I’m a Survivor!

This is to you my Guardian Angel, and to God’s amazing grace.

Last Sunday, the 30th of September, after the mass, as I finished my conversation with God, I just got off my seat, I saw this cute little chubby baby. And oh my God, did I wish at that moment, that he would come just near me. And God, listens you know. He came right to me and I bent down, and touched his cheeks. I wished to hug and hold him in my arms. I was just happy that I could hold his tiny little hand.

Life is amazing. The most amazing aspect of life is love. Give a little love and you get a whole world of love in return. And love is the easiest of all, especially, if you look at it from God’s point of view.

Sometimes, in life we make the mistake of looking down on a person. We pass the verdict that-the person wont amount to anything. But God is all knowing, and He does not see that way. He’s given each person certain potential that will come about in God’s good time. I want you to see with the eyes of God. I wish that you could love-with the love that comes directly from the Heart of God. I wonder if you could just give it a try. 

Love hurts, but not being loved, is a far worst feeling. I pray, for you to be surrounded by love.

It hurts to hear people often criticize each other. What’s even more difficult is to not feel a pinch of what others go through. Each and every day, I see someone trying to put the other person down. Each and every day that you continue with this behaviour, you harden your heart towards God and towards your neighbour. You become loveless.

All I really wish for you is that you understand, that you are everything to God, and if you know this truth, then you have to realize that your neighbour too is as important as you are. God loves all of us. Remember, Jesus, He died on the Cross for all of us. HE did not choose you alone or me alone. He loved us all.

With time comes change of seasons. We all hurt at some time or the other. But nothing in life is constant. So if you are hurting-Its okay to hurt and its okay to cry. It's a misconception-that only the weak cry. I think it takes a strong person to show their true feeling. To cry when you hurt-it just shows your softer side, and that’s okay. Thank God you are not mechanical.

The scripture (the Bible) states: Be not afraid-26 times and if you include ‘Do not be afraid’-the count goes upto 325 times or so. 

When you are hurting, the only person who can reach to your heart and heal and bless it abundantly is God.  

REMEMBER: Every once in a while the waters of the sea come back to the shore from where they started. And God is a witness to all of His marvels. He alone knows the time, and the count and seconds, and milliseconds.

Nothing is impossible to a GOD OF IMPOSSIBLES!

William James said: The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitude.

Successes and defeats are, attributed to our thinking. When we fill our mind with unbelief and dwell on being a failure, our attitude will produce defeat. But a faith-filled attitude is much more likely to bring success.

Satan tries to destroy people by creating fear, pessimism, self pity, un-forgiveness, hatred, and unresolved anger. And that’s why the Bible says, “give no place to the devil.”

The reason it’s important to guard our thoughts is because our thinking determines our actions and our actions determine our character. We become what we think.

Proverbs 23:7 says: “as a man thinks in his heart so is he.”

Let me explain-Your thoughts lead to actions! It takes right thinking to produce right behavior. That’s why Proverbs 23:19 warns to “be wise, and keep your heart on the right path.”

You are what you have been thinking. And your tomorrow is dependent on your thoughts of today. And God lets people fall into traps of their own design when they won’t trust Him.

If you live with hatred and un-forgiveness, you will become what you think—embittered and hateful.

But you’ll become victorious if you’ll fill your mind with what Paul commanded us in Philippians 4:8—whatever is “true . . . noble . . . right . . . pure . . . lovely . . . admirable . . . excellent or praiseworthy.”

This type thinking takes discipline, but you can do it! And it will transform your life!

So many people complain about being victims. Wouldn't you rather be a victor?

I have learned from the Word of God that we can have victory over pain instead of being the victims of it. In Philippians 4:13-"do all things through Christ who strengthens us".

God is El Shaddai, the all-sufficient God.

God in Your Life 
God cares about the tiniest details of your life. Nothing ever escapes Him. He often uses difficult moments and human tragedies to accomplish this purpose. When you understand this you can handle anything in this life.

Romans 8:28 states- ‘And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are so called according to His purpose.’
Realize that His purpose is that all things work together for good. No matter what you are going through God can use it.

God Gives Us a New Perspective  
We get bitter because we think someone is getting away with something and nothing is happening to them. We think God has let it go.
But if you believe God is involved and knows then we can turn things over to Him. It is knowing that God is there that will keep us going through hard times.

God Uses the Events of Our Life
The Lord uses the least capable and the most unlikely to accomplish His purpose. How tough is your faith? Will you allow God to use your life no matter what?

When something drains our strength-God has promised to enable us and be our helper.

In fact, He sent the Holy Spirit for this purpose. Jesus told His disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit to be their "Comforter (Counsellor, Advocate)" John 16:7.

God is "our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" Psalms 46:1. We can receive His help, however, only by asking for it—by relying on and trusting in Him.

What is Victory? People have the misconception that victory is the absence of problems. But I don't believe that victory is defined as "being problem-free." True victory-comes right in the midst of the storm—when it's raging and there is yet peace, when tragedy has struck and one can nevertheless say, "It is well with my soul."

Romans 8:37 says that "we are more than conquerors." I believe this means that we can have assurance of victory even before the battle begins. We can have such confidence in God that no matter what happens or threatens to happen we can be on top rather than on the bottom. We do not have to live under some—pressure.

I see people walking with defeated look on them all the time. I have this inclination to want to go up and shake them good, and say ‘wake up, good fellow’. Sometimes if I know the person I just go and do that. And if I don’t know them, I pray.

Victim to Victor
Trials will come; John 16:33. But we don't have to let them get the best of us. We have to get off the victim mentality and start thinking like a victor.

The proper attitude: Ephesians 3:16 teaches us to be strengthened in the inner man. If we are strong inside, the things coming against us from the outside cannot defeat us.

1 John 4:4 says, "Greater is he that is in [me], than he that is in the world".

If your faith is not strong, you need to spend time in the Word and if not daily then on Sundays to participate in the ‘Holy Eucharist’(The Eucharist is the celebration which includes the Word of God, thanksgiving to God, the consecration of bread and wine and participation by the faithful in receiving the Lord’s body and blood).

I learned not to talk about problems. Even though talking about it does not solve the problem, there is a longing in us for people to know what we are going through. We long for human sympathy.

Do you know why some people remain depressed? The answer is, It feeds their negativism! It feels so good to sit, to be pitied on, to sulk over their misery. Ultimately, we must learn to go to the Comforter.

The more we talk about our problems, the bigger they become. We can blow them entirely out of proportion by giving them too much attention. Don’t focus on your problem, focus on God. God is bigger than all the problems-put together. Aint-no mountain big enough for God to move.

Trust God to change you: We must turn ourselves over to God and trust Him to do what we cannot. We can exercise a certain amount of discipline and self-control, but no matter how much we struggle, we cannot change ourselves. God has to do it.

When I detect weaknesses in myself, I remember that His strength will be made perfect in them if I trust Him. God is more than enough!

No matter how deep in the pit a person may find himself, God's arm is not too short to save him. We cannot uphold ourselves and cause ourselves to be able to stand in His presence. But Romans 14:4 says, "And he shall stand and be upheld, for the Master—the Lord—is mighty to support him and make him stand".

Submit yourself to God: To get from being the victim to being victorious, we must know the truth about resisting the devil. The Word of God states: ‘Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you’-James 4:7.

As we submit to God and His instructions, we are resisting the devil.

God has a plan of deliverance and victory—a plan to prosper us and not to harm us-Jeremiah 29:11. It is His will that His children be victors, not victims. The book of James 1:5 teaches us that when we are experiencing trials we are to ask God, and He will show us what to do or what not to do in order to have victory. Then we must draw strength from Him, and do it by His grace.

Persevere-Remember: This too shall pass! What you're going through won't last forever, but God will... The Bible teaches us to endure. We might say that means "to outlast the devil."

Paul wrote to the Hebrews, "You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised”- Hebrews 10:36. He reminded them that their hope in God was not in vain, "for He who promised is faithful," and that their confidence in Him would be richly rewarded-v.23-35. Let us declare with Paul, "We are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved"-v.39.

We need to learn to trust God to deliver us—in His timing—and to turn our sorrow into joy. Psalms 30:5; 126:5.

If you, are determined to be free—to be more than a conqueror—remember to keep your eyes and your conversation on Jesus and off the situation. Submit yourself to God in all things. Spend time with the Lord, drawing upon His strength. Wait in His presence, and you will find that He is more than enough to bring you through to victory, no matter what kind of pain you may be experiencing.

I believe one of the most important things is that your thoughts are powerful and they will actually determine your future. Have you heard the saying, "It's all in your mind"? Well, that's exactly where our successes and victories begin. You can think yourself into a mess or you can think yourself into a place of victory.

Positive thinking doesn't just happen. You have to believe God's Word is for you. Then you need to hear yourself say what you believe.

 

You can never get beyond what you think—especially what you think of yourself.

I believe many people think they don't have a choice about their thoughts. But you can think on purpose—positive thoughts or negative thoughts. If a negative thought comes into your head, you can cast it down and begin to renew your mind with the Word of God.

Having your mind set in advance is important so that when something doesn't go your way, you've already decided to not let it bother you.

 

God loves me unconditionally!

When you really know that God loves you, you can conquer anything. You feel valuable, you become bold, and you realize you don't have to be afraid of making mistakes or failing. You know you have a purpose in life!

Knowing that God loves you unconditionally will also remove the fear from your life.

Even when the world tries to make you feel like there's something wrong with you, remember that the first thing God gives you when you receive Christ is righteousness. You're right with Him, and it doesn't matter whom else you might be wrong with.

Forgiving those who've hurt you is a big part of trusting God.

Set your mind that you won't be bitter, angry or resentful. You may not be able to help what you feel but if you change what you think, your feelings will catch up with your thoughts.

Don't you want to have God's promises? I do. In time, our thoughts and our words will be full of God's truths, and we will experience the blessings He has for us.

CONCLUSION:  You know how love is-you fear nothing-you would walk a 1000 miles to be with the one you love. There can be no mountain-whose height makes you tremble with fear. Even if you had to go down through a valley-you know you could. You would, cross the river-heck-you would cross the oceans for the one you love. What is it about love that makes you never want to fear?

Precisely why God considers Love the most important. Even faith and hope come later. Corinthians 13:13 says-‘Of Faith, Hope and Love, Love is the greatest’. It is for love of us that Jesus-the Son of God chose to be human, it is for His love and devotion to His Father-that He chose to do His Fathers will. Love is and will always be the greatest of all.

I understand now that God wants much more for us than mere survival. It’s not His will that we just barely make the finish line. He wants us to sail past it with hope. Even more important, He wants our acknowledgement that we get nowhere on our own. It’s all Him, all the time.

And you, my dear will always be more than a survivor-in the name of 'JESUS'.

REMEMBER: Whatever the Bible says you are is what you and I must confess we are.

That means we should say, “I am spiritual, forgiving, kind, virtuous, honest, loving, holy, Spirit-filled, faith-filled, confident, and a doer of the Word.”

Confessing your identity with Christ and who the Bible says you are will affect your entire Christian character. And that’s why Revelation 12:11 says we overcome: “by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony.”

PRAYER: Abba, Father, I wait on Your word. Keep me obedient and always faithful. Teach me to do Your will always.

Praise God! Praise to the Holy Trinity!

Promise date: 5^th October, 2012. Luke 1:37(First Friday).