Devotional on "A Mindset of Trust"

A MINDSET OF TRUST

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.

Psalm 62:8

When the Israelites were sandwiched between the Red Sea and the Philistine army, their minds were filled with terror. They cried out to the LORD and complained to Moses who assured them that the LORD was trustworthy. He said, “The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still” (Exodus 14:14).

Keeping your mind and thoughts still when you’re encompassed by the sound of roaring waves, pounding horses’ hooves, and clanking chariot wheels, had to be a little bit like sitting in the doctor’s office awaiting test results or discovering that your job has been terminated, or your spouse is calling it quits, or there are more bills due than money available at the end of the month. Be still? Really? God says, “Really.”

Moses told the Israelites what God was going to do: He is going to deliver you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still” (Exodus 14:13-14).

They felt trapped and Moses was telling them to trust. They were filtering their situation through what they saw and felt instead of standing firm in faith. Can you identify?

Be still and know that God is God (Psalm 46:10). He alone is trustworthy. Set your mind on His promises instead of your problems, His character instead of your circumstances, His ability instead of your anxieties. 

The Israelites’ trustworthy God hemmed them in by having His angel travel in front of them. He took up the rear guard by moving the pillar of cloud between the armies of Egypt and Israel to bring darkness on the Egyptians and light to the Israelites. Their trustworthy God drove the sea back so they were safely walled in by water. They were hemmed in on every side by God’s hand of protection and provision! God made a way.

By faith, open your eyes and recognize that He is doing the same for you! You hem me in – behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain (Psalm 139:5-6).  God will make a way in your situation, too.

 

Think on it: What do you need to trust God with today? Set your mind on your trustworthy God instead of your troubles.

Trust Me in all your thoughts. You can direct conscious thoughts much more than you may realize. Practice thinking in certain ways – trusting Me, thanking Me – and those thoughts become more natural.

Sarah Young

grace and peace,

Lenae         

If anything is excellent or praiseworthy...

A new devotional from our GEMS training manager, Lenae Bulthuis:

WHATEVER IS EXCELLENT & PRAISEWORTHY

We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done.

Psalm 78:4

A friend of mine will occasionally send an email saying it’s time for a Pow-Wow. We then take turns sharing a pow—one low point of our day and a wow—a high point of our day. It’s a conversation starter that I now regularly use with my children and the young women I mentor. It opens the door to what’s going on in their heads and hearts and gives opportunity to praise God in our heartaches and our joys.

God gives repeated commands in His Word to tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done. So the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children (Psalm 78:4,6).

Before the Israelites exodus from Egypt, God gave instructions for the Passover and how it was to be commemorated for the generations to come. “And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ they were to tell them how the LORD passed over their homes, sparing their lives because of the protection of the blood of the lamb (Exodus 12).

After the Israelites crossed the Jordan into the Promised Land, twelve memorial stones were set up. Joshua said, “In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that what God did to the Red Sea when He dried it up, and how He did it again in the Jordan River. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God (Joshua 4).

In the book of Joel, God urges parents to pass on the lessons that He’s taught them – the Pow-Wows of their story. Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation (Joel 1:3). 

What is God doing in your life right now? Think about your pow and like Job fall to the ground in worship. “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised” (Job 1:21).  Think about your wow and like the crippled beggar that was healed by Peter jump to your feet, walking and praising God (Acts 3:8). Think on God’s excellent and praiseworthy deeds, and then go tell the next generation.

Think on it: Think about what God is doing in your life right now. Now go and tell someone who is younger than you.

Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see.

Neil Postman

grace and peace,

Lenae         

Fall Workshop!

Please pray for Tami & I as we lead counselors from all over WA state in our annual Fall Workshop this Saturday, September 8. Pray for safe travels for all involved and for the women to be blessed by worship of our Lord, training, and fellowship with each other. Pray that God will speak His words of encouragement and love into each counselor's heart.