This old SNL skit with Dana Carvey’s impersonation of George H.W. Bush came to mind this morning as I battle a familiar foe. The relentless evil of Satan will never abate, well, at least not until he is once and for all punished and cast away forever. In the meantime, we as human beings are in the world, and he continues to use his tired old tactics to attempt discouragement and defeat, trying to squash and dismember us. Trouble surrounds and hope can seem lost, but we are not so easily defeated when we exercise the weaponry at our disposal.
Psalm 88:2-4 (KJV)
2 Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry; 3 For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave. 4 I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength:
If you have lived for any length of time, you will have prayed that prayer in some form or another; so overwhelmed that there remains no strength of our own to continue forward. It is in the life of the christian, as we suffer through inevitable trials and temptations that we choose whether or not to finish what has been started. Will we… “stay the course?” When we fail in our faith and sin, and we walk away from God’s grace, will we receive the correction we need to get back on course? Will we return to our hope in God with repentance, or fall helplessly into the abyss of our sinfulness?
There is only one response that will bring restoration, stay the course. Trust, believe, grow, mature, and learn. Find in the opposition you face a new and stronger faith that is rising to the challenge and overcoming in Jesus name!
Stay the course!
Philippians 3:13-16 (MSG)
Focused on the Goal
12-14 I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.
15-16 So let’s keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you’ll see it yet! Now that we’re on the right track, let’s stay on it.
The Place to be Real 