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Fretting Psalm 37:8 “Fret not yourself in any manner to do evil.” Fret = to gnaw & wear away; to eat at; to impair; to agitate; to vex; to be irritated; {all of this in the mind} To fret is to produce fear! “Fret not because of evil!” Fretting comes because we think about things that are not true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy – and that leads to sin. Even among Christians, fretting is not considered to be sin. But it is, because it goes against the admonition of scriptures. Fretting because evil is growing worse around us is against the will of God for us. We are exhorted to rejoice in the Lord at all times. We are told to delight ourselves in the Lord and He will grant us the desires of our heart. The reason we fret is that we perceive injustice or because matters do not go the way we think they should go. We must remember that all things are working together for the good of those who love God. For those who don’t, it grows worse. Fretting is a sign we are living in the flesh. We are not setting our mind on things in heaven. We do not have our treasures in the heavenlies. We are clutching to the natural things and trying to go higher, But we are weighted down. When we fret we are doubting the power and wisdom of God. Fretting puts hatred in our hearts for others. It replaces our warfare against spiritual wickedness and places it on fleshly people. God is willing that all be saved, even the most wicked. Fretting is what opens the door so evil can take us on! Every vile imagination is beginning to come forth in these days. How are we going to respond? What does the Bible teach? Psalm 2:1-4 (KJV) “Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? 2The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, 3Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. 4He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.” Laughter came to the church and we didn’t know what to do with it. But I am glad it came. Because now I am learning to laugh with God. [I drive down the street laughing.] It is the laugh of a conqueror, one who knows that God is in control of all things and His enemies shall one day know His terror (vrs.5). It is a laugh of confidence, of joy and peace, of perfect faith in God, of His righteousness, His love, and His almighty power. The next time you hear of some abomination – stop and get into the heavenly realm and give a great big laugh with God, not because you delight in evil, but because you know God will have the last word and the meek shall overcome and receive their inheritance.. One of the most evil and destructive forces that is being loosed will be that of fretting. If Satan can persuade us to curse what is of God, then we lose. When fretting, we are acknowledging that Satan is triumphing over Jesus Christ. We are honoring the adversary. No matter how perverse and morally wrong the future may become, remember, God is in control. The God of the universe has allowed 6000 years of sin so He could have sons, sons who will govern the earth and creation throughout eternity. God’s sons must have a thorough discernment of the nature of evil and the consequences of rebellion against God. We must be proven in the fires of earth. So God allows evil to continue for a time. Nations rise and fall, but the royal priesthood goes on in perfect conformity to the image of Christ. Remember, in the darkest hour the light of God will rise upon the saints. The commander in Chief will descend from heaven and the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. The path of the righteous does shine brighter and brighter unto the full day. There is great glory ahead for us. We know that every wicked word and act will come up for judgment. Those who refused to be submitted in this life will stand before the judge of all life and give an honest answer for all they did – an answer without trickery or deceit. So we can rest in God – now! We do not fret ourselves when we see wickedness abound, when we see wicked people deceive and seem to get away with it. Their day will come. Rather, we make sure that we are pleasing God ourselves so we may rest in the day of trouble. If we Christians are going to make any change in our culture, the first thing we must do is make sure we ourselves are living in righteousness, holiness, and obedience to God. When we are confident of this one thing we are to lift up holy hands and pray, pray, pray. And whatever Christ tells us to do, we can do it. Knowing we have obeyed the Lord fully, we then are to rest with God and laugh with God. We are to be joyously triumphant in Christ at all times, knowing that righteousness will prevail in the end. So fretting is a sign of ignorance and unbelief. We do not know what God has said or is saying. We do not believe in God’s power and love. When we fret we give a bad testimony to our family and friends. We portray to them that Satan is triumphant. We can rail against wickedness all we want, but we are literally allowing Satan to rage against the work of God – how perverse is evil!! We must gain the victory over fretting because fretting leads only to sin. Philippians 4:8 (KJV) “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” What is the command? Think about what is true. Think about what is honest or just or pure or lovely. Think about a good report. Think about whatever is virtuous or can be praised. And there is only one avenue to maintain this kind of mental attitude:
God never, never changes. Destruction and death have always been a way of life. We are sheep for the slaughter. Right now America is in an unprecedented amount of prosperity, but for how much longer only God knows? But this I know, there is a people of God who are being prepared in an unprecedented manner. And I for one am going to give all glory and honor to my Lord by and with my life – the life I live in Christ Jesus. -Pr. Steve January Newsletter 2003 | Fretting | Take the Land Pastor's Journal January 2002 | Bravery | Precious Seed part 1 of 3 |
Biblical Counseling for Leaders
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