Don't Be Afraid to Take Chances

I was having a conversation with a co-worker of mine this morning, as we were coming from breakfast, about our job and she was telling me that she hated that she didn't get a chance to sign up for the "fun committee" this year.  I asked what that was, and she told me that it was a committee that planned and organized all of the fun activities that we have at work.  And immediately I had an idea, that she would be a great event planner.  She's very bubbly, and fun, and she has a very colorful personality, and she loves to do creative things like that, so I expressed this to her, that she should look into doing it.  But she wasn't very enthused about seriously considering it as a business, another career, or even as a hobby.  Her setback was that she was afraid.

Now, this woman is about 5'11, if not over 6 feet tall, very outgoing, and meets no stranger.  And she was afraid of venturing out to do something that she is great at.  She could be missing her calling, her purpose in life, because she's too afraid to take a chance.

Often times, we let fear keep us from our destiny; the fear of the unknown and fear of failure.  But God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind (2 Tim 1:7).  God doesn't want us to have fear in our hearts, because fear is just a trick of the enemy to keep us from carrying out what God wants us to do.

Do you know what FEAR stands for?  False Evidence Appearing Real.  That's it. 

Many of us miss out on our blessings because we are afraid of failing, but failure is a good thing.  I know you're probably asking yourself, why?  Well, failure makes us stronger, failure is a guide, and failure is a great teacher. 

Going through trials and making mistakes is a part of life, that you can't get around, unless you do absolutely nothing for the entirety of your life.  How you respond to failure is what will help you in your quest to find your true purpose in life.  If you're smart, you'll learn from your past mistakes, gaining knowledge on what to do or not to do if faced with the situation again; therefore, making decisions based on past experience, that guide you down paths leading to your destiny.

I've always been a pretty adventurous person.  I love to try new things, and even though I may be a little apprehensive sometimes, I'll still do it, just to see where it will take me.  Especially, if I develop an interest in something or someone, I can't rest until I try it out, and if it doesn't work out, I just move on to the next project, maybe that wasn't for me. 

So don't be afraid to try things, if you want that job, go get it, it doesn't matter if you're the least qualified.  The favor of God upon you is all you need.  God said, "the last shall be first and the first shall be last (Matt 20:16).  Favor is when God blesses you with something that you didn't deserve upon any doing of your own, but He blesses you with it anyway, because His favor is upon you.

I pray that this message was a blessing to you today.  Thank you for reading.  In Jesus' name, be blessed.

Believe In Yourself

I know that you've probably heard this about a million times in your lifetime, but it's true, and it works. When you believe in something, it causes you to act on what you believe, therefore producing results that line up with what you believe. For instance, if you believe that exercise is good for you and will help you to lose weight, you will begin to exercise, thus producing the results that you anticipated.

Faith works the same way. It's a muscle that has to be trained and worked out, in order for it to work for you. If you believe that you can do something, you will do it, and there is nothing that anyone can say or do to convince you otherwise.


But you might say, "I don't have what it takes," or "I just can't do it." But God says, "You shall have whatsoever you say." (Mark 11:23) You have the power to speak life or death, prosperity or destruction, good or bad, it all lies in your tongue (Proverbs 18:21).  God says that if you believe and don't doubt, you can have whatever your heart desires.


It's important that we believe in ourselves, but more importantly believe in the immeasurable power of God, who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ever ask or think, according to the power that works itself in us (Eph 3:20).


Stop telling yourself what you can't do, and start telling yourself what you can and will do. Even if you don't believe in God, or believe that your words have life, what you say, whether it be good or bad, will still manifest itself in your life. So speak life, not death into your situation, into your family, and into yourself.

No Matter What It Looks Like, Never Give Up

Often times I've found myself giving up on things, and somtimes even people because of what it looks like on the outside, or what it looks like right now.  Or maybe not giving up on them, but just setting them aside for now, because it was too hard or taking too long.  I have mentioned before that I am a very, very impatient individual.  I want things when I want them, which is usually right now.

But I've realized that life doesn't quite work that way.  Some things can be obtainable right now, but some things take time.  I'm also learning that good things come to those who wait, and special orders take time.  See, when I get it in my head that I want something, it's always a certain way that I want it.  I'm very particular, and very detailed about things.  So I must understand, that in order to get what I want, the way that I want it, it's going to take time.

Maybe there's something that I need to do first, before God will give it to me or reveal it to me.  Maybe I need to mature more, or get to a certain place, emotionally, physically, mentally, and/or spiritually, like Abram in Genesis Chapter 13.  We don't know God's plans for our lives, but He does.  That's why He instructs us to seek Him with all our hearts, because He knows His thoughts toward us; they are of peace, to give us an expected end (Jeremiah 29:11-13). 

We can't just look at a situation or an obstacle and want to run away from it, because we may never reach our blessing.  And you're going to face it over and over again until you overcome it. 

When Joseph was sold into slavery by his own brothers, they meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.  When you know that you have God in your corner, you can look at the glass half full, not half empty.  Because whatever the devil tries to put in front of you to stop you from reaching your destiny, your God given purpose in life, God is the one who has full control, and can turn it completely around to work in your favor, but you have to give Him that control first.

Never let what a situation looks like stop you from going after your dreams, your passion, your purpose in life.  Try and try again, and again, and again.  God said that He would not cut off our expectations (Proverbs 23:18), and our God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change His mind (Numbers 23:19).

Don't Let Your Vision Die

This title came to me when I was listening to a sermon on the radio this morning, on my way to work.  The Pastor was preaching about Christian parenting and he was talking about how God wants us as Christians to teach our children to be Godly.  I than began to think of how this was my vision for my family before my husband and I got married.  However, that is not how it has turned out to be, and along the way, my husband and I both have lost sight of what we were called to do.  With all of the obstacles that he and I have faced, my vision of being a Godly wife and mother, and teaching my children the way of the LORD, had started to whither away.

And I realized that I am letting my vision die.

Once you start to lose sight of something, it becomes an out of sight, out of mind situation.  Then your actions are no longer in line with what you orginally set out to do.  No matter how long it takes, how hard it is, how far away it is, or how much effort you have to put forth, you should never let anything detour you from your mission.

Even in trying to discover my purpose and calling, I lost sight of what my first calling is now, and that's to be a wife and a mother.  To love and honor my husband, and train my children in the way that they should go.  The enemy had me so distracted, that I had forgotten about this.  Well, not forgotten, because it's embedded in my heart, but it became less and less important to me, the more I stacked other things at the top of my life's to-do list.

Noone should ever seek their purpose, without seeking the purpose of God first.  I will be the first to admit, that I am guilty of this, and I knew better.  But I've always been stubborn, and God knew that.  So He let me run around in circles trying to "find myself", because He knew I'd be back eventually.  God does have a sense of humor.

 I believe this is why I've been so lost and unfulfilled.  Because I had begun to let my vision deteriorate.  Before my husband and I got married, all I wanted was for the LORD to use us; to make us an example for other couples; to use us to glorify His name.  But when the crap started to hit the fan, all I wanted to do was run.  I forgot all about what I had asked God to do, and the passion I had for family, because this just could not have been in God's plans.  There must have been some sort of mistake.  He couldn't have possibly meant for me to endure so much in so little time.  I was starting to feel like Job; like I was being tested at every angle, but unlike Job I was failing every test.  I never blamed God, but I had a hard time seeing the glory in any of it.  But I do have hope in this: after Job went through his test, God blessed him 2 times over.

That's why I have decided to breathe new life into my dream of having a family that will glorify God.  I have to get back to putting God first and inviting Him into everything I do.  Like I get so often because I'm very impatient, I got tired of waiting on the LORD and I tried to go off on my own without God, but I'm a great example that that never works.  You will only get so far.  And nothing is more important than me and my family being able to enter into the Kingdom of God when that time comes.