Oh My Goodness!

Oh My goodness!
two times in one week I am writing unscripted on my own blog! lol

For sure!

Well, the way I see it, it's my blog and you are coming on here to read it...so I can do that, right?
Besides, from what I can tell there aren't too terribly many "yous" coming on here reading my unscripted (or otherwise) ramblings anyways, and right now it's doing me a world a good to ramble on....so I shall continue!
☺
Every once in a while you just have to blow off some steam. Depending on what it is you do for a living, your once in a while may come more frequently than others. Take for instance with my job.
Well I work in the financial industry. As you can imagine....with the economy being as it is....there is allot of "s t r e s s " and uncertainty that we all have to contend with these days....Well I am required, on my job, to sell and offer the utmost in customer satisfaction all the while tallying a good deal number of calls per hour. [Can anyone say STRESS?]......While here lately the customers I serve are 80% coming in "hot under the collar" because of their own worries of the economies situation. ALL day long I get blasted with vulgarities and accusations from clients as I am the the ambassador of the company to them...and then when I turn around and meet up with the big wigs I get it from them....seems as I never seem to "hit the mark" according to my superiors.
Broken promises...misinformed managers...lack of communication. Do as I say....today .....tomorrow may be different.

I about lost it today. I am gonna be 49 this year and I felt like a child today at work. (not in a good way) That is all I will say as I don't want to "dis" my employer...after all they still are my employer at this point. ☺

So, basically things didn't add up as I had expected. Things aren't as they were. Things aren't as they told me they would be. Things have changed........."Oh well."..... "What does that really matter?"

THIS is what I have been struggling with, all day.

THIS is why I have eaten half a bag of chocolate chips and that yummy Klondike Bar my gorgeous hubby Dano bought me.

These questions.

So WHAT? What do I do with them? Got any ideas....any advice? ☺

Not like I can't change any of the above fore mentioned truths.

What I figure I CAN do is one of the following:

1)Be super miserable at work and sooner or later get my self fired

2)Try to change everything back to way it was 2 years ago and aggravate everyone in
leadership ...and get myself fired

3) Put up with it; look for another job

4)Pray..... give this situation it to the Lord. Give myself to the Lord....my attitude to the Lord, thank the Lord for this job, as horrible as it may be at times and ask Him to provide for me an open door somewhere else.

I think it's a no brainer......#4.....lol As much as my "spirit man" knows this, my flesh is having a hard time with it! This is where the scripture from Matthew 26:41 comes in "The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak!"

HELPPPPPPPPPPPP!!


Maybe I just need to eat more ICE CREAM!!!!!! ☺

What are blogs for?

Do YOU know?

I don't....I really don't even know, remember why I started mine. I remember who talked me into it....haahaa...but can't remember their argument that made me turn the corner and actually "do it".

At any rate ...I am here....with a "BLOG"....and it is titled...."The Fire Within"....what exactly does that mean, The Fire Within?...Well I can tell you what I meant by it when I puck the title.
PASSION....the passion inside of me. Well and YOU for that matter....All of us.....We all have passion inside.
Some of us show it allot better and allot more often than others...but I contend that we all have passion deep down inside.

And~Right now I am a deep - deep -deep well...that used to be overflowing, upwards towards heaven with a gusher of crystal clear water, that now one might be hard pressed to find the bottom of....and when the bottom is found....how clear is the water? Even I can not be sure of that.....God is is working on cleaning out this deep, deep well of mine.

Night after night I dream of far away place. Up past the clouds and stars. Way farther away than the planets and even further off than the galaxies where the angels and demons battle.High in the Highest heaven I meet with my Lord and we sit and talk about things in the past and things to come. I have to be honest I don't want to leave His side when the night is done. Of course the choice, not being mine I awake as usual from my slumber, to yet another day filled the same things I left behind when I closed my eyes the night before. I know, I am human. When I awake I praise the Lord for His Grace. Where would I be without it? Without Him?

Still....alone.....I face the day.....so I pray...knowing that my prayers, [because I am righteous through HIS sacrifice for me], are effective...and powerful ......so I take a stand against the evil one and pray, believing even when the circumstances show me otherwise, I still stand in faith...because faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen, and I have God's promise! I stand firm on God's word. ***sigh***......[.still I miss them]

Lord, oh dear Lord....I know He takes care of all I hold dear. I do in fact know this. I wouldn't be able to make it through the day if I didn't "know" this...."believe" this.

Thank you Lord.

I love you.

One day soon....I will walk along the shores of Heaven during the day....with those I love.♥

Stand in Awe of G_d

Ecclesiastes 5:1-7

Fear God, Keep Your Vows

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.

Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool when there are many words.

When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, "My vow was a mistake." Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God.

Matthew 16:24-27

“Then Jesus said to his disciples,

"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.”

I know I have been posting allot lately...it's just that I have been able to. I have been home and able to spend allot more time in the Word and alone the Lord. Time reflecting on my life and all the Lord has for me to do in and through and for Him.

Today I was belaboring a very familiar subject with the Lord and the Lord was once again showering me with His grace. This time however He directed me out of my scheduled reading for the day (Mark 3) to Matthew 16: 24-28. I will focus on just vrs 24-27 here. As I began to read this scripture, Holy Spirit began to speak directly to me. Answering my every question about the belabored issue I had brought before the throne of God this morning, again. IN fact He answered even questions I had not yet asked Him. Yet, as our Heavenly Father is so good at doing, He knew what I was about to ask before I even prayed.

Of course I cried and cried as Holy Spirit ministered to me healing deep healing. Then I prayed again.

This time a different kind of prayer. One of repentance first. Then of thanksgiving for His mercy and grace.

Then I prayed for revelation and wisdom and understanding as I was about to re-read this scripture.

I wanted to get every bit of intended spiritual nourishment from the Lord's words.

So I began to read and line by line, one at a time the Lord broke it down to me.

Holy Spirit made it clear to me that there were things in my life that were standing in the way....of me living out God's "perfect" will for my life.

Here goes.

verse 24 says, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Now I am sure if you are a Christ follower you have heard this verse at some point and a sermon to follow.

I know I have. However I have never heard anyone connect this verse and the reference of the cross to our idols in life, only burdens we may have and persecutions we may face.

But as I read this morning~ Matthew 16:24

"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself."
then it says
"...and take up his cross and follow me."

Holy Spirit immediately brought idols to my mind.

Idols can be anything, anything that we place before God. People, place or thing.

It can be a job, even an admirable one such as reaching the lost; the ministry.

It can be a hobbie that gets outta control. A person, a loved one, a family member. Our children.

Of course the obvious ones money, and worldly objects.

Anything at all that TAKES OUR TIME AWAY FROM THE LORD.

Sitting at His feet, reading His Holy Word, ministering to Him, Getting to KNOW Him intimately.

Being Still and Knowing He Is God.

The second part of this scripture vrs 25

"For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it."

Ahhhh! Wow! This is awesome!

It is the very things we inherently search for in life...that are the reasons we get caught up in our idols.

(i.e. giving so much time to them...work, dating (relationships), ministry, kids, hobbies,)

And at the same time....(this is sad if we don't change!)

the only thing that will ever satisfy what it is we are searching for....is the one thing we seem to put last on the priority list of life.

Our relationship with the Lord.

Whoever wants to save his life....save his life. Remember verse 24? Jesus said if we want to follow Him we must first deny ourselves.

This can be, and I know by experience, most times, is very hard. Paul writes his letters that he does it every day. Dieing to ones self.

As I mentioned earlier some of the things that we do or desire may not necessarily be "bad" things in and of themselves. It's all a matter of priority.

If what we love or do or are thinking about has taken up residence in our hearts, homes, or minds leaving us with less time to spend in the presence of God and in His Word then it has been elevated to status of idol.

It is important for us to remember that when Jesus returns in His Father's Glory with his angels he will reward each person according to what he has done. (vrs 27)

How are we going to even know what we are personally responsible to do, if we are too busy doing other things? Too busy to just sit before our Lord and seek His face.

Yes, I know that we are all responsible to follow the great commission. We are all responsible to love one another as He loves us. We are all responsible to do our best to love the Word of God and keep it close to our hearts and follow it as a guide in our lives keeping its laws.

Yet as well, each one of us has a special purpose that only we can fulfill.

To find out what that is...we need to get get close to the Lord ourselves. This revelation will not come by way of a third party but by way the Holy Spirit of God.

I have laid my burdens down and once again have given my joys to the Lord.
As Holy sacrifice pleasing and acceptable to God.

No more an idol stand in the way of all that the Lord has for me.

Shalom

AmyColleen