Emotional and Mental Health - The Center of God's Will

 

Most people are either on top of the world right now, or buried under the burden of frustration, discouragement and disappointment. Jesus Christ makes the difference in both of these instances.

Even if someone is totally successful and right where their goals led them over the last few years, they may be as unsatisfied and unfulfilled as they were when they started their journey to the top.

Many people give up at this point and opt for a simpler life, downgrading their salary and vocational expectations for a quieter and less stressful lifestyle.

For Believers, living in the center of God's will is the only place where we find complete contentment. He may continue to lead us in the vein in which we started - adding an altered mindset, or He may change our circumstances completely.

It all hinges on finding and fulfilling God's directives for our life (Proverbs 3:5-6). We completely surrender our will and plans to Him, and live by the direction of His Holy Spirit instead of our human desires.

Even if God leads us through some valley or trial, we find His purpose for us in it. We can witness of His mercy and grace to a fellow traveler, learn a needed lesson, view His provision for us in a whole new light, and grow in our intimacy with Him through it all (1 Peter 4:12).

We learn to depend on His Body during our trials, to grow closer to our spouse, family and church family; our faith grows in the fact that we can count on certain people to help us and that God never fails us.

Prayer:

Father God, some trials devastate us to our very core. They shake the foundations of our trust in You and our faith in humanity. Yet, we often survive these unhappy circumstances with enduring blessings that we never would have experienced without them. Remind us to focus on You in the good times and the bad, giving You praise for each instance as we focus on You - You never change (Hebrews 13:8).

Help us to see life from Your viewpoint rather than our limited, human perspective. Spur us to remain faithful to You in spite of them. We look at life now through Your unfailing love and comfort, according to Your promises and provision (Psalm 119:75-76). Demonstrate Yourself to us in all of Your power and majesty. 

Thought for the Day:

Prayerfully surrendering our trials to God allows us to gain His perspective on what seems like a turn of bad luck; we ask God's Spirit for His wisdom and direction; and we come through these times of testing with a deeper faith and stronger spiritual, mental and emotional fortitude than we ever experienced in our life in the past.

Healing from Trauma - Part 1

 

Trauma in our life, starting with the birthing process, takes a toll on our soul. There is nothing we can do to stop suffering from happening, except not to take unnecessary chances.

Yet, life still manages to knock us down time and again. Over the years, I experienced my fair share of distress. I learned to pull myself up by my bootstraps and carry on in spite of them.

I fancied myself as an invincible Molly Brown, who is one of the famous survivors of the Titanic catastrophe. I fiercely fought any foreseeable force, which tried to upset my equilibrium.

No matter how high the tide rose around me, I never let my head sink below the surface of the water. A time or two, the thought occurred to me that I should just let go and float with the current.

My soul was not prepared to do that, however; because I still had enough emotional and physical strength left to protect myself. Then, the love of my life decided, after 22 years of marriage, that there was no option for us, but divorce.

I had no education, few job skills and no alimony. The straps on my boots were totally worn off. I was too tired from the waves of life to tread water any longer. I finally reached the point in my life where my only recourse was to let go and let God.

I laid back and floated with the current, watching as God moved mountains for me. He provided a place to live, several jobs to pay my bills, a new church family with recovery classes, and physical and emotional support from my children, parents, brothers and their families.

God taught me that there is never any need for anxiety and stress, because He is just a prayer away. We can let our needs be known with a thankful heart for all God already did in our life, and then look for the seed for a miracle within every trial (Philippians 4:4-7).

Prayer:

Father God, I am so sorrowful that I did not surrender to Your love and faithfulness when I was much younger. I would have spared myself so much anxiety and suffering from negative experiences and emotions. I am grateful that You never gave up on me, but continued to allow trials to come my way, so that I would eventually learn to let go and trust You.

Teach me to obey, so I will experience fewer trials as a result of my reliance on Your strength, rather than on my own. Remind me to walk in Your Spirit and make me effective for work in Your Kingdom.

Thought for the Day:

Surrender every area of life to the Creator of life and to the Author and Finisher of our faith. 

- Genesis 1:1; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 12:2

Roses Have Thorns

 

In life on this planet, we are often either in a trial, coming out of a trial or about to go into a trial. This is not a sign of spirituality, punishment from God or an attack by Satan. Life just happens! Sometimes, we simply reap what we sowed in life. Possibly they occur because of acts of selfishness perpetuated by some other person. Some of them provide a course-altering experience to get us back into God’s perfect will for us. Life really is a rose garden, but did you notice...roses have thorns (1 Peter 1:6).

The trials in our life provide the fire for our Master Blacksmith to shape and mold us into His divine nature. They strengthen our fortitude, patience and spirituality, as they force us out of our comfort zone and into unfamiliar and often unpleasant circumstances (James 1:2,12; I Peter 1:6). God’s desire is for us to respond to any negative issues we experience with patient expectation and spiritual integrity, knowing full well that His faithfulness will work out everything for our good (Romans 8:28).

Trials strengthen us and make us more resilient, so that problems, which used to devastate us, no longer make any impression on us (John 16:33). Over the years, we see God’s character and fruit replacing the personality traits with which we were born (Galatians 5:22-23). He exchange our human identity for His spiritual character. God always supernaturally sustains us and provides for us in every trial (1 Corinthians 10:13). In fact, we usually end up with more than we started with!

God uses trials to gain our attention and to manifest His Son’s divinity within us (Isaiah 43:7; Genesis 50:20; John 9:3). We may not understand what God is working out in our life, but He is faithful and we can trust Him (Proverbs 20:24; Hosea 14:9). No matter what we experience, even persecution for our faith, Heaven’s glory is worth it all (Romans 8:18). As we hide under the shadow of His wings, we trust in His faithfulness (Romans 8:28). We enter into His rest and live from a positive place of trust (Hebrews 4:10).

The world will constantly attempt to pull us back into its mold. The devil will try to deceive us into compromising our convictions. Even some in our family will fight to dissuade us from following hard after God (Psalm 63:8). The more we obey God’s Will, the more we realize that His ways are perfect. He is a shield for us, if we only have the faith to take refuge in Him (2 Samuel 22:31). Life gives us many options, but living in the center of God’s will is the happiest place on earth.

Prayer:

Father God, Your sovereignty and purposes in our life build Jesus’ character in our soul – our mind, will and emotions. We often try to escape the trials of life, but You will not give us anything that Christ in us cannot bear. We endure persecution and find contentment in all of our circumstances because of Your Son and Spirit dwelling within us (Philippians 4:11). We are victorious over life’s trials through Your joy, as we live a life of praise and prayer.

Thought for the Day:

Secure in Christ we can endure life’s trials with gratitude and hope.