Call to Courage, 411 Sawmill Creek Road, Copperopolis, CA (2026)

10/07/2023

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10/05/2023

Healing of A Woman’s Heart – To Be Seen or Not To Be Seen – by Thomas Koester

A little girl understands the significance of inner beauty from her daddy. Her mother may teach her the practicality and meaning of femininity, but her daddy will teach her the importance of feminine beauty and being captivating in heart and soul.

To ignore this writes John Eldredge;

"...to dismiss her little twirls, bashful smiles, and cries, of: "Daddy, do you see me? Daddy, do you delight in me? Daddy, do you have time for me?" Creates ugliness on the inside and an overemphasis on external beauty.

So many little girls are wounded in heart and soul by a brute father, cruelty, or physical violence. This is not to marginalize or diminish the pain of abuse, which so many little girls and women have suffered, but a father's absence, busyness, or silence can damage her inner beauty and feminine heart.

I know this because I have a fantastic, graceful, brilliant, and gentle daughter named Tessa. She is blessed with a natural outer beauty, and, despite my long periods of absence in her younger years, she radiates inner beauty and a love for life. She is also very creative and has become a very bright and savvy businesswoman.

Yes, I know about wounded little girls and wounded wives. I wish I could undo the absent and silent years while I was too busy with career and acclimation, fame, and fortune. I hate that not only did I validate much of my wife's wounding, but I created wounding within the heart and soul of my precious daughter.

But, as fathers and daddies, if we turn our hearts back towards our daughters, they can be set free to twirl, smile, and light up with inner beauty, no matter how young or old. It is never, absolutely never too late to heal the damage we men, young and old, have inflicted on the most precious gift as a little girl.

If we don't, she'll go on, accentuating her outer beauty and cultivating and shaping her femininity as a weapon against other women and allurement to capture men's primal instinct and attention, whereby she'll ruin herself repeatedly.

The hole in her heart is caused not by strangers, boyfriends, or lovers but by a father, and no other man on earth can make her whole again except the man called daddy.

A wound where there are no tears, but only a hardened heart and dry soul, is a heart and soul that a miracle can only heal. Fathers, you are that miracle!

My daughter has told me many times, while we're in public, "did you see the way that girl looked at me?" It took me a while to understand and catch what she had experienced, but one day, I saw the snarling look girls gave to pretty girls. The irony is that the angry or jealous girl may be blessed with outer beauty.

But doesn't this speak to the real issue -- the real battle within the wounded feminine heart and soul?

She feels threatened and at war with outer beauty; no matter how unattractive or beautiful an opponent may be, she can't help but constantly compare herself to them. Her extreme focus blinds her to the inner emptiness of others. This is because she has long forgotten or is unaware of her inner beauty. So all that is left is the shell and not the substance of who she truly is. She is lost.

A wise and good father will point his daughter to a greater Father by loving her from the inside out. By loving her from his heart to hers, he grants her the belief and faith in a Loving and Father-Hearted God.

"No one can come to the Father, Jesus has said, except through me." John 14: 6. And, with the passageway and destination to God being both males, a father-wounded girl may have difficulty trusting these words of Jesus, or the goodness of the heart of a Father-God.

The Evil One uses a father's inexperience and his childhood wounding from his own father to harm the daughters and sons that he's begotten. This is called a schism, a well-planted wedge of hurt and pain from one victim to the next, from one father to daughters and sons, until generations are inflicted with heartlessness, self-loathing, and with an over-emphasis on the flesh.

If we fail to turn to our daughters, a wounded girl will compete aggressively among other sufferers, among other wounded girls. The only difference between a wounded little girl and a wounded and grown woman is the cost of their hair, makeup, clothing, and accessories.

I have nothing against makeup, clothing, or a little bling. But, if you want the right kind of man, wouldn't you instead captivate him with your heart and soul? If not, you may fall for a guy who'll not see you, not delight in you, and not spends time with you. You'll settle for the abuse of silence and busyness, a hollow man only satisfied with your competitive and external beauty, which you must constantly fight against, foods, fads, and aging.

Wouldn't you want a man who values and is captivated by your heart and soul? After all, your heart and soul are eternal and not external.

Healing is possible. Life is possible. And Love is worth fighting for, and a daddy's love is worth risking the hurt of possible rejection. But, "faith, hope, and love are eternal," and, as it further says in 1 Corinthians Chapter 13, the Love Chapter, "Love keeps no record of wrongs."
..Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy; it does not boast; it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hope, and always perseveres. Love never fails.
..And now these three remain faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love. I Corinthians 13: 4-8,13.

If you want "Happily Ever After," you must find the guy who's after your heart, not your body or made-up face. When you do, you'll be happy and free to live and be loved truly.

It is the heart; it's always been the heart. And not only is this the part of you which Christ came to heal, but also to make his home with you, inside your heart.

"The Spirit of the Lord, the Eternal, is on me. The Lord has appointed me for a special purpose. He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to repair broken hearts, And to declare to those who are held captive and bound in prison, “Be free from your imprisonment!” He has sent me to announce the year of jubilee, the season of the Eternal One's favor:

For our enemies, it will be a day of God’s wrath; For those who mourn, it will be a time of comfort. As for those who grieve over Zion, God has sent me to give them a beautiful crown in exchange for ashes, To anoint them with gladness instead of sorrow, to wrap them in victory, joy, and praise instead of depression and sadness." Isaiah 61: 1-3 (VOICE)

To be seen or not to be seen? That is a great question. Start with the healing of your heart, and all will go well with you.

Be seen as radiant and beautiful of heart, and let all other fads, fashions, and accessories go, as nothing is more important than you and the little girl who was once lost and is now found, loved, and celebrated of heart and soul.

I see you!

I love the scene from the movie, "The Last of the Mohicans," when Cora Munro, played by Madeleine Stowe, is seen by Hawkeye, played by Daniel Day-Lewis.

Cora: "What are you looking at, Sir?"

-She neither expected nor anticipated the answer she received and appeared awkward and bashful, but she is captivated by his seeing her.-

"I'm looking at you, Miss," Hawkeye said steadily.

https://youtu.be/pnQ7l7UhQTM

I'm looking at you, Toni. You are a captivating, radiant woman of heart and soul. ... I see you!

10/04/2023

Healing The Wounded Heart - By Thomas Koester

"A wound where there are no tears is a wound that cannot be healed," wrote John Eldredge

A splinter under the skin, if left alone and ignored, will eventually fester to the point of infection. Your body rejects the foreign object no matter how small; the pain calls out for your attention. If you ignore it too long, you could end up in the emergency room.

How about your heart?

Why ignore the pain?

Your heart is more precious than a finger; you can live without a finger, but you can't live without your heart.

Sometimes we're strong in the wrong things and at the wrong times, but to be weak in the right things brings true courage.

If you are hurting, in pain, and are crushed in spirit, heart, and soul, you may be at the most significant turning point of your life. You may be dwelling with God in a high and protected place, but you must share your tears with God, or you'll be swallowed up in bitterness and left alone on earth.

Isaiah 57:15

"The high and lofty One who inhabits eternity, the Holy One, says this: I live in that high and holy place where those with contrite, humble spirits dwell; and I refresh the humble and give new courage to those with repentant hearts."

Psalm 51:17

"The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit. God, You will not despise a broken and humbled heart."

Let God encounter your tears; after all, he is the Everlasting Father. Please share it with him as your sacrifice of pride. Come to him crushed, broken, betrayed, rejected, and despised. He's well acquainted with all of this and more. He allows it to touch your life, not to destroy you, but to draw you closer to himself so that you may be healed.

God wants to father you...

Trust and turn to God and surrender your rights to be offended, your anger for being abused, and your self-hatred for being molested, r***d, and violated. God specializes in hurting and wounded people, and he'd rather be with you than with Kings and Queens.

The moment you offer up to God your tears and pain, you are with him in spirit and truth.

Isaiah 42:3

"He will not break the bruised reed nor quench the dimly burning flame. He will encourage the fainthearted, those tempted to despair. He will see full justice given to all who have been wronged."

God won't exploit your bruises. He'll not s***f out your heart, even if it's barely lit and barely alive.

God desires to be your daddy...

Give it all over to God. If you do, he'll see that justice is served, and you can give your anger and revenge a proper burial.

Then, you'll knock down your walls of despair and make them into a dance floor, and you'll dance with your Abba, just as He's always wanted to.

Don't live with the pain. Time is not the Healer of all wounds; that's a lie.

God is the Healer of all wounds, and he's waiting to hear your cries directed towards him so that He may act.

Isaiah 30:19

"O my people in Jerusalem, you shall weep no more, for he will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. He will answer you."

Give it up to God. Let it drink in God's presence and love, and so be healed and restored.

Become healed in the name of Jesus!

He came to seek out the lost and broken, and there is no one he cannot save or heal.

This may be one of your greatest moments and your most significant turning point.

Your heart and soul are God's specialty. Don't ignore this opportunity -- don't let your heart become hardened again. Act now while your heart has softened.

Don't live with a wounded heart. Jesus is dying to heal you. Amen

10/03/2023

Courage vs. Reluctance – By Thomas Koester

My wife, Toni, and I had a short, but great conversation about the subtlety of compromise.

The story of the wayward prophet, Balaam, son of Beor, came to mind during our conversation from the book of Numbers, Chapters 22-25.

I truly believe this story of how a wayward prophet was able to cause God’s blessing to be removed from the Israelite Nation is so relevant for today.

It is happening right before our eyes!

Some would say, “but this is Old Testament, there’s no contemporary relevance.”

Well, the unfortunate actions of Balaam, son of Beor, is herald, not only in several other Old Testament books, from Numbers to Psalms, and from Psalms to Micah, but also in the New Testament; in 2 Peter 2:15, Jude 1:11, and the Book of Revelations, 2:14.

When prophets, as they are doing today, align themselves with divination, the occult, etc; when they are touted and listened to; when they cause God’s people to act and worship as the pagans do, God’s blessing is removed from our Churches and Nation. Evil will then run rampant.

When we are reluctant to do what honors God, our reluctance is a dishonor to his Name. It’s a dishonor to Jesus!

When we place the pleasure (feelings) for others above the holiness and righteousness of God, we’ll experience his displeasure and disfavor.

God’s favor is on the one, or the many, whose zealous, but humble actions bring honor to his Name, even in the small things.

Take Sydney McLaughlin, for instance, she sets a new world record and wins the gold metal for the USA in the women’s 400-meter hurdles.

“Records come and go, the glory of God is eternal.” "And, I no longer run for self-recognition, but to reflect His perfect will that is already set in stone. I don’t deserve anything. But by grace, through faith, Jesus has given me everything.” - Sydney McLaughlin

Do not align yourself to the subtle compromises of others, or the rantings of false prophets, If you do, you’ll share their horrible fate. It is a dangerous thing to rob God of his glory and sovereignty.

Haven’t we compromised far too much as individuals, and especially as a Nation?

Haven’t far too many Churches lowered their standards of Godliness and righteousness?

Evil runs rampant, but not because evil is powerful, but because we lack the zeal of the Lord. God is all powerful, evil is not. Complacency and passivity however empowers evil by weakening holiness and righteousness. The Church is to be a radiant expression of Christ and not a redundancy of worldly compromise and passivity.

It only took one man, named Balaam, a wayward Prophet, to cause a Nation to compromise. It only took one man, Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the grandson of Aaron, whose zealous act turned away God’s wrath.

Where are the Phinehas’ of our day?

Where are the Sydney McLaughlin’s of our time that without compromise, give glory and honor to God?

“Courage, dear heart…” …defy reluctance! Be zealous and passionate for our Father's house!

Inspired by the Book of Numbers, Chapters, 22-25.

10/02/2023

The Devil Has Awakened - The Battle Against The People of God - By Thomas Koester

God's People Need Not Fear Bad News or Rumors of War.

"Call your councils of war, but they will be worthless. Develop your strategies, but they will not succeed. For God is with us!”

A Call to Trust the Lord

"The Lord has given me a strong warning not to think as everyone else does. He said, “Don’t call everything a conspiracy, like they do, and don’t live in dread of what frightens them. Make the Lord of Heaven’s Armies holy in your life. He is the one you should fear. He is the one who should make you tremble. He will keep you safe." - Isaiah 8: 10-14

From the movie Lord of the Rings:

King Theoden: "I will not risk open war."

Aragorn: "Open war is upon you whether you would risk it or not."

It is becoming more apparent that war is upon us and our soil. But, we as God's people must think and act differently than the masses, than even those whose job is to develop strategies and seek war counselors.

Our job as believers is to seek God, obey Him and to respect Him with great reverence and trust, and allow our reverence and confidence to be displayed to our nation and the world. This is all about the clash between light and darkness, between the ever-expanding Kingdom of God and the dwindling kingdom of darkness.

"...And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus." Revelations 12: 17

The conflicts we all see between the Left and the Right, in our politics, in our culture, and in our society is nothing more than the manifestation of a great spiritual battle.

Will we be swept up in this conflict?

Will some of us be tested?

Will some of us lose our lives?

"For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will find it." - Matthew 16: 25

Did you know that the most potent and most dangerous soldier is one who realizes that he's already dead?

Movie quote, Band of Brothers:

Capt. Ronald Speirs: "You know why you hid in that ditch, Blithe?"

Pvt. Albert Blithe: "I was scared."

Capt. Ronald Speirs: "We're all scared. You hid in that ditch because you think there's still hope. But Blithe, the only hope you have is to accept the fact that you're already dead, and the sooner you get that, the sooner you'll be able to function as a soldier's supposed to work. Without mercy, without compassion, without remorse. All war depends on it."

For us who believe, we are already dead to the passions and fears of the world. Our lives are hidden in Christ, and it is no longer you or I that live, but Christ living in and through us. This makes us unstoppable and immovable. You are powerful and dangerous for good if you are in Christ and he's in you!

And so, we have His grace running in and through us to grant incredible mercy and great compassion to our enemies without remorse or hatred. Even if they terrorize or torment us, we in Christ have greater power - For we have the power of resurrection and eternal life. For us to die is life eternal, but to live is Christ and the power of the cross to save even the vilest sinner.

Despite what you hear in the news, be that unstoppable and immovable force of faith and trust in God through Jesus Christ. For this is who you are in Christ, and this is what our nation and the world need to see. Christ Jesus is the only hope of the world, and He lives in you!

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9

Trust in the Lord. He's in this fight, and he will win the battle. It's all about the power of the Gospel, and your life and attitude must be the Gospel to all who need Christ Jesus, including BLM, Antifa, and Islamic-jihadist.

Make God holy in your life; after all, He's the only one you need to honor and respect with reverence and awe.

There is no other God but The LORD, and He is the only God whose name is The Lord All-Mighty (God of The Angel-Armies). And, He will therefore fight for His children.

The Devil's awakening is nothing compared to the glory of God amid His people.

Rise up Oh, Children of God! Trust fully in The Lord. It is His battle to win.

10/01/2023

Get In Spiritual Shape - By Thomas Koester

We become what we think. Matter of fact, the scriptures say:

"As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." Proverbs 3:27

If you want to be in shape and become the best you, then read God's Word as a letter to yourself, and wade into the depths of your heart for what God is saying there...

"...You are my son, and I am your God; I "reshape" those whom I truly love."

Let the voice and opinion of your True Father shape you rather than the dark voices and memories of your past.

It is more valuable to watch what you think than what you eat. Body shape is less important to your eternal state. Search the scriptures for your identity and rely on the Holy Spirit to enrich your heart and soul with God's Holy Word.

After all, Christ's likeness is the Father's goal for all those who love and obey him.

"You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had." Philippians 2:5

"In everything you do, stay away from complaining and arguing so that no one can speak a word of blame against you. You are to live clean, innocent lives as children of God in a dark world full of people who are crooked and stubborn. Shine out among them like beacon lights..." Philippians 2:14-15

Your best shape is to act like Christ and to shine like a beacon of God's light and light up this dark world.

We're headed for difficult days ahead. Your spiritual shape will be tested. We don't have anymore time to waste on unimportant things.

Listen for the voice of God whispering in your heart his love for you. His passion will shape you from the inside out. Oh, and how dangerous for goodwill your true shape will be!

09/25/2023

The Superman Pastor - By Thomas Koester

Are you exhausted, running on empty, and your stress odometer has cycled over too many times?

If so, you may be a Superman Pastor.

Your identity and significance must be in your sonship and not in your pastorship. Never use your intimacy with God as a vicarious impetus for others to synthesize. In doing this, you and your congregation will both become lost and distant from God. People will hunger for your intimacy at the sacrifice of their own connection with God. Instead, reveal the heart and passion of God for them until their Father-hunger for God surpasses their father-hunger for you.

Won’t this lighten your load?

Won’t this save your marriage?

Won’t this free you up to be your children’s daddy?

If not, maybe your cape is showing.

Some of you may have opted for early retirement or have dropped out of pastorship, only to find yourselves lost. It might be due to being trapped in a nonstop service and performance role with God and others. This was never God’s doing; it comes from the writ of men, financial expectations of Church boards, and the results-oriented corporate governance in most Churches.

Did you know that the word “religion” actually means to “re-bond” with God? The Latin word comprises two parts, “re,” meaning again, and “ligare,” pointing to bind or to bond.

We Protestants are constantly harping against other religions that faith in God is not a religion but a relationship. But, in tossing out the word religion, we’ve tossed out the significance of the word. Rather than genuinely encouraging and leading people into intimacy and sonship with God, they’ve learned by our actions as pastors and enter into performance roles, as presented by the World’s false religions.

So many pastors have lost their intimate bond with God because of the performance and service trap. So they end up helplessly modeling burnout, depression, and, believe it or not, loneliness. A pastor can become lonely even among his congregation, large or small.

Many pastors feel they must keep up the role of pastor at all costs. He must appear spiritually diligent and vivacious when in the public view. And, if he’s incredibly talented, he will maintain this exhausting role even in front of his family.

What happens to a man when he calls his darkness light?

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your vision is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light within you is darkness—how deep is that darkness! – Matthew 6:22-23

When a pastor calls his darkness light, he cuts himself off from God and others, and the duplicity becomes more and more costly.

If a pastor, and for that matter, any of us, satisfies our father-hunger with God and not with the ministry, we will grow as true sons and daughters of God. It will therefore be the fruit of our lives, which will benefit others, and encourage them to bear their fruit by connecting to the True Vine, Jesus Christ.

An overactive pastor cannot maintain a pastor’s schedule or demands with humility and transperity. Not if he's a mortal. Many fear transperity and humility due to the cost of acclaim and notoriety; therefore, he's afraid to allow his humanness and frailty to be seen by others.

Better to take on the humility of Christ and the burden of Christ. Did you know that bearing your cross is a very public affair? Jesus bore the weight of his cross in public, and, at the moment where he had lost his strength, a simple man aided him and carried his cross for a distance.

Being a good pastor is not a sprint, and it’s not meant to be a solo act. It’s teamwork; it should involve the aid of good men of faith. After all, the ministry of the Church is meant for the whole Church and not simply by one man. By each of us, you and me, joining in the ministry, we will grow in our faith and collectively reach maturity in Christ as a healthy body. Ephesians 4: 11-16

In so doing, we can spare the good men of God, who pastor the flock because of the call God has on their lives.

There is so much more to talk about on this subject. But, until then, pray for your pastors. Become more involved. Give them grace. Take better care of one another. Visit one another. Pray for one another. Support your pastor, and not just with your finances, but with your time too.

After all, aren’t we all children of God?

Only in DC Comics will you find a Superman.

09/24/2023

A True Leader - By Thomas Koester

Being a leader is becoming a servant and refusing all temptation to be otherwise.

A true leader is the first to repent, the first to seek forgiveness, and the first to rise after a fall. He is the first to extend grace to others because he's the first to extend grace to himself. He sets a standard that others can achieve without the need for a diploma or a pinstriped suit.

A true leader has learned the art of diminishment. He understands that if others are to increase that he must decrease, so he looks for others to promote rather than himself. He restrains himself from being the source of revelation but instead helps others find the Source.

He is more interested in raising leaders and not followers.

He does not set his own life as a standard to follow. He knows his life is plagued with imperfection and that leaders don't always do what is right; that's impossible. Instead, his humility points to the sufficiency found only in Christ and not in himself. He is clothed in Christ's humility rather than theological pedigrees.

A true leader refuses to sit on pedestals. He denies the acclaim and the applause of men. He understands fleshly accent will lead not only to his demise but to all those who foolishly elevate him.

So, he leads with humility, quiet strength, and fear reserved for the Lord. The voice and message that matters most to him are; "well done, my good and faithful servant," and not the flattery of men.

Being a leader is becoming a servant and refusing all temptation to be otherwise.

Men and women of these qualities appear rare because humanity always looks in the wrong places for such leaders. They did two thousand years ago, and they still do today.

Be careful following the "impeccable," They may be a fake and a phony. A real man of God doesn't hide his imperfections; he leads through them and because of them. Don't become captivated by their charisma, but rather by their character.

The authenticity of a real man of God and a true leader is who they are after the crowds leave and what their wife and children see of them when no one's looking.

A good man's greatest compliments come from his wife and children.

09/23/2023

Beautifully Broken - By Thomas Koester

"that's where GOD does HIS best work!"

No, this is not a treatise on global warming or climate change or the negative impact of cow flatulence on our environment -- far from it!

This is about fleeing pretense and duplicity and becoming the real you. It's about breaking down the fake areas in our lives and being honest with ourselves and others.

Wholeness can only be achieved by utter and complete brokenness. This is a universal principle. This is also the opposite of what the world thinks.

I like what Jerry Maguire said in his moment of a breakthrough:

"...Two nights later in Miami at our corporate conference, a breakthrough. Breakdown? Breakthrough. It was the oddest, most unexpected thing. I began writing what they call a Mission Statement for my company. You know -- a Mission Statement -- a suggestion for the future. What started out as one page became twenty-five.

Suddenly I was my father's son. I was remembering the simple pleasures of this job, how I ended up here out of law school, the way a stadium sounds when one of my players performs well on the field... And suddenly it was all pretty clear. The answer was fewer clients. Caring for them, caring for ourselves, and the games too. Starting our lives, really. Hey, I'll be the first to admit it. What I was writing was somewhat "touchy-feely." I didn't care. I had lost the ability to bu****it. It was the me I'd always wanted to be." - The Movie "Jerry Maguire"

You see a breakthrough, I mean the kind of breakthrough we know we really need, is always preceded by a breakdown. And, when we lose... no, rather when we refuse to bu****it ourselves and others, we'll become the person that we've always wanted to be.

You're divinely purposed to become a living act of God's love and glory. You can't become what your Creator has intended until you surrender your own mess. That is, your constant self-effort to holding the broken pieces of your life together. Living in fear and dread that your secret life will be exposed at any moment to a live audience.

Living life on constant defense and acting co-dependently, or as a self-enabler, justifying the actions of your false self at the expense of your true self. This is the definition of what I'm referring to as a "mess."

You cannot become assembled in body, mind, and spirit, all the while holding everything together. You are robbing yourself of the very strength and energy you need by wasting it on supporting your falseness and phony facade. Stop being driven by voices inside your head, echoing the curses from your mother or father, or from the other significant persons in your life.

These curses are the voices of "false coaches," driving you to repeat a cycle of self-destruction and family dysfunction. These curses are carcinogenic to your desire for wholeness and wellness. They are the cancerous agents eating away at the divine purpose for which God has created you.

“Gloria Dei est vivens homo," wrote Saint Irenaeus, which means:

"The glory of God is a living man."

The glory of God is you fully living, and not your daily self-destruction and learned dysfunction.

In the human body, you cannot build muscle without first tearing down the muscle you have. Tearing down the muscle requires a determination to submit to the pain and deny yourself comfort. Likewise, you must have a willing determination to submit your very life and comforts to God.

James says it this way:

4-6 "You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care? The proverb has it that “he’s a fiercely jealous lover.” And what he gives in love is far better than anything else you’ll find. It’s common knowledge that “God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.”

7-10 So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet." James 4:6-10 (MSG)

Pride is self-destruction, low esteem, self-loathing and such, is what's been behind your self-effort of "holding it all together." This is why pride always precedes a profound fall. There is nothing good in this kind of a fall because it's always a fall from grace and not towards it.

Do you want God's grace? Become truly humble. Oh yes, it is painful to stop your self-salvation and accept the Truth and act on it. But the light, which will come flooding into your darkness, will bring the wholeness and wellness you've been searching for.

The problem with bu****it is that it is not a respecter of persons, race, religion, or age... it flows from all of us.

"Men love darkness, rather than light," this is true. But you cannot become the man or woman you were meant to become all the while remaining in darkness. Just as painful as it is to build muscle, is it painful at first to step out from darkness into God's marvelous light!

The gain from the pain of coming into the light is worth the life of wholeness and holiness.

Did you know that embracing your brokenness, rather than hiding it will cause collateral beauty?

There may be a divine and strategic purpose behind your brokenness that when shared with others may cause a chain reaction of hope and healing in you and in them.

At this very moment, you're standing at a crossroad -- at a turning point; your next decision can create a paradigm shift of unprecedented emotional and spiritual change.

"The Lord said to his people...

“'You are standing at the crossroads. So consider your path. Ask where the old, reliable paths are. Ask where the path is that leads to blessing and follow it. If you do, you will find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not follow it!'” Jeremiah 6:16 (NET)

Stop hanging out with the "We will not follow it" crowd!

You no longer belong to the crowd who refuse to follow the right path.

Stop staring at the crossroad in front of you and follow the right path. Stop saving yourself and fall into the grace, mercy, and love of God, and you will become the man or woman you've always wanted to be. After all, God put the desire to be his love and glory in you so that you may be fully living, fully alive to a world content with dying and taking you with it.

A breakdown is always before a breakthrough. God is waiting if you are willing. Open up to God, or find a trusted friend to help lead you to God's grace.

God can turn the ugliness of your brokenness into something beautiful!

May I be honest and a bit crass?
..It is my prayer that you'll lose your ability to "bu****it!" - Amen

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