Christian Holiness Journal | Page 53 | a record of struggle and victory to know the mind of Christ

Fear Not 365 – We Have A Good Father

April 30, 2017 by ChristianHolinessDaily Leave a Comment

There should be a user’s manual for new dads. Grandfathers don’t need one, but young parents sure do. I know, because I was a stumbling, goof of a father to my children. It wasn’t until I became a grandfather that I learned how to be a good dad. I was way too strict with my kids, disciplined them far too often, and held them not nearly enough. I needed an instruction book.

I love my kids. And, I love my grandkids. I wish I had spoiled my kids as much as I do my grandkids. I wish I had more time and money to spoil the grandchildren.

How many of you can tell your children or grandchildren NO? I don’t mean when they throw a tantrum. I mean when they earnestly approach you and tearfully beg for something they want with all their heart. Are you able to tell them NO then? I’ll bet not.

That act of earnest begging…. of tearfully pleaing… that is supplication.

Look how that word is used in Philippians 4:6 –

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

Earnestly beg God. Plea with Him. Go to Him as the Good Father Who needs no instruction book. He will care for you.

Fear Not for we have a good Father.

Fear Not 365 – Pray!

April 29, 2017 by ChristianHolinessDaily Leave a Comment

I can’t stand talking on the phone. I absolutely hate it. My wife and kids think it’s them. My wife especially tries to make me feel bad any time I cut her phone calls short. On the other hand, cutting my phone calls short must make her – and my kids -feel bad. I don’t mean to.

The Bible describes our relationship with Christ as a marriage. No marriage could last if the husband and wife never talk. Few marriages could survive if the participants talk only when necessary. Yet, how often do we speak with our Savior?

The Bible tells us to pray continuously, but I would venture to say that the majority of Christians pray only when they are in desperate straits. I used to be like that.

Yet, there is a distinct benefit to prayer. I mean, sure there are several obvious benefits. Prayer builds your relationship with the Savior. Soon one finds He is no longer just your Savior, but also your Lord. God answers the prayers of the righteous. There is one more benefit, one that Paul points out here.

Prayer relieves fear and anxiety.

Are you afraid? Pray. Are you anxious? Pray. Pick up the metaphorical phone and talk to Jesus.

Fear Not. Pray!

Fear Not 365 – The Lord Is At Hand

April 28, 2017 by ChristianHolinessDaily Leave a Comment

I loved staying at my grandma and grandpa’s farm when I was a kid. I loved to sleep in their large screened porch with a tin roof, especially on a rainy summer night. Because they heated their home with a wood stove, winter nights were spent completely covered in a bed warmed with a brick that had been heated atop the stove. I rarely stuck my head out of the covers, but, when I did, I could see my breath. It sounds miserable, but it was not; it was an adventure.

My grandparents raised most everything they ate. I often helped Grandma make homemade egg noodles and peanut butter cookies. I resisted trying some of their recipes, though. I steered clear of hogshead cheese. I begrudgingly ate zucchini or spaghetti squash. I was fooled into eating pumpkin pie made of squash. I liked rabbit, however. It tastes like chicken.

My job when visiting their farm was to collect eggs. More than once, I faced off with black snakes that wanted the eggs worse than I. I even helped butcher the chickens and pluck the feathers.

I think that someday, when I am old and my memory has faded, the thing I will remember most about that farm will be keeping the newborn piglets warm under a heat lamp in the wee hours of a cold winter night. I laugh when I think that I named them. I may as well have named them Bacon, Ham, or Pork Chop. I was maybe nine years old, so what did I know? I made friends with the piglets and the sow (mother pig).

I only thought I made friends with the sow. I feel asleep in the barn. Later Grandpa carried me into the house. The next morning, I went out to check on the piglets. Grandpa had already let out the sow. As I crossed the barnyard, she was busy at the slop trough. Before I could enter the barn, she snorted and squealed and chased me to the gate. This hog was no friend.

Instead of opening the gate, I dove for a small gap under the fence. I thought I was safe. I wasn’t. The sow bit into my leg. Grandma spent the next couple hours doctoring it. I spent weeks milking attention from it.

That sow was vicious, just the opposite of the verse in Philippians 4:5 –

Let your gentleness be known to all men…

That verse brings to mind Christ’s words in Matthew 10:16 –

“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.”

The verse in Philippians is part of a larger context that speaks about the peace of God.

Don’t worry… Be gentle.

Don’t fear… Be meek.

Don’t fear… Be like a lamb.

Stop being anxious… Be like a dove.

That begs the question, then, how does gentleness bring one peace?

Take a look at the rest of that verse –

…the Lord is at hand.

The Lord is at hand.

He is by your side. Within reach. He’s your Guide. Protector. Defender. You have no need to worry. Your wellbeing is His concern. Vengeance is His concern, too.

Fear Not, for the Lord is at hand.