Seasons Designed for Healing and Purpose

 Every season is designed to grow and teach us. Distractions will try to distort your focus and so will your emotions. Be reminded of and focused on this fact: God's timing is EVERYTHING! In those tough moments you may be tempted to turn away from God in anger, but I'm telling you, don't do it! Instead, turn to Him and ask Him what can be learned in this season which is what I do at the beginning of any storm I encounter. [Some of what I am sharing is new, some is a repeat, i.e. reminder]. Praise Him instead and decide with finality that you will keep your eyes on Jesus. Someday, He will show you the bigger picture and you will understand the "why's" behind some of the things you've gone through or are currently going through. Grace will always find you and you'll see worthwhile things grow in the dirt of imperfection. You're going to cry and even complain or get angry at times, and know that's normal, it's okay! Just don't camp out in those emotions or you become captive to your emotions instead of being captivated by your Captain and the one who knows the direction of your ship. He hasn't brought you this far to leave you there, so stay focused and don't give up, knowing that there's too much at stake to fall for sugarcoated advice or short-lived trends to get you through the storm. 

Happiness is an inside job. Your strength ultimately comes from God. It's in the union of a soul with God that strength, new life, and spiritual power come. Bread sustains the body but we cannot live by bread alone......Matthew 4:4 - " Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." So feast my friends, build yourselves up!! To try to do the will of God is the meat and support of true living. Soul starvation comes from failing to spend that time with God. The world talks about bodies that are undernourished, but often forget about the soul, your spirit. Strength and peace come from partaking of spiritual food and spending time in the company of fellow believers. You've got to feed the fire inside of you to be able to withstand the flames all around you trying to consume you. 

When you keep feeding and developing, you will discover that the best possible source of emotional stability is God Himself. You will find that dependence on His perfect justice, forgiveness, and love is healthy and that it WILL work where nothing else will..............alcohol, shopping,overeating or whatever you've used as a crutch to fill the empty spots only God can fill. I got freed of trying to fill holes or numb what I didn't want to feel through the use of alcohol and shopping. No earthly thing will give you the strength and joy that Jesus can. It has been my experience that, when all human resources appear to have failed, there is always One there to share my joy, to steer me down the right path, and to confide in when no one else will do. He is the One who will NEVER leave you or forsake you! While my well-being and happiness can be added to, or diminished by human efforts, only God can provide the loving and nurturing that I depend on for my daily emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual well-being/health. 

Lastly, I will close with a beautiful prayer. Today, God, I commit to You that I want to walk out Your Word in such a way that it is clear that I desire to take heed to your guidance and instruction. Your laws and guidance are not to harm me or make me feel bound, but to provide me with liberty, boundaries, and protection. You allow me to be free from guilt, shame, and abandonment. Through my faithfulness and obedience, I desire to receive the fullness of joy and hope for my life by the power of the Holy Spirit. Thank you so much for the gift of salvation and correction so that I may have peace and everlasting life.