Time to Quit Fretting

Please read Psalm 37:1-40 Psalm 37:1-9 form comforting thoughts, characterized by exhortations to trust and assurances of victory. David cautions us not to worry about the prosperity of the wicked. He writes: Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. . . . Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way. . . . Do not fret—it only causes harm. (vv. 1, 7-8). The tendency to murmur when the wicked flaunt their wrong doing must be repressed if we are going to develop trust in the Lord. The question is why should our hearts burn with (righteous?) indignation when so much hotter a glow will burn up the cut grass? Let it (the wicked) wave in brief glory, without interference, the scythe and the sunshine will soon make an end of their wicked, miserable lives. Jesus includes this point in the Sermon on the Mount, telling us not to worry about our life, our food and clothing, and the troubles of tomorrow (Matthew 6:25-34). The Lord says calm down! Don’t get all worked up over it! The blessed results of trust and active holiness are stable dwelling in the land, and nourishment that only comes from God. We who take God as our portion will always have a safe place to live. The fact is no man will commit his way to the Lord unless he delights in Him. When we fully commit our ways to His sovereignty we can then find absolute rest in the Lord. For us to delight in the Lord is to possess our hearts delight, and find fulfilled in Him our desires and abiding joys. “Commit your way unto Him” (v. 5), or roll it upon Him, this is the exercise of trust, and, He will do all that is desired. We find in walking with the Lord that faith and trust are two sides of the same coin. As our faith in the Lord grows, so does our trust. We must “walk by faith and not by sight,” for we do not see all that He sees, and we certainly don’t know all that He knows. Our Sovereign Master has it all under His control. David describes the character of the wicked: The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes at him with his teeth. . . . The wicked have drawn the sword and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, to slay those who are of upright conduct. . . . The wicked borrows and does not repay. . . . The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to slay him. (Verses 12, 14, 21, 32. These portions of Scripture sketch in vivid detail the fury of “the wicked” toward “the Just” and the grim retribution that turns their own weapons into agents of the wicked’s self destruction. Their evil is obvious to all, especially God. We can be certain that the wicked have not fooled Him. For in essence He is the One they are sinning against. David contrasts the character of the wicked to the righteous: But the righteous shows mercy and gives. . . . He is ever merciful, and lends; and his descendants are blessed. . . . The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, and his tongue talks of justice. The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide. (Verses 21, 26, 30-31). Silently, the Goodman sits wrapped in his faith. All around are raging, armed foes. Above, the laughter of God rolls thunderous, and from the throne the obedient “day” is winging its flight like an eagle with lightning bolts in its claws. The difference in their characters is sharply defined, and we can rest assured that character is what dictates the outcome of our lives. David shows the end of the wicked: [Evildoers] shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. . . . For evildoers shall be cut off. . . . For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; indeed, you will look diligently for his place, but it shall be no more. . . . The Lord laughs at him, for He sees that his day is coming. . . . But the wicked shall perish; and the enemies of the Lord, like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. . . . The descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. . . . I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree, yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; indeed I sought him, but he could not be found. . . . But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the future of the wicked shall be cut off. (Verses 2, 9-10, 13, 20, 28, 35-36, 38). Here the destruction of those who plot evil and the vindications of the righteous are contrasted. Those who wait on the Lord are promised the sight of the destruction of the wicked. Divine judgments minister occasion for praise from the purest hearts before the throne of God. We can know for certain that the unrighteous will get what is coming to them. God always gives the correct punishment at exactly the right time. It is out of our hands, so we need not concern ourselves over it. If we were as wise, loving, and all knowing as God, we would mete out the exact punishment, at the exact time, as He will. David proclaims the reward of the upright: He shall give you the desires of your heart. . . He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. . . . But those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. . . . But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. . . . Their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. . . . For those who are blessed by Him shall inherit the earth. . . . They are preserved forever. . . . The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell in it forever. . . . He shall exalt you to inherit the land. . . . But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord. (Verses 4, 6, 9, 11, 18-19, 22, 28-29, 34, 39). If God is on our side, we have nothing to fear from the wicked, and we can look forward to blessings beyond anything we could ever imagine (Ephesians 3:20)! David explains that we can expect these blessings and rewards, not because we are innately wonderful and good, but because God is faithful: The Lord upholds the righteous. The Lord knows the days of the upright. . . . The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he falls, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholds him with His hand. I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread. . . . For the Lord loves justice, and does not forsake His saints. . . . The Lord will not leave [the righteous] in [the wicked's] hand, nor condemn him when he is judged. . . . He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in Him. (Verses 17-18, 23-25, 28, 33, 39-40). The picture in verse 24 is very comforting. David describes God as a Father, holding His child by the hand. The child has just learned to walk and is not very steady. When he stumbles—and he will—he does not fall completely because the Father pulls him back upright. God perfectly fulfills all the obligations He placed on Himself to do on our behalf. This is another reason we have no need to fear or worry. Lastly, David provides us with solutions to this dilemma: Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord. . . . Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him. . . . Cease from anger, and forsake wrath. . . . Depart from evil, and do well; and dwell forevermore. . . . Wait on the Lord, and keep His way. . . . Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; for the future of that man is peace. (Verses 3-8, 27, 34, 37). Trouble will come into our lives, but God will provide for us a fortress home, and out of it He will save us. These are David's instructions on how we should handle our envy of the wicked man's prosperity: Do good, trust God, and do not worry! If we patiently continue doing the things that God has commanded us to do—focusing on our own character, rather than complaining about another's—the scales of justice will come into their proper balance in God's time. “He makes all things beautiful in His time.” Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Spiritual Protection During Tough Times

Terry found the shield of faith his ally through a terrible event. Driving home after working the night shift, he saw a cloud of smoke as he approached his street. That is close to my home, he thought. As he reached his long driveway, he saw flames shooting above the tree line-from his house. Moments later, to his horror, he learned that his wife and four children had perished in the fire. Terry told me this terrible story, and I learned he had found Christ as a nine-year-old but soon wandered from God. "During my teen years I sort of forgot about the Lord," he said. "I pushed Him into the background. I married after high school. When our first child was born we went back to church to dedicate the baby. I promised the Lord I would start reading the Bible and attending church. However, I didn't follow through with my promise. After the birth of our third child I began to realize that God's blessing was upon my life in spite of how I was treating Him." "At this time I began getting serious about the Lord. Soon our two oldest children received Christ." "My wife Jan had grown up in a nominal Christian home. Her childhood church did not preach a clear gospel. She believed herself to be a Christian until one Sunday morning the Holy Spirit showed her how lost she was. On that day she went forward to receive Christ at our church. We were growing as a couple and growing as believers. Just when things came together in our lives, she and the children were gone." So often in situations like these the best thing I can do is listen. What words of consolation can anyone offer? As Paul said, "Weep with those who weep" (Romans 12:15), and that is what I did. Then Terry added, "I don't understand what God is doing, but I do know the Scriptures tell us to 'set our affections on things above.' I can confidently say all my treasures are now in heaven." Our session took place several months after his terrible loss. Among other things, we talked about the shield of faith. I explained how the shield keeps us from being destroyed. I explained how as believers, when God in His sovereignty allows one of the enemy's arrows to come through the shield, it is like a refining fire. Even in a terrible situation like the loss of life he'd experienced, I assured him we can trust God, who never errs. We can cling to Him and be confident that He is walking with us even through "the valley of the shadow of death." Terry picked up the shield of faith and walked on with the Lord, resolving to deal with his grief honestly but also to trust that God knew what He was dong. Now, five years later, Terry has married a fine woman who loves the Lord. They recently adopted a little girl whose first word was "Daddy." Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Jesus our Faithful Friend

Joan showed up at my office desperate and scared. Before she came, she had explained that she heard condemning internal voices and felt hopeless and worthless. She added that she was addicted to alcohol and wanted to die. When she walked into the counseling room, Joan began with this disclaimer. "I'm an agnostic." The look on her face as she told me this said, "I have really been wounded by someone religious." After some get-acquainted chitchat, I said, "Would you entertain a 'what if' question?" "Of course," she said. "What if there is a God?" She said , "I am very uncomfortable with that statement." After talking for a time abut the possibility of the existence of a supreme being, I asked permission to go a step further. I asked her, "What if there is a God who is a personal God?" "That thought frightens me!" she exclaimed. This resulted in a thought-provoking discussion concerning the possibility of a personal God. I then asked if I could take the discussion one step further. She agreed. I said, "What if there is a personal God who loves you?" "That's impossible!" she retorted. I sensed something deep and possibly horrible lurking beneath this outburst, and I asked more questions, probing her and waiting for honest answers when she deliberated. Soon, a floodgate of emotions welled out. She exclaimed, with a level of intensity I rarely see, "I grew up in an evangelical home and was taken to Church on a regular basis. At the same time my parents were engaging in drunken orgies in our home. As she described her childhood experiences, I began to understand the horror lurking inside. Joan had been exposed to the most vile sin and abuse at an early age. As a result, she grew up confused and cynical about religion and God. The god of her parents was a dirty joke. She recoiled at the thought of knowing such a god. In further conversations I was able to present the living and true God, citing specifically the character and person of Jesus. Using many Scriptures, I showed Joan four truths about the caring and vibrant life of Jesus of Nazareth: Jesus came down from a perfect home in heaven to a sinful earth not only to show people how to live abundantly, but also to make it possible for them to have that abundance in reality (from John 10:10). He gave up all His possessions in order to identify with men and women and be like them so that people would know He truly understands their plight (from Hebrews 2:17-18). Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings. He purposely chose not to show His glory to people, but was like them in every way, experiencing poverty and pain, rather than glory and power (from Philippians 2:6-8). Christ became a servant to those around Him, even to the point of washing His own disciples' feet so that He could show them He was not only willing to put them before Himself, but to set an example for how they were to behave toward others as well (for example, Luke 22:27; John 13:3-16). Through these truths, I was able to show this counselee that Jesus is the God who prays for me, loves me, lives in me, and serves me. Joan was astonished at these revelations, finding them attractive but difficult to accept. When we finished, I asked, "What will you do with the true Jesus?" Joan didn't know and continues thinking about that question. Not all counseling situations lead to a conversion, and I continue to pray for her salvation.

How the Lord Led Me into Spritual Warfare

For many Christians, spiritual warfare is an offbeat or even "weird" subject. Some believers do not even accept the idea that Satan, or his demons, exist, or that they possess any power to attack and afflict us in this age. For a long time, I maintained that very mind-set, oblivious to the reality of an active Satan and scorning those who posed the whole spiritual warfare scenario. Then one day my oldest son experienced his own personal and harrowing battle with the enemy. What happened annihilated any misgivings I had about such warfare, as my whole family was suddenly plunged into a heart-wringing and soul-disturbing situation that nearly took my son away. I asked, "How could this be happening to my son, my family? Didn't God keep Satan away from us? Didn't He prevent Satan from influencing or touching His children?" What followed was a battle unlike anything I'd ever imagined in nonfiction or even fiction. I rejoice about that today, because that incident open up whole vista of hope and healing to those engaging the enemy and not knowing it. Now I can help people deeply entrenched in the enemy's lies and trickery. Until my son's problem, I was often forced into the old cliches people use when Christians with problems came to me and I couldn't seem to help them resolve them. Old standards like "You don't have enough faith," or "Just read your Bible daily and you will get beyond this." I have learned that such responses are often the very lies Satan himself wants to foist on us. Don't get me wrong. I believe God is all-powerful, loving, and intimately involved in our lives. The enemy has no power that can stymie Him, or even derail His plans. That does not mean, though, that God's world is not a battle-ground, or that Satan cannot influence and even attack believers. During my son's time of crisis, a gracious friend patiently showed me step-by-step what this biblical battle involves and how to win it. Ultimately, my son gained true freedom in Christ. And I discovered in no uncertain terms that our common enemy "walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devious" (I Peter 5:8). That lion stalks all of us at different times and in different ways. But his goal remains the same: to devour us. For seventeen years I served as senior pastor of three churches. During this time I gave little attention to spiritual warfare because I thought only "crazy, radical kooks" were involved in it. This changed after my son came to freedom and I began to witness the real destruction and havoc Satan wreaks in the lives of Christians and others. As news of our family's struggle got out through the grapevine, my phone rang constantly, not because people were critical of me or my son; but people with desperate needs wanted help and believed my experience might offer them the insight they needed. As those beleaguered folks told me their stories, I began to research and understand the field of spiritual warfare and saw it not only as a personal struggle that a few Christians experience because of dabbling in the occult or other practices, but as a worldwide battle Satan wages for every heart and mind. I realized this was not unusual or abnormal, but rather the very thing all of us must deal with daily. Please understand from the start that spiritual warfare is not about attacking the devil. No swordsman, no matter how skilled, would consider going up against a dragon with billions of demons at his right and left. Christ is the One who has attacked, stopped, and broken Satan. It's not even up to us to knock him down a peg or two for divine spite. No, what warfare is about, in essence, is exposing the lies Satan used in lives through showing people God's truth. Satan's primary weapons are lies and deception-twisting, negating, and turing around the truth of God in any way he can to gain an advantage. My job is to help expose these schemes in a counselee's life. As Satan's lies are etched clearly against the prism of truth, they're exposed, and freedom and healing result. A whole new sense of hope and expectation grasps their hearts and personalities. Where there was struggle, despair, and (in some cases) a desire to end it all, a new exuberance appears and Jesus becomes a central figure in everything they do. That is my goal for everyone I counsel. My purpose is to expose the thinking and falsehoods of the enemy, break their power over a persons's life, and thus set him or her free. If you find yourself in a struggle to read the Scriptures or pray, resist sin, forgive an offense, or change an attitude, I guarantee you are involved in spiritual warfare. If God's love and power in your life seem distant and you struggle to draw closer to the heavenly Father, a spiritual battle is underway. It's those ensnared in such circumstances whom I want to help. Believe me, I know whats it's like to live in terror of tomorrow. My son's experience all most destroyed our whole family. But through Christ all things are possible. He preserved me, and He will do the same for you-if you seek Him and depend on Him for truth, hope, and power. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

A Juniper Tree Day

Elijah encountered the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel and God soundly defeated them. When Queen Jezebel heard about the death of her prophets, she sent a note to Elijah saying "So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time." (I Kings 19:2.) Jezebel sent Elijah a message and in his exhausted, depressed state of being, he ran. In the desert he sat down under a juniper tree and requested of the Lord, that he might die. An angel came and "Touched him, and said to him, get up and eat." After he regained his strength, he traveled forty days and came to a cave, and lodged there. In time the Word of the Lord came to him and told him to stand on the mountain. "And the Lord caused to pass by (Elijah) a great wind that rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks, but the Lord was not in the wind, and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire, and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so." (I Kings 19:11-13.) The Lord was in the "still small voice." What should we do when we have a Juniper tree day? Sometimes we have to take care of our physical needs before we work on the spiritual. "There was a cake baked on the coals, and a cruise of water at his head. He did eat and drink, and laid him down again." (I Kings 19:6). He ate, drank and slept to regain his strength. Then he was ready to deal with the spiritual, he was ready to commune with the Lord. Then the "Still small voice" of the Lord came to him. One lesson I learned as a counselor was if you can't reason with someone you can't counsel with them. I remember one dear lady that had been subjected to all kinds of counsel. Her real problem, she had a psychotic break and needed to be hospitalized and treated for her condition. I was able to direct her to a good medical doctor who took over her physical care. After three days of treatment she was in her right mind. Several days of rest, brought her to the place of being able to reason with the Scriptures. God said in Isaiah 1:18 "Come now let us reason together..." Are you having a Juniper tree day? Eat some food, get some rest and go to the Scriptures and listen to His "Still small voice." He is still Jehovah-rophe, the God who heals. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

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