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Luke chapter 14 verse 33.
Jesus replied, "So no one can become My disciple unless he first sits down and counts his blessings---and then renounces them all for Me."

Letting go of what we are used to and trusting in something someone is promising is hard to do. It is easier to do if there is something that we will benefit from. Follow Jesus and believe that there is a God who wants to takes care of me? Why would anyone do that?
   Try asking yourself if your life is everything you would expect it to be! Are you happy and content? Are you burdened down by stress and trying to please others? You know that if you do not do something about all your worries and concerns then it will explode inside you causing nothing but heartache.
   There are good days and there are bad days. As time goes on the bad days seem to be getting more and more frequent. You think you are doing your best to get over each little thing that comes up. You put on your best smile and grin and bear the feelings you have. Too many people live this way. I did.
   What I found to be the easiest way to deal with life's  issues was to drown them out and deal with them later. Hiding from issues sometimes allowed time to heal a situation or at least soften the blows. But no matter how I tried they never just went away. Is it me? or is it all the others around me that keep challenging my willpower?
   At some point you will be run down and tired. Longing for change and relief to come. "There has to be something better than what I have now." You know that when we are injured it takes time for the wounds to heal. You have to baby the wound and keep it clean. It is the same with our lives.
   A lot of years were wasted on battling from one situation to the next. And just as one battle was won another would come up. Relationships, family, job, money or health and so on..... Then I decided to take a chance on God. I was fed up and needed to know if I could find something better.
    Wow! It did take time for God to heal me. He worked ever so slowly but it felt great. As I read His word and prayed to Him, I could feel the burdens lifting and the healing power of His love surround my days. The hurts did not want to let go easily. Temptation to follow the easy ways out, clawed their way around but, now there was a different path available to follow. Even to this day, many years later, temptation to take the fork in the road beckons.
   When you come to God you will hear the voice of Jesus and He will guide you and lift you up out of the messy life you have been lost in for so long. Your life just gets better and better. Your happiness glows for others to see. And the things that challenge you?---Well, you are no longer alone to come up with the solutions but, are filled with the answers of love and caring.
   Jesus is walking with you. You are living in God's light. Your focus is on pleasing Him and holding close to the paths and plans He has for you. No longer deviating and wandering in all directions. You are seen as content and at peace with your decisions. Others look to you for guidance and who knows maybe they want to know about Jesus and what He can do for them.
   Thank you Father for Jesus. You open our eyes to see all the blessings of Your love. 😊

Matthew chapter 5 verse 47.
"If you are friendly only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else?"

Psalm chapter 37 verses 23 and 24.
"The steps of good men are directed by the Lord. He delights in each step they take. If they fall it is not fatal, for the Lord holds them with His hand."

Acts chapter 1 verse 4.
"In one of these meetings Jesus told them not to leave Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came upon them in fulfillment of the Father's promise."