I Found STRENGTH through my STRUGGLE!

From Now On!

Perhaps you've thought about reasons to STOP because you can't think of a reason to CONTINUE.  My advice...you must think of a reason to START OVER!

There's a difference in GIVING up and STARTING over.  Your new beginning has to begin with the words "FROM NOW ON..."

• FROM NOW ON ... Choose to let the things you cannot control GO!
  Honestly, most of things in your life today are there because you keep thinking about them.  To get the POSITIVE...often you have to distance yourself from the NEGATIVE.  Stop clinging to the memory of what HURTS and make room for what HEALS.  Refuse to let what is out of your control interfere with all the things you can control.
  
  
• FROM NOW ON ... Choose to REJOICE rather than REGRET! Whatever has happened was FOR you not TO you. I believe that God is working ALL THINGS for your good. God is working these things at His SCHEDULE and I've learned that He is seldom early but never late. Friend, for everything you LOSE, you GAIN something else.
  
  
• FROM NOW ON ... Choose to REST and REJOICE!
  Jesus chose to retreat to the mountain after He learned of the death of John the Baptist. Strength isn't about bearing a cross of grief it's about choosing your path and learning from the experience. Friend, regardless of the MESS that people may try to put you through...continue to do your BEST!  The good news is that the experience has taught you WHAT NOT TO DO as well as what to do.
  
  
• FROM NOW ON ... Choose to take RISKS!
  Changes aren't easy and can sometimes be scary. But do you know what's even scarier? REGRET. I've learned that most of your fears are bigger in your mind than they are in reality.  Friend, don't let fear stop you! Face it and move on! Live your life so that you never have to regret the chances you never took, the love you never let in, and the gifts you never gave out!
  
  
• FROM NOW ON ... Choose to keep CLIMBING!
  How do you get to the top of a mountain? One step at a time!  Good things come to those who WORK for them!  You gain confidence and strength with every experience in which you truly PUSH yourself to do something you didn't think you could do! As long you're standing in the place of "in-between", unable to or unwilling to move forward, you'll never see the VIEW from the top!
  
  
• FROM NOW ON ... Choose to SMILE through the STRUGGLE!
  Nothing is more beautiful and powerful than a smile that has struggled through the tears!  Don't regret your TIME, even the moments that were filled with HURT!  Choose to SMILE because you have learned from it and gained the strength to rise ABOVE it. In the end, it's not what you have been through that defines who you are...it's how you GOT THROUGH IT that has made you the person you are today, and the person you are capable of being tomorrow!

Believe me...you are STRONGER because of the STRUGGLE!  What you went through PREPARED you for the PROMOTION you're now enjoying.  

The LIDS of LIMITATION are removed when you CLIMB over the CEILING of COMPLACENCY, CONSPIRACY and CROSSFIRE!

You Are Stronger Than You Think

He gives power to the faint and weary, and to him who has no might He increases strength [causing it to multiply and making it to abound]. [II Cor. 12:9.] (Isaiah 40:29 AMP)

At some point, you will come to realize that living the good life involves some amount of necessary PAIN, and that there are more flavors of pain than ice cream and coffee combined…

There’s the little empty pain of leaving something behind ‒ graduating, taking the next step, walking out of a familiar, safe situation and into the excitement of the unknown. There’s the giant, whirling pain of life upsetting all of your big plans and expectations. There’s the little sharp pains of making a mistake, and the more obscure aches of success, when it doesn’t make you feel as good as you thought it would. There are the vicious, backstabbing pains of betrayal. The sweet little pains of finding others who are worthy of your time, giving them your love, and taking joy in their life as they grow and learn. There’s the steady pain of empathy that you shrug off so you can stand beside a wounded friend and help them face their problems.

And on the best of days, there are the subtle, tingling pains you feel throughout your body when you realize that you’re standing in a moment of sweet perfection, an instant of great achievement, or happiness, or laughter, which at the same time cannot possibly last ‒ and yet will remain with you for the rest of your life.

Everyone is down on pain, and when we experience it we usually say we’re having a bad day, because we forget something important about what we’re going through: Pain is for the living – for those of us who still have the chance of a lifetime. Only the dead don’t feel it, because their time is already up.

My friend...GOD BELIEVES IN YOU! He has given you the STRENGTH you need to not only survive the hurt, pain, betrayal and junk that may have happened to you but to THRIVE in the face of it!

Are You Tough Enough?

There's a saying I grew up hearing that says, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going!"  This has indeed been a true statement for anyone who has had to hurdle past obstacles and climb over life's disappointments.

The Bible teaches us in Proverbs 30 that there are four things that are little upon the earth, but they are exceedingly wise. The first is the ANT.  Solomon says they are not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer (v 25).

ANTS know that they don't have long to work before the chill of Winter sets in.  So, they gather all they can to feed their colony, while they have strength and opportunity.  ANTS do not wait for an invitation to your picnic.  They show up unannounced and are happy to carry away anything within their reach. 

ANTS are relentless.  ANTS are persistent.  ANTS use every muscle they can muster to carry their fair share of the load.  In the ANT'S world...you've gotta be TOUGH to survive!

How TOUGH are you?

Where did we ever get the idea that everybody would appreciate us?  Certainly not from Jesus!  He said His blessings were reserved for the "persecuted and the reviled" (Matthew 5:10-11).  If you are "thin skinned" you'll have a rough time, because that makes you an easy target for the enemy.

Endurance is the secret; not popularity!  

• Paul endured desertion by his friend.
• Ugly letters from the Corinthians.
• Disappointment with the Galatians.
• Mistreatment in Philippi.
• Mocking in Athens.
• Imprisonment and beheading in Rome.

What do we really have to complain about?  Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 16:13 "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong."

1. Watch ye! - "Be on the alert!" - Why?  Because you have an adversary who is out to get you.  What's he after? The DEPOSIT of God that's within you.  You are a SEED, capable of producing a harvest for God in the earth!

2. Stand fast in the faith! - "Be firm!" - Why? Because you can't stand on your feelings, your circumstances, or the opinions of others. Those things change constantly. You can only stand on the Word of God.

3. Quit you like men! - "Act like men!" - Why? Because being childish won't cut it when the battle rages. It's time to grow up! Learn from your mistakes and keep going!

4. Be strong! - "Toughen up!" - Why? Because weakness is an invitation to your enemy. Furthermore, it always precedes surrender, and quitting is not an option for you. God told His people that the Promised Land was theirs, but they had to fight for it. God's saying the same thing to you today!

You don't have to stand in your own strength!  

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."

Saying Nothing Says It All

Time, experience, etiquette and Godly mentors have taught me to remain quiet and fight off the urge to comment directly or indirectly about life's situations.

When you take time to PRAY about a situation, you'll be amazed at how differently you feel about it in a matter of days, weeks, and in some cases, a few years later.  Hindsight truly is 20/20.

• PRIDE says, "Don't just stand there; say something!"  
• WISDOM says, "Don't just say something; stand there!"

Our responsibility is to ask God for insight.  It's not a lack of faith to ask God "WHY" questions.  It's a matter of expressing your heart to Him and trying to understand why He allowed the heartache, pain, disappointment, betrayal, sickness, death, etc.

Time is the great leveler.  However, we live in an age of instant coffee and instant potatoes.  Therefore, we tend to look for instant answers.  When tragedy strikes, not only do we get the news immediately, but within minutes experts appear on television to tell us why it all happened.  But sometimes wisdom is SILENT.

What do you do when you're attacked, hurt, lied on, misrepresented or injured by people and assumptions?  You do what Jesus did.  Remember, He had the power to summon twelve legions of angels to defend Him, yet "He opened not His mouth" (Isaiah 53:7).  Pilate did all the talking.  Jesus just STOOD THERE QUIETLY, for He was not on trial; Pilate and the religious system were. Jesus knew His destiny, and most of all, He knew His Father intimately.

Like Jesus, sometimes all you can do is look in the whites of Pilate's eyes and SAY NOT A WORD!  Saying nothing takes STRENGTH, CONTROL and DISCERNMENT.

The Bible says in Proverbs 13:3 Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin.

Saying nothing and leaving it in God's hands is not always easy.  Your flesh wants to correct and shout the injustice from the roof tops!  But I've learned in my own life...ONE WORD FROM HIM CAN TURN THINGS AROUND IN A HURRY.  (God did it for me)

When you know God, you can face anything with confidence - and still be free to keep quiet. What a wonderful place to be!