A couple of weeks ago we received troubling news Conference wide. The belt of our budget needs tightening this year. We are praying for our personnel in the ministry field who are facing tough decisions right now.
Troubling news unceasingly swirls today. That's hardly a headline. We expect it because it never seems to stop. Researchers say up to 70% of our thoughts are negative ones that swirl in our mind most of the time. Negative news grabs most of the headlines and is an easy way to capture attention.
I prefer good news, however. How about you? The Good News today is the Gospel of Jesus Christ! He has conquered every obstacle against us, defeating our worst enemy of all - death! This is worthwhile news - news to build a life around sharing. This news has the power to invigorate lives. It shines a bright light on any situation. What do we have to fear now? 2 Timonthy 1:7, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” With the Gospel of Jesus Christ we not only have forgiveness, we have power for living today!
What can we do with troubling news when we receive it? 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 says, “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” We can't stop troubling news, but we can demolish it each time by taking it captive to Jesus Christ. Bring all our troubling thoughts before our Savior. He Who can set any captive free, can help set our minds free from each negative headline that might captivate our mind for a time.
Soon, it's all going to be good news. No more troubling news will ever be reported again. How great will that be? Let's start practicing now. I want to think more about Jesus today and in the days to come. He is everything good. And He is an overwhelmingly good future in store for you and for me.
Pastor Michael Brackett