November 17
Ezekiel 35-36
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances (36:26-27). This is one of the most exciting prophecies in the whole Bible. It was fulfilled at Pentecost and is yours for the asking (Luke 11:13).
Lord, you are supreme over all the earth. You send your Spirit like the wind wherever you please. I ask for your Holy Spirit to be in me, guiding me, teaching me, correcting me, reminding me who I am in Jesus. Take out the stony pieces of my heart and replace them with a heart of flesh that your word penetrates easily. I want to know you.
James 1
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance (1:2-3). Over a few months, a woman threw four parties. Her friend asked why, and she replied, “Our business partner stole half our money and fled the country. Then, our house flooded, and my sister’s marriage broke up. Last week, we had to move my mother into hospice.”
Her friend stared in disbelief. She’d heard about the embezzlement, but not the rest. She said, “You should’ve called for prayer at least,” caught herself, and added, “Sorry, I guess I just want to be here for you. It sounds like too much for one person to handle. But I still don’t get why all the parties?”
Party lady replied, “We wondered if God was punishing us, and to be honest, we were so down, we didn’t want to hear all the sympathy. I came across James during my quiet time with God, where it says, ‘count it all joy when you experience trials of many kinds,’ and realized that God will bring us through all of it. We thought ‘counting it all joy’ might mean throwing parties. So…”
Can you imagine a more difficult command than James’s? I’d like to tell tales of the parties I threw when I felt trials were strapping me to a whipping post, but I don’t have any. Either I forgot the command or, more likely, I was too overwhelmed with sadness, fear, and anger, and too lacking in faith; but now I’m confessing sin and that’s not why you’re reading this (all the same, see James 5:16 if have an extra minute). Perhaps you will do better than me the next time trials visit.
Psalm 116
Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you (116:7). I think the Bible scholars who say the soul is the part of a person that houses emotions are onto something. Emotions direct behavior, so a downcast soul means raw emotions and depression. The soul at rest in the Lord has God’s peace and calm emotions.
A great Bible study searches for all the verses that contain the word “soul.” You’ll see the importance of rest to emotional control. Telling someone to control their emotions when they’re wound up is like telling a river to stop flowing. I do not think God tells us to use willpower to control emotions. He tells us to allow the Holy Spirit to fill us so that our emotions grow calm (Galatians 5:22-23 and Ephesians 2:8-9).
When trouble strikes, the soul expresses fear, anger, sadness, and disgust, sometimes all at once, and quite loudly. Perhaps, you’ve noticed. When a soul turns to God’s mercy in faith, it finds rest. How else do you think James could find joy in trials except by the power of the Holy Spirit? Do not think you will become a sweet soul, attractive to yourself and others by your own doing–that is a lie–but it will happen by the Holy Spirit renewing your soul.
Proverbs 27:23-27
Be sure to know the state of your flocks and pay close attention to your herds. You have heard me say that the Bible is the best financial success book of all time. One of God’s key management principles is to know the condition of one’s assets. Where’s the money coming in and going out? What’s the maintenance schedule? To be good sons and daughters means taking care of what God has given us. One cannot be apathetic with God’s stuff!
