Domino Effect

TRUST....DELIGHT...COMMIT...REST From Kings to servants to prophets to ole sinners like myself, this question has been posed..."what should I do Lord?" Well here we go...  8He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee,  but to do justly, and  to love mercy, and  to walk humbly with thy God? (Micah 6:8) I had not remembered reading this scripture until yesterday. I  know  I make my life so much more complicated than it should be. He has shown us what is good...to behave JUSTLY (Fair, morally right in weighing out decisions),  to LOVE MERCY( to pleasure in being Compassionate and lenient toward others ) and to  HUMBLY (with submissive  respect, modesty, not arrogant in behavior) walk with Him!!   Now some of you may be just like me and at first say, "well I get WHAT you're saying, but HOW am I supposed to DO this?" my friends, believe me when I say this, He NEVER leaves us without perfect instructions on the " how to's..."   Number one...TRUST... trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed (ps. 37:3) Now I know that some of us have a difficult time putting our trust in anyone or anything.  It's a personal battle...but, my friend, we can't base our decision to do this on the way others have let us down or disappointed us, because He ain't like that! He is God...the creator, the one who CHOSE to leave all of Heaven to take on the lowest estate of man; to suffer the  ridicule and  shame of Calvary and ultimately sacrifice His life for you and I! The stripes he bore upon His back, the times he faced mocking and betrayal of those He loved...can you just stop, take a moment and breathe that thought into your soul? If you will, I promise it will change the way you see trusting in Him...it won't be so hard anymore! He is the Master of bringing the impossible to pass! And we are promised when we trust in Him, we will always find refuge and an ever present help!...He will NEVER fail. Number two...DELIGHT... Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. (ps 37:4 ) If you are like me, sometimes finding delight in anything can be a challenge.  This is sad, but true! We get so distracted by the effects of sin; that to experience sadness, anger and doubt is easy.  These emotions flow out of us naturally...but, to take great PLEASURE in the beauty of God's instruction and grace is, well, quite frankly, a struggle! I am finding out more and more that when my life is upside down, it is because my delight isn't in the right place.  Instead of finding honesty, loveliness  virtue and just living (phil4:8), just to name a few; I am enjoying the sins of the flesh far too much and far too often. D'oh! Did I strike a nerve ? Well good! Because, when the Lord struck mine, it began to change my way of thinking about delighting in Him...think back about the Cross again for a minute...no, I mean REALLY consider the work of Christ.  "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2-3) Our Savior DELIGHTED in doing the will of the Father so much that he saw His suffering and sacrifice as a JOY! He WAS the epitome of mercy! Now can you start to see how our hearts should delight in the LORD.  It really isn't difficult to find great pleasure in loving and living for someone who JOYFULLY gave his life so that you can have life, for without HIS delight in you, you wouldn't have that precious gift! How can We NOT find ourselves take great pleasure and comfort in that! Number three...COMMIT... Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. (ps. 37:5) In today's cynical "does love exist" world where the grass is always greener on the other side;  people find it difficult to decide on what to do for dinner and make a decision, let alone pledge their whole path in life to someone they can't physically see and feel...lots of doubting Thomases live here...we don't see how true love has existed before creation! It was His love that brought us INTO existence. When your fears and prideful doubts give way to the gravity and grace of the Cross, you won't find it so hard to bind yourself to Him.  Your behavior will begin to unfold with His character when you meditate upon the love and power displayed at Calvary. He has a perfect plan for our lives.  When we seek him, we WILL find Him and all goodness the world could never offer, HE will bring to pass...it's a promise!  And finally...REST... Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. (ps.37:7) In the hurried society we are faced with, it is easy to just exist and not actually LIVE! It seems the demands that we place on ourselves AND others just set us up for failure! Rest seems to elude us. But, it is just like steps one, two and three...it's a choice! I know, I know...how can a person rest with the weight of day's problems on their shoulders? Well, it really is much simpler than you think...TRUST, DELIGHT, COMMIT ! Because, when we do these, we behave justly, mercifully and humbly; therefore we do good and no matter what comes, how busy we are, what adversity we are facing, we will surely run and not grow weary, walk and not faint because we have the promise that HIS yoke is easy and HIS burden is light! So, if you are overwhelmed to the point of no peace...examine your burdens, see what you are yoked up to because God does NOT lie! You will find that there are some chains no doubt that you need to ask the Master to free you from.  Give Him your worries and fears, let Him replace them with the peace of trusting in His will to come to pass! I guarantee that no matter WHAT the days bring, His grace is sufficient to give your the strength to choose rest!  11Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God. (ps. 42:11) A humble walk with God in the cool of the Garden of grace, filled with the fragrance of mercy and justice, is where we do good! So, heed to the instructions of truth and...trust, delight, commit and rest in the powerful and completed work of the Cross! His life for ours...He came so that we could have, not only eternal life to come, but an ABUNDANT one while we live here on earth... One of blessings beyond our finite imagination...One of a peace that passes all understanding...One where joy can be found in the midst of struggles. I like to think of it like this...There is  a domino effect that kinda happens when you begin to trust in Him...True trust brings a joy and peace that births a delight in serving Him which only encourages a commitment to the one who keeps you...Jesus and when you truly know this truth, then rest is an absolute!