So Christine, how do we know whether we are grounded in truth or in a lie? That is a great question, I am so glad you asked! And this is where I brace myself for some hate mail. Such a hot topic these days. There is good news and of course, good news wouldn’t be good news if there weren’t bad news right?! God tells us in his Word-the Holy Bible is where we find truth. In His Word, we find truth about our hearts. Again, brace yourself and hold the fruit-bad news incoming. Jeremiah 17:9 states, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” I don’t know about you, but that is some bummer news if you ask me! Left to our own devices, we will not always do what is right, because what we think isn’t always right, and therefore what we say to ourselves and others isn’t always right.
So where do we turn if our hearts are deceitful (and deceived)? This is the good news part-we can turn to help. 2 Timothy 3:13 tells us where to turn. “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives.” We tend to think we are smarter than God. We think what He says is right, is wrong (because it goes against our sin nature), or we think what He says is wrong is right, (sin looks appealing to us). In Job 40, Job and God have a conversation. God challenges Job, He has a hard conversation with Job. Basically, ‘Job-look around you at creation-could you have done this? Do you have the power(or mind) to create all I have created, and make it obey?’ In Isaiah 45, “……Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker……Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’? And in 64:8 it says, “Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” The One who made us, knows what we need to function well, and so, in love and with care for us, He gives us His Word.
When I think about my last post, https://mustardseedcoachingandmediation.com/life-should-be-easy/,
and how I wanted to run from life, my thought process at that time in my life was, ‘Life shouldn’t be this hard. Life should be easier….etc…etc….’. I wasn’t speaking the truth. I spoke ‘my truth’ but ‘my truth’ wasn’t ‘the Truth.’ I was arguing with reality. I was arguing with God’s Word.
Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:16.
The Truth, Jesus, says, “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33.
So the reality is, we should expect that this life will be hard because Jesus said it would be hard. To think otherwise is to argue with reality. To argue with reality will keep us stuck and unproductive. Is that truth hard? I say emphatically, Yes! But He is with us. He will help us; we need to run to Him. He is where our help comes from.
He also says, we aren’t singled out. The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful, he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” What comfort in those words. It’s the whole truth-yes, there will be hardship and temptation, but you and I, (we) are not alone and singled out. Everyone endures hardship. Everyone is tempted-what I am going through is common, AND…..He cares for us. He will always provide a way, so that I can endure.
That is comfort, even when we are tempted to think we are singled out, and want to flee.
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