The Lord has been dealing with me to help people in overcoming their issues in life. One thing to realize when dealing with issues is the only person you can change is yourself, and that only with the help and leading of the Holy Spirit. We can pray for the people around us but we cannot change them. Years ago I prayed everyday with an elderly person who was my prayer partner. Everyday in prayer I noticed that she would complain and carry on about her relatives. It just didn't sound right, but I was very young and didn't know what to say. Everyday she would go on and on to the Lord about how bad they were, and their sins, and the terrible way they were living. And she pretty much said it the same way everyday. One day this elderly person told me that the Lord had revealed to her that in the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican (sinner) that God had revealed to her that she was the the Pharisee. Instantly my mind began to think of how everyday she had complained about how bad a sinner her family was and how much God needed to change them. I looked up the parable in the Bible and that is exactly how the pharisee prayed. He called the publican a sinner, and declared himself righteous with no need to change. He listed all his 'good works' as the reason for his righteousness and he told the God all about the sin of the publican. How many times do we ask God to change people around us and we forget that we also need to continue to grow in God.
You can move forward in life, here are three things that will help you accomplish that:
1. Realize that the only person you can change is yourself. If I spend 30 minute asking God to change someone else, shouldn't I spend at least an equal amount of time asking God to change me? Do each of us not have a need to change, to grow, to move forward? Are any of us perfect? None of us are perfect. The biggest lie of the enemy to slow down your forward movement in life is getting you focused on trying to change someone else. Your grown adult child knows every single imperfection in your life. Are they going to listen to you tell them their need for change when they know you haven't changed in the past 30 years yourself? The truth is when people around you see you change, it gives them hope, it makes an impression. Why? Because if you can change, then maybe their is hope that they can change. If you don't want God changing you, what makes you think any of your relatives want God to change them. Change is hard, so be the one willing to yield to change and you will create a hunger for change in the people around you. Many of you have no idea how much your spouse or your children really DO want to change, they have tried to change and failed. Show them by example how to yield to God and have a real change that is empowered by the Holy Spirit. You lead the way and others will follow!
2. Don't under estimate the power of your testimony!
Revelation 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto death.
Have you ever looked at one of your kids and said, "What did you say?" "What just came out of your mouth?" It is no different once we become adults. We have got to watch what comes out of our mouth because every word that we speak is our testimony. It takes more than the blood of the lamb to overcome the adversary, it also takes the word of our testimony and also that we do not love our lives unto death, so that we will obey God. Your testimony is powerful. But your testimony is more than just words. WE testify about what we know in our hearts. We must make sure that our hearts are right. When we have confessed the Lord Jesus as our Savior, but we still think God is holding something against us, we have to get to the root of the problem and gain the confidence inside that we are right with God. If we don't do this, our testimony is never going to give us the power to overcome the adversary. This is a big problem with many people that I counsel. They have lost confidence in their heart that God is for them, and they can't seem to regain it. We will talk about regaining this confidence in a later devotion.
3. If we want to move forward in life instead of being stuck in the same old rut the third thing we must do is value the Word of God. At whatever point you disobey the Word of God, you have disobeyed God. Whatever you neglect in the Word of God you have neglected from God.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
You can not separate God and the Bible. The WORD was GOD. At whatever point you reject the Word of God you reject God. At whatever point you excuse yourself from obeying the Word of God you have excused yourself from obeying God. God speaks to our hearts, but the primary way He speaks into our lives is through the Bible. We must be obedient to the Word of God. If we are not obedient to the Word of God than we are not obedient to God.
You can move forward in life. You don't have to be stuck in the same place, the same rut, the same situations forever. God has been dealing with me to walk along side of believers and help them move forward. Sometimes all you need is someone to walk through the valley with you that can help you find the path to greater heights. Feel free to call me at 270-250-4195. I would love to talk and pray with you about moving forward in life. Helping other people overcome the challenges they face has been my passion. If you live outside the United States, I don't have an international number, but contact me via email and maybe we can set up skype. God Bless. Patty McCann.
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