Hearing from God Each Morning (August 6)

This blog is about today’s devotion in the book Hearing from God Each Morning by Joyce Meyer.

Today’s devotion talks about not quenching the Holy Spirit by complaining. We are to wait patiently for God to fulfill His promises. Grumbling and complaining do not show patience, but praising God and being thankful in all situations does. When we complain, we cloud up our spiritual receivers, and this can keep us from hearing what God has for us.

Sometimes we need to focus more on the Word of God than how we feel. Feelings are important, but they aren’t everything. Instead of focusing on the negative (even if the situation is really bad), we need to be focusing on God’s blessings in our lives.

I know that this has been a life-changing shift in attitudes in my life. I’ve been through some really tough things: hazing at school, an “almost” eating disorder, depression & cutting, verbal & emotional abuse at home, my mom moving out, a mentor’s death, an abusive relationship, sexual abuse, my dad’s arrest, and a couple of long distance moves. For a long while I felt that my complaining and whining was justified. I figured that I had the right to complain a little now and then (all though my “now and then” was almost daily).

But when I started praising God, even in these situations, I started hearing from Him so much more because I was focused on Him instead of me and my problems. When you put things into the right perspective (a heavenly one), any problem that you might be facing here on earth seems so much smaller. When you look at the ways God blesses you, the problems are blown out of the water.

Sometimes I forget this, even now. A problem will sneak up out of nowhere and I will be so upset that I’ll forget how small it is compared to my God. But every time this happens, it doesn’t last as long as the time before. And one day, anything can happen and my first reaction will be to turn to God and praise Him for the things I still have. God is shaping me into the young woman He wants me to be. I’m not there yet and I will not make it there until I meet Him face to face in heaven. Oh what a day that will be!!