Hey everyone!
I've just been catching up on my Joel Osteen devotionals and I thought I'd share one with you that I find particularly inspiring, because it is an encouragement to, no matter what situation you find yourself in, change the words you are saying if the situation is not changing around.
Now first of all, I have to make sure that it is known here that this is not a guaranteed recipe for success, it just taps into a principle that makes sense the more that you think about it.
You cannot go around speaking negatively over your life and then wonder or complain why things are not changing.
Sometimes, in order to change what you see, you have to change what you say, dude!
Your words have creative power. With your words, you can either bless your future or curse your future. If you want to know what your life is going to be like five years from now, just listen to what you’re saying about yourself today. Too many people go around saying, “I’ll never get well. I’ll never get out of debt.” “It’s flu season. I’ll probably get it.” “This marriage is never going to last.” Then they wonder why they don’t see things turn around. It’s because they’re calling defeat into their future. They’re calling in mediocrity. Don’t let that be you!
I'm not going to post it in its entirety because that would negate the purpose of signing up to these devotionals for yourself, but I've copied enough for you to get the point of what Joel is saying.
What Good is What I Say, if What I Say is Not Good?
If I get tired of walking home, something I do a lot now my car is knackered, then what good is saying "stupid legs, walk faster", when my pace is governed by... well, me?!
If I keep on saying, I'll never get a worthwhile job, then why should I be surprised when I hop from job to job just to survive?
God has a plan and it is a good plan, that much I know. Sometimes I have to swap my eyes for His and learn to see how He sees.
Sometimes I need to enter a new dimension and elevate myself high above my circumstances and that is done by spending more and more time in my Saviour's presence, which incidentally is impossible to escape from given that I'm there all the time!
Switching One Dimension For Another
Do I have all the answers? Hardly, I just happen to know Someone who does!
I like that, though, from Joel, "just listen to what you are saying about yourself today" because it reminds me to always be listening to what I am saying about myself. In particular I need to not go ballistic when I spill my cup-a-soup all over the floor, like I admittedly did today! :D
I serve a Man with a plan and it's a good plan!
Yes I've still got my addictions I struggle with, but who doesn't? I just know that one day at a time with my Saviour is far better than a thousand elsewhere.
Changing Frequent "Sees" to Frequency
I'm learning bit by bit, day by day, not to see my mistakes as catastrophic-end-of-the-line decisions and to simply remember to acknowledge my Saviour's presence in the midst of all of this.
I need to rest easy knowing that He can work all things out for my good in the end. It is not my license to sin, oh no, no, no!
I, a good man, serve an even greater man, who has a plan for me and it gets better the more I discover about it and about me!
It's been ages since I could truly say that and mean it, because I've struggled with identity for a long time now and, until recently, was left wondering if there was this part of me that would always cause me to feel such discomfort as though there was an ever-present darkness within just waiting to come out and sabotage everything that I was working towards. A sort of Anakin recognising the dark side persona moment, if you will.
Instead, thanks to Pastor Steven Furtick's message on how to effectively handle your frustrations, be they self-inflicted or not, I feel better able to move forward having God draw an indefinite line under all those personal issues I had been carrying around all these years.
I love the work that Steven is doing and I can bet he's helping many more thousands, maybe even millions of people to tune into the frequencies of God's heartbeat and discover that at their most weakest points, people can be most effective for God.
As God unlocks their weaknesses, He combines it with His strength and BLAMMO... A mighty God-encounter for someone that really, really needs it!
Final Thought
My biggest issue is keeping my temper under control, I'm not ashamed to admit that because now I know and accept my limitations are not the be all and end all of my walk with God.
I'm going to look at that in the coming weeks with the exciting new project I've got lined up exclusively for The Write Dimension, so stay tuned for that one because I promise you, it will change your life almost as much as it's changed mine!
Peace off!
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