Tag: Life

Is It Possible to Trust, Even When You Don’t Understand?

Author, Nicole L. RossLeave a comment

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 Is it possible to trust, even when you do not understand?  The initial response for most people would be no.  We have a tendency to want to know everything before the word trust can be applied, when in actuality there are a lot of areas in our everyday life where we trust and have no clear understanding at all.  For instance, we get into our car everyday and drive it, not understanding how everything under the hood works.  We trust the car enough to get in and go so we can reach our destination.  This same theory is true for when you sit down on a chair.  You may not understand what the chair is made of or how it was constructed, but you trust it enough to sit down on it in hopes that it will hold you up and keep you off the ground.  The second trust is broken it is very, very hard to get back. It’s like a crisp clean sheet of paper.  Once that paper is crumbled up, it is close to impossible to ever get it back to that same crisp sheet it once was.

Taking all of this into consideration, why is it so hard then to trust the one who created all things?  Why are we hesitant to trust the one who formed heaven and earth, trees, cars, chairs and even humans?  In my opinion people have such a hard time trusting God because a lot of times they cannot comprehend or understand what He is doing.  We trust the chair, even though we’ve seen it fall on the ground several times.  Yet, God has never ever failed us and our trust in Him does not come quite as easy.  If nothing else, look at His track record.  It’s solid.  Every time you have been through a storm in life you have come out victorious.  In spite of every storm, heartache, pain or disappointment, by the grace of God you made it through.

In Isaiah 55, the Lord declares that His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts.  In essence that means there are going to be quite a few things we do not understand in this life.  Never let your inability to understand turn into distrust and you trying to take matters into your own hands.  Love is trust and if we really love God like we say we do, then we must trust His plan even when we don’t understand.  Trust that you are where God intended for you to be at this very moment.  Every experience, good or bad, is all apart of His divine plan for your life.  Planning and preparation are good, but doing so without the peace of God is not.  In other words, when you make your plans, if those plans do not go quite as you intended you should still have peace and know that it’s going just the way God intended for it to.

You may not understand what is happening in your life.  It may be craziness all around you.  It is times like these where your declaration of trust is put to the test.  You say you trust God, but do you really?  Your lights have been cut off, it’s the weekend and you know you paid your bill.  Do you trust Him?  You go to work early, stay late and have excellent reports from your superiors yet they give the promotion to someone else.  Do you still trust Him?  You lose your spouse then two days later your parent or sibling.  Do you still trust?  These are all situations that if you haven’t already had to deal with, it could come knocking at your door any day.  Will the love you have for God and the trust you talk about rise to the occasion?  Is it possible to trust even when you do not understand?  Absolutely.  You just have to have an intimate relationship with your creator so if and when the time does come, you can rely on His strength inside of you to make it through and not your own. I challenge all of my readers to make a choice.  Decide today that you will trust God no matter what.  When you do, you will have a quiet confidence and peace about all things.  #iDeclare #IsItPossibleToTrustEvenWhenYouDoNotUnderstand?

Prayer:

Father God in the name of Jesus, please help me to trust you at all times.  I need your help Lord because there are times when I do not understand what is going on, but I do not want that to pull me away from you.  I decree and declare that the spirit of God inside of me will rise and give me strength in times of uncertainty.  I will trust in the Lord until the day I leave this earth and join You in Heaven.  In Jesus Name, Amen.

Scripture Reference:

Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

Isaiah 55:8 NIV “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah 17:5-9 NIV “This is what the Lord says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes.
They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” The heart is deceitful above all things  and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Obedience Is Best

Author, Nicole L. RossLeave a comment

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I am a firm believer that when you know better you do better.  That being said, lately I have wondered why so many people still choose to do the wrong thing.  I mean every time I turn on the television, the amount of ruthless and outright disobedient behavior is unbelievable.  I was having a conversation the other day about people’s rights and the laws of the land.  Yes, I get that there are laws and rights, a lot of which I feel like if they did not exist people would still do what they want to do anyway.  But even still, just because you have the right to do something, does not make it the right thing to do.  We are experiencing a severe moral decline in our society.  People know better, but seem to be doing whatever it is they are big and bad enough to do. And the more unfortunate part about it is a lot of these same people also profess Christianity.   As Christians we are in the world, but the bible declares that we are not to be of the world.

Christians are held to a different standard.  Those of the world run their own lives.  They do what they want, when they want without regard for how it affects others or whether or not it is approved of by God.  Christians however, should seek to walk in obedience.  Not obedience to man, but to God.  They are to be led, guided and willingly controlled by the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit will always lead right to the will of God.  God wants us to choose His will, but what He won’t do is force it upon us.  So by me saying when you know better, you do better this is not a completely true statement.  The fact of the matter is you must still make a decision.  When you know better, you must decide to do better.  This is why so many people seem to be doing anything they want.  They are making a decision.

What I’ve come to learn is that obedience hurts.  It is the place where your flesh and your spirit disconnect.  When our feelings do not support our actions, it can be a difficult thing to process.  So, in essence obedience is a form of strength.  How strong are you when you just do what you want to do?  It takes self-control, discipline and commitment to actually do the right thing.

I’ve made it up in my mind that I am going to be like Paul and run my race and finish my course.  When life happens, I will be obedient.  My hope and prayer is that the spirit of God inside of me will lead me and guide me at all times.  When we willfully choose to do what God requires of us, even when our thoughts and feelings are not supporting it, it shows our love for God.  No matter what life throws your way, make up in your mind right now that you will be obedient.  If for no other reason, because obedience is best.  #iDeclare #ObedienceIsBest

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Prayer:

Father God in the name of Jesus, please help me to be obedient because I understand and truly believe that obedience is best.  I decree and declare that I am in this world, but not of it.  I am held by a higher standard and I choose to make decisions and operate in a manner that is pleasing to God no matter what life throws my way.  In Jesus Name, Amen.

Scripture Reference:

John 14:15 NLT “”If you love me, obey my commandments.”

Romans 2:13 NLT “For merely listening to the law doesn’t make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in his sight.”

Leave The Past Right Where It Is

Author, Nicole L. RossLeave a comment

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Leave the Past Right Where It Is

Social status and titles mean very little to me because difficulties in life show no mercy based on who you are or who you know.  No matter how you look at it, life is not easy.  Nor, do I think it was ever intended to be.  I’ve learned and am still learning that there will be some things in my life that don’t go the way I want, but I can’t just throw in the towel.  I have to make a decision to focus on the positive and live a life of joy and happiness in spite of my past or what I may be experiencing in my present.

Living thousands of miles away from my closest friends and family, I had been really homesick lately.  That was until my mom and aunt came to visit.  I was so happy because I knew that by spending time with them, I would get the encouragement I needed to help get me through the next months before we leave Europe.  Their visit went better than I could have ever imagined, however when they left I felt some kind of way.  I did not realize that I would miss them so much and instead of getting the push I needed, the enemy tried to attack my mind and almost tried to get me to revert back to how I felt when I first got here.  I had to call upon the strength of God deep down inside of me to get me back on track, forget all about my past feelings and focus on my present.  I made the decision to focus on those choices that I can affect and continue to make my life worth living.  While I still miss my family, I make the choice right now to live my life to fullest each and everyday and not allow this situation to get me off focus and regress back to my past behavior.  I know that I have purpose where I am and in spite of how I feel, I must finish the race that has been set before me.

This is just one example I am sharing.  I’m sure you could think of several things you have experienced that maybe did not go the way you want it to go or maybe caused you hurt and pain.  I want to encourage you today.  Whatever it is you are feeling, I am here to say that you can triumph over the challenges and difficulties of life.  It’s all about your outlook, strength of character and determination.  You simply have to choose.  Call upon your faith and trust in God to help you keep walking toward a better future.  Leave your past behind you.  For me, this even includes past behaviors.  If you spend so much time focusing on moments, situations or circumstances from the past, you just might miss the awesome things that God is doing right in front of you or any special moments that are to come.  Learn from it, grow from it but leave your past right where it is. Do not try to take it into your present or the future that God has in store for you.  #iDeclare #LeaveThePastRightWhereItIs

 

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, please help me to leave my past behind me.  Help me to not allow the situations or circumstances of my present to cause me to revert back to things of the past.  Help me to stay focused and determined to live a meaningful life.  I decree and declare that I will choose to focus on the choices I can affect and not miss out on what’s right ahead of me. In Jesus Name, Amen.

 

Scripture Reference:

Philippians 3:13-14 KJV “Brothers, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth to those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”