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Faith, Write 31 Days Challenge 2021

31 Days Of Bible Affirmations – Day 18 – I CAN Stand Firm

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31 Days of Bible Affirmations - Day 18 - I Can Stand Firm
31 Days of Bible Affirmations – Day 18 – I CAN Stand Firm

I CAN Stand Firm

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:1-3

We are always going to face difficulties, and when we do, it’s painful. I find that when I am trying my hardest to run this race that God has set before me, that is when the enemy runs alongside me and he tries to trip me up. I struggle to stand firm.

When we go through times when we struggle, our faith is always the first thing that takes a stumble. Do you have something you feel is holding you back from keeping you in the race? Or is there a situation you are going through right now and you just need some encouragement?

It’s ok if we stumble through these moments. As long as we keep turning back to God with how we are feeling with what we are going through. When we open ourselves up fully to Him, that’s when He can do a deep work in us to place us back into the race He wanted us to run. 

This year has been the year for me in moving forward with what I have been called to do. I have been working through growing in my gifts and trying to develop a character that would help me carry out my calling. 

The one area I struggle with is how I perceive myself and what I feel God and others think about me. That’s why I decided this month to set myself this challenge. To develop Bible based affirmations about how God sees me and what His heart is for me. Hopefully, by declaring Bible based truths over myself it will begin to shift a mindset I have in how I perceive myself. 

So, what’s holding me back?

Well, the enemy hates when we move forward in our faith with something and I feel that he has been using anything he can to try and get me to give up. I am now on day 18 and I did feel a little demoralised because I know I’m so behind. I’m tired and part of me just feels this is going to be another thing I will fail at again. 

It’s similar to getting a stitch when we are running. We get over the halfway mark and then bang, the pain hits. It’s so easy at this point to want to give up. The only way to beat the pain is to stand firm and run through it. It hurts to start off with, but then our body gets stronger as we persevere.

This is what I am going to try and do with my writing. I’m going to persevere through the pain barrier and stand firm in what I want to achieve. The only thing I need to do is to keep focussed on the finishing line and not worry about how long it takes to get there. I CAN stand firm.

Something to think about…

Why not have a go at personalising Hebrews 12:1-3 and re-write in your own words what you feel God is saying to you. You could also use my version and change to your own name. 

Lynne, you are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, throw off everything that hinders you and the sin that so easily entangles. Lynne, keep running with perseverance the race marked out for you. Fix your eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of your faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

If you enjoyed reading my thoughts on today’s Bible affirmation then why not catch up on my other thoughts for previous days.

Faith, Five Minute Friday

Steady As You Go

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Life is full of ups and downs – wouldn’t you agree? One minute you could be on cloud nine with excitement about some good news you have received…and then next you come crashing down to earth when something drastic happens. It’s not that easy to stay steady when things don’t go quite the way you planned, is it?

2 Timothy 4:5
As for you, be calm and cool and steady, accept and suffer unflinchingly every hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fully perform all the duties of your ministry.

When Paul writes to Timothy he gives him four directives that he should live by.

Be steady

My mum use to tell me this whenever I came to a situation that was beyond my control: “remember the three c’s – cool…calm…and collected”. It use to get on my nerves a little if she said it too much, but deep down I knew she was right.

Timothy’s first directive was to remain steady in what he was doing. He had to remain the three c’s – cool…calm…and collected. He needed to take seriously what he was doing in his life and remain focussed.

Be accepting of suffering

Accept suffering? Seriously? Now this is deep, but then Paul would know what he’s writing about after all the suffering he had endured. To name a few…

•He was in prison (and more than once);
•He constantly faced death;
•He was shipwrecked;
•He received whipping, flogging and was stoned…

…Shall I carry on?

Endurance is the ability to keep doing something difficult, unpleasant or painful for a long time. Like Paul, Timothy was instructed to keep steady whilst enduring his suffering…and he had to maintain the right perspective that would honour Christ.

Enduring our suffering and keeping the right mind throughout helps us to build on our character. This then in turn creates hope.

Carey Scott on her latest blog post “How to hold on to joy… no matter what’s trying to beat you down” reminds us how we can be steady and gain that hope…

“Friends, praise will always usher in joy when we’re struggling to find it. It’s a negativity-buster and gratitude-generator at the same time. And it will keep us tethered to hope… no matter what comes our way.”

Be an evangelist

It doesn’t matter who you are, what you do and where you are…spread the good news of Christ. It might not be your forte to communicate with other people the gospel, but we are commanded to do so.

Anyway, if Jesus can use a tax collector, some fisherman and, wait for it, even a political activist…then guess what, He will use you! What you do does not stop you from spreading the good news of Jesus.

Be the winner…

…and finish the race. Keep on going, not just endure, but to actually finish what has been started.

It’s been heard often that when runners compete in a marathon, it’s the last couple of hundred yards that seem the hardest. Just as you see the finish line in sight, everything seems heavier.

When things seem heavier, there is always a temptation to quit, especially when it comes to doing what God calls you to do. Each new day provides us with new challenges to complete the race.

How do we overcome this? By keeping our eyes fixed on the prize…Jesus Christ. As we run the race of life and we keep focused on Him we find that He is actually running the race with us and helping us along the way.

Something to think about…

Is there an area in your life where you are struggling to see the finish line and it’s hard to carry on with the race? Don’t give up. Just like runners who need to train constantly to keep on going when it gets tough, so do we.

When you feel off balance, keep steady by using Jesus as your weight to lean on. You will never be too heavy for Him as He can handle any weight you pile on. So, keep on keeping on and don’t give up!

Prayer

Lord, I know that I am going to go through life at times and feel like the race is too hard to run. Help me to be steady on my tracks and to keep focused on you so that I can endure whatever I run through. Amen.

You are reading a Five Minute Friday word prompt. This is hosted by Kate Motaung and is where a group of people write about a given word for that week. The word prompt write is “steady”. (Everything before the line break shows what I wrote in five minutes.) If you are interested in taking part or reading other people’s inspiring writes, then hop on over to the site.

Faith

Under The Weather

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This was me last week under the covers, with the fire on. I was feeling a bit fed up and sorry for myself with constantly not feeling well. I just wanted to get better. I wanted to be able to get up in the morning and feel like I hadn’t got something else wrong with me.

I apologise right now if I come across a little bit moany or ungrateful. I know that I should be thankful for the health that I do have. I know I’m not dying. I’m just saying how I feel at the moment, which is just a little bit crappy really. I’m just being honest.

I am 95% there now with my back and it’s great to be able to walk properly again. I can now keep up with the kids a bit more, which is kind of important when you are trying to catch them at something…and walking up the stairs doesn’t take me half an hour now!

I was ill last week though with a cold, topped off with an ear infection in both ears.  Dizziness… headaches… sneezing… feeling sick… earache… sore throat… aching… I think I will stop there!

I was trying to work out earlier when the last time was when I actually felt fit and healthy. You know where you can bounce out of bed and feel on top of the world.  I think it’s been a little over a year now to say the least. It feels a bit ridiculous, and frustrating at the same time, that I always have something wrong with me – and it’s been for so long.

Have you ever felt like that?

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It’s been one thing after another.  And honestly, when you feel a little bit under the weather, it is hard to feel positive. My friends probably look at me and think, “what’s wrong with her now?” I know I do!

There is something keeping me going through all this though…my faith. My faith gives me perseverance to carry on. I’m not saying it’s easy and that I don’t struggle, coz I do. Oh my word, do I struggle. So much so, that sometimes all I can do is just cry and shout out to God.

Shout out to God? Yeah, I shout at Him…I tell Him EXACTLY how I feel.  Why not? That’s what He’s there for after all.

When you are trying to look after yourself, and you have three little ones around you that are not well either…well, it’s blinkin’ hard! But somehow, I cope. I might not feel like I am at the time, but I do get through it. I can only believe that God is providing me with the grace and strength that I need to get through each day. He will never give me more than what I can cope with. I know that.

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If you are going through something right now, and you are finding it hard to cope,  hang in there. You may not feel it right now, but God is there right beside you…and He will not let you fall.