Have you ever felt like you just didn't want to read the word, visit a church, or bother with anything spiritual? If so, the following are some suggestions to keep you mentally and spiritually strong even if you don't feel like doing nothing but murmuring and complaining like the Israelites in the wilderness.
1. Read the scriptures.
2. Listen to others' testimonies.
3. Use your prayer language.
4. Pray.
5. Worship (without restriction.)
6. Ponder on the things God has already been doing in your life. You may want to write down your thoughts, then reflect on them at a later date to see how God has brought you through.
7. Sing.
8. Ask someone to pray for you.
9. Fast. (TV, food, Internet, phone, and people.)
10. Scream.
11. Cry.
12. Lie down on the floor and don't move for a long time.
13. Fall on your knees.
14. Sit quietly.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
Saturday
Always in a Rush
In a slow town, in slow motion
where people talk slow, walk slow.
God speaks.
No excuses anymore to not listen.
No honking cars in rush hour.
No people passing each other without a glance.
Someone knows your name.
Someone is praying for you.
A long way from home.
You don't need to talk fast, move fast
or rush God with your requests.
"God I want...
God I need....
God I love you..."
God isn't buying it.
Quiet!
Stop talking!
Your always in a rush!
He put you here, city boy, city girl in a small town
with small wishes, with small voices and small minds.
A town you love to hate.
But why?
Can't appreciate the simple things, too busy looking for the big things.
Someone told you there is a better life amongst the noise.
You remember the sound of birds and crickets don't you?
What about the singing of rain drops and wind?
No man-made sounds day and night in this here small town.
Peace and quiet.
What is He saying to you?
Is life difficult these days?
Are you troubled?
Can't get your head out of the past?
Lost in the future?
Breathe.
Your heart is racing.
Chest tightening.
Just breathe.
Take your time.
What's your hurry?
Always getting up to go to the next room to...
watch TV,
wipe something clean,
straighten something up,
pick up the phone,
listen to music,
surf the Internet,
get ready for work,
go to school.
He's talking.
Are you listening?
where people talk slow, walk slow.
God speaks.
No excuses anymore to not listen.
No honking cars in rush hour.
No people passing each other without a glance.
Someone knows your name.
Someone is praying for you.
A long way from home.
You don't need to talk fast, move fast
or rush God with your requests.
"God I want...
God I need....
God I love you..."
God isn't buying it.
Quiet!
Stop talking!
Your always in a rush!
He put you here, city boy, city girl in a small town
with small wishes, with small voices and small minds.
A town you love to hate.
But why?
Can't appreciate the simple things, too busy looking for the big things.
Someone told you there is a better life amongst the noise.
You remember the sound of birds and crickets don't you?
What about the singing of rain drops and wind?
No man-made sounds day and night in this here small town.
Peace and quiet.
What is He saying to you?
Is life difficult these days?
Are you troubled?
Can't get your head out of the past?
Lost in the future?
Breathe.
Your heart is racing.
Chest tightening.
Just breathe.
Take your time.
What's your hurry?
Always getting up to go to the next room to...
watch TV,
wipe something clean,
straighten something up,
pick up the phone,
listen to music,
surf the Internet,
get ready for work,
go to school.
He's talking.
Are you listening?
Wednesday
Poem: The Quick Tongue by Nicholl McGuire
Didn't mean it.
Thought it was the right thing to say,
at the time.
Some believe, "God told me to tell you..."
Others disagree.
I couldn't justify the reason.
Couldn't think of any excuse.
Needed some time to think.
Pressure.
Always pressure.
Make a decision now.
Think about the consequences later.
Say what you feel now.
Apologize later.
Repercussions.
Pay back.
They never see you the same way again.
Forgiveness doesn't erase memories.
Thought it was the right thing to say,
at the time.
Some believe, "God told me to tell you..."
Others disagree.
I couldn't justify the reason.
Couldn't think of any excuse.
Needed some time to think.
Pressure.
Always pressure.
Make a decision now.
Think about the consequences later.
Say what you feel now.
Apologize later.
Repercussions.
Pay back.
They never see you the same way again.
Forgiveness doesn't erase memories.
Locked Up, Locked In, Locked Out
Man down.
Frustrated.
TV watching doesn't suffice.
Walking in circles
from room to room
while his wife or is it his girlfriend or maybe it's his baby mama watches?
Locked up.
The prison warden makes a phone call
freedom lures him out of his cage,
but he doesn't want to go.
Locked in.
Established walls with no place to go,
he has no one to talk to,
no peace of mind
and no purpose for living of any kind.
Locked out.
his past caught up with him
no one wants Negativity around.
His mouth gets him in trouble.
Calling out for help,
"I need...I want...!" the man locked up, locked in, locked out,
ushers the unsuspecting to listen to him.
Caught in a trap, like a mouse, the good Samaritan now needs help.
Nothing more than a distraction is Negativity.
God stopped talking to him long ago.
Frustrated.
TV watching doesn't suffice.
Walking in circles
from room to room
while his wife or is it his girlfriend or maybe it's his baby mama watches?
Locked up.
The prison warden makes a phone call
freedom lures him out of his cage,
but he doesn't want to go.
Locked in.
Established walls with no place to go,
he has no one to talk to,
no peace of mind
and no purpose for living of any kind.
Locked out.
his past caught up with him
no one wants Negativity around.
His mouth gets him in trouble.
Calling out for help,
"I need...I want...!" the man locked up, locked in, locked out,
ushers the unsuspecting to listen to him.
Caught in a trap, like a mouse, the good Samaritan now needs help.
Nothing more than a distraction is Negativity.
God stopped talking to him long ago.
Monday
Feeling Angry, Misused and Confused?
“So tired! So tired of feeling like my head is going to pop off because the stress of work, raising children, maintaining a relationship, eating healthy, managing extracurricular activities, and the bills (the ones I know about and the ones that surprise me on any given day) is getting to be too much! Help Lord! Help!”
Have you ever felt like this? Does it seem like God has forgotten you? Do you feel like giving up on everything? If so, then it’s time to delegate some responsibilities, make some changes in your schedule, talk to your boss about taking a personal day, and tap a family member, friend or a babysitter for some help so that you can take some time to orchestrate a plan to make your burdens lighter!
For believers, you know God told us he wouldn’t put anymore on us then we can bear, but so often God isn’t the one putting burdens on us -- we are! Then we suffer with headaches, heartaches, backaches and whatever other ache! For example, read the following burdens we put on ourselves that have nothing to do with what God puts on us.
• Living a life bigger than we can afford.
• Taking on employment for a challenge and money which requires us to work long hours.
• Taking chances with sex and then one day, “Surprise we are expecting!” (Or in need of healing.)
• Drinking and eating things that we know are bad for our bodies then wonder why we are so sick.
• Wanting what we think is best for our children even if it means they have little time to do what is required of them like their homework all so we can say, “My child is into this activity and my child is doing this…”
• Opening up lines of credit on things we know we can’t afford including cars when public transportation is within walking distance.
• Fill our minds with music, television, Internet, and radio programming that subconsciously make us feel worse ie.) songs about breaking up, murder dramas, and unrealistic sexual fantasies.
We are all guilty of putting more on us than we can bear. Then we complain about not having any money! Then when we get more, we still aren’t satisfied. So yes, when we get to a place of being so tired that we can’t carry the burden anymore, that’s when we will change! That’s when we will get tired of the attitude that creeps upon us when someone asks us to do just one more thing. We will throw in the towel on a relationship that hasn’t been going anywhere for years. We will find childcare when we know we can’t handle being at home with the children. We will start exercising when we can’t stand to go to another doctor’s appointment. We will stop trying to be like the Joneses and put off those extracurricular activities for our children until we have the time and money to dedicate to them.
However, some of us just aren’t tired enough and so it’s only a matter of time that we will be put on our backs in a bed while looking up at the ceiling and thinking, “How did things get this way?” For some of us, we will come out of sickness and fight to get things right in our lives. But for others, despite illness, they just won’t learn. They will keep on being tired, keep on having an attitude, keep on feeling misused, and walk around looking confused.
You see, no one likes truth when he or she is busily working on a life that is spiraling downhill. We run from it, we deny, we defend, and we cut people off, because truth hurts. Truth doesn’t take you by the hand and coddle you. It pushes you in the back, sometimes grabs you around the throat, or simply looks you in the eye and says, “You’re wrong!” You’re wrong for walking around here with a bad attitude. You are wrong for thinking you are better than the next woman or man. You are wrong for treating your partner and children that way. For some people, truth will convict, shake you up wherever you are! I have personally seen truth at its worst, for those who are hardheaded, put people in jail, kill, burn down and burn up, cause one to miscarry, cause another to catch a disease, expose secrets, and so much more!
For believers, you know when truth gets way down deep into your soul: you are dancing, crying, screaming, chanting, jumping, running, or sitting still unable to move! Then one day you wake up and say, “I’m tired of feeling angry. I’m tired of having an attitude, feeling misused and confused!” Then you will act on what you know and you will begin to do things differently.
Some of us adults are like babies trying to walk for the first time, we stumble, we hold on, we fall and then we keep getting back up again until we have mastered the walk. Then as we learn how to walk, we will talk but there is life and death in the tongue, according to the Bible. Unlike babies who don’t have a choice of teachers to select, adults do. We should associate ourselves with people who will help us discover our truths; therefore, providing us with the common sense and wisdom to not only walk but talk the talk--the kind of people who will see when we are falling and call us to truth.
In time, we will get better! Then those around us will take notice that we don’t have such a bad attitude anymore and that we aren’t as angry as we once were. As we feel better about ourselves we won’t easily fall into traps of being misused or abused. Some people right now who are reading this are in the midst of change. You are thinking about the people in your life you must rid yourself of, you are thinking about cutting back on some of those activities you have got yourself and children in, you are thinking of doing some things to improve your personal relationships, and you are planning to make some financial changes too. This is what truth does it makes you sick and tired of being sick and tired!
God bless!
Have you ever felt like this? Does it seem like God has forgotten you? Do you feel like giving up on everything? If so, then it’s time to delegate some responsibilities, make some changes in your schedule, talk to your boss about taking a personal day, and tap a family member, friend or a babysitter for some help so that you can take some time to orchestrate a plan to make your burdens lighter!
For believers, you know God told us he wouldn’t put anymore on us then we can bear, but so often God isn’t the one putting burdens on us -- we are! Then we suffer with headaches, heartaches, backaches and whatever other ache! For example, read the following burdens we put on ourselves that have nothing to do with what God puts on us.
• Living a life bigger than we can afford.
• Taking on employment for a challenge and money which requires us to work long hours.
• Taking chances with sex and then one day, “Surprise we are expecting!” (Or in need of healing.)
• Drinking and eating things that we know are bad for our bodies then wonder why we are so sick.
• Wanting what we think is best for our children even if it means they have little time to do what is required of them like their homework all so we can say, “My child is into this activity and my child is doing this…”
• Opening up lines of credit on things we know we can’t afford including cars when public transportation is within walking distance.
• Fill our minds with music, television, Internet, and radio programming that subconsciously make us feel worse ie.) songs about breaking up, murder dramas, and unrealistic sexual fantasies.
We are all guilty of putting more on us than we can bear. Then we complain about not having any money! Then when we get more, we still aren’t satisfied. So yes, when we get to a place of being so tired that we can’t carry the burden anymore, that’s when we will change! That’s when we will get tired of the attitude that creeps upon us when someone asks us to do just one more thing. We will throw in the towel on a relationship that hasn’t been going anywhere for years. We will find childcare when we know we can’t handle being at home with the children. We will start exercising when we can’t stand to go to another doctor’s appointment. We will stop trying to be like the Joneses and put off those extracurricular activities for our children until we have the time and money to dedicate to them.
However, some of us just aren’t tired enough and so it’s only a matter of time that we will be put on our backs in a bed while looking up at the ceiling and thinking, “How did things get this way?” For some of us, we will come out of sickness and fight to get things right in our lives. But for others, despite illness, they just won’t learn. They will keep on being tired, keep on having an attitude, keep on feeling misused, and walk around looking confused.
You see, no one likes truth when he or she is busily working on a life that is spiraling downhill. We run from it, we deny, we defend, and we cut people off, because truth hurts. Truth doesn’t take you by the hand and coddle you. It pushes you in the back, sometimes grabs you around the throat, or simply looks you in the eye and says, “You’re wrong!” You’re wrong for walking around here with a bad attitude. You are wrong for thinking you are better than the next woman or man. You are wrong for treating your partner and children that way. For some people, truth will convict, shake you up wherever you are! I have personally seen truth at its worst, for those who are hardheaded, put people in jail, kill, burn down and burn up, cause one to miscarry, cause another to catch a disease, expose secrets, and so much more!
For believers, you know when truth gets way down deep into your soul: you are dancing, crying, screaming, chanting, jumping, running, or sitting still unable to move! Then one day you wake up and say, “I’m tired of feeling angry. I’m tired of having an attitude, feeling misused and confused!” Then you will act on what you know and you will begin to do things differently.
Some of us adults are like babies trying to walk for the first time, we stumble, we hold on, we fall and then we keep getting back up again until we have mastered the walk. Then as we learn how to walk, we will talk but there is life and death in the tongue, according to the Bible. Unlike babies who don’t have a choice of teachers to select, adults do. We should associate ourselves with people who will help us discover our truths; therefore, providing us with the common sense and wisdom to not only walk but talk the talk--the kind of people who will see when we are falling and call us to truth.
In time, we will get better! Then those around us will take notice that we don’t have such a bad attitude anymore and that we aren’t as angry as we once were. As we feel better about ourselves we won’t easily fall into traps of being misused or abused. Some people right now who are reading this are in the midst of change. You are thinking about the people in your life you must rid yourself of, you are thinking about cutting back on some of those activities you have got yourself and children in, you are thinking of doing some things to improve your personal relationships, and you are planning to make some financial changes too. This is what truth does it makes you sick and tired of being sick and tired!
God bless!
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