Through a time of Testing

I hate the devil.

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
- Romans 12:9 (NIV)

Using my closed ones against me. To falsely say all kinds of evil against me. Using my closed ones to doused the flame of my faith, to hurt me..

Been threading on enemy grounds lately... sharing the gospel almost everyday... and the devil ain't happy with me. I sense that strong spiritual warfare.

I'm pleased... I got on the devil's nerves. The more he tries, the stronger my armor gets.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
- Ephesians 6:13-17 (NIV)

For at least this day I know I'm pleasing God and not the devil.

Salvation is not a one step process, and I shouldn't feel discouraged or dejected... even though rejection and persecution from family members are hard... But like what Elysaa said, they love me and that's why they want me to know what I truly am doing.

Why did I even succumb to the lies of the devil initially, despite knowing it is partially wrong? The Lord knows my path and yearns for His children to draw closer to Him all the time, not further. And never will He allow me to leave, unless I choose to... even so that wouldn't be a overnight thing, and His Holy Spirit is always within me as I choose to obey and be guided by Him.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the first born among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
- Romans 8:28-30

Yes... why am I so worried about the future? The Lord has my life all placed in the end and He sees my whole life...

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
- Matthew 6:34

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
- Jeremiah 29:11-13

Yes... God has plans to prosper me and not to harm me... Those disturbing thoughts that took peace away from my heart were definitely not of the Holy Spirit. God will never device a plan for me to leave Him... He may bring me through trials and testings... but He will teach me the way to overcome them too.. And never will they be harder than I can take.

And the Lord brought to me last night a comforting reminder..

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say al lkinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matthew 5:11-12

The Lord has never failed me.... and the Lord has given me insights and promises. I will hold on to them.. Salvation is a process... and I'm thankful for the opportunities the Lord has given me to plant seeds.

Despite this persecution, I'm thankful for the chance to share.

I need to trust more... and really even during this time of crossroads... pray that God will open up doors for me...

Thank you for the so many ones who encouraged me over the past few days..

Christ Mix Umbrella - Lyrics

R&B never cease to keep a smile upon my face. What's even better is when you Praise the Lord with it!

Can't help but place it here again even when you've seen this before.



Loving this for I managed to figure out the lyrics for Christ Mix - Umbrella!

Verse:
I gave you my heart
In exchange for a brand new start
Lord then you made me clean
And you set me apart

You see I was in the dark
But you're the bright and morning star
Now with your amazing grace
You keep a smile upon my face

Chorus:
Because
When the son die He didn't die forever
Put Him in a tomb and three days later
Died on a cross and rose again
Dip me in His blood and washed away my sins, sins sins, eh eh
Thank the Lord I'm born again, ain ain ain... yeah~

Rap:
Look, her daddy been gone, her momma left when she was seven
Stuck a relative she didn't know was there a heaven
Wish I could grow wings and fly away from this place
That's what she told me but wiping tears from my face

But everytime you cry the Lord feels your pain
So put a fist in the air, you're ready for change
The race is not given to the swift or to the strong
You gotta endure I'm telling you to hold on

The Confused Flower

There was a flower who always felt inferior and was filled with insecurities. As a baby shoot it grew and grew, and so did the insecurities. Birds flew by and many mocked and spat at the flower. All the other flowers had birds and insects lay upon them, and this flower's insecurities grew stronger.

The flower began to work on its inner beauty, knowing that someday, a bird may land due to its inner sweetness. Time passed and some birds came, and one of them grew to spend more time with the flower. The flower for once felt genuine attention and care. Yet the flower was being taken away from the bird to a foreign land to be nutured by its owner. Both were sad, yet they believed they were going to meet and be together some day.

Out in the new foreign land, the flower stood silent amidst the strangers. It didn't care about the birds nor the insects. Yet time passed and the flower met another bird whom treated the flower with even more attention and care. The flower and the bird grew closer and happier together until one day, the flower heard a song in the wind that brought back sudden memories of the bird back in its hometown.

The flower's eyes closed for a moment, and was brought back to reality and confusion. There were two birds. The owner of the flower loved one bird deeply for the bird loved the owner too. The other bird was just a bird flying without knowing the flower's owner... The flower, however, believes in the day that the bird to come to know its owner.

The flower thought back to the days of its past and questioned its owner, to dawn upon itself the truth and the uncertainties yet to come by its way. The flower will never know where its owner will take it, and which bird the owner will allow for the flower. The flower does not want either bird to be hurt. The flower is filled with grieve choosing to hurt itself by running away and hiding its feelings.

The flower is filled with questions and uncertainties... yet will choose to understand and draw closer to its owner and walk its owner's way...... It is good that the flower has its owner to talk to, and an owner who loves and care for the flower. The flower's path is always in its owner's hands and happiness too. So the flower should not worry, but just return to the owner, humbled and contrite for the owner's love and comfort.

Poor flower, it's feeling so sad and confused. Let's pray for that flower...