Word of encouragement to stand firm

[Heidi]

2 Thes 2: 13-17

Stand Firm

13But we should always thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning to be saved by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth. 14To this He called you through our gospel, so that you may share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15Therefore, brothers, stand firm and cling to the traditions we taught you, whether by speech or by letter.

16Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who by grace has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope, 17encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good word and deed.

[Musterseed]

Psalm 27:14
Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage. Wait for the Lord.

Deut. 31:7
It is the Lord who goes before you; He will be with you; He will not leave you nor forsake you;
Do not fear or be dismayed.

Amen Heidi, Thank you

In Christ
Pamela

[Wanda]

Thank you dear sisters for these words of encouragement.

Isaiah 43:1-3
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord you God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Luke 12:25-26
 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life[a]? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

Philippians 4:6
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.

[Heidi]

In our daily walk we can be so easily caught up in the affairs of the world!  There are wars being fought, mass migration of people wanting a better future, a new virus to content with, climate change, Australia alight, people loosing everything etc.etc.....

My heart goes out to humanity for they dont know what we know and they dont have the inner peace we have nor has it been destined for them now to know.

But we, being one in Christ need to shine as lights in this world.

I am so grateful that God has graced me with this truth and peace.

I am grateful for my brothers and sisters and I'm grateful for this site.

Love
Heidi

[ralph]

I can't begin to tell you how comforting this post is ladies. I have a young daughter who has to grow up in this crazy world and it can become so stressful and overwhelming.  Anxiety and fear do tend to get the better of me at times.  Thank you for the words of encouragement.  It has brought me great peace. It is times like this that make me see how weak my faith is . Thank you again.  God Bless you.

[Heidi]

Hi Ralph,

F - false
E - evidence
A - appearing
R - real

Our fear seems so real at the time we experience it but praise God that we can take heart that He, Jesus has overcome this world and has given us a spirit of sonship.

Further encouragement from Gods word in Romans 8:15-17
15For you did not receive a spirit of slavery that returns you to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. 17And if we are children, then we are heirs: heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with Him, so that we may also be glorified with Him.

[Heidi]

I just LOVE the book of Romans because there are so many spiritual treasures in it for us and our future walk with Christ. 

Get excited by the following scripture....
Roman's 8:35-39

More than Conquerors
(Psalm 44:1-26)

35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:

"For Your sake we face death all day long;

we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."g

37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

What an amazing God we serve!

[Wanda]

Great post Heidi, thank you.
Ralph, I'll add something to think about.

Finally brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things."  ~ Philippians 4:8

In John 14 where Jesus is comforting his deciples, his final words are very telling and just as  applicable for us today.

30 I will not say much more to you, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over me, 31 but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me.

Thank God, I'm finally putting this into practice. For every bad news that threatens my state of peace, I immediately counteract it with something good and positive.

The Prince of this world, has the power to instill fear and deceive us in ways that can overwhelm us if we let him. By focusing only on the bad that assaults us at every turn, we can easily succumb to the fear and dread that comes from such thinking. This is the reason, Jesus tells us earlier in verse 26 - 27
26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have saidyou. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Jesus knew we would find no peace in this world, and he wanted us to know he was not leaving us alone to fend for ourselves against such powerful forces that would surely overtake and overwhelm us. There were provisions made for us to have help every step of the way, by resting in the peace he was availing to us, if we only believe and accept it. It took me the better half of my life to avail myself of these loving provisions, and there was alot of suffering in the process that cannot easily be forgotten. The lesson of learning humility is by far the hardest any of us must learn.

[indianabob]

Well said friend Wanda,
It's a difficult journey, but the reward is so wonderful that we will be able to forgive all things that we suffered.
Thanks for explaining.
bob

[ralph]

Thank you for responses everyone!    We are dealing with so much on this end at the moment.   We are currently living in a home  that isn't ours and the owner is seeking to kick us out. It's a long story, something we have been dealing with for years now.  They are members of my wife's family. Talk about wicked.  We have no car at the moment and very little saved so your words of encouragement and the scriptures you shared have brought me comfort.  I am only sharing that with you so that when he delivers us I can share my testimony and Glorify him. 

And the Lord just lead me to the following verses:

Psalm 91 New King James Version (NKJV)
Safety of Abiding in the Presence of God
91 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust."

3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the [a]fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

7 A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
8 Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
10 No evil shall befall you,
Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
11 For He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you in all your ways.
12 In their hands they shall [c]bear you up,
Lest you [d]dash your foot against a stone.
13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.

14 "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will [e]set him on high, because he has known My name.
15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With [f]long life I will satisfy him,
And show him My salvation."

[Musterseed]

Thank you Ralph , this is a beautiful and encouraging Psalm.

My daughter and her family are going through a similar situation as yours.
These trials are difficult . Thank God for giving us assurance of His mercy.
In Him we trust while praying Thy will be done.
My prayers are with you .

In Christ
Pamela

[ralph]

You are most welcome Pamela. Very sorry to hear your daughter and her family are going through something similar.  It is no picnic, I can tell you that.  It is just so amazing when the fear begins to swell how he calms the storm with his word.  Thank you for your prayers and God Bless you sis.