The Storms, The Red Seas we face in our lives.....

Good Afternoon, Everyone! I apologize for not posting more often than I have. I have something that I want to share with you that has been on my heart for quite some time. I want to speak to you about The Red Sea as we read about in the Bible, Exodus 14-15:2. The Israelites were being led from Egypt. They asked many questions about why. Things like "Weren't there enough graves in Egypt?" "What have you done to us?" "Why did you make us leave Egypt?" These were the wrong questions. Hear me out before you take me down. I mean when we are put in a difficult situation, a struggle, a challenge in our lives don't we ask questions like "How quickly can I fix this?" "How can I get out of this mess?" Now, do you see what I mean by the wrong questions? In this chapter, there are ten strategies that God gives us to get us through difficult times.

Now for me to open up. Two years ago when I had chest surgery I had been dealing with issues with my chest, by that time ten years plus. God brought my current surgeon to me to fix the problem with my chest. The examination didn't take long and we had a plan for surgery. My focus at this time was I was focused on my chest and the issue at hand, the pain, the limitations, the frustration of it not being resolved. When something else would come up I was focused on that and would talk about it. I would post it on social media because I wanted the help and prayers from friends and family. This is what I was thinking I was doing, but it was brought to my attention that I was not. I was essentially drawing attention to myself because of what was going on. I was focused on every issue that was coming up. I was living from one thing to the next even though when asked I said I was fine. I can live without going from one thing to the next. In reality, I wasn't.

Time has changed. Back to the Israelites and the Egyptians. Remember how much the Israelites argued that they were brought out of Egypt. The Lord will fight for you just as HE fought for the Israelites. When we think of our red seas, our struggles in our lives, we may feel that we are overwhelmed, that we can't move on, can't move forward, but indeed we can. The same God who led the Israelites out of Egypt can lead you out of your red sea. Now when I am facing something I go right to the Word of God. I get into this chapter of the Bible. I will tell you the strategies as I write this post to you. Please bear with me as it may be a bit long.

When a trial, a red sea comes in your life know that God means for you to be there. Now I know that doesn't seem fair, but hear me out. Some circumstances are beyond our control. Worry is a small trickle of fear that meanders through the mind, cutting a channel into which all other thoughts flow. Essentially, worry is putting a question mark where God has placed a period. When we face things in our lives you could say that it's God testing our faith, leading us into hardship, teaching us wisdom, showing us His ways. God allows these things in our lives, sometimes they can seem to be more than we can bear, but Christ can bear them. We need to be more concerned for God's glory than for our relief. How does that sound to you? Is that something you're comfortable with? Can you do that easily? Remember my talking about the questions in the beginning? When we let God be glorified how quickly our perspective changes. Don't you agree? When we are in a trial, red sea we need to acknowledge our enemy (Satan), but keep our eyes on the Lord. How easily Satan can enter into our lives, causing disruption and chaos. How he can get in there sneakily and by the time we recognize that he's there it's sometimes too late because he's already caused disruption. When we rebuff the enemy in the name of the Lord, when we stand our ground, when we resist his wiles and claim the victory of faith, when we shake off discouragement in the name of the Lord, Satan falls from heaven faster than lightning. Every time we resist the slightest temptation, we honor God. We have to remember to Pray! That is a big key in any red sea that we face. A hard part for me is staying calm and confident, and give God time to work. Is that easy for you? Is it easy to wait on God for answers? We live in a quick fix, do it now, have it now type world don't we. When we wait on God and give Him time to work, I can tell you that the blessing you receive is much larger. You see more that He has for you. With this, I remember slow and steady wins the race while fast and thoughtless is a set up for setbacks. How much time do we have for setbacks? Do we have time to spend on them? Would it be much easier to wait and be patient while God works in our favor to help us through our red sea? When we are unsure, we need to just take the next logical step by faith. God doesn't give us guidance for two steps ahead, but He does give us guidance for the next step ahead. We need to take that step and trust Him for the next and the next. We need to envision God's enveloping presence. How can we do that...we can affirm His nearness in our hearts, we need to visualize God's presence in our minds, we can access God's nearness in prayer, and we can reflect His presence in our demeanor. Now another that we need to do is trust God to deliver us in His own unique way. His way may not be the way that we expect. His way may be with a deeper level of intervention than we can discern; in the end, it will be better for us, though for a time we may be perplexed. I view my trials, my red seas, the challenges in my life as faith builders for the future. You ask how, well, I will tell you. When someone in your life is facing something difficult you may be able to share, enlighten them how God helped you through your "red sea." Another is claiming the promises of God in every situation, knowing that God has the power to do what He has promised.

Allow me to take a minute to tell you how I deal with red seas come into my life. I now have a different perspective when dealing with them. My focus is much different. I recently felt the same things happening in my chest as the last time. I first did question why? Why Lord? I know my chest was healed before. How can this happen again? I quickly got off of that focus because I was asking the wrong questions. I started thinking that the Lord means for me to be where I am. I trusted Him and allowed Him to take me through this red sea. He has and this red sea is not finished yet. I have a follow-up visit with my surgeon on Thursday from my recent surgery.  Not all of what was planned for surgery was completed. What my surgeon did do was repair a hernia, the cartilage and a small tissue mass were removed. The small tissue mass was then sent off for evaluation whether benign or malignant. The results returned and the small tissue mass is benign. I praise God for all that He has done with this so far.  Due to the chest still popping and moving as it did prior to surgery tells me that this is not over. It tells me that God has more for me to do. God wants me to keep moving forward and I am and will continue to do so. People who have stopped to see me, people who have spoken to me via the phone have said that I do not sound like I just went through two surgeries. I said yes, and I give God the glory for that. I have to continue to rebuff Satan in the name of Jesus. I have to stand my ground. I have to resist his wiles and claim the victory of faith. When I shake off the discouragement in the name of the Lord, Satan falls from heaven fast than lightning. (hehe, I know this is bad, but that would be a sight to see.) I said all that to say that when things happen I don't jump on social media or on the phone to talk about what is happening. I jump into the Word of God and spend time with Him. I spend time in prayer. I don't allow what's happening to take over my focus. I will leave you with my last point.

Finally, I finish with this. Don't forget to praise Him. One of the reasons God puts us in tough situations or allows us to be there is to give us the opportunity to praise Him. I hope you stayed with me as long as this post was. I want you to know it was heartfelt. I am here for you, feel free to reach out to me.

Grace & Peace,