Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. 1 Peter 5:7 AMP

Jesus said when you see signs of the end times do not be afraid, but instead “straighten up and lift up your heads” and “be on guard so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness [escapism methods] and the worries of life” (Luke 21:28, 34a). You may have lapsed into unbelief and fear, but Jesus’ mercy triumphs over judgment. You can destroy fear with faith and get back in your A-game.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

To cultivate a heart of confidence and trust in God, go to the Scriptures and get settled in God’s consistency. Read what King David wrote in the Psalms, or read about Caleb and Joshua, or study the early Church. The Bible is filled with men and women who continually referenced the faithfulness of God rather than the difficulties of their circumstances. In God, your thought processes can be redeemed and renewed. In God, you can overcome a spirit of fear and the vicious attacks of temptation. Use January as a month of fasting and prayer, a month of seeking God.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6

God has some stuff He wants to do through you—as an individual, in your family, through us as a church, through this generation—that you don’t have an inkling of right now. So keep trusting God. Make mid-course corrections, keep a humble heart, and keep standing. As you dial into how present and available God is, 2012 will become a year of stability, a year where you are fortified, rooted, and solid.

Because of Jesus it is a happy new year!
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2012 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Cast your burden on the Lord [releasing the weight of it] and He will sustain you; He will never allow the [consistently] righteous to be moved (made to slip, fall, or fail). Psalm 55:22 AMP

There is always the “day before the breakthrough”: the period of time when the weapons of mass distraction—anxiety, worry, lethargy—assail us. The devil loves to attack when we’re in these areas and times of uncertainty. But God is consistent. You can trust Him. As you read this, I pray that a spirit of faith will stir in your heart and you will be able to connect with just how faithful God is.

When you purpose to fulfill God’s plan for your life, you become a greater threat to the forces of darkness, so of course you are going to elicit a challenge. Any twig can float with the current. But the salmon swim upstream, over waterfalls and past grizzly bears, to reach their goal. Some of you are having a five-year challenge. Some of you wish it could have been just a five-year challenge because yours has stretched into a 20- or 30-year battle. But no matter how protracted your battle has been, God wants to see you through!

Most people who succeed in the face of seemingly impossible conditions are people who simply don’t know how to quit. Robert Schuller

Get specific. What is the primary thing bothering you right now? Take that item of worry and find corresponding promises in the Scriptures. Start speaking them over your situation. Go to God and trust Him to sort out that specific thing. No one else but God has the ability and inclination to care about your situation as if you’re the only person in the universe.

. . . Run in such a way that you may win. 1 Corinthians 9:24

Some of you are in the last phase of running your specific battle. Increase your expectation. Don’t drop off at 75 percent; stand for the next 25 percent! God knows the number of hairs on your head (Luke 12:7). He knows each item, each issue, and if you cast your cares on Him, He’ll work it all together for good (Romans 8:28).

God is faithful,
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2011 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. The Amplified Bible, Old Testament copyright © 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation and The Amplified, New Testament copyright © 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

God wants to pour out His strength on every moment of every day. Meditate on these verses and trust God!

Faithful is He who calls you but He will also bring it to pass. 1 Thessalonians 5:24

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

The people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.
Daniel 11:32b NKJV

Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength. Isaiah 40:31a

Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it. Psalm 37:5

But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul. Hebrews 10:39

I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. John 15:5

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

We learn to not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead. 2 Corinthians 1:9

This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him. 1 John 5:14-15

God Is Faithful!
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2011 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; He’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; He’ll always be there to help you come through it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 The Message

You can be fully persuaded by the fact that God is consistent and never changes. He will never let you down. Put your full confidence in God because He is trustworthy and He loves you. “You are My servant, I have chosen you and not rejected you. Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:9b-10).

• Trust in Him for strength. God doesn’t get worn out or tired. Lean on Him and draw from that eternal strength.
Trust in the Lord forever, for in God the Lord, we have an everlasting Rock. Isaiah 26:4

• Trust in Him for guidance. God’s GPS will never lead us wrong or guide us off a cliff. It will direct us through the battles and issues of life. He has answers corresponding to every situation.
Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it. Psalm 37:5

• Trust Him in the dark. God’s Word is a light to our path and we need fear no evil, even if we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. (Psalm 119:105; 23:4). Our God who has brought us this far will continue to bring us through.
Who is among you that fears the Lord, that obeys the voice of His servant, that walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God. Isaiah 50:10

• Trust in the Lord as a lifestyle. God is reliable beyond any other description of reliability. Victory doesn’t come so much from trying as it does from trusting. Trusting God in every area of our lives is how we will stay sustained in our relationships, get direction for life, and see a great harvest of souls!
Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah. Psalm 62:8

You can trust Him with your life.
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright ©2010 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9

God created us because He wanted to, and we are called to show how good He is in word and deed. But how can we do that unless we know the wonderful, praiseworthy things of our God?

Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things He does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! Psalm 103:2-5 NLT

God is our rock, our fortress, and our deliverer! He is our shield, salvation, and stronghold (Psalm 18:1-3). Go back into the Word and see who God is. Stir up your love and affection for Him. Be like David who gazed at God and only glanced at his problems.

O Lord, how my adversaries have increased! Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, “There is no deliverance for him in God.” Selah. But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head. Psalm 3:1-3

God has a hold on your life. Don’t ever imagine that you are out there alone, weak and frail. God’s grip is strong enough to hold on to you and never let go.

Trust Him.
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2010 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.