It Helped Me

Are You Feeling Alone in what You are Facing Today?

by Janet Scott

Ephesians 3:16-19  ”that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith – that you, being rooted and grounded in love may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Have you ever reached the point in your struggle where you begin to have difficulty reminding yourself of how much God loves you?  Have you ever felt as though you were just all alone in your situation and wonder if God has turned His back on you in what you are facing?  If so then it is time to dig deep and hold onto your faith.  Allow Him to remind you of all of His love for you because that is where you faith is found!

If Satan can get you to believe that God doesn’t really love you that much (basically the same lie he used on Eve, nothing is new with him) then he has won a mighty victory!  Without the deep seated belief that God loves us, cares for us and has a great plan for us where do we find any faith to carry on?  If we don’t fully believe that God has out best in mind every single day then how could we stir up the belief that He will deliver us and care for us.  Our deep inner strength comes from knowing just how much God loves us so don’t allow Satan a foothold in your faith by allowing him to lie to you about how much God loves you and cares about what you are going through today.

Allow God to strengthen you today in His love for you, hold onto these verses and look up others that are “God’s love” related.  Think on John 3:16, “for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

According to these verses if we truly want to be filled with all the fullness of God we have to know the love of Christ that surpasses all knowledge.  As the love of Christ becomes more real to us the more we can be full of faith and understanding of God no matter what comes our way.  If you are hurting today and you are desperately trying to hang on ask God to strengthen you in your belief in His love for you and to increase your faith.  It may not feel like it but He is right there beside you wanting to help you hold on and have victory!  Pray, read His promises and turn on some praise  and worship music and allow His love to comfort you and fill you!  The best is yet to come!

http://www.billscottgroup.com/janetgroup/are-you-feeling-alone-in-what-you-are-facing-today/

What to do when you’re in an “emotional fog” (when everything falls apart)

Growing up, I remember our family going on vacation in Nova Scotia, Canada.  During the summer, it is often very, very foggy. It’s sometimes so dense that you can only see a few feet in front of you. When you are driving in fog like that and can’t see, for your own safety and the safety of others, sometimes you just have to pull over, stop the car, wait it out and maybe even consider another route.

Have you ever felt like you were in an “emotional fog?”  I have.  You can’t see where you are going; you’ve lost your vision. Maybe you’ve lost your vision for your marriage. The road you were heading down with your spouse was suddenly engulfed by an affair, illness, cancer, or an addiction.  You once could see a bright future for your child, but the light has dimmed because of rebellion, drugs, or sickness.   Work has taken over your life, it’s no longer fun, it’s just tedious; or, perhaps you’ve even lost your job.  The fog of finances is now looming.

So, what can you do?  Well, there are no easy answers. But here’s a start.

Pull over.

You may want to stop what you are doing and pull over if you are able for a few hours or maybe even get away for several days so you can clear your mind.

Patience.

Sometimes, you just have to be patient and wait until the fog clears. You can’t try to control everything.

Ponder.

Spend time reflecting upon your life.  Instead of asking yourself “Why is this happening to me?” Ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?” Or, “What should I do as a result of this?”

Pray.

God allows the fog in your life and God can take it away. Sure, pray that the fog will clear. But also pray that He will be pleased with how you handle yourself when you’re in the fog.

Persevere.

Life is not easy. You will struggle. You will experience pain. Don’t give up. Don’t give in. The fog will lift. Blue skies will prevail again.

by Mark Merrill

(Source: markmerrill.com)

When You Feel Like Giving Up

from Rick Warren

“All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.” (Hebrews 11:39-40, NLT)

It’s not easy to live by faith. We live in a broken world. The weather doesn’t work right. Our bodies don’t work right. Our relationships don’t work right.

When God kicked Adam out of heaven, He told Adam that life would be hard. And it is. There’s a cosmic battle for your life going on inside of you and outside of you. You battle with your own sinful nature. You also battle against Satan himself, who wants nothing more than to “steal, kill and destroy.”

And sometimes it just gets to us. We just want to give up.

But in Hebrews 11 God urges us to hang on because God hasn’t forgotten us and will fulfill His promises one day. He promises to give us a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11). He promises to take away our tears (Revelation 7). And He gives us multiple other promises throughout His Word.

Hebrews 11 mentions a variety of biblical heroes who demonstrated faith in God’s promises—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, Gideon, Samson and others. Though they endured many difficulties, they kept going in their spiritual journeys.

Then Hebrews 11:39-40 says, “All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.” (NLT)

Living by faith involves pain. If you give up when life isn’t going well, you never learn to trust God. Why do you think this is so?

It’s easy to love God and serve Him when life isn’t going well. Will you trust Him when it’s not?

(Source: purposedriven.com)

Jesus’ Forgiveness Extends Beyond Your Greatest Sins

Jesus chose His words carefully.

When He hung on the cross, suffering through a horrific punishment He did nothing to deserve, He didn’t waste His final breaths. He spoke words that echo throughout eternity, forever shaping the way we view and receive His sacrifice.

Luke 23:34 records the first of the seven final sayings of Jesus on the cross: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

Just five days earlier, on what many now call Palm Sunday, people crowded the streets of Jerusalem, welcoming Jesus to the cries of, “Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!”

Days later, He looked down on another crowd at the foot of His cross harshly shouting, “Crucify him!”

His response to their outcry was opposite of what many of us might have done. Jesus asked God to have mercy. “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” His words reached far beyond the bloodthirsty people at His feet to us, today.

While it was our sin that ultimately subjected Jesus’ life to the relentless beating, mocking, and torture of the cross, it was the forgiveness Jesus issued in the midst of His torment that has the power to forever transform your life.

His forgiveness, if you receive it, extends beyond your deepest hurts, regrets, and failures.

To receive this great gift, we first have to see exactly how far His forgiveness reaches and all it covers: rejection of Christ, turning from His ways, doubting who He is, and so much more.

All of us have sinned and fallen short of living a perfect life. But we have the hope of forgiveness. Forgiveness that takes away those sins. No matter who you are, where you have been, or what you have done, Jesus forgives you. Unconditionally.

PRAY:

Jesus, give me the perspective today to see the full extent of your forgiveness. Forgive me for the times that I have unknowingly, and knowingly, sinned against you. I pray the same forgiveness I receive from you may overflow into the forgiveness I extend to others. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

APPLY:

The full extent of Jesus’ forgiveness extends beyond your greatest sins, and allows you to extend it beyond the greatest sins others have committed against you. What is one offense you have yet to forgive someone for? Take the opportunity today to reach out to that person to offer forgiveness

- from Pastor Steven Furtick, The Seven Mile Miracle and the You Version Daily Devotion series.

(Source: sevenmilemiracle.com)

Stand Your Ground in Your Calling

Nehemiah 6:3  And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down.  Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you.”

Sanballat and Tobiah were trying everything they could to stop the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.  They taunted and jeered and threatened but Nehemiah kept the people focussed on what they were supposed to be doing instead of allowing fear to creep in and stop the work.

Satan will use every distraction imaginable to keep you from your calling.  Churches can even become distracted from what they are called to do.  It is so important that we all keep our eyes on God and focus on what God is telling us instead of what other people may be saying.  These two men were ruthless and persistent in their desire to stop the work of God going on in Jerusalem and you will find there are more just like them out there.

God’s purpose for your life is by far more important that the approval of other people.  He will give you all you need to do what He has asked you to do and He will give you the strength to ward off the determination of other people to stop the work.

Stop for a moment this morning and ask God if you are being too distracted by other things to accomplish all that He has for you to accomplish.  Focus on Him and don’t allow the noise of the world to distract you from what you are called to do.  God will accomplish His plan through you if you allow Him to.  Don’t miss out on all He has in store for you – fight the good fight of faith.

-written by Janet Scott

(Source: billscottgroup.com)

Real Courage - before the lions’ den

So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”
Daniel 6:16

Daniel is one of the most courageous and faithful men in the entire Bible. But not for the reasons we usually think.

For example, when telling the story of Daniel and the lions’ den, most people usually focus on Daniel’s courage in the lions’ den itself. But what’s curiously missing from the whole story is any description of Daniel’s experience in it. Not one word.

153 verses on his life before the lions’ den. Aside from when he tells the king that God had shut the mouths of the lions, zero describing his time in it.

And the reason is because Daniel’s courage and faith in the lions’ den isn’t the point. After all, shutting the mouths of the lions was God’s thing. Once Daniel gets thrown in the lions’ den, what is he really going to do?

Daniel’s courage and faithfulness was shown in the way he lived that got him thrown into the lions’ den. The real miracle was when his enemies were looking for a way to accuse him but they couldn’t find anything in his life. So they had to make up a law forbidding prayer to anyone but the king to get him thrown in. And yet he still prayed. That’s real courage. That’s real faith. And it was that courage and faith that became the setup for God’s display of faithfulness.

I think most people want a lions’ den experience. Maybe not the danger, but they do want to see God do huge things in their life. Come through for them in big ways. Decisively display His deliverance. Show people that our God is still a God who can accomplish the impossible.

But most people will never have the opportunity to prove God’s faithfulness in the lions’ den because they have not proved their faith in everyday life.

They’re not going to see God come through for them in a huge way financially because they haven’t learned to trust Him with 10% of what they have.
They’re not going to see increased favor at work because they segregate God from their work.
They’re not going to see God use them in powerful ways at their school because they live in such a way that no one knows they even believe in God.

Don’t try to be like Daniel in the lions’ den. Be like Daniel who prayed every day and had integrity. Be like Daniel and serve God continually in every aspect of your life. Have the courage and faith to live in such a way that God actually has a platform to show His faithfulness from.

And then God will do His thing in the lions’ den.

-written by Steven Furtick

(Source: stevenfurtick.com)