BBD 08.18.08 Take it to the Lord
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>
The Burning Bush websites have received visits from more than 150 countries.
Celebrating 10 years online since January 31, 1998.
Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been spreading the truth
of God's Word to more than 11,000 subscribers across the world.
The Burning Bush Devotional
Welcome to the 993 new subscribers since January 1, 2008!!
08.18.08
Take it to the Lord
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is
light. - Matthew 11:28-30.
When life gets tough and we're between a rock and a hard place, what do we
do? What do we do when the car is repossessed and the IRS wants the rest?
What do we do when the doctor tells us there is no hope? What do we do when
we are arrested for a crime we didn't commit and no one will believe us?
What do we do when unexpectedly we are given the "pink slip" and told to
find another job? What do we do when we have an addiction that won't let go,
and it is destroying our life?
What are we to do? Do we just "grin and bear it?" Do we "count our many
blessings?" Do we "look on the bright side?" Do we put on our smiley face
and tell everyone we're fine when we're really dying inside? Do we pop a few
more pills, shoot some more dope, or go on a week long drinking binge?
When bad things happen or are happening in my life my response, since I have
been a Christian has always been to pray. When bad things happen, I take it
to my Lord. When our youngest son was born with Down Syndrome my Lord gave
me strength to continue on and still does. When my wife left me early in our
marriage my Lord intervened and changed what looked like an impossible
situation. When I was in debt up to my eyeballs God provided the way out.
When tornadoes have been headed for us God has protected us. When I have
lacked wisdom, He has come through with the guidance that I needed. When I
have been desperately ill my Lord has brought healing. When I have fallen
into sin, He has given forgiveness and raised me up to serve Him. When I
have been depressed and discouraged, He has given me rest, peace and
encouragement. When I was lost and on my way to hell, He found me and gave
me eternal life. He can do the same and more for you.
Jesus says, "Come to Me... and I will give you rest." How can Jesus give us
rest? He can give us rest by taking away our burden of sin. He can give us
rest by giving us "peace which surpasses all understanding (Philippians
4:7)." He can give us rest by giving us supernatural strength to endure our
situation "through Christ (Philippians 4:13)." He can give us rest through
His supernatural provision "according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus
(Philippians 4:19)." He gives us rest through His Spirit, through His Word,
through His people.
Are you between a rock and a hard place? Are you at the end of your rope and
your fingers are slipping? Jesus is the answer. His yoke is easy. His burden
is light. Only Jesus can give rest to your soul.
The words to the hymn, What a Friend We have in Jesus, were written by
Joseph Scriven. Here are some of the words of the hymn:
Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.
You can find out more about Joseph Scriven at Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_M._Scriven
Copyright © 2008. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has
been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the
Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.
Prayer Requests:
Please pray for the democratic nation of Georgia that has been attacked by
Russia. Please pray for Malachi and Cody who are young boys with cancer.
Many prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer
Request page. You can also post your prayer requests there and they will be
forwarded to the Burning Bush Prayer Group (Of course, I am always in need
of prayer - please pray for me. I believe that God is speaking to me about a
change in the ministry He has given to me.).
If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may
subscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org
Two videos of my sermons are posted on Godtube at:
http://www.godtube.com/Wrather
You can listen to services at my son, Clark Wrather's church (First Baptist
Church of Broken Bow, Oklahoma) live on Sunday mornings at 10:55am CST
http://www.kkbifm.com/
There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here
is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/33.html.
You can unsubscribe to the pure text version of the devotional by sending a
blank email to burningbushdevo-unsubscribe@welovegod.org and then respond to
the confirmation email.
You may subscribe to the html text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-subscribe@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-unsubscribe@welovegod.org and then respond to
the confirmation email.