Years ago a gentleman called me to make a counseling appointment. When we met, I could see that he was very troubled about something. “Pastor, is it possible to have peace in our hearts? Every turn I take seems troublesome, creating turmoil in my heart. I am upset all the time. I just want to have some peace. Is that possible?”
I responded by saying “Sir, do you love God’s Word?” While he looked at me with a puzzled expression, I turned to our verse for this week.
Those who love Thy law have great peace; and nothing causes them to stumble.”   Psalms 119:165
I told him that people who love God’s Word experience great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble.
We had an in-depth discussion about how we can experience and enjoy God’s peace daily. After praying together, he left less troubled and more hopeful that life can turn around when we turn to God’s Word and receive His peace.

Peace is important in our lives. Peace is pivotal to healthy and productive living. The more I mature (that means the older I get!) the more I value peace. Peace in my mind and heart.

David endured some very peaceless periods in his life. He was stalked by King Saul, shamed and haunted by his sin with Bathsheba, he warred continually with the Phillistines, was disrespected and driven away by some of his children. No wonder David wrote about “great peace” and how to have it.

The verse starts with “Those.”  Who are those anyway? “Those” are the people who “love Thy Law.” People who love God’s Word and live their lives according to it experience two tremendous blessings in their personal lives.

First, they have GREAT PEACE. Not just peace, but GREAT peace! The peace they experience is the peace of God that comes from the God of peace (Philippians 4:5-9). Great peace is peace that is greater than our problems. When life is hard to understand and makes little sense, the peace of God that passes all understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6) floods our hearts and garrison’s our minds. Great peace is greater than the troubles of life because God is great.

• Great peace, God’s peace, belongs to those who cherish and obey his Word.

Second, they will not stumble in life. The King James Version states “they will not be offended.” The Hebrew meaning is this: life is not a stumbling block to those who love God’s Word and have His peace in their hearts. Life will not offend them in any way. Note the word is “nothing.” I looked up the word and nothing means NOTHING! Nada! Zip! Zero!
There isn’t anything whatsoever that can cause a person to stumble who loves God’s Word. God’s great peace will keep offense at bay because God’s Word produces peace.

This verse has meant a lot to me over the years. It is so easy to stumble. We are so easily offended. Why? It is because we focus on life instead of God’s law. We are robbed of inner peace because we do not take a stand to stand on God’s Word when life tumbles around us. Life outside of God’s Word cannot produce peace.

Loving God and His Word will always produce peace. Great peace. When I guard my peace with God’s Word, I live in a stumble free zone.

I love having God’s peace in my heart. In all honesty, the best moments in my life come when I am walking in His “great peace.”

I am working on growing up in some areas of my life. One is not to be offended by what life brings to my plate. Another is not to stumble over things that God’s Word says I have victory over. This verse says that nothing causes us to stumble.

Nothing includes Satan’s spiritual attacks, people who offend or disappoint me, adverse circumstances that toss me a curve ball, challenging situations that are out of my control, setbacks that delay my dreams, or any of the stuff that life is made up that tries to throw me for a loop as I seek to fulfill God’s will for my life.

I have found that I experience great peace and I do not stumble when I love God’s Word and walk by faith and obedience to that Word everyday.

How about you my friend? Do you crave God’s peace? Do you love His Word? Do you live your life according to His law and promises? Is life a series of stumbling blocks to you? Or is your life stumble-proof in Christ?

Those (that is you and me!) who love God’s law will have God’s peace and will be stumble free! Hallelujah!

“The steadfast of mind Thou wilt keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in Thee.”
                                        Isaiah 26:3

“Peace I leave with you; My Peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let be fearful.’’                                         John 14:27 ​

A Word For Your Week: Lasting peace comes from loving and living God’s law.

How many professing Christians do you know who are totally sold out to Christ?

By sold out I mean born-again believers whose belief and behavior are so real they are one hundred percent on board for the Lord, following the Lord fully with all their hearts.
    
Caleb was sold out to God. His rock-solid commitment to God stirs our hearts and challenges our lives.

“Nevertheless, my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt with fear; but I followed the Lord my God fully.”  Joshua 14:8

For the background on this week’s word, study thoroughly Numbers 13:25-14:10 and Joshua 14:6-14.

At forty years of age, Caleb and Joshua went up to recon the Promised Land. Ten other “spies” accompanied them. The land was everything God said it would be. Spacious. Fruitful. Productive. Developed. Ready for occupation by God’s chosen people.

Reporting back to Moses, the ten spies gave a bad report based on fear. Caleb and Joshua gave a good report based on faith. Despite the negative majority report, Joshua and Caleb exhorted the people to go up and take the land God was giving them.

The two positive men of God told the people to not fear, but to have faith in God who had prepared the way for them. Now was the time to rise up, overcome fear, exercise faith and occupy the land of promise.

Sadly, the people followed the ten negative spies, rejecting Joshua and Caleb’s call to go forward. God severely judged Israel’s disobedience. The ten spies died on the spot. All the doubters and pouters over twenty years of age wandered in the wilderness until they all died off.

Forty-five years later, Caleb shows up again in Scripture. Under Joshua’s courageous leadership, Israel has conquered most of Canaan. Eighty-five years young, Caleb reminds Joshua that Moses promised him a piece of the Promised Land. “

Caleb declares that he is as strong now as he was four decades ago. He is a warrior, ready and willing to take out the Anakim (gigantic people!). Caleb’s request “give me the hill country,” the one with the big guys hanging out there, was based on God’s promise to give it to him.

And so it was. The Anakim wished they had never seen this sold-out servant of the Living God in their neighborhood!
    
Caleb’s spiritual legacy is that “he fully followed the Lord.” Three times in Joshua 14 (verses 8, 9, 14) Caleb is commended for his wholehearted commitment to God. For eighty-five years and counting Caleb held nothing back. His faith and devotion to the Lord never wavered.

Caleb could have joined the unbelieving, fearful holdout crowd. He could have thrown in the faith towel waiting in the wilderness for forty years while all the doubters died off. As an elder, he could have held out at age eighty-five and asked for a rocking chair. Not Caleb.

Caleb is the kind of guy that I would charge hell with a water pistol!

Sold out or hold out. Which one are you?

The perilous times we live in (see II Timothy 3:1-12) will eat the lunch of half-hearted Christians. The devil and our unbelieving world enjoy chowing down on those who holdout on serving Jesus Christ wholeheartedly.

Jesus sold out for us. When Jesus hung on the Cross, He was sold out on salvation for you and me. No hint of hold out from Him. Jesus gave it all. God’s Only Son spilled His life-blood to cover and cleanse our sin. Jesus followed fully God’s will for His life.

So how can we even consider holding out on Him? How is it that many professing Christians cannot be counted on when push comes to shove?

I want to ask you what I am asking myself. Are you sold out to Jesus? Do you follow Him fully? Completely. Wholeheartedly. Without reservation or hesitation. Or are you a hold-out? Holding back some part of your heart. Hanging out in the fearful crowd of mediocre Christians who move no mountains for God?

Being sold out for Christ means something like this.

• Jesus is Lord of my life everyday and in everyway.
• I will stand for Christ whether it is convenient or inconvenient.
• I will follow the Lord when the religious crowd stops following Him.
• I can be counted on to count for Christ when it is politically incorrect.
• I will obey God whatever the cost to me personally.
• I will stand tall for Jesus when others fall away.
• I will serve God with all my heart and strength until I breathe my last breath!

    
Sold out Christian’s hearts are on fire for the Lord. Hold-out Christian’s hearts are cold toward the Lord.

I do not know about you, but I like being around people who are sold out for something. I really like being around Christians who are sold out for Someone, the Lord Jesus Christ.
    
When push comes to shove in this sin-sick, lost world, are you sold out for the Lord Jesus Christ? Would people observing your life say that you follow the Lord fully? That you serve God with every fiber of your being? Maybe it is time to evaluate and shore up your commitment to Christ.

Sold out or hold out is your decision that will determine your destiny. Be assured that, like Caleb, God blesses those whose hearts fully belong to Him.

“For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.”                II Chronicles 16:9

“For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.”                                           II Timothy 4:6-7

A Word For Your Week: If you say you have faith, follow the Lord fully!

Have you ever heard yourself thinking things like this: Someday I will get that done. Someday I will clean out the garage. Someday I will spend more time with my family. Someday I will serve at my local church. Someday my dream will come true.


SOMEDAY, SOMEDAY, SOMEDAY!


Someday is out there somewhere.


Procrastinators love someday. Practitioners of procrastination enjoy putting off until tomorrow what they should be doing today. Someone said “Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” The problem with keeping up with yesterday is that important things do not get done today.     
    
Someday is often the enemy of success because it robs us of what we should be doing today. What is someday anyway? Where is it? Which day in the future is someday? Someday usually ends up being no day.


The truth is: Someday never comes because someday is today. Today’s “To Do” lists are to be done today, not tomorrow.


In God’s Kingdom, someday is always today. There is no procrastination in God’s redemptive plan. Our verse for the week is plain: SALVATION IS TODAY. Not tomorrow, or someday, but TODAY. 


“For He says, ‘At the acceptable time I listened to you, and on the day of salvation I helped you;’ behold, now is the acceptable time, behold now is the day of salvation.”
II Corinthians 6:2


Paul tells us that God listens to us and helps in “the day of salvation” which is today. The gift called today comes from the hands of a good, gracious and generous God. I am so thankful that He is there each day to meet our needs. One day at a time.


The word the Word uses is “now.” And “now” means now! “Now” is today, not tomorrow. Ever since Jesus died on the Cross and rose from the dead, TODAY is the day of salvation. Redemption is finished. God’s restoring work is complete. His great love for us has been manifested in His Son.


Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ is ours for the asking. Today is the day of salvation. Someday has arrived. Now, today, is the acceptable time to accept Jesus. Now is the time to be born-again and live for the Lord Jesus Christ.
When it comes to salvation, the Lord exhorts man to never put off until tomorrow what can happen today.


People who have been stirred in their soul by the love God and put off receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior are taking a significant risk. Someday may be too late when salvation is TODAY! Reader, have you received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior or are you putting Him off for another day?


Abundant life in Christ (John 10:10) is to be lived TODAY. Today is the day where “we walk by faith and not by sight” (II Corinthians 5:7). Today, not someday, is the acceptable and appropriate time to do what God has called us to do. We are not to put off until someday what the Lord has put on today’s agenda for us.
 
Satan loves someday.


Someday can be an easy excuse for doing nothing today. Someday can turn into a long string of somedays. Before we know it, someday is no day and we lose. The devil rejoices when God’s people live for someday instead of today.


Think about it. If you do not do this day what God intended you to do, today’s opportunity could be lost forever. That is a loss none of us can afford.


What do you need to do today that you keep putting off until someday? NOW is God’s time for you and me. TODAY is the day to go and grow forward in our faith walk with Jesus.


Do today what you would do someday. Then when someday comes the task is already done! At the end of today, make this day a “did that, done that, I have the T-shirt Day.”   


Decide to turn from someday and someway to today and His way.


ASSIGNMENT: Take one simple task that you are putting off for someday and accomplish it TODAY. That’s right, do it today. Do whatever you need to do to cross this item off your to do list. You will be glad you did! (And so will others affected by this task!).


By the way, how is your garage looking???


“This is the day that the Lord has made; therefore, I will be glad and rejoice in it.”
                                                 Psalm 118:24


“You choose this day who you will serve...”                          Joshua 24:15a


A Word For Your Week: Do today what you would like to do someday.

Life is one long series of stuff.
I just heard a collective sigh of agreement from my readers.
Good stuff. Not so good stuff. Bad stuff. Even awful stuff. Unwelcome stuff. Unwanted stuff. Undesirable stuff. Surprising stuff. Stuff is never ending. Stuff has a way of invading our space and interfering with our lives on a regular basis.
Positive stuff is a blessing. Negative stuff is more like a curse!
Today I want to focus on negative stuff and how to deal with it.
Stuff can be physical/natural, emotional, mental, relational, financial and spiritual.
Cars break down. Appliances bite the dust. Kids need braces. Storms knock out power. Inflation eats away at your income. Stock markets tank. A spouse wants a divorce. You get a pink slip from your job. A negative medical report from your physician. An accident sends you to the hospital. Sudden death of a loved one. Satan attacks your faith. You struggle with doubt and unbelief.
Stuff, stuff, stuff! Just when you think you get a handle on stuff, more and more stuff shows up at your doorstep (I am not talking about Amazon Prime!). Let’s be honest: negative stuff has a way of creeping into our life.
In the past when negative stuff hit the fan, Steve Roll panicked. I got upset. Wanted to pull my hair out, run away and hide, or kick a cat if I had one! Negative stuff had its way with me far too often, upending the apple cart of my life. Frustration, worry, anxiety, fear and “what now?’ knocked on the door of my mind.
I have learned (and continue to do so) that my past reactions were non-productive. Negativity only complicated and prolonged the situation. With the Lord’s help from His Word and wise advice from trusted friends, I have slowly but surely managed negative stuff much better. My wife is happy about that!
The Apostle Paul dealt with negative stuff on a regular basis. Read II Corinthians 11:22-33. If you think you are having a difficult day, think again after you read Paul’s stuff list.
Amazingly, Paul had a good attitude toward life’s stuff.
II Corinthians 12:7-10 records Paul’s request for God to remove a “thorn in the flesh” He was experiencing. God spoke to Paul about grace. Paul responded with a tremendous attitude that helped him deal with and overcome negative stuff.
“And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.
Most gladly therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ will dwell in me.
Therefore, I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
As Paul faithfully proclaimed the goodness of Jesus Christ, it was one thing after another. Stuff, stuff, stuff plagued his ministry. But he was victorious because of the grace of God.
Paul’s take on negative stuff: content with difficulties for Christ’s sake. Because when I am weak, by the grace of God I am strong.
I am not Paul. Neither are you. But I am a Christian, belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a fact: negative stuff is our traveling companion through our faith journey. The important fact: you and I overcome stuff through Jesus’ presence, promises and power. Hallelujah!!!
So, what should you and I do about negative stuff?
Managing Stuff Successfully

• Recognize what stuff really is. Stuff, including negative stuff, is part of life. But stuff is not your life.
• Do not ignore stuff. Do not stuff your stuff. Stuffing is for turkeys, not people. Stuff does not go away on its own. Face it with faith. Look to the Lord. Trust and expect Him to make stuff work for your good.
• Do not expect others to take your stuff. Take responsibility for your own stuff. Other people have enough stuff of their own to deal with! They certainly do not need your stuff!!!
• Do not take on somebody else’s stuff. Pray for folks experiencing stuff. But if they try to pawn it on you, give it back. No thank you. I have enough stuff of my own to deal with.
• Do not push the proverbial panic button. Panicky, negative reaction to negative stuff spells disaster every time. Calm down. Take a few deep breaths. Relax for a moment. Decide on a positive response.
• Do not get stuck in stuff. Navigate through it. Seek God’s help to solve your stuff situation. Tell Satan to stuff it if you know what I mean!
• Rejoice in and praise the Lord for the good stuff He brings to your life. Release, let go of   bad stuff. Thank God for grace to overcome negative stuff.

How you and I manage stuff is an indicator of our spiritual, mental and emotional maturity. How mature are you when it comes to dealing with stuff?
“Casting all your cares (stuff) on Jesus, because He cares for you.” I Peter 5:7
 A Word For Your Week: Hand your “stuff” over to Jesus.

Every day provides new opportunities for you and me to continue our Christian journey.

Our word for this week focuses on Abraham and his faith journey.

“Now the Lord said to Abram, go forth from your country, from your relatives and from your house to the land which I will show you. I will make you a great nation and I will bless you. I will make your name great, and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and the one who curses you I will curse.

In you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” And Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him….” Genesis 12:1-4a

“And Abram journeyed on…….” Genesis 12:9

The phrase “journeyed on” catches my attention. Grabs my spirit. Abram, who we know as Abraham, was called by God to leave his family and home to travel to Canaan. God promised He would bless Abraham. Abraham would be a blessing to the nations
of the earth.

Immediately, without questions or doubts, Abraham obeyed and kept on obeying the Lord.
    
I see four significant things about Abraham’s response to God’s call.

• First, he responded with faith. He believed and trusted God. (Romans 4)
• Secondly, he obeyed God without question (Hebrews 11:8, Genesis 22:1-18).
• Thirdly, Abraham worshipped all along his journey. (Genesis 12:7, 13:4, 22:9)
• Fourthly, Abraham kept on journeying! He never quit on God.

At seventy-five years young, Abraham journeyed on with God!


Wow! How old or young are you? Are you journeying on with God no matter what your age or stage of life? Are you being who God has called you to be and doing what He has called you to do?


One of Satan’s chief strategies is to stop you and me from journeying with Jesus.


Our adversary the devil would love for you and me to quit on our faith. To give in to adverse circumstances. To give up and throw in the towel of belief during tough times. The evil one would enjoy nothing more than to sit in his corner office in Hell’s headquarters and mock you and me because we chose to not journey on.


Let’s be honest. Sometimes our journey is downright rough.


Our purpose and mission appear thwarted at every turn. Roadblocks and detour signs pop up at the most inconvenient times. We can feel like Elijah when the angel of the Lord said “Arise and eat for the journey is too great for you.” (I Kings 19:7). The prophet was weary of his journey. It had become too much. He was refreshed, restored and renewed in the Lord. Then God told Elijah to journey on! Get off this mountain of despair and continue to represent Me to Israel.
    
Three things can hinder us from journeying on with Jesus.


1. Looking back to the past can prevent us from journeying on. Rear-view Christianity does not propel us down the road of life the Lord has laid out for us.


2. Fearing the future can paralyze us from moving forward. Faith trusts God for the future He has in store for us. You and I can journey on with confident faith because Jesus goes before us.


3. The pressure and weight of today’s tough times can tempt us to stop journeying and pull alongside the road of doubt, unbelief and despair.


My word to you and myself is: Do not do any of the above. JOURNEY ON! Jesus is ahead of you, with you, and for you.
    
Like faithful Abraham, we need to worship God all along our journey. If we would worship more and worry less, who knows what the Lord might be able to do in our lives.


What has God called you to do? Are you continuing to do what He has purposed for you? No matter what, like Abraham, journey on with faith. Obey God’s will and call on your life. Do not allow anyone or anything to hinder or halt your journey. Charge forward and journey onward every single day you have breath.
    
It has been well said that “the joy is in the journey.” With the Lord Jesus Christ journeying with us, nothing could be truer!


My friend, journey on with joy! Journey on with confidence! Journey on with hope. Journey on with steadfast, immovable faith. Journey on with expectancy of a fantastic future! Journey on to inspire others to journey on in their faith walk!


Keep on keeping on. Enjoy the journey you are on.


Let me say it again. JOURNEY ON!


“Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal of the prize of the upward cal of God in Christ Jesus.”    Philippians 3:13-14


A Word for Your Week: Journey on with Jesus today.