Spiritual Adjustments

 

I have developed a certain level of back pain issues throughout the years.  I have also  developed osteoporosis.  In an attempt to counteract pain I go to my chiropractor once a week for an adjustment and alignment.  I also go to a massage therapist every other week. At one time I only went to the chiropractor once a month, but over time it became necessary to go more often.  When one repeatedly uses ones body when it is not properly aligned, ones body may try to compensate and hence, may cause further injury and damage.

We also need to be spiritually aligned. It is so easy to tell ourselves half truths or negative stories about our current circumstances.  It is easy to allow the devil to whisper discouraging thoughts about our day to day situations and trials.  Instead we need to flip the negative script in our minds, to change our mindset, and to remind ourselves of God's precious promises regarding the Lord God's faithfulness and unfailing love.  In order to do this, we need to actually know what the Lord has promised in His Word, and we need to daily dig deeply into His Word.  Further, we need to think of our trials as light and temporary. Finally, we need to remember that good things like endurance and spiritual growth develops through difficult times in our lives.  This is how spiritual alignment takes place in the Christian's life.

We can still further flip our negative script about difficult seasons in our lives and become more spiritually aligned with God and His Word by praising Him for whom He is in His character as revealed in the Bible.  We also need to agree with whom He says we are.  We further need to remember all He has done for us by purchasing our salvation and in His contanst faithfulness in our lives. We can further take a small step forward in obedience, and share our difficult seasons with others around us.  

In conclusion, we need to reject what the world promotes to be true, and we must embrace what God says is true in His Word.  I talked about that in my blog post last week.  The link for that blog post can be found below:

https://christiancaregiving.blogspot.com/2025/10/what-world-says-vs-what-lord-says.html

 

What the World Says Vs What the Lord Says

 

Recently our woman's Sunday school class received a handout emphasizing the differences between what the world says about life and the truths that God says about life.  For the purpose of this blog post I am going to discuss these differences today. 

The world says we need to hustle or work harder.  God's Word tells us in Proverb 3:5-6, however, to trust the Lord God and to not lean on or trust our own understanding of things.  It commands us submit to the Lord, and promises that in doing so the Lord will make our paths straight.  He will direct our paths in the right way to go.  The world tells us to manifest our goals and destiny and that we must determine our life's path. James1:17 reminds us. however,that everything good comes from the Lord God alone, and Proverbs16:9 reminds us that it is God alone who determines and establishes our steps.

The world tells us to get what we want by putting ourselves first.  God tells us, however, in James 4:6 that God elevates or shows fovor to the humble and opposes the proud.  The world says success equals achievement. The Lord God, however, declares in Colossians 3:23 that success is everyday faithfulness.

The world says that life is short and to live for oneself.  It says to live for pleasure and the now.  The world says one's life is one's own. God says we belong to Him and that we should live for the hope of Eternity..  It also says that things work together according to God's purpose for those who believe in Him.  God further finally says that it is He who holds all things together.   (1 Peter 1:3, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Romans 8:28 and Colossians 1:17)

 God and His Word is always truthful.  God and His Word will never fail.  Trust what the Lord God says and not what the world says.

Abide in the Vine, Jesus

 

Scripture in the first few verses of the Gospel of John chapter 15 speaks of the necessity of abiding in the Vine, Jesus, in order for our lives to be joyful, productive, and fruitful.  Without our dependence on the Lord and our clinging to Him our lives will be of little significance.  They also will hold little joy.  Clinging to Jesus is the only source of these kind of blessings or fruit in our lives.

In a world of trials, unrest, wars, and violence it is especially important to be clinging to the Lord Jesus.  He is our only resource for sanity and grace in this world and in our lives. I talked about this in my blog post last week.  If you want to read or reread that post, you can find the link below:

https://christiancaregiving.blogspot.com/2025/10/the-cross-alone.html

The Cross Alone

 

There is much that is evil and destructive in our world and in our nation.  There are brutal and highly destructive wars, school and workplace shootings, and racial and political hatred.  It often feels as if these things are only getting worse.  Yet this is not happening for no reason.  It is happening, because people refuse to acknowledge, worship, and serve the Lord God.

Sin entered the  world many years ago. We read that in the early chapters of Genesis, the first book of the Bible. God created the world perfect and "very good." God's world was beautiful and without any flaws.  Creation is still beautiful, but because it has become flawed by sin, it is no longer perfect.  We now experience hurricanes, storms, floods, and other "natural" disasters.

As we said before, there is also much sin in the hearts of mankind.  In fact, mankind is now totally corrupt.  When God made the world He not only made the outside creation perfect and good, but He made the first people, Adam and Eve, perfect and good.  In fact, Adam and Eve had perfect dailly fellowship with God.  There came a point when Adam and Eve, however, chose to disobey one simple command from the Lord.  Satan also convinced them that they could become like God  instread of submitting to and worshipping Him.  And so sin entered the world, and all of us are sinners. 

Although Adam and Eve suffered serious consequences all their lives, and even though all mankind fell into sin; God immediately promised to send a Savior. That promise was repeated over and over in the Old Testament of the Bible.  Finally. over 2,000 years ago Jesus Christ was sent to the world in fulfillment of that promise.

And so Jesus came to this world and lived a perfect sinless life for us that we could not live.  He then died on the cross to  pay for our sins.  He suffered hell on the cross for us.  God. the Father, poured all His anger against our sins on Him.  Jesus Christ redeemed us!  Will you choose to accept His free gift of salvation, if you  have not already done so?  The rewards are eternal, and the consequences for not doing so are dire both in this life and for all of eternity.  Life as a child of God is not free from pain and trials. In fact, the Lord says we will have trials in our earthly life.  Yet He also promises to always be with us and to bring us to our eternal homes one day.

It's Okay to Rest when Weary

 

Recently I came across a post on Facebook where the character, Snoopy, is crying huge crocodile sized tears about something. The caption advices him, "You don't have to do it all today.  Just breathe.  That's enough."   The accompaning song to the post suggests that he does not have to fight and keep score.  He does not  have to  prove himself to other people.  He just needs to rest in the Lord. 

Whether you are grieving things that are going on in our nation or perhaps something more personal such as the death of a loved one; you can be assured the Jesus heals, and one day there will no longer be any tears. In the meantime we can and must rest in the Lord.  We need to rest in him physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Matthew 11:28-30 says: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light. 

Let's heed to this command and invitation of our Lord Jesus to yoke ourselves to Him.  That is the only place where we will find rest and peace. 

Faith is Joy Even in the Midst of Heartaches

When our hearts are aching and circumstances around us are very difficult, is it possible to have joy?  For me personally, this past year or so has included some physical pain problems and also some heartbreaking situations involving loved ones of mine.   If we properly understand the concept of joy, however, it truly is possible to have joy no matter what is transpiring in our lives. We can experience joy in the midst of heartbreak and right along side emotional and physical pain.

I have been reading about joy in my devotions again this week.  That has been a huge blessing to me.  We need to remind ourselves that joy is not the same as happiness.  Happiness is based on perfect circumstances.  Joy is based on something much more profound.

Joy is only grounded in the Lord and not on our shifting and fickle emotions.  It is a gift of the Holy Spirit.  Yet we also need to be always pursuing it, because Satan's lies and our own emotions can so easily drag us down.  Personal heartaches and trials, loved one's illnesses and sorrows, and the conditions of the world around us can so easily discourage us.  We should feel sorrow and heartbreak over many things around us.  Yet our joy is found not in circumstances but in a Person, the Lord. Our joy is found in the character of the Lord.  He is always faithful and always loves His people with an eternal love.  He is also powerful to help us in our trials.

I remember in my younger years thinking that if I could just get through the next situation. then everything would be good. Yet my God was always faithful, and He was always present.  The Lord is the definition of joy.  I need to remind myself that He is also the definition of joy in current struggles. By faith in Jesus Christ we can experience joy despite the circumstances that we may be currently experiencing.

Peace in the Storms of Life

 

We have heard much in the news of late about devastating floods, massive fires, earthquakes, wars,  school shootings, and political shootings.  I don't know about you, but hearing about these events and knowing the turmoil these things are bringing in people's lives makes me sad.

Personal storms in our lives can do the same.  Sometimes they can make us feel very sad and discouraged. When feeling very troubled about something, I am often reminded through Scripture that I need to trust God in that situation.  I need to be quiet in that situation.  Isaiah 30:15b says, "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength."  The feelings may not not all go away, but being reminded of this helps me immensely.   A song by Stephen Curtis Chapman also speaks about being quiet in the Lord.  The link to that song is below if you would like to hear it.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgaHaioAjyg

I remember the discouragement and sadness of seeing both my two husbands' bodies deteriorate step by step and the grief of losing them both to death. I also know the discouragement of bodily pain myself at times.  You may have similar feelings, dear Christian.  May the Scripture verse I quoted and song link about resting it with the Lord be a huge comfort to you.  God will always be faithful to you.

Another Scripture passage which is a huge comfort to me is found in the early verses of Isaiah 43.  It speaks of God summoning us by name and being with us through all the rivers and fiery challenges of life.  I wrote about that eight years ago at another blog site of mine called "Moments With God. " The link for that is below.  I hope you find this a comfort as well, dear child of God. 

http://scripturemoments.blogspot.com/2017/09/isaiah-43_14.html