What giants are you facing in life today? Remember that as you get busy helping others, you will find the strength to defeat seemingly insurmountable problems. Maya Angelou said, “When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.”
Remember, helpers need wisdom, strength and resource. God promises an abundant supply for those who are willing to go the extra mile. The scripture says, Give and it shall be given back to you, good measure pressed down and shaken together! With the same measure you give it shall be given back to you!
Let’s get busy helping someone today. When you add great value to someone else’s life, you will recognize just how valuable you really are!
Scripture: Luke 6:38 (paraphrased)
I’d like to share a story with you about a man from the Congo who was only one step away from a very tragic decision in his life. However, in just a matter of moments his world was changed instantly.
How? He heard words. Simple words of Good News opened the door to a new world. Do you need doors opened in your life? Today is your day!
In one of our meetings in the Congo, a young father was distraught and very upset about how life had treated him. I don’t know what situation you are facing—maybe you find yourself like this young father.
He had just purchased poison at a local pharmacy and was on his way home to take his and his family’s lives that night. As he walked, he heard words in the distance over loud speakers and decided to see what was happening. As he listened, he heard a new idea. The words began to penetrate his heart, and he had an overwhelming sense of God’s love and presence.
This young father later made his way to the platform to tell the audience what had happened. He stood weeping before 100,000 people, telling them the evil he had planned and how God had freed him and forgiven him. Suddenly, the crowd began to part as a woman with several children made her way to the platform. She was crying and shouting, “Honey, honey! We are here too!”
The couple embraced on the platform, forgave each other and committed their lives to the LORD. In an instant the question of who God is was answered—God is love! He is forgiveness, peace and restoration!
Do you need God’s presence? We have seen Him touch the masses around the world. Jesus is here for you right now. Wherever you are, just stop and turn your thoughts to God. He loves you. He believes in you. And today, He offers you forgiveness!
As a former collegiate athlete, intensity was my mode of operation, and “no pain–no gain” was my motto! Only when a wonderfully kind Australian pastor I met in my travels challenged me to evaluate my life did I begin to realize that I was driving my life rather than enjoying it. He challenged me to establish daily, weekly, and annual routines of work, worship, rest and play.
As you embark upon your dream, remember:
Work routines provide healthy self-esteem and a confidence that your dream is well underway. Worship is our expression to God for all that He has done in creating and preparing us for life. Worship helps us acknowledge that a source greater than ourselves is gently guiding and strengthening us each day.
Rest is the time required to recharge our physical and mental capabilities. We are complex beings that have a spirit, live in a body and function through our mind, our will and emotions. Rest recharges our spiritual, physical and emotional energy.
My last encouragement is to remind you to play! The kind Australian pastor that convinced me to relax and do some reading, later graciously encouraged me to go play! All I could think of was how I wanted to go for a swing. Something about playing on the swings in my childhood recalled fond memories of the freedom found as the wind blew through my hair and the blood coursed through my veins as I went higher and higher to discover new untouched boundaries.
Allowing ourselves to play opens up a child-like spirit of creativity, allowing us to dream as only a child can do. So this week after you have completed your worksheet and determined to accomplish your dream for humanity, put down your paper and pen and run out to the nearest playground, and let your inner child go wild. Go for a swing! Play! Ride the local carousel! Treat yourself to an ice cream! Tap into the supernatural reservoir of joy and energy that is resonant within.
Remember: Learn to establish rhythms in your life for true success and prosperity. You will need these in order to go the long haul. No orchestra ever created a masterful symphony without first tuning the instruments.
My husband, Kevin, and I founded the 100 Tent Project, and Tatiana is just one of dozens of Russian missionaries committed to helping the estimated 100,000 unreached villages of Eurasia through this unique method of connecting with these isolated communities and regions.
Tatiana and her evangelistic team travel from village to village with their 350-seat tent, bringing good news of encouragement, joy, and hope to regions overwhelmed by hopelessness.
No, Tatiana was not a public speaker, an educator, a government official, or an official voice of any sort. She was a Babushka, a grandmother, who was gripped by what she saw—a staggering need with no apparent solution. But with God’s help, direction, and the gift of one great tool: a big, bright yellow and white tent, she brought an answer that has impacted the entire area.
Follow this link to find out more about the 100 Tent Project and learn why the project began, as well as its intended purpose and destination: http://bit.ly/1SgDNLR. If you’d like to get involved in these rural regions of Eurasia and invest in the 100 Tent Project, I encourage you to go to www.LeslieMcNulty.com.
One afternoon a young Russian man by the name of Ildus approached the platform in one of our outdoor events. This young man was so excited he could hardly wait to tell others what God had done for him. I was speaking when Ildus decided it was time to share his story. Ildus was so full of joy! He was pointing at his heart as if to say, “I am not alone—something has happened in my heart!”
Just as Ildus opened his mouth to speak, my husband arrived at the meeting. This young man was now grunting into the microphone pointing at his heart. I remember my husband looking at me as if to say, why is this guy on the platform? He’s not normal and he can’t speak!
Have you ever felt rejected because you are different? Or because you lack skills that other people seem to come by easily? I know that Ildus felt all alone and had little to live for. He’d been rejected by his family and was living on the streets; rummaging through garbage and wandering around aimlessly. In fact, one of our team members had just taken him into his own home.
The next evening, as my husband was speaking, Ildus once again approached the platform. Several of us were attempting to get my husband’s attention, because something very different was about to unfold! Kevin kept telling them not to give Ildus the mic, but finally we prevailed. When Ildus took the microphone, he began to speak in perfect Russian! He reached into his pocket and pulled out a card to show the audience. We were shocked to learn that it was his special medical ID, and that he was classified as having the most severe level of mental retardation!
He looked at the crowd and said, “You know me, I am the guy that begs from the trash cans—but something happened to me last night! Jesus came into my room while I was sleeping and put His finger on my forehead and on my tongue. For the first time in my life the fog has cleared from my mind! For the first time in my life I can think and speak clearly!”
Regardless of your situation, today you can rise above whatever holds you back and discover that you have a friend with God. He will come to you today and reconcile what distresses you. Just say these simple words with me, “Come into my life, Lord, and release me from the fear that holds me back. Like Ildus, heal my heart and touch my mind.” If you would like more information on miracles, please contact us today. We are waiting to hear from you! http://bit.ly/1gmsroF
In the modern song entitled, “I Am a Friend of God”, the writer asks the question of God, “Who am I that you are mindful of me? That you hear me, when I call? Is it true that you are thinking of me?”
Mother Theresa said, “Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty.” You never have to be alone! The writer of “I am a Friend of God” concludes his song by stating of God, “You, God, call me, ‘friend’!”
Today I want you to know that you have a friend in God. For He said in His holy scriptures, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So go ahead and take His hand…. He’s there, right now. http://bit.ly/1E6nEg2
“A friend is one who knows you and loves you just the same.” The author of this phrase, Elbert Hubbard, also wrote a story about Ida Straus, and her death on the Titanic. As a woman she was supposed to be placed on a lifeboat before any of the men, but she refused to board the boat: “Not I!” she said, “I will not leave my husband. All these years we’ve traveled together, and shall we part now? No,” she said, “our fate is one.” Hubbard then added his own stirring commentary:
“Mr. and Mrs. Straus, I envy you that legacy of love and loyalty left to your children and grandchildren. The calm courage that was yours all your long and useful career was your possession in death. You knew how to do three great things—you knew how to live, how to love, and how to die.” “Happy lovers, both,” Elbert said, “In life they were never separated, and in death they are not divided.”
Ask yourself these three simple questions: Have I discovered the key to a full life? Have I learned to love with a full heart? What will I do when one day I face death? These questions, as simple as they may appear, lie at the core of a meaningful life.
If such human love like Mrs. Strauss is capable of such great sacrifice—what could you do with devotion and love of this type? How could you influence those around you?
I encourage you today to go to my website, www.LeslieMcNulty.com. We are here to help you, and have made tools available to you that will change your life!
Today and tomorrow in my Live Your Dream series I want to talk about Putting Your Dream to the Test. What measurements, standards or costs are associated with your dream?
Anything worth having has a price attached. As an athlete I learned early on: no pain, no gain. What do I mean? To improve our game, skills, and opportunity we had to practice, practice, practice! In the daily pursuit of our dream sometimes we didn’t feel like carrying on, but the sheer will of fortitude, the desire to win, and the constant challenge to press beyond our current capabilities kept us charging forward toward our destination.
Today, let’s begin refining our dream by discovering the facts. How do we do this? We begin by first researching what it takes. We ask questions such as, “what price is too high to pay?” You can count the cost of your dream by asking some more specific questions:
- What will my dream cost me personally—financially and emotionally?
- What will my dream cost my family, my marriage?
- What will my dream require from my current free time? Are you willing to give up your free time to learn a new skill, take a class, build a prototype, set a goal? Consider the price before you embark!
Go to my website and download your free “LIVE YOUR DREAM” worksheets! http://bit.ly/1gmsroFhttps://
As a young woman Mother Teresa, who was suffering from tuberculosis, heard the “Call within the call”. She knew she was to leave the convent in Calcutta and work with the poor living among them. With only 5 Rupees in her hand, she started a school in the slums to teach the children of the poor.
Mother Teresa, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and India’s highest Civilian Award, set up nearly 570 homes for the poor in 125 countries.
With only 5 Rupees and battling sickness in her own body, Mother Teresa rose above poverty and made a better life for millions of people. One idea, one thought from God can bring significant change, not only to your life, but to the lives of those you know in your community and in your nation! http://bit.ly/1E6nKV7
An elderly woman in Africa lived under an overpass in a cardboard house. She was dirty and alone. Her body was full of tuberculosis and no one wanted anything to do with her.
One day several ladies from the local church ventured out to see this lonely soul. You can only imagine how shocked this sick little woman was to see these very proper women show up under her bridge! The ladies had come to invite her to an outdoor Christian meeting where people were being healed. Reluctantly, she agreed to join them, but not knowing how the people might react to her, she insisted on standing at the edge of the very large crowd.
As she stood there she heard the speaker say, “God loves you, He’s closer than any friend and He doesn’t want you to be sick!” At that moment the church ladies glanced over and noticed their sick friend was smiling and breathing normally!
Her new companions were so excited that they insisted she go to the platform and tell everyone what had just happened. A few minutes later, as she stood there on the platform, she said to the large crowd,
“You know me. I am the woman you pass by every day. The one who lives under the bridge.” The ladies who brought her interrupted her and said, “Tell the people how God healed you today. Tell them!” The little old lady looked at the crowd and began her story again. “Yes,” she said, “I am healed, but what I know is that when I go home today, I will never be alone again! I have a new friend and His name is Jesus!”
