Tag: God

Thriving

I often hear people say how sorry they are for me. I know they mean well. Heck, if my crazy beautiful journey belonged to someone else I might feel sorry for them. But that is because people are looking at my journey from the outside. If you take a closer look, this journey really is beautiful. This journey has brought me great insight to what is important in life. Let me say this, I was very happy before this health journey started. But this almost 18 year health journey has been more than just living. More than just surviving. It has been about thriving. Choosing to thrive after every bad medical report. Choosing to to thrive after every setback. Choosing to embrace every breath. Choosing to embrace and overcome the pain. Choosing to embrace every lesson learned. You see,I am not just surviving this crazy beautiful journey. I am finally getting life right. I’m thriving. ~OC

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Living In Hope

How many of us want to live a life of hope? I pray everyone raised their hands. But with all the suffering and pain in the world, how can we possibly live in hope? Here are some steps we can take that will help us experience a life of hope.

Choose to Hope. I know this might be difficult for many, but we have to make the choice to live in hope. But OC, you have no idea the storms I am facing in life. How can I possibly live in hope with everything I am facing in life? I get it. I did not say it would be easy, but God desires for us to live in hope. But only we can make the choice to look past our current circumstances and choose to live in hope.

Prayer & Worship. I don’t know about you, but when I am praying and worshipping God I am filled with peace. Prayer and worship connects us to the timeless truth of God’s word. Spending time in prayer and worship, will fill our hearts with praise, encouragement, thanksgiving, grace and hope. So when your life is being tossed around like a crashing wave, I encourage you go to God in prayer, turn up the praise music and allow hope to wash His amazing hope over you.

The Word. The word of God was given to us that we might be filled with encouragement and hope. When we start our day with God’s word, it is like breathing in hope. The scriptures teach us how to navigate through the storms of life. So I encourage you spend more time in God’s word. That might mean getting up a little earlier or turning off social media for a few minutes. The Bible is filled with hope.

I pray you will not allow the storms of life to keep you from living a life of hope. Making the choice to live in hope will not always be easy, but I promise it will be life changing. ~OC

 

 

 

 

 

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Healing and Miracles

Prayer Warriors are needed to pray for a dear friend to experience a miracle. A group is meeting at Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida this morning 11/7 at 9:30am. I know most people reading this cannot physically be there, but I ask that you would pray for my dear friend and her family at 9:30 this morning. Please feel free to share this with your family and friends. Thank you. ~OC

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When Life Is Hard

We’ve all had some rough days. Maybe your rough days have turned into rough years.

As I have walked through my own crazy beautiful journey, I have experienced my share of rough days. Days where nothing seems to go right. Days where I just wanted to crawl back into bed (in my case, crawl up in my recliner). Those days can seem overwhelming at times. They can be stressful.

A season of health issues, relationship issues, financial issues or unemployment can seem overwhelming. During my health journey, I have learned a few lessons about dealing with the challenges of life. I pray you will find them encouraging and helpful.

Your Character. We cannot always control what happens to us in life, but we can always control how we react to the circumstances we face. During the rough moments of my journey, I have made the choice to stop complaining and instead thank God for my many blessings. Choosing to stay positive during those storms of life. Not always an easy choice, but it can be life changing. Our character should always be stronger than our circumstances.

Struggle to Strength. God can use every storm in life to make us stronger. To strengthen our faith. I know sometimes that is hard to see during the storm, but hold on. Our storms have a purpose.

God’s Plans are always perfect. God’s plans are almost always different than ours. Come on, we all think our plans are perfect in the moment. Sometimes we believe God’s plans for us are moving too slowly. Come on God, hurry up! Has anyone but me ever uttered those words? I would encourage each of us to slow down and be patient. Oh, that word Patience. Remember, God’s plan for our lives is always the perfect plan for our lives.

God is always with us. I know that is sometimes hard to believe, as we are holding on for dear life as we face another storm. But the minute you asked God into your life, he is always with you. Walking by your side as you navigate the crashing waves. If you have not asked God into your life, I pray today would be the day you make that incredible decision.

I pray these lessons help encourage you, as you walk through those tough moments in life. I also pray you will never walk your journey alone. Reach out to family or friends when facing those tough moments in life. Most importantly run to God and allow him to wrap his loving arms around you. ~OC

 

 

 

 

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A Night of Miracles

Hello everyone. Last Sunday morning, God woke me up and shared this past week would be a week of Healing and Miracles. During the week, I also felt God calling for me to asked people to pray for my throat and stomach. As many of you know, I have not had an appetite for almost 4 years and have not been able to speak without the assistance of a voice amplifier for about 3 years.

Last night my wife Laura and I attended a Prayer and Healing Service. During the healing part of the night, God blessed me with an appetite and allowed me to talk without the assistance of my amplifier. God is so good. I am overwhelmed by His incredible love for me.

Since I had an appetite, a bunch of us decided to go celebrate Jesus. So the picture below is my first meal in 3 years. I was able to eat a little chicken salad and fries. I also had a few sips of sweet ice tea. I am thrilled to share, I did not choke or throw it up. That had been a major problem in the past.

I encourage everyone to never stop praying for Jesus to move in your life. You never know when the Holy Spirit is going to show up. Keep Believing in your Miracle. ~OC

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New Opportunities

I had to retire early from my career in the juvenile justice field. I was only in my early 40’s. Thankfully, God was not finished with me. In the past ten years, God has allowed me to take on several new roles. Here are some of the opportunities God has blessed me to be part of:

Abolitionist

Missionary

Blogger

Encourager

Author

Thought Leader

Speaker

Prayer Warrior

Health Advocate

Blessed Overcomer

Ten years ago, I could have allowed my health issues to become my identity. But God had other plans for me. I had to make the choice to keep living and thriving. I pray you will make the choice to look past your current circumstances and choose to keep thriving and making a difference. ~OC

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