God has great plans for our lives, and He wants to use us to do great things for Him. But before He can put us in a position to use our gifts and talents in our fullest potential, we have to learn how to be stable, reliable and in control of our emotions.
As believers in Christ, we need to live what we say we believe in our daily lives so God can use us to accomplish what He’s called us to do—not just for our own sake, but for the good of those around us. This means our character should be strong in Christ, and our motives for using our God-given gifts should be pure.
In the early days of my ministry, when I was leading a small Bible study in my home, I had a call on my life to teach the Word like I’m doing it today through our worldwide ministry. But God couldn’t release me to use the full potential of the ability He’d given me then because, at that time, I didn’t have the spiritual maturity to go along with it.
I remember how I never knew from one day to the next whether I’d be in a good mood or have a bad day. I’d wake up some mornings expecting a good day, but then something would happen that didn’t go my way and it would put me in a bad mood for the rest of the day. I let my circumstances control my emotions, and it was a miserable way to live.
But the good news is we can change! We can control ourselves, with a lot of help from God, but we need to believe it for ourselves.
The first thing we need to do is stop making excuses. As born-again believers in Christ, we have the power of the Holy Spirit available to us to use self-control. And God will never tell you to do something that you can’t do; the key is learning to lean on Him for the strength to do it.
It’s also important to realize that we are in a spiritual war, and our enemy—the devil—will try to deceive us and defeat us in many ways. We need to know how to stand against him so we can remain stable and win the war.
Philippians 1:28 (AMP) says, “In no way be alarmed or intimidated [in anything] by your opponents, for such [constancy and fearlessness on your part] is a [clear] sign [a proof and a seal] for them of [their impending] destruction, but [a clear sign] for you of deliverance and salvation, and that too, from God.”
This Scripture is saying that God and the devil are both watching us. And when a difficult situation comes our way, we have a choice to make: We can get upset, or we can remain at peace.
See, the devil tries to set us up to make us upset. But if we stay calm, we’re showing God that our trust is truly in Him.
The truth is no matter how much you say that you trust God, if you’re upset all the time, you really aren’t trusting Him. What God really wants is for us to look to Him for the help we need, do what we can do, and then trust Him to do what we can’t do.
God is good! He loves us, and He will always do what He says He will do in His Word.
In Exodus 14:13-14 (NKJV), Moses told the Israelites, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”
When Moses said this, the Israelites were facing a seemingly impossible situation with the Red Sea in front of them and the Egyptian army closing in on them. But as they put their trust in God’s word for them, He performed a miracle, parting the sea and making a way for the people to go through it safely.
Being a Christian doesn’t mean you won’t have problems; it means that when problems come, God can give you His grace to get through them. Your faith doesn’t keep you from difficult situations—it helps you go through them with stability.
God is always with you, and He wants to fight for you. When He allows difficult situations to come your way, you can trust Him to be in control and cause everything to work out for good in the end (Romans 8:28).
The key is to remember in every situation to hold your peace, keep an attitude of praise, and trust God to fight your battles.{eoa}
Joyce Meyer is a New York Times bestselling author and founder of Joyce Meyer Ministries, Inc. She has authored more than 100 books, including BATTLEFIELD OF THE MIND and her brand-new biblical commentaries of EPHESIANS and JAMES (FaithWords). She hosts the Enjoying Everyday Life radio and TV programs, which air on hundreds of stations worldwide. For more information, visit www.joycemeyer.org.
Please note: The views and opinions expressed throughout this publication and/or website are those of the respective authors and do not necessarily reflect those of Joyce Meyer Ministries.
