Showing posts with label No Fear. Show all posts
Showing posts with label No Fear. Show all posts

Tomorrow Could Be The Day

God sometimes seems late but in the end, he's right on time.

It's darkest before the dawn.

Just when we think we can't take anymore, God delivers us.

If the deliverance is not total, it's enough to give us saving relief.

It's enough to encourage and strengthen us.

It's enough for us to feel that we can go on.

It's enough for us to understand that he is aware of what's going on with us.

Our Father is always aware of how much we can take.


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Giving Is A Choice In Freedom

The practice of tithing was under the Law of Moses. Christians today don't have to fearfully practice it because we don't have to do anything to be accepted by God after we accept his Son Jesus as our Savior. The tithing principle, however, is a good guideline for those who need structure in giving. 

While tithing required 10%, the scriptures teach that it is good to give more than that when we feel free to do so. However freely we give it will be freely given back to us (Matthew 7:2). This is a statement on how much we can expect back, not on how much we need to give. 

Today, it's not about tithing. It's about giving abundantly to others out of our own feeling of abundance. It's giving in freedom. The type and amount of that free-spirited giving varies from Christian to Christian. Our Father wants us to give from the heart, in the amounts and the frequency that we feel comfortable to do. Give how, when, in what way, in what amount and to where you are inspired to give.

If anyone attempts to make us feel ashamed because of our monetary giving or the lack of, their spirit is not of God. If you are not giving today but would like to, don't despair. God sees your heart and he will surely help you to get to your goal. He works with us, not against us. He does not push us, he understands us. Giving is a choice in freedom. Be comfortable and at rest in your freedom in Christ Jesus.



The Weapon Will Not Produce

No weapon formed against us shall prosper doesn't mean that the weapon itself will always be stopped from striking. It means that the purpose and plan of the weapon, as designed by whoever the enemy is, will not produce the evil effect that the enemy intended. This is the heritage for those who love God through Jesus Christ by the power of The Holy Spirit, for those who choose to walk in the spirit and not in the flesh.

Isaiah 54:17

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New Glorified Immortal Bodies

Don't be afraid of the destruction of the mortal body. All of us who have acknowledged and accepted Jesus The Christ as Savior, who love Our Father and who obey The Holy Spirit will live in the Resurrection of Life. 

The second death will have no power over us. We know what to expect, as much as God has chosen to reveal and as much as we can understand. 

It is our spirits that are born again, or reborn, not our corrupted bodies. It doesn't matter what happens to our bodies for we must put on the incorruptible. (I Corinthians 15:53-55) We are getting new, glorified, immortal bodies. 

Rejoice! May the peace of God be with you. 

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Stop Anxiety In Its Tracks!

An anxiety-ridden man asked this at a FBook group that I recently visited:

What should you do if you’ve divorced and currently remarried? How do you truly repent from this? Should you divorce a second time -the person that you’re currently with? And what about the children involved?

My advice to him was:

Simply ask God to forgive you for any wrong decisions that you have made. Believe that he has forgiven you through the Blood of Jesus and it is done. Ask him to lead you on how to proceed but stay where you are for now. Don't hurt any more people, including yourself, by making decisions and taking actions that you don't yet understand. Love your children. Stay where you are until you get direction otherwise from God. Accept where you are and continue to build yourself up in your most Holy faith. Blessings to you, your family, friends and to everyone in your circle.

I try to remember to take the advice that I am always giving to others, and it is this:

If you don't know what to do, pray and turn it over to God. Then, if you don't know what to do, do nothing. If you're not sure what to do, but you must make a decision, do what makes the best sense to you while waiting on God.

We are always to wait on God, but often a decision must be made immediately. We can't help that. God will give us an immediate answer, or he won't. One thing that he has already instilled in us is common sense. If we must make a decision and we don't yet have clear direction from God, we must use our common sense.

If we are afraid and must make a decision, we have to do it afraid if we don't have clear direction from God. An ideal situation would be for us to not have to make a decision yet. Whether we make a decision or not, whether we make a move or not, whether we choose one way or another, we are always dependent upon God. 

So, stop anxiety in its tracks! Pray and give it to God. Right now. Do nothing if you don't know what to do. Do what makes sense to you if you have to make a decision now.

Keep stopping anxiety in its tracks by reminding yourself often that it all is in the hands of Our Father. Remember that because we love and trust him and have a prayer session of giving the issue to him, we can't hurt his plan for us through any decision that we make.


  

God's Blessings Through Transitions, Transfers And Changes

I've learned that nothing that God does in our lives is necessarily permanent. Though I thrive on changes, transfers and transitions, some that are unexpected and unwanted are very difficult to cope with.  As Christians, we are often ashamed to accept a change when we shared that God did the thing and blessed us.

We think because God did it that it is engraved in stone and can never change. God gave it and we have it, for good! When the blessing circumstances begin to change, we are apt to and often encouraged by less-enlightened Christians, to believe that we made a mistake. Maybe God did not do it after all, because things are now changing. If God did it, it would not change, right? As we grow in Christ, we learn that this is not true.
God gives and takes away, shifts and turns things in our lives, opens a door for a season and then closes it and opens another door. He even brings people into our lives temporarily to bless us in various ways.  He then moves them out because they were not meant to stay. We are confused and wonder why these relationships are not retained. We lament and look back, when we need to learn to let go and move forward.
We should anticipate the new things that God will do. It helps to remind ourselves that everything in this fallen world is temporary. It all seems so solid to us because we endure time while we are here. Time seems to make permanent things but that permanence is all temporary. God shifts all according to his will and we are not to hold on to what he allows to change.
Transfers and transitions are more often experienced in the lives of some rather than others. Despite this, we all can grow through God's big and small changes as we listen to and obey His Spirit each day. If you have proof within yourself that you made a mistake and God did not do it after all, admit it and move on. Growth is good and God knows where you're at.
When things begin to change, however, regarding a blessing that you know came from God, don't degrade your relationship with Your Heavenly Father by choosing to believe that he never blessed you. Don't allow others to convince you to demean your spiritual growth and your commitment to God. Know that God does not change, but he changes things.
Our Father does not intend for the changes to hurt us. Because of the condition of this damaged and swiftly-deteriorating world, hurts and pains must come. God allows his planned and ordained changes to bring about his purposes. His end result is not for us to suffer for no reason. He plans and allows changes in his blessings to benefit us now and in the New Heaven and the New Earth, in ways that we cannot imagine. We just need to stand firm in what we know and accept what Our Heavenly Father changes, as we grow in our understanding of how He does things.


Overcome Evil With Good And Grow

Have you been feeling fearful or maligned lately? Been the target of malevolent or hateful treatment? What about persecution, harassment or oppression in it's various psychological and emotional ways? Do you wonder where your Father God is as you struggle to righteously endure the unceasing unfairness that he seems to be allowing?

Do not doubt that he is aware. Furthermore, he knows why you feel the way that you do. He knows the causes of your confusion and anger and he is not mad at you. When will he ever do something about what you are suffering? I don't know. Will he ever stop it? I don't know. Despite our uncertainties and intense anxieties, there is always a place where we can take refuge in a way that pleases God. We should always want to please and glorify him, no matter what. 

I pray every morning before I speak to or encounter anyone in person or online. I also do talking prayer to God throughout the day. When these distressed feelings are particularly severe, however, I need something else to help me. Rather than attack others (in my mind or outwardly) who may seem to be the cause of my troubles, I like to quote Psalm 91. I have it written on three little sheets of paper that I've taped together.

I keep the little packet in the place where I am most of the day. I can find it either on my art work table or at my computer. When I feel particularly distressed, I pick it up and walk around my home reading it aloud.


I bring the words out of my spirit and put them into my atmosphere, where they will grow and bear good fruit, within and all around me. I listen to myself speaking the Living Word of God, that which will transform and convert. I always feel better and equipped for the next stage of battle when I do this. 

Don't fight with others. Don't attack others in mind, spirit or physically. Don't repay evil for evil. Do good by speaking the Holy Scripture passage that will carry you to the next level of walking in God's light and growing in Christ.



Freedom From Bad Memories


We've become adept at suppressing distressing and painful chips and chunks of memories. At the time when bad things happened to us or when we did something bad to others, we were not able to process it, so we buried it and hid from it. This is often the source of an unhealthy mental state.
 
Hurtful memories cannot be laid to rest as long as they are suppressed. Offending persons cannot be forgiven as long as the thoughts of them are suppressed. We can't forgive ourselves until we face our offenses. The results of trauma cannot be converted through healing and deliverance as long as they are suppressed.

God shows us how to get free of the debilitating effects of these hidden facts. When the Holy Spirit allows a memory to surface, it's usually at the most unexpected time. It's often something that you think would be long forgotten and in which you are surprised that it has come back to memory. It was always there and we are adept at fooling ourselves that anything that we are not conscious of doesn't matter.
Don't ignore the pop-up memories that God allows to plague you. Face the feelings that they unearth. God often asks us to relive painful memories so that we can endure them in a new state of mind that can go through and overcome them. No, it's not fun and it doesn't feel good but if any man be in Christ he is a new creature. Old things are passed away. All things have become new. (11 Corinthians 5:17) Painful memories can only be crucified by facing the origin of them.
 
I am on that journey of deliverance. Bad memories, the ones that we were able to bury deep inside, are like gray shadows behind a thick, gauzy, misty curtain. Something is there but consciously we don't know what it is. Despite that, it effects our personality and our daily life.
 
We would never open the curtains to see the trauma that doesn't exist but God is able. Our Father, in his loving kindness and mercy, would never force us to face something that would cripple or destroy us any more than it already has. We usually don't know but God knows when we are strong enough. 
You might say, Well, it sounds like I would have to relive the bad experience in my mind and emotions. Yes, you would to a certain extent. Experiencing some parts of traumas with a strengthened, spirit-filled heart again lays them to rest. God decides what we are to revisit in our emotions and to what extent. We feel these old but potent, living emotions with a reborn mind and heart, abilities we did not have back then.
 
As we grow in Christ we become more able to handle difficult circumstances. We were not able to handle what was happening before, especially in childhood. Because of that, the secret memories keep hurting us today.  The whole point is that we can't go back and change things but Our Loving Father will help us come to terms with the bad memories from traumatic experiences.

Allow God to take you through the healing process and purge you of bad memories because of past offenses. You don't have to keep hurting and suffering through things that you did or didn't do, or things that someone did to you or didn't do for you. Even though you are lost about it all, you are not alone.
 
Stand firm on your daily prayer life and determine to have faith in your daily Bible reading, because you know that the Word of God converts. It's the Living Word and no word goes out of the mouth of God without effect. All of God's words accomplish what he intends for them to. His words in you are life, healing and health. 
When he begins to lift that curtain on your memory, go with God. Our Heavenly Father himself will hold you with the right hand of his righteousness. (Isaiah 41:10) He does care. He will guide you on how to be delivered. Whether it is in private between you and God, whether he leads you to a good Christian counselor, whether he prompts you to join a support group or whether it is a combination of these and other things, he will lead and guide you into all truth. (John 16:13)
 
You might say, Well, I could never talk about my bad memories with anyone. Well, God knows that and he understands. You may not have to. Don't be afraid. He's ready and willing to help you on your own level, from where you're at in this challenge. He won't force you to do anything. He never does. He's kind and considerate and will always work with you. He wants you to be free.
 
Knowing God is supposed to make a difference in our lives. If we allow him to, he will deliver us from the evil of past traumatic memories, no matter what they are or how they came about. God does not want you to keep carrying that burden or burdens. Don't turn away anymore when he shows you a past memory. Trust him, draw nigh to him, obey him and get freed.




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Stop bad memories from popping up, Stop bad memories, Eliminate bad memories

How Do We Pray When Damage Is Inevitable?

We are never without recourse in a time of trouble.
Sometimes I just feel overwhelmed when I want to pray for those in catastrophic situations. Despite changes that can avert destruction, there is what seems to be inevitable in projected reports. There is the history of recurring events. Lastly, but not least, are the prophecies in the Bible about what will occur as the time for Jesus' return nears.

I wonder sometimes what the use of praying is. What good will it do in circumstances like this? This makes me feel like we are sitting ducks, and that there is nothing that we can do. We are never, however, without recourse, and that recourse is still prayer. There is never a time when prayer will not help.

First of all, if we have faith that God can do anything, we pray that absolutely no damage will be done. That's it! We pray that somehow the storm will be turned away from human harm. We pray that it will miraculously abate, dry up and dissipate.

Next, if we can't bring ourselves to pray that, because we find it incomprehensible to believe, we pray that damage will be minimal and no lives will be lost. We pray that everyone will find safe shelter and that homes will remain standing.


Finally, if that type of prayer does not resonate in the face of a catastrophic event, we pray that the hearts of everyone who does not know him will be turned to Jesus. We pray this for those who are in the eye of destruction and for everyone involved.

All of these prayers really can be combined into one cry to God for help:

Help Us Lord!

Help Them Lord!

Have Mercy On Us Lord!

Deliver Them Lord!

Dear Jesus My Savior
You said you would never leave nor forsake those who love you.
Help those in this terrible situation come
to love you in all circumstances.
I know that you are at the right hand of Our Father,
always praying for us.

Dear Father God
You said Fear thou not, for I am with you.
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you. I will help you.
I will hold you up with my right hand of righteousness. 
 For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand saying
"Fear not, for I am with you".
(Isaiah 41:10,13) 

Help those in this destructive situation come to love
and rely on you in the same way. 
Have mercy on them and everyone involved,
friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers,
first responders, medical personnel,
city/government officials,
clergy.

So in writing this encouragement to help others, I talk myself into victory.

Victory in faith.
Victory in spiritual action.
Victory in prayer. 

I Believe In Prayer, No Matter What!






Poetry: He Will Turn It Into Good





He Will Turn It Into Good

I heard a man on TV today,
Who spoke about suffering and trials to allay,
The feeling that struggles are really for nothing,
The often unfairness and our life's contorting.

He said if we could not determine a cause,
That we can be certain and give this applause,
That we will come out of it richer inside,
The strength that we get will show on the outside.

Some trials are too heavy, some burdens beyond,
What we think is fair, way too much put upon.
But, there is not anything God cannot use,
To make our lives better, to help us improve.

That does not support that our pain is ordained,
That God must make sorrow for blessings to rain.
He does not need trouble and horror and woe.
He needs not the evil from that pit below.

We live in a world that is set on a course.
The fault is not ours so we feel no remorse.
We know we can't change Satan's evil world reign.
The Blood of Our Savior we use as a bane.

Don't think about quitting or turning on God.
To God be the glory and give him a nod.
He will make it right, this old world has to go,
And all of the pain and the suffering and woe.

So what can't be changed will be taken for you,
And made as a blessing, to help others too.
Just keep holding on and don't dare you forget,
That you will come out of it richer and blessed.
 
~ SJ Holland~




"He Will Turn It Into Good" poem ©Holland Writing & Publishing
Image: Pixabay.com

I Prayed And It's Getting Worse! Why?




Often, when we are believing God for big changes, and praying and standing on his promises, the opposite will seem to happen. When we think things should be getting better, some things may seem to get worse. Some areas in our lives may need to collapse, so that God can build upon a stronger foundation that which we desire.

This is not pertaining to the foundation of the life of a Christian, for that main foundation is already built upon the Rock of Jesus Christ. The foundations that I'm speaking about are the areas of our lives that are a hinderance to obtaining what we want. They are superflous things, people and circumstances that need to go, that usually were not introduced by God into our lives to remain in the first place.

Some definitions of superflous include unnecessary; uncalled-for; wasteful. The best definition, though, is obsolete, which means no longer produced or used; out of date. They may have been useful at the time, according to God's plan, but are no longer so. We don't realize that many advancements, relationships and situations that we encounter are not meant to continue along the road with us.

God rarely reveals to us that what is a blessing at one time will become dispensible at his appointed time. These invited-turned-uninvited blessings must be wrenched from our lives in ways that we don't expect, because we don't understand that we must let them go. While God is permanent, the circumstances that he allows or places in our lives are not always so.

How do we handle these potentially upsetting and distressing developments? We continue to stand on the original promise of God. While doing so, we also do what is best at any given time, facing the challenges that God places before us. We determine to continue to have faith in him, while doing our part to fearlessly manage our daily lives, fearing no thing.

We go with the flow and recommit to God daily, loving and praising him with every fiber in our being. The course may veer off along the path at times, but if we are sure of what God is doing in our lives, then the path is the same. It is time to move upwards and onwards to what we asked God for.


Definitions: dictionary.com , Google 
Image: pixabay.com

Saved But Worried Or Afraid?



Every day of your life conceive of yourself as living in partnership and companionship with Jesus Christ. If He actually walked by your side, would you be worried or afraid? Well, then, say to yourself, "He is with me." Affirm aloud His promise, "I am with you always." Then change it to say, "He is with me now." Repeat the affirmation three times every day.

~ Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking condensed edition, Chapt. 8, How To Break The Worry Habit, pg. 36. ©1987 & 2008 Peale Center for Positive Thinking. All rights reserved. Guideposts Outreach. GuidepostsFoundation.org ~

 

How To Deal With Tests, Trials & Tribulations

Sometimes, we just want it to end; those difficult trials and testings...

~ I had a moment of weakness
when I spoke in spirit to my Heavenly Father ~

Sometimes, we just want it to end; those difficult trials and testings that we are suffering through. I had a moment of weakness when I spoke in spirit to my Heavenly Father, with very much heartfelt expression, I just wish it would end. He knew what I was thinking about. I did not need to spell it out or identify the issue. Then on the heels of that thought came the one that always brings me back to commitment.

I thought of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. He had endured so much harassment most of his 33 years. He had lived through his cousin, John the Baptist, being murdered. He had been hounded, shunned, consistently plotted against and betrayed. Though he knew these things would happen, they still happened to someone who could feel as we feel. He experienced the feelings, emotions and stress that we feel. He was very tired, I'm sure, by the time he made it to that garden. He felt fear and dread. What did he do?


~ The moment of terrifying weakness
turned into a moment of strength ~

In a moment of human weakness, he asked his Father, with so much  heartfelt expression that it seems some of his capillaries burst and oozed blood from his pores, Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me.  The moment of terrifying weakness turned into a moment of strength when he said, nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done. He chose to reestablish his determination to accept God's will. The flesh that he had taken on was fearful, but in his spirit was the strength to continue on. 



God expects us to determine to overcome our aversion and fear.

If Jesus had not recommitted himself, dug his heels in, and stayed the course, I would not be able to say today that I have a Heavenly Father. I would not be able to say that I have true help in a time of need, that he prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies, or that he shows me how to overcome evil with good. I would not be able to say that he helps me to do all things, and to put on effective, spiritual armor. Most of all, I would not be able to say that my Eternity is set in Him.

When on the heels of that broken-down thought of supplication I remembered Jesus, and all that he had endured for me, I immediately said in my spirit to God, nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done. In some circumstances, no matter how much we plead and pray, the situation will not be changed. We sense this in our spirits, though we wish it was otherwise. God expects us to determine to overcome our aversion and fear, and submit to his care in these distressing times.

~ Even Jesus asked to be delivered ~

So, do not be afraid to say nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done. It is okay to ask if it can be done in some other way. Even Jesus asked to be delivered from something that we know today was necessary for our very Salvation. Our Father wants us to always be honest with him, to worship him in spirit and in truth, and to walk in the light before his face. How do we build faith in a time of suffering under adverse circumstances, frightening developments, and devastating trials?


...reliable faith is believing that you will be ok in whatever will happen...

The Lord showed me this week that faith is not grasping to believe that some undesirable situation will not happen. True, reliable faith is believing that you will be ok in whatever will happen, and that if you perceive that he has ordained it, he will see you through to some kind of victory, one way or another. 


Scripture: Luke 22:42 (NKJV) BibleStudyTools.com
Images: Pexels.com