"Even when I am afraid, I keep trusting you" (Psalm 56:3 CEV)

"Even when I am afraid, I keep trusting you" (Psalm 56:3 CEV). Notice this verse says, "when I am afraid" not "if I am afraid." We may want a life of no fears in this world but that only happens in heaven. In this life, we're all going to face fears of one kind or another. In all of these situations, you have a choice to make. Are you going to let the fear control you or are you going to take a risk of faith because you know you have a God who loves you?

Saint Theresa's Prayer

Image by flemming. d5000 via FlickrMay today there be peace within.

May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.

Let His presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.

There Comes a Point!

There comes a point in your life when you realize:

Who matters,
Who never did,
Who won't anymore...
And who always will.
So, don't worry about people from your past,
there's a reason why they didn't make it to your future.

Share the Good News Where You Are

The clock is ticking down on your life mission, so don't delay another day. Get started on your mission of reaching out to others now! We will have all of eternity to celebrate with those we have brought to Jesus, but we only have our lifetime in which to reach them.

This does not mean you should quit your job to become a full-time evangelist. God wants you to share the Good News where you are. As a student, mother, preschool teacher, salesman, or manager or whatever you do, you should continually look for people God places in your path with whom you can share the gospel.

Resiliance

Go With God's Destiny for Your Life

God is not going to bless your plan. God did not put you on earth to live for yourself. He put you on earth for something much bigger than that. And when you go with his plan for your life, he will bless it.

Mary could sing about God's plan for her life because she was excited about it; even though it would cause her problems, people would misunderstand her, and she would be accused of wrongdoing, Mary trusted God. She knew God would bless her and that generations to come would remember what God did through her.


"From now on, every generation will call me blessed! For he, the Mighty One, is holy, and he has done great things for me. And God will show his mercy to every generation who will worship and serve him."

Trusting God is Good for Your Health

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5 NIV). Why is trusting in God good for your health? When you trust Him then you don't worry.

Psalm 116:7 says, "I said to myself, 'Relax, the Lord is going to take care of you'" (NCV). If you really trust in God, you're going to be less stressed.

You have a choice -
• You can either worry or worship.
• You can either pray or panic.

The more you pray, the less you'll panic. Relax, because God will take care of you!

The Bible says in Proverbs 14:30, "A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones" (NIV). It's not just what you eat that matters, it's what eats you. You can have all the right macrobiotics and organic food, but if your body is filled with resentment, worry, fear, lust, guilt, anger, bitterness, or any other emotional disease, it's going to shorten your life.

Ask God to Help You Get Where You Want to Be

Getting where you want to be in life is simple: ask God to help you.
Step #1 - Determine your present position
Step #2 - Be specific about what you want
Step #3 - Look for God's promiseStep #4 -- Ask God to help you

Once you have found your promise in God's Word, pray and ask God for success, just as Eliezer did in today's verse: "O Lord, God of my master, Abraham," he prayed. "Please give me success today, and show unfailing love to my master, Abraham." Genesis 24:12 (NLT)

Your prayers reveal a couple of things. First, they reveal how serious you are about your goals. If you don't pray about them, you really don't care about them that much. If you only pray about them once, they are not a desire, they are just a whim.

The other thing your prayers reveal is how much you are depending on God to reach your goals. If you never pray about your goals, never pray about your job, never pray about your finances, you are not depending on God in any of those areas. The more you depend on God, the more you'll pray.

So determine your present position, decide what you want, find a promise from God to hold onto, claim it, and then ask God for help.

Our Future is Secured

We don't serve God out of guilt or fear or even duty, but out of joy, and deep gratitude for what he's done for us. We owe him our lives. Through salvation our past has been forgiven, our present is given meaning, and our future is secured.

Four "Hearing Aids" for Listening to God's Word

From "Purpose Driven Connection""

James says there are four "hearing aids" that help us receive the Word of God --

1. Be careful. "Be quick to listen, slow to speak ..."(James 1:19 NIV)I must have a careful attitude. Many of our problems are caused because we're quick to speak rather than being quick to listen. Be ready. Be intent to receive God's Word.

2. Be calm. "And slow to become angry ..." (James 1:19 NIV) Be calm if you're going to receive God's Word and be blessed by it. A relaxed attitude increases receptivity. If you're relaxed, people can communicate with you more. We don't hear much when we're angry, upset, bitter, or resentful. Bitterness is a barrier, an emotional block that keeps us from hearing God's Word. Some may ask, "How come God never speaks to me?" Maybe you've got some resentment in your life you need to get rid of.

3. Be clean. "Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent ..." (James 1:21 NIV) When you have a sin in your life, it blocks your hearing and prevents God's Word from getting into your heart. He says get rid of the evil, anything that we know that isn't right in our lives.
How can we be clean? By confession. "If we confess our sins, He's faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong." (1 John 1:9 NLT)

4. Be compliant. "Humbly accept the word of God planted in you ..." (James 1:21 NIV) Be teachable, yielded, humble, willing to be changed. Don't act like you know it all. If you know it all, God's Word can't get through to you.

Experience God in Nature

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Look For the Doors!

When you come to a wall, you can either climb it, or you can simply walk around until you find a door. Don't make life so hard, - look for the doors!

Conquer Your Fears

"The worst sorrows in life are not in its losses and misfortunes, but its fears."
-Arthur Christopher Benson

True Happiness

True happiness and joy comes from within. As we develop our trust and faith in God, our soul transforms us. Ssome slowly, some in an "AHA" moment. But it's a simple formula. God is love; love is happiness

Yet we continue to use crutches to feed our unhappiness; even solid Christians do this. Excuses of debt, excuses of health, excuses of relationships, and excuses of bad habits as to why they can't use this simple formula. But the formula is God.

Pray for courage. Pray for power. Allow God's love and happiness to unfold.within you. He will give you unlimited happiness.

Prayer of Thanks

Dear Lord, I thank You for this day, I thank You for being able to see and to hear this morning.

I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God.

You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me.

Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thoughtthat was not pleasing to you. I ask now for Your forgiveness.

Please keep me safe from all danger and harm.

Help me to start this day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude.

Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You.
Please broaden my mind that I can accept all things. Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over. And give me the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits.

I know that when I can't pray, You listen to my heart.

Continue to use me to do Your will.

Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others.

Keep me strong that I may help the weak...Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others.

I pray for those that are lost and can't find their way.

I pray for those that are misjudged and misunderstood.

I pray for those who don't know You intimately.

I pray for those that don't believe. But I thank You that I believe that God changes people and God changes things.

I pray for each and every family member in their households.

I pray for peace, love and joy in their homes; that they are out of debt and all their needs are met.

I pray others will know there is no problem, circumstance, or situation greater than God. Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight.

I pray that these words be received into the hearts of others in Jesus'
name.

For Strength in Stressful Times

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

1 Peter 5:10

Be confident in God's Word

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life. 1 John 5:13 (NASB)

"Thank God you don't have to work your way to heaven; if that were the case, none of us would make it."
The things written in God's Word are written so that you may know absolutely, for sure, for certain and with confidence that when you die you are going to heaven.

That doesn't mean you won't make mistakes. That doesn't mean you won't go through trials. That doesn't mean you won't disappoint people and they won't disappoint you. That doesn't mean you won't sin.

The point is - you don't have to be perfect to get to heaven, but you DO have to put your faith in Christ. Thank God you don't have to work your way to heaven; if that were the case, none of us would make it.

Jesus said, "I am the way ... . No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6, NIV) Put your faith in him, not in your efforts, and you can know for sure that heaven is your destination.

by Rick Warren

God Has My Back

When you persist through resistance you separate yourself from the pack and step on to the road less traveled. Keep focused on WHY you're doing what you do, know you are in a PROCESS and TRUST that the material rewards will come in their own time. The greatest reward is who you become by pursuing your dream!

I surrender the timing & outcome of my journey to GOD who ALWAYS has my back.

Move Ahead in Your Weakness

God waits for you to act first. Don't wait to feel powerful or confident. Move ahead in your weakness, doing the right thing in spite of your fears and feelings. This is how you cooperate with the Holy Spirit, and it is how your character develops.

Always Give Your Best

"People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered; forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives: Be kind anyway. What you spend years creating others could destroy overnight: Create anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway. Give the best you have, and it may never be enough: Give your best anyway. In the final analysis, it is between you and God: it was never between you and them anyway."

- Mother Teresa

The Power of the Holy Spirit

Mention the "power of the Holy Spirit," and many people think of miraculous demonstrations and intense emotions. But most of the time the Holy Spirit's power is released in your life in quiet, unassuming ways that you aren't even aware of or feel. He often nudges us with "a gentle whisper." (1 Kings 19:12 NIV)

Give Your Life to God While There's Still Time

Overcome Fear With Growth

"One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again."

- Abraham Maslow, was a very influential American psychologist.

Momentum, by Dave Ramsey

Dave Ramsey's Momentum Theorem provides an illustration of how God-applied momentum can bring sustaining peace to any obstacle in our way: It goes like this: Focused intensity over Time multiplied by God equals unstoppable Momentum.

Dave Ramsey deliver this talk at a church a while back. It is well worth checking out. Here is the first part of the message (it is broken into four parts).

Calm in the Chaos

I heard a song today that was a direct message from God. He weaved an answer to a prayer into an alarm clock awakening. God has me swimming in this chaos so that I will take action to achieve my lifelong dreams. Without chaos it would be easy to leave things as they are. It's tough to make a change when the current situation is so easy to stay within. But the chaos is my tipping point. Time to make it happen regardless of my comfort zone. He is there pushing me along, by my side, knowing that I will fully understand His plan when it is fulfilled. I have trust.

Surrender is the Ultimate Payoff

When we completely surrender ourselves to Jesus, we discover that he is not a tyrant but a savior; not a boss, but a brother; not a dictator, but a friend.

Surrender is the heart of worship

by Rick Warren

"...Give yourselves to God... surrender your whole being to him to be used for righteous purposes." Romans 6:13 (TEV).

The heart of worship is surrender. Surrender is not a popular word, disliked almost as much as the word submission. It implies losing, and no one wants to be a loser. Surrender evokes the unpleasant images of admitting defeat in battle, forfeiting a game, or yielding to a stronger opponent. The word is almost always used in a negative context. Captured criminals surrender to the authorities. 

In our competitive world we're taught to never quit trying, never give up, and never give in - so we don't hear much about surrendering. If winning is everything, surrendering is unthinkable. Yet, the Bible teaches us that rather than trying to win, succeed, overcome, and conquer, we should instead yield, submit, obey, and surrender.  

And by surrendering to God, we enter into the heart of worship. This is true worship: bringing pleasure to God as we give ourselves completely to Him. Surrendering is best demonstrated in obedience, cooperating with your Creator. You say, "Yes Lord" to whatever he asks of you.In fact, "No, Lord" is a contradiction. You can't claim Jesus as your Lord when you refuse to obey him. 

Peter modeled surrender when, after a night of failed fishing, Jesus told him to try again: "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." Surrendered people obey God's word, even when it doesn't make sense.God is not a cruel slave driver, or a bully who uses brute force to coerce us into submission. He doesn't try to break our will, but woos us to himself, so that we might offer it freely to him. God is a Lover and a Liberator, and surrendering brings freedom, not bondage. 

When we completely surrender ourselves to Jesus, we discover that he is not a tyrant but a savior; not a boss, but a brother; not a dictator, but a friend.