“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
~John 16:33 (NIV)
Many of us like to plan. However, no matter how much you plan,
sometimes things will happen in life that are out of your control. An extreme but very real example is what’s
happening right now all over the world with this pandemic. Many of us had plans to do certain
things.
Companies had budget plans to do better
this year than the last. But then this
happened. Now we have to course correct
our plan and figure out how we are going to deal with all of this. What can we learn from what’s happening now?
As you reflect on this verse from the word
of God “…In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Think
about what Jesus conveyed in this message.
Thru his word, God has made us aware that difficult things will happen
in life, but God also assures us that He has already overcome all of those difficult
things. Course correct if you need to,
but do not give up. God is with
you. You are not alone. God is with us.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you
may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart!
I have overcome the world.”
“What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”
~Romans 8:31
Early Morning: View of NYC skyline from Donnelly Park in West New York, NJ (pic. taken on January 11th 2020)
God is omnipotent. And what does omnipotent mean? It means all-powerful, almighty, invincible and supreme. God has the power and if God is with us we know that we will conquer. With God we will prevail. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” What this is saying is that it doesn’t matter who is against us; with God, we will conquer. We will prevail over this pandemic.
Trust that God is with you.
You are not alone. God is with us
and we are in this together. Meditate in
the word of God. Develop your
communication with God. Keep growing
spiritually. Continue to look at your
gratitude list every day. We cannot
understand everything that is happening right now. We don’t know exactly how long this will
last. But what I know is that with God,
we will conquer. With God, we will
prevail.
In the meantime, let’s continue to help one another. Just a kind word to someone who seems in
distress can be a way to help. We are so
grateful for the doctors and nurses who are working round the clock during this
time. We can also do small acts of
kindness with one another.
Call your loved ones, and give them words of
encouragement. Call a friend or a family
member you haven’t talked to in a while.
And unless you are a doctor, nurse, paramedic, or someone in a similar
category, please don’t tell me you are too busy to call. Acts of kindness is what makes us human. Acts of kindness is what keeps us going. Acts of kindness is what keeps us believing
that our people, our planet will heal again.
And remember you are not alone.
We are in this together. God is
with us.
“What, then, shall we
say in response to these things? If God
is for us, who can be against us?”
“Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.”
It is alleviating to know that making the right decisions in
terms of our food choices contribute to our well-being. Eating well must be a lifestyle choice to live
a healthy life.
When we eat well our body feels better. When you eat healthy, you build a strong
immune system that helps us fight disease.
People with strong immune systems barely feel the symptoms of certain
viruses and even if they get sick, they get well more rapidly again because they
eat nutritious dense foods.
God created the seeds and plants for us to eat. Eat well and take good care of yourself. And remember, we are in this together.
“Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.”
“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
~Proverbs 17:22
Company managers outing – January 13, 2020 (before social distancing was activated)
It may be easier said
than done…to be joyful when there is chaos going on. But how about if finding the way to be joyful
in the mist of chaos is exactly what we need to help us find healing.
The word of God says
that a joyful heart is good medicine.
There are stories and cases of people who went thru detrimental health
issues and were able heal. I have heard
stories of people who were told they would never walk again only to prove those
who said such thing wrong. When they
were asked how were they to overcome it, they said it was the mindset they
had. They were determined to overcome
their obstacle. They were determine to
NOT be crushed by their current circumstances.
And because of that tenacity and determination, because they had a
vision of themselves being well again, they prevailed.
In this time of crisis,
I think of all the things that I am grateful for. I am grateful for my family. I am grateful for you. I am grateful for the love of God. I am grateful for the love and kindness of
the people. I am grateful for the
ability to write this article. I am
grateful for all the nurses and doctors who are working during this pandemic
called COVID-19. My list could go on and
on.
Being grateful helps us
to have a joyful heart in the midst of chaos.
Being joyful is medicine. Having
a positive mindset will help us get thru this.
What are some things that you are joyful & grateful for? Make your list and look at it daily.
“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.”
~ 1 John 4:7 King James Version (KJV)
Social Distancing at Whole Foods – March 26, 2020
Amazing things can happen when we all come together as one. The love, the kindness, the respect, the compassion, and all of those beautiful things that exist in us as humans, flourish like spring again. Love is the most powerful force. God is love. God is also omnipotent. Together as one, united by the amazing love of God and compassion for one another, we will conquer this.
We are all in this together.
And no matter where you are right now, you are not alone. We are in this together. I am rooting for you and I know you are
rooting for me.
COVID-19 may have forced us into practicing social
distancing, but what it doesn’t know is that it has also unleashed our love for
one another. We are praying for one
another. We are looking out for one
another. You are not alone. People
are praying for you and for the world right now. I am praying for you. And we are going to overcome this in the name
of Jesus.
Love is the most powerful force. Let’s love one another, and
when all of COVID-19 is a thing of the past, let’s not forget to love one
another.
“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.”
“Again,
truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for,
it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name,
there am I with them.”
~Matthew 18:19-20 New International
Version (NIV)
Pastor Jose A. Tejada Praying to and with the people (this picture was before social distance due to COVID-19)
I
fell in love with God when I was just a little girl. It was my Godmother who planted the seed in me. I don’t remember exactly at what age, but I
know I was very young for I still did not know how to read. She used to take me to church with her and I
could observe with the passion that the people in the church used to praise God
and the name of Jesus.
I could not read the Bible at the time, and I remember asking God to help me to learn to read so that I could read His book. I don’t recall exactly how long it took between the time that I asked God to help me to learn how to read and the time I actually started reading, but I have a vivid memory of me being in church and being so happy because when the pastor said to open the bible in a specific chapter, I found myself reading along with the pastor and all the members of the church. I was so happy that I could read. I could read the word of God. And of course, I could read anything (in Spanish at the time).
I developed a special love for God since a very early age. And that love has never leave me. As a little girl, I developed a communication with God. As I grew up, I visited my Godmother less often and also church. But the job was done. The seed for the love of God had been planted in me and even when I might have gotten myself away from the house of God, God was watching over me. As time passed, I found myself missing God. Missing to reconnect with Him again. I realized that nothing in this world could fill the emptiness I was filling. Only God could.
And to my amazement, God always found a way to remind me of his love. Sometimes, He reminded me of his love thru a classmate in college. She would invite me to visit her church. At another time, it was thru a hair stylist, who told me about an event that would take place at a church near me. I did not even realize it until I started writing this article. But God was using people to remind me of his amazing love. And after many bumps, and ups and down, I made the decision that I did not want to live my life without God. I accepted Jesus as my savior and allowed God to be my guidance in my life.
I learned to talk to God about everything. When I would feel upset or frustrated about something I would talk to God about it. When I need help on something I talk to God about it. When I am happy, I talk to God about it. I talk to God daily about everything. God is with me. I share with Him my true feelings and emotions even though I know He knows exactly how I feel; I still try to articulate it to Him. I also meditate on His word. This spiritual connection with God is life to my soul.
God
listens to your prayers. God listens to
you, whether you pray alone or with a group.
But something special happens when two or more people pray together for
the same cause. Let’s you and I all pray
together for COVID-19 to stop spreading.
Let’s pray in the name of Jesus Christ for the healing and prompt
recovery of those who are sick. Let’s
pray for all humanity, for the healing of the physical body, for the healing of
the soul, for the healing of the mind, and for the healing of the spirit. Let’s pray together. And remember that you are not alone. God is with you. God is with us.
Here
is the verse again:
“Again,
truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for,
it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or
three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
“Have I
not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened,
and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
~Joshua 1:9
NYC Public Library 2020
The whole world is
facing a major crisis. A virus that
started in China and was announced in the news towards the end of December of
2019 known as the Coronavirus, has by today’s date (March 24, 2020) taken over
the whole world. EVERYONE, one way or
another has been affected by this virus, which has become a pandemic. And what’s worst, we don’t know how long this
is going to last.
Because of this
pandemic, people are dying everywhere.
People have to be isolated and stay in quarantine in order to help stop
this virus from spreading. People are
losing their jobs. We are living a time
of uncertainty. Yes, these are indeed
difficult times, and we are all in this together. And because of that, I started asking myself
some questions: How can I help shine a
light in the middle of darkness? How can
I help my fellow humans when I have to stay physically distant from them?
I thought about the
Word of God, which is my companion and strength in the good times and the
challenging times. The Word of God has
been so powerful over my life. It has
helped lift me up when I’ve felt most down.
This is why I decided that for the days to come, I will share with you a
verse from the Bible every single day for the rest of the year 2020. I will also include you in my daily prayers. I will pray for you to stay healthy and if you
are not feeling well, I will pray for your health and prompt recovery. I will pray not just for our country but for
our entire world. This is our planet
people. We all live in it. And we can see that there are no real
frontiers. There are no real borders.
Everyone is feeling this.
Right below is the verse again. Meditate on it. And remember that you are not alone.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and
courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord
your God is with you wherever you go.”
