abundance

DON’T GIVE UP!

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KITTEN, FROG, CRANE
SONG: DON’T GIVE UP!

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!
Psalm 27:13-14

Don’t ever give up!!! It’s a choice YOU make, you know! Even if you can’t justify hanging on to God’s promises simply because it’s the right thing to do, do it for this reason…“There’s just no way I’m going to allow Satan to win!” As I look back over the years (many for me!), I see that Satan has tried to destroy me from the time I rolled out of the comfort of my mother’s womb. (I’m telling you…someday I’m going to write a book!) But I have just enough of my dad’s tenacity and my mom’s stubbornness to say…“No way, Devil! Get behind me, Satan!” Now if I’m totally honest, which I try to be, I will admit that there were times I was tempted to give up. I felt like the picture of that little kitten hanging on a rope with only one paw and one claw! But by the grace of God and drawing on His strength another picture flooded my mind. Probably you’ve seen this one too. It’s a picture of a frog in the mouth of a huge crane that quite apparently has plans to have him for breakfast. But with every ounce of strength within him, the frog manages to free his two front legs and is choking the crane with all of his might! The caption reads, of course, “Don’t Ever Give Up!!!”

Needless to say, just like that crane with the frog, Satan would love to have us for breakfast! The Bible plainly tells us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…” (John 10:10a)  Did you get that? The only reason Satan even comes around is to steal, kill and destroy…YOU!  It is his sole purpose on this earth. And you actually wonder why you are having problems?   But let me tell you, God didn’t have a thing to do with it! “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 1010b)  “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone…Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” (James 1:17) Our Father God never changes. He is always good! Neither does Satan ever change. He is always bad!

Well are we going to just hang on by our last claw for the rest of our lives? Absolutely, unequivocally, undisputedly, irrevocably not! But the one thing that determines our success or failure is this…We can NEVER GIVE UP! Galatians 6:9 says, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Don’t let Satan defeat you! He is not stronger than God, therefore he is not stronger than you, for God is in you in the presence of the Holy Spirit! Let me give you a few verses to hold on to. Speak them out loud. They will put a chokehold on Satan! And before you know it, just like that little frog, you’ll be jumping right out of those difficult circumstances. I’m personalizing the verses for you!

Lord, I will hold fast the confession of my hope
without wavering,
for You promised and You are faithful.
Hebrews 10:23

Lord, grant me, according to the riches of Your glory,
to be strengthened with might through Your Spirit
in the inner man.
Ephesians 3:16

Thank You that “No temptation has overtaken me
except what is common to mankind.
And You, God are faithful;
You will not let me be tempted beyond what I can bear.
But when I am tempted,
You will also provide a way out so that I can endure it.
I Corinthians 10:13

I thank You, Lord, that I am strong in You
and in the power of Your might!
And above all, I will take the shield of faith
with which I will be able to quench
ALL the fiery darts of the wicked one.
Ephesians 6:10,16

Lord, I WILL NOT fear, for You have redeemed me;
You have called me by Your name; I am Yours.
When I pass through the waters, You will be with me;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow me.
When I walk through the fire, I will not be burned,
Nor will the flame scorch me.
For You are the LORD my God,
The Holy One of Israel, my Savior!
Isaiah 43:1-3

And I WILL overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of my testimony!
Revelation 12:11

THE “Aaaaah!” MOMENTS

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COFFEE . CHILD DRINKING

I (Jesus) came that they may have and enjoy life,
and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).
John 10:10 Amplified Bible

When I get up each morning, the first words out of my mouth are “Good morning, Father. Good morning, Jesus. Good morning, Holy Spirit. Thank you for abiding with me.” Isn’t that a lovely way to start the day? : ) …But then my day really starts! I amble to the kitchen, start my coffee, feed the cat, fix my lunch and sit down for my devotional with a fresh cup of coffee. But my eye is never far away from the clock. I glance up again as the cuckoo rudely interrupts me to remind me that my time is limited. I’ve got to get up and get ready…just five more minutes…now three, two, one …time is up! Now the race is on! I jump up (literally) and head for the closet to pick out my clothes for the day. I have a walk in closet overflowing with clothes and shoes, besides two more in other bedrooms, but what am I going to wear?! I just don’t have anything! (Lord, forgive me.) I pick out an outfit and lay it on the bed. After showering and doing make-up I put it on and…oh my goodness, it shrunk the last time I washed it! (Yeah, really?) Bummer! I have to find something else. By this time that cuckoo is screaming its head off…”You’re going to be late, you‘re going to be late, you’re going to be late…again!” I finally make it to the car and I’m on my way. Oh, no, I forgot my cell phone. Can’t do without that! I turn around and go back to get it. Then I get behind an elderly lady headed for the Piggly Wiggly with her weekly grocery list. She is oblivious to my presence behind her. She doesn’t believe in driving over thirty-five miles per hour and there’s no place to pass on these country roads. “Lady, you need to turn in your car keys!” I didn’t say it…only thought it (or maybe I did say it that time). Anyway, by the time I get to work, I have to consciously calm myself and settle down. You get the picture…probably very vividly.

Life shouldn’t be that way. I spend five out of every seven days in this routine. I need to change something! Some things about it I can’t change. I can’t change the fact that I need to get to work on time. But I can change my attitude and maybe even do a little more preparation. (Me…preparation?…did I say that in the same sentence?!). I just read a statement that made me think about all of this. “Today should be savored, not gulped down.” A preacher I often listen to talked about how he and his siblings used to sit with his dad and drink a cup of coffee in the morning…probably on Saturday and probably the coffee was half milk. But he said his dad would take a sip and then say “Aaaaah”. After a while all of the kids were following suit. Everyone would take a sip of coffee and in unison say, “Aaaaah.” That is the perfect picture of a savored moment!

I know that every moment in life can’t be savored. There are times that we just barely get through. But we can enjoy a lot more of those moments if we make a conscious effort. We can choose to be hurried without being harried. Next time we find ourselves getting caught up in the “rat race” so to speak, let’s mentally pour a cup of coffee, take a sip, sit back and say “Aaaaah!”