Tag Archives: Five Minute Friday

3 Steps to Help Doubt and Fear Disappear

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#FiveMinuteFriday!  Even though the word prompt is not in my title, 3 Steps to Help Doubt and Fear Disappear, it’s all over the 3 Steps! Be blessed and share away to encourage someone else.

It’s there. It looms in the background. Lurking, stalking, threatening to come back at any moment. You know it, you try to ignore it but it creeps, it saunters and before you know it you’re caught.

Doubt.

  • Uncertainty
  • Indecision
  • Hesitation
  • Suspicion
  • Confusion

And the ultimate…

Fear.

It’s the enemy’s business to keep us in this constant state: never progressing, never growing, never being all that God wants us to be in the Kingdom. It is not the will of God!

Take these 3 Steps to Help Doubt and Fear Disappear and apply them to your situation:

  • Praise and Quote Scripture

You may think it sounds elementary but friend, the Word of God is the  most powerful weapon on the planet! Take scriptures such as this one, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.'” Psalms 91:1, 2 NIV. (Actually the entire chapter of Psalm 91 is AMAZING.)

How is this for power: “See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to wreak havoc; no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you…” Isaiah 54:16-17.

Speak it, claim it, put your name in it!

  • Praise and Stay faithful. 

It’s so important when you are spiritually discouraged or confused to keep praying, keep going to church, keep studying the Word of God. In other words, keep doing what you know to be right. Know where your strength comes from and remind yourself, encourage yourself in the Lord! Yes, there’s scripture for that! “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.…” Jude 1:20, 21.

  • Praise and Keep trusting God

Yes, it’s that simple but sometimes seems so difficult in the midst of the trial. Keep trusting God. Depend on Him, talk to Him, rely on Him and remind yourself of His promises. Remind yourself you are His child and every promise in that book belongs to you as a child of the King. He has never failed and He never will.

His timing may not be your timing but it is the RIGHT TIMING for you!

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“But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me.” Psalms 12:5-6.

You notice how PRAISE proceeds each step? Praise is power. There is an old song we used to sing in church that goes,

“When the praises go up, the glory comes down.
Where sin used to dwell, grace now abounds.
There’s healing and hope, and love all around,
When the praises go up, the glory comes down.”

When you surrender, when you give Him glory, when you raise your hands to heaven and become a funnel for the power of God to come in and strengthen you, watch out! Your praise gets God’s attention, giving Him honor and acknowledging you recognize HE is all powerful and HE is in control, it is much easier to face difficult situations. Problems seem to fade as you allow the God of the universe to take over.

You can trust this God of ours.

Be encouraged and blessed as you praise God each and every day then those doubts and fears will disappear in Jesus’ name.

For the kingdom

 

When SHARING isn’t necessarily CARING

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#FiveMinuteFriday and the word prompt is SHARE. Today’s is a tough subject and I am preaching to ME! You all are welcome to listen in…

This isn’t just about gossip, although gossip is a huge problem.

This isn’t just about talking about our friends, family, co-workers, etc., but that is wrong too. We all are guilty.

I’m not just touching on the subject of “Oh, let me tell you about ‘Jim and Judy’ so you can ‘pray’ for them…”, when the time spent telling the prayer request could have been spent actually praying. Ouch.

I have been convicted over the time I have spent talking about needs or faults, and that time gets carried away and turns into counseling sessions where I think I can solve the other person’s problems…and they aren’t even there to benefit from my newly discovered knowledge.

The Lord reminded me of several things on the subject: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” 1 Corinthians 10:12 NKJV. Meaning it could very easily be ME that needs the help the next time. It could be ME that my friends are talking about next. Take heed! Be careful who you are talking about this week…or as the saying goes that we see so much of lately…

“Don’t judge others just because they sin differently than you…”

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And this gem:

“Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:5,6 NKJV.

Your gentleness. That seems Christ-like.  WWJD?

He would show mercy. He wouldn’t run and tell others. He would go straight to the one with the NEED. The one who had the problem. He would offer a helping hand.

What can we DO for them instead of talk about them? We can pray, make our requests known to God. Show them kindness, gentleness, love and extend mercy.

And if appropriate and necessary, go a step further:

  • Do they need assistance?
  • Do they need physical substance?
  • If the need is obvious, fill it!
  • If you aren’t sure, listen and let God tell you what to do.

The more I pray for the needs, and even sins, of my family, friends, co-workers and brothers and sisters in Christ, the less time I will have to pry and gossip.

I think HE will be more pleased with ME.

Be blessed.

Kingdom2

Discovering MIRACLES in the Mailbox

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Discovering Miracles in the Mailbox

It’s #FiveMinuteFriday and the prompt is DISCOVER. Join me for a for a personal flashback story!

My earliest memories at the mailbox go way back to my favorite mail lady, Sandra Sylvester (pronounced Saundra). She actually delivered the newspaper and her husband was our mailman, a wonderfully kind and humble gentleman was this U.S. postal employee. As nice as he was, it was the familiar sound of Sandra’s little VW bug coming up our hill, but still a few houses away, that would cause me to put down whatever I was doing, pause any fights with my little brothers and head for the mailbox/paperbox.

Sandra always had time to say, “Hello” and give away her lovely smile. She literally allowed Jesus to shine and I wanted what she had. I can remember running to the box when I heard her coming, not because I loved to read the paper, only thing good in it for my age at the time was “the funnies”. (For you youngsters, that is what we called the comics. For those younger than that, a newspaper, “what is black and white and read all over”, was how we discovered what was going on in the world and our town…before smart phones and apps!)

My excitement was not in The Herald Times, I wasn’t even a teenager yet. But Sandra always seemed to have time for me, for everyone, and the short time she spent talking to me seemed as if it were so much longer. I was always encouraged and felt as if a little heaven had stopped to visit. She literally glowed with the power of the Holy Spirit. Sadly, she was taken from this life all too young and too soon but her memory lives on in her beautiful family (my cousins) and those who loved her.

Some things you expect to see in your mailbox and others you dread:

  • Advertisements. No need to explain, we probably all stand at the trashcan and sort our mail, most of it is junk.
  • Collections. Bills, bills and more bills.
  • Solicitations. Mostly in the form of THIS IS NOT AN ACTUAL CHECK…but it could be if you want to pay 75% interest on a loan!
  • Samples. Isn’t it crazy how we could get excited over a half ounce of dishwasher detergent?
  • Cards. Okay, okay, let me explain this one too. Back in the day, people sent these little things we called greeting cards that wished you a happy birthday or anniversary, conveyed good thoughts about your illness or loss and even congratulated you on an accomplishment or a new home. Now, we have social media to save us from the $6/per card ridiculousness! (sarcasm is free)

But sometimes, on rare but exciting occasions, there would be a miracle. One particular that comes to my mind happened shortly after we returned from Latvia. Our financial situation was not one to brag about, most of our donations did not come through as promised and we had survived on a wing and a prayer for sure. Obviously, we weren’t starving, but we were learning how to depend on God. I don’t remember praying that particular morning for a miracle to be in my mailbox but when I sorted through all of the junk, I discovered a letter with handwriting I didn’t recognize. I opened it to see a beautiful hand-written note from a pastor’s daughter in another state. Her words?

“In prayer this morning, I strongly felt led to send you this and pray you are not offended. I don’t know the need but God does and we appreciate your sacrifice and honor your ministry today with this small gift.”

Inside the card? $500.

And a side note; we had never even met this young lady.

I had long forgotten about this miracle until recently when I opened our mailbox and once again discovered a miracle. This was something I had prayed about and I had great anticipation and faith that He would provide…and He did. Now, it doesn’t always happen just the way we ask, or pray, or even think, because HIS timing is perfect but it is rarely what we are anticipating. He always knows what is best and the answer, HIS perfect answer, will arrive right when it is most needed.

But this past week was that timing and when God performs the little miracles for you, it gives you faith to believe for other needs. You know He has done it before and He can do it again, according to His will, the key ingredient in every prayer.

What do you anticipate being in your mailbox? Do you look forward to what God might do each day? Do you anticipate you might discover a miracle? Your mailbox can look like many other things; the miracle may come through another person, through a spoken word, a message or through prayer. You might see it in tangible form or it might be a promise of good things to come. When He speaks and you KNOW you have heard HIS voice, that is a miracle of fantastic proportions, no one can take it from you!

So go forward today, anticipating that you may discover a miracle and it could just show up in your mailbox.

Share with us today a time when something unexpected showed up in your mailbox, or in your life, that has built your faith to believe He will do it again. Encourage someone else with testimonies of answered prayers!

For the kingdom