We were created to live in harmony--harmony with God and harmony with each other--in God's presence. Because we are separated from him, we fear. Even once we receive Christ and his Spirit dwells within us, his Spirit is only a deposit. We are not living in his manifest presence yet as he created us to.

For some of us, dealing with anxiety isn't really a choice considering it has to do with faulty brain chemistry and a lack of certain chemicals that ensure optimum function in our heads. But for others, there are actually some everyday things that we are doing that are causing us to deal with unnecessary anxiety.

Dear Rebecca and Burns,

I have a precious miniature long-haired dachshund who will be 18 and a half years old this month. After my husband’s battle with cancer, my daughter and I needed something to care for. She can't see, hear, chew anything large, walk or stand. While friends tell me to put her down, I refuse to do it out of inconvenience. Also, and most importantly, I don’t feel I should decide the day she Shouldn’t I let God decide when she has used up her last breath?

What would you do?

"Some people are so heavenly-minded that they are no earthly good." —Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.

You are envisioning an unlikely future.
You are missing out on countless precious moments.
You are rejecting God’s gift of today. You have no guarantee that you’ll get another day.

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It's no secret that many of us struggle with managing finances in our lives either because of comparison, lack of knowledge, or simply an apathy for tracking spending. However, in reality, it's important that as Christians we don't find ourselves in the position of having more month left than money.

I have stopped myself no less than five times from going on Amazon.com and ordering soap and hand sanitizer. I'll be honest with you, it's not because I need it, it's because I'm afraid of what the coronavirus is doing around the world.

I think if we're being honest, it has all of us reeling at some point or another. If you watch the news, you've been watching the coronavirus spread and panic rise and as I was thinking about this and praying about it this morning, I remembered the story of Job. If you look at Job 38:1, it says this, "Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm." When trials come, we tend to equate the presence of pain or fear with the absence of God, but nothing could be further from the truth. I'm asking the Lord what he wants me to hear in the middle of this storm and the sentence that keeps interrupting my thoughts is this: "His Word is still true." That's it. His Word is still true.

You see, his promises don't require a good report from the CDC and the strongest of storms do not nullify His provision. Psalm 139:5 says, "You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me." Is His hand removed because Kroger is out of hand sanitizer? Is His arm too short to pull us out of murky waters? God's word reminds us that he perceives us and follows us. He passes through every moment before we get there and He deposits sufficient grace for every trial. Even the really bad ones, the horrific ones, and even the ones that caused us to groan inwardly and more outwardly as we cry out for relief. But remember this, His Word is still true.

You know the Bible boldly and audaciously commands us not to fear not once, not twice, but over 365 times. "Do not fear", "fear not", and "do not be afraid" appear all throughout the Old & New Testament and for good reason. Philippians 4:6-7 says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

The last time I checked, anything includes everything, "but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God and the peace of God which transcends all understanding" including all viruses, all tornadoes, floods, explosions, power outages, soap shortages, and everything else that life can throw us will guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. His Word is still true. He is still speaking order out of chaos. He is still:

Comforter
Counselor
Helper
Healer
Storm Stopper
Water Walker
Waymaker
Pain Taker,
Sight Giver
Crowd Feeder
Thought Leader
Ear Opener
Sin Forgiver
Blessed Redeemer
Giant Killer
Mountain Mover
Shame Eraser
Death Slayer
Inheritance Sharer

He is still the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings and His word is still true. The coronavirus is nothing in the face of God.

Dear Rebecca and Burns,

My wife has always struggled with her weight. I love her just the way she is, by the way. She is trying a new diet and I want to support her in this, but here's the problem. She wants me to do it with her and I don't need to lose weight. What should I do?

If you are a fan of traveling and also like the benefit of living RENT-FREE in one of the most expensive cities in the world, look no further! New York City has a job opening in which many are claiming it to be the perfect job.

When we think about forgiveness, it is very hard to look past what we are doing for someone else to see how it really benefits us. It sounds like we're setting somebody free of conviction when in reality, the process of forgiveness has more to do with what it does inside of us.