Distractions

Distractions are a common thing. They are so common that you'd forget they were even there! These things pull you away from what is important, they coax you to slow down, relax, and lull you into a sense of false peace and security.

In this same respect, Distractions are what keeps you from growing in Faith, in growing in belief. And in growing - in general. They keep you occupied, drawing your focus away from what is important, feeding you with unimportant duties and false ideals.

Let's say you went to seek God. You sat before Him in silence, trying to listen for His voice, you've already called out to Him and now you are waiting for His answer.

Suddenly! A wild lizard appears! And your mind starts to wander, it starts slow, first flitting from thought to thought, then you begin to feel agitation build within you. Suddenly you feel that you can't sit still any longer and before you know it, your mind is elsewhere, planning what to do for dinner, planning your day ahead; thinking about football...

Time spent in God has just become time spent in yourself.

How are we, as a people, to focus on what is important, to focus on the right things, if we are so easily distracted?

How is it that we can focus so wonderfully on the Distractions, and yet lose focus so quickly when we're seeking God?

Can Distractions bring you peace? Can Distractions feed your spirit? Can Distractions, bring you closer to God? Can Distractions feed you? Can Distractions sustain your life? Can Distractions give you eyes to see, ears to hear?

If Distractions can do these things, then even I would recommend that we worship this thing called Distraction.

To grow closer to God, and to receive EVERYTHING that He has promised to us,we need to first learn how to focus on Him. To get to know Him personally. We need to get there. And these distractions? They're not helping. They're just burdens that weigh us down, holding us back, slowing us down from what is really important.

If the lives of a thousand people hang in the balance. Surely you'll empty your mind of all distractions!

It is because we think that we DONT need Him, that we allow ourselves to be so easily distracted. We do not consider Him to be of any importance.

Note that I said "we allow". And truly, we do allow ourselves to be distracted. It is an ALLOWANCE. It is a choice that we have to make.

If you truly desire to seek God, then you will know that these things are just hindrances. If you want to receive the full blessings from the Father, the fullness of real Joy from the Father, then you need to get to Him. Cry out, seek His face and you will find. And as you sit before Him, seeking his face, ask Him to teach you how to not be distracted, how to focus on the things that matter, and not the things that seek to slow you down.

  "They arrived at Jairus' house, where Jesus saw the confusion and heard all the loud crying and wailing.   He went in and said to them, "Why all this confusion? Why are you crying? The child is not dead---she is only sleeping!"  

They started making fun of him, so he put them all out, took the child's father and mother and his three disciples, and went into the room where the child was lying.

 

  He took her by the hand and said to her, "Talitha, koum," which means, "Little girl, I tell you to get up!" 

  She got up at once and started walking around. (She was twelve years old.) When this happened, they were completely amazed. "

Mark 5:38-5:42

Wings of Change - Salvation

Salvation. It is something that we don't work for, it is something that we don't work -towards-. Rather, salvation has always been for us. Salvation is NOT our greatest reward. It is a great thing, yes, but it is not the end of the road. It is the beginning.

Once you believe, salvation is yours. That's it, you're saved. Now you need to understand what it means to be saved.

Does being saved means you're automatically changed as a person? Of course not! As with everything that God does, there IS a process, there IS a state of change that has to take place, and there ARE resistances (from us, from our own selves). Many who are saved, carry on doing the things they've done BEFORE they were saved. But what does that say?

God is the same, now and forever, but don't think for a second that it means He is forever in a state of not-moving. If you read His word, you will see that He is constantly moving FORWARD. In that same line of thought, shouldn't we be moving forward? For the better?

If we claim that we are following the one true God, where does His traits reflect in our lives? Which part of us reflect His attributes?

Many of us cling on to the past, hanging on for dear life to that "sweet" suffering. We can say that we've let go, that we've moved onwards. But be honest, if someone were to come along and do the EXACT thing that they did to you in the past, would you be able to handle it? Chances are, you'd react the exact same way that you reacted in the past, albeit in greater measure.

So why do you do it? Why do you clutch on to the pain? And when God comes in to your life to REMOVE it, you get angry! You start to justify it as "experience", giving all the excuses to hold on to it.

Let go. Let go of all the obstacles in your way, let go of that painful memory that memory that you've grown so attached to, let go of all those thoughts of victimization, embarrassing memories, shame and disgrace. Surrender it to God, and let Him take it away from you. He came to die for all these things. Not one of these are too small or too big for Him.

It took me awhile to let go of my own memories of pain and frustration. But as I've come this far, I realize that most of the time, the first step to letting go is to forgive. Forgive that person, forgive the people who laughed at you, forgive them for all these things that they have done... forgive -yourself- for the mistakes you have made. Do not be afraid to forgive yourself. Let it go and move forward.

God is waiting for you, with His arms open wide, waiting for you to return to Him. And I tell you this, when He sees you turning back to Him, He will run out to meet you. He will find you. But you must make the first choice. Choose to find Him, cry out to Him, LOOK for Him. It will be a start of a new day for you, the moment you seek Him. Ask Him for understanding and wisdom. Ask Him to teach you how to forgive, how to REALLY forgive, and not just utter empty words.

Your heart must forgive. It will be a lie, if your heart does not, and you speak empty words.

If you find that you can't forgive, all the more you should seek God. Seek Him, He -will- teach you how to forgive, and how to be forgiven. All will be well, because He is your Father who loves you. Yes, you.

This is how faithful the Father is -to- us. He will do these things.

"The LORD said, "They are my people; they will not deceive me." And so he saved them..."

Isaiah 63:8

Wings of Change

Change is difficult. Change is nasty at it's worst, and heavenly at it's best. But more often than not, nobody wants to change. Most people are forced to change, or move into change - in desperation.


Ever looked at a situation in your life and went, "Oh, I wish that person would change.. if he doesn't change, I'm not going to bother!" or maybe you'd go "This person MUST change, I'll do everything in my power to change him!"

Never really works out well does it? You either fall into apathy, or fall into the "I am god, so I will change this person" trap.

WE don't change people. We CANT change people. But GOD can and is able to.
The only problem is that we, as people like to resist the changes that He makes. And because of the free will that He has given us, He let's us make the choice, even if He knows we'll end up destroying ourselves.

See, the problem here isn't so much of God being unable to change people, it's more of the fact that WE resist the changes. We force changes where none was necessary and resist change where it is necessary.

A liar will lie, force him to change, and he will resist with all his might, because lying is what gets him around!

Until a person is convicted (convinced) he will not change. Change isn't just about the external. What's most important is in the inside. If you have a change of HEART. Everything on the physical level, WILL follow.

IF you change the physical but leave everything on the inside dusty and broken and abandoned, you are just living another lie.


So how does one change? I find it easier to go to God, seek His help. He is the only one who is able to help you renovate the house of your heart. He is the ONLY one who can see what you're going through, tear for tear, blood for blood, shame for shame. Nobody else can step in your shoes and FEEL it as He does.

Doesn't it make sense that the only one capable of helping you get out of your personal Hell is the one who can deliver you into a personal Heaven?

Again, as everything in His kingdom goes, the most important thing is to go to God. Find Him, seek Him, cry out to Him. He will answer you.

May you grow in the strength of the Lord. His light will shine your path. You will receive the fullness of His mercy, love, compassion and joy. If only you choose.

Understand this, doing right before the Lord, doesn't make you a fool. It doesn't make you less than everyone else. Let's put it this way, if you please a King, do you think that he wont grant you his blessings? The king will lavish grand things upon you. Because he is pleased with you.

The same goes for God. The only difference is, He already loves you! How much MORE will He do, the creator of EVERYTHING - what more will He do, when He is pleased with you?

 "Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God---what is good and is pleasing to him and is perfect."

-Romans 12:2-

Hanging on!

Often times, one would hit a low point in their life. These are times where you question everything around you, you separate yourself from people, you feel empty, unaccomplished and weak.

These are the times of despairing, where everything you ever known, is put to the test. Everything you believed in and loved, is questioned.

If you would ask, "Who sets these tests? Who decides when these times come? Did God do this?"
Then I would have to answer, "He who sets the test, is the ONLY one that can help you pass it."

Let's put things into perspective. It is THROUGH these times of despair that you truly realize what you hang on to most. Whether it's alcohol, men, women, friends, games or even obscure things such as being abusive, being hateful or spiteful. What you FOCUS on, or in any case, what you HOLD on to, is what you believe in. And that becomes your god.

Now, depending on WHICH god you hold on to, you'll garner different effects. If you hang on to Drugs as your salvation (or savior), you'll fall into addiction and repeat an never-ending cycle of destruction. That's plain to see isn't it?

How about Jealousy? or Pride? If you hang on to these things and hold on to them as your saviors, you WILL fall into the same cycle of destruction, albeit, a different kind.

Let's put it this way, any kingdom can come attack in a myriad of ways. Sometimes you'll have enemies singeing your walls. Sometimes, a plague will strike your people, or sometimes, your people are the ones who will be doing the striking! All these are just different forms destruction takes.

Now, what if, you hold on to God the Father, He who will protect you, He who is your strength, He who will be your shield. He who is life. Like I said, what you hold on to the most, is what you believe in. And whatever you hold ON to, you reap the blessings; or the curses that follows.

Holding on to the Father, is like; holding on to Life itself. Holding on to Love itself. Not only that, holding on to Him is the only way to rise ABOVE the despair. So much so that it will never trouble you again; because you've risen above it! You have conquered the mountain!


For those of you who see that life isn't any good for you right now. You think that the people around you will never change. You feel abandoned, lost, and hopeless.
As you read this, some of you may have started to give excuses to yourselves, justifying the reason you feel this way. "Oh, I don't actually feel weak. I'm actually okay, I know I can get through this on my own."

Pause those thoughts, be honest with yourself. Nobody is waiting to laugh at your weaknesses.
However, there is someone, who is waiting to turn your weakness into your strength.

If you are willing, find the time, make the time, cry out to Him. Call on His name. He will answer you. He will hear you. He has been waiting for you to turn back to Him. You are not forgotten and you are loved. Do not be afraid to turn back to Him. He will raise you above the storm, and you will be blessed. More than you can ever imagine and in ways, you will never expect. In the name of Jesus, receive the blessings that the Lord has in store for you. He will restore you and fill you with peace. God bless you all.

" I said, "I have worked, but how hopeless it is! I have used up my strength, but have accomplished nothing." Yet I can trust the LORD to defend my cause; he will reward me for what I do. "

-Isaiah 49:5-