Tag Archive | bondage

Setup NOT Setback

Aug30

Broken PiecesOne of the greatest stories ever told in the Bible is about the young man, Joseph. God gave him a dream at a very young age. However, he wasn’t given the “how” or “when” of the dream.

Joseph’s life was a whirlwind of events. He was his father’s favorite son, which unfortunately, lead to his brothers’ jealousy. I’m sure Joseph didn’t realize that this jealousy would lead him to being thrown into a pit, sold into slavery by his own brothers, and being thrown into jail for something he didn’t commit.

Think what must have ran through his mind. He must have wondered about “why” bad things keep happening to him. Why did his brothers do this? Why would God allow this? What happened to the dream?

Here he was a young man that received an incredible dream from God Himself. You can only imagine his excitement. The Bible even tells us that he was so excited, he shared the dream with his family. Even though Joseph was excited, his family…especially his brothers were not enthused about it.

Best yet to comeJoseph found himself going through terrible things in his life. The more he tried, the worse things became. I’m sure he had no idea that he would hit every brick wall imaginable just for doing what was right.

So, what was his response to all the “so called” setbacks? He trusted God. No matter how bad things got or how many setbacks he encountered, he trusted God. As Joseph said in Genesis 50:20, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.“

Joseph never could have imagined that he was going to be one of the most powerful men of his time. He had no idea that he would end up saving so many lives; including his own family. The very brothers that sold him into slavery.

Yet through it all, Joseph remained faithful to God. There is so much we can learn from his story. No matter what adversity you encounter, no matter how bleak your circumstances look right now…know that God is setting you up for something amazing.

Just like Joseph, we need to stay focused on God who promises that all things will turn out in our favor. We will be victorious and successful against all the odds. It doesn’t matter what is happening in our lives right now. It doesn’t matter if we can’t see a way out of our situation.

We might not know the “how” or “when”; but we can be absolutely certain that our FUTURE IS GOING TO BE BETTER THAN WE COULD EVER DREAMED! GOD PROMISES IT AND IT WILL BE SO!

SIDE NOTE:

From time to time, I share song links to help you stay motivated through difficult times. Here is another wonderful tune that I hope helps you stand strong when everything seems to be going haywire. It is from the Fireproof movie called “While I’m Waiting”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3b2jw1rjBc

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The Fiery Darts

Aug15

23_grace-temptationWhen the Bible tells us “Emmanuel is with us” (Matthew 1:23), then we can rest assure that no matter where we go, no matter what comes against us, no matter what circumstances happen…we have Almighty God with us during all the good and bad times. God is our supply! He has provided us with wisdom, understanding, redemption, deliverance, salvation, forgiveness, healing, and prosperity. So, if God has provided everything for us, why do we need to put the full armor of God on?

Simply put…we have a very cunning adversary who knows how to corrupt, deceive and steal our joy. The devil and the spiritual warfare that rages against believers can turn our world upside down. We may not even realize what is happening because evil and deception come in many forms. Let’s face it…the devil is really good at using those closest to us for his evil purposes. However, our war isn’t against human enemies; it’s a full out assault against the rulers, powers, and the world forces of darkness and the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12)

The full armor of God has been given to each of us so that we can stand against the devil’s schemes and satan’s forces. (Ephesians 6:11) We cannot defeat satan and the dark spiritual forces with any natural weapons. The Christian armor is made to be worn daily. While you grow, mature and finish your course for the Lord, the devil and his schemers will continue to hone in on you and will do everything they can to stop your progress. So what does the full armor of God mean?

The Full Armorarmor_of_god of God

Ephesians 6:13-18: “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14: Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, 15: and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE; 16: in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.… 17: And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God . 18: With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints.”

God has supplied us with the armor to defeat all the attacks but we must put it on! We need to dive into His Word daily to know the truth, understand the Good News of His Gospel, to build our faith and know who we are through Christ. With His spiritual protection and authority, there is nothing that can defect us! Christ already gave us the VICTORY!

So the next time a fiery dart of satan and his cronies come against you…use your power and authority of God’s Word to crush and squash the evil desires and thoughts as they rise up within you. A well understood and rightly applied Word of God destroys any menacing adversary!

champion-8667

SHOUT OUT LOUD…

I am a Child of the Most High God. Today and every day, God is with me! It is through His love, His amazing grace, His truth, His salvation, His forgiveness, His healing, His understanding, His strength, and His Word that I am and will be victorious over all darkness. With God for me no one can possibly stand against me!

Hallelujah, Give Praise to the Lord!

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Run Your Race

Aug9

sadnessHow many of us feel like the picture to the left? Depressed, sad, alone, frustrated, stressed, worried or even all of the above. It is so easy to allow our feelings to get the best of us. Sometimes things come at us so quickly that we don’t have enough time to take a breath.

That’s when it’s imperative that you stop and take a moment to assess what’s happening. Satan knows that his time is running out. And for believers, we have a difficult and rough road ahead. Satan is going to throw everything he can in order to get us off track. Satan loves to bring persecution, trouble, trials, and opposition into our lives. As a believer, God told us that we would have trouble just like Jesus did. However, we are also told that we are to put on the full armor of God!

The Bible is like a treasure chest filled with promises, hope, love, guidance, truth, direction and peace. One of the best quotes from the Bible is:

Every Scripture is God-breathed and profitable…(2 Timothy 3:16)

Armed with such a statement from God, you can confidently know that everything you read in the Bible is true. When you open the treasures of the Bible, God, Himself tells us that whatever He starts…He’ll finish. We are also told that we’ll never be alone, we are healed by His stripes, Jesus is closer to us than a brother, that He gives us the power to get wealth and of course the list just goes on and on.

We need to be armed with God’s Word like never before. If we are going to win our race, we need to open our Bibles today and fill ourselves with His word. God will make sure to give you the revelation and direction you need in order to make it through your trial, but we must be willing to spend the time to really get to know Him. Not an “on-the-surface” kind of knowing Him but a deep-rooted realtionship that even when the whirlwinds are swirling around us we remain rooted in His truth.

God is good and there is absolutely nothing…and I do mean nothing…that is too hard for Him to handle. Fill yourself with His word. Get to know Him. Ask Him to have a real relationship with you. Because when you do, I can promise that absolutely nothing can stand in your way. You are victorious in Christ. It is because of Him and His amazing Grace that you will be more than a conqueror through Christ.

The best news of all…

BELIEVERS WIN!

Today's Forecast

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Words Hurt

Jul24

Broken Heart (2014_03_10 01_21_18 UTC)Have you ever been called dumb, stupid or maybe even an idiot? Maybe you’ve been told that you’ll never amount too much. Words can definitely impact your life. Just as positive things spoken about you can impact the way you see yourself, so can negative connotations.

You may find yourself living in difficult situations where frustration is the norm. You might be living in extreme poverty. You could even be struggling with finding employment, losing your home, struggling with addictions/health issues or having family strife. However, know that this does not define you!

See the thing is, as you walk towards God’s will in your life, things may not look good to those around you. You may even find yourself being the joke of those closest to you. But what you need to realize is that they simply don’t get it. They feel you need to live like they live. They want you doing things like they do. They want you to be like them.

Even though you may care about those around you, the hardest and most difficult thing to do is to follow God’s path for your life. Whether it makes sense to others or not, God has a specific purpose for your life. He knows exactly what He is doing and what you need to do in order to complete it. People are not always going to understand why you are doing what you are doing. They only can think about making money, buying material things, looking like the rest of the world. But we are not of this world. We may live in it but we are not of it. As a follower of Christ, we are called to be the light of the world.

During times like these, it is extremely important to remember who you are in Christ. As Isaiah 11:2 says:

“And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.”

When your life looks absolutely crazy and unbearable to others; sometimes even to ourselves…we must remember that God has a plan for us. While others are calling you stupid or dumb, what really matters is that you have the wisdom of God. One small touch of God’s grace in your life will make all your naysayers ask what the heck is going on.

God is the way, the truth, and the life. When He calls you for a specific purpose, it won’t matter what anyone else thinks. God is the alpha and omega; He knows the end from the beginning. So there is absolutely nothing that can happen to you without His knowledge. It is His knowledge, His grace, His love, His peace, His protection and His provision that will leave the rest wanting to know what you already know. This is true wisdom.

Don't Give up

So while others have their fun at your expense, don’t let it bother you. For when God’s amazing grace comes rushing upon you in His perfect time…He will open the right doors, the right opportunities, and the right people to come upon your life that will leave everyone else around you with their mouths wide open in shock!

SO…GET READY FOR THE LORD ALMIGHTY’S

HAND TO COME UPON YOU!

He promises that it will be beyond anything you can ask or think! Praise the Lord for He Is Worthy to be praised! 

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