CHOOSE GOD'S POSSIBILITIES OVER YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES

The reason why we are oftentimes disheartened is because we allow the circumstances and the situation determines our joy when it should be vise-versa- our joy determines our circumstances and situation. Yes, I understand, hard times and difficult circumstances happen in our lives. I have my big share in the past of how it is to have difficult times. I have experienced how it is to be in the rock-bottom.

- I have experienced to sleep in a bus terminal because I was a vagabond;
- I have experienced to be in the streets, drunk and broken;
- I have experienced to be in bad places and lived with no direction.

But I finally realized just like what a certain writer said, "No one cares of you being miserable, so rather, be happy." And freedom and blessings came into my soul when I fully embraced that in all these difficult situations, there is a gracious God who loves me and planned my life to be abundant, prosperous and victorious. When I started to shift my sight from the circumstances to the possibilities, from crisis to where Christ is and from defeat to triumph, my life also started to shift towards fulness.

This is what I have learned-

Circumstances and situations should not break me but mold me.
Circumstances and situations are but platforms where God will bless me.
Circumstances and situations are but a stage where God will show His power in my behalf.

There is a verse in Isaiah which said -

"The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose." - Isaiah 35:1

The circumstance and the place was unlikely and difficult - wilderness, solitary place and a desert. But what God was implying here was this -

when you chose to embrace God's possibilities and power, and you chose to be a winner no matter how your hard your circumstances are, time will come that even these circumstances will be glad and will rejoice for you.

Yes, God's grace picked me up and I chose to be victorious. Since then, I lived a forgiven, fulfilled, happy life with love and direction from God. I have experienced now the upward way of life. I have discovered my potentials and purpose. I have renewed relationships. I have found fulness in using my talents, time and potentials to help many people. Yes, I am living now a victorious life.

And you know what? One time I visited those places where I used to squander my life, and somehow I felt the truth of the verse. The circumstances and the situations where you once in will be glad and rejoice for you because they were not victorious over you, as if -

- the bus terminal is telling me, "You won. We didn't have you."
- the dirty streets are telling me, "You won. We didn't have you."
- the bad places are telling me, "You won. We didn't have you."

You know what got me?
God's grace.

You may have bad times, but the bad times ought not to have you.
You may have failures, but failures ought not have you.
You may have tough situations, but tough situations ought not to have you.

And what the next verse has said was true to me -

"they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God." - Isaiah 35: 2

This is the actual bus terminal where I used to sleep six years ago- miserable, rebellious and vagabond. I took these photo when I recently visited the place. Just imagine what I look like at that time.

And this is where I am now - happy, forgiven, enjoying life and touching the lives of many. GOD IS GREAT!