put away perversity from your mouth;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
Let your eyes look straight ahead,
fix your gaze directly before you.
Make level paths for your feet
and take only ways that are firm.
Do not swerve to the right or the left;
keep your foot from evil. 

 

There is a wealth of good health in this portion of scripture.  This is advice given to a young man, but it can be applied to any one of us.  First he tells his son to really pay attention and remember what he is about to say as it is very important.  We should do the same. He says to keep these words in our hearts.  The wisdom of these Words make a man’s whole body healthy.  They are life to him. 

When the Bible speaks of the heart it is speaking of the center of the human spirit, from which springs forth our emotions, thoughts, motivations, courage and actions.  If we store up good things in our hearts, our words and actions will flow forth with good things.

He says, “above all else,” or most important…guard your heart, because our life springs forth from it.  The heart “is the wellspring of life.”  All these things flow out of it as an overflowing water well springs forth water.

Then he tells us some things we need to do to achieve this good health. 

1. We need to watch how we talk.  How we talk reflects what we’ve been thinking about.  It also shows what is at our core.  Christians are not to talk trash as the world does.  It is very interesting, but if you listen closely while someone talks you can pretty much discover their relationship to God.

Matthew 12:34 “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”

2. We need to be careful what we look at.  Are the movies we watch honorable to the Lord?  What about the T.V. programs we watch?  Would we be comfortable if the Lord Jesus Christ was sitting right there with us? There are many examples such as magazines, Internet, and even watching other people that we can include here. 

3. We need to take heed to where we walk.  We are not to swerve to the left or to the right in order to keep us from walking into evil behavior.  Are you mindful of where you hang out and if it is pleasing to God?  Sometimes we need to avoid certain places and friends so that we won’t be tempted.

4. We need to watch our thoughts also.  Our minds are fragile and we must protect them.  Are you aware of what you think about most of the time? 

(Philippians 4:8)  Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

These are the things we should be thinking about.  You can examine your thoughts against the above scripture.  If they are out of line you can pray and ask the Lord to bring your thoughts where they should be.

Attaining to these things is not automatic or even easy.  But, If you make a serious effort the Lord will help you and then you too can have a healthy and happy life.

 

 

Read Full Post »

Thankful to God?

Posted in American culture, Anxiety & Stress, Christian, Faith, Holidays, inspirational, Praise, Religion, Worship, tagged , , , , , on November 17, 2007| 4 Comments »

thankful

It is time to celebrate Thanksgiving again, and I’ve been thinking.

I wonder how many people are thankful to God on Thanksgiving?  I remember when I was growing up how much fun Thanksgiving was.  All of our family would get together at my folks house and we would have a feast.  My mom would cook for a couple of days ahead getting food ready.We would have turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, winter squash, baked beans, homemade pickles, cranberry sauce, olives, and for desert pies and homemade banana bread. (It makes me hungry just thinking about it.)

The men usually would go out hunting for deer in the morning and then when they came in for dinner would be really hungry and would share stories of the deer they saw but couldn’t get a shot at.   I used to love to hear all the hunting stories.

I recall the guys would actually make gluttons of themselves having contests to see who could eat the most.

Those are fond memories of family as we celebrated together.  But, you know what, I think we were thankful for all the wonderful food we had, but I can never remember that we ever prayed before we feasted or gave thanks to God for anything.  Now, that strikes me as sad.

After becoming a Christian I realized that God is the one who provides.

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.(Philippians 4:19)

Yes, we can be thankful that we have a good job, that our family is healthy, that we have enough money.  We can be thankful for almost anything but God needs to be the object of our gratitude.  God has enabled us to work, to have a job, to make money.  He is the source of everything we have.

In Matthew 6:25-34 God tells us that we are more important than the birds and the flowers, and He provides for them.  He also tells us not to worry. Instead we need to be thankful for how He has provided for us by seeking Him and He will take care of us.

I had an email from a new Christian recently.  She can’t wait for Thanksgiving this year and said she has a new thankfulness now that she is closer to God.  She will look at the day in a new way this time.  Isn’t that great?

I pray each of you will be thankful this Thanksgiving holiday and that your gratitude will be directed toward God.

 

Read Full Post »

Faith or Fear?

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , on November 7, 2007| 3 Comments »

                     Golden Autumn

Golden Autumn

Are you stressed out?  Are you anxious and fearful?  Do you want to be at peace?  Do you realize that your finding peace has everything to do with faith? Without faith you will not become free from anxiety. I can say that with certainty. 

God has given us many promises in the Bible and we need them to live the type of victorious Christian life He wants for us.  But, in order to make those promises active in our own lives we must have faith.  It must be the right kind of faith.

First we need to believe in God.  Second believe in the finished work of Jesus Christ, His son, and third believe that the Word of God is true.  Then, we must take God at His Word.  When He says something, believe it, stand on it, and know that God will not let you down.

We need to apply our faith (in Christ) to the problem of fear and anxiety. We can do this.

We can see God’s handiwork in creation all around us.  That is a good example of something that can help us.  When we get those thoughts of fear and anxiety, we can refocus our minds by taking a good look around us.  We can see God’s handiwork and give thanks and praise to God for his creation, and in doing that we can turn off our stressful thoughts and replace them with God honoring ones.  Do you see how this can help you?

I’m not just coming up with some theory, but I’ve actually done this in my own life so I know.

Also, faith in and of itself has no value. There has to be an object to your faith.  And, that is Jesus.  It is because of Him that we can have faith.  Faith is a gift of God given to us to enable us to know Him and live our Christian lives. 

Colossians 1:4 “For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus (the leaning of our entire human personality on Him in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness) …  Amplified Bible. 

I love this Amplified version of the Bible as it brings out what is clearly said in the scripture. 

I want to challenge you today.  Do you have that kind of faith?  Is it in Christ Jesus only?  Do you have absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness? 

I also want to warn you that there are a lot of teachings out there today that are not truly Biblical.  One such false teaching is the prosperity gospel.  They declare that if you have enough faith you can be rich, and healthy, and have whatever you want.  Do you want a new car?  They say “just believe for it.”  This is a “faith in faith,” kind of thing.  It is almost like having faith in yourself, that you have enough faith to make things happen, or enough faith to make God do something.  That is not scriptural.  We cannot make God do anything, and we shouldn’t try. 

So, let’s be sure that we truly understand what God is talking about when he tells us to have faith, live by faith, and walk by faith. 

For more study on faith read Hebrews Chapter 11.

Read Full Post »

Glory to God for His Handiwork

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, inspirational, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , on November 7, 2007| Leave a Comment »

                    image

The natural creation brings Glory to God!

Psalm 19:1 reads:

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows and proclaims His handiwork. ”  Amplified Bible 

God’s handiwork is all around us.  What a amazing sight it is to go out on a dark night and go to a place where there are no street lights. The stars all shine so brightly, it is breathtaking.  They seem to just hang there in the sky waiting for someone to come by and pick a bouquet.  You marvel at all the constellations and wonder why God placed them in that particular order.

There are so many thousands of stars it is overwhelming, and yet we know  God made them all and put them in place.  The heavens also declare his glory in the sun and moon. 

What about a rainbow?  Again…when you see something so beautiful as that you know there is a God in Heaven.  Our wonderful creator.

I love living in the country.  We can get out and see all kinds of natural beauty that God has created.  Mountains, valleys, lakes, streams, trees, flowers, animals, and the list goes on and on.  And to think God made all that for our enjoyment.  Isn’t that a marvelous thought? 

In the evening God gives us brilliant sunsets.  Oh what a joy they are. Pictured above is one that we saw on a beautiful October evening. It was taken off our deck.  To me that is God’s signature on a wondrous day.

As we take a walk and observe creation we can give God glory for all He has done.  It’s an amazing time of fellowship and is actually worship of God.

If we take a look at  Romans 1:18-20 we can see that God has revealed Himself through creation and man is without excuse.  Man can deny there is a God, but he is only deceiving himself.  The evidence of God is all around us.  Praise the Lord!

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »