Friday, August 9, 2013

SHOUT IT OUT!

Good morning, my sister's in Christ Jesus!  I speak the blessings of God's favor upon your life.  And that you stay strong and encouraged through the midst of a storm.  God bless you.
 
(Revelations 12:11), They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the words of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.  Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!  But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!  His is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.
 
Your past is a part of your future.  Time and time again, we hear ministers or our friends say that you cannot move forward if you are living in your past.  I totally agree with that statement.  But let me help you out a little further.  Don't live thinking about trying to change your past or wishing that certain bad events or difficult circumstances never happened.  God says for you to use your past to be a living testimony.  Look back only if you are willing to pull someone else into their future.
 
A lot of times when we think about difficult circumstance and horrific things that have happened to us in our past, we tend to cringe up at the very thought of it.  Some of us even go as far as to pray to the Lord that He would take those thoughts and memories away from us.  That is something that I have prayed about and not understanding why God would not removed horrific memories from me.  I could not understand why certain things would keep coming up over and over again in my heart and mind.  Believing that God loves me so much, I wondered why not just take those painful memories out of my mind for once and for all.
 
The two things that I want to touch base on is (1) we can overcome the enemy by the words of our testimonies.  Turn your trials into testimonies.  If you have been set free from addictions, sexual abuse, drugs, rejected feelings, etc.  Don't hold your head down every time someone mentions it or you hear someone referring to people in the church.  Hold your head up high when you know that nobody but God could have brought you out of that situation.  Praise God for having mercy and loving you so much that He didn't mind getting a little dirty to snatch you out of the hands of the devil.  Never be ashamed of your past if you have moved on.  Share your story, shout it out to all the women that are where you have been, letting them know that there is hope for them through Jesus Christ.
 
(2)  The devil has come down here to us.  And the bible says that he is furious because he knows that he time is short.  The devil is furious at you every time you open your mouth to tell your testimony because you are snatching another woman out of his grasp.  The devil is furious at you because you did not die when he set his eyes on you to destroy you with drugs, abuse, rejection and everything but the kitchen sink.  The devil is furious at you because you are not giving him no glory about anything in your past.
 
It has taken me awhile to understand that God did not remove any of my past because He wants me to shout it out to all of you in the ministry.  The trials that I have overcome through my Lord and Savior are now my testimonies.  PRAISE GOD!
 
If you would like to support, "Spiritual Growth for Women Ministry", visit www.amazon.com or www.xlibris.com and purchase a copy of my book, "Spiritual Growth for Women - Breaking Shackles".  Thank you.  God bless you.