WHEN DUTIES OVERWHELM

 

Monday, October 12, 2026

WHEN DUTIES OVERWHELM

Matt 14:14

14 And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

Several times Jesus asked His disciples to partner with him in relieving suffering. Once He told them to give the multitude something to eat. Yet another time He asked them to pray that laborers would be provided. What can we do when our sympathies overwhelm our resources?

Five times in the New Testament it is recorded that Jesus was “moved with compassion.” Matthew mentions three occasions and Mark points out two. The Greek word that requires an English phrase to translate is the word splagchnizomai and means “to have the bowels yearn” or to feel sympathy or pity. Certainly, we have all felt that knot in our belly that is somehow connected to strong emotions!

Jesus was able to see a person’s need and pain. It is amazing that he was not constantly weeping! He saw the multitude without direction or care. He saw the sick in need of healing. He saw the unpaid debt that needed to be forgiven and the leper that needed to be cleansed. He noticed it all and his “bowels” turned over and over in sympathy.

There was never a situation that Jesus did not respond to with prayer no matter how large or small the problem. When he missed the fellowship of the Father and the comfort of Heaven he prayed. When he was hungry and tired, he prayed. If he was tempted, he prayed. When criticized he prayed. When hanging on the cross he prayed. There was never an emergency that would not yield to prayer.

Dear Lord, I run to you this morning with a long list of needs and concerns. I am doing what you did when overwhelmed. Lord, please meet the needs of my friends today. AMEN

 

HE’S ALL I NEED!

 

Sunday, October 11, 2026

[a classic]

HE’S ALL I NEED!

Isa 41:10-16

10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish.

12 Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought.

13 For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff.

16 Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, and shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

 

In these verses God promises…

1. His PRESENCE for the lonely!

One translation says: “Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.” Anxiety is the companion of the lonely. When we are abandoned, we long for a companion either to challenge our opinions or to confirm them. Jesus promised to be that constantly abiding friend we need.

 

2. His POWER for the helpless!

 

I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (v.10) He is our strength when we are weak – help when we are out of resources – and support when we fail and fall.

 

3. His PROTECTION for the vulnerable!

 

Children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable in this world. Those who would abuse them should pay close attention to what the Bible has to say about God’s love of widows and orphans!

 

Ps 68:5

5 A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.

 

4. His PURPOSE for those who feel useless!

 

I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff. (v.15)

 

Dear Lord, thank you for being all that I need today. I bring to you my long list of deficiencies and you give to me your long list of supplies. AMEN

 

ANGER IS UNSUSTAINABLE!

 

Saturday, October 10, 2026

ANGER IS UNSUSTAINABLE!

James 1:19-20

19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

            Anger is both fire and fuel. Given enough time and one will exhaust the other. Unless more fuel is added, anger will subside over time, and a calmer period will return. As an example, remember that the nation that bombed our base at Pearl Harbor and brought about the wrath of nuclear anger now sells us our cars!

          Husbands and wives do not stay together just because they are compatible but because they are stubbornly persistent in their relationship. Things get hot and then cool down. The real danger is that there will be unresolved damage caused by the anger.

          Be a ready listener! Be swift to hear. I suppose the greatest friends to anger are the closed mind and the open mouth. Both are dangerous and together they are furious.

          Be slow to speak! Not everything that forms in the mind should tumble out of the mouth. Consider how many arguments have been avoided by silence.

          The Amplified New Testament says of verse 20:  For man's anger does not promote the righteousness God.  Ephesians 4:26 urges us to “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:”

Dear God, place an angel at my mouth and another to watch over my mind. AMEN