Don’t get Distracted!

I cannot tell you how ecstatic I am to share this post with you today. Carrie Stremming has been a huge part of my life and my heart since she was a young girl. It is mind boggling to me that she is a mother of teenage boys now! Carrie is also a cancer survivor and maybe in the future we can get her to share some of the great things God did for her as He walked her through that trial. Be blessed today as she shares a true story and…Don’t get Distracted!

It was a typical busy Sunday in December for me. I hurriedly got ready for church, bright and early, as I learned my older son had gotten sick in the night. While figuring out how to help him, ironing pants for my other son, curling my hair, taking the dog out and chugging down a stiff cup of coffee, I miraculously made it to church in time to help out in Sunday School. Shew!

Church was awesome as usual, but in true honesty, I couldn’t tell you a word that was spoken. Not one. My mind was on my sick kid, another sick family member, lunch ideas, and how I was going to fit in everything in one day, including a massive pile of laundry to fold. Confession is good for the soul!

I hurried home after church to check on my family, and then again hopped back in the car to make gingerbread houses with my nieces and nephew. My sister is married to an airline pilot for Delta Airlines, and needed a little help going to this activity with their four awesome kids. I was pretty proud of myself jumping from task to task, while maintaining a crazy schedule.

We eventually got the huge Gingerbread houses to their destination, along with mounds of candy and icing to decorate them. It was a sight to see! So many people, live music, homemade gingerbread cookies and hot cocoa; hey, even Santa was walking around, it was pretty awesome!

All of a sudden, my niece, in her sweet, little voice, looked up at me and said, “Aunt Carrie don’t get distracted.” I instantly felt a pinch in my spirit. What sweet Lucy had said was something I really needed to hear about 7:30 a.m. that morning. Wake up! I was so distracted with my surroundings that I was not appreciating what was right in front of me: Lucy! After laughing and refocusing on her master creation, we went on to have a day that I will remember for many years to come, and I hope she feels the same way.

2 Corinthians 12:9, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (NIV)

This scripture spoke to me after the craziness of Sunday. I really try to be all things to all people, but what good am I if my body is there, but my mind is not? I don’t feel the need to boast about this weakness, but I do acknowledge that I suffer with a distraction disorder especially during the holidays.

This is Lucy McMurray with her masterpiece of a Gingerbread House. She said a gingerbread man crashed on the roof. Ha ha!

I am praying through this holiday season that I can be present and mindful wherever I am. Mindful of God and His presence, mindful of my job and co-workers, mindful of my family and our precious time together, and mindful enough to listen when the spirit says – DON’T GET DISTRACTED! Thank you Lucy!

Carrie Stremming is a mom of two teenage boys, and married to the man of her dreams. She has worked as a paralegal for over eighteen years, and also volunteers at a local center for cancer patients. Carrie says, “As a six year survivor of breast cancer, I try and give back to my church and community all the love that was given to me. Loving life and thanking God for each day!”

Many begin to think about fasting in December, preparing for corporate and personal fasts in January! Have you got a copy of The Daniel Fast Devotional? Head on over to Amazon, it’s available in Kindle form or paperback!

When Giving Thanks Isn’t Easy

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.” Colossians 3:15 ESV.

There are other life pressures that make being thankful just plain hard. Nothing seems to be going right, finances are tight, the job is unsteady at best, the world is in chaos and relationships are shaky.

Be thankful? For what?

When I feel like it?
When everything is going well?
When I am happy, upbeat and positive?
When my kids like me, my boss praises me and my wife still smiles when I enter the room?

Yes, be thankful when everything is going well.

And when it is not.

The Bible doesn’t tell us to thank God only when things are going perfect, it actually says, “In everything, give thanks.” In everything!

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus..” Philippians 4:6-7 NLT

This scripture seems to sum it all up so well.

Worry about nothing, pray about everything. Thank Him for what He has done.

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If we believe the Word then look at that scripture again: Don’t worry, pray about everything, tell Him what you need and THANK HIM for what He has done.

And if you do that? Then you will experience God’s peace! The Bible says that peace is greater than anything we can understand! Will your circumstance change? Maybe not, but His peace will guard your heart and your mind as you live in Christ Jesus.

Wow.

We hear so much in this present world, when someone has a beautiful family, a job promotion, a new house, a new baby, and on and on and on: “You are so blessed.” And it is true, we never take lightly the good things in this life, we give God the praise in all things!

But does that mean that the one who is not experiencing good things, prosperity or over-abundance is NOT blessed of God?

I dare say, “No.”

These things, if not of our own doing, are just part of living in this sinful world. Bad things happen to good people but in all things, in everything, God is faithful and sovereign. He never changes and He is always fair and just.

So, on this National Day of Thanks, remember you might be sitting beside someone who is struggling, who has forgotten that they still have much to be thankful for, someone who is finding it isn’t easy to Give Thanks…this year.

Maybe they have lost a loved one and the chair beside them is empty. Possibly they are separated from their spouse or about to lose their job. Perhaps they are just fearful of world events.

Whatever the reason that Giving Thanks Isn’t Easy would you try to be an encouragement to them? Speak words of love and affirmation, remember that you have been in their shoes at some point and that God hasn’t forgotten them.

And if you, the reader, right now, are the one going through dark trials, can I tell you Jesus Loves You? He knows right where you are and loves you more than the sparrows that He takes care of every day. He will never, never leave you and never forsake you. There is comfort in His presence, in giving your needs and cares to Him and letting Him be your Burden Bearer.

He’s already paid the price for YOU and one day soon He will come back for YOU and take you to be with Him.

So even though Giving Thanks Isn’t Easy, there is power in praise and strength will come back to you. Remember what God has done in the past and thank Him. Then don’t forget to praise Him for what He is GOING TO DO!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving Day with your family and friends. Jesus will be rhere too.

3 Steps to Help Doubt and Fear Disappear

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#FiveMinuteFriday! Even though the word prompt is not in my title, 3 Steps to Help Doubt and Fear Disappear, it’s all over the 3 Steps! Be blessed and share away to encourage someone else.

It’s there. It looms in the background. Lurking, stalking, threatening to come back at any moment. You know it, you try to ignore it but it creeps, it saunters and before you know it you’re caught.

Doubt.

Uncertainty
Indecision
Hesitation
Suspicion
Confusion

And the ultimate…

Fear.

It’s the enemy’s business to keep us in this constant state: never progressing, never growing, never being all that God wants us to be in the Kingdom. It is not the will of God!

Take these 3 Steps to Help Doubt and Fear Disappear and apply them to your situation:

Praise and Quote Scripture

You may think it sounds elementary but friend, the Word of God is the most powerful weapon on the planet! Take scriptures such as this one, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.'” Psalms 91:1, 2 NIV. (Actually the entire chapter of Psalm 91 is AMAZING.)

How is this for power: “See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to wreak havoc; no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you…” Isaiah 54:16-17.

Speak it, claim it, put your name in it!

Praise and Stay faithful.

It’s so important when you are spiritually discouraged or confused to keep praying, keep going to church, keep studying the Word of God. In other words, keep doing what you know to be right. Know where your strength comes from and remind yourself, encourage yourself in the Lord! Yes, there’s scripture for that! “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.…” Jude 1:20, 21.

Praise and Keep trusting God

Yes, it’s that simple but sometimes seems so difficult in the midst of the trial. Keep trusting God. Depend on Him, talk to Him, rely on Him and remind yourself of His promises. Remind yourself you are His child and every promise in that book belongs to you as a child of the King. He has never failed and He never will.

His timing may not be your timing but it is the RIGHT TIMING for you!

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“But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me.” Psalms 12:5-6.

You notice how PRAISE proceeds each step? Praise is power. There is an old song we used to sing in church that goes,

“When the praises go up, the glory comes down.

Where sin used to dwell, grace now abounds.

There’s healing and hope, and love all around,

When the praises go up, the glory comes down.”

When you surrender, when you give Him glory, when you raise your hands to heaven and become a funnel for the power of God to come in and strengthen you, watch out! Your praise gets God’s attention, giving Him honor and acknowledging you recognize HE is all powerful and HE is in control, it is much easier to face difficult situations. Problems seem to fade as you allow the God of the universe to take over.

You can trust this God of ours.

Be encouraged and blessed as you praise God each and every day then those doubts and fears will disappear in Jesus’ name.

Don’t get Distracted!

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