Topic Tuesday 11-25-08

As you can tell we still do not have very many blog followers or anyone new added to our blog roll, I pray that will change soon. However, until then I'm picking the topics - so come on get on board, before you get tired of whatever topics I come up with!

The topic for this week, in which we will pray over on Wordless Wednesday and through out the week and possibly discuss is:

DISCOURAGEMENT

Strange topic? Well, it currently fits a lot of things, in the lives of my family, friends, and those who are without work. I happened upon this topic only this morning. I received a message on Facebook that said:

1. Grab the NEAREST book to you.
2. Go to page 56.
3. Find the 5th sentence and post it along with these instructions.

The 5th sentence on day 56 of my devotional (which thank God happened to be nearest to me) read:

"If you become discouraged with the direction of your day or life, turn your thoughts and prayers to God." A Woman's Garden of Faith, Hope, & Love.

How many of us do that? How many of us in our discouragement, turn to God. How many of us try to fix it ourselves, dig ourselves out of the pit alone? How many of us blame it on other people or even ourselves? When you are discouraged what is the first thing you want to do? Get mad? Curl up in a ball in bed and stay there all day? Eat?

When is it we finally turn to God? Most generally it's a "last resort" instead of the "first" the way it should be. When we have tried every possible thing to get out of the pit, to rid ourselves of what is bringing us down and discouraging us...it is then that we finally say "Okay God, I give up...help me."

And what does he do? Does he get mad at us for being stubborn and putting him last? No, he just continually loves and forgives us. He doesn't rid us of our discontent immediately, he doesn't have a magic wand to wave and make it all better. It takes time, it's a process, and it includes learning and healing. And he will walk us through that process if we allow him. He does have to discipline us sometimes - what parent does not have to do that? Can you name one? I didn't think so.

2 Quotes were also included in my devotional that read:

"All discouragement is of the devil" Hanna Whithall Smith

Wow! Here we are so discouraged and it's the devil and he is having a blast because guess what? He knows that you won't call on God until it is your last resort, so he is going to make a big ole mess in your thoughts and your life until then. He is gonna dig in his heels and it's gonna take the mighty power of God to remove him. So why not just call on God first? What's it gonna hurt? What are you afraid of?

I had the privilege to hear the testimony of a dear friend of mine, Shelley, while serving on the Mom2Mom Ministry in Ohio and she talked about Depression. I think Discouragement & Depression go hand in hand. One thing I remember the most from her testimony was that she came to a breaking point, where she knew that the devil was controlling things, and that she just shouted at the top of her lungs, "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus Christ, whose blood was shed for me!" Those words have so much power, that it gives me chills, how bout you?

Say it, Say "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus Christ, whose blood was shed for me!"

Did you say it? How did it feel? Okay, now I want you, yell it, yell "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus Christ, whose blood was shed for me!"

Feeling better? Okay one more thing, now I want you to put all your heart in it, all your soul, all you feel, I want you to stand up, stomp your feet, and when you say "Jesus Christ" lift your hands and eyes to heaven, ready? Okay here we go, on your feet, at the top of your lungs, with everything you have in you, all your heart, all your soul, all your passions, and in a 100% convinced and believing (in God's love and promise for you) voice, and yell.....................

"I REBUKE YOU IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST, WHOSE BLOOD WAS SHED FOR ME!!!"

How do you feel now? Do you feel a weight lifted? Do you feel progress even if only the size of a mustard seed? I pray you do, because it is there. There is power in those words, there is power in the blood of Christ, and he shed that blood for us...Dear God may we never forget that!

I read a post on the M2M yahoo group the other day from the coordinator and another dear friend Sarah and she reminded us to never forget, this is what she said:

"Let's talk about feeling appreciated........Webster defines it as:

1 a: to grasp the nature, worth, quality, or significance of b: to value or admire highly c: to judge with heightened perception or understanding : be fully aware of d: to recognize with gratitude .

Just something to all of the moms (and anyone walking the planet) feeling unappreciated....I can relate. For YEARS I have dealt with this and at times, I can let my mind go there (I'm capable of going there five minutes from now)....then I need to choose to look up and remember that all of us, probably more times not then, unappreciated what Jesus Christ did for us. I know that it doesn't take long at all for me to simply 'forget' that Jesus literally picked up a heavy wooden cross, was whipped, beaten, crowned, flogged (this is a whip with rocks on the end meant to rip your flesh off), and nailed to his death just so I can sometimes 'forget' that he did this for my salvation and his undying love for me; what hurts me the most, is that he knew I would simply 'forget' about this from time to time as he was being beaten to his death.

I don't deserve his love, I don't deserve his forgiveness and I certainly am not worthy of his time, (and I mean all of this in the literal sense...I AM NOT WORTHY, I AM A DYING BLADE OF GRASS IN ETERNITY) but being humbled by what he has done has changed my view on life.

Please understand that I'm not trying to be harsh; but I'm trying to help you through this. This was a light bulb moment for me. Next time you feel unappreciated, please remember what Jesus Christ did and thank him. Then you, too, will feel appreciated because he died for what you are doing. Someone has already died for you and your purpose. Someone does appreciate you.

Let's look back up at def. b. This tells me that my Savior ''values and admires highly'' of me. This also tells me that even if not one person in this world values my work, my Lord and Savior does and that means more to me then what any of my friends or family says. Even more then my husband. God first, husband second, children third. A Man that I am not worthy to have a connection with ''values'' me. Seems odd that Jesus would judge me worthy when I've done nothing to deserve this, so this is why we strive to please Him daily, and not to please not man.

Pray about this. Please, please, please...I don't want any of you in the Pit where you allow Satan to wrestle with you. He's waiting PATIENTLY for you to come and play."

Thank you Sarah for a wonderful worded reminder of Jesus Christ love for us. As Sarah said, "He is waiting PATIENTLY for you to come and play." When you are in the pit, when you are discouraged, or down then you have become the devils playground. You mind and life become one mess after another. The other quote in my devotional for today read:

"When we yield to discouragement, it is usually because we give to much thought to the past or to the future." St. Therese of Lisieux

So you see, it's our stinkin' thinkin' that gets us into trouble. I'm a visual type person and the picture I see in my mind is that of a country road (dirt/gravel) after a hard rain, a lot of the gravel has washed away, and all that's left is alot of mud or muck - that's what our minds, our brains become when we allow the depression & discouragement to overcome us and when we allow the devil to dance in the mud puddles, and sling dirt in every direction of our lives.

It says in Lamentations 3:15-17

15 He has filled me with bitter herbs and sated me with gall.
16 He has broken my teeth with gravel; he has trampled me in the dust.
17 I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is.

Sated: to fill to excess
Gall: bitterness of spirit
Peace: freedom of the mind from annoyance, distraction, anxiety, an obsession
Prosperity: a successful, flourishing, or thriving condition

This is what the devil does to us when we allow him in, when we seek God last instead of first, when we allow our stinkin' thinkin' to bring us down, discouraged, and depressed. He robs us of all God can give us, all God has given us, and all God desires to give us.

Back to my picture, what happens to the road after the gravel is gone, the rains have stopped, and sun is high and bright? It dries, and it becomes smooth and soft - so much so that you could run across it in your bare feet! It's a good feeling isn't it? The soft, smooth, and cool soil beneath your feet? Wouldn't you like for your thoughts & your life to be like that? Smooth and soft? Peaceful?

Then I've got one more thing I want you to do today. I want you to let it RAIN, let it all out, let it all rain down and wash away the depression, the discouragement...just let it rain down! And remember to thank the one, the only one, who can deliver you from the holds of evil, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Dear Father,

I pray today that you will bring rain upon every person who reads this post, wash away their depression, their discouragement, and deliver them from the pit that they are in. Rain on them, the way the rain this morning fell from the sky and drenched me soaking wet, send them a hard and heavy rain and just wash away all their hurts & pain. I ask you Father today to bring them peace. Thank you, Jesus for loving us unconditionally.

Amen


If you have read today's post, please leave me a comment so that I might visit your blog. I hope today's post has spoken to you and I hope to hear that some of you experience rain, mud, and finally peace!

ME

P.S. I will be posting until Mom is up on her feet again - please continue to pray for her. Thank you.