Standing Strong

Matthew 7: ²⁴ “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. ²⁶ But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

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Watching my car get towed away was the “last straw.” I no longer had transportation, I no longer had money and I had plenty of bills. I simply wanted to just sit in a corner away from everyone!

• There have been some rough times when I just wanted to give up.
• There have been some difficult times when I felt like nothing was going right.
• There have been some extreme times when it seemed like I had no help and “everything” was crashing to the ground.

Years later I took a leadership course giving me several habits to believe in “me.” Up to this point I had already relied on my intuition so this course was a natural fit. When I completed the course I still felt empty. What happens when a problem occurs that is much larger than the power of “me?” GOD had an answer.

• GOD says to me “Listen to MY words and put them into action.”
• GOD says to me “Build your fortitude on MY promises to protect you.”
• GOD says to me “When you place your trust in ME you will not fall.”

Slowly I stopped depending on my wit and started placing more trust in GOD. I began walking down the scary road of not always needing to know what the future had to hold. When the difficult times came I began to ask GOD how HE wanted to handle the situation rather than springing into action.

Prayer began to pop into my head as the answer rather than the question. GOD is a firm foundation for which I place my trust!

• Are you being blown around by life?
• Do you feel like you have reached your wits end?
• Do you feel like giving up?
• Will you stop relying on your own power and start looking at GOD for your answers?

A Life of Impact

2 Kings 20: ⁴ Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: ⁵ “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord. 

⁶ I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.’”

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“What are you guys going to do today?” one of my fathers asked. My buddy and I said “I don’t know, probably go out and have some fun.” “Is that it?” he questioned. Then he said some “blah, blah” stuff.  Why is he asking me about my future? Doesn’t he know there is a new club that just opened and we wanted to check it out?

• Sometimes I act like I will live forever.
• Sometimes I don’t look into the future.
• Sometimes I waste precious moments doing nothing of value.

I have known people who have faced their mortality and when they recover they live life very differently.  Each day seemed to be a blessing and the worries they used to have seemed to disappear. As I observed these people they did have some common.

• They told me “Care about people.”
• They told me “Trust in the LORD.”
• They told me “Count your blessings.”

Life is too short to be worrying and complaining all the time. Being preoccupied on the trials takes away time I could have spent with GOD, doing what HE wants me to do. Someone else said this to me… “What if you KNEW you were going to die next week, how would you spend your time living your life?” Then live that life now.

This statement reached me. Now I see life as a marvelous adventure GOD has placed in front of me. Every day is a blessing that HE made and the more I realize HE made it, the less I complain or worry.

• Are you complaining about something?
• Are you overcome with worry, fear and doubt?
• What if you knew you were going to die soon, how should you live your life?
• Are you seeking GOD’s kingdom and preparing people for CHRIST’s return?