Encouraging and empowering people to live victorious lives in Christ

Posts tagged ‘God’

What is Success and a Special Announcement!

When a new year comes in, many people start thinking about what goals they want to achieve for the year.  I agree with setting goals (in fact, I believe that we shouldn’t wait until a new year approaches to do this), but a part of setting goals is understanding what success is.

According to Merriam-Webster, one of the definitions of success is a “favorable or desired outcome.”  This description is a very general one; I believe if you want to experience success, you must be more specific.

Here are a few questions to consider as you define success for yourself:

What is a favorable or desired outcome for me?

How do these outcomes line up with my beliefs and values?

Why do I want to be successful?

Notice I said “define success for yourself.”  Everyone’s definition of success is different; it depends on what’s important to them.  Someone may define success as financial prosperity so they can buy houses and cars, while another person may see it as financial prosperity so they can be generous to others. If you are a disciple of Jesus, our definition of success should line up with our Christian values and beliefs, including (I believe) a desire to grow spiritually and to become more and more like Jesus.  

The beginning of the new year is a great time to get clear on what success means to you. Once you understand it, you can ensure that the goals you set are in line with your beliefs. I encourage you to take some time to define success. Don’t compare yourself to others and their definitions; this is about you!  Once you’ve done this, I would love to hear from you!

Before I sign off, I’m excited to share that I am participating again in the upcoming Women’s Ministry for Small Churches Conference on January 25!  Specifically designed for smaller churches, the mission of the conference is to help women’s ministries go from filling a calendar to fulfilling a purpose! Help me spread the word! I’ll be speaking on “Growing in Grace: Practical Ways to Embrace Spiritual Disciplines.” Get all the details and grab your free ticket here

Have a good one!

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Only Believe!

Welcome to 2025!  2024 may have been hard for you (it was a challenging year for me for sure, a year of change and stretching).  As you are reading this, you may be thinking that, although we are in a new year, not much is different from the old one.  There may be health issues, the loss of a loved one or financial challenges that still exist as you flipped your calendar from 2024 or 2025.  What can we do?

No matter what is going on, even if nothing has changed, the last thing we should do is to stop believing.  Believing that all things are possible with God (according to Matthew 19:26), that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (according to Philippians 4:13), and that the promises of God are yes and amen (according to 2 Corinthians 1:20).  2025 has the potential to be a great year for us, but nothing can guarantee that it won’t have its challenges.  When hard times come (or as they continue), our mindset and our beliefs are key!  

As we enter this new year, I encourage you to search the scriptures for the promises that God has made to us and make them a part of your daily declarations.  The more you declare, the more you will believe!  And what you believe will carry you through the good and the not-so-good times. 

Jesus told Jairus, when his daughter died, to “only believe” (Mark 5). And miraculously, his daughter was brought back to life. Even if things look hopeless, let’s make sure our beliefs are in the One who is a miracle worker, way maker and a promise keeper!  In 2025, let’s “only believe!”

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Get ready for breakthrough!

So…you have been planning, praying and working toward a particular dream or goal. It hasn’t manifested yet but you’re believing God for it, walking by faith and expecting it to happen. Whether it’s financial increase, a growth in the number of clients your business serves or a new vehicle, the question I want to ask you today is, “are you prepared for the thing you’re believing for?”

If you are making strides to grow your business, what happens when it does grow? Are you prepared to go from a small number of clients to a greater number? How will you manage them? When you purchase that dream car, are you ready to handle the maintenance on it, making sure you keep up with it and have the funds to pay for it? Or when you receive that financial increase, are you planning to use it wisely?

While you’re waiting for your goals and dreams to come to fruition, make sure you’re preparing yourself to handle them! That means making the necessary adjustments in YOU for the future. For example, I should probably learn how to budget the money I have now so that when I receive more, I know how to handle it and it’s not wasted (just think about those lottery winners who end up broke in a few short years). Or, I should be intentional about cleaning the home I’m living in now, so that when I purchase my dream home, I’m already in the habit of maintaining it. You get the picture!  The time to get ready for your “more” is now, not when it arrives!

And as you prepare, I believe something will happen: you will become even more grateful for what you already have! Even if we’re lacking in a particular area, being mindful of what we have will help us to appreciate it more! 

How are you getting ready for your breakthrough? I encourage you to ask yourself this question and see where you need to improve in this area (because we all do). Let’s be good stewards of the things God has blessed us with now so we are ready for what is coming in the future!

Let’s get ready for our breakthrough!

I would love to hear your comments, please share them below!

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Have you prayed about it?

Are you starting to make plans for the upcoming new year? Goals you want to accomplish, vacations you want to take or money you want to save don’t just happen automatically; they need a plan, right? But before you decide on what your focus will be and start formulating a plan (I’m an advocate for those things, by the way), have you prayed about them? That’s the question I want to ask you today!

This is what happens with me when I get an idea about something: I marinate on it and bathe it in prayer. What do I mean by that? I get quiet so I can hear what God has to say about my potential plans. And I spend some extra time in the Word (outside of my normal devotion time) so I can be sure I’m hearing Him clearly (and not myself). Invariably, God will clarify the goals for me and give me specific instructions to move in that direction. Or, if it’s something that’s not in His plans (for right now or maybe not at all), He’ll let me know that too! 

So before we jump out there making big plans to do big things, don’t forget to consult the One who has the wisdom we need to make the best decisions! One of my favorite scriptures is Proverbs 16:9 (NLT):

We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.

I want God to direct my steps! I want to be in His will and operate in His wisdom. Especially if I’m moving into new territory with my new plans that have me outside of my comfort zone! What about you?

As you make your plans, be sure to pray about them. Alignment with God is key!

I would love to hear from you! Please share your comments below, and please tell a friend!

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Are you leading with love?

There seems to be a lot of doctrinal debate going on in the Christian world lately. I won’t take the time to list what’s being discussed, but if you follow some Christian influencers, you know what some of the topics are.  While Christians will probably never agree on everything regarding doctrine, what saddens me is that some of the debaters are callous, mean and downright disrespectful as they attempt to make their cases.  They don’t seem to be leading with love.

We may feel strongly about what we believe is correct, and there is nothing wrong with that.  The fact is…none of us has all doctrine 100% correct!  None of us has a biblical text that is an exact copy of the original (because the original manuscripts were lost many centuries ago).  So, we may be missing it in some areas.  Just because we may not agree on some issues, does that mean we treat each other with contempt?  I think not!

Meanwhile, the world is watching us Christians debate among ourselves, displaying disunity.  What Jesus said in John 13:35 is appropriate here: 

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

How will the world know that we are true followers of Jesus?  By our love for one another!  Where we disagree, we can show love, extend grace and be patient with one another.  Since our goal is to win souls for the Kingdom of God, can we put our differences aside and work together to bring as many people to Heaven with us as we can?

I would love to hear your comments; feel free to share them below.

Let’s lead with love today!

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What is my biggest lesson for 2021?

by Brenna Fields Hayes

2021 has been a year of firsts and change for me. My first book “Returning to Wholeness” was released in late 2020, so 2021 was filled with several new experiences (podcast appearances, book fairs, speaking engagements, and new ministry opportunities). As I reflect on the year, I realized that these were things I’d prayed for over the last few years, not having an idea of how or when they would come to pass.

As I began to reflect on how God has kept me and blessed me in 2021, I asked myself these questions: “What did I learn in 2021? What lesson from this year will I carry into future years?”

Before I reveal what the lesson is, let me share a little bit about what’s been happening over the last 18 months. There was a period in the middle of 2020 when I decided to look for a new ministry opportunity. I found a company that matches churches with open position and potential candidates. I submitted the required paperwork and interviewed with the company, explaining what kind of position I was looking for. The meeting went well (or so I thought), and the interviewer said he would get back to me a few days with a strategy on how we could move forward.

Well…to this day, I have not heard back from the interviewer (not even an email to say the company no longer wanted to work with me). Imagine my disappointment…we left our conversation on a very positive note (or so I thought), and I was left wondering what went wrong. Nothing went wrong… God closed that door. I had taken my search for a new opportunity into my own hands, and God, in His wisdom, shut that down! After I got out of my feelings, I decided to take my hands off this part of my life, while I continued to serve in the ministry position I was in.

Fast forward to November of 2020. I receive a direct message on social media from a local pastor. He shared that he had been listening to my weekly teachings on Facebook (God had instructed me to do my weekly messages again after a hiatus) and was very interested in meeting with me to get to know me.

To make a long story short…we met, we began dating, and we were married in July of 2021. Not only did God bless me with a godly mate, but he also blessed with me a new ministry opportunity.

So, what’s the lesson for me in 2021 is…let God be God! We may sometimes get impatient while we wait for the things we’ve prayed for. Proverbs 3:5-6 comes to mind here. As I was waiting for the answer to my prayer to provide a new opportunity, I decided to lean on my own understanding (thankfully, God quickly reversed what I was trying to do). When I chose to be obedient and “trust in the Lord with all my heart”, God opened a door that no man can shut!

Another scripture that comes to mind is Psalm 37:5: “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will act” (ESV). Once I committed my way to God, he acted in ways I could never have imagined.

Lastly, as I waited, I needed to lean on Romans 8:28 (all things work together for the good of them who love God and are called according to His purpose). I had to trust that a closed door of opportunity meant that God would open a better for me. And that definitely was the case!

As we prepare to enter a new year in a few days, I encourage you to take some time to reflect on what you learned in 2021. How has the lesson impacted you? And now that you’ve learned the lesson, how will you move forward into 2022?

Happy Holidays!

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Exercise Patience

by Brenna Fields Taylor

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. (James 1:2-3, NKJV)

When we go to the doctor, he or she may tell us that we need to start exercising.  Exercising is not an easy thing, and we may not want to do it (because it takes effort, it takes work); but it is required so that we can maintain or improve our health.

During the season in which we’re finding ourselves, I believe God is calling us to exercise patience.  By now, many of us thought that the pandemic would be coming to an end and that we could start returning to our normal lives (and as of the time of this blog post, that is far from true).  And on top of the pandemic, the racial, economic, and political climate is one that we in this generation have never seen or experienced.  And yet, I believe God is calling us to be patient.

In the epistle of James, the author teaches us to consider it joy when we face difficulties. Why? Because it’s going to produce something good in us, and that is patience.  No one likes to wait, but as we exercise patience, we are growing, we are maturing, and our faith is increasing.  So James says that we are to allow patience to do a work in us.

When we engage in physical exercise, the more we do it, the better we become.  Our muscles grow stronger, we can walk or run faster, our bodies function better, we sleep better, and we reap all kinds of benefits from physical exercise.  When we exercise patience, we’re reaping spiritual benefits:  we are growing in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ, our faith is increasing, and we have a deeper relationship with God (we pray more, we trust Him more, we have the peace that passes all understanding).

Look at your life before the pandemic and now: Are you praying more? Are you seeking God’s face more? If the answer is yes to those questions, that’s means we are exercising patience! We have no idea when the situations we face will come to an end.  Until they do, I encourage you to continue exercising patience.  And as we do, watch what God does in your own life as well as in the world and His kingdom.  We will reap the spiritual benefits if we continue to exercise patience.

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Hold On

“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.  Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 (NLT)

by Brenna Fields Taylor

As I write this blog, it is April of 2020, and the world is in the middle of a pandemic called COVID-19, a virus that is spreading rapidly throughout the world, taking the lives of countless people.  Because of the contagious nature of the disease, many communities are living in a complete shut-down (or at minimum, are sheltering in place, rarely venturing outside). As a result, the times in which we are living are unsettling, unusual and unprecedented.  History records that there have been many plagues of diseases that have impacted the entire world, including the flu pandemic of 1918 and a cholera pandemic that ran from 1852-1860.  While the experience of pandemics is new to us, it is not new to the world and certainly not new to God.

In the midst of these trying weeks, I have witnessed God’s healing power restores friends and loved ones, and at the same time I’ve seen when God has chosen to call others home to be with Him.  It has been an emotional rollercoaster!  What we are being told about this current pandemic seems to change almost daily, and a lot of times, we are unsure whose report to believe.  Churches don’t know whether they should meet in person or not, and sadly, there are debates among Christians on faith (or lack thereof), depending on churches’ decisions on this issue.  Vacations, conferences, class and family reunions, and weddings have been cancelled or postponed.  And since no one has any idea of how long this thing is going to last,  our lives seem to be on hold.

Even in the midst of all of this, I want to encourage you (and me) to hold on.  Isaiah 41:10 in the NLT says “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.  Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”

This virus has many of us hesitant to leave our homes and to be in close proximity to other people, and rightfully so. But this particular passage says that we shouldn’t be afraid.  This virus may have some of us feeling discouraged because we see so much sickness and death around us. I will admit that, even as a minister, I have been overwhelmed by the many prayer requests for healing and comfort, even as my own family deals with the aftermath of death.

But in this passage, God tells us that we don’t have to be afraid and discouraged, because He is with us AND He is our God.  God has given us three promises in this one verse: He promises to strength us, to help us and to hold us up.  I encourage you to lean on and lean into God and these promises, that He will strengthen you, to help you and to hold you up.

What I find interesting about this passage is that it’s not just any old hand that is holding us up.  It is God’s “victorious right hand” that is holding us up.    The right hand of God symbolizes power and might.  It conveys authority and blessings.  Not only is the hand of God powerful, but it is also victorious.  So if God is holding me up with his victorious right hand, he is giving me power, strength, authority, blessings and victory, even in this precarious time.

I know we are overwhelmed, tired and unsure…but hold on.  God has promised to strengthen us, to help us, and to hold us up.  Let’s trust God together.

 

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God is Speaking…Listen!

by Brenna Fields Taylor

I was in my devotional time today, and I began to pray for a friend of mine who is going through a situation similar to what I have just recently experienced. I called her name in prayer, asking God to give her bold faith to persevere through this trial. Since I am beginning to emerge from my own circumstance, I’ve come to recognize that my faith in God has increased!   What I’m currently facing seems to be challenging, but I am declaring by faith that God will handle it (I am not worried about the ‘how;’ I just know that He will). This is the prayer I prayed for my friend.

God is an amazing God! After I finished praying, I turned to the daily devotional I read, and this is what the scriptural reference was:

Isaiah 46:3-4 (NLT)

Listen to me, descendants of Jacob,
all you who remain in Israel.
I have cared for you since you were born.
Yes, I carried you before you were born.
 I will be your God throughout your lifetime—
until your hair is white with age.
I made you, and I will care for you.
I will carry you along and save you.

Talk about an on-time word! God spoke directly to my situation as well as to my friend’s, and I had literally just called her name in prayer minutes before! If you ask God to speak to you about a situation, trust that He will do it! And it will be unmistakable that it is HIS voice!

What God also said to me in this short amount of time is that when you are listening for His voice and walking in faith (bold faith, I might add), when the fiery darts of the enemy come your way (Ephesians 6), they affect you differently. Yes, the enemy may shoot them, but our faith doesn’t allow them to burn us! Our bold faith, based on the Word of God, is protecting us…we don’t have to worry about what the enemy throws our way. We are aware of the enemy’s tactics and schemes, but we keep moving forward in faith, knowing that God WILL care for us, carry us, and be with us!

Be encouraged, friends! We serve a God who speaks to us and to our specific situations. Ask Him to speak to you and then listen for His voice. And walk in faith!

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A Good Work

by Brenna Fields Taylor

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” – Philippians 1:6 (ESV)

“For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” – Philippians 2:13 (ESV)

Now that we have entered into a new year (2020), many of us have started wondering about purpose. We’ve begun asking such questions as: “What am I supposed to accomplish this year? What would God have me focus on?” And if you’re like me and have reached a milestone age (and you recognize that there is probably more of life behind you than there is ahead of you), these questions take on even more significant meaning. We may wonder, “What should I be doing with the rest of my life? What kind of legacy will I leave behind?” I recently asked myself this question as I read an article about a sorority sister of mine who recently passed away due to cancer at the young age of 52. Although the end of her story is tragic, her legacy of encouragement, support and perseverance, even while she battled cancer, is one that will live well beyond her years. To read more about this awesome woman and her life, take a look at this article: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article239071853.html

Good Work

As we begin to set goals for the year and ask ourselves about purpose, there is one thing we can be assured of…as believers, God is working in us to fulfill purpose. The passages above were written by the apostle Paul in his letter to the Philippian church. They were a group of Christians who were faithful to spreading the gospel and were very supportive of Paul and his ministry. He writes this letter to them to express his love for them, to pray for them, and to also encourage them.

The first passage says that God will finish the good work He’s already started. Sometimes, this good work in our lives is very evident to us, while at other times, it may not be so obvious. For example, you may unknowingly be an example for someone who’s experiencing a similar situation that you are (we have to remember that people are always watching us). You may never know how your life and actions can influence others. Or, you may be actively and openly pursuing your purpose. In either case, the first passage reminds us that whatever God has started, He will finish.

The second passage reminds us of who is working in us…it’s God! And He is working in us to fulfill His will and for His good pleasure. What does this mean for us as believers who are searching for purpose? God is the One who will reveal what our purpose in life should be, and He will also enable us to complete what He’s asked, all for His pleasure.

I highlight these two passages for a couple of reasons. First, as we set our goals for the year (and as we make goals, we should seek guidance from God), He may reveal something that seems to be outside of our reach. God may give us a desire for something that seems so massive, and we may wonder, “How in the world am I going to do THAT?” If God reveals it to us and we believe that is something we should strive for, we can be assured that God has ordained it and that He will give us the strength to complete it. Secondly, we can also be confident that the thing that God asks us to do is good. Since God is a good God, we know that everything that comes from Him is good (see James 1:17). So the goals that are ordained by God are good, the work we are to accomplish is good, and God’s will for our lives is good. Lastly, this good work that we are called to accomplish is a process and will take effort to complete (nowhere in either passage does it say that the work will be completed instantaneously). Commentator F.B. Meyer says this: “God, who began the work on the first day…is maintaining and building it up step by step.” As we advance through our purpose, God is maintaining and building it up (and us as well) step by step. While we fulfill our purpose, he is shaping us, molding us, and maturing us to become more like Him, even through the challenges we will face moving forward in our good work.

So, as we set our goals for the new year, let’s seek God for His wisdom and guidance. Let’s not be afraid of big goals! And when He reveals our purpose, let’s trust Him to complete this good work He’s given us to do.

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