Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. – Matthew 11:28-29
The post “Antidote to Despair” makes the point that everyone who believes in what the gospel clearly explains and accepts God’s Son as their Savior has a protective antidote to despair. Available is the opportunity to receive this antidote for a weary soul.
Jesus will carry your burdens so this day, lay them all down. Take a few minutes to listen to the song Oh My Soul by Casting Crowns. It may seem that joy is gone but remember, you are never alone. In just one short day, God can make a way so lay burdens down and things can turn around.
Our soul is in a constant battle with negative thoughts and attitudes of this world but God has the antidote to despair by replacing the negative that penetrates our soul with righteousness.
We know so far on our journey that Job is in a deep state of despair. He is going through anguish and misery because he had lost everything. His children, his livestock, and his property. Then, he is afflicted with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head (Job 3:7).
Reading today in Job 9, God’s justice doesn’t bother Job but the fact that he can’t do anything about his situation does. Job sees God as the Creator of everything. The Father, maker of night and day, the stars and heavens, and the water of the sea.
The justice of God is to make wrongs right; everyone who believes in what the gospel clearly explains and accepts God’s Son as their Savior has a protective antidote to despair. Available to everyone is the opportunity to receive this antidote that renews the soul.
*One thought from my pastor’s sermon years ago was that the world puts pressure on us all to do more than we could possibly do; to carry loads we can’t carry alone. Christ makes our burdens light. If we spend more of our time on developing our soul, we will be prepared for everything right now and for all eternity. – Steve Ramsdell, 10-20-2013
So we know now that there is an answer to Job’s complaint in verses 32-33. As pointed out in 1 Timothy 2:5, “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus”.
This day we are thankful for the antidote to despair which is God’s Truth. It may take a while for many to see but accepting the Truth makes one righteous. We patiently wait for more and more to comprehend this Truth that God became flesh as Jesus Christ. Today we pray in Your name Jesus as our Mediator. Amen.
The poem at my other blog “Step Ahead” offers inspiration for an attitude of concern for others and their needs. The poem is inspired by “Believe and Receive”. The photo is an amazing rainbow I saw one morning as I walked up to my office. It stretched from one end of the lake to the next.
The main thought of the poem is that Jesus gives us an example to follow when He fed the 4,000 because the attitude was concern for others and their needs. He demonstrates the bounty of never ending renewable power available to all who believe.
Let us worship with the song “I Can Only Imagine by MercyMe” and be thankful for our current provision and a future beyond our wildest dreams.
The law of the Spirit of life in Christ has made me free from the law of sin and death. –Romans 8:2
A major thought from “Three Dimensional Thinking” is that we can study a certain field, learn from history, or from experience but we are limited as humans. Only God is able to think in three dimensions; His Spirit and Word can be trusted to guide our steps into the future.
We are caught many times into thinking inside the box rather than outside the box. Let us open up to a future of three dimensional thinking with Jesus who provides grace. As the song Your Grace is Enough by Matt Maher, we have the key to be set free.
Brought out in Job 8, is that instructions from past generations help in the present generation. We may not always be able to find the clue for the present from the past but history does have a way of repeating itself. Experience helps and like the advice from an old cowboy, “I was born at night but not last night”, we should not always buy in to ideas that look good on paper but may be impractical or not proven.
Ideas from the world can be fragile like a spider’s web that is easily broken but we can always trust in the Word of God which has proven to be good advice over the years. We can study a certain field, learn from history, or from experience but we are limited as humans. Only God is able to think in three dimensions; His Spirit and Word can be trusted to guide our steps into the future.
Job’s friend in today’s passage is trapped in the one dimensional thinking of the past. A world view or way of thinking that puts up four walls like a prison to keep one locked up with no hope for freedom. But Jesus enlightens our thinking to accept the key of grace that allows us to escape the prison and be set free!
This day with You Lord, thanks for giving us the ability to escape the one dimensional thinking of long ago. We now have the three dimensional thinking that Christ brings to set us free. The key is grace that opens the prison door to our freedom. Today we have unlimited potential because we are guided by three dimensional thinking from the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirt. Amen.
This Day With God - A Spiritual Journey 
