Rejoice Always - HOW?

^{1 Thessalonians 5:16-18}

¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

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What a way to live your life! But how do you do that? Rejoice means to celebrate, express joy, delight, be glad, and cheer. Always means at all times, constantly, continuously, or all the time. So how do you celebrate constantly? How do you delight all the time? Sometimes (if not most of the time) life just doesn’t seem to be that good at first glance.

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How many times have you seen on TV where they go around the Thanksgiving dinner table and everybody is asked to say what they are thankful for? It seems like a difficult task. Maybe your family has this tradition too. Is it easy to think of something to be thankful for? Find a pen and paper. Quick, list 5 things you are thankful for… Did it take you awhile? Did you feel like you were reaching? Now quick, list 5 things you could complain about… was that a little easier?

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Think harder about the good stuff. Do you have a job? Do you have a home? Do you get enough to eat each day? Are there flowers outside? Do you have someone who loves you? Do you have health insurance? Did Jesus die for your sins? Even when it seems like there is nothing to celebrate there is always something. In fact usually there are always several things!

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Rejoice Always. So how do you delight in these good things? How do you look at the fact that the grass is green and you have a home, and cheer about it; without comparing it to the heartbreak of health problems, a fight with your husband, or your child misbehaving? Pray without ceasing. Rely on Jesus, “our refuge, our strength, and a very present help in time of trouble” (Psalm 46:1). Can the sun still shine even when it is raining? Yes, that’s what makes rainbows! He can help you see the rainbows through the storm. So even though you have problems, the bad stuff doesn’t cancel out the good stuff.

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This isn’t to say that you never have complaints. It is unrealistic to expect us flawed human beings to live our lives always skipping don the road without a care. Instead take your cares to Jesus, and try to always remember to think of something good after you complain about something.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing. Challenge yourself to try to live this way for a few weeks and see how you like it!

Photo a Day April - How You Feel Today

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Photo a Day April

Day 14

How You Feel Today

I saw this unique flower at Walmart today, and since I was keeping my eyes open for something to define how I felt, I had to jump on it. I feel wonderful!! I feel beautiful, flowery, colorful and weird. Lately this is how I feel every day, and I thank God that He has blessed me with such good spirits! Even when things were rocky at work this week I kept my mood up. Normally I wouldn’t have been able to weather the storm without crying, but with God’s help I handled it wonderfully. I also found out that I was not pregnant this week, but I’ve been asking for prayers that I could handle the letdown if I wasn’t pregnant, and it didn’t even bring me down. This has been a terrific week.

Somebody asked me a question a couple of weeks ago that really opened my eyes. He quoted Hebrews 11:6 “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.” Then he asked me if I was diligently seeking Him. I could not answer that question honestly and be satisfied with my answer. That one question turned my life around in an instant. I realized that I was not diligently seeking God. I wasn’t even reading my bible regularly. How can you know somebody if you don’t try? How can somebody comfort you if you don’t let them talk to you? God has given us the bible so that we can know Him, so that we can read His words. I can’t believe I have had this comfort tool sitting around my house (even staring at me from my phone) and I have been ignoring it.

I realized I have been separating my infertility from my faith, because I don’t know how to reconcile a loving God with the unending pain of infertility. I still don’t know how to do that, but I realize that compartmentalizing like that was not healthy for my relationship with God. Instead of dealing with my infertility outside of my faith I should be always looking for encouragement in the scriptures. Jesus says: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” –Matthew 5:4. The bible is full of comforting passages like this one. It is also filled with uplifting, inspirational verses: Matthew 21:21 ‘So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive"’ Sometimes it feels like the bible was written just for me! 

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