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From the category archives:

Faith

Closed Doors

by BlondieWrites on August 29, 2009

Today, I saw a passage about closed doors and it really made me think… it really hit home with me because of some personal things I had been going through recently.

In the past few months, I had suddently and unexpectedly been met with a lot of closed doors, and I found myself questioning God as to why so much in my life was suddenly changing. I lost a best friend, my income dropped drastically, I was under a lot of stress about money and health issues. It seemed that everywhere I would turn, every door that had previously been open to me was closing. And I made things worse on myself because I wanted to keep one door open. I had the idea that I knew what I needed more than God knew. Oh how wrong I was!

I found myself lost, not knowing which way to go. Instead of looking for the open door and just trusting in God that He knew what He doing, I fell into a deep depression. Somewhere in that darkness, my soul cried out to God to wash it all away and to just cleanse my spirit. And He did, just like that… almost instantly. All He was waiting for was for me to ask Him. Funny now how simple it was. Where pain and hurt was, where sorrow was, happiness and joy live again.

Here’s the thing that we need to realize and remember. God opens doors in our lives. He closes doors in our lives. Those open and closed doors can be to things like a job, friends, financial success, a home, where we live, etc. Sometimes a door is all wrong for us.. or maybe it was right at one time for us and things changed and now it’s wrong for us. Sometimes where we live isn’t right for us anymore and God will close doors to move us. Sometimes a friend we have had for years changes so much and is no longer right for us and God will close the door to that friendship. Sometimes a boyfriend or girlfriend isn’t who God wants us to marry and He will close the door to the relationship and opens a door to meet the one He wants us to be with. God might cause us not to get a promotion on one job so that He can lead us to an even better job. He might cause an income to dry up on one work at home job in order to open the door to what He is wanting us to do.

He brings people into our lives for various lengths of time.. sometimes maybe for an hour, maybe four years, maybe a lifetime.. and then He closes the door to them forever. He might allow us to lose a home to bad weather in order to give us the new home He wants us to have where He wants us to have it. He might cause us to lose our job on one side of the country in order to open the door to a job on the opposite side of the coast. And He might even lead two people into a chatroom on AOL to find each other as friends and later marry, to finally be happy with someone (hey, it happened to me).

So the next time you find God closing doors on you, look for the open door. And know that when God closes doors in our lives, it will sometimes hurt. After all, we are human. But in all of this, there’s an open door, and everything will work out.

We need to learn to praise the Lord as much for a closed door as we do an open door. The reason God closes doors is because He has not prepared anything over there for us. If he didn’t close the wrong door, we would never find the right door.

God directs our path through the closing and opening of doors. Once a door closes, it forces you to change your course. Another door closes, it forces you to change your course again. Then, finally, you find the open door and you walk right into your blessing.

The Lord directs our paths through the opening and closing of doors, but often instead of praising him for the closed door (which keeps us out of trouble), we get upset because we didn’t get what we wanted and/or we think we know better than God what we need.

You have an ever-present help in the time of trouble that is always standing guard. Because He walks ahead of you. He can spot trouble down the road and set up a roadblock or detour accordingly. But through our lack of wisdom, we try to tear down the roadblocks or push aside the detour sign. Then the
minute we get into trouble, we start crying, “Lord, how could You have done this to me?” or “Lord, why did you let this happen to me?”

We have got to realize that the closed door can be a blessing. Didn’t He say that no good thing would He withhold from them that love Him?

If you get terminated from your job, praise God for the new opportunities that will manifest themselves. It might be another job, it might be school.

If that man or woman won’t return your call, it might not be them, it might be the Lord setting up a roadblock (just let it go). Maybe they would only use you or hurt you, and God is sending you someone worthy of your love.

One time, a person had a bank they had been in business with for many years tell them “No!” to a $10,000 loan. The Lord put in their spirit to call another bank. That bank gave them $40,000 at a lower interest rate than the first bank was offering.

We can sometimes trap ourselves in doubt and discouragement through judging by appearances. Be grateful for the many times our Father has closed doors to us just to open them in the most unexpected places.

The Lord won’t always say in spoken words: “Go to the left, now to the right” …sometimes He will just close the doors that are wrong for you. Just follow Him.

Popularity: 22% [?]

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Who Am I, Casting Crowns

by BlondieWrites on August 28, 2009

This is one of the most inspirational videos I have ever seen. It’s performed by the Oslo UPC Youth Group to the song, Who Am I, by Casting Crowns. For something so simple, it carries THE most powerful message. Don’t just watch it, share it!

Popularity: 13% [?]

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God Heals Hearts

by BlondieWrites on August 27, 2009

Hearts get broken. It’s one of the things that we face in life. Whether our hearts are broken by the loss of a loved one through death, a breakup with a boyfriend or girlfriend, a marriage shattered by cheating, a divorce, the loss of a friend… a broken heart hurts. Where once was a heart filled with joy and love is a heart that is torn, shattered, broken, in dispair. Then we are left wondering how to go on, what to do, how to make it through each day.

There is no doubt that a broken heart leaves a person also broken. Often after a broken heart, we don’t want to try again, we don’t want to have a reason to go on, we see only more hurt in the future if we trust again or open our hearts up again. Often we just give up. Our lives become not living, but a mere existance.

Having a broken heart isn’t the end, though. It doesn’t mean life is over. It does mean hurt, yes. It does mean pain, yes. Loss and grief do hurt! But I am here to tell you that there is hope, there is reason to go on, there is reason to start over, there is reason to live and be happy again.

God heals hearts! He doesn’t promise us we won’t go through pain and grief and sorrow. But He does promise to never leave us. A broken heart can be mended, and it can be healed. God is the Great Healer. He can fill our hearts again with joy and laughter and happiness. We just have to open up to Him and let Him in. And where He is, there will also Love be.

When the trials of life get us down, we have somewhere to turn. We can turn to God. When we put our hearts out there loving and caring, and our hearts get broken, God is there to put us back together again, to heal us, to make us whole again.

This life isn’t perfect. And things are going to happen that tear at our hearts. There is just no getting away from that in this life. Accidents happen, death calls, people leave us, people use us, people hurt us… hearts get broken. But if we let God lead us, if we trust in God, if we allow Him to heal us, He will heal our hearts.

I know that God heals hearts, because He has healed mine. I didn’t do it. No human did it. God healed my heart and he will heal yours too. Just let Him in.

Popularity: 18% [?]

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When in Dispair

by BlondieWrites on May 9, 2009

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions.

One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, and soon there was nothing left. The worst had happened, and everything was lost. He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger. “God, how could you do this to me?” he cried.

Early the next day he was awakened by the sound of a ship approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. “How did you know I was here?” asked the weary man of his rescuers.

“We saw your smoke signal,” they replied.

It’s easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we shouldn’t lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain, and suffering.

Remember this the next time your “hut” seems to be burning to the ground. It just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.

Popularity: 70% [?]

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Finding Faith When There Seems to be None

by BlondieWrites on April 30, 2009

The Bible defines faith: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1 KJV)

It’s often easy to have faith when there are no storms or trials in life. When there’s nothing going on, we usually have no problem at all in having faith. After all, why would there be a problem in having faith when everything is fine?

The real test of our faith is when the storms come. And the storms do come, sometimes in droves. When trials occur in life, that’s when our faith is often tested. But how does a person find or keep faith when it seems that everything around them, their very life even, is falling apart?

Sometimes when a storm comes, it tears down the old things, making way for the new. Granted, the tearing down of the old is often painful. There are memories in what was, some good and some bad. There is also the fear of change with the tearing down of the old. But, the only way something new, better, and stronger can be built up is for the old to be torn down. Hence, the storms of life. This is where faith comes in. We have to have faith that what we cannot see is there, that what we need will be provided in the right time.

Faith is something that will take us through not only the easy times in life, but also through the darkest and roughest storms that life brings. For the man who has sworn off loving again because of past hurts, he has to have faith that there is the one that will be all that he wants and needs and more, and won’t ever hurt him, but rather will protect him for all harm. For the girl who got pregnant as a teen and fears no man will want her and her child, she has to have faith that there is a man that will not only love and want her, but love and want her child as his own. For the family that lost their home and all they own to a fire and no money to replace any of it, they have to have faith that a home will be provided and all the things they need for it. And the thing about faith is that all that we need will be provided, it is provided, when and how the time is right.

You might be in need of better housing but are unable to afford it. You might wonder how you will obtain what you cannot possibly afford the down payment for a new one. Then one day there’s a hurricane coming your way and you are forced to leave your home and almost all you own behind as you evacuate. The hurricane spawns several tornadoes and between those and the hurricane force winds, your home is one that is destroyed. As soon as you hear the news, you are distraught over the loss of your home. But immediately, you are also joyful, because you have faith that all will be fine. A few days later you learn that the insurance you have paid in for years is just the exact amount you need for a down payment for a new home.

Faith is knowing that a way will be provided at the right time, when it’s needed. Faith is trusting wholeheartedly that what you need will be provided on time. It’s believing and trusting and knowing that you will be taken care of, that your needs will be fulfilled.

The storms of life will come and clear the old, making way for the new. Faith tells us that even in the midst of the storm that all will be okay, that faith is the core of all that we hope for but don’t yet see.

Popularity: 100% [?]

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