Broken.....but not defeated

Brokenness, although painful, is one of God's means of showing His all-surpassing power in our lives. A disciplinary way of refining us/challenging our faith. I have experienced what seems like a domino effect of major trials within a short period of time. Totally unexpected, but when are trials of a convenience nature. We will all experience trials-yet we possess treasures from our God and He loves us so much. When we look through scripture, we see that we contain peace (Philippians 4:7), the forgiveness of sins, redemption, the riches of God's grace (Ephesians 1:7), joy (John 15:11) and the resurrection power of Christ (Philippians 3:10). Even in our imperfections and brokenness-God loves us and will use willing servants. I like the saying that God uses ordinary folks for extraordinary results. A song that I like is title Broken, by a group known as Seether. Part of the chorus says this; ‘Because I'm broken when I'm open--And I don't feel like I am strong enough -- 'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome--And I don't feel right when you're gone away.  Our God is strong enough-He will make us strong. He will not leave us/go away.   Broken-crushed-injustices-hurting……absolutely……but still a blessed life full of hope from our Almighty God. Blessings in your pursuit……TO

Confidence and Pride

This post inspired from a sermon of my good friend Toney Stowers. I am perplexed sometimes when differentiating between confidence and pride. God loathes the prideful(1 Peter 5:5-6, Prov 11:2, James 4:6-7). I typically do not demonstrate or perhaps even possess a confident attitude. I do not want to be seen as prideful/brash/arrogant/egotistical. 2 Cor. 3:4-5, ‘Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God’. I now believe the prevalent factor to be in recognizing the source or origin of confidence. If we are narcissistic and see ourselves as in control and haughty of our abilities, we indeed minimize the true source. Appropriate confidence is realizing that God is the source, we praise/thank Him, and use the abilities given to serve Him. Perhaps the term ‘quiet confidence’ is applicable. A humble confidence that is in our God and Creator, not self. God enabling us to work through His power. No matter your level of confidence-it is not about you. I am an introvert that is quiet, laid back and reserved. The confidence I have is not outwardly expressed. I have been guilty of allowing my personality to direct my spiritual actions by not being bold and confident in sharing a precious gift that has been entrusted to me as a Christian-Jesus Christ. Shame on me! A lifelong work in progress. Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Blessings

I recently read an interesting take on blessings-probably something I should have long heard/realized. We should never looking at a blessing as something given just for me. Perhaps we should always think two things...
1. Thank You God for entrusting this blessing to me. I know it is a gift from You.
2. How can I use this as an opportunity to bless someone else? The blessing will be more rewarding if it's not all about me.
Do these things come naturally? Not at first. Not in a 'me first/mine kind of world’. But we aren't called to live according to the norm, doing what comes naturally. We are called to rise above. Be set apart. Be different. Be pure in every way. "Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure" (1 John 3:3). Philippians 2:3-4 says, Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. What blessing do you have that might need to be shared today? I know of the ultimate gift/blessing that I have that I need to better share with others-a relationship with Jesus. How often do you/I share this precious gift? Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Secret

We should keep secrets that are told to us confidentially. Most folks are not the best at doing so though. Why is it so easy for us to tell of secrets that we promise the source that we would not do so? Yet, the most powerful secret/truth of all, the message of the Good News found through Jesus Christ, we become mute and do not share with those we come in contact with. Colossians 2:2-3, “I want them to be strengthened and joined together with love so that they may be rich in their understanding. This leads to their knowing fully God's secret, that is, Christ himself. In him all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are safely kept.” Several passages make reference to secrets being revealed to us…… these secrets are found through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. God never hides truth from sincere seekers. In fact, He came to earth in the person of Jesus to ensure that we’d learn His secrets and understand His ways. Our task is to open ourselves—ears, eyes, and heart—and listen intently to Him. My challenge is for all to become more bold. May we all have the desire to obediently share this secret/truth……the message of Jesus-and less interested in spilling out secrets told in confidence/gossip. Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Biblical reminders to our dependence on God

We live in an ‘I/me’ society. We are lead to believe we control our success/destiny-be self sufficient/reliant. Here are a few noteworthy examples of our dependency upon God. The first two we perhaps do not think about enough.
1) Daily Manna-the bread of Heaven. A forty year lesson to the Israelites to not store up but to trust/depend on God to provide(Ex.16). 2)Tithe- belongs to and is Holy to God(Lev.29:30-33). Money can compete with God as it provides power and feelings of self-reliance. Matt 6:24 says we cannot serve both God and money. When we freely/joyfully tithe, a bold statement that demonstrates, ‘money has no power/control over us’. Trusting/depending on God’s promise to sustain us. 3) Faith- That what we believe, yet unseen. Dependence upon God is integral to faith. “I love the recklessness of faith. First you leap, and then you grow wings.” -William Sloane Coffin. Wow! Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Preparation

We prepare for many things in this world; school, careers, choice of spouse, kids, retirement to name a few. John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus. God is preparing a most heavenly, eternal dwelling for those who are obedient followers. I have now learned, albeit the hard way, that scriptures will prepare us for the trials we will face in this life-and we will face them! I was cruising through a blessed life, probably becoming too content as if life would always be good. Oh if I had only PREPARED more by steeping my life with God’s word instead of it usually collecting dust through the week-only to pick it up for church services! I would have been better equipped to face a series of trials that have been very hurtful. As I said earlier, I have learned the hard way-sort of back tracking and now reading the Bible regularly to fill my life with a comforting peace in order to better handle the existing challenges and those that will follow. The scriptures tell us that God knows what we need and will not place on us more than we can handle. Sometimes I feel as though God finds me capable of handling more than I think I can withstand. The little things that frustrated me in the past seem as folly now. While God disciplines because He loves us, just as we do our own children, it is painful-yet will make us better(1 Peter 4:12-13, "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed", see also James 1:2-5). The past three years have been a much needed spiritual awakening for me-while difficult, scripture says to count these trials as blessings and be joyous-that God cares enough. A tough love from above! Are you preparing for life’s trials? Take it from me- do not wait until they hit, I’m confident that your PREPARATION will be a blessing. Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Time to sow

Time…..a precious gift that I often take for granted!!! We live our lives as if there will always be more to follow. Scripture tells us that we are not guaranteed a tomorrow. As I have gotten a little older, I reflect on how I have spent my time in the past and how I can do better. My biggest area of concern has been-‘how many people am I showing/sharing Jesus?’ Our lives here are given by God to serve others and worship Him. Am I sowing as God would have me? Are my actions of sowing/sharing Jesus pleasing in His sight? A constant battle. Time is fleeting, I desire to be a faithful/obedient and productive child of God as I strive to sow. I hope this is a gentle reminder that causes each one to reflect/re-examine things that are temporary-yet chew up our precious time, versus those that have an eternal impact. Plant some godly seeds each day!!! 2 Cor. 4:18, "There's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever." Blessings in your pursuit.......TO