When I was growing up we watched cartoons on Saturday mornings. Schoolhouse Rock was one of those sing a long songs that would come on in between cartoons. I still remember it. It was a grammar jingle. “Conjunction, junction what’s their function, hooking up words and phrases and clauses." The little cartoon guy would say, "And, but, and or, they’ll get you pretty far. And, that’s an additive, like, this and that. But, that’s sort of the opposite, not this but that." If you you’re my age, I have y'all singing it, don’t I?
If we aren’t careful we will live behind the “but”, we’ll live under our circumstances instead of above them. We put the God stuff before the but and our circumstances or feelings after it. For instance, I know God loves me but it sure doesn’t feel like it, things aren’t going too good right now. If you’re living behind the but or in your circumstances then that’s where Satan’s got you. The only thing you can hope for is better circumstances and if they don’t change then we are up the creek.
Our belief system is behind the but. I love David because he writes from his heart. He’s real. He pours out his heart before the Lord, but he always puts things in the right perspective by the end of every Psalm. David allowed his trials to shape his perspective to live behind the but. Listen to what David says in Psalm 13.
1 How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? 2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? 3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; 4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved. 5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. 6 I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me. |
Jesus lived with the same mindset. Listen to his honest conversation with the Father while He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Jesus - “Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine be done”. Luke 22:42
We can express our raw emotions and feelings to the Lord. God gave us emotions and feelings as a means of communication and relating to each other, but we mustn’t live life from that point of view. We need to have a belief system in place so that when hard times come we have a solid system that we stand on because that’s where we operate our lives from. It will sound like this, “I’m in pain but Christ is my sufficiency. I’m sorrowful but God is my peace, I’m awfully weak right now but God is my strength."
How do we this? We can choose to stop believing the lies. The truth sets you free, but only when you learn to recognize the lies and replace them with God’s truth and his promises. Train your mind to think on the right things. Philippians 4:8 is a great life verse.
Ephesians 2:4-5
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Sharon Ingram
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