Get Encouraged

Category: Bible Study

  • Remembering Creates Trust

    The past helps us trust in the future.

    The Psalmist encourages, “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name. Make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him. Tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name. Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and his strength. Seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he has pronounced.”

    Psalm 105 encourages us to remember the past. The Psalm does not want you and me to forget how the Lord has worked in the lives of those who came before us.

    “By recounting God’s work in history, Christians can be encouraged to praise God, because he is trustworthy.”

    Max Lucado

    According to The Bible Panorama, the Lord’s work throughout history is to be remembered. “It is here that we see God in his faithfulness, power, and grace. These characteristics have been manifested abundantly in the past. The sweep of Israel’s history including the exodus from Egypt and entering the promised land is rehearsed in the rest of this Psalm. What God promised to Abraham, he confirmed to Isaac and Jacob, made possible through Joseph, and progressed towards through Moses and Aaron.”

    The Lord later brings these characteristics to fulfillment in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the embodiment of God’s faithfulness, power, and grace. Galatians 5:1 states, “For it was for freedom, Christ set you free.”

    Today, Memorial Day, as we remember the sacrifices made for us, remember what the Lord has done. Take a moment and make a list of how God has been faithful. Include your personal experience and Biblical examples. Remember and praise him for what he has done.

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  • Remembering

    Give to each one what you owe. If honor, give honor. If respect, give respect.

    Joshua 4 records the account of the Israelites building a memorial to remember crossing the Jordan River. Joshua instructed one man from each tribe to bring a stone from the river to the bank to build a monument. The monument was to serve as a reminder of what the Lord had done for the Israelites. The stones would remind future generations of the Lord’s work. The Bible encourages Christians to remember those who have gone before us.

    Memorial Day is not a religious holiday; however, the idea is Scripturally based. Shortly after the Civil War, the last Monday in May was set aside to remember those who sacrificed their lives to help their country, community, and family.

    Remembering the past helps us be grateful for the blessings of the present.

    Romans 13:7 encourages us to give to each one what we owe. If honor, give honor; if respect, give respect. As we celebrate the unofficial start to summer, may we pause and remember those who have went before us so we may enjoy the blessings of today.

  • They Gave Much

    “Some search for what they can take, but a true king searches for what he can give,” Mufasa says in The Lion King.

    Between Me and the End of the World by Adam Hambrick reminds us there are individuals who sacrifice much for us.

     “This song is for the people who step in and serve people when things go horribly wrong,” Adam tells the Associated Press. “I have spent this quarantine watching my wife go off to work as a Physician’s Assistant to do her version of that. Testing and treating people for the virus. It has given me a new appreciation for all the people who spent their lives serving others in difficult times. It’s terrifying seeing someone you love do what they were made to do but have to do it in harm’s way.”

    1 John 3:16 says, “This is how we know what love is:  Jesus Christ laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”

    As we celebrate Memorial Day, may we pause and remember there are men and women who have lived out John’s words to the fullest. For the good of their country, community, and family, they gave their lives. To them, we owe a debt of gratitude and appreciation.

  • Feeling Hopeless?

    You are not alone.

    As recent events continue to unfold around the globe, a feeling of hopelessness may be emerging. The unknown of the future is causing much anxiety and stress for many individuals. If this is you, you are certainly not alone.

    Half of respondents to a recent survey state they feel hopeless about the future.

    In Psalms 42 and 43, the writer shares the feeling of hopelessness. The writer felt separated from God. Perhaps he felt as if he was on an island all by himself. Though feeling separated from God, the writer recognized he should put his hope in the Lord.

    Seek the Lord in moments of hopelessness, and he will provide hope.

    • Psalm 42:5 says, “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God. I will praise him again.”
    • Psalm 43 says, “Send out your light and your truth. Let them guide me. Let them lead me to your holy mountain, to the place where you live. There I will go to the altar of God, to God, the source of all my joy. I will praise you with my heart, O God, my God. Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God, I will praise him again, My Savior and my God.”

    The Bible reminds us there is no hopeless situation. Having Christ as Savior means there is hope in hopelessness, life in death, and light in darkness. “Our hope is the anchor for the soul. ‘Where’s your hope,’ Jesus asks. It is the confident hope of the return of Christ,” states Max Lucado.

    Give the Lord your list of hopeless situations, and allow him to provide you with hope. And, do not be afraid to reach out to others for help in this moment of hopelessness. The Lord has blessed us with individuals who can help us in our time of need.

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  • Pressing On

    Looking and moving ahead.

    We all have goals and dreams, and we work hard to achieve and fulfill them.

    As Christians, our main goal should be imitating Christ. Paul provides some advice to help us.

    In Philippians 3, Paul writes, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection, but I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing – forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead. I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the Heavenly prize for which God through Christ Jesus is calling us.”

    We are encouraged to narrow our focus in two ways.

    Forgetting what is behind.

    This may be hard for us to do. We cannot allow the past to absorb and control our present and future.

    • We cannot get hung up on what we have already achieved. There’s still more work for us to do.
    • We cannot allow mistakes we have made to beat us down. In his grace, the Lord will help us move beyond mistakes.

    Looking ahead.

    We should look ahead to what is coming; our concentration should be on the Heavenly prize awaiting us.

    Keeping our focus on the future rather than the past will give us the motivation to press on. Our Heavenly prize awaits us at the finish line.

     

  • No Matter What

    “Through whatever you go through, I’m standing with you.”

    The lyrics of I’m Standing With You are a powerful reminder the Lord is always with us.

    In Proverbs 17, Solomon says a friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. In chapter 18, Solomon reminds us we have a friend who sticks closer than a brother. The Lord will always be with us.

    When has the Lord truly came through for you?

     

    The Lord came through in a miraculous way for the Smith family. The movie Break Through, portrays the chronology of the events. Tragedy strikes as 14-year-old John falls through the ice of a Missouri lake, John spends approximately 15 minutes under the water as firefighters feverishly work to rescue him. They pull him out and rush him to the nearest hospital. Doctors believe him to be dead, but somehow, someway, John is still alive today.

     

    Break Through is available at Amazon.

  • Portrait of Grace

    He gave to his enemies.

    Saul was after David. He felt threatened by David, but Saul is eventually mortally wounded. David becomes king. He establishes his kingdom, and gives us a striking picture of salvation by grace and true friendship.

    Meet Mephibosheth. We do not know much about him. He was the son of Jonathan and grandson of Saul. This would have put him in line for the throne, so when Saul was killed, Mephibosheth’s family feared for his safety.

    In those days, one of the first acts of a new king was to eliminate any threat from the previous king’s family, so Saul’s family was obviously in a hurry to hide.

    2 Samuel 4:4 records, “Saul’s son Jonathan had a son named Mephibosheth, who was crippled as a child. He was 5-years-old when the report came from Jezrell that Saul and Jonathan had been killed in battle. When the child’s nurse heard the news, she picked him up and fled, but as she hurried away, she dropped him and he became crippled.”

    David did not have any plans to follow tradition of killing the previous king’s family; however, Saul’s family had no way of knowing David’s plans. They hurried, dropping the boy and causing permanent damage to his feet.

    For nearly two decades, Mephibosheth lived in a distant land. He was afraid of David, and he was unable to help himself. That is, until grace entered the picture.

    David remembered his promise to Jonathan, and fulfilled it through Mephibosheth. David invited Mephibosheth to eat at the king’s table; this was a great honor. David gave Mephibosheth servants and land. In short, David took care of Mephibosheth’s needs.

    Sound familiar?

    Like Mephibosheth

    There are some paralleles between Mephibosheth’s story and our story. We too had needs which were unmet, and we were unable to help ourselves. God, in his grace through Christ, invited us to his table. He offered us salvation to meet our needs.

    Romans 5:6 says, “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.”

    Like David

    In many ways, we are also like David. During the course of our lives, we will come into contact with people who have needs. The Lord may use us to meet those needs. When we are tasked with meeting those needs, may we respond with the same grace we have been shown.

     

  • Remaining Confident

    A shaken life of a confident person.

    David spent much of his life running and hiding. As a young man, David had to hide from Saul. Saul was jealous of David’s popularity, so he wanted to kill David. As an older gentleman, David had to run from a rebellion started by his own son. David’s Scriptural biography is filled with turmoil and heartbreak.

    On one occasion, David writes in the Psalms, everything is shaken. Nothing is stable. He writes in Psalm 11:3, “The foundations of law and order have collapsed. What can the righteous do?”

    Perhaps you can relate to this feeling.

    Everything is up in the air. Life is shaken. Your life has endured an earthquake leaving everything trembling in its path.

    The career you worked hard to establish has vanished. The good health you once enjoyed is fading. Your journey is not what it once was.

    David’s wasn’t either, and his Scriptural biography is filled with confidence in the Lord.

    Amid everything, David had great confidence in the Lord.

    It may have seemed like everything was falling apart, but David remained confident in the Lord.

    He continues in Psalm 11, “But the Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord still rules from Heaven. He watches everyone closely, examining every person on earth.”

    In Psalm 12, David writes, “The Lord replies, ‘I have seen violence done to the helpless and I have heard the groans of the poor. Now I will rise up to rescue them as they have longed for me to do.’ The Lord’s promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over. Therefore, Lord, we know you will protect the oppressed….”

    Can we remain confident in the Lord?

    As it seems everything is falling apart around us, we too can remain confident in the Lord’s promises. The promises are as pure for us as they were for David.

     

  • Enabling Grace

    David was reminded of God’s grace.

    David was in a season of turmoil. His family was a mess; there were many reasons for the messiness, and one of David’s advisors wanted to help him clean it up. He drafted a woman to tell David a parable.

    The parable consisted of a widow with two sons. One son murdered the other, and the community shouted for the murderer’s head. If he was convicted, the widow would have no hope of continuing her family line. She pleads for mercy from the king.

    David compassionately says she should receive mercy. Then, the woman applies the parable to David’s situation.

    She points out David has a banished son needing reconciliation, and reminds David God himself makes plans to enable a banished person to be reconciled to the Lord. 2 Samuel 14:14 says, “All of us must die eventually. Our lives are like water spilled out on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again, but God does not just sweep life away. Instead, he devises ways to bring us back when we have been separated from him.”

    Mistakes; they have been made. Regrets exist. The list of things we would not do or redo can be extensive, but God knows how to handle all of it.

    God has devised a plan to restore us to the family.

    “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only son, so everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his son into the world, not to judge the world but to save the world through him,” Jesus explains in John 3:16-17.

    Jesus also says in John 10:10, “The thief’s purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

    Jesus is the plan which enables man and God to reconcile.

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  • A Promise to Us

    The 3-fold promise of God.

    Walking through uncertainty is a part of life. We can try to avoid it, but eventually we will have no choice. We will have to walk through uncertain territory.

    The uncertainty we experience may be caused by events outside our control or decisions we have made. Either way, the Lord will stick with us.

    Psalm 32:8 states, “The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.” Here we find a 3-fold promise from the Lord.

    Instruct his children.

    The Lord promises to guide us on the best pathway for our lives. This means…

    • God will direct us in the way we should go.
    • He is willing to help us stay on the straight path that leads to fellowship with him.
    • Through his word, God gives us accurate counsel.
    • He leads us with gentleness and trustworthiness. This makes us feel safe.

    Give us wisdom.

    Through his word, the Lord will guide us. He will help us make the best possible decision. James encourages us to request wisdom and says the Lord will generously give wisdom to us.

    Watch over us.

    The Bible says the Lord will watch over our coming and going, both now and forever more. Psalm 121 says the Lord will not allow our foot to slip. He will watch over us as we take life’s journey.

    Life is filled with uncertainty. Recent days have magnified this truth; however, the Lord’s promise is still the same. He guides us, though it may not always make sense.

    Life may not always make sense, but we can rest assured God knows the plan. Psalm 32 goes on to say unfailing love surrounds those who trust the Lord.

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