Tag Archive | god

When You Feel Weak…

Sep28

Ever find yourself burnt out, stressed out and just not sure what is happening in your life? Ever felt like the weight of the world is upon your shoulders and you have no clue what to do?

There are times that it seems like we hit every brick wall imaginable.  There are times that seem like nothing is going right and we become so worried, stressed and plain ol’ worn out.  We tend to try and fix things ourselves, just to realize that nothing is working.

The one thing we can always be certain of is that God can be mysterious and unpredictable.  We don’t always understand why things are taking so long or why things don’t seem to be going our way – it drains the very strength and life out of us.  Making us feel weak, clueless and insecure along the way.

BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS…GOD SHINES THE GREATEST WHEN WE ARE AT OUR WEAKEST!

II Corinthians 12:9:  “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!

When we feel like we don’t have the strength to go on and we want to give up; the best thing we can do is:  STOP – DROP – THANK

Fall to your knees and tell God that you can’t do it!  Tell Him you can’t go on!  Tell Him that you don’t have any more strength!  In other words, TELL HIM EVERYTHING and don’t forget to THANK HIM FOR HIS ANSWERS!  Then, let go and let Him do the rest!

God knows what is best.  He knows the perfect timing for the amazing “thing” to happen in your life; catapulting you to greater heights.  His best is far beyond what we ever can imagine for ourselves.  Let Him raise you up and strengthen you – FOR HE IS GOD AND NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR HIM!

Struggles

Sep21

Have you ever found yourself facing many struggles all at once?  Has every door shut in your face and you just couldn’t understand why?  Do you ever feel like you are walking in God’s chosen path and everything seems to go wrong?

During those difficult times, I’m always reminded of two Biblical stories that really help put things back into perspective.

The Book of Job

Job was a man of God and very blessed.  He had a loving family, a home and many possessions.  However, Job had a great fear.  He feared for his sons and their sins against God.  This fear festered and was his ultimate demise.  It allowed Satan access into his life.  Job ended up losing everything; His livestock was stolen and destroyed, his servants and children were tragically killed, and everything was taken from him in a blink of an eye.  His closest friends came and tried to analyze why all of this happened and kept asking Job what he had done wrong.  Even, Job’s wife asked him to curse God and die.  Talk about pain and suffering.  Poor Job was all alone during his most trying times.

Yet, Job’s reaction to it all was to get on his knees and worship God.  When all was said and done, Job stood his ground and God rewarded him greatly.

JOSEPH

Then, you have Joseph.  From a very young age, God had a real purpose for Joseph.  But Joseph’s brothers were jealous and hated him.  They wanted to be superior and in good favor of their father.  So, what did they do?  They sold Joseph into slavery and told their father that Joseph was killed.  Just imagine how Joseph must have felt through all that betrayal.  You know he must have asked, why?

Nonetheless, Joseph excelled during his hardships.  He was even thrown into jail for something he didn’t do.  But, even in jail, he excelled.  By Joseph keeping his eyes on God, Joseph became one of the greatest men alive.  He was placed in a very high position where God’s favor shined through him for all to see. (Genesis 37-50)

These amazing stories are a great testament of God’s ultimate best! They had to STAND STRONG and dig their heels in deeper; totally relying on the Lord, and God rewarded them for it.

I will be the first to tell you, it is sometimes easier said then done.  As I was being attacked from every angle possible and attempting to dig in deeper; things were spiraling out of control.  I knew I needed to call in reinforcements.  My PRAYER WARRIORS came to the rescue.  I desperately needed them to pray with me and since the Bible says, “when two or more agree, it will be done”(Matthew 18:19); I knew everything would be alright.

We may not always understand God’s plan during the whole transitional period of difficulties.  But one thing is for certain…in His perfect timing, all will be revealed.  So, DON’T GIVE UP!

A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO MY PERSONAL PRAYER WARRIORS

Bobby, Denise, and Grams…From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU for your love, support and prayers when I needed them the most.  You are all amazing and are very special people who I’m blessed to have in my life.  May God prosper each of you beyond your wildest imagination, for your futures are BRIGHT!

If you need a prayer warrior, send me an email.  I will be happy to pray in agreement with you so God’s incredible plan for you shines through.  God Bless!

Special Edition – CHOICES

Sep1

In this special edition, I would like to share with you an amazing and valuable lesson I learned recently.  I can tell you right off the bat, most people who read this won’t understand.  However, for those of you who really want to follow Christ; will completely understand the test I was about to embark upon.

To give you a quick back drop…God continuously has shown me that he wanted me to help others understand how to overcome emotions.  I never dreamed of being a writer nor have I ever thought of having my very own website.  But, God’s ways are higher than our own; that’s for sure.  The book and website was all God.  I had never used the software programs that were needed to complete these things nor did I have the experience or training within these programs.  Yet, God provided for me every step of the way.  And, I certainly haven’t had to struggle through all of the steps in order to accomplish His tasks.  So, I’m obviously walking in His true path for my life because it has been a very easy and peaceful path to take.

With that being said, my difficult test began…

Recently, I was contacted about a great job opportunity.  It was a 3 month contractual job with great pay.  Now in the past, I would have jumped on a chance like this.  However, this situation became a major dilemma for me.  It tied my stomach in knots for days.  Here’s why…

This particular position would be considered a gold-mine for most people.  Great pay, short-term position…it would have set my finances up for quite a few months after the job was long gone.  Yet, deep inside, I was conflicted.  With this position, came long hours and a huge commute, downtown each day.  No big deal, I’m used to that…So, what’s the problem?

Unfortunately, there would have been absolutely no way I would have the strength or time to continue God’s path that I’m currently on.  Oh, let me tell you, I was making every debate in my mind:

  1. God provided me with this opportunity.
  2. God would give me the strength.
  3. God would give me the time I needed to keep writing.
  4. God would make rush hour easier.
  5. And the list went on and on.

But the whole time I was trying to make sense of it all, I knew that the decision was an either/or situation.  I simply don’t know how I knew, I just knew.  What made it worse was that my family really could use the funds that this position offered.  What in the world was I supposed to do?

I immediately discussed the situation with my mom to get her feedback; since she would be affected by the decision as well.  We weighed the pros and cons together.  We tried to review every aspect, yet in the end, my mom said to me, “Why don’t you go get quiet, pray for guidance and ask God for the answer”.  There was no mistaking her wisdom…God has given her great insight through all these major changes lately and He was helping me to look higher than my current circumstances.

So, I took her advice.  I knelt on my knees, got quiet and asked God for guidance.  I discussed everything with Him; the pros, the cons, the money.  With tears flowing, I’m telling God that my family needed the funds and I know that I could put everything on the backburner for 3 months and that He would understand.  I also promised Him that when the job was done, I would get back to His writing.

But the whole time, in my heart, I knew that wasn’t true.  I knew that it would stop the amazing flow of grace He has placed on my family during all these changes.  God has been slowly changing all of us, laughter has been raining in my family and it has become such a wonderful place to be.  So, how could I let that go?  We have come so far in such a short period of time, God was with us.

What I came to realize was that the bottom-line question was simple …follow God or follow the money.  When I put it that way…there was absolutely no choice.  God will provide the funds we need so that we can keep moving in His chosen path.  God has helped me every step of the way.  He has changed my thinking, my heart, my life…all for the good.  How could I possibly stop His amazing flow of ideas and creativity; just for the money?  In all reality, it wasn’t a difficult choice…I CHOSE GOD!

I can tell you, as soon as the choice was made; God filled both mom and I with such an incredible peace.  It was like he was giving us instant confirmation that the right choice was made.  It was an absolutely amazing experience.

A particular scripture has been mulling in my head ever since: “…faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.”  As children of God, we are to trust and believe in Him whether we understand His purpose or not.  And one thing is for certain, the devil will do anything he can to hinder God’s purpose for our lives.  He makes the wrong way feel so inviting to our minds and senses.  Yet, deep inside,  you will know the right way to go as God will make it perfectly clear.

So when this happens to you, just keep in mind the simple question:  Does it take you away from God’s purpose or does it place you closer to His calling?  The choice will be yours.  What will you choose when the time comes?