Long before I had to write things down and plan, I wrote things down and planned. I used to do it because it helped me stay in control of things, it also always gave me a feeling of accomplishment whenever I finished what I started and moved on to the next thing on my list. I was a control freak. I never tried to control anyone else, my motto was and still is; you do you and I do me. No, I just wanted to be in control of my life. When I reflect back, I spent so much time on trying to make sure I was on top of every and anything that might disrupt my plans for my life. That’s a hard job. No, that’s an impossible job. No wonder I was so stressed. And trust me, stress breaks down your body and mind like nothing else!  It took my life turning upside down to realize I am not in control of nothing, not even my own life? I had to be broken to the point where there was nothing left, no money, no home, no pride, just sick and tired. And that is when I reached out and gave God what was his in the first place, my life.  Thankfully I knew about God, always have, he was with me the entire time when I thought I was running my life, he was with me when my life as I knew it fell apart, and not once did he stop me from being foolish. I had to reach out to Him and give myself to Him. Oh. My. Goodness! Finally, I could exhale! It felt good. And now I can breathe, I can relax; I have this peaceful joy, no matter the circumstances or situation. And I got to not just know about Jesus, but to have a personal, intimate relation with him! Part of God’s plan is for each of us to have a personal relationship with Him. Listen, children do not have control over their lives, we as parents nurture and guide them. Every important decision is made by the parent while they are under age; we want the best for them. That is how our Father in heaven feels about us. He is a good Father. Our children, once they reach adulthood and sometimes puberty, want to be in control of their own lives. We as children of God do the same thing. Should we make plans and set goals in life? Absolutely!  But setting goals is not about what we want to do with our life. It is about what God wants to do in and through our life. We were created for a reason, and God has a specific plan for each one of us. God created the world with a plan in mind. God is not a God of confusion and disorder. He is a God of order and peace. We must learn how to plan and set goals that please Him and line up with His Word. Are you waiting to exhale? Give God your life and breathe again. The Word has a lot to say on this subject, read today’s scriptures in FOOD FOR THE SOUL. Much Love….

 

There is this story about an old man who lived in the country with his son. He had a beautiful horse that he loved dearly. One day a rich man was passing through and saw this beautiful horse. He offered the man a lot of money for the horse but the man refused to sell. Then not too long afterwards the horse broke through the fence and ran away. The village people came and said how sorry they were; they said, “If only you had sold the horse to the rich man at least you would have the money. Sorry this happened to you, this is terrible.” The old man said, “Good or bad, who knows?” A couple of weeks later the horse returned and he had six or seven wild horses with him. The village people said to him, “How wonderful, now you have your horse back and you have more horses. This is great!” The old man said, “Good or bad, who knows?” One day while trying to tame one of the wild horses the old man’s son fell and broke his leg. The son walked with a limp from that day on. The village people came with their sympathy and tears because the man’s son had been injured and now was crippled. They said, “This is the worst thing that could have happened.” The old man said, “Good or bad, who knows?” A war broke out and all young men were being recruited to fight, except those who had some type of limitation, like the old man’s son who walked with a limp. The village people were happy for the old man, they said, “It is a blessing that your only son will not have to leave you.” And the old man said, “Good or bad, who knows?” I could go on and on with this story because that is how life works. When bad or good things happen in our life, we must know that God is in control of both. All good things come from God, and if he allows what we think is bad, he still is in control. I know from experience sometimes what you think is the worst thing that could happen to you, can turn out to be the best thing that has ever happened to you. And what we may think is the best thing that has happened, could very well be the worst.  The point is, if it’s good, thank God, and if you think it’s bad, thank God. Don’t be like the village people and let life determine your joy. The good news is that when the Holy Spirit lives in you, you can go to Him for truth and wisdom, because good or bad, only God knows. Just something to think about. Much Love……

What can I say about Judas Iscariot? He was one of the twelve disciples, the one who betrayed Jesus. His father’s name was Simon. He was the treasury for the Lord’s ministry, which lets us know he was not an imbecile. You would think that Matthew would have handled the money because he had been a tax collector. Judas was a theft. That’s it. Scripture does not reveal much more about Judas or his background. Commentators have suggested many possibilities to explain Judas’ character: Love of money; jealousy of the other disciples; fear of the inevitable outcome of the Master’s ministry, an enthusiastic intention to force Christ’s hand and make him declare himself as Messiah, a bitter, revengeful spirit which arose when his worldly hopes were crushed and this disappointment turned to spite and spite became hate, all these motives have been suggested. I don’t know. What is clear is to me is that Judas was a self-serving thief. He was stealing funds from the Lord’s money box, which shows he was full of greed. He did not care about the poor. Judas was not in tune with Jesus, rejecting the Lord’s message. To the poor, Jesus preached the gospel. And for the needy, Jesus taught that we should go out of our way to help them. The scriptures do not state why Judas betrayed Jesus. However since he was paid its possible the only reason was for the money.

 Two things I know; One, Judas went against the teachings of Jesus’s by stealing, which left an opening for satan to enter. And two, Jesus knew that the devil would possess Judas and use him to accomplish satanic objectives. Jesus knew that ultimately His battle was with the evil one. On an occasion well before His final trip to Jerusalem, He implied that the devil would be involved. Jesus said, “one of you is a devil.” Jesus also said at the Last Supper, “woe to that man by whom the son of man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” Because Jesus came to die for us and none of this was a surprise to Him, you may ask did Judas even have a choice? Yes he did. God always gives us a choice. Adam and Eve had a choice. Acts 1:25 says that Judas went “to his own place,” the thought being the place of his own choosing. So it is not that Judas was foreordained from eternity past to go to hell, without opportunity to be saved. Instead, he chose to reject Jesus and suffer the consequences of any person who rejects the Savior.

 I can’t comprehend how Judas walked with Christ three years, heard Him preach day after day, and witnessed  Him live by what he preached, and still betrayed Him. We can learn something from Judas. We cannot go to church Sunday after Sunday, and sometimes Bible study through the week and think that our mere presence there will keep God pleased with us. We must put into practice what we learn from God’s Word. We must be doers of the Word, not just hearers, or just like Judas, we leave an opening for satan to ease in. If you have experienced betrayal from someone close to you, you know it is disappointing and very painful. Sometimes you want to get revenge. But think about this, after Judas betrayed Jesus, the devil thought he had won. The demons just like the religious leaders probably threw a victory party. Yea, party over here! However, in three days, God raised Jesus from the dead. We may have a Judas on our job, at school, in our family and yes, even in church. No worries, because God will take care of the Judases of life. Our business is to be faithful as long as He gives us breath and energy to serve! Please read today’s scriptures in FOOD for the SOUL. Much Love…

 

On yesterday we looked at Peter and how in spite of his doubt God reached down His hand into the water and pulled him up. In spite of his weaknesses God used him to spread the Gospel. Today we will look at Thomas, who some call “Doubting Thomas”. A Doubting Thomas is a skeptic who refuses to believe without direct personal experience. Doubt on an emotional level is wavering between belief and disbelief. Doubt involves uncertainty, distrust or lack of sureness of an alleged fact, an action, a motive, or a decision. Apostle Thomas refused to believe that the resurrected Jesus had appeared to the ten other apostles, until he could see and feel the wounds received by Jesus on the cross. I know I have and I am sure many of you have at one time been a doubting Thomas. No? Well what about that time when your back was against the wall, a bill needed paying and you didn’t have the money, your car broke down, you or someone you loved desperately needed healing? Your child was acting like an alien? You did not know where your next meal was coming from? You thought you would not survive the broken heart? Did you say God has this, I will not worry? Did you remember the times He made a way out of no way?  Somehow the bill was paid, the car fixed and you made it through the sickness. And your broken heart was made whole again. If we are honest we all have been there. We know if it had not been for God the last time, but we still doubt, and we still worry. Then when God shows up again, we sing, dance and praise Him. Just like Thomas who had to actually see the wounds to believe, we sometimes have to see what God is doing before we relax, release, and let God. It should not have worked that way for Thomas, Jesus told them he would arise in three days, did he forget that? It should not work that way with us, Jesus tells us that he will never leave or forsake us, we have seen him at work in our lives, just as Thomas had seen Jesus perform miracle after miracle. Thomas loved Jesus. He showed courage and loyalty to Jesus. When the other disciples tried to keep Jesus from going to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead because of the danger, Thomas told them that they should all go and die with Jesus. Thomas was the disciple that asked Jesus, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” We all have gone through stages when we questioned God or his timing.  In spite of Thomas’s disbelieve, Jesus loved him. So I’m not judging Thomas, I’m just saying, even though at times we too have doubted God, He loves us also. God will reach down His hand and pull us up again when we are sinking in doubt. Jesus have answered many prayers for me, I am literally a walking miracle. I know he is real. Because of this I have not been a “Doubting Thomas” in a long while. I try to stay close to God every day, study His Word, and be obedient. I don’t want to be a “Doubting Thomas” ever again. We must put our trust in God and praise Him in advance while trusting that His timing is perfect. There is a song that says something like; how can I doubt Him because I know too much about Him. So True. Please read today’s scriptures in FOOD for the SOUL. Much Love….

 

 

When Jesus met Simon, he recognized his leadership qualities. But he knew that Simon would need help. Jesus began by giving Simon a new name. He called him Peter, which means “rock.” Later, Jesus told Peter that he was to be the rock on which Jesus would build his Church. Although he had much strength, Peter had weaknesses, too. He complained that he and the other Apostles had given up everything to follow Jesus and wanted to know what he would get for this sacrifice (Matthew 16:27). At the Lord’s command, he walked on water, but then lost his faith in Jesus’ power and begin to sink in the sea (Matthew 14:31). At the Last Supper, Jesus told Peter that the time would come when Peter would deny knowing him. Peter angrily said it would never happen. Later that evening, Peter did deny three times that he knew the Lord or that he was one of his followers. Are you like Peter? Do you love God but you have weaknesses? Don’t feel bad, we all have some type of weakness or weaknesses. Do you love God but your weaknesses do not let you serve, obey or trust him completely? Do you praise him and then curse someone from the same mouth? Are you straddling the fence, you’re team Jesus but you live in this world so you say, “don’t judge me, I am not perfect.”? Saying a sin is really a weakness leads to rationalizing instead of repenting. Saying a weakness is a sin can result in shame, blame, despair, and giving up on God’s promises. Praying and talking with God can help us make these distinctions. Mistakes are a part of the natural learning process created by God. You cannot learn if you cannot make mistakes. God’s definition of perfection is simply to not sin by loving him first and people second. When Jesus said, “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matt. 5:48), He was saying, “Let your love be complete as God’s love.” God loves all people, even evil ones. This is how we can be as “perfect” as God. While Satin is eager to use our weakness to entice us to sin, God can use human weakness to teach, strengthen, and bless us. Contrary to what we might expect or hope, however, God does not always “make weak thing become strong” unto us by eliminating our weakness. When Apostle Paul prayed repeatedly for God to remove a “thorn in the flesh”,  God told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 2: 7, 9,) In our ongoing battle with sin, God is not looking for perfect, externally performed behavior or perfect internally performed motivation from us. We must stop focusing on being perfect, and then using it as an excuse to sin. God doesn’t want us to focus on performing perfectly; he wants us to focus on living out a childlike, dependent faith through genuine acts of love. God goes to great lengths to expose the imperfect clay feet of the Bible’s faith heroes, we should learn from them. Just as Jesus gave Simon a new name, once we accept Jesus as our Savior and we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we become a new person. I don’t believe that means we become sinless, but that we sin less because we have the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us. I love knowing that when I am tempted or when I fall short, Holy Spirit is there to redirect me or even convict me if necessary. Thank you Jesus for leaving us with the Holy Spirit! Regardless of how imperfect we are or where we are in our relationship with Jesus, he will and can use the gifts and qualities he has placed within us for His purpose. We just have to let Him, he will not force us. When Peter recognized that the Lord’s prediction of his denials had come true, he was overcome with sadness and tears. I believe that is when he stopped straddling the fence and became the “rock” Jesus saw in him. He may have still had cowardly tendencies and may not have been perfect; but at the Pentecost, the real power of the Holy Spirit was shown when Peter rose to speak and three thousand souls were saved. How can we account for cowardly Peter’s boldness as he stood that day to preach before a multitude of people?  The Holy Spirit filled Peter with all the gifts he needed to lead. In Jerusalem, Peter healed an incurable Cripple, who had been lame from birth. It was there that Peter preached his second recorded sermon. Five thousand men turned to Christ that day. Peter helped start the first church, worked miracles and baptized thousands. Peter should give us hope; God believed in him and loved him in spite of his weaknesses. God knows what we are made of, he made us. We can  tackle the challenge of human weakness, we can learn charity, compassion, meekness, patience, courage, long-suffering, wisdom, stamina, forgiveness, resilience, gratitude, creativity, and a host of other virtues that make us more like our Father in Heaven. Then let the Potter do his work to mold us. God’s love, wisdom, and redemptive power is evident in His ability to turn our struggle with human weakness into the invaluable godly virtues and strengths that make us more like Him. Please read today’s scriptures in “Food for the Soul”.  Much Love….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Tuesday I talked about the Beatitudes Jesus gave in the Sermon on the Mount. I just keep thinking how amazing God is. Be Attitudes. Jesus was definitely teaching on our attitudes. We have a choice to start each day with a positive attitude. The future looks bright when the attitude is right and the present is much more enjoyable. The positive person understands that the journey is as enjoyable as the destination. Sad to say, our attitudes are not automatically good just because we are Christians. We nurture attitudes of jealously, judgment, self-pity, and selfishness. In Philippians 2:3-8, Paul talks about the attitudes we should possess as Christians. Paul tells us five things about the proper Christian attitude: (1) Do things for the right reasons (v.3), (2) Regard others as more important than yourself (v.3), (3) Look out for the interest of others (v.4),(4) Christ recognized His sonship and therefore was willing to serve God and others (v.6),  (5) Possess the attitude of Christ, who was not power-hungry(v.5) but rather emptied Himself(v.7), demonstrated obedience(v.8), and fulfilled God’s purpose(v.5). Wrong attitudes in our lives will block the blessings of God and cause us to live below God’s potential for our lives.

The attitude is an inward feeling expressed by behavior. That is why an attitude can be seen without a word being said. Scripture teaches us that “God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (Samuel 16:7). The Bible says the heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick, and we cannot understand it. This is why we can’t know for sure what emotions are going on inside someone else. However, many times the outward expressions and actions are like a window to a person’s soul. Sometimes the attitude can be masked outwardly to deceive others. But usually the cover-ups will not last long. There is a constant struggle as the attitude tries to wiggle its way out. A hardened attitude is like a disease. It causes a closed mind and a dark future. When the attitude is positive and expectant to growth, the mind expands and the process begins. What process? I am glad you asked. The process of trusting and obeying God. Our attitude is important to our spiritual growth. Our attitude is also the primary force that will determine whether we succeed or fail. And when I say fail now, I’m speaking in relationship to our walk with God. Attitude can also hinder our successes in life. Some people find a difficulty in every opportunity, and others find an opportunity in every  difficulty. The fact that the attitude can make some while breaking others lets us know its importance. Attitudes determine our relationship with God, our relationships with each other, our life here on this earth, and our eternal life. Our attitude can turn our problems into blessings. Someone said “Adversity is prosperity to those who possess a great attitude.” The author John Maxwell put it like this, “When God wants to educate a man, He does not send him to the school of graces, but to the school of necessities.” What that means to me is that although life storms can be difficult, the attitude we have while going through them can make a difference between winning or losing the battle. When Goliath came up against the Israelites, the soldiers thought, he’s so big, we can never kill him. David looked at this same giant and he thought, He’s so big I can’t miss him. Ha, I love the Bible! It really is our instruction booklet for life. Ok, let me finish up with attitudes. I challenge whoever is reading this for one week to treat every person you meet, without a single exception, as the most important person on earth. Leave a comment here or on FB Emmanuel and let me know how that works for you. I bet you will find that they will begin treating you the same way. Much Love….

Some people believe that if you are single, you are lonely.  It is so often assumed that those who have not yet found that special person are experiencing waves of loneliness.  In reality, there is a magnificent difference between being lonely and being alone. Being lonely is that kind of aching that resonates in your chest. That dull, constant feeling that follows you around all day long. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing or whom you’re with, actually you can be in a room full of people and still feel lonely. Loneliness is that prominent gaping hole in your life that just can’t seem to be filled regardless of what you do. It’s like the feeling you have when you are grieving only no one has died. Trust me the only way to fill that hole is through Jesus Christ. No relationship, no amount of money, no status, nothing but our Lord God can fill that hole. Loneliness can be an invitation for God to come into our presence. There have been times when I felt lonely and opened up God’s Word and his presence soothed my soul.

But being alone is a different situation completely. Being alone is a state of being; loneliness is a state of mind. Being alone is taking the time to really think about what you want from someone the next time around, because you are going to do everything in your power that you never suffer from that lonely disease again. Being alone is going to a movie and dinner by yourself or reading a book at the park, and enjoying every single minute of it. Being alone is doing things by yourself, but also doing them for yourself. Of course, there are those times when being alone crosses paths with being lonely. For a brief moment that dull feeling aches in your chest; especially when you see couples together, but it doesn’t stay. Loneliness will try to force you to find that company with another person. You can always find company in yourself. If you let the loneliness consume you, you’re going to lose that rare chance to figure yourself out. One of the most destructive lies that single women and some men tell themselves is the lie that they are too old: too old to date, too old to marry, too old to follow your dreams. Whether you are 30 or 80, you probably had that thought. I have. Don’t buy into that lie. This is what I found out; when it comes to God and his plans for us, as long as he lets us breath, we are not to old! God does not do age! You are not too old for God to give you your soul mate, your dream job, your house or whatever breakthrough you are longing for. Do not give into the temptation to worry about being too old. God’s timing is perfect!

I have a confession. Honestly, sometimes (a lot) I would rather be alone. I hardly ever get lonesome. It seems the older I get, the more I like it. I can isolate myself even when I’m with someone. Sometimes I will tell people just enough but not enough for them to really know me. The real me I keep behind this wall that has sprung up from somewhere. Very few people I let behind the wall. Don’t judge me! I know this is not a good thing. God is working with me to tear down the wall. Because the Jesus who I have decided to model my life after did not have superficial relationships. Jesus lovingly broke down barriers and intentionally got to know people. He didn’t avoid painful situations and wasn’t overwhelmed by people’s needs. So on the days that I rather be alone, I try to think about my friend Jesus and His plan’s for me. He wants me to step out of my comfort zone. With His help I am tearing this wall down, one brick at a time. I’m definately not too old for improvement. The truth of the matter is God is not looking for people who are married or who is single. God is looking for a man or woman who is willing to say “yes, Lord, I’ll go where you want me to go and I will do what you want me to do.” All you need is a willing heart. Let God handle finding your soul mate. He did it for Adam while he slept. He did it for Ruth, when she least expected it. He will do it for you. In the meantime being alone can be the most empowering experience of your life; embrace it. Much Love…

 

Jesus Christ gave us the Eight Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount, recorded for all posterity in the Gospel of Matthew, the first Book of the New Testament of the Bible. While the Beatitudes of Jesus provide a way of life that promises salvation, they also bring peace in the midst of our trials and tribulations on this earth. An early contemplation on the Beatitudes came from St. Gregory of Nyssa, a mystic who lived in Cappadocia in Asia Minor around 380 AD. He described the Beatitudes this way: 

“Beatitude is a possession of all things held to be good,
from which nothing is absent that a good desire may want.
Perhaps the meaning of beatitude may become clearer to us
if it is compared with its opposite.
Now the opposite of beatitude is misery.
Misery means being afflicted unwillingly with painful sufferings.”

The teachings of Jesus of Nazareth were simple but unique and innovative at the time of his life on earth. The Ten Commandments, given to Moses on Mount Sinai in the Old Testament Book of Exodus, related a series of “Thou shalt not” phrases, evils one must avoid in daily life on earth.
In contrast, the message of Jesus is one of humility, charity, and brotherly love. He teaches transformation of the inner person. Jesus presents the Beatitudes in a positive sense, virtues in life which will ultimately lead to reward. Love becomes the motivation for the Christian. All of the Beatitudes have an eschatological meaning, that is, they promise us salvation – not in this world, but in the next. The Beatitudes initiate one of the main themes of Matthew’s Gospel that the Kingdom so long awaited in the Old Testament is not of this world, but of the next, the Kingdom of Heaven. While the Beatitudes of Jesus provide a way of life that promises salvation, they also bring peace in the midst of our trials and tribulations on this earth. “Poor in spirit” means to be humble. Humility is the realization that all your gifts and blessings come from the grace of God. Humility brings an openness and an inner peace, allowing one to do the will of God. It is pride, the opposite of humility, that brings misery. If we are humble and appreciate that all of our gifts and blessings come from God, we grow in love and gratitude for Jesus Christ our Savior. But this can only produce mourning and regret over our own sins and the sins of this world, for we have hurt the one who has been so good to us. One also mourns for the suffering of others. A person that is meek is one that exhibits self-control. Jesus was “meek and humble of heart” (Matthew 11:29). Justice and righteousness in the New Covenant indicate the fulfillment of God’s will in your heart and soul. It is not mere observance of the law (Matthew 5:20), but rather an expression of brotherly love (I John 3:10). “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36). Mercy is the loving disposition towards those who suffer distress. Love, compassion, and forgiveness towards a family member or neighbor will bring peace in your relationships. Moses (Exodus 33:20), John 1:18, and Paul (I Timothy 6:16) all say that no one can see God here on earth. God is hidden. But Jesus says the pure of heart shall see God! To be pure of heart means to be free of all selfish intentions and self-seeking desires. What a beautiful goal! How many times have any of us performed an act perfectly free of any personal gain? Such an act is pure love. An act of pure and selfless giving brings happiness to all. Jesus gives us peace – “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you” (John 14:27). Peace is also a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Peacemakers not only live peaceful lives but also try to bring peace and friendship to others, and to preserve peace between God and man. Jesus said many times that those who follow Him will be persecuted. “If they persecute me, they will persecute you” (John 15:20-21). But the Lord promised those that suffer for his sake will be rewarded with the Kingdom of Heaven!

Thank you for the Beatitudes Jesus. Read the eight Beatitudes in today’s “FOOD FOR THE SOUL” Much love..

I am one who does not like indecisiveness. However, I have learned that every situation should not get an immediate reaction. We may be too close to the situation to make the best decision. We may need time to get our thoughts and feelings together. We may need time to seek some advise. The situation may even need time to change. One thing for sure, nothing stays the same. Some situations require patience, not an immediate response. We must pray for patience before losing our control in trying situations. Patience is necessary in so many situations, little things such as waiting in line at the store, the slow driver in front of you, dealing with family or co-workers, and life changing decisions like should I marry or change jobs. It is really important that we don’t make rash decisions when we are angry. Remember anger is not the sin, it’s what you do with your anger that matters. This is a good example of when you do not want to react in the circumstances! This is when we should pray for patience. Whether it’s a petty annoyance or something more serious, we are counseled by scripture to show patience, so that we might better bear with wisdom both the good and bad things that happen to us. I struggle with patience. I have made many bad decisions based on what I was going through or feeling at the moment, and later regretted them. If I had only been patient and waited a little longer, thought about it some more, and definitely prayed about it, I believe I would have had better and positive outcomes. One of my son’s poems is called “ASAP”(always stop and pray). It is better to ASAP and then wait patiently for God’s answer. There are some people who have the patience of Job. I am not one of them. But I have come a long ways, thanks to God and the painful lessons of being impatient. The word patience is found 34 times in the King James version, interestingly enough all in the New Testament. Longsuffering which also mean patient is found 17 times, 4 of them in the Old Testament. Patience is one of the fruits of the spirit. I turn to God constantly in prayer asking for his help with patience. I am getting better at it. God takes his time developing us. It is a process. Read today’s scriptures in “FOOD FOR THE SOUL” the Bible has a lot to say about patience. Much Love…

 

I have learned that prayer does not change some things, not because God does not care but because He has a purpose for the pain, there is a reason for the madness. We may not understand it, we don’t have to. We just have to trust His process and survive the storm. Now that we can pray for and know that not only will He give us strength to survive but we will come out stronger and better. When we pray, we should make our request known to God, (not just in the big things but all of the small details, as well) but we should be prepared and accepting that the way God chooses to respond is His right and privilege. He is not our puppet to boss about as we please; or our servant to do our bidding. It is the other way around and the sooner we recognize and adjust accordingly, the less heartache we will bring upon ourselves in this life.  Even though we ask, God will not always give us insight into what is happening to us. He may not give us His perspective to view the difficulties of our plight. Scripture says we are to walk by faith and not by sight and that we are to simply trust and obey. Sometimes I do believe our Father God will withhold things from us with the purpose of growing our faith, trust and obedience. As I look over my life there were things I prayed for and God was right on time. There were things I did not pray for, and the blessings kept flowing. Thank you God! Then there were the storms, the worst just in 2016. After I realized I had done all I could, I cried and prayed to God. Nothing. (First lesson, I should have went to him first, could have saved myself a lot of tears and pain). I cried and prayed some more. Nothing. I was praying for God to stop the storm. And things kept getting worse. Finally I said, “Ok God, I am not a bad person, I try to do what is good and right. Why have you forgotten about me, don’t you see I can’t take anymore?”  “Please help me Lord because I am about to lose my mind.”  “I need you to help me through this.” “I cannot do this by myself.” And wow, there He was, comforting me, strengthening me, giving me a peace even though the storm was still raging. Do you get it? Once I stopped asking God to remove something that I now understand was there to take me to another level, and started praying for Him to help me get through it, things changed. Not the situation, but the way I was handling the situation. We know that prayer can change things, but sometimes prayer changes us and then we change things. God has established things so that prayer, on the basis of redemption, changes the way a person looks at things. Prayer is not always a matter of changing things externally, but one of working miracles in a person’s inner nature. With God’s help I passed the test. How do I know? Because I am here. Stronger, better and wiser. Wiser because the next time a storm comes, and it will, I will know it’s one of two things; God is preparing me for His purpose or the devil is trying to block something big God has for me! Either way, don’t you agree that is enough for us to hang in there and know we can get through all things through God who strengthens us? Much Love….