Hello friends, Well, here I go again. 🙂 I have noticed by some comments that I get some people are wondering about all the awful things in our world. They use those things to deny the existence of God. I will restate, as I believe, God’s creation is spiritual, not material. He is not responsible for all the bad in this world, but he is there to help us, individually, overcome some of those awful things, by giving us ideas and direction.
I used to think I was not good enough for this or that; then I discovered my mission was to know God better. Walking this path, I developed an interest in others and a desire to help. At one time, I thought that taking care of me first was selfish. Most of you have heard the instructions on an airplane that states, if the oxygen mask drops, be sure to put yours on first, so you are able to help those that need assistance. That makes perfect sense. I always take care of myself, mentally and physically, so when needed, I can step up and help. I was not always like this. For many years, while suffering from the adult effects of child abuse, I could not even help myself, let alone anyone else. I am so grateful for all the healing that has taken place in my life, which has made me who I am today. Thank you, God!
On my job for the last 30 years, among other things, I am a problem solver. I love a good challenge. Give me a puzzle, and I automatically go into a solve-it mode. I have to add that this does not work with my daughter. 🙂 When she shares things, sometimes I go into a solve-it mode, and she gets miffed. She says, “Mom, I was just sharing; I don’t need you to fix my problems.” LOL. I have learned not to give advice when not solicited. 🙂
At times, not knowing much about the problem I was facing, that was when I turned to God. He knows everything. I had to make sure that my motives were pure. The solution could not be for personal gain but had to bless all concerned. During prayer, ideas pop into my head, the “still small voice” speaking to me. He tells me where to find the answers I need. I am not highly educated, so I know these answers come from God.
This kind of prayer is not one of asking, but one of listening. “Be still and know that I am God.” Be still and listen, I had to put the problem and thoughts of the solution out of my mind, I had to think about God, and my relationship to Him and He will do the rest.
I think I have mentioned in a previous blog that I have received answers to challenges during the quiet of sleep. I do not have to beg or plead for God’s help; He knows what I need. He is just waiting for me to trust that He will supply my needs. I cannot outline what the supply will look like, that is up to Him. Many times, it came in ways I never expected.
I would not be surprised to hear that many of you have had experiences like this. God is there for us, no matter what the problem is.
Solving problems at work is different than solving world problems. I talked about world issues in my previous blog. It is worth a second mention. 🙂
When faced with world problems, frequently, our first inclination is to react with anger and fear. Sometimes out of fear, we stick our head in the sand and refuse to believe the problem even exists. That is not a good thing, as I have mentioned before. To solve a problem, you first have to admit it exists.
Jesus did not walk around in La-La land, refusing to see the problems; he could not heal what he refused to believe was there. He saw the problem and then denied that it existed in God’s creation. He refuted the lie that there could be anything bad in God’s creation, since as stated in Genesis, “He saw everything that He had made, and behold it was very good.” That enabled him to change the manifestations in this material world to image the spiritual creation.
Jesus left us such a beautiful example of how to live our lives. He was not out there trying to straighten out the world; he was working with individuals and groups teaching God’s love of man. I can only guess that he knew to heal our world; it had to start with individuals.
That is not to say we should ignore world problems. We need to pray first and listen for God’s direction. If working on our environmental issues, or get into politics is not your thing, then we need to do whatever we are able to, and then support our environmentalist and support your political choices, and make your vote count for good. Prayer is the most important first (listen) and last step (gratitude) in any situation. See the world from the divine point of view, and apply that to the world in which we live. Listen for God’s direction.
For those that are home-bound, remember prayer is a powerful weapon against the forces of evil. So put your prayers out there in the universal collective for good.
God is always there for us, but it requires us to take action. So don’t react, ACT. Solving one little problem at a time, we can change this world for the better.
Out of Darkness, Into the Light 