Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Don't Give Up!

"He who began a good work in you is faithful to complete it."  Phil 1:6

Have you ever started a project around the house?

Maybe you started cleaning out that junky closet that no guest is allowed to see.
You were filled with excitement about completing it but something interrupted you.

Now two days, or two weeks, or two months have gone by and the project that once excited you sits half way completed.
Instead of excitement about knocking it out, you now look at it with disdain and aggravation.

It's okay if you identify with this example.  
I certainly do!
I bet you we ALL do!

Guess what, though.
We serve a God that finishes the projects He starts in our lives!

He will bring to fruition the projects and plans that He has begun in your life!

What good works has He started in you?

Is it a plan for ministry?
Is it a plan to start a business?
Is it a plan to conquer a habit or addiction that has challenged you for years?

No matter what the Good Work is, our Father God IS Faithful to Complete it!

The enemy wants you to lose hope.

I'm here to tell you right now, "Don't give up!"

Don't fall into the trap of self doubt and fear.

"I could never begin this business, or this ministry."
"I could never quit taking these drugs or drinking myself to sleep each night."
"I could never conquer this sex addiction or be faithful to my partner."
"I could never live a sold out life for Christ!"
"Why Try?"

When those thoughts start creeping into your mind, take a stand!

Declare who you are in Christ!

You are a blood bought child of the creator of the entire universe and all things that inhabit it!

Your father is the King of Kings!

He not only knows your name today but He knew you before the foundation of the Earth!


Combat the fears of self doubt with the faith that is your Destiny!

You were created with a purpose, a plan for your life!

Don't let the enemy cause you to give up on God's plans for you.
God hasn't given up on them!

He may be waiting for you to surrender fully to Him before He can bring them forth but He has certainly not given up on them!

He wants to flood you with His grace and mercy this very hour and every hour to come, propelling you to accomplish the goals He has set before you.

Don't give up!

God's promises are Yes and Amen!

Search yourself today for the seeds that God has placed in your heart.

-Maybe they are long forgotten because you gave up on them so many years ago.
-Maybe it hurts to think about these plans because you carry guilt and shame from not accomplishing them already.
-Maybe God is placing ideas in your spirit right now that seem too outlandish for even Him to accomplish.

God will help you finish cleaning out the junky closets in your life!
God will provide for your ministry to excell!
God will cause your business to prosper!
God will rescue you when you are in bondage to addiction!
God will Destroy those chains that bind you!

Don't Give Up!

Rely on God as your source.

He will cause the seeds that He has planted in your life to flourish!

Surrender to Him all the areas of your life.

Like the Apostle Paul who died to Christ daily, lay your will at God's feet.
Give Him your plans, allowing Him to replace them with His plans for your life!

Trust in God to complete His Good Work in you!
 
Don't Give Up!

As always remember:

God Loves You!
God Created You!
God Accepts You!

Until Next Time,

SavedByGrace

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Is that your phone ringing?

Have you ever been in a restaurant or a theater and heard someone's phone ringing?

You look over both shoulders trying to guess where the sound is coming from.
Maybe you even remark to your friend about how annoying it is that they wont answer their phone!!

Evidently the person who is calling is very persistent because they keep calling back.
The phone rings and rings and you get more and more uncomfortable until finally your friend looks at you and says:

Is that your phone ringing?

So, let me ask you, is your phone ringing today?
Could it be that God is calling you?

How many times do we walk past the needy and think, "I wish someone would help them."
Ring Ring

How often do we see someone who is hurting but we are too timid to ask them if they need prayer?
Ring Ring

How many parties do we attend where we notice there is an outcast sitting alone but we don't reach out to include them?
Ring Ring

"I hear the phone ringing but it can't be my phone!"
Ring Ring

"I'm just not called to help the homeless. Someone else will do it." 
"They will just use the money for drugs or alcohol."
"They might be crazy!"
Ring Ring

"I can't offer prayer to that woman crying in the middle of wal-mart!"
"What will people think?"
"I am not a preacher! I just don't think I could pray for someone."
Ring Ring

"I see the guy no one is talking to at the party."
"It would not be cool to try and include him!" 
"I have an image to uphold!"
Ring Ring

Is that your phone ringing?

What if you are the person God has sent to help the homeless man you walked past on the street?
Ring Ring

What if your prayers for a hurting stranger will be the action that causes them to decide that life is worth living another day?
Ring Ring

What if the outcast sitting at the party see's Jesus through your kindness and decides that he too would like to be a Christian?
Ring Ring

Is that your phone ringing?

In Matthew 25 Jesus tells us, 
"35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (NIV)
Ring Ring

Is that your phone ringing?

My prayer for us all is that as we go through our daily lives that we will learn to answer when our phone rings. 

Instead of making excuses or pretending we don't hear it, I pray that we will stop and answer the call from God.
He puts people and opportunities in our path for a reason.

When you feel in your heart that God is asking you to do something, 
then do it.
To be Christians we should act like Christ.

This is summed up so simply in Matthew 22 when Jesus said, 
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’"(NIV)
Ring Ring

Is that your phone ringing?

Please answer the call today.
You may be the only Bible that some people ever read.

Thanks for checking out this post and as always remember:

God Loves You!
God Created You!
God Accepts You!

Until Next Time,

SavedByGrace

Ring Ring

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Through the Valley

"I get knocked down. And I get up again. You're never gonna keep me down!"- Tubthumping by Chumbawamba

Those of you who follow me on facebook might have noticed my status earlier today:

"It's not about how many times life trips you up and sends you face first into the dirt.
No, life is about getting back up, dusting yourself off, and walking forward.
Falling doesn't = defeat, but Rising Again = VICTORY!"

Let me be very real and vulnerable with you today.

I've been going through some rough times lately.
There are feelings and emotions that I have been dealing with from several different directions.

For lack of better words, I have been walking through a valley for over a month now.

In the 23rd Psalm, David says, "...Though I walk THROUGH the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me..."

He doesn't say that God will take him around the valley; beside the valley; above the valley.
He says that God will walk with him THROUGH the valley.

In the coarse of your life you are going to walk through valleys but the key is knowing who is walking WITH you.

When you find yourself walking a trail through a valley that twists and turns around hurts, despair, fear, or self doubt, that is the time to rely on God to navigate you.

Trust in Him to be the compass and bring you through.

He will give you the strength and direction that you need to come out on the other side!

Over the past month I have dealt with a tremendous amount of grief while my mind remembers and processes the illness that my mom suffered and her eventual passing on July 9th, 2010.

Everyone has cautioned me that the first anniversary is the hardest.
After walking through it, I believe them.

During this month I have found myself broken-
but not destroyed!

I have felt, at times, completely isolated-
but not alone!

There have been sleepless nights where the sadness has weighed me down-
but it hasn't crushed me!

Not once, not twice, but numerous times over the past month I have stumbled and fallen to the ground emotionally and spiritually.

Every single time God has been there to lift me back up!

- He has lifted me up to my feet like a loving father lifts His child.
- He has held me in His arms when I needed reassurance of who I am and who's I am.
- He has spoken peace into the storm that waged against me and reminded me of my purpose and destiny in Him.

I thank God for the support of true friends and a caring family who have been there through these last several weeks.

I also know that not everyone has that type of support system around them when they are going through a difficult time.

If you find yourself in the valley as you read this, know that you are not alone!

Your loving Father God is walking with you.

His Holy Spirit is your compass, guiding your every step.

His Son, the greatest friend we could ever have, is ready to place your arms around His shoulders and carry you when you get too tired to put one foot in front of the other.

Even if you have no support system from friends or family, you are not alone in the valley!

If you have fallen under the weight and pressure of life, turn to God to help you get back up.
When you are back on your feet, dust yourself off and keep walking.

Here's Some More Good News:
Valleys Are Temporary!

You have to keep pressing forward to get out of the valley but the reward is waiting on the other side.

There will be a day when you will be back on top of the Mountain, standing on the summit, praising God with reckless abandon for leading you through another valley!

When that day arrives don't forget who brought you through it!

Take that experience and share it with others around you who are walking in a tough spot.

That is how God takes the difficult times of your life and turns them into powerful parts of your testimony that helps others who are walking through their own valleys!

Thank you for reading and remember that if you are in the valley, I welcome your prayer requests.

I am always honored to pray with you.

You can e-mail me at MyGayChristianBlog@gmail.com or for prayer requests that you would like to share publicly visit the Sharing Joy and Asking for Prayer Page on the blog.

As always remember:
God Loves You!
God Created You!
God Accepts You!

Until next time,

SavedByGrace

He Is With You- Mandisa

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Independence Day- Repost


I have been praying for several days about what I should post for this 4th of July Holiday.

Everything I kept hearing in my spirit sounded just like this post from earlier this year.

Finally I took the hint from God and decided, for the first time in the history of this blog, to repost a previous entry (with a few minor edits).
It's the "Independence Day" blog post below.

Whether you read this back in February or it is your first time seeing it, I pray it will touch you deeply and encourage you to make today your Independence Day! 



"Let freedom ring. Let the white dove sing. Let the whole world know that today is a day of reckoning! Let the weak be strong. Let the right be wrong. Roll that stone away. Let the guilty pay. It's Independence Day!"

After you read this blog, check out the video posted below of Pat Benatar and Martina McBride singing "Independence Day." 

It's the inspiration for tonight's blog and the source for the quote above.

Are you lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgendered, queer, questioning, inter-sex?  
It's Independence Day!

Are you straight?   
It's Independence Day!

Have you been hurt by the Church or other Christians?  
It's Independence Day!

Do you think that you don't measure up?  
It's Independence Day!

There is freedom in understanding God's Love for you.

There is amazing Grace that fills your soul when you realize that no matter how many mistakes you have made; No matter how many times you have disobeyed God's plan for you; No matter how many times you have fallen or been hurt........ 

Today is Your Independence Day!

There is no place you can fall that is too far that God's loving arms cannot reach you.
There is no addiction so strong that the power of Jesus cannot destroy it!
There is no sin so great that the blood that was shed on Calvary does not forgive.
There is no hurt so deep that God cannot heal and restore you!

Rise Up and take your place in Equality as a part of the Body of Christ!

Allow God to meet you where you are and Heal You; Love You; Reveal Himself to You!

It doesn't matter what has happened to you.
TODAY IS YOUR INDEPENDENCE DAY!

Wake up each morning and drift to sleep every night knowing that the price for your Independence has already been paid on Calvary's Cross.

Take hold of that Hope, that Victory, and Live in it.

No matter who you are or where you have been, there is freedom through Jesus.
His salvation is for you!

If you feel like you have been held back by anything:
sin
abuse
addiction
complacency
guilt
shame
Shake off those burdens and claim your Independence today!

Through the Love, Mercy, Grace, Redemption, and Hope that is shown to us from our father God through His Son Jesus, every day is our Independence Day!

Live today in Freedom!

It really is Your Independence Day!

Always Remember:
God Loves You!
God Created You!
God Accepts You!

Until next time,

SavedByGrace

Martina McBride - Independence Day (Live) Repost