Does anybody ever worry or have anxiety? Worry and anxiety are completely unproductive and will only wear us out. In Psalm 23 we read: “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul (Psalm 23:1-3a; NKJV). That speaks of peace and tranquility. It is the devil that comes: “to steal, kill and to destroy (John 10:10; NKJV). He wants to steal our peace and destroy that tranquility. Jesus defeated satan and took back all power and authority from him (Col 2:15; 1 Cor 15:57) and we as Christians walk in Christ’s victory and authority over satan. James, the brother of Jesus said we could “resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7a). We resist the devil by reminding him of God’s promises for us and refusing to receive his thoughts and imaginations.
In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus told us not to worry but to focus on Him and He would take care of all of our needs. The apostle Peter exhorted us to cast every care over on God because He cares for each one of us (1 Peter 5:7). That does not mean cast our cares on Him in the morning but then pick them up and worry later in the day! It means give all your worries and anxiety to God all of the time! “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You. Because he trusts in You (Isa 26:3; NKJV). Do we get the picture?
“He saved us not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but because of His own pity and mercy” (Titus 3:5 AMPC). Where would we be without the mercy of God? It is the mercy of God that gives us forgiveness of sin. The Greek word for mercy is
“eleos”; it means compassion, feeling sympathy for someone but also doing something about it. Jesus was moved with compassion to feed the thousands and heal the sick as we read in the gospels, “but when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them…” (Matt 9:36; NKJV).
However, Jesus wants us to be merciful too, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice” (Matt 9:3; NKJV). Jesus quoted this from Hosea 6:6 in the Old Testament. In other words, God is more interested in us showing mercy and compassion towards others than doing religious performance which does not come from the heart. As we have received so much mercy from God, the least we can do is share that with others.
I’m sure you are familiar with the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:29-37. It is a great example of someone showing mercy to others. Jesus said “Go and constantly do the same” (Luke 10:37; AMP). Enough said!
Proverbs 21:10-31 was written a long time ago but the principles are timeless. So what can we learn from this woman? The word virtuous” can be translated: noble, capable, excellent, good or worthy. We see from the second half of verse 10 that
she was a “rare gem”. She comforts, encourages and does her husband only good (v 12). Ladies, our husbands need our praise and encouragement not our nagging!! (See Prov 27:15). Notice that she does him good all the days of her life (she is consistent).
We learn from verse 13 and several other verses that she works hard, work is not a dirty word for her! It also says she works willingly; she doesn’t complain. Along the same lines we see that she is not lazy (V 15,21,27), she gets up early to pray and provide spiritually and physically for her household. We are told that she uses wisdom in financial matters (v 16) and also speaks wisely (v 26). It’s already been stated that she makes a priority of her spiritual life but she is also developing her physical strength (v 17); this requires discipline and being intentional. She is prepared for the future (v 18,25) and is kind and generous (v 20,26). She is clothed with strength and dignity (v 24); these attributes come from within and develop over time.
What is the secret to her success which causes the Holy Spirit to dedicate almost the whole of one chapter of the Bible to this woman? The answer is found in verse 30, she fears the Lord! We all know only too well that outward beauty does not last but inward beauty which comes from our relationship with God lasts forever!