fear

I would like to start with a quote from Marianne Williamson.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Although this quote has always inspired me it’s the first part that can be confusing. Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

Most people tend to believe that they fear not being adequate, that they fear not being good enough, that they fear failure, that they fear not measuring up to others.

When in actual fact there real fear is that they fear their magnificence.

They fear that they could change the world. They fear that they really do have the power to create a life of real meaning. They are afraid to experience their power to create a life of such impact. So they hide behind a false fear… a fear that they are inadequate and they don’t even try to create a life that they enjoy.

The amount of times that I have asked myself who am I to step forward and say this or do that. Who am I to approach that person? Who am I to inspire others to their greatness?

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Consider how often have you asked yourself these type of questions?

How often have you not done what you wanted to do, to “fit in? To be accepted? To be liked?

Your doing this didn’t serve anyone, least of all yourself.

The funny thing is that when you stop fearing your greatness… when you embrace your God given power, and courageously and boldly step forward into the world declaring your life with confidence (shining your light) you will bring forth the divine power that lives within you.

It is within us all.

When you embrace the fact that you are a child of God with a unique purpose, you will receive a power so great and achieve much more than you ever dreamed of!

And when you embrace your POWER, unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. You inspire others to their greatness! This power is our true fear … and living it is our purpose.

Have a good week.

Rev J Martin

Is Free Will The Ultimate Power?

February 20, 2018February 20, 2018 Live Today With Faith2 Comments

free will

When God created us, He gave us free will, without free will, we would be robots. Predictable, boring, with no room to grow.

The major decision we have to make is to live in faith or live in fear.

Let’s just say Tommy has an interview, Tommy might initially feel overjoyed, rushing to share the news on social media.

But when the buzz has worn off, Tommy begins to doubt if he is good enough for the job, so he calls a friend, explaining how he feels. Jason encourages him, not by some magic trick but simply by telling him what he already knows deep down.

That he is awesome and will ace the interview.

Tommy puts down the phone in good spirits, pumped up for the interview. If only he could walk in right now. His energy alone would win him the job.

After a few hours, Tommy’s doubt returns.

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Before long, he’s back where he started, and to make matters worse Tommy has an argument with his girlfriend, and they break up. Becky tells him how useless he is, telling him attending the interview would be a waste of time, for a loser.

Tommy decides not to attend the interview.

A friend on the morning of the interview calls Tommy to wish him good luck; he tells his friend what happened. Again, his friend builds him up not by some magic trick but by telling him what he knows deep down within.

That he’s better off without a girl that doesn’t believe in him. That the job will help him grow as a person; that he will be doing a job he loves.

Tommy gets in his car and goes straight to the interview. Fired up, he walks in with confidence, energy, and style. He instantly connects with the people taking the interview, so much so they are memorized. Tommy gets the job.

What has happened here?

Tommy’s free will took him on a rollercoaster that almost when off the rails. We all have the choice to doubt or to have faith in each moment.

Free will is like the pendulum on a grandfather clock; it’s what makes the clock tick. It is what creates the ups and downs of life.

The thing that we need to know is that we are not the pendulum, we are the battery that powers the clock, but unlike conventional batteries our power comes from God and His power never runs out.

So for the rest of this week, when you come up against hard times that has your mood all over the place. Remember that you are not the pendulum but the battery that is separate from it all.

Have an amazing faith filled week
Rev J Martin

Warning: If you don’t use your God given talent, you could lose it forever.

September 12, 2017September 16, 2017 Live Today With Faith1 Comment

Sometimes, I felt like I didn’t have what it takes, but here I am. I inspire and touch 1000s of peoples lives each month.

And you know what?

You are right here beside me. Supporting me, pushing me forward. So, I just want to thank you.

Thank you for reading my words, on my blog or Facebook page. Thank you for downloading my books, and thank you for leaving me the reviews that helped me get my message of faith out into the world.

thank you

Each of us is capable of so much, but we need to go after what we want. If I had of let the negative thoughts win, I would not be in the position I am today.

It reminds me of an ancient story about a master who got his three servants together and said, “I’ve got these talents.” (Now back in those days a talent was a measure of gold.)

So, he said to the three servants, “take these talents and see what you can do with them. I’m taking a journey, and I will be gone for a while. When I come back, we will go over the books and see how you did.”

The master said to the first, “here is five talents for you. Five. Heres two of them for you. Two. And here’s one for you. One. Take those talents. See what you can do with them. When I come back, we’ll get together and go over it all.”

The servants said, “okay.” The master set off.

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When the master came back from his trip, he called for the three servants, and asked, “How did it go with those talents. Your five, what happened?”

That servant said, “Well, I took the five talents you gave me and put them to work. It was a little shaky at first, but things soon got rolling. I worked as hard as I could, and my talents grew to seven, eight, nine, ten. In the end, I double my talents from five to ten. The books will show.”

So the master said, “ Good job.”

Then the master turned to the second servant and said, “ I gave you two talents, what happened?”

That servant said, “about the same thing happened to me. I put the two talents to work. Working hard they grew to four talents. I doubled my talents from two to four. Books will show.”

And again the master said, “Well done.”

one talent

To the last servant, the master said, “ I gave you one talent. What happened?”

That servant said, “Well, I took that one talent you gave me, and I carefully wrapped it, and I dug a hole and buried it, camouflaging it.” I guess so no one would steal it.

He said, “fortunately, nobody got it. I knew you were going to be here today so I dug it up. Here it is, safely wrapped. I did not lose it while you were gone.”

According to the ancient story, the master said, “ take that talent away from him and give it to the man that has ten.”

Now, you might say, “Well, I don’t like that arrangement. The poor guys only got one talent. He’s got ten; it ought to be more even.”

The moral of the story is; what ever you don’t employ you forfeit.

Put another way, whatever you don’t use you lose. Lack of use causes loss.

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If you tie your arm to your body and leave it there long enough, you’ll never use it again. It’s over for the arm. The only way to keep the use of the arm is to keep using it.

When you give up due to lack of faith, fear, doubt, or worry. You lose automatically. If you don’t use the gifts and abilities God has graced you with, they will diminish.

Ambition unused decreases. Strong feelings unused diminish. Faith unused decreases. It will decrease, it’s a law.

Today, I want you to know that you too have been graced with many talents. If you choose to sit back and not use them, then you will live a very unrewarding and frustrating life.

Many people will say, but I don’t know what my talents are. Well, make it your mission to find out.

God given talents are things that you do naturally. Write, talk, paint, provide service, listen, motivate, and educate.

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Often you have done them most of your life. They are never forced, they are straight in front of you, but you fail to see them. We take them for granted because we think they are irrelevant. Looking back over your life with purpose you can easily find them, and I welcome you today to do so.

Now, like a muscle that has not been used for a very long time, it will take rehabilitation until your natural talent flows as freely as it once did but it is worth the effort.

Show your gratitude to your heavenly Father today by using and increasing your talents.

Thanks for reading.
Rev J Martin

The Crossroads of Should and Must?

July 16, 2017July 18, 2017 Live Today With FaithLeave a comment

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There are two paths in life: Should and Must. We arrive at this crossroads over and over again. And each time, we get to choose.

Should is how others want us to show up in the world — how we’re supposed to think, what we ought to say, what we should or shouldn’t do. It’s the vast array of expectations that others layer upon us.

When we choose Should the journey is smooth, the risk is small.

Must is different—there aren’t options, and we don’t have a choice.

Must is who we are, what we believe, and what we do when we are alone with our truest, most authentic self; it’s God calling us to take action to fulfil our destiny.

Must is what happens when we stop conforming to other people’s ideals and start connecting to our own. Because when we choose Must, we are no longer looking for inspiration out there. Instead, we are listening to our true calling from within, deep within our soul.

Must is the reason that I am writing this post today, the rest of the days I was saying I should write a post. Simple words, but incredibly powerful how they can shape your life.

But if Must is so great, why do we not pick it every day?

Well, it turns out that choosing Must is scary, it’s hard, and can feel a lot like jumping off a high cliff when you can’t see what’s down below.

Must is taking that leap of faith. Must means action.

Grab a piece of paper and write the numbers one through ten on the left side of the page. At the top, title it “What I should do?” This is the things that you have been meaning to do, but for one reason or another have been putting off.

You’ve got ten minutes to write them down.

Go.

list list list

Welcome back.

These are the ten things that are holding you back from living the life that you were destined to live. Ultimately, it’s fear that is stopping you, but you may never admit it.

You may list many excuses; I’m not talented enough yet, I’m not confident enough, I haven’t got the money. I’m too fat, too thin.

Line by line, walk yourself through each one, have a conversation about all of your fears. These are the biggest obstacles standing in your way.

Fear will never go away unless you face it.

Sometimes our greatest fear is that we will achieve great things. There is a famous quote— below.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frighten us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It’s not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Marianne Williamson. Author, Lecturer

You have something special inside of you, and it’s about time you gave your best shot; honor that calling in some small way — today.

Now go back to your list, and stroke out the word should at the top, and write in the word Must; WHAT I MUST DO. Choosing Must needs to be a daily practice, a recurring choice for you to see progress in your life.

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If you feel a knot in your stomach because you can see the enormous distance between your dreams and your daily reality, take one small step towards it by doing something — today. It could be as simple as checking what options are available or making a call.

If you’ve been peering out over the edge of the cliff but can’t quite make the leap, dig a little deeper and find out what’s stopping you — today.

There is a recurring choice in life, and it occurs at the intersection of two roads. We arrive at this place again and again. And today, you get to choose.

Take the word ‘should’ out of your vocabulary; it is such a dangerous word for making a change in your life. I should eat healthy— maybe tomorrow. I should speak up for myself— will it really make a difference? I should look for a new job— I might be unhappy here but at least I can do my job with my eyes closed.

I’m sure you have some of your own, so how do you make the change?

From today change all the should’s to musts; if you find yourself saying should— change it to must.

I must eat healthier, so I have the energy to go for the adventures that I love.

I must speak up for myself, what I have to say matters and is the truth.

I must get a new job; I need a new experience; I want to grow in my personal and spiritual life.

When you make the decision that you MUST do something your mind kicks into action, listing the series of steps that need to be completed. Should is almost an excuse that we use to put things off.

Change a should to a must today; give birth to a chain of events that could change someone’s life.

Have a fantastic week, and remember God only wants the best for you, which means living a life without fear.

Rev J Martin

Is technology taking the upper hand?

June 17, 2017 Live Today With Faith2 Comments

The world is speeding up; no one wants to wait. I am showing my age, but I remember when it would take minutes for the Internet to load. Dial up. The younger generation could not last one day of my childhood, but then again I don’t think I could last a day in theirs.

Often I go for coffee and see a group of friends sitting looking at their phones, occasionally chatting to one another about what someone has posted on Facebook or Snap chat. Sitting at the same table but miles apart.

Is spending time with friends not about spending time with friends?

I am all for technology as a tool, but it is starting to take the upper hand.

Even the way we pay has changed. Now there is contactless, where you can pay by just hovering your card over the card reader. When the assistant asked me the other day, do you want to go contactless?

It dawned on me, that’s what the world is slowly becoming; contact less.

Communication is getting faster, but people are drifting apart. Where is God in all this? Sadly on the sidelines; only to be called on if something goes wrong.

With constant notifications popping up every few minutes, I know too well how hard it is to pull yourself away.

What can we do, well, like all change it starts with you.

It’s so important to take time each day to connect with nature; leave the phone on silent for a while. You will be surprised at what a difference it will make.

When the mind and body is relaxed, pain and tension subside. An idea can come out of nowhere to solve a problem that has been stressing you out for some time.

Even in the writing of this, I realize that I need to take my own advice. There is always something to do; even when I am resting my mind is always active.

It’s a mental break that is needed.

With constant stimulation from morning to night, you can push yourself for weeks and even months without noticing, you are slowly getting run down; to the point that pain or illness sets in.

God has a way of slowing us down; it is for our benefit in the long term— although, it may not seem that way at the time.

Unaware that it is self-inflicted, we go to the doctor, and he gives us some pills, resetting the balance for while.

Then a holiday comes in just the nick of time, but instead of being full of energy to go on adventures and visit friends near and far, we fall exhausted and spend most of the week in bed.

Take a mental break from the madness, start connecting face to face; turn off from the world, and see the difference it can make.

Enjoy your weekend and don’t forget father’s day.

Rev J Martin