Basic Truths | Finding God in Everyday Life

  I was working on my golf game the other day. I had to focus on keeping my head down and my eye on the ball through the swing.  Many other sports require you to keep your eye on the ball. We’ve all seen the wide receiver drop the football because he was looking where to run or the infielder misplay the baseball because he was looking to see where he should throw it.   We need to keep our eyes focused on what is important spiritually. As Christians, we should always be looking towards God. When we get distracted and begin to look at our problems or needs or plans, we can find ourselves sinking like Peter, who was able to walk on the water when his eyes were fixed on Jesus but began to sink when he started to look at the waves around him.   Jesus told His disciples, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothes…..For the pagan world runs after all such things,...

  There are few things that make me more miserable than having to be outside in a cold rain.   I can think of a few outdoor events that I have been to that didn’t allow umbrellas. I remember feeling dismally depressed, counting down the hours until I could be warm and dry again.   We all wish that the good works we do for God will leave us feeling happy and energized. The fact of the matter is that sometimes we may be called to do difficult tasks for which we do not get a lot of immediate positive feedback. We may feel spiritually wet, cold, and tired and feel guilty for feeling that way. When this happens, we need to remind ourselves that it’s OK to be in that place as long as we don’t stay there. Ask God for an extra special measure of His grace and comfort. Remind yourself that, one day, when the Master returns, He will say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and share your master’s happiness” (Mt 25:21).   “Consider it pure joy, my brother...

  I swim like a rock. I learned how to swim when I was a kid but I was never very good at it. I knew the mechanics of swimming but I could never convince myself to go out into deep water because I didn’t have the confidence that I could stay afloat.   We see people throughout the Bible who had to step out in faith, trusting that God would keep them afloat. The widow of Zarephath was down to the last meal for her and her son before they starved, yet she prepared some bread for Elijah and God provided food for them to last until the drought was over. Jesus commended the widow who put her last two coins into the temple treasury. Nothing is said in the gospels about what eventually happened to the widow but I believe that God provided for her in view of Jesus’ remarks.   We need to be ready to step out in faith when God calls us to do so. We can do it confidently only if we are staying close to Him and remaining open to hearing Him speak to us. The more times we go ou...

  As a doctor, I occasionally get frustrated when one of my patients follows up with me and says that they aren’t feeling any better, but they never took the medicine that I prescribed for them to deal with their problem.   Studies have shown that one-third to one-half of all prescriptions are either not filled or not taken as they were prescribed. Sometimes the problem is simply that the medication is too expensive but other times people don’t believe that the medicine will help them or misunderstand what it was given for or are worried about possible side effects. Some people don’t trust the doctor who prescribed the medicine.   We will face many problems over the course of our lives in a whole range of issues – physical, personal, marital, financial, social, and spiritual. God loves us with an infinite love that insists that He help us with our problems. We can and should come to God with our problems. If we are asking God to guide us in knowing what to do, we need...

  Those of you who know me know that I am particular about my work clothes. I always want to look like a doctor when I’m working. No casual Fridays for me! When I go into the exam room of someone that I am not well-acquainted with, the first thing I say is “Hi, I’m Dr. Yarmchuk”. Despite that, occasionally a patient asks me after awhile if I’m the nurse, the medical assistant, or someone else. I feel bad when that happens because I feel that I haven’t been clear enough by my actions for them to know who I am.   John the Baptist was a very self-aware individual. When the Pharisees came asking him who he was, John had a ready answer,  that he was a voice crying in the wilderness to prepare the way for the Lord. Knowing who he was made it easier for him to know what he needed to do. He also knew his place, with humility stating that he was unworthy even to unfasten the sandal of his Lord.   We need to stop once in awhile and remember who we are. We are, first and foremo...

  I’ve noticed that I have more difficulty maintaining my balance as I’ve gotten older. Fortunately I’ve only fallen a few times but I always have to be careful. It may not be as readily noticeable but it is easy for our lives to get out of balance. We may find that we have gotten so wrapped up in something that it distracts us and detracts from the rest of our lives. It may even be something worthy like serving in the church or doing some other charitable work. We may feel guilty about taking time away to do other things.   A life out of balance can cause us to fall just as easily as a physical loss of balance. If you are chronically feeling overwhelmed and exhausted due to your activities, you may not be following God’s plan for your life. We should stop once in awhile to see how well-balanced our lives are and pray about it. Psalm 127 advises us, “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain….In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to e...

  I’m not a very patient person by nature. I don’t like to wait in line or in traffic or most other places. I suspect my wife thinks that the only time I’ve ever been willing to wait was in asking her to marry me (but that’s old news!). I’ve been getting a little better since I retired and the pace of my life has gotten slower. It’s still an issue that I need to pray about at times.   Jesus told His disciples before His ascension not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for the gift that the Father was to give them. There are several other places in the Bible where believers are told to wait. In our modern-day society, we often find it hard to wait. We feel that we should be doing something now. When God calls us to wait , it’s as if He has placed a great weight upon us.   We need to remember that God exists outside of time. The whole tapestry of our lives from beginning to end is laid before Him. Given His knowledge and infinite love, we can and should expect Him to k...

  Our cat is something of a wimp. He lets the other cats in the neighborhood chase him up a tree or up onto our roof. We’ll look out the back window and see Shadow up the tree with another cat sitting at the base of the tree standing guard. My job is to shoo the other cat away and convince Shadow to come down. Once I’m there, Shadow will usually get his courage up and come down and stay with me in the yard or go back into the house.   Sometimes we let our problems get the better of us, making us nervous and possibly even anxious. We may even get upset at ourselves for letting our problems “chase us up the tree”.   We need to remember that God is with us. The creator of the universe is bigger than any problem you or I will ever encounter and He loves us so much that He greatly desires to help us.   If you struggle to cope with your problems, you might want to consider putting up a reminder for yourself somewhere that “God Is Bigger”.   Let it be a reminder to...

  I learned to play golf when I was a kid. I eventually got to be fairly good at it. One lesson I learned was that, when getting ready to hit the ball, you need to visualize hitting the shot you want. If you focus on what you are trying not to do, your ball will likely end up in the water, the woods, or the sand.   Your expectation drives your action.   As I’ve said before, I think that certain passages in the Bible are meant to appeal to our sense of humor. In Acts, we read that the believers were praying for Peter after he had been arrested by Herod. Then an angel comes and frees Peter from prison! When Peter comes to the home where the believers were praying for him, a servant girl answered the door. She ran upstairs to tell everyone that Peter was at the door. Did they rejoice at the news? No, they told her, “You’re out of your mind”.     We shouldn’t be surprised when God answers our prayers. Our God loves us and delights in doing good for us. We c...