God Satisfies Our Soul

Our whole being finds fulfillment only in the everlasting arms of our Lord God. His love is better than anything that life on this earth provides (Psalm 63:3); and we cannot help but lift up our hands in praise to Him as we glorify Him with our every thought, word and deed.

Through His salvation, He satisfies our soul and makes us secure in this sin-filled world (Psalm 23:3-4; 63:1-5). Our spirit is no longer dead in sin, but dances through life, alive in Christ forevermore. We bathe in His love, rest in His peace and sing because of His joy in us, as He rejoices over us with singing (Zephaniah 3:17).

Our fellowship with Him is in perfect and complete harmony and unity due to His mercy, love and grace (1 John 4:19). We walk in His light and enjoy fellowship with His Body now and throughout eternity (1 John 1:7).

Clinging to our pride and rebellion, our addictions and our insecurities only brings us trouble and devastation; but surrendering all to Jesus gives us the faith and security to thrive in this war-torn world.

When we reach out to Jesus, turn away from our sinful lifestyle and submit to His authority in our life, we find satisfaction and healing in His love. God heals our pain associated with all of our relationships, even those filled with disappointment and trauma. 

He helps us to humble our self and to reconcile with those in our life that caused us pain. We forgive one another and bless each other with God's encouragement and love.

God's perfect love is what our soul longs for and that which heals our broken heart and drenches us like a waterfall in this discouraging and broken society. We live as sojourners and pilgrims until He is ready to take us home with Him for eternity.

Prayer:

Father God, You created us so that our eyes are the windows of our soul. We often answer glibly when someone asks us how we are, because we know they do not really have time to hear our honest answer, nor are most of them concerned with how we really feel. Help us to look into each other's eyes and to see the true feelings emanating from them, to take time to really listen, and to show concern and ask how we may help to improve each other's lot in this life.

Remind us that we have to start by taking a searching inventory of our self in order to understand exactly how we do feel. What does our spirit need to grow in Your grace? How is our body and soul - our thoughts and feelings, which affect our choices? You are patient with us, and Your kindness is everlasting. You love us beyond words. You strengthen us and shower us with so many blessings that those who know us stand in awe of You (Psalm 86:15).

Thought for the Day:

Our success in this dark and pain-filled life comes from trusting in God alone to help us to live victoriously over the evils present all around us; as we call on Him to empower us, so that we can keep a daily, vigilant watch over our body, soul and spirit; this enables us to live serenely in His everlasting arms.

God is in Control - Through Troubles and Trials

We live in a world that often frightens us. Unexpected trials and trouble attack us from every side when we least anticipate them; so we develop the mentality of fear and apprehension.

We constantly wait for the next shoe to drop, anticipating trauma around every corner and never allowing our self to believe in or hope for the best. This continues until we realize that every day in Jesus is better than the day before.

As a melancholy personality, I struggled for years to come to this place of total trust in God's goodness and to have faith in His faithfulness and perfect peace in His will for me, regardless of how bad the circumstances seemed.

Very few of the imaginary worse case scenarios, which occupy our mind, ever materialize. We end up worrying for nothing; and spending time, when we could be praising God with our thoughts, in trying to be prepared for ever circumstance life may possibly throw at us.

Elections, terrorists, natural disasters, financial strain and insecurity, disease, strained relationships, etc. all dim in importance when we realize in our spirit and our soul that, if we live in total surrender, God is in control of every aspect of our life.

Life as an authentic, Born Again Believer teaches us that life in Christ is an adventure. We are already dead with Christ in God, living in His abundant rest, walking in His Spirit and enjoying His perfect will for our life.

Trouble is merely a tiny bump in the road when we hide under the shadow of God's wings and allow Him to live life in and through us. Fear, anxiety, insecurities and worry no longer overwhelm our soul, and our spirit draws strength and life from Christ within us.

We live, move and have our being in Christ (Acts 17:28). God's Spirit controls all of our decisions, trials and troubles. The shadow of darkness in this world is dispelled by the light of Christ within us.

Prayer:

Father God, as we learn to trust in You, the issues which formerly sent us into the pit of despair, no longer rock our world. We learn over the days of our life spent in Your presence, that You have a perfect plan for our life (Ephesians 2:10). If we pray without ceasing, walk in Your Spirit each moment of our day and trust in Your unfailing love and mercy, we have joy even in our trials (James 1:2-8).

Remind us to replace the negative self-talk and lies straight from the pit of hell with the Truth of Your Word, which is alive and powerful and able to separate the worries of our soul from the faith in our spirit (Hebrews 4:12). Give us Your grace to see us through the days when our faith wanes and the waters threaten to drown us (Habakkuk 3:7-19).

Thought for the Day:

Although the closets are bare, we have no job, the garden is overcome by weeds, the grocery prices are way beyond our means, our savings is depleted, and our relationships are hopeless, we can still rejoice in the Lord, because He is the God of our salvation, our strength, our provision, and our enabler in every area of our life. - Habakkuk 3:7-19

 

Overcoming Anxiety

Anxiety is a horrifying malady. It strikes when we least expect it and has some sources that are subconscious and not apparent to the conscience mind. The healing process for anxiety often eludes us.

Anxiety may have its roots in unresolved conflicts of our past and is fueled by lies, which Satan planted there. Often our medication taken for medical issues will also trigger unexplained and unfounded panic attacks.

We chastise our self for these feelings, believing that we should be able to overcome them. The exciting truth is that anxiety cannot harm us. We have authority over the attacks in Jesus' name.

Focusing on the anxiety only increases the fears within us. Instead, we can focus on Christian music, fellowship or memorized Bible verses until the attack passes (Isaiah 41:10). Herbal relaxants also calm us.

Human faith is limited, and dependent on our five senses and physical circumstances. Faith in God replaces our fear of life's uncertainties (Isaiah 43:1). This supernatural faith understands what our human senses cannot even perceive (Hebrews 1:11).

God's Spirit is right there in us and with us, protecting us and guiding us through the travesties of life. His fruit replaces our carnal nature with the character of God (Galatians 5:22-23).

Hearing God's Word and standing on Jesus, the firm Rock of our salvation, also increases our faith in God (Romans 10:17). They renew our mind and heal us from past trauma by helping us to expose Satan's lies and to resolve those issues (Proverbs 12:25; www.theophostic.com )

Regardless of our experiences, God strengthens our resolve as we trust ONLY in Him, obey His commandments and believe without a doubt that He is always only a prayer away (Psalm 94:19).

There is no human way that we can control life, regardless of how much we obsess or attempt to keep our self and our loved ones safe. As we trust in God instead of our self, we experience His supernatural peace which exceeds all human comprehension (Psalm 56:3).

Prayer:

Father God, regardless of our experiences, either past or present, or our fears of the future, there is no trial that You will not walk through with us. You carry us through the rocky roads and the fire scorched earth to a place of safety tucked away in the cleft of the Rock of Christ (1 John 4:18).

You teach us that our mind is Satan's battleground, which he uses to take control of our life and to make us ineffectual for Your Kingdom work on the earth. Thank You for strengthening our resolve to deal with, or to turn over to You, the source of any negative thought or emotion in our life, and to put our trust in Your control over our circumstances (2 Timothy 1:7; 1 Peter 5:6-7).

Thought for the Day:

The result of sitting quietly in God's presence is a renewed sense of intimacy with Him, spiritual power to take authority over Satan's interference in our life and peace that surpasses human understanding.

 - Philippians 4:6-7; James 4:7-8; John 14:27

Renewed Mind - Part 4 - God-Given Emotions

Our soul - our thoughts, choices and emotions - is a vital part of who we are as human beings. Ignoring our soul only stunts our growth both in our soul and in our spirit.  

A need for attention, dependence on others, and fear of being alone are results of abandonment issues from our childhood. Destructive acts, pouting, self-centeredness and temper tantrums all stem from deep deprivation and anger from our past.

Our lack of self-awareness and failure to accept our emotions will compound our past wounds, which we carry with us every day of our life, some of them since conception.

Our relationships suffer due to emotional, behavioral and mental deficits. Psychologically, we are stuck in the unresolved issues of our past, which prevent us from experiencing adulthood with a mature attitude.

We fail to succeed in most of our endeavors due to the lack of adult persistence, self-control and planning. Some of us are consumed with anger and unforgiveness, which we internalize.

This results in depression for which we take medication. This simply masks the pain in our soul and causes more grief as well as physical ailments such as headaches, and stomach and breathing and heart related issues.

If we allow our self to feel our anger, we can work through it to the grief buried within our subconscious mind (Ephesians 4:26). We can journal our thoughts and feelings, and ask God to help us to find the root cause of our grief and other negative emotions.

Never apologize for your emotions. God gave them to us. They are either a sign of sickness in our soul, a precaution to keep us safe, and an expression of the joy He places in the heart of His children (Proverbs 16:32, 17:22, 19:8; Ephesians 4:26-27).

After we identify the source of our negative emotions, we can grieve our losses and affirm and validate our feelings. Then we pray for God's wisdom and healing. 

We forgive the perpetrators, who wounded us and caused our grief; and we move into the freedom and rest of the Lord Jesus Christ (Hebrews 13:5; John 8:36).

Prayer:

Father God, there are few of us on this earth who did not experience some form of abuse in our lifetime. We never learned to handle our emotions and often sin because of them. We may minimize, disassociate from or magnify our feelings; but teach us to learn from them, and to bring them to You for understanding and healing.

Help us to stop blaming our self for the abuse we suffered; to release the pent up energy from our negative emotions without sinning against You or someone else; and to allow our self to cry and grieve our losses. Then we can release the incident to You and find Your forgiveness for those who wounded us.

Thought for the Day:

God and Christ both gave us clear examples of how emotions are a normal and healthy part of life.