"Don't Let You're Hearts be Troubled, Trust in God & Trust Also In Me." ~ John 14:1

We see in this scripture that Jesus was telling His disciples that He was going away, yet He was instructing them to not let their hearts be troubled, but rather to trust Him. Notice He told them NOT TO LET THEIR HEARTS BE TROUBLED.

This shows us that we have the choice to let our hearts be troubled. If we decide that we are going to truly trust Jesus, then we have to do so...Period. When troubling thoughts or situations are all around us, we must listen to Jesus's instructions, and make the decision to stop those troubling thoughts in their tracks! You may be thinking that it's simply impossible to have peace, because your situation is so devastating. I've certainly had times like this, and then God painted a picture for me in His Word that made it much easier to 'shake off' that discouragement that was trying to come against me.

In Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas were going about their business, preaching the good news, and suddenly some 'influential' leaders got wind of what they were doing. These leaders became extremely jealous of Paul and Barnabas, and they decided to form a mob against them, and run them out of town. Although these men of God were rejected by some of the most highly respected people of their day, they simply made the choice to 'brush off ' any feelings of anger, hurt, or rejection without allowing these feelings to get the best of them.

You see, if they would of dwelled on the rejection of man for one minute, they could have easily gotten offended, and even allow a bitter root to form in their hearts, and even got discouraged from their calling. Instead, they chose to brush off these things that could have greatly troubled their hearts, (like dirt off their shoes), and continued to walk on, staying on the course that God had for them.

We then see that because they chose to trust God, that they went on to the next town, and the bible tells us that, "the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit." ...All because they chose to not let their hearts be troubled!

Here is a prayer that I wrote for the times when I need a reminder to keep my mind and thoughts focused on the truth, and keep my heart fixed on Him:

"Lord, I pray that you bring this word of truth up in my heart when I am tempted to be troubled. I choose to follow your instructions, and not let my heart be troubled, but rather, I will trust in you, and your love and promises to me. Lord, where I am tempted to be discouraged, I pray that you will lift me up and comfort me, and I pray that you will help me make the choice to 'shake off' any feelings of hurt, resentment, or anything else that would get me out of peace and trusting in you. I am making the choice to not let my heart be troubled now, but rather, I will trust in you! In Jesus Name, Amen!"