When we ask God for something, our responsibility is not to continue to worry about it. Our responsibility is to simply believe. Hebrews 11:6 says “ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” The part I’d like to focus on is the part that says ” …for he who comes to God must believe that He is…” If we come to God we must believe that He is able to bring us out of the trial we are facing or He is able to do what we’ve asked Him to do for us.

James 1:6-8 tells us about the dangers of asking God for something and then not believing. Verse 6 gives us an example of what we’re like when we ask God for something but don’t apply faith to it. It says “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind…” When we look at waves being tossed by the wind, they’re unstable, and even scary at times. When we  ask God for something but don’t apply faith to it, we are like those waves…unstable.

…to be continued

Throwing it Out Part 1 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

God didn’t  equip us to run away from things. If you study the armor of God in Ephesians 6:14-18, you will notice all of the armor God has given us covers the front of our bodies…not the back. Our armor isn’t designed to protect us from running away, it’s designed to help us confront. Know that when we run away from things, just like failed tests, we will have to go back and face that things eventually. I believe it makes more sense to simply deal with it and get it over with,  than to waste a bunch of time going into the wilderness. We will only end up having to go back to the thing in the end.

Ladies, we can do all things through Christ who strengthens  us (Philippians 4:13). This includes dealing with problems and facing challenges. When God says to “fear not”, He’s not telling us to not feel the emotion of fear. He is telling us not to run away from what’s making us feel that fear. When confrontations, problems and challenges arise, simply seek God for the solutions. Then, trust and believe that He will come through as promised in His word.

Running Away Part 3 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

Why are we running? I believe the main reason is fear. For me, I didn’t like to cause strife, “drama”, or hurt someone’s feelings. I believe my main reasons were fear of man. Whatever the reasons were, they were all rooted in fear. We know that fear is the opposite of faith. Hagar didn’t show her faith that God would help with with the issues between her and Sarah. Elijah wasn’t showing faith that God would save his life when Jezebel sought to take it. When we run away from something, we are not showing our faith that God will help us deal with the problem

Running Away Part 2 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

The Bible shows us several examples of this. One example can be seen in Genesis 16 with the situation between Sarah (then Sari) and Hagar. Sarah couldn’t have any children. So, she told her husband Abraham (then Abram) to have a child with her maid, Hagar. Verse 4 says, when Hagar saw that she was pregnant by Abraham , she “became despised in her eyes.” I think it means she got an attitude with Sarah. Verse 6 says Sarah dealt with Hagar harshly. I don’t know if it was physical or verbal but Hagar didn’t take it too well because she ran from the situation. Ending up in the wilderness.  God tells Hagar through an angel to return to Sarai. So, even though she ran from the problem, she still had to go back and face it.

When we are the ones that are being mistreated, as in Hagar’s case, running away may seem like  the logical thing to do.  But, staying and facing the problem is the solution. I can remember a time while working at a retail store,  the store manager and I didn’t get along very well. I will never forget a day when I’d called my husband telling him that I was ready to walk away from that job and quit. Had I quit, I would have been running away from the situation and not facing it…

Running Away Part 1 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

The first part of 1 Thessalonians 5:24 is very reassuring. It says “He who calls you is faithful…” I love the fact that the word “is” is italicized. As it can be deemed as another form of reassurance. God is faithful…period. There are tons of examples in the Bible showing this. He was faithful back then and He is faithful now. When God says He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5) He means it and we can rest assured that He won’t leave us high and dry.

The second part of 1 Thessalonians 5:24 also takes the pressure off. It says, “who also will do it.” This plainly tells us that God is the one that fulfills the call on our lives. Isn’t that great news!? So, whatever your calling in life is, you don’t have to worry about going at it on your own. God will finish it for you (see also Phil 1:6). And because He’s faithful, He won’t give up when it gets too hard.

The burden of the work is not ours. However, we do have the responsibility of cooperating with the Holy Spirit. Jesus talks about the Holy Spirit being our “helper” in John 14:16. He will help us, guide us, and comfort us when things get tough. In 2 Chronicles 20:15 it talks about a particular battle belonging to God and not Judah. This can be applied to every aspect of our lives and not just when we are battling life’s trials and tribulations.

Ladies, God has a plan for all of our lives. But it’s just that, God’s plan. And since it’s His plan, He’ll get it done. All we have to do is listen, and do what He leads us to do. There’s no need to be worried about fulfilling God’s call on our lives, because He’ll faithfully complete it.

He Will Complete It is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

Many times the young, exuberant, confident child is beat down because of his dream. Life doesn’t want to GIVE him anything. People who have lose hope in their own dreams have morphed into crabs and they all realize that they are in this mental barrel. No one wants sees themselves getting out and no one wants to dare allow another to see their dream either. In unison they sing a song of sorrow with the ways they live their lives.

Ask them what’s up? and often times you’ll here “same ‘ole same ole’ .. either that or they begin to run down a list of what’s not and what didn’t happen. There’s a good chance these people have not gotten over themselves! They have not looked in the mirror and told themselves that regardless of the bullies and put downs, regardless of the bad decisions and regardless of the hand they were dealt. I’m STILL going to be that Fireman! The young girl hasn’t told herself that even though she grew up in the project housing that she still deserved to be treated like a princess. They have settled for whatever life brought them. They have chose to believe the words of those who said they couldn’t do it. They have listened to the statistics and placed themselves next in line. Some have convinced themselves that they are too old. They have not got over the person who made dumb mistakes.

Well, the time is now. The time is NOW to take out your makeup mirror (yes, please do.. take out your mirror), or go to your closest bathroom stall guys — Its time to look at that person and remind them of the dreams they once had as a child. Its time to convince your person of a new conversation. Its time to get over the divorce, the double crossing friends and enemies who plotted your downfall. Its time to realize that things like that will be around for a long time to come.. and its also time for the person in the mirror to say SO WHAT! its time to get over who you once were. Its time to submit to a God who loves you. Its time to accept a Savior who does for you and cares. Its time out for worrying who or what you will lose because of your positive decision making.

You have to realize that whatever falls off because you doing something good, probably wasn’t meant to be there in the first place. Its time to GET OVER OLD SELF and Move on! Dream again!

Get more of Timothy Jones’ ministry at Mixtape Ministry

Get Over Yourself :: Dream Again – Guest Post by Timothy Jones Part 3 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

Maybe you’ve heard about the crab in the barrel mentality. How when one crab tries to climb out the bucket, the rest who are at the bottom pull it back down and none of them achieve the goal of getting out. Its very likely you didn’t hear that story about the crabs in the barrel just because.. the speaker was probably going through it at that time or at a time before. We are surrounded by it. Everywhere you look and turn, there are people who would rather see you in a pit than on a cloud. This reality can cause people
to not want to achieve a point in life where they may end up alone so they go along with their struggles just to fit it. That may sound tuity fruity..but its true. Some people are afraid to make it.

Many of us when we were young school aged children would proclaim in a heart beat what we wanted to be when we grew up. A little 6 year old boy, may with all smiles yell, “A Fireman!” .. another, “A Police Officer!” and another “A Doctor.” Little girls may squeal, “A Lawyer!” or a Teacher and one might even shyly envision being a Princess. These kids probably had no idea what achieving these position would consist of, and probably nor did they care. They just knew what they wanted to be and let them tell it, no one or nothing was going to get into their way of achieving that goal.

Then came Life.

Bullies, name-callers, Teenage Peer pressures, bad decision making, rebellion, bad habits, teenage pregnancy, relationship breakups, 2 faced friends, rejection, job loss and the list could go on and on.. and before you know it, the young child who, chest out, with a wide grin, proclaimed to the world that he wanted to be a doctor, is now in the ER being attended by one due to a near drug overdose. What happened?

Many times the young, exuberant, confident child is beat down because of his dream. Life doesn’t want to GIVE him anything. People who have lose hope in their own dreams have morphed into crabs and they all realize that they are in this mental barrel. No one wants sees themselves getting out and no one wants to dare allow another to see their dream either. In unison they sing a song of sorrow with the ways they live their lives.

to be continued…

Get Over Yourself :: Dream Again Guest Post by Timothy Jones Part 2 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

-Timothy Jones for MixtapeMinistry.com

So many of us desire to do things that we simply can’t see ourselves actually doing. The question is, Why is this? These people have not gotten over themselves. Often, these people have not gotten over all the mistakes they have made in life, the failures that have come their way and bad decisions they have made. In a gist, they either think its too late for them or they don’t believe they have the ability or means to get it done. They have not gotten over themselves.

When some of you saw the title “Get Over Yourself”, maybe you thought this was going to speak about how we need to tone it down a bit, stop being so arrogant and prideful and to not think you’re all that That alone can be an indication of how we have allowed life and the people around us to dictate how we act and/or think. Some people are actually afraid to succeed and not because they don’t think they can achieve success, but because they are afraid of who and what they will lose once they do achieve it.

Maybe you’ve heard about the crab in the barrel mentality. How when one crab tries to climb out the bucket, the rest who are at the bottom pull it back down and none of them achieve the goal of getting out. Its very likely you didn’t hear that story about the crabs in the barrel just because.. the speaker was probably going through it at that time or at a time before. We are surrounded by it. Everywhere you look and turn, there are people who would rather see you in a pit than on a cloud…

…to be continued

Get Over Yourself :: Dream Again – Guest Post by Timothy Jones Part 1 of 3 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

In a post titled “Something from Nothing“, I talk about a revelation my husband shared with me. We don’t like dirt, we don’t want to get it on our clothing and we strive to stay way from it as much as possible. Yet, God used it to form the greatest creation…man. If God can take dirt and make something great, how much more can He use us? Don’t worry about whether you are qualified for the job or not. God qualified you when He called you.  If He gives the vision, He will make the provision. So, what are you waiting for? God’s calling you to do something great my sister…pick up that spiritual phone and meet your destiny!

Unfit and Unqualified Part 2 of 2 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com

There are several examples in the Bible where God hires someone that the world may deem as unqualified for the job. The most profound women in the Bible were the ones that seemed the least fit and qualified for the tasks they accomplished. Ruth was a widow, Esther was an orphan, and Rahab was a harlot. Yet, all three of these women were used by God in mighty ways. What would have happened if they had allowed whether they were qualified for their calling stop them from being obedient to God?

Unfit and Unqualified Part 1 of 2 is a post from: Mrs. BliSs for WomantoAnother.com