Andrew Golden's Blog, page 2

Just A Call Away

Psalms 50:15 – And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

What do you do when everything comes crashing down? Do you try and fix it yourself? Do you call close friends for help? All you need to do is stop and call upon God. Let him lead you out of your problem. You will fi d in life that there will be problems you can not fix, but God can. He is your ever help in your time of need. So just stop and call upon God.

Directions From God

Proverbs 16:9

A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.

Ever go to make a decision and you keep feeling it in your heart what you should choose? Well, if you have prayed about it, then it is the spirit pushing you the direction you need to go. It may not be the choice that everyone wants you to make. It may not be the choice you want. However, if you follow the spirit of God, then it is the right choice. People will try to change your mind. Don’t let them. God is directing you in that direction for a reason. Learn to listen to the spirit and allow God to direct where you walk.

Strength

Philippians 4:13 – I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

This is more than just saying that God will give you physical strength. It means that on the days you feel like you can’t go on, God will help you get up out of the bed and keep going. When you feel like the weight of the world is crushing your mind, through Christ, you will have the strength to hold together. God will give you the strength to make it through these hard times, and when you make it to the other side, and you will make it, you will be that much stronger.

It’s Not About Convenience

2 Timothy 4:2

2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.

I notice a lot of people praise God when everything is going great. When they receive a blessing, they can’t wait to talk about it and testify. When was the last time you heard someone say, “I thank God for telling me no? You see, this verse is not just for preachers. It is for every one of us. We have fallen in a place to where we only pray when it is convenient, only testify when we get what we prayed for, and only stand up in church when the preacher calls on us to speak. Now I’m not saying we should try to talk over the pastor. What I am saying when it is asked is that if anyone wants to testify, we should look like popcorn getting popped. We need to get out of the mindset that we serve God when it is convenient for us or when it is easy to pray. We should not have to hope we have a few minutes to talk to God at the end of our day. We should talk to him no matter how late it is or how tired we are. When we are talking about God and someone walks in, we shouldn’t shut up because it might offend them. We should keep telling of the wonders of our God. Being a Christian is not convenient. It is a rough road. It is a long journey, and it is a tough battle.  But your roughest roads lead to the best views, your longest journeys lead to the best destinations, and the harder the battle, the sweeter the victory.

Encourage Yourself In The Lord

1 Samuel 30:6
6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.

The first thing we all do when something goes wrong is call our pastors and as many people as we can to pray. There is nothing wrong with this, but what if you can reach no one. What if you have no cell reception. What if no one answers when you call. Are you close enough with God that you can pray yourself? Are you close enough with God that you can tell yourself he will see you through? There will be a day that you have to be. There will be a day that it will be you and God, and no one else. You may have to encourage yourself in the Lord. That means you will have to be strong enough to say the prayer that needs to be said. You have to be bold enough to stand against the enemy and know that you and the father have the victory. It wouldn’t hurt to already be at that point in your walk with God.

God Is Not A Liar

Numbers 23:19

19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

People spend too much time feeling like God has forgotten them. They complain that God has not answered their prayers. They are not receiving the blessings the Bible promises them. God has not lied to you. He does not lie. It is just not yet time for you to receive your blessings. So, learn to wait and trust that if God said it, he always comes through with his promises.

Send Me

Isaiah 6:8

8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.

To say this week has been hard on my family is an understatement. I won’t go into details, but you can say it has been battle. You know those battles that when they finish your body and mind want to just lay down and quit, but in your heart, you know you have to get back up. Yea, that was how I felt today. In these moments, God is seeing if you have it in you to stand back up and say okay God send me on to the next battle. The enemy is watching betting you will throw in the towel. Satan will whisper no one cares about you. Ignore him and tell God to send you. Send you into the heat of battle. Send you to preach to the lost. Send you to pray for the sick. Send you to do the work of God. Get up, it hurts, I know, and say, here I am God send me.

Sweet Victory

Romans 8:18 – For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

I have noticed that no matter how hard the battle we face is, the victory outweighs everything we go through. Let me explain, 6 years ago my wife and I were finishing a long battle with infertility. We had been given the devastating news that it would be impossible for us to have a child. We gave up and said that if God wanted us to have a child we would. Two months later we found out that she was carrying our oldest son. We went through 6 years of doctors and treatments. We were so tired and felt like we were losing the battle. We wanted to throw in the towel, but that is when God moved. We got to bring our loving son into this world and then 3 years later we welcomed his little brother. I tell you this to say this. Even though we experienced a beautiful victory, it still does not compare to what is waiting for us. What Jesus went to prepare for us isn’t a break from the battles we fight. It is not a victory that we only get to enjoy for a little while before the next battle arises. It is eternal peace. It is a victory that we give to stay in forever. You many have seen miracles, but I promise you that you haven’t seen anything yet. The glory that is waiting for us when our fight is finished is better than anything we can imagine.

Run To The Battle

1 Samuel 17:48

48 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came, and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

We all focus on the fact that Goliath fell to David, but we never talk about the fact that David ran to meet him in battle. David had no experience fighting a war. He didn’t have a sword or spear. All he had was the tools of a sheppard and the faith that God had his back, and that was all he needed. When the whole Israelite army hid, David went to battle. He didn’t hide in the rocks and tell God he needed him to get rid of the enemy. He let God use him to take down a giant. Stop hiding and asking God to fight your battles for you. Instead, get up and run toward the enemy, having faith that the one in you is greater than the battle you are facing. It does not matter if you are facing an army of Goliaths, God can still guide you through. Jesus conquered the hardest battles for us. Death, hell, and the grave have been defeated. He is still there helping us through our daily battles. However, if you hide in the rocks like the Israelites, then the enemy will just set there and mock you. But if you raise up, take up the weapons God has armed you with, and run toward the battle, Satan has to give up, because he knows our Jesus has already beaten him time and time again.

Don’t Worry

1 Peter 5:7 – Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

So many Christians spend their days in a constant state of worry. They worry about bills. They worry about doctors’ appointments. They worry about everything and forget that God is in control of everything. Stop worrying about the things you have no control over and give it to God.