Over these last nine months, I've learned even more of HOW to fight!
Whenever you endeavor to do something, always remember that if everyone else loses for you to gain… you’re wrong!! It's like the person climbing the corporate ladder who pushes everyone else out of their way to get what THEY want. Maybe the world needs to do this, for they're running a rat race, but we're called to something GREATER. If how you're handling things lacks integrity, then I can assure you that God is absent in what you're doing. If you try to place blame on others to make yourself look better about what you're doing, you're only giving yourself away.
You must always choose your battles wisely. Not everything is worth fighting for, some things you just need to let go of. But keeping things simple and putting first things first will almost immediately help you to decipher what’s of REAL value and what’s merely a distraction.
The end of a thing is better than its beginning. If things are still rocky, it’s not the end. You’ll know the end by the harvest it brings, whether it’s a severing or a reconciling. But when it’s finished, there will be a settlement within you that’s undeniable. And, not to mention, the REAL ending is always the marking of your REAL beginning…
You can be doing everything RIGHT, but still be treated so WRONG. You can say and do everything perfectly and be sweet and gentle and strong and daring and honest and giving in every aspect possible, but STILL be rejected and ridiculed and literally HATED. Please remember that in Galatians 6:5 it says to be not weary in WELL DOING for in due time you will reap a harvest IF you faint not. It’s better to be hated for doing good, than to be hated for doing evil. Keep your motives pure and keep doing what’s right, no matter the cost! Someone really IS waiting on the other side of your obedience.
Sometimes the Lord will allow us to come to a place of having a broken heart. While it can be confusing and FEEL like the end of the world, always remember that what CAN be shaken will, and what’s left is really all you really want anyway. So, release the things that need to be shaken, and cling only to the TRUTH. Sooner or later a harvest will come and you’ll easily see how to separate the wheat from the tares. Allow the fruit you have to continuously be pruned and tried by fire.
If you have to HIDE yourself because you can’t face someone, you are a coward. The very fact that you hide yourself only reveals the guilt. Light and dark don’t mix… and darkness RUNS from the light. Darkness is nothing but a mix of fear, doubts and insecurities. The light merely reveals what’s ALREADY there. What’s been HIDDEN becomes MANIFEST because of the light. That’s all. Darkness doesn’t like to be exposed. And just because you offer unconditional love doesn’t mean the person will take it. But, again, be not weary in well doing… if your motive stays right, then your efforts will not have been in vain. Your very actions and prayers could be the ONE thing that could save them. Hand them over to the Lord when you’re released… and go forward! Love never fails, so don’t lose heart! Be courageous!!
Don’t try to impress people, simply BE impressive. You being you IS the MOST impressive thing you CAN do!! If you can’t be YOU, then you’re insecure and fearful. What are you so afraid of? Rejection? The very thing you run away from is the very thing you need to face head on. You will never get over a mountain if you never being to climb! The more real you can be with yourself, and with the Lord, the more real you will be with others… thus, the more impact you will have on the world around you!
Don’t be afraid. Don’t create regrets. Resist the temptation to give up!
Just about four days ago, I was faced with such pressing circumstances and KNEW I was near the end because of just how much force everything was hitting me from every single angle! It was so great, yet I continued to press in to the Lord and I didn’t care HOW I felt, I was DETERMINED to trust Him and NOT give myself over to the unbelief that was trying so desperately to get me to side with defeat! In fact, it got so bad that I actually had to dig my heels in so deep I was on FIRE inside my chest and had to say out of my mouth, “If I DIE while standing, then I will DIE!! I don’t care WHAT happens to me, I will NOT come off my stance! If the Lord doesn’t deliver me and I DO end up dying, then I will have died standing! I will NOT lay down! My God will NOT fail me!” Shortly after… the Lord parted the waters.
Humble yourself… ALWAYS. Let the Lord lift you up. You won’t be disappointed.
Though it tarry, wait for it…
Waiting is the number one thing we need to learn, and it’s the number one thing we DON’T want to do. To wait is a gift. A discipline. An act of mercy. Waiting is all about positioning and growth and preparation. For to wait for something is a sign of maturity. It shows yourself to be READY. Impatience comes from misunderstanding. Patience stems from Love’s point of view, which is Truth.
Watch and pray and be alert! You never know who you will meet. You never know what condition someone will be in as God brings people across your path. Be at the right place at the right time. Let yourself be a vessel He can use. Don’t be contaminated by the cares of this world, but be focused on what HE is showing you because you’ve ALREADY handed your care over upon HIM… you’re not carrying it yourself (which is idolatry anyway). Be ready with a word to speak in due season. Be ready to give a soft answer that can turn away wrath. Have a mouth full of wisdom and kindness. Be that meek and gentle spirit that He so very much loves. Be merciful, as our Heavenly Father is. Be faithful. Be loyal. Be dedicated.
Be daring to believe that God’s Word is true.
Be daring to love someone who HATES you.
Be daring to step out, going against the grain, to do what the Lord’s called you to do.
Never look back when you take that first step forward.
But don’t be afraid to cry… you’re not weak because you cry, but you cry because you’re weak. It’s a simple thing to remind us that we NEED the Lord to mend us and make us whole and complete. Without Him, we can do nothing.
Don’t be afraid to take someone’s hand. You may have been hurt before, but don’t let that shut you down to where you’ll never trust again. You just have to know HOW to trust. Put the Lord first and acknowledge Him in ALL things, and He will lead you down the right path… to the right people. Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing, but don’t retreat because there might be wolves! You’re called to be as bold as a lion, to fear NOTHING and NO ONE! So, when that hand is extended towards you… look up.
Being alone is different than being lonely. You CAN be alone and NOT be lonely. But you can also NOT be alone but BE lonely! No person can make you complete, only Jesus can do that. No one can love you and tell you all the things you want to hear to the point where you FEEL loved… for that need will surface again… it won’t SATISFY. Learn to love the Lord with all of your heart (by giving yourself over to Him, and HIS will), and as you become CONTENT in that, you will find the satisfaction you’ve been seeking all along. All discontentment shows us is where we’re not yielding to the Lord… we’re still holding onto what WE want.
Lose your life, don’t try to save it.
Your story is unwritten. The pen is equivalent to your will. What will you choose to fill your pages with?
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