GOSPEL CORNER : WE’RE ALL AWARE OF THE DAMAGE THAT TOXIC WASTE SITES DO TO THE SOIL, THE WATER, THE AIR, AND THE PEOPLE NEARBY. NEGATIVE EMOTIONS ARE LIKE THAT. YOU CAN’T BURY THE ANGER, THE HURT, THE REJECTION, OR THE BETRAYAL INSIDE AND THINK IT’S NOT GOING TO CONTAMINATE AND POISON YOU. 

30/12/23

JOEL OSTEEN MINISTRIES
Today’s Word

Today’s Scripture
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32, NIV

DON’T BOTTLE IT UP
We’re all aware of the damage that toxic waste sites do to the soil, the water, the air, and the people nearby. Negative emotions are like that. You can’t bury the anger, the hurt, the rejection, or the betrayal inside and think it’s not going to contaminate and poison you. When you bottle up negative emotions, they never die and they always leak out and resurface. At some point that poison will contaminate not just your dreams, your attitude, and your vision, but it will poison your relationship with the people in your life. It will drain out your joy, your peace, your creativity.

The good news is that you can get that toxic waste out of you. Don’t bottle up the bitterness, the guilt, or the resentment. Let it go. You have to forgive and release the person and give what happened to you to God. It wasn’t right what they did, but you’re forgiving so you can be free. You’re letting it go so you can see beauty for the ashes. This is your time to be free.

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You that I can prevent my life from becoming a toxic waste site of negative emotions. Show me if there is anything that is causing me to be bitter or resentful, and help me to forgive any person who hurt me and to release to You what happened. In Jesus’ Name, Amenec

SECTION TWO
It gives me such assurance to know that the Lord can deliver us from trouble. But do you know what’s better than being delivered from trouble?

Not getting into trouble in the first place.

My dear reader, don’t just seek miracles and protection from God without seeking the wisdom from Him to stay protected and out of trouble. There are times when the challenges that we face are beyond our control. But I’ve found that often, we experience His protection when we follow the Holy Spirit and lean on His wisdom when making decisions.

Every day, we need His wisdom, just as we need His protection. After all, Proverbs 4:7 tells us that “wisdom is the principal thing,” and in all our getting, we need to get wisdom.

The Bible tells us that Christ has become for us wisdom from God (1 Cor. 1:30). So what we really need is the Lord Jesus. We need to lean on Him and draw close to Him daily.

He is our wisdom and only He can cause us to always be at the right place at the right time. I believe that many troubles and dangerous situations can be completely avoided when we don’t depend on our own wisdom and planning, but involve the Lord in all that we do (Prov. 3:6).

Oftentimes, wisdom and divine protection work hand in hand. Knowing that we can trust God for His protection certainly does not mean that we should willfully put ourselves in precarious situations.

We need to apply wisdom and heed the Lord’s leading through the wise counsel of the people around us, such as our leaders in the local church and our spouses. Proverbs 11:14 tells us, “Where there is no counsel, the people fall; but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.” For instance, if your spouse has been telling you that you have a problem with speeding, please take heed.

While there can be divine protection, do not be foolish and think that you can do whatever you want and nothing untoward will ever happen to you. I pray that as you involve the Lord and learn to walk in wisdom, you’ll begin to walk in a greater measure of peace, protection, and good success.