Angry with God

Writer Renae Brumbaugh wrote a thought-provoking post on her blog a couple of weeks ago about being angry at God that set me to thinking.

In my humanity, there have been times in my own life when I'm ashamed to admit that I've been *ahem* a little miffed with God, not angry to the point of being just downright sinful, but to the extent that the anger so filled me that I couldn't pray or read my Bible or do any of the things that fostered fellowship with Him. To be honest, during those times I would put him on 'ignore' just as I would have an errant suitor who disappointed me in his pursuit of me.

The reasons have been varied, whether it be that He blessed an enemy in an area that I was looking for a blessing, He showed mercy on one whom I felt undeserving of mercy, or He sent a time of trial and suffering in my life that I felt unjust.  The causes of my anger have ranged from the minuscule to the great, but all justified in my frail human sight at those particular times.  A greater level of spiritual maturity has mitigated the frequency of these occasions of anger, but they have occurred nonetheless. 

I thank God daily for continually teaching me about the peace that comes with trusting and believing His Word and accepting His Divine Will.  My gratitude knows no bounds for the gift of perfect faith.  I know deep down inside that His thoughts are not my thoughts. I most of all thank Him for His mercy and grace in that the very anger and justice that I may have wished rained down on others could have been rained down on me for my own imperfections.

My prayer is that I be found walking worthy of His commandments when He comes back to take us home.

Have you ever been angry with God?  How did you deal with it? Did you learn anything from the experience?

"Be ye angry, and sin not:..." Ephesians 4:26a

Read Your Bible Today

A couple of weeks ago I had the mother of all days.  Everything that could have possibly gone wrong went wrong; most folks that I came across were ill tempered (no easy feat since I primarily work at home); and my stress level was through the roof. I'll bet ducks to dollars that you know the kind of day that I'm talking about.

Although I, like anybody else, am not at all fond of bad days, I can usually take them in stride and meet my challenges. But on this day I just couldn't seem to pull it together.

Thinking it over ... 

By that evening, you could have stuck a fork in it because I was done. On thinking back over the day's events I tried to pinpoint what was different about that day (aside from the enemy stepping up his game to set a new record for number of attacks) than any other. A few thoughts came to mind:

• When I got up that morning I didn't read my Bible - and neither had I read it the night before;
• Other than a cursory 'good morning' I didn't spend any time in prayer with God when I woke up. I didn't ask Him to cover me, lead, guide, protect, and shield me under His wings;
• And very much unlike other days I wasn't focused on His presence throughout the day. No meditations on Scripture, no spontaneous silent or vocal expressions of prayer. My focus had totally shifted ... to my problems.

Now I'm not at all suggesting that if I had done these things that I wouldn't have had any problems that day;  to the contrary, I'm sure that they would have still been there in full force -- but I sure would have been able to fend off the attacks with much more precision if I had had my armour on.

You have a choice -- victory or defeat ...

It's amazing how it turns out to be the little things that can make the difference between opening the door to defeat or blasting open the flood gates to victory.

Make it a point to read your Bible today. Spend just five minutes with Him and let Him speak to you. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you. See what kind of a difference it makes.

Do you read your Bible every day? Do you meditate in His Word? Do you pray often? Share with us how implementing these very good habits in your daily routine makes a difference in your faith walk.

"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Ephesians 6:11

"This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success." Joshua 1:8

"Pray without ceasing." I Thessalonians 5:17

We've Got a New Look!

We've been busy working behind the scenes at Danny's Angel Writes trying to come up with ideas to make your experience with us even more fruitful.  You may notice that as of today we have a new look! Post down below and let us know how you like it.

We've also added a couple of new entries to the blog roll, blogs that we believe will add value to your day and inspire you to continue to grow and mature both spiritually and personally. 

We'll continue, of course, with our regular publishing schedule on tomorrow. Just a reminder -- we publish every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 6:00 a.m., bringing you fresh, new, relevant content to help you along your faith journey.

Don't forget to tell your family and friends about us if you find something of value here. We're all walking this road together;  let's strive to help each other along the way.

Be blessed!

The Angel Food Store

You may have noticed the new link that's been floating at the top of the page for a little over a couple of weeks now touting The Angel Food Store.

The Angel Food Store features books (and now some music) that we recommend as helpful to spiritual and personal growth. The prices are reasonable and the inventory varied. The reading material is mostly a choice of nonfiction, but we also have a couple of very well-written fiction pieces in stock. We plan to expand and offer DVD's, e-books, and CD's in the near future.

The Angel Food Store is where we'll also primarily be marketing books published through Danny's Angel Publishing near the end of the year, so please stay tuned for those product launches. 

If you have any suggestions of other works that you'd like to see inventoried in the store, please feel free to email me at the address at the very bottom of the page, and I'll add them to the store just as quickly as possible. 

We appreciate the support that you've given Danny's Angel Writes since our launch back in May and have a little something special planned for our readers who've joined our mailing list (see button on the sidebar to the right of the page), so be sure to get your name on the list soon.

Have a great weekend!

Just Do It - Sow Your Seed!

Previously I wrote about the benefits of moving forward in faith-based action, and I'd like to add a little bit more to that discussion today.

God keeps leading me back to write on this subject again and again, so I believe that He's trying to capture somebody's attention -- could that somebody be you?

So many people are stuck in jobs that they don't like, in life circumstances where their dreams aren't being fulfilled, and have come to a place where they've given up and have become stagnant. They're just standing still, waiting on God, with no faith-fueled fire to propel them onward.

Is it fear that's holding you back?

They can't seem to take hold of the seed that God has placed in their hearts, sow it, and do what's needed to make it grow. Most times the root of their inaction is fear -- fear of the unknown, fear of not knowing what to do, fear of failure.

What does the Bible say?

I was surprised to find in my reading that the Bible says to just do it! To sum it up, you'll never know whether what you desire will come to pass unless you actually try to do something to make it come about.

I can attest to this in my own life. God placed a dream in my heart as a very young child, but over the years I let people, circumstance, and fear set in like weeds in my spirit and choke the dream out. Once I got to the place that I let GOD'S leading and instruction take precedence over the external forces that were assailing me I sowed the seed of my dream, it took root, and began to grow! To coin the words of an old song, 'Ain't no stopping me now!'

I urge you to sow your own seed today. Every day wasted is another opportunity lost.  Don't wait another second. My prayer is that God bless you as you go forward in pursuing your dreams. You're never too old;  it's never too late.

Has God planted a dream in your heart? What are you doing or what have you done to sow it and make it grow? Tell us about it. 

"In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good." Ecclesiastes 12:6 (KJV)

Pray with Your Legs

Recently I posted a Facebook status update that along with the replies that I made to the comments it received went something like this:

Learn this lesson faster than I did. When you don't know what to do, do SOMETHING. Pray, ask God to order your steps, and believe. Inaction never accomplished anything. Faith requires some action on your part. "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he
delighteth in his way." Psalm 37:23

I'm telling you, we miss out on a lot of blessings by just waiting without powering it with some faith-based action on our part. :)

Let me add that there *are* some times when we should just stand still and wait, but it's wise to pray and ask God for discernment to know the difference.

The day after that post I received an email from one of my favorite sites, 48 Days to the Work You Love. Dan Miller wrote a blog post entitled, Pray with Your Legs that explained what I was trying to say way better than I could. I'm copying and pasting the link to his post here for you in the hopes that it helps someone along their way.

Pray with Your Legs - http://48daysblog.wordpress.com/2010/06/15/pray-with-your-legs/

Welcome to All

Welcome to all of our new subscribers!  We're honored to have you here with us and thrilled to know that something at Danny's Angel Writes caused you to want to visit with us on a regular basis.  My prayer is that God will work through and in all to add a blessing to your life, whether it be in some new insight, a word of encouragement, or motivation to go deeper in His Word and develop a more personal, intimate relationship with Him.

I'd like to encourage those of you following on our Facebook page to periodically visit the website directly at dannysangelwrites.com. We publish every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but sometimes the feed is a little slow to import to Facebook, a lag of many days in some cases. Feel free to jump in and post to either a thread on the website or one over on Facebook. Also, we have a blog roll on the website that links to other blogs that we feel have content that may help you along your journey to continued spiritual and personal growth.

We're on Twitter, so feel free to follow us there if you're so inclined:  @writerangela

Drop me a line sometime and let me know how you're doing (my email address can be found at the bottom of the website).  I love to hear from our readers! 

Tell your friends and family about us if you feel that they may find a blessing here. I promise that we'll welcome them with open arms. 

Again, welcome to all! Pray for me as I'll be praying for you. I look forward to our future fellowship.

'Love of Christ,

Angela

Happy Father's Day!

It's that time of the year again to honor that special man in your life who loved, raised, sacrificed for, and nurtured you in the admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4b).

Everyone isn't blessed, for whatever reason, to still have their father with them. Even more sad is that some have a bio dad who is still living, but he never fulfilled the true duties of a father as he should.

If you have a father (or have been blessed by God to be given a father figure) in your life right now who has fulfilled all of the duties of an earthly father just as God ordained, be sure to let him know on this Sunday how much he's appreciated. 

Most importantly, take a moment to thank the Heavenly Father above for the love and sacrifice that He showed to all of us by sending His only begotten Son to die as a sacrifice for our sins.

If you'd like to make a short comment to give your earthly father honor for all that he's done for you over the years, please feel free to do so below.

"Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." Exodus 20:12

Review: I Want to Say Thank You by Lisa Page Brooks

This is the song that holds the top spot on my iPod Touch right now. 

Lisa Page Brooks will stir your spirit into a deep sense of gratitude and worship to God for all that He has done for you in both the past and the present.

Her voice is a rich blend of soulful delight.  With her unique alto strains she elevates I Want to Say Thank You to an anthem of praise that makes you want throw yourself at the Father's feet and give Him your all for all of His goodness.

A great song to begin each day or to incorporate into your private worship and devotionals. 

I Want to Say Thank You is all you'll want to do every time you listen to this song. 

God Answers Prayer

I shared with friends on yesterday that I had a problem arise that was going to cost me big bucks -- bucks that I didn't have at the moment to spend.  I didn't know what to do, so I did what I always do when I don't know what to do ...

I prayed.

Over the years God has proven Himself faithful, so I laid my situation at His feet, prayed, and believed. I asked Him to guide me towards the solution.

Because I read, meditate on, and study His Word I know the promises that He's made to me as a believer, and I stood on His promise to answer my prayers. Slowly the answer began to unfold in my mind and step by step I moved towards a resolution.

Within a few minutes of following His lead the problem was solved, I didn't have to spend money that I didn't have, and I was able to move on to more pressing matters.

Give God a chance to work in your life. Take all of your problems, both great and small, to Him. See if He won't show up on your behalf and make a way out of no way.

If you have a testimony about how God has answered prayer in your life, share it with us below. He loves it when we give Him the praise that He's so rightly due for being so good to us.

"Ask, and it shall be given you ..." Matthew 7:7a

Reminder: Free Apple iPad Giveaway

Hello everyone!  I just wanted to take the time to remind you all again about the Free Apple iPad Giveaway that's being hosted over at Christian Personal Finance.

You never know, this might be an opportunity for you to win one of 2010's most wonderful pieces of technology for absolutely free.

Read the details again here.  I've already placed my entries.

Be blessed!

~Angela

The Friendship Acid Test

Every now and then it's just good to take inventory of our friendships and see if a little pruning is needed.

Of course, we know that there are different levels of friendship.

• There's the neighbor across the way that we might extend small talk and greetings to in passing and sometimes provide a helping hand;
• There's the church sister or brother that we fellowship with outside of church service, the ones that offer us encouragement and support and to whom we reciprocate the same;
• There's our group of general acquaintances;

And then there's our inner circle where the faithful few dwell, the ones we can depend on when the storms of life are raging, that we don't have to talk to every day but when the need arises they have our back, that we can tell our most intimate secrets to and know that they won't judge us or betray our confidence.  These are the ones that exhort us to become closer to the Lord and who can tell us the truth without reservation to help us grow stronger.

How do we determine who is worthy to enter that inner circle?

1.  "Birds of a feather flock together, and so will pigs and swine." This has always been and always will be true. Our friends should share our same basic core of spiritual beliefs, values, morals, and convictions. They don't have to be our carbon copies, but they should have both feet planted with us on the same foundational pillar.
2.  "Loose lips sink ships." Can our friends be trusted to keep a confidence, even in the face of peer pressure? Or are there consistent information leaks with your private business being laid open to public scrutiny?
3.   "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Are your friends people that you can really depend on ... or are they only there when things are going good and there's something in it for them?
4.   "Everyone is a friend, until they prove otherwise."  Has your friendship been proven through trials and challenges?
5.   "A friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else." Do your friends sacrifice for you when needed ... without being asked?  Or are you always the one found to be making the sacrifices?

"True friends are like diamonds, precious but rare.  False friends are like autumn leaves, found everywhere." 

Choose your friends carefully.  As we walk our spiritual journey friends can either help us find the way or lead us astray.

Do you have friends in your life who really make a difference in the quality of your life?  In what way do they make a difference? 

"... and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother."  Proverbs 18:24b

*Proverbs listed above;  sources unknown.

Care and Feeding of the Temple: 10 Steps to Vibrant Health

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away." 

10. Have regular check-ups with your primary care physician. Pay attention to his/her suggestions for everyday health maintenance.
9.  Find articles that pertain to healthy living. Read, study, and implement the tips into your life.
8.  Pay attention to the signals that your body sends you. Pain, recurrent discomfort, bleeding, bruising, etc. are all signs that something is wrong and must be addressed.
7.  Cleanliness is next to godliness. Wash your hands regularly throughout the day. Many illnesses can be prevented by following just this one simple step alone.
6.  Consider that smoking and drinking toxify your body. Toxins produce disease.
5.  Manage your stress. Learn not to sweat the small stuff. Manage your anger, don't let it manage you.
4.  Get adequate rest. An adult needs at least eight hours of full restful sleep a night to allow the body and mind to rejuvenate.
3.  Hydrate. Drink at least six to eight glasses of water a day. To make it more visually appealing until habit and discipline kick in, use lemon, lime, or cucumber slices for garnish. Have a special crystal goblet on hand just for your water breaks.
2.  Exercise consistently. You don't have to work out like an athlete, but be sure to incorporate at least 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise into your schedule three to five days a week along with at least two days of strength training.
1.  Eat nutritiously every day. Make sure that fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are a major component of your feeding regimen. Choose high-quality protein sources.

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?" I Corinthians 6:19

Share your tips for vibrant health below.

*Disclaimer:  The information in this article is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.  All content, including text, graphics, images and information, contained on or available through this article is for general information purposes only.    Always consult a physician for matters of serious health issues. 

He Indeed Will Supply Your Need

We live -- and have been living for the last few years -- in an unquestionably troubled economy.  There isn't a day that goes by that we don't hear about someone losing their job, their home, their car, retirement savings, and/or health benefits. If we believe the media's report, there's almost no hope for the future.

In your own life maybe money is tight.  No matter how hard you try, with the price of gas, groceries, and utilities, mortgages, rent, credit card payments, and car notes there just always seems to be more month than money when bills come due.  It's so expensive to just live, much less to try to buy our wants.

Discouragement, worry, and anxiety are taking over your life, and your faith is slowly being replaced with fear with each incessant ring of the telephone and each visit to the mailbox.

Hold on ...

In all of this, still hold on. God is coming. He sees your struggle. He knows your need.

What can I do?

1. Continue to meditate on His Word.  Research the scriptures that specifically pertain to provision and meditate on them every day. 
2. Pray.  He wants you to come to Him and cast your cares upon Him.  He wants you to ask Him to take charge of the needs in your life. 
3. You may need to escalate your petition to Him with fasting. There are circumstances in life where reading and prayer are the basic foundations for getting in contact with God, but there are other circumstances that may entail more complex issues where fasting may be needed. 
4. Do good for others.  When we take our focus off of ourselves and our own problems we give God more room to work.
5. Be faithful to His house.  Encouragement from other believers, preaching and teaching of the Word, and a purposeful effort to be faithful to what God requires of us can help us to maintain our faith while in the midst of a struggle.
6. Believe.  He promised to provide, His Word is true, and He can't lie. 

God is fathful.
 
God will bring victory into your life in the area of need.  Your definition of need may not be limited exclusively to finances. It may extend to companionship, deliverance, to guidance. Need in the life of one believer may be different than need in the life of another aside from the basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter.  Try Him and see if He won't pour you out a blessing that you won't have room to receive. 

Hope and believe.

If He doesn't seem to be answering your prayers ask Him to reveal to you if there's anything in your life that isn't pleasing to Him, and if He shows you make that adjustment. But know that there is a hope for your future, that He's able, and He indeed will supply your need.

"But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."  Phillippians 4:19

Special Post: Free Apple iPad Giveaway!

I'm making a special post today because I'm excited to share with my readers that one of my favorite blogs, Christian Personal Finance, is sponsoring a Free Apple iPad Giveaway!!!  Yes, you read it right, you can win a FREE Apple iPad!  Entries will be accepted until midnight CST on June 17th. The contest requirements are simple, and you have six, count it six, options of increasing your chances of winning. 

Don't sleep on this one!  Again, the link to the contest is Free Apple iPad Giveaway.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming ...

Want Some Sugar for that Haterade?

"But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies ..."  Luke 6:27

Ouch.  I'm the first to admit that sometimes when I read that scripture I have to restrain myself from praying, Umm, Lord, are you sure that's what you meant to say?

I know I don't have to tell you that folks can be a challenge to get along with.  One of the most popular terms to explode in our cultural lexicon of late is 'hater,' and it's not without good reason.  There just seems to be a pervasive spirit of enmity, jealousy, and envy in the air wherever you look, and most times folks can't even give a good reason why they don't like somebody else!

As believers we're called to a higher standard.  It tastes sour going down, but it will come forth as sweet as honey where it really counts -- in the scheme of eternity.

So instead of one, make that two lumps of sugar in that cup of haterade ... regardless of whether you're the one making it or drinking it. ;-)

Weigh in.  Are you a lover or a hater?

REVIEW: BibleGateway.com

Welcome to BibleGateway.com, a free service for reading and researching Scripture online--all in the language or translation of your choice! 

 As a total computer geek, I'm always open to new applications of technology.  Like a number of my peers, I do almost everything via the Internet -- shopping, working, networking, etc.  I've even been known to date by way of the Web.  The most interesting use of the digital realm that I've heard of to date has been by a couple of my friends ... who attend church via the Net!

Some months back I was introduced to an awesome website called BibleGateway.com.  Both new and seasoned scholars of the Word will find it a wonderful resource.  I use it as my primary concordance.  By entering key words and/or phrases the user is given the ability to search every major translation of the Bible known to man in just a matter of seconds.  In addition, you'll find:

• Commentaries
• Articles on specific topics related to spiritual growth
• A Verse of the Day section
• An audio Bible
• A calendar-driven reading plan for your personal use
• Even an online store.

The site is user friendly and, of course, has a mobile version that can be accessed from any of your favorite hand-held devices.  Your reading and research options are endless!

Check out BibleGateway.com and share your experience with us after you visit.

Rating:  5/5