Threads from Henry's Web

Tag: work

  • Psalm 119:67 – Afflicted

    Psalm 119:67 – Afflicted

    Before I was afflicted, I went astray,
    but now I keep your word.

    What is your reaction to difficult times? I’m not a terribly optimistic person, and I don’t take to it all that well.

    I’ve noticed that modern Christians have inconsistent responses to trouble. On the one hand, they’ll say that if God is in it, everything will be there. Sometimes they go so far as to say that Christians shouldn’t really have any trouble if they’re “in God’s will.” I always run this view up against the lives of the people listed in Hebrews 11. No, it’s not always easy for God’s people.

    On the other hand, people will say that the person who’s having trouble is being attacked by the devil, usually because that person is doing things that threaten the devil’s kingdom. I always want to ask how they’re sure it’s not because they’re not in God’s will.

    Experience suggests that you will have hard times and good times. That’s how the universe works. I believe in both God’s blessing and in God allowing us to experience difficult times. So there is a third option. Perhaps things are going wrong not because I made the wrong choices, but because others did, and I’m collateral damage.

    Let me suggest a response to affliction, which can be any sort of difficult season in your life. Rather than trying to figure out just what God is doing, perhaps we should simply ask what we, ourselves can do.

    No matter whether you are suffering the normal vicissitudes of life on this crazy planet, or God is trying to teach you something through hardship, or the devil is trying to block you because he doesn’t like what’s you’re doing, the best next move is to do right as best as you can while relying on God.

    And that reliance on God is important. It isn’t an excuse not to act. It is an assurance that when you act, you will accomplish more than you could do on your own. It is also the assurance that even in failure, you’ll be part of God’s family.

    Exodus 2:14-15 tells us that when he realized that the fact he had killed an Egyptian had become known, Moses was afraid. Hebrews 11:27 records that he left Egypt, not afraid of the king’s wrath. That’s the faith view of our actions.

    In what ways do you need to work and trust today?

    (Featured image generated by Jetpack AI.)

  • Psalm 119:45 – Speaking Before Kings

    Psalm 119:45 – Speaking Before Kings

    I will speak of your testimonies before Kings
    and will not be ashamed.

    Do you speak of your faith to other people? For many, this is a question specifically about making religious statements. Can you attempt to “bring someone to Christ?” Can you make a new disciple?

    What I wonder is whether we can talk about the ways of God, the things we might study from scripture and from God’s world, before others. I’m not opposed to sharing our faith. I think we should. But right now I’m talking about something different: Sharing what we have learned outside of the context of faith and religious activity.

    Can you present things you learn from God in ways that will be valued in a non-religious context?

    In my Sunday School class there is a gentleman who is a master at this. I can present a spiritual idea and he’ll find and express how that applies in professional or business life. The things I will teach from scripture he can present as a part of simply doing one’s job well or helping to change the world around him.

    I really appreciate this input. I also appreciate people who can express their faith without being religious about it. One might call it good advice without sanctimony.

    Can you share something of value that you learned through Bible study with someone else without first trying to convince them that the Bible is the word of God?

    I’d suggest that’s a valuable skill.

    (Featured image generated by Jetpack AI.)