Thinking about labor and what it means

I have a different perspective now of labor due to my current circumstances. I'm learning the hard way that there is labor that leads nowhere and labor that fulfills someone's need. Time is a precious commodity, so if you do labor that doesn't lead anywhere then you are wasting it. If you labor to fulfill someone's need, then you are redeeming it. It sounds pretty simple. We all must labor to help each other out, not accumulate stuff for ourselves or build a barrier between ourselves and others.

So, how do we labor for others? We start by stopping to think about how we can fulfill someone's need. What are their pain points? How can you resolve to fix them? First and foremost you should write down and resolve to do what you can to fix the situation(s) that are causing the pain. Pray and talk to God about the situation. Then you should labor as God directs you, utilizing the talents and abilities he has given you. Not so simple...some of us spend our whole lives trying to figure out where our talents and abilities lie. Yet we all have unique talents and abilities that we can start using and we should start using.

I know what mine are but obstacles get in my way when I start to use them. I forget at times who is in control. I panic without reasoning out the circumstances that led me to where I am. I have to remember and remind myself that God is in control. So, do I wallow in self-pity because of my current circumstances or do I praise God for the resources and support he has given me? I choose to rejoice and praise God for the resources and support I've been given. Now I must utilize that support and those resources to help someone else out, otherwise I'll be wasting both time and energy.

I then come to the conclusion that in everything I do that I should do it for the Lord, not for myself. I realize that labor can be a bitter experience for everyone involved or it can be a blessing to everyone involved. Do I want to be a burden or blessing? I want to be a blessing.

Putting on the whole armor of God-Time to Fight

Yes, I realize all too well what it means to put the whole armor of God on now. It means that I need to bathe myself in God's Word, soaking it up in my mind so I can answer those who come out against me. It means I need to trust God to know what's in front of me, and not my own self. It means that I can't give in to the fears and doubts that assail me.All of this is hard to do. I know. I'm struggling now with fears and doubts that want to tear me apart. I can't let them. I have to remind myself that I'm not alone, even when it seems like I am.

As a country, we too must start to fight against the forces of evil that have prevailed in this land. We can no longer afford to be complacent and pliable. Yes, that's hard too. I know. You say the wrong thing and people judge you for it. Some say it's better not to say anything at all. Yet I can't help hearing in the back of my mind the phrase, "If you stand by and do nothing, it's just the same as if you condoned the action." I can't stand back anymore and watch others suffer for the wrongs that are being perpetrated on the innocent. I'm not foolish enough to think that one person can make a difference. I know that there are many out there that are waiting for the right moment to act. I can understand that too. With all the rhetoric flying around, it's even more difficult to ascertain when to speak out. That's why we all must put the whole armor of God on, not just one piece. We have to be willing and able to speak up against the evil and show others the good. If someone doesn't have the good, then it's a given that they will fall back to the evil.

I believe that is the situation in the world today even with all the great communication. No one understands the good. Their ears are closed to the Word of God, even while prophecy is being fulfilled right before our very eyes! How do we tell them? We tell them through our actions and our words. 

A dark and scary time

I've been living through a dark and scary time. It seems almost like Satan and his minions want to do all they can to extinguish the light. Satan knows that my biggest fear is being out on the streets, especially at night. He fans that fear to the point where with every step I'm looking over my shoulder. Then he places people in front of me that are ready and able to tear me down. I do struggle daily to put that fear aside. Yet when I let my guard down, he pounces. I'm reminded more readily than ever before that I must put on the armor of God and continuously guard against his attacks. If I keep telling myself that God is in control, I can move on.

Both presidential candidates scare me with their vicious verbal attacks and imagery. I can wallow in despair about the state of the economy and my current situation or I can try to do something about it. I can begin to focus on God more and his promises that now seem even more appealing during this dark and scary time. I remind myself that I'm only passing through and hopefully pulling others to follow me. I do believe that only in Christ is there salvation for both soul and body. I pray for everyone who is still in bondage to Satan and his minions who tell you constantly that you are captain of your own ship....or just do it.

I still can't understand that reasoning. Why would you "just do it" without weighing the cost or understanding how it would affect the people around you? Everyone needs someone to come alongside them. I know I do.

Angels of Mercy-Coming in the nick of time

This week has been particularly hard for me. I've had to trust others to do the right thing and wait on the Lord. There have been some angels of mercy around me. I know this. I was at the lowest point of my existence, wondering what in the world I was going to do. Then I heard a voice telling me that I was not alone. I knew that voice. I heard it many times before. I had a choice to make. I could continue to wallow in my self imposed prison or I could reach out. I decided to reach out. Would my situation improve with this reaching out? Yes....just having someone to talk to and who was willing to listen was enough.

I was struggling. Yet I told everyone I wouldn't give up. I couldn't give up. I felt like I was drowning, going down for the last time when someone came and lifted me up. The words of encouragement energized me. I could now laugh at myself, instead of weeping for what was lost.

Maybe you're struggling now. Maybe you feel as if the bottom has dropped out and you're free falling to your doom. There is a lifeline. You just have to believe that it's there and reach out. Yes, I know it's scary to reach out. You don't know what to expect. I know. I've been there. I know that feeling of not wanting anyone to know how scared you are and not being able to do anything at all. It's not a good feeling.

Remember this, God sent his son in the nick of time to save us from ourselves and to make us his children. More than you and I, he knows the innermost part of your being....the part that longs to be whole again. He can make you whole again. He's done it for me many times. I have the assurance that he will continue the work he's doing in me forever. What a comfort that is!...to know that he won't give up on me.

Days of Daily Blessings-Grace in the midst of trial

This week I was reminded of God's grace towards me in so many ways. I realized that we are so blessed in this country, even as we struggle to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads. I know that I have been blessed by the support I've received from so many people. I think it's because I can relate to where they are at and can see the pain they are going through more clearly than I had before now. Some say that suffering grows a person if they let it. I believe that is so. Sometimes it's extremely difficult to understand why the Lord seemingly allows bad things to happen to us. Yes, I do that. I admit that freely. The Lord knows our struggles and our fears. He knows how hard it is to stand when it seems like the world has turn its collective back on you. Yet I do stand. I do have a purpose, a God given purpose and a calling.

Suffering can also embitter a person if they let it. You tell yourself that you're just another "cog" in the wheel. You don't understand how anyone could love you or even care. You shut yourself off to any help, and tell yourself that you can do it yourself. Oh, I know those feelings too. They choke the life out of you. They whisper that you should just give up and give in. What is one less person in the world?

Oh, don't you know that you are precious in God's eyes? He loves you. He loved you so much that he sent his son to die for you and more than that....Christ took your sin on himself and became the Sacrifice. I am blown away by this because of what happened next. Christ rose again! It gets even better....He's coming back to bring us to his Kingdom to live with him forever more. Just thinking about that makes me feel like singing "Hallelujah!".

It's been an emotional rollercoaster.

Yes, I am grateful. I am still alive, still healthy even as I go through this emotional roller coaster of  a life. It's funny you never really see things for what they are until you see them through someone else. We're all blinded by things that don't really matter in the grand scheme. I have tried to rationalize my feelings, but they are so subjective and apt to steer me wrong. I know I've been stressed out wondering why God has placed me in the situation I'm now in. Some of you know what I'm going through with my current lack of employment. Yet I believe it is more than that. I can't pin it down right now, but can only say that if anyone had ever seen "Future Shock" either at school or somewhere else....then they would feel the same way. The feeling that there is no permanence in the world is what rapid change does to the world.

I do have hope though. The Lord sustains me and in his word is the permanence I long for in my life.

Time to be Grateful

Yes, I now realize that I've been having a "grumpy" fest lately. I've been so absorbed by all the negative stuff that's been going on in my life that I've forgotten the positive. It is time to be grateful. It is time to stop putting out these negative feelings. No one needs to know those negative thoughts anymore. They just don't. So starting right now I will be grateful for at least one good thing in my life.

I know it will be hard at first to think positively when everyone around you is responding to things negatively. It can't be a chore for you to do. It can't be something someone forces you to do. It has to be something you want to do. More importantly it should be something that you can look at and respond to in a positive way. Yes, I know that's tough too. The world wants to pull you down with it.

Here's the key.....Close your eyes. Think of one thing that you would miss if you didn't have it. Now imagine life without it. Would it be rough? If so, then praise God you have that thing. Right now, I'm grateful for friends and family, my health, food and shelter.

I know what you are thinking....that's easy. Yes, but here comes the hard part. We also should be grateful for the bad stuff that happens to us. I forgot that too readily this past year. I am grateful though for the hard times, even when they try my soul.