A Little Word of Encouragement

A Little Word of Encouragement

by | Jun 25, 2021 | encouragement, Fruits of the spirit, Praise & Worship

O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Ps 34:8

What an exciting time when we accept Christ in our lives. When we put away the old things and become a new creation in Him. When we accept Christ, when we are baptized and allow ourselves to listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit. When we allow ourselves to follow His word and His will in our lives. When everything is fresh and new!

Then we begin to share with the people around us. Those who ‘know’ us from ‘before’ can be a challenge to our new spiritual growth. We want them to SEE the new us! However, all they can see is the old us. Especially the ones we hung out with and know all the secrets from our past. They want to use it against us. They want to bring us down. Its not even that they WANT to do it, it’s like they are compelled to do it. The devil wants to steal our joy and he will do it using those closest to us if he can.

We have to have time to build up who we are in Christ. We need time to learn His word, to saturate ourselves in His presence with prayer and praise. We need to move away from ‘the old’ and into the new. This can be a very difficult transition. Sometimes this means that we have to leave our old friends and find new ones – to surround ourselves with a body of believers – in order for us to be built up so that we can stand firm.

We need to remember that not all of our old family and friends will welcome us with open arms.  John 4:44 tells us ‘a prophet is not welcome in his own home town.’ He gave us a warning that we might face people turning away from us when we proclaim the Good News. Yet, this doesn’t mean we can’t witness or shouldn’t witness to those people. It doesn’t mean we can’t plant a seed – through our actions – that show we truly have changed.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17

This can be a very difficult journey. We have to remember we weren’t promised that WE would be the ones to lead our family to salvation – in some cases those family members may be saved and have been praying for us for a very long time. We are told that ‘unless the Lord builds the House then the laborers labor in vain’. We need to seek God’s will and direction. We need to produce the fruits of the spirit and let them manifest in our lives. We need to be a light set upon a hill. We need to be willing to be a servant and humble ourselves. We need to remember that God is always with us.

Isaiah 41:10-13  Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Behold, all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; those who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them; those who war against you shall be as nothing at all. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”

No matter where you are in your walk with God. No matter where you find yourselves. No matter how high the mountain or how low the valley – Always remember that God will not leave you nor forsake you.

All we have to do is seek Him and we will find Him.

It is such a small thing, to seek, yet there are times when we choose not to. We don’t want to humble ourselves, we don’t want to pray or ask, we don’t want Him to find us. We don’t want to recognize that even after we accept Christ we will stumble and fall. We need to recognize that everything in life takes time and work. Every relationship we have requires that we put something in – and only by

Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Hebrews 13:5
working are we able to build up something that will last.

One great thing about our relationship with Christ is that the work we put helps us. It helps us become strong in the spirit and the knowledge of God’s word. We know what He has done for others He will do for us – but if we don’t know WHAT He has done for others then we haven’t even begun to understand what He can do for us.

He reached into the darkness and found me. He pulled me out of the fire and nestled me safely under His wings. He protected me when no one else was there to protect me – not just from others but from myself. He holds me constantly in His love and care. He has bore witness to my comings and goings. He has picked me up when I fell down. He has heard my voice when I called upon Him. What a loving, wonderful God we serve.

You know what He has done for you – you may have shared your testimony with someone. You have probably heard the testimony of others. My friend, this is only the tip of the iceberg to what God is capable of and wants for our lives. We need to continually submit to His will. Our nature will have us stumbling and falling; without the grace of God we would not have come as far as we have.

Even after salvation, you will stumble and fall. You may unintentionally cause your brother to trip as well. We need to remember that this is not something God holds against us – as a matter of fact, He has given us a way to move forward – forgiveness; asking for it and giving it.

Psalms 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

What a wonderful God we serve!

Building up and creating your heart of worship

Building up and creating your heart of worship

by | Aug 1, 2019 | General, Praise & Worship

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Psalm 100:4

KJV

Imagine standing in a field or on the top of a mountain, spreading your arms wide as if to fly, the breeze moving over you. The warmth of the sun on your face as you lift it toward the heavens. Imagine taking in the vastness and the beauty of that one moment and then allowing it to grow larger. Now imagine, taking this feeling and carrying it with you. You pull out this memory every time you start to feel depressed or lonely.

This is a small comparison of what it is liked to be wrapped up in the heart of worship. The tremendous grace and blessing we receive when we go before the throne and we share our love and passion, our desire to draw close to the throne of grace. 

I remember learning about God’s love and grace. What I was moved by is that there is order in how we should approach Him. We enter into His gates with thanksgiving. We express our reasons for being thankful. Admittedly, during the dark times in our lives, it is much harder to find reasons to be thankful. It is much more difficult to see the blessing when we feel as if we have been cursed. The closer it is to have some excruciating pain cover our lives; whether it is the loss of a loved one, the loss of self, the loss of the ability to use our body – and we feel as if it is working against us. No matter what the pain is the more difficult it is to find a reason for thanks, especially when it has just happened. We shut down. We want to shut down. We want to shout out to God about how cruel and unfair it is.

As time goes by, we rely on our faith and our belief, we remember that we aren’t given more than we can handle. I will admit, I have challenged that in my own life. What I feel I can handle and what God feels I can handle are definitely two different things. Yet, even in these challenges, I have learned to move forward. Once you can get to a place of thankfulness, it allows you to increase your joy. 

Which brings us to the next step; entering His courts with praise. Praising Him for the things in our lives. Again, it is easy to focus on the good things. Pleasant things. The positive things. It is easy to compliment others when we aren’t feeling angry and oppressed. When we aren’t mad at the world for all the negative that is going on and happening. Yet, when we can learn to turn these things into a reason to sing His praises, how much sooner we are able to feel His presence in our lives once again.

I am guilty of not always giving thanks and praise when times are tough. It is definitely not always the first thing that comes to mind. The struggle of the flesh against the spirit is real. It is nothing to be ashamed of. It doesn’t mean you are less or weaker than someone who has learned to give thanks and praise in all things. 

It is a worthy goal to strive to a place of existing; like our perceptions of Mother Theresa. As well as other people who loved peace, who loved their people, who moved toward those goals of helping and building. These are individuals who served and yet I am certain that they struggled in their own private lives at times. Yet, they kept it between them and God and openly gave thanks and praise. 

We are all called on different journeys. We all serve in different ways. However, no matter what you are called to do or how you are called to serve, you will find strength in praise and worship, in giving thanks and praise in all things. Opening the door to a closer relationship by developing a strong heart of worship.