Worship the Lord

I can remember seasons in my life when worshipping the Lord was one of the hardest things to do.  It took every ounce of energy to sing and focus on the Lord.  He is worth it though!  He is worthy of our praise every day, any day!  Somehow I gained more strength and energy when I pushed through and worshipped anyway.  There is power in worship.  So sing!  No matter how your feeling today.  Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. (James 4:8)  The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.(Psalm 34:18)
Let's not forget to praise Him in the good times, and times of peace as well.  Sometimes we can be happy and content and don't press in as much as we ought.  Remember who it is that gives you all these wonderful blessings,which isn't always physical stuff.  Acknowledge the Lord and the great things He's done for you. 

  ...the Lord's unfailing love
surrounds the man who trusts in him.
Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!
Psalm 32:10-11

Our struggle...

My family and closer friends have known that for a number of years now I've dealt with depression.  It's been getting better through the years.  The closer I get to the Lord, the more I study His Word, the better it gets.  Some days are worse then others but the Lord is faithful.  In the past year and a half He's been showing me how to fight this battle.  So for those of you who deal with depression (and we all do from time to time) listen up.  These tips may help you.  One of the things the Lord 's been telling me is when those dark clouds start rushing in and the wall of depression is about to consume me, PUT UP YOUR SHIELD!!!  Your shield of faith.  Whether we like it or not we are in a spiritual battle (Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Eph. 6:12) and as christians we need to be sure to have on our armor.  So what will putting up our shield do?  Well, this is our shield of faith that we use to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (Eph. 6:16)  Most of the times we get depressed it's because of a lie we believe as truth.  Check what your thinking with God's Word.  If your questioning your self worth, God loves you unconditionally, ALL the time.  Check your thoughts against God's Word. 
#2 DON'T isolate yourself!  Seclusion is fatal to the depressive heart.  Pick up the phone, call a trusted friend or family member, your spouse, your pastor, anyone you trust that will show you you are loved.  Talking about the way you feel strips depression of it's power and eases it's hold on you.  People were made for relationships.  To interact with each other.  Not to stay in your own little world.  It may feel safer when you've been hurt but in the end, seclusion is worse then the risk of being hurt. 
It would be a good idea to memorize scriptures that reminds you of God's love for you and how precious you are to Him.  As well as other verses that defuse the lies we buy into.  That way you are prepared with your shield AND your sharpened sword (God's Word) by your side.
Here are a few suggested verses to memorize:
Isaiah 26:3-4                                    John 14:27
Isaiah 54:17                                     Isaiah 49:16
Duet. 26:18
I pray to be healed of depression but I believe sometimes God heals you by helping you work through something.  I'm worlds from where I started.  All to the glory of God!

To be like a child

My 4th child has just started walking within the last two weeks.  I've been watching him as he took a few stumlbly steps, then could walk across the room, and now wobbly walk around the house.  Each time he did better he was so proud of himself.  He'd fall but have the biggest smile on his face, joyful about his new ability.  Then he'd get back up and try again.  I thought to myself, when did we as adults lose that childlike excitement and determination that, even though we fall, we smile and get back up and try again.  Often we tell ourselves our bad qualities about ourself or beat ourself up for not getting it right.  Then we don't always get back up.  There is a time to know when enough is enough but more often then not we should smile, knowing we're learning and growing, then looking to our heavenly Father, get back up and try again. 

Hello!

Hello!  A year or two ago I had a blog but apparently I didn't write on it enough so it was deleted.  So I decided to try again. 
Yesterday I was listening to my christian radio station and a phrase kept going through my head that ended up being a poem.  I'd like to share it with you.

God will not give up on you
Maybe you've had a marriage that's failed,
God will not give up on you

Maybe you've had a parent say you're hopeless/worthless
God will not give up on you

Maybe you feel like friends have abandoned you
God will not give up on you

Maybe a pastor or church leader has hurt you, left you feeling broken or alone
God will not give up on you

Maybe you've given up on yourself
God will not give up on you

Do not be afraid of discouraged, for the LORD will go ahead of you.  He will be with you.  He will neither fail you nor abandon you.  Dueteronomy 31:8