The Abundant Life Center

by Dona Hake

I truly believe that the believer that has submitted their will to the Lord and has made a decision to obey Him can truly know that He will direct his paths.   Jesus has promised to never leave nor forsake us.  He has promised to lead, guide us and direct us with His wisdom at every turn. I am sure you can identify at times where things seemed a bit hard to understand.  Maybe things were unfolding totally differently than how you thought it would go.  On top of it all, it is making you feel a bit uneasy because you have been bumped out of your comfort zone.

This proverb counsels us not to worry if we do not totally understand everything as it happens.  Instead, let us take heart and fear not for God is on our side and He will cause us to rise victoriously and cross the finish line.

Proverbs 20:24 (VOICE)
“Every one of our steps is directed by Him;
so how can we attempt to figure out our own way?”

This scripture exhorts my heart to be reminded to never try to figure things out too far ahead for I do not know all that God has in store for me in my journey.  It causes me also to be mindful that I should be casting all my care upon Him because as He cares for me, all will be well with my soul as He works His beautiful plan in my life.

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by Dona Hake

How do you define patience?  If you were to ask my oldest granddaughter she would tell you that patience is waiting with a happy heart.  For months now I have been sharing this simple little definition of patience with both of my granddaughters.   For children, waiting can be so very hard yet how important it is that they learn patience.  Many times we are riding in the car and both them are so excited and cannot wait till we  stop for donuts and then finally get to Grandma’s house for the day.

One day in particular we were hitting a lot of traffic and it seemed like forever till we were reaching the donut shop.  I began to say, “Remember! we need to be patient!…and what does patience mean?” My granddaughter said, “I know, I know, it’s waiting with a happy heart but sometimes I don’t do patience!”  I have to be honest with you that when she said that I almost cracked up laughing.   I love how children are just so bluntly honest at times.  I just had to chuckle and I replied, “You know what?  Some days I don’t do patience either.”

Let’s all be honest with ourselves…we all have those days that we do not do patience and it ends up causing us to be annoyed, upset, etc…     In the book of James he wrote and exhorted us in the importance of allowing patience to have it’s perfect work.  I used to wonder how James could write and tell us to “Count it all joy when you fall into various tests and trials…”

James 1:2-4  The Voice

“Don’t run from tests and hardships, brothers and sisters. As difficult as they are, you will ultimately find joy in them; if you embrace them, your faith will blossom under pressure and teach you true patience as you endure. And true patience brought on by endurance will equip you to complete the long journey and cross the finish line—mature, complete, and wanting nothing. “

This scripture reminds me to thank God that our faith can blossom even under the pressures that may seem unpleasant.   He will be faithful to teach us true patience that we can cross the finish line!  So today I encourage you to be patient in all things or may I say “Wait with a happy heart!”

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by Dona Hake

I can remember not too long ago someone asking me at the last minute to grab my camera and bring it to where I was going to get some shots. At the last moment before I left, I threw the camera over my shoulder and out the door I went. As I was driving down the road it dawned on me that more than likely my battery was low. Sure enough when I check it’s level, it was blinking and this was not good. I turned around and went back and grabbed one of my back up batteries. Thank God for back up! Normally with client shoots I have all batteries full and extra of everything. My point in this story is that I was caught off guard.

There is an analogy to this little story. Life can bring us situations that just catch us off guard and we may have no time to do anything about it. I had noticed for a while that my battery was blinking low but I just ignored it and the thought was….just charge it later. Well, “later” did not happen and had I not realized it I would not have been able to get the shots this individual wanted me to get. You see, my lithium battery is well capable of shooting for hours on end IF it is fully charged. There was not a thing wrong with the battery. The thing that went wrong was that I failed to be attentive to it’s warning and do what needed to be done. I failed to maintain such a small but most vital part of my camera.

We too are like ”spiritual batteries” that need charged and watched over. We need our time with God and the infusion of His strength and guidance each day. We cannot try to thrive on what was yesterday’s faith. We cannot fool ourselves and think we are going to get away with ignoring the warning signals that come with being weary and worn down. We must keep ourselves full that we can do all that He has for us to do. I leave you with this scripture that is a wonderful one to reflect upon.

2 Peter 1:3
The Voice (VOICE)
“His divine power has given us everything we need to experience life and to reflect God’s true nature through the knowledge of the One who called us by His glory and virtue.”

Draw upon that power and all that He has so graciously given you to live your day!

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by Dona Hake

Proverbs 12:25
“Anxious hearts are very heavy, but a word

of encouragement does wonders!”

Today I want to encourage you to seek opportunities to lift up hearts that may be heavy.  As we ask the Lord for such opportunities He is sure to bring them in our path.  We live in a time where it is plain to see that many have anxious and heavy hearts.  I love those God given opportunities when I can lock my eyes with someone that looks grumpy or depressed, and try to get them talking.   People like this need our loving smiles and encouraging words.

The Lord lifts us up and faithfully ministers His strength to us.  Day by day He pours forth an abundant supply of joy and strength for our day.  Let us be ready to give it to those around us as He provides us opportunities.  God wants us to be givers not hoarders of all the blessings He has imparted to us.

Proverbs 11:24
Living Bible
“It is possible to give away and become richer! It is also possible to hold on too tightly and lose everything. Yes, the liberal man shall be rich! By watering others, he waters himself.”

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by Dona Hake

I just want to encourage you today with the fact that God desires to be our Rock and our Redeemer! As Redeemer, Jesus restored us back to fellowship with the Living God of this Universe! We can be cleansed of any sin and we no longer need to live in guilt of past or present mistakes. At any given time in your day you are free to run to Him for the forgiveness and help that you need.

As we look to Him as our Rock, we no longer stand in places that shake or can be moved but we can stand on that which brings us strength and security. I loved the one definition of rock that I found.  It said to be lulled in security and hope.  When one is lulled they are soothed and quieted.  I could not help but to think of times when my sons were little and they would come and just be comforted as I held them tightly and prayed over them.  We too can run to Him in those times that we are shaken and our soul will be quieted.     As we sit as His feet we can be assured that He will calm us from our anxieties and strengthen the faith in our heart.

Psalm 37:7

Amplified Bible

by Dona Hake

Sometimes life can become so hectic that we do not realize that are souls are no longer quiet before Him.  There may be times that  we need to hear from Him and because we are so hurried in our day but we expect Him to speak to us on our terms.  If we are not careful we could miss His gentle voice that so desires to fellowship with us and give us the direction that we need.

1 Kings 19:11-12  (AMP)
” And He said, Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake;
And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire [a sound of gentle stillness and] a still, small voice.”

Elijah knew that the sound of a gentle whisper was God’s voice.  He understood that God did not just reveal Himself in the big and the powerful, in the sound of stillness.   The Lord is often found in the gentle whisper in the quietness of a meek spirit.   It is there that He is able to whisper to you the secrets of His perfect will and purposes for your life.

Today let us purpose in knowing that our hearts are quieted before Him.  I believe even in the midst of the demands of our lives that we can maintain our hearts and keep them at peace that we can hear His voice no matter what is going on around us.

“Let us be silent that we may hear the whisper  of God.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

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by Dona Hake

God is great and all His works are to be greatly praised.  From the time that He created the Heavens and Earth to this very day, He continues to show Himself mighty and His wonders never cease.  When I think of how great our God is,  I realize that our understanding is limited because He is God and everything about Him is beyond the bounds of human comprehension!!  I just want to share a few scriptures with you to think upon relative to this word ~boundless~.

Psalm 147:5
“Great is our Lord and of great power;

His

understanding is inexhaustible and boundless.”

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Ephesians 6:10
“In conclusion, be strong in the Lord

[be empowered through your union with Him];

draw your strength from Him [that strength

which His boundless might provides].“

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1 Peter 1:3
“Praised (honored, blessed) be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah)!

By His boundless mercy we have been born

again to an ever-living hope through the resurrection

of Jesus Christ from the dead…”

Today I encourage to allow Him to show you His boundless mercy, His boundless might and His boundless understanding which is inexhaustible!  How great is our God!

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by Dona Hake

In this life there will be things that will tempt us to worry.  We could be worrying about things that we do not WANT to happen.  There are also those things that you WANT so badly to happen and you fear they will not come to pass.  The word I want to focus on is WANT.  Now, let us reflect on a very popular scripture that many love and turn to in time of troubles.

Psalm 23:1

“The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not WANT.”

As we walk beside our Shepherd, sit at His feet or follow behind Him in uncertain paths, we must remind ourselves that we shall want for no good thing if our eyes are on Him.

Philippians 4:6-7  (MSG)

“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.”

I love this translation.  “Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers.”  Today I encourage you to keep your mind care free as you offer Him your praises and prayers.  He promises to take care of us no matter what and it is vital that diligently offer up all of our care and worry to Him.

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by Dona Hake

Proverbs 4:25 (VOICE) 
“Keep your head up, your eyes straight ahead,
and your focus fixed on what is in front of you.”

Many times when people talk about focus especially in the realm of the spiritual we tend to think of moving toward spiritual goals.    As I was pondering this I began to reflect on the importance of doing what you need to do to go forward when everything around you is a blur.  There are those times where you can be walking through such turmoil that you do not know which way to turn or what to do next.   I have had times in my life where focus seemed impossible and I had to just be still before Him to hear His voice that I may see clearly again.

I began to think about the art of photography and the use of different lenses when I shoot.  Recently during a session I was encountering different lighting problems and situations and I kept asking my client to be patient as I was taking on and off my camera body three of my favorite lenses.  In order for me to get desired results I had to be totally accurate with what lens I was using to get the highest quality shot.   It was not until I felt that everything was perfect that I was satisfied.   So it is in this life that there will be times in which we need to be willing to do what it takes to achieve our desired results.  We need to know that we are seeing as clearly as possible so we can go forward with clarity of vision.

I have observed at times where people in the midst of  “blurred vision” would up and run away to keep themselves distracted from the problem they are in.      When one does this they will soon find themselves tossed to and fro by any negative encounters in  life.  Retreating from a problem will never solve it, we must learn to stand still and see the salvation of our Lord. We need to be a people that keep our feet planted and our eyes fixed and be willing to do whatever it takes to get the victory.  God desires that we be not moved no matter what is going on around us.

Psalm 112:7 (VOICE)
” They will not be afraid when the news is bad
because they have resolved to trust in the Eternal.”

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by Dona Hake

The Lord desires that we diligently care for our hearts, minds and tongues.   It is up to us what we deposit into our hearts and minds.  If you are a person that takes it seriously to guard your heart than you well understand the battle that it can be.  Daily we are bombarded with things that serve to pull us away.  Thoughts can seemingly come out of nowhere and if your heart is not rock solid with His Word,  you will not know how to properly discern right from wrong.

An area that I know we can all get ourselves in trouble is thinking incorrectly about ourselves.  For instance, if we make mistakes we can be tempted to not forgive ourselves and we keep thinking about our mistake.  As we meditate upon negative thoughts about ourselves that negative will grow bigger and bigger in our mind.  The strength of any negative will be an arrow that the devil will use against us.   One of his main tools will be our own tongues. You may begin to speak things about yourself and you put yourself down.  Eventually the more you hear those words from your own mouth, you will begin to believe them.

Proverbs 4:24(ERV)
“Don’t bend the truth or say things

that you know are not right. 

We well know it is wrong to lie but let it be established that we not lie about ourselves.  As we stay full of His Word and remind ourselves of who He says we are, we will not fall prey to lies about ourselves.  I encourage you today to guard your heart with ALL diligence for from it truly flows the issues of this life.

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