Tag: Faith inspired

Posted on in Encouragement

Go Back and Say Thank You!

In the story of the 10 lepers, we are told that Jesus healed all 10 from leprosy, but only one returned to say thank you.

In the book of Luke, chapter 17, the Message version, it reads as follows: “11-13 It happened that as he made his way toward Jerusalem, he crossed over the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten men, all lepers, met him. They kept their distance but raised their voices, calling out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”14-16Taking a good look at them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.”They went, and while still on their way, became clean. One of them, when he realized that he was healed, turned around and came back, shouting his gratitude, glorifying God. He kneeled at Jesus’ feet, so grateful. He couldn’t thank him enough—and he was a Samaritan.17-19Jesus said, “Were not ten healed? Where are the nine? Can none be found to come back and give glory to God except this outsider?” Then he said to him, “Get up. On your way. Your faith has healed and saved you.

When you take the time to reflect over situations you’ve been in where do you stand? Are you part of the 9 or did you go back and say “thank You”? As the world continues to see so much sickness, disease, death, chaos, devastation and violence have you thanked God that you are still here? If you are reading this, you have survived all that 2020 threw at you and you have survived a good part of 2021. Have you remembered to say “Thank You”?

“Be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life union with Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (GNT)

I want to encourage you, that if you have not taken the time to tell God “Thank You, that it’s not too late to go back and tell Him.

Heavenly Father, we are coming back to say Thank You. Thank You for waking us up today. Thank You for protecting us and providing for us. Thank You for Your unconditional Love. Thank You for Your Grace and Your Mercy. Thank You for all the things You have done and especially for those things where we failed to show gratitude. Father, please forgive us for not coming back to say “Thank You”. In Jesus’ name, Amen!

He is My Rock!

Have you ever felt like you just wanted to crawl under a rock and hide? I know that is just a figure of speech, but have you ever felt that way? You just feel like you need to be by yourself or you need to take a break from all the noises and distractions going on around you. Do you have some decisions to make and you just want to spend time alone with God in order to seek His guidance? Perhaps you are dealing with some issues that are hard to put into words and/or share with others and you just want to hide under a rock. Do you just need to rest and get closer to the Rock who saves you?

I must admit I have felt like crawling under a rock many times. Even during the pandemic and time of quarantining at home, there were times I just felt like too much was going on and I needed to crawl under a rock! I found myself trying to focus on too much and being distracted all at the same time. Thankfully, when I feel this way, I know where to find my Rock in order to steal away for awhile. God is my Rock. He is the One that I can take all my troubles to and lay them down at the foot of the cross. He is the One I can go to when I am feeling overwhelmed with everything that concerns me. He is the One I ask to take captive of my thoughts and to calm my spirit. He is my Rock!

Here are a few verses out of Psalms that you can pray whenever you may feel overwhelmed or feel like you may want to crawl under a rock:

“In you, LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame. In your righteousness, rescue me and deliver me; turn your ear to me and save me. Be my rock of refuge to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of those who are evil and cruel. For you have been my hope. Sovereign LORD, my confidence since my youth.” Psalm 71:1-5 NIV

“I love you, LORD, you are my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my savior, my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.” Psalm 18:1-2 NLT

“He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will never be shaken.” Psalm 64:2 NLT

“But the LORD is my fortress; my God is the mighty rock where I hide.” Psalm 94:22 NLT

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Father, I thank You for being my Rock. I thank You for being my place of shelter and refuge. I thank You for being the Rock that gives me peace, hope, joy and love. I thank You for the strength I find in You to keep going. You are my Rock. In Jesus’ name, amen!

A View Versus A Vision!

 

The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” (Genesis 13:14-17)

We do not see what God sees.  We see what is currently in front of us and God sees our future, our destiny and our purpose. We have a view but God has a vision.  A view is the actual extent or range of your vision.  Vision is the power of anticipating that which may come to be! In the scripture above, Abram had a view of the land in front of him. The vision was in the length and breadth of all the land and the offspring to come.  The view to Abram was that he and his wife, Sarai, were too old to have children.  The vision was the offspring that would be too numerous to count!

Our view is so much different from God’s vision.  We see our current situation and God sees what will come to pass.

The view is the struggle; the vision is the victory!

The view is the cancer; the vision is the healing!

The view is the unemployment; the vision is the new business!

The view is living from paycheck to paycheck; the vision is the harvest!

The view is the  problem; the vision is the praise!

Abram was a man of great faith.  He made a decision to trust and believe in God’s promises to him.  As he walked through the length and breadth of the land, he experienced some setbacks and some situations, but he kept on walking in faith.   Are you focusing on your current view right now? Or has God given you a vision?  Continue walking in faith.  God has plans to prosper you and give you hope for your future!

Don’t give up!

Don’t let the view distract you!

The vision is so much better!

To the persecutors of Jesus, the view was death on the Cross.  The vision was eternal life and salvation!

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Dear Lord, I am thankful that you have better things in store for me than I what I can see right now. I am thankful that Your vision will bring me through this current view that I have.  I am leaning and trusting on You, Dear Father, as I take this walk of faith to get to where You would have me to be!  In Jesus’ name, I say Amen!

Didn’t You Hear Me?

The past few weeks have been very challenging to say the least.  It seems like I get over one hurdle and before I can get one foot on the ground, another hurdle is before me!  Today, when I got home from work I had to get to my prayer closet to have one of those heart to heart conversations with God.  Our conversation went like this :

Me:  Lord, what is going on?  Why do I feel like I am in several battles at one time?  Why do I feel that I am under attack?  Why do I feel such a heaviness is on me?

God: My child, you feel this way because you have not laid your burdens down. You have not trusted me to fight your battles!

Me:  Yes, I did turn all of this over to You!  Didn’t you hear my prayers the other night when I was crying out to You?  I laid it all down, every challenge, every struggle, every disappointment.  I gave it all to You.  You must have heard me!

God: Yes, my child, I most certainly did hear you crying out to me.

Me: Well, what’s the problem?

God: My child, as soon as you finished your prayer and said in the name of Jesus, you went right back to worrying about everything you prayed about!

Me: Did I do that?

God: Yes, you did do that! In fact, you did not give me a chance to let you know that I got this! I am God all by myself! I can fight all of your battles.  I can lift every burden!  I can wipe away all of your tears.  I can mend your broken heart.  My child, I can guide you safely through every storm!

Me:  Wow!  I didn’t even realize I picked my burdens back up.  Forgive me?

God: Of course, my child, I forgive you!  But now I need you to do something for me.

Me:  What would that be?

God: Trust me!  I got this!

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Dear Lord, I am trusting You with everything!  (The good and the not so good.) I am trusting You to work everything out.  I release all of my worries and struggles to You.  I release every distraction and stumbling block to You. I  put all of my trust and confidence in You to fight all of my battles! I declare peace in every area of my life!   In Jesus’ name I thankfully say, Amen!

Posted on in Encouragement

5 Steps to Your Restoration!

worship_b_20-05-2012In a previous post I shared that God had placed three words on my heart for this year. Those words are  Release, Restore and Rejoice.  I have already written a post on Release entitled “Let It Go!” (See Broken-2b-Restored.com/Release)

Today’s post will focus on the word Restore!

When I looked up the definition of restore, I found several meanings.  Restore can mean to re-establish; or to put back; or it can mean to bring back into existence.  The definition that stood out the most to me was this one:  “to bring back to a former, more desirable condition.”

Are there areas in your life in need of restoring?  Have you been faced with an unexpected set back that nearly knocked you off your feet?  Are you holding on to some past hurts and disappointments that are hindering you from moving forward?  Have you been left with a broken heart and don’t feel that you can trust to be in love or to really be loved again?  In the midst of your setbacks, past hurts and disappointments, God can restore you and He will restore you!   Only He can restore you to a better place, a better position and a better condition than you were before!

Here are 5 Steps to your restoration:

1. Confess your brokenness! – God already knows what you are going through.  It’s just good spiritual therapy for you to get it out in the open with Him and to seek His forgiveness. Talking to God will strengthen your relationship with Him.   Isaiah 55: 6 says, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near!”

2. Trust God – In your time of restoration, take direction from Proverbs 3:5 which tells you to trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  You may not understand why you have experienced your brokenness and you may not understand how He is  restoring you.  You just have to trust Him to work it out for your good and then you will be able to give God  the glory that is due to Him!

3. Forgive – Forgive yourself and be ready to forgive others.  Sometimes we think it is hard to forgive others, but I have also struggled with forgiving myself.  As I analyze the areas of my own brokenness, I have to admit, that in some cases, I was just as responsible as the ones who wronged me. I made some choices that led me down a path of being hurt and mistreated. There were times when I could have walked away before experiencing complete brokenness, but I chose to stay in the mess that I was in.  I have had to learn how to forgive myself.  As I am maturing in my relationship with Christ, I am also learning to be more forgiving of others.  It is not always easy to do but that’s when I talk to God and when I have to trust God.  I know I am being restored, when God will have me pray for the person who has wronged me.  Matthew 6:12 asks God to forgive us the wrongs we have done, and allow us to forgive the wrongs that others have done to us.

4. Stay prayerful – In your time of restoration, continue to pray.  In fact, pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17)! In your process of being healed, delivered, and/or restored, continue to pray.  Being restored is a process; it won’t happen over night.  When you are in the Potter’s  hands, He is molding you into a better and stronger vessel than you were before you experienced your brokenness.  As you go through the process, cast all your cares and worries on Him because He truly does care for you. (1 Peter 5:7)

5. Be thankful – when you can praise God in the midst of your brokenness and in the process of being restored, you are being obedient to God’s word.  1 Thessalonians 5:18 says that you are to give thanks in everything; for that is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you!  Remember that trouble does not last always.  So this should tell you that even in “your process of going through the process”, your outcome will be one of victory!  Just knowing you will be restored, no matter the place your are in right now, is reason enough to give Him thanks!

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My Heavenly Father, thank You for all that You have done for me and all that You are doing for me.  Even in my brokenness, I know that I already have complete healing and restoration because of You.  I thank You for Your Word that I can meditate on day and night.  I thank You for Your continued blessings as I go through the process of being restored.  Dear Lord, thank You for making me better and stronger than I was before.  In Jesus’ precious and mighty name, Amen!

It’s As Simple As That!

Preview

God is great; God is good!

Let us thank Him for our food!

Bow our heads and all be fed.

Give us Lord, our daily bread!

This is a simple prayer I was taught as a child to bless my food before eating.  This is the same simple prayer, 30 some years, later I taught my three young children.  A few evenings ago, I was blessed to see how this simple prayer had impacted my 17-year-old son’s life.

When my son, Isaiah, came home from basketball practice the other night he was tired and hungry (or better yet, hungry and tired!)  It was still some time before dinner, so he made himself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for a snack.  When he sat down to eat his sandwich, he bowed his head and blessed his sandwich.  As simple as that, he said a prayer over his snack!  I know that his prayers to bless his food have changed since I taught him the simple prayer cited above. The point is that he is still giving God thanks for his food, even if it was just a snack!  It touched my heart to see him bow his head and give thanks for something that most of us would take for granted, because it was of course, just a small snack before dinner.

1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 tells us to “pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  This means in all you do or in all you may be going through, that you are to be in constant prayer and thankfulness.  It does not matter whether it is a snack or a full course meal.  It does not matter whether you are in a good place in your life or in a not so good place.  It does not matter whether all your bills are paid or whether they are all past due.  What matters is that you are giving God thanks for His current and future provisions to you.  What also matters is that you are taking all of our requests and needs to Him in prayer and being thankful as you wait for God to move in your circumstances.  It’s as simple as that!

My son was praying and giving God thanks for a snack.  He had an expectation that God was going to give him more to eat later on that evening.  However,  he gave God thanks for what he had available to him at that time as he patiently waited to receive the bigger blessing later on!  It’s as simple as that!

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Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for always giving me the opportunity to come to you in prayer.  I am thankful that I can make my requests known to You and You are an ever present help in my life.  I thank You for the small blessings as well as the bigger blessings.  I thank You for all You have done for me!  In the name of Jesus, Amen!

It’s as simple as that!

Posted on in Encouragement

I Am Still Here!

photo (2)  Today, November 2nd, is the two-year anniversary of Broken-2b-Restored.com!  I am grateful to all who have continued to read my posts and thankful for when you have shared them with others.  I appreciate every comment and every word of encouragement! I am thankful for all of the new followers of my blog! God blessed me to publish my first post two years ago on my birthday and I am praying for His continued inspiration as I move forward!  I am thankful to my Lord and Savior, because I know He has richly blessed my life.

Today, I am celebrating me and the 52 years He has given me! I am so glad He woke me up this morning!  Even with some hurts and disappointments I have had to endure, I am still joyful!  I still have a great expectancy as to where God is leading me!  Because of His love for me I am still here! Thank You, Jesus!

Psalm 18

1 I love you, Lord, my strength. 2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Posted on in Encouragement, Faith, Inspirational, Prayers, Spiritual

Release (Let Go)

In the beginning of 2013, I wrote three words down in one of my journals.  They were Release, Restore and Rejoice!  Although I try to stay away from making New Year’s resolutions,  I guess I could consider these words as my resolutions for this year.  As we enter into the last few months of 2013, God has reminded me of these words in order for me to reflect on where I am now.  Today’s post is on the word Release and upcoming posts will tie in Restore and Rejoice!

“Release” means to escape from confinement or to be set free!  It also means to allow something to move or to flow freely.  Ask yourself this question, what or who are you holding on to that is not allowing you to move freely in your relationship with God?   What is restricting you from moving forward? Notice that I asked what are “you” holding on to!

Sometimes we find ourselves trapped  because we continue to hold on to what is familiar or what feels comfortable in our lives.   Our mindset is not to change because we feel everything is okay just as it is.   We hold on to crutches such as past hurts, failures, disappointments, and rejections.   Sometimes we think just because we messed up in the past that we can’t do any better or that we are not deserving of anything better. We, unfortunately, allow ourselves to think that just because we have failed  a few times in this life, that we will never get it right. Or we allow ourselves to think that just because it is comfortable or familiar to us, that we do not need a change.  So, what do we do?  We continue to do the same things and we continue to hold onto the past as if there is no hope for a better outcome or a better future.

God does not want us to hold on to past hurts and failures.  He does not want us to feel restricted or confined.   It is time to release and let go!  There are times we will not forgive ourselves even though God has already forgiven us!  It is time to forgive ourselves, forgive others and move on!  It is time to walk freely in the blessings God has for us! God wants us to lean and depend on Him. He wants us to draw closer to Him; to feel His love and feel His presence in our lives.  How can we do this if we continue to hold on to things that weigh us down or hold us back?  Jeremiah 29:11-13 says:

“For I know the thoughts and plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, ” plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with your whole heart.”

God has a future filled with His promises just waiting for you.  Are you hindering yourself from receiving all of your blessings?  Are you holding onto some things you should have released a long time ago?  Release and turn them over to God. Psalm 55:22 says “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” 

As we get ready to close out another year in just a few short months, think about what it is you need to release.  Spend time in prayer and meditate on God’s word.  Are there some  issues and fears that you don’t need to take over into another year with you?  Fears, doubts, hesitations and past failures will restrict you from moving forward.  It’s time to release and let go!

crutches

PRAYER

Dear Lord, grant me discernment and guide me as I let go of those things that are restricting me in my walk with You.  Set me free from things that I am holding on to that are preventing me from moving forward.   I am releasing the crutches of failure, hurt, negativity and disappointment.  I am leaning, depending and trusting on You. Lord, help me to forgive myself. Thank You, Lord, for Your grace and mercy in my life; thank You for forgiving me.  Today, I am releasing and letting go. I am moving forward!  In Jesus’ name, Amen!

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So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed! (John 8:36)

Where Did The Time Go?

Just a few months ago I was eagerly anticipating my youngest daughter’s graduation from high school.  When that day and that moment arrived,  my heart was filled with mixed emotions.  I was a proud mother to see her stand before her graduating class and deliver the commencement address; but I also knew it was time to let her go.  I kept asking God where did the time go?  It seems like You just gave her to me and now. . .

And now, here  we are already in September and she has completed 2 weeks in college.  Where did the time go? I now have two in college and one beginning  his Senior year in high school.   I have watched my three children grow from babies into young adults and I can’t help but to marvel as to how the time has flown by.

It seems like it was just yesterday when I was taking them to  daycare and kindergarten.  I must admit the thought of my children not being home every night has been tough at times.  Over the years I have gotten comfortable in knowing they were safe and secure in their rooms and close by if I needed to look in on them.  Now,  I’m watching my son go out in the evenings to hang out with his friends knowing that within less than a year he will also be on his way to college.  There is so much going on in the world these days, that it’s only natural you want to protect your loved ones at all times, especially your children.  You want to keep them close by as if nothing could happen to them at home, school,  church or in places we call familiar.

The Sunday afternoon I had to leave Cecily at a college 4 hours from home, I had my emotions in check (or at least I thought I did!) I was so busy running around trying to make sure she had everything she needed before we left, that I did not have much time to think about getting emotional.  Just two years before I had taken her sister to school and figured I know how this works now; I can handle it! I’m a big girl! I’ve got this all under control!

Well, I’m sure you can guess what happened. As soon as it came time to give our hugs goodbye, I realized this was it. This was the moment of letting go!   Where did the 18 years go?  When I saw Cecily hugging her brother and sister goodbye, the tears just started to flow.  I could not stop them!  As I hugged her and the tears continued to flow, I said another prayer over my child and her new journey in life.  I gave thanks to the Lord for blessing me with her.  I  told Him that I was trusting Him even more to keep watch over her.

 You see, I needed this reassurance for me more so than I needed it for Cecily. For the past 18 years I’ve known this day would come. I’ve known that my assignment was to raise Cecily as best I could and to encourage her to have her own relationship with God.  He tells us in Isaiah 55 (NIV)

8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

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Cecily Elise Matthews, although I am marveling at how fast the time has flown by, I know you are in God’s hands and you will continue to flourish.  He has a greater purpose and plan for you and it will be fulfilled.  Because of this, I am ok with the letting go and allowing you to grow and prosper according to His divine will. You are a blessing to me and I am blessed because you call me mommy!

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The link below is a post I had the opportunity to write when my oldest daughter graduated from high school 2 years ago. The words “Take Courage” still resonate within me today.  Thanks, to my sister Change Agents, Renee and Roslyn! Love you both!

http://doubleportioninspiration.blogspot.com/2011/06/take-courage.html

Posted on in Encouragement, Faith, Inspirational, Prayers, Spiritual

The Lord’s Special Day!

Don't give up

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of going to dinner with a dear friend and her 8-year-old daughter, Layla.  Before our food came to the table, I asked Layla if she would say the blessing.  Without hesitation she gave me this big grin and asked us to bow our heads.  It was if she knew I was going to ask her to pray.   We bowed our heads and Layla proceeded to thank the Lord for His special day.  She said it was a great day and everything was good because it was His special day.  You could hear the joy in Layla’s voice telling God about His special day.  I can’t tell you how many times she said to the Lord that it was His special day but as you can see it was enough for me to write about it. ( And, yes, she did eventually bless the food!)

The Lord gives us a new day every morning when He so graciously wakes us up.  With each day, He gives us another chance to correct the wrongs we have done and seek forgiveness. Everyday, He gives us another chance to let our family and friends know that we love them.   He gives us another chance to spend time in His presence and to worship Him.  For the last couple of weeks, I have looked at each day differently.   I knew before that particular evening that I am not promised each new day, but something hit deep inside me when Layla kept saying it was the Lord’s special day.  It was not just another Monday.  It was not either of our birthdays.  The restaurant where we were dining was not at all spectacular.  But, as Layla so eloquently spoke it, it was the Lord’s special day!  We were blessed to be enjoying each other’s company.  We were blessed to be able to talk about the Lord. And most importantly, we were blessed because it was the Lord’s special day.

The Bible says

Genesis 1:5  And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

Lamentations 2:22-23  It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.  They are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness.

Psalm 19:1-2 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night uttereth knowledge.

Genesis 2:1-3 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.  And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all his work which He made. And God blessed the seventh day, sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.

Psalm 118:24  This is the day which the Lord hath made: we will rejoice and be glad in it.

The Lord blesses us with His special day every morning! We need to embrace each day with joy and gratefulness.  Mondays should be no different from Fridays simply because He creates each day.  I am thankful each day that He wakes me up no matter what comes my way.  Each day is His special day and He gives me another opportunity each time He wakes me up in the morning.

At the end of our meal, Layla, asked to pray again!  She still had more she wanted to speak to the Lord about His special day. This time she prayed for her parents, her grandparents and all of her friends, and she prayed for me.   It was obvious Layla had a good day and although it was about to come to an end, she was excited about the next day.  She was excited about the next day because she knew it was going to be the Lord’s special day!