Facing 2014 with confidence

As 2013 slowly slips away as a full moon beneath a morning cloud, you stand at the threshold of a new day and the beginning of a new year 2014.  You know not what the future holds, you are like a blind man on a dark street feeling your way through.  Yet, although the darkness enfolds you and the path ahead seem endless and scary, you can face it with confidence knowing the following is true:

You are never alone -  God is always with you.  This is a proven fact no matter what is happening in your life at this moment.  He promised in His Words that He will never leave you nor forsake you.  He is the rock that is always there.   He will never leave you comfortless.   Seek His help at all times and He will give you the strength to go through.

There is no need to fear - God never gives you the Spirit of fear, but of sound mind.  Fear paralizes you and leave you helpless.  Fear causes you to make bad decisions, fear brings procrastination and you will never get to your destiny.  God wants to see you prosper, so you need to see your future through His eyes, not what is before you, because he holds your present and your future in the palm of His great Hands.

God wants to see you prosper  -  You may look at yourself and feel in God's eyes you're like a tiny dot, but you are more than a masterpiece in His Hands.  He has a plan for your life and He knows the path you will take to get there.  Always ask for His guidance, His wisdom and the ability to make sound decisons.  He will always open ways when everything around you seem hopeless.

God loves you  - The answer is all around you, the sunshine, the trees, the beauty of the seasons, the wonder of each new born day, each morning you awake and rise, each night you go to sleep.  God gives us free will and is courting you for your love.  He gave His best when he gave His Son and He expects your best in giving Him your heart.  

Knowing that the above is true, you should have no fear facing 2014 and beyond.

STEPPING OUT BY FAITH

 

Have you ever left your comfort zone and stepped out in a world unknown; that behind there's no where to go back to and in front you know not where it leads?  Or would you say that's something that you do each day when you rise not knowing how the day will end?  Well, if you stop for a while and review your life, you will come to understand that each day you've been stepping out by faith without knowing it, but just living it.

When you kiss your spouse goodbye as he embark on a business trip out of town, when you hug your children and tell them you love them and will see them later, do you know if you will ever see them again, no, sometimes you never do, but deep in your heart you hope you will and you also believe they will come home to you at the end of the day.

The famous saying "Faith is a journey, not a destination" is etched on my front door and deliberately so, because that's what it is and you take this journey each day in your different walks of life.  Sometimes the journey gets rough, sometimes there are stones that lines your pathway, sometimes you get tired and

weary and wonder when it will end, sometimes you see others idly pass you by, but  the clock ticks on and you have to believe that your day will come.  Your taste of happiness is not far away.  You cannot give up now, it could be nearer than you think.  You just have to keep stepping out by faith each day and learning from your experiences, get new strength from knowing that you're not alone, hang on to what you believe in and rise above the struggles and pain.  See yourself as a victor and not a victim and one day your faith walk will reap the dividend  of  success.

Are You Standing At The Crossroads Of Your Life



Are you standing at the crossroads of your life.  Do you feel like you are not sure where to turn, whether to continue straight ahead on the same dreary, lonesome and unexciting road you've been travelling or make a faith turn to the left or right?  

Well, we all stand at this crossroad sometime in our lives.   It may be shortly after finishing high school, university, when you have applied everywhere, but still no job, when you've lost a friend who you have spent so much of your life with, when a boyfriend or spouse walk out and you feel violated and sad, when you have been diagnosed with an incurable disease, when you wake up and find you are alone after your soul mate have died, when you have lost a job that provided stability for as long as you can remember, when you lose your dream home to foreclosure and you walk away from the storage you have crammed all your precious  possessions?

How do you decide which way to go?  Do you depend on your friends to steer you in the right direction.  Do you sit and worry about how to deal with the wind of change that has slowly blown in your life and left you spinning in a tail wind, do you get down on your knees and pray or do you wonder if it makes sense to go on in this life?

This crossroad comes in your life for a reason.  Life is not easy, it is challenging from the day you were born until the day you die.  The good thing is that it is not stagnant either, it changes and rearranges.  You turn over new chapters in your life, new dreams are fulfilled, you enter into new seasons, you grow and mature as an individual, you learn from your experiences, you get stronger and wiser, you discover that life is not that bad after all. 

When you get to these crossroads it helps you to discover who you are as an individual.   The totality of your life experiences play into your decision.  You have developed faith in the unknown, because there was someone who you could trust even when you thought no one cared, who you could turn to in the darkest night, you have become a different person because of this - you have proven that nothing is impossible with God as your guide.  You have discovered that the only way to live and survive in life is to put your hope and confidence in a God who holds the future.

Does maturity always comes with age or does age just come along?

What is maturity you may ask yourself?  Is it being a certain age?  Is it the fact that grey hair is visible all over your head?  Is it because you are living on your own?  Is it the degrees after your name? Is it because you are driving a fancy car?  Is it because you have become a parent?  Is it the fact that you take home a big paycheck?  Think again, because none of these come close to being mature.  They are just some of the many things that grown up do.

Maturity, on the other hand involves our state of mind, our ability to make good judgement, to bring a plan to fruition, to be able to make decisions and be accountable for your action, to be deeply aware of your responsibilities to yourself and to the society you live in.  To set a  trail of high standard, honesty, integrity and morality in everything you do.

Many of you might have experienced maturity early in your lives.  You might have gotten there because of the experiences that you gained as you grow older: the lost of a loveone, the heart break from a relationship, the lost of a job, losing your life savings, losing your home, just having your back against the wall.  All these may be painful at times, they may force you to re-think your current pathway.  You have no control about getting old, but maturity is the light that takes you to that next level in your life.  That is when you are ready to live this life to your best potential.

I am what I am today, because of the choices I made yesterday

Life is never void of choices.  Every day you are faced with different choices.  Some may be simple as to whether you want to go for a walk or lie in bed, whether you want to go to work to earn your daily living or stay home and laze the day away.  Some choices may be big, some may be small.  Some choices you have to make immediately, like when you are in a dangerous situation.  Some choices can change your life forever whether for better or for worst, but does the choices you made yesterday influences who you are today?

Yes they do.  The decisions you make in your daily life lies at the heart of who you are as an individual and these daily choices all add up to who you are today.  If you made bad choices, you  have to live with the consequences,  but there are lessons to be learned.  These lesson helps to build character in you and you become mature as an individual.  It is what is called a learning process.  If you do not have a past, you cannot have a future.  Therefore, as you mature you should think carefully before you make choices and ask God for wisdom, knowledge and understanding to make better ones.  None of us is perfect and it is through our choices that we will grow and be able to help and strengthen others.

Are you in an abusive relationship with food?

Are you proud of your food choices today?  Did you give thanks and really made a deliberate attempt to eat something that nourishes your body, that will makes you feel satisfied that your  stomach is happy, your blood will be pumping with more vigor, your whole system is strengthened, you have done the right thing and your body is grateful?

Well, did you know that food is one of life's greatest temptation.  There's such a wide variety of food that our taste bud keep flirting with our brains that it needs to be satisfied and it need it now.  Some of us eat when we have the time and that is a bad way to eat.  We have no time for breakfast, we grab a cup of coffee, a donut and off we go.  We have no time for lunch and then when it comes to dinner time we eat everything in sight, from the fries at a fast food, the pizza around the corner to the ice cream at 10:00 p.m.  Then we pull ourselves to bed with undigested stomachs and the heart burn and the night sweats and our aches for relief and we toss and turn all night, because we have abused the beautiful temple God gave us.

So are you really thankful that God made you and you are special?  That he gave you so many tasty and delicious food around you?  Did you know that a lot of the illnesses that we experience are all there because of our diets?  Are you an emotional eater, do you eat when you are sad, do you eat more when you are upset, when a boyfriend walk out, when you are lonely,  when you feel like life has let you down?  Well, it is not easy, but it takes one step at a time.  You have one body, there's only one you.  You've got to rise from the ash of despair.  Think before you eat, make a deliberate attempt to eat a balance meal, cut down on serving sizes, eat healthy snacks, an apple, a banana, a handful of grapes, a handful of nuts, just everything in moderation.  I am not encouraging you to go on a diet - just a change of life style and whatever you do, move your body.  Get tapes, stand in front of the TV and exercise, take a walk,  make love, dance, have some fun.  Take healthy groceries home, love yourself, love life, pray and ask God to help you to have a meaningful,  long-term  relationship with food.

Who Are We Outside The Church

Like ants on a mole hill we all gather together on Sundays in different churches to worship God.  We are involved in different ways: we are on the choir, we are playing the organ, we teach Sunday School, we are worship leaders, we usher, we serve on Pastor’s Board, we are deacons, we are pastors, we are greeters, we serve in all different capacities.  However, when church is over and we leave God’s house, who are we really, how does society sees us and how do we see ourselves?

Going to church is like wearing a different hat, but does it change who we are?  God’s word is the defining factor.  It says that we should not be conform to this world, but we should be transformed by the renewing of our minds.   So when we meet in God’s house it should be like being immersed in a spiritual shower, the songs that we sing, the words that we read, the prayers and the praise, and the message that is preached all goes together to prepare our hearts while we worship Him for life outside the church. 

If you are in a service industry like the medical field, banking, restaurant attendant, etc.  give of your service in a way that pleases God, give of your best, if you are a wife or a husband be sensitive to the needs of your other half, if you are an entrepreneur run your business with integrity, if you are a writer, write from the heart, if you are a friend, let your friendship be something to cherish.   Ask God to give you a clean heart each day.  Learn the freedom of forgiving, practice the joy of giving; open your hearts to other s with a smile.  Find time to relax and breathe the freshness of the morning air, be thankful and leave a rose petal of love wherever you go.