Assurance that God answers our prayers.
A powerful psalm of comfort.
Comfort that God will forgive us.
A Righteous God – God acts in love towards His believers.
Baptism Comfort – God has made you His Child.
The Child of God Counseling* uses II Corinthians 5:19 when a person doubts that God could ever forgive him or her.
Using Isaiah 49:15 for grief, the loss of a child through miscarriage.
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. I Peter 5:7
“Hang in there!” Has anyone ever offered you those “encouraging words”? They no doubt meant them to offer you encouragement. But maybe they had the opposite effect. To “hang in there” puts the focus on you and your ability to help yourself by holding something tightly-like when that merry-go-round got going too fast when you were a child so that you had to hold on “for dear life” just to survive the ride!
Did you realize that we who live on planet earth are actually moving about 67,000 miles per hour (by the time you figure in revolutions and rotations of our planet…). It’s no wonder then, that we become anxious from time to time! Our heads can be spinning while we ourselves are spinning like that “tea-cup ride” at the local fair.
When life is moving a little too fast, remember who is in control of all things, who was able to cause the winds and the waves that had been raging uncontrollably to become completely calm (Mark 4:35). He’s the same One who left his peaceful home in heaven behind, to ride it out with us here on earth, and to give us something to eagerly look forward to enjoying, when this ride we call life comes to an end.
He understands anxiety and even “sweated it out” in a Garden called Gethsemane where he would cast his anxiety on his heavenly Father (three times!) and put himself into his Father’s caring hand to carry out his will for the good of all mankind. It was there, in that garden that he was so anxious that his sweat was like drops of blood (Luke 22:44). His name is Jesus Christ and boy does he care for you!
He who did not want you to be anxious about what is going to happen to you when you die, is also interested in anchoring you firmly in this life when storms arise. He’s there for you. He understands anxiety. And he already took care of your greatest fear in life. With Jesus “on duty” you don’t have to “hang in there”. He would hang in there on a cross so you could know that it’s o.k. to just let go!
Prayer
Lord, you invite us to “be still” and to know that you, the great “I AM”, are in control of all things. You have promised to see me through this life and to be with me when storms of life rage all around. Fill my heart with peace to “let go and to let God [YOU]” work everything out for my eternal good. I pray this to you because you obviously care for me! Amen.
Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” Matthew 14:22-33
Cornelia Arnolda Johanna ten Boom is credited with the statement, “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed; If you look within, you’ll be depressed; If you look at God, you’ll be at rest.”
“Corrie” ten Boom was an amazing Christian. She and her sister were placed into a WWII concentration camp for trying to help Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust. She survived. Her sister did not.
Peter was doing great (even walking on water!)…until he took his eyes off of Jesus and looked around and saw the terrifying circumstances that surrounded him. Those circumstances began to swallow him up.
C+P=E
Circumstances plus Perspective equals Experience
This is one of our “tricks of the trade” to help people to cope with what’s going on in their lives is to invite them, when they can’t change their circumstances, to change their perspective which will inevitably change their experience.
If they can’t change their situation (circumstances) they can change how they choose to see themselves in their situation-and that will change how they experience what they’re dealing with.
If I know that I’m not walking alone through life and that God has a plan and purpose for everything He permits to happen in my life (and that He promises to help me handle whatever happens in my life), it makes all the difference how I experience life.
Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. He will see you through the storms until you’re safe with Him “on the other side”. He is with you always-until you will always be with Him in heaven!
Prayer
Lord Jesus, help me to fix my eyes on you and not on the storms that come “crashing in on my party” all the time. Take away my anxiety and fill me with peace as I put my trust in You. Amen.
“Every time I drive past the Veteran’s home, I get a sick feeling in my stomach.” Margo had spent months at the facility caring for her husband. The day that he died, however, was a day she hadn’t gone to visit. She still remembers getting a phone call on that day informing her of his passing. And just like that, she was all alone.
Margo was grieving. Grief is an intense feeling of sadness caused by loss. Grief is real pain. And it lingers. We grieve because we love. Death causes the most profound sense of grief. A person might even feel guilt associated with grief. It might be guilt over unresolved actions or unspoken affections. Sometimes, the past can feed guilt and grief.
Some days, people can stuff their grief down inside; other days grief and loss can feel like a punch to the gut. Past memories and important dates such as holidays and anniversaries can creep up on a person and cause cruel pain.
There are stages of grief. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross (On Death and Dying) offers some insight:
Denial > Anger > Bargaining > Depression > Acceptance
Like the pain of grief, these stages come and go, and can be severe in one moment and slight in the next. It is important that people know these stages are fluid and linger. A person can experience one or more of these stages at a time.
Grief has a purpose. It allows us to mourn our loss and express our love. Things don’t get back to “normal.” That is not the purpose of the grieving process. The goal is to allow people to express their sadness and to absorb those emotions into their lives as they learn to find a new way to move forward. Grief is normal. It’s okay to be sad.
Even Jesus grieved. The Bible tells us that he was so overcome with sadness that he wept at the grave of his friend Lazarus. It is healthy for people to express their sorrow in response to grief and loss. Jesus knows the pain of loss and the sadness of sorrow. He knows the power of death. The Bible tells us that death is a sad consequence of sin. Grief and loss are also bitter realities of sin in this fallen world. But in our times of sorrow, we have One who sustains us. He is our Savior, Jesus Christ who conquered the grave, so that we might have hope.
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26
While it is natural to be sad and mourn the loss of a loved one, Jesus promises to be there with us and to hold us in his loving arms. He understands. He meets us in our grief. While there are tears on our cheeks, we have smiles on our hearts because Jesus dies and rose again. And he promises to come back to join us with our loved ones in the greatest reunion of all!
It is healthy and necessary to process our grief and the many ways it feels. Our Lord offers his comfort which allows us to redirect our hurts and sadness away from the “would’ve/could’ve/should’ve” wishful thinking patterns to real healing. No matter how we feel here, God promises a perfect, unending future with him. Today might hurt. Tomorrow is filled with hope.
Prayer
Lord, I wish I understood your plans. I have to admit that I don’t. I am hurt, angry, and sad. Lord, I trust in your promises. Remind me that it is okay to be sad and that you meet me in my sadness. You will not leave me where you find me. You move me on to healing and hope. In your name, dear Jesus. Amen.