Promises

 Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama! A beautiful blank canvas is before each one of us…let’s intentionally choose to make a masterpiece out of this day!

This week I am going to share two messages to put tools in our toolboxes.

The first tool comes from a Bible Study in the YouVersion Bible app. The study is titled Dealing With Uncertainty and it was written by the YouVersion team. The specific excerpt I am sharing comes from the 4^th day of the study and it is titled Pick Up God’s Declarations.

“The thoughts you fill your mind with are crucial because what you cling to influences your worldview.

If you choose to dwell on God’s promises, you start to recognize God’s blessings during uncertain times. Plus, trusting that God will redeem your present pain equips you to walk forward in faith and keep on fighting.

As you walk forward today, reflect on some of God’s promises, and let them transform the way you think:”

“God will sustain you.”

Cast your care on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. – Psalms 55:22

“God’s peace will guard your heart.”

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:7

“God delights over you with singing.”

The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. – Zephaniah 3:17

“God will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.”

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. – Psalms 32:8

“God is your refuge and strength, your help in times of need.”

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. – Psalms 46:1

“In all things, you are more than a conqueror because God loves you.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:37-39

“God will never leave you or forsake you.”

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave nor forsake you. – Deuteronomy 31:6

“God’s perfect love casts out all your fear.”

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. – 1 John 4:18

“Nothing can separate you from God’s love.”

“God’s not done with you. God’s not done with you. God’s not done with you.”

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. – Philippians 1:6

Powerful stuff, right?! I would strongly encourage you to do two things: 1) Check out the YouVersion Bible app. There are so many great Bible studies! 2) Print of this Happy Friday and keep these declarations handy so you have them when you need to speak Biblical truth over your life.

The second tool I am going to share with you is title Stop Blaming and Start Being. It was written by Bryant McGill.

“Stop blaming and start being! We attract what we are. We attract who we are. If you don't like something in your life, look only at who you are. Who you are is why you choose the friends and situations in your life. Who you are is why you choose poorly, or fail to choose wisely. Stop being a victim! If you do not like a certain behavior in others, look within yourself to find the roots of what discomforts you. The conflicts we have with the outside world are often conflicts we have within ourselves.

When you blame others you are effectively proclaiming that you are only response to stimuli. But you are more than response to stimuli. When you blame others, you are affirming that you have no power, and your existence is only a reaction to the power of others. But, you are powerful, if you choose to be. You can choose to be pro-active, assertive and self-defining. You can choose better relationships, better jobs, better places to live, better uses of your time and better ways of treating yourself. Go look in the mirror and have a talk with your real boss. Find a new and better leader within yourself, for yourself. Lead your life with love and friendship; self-love as your own friend. Lead with honesty, total integrity, compassion, patience and tolerance — toward yourself! If you live with values for yourself, then you become of great value to all who know you. It starts with you. Quit waiting for others to give to you; it is not going to happen.

You see, reconciliation with others and the world begins within. If you don't get right with yourself, then nothing in this life will ever make you happy. Blame is very tricky in that it seems like a way out when it is really a form of imprisonment. Until you stop blaming and become positively self-critical you are not going to move forward. You think that if you blame, you will then be free of those problems, but blame cements you to your problems. You have to take responsibility. Empowerment is never about blame; it is about taking personal responsibility. Taking personal responsibility is not about being "responsible" — it is about seeing your truth and evolving. People who blame are always looking to "get out" of something, but like quicksand, the more they struggle the more they are captive. Blame anchors us into the past; a place we cannot change. Acceptance frees us to the future. Even when something is not your fault, toxic blame has no place in your life. Focus on your own empowerment and healing. If you set a clear standard for yourself; for how you wish to be treated — people take note. Rather than communicating blame communicate your standards for proper future treatment.

Ultimately, everything is completely up to you. Quit looking for the answers outside of yourself. The invitation to something better is not arriving from any source outside of yourself — ever. Those who get the invitation are the ones who realize, that the invitation, only comes from deep within. Give yourself permission to be free from the past. You are the authority and the gatekeeper of your own life. Once you become something, only then, are you worthy of it. The life you want is a manifestation of self-realization. It is easy; just be to have. Begin accepting the gift now, and have every beautiful and good thing in life — and then share.

Stop blaming and start being. Everything comes by being! Be the love you seek. Be the friend you seek. Be the lover you seek. Be the honesty you seek. Be the integrity you seek. Be the patience you seek. Be the tolerance you seek. Be the compassion you seek.

Fill-in the blank: Be the ___________ you seek.”

I hope these two tools are useful to you! Regardless of whether you choose to use them or not, 1) What Will Your Influence Be…in your life? What will you fill your Spirit, heart, mind, and body with? What you pour in will eventually pour out! 2) What Will Your Influence Be…in the lives of others? It has been scientifically proven you will influence every person you encounter, the only thing to be resolved – by you and you alone – is whether it will be positive or negative.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, please pray for those being impacted by Hurricane Ian, and please stay well! 😊

Kev