For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
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Disclaimer:
It is not my intent Nor has it ever been my intent to mislead anyone. I am simply sharing my story in hopes that it will bless someone. I want you to know that I understand everything you're going through is real. The hurt, pain, disappointment, struggles they all exist; don't let anyone tell you different. Like all things exciting that happen in our lives, we wait in anticipation. You know, we expect it to happen. We don't know exactly when or how but we know for sure it is going to happen. The same holds true for the promise that Christ is coming again. The Bible tells us in Ephesians 5:27, "That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." In other words, upon Christ's return to the earth, He is expecting to see us (the Church) doing and looking our very best.
This is not a physical expectation. Christ is looking for us as Christians to be pure. To be set apart from the things of the world. Psalm 24:4 lets us know that God wants us to come before Him with a clean heart; "He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully." Now, does this mean we won't have problems? We won't mess up? Absolutely not. It simply means that if and when we do, we must go back to Christ and get it right. For example, in a husband and wife relationship, when one disappoints the other, in order to keep a happy, healthy, and whole relationship, they must acknowledge the wrong and move towards a different behavior. The same holds true for us with our relationship with God. When we mess up, and if we keep living, we will mess up. We have to go back to Christ (and whomever) and make it right. It will not erase the incident from its place in history but it will write a new line of repentance, forgiveness, and humility before our Father. We can never say we haven't been warned; or the traditional excuse we as humans use. Nobody told me. Well, the Bible tells us in Revelations 22:12-13, and I am here to reiterate, "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last." This scripture lets us know that the return of Christ is already underway; it is about to happen. He is going to bring with Him the judgment that we each have earned, whether it is a reward or punishment. The purpose of His return is to render to each one of us that which we have obtained in return for our services. Matthew 16:27 tells us, "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works." All this is saying is it is certain the future holds a judgment for all who live and die. Therefore, we must work while we still have time. Remember, the return of Christ is to judge us according to that which we have done. If we haven't done anything then guess what? He can't judge (reward) us for anything. Keep in mind, our work is our evidence that we are making preparations to enter into the kingdom. Now, if we have nothing to verify we deserve to be in the kingdom, then God will not give us salvation. In other words, if there is no evidence from us, there is no place in the kingdom for us. So, James 2:17 lets us know that even though we have faith, it is not enough, if we don't work, "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." Therefore, we must believe that because God gave us life, He expects us to work; and for this reason, because of our works, our faith is perfected; brought to completion. James 2:22, "Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?" I find it very interesting the very people you over extend yourself to, turn out to be the same people whose always throwing shade in your direction. If we be honest, we all know someone who has a shady spirit. For example, what about the person who sits to your left, smiles in your face but yet talk behind your back?
This has happened to me so many times that it doesn't shock me any more. What it does instead is boost my confidence and helps me walk in the knowledge of the fact I must be doing something right. I don't get pulled in any more by smiles, I don't get trapped any more by blank tears. What I do is listen attentively and do just as the Bible tells us in Matthew 26:41, " Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." As my life began to transition and God began to elevate me, it got so shady around me I thought I was walking in the middle of the night. The truth of the matter is that's what Satan wanted. He wanted me to question who I was and to walk around in darkness. Fortunately though, the Bible tells me in John 8:12, "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." Therefore, I took God at His word. I began to follow Him just as He instructed; and when I did, I began to see things and people for what and who they really are. John 1:5 tells us, "And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not." It is for this reason, the enemy has chosen to thrust shade upon your life. I would like to encourage you, don't be fooled by those who say they are with you. Why would I say this you may ask? Because if they have to tell you then, they're trying to convince themselves. True friends don't find it necessary to tell you instead, they find it more significant to show you. If you don't believe me, begin to pay closer attention to those around you. As long as you are going along with them and they are getting out of you what they want, yes, you are their girl. But, switch it up a little bit. Begin to say no to some things or better yet, have a crisis in your life and see what happens. Whatever the case, know that you are not alone. I have stood in your shoes; and believe me, it wasn't that long ago, as is noted in Ephesians 5:8, "For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:" Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven, and finally, 1 Peter 2:9 lets us know, "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;" Hold on to it. When I think about all of the uncertainty that comes with life, I can't help but sometimes feel overwhelmed. There are days when I wonder what will happen from hour to hour. I know this is not a healthy state to be in; but, life can seem too much to bear at times.
It is so easy to become filled with fear and despair when we look around. There is sin, war, cancer and so much more threatening our peace of mind. They all seem to find a way to steal our hope and cause us to wonder if we really have a future. God with His wonderful self has given us a promise in Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." Those plans include a good future filled with hope. God's spirit allows us to look ahead with joy, knowing that God has placed destiny on our life. Remember this, God never starts anything He can not or will not complete. The Bible lets us know this with 100% certainty in the Book of Philippians 1:6, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:" I just want to encourage you. God instructs us in Matthew 6:25-34, "Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." Proverbs 12:15
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. At some point in our lives, we have all had something to go wrong. Whether it was choosing the wrong job, or choosing the wrong mate; regardless, wrong is wrong. How we choose to deal with our wrong is what's important. One thing I pray that you will take away from this post is no matter how far down the wrong road you have gone, you can always turn around. Jeremiah 15:19 tells us, "Therefore thus saith the Lord, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them." Be careful how we allow small seeds of doubt and distrust to grow in our hearts. Don't let the constant persecution and rejection take a toll on you. With this scripture, God is giving us another opportunity to express sincere regret for our doubt, distrust and most importantly, our self pity. It's time to stop complaining and turn to God. As a part of our turning around, we have to ask God to help us discern between not being careless, and not feeling worthless. Remember that God has promised protection and power. In Psalm 16:11, God has promised to make His presence known in our lives, "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." No matter the source of opposition, persecution, our opponents will not be able to defeat or conquer us. The Lord will be with us just like He was with Jeremiah. He promised to rescue and deliver us. The Lord promised to save and redeem His servants from the wicked and the grasp of their cruel hands. Jeremiah 15:21 tells us, “I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked, And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible." Let me encourage you to repent and turn your heart and life over to God. Even though your life has been filled with isolation, rejection, pain, persecution and suffering; even if your family turns against you. Even if you have found yourself alone, dealing with the pain and gnawing of emptiness from years of being misunderstood; know that God will remain faithful to you in spite of the opposition. In spite of the persecution and in spite of the rejection, God will be with you. So again in Matthew 10:16-22, God lets us know:
"Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved." We will be persecuted but, we must be faithful. |
In Memory of: Charles T. Wilcox
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