Writings from the Soul

"The Fortress" 
~A writing from the soul by ~Brian Waddell. 2024©

Though I am tossed about by the waves and the storms of life. I take refuge in the Fortress of the most high! Where the attacks of the enemy buffet me and crash against me I stand closer and closer to the pillar of my strength. I call out longingly and in earnest for the whisper of your reply. I look to the heavens and the high holy hills! To thy mountains I cast my eyes looking for the light of my salvation. My soul longs for the voice who holds it all and is all things. With a word with a whisper. You ask to enter into our hearts and take over each room of hurt and wounding. You bathe the infected in healing light! Fire to burn out the things keeping us hostage. We bathe in your presence!!  We grasp tightly to the hope and the Promise of our salvation! We know you work all things for your good! Through adversity and trials we take the opportunity to step out and trust you!  

Conversational Prayer Passage Psalm 18:1-3.

A song to the Pure and Shining One by King David, his servant, composed when the Lord rescued David from all his many enemies, including from the brutality of Saul. He said:

I love you, Yahweh, and I’m bonded to you,
my strength!
Yahweh, you’re the bedrock beneath my feet,
my faith-fortress, my wonderful deliverer,
my God, my rock of rescue where none can reach me.
You’re the shield around me,
the mighty power that saves me,
and my high place.
All I need to do is to call on you,
Yahweh, the praiseworthy God.
When I do, I’m safe and sound in you--
delivered from my foes!

Psalm 59:9-10

My strength is found when I wait upon you.
Watch over me, God, for you are my mountain fortress;
you set me on high!
The God of passionate love will meet with me.
My God will empower me to rise in triumph over my foes.

Contrasting Prayer Contemplation

Psalm 16:17-18
Repenting from evil ~ places you on the highway of holiness.
Protect purity and you protect your life.
Your boast becomes a prophecy of a future failure.
The higher you lift yourself up in pride,
the harder you’ll fall in disgrace.

God is a fortress for all! He is our Shelter in a time of need. It is a provision of God for both those who call on Him and for those who we think don't deserve the rescue. Never allow your pride to get in the way of the access points of God's love for those who are lost!

IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

​All rights reserved! ©2024 •Wild on the Path. John Fairrington • Brian Waddell

Most of us have always been on the track of waiting for that anointed calling and path for our life that will set us apart for big things. We do this because we believe that greatness comes in the form of performance for God and that it is an outcome of catching the right call.

The reality is... It's just a precious waste of time because God is after our hearts and not our performance.
Shouldn’t we be asking daily… “Lord, how should I think about this, or Lord, how would you have me act while on this wild path today?”

Is it possible that our calling is to do even greater works than Jesus did? Could it be that God's calling (track) for me is to live in the constant rhythms, nature, and outflow of Jesus and that these things are what constitutes being on the right track and fulfilling His call and anointing on my life.

Is it possible that God’s calling and anointing has been in front of you the whole time!

Micah 6:8 The Message

But he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don’t take yourself too seriously—take God seriously.

Isaiah 61:1-3. The Message

The Spirit of God, the Master, is on me because God anointed me. He sent me to preach good news to the poor, heal the heartbroken, Announce freedom to all captives, pardon all prisoners. God sent me to announce the year of his grace--a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies--and to comfort all who mourn, To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion, give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes, Messages of joy instead of news of doom, a praising heart instead of a languid spirit. Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness, planted by God to display his glory.

You know what to do from here!

IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!​

Psalm 83:4-13

Our enemies keep saying,
“Now is the time to wipe Israel off the map.
We’ll destroy even the memory of her existence!”
They’ve made their pact, consulting and conspiring,
aligning together in their covenant against God.
All the sons of Ishmael, the desert sheiks and the nomadic tribes, Amalekites, Canaanites, Moabites,
and all the nations that surround us,
Philistines, Phoenicians, Gadarenes, and Samaritans;
allied together they’re ready to attack!
Pause in his presence
Do to them all what you did to the Midianites
who were defeated by Gideon.
Or what you did to Sisera and Jabin
when Deborah and Barak defeated them by the Kishon River.
Do to your enemies what you did at Endor,
whose rotting corpses fertilized the land.
Repeat history, God! Make all their “noble ones”
die like Oreb, Zebah, and Zalmunna, who said in their pride,
“We will seize God’s people along with all their pleasant lands!”
Blow them away, God, like straw in the wind,
like a tumbleweed in the wilderness!
Burn them up like a raging fire roaring down the mountainside;
consume them all until only charred sticks remain!
Chase them away like before a mighty storm and terrifying tempest.
O Lord, disgrace them until their faces fill with shame,
and make them acknowledge the glory of your name.
Make them utter failures in everything they do
until they perish in total disgrace and humiliation,
so they will know that you, and you alone,
are Yahweh, the only Most High God exalted over all the earth!

Let's contemplate the Ishmael effect for a moment because it has been playing out over and over again in the Narrative of God.

Have you ever missed the mark or felt like you have blown any opportunity to be used in God's plans for you? Well, you are in good company and I have good news for you!

If you find that the narrative of your story has left you in desolate places or that you have made mistakes that you can't undo, then give consideration to how God still is working out His narrative even in the resulting mistakes of Abraham, the consequences of a wrong relationship, and the birth of something that got ahead of God's plan. You remember a guy by the name of Ishmael who became the father of the Arab people whereas his brother Issac became the lineage of the Jewish people and the two were at odds growing up and they are at odds even to this day. The root of all the tension that we are experiencing in the world today goes all the way back to the mistake that Abraham made. He got in the flesh, he lost his faith a bit, he tried to do things in his own energy and we are seeing the repercussions in the world today.

Now time goes on and Ishmael is sent off, It breaks Abe’s heart but God says “I want you to listen to your wife, you're doing the right thing!’ And off Ishmael and Hagar go. Time goes on and Issac grows up has a family and then he dies like Abraham before him but he has a son named Jacob and Jacob has 12 sons one of which who was named Joseph. Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob and the other sons became increasingly jealous of that fact so they threw him into a pit and left him there to die taking his coat, dipping it and blood and planning to convince their dad that he was attacked by wild animals and killed so as not to take any blame for their evil plot. But, while they were waiting for Joseph to die there in the pit, there were caravan’s coming along and one of the brothers convinced the others to sell him into slavery so Joseph's blood would not be on there hands. Genesis 37:28 says that merchants who were Midianites came by and pulled Him from the pit and then sold him to Ishmaelites, descendants of Ishmael who then brought Him to Egypt and sold him to a guy named Potipher.

Now here is the kicker! The Ishmaelites, Abraham's mistake, Abraham's goof, Abraham's missing the mark, Abraham's sin, as a father who fathered Ishmael. He got ahead of the Lord, He wasn’t obedient to the lord, and now Joseph, the great, grandson of Abraham is being taken by Ishmaelites to Egypt where through a series of miraculous events he winds up becoming the Prime Minister of Egypt. Meanwhile in the promise land there is a famine and the whole story hinges on the question, who got Joseph to the place where he needed to be to save the descendants of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob? It was the Ishmaelites! It was the descendant’s, the offspring of Abraham's mistake! In this amazing story what God does through the mistake of a father ultimately saves an entire nation. We all as followers of Jesus have Ishmael’s in our lives, We have all dropped the ball at some point, but God had a plan to redeem your story, to restore his people, and to keep us on the Path of Jesus. Your Narrative may have been ugly at times but God is at work and accomplishing His Plan in you!

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

Hells Canyon, located on the border of Oregon and Idaho, is North America's deepest river gorge. Its maximum depth is 7,900 feet. The canyon is almost 2,000 feet deeper than the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

Life has a way of making you feel like you have been through Hell and back! You might see the Seven Devil's in your background and no way through the canyon right now but that's your present perspective. It is driven by the emotions, negative circumstances, and experiences that happen in our story. But what if we practice new and different perspectives regarding the hellish activities of our lives and see things through the lens of Jesus?

Back when I took this photo while visiting Hells Canyon, the Lord ministered this passage to me and it has prepared me for every potential hellish experience whether by geographical location, spiritual discernment or metaphorical application! Pray through this passage and expect God for your break through!

Conversational Prayer Passage.

Psalm 43:3-5
Pour into me the brightness of your daybreak! Pour into me your rays of revelation-truth! Let them comfort and gently lead me onto the shining path, showing the way into your burning presence, into your many sanctuaries of holiness. Then I will come closer to your very altar until I come before you, the God of my ecstatic joy! I will praise you with the harp that plays in my heart to you, my God, my magnificent God! Then I will say to my soul, “Don’t be discouraged; don’t be disturbed, for I fully expect my Savior-God to break through for me. (TPT).

What the lens of Jesus (scripture) says about your present Hell.

Psalm 103:4-6
You’ve rescued me from hell and saved my life.
You’ve crowned me with love and mercy.
You satisfy my every desire with good things.
You’ve supercharged my life so that I soar again
like a flying eagle in the sky!
You’re a God who makes things right,
giving justice to the defenseless.

Psalm 144:7
Reach down from your heavens
and rescue me from this hell,
and deliver me from these dark powers.

Pause in his presence

Psalm 39:12-13
Lord, listen to all my tender cries.
Read my every tear, like liquid words that plead for your help.
I feel all alone at times, like a stranger to you,
passing through this life just like all those before me.
Don’t let me die without restoring
joy and gladness to my soul.
May your frown over my failure
become a smile over my success.
​

A VISUAL AND CONVERSATIONAL PRAYER PASSAGE

PSALM 40:1-11

For the Pure and Shining One A song of poetic praise by King David
I waited and waited and waited some more,
patiently, knowing God would come through for me.
Then, at last, he bent down and listened to my cry.
He stooped down to lift me out of danger
from the desolate pit I was in,
out of the muddy mess I had fallen into.
Now he’s lifted me up upon a rock, into a firm, secure place
and steadied me while I walk along his ascending path.
A new song for a new day rises up in me
every time I think about how he breaks through for me!
Ecstatic praise pours out of my mouth until
everyone hears how God has set me free.
Many will see his miracles;
they’ll stand in awe of God and fall in love with him!
Blessing after blessing comes to those who love and trust the Lord.
They will not fall away,
for they refuse to listen to the lies of the proud.
O Lord, our God, no one can compare with you.
Such wonderful works and miracles are all found with you!
And you think of us all the time
with your countless expressions of love--
far exceeding our expectations!
It’s not sacrifices that really move your heart.
Burnt offerings, sin offerings—those aren’t what bring you joy.
But when you open my ears and speak to me,
I become your willing servant, your prisoner of love for life.
So I said, “Here I am! I’m coming to you as a sacrifice,
for in the prophetic scrolls of your book
you have written about me.
I delight to fulfill your will, my God,
for your living words are written upon the pages of my heart.”
I tell everyone everywhere the truth of your righteousness.
And you know I haven’t held back in telling the message to all.
I don’t keep it a secret or hide the truth.
I preach of your faithfulness and kindness,
proclaiming your extravagant love to the largest crowd I can find!
So Lord, don’t hold back your love or withhold
your tender mercies from me.
Keep me in your truth and let your compassion overflow to me
no matter what I face.

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

Song of Songs 4:15-16

You are a fountain of gardens.
A well of living water springs up from within you,
like a mountain brook flowing into my heart!

The Shulamite Bride

Awake, O north wind!
Awake, O south wind!
Breathe on my garden with your Spirit-Wind.
Stir up the sweet spice of your life within me.
Spare nothing as you make me your fruitful garden.
Hold nothing back until I release your fragrance.
Come walk with me as you walked
with Adam in your paradise garden.
Come taste the fruits of your life in me.

In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)     John 7:37–39

What makes you fruitful and refreshing, prolific and productive?The flowing of the Holy Ghost within and from your life. Seek the blessing of the Holy Spirit. Jesus taught us to ask the Father for the blessing of the Holy Ghost (Luke 11:13), for when the Holy Spirit flows in you and through you, there is a fruitfulness about you. Without Him, there’s only barrenness and dryness.

Song of Songs 4:16...
Awake, O north wind…

The bride speaks. The north wind is a cold wind. Perhaps you feel cold presently—you don’t feel the intense love for Jesus that you would like to or once did. You feel distant and alone. That is the blowing of the north wind. Let it blow—because the times that are devoid of tingly feelings or “Holy Ghost goose bumps” provide unique opportunity for you to demonstrate your love for the Lord through diligence in worship, prayer, and study of His Word—even though you don’t feel His presence, an absence of feelings doesn’t mean the Lord has forsaken you. On the contrary, He is allowing you to go through a cold season in order to grant you the privilege of learning to walk by faith and not by feeling. Feelings are so fickle. They’re affected by what you ate last night, by what your family said to you this morning, by the news, the weather, the economic outlook. Not so faith. It is a constant because it is totally independent of outside circumstances. Therefore, the Lord, wanting the best for His people, desires us to walk in the surety and stability of faith.

Can you, like the maiden, say, “Lord, I’m willing to go through a week, a month, or even a year of the blowing north wind in order to give to You without expecting the sense of Your presence in return”? Can you say, “Lord, if I can best demonstrate what You have done in my life through periods of coldness, so be it”?
Most of the time, whenever I give to God, I get so much back that I can’t really call it giving at all! I start to worship and say, “Lord, this is a sacrifice of praise to You,” when suddenly, finding myself flooded with feelings of joy, I think, “This is no sacrifice at all. Am I doing this to give—or am I doing this to receive?” But when I feel somewhat distant from the Lord, it’s an opportunity for me to give without necessarily receiving anything in return.

If you’re going through a cold spell today, if the north wind is howling, rejoice. You have a unique opportunity to minister to Jesus, to give to Him worship and adoration, praise and thanksgiving regardless of your feelings.

Song of Songs 4:16...
…and come, thou south…

The south wind is a hot, arid wind. Perhaps you are presently walking through days of difficulty and times of fiery trials. That is the blowing of the south wind. If this is your situation, remember that it’s not when you’re prospering and cruising through life that others can see Jesus in you. It’s when they see you walking through difficult days by the grace of God that they know He is real to you.

Song of Songs 4:16...
…blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out.…

Not long ago my wife and I got away to decompress. We had become a little snarky about some thing going on in our lives and committed to a week of just soaking in the work that the Lord was desiring to do in us. After a few focused days of thankfulness, gratitude, an refocusing on Him. We had just climbed into the warm waters of the Alvord Desert Hot Springs; A great little desert oasis in the middle of nowhere. While we were soaking one rather stormy day, all of a sudden, I smelled something. My mouth began to water and my stomach started to growl as the fragrance of barbequed steak was working its way down the path from one of the campground fire pits and into my nostrils.

When the storm winds of adversity and difficulty blow through our lives, a fragrance is released. It is either a foul odor of bitterness, snarkiness, even hostility, jealousy and anger—or it is the sweet-smelling savor of praise and thanksgiving, worship and adoration. You see, the wind itself doesn’t determine what the fragrance will be. It merely releases the fragrance already present. Therefore, when I find bitterness, anger, jealousy, or hostility and snarkiness coming forth from my life, I must say, “Father, the problem isn’t him, her, them, or where I'm at. It’s me. Father, forgive me. I thought I was farther along than that. Oh, Lord, have mercy!”
Here is the deal! If, instead of blaming everyone and everything else, you say, “Oh, Lord, the fragrance in my life is not what it should be. I repent, Father. Change my heart,” you will find a pleasing fragrance emanating from your life.

Song of Songs 4:16...
…Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.

Take special note of this verse, kids. The key to life and enjoying our union with God is saying, “I’m Your garden, Lord. Eat of me. I exist for Your pleasure and Your glory. That is why I am alive today. That is why I will awake tomorrow. I exist for one reason: not to heap pleasure upon myself, not even to please others—but to please You.”

Why do you exist? To bring pleasure to the Lord (Revelation 4:11).
Tomorrow will be a fabulous, wonderful, exciting, fulfilling day if you’ll say, “Lord, I’m here to please You all day long. I’m taking You out for lunch. We’ll grab a burger and then I’ll meditate on Your Word, talk to You, and worship You. Lord, on my coffee break, my thoughts and prayers will be ascending to Your throne. I’m going to carry a verse in my pocket so that my thoughts might be upon You as I meditate upon it at various intervals throughout the day.”
You exist to bring the Lord pleasure! You are His garden!

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

Take my yoke upon you…

Matthew 11:28–30
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

The Greek word translated “carpenter” used in Matthew 13 to describe Joseph refers to a finish carpenter rather than for a framer. Tradition has it that the carpenter shop where Jesus worked with His father, Joseph, specialized in making yokes and fitting things like stone together like a structural mason of sorts. To yoke two oxen together, the skilled craftsmen designed the yoke to fit each ox individually and it was the same in stone laying. However, in designing yokes since there was always a lead ox yoked together with one who would follow, the yoke was designed in such a way that the lead ox would pull the greater weight. The follower, or assistant ox, was just to go with the flow.

Take My yoke upon you…

Jesus used an analogy well known to the people who listened to Him when He said not only, “Come unto Me,” but, “Yoke with Me. Let Me be the lead ox. Go with My flow. Don’t try to figure out or change My direction. Let Me lead you.”

The story is told of a battleship cruising the Atlantic, off the northern coast of Maine. One stormy evening, the commander was notified, “Sir, there’s a light ahead. Oncoming vessel.”
“Signal the oncoming vessel: change your courses ten degrees to the west.”
The message was sent.
But a light flashed back, “Change your course ten degrees to the east.”
“Signal again,” barked the commander. “Change your course ten degrees to the west. I am an admiral!”
The light flashed back, “Change your course ten degrees to the east. I am a Seaman Third Class.”
By this time, the admiral was incensed as he thundered, “Signal again: Change your course ten degrees to the west. I am a battleship.”
And the message came back, “Change your course ten degrees to the east. I am a lighthouse.”
So, too, as we impudently and impetuously say to the Lord, “Lord, let’s go my way,” He answers...

“No. We’re going My way.”
I am the Lighthouse
I am the Light of the world,
The Rock of your salvation,
The Creator and Sustainer of your soul.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
The One who knows the beginning from the end.
Trust Me.

Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart…

This is the only autobiographical statement Jesus ever made.
He didn’t say, “Learn of Me because I am majestic and mighty,” or “Learn of Me because I am powerful and prominent.” He said, “That which you discover when you learn of Me will refresh you, for I am meek.”
What is meekness? Meekness is strength under control.

Picture a big, gentle Saint Bernard surrounded by yapping, snapping, little Chihuahuas. Now the Saint Bernard could open his mouth and chomp the Chihuahuas down in one gulp. He could take his paw and knock them away with one swipe. But the powerful Saint Bernard patiently puts up with the yappers and snappers at his feet. That’s meekness.

When I study the Scriptures and learn of Jesus, I am always amazed at His goodness, His grace, His kindness, His gentleness, and His meekness.
Jesus says, “Come to Me—you who have been burned out by Pharaoh, you who have been wearied by the folly of sin. Yoke with Me—don’t try to maneuver Me, steer Me, or demand of Me. Learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly.” The result?

…And ye shall find rest unto your souls.

You’ll find what your heart is craving: Shabbat. Sabbath. Rest.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

The final consideration for this Acts 15 contemplation is... Questions arose concerning Gentile converts and whether or not they should follow the laws, and the rituals, and whether to be circumcised. Peter gave this response, I’ll state it again:
Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? Acts 15:10
​
“My yoke,” Jesus said, “is easy.” It’s not religion—it’s relationship. It’s not Judaism—it’s Jesus. It’s not the law—it’s love.

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

Psalm 107:23-31
Some of us set sail upon the sea to faraway ports,
transporting our goods from ship to shore.
We were witnesses of God’s power out in the ocean deep;
we saw breathtaking wonders upon the high seas.
When God spoke he stirred up a storm,
lifting high the waves with hurricane winds.
Ships were tossed by the swelling sea, rising to the sky,
then dropping down to the depths,
reeling like drunkards, spinning like tops,
everyone at their wits’ end until even sailors despaired of life,
cringing in terror.
Then we cried out, “Lord, help us! Rescue us!” And he did!
God stilled the storm, calmed the waves,
and he hushed the hurricane winds to only a whisper.
We were so relieved, so glad as he guided us
safely to harbor in a quiet haven.
So lift your hands and give thanks to God for his marvelous kindness
and for his miracles of mercy for those he loves! (TPT)

FOOD FOR THOUGHT!

Acts 27:30–32
And as the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship, when they had let down the boat into the sea, under colour as though they would have cast anchors out of the foreship, Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved. Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the boat, and let her fall off.And as the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship, when they had let down the boat into the sea, under colour as though they would have cast anchors out of the foreship, Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved. Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the boat, and let her fall off.

After jumping through legal hoops in Caesarea, Paul was finally sailing toward Rome to plead his case before Caesar. On the way, a storm arose that threatened the lives of the two hundred seventy-six soldiers, sailors, and prisoners on board with Paul. After the crew readied a lifeboat to avoid the inevitable dashing of the ship against the rocks, Paul, the little rabbi who was a tentmaker by trade and a prisoner by decree, said, “Except ye abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved.”
I believe Paul’s words are the heart of the Lord for us today. There are times—maybe you’re in one right now—when the wind is howling, the waves are rising, and you find yourself saying, “I’m out of here. I can't take these circumstances one more day! I’m jumping ship. I cannot take this marriage one more day,” or—“I can’t take my parents, or boss, one more minute. Adios.”
Storms come, and the temptation arises within all of us to bail out when things get tuff or we think we’ve been tricked or cheated. 

Wive's, you might look at the man next to you and say, “I was tricked. He’s not the man I thought he would be.” Husband's, you might look at the woman you married and say, “She’s not the passion of my life. I didn’t know she would turn out this way.” But if you jump ship, know this: You will miss the blessing of the birthing of Jesus in a supernatural, incredible, wonderful way because there are no tricks in the life of a child of God.
Employee, you might look at your boss and say, “When I signed that contract, I didn’t know he would be such a jerk. I don’t care what I signed. I’m going to find a legal loophole. I’m jumping ship.” But when you put pen to paper and signed your name, your Father was there. And to the child of God, there are no tricks.
Teenager, you might look at your parents and say, “I was tricked. I must have been switched at birth. God couldn’t have chosen these people to raise me.” But know this: You are not only their child—you are a child of the King. He, in His wisdom, hand-picked them for you. And He makes no mistakes.
Paul said, “If you jump ship, you’ll lose your life.” And the centurion, knowing how tempting it would be for the sailors to bail out, to jump ship, to give up, ordered the soldiers to cut the lines so there would be no possibility of escape.

I know there are some who are saying, “I haven’t jumped ship. I’ve only lowered a lifeboat over the side. I’ll give it three more months, or two more weeks, or one more year.”
But if you keep an escape option open in your mind, I guarantee you will end up using it.
Think about divorce—and you will end up divorced. Think about other men or other women you wish you had because you’re feeling tricked by the one you’re with—and inevitably, you’ll bail out. Think about changing jobs, even though you gave your word—and you’ll miss out on what could have been.
Think about leaving home, even though that’s where God has you—and you’ll never see His reality.
Bag on the present ministry He has you in and you’ll be just like the Dead Sea, always taking in and never giving out until every thing in you dies. Everything your about seems to rob the life from you. I have watched individuals go off the path of the Lord that they were on just for a moment. The first thing that went away in their life was ministry, It lost its importance. And as fast as they began to grab for a new venue to satisfy themselves with, I watched the Joy drain right out of their lives and them fall right out of fellowship.. 
Get rid of the lifeboats. Cut the lines!

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

Psalm 16;5-6
Yahweh, you alone are my inheritance.
You are my prize, my pleasure, and my portion.
You hold my destiny and its timing in your hands.
Your pleasant path leads me to pleasant places.
I’m overwhelmed by the privileges
that come with following you!


I must know whose hands I’m in! The hands of the Lord are what forms
​every day, good or bad I must know who’s hands I’m in!
​
A basketball in my hands is worth about $19.
A basketball in Michael Jordan's hands was worth about $33 million.
It depends whose hands it's in.

A baseball bat in my hands is worth about $6. And is good for deterring would be thieves.
A baseball in Mark Mcguire's hands was at one time worth $19 million.
It depends whose hands it's in.

A tennis racket is useless in my hands. More like a big boy's bug swatter!
A tennis racket in Pete Sampras' hands is a Wimbledon Championship.
It depends whose hands it's in.

A rod in my hands will keep away a wild animal or poke me in the eye!
A rod in Moses' hands will part the mighty sea.
It depends whose hands it's in.

A slingshot in my hands is! a kid's toy and a good way to break a window!
A slingshot in David's hand is a mighty weapon.
It depends whose hands it's in.

Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches and a lunch I’m probably not going to share. Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in God's hands will feed thousands. It depends whose hands it's in.

Nails in my hands might produce a couple of framed walls But,
Nails in Jesus Christ's hands will produce salvation for the entire world.
It depends whose hands it's in.

As you can see now, it all depends on whose hands it's in. And all you have to do today is put your concerns, your worries, your fears, your hopes, your dreams, your families and your relationships in God's hands because...

It all depends whose hands it's in!

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!

SCRIPTURE FOR THIS VISUAL CONTEMPLATION
​
PSALM 43:3-5
Pour into me the brightness of your daybreak!
Pour into me your rays of revelation-truth!
Let them comfort and gently lead me onto the shining path,
showing the way into your burning presence,
into your many sanctuaries of holiness.
Then I will come closer to your very altar
until I come before you, the God of my ecstatic joy!
I will praise you with the harp that plays in my heart to you,
my God, my magnificent God!
Then I will say to my soul,
“Don’t be discouraged; don’t be disturbed,
for I fully expect my Savior-God to break through for me.
Then I’ll have plenty of reasons to praise him all over again.”
Yes, he is my saving grace!
​

​IF THE USE OF THESE VISUAL CONTEMPLATIONS ARE HELPFUL... PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!