Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Don’t be led astray by various kinds of strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established by grace and not by foods, since those involved in them have not benefited. Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus — the great Shepherd of the sheep — with the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with all that is good to do His will, working in us what is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ. Glory belongs to Him forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:6-9, 20, 21 HCSB)

     Whatever situation we find ourselves in, we can call on the The Lord, he is our Helper.  I have always had confidence that nothing is too big for God, but there was a time when I never considered praying for the small things. The truth is God loves His sons and daughters and He cares about all things concerning us. I remember a time in my life, probably about twenty years ago now, when several of my joints became suddenly very inflamed and quite painful. Walking was painful and everyday responsibilities of caring for my young families became a challenge for a time. Responsibilities had to be met, laundry, shopping for meals and preparing them.  I vividly remember one shopping trip. We had to have groceries and I was struggling that day. Walking was difficult. As I drove through the huge parking lot several times, no close parking could be found. Finally, I felt the nudge to pray. My thought was that is silly, not about something so small and selfish. Again, the word pray came to mind. Ok. I prayed, feeling quite silly but knowing that getting two small children and myself from the far end of the lot to the grocery store would tax my painful joints and shorten my ability to pick up the needed groceries. I then choose to drive around the next aisle and right as I reached the front, a car began to back out in the very first spot! After several similar incidents during that time, I learned God really does care about all things concerning us! He has since brought complete healing and now I gladly park out and walk but the lesson learned has stuck with me…He is my helper and is concerned about all my needs.  His grace is sufficient for me in my health and in my challenges!

     Next our verse tells us to fear not! Remember what your leaders have taught you about the Word of God, watch how it looks and works in their lives and mimic their faith because Jesus is the same today as He was in Biblical days. He doesn’t change, His character is reliable.  Watch out for strange teaching, let grace establish you. You can see by the fruit in others lives whether or not their teachings have benefited them.  Do not hesitate to test the words of those who teach you or advise you. I often listen to wonderful Christian communicators and speakers and I have learned much from their teaching and stories about their lives but I always return to the Word of God, verifying that their teaching is in line with what the Word says because we are warned many times about false teachers.  The Lord equips us with all we need to do His will and to do whatever He has called us to do in each season of our lives. He gives us the Holy Spirit as our comforter and teacher and His Spirit is able to guide us and teach us all truth concerning God’s Word. What was once a great mystery to me and hard to understand, has become a delight and joy in my life. Today we are very blessed to have different translations that use everyday English and are easier to understand and we also have wonderful sights online like Youversion.com, Biblegateway.com, and Biblestudytools.com where we can access different versions of the Bible online and don’t have to purchase different versions. Again, check out the versions just like you check the words of your teaches to make sure they are in line with God’s Word. I have seen one or two that seemed very odd. You many have noticed that I have used several different versions in my blog but I always check them against what other versions say for continuity. Grace and blessings to you this day!

Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus — the great Shepherd of the sheep — with the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with all that is good to do His will, working in us what is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ. Glory belongs to Him forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20, 21 HCSB)