You Can Lead a Horse to Water

You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink! This well known fact is what got my mind whirling first thing this morning.  I was reflecting on my conversation with someone. He’s in a life battle. I see it clearly but by his refusal to believe that God is cheering him on, he has chosen his personal figure to currently be a pawn. Weirdly enough he is being used against himself. It pains me to witness this for I fully understand his pain. I guess that is the blessing in living through all I have. I can sympathize and empathize, but how do I take that emotion and get others to see the bigger picture without offending them?

There is an incredible life outside of any pain, worry, anguish, apathy or whatever negative emotion you yourself might be swimming in. I used to think that a selfish God would demand you put Him above all other things but I understand that in doing so, pain looses its grip. While you are still more than capable of feeling pain, you are suddenly able to step outside of it. This gives even greater understanding to the passage “Let the dead bury the dead”:

One day Jesus invited a man to follow Him and become His disciple—but the man refused. He said he would follow Jesus later, but first he wanted to go bury his father. Jesus responded, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead” (Matthew 8:22).

When you are caught up in the world and the undertow of emotions it places on you, you are in essence part of the living dead. While you are alive and perhaps surviving, you are not thriving. You are a slave to the world.

Many times an abused woman will stay in an abusive situation simply because while abusive and dangerous, it is familiar so she sees it as ironically safe in a way. She can’t get outside of her prison because she fears the unknown. God reaches out His hand and says ‘Trust me’ and when you do, when you step out in faith, your whole world will change.

This does not mean that you won’t face awful, tragic, heart breaking, insulting, and at times, overwhelming pain. Sometimes so great one would think it would take you out. But in putting God above all things, nothing here in this world has the power to take you out! God promises to turn all bad to good and I’m telling you I have lived through some serious bad. I think that is why God called me forth to reveal all the mess in my life. All the rotten things I have done. All the nightmares I have lived through. I was afraid of sharing my skeletons. I mean who in their right mind pulls back the curtain and says, “Hey look at this?”

It’s even crazier that I feel it necessary to call out every day inviting people to read what I have written. I am compelled to do so for I know who I was. Thanks to the wicked games the evil one plays and the allotment of tools and pawns he has at hand to use in this warfare we are all a part of, I was a lost child of God so full of confusion I couldn’t see myself as God sees me. We often give credit where credit is not due. We only need to look in the oldest history book on earth to see the evil one in action right at the start of things. Did he stop once he got Adam and Eve kicked out of the Garden? No, he went after their children and he hasn’t stopped since.

Many people misunderstand how the evil one sets things in motion. I think we are prepared for some big scene like in the movies where the devil is an obvious character, easily recognized. Oh! If it were only that simple! I was shocked the first time I realized I had a negative sound loop playing in the back of my mind. We all talk to ourselves negatively. This is a habit we must immediately begin to break. However, what the evil one softly whispers to us about ourselves is directly meant to keep us from our purpose!

It is important to discover and understand how the evil one works. When playing sports, don’t we study our competition? When coming against an opponent one on one, don’t you study their strong points in an attempt to discover their weakness? Satan has only one weakness and that is Christ. Christ was the victor when the two of them battled. Christ is the one you need to know in order to win the daily battle. EVERY day is a battle. Every day, no ifs ands or butts about it, EVERY DAY is going to be a battle. Here is a little poem I wrote the other day. In reading it perhaps your eyes will be opened slightly to the ways of Satan and just how shrewd he is as well as how you can defend yourself against him!

A seed planted often grows.

This truth the evil one knows.

A fiery arrow without the shield of faith will take hold.

“Don’t worry about tomorrow” in God’s word we are told.

We must put on our armor daily for the fight is real.

Don’t forget for one moment the thief came to steal.

He’s out to rob you of your joy and peace

For the evil one the fight does not cease

He’s been hard at work, his harvest is large

I’m waging in the war, I’m leading a charge

I’m part of the eternal brother and sisterhood

Reminding those listening of something good

A promise of freedom, and unending love

Support like none other from our Father above

Don’t be fooled, our Father is just

In this truth, you must trust

No matter what this world brings,

Turn to Him for all things.

You may think to yourself, “This girl is crazy. God doesn’t care about me. Look at all He’s allowed me to suffer through.”

I say, “God called me forth to share my story; the ugly and the good alike. In reading you will fully see that I am indeed someone who has walked in your shoes. While it is true today I am full of joy, I have faced my own share of problems as well as adversaries. In reading my story you will see that I went against God’s wishes for me, even believing I could outsmart Him. I have blamed God for things, yelled at God for things and was even convinced He was out to get me a time or two. I have not had it easy to say the least!

All I want out of each day is to find one person who is calling out asking, “How can I have a better life?” If that’s you, it’s my belief that my story will help you. Regardless, I promise it is not a boring read. If you thought Shades of Gray was something, you owe it to yourself to read my 3 part true life series. The feed back from those that have read my books in order has been a blessing all in itself. My 3 book collection only costs $13.00 in electronic format and in print the set is only $25.00 I created a short audio clip of me reading the first portion of “In the Beginning” Click this link to listen now!

Father today I pray you enlighten me on how to successfully share my story with others. Let them see that I am just a girl who today shines like diamonds glittering in the sunlight due to your love and the relationship we have. Please help me be as shrewd as the snake and as gentle as the dove. Please help me share the message of grace and unending love. Let me be a light so bright there is not doubt just exactly what my purpose is all about. I was born to give you glory simply by sharing the truth about my story. Help me father cause a turn in this fight. In the city of darkness let me be the light! In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

I close this post with the verse that got it all started:

For we live by believing and not by seeing ~ 2 Corinthians 5:7 NLT

It was in reading that that my mind was set on fire in regards to just how I could be used as a tool for those to find their faith. Sometimes I feel like I was allowed a cheat. I have witnessed unbelievable things. This allows me to understand that the unbelievable things we read in the Bible are actually believable. Today I ask you to read my story. You may find it unbelievable at times but I promise my chapters contain true life events. I also promise you that when you begin to truly seek the Lord, as he promises, He will answer. Just read my story. Everyone starts somewhere; my story is a great place for all who are curious about whether or not God is active today! What are you waiting for? I do have great news, today, you can get all 3 books in print for only$9.99. Not long after I published this, God showed me how to republish my 3 books into one big book! Simply click the icon on the side of this post to purchase your own copy of, "You are Worthy Too:the Proof is in the Posting!

Wendy Glidden, walks with God, mom of many  

© Wendy Glidden 2014