Page 8 - Good News June 2014 paper

Continued from p. 1 hungry lions for Daniel. He's the God Who
Continued from p. 1
God and in due time He will exalt you. Cast
the whole of your cares, all of your worries,
all of your concerns, all of your anxieties,
once and for all on Him, for He watchfully
and affectionately cares for you.” (Ampli-
fied Bible).
Notice that for God to take care of us, we
must be willing to do what verse 6 says:
“humble ourselves.” In other words, we
have to stop trying to handle everything on
our own and come to the realisation that
we need His strength and His power. We
should be willing to say, “God, I can't do
this by myself; I need your help.”
A proud person does just the opposite. He
or she says, “I don't need any help - not
even from God. I am confident in my own
ability. I can handle this alone.” But the
truth is, if you make the mistake of trying to
do everything in your own strength and
reasoning, God will politely step out of the
way and allow you to try!
Unless we humble ourselves and let go of
our stubborn self-will, we will not see the
mighty hand of God at work in our lives. He
is more than willing to take care of us. More
than willing to work in our negative
situation. More than willing to bring our
dreams to pass and give us abundant life.
But He intends to work on His Own terms,
not on ours. We have to learn to let God be
God, surrender our pride and cast our
cares on Him - because He is a whole lot
wiser than your or me!
Notice that the word “cast” is not a passive
word, or a weak, half-hearted one. To
“cast” something means to hurl it, or
throw it with force. Half-heartedly offering
our cares and worries to the Lord is not
enough - instead we must cast them off
with a strong will and extreme determi- abundant life that Jesus came to give!
nation. Sometimes you and I might have to
get a little bit violent, and show the enemy
that we are more determined than he is!
That we refuse to dwell on his lies or to
carry the burden.
You might need to say, “Enough is
enough! I am sick and tired of being sick
and tired. I refuse to carry this heavy
burden any longer - especially when I
know God desires to take it. I am going to
give Him all my concerns, all my cares. I
know He will take care of my worries - and
of me.”
Once we cast our worries on God, our
focus should be on Him, not on our
problems. You see, with God, all things are
possible! There is nothing He cannot do.
Our God is the God Who stopped the sun
for Joshua, and closed the mouths of
parted the Red Sea for the children of Israel
- and this same God is able to act with
supernatural power in your life and in mine!
He is called Jehovah-Jireh: the Lord our
Provider. He is El Shaddai - the God Who is
more than enough! And He is the great I AM
- not the great “I was” or “I'm going to be.” I
am so grateful that we serve a mighty
“right-now” God!
I have discovered something else about
casting my cares on the Lord. I have
learned that when I make a conscious
decision to give my worries or anxieties to
God, it helps me to have a set time and
place for that “handing over.” Then, when
the enemy comes back and tempts me to
worry, I can say, “No, devil, last Saturday
afternoon in my living room I gave that
burden to the Lord… and He's taking care
of it. I refuse to dwell on your lies.”
Then, when the enemy brings you those
thoughts of worry and anxiety and fear,
they can simply be a reminder to you to
thank God that His answer is on the way.
You see, once you've turned something
over to the Lord and you are presented with
an opportunity to worry, you can just say,
“Thank You Father, that You are at work in
my life, and that You have this situation
under control. I am focusing on You, God,
and not on my worries. I trust You and I
praise You for the victory that You are
bringing me.”
Did you know that worship beats worry
every time? Start everyday by acknowled-
ging that God is your strength. Admit that
you don't know what to do. Cast your
burdens on Him and believe that He is able
to overcome every obstacle that you face.
When you learn to be a worshipper and not
a worrier, you’ll begin to experience the
[Living the Joy-filled Life, Joel Osteen,
2005].