Fully Persuaded

There's faith and then there is FAITH.  I'm not just talking about the kind of faith that operates like a carousel, up one minute and down the other.  I'm talking about the kind of faith that is unshakable   As I read Romans 4: 19-21, I am amazed at the conviction in which Abraham lived out his faith.  We read the following regarding his faith:

"And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:  He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. "

God had promised Abraham and Sarah a child many years earlier.  Time went by without the promise being answered.   If anyone had the right to doubt, it would be Abraham.  His body was,well....kind of old.  His wife's womb was considered dead with regards to child bearing (v. 19). Yet, Abraham remained "fully persuaded".  To me, that means that he didn't doubt even once. Sarah doubted a couple of times, but not Abraham. He was a friend of God.  He knew that God would answer as impossible as the situation might have seemed.  God honored that kind of faith.  Romans goes on to tell us that his faith was  imputed to him for righteousness. This means that his unshakable faith made him saved.  His faith made him pure.  That's some special kind of faith!  

Romans does not stop there.  It says the following:

Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it [righteousness] was imputed to him, but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead (Romans 4:23-24). 

So here's the cool thing.  Abraham's story was written for us as an example of what our own faith should look like.  Notice that the last verse emphasizes our belief in the God who "raised the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead." What this tells me is that we should have a resurrection type of faith.  If God raised Jesus from the dead, then know that He will make the dead things in your life live again and will do the impossible when we are "fully persuaded" of his goodness and faithfulness. 

This song was written a couple of years ago, but I feel it more than ever.  Enjoy!

Single for a Season...Single for a Reason

Note:  If you've never experienced a long season of singleness in your own life, then this blog posting is probably not for you.  However, please feel free to pass on to others who you think might be blessed by it. 

I couldn't help but share this amazing article of encouragement with all my fellow singletons, but before I share it, I want to preface it with some of my own words.  I am finally at a point that I am enjoying my season of singleness  to the  fullest.  I wasn't always at this point and for most of my 20's( I'll be 30 next year), I was dragged down the road of God's will often times kicking and screaming like a big baby. lol.  I really thought that I would be married by the time I was 25 years old (uuummm, I've kind of changed my mind about that).  I used to ask God, why am I not married yet?  I'm a decent gal.  I've done everything right for the most part (completely self-righteous as if our works can manipulate God into doing what we want). If its not time, I used to beg God, please take this feeling of wanting to be married away from me so that I can enjoy my life. Yah, that didnt' happen. God wanted me to learn how to depend on Him even more.  He wanted me to learn patience by being put in situations that required PATIENCE.  It didn't come right away, but I recall the time where God began to speak and tell me, You have waited on me and now I'm going to give you what your heart truly desires. I am going to give you a season of pure satisfaction and contentment only in me.  I'm going to give you that rest you  asked me for all this time.  I am going to give you a season of joy and peace where you can serve me without distractions and with singleness of heart.  This will be one of the most blessed seasons of your life.  I cannot express fully what God has done in this season of my life up to this point.  I feel a supernatural push daily to serve God like never before. I feel happy just getting up in the morning. Some even say I smile too much.  I have been blessed in my career as well. I just received a scholarship to go study at a prestigious museum in New York City this summer.  It had nothing to do with my abilities, but everything to do with God's.  He has planted in my heart areas of ministry that I was too afraid to even dive into before.  I feel like I have a gift to encourage other singles to live for God like never before.  Did you know that right now, in our world today, the largest group of under-served and un-churched people are singles.  More young career professionals are putting off marriage until later years in order to pursue their goals.  I believe the church has a wonderful opportunity to share Jesus with these people, disciple them, and send them off the make more disciples.  They not only have the time, but they also have the resources.  I want to be part of the group that makes this happen.  If God can use my simple life to help in this area, then so be it.  Don't get me wrong, I know that one day when God decides to open that door, I will join in matrimony with a person who I can team up with to further God's kingdom, but for now, I want him to use me to the fullest to reach others to build His kingdom.  Some may not be ready to hear me out and I totally understand that. I was once at that same point.  When you are ready to let God use you, where you are at in your life, with what you already have, there is a place for you and an amazing opportunity to make a difference.  Pastor Jason Sciscoe said it once and it has stayed with me until now:  The most on-fire people, the most dedicated, the greatest prayer warriors, and overall, the greatest Christians should be single people.  They can give themselves wholly to God without reservation and without limits.  May that be my life-story.  :)

Here's the article that I found that will encourage you in your season.  May it empower you like it empowered me:

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/single-satisfied-and-sent-mission-for-the-not-yet-married


Other resources:
Rev. Lee Stoneking and his thoughts on singleness:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOLeCjC-2K4
Skip Heitzig's Series on Singleness, Dating, Marriage, Divorce, and Widowhood (Great series, completely downloadable):  http://skipheitzig.com/teachings_search.asp?series=112  

When God Hears, but Does Not Answer

    

   We all want to be heard.  There’s something about having our words acknowledged and deemed important by someone else.   We want to know that someone understands how we feel  and that  they can sympathize with us.  In Psalm 22:2, we can relate to the words of the Messiah when He says, “O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.”   How many times have we felt like God is not hearing us?  How many times have we felt like our words bounce back to us when we pray?  We all have felt this way at some time or another.  It can even be discouraging.   Yet, a couple of lines later in that same chapter, we see that the Messiah sings a new song, “Save me from the lion’s mouth: for thou hast  heard me from the horns of unicorns.”  This is much different from his initial cry and prayer.  Hebrews 5:7 says it like this (referring to Jesus),

“Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save him from death, and was heard, in that he feared.  Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things he suffered…”

Jesus, without a doubt, knew that every word he had prayed had been delivered and  heard. There was a peace in knowing this.    The interesting thing is that nothing had changed in Jesus’ situation.  He still made his way to the cross to be crucified.  He still had to learn true obedience to God’s will.  This is how he would be perfected and glorified.   A lost and dying world needed Him to be obedient.   It’s through his obedience that you and I can enjoy his salvation today.

      So here is what I want to tell you.  God hears you.  He hears every word that comes from your lips.  He hears your praise and worship, but he also hears your words of pain.  He hears those late night cries.  He hears those sighs of exhaustion because you feel you can’t go on anymore.  He hears your frustration.  He hears those fragrant prayers for your loved ones.  He hears those prayers for that special need that you have.  He hears you.  Your situation may not change immediately because there is still more perfecting that is needed in you.  Your prayer may not be answered because God is teaching to be obedient even when you don’t have your answered prayer yet, but rest assured that God hears you.  There is a peace in knowing that God hears you.  When you trust that His ear is open to your prayer, there is a faith that floods your soul that allows you to walk confidently through life even through the silence of God.  His silence does not equate to a closed ear.  His silence means that He is working on your behalf and believes that you have what it takes to trust him.   My greatest faith has come through His silence.  My prayer is that your faith will also grow through knowledge that God hears you.

Walking in confidence,

April

Sharing the Gospel is Not Always a Day at the Beach

When I was about eight years old, I remember my family going to Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk for the day.  We picked a nice sunny spot on the beach to settle down, and then my mom let my little sister and I loose to go play in the water.  Deb and I found a water way under the boardwalk to play in, but we stayed near the shallow end at our mother's instructions.  You see, Deb and I still did not know how to swim.   However, it didn't take very long for my Deb, who was six years old at the time to get nosy and venture to the deeper parts of the water.  Within seconds of stepping into the deep end, she began to cry for help as her head began to go under. She frantically flapped her arms and began splashing in the water as she tried to come up to the surface for a breath of air.  When I realized what was happening, I initially froze in fear. I wanted to help, but I couldn't swim and yet my little sister was drowning.  All of sudden, courage hit me like ton of bricks and I knew what I had to do.  Without knowing how to swim, I jumped into the deep end to rescue her.  As I went under, I realized that there was a possibility that I might drown too, but I didn't care anymore.  I had to save my sister. Within seconds of my heroic act, a slicing pain shot through my foot as it met the floor underwater. The pain took hold of me as I realized I has stepped on something very sharp. The pain in my foot was so intense that it caused me to give up and surrender to the waters. 

 

Then, I felt his hands.  They were strong and mighty and in one quick second, he swooped in and grabbed me from the deep.  As I came up out of the water in one of his arms, I saw my sister in his other arm. Realizing that we were being rescued,  I never felt such relief in my life.  The man sat us on the sand as my little sister was crying uncontrollably. I was still in shock.   Then the pain from my foot hit me like a thousand needles while the  bloody sight of my foot  did not help the situation. I too began  to cry.  My mom who had seen the whole thing from far off ran towards us frantically while a lifeguard was summoned. When we finally stopped crying, my foot was bandaged up by the lifeguard and we went on a trip to the  hospital so I could get stitches.  It turns out I had stepped on a broken beer bottle under water.   To this day, I still have the light scar on my foot, although it has almost disappeared for good.  However, the memory will always stay with me.  

So what is the point of my story?  This morning as I got ready for work, God reminded me of this experience  to show me what sharing Jesus with others can be like for many Christians.    I'll keep it simple for you.  There is a dying world out there that needs Jesus and they are frantically calling out for help.  They are drowning in pain and sadness just like my little sister was drowning in the Santa Cruz Beach waters that hot summer day. As Christians, we are the only hope for many, but we are too scared to do anything because we feel unequipped for the task at hand.  Just as I felt unable to help my little sister because I could not swim, we feel helpless to share Christ with the unbelievers.   However, there is moment when the Holy Spirit gives us a boldness and courage that only comes from God just like the courage that came upon me in my sister's moment of need. This courage allows us to take the risk and jump into the unknown waters of life so that we can help those who so desperately need the Jesus who lives inside of us.   Just as I was unsure of the final outcome with my leap of faith that summer day, there also comes the possibility of failure and obstacles when we make our spiritual leap of faith.  In my situation,  I was met with the pain of stepping on glass and almost drowning along with my sister. However, just like the stranger on the beach  came to our rescue, our Heavenly Father is ready to take us up in his own arms and rescue us too.   So here is my advice today- Take the risk, step into the deep, and be ready to see God work because of your faith and obedience.  God honors both. You might mess up, you might stumble, the words may not come out as smooth as you would like.  You may get some who don't want to hear the Gospel.  You may even feel rejected by those who you speak to, but just know that God will honor your efforts.  Like the title of this post says, "sharing the Gospel is not always a day at the beach."  However, watching God work through us and accomplishing his task DESPITE us is amazing.  

 

April

God, Teach Me to Have Joy

"In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  I Thessalonians 5:18

For the longest time, I didn't know how to have fullness of joy.  It was almost like I didn't know how to be happy simply "being" me everyday. If I wasn't working on some new endeavor, some goal, or I didn't have some new adventure before me, I felt like something was wrong with me. It's not that I like being this way, but I didn't know how to be different.  As a matter of fact, God spoke to me about being in a new season of favor  and guess what, I began to ruin it with murmuring and complaining about what wasn't right in my life or what was still lacking.  Nevertheless, God kept speaking and pushing me along.  I asked Him, Please teach me to have joy in simply "being." Teach me joy in the everyday tasks of life and even in the not-so-exciting times.  He spoke ever so gently (as always) and replied, The key to having joy is being thankful for what you have and being thankful for those things that make you feel most uncomfortable.

What?????  Ok,  Lord, I get being thankful for the good things, but I also have to be thankful for the yucky things?  You mean I have to be thankful for the disagreement I just had with someone, the fact that I don't have any extra money to spend this month, the fact that my ankle  is still feeling injured, the fact that I'm still plugging away at school after so many years,  that I'm still adjusting to recent changes in my life, and the fact that I'm always so exhausted?  Hmm.  Sounds kind of hard Lord.  

Yes, April, he replied.  He continued, There is power in thanksgiving.  There is power is your daily proclamations.  Exchange your murmurings for thanksgiving and watch me work. 

So my journey started and it wasn't easy.  Every morning I got up and I began to thank God for the good and the bad.  Instead of complaining that I was exhausted after work,  I spoke to God and said, Lord, I'm so grateful for the rest that you've given me.  Instead of complaining that I had so much homework, I instead said, Lord, thank you for letting me return to school to get my Masters. I know not everyone has this privilege.  Instead of complaining about my disagreements with people,  I instead said, God, thank you for putting that person in my life to help me grow as a person. They are blessing me and challenging me to be a better person.  

I am so serious when I say that this attitude of thankfulness changed my life and continues to do so. I don't feel so tired anymore, I'm not so sensitive anymore, I feel more financially blessed than ever before, my health is improving, and I smile more than ever. I wish I knew this secret a long, long, long time ago.  There is such peace and joy in my life like never before.  Now, I want to invite you to join me in sharing in it.  But watch out because once you start, you are going to see the blessings of God pour out on you like never before.  So many times, we want to know God's will for our lives, but the Bible clearly tells us what His will is, "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (I Thessalonians 5:18). So the real question is, are you ready?  If so, then repeat after me, Lord, thank you so much for  _________________ (you fill in the blank).

On a side note, I created a "thankfulness" jar and every time I receive a blessing or God speaks to me in some way or another, I record it on a piece of a paper, fold it, and put it in the jar.  My plan is to open the jar on New Year's Eve of 2013 and review all the blessings that God has poured into my life throughout the year.  I can't wait!  

Passionate about your spiritual success,

April

Spiritual Leanness

"They [Israelites]soon forgot his works; they waited not for his counsel: But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert. And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul." Psalm 106:13-15

If God gave us everything we wanted when we wanted it, I do not believe that we would be truly happy. What we think is best for us is not always what God thinks is best for us because He sees the entire picture when we don't. However, I do believe that God sometimes gives in to our foolish requests, even though it might not be His best for us, because of our stubbornness to have it our way. The Israelites experienced this when they were in the wilderness, murmuring about how hard they had it. God had just done an amazing work by parting the Red Sea and allowing them to cross over when they began to complain about the manna that God provided for them. They wanted meat to eat. Psalm 106:14 says that the Israelites began to lust exceedingly and tempt God. You know what God did? He decided to give them what they wanted. Verse 15 says this, " And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul." What does this mean? God sent them flesh to eat. He gave them what they wanted. As a matter of fact, He gave them so much quail that it literally came out of their nostrils (Numbers 11:20). Gross, right? The verse goes on to say, however, that with their request, he sent "leanness to their soul." What is leanness? Leanness means thinness. In some commentaries, leanness equates to starvation. So, what this means is that although God honored their request and gave them what they wanted, He left their souls starving. They were fed with their immediate physical need, but they missed out on seeing God truly provide for them which left their souls spiritually wanting.

Here's what I'm trying to say. We chase after experiences, hobbies, money, careers, jobs, education and entertainment in hopes of satisfying that nagging sense of longing we feel on a day-to-day basis. Some even chase after relationships in attempt to satisfy that longing and emptiness, but even after that new relationship has begun, the soul is still starving for something more. Our stubborn desire for immediate gratification and God allowing it leaves us spiritually bankrupt, or spiritually "lean" because although we are getting our physical desire answered, our soul is still starving for Him. The human soul longs to be satisfied by God and God alone. Our flesh may deceive us into thinking that other things can satisfy us, but we quickly see that once those wants are met, we still feel the same, or worse.

What is the remedy? Trust that God's manna is better for you than anything else this world can offer. Eat from His table daily. Eat of Him daily (John 6:51). I leave you with our bishop's words to us a couple of weeks ago. He simply put it this way, "God is most glorified when we are satisfied in Him." Allow God to satisfy you and feed you with the fatness of his presence. Then, and only then, will your soul be content.

"...I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness..." Psalm 63:4-5

"I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." John 6:51

I am passionate about your spiritual empowerment,

April

No Fear! A Testimony for those Who Experience Panic Attacks

Starting when I was nineteen years old, I struggled with panic attacks every single night for 2 1/2 years.  Ask anyone who knew me, I slept very little and dreaded going to sleep.  I would go to sleep, but would wake up as if someone had scared me out of sleep, my body would shake uncontrollably, and my heart would race. Sometimes, it would take hours to get back to sleep.  I was so shaken up that it was even hard for me to call on the name of Jesus at times. Although I don't believe that the enemy caused these attacks, I do believe that he tried to use these attacks to make me feel timid and lose my confidence in God. I was tired (as you could imagine) of experiencing these attacks and in my prayer time, asked God to help me.  The help did not come right away.  I believe that God was trying to force me to be bold and commanding against the enemy, which I was not.  The enemy had me right where he wanted me, scared and intimidated. I didn't have the strength to command the fear to leave me. One night I went to a church service at a United Pentecostal church in our area and the preacher brought forth a word on fear.  He invited anyone up who was experiencing fear to come up and be delivered. I knew that word was for me.  The moment this man of God laid his hands on my head and prayed for me, I believed in faith that God had healed me.  I went home, and for the first time in years, I slept like a baby, God's peace saturating my mind.  Then God started working on me.  I began to hear his voice speaking to my spirit telling me that He was not done with me yet.  He may have relieved the anxiety for the moment, but I still had not learned the lesson He wanted for me.  He wanted me to learn that I had power over the enemy and his tactics of fear and I had the right, as a daughter of the most high, to cast out that fear and command peace into my life.  In my prayer time, I began to ask God for boldness in the spirit and I believe God began to answer me.  A short time later, the panic attacks came back, but this time, I was ready.  I spoke to the fear that tried to overcome me and commanded it to leave in the name of Jesus.  Guess what?....The fear LEFT.  From that point on, I went to sleep every night knowing that God had my back and that I had the power to overcome.


Panic attacks are usually a result of our poor habits like not getting enough sleep, allowing stress to come into our lives, and sometimes,  not giving problems we are facing to God like we should.  When I first began to experience panic attacks, I was in college, and therefore, was very stressed, did not have a consistent sleeping schedule, and was pulling all-nighters writing papers etc.  I know that my own bad habits caused the panic attacks.  However, the enemy will take what he can to paralyze us and that is exactly what he did.  He used these attacks to put fear in me and he does the same in others.

 We must find the courage to use the spiritual authority that God has given us to bind that fear and cast it out.  It has no place in our lives.  It's been years since I've had those attacks, but just a couple of weeks ago, they tried to sneak back  into my life.  In one night, I had two attacks.  Just when I was about to get discouraged, I remembered what I learned. I told God, this is not your will and I speak peace into my life right now.  I laid down and closed my eyes.  I don't know exactly when it was, but I remember dozing off, still feeling tense, when all of a sudden, I felt something so peaceful enter my room and saturate itself in my spirit.  I literally felt like a spiritual tranquilizer hit my body.  I knew God was right there with me and I knew that everything was ok.  I learned the lesson and I'm glad that God didn't just take away the problem, but allowed me to learn how to deal with it.    I pray that this will encourage someone to take up the authority God has given you and live in the peace that God has for you.