November 21, 2024

Joy To The World

December 21, 2015 by

phssChristmasgraphic2014
Joy to the World , the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love

Pentatonix
Written by Isaac Watts ~ Music composed by Handel

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He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
Luke 19:40 ESV

Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
Let the sea roar, and all its fullness;
Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it.
Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the Lord.
Psalms 96:11-13 NJKV

Joy

Defined by Merriam-Webster as:
1a) the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires : delight
b) the expression or exhibition of such emotion : gaiety
2- a state of happiness or felicity : bliss
3- a source or cause of delight

Based on these definitions, joy is something to be achieved, and is fleeting or short-lived.  But is that how the Bible defines joy?

Let’s start with where our joy come from. Psalm 16:11 NASB says

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

Jesus is our joy!  His birth makes it possible to have constant permanent joy in our lives though the Holy Spirit.  Look at these Scriptures:

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in Him
Romans 15:13 HCSB

But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is…joy
Galatians 5:22 AMP

…the joy supplied by the Holy Spirit;
1 Thessalonians 1:6 AMP

And the disciples were continually filled with joy
Acts 13:52 NASB

When we believed in Jesus…when our ‘hearts prepared room’ for Him…the Holy Spirit entered our hearts and joy is one of the many fruits He provided.

 Joy is within us – continual joy.

Jesus’ birth is the beginning of constant, permanent joy in our lives. Our joy is not tied to our emotions or our circumstances. Our joy is tied directly to our Savior, Jesus Christ, and our relationship with Him.  Joy lives within us.

God brought joy to the world in the form of an infant named Jesus. That joy is still with us today. As Luke 19:40 says, even if we remain silent, the stones will cry out.  Psalm 96:11 reminds us that even heaven and earth sing.

Shouldn’t we, too, then ‘repeat the sounding joy’
as we celebrate ‘the wonders of His love’?

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A Little Hope

November 23, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

Well it’s safe to say we’ve probably never met
Even still if a betting man was I I’d bet
Every single one of us have found ourselves
Standing in the storms of life soaking wet

But do not fret, chin up my friend
A little bit of rain is not how this thing ends
But sometimes we forget so if you understand
Let me see those hands, ’cause

Everybody needs a little hope
You know the kind that turns your grey skies blue
A little something that’ll pull you through
Well good news that something’s living right inside of you

Yeah Hope
It makes you smile when world says don’t
It keeps you dancing even when life won’t
And when the music’s gone keep singing
‘Cause what you’ve got is hope

Now maybe you’re thinking ‘yeah, nice try’
But you do not know me you don’t know the things I hide
Well I’ve walked that road and I’ve felt that pain
We are all the same

Come and you’ll find rest
This hope is bigger than your regrets
Bring your worst
Bring your best
And all God’s people said 

MercyMe
Written by Bart Millard, Christopher Stevens, & Bryan Fowler

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Now may the God of hope
fill you with all joy and peace
as you believe in Him
so that you may overflow with hope
by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 HCSB

My soul, wait in silence for God only,
For my hope is from Him.
Psalm 62:5 NASB

Christ Jesus, our Hope
1 Timothy 1:1a NASB

This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls….
Hebrews 6:19 NLT

“Everybody needs a little hope.”

Now, isn’t that the truth?  I don’t know about y’all, but I need hope even when things are going well.  Hope keeps me moving forward.  Hope lifts my spirits. But, I have to check the source of my hope.  We can put our hope in a job, a relationship, a new home, new clothes, etc.  These things can give us hope, but it is only fleeting.  There is only one true source of —Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 1:1). God alone is the Author of our hope.   The only way we are continually filled with His hope is through the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13). Because of the Holy Spirit, Hope is living right inside of us!

I love how Hebrews 6:19 describes hope— ‘a strong and trustworthy anchor’.  I picture a small boat being rocked by huge waves, tossed to & fro by strong winds, held firmly in place by an anchor.   When we are tossed about by life’s struggles, when circumstances threaten to overwhelm us, our Almighty Anchor of Hope holds our souls firmly in place.  That Anchor of Hope will pull us through the trials and tragedies of this life.  That is enough to make me:

smile when the world says “don’t”
keep dancing even when life won’t
keep singing when the music is gone

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Hope During Affliction

April 16, 2015 by

Many of you have gone on Spring Break or are anticipating taking a vacation this summer.  It is a time to refresh spirit, soul, and body.  Over the next couple of weeks, our faithful bloggers will be taking a ‘spring break’ from writing so that they can come back to us refreshed and freshly anointed.
However, Girlfriends’ Coffee Hour website won’t ‘go black’!  We will be revisiting some of our favorite blogs and daily devotions which have blessed us in the past.  We pray that each of you, our faithful friends and readers, will continue to start your day meditating on the devotionals and songblogs, and be encouraged and blessed.

Let’s give each of our bloggers a big round of applause, a hug,
and the rest they so deserve.  God bless you, ladies!

SeekingHimLogo

Remember Your word to Your servant;
You have given me hope through it.
This is my comfort in my affliction.
Psalm 119:49-50a HCSB

This passage reminds me of Roman 12:12 NIV; in fact, it seems to me this passage provides the reason we are urged to be “…joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer…”.

What is hope?

  • Bakers Evangelical Dictionary – to trust in, wait for, to expect something beneficial
  • Strong’s Concordance – a strong and mighty trust, actively waiting

God’s Word gives us hope.  We trust in the Scriptures.  They are the foundation of our hope and should be the only source of our hope.  We can be assured God will never disappoint the hope He has given us.  Take a look at these two verses:

Fully satisfied and assured that God was able and mighty to keep His word
and to do what He had promised.
Romans 4:21 AMP

So let us seize and hold fast and retain without wavering the hope we cherish
and confess and our acknowledgement of it,
for He Who promised is reliable (sure) and faithful to His word.
Hebrews 10:23 AMP

We are to have hope even in times of affliction.

So, what is affliction?

  • Holman Bible Dictionary – the state of being pained or distressed
  • Strong’s Concordance – persecution tribulation, distress, pressure

His Word comforts and sustains us in times of affliction. Check this out:

For whatever was written in the past was written for our instruction,
so that we may have hope through endurance
and through the encouragement from the Scriptures.
Romans 15:4 HCSB

His Word was written for OUR instruction.  We are to have a strong and mighty trust in His Word as we actively wait during times of pain, distress, and pressure.  When we do so, we can be confident that:

…the God of hope (will) fill you with all joy and peace,
as you believe in Him so that you may overflow with hope
by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 HCSB

I think one of my favorite verses sums up what happens when we hold tight to hope during times of affliction.

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Psalm 27:13 NIV

Continue to expect something beneficial in the future, especially during times of trouble, and you will see the goodness of the Lord.

He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.
1 Thessalonians 5:24

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Father God, we are so thankful we have Your hope to hold on to, especially in the trying times of life.  Help us actively wait with a strong and mighty trust in You, knowing we will eventually see Your goodness come through.  In Your precious and Holy name we pray – Amen, it is so!

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JOY

December 17, 2014 by

gchSHadventjoygraphic

You know when you have a lack of joy in your life.  I would say right now is such a time for me.  I am desperately in need of some joy.  Joy gives you true motivation to sanely make it through each day.  It’s what makes it easier to get out of bed. It is closely related to hope and peace.  If you are not at peace then it is hard maintain joy and hope.

My pastor says you choose joy. I believe this is true. Which means that the lack of joy I am experiencing right now is my own doing.  However, I’m lacking the motivation to do anything about my current situation.  You could say that I am weary—I’m tired and I just want a break from life.

Romans 15:13 is my prayer.

“Maythe God of hope fill {me} with all joy and peace as {I} trust in Him,
so that {I} may overflow with hope by the power of His Holy Spirit.”

See how closely related joy, peace, and hope are?  Joy, hope and peace are all things that are only possible when we keep our eyes firmly focused on God.  And even though sometimes we may get weary of doing right and good, pushing forward through our feelings is the way to go.  The Bible clearly tells us…

“Let us not become weary in doing good,
for at the proper time we will reap a harvest
if we do not give up.”
Galatians 6:9

My pastor says, do what you do know to do when you don’t know what to do.  And above all honesty helps…honesty and friends.

Filed Under: Seeking Him Daily Devotional Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hope During Affliction

October 16, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

Remember Your word to Your servant;
You have given me hope through it.
This is my comfort in my affliction.
Psalm 119:49-50a HCSB

This passage reminds me of Roman 12:12 NIV; in fact, it seems to me this passage provides the reason we are urged to be“…joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer…”.

What is hope?

  • Bakers Evangelical Dictionary – to trust in, wait for, to expect something beneficial
  • Strong’s Concordance – a strong and mighty trust, actively waiting

God’s Word gives us hope. We trust in it. It is the foundation of our hope and should be the only source of our hope. We can be assured God will never disappoint the hope He has given us. Take a look at these two verses:

Fully satisfied and assured that God was able and mighty to keep His word
and to do what He had promised.
Romans 4:21 AMP

So let us seize and hold fast and retain without wavering the hope we cherish
and confess and our acknowledgement of it,
for He Who promised is reliable (sure) and faithful to His word.
Hebrews 10:23 AMP

We are to have hope even in times of affliction.

So, what is affliction?

  • Holman Bible Dictionary – the state of being pained or distressed
  • Strong’s Concordance – persecution tribulation, distress, pressure

His Word comforts and sustains us in times of affliction. Check this out:

For whatever was written in the past was written for our instruction,
so that we may have hope through endurance
and through the encouragement from the Scriptures.
Romans 15:4 HCSB

His Word was written for OUR instruction. We are to have a strong and mighty trust in His Word as we actively wait during times of pain, distress, and pressure. When we do so, we can be confident in this:

…the God of hope (will) fill you with all joy and peace,
as you believe in Him so that you may overflow with hope
by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 HCSB

I think one of my favorite verses sums up what happens when we hold tight to hope during times of affliction.

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Psalm 27:13 NIV

Continue to expect something beneficial in the future, especially during times of trouble, and you will see the goodness of the Lord.

He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.
1 Thessalonians 5:24

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Father God, we are so thankful we have Your hope to hold on to, especially in the trying times of life. Help us actively wait with a strong and mighty trust in You, knowing we will eventually see Your goodness come through. In Your precious and Holy name we pray – Amen, it is so!

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Little Ol’ Me

October 3, 2014 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

 

Well I was just a kid coming up those steps
All dressed up in my Sunday best
Learning to sing, learning to stand
Right in the front, holding mamma’s hand
I still remember listening to my dad
Even if I didn’t always understand
Cause deep in his heart, deep in his soul
There was a fire that I wanted to know
And those memories are still burning brightly
Oh Jesus how I love the way You’re writing my life

However could it be, to have a part in your story
Bigger than what I can see, little old me, little old me
I may not know Your plan but I’m safe here in Your hands
Cause I know that You believe, in little old me, little old me

Walking through the halls on my way to class
Caught my reflection in the trophy glass
Who was this girl, trying to be
And who in the world is she trying to please
Suddenly ignited by a spark I hear my Savior’s voice speaking right to my heart
“Don’t give up now, and don’t be afraid, you know who you are,
you got something to say”
And those memories are still burning brightly
Oh Jesus how I love the way You’re writing my life

Turning the page, I’m up on stage
But I’m still a kid in a lot of ways
So many dreams, that are coming true
But Lord when they see me, I hope they see You
Nothing but You
(God I know, I know You got big plans for me)
Little old me, little old me

Singer/Songwriter: Jamie Grace Harper along with Morgan H. Nichols, Juan Otero, Joel Parisien
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“Suddenly ignited by a spark I hear my Savior’s voice speaking right to my heart, ‘Don’t give up now, and don’t be afraid, you know who you are…’ “

Do we REALLY believe who God says we are??  Would we walk our walk with Him differently…fully confident with our head held high KNOWING we are more than conquerors??  God never meant for us to be living a defeated life and walking around in despair.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
Romans 8:31 NIV

As long as we have God on our side there is never a reason to lose hope in any situation.  Our hope is in Him.

I pray that God, the Source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace
because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope
through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 NLT

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Heavenly Father, may we never lose sight of the hope that we have in You and knowing with full confidence that ‘if You are for us WHO can be against us’.  Thank You for the promise in Jesus’ name.  AMEN!!!!

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Sacrifices and Joy

June 3, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love
and His wonderful deeds for mankind.
Let them sacrifice thank offerings
and tell of His works with songs of joy.
Psalms 107:21-22

When one reads the Bible and thinks of sacrifice, they probably think about animal sacrifices to God.  However, most cultures do not do animal sacrifices anymore.  It is, in today’s modern world, an outdated practice in most cultures. Yet there are other ways to make sacrifices for God’s glory.

As parents, we sacrifice our time to raise Godly children.  We sacrifice our time to ensure that our children know who God is when we could be doing something else.  We sacrifice our own wants and wants of the flesh to bring glory to God through serving at church or in other capacities, working in various ministries, etc.  These are  just some ways we do “sacrifice thank offerings”—by giving up our own time to serve Him in some capacity.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 15:13

When we accept Christ or witness others accept Christ, we are filled with joy.  We are joyful that one of the lost has found their way back into God’s arms again.  We take that same joy and tell of God’s great works and miracles through song and praise.  We tell of His wondrous life and works with joy to anybody who is yearning to hear His story of peace and redemption.  We become filled with the hope that the Holy Spirit brings us.  We spread this hope and joy and peace through sacrificing our time and selfish human desires to serve and worship God.

“My son,” the father said, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.
But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead
and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”
Luke 15:31-32

As in this parable about the prodigal son, the father had made great sacrifices to provide for his family.  He gave the one son his inheritance who then squandered it.  But, when that son returned home, the father was overjoyed.  In this parable, we can see God as making sacrifices for us, those who choose to ignore Him and refuse to follow Him.  However, when we come back to Him and accept Christ, He is overjoyed.  We are alive again, and we can tell of the great joy and miracles that God brings us through voice and song.

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Dear Heavenly Father, we are overjoyed that You love us.  We sing with joy of the wonderful blessings You give us and of the miracles You perform.  May we be strong witnesses of Your love and grace.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Restless

February 25, 2014 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

~  Listen while you read, please!  ~

I am the sea on a moonless night calling falling, slipping tides
I am the leaky, dripping pipes; the endless, aching drops of lights
I am the raindrop falling down always longing for the deeper ground
I am the broken, breaking seas even my blood finds ways to bleed
Even the rivers ways to run, even the rain to reach the sun
Even my thirsty streams, even in my dreams

I am restless…I am restless…I am restless
I’m looking for You
I am restless…I run like the ocean to find Your shore
I’m looking for You

I am the thorn stuck in your side, I am the one that you left behind
I am the dried up doubting eyes looking for the well that won’t run dry
Running hard for the other side, the world that I’ve always been denied
Running hard for the infinite with the tears of saints and hypocrites
Oh, blood of black and white and grey; oh, death in life and night in day
One by one by one, we let our rivers run

I can hear You breathing
I can feel You leading
More than just a feeling, more than just a feeling
I can feel You reaching
Pushing through the ceiling
‘Til the final healing
I’m looking for You

Until the sea of glass we meet, at last completed and complete
Where tide and tear and pain subside and laughter drinks them dry

I’ll be waiting
Anticipating
All that I aim for
What I was made for
With every heartbeat
All of my blood bleeds
Running inside me
I’m looking for You, looking for You, looking for You….

~  Performed by SwitchFoot ~

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Restless … that’s how I felt at the age of 22 in my deepest, darkest pit of despair with no hope.  You want to know why?  Because nothing, absolutely nothing, can satisfy the human heart except the One who made it.  Jesus is the ONLY One that can fill those empty places.

Just as Proverbs 13:12 tells us:
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

Those who have hope in Him have found a Tree of Life…Jesus is my Hope!

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 15:13 ESV

God was searching for me in that dark place and I was searching for Him.  The only One who could satisfy what I was longing for and give me a love unlike anything I had ever known!

A longing fulfilled is sweet to the soul
Proverbs 13:19 NIV

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Let me pray for you:
Heavenly Father, I pray for each and every lady reading this who is out there searching…longing for something.  I pray that they would come to the revelation knowledge that the only thing that can satisfy what they are longing for is You. Father, I thank You that You are always longing for us and that You love us so much that You never give up on us even in the darkest of places.  Father, thank You for Your unconditional, redeeming love.  In Jesus’ name, Amen!!!

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God-Given Joy

December 27, 2013 by

SeekingHimLogo

Each week during the season of Advent, our blogs will focus on a central theme which is associated with the coming of Christ—His Advent.  This final week’s theme is JOY.  Christians throughout the world celebrate Advent.  Some light candles or sing songs; some give gifts or  hang wreaths.  All of these are simple joyous ways of extending the celebration of Jesus’s coming beyond a mere 24 hours on December 25. Our prayer is that these devotionals throughout this season of Advent would help you to celebrate His first Coming and anticipate with the peace and joy of His second Coming.

I’m sitting here thinking about joy  and what it truly means. I have read books, watched videos, and talked to people about the concept of joy and what it really means to be joyful, or to have joy, or to even fully understand the word joy.

The words joy and happiness are oftentimes used interchangeably, but I think it’s so much more than simple happiness. We’re happy opening presents, we’re happy when our family and friends are over to celebrate. This is great! But happiness is a temporary emotion, a feeling that can leave us once something goes differently than we planned. But joy is something different….

After all the looking and researching I learned that joy isn’t simply something that I can find. It isn’t the contents inside of a gift…it isn’t something I can find in a job well done. Even though I can’t touch joy, I can embrace it. I can embrace it because it is something that is given to us—something that we, as children of God, have been given a right to.

To me joy is a feeling in my heart and mind that no matter what happens in my life, that everything will be okay. I have joy in knowing that I am loved with the most unconditional love by the Creator of everything. Growing up I always heard that our joy is something that no man can ever take, that Satan can never take; this is because joy is God-given, and what God gives us can never, ever  be touched. Joy is ours.
What is joy to you?

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials….
James 1:2

* * * * *

Let’s pray: Dear Heavenly Father, so many things are temporary in this world.  They come and they go, but the joy that we are given by You can never be taken away. Lord, please open our hearts and minds to what joy truly is. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

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Life’s Healing Choices: Chapter 7 – Maintaining Momentum (pp 205-208)

February 18, 2013 by

Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will.

______________

So if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!
1 Corinthians 10:12

This week we are going to focus on maintaining momentum on this road to recovery.  If you don’t keep your guard up, and allow God to be in control, you could relapse.  Many think the word relapse is only for the alcoholic who has taken a drink or the drug addict who went back to the street drugs.  Relapse simply means to fall or slide back into a former state.  This could be anything – anger, guilt, depression, overeating – whatever your hurt, habit, or hang-up is.  Chapters 7 and 8 help us to live out our recoveries for the rest of our lives.  It is time to look back at the previous weeks and see that we are no longer in denial…we have made our inventory of the hurts, habits, and hang-ups in our lives…we have done our best at making amends…and now we have the desire to grow closer to Jesus Christ who has brought us through the fire. Sit back and realize the growth you have each made in the past weeks and the healing God has done.  Be proud of how hard you have worked and the freedom you are beginning to feel.

In our book, John Baker outlines four predictable patterns of relapse:

Ø  Complacency

Ø  Confusion

Ø  Compromise

Ø  Catastrophe

First, relapse begins when we become comfortable.  When we have talked with others regarding our issues, begun working through them, have made amends and feel we are making some steps forward—we begin to become comfortable.  How many of you have had a cold or flu and received medication for 10 days from the doctor?  After six days you begin feeling back to normal.  So what do we do? We stop taking the medication, we keep on our regular routine and three days later we relapse.  We then wonder what happened?  Why did the medicine not work?  Just as with good medicine, continuing to seek the Lord daily, keeping up with our prayer and Bible reading tim,e and talking with our trusted friend will help us keep our focus on the race, so we can, like Timothy, say: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith”  2 Timothy 4:7.

If we start becoming too comfortable and do not immediately get back on track, we can move into the second phase—confusion.  We can begin rationalizing and thinking, “Maybe it wasn’t that bad,” or “Maybe I can do this myself.” When I look back at the 35 years I was in the alternative lifestyle, I lost count of how many times I rationalized or tried to walk away on my own.  Either I would rationalize that the lifestyle was not wrong and I could continue, or I would try to walk away with no help.  I did not want to ask for any help and I did not think I needed God’s help.  After all I was an independent, hard-working person that could take care of me.  Wrong!!! Every time I attempted to walk away on my own, I fell right back into the tangled mess.

Then what do we do? Go right back to the place where temptations are the strongest.  We compromise and go frequent the bars, back to the internet, down the cookie and donut aisle, back to the one person or place that was unsafe to our healing.  It may start with little things, oh, just one drink – just one website – just one pull on the slot machine – just one cup of coffee with that one person.  Then before we know it, the snowball becomes an avalanche.  We are spinning into…

CATASTROPHE!! 

The time where we actually go right back to the old hurts, habits, and hang-ups.  The anger, resentments, depression, guilt, and shame come back.  We go back to the old catalyst that was controlling our lives.

Each time I tried on my own to walk away from the lifestyle I would be strong at first.  My anger toward that person drove me to be determined to succeed.  I was in control – I could do this!! I would go to church, because in my heart I knew what I was doing was wrong.  Each time I was at church the message was just for me.  Ever been there?  I just knew all those around me and my pastor knew exactly where I was and what I was trying to walk away from.  I would start feeling stronger, so I would work harder, take care of my boys harder, clean my home harder – all I was doing were actions to avoid really dealing with the root.  I still thought – “I can do this!!”

Then when things started stabilizing and I felt stronger, I would slip away from church, continue to work hard, but not so hard on walking away – just avoidance.  This is when the enemy loves to mess with us.  I would think, “‘Well, maybe this isn’t wrong.  After all society is more accepting.  My friends are still my friends, maybe I will just make one call.  Just to see how they are doing…I mean, I am just showing how I care about someone.”

CATASTROPHE!!

I walked right back into my avalanche.  Next thing I knew, I was full-blown back into the lifestyle I had thought – “I can do this!!”

When life had come to the point that I was tired of trying on my own, I realized I needed help to make this stick.  My desire was to walk away from the gay lifestyle into a life close to God.  How was I going to do that?  First, I turned to trusted individuals who would listen and be strong in keeping me in God’s word.  I had to reserve a daily time with Him.

Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Mark 14:38

I had to spend that time alone, listening to what the Lord would say to me.  Praying and asking His guidance and direction to stay away from being comfortable. “But if not, then listen to me; be silent, and I will teach you wisdom” Job 33:33.   Daily, I would put on His armor (Ephesians 6:10-18) so I would not compromise or walk back into my areas of temptation.  Finally, as I listened, prayed, spent time in His word and with Him I started seeing the healing He was bringing into my life.  I would then spend time rejoicing with Him and sharing with others the joy He brought into my life.  I am thankful He allows me to continue to serve Him and tell others of His testimony in my life.  As you continue on this journey I will leave you today with one additional scripture:

Romans15_13

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Let’s Pray:

Father, we come to You today so thankful for Your love and grace in our lives.  We admit we have tried so many times to do this changing on our own.  Today we are laying this burden at Your feet, we need Your help, so we do not get comfortable or begin to compromise our lives.  Remind us, Lord, to walk closely to You daily, listen to Your voice, seek Your direction, pray for healing, and rejoice as You bring us through the fire.  Lord, we pray Your word that we may be filled with joy and peace, that we may trust in You, and we thank You for the hope we have by the power of Your Holy Spirit.  Again, we give all glory and honor to You, Father.  In Jesus Name, Amen!

Your Assignment:

Throughout this study we have talked about spending quiet time with Him.  Have you developed that quiet time?  Also, do you take the time to rejoice through the victories, no matter how small?  If so, please share with us how you have done that.

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If you would like to send a private message to Laurie in regards to this blog, please email her at Laurie@girlfriendscoffeehour.com

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