"Fight to Keep the Faith!

     First off I would like to say Hello to everyone that reads this post. God Bless You! I appreciate you! I would also like to encourage you to Not Give Up! I know this world can be hard and it's a battle! A couple of times I have asked my Lord Jesus, "Lord, can I please have no battles for a while? Can I go on vacation from the fight? I will jokingly explain to him how even soldiers in the army are not out on the "battlefield" all the time, they do get to go on vacation. I would explain to him that I just need a little break, but I would immediately clear that up and say, Lord, I want a break from the battle but I don't mean "sick bay", please don't allow me to be put there, then I would chuckle. I am so thankful that Jesus does have a sense of humor! He loves us and understands. 

     As David says in Psalms 103: 13,14 "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. 14. For he knows our frame; he remembereth that we are dust."  The Lord knows our frame. He knows where we come from. He knows we are human. He knows how he created us. God is the Potter, we are the clay. He is taking us marred vessels and turning us into something grand and awesome! He knows what he is doing with us. He knows just how much heat we individually need to get all the cracks out, to smooth us out, straighten us out, or whatever he thinks we need to simply make us shine for his Glory!

"Make it or Break it"

I watched a vessel being molded

by a potter one day.

I talked with the potter about what he was doing.

Here is what he had to say.

He said,  "I take this clay and hold it,

with oh! such tender care. 

I hold it in my hands,

and it's not going anywhere!

The Potter said, "I mash it,

and I squeeze it,

and it changes

bit by bit. 

The Potter knows what he is doing

he's a master at his art.

He knows how to handle the clay

every single part. 

The Potter knows

exactly what to do.

He knows just how much pressure

to take the clay through.

He knows how much the clay

can stand the flame in the fire.

He knows what is good, for the vessel

and how much heat it doth require.

He keeps working on the vessel

after he does begin.

He keeps his eyes upon it.

Never to take them off again.

To make it or break it and shape it

into a beautiful design.

And then he puts his name upon it,

and says, "This work of art is mine!"

     

     I love that part in that poem God gave me. " He puts his name upon it, and says, "This work of art is mine!" Doesn't that make you want to shout? Knowing that God Almighty loves us and calls us "his", helps us get through whatever comes our way. We have to remember that we are not on this earth forever! We are just passing through, and whatever we go through, we are just "going through". No matter what we go through we have to Keep the Faith in Jesus Christ until we take our last breath! That is the one thing we have to fight for! Our Faith in Jesus! Sometimes we go through some kind of fire! Believe me, I have had what "I" believe is way more than my share! God knows I am saying the truth! Because I have often voiced my opinion to him on the matter! Until I realized I can either get bitter or better. I chose to get better, not bitter! I chose to let Satan and all of Hell know that I will never give up my faith in God! I love the story of Job, in the bible. Read the book of Job. I love the King James Version. Read how God was bragging about him to Satan. God had Faith in Job that Job was going to hang onto his Faith no matter what! Job was a man who lost everything. His children, his health, and his livelihood were gone! He went "through" a very horrible time!

       During those times when you are in the fire experiencing trials and tribulations and persecutions from the devil himself and it feels like all of Hell is coming against you, consciously choose Faith in God! You cannot be passive at this thing of keeping your Faith! We have to stay aggressive in this fight of faith! Job had to aggressively hang onto his faith in God. Job didn't have anyone except for God! Job's own wife was telling him to curse God and die. Job's friends were no comfort. They thought they were but they weren't. 

     We are to follow those who have held onto their faith until the very end. Hebrews 13:7 says, "Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the Word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation." We cannot never forget also, Jesus says in Matthew 28:20 "Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." Amen! 

     I am here to tell you it is going to be a fight. The devil will come against you. He hates you because he hates God. He sees the awesome work God is doing in you and he knows why. He knows God is making an awesome warrior out of you and he is trying to stop it any way he can. 

Keep your Faith in Jesus unto the end brothers and sisters.

     You are a work of art and the devil knows it! The devil knows you are valuable! That is why he is fighting you!  

email at hopefulhappyandwhole@gmail.com

Photo by Jake Peterson on Unsplash

You Were Born For A Purpose!

Ecclesiastes 3:1 "To everything, there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the Heaven. A time to be born, and a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted."

    
      Have you asked yourself, "What am I here for? What is the purpose of me being here?" I'm talking about being on this earth, do you know "why" you were born in the first place? Personally, each one of you reading this now or listening to this on video. You are here for a purpose!

     I am writing this to expose the lie of the enemy that we are just here to go to school, to grow up to get a "job" and then retire and die. I mean really, is that the only thing we were born for? A job to make a paycheck and then die? That sounds so empty and meaningless, doesn't it? From the time we are young and growing up we are taught to go to school and go to college to get a career so you can get a good job when you are older, retire and that's it as if that is all there is to this life. That's a Lie! Listen to this parable of Jesus talking about a man who put more focus on temporary riches than eternal riches. 

Photo by Jake Gard  Unsplash

     Jesus tells us in Luke 12:16-21 "And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully (good crops). 17. And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do because I have no room to bestow my fruits. 18. And he said This will I do; I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19. And I will say to my soul, Soul thou hast much goods laid up for many years, take thine ease, eat, drink and be merry. 20. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee, then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided? 21. So is he that 'lays (saves) up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God." That is pretty scary! This man believed the lie that all his life was about was having more stuff and a bigger place and then retiring. He chose to spend his time on temporary riches. Jesus called him a fool because he was not rich toward God. This man thought only about temporary riches and didn't focus on eternity concerning where his soul was going to live forever and ever! How sad! There are far too many people who share this one's fate and are in Hell today! 

     You may say that the man in that parable must have been a "good" man because he worked hard to be rich, but Jesus said, He laid up treasures for "himself". He was rich toward "himself" and not rich toward "God". See, we are all created for God's pleasure, not our own. John says in Revelation 4:11, "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for thou hast created all things and for thy pleasure, they are and were created." 

    

      If you are reading this today, there is hope for you! You do not have to suffer as others who believed they were their own God. Who thought because they were rich in material things that they had everything they needed. They didn't need God, or a Saviour. You have hope that is reaching out to you right now to help you see you are here for a purpose! You know you could have and should have been gone from this earth many times. and if you died without a relationship with Jesus you would have gone to Hell. But It was God that kept you here to give you another chance to choose to love and serve him. He wants you to really enjoy your so-called "retirement", but there will be no joy in your heart without him. Don't be foolish to even think that you could rest, eat, drink and be merry (like the guy in that parable), without the God who created you! We are all born with an emptiness in our hearts until we invite Jesus to come in. Nothing or no one at all can fill that void in our hearts but Jesus!
   
     Whether you are monetarily rich or poor, when you are living your life without acknowledging God and you are living for your "self", you are missing out on the true riches God planned on you to receive. Jeremiah 29;11-13 goes for us today as well. He says, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not evil, to give you 'an expected end (hope in your latter end). 12. Then shall ye call upon me, and I will hearken unto you. 13. And ye shall seek me, and find me when ye shall search for me with all your heart." 

 

     In Conclusion- This World System and those who are caught up in it, have lied to us, making us believe our "job" defines who we are! People will make you feel like you are nothing if you do not have a "job" or money. People say You have to have a "job" to survive, to earn your way through this world system. And Dear Lord help those who do not have a "job" because people will make you feel like you are nothing if you do not have lots of money! That is all this world is about! However, I am here to tell you, You Are Valuable! You Are Precious and Priceless if you only have two pennies in your pocket right now! You are Valuable! You are worth dying for! That's what Jesus has shown you on the cross! He died for you! That is how special you are! He knows everything about you and he loves you! He knows the very number of hairs on your head. He knew you in your Mother's womb. You are here on this earth for more than just a "job". You have a Purpose and a Calling! There is a big difference! God created you for a reason! I am not telling you to quit your job but I am saying to if you don't know Jesus, to really take time to get to know him. Give him your life and follow him. He will give you direction. Proverbs 3:5,6 says, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." (read more below).

Cocoparisienne

     God told Jeremiah in Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee and before thou came forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." Before he formed you in the belly he knew you! He already has plans for you. God has given you gifts and talents. It is up to you to choose what you are going to do with your life. Give it to Jesus and let Him use you for His Glory, or continue to live for your "self". Choose wisely because we all will give an account to him when we leave this earth. Choose to follow Jesus and you will know your purpose. He will lead you to Heaven when your time on earth is up. 

What does "Success" mean to you? When I was seeking an image for this post, I typed up free images of success. Not too many came up. This was one of four. They had a couple of high-rise buildings and this gentleman in a suit. I thought to my self, so this is what people think "success" is? High-rise buildings, a man in a suit, cars, houses, a woman in heels, all that stuff. That's all people think success is? How superficial is that? 

Many people have struggled to climb that corporate ladder and managed to get to the top and ring the bell, but are still empty, dead on the inside, greedy and still money hungry! That is what you call success? 

There was a man in the bible, who God chose to be one of Jesus' disciples. This man followed Jesus everywhere along with the other chosen disciples. However, this man was not following Jesus in his heart. His mind was on the money. He was not content, because of greed, pride, and lust for power. In the end, this particular disciple made the money. But it was by selling out on Jesus, the Son of God. It led him to go out and hang himself. This man's name was "Judas". For the money Judas betrayed Jesus. You can read this story in Matthew 27:1-8 KJV. 

We have to be very careful to not love money. We are to follow Jesus, not follow after money. Jesus says in Matthew 6:24, "No man can serve two masters; for either, he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Money." 1 Timothy 6:10 says, "The love of money is the root of all evil; which while some 'coveted after (were greedy about), they have erred from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 

Timothy was warning us in chapter 6 to watch out for and withdraw from those who say, "Gain is godliness." He tells us in 1st Timothy 6:6 "But Godliness with contentment is great gain. 7. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8. And having food and raiment let us therewith be content." And speaking of contentment, Paul (in the bible) learned the hard way. He says in Philippians 4:11-13 "Not that I speak in respect of want; for I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. 12. I know both how to be 'abased (made low), and I know how to 'abound (be prosperous); everywhere and in all things, I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13. I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me."

Paul learned to be content and happy just walking with God. In verse 4:19 he says, "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in Glory by Christ Jesus. 20. Now unto God and our Father be glory forever and ever. Amen." Paul could only say God would supply our need because he walked with him and knew by experience God could be trusted. I have learned by an experience like Paul's, true contentment comes from walking with God and loving him.

So, to those of you who are climbing that corporate ladder, or seeking to be rich. just make sure you are walking with God. Make sure you are seeking Jesus and his righteousness first as Jesus says in Matthew 6:33 "But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you." 

If you don't have a relationship with Jesus and give Him the glory for all you have that he has given you, then you are not truly successful. It doesn't matter what you drive, or what kind of house you live in, or what kind of fancy clothes you wear, or where you travel, remember,

 "Success is not where you take your heart, but being content where your heart is right now!" Is your heart right with Jesus right now? If yes, and you are content and at peace, that is SUCCESS!

True success is walking and talking with God and having a relationship with him, whether we have two pennies in our pocket or two trillion in the bank, and giving him all the glory no matter what!

Listen to this song below by "Josh Turner called Me and God."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGZV2Sr1sTg

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