Category: Strength for Today

Job 32:9
“Great men are not always wise: neither do the aged understand judgment.”

A wise but very troubling statement is made in the verse above when it says, “Great men are not always wise…” Job had three friends who were supposed to be great men in their day, but in their greatness they did not have the wisdom to help Job in his condition. Elihu, a younger man, was troubled that these great men lacked the wisdom to help Job in this troubled time of his life. This is why he said, “Great men are not always wise…”

Yet, Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 5:5, “I will get me unto the great men…” After Jeremiah looked at the condition of the people and wondered how they could not see the judgment of God, he said that he would go to the great men. He declared that the great men knew “the way of the LORD, and the judgment of their God.” He understood that the great men had something to offer him.

The older I get, the more I realize how much I want the wisdom of the great men. We live in times when people go back through history to base their actions and beliefs upon statements of “great men” from the past. There is nothing wrong with this as long as we allow some principles to guide us with the wisdom of great men. Let me give you some suggestions that will help you with the wisdom of great men.

First, “Great men are not always wise.” Just because a person from the past has made a great statement doesn’t always mean their doctrine is right. We have a way of looking at great men of the past as sinless people without realizing they are still sinners capable of having wrong positions. Just because someone we respect in history says something, that doesn’t make it right. What any person says must still be based upon the truths of God’s Word. Great men are still sinners who are capable of making unwise statements. Just because something is old doesn’t make it right. Right and wrong are determined by God’s Word and not by antiquity.

Second, “I will get me unto the great men.” You need great men in your life. I want to caution you not to let the humanity of great men cause you to throw away all that they did that was right. If we treated the apostles the same way we treat some great men of God from the past, then we would never follow any of their examples. We don’t throw away all the Paul taught us because he foolishly took a Jewish vow. We don’t throw away all the Peter taught us because he denied the Saviour. I am in no way justifying wrong, but we must be careful that we don’t throw away all the good of great men because we discovered their humanity. The methods of men whom God used greatly still work today if we will be wise enough to follow their examples. Don’t throw away the principles and methods of great men of the past for the unproven methods of modern day Balaam’s just because you perceived the humanity of these great men.

Simply put, great men are human, but don’t throw away their good contributions because you discovered their humanity. Moreover, be careful that you always use God’s Word as your basis for all doctrine and direction. Great men are only great when they follow God’s Word. You will never fail if you let God’s Word be the guide to approve the actions and beliefs of great men.

2 Corinthians 12:10
“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

One of the hardest things that you will deal with in your Christian life is keeping yourself in proper perspective. Paul addressed this issue by showing us why God allows us to suffer a thorn in the flesh. Paul asked God three times to remove his thorn in the flesh, but He told him that His grace is sufficient. When Paul accepted the thorn in the flesh that was given to him, it changed his perspective of hardships and why God sends them our way. There are three reasons God allows you to suffer a thorn in the flesh.

First, God allows you to have a thorn in the flesh so that it will change your perspective of yourself. Without the thorn in the flesh, Paul could have easily gloried in himself. He said in verse 5, “Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.” This thorn kept Paul from becoming filled with pride.

One of the reasons God allows you to suffer with a thorn in the flesh is to help you keep a proper perspective of yourself. God knows, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18) God is trying to keep you from destroying yourself. As long as your thorn keeps you realizing that you need God, then your thorn becomes a tool to help you keep a proper perspective of yourself.

Second, God allows you to have a thorn in the flesh so that others will keep you in proper perspective. Those whom Paul taught could have easily lifted him above Christ. Verse 7 says, “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.” As long as you have a thorn in the flesh it reminds others that you are still flesh. It will help them not to put too much confidence in you and to keep their trust in God.

Third, God allows you to have a thorn in the flesh so that you can experience His grace. Friend, knowing what God’s grace can do in your life will help you to become a better servant for Him. It will allow you to help others who are going through tough times because you will be able to show them how God’s grace can help them through their hardships. Part of experiencing God’s grace is that it will help you to walk closer to Him. It will help to show you how much you really need Him on a daily basis.

Ultimately, the thorn in the flesh is there to ensure that God receives all the glory. How could Paul take “pleasure” in his infirmities? He took pleasure in them because through them God was lifted up and he was used to help others. When your life’s infirmity causes you to change your perspective of you, then it will change your perspective of your infirmity. You can either fight your infirmity, or you can allow it to change your perspective so that others will see you properly which will result in them seeing the power of God. That is ultimately what you should want to happen.

Job 23:8-9
“Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him:”

In the midst of Job’s trial he states that he looks for God but could not find him. He said he went forward, but God was not there. He went backward, but he could not perceive God’s presence. He turned to the left where God normally works, but still could not see God. He then turned to the right where God hides Himself, and yet Job could not see Him. Though Job could not see God, he came to the right conclusion in verse 10 when he says, “But he knoweth the way that I take…”

There are going to be times in your life when it seems as if God is nowhere to be found. There are going to be times when you wonder if God is working in your life. Trials have a way of getting us to think that we are all alone. They have a way of causing us to think that God is done with us. In spite of our feeling that God is nowhere to be found, there are some things we need to remember during these times.

First, God’s presence is not dependent upon you seeing Him. Job was concerned with seeing God in His life, and because he didn’t see Him he felt that he was all alone. You just have to remember that God’s presence is not dependent upon you seeing Him, but His presence is a promise that He will “never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (Hebrews 13:5) All you have to know is that God promises to be there for you.

Second, just because you don’t see God working doesn’t mean that He is not working. Job said that he looked “where he doth work, but I cannot behold him:” Yet, God was working in Job’s life. In those times when you can’t see God working, you just have to trust that God is performing the promise that He is still working in your life. Philippians 1:6 promises, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” This verse promises that God will perform His work until Jesus returns. It doesn’t matter if you see God working, He is working because He promised He would.

Third, you don’t have to feel God’s presence for God to be present. One of the mistakes Job made in these verses was that he was relying upon his senses instead of the promises of God’s Word. Friend, you can’t rely upon your senses during trials because one of the things that trials do is disturb your ability to sense. That is why you must trust God during them. That is why God says in Proverbs 3:5-6 to trust Him “in all thy ways.” We depend on our senses too much when we need to trust the Word of God and His promises.

Friend, you don’t have to see God for God to be there. If you need to see that God is there, then look at the promises of His Word and realize that He promised to be there. It doesn’t matter what you are facing in your life, God is there. You may not understand why you can see Him, feel Him and perceive His works anywhere in your life, but that doesn’t take away the fact that God is doing a work in your life. When you come to the end of the Book of Job, you see that God was there just like He is in your life right now. Stop relying on your senses and rely upon the promises of God’s Word that have never failed. Always remember that God is in your life even though you don’t see Him.

2 Corinthians 1:9
“But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:”

When you think of a death sentence, you think of a criminal sitting on death row who has no hope. The only thing they have to look forward to is the day when their life will be taken from them for the crime they committed. This has to be a very heavy life to live. When you think of a death sentence, you think of finality.

Paul shows that when the Christian faces a death sentence that it is just the beginning of life. When Paul came to Asia, he was carrying a heavy burden that he thought was too heavy to bear. It came to the point in his life when he felt he was going to die; however, it was at that point when he found life. When he was at the point where he thought he would die, he realized he could not put his trust in himself but in God.

This is the whole purpose of God increasing the load of suffering upon the Christian. We like to stay in control of our lives. We like to think that we can work everything out ourselves. So God continues to increase the pressure on us until we feel like we are going to die. God does this so that we will let go of the controls of our lives and completely trust Him to guide us through our trials. It is when we stop trusting ourselves and start trusting God that we find the delivery we need from whatever heartache we face.

Years ago when I was a boy, my mother would ask me to open a jar that she could not open. I would pick up that jar as if I were some bodybuilder to show her how much strength I had only to struggle with it. My father would ask if I wanted his help, but in my stubbornness I would tell him I could get it myself. He would sit there and watch me try every conceivable way to open the jar. When I finally realized that I could not open the jar and that he could, I brought it over to him and asked him to open it for me. He would then open the jar and hand it back to me so that I could bring it to my mother for her to finish cooking supper.

Is that what you are doing with your trials? Are you trying to work everything out yourself? You have to understand that God will not impose Himself on you, but He will increase the load you are carrying to the point where you realize you are helpless. You can continue to be stubborn and try to work it out yourself, or you can give in and trust God to take control of your situation and be delivered from the pressure of your trials.

My friend, God wants to help you with whatever you are facing today. Do you feel like the pressure is going to cause you to explode? Do you feel like what you are carrying is to heavy to carry? Do you feel like you are about ready to die? Then let me encourage you to stop trusting yourself and your ability to work through it and trust God. He is the only One Who can deliver you at this point. You can either continue on facing the pressure alone, or you can hand it over to Him and let Him deliver you. It is your choice!

Surrender to His help today. Cast it upon Him today. You will find the release of pressure happens when you give it to God and let Him perform His will through your life.

Job 16:5
“But I would strengthen you with my mouth, and the moving of my lips should asswage your grief.”

Part of Job’s hardship was hoping that someone would understand what he was going through. He certainly had no clue as to what was going on and why, and those who came to “comfort” him certainly didn’t either. What he did say during his time of grief says a lot about what those who are hurting would like to be said to them.

The first thing Job said was that he didn’t want people to falsely accuse him. Verse 4 says, “…if your soul were in my soul’s stead, I could heap up words against you, and shake mine head at you.” One of the worst things you can do to someone who is going through a tough time is to assume that they are being punished by God. You don’t know that God is punishing someone. You can assume that you know, but that doesn’t make it true. Many people have been hurt deeply by someone telling them they just need to get right with God. It may seem obvious to you that God is judging someone, but leave that up to Him. Don’t let your tongue become a tool to destroy, but let it be a tool to comfort and build.

The second thing Job said was that he desired for someone to strengthen him with their mouth. What you say to hurting people can oftentimes hurt them more than the trial they are facing. Instead of assuming that you know why someone is facing hard times, use your energy and words to strengthen them during those hard times. There are plenty of things you can say to help strengthen someone that will help them through their tough time. You must not try to be God during someone’s hardship. Your words during someone’s grief can help someone tremendously if you use your words to strengthen them. A simple phrase like, “I’m praying for you” will go a long ways. You don’t have to elaborate anymore. If they want you to say more, then they will open up to you.

The third thing Job said was that he desired for someone to treat him as if they were the one hurting. In other words, Job was saying that he wished these men would put themselves in his shoes. One day you will be in the shoes of the hurting. What you say now to those who are hurting may be the very thing they say to you when you are hurting. Would you want what you are saying to be said to you if you were hurting? You could be training someone to help you in the future. As one preacher said, “Be good to everyone, because everyone is having a tough time.”

Friend, all around you are people who are hurting. Be careful about using your words to hurt them in a greater way. You may be right in your assumption that God is judging them, but let the Holy Spirit do His work in their heart while you try to comfort and help them through their hard time. You can either be a tool to drive people away from Christ during their time of hurt or closer to Him with words of comfort. Remember the words of Job the next time you are around someone and let them guide you into helping others during their time of grief.

1 Corinthians 4:16
“Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.”

People often ask me what was one of the biggest influences in my young life that caused me to serve the LORD. My answer is that there was not one big influence, but there were many influences. There were so many people who took interest in me and asked me to do things with them that influenced me to walk in the paths that I should walk. Most of these people were not full-time servants of the LORD, but most were lay people in the church who simply followed the LORD’s command to disciple others.

Paul told the Corinthian church, “…be ye followers of me.” This was the same command that Jesus gave to Andrew and Peter when He said, “Follow me…” Paul understood that the greatest way to disciple people was to spend time with them. He even gave the prerequisite of when to stop following him in 1 Corinthians 11:1 when he says, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” Anytime he stopped following the LORD they were to stop following him. The only reason people are to follow us is so that we can train them to focus upon Christ. There are several things you need to do if you are going to influence others.

First, never go alone. The key to getting people to follow you is that you must ask people to follow you. Most of the time you should ask someone to go with you as you serve the LORD. When you go soul winning, ask someone to go with you. When you go to hear a preacher out of town, ask someone to go with you. When you go to visit someone in the hospital or nursing home, ask someone to go with you. Find excuses to get people to go with you. They learn how to serve the LORD by watching you conduct yourself in everyday situations.

Second, be willing to be inconvenienced. One of the biggest reasons people don’t influence others is because they don’t like to be inconvenienced. It will be inconvenient at times to ask someone to go with you, but if you want to influence younger Christians for right then you are going to have to be willing to be inconvenienced. There were times it was not convenient for Christ to have His disciples with Him, but He had them follow Him everywhere He went because He needed to influence them for right. Never let inconvenience be your excuse not to bring someone with you.

Third, let every situation be a teaching moment. Part of the reason you ask people to come with you is to teach them how to serve the LORD in every situation. You have to understand that how you conduct yourself in daily situations is a teaching moment for the younger Christian. You waste those moments if you avoid them or don’t stop to teach them. Jesus used the storms to build the disciple’s faith. He used the lack of food to show the disciples His ability to do much with little. Let every situation in which you are with someone be a teaching moment.

Fourth, realize the impact your life has on those who are following you. One misstep could cause one person to stop following Christ. With the privilege to lead others comes the responsibility to not hurt them. Be careful to live your life in such a manner that you don’t hurt those who put their confidence in you. They will eventually put their eyes on Christ, but until they do you need to be careful that you don’t do something that would cause them to lose confidence in the ways of Christ.

Proverbs 12:18
“There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.”

Have you ever been around someone who doesn’t know when to stop talking? It is annoying to hear them constantly talk. They are the ones who seem to know everything about everyone, and you are going to hear about it whether you like it or not. It is this type of person whose conversations are hurtful. Like the verse says above, “There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword…” The abundance of words always ends up hurting instead of helping.

There is another type of person who rarely says anything, but when they say something it is worth listening to because it is going to help. That is what God meant when He says, “…but the tongue of the wise is health.” It doesn’t say how much is said that makes his words healthy, it just says that what the wise person says is healthy.

According to the verse above, your words are either going to be a sword to hurt or a balm to heal. It’s interesting that the word “speaketh” means to babble. In other words, the one who talks uncontrollably ends up hurting, but the one who is measured with their talk ends up helping. Let me give you three suggestions that will help you to make your words helpful.

First, you don’t always have to say something. Sometimes no answer is the best answer. Just because you are listening to a conversation doesn’t mean you have to say something. Many people get themselves into trouble by talking when they should be quiet. Opinions are oftentimes the source of hurt. We approach a situation and think we have to give our opinion when it is not necessarily our right to give our opinion. Just because you want to say something doesn’t mean you should. Always remember that every word that comes from your mouth has an impact for good or bad.

Second, think before you talk. The problem with the person in the verse above is they won’t stop talking; they just keep on talking trying to find something to say. Don’t always feel like you have to quickly give an answer. The best way to give the right answer is to think before you speak. Ask yourself if what you are about to say is truly going to be helpful to those who hear. Words will only be helpful when you learn to say everything on purpose. Be precise with what you say and then be quiet.

Third, don’t say anything when what you are going to say won’t help. My mother used to say, “If you don’t have anything good to say, then don’t say anything at all.” I’m sure every child has heard that statement. As much as you didn’t like it when your parents said that to you, it is a very true statement that should be followed. Your words will either help or hurt, so it would be best not to say anything at all if what you will say won’t help.

Every word spoken can never be retrieved. If you are measured with what you say, then you will never wish you could take something back. Let your words be words of health. Your motto should be to say something good to everyone because everyone is having a tough time.

Nehemiah 13:3
“Now it came to pass, when they had heard the law, that they separated from Israel all the mixed multitude.”

After the wall was built, Nehemiah had to break many of the alliances these people made throughout their years of bondage. Nehemiah 13 shows several alliances the people had that were destroying the work God did through them in building the wall. It doesn’t help to build a wall to keep the enemy out when you align with those who will destroy you from within. There is no purpose in building a wall if you are going to bring within those who you are to keep out. There are three crowds of people we learn about with whom we are not to align.

First, mixed alliances are destructive alliances. It says in the verse above that there was a “mixed multitude” among them. This “mixed multitude” was a people who were part Jew and part Ammonite or Moabite. You cannot run with the world and think that it won’t affect you. When you allow mixed alliances in your life, those alliances will affect your perception towards right and wrong. These people influenced the Jews to the point where they were willing to build a chamber for Tobiah who was their enemy. You have no business as a Christian running with the world. When you start joining up with the world, you will find your children will eventually marry them. Mixed alliances will not only destroy your fellowship with God, but it will align your children with the world.

Second, evil alliances are destructive alliances. It is very interesting that the very person who tried to stop the building of the wall was the very person they built a chamber for in the house of God. Tobiah was their chief enemy, but they built a chamber for him to their own destruction. Always remember that you can never make an alliance with those who are trying to destroy you. They will try to persuade you to compromise, but what they don’t tell you is that they will never move. They always want you to be the first one to move, and when you move they will stay where they are. Never sit down at the negotiating table with those who want to destroy you. There is nothing to discuss, so don’t try to make alliances with them with the thought that it will create peace between you. The only time the evil alliances will agree with you is when you follow their practices and beliefs.

Third, directional alliances will destroy you. In verse 23, there were those who married people whose direction was wrong. One of the most important things that you will determine in life is a person’s direction. When someone’s direction is different then yours, then don’t align yourself with them. When you make alliances with those who are directionally different, then those alliances will eventually turn you from what you are supposed to do.

All it takes to destroy your life is one wrong alliance. I often tell people that you are as strong as your weakest friend. Let me encourage you to look at the alliances you have in your life and be sure that God would be pleased with them. Any destructive alliance you have should be put away. Your alliances will not only influence who you become, but they will determine who your children will marry. If you keep the right alliances, then you will keep the right direction.

Romans 13:10
“Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”

Love is one of the most misused words. People say, “I love you,” but their words oftentimes do not match their actions. Love is not a noun but a verb. Love is an action and not a possession. God says, “…love is the fulfilling of the law.” You will notice that God says, “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour…” Again, love is an action or a work and not a feeling.

We oftentimes have this mentality that love is a fuzzy and warm feeling, but a fuzzy and warm feeling does nothing for those whom we are to love. If I say to my wife, “I feel fuzzy and warm about you,” that will not go very far with her because love is more than a spoken word. A child can tell their parents, “I feel emotional about you,” but that doesn’t get the trash taken out and the rules obeyed. Love is a present-tense action and not a past feeling.

One of the best ways to fix any relationship problem is to truly love someone. If you want to make your marriage what it should be, then don’t just say you love your spouse, but show your spouse you love them. A husband can say to his wife, “I love you,” but that doesn’t make his wife feel like he loves her. If a husband wants to love his wife, then he would be wise to prove his love. A husband loves his wife when he turns his head from looking at that which he should not look. A husband loves his wife by mowing the yard and keeping the car in working order. The husband loves his wife when he makes sure the bills are paid and that there is money in the banking account to purchase groceries. Love is turning down the strange woman. Love is going to work every day to pay the bills. Love is living right when your wife is not around.

Moreover, a wife loves her husband when she makes sure that his needs are met. Love is making sure your husband has clean clothes to wear every day. Love is making sure his dress shirt is ironed and ready when he goes to the closet. Love is preparing the meal everyday to the best of your ability. Love is submitting to his leadership without the dramatics of your disagreement. Love is fulfilling his physical needs without showing your disdain. Love is doing right when your husband is not around.

Furthermore, just because a child tells their parents that they love them does not mean they love them. Love is a child doing their homework without their parents having to stand over them to be sure it is done. Love is staying pure when the opposite gender makes an advance. Love is listening to the right music when your parents are not around. Love is completing your chores the first thing every morning. Love is making your bed every morning before you leave your room. Love is cleaning your bedroom without your mother having to tell you. Love is an action and not simply a word.

Friend, this principle is true for every relationship. It is true for the Christian’s relationship with Christ. It is true for a friend’s relationship with a friend. It is true with your relationship with in-laws. You must ask yourself, how much do you truly love those whom you live with everyday? Yes, you should tell people you love them because they need to hear it, but your actions will validate an “I love you.” Start focusing more on your actions than your words, and you will find they will believe you when you tell them you love them.

Nehemiah 4:1
“But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.”

Nehemiah learned early on in the rebuilding of the wall that everybody would not be thrilled with his work for the LORD. The enemies threw every type of opposition their way, but they continued building the wall until it was finished. The opposition he faced is the same opposition any Christian faces when they serve the LORD, and his response to their opposition is the same response you must have when opposition comes your way.

First, don’t be concerned with their claims of your irrelevancy. If Nehemiah and the Jews were so irrelevant, then why were they addressing them? Their claims of irrelevancy are false because if what you are doing is irrelevant, then they would not even address what you are doing. Don’t listen to their claims, but keep doing what you are supposed to do.

Second, don’t let criticism get you off focus. Nehemiah had to purposely keep his focus when the opposition came. When opposition comes your way, always remember what you are doing is more important than addressing the opposition. Always remember Who you are serving is more worthy of obedience than their demands. Also, don’t let their criticism take your focus away from whom you are fighting: Satan. Staying focused will be a chore in itself.

Third, don’t change how you are building just because of opposition. They desperately wanted Nehemiah to change how he was building the walls, but he kept on building them the same way he was told to build them. You must never change your methods just because of criticism. Part of the goal of opposition is to get you to change. Keep doing what you are supposed to do the way God told you to do it in spite of any opposition.

Fourth, when opposition comes, don’t negotiate with the enemy. They wanted Nehemiah to come down and negotiate a deal, but he would not. There is nothing to negotiate with truth. Truth is right whether or not the opposition agrees with it. Always remember that negotiating truth should never be considered. You are to do right even if the opposition doesn’t like what you are doing and how you are doing it.

Fifth, don’t quit until you are finished. One of the things I love about Nehemiah is that he kept on building until the wall was finished. You will not be finished in the Christian life until God takes you to Heaven. Always remember that it doesn’t matter how long you have served the LORD, if you quit at any point, then the opposition will use that to invalidate what you have done even if what you did was right. You must determine that you are not going to quit building the wall until the LORD comes.

Friend, you must expect opposition to come if you are serving the LORD. Satan is not pleased that you have chosen to serve the LORD, and he will do everything in his power to stop you. Remember these five pieces of advice when opposition comes. It will help you to finish what you start and finish the way you started. Ignore the opposition and stay focused on the LORD and His will for your life and you will finish building your wall for Him.