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And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7

An error message  appeared on my Blogger account one day that said "service unavailable" when trying to post something to Facebook. It was very frustrating to have glitches in trying to get my writing done. Occasionally things happen that cause stuff to be out of order and it can cause frustration or panic. It is how we handle ourselves during this time that matters. In the big scheme of things it is fairly small even though it is maddening.

Getting mad, throwing things, and having a tantrum won't change things so you may just as well seek peace in the midst of this down time. Go one to something else. Get your mind off your trouble. Stuff breaks, friends disappoint, people hurt you, promotions don't come, bills pile up and all sorts of other things. In times when things aren't as they should be trust in God for His peace to see you through.

PRAYER: This is the day you have made and no matter what comes my way Lord help me react in a kind positive way. In Jesus' name. Amen.
       

GOD, WHEN?

What are you waiting for in life? You pray, you wait. Nothing seems to happen. You cry out "God just when will you get me out of this mess?" Sometimes in life God wants us to grow to be more like Him and that often requires patience while we wait. Maybe you feel you just can not hold on any longer. It could be a situation you are waiting for in your life or a breakthrough in the life of a loved one. Regardless how you feel God has not abandoned you.

James 5:7(NIV) is similar to the topic I wrote about yesterday. It says 'Be patient then brothers and sisters until the Lord's coming.See how the farmer waits for the land to yield it's valuable crop patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains.'

Can you trust God has a plan and sit back and keep praying and relax? His timetable is not the same as ours.

Isaiah 55:8(KJV) says 'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.' Keep going to God in pray and in the meantime do not forget to praise Him for who He is and thank Him for the answers to prayer as well.

PRAYER: Dear Lord I ask for you to help me as I wait on you and wait on answers to prayers. I know you are doing a perfect work and I need to trust you and not be afraid. In Jesus' name. Amen.

WHAT'S YOUR STRUGGLE?

 Everyone has experienced some sort of struggle in their life if theyhave lived long enough. When you are in the midst of them they are notfun at all. Have you ever thought of your struggle as a proving groundor training ground? For just a moment think back and I am sure youcan recall going "through" something and it turned out after it was all said and done that the trial made you stronger.

When a person works out a the gym lifting weights at first it is verydifficult and you may want to quit, but you hang in there and yourefforts pay off. Have you ever heard anyone say "nothing good comes easy"? It is true. You have to work hard to achieve earthly success.

Things in life seem to happen. Maybe a bankruptcy, car wreck, failed business, furloughed from work, unexpected illness. Whatever be the situation God is still there. Sometimes he does His best work in hard times. There are many cases in the Bible to prove just that.

1 Peter 4:12-13(NIV) says 'Do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.

Sometimes God has to take you "through" something to get you "to something".Not sure who originally said that but if you think about it is so very accurate.what are you "going through" today? Perhaps look at it as a training ground for maki you more into Christ image?

PRAYER: This is the day you have made Lord and regardless of my circumstances I choose to rejoice for I know you have a wonderful outcome waiting for me and my loved ones. I know Satan is the author of discouragement and he is the one who tries to get us to blame you. Father forgive me if ever I have blamed you. I choose to keep my eyes n the cross. In Jesus' name. Amen.


Click link for an awesome song of worship:

http://youtu.be/sBWHBrKqMdE

FALL AND GET BACK UP AGAIN

When you fall you do not just lie there on the ground and wait for
someone to come along and scoop you up but you attempt to get up on
your own and charge on in life. When trouble comes and you possibly
get knocked down or thrown off course you do not sit there and pity
yourself but you keep on going. When you run a race and people pass
you do not stop running but you keep going looking towards the finish
line. When hardship comes you do not cave into it and stop trying but
you have to keep on. Giving up is not an option.

Storms of life and set backs can in fact make you stronger. But if you
let fear defeat you of course you will give up.God is a God of trying
again and of looking ahead to what is in store. He mends the broken
hearted, give strength to the weary, makes the feeble strong. He is
the God of possibilities. Not just for those under 40 but the God who
cares about all people of all ages and nationalities.

Has something in life made you feel worthless or like quitting? Those
feelings of defeat come from Satan ,not God. God gives feelings of
hope and encourages us.

We are in a training ground of sorts here on planet Earth. Those who
name the name of Jesus await their heavenly home some day and this is
preparation for it. Not everything in life that happens will be good
but that does not mean your life is over. James 1:2(NIV) reminds us
'Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face
trials of many kinds'.  Joy, are you kidding me? I am supposed to be
joyful over a job loss, a sickness, an injury, or a host of other
things that happen in life that seem to be automatically placed in the
"bad" category. All I can say is God is there and He uses all things
for His purposes. Verses 3 and 4 of that same chapter in James go on
to say '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.' Praise God in good times
and in bad times. James 5:12 (NIV) says '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.'

No matter what you are going through, and granted some things are much
worse such as the loss of a child or any death for that matter, God is
the God who is there to comfort and see you through. He does not cause
the trials but He can turn scars into stars so to speak. Hang on
because God can lift you up!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus I thank you for hope. I thank you for a new day. I
thank you for your love for me. I thank you for another day to sing
your praises. When I am tempted to give up help me to keep running my
race to win. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Click on link below for a powerful song of praise.
http://youtu.be/7bQMDvx3db0