Salvation Strength

𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞… ⁣ ⁣ I asked my girlfriend   to do a photo shoot of me. ⁣ This may sound a little peculiar and weird to you if you’ve been following me and watch my LIVE Facebook videos but truth be told, I have never been comfortable in front of the camera.⁣ ⁣ 𝐈𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭, 𝐈 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐧.⁣ - 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 ⁣ If you were to ask my Mom to show you pictures of me growing up, you would be hard pressed to find one single photo of me smiling.⁣ ⁣ You see, I always struggled with a low self esteem and growing up I had severe acne - the type that strong medications like Accutane couldn’t even seem to cure.⁣.. 𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘪𝘵 I hated the way I looked in the mirror and pictures were just a constant reminder of how ugly I felt.⁣ ⁣ This ugliness and lack ...

I was simply reminded today that when we don't understand things or when we're always trying to seek answers or we're always trying to make sure that we're on the right path with God...⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ It's a sign that we are not at Peace or even Strong in our Faith ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ In times of frustration or need we often times want a sign or more understanding or perhaps even a direct answer to make sure that we're on the right track and that we're doing the things we're supposed to be doing.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Well, I had this revelation where instead of seeking understanding, instead of seeking answers, and instead of questioning whether or not I’m on the right path, 𝐈 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 𝘐𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵?⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Am I at peace with the future? ⁣⁣ Am I at peace with the present? ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ You see, I know that when I’m at a place of peace an...

I don't know if you're anything like me but all through my adult life I would do just enough to get outside of my discomfort and pain that I would be in and once I reached a level of happiness, triumph or success, I would then ease off the gas pedal a little bit, take a break and would tell myself, “Good job,” Instead of continuing to move forward with my progress. I would relax to the point that I would see myself sliding back down the Hill if you will and in some cases, starting all over again because I allowed myself to coast for too long. I have done this in relationships, my own weight loss, business and even in my spiritual walk with God.  It was like the only time I would get serious again was when I was in a tough spot in one or several of those areas in my life and I was suffering and in pain all over again.  I would be in " need " of money so it’s time to hit business hard again or I’m really lost in my spiritual walk so it’s time to reconnect with God… Man,...

 

Adversity can either bring us joy or distress. Every time something bad would occur in my life, I would quickly become the victim and find myself questioning God, "Why me?" "Why is this happening to me..." Which often lead down to darker moments, frustrations, and questions of... "Why do you hate me?" This morning I'm reminded to use setbacks and adversity as a way to draw closer to God and not further away by seeking comfort in the assurance that God only wants what's best for me. I may not always understand His plan or His method but I can at least find peace in every situation. However, if I allow myself to play the victim, I always find myself deeper in despair and depression, thus making poor decisions that only take me further down the path of destruction and even worse circumstances. Too often in my life, I would hold tightly onto something that God was telling me to get rid of. When I finally let go, I discovered something better as well as...

This morning had an unexpected realization.   Jeff posted on his Facebook wall a little video about revisiting your why's and how he would keep a notebook to keep him on track of why it's important for him to stay on track with his fitness goals.   That was a good reminder for me to do the same. I’ve been getting ahead of myself lately in the mornings and starting my day with “business” instead of starting each day in Scripture. This morning I got really carried away in my own workings and in my own doing and did not take the time I need to devote to myself.   I honestly found myself getting really busy with answering messages, making posts and getting pulled in several directions before grounding myself in God’s word. Unfortunately, for me, this process does not work for me.   In the long run, I find myself drifting further and further way from God when I do this and along with that comes a lot of anxiety, doubt and fear. I noticed this happening this morning as I w...