Category Archives: Deep Restoration

Finding Peace For Restoration

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We live in a very noisy society today.  Everyday we get up and go about our business, we are bombarded with a million distractions around us, stuff on radio and tv, social media, daily traffic on our commute, drama in our circles, drama in the workplace, and so much more.  From the time we get up, until the time we go to sleep, we are under constant bombardment which can easily distract and wear us out, not only physically, but emotionally and spiritually.  With so much going on, many of us don’t take the time to step away and find time to sit in peace and solitude to restore ourselves.  I was reading an article yesterday about solitude an and the importance we have of finding a place where we can stay away from the distractions of this world and restore ourselves in solitude.

Some where do you go for that peace or do you at all?  For me, there are a few places I find helpful for my restoration.  First for my daily time, it comes in the early morning hours, before the house starts moving.  When I get this time, I dive into God’s Word and meditate and journal on what I’m reading that day and then pray on it.  This is a daily practice that helps really get the day going.  Also during my morning workouts at the gym.  I plug my ears in with Praise and Worship music whenever I workout and stay locked in for the next hour and half.  For my major restoration from the year of craziness that comes from work and family priorities, it comes when I am at the beach.  There is something about getting up in the early morning and walking on the sand before all the other vacationers come out.  I listen to the ocean, feel the breeze, and in that place I feel completely locked in with God.

During any of these times, it’s not about being alone and lonely, it’s about solitude.  As the article I read in And Sons Magazine describes, there is a distinct difference between loneliness and solitude.  The author describes loneliness as “Cold. It haunts us in the quiet hours when we have failed to create enough white noise to drown it out. It is scary. It is deafening.”  Solitude however, “is the quiet of standing in a windless snowfall. The snow acts as a sound dampener—it’s hard to hear a car even if it’s only 20 feet away. It’s more than quiet—it is substantive, as if you could stretch out your hand and push into the silence like a down pillow.”

As the article also points out, there is one who made moments of solitude a regular practice.  That is none other that Jesus Christ.  Many times in the Gospels we read of Jesus stepping away into the wilderness to pray and restore himself.  To connect with The Father.

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” (Mark 1:35)

“After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone….” (Matthew 14:23)

Then of course there was the 40 days in the wilderness which prepared Jesus for what was to come in His ministry and in fulfilling His purpose according Scripture.

These moments of solitude are extremely important parts of our lives and our restoration and preparation for what is still to come in our lives.  In these moments we can connect closer with God.  We can sit still in silence and fill His Spirit fill us and restore us.  It is in these moments where we can fully let go of the stresses this world brings in our daily lives and talk with God and listen to where He leads.  These moments are priceless and really help prepare for the next steps in our journey.

I am going to touch on this more in the coming weeks.  My next video blog will come out in July and will be on this very subject.  I think this is such an important part of our lives in our walk with God and finding where He is leading us, dealing with the spiritual battles and sin that the Adversary throws our way every day, and in restoration our lives and relationships with those around us.  We all need that place and that time to find peace and restoration.

Having Faith in Where God is Leading You

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Have you ever had those moments where you felt like you were called to do something radical and different?  You sat and pondered the idea and felt like it was something you needed to act on.  Then in the midst of preparation and putting that idea together and bringing it to life you fall back and start having thoughts pulling against you.  Thoughts that may the result of fear and anxiety over what you are about to do and then quiet often, fear over what others might think of it.  Then you start to question your own motives and often questioning God’s motives and wonder if you can really go through with it and where He may be calling to go.

I’ve definitely had those moments.  Many of you saw my last post “My Faith Testimony,” where I stood in front of the camera for the first time and shared with everyone my personal faith testimony and journey of how I came to building a relationship with God and Jesus Christ.  Those reading my blog will know that I first posted about this idea over a month ago.  I knew that was going to be a big moment for me and faith journey and knew God was leading me to take that step.  Over the last month, time and time again, I questioned myself and even prayed if this was what God really wanted me to do.  It would pull me away from the idea and took me some time to finally get up in front of the camera to do it.

What you don’t know, is that it took three efforts of recording to finally get it to where I wanted.  After the first time through I was so caught up in critiquing myself and was so scattered that I almost scrapped the idea.  I felt throughout the days after that something was trying to stop me and I started thinking very negative about it.  After a few days of prayer and discussion with my wife, I was motivated again and trusted that God was leading me down the right path.  Since posting, I realized that it was the right thing.

Sharing my story and journey took a lot of guts for me.  I am quite the introvert.  Very reserved and am not one that goes out to seek attention and conversation.  God was telling me that I needed to take a giant leap of faith though.  I realized from this that when He is calling on you to do something new and big, you just have to trust Him.  Trust where God is leading you and have faith in the results.  I don’t do any of this, writing or the videos for my own sake and glory.  For me it is all about God.  It is all about drawing closer to God’s heart and helping to lead people to draw closer to God as well.

The enemy will try every way he can to stop you.  That is where the doubts and fears come from.  You begin to worry about what the world will say if you answer that call; if you make that big change or do the task thrown before you.  You start to stress about potential consequences and start hearing conflicting thoughts in your own head.  I dealt with those same thoughts.  I often deal with those thoughts when I write too.  That feeling of hesitancy before hitting the button to publish.

Simply put, trust in God.  Have faith in where He is leading you.  Have the confidence to take the leap.   You’re going to always have naysayers.  You’re going to always contend with some kind of negative trying to slow you down or prevent you from doing what your being called to do.  Spend time in prayer.  Listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  Know that God is using you for His purpose and have faith that your efforts draw you closer to Him.  Give God all the glory.  The results may not always be what you expect, but trust what God expects and what He’s doing.

You have a choice in it all.  God gave us that will to make the choice.  He knows where He wants to move, but we have to decide if we follow where He leads or go our own way and where the world tells us.  Have faith in Him.  Saint Augustine said, “Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.”  Your faith will bring about great reward in the end.  Hold tight to that.

Is Your Heart Thirsty?

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This week, I began reading a book called “The Sacred Romance – Drawing Closer to the Heart of God”  This book was written by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge.  Now, for those that have followed my writing, you will notice that I often quote information from Ransomed Heart Ministries and books from John Eldredge and others.  While I just started this book, I felt prompted already to begin sharing.  I look forward to uncovering what else they have in this book and I’m sure I’ll be motivated to share more as I go along.   I don’t do this to copy what they doing, but I do this because I believe God has called me many times over to reach other men and beyond in their own pursuit of knowing God’s purpose for their life and pursuing life in way that is close to God and glorifies Him daily.  That’s what we are all meant to do.  To glorify God in all we do, whether the outcomes are good or bad, we have to give glory to Him.

Now in this book, the very first chapter speaks to the promptings of God through the Holy Spirit.  How He speaks with us throughout our lives to help guide our actions and where we go.  Any of you ever hear that small voice inside telling you that you need to listen to your heart because their’s something more?  It asks you if you’re thirsty for something more.  I certainly have.  No, it’s not a midlife crisis.  It’s prompting from the Holy Spirit saying letting you know that your were purposed for more.  There is something missing.

Often times, when we hear that voice, we brush it aside because we have so much more going on in our crazy lives.  We don’t have time for those thoughts.  However, later it comes back again.  You continue to hear it nag at you, so to speak.  It’s trying to get your attention until you finally stop and pay attention and decide to take action.  This voice is calling you to more.  Calling you to a life that walks closer to the heart of God.  God is always pursuing us.  The Holy Spirit, whether we walk with God daily or not, will always be there to try to get our attention.

Listen closely.  That voice will speak to you at varying times.  It may be in the middle of the night when you’re farthest away from the busy life you have during the day.  It could be at anytime.  Stop and listen.  God is talking you.  Yes, you.  He wants everyone of us to draw closer to His heart and walk in His purpose.  He wants all of us to be contagious for His Kingdom and share the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ.  He wants all of us to fully come alive through glorifying Him and purposing the purpose He created us for.  When we choose to change course and pursue a life that aligns to God’s purpose for you, you will see a great difference in your own life.

When the Holy Spirit asked if I was thirsty for more, the answer was most definitely yes.  “Thirsty hearts are those whose longings have been wakened by the touch of God within them.” – A.W. Tozer.  God has wakened me and where I am going.  I’ve chosen to plant the seeds and start on the path He called me for.  I pray that each one of you will do the same in your own lives.  Listen to the voice within.  Don’t let the craziness of this world cloud you and keep you from seeing what God purposed you for and what your calling is.   Maybe it is time for a big change to come.  Will you be strong and courageous enough to pursue it?  Are you still thirsty?

Unleashing Your Real Talents

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I’ve been blogging and writing for many years.  In addition to the different blogs I wrote, I also did a lot of writing through my many years of schooling through graduate school and doctoral program.  I never really found it to be a real strength, if you will, but rather just something I did.  I am a very reserve and introverted person.  Writing became a channel for me to talk about things that weighed heavily on my mind.  Never really thought of it as much of a talent, but something i just liked to do and began to do regularly.  Now, as you all know, I don’t blog every single day, but rather when something inspires me and a thought comes across that I feel needs expressing.

Through school, writing was different.  It became something that was more forced and to write about things that really did not matter much to me personally, but rather because it was assigned.  I find that writing comes much easier when it is something I feel strongly about and really stands out to me.  If I don’t feel the passion behind the writing it’s hard to focus strongly on it.  You can ask my wife on this.  There were many nights she would see me at my computer just trying to force out a paper.

This year, I began something a little different.  I started writing post-game blogs for my son’s middle school baseball team, the Jefferson Dragons.  I did not write huge articles on the games, but rather game recaps with a touch of dramatics to add excitement for the readers.  The players and parents loved it.  In the readership and response I received and my wife received for her pictures that accompanied, it I realized that this is a real talent.  There is something really here.  I knew God gifted me with the talent of writing, but its cool when you can see the reaction that it gives others and it helps really solidify that something really is there.  I’ve been writing for so long, but it never really occurred to me that it was a talent God gifted me with until the last year or so.

My whole point here is that every single one of us has a talent that God gifted us with that we can use to do some pretty awesome things.  Many of you may have already figured out that talent and are realizing that today.  Still others of you may not have figured out exactly what that talent is.  What is it that God gifted you with to bring to this world?  I promise you it is there.  It may be very subtle or it may be something huge.  Either way, you have to find it within yourself and pray on it so that this talent can be unleashed and put to work.  Don’t let someone else define it for you and tell you what you are good at.  Know what you are good at and ask God to lead you into works that will help you realize its potential and give Him all the glory for it.  Once you put that talent to use to do what God tasked you to do, you will see awesome things happen.

Having the Courage to Change

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I have written many times over the past year since I started this blog about changing our life’s direction and changing ourselves and where we go.  We often times find ourselves on paths that don’t seem to make a lot of sense to us and therefore can get ourselves caught in a life of complacency and not motivated.  We simply just coast along and see where the chips may fall.  Trust me, I have been in that position many times.  A life with a mindset that is complacent and not sure what needs to happen next.

I’ve also written that we all have a purpose in life.  God created each and every one of us in a unique way and with a unique purpose and path.  All of our paths are meant to glorify Him, but the path that we take are often times very different.  Ultimately, however, no matter what assignment God inspires us to do, we are meant to complete those assignments in a way that brings Him glory and continues to share the Good News of Jesus Christ through our works and how we interact with others.

What about you?  Do you find yourself fixated on the purpose of glorifying God?  Do you feel that where you are right now is doing work that God purposed you for or you do you find yourself in a spot that seems to suck at your soul and keeps your heart and mind not fixed on God.  Max Lucado said that, “You change your life by changing your heart.”  If you don’t find that God is that center, then you need to change your heart so that He is.  Once He is, then you are more prepared to do the tasks He purposes for you.

People will often sulk because their not happy with their job or where they are in life.  They sit and complain, but don’t plant the seeds they need to plant in order to move.  They don’t talk with God to see where He wants them to move and sit in misery.  Again, I’ve been there too.  You can get yourself out of cubicle world or out of that job or task that simply has no purpose or value.  Don’t let that keep you from realizing what it is God purposed you for.

Now, I know for many, change can be very difficult.  Change is hard on anyone, especially if it means doing something dramatically different than you’ve ever done.  For me, I’ve found my story has taken me on a path that enables me to share and relate with both worlds.  I know what it is like to sulk and feel life wasting away in meaningless work doing what I thought was the right thing.  Since I’ve been reborn and now see where God is leading me, I can share just how glorious that is.  No, I’m not all the way there.  It’s a long road that can be often times difficult and even test you when the world tells you what your doing is not right.

In this case, I look to Joshua 1:9, “This is my command – Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  Even if we cannot see what the end result will be, and I surely don’t know how far God will lead me on this path, I know that I have to strong and courageous.  God will be with us through everything we do.  We need to not turn from Him, but rather let Him lead us.  He will always be there.  If you hear Him say it’s time to move, have faith in where He leads you.  While it may not make much sense on the surface.  He has a purpose for it and following through will show His glory that much more, not just to you, but to the world.

We’re All People…We’re All Broken

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I’ve been greatly inspired these last several months, weeks, and days.  My family and I found a new worship home this year, rather found our way back to our worship home.  It’s been an eye opening experience to be able to worship God every week with so many believers.  So many people who have their own story as we all do.  So many people who have had their share of pain, struggle, and brokenness, as well as joy and happiness.  This morning on my way to the office I was listening to the radio and hearing discussion about an article that referenced the fact that throughout the Bible, New and Old Testament, God used people that were broken to advance his Kingdom and Glory.  Only Jesus pleased the Father and did not fall short of His Glory.

With the release of God’s Not Dead this past weekend, I started thinking more how God uses so many different people in so many ways to help advance His Kingdom and share the Good News of Jesus Christ.  I’ve been connecting with more and more people these past few days on social media, particularly Twitter that are involved in ministry, involved in the movie, and people that are connecting with God’s message.  I realized that we’re all people and we’re all broken.  God is using each and every one of us in a unique way for His Glory.  While we may have different assignments and paths, we all have the purpose of being Ambassadors for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20).

Each and every one of us now and throughout history has a unique story that has brought us through trials and struggles.  My pastor challenged each of to write out our testimony and share that with everyone.  Our story of life through struggle and brokenness and to redemption.  Our personal testimonies are a huge way to bring others in and show just how God is working in our lives and how faith in Christ transformed.  A few years ago, He transformed me big time.  I was lost spiritually for way too long.  I am writing out my story and you will all see it very soon.  I pray that it finds its way to many more as I show what God has done in my life.

We can all do the same.  If your faith has transformed you, share it with others.  Open up about your own brokenness and how Christ redeemed you.  We can all do this.  We all have a story, we all are just people, and we’ve all been broken to some degree.  Pray and figure out where God wants you to work for His Kingdom and use your story to bring others to the Kingdom.  It’s a huge battle that we all as a body must take part in and are purposed to do.

Be Bold and Don’t Sit Back

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Throughout life it can be very easy to get complacent.  To find yourself in a life routine that you just accept and move forward with no matter what.  Many people find themselves that way especially in their careers or the way they live wondering if there is any real meaning and purpose.  We may even question God and wonder why our lives seem to just trudge along without much meaning and/or fulfillment.  I’ve got news for everyone, God did not create us to just sit back in complacency.  He did not create us to just accept the status-quo and trudge through life in miserable complacency.  He called us to be bold.  He called us to not be complacent.  He called us to pursue Him and to bring others to Him through our works by doing works He purposed for us.

Each of us have a God given purpose in life.  Through it all it is to glorify God in all we do.  You can do this in so many ways and so many career paths.  I tell you this though.  If you are in an area that does not provide any fulfillment and does not make you come alive, then you are not where you need to and not where God wants you to be. You cannot glorify Him in pointless misery and complacency.  Pray and walk with Him and He will lead you where you need to be.  I promise you.

Speaking of purpose, get ready.  I’m bringing something different and awesome to 4 Pillars over the next few weeks.  It’s going to be new video-casts or video-blogs, however you want to call it.  You will start to see me online as I begin to speak out what I write out each month.  I’m very excited about where God is leading me with.  This is my next step in being bold and leaving complacency in the dust.  Through this channel, I pray that I will be able to reach many more people in a whole new way.  I will continue to write on a regular basis, but I am now going to expand on it.  I’m nervous in a way being the introvert that I am, but like many introverts, when I speak, it is usually something pretty profound.  I will be speaking on various topics related to the 4 Pillars (Finding Your Calling, Relationships with God, Relationships with Others, and Spiritual Battles).  I will continue sharing my own testimony of what God’s done in my life. He’s brought through very difficult times and was also there for me even when I had strayed away.  I look forward to sharing so much with all of you.  It’s going to be fun and different and I hope you’ll join me.  Each new video will be posted here to this sight as well.

We have to be bold folks.  I am going to be bold.  I proclaim my faith in Jesus Christ who is THE Answer.  I seek to glorify Him in my works and this is where He continues to call me.  Be Contagious in your faith through your boldness and don’t sit back waiting.  You’re called to do and be more.  I hope you’ll join me as I move to grow this calling in my life and help others to seek God and His purpose for their life.  It’s going to be an adventure like no other I’ve been on.

Having Courage to Pursue

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How often have you ever had an idea or thought come through that you wanted to pursue after, but then decided against it?  It’s in those moments where you know have a great thought or idea and you know it can be powerful, but you hear something discouraging you or you fear what others may say about it.  It could be a simple idea for a new project at work or it could be a life changing move in life such as starting a new business or something.  It could be anything.  Something lights you up and gets you motivated but when crunch time comes, you shy away.

I’ve certainly been there.  I’ve been there a lot in the past year since I started writing to this site and posting to my Facebook page.  I get motivated and then discouraged or just lose motivation due to distractions or wonder if people even care about what I have to say. I wonder if what I am doing here really made any impact.  While I don’t write as much now due to a busy family schedule, I realized that even if only a few people read it makes a difference that can impact more.  I share my thoughts and testimony in hopes that people will be able to find their God given purpose in life and pursue it with no excuses or apologies for it.  Part of my gift and purpose, I’ve realized is writing here and when I hear others mention it knowing they read, it’s encouraging to know that just maybe I’m having an impact even if it is just on a few.  I start with a few in hopes of impacting many more.

Anyway, I digress.  My example is just one, but to my point, if you ever have that idea or passion that you know you are called to pursue in life, that is when courage is needed.  Your faith in God can be a big factor in building that courage.  That naysayer that you hear in your head telling you no or being discouraging is the adversary trying to cloud you thinking.  Don’t listen to that.  Talk to God, get on your knees every day and I promise you, your faith will build your courage and when the time is right, God will tell you when it’s time to move.  Marcus Tullius Cicero said that, “A man of courage is also full of faith.”  Your faith will drive you forward and God will prepare you to battle this world and pursue your purpose.  Don’t let world distractions get in your way and discourage you.  Have faith and courage and you will succeed in achieving what God purposed for you.

According to His Purpose and Not Ours

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Over the last year, I have written a great deal about purpose. Many people to this day striggle with what it is they are here for wonder aimlessly trying to find the answers. Often times, it is related to a career path where we try to find something we are passionate about and gives us fulfillment. The more I wrote, the more I realized that our purpose is much bigger. Our purpose, each one of our purposes, comes from one source…God. The issue we have to contend with is unlocking it. The thing is that it’s right there in front of us already. It is breathed through the Word of God and we just have to take that time to walk with Him and learn it. Yes, God will giveeach of us differing assignments, but it all circles to one single purpose, to honor and glorify God, to worship God, and to Walk with Him, and witness for Him.

Each of use has struggled with this. I most definitely have. Our hearts and minds get in the way and then our direction begins to cloud with worldly distractions. We face problems that we think are too big to handle and even doubt God’s ability to answer and help. There is one truth I know though. God is way bigger than any problem or struggle we face and by living for His purpose we will see that realized always. When I lost my Dad a few years back, I was lost. I struggled and wondered aimlessly for sometime trying to figure out what really mattered. My faith was not a central point as much as I said it was. In essence was not honest about my struggle and continued to wonder if I did have a purpose. God’s purpose was revealed through this struggle though, even though it took a while to see it. The purpose of walking closer with Him and worshipping in prayer and worship.

Two years ago, I recommitted myself to my life missions with my family, when I committed to the Resolution to them. That Resolution hangs as a daily reminder now of where God is leading me. Now in the last year, since starting 4 Pillars, I think God’s next purpose is being realized in working with God through what He gives me and witnessing for Him of just how powerful He is in our lives. So yhis is where I will continue to go. I commit to all of you and before God to continue walking in step with Him daily and to testify to His glory.

We all have our own skills and talents in how we can do this very thing. Please dont’t sit back in life. None of us were meant to be by-standers. Romans 9:11 says that…”God chooses people according to His own purposes.” He is calling on every single of us if we will listen and let His Spirit shine down through us. Let’s answer that call. It’s His purpose and not ours.

Re-Focus Yourself for His Purpose

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I hope that every one of you is off to a great start in 2014.  I know I have been away for a few weeks as I took time to focus more on my family and our time which has pulled me away from writing.  As my first post of the year, I really wanted to write something that was impactful and really set to the tone for what you can expect from me and my writing this year and going forward.  When I first began this blog at the end of 2012, the primary focus for me was what I could do and build to make life more fulfilling for me and my family.  As the year and my writing evolved and through my time in scripture each day that focus began to shift as it still seemed that something was missing.  Later in 2013, the writing really began to get shift in focus to bring faith further to the forefront and discovering what God has called us to do.

I want to begin 2014 with a renewed focus in my writing and helping each of you that read my writing with the goal of discovering God’s purpose for you.  You see, before, it was more on what could I do for myself to help achieve what felt to be the purpose, but where it needs to be is what was I created for and what do I need to do to fulfill the reason I am here and was created.  In my daily reading this morning, it began with this, “Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something on my own choosing.”  This is from “My Utmost for His Highest,”  We all struggle with this in life and it can sometimes take time to find that purpose, but if first takes turning to God.  We cannot EVER do this on our own.  We need Him through it all.  It’s not about what we want, but what He wants from us.

Sitting in church these past couple of weeks, my Pastor’s teaching has been focused Purpose and what is that purpose.  What and opportune time for that message and I can certainly hear God talking to me through Him more as I refocus and hone in my real purpose.  Yesterday, the message was very clear.  Our personal mission in life is as follows: What I believe God wants me to do? Hebrews 11:1-8
To worship God with all that I have – Abel
To walk with God in a manner that is pleasing to HIM – Enoch
To work along side God as he gives me assignments – Noah
To witness the works of God – Abraham

What a powerful message!  This is something we have to work at everyday, but the primary reason God has created us is worship Him, walk with Him, work with Him where he assigns, and to witness His works.  It doesn’t get much simpler than though.  Don’t listen to what the world thinks you should do, return to God and listen to Him through The Word, through fellowship with others, and through prayer.  He has that plan for you and will reveal that to you.  You just have to act on it.

We all have unique gifts and abilities that we are blessed with.  God will use those abilities and our experiences in life to be able to fulfill His purpose for us.  For me, large part is to continue writing to you to witness to you from my life experiences to show how much God loves us and works through us and how the redemption through Christ works through us.  He has been working wonders in my life these last few years.  Drawing me closer and closer to Him as I walk with Him each day.  We all have trials and tragedies of different kinds in life, but God uses those to work through us and bring us closer to Him and that’s what He’s doing in my life and will through yours.

If you struggle with your purpose in life, return to scripture and prayer.  That is the first step to unlocking what it is you were truly made for.  Don’t listen to what the world thinks.  Don’t be complacent.  God is calling on each of us and has a unique purpose for each one of us if we choose to accept it.  Let’s all begin this focus today if you have not already.  Turn to Him and I promise you, that you will see amazing things through Him.  Trials will still come as the world and the evil of Satan tries to engulf you.  That won’t end, but you can be strong and give it up to God, nail your struggles to the Cross and push forward to what you were made for.  Never settle, because God has a plan for each one of us.