0605 神的保證
因為主曾說… 所以我們可以放膽說…《希伯來書13:5-6》
我的確信是建立在神對我的保證之上的，神說：「我總不撇下你」，因此我「可以坦然無懼地說：『主是幫助我的，我必不懼怕 。』」（希伯來書13:5-6）。換句話說，我不會沉迷於擔憂中，這並不意味着我沒有害怕的試探，但我會記住神保證之言。我會充滿勇氣，像一個孩子努力達到他父親為他設定的標準一樣。當憂慮進入思想時，許多人的信心就開始動搖，他們忘記了神保證的意義。他們忘記了做屬靈的深呼吸。消除我們生活中的懼怕唯一之道就是聆聽神對我們的保證。
你在害怕什麼？無論那是什麼，你都不因此是懦夫——你決心要面對它，但你仍有一種恐懼的感受。當似乎沒有任何事物和沒有人可幫助你的時候，對你自己說：「但『主是幫助我的 』是正在這個時刻，即使在我當前的處境中。」你學習了在說話之前先聽從神的話嗎？或者你先說話，然後試圖讓神的話語符合你所說的？抓住天父的保證，然後以堅強的勇氣說：「必不懼怕。」在我們的道路上有什麼邪惡或錯誤並不重要，因為「祂親自說過，『我總不撇下你…』」
在神保證的話語和我們自己的言語和思想之間，人性的軟弱是另一件事。當我們意識到自己在面對困難時是多麼軟弱時，困難就變得像巨人一樣，我們就變得像蚱蜢一樣，神似乎不存在了。但要記得神對我們的保證——「我總不……丟棄你。」我們學會在聽到神的主調後就跟着唱和嗎？我們是否不斷充滿足夠的勇氣說：「主是幫助我的」，還是向懼怕屈服呢？
來自章伯斯的智慧
許多國家和個人都曾嘗試過基督教，但放棄了，因為發現它太難了。但無人經歷過有意使耶穌為主卻發現祂是個失敗者的危機。《神的愛—一個基督徒的形成》
0605 God’s Assurance
He Himself has said….So we may boldly say… —Hebrews 13:5-6
My assurance is to be built upon God’s assurance to me. God says, “I will never leave you,” so that then I “may boldly say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear’ ” (Hebrews 13:5-6). In other words, I will not be obsessed with apprehension. This does not mean that I will not be tempted to fear, but I will remember God’s words of assurance. I will be full of courage, like a child who strives to reach the standard his father has set for him. The faith of many people begins to falter when apprehensions enter their thinking, and they forget the meaning of God’s assurance— they forget to take a deep spiritual breath. The only way to remove the fear from our lives is to listen to God’s assurance to us.
What are you fearing? Whatever it may be, you are not a coward about it— you are determined to face it, yet you still have a feeling of fear. When it seems that there is nothing and no one to help you, say to yourself, “But ‘The Lord is my helper’ this very moment, even in my present circumstance.” Are you learning to listen to God before you speak, or are you saying things and then trying to make God’s Word fit what you have said? Take hold of the Father’s assurance, and then say with strong courage, “I will not fear.” It does not matter what evil or wrong may be in our way, because “He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you….’ ”
Human frailty is another thing that gets between God’s words of assurance and our own words and thoughts. When we realize how feeble we are in facing difficulties, the difficulties become like giants, we become like grasshoppers, and God seems to be nonexistent. But remember God’s assurance to us— “I will never…forsake you.” Have we learned to sing after hearing God’s keynote? Are we continually filled with enough courage to say, “The Lord is my helper,” or are we yielding to fear?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Both nations and individuals have tried Christianity and abandoned it, because it has been found too difficult; but no man has ever gone through the crisis of deliberately making Jesus Lord and found Him to be a failure. The Love of God—The Making of a Christian, 680 R