zach williams: fear is a liar devotional

Day 5: Today’s lie: You’re not loved.

This is a difficult and painful lie that so many of us have been told and so many of us believe. Some of us have been treated like this by people we care about, people who influence us, and people who’ve been mentors, guides, or family to us. Another lie that we’re often told is that we have to earn love, that it doesn’t come naturally, and that it’s dependent on how we act, look, or behave. There is a verse that we’ve all heard and see often when people quote the Bible, but I encourage you to read it with fresh eyes and an open heart. 

“For God so LOVED the WORLD (that’s us!), that he gave his one and only Son, that WHOEVER believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16 (NIV). Emphasis added.

ANYONE who believes in Him has eternal life. God so loved the WORLD that He made the ultimate sacrifice. It doesn’t say, “After all of God’s children started doing certain things, looking a certain way, or acting a certain way, then God sacrificed His Son because they earned it.” This is NOT the God that I know and this is not what the Bible teaches us at all. God sacrificed simply because He loves us and wants to spend eternity with us. All we need to do is believe in that fact and we inherit His kingdom on Earth and in Heaven. 

I can’t even walk without you holding my hand

This is what got us through another difficult night tonight. I’m so thankful he’s holding our hand. I sure wouldn’t make it any other way. Thank you Jesus for holding my hand tonight!

Voddie baucham: biblical love

There is so much more to this sermon, it’s actually a four part series.
But this is a snippet I came across the other day, and WOW! How I wish everyone could hear this.
If more people lived by this we wouldn’t have as many problems as we do. Especially the
Young teenagers, and us young adults too.

Fear is a liar: Zach Williams devotional part 1

Day 1: Today’s lie: You’re not strong enough. 

The song “Fear Is a Liar” outlines many of the fears and lies that the enemy tells us. One of those lies that we are often told is that we’re not strong enough. We can fill in the blank of that sentence with so many things. 

We’re not strong enough to step up and be the parents our children need.

We’re not strong enough to be vulnerable with our spouse/pastor/counselor.

We’re not strong enough to quit drinking/smoking/taking pills/looking at porn/overeating/cheating.

We’re not strong enough to step back in church after years of distance.

We’re not strong enough to ask for forgiveness from someone we wronged/hurt/ignored/abused/manipulated.

We’re not strong enough to smile in the face of pain. 

We’re not strong enough to believe in a better life. 

We’re not strong enough to seek help. 

We’re not strong enough to stop judging others.

So why even try? 

The list could go on and on. The amazing thing is that over and over in the Bible, God tell us two things, 1. We don’t have to be strong enough on our own because, 2. His strength is what we need to be strong enough. That should feel like a weight has lifted off of your shoulders. It does to me. 

“I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13 NIV)

“…but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31 NIV)

The Bible even takes it a step further and encourages us to see our ‘weaknesses’ as things to ‘boast’ about ‘gladly’ because it’s more opportunity to be truly strong with Christ’s power. “My power is made perfect in weakness” as it says in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. This is a difficult concept to grasp but if you think about it, none of us are perfect, we’re all missing a puzzle piece in order to be strong enough to accomplish what we need. God has that missing piece. His power is made perfect in our weakness. 

If you’ve been told you’re not strong enough by someone else or by the enemy, it is a LIE. You are strong enough because you have God’s 

Why God: Austin French

Why God?

So to say my life has been chaotic would be an understatement. But I need to write again, I use to more when I was younger and it helped with whatever I was going through.

So last night my dad had another heart attack. I got a phone call at work that the paramedics were taking him to the hospital and it looked like a heart attack. So Kelsey and I rushed from work to the hospital, we met my mom there and Kaity rode in the Ambo to the hospital.
While driving up there I was just feeling so many different emotions, it's not the first time we've been here  or have gone through this,but it doesn't get any easier. Your heart stops every time and you wonder is this it? And I don't know if it's because I have lost many loved ones already and almost have lost both parents, but I always tend to think more negatively than positively in these moments. And it's very easy to go there with the devil and question God.
Why God is this happening?
Why God are you not hearing me pray?
Why God do we have to go through this over and over again?

And I've heard some say well why would you question God when he's done so much for your family?  and yes that's true God has done so much! And I'm grateful for what God has done. But it doesn't change what you feel in those heart stopping moments.
It doesn't change the trials your going through, it doesn't change the devil that's waiting there to pounce on you.

There's a song called 'why God' by: Austin French
And it talks about questioning God, and not understanding the things we go through, and why things fall apart.  But that through the questioning we understand a little bit more.
Instead of why God is is happening? You understand this is why God I need you.

And it's a lesson I went through this past year, why are we questioning God as if we'd have a right to know what his will is? As if we know better than he does? Why do we focus more on the negative than trying to focus on The positive? Because the negative Is my dad shouldn't be alive, and neither should my mom, but they are. We should be homeless but we're not. I shouldn't have a job, but I do. And The list goes on, and on.

My point is why do we focus on what we don't have, and what prayer God hasn't answered. Rather than what we do have and what God has answered. I heard someone say that when we pray there's two answers to our prayers and that's yes, and yes. It's either a yes down here, or a yes up in heaven.
Because if we believe God, And if we believe the Bible and if we believe theres a heaven, And there's a hell. And we believe that God sent his son to die for us so that we can become a child of God and have a home in heaven for us. Then why wouldn't Gods answer to our prayer by taking  a loved one home be a yes?

So heaven forbid it, but if Gods answer to my prayer is yes, but he takes daddy home to heaven. I'm not going to question that. Because at least I know where he's going, and I know I will see him again someday. Not saying it wouldn't be a hard thing to go through, but I either trust God and have faith in him or I don't.
And when we go though these things you come to the point where you trust God or you don't, you believe him or you don't. You stand on his promises or you don't. And it's in the times where your standing in a hard place where you have to make that decision and walk it out.

Even though the devil wanted me to go there last night I had to stop and go wait. God I do believe you, I do believe your promises, and I believe You can help him more than any doctor ever could. And that's when I felt a peace that passes all understanding, a peace that surpasses all knowledge and I knew that know matter what happened God was with my dad, and that God was with me. And that He wasn’t going to leave us now.

These are just some rambling thoughts I had today while trying to process everything. I will hopefully be posting more, but I say that and then Don’t post for a year! So we will see.