Control Your Thoughts.

                  Control Your Thoughts.

You have control of your mind and once you take that control, then you’re at your turning point in life. Positivity brings success. You only have to believe you can, for as it says in the bible; I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. When you stand of the promises of God, your success is secured.

You do need positive convictions to be able to stand. You need to be positive about God, His love for you, His hope in you, His plan for you. Be excited about what God’s going to do next in your life.

You must speak to yourself in a positive way. The most important words you’ll ever speak are the words that you tell yourself. Bring every thought into alignment with God’s thoughts of you. Thoughts release chemicals, which set our emotions. You won’t have stable happy emotions with negative thoughts and that comes back to where we started; control of your mind. Take every thought captive.

Our lives are a reflection of our metaphors. What we think about, meditate upon, what we put before our eyes, the way we speak, that is the way our life looks. Our life is a result of our thinking and our words. Preach positivity to yourself. Never demoralise, never put down, never shame.

Be positive through your crisis. Thank God for the good things in a bad situation. To do so will shorten that situation and quicken the change of direction you wish to see your life headed.

Psalm 119 speaks about the precepts God has laid down and the successes you’ll have through following them. Much of the bible speaks of the success you will have, when you follow God and His word. Many failures too are recorded in the bible, of those who didn’t follow God. Many of those who partnered with God started out well, but finished poorly, as they stepped away from God.

You should read your bible daily. Read with a belief that what’s written between the pages are true. Speak in tongues daily. Connect with God daily. Paul, who had many trials and much success, said; “I thank my God, I speak in tongues more than you all.” (1 Corinthians 14:18). Tongues; a gift from the Holy Spirit and one you should be thankful for and one to use regularly.

How much of Paul’s success was due to his speaking in tongues regularly? You will find out for yourself, when you start to do it for yourself.

Be bold in the Lord. Speak words of power. Put away all foolish things. Trust God in the process.

Unanswered Prayer.

Unanswered Prayer.

While our prayers should be answered, what happens when they aren’t? What do we do when we’ve prayed for years and still aren’t seeing the result we desire?

God is not a magician, here to grant our every wish. God did however, create the trees. Our job is to create something from them. God gives us the tools and and we’re to create the furniture.

At the same time, we need to own it. Own your life and what you’re doing in and with your life. If life’s not going the way you’d like, change something. And you can’t expect the promises of God to work in your life, if you’re not practicing the principles.

Having said that, it’s not by works, but by our faith and by His grace that we attain the promises of God. As soon as the principles becomes regimented routine, you find yourself in ‘works’ and works won’t work in the end.

We need to stand our ground, hold the line and keep the faith, run the race, until the end. Commit yourself the Lord and live out your faith without variance, without sway, in perfect peace, regardless of what you see around you; regardless of still being unwell and not seeing health, regardless of being unable to pay your bills, but trusting God will come through. Stay in faith, stay in His peace and the peace He promises will come to pass.

So, if we want to practice the principles, we need to know what those principles are and those principles are: Love God. Love what God loves. Hate what God hates. Put Jesus first. Simple!

A relationship with God the Father means bible study, prayer, tithe to His church. Seek Him. Talk to Him. Search the scriptures daily. An hour on Sunday morning isn’t enough. It’s a place to start, but we need to continue throughout the week.

The bible says to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. To have righteousness with God is to be in right standing with Him. It means to act on what He’s telling you to do. It’s not enough just to pray or read the bible, but to seek what He wants from you and then to do what He’s told you to do.

If He says tithe, you tithe. If He says worship Him and Him only, worship nothing but Him. If he says to keep away from evil, that’s what you do. No books, movies or computer games on death and destruction. No gambolling, drinking, drug taking. No foul language. We must stand before Him pure and clean and if we step out of line; repent and repent quickly.

Jesus said in John 17:17 Thy word is truth (speaking to the Father). God’s word – The Bible – is true. When we believe this without wavering, then we shall attain results.

We’re to seek first the kingdom of God. What is the kingdom of God? It’s the spiritual realm in which God reigns, in which God brings the fulfilment of His will on this earth. We are the vessels He’s chosen to do this through. When we take on the characteristics of God (graciousness, compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, peace and joy) then we are doing His work in His way.

We can’t fly off the handle as we see fit. We have to exercise control behind the wheel of the car. We must be honest in all matters. As we become more Christ like, as we draw closer to God, He hears our prayers and then answers them.

Psalm 91:15 states; He will call on me and I will answer him.

He does that when we dwell in His shadow (draw close to Him), when we acknowledge Him as a refuge and fortress (the One true God), when we let go of fear and trust Him through all of our difficulties. When we meditate on His word day and night, then we shall be like Him and then we shall have good success.

Psalm 1:2-3 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither and whatever he does shall prosper.

That verse is a key to living in success and that’s what I want for all of you. We all need success. We all need to strive for greater things than just ourselves, our wants and our needs, but our needs and wants will be met, when we strive with God.

The Many Facets of God.

The Many Facets of God.

I was listening to John Bevere, who was saying he talks to God as he reads his bible. I thought to myself; “Now that’s interesting.” I’m usually listening to what God is telling me while reading the scriptures but I’m not talking, so I thought I’d give it a try.

Often, I’ll start my bible reading asking the Holy Spirit to speak to me through the word; Dear Lord, Give me spiritual epiphanies. Show me what You want me to see and teach me what You want me to know. After that, I’m listening not speaking. And this has served me well for a long time.

I’ll read aloud, for faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). It isn’t a matter of just reading, but also of hearing and God speaks through His word, so I do read my bible aloud, pausing and looking up any passages that appear to stand out. But for me to actually have a conversation within my bible reading, I can’t say I do that as a regular thing. Oh, I may have, but most likely it’s automatic rather than instigated.

Opening my bible today, initially I started reading and couldn’t find a place of conversation within the text I was browsing. I persevered and got to Luke 10:20-21 where it said Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit. I found an opening point for conversation and asked Jesus; “How did they know You rejoiced? It’s not telling me here how You rejoiced, only that You rejoiced.”

In looking it up, Ephesians 5:18-19 makes mention of speaking to yourselves, which is kind of what I was doing, sort of, as I directed questions to Jesus aloud, rather than just in my head. The verse went on to encourage us to speak in psalms, hymns, etc. At this point my heart leapt and I thought; “Oh, that’s what it is.” In speaking to Him through the word, rather than just reading the word and hearing Him speak to me, the heart does rejoice.

In this passage, Jesus emotions were stirred as He was passionately within the Spirit, just as I was, in this moment. My heart leapt; my emotions were stirred as I was talking to Him and delving deeper into His word.

That the ‘Man of sorrows acquainted with grief’ rejoiced, though He was close to His time of crucifixion, is a truly remarkable point. A profound time of sadness is momentarily put aside, as He tells His disciples to rejoice, because their names are written in heaven.

Luke 10:21 says “In that hour Jesus rejoiced,” so the disciples must have seen it, or it wouldn’t have been written down. I wasn’t questioning they saw it, but what it was to see it in action. This passage continues to say He has revealed His hidden works for babes (that’s me) and in verse 22 it further mentions… and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. That too is me. I’m the one Jesus wishes to display just who the Father is.

I do feel I’ve gained further insight today, in speaking aloud and questioning, rather than just listening and it will sure be a lot of fun taking this further. We never stop learning, when it comes to all matters biblical. God is like a gemstone with many different facets, with each aspect of the gem lighting up, revealing insights; new and innumerable.

Your Enemy Is Your Doubs.

Your Enemy Is Your Doubts.

What if the ancient stories of life were real stories? What if there is a parable universe, a life after death, another plain of existence? What if Jesus were real? What if Spirit is real? Don’t you owe it to yourself to take a closer look, to give it some serious consideration?

What if you don’t believe in eternity and its ‘poof’ and you’re gone – lights out, curtains closed? What if eternity is real and ‘poof’ you’re not gone, instead you’ve crossed over? Where are you now?

You’ve heard of heaven and hell. Perhaps you might at least consider the magnitude of this. Perhaps you might consider delving a little deeper. You see, you can have your own thoughts on the issue, but without proper study, they’re just your thoughts and subject to flaw, for none of us know everything in this world.

If you study and find out the truth of the biblical writing’s you’re sure to want to move forward in a walk with God.

When you reach out to someone in prayer, you’re correcting with what’s gone wrong in their life and taking back what was stolen. Reach out with compassion, just as Christ had compassion.

How do you overcome? How does prayer work? It helps to have faith, for without faith God cannot act. There is no formula to prayer. If there was, every doctor in the world would be using it and trying to make money from it.

Prayer is like a flowing river, with new waters traveling along at all times. There are a few things which might help keep you focussed in prayer. Repeating Psalm 91. Playing uplifting songs. I like “Raise a halleluiah’” by Bethel Music. Something similar to this or something which speaks of success in the Lord.

Speak aloud to the devil. Tell him; “I am a righteous child of God. By His stripes I am healed. It’s illegal for you to be here. GET OUT in the Mighty Name of Jesus and by the power of His blood.” (The devil abhors the use of the word blood because of our Blood Covenant, the covenant Jesus died to give us).

Praise Jesus for His healing power and watch as your health takes a turn for the better. Praise Him for your relationships and watch as it takes a turn for the better. Do the same for your finances. Keep singing praise and worship songs. And keep praying. Don’t stop until you see the desired result.

Expect supernatural, extraordinary and unusual provision. We don’t get what we deserve in life, we get what we expect, so expect big things.

Talk in tongues – you can look this up online, if you don’t know what it is or how to do it. Give praise and thanksgiving, often. Worship often. Jesus is the door, enter the door and ask Jesus what He would like to show you.

You are the one who has to fan the flames. Paul told Timothy to fan the flame as he was waxing cold. King David had to stir up his own faith, after a harrowing ordeal. We too need to stir up our faith particularly if it’s waning thin.

Pray sniper, shotgun, nuclear prayers – prayers with pin-point accuracy. There’s no need for waffle. Get straight to the point and pray with confidence.

Decree and declare out loud what you want to see change/happen. Prophesy to the wind and say to the wind: Thus, sayeth the Lord God: come from the four winds, oh breath and breath upon the slain that they may life – they lived and stood upon their feet.

Find a problem and solve it. If you can’t find anything for yourself, I’m sure you can find one for someone else. There are always issues you can pray over. These issues and problems become your testimonies, as you grow in Christ and see His answer to your prayers.

What happens when what you see is contrary to what you believe? You have to keep believing for that’s what faith is; believing in what you can’t yet see. We have to have a firm faith, a faith that cannot be shaken and one where no weapon formed against us will prosper.

In reality those weapons feel as if they come mighty close. We quote certain scriptures and yet live our lives in the uncertainty of what could happen. It’s in the not knowing that we must remain humble and draw close to Him who is our help.

In any new venture there’s going to be missteps and side steps. Not everything is going to go in a straight line, but there will be steps forward and on occasion, steps backward. In the mean-time we need to rely and trust in God. Even though we might mess up, God is still working behind the scenes. Even though there are times in life where we will have uncertainty, God is still working behind the scenes.

Certainty is an illusion. Even though certainty is what you’re aiming for, life doesn’t always go in the direction you wish it to go. In aiming for certainty, we can end up in fear and anxiety. Even through this, God is working behind the scenes.

When we give in to fear, we also give in to trying new things and life becomes mediocre and mundane. The dark realities of the moment can be incredibly frightening, once we let loose our imagination. 99% of the time what we fear doesn’t eventuate. Whenever we’re in crisis, dilemma or destruction, fear takes hold as the imagination takes us into the deep depths.

When you’re in a problematic season of difficulty, it feels like it’s taking forever. We need to remember the dilemma is temporary, but God is permanent. All God’s promises are true for those who believe. To everything there is a season and you cannot outlast God. Your problem will eventually go away, but God is always present.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens. This tells us there is a time for everything, but every crisis is balanced out by a change in season. Every opposite has an equal. After crisis comes blessing. Crisis has a time, an ending.

God created time on the fourth day, as it says in Genesis. Let the light separate day from night. A crisis has an expiration date and it expires the moment God speaks. The moment God speaks into the situation, it’s over. The light has dawned. Creation started in crisis and chaos. God gives us time so that we’re not constantly looking into our crisis.

Everything is conditional and based on faith and you have to fan the flames. You have to contend, battle, war. It doesn’t just happen because God says. There will be times when you have to fight for it.

It’s not just confession, it’s the marriage of the seed to the soil. Seed has everything in it to produce a crop, but it needs soil. If God was in control, everything you say would come true. That’s not to say God’s not in control, but we don’t contend for what is rightfully ours. We give up too soon.

In contending to win, you might consider memorising Ephesians 1:16-23. Recite it as often as you can. Another verse you can stand on is Jeremiah 15:21.

You can’t be an overcomer if life doesn’t bring opportunities for you to overcome. It’s during the battles of life that we grow the most. Speak healing words, words of life over your situation, not death.

Dalby Library

                         Dalby Library

Lest We Forget…

A recent visitor to the beautiful town of Dalby, I couldn’t help but notice this stunning piece of stained glass, as one strides up the stairs to the library. Nurse, army, sailor, airman and of course, the lone pine.

Endeavouring to find more on this glasswork I asked the library staff who didn’t seem to know anything about it. To give them credit, it sounds to me the library is reasonably new to this location, having more or less recently transferred to the building.

So, getting nil result for my query within the library, I phoned the local council. They too, couldn’t provide any details about the impression within the glass. I tried one more stab at it and phoned the lessor of the building and while they were under obligation not to give details of the owner of the building itself, they did suggest I perhaps try the RSL sub branch, who had previously held the lease.

Enthusiastically I emailed the Dalby RSL sub branch and eagerly awaited a reply, which never came. Dogged determination ensued and I contacted a friend from another RSL sub branch, out of the area. He looked at the photo and informed me that it was perhaps a work taking into account the “Battle of Lone Pine.”

The tree, the ocean, the steep terrain now made more sense; yes, this could be it. Perhaps the airman in the work wasn’t in the Lone Pine Battle, however, not to be forgotten it was a thoughtful inclusion into the segment.

And while I haven’t delved deep enough to trace the artist who created this piece, I did think it of considerable important that I write and bring this to the attention of the Dalby locals; Lest we forget and this item becomes lost to history.

How do you Know the Will of God?

How do you Know the Will of God?

Your enemy are the doubts and thoughts of limitation within your mind – doubt, fear and oppression. Your enemy is the thoughts of limitation in any area. Fear is a big stronghold. Some might say as a Christian we should have no fear, however it’s not the absence of fear, but the courage to enter the battle that causes us to win the war.

Find the king pin in your life; the enemy you haven’t yet defeated. Decree and declare the opposite of what you see, for then you’ll see the walls crumble and come tumbling down. Make a mighty shout to the Lord. Declare the truth of His promises. Speak it to the four winds, a word in every direction.

There are times we get a ‘yes’ from God, but sometimes it requires a battle before we can actually take hold of the promise.

For the believer proof is not necessary. For the sceptic proof is not possible. You need to believe.

If, when you’ve prayed, it doesn’t come in the form of a miracle then it will come through execution and perseverance. Stay in the battle, standing under the promises of God, until what you’ve prayed for comes to pass.

You can’t be set free without the Son, for it’s only through the Son that we’re set free. We need to give our spirit to His Spirit, for where there is no spirit, there is no freedom. Call upon Jesus today.

Pause in contemplation and meditation. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you. The more you do it, the easier it becomes to hear His voice. Read the bible and let it speak to you – for that is the word of God.

You’ll find you never get what you’re not willing to pursue, what you’re not willing to fight for. You must do your part and when you do, God will do His. You can’t expect to win while lounging in the comfort of your chair.

How do you know if you’re doing the will of God? You are the will of God, just keep walking.  

 

A Trip to the Oval Office.

               A Trip to the Oval Office.

I went into the heavenlies and ended up at the Oval Office. Jesus stood behind me pointing to the chair in the room and said; “This is Donald Trump’s chair.”

I took this to be a prophecy. This doesn't happen all that often to me but time will tell if it's true or not. The elections are in progress and Trump is running. November is the date to watch.

I enter the heavenlies through meditation and anything can happen when I do this. At this point in time, I walked into the Oval Office. An aromatic smell of furniture polish and oiled leather was present, as soon as I entered the room.

Everything was sparkling clean. Two flags stood behind a large, padded, mahogany coloured leather chair. The timber desk top glistened, polished to the point of reflection, without a scratch on it. Shelves of books stood around the curved walls. Not wall to wall, but a number of curved shelves along curved edges.

One thing I do remember thinking was; “Wow! I’m in the Oval Office!” There was an air emanating from the space in front of me. You could tangibly discern the command and respect that room embodied.

Li’l ol’ me – in the Oval Office, of all places. The White House on Capitol Hill. Wow.

Why I tell you this and what we need to know is; if we’re not seeing the supernatural happening in our prayer walk, it’s time to lift our game. We resist change for a number of reasons. One reason being fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of things going wrong. Fear of failure.

Change is uncomfortable. It’s not always easy. If you’re depressed or in a rut, change is just what you need. If you just want a closer walk with God, you might look at changing the quantity/quality time you spend with God. When we look to the supernatural, when we look to God to bring change, we’re looking past our greatest hindrances to moving forward, as we lead the charge to a cause greater than ourselves.

To move into the supernatural, you have to spend time with God. It’s not going to happen unless you’re reading your bible, praying, doing all that you should be doing and most importantly, being a friend of God. The more you put into God and His word, the more you get out of it.

The bible says; Draw near to God and He will draw near to you (James 4:8). This is a truth of which I can testify. The closer I’ve drawn near to God, the more I hear from Him.

If you’re far removed from a good prayer life, you won’t see the supernatural. If you’re disconnected in any way, God can’t work with you. Well, He can. He’s God. But we don’t want to leave this to chance. We want to be an active participant. We want to be meditating on God’s word, worshiping Him, praising Him; morning, noon and night.

We want the supernatural to be a regular segment in our life and we need to be doing our part in order to bring this about.

Optimizing Brain Health

               

                Optimizing Brain Health.

Brain health is foundational to mentally strong kids. If your brain is healthy, your mind will be. The brain is an organ and like any other organ in the body, it needs a healthy lifestyle to function well.

When kids struggle to function and cope often it’s the parents who get the blame. If a child has a problem, it might not be the parents. It might be that there’s something missing.

If you could scan a brain, you could perhaps see there might be something going on, something you can’t see from the outside.

A decrease of control, be it focus, depression, lethargy, or others, can show up in areas of the brain. Supplements can help with focus and impulse control. A high protein, healthy fat diet can be enormously helpful.

You have to love and care for you brain and when you do, it will decrease depression and impulse control. If your child is struggling, think about optimising the brain.

Love your brain. Avoid anything that hurts it; sugar, chemicals, processed food, soft drinks. Engage in regular health habits; fun exercises like sport, bike riding, hiking.

Encourage brain healthy foods (fresh and organic) and exercise. An intake of good vitamins, fatty acids and probiotics will help. Saffron is the best food for focus and memory.

Reduce stress (easier said than done), in your life and in the life of your child. Look for the problematic areas in your life and work out a strategy to ease them.

Teens who use marijuana are more prone to suicidal thoughts, psychosis and depression. These teens are also less likely to reach their full potential. Marijuana can lead to schizophrenia. Digital addictions and excessive screen time wear out the brains pleasure centres, increasing anxiety and depression and this can bring on ADHD.

Advertising companies use the same strategy that casinos use to entice one to play their games. These are geared to children using iPhones, iPads and such. Social media companies manipulate the kids to continually stay connected. Toxic levels of self-absorption for more than 3 hours, more than doubles the rate of anxiety and depression.

Health experts have been warning of the dangers of screen time for quite a while now. It would pay for you to heed their messages.

Fun times out doors on a weekend. Board games of an evening. Games which involve the whole family, bring a family together. No phones during meal times. No phones at church. Disengage from screen activity. Learn to do a new thing, rather than the mindless activities on your screens.

Children don’t necessarily do as you say. They will do as you do, so lead by example.