Take My Hand Inspirations: August 2017

Friday 18 August 2017

15: Fruit of the Spirit Series Intro: Like a Tree Planted . . .

Take My Hand Inspirations

Fruit of the Spirit Series

Intro: Like a Tree Planted . . .That Brings Forth its Fruit

Jesus spoke these to me and told me to share them with all of you:

Every soul is important to Me. I cried for you. I died for you. In death, your soul comes to live with Me in the place I have prepared for you. Decide now where you want to live for eternity. Yes, there is life after death. And I am not willing that any should perish.

African-American, or Black people, living in the southern parts of the United States have a tradition of calling their food “soul food”. Food that’s so delicious and rich, it makes the soul feel good. Father Isaac, a blind old man at that time, requested from his elder twin son Esau, “And make me a savory [rich and delicious] food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die (Genesis27:4).”

Good eating is soul satisfying.

Though it is the physical body that benefits from the necessary balance of nutrients provided in the food we eat, being satisfied in the stomach is directly related to being satisfied, or satiated, in the soul. Hence that traditional adage: “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” As described in Blog #5 entitled The Alignment of Body, Soul, Spirit, the heart is the seat of the soul. The soul can be expressed as your thoughts and feelings.

And, after devouring his delicious well spiced meal, Father Isaac, in a highly happy and satisfied state, closed his eyes and poured out all the blessings he had from his satiated soul onto his son—before the Lord.

Remember, all three of your being—body, soul and spirit—are tied together so tightly, that if one is not fed well, or not at all, the other two will surely fall sick. Simply put, when we eat well, we feel good, right, balanced, aligned, and ready for anything. Our physical, earthly part is in good condition.

Now, moving on to your real ‘soul food’, requires us to be reminded that our soul is comprised (made up) of the thoughts we create or adopt and keep in our mind’s memory storage, which is attached to our heart—and, thus, our feelings. What is created in your mind is what has been built up in you by all the choices/decisions you’ve made throughout your entire life—whether right or wrong, good or bad. They’re all mixed together forming your “world” as you see it. That’s why it’s so important to "eat" what will make your mind choose what is right in God’s eyes, being led by the Spirit of God and not of Beelzebub (satan).

So let’s digest our ‘soul food’, shall we?

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things . . . and the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:8-9).

Wow! All these things, wrapped up in a nutshell, mean to keep our thoughts on what is good and right and sincere and pleasant, just like the thoughts of a two-year child laughing and caring for nothing except to be loved and hugged. Proverbs 23:7a reiterates that: for as he thinks in his heart, so is he. So, then, whatever you feed your mind is what is surely going to be projected or reflected in your “world”.

Some of us force to enjoy a perfect and quiet world where we can freely meditate on what’s happening around us in a tranquil environment of lovely music playing or intensely drawing or creatively writing. Others are drama kings and queens always luring the attention of weak minds into their wild story-lines (either plotting good or propagating evil). Society is their audience; and they feed off its environment of sounds (shouts, screams, tears, cheers, all kinds of words haphazardly fluttering through the air). Then there are the rest of us who are caught in the middle of both extremes.

But we all have one thing in common. Becoming a Christian made us “born-again”. In other words, we all got a soul-change—a change from a worldly point of view to a renewal of a godly (holy) point of view. We “see” things differently now than where we were before because now we are a new creation: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17).

But memories of our old creature (of who we were before accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour) still remain. I asked God: Why, Father, didn’t you take away our past memories and allow us to start afresh, all over again, like new-born babes in our re-born souls? He replied: My child, some of your memories were good and drew you nearer to Me. Other memories were awful and made you come running to Me. All your memories have shaped who you are today. All memories have valuable lessons in them. As a new creation, you must keep the lessons you’ve learned in your memories to help bring other lost and suffering souls to Me.

Ain’t that deep? Tell yourself: “As a new re-born soul, I MUST CHANGE in the way I think and feel.” In our flesh, we operated in the works of the flesh: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, idolatry, outbursts of wrath, selfishness, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like (Galatians 5:19-21). Simply put, we were addicted to sex, money, gods, jealousy, gossiping, drinking, smoking, shooting, snorting and partying—all to please “me”, the you that was driven by the need to make the flesh, the body, and hence the ego (the “I” conscience) feel good. What spirit drives our flesh in this way? Definitely not the Holy Spirit.

Being born-again changes your choices/decisions from allowing the demonic spirit to drive your flesh to begging the Holy Spirit to drive your body and your soul into what is pleasing to God who gives us peace—that balance, that alignment we need to be the best we can be.

The devil can never make us put our attention on things that are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous or praiseworthy. Only the Holy Spirit can: And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2).

What is true is that you are a wonderful and perfect creation of Almighty God. What is noble are the talents and gifts you have in you to make this world a better place. You can be the giver of justice in your world: helping others to choose what is right; and rejecting what is bad.

Purity starts when you are born-again and live a holy life free of unlawful sex or worshiping idols including gods, money, technological toys; and not allowing your body and mind to be polluted by the dirtiness (more like diabolical filthiness) of the other world you once lived in.

What is lovely now is the smile you share with others who are hurting. And your tongue speaks what is of a good report about others, even your ‘enemies’. You cover the offenses of those who hurt you by constantly forgiving them instead of retaliating; and that’s what is virtuous about you. And you praise God for all the good things He is doing in your life as you now witness to the lost and suffering with songs, words of encouragement, and helping hands.

Now that’s good ‘soul food’ eating!

Once we’ve banqueted on our ‘soul food’, let’s not forget that these are the seeds planted in us which are to grow with the watering of God’s Word, the Bible, into God’s food—the Fruit of the Spirit.

© 2017 by Take My Hand Inspirations, a division of PepParadise Society Ltd Publishers. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

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Take My Hand Inspirations

Tuesday 15 August 2017

14: Are You Tired? BREAK OUT!

Take My Hand Inspirations

Are You Tired?

One definition of tire is “to begin to feel as if you have no energy and want to rest or go to sleep; or to make someone else feel this way.” And there are different degrees of tiredness: physical, emotional/mental and spiritual. As discussed in my blog entitled The Alignment of Body, Soul, Spirit, when one of these parts of our being is off balance, it throws the other two parts off balance, and we find ourselves overwhelmed with grief or stress or frustration or confusion, then depression; in another word, just plain tired!

“I’m tired of hearing you say the same negative things about me. Can’t you find anything good to say?” “I’m tired of working in a job where I am not appreciated. Can’t you say, ‘Well done’, every now and then?” “I’m tired of living like this. Lord, can’t I get money somehow to improve my lifestyle? I hate poverty!” “I’m tired of you not willing to understand me and to help me get through our troubles as a married couple. Can’t you come to me when you’re upset and not go out to your relatives and friends to talk about us?” “I’m tired of struggling, of having to prove my worth, of dealing with people who don’t understand me, of this, of that, of . . . .” I AM TIRED!

And to add to the definition of tire, we have its extreme version called weary which means “to be very tired, especially after working hard for a long time; or to make someone else feel very tired.”

In both descriptions of the words tire and weary, we notice that

1. We can allow ourselves to feel as if we have no more energy for the task in front of us; and

2. We can allow others to make us feel as if we have no more energy for the task in front of us.

Well, if that’s the case, then we have two solutions to our problem of tiredness or weariness:

1. We must allow ourselves to step out, break out, of the situation facing us and rest for a while; and

2. We must not allow others to get into our central processing system (inner being) to cause physical, emotional/mental or spiritual disturbances.

Easier said than done, huh?

So many books have been written and words spoken regarding how to release stress, anxiety and to get back on your feet and push forward. I have read many of these motivational books and have taken to heart the pastors and motivational speakers who give me great encouragement.

But the one thing I’ve discovered is if you don’t want to make a move to come out of being tired and weary, the devil has a marvelous way of keeping you in it. His weapons are called apathy and laziness. Satan uses these weapons to keep us down in the dark pit of tiredness and weariness by making us feel we do not have the strength and determination, the power, to come out, to break out, of the despair we feel when we are tired.

Apathy can be defined as the “I Give Up!” spirit. Those who quit when the going gets tough find themselves no longer caring about a person, a problem, or a plan. Laziness can be defined as the “I Paralyze You!” spirit. It forces us to go numb in our thinking and in our doing. We stop thinking about ways to be and to do better and settle in our mediocre (under-achieving) surroundings, starving in poverty, and envying (even hating) those who are taking charge over the same or similar issues we are facing.

How do the overcomers do it?

It takes great strength, hard work and sheer undistracted conscientious concentration to BREAK OUT of weariness. And it is humanly impossible to do it. That is why we must call upon the Lord to help us. Stop trying to do this thing on your own, dear brother. Stop crying through the deafening darts of defeat, dear sister. YOU CAN’T DO IT ALONE.

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall utterly fall, . . .

But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31).

YOU MUST CALL ON THE NAME OF JESUS! “Lord, I am so tired! I can’t do this anymore. I’ve tried in so many ways to get their approval, to be appreciated, to be loved.” And the Lord says, Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28) He watches over us waiting for us to ask Him to come into our situation and give us the rest, the peace, the alignment or balance, the stability we need to meet the challenges before us. YOU CAN’T OVERCOME TIREDNESS OR WEARINESS WITHOUT THE STRENGTH, WISDOM, OR THE REST YOU NEED FROM AND IN THE LORD.

When negative accusations rise up and float all around you, the Lord will send someone to come and commend you. When you are lost in a situation and can’t find your way out, the Lord will create an atmosphere where you will prosper and others will look to you for your ideas which will be the very solution they seek for the problem at hand.

You are one of a kind, brethren. We are a peculiar people, a chosen generation. CHOSEN to handle the matters of the day. We are given the tools to face and to overcome our circumstances because Jesus is in us.

The antidote to apathy is concern—what do you care about? Do you care about your husband, wife, children, home expenses, school fees, your future schooling, career, relationships? Do you care about your soul and where it will live after your body turns to dust? Find what you care about, then get up, dust off your self-pitying thoughts, and ask the Lord to give you the idea, the plan, the way to BREAK OUT of your prison of laziness—the inability to work hard at achieving your goals and dreams.

Yes, we shall become tired and weary at times because life is a constant battle. Satan is not dead. But he can be conquered if only you MAKE A CHOICE TO SHAKE THE DEVIL OFF and put on the Armor of God (read Ephesians 6:10-18). THE BATTLE IS NOT YOURS; IT’S THE LORD’S! And once you make a move to BREAK OUT, the Lord will lead the way, back you up and cover you on all sides. This is the antidote to laziness—making a move to break out, to remove yourself, to leave, to let go and to let God.

I depend on God alone. I put my hope in Him. He alone protects and saves me; He is my Defender, and I shall never be defeated. (Psalm 62:5-6 ESV).

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken. (Psalm 62:5-6 NIV).

BREAK OUT PRAYER:

Dear Jesus,

I feel like busting loose! It’s like I’m wrapped in rubber and I need a sharp sword to cut it loose. My sword is my prayer. Help me to get up and PUSH!—PRAY UNTIL SOMETHING HAPPENS! Oh Father in Heaven, I need your PUSH! Get me out of this mess I’m in: this sickness, this money matter, my shaky marriage, my children in need of school fees, my wayward adolescent, this unfulfilling, boring job. I need better relationships, oh Lord. I’m tired, so tired of fighting for a way out. COME INTO MY SITUATION RIGHT NOW! Satan, get out of my way—in the name of Jesus! Loose your strongholds over my life now!

I am FREED IN JESUS! Oh Lord, take my hand and lead me out this suffocating darkness and into the light of my solutions, the answers to my problems with your favour and mercy. I need you, Lord, every hour, every minute, every second, every day, to mount up with wings like an eagle, soaring and conquering and glorifying You. Amen and amen and amen.

Special Note: Don’t stop praying, dear Christian. Prayer is your number one weapon to destroy apathy and laziness. And no one can pray this kind of prayer for you. YOU MUST PRAY FOR YOUR OWN BREAK OUT. You must talk to the Lord like a father, a friend, a partner for life; everyday. And you must eat the seeds He plants in you so that you will bear His fruits. Just as the body needs fruit to stay healthy with a strong fighting immune system, so too does the Spirit in you need God’s fruit to stay alive, active and sharper than a two-edged sword cutting down every evil spiritual stronghold satan tries to erect around your life’s blessings. To enjoy the Fruits of the Spirit, read Galatians 5:22-23. And, in our next conversation, we shall dine on the Fruits together.

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Take My Hand Inspirations