Hope

You'll get through this.....

“You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime don’t be foolish or naive. But don’t despair either. With God’s help you will get through this.”

from     You'll Get Through This: Hope and Help for Your Turbulent Times      by Max Lucado

Restoring Dignity and Respect

He puts poor people on their feet again; he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope, Restoring dignity and respect to their lives— a place in the sun! For the very structures of earth are GOD's; he has laid out his operations on a firm foundation. 

1 Samuel 2:8 (MSG)

Toby Mac - Speak Life (video)

"Speak Life"

Somedays life feels perfect
Other days it just ain’t workin
The good, the bad, the right, the wrong
And everything in between

Though it’s crazy, amazing
We can turn our hearts with the words we say
Mountains crumble with every syllable
Hope can live or die

So speak Life, speak Life
Through the deadest darkest night
Speak Life, Speak Life
When the sun won’t shine and you don’t know why
Look into the eyes of the brokenhearted
Watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope
You speak love, you speak...
You speak Life, You speak Life

Some days the tongue gets twisted
Other days my thoughts just fall apart
I do, I don’t, I will, I won’t
It’s like I’m drowning in the deep

Well it crazy to imagine
Words from our lips as the arms of compassion
Mountains crumble with every syllable
Hope can live or die

So speak Life, speak Life
Through the deadest darkest night
Speak Life, Speak Life
When the sun won’t shine and you don’t know why
Look into the eyes of the brokenhearted
Watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope
You speak love, you speak...
You speak Life, You speak Life

Lift your head a little higher
Spread the love like fire
Hope will fall like rain
When you speak life with the words you say

Raise your thoughts a little higher
Use your words to inspire
Trouble falls like rain
When you speak life with the things you say

Lift your head a little higher
Spread the love like fire
Hope will fall like rain
When you speak life with the words you say

So speak Life, speak Life
Through the deadest darkest night
Speak Life, Speak Life
When the sun won’t shine and you don’t know why
Look into the eyes of the brokenhearted
Watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope
You speak love, you speak...
You speak Life, You speak Life

You speak Life, You speak Life

Somedays life feels perfect

Facing difficult times?

If you or you love ones are facing difficult times, speak out the Word of God with child-like faith. It will change the spiritual atmosphere around you. it will also reveal to you the presence of our Loving God.
Bob Lipsys, Australia

Psalm 116:1-9 (NLT)
1 I love the LORD because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. 2 Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath! 3 Death wrapped its
ropes around me; the terrors of the grave overtook me. I saw only trouble and sorrow.
4 Then I called on the name of the LORD: “Please, LORD, save me!”
5 How kind the LORD is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! 6 The LORD protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and he saved me. 7 Let my soul be at rest again, for the LORD has been good to me. 8 He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.
9 And so I walk in the LORD’s presence as I live here on earth!

Awakening your destiny

God gives us hope by calling forth our destiny. This prophetic thought from William Matthews & Christa Black's "Hope Anthem" is the best explanations of Christian "Hope" that I have come across.

The word hope is often used in the sense of a wish. eg "I hope you get better." Hope therefore is often seen as a desire far from reality. However Dr Ern Baxter writes “In the New Testament when the Holy Spirit uses the word “hope” – He doesn’t use it in the sense of the word “wish for”. Hope in the New Testament is that which God has declared will be and that toward which we move with certainty". This is perfectly summed up in the Hope Anthem below. Re-read the Bible verses below in light of this song. (Bob Lipsys, Australia)

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. Ephesians 1:18

Hope's Anthem
by William Matthews & Christa Black, Bethel Worship

He's awakening the hope in me
By calling forth my destiny
He's breathing life into my soul
I will thirst for Him and Him alone

He has come like the rain
That showers on the barren plain
So my heart and tongue confess
Jesus Christ, the Hope of man

My hope is in You, God
I am steadfast, I will not be moved
I'm anchored, never shaken
All my hope is in You

He's bringing hope to the hopeless
And giving his heart to the broken
And sharing His home with the orphan
He is the joy, He is my joy

He is the hope of the nations
The father's heart we're embracing
He is the song we're declaring
He is the joy, He is my joy

Why so downcast oh, oh my soul
Put your hope in God alone

When your atmosphere is poisoned by negativity.

What is surrounding you at present? What atmosphere are you living in?

Someone just like you once wrote: “I have heard the many reports and rumors about me, and I am surrounded by terror” Psalm 31:13 (NLT).

David is surrounded by negativity, bad news, threats to his person and his life. It terrorizes him.

Rather than remaining in that negativity, and rather than accepting the reports and the so called facts of the situation, he calls on God for a good future. He prays: “ But I am trusting you, O LORD, saying, “You are my God! My future is in your hands.” Psalm 31:14-15 (NLT)

God is God. God is in charge. Not his enemies. Not the facts or reports. God is God. The Lord is David’s God.

This faith in God changes the atmosphere around David. Terror is replaced with “Songs of Victory.” And the implication is that God is singing these songs.

“For you are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory. Interlude: The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.” Psalm 32:7-8 (NLT)

What is it like when God sings? God sings your future…..

Lord, open the ears of all who put their trust in you. Let them hear you sing.

In Psalm 32:10 David describes it as being surrounded by unfailing love. “...unfailing love surrounds those who trust the LORD.” Your future is good in God.
Bob Lipsys, Australia

Hope does not dissapoint

".... hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." Romans 5:5 (NIV) It is time to rekindle the hopes that God has placed into your spirit. It is time they are set on fire by the Holy Spirit.

Right Time, Right Place

When it comes to God’s promises, it is not a matter of hoping that they will come true. They definitely will. The unknown is time. We don’t know exactly when they will be fulfilled. The call on our life is to move forward proclaiming the Kingdom of God, knowing that the yes has already been given in Jesus. Then, at the right time, on the right day, we will then be in the right location to receive all that God wants to give us.

Bob Lipsys, Australia

Hope in financial collapse

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The collapse of financial institutions and businesses has affected many. Here is one true story:
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From our local Paper, the Townsville Bulletin, May 6th, 2009
THEY were self-funded retirees, debt free, with their own home, four mortgage-free investment properties that were generating income, a 2ha block of land, $973,000 in savings, $78,000 in shares and $150,000 in superannuation.
They are now looking for work, $1.5 million in debt, have mortgaged the family home and one investment property which is to be sold, sold the remaining three investment properties and block of land, and the shares and superannuation are worth almost nothing……….

"Our dream was to enjoy our lives, fund ourselves and still be able to provide for our children with a legacy to help their futures," they said. That dream will never become a reality, with almost everything they earned and worked for now gone.

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The collapse of financial institutions and businesses has affected many.What does God say about this situation?
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Jesus said "People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God’s reality, God’s initiative, God provisions. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Don't be afraid of missing out. You're my dearest friends! The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself. "So be generous. Give to the poor. Get yourselves a bank that can't go bankrupt, a bank in heaven far from bankrobbers, safe from embezzlers, a bank you can bank on. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.” … Luke 12:31-34 (The Message)

Generous Giving is the sign of true wealth
Bob Lipsys

When you are living in deep darkness.

When your life is filled with darkness, when you can no longer see the way ahead, when hope fades and disappears; You need a word from God.

God’s word brings life. It releases hope. It opens your eyes so that you can see right through the dark. God’s word takes hold of a good future and pulls it into your present. Jesus described it as the Kingdom of God being right with you today.

Take hold of God’s word with all your being. Bob Lipsys

PS Here are some words which sustained and brought me life today:

God … brings victory in the darkness.... If you're going through some times where it looks like devastation in your life...and things look very, very disgusting and discouraging, I want to remind you of something: Holy Spirit is right outside your door, in the dark, evaluating the situation.... Holy Spirit knows how to move in your darkness.... He's examining and inspecting and evaluating your situation. And believe me, it might seem like God is not up to much; it might seem like you don't see anything happening, but Holy Spirit is looking it over. He's coming up with a plan, and believe me, He won't just look it over; He'll return and He'll help you.
by Pastor John Kilpatrick--a sermon, Nehemiah, Portrait of the Holy Spirit

What does a Christ Follower do in a recession?

What does the "Christ Follower" do in a recession? What does the Christ follower do when things go south? What does the Christ follower do when things don’t look so good? Here is a great message for followers of the Lord Jesus, by Greg Johnson. Be Blessed....Bob Lipsys
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What does the "Christ Follower" do in a recession?

A message by Greg Johnson www.LovingGodFellowship.org

The Christ follower does the same thing in the bad times as they do in the good times – they bear good fruit. They continue the ministry of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. They minister at the point of need. They make a difference in their day.

Find encouragement today from God’s Word. (Jeremiah 17:7-8 NIV) ""But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."

The Christ follower lives by faith. Their trust is in Jesus, the One they follow. They realize that Jesus is the author of their faith and He is continually perfecting their faith as they follow Him from earth to glory. (Hebrews 12:2 NIV) "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

The Christ follower is rooted and grounded in God’s Word. Just as a tree by a stream is rooted and grounded in a fashion to draw strength and refreshment from the stream, the Christ follower is rooted and grounded in God’s Word. They read it. They study it. They listen to it preached. They listen to it taught. They memorize it. They hide it in their heart. The Christ follower draws strength and refreshment from the water of the Word. When the heat intensifies, they don’t wilt and whither, because they are rooted and grounded in God’s Word.

The Christ follower does not live in worry or fear. They learn to release all of that to God in their place of prayer. They continue to trust in the One they follower. He is their Good Shepherd. (Psalms 23 NIV) "The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. {2} He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, {3} he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. {4} Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. {5} You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. {6} Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."

The Christ follower bears good fruit. No matter what goes on around them, the Christ follower bears good fruit. In the good times and in the bad times, in the hot and in the cold, on the mountain top and in the valley, in the dessert and in the oasis, the Christ follower never fails to bear good fruit.

What does a Christ follower do in a recession? The same thing they always do. They bear good fruit. They can do this because they live by faith in Jesus, they stay in God’s Word and they refuse to live in worry and fear. And God blesses them with more of His amazing grace and shows the world around them that His grace is truly all sufficient.

Be blessed today as you trust in Jesus. Amen!

Know that you are loved,

Greg Johnson

www.GAJohnson.org

www.LovingGodFellowship.org

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Another great message Greg. Keep flooding the internet with God’s Word.

Bob Lipsys

Success in any situation: Even when the Share Market Crashes.

Check out this great article by Doug Addison. I first read it over 6 months ago. Today it is even more relevant. Check out Doug's Web site. Good Material

Blessed in any situation

by Doug Addison

see http://www.dougaddison.com
Two verses from the Bible that I keep hearing over and over are, "Seek first God's Kingdom" and "Do not be afraid!" Historically God has moved very powerfully during times of world crisis. I have been reflecting on the life of Joseph, son of Jacob in Genesis. Joseph experienced quite a bit of turmoil in his life. He was also a very good dream interpreter and was known for his wisdom. Joseph interpreted a dream for Pharaoh regarding seven years of abundance coming to Egypt that would be followed by seven years of famine (Genesis 41).

Not only did Joseph accurately interpret the dream, he made a very powerful application on how Pharaoh should respond. He advised to store up grain and provisions during the time of plenty so that Egypt could supply the world during the down time. Pharaoh was so moved at the wisdom that God had given Joseph that he put him in charge of his entire palace and he was allowed to spearhead the proposed project.

Interestingly, after the famine hit, God used Joseph to bless his father Jacob (Israel) and all of his brothers. During a world crisis, Israel received gold, new clothes and a place of honor in Egypt (Gen 45:16-19). I am convinced that we can be blessed by God in any situation and in turn be a blessing to the rest of the world.

I have outlined a few key points to consider to prepare you for what lies ahead.
- Do not allow fear and panic to control your life. The ploy of darkness is to get our focus off of God. Be at peace.

- Listen to God and allow Him to guide you. The safest place to be is in God's will.

- Just as Joseph made a practical application to the interpretation of a dream, we too need to respond when God speaks to us.

- Do not make any major decisions or changes without solid confirmation.

- As big businesses fail, small businesses will begin to increase. This is a time to expect blessings in businesses.

- There are a lot of prophecies of doom and judgment flying around. Don't let these words discourage you from What God is calling you to do.

-Be sure to laugh and enjoy the ride of life!

Blessings,
Doug Addison

http://www.dougaddison.com

Time to dream again.

Welcome.
You are not at this blog by accident.
God has brought you here.
He wants to speak deep into your heart.
He has words to say to you that can and will change you destiny.
Words that bring life.

As I was praying for this blog (and you)
I believe God whispered into my spirit
"It is time to dream again."
I can feel the Holy Spirit tingling through me
as I write these words.

Broken one, crushed by life,
exhausted, weary, surviving.
God will raise you up to new heights.
Open your heart to Him.
It is time for you to dream again