Articles by Muriel Larson at Heartlight

The Jewel

Sat, 25 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0500

As a writer, speaker, and E-Mail counselor for "Christian Women Today" online, I often use Romans 8:28 to comfort, encourage, and reassure readers, hearers, or counselees. It's a terrific Scripture! Think about this great promise for a minute:
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him" (NIV).
If Christians really accept and believe this, it can set their minds at ease concerning their present problems and their uncertain futures.

Recently I was given a Scripture passage for a Bible study guide. As I worked on my assignment, the passage made several tough points (Colossians 3:22-25).

Slaves are to obey their earthly masters.

They are to do their work with all their heart, as to the Lord.

God would reward them for their labor.

Tough words, but then I reminded the readers of Joseph (from the Old Testament) as an example of these very principles. Of course Romans 8:28 was the special verse to add hope to the message.

When I received the edited proofs on these devotionals, I did a double take on the verse. It read, "And we know that in all things God works for the goad of those who love him." GOAD? Yes -- that too!

A goad is a pointed rod used to urge on a beast. So the word means something that acts as a spur. And let's face it -- hasn't much of our greatest growth in faith and dependency on our Lord and His Word occurred when our trials and tribulations goaded us to look more to the Lord? So here is another way we can look at Romans 8:28 when we're going through the valleys of life: the trials are for our good, goading us to a closer walk with Christ -- and making us more like Jesus.

The Lord understands us -- His frail children! The Holy Spirit reminds us that God sometimes disciplines us for our good (Hebrews 12:10-11). And though it's not pleasant, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Thus this error missed by "spellcheck" can help us perceive a new facet of the jewel called Romans 8:28.

Rose Terry Cooke wrote in her poem "Beyond":

Take courage, soul!
Hold not thy strength in vain!
With faith o'ercome the steeps
Thy God hath set for thee.
Beyond the Alpine summits of great pain
lieth thine Italy!

Victory Over Loss and Anger

Thu, 03 May 2007 00:00:00 -0500

It had been the worst year in her life -- a year since Kathy's husband had suddenly died in an automobile accident leaving her full of grief, anger, bitterness, turmoil. At first she couldn't believe her husband had died. Then when she did accept it, she felt angry -- angry at the drunken truck driver who had caused David's death, angry at God for letting it happen. Then she had felt guilty. "Why wasn't I more loving toward David when he was alive?" she accused herself.

Grieving set in, and for some reason she couldn't cry. She would just get the children off to school and sit there like a zombie, staring off into space. "God," she exclaimed angrily one day, "how could you have let this happen? David was such a good man, a good father! Now my children are fatherless and I'm alone. It's not fair!"

Kathy went on with the routine of living, but the anger, bitterness, and depression sat like a heavy burden on her. She resigned her position as Sunday school teacher and dropped out of church completely.

Her pastor came to see her, but she was almost rude to him. Seeing he couldn't talk to her, he finally said, "Well, Kathy, we miss you, and we'll be praying for you." Christian friends called and she brushed them off in similar fashion.

Kathy was troubled by the drop in her children's report card marks. They didn't seem very happy either. She began to realize she would have to pull herself together for their sakes.

Then one day, Kathy went out for lunch with a Christian co-worker. As they talked, she shared with Anne what she had been suffering. "I went through all that, too," Anne said, "when my husband left me for another woman. But I finally got tired of feeling sorry for myself and being full of turmoil. I finally decided to 'let go and let God' -- to really trust him with my life and realize that he could work all things together for my good! I forgave Jerry. I forgave myself. And for the first time in a long time, I experienced real peace!"

When Kathy got home that day, she fell to her knees and followed Anne's example -- and she too found peace and meaning for her life. It wasn't easy. It was a commitment she had to make again and again, but turning things over to God, really trusting him with her life, was more than just a slogan; it was the way back to life again.

Quite often when we feel that we have dealt with our grief over loss -- that we have turned it over the Lord -- we can be hit by reoccurrences that get us down. After all, we are all only human, and it is easy to backslide into feeling depressed and very sorry for ourselves because of our losses. We quite making that daily commitment to trust God and focus on the future. So how do we climb out of the pit again? Here are some suggestions.

All those old feelings coming back make you feel sorry for yourself again. This in turn depresses you -- may even make you angry again too. The Bible tells us not to fret -- to sit around and worry and stew and make ourselves anxious (Psalm 37:1). Why? Because fretting brings us back to square one -- doubting God and making ourselves miserable. Stop looking inward, and go back to looking upward!

Go back to the source of your first victory over grief and anger -- the Lord. He is still there for you. He loves you. He hasn't left you -- you have left Him! Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and heavily laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). When you bring that burden to Him, leave it with Him! It works for me every time I really do that!

Those old feelings revive something else in us -- remorse about our own shortcomings, blaming others and God, too. So we must forgive ourselves and others, and trust in God again.

Rejoice in the Lord. Rejoicing in the Lord lifts our spirits, draws us back to Him by thankfulness, reminds us of how much better it is to look forward than backward (Philippians 4:4-9). Again, look up!

Dealing with Stress with Thanksgiving

Tue, 22 Nov 2005 00:00:00 -0600

Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done. (Colossians 2:7 NLT)

Years ago, my husband and I were going through financial problems. I was distraught with worry. Then I read Paul's clear words of truth written to the Christians in Philippi: "Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7 NRS)

When I started giving thanks to God, faith filled me. I received "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding"!

Can we really find reasons to thank God even during difficult times? Absolutely! There are many reasons to give thanks, even in times of despair and difficulty. Let me list a few to get you started thinking about the blessings in your life. Once you get started, I'm sure you can think of many others reasons to give thanks.

Salvation
When we come to know Jesus Christ as our Savior, we are blessed with forgiveness, everlasting life, constant communion with Jesus, divine guidance, and God's faithful provision, answers to prayer, hope for the future, and a host of other good things. When it comes to salvation, we can join Paul in saying, "Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" (2 Corinthians 9:15 NRS)

The Beautiful Creation of God
Sometimes when I feel down, I go for a walk and praise God for the beauties of His world. Jesus said, "Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these." (Luke 7:27 NRS) God's beautiful creation is such a great blessing!

The Fellowship of the Saints
Our Lord has given us our brothers and sisters in Christ for our enrichment and encouragement. "Take care, brothers and sisters, that none of you may have an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called 'today,' so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." (Hebrews 3:12-13 NRS) The gift of Christian fellowship should never be taken for granted!

God's Wonderful Promises
When troubles assail, I open my Bible and find a promise that gives me comfort and reminds me of God's faithfulness. "For God is not unfair. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other Christians, as you still do." (Hebrews 6:10 NRS) God's promises are faithful and true. The Scriptures remind us of God's great faithfulness!

Thanksgiving does drive away anxiety! But, we don't have to go through hard times to appreciate God's blessings. If we look, we will find that His blessings are new every day. Our hearts can awaken to these when we choose to give thanks!