4GIVEN

The cure for Fair-Weather Syndrome (“FWS”) is found in the beatitude expressed in Proverbs 17:17; “Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.” Adversity and trouble come-to-pass, but love was designed to last forever! Think about it 🧐!

Gratitude is an important Biblical principle. We see this when Jesus was approached by 10 lepers. After they cried out for mercy, He commanded them to “go and show themselves to the priests.” Before they departed, nothing had happened. But “as they were going, they were cleansed. Luke 17:17-18, “Jesus answered and said, ‘Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?’” Out of 10 stood 1 and that 1 Samaritan leper returned to Jesus, He glorified God “with a loud voice.” Then “he fell on his face” at Jesus’ feet, “giving thanks to Him.” Look-a-here, God doesn’t have to give me, heal me, nor bless me for me to show Him gratitude. I wanna glorify and magnify Him simply because of who He is!! When was the last time you just truly thanked God for being the Lord of your life??

Pray with me:

Father, forgive us all for taking you for granted and for not being grateful for things you have done, things that are still undone, and the things that are yet to come! In Jesus name, amen!

In order to live God’s best, we must be comfortable with God’s discipline. God’s discipline curtails destruction, requires both word and action, expresses His love for us, teaches us obedience, Short-term pain and long-term gain. The Message Bible paraphrase of Hebrews 12:4-11 helps to discern these five distinct characteristics of God’s discipline through transparent lens. The Author wrote, “In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed! So, don’t feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children? My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either. It’s the child he loves that he disciplines; the child he embraces, he also corrects. God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.” Perspective is everything and God’s discipline is an expression of God’s love and through it we are empowered and equipped to live God’s best.

Jesus is not a way, He is the only way to make things right with God. Therefore, if you haven’t already done so; surrender your life over to the One that gave up His life to save you and me from eternal separation (Hell) from God!! Romans 8:30 reminds us that we were all personally chosen (handpicked) by God. He knew us before conception. So what are you waiting for? This is your clarion call,answer it today and don’t send it to voicemail! Time is precious and non-prejudicial….it waits on no man!

We all fall short of God’s glory (Rom 3:23) and incessantly sin tries to keep us bound to it’s gripping satanic claws. However, we rise tall and boldly in God’s presence not because of who we are but because of what Christ did on the cross 2,000+ years ago (Rom 5:8)!! God will never deny Himself and all of His promises are ‘yes’ and ‘amen’ (2 Cor 1:20)!! Obviously, we are undeserving recipients of the grace that God unconditionally, impartially, and relentlessly pours out into our lives and I don’t know about you but this is ‘reason’ enough for me to give Him the honor, respect, praise, worship, and glory that He rightfully and unequivocally deserves! Rejoice with me today because we are God’s beloved children and remember what Paul said in Galatians 2:20, “[We] have been crucified with Christ and [we] no longer live, but Christ lives in [us]. The life [we]now live in the body, [we] live by faith in the Son of God, who loved [us] and gave himself for [us]!”

QOTD: To what end are we to “be still,” “let go,” “surrender,” and even to “die to ourselves”? We must surrender our will and our mouths in order to know that God is in control as ‘Ribbono Shel Olam’ – the Master of the Universe. We “let go” in order to objectively know the saving power of God in our lives. We give up trusting in ourselves and our own designs in order to experience the glory of God’s all-sufficiency. Did you notice I included surrendering our mouths. We may surrender our mind, will, and emotion but way too often when calamity and unexpectedness interrupts our lives we have the tendency to excessively talk to ourselves and with others about the circumstances wreaking havoc in our world. Now don’t get me wrong,self-deliberation and talking to others can be therapeutic however, praying and then listening to God is far more rewarding. The Message paraphrase of Exodus 14:14 put it this way, “GOD will fight the battle for you. And you? You keep your mouths shut!” Now, let’s be honest and true to ourselves; this is some sound advice to embrace!

Internet’s largest independent mental health online resource, Psych Central reported that medical studies have demonstrated some hereditary links to anxiety. I believe there’s an “anxiety gene” in our maternal family line that makes us more predisposed toward anxiety and worry. With that said, there are many ways of battling anxiety disorders and some of them are very useful. I have read/skimmed several newspaper articles recently about the fact that exercise can help ward off anxiety during stressful events. Although, we have many strategies to help overcome anxiety issues in our lives, the best therapy/remedy is Biblical therapy. Getting into the Scripture is a powerful treatment program for anxiety/worry, because so many passages in the Bible deal with this subject. One scripture in particular is found in Philippians 4:6 (MSG) Paul reminded us; “Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.” It is only God’s anointing that breaks the yoke that try’s to keep us in bondage (Isaiah 10:27). The only true lasting remedy is to “turn-it-over to God”! Replace anxiety/worry with praise/worship. This is so important that God put it at the beginning of the Bible in Exodus (17:1-7), in the middle of the Bible in Psalms (95:1-7) , and at the end of the Bible in the book of Hebrews (3:5-4:13). Read these scriptures and sow them into your life today!

When it’s hot 🥵 outside most of us put on less clothing in an effort to beat the heat. However, you should never 🛑leave home without clothing yourself with a few essential garments. Paul knew the best dressed Christian should always operate out of the spirit of love ♥️. Therefore, he said in Colossians 3:13 (MSG), “So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.”

Whatever you may be facing today remember the words spoken by Isaiah in Chp 59 V. 1, “Listen! The LORD’s arm [hand] is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.” If God has not answered your prayers don’t grow weary because at the proper time a harvest of blessings awaits those who don’t give up (Galatians 6:9). Like you and I sometimes do, Moses also doubted God’s power. When God said that he would provide meat for the traveling (and grumbling) Israelites, Moses’ response was nothing short of mocking. In Numbers 11:22 he said, “Would they have enough if all the fish in the sea were caught for them?” To Moses and the Israelites it just didn’t seem credible that in the middle of a desert that God could provide them with a regular and abundant supply of meat when there was no meat to be seen. You got to remember they hadn’t had meat since leaving Egypt and now here’s God promising to give them so much they’ll actually grow sick of it. Yes, It sounds like crazy talk …Ridiculous! But the Lord’s response reminded Moses (and reminds us) of an important fact – with God there are no limits to his power: “Is the Lord’s arm too short?” says the King of creation. (Numbers 11:23). God’s track record is incomparably flawless and one things is certain nothing and no one (not even you) could ever stop God’s power, plan,and promise from manifesting in our lives!

The enemy is a liar! Just because you may experience some struggles in life doesn’t mean you’re failing in life!! James 1:2-4 (MSG) reminds us to, “Consider it a sheer gift when tests and challenges [struggles] come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.” God takes everything crappy thing about lives and He turns them for his glory and our good. Can I get a witness? Y’all know their stories and y’all also know their conclusions were far better than their dilemmas. Coming to the witness stand: Job and his trifling friends, David’s plight and fight, weeping Jeremiah, and 3x denying Peter? Many of us sojourn through struggles that test our faith however; there is no faith worth having that is not tested by fire. As our faith becomes more refined it becomes more precious than gold because it lasts. I Peter 1:7 confirms, “These trials [sufferings] show that your faith is genuine. It has been tested as fire tests and purifies gold-though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise, glory, and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world!”