Reba Bailes-Faith Filled Inspiration

Did you ever have big plans for your life? Did those plans work out just as you thought they would? I think most people are like me in that some plans work out as I imagined and some are far from anything I had hoped. Yes, life is full of many surprises. Some unexpected events are total letdowns and others are heartbreakers. And when life seems to be all “rainbow and unicorns”, as my oldest daughter frequently refers to it, we tend to become prideful and sometimes greedy, spoiled Christians.

I awoke at 4:45 this morning thinking of you. You in foreign nations that have visited my website are on my mind. I am thankful and humbled that you chose to read what I have written. Each passing day I think, “I need to write about this, or about that.” In the course of one day, I have many topics to blog about and as you can see, I don’t. I deeply desire to encourage and help spread hope to others so I write what is on my heart. Even if it is before daybreak.

Since you are reading this blog, you know I am an American. Growing up as an American I was given some freedoms that no other country I know gets to enjoy. My father, uncles, cousins, nephews, and husband have served in our armed forces to protect those freedoms. Those freedoms were God-given and based on Christian principles. I have lived enough years to see and experience what happens to a nation that turns away from God. The American dream is turning into the American nightmare, to say it mildly! Greed, hatred, immorality, violence, chaos, confusion, detestable lifestyles toward God, and evils of all kinds are occurring with intensity each day. I could continue, but you get the idea if you see any news of what is happening in the United States.

And there it is…the United States. Through our turning from God, we are no longer United. Have you ever heard of the ancient military strategy to “divide and conquer?” I believe that strategy is one of our enemy Satan’s, favorite. If he can divide us in our belief in the ONE true God, then he can weaken us as a nation and we no longer stand. United we stand. Divided we fall.

2 Chronicles 7:14 If My people who are called by my name, will humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. NKJV. I have a heart-gripping drawing of the Statue of Liberty on her knees, hands lifted to heaven, tears streaming down her face, and “IF MY PEOPLE” is written on her foundation. This verse of scripture is written out beneath. Please take a moment to think about the word “foundation.” As you do, here are a few scriptures to look up and be strengthened by: 2 Timothy 2:19; 1 Corinthians 3:11; and Matthew 7:24-27…All other ground is sinking sand!

This brings me to BIG PLANS.

A poem evolved as I thought of the unimaginable deterioration of our America the Beautiful. The Perfect Plan was the message of hope and encouragement I needed to get my thoughts on the Sovereign God I serve. If I do not recognize that God’s plan is perfect, I will lose all hope, for not only the future of America but mine and my loved one’s futures. Although it doesn’t stop there! I would have no hope of a future for any of you also. If I don’t have something, I cannot share it.

So, I thank God for His Grace and Mercy for Salvation for all who call on His name. And I thank Him for the opportunities He has given me to share these messages of hope and encouragement. I am just one of His many children living in a nation that so desperately needs to do as He told us in 2 Chronicles 7:14.

Through the saving Grace of Jesus Christ, Him, and His Word being my solid foundation, my Big Plans transform into His bigger, better, perfect plans for me, my loved ones, the nations, and this whole big world! By the way, He created the universe, so He has got that too! Psalms 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork. ESV

As I stand on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ and His Word, I can trust that His perfect plan is better than anything I could ever devise. As I surrender my will to Him, I have all of the hope and encouragement I need to share with the nations. This fulfills His plan for my life and my heart’s desire for those of us in the United States of America, Singapore, Ireland, Canada, India, Philippines, Netherlands, Romania, China, Germany, United Kingdom, and Sweden, thus far. I know God is great at multiplying blessings, so I can count on Him to add to this list. You are a blessing!

I want to thank you for spending time with me and I would love for you to connect with me on my Connect page. Countless times I have been encouraged by those who have commented.

If you want to know more about my life experiences that have helped build my faith, you can read about some of them in my new book, “Blue Skies, Butterflies, & Battlegrounds.” The Perfect Plan poem and narrative are in this book also. My first book “Inspire Me” tells how and why my writing began. You can find them on my Books page here on this website.

As I pray for your nation, I ask that you include the United States of America in your prayers. Let us pray that we will all stand united with Christ before the One God that made it all possible.

May God bless you and keep you wherever you are!

Until our next time together,

Reba

At an early age, my parents began teaching us the rules of our house. Rules were abundant! Don’t run in the house, don’t put your feet on the furniture, no elbows on the table, don’t talk with food in your mouth, don’t cross the street without looking both ways, don’t talk back (and when it comes to those in authority, don’t even look like you want to talk back!), address your elders with Sir and Ma’am, and my all-time favorite… don’t come tattling on your brother, (the one just two years older than me). And certainly, don’t lie, cheat, or steal! You get the idea with these few examples. My parents would be smiling if they could read this now. 🙂

After some time, I graduated to the rules of society, community, and government, while still practicing the house rules my father laid down. He was certainly the authority figure.

It didn’t take me too long to figure out that most of the rules were to keep me safe and to teach me there are consequences when not following the rules. Although, I did wonder about some of them. Especially the one, “Don’t come tattling on your brother”. After all, who was going to keep them abreast of what he was up to? Surely, he needed me to take on that job. Isn’t that why God gave him a little sister?

Since I had some key things figured out, I got pretty good at following most of our house rules. Partially because I am a natural people pleaser and partially because I have four older siblings as an example of what happens when you don’t comply. There are consequences! Most of them were a huge deterrent to breaking the rules. Seriously, how could that be a bad thing?

Moving on to what My Heavenly Father tells me…

My parents quit taking us to church when we moved from Georgia to Arkansas. I was about seven years old. At nine years of age, I attended a revival with my next-door neighbor friend. I heard how Jesus would save me from my sins so I wouldn’t go to hell. You know, the consequences of breaking the rules! The only “God” rules I knew anything about were the 10 Commandments. I didn’t think I was guilty of breaking most of those rules. Man! Did I have a lot to learn?

Since this is a blog and not another book, I will try to give you the condensed version and say…praise God through Jesus I can shut the mouth of the deceiver!

The all-important logical question is, “If I could follow and never break any of God’s Commandments, why would Jesus come to save me from the penalty of being a lawbreaker? My Heavenly Father taught me that the commandments were given to show us that we could never be “good enough” to stand before Him sinless. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” So, He sent His perfect sinless Son to pay the consequences for us through His sacrifice on the cross. Now, my part is to accept Jesus’s sacrifice for me and for me to surrender my life to Him.

Now I would like to introduce you to the instigator of the ideas I am expressing in this blog. His name is Greg Fritz. He was a guest speaker at our church last Sunday and has been our guest many times. I have also led our Ladies Bible Study Group in several of his studies. His ministry is on Youtube and I encourage you to look him up.

His message was based on why living for God is best for me. One point that he made that I’ve been working on to express in this blog, is that God’s boundaries are good. Very much like our “house rules”. His clear-cut logical message confirms the love of God and His purpose for rules, guidelines, and boundaries. Greg says, “The narrow road is plenty wide for me.” I love that!

He touched on numerous topics that I have written poems and narratives about. For example, Enough, Gain, and The Perfect Plan in my book “Blue Skies, Butterflies, and Battlegrounds.” Also, My Will Be Done? Thank God for Hope in my first book “Inspire Me.”

I would love for you to read those and see if you agree that God’s will for our lives is always best. And on my Connect Page let me know if you also find others.

His will comes with rules, boundaries, and guidelines. For He knows how to not only keep us safe but how to give us the best life. Our lives are filled with strength, hope, fulfillment, protection, power, and purpose until He brings us to our eternal home with our Savior. The One who made it all possible. By all means pick up your Bible and read the Good News. Greg also says, “The Good News is so good that the bad news doesn’t matter.” I say a big amen to that!

Yes, I tell in my books and when I give my testimony, I did not want to be a massage therapist, a poet, or a writer. I thank God that I grasped the meaning of surrender because He certainly knows what the best life for me is.

My Father Told Me for my good and His glory! Romans 8:28 NLT says “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them. Now I can share it with you.

I could not close without saying that I realize some of you did not have a father figure in your life. Or some had a harsh unloving father. I know our Heavenly Father can and will heal all of the hurt and suffering caused by this. It is not only His desire but His will to do that for you. It is your opportunity to live the best life He created you for, in spite of your circumstances. He fulfills every need we could ever have.

With love,

Reba