Power of Sitting on The Edge of Your Seat

Key Scripture:  “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow.  They neither toil nor spin.”  Matthew 6:28

Power Point:

I heard a message on TV this week by Joseph Prince. He was telling the story of a noted heart surgeon in the last century.  Quite by accident and by an unexpected source the surgeon was the first to discover that stress was a leading cause of heart disease.  The doctor had sent in some of his patient chairs to be reupholstered.  When the lady who had re-covered them brought them back to his office she asked him why the “edges” of the chairs were the parts that were worn out. In all the other chairs she re-covered they were worn at the back and in the middle. As he thought about it he realized that his patients were always on the “edge of their seats”.  As he began to look further he discovered that most people parked their cars in his parking lot “nose-in”.  His patients parked “nose-out” always ready for a fast getaway.

In the Old Testament the Amalekites were always snapping at the heels of the children of Israel. In one battle Joshua leads the battle against them at Rephidim. I tell you all that to tell you this. The word for “Amalekite” means “worrisome toil”.  The word for Rephidim means rest. Joshua defeated “worrisome toil” at the place of rest. Moses built an altar there and called it “The Lord Is My Banner”, Yahweh-Nissi.  The banner was where the armies would rally to fight. When it was lifted up the people knew they were to assemble there for further instructions. Moses knew that the place of rest was where the presence of God could be found.

Just as Joshua defeated the Amalekites at Rephidim, Jesus has defeated worrisome toil in our lives with His offer of rest. In Hebrews 4 we are cautioned for what I think is the one and only time to be very afraid of something. We’re told to be afraid if we do not enter into God’s rest. Why? Only true believers are able to enter that rest. If you find yourself “restless”, anxious, worried about many things, or driven to distraction then you have not entered into God’s rest. The author of Hebrews defines the cause of that as “not allowing the word you hear to profit you because you don’t mix it with faith in God.

Have you ever been there? You know that God has said something specific to you about your situation. He’s raised the banner in order to rally the troops and yet your faith seems to have dwindled to nothing and you find yourself without comfort and without confidence that He will do what He has promised. Your peace has passed.

Beloved, that’s the point where we need to take a step back and plant our feet firmly in the “rest” that Jesus has provided for us. Plant your feet on the solid ground of the Truth that sets you free so that the peace and rest that He died for you to have can blossom in your life. Worrisome toil only keeps you on the edge of your seat. Sit back and relax and know that your heavenly Father is taking wonderful care of you.

Power Thought:

Rest is our way of showing that we believe in Him.