Today’s a new day!
Today’s a new day! This morning I need you to STOP!
S: Seek God in prayer about everything.
T: Trust God through prayers of thanksgiving.
O: Open your mind to that which comes from God.
P: Practice the Word of God.
Praying your day is filled with amazing moments and God’s blessings. ~OC
Today’s a new day! God did not bring you this far to lose. Keep your head up and keep fighting. You are strong enough. God knew when he chose you, that nobody would run harder for him than you. When the enemy showed up at God’s door, and shared he wanted a fight, God needed someone on the frontline and he chose you. God didn’t choose you by accident. He chose you because he knew when things got tough you would not run away. No you would run to a the battle. No retreat. There is no quit in you. You have been through battles way tougher than anything the enemy could ever throw at you. And you continue to overcome. So stop complaining and step up! God has brought you through bigger battles than this. God will not settle for the world’s second best for you. You have to choose to step up and out for your God given purpose. Stop just passing through life. Every hater and naysayer will try to hold you down, but you are a child of God’s. So keep fighting. Never give up! Choose to be all that God created you to be. A Overcomer! Don’t stop running until you receive your prize. Anything standing in your way will be defeated. So get up and be the Champion God created you to be. Go get it! ~OC
Today’s a new day! I enjoy peace and harmony. But sometimes I allow myself to get caught up in the distractions of social media. So starting today, I will no longer be responding to anyone’s negative or conspiracy theory posts, comments or text. I know I am not going to change anyone’s way of thinking, so why allow myself to get caught up in all the negativity. As I walk out this 4th quarter of my life, I want to enjoy the ride. Blessings. ~OC
Today’s a new day! Whatever has power over you is becoming powerless. Chains are being broken. Strongholds released! God is freeing you, so you can experience His peace, love, healing and purpose in every area of your life. ~OC
Dear Jesus, we have seen you calm natural storms and stormy lives.
We are praying you extend your power and grace again,
especially upon those most recent storm victims.
Speak peace and healing over the lives of so many broken by Hurricane Helene.
Jesus, speak peace.
Speak peace and hope over families and communities devastated by the sudden loss caused by Hurricane Helene.
Jesus, speak peace.
Speak peace and unity over diverse groups of people, so they would come together for the greater good and the rebuilding of lives and communities.
Jesus, speak peace.
Speak peace and protection over rescue workers, first responders and all volunteers as they reach out to those who are suffering.
Jesus, speak peace.
Speak calmness over Hurricane Milton as it rages in the open waters. May everyone in its path be safe.
You are the Prince of Peace.
You are the Resurrection and the Life.
You are strong to save and restore.
Our hope and trust are in you. Amen.
Today’s a new day! Being chronically ill comes with a lot of ups and downs and a wide range of emotions. These emotions can be so strong and overwhelming at times. As you walk through the different stages of being chronically ill, you are faced with a lot of situations that you could never prepare for and those moments can make you feel like you’re on an emotional roller coaster. Physical health affects your mental, emotional and spiritual health more than people would think.
When you are chronically ill, your life becomes a vicious cycle of intense symptoms and flares. This can leave you feeling completely hopeless and lost at times. But even at moments when it feels impossible to find joy, it is possible, even on the darkest days. Some days you have to search a little harder for that joy but it is always there. Joy looks different to everyone. As a chronic illness warrior it is so important that you surround yourself with joy because it is easy to lose hope of experiencing pure joy again.
I find joy in many ways in my life and I really make an effort to make those things a part of my daily living. One of the main ways that I find joy/happiness is by leaning into my faith. My faith has allowed me to overcome a lot of tough moments in this journey. I also surround myself with the love and support of my family and the few friends who have decided to stay in the boat with me. A supportive group of people have the ability to turn my bad days into great days. I am so thankful for each of them because they not only provide peace/joy, they also give me so much hope. I also find joy and happiness in doing things I love such as: writing,listening to music and making memories with my bride.
The past month has been filled with more tough news regarding my health. Looking back on the past month, joy has still there even in the darkest days. Sometimes during hard times things become so overwhelming that we forget that even then we can still find joy in the little things. It is okay to have bad days but it is so important that everyday we challenge ourselves to stop and find happiness and joy. Joy always outweighs the bad and it is so important that we remind ourselves of that. Have a great day! ~OC
Today’s a new day! I know I will take some heat for this post, but I am a big boy. As we move toward another presidential election, I truly am trying to understand how Christians can continue to support Donald Trump. In all seriousness and good faith, I’m asking you to tell me.
I am posting a number of questions here and I would truly love your honest feedback about your support of the former President.
I would ask that nobody leave sarcastic, snarky or rude answers or comments. I truly do want to understand how a Christian could cast their vote for Donald Trump.
I grew up in the Church, so I know we are all more than one thing. I know if I was just released from the hospital, you would start a meal train. If I were in a car wreck you’d stop to help me. You wouldn’t ask if I’m a Christian or a Democrat or a DEI worker. You’d just help. I know that side of so many of you. That’s part of what makes your support of Trump so baffling to me.
I want to understand this issue that puzzles me because what I see in the former President is absolutely antithetical to the gospel I learned about as a child in that Southern Baptist church in South Florida.
I want to understand how you see the former president so very differently than I do. So, please, write in and respond to one or two of these questions:
1). Why do you as a Christian support Donald Trump?
2). Do you think Trump as a person and/or his former presidency and current campaign express the love of God in Christ for others to see?
3). Does Trump’s personal moral behavior matter to you as long as he supports policies you want?
4). Do you think Donald Trump is a good role model for your children or grandchildren?
5). The Bible many times over says to welcome the foreigner within your borders. How does that square with Trump’s ultra anti-immigrant stance and policies that especially target migrants at our southern border?
6). What do you think of Trump’s history of sexual misconduct and impropriety, including comments about his own daughter, Ivanka?
7). The former president has threatened chaos, including the possibility of a civil war, if he’s not elected. What do you think of that?
8). If you believe the U.S. is supposed to be a Christian nation, what do you think we should do about the non-Christians who live here?
9). If the U.S. is supposed to be a Christian nation, which Christians get to decide public policy?
10). What do you think of how Trump calls people names or says ugly things about people?
11). Are you bothered by all of the Trump lies?
12). How does your support of Trump square with the Gospel for you?
I really hope and pray my fellow Christians will take the time to study and answer these questions. Thank you. ~OC
Today’s a new day! There is a four-letter word that is woven into the fabric of our souls, and that word is HOPE. Having a purpose in life encourages self-determination. It all starts with a belief, an idea that can create a powerful purpose filled life.
The seed of hope is planted deep within each of us. If we water those seeds, amazing and beautiful things will be created. Hope creates motion, motion creates action, action creates results, results create achievement, achievement creates self-confidence, and self-confidence creates the mindset that we can and will achieve everything God desires for us.
Through hope, we can conquer our fears and turn a life of trials into a life of triumph, a mess into a message, fear into faith, and a test into a testimony. There are times our hope button can get stuck. Here is how I believe we can activate our stuck hope button.
We have to decide to change our mindset from selfish to selfless, from “poor me” to helping someone else who is walking through a major trial. Our selfless time engaged in someone else’s life battle could help kick-start hope within them and start a chain of of hope dealers. Hope is contagious!
How awesome would it be if we each lived a life of Helping One Person Everyday. Helping others succeed brings so much hope and meaning into our lives. How beautiful it is when we give of ourselves. It fills us up as well and provides us with the strength to conquer life’s challenges.
We all have the ability to share hope with those around us. It could be a smile, kind word, listening, or lending a helping hand.
It is never too late to start living a life of Hope. You never know the difference you can make in a person’s life. So today be bold, compassionate and loving. Share Hope. Help one person today. ~OC
Today’s a new day! We need to stop walking with a prideful strut. We need to stop being smug and selfish. We need to stop making life about us. We need to stop being a “Me Society.” We need to put the focus back on God. He is the only one who needs to be famous. We need the Holy Spirit to subdue our fleshly pride. We need to walk with a limp of total dependency on God. ~OC
Today’s a new day! Yesterday, I had the honor of being in Plains, GA to celebrate former President Jimmy Carter’s 100th birthday. It was a wonderful day seeing old friends, meeting new friends and reflecting on the life of a man who has truly lived a life of honor.
As we are in the middle of another election, I spent some time reflecting over the legacy of past American presidents. The debate over a president’s legacy begins the moment they leave office. Sometimes sooner. I am sure everyone can make their case for who is or was the best and greatest president in the history of America. We could debate their contributions, records and everyone could weigh in with their memories and opinions. But I personally do not believe anyone can argue that the greatest post presidency does not belong to the 39th President of the United States from Plains, Georgia Jimmy Carter.
When President Carter and Mrs Carter left Washington, DC in 1981, the so called experts were in agreement that President Carter had failed and would be forgotten. That was not to be the case. Not even close. President and Mrs Carter would leave a major life changing legacy behind.
Upon leaving the White House, one of the first things the Carters did was to become closely identified with a nonprofit volunteer project, Habitat for Humanity. During its initial two decades, owing in large measure to the Carter’s involvement, Habitat became a household name in communities across the US, helping over 59 million people build or improve a place to call home. Well into their 90’s, President and Mrs. Carter were still spending one week each year volunteering with Habitat. The Carters became so identified with Habitat that when thinking of them, more Americans probably called to mind the Carters in denim with hammers in their hand more than the Carters dressed up for a formal dinner at the White House.
In 1982, just two years after leaving office, Carter further burnished his credentials as a great leader when they created the Carter Center, which described its role as “waging peace, fighting disease, and building hope.” Many of the Carter Center’s initiatives were led by President and Mrs. Carter, including monitoring elections in dozens of countries; negotiating peaceful resolutions to conflicts in Africa, Asia, and the Americas; under the leadership of President and Mrs. Carter the Center took on programs to help eradicate multiple diseases around the world including guinea worm. According to the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia, In 1986, the disease afflicted an estimated 3.5 million people a year in 21 countries in Africa and Asia. Today, thanks to the work of The Carter Center and its partners — including the countries themselves — the incidence of Guinea worm has been reduced by more than 99.99 percent to 14 provisional* human cases in 2023. Working tirelessly to address multiple global concerns, the Carters have established a legacy as the greatest of our former First Families.
My wife and I had the honor of meeting President and Mrs. Carter in 2019, as he taught Sunday School at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, GA. It was one one of highlights of my life. I had no idea how profoundly that day would change my life.
Yesterday, at the 100th birthday celebration, a group of us who all attended President Carter’s Sunday School class at different times, sat around a table reflecting and celebrating the life of the man who brought all of us together yesterday not as strangers, but as friends. That is one of the beautiful legacies of President and Mrs. Carter.
With all these wonderful memories flowing from my heart, I recall the words of President Carter from back in 2019, when sharing about his health, “I didn’t ask God to let me live, but I asked God to give me a proper attitude toward death. And I found that I was absolutely and completely at ease with death.”
This is the legacy of our 39th President Jimmy Carter. A humble man who has taught us how to live a life for others in service. As President Carter approaches the end of his life, he is teaching us another lesson about not only living a life with grace, but maybe more important how to die with grace. ~OC
The Blessed Overcomer 