4GIVEN

The possible causes of anxiety, worry, and fear are many: conflict, health problems, dangerous situations, death, unmet needs, spiritual problems, false beliefs, etc. However, the apostle Paul found his strength in God despite his weakness and challenges! He said in 2 Corinthians 11:23-12:10, “I have been in prison frequently, been flogged severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. …Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn? If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. …I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. …[God] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Christian Counselor Dr. Gary R. Collins said, “According to the Bible, there is nothing wrong with realistically acknowledging and trying to deal with the identifiable problems of life. To ignore danger is fooling and wrong. But it is also wrong, as well as unhealthy, to be immobilized by excessive worry. Such worry must be committed to prayer to God, who can release us from paralyzing fear, [worry], or anxiety, and free us to deal realistically with the needs and welfare both of others and of ourselves.”

Lord God, please help me today. Give me strength when I am weak, lend me your ear and shoulder when I need to cry behind the veil, and help me up when I fall or fail. Father, I know your test are meant to build me up and not to destroy me and for that I thank you equally for my blessings and for your testing. I am learning that patience is not based on my ability to wait but, how I act while I wait. Thank You Lord and I know all things work together for those who love you and are called according to your purpose. In Jesus’ name, amen and amen!

God chooses simple people to do incredible things. Therefore, we should never look at a person base on what ‘we see’—his/her background, education, culture, job or status in the community as a factor for election. Jesus called ordinary people to follow Him. He didn’t choose religious leaders—He chose fishermen (Matt 4:18-22). He didn’t choose rich or widely successful people—He chose a tax collector. He didn’t choose people from the upper classes rather, He chose a Zealot and an embezzler. He does NOT choose people we would expect to change the world—He chooses people like you and me. This is who Jesus chooses when He goes looking for disciples to follow Him. We need to make sure not to miss these people when we go looking. God sees them as special and peculiar (Deut 14:2) and He is willing to use them to change our world and to build His kingdom!

#ChosenByGod

In 2 Timothy 2 Paul encouraged young Timothy to be strong in grace and to endure hardships like a faithful soldier of Christ. Furthermore, in V 11, he explained that we endure worldly hardship for the sake of the elect and he recited a ‘faithful saying’ we should all commit to memory; “If we die with Him, we shall also live with Him! If we endure with Him, we shall also reign with Him! If we deny Him, He also will deny us! And here’s the kicker; if we are faithless, He remains faithful as He can not deny Himself!” Endure in the Greek is made up of two words hupo and menó ( hoop-om-en’-o). Translating it from right to left it means to remain under authority. Wow, that tells me every hardship we endure is subordinate to God’s authority. Therefore, we shouldn’t run from hardships rather, we should bravely and calmly persevere through misfortunes and trials because of we endure to the end, we will be delivered (Matt 10:12,Mark 13:13). THANK YOU JESUS!!!

In order to walk in the spirit of love you must also walk in the spirit of humility. You can’t do one effectively without the other. So choose to walk in both and watch the world around change for the better! Ephesians 5:2 says, “Walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” Love and humility will always look for ways to serve others, no matter the cost.

Life can become severely complicated and dreams can break into pieces right within our own hands. Therefore, whenever circumstances become too heavy to handle remember that you are not defined by bad choices, challenges don’t come to stay, God is able, God is with you, and your story ends in victory! Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world we will face problems but, be of good cheer, He overcame the world.” Paul reminds us in Romans 8:37 that, “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Fact is, God causes everything in our life to work together! He omnisciently takes the bad and good and he creates something beautiful in us; a masterpiece! So, don’t beat yourself up nor be discouraged. Allow God to do the heavy lifting as you take each day one step at a time!

The road we’ve traveled hasn’t been easy but, we are still here! The only reason we haven’t lost our minds is because God has been walking this road with us, every step of the way. And for that, I am extremely grateful! Thank you Jesus for your indispensable peace, unyielding grace/mercy, irrevocable promises, and for keeping us even when we couldn’t keep ourselves! To you O’God be power, glory, and dominion both now and for eternity!!

If God is making you wait, there’s a reason. More than likely, He wants to protect you from getting your heartbroken. God uses these waiting periods to increase your trust in him and loosen your perceived control. Waiting reminds us we’re at the mercy (literally) of God’s timing, and we have no power to change that. As humans, we crave control, yet waiting pulls that from our grasp. I get it, waiting on God is like being strapped in a seat belt. Leaving us no other choice; we have to be patient. We can either ungratefully fight/resist it or contentedly embrace it. Patience says we will faithfully and solely trust in God alone!! Psalm 27:4 reminds us to, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let our hearts take courage; wait for the Lord!” At the end of the day, God knows what we need, and if he wants us to wait, it’s always for his glory and our good. Our calling is simply to walk in faithfulness, humility, and patience!

The byproduct of obedient faith produces open doors. In fact, God is the only one that can open a door that no man, no hater, and no devil can shut! In Revelation 3:8 Jesus said, “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.” Therefore, be steadfast in your obedient faith, live out loud for Jesus, and continue moving forward on purpose!