Beloved, I thank God in Christ, that I am a man of confession and today, that is exactly what I am going to do in the efforts of experiencing the joy of God’s peace through confession and repentance and I pray, this will encourage you to seek Him out in like manner if you have struggled and do struggle with such fears and worries. With that said, I now invite you Into My HEART…
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (Romans 8:35 NLT)
No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. (Romans 8:37 NLT)
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 8:38-39 NLT emphasis added)
Beloved, I find myself yet again in a place of confession. Confessing that I am someone who has allowed fears for today and worries about tomorrow to play a roll in my life choices and in turn I have either not embraced or I have let go of opportunities that God had in store for me. As I was thinking of this a couple of days ago, I realized that I have allowed fear and worry to dictate my choices. I will speak candidly of my fears and worries and I will list them out as writing to me can not only speak into the hearts, minds and souls of others revealing the love of God through Christ the Lord in which is first and foremost my priority, but it is also like breathing oxygen to live; counseling of the soul through confession that alleviates the weariness of my mind and the aches and pains in my heart.
- The fear of losing my intimacy with the Lord Jesus if I were to marry a certain woman, as my loyalties would be divided between Him and her; My concerns with pleasing the Lord and my concerns with pleasing my wife. As the Word of God speaks to this quite directly and accurately: “But I want you to be without care [without fear or worry]. He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord—how he may please the Lord. But he who is married cares about the things of the world—how he may please his wife. There is a difference between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman cares about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit. But she who is married cares about the things of the world—how she may please her husband. And this I say for your own profit, not that I may put a leash on you, but for what is proper, and that you may serve the Lord without distraction.” (1 Corinthians 7:32-35 NKJV emphasis added)“If a man has a woman friend to whom he is loyal but never intended to marry, having decided to serve God as a “single,” and then changes his mind, deciding he should marry her, he should go ahead and marry. It’s no sin; it’s not even a “step down” from celibacy, as some say. On the other hand, if a man is comfortable in his decision for a single life in service to God and it’s entirely his own conviction and not imposed on him by others, he ought to stick with it. Marriage is spiritually and morally right and not inferior to singleness in any way..” (1 Corinthians 7:36-38 MSG)
- The worry of not being able to please my wife in my husbandly duties to her.
- The fear of not being able to provide for my wife and my family.
- The worry of not living out my purpose for the Lord.
After thinking of these fears and worries, I was automatically reminded of the words of Jesus concerning fear and worry, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:34 NLT) and again, “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time come” (Matthew 6:34 MSG) and of course God’s soothing Word applies for today, tomorrow and forever, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7 NLT) and that cherry on top and seal of success over fear and worry, “Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies” (Philippians 4:8-9 MSG).
As I was thinking of these things over the last two days, I realized I actually was a man who becomes overwhelmed by fear and worries. I also realized that when I start to think of myself or rather, the things of the earth, I begin to struggle. One thing that I consider to be monumental breakthrough are the words I spoke to the Lord yesterday as I was walking and talking to Him, “You said, “she is to be your wife,” and yet, here we are, no longer together. Let not others who have known this, now say, ‘look! God promised this and that to them, and yet, now He has not delivered on that.’ For your own namesake, uphold your Word and let not shame overcome your people.”
As I was thinking of these things over the last two days, I realized I actually was a man who becomes overwhelmed by fear and worries. I also realized that when I start to think of myself or rather, the things of the earth, I begin to struggle. One thing that I consider to be monumental breakthrough are the words I spoke to the Lord yesterday as I was walking and talking to Him, “You said, “she is to be your wife,” and yet, here we are, no longer together. Let not others who have known this, now say, ‘look! God promised this and that to them, and yet, now He has not delivered on that.’ For your own namesake, uphold your Word and let not shame overcome your people.”
Life is full of twists and turns and is a bumpy ride. Have you ever heard that? Well, for myself, I know and I confess to this. I have my moments where I experience those twists, turns and bumpy rides as this is true of many throughout the world, and in fact, I said this to the Lord early this morning around 2 a.m. “Lord, there are times when all I want is to be to you. Faithful to and undivided from pleasing you. There are times that all I want is to be married to her, have our home, family and giving together as a family to the things that captivate your heart. There are times all I want is to live alone. There are times I want to travel the word for your namesake. There are times I can’t take the singleness of it all and I want to satisfy my bodily cravings. All in all, it is clear I don’t know what I want, but you know what is best.”
What can be said of all this? The very best and sure thing for this man to do, is to desire for God to accomplish all that He needs to accomplish and whatever He will reveal to me that is to be in my life, to desire that, for in it, I am sure to be happy, and whatever is not revealed to me, to continue to trust what He is doing, because everything from Him whether known or unknown is good. Amen.
I want to close with a prayer to the Lord. Why? Because I have known prayer not to be mere words spoken into the open air, but the very channel of communication from a joyful heart filled with thanks and praise to the Lord God of heaven and earth for all He has done, as well as a sorrowful heart and a troubled heart, though thankful yet uneasy, being heard by a gracious, compassionate and merciful God who will come to the rescue of His people. So, if you find yourself where I am, then let us pray, and may the Holy Spirit lead you to pray with a pure heart what you are truly in need of:
Father God, and I say Father to you, as you are the very essence and origin of unconditional and sacrificial love. You are slow to anger and abounding in your lovingkindness. Not only that, but you are forgiving. Forgiving of sin and rebellion. Like a father who forgives the wrongdoings and hurtful actions of his children, so you are willing to do this. Thank you for this Father, and thank you for also being so very attentive to me; to all your children who cry out to you. I am so desperately in need of your perfect guidance right now. Help me to know what I am to do. Please calm me from my fears and worries as they are consuming me. Yet as a God who knows all and nothing escapes your eyes, you know that I fall short of knowing what I am to do and I desperately want to live the life that I know you created and called me to live. I cannot do this without you. I do not have the strength, wisdom or conviction to accomplish this. Please give to me the wisdom I lack, the strength to move forward and the conviction to commit and remain committed to the calling. My God, if not for you, I will surely perish. Without you Father I will never love with a pure heart. Do not let me continue on with my head sunken down in shame, and I ask you, to complete and bring to fulfillment what you started when you said, ‘She is to be your wife.’ Oh Lord, as a man, I say this with all sincerity. Please make haste, to do as you said, and let not, another year pass by without it being done. May I find myself able to embrace her, with confidence in every area that a man needs to be confident, knowing His God has provided everything he is in need to protect, provide and please his wife as well as his God. In Jesus name, the name that saves and fulfills all of God’s promises, I pray. Amen.
What can be said of all this? The very best and sure thing for this man to do, is to desire for God to accomplish all that He needs to accomplish and whatever He will reveal to me that is to be in my life, to desire that, for in it, I am sure to be happy, and whatever is not revealed to me, to continue to trust what He is doing, because everything from Him whether known or unknown is good. Amen.
I want to close with a prayer to the Lord. Why? Because I have known prayer not to be mere words spoken into the open air, but the very channel of communication from a joyful heart filled with thanks and praise to the Lord God of heaven and earth for all He has done, as well as a sorrowful heart and a troubled heart, though thankful yet uneasy, being heard by a gracious, compassionate and merciful God who will come to the rescue of His people. So, if you find yourself where I am, then let us pray, and may the Holy Spirit lead you to pray with a pure heart what you are truly in need of:
Father God, and I say Father to you, as you are the very essence and origin of unconditional and sacrificial love. You are slow to anger and abounding in your lovingkindness. Not only that, but you are forgiving. Forgiving of sin and rebellion. Like a father who forgives the wrongdoings and hurtful actions of his children, so you are willing to do this. Thank you for this Father, and thank you for also being so very attentive to me; to all your children who cry out to you. I am so desperately in need of your perfect guidance right now. Help me to know what I am to do. Please calm me from my fears and worries as they are consuming me. Yet as a God who knows all and nothing escapes your eyes, you know that I fall short of knowing what I am to do and I desperately want to live the life that I know you created and called me to live. I cannot do this without you. I do not have the strength, wisdom or conviction to accomplish this. Please give to me the wisdom I lack, the strength to move forward and the conviction to commit and remain committed to the calling. My God, if not for you, I will surely perish. Without you Father I will never love with a pure heart. Do not let me continue on with my head sunken down in shame, and I ask you, to complete and bring to fulfillment what you started when you said, ‘She is to be your wife.’ Oh Lord, as a man, I say this with all sincerity. Please make haste, to do as you said, and let not, another year pass by without it being done. May I find myself able to embrace her, with confidence in every area that a man needs to be confident, knowing His God has provided everything he is in need to protect, provide and please his wife as well as his God. In Jesus name, the name that saves and fulfills all of God’s promises, I pray. Amen.
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