GOING THROUGH

If God takes you through something that you prayed not to go through, you still have to believe that God has a greater purpose for sending you through it. He will be with you and take you through it. It's always for our benefit and well-being even though it may not feel good.

When you are going through your worst, you are probably closest to your breakthrough. If you give up, you will have to go back to the starting point of your test.

It doesn't mean God is mad at you. Sometimes when you ask God to bless you, you have no idea what it takes to get the blessing. You may have to go through trials and tribulations to receive your blessing.

God is Always Watching

Look beyond my circumstances to the One who controls all things. God is always watching. Weaving all these jumbled, seemingly random events together into a purposeful, beautiful whole. And just when I think evil really has won, God orchestrates the ultimate plot twist!

THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK

HELP ME THINK TWICE BEFORE SPEAKING ONCE.

HELP ME PRAISE TWICE BEFORE CRITICIZING.

HELP ME TELL THE TRUTH ALWAYS AND TRUST THAT YOU WILL BLESS ME EVEN IF THE TRUTH MAKES ME LOOK BAD.

~Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips.

HAVE FAITH? DO SOMETHING!

FAITH IS AN ACTION WORD. IT REQUIRES YOU TO DO SOMETHING! HAVING FAITH IN GOD REQUIRES YOU TO TRUST HIM, CAST ALL YOUR CARES ON HIM AND KNOW AND BELIEVE THAT HE WILL PROVIDE ALL YOUR NEEDS. THE MORE YOU PUT YOUR FAITH IN GOD, ON PURPOSE, THE MORE FAITHFUL YOU BECOME. 

BAD COMPANY CORRUPTS GOOD CHARACTER

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO LIVE A LIFE THAT IS UNAFFECTED BY OTHER PEOPLE'S BEHAVIOR, ATTITUDES AND OPINIONS NO MATTER HOW HARD WE TRY. PEOPLE HELP SHAPE OUR PERSPECTIVES AND INFLUENCE OUR DECISIONS. WHEN A PERSON POSITIVELY AFFECTS ANOTHER'S LIFE IT IS GREAT. HOWEVER, THERE ARE MANY TIMES WHEN PEOPLE ARE NEGATIVELY AFFECTED BY OTHERS.


I REMEMBER AS A CHILD AND YOUNG ADULT MY MOM TRYING TO KEEP ME AWAY FROM "BAD PEOPLE." THEY WERE THE PEOPLE SHE THOUGHT WERE OR WOULD INFLUENCE MY BEHAVIOR NEGATIVELY. NOW, AS AN ADULT, HAVING ENOUGH DISCERNMENT TO SEE PEOPLE FOR WHO THEY ARE AT THIS POINT IN THEIR LIVES CAN SAVE YOU A LOT OF HEADACHE. HOWEVER, SOMETIMES IT IS EASIER TO SEE IN HINDSIGHT THAT YOU HAVE BEEN SWAYED BY THE BAD INFLUENCES OF OTHERS.

YOU DON'T BELIEVE THAT YOUR ASSOCIATIONS, AFFECT WHO YOU ARE?

YOU BELIEVE THAT BAD FRIENDS WON'T CHANGE YOU?

EVEN A MAN AS WISE AS PAUL KNEW THAT WE CAN FALL INTO THIS MISCONCEPTION. THIS IS WHY HE SAID TO THE CORINTHIAN CHURCH:

DO NOT BE MISLED: BAD COMPANY CORRUPTS GOOD CHARACTER." (I CORINTHIANS 15:33)

A VERY SHORT PERSONAL STORY IS:
One of the "friends" I had as a young adult, contacted me as an adult. I was surprised to hear from this person and after a long catch-up talk, I discovered that we had a lot of similarities in our current situations. Since this was a "friend" that I was warned about from my mom early in life, and that I soon found out was a bad influence back then, I was curious to see that things had changed. Unfortunately, I found out that things had only changed in circumstances and not the character of the person. I found out after I had been deceived back into some situations that were not beneficial to me; that were downright bad for me. After the Lord revealed to me the changes in me since I had been back in contact with this person, I removed myself from them, repented, and prayed for that person.

It is a lie of Satan's that you can romp around in the mud and not get dirty. So, "take heed" to the words of Paul, "lest you fall." (I Corinthians 10:12)

BEAR FRUITS WORTHY OF REPENTANCE

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO

BEAR FRUITS WORTHY OF REPENTANCE?

-MY LIFE SHOULD REFLECT A LIFESTYLE, ACTION, AND CHOICES WHICH ARE CONSISTENT WITH HAVING REPENTED OF SIN - THAT IS - WITH HAVING MADE A DECLARATION AGAINST THE DESTRUCTIVE THINGS OF THIS WORLD IN FAVOR OF ALIGNING MYSELF WITH THE BEAUTIFUL THINGS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD.


Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don't just say to each other, 'We're safe, for we are descendants of Abraham'! That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones.
Luke 3:8


TURN FROM THAT WHICH IS DESTROYING US TO THAT WHICH SAVES US!


LORD, BE THE RULER OF MY HEART AND THE MASTER OF MY HOME. MAY THERE BE NOTHING IN MY LIFE THAT IS NOT UNDER YOUR LORDSHIP."

SAVING GRACE

WHAT GOD HAS SAVED ME FOR IS SO MUCH GREATER THAN WHAT HE HAS SAVED ME FROM.

REMEMBER LOT'S WIFE -- DON'T LOOK BACK!

GOOD MORNING LORD

Good Morning Lord. I lift up my voice in desperate need of your mercy right now -- this day! My only option is You.

*God hears our pleas, He meets our needs, and He turns our desperation into satisfaction.

Why am I so impatient? Who do I think I am???
I hate it when other people expect me to get in line with their agendas. So, why do I do that to other people?
Please, Lord, help me relax and enjoy You and the people around me more.
Help me get my life more in tune with your agenda. What You want is more important than what I want.


"With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love..."
Ephesians 4:2


Help me to believe, really believe, always believe,
that you call great those who serve other people humbly.

Obeying God

OBEYING GOD -- Sometimes God will not give me a "sign" to "prove" it is Him commanding me to do a thing. Sometimes the affirmation comes after the obedience. God is basically saying - "Do it and you will know it is me when you succeed."

Reference: Hebrews 11:8
(Abraham was called by God and told to go to a place, and he obeyed not knowing where he was going.)

Mustard Seed Faith

"If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'move from here to there,' and it will move; nothing will be impossible for you." -Matthew 17:20

If I can do it on my own, with my own resources, it does not require faith in God to do it for me. I first, though, need to be sure that God has told me to do a thing before I can have faith that He will do it.

Sometime during the month of August 2013, we had a large bill (according to our income) we needed to pay. I felt that the Lord was telling me that He would make it possible for us to pay the bill within the next 3 months. I then, prayed the following prayer:

"Lord, you have told us that you will make it possible for us to pay this bill off in 3 months. That would require us to pay $1,000, a month toward the bill. I cannot see that we are able to do this on our own. This requires faith in You to make this happen. We put our faith in You this day to have it come to pass."

Not many days following this prayer, things were looking pretty dire. I started to think that maybe I had misunderstood what the Lord said. I allowed Satan to get in my head and make me doubt what I knew God said and what I knew was possible if He said it. But, that's how the devil works. He wants us to be confused and doubtful in hopes that we will give up.

On September 1, 2013, we had not made one payment and things were looking even more bleak. I prayed: "Lord, please give me confirmation that you are leading us to pay this bill in 3 months. I do not want to be outside of your will and try to do this on our own." I never received additional confirmation. When God told me the first time, that was my confirmation.

During the first week of January 2014, other resources were threatened because of this outstanding bill which we still had not been able to make a single payment on. I started strategizing ways that I could "make this happen" and get the bill paid. Once I thought I had the plan all figured out I felt conviction in my spirit and immediately went into prayer asking for forgiveness. I decided that I would not try to do God's work for Him (as if I could anyway) and continue to muster up the little bit of faith I felt I still had at the time.

God showed up in our situation the very next day and provided a way for us to pay the entire bill in full immediately!

I'm sure there are several lessons to be learned here. For me, I built some faith muscle! I know that God is the same God yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8) so if I encounter similar experiences in the future, I know that if He came through for us before, He can do it again!

What do you think is a valuable lesson that can be learned through this experience?