A New Chapter.

The city of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia has been my home for almost five years. As the Bible instructs us in Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NASB):

"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven-"

I thoroughly enjoyed my season in Philadelphia. I am grateful to God for many blessings He bestowed upon me:

Friendships, valuable life's lessons, spiritual growth and maturity. Most importantly, this is where I really experienced God's unchanging Hand. Despite living in a foreign land, I always had a roof above my head, food on my table, clothes on my back, God's protection, God's provision and God's providence. On many occasions where I could have found myself in a pit, God intervened and showered me with Fresh Manna from Heaven. Manna is defined in the dictionary as :

" food miraculously provided, spiritual nourishment of divine origin, something of value that a person receives unexpectedly."

Yes, Miracles still happen and I have been the recipient of many. As I am getting ready to close a chapter of my life in Philadelphia, I am counting of the faithfulness of the "Miracle-Wonder-Working" God to carry me over. Our God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is the one who will walk with me as I relocate back home to Canada.
Life will take us trough different changes. Some might even be unexpected and difficult but I encourage you to be opened during the process. While times of transition can be scary because of the fear of the unknown or leaving the familiar, we should always remember that God is immutable. He is constant in His Love for you. Therefore, He will be with you to help you navigate through periods of uncertainties. He is the God of your past, present and future. He is the Alpha and the Omega. Some doors may close, others open or be in a limbo stage but God does not change. He reminds us himself in Malachi 3:6 (NLT):

"I am the LORD, and I do not change"

What a wonderful promise! I am holding it close to my heart and looking forward to a new beginning while I continue to be in awe of God's amazing plans for all of us.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we worship you today for who you are. We magnify and bless your Holy Name! You are immutable! You are incredible !You are amazing! We thank you Lord for your constant love and faithfulness towards us as we experience periods of transitions. Our circumstances and surroundings may change but we know that your unchanging Hand is stretched towards us in every season that you have ordained in our lives as Isaiah 59:1 proclaims: "Listen! The Lord's arm is not too weak to save you, nor His ear too deaf to hear you call." Help us, Jesus to firmly believe in these promises when change comes knocking at our doors. In Jesus' Name! Amen!

May your life be a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God !

Abi

Uprooting the Weeds!

" Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43: 18-19 (NIV)

Happy Monday! I hope everyone is off to a good start. I know, I am. Over the weekend, I had a "rewind" episode, playing in my head. My mind took me back to some events that occurred last year. I recalled how the actions of one individual led to the demise of my job. It was not only hard to swallow at the time because of the financial troubles it created but I also found myself hating this particular individual with a passion. Soon my emotions of pain, hurt and betrayal yielded to more than I could bargain for .Slowly but surely, I was filling my mind, my heart and my soul with weeds. Those weeds were anger, bitterness, resentment, hatred and unforgiveness. Those were unattractive, undesirable and troublesome feelings that I allow to grow wild where they are not supposed to thrive: My heart. My heart should be a sanctuary for God, a temple for His Holy Spirit. It simply happened because I kept dwelling on the past. I could not let go of the painful memories because it became an unhealthy way of coping. I found myself quickly in the prison of my past and it was very difficult to enjoy my life. How could I have any hope for the future to get better if my present appeared bleak.
It was not long before I felt convicted by the Holy Spirit to shake myself loose of the past hurts, past pains and past betrayals because these weeds were killing me softly. It was indeed time to do what God said in
Colossians 3:8 (NRS)

"But now you must get rid of all such things—anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth." and Colossians 3:13 (NRS) "Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." 

You might be thinking to yourself that : "All of this is easily said than done". I completely agree with you but no matter how much you find it difficult, it is totally worth trying. By making the decision to forgive, you are also shedding pounds of unwanted burdens. You are not doing the person who offended you a favor. In fact, you are setting yourself free. Yes, like others have mentioned it before, Forgiveness is really for you.

If we are hurting now as the result of another person's actions, we can reclaim the power we unknowingly handed them by forgiving them. In addition, we should no longer rehearse our past but only use it as a testament of "lessons learned". Rather, we should embrace our present and move on. As we do that, God's healing process can take place and restore our broken hearts. However, we must first commit to uproot the weeds today and heed the words of St. Paul in Philippians 3:13 (NLT)

" No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead."

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, we are tired of holding on to our past hurts. Forgive us our trespasses as we learn to forgive those who have offended us. As we promise to let go of our painful past, we believe that you will do a new thing in our lives. We thank you Lord for the promises of Peace, Healing, Deliverance and Restoration that are given to everyone who chooses to cast their anxiety on You because You care (1 peter 5:7). In Jesus' Name. Amen!

May your life be a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God !

Abi

An Attitude of Gratitude.

"Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5 :18 (NLT)

I am sure you previously heard the following cliche: "your attitude determines your altitude". Today, I am taking the liberty of modifying it a little bit by saying : "An attitude of gratitude will determine our altitude". Altitudes are the milestones we want to reach, the dreams we want to accomplish, the goals we want to achieve. Along the way, we are faced with the reality that such heights are not attained without overcoming obstacles. Many who are now able to stand at the summit of the mountain of Success and Achievement will tell you that they first needed to go through the valley of despair, disappointment and discouragement. Our perfect example is Our Lord Jesus Christ. He did not allow the pains of the Cross and Golgotha from preventing Him to grasp the Glory of the Resurrection. I not only admire Jesus' total obedience to our Heavenly Father but I am also learning other facets of His personality. Jesus' attitude did not stink! Let me correct it for the purists out there: Jesus' attitude was above reproach. He never complained about dying for ungrateful sinners or having to do it all by Himself. He did not have a " Why Me? " attitude. Rather, He remained in a posture of humility and wore a " Thank God" attitude. Jesus knew that because of His sacrifice, everyone who would accept Him and call upon His Name, would  be saved and receive eternal life. So, He was thankful.

You see, I can use few pointers myself from Jesus' life. I woke up this morning with a phone call  and some email that really upset me. The news were discouraging. All I wanted to do was to crawl in my bed and lament all day.However,something inside of me encouraged me to see the " glass half-full" rather than "half-empty". I believe that it is the Holy spirit who is constantly teaching me to renew my mind and change my attitude.  We must realize that our enemy ,satan ,will always send us some distractions in order for us to fail. Always remember that the devil can see where God is taking us. He knows that God has a great future and plans  for  us (Jeremiah 29: 11) and that is why he will do everything in his capacity to block or destroy our destiny. We can either fall for his tricks or change our attitude towards the problem we face. I don't know what has been troubling you lately? Maybe it does not seem as if you are making some progress. Maybe, you think that life has been unfair to you and you will never make it. Be comforted because God says in

Jeremiah 32: 27:

"I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?" (NIV)

Absolutely NOT! God can transform our circumstances instantly according to his timing and Will. While, we are waiting,we should keep on pressing. We should  count our blessings and adopt an Attitude of Gratitude.

I started a " Gratitude journal" where I write 5 things that happened during the day and that I am grateful for. This simple but yet powerful exercise allows me to keep my attitude in check and to recognize that God is in control and the last time I checked Jesus is still seated on the Throne,at the right hand of the Father. So who cares what the world would bring tome today ? I am thankful that God woke me up this morning, that's enough for me to praise Him. Hallelujah! What are you grateful for today, every day? Write it down!

Prayer: Dear Holy Spirit, please teach and show us how to be thankful regardless if things are good or bad. Empower us to have the mind of Christ,which will allow us to conquer every situation we face no matter the difficulty. We thank God that He cares and sees us even in the midst of our struggles. He will not give us more than we can bear and will provide a way out for us when it becomes unbearable (1 Corinthians 10:13). Help us, Lord Jesus, to keep running for the prize of the higher calling that is found in you alone. In Jesus' Name. Amen!

May your life be a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God !

Abi

2012 : I am coming Back!

Happy New Year 2012! I pray that God will perfect everything which concerns you in 2012: Health, Family, Relationships and Finances. I was one of those who could not wait to kiss 2011 good bye. I was eagerly waiting for the new year to get here. Excitement was building up as I looked at the clock ticking. You may wonder what was the hype all about. Every year, I would usually just go through the motions and write my resolutions. It would not take long before I gave up on my commitments and return to my old habits. I have been doing the same routine for as long as I can remember. However, I made a conscious decision that some things would need to change in 2012 because I was so determined to not repeat the same mistakes I made in 2011. In addition to writing my goals, I have also added four ingredients on my plate: Determination, Discipline, Dedication and Devotion. I believe these will be the keys that will transform my setbacks into comebacks. I thank God for giving me a clear vision, which allows me to understand the purpose in my pains. Indeed, I went through in 2011 in order to come through and come back. The trials were not meant to destroy me but they were used by God to brew a revolt within me that shouts: "Enough is enough! I am coming back in 2012." I have jotted down few points to explain how I intend to accomplish just that.

In fact, if  you feel the same way I do, You can come back in 2012 by being:

- Determined:  We should have a firmness of purpose and  make the resolution to put God first in our lives. We  must seek Him first and acknowledge Him in everything we do so that God can direct our paths. Therefore, We must commit to read the Bible daily, to pray without ceasing, to seek God's face through worship and to spend time alone with God so that we can hear His voice.

- Disciplined: We have to exercise self-control and train ourselves to comply to the promises we made to God and ourselves. This will be achieved by setting Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-framed (S.M.A.R.T) goals and apply them in every area of our lives: Spirituality, Career, Business, Health.

- Dedicated: We must be wholly committed to our dreams. If God has put a desire in our hearts, We should follow a specific action plan in order to see them materialize. It is no longer enough to talk about it or  pray about it but Now is the time to get up and just do it! We have to  forsake and renounce procrastination, laziness and slothfulness forever. The Bible says: "Faith without works is dead."

- Devoted: We should become zealous in our love for God, our family, friends and ourselves. We must shun negativity and pessimism in all its forms from our lives. We should engage in activities that will not only nurture our relationship with Jesus Christ but will also create health of the body, mind, soul and spirit. Furthermore, it is very important to practice the discipline of speaking positively, seeing the glass half-full rather than half-empty, turning a failure into a learning opportunity.

I am up for the challenge and It is my prayer and hope that you will join me. When you do, I am 100 % positive and persuaded that God :

" is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us." Ephesians 3: 20 (NIV).

Yes, I guarantee you that God will bless us in 2012 beyond our wild imaginations but we must also do our part. This is not just some wishful and positive thinking but it is a formula that has been tested and true as King Solomon says in Proverbs 30: 5 :

"Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him."

As you step out of your comfort zone and walk by faith throughout the year, I am encouraging you with my "Marching orders for 2012" : to live passionately for Jesus Christ, to laugh out loud and to get back up when I fall down.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we consecrate this year 2012 into your hands. Have your way in us. Please give us the courage, the strength and the ability to be determined, disciplined, dedicated and devoted to keep the promises we make to You and to ourselves. May the goals we want to achieve in 2012 be aligned to your divine Will. May you open the doors that need to be opened and close any door that needs to be closed. May your unmerited favor rest upon us as we are always mindful to give you thanks, glory, honor and praise. In Jesus' Name. Amen!

May your life be a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God !

Abi