Good Morning Everyone,
Today I opened this devotion by Max Lucado.
To me he is one of the most colorful and descriptive
Christian authors in the marketplace today.
His writings are inspiring, they make you feel
like you are right there witnessing what he is
describing.
But today ... this one touched me, and I know it will you.
My dear friends, do you have days when you don't feel
you can go on any longer? Do you have days where
you feel life has been unfair, and you don't know where
to turn or how to fix things?
What does one do when the storms of life batter
the seas and we feel tossed to and fro by the winds
and the rain?
What do we do when circumstances seem greater
and more profound than available answers?
We Cling to God with all our heart, soul and mind
until the storm passes by. We stick our chin out like flint,
we persevere, we don't give up, we don't get shaken,
we recognize God is in control. We find hope when
there seems to be none, because that is what Faith is.
Faith is believing the answer is on the way, even
when we cannot see it.
Faith is trusting in God's great, all powerful abilities
and not our own.
Faith is trusting in our heavenly Father when we have
no one else to trust in.
Faith is resting in, relying on, clinging to, hoping in,
finding strength in, and RESTING in God. We don't look
to the right or left, we cling to God for all we are worth,
until we can stand strong again and face the day.
We are not alone. We are not hopeless.
We deal with what we have within our hands, count
our blessings and make the best of the day.
You might say to me, oh, but you don't understand
what I am facing, and how I have been hurt and who
has done what, and how sick I am, or how poor I am.
How do you know I don't? Do we not all struggle?
How can one know the pain of someone else?
The physical struggles in
my life are huge now. I just am not going to sit and
talk about it everyday. I am going to do what I can
to make each day count and talk about the goodness
of the Lord in the Land of the Living. Each of us
have struggles, it is common to man ... the secret
is ... what are you doing to overcome them with
the Word of God and your thinking?
My hope is in God, not in my circumstances!
My friend, we are in the army of God. We must be
strong in the Lord and the power of HIS might.
If you feel weak, close in with God, strengthen your
mind with HIS Hope, HIS word planted firmly in your
heart, and nothing can shake that! (Unless you allow it to)
Talk to Him till you feel peace. Don't stop talking till
you let go, and receive His peace.
It is a choice.
Receive peace or receive fear.
Receive strength or give it away.
Receive hope or dwell in anguish.
Prayer is our communication with God.
You either trust Him or you waver.
Nevertheless God prevails. He will have His
way, and He loves us dearly. Don't let anyone
tell you differently.
Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor stands in the way of the sinners, nor sits in the seat
of the scornful.
But his DELIGHT is in the law of the Lord, and in His
law (word) does he meditate day and night. (When was the
last time you meditated day and night on God's word?)
And he SHALL BE like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
that brings forth fruit in his season,
his leaf WILL NOT WITHER,
and whatsoever He does shall prosper.
Psalm 1:1-3
Why doesn't he wither? Why does He prosper,
because He trusts on God, day and night, fills
his heart with Gods word and it firmly roots Him
and plants Him in God, whom we cling to, rely on,
hope in and find strength from.
Just do it!
Love
millie
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Nevertheless…
by Max Lucado
And the king and his men… spoke to David, saying, “You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,” … Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David).
- 2 Sam. 5:6–9
Did you see it? Most hurry past it. Let’s not. Pull out a pen and underline this twelve-letter masterpiece.
Nevertheless.
“Nevertheless David took the stronghold …”
Wouldn’t you love God to write a nevertheless in your biography? Born to alcoholics, nevertheless she led a sober life. Never went to college, nevertheless he mastered a trade. Didn’t read the Bible until retirement age, nevertheless he came to a deep and abiding faith.
We all need a nevertheless. And God has plenty to go around. Strongholds mean nothing to him. Remember Paul’s words? “We use God’s mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil’s strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4 NLT).
You and I fight with toothpicks; God comes with battering rams and cannons. What he did for David, he can do for us. The question is, will we do what David did? The king models much here.
Two types of thoughts continually vie for your attention. One proclaims God’s strengths; the other lists your failures. One longs to build you up; the other seeks to tear you down. And here’s the great news: you select the voice you hear. Why listen to the mockers? Why heed their voices? Why give ear to pea-brains and scoffers when you can, with the same ear, listen to the voice of God?
did.
Turn a deaf ear to the old voices.
Open a wide eye to the new choices.
Who knows, you may be a prayer away from a nevertheless. God loves to give them.
Peter stuck his foot in his mouth.
Joseph was imprisoned in Egypt.
The Samaritan woman had been married five times.
Jesus was dead in the grave …
Nevertheless, Peter preached, Joseph ruled, the woman shared, Jesus rose—and you?
You fill in the blank. Your nevertheless awaits you.
From Facing Your Giants
Copyright (W Publishing Group, 2006) Max Lucado
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