Perhaps you know the story of Corrie ten Boom and how she and her sister were imprisoned during World War II for hiding Jewish people from the Nazis. Well, I have one last wise statement to give you, and this comes from Corrie. She said, “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strength.”

We all know that worry is useless and yet I dare say we all still worry, some of us more than others. And Corrie is so right—worrying just takes away your strength and your endurance. What or who is on your worry list today? How long have you been worrying about them or it? Has it helped? Are things any better because you are worrying?

Silly question—of course not. Yet this is a tendency all of us have—to just worry about most anything, and that takes us easily into the miserable what-ifs that I talked about earlier this week. Here’s what Jesus said about worrying:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. . .  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’. . .  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:25-31, 33-34).

This is a directive from Jesus: “Do not worry;” full stop! So that means when you worry, you are disobeying Jesus and believe me, that never ends well. Here’s what Jesus told us to do with our worrying situations:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30).

Exchange your worrying burden for Jesus’ light one. You may have to do it several times a day, but when you start to worry, stop in the middle, remind yourself that you are disobeying Jesus, and then by an act of faith—not feelings—leave your worry with Jesus and take his light one. It works, I promise. You just have to do it.

Never underestimate the danger of disobedience. That is my next wise statement for you—things that I’ve heard or read that I resonate with and I need. And this is certainly one of those.

For those of us who are raising or have raised children, one of our continual challenges was to teach our children that obeying us was for their good, not to make their lives miserable—right? But it is not typically a readily-understood principle as our children grow. They often have to learn by experience that there is danger in disobedience.

And how often does our God have to remind us as his children that there is great danger in store for us when we willfully disobey or disregard his principles. What looks so enticing to begin with or so innocent and harmless can take us into sin that cripples us and keeps us in bondage.

Here’s the truth: Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. You’ve heard it said that anything that is fun is either illegal, immoral or fattening. Well, that is so not true. Psalm 16:11 says: “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” It’s a lie from Satan that sin is fun and righteousness is boring. Satan is a liar and a very good one, and from the Garden of Eden to this day, he has lied about sin and its consequences. Sin is deceptive, destructive and deadly.

Yes, we have a forgiving God who is ready to forgive and restore us, but initial obedience is always better than asking for forgiveness later because the consequences of disobedience are still with you. You can choose your sin but you can’t choose its consequences.

So, is there some lingering sin in your life—some addiction—that has you in bondage? It looked so good at the beginning, so innocent, something you could handle for sure, but it hasn’t worked out that way. Proverbs 4:23 – 27 is really good advice:

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead;  fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.

Never underestimate the danger of disobedience. That is a wise word I hope you’ll remember.

This next wise statement is one I heard in a sermon recently, and it’s quite simple. You’ll probably find it unimpressive but think about it. The preacher said, “It’s no sacrifice when you get more than you give.”

He referred to this passage from Matthew 16:24 – 25:

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”

Jesus always made it clear that there is a price to pay to follow him. Maybe you can name some prices that you have paid because you have chosen to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Perhaps some rejection by family or friends; maybe some promotions have been denied you. Certainly, there are Christians in the world who suffer continual persecution and whose lives are in peril because they follow Jesus.

The enemy of your soul wants you to believe that to live for Jesus, you must give up so much. I just want to remind you that you can never truly sacrifice anything for our Lord because what you get back in return is so much greater.

There is nothing we can offer Jesus that compares to the peace he gives us. If you have given your life to Jesus, you have received his peace that passes understanding. Unreasonable peace, I call it. And then there’s hope. Eternal hope—full assurance that you will spend eternity with our Lord. Nothing you could ever give to Jesus could match this sure knowledge that your future is secure. And joy—unfailing joy even in the midst of troubles or suffering—the joy that Jesus gives us—how could you ever put a price tag on that inward joy that comes from knowing Jesus.

So, my simple message is to remember that you can never sacrifice anything for Jesus—not in the true sense of giving up more than you get. That’s because any little or big thing you may give up for Jesus is overwhelmingly repaid with the gifts that he gives you in exchange.

So, don’t let the enemy lie to you and make you think you’ve sacrificed for Jesus. Jesus gave his life for you so that you could have life to the full—full of peace and hope and joy no matter what. You can’t call it a sacrifice if you get more than you give.

Recently in a prayer meeting with some sisters in Christ, one of my friends prayed, “Lord, Satan wants to put us into the what-ifs.” That stuck with me, and it’s one of my five wise statements.

Have you ever been stuck in the “what-ifs”? This is what James referred to when he wrote:

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  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. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do (James 1:5 – 8).

You may ask God for wisdom, but if you are doubting when you ask, you should not expect God to give you wisdom. That’s what James tells us, and he describes people who doubt as being blown and tossed and unstable in all they do.

That’s what the what-ifs will do to you. One day you think you should do one thing; the next day you doubt if that is the right thing to do. Back and forth and back and forth—blown and tossed by fear. And you know that fear comes straight from Satan because God never gives us a spirit of fear. I repeat: Satan wants to put you into the what-ifs.

Another way the what-ifs work is to cause you to live in fear of what may or may not happen. So, you allow your mind to focus on those what-ifs instead of bringing your thoughts into captivity and thinking about things that are good and true, and soon you are stuck in that fear, worrying about the unknown, imagining the worst, and Satan is more than happy to leave you there.

Are you tired of living in the what-ifs? If so, here’s what you do: Cast all your care on the Lord because he cares for you, and leave them there, even if you must do that many times a day. And if you’re stuck in the what-ifs of some decision you need to make, seek godly wisdom, pray much, do your due diligence, and then take the first step out of the what-ifs and by faith, trust God’s wisdom in you.

God doesn’t want his children who have been set free from the bondage of sin to be trapped in the what-ifs. Is not a good place to be.

I want to share five wise statements with you. Each of these are things I’ve heard or read and they stuck with me. They make me think about my priorities and my time management and they reinforce some disciplines I need in my life, so I thought they might be helpful to you as well.

I heard a preacher say this recently: Kill complacency or it will kill you. Short and pithy—but oh so true. Complacency can be a killer. Complacency is not laziness, although if you are complacent, it could cause you to be lazy. But rather a complacent person is a self-satisfied person. When you are complacent you can be rather smug and uncritical of yourself.

The Apostle Paul wrote to young Timothy:

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline (2Timothy 1:6-7).

The reason that Paul referred to was Timothy’s heritage. His mother and grandmother had fostered Timothy’s faith because of their sincere faith and now Paul was mentoring him and advising him. And he reminds Timothy not to be complacent. He notes that God had gifted him but it was his job to fan that gift into a flame.

Years ago, I wrote this passage in my prayer journal and began to pray that God would show me how to fan into a flame the gift of God in me. To not be satisfied with just being okay; to not settle for getting by. But to refuse to be complacent and content where I was in my spiritual growth.

If you’ve been born again, you’ve been given the Spirit of God indwelling you, and that Spirit gives you power, love and self-discipline. Self-discipline is a fruit of the Spirit and when you are self-disciplined, you will not be complacent.

So, my first wise thought is: Kill complacency or it will kill you. It will kill your self-discipline, your love for God and others and it will kill God’s power in you. Rather, fan into a flame the gift of God in you—whatever it is. Get better at it all the time. Kill complacency or it will kill you.

As followers of Jesus I think one of the biggest challenges we face, and one I can certainly come up against, is knowing and remembering how God sees you, how he feels about you and what God thinks about you. And when I say know, I am not talking about just intellectual or head knowledge, but really believing what God has declared about you. If you have been following Jesus for any length of time and you have read the Bible, I am pretty certain you have head knowledge about what God says about you through his Word. You may even be able to recite verses. But there is a huge difference between knowing what God says and receiving it, believing him, and living like it’s true!

When you don’t live from the truth that God has already spoken about you, it causes a whole lot of problems. It keeps you from living the life that Christ died to give you. Your life hinges on what you believe. And Jesus says in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” You simply cannot live the full and abundant life in Jesus if you don’t realize, fully receive, embrace, and strive to take hold of what your identity is in Christ. And throughout your lifetime on earth this will be one of the biggest battles you and I face, which means we need daily reminders.

As you remind yourself and re-ground your identity with the authority of God’s Word, the bottom line is this: It is God who has the first and final say on who you are. Your past does not get the final say.

What a parent or teacher said about you when you were a kid does not get the final say.

Anything you have done or anything that has been done to you does not define you and does not get the final say. Your failure, your sin, your successes, circumstances do not get the final say. Your thoughts about yourself, and what others say about you do not get the final say. What the culture tries to get you to believe about yourself and conform to does not get the final say.

None of these voices have any authority in or power over your life. Because as a follower of Jesus you are a child of God, and you were made in the image of a holy God.

All too often we can let our past, our circumstances, other people’s judgements or perspectives of us dictate who we are. While harsh, cruel and mean words may have been spoken over you or your past may be less than picture perfect, they don’t define you. And I declare right now that in the name of Jesus every word that does not align with the living and active Word of God has lost its power over you.

As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” When Paul writes these words in his letter to the believers in Corinth it is a strong exhortation, a warning that any and every teaching, word, or thought that does not align with God’s thoughts are to be torn down, held captive, submitted to and brought under the authority of Jesus. So when your thoughts, someone’s thoughts about you, or the world’s thoughts are not in agreement with your creator, the Lord God almighty himself, it is time to take action. Ask yourself, “Am I getting captured by my thoughts or am I taking my thoughts captive?” Your thoughts, consciously and unconsciously, will take root in your mind and heart unless you take them captive and cancel them out, replacing them with truth.

The other day I had a conversation with someone who had some pretty unkind things to say to me and when the call ended I felt an overwhelming sense of shame. Her words caused me to really doubt my skills. I felt like a failure. My mind started a downward spiral as I began to question my gifts and my calling. This 45-minute conversation jolted me and put my confidence on shaky ground. I allowed her opinions to have power over me and inf...

I’ve been passing along some life lessons that God has taught me—and is still teaching me.  You know, one of the characteristics of a godly, truly humble person is to be continually teachable.

Life Lesson No. 9: When you’re facing what seems like a disaster, ask yourself, “What difference will this make tomorrow—in five years—in eternity?”

This is a principle God began to teach me years ago—to have an eternal perspective, to see everything through “Forever Eyes.” Learning to live now in the light of eternity is one of the most life-changing things you will ever do. But I warn you, you have to be intentional about it and you have to work at it every day.

We so easily lose a realistic perspective when something is affecting us personally. Our emotions get all involved and we blow things out of proportion and we get very stressed over things that don’t really matter. In fact, I find that about 80% of what is bothering me at any given moment won’t even matter in 24 hours, much less five years!

Now obviously, there are times when we do face substantive disasters, but those are very few and far between, as a rule. And if we can learn to let go of all the stuff that doesn’t matter, we’ll be far better prepared to deal with the true trials that come our way. I strongly encourage you to put this life lesson into practice in your own life. Believe me, it will make a difference.

Life Lesson No. 10: When God gives you a passion, go for it!

If you want to be a speaker, look for opportunities to speak. If you want to be a writer, start writing. If you have a passion to be a counselor, figure out how to get the education you need and start. Don’t wait for someone to open the doors for you; if it’s a God-given passion, just somehow, someway go for it.

When God gave me a passion to start this radio ministry over thirty years ago, I had no idea how to start. I had no connections, no experience, no mentor. But I decided that I could no longer ignore that passion, and after much prayer, I determined to find out how to start a radio program. Once I stepped out on faith, God began to open the doors, and God has sustained us all these years. Don’t ignore God’s passions in your heart; don’t be afraid to take the next step and see what God wants to do.

I’m sharing some life lessons with you. I’m sure you’ve learned some valuable lessons in your own life, and it might be good to write them down somewhere. I’ve shared six of my life lessons so far, and here are the next two.

Life Lesson No. 7: Believe it or not, you’re not indispensable. Life will go on without you.

I remember some years ago when I was directing the handbell choir at our church. I loved it, and the church seemed to really love hearing the handbells. Then after I began this ministry my life became so busy that I realized I had to give it up.

I thought, “Oh, dear, the handbell choir will be no more because they won’t have me as their leader.” Wrong! The handbell choir is much bigger now, much better, and they have a director who is far more experienced and talented at handbells than I am! I was not indispensable. And indeed by stepping aside, I gave someone else an opportunity to use their gifts in the church.

So, don’t be afraid to let go; others can pick up the ball and carry on even without you! There’s only one person in control of the universe, and it’s not you!

Life Lesson No. 8: Don’t be afraid to ask. The worse they can say is “no.”

James wrote, “You do not have, because you do not ask God” (James 4:2b). And Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened” (Luke 11:9-10).

I could tell you many stories of situations where I’ve just revved up my nerve and asked for something which seemed impossible, and I got it simply because I asked. Obviously I’m not talking about asking for things for myself, but asking for appropriate things for the ministry or for others. I don’t find it easy to ask. I really have to make myself do it, because I either get intimidated or I think it will appear inappropriate, or in many cases, I just don’t want to humble myself and ask. But I’ve learned that many times people want to be asked and enjoy giving.

Those of us who are parents know how we love for our children—even the grown ones—to ask us to help them, in moderation, of course. So, don’t be afraid to ask. Even if you are turned down, you’re no worse off! As James said, often we don’t have simply because we’re afraid to ask.

What lessons has life taught you? I’m sharing ten life lessons I’ve learned—and am still learning!

Life Lesson No. 5: Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

I often remind myself that people aren’t thinking about me nearly as much as I think they’re thinking about me! Isn’t it true that we often put ourselves under unnecessary stress by just taking ourselves too seriously! We worry about what others will think of us and that can become an obsession.

Here’s the secret: Make it your passion to care very much about what God thinks about you. Pray daily that God will grow you into the mature Christian he wants you to be. Let God’s Word reveal areas in your life that need changing, and then by God’s grace, work on them. Care very much about what God thinks about you.

But stop worrying about what others think about you. Stop imagining what they’re thinking or saying. First of all, you’ll never please everyone, no matter how hard you try. And secondly, have you ever thought about how wrong it is to care more about what other people think of you than you do about what God thinks about you? Remember, it’s not all about you; it’s all about God and what he wants to do with your life. So, don’t take yourself so seriously.

Life Lesson No. 6: Make every day a special occasion: burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the new shoes.

How many things do you have tucked away, saving them for a special occasion? Recently I found some beautiful soap someone had given me, probably years ago, and I had put it away for a “special occasion,” and now it was so old and hard that it wasn’t really useful. I think my mother taught me to “save things for special occasions.” She was raised during the depression, and when she got something nice, she just had a tendency to squirrel it away rather than use it and enjoy it.

You’ve heard people say, “Life’s short; eat dessert first.” Well, life is short, and while we need to be frugal and saving, we also need to celebrate life and enjoy the good things God has given us. We need to make our everyday lives special and teach this to our children as well. Paul wrote to Timothy that God “richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (1 Timothy 6:17b).

So, make today special. Tomorrow is not promised to you, so enjoy today.

Life does teach us some lessons, does it not? I’m sharing ten life lessons that God has taught me along the way.

Life Lesson No. 3: Pay off your credit cards every month.

Financial troubles affect every area of our lives, and most people’s financial troubles begin with that plastic card. The credit card companies make it easier and easier for us to get a card and then they do everything to encourage us to use it, and then just pay the minimum each month. That is a recipe for financial disaster.

Could it be that you are in financial trouble now because you’ve got so much credit card debt? What do you do? First, stop using that credit card. Look at where your money is going and eliminate those things you don’t absolutely have to have. Then stop buying things you really don’t need until you have paid off those credit cards. And believe me, we all need a lot less than we think we do.

Credit cards are convenient, especially for travel, but I’ve had a rule for years that I must pay off my credit card bill every month. I just refuse to pay any interest. That puts controls on what I spend. One of the biggest favors you can do for yourself is to wipe out that credit card debt and then pay it off in full every month.

Life Lesson No. 4: Save something from every paycheck.

Frankly, I have not followed this principle all my life; I wish I had. But it’s never too late, and I practice this faithfully now. The secret is to have money taken out of your paycheck or your checking account every month—before you see it. I don’t care how small it is, make yourself start the habit of saving some money out of every paycheck, and put that money in an account that you don’t touch. Just forget it’s there.

Financial experts tell us we should save enough money to cover six months of expenses for emergencies. Now, it may take you awhile to get there, but you’ll never get there if you don’t start. So, make yourself begin with your next paycheck to save some money, and teach this principle to your children. Of course, giving to God is the first thing we should do with our paychecks. He should get the firstfruits of everything he has given to us, and ten percent is a good standard to use.

You know, the Bible has more to say about money than almost any other topic. That’s because where our money is indicates where our heart is! I promise you, if you will pray about this and get serious about getting your financial house in order, it will take so much stress and strain out of your life. I encourage you to do it.