Living in a Hostile World

November 25   Living in a Hostile World  Proverbs 3:5-6

Good morning from Pastor Glen Brock, Baptist Tabernacle Church, Wendell, North Carolina… “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”  (Proverbs 3:5-6)

The question of “How we are to survive in a Hostile World,” is a valid question.  When “common Sense” has been replaced with momentary emotionally driven reactions, when the foundation of our nation is being systematically dismantled,  when graft and corruption is seen as being necessary to further the cause, when those who are charged with the task of reporting facts, yet proclaim self-serving lies, when professing believers are participating in this madness because of some earthly family traditions, when our very way of life is being attacked, we have to ask the question: “How do we survive?”  First of all, life is hard!  Folks, we are not promised a life of ease and constant pleasure, here on earth; quite the contrary, we can expect trials and tribulation (John 16:33), but under the saving and sustaining Blood of Jesus, we are overcomers.  If we lean on our own earthly understandings, then we are going to be bewildered and confused.  Look around at this crazy world.  Prophesies are being fulfilled all around us.  So, how do we survive?  We are to “TRUST” in the Lord!  The Hebrew word for TRUST; that is used in this scripture passage is “baatach,” which means “to lie down and stretch out.”  To TRUST GOD is to absolutely surrender to His powerful and sustaining provision and depend on His promises.  To lie down and to stretch out, places us in a vulnerable position, which requires complete Faith and Obedience to His calling.  Regardless of what we face today, God sees and knows and He has provided the means and the opportunity to survive; even thrive in this Hostile Environment!  We have to “Acknowledge Him,” which means that we HAVE TO HAVE FAITH IN HIM AND EMBRACE HIS PROMISES FOR OUR LIVING!!  He promised that He would “Direct our paths!”  Praise God!  He is out, in front of me and He is clearly obstacles and stumbling blocks from my path and He is actively guiding me through this Evil maze of Earthly and Anti-God challenges.  I was sharing this fact, with a couple, just yesterday, and the lady told me that I was being simple minded.  She went on to inform me that the issues of the day were not simple and that it would require someone of a greater intellect than me to solve the problems.  I smiled and agreed with her.  Sadly, the best that I could do for them was to share the message of Jesus with them and turn it over to the Holy Spirit.  She did point out a glaring and clear fact!  We, in our human condition, cannot and will not solve the issues of this day, however, our task, our duty, our calling is to navigate people into a “Saving” relationship with Jesus, and by doing so, we are changing the population NUMBERS OF HEAVEN!  Can we survive in this world?  Yes we can… LISTEN, the answer is simple, so some will miss it… “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”  Simple, yet life changingly profound… Survival depends on our focus on Him and not on this temporary world.  Again, THIS WORLD IS NOT MY HOME, I AM JUST PASSING THROUGH!! Praise God for His Power, Presence and Provision…Stay Strong, Stay Focused…THE BEST IS YET TO BE!