Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9
Joshua 1:9
I decided to continue with my thoughts from last week as I listened to a testimony from a single mom, Abigail, who had cancer. As she shared her testimony I got emotional because I saw God so powerfully at work in her life.
Both her father and her grandparents had died from cancer and it seemed she was going to be next. She spoke about feeling that spirit of death crowding in on her making her fearful but Jesus’ presence also being there encouraging her. When she got the news, the doctor told her that the cancer had gone to places that he couldn’t reach and honestly told her that she was going to die. The treatments were very aggressive and were only meant to delay the inevitable. She asked loved ones to pray for her and she, herself, held on tenaciously to God trusting Him to perform a miracle for her. Unfortunately, even as she was aggressive in her prayer and faith, the cancer became even more aggressive. As she said herself, it was becoming more difficult to hold on to hope. Even as I heard those words, I was reminded of the reality that sometimes even with our best efforts and best support from family and friends, our situation just does not seem to be improving but rather getting worse. And it’s at this point many of us usually simply give up. It’s too hard, all hope seems lost and even other voices may be telling us that it doesn’t make sense you may as well just give up, let go. Let me just say here that it is important to let go but be careful of what you are letting go. Let go of the situation, let go of the problem but don’t ever let go of your hope in your God. Let Him decide how He is going to handle it and know that in the end He will fight and win for you. With hope slipping out of her reach, Abigail took a trip to the Dominican Republic and spent time with a friend who was also a doctor. When her friend saw the results, her reaction made Abigail even more scared and discouraged. She cried out to God as she had done many times during her ordeal and asked Him straight out if she was going to die. Instead of responding right away, He took her on a spiritual journey at the end of which He assured her that she was cancer free. A few weeks after her return home, she did another PET-scan and the results confirmed what she already knew. That was in 2017 and she is still cancer free today. What caught my attention the most was the fact that in spite of her faith and prayer and trust in God, her situation was growing worse. It was a blow to her faith getting negative results over and over, but she kept her eyes on Jesus. We too will face challenges and trials that seem to knock the wind out of us, so to speak. We will face times when it doesn’t even seem to make sense hoping or trusting in God. Just as the devil came to her as if to say, “your father is gone your grandparents are gone, now it’s your turn,” the devil will always come to discourage us, steal our faith in God if possible, and try to make us believe the lie that it’s over. We too, like Abigail, really have to choose to keep our eyes on Jesus. In Abigail’s case, no doctor was able to help, her supporting family and friends couldn’t help, she was on her own, either God would do it or He wouldn’t. I don’t know what situation you are believing God to pull you out of. I don’t know what impossible challenge you’re facing today. I do not know how many times you have heard “no” when all you wanted to hear was “yes.” However, I do know this. Jesus hasn’t moved and gone anywhere. He is not worried. The battle still belongs to God it was never yours to begin with. So, I encourage you to fix your eyes steadfastly on the One who is able to do anything and everything and choose to live, choose to trust, choose to let Him have His way. Choose to focus on what His Word says about your situation, what His Word says about you. Stand on His Word, stand on His promises. Your situation doesn’t have the final say, God does! If you have never accepted Jesus Christ into your life as Lord and Saviour I invite you to do so now. We all need Someone bigger and stronger than us who has our back.
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![]() I was trying to decide what to write for this post this week when I bounced up on an interesting video about inmates saving the life of an officer. It seems the officer was on duty when he started feeling unwell. The inmates were locked in their cells upstairs and no other officer was nearby. Some of the inmates were able to see the officer at his station and noticed that he took off his hat, which he never did, and started fanning himself. They then observed when he fell unconscious. They started screaming his name, trying to revive him. By this time of course all the inmates, even those who could not see him from where they were, realized something was wrong. They continued shouting his name until finally he revived, and although in a semi-conscious state, he was able to press the control to open their cell. They rushed down the stairs to his assistance and were able to call for help. What I found interesting was the care and concern of these men for this officer on duty. They could have ignored him but they didn’t. When interviewed they spoke about his kind and friendly attitude towards them. It was this that prompted them to be willing to rush to his assistance because they knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would do the same for them. I was moved by this video to see the good there is in each of us but I see God in this as well. God could have allowed that deputy to become ill by himself somewhere with no one around to help him, but He didn’t. He allowed him to fall into that situation in an environment where He knew he would get help because of the kind of seeds he had planted there – seeds of love and kindness. God made sure that he would be taken care of. I don’t know whether or not the officer is a child of God, but we see God’s mercy and grace extended. How many of us can look back and see God’s mercy and grace extended in our own lives – especially when we know we didn’t deserve it? At the end of the day, the one thing that comes to my mind is this ... it’s all about Him. It’s all about His mercy, His grace, His love, His salvation extended to us whether we deserve it or not. If it were about us I’m afraid many of us, myself included, know full well that we would be in trouble. Yet, God doesn’t depend on our love for Him or on all the good things we do. His love, care and concern are about who He is NOT who we are. I think about David. He did some good things: he killed Goliath, he was a man after God’s heart, He was a worshipper, yet, he committed adultery and murder in almost the same breath and only came clean because he was caught! He didn’t always handle his family situations very well and this almost cost him his throne later on in his life. Yet, God loved him, covered him, blessed him and did not hold his shortcomings against him. I think we can all think about times we know we fell short and yet God was still there for us – and we didn’t even deserve it. The verse that comes to my mind is this: “My grace is sufficient for thee for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9a). His grace, His undeserved favor, is sufficient. There is nothing I can do to deserve it, it’s all about Him. There’s nothing I can do either to stop it, it’s all about Him. My weakness does not turn Him off, it doesn’t chase Him away. In fact, my weakness, I guess, is what causes His grace to shine more. His strength, in fact, is perfected through my weakness. I don’t have to have it all together, I don’t even have to do everything perfect. My weaknesses, inabilities, insecurities, sin, are what gives Him the opportunity to be God in my life. Actually, I wouldn’t need Him, if my life was perfect, none of us would. I would be self-sufficient, totally capable of handling myself on my own. Mind you, this is not an opportunity here to embrace and excuse sin, but rather the opportunity to hold on to the God who just does not let go of us. It is all about Him and if you don’t have a personal relationship with Him I encourage you to invite Him into your life. The God of the universe wants a relationship with you, He wants you to come as you are and whatever needs fixing He’ll help you with it. And for those who already have that relationship with Him, I encourage you not to give up on Him. He has been too good, too faithful, too merciful for you to turn your back on Him. Allow Him to continue loving you even when you don’t feel you deserve it because in His eyes NOTHING can separate you from His love for you (Romans 8:35, 38-39). ![]() Some or many of you are probably familiar with Nick Vujicic an inspirational speaker who has ministered to thousands of people around the world. Recently, this past week, I was looking for some Christian inspiration to share with a group of teenagers to inspire them in their walk with God. I came upon one of many videos by this speaker and decided to share that with them. I shared some background history on him because for the most part they knew very little or nothing at all about him. I wanted them to see that he had no arms or legs but that that was not stopping him from giving his all to God. He was using what he has to glorify God and was not choosing to focus on his limitations. As I looked at another video with him in ministry, what caught my attention was not his handicap but the large crowd I was seeing waiting to hear what he had to say. This man could have chosen to stay in a corner and hide, and sulk and complain about all that God had not given him, about how imperfect he was and above all, the fact that he had nothing to share, nothing to offer to anyone far more the world. But he didn’t. He lived his life and continues to live it to the full in spite of limitations. Many times we try so hard to hide our flaws, our limitations, afraid that we would be rejected, afraid of being told that we have nothing to offer, that we are not qualified to do great things. But as I looked at that vast crowd in front of Nick, who appeared even smaller because he had no legs to elevate him, he was not afraid and whoever I saw, looked as if they were very much interested in what he had to say, in what he had to offer. I am reading a book now by Pastor Joel Osteen entitled “Emptying out the negative.” And what I am reading seems to parallel Nick’s life. Nick could have said, and honestly so, that he has no arms or legs, so he can’t play sports. But guess what ... he does. He could have said that because of no arms or legs he can’t get married because after all he can’t hold his wife to hug her and love her and be the husband that she wants. But guess what ... he is married and has four children. He could have said I have no arms or legs and I can never do a whole lot for God. But guess what ... over a number of years he has ministered to thousands and more I’m sure, encouraging and inspiring people to serve God. His life has not been easy but he has clearly chosen to empty out, to remove every negative thought meant to stop him from living an abundant life in Christ. What thoughts are you clinging to that are probably stopping you from doing great things for God? What thoughts are stopping you from accomplishing a goal or a task that you know even God is pushing you towards? At the end of the day, when you think about it, sometimes it’s not the devil or other people that stops us. We are the ones that welcome and entertain negative thoughts that hinder us from doing so much more than what we are doing right now. Our opinion of ourselves could be our greatest blockage and all the devil has to do is whisper a thought or send the right person to say that we can’t, that we’re not good enough, that we shouldn’t even bother to try because it’s too late and we would come into total agreement with them and not even bother to try. Imagine if David had been intimidated by the words of Goliath. The entire Israelite army was ... and they were the trained soldiers! They allowed the negative words of their enemy to so intimidate and cut them down that they were immobilised with fear (1 Samuel 17:11)! He had not even killed anyone. All Goliath used was “words” and that was enough to cause Israel to believe that they were defeated ... and defeated they were before they even started the battle because they had no confidence in themselves or in their God. David, on the other hand, knew His God and saw what he was able to accomplish through His God. With God’s help he had killed a lion and a bear and he knew he could kill this giant, not in his own strength, but with God’s help. His confidence in himself was based on his confidence in His God! (1 Samuel 17) What negative thoughts are you entertaining and welcoming even holding on to tightly today? What are you saying and believing about yourself that could be hindering you from doing great things for God? Guess what? You need to empty out those negative thoughts and replace them with right ones, with God’s Word, with what God has said about you. You are blessed, you are certainly not cursed (Ephesians 1:3). You are favoured by God (Psalms 5:12), you are the beloved of the Lord (Ephesians 1:6). Whatever you put your hands to do that is good is blessed (Deuteronomy 28:8). You are the head and not the tail (Deuteronomy 28:13). You are more than a conqueror through Christ Jesus (Romans 8:37). You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you (Philippians 4:13). You are equipped, you can handle it. God will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5b). And there are so many more truths you can rely on and hold on to. With not a little shame, I remember recently getting the opportunity to do something for God but because of fear, because of negative thinking of not being good enough, I ran from the opportunity. Afterwards I realized that I had been making excuses and that if God sends the opportunity, no matter how it comes, He will enable me to do it. Let’s strive to be the best we can be. Let’s choose to focus on what God says about us. Let’s choose to force out the negative opinions and thoughts about ourselves and instead choose to align ourselves with God’s opinion of us. God’s Word still stands, still outruns the competition, still gives life. Choose to believe and speak life over yourself. After all, God is still able to perfect that which concerns you (Psalm 138:8a). If you have not accepted Christ into your life as Lord and Saviour, I invite you to do that today. Let Him change out those negative thoughts and replace them with new ones, new thoughts from Him that will help push you to accomplish more in Him than you could ever have dreamed or imagined. ![]() I have mentioned this more than once but I’m going to mention it again. Over the years I have learned to thank God for not just the good things but for the negative things in my life. I have learned to thank Him in spite of the negative, I guess we all have, but I have also learned to thank Him for it. There have been times when I have asked God questions that started with “why” and “how long.” But I have been realizing in recent times, that I have needed to shift my focus to the reality that after all I’ve been through I am still standing. How many of us can say that? I think many, if not all of us can. We have been through trials and testings ... that’s a part of life we can never escape. But maybe more and more we need to remind ourselves that with everything that we have been through and continue to go through, God is there, He has never left us, He has never abandoned us. It has taken me a long time, I admit, to fully understand and appreciate this verse: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” The second part of that verse, “a very present help in trouble” has troubled me for years because I never felt it to be true. It seemed to me that God didn’t do anything right away to help me out and that I had to wait for a long period of time before help finally came. But recently, this week to be exact, God gave me a revelation of that verse that really blew my mind. I was having my private devotion with Him and He helped me finally see that He has been a present help all along. As I looked back over my life, I realized how blessed I have been and still am; how safe and secure I have been and still am in God’s loving care. He has NEVER left me nor forsaken me. He has always been and continues to be at my side. But what you might ask prompted this sudden revelation? A book. I recently purchased the kindle version of a new book by Pastor Samuel Rodriguez entitled “From Survive to Thrive.” It’s one of the many books that in recent months I have felt God prompt me to purchase as I seek to grow and develop in Him. In a sub-section entitled “Prism of Pain,” the following words jumped out at me: “God wants you to know He has not forgotten you and your needs. Your Creator has carried you through the unimaginable trials of recent times in order to strengthen you, empower you and redirect your attention to what matters most. Through the power of Christ in you, you are not merely a survivor but a conqueror.” God has not called us to just survive through the trial, or bear with the pain, but He has called us to thrive and the word “thrive” has a few meanings – to flourish, to prosper, to develop well, to bloom, to blossom, to succeed... You get the picture. As I read these words, God helped me put things in perspective. He helped me see that through every situation I have been through, He has been there. He has literally been sending help to me every step of the way through songs, sermons, movies, books, people, even the wonders in His creation have been sources of encouragement and motivation for me. Added to that are all the things He has been accomplishing in and through me, using me to bring inspiration, encouragement and hope to various lives. Guess what? That’s not just me, that’s all of us. Whenever we yield our problems, our situations to Him, He provides help and encouragement in so many ways and goes a step further and uses us, sometimes in the midst of our storm, to be a light and help to others. Many times, we don’t even realize it but just because we can’t see His hand at work during our trials doesn’t mean he isn’t working. It just means we aren’t “seeing.” Remember that even at His weakest moment, Jesus asked God, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me” (Matthew 26:39 NASB). We would all like to blossom and bloom in the Lord without the pain, without the suffering, without the trials. But remember Jesus also said in the same verse, “yet not as I will, but as You will.” He knew that there was something greater on the other side of His suffering. We need to be reminded of that too. If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Savior, I invite you to do that now. Suffering in this life is inevitable but in Christ you can be a part of discovering the greater blessings that God has in store for you on the other side of your pain. |
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February 2025
AuthorThis blog provides inspirational nuggets inspired by the Word of God and serves to encourage and motivate Christians in their Christian walk. |