What about the Vision?

“…Do not give up.
Even when others do not understand.
Even when you feel alone with your dreams.
......Even when the vision gets a little blurred…
Your steps are ordered, and you are destined for greatness.
You are stronger than your mind can conceive, everything you need lies within…” -LaKesha Womack

 

 

Spirit of the Living God fall fresh on me. Spirit of the Living God fall fresh on me. Hide me behind the Cross that they may see more of thee and less of me. Spirit of the Living God fall fresh on me.

The previous saying is said every Sunday by my Pastor. I admire it and find that it is humbling and keeps the messenger focused on relaying the message deposited into their spirit. I utilize it in the same manner. With all of that said, have you ever felt that the dream that God deposited into your spirit just wasn't going to come to pass due to your current circumstances? Maybe you are in the boat with me where you know that you are destined to do something great but don't have the complete vision as to what it is yet. Maybe you are like me where you often wonder....maybe I heard or saw the vision wrong. Maybe my current circumstances are so hopeless & final that my time is up. To all of that I say, "I can do all things through Christ that gives me strength". I am the head and not the tail. I am above and not beneath. ALL things work together for THE GOOD of those that love the Lord. It is important that we fight these negative thoughts with the word of God. When in a debate with the enemy, you fight with God's word. The THREATS of the adversary have no power over God's PROMISES. With that in mind, you must get into God's word to actually know what he promises you. Many don't know his promises. Some know his promises but get so caught up in the cares of this world that it blocks out and clouds their vision. I completely understand what it's like to have a fear so paralyzing that you simply sit there & weep. I understand what it's like to be in a depression so deep that you think that you'll never come out of it. I am here to tell you that if you keep your focus on Christ, he will never lead you wrong. He never promised that the road would be smooth. As a matter of fact, his word says that the righteous have many afflictions but HE delivers us out of them all. Just to clarify, when I say righteous, it simply means that everyone who accepts Jesus as their savior and believes that through him, they can gain everlasting life, they are made righteous. This is simply by GRACE. Never confuse me or anyone as a person who is "God". When I say that, I simply mean a person who never falls short in sin. I am NOT that person. People tend to place you on a unrealistic pedestal when they hear or see you speak or write in the manner that I do. When they do this, they place unrealistic expectations on you and often place harsh condemnations on you when you fall short of them. I do understand that this is the price that is to be paid when I stepped up to the plate to do this so I take it to God and just pray that he is pleased with me even when people aren't. I say all of that to say that the only difference between me and a person who isn't a believer is simply that I KNOW I can't do anything without him and WHEN I fall, I go to him for my redemption and forgiveness because in the end, he's all that matters. Moving on, know that if God places a seed(s) in your spirit & you persistently & consistently seek him to bring it to pass, IT WILL HAPPEN. Your gift will take you into the presence of great people. No one or nothing will stop you but you. I say that because oftentimes, we as people tend to focus on our faults and shortcomings. LISTEN! God KNOWS what he's dealing with. He knows you better than you know yourself. He made you. We tend to compare ourselves to others in regard to what they have or where they are in life but that is the wrong way to think. God places different gifts in us all. We all can't do the same thing in the same way. Your anointing will not be the same as my anointing. My anointing is no better than your anointing. It is important that you stay in the lane that God places you in. Never let your emotions...or society...or the adversary...or friends...or your own stinkin thinkin...convince you into believing that you aren't important or that your limitations are his limitations. Cling to CONFIDENCE in GOD....not yourself...but God because it is in him that you will be able to do all things that he has called you to do. He will work through you. He will work through your weakness because his strength is made perfect in that. Keep a right attitude towards yourself so you are able to exercise it towards others. When you have unrealistic expectations of yourself to be perfect, you start to place it on others in which causes animosity,depression, and bitterness to manifest. Seek him and ask him to start seeing yourself as well as others through his eyes. God has so many plans for us if only we took the chains from around our thinking, we could grasp it & receive a joy so overwhelming, words would do it no justice and circumstances would not be able to shake it. Know that once you make a decision to try to follow "the light", there will be adversity. There will be people that don't understand. Most of the time it's the people that are closest to you. There will be times where you will have a period of "alone time". This is simply because he has to get you by yourself. He has to process you. He has to put some things in and take some things out. He has to change your thinking. He has to brand in your spirit that he is the only thing that you need and the only thing that can bring you genuine peace. You can be rich and not have peace. You can be married and not have peace. You can have millions of friends but not have peace. Those things are simply "accessories" and can be fleeting. Jesus is the only ROCK that can bring something into your life that is unshakable. He often shakes our foundation to show what's unshakable. He loves us without conditions. He loves us simply because of who he is, not because of what we do or don't do. God blesses us even when we don't deserve it. He loves on us when he is not even on our minds. Look back over your life and think on where he has brought you from. Think about the times you know that circumstances could've went a completely different route, yet he blocked it and saved you. He saved me in my drunk, passed out state. He saved me during my most deceitful & ugliest ways. He saved me even when i called myself condemning someone else because they didn't say or do something in a way that I felt was acceptable when the whole while I've fallen short and STILL fall short. One of my shortcomings is that I beat myself up harshly on the inside because of certain ways that I have. I'm learning that God sees and knows all. He knows me. He knows the real me. He knows the "real you". The "real you" is that person that shows themselves when conditions aren't in your favor. The "real you" shows when you are not in the church pew. That "real you" is the YOU that comes out when you are around people that you aren't trying to impress.  That's what's so good and different about him. People will harshly condemn you and often remind you of your shortcomings and mistakes whereas God is simply waiting for you to genuinely say "Forgive Me" & he ERASES it from the slate to never be brought up again. He doesn't deal with us according to how we behaved in the past. It's like he sees us as brand new. All of us can learn tremendously from that. So many of us are so hard on each other and often hold grudges with each other when in reality if we truly took a really good look back over our lives, somewhere along the line we've let other's down in some form or fashion. We've hurt some feelings. We've behaved selfishly. We've all basically done some things that we aren't proud of . We really must practice forgiveness and loving each other unconditionally. We all are a work in a progress. We really can't afford to dwell on what happened in the past or how a person has mistreated us because we will miss out on what God is trying to bring to pass in the present. It also contaminates our spirit. Bitterness is a very nasty poison that hurts the owner. Bitterness is often deceitful too. Many of us disguise it with whatever label our mind can fathom but once the light of truth shines on it, that's what it is. To grasp what God is giving us, we must let go of what the world has placed in our hand. Just let it go. Don't say with your words that you let it go. Say with your actions that this is so. Say with your spirit that this is so. It's time that we become the woman/man that he has called us to be. In order for us to do that, we have to grow. Many don't like to grow because it hurts. Growth truly does hurt because things are dropped off and things are gained. The things that are dropped off are "the familiar". The thing that is gained is transformation. Growth causes some of the things in your familiar environment to move. Some things move out and some move in closer. Trust that you are right where you are supposed to be. Trust that even through the tears and pain, good will come out of all of your experiences. Trust that even when some people abuse, use, and talk about you, that it is all for a greater good in your life. Trust that even when you sometimes don't understand some of the things you say, feel or do, that he does. Block out the "distractions" in life and keep your gaze fixed on him. You are not crazy even though many would like to convince you otherwise. You are not worthless even though folks try to make you feel otherwise. Your value doesn't lay in what a family, friend, or foe has to say about you. It lays in what God says about you. Some people resort to trying to chop you down in order to build up their ego. Some people become jealous of you because they undervalue their own abilities and character and overvalue yours. Keep your mind on what is right & you will be able to recognize what is coming against you.  Have faith that God will bring to pass whatever it is he has called you to do. Stay focused. You will get there. I hope this brings joy and hope to every eye that comes upon this.

 

Peace, Love, & Blessings,

Nata Bee

copyright © 2011 Renate' Bender All Rights Reserved.