self trapped

Let the wicked fall into their own nets,

while I pass by safely.

Psalm 141:10

Fallen in a pit

dug to trap another

hanging from a rope

meant to catch a brother

what the wicked plan

in the ways of man

we can understand

God will bring their end

using their own traps against them

Consequences follow

every evil scheme

God can turn against

the wicked what they originally mean

to hurt, wound, or kill

will never thwart God’s will

God will overrule

using their very evil tool

in irony to destroy them

Trapped in their own net

they don’t trust God and yet

God in mercy shows them

how to repent and turn to Him

they can still turn away

from self and no longer stray

He would always take them back

and deliver them from their trap

if by faith they would trust in Him

intense ministry

And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.

Matthew 9:35

Jesus really had an intense ministry. It is like nothing else we read of in the Bible. Matthew’s summary description of it here shows a four-fold work taking place:

1.  Jesus traveled to cities and villages. He was always on the move, taking His ministry and message to new places. He was sent to a people (Israel) and connected with them by going to where they were.

2.  Jesus taught in the synagogues. He worshiped with those to whom He was called. And as a rabbi, Jesus was allowed to teach at their gatherings. He operated within the means of worship and instruction that everyone expected.

3.  Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom. He had a new message of hope. He proclaimed salvation to Israel. He pointed the people to Himself and a new way of God transforming hearts that only His work would bring.

4.  Jesus healed diseases and afflictions. People were physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually afflicted. Jesus had mercy and authority over sickness and demonic possession. He healed in order to show that power and authority. And it was no doubt His miracles that brought the crowds to Him as He did what only God could do.

All of this intense ministry was fueled by an authentic and unique love for the crowds… something the religious leaders of Jesus’ day did not display. He saw the crowds as harassed and helpless, in need of a gentle shepherd (Matthew 9:36). And Jesus would call all His disciples to love and to serve with kingdom intensity like He did (Matthew 9:37). May His church today carry on with authentic intensity as Jesus continues to empower and enable us to travel, teach, preach, and see Him heal lives!

singing praises in the pressure

…for you have been my help,

and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

Psalm 63:7

One biblical strategy for not being overwhelmed by stress and anxiety is to truly worship God. Psalm 63 was written in a stressful time for David as he fled from Saul in the wilderness of Judah. There was an entire army bent upon following Saul’s orders. They wanted to “destroy” David’s life (Psalm 63:9). David had reason to fear but chose to fight fear in faithful worship of God.

David acknowledged that his circumstances INCREASED his thirst for God (Psalm 63:1). So an immediate action when given to fear is to see how the painful circumstances call out for desperate faith. Crave God when you feel like caving in to fear!

That thirsty craving led to expressive worship engaging David spiritually and physically. His eyes looked upon God to behold His power and glory. His lips praised God for His steadfast love. His hands were lifted up in praise (Psalm 63:2-4). Choose to fight fear with your whole person — soul and body!

David directed his soul to remember God… even in nights when it was hard to sleep (Psalm 63:5-8). He remembered God as he turned in his bed. He made those nights time to worship and to meditate upon the God Who satisfied him, sheltered him, and held him up in the stress-filled story. He chose to make sleeplessness worshipful.

The last word for David in response to anxious stress was this: “,,,the king shall rejoice in God.” Worship in the hard times can have its own unique joys… if we will only discipline our souls to see them and choose to embrace the gift of songs in such stresses.

Jesus the Healer

This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.”

Matthew 8:17

Mark 8 emphasizes Jesus as the Healer. A simple survey of the chapter yields these insights about how He heals:

• Jesus heals a leper - Emphasis: Jesus wills it so (Mark 8:1-4).
• Jesus heals a centurion’s servant - Emphasis: Jesus has authority at a distance (Mark 8:5-13).
• Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law - Emphasis: Jesus meets needs before we even ask (Mark 8:14-15).
• Jesus casts demons from many - Emphasis: Jesus fulfills scripture (Mark 8:16-17).
• Jesus calms a storm - Emphasis: Jesus commands the physical world (Mark 8:23-27).
• Jesus heals two demon-possessed men - Emphasis: Jesus commands the spiritual world (Mark 8:28-34)

Lord Jesus, 

You are the Great Healer. You have borne all our hurts, our sorrows, our pains, and our illnesses. You have the will to restore us and make us whole. You have all the authority so that nothing… not time, distance, our emotional responses, our fears, or any opposition can change what You will to do for us or what You will for us to be. You see the need we have before we even come to You. You fulfill all that has spoken in scripture concerning You. You command the forces of nature. You command even demons to flee from us.

There is nothing broken that you cannot fix. There is no distance You cannot by grace and power bridge. There is no evil stronger than Your power to command it to cease. My life then is Yours to heal. My broken relationships are Yours to renew. My anxious and weary heart is Yours to calm and mend. My oppressive circumstances are Yours to break. My storms are Yours to still. You are always my Healer!

Amen