The Lifeline of Hope

The following definition of ‘lifeline’ was provided by Siri… “A thing on which someone or something depends or provides a means of escape from a difficult situation.”

The impact of an unforeseen adversity, or heart wrenching situation can affect one’s psyche and has a way of shaking the very foundation of faith.  It can be most daunting to try and maintain some kind of semblance of hope when being bombarded by outside forces. 

These forces can affect the mental stability and spiritual state of mind associated with faith.  No doubt the level of heartache is dependent upon the severity or intensity of what a person is going through.  Troublesome times can also cause a glitch in the communication factor between God and those that believe in prayer and trust its power. 

Unexpected happenings have a way of testing one’s capacity to maintain faith when hope is bordering on hopelessness or nearing its breaking point.  This can happen when God’s answer to prayer is delayed or not answered in the time that the petitioner thinks it should happen.  (Note) Impatience is not a virtue; patience is.

All the above thoughts can be misunderstood as negative in nature, and lacking encouragement, but the truth and reality are real.  The above is exactly what people endure when facing trouble.  Stay with me.

Things happen to everyone; no-one is exempt from pain or suffering—it’s life.  How we handle this misery is what matters most.  The Bible says that problems fall on the just and unjust alike, but then there’s God!

When effectual, fervent prayers are exercised and maintained, faith has a way of magnifying the light of God’s power and does not illuminate the problem even in our darkest hour when doubt tries to creep in like a thief in the night.

Through prayer, born-again Believers can stand in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, recognizing that He is the hope for all tribulations. 

(James 5:16), “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.  The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

Most everyone has heard the phrase, “Keep the faith.”  These are powerful words to remember in times of trouble, but it requires perseverance in prayer to do so.  When we submit our emotions, anxieties, and questions to the Lord, while grasping onto faith, we stand our ground and demonstrate trust in God as we face oppositions.  This keeps hope alive in our heart. 

Prayer is the lifeline of hope, and when coupled with faith, they bring peace when we need it the most.  Together they become our stronghold that helps us maintain open communication with God.  Without hope, hearts can real and rock under the strain of unanswered questions that may cause a person to fear the worst.

Do not give fear a seat at the table of hope.  Fear does not have the final say, God does.  When we stand on the Truth of God’s word and pray, this act of faith enables hope to move any situation beyond the finite question of “why” and brings us into the infinite, spiritual realm of God’s realism of hope that allows us to expect and believe Him for miracles.

The Holy Spirit, our Comforter, brings comfort to the weary and hope to worried hearts through prayer.  God’s bountiful love goes beyond our wildest dreams when He speaks peace during the hard times.

(1 John 4:18), “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”

Intercessory prayer is the lifeline of hope that keeps doubt at bay.  Doubt is most assuredly initiated by our adversary, the devil.  Though he tries to poison our faith in Jesus with lies and unfounded bombast, we can stand on the promise of God.

(1 John 4:4), “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”    

As I said, it can become a challenge to keep the faith and maintain a positive outlook when our mind is fighting off negative thoughts that Satan throws our way.  He tries to deplete the hope we have in Jesus through his antiques. 

On occasion, my faith is shaken and wains a bit when it seems as if the heavens are brass when I pray.  I’m sure you’ve experienced the same feeling of aloneness, but we walk by faith and not feelings.  Feelings can be misconstrued as factual, and we fail to see the reality of the spiritual realm.

If loneliness rises and shouts with a loud voice in your soul, “Where is God?!” this is the time we can lay honesty on the altar before God and humbly say, “I believe, but help me overcome my unbelief.”

Jesus wants us to be honest concerning our feelings and thought process.  He understands us better than we know ourselves.  If we give ear to the devil’s lies that God is too busy to care about our hardships, this can bring about fear, and cause hope to crumble.

Satan tells us we have no hope and that we are standing alone to face the challenges ahead.  He tries to convince us that we lack strength to overcome the trial by saturating our hope with false misgivings.  But God will someway get the glory out of any situation when we stand in His strength.

God’s amazing love goes far beyond our natural understanding of things.  It is hard to grasp the enormity of God’s agape love that He has for us.  The Bible says that we see through a glass as if it were very foggy.  God’s ways are far beyond our understanding.

(1 Corinthians 13:12), “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” 

Remember this: negative thoughts are generated by the devil and are merely smoke screens to try and overshadow or cover up God’s miraculous power from our tear-filled eyes.  Satan wants us to doubt the superiority and power of Almighty God, with headwinds of negative thoughts, while using people having personalities like job’s comforters to sow platitudes of doubt.

We may not see what’s around the corner, but we need not fear the unknown when God is in control.  We must keep our eyes always on Him.  Rebuke Satan in the name of Jesus and plead the blood of Jesus over your situation!

Keep bombarding heaven with prayers and continue to look for and expect miracles to happen.  Prayer is the lifeline of hope that maintains our faith in Jesus.  Faith moves the hand of God in our behalf.  The following scripture says that we have a High Priest who is touched by the feelings of our infirmities. 

(Hebrews 4:15), “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

(Hebrews 11:1), “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

Whatever troubles us, concerns God.  He has a plan for us and will bring it to fruition in His time.  We must always trust in God’s sovereignty, because He has our best interest at heart—always.  This trust is maintained through prayer, the lifeline of hope.

Don’t allow the devil to steal your hope or shake your faith in Jesus…trust in God; He will never leave nor forsake you.

www.wordsfrompapa.blogspot.com

Written by,

Papa Boyd

The Perfect Plan

Have you ever made plans, only to have them literally fall apart before your tear-filled eyes with nothing going right?  I know a have.  After the implosion of regrets was over, as I picked up the broken pieces of ‘whys’, it hit me; what or whom did I rely on?

What could I have done differently?  It didn’t take too many disappointing incidents to figure out when I include God in the planning stages, things have a way of working out.  This applies to all areas of one’s life.

The Lord loves us dearly and wants to be involved in every area that concerns us!  He promotes the perfect plan.  With this acknowledgment, it is now fun to plan events.

Planning vacations, an ocean cruise, or surprise parties for friends and loved ones is always exciting.  I would be remiss if I failed to mention the endearing joy of planning a wedding, especially when it’s your own.

The days leading up to my marriage to the most incredible woman that God blessed me with, there was a lot of planning that was challenging and tense at the same time.  I won’t minimize the anxiety level that we faced when trying to get all our ducks in line, as it were, to plan everything…food, flowers, cake, groomsmen and bridal party, tuxes and matching dresses, and most importantly, the bridal gown.

Securing a venue for the reception worked out perfectly.  God calmed our minds and made everything come together.  The church leadership allowed us to use the large, multipurpose room and didn’t charge us.  It was perfect.  I will quote Mr. T in the 1982 movie Rocky III: “I love it when a plan comes together.”

Finding an apartment was quite an adventure.  Hand delivering the information needed by the apartment manager before someone else jumped in ahead of us to secure the apartment for themselves was interesting, to say the least.  It was all in God’s hands. 

The supply and demand ratio of apartment seekers vs. the limited availability of apartments was an eye-opening shocker, but God worked it all out.  I should not have stressed, knowing that God was in control and instrumental in working out His perfect plan for us. 

The Lord does not do things halfway; everything has a way of falling into place.  He helped us find favor with everyone we dealt with.  What can I say?  God is good!  The manager held the apartment for us, and it was perfect in every way.  We loved it!

Planning for the pastor of her church and the pastor of my church to officiate our wedding on the same day took some coordinating, but God, again, worked out every detail, because His plan was perfect concerning my bride-to-be and me.

During all the planning, my fiancé and I went to the courthouse in Martinez, California to obtain our marriage license.  I lovingly looked at her as we stood in line and she was pale as a ghost.  I quietly asked if everything was okay, and she assured me that all was well, and that it couldn’t be better.

Later, she shared that the realization of marriage and the grave responsibility of becoming a partner for life flooded in on her.  Although a smidgen of fear creeped in briefly, she had full confidence that God’s plan was coming together and that everything was working out in grand fashion, according to His will.

It is probably natural for couples that are embarking on a serious venture together in marriage that in the days leading up to any marriage they may experience unsettled emotions deep within their psyche, causing questions to arise.  A lifelong commitment is a lot for anyone to process.

I was sure that this was God’s plan concerning me.  My companion also believed that our unity was God’s plan for her and me.  I was ready for marriage as she was even though we had been dating for only three months, plus three months engagement.

Some people said, “Long engagements are better.”  But she and I were the ones saying, “I do.”  We were ready.  No doubt, with some couples, a longer engagement is best, because a short engagement can generate stress.  It is better to know for sure before tying the knot.  Time provides safeguards against making life-changing decisions too quickly.  We were both excited and ready to take the next step, together.

Backtracking a bit, allow me to give you a little history.  The future Mrs. Boyd was thirteen when she saw me for the first time when I sang with a Christian quartet at an “Eye Rally” in the City of Walnut Creek, California.  The gathering was a David Wilkerson sponsorship for youth. 

I was seventeen at the time, four years older than her.  She was certainly too young for me, but little did I know what was around the corner.

Almost a decade later, I met this girl, because the organist in her church, who knew me, gave me her telephone number.  That teenybopper was now Twenty-one years old.  I called her and we talked for Forty-five minutes.  I was drawn to her on the phone, never having seen her.  There was just something there!  We had a lot in common.  It was God!           

After dating for a while, she told me that she had eyes for me back when she saw me that first time.  How sweet is that!?

Who knew in nine years that I would marry this girl?  Oh wait, God did!  He had the perfect plan for both her and me.  It just took time for everything to fall into place prior to us meeting.  As God’s plan unveiled itself through the years, the Lord directed both our paths and in His perfect timing, we met, fell in love, and were married.  She was Twenty-two and I was Twenty-six.

Our marriage together has been a wonderful partnership, because God’s plan was perfect from the beginning regarding her life and mine.  I believe we were created for each other.  When God does something, He does it right, because of His unfailing love.

My advice to anyone looking for romance, or a mate, or needs confirmation and assurances that they are heading in the right direction is this: most importantly, be patient and DO NOT get in a hurry.  DO NOT branch out into unfamiliar waters to deviate from God’s plan.  DO NOT get ahead of Him by doing your own thing, lest you are filled with remorse later.

Follow God’s direction, faithfully, because the Lord has a perfect plan for those that trust in His providence.  We MUST allow God time to work out the details of His plan. 

For sure, giving our life to God is a step of faith.  It takes courage and absolute trust to not take destiny out of God’s hands to pursue our will.  It is much better to wait a little longer than to make a mistake, an irrational move, and regret the decisions made.  Our adage should be, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”

I am told that patience or perseverance are vital when making decisions.  We all need to practice this concept, because humans are prone to be impatient and move too quickly, because we want it now!  God may have a five-dollar watch, figuratively speaking, but He is never late; He is always on time.

If you are concerned what lies ahead and the things that tomorrow holds around the corner awaiting to be revealed, the moment you give your all to Jesus, your heart will be filled with perfect peace.  He will bring His plan into focus and fulfill the perfect plan in His time.  Allow Him to direct you in the way that is right.   

‘The Perfect Plan’ is His delight, because He delights in you and me.

(Jeremiah 29:11), “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

(Psalm 37:23), “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.”

www.wordsfrompapa.blogspot.com

Written by,

Papa Boyd

Creepy Crawlers

From a man’s perspective, I would think that guys, for the most part, especially Type-A personalities, do not want to appear feeble, fragile, weak, or afraid of anything.

The word ‘macho’ is sometimes used to describe certain male figures.  I would venture to say that not too many males make a practice of touching or playing with any type of creepy crawler.  I choose to leave them alone and I want them to leave me alone.

In the beginning, God created man with a strong, physical makeup and having a mental disposition unlike the woman.  I believe it’s only natural for males to assume the role of protector and provider, because of their masculinity. 

Let us be real, underneath all that macho persona, often, things exist that men ignore, while hiding them in the recess shadows of their brain, preferring not to talk about them. I believe it is reasonable to say that the one big factor in men, they display an outward façade of manliness to not appear as overly sensitive or having feminine qualities.

Most men sidestep girlish emotions lest they are perceived as being a wuss or lacking manly characteristics.  Please, don’t assume or read into my words that I think women are physically or mentally inept—they are not!  From my viewpoint, they are certainly a helpmate to the male gender in decision making and other important areas.

Some guys live in a bubble that is full of pretense; a pretend reality to modify the truth to suit their mindset.  They want to be seen as brave.  I think the truth of the matter is this: men are sometimes discreet in nature, trying not to attract attention to the weaker areas they are hiding. 

Men do not want to be seen as being an easy mark to be taken advantage of in any way, shape, or form.    This is just my take on masculinity.

The following percentage is quite interesting.  52% of males experience Arachnophobia, a phobia of spiders and Ophidiophobia, a fear of snakes, which are common phobias.  The fear of snakes affects approximately 1 to 5 percent of the global population.  These phobias are usually a non-spoken reality with men, known only to their closest friends or family members.

The fear of spiders is more prevalent in women than men, but I can attest that these phobias are real in my circle of friends.  Some of the men I know are afraid of spiders, even daddy-long-legs. 

One of these guys was an M.P. (Military Police), physically toned and very strong.  I would say a tough character, yet he is vexed with phobias. 

In my late teens, I knew a fellow that if you teased him with a snake, even a non-venomous one, he would beat you to a pulp, because he was deathly afraid of creepy crawlers, especially “slithering reptiles” as he put it.

When I was a young kid growing up in the bedroom community of Martinez, California, one of my childhood buddies had no problem catching and playing with lizards when we were messing around in his backyard.  He had pet tarantulas, snakes, and other creepy crawlers in glass enclosures in his bedroom.

These critters were not in my wheelhouse for having fun.  They creeped me out and made my skin crawl even though my personality was Type-A.

The following creepy crawler was instrumental in bringing about a total mess on earth from the very beginning when God created man and woman in the Garden of Eden.  Humanity has been shackled with the ‘sin-nature’ that has plagued the world’s population since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden.

In their defiance, they ate the forbidden fruit that God commanded them not to eat nor touch.  Because of their shameful disobedience, we inherited an ungodly nature of sinning thanks to these self-centered ancestors.

Eve, the woman God gave to Adam, should have restrained her inner desires and walked away from the one tree that God exclaimed, “Do not eat the fruit!”  She obsessed over the fruit, while listening to the serpent that was more cunning than any beast in the field.  He tempted her to eat the fruit by telling her she would be like God, knowing good and evil.

Eve did the unthinkable when she refused to give credence to God’s warning and ate the fruit.  She then encouraged Adam to do likewise.  That creepy crawler was Satan himself, the deceiver that took on the form of a snake.

Later, when Eve was questioned by God concerning what she had done, she tried to blame the serpent for her disobedience.  God didn’t buy it!  He knew she was not blameless in the betrayal.  This senseless act of willful misbehavior was an out and out sin against God. 

Eve disregarded the consequences for her selfish, undisciplined act, and involving Adam.  She wanted her way, period.  God expelled them out of the Garden of Eden.

Humans, today, are suffering negative repercussions because of Adam and Eve’s sin.  One thing is certain, listening to Satan’s lies and doing what he tempts us to do destroys any chance of promoting forward motion to wholesome living.  Sin does not pay in the long run.

Adam and Eve’s fall is a good example and lesson for you and me to not sin when we know it’s wrong to do so in today’s radical environment of temptations.  It is wise to leave creepy crawlers alone—namely sin.

Why risk playing with sin, like people tempt fate when they handle creepy crawlers, only to get bitten as they play with venomous spiders, snakes, lizards, and other such critters? 

Before sinning, we should consider the consequences of our actions lest we die from the bites.  We need to remember that Satan’s venom is toxic and deadly if we choose to listen to his lies.  Nothing in the world is new since the beginning of time.  The devil is still slithering here and there seeking whom he may deceive and devour.

The ‘Adam-nature’ to sin is born into every human being, but we can resist the urge to sin through Jesus Christ and the born-again experience.  The ‘sin-nature’ was inherently transferred to us through heredity that sets the tone for our behavior, but as I said, we can change because of God’s amazing grace.

Mankind is inclined to do their own thing just like Adam and Eve.  It’s easy to disobey the 10-Commandments and the rule of law in the land, but there is hope in Jesus.  We don’t have to listen to the serpent and give into temptation when we stand in Christ.

Sadly, sinning comes naturally, but God provides a way of escape to those who are looking for deliverance—it’s God’s plan of salvation that is free to anyone wanting redemption from the plague of Adam and Eve’s sin.

Every person that sins can try to blame someone else for their misbehavior, or push it off on Adam and Eve’s as if it’s their fault for having uncontrollable urges to sin, but the truth is this: there is no excuse under heaven for turning one’s back on God and choosing corrupt behavior rather than wholesome living, when God has provided a plan of escape.

Every person is responsible for his or her own actions and will pay the price for their sins, but the answer to ‘new beginnings’ and how to ignore the creepy crawler that tempts us to sin is in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.  He alone sets us free from the ‘sin-nature’, because He paid the full price for sin.

Jesus was crucified on a cross to set us free from the bondage and venomous bite of sin.  God gave His Son to provide salvation for whosoever will, but it is up to everyone to accept Jesus as the propitiation for sin or to reject God’s plan and die as a result.

(John 3:16), “For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” 

We need not fear Satan, the creepy crawler.  He is the evil one who wants company in hell and is hell-bent on deceiving us like he did Eve.  God gives us the power to tread on this serpent and cast him to the curb in the name of Jesus.

(1 John 4:18), “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”

God gives us the insight and wherewithal to identify the creepy crawlers in our lives and to recognize all his disguises and turn away from them before we are deceived and bitten.

Today, people prefer to tempt fate rather than running in the opposite direction.  Even though they know something is bad and that they might get bitten, they go against the laws of God and against the rules of society.  They want to do their own thing just like Eve did in the garden.

Nothing has changed over time.  Satan’s creepy crawlers, the angels of darkness (fallen angels) are everywhere and hazardous to one’s physical and spiritual health.  Though something may seem harmless, it’s better to leave it alone than to die because of hardheadedness.

A person can either partake of sin and die or leave it alone and live through Jesus Christ our Savior.  Why play around with creepy crawlers that deceive, bite, and kill their hosts?

www.wordsfrompapa.blogspot.com

Written by,

Papa Boyd