The size of your enemy is a measure of the size of God's confidence in your ability to overcome.

Scripture Reading
1 Samuel 17:1-51, tells how David, armed with a sling, five stones and the anointing of God, defeated and killed Goliath, a giant Philistine warrior.
God sees potential everybody else misses.

Take David for example. Who would have thought that a shepherd boy from Bethlehem could bring down a professional soldier nearly twice his height? Or, for that matter, could become a king who would lead his nation to greatness? God did . When God looked at David He looked beyond the shepherd and saw the heart of a warrior and a king. God knew the potential for greatness that was in David. After all, He had put it there.

Not even Jesse, David's father, recognized the potential in his youngest son. When Samuel arrived to anoint one of Jesse's sons as king of Israel , Jesse did not even call David in from the fields to be in the lineup. One by one the Lord rejected David's older brothers, saying, “For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” Finally, David was called before Samuel. “And the Lord said, ‘Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!'”

Not long after this God began to elevate David toward his destiny. He brought David face-to-face with a formidable enemy. With the soldiers of two opposing armies as witnesses, David brought down Goliath with a single stone from his sling. David succeeded because he knew where his power came from. Just before this battle he told King Saul, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” God was confident of David's ability to overcome because He knew that David would not trust in his own strength.

God sees great potential in you too. God knows what you can handle because He knows what He has placed inside you. The more you align your life to God's purpose the more He will begin moving you toward your destiny.

Remember that new levels bring new devils. Don't fear the obstacles and challenges that lie before you. Don't fret over the apparent size and strength of your enemies. They merely reflect God's confidence in your ability to overcome— in His power . Trust the Lord. He will match your character and strength to the challenges you face. He will make you more than a conqueror!

Labels: God, word

Tash @ 3:12 AM

Got this in the mail from my aunt and I think it is beautiful. Today is going to be a beautiful day! :)

When I look at a patch of dandelions, I see a bunch of weeds that are going to take over my yard.
My kids see flowers for Mom and blowing white fluff you can wish on.

When I look at an old drunk and he smiles at me, I see a smelly, dirty person who probably wants money and I look away.
My kids see someone smiling at them and they smile back.

When I hear music I love, I know I can't carry a tune and don't have much rhythm so I sit self-consciously and listen.
My kids feel the beat and move to it. They sing out the words. If they don't know them, they make up their own.

When I feel wind on my face, I brace myself against it. I feel it messing up my hair and pulling me back when I walk.
My kids close their eyes, spread their arms and fly with it, until they fall to the ground laughing.

When I pray, I say thee and thou and grant me this, give me that.
My kids say, "Hi God! Thanks for my toys and my friends. Please keep the bad dreams away tonight. Sorry, I don't want to go to Heaven yet. I would miss my Mommy and Daddy."

When I see a mud puddle I step around it. I see muddy shoes and dirty carpets.
My kids sit in it. They see dams to build, rivers to cross, and worms to play with.


I wonder if we are given kids to teach or to learn from? No wonder God loves the little children! Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you may look back and
realize they were the big things.

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away."

Labels: word

Tash @ 12:51 PM

"You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God?" - James 4:4

Sex Sins In Disguise

Adulteresses - We live in a culture of "normal" unfaithfulness. From prime-time sit-com to the soaps, from music to movies, from pop icons to presidents, adultery is acceptable. As far as the culture is concerned, the message is: sex sins satisfy. Unfaithfulness is just the way humans are wired. Excused, condoned or ignored, we have a global "don't ask, don't tell" morality. Consequently, when James uses the word moichalides (adulteresses), he strikes a chord we would rather not hear. By the way, it was the same in the first century. Men and women have not progressed much in 2000 years of moral corruption. The same old sins prevail.

You might be interested to know that in about half of the ancient manuscripts, both genders are included in this descriptive phrase: adulterers and adulteresses. Male and female He created them, and both genders have done their best to destroy the sacredness of that creation.

What's unusual about this verse is not the implied immorality. What's unusual is that James chooses this very strong word to describe not sexual behavior but rather a love (the word is phileo) for the world. Did you get that? Maintaining a loving friendship with the world is the equivalent of sexual infidelity in your relationship with God. Every time you let the world's system set your priorities, every time you fall prey to its seductions of power, wealth and glory, you participate in adultery. You willingly give yourself to another.

Do you know what that's like? Do you know the agony, the guilt, the shame, the excuses and lies, the broken trust, the terror of abandonment? Do you know the shattered life, the numbing denial, the terrible truth, the twisted logic, the hopelessness? Have you felt the emptiness, the anger, the destruction, the death that accompanies unfaithfulness? Then you know something about God's heart, some tiny bit of the crushing blow that adultery brings in its wake. But remember, this kind of adultery is not about sex. It's about your love affair with the world's standards. It's about I, me, mine. It's about my protection, my goals, my needs, my agenda and my desires.

Don't you know that going to bed with the world breaks the heart of God?

Labels: God, word

Tash @ 1:22 PM