Victory is Ours for the Taking!

It's not big news when I say that Jesus died on the cross.  It's not big news when I tell you that in dying on the cross, He died to take away our sins and make a way straight to Him that isn't through sacrifice.  But when Jesus died, crying out, "It is finished," (John 19:30) what was He really saying?

I'm sure there are many different things that Jesus meant when He cried out these words.  He could've meant that His reason for being on Earth was done or that He knew it was His last moments.  What I think it means - well, one of the meanings of this phrase - was that He had given us victory.  That when it was finished, the victory, over situations in our life, battles, is ours. 

See, as a Christian, we are in constant battle with Satan's forces.  The devil will come against us faster than we can think.  He tells us lies, very convincing lies, brings us down, strikes us with fear and sickness, but we don't have to live that life.  Why?  Because the battle has already been won!  When Jesus died, He took care of that for us!

When God sent His Son, Jesus, to die for us on the cross, He knew that with His death we would have victory.  So why are we still fighting these battles that have already been won?

But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:57)

It's simple.  We're human, and we want to do things on our own.  We want the doctor to fix our aches or medicine to take away the depression.  But we have to learn to let that go.  Reach out and grab your victory.  It's there for the taking.  

God wants us to live a life of honor and glory in His Name.  That also means that we can use His Name to proclaim our victory because it gives GOD the honor He's so deserving of.  We have power in the Name of Jesus to overcome devils, make mountains move!  That means that our mountains, the things that cause us to stumble or completely stop us from having faith because they are weighing us down, will MOVE simply because we have victory through Jesus!

Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: (Zechariah 4:7)

Put your faith into that victory.  I know that it's hard, but if we have faith as a grain of mustard seed  (That's about the size of a poppy seed.), we can move mountains, casts trees into seas, and they will have to obey us because we are speaking this in the Name of Jesus.  (Matthew 17:20, Luke 17:6) 

That's not a lot of faith that is required of us if you think about it, but somehow, we make it into a lot.  We make our molehills mountains instead.  Step back, take a deep breath, and step over that molehill before it becomes a mountain.  Who art thou, O great mountain?   Who is this mountain to stop us?  In the Name of Jesus, it will be nothing but a plain - flat land for us to walk across instead of being stopped by a gigantic rock.  

Step into faith and cast away that mountain.  WE HAVE THE VICTORY!  CLAIM IT TODAY!


For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.  (1 John 5:4)

Make 2013 Your Year!

Today we have another guest post from Sharon Johnson! 

   

It is never too late to make a change.  Change is good.  Change is also scary.  Fear is what stops people from making changes in their lives.  Fear traps people from moving forward in their lives. 

    

People get comfortable and don’t want to leave their comfort zone.  They settle.  Accepting the way their lives turned out.  Afraid to change.  Afraid to fail.  People are in a job they hate.  Accepting that there is nothing better out there for them.  They don’t have a college education and convinced themselves that they are too old to change.  Fear has paralyzed them.  Fear has stopped God from moving in their lives.  Fear is exactly where Satan wants you to be. 

 
If fear is stopping you from changing your life.  Stopping you from doing something you have always dreamed about, stopping you from what God has told you to do, then Satan has you in his grip.  It is time for you to get Satan out of your life and let God begin to work in your life. 

I am not saying it is going to be easy.  I am not saying that you will not be scared.  I am saying that if you are tired of your life.  If you want a change.  The only way to change your life is to face the fear head on.

    
I am a creature of habit.  I do the exact same thing every day.  When I get up to go to work, I have a routine.  I drink out of the same glass.  I eat with the same fork.  I live in my comfort zone.  Some say I have OCD Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.  It has limited me to what I can do.  When I can leave the house.  Where I can go.  I even have a hard time eating out in restaurants.  I accepted my fate.  I was willing to live in my comfort zone and die in my house.  This was my destiny.  A year ago, I couldn’t go on vacation with my boyfriend.  I was afraid to leave my house.  The What If’s kept popping up.  What if, my pipes break and the house is flooded.  What if someone breaks into my house?  What if?  So we stayed home.  I restricted myself to going to work and coming home.  I went nowhere else.  Fear had me.  Satan had control of my life.

    Psalms 103:4-5

     Who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion.  Who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

I was in a pit and GOD says that he will redeem my life from the pit and crown me with love and compassion.  Not only will he get me out of the pit, he will give me the desires of my heart with good things.  That makes me want to do my happy dance.

I was in a job, I didn’t like anymore.  It was a good job.  I was getting older, the boxes were getting heavier and I knew I couldn’t do this job when I neared 60.  Having turned 50, I wanted a change.  Had no idea what, but I couldn’t live this life for the next 20-30 years.  There had to me more to life than work and hiding in my house. 

     

At work, there was a cashier position open.  It was the night shift.  I read and reread the notice.  I couldn’t learn to check.  I would be up front mostly by myself.  I would have more responsibility.  I told myself I couldn’t do it. Fear gripped me. They had to know today.  I didn’t have time to wait.  If I didn’t go in and put my name in, I would be stuck, nothing would change.

I walked into the mangers office and told him I wanted to apply for the position.  To my surprise, I got the job on the spot.

  

Then the fear crept in.  Co-workers asked why I wanted to be a cashier.  I only had 4 hours to learn how to check and then I was on my own. I know for a fact that the minute I decided to stop listening to Satan, GOD stepped in and started working in my life. 

I learned to check.  I learned how to use the ordering gun.  I learned to face fear and walk through my fear.  I am not saying that it was easy.  I am saying that if you don’t face your fear and stand up to Satan, nothing will ever change. 

For the first time in 5 years, I am going on a two week vacation with my boyfriend.  Is the What If’s still pounding in my head?  Yep.  Am I nervous about leaving my comfort zone?  Yep.

    

I want a change in my life.  I have to admit, that things are changing in my life.  I am listening to GOD.  Leaning on GOD.  I am trusting GOD. 

I am still OCD, but when I realize that it is stopping me from doing something, I remind myself that I am now dependant on GOD.  GOD love me and he redeemed me from the pit.  It is not always easy, but the more I turn to GOD, the easier it gets. 

No matter what you are going through or how old you are, it is never too late to change.  Ask GOD.  It won’t be easy, but with GOD on your side nothing is impossible.  2013 is a new year.  Make a change this year, start listening to GOD; he is who redeems your life from the pit.

I was tossed in the pit by Satan.  It was only by the Grace of GOD that I am no longer in the pit.  

In my book  My Bible—My God  www.amazon.com/dp/B006N0ZDGW  I tell how GOD and his word, the Bible saved my life.

http://iamwalkingwithgod.blogspot.com

http://sharonleejohnson.com