Tunnel Vision – Problems Stealing Your Peace – 40 Day Journey
with Martin Luther – Day 19 – Purity 1292
Purity 1292 03/06/2024 Purity 1292 Podcast
Purity 1292 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s photo of a “mountain” of a palm tree in the
foreground of the setting sun comes to us from Pat Harris who shared this scene
on social media back on February 27th. Well,
It’s Wednesday and while this tree isn’t a mountain I thought that it was a
fine way to welcome us all to the midpoint of the work week. So happy hump day,
may God’s light shine upon you regardless of the weather.
Anyway, over the last couple of days, I was sharing
some photos from unknown FB friends from back in 2021 because I was struggling
with a situation at home and a day hasn’t changed that but this morning I have
decided to redirect my thoughts to the things I do know and the things I can control
– My God and my thoughts and actions.
Getting upset about the condition of the other people in our lives is
understandable. However, the excessive worry and anxiety that is caused by our
concern is something the enemy loves to see and will seek to increase to steal
our joy and peace and to lead us into sin.
When we are upset, our moods can cause us to do and
say things that reflect the world, the flesh, and the devil more than who we
are in Christ. When we are faced with a
problem that we can’t control with unknown or uncertain outcomes that we are “a
hoping and a praying” to go a certain way, we can become blinded to the good
things we currently have and see the world around us as hostile. Our worry and anxiety can take that one
problem and make it into a “mountain” and that mountain can collapse and become
an avalanche that spills into the other areas of our lives. When we are upset with a personal
relationship, we can become dissatisfied with our professional lives, our
current place in life, the uncertainty regarding other areas of our lives. Our inability
to “fix” this one problem, can cause us to doubt our ability to do anything
right! When one problem gets blown up
and takes centerstage of our lives, it can make everything look like a
problem.
But that’s a lie. That’s tunnel vision, and the
enemy will use it to sow seeds of discontent, despair, depression, and anger
into our lives to make us sin. In
frustration over the situation I have been focusing on, my language has been
foul – as if swearing will relieve my stress or make things better. My tunnel vision has caused me to echo the
sentiments of the one I am trying to help – “Yeah, I hate my job too…” – That’s a lie. “Yeah, I hate my life too…
Deal with it.” Another lie, with some
hard advice but still a lie… and I am saying these things to myself – nobody else
gets that hard advice but me, and it causes me to look at the negative aspects
of my life, when in fact I am blessed, happy, and content.
So in this season of Lent, I am repenting of the
dialog that I have been locked in and am going to focus on who I am in Christ and
release the problem to the Lord. I said what I needed to say and pointed people
to the way they needed to go. And for today, I have to let things go and let
God and the other people involved in this situation do what they are going to
do. In the meantime, I will draw close to God and enjoy the peace that I have
in Him alone. So let’s draw in with the
next day of our 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther.
It’s the nineteenth day of Lent and so we continue
my personal walkthrough of Gracia Grindal’s 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther
to observe and celebrate the Lenten season.
In this walkthrough of Grindal’s devotional, it is our hope that we will get to know
Martin Luther a little better as we seek to draw closer to the Lord on our
journey to Resurrection Sunday – Easter.
And so we continue.
“Journey
Day 19
I
believe that God has created me together with all that exists. God has given me
and still preserves my body and soul; eyes, ears, and all limbs and senses; reason
and all mental faculties. In addition, God daily and abundantly provides shoes
and clothing, food and drink, house and farm, spouse and children, fields,
livestock, and all property – along with all the necessities and nourishment
for this body and life. God protects me against all danger and shields and
preserves me from all evil. And all this is done out of pure, fatherly, and
divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness of mine at all! For
all of this I owe it to God to thank and praise, serve and obey him. This is
most certainly true.
If we
believe it, this article should humble and terrify all of us. For we sin daily
with eyes, ears, hands, body and soul, money and property, and with all that we
have, especially those who even fight against the Word of God. Yet Christians
have this advantage, that they acknowledge that they owe it to God to serve and
obey him for all these things.
Biblical Wisdom
Thus
says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread
out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it
and spirit to those who walk in it: “I am the Lord, I have called you in
righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a
covenant to the people, a light to the nations, to open the eyes that are
blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who
sit in darkness. Isaiah 42: 5-7.
Silence for Meditation.
Questions to Ponder
· If “God
daily and abundantly provides… all the necessities and nourishment for this
body and life,” why is it that so many are poor, hungry, and lacking the
abundant life?
The world has been broken by sin. Our sinfulness, selfishness,
and ignorance keep us from being the people God created us to be. The world,
the flesh, and the devil war against us to love ourselves more than others and selfish
self-interest makes the world a hostile place. Also often the poor and hungry
are locked in hopelessness and generational sins that keep them living in a
victim mentality.
· In
what way does confessing faith in the “Creator of heaven and earth” make us a “light
to the nations”?
Confessing faith in God, the Creator, and speaking
the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ make us a light to the nations because
our witness could be used by the Lord to bring people into His kingdom, to take
them from death to life, from darkness to the kingdom of light.
· What
kind of advantage do Christians have in knowing what they owe to God?
Christians
who understand what they owe to God have the advantage of knowledge and
wisdom. To know the truth is the beginning
of hope. To know what we owe to God could cause us to love Him and to obey Him.
Our advantage – of knowing God and the truth – could cause us to reap the
benefits of a righteous Christian life, free of sin and confusion.
Psalm Fragment
When
I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that
you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them? Psalm 8:3-4.
Journal Reflections
· Make
a list of what God has given you and for which you owe God praise, service, and
obedience. In what ways are you giving to God what you owe God? What more might
you (should you) be doing?
God has given me: life, a loving family, good
health, talents, abilities, intelligence, peace, joy, love, and freedom I do this blog and podcast to encourage others
to realize what they have been given and to inspire them to trust in Jesus as
Lord and Savior and to follow Him with the way they love. I try to give to God what He gave to me –
love and devotion – and try to represent Him as much as I can. I can’t do enough
to thank God for what He has done or to give Him glory, but I will continue to
do so as a labor of love and to fulfill my life’s purpose.
· Meditate
on today’s Psalm fragment. Write about any feelings or thoughts the reading
evokes in you.
The immensity of the universe and the beauty of God’s
creation cause me to have similar thoughts. How could a Creator God who made so
much care for me? I don’t know how or
why, but I know He does, and I rejoice!
· Reflect
on times when you have seen some great evidence of God’s creative power. Write
a short poem to express your feelings.
Roses are Red, Violets aren’t Blue,
The evidence for God is all around us ,
And there is no end to the things that God can do!
Prayers for the Life of Faith
Pray
that your eyes will be open to see the greatness of God and the grandeur of
creation and also in the little gifts you receive from family and friends.
Lord, open my eyes to see Your Greatness and the grandeur of your
Creation and all the little gifts I receive from you through my family and
friends.
In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Prayer For Today
Dear Creator,
Redeemer, and Comforter, open my eyes to your grandeur in all the gifts you
have given me abundantly. Help me to love, serve, and praise you forever.
Amen.
(Gracia M. Grindal. 40-day
Journey With Martin Luther. Kindle Edition.
(We encourage you to purchase Grindal’s book and
take the 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther for yourself by purchasing Grindal’s
book wherever books are sold. You can find it online at many different sites
and purchase it new, used – paper or electronic for less than $15.00).
——————————————————————————————–
For
those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide,
I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .
Today’s
Bible verses come to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By
John G. Kruis.
(
While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick
Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late
author’s work. (https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Scripture-Reference-Counseling-Kruis-ebook/dp/B00CIUJZT2?ref_=ast_author_dp )
This
morning’s meditation verses come from the section on Contentment, Coveting
& and Priorities.
Luke 12:15 (NASB)
15 Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of
greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of
his possessions.”
Today’s
verses fall under the fifth point of our counseling reference guide resource’s
section on Contentment,
Coveting, and Priorities.
6. Life does not consist of what one possesses.
Today’s
verse points to a fundamental fact of life that is difficult to grasp. Our lives are not defined by what we
own. Although we will cling to things to
our dying breath, the end of accumulation is dispersal. What you gather will be
scattered. We don’t build anything that will last… except our relationship with
the Lord. That’s why greed is a sin- it causes
us to worship something else more than God and ironically all our accumulating won’t
ultimately satisfy us, or it will lead us to believe a lie that send us to
hell. “I’m happy with all my things in
my fortress of solitude.” But as Jesus told the rich man who was going to build
new barns to hold all his accumulated wealth, that sentiment is foolish. God will call us to account for our lives and
the things we have will be shown to be things that God provided for us and will
prove to be our undoing.
So
beware of greed and know that your life consists of knowing who you are in God’s
kingdom and the things you do to give God glory.
———————————————————–
As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from “According to Your
Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament” By Stephen F. Olford – A
Collection of Devotional Journals: 1940-1941.
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage you all to purchase Olford’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available online
for less than $10 at many sites.
EVENING READING: LUKE 8
“Then they went out to see what had
happened,
and came to Jesus, and found the man.”
– Luke 8:35
A wonderful miracle had been performed. A man, who was
more of a beast than a human being, had been completely changed. Though no man
could bind him (not even with chains) or tame him, Christ had delivered him.
The people in the surrounding district heard of it, and they came out to see
what was done. What did they see? They saw Jesus. To whom did they come? They
came to Jesus. In doing so, they found the man sitting at the feet of Jesus,
clothed and in his right mind.
If I am to see what You can do and
will do,
I must come to You.[1]
—————————more
tomorrow————————
Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage
Breaker”, “Freedom in Christ” series of Discipleship Classes via the
mt4christ247 podcast!
at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts
(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available
on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and
Audible.com.
These teachings are also available on the
MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247
Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and
to be encouraged.
My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian
encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ), her
Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on
Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)
“The views, opinions, and commentary of this
publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to
reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries,
or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication,
and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the
author may represent.”
Encouragement
for the Path of Christian Discipleship
[1]
Stephen Olford and Heather Olford, According to Your
Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament, A Collection of Devotional
Journals 1940-1941 (Nashville, TN: B&H Books, 2008).
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