Be Joyful Always...

"Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil, and let us see what we are made of."

UPDATE:
Hello all! I have been dying to write this next post because i have been so encouraged lately through you guys participation in everything. Wow is the only word that's coming to mind right now (probably due to the fact that I'm not the type to pull out a dramatic vocabulary word in a time like this).. but seriously! Through the "donation" link, I have received about $400 and that's just through the link. I have also received emails and Facebook messages from people wanting to participate by sending a good ol' fashioned letter. You all have encouraged me in this process verbally and nonverbally more than you realize. Also, those of you who have sent me a personal letter of encouragement, THANK YOU. It means the world. To fill you in, the support raising these past couple of weeks since my last post has been remarkable. More support from the first round of letters I sent out are coming back in the mail which is a thumb's up in my book plussss the online support that i've received equals a second THUMB'S UP. I am approximately 75% there goal-wise so two thumbs up right back at yall! Let's keep pressing on towards the final goal... almost there!

Since this journey began, I have experienced trials of all types and something I've been contemplating lately is how do you know if its Satan scheming or God working. If you look at the story of Job, God allowed Satan access to test his faithfulness to Him. Why would God allow such a thing? For God's glory. One thing that's become clear is that God is Sovereign and will receive glory in everything; that's just who He is! Well, the conclusion to the story of Job was that he was faithful all the way through. He lost everything, but in the end, God poured out blessings that tripled what he had before. The lesson to learn here is it's all in how we choose to respond to the trial at hand. God-given or Satan inflicted, glorify the LORD in your response to the particular trial and He WILL bless you. God's hand is in everything. Through trials, we are being refined into the men and women the Lord desires us to become.

Of course, I expected for my world to be rocked sooner or later due to the big trip coming up, but definitely not in the ways I've experienced. Some wise words were written to me recently: "When you embark on a journey of truly utilizing your life for the purpose of the Lord, SATAN SHOWS UP; to walk with you and attempt in every way to destroy your aim and your devotion." Honestly, he was successful for a little while, but praise be to our God and Father to rescue me from his snare and turn it into a life lesson for me to learn from.

James 1:2-4:
"Count it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

Count it all joy... Okay. Sounds so easy, but to actually put it into effect? Now, that's a challenge. When i think of the trials that I've come face-to-face with these last several months, I cringe at the thought to "count them all joy." How can someone find joy in such things as pain, heartache, suffering, and rejection? Well, Christ did 2,000 years ago. Before finding Christ myself, I would have thought someone to be a crazy freak if they had a smile on their face during one of the hardest times of their life. Just because Jesus Christ was God, he was man and walked with man and thought as a man. Yes, He lived a blameless life, but He did NOT have i easy. He experienced everything you and I face daily. Those days where everything seems to go wrong, He knows how you feel because He had many of those days Himself. Just because He walked on this earth ages ago doesn't mean he can't 'identify' with you. He created you! He knows how you tick and how you think; That thought that just passed through your mind- He knew it before you even thought it. Who would want to bypass a friend like that? If i remember correctly, most of our best friends in life are those who we feel 'understand' us? Hmm... I'll leave you to contemplate that.

So, recently, that has been what I've been learning... to count it all joy when it comes to trials in life. When I experience hurt from a dear friend, I count it all but joy. When i experience rejection, I count it all joy. When things don't go the way they should have, I will choose to count it all joy. Because of these trials, I am a stronger person and will be better suited for the battle that's headed my way in a couple months! Satan will not have any part in stealing my focus nor my devotion in life. God has a huge plan for me as well as He does you, so don't allow the obstacles Satan throws in your path to distract you from where you were walking in the first place. Every day will be a battle, but God is daily training us: "God often takes away our comforts and our privileges in order to make us better Christians. He trains His soldiers, not in tents of ease and luxury, but by turning them out and using them to forced marches and hard service." Charles Spurgeon

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (MY LIFE VERSE):
"Be JOYFUL always; pray continually; and GIVE THANKS in ALL CIRCUMSTANCES, for this is God's WILL for you in CHRIST JESUS."

Australian Interesting Fact:
People of Queensland in Australia are called “Banana Benders." Also, “Sand Gropers” is the name given to the people from Western Australia .