I used to think the only reason God inspired me to write and to tell my testimonies was to bless others. If someone was going through their own wilderness, it would help them to see how God brought me through mine. Actually it has blessed me also. I would have been happy to forget those times and never mention them again. But God also knew that I needed to heal. There are some things I could not talk about without getting emotional and crying (some things I’m still working on). God knew that not only would it boost my faith to remember where he brought me from, but I would be able to see my growth. I am amazed at the change in me. When storms come at me now, and they do, it’s a different person they meet. Because I have a renewed trust and faith in the Lord, I handle things differently. The attitude you choose in a situation or while in a storm can make or break you. You know the saying what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger? That is not in the scriptures, however I believe it is true. We become stronger in the Lord and with him on our side, we are victorious! We can choose to see God’s goodness in the mist of the storm. In the wilderness, I was diagnosed with several Auto Immune Diseases. I focused on the pain and all the symptoms that come with the diagnoses. A cycle that led to depression. Should we be happy and rejoice even when we are going through? God does not expect us to rejoice in our circumstance or pain, but we can choose to rejoice in the Lord in spite of the circumstance. We must keep our gaze on God and glance at the situation. Trials can lead us to a greater dependency on God and a deeper trust in him if we let them. I wish I had learned that sooner. I wish that in the beginning of the storm I had focused more on God than my storm. This world is broken and life is sure to bring hardships. I now know no matter what, God is worthy of our praise. When we praise the Lord in spite of our circumstances, praise becomes our deliverance. Toward the end of my journey I gave up on self and leaned on God, focused on him, thanking him, and praising him for sustaining me thus far. And that’s when I began to see the rainbow. There is always a rainbow after the storm, keep your eyes on God until you see it! Please Share.  Much Love….

 

Diamonds are a crystallized form of carbon that grows from a primary carbon source subjected to very high temperatures and pressure. Diamonds also can come from outer space, delivered to Earth by meteorites that enter the atmosphere and hit the Earth’s surface. Scientists believe that these diamonds were created under similar conditions, namely high temperature and heat. The rock type produced by these volcanic activities is now known as kimberlite, named after the South African town of Kimberley where it was first discovered. If these eruptions pass through the diamond stability zone, they can carry diamonds with them in their journey to the surface. The challenge for miners and exploration companies is these kimberlite deposits must be discovered. Although geologist now know where kimberlites are most likely to occur, they are usually covered below the Earth’s surface. Exploration can be a long and often tremendously expensive process. Diamonds which are beautiful and ultimately bring joy are often the result of extremely hard labor. 

Why am I talking about diamonds? Because today someone said I was a diamond and that in order for people to know there’s a diamond, it has to be mined. Mmmmmm, I don’t know if that’s an original line or what, but I liked it. It made sense to me, and after I researched a little about diamonds it made even more sense. God created each of us as such, beautiful perfect unique diamonds. We are masterpieces created by the master. However I believe sometimes life buries us so deep into the earth or takes us so far into the wilderness that we get caught up and we are lost in the rocks. But God! He is the volcano that can burst us out to the surface! Then what? We are still covered with this dirt, we still feel weighed down by hurts and disappointments. We still feel lost, lonely, and not good enough even though we try to hide it. But God! He sends us miners. He uses them to uncover the dirt, our hurt, and our disappointments, one layer at a time. Sometimes it is a long hard process. But when the miners are sent by God, they know that diamonds are worth it, that they are rare and that ultimately the diamond will shine! Make sure the people you surround yourself with are miners who know your worth and are willing to help you shine! Click on FOOD FOR SOUL and see why in God’s eyes we are diamonds.  Please share. Much Love…..

 

 

So you are waiting for your Boaz. For most of us, waiting for anything is one of the hardest things to do. When it comes to God, we might as well get use to it. Sometimes He will give us what we want, when we want it. I love those times! However we must remember that God has a purpose for our lives, and He is concerned about every area of our life. This includes our Boaz ladies. So when we say we are waiting, we should not actually be waiting. You probably say that doesn’t make sense. What I mean is we should go about our Father’s business and be focused on him. Let Him woo and love on us. Let him remake and shape us. Let him prepare us for our Boaz. God is a good Father. He knows exactly what we need and He is more than willing to give it to us. In his time, when we are ready. And trust, his time is always better than our time. When we focus on God, He’s not only going to take care of us but he will also give us the desires of our heart. There is nothing wrong with the desire to have a Boaz. It’s a natural thing. God shaped us and molded us in this way. Our human nature longs to love and be loved. My belief is that God has someone for each of us. Just as he prepares us, he also has to prepare our Boaz. God’s not going to give us no mess! We do that when we don’t wait on God or try to prepare (change) someone who we think is our Boaz. If the wait seems long, it’s either we’re not ready or he’s not ready. Trust in God’s timing.

 So are you waiting for your Boaz? Notice I did not ask are you looking for your Boaz. There is a difference. We should not be looking according to God’s word. I say again, we should not be looking! Adam walked in the garden with God. I can’t even image how peaceful that was. However, God said it was not good that man should be alone. He took one of Adam’s ribs and made woman. He did not create woman and then from her create man. The scripture say’s, “ He who finds a wife finds a good thing.” That’s it ladies, he will find us! And while we wait, let’s bloom where God has planted us. While we wait, let’s dance with God. He will let the perfect one cut in, in His perfect timing. And my brothers the same applies while you wait for your Proverbs 31 woman! I really hope this encourages someone while waiting. Be sure to read what God says on this issue, click on Food For The Soul. Please like and share. Much Love……

 

 

 

When I really think about it, all my life I have been blessed. My childhood was good; we didn’t have much, probably considered poor by some. But we were never hungry, clothes may not have been expensive but we were always clean. Our basic needs were met. My father was a pastor so we attended church every Sunday. I was taught if you went to church, obeyed the commandments, and was a good person, you would not have any problems. So I was good. I never messed with drugs or broke the law. I married young but if I’m to be honest I was blessed even then, I was never abused or mistreated in any way. In spite of us being young we raised an awesome son and even when the marriage ended, when it came to our son, we were together. Our son never gave us any problems. I had been self-employed since the age of seventeen. And any job I did work, I excelled. I’m not saying life didn’t happen but when it did, it always worked out for me. I was never sick. I always helped anybody I could. It sounds like I’m bragging, right? I’m not. It’s the truth. The problem here is that I believed I was blessed because I was good.

So when the storms came and they just kept coming until I found myself in the wilderness, I wanted to know why this was happening to me. I was good. And not like before, nothing I did could get myself out. Things just kept getting worse. I was sick, could not work and eventually lost everything I owned. So I was mad, yes mad at God. I was good. I went to church every Sunday. I helped people. Oh yes, I alternated from being angry to depressed. I did a lot of talking with God. It took a while but God showed me how wrong I was. It was in the wilderness that I really began to understand about God’s mercy and grace. Jesus speaks a parable where two men went into the temple to pray; one of them thanked God that he was not like other men who did bad things, he talked about how he followed the law, in other words how good he was. The other man who did not look up because he believed he was unworthy, he asked God for mercy because he was a sinner. Jesus said it was this man who was justified because he did not praise himself and he was humble. (Luke 18:9-14). Before the wilderness I was like the first man. All those years I thought I deserved his goodness when the reality is I am not worthy. Because of Jesus, everyone gets the same mercy and grace, the good, the bad and the ugly. It is a gift. It is not what we do or how good we are. Grace is God’s unmerited favor and it goes beyond mercy. Mercy is God not giving us the punishment that we deserve for our sins. I thank God for showing me favor, grace and mercy most of my life. I thank Him for the wilderness because it was there that I received a renewed understanding of His love. Sometimes with people we feel if we don’t say or do the right things, or we don’t behave the way they want us to they may not love us. Before the wilderness that is how I thought it was with God. I still strive every day to be good. The difference is now it is not so I can receive God’s mercy and grace. That is a gift that God being God gives to whomever he pleases, whether they are good or bad. God knows nobody is perfect, and he knows we have all fallen short of his glory. I strive to be good not so God will love me, God loves us unconditionally. I do it because he has been so good to me and I love HIM. Please read and study today’s scriptures in Food For The Soul. God’s Word can explain it much better than I can.

Our role is to simply love God and each other. The Lord our God’s role is to save us and give us a purpose that extends beyond our small vision of the world. I’m not perfect, I am flawed, we all are. However as we follow Jesus daily, He transforms us while using us to encourage others as we share His love and truth. My desire is to be obedient and follow God’s will for my life. It’s not always easy, sometimes He will take us out of our comfort zone or we will lose people from our lives. That is why it is important to stay close to Him and His Word. The Word protects us, gives us peace, and also gives us a weapon to fight the enemy with. The enemy hates it when we say, as Jesus did, “It is written”.

We all want to be happy, but sometimes trying to find happiness can be a struggle. We search for happiness in all the wrong places or ways. We convince ourselves that life will be better after we find the right man/woman, when we finish school, or once we go back to school, when we get that dream house or car, when we get married, after we are divorced, once we lose 10 pounds, once we gain 10 pounds, when we have a baby, when the kids leave home, when we go on vacation or better yet when we retire. I could go on and on about how we tell ourselves life will be complete after or when. The truth is true happiness is a gift from God. Accept it and you will find there is no better time to be happy than right now! I’ll share with you one of my favorite quotes;

                                  Happiness is a Journey, Not a Destination.

For a long time it seemed to me

That Life Was About To Begin-Real Life.

But There Was Always Some Obstacle In The

Way, Something To Be Gotten Through

First, Some Unfinished Business,

Time Still To Be Served, A Debt To Be Paid.

At Last It Dawned On Me That These

Obstacles Were My Life.

This Perspective Has Helped Me

To See There Is No Way To Happiness.

HAPPINESS IS THE WAY.

So Treasure Every Moment

You Have And Remember that

Time Waits For No One.

Alfred d. Souza

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love Bible study, each time I study the Word, there is new revelations. I’m sure you have heard “God will never give me more than I can handle.” It sounds good but the Bible does not teach that. Some use 1 Corinthians 10:13 to back up this “Christian teaching.” But is that what Paul meant when he wrote: “God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear?” If you read the full passage 1-13, and put it in context, the topic is temptation and being prepared to resist it. Paul encouraged believers in Corinth to practice strict spiritual discipline as he did. Paul elaborates on what we should do instead of giving into temptation and falling into sin. The real promise of 1 Corinthians 10:13 is that God will never allow us to be tempted to sin beyond what we can resist. God always gives us a way out, a choice. So does God give us more than we can handle? Yes he does. Paul also wrote 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 and Paul explains that God allowed him and allows us to experience trials and difficulties, grief and pain, and sometimes more than we can bear. Why? So that we will rely on God and not on our own strength and power. When we are unable to deliver ourselves, God is able. When we are unable to stand up under the pressure, it will be God’s strength in us that allows us to stand. God does not promise that He will never give us more than we can handle. God promises that He will hold out His hand and tell us to lean on Him. I don’t know about you but I like that promise better because I know I cannot lean onto my own understanding or strength. Don’t take my word for it, click on “Food for the Soul” and see what God’s Word says.

I woke up this morning feeling pain. My first thought was thank you Lord that I can feel. So I spoke it out loud. Then I rolled over Lupus, Fibro, and RA and got out of bed. I am growing. What you think and do really affects the way you feel, spiritually and scientifically it has been proven! My name is not what I have been diagnosed with, my name is Curleen. I am a child of God. My Father says I can have what I say. Therefore I say; I have eternal and abundant life. I walk in complete and total health, prosperity and wholeness. Disorder and confusion are bound from me and my steps, thoughts, and words are ordered of the Lord. I am calm and full of peace. I have the spirit of boldness and follow God not man. The Holy Spirit and angels are with me and order things in my life for good. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me and victory is mine! That is what I say. What do you say?

I look at my life in chapters, for example my life before my mother’s stroke and my life as her caregiver after the stroke. Looking back I know God sustained me even then, but that is not the chapter I want to talk about now. I want to talk about my life after my wilderness experience. I came out of the wilderness a better person. One of the blessings I have now that I did not have before and during the wilderness is peace. This peace I have now I would not trade for anything. It has changed my life. I believe the secret of peace is our relationship with Jesus Christ. To trust in Jesus is peace. This peace goes beyond logic and understanding. I had heard that before and now I am experiencing it. It is an awesome feeling! You have that inner confidence that God is in control. Things like sickness, financial difficulties, or danger may be present, but peace reassures you that God holds our life in His hands and we can trust things will work together for good. My prayer for everyone today is that as the apostle Paul said, “May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way.”

Sometimes the battle is in our mind. It doesn’t matter what emotional battles we face, when we tap into the wisdom of the Word of God and power into the Holy Spirit, we are guaranteed to win! We do not have to be victims of emotional outrage, jealousy, hate, pride, to name a few. None of these things are of Christ. We are more than conquerors because of Christ’s great love for us. God wants us to conquer our emotional issues. If we wallow in the anger or depression, we miss out on the gift that we have been created to be. We have to be committed to being the best you that you can be. God needs us to be a living testimony of joy and peace when the world is falling apart. We have to realize that our life is not about us; our life is about serving God and revealing HIS character to the world.