If you're anything like me, every now and then you need someone to encourage you to go further, to fly higher. I want to be that person for you. I want you to know that no matter what the circumstances are in your life, you can rise above it. How do I know? As a child, I was told that I would never be anything more than what my father was. Well, let me tell you about my father. Unfortunately, I only have four memories of him in my entire life. 1. He visited us one day and he was so inebriated he could not et out of the car. 2. We visited him one day and he was lying on a sofa with his best friend Jack sitting right at his head. 3. We were called to the hospital because he was admitted into ICU. 4. He was answering his call to our father which art in heaven. In case you were not able to read between the lines, my father was an alcoholic who was not active in my life. Let me preference right now by saying, regardless to what he did, he was still my father and without him, I wouldn't be here today. Therefore, I am grateful to have had him participate in my life b whatever means it was. I shared that to say to someone today; no matter what you have experienced in your life and no matter how you have been treated, God has always been by our sides. If you have been following me then you know my story. And, you also know some of the obstacles I have faced. But, I can honestly say that even though patience is not one of my strongest qualities, I have learned to live by God's word as it is printed in Isaiah 40:31, "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." What does this all mean you may ask? Let me help you understand. At some point, we have all experienced some level of anxiety. We have all had to wait for something to come to pass. Isaiah in Chapter 40 and verse 31 gives us hope that waiting can have a positive result. Let's look at it this way. When we go to a restaurant, we have someone who waits on us. Although the waiting can seem like a long time, a good "waiter" will often check in to see if we are in need of anything. They will provide excellent care and attention to make sure we are comfortable and that the wait doesn't become cumbersome. Just like God, when we are waiting for Him to move, He will check in on us often to make sure we are still holding on. He'll make sure we are staying focused and our needs are being met. The great thing about taking this attitude with God is we know in the end, He will come through. Keep in mind, regardless of how we choose to accept the wait, the same amount of time will pass. It's up to us how we position ourselves for the blessings to follow. Remember this one thing. When you shift your mind from "just waiting", to "waiting upon", waiting becomes easier. Your new perspective will give you renewed strength, purpose, and meaning and therefore, your eyes will open wider to Christ and how much He desires to bless us. When I think about all of the things God has done for me, I can't help but shake my head and wonder why. He has done so many marvelous things in my life, I have been left speechless. I can honestly say I am living my best life. It hasn't been too long ago when I was truly living in a hellacious environment. I mean there was never a dull moment. However, there were many questionable moments. As I am writing this post, I am reminded of the days when God would wake me up and instead of me thanking Him, I would question Him. Why? Why do you keep waking me up day after day to go trough the things I have to go through; and I remember hearing the Lord say, trust me, I have a plan; and I am reminded of this in Jeremiah 29:11 of His wonderful word, "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." The more I asked why, the more I am reminded of His word when "He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." 2 Corinthians 12:9 But God I would say, this doesn't make sense to me. Why don't you give these days to someone else. Why me? Then I remembered hearing Him say in Isaiah 55:8-9, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." So as you can see, no matter how hard I tried to get out of waking up every day, God had a reason for doing what He did. To this day, I still sometimes wonder why? Then God told me in Psalm 37:1-2, "Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb." God said, you're my girl, and I love you so much that I laid down my life for you. For this reason, I want you to remember, "This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24 We all know that the God we serve is mighty. How do we know this? Look in the mirror. There is no one else in this world, on this earth who has the ability to create someone as beautiful as you. Your eyes are your eyes, your nose is your nose. Your ears are your ears. In other words, you are you and there is no other. As we read through scriptures, we learn that our bodies are valuable to God. God created us in His image and therefore, our body is our temple. It is holy and it belongs to Him.How do I know, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says so, "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." Further, 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 tells us, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." Therefore, I encourage you to do as the Bible tells us to do in Romans 12:1-2, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." With all of this being said, keep in mind that whatever you do, do it as if you're doing it unto the Lord. While it is important for us to have a physical workout, it is equally important for us to have a spiritual workout. Physical training has some value but spiritual training, otherwise known as godliness has more value. Sometimes life can have us so messed up we don't know if we are going are coming. Sometimes we don't know left from right; and right from left. But one thing remains certain, at God is standing by our side. When we are feeling weak, the Bible tells us in Psalm 31:24, "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord." In other words, this scripture is telling us as long as we place our hope in Christ, and walk uprightly before Him, He will keep us strong at all times. Philippians 4:12-13 says, "I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." In this particular scripture, we are saying we acknowledge it's God's strength that keeps us; its God's strength that keeps us from giving up. When I look back over my own life, I can see many times God kept me through situations that seemed impossible. Situations where I wanted to throw my hands up and say enough. However, I was convicted by the word of God in Galatians 6:9, "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Knowing that we have a season of reaping ahead of us, is reason enough not to give up. Believe me when I tell you, I understand exactly how you feel. There were many times I honestly felt just like giving up. With trials on every hand, life can be just that difficult. I encourage you, never ever give up. God has something for you that is going to blow your mind. Remember, He is the God who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Ephesians 3:20. More importantly, "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." 1 Corinthians 2:9 |
In Memory of: Charles T. Wilcox
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