Heavenly GPS

Unless I’m missing something, God doesn’t offer his services a la carte.

I’m amazed by the number of people, claiming to be Christians that are under the impression that they can pick and choose the parts they like in the Bible paying no attention to those they don’t care for, or more than likely don’t fit their lifestyle. They probably stand out so much to me as I use to be one of them.

A popular TV Preacher even states that if you just pray hard enough, think the right thing and act the right way you won’t experience problems in life. If you aren’t as prosperous as you would like to be, you must not be praying enough. Just pray harder and “You can have your best life now”. And sin, well that isn’t spoken of; the focus should only on the positive aspects of God, right?

If we read the Bible, we know this just isn’t the case.  The Christian life isn’t easy and we will absolutely encounter hardships in this world. As my old Pastor Jack Graham said frequently “Being a Christian does not exempt you from the struggles of life”. But as is always the case, God has us covered. We have His living breathing Word to direct us through the trials we will face.

“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil”

Matthew 4:1

Led by the Holy Spirit, Jesus entered the desert to be tempted by the devil. During this time of 40 days and 40 nights, our Savior fasted, surviving solely on the Word of God, answering every enticement offered by Satan quoting what God’s Word said about each particular temptation. The devil was defeated using the perfect truth found only in scripture and we have that weapon to swing as well.

It’s interesting that the desert is a quiet place in light of the fact that its name is derived from the Hebrew word “dahbaar” which translated means “to speak”. And we will all find ourselves in the "desert" at different points in our lives where we are tempted and need to look for for answers.  Don't think for a minute that you will not be spoken to while you are in the desert so we must be certain of whom we listen to and more importantly, how we answer. The devil has a loud voice but if we have the Word of God written in our hearts, His still small voice will always be heard.

As a Child of God, we know He is in control of everything that happens in our lives, good and what we perceive as bad. Christ gave us the perfect example to follow in those times when He chooses to led us into the desert, finding what we are made of and of what use we can be to Him. Our deserts will be times of weakness and turmoil where we feel helpless and alone. Immersing ourselves into the Word daily and knowing scripture is how we activate our “Heavenly GPS” and see our way to the other side.

 

Grace and peace,

Jeff