Whether it is financial, relational, or physical, we are often in the middle of a battle. When we are there, our faith in God’s delivering power may be the very element He is trying to teach us. We know God honors faith; and Jesus challenged us to maintain faith and a willingness to put our trust in Him regardless of the situations of our lives.
Hebrews 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
Matthew 17:20 – “He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.’”
Yet, there are times in our lives when God is teaching us other lessons. Sometimes the emphasis isn’t upon our activity, but God’s. Often the focus isn’t our faithfulness but God’s showing His faithfulness. Sometimes, the focus is on someone else, and God uses our circumstance to teach lessons others need to learn.
In the end, we learn to rest in Him, whether by difficult times, joyful occasions, storms, droughts, sunny days, or prosperous events. The manner in which our lives have been designed and molded forms us in God’s purpose and plan for our personal lives. In short, we become the people God intends us to be as we respond in faith regardless of the situation. We come to a point where we see His purpose for our lives fulfilled. And in each situation, God wants us to see His faithfulness.
One of my favorite Bible stories is a story of ordinary events, typical humanity responding to circumstances of life. As with our lives, the events of this story mold the lives of the persons involved. It is a story about people like you and me, facing life circumstances and finding God’s faithfulness in the midst of life.
A famine strikes the land of Israel and a Hebrew family, Elimelech, Naomi and their two sons, move to Moab in hopes of finding better conditions. Moab, a nation on the east side of the Dead Sea, was just next door geographically but was light years away philosophically, religiously, and morally. While there, the sons marry two women from Moab, Orpah and Ruth. Tragically, Elimelech and both the boys die; Naomi and her two daughter-in-laws are left as widows in a land foreign to Naomi. She decided to return home to Israel. Orpah, one of the daughter-in-laws, returned to her family in Moab; but, Ruth, the other daughter-in-law, committed to stay with Naomi.
Ruth 1:16 – “But Ruth replied, (to Naomi) “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.'”
Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem together. They were accepted by Naomi’s family there. A prominent land owner named Boaz noticed Ruth and asked his workers to be kind to her and her mother-in-law. He left extra grain for Ruth to pick up, glean, in the fields. Boaz took Ruth as his wife, bought Naomi and Ruth out of debt, and provided the two ladies with loving care. The result was provision in their lives though they had both been widows.
Sometimes the focus isn’t on our ability to demonstrate faith, but God’s loving faithfulness to us in tragedy. The story of Ruth and Naomi demonstrates God’s interest in our lives. Simple women living in Godly ways are noticeable to God. All He requires is a willingness to serve Him as our God. Just as He cared for the details of their individual lives, He cares for all the details of our lives.
You may be in a situation through no fault of your own; it may simply be tragic circumstances. Be assured God will show His faithfulness to you. He will restore, renew, and care for you. Trust in His faithfulness.
Week 2 Leglislative Update: Sen. John Wilkinson
First of all, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people of the 50th Senatorial District for giving me the opportunity to represent you in the Georgia State Senate. The 50th district is composed of approximately 180,000 people in Towns, Rabun, Habersham, Stephens, Banks, and Franklin Counties, as well as, portions of Jackson and Hall Counties. We are blessed to live in the most scenic area of our beautiful state. I pledge to you that I will work hard every day to represent your interests and support policies that will make Northeast Georgia an even better place in the future for our children and grandchildren.
The 153rd legislative session officially began on Monday, January 12th, however, much work had been done ahead of time to ensure a productive session. The Senate Republican Caucus met in December and selected officers for the upcoming session. I was selected by my fellow Senators to serve as Secretary of the Republican Caucus in the Senate for the upcoming session. One of our most important responsibilities is the assignment of Senate members to committees and to offices on those committees. During the first week of January, I was one of two Senate members named to the Committee on Assignments by Lt. Governor Casey Cagle to work on this task. I served along with other members of the Senate Leadership to assign Senators to committees. When I make my requests for assignments, I do so with the needs and interests of Northeast Georgia in mind. I was pleased to receive the following committee assignments for the upcoming session: Agriculture and Consumer Affairs (Chairman), Appropriations, Education and Youth (Vice Chairman), Natural Resources and the Environment, Rules (Ex-Offico). During the upcoming session these committees will work on legislation that will have a tremendous impact on all of us. If there are issues of particular interest to you, I encourage you to contact me and share your concerns.
During the first week of the session, Governor Nathan Deal delivered his annual “State of the State” address, outlining Georgia’s achievements and goals for the future. Obviously, there are many issues that we will face during the upcoming session. Since education is the recipient of more than half of our state’s budget, it is always important to make sure the money is being spent in ways that provide the most benefit to our students. We will be looking at updates to the funding formula for our schools. As our state’s economy continues to improve, we will continue to fund K-12 education at a higher level. Last year, we were able to increase funding to local school systems by more 300 million dollars, and we plan a significant increase again this year. Our young people are our most valuable resource, and we have an obligation to provide them with a “world class” educational experience. A transportation plan for our state and a bill to allow our children who are suffering to benefit from medical cannabis without moving to another state are also priorities for this session. I feel confident that we will meet these challenges.
This past week, we have been in recess for budget hearings. This gives the appropriations committees in the Senate and House the opportunity to hear from various state agencies regarding their budget requests for the upcoming year. As our economy continues to recover, it is important that we prioritize our resources and use them as efficiently as possible.
We will be back in the Senate Chamber and ready to begin debating legislation on Monday, January 26th. Again, if I can be of any assistance, please feel free to reach out to my office at 404.463.5257 or by email at [email protected].