The Serpent's Sleight of Hand

All other things derive being – their ‘is-ness’ is secondary.  But God did not derive His being from any other – His ‘is-ness’ is underived, original, eternal!  He was, and is, and is to come, the eternal ‘I Am.’ Rather than concealing His identity, this Name reveals the deepest mystery of His being, and rocks our minds with the discovery that we cannot begin to fathom the mind and life of this eternal God.

Sinclair Ferguson

A Heart for God, 1987, p. 51

Genesis 2:4-3:9 (NASB)

4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven.

5 Now no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground.

6 But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground.

7 Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

8 The Lord God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed.

9 Out of the ground the Lord God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10 Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it divided and became four rivers.

11 The name of the first is Pishon; it flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold.

12 The gold of that land is good; the bdellium and the onyx stone are there.

13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the whole land of Cush.

14 The name of the third river is Tigris; it flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.

16 The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;

17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”

19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.

20 The man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him.

21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place.

22 The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.

23 The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones,

And flesh of my flesh;

She shall be called Woman,

Because she was taken out of Man.”

24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. 

Chapter 3

The Fall of Man

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”

2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat;

3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”

4 The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!

5 “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.

7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.

8 They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

9 Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” 

 Did you miss it? Might I indulge you to re-read it, one more time, below.

Genesis 2:4-3:9 (NASB)

4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven.

5 Now no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground.

6 But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground.

7 Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

8 The Lord God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed.

9 Out of the ground the Lord God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10 Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it divided and became four rivers.

11 The name of the first is Pishon; it flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold.

12 The gold of that land is good; the bdellium and the onyx stone are there.

13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the whole land of Cush.

14 The name of the third river is Tigris; it flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.

16 The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;

17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”

19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.

20 The man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him.

21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place.

22 The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.

23 The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones,

And flesh of my flesh;

She shall be called Woman,

Because she was taken out of Man.”

24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. 

Chapter 3

The Fall of Man

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”

2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat;

3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”

4 The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!

5 “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.

7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.

8 They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

9 Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” 

LORD God.

Lord, in the original language of the text, is “Yahweh”; God is “ĕ•lō•hîm”.

Yahweh occurs 6,829 times in the Old Testament (the first instance here in Genesis 2:4); Elohim occurs 2,598 times (this, in Genesis 2:4 being the 36th instance).

Yahweh literally means “I am who I am", or, "He who will be”; it is used when God’s word stresses God’s personal relationship with His people as well as His holiness (perfection). Basically, the pure-goodness of God. Elohim, on the latter side of “LORD God”, refers to God as creator of all things, as well as ruler over it. Basically, the pure-greatness of God. Some scholars suggest since Elohim has a plural form, the mystery of the Trinity, from verse one of the Old Testament, was embedded to be revealed in the coming of Jesus Christ.

Elohim has been used to this point in God’s word, and correctly so, to show God’s role as THE creator of all things; which is the main stress of chapter one. Yahweh enters God’s Word to begin to show, and unravel to the reader, God’s purpose and plan of salvation.

There are at least fourteen different names for God in Holy Scripture (that is, if you do not use the multiple names for Jesus himself: i.e—Son of man, The Living One, The first-born from the dead, Lion of the Tribe of Judah, etc); obviously we cannot examine the full magnificence of our Lord.

However, what is very interesting about this text—which is very practical in its essence without getting too deep into the many ideas of God and His countless attributes—is the sleight of hand by the serpent. The one point of this article I pray you grasp is to see and understand what the serpent did (and does, still, today). The goodness of God, the self-sufficient God Himself (Yahweh), was shown to Adam and Eve in the garden very clearly; so much so that in verse 23 of the text we witness Adam, literally, singing because he was so delighted to have a companion in woman. Sadly, it didn’t last long.

The serpent (Satan), a created being, did not deny God’s existence, or His greatness. Very subtly, Satan attacked Eve by installing doubt into her mind: “Indeed, has God said, you shall not eat from any tree of the garden?” Eve answers, following the lead of Satan rather than God-- and what had been passed on to her by Adam: ”From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die’”. Let me be clear: this command was given to Adam before Eve was created; obviously, there was communication of God’s command between Adam and Eve. This, though, should not present as an opportunity to myself nor anyone, for that matter, to lay a heavier blame on Eve versus Adam; both were equals in sin. Look ahead to verse six: “..and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate”. Adam, close by, sat idly by with full awareness of what Eve was doing and the consequences that would come of it. He did nothing. He was apathetic to God’s command.

“Yahweh” joined “Elohim” to indicate that the creator of all is now the one (Yahweh) who is thoroughly concerned to preserve a personal relationship with individuals who will walk with him. The very cunning one, the “shining one” (“Nachash” in Hebrew which literally means “shining one”), enters the picture in an attempt to separate the two traits of God; an attempt to undermine God’s word and command to persuade Eve, and Adam for that matter, to go their own way, or the way of the world. Yes, God is great; that, even Satan and his demons concede. Their goal is not to dissuade the greatness of God; that, is quite impossible. It is, however, Satan’s goal to remove God’s goodness from your eyesight, to give you a picture of what life could be like living with worldly possessions and worldly desires; basically, to persuade you that sin and its pleasures are sufficient enough for us over obedience to God.

Make no mistake Christian: Satan will attack us, exactly how he attacked our parents—Adam and Eve. Think about it: Satan does not and will not waste his time attempting to disprove God, he himself is a created being and fully aware of who God is. Maybe you are a new believer; you, naturally, are less prepared in knowing how to resist his seductive suggestions. Maybe you are going through a tough season in your life, maybe you are facing persecution or affliction; you instantly become an easy target—the suggestion will come (like in the garden of Eden) that God is not fair, He doesn’t have our best interest at heart, there is a better way to get through your trials; i.e, instant gratification by way of sin.

I quote Thomas Brooks here: “Satan promises the best, but pays with the worst; he promises honor, and pays with disgrace; he promises pleasure, and pays with pain; he promises profit, and pays with loss; he promises life, and pays with death. But God pays as He promises; all His payments are made in pure gold.”

How true and how profound are those words. I pray you think not of this world as your final dwelling place. Because, when all is said and done, when this life bids us adieu, one of two things will happen: 1) we live or; 2) we die. Both realities are eternal; the former is in the presence of God living in Holiness; the latter is the unending wrath of God—a life of torment. Satan’s goal and objective is to take as many people as he can to the absolute best thing he has to offer you—Hell.

Do not run the risk of believing for a second that Satan is more interested in your welfare than God is: not following Jesus, not crucifying yourself daily as you carry your cross, not surrendering to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, is, though, just that, believing Satan’s way is the best way. Believe that and you, like Eve, will look into the face of God and call him a liar—don’t make that mistake.

Don’t think because you profess your belief in God that you are set on the narrow path; Satan will indeed guide you down the road you believe leads to heaven—don’t fall for it. God is great, yes, but the goodness of God should not be separated from this equation—He works all things for good, He is fully in control, and His love is the greatest love the world has ever seen.

You do not have the option of making Jesus Christ Lord of your life; He is Lord. Surrender and follow Him; but be prepared for the serpent's sleight of hand.

YAHWEH ELOHIM. He is good. He is great!

Quotes:


[In reference to the temptation in the garden:] "God is a liar," (Satan) says. "He has deceived you, taken your freedom, and restricted your joy." Satan's lie is still the same today: "You can be free. Do whatever you want.  It is your life. There are no divine laws; no absolute authority; and above all, no judgment. You will surely not die."

 John MacArthur

The Battle for the Beginning, W Publishing Group 2001, p. 197.


“Drunkenness is the devil’s back door to hell and everything that is hellish. For he that once gives away his brains to drink is ready to be caught by Satan for anything.”

 C.H. Spurgeon

Sermons, 46.64.


“[Satan] can make men dance upon the brink of hell as though they were on the verge of heaven.”

C.H. Spurgeon

Sermons, 11.75.


”Our enemy knows that when he strikes the shepherd, the sheep will scatter (Matt. 26:31), and church leaders – even as the Lord Himself – are Satan’s special targets. The more faithful and fruitful a pastor is, the more his people need to pray for his strength and protection. He is more subject to the devil’s schemes to make him discouraged or self-satisfied, hopeless or superficially optimistic, cowardly or overconfident. Satan uses every situation – favorable or unfavorable, successful or unsuccessful – to try to weaken, distract, and discredit God’s gifted men in their work of “equipping of the saints for the work of service” (Eph. 4:12).”             

John MacArthur
Ephesians, Moody, 1986, p. 384.


“Some of these things the devil would not do if he could. He would not awaken the conscience and make men aware of their miserable state caused by sin. He would not make them aware of their great need of a Savior. The devil would not confirm men in the belief that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of sinners or raise men’s value and esteem of Him. He would not generate in men’s minds an opinion of the necessity, usefulness, and truth of the Holy Scriptures or induce them to make much use of them. Nor would he show men the truth in things that concern their souls’ interest. He would not undeceive them and lead them out of darkness into light. He would not give them a view of things as they really are…Therefore, we may be sure that these marks are especially adapted to distinguish between the true Spirit and the devil transformed into an angel of light.”


Jonathan Edwards

Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God, 1741. Modern language courtesy of Archie Parrish, The Spirit of Revival, Crossway Books, 2000, p. 100, 102

The View of God: Christian or Non-Christian, Not Black or White

Recently, with the death of Trayvon Martin , it has become clear a racial-divide is still visible in America.

I am not here to speak on the case as it is: honestly, I do not know enough to form an opinion. I also am not here to say whether or not the outrage that has rippled through the country is just or not; it may very well be (to an extent). What I am here to do is to serve the Word from God.

I do not know the ins or outs of the Trayvon Martin case: I have witnessed rallies with, what appears to be, a diverse group of people; but, I have also observed individuals taking stances, not against crime or injustice that was possibly perpetrated, but against the opposite race from what oneself is. (Note: I have witnessed these actions against the opposite-race, via salacious word, from, not just one ethnicity but, many)

"for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him." (Romans 10:12 HCSB)

Christian: Let us not allow the evil of the world, satan and his army, to take our eyes off the teaching of scripture. I understand the ease at which this can take place: it happened 2,000 years ago with the illegal arrest, illegal trial, illegal conviction, and illegal murder of the redeemer of all peoples—Jesus Christ. The Sanhedrin, then, had a goal in mind: and they were going to accomplish it no matter what; little did they know, God was applying His sovereign will to it all; directing the most atrocious crime and, at the same time, most beautiful act of sacrificial love, of all time.

There is not one God to Caucasian-man, one God to African-American man, and one God to Native American man: And this is what is being written by the Apostle Paul to a group of Christians in Rome; there is not one God to the Jews and another to the Gentiles; the Lord our God is Lord our God to all men. Jesus came to earth 2,000 years ago to redeem and provide a way for all people-groups; not just one.

When it snows, it has been said that no two snowflakes are the same: Wilson Bentley, whose nickname was "snowflake", was so enthralled with this idea that he dedicated his time to photograph over 2500 snowflakes. His findings showed that a snowflake is a hexagon with six tips or dendrites forming a perfectly symmetrical design; however, there never was a duplicate. Ever. Dwell on this: millions and millions of snowflakes and never a duplicate; to me, that is a beautiful example from God—who controls the entire universe; the sun, the rain, the snow, the lightning, the wind, the storms—that He takes enjoyment in His diverse creation.

All human beings have differences: we walk different; talk different; have dark and light skin; our hair color is different; some of us don’t even have hair; anatomically, though, we are all the same—we are all in need of a savior from our sin-filled nature. We need that, both, before and after we meet Jesus Christ: He saves us and then keeps us on the narrow path to Heaven. This is the goal before all other goals—to spread the tremendous news of Jesus Christ. The Gospel can and will cure all.

We are all very different, but all have the same need; and because there is only one way to fulfill that need, in Jesus Christ, this fact always brings us back to the same commonality—we were made in His likeness to praise, adore, and worship Him, and spread the news.

V.C Grounds said this: "We are also the same in our need of salvation. And there is just one way. Anyone, anywhere, anytime, who calls on Jesus Christ in faith experiences the destiny-changing wonder of God's redemptive love. The one and only Savior has been provided for all of us."

"that is, God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe, since there is no distinction." (Romans 3:22 HCSB)

Being a Christian, yes, is a narrow road; but it is not an exclusive road. The Gospel is for whoever believes and has faith in the coming of Jesus Christ, believes and has faith in the resurrection, and, because of that, it changes your entire life, you are never the same; that produces the fruit—the "good works". They are all tied together. If you are missing one of those: 1) you have never met Jesus Christ truly; or 2) you are in need of repentance: something, somewhere, is holding you back, something is numbing you, which is allowing you to toss salacious hurtful-words to a human being you view as "smaller" of "less-worthy". Sharing the Gospel involves repentance, the Holy Spirit, and Baptism: If you are truly new, truly born-again, that does not mean you will not fall short or sin, but you will never dwell there in it without conviction, you will repent, and you will get back on that narrow path.

"Or is God for Jews only? Is He not also for Gentiles? Yes, for Gentiles too" (Romans 3:29 HCSB)

"He sent the message to the Israelites, proclaiming the good news of peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all." (Acts 10:36 HCSB)

"Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6 HCSB)

"There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people, and we must be saved by it." (Acts 4:12 HCSB)

"and have put on the new self. You are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of your Creator." (Colossians 3:10 HCSB)

Read it: this is not rocket-science; I take what the Bible says literally. When the judgment comes (and it will) God, the just judger, will either welcome us because he sees Jesus Christ living inside of us, or He will depart us because He never knew us(Matthew 7:23).

That grace is available for all peoples. The choice is yours. Have no doubts.

9 After this I looked, and there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were robed in white with palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:
Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb! (Revelation 7:9-10)

My Story of Depression

“What the king is asking is so difficult that no one can make it known to him except the gods, whose dwelling is not with mortals” (Daniel 2:11)

This verse is quite profound to me and here’s why: King Nebuchadnezzar began having dreams in the second year of his reign, and for this dream the king had requested that the wise men (which is a general term for all the king’s counselors, who gained their knowledge through occult practices) not only translate his dream, but tell him what he dreamed and THEN translate it. The wise men admitted that despite all their incantations, magic, and astrology, they were not capable of receiving supernatural revelation on their own.

Not only that, but it is kind of cool to look at this verse and know that a time would (and will again) come that God would dwell with His people in the form of Jesus Christ.

My story:

The year 2011 was as difficult and trying a time as I had ever faced in my life. Coming off the late 2010 loss of my best friend, my grandfather, 2011 was a year that tested every ounce of my being. Looking back, now, though, I smile. And this, fact, is true for everyone who is reading this because God can use your pain, your strife, your loss, your heartache and heartbreak, to glorify His name and make you a stronger believer. I am living proof.

We are all sinners, this is true. However, living in daily sin, each and every day, not only quenches the Holy Spirit off from really being able to guide you but it is a slap in the face of our Father in Heaven who by His grace alone is allowing us to continue living. That right there should be enough to get us out of a sinful life style, right? Well it wasn’t for me.

I was in a four-year-long relationship, by which my beautiful son was created. We lived together, we had a son together, we bought a house together, we vacationed together, we were very comfortable together; however, we were about as far apart as two people could be. God had no place in our relationship. I will stop here in my discussion of my son’s mother because that is not the point of this post. She loves my son, Kabriel, as he loves her and I will not lay blame on anyone other than myself for the depths I would find myself in last year. As a called leader I failed miserably. Satan exposed every single weakness and every single scar of my life and fully exploited them. He was winning. Key word, was.

When push came to shove, the relationship ended. A part of me was relieved, but a part of me was saddened. Not really saddened because I would now be apart from who I was in a relationship with; I was saddened because, all of a sudden, I did not see my son everyday, who I had watched grow up every single day of his life. That was tough and it still is.

As the days went on, apart from my son; apart from the home I had purchased; and apart from the life that I knew, I fell into a deep, dark depression.

I had never really bought “depression” as an actual disease. I mainly thought that because I did not see how anyone could get so low. How naive I was.

One night in September, in the middle of this period of my life, which no one knew about, I hit rock-bottom. I was ready for this life to be over; not figuratively, but literally.

I went for a drive one night, in September, after covering a Clemson football game, with my mind made up that I had gone as far as I could, I have done all that I could do, my life as I knew it was over from my point of view. There—“from my point of view”—in lies the entire crux of the problem. I had one view; what was best for me.

As I drove on a local road here in town that night, I was looking for a place that would end my life quickly; I was hoping it would, maybe, even appear as an accident. There is this bridge on the road I drove up and down that night, that seemed to be perfect: a steep drop from the bridge to the highway below; I thought that would have to end it quickly. I remember thinking to myself—and I may have even muttered this aloud—“I don’t have the guts to put a gun to my head, so I have to do it this way”. The thought of my son also permeated in my head; I knew I did not want him growing up with a Dad who killed himself, so it had to look like an accident. No note could be left. At some point around that moment, the thought of “not having the guts” to end my life in a different way started to play on me. I am fully convinced, now that I was apart from my habitual daily-sin that God was drawing me out.

I don’t believe in coincidences.

With my mind racing a million miles a second and staring at the end of my life, I glanced down at my phone and the date of September 24th leapt out at me. This date probably means nothing to you. Heck, it meant nothing to me for the past three-to-four years. But September 24th is a date that I could never forget. It’s the date of my spiritual birthday; in 2006.

Then, all I could do is cry. I turned my truck around, went home, and just prayed.

Now I am not going to sit here and tell you that overnight I went from far away to close to God; that isn’t how it happened. But, what I am going to tell you is that God never left me. In His strength, in His sovereignty, He knew where I was as he knows where we all are, and He used the situation I was in to teach me the most humbling of lessons possible. He wrapped his arms around me that night. He made it clear to me that He was not done with me. In the middle of the darkest time of my life and as far as away from Him as possible, He showed up.

Christian or non-Christian, what that is—is love.

Love is patient, and He was.

Love is kind, and He always has been.

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

What God did was take my focus off the perceived problems I had and He put it onto the only thing that gives us the strength and power to overcome anything this temporary life throws at us. Jesus Christ took the worlds best shot, death, and he overcame it. He rose from the grave. That tomb is empty folks! As Christians, we, too, have the strength and power that rose Jesus from the grave indwelt inside of us. And that is enough.

Perception.

I perceived that that night was the end of my life. And it was. My life, as I knew it, ended that night last year. And since then, I am not even close to the same person I was, nor will I ever return.

I gave up running, I gave up fighting, I recognized the problem in my life that I had quenched off what I needed (and need) daily just to make it. I cannot do life alone. I surrendered it all, I, this time, allowed God to have my life, as I dropped off all my baggage at the cross.

As long as you focus on the problems—both large and small—that you may have, that is what your life will be recognized as. When the time comes that you take your focus off those problems and you turn the focus onto the creator of the universe, then that is when you find yourself on the path of peace.

There is nothing too big, or small, for God to correct and use for His glory. Nothing. I am living proof and I will glorify His name because of it. He saved me. And since that time, the blessings that have been poured out on me—as if He had been saving them for me until I came home—has been nothing short of amazing.

I am in a place now that I, formerly, would have perceived as “displaced”, but the difference now is, I live for the King; I am surrounded by tremendous people in my life, that I thank God daily for; and I don’t focus on problems that may arise. Instead, I learn, I keep moving, and I give thanks, because if I am still breathing and typing this He is not done with me.

The same goes for you. If you are here, it’s not over.

If anyone needs help, advice, or someone to talk to, please feel free to contact me: regieeller@gmail.com