Man’s steps are ordered by the Lord. How then can a man understand his way?
—Proverbs 20:24
This Scripture has stabilized my emotions many times when I was in a hurry to get somewhere and found myself at a standstill in traffic on the highway. Initially, I get a sinking feeling, then I get aggravated, and then I say, “Well, since my steps are ordered by the Lord, I will calm down and thank God that I am right where He wants me.” I also remind myself that God may be saving me from an accident farther down the road by keeping me where I am. Trusting God is absolutely wonderful because it soothes our wild thoughts and emotions when things don’t go the way we had planned.
I learned long ago that with God on our side, even though we will experience disappointments in life, we can always get “reappointed.” If you or I have a doctor’s appointment and he has an emergency and has to cancel, we simply make another appointment. Life can be that way, too. Trusting that God has a good plan for us, and that our steps are ordered by Him, is the key to preventing disappointment from turning into despair. How do you react when you get disappointed? How long does it take for you to make a transition and get reappointed? Are you acting on the Word of God or merely reacting emotionally to the circumstance? Are you controlled by what is around you, or by Jesus, Who lives inside you?
Trusting God completely and believing that His plan for you is right is infinitely better than trusting your own plan. It is impossible to be mad at someone you really believe has your best interest in mind. And God is always for us, never against us. He is the only One Who can help you and truly comfort you; therefore, it is much better to run to Him in your disappointment than away from Him.
Trust in Him: Trust God to reappoint you—when you do, it will calm your thoughts and emotions.
Disappointed? Get Reappointed
by Joyce Meyer - posted May 21, 2016Man’s steps are ordered by the Lord. How then can a man understand his way?
—Proverbs 20:24
This Scripture has stabilized my emotions many times when I was in a hurry to get somewhere and found myself at a standstill in traffic on the highway. Initially, I get a sinking feeling, then I get aggravated, and then I say, “Well, since my steps are ordered by the Lord, I will calm down and thank God that I am right where He wants me.” I also remind myself that God may be saving me from an accident farther down the road by keeping me where I am. Trusting God is absolutely wonderful because it soothes our wild thoughts and emotions when things don’t go the way we had planned.
I learned long ago that with God on our side, even though we will experience disappointments in life, we can always get “reappointed.” If you or I have a doctor’s appointment and he has an emergency and has to cancel, we simply make another appointment. Life can be that way, too. Trusting that God has a good plan for us, and that our steps are ordered by Him, is the key to preventing disappointment from turning into despair. How do you react when you get disappointed? How long does it take for you to make a transition and get reappointed? Are you acting on the Word of God or merely reacting emotionally to the circumstance? Are you controlled by what is around you, or by Jesus, Who lives inside you?
Trusting God completely and believing that His plan for you is right is infinitely better than trusting your own plan. It is impossible to be mad at someone you really believe has your best interest in mind. And God is always for us, never against us. He is the only One Who can help you and truly comfort you; therefore, it is much better to run to Him in your disappointment than away from Him.
Trust in Him: Trust God to reappoint you—when you do, it will calm your thoughts and emotions.
The Peril of Prosperity
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.”
Luke 12:16–19
In his book Money for Nothing, Edward Ungel recounts the results of his investigation into the lives of people who won large jackpots playing the lottery. He tells the tragic story of Abraham Shakespeare, who won $30 million in 2006. Shakespeare was hounded by relatives and acquaintances for money and found himself surrounded by new friends who offered to help him. One of them, Dorice Moore, convinced him to transfer his assets to her to “protect” them, not long before she ended his life. A few weeks before he was killed, Shakespeare told his mother that he wished he had never won.
While many people dream of getting rich, they fail to understand that wealth does not take away problems and temptations; it simply changes their nature and scope. In fact, while great wealth is often viewed as a blessing, it can be the means of destruction for those who refuse to heed the wisdom and instruction of God. “For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them” (Proverbs 1:32). Money is not evil, and having money is not wrong. It is simply a tool that we should use for eternal purposes. The danger comes when our focus is taken away from the eternal by the temporal resources so many try so hard to obtain.
Luke 12:16–19
In his book Money for Nothing, Edward Ungel recounts the results of his investigation into the lives of people who won large jackpots playing the lottery. He tells the tragic story of Abraham Shakespeare, who won $30 million in 2006. Shakespeare was hounded by relatives and acquaintances for money and found himself surrounded by new friends who offered to help him. One of them, Dorice Moore, convinced him to transfer his assets to her to “protect” them, not long before she ended his life. A few weeks before he was killed, Shakespeare told his mother that he wished he had never won.
While many people dream of getting rich, they fail to understand that wealth does not take away problems and temptations; it simply changes their nature and scope. In fact, while great wealth is often viewed as a blessing, it can be the means of destruction for those who refuse to heed the wisdom and instruction of God. “For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them” (Proverbs 1:32). Money is not evil, and having money is not wrong. It is simply a tool that we should use for eternal purposes. The danger comes when our focus is taken away from the eternal by the temporal resources so many try so hard to obtain.
Today’s Growth Principle:
If our trust is in God rather than our own resources, money will not have an unhealthy hold on us.
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