Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

This morning during my quiet time with the Lord, I had a revelation.  I feel like I may have already known this on some level, but it became clearer to me. The revelation is that I do not have to wait for a location or place to "enter in" to the Promised Land.  Yes, Joshua and Caleb entered a physical, literal land.   But I believe that our "wilderness" is not always due to our circumstances, no matter how abysmal.  I believe we can know and live out God's promises for us anywhere and in so doing, we "leave" the wilderness and enter in to His bounty. That's what the Promised Land was - it was rich agriculturally, filled with life. This is more than "positive thinking."  So much more! This is taking each promise that the Lord has given us in His Word and actually believing them! Did you know that you can know something without really believing it?  I know plenty of Bible verses by heart, but when I live in doubt, fear, worry, anxiety, and

When you've been through many trials and tribulations, years of suffering with little let-up, you start to doubt God's goodness toward you. Oh you may still believe that He is good toward others, but you have a hard time experiencing His goodness toward you because of difficult circumstances. That is where I was in my faith for longer than I like to admit.  Oh my faith in the Lord was still strong.  But I struggled with the difficult things He allowed to enter, and continue, in my life. After all, I listened to Him and obeyed Him where most would not.  Why the long, hard season?   I believed in His goodness even when I obeyed and things still turned out awful, or worse than they were.  But I had stopped clinging to His promises for me .  God does not always fix all of our problems, though He does come alongside to comfort us in the midst of our problems. What if those harsh realities never go away this side of heaven?  Can we still believe not only in God's goodness toward