Tag: Hope

Praising in the Pit…

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“Focus on remaining so gracious that when the time comes for your testimony, people’s recollection of how you maintained your faith and good character despite going through such a difficult season, will encourage them even more about what it is to truly trust in God.”

Smiling when things are falling apart around you, is possibly one of the most difficult things to do.
It’s hard to laugh, have fun, or even see the good in anything, because your circumstance is saying otherwise.

Today I want to encourage you to  P R A I S E  in the Pit.
And if you cannot think of any reason why it may be worth it, simply consider the fact that you have life, God still loves you perfectly, and His word says He will always be with you – that is more than enough to give Him praise for. (Romans 8:38-39, Deuteronomy 31:6)

In addition to that praise, here are three other key things to do:

1. Continue to do and be G O O D

Don’t allow your situation to make you bitter.
Natural emotions that we may experience when things are tough include;

  • Sadness
  • Frustration
  • Anger
  • Feeling fed up
  • Being irritable
  • Self-pity
  • Loneliness

and many others.

When we feel like this, it’s often difficult to be our usual selves, and in fact it is quite easy to fall into the trap of allowing our emotions to dictate and change who we are, negatively.
One of the most important things I want to tell us is that we must not allow our emotions to rule us. Yes, things aren’t great, but that is no excuse to compromise your character and forget who God has called you to be – which is someone who exudes L O V E at all times. (1 Corinthians 13).
Focus on remaining so gracious that when the time comes for your testimony, people’s recollection of how you maintained your faith and good character despite going through such a difficult season, will encourage them even more about what it is to truly trust in God.

When you find yourself getting into ‘a way’, remember that God’s word tells us a lot about His plans for us. (Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28).
Therefore, knowing God has a greater purpose, plan and will for you, means you cannot allow your energy to match your present situation. Instead, you have to ensure your energy is in line with the greater place God is taking you to! For that reason you need to draw out the praise that is on the inside of you and show God that you are dedicated to praising Him in spite of what is going on in your life. Show Him that your love for Him goes beyond your circumstance and that you truly love Him for who He is, not what He does.

 

2. Don’t obsess over ‘why’

Common perspectives many of us may have adopted throughout life, is that there is a reason for everything and that there is always a lesson to learn from every season you find yourself in. While I agree with both these concepts, we must be careful not to distract ourselves with trying too hard to make them fit into our lives in the most practical or perfect way.

Here’s what I mean by this…
Sometimes God does share ‘why’ He’s taking us through things, other times, He doesn’t.
The point is, if we get so utterly consumed with finding out ‘W H Y’ something is happening to us, or we get fixated on gaining an idealistic lesson out of it, we run the risk of losing focus on how God has truly called us to serve in that season, as well as engaging with God’s actual purpose or lesson for us.
For some of us, our focus on finding out ‘why’ could actually wrongly dissuade us from praising. This is because we subconsciously tell ourselves that we need a reason and purpose for the pain before we can praise in that pit, when actually the word of God encourages us to praise and give thanks in ALL things – good or bad. (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
Focusing on getting a so-called reason or lesson that we deem tangible enough to us, also falsely implies that depending on the answer we get, God could possibly be unworthy of our praise – and this is so far from the truth.
The bible tells us that He is worthy of all praise, honour and glory forever. (1 Timothy 1:17).

 

3. Surrender it all to God

This is the most important bit.
Stop trying to create the ideal outcomes in your mind, and stop trying to help God sort things out your way – just give it to Him and rest in Him.

The bible not only teaches us that we are made for God’s pleasure and to bring glory to His Name (Isaiah 43:7, Isaiah 43:21), but it also very clearly enlightens us that God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). Therefore some things may not make sense to us. Some things won’t add up according to how our human minds may try to work them out, and so chasing a reason, or trying to create an artificial lesson that we assume God is trying to teach us, will only leave us exhausted and disappointed.
What we should do instead in these situations, is truly and wholeheartedly seek God and ask Him to enable us to live out His very purpose for us in that situation.
We must learn the art of absolutely surrendering our will and way to God, realising that He is Sovereign and thus actively deciding to allow Him to have His way. This may not be easy – but it’s always worth it.

Worth it;
– because the earlier we surrender, the sooner we have peace.
– because walking with God is so much better than working against Him.
– and because ultimately, we should always desire for God’s perfect will to manifest, as opposed to anything else, as He really does know best!

 

Now get to know God’s Promises

It’s all well and good me encouraging you to trust God and rest in His promises etc., but you need to know His word for yourself, because that is what you have to hold on to.

So here’s a start for verses to use to remind yourself of how well God will carry you through it all, and that there surely is a greater glory awaiting you at the end:

Something crucial to remember in the midst of your pain and unrest, is that regardless of how sour things may seem, God has not, and will not EVER remove His covering over you. This means no scheme of the enemy could ever prevail over you, nor lead you to destruction, rather, just like He did with Joseph, God will turn it all around and use it for His glory and your victory. (Genesis 37:18-28, Genesis 39:21).

The story of Joseph (found in Genesis 37 onward) provides a good example of someone who praised and served his purpose diligently whilst in his pit. In fact his very service to others whilst in jail, is what then delivered him in time to come – but that’s a word for another day.

Admirable examples of other Praisers in their Pits and people who remained faithful to God in the face of adversity are;

Daniel – with friends in the fiery furnace – Daniel 3, in the lion’s den Daniel 6

Paul and Silas – Acts 16:16-40

Job – Job 1, Job 1:20-22, Job 2:10, Job 42:10-17

In each story, as each character served their season of pain/trials with diligence and grace, we see the final outcome was completely worth the strife, especially when it caused others to give their lives to God.
So today I encourage you to keep Praising and keep your heart Faithful to God.
Praise your way into the sweeter season, because you serve a God that would never leave your current situation as your final destination.

Set it in your heart that NOTHING will steal the praise from your lips and the worship of your heart,
Because at the end of the day
God will still be God –
The Sovereign God, who knows best,
So why not Praise Him anyway?!

 

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing

Song suggestion: Praise Him in advance by Marvin Sapp

*Practical tip: (suggested by a friend and I think is a great idea) Create a playlist of Ten upbeat praise songs! Get into your praise zone with these daily and be reminded of God’s goodness.

A Need For You…

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So we’re stepping into a new week, only by the grace of God, and of course, I have a message for you…

There is A Need for You…

Someone needs your smile

Someone needs the hope you have within you

Someone needs the strength that you can share

Someone needs the encouragement your words provide

Someone needs the comfort that you bring

Someone needs the love of Christ that flows from within you.

I want us to make this week all about everyone else.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.
Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,
not looking to your own interests
but each of you to the interests of the others”.
[Philippians 2:3-4]

I want us to take the scripture in Philippians as literally as possible, and try our best to put our own concerns and burdens aside, as we look around to help the people around us.

To some of us, this may sound extremely silly or uncomfortable or hard to do or just not ideal, because your present situation is tough – but what God told me to tell you, is that in the same way He is sending you as a helper to someone else, so will He send someone to you – therefore, you need not worry one bit about what’s going on with you – (remember what His word says in Deuteronomy 31:8, Philippians 4:19).
Pray for the strength to turn your eyes away from your issues, and focus on helping the people in your care.

Focus on your neighbour, and consider their needs.

Let them on the train before you, pay the extra £1 they’re short of, phone that relative and remind them someone is thinking of them, pray about the problem that is causing your friend to cry.

The bible teaches us to regard others above ourselves, to acknowledge their interests above our own and to value the things concerning them more than those concerning us.
Like I said above, sometimes when we’re going through so much hardship, and feel like life is working against us (even in the simplest of scenarios such as running late for work), this word is far too difficult of a pill to swallow.
We’re wallowing in our own worries and our self-pity that we don’t even have space to think of others or what they’re going through or how we can help them, because we are in need of help ourselves!!
But what the bible reminds us of here, is the fact that Love is unselfish (1 Corinthians 13:5)…
Therefore with the love of Christ, we ought to remember that there is always someone who is in deeper need that we can reach out to.
And no this isn’t about feeling better about yourself, but it’s about acknowledging that as children of God, God has given us a grace to ALWAYS be a blessing, regardless of our present circumstance.

So let us be mindful of our surroundings.
Let us consider others, and acknowledge their needs physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and let us stretch out our hands and pull them up from whatever valley they may be in!

This week, and always, I want us to remember that we are Ambassadors of Christ.
His Spirit lives richly in us, and we represent Him and everything He stands for.
Therefore just as He came to serve, and honour those He lived with, we ought to do the same with an open and joyous heart, desiring to make the lives of those around us pleasant and peaceful and filled with light.

Let’s start by labelling this week 25/09/2017-01/10/2017 as our #SelflessWeek.
And I pray that through the manifestation of the various selfless acts we carry out this week, we will be encouraged to permanently embed selflessness and living for others, into our everyday life.

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.

#SelflessWeek
#MoreThan100PeoplePraying

 

A Prayer for our Youth

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I woke up yesterday, and I could overhear my younger sister’s conversation.
I could tell someone else was gone again…

Immediate emotions were heartbreak, fear, sadness for the young boy’s family, but then it struck me that we can’t sit in silence, when God has given us a weapon – P R A Y E R – which has the power to destroy every evil plan, at the mention of the name of Jesus!

You see, the youth of today are often referred to as the future of tomorrow, because they ARE! But if their lives are all cut short now, there simply will be no tomorrow!

So this is what I ask of you today;
That you’ll stand with me and say ‘Enough is Enough!’
And I hope that you will believe with me, that as we connect our hearts and our spirits as one body to pray this prayer, that heaven will hear our cry and attend onto our prayers.

In Jesus’ Name,
Let us pray: 

For Guidance

Father Lord guide each and every one of Your children as they go in, as they go out.
Direct their footsteps and do not allow them to go where Your glory doesn’t lie!
Help them to be led by You, and to not be led astray by the tempter in Jesus’ name.

For Friendships

Every friendship that will lead them to destruction, Father bring it to an end in Jesus’ Name.
Help them to move with the right crowd and be influenced by people who will lift them up, rather than bring them down.
Help our youth in fact, to be a light onto others, rather than the darkness people are running from!

For Families

Every youth coming from a home that is troubled or broken, Father give them peace in Jesus’ Name.
Be the Peace that completes them and fills their void in Jesus’ Mighty Name.
Father though it may be difficult, please allow them to see their struggle, misfortune, or difficult beginning, as motivation to do, and be better for themselves, and for their own future generation to come after them.

For Education

Every Spirit of dropping out and giving up, Father we rebuke and come against it in Jesus’ Name.
School is not impossible for them, therefore we pray for every single youth we know, both closely and distantly, that You will enable them to always remain passionate about furthering their learning and broadening their horizons in Jesus’ Name.
Every limitation that teachers/professors/advisors may have placed upon them is broken today in Jesus’ Name.
And those who lack belief in them shall be put to shame in Jesus’ Mighty Name.

For Relationships

Father, we pray for romantic relationships, platonic relationships, relationships with siblings, friends, parents – that You will give Your young people an ability to love and treat others with respect.
Help them to honour one other and look out for those around them, whilst being led by You.

For Lives Lost Already

Father, we pray for those who have been snatched from us so early – whether it happened 10 years ago, or 2 days ago – we pray for comfort, strength, and peace for their families and friends in Jesus’ name.
We pray that every bitter heart towards what has happened, will be taught how to love again.
We pray that You will soften the heart of every person wishing to seek revenge, and give them peace and wisdom to know that judgement and vengeance is Yours alone.
Help them to hold firmly unto You, and never ever let go in Jesus’ name, for their true help, comes from You alone, Lord.

For a True Love of You

Above all things we have prayed for Father, we pray that each soul will run after You, long for You, and desire You more than ever before.
As they seek You, Lord, let them find You, and never let You go!
We pray that they will love You and be people after Your own heart.
Let them develop a relationship with You, and let them fear You and honour You with their whole lives.

Father Lord,
We trust that as our hearts connect with one another, You have heard our cry and have heard our prayer, in Jesus’ name.
We ask that the  T R A N S F O R M A T I O N  of the youth of today, across the world, begins now, and becomes a permanent triumph over the enemy in Jesus’ Mighty Name.

We pray that the helpers of our Youth, the people whom You have put in a position to lead the change and encourage Your young people, will never be discouraged or fearful or fed up in Jesus’ name.
We pray that those who are praying for our young people, and fighting for them to come to church, come to Jesus, find Salvation and so on, shall never get tired of fighting for their souls! We pray that You will keep a fire burning in them, that will never give up until Your work is fully accomplished, in Jesus’ name.

We pray that parents will no longer mourn their children.
We pray in Jesus’ Name, that we will celebrate our youth more, rather than grieve and cry over them.

We seal our prayers with the blood of Jesus.
We thank You for the privilege to even remember that we can pray and speak to You.
And we know that all this is done, as we have asked and prayed,
in Jesus’ Mighty Name.
A M E N.

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.

Not Some… ALL

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The thing about the bible is, the words in it do not lie.
Therefore when we see a sentence in there, or when we see a phrase in there, we have to take it for what it says.

How many of us are familiar with the Philippians 4:13 verse?
The one that tells us we can do all things through the strength we have in Christ Jesus.
How many of us believe it? (Many of us will say ‘me’.)

Okay, now how many of us truly believe and live by it?

You see, it’s one thing to believe that something is true, but it’s another thing to actually take on that truth and embed it into your own life.

All things, means All things.

It doesn’t mean a quarter, or a third, or two thirds or even 99%, but All things, means ALL…Things…

That means when you’re thinking of quitting because man, or even your own flesh has qualified you as unable to fulfil that task – you need to step up and realise that Christ is with you in ALL things, and you can and will do it – just apply yourself.

When your teachers/professors tell you that ‘Most students fail at this hurdle, hardly any students make that jump successfully…’ – you need to wear the garment of ALL things being possible through Jesus, and let them know there’s a Greater Being in you, that drives and enables you.

When your bosses say you can’t do it because of your background, or your experience, or your qualifications – you need to tap into that favour and grace from Christ that breaks protocol on your behalf and places ALL things within your reach.

Even when your family, who most people would argue are the ones who know you best – yes friend, even when they, in the deepest love for you, and through the desire of wanting to protect you from disappointment – even when they tell you that the venture is no good, or it’s too hard for you –  you need to strap up your ALL things footwear and get trekking, because Christ is going to take you there; to that desired goal and even further!

My reminder for you today is this,
When we extract verses from the word of God, let’s take them in their wholeness.

Just in the same way that we know we shouldn’t follow laws half-heartedly, or ‘pick and choose’ which commandments we want to follow, we also shouldn’t weaken verses of encouragement and empowerment, but rather, take them as FULLY as they come.

If Christ was only capable of enabling us 50% of the time, in 50% of the tasks, then the bible would tell us that!

100% UW

But as it says ALL things, it assures us of Him being 100 percent!
Therefore I encourage you to,
1. Put ALL your faith in His strength that lies in you.
And 2. Be bold to step forward and know that you truly are a conqueror, a victor and a success in EVERY single thing you lay your hands upon.

Now how’s that for a word to start your Wednesday morning?!

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you

Perfect Peace; Isaiah 26:3

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So here’s a PFP* for you this Wednesday afternoon.

Today, I woke up feeling overwhelmed.

I have so much work to do, so little time, and it’s no one else’s fault but mine.
(Haha, that rhyme was not intentional, I guess I’m a natural [Cheeky grin]).

Anyway,
Having tried to do this essay so many times, and having dedicated so much time to it, the exam I have next Friday has crept up on me, and I definitely haven’t done adequate revision for that either!

So my mind wasn’t rested this morning. And the human in me was quite worried, in fact, very worried.
On the other hand, there’s the Spirit in me, that knows it’ll all be fine at the end of the day, but still the flesh always challenges it, because I know that the bible says faith without works is dead (James 2:14-26), therefore I know I need to do the works part.

So anyway, I saw my academic mentor this afternoon, because we had scheduled a general meeting a few weeks ago, to see how it’s all going, and of course when I got there, I explained the fact that I feel like I’m struggling a little at this present moment.

And here is God…

She gave me different resources to use in my essay, and also advised me to not think too hard about it, and just get something done!
I left that meeting feeling and knowing that I can and will do it.

What’s my point here?

My point is that we should keep our hope in the Lord at all times, and trust that He will always bring us to perfect peace in our times of absolute chaos/worry/panic.

This morning, despite my worrying, I remember that there was a tiny hope I had in the meeting that I was going to attend with my mentor. I knew that God would send me some sort of direction through her, and that she would say something that would remind me that there’s still time to turn it around…

I couldn’t think of anything more real to share with you all today…

I want you to remember that there is ALWAYS still time to turn it around.

If you can just find that tiny hope that is still alive somewhere in your heart, grab it, hold on to it, and let it be the driving force, when the rest of you wants to give up.

The bible in Isaiah 26:3 says,

“You will keep in perfect peace
    all who trust in you,
    all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”

Take this word as your truth today and always.

Even if everything around you is falling down and crumbling, God will maintain an incomparable peace in your heart, to keep you calm, unworried, and level-headed, to get through it.

What you have to do, is just make sure you Trust in Him (Isaiah 26:4). And Trust in the Process.
Trust Him so deeply, that even when your flesh wants to worry, your Spirit holds on to His word and looks up in faith, to Him.
Make sure that your focus is right – let your thoughts be fixed on Him, let your mind be steadfast in Him, knowing that,
He. Is. Able.

I pray for you today,
That you’ll locate that tiny hope that’s somewhere within you, and allow it to usher in the great peace that God gives, to keep you calm, and keep you going, in the midst of what seems like a crazy muffle of too much!

Remember, You can do it 🙂

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.

 

*PFP = Personal Founder Post; a word with a personalised twist to help portray the message better *

Romans 12:12

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“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer”.
[Romans 12:12]

New Week?

We’re gonna ‘Romans 12:12’ our way through it!

Step 1: Say to yourself; ‘I will be joyful in hope!’

To hope is to have a feeling of expectation and great desire for a particular thing to happen.
To hope is also to trust.

Friends, to be able to hope is amazing, but because of how bleak things look now, some of us feel like there’s no point….
I’ll tell you, hope is beautiful and it keeps us going, because it means we aren’t giving up, and we trust for a better tomorrow.

Say, believe, and mean these things:

In this new week, I will sit confidently with happiness that greater is coming.

I will express my great pleasure in the fact that I know, it is not over concerning whatever situation I am praying about.

I will be joyful in the hope that never dies as long as I have Christ Jesus.

I will be joyful in the hope I have in the fact that as long as I am living, there is still a chance, there is still a possibility, and God will surely make a way.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
[Romans 15:13]

 

Step 2: Say to yourself; ‘I will be patient in affliction!’

Now this prayer takes maturity and true trust in God.
I say this because a lot of the time, we want it ‘now’ – We pray today and we want the ‘yes’ tomorrow (or even that same day!)

Let’s learn to endure our times of pain, and look to God in hope and faith, trusting that He knows what He has purposed it for, and that we will come out refined.

Say, believe, and mean these things:

I will be patient in affliction and I will learn the lesson that it brings.

I will be patient in affliction and trust God regardless of what anyone says – I will listen to His directions, obey His instructions and hold on to His promises.

I will be patient in affliction and turn to no alternative false solutions – I will wait on God.

“But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”
[Isaiah 40:31]

 

Step 3: Say to yourself; ‘I will be faithful in prayer!’

Some of us become consumed by a situation and stop praying.
Some of us don’t remember God when everything is rosy…

Today, we’re changing our attitude to prayer…

Say, believe, and mean these things:

I will pray without ceasing – 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

I’ll keep thanking God.

I’ll keep speaking to God.

I’ll keep up a constant conversation with Him because it’s in Him alone that I rest, and put my trust – (Proverbs 3:5-6).

I’ll keep consulting Him before my every move, because I know He knows best and has my best interests at heart – (Jeremiah 29:11).

 

So friends, here it is again…

Romans 12:12

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer”.

 

Let’s read it, take it in, believe it, and declare it;

We will be Joyful in every Hope we have in Christ,

We will be Patient in Affliction because we serve a Living and Loyal God that won’t leave us hanging,

We will be Faithful in Prayer – because why wouldn’t we want to speak to our Amazing Father daily?

 

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.

Cast your Cares…

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The bible says ‘Cast your cares…’

And there’s a good reason for it!

Because if we didn’t put those worries just somewhere else, onto someone else, they would literally drive us mad. 

The amount of things our minds need to think of, comprehend and process in one day is truly unthinkable.
Now then to add unfortunate circumstances, negative outcomes and bad news into this mix – it would physically and mentally be unbearable. 

So here is what the bible teaches us to do, when we are feeling overwhelmed with problems, consumed with grief, and it just feels like so many things are going wrong… 

“Casting all your cares
[all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all]
on Him, for He cares about you
[with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully].”
[1 Peter 5:7]

Cast your Cares. 

It says give your worries, your anxieties, your troubles, your concerns, all unto Jesus – Your Lord, who saves, who redeems, who looks after…

The bible assures us that He will carry our heavy load, and relieve us from the strain and the weight of ‘life’ that we’ve been carrying on our shoulders…

“Then Jesus said,
“Come to me,
all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest.”
[Matthew 11:28]

The bible assures us that we will be made to stand firm, strong, tall, and steady, because God Himself will sustain us….

“Cast your cares on the Lord
    and he will sustain you;
he will never let
    the righteous be shaken.”
[Psalm 55:22]

He will not allow us to ‘slip and fall’….

Cast

Your

Cares.

You see there is a sense of peace, in running away from those problems for a second. And that’s what some of us do, when we turn to external, worldly things to relieve the pain, the hurt and the worry. We run away, but only for a time.

But let’s talk about true peace…

“And the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
[Philippians 4:7]

When we run into Jesus, and hide in Him, what we are given is not temporary like that of the world’s.
No this peace is not a false feeling found in ‘quick-fixes’ from the world, but rather the true Peace of God provides us with a permanent escape, a permanent resting place.

When you Cast your Cares, you receive great Peace from entrusting all these issues into the hands of a Man who actually isn’t a mere man and is truly divine and conquered death and therefore through conquering death actually now sits at the right hand of God and has power above every single issue that confronts you.

When you Cast your Cares you allow yourself to Get Away.
Yes friend, Casting your Cares provides your mind with a holiday – it takes you away from the stress and the strife, but the better difference is that once you give it to Jesus, unlike a physical holiday, you don’t have the concept of returning home to ‘reality’.
With Jesus, your new found peace is maintained throughout your home (your heart). Peace becomes your reality…  

Peace becomes your insurance and security that with Jesus, Everything. Will be. Okay.

The only thing left to remind you of, is to continue doing your part.
What I’m saying here is, make sure you uphold and fulfil your physical role, when and where applicable, e.g. making the job application, studying for an exam, and so on.
Jesus does His part, and we must also maintain ours, through the strength and ability He has given us, because together, it makes the manifestation perfect! (Read James 2:14-26 which teaches us about the need of both faith and works to go hand-in-hand).

Let Jesus take those burdens COMPLETELY, and allow His peace and power to comfort you, and overcome every problem and every situation concerning you, today, and always. 

Cast your Cares, Maintain your Peace, Uphold your Role.

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God bless you. 

Another Shot?

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No, not that kind of shot!
I mean do you want to have another go/try/chance/opportunity at the thing you said you’d do in 2017?

Yes? Great!

Well firstly, let’s evaluate – how did January go for you?
Before we take steps to fix something, we have to know what’s wrong with it, so I want us to honestly assess the month of January in terms of the goals we set for ourselves.
Let us look at:

  • What went well?
  • What could have been better?
  • Ways to improve.

We all walked into the New Year with dreams, goals, good intentions and aspirations, but we’re on day 32, and without a doubt, a lot has happened.

Some things you won’t have bargained for may have popped up and distracted you or thrown you off your tracks.
People (sometimes the closest ones to you) may have discouraged you and made you feel like ‘you will never change’.
Circumstances may have simply not permitted it.

Does this mean, we should just give up?
No way!
Let us be courageous, ignore what people have said, shake off our emotions, stop feeling sorry for ourselves and Try Again.

Let’s read Romans 6. This isn’t to say that we’re all trying to change from a particular sin, but let us take context from it.

It tells us that in becoming aware of something that isn’t right, we shouldn’t just continue in that way, hoping that we can enjoy God’s grace, despite doing what we know is wrong and requires a change. Rather, we must rid ourselves of it. We should desire to become a new creation, because Christ has enabled this by dying for us. He allows us to be saved from our old ways and no longer be a slave to sin, addiction or any bad habit that we may have had!

Equally for those of us who decided that this year we wanted to take up a positive task, the bible tells us not to get tired of doing good;

“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.”
[Galatians 6:9]

So we’re all on the same page about trying again, whether we’re trying to move away from something, or take on a new task/service – it doesn’t matter if January didn’t go to plan, we have the chance to start afresh. Right now!

Let’s head back to our evaluation questions.

What went well? When we’re looking at this question, let us look properly, because some of us are really hard on ourselves.
I want you to identify times when you achieved aspects of your goal or in fact succeeded in doing what you said you would do or not do (e.g. be on time to church, or not argue with a friend/parent/spouse). Acknowledge that you did well here, and expand on it… Look at the details of what happened in that instance to allow the occurrence of your desired outcome, make a note of it and then replicate it each time you get the chance. This way, you’re moving closer to consistently reaching your goals.

What could have been better? Pay attention to the fact that this doesn’t ask you for what was bad, because asking for what was bad simply points it out and leaves it in the air (#unhelpful).
However, when you’re looking at what could have been better, done better, said better etc, the idea is that you identify areas where you may have tried less, or fallen back into the old habit and again, you should explore why it could have happened. Then create practical steps that will help ensure that you avoid it happening again.

Example: I barged a woman on my way to university because I was in a rush, but my goal was to be more polite and calm when using public transport.

Going back, I’ll evaluate that I woke up late, and that was because I slept late the night before, so I was in a rush in the morning, which made me grumpy already, and meant that I was charging through the station and not in the mood to even apologise to someone I pushed.

Yes, this will take a good amount of thought-processing, but the idea is to eliminate things that will cause us to do what we don’t want to do. Or even prevent us from doing good.

Now, in expanding on what went well and what could have been better, we have already looked at some ways that we could improve on working towards our goals,
But let’s look at a few more key Ways to improve…

The first thing I want us to do is be serious about trying again.
In fact that may have been your issue from the start – that you didn’t really believe in what you were doing.

Well look, first step – take it seriously.

That means;

  • Don’t premeditate failure
  • Don’t create sub-standards for ‘just in case’
  • And don’t make fun of it! – (Some of us make a joke of our goals, probably as a defence mechanism in case they don’t work out – that’s not good enough).

We must truly believe in what we want to do and in fact the best thing is to put God right at the centre of it, because the bible tells us that in whatever we plan, it is God that directs/establishes our footsteps;

“The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.”
[Proverbs 16:9].

In addition to this, we can ask for help and accountability from those around us (the right people), but above all, ask God for direction and guidance.

Ask Him to first clarify the vision/goal/dream/desire. Tell Him that you want to see it clearly, so you’re able to know exactly what you’re going to do with it.

When you get the answer, Write It Down… Write out your goal as you’ve been inspired to fulfil it.

In Habakkuk 2:2-3, God describes the power that there is in scribing a vision, He says two things that we can take and apply to writing our goals – when we write them clearly, we will know exactly what we want to do, and also though it may not happen immediately, we should have faith that it will certainly take place.
Therefore write it down clearly, put it somewhere you can see it.
Put it somewhere accessible so you can always refer back to it.

Also when resetting these goals, I want us to aspire to achieve the best version of it. So as I mentioned, no sub-standards, and no short-lived goals (e.g. I’ll see if I can give up smoking for a month first) – No, I want us to run with the biggest version of the vision, then intricately plan towards how we will get there step by step.

Rather than think small to start off with and then settle if things don’t work out, saying ‘It was only meant to be for a month anyway’,
Think big, then plan towards it, and with God as your guide, you will surely get there.

I mustn’t end this message without saying congratulations and well done to the people who have stuck to their New Year plans – I pray for a continued strength for you month after month, year after year, and I pray that whatever you have given up or taken up, will remain as it ought to be in order to always please the Most High God, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

One thing we should all remember is that even if today doesn’t go to plan, let us not wait until next month, or next year to give it another shot.
Each new day provides a new grace and a fresh opportunity for us to get it right.
So friend, please keep going with your dreams and visions, and no matter how long it takes, keep working hard to become the best version of you there is!

I’m rooting for you, and praying for you.

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.

 

My Help

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Let’s read:

“I lift up my eyes to the hills.
    From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth.”
[Psalm 121:1-2]

This affirmation is beautiful.
But how many of us truly believe that our help comes from God?
How many of us remember that God is actually there to help us?
How many of us accept His help when He sends it?

I ask these questions in the hope that we would each search ourselves for our personal response and then adapt our ways and just stop cheating ourselves of God’s gracious mercy.

1 – How many of us truly believe that our help comes from God?
“It just happened…”
“I got lucky…”
“By coincidence…”

Can I tell you that God knows every single thing about you – from the tiniest strand of hair on your head, to the soles of your feet, to the dinner you ate, and the time you brushed your teeth – God knows everything!
Therefore nothing that happens to you is simply by coincidence, or ‘just happens’.
If you have a look at the bible, it tells us that God has already written every single thing concerning us, way before we even took our first breath, or first step;

“…all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be.”
[Psalm 139:16]

(Also read the whole of Psalm 139)

God who made you, is always looking out for you and this is something the bible reminds us of more than once – (Deuteronomy 31:6, Hebrews 13:5).
So please friend, rather than attributing things to chance, just take a moment to reflect a bit more, and begin to acknowledge the Grace, Mercy and Help of God in your life.

2 – How many of us remember that God is actually there to help us?
Trust me, I know…
I know how hard it can get, how cloudy it can get, how confusing it can be, how low you can reach at times, that even to look up no longer seems like an option.
But please, I encourage you to look up! And remember that you know a Living God who works miracles – He’s done many things before, and He’ll surely do much more.

“I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
    yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
I will consider all your works
    and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”
[Psalm 77:11-12]

(Read all of Psalm 77 when you get a chance)

No matter how bad it may seem, you have to remember that there is nothing impossible for the Omnipotent (All-Powerful) God.

“Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.”
[Jeremiah 32:17] 

And I haven’t missed out those of us who forget God simply because we’re too busy trying to figure things out logically, or practically – please be reminded that Wisdom and Power are His – Daniel 2:19-20, Proverbs 3:19-20 – God knows exactly what to do and how to do it! (And His way will definitely be better than ours).

3 – How many of us accept His help when He sends it?
Now this refusal of God’s help can be down to many things; pride, lack of clarity that it’s actually from Him, denial that you need help at all (acting like it’s all okay), trying to do things ‘practically’ (as mentioned above), or simply because we believe we don’t need it/Him.

Whatever our reasoning may be, I want us to rethink our decision and have a read of the various verses above that not only prove how ‘qualified’ God is to help us, but they actually show us how worthy God is of honour and praise! (And I don’t mean to belittle God by calling Him qualified, because He is Almighty, but I hope you get what I mean).
We should realise that we are truly privileged that He cares enough to always come when we cry (Psalm 46:1).

I want to remind you that we mustn’t be foolish to think that we can do it all alone, or that we don’t need God, for the bible tells us to,

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not lean on your own understanding.”
[Proverbs 3:5]

Finally, I want to encourage you to go back and read the whole of Psalm 121  (I know, quite a lot of reading in this one) and in case this part skipped your eye, I want you to notice that verse 2 says ‘the Lord who made heaven and earth’, pointing out the fact that His ability to help you is Limitless.
This should tell you then, that He is simply the best place to run to; no-one above Him, no-one better than Him, and most importantly, no-one who knows you like He does!

So here’s a task,
“My help comes from the Lord” – say it out loud to yourself over and over again, and make sure that it sticks so strongly in your mind, that you don’t for one second again, try to do this problem-solving thing (or anything!) without Him.

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.