Thought for Wednesday, 3 May 2023

 Hebrews 11:1 NIVUK

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance

about what we do not see.

J. R. R. Tolkien said, “In the last resort faith is an act of will, inspired by love. Our love may be chilled, and our will eroded by the spectacle of the shortcomings, folly, and even sins of the Church and its ministers, but I do not think that one who has once had faith goes back over the line for these reasons.”

I think he is right. My thoughts are that some people see the prosperity of others and wonder why they don’t have that kind of life. This kind of question can stir up feelings of envy which in turn opens a door for Satan to gain access to our lives. Why can’t we have some of what they have? It doesn’t seem to be doing them any harm.

However, what we see on the surface is not what we would see in their hearts. We would like to be able to live our lives without being told what to do, just as they do but we all need to live by rules of some kind or there is anarchy. We are fortunate in having the word of God to guide us and it will sustain us. If we let it!

We have been told clearly that we have certain standards to maintain but there are many in the world today that have decided they have their own standards and are trying to bully and coerce people to follow their warped rules.

As J. R. R. Tolkien has said, even the church and its ministers are being caught up in this trap of evil in many cases. Satan starts with small things here and there, then as we start to feel more comfortable it begins to escalate until it is almost impossible task to close the door that has been opened. The word to be underlined here is almost.

With God nothing is impossible! God can close any door and our part in it is sincere prayer. Whether the prayer is for ourselves or for loved ones, we all must take a stand against the forces of evil that are gaining strength in this place, and the only way is by prayer.

 

 

Prayer

Almighty Father, we come to You, as always, to help us against the enemy who stalks the weak and innocent as well as those strong in their faith who are also vulnerable to the deceitful whispers of Satan. We ask that we may receive from Your Son, some of the strength and knowledge that allowed Jesus, to deny the temptation we are faced with today. Give us courage to deny those whispers we hear which are not from You. In Jesus precious name we ask, amen.