DAY 2: That Darned Pride

 One would think that I would get tired of going around and around with this issue. P-R-I-D-E...the plant of negativity whose roots seem to be so elusive when trying to pull out. But today, I realized that we couldn't have a discussion about ridding our hearts of negativity without dealing with pride early on. I believe that pride is the root of so many of our negative spaces. Our self-righteousness and anxiety or contrary attitudes are often birthed out of the idea that we know better, we would do different/better, we need to have control and so on. Pride is the weight that we often choose to hold on to even in situations when it's to our own detriment.

However, the Bible is clear on this very topic. Proverbs 16:18 says that 'pride comes before our falls and a haughty spirit before destruction'. The Word doesn't hesitate to associate being prideful with being wicked (Psalm 10:4); and one of my favorite verses being where it tells us that "When pride comes, then comes disgrace (UGH!), but with the humble is wisdom." (Proverbs 11:2) At the end of the day, we are faced with a choice. We can hold on to our false righteousness in an effort to be RIGHT or we can begin to connect our hearts with the will of God to be humble.

Today, make a choice to do something a bit different: Choose humility. Choose to rid your daily situations of the horrific, cancerous leech that pride can be. Present your heart today and know that God can truly walk with you and help you. Be reminded that he is the Greatest Gardener ever and when we put our hearts in his hand, he can delicately remove roots that we allow him access to. Present yourself to Him in prayer continually until you look up and trust is built, humility is in bloom and positivity shines bright...

Lord, I have given up my pride and turned away from my arrogance. 

I am not concerned with great matters or with subjects too difficult for me. 

Instead, I am content and at peace. As a child lies quietly in its mother's arms, 

so my heart is quiet within me. Israel, trust in the Lord now and forever! 

Psalm 131 (GNT)

Be encouraged and be blessed in this day!
Pastor Andrea

Build To Order

"So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. This is how you are to build it:...And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him...But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded."

Genesis 6:14-15a, 7:5, 8:1

The other day, I was assisting with the process of organizing chairs in a conference room. The conference room was average size and the chairs enough to sit approximately 350-400 people. As the process began, one of the ladies in charge began to explain to me their way of doing this. It would not be enough to simply "eyeball" the chairs and line the backs up in lines. The precision that the process demanded literally boggled my mind. She explained that we had to have at least 3 people to make the process work--two to hold ropes at either end of the room and the third to arrange the actual chairs in line. I stood there with my brow a bit furrowed as she and the others explained the process, on the edge of protest to say that it didn't have to be this complicated. Until the Lord began to deal with me. 

As He pierced my spirit, I tempered my tongue and simply fixed my face and followed instructions. While I couldn't truly grasp what the point was for the complicated process, I knew that it was an order that had been handed down from the leader of the organization. This was the way it was to be done. And as we completed our task and stood back, it became increasingly clear that the level of excellence that they demanded was well worth it. It was almost breathtaking to seek the whole room in such a state of order. While I would have been satisfied with approximations of lines, they were striving for consistency, excellence and obedience. I thought of all the times in the Bible where we read instances where God spoke and people obeyed--Solomon with the temple, Nehemiah with the wall...but Noah was at the top of my mind. When God said "this is how you do it", Noah did not respond "well why?" Instead, he moved forward in obedience down to the very cubit. And God remembered him in the end and "the waters receded."

Do you ever wonder what if things in the Bible had gone another way? What if Noah had not been as righteous? What if he had questioned God? Or what if he had proceeded but changed the measurements of the wood or only brought one horse instead of two? How many times do we have the opportunity to submit our will to that of others and/or God and we either do it reluctantly with questions of "why" along the way or we simply don't do it? How many times has God unctioned our spirits to proceed in one direction and we have turned to the other? How many times have we had supervisors who have given us instruction that we have grudgingly walked out when we could have simply submitted our spirits to authority with a smile? If you're anything like me, I'm sure you can point to a number of opportunities that you missed. So I'm here today to encourage you not to miss your next chance. Something or someone will come your way in in the coming week (or just came at you recently) and I want to challenge you to proceed in pure, uncontested obedience. Perhaps you are waiting for the waters (things that are overwhelming you) to recede but haven't built the boat to order. Imagine the "floods" of life that God will keep you from and bring you through if you simply obey. Selah...pause and think on this.

Blessings,
PastorA

Where There's A Will...

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13

Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to go down some challenging routes of faith for God. My decision to follow Him was not predicated upon conditions of where/how I would be willing to go or not. I didn't say "I'll go if..." I've trusted Him (even when scared) as opportunities to do somewhat unrealistic things with my life or to venture to somewhat dangerous areas, during somewhat dangerous times. However, I am often surprised by the fact that the loudest voices of fear that I hear come from Christians. Their excitement for what God is doing in/through me is often tempered by love and words of caution. As a human being, it makes me smile and feel cared for, but as I listened to the last of these "lectures of love" most recently from a relative, I couldn't help but feel a little sad as well.

You see, there are some verses of scripture that just about every Christian can recite (even if they don't know where it's found in the Bible). Philippians 4:13 is one of those verses. But I often find myself wondering if we really believe what we recite. Do we believe that small three letter word that defines what we are capable of...A-L-L? When David faced Goliath with stones, He didn't cower in fear but conquered in courage (I Sam 17). When Abraham was told to leave all he knew to be precious and "go", he didn't didn't rest on a "woe is me" song but instead started singin' "On the road again..." (Gen 12). When Esther was asked to stand against all odds before a king in the face of death, through her own fear/hesitation, she rose to the challenge "for such a time as this" (Esther 4). And when Christ himself faced the cross, he did so saying "not my will by Thy Will be done" (Luke 22:42).

From Genesis to Revelations, we have that "great crowd of witnesses" that the Bible talks about (Heb 12:1) who testify to how God can both grant supernatural victories in the face of defeat and bless you beyond your wildest dreams while doing it. The key to being able to really live that Scripture out is simply to do it. There is no magic solution. This week alone, there have been forces coming against you to stop you from doing things (big and small) that line up with God's Will for your life. And time and time again, you've allowed the small voices of fear and doubt to overrule the "still small voice" of God unctioning you further in Him. God wants to help you do the impossible. He wants you to take your eyes off the greatness of the end result and just do what He told you to do. Take that leap of faith to find what you need waiting for you at the top of your jump. What's waiting are the fruit of His promises and the relief of your destiny. Be encouraged this week to plow forward into ALL THINGS with abandon that shows you truly believe that you can do it all through Him.

Blessings,
PastorA

Why So Surprised? HE IS GOD!

I will sing of the LORD's great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations.

Psalm 89:1

When I left home yesterday morning, I have to admit to being a bit blue. The previous couple of days (more than that if I'm being honest) had been particularly "heavy". There was no major event to explain why that was the case but it was more about the season I have been in weighing on my shoulders and simply trying to maintain my faith. Like so many other days before, I had had a bit of a melt down the previous day about my transportation situation--crying out to God that I was still waiting for the promise of a car that He had given me and that my fortitude in the wait was wearing thin. And so as I began my trek that morning to the bus stop, a small speck of white on the sidewalk caught my eye.

As I looked down, there was a small bead with the letter A inscribed on it. This random little speck made me stop, back track and take a picture. There was something about it that made me feel like God was whispering directly to me that morning that I was on His mind and that He hadn't forgotten me. Feeling the way I had recently, I could use every piece of encouragement I could get from God so I snapped the picture and kept on moving--this time with a little less weightiness dragging me down. As I made my way up the road, I was still a bit down but just that much more encouraged that God hadn't forgotten me. I took one bus then stood waiting on my connecting bus feeling worn out and the day had not even really begun.

The ringing of my phone would next change the trajectory of the entire day as a friend called to tell me that she and her husband wanted to bless me with their "old" (yet new to me) mini-SUV! I thought I was hearing things. Tears began to overwhelm me as she explained how I had been on her heart to do this for me the last three months and basically how God made a way for it to be possible. Her husband had blessed her with a new, bigger truck for Mother's Day and was in agreement that they should give the old one to me instead of using it as a downpayment on the new one. My prayers had availed and God's promise had been manifested just that quickly. When I shared the news with one of my friends last night, she almost made me feel stupid saying 'duh...you SAID He was gonna do it!' and I told her that my awe was not in the belief but because I was overwhelmed by His faithfulness.

As I awoke this morning, God reminded me of the scripture in II Kings 4 where the prophet told the Shunamite woman after her being barren for so long that "this time next year" she would hold a son. True to that prophetic word, by the time he returned the next year, she had had her son. Last year the weekend of Mother's Day, my old car died and God told me to get rid of it. He also told me that he would replace it (though I did not know when). So this time last year, God was telling me to trust Him and this time this year He is reminding me that that trust is never misplaced. As "crazy" as prophesy sounds at times, He was very specific in putting a small SUV in my heart and said that something I did in ministry would be result in someone blessing me. When my friend gave me the news yesterday, she expressed those same thoughts.

When we move in obedience and do what He tells us, He remains faithful to take care of us. Period. Though our obedience should never be about earthly rewards, we have to keep in mind that God uses us in life plants seeds and unlock our own blessings. And it's not about what we are going to "get" as much as it about the potential for lives to be impacted for God's glory. In the end, I'm going to nickname this car "Faith" as a constant reminder to me of how God is faithful. The car is a "little" thing in God's sight. The promises He has given me are much bigger than my transportation, but God in his infinite grace and mercy saw fit to throw me a bone and lift some weights yesterday and simply remind me that He is God. I couldn't leave my house this morning without "singing of the LORD's great love" (as it says in the Psalm above) and encouraging you in this season. We can believe Him. There's no need to be surprised when He makes good on His promises both big and small.

Be encouraged that you are on God's mind and He has not forgotten you.

Blessings,
Pastor A

P.S. Some of you remember that I even wrote about my car before. You can see that entry at http://lhmdevotional.blogspot.com/2012/06/when-is-enough-enough.html.

ENJOY It

"...Then you shall return to the land of your possession and enjoy it..." Joshua 1:15b

I was talking to a gentleman a few weeks ago, and he accused me of something odd. He called me a dreamer. And, with some condemnation to his tone, he said I put too much stock in daydreaming. It was enough to give me pause and wonder if I was simply living in a never-never land and needed to wake up. He came to this conclusion because several times over the course of the prior two weeks, I had sent him beautiful scenic photographs in the name of taking a "mental vacation". I suppose that I sent him one too many because that's when I received my indictment. And, as I pondered on his accusation, I considered making a change. I thought about limiting my perusal of beautiful photographs in the interest of going somewhere different (if only for a moment). But then I read two little words in my devotional one morning that kept me on the right track. The verse said "enjoy it".

Now, the context of the verse does not relate to mental vacations of fancy or daydreams. However, the mere thought that there was an element of joy and enjoyment included after the fight was encouraging to me. The children of Israel were being tasked with going into the Promised Land and fighting for what was promised to them; and then those who would be residing outside the Promised Land would get to then go back home and enjoy their promise. Fight then enjoy. That seemed to be the edict given.

There's no place that says we must live stoic lives of complete lack (physical, spiritual, and mental). Though the faces (and constant negative testimonies) of many modern-day Christians would suggest otherwise, we were not meant to live in the midst of our pain. We were meant to focus on the possibilities of our PROMISE. I'm sure that I'm not alone in saying: It's been quite a journey! The past few years have been fraught with so many moments of challenge and tribulation that it's been hard not to become jaded by the heart break. It's been difficult to maintain joy when bitterness is so much more enticing. It's been a challenge to reminisce on the positive instead of reflecting on the negative.

Parasailing in Jamaica...a joyful memory

 

But then I'm reminded that "the JOY of the Lord is my strength" (Neh 8:10) and that "weeping may endure for a night but JOY comes in the morning"(Ps 30:5). We have a choice to make. We can live in frustration or freedom...in judgement or JOY. And so, with that in mind, I have chosen to live with constant reminders of God's GOODNESS and BEAUTY. On cold and rainy days, I choose to be reminded that the rain makes the flowers bloom. On nights of frustration, I choose to think of the possibility of a moment of rest and relaxation. In moments where I feel weighted down by the world, I choose to focus on memories of a day when I was flying high in the sky without a care in the world. My "mental vacations" may be moments of fancy, but as I make the decision to cherish the moments of my life, I have to intentionally take moments to smile and remember that God is bigger than my situation and greater than my moments.

God said we don't have to bear our own yokes/burdens. So won't you join me on my mental vacation and ENJOY (Entrust Now Jesus with Our Yokes) a brief moment away from your pain and consider the possibilities of your future? Be encouraged...trouble don't last always...

Blessings,
MinD

Faithful to Finish

For I am confident of this very thing, 

that He who began a good work in you 

will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. 

(Philippians 1:6 NASB)

There are times in our lives when we become discouraged. There are days when we look up and around and begin to lose sight of whatever God has said for our lives. There are seasons when the promise of God seems so illusive--where the reality of our circumstance and situation makes seeing the possibilities of God's will difficult. We are weighed down by life and responsibility. We are distracted by the twists and turns of day-to-day living and begin to forget that God is a God who can make it all straight.

I am in such a season. If you're anything like me, you begin to think you must have dreamed it all. I have pouted and thrown tantrums with God. I had even made a decision the other day that perhaps I should simply start trying to convince myself not to believe. In the interest of being content or satisfied, perhaps I should simply decide that I'm not meant to be or do any more than what I'm currently being and doing. I began to think that if I lower my expectations of what God said was to happen, the process would somehow hurt or fatigue me less when/if things didn't move as I would hope. I'm a person who shouts "YOU MUST HAVE FAITH!" from the highest mountain tops, but was facing a crisis of my own--thinking that it was enough to have faith in how powerful I believe God to BE without fully investing my heart in the faith for what He said He would DO!

I went back and forth in my mind the last few days about weather to embrace this shift in mindset. BUT GOD (gotta love when He puts his "but" in things), the lover of my soul, wrapped His arms around me in the form of an emailed video from a friend today. My friend had done me the favor of digitizing the video from my initial sermon. (I have only watched this sermon once and that was some time after at the taunting of friends.) But TODAY, I needed to be reminded and God was faithful to send me that reminder. I remembered that being content and satisfied were not one in the same. As I listened God reminded me that wanting what He has for me has nothing to do with not being content. If He doesn't do another thing for me, I will be content. But I refuse to live satisfied with less than what was His original intent when He fashioned me in my mother's womb. The Bible tells me to press towards the mark (Phil 3:14) and not just float our way there. There is action and intention in walking out the promises of God and we cannot lose sight of the destination while we are panting through the course!

Just has He did for me, it is His intention for you to understand that He IS a Promise Keeper! You were starting to feel like you must have dreamed what God said or like He has forgotten, but He sent me today to remind you in love that He's not a man that He should lie! He sees you and knows your path! HIS WORD IS BOND!!! He's a FINISHER and will begin what He started in you. Beyond your tears and the realities of your circumstance lies your PROMISE. Today, be encouraged to keep your eye on the prize and keep pressing. He's well worth it!

Blessings,
MinD

P.S. I've posted this in my personal blog as well and have uploaded a clip from my initial sermon on YouTube (http://youtu.be/2E6hVj0Hotc). If you have 7 minutes, please take a look and stand in agreement with me for the promises that God is bringing to pass and be encouraged to share that encouragement with those you think may need a bit of a boost today.

Striving for Perfection

For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.

~Hebrews 7:28

I recently had the opportunity to visit a Mayan ruin in Belize--Lamanai. Like many ruins, it was once used in Mayan society as a place of sacrifice, worship, government and trade. A tall structure, it is used by tourists now to climb to the top and see over the treeline God’s great Creation. To say the least, it is a feat to be conquered and not for the slight of heart or fearful of heights. I, in my haste, decided to take on the challenge. As I began to climb, the stupidity of the exercise began to enter my brain. With nothing to secure a climber (holster, rigs, etc.), I was beginning to second guess my decision to climb as my fear of falling kicked in not far into my adventure. I made a decision twice (around step #10 of the incline steps), in fact, to stop the whole charade of bravery and adventure and abandon ship for safer, solid ground. Each time, a fellow-climber would skip by me (seemingly effortless climbers) with words of encouragement. And so I pressed on—speaking the words of Phil 4:13 to myself as I went…muttering “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” as I purposefully made my way up the narrow stairway. And as the end of the rope you can hold going up came to an end and the “real climbers” could take the last 10 steps up to the very top, I had hit my limit.

Looking up at the folks on top.

I stood on the plateau, shaking like a leaf feeling completely victorious even though I had fallen short of the ultimate plateau. I looked up at those above me who had achieved their ultimate goal of making it to the top and smiled to myself as I had achieved my ultimate goal of pressing passed my fears to the place where God would allow me to go (somewhere around step #50ish). I knew that I could go no further. Safety would not allow that—shaking uncontrollably while trying to climb with nothing to hold on to is not advisable for anyone.

You see, I had strived to accomplish the best that I could be. I had strived for perfecting this adventure. And what I learned when I got to my top was that my point of perfection is not the same as another person’s point, my accomplishment is not the same as another person’s accomplishment, my goal was not the same as other people’s goal. And, while my fellow climbers seemed to want to console me in my inability to make it all the way to the top, I could only smile the biggest smile ever because I was celebrating my ability to do even more than I thought I could do. And the same thing goes for the other areas of our life. Our ultimate goal is common—we all want to reach the perfection of being like Christ. But along the way, what we will come to learn is that we are human. And, as Hebrews 7:28 says, we are a priesthood full of weaknesses. We have been chosen indeed. 1 Peter 2:9 says we are a “chosen generation, a royal priesthood” but that does not ever make us all the same. What’s more it does not equate us with Christ. There is always One (Christ) who sets the bar higher than we will be able to reach but a bar we should strive to meet nonetheless. And as we climb towards that bar, push through our comfort zone (step #10) and hurdle over our fears, we will feel assurance and excitement in making it to our own levels of accomplishment.

Today, your challenge is to make sure that you don’t sell yourself short and stop on step #10 when your place of accomplishment is at step #40 or #50. Be encouraged as you press on towards that mark in Christ Jesus. God and a host of angels will be cheering with you when you do (even if man does not). Push on. You can do it!

Blessings,

MinD

P.S. Don’t forget to share this prayer point with someone today. You never know who could use an encouraging word to make it past their step #10.

God's Whisper Through The Shift

This week, my life is changing. After ten years of love, joy, peace, sanctuary, friendship, triumph and trials, I am moving out of my home. It is my first home. It has seen me through 6 roommates, 2 pets, 3 degrees, 3 vehicles, and countless other blessings of jobs, relationships, and more. The corners of the room have heard me weep when there was no one else around and they have heard me whoop and holler when the room was filled. The walls have watched as I've gone through so much transition in my life and so the parting of ways has been like leaving an old friend. There are positive sides to this transition and challenging sides as well. With that in mind, making the decision to move has not been an easy one and has challenged my ability to be obedient as God shifts things around in my life. So it seemed only fitting that as I opened up my devotional on my big move date, it "just so happened" that my readings coincided with just what I needed to hear. The first words I read were those in Ecclesiastes 3 and then in Hebrews 4:

"To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven."  ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1

"For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.  Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." ~Hebrews 4:15-16

God, in His infinite wisdom started my day whispering comfort in my ear. Letting go of one season to walk into the next is never easy, but the great thing is that God is right there with us through it all. He walks with us and knows the turn of our hearts as we are pushed and pulled through the shifting seasons. Our emotions may be all over the place but, if we stop for a moment in the midst of all the hubbub, get quiet and listen, He whispers to us and brings a great peace that helps us to move one more step through the seasonal shift. In the midst of our trial and in the midst of our shift, we can go boldly to "the throne of grace" and He's waiting with the help that we need. 

Today, there is something that God is trying to move you from and/or move you TO. You've been resisting the shift, feeling alone in the movement. But I want you to be encouraged today. I pull the instructions from Hebrews that are repeated often..."harden not your heart" and hear what God is trying to whisper to you. Be obedient to the move of God and He will be right there at every step. He is trying to move you to that next place in your purpose and will honor your obedience. Do not hesitate and press through the obstacles before you. He wants to make your shift seamless. He wants to be there for you. Stop, take a deep breath, and listen to what thus said the Lord.

Be encouraged,
MinD


 

Firm, Unshaken & Holding On

"For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ." Hebrews 3:14 (NLT)

Fall is my favorite season. Nature's autumn colors serve as a constant reminder of how God is The Master Artist, and it always brings me such peace. In the midst of a life that is full of craziness, you can always count on a blue sky and a leaf turning ten shades of green, yellow, red and orange (not grey) and settling your mind if only for a moment. Today, I experienced that very peace as I drove through the mountains. My mind began to wander as I remembered a particular tree that I saw a few years ago around this time of the year. Most of the leaves had fallen from a tree and there was just one little leaf who was holding on for dear life in a position that was abnormal to a leaf. I walked away and came back to it still in position. It was like the leaf had sheer determination and refused to be parted from the very thing that had given it life for so long. Even when the stem was disconnected, the leaf was tenaciously hang on just a little longer. And, as I watched that leaf, I was reminded of the kind of fortitude that God expects from us. From the start of our season to the very end, God wants us to hang on for dear life. 

Hebrews 3:14 says that we have to be "faithful to the end". The Amplified translation says that we are to have "assured expectation firm and unshaken to the end". As life turns topsy turvy, as you even begin to feel like you may be disconnected from The Source (God), you need to remember this leaf, make some adjustments to your grip and don't let go. The God who so eloquently made millions of shades of greens, yellows, reds and oranges in ONE leaf, did so much more in us when He perfected us. And the Bible assures us that He will complete the work He has begun in us (Philippians 1:6). If we hold on, we will get to partake with Christ in His inheritance and that's a prize worth waiting on.

Be encouraged to stand firm, remain unshaken and simply hold on for dear life. He's got you!

Blessings,
MinD

Day 21: Five Minutes...You're On

The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.  

~ Proverbs 21:1 ~

Today I am reminded of a saying that I once wrote about. It was a phrase that one of my supervisors once told me a few years ago that I find great comfort and encouragement in when I reflect on it. She said, "It's five minutes until change." As long as we wait for life to change and for things to work out in our favor, it seems as though change takes a long time. However, change and blessings come in the instant of an eye. It simply takes one right decision, one nod from the right person, provision from the right direction and your life can change in a moment; and sometimes it's good to be reminded of that fact. As you wait and wish for life to happen around you, realize that it's all in God's hand. And, while it may take a lot of energy and pleading and prodding from us as humans to make change, when we leave it in God's hands then we allow Him to make His wishes come true. Proverbs says that God can turn the head of even the king to accomplish what He wishes. That means that you and I can stop trying to do the work. Stop beating your head against the walls trying to convince other people of who you are or what you are capable of. Stop trying to make life happen. Trust only in God and what He wants to do for you.

Be encouraged to make room for His wishes. They will far exceed anything you can ask or think (Eph 3:20).

Blessings,
MinD

Born This Way!

For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.

Psalm 139:13 

There’s a popular song sung by Lady Gaga that says “I’m beautiful in my way; ‘Cause God makes no mistakes; I’m on the right track, baby; I was born this way.” It’s a multi-million dollar selling song that has encouraged many folks both young and old around the world. They call it an anthem for the anti-bullying movement and is often discussed in the context of tolerance. As I sat one morning and watched the rain fall, I actually started humming it as sort of my own personal anthem while I was trying to be encouraged in a place of gloom. I don't know all the words but just that part seemed to stick. And then I was listening to someone preach that day. Their topic was something different but the preacher said something to the effect of "he was born to do what he was doing."

Instantly, I was encouraged. You see...though things may not go our way at all times...though we may find ourselves battling to keep our heads above water, one thing you can know for sure...you and I were born for GREATNESS! Your greatness may not look like mine or like Obama's or Gaga's or Oprah's or cousin Bookie or Uncle Buster. It's yours. God made you with a plan in mind and He's just the kind of God that see's everything through that He started. The Apostle Paul tells us that we can be "confident" in the fact that "that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil 1:6). Despite how it looks today, God didn't make a mistake. You can trust in Him because it is HE that "upheld you from birth" (Psalm 71:6) and will continue to hold you until your destiny is fulfilled. It also means that you were born triumphant. Don't let Gaga (a secular singer) be the only one who knows that God didn't make mistakes. Before you came on the scene, Jesus took care of it all for you and me. You were born in victory! You were born to have a peaceful spirit. You were born to persevere. You were born to give Him glory!

So be encouraged today, hum a tune and walk as though your soul knows well: You were born this way!

Blessings,
MinD