I am a very fortunate person, like some others, that have not REALLY suffered. We have witnessed others suffering, (perhaps caused some suffering 🤨) I enjoyed reading this. I wish I could send it to some friends but they would not read it bc they are too lazy.
I am so very very grateful that God guides me. God is everything.
I have suffered greatly in this life. Been tried in the fires. My faith is unshakeable. There are things only those who suffer can fathom when it comes to God. Perhaps they are the ones who are meant to teach by example. (If I can overcome so much pain and trauma then you can too.) No matter what abuses I endured, I always knew I had a purpose to fulfill for God. It is what kept me going in the worst of times. These times we are in at present, have taught me why I had to endure so much. To be ready for such a time as this. My faith grows stronger and I will do what ever God needs me too. I have been persecuted by those who were suppose to love me, my entire life. There is nothing that could be worse than that, in my mind. I understand the cost of following Christ. Faith is stronger than fear. To be absent of the body is to be in the presence of God. So, I ask you, what do I have to lose? There is nothing this world can dish out that can separate me from God. NCSWIC. God bless.
Once the Apostles had went a certain distance with Christ, I think it became evident that to go back was more insane than going forward. Sometimes God leads us into places we can't imagine but we know we must press on no matter what.
Sometimes it comes down to a stoic principle, not allowing the devil to glean any power from your pain. It does not solely define you as a martyr when you are capable of keeping faith, love, and courage as your shield. In this day it seems of utmost importance to find joy and hope in every situation, if for no other reason than to confound the devil so his energy is further spent without gain. God Bless You and everyone reading this.
Marcus Aurelius wrote on this subject a lot. I think there is something to be said about shielding our minds and hearts no matter the outward pressures.
Beautiful, Pepe! I have been suffering with an absolutely broken heart for many years, bc our beautiful family has been shattered. First bc of Christ and then bc of the truth about the plandemic, the 2nd amendment,…..Pres Trump, you name it. My husband and dearly loved our 3 kids as we sought to raise them in the Lord and give them a wonderful upbringing. Now they are 25, 27, and 33, and 2 if the 3 have rejected Christ, and two want almost nothing to do with us. Some days the pain seems unbearable. Thank you for the reminder about Paul’s situation. When He told Paul. “No,” He also said, “My grace is sufficient for you. For power is perfected in weakness.” I had forgotten about those verses. Thanks for the reminder.
This viginette is not about quoting Scripture (the intended audience already knows the verses implied) but fleshing them out for us in a vivid and succient way. The whole piece is about internalizing that verse to meet us in real-time.
I was referring to scripture that was quoted, so, the discussion is about scripture. If misquoted it changes the meaning of scripture significantly as does misquoting anything else. Then the internalization of the meaning becomes quite different than the actual meaning. If we apply a meaning that is not the intended meaning to our lives we are being misguided. Led away from the Truth not toward it.
Prodigals do come home. We keep on loving them and praying for them.
Heavenly Father, break the stronghold that satan has over the minds of these young people. We know that You love them dearly. Be “the Hound of Heaven” and pursue them with your love. Comfort and strengthen Marianne’s heart.
How kind of you to respond! Do you ever watch Give Him 15 on YouTube? Dutch Sheets spent a week talking about prodigals. It was about two weeks ago. It was very helpful. Also, his brother Tim Sheets and Dutch’s niece have written a book about God’s heart for prodigals and prayer strategies. I have a prodigal, too, and I have one that has already come home. Much love and hope to you through our precious Savior Jesus.
Thanks for telling me about this, Catherine. I will have to look them up. So happy for you that one of your prodigals has come home. I’m hoping that the Lord will use the difficulties of what’s coming to wake up many young adults who have walked away from their Christian upbringing like my kids have. When they begin to realize that they have been lied to about so many things(ie doctors, gov leaders, wars, Covid, etc) I am hoping that they begin to wonder if they have been lied to about the Lord, too. We keep praying.🙏
I think that you are right. Prophet Bob Jones said there would be a billion soul harvest. I believe we are on the cusp of that. Many young people need to see that the God of the Bible is real. ( By the way, I am a nurse and COVID woke me up.)
Thank you for this! As I have had Bell's Palsy for 3 years, it is almost healed, but my left eye and part of my left mouth still are not 100%, then food allergies that leave me living like a recluse, by the Grace of God, I figured out which food trigger it, so it is somewhat controllable, and has really led me to better clean eating and a full clean KETO diet. All of this happened when I turned 50, and came from nowhere, I did not take the vaxx. I was suicidal at first, I was just done, but my loving husband brought me back from the brink, he is truly a God send, and I am so grateful that I have spent the last 35 years of my life with him. Even in the most down times of life, God opens another door, it is almost like the pain and suffering is pushing you to something else that you would of not gone to had the illness or injury not happened. Same with financial difficulties and job loss, God seems to push you in a different direction and it always works out. Praise God and I do thank him for all of the suffering, it has showed me Love and Patience.
SAMES, Sister! I was gobsmacked by Pepe's simple interpretation of scripture this morning. In a world of hurt these past 3 years I was starting to turn on myself. "I'm not good enough for God to help me up and out." "My mistakes are unforgivable." Now I feel convicted for my unbelief. I think I'm crying out all the "venom"
Not sure what came over me while reading this. Living with RA for 16 years is a challenge that I thought I had a good grip on. Started sobbing about the second paragraph and didn't stop until long after I was done reading. A good cleansing cry.. If fact I could easily start again right now. You have a gift that I treasure. Thank you for your words.
I too can relate to this Pepe! Excruciating sciatica pain, had surgery to release the nerve being crushed, only to find out that hopefully now it can heal. Two years later still plagued with it healing, sloooowley and hopefully surely. I also wondered, is it something I did wrong? Do I not have enough faith to see this resolved swiftly? Sometimes I feel so alone in this pain but your writing really made me think and and helped with some answers. I'm not alone, we all have our own battles. Through it all, I love the Lord and thank him for giving me the strength to get through some of my worst days ever, knowing it could always be worse. Thank you again for being You! =)
I feel for you. Sciatica is an enemy of mine. If you read my above post you'll see I know all about the horrendous pain. I have had other pain from living with a disability all of my life but nothing prepared me for this kind of pain. It really does take away the will to live.
Wow! I know from your writing that, although this certainly pertains to you and your own suffering, (which I pray is soon diminished or gone) it comes- once again -as a blessing and a reminder to those of us who also suffer. Whether it’s physical or emotional/psychological pain, we must get with God. For me, today was the perfect day to read this, so Thank you again. It’s amazing how we can count on you to right the ship. LET IT BE! 🙏🇺🇸🙏
The key is to stop asking "Why me?" and instead say "Why not me?" If God needs someone who is in constant pain, then volunteer: "Choose me!" What better way to confound our enemy than to live in gratitude for all things, without qualification or any explanation.
The enemy becomes extremely frustrated when we refuse to acknowledge him sometimes. This is a tactic I have learned. Sometime they want us to focus on the wrong things and when we refuse, we win.
I feel like this was written for me. Literally. I walk with a limp. Have all my life. Was born with dislocated hips and have had many surgeries as a child and adult. Mental and physical pain is no stranger to me. I was blessed with about 10 years of pain free living until the back issues that were a result of my disability hit. Pain like I've never been through before. Pain where I was basically screaming at God and beyond angry. Wasn't it enough that I was born this way. I have to admit not proud of my behavior. Mad at God. I just didn't know how to handle the pain. Months of pain. Pain that will never fully go away. I'm not sure how I will handle it when it happens again but I pray I can hold it together enough not to blame God. Just to pray for strength and grace to get through again and to be grateful for the days that are not so bad.
Thank you. I hope I didn't come across as looking for sympathy. Sometimes I write my story so others know that they are not alone in whatever pain they may be going through.
Thank you Pepe; so timely and honest. It is something I have struggled with. Many years ago, I suffered a horrific tragedy and lost my fragile faith. It was a long road back, but it was a long hard road I had to take. I thought God had abandoned me and everyone else who got hurt, but I know now that even after I turned my back, He never abandoned me. I didn’t deserve that loyalty. I make a point every night to thank Him for the day, no matter how bad the day was. In actively thanking Him, I find I can always tease out parts of the day that were significant and worthy of thankfulness, no matter how small. Even the pain is worthy, it makes us warriors. Nothing I’ve endured can compare to the agony of Christ. Every day we are here and spiritually present is reason for gratitude. I still struggle, and I am learning to lean on God in my pain and to accept the things I just don’t understand. The hardest part is in accepting that I am weak and He is strong. Your post touched me deeply ❤️
Well can't say I'm surprised by this post. Pepe has touched the heart of faith with these words. So much is honorable being shared. It's both personal and divine in the moment. These are the messages that keep me spiritually alive! Much Thanks
For me as a witness to another’s suffering I feel the greatest sense of humbleness and compassion toward those who have suffered. I want to pray that God would have mercy on them. It brings me to my knees. An enormous feeling of love sweeps over me. God reminds me of the selfish petty thoughts I have about myself. God forgive me.
beautifully written.
Thank you.
I am a very fortunate person, like some others, that have not REALLY suffered. We have witnessed others suffering, (perhaps caused some suffering 🤨) I enjoyed reading this. I wish I could send it to some friends but they would not read it bc they are too lazy.
I am so very very grateful that God guides me. God is everything.
I hope these writings can be a blessing for someone. Appreciate you.
It's is a huge blessing to me. I can't thank you enough!! 🙌🤗🥰
Send it anyway. God Bless.
I have suffered greatly in this life. Been tried in the fires. My faith is unshakeable. There are things only those who suffer can fathom when it comes to God. Perhaps they are the ones who are meant to teach by example. (If I can overcome so much pain and trauma then you can too.) No matter what abuses I endured, I always knew I had a purpose to fulfill for God. It is what kept me going in the worst of times. These times we are in at present, have taught me why I had to endure so much. To be ready for such a time as this. My faith grows stronger and I will do what ever God needs me too. I have been persecuted by those who were suppose to love me, my entire life. There is nothing that could be worse than that, in my mind. I understand the cost of following Christ. Faith is stronger than fear. To be absent of the body is to be in the presence of God. So, I ask you, what do I have to lose? There is nothing this world can dish out that can separate me from God. NCSWIC. God bless.
Once the Apostles had went a certain distance with Christ, I think it became evident that to go back was more insane than going forward. Sometimes God leads us into places we can't imagine but we know we must press on no matter what.
AMEN
Powerful! 🙏💞
Sometimes it comes down to a stoic principle, not allowing the devil to glean any power from your pain. It does not solely define you as a martyr when you are capable of keeping faith, love, and courage as your shield. In this day it seems of utmost importance to find joy and hope in every situation, if for no other reason than to confound the devil so his energy is further spent without gain. God Bless You and everyone reading this.
Marcus Aurelius wrote on this subject a lot. I think there is something to be said about shielding our minds and hearts no matter the outward pressures.
Beautiful! And God bless you! 🙏💞
Beautiful, Pepe! I have been suffering with an absolutely broken heart for many years, bc our beautiful family has been shattered. First bc of Christ and then bc of the truth about the plandemic, the 2nd amendment,…..Pres Trump, you name it. My husband and dearly loved our 3 kids as we sought to raise them in the Lord and give them a wonderful upbringing. Now they are 25, 27, and 33, and 2 if the 3 have rejected Christ, and two want almost nothing to do with us. Some days the pain seems unbearable. Thank you for the reminder about Paul’s situation. When He told Paul. “No,” He also said, “My grace is sufficient for you. For power is perfected in weakness.” I had forgotten about those verses. Thanks for the reminder.
Amen. Praying for family restoration for you.
That means the world to me! Just to know that someone has prayed for my family.
Keep praying that someone will come into their lives and reach them when you cannot. In the meantime, here's a (hug).
Thank you, Catherine.
Not trying to be a smartalec, but you left out an important part :
My grace is sufficient for thee; for MY POWER is made made perfect in weakness.
No our own power. Our weakness. It's important to remember it's God's power.
NASB version
It's important to me not to try and run on my own power. To remember it comes from God and His grace and to ask for those.
Thanks for letting me know what the NASB version is.
This viginette is not about quoting Scripture (the intended audience already knows the verses implied) but fleshing them out for us in a vivid and succient way. The whole piece is about internalizing that verse to meet us in real-time.
I was referring to scripture that was quoted, so, the discussion is about scripture. If misquoted it changes the meaning of scripture significantly as does misquoting anything else. Then the internalization of the meaning becomes quite different than the actual meaning. If we apply a meaning that is not the intended meaning to our lives we are being misguided. Led away from the Truth not toward it.
Not sure what vignette you refer to...
God bless you! 🙏💞
Prodigals do come home. We keep on loving them and praying for them.
Heavenly Father, break the stronghold that satan has over the minds of these young people. We know that You love them dearly. Be “the Hound of Heaven” and pursue them with your love. Comfort and strengthen Marianne’s heart.
In the Name of Jesus Amen
Forgive me for not responding when you first prayed this, Catherine. It meant the world to me. Blessings.
How kind of you to respond! Do you ever watch Give Him 15 on YouTube? Dutch Sheets spent a week talking about prodigals. It was about two weeks ago. It was very helpful. Also, his brother Tim Sheets and Dutch’s niece have written a book about God’s heart for prodigals and prayer strategies. I have a prodigal, too, and I have one that has already come home. Much love and hope to you through our precious Savior Jesus.
Thanks for telling me about this, Catherine. I will have to look them up. So happy for you that one of your prodigals has come home. I’m hoping that the Lord will use the difficulties of what’s coming to wake up many young adults who have walked away from their Christian upbringing like my kids have. When they begin to realize that they have been lied to about so many things(ie doctors, gov leaders, wars, Covid, etc) I am hoping that they begin to wonder if they have been lied to about the Lord, too. We keep praying.🙏
I think that you are right. Prophet Bob Jones said there would be a billion soul harvest. I believe we are on the cusp of that. Many young people need to see that the God of the Bible is real. ( By the way, I am a nurse and COVID woke me up.)
Pepe, love getting your messages of hope in these difficult times. Thank you, Fren!
Thank you for reading!
Well written god bless fren
Thank you for this! As I have had Bell's Palsy for 3 years, it is almost healed, but my left eye and part of my left mouth still are not 100%, then food allergies that leave me living like a recluse, by the Grace of God, I figured out which food trigger it, so it is somewhat controllable, and has really led me to better clean eating and a full clean KETO diet. All of this happened when I turned 50, and came from nowhere, I did not take the vaxx. I was suicidal at first, I was just done, but my loving husband brought me back from the brink, he is truly a God send, and I am so grateful that I have spent the last 35 years of my life with him. Even in the most down times of life, God opens another door, it is almost like the pain and suffering is pushing you to something else that you would of not gone to had the illness or injury not happened. Same with financial difficulties and job loss, God seems to push you in a different direction and it always works out. Praise God and I do thank him for all of the suffering, it has showed me Love and Patience.
Wow what a story. Thank you for sharing.
SAMES, Sister! I was gobsmacked by Pepe's simple interpretation of scripture this morning. In a world of hurt these past 3 years I was starting to turn on myself. "I'm not good enough for God to help me up and out." "My mistakes are unforgivable." Now I feel convicted for my unbelief. I think I'm crying out all the "venom"
Not sure what came over me while reading this. Living with RA for 16 years is a challenge that I thought I had a good grip on. Started sobbing about the second paragraph and didn't stop until long after I was done reading. A good cleansing cry.. If fact I could easily start again right now. You have a gift that I treasure. Thank you for your words.
That is so amazing to hear. I'm so glad you resonated with the message!1 God bless you.
I too was overcome with tears. It's been too long for me and I feel God's tenderness again. Ty, and TY Pepe, as always! 🙏💞
I too can relate to this Pepe! Excruciating sciatica pain, had surgery to release the nerve being crushed, only to find out that hopefully now it can heal. Two years later still plagued with it healing, sloooowley and hopefully surely. I also wondered, is it something I did wrong? Do I not have enough faith to see this resolved swiftly? Sometimes I feel so alone in this pain but your writing really made me think and and helped with some answers. I'm not alone, we all have our own battles. Through it all, I love the Lord and thank him for giving me the strength to get through some of my worst days ever, knowing it could always be worse. Thank you again for being You! =)
Chronic pain has a way of making us feel alone. I suppose I was writing this to hopefully connect with you all in my pain. Appreciate you.
I feel for you. Sciatica is an enemy of mine. If you read my above post you'll see I know all about the horrendous pain. I have had other pain from living with a disability all of my life but nothing prepared me for this kind of pain. It really does take away the will to live.
🙏😭
I'm so sorry Tracy, I know exactly what you mean. I pray the Med Beds come soon for so many reasons, not just mine. Xo
😊
You are never alone, and we are all here together in our pain, and joy. 🙏💞
Thank you Tammy, always a good reminder!
Wow! I know from your writing that, although this certainly pertains to you and your own suffering, (which I pray is soon diminished or gone) it comes- once again -as a blessing and a reminder to those of us who also suffer. Whether it’s physical or emotional/psychological pain, we must get with God. For me, today was the perfect day to read this, so Thank you again. It’s amazing how we can count on you to right the ship. LET IT BE! 🙏🇺🇸🙏
Thank you!
This is a keeper. So well written and so true.
The key is to stop asking "Why me?" and instead say "Why not me?" If God needs someone who is in constant pain, then volunteer: "Choose me!" What better way to confound our enemy than to live in gratitude for all things, without qualification or any explanation.
The enemy becomes extremely frustrated when we refuse to acknowledge him sometimes. This is a tactic I have learned. Sometime they want us to focus on the wrong things and when we refuse, we win.
I just wrote my reply with the word confound and then I saw you wrote that word too! I think we are onto something… ❤️🔥
The river runs (wild) only with God through it completely
I feel like this was written for me. Literally. I walk with a limp. Have all my life. Was born with dislocated hips and have had many surgeries as a child and adult. Mental and physical pain is no stranger to me. I was blessed with about 10 years of pain free living until the back issues that were a result of my disability hit. Pain like I've never been through before. Pain where I was basically screaming at God and beyond angry. Wasn't it enough that I was born this way. I have to admit not proud of my behavior. Mad at God. I just didn't know how to handle the pain. Months of pain. Pain that will never fully go away. I'm not sure how I will handle it when it happens again but I pray I can hold it together enough not to blame God. Just to pray for strength and grace to get through again and to be grateful for the days that are not so bad.
I can relate. Thank you for sharing. Praying God brings you healing and comfort.
Thank you. I hope I didn't come across as looking for sympathy. Sometimes I write my story so others know that they are not alone in whatever pain they may be going through.
God bless you, my sister in Christ! Praying for you... 🙏💞
Tracy I’ll pray that you WON’T have to experience that pain again!!🙏🙏🙏❤️
Thank you. It's always hanging over my head but the good days are always appreciated.
Thank you Pepe; so timely and honest. It is something I have struggled with. Many years ago, I suffered a horrific tragedy and lost my fragile faith. It was a long road back, but it was a long hard road I had to take. I thought God had abandoned me and everyone else who got hurt, but I know now that even after I turned my back, He never abandoned me. I didn’t deserve that loyalty. I make a point every night to thank Him for the day, no matter how bad the day was. In actively thanking Him, I find I can always tease out parts of the day that were significant and worthy of thankfulness, no matter how small. Even the pain is worthy, it makes us warriors. Nothing I’ve endured can compare to the agony of Christ. Every day we are here and spiritually present is reason for gratitude. I still struggle, and I am learning to lean on God in my pain and to accept the things I just don’t understand. The hardest part is in accepting that I am weak and He is strong. Your post touched me deeply ❤️
Christine, your post touched me deeply. I'm on the same path. Your faith is beautiful. 🤗 thank you for sharing.
Thank you for commenting, SBJanet. It’s so comforting to have a family of believers. ❤️
Well can't say I'm surprised by this post. Pepe has touched the heart of faith with these words. So much is honorable being shared. It's both personal and divine in the moment. These are the messages that keep me spiritually alive! Much Thanks
Thank you!
For me as a witness to another’s suffering I feel the greatest sense of humbleness and compassion toward those who have suffered. I want to pray that God would have mercy on them. It brings me to my knees. An enormous feeling of love sweeps over me. God reminds me of the selfish petty thoughts I have about myself. God forgive me.