When we feel like we’ve lost the connection with God, we need to maintain our attitude of reverence toward Him. This devotional reading looks at watching and waiting while we endure the trials we are experiencing..
Nuggets
- When we don’t know what to do, we still have to watch for God to work in our lives and wait until He does.
- When we don’t know what to do, we still have to remain faithful as we endure the time of silence.
In the last devotion, we started looking at ways to get back into full fellowship with God when we feel like we’ve lost the connection with Him and don’t know what to do. We looked at two of the four suggestions. Let’s look at the last two.
Let's Put It into Context
To read devotions in the Habitual Holiness of Heart and Life theme, click the button below.
Here is a running list of nuggets for the theme.
Devotions in the What to Do When We Don’t Know What to Do series
Here is a running list of nuggets for the series.
Watch and Wait
“Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you” (I Pet. 5: 7-10 ESV)
When we don’t know what to do, we still have to watch for God to work in our lives and wait until He does.
“Casting all your anxieties on him …”
When we get to the point where things are so bad that we don’t know what to do, our anxiety level shots up. We tend to focus on what is going wrong – and what isn’t happening that we think should be happening.
Anxiety is a distraction. It takes our focus off God. It backs us out of being at the heart level.
Peter told us to cast our care on God. There is an important reason for doing this.
When we allow the anxiety to come in, we split our faith. We may have some faith still in God.
But we don’t have complete faith in God. We know that because – if we did – we wouldn’t be having the anxiety to the extent we do.
Vincent described it this way. He wrote, “… a lack of faith in God proportioned to the amount of care which we refuse to cast on Him; an excess of self-confidence proportioned to the amount which we insist on bearing ourselves.”
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Because we lack faith, we tend to see trouble where there is none or blow what there is out of proportion.
Did you see what Peter actually said? “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (I Pet. 5: 7 ESV).
We are to cast everything on God. Peter cautioned us to not hold anything back. We are to give God everything.
That everything is our anxieties. It doesn’t say that we are to work things out and get everything fixed – then come to God.
It is just like salvation. We don’t clean up our acts and then get saved. We come to God while we are still sinners.
We are to give everything to God when we have the anxieties – even when we don’t know what to do.
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. ...."
God calls us to be sober minded. A sober-minded disciple is, according to Taylor, self-controlled, loving, humble, modest, and content.
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Exhibiting those characteristics make us healthier in body and mind. We do not display anxiety when we are even keeled.
We have to be self-disciplined in order to be sober. That is logical. Both has a major component of saying no to what either takes our focus off God or that which God does not want us to do.
Disciples are to be watchful. We have to stand guard.
I like what South said. He wrote, “The truly pious is never at rest in his mind but when he stands upon his guard against the most minute and unobservable encroaches of sin, as knowing them upon this account more dangerous than greater; that the enemy that is least feared is usually the soonest felt.”
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Being watchful is a component of waiting. We are to wait for God’s direction.
When we don’t know what to do, we shouldn’t make a move until we know that is where God wants us to go.
We have to watch and not grow weary.
“Resist him, firm in your faith …”
Satan is diligent in trying to lead us astray. We can’t let him get a foothold in our lives.
When we let Satan in, we put our priority on the world rather than on God. Whether Satan leads us to the worldview or we let our worldview beliefs allow Satan in, the result is the same. Satan is leading our lives.
We can only resist Satan when we are steadfast in our faith.
Cooke said something profound that I think we know but don’t always think about. He wrote, “Satan allows you as much religion as you please for the carrying on of his designs; and yet, if you please, you may have none at all.”
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We trip over the statement that Satan allows us to have religion, don’t we? We would think he has only two option – we go worldview, or we don’t and follow God.
But if – in essence – we are Matthew 7: 21 people, we don’t have a witness or any kind of influence a disciple would have. Satan doesn’t mind if the outward appearance looks like we are disciples as long as our hearts do not follow the same route.
Endure
“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (Jas. 1: 12 ESV)
When we don’t know what to do, we still have to remain faithful as we endure the time of silence.
“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast ..." (Jas 1: 12 ESV)
We endure when we don’t lose our dependence on and belief in Him. We don’t give up.
Our enduring is challenged when we get to the point where we don’t know what to do.
We can find ourselves more easily tempted by Satan when we don’t feel God near to us. However, we are shown time and again that God will never leave us, which grows our faith.
- “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed” (Deut. 31: 8 ESV)
- “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’” (Heb. 13: 5 ESV).
- “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you” (Deut. 31: 6 ESV).
- “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you” (Josh. 1: 5 ESV).
- “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isa. 41: 10 ESV)
- “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Josh. 1: 9 ESV).
- “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?’” (Heb. 13: 5-6 ESV).
- “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you” (Gen. 28: 15 ESV).
We must endure the daily trials circumstances present us. Our feelings of God’s nearness shouldn’t be what determines whether we endure or not.
It must be our choice to endure. We must choose to do so because of our unflinching faith.
We must increase our dependence on God — even when we don’t feel Him nearby.
"... for when he has stood the test ...: (Jas. 1: 12 ESV)
Let’s put this into context. James had already written “… for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” (Jas. 1: 2 ESV).
Watson reiterated that dependence on God is how we remain steadfast. He wrote,
“What the Christian needs is the power of patient endurance … The wealth we have, the talents we possess, the station in life we occupy, our knowledge, our leisure, our business capacity are all tests of character whereby we prove to God and man what we are living for — whether we are living all for self and the world, or whether we are living for anything nobler, purer, better.”
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When we experience these trials — in other words, as we live our lives — we gain wisdom (Jas. 1: 5), which grows our faith. We gain this through God’s power.
Our faith grows in two ways through these trials. We endure trials that bring us to a deeper understanding of the life of which He offers us.
That understanding grows our confidence in God. We see Him for Who He is.
"... he will receive the crown of life ..." (Jas. 1: 12 ESV)
When we endure, we will gain God’s character.
We know that those who are blessed are those who are saved. “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin” (Rom. 4: 7-8 ESV quoting Ps. 32: 1-2).
Disciples who endure will be rewarded with eternal life. In Heaven, there can be no sin. “No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him” (Rev. 22: 3 ESV).
I like what Manton said. He wrote, “… they lose nothing by affliction but their sins.”
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Worldview people want us to think we give up so much when we become disciples. Sin seems to be the bright, shiny things we should be coveting.
Disciples know, however, that we gain much more than we give up because the only thing we give up is sin.
We gain the crown of life. “Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2: 10 ESV).
St. John said we shouldn’t think we are talking about a physical crown. He wrote, “Be faithful unto death; and you receive that crown — simply life.”
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See, we focus on the crown part and gloss over the life part. A crown is an earthly symbol.
We tend to skip the life part — eternal life. But that is what the whole Plan of Salvation is about. We are to accept the gift of salvation so that we can be restored to live eternity with God.
Making the Connections
Actions are important. Attitudes are more important.
The actions we perform may be suspect. Our motivations may be wrong.
Our attitude must be that which Christ exhibited. We must always be honoring God in all that we say and do.
How Do We Apply This?
- Get our hearts right with God.
- Remain sober, vigilant, and steadfast in our faith.
- Resist sin.
- Be diligent.
Resources
Father God. We want our action to be done to further Your kingdom. More importantly, we want our attitude to be that of Christ’s. That way – in all we do – we will honor You. Amen.
What do you think?
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