I was relying on me and not God.

God knows me better than I know myself and I am grateful for this.  God also knows you.  We are all called to a purpose.  We must accept that purpose or talent that God has asked us to use and grow in it using any resource God has given us.  Including the people He has put in your life.  Most of the time, they are the ones coming with God’s answers.  Your confidence is drawn from how much you believe in what God’s word says.  Trials and heart ache can really make you second guess what God says about you and your calling.  It’s hard to keep walking in the valley alone, but we are not alone.  Where you only see one set of footprints, God is carrying us through.  You were called to be a leader, you were called to me a mother, you were called to be a Pastor.  God’s word, which is truth, is your confidence.  Step into your calling like a comfy pair of slippers and rest knowing that God has given you the ability and confidence to fulfill everything He has asked of us. 

Growing In God (Poem)

I know we will all grow so much during this year

Growing with you all has been a blessing in my life

Pastor pours out the word that’s as sharp as a knife

Open your hearts and be ready to receive

All the goals you have set out to achieve

God has new things that are about to be conceived

All you have to do is have faith and believe

Don’t let the enemy make you naïve

He has so many tricks under his sleeve

Don’t let him fill your mind with overwhelming sin

Making you believe there is no way you can win

God has given us dominion over the devil

He wants to rise us up and take us to new levels

So don’t give up, don’t quit, this is only the start

God is going to do a transformation in each of our hearts

So let go, let God and leave it all on the field

And in the end Gods glory will be revealed.

Written by: Tiffany Gonzalez

Se que todos vamos a crecer tanto en este año

Creciendo con todos ustedes a sido de bendicion a mi vida

Pastor derrama esa palabra que es filosa como un cuchillo

Habran sus corazones y esten preparados para recibir

Todo los logros que te has puesto para cumplir

Dios tiene nuevas cosas que esta a punto de concebir

Lo unico que tienes que hacer es tener fe y creer

No permitas que el enemigo te convierta ingenuo

El tiene muchos trucos por arriba de sus mangas

No permitas que el llene tu mente de pecado sobre abrumante

Haciendote creer que no hay manera de superarte

Dios nos a dado dominio sobre el Diablo

El quiere elevarnos y llevarnos a niveles mas altos

Asi que no te rindas, no te des por vencido, que esto es solo el comienzo

Dios va hacer una transformacion en cada uno de nuestros corazones

Asi que sueltalo, deja que Dios tome control, y dejalo todo en el campo

Y al final, la gloria de Dios sera revelada

Escrita por: Tiffany Gonzalez

In Psalm 139 David speaks about the Omnipresence and Omniscience (Fancy words to mean everywhere present at the same time and all-knowing) of God as it pertains to His relationship with us.  In verse 16 he states: “all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” Hence, the title of this blog. He reminds us that there is a set time for us to live, and then we die. 

I come from a big family. My mother is one of TWENTY-TWO siblings while my dad is one of THIRTEEN. Continuing with this legacy is an uncle who has TWENTY-THREE children of his own, which means; yes twenty-three cousins from this one uncle. I’ve always pride myself with having a big family. But lately Psalm 139 has become all too real for me. It seems that every few months we are taken to another state to bury yet another family member. Oh the brevity of life. Tony Evans explains it this way: The average life expectancy today for men is seventy three years and for women is seventy nine. He recommends you do an exercise.  If you’re a man, take your age and deduct it from 73. If you’re a woman take your age and deduct it from 79. That will leave you with X number of years that you have left. Multiply the number of years times 365 because that tells you how many days you have left on average. Then take a sheet of paper and cut them into squares. Number these squares and let them represent your days, which are numbered. Every day, take a slip, ball it up, and toss it in the trash can. That little exercise will remind you that your stack is getting shorter. Time is running out.

My cousin, who recently passed away, according to this exercise had 30 more years or 10,950 days still to live. She didn’t get to live the average expectancy.  You see, because life is not promised to anyone regardless of your age. Whether you live out the expected age or your days are shorter the question you must ask yourself is this, how am I living my life? Am I making every day count? Am I living for the Glory of God? What legacy am I leaving behind? Can people say of me:  He or she wasn’t perfect, but he or she walked in the Power of the Holy Spirit because it was evident in their life style? 

Whatever you plan on doing for the Glory of God and the Kingdom of God, you need to get around to it. Evans says, only one life will soon be passed; only what’s done for Christ will last!

The definition of fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that something or someone is dangerous, likely to cause pain. Some synonyms for fear are terror, fright, panic, to be afraid and to be scared. No one likes the feeling of having fear inside them. It is an uncomfortable feeling to hold onto fear, yet so many of us do. Fear is like being held captive in chains. Fear holds us back from so many things God wants to do in our lives. Fear sits in front of us as a stumbling block waiting to take us down. Fear tries to kill our deepest desires and dreams. There was a point in my life when I felt stuck. I felt comfortable where I was at. I thought just going to church and receiving the word of God was enough for me. I thought that was all God had in store for me. I was wrong. Although going to church and receiving the word of God is beneficial, God showed me that he had so much more for me. I got comfortable just receiving but what was I giving.

I wasn’t putting my best foot forward. I wasn’t giving God the best of me. I realized that I had desires and dreams God placed in my heart that just remained dormant. They were buried deep down inside with layers of fear covering them. I started to see that I was living with fear inside my heart. I was afraid of rejection and afraid of being judged by others. That fear stopped me from fulfilling the purpose God had for me at that time in my life. Quite often we become fearful of what others will think of us and our focus becomes on man instead of God. God is the only one who will help us overcome our fears. We can get so caught up in the thoughts of fear in our mind and we give them control over us.

Fear does not come from God. Fear is a tool the enemy uses to distract us from fulfilling our God given destiny. God is showing me that I have to step out in faith and God will be with me in the midst of my fears. Sometimes when God tells me to do something, I do get afraid, but I realize now more than ever that God will be with me wherever I go. It’s better to do it afraid with God helping you overcome your fears, than being disobedient and not doing it at all. Everything in our walk with Christ is a learning process. That is how he molds us and shapes us. The more we are connected to God, the more we become more like him. The more we are like him, the more we forget about our fears because of his love working in us and perfecting us. When Jesus sacrificed his life on the cross for us, I can’t help but think of what a fearful time that must have been in his life. Matthew 27:46 says “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” These words expressed an emotion of fear in the human flesh. I can’t even imagine how scared Jesus must have been on that day. All of the suffering and pain he endured had to be so frightening. 

We tend to forget that God sent his son Jesus as human flesh just like us. He experienced all of the feelings that we go through, yet he endured it all and always found a way out through God. His trust was in God alone. Jesus knew that God was the only one who could help him overcome his fear. He knew that even in his fears he had a purpose to fulfill, and that was dying on the cross for you and I. God gave him the strength he needed because Jesus relied and depended on him. God can do the same thing with us and the fears we have inside if we allow him to and surrender our all to him. So lets not let the devil make us his victims of fear. Don’t give the enemy any power over your life. Remember we are children of the most high God. I encourage you today to step out in faith and allow God to use you. Give all your fears to God and he will be with you, guiding you every step of the way.

No estaba poniendo mi mejor pie adelante. No estaba dando a Dios lo mejor de mí. Me di cuenta de que tenía deseos y sueños que Dios colocó en mi corazón que sólo permanecieron latentes. Fueron enterrados en el interior, con capas de temor cubriéndolos. Comencé a ver que vivía con temor dentro de mi corazón. Tenía temor del rechazo y temor de ser juzgada por otros. Ese temor me impidió cumplir el propósito que Dios tenía para mí en ese momento de mi vida. Muy a menudo nos volvemos temerosos de lo que otros piensan de nosotros y nuestro enfoque se hace en el hombre en lugar de Dios. Dios es el único que nos ayudará a superar nuestros temores. Podemos estar tan atrapados en los pensamientos de temor en nuestra mente y les damos control sobre nosotros.

El temor no viene de Dios. El temor es una herramienta que el enemigo usa para distraernos de cumplir con nuestro destino dado por Dios. Dios me está mostrando que tengo que salir en la fe y Dios estará conmigo en medio de mis temores. A veces, cuando Dios me dice que haga algo, tengo miedo, pero ahora me doy cuenta más que nunca de que Dios estará conmigo donde quiera que vaya. Es mejor hacerlo temeroso porque Dios te ayudará a superar tus miedos, que ser desobediente y no hacerlo en absoluto. Todo en nuestro caminar con Cristo es un proceso de aprendizaje. Así es como nos moldea y nos da forma. Cuanto más cuando estamos conectados con Dios, más nos hacemos más parecidos a él. Cuanto más somos como él, más nos olvidamos de nuestros temores debido a su amor trabajando en nosotros y perfeccionándonos. Cuando Jesús sacrificó su vida en la cruz por nosotros, no puedo dejar de pensar en lo que un tiempo terrible que debe haber sido en su vida. Mateo 27:46 dice: “Dios mío, Dios mío, ¿por qué me has desamparado?” Estas palabras expresaron una emoción de temor en la carne humana. Ni siquiera puedo imaginar lo asustado que Jesús debe haber estado ese día. Todo el sufrimiento y dolor que soportó tuvo que ser tan aterrador.

Tendemos olvidar que Dios envió a su hijo Jesús con carne humana como nosotros. Experimentó todos los sentimientos que atravesamos, pero lo soportó todo y siempre encontró una salida a través de Dios. Su confianza estaba en Dios solamente. Jesús sabía que Dios era el único que podía ayudarlo a superar su temor. Él sabía que incluso en sus temores tenía un propósito que cumplir, y era morir en la cruz por ti y por mí. Dios le dio la fuerza que necesitaba porque Jesús confiaba y dependía de él. Dios puede hacer lo mismo con nosotros y los temores que tenemos dentro si le permitimos y le entregamos todo lo nuestro. Así que no permita que el diablo nos haga víctimas del temor. No le dé al enemigo ningún poder sobre su vida. Recuerden que somos hijos del Dios Altísimo. Yo animo ustedes hoy de tomar el paso de fe y permitir que Dios los use. Da todos tus temores a Dios y él estará contigo, guiándote en cada paso del camino.

We put away our harps, hanging them on the branches of poplar trees .

For our captors demanded a song from us.

Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn: “sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!”

But how can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a pagan land?”

My grandfather was going through a life risking surgery. My mother was also In the hospital. although I was hoping and praying for the best .. I can’t deny that the weight of my doubts were getting the best of me. I started to think how can I find joy in moments like these? How do I stay firm in my faith? How do I not feel discouraged in a time like this? 

I was beginning to let it all just overcome me. 

I know that I’m not the only one that faces difficult times in which we feel we’ve been drained of all hope and faith. In our darkest moments; our toughest times; the times where we feel there’s no hope we must turn away from the noise of all the mixed thoughts and doubts in our heads that cause us to feel so discouraged and rob us of our joy. We must pick up our harps and sing our joyful song in the middle of our “pagan land” (difficult times). 

Canta A Través Del Dolor

God loves you. (John 3:16)

God knows you. (Jeremiah 1:5)

God wants good for you. (Jeremiah 29:11)