I am NOT thankful

Well, it’s about that time of the year again, Thanksgiving. We are a few days before this great festivity and I personally have a lot to be thankful for. We all should. While many do not have shelter or food, I thank God that I do. Many will be in a hospital bed instead of being in their own beds this holiday season. Many families will be mourning the loss of a friend or family member. I tell you, with everything going on in this world, we seriously do not know if we will be returning home after a day at work or school. Lord be with us! I am thankful for a wonderful family, great friends and a loving church family. And, the list goes on, but today I want to focus on the one thing that I am NOT thankful for. Yes, I said it! I’m going to talk about it. There is one thing that has been bothering me and I want to talk about it. I know this can be deemed as being quote unquote “ungrateful” if that’s the case, then so be it!

                                                                    Photo Credit: Annetta Bosakova

I am NOT thankful for loss of time due to FEAR. I mean who is? No one, right? It is said that fear kills your mind, your heart and your imagination. Fear makes you waste time. Yes, many may say that time is not wasted, that there is always something to learn during those “idle times” but sometimes, you’ve gotten all of the preparation you will need, you just have to put the pedal to the metal and simply move! It is said that the majority of the dreamers are at the grave. Those who aspired to be someone or something in life and just never got to do anything, why? Mainly, because of fear. They thought they had more time, they thought they could stall a little longer, they wasted their time, they allowed fear to overtake their mind, hearts and imagination. I am not thankful for fear because it has robbed so many people from becoming their very best!

As we are approaching the last couple of weeks of this year, understand that you have the control to allow or disallow fear manage your life.

I thank God that I am beginning to understand fear a little bit more now and I am starting to kick its butt. I’ve been able to accomplish great things in 2014 that otherwise would have kept me from achieving it if fear would have taken a front seat.

When you stand up to fear, you stand up to defeat. Do not do yourself a disservice by putting up with fear. When you harbor fear, excuses take up residency in your life. And when you have excuses to rely on, things such as: I am too shy, I don’t know if that will work out, he or she does it better than me, I don’t know, we’ll see, I don’t have the resources or connections….” become part of your vocabulary. You see how easy it is to get entangled with this monster called fear? It sweeps you off of your feet and you begin to believe what it says about you. It’s time to stand up to this bully called fear and say: I will allow it NO more!

It’s time to live the life that God has intended for you to live. You must live it in absolute freedom because the plans He has for you are great and will require faith from your part. You must trust in the fact that He has called you to greatness for such a time as this.  This is your time and the time is now! Do not put a cap on what you can do for His glory! Be thankful for your skills, gifts and talents but do not be thankful for the words that the enemy whispers in your ear because those words are pure lies. He is the father of all lies, the bible says. He whispers words of doubt, failures and comparisons. He whispers FEAR. Reject those words in the name of Jesus and receive the words that God shouts in your heart, words such as: Yes, you can! All things are possible and I am with you!

I challenge you today to act. Thinking will never overcome fear, action will. Let this be your declaration today: I will not allow fear to rob me from another day. I will walk in faith and not in fear. I will accomplish everything that God has said that I will do, in Jesus Name. Amen!

I AM NOT THANKFUL FOR FEAR.

Be Encouraged, Be Blessed!

Landy Perez-Feliciano ♥

 

But.. what if?

Have you ever wanted something really bad and did everything the way you were supposed to; I mean you crossed all of your T’s and dotted all of your I’s, and nothing?  Have you thought about how you would feel or react if things simply didn’t go as planned? I often think about it, especially in this walk of faith that day to day we endure. Life is a journey with many peaks and valleys, highs and lows, good and bad. How do we maintain a steady and balanced state of mind when things simply do not go our way, when prayers are not answered, when we don’t receive what we want but receive what we did not expect? Let’s talk about the many “But.. what if’s” that surprises and confronts us. What should our reaction be?

But.. what if I’ve been praying day in and day out for a specific request and God doesn’t answer or simply “delays” his answer? How am I going to react? Will I stop praying because I didn’t get my answer when I wanted or how I wanted it? Have you thought about that?

But.. what if I’ve been declaring God’s healing power over my sick body and I do not receive healing? Am I going to stop declaring? Will I stop believing that God heals because He didn’t do it for me? Have you thought about that?

But.. what if my faith is SO big and I am believing for something BIG and I am wrapped around God’s promises to the point that my faith is not shaken. I know that I know that I know it will come to pass (next week). And it’s a month later and everything is still the same. Will my faith be shaken? Will I still believe and know that I know that it will happen? Or will I just give up? Have you thought about that?

 

And there are countless examples that I’m sure you can think of as well. The point here is this: What will your attitude be if what you are asking, declaring, and confessing with faith turns out to a big “but what if” moment in your life? It appears out of the blue to disrupt your smooth connection of faith and prayer with your Heavenly Father.  I am the first one to believe in prayer, having faith, in declaring God’s promises and all of those beautiful biblical affirmations. But it is important to understand that our prayers are channeled to the throne of God through this question: Is it God’s perfect will? Sometimes we will receive exactly what we want and ask for, because it was God’s perfect will at that particular moment. Many times, we will have to wait, wait, and wait a little longer to receive our blessing. The word of God says in Proverbs 10:22 that “The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it”. When God blesses, there will be no sorrow, confusion, bitterness, none of that. God’s blessings bring peace, love and joy. So many times, it is in God’s perfect will to answer that request but it's simply  not the right time. And that is why we must learn how to not only have faith but also, wait in the Lord for His perfect timing. You may be in God’s perfect will but be out of His perfect timing and that can be damaging to our lives.

I would like to propose that in this New Year, only 9 days new we really think about this. This is the time where we are still pretty fresh and excited about the New Year and we are on cloud 9 with our resolutions. Our prayer lives is in full speed and we believe for anything and everything good to happen to us. And I am all for that! I’m actually one of those people! Lol But let’s take a moment to think about the “But.. what if’s” . This will relieve us from many heart breaks, frustration and even anger toward life-and God.

When the “But.. what if’s” pop up, simply say THANK YOU! Thank you Lord because things didn’t happen the way I expected, they happened exactly the way you wanted them to happen. Then what? Then keep doing what you were doing. Your biggest mistake will be to simply give up. Continue praying, continue believing, and continue giving thanks because if it didn’t happen when you wanted, it will happen God wants. His timing is impeccable – and His clock is always on point, literally! If He didn’t answer a prayer when you wanted, do not give up!! He’s working on something bigger and even better.. Just wait a little longer! Do not get caught up in the moment; open your eyes to God's vision. And you will see what God sees, for we only see the  puzzle piece but He sees the whole picture.

Be Encouraged, Be Blessed!

Landy Perez-Feliciano ♥

 

 

Photo Credit: www.photographymojo.com