Tag: encouragement

Bible Study, faith, God, Healing, Hope, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality, Women

12 Things Women Give Birth To – Mother’s Day 2018

Here are 12 things woment give bith to. It is the Word God have me to share at our Women’s Luncheon this year. God bless you!

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

Copyright 2018 Diana Rasmussen

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.  Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” Gal. 5:22-26 NKJV  

A tree doesn’t have to work to make fruit. You don’t walk outside and hear an orange tree saying, “Uggggg, Ohhhhhh, give me an orange.” You don’t walk through an apple orchard and hear, “Noooooo, Ouchhhhhhh, Oh myyyyyyyyy, give me an apple.

Why?

Because that is what is was made to produce.

The fruit is already in the tree.

God made it that way.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you;
I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” – Jeremiah 1:5 NKJV

Yes, the trees need water, they need sunlight, and soil. But the important thing is – they were already made to birth fruit!

I want you to think of a birthing suite. There is a special room, special Doctors and Nurses. A special place to bring a baby into the world. God is our father. We are his inheritance, We are His children. He will birth new things from Heaven to Earth – through us. We are God’s Birthing Suite.

As women we were made to birth new things. Yes, we birth children, but God also created us to birth new ministries, new life, and new hope into those we touch. Do you remember your mothers touch? You would be sad or upset, and she would scoop you into her arms and hug you.  That love would drive out the sadness or the anger. It washed over you like waves until all you felt was good.

There is healing in our hands. God has given us the right and the authority to heal. A woman’s touch can change world!  As mothers of children and ministries and hope we carry within us the Healer, the Redeemer, the King of Kings. Sometimes it’s just a friend that needs someone to listen. Other times it’s a family in need of desperate prayer. Either way, God hears and answers our prayers.

DEFINITION OF BIRTH

• an act or instance of being born

• the emergence of a new individual from the body of its parent

• high or noble birth

• any coming into existence; origin; beginning

 

12 Things Women Give Birth To

1. Forgiveness

God calls us his Beloved. We are already loved and accepted by what Jesus did at the cross. We are forgiven god calls us to share that forgiveness with others. I remember when my mom was passing away. I was there in the hospital with her. She started bringing up things that she regretted. I stopped her. All I said was, “Mom, I forgive you. You did the best you could with what you had. I love you. And God forgives you too.” She started crying. Forgiveness is a powerful thing we birth into others. It has the power to break down walls and years of regret. Offer it generously.

2. Love

Women know how to love. God made us that way. We will go out of our way to help someone in need. We will sacrifice every day for our children and our families. We will love the lost. We love the broken. In fact, we are the first to get out the Band-Aids and antibiotic lotion. We will bandage up the broken. Do you remember when Jesus died and was buried in the tomb? It was the women that went to the tomb to anoint Him.

3. Hope

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV

God is the author of hope. His hope is our anchor. Our hope is not in ourselves, but in God! How can we go wrong when we place our hope in the hands of the Maker of Creation? He knows all things, can do all things, and will bring life to the dead! God will use that hope to spill on over to those we meet. Your hope in the middle of this crazy world is what will draw people to you like a magnet. The entire creation, even the Earth is groaning for HOPE!

4. Children

Do you remember when God decided to enter his creation as a man? He chose a woman to give Him birth. The Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary and she became pregnant. God chose a woman to carry Him, to hold Him, to love him when he was a baby. He knew that a woman’s touch would help him grow and thrive. As women we have the ability to bear children. We also find ourselves caring for other people’s children. Heck, we usually adopt the whole neighborhood!

5. Peace

Have you noticed how women are peacemakers? Give a woman a few kids fighting and she will instinctively jump right in the middle of it and break it up. God made us that way. We crave peace. So do those around us. God gave us peace that surpasses all understanding, and we carry to those who we touch

6. Joy

God had given us joy unspeakable. Joy that bubbles up like rivers of living water from the depths of our being. There are times we laugh out loud at the smallest thing. That is the Joy of the Lord spilling over. Joy is contagious. Have you ever laughed uncontrollably and all of a sudden so is everyone else? That is what our God does. He delights in you my Princess. You are the apple of His eye and he adores you!

7. Ministries

God has a place for women in his Body the Church. Without women, it would be pretty dry out there! We are the water for a dry and weary land. We are the light bearers who go rescue those who are lost in the darkness. We are the hands of God to a lost and dying world.

8. New life

“Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer,
And He who formed you from the womb:
“I am the Lord, who makes all things,
Who stretches out the heavens all alone,
Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself;” – Isaiah 44:24 NKJV

God will use us to bring life to dead things. Have you noticed how a woman can take a run down old house and make it a home? We are resourceful. We use what we have. We are creative. God made us that way. We bring life to the dead, just like Jesus.

9. Faith

 “So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”” – Matthew 21:21-22 NKJV

The faith we carry to those around us will open up the doors of Heaven over them. Our faith is contagious in a good way. When we bring God into the situation, we bring health, healing, hope, love, forgiveness, and new life!

10. Healing

“In that region there was an estate of the leading citizen of the island, whose name was Publius, who received us and entertained us courteously for three days. And it happened that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and dysentery. Paul went in to him and prayed, and he laid his hands on him and healed him. So when this was done, the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came and were healed. They also honored us in many ways; and when we departed, they provided such things as were necessary.” – Act 28:7-10 NKJV.

As women of God there is healing in our hands. We carry in us this hope of Glory, Christ in us. Christ can touch people and heal them when we simply reach out and touch someone. God will do the healing. We can just lay hands on them and they shall recover, God promised!

11. Prayer

“ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” – Philippians 4:6 NKJV

“Confess your trespasses[ to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” -James 5:16 NKJV

Our prayers move mountains. When we stumble and fall, there is a sister to pick us up. We carry each other’s burdens. We pray for one another. God answers our prayers.

12. Power

“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.  Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” 2 Corinthians 1:20-22 NKJV

God fills us with His power with the Holy Spirit. We have received a deposit. A precious deposit that guarantees our inheritance. It marks us as His.

“In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.

 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.” – Ephesians 1;11-13 NKJV

To summarize, the fruit is already in you. God put it there.

You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. These things I command you, that you love one another.” John 15:16-17 NKJV

You were give the power with Jesus to birth 12 new things into this world:

Forgiveness, Love, Hope, Children, Peace, Joy, Ministries, New Life, Faith, Healing, Prayer, and Power.

Now go on out there and share the love, and share the fruit, in Jesus Name!

faith, God, Hope, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality

Climb that Mountain!

You remember that old song? Climb every mountain? Want to know why? God is waiting to meet you at the top of that mountain! Remember Moses? He had to climb that mountain more than once. But God met him there and he received the Word. 

Exodus 24:12-18 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and commandments which I have written, that you may teach them.” So Moses arose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. Indeed, Aaron and Hur are with you. If any man has a difficulty, let him go to them.” Then Moses went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain. Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. The sight of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. So Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights. 

What about Peter and James and John? They had to climb that mountain to. Jesus walked them up the mountain.  Guess who was there waiting? God and Elijah and Moses! 

Mark 9:2-10 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”— because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!” Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus with themselves. Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant. 

Don’t give up my friends. Whether it is the mountain of debt, the mountain of discouragement, or the mountain of sickness – God and His Saints are waiting to meet you there and conquer! We are more than conquerors with Christ. Jesus walks with us to the top of that mountain. Get up and get going! You have a Divine Appointment coming your way!

The best news yet! You won’t only climb that mountain – God will use your faith to MOVE IT!

Matthew 17:1-9, 20-21 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.” When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.”

 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” 

faith, God, Hope, Prayer, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality

Prayer When You Are Tired

Dear Lord,

You know I am tired. This world is so draining. Sometimes it seems like I am just a rat running circles in a cage. These endless bills and living paycheck to paycheck just sucks. Enlarge my vision Lord. Help me to see what purpose I fulfill here on planet Earth. Show me your glory. I am so hungry for a fresh revelation of You. Make your home in my heart Lord.

You said all who are weary could come to You and You would give us rest. Here I am Lord, fill me with fresh hope and joy. I need You. Only your presence gives me hope to carry on in this world of monotony.  Show me your glory Lord.

Be the glory in my Life Lord – you promised. 

Hope, Spirituality, Uncategorized, Women

Hard Times Reveal True Friends – Quotes to Live By

Hard times reveal true friends. I had a hard day today. I think it was just all the stress of everyday life piling up on me.  But I had friends at work who helped me see beyond today. Friends who showed me kindness when I lost it. Friends who gave me hugs and prayed for me in my time of need.  Thank you Lord – for good friends!

 

“Friendship … is born at the moment when one man says to another “What! You too? I thought that no one but myself . . .” ― C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves

“Don’t walk in front of me… I may not follow
Don’t walk behind me… I may not lead
Walk beside me… just be my friend” ― Albert Camus

“When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives mean the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares.” ― Henri J.M. Nouwen, Out of Solitude: Three Meditations on the Christian Life

“A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.” ― Elbert Hubbard

“If I had a flower for every time I thought of you…I could walk through my garden forever.” ― Alfred Tennyson

“I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.” ― Helen Keller

 

“Why did you do all this for me?’ he asked. ‘I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.’ ‘You have been my friend,’ replied Charlotte. ‘That in itself is a tremendous thing.”
― E.B. White, Charlotte’s Web

 

“I think if I’ve learned anything about friendship, it’s to hang in, stay connected, fight for them, and let them fight for you. Don’t walk away, don’t be distracted, don’t be too busy or tired, don’t take them for granted. Friends are part of the glue that holds life and faith together. Powerful stuff.” ― Jon Katz

 

(All images from Pinterest)

God, Hope, Quotes, Spirituality

Monday Motivational Quotes

12 Motivational Quotes to Inspire You

  1. Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. —Charles Swindoll

  2. Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. –Robert Frost

  3. I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions. –Stephen Covey

  4. All progress takes place outside the comfort zone. –Michael John Bobak

  5. If you’re going through hell, keep going.– Winston Churchill

  6. You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.– Margaret Thatcher

  7. Nothing is impossible, the word itself says “I’m possible”! —Audrey Hepburn

  8. To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. –Anonymous

  9. Life isn’t about getting and having, it’s about giving and being. –Kevin Kruse

  10. To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart. –Eleanor Roosevelt

  11. I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work. –Thomas A. Edison

  12. What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.– Oscar Wilde

 

You are more than you think. Have you ever taken a pebble and thrown it in the water? Your life leaves ripples. Be easy on yourself this week. Enjoy the good, forget the bad and trust God to lead and guide you to more adventures. He loves it when we expect good things from Him!

God’s Word for You:

For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord will give grace and glory;
No good thing will He withhold
From those who walk uprightly. – Psalm 84:11 NKJV

 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning – James 1:17 NKJV

My Prayer for You:

Dear Lord,

Help us see the good in things and people this week. Let us soften our hearts and see the need around us in our brothers and sisters.  Give us the means to bless them abundantly. We trust you to guide us into good things and direct us to reach the Promised Land you promised us. Let us not walk around mindlessly for 40 years. Direct our steps as we turn our hearts to you. In you we trust Lord. in Jesus Name.

 

 

 

behavior, faith, God, Healing, Hope, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality

5 Ways Your Attitude Fuels Your Journey

As a man thinks, so he becomes. Have you ever heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy?  For example, someone way back when tells you a loser. You believe it. (even though it is not true). You start to act like a loser. You set yourself up for failure time and time again. The minute that things start to go well, you throw the other shoe first and quit. Just because you “know what will happen”.  I find I have lived much of my life upon the thoughts and beliefs of what other people have told me – even though it isn’t true! Growing for me means confronting these lies, replacing it with the Truth of God, and taking back my life.

 

Do you ever think about what you are thinking about?

What if our attitude was the fuel for our journey?

Is your tank full or are you running on empty?

 

 

5 Ways to Fuel Your Attitude

1.  Own it

Owning my attitude has helped me heal. It is empowering. All of a sudden my  focus has shifted. When you own your attitude you own your life. People can be jerks, bit that is their choice, not mine. I can choose my attitude despite what they do or don’t do.  There is freedom in not having to please people. Just be yourself, I like that.

I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. – Isaiah 41:9b-10 NKJV

 

2. Open it

Renewing my mind with the Word has helped me think better. I get to choose what I want to put in there. If I have a poor self image I need to open my mind to the idea that whatever I am thinking may not be true. Just because I thought it was true doesn’t mean that it is. There are people that have tried to put false words over my life. For a time I believed them. Today I know they were lies that I have believed. Just because someone said it does not make it true either.

 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. – Romans 12:2 NIV

3. Change it

Admitting that I may need to change my thoughts on some things has helped me grow. It’s ok to make a new choice and change my mind. If I am reading the Word and drinking the fresh Living Word, then I should change my mind about some things!

 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,  casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,  and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. – 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 NKJV

4. Grow it

Giving myself room to grow and make mistakes along this journey has helped me become new.  With this space comes the ability to reassess and reevaluate my choices. It’s ok if things didn’t work out. That just tells me it’s time for a new choice!

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye. – Psalm 32:8 NKJV

 

5. Enjoy it

Not having to know all the answers helps me enjoy my life. I trust my God to lead me, comfort me, and direct my steps. Making the choice to trust God is a daily thing with me. That’s ok. That’s where I am at today. God is faithful. Everytime I turn to Him He answers. Yes, my attitude can fuel my life. Today I am learning to rest in God’s plans for my life and not my own. I don’t need to know all the answers ahead of time. I know Him who has the answers! Life can be such an adventure!

Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. 1Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. – 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NKJV

God, Hope, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality

Loving Others Extravagantly in 2016

My goal for 2016 is to open my heart more. To love others extravagantly and without measure. To give grace abundantly and to open my life to my fellow brothers and sisters. 

2 Corinthians 6:12-13 We are not withholding our affection from you, but you are withholding yours from us. As a fair exchange—I speak as to my children—open wide your hearts also. 

It troubles me that we are not bound together in our everyday lives. We come together on Sunday and praise the Lord yet on Monday or Tues we don’t even talk. The body is hurting. And we are not even talking about it. It’s time to get real – and share our struggles. I’m not talking about a church function where we all out on our ‘religious faces.’ It’s the ordinary, everyday lives that we should share with each other. Let it begin with me Lord. 

When did fellowship become an event?

When did a meal together become an event?

What happen to just sharing our lives? 

I pray for humility this year. To stop the religious ‘busy-ness’ of events and just ‘be’ with other believers. To be spontaneous and have fun together. To be the family that laughs together and cries together and prays together. 

  

Philippians 2:1-4 Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. 

Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 


Let me put others needs above my own this year Lord. Open my eyes to see where I can help my brothers or sisters. Let me see and fill their needs – whether it is time, money, food, prayers, or just sitting down long enough to listen – use me Lord to build up the Body of Christ, in Jesus Name.

  

2 Corinthians 5:17-21 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 

  

Hope, Music, Spirituality, Videos

Stand Up and Don’t Give Up Yet

Sometimes there are short seasons of getting ‘pounded on”. Has that ever happened to you? This past week has been a challenge for me. And for me the biggest thing I have learned is to keep my mouth shut!  I did not want to argue with the enemy. I knew it was an attack. So I shut up and did NOT talk about how I felt. Sometimes feelings aren’t always truthful. I have found when I follow my feelings around I get slammed sometimes.  Feelings don’t rule – God does. So in the middle of my mess I found short verses to speak. And then shut up!

Let me show you what I mean. In each of these circumstances this past week I had to exercise my faith. I’ll be truthful, I was NOT happy about it. I was mad. I couldn’t believe that all of this stuff was happening at once.

  • I interviewed for a job last week. It took about a week longer to get through all the hoops at HR. They didn’t like the letters or awards I had submitted so I had to redo everything. It was rather frustrating. I had to ask for new letters from some of the people I know. Yet, it was worth it – I got hired. I haven’t worked at the School District for about 8 years. God provides!
  • Then the very next day, my daughter was in a car accident. She is fine, but my car got crunched. It is at the shop now. It’s not road worthy yet. She got hit right by the gas tank on the passenger rear side. Thank you Lord, that the car did not burst into flames. Again – God protects!
  • I woke up with a terrible wrench in my neck last Friday (the day of the accident), and was unable to hold my head up straight. Because I am stubborn, I didn’t go to the Dr until Sunday afternoon. They gave me some muscle relaxers and today I am finally able to sit at the computer and type. Again – God heals!

I am not sure how things will work out with this car. We have about 3 weeks to get something up and running so I can go to work and get my kids to school every day. And my car insurance people are dragging their feet. So once again, I get to stand up and not give up – God is not finished with me yet!  And now I know why God asks me to be joyful during this season of testing – because that is NOT my natural response!!!

Thank you for your prayers my friends 😉   Diana

Trials and Temptations

 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,  whenever you face trials of many kinds,  because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

 Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower.  For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business

 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him. (James 1:2-123 NIV)

This song made me smile today!

IF YOU’RE GOING THROUGH HELL – by Rodney Atkins

Well you know those times
When you feel like there’s a sign there on your back
Say’s I don’t mind if ya kick me
Seems like everybody has
Things go from bad to worse
You’d think they can’t get worse than that
And then they do

You step off the straight and narrow
And you don’t know where you are
Use the needle of your compass
To sew up your broken heart
Ask directions from a genie
In a bottle of Jim Beam
And she lies to You
That’s when you learn the truth

If you’re going through hell
Keep on going, Don’t slow down
If you’re scared, don’t show it
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you’re there

Well I been deep down in that darkness
I been down to my last match
Felt a hundred different demons
Breathing fire in my back
And I knew that if I stumbled
I’d fall right into the trap that they were laying, Yeah

But the good news
Is there’s angels everywhere out on the street
Holding out a hand to pull you back upon your feet
The one’s that you been dragging for so long
You’re on your knees
You might as well be praying
Guess what I’m saying
If you’re going through hell
Keep on going, Don’t slow down
If you’re scared, don’t show it
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you’re there

Yeah, If you’re going through hell
Keep on moving, Face that fire
Walk right through it
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you’re there

If you’re going through hell
Keep on going, Don’t slow down
If you’re scared, don’t show it
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you’re there

Yeah, If you’re going through hell
Keep on moving, Face that fire
Walk right through it
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you’re there
Yeah you might get out
Before the devil even knows you’re there
Yeah.

Read more: Rascal Flatts – If You’re Going Through Hell Lyrics | MetroLyrics

Kingdom Authority, Spirituality

We Are Key People

The following are my notes from a wonderful class my husband and I took to learn about the Kingdom of God.

 

We are KEY PEOPLE. The Lord has anointed us to open key places in your city, country, and time. See yourself as the key to open the doors in your area.  We bring breakthroughs! We open doors, we enter in and we overcome the darkness with the Light of God. We are key to what God is doing here and now in this region.

 

How to See Yourself as a Key Person:

  1. We are the key to what God is doing here. We are a key to a slot in this society to unlock territory and breakthrough.

  2. Only the righteous can open the door. We have been declared righteous by what Jesus did for us, not by our works. We are a key because Christ is in us. It is he who does the work.

  3. We are the solution to war the darkness in our area.

  4. If you don’t see yourself as a key person, then others won’t see Christ in you. The Kingdom of God is within you. The Kingdom of God is here, now.

  5. We work together in a team to push a cause – the cause of Christ.

  6. This cause is bigger than the giants in your land. The Cross of Christ is bigger than the obstacles.

  7. Push the Gospel Message through your ‘house’ to change people. God changes the hearts of people when they get a vision of being a Kingdom Person. That’s how we change the World.

  8. The Lord will anoint you with His Spirit and His Power to do His work. It’s not about us or our agendas. The Lord will lead you and the Holy Spirit will teach you on your journey.

  9. God will send the rain and the blessings because of the Presence of Jesus in us, not because of what we do or don’t do.

  10. This Spiritual Rain makes things grow. God has a purpose and a plan.

  11. Relationships create life. Jesus wants relationship, not religion. It’s the LIFE in the plant that produces the structure. The structure does not produce LIFE. The more Godly relationships we have – the more LIFE. Connect to LIFE. We are all Key People in the Kingdom of God.

  12. We are safe people and we create safe places. When you know who you are you can bless people. When we work together in faith ALL of God’s people are key components.

  13. Our faith and our relationships will grow. Just as a baby born with a baby skeleton grows over time, we will adapt and change to facilitate growth.

  14. We will all bear fruit. We all have something to say. Don’t disqualify yourself! God has already qualified you for the work He has for you. God has make you for such a time as this. You are a Key Person to unlock destinies and overcome the darkness in the world around you.

  15. Let go of old concepts and embrace the new ones that God shows you. We are dynamite. and we receive power from on High to be His Witnesses. He will accomplish amazing things through us.

 

(Image Sources – Pinterest)

 

Healing, Quotes, Spirituality

This is Your Opportunity

Opportunities come in strange packages sometimes. You know, you are expecting a pretty package, wrapped perfectly, with that pretty bow on top. And you receive a box, wrapped in an old brown grocery bag, beat up on the corners, that shakes when you rattle it. Yep. Not what we expect at all right?

Yet with every obstacle comes an opportunity to grow, an opportunity to change. And perhaps things will be better.  No one likes a stagnant pool of water right? It’s all green and stinky.  The water has to MOVE to be fresh.  And so do we.

What would you do if things did NOT stay the same?

How do you respond to change?

Do you welcome it or run from it?

 

12 QUOTES ON OPPORTUNITIES

  1. “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”― Winston S. Churchill
  2. “With each opportunity before me, God presented me with a choice. I could accept His offerings, His wisdom, His grace. Or I could choose to hold onto the pain, the anger and the resentment a little longer.” ― Sharon E. Rainey, Making a Pearl from the Grit of Life
  3. ” Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” ―Galatians 6:10 NIV
  4. “The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word ‘crisis.’ One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger–but recognize the opportunity.” ― John F. Kennedy
  5. “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.”― Colossians 4:5 NIV
  6. “Strength comes from struggle. When you learn to see your struggles as opportunities to become stronger, better, wiser, then your thinking shifts from “I can’t do this” to “I must do this.” ― Toni Sorenson
  7. “Our most significant opportunities will be found in times of greatest difficulty.”― Thomas S. Monson, Pathways To Perfection: Discourses Of Thomas S. Monson
  8. “For a wide door of opportunity for effectual [service] has opened to me [there, a great and promising one], and [there are] many adversaries.”―1 Corinthains 18:9 AMP
  9. “How would your life be different if…You didn’t allow yourself to be defined by your past? Let today be the day…You stop letting your history interfere with your destiny and awaken to the opportunity to release your greatest self.” ― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free
  10. “I will prepare and some day my chance will come.” ― Abraham Lincoln
  11. “We often miss opportunity because it’s dressed in overalls and looks like work”― Thomas A. Edison
  12. “It still holds true that man is most uniquely human when he turns obstacles into opportunities.” ― Eric Hoffer
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Healing, Spirituality, Uncategorized

You Can’t Drown a Rubber Duck

You can’t drown a rubber duck. Really. This post may be a bit out of the ‘norm’ for me. But it’s true.  Today is D-Day. Foreclosure day.  We have to go to court and sign the papers as the bank is taking back the house we thought was ours.  Life happens. Yep.  Not what we had planned – but we will walk through it together.

I lost my job after a leg injury. Went back to PT twice this past year. And the ex stopped paying his Child Support the same week we signed papers for the house. Guess he got jealous. Oh well.  And the other ex put a lien on the property with the back child support due.  Guess you can pay for 7 years and still have a debt that doesn’t go away overnight. Big surprise.

We have been paying our debts – yet here we sit. We have been following God and seeking His face – yet here we sit.  We are believing God for good things – yet here we sit. Can I tell you life is not always rosy when you are a believer? Things still happen – planned and unplanned.  Yet, God is still good and I know He will make something good come out of this.

It’s funny how people respond when you are going through a trial to test your faith.  You either get the “Ohhhh – no wonder you are so stressed.” or the “You need to get right with God.” as they point their fingers and raise their eyebrows. Funny how some people like to kick you when you are down. And funny how some people judge your walk by how much money you make or how much you tithe.

But then there was one. One man who told the truth and came into our trial.  “I went through a foreclosure too.” He said. “And I made it. My kids made it. And things are better today. God is with you and you will make it.” I can’t say who, but thank you my brother – for sharing your journey with us. It means more than you will ever know.  You give me HOPE. You build my faith when you share how God has restored you and your family.

Today I choose to believe in faith – despite what I see, despite what I hear today.  It WILL work out for our good – God promised.

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. (Romans 8:26-28 MSG)

 

So, what’s the duck you ask?  Well at Quaker State  & Lube they have this drink I got one time that is called DUCK, DUCK, GOOSE.  It is a blue vodka thing that comes with one of those rubber ducks in it.  And the duck floats on top of the drink.

It reminds me of that carnival game we all played at the fair with all the ducks floating in a row.  You can dunk them, push them down, but YOU CAN’T DROWN THAT RUBBER DUCK! It always pops right back up! We will get up – you can’t drown this hope – we will pop right back up!

And then I ran across this story that made me smile.

WHAT 28,OOO RUBBER DUCKS LOST AT SEA CAN TEACH US ABOUT FREEDOM

“In 1992 a shipping container filled with rubber ducks was lost at sea. Over 28,000 rubber duckies fell overboard on their way from Japan to the United States. Imagine thousands of rubber ducks floating on the ocean. Many of them have since washed up on the shores of Hawaii, Alaska, South America, Australia and the Pacific Northwest. Others have been found frozen in Arctic ice and made their way to Newfoundland and Scotland. How wonderful to find a rubber duck on shore one day!”

Source: http://vividlife.me/

 

I pray that you and I float  just like theses rubber ducks today – and find new and exciting places to go because YOU CAN’T DROWN A RUBBER DUCK!

 RELATED POSTS

I looked up some other Christians who have gone through Foreclosure.  Thank you Lord, for witnesses who are not afraid to share their struggles. God bless each of them abundantly!

Foreclosure Futility – A Family’s Journey with God

Peace in the Face of Foreclosure

How Can I Trust God When I’m Facing Unemployment, Foreclosure, or Bankrupcy? 

How to Trust God When Going Through Difficult Times

Never Surrender to the Enemy

 

(Image Credits: http://vividlife.me, birthdayinabox.com, pinterest.com)