There are many lessons in nature. It’s amazing what we learn just by watching everything God created be submitted to His will and plan. One of my favorite times of the year is Fall, and something beautiful happens – the leaves change color and begin to drop off the tree over time.
Because there are changes in the length of daylight as well as cooler temperatures, the chlorophyll (food-making substance) breaks down in the leaves. This is what causes the change in leaf color. I’ve learned that there are some things I need to stop feeding. Those things started with internal frustration as an indicator. I didn’t like it, but I still gave life to it. I still tolerated it. I still allowed it. But in the Fall season of life, I’m learning how to let the chlorophyll of my soul stop feeding what is ready to drop. After the leaves change color, they fall to the ground so in the Spring they can grow new leaves with a fresh food supply. May we understand that the sufferings (giving up, letting go) of this present time is not worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed. What are you holding on to that’s killing you? Can you receive the grace to operate in freedom from that toxic thought or relationship? The Truth has an assignment. Let Him make you free.
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Many of us have heard the phrase, “trials come to make you strong.” While this is true, it’s also challenging to have a good attitude while facing a trial. As a matter of fact, hardly any of us would like to go through any trials. But God allows some of them to happen in our lives. They strengthen us for the journey ahead.
What I’ve discovered is that trials make us stronger for the promise that’s coming. When we make our requests known we many times struggle with impatience because we think it should happen in our timing and on our pace. But when it doesn’t, we blame God or accuse Him of not hearing us. The Truth is that He heard our prayers the first time, but we must be strengthened for what we are asking for. See, the promise has more weight than the trial. It takes responsibility to manage more. It’s not a walk in the park. It’s not some DIY spiritual project. We’re truly being led, groomed, and matured by the Holy Spirit to handle what we’re having faith for. So if there is a promise in your life that has not come to pass yet, count it all joy because the trials you’ve gone through will strengthen you for the manifestation! Selah. A few days ago, we just got finished celebrating Thanksgiving. But to the believer, giving thanks is the will of God (1 Thessalonians 5:18). It’s not limited to a holiday; it’s a major part of everyday life. But why is it the will of God to be thankful?
Gratefulness puts us in a place of joy. It even lightens our mood. It has even been medically proven that those who have a grateful heart live healthier lives. Constantly complaining and being negative absorbs into our bodies as well. So let’s form a healthy habit; let’s choose to focus on what we are grateful for, not just during this holiday, but every day. It will improve our perspective, improve how we talk to people, and may even help to altar some things in our health for the better. We have it far better than what we have allowed ourselves to think. Hubby and I were having a discussion that other day, and he said something that brought a lot of clarity to me. He talked about an imaginary handbook we tend to follow our lives by. This immediately prompted a question in my heart. “Who created the imaginary handbook?”
A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog called, “Who Told You?” The imaginary handbook is a continuation of that thought. Remember in Genesis, when Adam and Eve sinned, and God asked Adam, “where are you?” And when He talked with Adam about the sin, Adam responded to God and said, “we went and hid ourselves behind the fig leaves because we knew we were naked.” God asked them, “who told you that you were naked?” I want to pose a question to you. What imaginary handbook have you been following? Whose pattern have you been living after without even knowing who said it? And even if you knew who said it, are they God? Were they prompted by the Holy Spirit to say it to you? Why has it been ok to live out what someone else has spoken? Why have those things become law in our lives? The imaginary handbook is based on a majority of those who live in doubt and defeat but don’t want to acknowledge that fear is what drives how they live. Before making decisions, let’s check the motives of those decisions. Of course not all fear is bad, but the fear that brings torment is not of God. We should never live under a pressure to be something, do something, or have something. That pressure comes from the imaginary handbook. There is only one Book we should be patterning our lives after, and that’s the Word of God. I read a devotion written by Pastor Rick Warren, and it really changed my thinking. It said, “think about what you’re thinking about.” I’ve learned that every thought is not our own. Yes, there are some that are ours, but there are others that we don’t have to receive. We tend to think that because these thoughts are introduced to us or even may be intrusive or invasive that we should receive them, but we are not obligated to!
God began to speak to me about thoughts and beliefs. He said to me that the thoughts that roam around in our minds constantly that cause us pain and confusion are connected to a belief. The belief gives that thought permission to dwell in the space of our minds. So I’m asking you, what thoughts are roaming around in your mind that are not God’s thoughts for your life? Write them down and trace them back to the belief that causes them to remain in your mind. After doing so, pray about the beliefs that gave those thoughts permission to live in the space of your mind. We live in a time where society exalts the workaholic. We are always on the go. We have access to the world at our fingertips but manage to feel more lonely than we ever have.
I just want to share a thought with you, a daily thought. Yes, go after the dreams God has placed in your heart. Check off that thing on your bucket list. Write the vision and make it plain. But also rest. Rest is important for your body, mind, and emotions. Without rest, stress can take over and cause things to happen that throw us off course. We can’t think straight when we’re stressed. We don’t always make good decisions when we’re overwhelmed. And for those who feel guilty for resting, why work so hard and can’t enjoy the fruit of your labor? Rest is a principle in the Bible. When God made Heaven and Earth, He rested on the seventh day. It was not that He had to, but He chose to teach us in that moment that rest is a part of us trusting in Him. The emails that are not finished can wait until tomorrow. The pile of chores will be there when we wake up. Just rest. Work, but rest. It’s important. Think about it. Ever had a conflict inside of yourself? A part of you wants to do one thing and another part of you doesn’t? I call this an internal frustration. Many of us deal with this. But what we do not want is for this to turn into doublemindedness. James 1:8 in the AMP says that a doubleminded man is unstable in everything he thinks, feels, and decides.
To be doubleminded is to literally try to function and live from two minds. This is not just mere indecisiveness. This is an internal conflict to the degree where we’re trying to live like two people. Doublemindedness wants both options; it can’t choose. It’s wanting to be friends with someone while treating them with a cold shoulder at the same time. It’s wanting that business opportunity to become available but too afraid of the responsibilities. It’s two opposing vantage points trying to operate through the same person. Do you have internal frustration? What’s keeping you from choosing what God is saying? What belief allows the thoughts of darkness to linger in your thought life? Write down the things you’re torn about. Ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen you to make the decision that pleases His heart. In nutrition, empty calories are in foods that are loaded in sugar and very minimal in nutrition. In other words, they taste great, but they provide nothing for the body to absorb to be well. We may even feel good when we eat empty calories. Our endorphins may rise and cause us to feel like we’re in a euphoric state of mind. But even that euphoric feeling doesn’t supply nutrients to the body when we consume calories that are void of benefits.
As it is in the natural, it is also in the Spirit. What are we digesting that’s empty? What conversations are we engaging in that do not provoke spiritual nourishment? I know some of those things may feel good to you but is it good for you? Here’s a thought. At some point in time, the issues we deal with will sober us up. If we truly want to be healed, we will be faced with strong truths. In our healing process we will be chewing on a spiritual diet that may not taste good but will certainly be nutritious to our souls so we can be well. So this week, let’s monitor what we’re eating spiritually. Let’s check our spiritual diet. Our very wellness depends on it. Selah. I have a serious question to ask you? Who told you that? I know I’m being a little forthright but think about it. A lot of what we’ve been told was not Biblical, nor was it God’s will for our lives.
So who told you that you had to be married by a certain age? Who told you that the perfect family included two children, a dog, and a house on a hill? Who told you that your ministry is just behind the pulpit? Who told you? These things begin to shape our desires until we begin to go after what someone else wants. In other words, we can be pursuing someone else’s dreams and callings. Dangerously, people tend to live vicariously through us, claiming that the Lord told them things to tell us, but the voice was actually their own fears. And just because you don’t do things the way everyone wants you to do them doesn’t mean you’re outside of God’s will. Follow God’s voice, and those who speak on His behalf will resonate His heart. Unhealthy loyalty is feeling as if loving a person means to accept every bit of advice they give, even if it’s not wise counsel. And on the flip side, some people believe that they are not loved unless people do everything they tell them to do. Neither is healthy. Love gives a choice, so we should be given the opportunity to choose the path God is leading us on, even if a part of that plan involves not receiving advice from someone we really love and care about. That doesn’t mean we don’t love them; it just means we’re hearing the Lord say to go another way. So I’m going to ask you again…who told you? To truly pursue after what God has for you, you must detox from the desires that are not your own. Selah. There’s a Scripture I want to use as the basis for this blog. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be alert, be on watch! Your enemy, the Devil, roams around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (GNT). One of the key words in this verse is “roam.” Roaming gives an indication of traveling from place to place. The point is that the devil is looking for someone to consume, someone to speak to, someone to lead. And we decree that because are filled with the Spirit of God, we will rid the devil homeless with no place to live in our hearts. We declare that only the Holy Spirit occupies us.
The way for our heart to remain full of light is to do what the Scripture says. “So then, surrender to God. Stand up to the devil and resist him and he will turn and run away from you” (James 4:7 TPT). Resisting the devil is to violently oppose him. We cannot be casual with the enemy. We cannot treat his lies and suggestions nonchalantly. We should not be flexible in our stance against what he offers. We must violently oppose him. Voices that are not motivated by the Holy Spirit desire to make us anxious, depressed, condemned, and defeated. The enemy desires to make us believe that God is not for us. Let’s get in position by putting on the whole armor of God so we can stand against the wiles (methods) of the enemy (Ephesians 6:10-17). Selah. |
I love to journal my thoughts I receive in prayer. "Chronicles" is my journey I'm sharing with you. Archives
December 2022
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