red alert part 1
All of a sudden, the unthinkable has happened.
It started off as a
day like any other day but then without warning, a crisis situation
entered
your life and now you have to find a way to deal with it. It could be a
sudden
accident, an unexpected diagnosis, the loss of a loved one, or some
other
unforeseen emergency or event. What will you do in such situations? How
will
you handle it? What will your response be when the moment of
crisis
arrives in your
life?
Most people don't like to think about unpleasant things like
accidents and
emergencies. That's totally understandable. But the truth is that just
about
everyone will have to respond to some kind of crisis or emergency at
some time in
their life. The way that you deal with these crisis situations can tell
a lot
about who you are and what you really believe about God.
If you read through the Bible, you'll find that a lot of
really Godly people
had their own "moments of crisis" where they were forced into dealing
with unexpected events.
In the years before he became king, David and a group of his
men had split
away from
Now "home" for David and his men was a place called Ziklag. Ziklag
served as both a home city and military base for David and the men who
were
with him. Ziklag was a place where David, his men and their wives and
families
had been living for over a year, so things had become pretty
comfortable and
well established there. In fact, David and his men were probably
looking
forward to getting back to their homes and enjoying a little rest and
relaxation with their families.
But when David and his men returned home they made a horrible
discovery…
"Three
days later, when
David and his men arrived home at their city of Ziklag, they found that
the
Amalekites had raided the city and burned it to the ground, carrying
off all
the women and children. As David and his men looked at the ruins and
realized
what had happened to their families, they wept until they could weep no
more.
(David's two wives, Ahinoam and Abigail, were among those who had been
captured.)" (1 Samuel 30:1-5)
Think of the horrible realization that began to dawn on David
and his men- a
group of terrorists had come into their homes and destroyed
them. Their
families had disappeared and everything that they owned and worked for
had been
totally destroyed.
Now we're told in this passage that it was the Amalekites who were
responsible for
destroying this city. The Amalekites of David's time were a group
of
raiders and terrorists who attacked without being provoked and had no
problems
with killing large numbers of people. In this instance, they probably
moved
into the city without warning and caused tremendous destruction and
devastation
on the defenseless women and children who were left there.
So imagine this whole scene in your mind. The city is in a ruin, burnt
to the
ground. There's a heavy smell of smoke still in the air. There are
little
pockets of rubble still smoldering and areas where fires are still
burning. All
around, people are frantically searching for their loved ones, not
knowing if
they were dead or alive. As you can imagine, the effect of all this was
absolutely devastating on the men who remained. Many were angry. Some
even
wanted to kill David because of what had happened.
So what was David's response to this situation? What did he do when the
moment
of crisis suddenly arrived? Well, here's the answer...
"David
was seriously
worried, for in their bitter grief for their children, his men began
talking of
killing him. But David took strength from the Lord" (1 Samuel 30:6).
Did you catch that last part? When the moment of crisis came, David took strength from the Lord! So how did he do that? How did David find strength in the Lord and how can we find that same strength today? Well, The Doctor believes that a really good way to take strength from the Lord during a time of crisis is to stop and remember who God is.
For
example, what are some things that you know about God? Well if you're a
Christian, a few things should quickly come to mind...
God Is Truth - "Jesus
answered, 'I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'"
(John
14:6 NIV)
God is Love - "We
know how much God loves us
because we have felt his love and because we believe him when he tells
us that
he loves us dearly. God is love, and anyone who lives in love is living
with
God and God is living in him." (I John 4:16)
God Is All Knowing - "For
if our heart condemns us,
God is greater than our heart, and knows all things." (I John 3:20 NKJ)
God is All Powerful - "O
Lord God! You have made the
heavens and earth by your great power; nothing is too hard for you!"
(Jeremiah 32:17)
God Is Perfect - "As
for God, His way is perfect; the
word of the LORD is proven; he is a shield to all who trust in Him."
(Psalm 18:30 NKJ)
God Doesn't Change - "But
whatever is good and perfect
comes to us from God, the Creator of all light, and he shines forever
without
change or shadow." (James 1:17)
God Is Gracious - "But
you are merciful and gentle,
Lord, slow in getting angry, full of constant loving-kindness and of
truth..." (Psalm 86:15)
God Is Merciful
- "But God is so rich in
mercy; he loved us so much that even though we were spiritually dead
and doomed
by our sins, he gave us back our lives again when he raised Christ from
the
dead-- only by his undeserved favor have we ever been saved-- and
lifted us up
from the grave into glory along with Christ, where we sit with him in
the
heavenly realms-- all because of what Christ Jesus did." (Ephesians
2:4-6)
God Is Forgiving - "O
Lord, you are so good and kind,
so ready to forgive, so full of mercy for all who ask your aid." (Psalm
86:5)
God Has A
Plan - "You
intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is
now
being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20 NIV)
The Doctor is not a real doctor but he plays
one on the Internet. E-Mail prescriptions are also
available on an individual basis.
Except as indicated, all Scriptural references taken from The
Living Bible, © 1971, Tyndale House Publishers Back
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