So, this weekend I found myself having gone through all my new Christian fiction books on my bookshelf and only left with the non-Christian fiction ones left. So, I read one of them so that I would at least have something to read. It wasn't a bad novel, it was called Me and Mr. Darcy and based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (which is my all time favorite novel) but I didn't find it as satisfying a read as Christian fiction. Therefore, instead of reading the other 4 novels on my shelf that are just plain fiction I chose to read a book I read about a year ago that I really liked and found that I still really like it and will probably read it again in future years. This novel is called The Princess and is written by Lori Wick. I have attached the link to the publishers website that lets you read an excerpt from the novel and the information on the back so that you can learn more about the novel if you are looking for a new read.
For me, it is such an enjoyable read because though it is based in a fictional country it has enought reality infused that you can imagine it as possible, there is an element of a "cinderella story" in it (but in a healthy way), the romance is touching, the characters are well developed, and the faith lessons in it are ones that make you stop and anaylize yourself...which to me is that hallmark of a great Christian fiction novel.
One of these faith lessons really struck home with me as I was reading last night. I believe that God is speaking to me about this particular issue a lot lately because it is something He is working with me on...the issue of worry. Here is an excerpt from the novel that really made me stop and think...
"When we worry we say to God, 'I can't trust You. You're not doing Your job, so I'm going to step in and take over.' We can't just call that arrogance and foolishness--it's sin... God is able to bear all that you are fretting about. He has made a plan. He has made provision. There are no shoulders larger or more capable than His. Give that worry, whatever it is, to God."
I myself am guilty of this sin because I worry all the time. I have been striving lately not to worry over many different things, so I know that this is an area I am actively working on. Yet, my closest friend pointed something out to me yesterday that I hadn't even considered as being worry. We were discussing the current economic status here in the US and it's effects on the people, possibly me included as far as job situations, and I made the comment that things are just getting worse here in the US and that I felt it was possibly God's punishment on us. Then she said to me, "When has it ever been better? It isn't getting worse, it is sin and sin has always been around ever since the fall of Adam and Eve. There has always been sin, murder, hardship, and all that other stuff. It is just plain sin."
This made me stop and think. I thought about it all night. I even felt the urge to get up early and blog about it since I am finding this blog is a great way for me to process and get things out clearly. She is right, it is sin and sin has always been around since the fall of man. I think it is just that as we grow older and become more aware of the environment around us we begin to see things differently and understand them differently. This time in the US with the economic stuggles we are facing is not something new, it is just a different manifestation of the sin that is all around us. I have to remember to not live in that sin, but to be in the world and not of it. I have to make sure that I do not let myself get caught up in the worry about my job and how I will pay my bills, or how the government is responding to everything that is going on. This is going to be a LOT harder than just saying it here in this blog or in person, because EVERYWHERE you go it is being discussed...it is one of my family members favorite topics of discussion of how the government is ruining this country and everything is turning into socialism. You can't always just walk away when people start discussing it; case in point my family memeber, who if I did that it would be considered not honoring my elders to just walk away and flee the conversation.
This sin of worry and telling God that I don't trust Him is also in other areas of my life that I had never before considered as being worry, like when I am constantly praying for God to finally bring me my Boaz and bless me with marriage. When I constantly pray about that is it worry instead of me pouring out my heart to God? He already knows my heart and my desires, so by constantly reminding Him of them am I sending Him the message that I don't trust Him to remember and that I feel He will not provide for me in this way? This thought of worrying being a way that I am telling God I don't trust Him is a thought that affects so many areas of life, so fleeing this sin of worry is not going to be an easy one but I do feel that it is what God is asking of my right now.
I charge you all as well to flee this sin of worry. The Bible speaks many times about worry and how it is something that God commands of us not to do, that by worrying we cannont add an hour to our lives but instead need to trust in Him to provide. We all need to "TRUST in the Lord, and lean not on our own understanding..."Proverbs 3:5
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