#extremelyfavored

Another reminder from the Lord! ❤❤❤

Return to your rest, O my soul, For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. For You have delivered my soul from death, My eyes from tears, And my feet from falling.

I will walk before the Lord In the land of the living.

Psalm 116:5‭-‬9 NKJV

I have not been feeling good since Saturday, my nausea and fatigue was annoyingly persistent, and I could only do one major task for the day, after that I'm done. I'd get really dizzy, my body and my mind won't function well. I'd get a slight fever, I'd feel really really sick. I feel heavy, I feel overwhelmed, I feel concerned and troubled with everything going on in the world, I feel sad, I feel like a failure-- too many things going on in my head.

So I pushed myself to rest instead, even when my head is telling me to get up and work, I couldn't, I really was not feeling well. I tried a couple of times, but I would get dizzy or my back would really hurt. It's like my body is shutting down. I feel helpless. And I REALLY DON'T LIKE FEELING THIS WAY.

I even tried listening to another Sunday teaching, but got sidetracked when my daughter threw a tantrum. So I stopped.

I tried again, turned it on and listened as I was preparing the kids and I to go to sleep. I would doze off now and then, but from teaching, this verse struck me:

"For You have delivered my soul from death, My eyes from tears, And my feet from falling. I will walk before the Lord In the land of the living."

Ps 116:8‭-‬9 NKJV

So I read the whole chapter and said, God, I needed this. This is how I exactly feel, and You've shown me what I should do-- to rest and know that God is always in control of my life, and that I should trust and rehearse the victories we went through together, because He's about to do it again!

Thank you, Lord! That's all my heart could find to say. I may not be feeling well still, but I thank You in advance for everything-- for the strength, the patience, the wisdom, the timing, the victories, the protection and most especially the love You always pour out on me.

As the verse continues,

"What shall I render to the Lord For all His benefits toward me? I will take up the cup of salvation, And call upon the name of the Lord."

This verse has helped me through A LOT, and as expected even now-- at times I don't feel good because of the constant nausea and fatigue, and I feel bad because I have things to do but I need to stop and pause. I'm comforted by the fact that God is with me through this.

Your Fears and Anxieties Dissipate in God's Presence

(Joseph Prince Devotional, Feb. 2, 2022)

No matter where you are, the Lord is with you. Even in the midst of your fears, while you are alone in your room, He is there with you. The moment you begin to be aware of His presence and cultivate His presence, all your fears, anxieties and worries will melt like butter on a hot day, or as the psalmist David puts it, "The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord."

You cannot psych yourself out of fear nor can you psych yourself out of worry. You can't just tell yourself, "Come on, stop worrying. There is nothing to worry about." It just doesn't work. The debt will still be staring you in your face and your problems will still be as insurmountable as ever no matter how hard you try to psych yourself up. That is what the world is trying to do, but it does not work. It takes the presence of the Lord to keep you free from worry.

Jesus is not asking you to psych yourself up and live in a state of denial. No way! He is saying to you, "In the midst of your affliction, I am your shield. I am your defender. I am your fortress. I am your refuge. I am your supply. I am your healing. I am your provider. I am your peace. I am your joy. I am your wisdom. I am your strength. I am the glory and the lifter of your head!" (Psalm 3:3). Amen! He is not asking you to pretend that the facts are not there. He wants you to realize that HE IS THERE WITH YOU!

When you know that He is with you and for you, and you put your problems in His mighty hands, you will begin to get a more accurate evaluation of just how "big" your problems are. When they were in your hands, the weight and burden of your problems may have crushed you. But when you involve Jesus, the once-monumental problems become microscopic against the largeness of His love and goodness toward you!

"It's so compelling to jump into our days—  whether it's fixing breakfast for children or leading a meeting at work—without ever pausing to sit at Jesus' feet. It's so much easier to whisper a prayer while driving carpool or listen to the Christian radio station and consider that our time with God. We can be sure that God loves to hear our prayers and songs of worship. But Martha's story challenges me to do a heart check:

Why haven't I carved out time every day to just enjoy the presence of the Lord?

The spiritual principle starts with a practical habit: press the pause button more often and check in with my heavenly Father. I need to ask for his wisdom in situations rather than depending on my own...

God promises me a palace, and I settle for a shed when I seek my kingdom before His."

"...open up the Bible and see Jesus in the types and shadows in the Old Testament. Every sacrifice, every feast, and even the tabernacle and priests point to Jesus. In the New Testament, see Jesus loving and forgiving those whom the world despised, such as the woman caught in adultery. See Him healing the blind, lame, and all who were oppressed with sicknesses and diseases. See Jesus multiplying provision for those who lacked.

I promise you that your heart will burn, your body will be renewed, and your mind will be filled with His shalom-peace, joy, and soundness. I promise you that sin, addictions, bad habits, fear, guilt, anxiety, depression, and condemnation will drop off from your life when you are absorbed and occupied with the person of Jesus. They simply cannot coexist in your life when you are occupied with Christ and not yourself." —Joseph Prince

Woke up exhausted, with a bad cough and backache. Opened my Bible and started my devotions and got this Word.

It's true that whatever the enemy and the world throws at you to blindside and distract you—only God's Word can keep you back on track, encourage you and fill you with hope and positive expectation that BETTER things are coming!

I was in a hurry this afternoon, with the desire of getting work things done.

I was nauseous when I woke up and had to do stuff in my to-do list slower than my normal pace. My 3-year-old daughter, Gianna, also decided to be extra bored from our 14-day quarantine, so she kept on asking me to do this, and do that, even during my morning devotions. (Usually she'd just read when she sees me reading...)

Anyway, after lunch Gianna had a very bad tummy ache and threw a tantrum. We tried comforting her, her Dad tried to help but she wouldn't accept any comfort or help. (Much like us, sometimes, huh?)

Out of desperation, and probably exhaustion, she stopped and walked over to me, and asked for a hug. I tried carrying her so she can take a nap, but she'd get agitated as if ready to throw another tantrum.

So, I just let her be. I stopped everything I was doing, just held on to her. I was on the bed, while she was hugging me standing up-- and she fell asleep. I tried moving her or carrying her, but she would wake up and cry.

I decided to just stop moving, and read. What else can I do? Our internet stopped working while in the middle of all this hullabaloo so I can't really do work on my phone. Oh well.

But you know what, I'm glad I read my book. Why? Because God reminded me of some very important things He's been working on with me, something He has been continuously teaching me since the start of the pandemic... to let go, continue to trust Him, always listen to Him, and to stop hurrying.

"We were designed to go at a slower pace, to ponder, to process thoughts one at a time. And when we try to go at computer speed, we miss out on what's important on life.

Hurry robs us of the beauty God has placed in front of us and the grace that others so desperately need. Hurry is also a tool Satan uses to undermine God's plan for us." —Glynnis Whitwer

This struck me real good, it literally wiped out everything I was currently thinking. I paused and I continued reading...

"Hurry leads us to jump to conclusions... Hurry keeps me from being able to think deeply about a situation and compe up with the right response."

Okay, I got that. But there's more...

"Rushing doesn't make me better at anything... hurry doesn't guarantee success."

"Hurry steals my contentment... When I'm in a hurry, I don't appreciate the beauty around me. My awareness of others is diminished in my increased focus on the goal. I miss the small details of life that bring me the most joy in my rush.

Contentment isn't found in the big splashes but in the gentle ripples."

Wow, exactly what I needed today.

My daughter is still fussy because of her tummyache, but she was able to sleep a bit. I pray her tummy ache stops soon. For now, I need to focus on her, on this.