Author: Rev.A

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Patience and Listening: God Still Speaks To You

I just wanted some hamburgers for lunch. 

Me and my boys were in the Walmart attempting to use a gift card. It wasn't working, and I was left with only a bag of quarters my wife had given me. So we put back the roll of hamburger and got some bread and a trifold my other son needed for a school project. 

Then I was prompted by the Spirit to give it another go. I told my sons that we're stopping at a local Food Lion to grab some hamburger. Moments later, I have the hamburger, my bag of quarters, and I'm standing in line. I hate lines. It makes things tedious. However, considering it's the first weekend of the official holiday shopping season, it was expected. I looked around and saw all the other lines and was going to move but God said, "DON'T. MOVE." 

LISTEN: "Your Moment": 3 Don'ts For The Season

I was paralyzed. Why couldn't I move to another line? A God event was ocurring. That's what I call them when the Holy Spirit prompts me with urgent instructions. As I began to scan my area for any anomalies I looked up front and began paying attention to a younger guy and an older woman talk. He was paying for expensive pot roast  she was stunned. In return, she turned to the woman in front of me and paid for her groceries! The woman, unsure of what was going on, turned to me and paid for my hamburger! What an amazing moment! 

Here are some lessons I learned from the experience: 

  1. Be obedient to God's prompting, even when it doesn't make sense to me. 
  2. Be obedient to what God has called you to be – a follower with a pleasant Spirit. I could have easily gotten impatient and aggravated at my day. I didn't, and I thank God I did well! 
  3. Patience is more than an action, but a mental condition. The ability to be patient begins in the mind and is shown in our actions. 

Scripture tells us in James 1:25 that, "But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do."  

If we continue in what Jesus has taught us through his Word, we will always be free from bitterness, anger, poor spirits, etc. If we don't forget God's Word, and do it, God will bless us. He wants to bless us, but he also needs us to listen to bless us.  

And yes, I made some awesome burgers for Sunday lunch, but learned a lot more from the Spirit. 

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The Joker and Real Reasons Why The Media Hates It

The problem with ‘Joker’ and the mainstream media is the movie is not useful to them. Mostly in the left-wing community, this movie was a waste of time and money. They just couldn’t use it. As a result, it MUST be blacklisted. 

Nowadays if the movie doesn’t have progressive themes, it’s considered a loss immediately by the left. This community must be able to use every form of media to push forward whatever narrative they’re towing that day. And for that, ‘Joker’, starring Joaquin Phoenix must pay. It must stand as the media’s example to Hollywood directors everywhere that if you make a movie that cannot be used exclusively for the progressive themes of this country, many of which go against Biblical principles, it will be demonized to the point of no return. Don’t believe me? As of 9:30 a.m. Oct. 4, 2019, these were the headlines:

· ‘Joker’ hits movie theaters with controversy and extra security : In this narrative, the media created a theme that it would incite violence. Yet, people went to see other action movies this year with just as much violence.  

· Why ‘Joker’ became one of the most divisive movies of the year: When they don’t want you to see a movie, it’s labeled ‘divisive’.  David Chapelle’s Sticks And Stones received the same label because he challenged everything you’re not supposed to make fun of: All the progressive narratives. 

· Joker review — the most disappointing film of the year: In the final narrative, the media now just says it’s horrible. They’d prefer you don’t see it at all because it’s “Just that bad.”

The problem with this pattern is that it has become very, very obvious to the movie fans. If there isn’t a LGTBQ presence, a female lead or supporting female lead role, a minority lead role, a progressive theme that can be discussed on all the media outlets that match with a worldview, it’s useless. ‘Joker’ addresses mental health and the failure of a government support system. People can easily relate to a man who faced an uphill battle from birth and matured into something he probably didn’t set out to be, but accepted as his fate.

Weeks earlier IT: Chapter 2 was released and there were no alarms of threats in theaters. There were no concerns of mental health and all the elements that surround that topic. Why? Why no outrage. It could be used.

****Spoiler Alert: Stop reading here if you haven’t’ seen IT Chapter 2. ****

The movie opens up with a group of young men bullying and assaulting a gay couple. And there it is. Follow the headlines and you can make the connections to the theme so easily that IT was a poster for the quest to fight bullying, especially against the homosexual community. It could be used, while entertain at the same time. It bore a mark. 

The Bible clearly explains this would be the times we would endure:

 “And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” -Revelation 13:17 

The text tells us that for people to buy or sell during the time of the Beast, there is a choice. Notice the conjugation “or”. There is a choice. A person, company, brand, can either have a mark, know the name, or the number. In my personal opinion, these are codes or signals to alert one another. It’s not surprising to interpret the text in such a way. Christians used to draw fish on the ground to identify with one another.

Let me end by saying this: I went and saw The Da Vinci Code because I wanted to know for myself the content and context. I would recommend you do the same. You cannot trust movie reviews no more than you can trust just one news network. There is a war going on out here, and the Spirits of Darkness know that media is the quickest way to influence, indoctrinate, and activate many of their divisive tools that go against God.

These are the same people who will be lining up to see Terminator: Dark Fate. I love the Terminator movies, but you’ll see a different media response, and now you know why. Don’t be sheep. 

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Joshua Harris: There are thousands more, he’s just another added to the list

Joshua Harris, the former lead pastor of Covenant Life Church, the founding church of Sovereign Grace Ministries in Gaithersburg, Maryland, has now stepped away from Christianity. 

I’m sure you’ve read the Instagram message. Here’s a brief snippet: 

…The information that was left out of our announcement is that I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus. The popular phrase for this is “deconstruction,” the biblical phrase is “falling away.” By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian. Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now…

This news came in the wake of news of Joshua Harris separating from his wife. Though they both plan to remain friends and tend to their children, it’s just unfortunate. He’s gone through a transformation that looks more like the everday Internet Marketer hunting for the next startup. This is is life, his choices. 

I wish him the best.  

But why Rev? Why are you not outraged?

It’s simple. Christians, like the sheep that we are go astray. Somewhere between writing books, raising kids, being a husband something obviously became a great distracter, if not a deciever. I also found quite interesting how he immediately recanted everything said to the LGTBQ community. I can only assume,  like you readers, that whatever he’s looking to do next he wants to make sure he’s hitting all the right buttons on the world stage. 

The problem with Chrisitanity is that we look at the world instead of at God. We’re trying to figure out what we can do instead of what God has called us to do at our level of understanding and abilities.  There are a thousand, if not millions of Joshua Harris-like believers out there that just burn out and quit. They have their reasons. Serving only as a casual reader and not as judge I can tell you he’s not the first,  and he won’t be the last.   Many will turn away and will embrace the world for what it is. They will bear whatever marks they need to achieve their desires, and they will love, reject, destroy, and affirm whatever and whomever they need to do so. 

In Second Thessalonians 2, Paul’s first set of verses leads us to understand this process: 

  • First, the warning: Paul emphasizes to the people to be weary of anyone who brings a different Gospel.. In addition, the signs conclude that the person will make himself God in God’s house (v. 1-4).  
  • Second, the spiritual facts: There’s a “…secret power of lawlesness already at work…” (v.7) For it to be secret is to be kept from public eye, in the dark. Remember, anything that has to be done in the darkness cannot be of God, because God is light and truth.
  • Third, the spiritual victims: Do you think you’ll be caught up in this chaos? As a follower of Christ, you might bear witness to seeing it, but Christ will protect you! But where are you in your walk with Jesus? Paul explains in v.10 that those that will be decieved were already perishing. What does that mean? It means they were already on a path away from the Lord, and this just sped up the process.
  • Fourth, God’s plan to identify and erradicate: Once those persons have been idenfitied, (Those who believed the lie, and fell to the delusion as per v. 11), they will be condemned.  God calls for authenticity in service to him.  He wants us to be just as real with him as he is to us. But a choice HAS to be made! And once that choice is made you must accept the path ahead of you. Joshua Harris can’t get mad at God when things don’t go his way. The good thing is we all have a chance to turn back. The bad part is no one can gurantee how much time you have left to do so.

I do hope Joshua Harris comes back to Jesus and re-forms his Christian walk. Whatever he’s going through or has gone through cannot be worth serving a worldview as a Cultural believer that “something created something out there”. He knows the truth. I pray that somewhere a revelation occurs quickly and with great conviction, just as I do for everyone that turns away. 

But until then, the work to save souls and fight evil continues. 

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Finding the Correct Source for Answers

We spend a lot of time finding the right source to get the answers we need. 

It’s a process of elimination until we finally realize that we’re in the right place, just talking to the wrong person or people.  It’s like a puzzle: We have all the right pieces around us, but only one fits the place where we are starting the journey to complete the puzzle. 

This was the case for me recently. I headed to the local hardware store to replace a broken piece on my trimmer.  The first person to help me wasn’t really that helpful. We looked for the replacement part, couldn’t find it, and he decided to remove a part from a demo and give it to me. Was it the part? Yes. But I didn’t want it that way. I think he figured he was giving me a hookup when it was really stealing. I couldn’t walk out of the store with it.  I placed the piece back on the shelf as he walked away, and I purchased another piece. 

That piece didn’t fit either. Sigh. We returned to the store and asked for help again. Here comes the manager. I explained to him what I was looking for and in a few seconds, he showed me exactly where it was! I was stunned. The previous employee was standing right in front of it and neither of us saw it!  

What was my error? 

I only considered ONE source and when that failed, I didn’t seek out another source. In the Bible, Proverbs 15: 22 states, “…Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors, they are established.” The text explains that without the assistance, we’re going to be frustrated, but with multiple sources, we have more chances at achieving our goals.

If you’re wondering why you haven’t found answers to your problems it might be because you’re simply talking to the wrong people! Or the wrong Christians!  We’re all part of the Body of Christ, but we all serve different purposes! (1 Cor. 12)  So how do we complete our puzzle? 

1. Pray over your problem. Ask God to send you the right person to help you. 

2. Keep asking questions. God loves it when you come to him FIRST before going solo.  Sometimes it’s a process to get you where you need to be but you learn a lesson along the way. 

3. Remain calm, don’t get frustrated. The moment your emotions take hold you’re going to make mistakes. Keep a sound mind so that you can hear God’s instructions. 

In the end, I did get the piece and finished my yard work.  Remember, it begins with Christ, and he will get you where you need to be if you trust him. 

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Gospel Lessons From a Grocery Store perspective

I was in a grocery store looking for a particular snack. I couldn’t find it. I had traveled those grocery store aisles for at least 30 minutes.

Moments later a friend of mine who works in the store asked me what I was looking for. I told him and he immediately pointed me in the direction I was supposed to go. I got my snack and was headed to the checkout line when he said, “Rev, all you had to do was look up and you would have seen where it was.” He was right. I looked up and the information was on the signs hung above each aisle.

Then the Spirit spoke to me. I said, “Hold up brotha, you mean to tell me if I had just looked UP I would have found what I was looking for?” He smiled. “Yeah man, if you had just looked UP, you wouldn’t have wandered around for so long looking for what you wanted.

“You mean that sometimes the answers are right there only if I look up? “

“Yes.”

We were laughing because we knew what we were saying, and it wasn’t about snacks. The Gospel has a way of connecting us all. He knew that I knew that’s a powerful Bible lesson. You see, sometimes we spend more time wandering around the aisles of life when all we had to do was look up and we would have been given the answer. However, I did find the provider of that information that directed me to that thought. You see, Christians need to remember that to get to the answers of life, we need to find the provider, and that is Jesus Christ! Psalm 121 confirms this thought. The first two verses say:

  1. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
  2. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth

Look for Jesus. Don’t wander around.  Sometimes if you had just looked up to God, you would have found what you were looking for and would have been on to the next journey.  He has the answers. Just look up!

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3 Timeless New Years Resolutions for 2019

People spend lots of time talking about a new year and all the things they plan to do.

I’m not immune from this foolishness. I, like you, have made some resolutions I know I’m not going to keep. As we go about the year, we’re going to forget a lot of what we said January 1. It happens in this business we call life. And it’s only natural because many of these promises we made to ourselves and not to God! If we  were truly honest with ourselves, how many times did we make a rule or promise that didn’t have God in mind? How many times  did we get angry when December comes around and we realize how little progress we’ve made?

Jesus already gave a list of things you need to do, so let’s start there for 2019:

1. Share the Gospel with the world, teaching them everything about Jesus (Matt. 28: 18-20). Jesus wants everyone to know him and to be known in the world. Beyond everything you hear in the news about Christians being persecuted for their faith in him, it’s still our job to share “The Good News”.

2. Be useful. Jesus says for us to present what he has done in our lives and be a light to this world (Matt 5: 14 -16). We have many Believers who choose to remain silent, oversaturated with social media missteps and fallacies, and who believe that if they over love the person in sin while never addressing their sin, they’re doing a good deed. The flavor we provide to this world as salt is to purify and make things better received when ingested (Matthew 5:13). Now before Mark 12:31 is taken out of context in response to that comment, let’s consider what is being done: Like a parent to a child,  do you not love your children enough to present to them their wrongdoing and a pathway to correction?  God did that with you!  We are sinners saved by grace. Simply share that truth, and God will do the rest.

3. Be discerning. Sans the popular culture abuse of Matthew 7:1 in regards to judging, we are to be discerning. Did you know that it’s written that we should avoid being deceived because of the effects of “Bad Company” ? (1 Cor. 15:33). I think that involves making some judgement calls on people and places right? In addition, John says that we should “…try the Spirits…” (1 John 4: 1-6).

The Bible presents all the New Years Resolutions we’ll ever need, and they’ve lasted longer than ours.

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Holiday Stress: How to Smile and Endure

What Do Others See?

Holiday stress is a thing, so don’t act like you’ve had it all together up to now.

Holiday stress grows from things that are supposed to be joyful: Putting up the Christmas tree, the lights (eh…) and peppermint everything! But we know that’s not the case. In fact, we stress ourselves out. We usually end up doing one of the following:

  • 1. Stressing out about the bills. We’re shifting to minimum payments on EVERYTHING. Then we stress out about January while it’s still December.
  • 2. Not enough money for the gifts you want to buy. We don’t want to come up short on our Christmas shopping goals.
  • 3. Getting the house “Christmas ready”. The house isn’t where you want it, and it’s making you mad. In fact, you’re ready to quit and the first week in December hasn’t passed yet.

Here’s what I want you to do: I want you to start your day off with Jesus Christ. I want you to take out some time early in the morning when everyone is sleep and do some reading. I want you to spend some time with Jesus. It’s his season, not Santa’s. Consider this text: Psalm 121 verses 1-2 which reads,  “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth…”  Jesus commands us not to worry because he’s the great provider (Matthew 6:31-32). We can trust God’s words because they are forever (Luke 21:33).

Next, to combat that holiday stress, I want you to write your Christmas list to God. Have some faith.  Do you know that Jesus told us that we should ask him for the things we need? He stands by waiting for us to come to him! He knows what you’re trying to do. He knows how you feel this time of year. He wants you to bring your burdens him! (Matthew 21:22). The last thing you should be doing is trying to get it on your own.

Finally, accept God’s response. Maybe it wasn’t meant for your son or daughter to receive that fancy phone this season. Maybe that money needed to go to something else. Whatever the gift, no matter the reason you have or don’t have it, accept the outcome and thank the Lord for what he has provided. Don’t add to your holiday stress by stressing out on a day meant to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior!

Remember, you serve a big God who does so much for you and everyone else. He tends to the environment, he heals the land we use and cleans the air we breathe. It’s important to know that if he can do all these things, he can provide for your Christmas needs (Job 38).

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Shed Some Tears, and Be Ok with That

Tears, shedding tears

Shedding tears in this world is not a matter of if, only a matter of when.

There’s nothing wrong with shedding tears.

I was speaking with a friend the other day and he was telling me about his financial hardships. He was going over how things were getting tough around the house, and how he was working hard to make life better. He had been crying. I responded with words of encouragement and said, “Don’t worry. God knows what you need. It’s going to be ok! He will respond to your needs!”

He replied, “I know but the pain is still radiating and my tears are what God has given me to relieve the pain.” I took me a while to understand why he felt the need to give me a reason to why he was crying. Then it hit me: He thought I was telling to stop crying when I was trying to provide spiritual comfort.

Any biblical response to a bad situation is not a call to “Toughen up Buttercup”. It’s recognizing you may not be able to do anything about the situation, you serve a mighty God that can. My Bible tells me that with God all things are possible (Matt. 19:26). The shedding of tears may be a sign of weakness to some, but that’s weakness made perfect in Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 12:9). Tears are a human response to relieve the body of physical pain. The removal of that response can evolve into a sinful nature that was never meant to engage. But because you were hurting, you were vulnerable, and you needed a release.

Let’s shed some tears. Don’t turn to adultery, drugs, or over eating. Don’t let Satan’s voice whisper in your ear to end it all. NO. I want you to have a good cry, but in that moment, I want you talk through those tears to a God that loves you.   Jesus gives us a perfect model to dealing with our tears. Jesus wept when he approached the tomb of Lazarus (John 11: 35- 38). But in his groaning, the text explains, he was moving towards a spiritual response. That response not only raised his friend from the dead, but was a confirmation to all he is God’s Son! (John 11: 39-44). God works through the spiritual to address the physical! Let His Divine nature take control and not only be victorious, but a testimony to others who may also be suffering.

When God is ready to use you, tears will dry up. Why? Because you’re  entering into a different form and function. Tears serve a purpose. Don’t ever think you’re wrong for crying. Don’t get defensive when people come to you with spiritual comfort. When giving spiritual comfort, let the recipient understand it’s ok to cry. But, let them know that God is in control, and that the brokenness won’t last forever. If we had more people shedding tears, and even more people comforting them with God’s Word, who knows how that would affect bullying, suicides, crime in general. It’s ok to cry. Never forget that.

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Forms of Godliness Won’t Solve Country’s Problems

Forms of Godliness Won’t Solve Country’s Problems

When I look at the current status of the country, it’s easy to sigh. Forms of Godliness aren’t working. People need to understand you cannot mimic God and be successful.

Everyone is analyzing everything.  Is it a gun issue? A race issue? Here’s my take: People want forms of Godliness without God involved.  They want the traits, characteristics, habits, systems, you name it. They just don’t want Jesus in the process. Because of this, society is experiencing a great deal of frustration, regret, depression, and hopelessness.  They’re frustrated because they don’t understand how to stop the evil, regret the things they missed leading up to the tragedy, are depressed at having to read it almost everyday, and have lost hope in real change.

Have we as Believers in Jesus Christ heard of this before? Yes we have. In 2 Timothy 3, Paul addresses this issue with Timothy in verse 5:

 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” – 2 Tim. 3:5

What was Paul talking about? For that answer, we must look at what he says prior to this statement:

“…This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3  Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4  Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;” – 2 Tim. 3:1-4

We read in the text Paul is describing things that “shall come” (Most are already here if you ask me…) When you take a look at the list, we read of all the things men will evolve into. The observation is that after all of this, these men (yes, it addresses the men) will have a form of Godliness. Isn’t that crazy? Knowing that through man’s boasting, blaspheming, disobedience, unthankful attitude they will still hold a form of Godliness.

This is what we’re dealing with. Their form – the people who carry these natures, are being covered by a form of Godliness. The problem with that is it doesn’t last long before they’re discovered.  Why? Because their functions are not of God.

How does this affect women? Verse 6 states:

“For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts…” 2 Tim.3:6

Notice the text states they will lead astray “silly” women. The KJV defines that from the Greek word gynailkaria  (prnounced goo-nahee-kar’-ee-on ) meaning “weak women”. These would be women not spiritually strong, susceptible to influence, and unable to break away from these types of men.

How do we respond? Believers must get back to the sharing of the Gospel. We cannot allow the world to dictate to us the gospel and how to share it when they’re consistently being led astray by spirits that pose in one form but are something else.  We should aspire within ourselves to want to represent a form and a function that is pleasing to God. That begins with faith (Hebrews 11:6). We need to share that as well. Men and women in God’s kingdom must reach out to those who we  know are weak in their nature and present to them the love of Christ. Otherwise, this only gets worse.

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How should a Christian view success?

How should a Christian view success?

The Christians definition of how we define “success” in a year usually falls alongside worldly goals. It’s easy to create New Year’s resolutions. They are the sum of all things that happened the previous year we didn’t do. It’s also the compilation of things we want to stop doing. It’s human to look at what is quantifiable. Here is usually how we evaluate a year in review:

  • We count how many “wins” we had during the year, not reviewing what we’ve learned from failures.
  • We define success on what we’re able to buy during the Christmas season, not current blessings.
  • We evaluate God’s response rather than his present provisions.

How do we break this?

It begins in the Spiritual realm. We have to retrain our minds to look at the bigger picture. It’s not what happened or didn’t happen, it’s where God has us, and his care and covering over us. It’s a difficult area of thought because our humanity wants to achieve our goals.  As Believers, it should always be the priority to live our lives to give God the glory. As we slowly exit another year, let’s focus on how we can do that:

  • Start your conversations with what God has done for you. Give thanks.
  • Gifts? List God’s blessings to you and your family.
  • How were you able to help others?
  • What happened that made God’s provision for your life more than words?

Keeping a Godly perspective is hard. Sharing that perspective is harder. The hardest thing to do at the end of the year is to reflect with a perception that doesn’t forget 2017 but gives God the glory for it. The Christian definition of success begins and ends with God.

 

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Yes, I Will Share Christmas Tree Photos, Gifts and All

There’s nothing wrong with that, right? Well it’s around this time I also see the following messages about materialism. Parents get chastised on Social Media about the number of gifts, the size of the gifts. They’re not teaching the ‘real meaning of Christmas’. I usually pose the question, “Your meaning of Christmas or the true meaning, Jesus Christ?”  It never gets the warm fuzzy response. It’s usually followed by the usual defense about Christians are wrong and hypocrites. There is a reason to why I share my photos of the entire Christmas scene in my home. I take my thinking from Matthew 5:14-16 (KJV):

“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.  15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

Every gift under my tree, and yours, is a representation of those good works. It’s a testament to how God has blessed you through the year to get to the point you’re at now. Readers won’t know about the job loss, the bills that didn’t get paid on time, when you came up short on the mortgage or rent. No, they don’t know that.  Those that know you will get it.  They will see what God has done for you and testify on your behalf without you even knowing it. That ripple affect changes those hearts that look at what’s under your tree.  Those that don’t believe will see what God can do when you hang in there. Those that believe get motivated by seeing God’s masterwork in your life.

Social Media Guidance for Sharing Christmas Tree Photos

  1. When you post your photo, post your testimony with that photo. Talk about what God has done for you and your family.
  2. Share how God has blessed you to be a blessing to others
  3. Remind people that while there are gifts under the tree because of God’s grace, Christmas is about the birth of Christ, period.
  4. Finish with a call of inspiration to those who are “going through it”. Remind them that Jesus has not forgotten them, and always responds on time.

Make your post a blessing to others. We’re here, now let’s go there.

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Seasonal Depression: Remembering God’s Provision

Seasonal Depression: Remembering God’s Provision

When we see those words, some of us may think about those persons who lost loved ones during the year. They’re facing the great task of celebrating the holidays without that person for the first time.  What I would like to do is help you rethink the term from a big picture perspective.

I have a friend that was dealing with unemployment during the holiday season. I have another friend that dealt with not having as much as he had hoped for the holiday season. This led to a depression that even they didn’t realize was happening. The stress of not having had become their evaluation of that year. Because they could not do what everyone else was doing, they drifted through the holiday season in a daze.  They were experiencing Seasonal Depression. It is the downward evaluation of your year in review. It’s what you feel when you look forward to the Christmas tree and the fear of having few gifts to wrap. It’s the evidence of goals met, or the evidence of how far behind you really are. That‘s in your mind. That’s what you’re thinking.

These are practical feelings going South quick. God has already presented words of comfort we can review.

Psalm 121 presents an active role for the Believer. It’s what I call a “Psalm on the move“. Here’s a breakdown:

  • V.1: There’s something Christians need to do, and we have to be confident in that action.
  • V.2-4: We should specify where that confidence come from, and remind people that he will never “go asleep on watch”.
  • V. 5-6: God is in control! He controls the day and the night! Why am I worried?
  • V. 7. God protects us externally and internally. It’s not about what you see all the time, but it’s about what you don’t see. The Holiday season is all about what you see. All the decorations, sales, and food of course. It hurts when you can’t participate at the level you want to participate. What I am challenging you to do this season is to let the Holy Spirit intervene. Don’t worry about what you don’t have and take it day by day, as Jesus tells us to pray (Matt.6: 9-13).
  • V.8: God tends to our daily operations. If we can remember that God is in control from the moment we get up to the time we lay back down, you’ll beat Season Depression. Ask yourself this question: How do you start your day? Am I starting my day from a Biblical worldview or do I turn on the TV first? (We all do this, relax.) Make it a discipline that before you start your day you talk to the Lord. Get your mind there  and the body will follow in health.

We all have goals. We’ll meet some and miss some. Life is going to happen. When it does, remember that though you may not be where you want to be, you’re further than what you were last year at this time. Broaden your perspective on Seasonal Depression and help protect yourselves and your loved ones from facing a season where we recognize the birth of Jesus Christ with stress.

You’re here. Let’s go there. We’re praying for you. Got a prayer request connected to Seasonal Depression Tell me about it.

 

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