Standing Firm

"If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." Isaiah 7:9

The Bible is not to be read like a fortune cookie. As tempting as it is to take the sweet platitudes of scripture and make them our mantra for the day, we really should study the Word and understand its context. Most verses are not taken out of context by most believers, but some are and it trivializes the Word of God. In the preceding verses God is promising protection for His people. He then states the way it will be instead of the way they think it will be and closes with these encouraging words, "If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." These words stand in principle on their own. It is true that we cannot stand without Him and we must trust Him to keep standing, especially when things are stacked against us.

My life, like yours, is one of ebbing and flowing faith. Sometimes my faith is very strong and sometimes I am blown down by a few words that I might even be misunderstanding. I know I must keep my grip on my faith and if I am going to stand firm, I must do it in His strength and not mine. Recently, I have been making special efforts to resist the temptations of the evil one to mess with my thinking. satan feeds my fears and worries. I believe I am pretty perceptive and am a decent objective analyzer, but that does not replace trusting Him. Situations around me are more complicated than I think and the dynamics of relationships cannot easily be categorized or analyzed for that matter. So what I don't know and/or understand I must for sure put those things in particular in His hands.

I would rather figure out to stand firm in my faith before my feelings take me down or my anxieties get the better of me. Today is a Monday. A good day for me to remind myself to stand firm. Somewhere in between trying to be tough and immovable and being blown over I am going to trust Him in the ebb and flow of today, and this week. If you are like me I don't do real well with unknowns. All the more reason to stand firm in my faith. My faith doesn't change and certainly the one in whom I put my faith does not change. Me, I am a work in progress. Hope these words will ring in your heart today.

"Trust in the Lord, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight."
--Proverbs 3:5-6
Standing firm,
Pastor Fred

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