I know of many professed Christians who are just eaten up with worry, doubts, fears, anger, resentment – all of these negative things – and how sad it is.

Let us just consider a couple of them. (But perhaps all of these negative things are interrelated.) What would you say the other side of worry is? “After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.” Genesis 15:1. Fear?

Perhaps, for someone it is fearing that either they, or one of their loved ones, are going to come to some type of loss, and thus, they worry. But what can worry accomplish? Or maybe it is anger – anger is just the other side of fear. Anger is only for someone that has run out of words, as the saying goes. But I really think the other side of worry is actually complaining. “That our oxen may be strong to labour; that there be no breaking in, nor going out; that there be no complaining in our streets. Happy is that people, that is in such a case: yea, happy is that people, whose God is the LORD.” Psalm 144:14–15. They are always complaining about what someone has said about them, or done something to them, whether real or imagined.

Why does all of this have to go on? Why are we always so confrontational, so adversarial? Why do we harbour a complaining spirit? To me, it is interesting when, in the Bible, God contrasts happiness with complaining. Happiness is a form of courage also; it is when we decide NOT to complain, even though we feel that we have just cause to com

Then there are some people who thrive on constantly dwelling upon the faults of others – whether real or imagined. They seem to set themselves up as martyrs, always complaining of others who are against them – whether this is real or imagined, as well. Self is really at the root of all of our problems. All of these problems stem from not having a good relationship with our God, and therefore, we can’t have a good relationship with ourselves. Now, of course, our experience shows that the reality of man’s situation is that we all have fears. Job said, “For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me. I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet; yet trouble came.” Job 3:25–26

But his friend Eliphaz tells him something quite helpful. “Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Al-mighty: For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole.” Job 5:17–18. This is what we must trust in when we are afflicted. We must trust our case into the hands of God. Do you feel that you always have to guard yourself from mortification and insult? Maybe you are worried about this?

Many times E. G. White was attacked by those enemies of truth who didn’t like what she was teaching. How much time did E. G. White spend in self-justification? Or even explaining herself to others that were demanding an explanation?

Not very much time at all, for she said, if she would do that, she would be constantly answering the accusations and demands for an explanation, rather than doing the work that God had appointed her to do.

“Duty of All to Respect Self.–We must have a better and deeper teaching than man can give us. There must be a deep conviction in our own souls that forms and ceremonies are as nothing without Christ. He is the Alpha and Omega. Truth is the only panoply for the covering of any soul. Our convictions need daily to be rein-forced by humble, sincere prayer and reading of the Word. While we each have an individuality, while we each should hold our convictions firmly, we must hold them as God’s truth and in the strength which God imparts. If we do not, they will be wrung from our grasp.” –Daughters of God, p. 144

We have to hold our convictions firmly, in God’s strength, or they will be wrung from our grasp!

Now in contrast to this: “We need to be self-reliant; it is the duty of all to respect self; but we are to remember that we are God’s property, that we are bought with a price, body, soul, and spirit. We must guard the living machinery, and keep it in the very best condition, that we may glorify God. It is to be daily oiled by His grace, to run at His touch, without friction. To trust in ourselves, to become boastful as if we had created and redeemed ourselves, is to dishonor God. Human wisdom, aside from God, will prove itself to be foolishness, and will bring confusion and perplexity. We need to have on the whole armor of God. The holy influence of a Saviour’s loving protection is our sure defense. There is but One who can prove a safeguard against the schemes of Satan.” Daughters of God, p. 144 (emphasis mine).

Perhaps what is motivating this spirit of com-plaining and worry is actually guilt. Some are always under a horrible cloud of condemnation and guilt and what are we to do with this feeling? “This feeling of guiltiness must be laid at the foot of the cross of Calvary. The sense of sinfulness has poisoned the springs of life and of true happiness. Now Jesus says, ‘Lay it all on Me; I will take your sins. I will give you peace. Banish no longer your self-respect, for I have bought you with the price of My own blood. You are Mine. Your weakened will I will strengthen; your remorse for sin I will remove.’” –Daughters of God, p. 144 (emphasis mine)

A LETTER OF ENCOURAGEMENT

“WRITTEN TO MARTHA BOURDEAU, A WOMAN AF-FLICTED WITH FEELINGS OF SELF-DOUBT, DESPONDEN-CY, WORTHLESSNESS, AND DISCOURAGEMENT. *MARTHA BOURDEAU WAS THE YOUNGER SISTER OF GEORGE I. BUTLER, A PROMINENT LEADER IN THE SEV-ENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH. SHE WAS FIRST MAR-RIED TO WILLIAM ANDREWS, BROTHER OF J.M. AN-DREWS. THEY HAD THREE CHILDREN, AMONG WHOM WAS EDITH ANDREWS, WHO WOULD SOON DIE OF TU-BERCULOSIS. A.C. BOURDEAU WENT TO EUROPE IN 1884, AND MARTHA, NOW A WIDOW, MARRIED HIM. THEY LABORED TOGETHER IN ITALY.+

“Dear Sister Martha: We came here *Tramelan, Switzerland last Friday, and the Lord has given me some precious tokens for good. I spoke with much freedom to our brothers and sisters from Malachi 4:6. The Lord spoke to hearts. Abel Guenin, who has been discouraged for a long time and had taken no part in the meetings, broke down and confessed his wrong, his indifference, and his discouragements. Said he would no longer remain in the place he was then in. He would come into harmony with the church and do his duty in the fear of God. The tears ran down his face while he talked. His mother, *who+ has taken no part with the church and has been much prejudiced against anyone from America, spoke for the first time. She bore a good testimony.

“A young man, a baker employed by Oscar Roth, made a humble confession. The Spirit of the Lord was indeed in our meeting. A sweet melting power was there. After meeting, we had a praying season in Brother Roth’s house for the son of Brother Guenin. I prayed while Brother John Vuilleumier interpreted. The blessing of the Lord came in and the young man with tears running down his face shook hands with his sisters and con-fessed his wrongs. It was a precious season indeed. . . .

“My mind goes to you, Martha, in Torre Pellice *Italy+, and I believe that yourself and husband should attend the meeting of the conference. We want to see you, and we want to see you trusting fully in the precious Saviour. He loves you; He gave His life for you because He valued your soul. I had a dream not long since. I was going through a garden, and you were by my side. You kept saying, ‘Look at this unsightly shrub, this deformed tree, that poor stunted rosebush. This makes me feel bad, for they seem to represent my life and the relation I stand in before God.’ I thought a stately form walked just before us, and he said, ‘Gather the roses and the lilies and the pinks, and leave the thistles and unsightly shrubs, and bruise not the soul that Christ has in His choice keeping.’

“I awoke; I slept again and the same dream was repeat-ed. And I awoke and slept and the third time it was repeated. Now I want you to consider this and put away your distrust, your worrying, your fears. Look away from yourself to Jesus; look away from your husband to Jesus. God has spoken to you words of encouragement; grasp them, act upon them, walk by faith, and not by sight. ‘Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.’ Hebrews 11:1.” –Daughters of God, pp. 145–146

What is another word for faith? Trust, abiding confidence. “Jesus holds His hand beneath you. Jesus will not suffer the enemy to overcome you. Jesus will give you the victory. He has the virtue; He has the righteous-ness. You may look to yourself to find it and may well despair in doing this because it is not there. Jesus has it. It is yours by faith because you love God and keep His commandments.

“Do not listen to Satan’s lies, but recount God’s promises. Gather the roses and the lilies and the pinks. Talk of the promises of God. Talk faith. Trust in God, for He is your only hope. He is my only hope. I have tremendous battles with Satan’s temptations to discouragements, but I will not yield an inch. I will not give Satan an ad-vantage over my body or my mind.

“If you look to yourself, you will see only weakness. There is no Saviour there. You will find Jesus away from yourself. You must look and live; *look+ to Him who became sin for us, that we might be cleansed from sin and receive of Christ’s righteousness.

“Now, Martha, do not look to yourself but away to Jesus. Talk of His love, talk of His goodness, talk of His power, for He will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able to bear. But in Christ is our righteous-ness. Jesus makes up our deficiencies because He sees we cannot do it ourselves. While praying for you I see a soft light encompassing a hand stretched out to save you. God’s words are our credentials. We stand upon them. We love the truth. We love Jesus. Feelings are no evidence of God’s displeasure.

“Your life is precious in the sight of God. He has a work for you to do. It is not unfolded to you now, but just walk on trustingly without a single word, because this would grieve the dear Jesus and show that you were afraid to trust Him. Lay your hand in His; He is reaching over the battlements of heaven *for it+ to be laid confidingly in His. Oh, what love, what tender love has Jesus manifested in our behalf. The Bible promises are the pinks and the roses and the lilies in the garden of the Lord.

“Oh, how many walk a dark path, looking to the objectionable, unlovely things on either side of them, when a step higher are the flowers. They think they have no right to say they are children of God and lay hold on the promises set before them in the gospel, because they do not have the evidence of their acceptance with God. They go through painful struggles, afflicting their souls, as did Martin Luther to cast himself upon Christ’s righteousness.” –Daughters of God, pp. 146–147

“Memory’s hall should be hung with sacred pictures, with views of Jesus, with lessons of His truth, with revealing of His matchless charms. If memory’s hall were thus furnished, we would not look upon our lot as intolerable. We would not talk of the faults of others. Our souls would be full of Jesus and His love. We would not desire to dictate to the Lord the way that He should lead. We would love God supremely and our neighbor as ourselves. When the joy of the Lord is in the soul, you will not be able to repress it; you will want to tell others of the treasure you have found; you will speak of Jesus and His matchless charms. We should devote all to Him. Our minds should be educated to dwell upon those things that will glorify God; and if our mental powers are dedicated to God, our talents will improve, and we shall have more and more ability to render to the Master. We shall become channels of light to others.” –In Heavenly Places, p. 123 (emphasis mine)

Do you see how talking about the faults of others is related to all of this? What actually motivates the speaking of the faults of others?

Well, two things really, but it really comes down to one thing. As the reading says, we feel so bad about our-selves that we have to put others down, in order to ex-alt self and feel a little bit better about ourselves. (The other thing that I thought of at first was that we perceive others as better than us, so we have to bring them down a few notches, but as I say, it really comes down to one thing – that we feel so bad about our-selves.)

“‘Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?’ Matt. 6:25.

“While you do your best, weary not your body and mind with the cares of this life. Do not spoil your religious experience by worry, but trust the Lord to work for you and to do for you what you cannot do for your-self. The life is more than meat. . . .

“There is much needless worrying, much trouble of mind, over things that cannot be helped. The Lord would have His children put their trust fully in Him. Our Lord is a just and righteous God; His children should acknowledge His goodness and His justice in the large and small things of life. Those who cherish the spirit of worry and complaint are refusing to recognize His guiding hand.

“Needless anxiety is a foolish thing, and it hinders us from standing in a true position before God. When the Holy Spirit comes into the soul, there will be no desire to complain and murmur because we do not have everything we want. Rather, we will thank God from a full heart for the blessings that we have. . . .

“There is one blessing that all may have who seek for it in the right way. It is the Holy Spirit of God, and this is a blessing that brings all other blessings in its train. If we will come to God as little children, asking for His grace and power and salvation, not for our own uplifting, but that we may bring blessing to those around us, our petitions will not be denied. Then let us study the Word of God that we may know how to take hold of His promises and claim them as our own. Then we shall be happy.” –In Heavenly Places, p. 113

How can we be happy? By taking hold of the promises of God and claiming them as our own.

“Christ came to earth and gave His life that we might have eternal salvation. He wants to encircle each of us with the atmosphere of heaven, that we may give to the world an example that will honor the religion of Christ. . . . In this life we are to be controlled by the spirit that rules in the heavenly courts. Righteousness and truth are to go before us. And the glory of the Lord will be the rereward of all who serve Him acceptably. They obtain Christ’s righteousness.” –In Heavenly Places, p. 113

“For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.” Romans 15:4, 13

This is the experience that God wants for every one of us. He wants us to take all of our burdens and leave them at the foot of the cross; to acknowledge all of His goodness, even if we do have difficulties, and praise and thank Him, even in the midst of those difficulties. Then we can be happy and truly preparing for heaven.

Amen

Jerry Eaton