STAND—WHO—Makes Us Able to Stand?
Each day, after a time of reading, questions come to my mind.
Reading—first the names and the initials of those serving as missionaries in other parts of the world and in the USA.
Reading—then the names written and circled on a list created by me at the beginning of this new year.
Praying. Reading the names and praying.
Reading God’s Word and sensing the questions being asked of me.
SEE WITH ME.
“I sought the LORD, and He answered me,
And delivered me from all my fears.”
(Psalm 34: 4)
Questions like—
- What makes a believer, a Christian STAND and raise his hands in praise?
- What makes a believer, a follower of Christ STAND near a friend, co-worker, or family member who needs help?
- What makes a believer, a disciple of Jesus STAND in faith and boldly share the love of God with others?
- What makes a believer, a child of God STAND in prayer, seeking God’s will for his day?
- What makes a believer, a sinner saved by the grace of God, STANDING and paying whatever cost it takes because he knows God will use hm to raise up the kingdom of God?
- What makes a believer, a brother, a sister STAND as he lives as “salt and light” in the world?
What makes a believer, a person who knows Christ Jesus as Savior—STAND?
That’s what I wonder today.
“The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous
And His ears are open to their cry.
The face of the LORD is against evildoers,
To cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry, and the LORD hears
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Psalm 34: 15-18)
Then I begin to wonder questions like—
- What causes a believer, a Christian to STAND BY and quietly or even forget to praise our God?
- What causes a believer, a follower of Christ to STAND BY near a friend, co-worker, or family member who needs help & do nothing to help?
- What causes a believer, a disciple of Jesus to STAND BY in a faithless state and refuse to share the love of God with others?
- What causes a believer, a redeemed sinner, STAND BY feeling powerless to help when our brother needs our help through the life-struggle?
- What makes a believer, a child of God STAND BY in self-focus, forgetting to pray, not seeking God’s will for this one day we have been gifted to live for Jesus?
- What makes a believer, a brother, a sister NOT STAND as “salt and light” but instead live in a STAND-BY mode, just watching from the sidelines in the battle of spiritual warfare?
What makes a believer, a person who knows Christ Jesus as Savior—STAND BY when he could be “fighting the good fight” instead?
That’s what I wonder today.
“The LORD redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.”
(Psalm 34: 22)
I don’t have a Facebook account, and so when something needs to be shared, my husband often shares a person’s post with me. Yesterday, he showed me a photo of a VERY LARGE ROCK my niece posted, a ROCK that filled an entire room. If you know me, then you know I like rocks, so my husband shared this post with me. If you know me, then you also know that I carry a different rock with me, in my right pocket, daily, so my husband knew I would enjoy this post of this OVERSIZED ROCK sitting (or trying to sit) in the corner of this room. If you know me, then you further know that I have a good collection of rocks; some sit on the shelf above the kitchen sink, some rest in drawers, some ride inside the vehicle with me, some are gifts from students, some surround my home, and some I have picked up along the journey of life. So my husband showing me my niece’s post of the OVERLY LARGE ROCK did not come as a surprise, but what did surprise me was the sudden thought that permeated my mind last night and then again today when I beheld THE ROCK.
- What makes a believer, a saint, a justified, sanctified, and faithful follower of the Lord Jesus Christ—cower under the weight of the world—when we have the SOLID ROCK living inside us?
- What makes a believer, a faithful follower of God—stumble under the pressure of temptation—when we have the SOLID ROCK alive and leading us as we go?
- What makes a believer, a redeemed child of the heavenly Father—silently journey through each blessed day we have been given to live—when we have the SOLID ROCK of JESUS living within us?
What makes a believer, a person who knows Christ Jesus as Savior—decide to either—boldly STAND OR STAND BY—each day of his life?
That’s what I wonder today.
The great Bible theologian Charles Spurgeon once said—“Consider what you [believer, Christian, follower of Almighty God] owe to His immutability. Though you have changed a thousand times, He has not changed once.”
God is ALL & so MUCH MORE!
- HE IS THE ROCK of OUR SALVATION!
- HE IS FOREVER FAITHFUL!
- HE IS UNCHANGING!
- HE IS WORTHY of ALL OUR PRAISE!
- HE IS THE PROMISE-KEEPER!
- HE IS THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!
- HE IS OUR SAVIOR & REDEEMER!
- HE IS OUR EVERYTHING & SO MUCH MORE!
As believers, As God’s children, As God’s heirs, As brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, As faithful followers, As saints of God, As the redeemed, As justified & sanctified, As a child of the King of Kings—
What are we doing if we are forgetting each day these basic tenants:
- STAND & BE COUNTED—AS ONE OF HIS CHILDREN!
- STAND & BE FAITHFULLY BOWED ON OUR KNEES—PRAYING—FOR OUR BROTHERS & SISTERS IN CHRIST!
- STAND & BE CONSISTENTLY SHARING THE GOSPEL MESSAGE—WITH WHOMEVER THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD LEADS US TO THIS DAY!
- STAND & LIFT OUR HANDS IN PRAISE—TO THE ONLY KING!
- STAND & AUDIBLY SING ALOUD—YOU ARE MY EVERYTHING!
- STAND & BOLDLY SHOUT FOR THE WORLD TO HEAR—”GOD, YOU ALONE ARE MY SOLID ROCK!”
- STAND & PRAY, ASKING THE FATHER TO HELP US TODAY—LIVE AS “SALT & LIGHT” FOR HIM!
So, on this day, as I end and prepare to leave my home for work, listen with me to a beautiful melody by the Newsboys called (yes, just as we might expect) “STAND.”