What has happened when it appears as if everything has gone wrong? The economic collapse occurring on Wall Street reminds us of our dependency on the success of businesses in order to maintain the jobs to keep everybody working. When those who wish to work have jobs; they have money. When they have money they are able to buy both the necessities and the luxuries of life. What is the cause of the dry spell affecting not only the United States of America, but the entire world? The numbers of foreclosures have saturated the housing market. The long lines of the unemployed, inclusive of many who are overly qualified for remedial jobs, have reached astronomical proportions. The lack of income and the lack of jobs have set in motion a domino effect contributing to the increase in crime. The increase in crime places a need for added security measures to be taken. The threat of life and property create an environment of fear and anxieties. These among other factors make us fully aware that this is not the same world that we lived in just a few years ago.

 

When it becomes apparent that we are on a downward spiral of degeneration, the question that makes the most sense is, “what shall we do?” This question suggests that in spite of all that is happening, the only way for things to change is that we must change. If we are not a part of the solution, then we are a part of the problem. Merely to report or to lament over how terrible things are will not resolve anything. The information we are exposed to will be very depressing. A major contributor to depression is seeing the problems but standing along the roadside helpless to do anything about what we see. To be honest, only a very small portion of the dilemma is actually visible to you and if the entire truth was to be made known, many who appear to be sane would become suicidal, overwhelmed at the magnitude of the problems.

 

I was reading a devotional a few days ago, to paraphrase what was written it said, “Do not seek God in order to know the future. Why would you request from Him knowledge that would rob you of your faith? Seek to know Him, and trust the One who knows the future to lead us wherever He desires for us to go.”  This challenged me to fill my life with the knowledge of God where the knowledge of the future is absent. If you had all knowledge but no power it would not contribute to your preparedness. It would only place you in a state of having to prepare for the inevitable. It is like bracing oneself for the fall or for the pain that is about to be inflicted. Trust in God should not merely be a cliché used by the hyper-religious who know nothing about really pursuing Him. It must become the motto of our lives. How do we trust Him or how can we really know if in fact we trust Him? First acknowledge the fact that you do not trust Him as you ought. That is the hardest part against the pride of those who would much rather think they have already arrived. Then ask Him to reveal what He means by faith in contrast to your old opinions of trusting Him. The Holy Spirit can then and only then lead you into a new experience of trust and guidance through the crisis to which we must all face.