A Call To The Remnant

Oftentimes when things become more accessible they become less desirable. There is a fundamental flaw in humanity, you can call it the Adam and Eve flaw. We desire what we cannot have and oftentimes take for granted what we do have, until of course we do not have it. The object remains the same, what determines the attitude depends upon whether we have it or not. The ability to be thankful for what we have is a gift that must be learned practically. It can only be learned in the classroom of life. Many never learn , a fortunate few discover that there is great peace and contentment within the heart that is full of thanks.

The great danger is that we take our relationship with the Lord for granted. Time and time again we see Israel drift away from the Lord in times of prosperity. When we are in battles in life, or struggling to survive, we have a high dependency upon the Lord. We stay close to Him and we cry out to Him to keep us. The key for our walk with Jesus is to stay close to Him whether we are full or whether we are hungry, whether we are clothed or whether we are naked. In short, we must learn to be content in whatever situation we find ourselves in. The condition of our hearts are vitally important. Staying close to the Lord is vitally important. Just as we can neglect our spouses by not talking to them or shutting them out, we can do the same with Jesus. In times when things are going well we can become distracted by shiny things of no importance and begin to drift away from the Lord. I would argue that this has been one of the major problems in the West in the last couple of hundred years and has added to the great falling away that we have seen.

Staying thankful, staying intimate, spending time with the Lord lies at the heart of our relationship with Him. Thankfully we have been called to a battle-field and not a playground. If we are living Godly in Christ Jesus we will experience persecution and this persecution keeps us close to our Lord. That is why it is important to thank God in everything, to rejoice in Him at all times and in everything. Not for everything but in everything. For the steps of a righteous man and woman are ordered of God. We are His servants and it is He who keeps us. He keeps us when we go through the waters, He keeps us in the midst of the fires and He keeps us in quiet tranquil days when there is not a cloud in the sky. If He is the center of all things then we shall be grounded and centered in Him no matter what the circumstances of our lives.

He is the eye of the storm. He is our center. When all around are being devastated by circumstances and tossed like waves in a sea overcome by storms, we stand above those waves on Jesus. Rather than the circumstances of life tearing us apart, with the right attitude of our heart, they become elements which make our faith deeper and stronger. The great roller-coaster of life is the emotional world. If it rules you then you will find yourself on a constant wild life of ups and downs and violent twists and turns. Lost of screaming and noise. Emotions are good and should not be avoided, but they should not rule us. We can have wonderful emotional experiences without strapping in to a roller-coaster. It is the will that keeps us. The will rules the emotions. Jesus in the garden submits to the will of His Father. It brings Him great peace when the matter is settled. You must settle in your mind if you will trust Him in all things. If you do that and then put it into practice, put flesh on the bones of what you believe, then you will be able to say with Paul that you have learned to be content in every situation.

Php 4:11  Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.