Resting in God's Care

　　By: Jennifer Slattery

　　Bible Reading:

　　Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5, NIV

　　For me, it’s easiest to feel content when I’m in a financially secure place. I find this much more challenging when my life feels topsy-turvy and upside down and unexpected bills flood my mailbox. That’s when I most need to remember and hold tight to the second half of today’s verse. God Almighty, my ever-present help in times of need and victorious Savior, remains with me, always.

　　This was an important truth the author of Hebrews knew first-century Christ followers needed to read. Scholars believe this letter was written sometime between 64-69 AD, during the reign of Emperor Nero, a horrifically cruel and insane leader who used a fire in Rome to launch a violent, government-led persecution against Christians. Meaning that these men and women weren’t just losing jobs and property, and therefore experiencing intense financial insecurity, but also feared imprisonment and death.

　　Those are not circumstances in which one expects to experience contentment—especially if they feel abandoned and alone. It’s easy to feel that way when we land in a crisis, and those seasons are also when the devil, the enemy of our souls, attacks us with his lies.

　　We fend off his attacks by turning to God, recognizing and resting in His presence, and thinking deeply on His truth. For me, this means reading passages that have strengthened my soul, journaling on them, and reflecting upon what those passages reveal regarding God’s heart, power, unchanging character, and past faithfulness—in Scripture and my life personally.

　　The men and women reading the letter our Bibles call Hebrews had a thorough knowledge of Old Testament history. They knew how the Lord had rescued their people from 400 years of slavery and oppression in Egypt. They remembered how He’d led their ancestors through the wilderness for forty years, and how He’d revealed His presence through a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. They also knew about all the miraculous ways He’d provided for them during that time, by raining sweet wafers called manna from the sky, sending them enough quail to feed all 2-million-plus of them, and causing water to gush from a rock—again, enough for all of them and their animals.

　　Granted, their overwhelming circumstances might have caused them to lose sight of these events temporarily. Even so, I’m certain the words in today’s verse would’ve immediately turned their thoughts to that pivotal period in their nation’s history. You see, the person writing the letter quoted from Deuteronomy 31, which recorded the time when Moses, the man God used to liberate His people and lead them from Egypt to the land He promised, handed off leadership to his prodigy, Joshua.

　　At that point, the emerging nation had spent 40 years wandering through the near eastern desert due to their parents’ stubborn lack of faith, and the children, now adults, were about to enter the land first promised to a patriarch named Abraham. Moses, who’d long functioned as the mediator between God and the people, would soon die.

　　They had reached the very place in the journey in which their parents became paralyzed in fear and refused the abundant gift God had planned for them. This would’ve been an exciting, anxiety-producing, and hope-igniting time for the ancient Hebrews.

　　Listen to how the Lord prepared them for the massive step of faith ahead of them. In Deuteronomy 31:6, He said, Be strong and courageous.Do not be afraid or terrifiedbecause of them, for theLordyour God goes with you;he will never leave younor forsakeyou.”

　　In the original Hebrew, this could be read as, “He will never relax His grip on your life, stop caring for you, or turn His back on you.”

　　Intersecting Life Faith:

　　According to Hebrews 13:5, it is our understanding of Almighty God’s presence, and all that entails, that leads to contentment. Did you catch that? Listen to the verse again:

　　Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, becauseGod has said,

　　“Never will I leave you;

　　never will I forsake you” (NIV, emphasis mine).

　　To which I’d add, with God’s presence comes power, provision and peace.

　　This suggests the depth of our contentment, whatever the circumstance, reflects the depth of our trust. The solution, then, is to focus on building our relationship with Christ, asking Him to help us see and remember His faithful care and to help us receive His love, which coexists with all of His other qualities, like His power, wisdom, and sovereignty.

　　Here’s what I find beautiful and inspiring. We strengthen our relationship with God by turning to Him in times of uncertainty and fear, seeing how He comes through for us in our times of need, which helps us anticipate His care in the future.

　　Further Reading:

　　Philippians 4:11-13

　　1 Timothy 6:6-18

　　Matthew 6:25-34

　　Photo Credit:©GettyImages/Prostock-Studio

　　Jennifer Slattery is a writer and speaker who co-hosts the Faith Over Fear podcast and, along with a team of 6, the Your Daily Bible Verse podcast. She’s addressed women’s groups, Bible studies, and taught at writers conferences across the nation. She’s the author of Building a Family and numerous other titles and maintains a devotional blog at JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud.com.

　　She’s passionate about helping people experience Christ’s freedom in all areas of their lives. Visit her online to learn more about her speaking or to book her for your next women’s event, and sign up for her free quarterly newsletter HERE and make sure to connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and GodTube.

　　Check out fantastic resources on Faith, Family, and Fun at Crosswalk.com!

　　Related Resource: 3 Simple Steps to Manage Your EmotionsAre you tired of up-and-down feelings stealing your peace, sabotaging your relationships, and filling your mind with self-defeating thoughts? What if you had a proven emotional management tool to biblically respond to your feelings with compassion and clarity? Join us for today’s episode to discover three simple steps to manage emotions, reduce stress, improve decision-making, and grow closer to God. If you like what you hear, be sure to subscribe to The Love Offering on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!