The Plumbline

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. (Isaiah 41:10 NLT) Fear and discouragement are two very prominent emotions we must deal with. We may not want to admit we are fearful of some things, but when we take a look at the various emotions wrapped up when we face that 'thing', we might just realize the basis of our emotional upheaval began or ends with fear. It doesn't take long for fear to grip us, paralyzing us, holding us in place with discouragement following closely on its heels. The antidote to fear is faith - faith in something and someone bigger, stronger, and above anything we will ever or could ever fear. God holds us up when we face things beyond our ability to endure - he won't let discouragement waylay us for very long. He will keep working until we finally realize our source of discouragement isn't that 'thing', it is our be...

The person who shuns the bitter moments of friends will be an outsider at their celebrations. (Proverbs 14:10) Walter Winchell reminds us: "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Do you have this kind of a friendship with anyone? If you do, count yourself blessed; if you don't, it is high time you ask God to bless you with one! A true friend will never shun your bitter moments - they will love you through them. Yes, I said "through them" because that friend will not abandon you to your folly or your grief. "True friendship multiplies the good in life and divides its evils. Strive to have friends, for life without friends is like life on a desert island... to find one real friend in a lifetime is good fortune; to keep him is a blessing." (Baltasar Gracian) Multiplied blessings don't come because we 'do life' alone - they come because we do life in communion with one another. God never asked or expected his k...