BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE HOPE IS IN THE LORD. Cursed is the one who trusts in Man, they will not see prosperity when it comes. Do not follow the way of people, do not fear what they fear.

Throughout the story of Moses and the Israelite’s, we find many lessons in trusting God. The Israelites complained and worried even though God miraculously saved them with mighty miracles. They easily forgot His power and ability to save them. Punishments for not trusting God ranged from plagues, death, war, sword, consumed by fire to the scariest ever – the ground swallowed them up (Numbers 16). Complaining and worrying is actually acting out in distrust to God.

In Numbers 14:28-35,  every complaint, worry and word of doom they spoke of, God made happen to them because they spoke it! Watch your words, don’t speak evil over yourself or anyone.

 So tell them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very thing I heard you say:  In this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me.  Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.  As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected.  But as for you, your bodies will fall in this wilderness.  Your children will be shepherds here for forty years, suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the wilderness.  For forty years—one year for each of the forty days you explored the land—you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.’  I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this wilderness; here they will die.”

The Israelites listened to an evil report and they believed it. God promised the people a new land but fear stuck the people and they didn’t trust God to carry out His promise.  Jeremiah 17 tells us that “CURSED IS THE ONE WHO TRUSTS IN MAN”. In Isaiah 8, the Lord tells Isaiah that he “is not to think like everyone else, do not fear what they fear nor dread what they dread, but instead fear the Lord God, it is He you should dread”. Cursed is the one who trusts in man………

Hear the Word of the Lord :

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Proverbs 18:21

From the fruit of their lips people enjoy good things,  but the unfaithful have an appetite for violence.3 Those who guard their lips preserve their lives,  but those who speak rashly will come to ruin. Proverbs 13:3-4

Sometimes when we hear “trust in God” we think it simply means that we believe in Him, but it’s much more. It also involves our actions, our thoughts, our words and our motives. It also means not allowing yourself to worry about tomorrow. Trusting in God extends to our health, our finances, our home and our tomorrows.  I like the way Psalm 131 puts it

 My heart is not proud, Lord, my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters  or things too wonderful for me.
But I have calmed and quieted myself,
I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content.

 There are times in our life when we are dealing with matters that are too great for us to bear. It is here were we can have the peace that surpasses all understanding (John 14:27 and Phil 4:7) because we have full faith that God knows our tomorrow. NO amount of worrying can change that. In fact, Jesus commanded us not to worry (Matthew 6:24). So don’t concern yourself with worrying about matters that are too great for you to bear, rest in the arms of your creator, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

When our world seems to be falling apart and the words of doom fill our heart and mind, we can easily feel hopeless. We are told not to trust in man’s words. Consider the Shumanite woman whose son died, there’s a true act of trust in God. Even thought her son was dead before her eyes, she fought on knowing to trust in her God.  There was a time that I felt like I had overwhelming troubles and I could see no hope ahead, I was listening to negative words around me. I cried out in my prayers to God about my situation and as I cried out to God, I saw a verse coming toward me out of the darkness.  It started off far away and so little that I didn’t know what it was, but as I watched these words come closer to me, I saw “Isaiah 51:12”

I, even I, am he who comforts you.   Who are you that you fear mere mortals,  human beings who are but grass,¹³ that you forget the Lord your Maker, who stretches out the heavens  and who lays the foundations of the earth,that you live in constant terror every day  because of the wrath of the oppressor, who is bent on destruction?For where is the wrath of the oppressor? The cowering prisoners will soon be set free;they will not die in their dungeon,  nor will they lack bread. For I am the Lord your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—the Lord Almighty is his name. I have put my words in your mouth  and covered you with the shadow of my hand—I who set the heavens in place,  who laid the foundations of the earth, and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’” Is. 51:12-16

 I immediately knew and understood that God did not want me listening to or believing bad reports of doom around me. God wanted me to trust in Him, He is the one I turn to, He is the One who comforts me. Why in the world would I fear man’s words – even if they make logical sense and seem right – when I have a great and mighty God who loves me and fights for me?  I needed to set my mind right. It’s easy to forget these truths if we aren’t in God’s word every day.  Remember His good works, remember His saving power and remember His love for you. Never forget and make a daily effort to remember God’s goodness.

 

 

•  CURSED IS THE ONE WHO TRUSTS IN MAN AND WHOSE HEART TURNS AWAY FROM THE LORD
  This is what the Lord says:“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,  who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord.6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;  they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert,   in a salt land where no one lives. Jeremiah 17:5-6
  
•  IT IS BETTER TO TAKE REFUGE IN THE LORD THAN TO TRUST IN PRINCES
  When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord; he brought me into a spacious place. The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.  What can mere mortals do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper.  I look in triumph on my enemies. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans. ⁹ It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. All the nations surrounded me, but in the name of the Lord I cut them down.  They surrounded me on every side, but in the name of the Lord I cut them down. They swarmed around me like bees, but they were consumed as quickly as burning thorns; in the name of the Lord I cut them down. I was pushed back and about to fall, but the Lord helped me. The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. Psalm 118:5-14
  
• BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE HOPE IS IN THE LORD
  Do not put your trust in princes,  in human beings, who cannot save.4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;  on that very day their plans come to nothing.5 Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob,  whose hope is in the Lord their God. Psa 146; 3-5
  
•  HUMAN HELP IS WORTHLESS
  Give us aid against the enemy, for human help is worthless. With God we will gain the victory,  and he will trample down our enemies. Psalm 60;11-12
  
•  DON’T GO ANYWHERE WITHOUT CONSULTING THE LORD FIRST
  “Woe to the obstinate children,”  declares the Lord,“to those who carry out plans that are not mine,  forming an alliance, but not by my Spirit,  heaping sin upon sin; who go down to Egypt  without consulting me;who look for help to Pharaoh’s protection,  to Egypt’s shade for refuge. But Pharaoh’s rotection will be to your shame,  Egypt’s shade will bring you disgrace. Isaiah 30:1-3
•  CONSULTING WITH MEDIUMS WILL LEAD YOU ALONG A DARK AND FEARFUL PATH
   When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? Consult God’s instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness. Isaiah 8;19-22
  
•  DO NOT FOLLOW THE WAY OF PEOPLE, DO NOT FEAR WHAT THEY FEAR
   This is what the Lord says to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people: “Do not call conspiracy everything this people calls a conspiracy; do not fear what they fear,  and do not dread it. The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread. Isaiah 8;11-13
  
• WOE TO THE ONE WHO DOES NOT SEEK HELP FROM THE LORD
  Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help,  who rely on horses,who trust in the multitude of their chariots  and in the great strength of their horsemen,but do not look to the Holy One of Israel,  or seek help from the Lord Is Jeremiah 31:1-2
• Ask God for wisdom  But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. James 1:6

 Don’t Worry

Don’t Complain

Don’t speak words of hopelessness, FEAR or doom
But instead trust in the Lord God, He is with you! Put all your hope in Him, you can trust in Him to deliver you. Wait on the Lord, Be silent before Him. Lift up your hands and Rejoice, for the Lord is coming to save you. Everything is going to be alright in Christ.

 

Don’t cower in fear when you hear words from man, watch the news, receive bad news or when your thoughts bring you to the “what if’s”. It’s important to trust God in all things, cast down all imaginations (that’s when your mind wanders- worst case scenarios), and also to fix your mind or make an effort to control what you think (Philippians 4;8). The devil can’t hear your thoughts, but he can throw lies and terror into your mind (those are the fiery darts).  Trust God and never give up the good fight of faith. Proclaim the name of Jesus on the Mountaintops and let your life honor the greatness of His name.

• Related articles:
  Fear of the Lord vs. the Fear of man, who do you fear?
• The shumanite woman, it is well, it is well 2 Kings
• Psalm 131 Calm Down
• Power of Words
• Faith can move mountains, how can I have this faith?
• What is grace and how can I be in God’s grace?