​There is a whole lot of shaking going on.
 
I believe the above phrase was part of a popular pop song in the past. Anyway, there is definitely a whole lot of shaking going on in our world. The kind that can make you and me feel a bit shaky if you know what I mean.
 
Sudden, breaking news bulletins can shake things up in a hurry. Troubling worldwide events. Catastrophic natural disasters. Shameful, divisive, hateful political theater in America. Heartbreaking tragedies. Economic ups and downs. Moral implosion. Injustices. Prejudices. Shake, shake, shake our security to the core if we are not watchful and careful.
 
So what should Christians do when a whole lot of shaking is going on?
 
Don’t shake with the shaking.
 
The writer to the Hebrews in 12:25-29 reminds us that God’s Kingdom is unshakable.
“And this expression, “Yet once more”, denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, in order that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”  Hebrews 12:27
 
Created things that are shakable will be shaken “once more” so that unshakeable things will remain. I believe the writer is encouraging us to focus our faith on what is unshakeable and lasting, not on what can and will be shaken and lost. Three thoughts stand out to me about not being shaken. 
 
 First of all, shaking is part of life. I don’t think I need to elaborate much here. All of us, at some time or another, and most likely more than once, have felt shaken by something that has happened.
 
Secondly, there are some things that will be shaken and won’t survive. Material possessions. Worldly stuff. Everything man made. Temporal things. None of these things will pass the shaking test.
 
Thirdly, and most importantly, there are things that are unshakeable. Shake proof things exist in life. When shaking comes, they are unshakeable and remain.
 

• God and His Kingdom are unshakeable. Who or what can possibly shake Almighty God off His eternal throne? He is unimpeachable and unremovable.

 

• God’s Word is unshakeable. The Word of God is unshakable because truth cannot be shaken. Jesus, who is the Word, is the solid rock of our salvation.

 

• God’s kids are unshakeable. As Kingdom kids, we cannot be shaken when we abide and hide in Christ.  

 
It is a fact of real life that you and I will experience some shaking. But when shaken, will we remain unshakeable?
           
Not everyone is shaken up by the same thing. Different things shake up different people. And some of the same things shake up different people differently. I believe that we should be sensitive and seek to understand what might be shaking someone up. Just because it isn’t shaking us up doesn’t mean the trial is not very real to the other person. 
 
I know what has the potential to shake Steve Roll up. You don’t need to know what those things are, but I do. I must identify, then isolate and not be intimidated or negatively influenced by the shaking going on. I would like to report that I am 100% successful in standing unshakeable. But then I would be less than human and certainly not honest.
 
My personal resolve and goal is to be unshakeable in the things that can’t be shaken. I have realized that it takes some good old fashioned grit, guts and complete surrender to and dependence on God to stand tall and firm when life is tumbling down around me.
 
Being unshakeable in spirit doesn’t mean that Satan won’t try to shake us up. The devil is a disrupter, a confuser, an antagonist.  Satan is a master of stirring things up. He loves disorder. The evil one is a conniving, lying, deceiving enemy who is bent on shaking up the security and stability of God’s people. .
 
Satan’s strategy is to shake us up and shake us down for the purpose of destroying our faith in Jesus Christ. 
 
Unshakeableness (is that a word?) is not for sissies! The longer shaking goes on, the more you and I need to dig in our spiritual heels, pull up our spiritual boot straps and stand fast in our faith. Spiritual and emotional wimps don’t live unshakable lives.  
             
 Are you unshakeable in Christ? Does your faith withstand the whole lot of shaking that is going on? Take some time to take inventory of your ability to withstand shaking.
 
Wake up every day with unshakeable faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Your trust in God will shake up what is trying to shake you up.
 
“My soul waits in silence for God only, for my hope is from Him. He only is my rock, and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be shaken.” Psalm 62:5-6  
 
 
 
 “Now we request of you brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together with Him, that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.”                                  II Thessalonians 2:1-2
 
A Word For Your Week: Shake off what is trying to shake you and your faith.  

Self-pity is the pits.
 
Elijah, mighty man of God, witnessed a momentous miracle when the Lord sent fire from heaven to fry the false prophets of Baal (I Kings 18). Elijah should be elated and celebrating, throwing a victory party, shouting the praises of his deliverer and redeemer. Instead, the prophet is holed up in a dark cave personally engaged in a full-blown pity-poor-me party on the backside of desolate, depressing Mt. Horeb.  
 
‘Then he came there to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here Elijah?” And he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant, torn down Thine altars and killed Thy prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life to take it away.’   I Kings 19: 10
 
Sucking his spiritual thumb and dragging his woe is me blankie, Elijah laments before the Lord how bad things are going for him. Elijah, running for his life from the death threats of wicked Jezebel, wanted to die.  
 
Feeling sorry for himself, God’s man is stuck in the muck of “poor me”.        
           
Poor me. You gotta be kidding Elijah! Your very own eyes witnessed the fury and fire of the Lord of heaven and earth. Almighty God vindicated His holy name and made you look pretty good too.  
           
So how in the world could fiery, fearless, faithful Elijah descend from the mountaintop of miracles to the pit of self-pity?
 
 He took his eyes off God, fixing his eyes on himself.
 
The essence of self-pity is poor me. Pity poor me. Woe is me! My life is so miserable. Everybody is after me. Nothing is working out. Nobody is helping me. In today’s vernacular, my life sucks. I am alone. Nobody cares. I might as well throw in the towel and die. Sound familiar?
 
Being self-centered, self-pity blinds our spiritual eyes to God and what He can do. 
 
Self-pity zeroes in on our problems, not God’s solutions. Self-absorption and selfishness feed self-pity’s appetite. Self-pity is self-serving and self-destructive. Self-pity people, instead of sucking it up and moving on with God’s help, sit down and spin their wheels in the muck of poor me.  
 
Personally, I have actively participated in self-pity parties, and I hate them! I despise what the spirit of self-pity does to me. Self-pity turns me into a self-centered, thumb-sucking, blankie dragging, spoiled little brat who manipulates others to get his way. And I am sixty-seven years old!
           
There is no place for self-pity in the lives of God’s people. A person who is self-centered is off-centered. People who are all wrapped up in themselves are over dressed. Sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves is not a picture of success. 
 
You and I are not to be pitied by ourselves, God or anyone. Jesus Christ has set us free from ourselves! We Christians should be singing God’s praises for delivering us from sin’s selfishness. Praise parties, not pity-poor-me parties are more appropriate for God’s kids.   
 
Someone has said “It’s all right to sit on your pitty potty from time to time, just flush when you are done.” I will let you apply this thought to your life!  
 
May I share a couple of realities that might shake us out of self-pity?
 

• Our Lord Jesus Christ never threw a self-pity party.
• God never gives in to self-pity tantrums.  
• Positive, healthy people run away from self-pity people.
• Family and friends get really tired of our self-pity sessions.
• Satan loves self-pity people. Self pity is spawned from the pit of hell.
• Self-pity increases, never decreases our difficulties.
• Self-pity always sets us back from coming back from setbacks.    

 
Self-pity is pitiful! When life is challenging, and it will be, resist the temptation to slip into the pit of self-pity. The slippery slopes of self-pity will only lead you to discouragement and despair.
 
Stay out of the pit of self-pity. Stand firm in your faith in the One who loves you and believes in you,  but will never pity you. 
 
If you are having a pity-party, go ahead right now and slam the door on self-pity. Open the door to God’s lovingkindness, mercy and grace.
 
 “Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance, and my God.”                                                                                                                           Psalm 42:11
 
A Word For Your Week: Tell self-pity to take a hike when it knocks on the door of your heart. 

​Change is a certainty in life, and honestly, most of us don’t like it!
 
Think about it. Who gets up in the morning saying, “I can’t wait for change to come my way today?”  
 
Change can be positive or negative. Change of any sort carries the potential to breed uncertainty, questions, frustration, anxiety, doubt, a negative attitude and even fear.
 
If you and I are not watchful and careful, change can cause us to lose perspective.
 
According to Webster perspective means “to look through, to see clearly; the capacity to view things in their true relations or relative importance. Simply put: To keep perspective means to see things as they really are.
 
Personally, when change comes, I can initially become anxious. Just ask those closest to me. Slowly but surely (I am a bit thick-headed at times!) I have learned, through many tests of my patience, to step back for a moment, catch my spiritual/emotional breath, and then look at the change in the light of God’s Word.
 
It is a fact of life…all things change. Or do they?
 
Our word for this week answers that question with a resounding no! The prophet Malachi declares to us that God does not change. “FOR I, THE LORD, DO NOT CHANGE; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.” Malachi 3:6.
 
Did you catch what Malachi said? The Lord, Almighty God declares that He does not change! The God of the Bible is an unchanging God.  
 
Because the Almighty is changeless, we as His people are not consumed by changes in life. Life does not eat our lunch when things change because God remains the same.
 
What never changes about God is His character.
 
God is love (I John 4:16). Look what Micah says about God’s love. “Who is a God like Thee, who pardons iniquity, and passes over the rebellious acts of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, BECAUSE HE DELIGHTS IN UNCHANGING LOVE.”                                          Micah 7:18.
 
God never changes because His love never does! God delights (takes great joy!)  in unchanging love. No matter what is going in life, God’s love for us remains unchanged. Changing circumstances have no effect on God’s love.
 
Circumstances are just that…circumstances. They change all the time. Circumstances shift like blowing sand. But God’s love is a solid rock which no life change can move. God’s steady, stable, secure, loving hand is on the helm of His perfect will for our lives.
 
God Himself is the anchor for our soul in times of change. God can be counted on to be God every time, in every situation. His constant character and consistent conduct overrides all changed circumstances. Things change. People change. Life changes. God does not.  Bank on His unchanging love for you every time!
 
Change can’t change God. So change shouldn’t change God’s children who trust in His love either!!!!
             
When things change, and they will, cling to that which doesn’t. God can be counted on to be who He says He is and to do what He says He will do. Every single time!
 
 Change can work for or against us. Changes can consume us or we can conquer change. depending on our perspective. Bottom line: you and I choose how to respond to the challenges of change.
 
 The Christian perspective on life circumstances is this: Life changes, but God never does. Therefore, life is secure in Him. It is awesome to know that changing circumstances will never consume us because circumstances never change God!
 
 Keeping Proper Perspective
 

• EXPECT change will come from time to time.

 

• EVALUATE changes in the light of God’s Word

 

• EXERCISE faith that looks beyond circumstances to Jesus Christ.

 

• EMBRACE the good you can see in the change.

 

• ENCOURAGE others to overcome change in their lives through faith in Christ.

 

• EXALT in God’s unchanging, unending love for you.

 
Are you currently experiencing some changes? Is a significant transition attempting to rattle your emotional cage? Are you worried about what is next in light of a life adjustment?
 
Maintain proper perspective.  Keep your personal faith fixed on the unchanging, changeless Lord Jesus Christ.
 
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, and yes, forever.”   Hebrews 13:8.
 
A Word For Your Week:  Surrender change to the unchanging God who loves you.  

​Many people today are fighting the wrong fights.
Marriage fights. Family Fights. Custody fights. Legal fights. Financial fights. Political fights. Work fights. Church fights. Fights, fights, fights and more fights. The sad reality is most fights are being lost because they are the wrong fights.
Think about the spiritual, mental and physical energy, emotional frustration, time, and resources wasted fighting the wrong fights. Our culture has rapidly degenerated into a contentious, offense oriented, violence leaning society, where wrong fights are the order of the day. Pick a fight and someone will be more than happy to fight you back!  
It is biblical truth that you and I reap what we sow (Galatians 6:7-9). Fighting the wrong fight reaps the wrong fruit. Fighting the right fight reaps the right fruit.
The right fight is the good fight of faith.
How can I say that? The Bible says so. Paul wrote to Timothy, his son in the faith, the following words “But flee from these things, you man of God; and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance. and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” I Timothy 6:11-12.
The elder Paul instructed the younger Timothy what to flee from and what to pursue. As man of faith and man of God he was to pursue, seek after, righteousness, godliness, faith, love perseverance, and gentleness. Wouldn’t it be awesome and life-altering if you and I pursued these same things? May you and I aspire to do so with God’s help.
Then Paul exhorts, encourages his ministerial protégé to fight, that’s right fight. Fight what? The good fight of faith. Timothy was to fight, contend, stand up for his faith in Christ. Timothy was to be a faith fighter who took hold of, grabbed onto the eternal life he had been called to, and for which he had made a good, personal confession before many witnesses.
In other words, Timothy, fight the good fight of faith which you have confessed before the church and the world. Run your faith race as a faithful servant of the One who called you to eternal life. Don’t be distracted or sidetracked by the wrong fights son. Set your sights, keep your belief focused on the right fights, the good fight of faith.
Paul also reminds us followers of Christ that our struggle, battle, spiritual warfare, is not with flesh and blood, meaning people. (See Ephesians 6:10-20). Our fight is with Satan and his demonic forces in heavenly places. Sorry, fellas, she may act like it at times, but your mother-in-aw is not the devil! .
If you and I are fighting people all the time, we are fighting the wrong fight.
Throughout my life as a Christian and minister of the Gospel, I have been asked “Steve, what does Satan want from me?’ What is the evil one really after? My reply has been that the devil doesn’t want your stuff, your position, your money, your assets and not even your loved ones. He wants your faith.
Satan’s chief strategy is to deceive unbelievers from believing in Christ, and to discourage believers in Jesus from continuing believing in Him. Bottom line: the devil wants your and my faith
The good fight of faith is a faith fight against the devil who seeks to destroy faith in Jesus. The spiritual battle we wage is about maintaining, increasing, defending and sharing our faith in the Lord.   
Christian faith is of little value unless it is worth fighting for.
You may be struggling right now with a faith fight. I encourage and implore you to fight, yes fight, fight for all you are worth. Pushback doubt and unbelief with faith. Stand firm against lies and falsehood with faith. Stand courageously for what is right in God’s sight with unshakable faith. When tempted to doubt, knock doubt out with a loud shout of faith in Christ!
The good fight of faith is faith in Christ and His Word for our walk with the Lord, our personal life, our marriages, our family, our relationships, our employment, our finances, our health, our nation, our beliefs and our positive influence as light and salt in our society.
 Fighting the good fight of faith is the key to fighting for what we value most.  
My friend who and what are you fighting for? Who and what do you stand up for? Believe in? Support? Where do you invest your time, talent, treasure and testimony? Are you willing to die on the hill of faith? Would those who know you best say you are faithfully and victoriously fighting the good fight of faith?
Christians are called to be faith fighters. When you and I were born again, we enlisted in God’s holy army as good soldiers of Jesus Christ (see II Timothy 2:1-4).  Our Lord and Savior is our commander in chief in the battle for the souls of men and women, boys and girls.  
2020 has arrived. If you have been fighting some wrong fights, I encourage you to humble yourself before the Lord, repent, ask Him for forgiveness, receive a clean slate, then wholeheartedly commit yourself to fight the good fight of faith from now on.
Fight the good fight of faith will all you might every single day this new year.  
“But you beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.” Jude 20-21
A Word For Your Week: The good fight of faith is the fight worth fighting.