I choose to SOAR, how about you?

As I sat, looking out the window today, feeling very discouraged...asking God to do a new thing in a few relationships and situations in my life, I spotted a large bird soar across the sky. This led to such an encouraging word for me.

 

ISAIAH 40:28-31 hits the nail on the head today for me! Here is what those verses read:

 

Do you not know? Have you not heard?

The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth

Does not become weary or tired.

His understanding is inscrutable.

He gives strength to the weary,

And to him who lacks might He increases power.

Though youths grow weary and tired,

And vigorous young men stumble badly,

Yet those who wait for the Lord

Will gain new strength;

They will mount up with wings like eagles,

They will run and not get tired,

They will walk and not become weary.

 

Prior to looking up this verse, I wrote some random thoughts in my journal about eagles:

 

"Eagles fly against the wind, yet uses it to their advantage to soar higher."

 

"Eagles fly solo. I wonder if they get lonely. Or do they accept that not many are able to soar as high as they? God must have given them the courage and dream to soar as high as their wings will take them."

 

 

So then, would you really "feel" lonely when you are doing what your were created to do? Would you "feel" lonely when you are near heaven's expanse, high above the world? 

Do you know a lot about EAGLES? Here's some things I found when I googled 'facts about eagles' just to test my random thoughts.

• Eagles fly alone at a high altitudes.
• Eagles have strong vision.
• Eagles are the only bird that loves the storm. The eagle uses the winds of the storm to rise and
  

  

  is pushed up higher. The eagle stops flapping and uses the pressure of the raging storm to soar high and glide.

 

Are you an EAGLE?

Created to soar high above the storms of this world and life, and reach the brim of heaven?

If we stay full of the Spirit of God, consistent in God's word, abiding in His presence -

We won't "feel" lonely. Reminded that our flesh cannot soar as high as our spirit-man can.

When we feel empty and the "feelings" of our flesh are ruling, our view on life is clouded.

This is when discouragement and loneliness can set in and we stay in the shadows of the cliffs, not living out what we were created for. If an eagle never leaves his nest, he will starve and die. Yes, an eagle builds a nest on the cliffs.

We will need to step to the edge of our comfort zone (our nest) and set our sights on the vision that God has given us. We too must dive into His directions, plan, and purpose for our lives...spread the wings He has given us and set our face to the winds of life. With our minds on Christ and our destination heaven, we can soar high in the wind of adversity. God has created us to soar!

Open your heart and fly with the faith in God that takes you high to the brim of heaven....God's will!

 

IS THE BODY OF CHRIST CRIPPLED? CRIPPLED BY ADDICTION, IDOLATRY, OBSESSION?

Are we crippled? In bondage to our addictions? I believe so.

But we cannot hang onto our vices any longer, our addictions: alcohol, drugs, pills, porn, media (FB, YouTube, etc.), movies, t.v., games, activities, money, shopping, illicit sex, cigarettes or even work. The list can go on and on.

For this leaves us in bondage, slaves to our body, the ruler of this world, and to the world’s standards and morals.

Doing what you want,

Doing what you think is right,
Is not always what is best for you.

You think you have freedom-

But you are a slave.
Just try to stop those vices and see what happens, how you feel.
Don’t pick up your phone, your remote, that glass,
that ___fill in the blank__. And you will see the hold it has on you.

Obsessions are bondage & idolatry.

Possessions can enslave & burden.

Freedom in Christ is rising above your flesh.

Yet your thoughts are full of lust, lust for pleasure.
There is a battle for your attention, time, and affection.

The enemy is winning when you give into these

vices, obsessions, addictions.

When tangled up drunk, high, hungover, glued to a screen –

How are you able to fulfill:

1.      The Greatest Commandments?

2.      The Great Commission?

Be honest with yourself & God.

Answer the question….you simply can’t.

Your obsessions are robbing your life of the time, money, and energy that God intends to be poured out to: HIM, YOUR FAMILY, AND OTHERS! (Also known as: The Greatest Commandments: Love God & Love others!)

Your possessiveness over your life, time, money, and energy prevents you from being led by the Spirit to carry out the Great Commission! (AKA: Preach the Gospel to all the tribes and nations (people)!)

How often do you examine yourself, your life, your schedule, your bank statement, or your relationships?

When we examine ourselves,

We must be honest with ourselves.

Many avoid this self-reflection because it often requires change.

The Bible calls it REPENTANCE.

It’s the most freeing thing you can do for yourself.

Repent of those addictions, obsessions, and unhealthy behaviors.

The Lord calls you to:

Love Him, your God with all your heart, soul, and might.

 

So who or what will you repent of, lay down, or run from in order to do Love God first?

Let Jesus Christ be the One Lord in your life so that you can experience His Presence, His Spirit, His Leading, and His Peace.

In doing so, you will have the passion, excitement, boldness, desire to fulfill God's will for your life and you will overflow with ambition to share the Good News of Salvation!

**** I write this as a person who once was so entangled in my own addictions, many of the ones listed above. And I found freedom in Christ. If you would like to hear about my testimony, email me at promojen@gmail.com.

The More You Pray...

The more you pray, the more you will see the need for prayer. It's cyclic. You pray, you get answered prayers, you get more faith, you then pray more, you get more answered prayers, and you get even greater faith. But you've got to start this miraculous cycle by starting a prayer life.

I pray out loud. I pray silently. I journal many prayers.

I use a notebook, any tablet works for me. And in the quiet dark mornings my pen is moving rapidly across the page.

My pen pours out my heart on how I feel about things:

• the things troubling me,
• the things I need,
• the things I want,
• the fears I have,
• the people causing me anguish,
• the people causing my loved ones anguish,
• friends and family dealing with sickness, heartache
• EVERYTHING THAT CONCERNS ME & THE WORLD AROUND ME!

One reason why I love to journal my prayers is that they are recorded. Because many, many times, my prayers come to pass. And journaling them reveals how God changes my original prayers and circumstances the more I pray.

For example, many people pray for a raise, more finances, right? Common prayer. But through days and weeks of prayer, God may start to reveal that you have all the finances you need. You just need greater stewardship over them. So then a person who started praying for more will start to pray for self-control at the mall, insight on how to have a tighter budget, or they may have a greater desire to give to God's causes more so that the door of blessing will be opened and finances are increased as a result.

Prayer journals record this journey. But not having a pen and pad does not stop me from praying. Having a prayer partner for some big stuff is a great way to record requests made and have that extra person in agreement with you. The Bible says when we agree in prayer, prayers are answered. And that's what we want, right?

Then opportunities for solo prayer come all day long as the day unfolds. Challenges come, trials to endure, hardships land in your lap - it's time to pray. You get a bad phone call, you see a car accident, your kids seem impossible - it's time to pray. You wake up grumpy, you feel hurried, anxious, or sad - it's time to pray.

And when great things happen -

it's time to pray and praise God!

Sometimes people feel like prayer has to be this super formal thing that we do alone always. No way! Prayer is simply talking to God. Acknowledging Him.

Often, in the car with my kids when opportunity arises, I say, 'Let's tell God about that'...'Let's pray that God will _______', 'Hey Daniel, why don't you ask God if He can _______?'

Prayer is something we can do anywhere, anytime.

The point is to pray, and then pray more. Through prayer we get to know our Maker more intimately. The same way you get to know your new best friend, your potential spouse - you talk to them endlessly, right? So why not talk to your Creator endlessly about everything that concerns you and your life?

And seriously, don't be shy about your requests. I think sometimes that people think that asking God for little things are unnecessary. NO WAY! This is when you get to see/feel the infinite love from God. When you ask things that seem so insignificant and He still answers that prayer - you get to experience Him in such a deep, personal way.

So my encouragement is to PRAY...

....and then the more you pray...the more you WILL pray!

Let God be God above all. The Bible says that nothing is impossible for God - so ask Him for impossibilities today!

Got "STUFF"?

We've all got "STUFF"? Don't we?

Some more than others. Men and women have different kind of STUFF.

Why do we gather so much STUFF? Don't think I'm talking to you? Read on...

To Women:

Look in your closet...seriously, how many pairs of shoes does one person need? And then some have a purse to match the shoes...or just a giant collection of purses. Right?

Some have a giant collection of jewelry. Some fancy/expensive...some costume.

Some have a knick-knack collection. Or some just never let go of anything and have a home full of clutter. You go get more stuff when you don't even use what you have...right?

Could stuff = clutter?

To Men:

Really, how many i-products do you need? At some point they all do the same thing right? What you can do on the ipad, you can do on your iphone...and what you can't - you can do on your mac...right?

And how much sports memorabilia do you need? Guns? Vehicles: truck, jet ski, boat, atv, etc.? You can only drive one thing at a time...why do you "need" so many of the same thing?

ALL OF YOU:

Look in your cars - stuff! Look at your offices - stuff! And then...look at the stuff YOU are collecting for your kids - YIKES! (I am guilty too!)

When you feel like the walls are closing in on you...do you ever think to stop getting more stuff? And get rid of some? (Remembering not to replace it?)

Here's my concern and question for you:

What is the void that we are trying to fill w/ all that stuff?

• Voids in our lives.
• Voids in our relationships.
• Voids in our marriages.
• Voids in our spiritual walks. 
• Voids in our career.
• Voids in our children (that we could've prevented had we not been collecting stuff). 

When we turn to STUFF, collecting it, searching/shopping for it, trying it on, trying it out...our minds are distracted away from what we are lacking within ourselves...and  with those around us.

If you're a 'victim of stuff-itis' - listen to this:

But whatever things were gain to me,

those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

More than that, I count all things to be

loss in view of the

surpassing value of knowing

Christ Jesus my Lord,

for whom I have suffered the loss of all things,

and count them but rubbish

so that I MAY GAIN CHRIST!

 (emphasis mine) - Philippians 3:7, 8

My challenge is for you to go look at all your stuff. Look at what you have. Look at the duplicates. Look at the 3 pairs of brown boots...besides the buckle, are they really that different? Besids the size, is your ipod much different from your nano?

Now before you start acquiring more of stuff...and more expensive, and more elaborate stuff...I want you to stop and...

• Look at your heart.
• Look at your relationships.
• Look at the things in your life that may be void of peace, joy, and completeness.

Search until you find what is truly lacking in your life and go to God about it. Get to the root of it. Could the real answer be that your life, heart, relationships are void of CHRIST.

And I'm not just talking to those who don't even know Christ...I'm talking to the ones who do, but instead of having a rich, life-giving, powerful relationship with Him...you're turning to stuff for fulfillment instead of Jesus..who said "Come to me all who are weary and heavy-laden and I will give you rest..."

The STUFF will never be enough. You think: if I just get this, if I can just buy that, if I can just drive this, if I can just go there....the list goes on and on and on..."IF I CAN JUST________________, then ___________."

No - if you can just GAIN CHRIST in all His splendor...then you will _______________.  Do a study John 15 for more self-discovery.

Discontentment is expensive and never fulfilling. Go to God to fill that void that your are attempting to fill with stuff. Then and only then, will you be satisfied, content, fulfilled, and complete.