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

Ever wish your life was better or just had a break? Better job, more money in your bank account, a better home? The list is endless and I am guilty of asking God for better life sometimes when I don't feel like I have enough. My problem, and I’m sure for most of you, the issue is focusing on myself and not God. The last few days I’ve had an attitude of “I want things to be better”. Then I started to look around and saw people in much need, greater than mine. It humbled me deeply and I thanked God for His blessings in my life. 

As Christians we must know this world is not ours. We are simply passing through with God’s help. When we focus on Him and trust that His provisions are the best, then we can focus on the needs of others and do what He wants us to do…share His love to a lost and dying world. 

If you are a child of God, you have everything you need to succeed in this life. Trust that what He’s given you is for your own good and use it to spread the love of Jesus today and every day! God will bless you more when you show His love to others! God bless!

But they who wait for 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

 

Yesterday I got to go with my dad to a farm show in Peoria. It was an awesome father son time! As we walked up to the Civic Center we approached some doors that led into the facility, but to our surprise they were locked. As I peeked in thru the door’s window I saw darkness. This was definitely not the doors to enter for our event.

 

Boy, how often do we as Christians try to open doors God has locked OR not intended for us to open. Sometimes He keeps certain doors locked, others he keeps them unlocked buy allows us the free-will to decide if we should open them or not. We are gifted with His Holy Spirit and should rely on the Spirit’s prompting to keep them closed if He makes that clear to us. Sometimes our pride and curiosity makes us tempted to open them….as we enter that darkness we get lost in the room and sadly it’s hard to backtrack to safety. Lord Jesus is talking to me right now….is He talking to you?

 

The best way to avoid opening those doors that lead to nowhere is to LISTEN to HIS Spirit and heed those warnings. Not hearing His voice doesn’t automatically give you His permission to open that door. Waiting on the Lord is key to opening the right door. Are you patiently waiting on Him to reveal the right open door? Wait on the Lord and He shall renew your strength and will bring you a trouble free journey as you walk within His will for your life! God bless!  

Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Matthew 26:41

As a Christian, do you ever ask yourself how you can mess up so badly? As humans no one is perfect and can easily fall prey to the darkness of this world. Some of the strongest Christian leaders have fallen into shameful sins and destroyed their witness and character. Its truly a battle of spiritual warfare and the Devil is looking for his next victim.

Today’s verse gives some sound advice on how to avoid the pitfalls of Satan’s temptations…..watch and pray. In battle, the military sends out scouts to look ahead and see exactly where the enemy is located and what they are planning to do. We too need to always keep our eyes open to what Satan may be planning next. He knows your weaknesses and vulnerabilities and wants to destroy you at your most vulnerable area. For most it’s the heart. He knows if he can entice your heart into one of his deadly passions, he’s got you! So remain on the lookout.

Prayer. Communicating with God. The MORE you do that, the less time you have to hear useless chatter from the enemy. God communicates back and forth to His children who pray earnestly and seek His wise counsel. If something or someone captures your attention, its best to put them before God and ask for His guidance and wisdom. Is this the person I need to be with? Is this the pathway you have prepared for me? Never ever take a step forward until you have His blessings and confirmation. Trust me, He will speak to you through the Holy Spirit and close Godly friends.

The flesh is weak and can’t be trusted. Trust your life, your pursuits, and passions with God at the center of every decision and you’ll never go wrong! God bless!

The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the Lord. Proverbs 21:31

You ever have a difficult challenge ahead of you? You prepared the whole way through as you try to overcome its hurdles, yet you come up short either in strength, encouragement or wisdom. If you are breathing in air, you’ve encountered defeat, no matter how well prepared you were. How can you be victorious in a battle that seems to be more complex than you’re your wisdom, greater than your strength and zaps all encouragement? Give it to God!

The battles we face in life are either self-generated or put in our path by Satan to bring us down and destroy us. I’m reminded that God has a better plan....For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11. 

God wants you to succeed in life. Those challenging times are opportunities for God to show you how much He cares by protecting you in the battle, giving you wisdom so you’ll know which direction to take and providing encouragement just as a parent would for his child. Once you’ve done your part by preparing for what ever faces you, the next step is trusting it into God’s hands and letting His way lead you to greener pastures.

One of the hardest things I have had to learn in my Christian journey is to let go and let God take it under His care. My personality type wants to take control and manage things how I see fit. Of course, when I get more involved in my problem, the more messed up it becomes. Trust me, one of the best things you can do when faced with a challenge is put less of yourself into the equation and put more of God in it through prayer and faith that He’s got this! When you do, the outcome will be much better than you could have planned and you remain within His will….which is the best place to be when navigating this thing we call life! God bless!

Proverbs 27:12 The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

The old saying “breaking up is hard to do”, is so true. The emotional devastation it causes usually affects more than just the two who are parting ways. Unfortunately, so many couples forge ahead too fast and get married, leaving unforeseen issues to be dealt with down the road. Some of them can be resolved, while others seem to have no resolution. The end result: a sad and struggling relationship that generates ill feelings towards one another and divorce seems to be the final solution.  

A life lesson for me, its important to take time to get to know someone and let that relationship grow slowly. As you do, you can see an issue approaching and work through it. Sometimes those conflicts are more than one is willing to work through and the decision must be made to either end it now or work through it if there seems to be a possible resolution. Sometimes there is an answer and sometimes there will be no end to the problem at hand…leaving one to make a decision to end it or just keep struggling in hopes things will get better one day.

Me personally, I am one to think through things and try to see into the future. I personally can’t go on with something if I don’t feel comfortable and confident that it will work out….thats true of anything from a relationship to a major purchase.

My advice, take your time to think through things so you can either commit or change course to protect not only your future but the future of others.  Sometimes you might be the only one standing on the side of your decision, and that’s ok. Better to make a tough decision now than step into something you aren’t comfortable and confident to continue in life. God bless!    

 When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. ²⁴ And suddenly a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves; but Jesus was sleeping. ²⁵ And the disciples went and woke Him, saying, “Lord, save us, we are going to die!” ²⁶ He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was [at once] a great and wonderful calm [a perfect peacefulness].

Matthew 8:23 – 26

The other day I had lunch with a great friend. During our conversation he asked where was God in the middle of life’s difficulties. As he spoke, God laid this story on my mind. My response, Jesus is in the boat with you!

As Christians, we have unlimited access to God’s power, residing in us through the Holy Spirit. He is there with us 24/7, willing to lead us through the storms of life, full of wisdom to help us make wise decisions and powerful enough to overcome the largest waves of adversity. Jesus was so confident that God was watching over Him in that boat that He slept.

Maybe you have a storm keeping you awake at night. The thoughts, the worries, the stress of it all has run you ragged and you see the next wave coming…and its big. Friend, trust me, no wave of adversity is too big for God. Trust Him daily with your life events and lean on Him for support. God is in the boat with you and will see you through the storms of life! God bless!

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of ^[a]witnesses [who by faith have testified to the truth of God’s absolute faithfulness], stripping off every unnecessary weight and the sin which so easily and cleverly entangles us, let us run with endurance and active persistence the race that is set before us.

Hebrews 12:1

For a runner, eating healthy is very important. Certain foods can add extra weight, which slows down the runner and makes him tire more easily. The old saying “you are what you eat” is very true!

What you feed your life can affect your walk with the Lord. Toxic people, habits and behaviors can add weight to your Christian journey and witness. Its important to feed your mind and heart on the things of the Lord. Church attendance, having a close bond to other Christians, reading God’s word and staying in prayer are essential for a healthy spiritual race.

What are you feeding on? Keep your source of nourishment spiritual so you wont be weighted down by the fat of this sick world and run with endurance, the race set before you! You will win every time! God bless!

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned; neither shall the flame scorch you.
Isaiah 43:2

As I traveled to Illinois for the holidays, I ran across an HOV lane in Nashville and no one was in it, so I quickly changed lanes and was able to pass by a lot of slow traffic. HOV stands for “High Occupancy Vehicle” for your information. This lane is reserved for vehicles which have 2 or more people riding in the car during certain times of the day. It started as a way to encourage “car-pooling”.

As I was riding along, seeing that thick traffic to my right, I thought about how we navigate difficult times in life and how God promises to never leave us alone. He is the passenger that allows us to take the less traveled path, He provides a smoother path than what the world has to offer and He gets you to the intended destination much quicker than you could fighting everyone else in the lanes of the world.

Maybe you are struggling with an issue in life and you feel like you are at a standstill, stuck in heavy traffic and your patience is running thin. Ask God to step in to your circumstance so you can get in the His express lane which provides all the necessary resources to get you thru it safely, quickly and with more ease than you can do within your own power and strength! Call on Him today! God bless!

The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Psalm 18:2

 

We have seen a lot of rain in our area over the past week, and its still raining as I type. The other day I was walking behind my office, along a pathway, and my shoes were getting muddy. Up ahead a saw a huge puddle of water and wondered how I was going to navigate around it so my feet would get wet. Fortunately I found a few rocks sticking up in the water and was able to use them to cross over that wet, muddy mess.

 

Life can bring on some rainy days. The challenges of life can make any day miserable. Oftentimes our strength doesn’t seem to be enough to weather the storms that come our way. Fortunately we have a God who remains true to His word to watch over us, to protect us and give us strength for the moment we need it most! Just like those rocks that were sticking above the water puddle, God provides safe passage thru life’s muck so we can come clean on the other side of the challenge.

 

What’s facing you today? Maybe it’s a struggling relationship, financial burdens, worries over your children…..the list is endless. Keep your focus on God and trust that He will see you through the challenges of the day! God loves you unconditionally. No matter what mess you’ve found yourself in, God will see you through it if you simply put your faith and trust in Him and let Him provide the stepping stones to navigate through it! God bless!

For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. 1 Corinthians 16:9

 

“Stick to your guns” is a popular saying that’s been around for a long time. Its meaning is to stay close to your beliefs and follow the path ahead with diligence and not let things or people distract you from achieving your goals.

 

God oftentimes places doors of opportunities for you to pursue as part of His plan to grow you spiritually.  But, just as today’s scripture reminds us, there are always adversaries there, ready to trip you up in  your plans to pursue what God has provided. Satan uses people, things and circumstances to divert your attention away from God’s intended goal and blessings. If you lose focus, you’ll veer off the narrow pathway and never receive what God intended for you to have and accomplish.

 

One thing I’ve learned in life as a Christian, God NEVER stops providing doors of opportunity to grow you. If you are like me, there is probably a door waiting for you to open and write a new chapter in your Christian journey. Take it! God promises to protect His children and provide them the necessary vehicle to get you to the finish line. Keep your hands on the wheel and stay focused on God. Don’t get distracted by the enticing billboards Satan has put up to make you take the next exit off God’s plan. Stick to your guns friend and find God’s blessings as you open that door of opportunity with faith! God bless!

And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

 

Have you ever seen a mother bird bring worms to her babies? As she approaches the nest, those baby birds sit up, open their mouth and cry out for food. The mother bird graciously places parts of the worm in their tiny mouths, feeding them nourishment so they’ll grow. It’s a beautiful sight for sure!

 

As God’s children we often expect Him to bless us with things and strengthen us when we are weak. Is that you? Are you looking for a blessing? If blessings haven’t been coming around too often, I can assure you it’s because your attention isn’t focused on him and your mouth has closed off its praise to the King of Kings…who is worthy to be praised.

 

Try changing that today by focusing on God instead of your allowing your pride and personal pursuits overshadow your need for His help. God wont bless you unless He is priority one in your life! When you look to God, you recognize your weaknesses and failures and you long to receive His help, His nourishing words of wisdom and blessings to make today a brighter one. God has plenty of blessings to bestow on you. Turn to Him in praise and worship and find your mouth filled with His goodness as you sing out praises to Him! God bless!