Problems or Opportunities??

I know, it's hard to believe when you are up to your eyeballs in a problem...that ANYTHING good could come out of it. I'm not above this same kind of thinking when a problem lasts longer than I expected, is getting worse or just seems to be getting the best of me.

We have to remember where to keep our focus, on Jesus and not the circumstances that seem to rage with every impossibility day and night. Problems are obnoxious. They demand our attention, they steal our peace, they trample our happiness and make us feel defeated before the battle has even begun.

So how the crapola can we survive the problems of life? We must adjust our vision to the promises of God that are available to us. This means that every problem is actually an opportunity to receive God's provision.

Remember what God is capable of, He took a handful of dirt and breathed life into...meet the first man, Adam. He made a human out of dust!

Jesus replied, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Luke 18:27 (NIV)

We need to be reminded of this because in the humdrum of everyday life, we forget who God is. We think it's only up to us, that we are alone in solving the problem and that maybe even God has forgotten about us.

Well, I'm here to remind you that nothing gets by God. We may not be able to know why certain things happen, because God even tell us in Isaiah 55:9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts"(NIV). But God loves you and He has a good plan for your life!

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

What we must do in the problem, KEEP praying, KEEP asking God for His wisdom, for His favor and EXPECT Him to be at work on what is giving you such heart ache and trouble. And the most important thing that I have found that keeps my little sinking heart afloat is praising and thanking God WHILE STILL IN THE PROBLEM. You will not FEEL like praising God as sometimes it feels like your mouth is full of gravel and you can barely muster enough energy to get out of bed!

Nehemiah 8:10 "the joy of the LORD is your strength."

Psalm 98:4 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music;

1 Thessalonians 5:19 pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

CHOOSE to be joy filled. This is not easy, but I can attest the it does give us strength in areas that are fragile.

PUT on worship music, even if you can't sing along at first. Just allow the words of worship and praise to God fill your heart until you CAN SING!

DON'T leave God in those times. Instead, come closer to Him, pray and give Him every detail that burdens your heart, mind and body. Don't give up when you don't get an immediate change in circumstances. Often times, God does a lot of behind the scenes arranging before we get our breakthrough, answer or need.

And know that I am praying for you, that your needs are not only met but overflowing in abundance according the riches and glory in Jesus Christ!

LOTS of love,hot chocolate and 20 marshmallows,

CLC

Love For Others

Written By Victoria Osteen:

John 15:13 tells us that "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). This scripture is talking about the ultimate sacrifice that Jesus made to pay the price so that we can spend eternity with Him, but every day we have the opportunity to "lay down" ourselves for the people in our lives. Making sacrifices and giving to others of our time, abilities and resources is how we show our love. It's easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day activities of life. Most people spend their days maxed out, but we have to make the effort to communicate our love to our family and friends.

Novelist Katherine Anne Porter once wrote, "Love must be learned and learned again; there is no end to it." In other words, love should not remain the same year after year; love is supposed to grow. Relationships evolve over time, people change over time, and our love should strengthen and grow over time, too. The apostle Paul prayed that our love would abound and grow in knowledge and depth of insight. That tells me that I cannot put my love on autopilot. If we put our love on autopilot and trust that the people in our lives will simply "know" that we love them, our relationships will not grow nor be as fruitful as they were intended to be. That's why it's so important to make every effort to keep strong connections in our relationships.

Today, find a new way to show someone you care. Do something out of your comfort zone. Ask God to give you a creative idea and be willing to stretch yourself. It can be as simple as leaving a note or doing something extraordinary around the house. When you lay down your old ways and old ideas, that's when new growth will come to your life personally and to your relationships. Dare to make others a priority in your life and let them see the love in you!

A Good Word

There is a young lady I know who is very creative. She puts on major programs for different organizations to empower women. She's known for being very innovative and always on the cutting edge. But she told me that for many years, she never thought she was creative. She worked as a secretary and thought that was what she would do for the rest of her life. But one day, management asked her to head up the Christmas program they put on for the company every year, and so she did. It was very successful. Everyone loved it and had a great time. Afterwards, a long-time friend came up to her and said, "You are so creative! You are amazing at what you do." Later she told her friend, "You are the first person to ever tell me that I am creative. When you said that, something ignited on the inside."

To the friend, it was a simple and obvious compliment; but to this young lady, it was a supernatural moment. That was God calling out those seeds of greatness inside of her. But it all started when somebody was willing to speak simple, life-giving words.

Today, I'm asking you to be free with your compliments. When you see someone doing a good job, don't just think, "Wow! They're really talented." No, your thoughts don't bless anyone. If that friend would have just thought, "Wow! She's creative," it wouldn't have done this woman any good. Here's the key; a blessing is not a blessing until it is spoken. All around you people are thirsty for life-giving words. People need encouragement. People need approval. They need to hear you say, "I believe in you. You've got an amazing gift. You are great at what you do. I'm proud of you." When people know you believe in them and you speak faith into their destiny, it does something on the inside. It's amazing how sometimes just one compliment, one encouraging word, one "Hey! You're so creative" can be the spark that will push that person toward their divine destiny.

Remember, as believers in Jesus, we are His body, His hands and feet in the earth. We are His voice; we are His representatives. Look for ways to encourage the people around you even if you are the one who needs encouragement. Like seeds, those words of life go out and then a harvest of blessings returns in your own life. Keep speaking, keep loving and keep honoring God with your words and actions and let Him pour out His love and blessing in your own life in return!

"The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life" (John 6:63, NIV).

Waiting It Out

The other day, I was sitting in traffic and just started thinking about all the time we spend waiting in life. We wait in traffic, wait in line at the grocery store, wait for a promotion, wait for a relationship to turn around or wait for a prayer to be answered. It seems we spend a lot of time in the waiting room of life!

God sees us and is saying to us today, "I want you to wait the right way." What is the right way to wait? If you look up the word "wait" in the original Hebrew, it's translated to mean hope and expectancy. See, God wants you to wait in Him. He wants your hope and expectancy to be in Him. Isaiah 40:31 says, "Those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." (NKJ)

God has promised that if we wait the right way, then we'll have the strength to wait. We won't feel overwhelmed, frustrated and "zapped" of all of our energy. If you wait in Him, you'll run and not be weary, walk and be lifted up, and soar like the eagle. This verse tells me there are seasons of waiting. Sometimes we have to walk through some things while we wait. Sometimes we run and the season goes by quickly. And sometimes, we'll just rise above the circumstances and soar through the season of waiting. No matter what, God promises to strengthen and empower us when we wait on Him.

How do we wait in Him? First of all, we need to wait with praise and worship in our hearts and mouths. Praise always precedes the victory. God says He inhabits the praises of His people, and when God shows up, the enemy has to flee!

Another way to make sure you are waiting the right way is by watching your words, thoughts and attitudes. Your thoughts direct your words which ultimately direct your life. Make sure your words line up with His Words. Come in agreement with Him because your strength comes from your unity with Him.

You've probably heard it said that your attitude determines your altitude. If you want to rise high above the storms of life, you have to set your mind on things above, not on the cares of this earth. You have to keep your focus on Jesus because He is the Author and Finisher of your faith.
Today, if you're waiting, make sure you're waiting the right way. Keep an attitude of faith and expectancy and a song of praise on your lips. Know that He is faithful, and He will renew your strength and lift you up when you choose to wait in Him.

A Story About Ruth

Scripture talks about a woman named Ruth. She had been through a lot of heartache and pain. Her husband had been killed in a battle. Now her mother-in-law, Naomi, was moving away to a different city. Ruth decided to go with her and help take care of her. During all of this, there was a great famine in the land, and they hardly had anything to eat. Every morning, Ruth would go out into the fields and follow behind the reapers that were gleaning the wheat. She would pick up the leftover wheat that had fallen behind on the ground, and that's how she and Naomi were surviving.

One day the owner of the field, a wealthy man named Boaz, came into town to check on his field. It just so happened that he saw Ruth out there and she caught his attention. He asked his workers, "Who is that new, young girl?" They said, "That's Ruth. She's a widow and just moved here. She goes behind us every day and picks up the leftover wheat." Boaz said to his workers, "Here's what I want you to do; drop handfuls of wheat on purpose for Ruth."

I love the fact that Ruth was just minding her own business, being her best, being faithful. She was focused on meeting the needs of someone else, and she was blessed in return. One day, all of the sudden, she started seeing excess wheat lying in front of her. Think about it. Suddenly, she doesn't have to struggle anymore. Suddenly, she doesn't have to search the field trying to find the leftovers. All she has to do is step and what she needs is in her path. Suddenly, she goes home with four or five times what she normally would collect. Naomi asks, "Ruth, how in the world did you get all that wheat today?" I can see Ruth scratching her head. She says, "I don't know. I just stumbled into it. Normally, I get the leftovers and scraps, but for some reason, the workers started leaving all this wheat right in my path!"

Today, I want you to know that God has dropped "handfuls on purpose" for you, too. In your future, God has already dropped favor, promotion and health. He's dropped wisdom, good breaks and divine connections. They're out in front of you just waiting for you to come along. Don't believe those lies telling you there is nothing good in store; you'll never accomplish your dreams. No, if God were to pull back the curtain and allow you to see what He's already lined up; the breaks, the people, the favor, the things He's already released into your future, you wouldn't worry again. You wouldn't be discouraged. You would be excited about your future. You would live with expectancy knowing that at any moment, you could come across one of those handfuls on purpose!

YOU

Don't play small! Stand up! Take charge! You are doing yourself and others a disservice by catering your actions towards how you think others will react.

Instead, just be yourself, exactly as you are. When you are simply being yourself you will attract everything that is in alignment with who you truly are. You will be shocked to see who drops away. Their absence will leave a space for new and amazing relationships to enter your life. Just be you, and let everyone else do what they may.

"The people that know the least about you are usually the ones that have the most to say."

You are not what others believe you to be, you are what you know you are and nothing else. Just be. You will be rewarded for your courage with a life that reflects your true essence instead of an invented identity created to "please others".