I recently came across a teaching by Andrew Wommack that has been a great blessing in my life. It is intitled "The Four Keys To Staying Full of God." I have been using these very successfully for the past few months and have been greatly blessed by it. I know how hard life seems sometimes and it almost seems like the madness will never stop. However, by learning the principles, I have overcome the hardships of everyday life. I am not saying that bad things won't happen, but I am saying you can have joy and peace through these things. For example, my fall semester at school could have been the hardest semester I had. I had a new professor that seemed to pile on the work and not let up. And I had him for 2 classes. I was also taking so many other classes that demanded a lot of time. Now, most of you would say that is just college life. But, it wasn't for me. I came from a high school were I had to do little to no work at all, and I still had a straight A average. I was totally unprepared to actually study. However, I learned the principles of this teaching and had the easiest semester of my entire college career. By focusing on God I found that any challenge is no problem.
I would like to share with you a few of the things that I learned from this teaching. The first and promenient one in my mind is the one about value. Andrew asks the question, "What do you place value on." It taught me that if I place value on my problems or think of them as major obstalces them that is what they will be. He reminded me that Paul said that his afflictions were light compared to what God had done for him. If you don't know, Paul was so greatly persecuted in his life that he almost died several times from the brutality and also spent many years in prison. I garantee that no baody in this country has ever had this kind of abuse. So if Paul that his problems were light them ours can be no more than a joke. I know many of you are probably thinking, you just don't know what I have to go through. There is always some one out there who has it worse than you. The only reason you think you have it so bad is because you are giving more value to your problem than it is worth. its the same way with money. The only reson it has value is because people give it value in their thoughts. If we look to God and value you him and what his word says and disesteem and place little to no value on everything else, life will be much easier. His point is that we must glorify God as God.
His second point is that we must be tahnkful to God for what he has done in our lives. This is not simply done by thanking God for what he has done overall but specifically what he has done for you. If you are constently remembering what God has done for you you can't help but be thankful. We need to rehearse our victories and remember tham and thank God for them all the time. The most prevelent one in my mind is how God has saved my life. He has done it many times but just recently on January 2, 2003.
Me and a freind of mine were coming back from a backing packing trip in Georgia. It had recently started to snow in the area so we decided to come home. At this point the roads were still clear and the snow had not began to stick to it and it had died down for the most part. As we were coming down the mountain there was one curve that was a solid sheet of ice. We had no clue that it was coming and my friend, who was driving, was not expecting it. Then when we reached this curve we started to slide striaght toward the edge of the road and right of the side of the mountain. There was really nothing we could do to stop it. However, my friend slammed on the brakes and the car came to a stop just before we went off the road. I know for a fact that brakes don't work very well on ice because the tires have no traction. I know if God hadn't of stopped that car then I could be dead right now. That car would have had a hard time stopping in the distance we had with good traction. I thank God for saving our lives that day. That is one of many stories of how God has blessed me. I know God has done something great in each of our lives and if you continually remember and thank God for it you will receive even greater blessings from it.
The third point he makes is that our imagination is a powerful weapon. The bible says that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34, Luke 6:45). This has direct affect on what we think about and concentrate on. If we focus our thoughts and imaginations on evil things them we will reap evil things because that is what we are believing for. But if we think on God things and the fact that God has given us victory over all things, then we will always be victorious. A friend of mine spends a lot of time watching soap operas and things of this nature. That heart is filled with all the vile and crude things because these images and dialogue are in that head. The lies they tell each other, the adultery and the decit portrayed in these saop opera are part of this persons thought patterns. Naturally, people treat this person the same way because of the belief that is how people are going to treat this person. Not only that, but the word they speak are word that people are going to do this. The imagination is focused on the bad things instead of the good. Until they change these things will continue to happen. How, you see yourself has a big effect on how things in your life come about. Imagine yourself as a success and you will be one. It is true, that if you can think it, you can do it.
The fourth and Final point Andrew makes is that we must have a good heart. Just as I stated before, our imagination has a lot to do with what is in our heart. This point really ties it all to gather. If you will focus on the things mentioned above then God will create in you a good heart and a good heart will get you everything you need and then some. I encourage you to seek God with your whole heart, and it will totally and ratically change your life. |
