34 Likes In A Minute

I am convinced that the most overused, non-profanity word is “like”.  It is crazy how much this word is grossly overused in conversations.  I overheard a conversation recently and actually counted that the word “like” was used 34 times in one minute.  It gets to the point of being ridiculous.  Why is the word “like” being used so much to the point of oblivion?

Here’s how the conversation went:

”I told him like this was like how we needed to go down to like Times Square because we like will be like in the middle of a bunch of people who like go down there and like a lot of tourists….”

You see what I mean?  So why do people do this?

Some have fallen into the habit of using it to fill gaps in their conversation because their brain is running faster than their mouth.  It is also a substitute for “um” or “uh”.  Using the the word “like” is the in thing now with current social habits for people to connect to their friends.

It is very annoying.  

Ways that people can calm down using the word “like”.  First, just slow down and take a break.  Be okay with taking a pause in your conversation instead of feeling compelled to add extra words.  Also practice the way you talk.

For me, I think overuse of the word “like” is just as annoying as when people use the F-word.  I get like very annoyed like people using the word “like” so much.

Three Ways That God Heals

When we prayer earnestly for God to heal, most of the time we are hoping it will be instant miracle.

Most of the time it isn’t. I have seen various ways God heals during my lifetime. I remember when I was growing up that my dad never took medicine and never went to the doctor. He believed totally in divine healing. I have seen him laying on the floor rolling in extreme pain believing God would heal him.

When I have encountered moments in my life when I or someone I love needed at healing that I knew it was going to be a lot of praying. I really can’t remember when I prayed and suddenly there was a healing.

Nothing really stands out in my mind but I do believe that God heals.

Here are the ways that He heals:.

Divine Healing
This is when healing occurs which defies any scientific explanation. A divine healing can happen instantaneously or over a period of time.

Some of the ways that divine healing works are:

By touch through the physical contact or the laying on of hands.
By the spoken word when someone commands the sickness to leave.

By faith and action where the recipient actively seeks out God or through obeying a specific instruction.

Healing Through Medicine
Contrary to what many Christians believe, God can use doctors and medicine to heal. In spite of all of the medical technology, there is never a guarantee that a treatment is going to work. The way our human bodies work is so complex.

Rather than viewing science and faith as competing, they are often complementary. Medicine is views by many as a divine gift of wisdom and doctors, nurses and treatments as instruments through which God brings restoration and healing.

The Ultimate Healing
This is one that none of wants to happen. This healing happens when someone passes from this life into eternity.

When we pass from our physical body we will experience the final healing and a place where there is no more pain or death.

Although we pray for a physical healing, the ultimate and complete restoration of our body and soul is fulfilled beyond physical death.

God always heals, we just don’t always know how or when He will perform the healing. None of us wants to suffer or see our loved ones suffer. We pray and believe that God will have compassion and answer our prayers for the healing. The challenge is for us to be prepared for how He does it.

Is God Fighting My Battles?

I like to control things.  

There, I said it.

It’s a confession that I am not proud of.

So when I face difficult times, naturally I try to figure it out and resolve it myself.  Unfortunately, I don’t always have the solution.  I do not have the control l would like to think I have.

Having faith in God is hard.  It means you have to let go.  The battles we face aren’t ones we can fight on our own.  It’s hard to give up the control and let God fight our battles for us.

God is in control whether we believe it or not.  He’s God.  We are not. I would like to have the faith of David when he was standing in the Valley of Elah facing a giant named Goliath.  Although David had picked five stones he only needed one to take out the giant in his battle.  We all need the courage of David in the moments we are facing the battles that challenge us.

We have to be all in if we are trusting in God to fight for us even if the results aren’t what we were expecting.   I have no cute quotes or feel-good cliches to give you on this.  You either trust God in your battles or you don’t.  If you are on the Lord’s side then be on it and trust that his strategy is the right one.

I write this for you but I can tell you that this isn’t easy.  Trusting God is hard and takes every ounce of you.  It’s hard to let go.  Until you are in a battle, you truly don’t know.  As smart as we all think we are, none of us truly knows what is ahead for us.  We don’t know what will test us or the battle we will face.  We can’t prepare for the battle we don’t know but we can put our trust in the one who will fight for us.

If we put our trust in God, He can help us to stay calm and not panic.  He goes ahead of us to open doors, move obstacles and arrange solutions we do not see yet.  Sometimes if He doesn’t remove the battle, He will give us the strength to endure it.