Under The Lord’s Control

Posted by jerrywhite on Feb 26, 2009

“The most miserable person on earth is the man or woman who does not know how to turn to God—or how to draw from God all that the soul needs to live. They are easily disturbed, easily driven to fear and anxiety, easily driven to self-pity and dissatisfaction.
Why are these people so easily troubled? It is because they cannot control circumstances or get life to turn out exactly the way they want it to. Also, because they cannot have exactly what they want.”
Thomas ‘a Kempis
Come, Lord Jesus
Edited by David Hazard, p. 67
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I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.
Philippians 4:11 (ESV)
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The lesson the Lord Jesus kept teaching His disciples was, “you can trust Your Heavenly Father. Do not doubt. He knows your need before you ask Him. He hears your prayers. The very hairs of your head He has numbered. Not a sparrow falls without His knowledge. He will care for your every need. He is present with you always. He will never fail you or forsake you. He knows what is best for you.”
Heart knowledge of this assurance brings peace and rest. Retaining control of one’s life prevents these truths from becoming real, and therefore hinders rest, peace and joy from ruling within. Because the Lord Jesus loves you with all of His heart, never is there any reason to doubt that every detail of your life is under His watchful care. This means that all that comes to you has His fingerprints upon it, and it comes with perfectly measured design and loving purpose. Someone pointed out that the hand that guides us is nail-scarred. No safer place is there to be than out of my control into His complete control.’’

Christ Requires All

Posted by jerrywhite on Oct 27, 2008

“What is Christ’s claim upon us if we want to be His disciples? First of all, a supreme love. We cannot follow Christ unless we love Him better than anyone else. He puts Himself alongside the dearest relationships of earth, and says in unforgettable words, ‘You must hate all these, or you cannot be my disciple.’…The word ‘hate’ is a relative word, it is not absolute….
He demands from you and me a love greater than the earliest love—the love to father and mother, greater than the dearest love—the love to wife and child, greater than the nearest love—the love of our own life.”
W. Y. Fullerton, quoted by J. Oswald Sanders
Enjoying Intimacy With God, p. 120
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If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:26 (ESV)
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The Lord Jesus plainly says that He must have our supreme allegiance if we are going to be His. Anything less and we cannot be His, even if we have professed Him as Savior and think we are Christians. How shocking Judgment Day will be for those who professed Christ but never yielded all to Him. These are tough and searching words by the Lord Jesus in this age of easy “believism” that often does not affect changes in lifestyle. He who gave His all demands my all, or I am not His at all. He who gave His all deserves my all, and He will receive not one particle less. There is one reason: The Lord Jesus as Creator, Sustainer, Redeemer, Sovereign Ruler, and Judge is worthy. He alone is worthy! The Kingdom of Heaven is His, and He possesses all authority to set the standard for entrance into it.