And every time I make a decision when the pressure is on I miss it!

We are not supposed to make important decisions when we feel pressured (unless it’s a life or death situation).

For one thing, sometimes we will decide just anything to get rid of the pressure.

But, more important than that, we will not be able to listen from God.

You see, God does not use fear or anxiety to lead us. He will always lead us with peace, even under exasperating circumstances.

Jesus was pressured a lot by the religious people of His age. They always tried to trick Him into situations that would give them the right to accuse Him of blasphemy.

One day they took a woman to him who had committed adultery. Under their law she was doomed to be stoned and die for her sin. But they knew that Jesus was going to have trouble with this issue. After all, He preached about love and forgiveness, two concepts they were not very familiar with.

So they confronted Him with their two options:

A) Either she has to be stoned to make justice

B) Or you declare her free with your “love message” and you violate the law of Moses.

Pretty tricky situation, huh?

But Jesus did not hurry to answer them. He knelt down  and started drawing in the sand. Waiting, listening to God.

His adversaries were dumbfounded, they never expected that!

After a wile Jesus came up with His glorious option C): “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” (John 8:3)

His opponents had no other choice. One by one they disappeared and the woman’s life was saved.

Next  time you feel pressured with an option A) or B),  kneel down in the sand and listen to God!

He will always have an option C) for you!

Oh, and remember…
“Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart” (Psalms 27:14)

G.F.I.
Go For It!

Bettina

PD Don’t make rash decisions. Learn how to hear from God.

Everything in life has a value assigned to it. The problem is that people feel unwanted and unloved because they see their worth through the eyes of others.

What is even worse, these feelings of unworthiness stall our personal growth process and keep us stagnant in a level of life that is way below our true potential.

Do you feel neglected and unworthy? Is your self esteem on a critical level?

The following story will help you understand your true value, overcome your low self confidence, and show you how to unleash a dynamic growth process in your life:

An important auction was taking place and many valuable antique objects of an important art collection were going to be sold. Among them was an

 old violin. Just by looking at it you could see that it had not stood the test of time. It looked timeworn and wasted. While everybody was delighted about the rest of the collection, nobody looked twice at this old, worn out violin.

When the auction started, people started bidding huge prices on the beautiful pieces of art, -except for the broken down violin. Nobody wanted it. The auctioneer was about to close the bid for the violin when an old man stood up and lovingly took the battered old thing into his hands.

He dusted it off, polished it and tuned its deteriorated chords. Then he gave a few strokes before he started playing on it. The auctioneer was getting impatient, but the audience started to hold its breath.

A beautiful melody was springing forth from what had been a tattered old violin. As the old man passionately played his song on that violin, the people started bidding again. The price of the violin went higher and higher until it ended up being the most highly priced object of the whole collection!

Maybe you have been feeling like that old violin. Forgotten and forsaken in some corner of existence. You feel unimportant and unworthy.

Don´t measure your worth according to what others think about you. People’s opinions change every day. If you are trying to please them, you will always end up frustrated.

Why not see yourself through the eyes of Him who knows your true worth? God sets the standard for worth in this universe, not men. He can take you in His arms and teach you to play the song He created you to sing.

Oh, and remember…

“You were bought at a high price, don’t become slaves of men.” (1 Corinthians 7:23)

G.F.I.

Go For It!

Bettina

PS If you don’t have them yet, learn how to cope with low self  esteem and get your GRANTS (Godly Removal of Automatic Negative Thinking) here:

Confession GRANTS

Prosperity GRANTS

Healing GRANTS

PPS If you already have your GRANTS, don’t forget to read them every day until those truths become reality in your life!

Everybody desires a change for better in any given area of their lives: health, finances, self-esteem or personal relationships.

The problem is that great ideas will not change our lives overnight. Being enthusiastic about a new idea for a few days, or even a week, is easy. Anybody can do that. It is when the going gets tough and when it turns out to be harder than we imagined that we lose momentum and eventually give up on our new project.

If you are a quitter, here is good news for you: You can change that bad habit—because that is what quitting is all about—and  learn how to achieve your goals successfully.

Acquire a Vision

Long term projects cannot succeed if they are chosen randomly as a whim of the moment. You might have very good ideas, but you need to take them one step further if you want to implement them successfully.

You might not be aware of it, but God has already laid out a wonderful plan for your life. You were not placed furtively on this planet to survive as good as you possibly can. The Bible states you are His masterpiece created to walk in a life He has already prepared beforehand (Ephesians 2:10).

So all you have to do is connect with God and flow with His program!

Fix Your Thought Life

Most of us make the mistake of focusing on externals when we implement changes in our lives. We neglect working on our mindset, the very place where wrong thought patterns will cause our endeavor to fail.

If those wrong thoughts are not dealt with, they will lead you to quit just as they did in your previous projects. Because the thoughts you have today will determine your life tomorrow.

The most powerful way to change wrong thought patterns is by studying the Word of God—the Bible—and finding out what God has to say about your situation. And that leads to key number 3:

Have Faith

Somebody once said, “Faith can move mountains.” And it does. Faith is the most important factor when it comes to achieving success in life.

You might say, “But I don’t have a strong faith!”

That’s easy to solve: Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. It is when you diligently seek God and His way of operating that you will come to see yourself as the one He created you to be: A victorious overcomer.

Here is a very a simple, common sense philosophy of life:

• Discover your strengths
• What you are really good at
• What you love doing
• In what field do others come to you to ask for help for?
• What you choose to do in your free time?

Then develop it to its maximum potential until you can live from it. Bingo! You’ll never feel like you’re working again, because you love what you are doing! Goodbye to dreary Monday mornings and the weekly rat race.

Is it possible? It’s not only possible, it is inevitable once you understand the deep meaning of what it’s all about.

You see, that unique gifting is God-given. And it is meant to be the most fulfilling and exciting choice of lifestyle you can make during your brief existence on this planet.

Nevertheless, most people choose the security of an occupation that will provide for their needs, but not necessarily fulfill their lives. Until one day they discover that there’s a dream lurking in their hearts.

“Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them” Henry David Thoreau

The problem is we have been educated to focus on our provision. The best of our waking hours are dedicated to the task of providing for our needs.

Forget the assignment, forget the passion and forget that song.

What most people don’t understand is that God would never give you an assignment without fully providing for your needs, –and He is a good employer. He takes good care of His children.

“Seek first the kingdom of God His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”(Mattew 6:33)

Everybody is an expert at something. God has given each one of us a unique blend of gifts and talents, and He doesn’t have favorites who receive a bigger portion.

During our walk through life some of us develop these talents more than others, but, nevertheless, they are always there.

The problem is that most of the time our strengths seem natural to us, that we don’t think they are such a great deal. We walk through life without ever recognizing the genius God put within us.

Most experts assume that the rest of the crowd already knows what they know, so they never come to share their expertise with anybody. What’s more, they never suspect that they could successfully monetize their knowledge. That is what it’s there for.

So if you aren’t an expert yet, you can be one whenever you choose to. The raw material is in your hands right now.

You might even have something to share that you do not know of today. Don’t hold it back. The world needs to know what you have to say.

Many of us are so caught up in our daily routine that we don’t even consider the remote possibility of getting passionate about what we do.

If you are tired of feeling that you are losing your time in unnecessary business, here are 5 simple steps that will help you organize your day and get motivated again to accomplish something that is meaningful to you:

1. Make a list of all the things you would enjoy doing today. Yes, not a regular to-do list, but a list of dreams and goals you have always left for some day when you would finally have time. Think of your strengths and talents you’ve always wanted to develop. Lay out a step-by-step plan to accomplish this goal by doing a little bit every day and determine to start today.

2. Now you write down your daily duties you are responsible for. Don’t put too much on that list, it will overwhelm you and ultimately lead to frustration. If there is a bigger task you need to accomplish, divide it into little bites and determine to deal with them during several days.

3. Do the second list first. Rank the items on your list according to their urgency and importance. While you are in what might feel like your daily treadmill, motivate yourself by thinking of the fun stuff you will do later.

4. Start checking the items you have already done. This will give you a marvelous feeling of accomplishment. There is no way around our daily duties, but we should celebrate a bit to feel satisfied once they are accomplished.

5. Now you can dedicate time to your first list without a bad conscience. You can finally start developing in that area you never had the time for. And there is nothing more fulfilling than getting on with what God has put in your heart to do.

If you do this each day, you will not only accomplish your daily duties efficiently, but you will also have made the important step of taking the time to pursue your dreams consistently.

Development comes by exercising every day continually, day in day out. Most of us have no trouble running the first 100m of our race. But when the going gets tough, and things don’t turn out the way we expected, we either slow down or give up altogether.

Just like your physical body through exercise, training and effort can come to the place where it is at maximum performance, your mind and your spirit can also reach their full potential with proper training.

You don’t just grab your barbells and work out one morning, and then go out and fight that night. The ability to achieve success in any area of your life is already there, but you have to work it out. You have to develop. It’s not going to happen just by itself. That’s true with your body, your mind, and it’s also true for your spirit.

If they are trained correctly and persistently, all three of them can be developed far more than you think. Power lies in consistency of operation. Basically, this means to be functioning the same way all the time.

But how do we stay on track? How can we possibly keep on running when things get tough?

First of all, stick close to God. It makes a world of a difference if you’re running for yourself, for somebody else, or for Him. He will give you the vision to pursue, the strength to run, and the wisdom to confront the obstacles you’ll encounter.

Second, develop in the area you have passion for. Don’t go after the crowd, don’t do what everybody else does. Practice some self-directed learning. God will be faithful to show you which area to choose. He has put a dream into your heart to give you a vision, a purpose to live for.

So, no matter what anybody else may think, pursue it with all your heart, and develop it by yourself, on your own schedule, with a mentor of your choice.

Nobody but yourself can really stop you from achieving that dream.

Although anybody can determine to develop their God-given talents by unleashing the power of self-directed learning in their life, not everybody is willing to pay the price. But God is no respecter of persons, and He certainly doesn’t create failures! An abundantly blessed life is available for everybody.

Then why do so many people choose to just go with the flow, doing the same things the crowd does, – frustrated and living from weekend to weekend?

It’s because of two things: Either they never get motivated to change, or they give up somewhere down the line. Here are some helpful tips to get you motivated, ­­­­­­–and to stay motivated until you succeed in whatever you endeavor.

How to get motivated:

Without the daily pursuit of a vision, life in the rut can get old real quick. You can get a vision for your life by reviving your dreams and by starting to set goals to reach them.

Even though you might not be aware of it, you have the built-in potential to live a blessed and purposeful life. God designed a perfect plan for your life and He has given you all the tools you need to walk it out.

If you are willing to submit to His plan, He will always reveal it to you and faithfully guide you on the quest for your destiny.

How to stay motivated:

You stay motivated by staying focused on your goals. Every successful person reaches his or her goals because they focus on them and don’t allow themselves to get distracted by anything else.

“My thoughts before a big race are usually pretty simple. I tell myself: Get out of the blocks, run your race, stay relaxed. If you run your race, you’ll win….Channel your energy. Focus.” Carl Lewis

When we come to this point we accept life as a lackluster sequence of unattractive, but necessary events, with hopefully a few gratifying moments in between. Worries, problems, and disillusions take their toll on our daily walk and nudge us, in a very subtle way, towards a stagnant existence of listless detachment.

The problem is that we abandon our dreams and resign to a lower level of life.

But your dreams were not intended to end up in a funeral, destined to get buried and lost forever. They were placed in your heart by God Himself to impulse you forward toward constant growth in pursuit of them.

They are there to give you a vision and a purpose for your future. So no matter what state your life is in right now, if those dreams are still dormant, it’s time to arouse them.

The best way to revive your dreams is by determining to learn something new related to them. If you’ve always wanted to write a book, maybe it’s time to study the style of your favorite author, or to take a typing course. Or maybe you’ve always wanted to be an artist, but never had the chance to develop your gifts. Well, today is the day to start. That “some day” when you’ll have time will never arrive!

Then, when you’re well on your way, start sowing your gift into other lives. Pass it on to bless others. That is why God put it there in the first place. This will bless you more than anybody else.

Take some time to assess what you have to do to arrive where you want to go. I can assure you that God will open doors for you when you determine to get back on track with His program for your life.

Even if you just take a small baby step today, at least you are on your way and you’re not stagnant any more. You can make changes today that will affect the course of your life forever. Learn how to flow with God’s plan for your life, and how to successfully develop the talents He has given you with my free e-course “7 Steps to Consistently Change Your Life” and e-book “The Power of Self-Directed Learning” at http://www.Self-DirectedLearningForSuccess.com

The secret is a thankful attitude. It will help your imagination focus on the good things about every situation, instead of the bad.

Our imagination is like a spiritual womb that births the circumstances around us. What many people don’t know is that the way you can see things or picture them will determine the outcome of what will happen.

That negative image of seeing yourself as a failure, is a self-fulfilling prophesy. Thanksgiving will help you get out of that mind-set. It will make situations that could have been a major deal work out just fine for you.

Remember the good things that have happened to you, and give value to everything God has already done in your life. Just the fact that you’re sitting there reading this message means that you are breathing, and that you can see. That’s a lot to be thankful for.

Instead of majoring on the minors, and focusing on the things that are not going to work out, you can thank God. Your faith will rise, you’ll be able to put worth on what really counts, and little things will not get you down.