Tag Archives: God’s word

Seek First His Kingdom

Matthew 6:33 “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

I have been under attack this week. No…not a physical attack. A spiritual one, an attack on my thoughts and mind.

But sadly, I didn’t recognize it as such. It started off small…very subtle. Thoughts that slowly spiraled into being overwhelming and filled me with sadness, fear and frustration, anger and disappointment. And then…guilt.

I felt guilty for feeling sad, for being angry. For not having a handle on this disease. Not being completely surrendered to the Lord. Guilty for struggling with my diagnosis, and then guilty for being tired, for raising my voice to my children, for not counting my days as valuable, and feeling irritated with myself for spending my days focused on myself. Then, for wasting a day in self pity. Ugh.

Do you see the spiral effect of negative thoughts?

How did I get here? What went wrong? I was doing so well. I immediately started blaming myself for how I got here. What did I do wrong? How can I correct this? Prevent this? How could I let one person’s unintentional words bring me so much grief?

Three days before this downward spiral, I was filled with peace and told my husband that I’ve had the best 2 weeks! I literally felt like I had forgotten I had cancer! That I didn’t think about it at all! I was filled with joy and just living my life like normal.

Was it a subconscious invitation to the devil…who was prowling around waiting for a weak point? Like Job, I felt he was asking me….do you praise God now? Now that I have reminded you of your lot in life? Of your weakness? Of your cancer? Of the trial that is before you? Of your death?

I have been struggling this week. And yet, as strong as my faith is….like Job….I am not immune. It took most of the week to truly recognize this for what it is. It’s a spiritual attack. My self pity, fear, sorrow and anger….may be real, but Satan is using them to pull me away from the Lord, to begin to doubt my Savior, to cause me to turn my strength away from God and be reminded of my immense weakness.

Satan has even begun to attack my family. Two of my children have been having nightmares this week!

It was then that my husband recognized it and began to pray over them. And now….the Lord has opened my eyes to the truth! I am not a victim! I am victorious in Christ! He is my strength, my peace! He alone is my hope and I have professed my trust in Him!

Oh friends, none of us is immune! We all can fall to the lies Satan pours out in our minds. I read a book recently that reminded me that the truth of God is in our hearts as believers, we know it! We trust it and we believe it, yet it is with our minds that Satan begins to weave doubt. We must be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

God tells us not to be afraid, not to doubt, but he also tells us to be courageous and to not conform to this world where thieves break in and steal. He tells us not to worry but to seek his kingdom. Why would he tell us these things? Because he knows we are weak! He knows Satan. He knows how he attacks. Our faith is to uphold us and to strengthen us when we are weak. When we are weak, He is strong! It is in this real fear that he calls us to be courageous! To trust in our faith!

Praises be to God who is mighty and who took away the sins of this world on the cross! It is for his glory that I am alive! It is for Him that I draw a breathe each day. My life is not my own, it is for him. I must surrender my life, all my emotions, my fears and my weaknesses, so that he alone is magnified. He is the great healer, the miracle worker, the promise keeper. He alone is God. Who am I? But his servant, his disciple. I am to learn, to surrender, to serve, to love and to trust….even in the midst of this trial. There is nothing my God can’t do.

When I take my eyes off of him and onto my circumstances, Satan has me. He lures me with thoughts that are contrary to God’s kingdom.

And so he steals our lives, our moments. I have been down and just depressed at moments. I have allowed Satan to steal my joy and steal the moments with the people that are the most important. I have not prayed, not been my best self. I have withdrawn and have doubted the one person who has been faithful to me throughout my life, and especially this journey.

Today, I will choose faith. To trust again my Lord who saves and who hears my prayers. Who loves me unconditionally and who strengthens me when I am weak. I will pursue Him and his word and praise him with my words and my life. I will bow before him in thanksgiving for the life he has given me TODAY.

He has reminded me that prayer is our greatest weapon. I will have negative thoughts again. I am human, but today I will counter those attacks with prayer! With praise to the God who sees me, who knows me and who loves me.

Friends, be reminded of this truth today. When you hear those thoughts in your head, don’t try to “be more positive”, but rather surrender yourself to God in prayer! Stop, drop to your knees, speak truth! Read the Word of God! You are loved, you are heard. He sees you and is with you. Our God will not forsake you .

Psalm 18 says, “I love you lord…the cords of death entangled me…in my distress I called to the Lord, I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice …With my God I can scale a wall. It is God who arms me with strength.”

Seek God this moment, this day, and recognize His power in the midst of your weakness, your circumstance. It is through him that we regain our lives and are strengthened with the hope of his glory.

Today…PRAY!

2 Powerful Ways To Change Your Life

2 Powerful Ways To Change Your Life

A recurring theme in my life: I talk about doing things more than I actually do them.

Currently, I do this with prayer.  It’s this ‘I need to pray more’ statement that keeps circling my thoughts but never seems to land.  I know God is nudging me to focus on this spiritual discipline.  But, I find myself distracted and challenged to invest the time.

And the more I think about needing to pray, the more I feel like I’ve actually prayed!  It’s crazy!  But, isn’t this true of so many things?  How about exercise? We tell ourselves that we need to exercise so much that we convince our subconscious we’ve already done it. This is deception at it’s finest!

 James 1:22 tells us, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

Ok, I get it. Quit talking about it. Just do it. Follow through. Be intentional. Plan. Live on purpose.

Every new year, we all begin with grandiose ambitions about what we want to accomplish, what we hope will happen throughout the year and how we wish to change.  But more often than not, we quit halfway through.

 Why is this?

Why is it that our greatest intentions become our biggest struggles or disappointments?

Here’s where I fall short.  I try to “do it” in my own power. Whatever the “it” is; praying, eating healthy, serve more, speak kindly, love better, stop yelling at my kids.

But do you want to hear some AMAZING news? God never intended us to live a life of obedience in our own strength and power!  Yay, God!  He knew we’d fail.  He knew we’d fall short-way short sometimes.  He looked upon us with compassion and love and when he said he’ll never leave us or forsake us, he meant it!  He knows I have great intentions, and a pitiful ‘follow through-er’.  So, he knows I want to pray, he also knows I can’t do it in my own strength for very long.  But at the end of me, is where His strength begins.

In Acts 1, the disciples were listening to Jesus after his resurrection.  They had to be wondering, “Ok, what now?” They asked Jesus, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”(v. 6)

Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

 Then he left them.

Acts 2 tells us that when Pentacost came they were all together in one place. With wind and fire…”All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”

As the Spirit enabled them.

Receive power.

 All we want to do or attempt to accomplish, as in the words of Solomon, are “meaningless” without God’s power.

I certainly am not saying that making plans and striving to achieve them is meaningless. Creating goals and plans is imperative for a well-lived life.  However, much of my planning, doing, and striving are devoted to my own desires and wishes, not giving much effort into searching God’s will and plans for my life.

My verse for this year is Matt 6:33, “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things shall be given to you.”

I tend to do the planning and thinking, before I do the seeking and praying.

Do you want to stop feeling powerless to change your life and see lasting transformation?   Do you want peace and a rest from your striving?

God is showing me I am lacking in two of the most important spiritual disciplines: prayer and meditation.

 2 Powerful Ways To Change Your Life

  1. Prayer. Prayer is nothing more than communication with God.   It was meant to be an ongoing conversation.  However, much of the time, I’m the only one talking.  I tend to use way to many words.  The Bible instructs us to ‘pray without ceasing’.  I see this as a daily humble dependence on God’s grace.

 What is God telling me?  Stop talking. Use less words.  Less of everything-really.  Strip away all that is unnecessary.  Listen for the whisper of God’s voice. Away from all the distractions.  Talking to God is important, but so is being quiet.

 In Ephesians 6:18  “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”

  1. Meditation.  To think intently and at length on God’s word.  I read the Bible. Probably more inconsistently than I’d like.  I know it’s important to memorize scripture.  But I’ve never put forth much effort into it.  For me, it’s always…  “somewhere in Ephesians I think it says something like this.”  Not exactly what God had in mind.

In Old Testament times they didn’t have the written word.  It was ALL memorized!  So what’s the difference today?  My mind is too full, too cluttered. So, how can I give my mind a rest?  Fill it with the words and messages of God.

Isa 26:3 “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”

What is God telling me?  If you want change, peace and a mental rest, meditate on my word.  Pick a verse a week to memorize and believe.  Stop reading everything else right now and read the Bible only.  Oh…I’ve been battling this one.

I love to read but I need to love to read God’s word more. I’m not telling YOU to stop reading.  And I sure hope God isn’t telling me to stop reading books.  But for now, it’s about emptying my mind of all the unnecessary clutter and filling it with His truth and peace.

 Through prayer and meditation we unleash the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for it!

Joshua 1:8 (NLT) “Study this Book of Instruction continually.  Meditate on it day and  night so you will be sure to obey everything written inn it.  Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.  This is my command-be strong and courageous!  Do not be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

 

 

 

 

 

Don’t Just Be….Become

image courtesy of wiangya/freedigitalphotos.net

image courtesy of wiangya/freedigitalphotos.net

“Don’t just Be…Become, ” were the words I said to my husband about a month ago.  We were discussing some dreams and desires we had for ourselves and that sentence just flew out of my mouth.  I paused and then I said it again, this time I listened to what I was saying.  I don’t just want to “BE”….I want to “BECOME”.  To “BE’ means to exist, to be alive.  Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with existing or being alive.  I’m quite thankful for both.  But, it sounds so stagnant.  I questioned myself…is that ALL we were meant for? I think not.  Rather, to “BECOME” means to undergo a change or development!  That was it.  That was a turning point.  Since then, I started taking a look at where I am and where I want to be.  I realized several things; first that I am amazingly blessed!  We have a beautiful healthy family and being a stay at home mom is what I’ve always dreamed of.  I have a devoted, involved and loving husband who inspires me and encourages me in everything, I have a wonderful family and a fabulous group of friends.  The second is that I’m a habitual “non-follow-througher”, an “I can’t-er”.  I find myself wishing and hoping and wanting and too often, not accomplishing, doing or following through.  I’ve set New Year’s Resolutions and failed at following through with them.  I think of so many home ideas, activities or memories I want to create for my family but instead find myself saying…”I wish I could…” or “I would love to be able to…” “why can’t I…” or “I wish I would have”.    Too often I find myself feeling disappointed and discouraged.

I’m ready to BECOME the woman God wants me to be!  Am I the wife, mom, daughter, sister, or friend that I am supposed to be, that I should be?  Am I living my life with intention and purpose?  I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to miss out on this beautiful life God has given me TODAY.  I want to be intentional, to live life on purpose, to be disciplined.  I’m exhausted from waking each day without a plan and purpose.  This is my journey.  My journey to follow through, to finish what I start, to be intentional with my days, and to pursue life change through God’s word! I want to be a real life do-er!  And my journey begins right now, right here, this moment!  The best part is that I don’t pursue this intentional life alone.  God is with me every step of this journey.  He is my biggest encourager, guide and inspiration.  And I am so thankful He also uses people to encourage us on our journey as well.  Your life is entirely different from my own, but ladies, we are on the same team!  We were created to encourage each other, to live life in relationship and to build each other up!  I’m ready to make some purposeful changes in my life.  Let’s do this together!   Let’s impact our  lives, our families, our world, one small finished task at a time.  Are you ready?  Let us pursue an intentional life….together!