The Roller Coaster Of Life

Imagine yourself riding an awesome  roller coaster, it’s at the latest and greatest theme park, I have decided to ride with you, although we pick different buggies, you a lover of roller coasters, and me scared to death of them. We approach the ride with trepidation, and excitement. The roller coaster locks, us in, it’s path unknown. The roller coaster hits, bumps, glitches and shakes, shaking us and our confidence in the process. The roller coaster goes over hills and glides through falls, each one, seeming quicker than the other, each turn, curve unexpected takes our breath away. The roller coaster thrills us, excites us, scares us, and frightens us, every time we prepare our nerves, something new, greets us, on a ride in which we cannot stop and seemingly have no control over. Such is Life.

Life takes us along a journey, each new day brings challenges, excitement and elements of fear of the unknown. Often it seems like we are locked in a journey or path and destination, unknown to us. We climb towards mountains, and race toward valleys, our struggles and triumphs seem to fall into a steady rhythm. Life offers us thrills, it greets us, excites us, scares us at times and even frightens us, we prepare ourselves, and often find our preparation for naught, for this new obstacle, this new struggle we could not foresee, it caught us, by surprise.  Such Is Life.

At times we felt alone, at times we questioned why, at times we looked around and wondered why didn’t I die? At times we felt unsure, often wondering “Lord, what have I done to deserve this? At times it seemed like God, offered no reply. At times it felt like time moved too fast, and at other times the wait seemed unbearable, we wondered aloud through our moments of triumph, victory and defeat, when oh, when will this ride end, the ride slowly calmed, peace it seemed in the midst of the storm had finally arrived, we looked around surprised to see Jesus sitting peacefully by our side.

~Playing In The Background, “Just for Who You Are” by Earnest Pugh~

There Is Nothing & No One Like God

There is nothing {no situation}, in our lives that is beyond the reach of God's hand. There is nothing {no issue(s)}, that arise in our lives, that catches God by surprise.

There is nothing {no infirmity}, of which you can't be healed & made whole. Have you forgotten that there is no power on the earth or in the heavens, that is greater than God?

God~Must Be 1st!

I believe that the most difficult thing to do is Praise God when things are not going well, when our backs are against a wall, when all hell seems to be breaking loose in our lives, but those are precisely the times when we should Praise God, even the more, for we owe God a praise. However, so many people are walking around giving God their leftovers, leftover money, leftover talent, leftover prayer life, leftover worship, oh but what if God gave you someone’s leftover breath, do you think you would be able to breath?

6In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:6

What if God gave us some leftover sunlight, would it still warm the earth anew? What if God gave us some leftover rain, would it fall from the sky to wash the earth clean? What if God gave us, a leftover anointing, would we be as effective? What if God gave us leftover grace, would we have made it out alive, in a place we knew we should not have been in the first place? What if God gave us left over mercy, would you have still just caught the STD and not the HIV? What if God, Oh What if God, decided to give you leftover salvation, would all your sins, still be washed away? What if God decided to give you leftover sanity, would you still know him as a keeper? What if God, decided to give you leftover time, would you be able to accomplish everything that has been set before you?

33But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

God should be first in our lives, not an afterthought, someone we reach out to just when we need him, someone who’s only called on in cases of emergency. I don’t know about you, but I enjoy hearing from God daily.

I put him first in everything I do, for it is in him I move, breath and have my being. Don’t get it twisted, we would be nothing without God, we could do nothing without him.  It  is because of his grace and mercy that we made it through the most difficult parts of our lives,it’s because of his grace and mercy, that we didn’t commit suicide,committing to death everything God had placed within us.

It’s because of his grace and mercy that we didn’t die of a drug overdose, don’t get it twisted, my friends, readers, haters, and family, you didn't get where you are in life on your own. How do I know this, I tried it on my own, I couldn't make it, without God holding my hand.

So if you find yourself, giving God your leftovers, and not putting  God first in your life, I urge you to do so today, he will make a change in your life, and your life will be sweeter with him as your guide.

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Your Next Step……

Every move you make, every single day,every time you pray, every step you take….

Wherever you may happen to be as you read this post, turn to your neighbor, turn to your friend, turn, turn to anybody and say to them with conviction, “My Next Step Is Destiny”!!

Relationship With God 

It is impossible to walk with God, have a relationship with God and your life not be changed, God always inspires us to reach for more, believe in ourselves and our abilities. God loves to remind us that he can do the impossible and that with his help we can achieve the seemingly impossible. 

24And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24

The more you walk with God, the more your life will change, often we feel like we are walking thorough life in circles, or a cycle like the children of Israel were when they walked in the desert for forty years.

Repeating Cycle’s/Roadblocks

However, you are not in a repeating cycle, even though you may not think you are making progress, you are.  A cycle is a roadblock, something that frustrates you, such as when people lose their wallet, they search and search and search, with one determined focus, getting their lost or misplaced wallet back.

While walking with God, we fight battles of both spiritual and physical warfare.  It is not enough to just pray in the spiritual, and to conduct spiritual warfare and ignore the reality around you.

How I Conduct Spiritual Warfare

The following is a journal entry I wrote not too long ago, when I was fighting a spiritual battle:  

God, I have been in Spiritual Warfare since I have been sleep last night, the devil knows that I fight on all fronts, and that I’m just positioning myself for victory, my actions, my prayer life, my conversation and my relationships have all been in one direction, totally focused on the battle at hand. I have had people sing, read & even pray for me. I have used everything at my disposal to fight this battle. I refuse to concede defeat, I realize that often I must go through, to get to my breakthrough. God, could I be aiming at too many things at one time, thereby rendering myself ineffective at obtaining the victory over just one thing? Could I have my hands set to do too many things? God how can I regain my focus? How can I give the tasks in front of me 100%.  God I have so many things I want to see you do in my life, I realize that I must wait on your perfect timing, but honestly I am tired of waiting. God, there are so many people close to me who need a breakthrough, need a miracle, they need you to come through for them, or they just won’t make it. God I have faith in the tools you have given me, and I know you will use the tools you have placed in my hand to be effective against the battle at hand. God even I, find myself needing your help and I am totally dependent on you.

!Your Next Step Is Destiny!

Let’s Take A Walk

If I may take the liberty, I want you to imagine yourself walking in a prairie wilderness, with God, all around you are just lush grass, flowers and trees as far as your eyes can see. You can feel his presence beside you, the weather is warm and the sun is shining just right with a slight breeze. As you walk, you begin to tell God all your troubles, all your heartaches, all your struggles. God turns to you and says, my child tell me about where you are now. You begin to tell God how your struggling, you feel like your not going anywhere, your tired of working towards your goals and dreams, you feel like things would be going better for you if you were back home, or if you could just be anywhere else than where you are now. You reflect with regret on some of your past mistakes and choices. God looks at you, with eyes filled with love, and with his still quiet voice, he says,  My child, do you not know that I who created you, had a plan in mind for you before you were born, that I who created you, knew what tasks you would face, knew what battles you would triumph in, I who created you, filled you with creativity and knowledge, filled you with ideas and concepts. I make all things well, as you have been walking down life’s journey, I have been right here beside you, at times you felt alone, you couldn't feel my presence but I was still here, at times you called out to me, in desperation, in despair, in anguish, it hurt me to see you so, but my hand was still here to guide you. You see my child, only you thought things in your life were delayed, only you thought that you were not moving fast enough, you saw everyone else succeed, saw everyone else move ahead in your eyes and you questioned me. You wondered what was taking so long, why were my promises so far off for you, while others around you seemed to get blessed every day, living half the life you live. You see my child, while on the surface it looks as though those around you are really doing well they are not really living, just functioning through life.  My Child, I who have started a work in you, have you just where you need to be, walking with me, you can never go wrong. Each day of your life, you have been walking with me, and I have always guided you where you needed to be, I know what’s best for you, and I made a plan for you before you were born, I considered all the obstacles and trails and tribulations you would face, and I made them all work for your good and according to my plan, and now Your Next Step Is Destiny, That’s only if you choose to continue to walk this journey with me, God then says, Will You?

Have You Ever?

Have you been giving too much of yourself away? Have you ever wondered if your efforts are worth it, when you walk away and no one says thank you? Have you ever slipped a financial gift in someone’s hand, have you ever lifted up a prayer for someone else? Have you ever sacrificed your want to help meet someone else’s need?

Have you ever been an unnamed solider who has marched in someone’s life to make it better, and all that is left is the impact (footprints) of your presence on their life? Have you ever questioned the energy it required to finish a task for someone or something else that was important at the time, only to drain all your energy and not be able to accomplish what you needed to when you arrived at your home? Have you ever invested so much time in something, someone or a particular task, and those hours you poured in seemed to yield little return for your investment? For every act that you think has gone unnoticed, for every good deed that you think has gone under the radar it has not. It will be rewarded.

Unnoticed giving, giving in secret. Expending your time energy and resources, don’t forget emotions with little notice from others. You may seem like your very much underappreciated, you may think your unnoticed or undervalued, but you are not.

So if you happen to find yourself feeling this way, do not despair. Someone sees your efforts and they have not gone unnoticed in his eyes. He (God) is watching every opportunity you’ve seized, every gift you’ve given, every kind word you’ve said, he has taken notice and he will reward you in due time. Isn’t that the best reward worth receiving anyway?

LiveJournal Tags: life,gifts,impact,footprints,encouragement,God,staircase,presence,energy

It’s Time For You To Walk Part 1

You know how babies when they first learn to walk they grab on to different things around the house and don’t have very much strength and a degree of uncertainty. Now anytime a baby starts to walk they eventually encounter something they want and give up and crawl, when they first started you were happy, but as time moves on, and they begin to try and walk they get no praise. When they crawl they don’t get any praise from us, they get no applause and no smiling faces.

Hmmm, crawling when it’s time to walk, sounds familiar? It’s easier sometimes though isn’t it? I truly understand, I’ve been there. I’ll be the first to admit, that growing up takes more strength than I originally anticipated. Looking back, I’m sure like me, you faced many difficulties, going from one level of maturity to another, sometimes like me, you may have delayed your own development. Every new level of growth brings new responsibilities. Not just physically in your life, but spiritually also. The time has come, the time is now, it’s time for you to walk my friend, it’s time for you to walk.

LiveJournal Tags: walking,life,journey,babies

Profiling Zacchaeus 4rm Luke 19:1-10 (Part 2)

Now the question, I will try to answer for you is how you fill the emptiness that you feel inside, and how to reach true fulfillment. Sheer Will, Desire, Motivation and Determination.

We need to stop, stop settling for things in our lives that are outside the promise. If God said it, it is so. Learn to pray and move with the Lord’s direction. We must get our lives in complete order. God has promised to be a present help, when we need him and he will strengthen us when we are weak. I encourage you to ask God for wisdom. 

We are no good to the Kingdom if we continue to settle in life, and not strive to reach our maximum potential with the Lord. Please don’t let another year come being outside of the promise or being satisfied with a half-deliverance\half-blessing. The promise is yours to possess, walk into it. The fight with the giants is worth the produce of the land, (Numbers 13 & 14, Joshua 1). For every moment that you feel that you have wasted, know that God can restore your wasted moments and redeem the time.

But before I can get to Zacchaeus, I have to ask, What’s your belief system? That’s right, what are the things that define you, that provide your moral compass, whom and how do you shape your beliefs? How do you see yourself? What gives your life purpose and a sense of direction?

My second semester as a Freshman in college, I asked God to give me his eyes. I realized that I was not viewing myself the way he saw me, and I was not looking at others the way he saw them. Fulfillment does not come from material things. Fulfillment comes from relationships. People become famous and successful but lack strong relationships.

Zacchaeus also teaches us that, even a safe haven, or what you consider a safe haven can become a place of danger, uncertainty, and dissatisfaction. Zacchaeus had quite alot of enemies, he had a good profession but not a good reputation and he was not like by his towns folk. Zacchaeus realized that his adversaries (haters) were his biggest advertisement.

I realize that at times we all wonder what’s taking God so long, to bring about the promises that have been given to us. It’s common to feel like one is surrounded by people, places and things that only seem to frustrate or be the source of one’s frustration.

Zacchaeus had a dream for something better, and he was just waiting for the right opportunity to come along. A word of warning, you can’t tell everyone your dreams, they won’t support you. If you find that you’ve already told them, relax. Despite what Zacchaeus considered to be a hopeless situation he kept pursuing, kept chasing, kept going after the felling that he knew there was something better for him. Now more than ever before people are discouraged or becoming discouraged. Discouragement robs us of our energy and our productivity. Zacchaeus gives us reason to hope again. If you do crazy things for God, I believe he will do crazy things for you, for he chooses the foolish things of the world to confound the wise.

I believe that if Zacchaeus could speak to us today his words would be the following, “Be thankful for your limitations Because they give you opportunities for improvement And the motivation to keep dreaming and reach higher Be thankful for each new challenge Because it will build your strength and character”.

 

 

LiveJournal Tags: zacchaeus,bible.transformation,radical