Hope in the Midst of Despair

In every effort, and every war for a cause, a shadow eventually passes over the righteous. It blocks out the sun, leaving one bitter and cold, grasping for some foot or hand hold to anchor on to, to keep from being swept up in the dreariness of despair, deceit and fatigue. One searches frantically for any sign of light, for love and the fountain of living water that once poured inspiration so freely into your heart and spirit. “Where is it?” you ask. Where has my heart gone? Is there no more hope? You feel as if you have striven to the very end of your being, to the very end of your inspiration. Every last ounce of Passion in you has been poured into your work, and now you are left dry, lifeless, without cause, purpose, or the means to muster the strength you need to go on. But fear not my brothers and sisters. This happens to all of us, and it is the pivotal point in our journey where we can either falter and completely fade away into darkness, or we can persevere and blossom into strong warriors of God, victorious to our last breath. This is because to persevere is to have faith – to pursue Christ as the foundation of our being and the giver of our passion and strength. The shadow we see is nothing more than the common playground bully. It can pose a threat…if you’ll let it. It has no real power or sway, save only that which you grant it. But if you’ll arise from the darkness and shout into its grisly maw saying “I will not be destroyed! I will not go quietly into the night! For I am a child of God, and I am in the service and inheritance of the Lord! Every weapon formed against me shall not prosper, and every tongue raised against me shall be shown to be in the wrong! My God is mighty, and my cause is righteous, and my God will never abandon me. So be gone despair, In Jesus’ Name!” , that shadow will have no choice but to pass over you as the angel of death did over the Israelites in Egypt. Keep to the Word! Hold on to His promise! He will never let you down, and He will not let you fail if you pursue him with a righteous heart! When we are laid low, we are made great! When we are brought down, that is the time to fight the hardest and to throw off the oppressive cloak of spiritual fatigue and passionless despair! Take Joy in all things, and be praiseful and exalt Him in every situation. As Paul did from his prison cell, so you too can persevere and remain faithful, continuing to have an impact and champion the cause! Be the victor you are meant to be. Hold on to the hope you have in Jesus, the cause He gives you, and never look back. What we do in the face of adversity is what has the greatest impact on the world, and on ourselves. Take up the sword of the spirit. Gird your loins with truth. Don the helmet of Salvation. Apparel your feet with the Gospel, and raise up the Shield of Faith. March into battle with these, and with God in your heart every foe that comes against you shall be laid to waste, spiritually speaking, for our weapons are not carnal but mighty for the pulling down of strongholds. This is a war, and we are the soldiers. Challenges come with the territory, but victory comes with faith! Keep on coming! Rock the very foundations of the enemy and persevere! WE are the knights of this era- the champions of this hour. Light is coming for the heart that holds on! As believers we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. So I encourage you as a brother in Christ to keep on keeping on. The flesh grows weary but the spirit is willing. Look to God in your time of need and encouragement and look to each other, for we are all servants of the most high God, and in working together in His name, victory is a thing assured. If you are wounded and are tempted to despair, remember this – you serve Jehovah Raapha, God who heals. This battle is not over yet, and it will take much more than fatigue to bring our God down! Amen.

Action

America and Liberty make an inseparable couple. They always have been, since the beginning of this nation. But somewhere along the line, we took our liberties too far, to the point that they now encroach upon the liberties of others. This violates the concept of liberty for all Americans. As heinous as this seems, it is far more horrifying than that. The most important liberty, the most essential right that we are treading on is the right to life. And we are taking this right away from those who cannot yet walk, those who cannot yet see, and those who cannot yet speak. Yet they can feel and think and dream all too well. Yet we are slaughtering them. Some of us have never physically brought harm to those of which I speak. But by our silence and gross apathy, we might as well be the ones that burn them with saline solution, or rip them apart with a vacuum, or suck out their brain tissue with syringes, or, in some cases, behead them. If we do not speak out, nay, if we do not take action, then by our indifference we are killing millions of babies each year- all because we took the notion of liberty too far, and placed convenience and self above the value of human life and love. Never before did we refuse to admit that those still within the womb were living human beings. We only decided to change that after we decided that abortion was an easy way out – in order to justify what we know is murder. The numbers of babies killed each year by abortion far outdo anything that Hitler or Stalin accomplished with their brutal fascist tactics and concentration camps. When we Americans regain our conscience, we will realize that we bear the shame of the wanton deaths of not one, but many generations. Wake up! We spend our time fighting amongst ourselves – going at each others’ throats over who hurt which politician’s feelings with a nasty comment. While all of the nation’s attention is focused on the death of one man who merely entertained us and may have even molested children, and on the fact that someone in the limelight used the word retard in reference to Sarah Palin, millions of innocent babies are dying at the hands of our own countrymen. Ask yourself – do you love this country enough to admit when it is doing something wrong and to stand up to do something about it? We need focus, we need to re-evaluate our priorities, and we need action – not just talk. That’s why you probably won’t see as many articles from me as you have in the past. I’ll still write, but action is needed as well, and I am working to start an organization within my school that will spread the pro life cause and raise awareness about abortion and the alternatives to it. Please keep me in your prayers, and in God’s name with His help, do your part to stop the genocide of American infants. Life is a sacred gift from God. One which we have no right to take from those who have not forfeited it through crime or otherwise. Who knows who we may save. Perhaps the one who will discover the cure for cancer is yet to be born. God Bless.