The Holidays are Stressful

I just got this email from one of the ministry leaders at church and had to share it out:

Guess what!? God's really been teaching me this week! Are you experiencing difficult times lately? Maybe fighting with your friends, or having disagreements with your spouse, or maybe being pulled in five different directions by family? Well, it's not your fault. December is a difficult month not just because "the holidays are stressful" but because of spiritual warfare!

The devil is going to do anything he can to get in and take your joy. Are you going to let him win? Someone told me at bible study this week that no one "steals" your joy. Ultimately we give it up. We decide that our circumstances are greater than our God and we get overwhelmed. I'm here to tell you, no matter what you are going through, good, bad, or ugly...God is still on the throne! He's still in control and he sill knows where you are going and why. He already knows what is going to happen. All you have to do is walk toward him and he will guide you!

How can you walk toward God this week?

1. Talk to him - Pray for other people and don't focus on yourself and what may be going wrong in your life. God's going to work all that out in his timing. 

2. Talk about him - Tell someone about what God is doing in your life. Maybe you're having a tough time and you can't do anything but say "...through it all I know God still has me in his hand and he's going to take care of me." 

3. Don't let anyone steal your joy. Period. Don't let the devil find happiness in keeping you in a state of anything but happiness.