I'm Struggling With...

   "I'm struggling with faith." "I'm struggling with anxiety." "I'm in a battle with drugs." "I can't seem to stop gossiping." The list can go on and on. We all have struggles, problems that come along, sins we can't seem to shake, etc. Jesus promised us life wouldn't be easy.

   John 16:33 which says, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." In the world we will have trouble, but Jesus has overcome the world. Because of that, we can have peace no matter what struggle or battle we face. 

   Now, there is something we can do no matter what struggle we face. We must choose if we will give more power to the struggle or to God. If we focus too much on the problem, sin, or struggle we give it power. Instead, we should focus on God. He gives us strength to defeat the struggle. God is with you in your struggle. Fix your eyes on him. Trust in him. He will not let you fall.

   So, are you focused too much on your struggles? How can you focus more on God during struggles? How can you pray for those who are struggling today?

https://youtu.be/dYTRpPKP-mA

Focus on What You Have

    As a goalkeeper for soccer, I had to do many different drills in order to get my skills as a keeper up to par. Some of those drills involved had me having multiple soccer balls shot at me at once. In that drill if I focus on all of the soccer balls coming at me then I could either get hurt or miss stopping all of the soccer balls, which, in case you did not know, the job of a goalkeeper is to stop the ball from going in the net. 
   At this point you may be wondering why I am telling you this. This situation relates to our lives in multiple ways. The first way is that many times we are focused on what we don't have in life rather than what we do have. In goal if I go to stop one shot but I take my eyes off that one shot and look at another shot that is better I lose out on saving the first shot. In life if we focus on what we don't have we will never be happy. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." The things of this earth are temporary. If we focus on the things we don't have, the people we don't have, or the looks we don't have we won't be happy and we won't be able to reach others for God. We need to be transformed and focus on what God has blessed us with. 
   The next way this situation relates to you is leadership. At some point in your life you will probably be asked to lead. Being a leader is not always easy. Leaders make many choices and people under them may not always agree with them. That's why leaders need to focus on what they do have character wise and follower wise. If leaders focus on what other people have or the people who stopped following them then they will not be as effective. A leader's job is to do his work to the best of his ability. The leader must focus on what God is calling him to do. 
   So, are you focused on what you don't have? Are you using the abilities God has given you to glorify him? 

   Image from here.

Eyes Fixed in the Storm

   Have you ever read the Bible and couldn't believe that one of the people would do something so silly or dumb? I think, at times, we are all tempted to do that.
   In Matthew 14:22-33 we read the story about Jesus walking on water. The disciples saw him and thought he was a ghost. When Peter found out it was Jesus, Peter asked Jesus to tell him to come to him. Peter got out of the boat and started walking toward Jesus. Then Peter looked around and saw the storm. When he took his eyes off of Jesus he started to sink. Jesus saved Peter from the storm.  Then they went into the boat and the storm stopped.
   Now, if you were in Peter's position what would you have done? Would you have had the courage to ask Jesus to tell you to come to him? Let's say that you did do that, would you have been able to keep your eyes on Jesus?
   If you are saying yes, I am going to play Devil's advocate here. Have you ever had a time where you felt everything was crashing down in your life and you had no hope? Have you ever had an idol in some way, shape, or form? Have you ever sinned? If you said yes to any of these questions, then you are just like Peter. You may have been able to keep your eyes on Jesus for a little but then some storm came and you took your eyes off of him.
   You may be saying, "how is it possible to keep your eyes on Jesus all the time?" The answer is its not possible; at least, not by our own strength. If you noticed in the story of Peter and Jesus Peter fell into the water but at the same time he did something else. He called out to Jesus to help him. Peter could've kept his mouth closed and tried to stay afloat on his own, but he didn't. He knew he couldn't do it on his own. If he wouldn't have called out for help he may have drowned.
   See, God is a good father. He wants us to learn lessons and grow but he also wants to help us do that. We have freewill. We can choose to ask God for help or we can try to do it on our own. If we do it on our own, we will probably drown in the storms of life. God wants to walk with us and help us but we have to be willing to walk with him.
   So, will you be like Peter and ask for help from God when you need it? Will you choose to walk with God through the storms of life? 

   Image from here. 

Don't Focus Too Much on the Past

   The past is important. The past can help us learn from our mistakes. The past also shapes us into who we are. However, if we focus too much on our past is that a good thing?
   In Genesis 19 we find the story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Two angels come to the city and Lot, Abraham's nephew, invites them to his home. Some very odd events happen but in the end the angels tell Lot and his family to leave because God is going to destroy the cities. Lot is hesitant at first so the angels grab his hand and his family's hands and take them out of the city. The angels tell Lot and his family to flee to the mountains and don't look back. Lot asks to just go to a near town named Zoar. The angels agree to this because of the Lord's mercy. Then God destroys the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Unfortunately Lot's wife looks back at the cities. Because of that she is turned into a pillar of salt.
   What was going through Lot's wife's head? We don't know. But, I have a guess. She might have been thinking: "I really miss my home. I worked so hard to get the decor just right. And, I miss my friends. Why would God destroy my friends and my home? Why can't we go back? I had such good times there. Doesn't God care about that? Maybe if I could get one last glimpse of my home that would suffice." Then she looks back and BAM! She turns into a pillar of salt.
   Many of us probably wonder why she looked back when she was told not to. But we forget, she probably wasn't just looking back because she was curious. She was looking back at her home, her friends, her past...
   We may be tempted to think we would never do such a thing. But, in a way, some of us have. Have you ever reflected back on your life and thought "wow I had some good times then and there. I wish I could go back." When you do that you are doing what Lot's wife is doing. You are focusing too much on the past. Now, I'm not saying that you should not reflect. Reflecting is good and important. Reflecting helps us learn from mistakes. But if we focus too much on the past to the point where we are not moving forward that's a problem.
   Philippians 3:13-14 says "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." I love the way Paul uses a word picture to get his point across. If you are running a race and you look back too long what will happen? That's right, you will crash and burn. We are to look forward to our goal. What's our goal? Our goal is heaven. If we are focused on heaven then we will do what we are called to do. If we are focused on heaven we will follow what God wants us to do each day.
   So, are you focused too much on the past? What can you do to focus on your heavenly goal today? How can you follow God in your life every day?

Image from here.