Tag: Times of trouble

I do think that this title, has got to be the strangest one, that has come to me, so far.

It’s a picture of how things can be very wrong and confusing, and it can be difficult to understand why this is so???

If someone speaks to you, with polite words, that have an appearance of friendliness about them, but then their actions, end up causing you pain, that you just can’t quite put your finger on, that then causes you to question, “What is going on?”
It’s this very wrong scenario, that this picture is trying to shine a light, onto.

If someone is wearing velvet boxing gloves, then the technique they could use, could be, “see and feel the velvet of these gloves, isn’t it a beautiful thing to behold.” Then, when you are looking at one glove, they jab you, with the other one, whilst still telling, and showing you, the quality of the velvet boxing gloves.

If you are ever caught up in a situation, where it could be that, velvet boxing gloves, are be used against you, then that is a very serious situation, and not one to be laughed about.

How can we tell, if we are being caught out, by someone using, velvet boxing gloves?

Psalm 34:8
Taste and see that the Lord is good;
    blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

From the above scripture, we can see that, if something is good, then it should have a good taste to it. (I have tasted and seen, that The Lord Our God, is indeed, Good!)
If we are being left with a bitter after taste with something, then, is it because, there is something wrong?

Another scripture is coming to my mind.

Matthew 7:15-17
¹⁵ “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. ¹⁶ By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

The theme of this scripture is the very similar to the taste and see one. By their fruit, you will recognise them.

If we are ever caught in a situation where someone is using velvet boxing gloves against us, then the first step is going to be to recognise, that something is wrong.
If we can recognise it, then we can possibly have a better understanding about our situation, and then act in a better way.
We may even possibly need to seek help and advice from someone else, who is Outside of the situation?
Our Lord God, will always be my first port of call, for seeking help, for the best route to take. He is able to lead and guide all who ask for His help.

Lord God Almighty,
If anyone is caught up in a situation where they are facing velvet boxing gloves, then please, help them to see things, as they actually are.
Please, lead and guide them, for the actions that they should take.
Please, put into their mind, a person or an organisation that they can contact, that can be a help to them.
Lead them out of darkness, and into the light.
Amen.

Surviving can be coming through something, that can then leave us bound, in some way.

In order to Thrive, do we have a need to be set free?
For the shackles to be removed and taken away?
To be truly free as we are meant to be, so that we can then Thrive!

Would you like to Thrive, instead of just survive?

Our Lord God Almighty IS The One, who can help ALL, to Thrive!

Would you like to have a connection to The One who can set you free, so that you can then Thrive?
If yes, then you could say the prayer below.

God, if you truly are real, then please be real to me.
I ask for you to come into my heart and life.
I ask for you to lead and guide me in the way that is better for me to go.
I ask that you would help me to place before you, all that causes me pain and upset.
I ask that you will help me to know where to go and what to do with it, so that instead of just surviving, that I could start thriving.
I say a Thank You, to You, in the Hope, that You will answer my prayer.
Amen.

If you have just said the above prayer for the first time, then I would like to say, “Welcome to Our Lord God’s family!
Our Lord God Is Able to lead and guide us all, in the way, that is better for us all to go.”

I would also recommend that you tell someone that you have asked for The Lord God Almighty, to be real to you, that you have asked for Him to come into your heart and life. (There can be a conformational power, as you do this.)

If you have come to this point through any kind of struggles, then,
I pray that Our Lord God Will meet your needs.
I pray that He will lead and guide you, in the way that you should go.
I pray that you will hear His voice, and have the confidence to follow His prompting.
Amen.

________________________

How do you pray when you feel that you just can’t do anything?

I see a Vessel – God is there to heal and make us stronger.

The Calling Abyss – We can say “NO” to the calling abyss

More Post about Struggles

This post, in many ways follows on from a past post, Is your Greatest Trophy, just a Foundation Stone?

Quick summary of that post…
The thing where you think that you are the Best at. Will you take it out of the trophy cabinet, where pride could possibly be a snare to you?
Will you offer it up to Our Lord, and be willing to step onto it, in order to step into the new, that is waiting for you to take hold of?
For the full picture, please consider having a read of the post, Is your Greatest Trophy, just a Foundation Stone?

As well as our Greatest Trophy, my eyes have recently been opened up to our greatest defeat. The things that we would rather not look at. The things that we would rather hide away, and not have to deal with.

Sometimes, not looking at our greatest defeat, can be the right course of action to take, if we are lead to do so, by Our Lord God.
If He says to us, “This is not to be dealt with today, but perhaps another time.” Then we should listen to Him.
The enemy may want to pull us down by trying to make us dwell on the wrong things, but Our Lord, leads and guides us, to the things that will bring us a freedom, as we walk through them, at the right time, with Him.

But, if Our Lord God, brings up our greatest defeat, the thing that we would rather run and hide from, will we be willing to place it before, Our Lord God Almighty, and simply ask, “Please, Help me with this Lord! Help to know what to do and where to go with this!”

It maybe a difficult and painful thing to do, but Our Loving Heavenly Father is for us, and wants to see us set free, and made stronger, by working through our greatest defeat, with His help and guidance.
He longs to see us free from the pain and anguish, that Our greatest defeat would try to hold over us.

If we can place our greatest defeat before Our Loving Heavenly Father, will we then find ourselves in a place where we can exchange our shame for Joy?
Will He then change our mourning to dancing?
Will He take our Ugly Rock, and reshape it into an exquisite sculpture, that we will then want to show to all, declaring,
“Look at what The Lord has done for me, He has turned my mourning to dancing!
He has taken my shame away, and given me peace and joy, in it’s place.”

I know that this can be a reality, as I have gone through this process.
I was given a picture, and then I had to walk through the process of the picture. For me, this then lead to a mini series of posts (numbering 5), that I was very happy, that most people just wouldn’t see. (The doors maybe open, but not many people come in to read. 🙂 )
Time has gone on since then, and I can now talk to people about what happened. I can now even point you to the mini series of posts and say, have a read of them if you wish to.
I can now look at it, and say, “This is just something that happened, and it’s not my fault. It is just something that happened and is now just part of my past.”

The first in the series is:
Will you work with Our Lord, to shape, your Ugly Rock?

If you just want the big reveal, then chapter 4 is:
When the wheels fell off.

Our Lord God, IS in the business of setting captives free!
Of turning mourning into dancing!
Of exchanging shame for Joy!

So if Our Lord God asks for your greatest defeat, will you offer it up to Him?
Will you offer it up, to The One who Can set you free?

John 10:7-11
⁷ Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. ⁸ All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. ⁹ I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. ¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

¹¹ “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

When the darkness comes, it can be all consuming, Seek the Light.
When the darkness comes, it can keep you on a constant replay of things gone and done wrong. Seek the Light.
When the darkness comes, it can accuse you of all that you have done wrong, trying to tie you up in knots of shame. Seek the Light.
When the darkness comes, it can try to convince you to just run and hide, to just bury your head in the sand and wait for it to pass over. Seek the Light!

The Light is Our Lord God Almighty!
He does not come to condemn, but to set Free, those who are held captive in chains.
He is LOVE, and He Loves ALL. Even those who have gone astray and made mistakes.
He comes to make Good, that which has gone wrong.

Stepping into the light can be a painful thing to do.
Push past the pain. Press on into the Light.
As you do, you will start to see the truth, and The Truth will set you Free.
Who The Son sets free, will be free indeed.

John 10:10-11

¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

¹¹ “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

Heavenly Father,
Please help all who are struggling.
Help them to seek Your Light.
Open eyes and ears, so that Your Light is easy to find.
Help them to step into Your Light, which sets captives free.
Please let Your Love and Peace fill everything.
Our Loving Heavenly Father.
Amen.

I had a conversation with a friend just recently, the details of which I’m not going to talk about, but I got the feeling that my friend was feeling guilty about something that was actually quite small.
Although it didn’t seem small to my friend.

As I have thought about this, the the thought of, “The enemy comes to condemn, but the Lord brings a word of rebuke,” has come to my mind.

On the outside, a word of rebuke or condemnation may look exactly the same, but who is bringing the word can make all the difference.

The source of a thought or word is oh soooo important.
A word of rebuke from Our Lord God should lead to repentance and a clean heart. But a word from the enemy can bring condemnation, only to try and pull us down and leave us in a wretched state of, “how could I”, or “what am I doing”, and the like.

So can we recognise the difference, and act accordingly to any given word?

If it is a word of rebuke from Our Lord God, then can we bring …….. to our Father in heaven in repentance and seek His wisdom for how to deal with it. It will work out for our best if can bring all things to our Loving Heavenly Father.

If it is a word of condemnation from the enemy, then can we recognise it as such?
If we can recognise it, then we should be rebuking the thought and sending it away in the power of Our Lord God.
Praising Our Lord God will have the effect of sending the enemy away. So try to praise the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, if you are feeling that you are being pulled down.

If we respond well to a word of condemnation from the enemy, then that which the enemy brought for bad, can be turned for good!

I’m starting to think that the short version of this post should be, bring all things to your Loving Heavenly Father. He will know the best way to deal with all things. 🙂

Can we echo the words of Psalm 139

²³ Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
²⁴ See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

If Our Lord God tells us not to worry about something, then can we let it go?
If He tells us to work on something, then will we follow His leading?

My Lord God, who is above all and knows all!
Help me to know Your voice, so that I can follow You and Your ways that much better.
If the enemy is trying to pull me down, then help me to recognise this, so that I can then turn to You and send the enemy away, praising You instead of allowing the enemy to pull me down.
For You are the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
There is no one who is greater than You!!!
My Lord God.
Amen.

I wrote the above a day or so ago, but I do think that there is a part 2…… So Part 2 is below.

The enemy comes to condemn, but The Lord God brings a word of rebuke that leads to holiness.

If you are hearing words that say you are no good, useless or the like, then KNOW that these are words from the enemy!!!
They should be dealt with accordingly.
Rebuke, refuse and refute them.

Instead fill yourself with the words of what Your Loving Heavenly Father says to you.
His words to you are, “I LOVE YOU!!!
I sent my Son into the world for you.
He shed His blood on the cross to redeem you, so that you could have life in abundance.”

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the 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.

You matter so much to God, that He sent his Son to Save you.
You matter so much to God, that He has a plan for you, a plan to prosper you.

If you are going through tough times, then that might be difficult to see, but it is the truth. Our God is there to help us at ALL times, and all the more so when times are tough.

Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Remember the Footprints in the Sand poem.
If you haven’t read it, then consider having a read of the poem. (A Web search for “footprints in the sand” should easily find a copy.)

Listen to some GOOD praise music.
If you would like to have some up to date Christian music to praise to, then a YouTube search for “Bethel church Victory album” should give you some life giving music to listen to.

I implore you to hear the Good words that Your Loving Heavenly Father is speaking to you, and to then put them into action.

Father,
Please help all who are struggling.
Help them to hear Your Life Giving words to them.
Help them to know that they ARE LOVED by You.
Help them to know that they matter and are important.
Lead and guide them in the way that is best for them to go.
Give them the courage to follow Your ways.
Our Loving Heavenly Father.
Amen.

Below is a list of some previous posts about struggles.
If God prompts you (if one just stands out to you) then please do consider reading that one. (or two or ….)

I see a Vessel
When you are at your weakest, God is there to build you up and make you stronger.

The Calling Abyss
When facing depression, you do have a choice to say no to it.

How Do You Pray when you feel you just can’t do anything?
Title says it all.

“I’ll Raise a Hallelujah” is a battle cry
Sing Praises to God when times are hard.

Cut away the veil of What If’s
Try to focus on what matters, rather than what doesn’t.

Accept, Repent and Forgive, There is Power Here!
Ever felt like a caged animal? Three little words could be a release.

Accept, Repent and Forgive (a practical example)
Putting into practise the previous post of Accept, Repent and Forgive.

A Diamond in the Dirt is still a Diamond
Let Jesus Shine in you.

I could so easily list all the post about struggles here, but instead I’ll finish with a link to the archive page of Posts about Struggles.

This is a picture that came to me one Sunday morning at church, when things didn’t go as smoothly as people wanted them to.

A man was running a race and making good progress.
The trickster was about though.
He had placed a lot of glue and then oil on the track.
When the runner got to the glue on the track, the runners progress slowed. It was suddenly hard going.
The runner had half a thought to stop and rest, but he was in and race.
So he just kept on going, and made it past the glue, where the going was good again.
The runner soon came up to the section of track with oil on it.
Whooooh, almost fell over there. Skating about a bit now??? Thought the runner. He just about managed to maintain his balance and not fall over.
Progress was slowed again. He just had to concentrate on not loosing his balance as he made his way through the oil.
His pace was slowed, but the runner kept his eyes on the finish line, and kept moving in the right direction. In time, he made it past the oiled section of the track, and could then run unhindered yet again.
The trickster’s attempts to stop the runner had failed.

When life throws difficulties our way, can we end up feeling like the runner making his way through the glue and oil?

If you feel like you are in the glue, then just keep moving.
Don’t give the glue time to set!
If you can keep moving, then just keep doing that, heading in the right direction.
If you do stop for too long, then the glue could set, and to start moving again could take that much more effort. You might have to chisel your way out of the glue, or leave your shoes behind.
It’s best to just keep moving.
If you need to take a rest then head for a rest station, where you can rest in safety for a while, but do your best to not stop in the glue.

If you feel as if you are skating about on the oil, then try to keep your balance.
Keep the finishing line in your sights, so you know which direction to head into.
Do your best to remain up on your feet. Your progress might be slower than you’d like, but just keep heading in the right direction.
If you do fall over it could be fun and games to regain your feet (it could be hard, but not impossible).
So do all you can to keep your balance and keep moving to the finish line.

Those who can keep their focus will have a better chance to make it through the glue and oil and onto the finishing line, where the prize awaits for those who complete the race.

2 Timothy 4:7-8

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Father,
Help us all go keep our eyes on you at all times, so we can keep heading in the right direction.
Please give us the extra strength we we need, when we feel that we are going through the glue.
Please give us a good sense balance if we feel as though we are skating on the oil.
Thank you that You are with us and will never leave us, as You promised us.
You are our Lord God Almighty.
Amen.

In my last post I effectively wrote about how we can try to help, but instead just shake things up a bit.
In this weeks post I will try to offer a picture/advice about how to help someone who is in need but doesn’t know how to, or doesn’t want to ask for help.
I have been in this position, so hopefully I can share something that might help somebody.

I think that a good place to start is a picture.
The thought that came to me was one of those videos that can be seen online, where an animal has caught itself in something and can’t get free.
Then the brave hero comes to set it free.

The animal I’m thinking of is a deer with it’s antlers caught in a fence made of a netting material.
The deer is wanting to break free, but it is helplessly caught in the fence and is becoming very distressed.

When the hero approaches the deer, he does so slowly and calmly.
The deer may well not understand a word the hero says, but he can still use his voice in a calm way in order to try to put the deer at ease, as much as he can.

There is so much to be said about this first bit alone.

Some of my thoughts are, the hero needs to have a calm way about them.
If they are frustrated, then they could very easily bring that frustration into a already tense situation, and then just add fuel to the fire.
If we have frustrations with us, then endeavour to leave those frustrations outside of our helping the deer.
If we can’t do that, then leave the task for someone who can.

As you approach the deer, how you act communicates to the deer how calm you are.
If you approach in a brash manner, then you are only going to scare it that much more. It’s the same with people.
Sometimes humour can be used to lighten the situation but sometimes it can be adding fuel to a fire. Use wisdom (Fathers wisdom is best) if you use humour.

The calmness that is shown to the deer needs to be genuine.
If you are tense or there is a falseness in your calm then it is likely to be passed onto the deer.
I have seen a program where dogs are behaving badly. Sometimes the reason for this is because the owner is tense and the dog picks up on this and then acts badly.
The same principle could occur when coming close to someone who is hurting, so do try to have a peace that is genuine.
A peace from God, would be good to have.

If you dwell on this first part with Father, then He could possibly speak the thing you need to know, for where you are, better than anything I can type here.

As the Hero gets closer to the deer, he then tries to make a connection with the deer.
He just tries to pat the deer and reassure it, that he means no harm.
He doesn’t just try to cut the netting free.
Making a connection with people is so important.
A friend is more likely to be listened to rather than a stranger who just waltzes in and tries to do what is needed.
The stranger who just waltzes in is only likely to be hurt with one of those antlers and do no good in the process of trying to help.

As the hero gets closer to the head, he looks closely at what the situation is before making any cuts to the netting. He is not in a rush to cut the netting away.
Try to use all your senses to appraise what is going on.
Ears that are open to Father’s words and prompts are going to be your best asset.

Sometimes a second person comes along to help the hero.

You don’t have to do it all on your own!
Ask others for help and support if you need it.

Not everyone needs to be in the trenches with you though.
One or a few people in the thick of things could help. But beware, too many cooks could spoil the brew.

Many people could pray for you, the deer, the situation or wherever Father leads you/them to pray, but not everyone needs to know everything.
Use wisdom with what is shared.
Don’t feel that everyone needs to know everything just so that they can pray better. Father knows it all already.
Nobody likes the thought that they are the talk of the town.
If you think prayer is needed (which it probably is) then ask what can be shared, if it is appropriate to do so.

At some point the deer is wrestled to the ground and subdued in order to set it free.
No, I’m not going to suggest you wrestle the hurt/needy one to the ground.
However, at some point you might need to say or do something that is uncomfortable.
Use wisdom (Fathers wisdom, again, is best).
Try to ensure that love is at the core of your actions and not frustration.
Sometimes, things do just need to be said or done.
Expect to feel some resistance when doing this and try to not take offence from the others reactions.

When the deer is finally set free it just runs off into the distance.
Sometimes, when you have helped someone, they might just walk or run away.

Do your best to not take offense at this.
Instead be happy and joyful that you have helped someone in need.
Father sees your actions and if you have helped someone, then He will be pleased with you.
Father being pleased with us should be enough.

Hopefully the one you help will be able to say thank you, but don’t expect it. A thank you might come in time or it might not.
Look to Father to ask if you have done ok, and then let what He says to you be enough.

I think that is the end of me drawing lessons from the picture.
Father could add just what you need to hear if you will seek Him for His wisdom.

I would like to add a couple more things.

When you are in times of trouble, the one thing you need most is just simply a good friend.
A good friend who prayed with me and invited me to dinner on a regular basis was a great help to me when I was in need.

In my time of need the one thing I didn’t want was to be someone’s project.
This might be why I was not so inclined to share.
Although at the time I didn’t know (mostly) what to share or ask for in terms of help.

Whatever you do, try to let love be your driving force.
If you are trying to help from any other driving force then you might or might not be a help. If love is your main driving force, then hopefully Father will be guiding your steps.

If Father is leading and guiding you, then expect a break through.
For with Fathers help, all things are possible.