God Calling.....

Today, I am simply posting something I read this morning in a little book called "God Calling".

First of all, after some conversations that I had this week, let me be clear that I am talking about Jehovah God, whose son is Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus Christ, we can have a relationship with God. In this relationship He speaks to us....this I believe is a message from Him today to so many of us.......

"I am with you to guide you and help you..... Your petty fears are groundless. What of a man walking through a glorious glade who fretted because ahead there lay a river and he might not be able to cross it, when all the time, that river was spanned by a bridge? And what if that man had a Friend who knew the way-had planned it-and assured him that at no part of the journey would any unforeseen contingency arise, and that all was well? So leave your foolish fears, and follow Me, your Guide, and determinedly refuse to consider the problems of tomorrow. My message to you is, trust and wait. ~ God."

FREE from fear

Ok...this is a warning at the beginning of the blog..."Some language may not be suitable for some religious people, or the easily offended. Read at your own risk."

Here we go...Fear has pissed me off. Yes, you heard right. I

have seen it imprison people,paralyze them, rob them of joy, peace, hope....The Bible says in 2Tim 1:7 that "God does not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, and love and a sound mind!"

That means that fear is never from God...EVER! God gives us peace of mind...a sound mind.

Here is what has really pissed me off....again, I'm sorry for the language, but I just don't know of

another way to say it. Fear crept in gradually, quietly, underhandedly...invited some of it's friends to distract from it's real name. Let me tell you some friends of fear....they're actually very closely related, except sometimes you just don't realize how close.

Enemy #1 FRUSTRATION: Doesn't really sound like fear does it? Well it is. Frustration is fear

that all of your hopes, or efforts aren't going to pan out. What are you frustrated with? Who are

you frustrated with? Isn't is usually because you are "afraid" that situation isn't going to change or change quickly enough, so you are frustrated. So carefully decide, are you really frustrated, or actually has a little bit of "fear it's not going to work out, it's not going to change, it'll take too long" crept in?

Enemy #2 WORRY: Here's a definition for you..."worry" is a disquieted uneasiness of mind

(ding ding ding...1st clue), and anxious apprehension (ding ding ding...2nd clue) concerning an impending or anticipated situation; fretting about a foreboding misfortune or failure of yours or one you love. Come on disquieted uneasiness of mind?! Sounds like the opposite of a sound mind to me...must be "fear" that something negative is going to happen or something positive isn't going to happen.

Enemy #3 ANXIETY: Another definition for you..."anxiety" is abnormal, overwhelming

apprehension; anguished uncertainty and self doubt about ones ability to cope with the

situation, to the point of becoming distressed, distraught, panicky or tormented. Hmmm...that doesn't sound like peace of mind or a sound mind to me. Sounds more like "fear" of not being able to take it, fear of not being able to get through something or even fear of losing your mind.

Enemy #4 DOUBT: Did I just say doubt? Related to fear? Yes. Don't let doubt fool you. Fear is the exact opposite of Faith. When you doubt, you question whether the promise applies to you. You "fear" it's too good to be true. You "fear" the promise won't be kept. You "doubt" it.

You cannot walk in faith and in doubt. That is because doubt's father is fear.

I'm sure I could go on....but here's my point. I had NO idea I had let fear creep in. That is what makes me so mad, and why I'm bent on exposing that ugly devil. "God does not give us a spirit of fear". and "His perfect love casts out all fear". I

knew that...so had fear come in a very recognizable way, I would have had the "aha!" moment, and fought it. But...instead 2 Emergency room visits with Blood pressure at critical levels....194/114 was one of the lower BP....being put on Xanax...and then finding out I was having panic/anxiety attacks?! Since when? I've been through hell in my life...been through all sorts of things prior to my husband

dying, then his death, having to be a single mom, financial pressures, now raising two teenagers....but I've always given my cares and worries to God....or so I thought.

So when I realize what's happening...that's when I'm pissed off!! Definitely mad at fear, but also at myself for the inroads I opened up to fear. Another blog at another time I will go in depth about how guilt also opens the door to fear. Not spending enough time casting my cares on God, not spending enough time in His presence, not spending enough in the Word of God, which is the very way we build our faith and fight our battles.

I always "fear" being too long winded and losing you before the end...see how easily fear can slip

in...so let me rephrase that...I hope I don't lose you before the end. I've got something to say here and I hope it helps you!

Well, thank God, I knew and know that there is great power in the Word of God. If you don't know it, it is Powerful, and Living and is a weapon! I began declaring scriptures about Peace, and Healing, and Soundness of Mind! Fear was trying to torment me...Fear of Death was causing me to panic. I didn't even know what was happening.

Here's what I do know...that after dealing with these things for a month or so...I had been in

church all the time, and once I realized what was happening, I started asking and believing for God to free me. In one POWERFUL service, during an amazing time of worship, God healed me.

I'm determined to stay free, by standing on every word that God has regarding Peace, and soundess of mind. I'm also very aware now too look for the little things...stressing over things I shouldn't, worry, doubt, anxiety, frustration. I choose, Joy, Peace, Strength, Hope and Love!

HOPE comes from God. PEACE comes from God. JOY comes from God. Love comes from God. Strength comes from God. Soundness of Mind comes from God. All that I need comes from Him, and being with Him.

By the way...God works all things together for our Good! He healed me and changed me and while I thought it was a blood pressure issue, I have eliminated as much sodium as possible. That is apparently the one key I've been missing for years for being able to reduce calories and lose weight. So...with my new eating habits and lifestyle, I'm now on my way to places of victory I've never had before. Oh how I love God. If you let religious people, and religious rules keep you from a relationship with God, you are missing out on more than you know.

The giver of Hope, wants to give you HOPE that drowns out every fear. HOPE that keeps you looking forward with positive expectation, not dread. HOPE lets you know that it won't always be this way...it WILL get better...in fact The Best Is Yet To Come!!!

Don't let fear keep you in torment....enjoy the peace that Jesus paid for you to have. There is nothing like it! You cannot put a price on Peace!

Some verses for you...Philippians 4:7 that "The Peace of God, that defies all your reasoning and understanding, will stand guard around your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus!" In 1 Peter 5:7, God says to “cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” In Philippians 4:6 He says “Do not be anxious [do not worry] about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (and then trust that He'll take care of it). AND God will keep you in perfect peace when your mind is stayed on Him, because you trust in Him.