Good Morning...

This morning was...a challenge.

I woke up earlier than I wanted to do and had to deal with something I really didn't want to.

What's funny is I spent time last night in prayer over that very thing, and there the problem was shaking me awake this morning.

I had to remind myself of God's faithfulness. I had to encourage myself in His love. And I had to tell the devil where to go.

At times like this I remember the Apostles and how they encountered persecution everywhere they went. Each city posed a threat to their lives. They were openly mocked, cast into prisons, beaten, whipped, and even put to death for what they believed in.

Still, they continued to preach the gospel. They continued to go into all the world and tell of Jesus' love. In the midst of their physical pain and emotional beatings, they continued to trust God. They continued to stand on the principles of Christ. They continued to choose to live out what Jesus profiled.

And here I am. Yes, my pain is real. Yes, my trials are distressing. But they are nowhere near what the Apostles faced. I have much more freedom and support in my endeavors. As they chose to continue to follow God in spite of what it looked like, I can choose to remain faithful to the God who is yet faithful to me.

Verse of the Day: We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 2 Corinthians 4:8-10