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Pain and Suffering

Dec7

As I found myself going through so much adversity, I wondered where God was.  I found myself begging and pleading with God to help me.  I couldn’t understand how to turn things around in my life.  The more I tried, the worse things became.  It was absolutely unbearable; physically, spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and financially.  It was a one-stop shop to crazyville.

It wasn’t until I heard a sermon on II Corinthians 12, when all of a sudden, a light bulb turned on.  Within these passages, Paul had been given an incredible gift by God.  He had been caught up into paradise; into heaven.  Yet, he was plagued with pain and found himself pleading with God.  Let’s see what he had to say…

II Corinthians 12:7 – 10  “And to keep me from being puffed up and too much elated by the exceeding greatness of these revelations, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a message of Satan, to rack and buffet and harass me, to keep me from being excessively exalted.  Three times I called upon the Lord and besought [Him] about this and begged that it might depart from me.  But He said to me, My grace is enough for you; for My strength and power are made perfect and show themselves most effective in [your] weakness.  Therefore, I will all the more gladly glory in my weaknesses and infirmities, that the strength and power of Christ may rest upon me!  So for the sake of Christ, I am well pleased and take pleasure in infirmities, insults, hardships, persecutions, perplexities and distresses; for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

Paul is very specific here.  It is obvious that it is easy to boast and become egotistical when God does something amazing in our lives.  And we can also see that we tend to beg and plead with God when things don’t go our way.  Geez, Paul tells us that he begged God three different times, with no success.  Why?

Like Paul, we all must grasp this concept.  We may plead for God’s help.  However, just because we ask for something doesn’t mean that God will answer in the way we want.  See, God has a specific purpose for us all.  We have no idea how our pain and suffering, as well as, our overcoming the situation may help someone else down the road.  Who knows, you might meet someone going through something God has already brought you through; giving you the opportunity to tell your story and help someone else.  That is pretty powerful in itself.

But, Paul takes it a step further.  He also began to see his suffering differently.  Every time he felt the pain, he was happy for his weakness.  He knew that God was strong enough to handle it and that God’s grace and power was more than enough to conquer it.

So, no matter what you see or feel…wake up each morning…

  • THANKING GOD FOR A NEW DAY
  • THANKING GOD FOR HIS STRENGTH
  • THANKING GOD FOR HIS HEALING
  • THANKING GOD FOR HIS ANSWERS
  • THANKING GOD BECAUSE YOU’RE IN THE PALM OF HIS HANDS

SOMETHING AWESOME IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO YOU TODAY!

Where’s the money, Honey?

Oct5

Have you ever noticed that the world revolves around money?  Have you ever noticed that the more you think about money, the less you find yourself having in your pockets?  Why is that?  Well, today, we are going to cover the whole MONEY issue; in a very plain and simple way.  So, let’s get started.

Like most Christians, we are taught to pray for our answers.  We are taught seed, time and harvest.  Now, don’t get me wrong…these are wonderful tools that God has given us and are discussed in great length throughout the Bible.

However, we tend to miss the most important lesson when we pray for financial abundance and breakthroughs.  What most of us do when we pray is to tell God what we want and think. So, when we don’t receive the answers we desperately prayed for, we get discouraged and think God didn’t answer our prayers.

What we must realize is that money is not our answer.  Yes, we have bills to pay or we have something in mind that we would like to buy and we seek God for our miraculous solutions.  But the whole problem with this thinking is that GOD KNOW WHAT’S BEST FOR US…WE DON’T!

The best way to describe it is that you can be a billionaire and have bad health.  You can have all the money in the world and be depressed.  You could have everything your heart desires and be full of anger, loneliness or sadness.  Money can slip through your fingers so fast that it makes your head spin.  Again, MONEY IS NOT THE ANSWER!  GOD IS!

What I’ve come to realize is that I don’t just want the money, Honey…I want the complete package (III John 2):

  • The wisdom and knowledge to use the funds properly.
  • The who, what, when and where to bless others.
  • How to invest correctly.
  • Happiness, Joy, Peace and everything in between.

See, God wants us whole; nothing missing and nothing broken.  He doesn’t want us to just “get by“, He wants us to have “more than enough”!  He will give us the wisdom and knowledge to handle the miraculous solutions He has coming our way.  All we have to do is learn to rest in His provisions, then the whole universe opens up to us. (Malachi 3:10)  The best part about it is that whatever the Lord brings, there is absolutely no pain or sorrow attached.  So, seek what HE wants us to have not what we think we need.

God still works miracles everyday and He definitely wants the absolute best for us all.  So…LOOK UP – YOUR WILDEST DREAMS ARE ABOUT TO BECOME REALITY!

FEAR

Sep14

Fear is so prevalent in our society today.  All you have to do is turn on the TV or search the internet and you will see fear everywhere!  But, did you know that fear is the devil’s way of keeping you in bondage? When we allow fear into our lives, it can birth into other nasty emotions, such as worry, stress and discouragement.

  • The fear of the unknown.
  • The fear of “what ifs”.
  • The fear of not having enough.
  • Fear of war, diseases and the economy.

We all have moments of fear or doubt.  In all honesty, most people fear things that most likely will never happen to them.  The problem with fear is that it can really take a grip on you.  You can find yourself in such a state that you stop doing the very things you have loved to do in the past.

But, what does the Bible say about fear?  Proverbs 29:25 says, “The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever leans on, trusts in, and puts his confidence in the Lord is safe and set on high.”

God is specifically telling us to lean and trust in Him because we are safe.  It doesn’t take a lot of faith or constant prayer.  Just tell God about the things you are fearing and let them go.  The one thing we really need to understand is that God has everything under control.

So…RELAX!  The battle is His and it is already WON!  Just seek the Lord and let Him take care of the rest, for fear has no place in your life.  Live, Love, Laugh and be Happy!  Life has so much to offer – REACH OUT and GRAB IT!

Stinkin’ Thinkin’

Aug17

Everyday we are bombarded by thoughts.  Maybe you heard a song on the radio and started to reminisce about days gone by.  Or, you’re at work and a thought pops into your head and you wonder where did that come from?

There is absolutely nothing wrong with thoughts.  They are a part of our everyday life.  With all the memories created throughout our life, it would be impossible not to think of them from time to time.  However, there is a different side to our thought life that has devastating consequences.

When you are going through difficult times, your thoughts tend to be on the negative side.

Thoughts like:

  • I don’t have enough money.
  • I’ll never make something of myself.
  • I don’t have the right education or skills.
  • I can’t do it, it’s too hard.
  • I will never get over this sickness.
  • I’m a failure.
  • And so on, and so on, and so on…

One of the quickest and sure-fire ways to pain and suffering is to allow STINKIN’ THINKIN” into your life.  They are extremely harmful.  John 10:10 tells us that “the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy”.  One of his ways of trying to destroy you is through your mind.  As soon as a negative thought pops into your mind and you allow it to stay there; mulling it over, the devil has you under his control.  Yet, the worse part is, is that if we allow ourselves to constantly think these stinkin’ thinkin’ thoughts; we remain in the difficult situation and it actually begins to spill into other areas of our life, becoming much worse than before.

Proverbs 23:7, tells us, “as he thinks, so is he.”  So, let’s stop for a moment and really grasp this concept.  If I am thinking that I’m a failure then, by this scripture, I am a failure.  If I’m thinking that I’ll never have enough money then it tells me that I will continue to live in poverty.  So, as you can see, just by this scripture alone, the Bible makes it very clear that our thought life is powerful.  What we think about ourselves and our lives is exactly what it will become.

Then, what should we do about it?  Overcoming stinkin’ thinkin’ can be quite simple.  The best way to start is by realizing that Jesus defeated everything that could ever come against us.  In 1 John 3:8, it explains the very reason why Jesus came to Earth, “…The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.”  It simply doesn’t matter if you are being attacked in your health, relationships, finances, or in any other area of your life…Jesus WON long time ago.

So with this in mind, what does the Bible have to say about the things we should keep in our minds?

  • Philippians 4:8   “…whatever is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely…dwell on these things.”
  • 1 John 3:1            “…great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we be called children of God….”
  • John 10:10          “…He came to give us life and life more abundantly.”
  • Psalm 23:1           “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not lack.”
  • 2 Samuel 22:2     “The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress and my Deliverer.”
  • Isaiah 55:8           “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways.”
  • Philippians 4:13  “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

If you stop and really think about these scriptures, any stinkin’ thinkin’ that comes into your mind has absolutely no right to be there.  God’s word simply tells us that no matter what we’re going through…We are WINNERS!  We are VICTORIOUS!

Since, Jesus already WON the battle and He is certainly more than capable of handling our situations, then, all we need to do is keep our thoughts on Him.  And I for one believe that there is absolutely no better place to be, but, in the hands of Jesus.

So, as you can see, maintaining positive thoughts is detrimental to your well-being.  Take a stand against negative stinkin’ thinkin’.  Keep your thoughts on His word and become aggressive, for you are already a WINNER!

THINK LIKE IT…ACT LIKE IT!  For your best days are just ahead!