Did you know that the “advice column” such as “Dear Abbie” has been around since the 17th century? This is according to an article I found on the online news outlet, Vox, entitled, “Our 300-year love affair with advice columns.”
You would think the advice column would be a relic of the past. It belongs to a time when the local newspaper ruled the medium of how we got our information. Before widespread therapy, and before Google, Alexa or Siri were around to answer people’s questions, many got answers to life’s pressing questions from an advice column. And as hard as may be to believe, but the advice column is still popular today. It has evolved from printed paper to the online format of live chats, blogs, vlogs and podcasts. It seems our world is incessantly attached to getting advice. And of course, there’s a plethora of voices willing to give it. From Ms. Manners to comedian Steve Harvey to Dr. Phil and of course the sage prognosticators of You Tube. Advice abounds all around. Well, I want to share not good advice, but great advice as you start this new year. It’s great advice, not because it’s coming from me. But what makes it great is that it comes from the inspired & inerrant word of our God who cannot lie nor deceive.
Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”
I Peter 5:5-7 (NKJV)
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
In the text, Peter advises us to do two things: Stay humble and to give our worries to the Lord. In fact, he says we should cast “All” of our concerns on the Lord. Because the verse says, “For He cares for you,” and it’s written in the present tense grammatically which means it’s a continuous action. The verse could be read, “Cast your cares upon the Lord because He always, every day, in every way, at every moment is caring for you.” The Lord never takes a day off from caring for us. I’m sure this year you will face some difficulty that you’ll be tempted to worry about, and Satan will whisper to you, “Nobody cares.” But rest assured Beloved, Jesus cares.
I love the song by Blind Willie B. Johnson and Willie B. Harris, Leave It There. It says, “If you trust and never doubt, He will surely bring you out. Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there. If your body suffers pain and your health, you can’t regain, and your soul is almost sinking in despair. Jesus knows the pains you feel, He can save you and He can heal. If your enemies assail and your heart begins to fail. Don’t forget God in heaven answers prayer, He answers prayer. He will make a way for you, then He’ll lead you safely through. Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.”
Now, that’s some great advice for the new year and always.
Bee-Attitude
Blessed is the person that heeds Biblical advice.
Terrence M. Curtis
Terrence M. Curtis is the pastor-teacher and visionary of the Calvary Baptist Church of Jonesboro and Barnesville, GA, starting these churches respectively in 1997 and 2022. Having been called to preach at the tender age of 14, he has dedicated over 42 years of his life to preaching the Gospel. He received a Certificate of Theology from The Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC), a degree in Biblical Studies from Faith Bible Institute, a Bachelor of Arts in Christian Education and a Master of Divinity degree from Restoration Theological Seminary. He and his beautiful wife Shelia, to whom he’s been married thirty-eight years, have three children and twelve grandchildren.
