You ARE Going to Make it After All!

A Cup of Tea with Carol
Written By Carol McLeod

Let me tell you what I believe today …

I believe that you really are going to make it after all!

The reason that I believe this unbelievable philosophy is not because of the catchy lyrics to a TV sitcom theme song … but I believe it simply because of the God whom you serve.

I don’t believe it because someone has smugly informed you that they are sending positive thoughts your way … but I believe it because I believe in the power of prayer to a Father who cares!

I actually don’t believe it because of any extraordinary gifts or talents that you might possess but I believe it because I know that you serve the greater God!  Nothing is too difficult for our God so you are going to make it after all!

The power of God that is vibrantly and actively alive inside of you is by far greater than any problem that you face … than any circumstance that comes your way … or than any unkind person who torments you.

Friend … you actually are going to make it after all!

The older I become and the more I understand about life this side of heaven, the more convinced I am that living in a place of hope and joy is the most powerful choice that I can make on any day of my life. I firmly believe that actions follow attitudes and so I must make sure that my attitudes are in obedience to the power that works within me.

If I determine to be the most joyful and the most hopeful person alive at my moment in history, then the words that I speak and the actions that I exhibit will follow my chosen heart attitudes.

As I speak the language of hope and as I exhibit the stirring song of joy, it is in that powerful and life-changing choice that suddenly … that is who I become!  I become a woman whose very DNA has absorbed the hope and joy of my belief system!

I don’t know what has you bent all out of shape today but I can tell you this … you ARE going to make it after all so embrace hope and exhibit joy!

I am not privy to your personal offenses, your lifetime disappointments or your unanswered prayer requests but let me tell you the way out of your emotional pain is to wisely and strategically guide your life with the compass of hope and joy!

When the world crashes in around you … take a deep breath … set your eyes on the Father … and begin to sing!  Never allow the pain of temporary circumstances to rob you of your ability to sing.

Serenade your pain with the triumphant song of hope!

Escort disappointment out the door with a melodious stanza of joy!

What did Paul and Silas do when they had been beaten and locked up in a Roman prison cell?  These two uncommon men did what any man or woman should choose to do at the very worst moment of life … they sang a song of worship to their mighty God! The chains that held their arms in place did not have the power to inhibit them from raising their voices to heaven!

As Paul and Silas sang in the inky darkness and in the destitute cold of their circumstances, a miracle happened! Their chains fell off, the prison doors flew wide open and their prison guard invited them to his house.  That very night, an entire family was saved because Paul and Silas chose to sing the song of hope and joy.

Paul and Silas could have made a different choice, you know.  They could have chosen to magnify their circumstances rather than magnifying the lyrics of the song that was richly growing in their hearts.  They could have decided to whine, complain and to throw in that infamous towel!  None of us would have blamed these two bleeding and cold prisoners if that had been their understandable choice … they certainly “deserved” to allow their emotions to rage and their pain to be expressed.

But what you deserve to do and what you should do are two different things, indeed!

The song that you have been given to sing is not merely a catchy tune but it is a powerful cantata of hope and peace!

You were made to sing at the midnight hour … you were made to sing in the constraints of prison … and you were even made to sing when life has unfairly beaten you up.

You were made to sing!

You were made to sing a song of joy and hope that the world is waiting to hear.

Let me cut to the chase here … are you ready to be convicted?!  There is a world in pain because the Body of Christ would rather whine than sing the song we were created to sing.

There is an entire generation going to hell because you and I have decided that we deserve to wear our painful and disappointing emotions on the sleeve of our hearts rather than victoriously sing a song of hope and joy!

You were made to sing, my friend!  So dust off your vocal chords, retrieve that old choir robe that has been hidden on the closet floor of discouragement and open the hymnbook of your heart to that familiar page that declares,

“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!”

And while you are singing that great hymn of faith, just for fun, you also might want to add a chorus or two of “You’re going to make it after all!”

As always, thanks for listening to my heart.  As you know by now, it is not a perfect heart but it is a heart that sings a song of joy and a melody of hope.  It is also a heart that is enthusiastically chasing after God and all that He is!

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Carol McLeod
Carol says, “I am just a girl who is head over heels in love with Jesus ... passionately addicted to His Word ... and find all of the joy that I need in time spent in His presence." Carol is a Christmas-aholic, loves ACC basketball and the beach! Like all menopausal women, she is overly fond of chocolate and enjoys a good read. She doesn't like cleaning her house and is an expert in carry-out dinners. She hates to shop … loves to jog … and somehow finds time in her busy life to hang out with small children. She is the kind of woman that you could laugh with over lunch, cry with over disappointment and shout with over a victory! But … if you need her official bio … read on! Carol is an author and popular speaker at women's conferences and retreats, where she teaches the Word of God with great joy and enthusiasm. She also hosts highly successful Just Joy! outreaches. Carol encourages and empowers women with passionate and practical biblical messages mixed with her own special brand of hope and humor. Carol has written three books, "Holy Estrogen!", "The Rooms of a Woman's Heart" and "Defiant Joy!" which was released by a subsidiary of Thomas Nelson. Her teaching DVD, "The Rooms of a Woman's Heart", won the Telly Award, a prestigious industry award, for excellence in religious programming. Carol has also been featured on YouVersion (the smart phone Bible app) with several devotionals, including: "For the Journey Set Before Him", "Jolt of Joy", and "Joy to YOUR world", " Carol has a daily radio program, "Defiant Joy! Radio" which is available in several national markets including Youngsville PA, Warren PA, Buffalo NY, Roanoke VA, Norfolk VA, and Nashville TN.  A 1977 graduate of Oral Roberts University with a degree in Music and English, Carol has the distinction of being both the first Women's Chaplain and the first woman to speak at the university's Vespers.  Carol currently serves on the ORU Alumni Board as chaplain.  She is married to her college sweetheart and love of her life, Craig, who serves as senior pastor of Life Church, a church near Buffalo, NY.  Craig and Carol have been happily married for nearly 37 years and are the parents of five children and three delightful daughters-in-law. Craig and Carol are thrilled with the joy of being grandparents to five precious grandchildren! Carol has written three books, "Holy Estrogen!", "The Rooms of a Woman's Heart" and "Defiant Joy!" which was released by a subsidiary of Thomas Nelson. Her teaching DVD, "The Rooms of a Woman's Heart", won the Telly Award, a prestigious industry award, for excellence in religious programming. Carol has also been featured on YouVersion (the smart phone Bible app) with several devotionals, including: "For the Journey Set Before Him", "Jolt of Joy", and "Joy to YOUR world", " Carol has a daily radio program, "Defiant Joy! Radio" which is available in several national markets including Youngsville PA, Warren PA, Buffalo NY, Roanoke VA, Norfolk VA, and Nashville TN.  A 1977 graduate of Oral Roberts University with a degree in Music and English, Carol has the distinction of being both the first Women's Chaplain and the first woman to speak at the university's Vespers.  Carol currently serves on the ORU Alumni Board as chaplain.  She is married to her college sweetheart and love of her life, Craig, who serves as senior pastor of Life Church, a church near Buffalo, NY.  Craig and Carol have been happily married for nearly 37 years and are the parents of five children and three delightful daughters-in-law. Craig and Carol are thrilled with the joy of being grandparents to five precious grandchildren!
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