Tag Archives: #mindset

#inspiration, #spirituality

The Most Dangerous Prayer

In the Bible we are encouraged to “pray continuously.” Admittedly I forget to do this sometimes. Most days I’m just talking to God throughout my day. Perhaps that is prayer, but I just consider it talking to a trustworthy friend.

Do you want to activate your prayer life? If your answer to this question is yes, and you mean it, here’s how: pray the most dangerous prayer you can. And it’s short. Use me. That’s it. And believe me when I say that God will answer quickly.

God is looking for people He can use to accomplish His will on earth. When we become willing, He will use us.

Here is my daily prayer. Feel free to use it for yourself. “Use me. Work through me. Through my writings and through my words. Through my actions and through my deeds. Let me be a light in this dark world.”

Be a light…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Ask

What do you really want from life? Have you asked God for it?

This is everywhere in the Bible. Jesus himself told us that “whatever we ask for in prayer, believe you have already received it.” Faith is ignited by our belief. But remember, our motives must be pure, not selfish.

In The Book of James, the author reminds us that when we ask and don’t receive, it’s because we asked with the wrong motives.

There’s no ambiguity here. Proper motives aligned under God’s will have power. We just need to ask and keep asking. Does God need a reminder? Of course not. He wants to see how badly we want what we are asking for.

And if you are unsure, ask God to align your request under His will. He will take care of the rest…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Doubting

Why do we doubt ourselves? We didn’t walk perfectly when we started learning how to walk, but we kept trying. Doubt never enters the mind of a toddler. Today we walk wherever we want to and never give it a thought that we might not be able to.

Doubt overtook the disciples. Jesus told them that he would allow his enemies to kill him, but he would rise on the third day. The disciples had witnessed thousands of miracles performed by Jesus. Yet, when his prophecy came true about his death they scattered like cockroaches, fearing for their own safety. After Jesus’ resurrection, the disciples now had unshakable faith. Most of them died horribly. You don’t die for a lie.

Life has knocked most of us on our asses several times. Doubt creeps in. I encourage you to jettison your doubts and live fully. Live fearlessly.

Doubts will return, but you don’t have to believe in them. Believe in yourself…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Afraid

Over the course of our lives we develop fears, things we are afraid of. When left unchecked these fears can become irrational and debilitating.

Growing up in a violent home, I used to become fearful and I would shut down when people raised their voice. It triggered me. Even as an adult, I knew no one could harm me physically anymore, but inside of me the visceral reaction was real. Through my time spent with an excellent psychotherapist I was able to heal from my past.

Therapy is a good thing when you find the right therapist. I’m fortunate that God led me to the perfect person to guide me. The brain is a remarkable creation, resilient and powerful. We do the work. The therapist is the guide.

You don’t need to jump out of a perfectly good airplane to conquer your fears. You do need to take a leap into the abyss, the unknown, and work on yourself.

It’s an inside job…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Obsess Over It

What drives you? What would you spend your time doing whether you were paid or not? The answer is the key to your true purpose in life.

It has been estimated that over 80% of people go to jobs they really don’t like. You cannot be effective when you aren’t fully engaged. This is something you can change if you are in this situation.

Change requires discomfort. When we are comfortable there is no reason to do anything different. Motivation comes when we become uncomfortable.

Take inventory of your strengths. Figure out what you love to do. You don’t need to have everything figured out. Just do it…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Headcount

At sporting events they announce how many are in attendance that day. I’m not sure why because the stadiums always look full to me.

I know pastors who are obsessed with headcount. But their effectiveness isn’t measured by how many people hear the message. The question is, how many people heard the word and then did something with it. Those were the ones who were moved.

Audience size doesn’t matter. Remember, God had the people there who were supposed to be there. That is the best measure of headcount…

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#inspiration

Tax Day

On April 15th, Americans file their income taxes for the previous year. Or they have the option of extending the deadline to October 15th. Either way we pay.

I’m happy to pay taxes to support our military and keep our border secure. Our tax dollars should be used to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves, along with our veterans. These are legitimate expenses.

But Congress wastes tremendous amounts of money. They appropriated $3.5 million dollars for parade balloons in Michigan, and they sent $10 million to Pakistan for “gender studies.” Seriously.

Michigan can fund their own balloons and Pakistan can fund their gender studies without our money. It is our money. Government doesn’t produce revenue.

If you agree these are wasteful practices, write your Congressional Representatives. If they hear from enough people and believe they might not get reelected, then their behavior will change…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Ignition

The ignition on your car must be used to start the engine. If you don’t engage it, nothing happens and you go nowhere.

Similarly, the Word of God gets things, big things started when you believe. The Bible gives us the best, most comprehensive toolkit to live our lives well on this side of eternity.

Our planet and everything on it is broken and flawed. Yet, God transcends time and space. He is in the past, present and future at the same time. He knows what our future holds because He’s already there.

You will experience your share of trouble in this life. Thankfully we have the guide to get us through everything thrown our way.

Read God’s Word and pray. It’s time to get started…

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#inspiration

Processed

You hear a lot about how bad processed foods are for us, and they are. Our bodies aren’t meant to handle unnatural elements.

In today’s post, I want to talk about processing our emotions. Our brains can handle a lot, yet sometimes the mind gets wired in an unhealthy manner. But there’s good news! What was done can be undone, if we are willing to do the work.

Stuffing down our emotions like anger can destroy us. Righteous anger is okay, but it must be channeled correctly. Use it as fuel to right some of the wrongs in our world. Then anger comes out in the right way.

If you have been hurt by another person, I’m truly sorry. People do horrible things to others and damage the innocent. But I encourage you to process your emotions in a healthy way. You might need the guidance of a psychotherapist to work through it. But you can get through it and live fully.

Start today. In fact, start now…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Different On Purpose

The same way of doing things might work for a while, but to grow you must evolve. Situations change, as do people. Don’t fall into the limiting trap that says “we’ve always done it this way.”

Be on the lookout for new opportunities. Think and be different on purpose. Look at every situation through multiple lenses. Then be open to taking a chance to be different.

Life itself is full of risks. Nothing great ever happened by playing it safe…

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