Replacing lies with truth.

God has been allowing some pressure on my spirit lately. Slowly but surely I am learning that when that happens I am to remind myself of His word.

I have a bad habit of grasping for the wrong things in order to satisfy my ache. I want some comfort, so I will go buy a starbucks (oh that may have hit a nerve for some of you coffee drinkers) or I think of a vacation spot far, far away that I could escape to for some peace. But the reality of it is that the only place I can get the comfort & peace I so wish for, is in the presence of Jesus.

I went through a tough time lately where I was allowing the voices in my head (and sometimes other people’s voices) to get me down. I believed that I wasn’t capable, and that I wasn’t good enough, which allowed the fear of being a failure & getting rejected to hold me back from what God has called me to do in life.

I was shrinking back, becoming a shriveled spirit. Not one that stands boldly in the face of battle, but one too tired to even bother.

That is not the life God wants for me, or you. We are to be risk takers, to fearlessly declare the gospel and stand firm while doing so, KNOWING who we are in Christ.

There was a gap for me between knowing in my head, and knowing in my heart. I just couldn’t grasp the fact that I already am. I already AM redeemed, I already AM righteous, and I already AM perfect & complete in His image! So lately I have been memorizing scripture to help remind myself of these truths. It’s amazing how it pops up just at the right time, either when I am in need of some encouragement, or when a friend is in need of some! I get to steal Gods wisdom and use it as my own!

When we live out of a place of fullness, we walk in freedom & confidence.

If we are seeking to be filled, we will grab at whatever is in front of us hoping it will quench our desire… and it never will.

The answer that helps me (helps, not helped…because I still struggle with it!) overcome my dreadful thinking is Scripture. God gave us His word to fight the enemy with.

Ephesians 6:10-20 explains it perfectly.

The Armor of God

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. 19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

Take in His word; make it a part of you so that when you come up against battle, you have something to fight with. Grab hold of a verse every morning to be your anchor for that day. Then pick a verse to memorize and get into your heart monthly, in fact I'm going to name it your heart verse. Because you don't want to just communicate it to your mind, you want your heart to soak in it.

My verse today is Matthew 11:28

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

My heart verse to soak in is Romans 15:13

"May the God of hope fill you will all joy & peace, as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope, by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Two questions to leave you with:

What are you grabbing for? Scripture...or Starbucks? :)

And what will your heart verse be?

Empty your pockets

I feel like I just stumbled upon a jewel; a piece of secret information that has never been discovered. Although, in reality it has been said to me many of times in different ways by friends, Pastors & I have read it countless times in the bible. But today, it became clear. I am not the smartest of creatures and God has to repeat Himself numerous times in order to awaken my brain.

We need to develop the habit of emptying our pockets, so to speak. Because suddenly the extra weight of the "junk" we are carrying becomes too much & we break under strain. We must spread out our feelings before the Lord, prayerfully sort through, and ask Him to dispose of the trash. In doing so we will discover that we have exchanged our "spirit of despair" for a "garment of praise."

"

It couldn't have been said better.
I do this once in a while & feel free again then get so busy with life until the weight of it all crushes me. I sit in despair wondering where this all came from & what to do with myself.
He offers me His hand and I'm too ashamed to take it, or sometimes just too tired. I think if I take it work orders will be given & I can't bear anymore load.
But that's not what HE wants, He wants to sort through it with me. He wants to take my load so that I am free & weightless to run the race He has set before me.

You can't do that with the weight of your thoughts. Lay them out before Him today & let Him love you where you are, let Him fill you with the weightless love that He so lavishly pours out so that you can overflow on some crushed spirit He puts in your path today.
When you love others out of your own love, you get tired.
When you love others with His love, His wisdom, His words...it's a never ending flow.