JAMES 1 UNWAVERING TRUST IN THE LORD

July 22

JAMES 1

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. – James 1:5-12

JAMES 1 UNWAVERING TRUST IN THE LORD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If your trust in the Lord is unwavering, you’ll prosper

If you lack wisdom, ask the Lord Almighty for his counsel

And you will be generously given it, but ask with no doubting

For if you hesitate, you are manifesting a heart that is distrusting

A firm trust in God is evidence of your commitment & love for him

It shows conviction that withstands the enemy’s temptation to sin.

So many of us say we love someone but how few of us could actually say that we totally trust the one we claim to love? It is human nature to protect ourselves from what is unknown. It is interesting that even between husbands and wives, we often see some tinge of mistrust brewing in marriages. It is understandable to witness such suspicions and uncertainties if there were preceding events that led to one of the spouses being betrayed once if not often. In those instances, we know that one of them has already broken their vows to love each other. It usually takes time to heal those wounds of unloving acts and betrayals, that is, if it is actually repented on and then forgiven.

In this letter of James, he emphasized the importance of unwavering trust in the Lord. To have a total and complete trust in God, we need to submit control and understanding to him. When we ask him for a plea, it must be out of humility and not twisting God’s arms to give us what we ask for. Often, we come to God for help after we have already exhausted all our knowledge and understanding of a situation. This isn’t truly showing a humble faith and dependence on God. It shows that we rely on ourselves first before we run to God’s counsel. It is proof that we don’t have full confidence that God is our Father and that he has already provided all that we need even before we ask for it. James cautions us from doubting as it is compared to the instability of the waves of the sea that is tossed and blown by the wind. When we doubt, we are not believing that God is the Provider and Source of all things. When we are not firm in our belief in him, we are actually not serving him. We are operating in the camp of the devil.

REFLECTION

·       What does unwavering trust in God look like in a Christian’s life?

PSALM 143 TRUST GOD & YOU’LL KNOW THE WAY

July 21

PSALM 143

7 Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails!

   Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.
8 Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust.
   Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.

9 Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord! I have fled to you for refuge.
10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God!
   Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!

11 For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life!
    In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble!
12 And in your steadfast love you will cut off my enemies,
    and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul, for I am your servant.

                                                                                        – Psalm 143:7-12

PSALM 143 TRUST GOD & YOU’LL KNOW THE WAY

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Make a habit of lifting up your soul to the Lord each morning

It will ensure a day of praise and worship to the Almighty

Consult him for counsel for even the littlest matter

He’ll show you the way to go and you’ll be out of trouble

Trust God and he will preserve your life and destroy the enemy

You will have wisdom to face the battle courageously.

How often do you wake up and immediately say a prayer to God? Do you greet him as soon as you get out of your unconscious state? In this age of information and technology, many people sleep with their devices on their bedside table and usually it is the first thing that they reach out for every morning. I wonder how God longs for us to make him our priority! If you have been in a relationship, you always yearn for your loved ones’ attention, don’t you? Especially in the honeymoon phase of a marriage, the husband or the wife couldn’t get enough of their beloved and usually stares and looks at them with much affection even while they are still asleep. They are so in love with their partner and they can’t get their eyes off them. Shouldn’t each Christian feel the same way for their Lord? What would it be like if we are all so much in love with the Lord and we can’t get enough of him? Wouldn’t we start praising him as soon as we are awake? Wouldn’t we be reaching for our bibles so we can spend time with him and be caressed by his holy word? Wouldn’t we be engaging in a conversation with him from the truth that we have just received? Wouldn’t we pour out our hearts and praise him first thing in the morning?

In this psalm, David showed us his habit of conversing and seeking God’s counsel each time he woke up. In the midst of fleeing his enemies, he never stopped trusting God and making him his priority.

REFLECTION

·       How can you show your love for God in your daily life? How do you stay in love with him?

ROMANS 8 ALL THINGS WORK FOR THOSE WHO TRUST GOD

July 20

ROMANS 8

24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

                                                                                        – Romans 8:24-30

ROMANS 8 ALL THINGS WORK FOR THOSE WHO TRUST GOD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Are you beset by troubles and challenges in your life?

Have you switched your focus away from your loving God?

When you don’t trust the Lord your God with all your heart

You will find it hard to hope for all his promises in your mind

Remember that when you believed in Jesus, you’re given a Helper

If you do not listen to the Holy Spirit, you will fail and be fearful

All things work together for good to all those who trust God

Never forget to lean on him and not on your own understanding.

“Hope for the best” is an idiomatic expression that dates back to the Roman antiquity from the statesman Cicero but they added “and prepare for the worst” in 16th century England and 19th century novels. Interestingly, Paul wrote to the Romans in this letter about the hope we have in Christ Jesus. If you closely examine it, the idiom has nothing to do with the hope that Paul was talking about in this letter. If you hear this idiom from someone and you’re a Christian, you already know that these are two different hopes we are talking about. The world view is about optimism and positive thinking or somewhat trying to prepare themselves for the worst that might happen, so they can cope with the situation when it comes. The hope that Paul refers to in this letter is opposite of what the world is trying to do when they say that idiom. Hoping for the promises of God that were fulfilled in Christ comes with the trust that God will fulfill his promises. It is not preparing to control outcomes of bad events or situations, but seeing what’s going on in the perspective that God is in control. Instead of fixing what bad things might happen before it happens, believers have the expectancy of the fulfillment of the promise. Even if the worst circumstances happen to them, they know that God allowed it to happen for his own purposes. In the world view, God is not the one they trust but they want to manage what worst thing may befall them. It is a way of preparing their minds and equipping themselves to cope with situations.

REFLECTION

·       Do you think Christians should use the idiom “hope for the best?” Why or why not?

MARK 4 YOU OF LITTLE FAITH

July 19

MARK 4

35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” – Mark 4:35-40

MARK 4 YOU OF LITTLE FAITH

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Where do you turn to when you are fearful?

Do you tend to isolate or run to the Almighty?

If you have little faith, you will be overcome by fear

Believe that the Lord has all control and all power

Grow your faith consistently and trust God even with little things

You will eventually begin to give up unbelief and start believing

Even if your faith is as little as a mustard seed, nurture it

For the Lord will be the one to grow your smallest act of trust.

We witness in this account the fear that overcame the disciples as a great storm arose and their boats were being tossed and turned. They feared for their lives. It is human nature to experience the same feelings they had when we experience great natural calamities and disasters. What is interesting in this story is the irony between their panic and Jesus’ calm as he slept. When they woke Jesus up and said to him “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” That is the statement of unbelief. The audacity of these disciples to ask Jesus such a question after seeing all his miracles right in front of their very own eyes. You think that after the number of years they have been following Jesus that they would have grown their faith, but it just exposed how little their knowledge of him was. When Jesus asked them “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” It is not like Jesus didn’t know the answer to that. He was challenging them to reflect how much trust they have grown since the time they were chosen to be his disciples. If their intimacy with Jesus was mature, they would know that Jesus has power over the wind and the seas. Because of their shallow relationship with their Lord, they feared for their lives not knowing that Jesus is life itself. Jesus felt sad that after those years of being with him, they still have not grown their trust in him.

In Mark 11:23, we hear ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart.’ We should be able to visualize what we are hoping for and believe that it has already happened so we can receive it.

REFLECTION

  • Who should you have little faith in and who should you give all your trust to? Why?

PROVERBS 29 FEARING MAN LAYS A SNARE

July 18

PROVERBS 29

23 One’s pride will bring him low,
      but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.
24 The partner of a thief hates his own life;
       he hears the curse, but discloses nothing.
25 The fear of man lays a snare,
    but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe.
26 Many seek the face of a ruler,
      but it is from the Lord that a man gets justice.
27 An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous,
       but one whose way is straight is an abomination to the wicked.

                                                                                        – Proverbs 29:23-27

PROVERBS 29 FEARING MAN LAYS A SNARE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If you are afraid of what wicked people can do to you

You have been enslaved by the state of being fearful

Whoever gets terrorized by someone do not trust God

If you know the Lord your God, you will live in love

The perfect love of God casts out fear, so trust the Lord

When you do not know God, you will be overcome by the world.

When was the last time you were manipulated, bullied or terrorized by someone? It is not a pleasant experience when you become intimidated by someone who controls you because you are in desperate need to be loved. I remember that feeling while I was growing up and being dismissed and neglected by my own mother. It was a very painful rejection of my existence. At a very young age of seven, I remember being so confused after I was showed a gesture of love and care for my mother when she got home from work. I offered her slippers as she came into the house, wanting to connect with her. She is always busy at work and never finds time to spend with me and my brother. She delegated her parenting role to her two sisters who lived with us. I was always living in fear that she is never ever going to find time to see me or be heard. But as I offered her the slippers as an opening for connection, she tossed the slippers and yelled that she doesn’t have time for me. How would a seven-year-old deal with that kind of rejection from her own mother? When I learned about Jesus in school, I began to have conversations and also wrote him letters as I learned to read and write at that age. The pain of rejection wasn’t that much anymore after I began having a relationship with Jesus. I felt relieved and at peace each time I talked and conversed with my Lord.  I felt that I had a confidant, a friend who’ll not reject me.

In this book of Proverbs, Solomon exhorts us to never allow humans to intimidate us and cause fear in us. When we fear man, we are going to be in bondage, but if we fear the Lord and trust in him, nothing will ever make us tremble in fear anymore. Instead of fearing man, let us trust and fear the Lord instead.

REFLECTION

·       Share a time when you were freed from the bondage of being afraid of someone or something.

PSALM 60 TRUST GOD AND YOU’LL DO VALIANTLY

July 17

PSALM 60

4 You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
    that they may flee to it from the bow. Selah
5 That your beloved ones may be delivered,
    give salvation by your right hand and answer us!
9 Who will bring me to the fortified city?
    Who will lead me to Edom?10 Have you not rejected us, O God?
    You do not go forth, O God, with our armies.
11 Oh, grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man!
12 With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.

                                                                                  – Psalm 60:4-5 & 9-12

PSALM 60 TRUST GOD AND YOU’LL DO VALIANTLY

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If your Master is the Lord God, you will pledge allegiance to him

As you trust the Almighty God, you will start to hate and resist sin

Those who rely on God alone will find much courage and insight

But all those who rely on their own strength remain foolish

Bring your weaknesses to him and you will do valiantly

He is your deliverer and will fight for you and defeat your enemy

Trust in the rock of your salvation and you will overcome your foes

If you trust your own, you will surely be fearful and eventually fail.

With the rise of psychology in the world of information age, many people rely on understanding their predicaments under this scientific study of the mind and behavior. I am not exempt in this fascination to understand why people behave and act as they do. When I was diagnosed with complex trauma, psychology has helped me understand what I went through and somehow led me to make sense of why I was raised in my family with the absence of love. It took over 12 years of counseling and therapy before I was awakened to know the truth in God’s word. Scripture is what truly healed and saved me from all those lies I believed in for half a century of my life. Those long years of human advice from the world of psychology didn’t include praising God for his truth that actually saves all of humanity. Fourteen years of daily studying the bible has given me such discernment that I never had all my life. Human counsel will never be at par with the wisdom that only comes from the word of the Lord. God’s word healed my mind and heart and exposed every lie that I have been told all those five decades of living. The truth has set me free from the bondage of sin and trauma.

In this psalm, the author is showing us that if we trust in the Lord alone, we will do valiantly. We will be able to see and discern what God has already given us authority over. There is no weapon formed against God’s people that will prosper. Trust only the divine power that comes from God and his word.

REFLECTION

  • What is usually the source of fear and anxiety in our lives? What’s the remedy to it?

PSALM 146 IF YOU TRUST GOD & NOT MAN

July 16

PSALM 146

3 Put not your trust in princes,    in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
4 When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;  on that very day his plans perish.

5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,  whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 who made heaven and earth,    the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever;
7     who executes justice for the oppressed,   who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free; 8    the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord watches over the sojourners;   he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
    but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin. – Psalm 146:3-9

PSALM 146 IF YOU TRUST GOD & NOT MAN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Do you run to God or to yourself and others when in trouble?

Do you think that humans rather than God will have all the answers?

Remember that the Lord God sees and knows all things

Because he made everything, he sees all your difficulties

Why would you trust man and leaders who are finite like you

If you trust God and not man, you’ll be blessed and have wisdom

Blessed are you who run to the Lord for help, you’ll be hopeful

If you trust man and not God, you’ll be frustrated and anxious.

In this psalm, the writer who is unidentified cautions man not to put their trust in anyone. He mentions princes here which we could also think of those who are in authority over us. Most rulers and kings of the world do not necessarily know God, so they would be operating and leading under the world system which is usually corrupt and ungodly. Man is fallible while God is perfect. Why would anyone want to rely on someone who is imperfect? Wouldn’t you want to be anchored to someone stable? Matthew 7:34-37 says this “24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been found on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” The Lord is our rock and our salvation. Man is not dependable because he is weak and easily tempted to sin.

The psalmist continues to point out all the benefits of trusting God and not in man. God rescues man and lifts up those who are bowed down. God is faithful, he will never let you down unlike man who is so ambivalent and unstable. The Lord never forsakes or leaves us. He is full of wisdom and good counsel and his love is unconditional.

REFLECTION

·       Share a time that you trusted man more than God and they failed to deliver.

PSALM 37 COMMIT YOUR WAY AND TRUST GOD

July 15

PSALM 37

Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
   fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
   over the man who carries out evil devices! – Psalm 37:1-7

PSALM 37 COMMIT YOUR WAY AND TRUST GOD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When you live as servants of God, you ought to trust in him

Never do things in your own strength or you will definitely sin

When you face trials, consult the Lord for good counsel

If you have plans, seek the Lord’s advice and you will prosper

Trust in God alone even if you don’t see results as you expect it

If you commit your way to him, he will act but you need to be patient.

The psalmist advises us to avoid envy. He assures them that the wicked may seem to be prosperous but there is no reason for the people of God to be envious of such because their riches or success will be momentary only. In verse 3, he exhorts them to trust God and continue to live in faithful devotion to him. In verse 4, he reminds them that loving the Lord is something to be rejoicing about. He used the phrase “Delight yourself in the Lord”- translated from the Hebrew root verb עָנַג (anag). It means to find soft, exquisite pleasure or luxury in God. In other words, to delight would involve a love for that person. God wants his people not just to follow or do what he says because he says so, but to reciprocate the love that he bestows on all his people. When couples are newly married, they are so delighted in each other during the honeymoon phase of their relationship. As time flies, some marriages become duty bound responsibility and the delight dies out. Just like the charge of Jesus against the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2:4, they have forsaken the love you had at first. They have become lukewarm and no longer delighted in Jesus. It would be wise for all believers to never forget the first time they committed their lives to the Lord. In verse 5, we are encouraged to bring all our plans, dreams and wishes to the Lord so that we will do what is right in his eyes and not in our own eyes. In James 4:14-15 he reiterates this concept of committing your way to God when he says “whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” 16 But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. To leave God out of your life is purely “boasting.”

REFLECTION

·       How is not seeking God’s counsel and his will an act of defiance, pride and mistrust?

PSALM 37 COMMIT YOUR WAY AND TRUST GOD

July 15

PSALM 37

Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
   fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
   over the man who carries out evil devices! – Psalm 37:1-7

PSALM 37 COMMIT YOUR WAY AND TRUST GOD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When you live as servants of God, you ought to trust in him

Never do things in your own strength or you will definitely sin

When you face trials, consult the Lord for good counsel

If you have plans, seek the Lord’s advice and you will prosper

Trust in God alone even if you don’t see results as you expect it

If you commit your way to him, he will act but you need to be patient.

The psalmist advises us to avoid envy. He assures them that the wicked may seem to be prosperous but there is no reason for the people of God to be envious of such because their riches or success will be momentary only. In verse 3, he exhorts them to trust God and continue to live in faithful devotion to him. In verse 4, he reminds them that loving the Lord is something to be rejoicing about. He used the phrase “Delight yourself in the Lord”- translated from the Hebrew root verb עָנַג (anag). It means to find soft, exquisite pleasure or luxury in God. In other words, to delight would involve a love for that person. God wants his people not just to follow or do what he says because he says so, but to reciprocate the love that he bestows on all his people. When couples are newly married, they are so delighted in each other during the honeymoon phase of their relationship. As time flies, some marriages become duty bound responsibility and the delight dies out. Just like the charge of Jesus against the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2:4, they have forsaken the love you had at first. They have become lukewarm and no longer delighted in Jesus. It would be wise for all believers to never forget the first time they committed their lives to the Lord. In verse 5, we are encouraged to bring all our plans, dreams and wishes to the Lord so that we will do what is right in his eyes and not in our own eyes. In James 4:14-15 he reiterates this concept of committing your way to God when he says “whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” 16 But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. To leave God out of your life is purely “boasting.”

REFLECTION

·       How is not seeking God’s counsel and his will an act of defiance, pride and mistrust?

PSALM 27 TRUST GOD AND WAIT FOR HIM

July 14

PSALM 27

7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!
8 You have said, “Seek my face. ”My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
9 Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger,
    O you who have been my help, Cast me not off;

    forsake me not, O God of my salvation!
10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me,
    but the Lord will take me in.11 Teach me your way, O Lord,
    and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;
    for false witnesses have risen against me,
    and they breathe out violence.

13 I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living! 14 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

                                                                                        – Psalm- 27:7-13

PSALM 27 TRUST GOD AND WAIT FOR HIM

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Believe that you are a child of God and that he loves you

You will experience a hunger for his love and his truth

Even if your closest relative and friends have all gone

The Lord will always be there and never leave you

Call on him with much fervor and he’ll hear you

Do not forsake your promise since he is faithful.

What is the manifestation of trust in a relationship? It is patience to wait on things that do not seem promising. In many relationships, we often see that many people do not anchor their relations with others based on their relationship with God. If you have had many failed relationships, chances are that you also have not been connecting with the Lord yourself.  I am a testament to this because I have had so many failed relationships all my life. Probably the absence of a Christ-centered life in my family contributed to such failures. How can a child learn about God if their parents never talked to them about the Lord? How can a child survive life without being shown love and affection from their caregivers. It would be impossible for them to navigate and have a healthy view of loving others.

In this account, David exhorts us to trust God and have courage to wait on the Lord. What does “waiting on the Lord” look like? It is to anchor one’s life to Jesus, to seek his presence on a daily and regular basis. It is to know and stand on all the promises of God in all aspects of your life and expect all of it.

REFLECTION

  • How is standing on God’s promises a sure way of trusting him?