Courage – mental or moral strength to venture, persevere and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty. – Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage. Check out my website

Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. – Deuteronomy 31:6

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. – Joshua 1:9

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. – Psalm 27:14

And said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me. – Daniel 10:19

As you can see from above there are numerous places in the bible that says you are to have the courage and fear not. God created us to be strong and not weak. We are to be bold and vivacious. This is something that we can easily master when we rely on our heavenly father. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. – Philippians 4:13.

Moses appointed Joshua to be the new leader once God had informed Moses that he would not travel into the promise land. Once Moses passed away God told Joshua he would be with him and don’t be afraid and have the courage to lead the people. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage.

God was with David when he went to fight Goliath and killed him. David’s confidence in a powerful, wise, loving God was key. The Bible says that after Samuel anointed him with oil, “the spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.” If we try to emulate David’s attitude, our confidence in God will produce the courage to face any giant in our lives. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage.

God was with Samson when he killed 1,000 Philistines. Ask someone who was the strongest man in the Bible and you’ll likely hear “Samson.” After all, it’s not every day that one hears of a man who kills 1,000 men in hand-to-hand combat. Armed with only the jawbone of a donkey, Samson was one tough adversary. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage.

God was with Nehemiah when he appealed to King Artxerxes of Persia and won his backing to return to the land of his ancestors to rebuild the walls of the city.

God was with Esther the queen when Haman, the second-most powerful man in the land, persuaded King Xerxes to condemn the 9 million Jews in the kingdom to death. She risked her life by approaching Xerxes and revealing that she was a Jew. Xerxes changed his mind, and the Jews were delivered.

God was with Noah when he asked Noah to build the ark. Noah listened to God. God spoke to him only once, and he built the ark on dry ground and waited decades for it to rain. To others, his faith appeared foolish, but it was an act of obedience to God. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage.

God was with Barnabas. Before his conversion, Paul persecuted Christians, so members of the early Church didn’t trust him at first. But Barnabas believed Paul’s conversion was genuine and saw his potential, and he was willing to risk his reputation to vouch for him. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage.

God was with John the Baptist. John called people to repent: to take stock of their lives, realize they were sinners, and turn to God. He eventually was thrown into jail and executed, but Jesus said, “among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist.”

God was with Gideon when he downsized his army of men from 32,000 to 300 before waging war. Gideon asked God for a sign before acting. We might think that Gideon was wrong to do this, but the opposite is true: Gideon was sensitive to God and stood in the gap for His people against a fierce enemy. God challenged Gideon to trust Him, and God was pleased with his faith and courage. If you attune yourself to listen to God’s voice today, he will give you words of correction and encouragement.

Do you believe that God can do remarkable things – impossible things – through your life? God is looking for ordinary people to do extraordinary things by just stepping out, trusting God, and having courage. Will you be one of them? Christian Books – Donna Louis – Courage. Check out my website 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To everything, there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. – Ecclesiastes 3;1-8. Christian Books – Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season.

Well, it has finally arrived. The summer season is officially here. Family barbecues almost weekly, crowded beaches, long lines at amusement parks for rides, sailboats, powerboats, boats of all types in the water, picnics, bonfires, going to a drive-in movie theatre, take a nap in a hammock, go to live outdoor concerts, fly a kite, go on vacation, etc.

Summer is a great season and an outdoor season, but all the seasons have their highs and lows. Summer season lows can bring sunburn, dehydration, mosquito and insect issues, etc. We all also have seasons in our lives where we encounter high and lows. Farmers know a lot about seasons. Christian Books – Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season. Check out my website

Spring – this season normally begins in the latter part of March and ends in the latter part of June. When spring comes, and the weather warms up, farmers begin to prepare the soil for planting. Spring is the season of new life and new growth. Once the ground is thawed out from the cold of the winter, farmers often plant their crops. In April and May, the fields get planted with the seeds of crops. These crops may be ready for harvest in only a month or not until many months later. This is an exciting time for the farmer. This same principle applies to us because we come alive and feel like we have been revived. However, just like the crops, there will be highs and lows. Some things will go well and be ready for harvest and some things may need more time. That doesn’t mean we give up on our dreams and pursuits we just must persevere. Christian Books – Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season.

Summer – summer occurs from the end of June till the middle of September. During the summer months, there are constantly things to do around the farm. There is always plenty of weeding in the garden to do, and there is never a shortage of cutting grass. We can learn a lot from ants and how they operate in the summer months. The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer. – Proverbs 30:25. Ants never quit. When they are on the trail for food, they don’t let any obstacle stand in their way. They just don’t stand there shaking their heads in disbelief. They don’t give up on their goal. They don’t start to feel sorry for themselves and decide that success isn’t for them. They confront their obstacles and walk around it, over it, though it or under it, until they achieve their desired outcome. They think winter all summer. In life, we should be using the exact same process. Christian Books – Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season.

Fall – During the months of fall, usually late September to late December, farms are busy with getting things ready for the chilly winter months. It is important that it is dry out when harvesting takes place because hay and most of the crops cannot be stored while they are wet. This makes harvesting stressful for many farmers due to the constant change in weather during the fall. In our lives, the fall season is also stressful sometimes. Children are returning to school, more traffic on the roadways because the schools have re-opened. With children returning to school then all their school activities such as football, music class, ballet, etc. come back and take even more of a dent out of our daily grinds. Our employers are looking for strong closing 3rd quarter tax numbers before the 4th quarter starts. This is when we need to pace ourselves and connect closer to God to renew our strength every day. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary, and they shall walk, and not faint. – Isaiah 40:31. Christian Books – Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season.

Winter – Once winter rolls around on the farm, everything settles down on the farm. Even when it’s too cold for crops to grow, farmers still have duties on the farm. Even after the combines are sparklingly clean and put away for the winter, crop farmers don’t stop farming. The winter months are a time to prepare for the coming year by budgeting for and purchasing things like seed and fertilizer. When the wintry weather comes around and there are cold rainy days and the snows have descended upon us and we revert to eastern standard time for some of us things can become a little depressing. One great pick me up is the Christmas lights on people’s homes and stores. Christian Books- Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season.

There are times in everyone’s life when things go wrong and not according to plan.  Unfortunately, I can almost guarantee that there will be disappointments and let-downs, making certain periods of your life seem like Winter. However, statements like, “Life is always hard and disappointing”, “I can never get ahead where things go my way” and “I’m always stressed” can be extremely damaging and depressing after a while, making our low periods seem longer and sometimes actually last longer. Understand that tough times always end, things do get better and Summer is coming!

Remember life is what you make it. Sure, there will be highs and lows but try changing your thought pattern. Say things like, “I have an inbuilt optimism and know that the lean times won’t last forever. Everything and everybody prospers me.” Start to look at the glass as if it is half full and not half empty. Christian Books – Donna Louis – To Everything There Is A Season. Check out my website

 

Christian Books – Donna Louis – Running Hot and Cold

Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: I am the Lord your God. – Leviticus 18:4

And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. – John 10:4

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. – John 8:12

For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the Lord, to provoke the eyes of his glory. – Isaiah 3:8

For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord: unto whom the Lord sware that he would not shew them the land, which the Lord sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey. – Joshua 5:6

But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: – Deuteronomy 28:15. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Running Hot and Cold. Check out my website

There are times in life when you will be running hot and cold. If you have a fever or chills you will feel hot and cold. When you take a shower you normally combine the hot water faucet and the cold, so it is a mixed temperature, so you don’t scald your body with too much hot water and you don’t freeze your body with too much chilly water. If you’re old-fashioned and wash your own dishes or if it’s just yourself and maybe someone else in the household instead of running the dishwasher you wash the dishes yourself and use the same format as the above example and mix the water temperatures. If you go into a sauna which is meant to make you sweat and remove toxins from your body while you are in there you are hot but once you come out, you need to wrap your body with a bathrobe or else you will immediately feel cold. These are all examples of running hot and cold. However, you should not be running hot and cold in your spiritual life. When Jesus sacrificed himself on the cross for you he did not have second thoughts and run hot and cold. Christian Books – Donna Louis- Running Hot and Cold.

When life is great you are running hot. You are quick to read your bible, follow your bible, go to church, follow the golden rule, give your tithes to the church, help your neighbor, be kind to a co-worker, volunteer your time at organizations, give to charities, etc. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Running Hot and Cold.

When life is testing your faith then you are running cold. You have no intention of reading your bible because God is not answering your prayers. You don’t even know where the bible is. Going to church is the last thing on your mind. You don’t want to follow the golden rule because why should you be nice to others when you are in pain with your personal issues. I need every penny I can get my hands on so why should I tithe. There are many other people in the church who are tithing so the church doesn’t need my money. I can save my tithe money, so I can buy all my Starbucks lattes for the week which I need to keep me awake to go to this treacherous job where nobody cares and are the most ungrateful bunch of people I have ever encountered. I’m not the only person on the block so my neighbor can ask someone else to borrow their lawnmower. I work 60 or more hours per week, so I don’t have time to be kind to a co-worker or volunteer my time at different organizations. I am not donating or giving to any charities because I am a charity case myself. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Running Hot and Cold.

WOW, that was a mouthful! Let me take a breath.

God provided us all with a beautiful thing called memory and remembrance. Let’s reflect a moment, shall we?

1-Even though your credit score is not 800 God got you approved for that brand-new car when your old car the clunker that it is was on its last leg.

2-There have been three rounds of layoffs at your job within the last year, but you are still employed so you can continue to pay for that new car.

3-You don’t have healthcare, but God continues to keep you healthy and strong where you can move around on your own and you still have use of your five senses.

4-There are times when you didn’t have enough money to pay your cell phone bill or buy groceries for the week, but you do have that trusty old water bottle in your place where you could take out all the coins and change and go to the supermarket and put them in the coin star machine and then go to the customer service desk and get bills and handle what you need to.

5- What about the times when you wrote a check to pay a bill for a disconnect and you are hoping the check doesn’t clear the bank before your pay is direct deposited. You get lucky and it works for your good.

There are countless other examples that I can use but I know you all get my drift. Remember what the bible says, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” – Hebrews 13:5. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16. “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” – Proverbs 3:5-6. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Running Hot and Cold.

God has made some very powerful promises to us and if we would just be obedient and heed his words we will be abundantly blessed. Stop Running Hot and Cold, God doesn’t. Christian Books – Donna Louis – Running Hot and Cold. Check out my website

 

And he said, hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, thus saith the Lord unto you, be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel. Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you. – 2 Chronicles 20:15-17. Christian Books – Donna Louis – The Battle Is Not Yours – It’s The Lords.

Notice the words that are used in this passage: You will not need to fight. Position yourself. Stand still and see. Do not fear. There are a lot of action words here, but it’s clearly conveyed that all God’s people must do is be obedient and submissive to God and He will do the rest. Christian Books – Donna Louis – The Battle Is Not Yours –  It’s The Lords. – Check out my website

In the book of Judges, Chapter 7, there was a man named Gideon, who had an army of 32,000 men and was about to wage war on the Midianites. The Midianites were the people whose hands the children of Israel were delivered for seven years by the Lord because Israel did evil in the Lord’s sight. Christian Books – Donna Louis – The Battle Is Not Yours – It’s The Lords.

When the Lord was ready to destroy the Midianties he sent an angel who appeared unto Gideon and said, “The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valor.” Christian Books – Donna Louis – The Battle Is Not Yours – It’s The Lords.

Now, as Gideon was prepared to wage war, the Lord wasn’t pleased with the company of men Gideon had. And the Lord said unto Gideon, “The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, ‘Mine own hand hath saved me.’ And so, as you read on further, you will see that Gideon cut down his company of men from 32,000 to 10,000.

God again spoke to Gideon and said that the men he had with him were still too many. Verse 4 reads: “And the Lord said unto Gideon, “The people are yet too many; bring them down to the water, and I will try them for thee there; and it shall be that of whom I say unto thee, “This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go.” As you continue to read on among verses 5-8, God explained to Gideon what formula he would use to lessen his troop. As you can clearly see, God will not share his glory with any man.  He cut the troop down to 300 men.  Remember, back in verse 2, where God says, “Less the men say mine own hand hath saved me.” Christian Books – Donna Louis – The Battle Is Not Yours – It’s The Lords.

And so, the Lord delivered the Midianites into the hand of Gideon and his downsized army of 300 men.  “And it came to pass the same night that the Lord said unto him, ‘Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.'”

God used a very unusual way to deliver the Midianites into the hand of Gideon and his army, you can read the entire story of Gideon in the Bible in Judges 6:11 – Judges 8.

We all know the classic movie by director Cecil B DeMille “The Ten Commandments” and how pharaoh’s army was destroyed in the Red Sea. “And the Lord said unto Moses, stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared, and the Egyptians fled against it, and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea, and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. Thus, the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the seashore. – Exodus 14:26-30.

God is an all-powerful, almighty, awesome Lord.  God is a Lord of justice and will never leave you or forsake you ever. God is a conqueror. Test your faith, what problem do you currently have that needs to be battled? Are you going through a battle with an employer, spouse, family member, friend, or even your children? You can’t change them only God can. Remember, The Battle Is Not Yours –  It’s the Lords. – Check out my website