- 07.29.2023 - #mamashelia
I do! As I look back over my 75-years, I believe that it is the challenges that have kept me “going!”
I was one of those kids who, when someone said, “You can’t do that!” – I would have to prove them wrong! Even yet, when I am presented with something new or demanding and I am stretched to embrace a new perspective, I may question it -at first- but I love the pursuit of truth and the discovery of new things!
Or, perhaps in reading a passage from the Word, Holy Spirit suddenly gives a fresh revelation and my old way of thinking has to change! The Word says that we should be joyful when we face the challenges of life!
“Consider it a sheer gift … when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.” (James1:2-4 MSG).
I’m so grateful for those who have challenged me to reach beyond my comfort zone. To believe the unbelievable! To do the “un-do-able”! To expect and experience the miraculous!
Now does that mean I swallow “hook-line-and-sinker” everything that is new or different? Absolutely NOT! But without the challenge to go beyond what I already know … Well, I’d be right back where I was at 16 years of age – dissatisfied with what I had experienced and feeling totally unfulfilled!
Perhaps I make others “uncomfortable” at times – but, one thing I know – I don’t want to ever leave you “where you are.” Because the more I know of God, the more I know that I don’t yet know. I am in pursuit of all that He has for me!
And nothing pleases me more than to provoke others in their pursuit of an inexhaustible loving Father, “Poppa,” whose outrageous grace and mercy overwhelms us.
Life is an adventure and we are on a “treasure hunt” with God revealing fresh evidence of those things hidden from the wise and revealed to the simple – as we discover MORE of Him and ALL that He has for us to enjoy. Great Treasures! Great Riches that are ours in Christ Jesus!
"Proclaim the Message with intensity; keep on your watch. Challenge, warn, and urge your people. Don’t ever quit. Just keep it simple” (2Timothy.4:2).
I challenge you to take this journey! We are living in the most exciting and prophetic times ever seen by mankind in this earth!
“Anyone who meets a testing challenge head-on and manages to stick it out is mighty fortunate. For such persons loyally in love with God, the reward is life and more life!” (James.1:12).
"The Message (Good News) bears fruit and gets larger and stronger, just as it has in you. From the very first day you heard and recognized the truth of what God is doing, you’ve been hungry for more." (Col.1:6) What a great Challenge we have before us! What an exciting and outrageous life!!!
Don't you love the challenges of life? ~ #sheliahartartt
