“Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.” Waiting doesn’t seem to be a part of today’s culture anywhere. As we do wait on the Lord, He shall renew our strength though (Isaiah 40:31). Today’s verse also speaks of being strong and letting our hearts take courage. We can willfully be strong when we don’t feel like it, but you must invoke your will. Make yourself do it regardless of your thoughts or feelings. Many of us get defeated because of the negative thoughts that pop in our minds. These thoughts do not have legal rights to any of your make-up. Handle the bad thoughts by working the word of God. There are scriptures for everything that has to do with life and how to overcome it. When we expect the Lord to, and have true anticipation for His help, that’s acting in faith, which brings God’s resources on the scene of your challenges. The Lord wants us to be brave and of good courage, with a stout and enduring heart. Through faith and patience we obtain the promises of God (Hebrews 6:12). Talk the talk, but you must walk the walk.

“For godly grief and the pain God is permitted to direct, produce a repentance that leads and contributes to salvation and deliverance from evil, and it never brings regret; but worldly grief (the hopeless sorrow that is characteristic of the pagan world) is deadly [breeding and ending in death].” When God allows sorry to come to your doorstep, there’s a different purpose behind it than depressing you out of your mind. The purpose of Godly sorrow is to lead us to repent not take us out. Worldly sorry is hopeless, it’s not intended to bring you hope, and it is only able to produce in you, things which motivate your demise, no comfort there. When we are going through our wilderness experiences of trouble, the world’s advice is limited, it may possibly lead to a temporary fix, but from the root of your core, you know it ain’t over. There is a sustaining comfort of hope when the Lord is in the picture on your behalf. Everything we need for this life and its woes, are outlined in the word of God, which is God’s will for us, the bible. Our part is to find out what belongs to us from the Creator. That would include your rightful authority over evil being restored to you. If you don’t know or haven’t learned the basics of who you are in Christ Jesus, you will always be fighting an unnecessary battle. There you have it, two different sorrows, which you will, or at least have the opportunity to experience. Get away from people that agree with your troubles to the point they say, wow you’re really having a go of trouble, that makes you feel worse not comforted. Godly comfort says, you got this, and I’ll help you through it.

“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” This verse can be interpreted in a many ways. Our purpose in life is connected to prosperity as we allow it to play out. Troubles, opposition, and getting weary from life’s struggles are a part of our development. We must see a thing through once it is motivated by your God given purpose, regardless of the demonic influences that come against you. Out of our hearts flow the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23 KJB), and we find ourselves many times dealing with our issues unaware of the treasures that wait for us by following our heart. The Lord’s connection to us from heaven to earth is through our hearts, our human spirits. In the creation of mankind, God put in us everything we need to have a successful victorious life. When our heart is in a thing, and your assignment is from the Lord, treasure will be in the picture, because God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. To find and fulfill your purpose, you must have close fellowship with God. This verse could be interpreted differently depending on your perspective. Storing up treasures on earth opposed to storing up treasures in heaven. Storing up on earth has to do with your personal gain, and your heart may be in that, which is not God inspired. Treasure for future use in heaven is God inspired and is a selfless act proving where your heart is positioned. Nothing wrong with having money and a lot of it, as long as the money doesn’t have you. Where your heart is, your treasure will provide its location, earthly or heavenly minded.

“Why are you cast down, O my inner self? And why should you moan over me and be disquieted within me? Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him, Who is the help of my countenance, and my God.” The inner self can get disquieted within us. That’s when worry and anxiety have taken a seat in your soul. Our human spirits are the real us, the inner man, but our souls which are not the same as our hearts or spirits, can be put to the test. In this area of our minds, where our thinking processes happen, is also where the good fight of faith in God occurs. It’s a good fight because we win. Once we have renewed our minds, (our way of thinking to conform to God’s way), by the washing of the word of God in our souls (Ephesians 5:26). Until we renew our minds with the word of God, we are prone to worry as usual, and have unnecessary anxiety like you always have. Once we understand the truth of what God is really saying to us, which pertains to life and godliness, you become less concerned of being easily moved into temptation or bad decisions. Our best bet is to learn how to live above the evil in this world which is what Jesus prayed to the Father for us (John 17:15 KJB). If you do the work you will reap the harvest of keeping peace in your soul.

“Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Training our children in the way they should go is very important when they are young, it’ll stick better, and the words of the bible in their hearts will not depart from them even when they are older. The power behind God’s word operating in the heart of a believer is the nightmare of Satan and his crew who have come to steal, kill, and destroy. The foundations of our life are supposed to be built by the family unit (good morals, discipline and behavior, etc.), preferably with dad in the picture. But things are not hopeless without dad. I was a single parent for three years and I did bible study with my two and four year old children every night, just the three of us making it happen, and the same thing with my youngest son later on. To this day as they are adults now, they are flourishing in life with children of their own learning about God’s word at a young age. The importance of training up a child in the way they should go, Is totally realized after they’ve gone through the normally scheduled hard places of life, which is to make you stronger, not an opportunity for you to give up the fight. The way we all should go is based on the living word of God. It’s alive and sharper than any two edged sword. As children get older, they begin to assert themselves. As their will is involved, parents are to simply keep them in prayer. Trust God!

“External religious worship [religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.” To be in this world but not of it has been one of the greatest challenges for christians since long ago. We are ambassadors for the Kingdom of God. Our temporary existence here on earth may seem like the final destination but it isn’t. There is life after death. When we can care for those in dire need that can’t help themselves, and not allow the stench of the world’s ways to affect our way of thinking while doing it, then we have a tight fellowship with the Lord, it’s the only way. Without experience in working God’s word for your troubles on a regular basis, you won’t stand without being influenced by undesirable people, and circumstances. The word of God is our sword and shield against anything coming to kill, steal, and or destroy that which God has developed in us. Once the christian has lost his or her salt saving preservative qualities against evil, the world will have your undivided attention, and temptations will be harder to resist. God is always about helping people. He’d rather we go into the hardest, toughest most undesirable places to share His gospel than He cares about how many members the church congregation has grown. Pure religion is not what most church folk think it is.

“And this I pray: that your love may abound yet more and more and extend to its fullest development in knowledge and all keen insight [that your love may display itself in greater depth of acquaintance and more comprehensive discernment], So that you may surely learn to sense what is vital, and approve and prize what is excellent and of real value [recognizing the highest and the best, and distinguishing the moral differences], and that you may be untainted and pure and unerring and blameless [so that with hearts sincere and certain and unsullied, you may approach] the day of Christ [not stumbling nor causing others to stumble].” Did you know your love can abound in knowledge and depth of insight. To have a more comprehensive discernment, you will have the ability to understand where a person is really coming from. When you’re walking in the agape love of God, you have the proper discernment to deal with people where they really are concerning their motives or intent, (it’s like you pick up an extra awareness by loving harder). Our love grows as we love others more and more. To love the unlovely is a true testament to your love level. Anyone can love someone else who shows love to you first. But to love a person through offense, disrespect or straight up nasty, takes patience to achieve. Allow love (God) to abound in you, and you won’t recognize yourself. Nothing can stand against the power of love.

“But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.” This verse is also a sign of our needs being supplied. The things being talked about in this chapter are referring to the things we need for everyday life, clothes, food, what to drink, etc. Those things will be added to us as we first seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but we are to study, and meditate in the word of God day and night, and it shall make your way prosperous (Joshua 1:8). He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). There are so many opportunities and ungodly distractions around us. At one point in our lives we get to the place of being sick and tired of being sick and tired. When you arrive there, prove whether or not God’s way will work for you. If it doesn’t work for you, you’re not working it properly, it’s a lifestyle not to be tried, but to be lived. When we want something bad enough we go after it like our life depends on it, and in reality, it does. Life and death are in the power of the tongue and those that love to talk shall eat its fruit, good or bad (Proverbs 18:21 NLT), because we eventually have what we’ve been saying over time. So start using your words in a positive manner. When you decide to start getting serious about God, He’ll start getting serious about you.

“But all things are from God, Who through Jesus Christ reconciled us to Himself [received us into favor, brought us into harmony with Himself] and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation [that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him].” We have the ministry of reconciliation. We are commissioned to go out and spread the good news of the gospel, as per the Lord. By word and deeds we must aim to bring others into harmony with Him. We are part of the body of Christ. Jesus being the head of the body has completed His part when He walked the earth. Now it’s our turn to put into action the plan of reconciliation. Winning souls for the Lord is the highest priority in the Kingdom of God. It is the “greater works” Jesus said we’d do after His departure back to heaven (John 14:12). People getting healed of sickness and disease is big, and thank God for His healing, and delivering power. Someone changing their eternal direction from going to hell, to going to heaven after death, is a greater work indeed. The price has been paid for us to spend eternity with the family of God instead of burning in hell with Satan and his crew. Justice must be satisfied because of our wrong doings. Jesus satisfied justice on the cross for anyone who reaches out for salvation. Jesus is the way the truth and the life. God has reconciled us back to Himself, but without asking Jesus to save you, your final destiny will be paying for your own sins in hell forever.

“And he shall turn and reconcile the hearts of the [estranged] fathers to the [ungodly] children, and the hearts of the [rebellious] children to [the piety of] their fathers [a reconciliation produced by repentance of the ungodly], lest I come and smite the land with a curse and a ban of utter destruction.” This verse is God telling the saints of old how He will turn the hearts of the estranged father to their children and the hearts of the children to their Fathers / parents. There is hope for that Father who has for whatever reason left his position as prophet, and priest of his household. God will bring those dad’s home to you, but you have a diligent part to play. First of all if you want him back home, much prayer is required. The father’s will is involved so God has to work around that. But by your constant prayers going up to God, it gives the Lord something to work with. So time being the great equalizer, through faith and patience we obtain the promises. Because of our will God can’t override it, or He’d be no better than the devil, making us do something through manipulation against our will, which is Satan’s MO. Your children will come back to you with this same process of praying, believing, and waiting with a confident favorable expectation, thanking God while you wait for the return of your loved ones. It is the Lord’s good pleasure to bring dad, and your children home, so do the work it takes, use your faith. Hang a sign up on a wall in your house saying, welcome home dad before he gets there, that’s your faith in action.