Tag:

Overcoming

5 Ways to Overcome Stressful Family Relationships

by Lauren Koch April 27, 2022

We don’t get to pick our family. I am often brought back to Joseph’s story when considering sticky circumstances with family. Not only was he abandoned by his eleven brothers, they sold him into slavery out of jealousy.

Like Joseph, how you choose to respond in relationships to others is what you are responsible for. Who has God called you to be in these relationships? Be constantly reminded of this as you pray into your family dynamics and how you can best represent Jesus to them.

1. Be Spirit Led

The most important leader in your life is the Holy Spirit. He has answers for you! Allow Him to fill and motivate your thoughts, words, and actions. Ask Him to fill your heart to overflow with His power, presence, and love for the people in your life.

2. Manage Your Triggers

Only you are responsible for the triggers you have. Take initiative before conflict occurs in your family to recognize and proactively know how to address your heart when emotionally triggered.

3. Get Your Hopes Up

God knows you and your family best. Let the truth of His word fill you with all hope so that you are not living with fear or anxiety for the potential stress that could come from your family dynamics. There is always room for God in seemingly impossible circumstances.

4. Learn When to Step Away

Sometimes conflict is best left unresolved for a period of time. Respect the boundaries you have for yourself and clearly communicate that you can engage in conflict when it is respectful. You are worth it.

5. Remember Things Can Change

Your circumstances are not permanent. As believers we know that we are storing up heavenly treasures in this life. But even more so, God is working in your family, whether there is evidence to see it yet or not.

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April 27, 2022 0 comment

Faith Featured

Dream Bigger With God

by Lauren Koch April 18, 2022

written by Lauren Koch

“For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, they are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). You may be all too familiar with these words and this verse, but do you actually believe them? You are actually a dream of God; His creation brought into the flesh to release heaven on earth and fulfill an eternal destiny.

As the Spirit of God hovered over the waters in the beginning of time, shaping something out of the formless void, there was a purpose and intention for your life. Beloved, the dreams God has for your life are limitless. Knowing this, are you expectant for all that He has planned for you?

God takes your biggest dream you think you have, and multiples it into something unrecognizable.

It is just who He is. God is plentiful; in Him there is no lack. He does not play small with the significance of our lives on the earth today. He is the maker of all things; the beginning and end of every dream and desire for your life and the generations to follow you.

God dreams are multigenerational

God looks ahead to the future, where your children’s children are feeding off the seed that you sowed. Does this truth challenge the dreams and destinations that you had in mind for your life? God’s plans for our lives are to impact people in our family line that we will never met.

Our average dreams for ourselves often stretch ahead a few decades until we are old and grey. I challenge you today to ask God for vision beyond your own lifetime. And I pray that the Holy Spirit reveals in excitement the mysteries of the life ahead of you and beyond.

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April 18, 2022 0 comment

Articles Faith Featured

Here I Am, Send Me Anyway

by Dr. William M. Wilson April 16, 2022

written by Dr. William M. Wilson

Many Christians today are being called by God to leadership. Some may think the timing is wrong or feel unqualified for the job. But during a time in world history that parallels our world today, the great prophet Isaiah said, “Here am I, send me.” There’s a reason for his answer.

Isaiah grew up in the royal court of King Uzziah. When Isaiah was about 25 years old, Uzziah disobeyed God and died of leprosy, which created a leadership crisis. The nation was already in moral decay. People were resisting God. Plus, Isaiah had a personal struggle. Yet, in the midst of this, Isaiah wrote:

“I saw the Lord high and exalted, seated on a throne, and the train of his robe filled the temple…. Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, Here am I, send me” (Isaiah 6:1, 8 KJV).

Today, we see crises in leadership on every level of society. Church leaders have failed morally, relationally and financially. Secular leaders are failing from the U.S. to Europe and from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.

Yet, although earthly leaders fail, God never fails. Many Christians called to leadership during a leadership crisis need to realize that just because others fail, it doesn’t mean they will fail.

Isaiah answered God’s call during this leadership crisis, and also while also facing the nation’s moral collapse. God’s law was neglected. Injustice was rampant. Oppression was normalized. Prayer was peripheral. Idolatry and immorality were prevalent.

Our world is in a similar moral decline. Yet God is calling us to be his voice in the middle of ungodliness and to be a light in the middle of darkness.

The Message version translates a warning the Apostle Paul gave his protégé, Timothy, about difficult times ahead. “As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust and allergic to God” (2 Timothy 3:1-5 MSG).

Jesus taught about the last days. “There will be an environment of deception. There will be wars and rumors of war. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom will rise against kingdom. There will be famine. There will be pestilence. There will be natural disasters. All of these are like birth pains in the earth. Persecution will happen to the Church. People will betray those they once loved. There will be spiritual coldness, and an environment where only the committed will endure” (Matthew 24:6-9, my paraphrase).

Then Jesus said that even in this kind of environment, “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 4:24 NKJV).

Even in the middle of a resistant world, Jesus has promised us that the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in every nation.

Isaiah was facing a leadership crisis, moral deterioration and significant resistance, yet God told Isaiah to preach to the people even though they were not going to listen to him (Isaiah 6:9-10).

Expect resistance. It’s not easy to be God’s instrument. All the easy jobs in God’s kingdom are gone.

Consider the long legacy of Christians who have endured resistance to answer God’s call. David Brainerd, an orphan, born in 1718, served Native American missions for three years before he left due to tuberculosis. He moved in with Jonathan Edwards, a leader of the First Great Awakening, and died at the age of 29.

Edwards’ biography about Brainerd’s persistence during great resistance inspired a generation of missionaries. One is William Carey, the “father of modern missions.” Influenced by Brainerd’s testimony, Carey, the shoe cobbler, took his family to India. He met great resistance. Carey’s ministry partner quit. His son died. His wife lost her mind. It took Carey 41 years to make just 700 converts.

But in India, Carey translated the Bible into India’s major languages and portions of it into more than 100 dialects. His work paved the way for future missions, and tens of millions of Indian believers are the result.

Isaiah faced a leadership crisis, moral decay and resistance, and he also faced a personal struggle. When he saw the glory of God, he said, “I’m a man of unclean lips” (Isaiah 6:5 KJV).

What he meant is unclear. Perhaps he told dirty jokes? Or cursed? Or couldn’t speak straight? What is clear is that Isaiah had a personal struggle and so do all “called” people from the time of the Scriptures to this present day. God calls flawed people.

Paul wrote, “Think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards. Not many were influential. Not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:26-27).

Something happened to Isaiah when he admitted his personal struggle that changed everything. A seraph placed a lump of burning coal from the altar of God on Isaiah’s mouth, signifying that God’s fire was purifying him and getting inside him.

From that moment on, Isaiah was “on fire.” He didn’t care if the world was falling apart. He’d been touched by heaven, and he had to answer God’s call.

Isaiah was looking at the chaos in his world and at his own personal struggles and basically said, “Lord, Here am I, send me anyway.”

God says to you today, “I know the chaos in the world, and I know your flaws and struggles, but I’m calling you anyway.”

If you let him, God will touch your life with fire from heaven. It’s up to you to say, “It may not seem like the right time, and I may not feel like the right person, but here I am. Send me anyway.”

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April 16, 2022 0 comment

Faith Featured

Authenticity Moves The Heart Of God

by Lauren Koch April 10, 2022

written by Lauren Koch

God is concerned about the state of your heart.

This is where He communes with you. Not in the accomplishments you check off, or the job you go to, or even the family that you have created. Sure, He is a part of all of these things. But they are not the one thing He wants most, an authenticity that begins in your heart.

Even after walking with the Lord many years, you do not have to be concerned with growing stagnant when your heart is set ablaze towards His love and devotion to you.

Like the Young Woman in Song of Songs, count on the strength of love God has made between you:

“Place me like a seal over your heart,
    like a seal on your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
    its jealousy^[c] as enduring as the grave.^[d]
Love flashes like fire,
    the brightest kind of flame.
Many waters cannot quench love,
    nor can rivers drown it” (Song of Songs 8:6-7, NLT)

Have you noticed yourself longing for those early days with the Father, when you were completely enamored by His love set before you? It’s not too late to return to your First Love. Authenticity with the Father

What Does Authenticity With God Look Like?

Remembering. Remember the ways in which you needed to know His love. Remember the thrill of reading His word and feeling it come alive inside you.

Thanksgiving. The opening of Psalms 9 models this for us: “I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.” Thanking God simply for who He is in the midst of your circumstances can powerfully transform your heart.

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April 10, 2022 0 comment

Faith

Be Supernatural Because He Is Supernatural

by MJ April 4, 2022

written by MJ

Be Supernatural; For He is Supernatural! Are you staying on course with this attitude?

We are Supernatural beings created by a Supernatural God in His image. But we often try to tolerate what’s happening in our life that is contrary to God’s purpose. If this is you, it is time to realign your thoughts, so you can reach your promised land, whatever that might be.

Born From Above

We are not of this world. (John 17:16) And every aspect of our lives must resonate with this truth. But many times we operate just like the world.

Some trust in luck and others credit their hard work for their achievements. But we know that it is His Grace that enables our efforts to succeed.

Chased By Goodness

When you follow God, Goodness and Mercy shall follow you all the days of your life so you can succeed. You don’t have to chase success, success will chase you instead. But what if you feel the opposite?

What if you feel like you have gone way past the time of your breakthrough? You quit! And console your mind that it is not God’s will, and maybe it is your flesh.

Pretending to feel good this way will only make things worse. Can you imagine the extent of frustration you could garner living like this?

Don’t Accept Lemons

The world’s way is to give up and get by with what is available. If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But what if your God-given desire is something else? If that seems impossible, do you go with lemonade instead? No. Don’t accept lemons when God has something better.

The devil and the world will convince you that you have messed up beyond redemption, or that you are too old, too under-qualified, or perhaps even overqualified.

Sarah’s Supernatural Story

Abraham’s wife Sarah was a remarkable woman, titled by God as the Mother of Nations, even before Isaac was born.

Sarah was this young, bold, and beautiful woman. But things should have gone downhill as she grew old, yet childless. She might have concluded that she misinterpreted the promise of God and ended up giving Hagar to Abraham.

She got complacent as she saw herself as an old woman with feeble knees and wrinkled face, way past the time of childbearing. So she might have said, “I came this far. I can make it. ” Sarah might have had this attitude for years.

Destiny, Not Death

God saw Sarah tolerating her situation. He knew she was not ready for the covenant child Issac. The Supernatural time of God was not in sync with the natural time of childbearing in the case of Sarah. The father and the mother of the faith movement had to be trained by God.

Sarah felt disqualified that she even laughed when God Himself visited and promised. But God made sure that she was blessed with Isaac supernaturally when it seemed impossible in the natural. It was Sarah’s destiny.

Journey To Destiny

Stepping into your destiny happens to you if you are in His hands, no matter how long it takes. As a child of God, you are not just waiting, but actually preparing to meet with time. You were not created for time, but time was created for you. Time eagerly waits for you.

For [even the whole] creation [all nature] waits eagerly for the children of God to be revealed. – Romans 8:19 (Amplified Bible)

Practice the passion that God has placed in you. Prepare consistently for what God has called you to do. And time will meet you to establish you in your destiny. So be ready for a rendezvous with your time.

The Supernatural Attitude Of Jonah

Jonah was a man that knew how to be established in His destiny, even after messing up so bad. He did not forget to whom he belonged. Neither did Jonah expect to die in the ill effects of his actions. He repented and envisioned his future instead. He knew how to get time and tide respond to the voice of repentance.

He spoke to God about what he shall do when he gets out of the fish. Jonah did not quit even when he made a mistake or committed a sin, to be precise. He acted upon his supernatural identity and banked on God’s goodness and mercy. God responded at that instant. Despite his situation, he planned on completing his assignment, and probably going on a vacation, definitely not on a luxury cruise.

Enforce Your Supernatural Victory

The will of God for you is always progress, purpose, and promotion, even if you miss His lead at some point in the natural. He has chosen, called, and anointed you, knowing your whole life. There is no way you can mess up beyond His knowledge. Therefore,

‘Be Supernatural; For He is Supernatural.’

Don’t quit. Enforce your victory. In Jesus’ Name.

April 4, 2022 0 comment

Faith

Real, Authentic, Unfailing Hope Is Found In Jesus

by Corine Channell March 19, 2022

written by Corine Channell

Once upon a time (for real) – I dwelt in a place the Bible refers to as “the valley of trouble.” Trouble can be a combination of unrest, disorder, distress, and anxiety. In an actual definition a valley is referred to as a low point, a depression. The fusion of those two words describes my then secret life. Sexual abuse stole my self worth, my dignity, my ability to be trusting, replacing it with – well, trouble! It caused me to lose hope.

VALLEY OF TROUBLE

The Canaanite city of Ai was renamed the Valley of Achor, which means “trouble” in the Hebrew translation, so also referred to as the Valley of Trouble. The Israelites suffered defeat in battle there because a man named Achan had BURIED banned spoils of war under his tent (Joshua 7:1-21). His evil was exposed, so to this day the Valley Of Achor serves as a reminder of failure, of desolation, and of defeat. For those of us who live with the repercussions of abuse, our troubled soul serves as a reminder of our deepest, darkest secrets and lays siege to our ability to see hope past any of it.

DOOR OF HOPE

BUT the Valley of Achor was later ALSO referred to by the prophet Hosea as a DOOR OF HOPE. “I will transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope.” (Hosea 2:15 KJV) Wait. I need to look up the word GATEWAY. A gateway is a means of ENTRY to a place – the way IN. Hope is the OPPOSITE of a bolted door. WOW. MY valley of trouble – YOUR valley of trouble (whatever that means to you personally) yes, God CAN turn it INTO a door of hope, even a place for joyful singing, and finally – a resting place. He can do something extraordinary and unexpected that changes our future. Let’s put it in THESE rearranged words – I will transform a bolted door of trouble into an open door of hope.

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12 NIV) What is ‘hope deferred’? It is when something or someone you are waiting for is delayed or held up; withheld, postponed or suspended. You know that feeling – like, waiting for Christmas boxes that were late. OR if your dinner date NEVER showed up. These are small measures of hope deferred. Now, larger major disappointments (like abuse with no healing balm for its pain),the inability to conceive – these bring deep depths of sickness to the heart. This causes you to despair and that is where hopeLESS comes into play.

SWEET AROMA OF HOPE

In our worst moment, on our worst day – there is this delicate fragrance that unexpectedly drifts into the room – like the soft fragrance before a fresh spring rain, or the sweet aroma from a dark valley (valley of trouble…) full of perfumed wild flowers, you can just detect it.This is hope. You immediately just feel revived by something silent yet powerful, that stirs your heart to believe anything is possible. This is hope. To hope is to confidently EXPECT. I have learned that really, there is only ONE place I find hope that will NOT fail me. Jesus. Real and authentic and unfailing hope IS Jesus.

“You were the voice in the desert,
Calling me out in the dead of night.
Fighting my battles for me;
You are my rescue story.
Lifted me up from the ashes,
Carried my soul from death to life,
Bringing me from glory to glory.”
(Rescue Story by Zach Williams)

DEM DRY BONES

Ever hear this old spiritual song – “Dem bones/ Dem bones /Dem dry bones, Hear the word of the Lord.” It is titled “Dem Bones” (or Dry Bones) and was written in the early 1900’s by James Weldon Johnson and his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson. The words were inspired from the book of Ezekiel where the prophet visited what he called “the valley of dry bones, and he prophesied how those bones would one day be resurrected back to life! Wow.

The thought of there being NO hope is literally THE worst thing we can imagine. Dry bones are really the best visual of hopelessness. Bones have no life. Bones are the final remains of each of us. That’s about as grim, broken and hopeless as anything I can imagine. “They say, Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.” (Ezekiel 37:11)

So yes, bones are dry, but also shatterproof, so no doubt they purposely speak of resurrection in the Jewish tradition. “O ye dry bones, hear the Word of the Lord. Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you and you shall live.” (Ezekiel 37:5) Oh, what a promise for every seemingly hopeless, lifeless situation we may find ourselves in! Oh, what a promise for every seemingly hopeless, lifeless soul we stand in the gap for.

BONES WILL LIVE AGAIN

“Therefore prophesy and say to them: This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel.” (Ezekiel 37:11,12) Hope will arise from GRAVES! WOW! Bones will LIVE again. What a visual of hope for any of us who have ever felt like all the air was sucked out of us, and we were just coughing up dust!

In Hebrew, the word hope (Tikvah) means expectation. It also means a rope or cord, which comes from a root word meaning to wait for or to bind. When someone says they are ‘hanging on by a thread’, this is hope. It shows up when you least expect it and need it the most. Let us take the much needed journey up and out of the valley of trouble, through the OPEN door of HOPE.

Lost among the shadows,
buried by what once was.
Shrouded by the darkness,
captive in death’s jaws.
From the ground a song of hope is rising.
Life has come to the broken.
No more sorrow, no more crying
Heaven has spoken.

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March 19, 2022 0 comment

Faith Featured

Go On the Offensive

by Dr. William M. Wilson March 18, 2022

written by Dr. William M. Wilson

Conditions will never be perfect for serving Jesus Christ. Earth is a perpetual disaster area because of the enemies of God. Jesus Christ came into this chaos to attack and defeat Satan and bring us peace. God is calling us, as 21st century Christians, to move out of a defensive mode and onto the offensive.

Jesus didn’t come to make a peace treaty with the enemy. Jesus came to destroy his work. As the Father sent the Son, so Jesus sends us (John 20:21-22). We are called, with Jesus, to assault darkness and destroy the devil’s work. Wherever the enemy is at work, we are called to engage him and drive him out.

When we get on the offensive, hell shakes. A parallel is seen even in the natural world. The famed “Doolittle Raid” that was the United States’ answer to the Pearl Harbor attack lifted the hopes of the American people and shook the enemy. In football, the truth of the saying, “the best defense is a good offense,” has shaken even the strongest teams.

Going on the offensive affects us in other ways. Jesus said, “I want you to go and make disciples.” To bring someone to Jesus Christ, we must confront the enemy. When we’re on the attack, it isn’t easy to backslide. During an aggressive, anointed, empowered offense, the gates of hell give way to us. It changes us.

Even when the odds seem overwhelming, we can still take the offensive. Three people in scripture come to mind.

Samson

Samson was once bound with ropes when the Philistines came against him, but the Holy Spirit moved on Samson. He broke free from the ropes and, with no weapon in sight, he spotted the carcass of a donkey, grabbed its jawbone and killed 1,000 enemies (Judges 15). The site became known as Jawbone Hill.

Samson was thirsty after his fight and in that high place, God opened up a fountain of water. Samson received refreshment in the place of his victory.

Two lessons emerge. First, even when outnumbered, Samson used a rudimentary weapon and conquered his enemy by the power of the Spirit. Second, we can see that our place of victory will often become our place of refreshing.

Jonathan

At a significant battle in the perpetual conflict between Israel and the Philistines, King Saul and his son Jonathan went into battle with swords while their 600 men were unarmed (1 Samuel 13:22). The Philistine army was well-armed because they were the only ones with the tools to sharpen weapons.

In this midst of this uneven battle, Jonathan called to his armorbearer, “Come on! Let’s go! Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few.” (1 Samuel 14)

The two young men climbed sharp cliffs to the high ground of the Philistine camp. At the top, they quickly killed 20 enemy soldiers with just one sword between them. Then panic struck the Philistines. God literally shook the ground. They started killing each other and running away.

Jonathan’s great statement, “the Lord can win by many or by few,” illustrates that sometimes God needs just one courageous person to win the victory. When someone stands up and says, “This looks terrible, but I believe God is calling us to move forward,” then by the authority of God’s Word and the sword of the Spirit, battles are won.

Jehu

An army captain named Jehu was unknown until the day a young prophet sent by Elijah ran breathlessly into his tent. He poured oil on Jehu’s head and said, “God has anointed you to be king of Israel.” Jehu was not in line for the throne. He had no lineage to be king. But he told the other officers what the runner said. They took action, throwing their coats on the ground and blowing a trumpet, shouting, “Jehu is king” (2 Kings 9).

Jehu then rushed into action. Some Bible translations say he drove his chariot passionately; others that he drove like a maniac. His heart was burning. The kings of Judah and Israel came out to meet him and he killed them both. But Jehu didn’t stop there.

Jehu went to the city of Jezreel, where wicked Jezebel had established a thirty-year reign of evil and Baal worship, first as queen, then as queen mother. Against all odds, this young soldier faced down this woman that neither Elijah nor Elisha had been able to topple. She looked out the upper window and mocked Jehu. But Jehu responded by talking to the people around her. “Who is on my side?” he asked.

Some of Jezebel’s officials had worked around her evil for most of their lives. Answering the challenge from one young, anointed, unknown soldier, they grabbed their boss, Jezebel, and

threw her out the window. On the ground, she was trampled by horses, and her body was eaten by dogs. Jezebel’s downfall was prophesied, even the detail that she would be eaten by dogs.

But it took decades to happen.

It may take 20 or 30 years to win a battle. But when a person is anointed and has the courage to do what God says to do, God will break strongholds and defeat the enemy.

It looked impossible for Jesus to triumph over the kingdom of darkness. Yet under the anointing and power of the Holy Spirit, wherever Jesus found Satan’s kingdom, he tore it down. Jesus came to invade the enemy’s territory, overthrow his kingdom, and bring in the kingdom of God. He calls us to do the same.

God still brings the strongholds down and defeats the devil by His power and for His glory. The impossible becomes possible when God’s servants go on the offensive.

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March 18, 2022 0 comment

Faith Video

Beyond The Bolted Door

by Corine Channell February 14, 2022

written by Corine Channell

Whether you are a survivor of sexual abuse or you are still fighting your way out, the first thing you need to know is that YOU are NOT alone. There is life beyond the bolted door.

THE BOLTED DOOR

In my first published paperback book, Beyond The Bolted Door, I am sharing MY story in hopes that you will find the courage to tell YOUR story and to break through the bolted doors in your life.

There are SO many others throughout history who have stood frozen with terror at a door slammed and bolted shut in their face. This door represents secrets, shame, guilt, lies, pain, cover-ups, and devastation.

It took me 50 years to speak up on my own behalf, to finally see my own value and worth. I see my story as one of hope and survival but also a cautionary tale – where I beseech you to NOT wait as long as I did to defend yourself or tell your story or even be your OWN hero!

BOOKENDS OF LIFE

Beginnings and endings are the bookends to every life story. And the journey itself IS the chapters in between. We ALL have a story to tell. No one should ever carry the weight of a secret burden that crushes their soul and cripples their journey.

No one should ever feel their story is not worth telling or not worth hearing. Ironically, it is facing the truth of your painful story that sets you free FROM it. “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32)

PAIN TO PURPOSE

My pain has transformed into a work of art now on display; light shines out from my broken places like sparkling glittery diamonds. My purpose has exploded in beautiful words of HOPE laughing in the face of darkness.

I no longer feel like the misplaced puzzle piece – NOW I FINALLY see my place and it is a perfect fit. My cocoon is long gone. I know WHO I am and where I belong. My healed heart beats for the abused, for the broken, the lost, the forgotten, the angry, the rejected, the misunderstood, the captive, the ones who feel hopeless and that life is not worth living – my heart beats for YOU. YOU are my WHY.

At the very least I hope to point you in the right direction of how to turn your pain into purpose, by sharing MY story – understanding that your story is YOUR journey, and will be deeply personal (and unique) to you in its unfolding and resolve. BUT God has set eternity in the human heart therefore we are eternal beings. Remember that. So, THIS life with all of its pains is NOT all there is. It is just our earthly journey, and our stories will live on long after we are gone. And THAT is really, the whole point to life; to find the purpose buried deep in the pain and to be awakened to our true value.

LEAVE A LEGACY OF HOPE

We all hope to leave behind something of worth that can not be silenced or shaken. So, in essence (which is THE most important element of something) we get to leave behind – ourselves, in story form. Our stories may have been silenced or suppressed, but as we together begin to rise up, the sound will be a mighty cry of triumph that will echo down through the ages.

COMING FORTH AS PURE GOLD

The strength of character and the fortitude of an unshakable faith is built into us IN the deep, dark trenches! Remember the word there – IN! When we are tried IN the furnace of affliction, we shall come forth as pure gold.

In conclusion, I get it! If we have been healed and changed, then it should be visible as a testament to God’s power made manifest IN and THROUGH us. Like the blind man who got back his sight and proclaimed, “I was blind but NOW I see!” I would assume that after being blind you would WANT everyone to know! Finally, once all the scales are off your eyes, you can NOW proceed with glorious intention and purpose to leave behind a lasting legacy that will endure and will remain.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

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February 14, 2022 0 comment

Faith Featured

Making Your Stand In An Evil World

by Dr. William M. Wilson February 7, 2022

written by Dr. William M. Wilson

“If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.” (Isaiah 7:9 NIV)

“If you don’t take your stand in faith, you won’t have a leg to stand on.” (Isaiah 7:9 MSG)

Our world is engaged in a battle between the light and darkness, good and evil, integrity and corruption, holy and profane, pure and impure, pride and humility, and between the Lord of hosts and the prince of darkness.

The lives of over 7.5 billion people on this planet are the arena for this battle and the goal of the conquest. The world’s population is greater than ever, so the stakes for this spiritual war are the highest they have ever been.

So, like it or not, wanted or not, you are the object of war and in a battle for your life. Many will be overwhelmed by the forces of darkness. However, God is raising and equipping a group of believers that will stand up and answer the call to engage the enemy.

God’s Word points to a spiritual army infused by God’s Word and animated by God’s breath. Ezekiel envisioned a valley of dry, dead bones, representing the hopes and aspirations of God’s people. God told Ezekiel to speak to the bones and they came together and flesh came upon them, but they were still laying there dead. God then tells Ezekiel to breathe upon the bones and as he did, the bones came to life and stood up on their feet, a vast army.

I believe this represents the army God is raising up today who respond to the Word of the Lord, experience the breath of God, and will rise to make a stand for God’s kingdom. I believe they will have supernatural victories and change the world.

Paul wrote to take our stand against the devil’s schemes, not against people, but against “rulers, authorities, powers of darkness and spiritual forces of evil” (Ephesians 6:11).

To “stand” means to maintain our position in the face of pressure. Throughout history, this has been God’s call to those who serve Him—to take a stand.

· God spoke to Jeremiah, “Stand against the whole land. … They will fight against you, but will not overcome you, for I am with you” (Jeremiah 1:17-19).

· God said to Ezekiel, “Stand up on your feet, and I will speak to you.” Ezekiel records, “As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet (Ezekiel 2:1-2).

· To Daniel, God said, “Consider carefully the words I’m about to speak to you and stand up.” Daniel records, “When he said this to me, I stood up” (Daniel 10:11, 19).

· After experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter moved from the place of repose and fear into a place of courage and boldness (Acts 2).

· To Paul, God said, “Get up and stand on your feet. I’ve appeared to appoint you as a servant and as a witness” (Acts 26:16).

Today, principalities and powers want Christians to cower, retreat and run away. But God is calling us to stand in the face of the enemy and trust Him.

In the epic film “The Return of the King,” Aragorn made a stand against Sauron and his kingdom of darkness. “Hold your ground,” he said. “A day may come when the courage of men fails…but it is not this day.”

The Lord of the Rings was written by a Christian author, J.R.R. Tolkien, who put not-so-subtle messages of Christianity in his works.

The point is, when we feel surrounded, we can stand firm on the Word of the living God, and God will give us the victory. The Bible is filled with people who made a stand.

· When Israel was at the Red Sea, Moses said, “Stand still and see the glory of God.” They were out-equipped but not “out-faithed.”

· Gideon went from cowardice to boldness and though he was outnumbered, he was not “out-faithed.”

· David stood on God’s Word before Goliath. He was out-trained, but he was not “out-faithed.”

· Jehoshaphat was attacked by the Moabites and prayed. The answer came, “This battle is not yours, but the Lord’s.” He was “out-attacked” but not “out-faithed.”

· In one of the greatest sieges of human history, King Hezekiah got a word from Isaiah that the enemy would not prevail. The next morning, 185,000 enemy warriors were dead without Hezekiah ever raising a sword. He was out-maneuvered, but he was not “out-faithed.”

· Surrounded, Elijah’s servant was frightened. Elijah asked God to “open his eyes.” God opened his eyes, and the servant saw chariots of fire and angels on all the hillsides. He was overwhelmed but not “out-faithed.”

Conversely, when King Ahaz was under attack, Isaiah gave him a message. He chose instead to seek help from the world. He was defeated. Ahaz refused to trust the living God. As a result, he was not even buried with the other kings of the nation.

The message is the clear message for us today. If we do not stand firm in our faith, we will not stand at all. If we don’t take our stand in faith, we won’t have a leg to stand on.

In this generation, we are all going to feel under pressure, both overwhelmed and under attack. But we can stand on God’s Word. Trust Him. Believe him. Put our faith in Him.

The forces of darkness, waves of wickedness, and a flood of evil and impurity are raging in our world today. The devil is trying to bully God’s people because when we make our stand against the kingdom of darkness, all hell turns loose against us.

But God’s Word is true: “no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me” (Isaiah 54:17).

When you make your stand on the Word of God, hell will attack, but God will use those who prevail to change the world.

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February 7, 2022 0 comment

Faith Family Featured

Sometimes Pain Proceeds The Promise

by Pietze Duffield January 28, 2022

written by Pietze Duffield

Last year started out hard. Coming off of 2020 God started moving in Jonny and I, but then the impact of 2020 hit us. Our circumstances became hard, our relationship was hard, being a parent of a special needs kid was hard. It was like the refiners fire got turned up on everything in our life, and all of our crap came to the surface.

When people this year asked me where I felt like God was in all of it. I replied “God is like Abraham and I’m like Issac. He’s leading me to the altar, I don’t know what the outcome will be, but all I can do is trust him even when I don’t understand.”

Jonny and I have worked and processed through so much deep pain this year. From facing deep childhood pain, to hitting some of the deepest grief and pain about Yanna. As well as continuing the process of healing deep wounds between us. We both had to take a long hard look at ourselves and rather than being defensive.

We had to lean in, listen and choose to grow. But I suppose that’s the process of dying to yourself, of choosing to lay your life down, choosing into the process, choosing to look at the pain so you can find greater healing.

Emerging on the other side of this, I’m starting to see like a blurry picture coming into focus, the reason why… All of God’s promises are yes and amen. He is more committed to me and what He has for me than I am. And sometimes like childbirth, pain proceeds the promise. Sometimes it feels like you have to die to the life you built in dis-function to receive a life built out of healing.

I think as long as I’m living I will be in process. It’s part of being a human, but I have a God who loves process, who loves to father because he loves me. The point is not arriving, the point is what happens between Him and I in the process. Like the altar of sacrifice, I’m laying down who I have become in pain to receive who God has meant for me be in healing. In turn I feel more connected to God, my husband, parents, kids, siblings, friends, and even myself. Through it all I became more deeply connected to the One who lovingly chose to lead by example and lay down His own life on the altar of the greatest sacrifice to restore connection with me.