Who I Am In Christ Devotionals

  Instead, I have calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with its mother; my soul is like a weaned child. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, both now and forever. Lord, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I do not get involved with things too great or too wondrous for me. Psalm 131:1-3 I am a child of God. He has blessed me greatly. And the Holy Spirit empowers me as He does all of His. Yet sometimes, I can forget all about God’s hands-on work in my life. I think that I need to manage this heavy load all by myself. I am learning (sometimes slowly), by His grace, to take my disquieting thoughts to Him, those anxiety surges that squeeze my chest. Instead of the voice in my head that screams this is going to fall apart, I am beginning to hear the Lord is my shepherd… I am learning to take these thoughts and bring them to Jesus because I don’t know how to back them down by myself. But when I set them at His feet, I get a sense of calm. The Psalm says, “Lord, My heart

  I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:12-13 Stress Contentment is a blessing, and it’s in my control as a believer. Really? Yes it is. How do I know? Because Paul is implying here that believers should be content. If he is saying that I can be content, then I can. How easy it is for me to not treat contentment with the full respect it deserves! Sometimes I don’t think at all about how to nurture it nor protect it. I know what it is to be rich. And I know what it is to scrape by, to wonder how the bills are ever going to get paid. I can get so anxious about possible upcoming stresses. So I build up this steam of discontent all in my head, ruining the day. Learning to be Content How do I get this contentment? I love the first few lines of the serenity pr

  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:33‭-‬34 Trusting Jesus This verse summarizes my desire today. Seek first His kingdom. Trust Him. Anxiety goes. Believers trust Jesus. Still, I must daily reset my trust. If I don't, I shoulder my own burdens. This adds to my worry. One day without trusting Him leads to another day and to another. And the devil pounces on that. He's like a cat waiting at a gopher hole. Thank the Lord that he's on God's leash. Worry on top of worry, I dog paddle the ocean deep. But I don't have to do that ever again. Ever. Filling My Mind With True Things About Jesus I can simply seek Him and His righteousness. Trust Him. And not be anxious. What does that look like? "Be still and know that I am God," He says. That's prayer. That's

  Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  Hebrews 13:5 Lust for Money I'm a believer who can lust for money sometimes. I can be greedy.  Apparently this problem creeps in on believers because the writer of Hebrews says to, "Keep your life free from the love of money." If it wasn't an issue, He wouldn't warn us.  It can sure creep up on me. And then the jealousies too. I can get mired in thinking that if I had more, I wouldn't have this character problem or that one.  If only. If only. If only. The Lord gently helps me and He says, "Here's what I have given you." My correct response is to be content. To be grateful. Yet, I can be like Israel in the wilderness, discontent with miraculous manna. And thank Jesus, He works on me.  Feels So Ugly I know this: I have control over my response. Otherwise, He wouldn't tell me to be content. A jealous reaction