Back in July 2016, I embarked on a special retreat with my church, affectionately titled Restoration Encounter.
It was a weekend away of mentoring, counselling, and healing at a country manor in Hertfordshire.
Being a man who once prided himself on rationality, I was baffled by the enigmatic, bizarre visions I experienced and the grand lesson I learned for the first time in my life; the power of proper, loving relationship with others.
Before this weekend, I didn’t even like the word ‘relationship…’
Following the powerful experience, I wrote this blog below detailing the most practical points I’d extracted that I could apply to life.
5 Practical Points to Live Well and Healthy
- Know Your Intentions. Remember throughout your day that you are serving God in everything you’re doing. He comes first. Be that vessel and let your ego/pride decrease. You will find life is a lot easier when you take the ‘I,’ ‘Me,’ and ‘Who’ out of a scenario and see what’s left. John 3:30
- Know Your Worth. If a bad thought comes into your head disparaging you from either something said or witnessed, immediately think of how Jesus sees you. Psalm 139:14
- Receive Your Worth. Say ‘thank you’ for any compliment you receive and that’s it. No ‘ifs,’ ‘buts,’ or ‘coconuts.’ Just accept the compliment with a sincere ‘thank you.’ Additionally, say thank you to the Lord–in your mind or vocally–as all blessings come from Him. Proverbs 15:23
- Know the Freeing Power of Forgiveness. If you have an argument with someone and need to forgive, visualise the brutality that Jesus endured as an innocent man, then apologise for your wrong and/or forgive the person. Don’t let the sun go down on your anger…ever! Ephesians 4:26 and Ephesians 4:32
- Know Appreciation and Gratitude. Pray to comprehend this as it’s the path to joy and peace. You need to know that food on your table and a roof over your head are not just defaults; they’re to be valued. True appreciation and gratitude of what we have is a tough area, which requires prayer as it is a blessing to be deeply thankful. 1 Thessalonians 5:18
(Owing to the human condition of our fallen nature that is built and driven toward self-preservation or more accurately put, selfishness, we usually have to either (1) experience lack, suffering, pain, and/or despair to conceive sincere appreciation, OR (2) know someone intimately who is in a position of poverty to provoke our empathy and following this feeling, profound thanksgiving for our blessings)
Leave a Comment