The Deliverer

Luke 8:26-39 Holman

26 Then they sailed to the region of the Gerasenes,[e] which is opposite Galilee. 27 When He got out on land, a demon-possessed man from the town met Him. For a long time he had worn no clothes and did not stay in a house but in the tombs. 
28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What do You have to do with me,[f] Jesus, You Son of the Most High God? I beg You, don’t torment me!” 29 For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was guarded, bound by chains and shackles, he would snap the restraints and be driven by the demon into deserted places.

1. Luke 8:26 Other mss read the Gadarenes
2. Luke 8:28 Lit What to me and to You

I relate to this man - driven by inner torment

uncontrolled by any external constraint

living in deserted places 

among the dead

no connection to living persons

unable to live and function in community with others

this passage is difficult because it raises so many difficult questions

How did this man come to be in this condition?

Was it something of his own choice?

in our modern era we like to be able to explain things in terms of natural causes and assign problems to some level of human control or blame

This passage forces us to acknowledge there are forces beyond our control and understanding that do intersect with our existence

How? Why?  not sure

it is sanity to acknowledge there are tings beyond my limited understanding
not to make them a scapegoat 
but that their are malevolent forces that I cannot deliver myself from

What exactly is the dividing line between human weakness, frailty, failing
and powerful spiritual influences that bring torment?

I don't know

But Jesus came to this man

the man no one could help
no one control
no one reach 
soothe
calm 
reason with 
comfort 
or redirect

He was completely and utterly alone

driven to torment inside and out 

Oh Lord, 
I don't understand all of the whys or the hows of how I came to this place
but i relate to this man
so full of pain and fear and misery
terrified of even you 
who came with love and deliverance

Only you can help us, Jesus

Only you have both the power and the love to reach the unreachable
the tormented

Please help me to not run away and shut you out in my place of terror
It may be frightening and uncomfortable 
but you come to bring me to peace
you come to set me free

from what is all I know
from the familiar entrapments

Help me to let you in 
to let you work

Do your work of deliverance in me

30 “What is your name?” Jesus asked him.

“Legion,” he said—because many demons had entered him. 31 And they begged Him not to banish them to the abyss.

32 A large herd of pigs was there, feeding on the hillside. The demons begged Him to permit them to enter the pigs, and He gave them permission. 33 The demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and drowned. 34 When the men who tended them saw what had happened, they ran off and reported it in the town and in the countryside. 

35 Then people went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man the demons had departed from, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 36 Meanwhile, the eyewitnesses reported to them how the demon-possessed man was delivered. 37 Then all the people of the Gerasene region[g] asked Him to leave them, because they were gripped by great fear. So getting into the boat, He returned.

Oh Lord, 
we pray for change
for transformation 
for revival

but when you work your wonderful work
we become more terrified than we were before

because you are amazing 
and we cannot explain or control you

it threatens the fragile realities we try to construct 
to shelter us from what we cannot understand

You came in love 
to this whole region

but only one experiences your great deliverance
only one 
was brought 
to peace
covering 
and a right mind

Oh Lord 
help us to not ask you to leave
when we are frightened out of our wits
by the unknown
by you

You are so gracious
you listened to their request
you left 

Please don't leave me, Jesus

I need you 
and there is no other
like you

38 The man from whom the demons had departed kept begging Him to be with Him. But He sent him away and said, 39 “Go back to your home, and tell all that God has done for you.” And off he went, proclaiming throughout the town all that Jesus had done for him.

Oh, Lord, 
thank you
because you died for us
we never have to be sent away from you

we can always be with you
no matter what our situation 
no matter how we feel
no matter what others may be saying and doing
or how they view us

you have made a way for us to abide in you 
as we are honest with you 
in confessing our sins and our need 
and trusting what you alone have done

Thank you, you just want us to share what you have done
we don't have to convince anyone
or change anyone
just tell the truth
of who we are 
of who you are
of what we know you have done

you are reaching out in love to those around us
even to those who have known us well in our deepest torments

Oh Lord, 
I love you
you are so wonderful
thank you for loving me 
and seeking me out even in my torments
for bringing me to 
sitting at your feed, 
clothed
and in my right mind. 
a mind of worship and gratitude 
to you

Amen

2 Timothy 1:7

KJ21

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

ASV

For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and discipline.

AMP

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control].

mindful of Christ - insecurity

For when I feel insecure, alone and uncared for


you care for those no one cares about

you are father to the fatherless
 
 

Psalm 68:5-6International Children’s Bible (ICB)

5 God is in his holy Temple.
    He is a father to orphans.
    He defends the widows.
6 God gives the lonely a home.
    He leads prisoners out with joy.
    But those who turn against God will live in a dry land.

you seek out the lost one

  12 “What do you think?
 If a man has a hundred sheep, 
 and one of them goes astray,
 does he not leave the ninety-nine 
 and go to the mountains 
 to seek the one that is straying? 

13 And if he should find it,
 assuredly, I say to you, 
he rejoices more over that sheep 
than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.   
Matthew 18:12-13 NKJV


you came to seek and to save that which is lost

10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Luke 19:10New King James Version (NKJV)

you lift up the beggar from the trash heap 
and set him with the princes of your people.

    He raises poor people up from the trash pile.
    He lifts needy people out of the ashes.
  He lets them sit with princes.
    He gives them places of honor.  

    I Samuel 2:8 NiRV

shame 

 i feel deeply ashamed
unwanted
un looked for
un sought out
un desired

thank you Lord
you are the God of the un's

you call those things that are not as though they are

said to Abraham  

17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”[a])
 in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead
 and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;  Romans 4:17 NKJV

You spoke in nothingness and then there was
You called everything we see and touch and know our of nothingness

You are God of all the lack

“My grace is enough for you:
 for where there is weakness,
 my power is shown the more completely.”
2 Corinthians 12:9

you are glorified in our weakness
you are magnified in our need

help me to hear that again and again

my need is your opportunity
to shine forth

so you can be seen
not me

deep in your wounds my shame to hide
by his wounds we are healed
a safe place to be vulnerable
in your light
in your love

you are light
in whom there is no darkness at all

you are the light that shines in the darkness
and the darkness has not overcome it

  At the beginning God expressed himself. That personal expression, that word, was with God, and was God, and he existed with God from the beginning. All creation took place through him, and none took place without him. In him appeared life and this life was the light of mankind. The light still shines in the darkness and the darkness has never put it out.  John 1:1-5 Phillips


what better place to rest unseen than in the midst of bright shining light
bursting forth in all directions
a refuge for my self conscious weary soul

you are the outshining of who the Father is
the glory and beauty

no one needs to see me only you
You see me and that is enough

That was the true light which shines upon every man as he comes into the world. He came into the world—the world he had created—and the world failed to recognise him. He came into his own creation, and his own people would not accept him. Yet wherever men did accept him he gave them the power to become sons of God. These were the men who truly believed in him, and their birth depended not on the course of nature nor on any impulse or plan of man, but on God.

14-18 So the word of God became a human being and lived among us. We saw his splendor (the splendor as of a father’s only son), full of grace and truth.       John 1:9-14 Phillips

vulnerable

this is what it costs
being vulnerable

pride

let it drain out
it only leaves me high and dry
isolated and alone
oblivious to the reality of who I really am
and the depth of my need

face the truth

i need
i need you
i need others who have you

casting all your care
on Him
because
HE CARES FOR YOU

You Care
YOU CARE FOR ME

You are what I need
You are greater than even my greatest and deepest shame
lack  failure weakness and need

there is no pit so deep that you are not deeper still



"... that we should be holy and with out blame, before him in love" Ephesians 1:4

 holy
you desire us to be like you
to be full of you Holy Spirit
through and through
so that you seep and shine out in every way
in every interaction
more and more of you

"... that we should be holy and with out blame, before him in love" Ephesians 1:4

without blame
Only you can make us without blame
we are at fault in so much
but you never fail
always perfectly righteous
and perfectly good

"... that we should be holy and with out blame, before him in love" Ephesians 1:4

before him in love
you want us not far away
but before you
before you
in love

You look on us with great affection
tenderness
yearnings of kindness

facing one another
in full view and close

Praise you Lord
only Jesus can do this
but you want to
you long for this

"... that we should be holy and with out blame, before him in love" Ephesians 1:4


My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
2 Corinthians 12:9 

 I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,

My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.

Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.

2 Corinthians 12: 7-10 The Message

Mindful of Christ - envy

Like a red hot poker shoved into my soul is envy

a piercing burning that goes straight to the core

of the deepest levels of who I am and what I long for

Oh Lord, it hurts

coming suddenly and unexpectedly

a sudden boiling swirling typhoon of the soul


the pain of what I deeply wish and long for

but has not been granted


what I think would make things better
would make me better

what you have not given at this time
and quite possibly might not give

Oh Lord, I don't want this green poison in me
choking out you and blinding me toall the good you have so graciously given me

1 Corinthians 4:7-8The Message (MSG)

7-8 For who do you know that really knows you, knows your heart? 
And even if they did, is there anything they would discover in you that you could take credit for?

 Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? 

So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing? 
You already have all you need.
You already have more access to God than you can handle. 
Without bringing either Apollos or me into it, you’re sitting on top of the world—at least God’s world—and we’re right there, sitting alongside you!

"Isn't everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God?"

Yes, everything, everything is a gift from you

You are the source of all life, all goodness, all everything that I need

You give different gifts to different people at different times in our lives

stop comparing

we all need you, desperately and deeply

we all receive from you, deeply and generously

What you want most to give, is YOURSELF

What I need most right here and now is YOU

You alone can cool the burning

You alone can fill to the brim and even overflowing with your love

your care, your goodness, your peace, your kindness, your self-control

your hope, your joy

Galatians 5The Message (MSG)

The Life of Freedom

5 Christ has set us free to live a free life...

13-15 It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. 

For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. If you bite and ravage each other, watch out—in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then?

16-18 My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are antithetical, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence?

19-21 It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.

This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom.

22-23 But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.

23-24 Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for good—crucified.

25-26 Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives. That means we will not compare ourselves with each other as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do with our lives. Each of us is an original.

Dear Lord,

there is so much in this passage that I need to hear and deep down absorb.

please help me to receive your words

to trust and receive you into our deepest parts

whatever pain we are experiencing right now

you want to set us free to know your love for us   deeply     truly

and to be enabled to love others

help me right now where I am today to receive the gift of your love

of your Holy Spirit 

to let your fruit grow in my life and let go of all I am clinging to to try to desperately meet my deep need of you

you give me yourself

you hold nothing back

you intend good for me

fill me with you

and your love 

enable me to love 

you are the greatest gift

i love you Lord

amen

True Peace =Your Peace

"You, Lord, give true peace. 
You give peace to those who depend on you.
You give peace to those who trust you. 
So, trust the Lord always.
Trust the Lord because He is our Rock, forever"
Isaiah 26:3-4 International Children's Bible


MY PEACE....
my peace is like a Hallmark Card
or a
G-rated movie made for 2-3 yr olds
very little conflict
easily solved with a few words
everyone happy and getting along together in a wonderful way

YOUR PEACE
but your peace is
strong
durable,
deep
lasting
enduring storms
rugged
not flimsy or fragile
 like cookies made of delicate icing
beautiful to behold but shattered with the least pressure

your peace is like the rocky cliff that endures the battering and bashing of pounding waves
and stands still
it can be counted on
it can be depended on
it can be the rock on which the foundation can be built for a house that will stand through any storm


A SURE FOUNDATION

"Everyone who hears thes things I say 
and obeys them 
is like a wise man. 
The wise man build his house on a rock. 
It rained hard and the water rose.
The winds blew and hit that house.
But the house did not fall, 
because the house was built on the rock.

But the person who hears the things I teach and does not obey them 
is like the foolish man. 
The foolish man built his house on sand. 
It rained hard, the water rose, and the winds blew and hit that house. 
And the house fell with a big crash."  Matthew 7:24-27

Both houses might have looked just the same
Both individuals heard the teachings of Jesus
but only one responded beyond just the hearing

They looked the same
until the storms came


GOD'S WAY FORWARD

I have learned that pretty much anytime I pray for a better relationship with someone
what comes to my mind is beach sunsets and lots of smiles and quick understanding and comfortable times together

what I tend to experience is:
 Conflict
not just Conflict but

CONFLICT !!!!

nail bitting,  up all night for days at a time kind of stress

this always comes as a shock and surprise to me

but I begin to see You in this


MY WAY - SLIGHT HEALING

"They try to heal my people's serious injuries 
as if they were small wounds. 
They say, 'It's all right, it's all right!"
But really, it is not all right."

Jeremiah 6:14 International Children's Bible


"They have also healed the hurt of my people slightly, 
Saying, 'Peace, peace!' 
When there is no peace."

Jeremiahh 6:14 KJV


I want to smooth things over with something nice
and it is always wonderful to show love and kindness to others
a soft answer does turn away wrath

but I see that I really wish to avoid dealing with the unpleasantness that is lurking below the surface
this is where sin lurks, hides and grows

like a poisonous plant
like a cancer cell
silently  mutating microscopically
but then duplicating itself over and over again
over time
until
many times
by the time it is known
it is too late

ROOT OF BITTERNESS

"Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:  looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble and by this many become defiled.
Hebrews 12:14-15 NKJV

"Work at getting along with each other and with God. Otherwise you'll never get so much as a glimpse of God.  Make sure no one gets left our of God's generosity.  Keep a sharp eye our for weeds of bitter discontent.  A thistle or two gone to seed can ruin a whole garden in no time." Hebrews 12:14-15 The Message

all plants grow from a tiny seed
hidden under the soil

we only see the plant springing up
the fruit it bears
("You will know them by the fruit they bear" Matthew 7:20)

but the root grows below the surface
hidden and unseen

I may cut off the part I see
but the root persists
it springs anew and afresh

It seems, for me, anyways, that it is only in deep seated difficulties
with those whom I am very close to and love deeply
 and/or are in consistent and close levels of interactions with

that the roots of things become clear

I can put up with a lot
or at least I try anyway

but it these deep and intimate relationships
I cannot

and the truth of what is in my heart is made manifest
for those who have eyes to see it


LIGHT MAKES MANIFEST

"The secret things in his heart will be made known. 
So he will bow down and worship God. 
He will say, 'Truly God is with you.'"
I Corinthians 14:25 ICB

this passage is not talking about an individual alone with God and a Bible
it is describing the community of believers
together
I have found this to be true
it is in relationships with others
that the revealed truth of God is made clear to me

the truth  - not what I think is true about myself and my behaviour
but actually what is truly true

I need you to help me see what God is trying to show me
about myself and what He wants to heal, change, transform
where He wants to get worship and glory
I cannot see it clearly on my own
because my own point of view most likely will distort it

"Every person who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches"
Revelation 3:13 ICB


OPPORTUNITY

right here in this relationship
in this difficulty and conflict

is an opportunity to hear You, to really hear You

Oh Lord, grant me the eyes and ears and heart to really see, hear and receive the truth you are wanting me to face
to not sugar coat it
excuse it
defend it
point the finger out to another
or to the circumstances

What are you trying to communicate to me?

Regardless of what another may be saying, doing, thinking,
You are at peace
You are not perturbed
You are not agitated
You are at rest
You are full of love
Even when you must take strong actions and words
They are done in your wisdom
and rightousness
and for the ultimate good of another

This is the only path to your peace

PEACE WITH GOD

Your peace that came through shedding of blood, betraying, mocking, whipping, scourging, rejecting, nailing, crucifying
dying

no smooth, simple, easy peace here


"We have been made right with God because of our faith. 
So, we have peace wtih God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
Through our faith, Chriat has brought us into that blessing of God's grace that we now enjoy. 

And we are happy because of the hope we have of sharing God's glory. 

And we also have joy with our troubles 
because we know that these troubles produce patience. 

And patience produces character, 
and character produces hope. 
And this hope will never disappoint us, 
because the God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. 
God gave us his love through the Holy Spirit whom God has given to us. 

Christ died for us while we were still weak.  

We were living against God, but at the right time, Christ died for us. 
Very few people will die to save the life of someone else. 
Although perhaps for a good man someone might possibly die.

But Christ died for us while we were still sinners. 

In this way, God shows his great love for us. 

We have been made right with God by the blood of Christ's death.

Romans 5 :1-9 ICB


"You, Lord, give true peace. 
You give peace to those who depend on you.
You give peace to those who trust you. 
So, trust the Lord always.
Trust the Lord because He is our Rock, forever"

Isaiah 26:3-4 International Children's Bible

Integrity

(There are so many powerful issues raised by this tragic interchange of two people - the lesson I am seeking to absorb is not meant in any way to trivialize or gloss over any of the deep questions this situation raises. It is just one small thought that has impacted and helped me to change)

 Darren Wilson,
simply had no idea that confronting two boys walking down the middle of a street would end up so profoundly changing his life
ending his job,
putting him on trial
nationwide even international attention

Michael Brown
had no idea that taking cigarillos from the corner store and encountering a lone man in a car would make any real impact on his day
let alone his life

who knew?

Proverbs 27:1New International Version 

27 Do not boast about tomorrow,
    for you do not know what a day may bring.

New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Holy Bible, New International Version® Anglicized, NIV® Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

if either of them could have known or seen the earth-shattering impact of choices made in relative obscurity and minutia would it have made any difference?

Take home lesson among many
so much of my life can seem mundane, trivial, obscure

I cannot even imagine having the intense scrutiny that this unfortunate and tragic interchange has brought upon these two individuals, their families, their communities, their town, this nation etc.

When I am home with my children...
Would I act differently if another adult was there to observe?
How would I act if several people were there?
or even my whole neighborhood?
or my whole town?

what if I was being filmed for the world over to scrutinize and replay over and over again and discuss?

Integrity is being exactly the same in all of these situations
because God is always watching
God always sees me

People have a wide variety of opinions, perspectives, responses
but
God always sees and God knows

not just what I do
but why

nothing can be hid or disguised from Him

Living for an audience of One

If I live with God in view
if I live knowing God has me in view

what would that change?

my attitude
the why of what I do
seeking to love Him who has loved me first
 by showing practical love
to those He has put right here in front of me

seeing them as the opportunity God has given
to both know His love and grace working in me
and to extend it to them.

Believing that only through Jesus
am I or any one else, brought into this wonderful relationship
with the Living and all powerful and all loving God

That I deserve nothing, worse than nothing

and therefore can show His love and grace to anyone

Inner Transformation working outwards
how this changes my demeanor and tone and how I interact with my children, my spouse, my neighbors
the employee I have to interact with to get the window in my house repaired

to see each one as You see them
loved, desired, understood, longing to bless and comfort and save

how do I see these people?
how do I treat them?

how do I see that sink of dirty dishes
that pile of laundry
that bathroom that needs cleaning

meaningless,
trivial
mundane
obscure
something to avoid
or rush through to get to more 'meaningful' activities elsewhere?

Luke 16:10New King James Version (NKJV)

10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.

New King James Version (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Luke 16:10New International Version (NIV)

10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide

This is reality

How do I think, act ,interact and respond when someone I care about
 or at least want to think well of me
is watching?

How do I -   when I think no one is watching?

what would I do differently if I knew ahead of time that the tiny details of my day were going to be broadcast and scrutinized and discussed by millions?

this is reality with God
to be the same with or without
to live before His gaze only

an audience of one

this will keep me
this will transform me
this will bring me to my knees
to seek Jesus for the kind of deep, transforming and pervasive change He has wanted to do all along

"Faithful in little; Faithful in much"

Oh Lord,
help me to know you are here with me
you have given me these tasks and no one else
you see all
you see my motives and my heart
you are never confused or unaware or unsure of what is going on with me
within me

Help me to be
to do,
to be in relationships
as you want
as you will enable

whether anyone one else sees or doesn't see
You do see me
You see what I do
You see what I want

I want You
this is life changing and powerful
for me
and for all with whom my life intersects

This is opportunity on a grand scale
let me not believe the lies
that what lies before me is inconsequential
trivial
meaningless
drudgery

it is opportunity
to find YOU
to know YOU
to be changed
to know more of YOU
to know more of YOU in me
in my home
in my family
in my day

help me not to be driven to seek what you have not given at this time from others
such as attention, affirmation, approval

help me to seek and find You
right here and right now
in this place and time where I am

knowing I am not alone
but You are with me

Hebrews 13:5-6New International Version (NIV)

5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have,because God has said,

“Never will I leave you;
    never will I forsake you.”[a]

6 So we say with confidence,

“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
    What can mere mortals do to me?”[b]

Footnotes:

1. Hebrews 13:5 Deut. 31:6
2. Hebrews 13:6 Psalm 118:6,7

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

1 Corinthians 10:31New International Version (NIV)

31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, In.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide

Colossians 3:23J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)

 Whatever you do, put your whole heart and soul into it, as into work done for God, and not merely for men—knowing that your real reward, a heavenly one, will come from God, since you are actually employed by Christ,...

J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)

J. B. Phillips, "The New Testament in Modern English", 1962 edition by HarperCollins