From Joel Osteen Ministries – Joel and Victoria’s Blog

http://www.joelosteen.com/Pages/Blog.aspx?blogid=8956

It’s All Subject to Change

Post by Joel Osteen on August 22, 2014

I know this couple that was believing to buy a new house. They found one that they really liked, but for some reason, the financing didn’t go through and they got turned down. This happened three different times. Each time, it was something very odd that stopped the whole deal. They had been in their apartment year after year with three children. They were tempted to think, “It’s never going to change. What’s the use of even trying? This is just our lot in life.” But deep down, they knew that it was only temporary. They stayed in faith. Last week, they brought me a picture of their brand new, beautiful home that they just moved into. They said, “Joel, this is God doing more than we could ever ask or think.”

Sometimes in life, you may hit some setbacks, but don’t believe the lies that are telling you, “It’s never going to change. You’re never going to see that breakthrough.” No, every day remind yourself, “It’s only temporary. This is not going to last forever.” In fact, there is a scripture that says, “The things that we see are subject to change.” You may have been turned down a dozen times, but the good news is that it’s all subject to change. God is still on the throne. The next time you apply could be the time it all works out. The next time you resist and don’t give in to that addiction could be the time you break totally free. The next person you meet could be the person of your dreams. Keep believing. It’s not permanent!

It’s interesting that many times in scripture, when Jesus prayed for people, He asked how long they had been in that condition. He said to a crippled man lying at the pool of Bethesda, “How long have you been here?” The man replied, “Thirty-eight years.” Jesus asked a woman who was hunched over how long she had been sick. She replied, “Eighteen years.” Some parents brought their grown son who was blind to Jesus. Jesus asked, “How long has your son been blind?” They said, “Since his birth.” Why was Jesus so interested in the length of time? Why didn’t He just heal them and move on? It’s because Jesus wanted us to see that nothing is permanent. He wanted it to be forever recorded in scripture for all generations to come so that we would know it’s never too late.

You may be facing situations right now that have been the same year after year. It looks like it’s never going to change. God is saying today, “I can still turn it around. I can still bring that dream to pass. I can still bring the right people across your path. I can still heal your body, restore the relationship.” Keep praying, keep standing, keep believing knowing that with God all things are possible, and that trial you are facing is subject to change!

“. . . with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26, NIV)

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I hope this will make you smile, and give you a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T

God bless you and give you peace.

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My Daily Prayer by Rick Hamlin…

I found this beautiful post on Guideposts.org. Please take the time to read it. With humility I hope to make this my daily prayer.

Link: http://www.guideposts.org/blog/my-daily-prayer

This one shows up on a prayer app at noon everyday, and since I’m a creature of habit, I check for it on my phone somewhere between 12 and 2:00. It starts, “Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace…”

Most often it’s called “A Prayer Attributed to St. Francis” because it has been thought to have come from the dazzling mind and heart of that beautiful soul who lived in Assisi back in the 13th century and charged Christendom with a Jesus-like model for love of all, even the animals. Especially the animals.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there is darkness, light. Where there is sadness, joy.

It’s funny, though, sometimes a famous prayer can make you feel both inspired and inadequate and after praying these wonderful words, I confess that I started to feel inadequate. How could I do all that? How could I be an instrument of God’s peace. If I was any sort of instrument, most often I felt like an out-of-tune ukulele.

The prayer goes on: O Divine Master, grant that I make not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.

Goodness that started feeling beyond me too. I need love as much as I need to give love and show love and consolation, didn’t I need a huge dose of that? Along with massive bits of understanding?

For in giving we receive, says the prayer, and in pardoning we are pardoned, and in dying we are born to eternal life.

Yes, giving was important, and I felt better about myself whenever I gave, but all those big challenges of sowing love and faith and hope and light and joy. Ouch. How could I do all that on my own?

Then one day at lunch, as I was sitting on a bench outside in the lovely spring sunshine, eating my lunch and saying my prayer, it came to me–it was so obvious, I should have known all along: You don’t have to do this on your own.

No, part of prayer is to pray with others. When we say “Our Father” we are immediately including everybody else who is saying that prayer. And this prayer, me as the ukulele, out of tune, maybe missing a string or two…well wasn’t I part of a larger orchestra, a huge rollicking band of faith?

That’s the power of prayer. WE do it together. Instruments playing our different parts, doing our different jobs, making our different contributions to peace.

So pray it with me. It’s easy. Let’s do it together: Lord, make me an instrument of your peace…

God bless you and give you peace,

Sandi McCravy

Encouragement Quotes…

From: http://keithcraft.org/what-is-encouragement/

“You can get a thousand no’s from people, and only one “yes” from God.”
― Tyler Perry

“A library is a good place to go when you feel unhappy, for there, in a book, you may find encouragement and comfort. A library is a good place to go when you feel bewildered or undecided, for there, in a book, you may have your question answered. Books are good company, in sad times and happy times, for books are people – people who have managed to stay alive by hiding between the covers of a book.”

[Letters of Note; Troy (MI, USA) Public Library, 1971]”
― E.B. White

“Do not sit still; start moving now. In the beginning, you may not go in the direction you want, but as long as you are moving, you are creating alternatives and possibilities.”
― Rodolfo Costa, Advice My Parents Gave Me: and Other Lessons I Learned from My Mistakes

“You cannot expect victory and plan for defeat.”
― Joel Osteen

“It’s just that in the Deep South, women learn at a young age that when the world is falling apart around you, it’s time to take down the drapes and make a new dress.”
― Karen Marie Moning, Faefever

“How would your life be different if…You walked away from gossip and verbal defamation? Let today be the day…You speak only the good you know of other people and encourage others to do the same.”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

God bless you and encourage you.

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Reading between the lines (C. S. Lewis)

God Bless You an Give You Peace,

Sandi McCravy

Great is thy faithfulness…

There are so many beautifully talented people in this world….that might be why I have fallen in love with Pinterest!

He loves you so much. If you have a chance, listen to the song “Great is Thy Faithfulness”.

Remember…you are loved every second of everyday by our Amazing Creator!

Blessings,

Sandi McCravy

**Image from Facebook, Proverbs 31 Ministries

Stop questioning and trust in God

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Marian Griffith

Trauma makes us ask God, why? When I questioned, this is the answer I received.

There comes a time in everyone’s life when we go through a traumatic experience, an untimely death of someone we love, or just feel we are tried beyond what we can bear. We experience physical, mental and emotional trials. It is during those darkest moments we each turn to our God and passionately ask — why? What have I done to deserve this? Why am I being punished? Why did I have to go through this?At one such point in my life, I pleaded to know why, and the words, “Be still and know that I am God,” came to my mind. That was followed by the words, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” I immediately felt a peace and calm come over me.I remembered these words from the Bible and wanted to see if I could find them. The first Bible verse is Psalms 46:10, and the latter is in Isaiah 55:8. The next three verses expounded on the first and touched my heart.These words reassure us that God is in charge. He sees the big picture while we are not able to see past the immediate challenges we face. I believe He is our Father in Heaven who loves us and wants the very best for us.It is almost like he is playing a tremendously large chess game. Each one of us are the players. He knows who he must inspire to accomplish his purposes. Each choice we make affects others, sometimes close to us and others anywhere in the world.There is a story about a little girl named Mary whose father worked digging wells. Every day Mary took a sack lunch to her father. Looking down into the dark hole, she couldn’t see her father working at the bottom, but he could see her standing in the light. Every day, she called out to her father. He told her to drop the sack down to him, and he would catch it. One day, her father said, “Why don’t you come down and join me for lunch today? If you’ll just jump into the hole, I’ll catch you.”“But, Daddy, I can’t see you.”“I can see you, and I will catch you.”Trusting, the little girl jumped. Her father caught her, and they enjoyed their lunch together.This is the kind of faith that the scripture, “Be still, and know that I am God,” is talking about. We must have an absolute faith in God to accept that he knows all and whatever happens is for our benefit. I believe he can see us and knows what we need to become the person we need to be.
Instead of asking why, it would be more profitable for us to pray and ask for peace through our trials and the strength to endure them well. We can ask him to help us recognize what he wants us to learn from the challenges we face.

When we approach God in faith and show our faith by obeying his commandments and living the very best we can, we will be guided and blessed. Just hold on. God knows what he is doing.