I woke up one morning and the verses in
Romans 8:5-6 kept ringing in my mind. As I continued meditating on the verses
and praying in the spirit, the Lord started telling me many believers do not
have abundant life and peace because they have been seeing and doing things in
carnal/worldly ways.
“For
those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the
flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For
to be carnally minded Is death but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
(Romans 8:5-6 NKJV)
It is not easy to not worry if you read
newspaper or talk to people about the world situations now a day. The crumbling
world’s economy structure, rise of crime, increasing environmental and air
pollution, shortage of food and fuel supply in the future and etc, none of
these will not cause anxiety to the hearts.
But the Lord said, if you would set your
mind on the things of the Spirit and seek Him, you will know His ways. When you
know His ways, you will have peace that surpasses all understanding
(Philippians 4:6-7) because you will have the understanding that He is always
in control indeed. And you will have the wisdom to living an abundant life
(1Timothy 4:8; Psalms 37:9). The world may see your faith and obedience as
foolishness, but worldly wisdom is foolishness with God (1 Corinthians 3:18-19).
Let’s take a scenario. Say, you are working
in a big company and there is rumor being passed around that the company will
go bankrupt soon. Many of your colleagues have started looking for other jobs
and they are willing to compromise on their salaries as long as they find a
steady job immediately. If you have been setting your mind on the things of the
flesh, you would immediately follow suit and couldn’t stop worrying about your
future. But if you have been living a close relationship with the Spirit of
God, you would first seek spiritual understanding for your current situation
and soon enough the Lord will provide you the wisdom to act. Say, the Lord
tells you to stay put in the same company and work as normal. You obey
willingly while being the laughing stock of your resigning colleagues. You are labeled as a fool who waits to doom.
However, very soon, their laughter stops. Your company gets a huge project and
its share value rises highest in the company’s history. Best of all, you get
promoted to take over the position of your manager who had just left for a
smaller company. So, where will you set your mind today, the worldly way or
God’s way?
By the way, are you a thrifty person? If
you are being thrifty because you feel responsible as a good steward of the resources
provided by God, keep it up. But, if you are being too thrifty because you are
worried that you will lose out in the big sale, or you are always suspicious of
people taking advantage of you, or you will not buy anything unless you get to
bargain until the last cent you deem deserved, that’s poverty mentality. If you
have been spiritually minded, you will have the confident that even if a loaf
of bread is going to cost you $100 one day, the Lord will still be able to
provide you a comfortable life.
Can you remember the time when you were
still under the care of your parent and didn’t have to worry what you are going
to eat the next day? Setting your mind and living in the Spirit will enable you
to experience the same kind of life, putting yourself under the direct care of
your Heavenly Father. You will be fed directly from your Father’s hand. It is
possible to grow old yet not worn out by the hardships and troubles of this
world. Start meditating and speaking Roman 8:5-6 to yourself and seeking the
Lord diligently today. Be set free from anxiety and get a life filled with the
peace of God. Have a great life!