^“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” -I Cor 10:13

I was listening to Keith Moore recently and he read this verse. Before he went into ministry, he was training to become a fighter. He said that when he was training, he got a hold of this verse and realized that God wouldn’t let anything in the ring with him that he couldn’t knock out! So he knew that if something or someone got in the ring with him, he could knock him or it out!

“God won’t let anything in the ring with you that you can’t knock out!”

Remember what David said to Goliath when they fought?

45 David replied to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! 47 And everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!” ~I Sam. 17:45-47

David knew that whatever got in the ring with him, he could knock out. We need to have this same attitude when we’re facing anything that comes against us. God won’t let us face anything we can’t knock out. It’s His battle, not ours. With God, we can conquer and overcome anything!

Whatever or whoever is waiting for you in the ring today, realize that with God,  you can knock it out! It doesn’t matter what it is. If you’ve been hesitant getting in the ring with something or someone, stop! Get in the ring! Remember, if it’s up against you, you can win.

You will know them by their fruits. -Matthew 7:16

I heard Keith Moore tell the story of A Little Pear Tree. It goes like this:

Once upon a time there was a little pear tree. The little pear tree was surrounded by large trees in a forest! The little pear trees looked up at all the trees and said, “I’m a pear tree!”

The other trees replied, “You’re not a pear tree, you’re a little shrub! You don’t have any pears! You’re just shrub!”

The little pear tree replied, “No, I’m telling you, I’m a pear tree!” They argued all fall and all winter. The little pear tree tried so hard to prove he was a pear tree.

When spring came, the little pear tree produced pears. The pine trees stopped arguing and the little pear tree no longer had to prove that he was a pear tree!

Does anyone other than me feel like the little pear tree? We’re trying so hard to prove to the world that we’re something. “I’m a pastor! I’m a leader! I’m successful! I’m an author! I’m a ____”

Then we have people and thoughts come our way and tell us that we’re none of those things and that we’ll never be successful.

The truth is that we are who God says we are. If God called us to pastor, we’re pastors. If God called us to lead, we’re leaders.

The Key: The outcome of our lives. If we’re pursuing God with all of our hearts and taking the right steps, our lives will show who and what we are.

We won’t have to prove anything to anyone. What critics say won’t matter any more. The outcome of our lives will do all the talking.

Hear from God. Follow Him. Do what He says. Step out in faith. Shut your mouth. Don’t listen to critics. Stop trying to prove to the world who you are. Watch God do an incredible work in your life.

Thoughts?

⁷Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. I Peter 5:7

When I was in high school, after an incident with drugs, anxiety attacks forced me to sleep with my mom for 3 weeks and left me with a deep depression, they’ve caused me to call people in the middle of the night for comfort, and even caused me to call 911 one time because I thought I was going to die.

They are not fun. They leave in you in a constant state of fear and worry. There have been periods when I’d have anxiety attacks every night for weeks.  I got to a point of desperation where I was willing to do whatever it took to get free from the prison these attacks had created. Over the period of a few months – I got free.

When it came down to it, it was a combination of things that helped me get free from the prison of anxiety. One was having people that loved me unconditionally that I could be honest and open with. There were two people who were there for me whenever I was experiencing an attack. For them, I’m eternally grateful.

Above that I listened to Larry Hutton’s Healing Scripture CD often, Keith Moore’s Message “God Loves You” almost every night, and the thing that really set me free is Keith Moore’s series called “Free from All Fears“. These were the main scriptures I stood on every night:

⁴I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. -Psalms 34:4

⁶Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. -Phillipians 4:6

⁷ For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. -II Tim. 1:7

I listened to these things over and over again and confessed these scriptures over my life over and over again until I was fully persuaded that God loves me, that I could cast ALL my cares on Him, and that He HAS FREED ME FROM ALL MY FEARS. Once I was persuaded of this in my heart, I was free from anxiety and haven’t had an attack since.

Anxiety, fear, and worry can be a scary thing, but it doesn’t have to be permanent. The best way to get free from all of those is to give them all to God. God loves you more than you could ever imagine and the Bible says we can cast ALL OF OUR CARES UPON HIM FOR HE CARES FOR US.

When you KNOW in your heart that the Word says God loves you and He’s freed you from all your fears. A confidence will come over you that will make you invincible!

I hope this post helps those who struggle with anxiety as I did. If you are struggling and would like to talk about this, e-mail me at douglasasmith53@gmail.com and I’d love to encourage you and go into greater depth.

Thoughts?