“Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.”--1 Pet. 5:7
This is one of those verses that provoke much thought. The more you think about it the more that comes to mind. Here we are told what to do and why. It gives us both instruction and inspiration. God is not only our Creator, He is our Care-taker as well. Rather than being left to fend for ourselves, we have One who, cannot lie, that has vowed to care for His own– and He never fails. He is simply amazing!

He knows each of us and everything about each of us. He knows our faults, failures, desires, needs, temptations, and trials. Not a hair on our head, nor a thought in our mind goes unnoticed. While others despise us, God delights in caring for us. As unworthy as we are, He thinks of us and watches over us. His eye, that never sleeps, is upon us in all places, at all times, and under every circumstance.

His children are on His heart and He never forgets them. They are in His hand and He won’t let them go. They are His–purchased by His blood, indwelt by His Spirit, and the objects of His affection. They are precious in His sight, protected by His power, provided for by His grace, and preserved from their enemies. In His strong hand they are safe, secure, and satisfied.

Although of few days and full of trouble we are under God’s constant care. He deals with us out of love, in wisdom, and with patience. He brings good out of bad and turns burdens into blessings. Even if we fall we are not utterly cast down, but raised up by His mighty power and transformed into a greater likeness of Christ. We can rejoice because we know that He knows, He cares, and He can help. He is a “very present help in trouble“(Ps. 46:1). Therefore we are told to ,”Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and He shall sustain thee…“(Ps. 55:22).

“Day by day, and with each passing moment,
Strength I find, to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.
He Whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best—
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.“

Have you ever noticed that sometimes the sin of others become our sin? It generally happens so slowly that we aren’t even aware of it. For example– when someone ignores, neglects, or abuses you in some way you tend to respond in kind. While it’s easy to be nice to those who are nice to you, it’s a whole different ball-game when it comes to those who snub you. They don’t speak and so you don’t either. They say something hurtful, so you hurl an insult back at them. They forget your birthday, so you don’t waste a stamp sending them a card. Whether you realize it or not you are living by the code of “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”.

Sadly this kind of stuff goes on all the time. Some how we feel justified in treating others as, or worse than, they treat us. Thus, their sin becomes our sin. We do just the opposite of what Christ does to us and demands from us (Matt. 5:43-44). We condone in ourselves what we condemn in others–as though we are better than them.

This is a very real danger that we face. Regardless of how hard we try there will always be those who mistreat us, and it’s difficult to resist the temptation to return evil for evil. If we would simply remember that we will reap what we sow it will help us to be more careful. If we would remember these three things it help us avoid falling into this trap. Returning evil for evil is–
— disobedience to Christ and affects our fellowship with Him.
— destructive to our testimony and relationship with others.
— detrimental to our well-being–we make ourselves miserable.
If you don’t see danger in all of this something is seriously wrong with your outlook on life. Sin always has consequences. Although we might be forgiven, sin often does things that can’t be undone.

We need the attitude of Joseph when he said to his wicked brothers, “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good,…“(Gen. 50:20). If we respond as we should God will make something good out of the bad. Naturally, as you should know, this is not something we can do on our own. Loving our enemies is more than the arm of flesh can accomplish. But, through Christ we can do all things (Phil. 4:13). The Spirit of God enables us to do anything the Word of God commands us to do.

If I say, as the Bible affirms, that “Jesus satisfies the longings of the soul” nearly every professing Christian would agree. Why then are there so many dissatisfied Christians? Is our claim not true? Or do we mean that He just satisfies under special circumstances? What’s the truth– does He or doesn’t He?

Of all the books in the Bible one of the most precious, interesting, and helpful to me is the little letter to the Philippians. Chapter by chapter, it tells us how we can have joy in spite of circumstances, people, things, and worry. Hardly a day ever goes by without me thinking of some verse in this great book. In the last chapter alone, Paul speaks of “Rejoicing in the Lord alway”(4:4); being “careful for nothing“(4:6); “the peace of God which passeth all understanding“(4:7); being content “in whatsoever state I am“(4:11); and being able to “do all things through Christ”(4:13). Is that not amazing? And it is all the more so when you consider his circumstances! He was in prison–hated, despised, forsaken, weary, and lonely. Yet through it all he could say these things.

How do you explain a man like that? Why does he succeed where we fail? What sets him apart from others? I believe the answer is found in Phil. 1:21 where he says, “for to me to live is Christ…”. No day goes by without me thinking of this statement. The import of it goes far beyond what most people imagine. Everything about Paul was Christ-centered, and that made the difference in everything! It will make a difference in your life as well.

If I could sum up my deepest desire, greatest aspiration, and most passionate pursuit it would be with these words–“For to me to live is Christ..”. As someone said, “This is a key verse in this epistle. In fact it should be a “key verse” in the life of every saint. This should be our watchword”. If “to live” is anything other than Christ you are living for the wrong thing. As an old song says, “He is my reason for living… He is my everything”

“…Be not afraid , only believe .” Mark 5:36

That is take God at His word. Give Him credit for meaning what He says, for being faithful to His own word; and then what will become of your fears? God speaks to you in language which you can understand; He promises all you can possibly need; He bids you put Him in remembrance, and plead with Him; and He pledges His character for the comfort of your heart. If you believe not, you make God a liar; you bring darkness on your own soul; you give Satan an occasion against you; and a thousand fears, doubts, and suspicions distress you. Is it any wonder? Can you offer a greater insult to God than deliberately to disbelieve His word? But you ask, Are the promises made to me? Yes, to every one that believeth, and to you if you believe. And the Spirit is promised to work faith in your heart; complain not then of the difficulty of believing, or of the power of unbelief; but go to thy God, and plead with Him, crying, “Lord, increase my faith:” and go to His word, as to the word of a gracious Father, and endeavour to believe it.(James Smith)

O that closer I could cleave
To Thy bleeding, dying breast!
Give me firmly to believe,
And to enter into rest:
Lord, increase, increase my faith;
Make me faithful unto death.

“....let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:.” Hebrews 12:28

We daily need grace to sustain us in troubles; to subdue our corruptions; to sanctify our tempers; to preserve us in temptation; to quicken our languid affections; to enlarge our experience; to render us useful to others; to enable us to endure to the end; and to meet death with confidence and joy. Our God is the God of all grace. Jesus is full of grace, He giveth more grace. He has promised it. “He will give grace.” He has invited us to come and receive it. “Come boldly to the throne of grace, that ye may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” His grace is sufficient for us; but without grace we are dull, lifeless, and sure to fall. O let us look to Jesus for grace to strengthen us, sanctify us, and make us useful! Let us never attempt anything in our own strength; but let us receive from the Lord, that we may live to the Lord; and ascribe all that we do that is good, to the grace of God which is with us. Grace is always free. It is free for us, for us this morning, and our God bids us to the throne of grace, and you Shall obtain mercy, and find grace to help you this day.–James Smith, 1840

On me, my King, exert Thy power,
Make old things pass away;
Transform and draw my soul to Thee,
Still nearer every day