Wednesday, April 14, 2010

SHOUT!

April 7th—Shout!

“It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him.”
Joshua 6:5 NKJV

Are you fighting a battle you’re afraid you won’t win? Who are you depending on: God or yourself? When faced with the combined armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, God told His people Israel, “The battle is not yours, but God’s (2 Ch. 20:15 NIV). And God’s never lost a battle yet! He told Joshua, “I have delivered Jericho into your hands” (Jos. 6:2 NIV). Notice, He didn’t say, “I will deliver” or “I might deliver.” No, He said, “I have delivered Jericho into your hands!” Israel already had the victory, now they were being called to act on it. But the question remained, how? God’s answer was “Shout.” Joshua told the Israelites, “When you hear…the trumpets…give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and [you] will go…straight in” (Jos. 6:5 NIV). Now no rational person would expect a shout, no matter how loud, to bring down the walls of a big city. But this was no ordinary shout; it was a shout of faith based on a promise God had made. Even though victory looked impossible, when Israel shouted God responded by bringing down the walls and opening the doors to the Promised Land. When you’re looking for an open door and all you can see is a brick wall, the last thing you feel like doing is shouting “victory,” right? But you need to do it regardless, because: (1) the shout of praise leads to victory; (2) it puts your faith “on the record;” (3) it confounds the enemy and robs him of two of his greatest weapons: doubt and discouragement; (4) obedience, even when you don’t understand, always brings results. So shout—for the victory is yours!


WOW! Was this message something I could have read months ago....maybe even more than a year ago. Being the wanderer I was....wandering away from God......something HAD to make me wake up. It no longer mattered who I made happy because I was miserable. My insides were torn, my mind was not in the right place and Lord knows that my heart was so broken. But lucky for me, I have learned to love myself again and see myself as God sees me. I was created by God. Although I wandered away from him, he was always there. He brought me back to him. And even though it was a rough road, none of that matters now. I will live in the moment, never regret the past and always look for the best for my future. No matter who loves me, or doesn't love me, God always will. It doesn't matter who forgives me or who doesn't forgive me, God always will. It doesn't matter who believes me or who doesn't believe me, God knows the truth. And, God is the ONLY one who matters.

What I am thankful for today:
Faith
Hope
Laughter
my children
my friends
my store
positive thoughts
The Secret
the power of prayer
God
the sunshine
ice cream
a long walk with Makenna today
time at the park today
my health
happiness
love

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