Thought for Wednesday, June 27th

June 27, 2012

Are You Looking For Trouble

Do you ever feel like trouble is around every corner?

Sometimes it seems like trouble can find us even when we are trying to hide from it.

And yet there are still others who we may know who seem to be the ones who go looking for trouble.

Have you ever thought about this concept from a spiritual perspective?

Do you ever think that some of us Christians, who are instructed to flee the very appearance of evil, might actually be guilty of looking for trouble, rather than trying to avoid it?

Do we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness or do we often find ourselves instead seeking everything we can find fault with within the church?  Do we look at the Sunday Sermon as a challenge to inspire us to live better or do we see it as an affront and personal attack propagated by the pastor to make us feel guilty?

Do we view the opportunities for service within our local body as just that – opportunities; or do we view them as burdens to be endured rather than experiences to be cherished?

Anytime we look for a perspective that is anything less than with thanksgiving counting all things as a blessing and if we are not looking for the glory and honor of God to be the underlying foundation of any and every situation – in affect – we are looking for trouble.

“What we see depends mainly on what we look for.”

-       John Lubbock

  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Matthew 6:33-34

For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.  We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;  Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. So then death worketh in us, but life in you.

2 Corinthians 4:6-12

There is an English Proverb which states, “He that seeks trouble always finds it.”

There is a lot of truth in this statement.

If we seek trouble, whether in the natural world or even within the scope of our spiritual world – we will find it – because no one we will deal with or nothing we will encounter is perfect, save for the Lord Jesus Christ. 

So may we head the admonition of the Word and seek God with all our heart, mind and soul and may we flee the appearances of evil and strive to honor God in all we do.  If we do these things even with a modicum of success – this will take us a long way towards staying away from trouble.

Today’s Prayer

Father, your amazing, wonderful, awesome and glorious: beyond measure and greater than there are words to describe: and yet even in all that you are in and through me and all that you do on my behalf: I still seem to find more than my fair share of troubles to get involved in, and sadly I often get involved way to willingly.  Help me to be less of a trouble seeker and more of a God pleaser in the things I say and do.

“My life is in You Lord
My strength is in You Lord
My hope is in You Lord
In You, it’s in You

I’ll praise You with all of my life
I’ll praise You with all of my strength
With all of my life, with all of my strength
All my hope is in You “

-  Lyrics from ‘My Life Is In You Lord’ by Daniel Gardner