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Bible Study Notes, Cultural and Current Events

What I *Won’t* Do in the New Year

patricia grace
happy new year 2019

It’s the time for New Year’s Resolutions, which usually includes something you want to DO in the New Year. For now, I’ve formulated a list of actions that I want to keep from doing instead.

Chasing Sleep

Although sleeping too much is definitely something that I want to avoid, that’s not exactly what I mean here. Whenever I can’t sleep (a situation that occurs more often lately), I tend to just lie in bed for hours praying for sleep.

This habit isn’t helping me to rest and I’ve decided to just get out of bed when it happens. I keep fearing that if I get up and do something else then I won’t feel rested; however, lying in bed for hours mentally chasing sleep hasn’t helped me a bit!

Tweet from Paul Washer reads 3am...cannot sleep...One thing I have in common with the Apostle Paul. Many sleepless nights.

I’ve read that evangelist Ray Comfort has spent hours in prayer when he can’t sleep. And one of my favorite Bible teachers Paul Washer has reminded us that while Jesus was God in the flesh, He still sacrificed sleep and relied on His Father in prayer. (Luke 5:16, 6:12) We are made to need sleep, but we can sacrifice some bodily rest to receive spiritual rest and refreshing.

(If insomnia is a problem for you, you may want to read Ray’s book Overcoming Insomnia*. And for more on Paul Washer and prayer, check out his sermon on the I’ll Be Honest YouTube channel).

Failing to Submit

This resolution is not simply a good idea, a goal, or part of a life enhancement plan. Being submissive is a command of the Lord to all of His children, and I’m referring particularly to the command to wives to submit to their husbands.

 

…submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Ephesians 5:21 ESV

 

Immediately after writing the heading for this section, my resolve was tested. I enjoy my solitude, especially when writing, and my husband frequently interrupts with questions. Obeying the Lord’s command to serve my husband trumps my desire for quiet work, however, and this resolution is going to be the most difficult to fulfill. The Lord is worthy of my obedience and my husband, as a brother in Christ and fellow image bearer is worthy of my respect.

 

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.

Ephesians 5:22 ESV

 

We’re enjoying some new devices we received for Christmas, and he often has a million questions for me since I’m much further along in technology knowledge than he is. Instead of being grateful for these wonderful inventions, I am tempted to succumb to aggravation and an ungenerous spirit. Failing to submit is definitely something that needs to go.

Lack of discipline

My life is blessedly full. I have several self-paced online computer courses which I’ve undertaken, an active church membership, family obligations and events, along with a love of Bible study. The problem is that I float along from one task to another, often leaving projects unfinished. It’s well past time to do something about the lack of disciplined time management in my life.

With all the aforementioned technology tools, I have zero excuse. There are apps for time management, reminders, and event scheduling. And, whether or not I make use of technology to help, I have the gift of the Holy Spirit Who is a promised counselor and guide.

My first step after closing this article will be to take some time to actually schedule my day tomorrow, instead of lazily drifting into the stream of obligations with no plan or goal. With God’s help, I’ll be leaving a few sinful, bad habits in the past and greeting the New Year rested, submissive, and fruitful!

Bible Study Notes

Do not fret

patricia grace

After all the temptation to fret, once again, the Lord provided for all our needs.

In regards to my last post, my husband remembered another friend who used to attend our church who is an electrician. We found his office number and my husband had a nice conversation with the man. He is still attending church and came out to assess the situation the same day.

He needed to bury a new wire and told my husband that if he could dig a trench out, he could come back and hook up the new wire. Well, this accomplished two good things. One) It saved us money on having someone else do the digging and Two) we have old rotten deck boards that needed to be taken out anyway. So, my husband has gotten rid of those rotten boards in the process of getting our electrical repair sorted out. Blessings!

As of last week, the electrical issue with the sump pump is fixed. The yard is a mess and we need to put sod or new decking where all the digging was done, but the fearful fretting is over.

In the middle of all of this, before my husband had finished the trench and before the electrical work was done, our BSF (see https://www.bsfinternational.org/  for more information) study handout had this important reminder that jumped off the page at me:

Often, God uses times of waiting to teach His children that His presence is more precious than any answer or desired outcome.

BSF notes Lesson 11 People of the Promised Land

I thought, “Am I valuing God’s presence more than getting these home repairs done?” Maybe for the first time ever, I could honestly answer “Yes!” I want things to work properly, I want my husband to figure things out, I want folks to respond as they should, etc, etc, but my relationship to God is supremely important. More important than all of those other (good) desires.

I finally understood what people are talking about when they describe peace and happiness with the LORD even when their circumstances are less than ideal.

There are still little things that need done around the house. I wish all of them were completed and that the bank account could support hiring repairmen to complete them all. But, my emotional and spiritual health need not be wrecked by unfulfilled wishes. I can have a solid, settled peace whether or not these are done, all because my eternal soul is safe and I have a great future with the Savior of the world.

My newfound peace was tested again a couple of days ago, when I found that our homeowner’s insurance had quietly billed our mortgage company again, after more than doubling our premium. We’d received an email regarding a change in rating, but nothing else alerting us to a rate change. Again, the temptation to fret and carry a sinking feeling around with me threatened to rock my peace. But instead of giving in to fretting, I prayed and remembered the promises of God to sustain me and care for me.

In less than two days, after a quick quote from our auto policy provider that also offers homeowners insurance, I got a better policy with similar coverage. I’m hoping my mortgage escrow account can be readjusted soon as the former homeowner insurance double billing was now requiring over $200 more each month for our mortgage payments, starting next February. But, guess who’s not fretting as she waits for the mortgage company to sort all that out? Haha, you’re right if you guessed it’s me– THIS GIRL!

Bible Study Notes

Trials and Testings

patricia grace

The latest trial involves a needed home repair.

A few days ago, I noticed a puddle in the yard near the septic tank. Oh no. A sinking feeling in my stomach began. My husband didn’t really know what to do. I don’t know about septic systems (or electricity or plumbing, etc) and I had expected him to know more. That was most discouraging to me, that he didn’t more about what to do.

However, instead of doing my usual routine (fretting and doing internet searches on the problem and getting more and more upset when I can’t find solutions) I knelt and prayed.

As it turned out, the breaker to the pump had tripped. After resetting, all was well. It just came to my mind to check the breaker panel. I shared with my BSF Bible study on how I was learning not to fret so much, and how God had taken care of the situation. I had stopped to pray when I noticed the puddle, and tried hard not to let impatience and fear rise in my voice when trying to figure out what to do. I refrained from trying to take matters into my own hands (completing frustrating internet searches, emailing DIY forums or contractors in a frenzy) and lean on the Lord.

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I felt as though as I had taken a step forward in sanctification until yesterday. I was running the dish washer, and thought I would check the breaker panel again, just to make sure the pump switch hadn’t tripped again. (When I discovered the tripped breaker last time, I had been running both the dishwasher and the washing machine. We reasoned that maybe it was too much stress on the circuit. I am not sure now if that even makes sense — shows how little we know about circuits and electricity). Well, it was tripped again.

After resetting, my husband said he would get a replacement part for the breaker panel. But, before he could do that, I checked the panel again today, and noticed the breaker had tripped again! I wasn’t running anything either. I reset it but it keeps tripping.

Psalm 37:8 New International Version (NIV)

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;

do not fret—it leads only to evil.

So, the issue is not resolved and I am struggling not to fall into despair.

My husband didn’t do anything about it and wanted to attend a funeral this evening but says he will call his friend who is an electrician tomorrow. We haven’t had much success in the past with his “friends” and family members helping. He has friends or family in HVAC, fencing, electricity, and roofing, yet when we’ve needed help with these issues in the past, none provided help (or if they did help, it didn’t save us any time or money. One didn’t return a call for weeks). So, I’m not relieved yet.

I’m afraid to run water or flush toilets until this is resolved. I’m going through a list of past victories, how the Lord helped with repairs in the past, how He has provided, how I was able to get through trials and find peace again. It’s not helping as it should. I can’t seem to get out of this mud of despair. I feel so weighed down.

My mom suggested calling an uncle who is handy. He wasn’t sure if I needed an electrician or septic tech. When we bought this home, we did get a one year home warranty that covers many systems and appliances. We’ve already used it once for the air conditioning. That was a blessing, though it does cost $75 for each service request.

What is more stressing is that we paid several hundred dollars getting access covers and an alarm installed for the septic system. Well, we’ve discovered the alarm is on the same breaker (not even sure if I’m using these terms correctly) as the pump, so when the breaker tripped for the pump, the alarm doesn’t work! If I hadn’t seen the puddle in the yard, we wouldn’t have known there was a problem until junk backed up into the house!

So, this electrical problem has snowballed into me mulling over past decisions, questioning past actions: This home purchase, paying extra for the alarm and access covers, questioning my marriage too, as my husband doesn’t seem to know how to handle some home repairs. This fretting is frightening, disheartening, unsettling, and extremely discouraging.

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What prompted this post was that I wanted to start documenting how I get through trials to try to bolster my faith and keep me from so much discouragement during trials. I’ll post again on what happens. For tonight, I plan to keep praying, search the Scriptures, and go to bed early. Please help, Lord.