The Hallway of Transition

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Leah

So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. So the LORD gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their ancestors, and they took possession of it and settled there. – Joshua 3:14-16; 21:43 (NIV)

Do you welcome or dread change? I’m sure we would all agree that whether we like it or not everything around us is constantly changing. Even the earth from where we sit spins at approximately 700 to 900 miles per hour. Due to the constant change, most of our lives are spent in the hallway of transition. It seems that we are always working toward arriving at a certain point in life and then when that moment arrives the next transition phase begins. Change is inevitable; the key factor is how we deal with and respond to change.

In the hall of transition there is a door before and behind us. If we make a decision to digress to our past, true contentment can never be realized. Even the past does not stay the same…the only constant in that equation will be the individual who chooses to stay behind. Nevertheless, in order to close the door to the past and walk forth into the door of the unfamiliar it will take a huge step of faith. At times it may feel like God is calling us to walk on water.

The door that is placed before us, in the hallway of transition, beacons to be opened. The truth of the matter is that we can not take possession of our destiny until we open the door and take that first step forward. It’s impossible for our destiny to move toward us. It’s the forward step of faith that releases our destiny and allows our path to intersect with God’s preordained plan for our future.

Prayer

Lord, I ask You to strengthen my inner man so that as I am in the hallway transition I will always keep my eyes, feet and hands facing forward to take hold and walk through the door that unleashes my destiny.

Posted in Body | Leave a comment

Dispel Anxiety

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Leah

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. – 1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)

Is something in your life causing you to feel anxious? Life seems to be full of uncertainties. Even the things we deem stable has an overshadowing aspect of uncertainty. The only person and thing that we can be absolutely certain of in this life is God and His Word. No attack from the enemy can cause even the slightest shift in God and His Word; He is the one and only firm foundation.

Since everything and everyone on this earth are temporary, they are subject to being shaken. The enemy is not oblivious to this fact so in an attempt to impede us from fulfilling our God given purpose; he shakes the foundation of everything that we hold dear. God allows this to happen, not because He wants to see us discouraged, but because He has prepared previously prepared us to not be threatened by this.

Life is like one gigantic puzzle. Each encounter we have in a day represents only one tiny piece of that puzzle. The problem occurs when we carry around one piece with us; it soon becomes magnified and distorted out of proportion. At that point, it is time to return that piece to fit firmly back in its allotted spot and take a step back to regain focus on the big picture. That thing that made us anxious will take its rightful position. As we readjust our focus solely on Jesus all else will appear dim.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you that You are a firm foundation that can never be moved or shaken. As I return the troubled piece back to the grand scheme of the overall puzzle, my anxiety is sure to be dispelled.

Posted in Mind, Spirit | Leave a comment

The Ultimate Thirst Quencher

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Leah

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” – John 4:13-14 (NIV)

What do you use to quench your thirst? Every human being has a thirst that has been placed inside of them. The thirst goes much deeper than simply choosing a beverage in which to satisfy. We were purposefully given a spiritual thirst that can only be quenched by spiritual means. Also, it was not designed to be a one time fix. Through God’s creative majesty, when we partake of Him, He allows us to feel satisfied but yet longing for more at the same time. It is the only high known to mankind that can have such an impact.

Like the woman at the well in John 4, do you carry your water jar day in and day out longing to find something or someone who will quench your thirst? If you have ever done so, I’m sure you will agree that it becomes very tiresome and discouraging. The most something or someone can do for you is to give you just enough to wet your tongue and yet leaves you feeling more depleted than before. Since it stems from a spiritual thirst, nothing or no one out there can quench it quite like Jesus can. Everything else is like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.

As in the story of the woman at the well, we have the same opportunity to leave our water jar behind and drink freely from the living spring of Jesus himself who wells up on the inside of us. If you are one who has left your jar behind but at some point have gone back to retrieve it, be encouraged. God is a God of second chances. It may help to visually picture leaving it behind. Let it be a reminder that you no longer have a means to be filled by anything or anyone, except by Jesus.

Prayer

Lord, I thank You that You have purposefully placed a thirst inside of me. No matter how much I have longed for something or someone to quench that thirst, I am so grateful there is no possible chance for that to happen. As a result, it has led me to You, the only one who can satisfy.

Posted in Spirit | Leave a comment

Hold Tightly to the Promise

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Leah

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. – Genesis 12:2 (NIV)

Has God given you a promise about something that will take place in your future? At times, God gives His children a sneak preview of how He plans to work through them in the time to come. As in the promise God made to Abraham, it was presented as a well packaged finished product. It was chalked full of positive accolades. What it did not contain was the list of struggles that he would undergo in order to fill the “new shoes”, so to speak, which was custom made for him.

As the promise was released it meant that he was no longer going to be able to “do life as usual”. From the onset he became a target of the enemy. The level of attack was representative of the level of his calling. You see, Abraham had to experience a little chaos in his life before he could experience cosmos. God allowed satan to create a whirlwind in Abraham’s life because God had insider information as to how the story would end. What satan meant for evil God used for good.

As believers, all too often we are ecstatic about receiving the promise but are not so enthused about what we will have to endure in order for the promise to come to pass. What we must realize is that the enemy does not have the power to abort the promise. The only way the promise can die is if we are unwilling to go the distance and subsequently walk away from it. If God has given you a promise, whatever you do, DO NOT LET GO! Store the sneak preview in the forefront of your mind in order to serve as an encouragement to carry you through until the promise comes to pass.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you for giving me a sneak preview of the promise you hold for my future. I choose to hold tightly to it while I wait for chaos to turn into cosmos.

Posted in Mind | Leave a comment

A Thorn in the Flesh

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Leah

…Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. – 2 Corinthians 12:7-8 (NIV)

Like Paul, do you have a thorn in your flesh that you are asking God to remove? I have had a fear of public speaking for quite some time. I have pleaded with God to remove it, but to no avail. I have even reasoned that I could be a more effective witness for His kingdom if only He would remove this hindrance. My fear is so great that it brings me to my knees every time I have to speak in a group setting, even the smallest of groups.

One thing that I have learned through all of this is that God is more concerned about my commitment to Him than He is about my comfort. Although it may be hard to accept, this life truly does not revolve around mankind; mankind is to revolve around God. His purpose for creating and interacting with us is doxological; meaning it’s all about drawing praise that is due to Him and Him alone.

If you have pleaded with God to remove something in your life and He has yet to remove it, you may want to consider that it has been left there for a very valuable purpose. The thorn in our flesh can be used as an instrument to produce an increase in our level of commitment to the Lord. If our discomfort brings us to our knees before the Him, then it has served its purpose.

Prayer

Lord I recognize that a thorn in my flesh is not necessarily a bad thing, if it draws me closer to You. Today I make a conscious decision to serve You wholeheartedly whether You choose to remove the thorn or not.

Posted in Body, Spirit | Leave a comment

Set Free

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Leah

Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes. – 2 Corinthians 2:10-11 (NIV)

Aren’t you glad we live in America? It’s a land where we get to enjoy so many rights that other countries would only dream of. Our founding fathers of this country have made sure that we would be able to experience certain inalienable rights such as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. For Christians, our Heaven Father has taken it one step farther by sending His Son into this world to set the captives free so that we can not only experience life, but abundant life. If that is so, have you ever wondered why so many of us seem to live such defeated lives?

The truth of the matter is that we have an enemy who works overtime to bind us up with strongholds so that we will fail to ever experience the level of freedom that is actually available to us. One common stronghold involves unforgiveness. When we fail to forgive an offense committed against us by another person, we essentially carry that person around with us like a piece of luggage. If not dealt with properly it will take a toll on our bodies and completely deplete us of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Even though the freedom that is available for us to enjoy today does not cost us anything, there originally was a price that had to be paid. Jesus and the founding fathers picked up the tab. They had to lay down their personal agendas for us to be set free. Aside from it being an enormous weight removed from our lives once we make a decision to release an offender, we owe it to those who worked so hard to ensure our freedom. If we don’t, then their efforts were done in vain.

Prayer

Lord, show me if there is any unforgiveness in my heart and give me the strength to set the offender free so that I in turn can be set free in order to live an abundant life.

Posted in Body, Mind, Spirit | Leave a comment

Only One Superstar

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Leah

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. – Philippians 2:9-11 (NIV)

If we take one look at the world of sports we can see that there has been a loss of focus as to who is most important in life. A poll shows that people spend an average of 10-20 hours per week watching sports on TV, talking sports with friends, going to games, playing fantasy games and reading sports news. As far as religious and spiritual activity is concerned, less than half of that amount of time is spent on talking to God and about God. We spend more time promoting our favorite superstars in the sporting arena than we do promoting the ultimate superstar, Jesus Christ.

It is amazing that it is not politically correct to say the name Jesus, especially on television, but we can talk freely for hours on end about our favorite athletes as though they were some sort of savior for making a grand play. For Christians, the amount of excess time we spend giving accolades to someone other than Jesus is not a heaven or hell issue personally, but there is a world of people out there who are going to hell. Every hour we spend focusing on someone other than Jesus means less time that the gospel is being shared in order to save those souls from hell.

Many would argue that we must be well rounded in the things that interest the world in order to effectively reach them, but for many there needs to be better discernment as to where to draw the line. I’m sure you would agree that it only takes a couple of minutes of watching the news in order to be kept abreast of everything that’s going on in the world, even with a few details to spare. If we truly want to effectively impact this world for Christ, the One and Only Superstar, then we must be better stewards of our private time. In that way, we will know enough amazing stats about the Superstar of our team that will leave people longing to join in.

Prayer

Lord, help me to be a good steward of my private time so that I will spend enough time with You and in Your Word in order to be equipped to adequately promote You as the One and Only Superstar!

Posted in Spirit | Leave a comment

Give the Gift of Goodbye

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Leah

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. – Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)

As the beginning of a new year is underway, there are people and things in our lives that are not in God’s plan to accompany us in our future. Time does not stand still. People and things are constantly shifting. If that were not so then progress would go unfulfilled. I think if we all take a look at our past we would agree that it was best that some things did not accompany us to the present. Many times God wants to give us something new but He is waiting for us to let go of what necessitates the gift of goodbye.

When we feel that a season in our lives is coming to an end, the typical response is to grip it tighter. I think the most difficult part is being left with a huge void of uncertainty, especially if God is not ready to fill that empty space with something or someone new. Even if the thing or relationship is toxic in our lives, there is still something to be said about the comfort that is found in the familiar.

It is essential that we release those things and people into God’s hands. If we fail to, those things and people will simply weigh us down and prevent us from completely fulfilling God’s purpose and plan for our future. One thing that makes the “letting go” process more bearable is to take our focus off of the person or thing and fix our focus on Jesus who never changes and promises to never leave us or forsake us. If He allows something or someone to exit our lives it’s only because He has our best interest in mind.

Prayer

Lord, I thank You today for the gift of goodbye. I freely release anything and everyone in my life that does not enhance but only hinder me from fully carrying out your perfect plan for my life.

Posted in Body, Mind, Spirit | Leave a comment

Breakthrough Believer

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Leah

So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer. – Ezra 8:23 (NIV)

Are you a breakthrough believer? Amidst the turmoil that goes on in the world, there are people called to “go before” others, so to speak, to prepare the way. There is darkness and void that necessitates penetration. A breakthrough believer is called upon to create a path where there is no path, similar to one who digs an underground tunnel.

A breakthrough believer understands that any progress that is made is not done in his or her own strength. It is understood that the breakthrough occurs solely on account of being a willing vessel by standing in the gap in prayer and decreeing it be done in the name of Jesus. A breakthrough believer understands that there is a sense of urgency. Thus, he or she does not feel inconvenienced when prompted by the Holy Spirit to take the night shift. Also, a call to fast is not an uncommon request in the life of this believer.

A breakthrough believer understands that there are evil forces in the spiritual realm that want to inhibit or destroy the plans of God. While there is an understanding of that truth, there is an even greater understanding of the unsurpassable power that was given Christ through the shedding of His blood to have triumph over evil. There are some strongholds that require both prayer and fasting beforehand in order to create a clear path for others to go forth.

Prayer

Lord, I thank You that You have allowed us to participate in seeing breakthroughs as we yield to You in prayer and fasting. I thank You that through these acts strongholds are broken and clear paths are created.

Posted in Body, Spirit | Leave a comment

A Royal Ambassador

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Leah

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. – 2 Corinthians 5:20 (NIV)

Do you realize just how important you are? Regardless of how you may feel at the moment, Christ refers to you as His ambassador. Generally to become an ambassador one has to meet specific education or experience requirements. Though as an ambassador for Christ, this is not the case. He receives you just the way you are because He has total confidence in His qualifications to supersede your shortcomings.

As an ambassador we can not treat our position as though we are self-employed, setting our own work schedule. All too often with this important position we fail to recognize the importance of incorporating it into our day to day activities. It must invoke a change in our entire lifestyle. Hence the coining of the phrase WWJD (What would Jesus do?). Many have used this phrase throughout the day as a reminder of their position as Christ’s representative.

As an ambassador for Christ we serve as His delegated representatives of another kingdom. The place in which we live is not our final resting place, nor is it God’s intent for the rest of mankind. It is not okay for us to be content merely with our own salvation and that of our immediate circle of influence. Bystanders are watching to see if our actions will align with what we profess to believe. Will you join me in living out what you profess?

Prayer

Lord, help me to understand the importance of my calling to serve as Your royal ambassador. I pray that the appeal that You are attempting to make through me would be clearly displayed for all to see. May it result in a mass move that changes the course of destiny for many.

Posted in Body | Leave a comment