​How to Respond in Faith in the Midst of Fiery Trials!

At times God puts us through the discipline of darkness to teach us to take notice of Him, and we are put into the shadow of God’s hand until we learn to hear Him… Watch where God puts you into darkness, and when you are there be still. Are you in the dark just now in your circumstances, or in your life with God? Then remain quiet… When you are in the dark, listen, and God will give you a very precious message for someone else when you get into the light. 
“If you have faith… nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:20).

“Daughter, your faith has made you well” (Luke 8:48).

“If you believe, all things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23).

“as you have believed so let it be done for you”(Matthew 8:13).

“According to your faith let it be to you” (Matthew 9:29). 
Are you presently facing a fiery testing of your faith? Are you in the dark regarding circumstances in your life? One of the things that we find hardest to handle is the testing of our faith. It calls for too much internal struggle for us to come out on the other side. We want to know the answers. We want to see the light at the end of the tunnel far in advance. It is just too much of a challenge for us to go through a long testing of our faith and the discipline of darkness, yet God requires this of each one of us if we are to grow spiritually. The testing of our faith is so unpredictable. It throws us off guard. We have to muster up our courage and passionately seek God deep within if we are to make it through uncharted waters. We don’t like what we can’t see.

But God engineers and even brings us into the very thing that tests our faith. Why does He do this? What we rarely can comprehend at the start – especially of a life challenge – is that He permits this type of unrelenting trial for our good and benefit. He doesn’t intend to do us harm. He intends to bless us if we move closer rather than farther away.   
If you are facing fiery trials, you are not alone. God is with you and can give you confidence in the middle of your trials. You are in the loving hands of the Almighty like a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer. He is aiming carefully at something that you cannot see. He is stretching, pulling and straining you into His purposes. 
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Have a wonderful day as you remain in faith and in His presence. Love you!

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How to deal with the Pain and Darkness in Life?

​I  hope and pray that this message meets a need in your life. We are living in difficult and dark times for so many people. If you are one of them, I want you to realize that you are not alone. Maybe God wants to use you to encourage someone else battling the darkness. Hard times will come and the darkness will find each one of us. At some point in life, we all will face some kind of pit. It may be a pit that we have dug with our own hands of wrong choices or it could be a pit that has been uniquely designed for us by the enemy. Have a wonderful Christ-centered day. Love you all. 

“I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.” Psalm 40:1-3,    

What can we do to find hope in the midst of the darkness? We can become bitter and blame God for the pain or we can give up and wallow in the mire and mud of that slimy pit. Some of you maybe guilty of plastering a smile on your face, gritting your teeth and denying that the pit even exists. However, the choice we should make is to trust God, knowing He will deliver us in and from the pit.   

God’s grace turns defeat into victory, tragedy into triumph and weakness into strength by providing real power over circumstances. People without Christ can’t muster up enough courage and human strength to get through a trial. God will not only enable us to survive the hard times, He wants us to thrive in and because of them.

Joy is not an earthly treasure but a heavenly gift from our loving Father who is committed to the joy of His children.Some of the most joyful people I know have suffered the most because they have learned not to live on explanations but on promises – the promises of God.

Jesus wants to give us a life of joy, pits and all. We need to remember that joy is the deeply-rooted confidence that God is in control and that our inner attitudes do not have to reflect our outer circumstances. We can find joy in the pit.

God Takes Delight in you!

​Do you believe God is watching over you, smiling and delighting in the fact that as a born-again believer you are HIS child? Close your eyes and picture God watching over you at this moment. No matter what you have done or what has been done to you, God’s love reaches down to hold you in His arms. Bow your head and tilt your heart to listen to Him whisper, “You are precious in my sight and I love you.” (Isaiah. 43:4,) Now rest in the promise that He loves you, He knows your needs, and He’s constantly by your side. Have a wonderful as you remind yourself of this promise from God. Love you all. 

“The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17

My friends, our heavenly Father, is watching over you. He calls you His treasured possession, the apple of His eye. There have been times when I have felt as if His hand is upon my head, letting me know that He is watching over me. To be in the loving arms of my ABBA Father is safest place of all. He takes great delight in you, just because you are His son/daughter. When you feel afraid or even a little scared, He will quiet you with His love. He says to you, “Everything is going to be alright. Your ABBA Father is here just for you.” His words are so soothing to me. They bring me peace. He rejoices over us by singing songs of His never-ending love for us.

You know, God loves to be with us and watch over us. It’s not because we are doing anything for Him, but simply because we are His. We might have even disappointed Him that day, but it doesn’t change how He feels about us.

I sense God wants you to know today that He delights greatly in you my friends. And with His love, He is there today to quiet your fears, concerns, insecurities and doubts. I have a feeling the joy-filled songs He sings over you are written just for you, describing the beautiful person He’s created you to be, while gently leading your heart to know and rely on His love more and more each day.

What a great reminder for times when nothing’s going right; when we feel like the whole world is against us and nobody understands what we’re going through. I hope the next time you have one of those days you’ll imagine Your Heavenly Father loves and delights in you even more then you can imagine!

Grant me the Joy of your Presence and the Pleasures of Living with you Forever!

​Joy comes from being in God’s presence. David’s heart was  glad–he had found the secret to joy. True joy is far deeper than happiness; we can feel joy in spite of our deepest troubles. Happiness is temporary because it is based on external circumstances, but joy is lasting because it is based on God’s presence within us. As we contemplate his daily presence, we will find contentment. As we understand the future he has for us, we will experience joy. Don’t base your life on circumstances, but on God. Have a wonderful day as you receive the joy of being in His presence. Love you all. 

 “You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” Psalm 16:11

Spending time with God gives us the opportunity to experience God’s love permeating through every cell in our bodies. When we sit or walk alone with Him, away from distractions, He ministers to us. Our hearts can, and do, respond in return, with love for Him. If we don’t take time to allow God to minister to us, our Christianity becomes legalistic and shallow. Our ministry becomes a drag, a duty we come to resent.

God desperately wishes for us to know his presence. As his children, he wishes constantly to be our abiding heavenly Father and to guide us through every aspect of our lives. Just as an earthly father cares and worries for his children, so God wants only the best for us and worries that we may stray from the path he would choose. But, unlike our earthly fathers who sin and err and do not know what is best for us, God knows exactly what circumstance we need to bring us to the “fullness of joy.”

Many times in life we run from God’s presence. In times of distress, we cling to what we think we need and have hope in false idols. We have faith in our comforts and we believe our friends and family to be enough to see us through our dark days.

The truth is that only in God is there hope. Only in God is there faith. Only in God may we believe and have confidence in the promise of everlasting life, eternally in his presence. If we would but accept that “apart from [him we] can do nothing,” we would find the never ending joy that is in God’s presence alone. (John 15:5)

“Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning”

​This life we live in is filled with many problems, where we seem to  suffer overwhelming, emotional, pain where every second seemed like an hour, and every hour like a day, and every day like a never ending eternity. My Friends-It may not be this morning, or tomorrow morning, but the joy of the Lord will return to your  heart and your circumstances will turn around for your good if you continue to seek the Lord. Don’t give up and don’t turn back. You’ve come too far to drop out of the race now, continue to run for the prize. Too much of you has been invested in Him, and He has invested His Son in you. His hand is outstretched still. In His favor is life, and that more abundantly. Have a wonderful day with the joy of the Lord being your strength. Love you all. 

 “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5 

But there are times my friends, when it hurts so deeply that trusting God is the only way to find life again. How often have you found yourselves in that very predicament. You see we’d like to think that once we come to Christ, once we ask Jesus into our hearts and choose to live for Him, that life will somehow be mountaintop experiences from that day forward. Friends, I’m going to be completely honest with you and speak from my own personal experience when I tell you it is not a mountaintop experience all the way, but when He takes you to the mountaintop there’s nothing else like it in the world. But choosing between living life with God or living life without God, I’d rather have God by my side every step of the way. For once the weeping has ended and His joy comes in the morning, there is no experience that compares to that. 

The more life hurts, the more I’ve learned to lean on Him and trust Him. In the face of failure I submit all the more and allow Him to get the glory, allow Him to use for good what the enemy meant for evil. 

So no matter what you are facing today, take it to the Lord, cast all your cares of it onto Him, and know that because of His mercy on you His kindness will not leave you and His peace shall not be removed. They’re yours if you can only believe. Life will throw curves on a good day, it will get really ugly and painful on a bad day, and the bottom may drop out, but underneath are the Everlasting Arms. Trust them today and find healing for your soul. Scripture says in Psalms 29:11- The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace. I pray He blesses each of you this day.

For all of God’s Promises are Yes and AMEN!

​A promise sometimes is hard to keep. We even make promises to the Lord and still struggle, not keeping them at times. To trust, obey, and depend on Him, to show Him love every day, to disciple and lead others to Him, to praise and worship Him with our total being, giving Him all of the glory and not letting our flesh be glorified. But God still loves us and gives us chance after chance. One thing we can be sure of is that we can always count on Him to keep His promises. Have a wonderful as you remain in His presence remember that all His promises are Yes and AMEN! Love you all. 

“For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen”             ~ 2 Corinthians 1:20

There are many promises that God made in His word too, and you can be guaranteed that He will come through for you. He keeps His word!  A few of them are the promise of Blessing (Ezekiel 34:26, Malachi 3:10), Comfort (Isaiah 40:1, 51:3, Matthew 5:4), Deliverance (Joel 2:32, Daniel 3:17, 2 Peter2:9,), Healing (Isaiah 53:5, Matthew 4:23-24), Help (Psalm 46:1, Isaiah 41:10), Joy (Nehemiah 8:10, Psalm 30:5, Psalm 126:1-3, John 15:11), Peace (Isaiah 26:3, John 16:33), Victory (1 Corinthians 15:55-58), to Never Leave nor Forsake Us (Hebrews 13:5). 

Maybe you’re reading this and desperately needed this reminder. All around you it looks as if your life is falling apart in the natural realm. It appears that God is not keeping His promise to you. I hope and pray this reminds you that God always keeps His promises. You job is to walk by faith not by sight. What looks like a failure in the natural is upward movement in the spiritual. That’s where you will be able to see God’s promises.

The only way we are going to fully experience and walk in the promises of God is if we continue to love Him, don’t give up, wait on Him, and believe and trust that every word He says is true.  He has also declared individual promises to each of us and they will come according to His will. Just hold on, it will be fulfilled.  

“Be on Guard. Stand Firm in the Faith!

​When things go wrong as they sometimes will, When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill, When the funds are low and the debts are high And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest, if you must, but don’t quit. More, now than ever before, we need to stand firm in our faith. With all the corruption in this world and temptations alluring us away, we need to stand firm. These times we live in now are so difficult. But no matter what the world says, no matter how right it may sound, we need to stand firm in the faith. Have a wonderful day in His presence as you stand firm in your faith. Love you all. 

 “Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous! Be Strong!” 1 Corinthians16:13

There are times when you want to give up and give in. There are pressures from the forces of darkness trying to twist you and turn you. The power of evil lurks behind you and whispers in your ear. The power of evil tries to directly crush your spirit with an in-your-face assault.  However, at this minute, as you read these words, Christ Jesus is standing next to you. Christ pours out His spirit of strength, encouragement, and sustaining power upon you.

At this very minute, as you read these words, Christ Jesus is calling upon you to hold fast and not give in. Jesus knows the reality of Heaven is just ahead of you. Jesus can see the golden rays of heaven made ready to wrap their splendor around you. Your crucial battle in this present darkness can be won not only by your human will, but also by turning your human will toward God’s will. There are many costs to standing firm for Christ. However, there is no cost greater than the cost He paid for you upon the Cross. Because He did so much, He knows you can stand firm and never ever give in.

No matter what life may throw your way, don’t quit looking to our Lord for your strength. Today in prayer, thank Jesus that in Him you can stand in faith and never be shaken.

The Lord is the one who sustains me!

​King David’s enemies wanted him to fall so they could rejoice over him with gloating. His enemies wanted to cause Him to become greatly discouraged. They wanted to bring him to a place of resignation, or more simply put, a place where he would sit down and just simply give up. However, David drew His strength from God and kept on going to become an over-comer. Let me encourage to like David to not give up and be an overcomer. Have a wonderful day as you remain in His presence. Love you all. 

 “Surely God is my helper, The Lord is the one who sustains me.” Psalm 54:4

 

In times when you feel as if the battle is too much, when you feel as though you cannot go on, then go to the Lord, who, as our scripture for today says in Psalm 54:4 will help us and strengthen us, “Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.” Listen how loving and caring God is towards you in Isaiah 46:4, “I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” It is the Lord who sustains us. He is whom we rely upon for my every need, and it is He, who lays His hand upon us, to upholds us and strengthens us.

 

Maybe there have been times in your life during like David where some people were hoping to see you fail and fall flat on your face, so they could gloat over your shortcomings. Where the enemy wanted to destroy your testimony and your faith in God, but like David, from Psalm 54:4, You too could say this, my confession of faith, as a testimony of God’s grace, provision, protection, and goodness, “Surely God is my helper; the Lord is the one who sustains me.” And praise God, to this day, you are still standing strong in the LORD and in the power of His might!

 

My friends, when you go through times of difficulty that may reveal your shortcomings and that is just what they are, shortcomings, you can still come through victorious if you keep your eyes on Jesus, and draw your strength from Him. Take heart, for what you go through today, you will not go through tomorrow, because they will not last forever. God can, and will, turn things around for you. The Bible says Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble.” He is the One who will help and sustain you every second of the day. He is the One who will carry you through and rescue you; He is the One who keeps you going, He is the One who will give you the strength that you need to be an over-comer in Him, in every area of your life.

Seeking Peace in Your Troubles!

​We all know that it is difficult to understand as believers when you are overwhelmed, but your attitude in times of trouble is an indicator of where your faith lies. When you face a trial in your life, it is a struggle to believe that God will be there to help you through it. You feel alone. Yet, the more serious your problem, the more grace He extends to you. You are never left to fight a battle on your own.  We can all trust God when we have some control in the situation. But when the problem is impossible for us or anyone else to help, that is when our faith is put to the test. Have a wonderful day as you put your faith and trust in God to take you through your difficult time. Love you all. 

Jesus told us in John 16:33, ” In this world you will have trials and tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”  

It doesn’t matter what we face as believers for all things are under the sovereign authority of Christ. It is His will that prevails in the outcome of every problem we face. If you will try to understand that truth, it will bring you peace when all hope seems gone. Your struggle is actually the transforming power that reveals God’s strength. It is always His purpose to bring you through your heartache and reveal more of Himself to you. Your battles are won long before they start because Christ paid the price for your victory. That may seem difficult to comprehend when your heart is breaking –but that is the truth.

I pray that you also know that every tear you shed is before God and subject to His ultimate authority. Your heart cannot be broken beyond our Creator’s hand to heal. It just can’t happen. There is no situation you face that can ever empty out the future God planned for you. Although you may not feel it now, your life is filled to overflow with God’s unending power and purpose. His angels are surrounding those who belong to him. There is nothing that has been left to chance.

You can enjoy quiet peace in spite of your pain when you stop trying to control the way God deals with your situation and let Him work it out his way. You can take rest knowing  that whatever God allows in your life, He has planned it long before you were born to use it for your good. His ways will always be higher than ours, but His ways are the only path to victory. Surrender your pain to Christ who will heal you and give you back abundant hope from the ashes of your broken dreams. May you know that your tears are not in vain. You still have hope regardless of what you are facing. This world is perishing and yet those who belong to Christ shall never be destroyed. Let Him work out your problem and restore your peace. Don’t settle for the lies of the enemy. You were meant for more!

Cast Your Cares on the Lord!

​When you have confidence in God, you will trust in what His Word says about your situation. He is not some impersonal “being” in the sky who is disconnected from the day-to-day realities in your life. He knows just when to step in and assist you when you need it most. Cast your cares upon the Lord, and don’t try to carry the load yourself. He wants to help. You may not understand every detail of God’s plan for you, but when you believe in your heart that God loves you, feeling like you are fighting your battles alone will soon fade. Have a wonderful day as cast all your cares on the Lord. Love you all.

 “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will take care of you; he will never let the righteous fall.” Psalm 55:22

We have all experienced situations that seemed impossible to handle at the time. It may have been a financial challenge or a bad report from the doctor or a myriad of other things. When things seem hopeless, and you feel you are at your worst, that is the time to turn to God and seek Him with everything you have.

You may feel that you are alone in your circumstances, but God is a very present help in times of trouble. Although it would be great if the Lord would perform some sort of magical transformation of the tough circumstances you face, that just isn’t reality(It’s not that He can’t do that). However, the Word of God is your way out of any situation. Because God’s Word is infallible and contains burden-removing, yoke-destroying power, when you can meditate on it, and speak it, you will see changes in your life. 

Don’t allow the devil to convince you that God doesn’t love you or won’t help you. The enemy wants to steal your confidence in God. He knows that if he can cause you to feel isolated from God’s love, you will lose hope, and your life will become a battleground of chaos and destruction. What I want you to grasp is the fact that Satan wants to influence how you feel. When you allow the pressures of life to influence your emotions in a negative way, you will most likely make decisions and take actions that will keep you stuck in your present situation. Because of this, it is important that you give more attention to the Word than you do to what is going on around you. Get in the Bible and meditate on the Scriptures that speak to your situation. Allow your feelings to be governed and controlled by the Word so your decisions and actions can lead you in the right direction.