Inspiring Stories to help you beyond your circumstances Author Archive
DIRECT MY STEPS LORD
When any of us are stricken with some crushing pain, crisis, hardship, or trial and we don’t know what to do, it is paramount to remember the words of Jeremiah: “I know, O Lord, that a man’s life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.” (Jeremiah 10:23).
The absolute worst thing we can do in times of trouble is to make hasty decisions and to take whatever course of action seems easiest at the time. Remember, God has promised to lead us.
In 1 Samuel 30, David was in extreme duress and had wept till he had no strength left. All those with him did the same. You can read the story. Even those around him wanted to stone him, but David encouraged himself in the Lord, chose to worship, inquired of God and God gave David specific instructions. David obeyed and recovered all. (*Note: … those with him wanted to stone him and out of all of those men, David was the only one mentioned that turned to the Lord). Time doesn’t heal our wounds; it is in turning to the LORD where we find strength and help in times of trouble.
We must remember that our life is not our own, and that God has promised to lead us. I don’t know what you are facing, but God does. Turn to Him and He will give you direction. He will direct your steps. If you sense a small unsettling nudge in your heart, don’t ignore it. It may save your life and future.
You may be seeing injustice all around you and sense God nudging you to step out into a new career to be the change. You may be facing a business decision and need help from God and clarity. You may be deciding which job to take, where to move, or what church to connect with in a new city. One thing I know for sure, God will lead you. He will also connect you will people to help you succeed as a team.
HIS love and mine,
Deborah
BOOKS BY DR. DEBORAH STARCZEWSKI
GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed and Know Your Purpose)
A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)…the miraculous account of God raising my husband from death, healing him from two strokes, and two open-heart surgeries. The story will keep you turning the pages, give you encouragement, and increase your faith to believe God for whatever you are facing.
THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?)…a must read for all. A great devotional type read…the perfect gift for family, friends, and co-workers.
Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.starministriesinc.com and other distributors.
Contact Deborah at www.starministriesinc.com for speaking and ministry engagements.
OPEN YOUR EYES TO SEE…..HELP FOR ALL
(Excerpt)…”You may find yourself in a place of extreme pain and derision. Perhaps, you don’t have the natural strength to move forward due to all the stress from a situation. Maybe you’re contemplating all the months ahead and wondering how on earth you are going to make it. Perhaps, you don’t have the physical strength to even move forward from all the stress you are experiencing. Do you find yourself in a desert wondering how you are going to provide for your small kids, make the house payments, go to work and function with excellence, to just getting out of bed? You are the very one God wants to speak to right now and take you to the place of totally depending upon Him and trusting Him with your every need.
God wants to open your eyes to His well of provision just like Hagar saw in the middle of her desert. God not only wants you to have provision but He wants you to be in peace. He tells us in His Word, “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trust in you” (Isaiah 26:3 NIV).
As we trust the Lord, pray, and renew our minds, we find that our emotions do not run wild but rather, we have a calm assurance that God will provide in every area as we wait upon Him. That is the most amazing way to live.
Not only does God keep us in peace as we keep our mind stayed on Him, but He also provides food. The psalmist tells us, “I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging for bread” (Psalm 37:25). The LORD can move on someone’s heart to bring you a meal to providing for you in some manner you least likely expect. Several months ago, I remember I was at an appointment and the doctor was running late. I had a lunch appointment and knew I was not going to have time so I called and cancelled lunch. I also knew if I didn’t get a little something to eat that I would have a headache.
I remember thinking I would just drive over to the bagel shop and get a toasted bagel for a snack. Just in front of the door, a lady dressed in a warm-up suit asked me if I had some change. I told her I would get some inside. I walked inside and the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart to ask her to join me and buy her lunch. I walked back outside and asked her so we both proceeded through the door together. We began to have casual conversation in line and I asked her what she would like, so we ordered and I paid for it. We sat down and I prayed over our meal and then she began to tell me that she was homeless due to several bad choices. She expressed that she had a good job but lost it due to falling back into some sin and not getting to work on time. I asked her if she had a relationship with Jesus and she said she had heard about him. We ended up praying again and I shared how God had rearranged my day to meet her. I gave her money for a bus, for food, and for a hotel for the night. She told me she stayed off Sugar Creek Road somewhere. I felt compassion for her and her situation.
On my drive home, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart to go and get a pedicure. Now I can guess that some of you might be thinking, “Why would God tell her to get a pedicure?” God sometimes gives us strange instructions, interrupts our days, and positions us to hear from Him specifically. God knows I rarely watch TV news. So listen to this.
While getting the pedicure, I heard a man on the news that was on in the nail salon and tentatively listened to every word. He shared how he had been homeless himself, how the churches in the area were coming together, God had given him a ministry, and that a shelter to house the homeless was opening off Sugar Creek the next day. This was the area the lady stayed near.
God was letting me know that He positioned me to take care of the lady I met for the day, and He would provide the rest. God never ceases to amaze me.
Now, you may not be homeless, but in your heart, you may feel the same. All alone in this big world! Just as God provided for the lady’s day, He is providing for you. I don’t know all the details, but HE does.
God provides for our needs because He says so in His Word. The apostle Paul says, “My God will meet all your needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus.” I believe Him. Jesus told His followers not to worry about what they would eat or drink or wear, but to seek His kingdom first and His righteousness, and then all other things would fall into place (Matthew 6:33).
God provides comfort as we walk through the desert. He brings encouragement in detailed ways. He goes to extreme measures to encourage and provide for His Sons and Daughters. Our God is described as the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles.”
(Excerpt from GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE…published 2011, Creation House Press)
God bless you!
Deborah Starczewski
BOOKS BY DEBORAH STARCZEWSKI
GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed and Know Your Purpose)
THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?)
A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)…the miraculous account of God raising my husband from death, healing him from two strokes and two open-heart surgeries. This book will keep you turning the pages and give you faith to believe God for yourself.
Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.starministriesinc.com and other distributors
WHAT DOES GOD WANT US TO DO?
Many sincere seekers for God are puzzled about what God wants them to do. Man’s traditions and world’s religions are humankind’s attempts to answer this age old question. In John 6:22-29, Jesus’ reply to this question is simple: We must believe on Him whom God has sent.
The crowds began gathering on the shore, waiting to see Jesus. They knew that Jesus and His disciples had come over together and that the disciples had gone off in their boat, leaving Jesus behind. Several boats from Tiberius landed near the place where the Lord had blessed the bread and the people had eaten. When the crowd saw that Jesus wasn’t there, nor his disciples, they got into the boats and went across to Capernaum to look for him. When they arrived and found him, they asked, “Teacher, how did you get here?”
Jesus replied, “The truth is, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you saw the miraculous sign. But you shouldn’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that I, the Son of Man, can give you. For God the Father has sent me for that very purpose.”
They replied, “What does God want us to do?”
Jesus told them, “This is what God wants you to do; Believe in the one he has sent.”
The first step is accepting that Jesus is who He claims to be. It’s imperative for our spiritual development to know who we are IN CHRIST and WHO HE IS.
Satisfying God does not come from the work we do but from whom we believe.
In this passage, Jesus criticized the people who only followed Him for the temporal and physical benefits and not for the satisfying of their spiritual hunger. In this world many are driven by ambition, prestige, power, and performance and use religion to gain prestige, comfort, or even political votes…which are all self-centered motives.
We must know in our hearts that Jesus is “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16), and embark on our life and spiritual journey of belief that is pleasing and satisfying to our Creator. Jesus is the true Bread from heaven.
It’s not about a head knowledge, it’s a heart change. Man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart. (See 1 Samuel 16:7)
If you keep on reading in John 6:30-40, we learn that Jesus did not work independently of God the Father but in union with Him. His purpose was to do the will of God, not to satisfy human desires.
People eat bread to sustain physical life and satisfy physical hunger. We can sustain spiritual life and satisfy spiritual hunger only by a right relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s not about man’s traditions or world’s religions; it’s about a relationship with Jesus Himself. There is no wonder Jesus called himself the Bread of Life.
Bread must be eaten to sustain life, and Jesus Christ must be invited into our daily walk to sustain spiritual life.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. No one who comes to me will ever be hungry again. Those who believe in me will never thirst. But you haven’t believed in me even though you have seen me. However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them. For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do what I want. And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them to eternal life at the last day. For it is my Father’s will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life—that I should raise them at the last day.”
Those who put their faith in Jesus Christ will be resurrected from physical death to everlasting life with God when Christ comes again (see 1 Corinthians 15:52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16).
Oh, what a glorious day that will be.
If you have never been born-again, now is the time to believe on Jesus. It’s not too late while you have breath in your lungs. Cry out to Him now. He is waiting on you to receive the gift of eternal life through believing in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit of God gives spiritual life. Without the work of the Holy Spirit, we cannot even see or recognize our need for new life (John 14:17). Thank GOD for the Holy Spirit……who convicts the world of sin.
Love,
Deborah Starczewski
Books for encouragement by Dr. Deborah Starczewski:
GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed And Know Your Purpose)
A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)…the full account of God raising my husband from death, healing him from two strokes and two open-heart surgeries. The miraculous account will keep you turning the pages and give you faith to believe God for anything.
THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?)…. a must read for all.
Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.starministriesinc.com and other distributors