"Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." -Psalm 51:12 (NIV)

In "What My Heart Believes?!", we discussed how easy it is to recite scripture and to post these scriptures on our feeds and timelines, and pull them out to read when we are feeling discouraged or when we need motivation to keep moving forward. Yet as easy as it is to proclaim these scriptures, we at times find it difficult to believe with confidence the very scriptures that we are posting, reading, and reciting. In reflecting on this facet, we expounded on that little shepherd boy with the big brave heart, King David, who both amazes and inspires us concerning his relentless trust in God and his will to please Him.

​

There are many things that we learn from that mighty warrior known as David, but the one that we'll focus on within this post is David's ability to always have complete confidence in God despite whatever it was he might have been facing. Whether facing lions, bears, giants, or King Saul, David had no doubt that God would come to his rescue. David had no doubt that God was capable of delivering him. Even when David fell short, he poured his whole heart out to God asking God to forgive him.

 

David asked God to not only cleanse him from his impurities, but to also give him a willing spirit to help him stay on the right path. Many of us might quite often ask for forgiveness, but David reminds us that even when God forgives us, we still need to ask God to give us a willing spirit to resist temptations. We need to ask God to free us from all the things that weaken our flesh, causing us to go astray. In Psalm 51, David was not just asking God to forgive him for his current sins, but David was also asking God to purge out of him anything that might cause him to sin further. David was already striving to steer from anything ahead that might cause him to stumble. David recognized that his repenting were only words unless he truly meant them and acted them out. And because David felt separated from God due to his having sinned, he asked God to impart mercy upon him and to once again allow His presence to dwell with him. David asked God to "restore to him the joy of [His] salvation". David wanted to once again know the joy of being both pleasing and acceptable in God's sight. He wanted to once again know the joy of being under God's covering. David wanted to once again know the joy of God's saving grace.

 

Although Psalm 51:12 refers to David's repentance, in David asking God to restore to him the joy of His salvation, I began to reflect on our blog posts from the past few weeks. We've been discussing being wounded, fighting battles, and supplicating unto God, which led me to reflect on this verse from a different context. How many of us have ever found ourselves wanting God to restore to us the joy of "OUR" salvation, not because we've sinned and have become separated from Him, but because we've been following Him and facing our battles with full dependence on Him and we are starting to feel like "SALVATION" is starting to "STRESS" us, and we need Him to give us joy?

 

How many of us whether past or present have ever reached a point in which we needed God to help us to grasp and have confidence that "SALVATION" is worth all the turmoil that it attracts?

 

How many of us whether past or present, needed God to encourage our hearts to help us to see our "SALVATION" as a shield, because it felt like this "SALVATION THING" that is supposed to save us was instead BEATING US UP! How many of us are finding that although we have "SALVATION", in our present tense, there's nothing joyful about it? How many of us are finding that we are far from happy because these fires, pits, and lions' dens are simply no fun?

 

How many of us feel that although we have had many victories and stories of triumph, we just NEED A BREAK from this obstacle course that was put before us the moment we decided to follow God wholeheartedly? How many of us are still holding on yet looking up saying, "God, I'm on my last limb and this branch is about to break!"?

​

If we were to be truthful, many of us might find ourselves needing to ask God to RESTORE TO US, THE JOY "IN" OUR SALVATION!

 

SALVATION IS NOT EASY! It is going to hurt. It is going to cause some pain and some despair. It is going to at times annoy and frustrate us. When we choose to follow Christ, we are going to be presented with some obstacles and challenges, which is why Paul both warned and stressed to us that WE MUST KEEP OUR EYES FIXED ON GOD.

 

Paul repetitively reminded us that following Christ would bring hardship. Paul referred to himself as "a prisoner of Christ" due to his sufferings and his being imprisoned over and over again because of his spreading of the gospel. Paul was not kidding and it was very real when he urged us to have endurance.

 

Endurance is defined as:

• the ability to keep doing something difficult, unpleasant, or painful for a long time,

• the ability to withstand hardship or adversity; especially: the ability to sustain a prolonged stressful effort or activity,

• the power to withstand something challenging.

​

From the time that the Lord stopped Saul (Apostle Paul) on that road to Damascus, overcoming challenges became a part of his repertoire. Endurance became a muscle that Paul had to consistently flex in order to do the work that God had called him to do.

In 2 Corinthians 1:8-11, Paul expresses:

 

                  We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the

                  province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired

                  of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not

                  rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he

                  will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your

                  prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers

                  of many (NIV).

 

Here it was Paul and the other followers of Christ, doing the work of God, yet facing pressures and troubles that were so burdensome that they felt they could not survive them. They felt that the troubles that they were facing were far beyond their ability to bear. And in feeling this way, they did the only thing that they knew to do, which was to depend on God and God alone! Paul though in despair recognized that it was this despair that forced him and the other followers to place their trust and dependency in God.

 

If we thoroughly read the Word of God, while God promises us things such as peace, joy, provision, protection, victory, and strength, nowhere in the Word does it promise us that because He has promised us these 'GOOD' things that we won't have war, sorrow, weariness, troubles, enemies, or any of those other unfortunate things that we don't want to have to face. However, He does promise that amidst the bad things, these good things are ever so present and available to us.

​

We must understand that warring is not an option. We are going to experience battles of some sort. Even if we're not warring with the things around us and the enemies that come against us, many of us are warring with ourselves, and those inner enemies, known as sin and temptation, that attack our flesh. In Romans 7:18-25, Paul expresses:

​

                     For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is                               good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I

                     keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that

                     does it. So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being

                     I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making

                     me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body                         that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in

                     my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin (NIV).

​

Those inner battles are just as hard and burdensome as those outer ones. At times we want to do the right thing, but lashing out

appeases us more. At many times we want to do the right thing, but the easier and forbidden way out 'APPEARS' less work and less stressful. At many times we want to do the right thing, but that lie will make what I need more affordable. At many times we want to do the right thing, but our flesh wants to be satisfied because this spiritual life does not always give us the instant gratification that we need to destress. These are many of our truths, and it is these truths that keep us bound. And the very sad truth is that at times there are many of us who would rather be bound and appeased by our flesh rather than being free in Christ, but having to obey His instructions and WAIT on a promise that seems too far off to bring satisfaction to us in the place that we currently stand.

 

Whether fighting the giant that stands before us or the one that wars within us, we are going to be presented with a fight!

No matter how long we've been journeying with God, we still have those moments in which something hits us in a way that makes us scratch our heads and really reflect on how many battles we have had to overcome. And if we allow ourselves to focus on the battles more than we focus on God having brought us out of them, we can easily become discouraged and veer off course from where God is leading us to go, in search of release, because the road seems too hard and too long. When we
find ourselves in this oh-so familiar place, we MUST SEEK GOD to pull us through!

​

Sustaining through Discipline and Prayer       

​

"Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.

No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others,

I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."

-1 Corinthians 9:26-27 (NIV)
 
"Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known

the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains.

Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."

-Ephesians 6:19-20 (NIV)

Many of us are a beam of encouragement for everyone else yet at the same time, we are losing our energy to motivate our own selves. Many of us fight hard and we fight long to help others make it through their storms when we feel like we ourselves, are a rowboat short. There are many of us spreading the gospel but tossing and turning at night and dragging ourselves out of bed in the morning yet still going forward in faith. There are many of us who don't know if we're coming or going but nonetheless, we haven't stopped moving toward that place that God has called us to go. None of us can judge anyone that finds themselves in this place nor can we condemn ourselves if this is where we are or have ever been, because having faith does not make the challenges easier as much as it sustains us through them. It is quite possible to have faith in God and still feel the weight of what we are enduring, which is why this "JOY" that we have the right to obtain, is ever so pivotal. It is why our ability to discipline ourselves and seek God's face in prayer and supplication along the way, is ever so pivotal.

​​

Joseph's having faith in God doesn't mean that being betrayed by his brothers and lied on by Potiphar's wife did not hurt.

 

David's having faith in God doesn't mean that he didn't get weary or that he didn't become exhausted from battle.

 

Job's having faith in God didn't mean that he wouldn't feel the agony of having lost everything and having his body physically attacked.

 

Jesus' having faith in God did not make the whips any less painful. Jesus had faith in God and yet he still felt "forsaken". HOWEVER, we must understand that his feeling forsaken was aligned with God's purpose for him.

​

We must understand that faith give us "ENDURANCE"; it does not make us TRIAL FREE!

​

We must understand that faith gives us "ENDURANCE"; it does not strip us of our ability to feel although it can both impact 
and influence how we react and what we do with those feelings.

 

Having faith in God does not make us numb although our faith can help us with our tolerance and temperance. Our faith can help us to make a choice to be unbothered by those things that come against us. Our faith can help us not to be as fazed by certain trials and situations that we are faced with. BUT IT WILL NOT STOP THE ATTACKS! In many cases, we will find that God allows the attacks to come against us as a means of increasing our faith. God at times allows the attacks because His plans and purposes for us are rooted in the attacks that He allows to be inflicted upon us.

​​

Faith does not make us "ENJOY" what we are going through!

Our faith helps us with our ability to "ENDURE" it!

 

 

There are those like the individuals mentioned above who had relentless faith. They had human emotions, but their faith was firm. They still trusted God. And they STILL REMAINED HOPEFUL!​ However, there are some of us who both believe and love God with all our hearts, yet something can come along and shake us in a way that causes us to lose all hope.

 

Call ME MARA!                              
 

"Don’t call me Naomi,' she told them. 'Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter.

I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty.

Why call me Naomi? The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me."

-Ruth 1:20-21 (NIV)

​

We won't discuss the full detail of Naomi and Ruth's story. However, their story is an interesting one. If you are not familiar with their story, please take the time to read the book of Ruth as there are many revelations presented in their story that speak to the omniscience and perfection in God's plans, purpose, and timing as it concerns how He orchestrates the events of our lives. Their story also speaks to how God uses our setbacks, sorrow, and unfortunate circumstances to manifest that which He has promised. 

 

Naomi had lost her husband, as well as both her sons. Just as Job had moments of wrestling with hope, trying to figure out if his life had hope, where his hope was, and where did his hope lie, Naomi also wrestled with hope. At some point Job decided to keep his hope that God would answer. However, Naomi's loss caused her to completely lose all hope, not anticipating or questioning its return. Naomi thought that even if she had hope for herself, her hope still would not be of any use to those around her. It is interesting that much like Job, Naomi thought that it was God who was responsible for her sufferings. Naomi thought that God had turned against her. Because Naomi had no hope left, unlike Job, she doesn't try to figure out why God had inflicted this harm upon her that she was crediting Him for having done. Neither does Naomi welcome anyone to join in her sorrows with her to help her make sense of where she was. As a matter of fact, Naomi still with her belief in God, decides to pick up and go back to her hometown. In an attempt to join Naomi, both her daughters-in-law set out with her on the path that would take them to Judah. And then we read the following:

 

                         But Naomi said, 'Return home, my daughters. Why would you come with me? Am I going to have any

                         more sons, who could become your husbands? Return home, my daughters; I am too old to have

                         another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me—even if I had a husband tonight and then

                         gave birth to sons—would you wait until they grew up? Would you remain unmarried for them? No, my                                           daughters. It is more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord’s hand has turned against me!'

                         (Ruth 1:11-13, NIV).

 

Naomi felt that there was no possible good that could come to her. Naomi thought that there was nothing more that could become of her life. Therefore, she thought it best for her daughters-in-law to move on without her and go back to their own people. While Naomi had no hope for herself, she thought that there was still a chance that her daughters-in-law could make a life for themselves. However, by reading the account, we know that while her daughter-in-law Orpah does as Naomi suggests and decides to return to her people, the other daughter-in-law Ruth, refused to leave Naomi's side. We read that Ruth and Naomi continued on the road to Bethlehem.

 

When they arrive in Bethlehem, the people in excitement express, "Can this be Naomi?", and Naomi's response is an interesting one. Naomi decides to give herself a name change. Not because of what she hoped to gain but she named herself according to what she had lost. Naomi named herself according to what she saw in front of her. Naomi told the people to refer to her as Mara, because God had made her life "bitter". Naomi's name meant "pleasant" but due to having experienced loss and 
suffering, she was choosing not only to be "bitter" but to change her name as such. And if we were to be honest, we can understand Naomi's feelings. We can perhaps relate to how she reacted to these tragedies that she had to come face-to-face with. We can't judge her pain. And what is so profound is that although Naomi had lost hope and given up on herself, because she still served a faithful God who is the foundation and essence of 'HOPE', He overlooked how she was labeling herself because how she felt about herself and how she felt about where she found herself, did not have the power to change God's plans. Naomi COULD NOT CHANGE WHO GOD SAW HER AS! Naomi said that she left her hometown "FULL", but that she "RETURNED EMPTY"! And because God leaves nothing 'VOID', simply because HE CAN'T, He already had a plan in place that was going to align Naomi's life back with her name.

What Hope is There?-The Certainty of Promise                       

​

"When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by,

he swore by himself, saying, 'I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.'

And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised."

-Hebrews 6:13-15

 

When God promises us anything, it is backed by His own word. There is no one greater than God therefore the assurance of what He promises us rests in the certainty of who He is. In God promising Abraham that he would "SURELY" bless him and give him many descendants, God indeed fulfilled what He had promised. God making this promise to Abraham was the confirmation that it would happen. Anything that God promises us has to be, just as He says it is. However, while God promises to bless Abraham, God did not promise Abraham that things would happen swiftly or that things would happen without him having to endure some hardship along the way. God assured the promise, but He did not take away the testing of Abraham's faith.

 

Hebrews 6:15, reminds us that "AFTER ABRAHAM WAITED PATIENTLY", he then received what was promised. While the promise is always assured, we must exercise some patience as we wait for the manifestation of whatever it is that God has said He'll do. And this is perhaps the part that at times makes our salvation feel burdensome.

​

At times, THE WAIT puts pressure on us because we are waiting, trying to exercise the patience to hold on to something that does not seem like it's ever going to happen. God promises us peace, joy, provision, protection, victory, and strength, when we choose to follow Him. Yet when we are presented with trials that attack us in a way that make these things that God has promised us seem like they are nowhere near, we grow weary.

​

We love God, and we know the importance of the price that Christ paid for our sins through his own pain and suffering. We are fully aware of what the greater reward is going to be. However, while we know this, that human part of us when filled with pain and other agonizing emotions, still at times find ourselves crying out to God trying to figure out...

"God, WHERE IS THE JOY IN MY SALVATION?"
"God, WHERE IS THE PROVISION IN MY SALVATION?"
"God, WHERE IS THE PROTECTION IN MY SALVATION?"
"God, WHERE IS THE VICTORY IN MY SALVATION?"

 

In other words, "GOD I KNOW, BUT I NEED YOU TO ENCOURAGE MY HEART TO HELP ME SEE WHAT IS THE BENEFIT "IN" MY SALVATION". In other words, "God, RIGHT NOW IT'S HARD and you seem so far away. And on top of that, the promise of these things seem an even further way off!"

​

When we have salvation and the trials of life hit us in a way that shake the faith that our salvation is rooted in, we tend to forget about the JOY OF THE CROSS and what JESUS ENDURED ON IT, because ALL WE CAN FEEL IS OUR OWN CURRENT PAIN! We understand the significance of the cross and the hope that it gives us, but if we were to be truthful, our minds nor our hearts want to have to wait for an eternal peace. WE WANT SOME PEACE IN OUR NOW! WE WANT SOME HOPE IN OUR NOW! WE WANT SOME JOY IN OUR NOW! WE WANT SOME VICTORY IN OUR NOW! And it is at this point that we must put time and effort into understanding the strength of our salvation.

​

Salvation RISE UP!                           

 

"You armed me with strength for battle; you humbled my adversaries before me."

-Psalm 18:39 (NIV)

 

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"

-Psalm 27:1 (KJV)

 

"But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord: he is their strength in the time of trouble.

And the Lord shall help them, and deliver them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them,

because they trust in him."

-Psalm 37:39-40 (KJV)

 

While we are human and are naturally going to become exhausted when we are constantly and consistently at war, part of the reason that we at times struggle with our salvation is because we're trying to do this "SALVATION THING" without God. If we understand nothing else, we must understand that while God grants us salvation through grace, and although this salvation is given to us, we still cannot separate the maintaining of our salvation apart from God.

​

While we are responsible for our own salvation, we still need God to help us with and through it. WE CANNOT DO IT ALONE! Apart from God giving us salvation, we must understand that GOD IS OUR SALVATION! Therefore, when "SALVATION" starts to feel like a burden due to the attacks that we experience as a result of having received salvation, we must understand
that finding the joy, provision, protection, and victory "IN" our salvation is going to rest in our ability to allow God to be our strength.

 

When we become weak, tired, distressed, and simply fed-up, we might begin to question where are all of those benefits that salvation is supposed to give us. The truth is that these benefits are ours, but we at times are going to have to ask God to give us the strength to hold on to these truths and to strengthen us with the patience to wait for these things to come. We must also understand that at many times joy, provision, protection, and victory are there, and these things are most definitely ours, they're just perhaps not being given to us based on our earthly understanding of them nor based on our fleshly desires as to how we want them to be given to us. 

​

The birth of Jesus brought us joy. However, so did his resurrection which had to come about by means of his crucifixion. Jesus is our joy, but there were some hardships that were packaged along with this joy. The joy was ours even before Christ was born but he still had to receive the stripes, give up his life, and rise, in order for that joy to be made complete. The joy was always ours, but it had to endure some things to come into its fullness.

 

Provision was always there for Abraham, but he did not see the ram in the bush until after he was given the test of having to sacrifice his own son. In the same sense, God gave the Israelites manna. He gave them this provision, but it was not something that they were accustomed to. Better yet, it was not the food that they had in mind when they grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. They missed having "pots of meat" in which they could eat all that they wanted whenever they wanted. However, God provided for them according to what He desired them to have. God gave them the provision of manna along with a set of instructions as to how they were to consume it.

 

Gideon was distressed from having to endure the constant attacks from the Midianites and God's way of protecting him was to send him into battle to defend all of Israel. God was protecting him by giving the Midianites into his hands, but he had to first wage war! And it was upon waging war and attacking this vast army while having only 300 men, that Gideon then gained the victory that God had already promised him was his at the moment that He called him forth.

 

All of these things that God promises to give us, are most definitely OURS and they are always there, but THEY ARE NOT GOING TO BE OBTAINED BY US IN THE WAY THAT WE WANT TO ACQUIRE THEM!

 

"Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation." -Psalm 62:1 (KJV)

 

                "But as for me, afflicted and in pain—may your salvation, God, protect me." -Psalm 69:29 (NIV)

 

                              "My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word." -Psalm 119:81 (NIV)

 

We must accept the fact that while all of these things are ours, simply because God promised them and HE CANNOT LIE, we still might have to wait on some of these things to come into fruition. We might have to experience some pain and affliction before receiving these things. MOST IMPORTANTLY, WHEN OUR HEARTS GROW FAINT BECAUSE SALVATION DOES NOT FEEL GOOD, WE MUST PLACE OUR HOPE IN WHAT GOD SAID DESPITE NOTHING AROUND US LOOKING LIKE A MANIFESTATION OF THOSE WORDS THAT HE BOTH SPOKE UNTO AND PROMISED US!

 

The Restoration of Naomi's "Pleasantness"             

​

"So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves

you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.” Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David."

-Ruth 4:13-17 (NIV)

 

Naomi when first arriving in Bethlehem, instructed the people to refer to her as Mara ("Bitter"), because she felt like God had afflicted her with pain and made her life bitter. Naomi felt like she was at a loss. However, because Naomi served a faithful God whom Ruth also decided to follow when she chose to follow Naomi back to Bethlehem, Naomi found herself no longer as such. While Naomi had at one point considered herself bitter and empty, having nothing, she now had the joy of this child, a grandson who would be important to us all. 

 

​As they settled into their new life in Naomi's hometown, Ruth met a man named Boaz, who was a relative of Naomi's late husband. God gave Ruth favor with Boaz, which in turn brought about provision and protection. Ruth and Boaz end up getting married, and having a son, whom they named Obed. Naomi now had a son that though she did not give birth to, she could consider her own. Ruth who had been loyal to Naomi, choosing to go with her back to her people and to also serve the same God that she served, had given birth to a child, whose lineage was of a significance that none of them realized. And it was through this child that God will give us all "JOY"!

 

Though Naomi felt as though God had afflicted her, she did not denounce Him as her God. Even when she felt as though he had afflicted her, she still acknowledged Him as "The ALMIGHTY". God had his own reasons for why Naomi had to return to Bethlehem and why Ruth had to be the one to journey back with her. Much like Naomi and Ruth, we at many times cannot see the benefit of the unfortunate circumstances that we have to endure nor the promises that might be attached to them, because we are not made privy of God's plans for us.

 

While God might reveal certain facets to us about the promises that He has made us, and while He might instruct us to take certain paths or reveal to us certain assignments that He has for us, ONLY He KNOWS HIS FULL PLANS!

 

We will never be made privy of everything that God has in store for us because there are things that are going to have to be hidden and unbeknownst to us as a means of strengthening our ability to both trust God with what we don't know as well as with what we can't see.

 

God does not want us to follow Him based on self-fulfilled desires of what He can give us. God does not want our allegiance to Him to be based on what we know we will obtain whether now or in the future. God wants a sincere reverence for Him and a willingness to please Him despite what we might receive in return.

​

If we knew God's plans for us, many of us might try to use it to our advantage. We would perhaps even pick and choose what we will and won't do based on whether or not we wanted whatever it was He had in store for us. THERE IS A REASON THAT WE DON'T KNOW THE DETAILS OF GOD'S PLANS FOR US. 

 

Although we don't know the details of God's plans for us, there are some very important facts about His plans for us that can be found in Jeremiah 29:11. In Jeremiah 29:11, God promises that His plans for us are ones that include prosperity, protection, hope and a future. While the context of this scripture involves the words that the Lord had given Jeremiah to deliver to those who had still found themselves in captivity in Babylon, these very promises still remain true to us as well. 

 

Because of God's love for us, it is His intent to both bless and prosper us. Because of God's love for us, it is not His intent to harm us. Because of God's love for us, it is His intent to always give us hope. Because of God's love for us, He has a purposed future for all of us which does not include Him wanting us to remain in the burdens of our sins, temptations, judgment, or despair. God promises us both salvation and restoration. BUT WE MUST TRUST HIM AT HIS WORD. WE MUST TRUST HIS WILL. WE MUST TRUST HIS WAY. In order for us to find the JOY "IN" OUR SALVATION, we are going to have to trust the plans that God has for us. We are going to have to trust that THESE PLANS ARE WITH GOOD INTENT!

 

It's not always easy. THE BATTLES ARE GOING TO EXHAUST US! While we are fighting those things that attack and seek to destroy us, WE IN MANY CASES WILL ALSO HAVE TO FIGHT TO MAINTAIN OUR FAITH! 

​

UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE GOING TO NEED GOD IN, AROUND, AND ALL THROUGH WHATEVER IT IS THAT WE FACE! WE ARE GOING TO NEED GOD TO BE OUR STRENGTH WHEN WE ARE TIRED OF THROWING BLOWS!

 

Keeping the JOY "IN" our SALVATION is not always going to be easy, but our ability to trust God makes it all the more possible! Our ability to stay focused on HIM AND HIM ALONE, makes it ALL THE MORE POSSIBLE! Our ability to DO IT HIS WAY, MAKES IT ALL THE MORE POSSIBLE! That Joy that at times feels like it has slipped away from our salvation IS ALL THE MORE POSSIBLE, but we must have a WILL TO MAKE IT OURS!