Tomorrow is Sunday... at least in our hemisphere. On Sunday many Christians go to church and worship. They sing. They pray. They read the Bible. They testify. They give an offering. They encourage one another. But unfortunately, for many Sunday is the only day they do these things. I want to share a Psalm this morning that encourages worship, praise, and testimony. I want to remind you that you can do these things today even with no one else around, and no one else leading you. You can sing without a worship band. Here is what David wrote thousands of years ago, I will exalt You, Lord, because You have lifted me up and have not allowed my enemies to triumph over me. Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You healed me. Lord, You brought me up from Sheol; You spared me from among those going down to the Pit. Sing to Yahweh, you His faithful ones, and praise His holy name. For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor, a lifetime. Weeping may spend the night, but there is joy in the morning. When I was secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.” Lord, when You showed Your favor, You made me stand like a strong mountain; when You hid Your face, I was terrified. Lord, I called to You; I sought favor from my Lord: “What gain is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it proclaim Your truth? Lord, listen and be gracious to me; Lord, be my helper.” You turned my lament into dancing; You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, so that I can sing to You and not be silent. Lord my God, I will praise You forever. (Psalm 30) Everything and everyone should praise the Lord. But certainly those who have been redeemed and rescued from death should always be ready to speak of the goodness of God. Right now, praise God for three things... all about Him and His greatness in your life. Now.. carry on with your day. And then get yourself to church tomorrow so you can multiply the praise. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. I had a very good start to this day. But beyond that I know I will have some difficult things to deal with throughout the day. So I can live in the joy that the same God who started my day off right can finish it well, or I can abandon God's promise of daily faithfulness and lose the joy of His mercies which are new every morning. Worry never solved a single problem, never made a single dollar, never salvaged a broken relationship, and never broke an addiction. Worry chases away contentment and the peace that comes with it. I have read this before, and thought I would share it with you. "Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He do much more for you—you of little faith? So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Jesus (Matthew 6:25-34) You need to hear that today. I know because we all should hear that everyday. Here are three things everyone reading this can do right now. Stop worrying. Seek God's rule. Start trusting Him. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. When we say the word 'drugs', it conjures up different pictures in people's minds. A doctor may immediately think of medicine. Most of us probably think about meth or crack. Some may think of alcohol or cigarettes. These are all legitimate thoughts, as all of these fall into the drug category. Our current devotional series has focused on how a Christian should approach the use of drugs... the good (proper medicine, properly designed, and properly administered), and the bad (good medicine abused for the wrong reason, including addiction). Today we look at the ugly. This is about bad forms of drugs used for recreational or evil purposes. In the Bible we find that the same word we translate as pharmaceutical could be translated sorcery or witchcraft. There is power in drugs. Drugs can take you to a place that is other-worldly. Most drugs have a powerfully addictive nature. This is why people use them. They meet a desire, and they create a need for that need to be met. While God created everything on the earth for a purpose, we in our fallen state have figured out how to manipulate various elements to bend our senses and give us an alternative reality... at least in our minds. Some people use this experience as a mild escape. Others use it as a regular pleasure. And others use it as a way to put themselves in a place where they can do things that are not good with no inhibitions. Some people use legal drugs like dip, cigarettes or alcohol to calm their nerves, and let their hair down a little bit. These drugs are designed to change your mind. Using these in moderation the user seems to retain most of their faculties, but still loosen up enough to have a more free time with their friends. Most of the time, the worst thing that happens is some mild embarrassment, stinky clothes, and health issues that may or may not be life-threatening. If used to a more extreme level, these same drugs can result in financial trouble, severe life-ending health issues, and violent behavior towards others. Then there are the 'harder' drugs like cocaine and heroin. These are illegal. Again, they are designed to change your mind, but to a more extreme level. Some people who use these in moderation can still 'function' in parts of their life and even hide the use from family and friends. But the more extreme cases often find the person in a life of deeper crime, and often without family, a job, or home. With these there are also life-threatening effects, that can exhibit themselves and escalate more quickly. Along the continuum of drugs you will find marijuana, LSD, various types of pills, and smokes. All of these are designed to change your mind. That is why they are found in the sorcery field. They may look like material elements that you can hold, burn, or drink. But they are actually spiritual elements that take over your mind and cause you to do things you wouldn't normally do. Throughout the centuries people have used these drugs before going to war so as to bolster their 'courage', or more likely to numb their minds to the atrocities they were about to commit. Sometimes various religions use drugs to enhance their religious experience. But regardless of what the drug is, or what the specific reason is that a person takes it, there is one common denominator. Drugs are designed to alter the mind and control it. Again, some people like this because they are trying to forget or deal with something that is too much for them. But this is dangerous for anyone. And for the Christian, to seek this out is unacceptable. Since these elements are being manipulated to manipulate ones mind, they are not good. Just because God created nature does not mean we get to use it however we like and call it good. God made plants, but we do not have the right to use those plants to alter our state of mind and give up self-control. Aside from the obvious and serious health risks, it is this giving away control that is the crux of my problem with recreational or escape drugs. People use cigarettes to 'calm down'. People drink alcohol to 'loosen up'. People use other drugs to 'forget' and 'lose themselves' for a time. This is an alternative to transformation and the work of the Holy Spirit of God. God leads us into all truth. Drugs lead us away from truth. The Spirit convicts of sin. Drugs lower our inhibitions and blur the lines of right and wrong. The Holy Spirit comforts us as we are surrendered to Him, but drugs give us a sense of peace and comfort by pushing aside or covering up our real issues. We were created to have fellowship with God and receive our 'highs' from Him. In the Bible we are told to set our mind on certain things. We are told to be sober-minded. We are told to flee from certain sins. We are told to submit to God and resist the Devil. We cannot do these things if we are not in charge of our mind. If I have been drinking, I can't control everything I think and do. The same is true if I am strung out on crack, or weed, or Xanax, or even dip. Around a decade ago there was a young man who was growing up in our youth ministry. He would dip tobacco. He got in trouble for having it on the church van. One day we sat down and talked about why it was wrong to use that product because he believed the health risk was fairly minimal. I asked him why he used it. He said he liked it. I asked him why. He said that it calmed him down. I told him that is what it was designed to do. But I also said, "That is what God wants to do. If you continue using that product to do what God wants to do, you will end up putting your faith in that thing instead of God. And here's the thing... sometimes we have things in our lives that we shouldn't have peace about. We are disturbed because we are doing something wrong. God is trying to convict us, but we are setting that conviction aside by putting something in us that makes us feel better when God wants us to feel bad so we can seek true peace and forgiveness through Him." We had a good talk. We are still friends to this day. Think about it. We are using sorcery or magic to trick our minds into believing we are experiencing peace, joy, love, courage, etc. We are fooling ourselves and missing out on what God has for us. Paul put it this way... "Though we live in the body, we do not wage war in an unspiritual way,since the weapons of our warfare are not worldly, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every high-minded thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to obey Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) You cannot... CANNOT bring every thought captive to obey Christ if you are smoking weed or Marlboro, or drinking Wild Turkey or Budweiser, or popping pills or shooting up. There is no material product that can save you or bring you the good things that come only through Christ. In fact, those fake feelings actually keep you from dealing with the deeper issues. I will admit that I have never smoked a cigarette, or drank a beer in my entire life. That doesn't make me any better than anyone. It is just my experience. I have been around a fair amount of drug use in my ministry life. I have several friends who have been delivered from various types of drugs. I asked one who used to smoke weed, "If you were mentoring a young lady and she was dabbling in marijuana and asked you why it is wrong for a Christian to do drugs, what would you tell her?" Here was her response... "First I would say it is illegal and God would have you to obey the laws of the land. Secondly, smoking weed robs you of so much... your money, because there is no return on your investment, and you are actually paying for something that is damaging your lungs... your time, because you spend so many hours, days months, and years either looking for some to buy or being inactive because all of your senses are on pause and you're basically a walking zombie... your dreams, because you just somehow never quite get around to accomplishing the things that you start. Now there are functioning addicts, but as a Christian we want God's best in our life in every area. God wants you to be healed, set free, and delivered from anything that is controlling you and keeping you in bondage. 1 Peter 5:9 tells us, 'Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.' Do not be ignorant of Satan's devices. He will use the things you think are harmless to paralyze your progress in life. 'Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God. You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.' (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) The closer you stay to Christ, the less you need the things of the world to fulfill you." My friend speaks from experience, and I agree with her wisdom. Part of the point of magic or sorcery is to get you to believe in something that is at its core not true. If you are using legal or illegal recreational/mind-numbing/altering drugs I encourage you to consider what they are doing to your body, soul, and spirit. I know... you think you are controlling them.. but that's part of the trick. They are actually controlling you. There is true freedom in Jesus. Seek Him. Find a pastor and church who can walk with you through your deliverance. If you need help in breaking free from drugs, feel free to contact me. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. In this three part series we are looking at how a Christian should look at drugs... both the legal helpful kinds and the illegal or recreational kinds. Yesterday I shared my personal belief that God created means for medicine and gave scientists and doctors the ability to use medicines to combat illness and bring healing. I take aspirin, Tylenol, and various cold or allergy medicines. If the need arose, I would not be opposed to taking stronger drugs to deal with other illnesses. At the same time we have a primary responsibility to trust God for healing and leading in these areas. Some medicines have horrible side effects that are not beneficial for the believer and can even be detrimental to their ability to follow Jesus. Other medicines are produced by evil means (such as from aborted baby body parts.) So while taking certain drugs is acceptable for a Christian, it is by no means a no-brainer proposition. Taking drugs/medicines should be considered a spiritual decision, and not just a physical one. Another issue we have in the realm of good drugs designed for the right reasons is that there is the tendency for people to become addicted to certain medicines. What may start out as a good treatment can become an evil crutch in a believer's life. One of the great tricks of the enemy is to make us dependent on something that is not inherently bad. Prescription drug abuse is a major issue in America. It drives a huge black market industry... not in our back alleys, but in our living rooms. When you take something good and use it for evil, you exchange the blessing that came with it for a curse that goes with you. Over time a person takes a certain medication to deal with a real issue. At some point the health issue clears up, but they do not want to give up the drug that helped them. Whether it is some sort of painkiller, or another type of drug, they have become dependent on it and cannot break free from its effects to go back to a normal life. Just like with any addiction, it will take the power of Christ to break its hold. But it seems like a more difficult conversation when you are discussing a drug prescribed by a doctor as opposed to a drug sold by a seedy dealer. The Bible gives some insight into this issue of how dangerous it is to use things that can be good in a bad way. In a letter to a young preacher, the apostle Paul said, "Timothy, don’t continue drinking only water, but use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses." (1 Timothy 5:23) Paul was giving Timothy a prescribed method for treating a sickness. Apparently a little wine would help over whatever was bothering his body. Paul believed in instant healing. He had by the power of God raised at least one person from the dead. But he also knew the medicinal value of wine... but only a little wine. Earlier in the same letter to Timothy when Paul was giving directives on who should be a leader in the church he wrote this... "An overseer, therefore, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an able teacher, not addicted to wine, not a bully but gentle, not quarrelsome, not greedy - one who manages his own household competently, having his children under control with all dignity." (1 Timothy 3:2-4) So Paul advises Pastor Timothy to drink a little wine for his health after telling him that an overseer should not be addicted to wine. This is a perfect example of what we are looking at today. It is alright for believers to take a little medicine to help with their physical issue. But it is not okay for a Christian to let that drug rule them. It is impossible to be self-controlled, sensible, respectable, and competent to manage your household if you are strung out on prescription drugs. Last night as I was talking to a friend about this devotional he told me, "Pastor, I have to stay away from certain medicines. As a former addict, I look at some medicines and realize that they are a pathway to my past life. I don't take some drugs that would help me because I don't want to go back to that place." Drugs are powerful... that is why God gave them to us. But it is also why the enemy uses them. God has told us to be sober-minded. We can't do that if we are sacrificing our faculties to a pill... even a good pill. Today if you find yourself in the grips of a good drug, first call out to Jesus. He can break every chain of addiction. And then find a pastor or spiritual mentor to which you can safely commit this truth about yourself. They can at least pray with you and help hold you accountable, or they can help you find more help as you leave the lifestyle of prescription addiction. Tomorrow we will look at the ugly dangers of recreational and illegal drug use. Why is it wrong for a believer to use various types of drugs for pleasure? [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. I believe God created everything. And in that everything we find wisdom as well as nature. The Bible tells us, "Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning." (James 1:17) One of the great gifts we have is a planet that provides for a great deal of enjoyment and success throughout life. When Adam and Eve sinned, Creation lost some of its greatness and beauty. It is still amazing, but imagine how awesome it must have been before the death of sin entered. Along with that death entered manipulation, evil desires, and the ability to use things in ways that God never intended. I happen to believe that God gave early humans intelligence and wisdom about healing through natural means. I think of them not as cavemen trying to figure out how to make fire, but more as advanced scientists whose brains and minds had not been decayed by sin to the extent ours is today. So God gave medical means in the natural and He also gave the knowledge and ability to turn those means into healing medicines. We now have what we call drugs of various types. How we use those will determine much in our life and culture. Over the next few days, I want to look at three ways of using medicine and drugs and what they mean for our natural and spiritual life. At the outset, know that I believe God heals miraculously without the aid of doctors, medicine, or treatment. I know this is true. God does not need the help of medical equipment to heal immediately from the most serious diseases. But it is also true that He heals through those earthly means. THE GOOD First, I want to take a look at good drugs used for the right reasons. I do not see anything wrong with using medicines developed in the right way used to solve health issues. God's wisdom using God's creation is a wonderful thing. The apostle Luke was a physician and helped the early Christians in their physical health. He wrote the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. His physician skills were evident in his meticulous records recounting the story of the birth of Christ, His ministry, and the birth early work of the Church. Paul referred to him in the letter to the Colossians in this way, "Luke, the dearly loved physician, and Demas greet you." (Col. 4:14) At the same time, not all good drugs developed in the right way for the right reason are good for everyone. Some medicines/drugs have adverse effects on certain people. And some good drugs carry risks for everyone who takes them. Some medicines have physical side effects that are negative, like rashes, soreness, etc. Other good drugs have mental side effects that are negative like thoughts of suicide, violence, etc. It is not unusual for some drugs to cause hallucinations in people. I remember as a child there were some times when I would take cold or allergy medicines and have strange feelings and perspective issues. It would kind of freak me out. That is a somewhat mild side effect. But I know there are some people who have taken good medicines designed to treat a physical problem, but it affected their mind in such a way that they committed suicide, which was totally out of character for them. Another issue we have today is the way our medicines are designed. It used to be that bark from a tree or some other natural element was boiled down into a medicine. But today we have 'advanced' to the point where we can develop drugs using things that are not natural... like aborted baby body parts. There are some ethical decisions we have to make today that previous generations would not have considered. I believe we have an obligation to ask and discern where our drugs come from. I don't think I should benefit from the evil practice of abortion. I don't want my life to be made better because of the murder of another human being. This is real, and it is the world we live in and are passing along to our children. Taking medicine is not a no-brainer decision. It is up to the individual (and their family) to consider whether the reward of taking the drug outweighs the risks associated with it. And some of these need serious discussions. In our culture it seems to be the default that a person will automatically take the doctor's advice on using a certain treatment. But following the directive of a doctor should always come after following the leading of the Holy Spirit. Some people and groups believe that we should avoid all medicines and treatments. That may be what they need to do, but I'm not there. We need not avoid good medicine developed in the right way for the right reason, but neither should we go into it blindly and without thought or prayer. While God is glad that we use the tools He has given us, we must be careful to not put our faith in doctors, hospitals, treatments, or medicines. I'd say it is a good thing to take medicine in line with prayer. Pray before you take something. Pray as you are using it. And pray after you are done with the treatment. The only reason a drug works is because God gives it the power. So it is good to invoke His wisdom and help in the process. Tomorrow we will look at a bad side of good drugs that has many people trapped. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. |
AuthorMy name is David, and I want to know God more, and help other people find Him. Archives
March 2019
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