Count It All Joy

By Missionary Paula

We are all accountable for our own sins and we cant stand before God and put the blame on someone else. There is no small sin or big sin and God doesnt hold our past against us like we do to some people. Regardless of what you do in life, if you sincerely come before God and ask Him for Forgiveness He will give it to you. When struggles come they may not turn out the way you think or expect to them to but God can give you the grace to Count it All Joy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 17, 2015
• ISBN: 9781493161232

Missionary Paula

Missionary Paula is a dedicated servant of Jesus Christ. She accepted Christ at the age of twelve years old however due to a lack of knowledge she strayed away from the church for a time. She was born in Jersey City, New Jersey and raised in Bayonne, New Jersey along with one brother and one sister. Once Missionary Paula became a part of Ministry in North Carolina in 2006 she began to find out the truth. Missionary Paula found out that she had been living in denial most of her adult life and needed to rededicate her life to Christ.

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Copyright © 2015, 2016 by Missionary Paula.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2014900349

ISBN:       Hardcover       978-1-4931-6122-5

       Softcover       978-1-4931-6121-8

       eBook       978-1-4931-6123-2

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

All scripture quotations unless otherwise stated have been taken from The Maxwell Leadership Bible, NKJV (New King James Version by Thomas Nelson Inc., 1982).

All definitions have been taken from The American Dictionary of the English Language by Noah Webster.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Rev. date: 07/22/2016

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CONTENTS

Introduction

» In the Beginning

Chapter one: Through Tests and Trials

» Evaluate our Circumstance

» Humble Ourselves

» Stay Connected

Chapter two: Through Suffering

» Praise our Way through It

» Pray our Way through It

» What Are We Willing to Give Up?

Chapter three: Looking for Joy in All the Wrong Places

» Growing Up

» Living in Denial

» No Direction

Chapter four: Through the Wilderness

» Make an Adjustment

» Build A New Foundation

» Don’t Look Back

Chapter five: Exercise Your Faith

» Walk in Faith

» In our Hearts

» Rejoicing In the Lord

Conclusion

In the End

My prayer is that those of you who read this book will take my personal experiences and learn from them. I wish that I could have provided more for you, but I believe I have given you enough to at least begin rethinking your life. For those of you who are already mature in Christ, I pray that you will spread the word about this book to others whom you know that may benefit from reading these words.

DEDICATION

In the loving memory of my mother, whom I am grateful that God had chosen to bring me into this world. To my son and daughter whom I love so very much, it is my prayer that the two of you have learned from my mistakes and will not repeat them. Continue to allow God to guide and direct your path and you will never go wrong.

INTRODUCTION

»

In the Beginning

It says in James 1:2-8 (NKJV), My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, (3) knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. (4) But let patience have its perfect work that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. (5) If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. (6) But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. (7) For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; (8) he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. "How can we apply this Word to our lives?" Well, when we accept Christ into our lives, we have access to everything that God has promised to His people, and all we have to do is tap into it. What I mean is that we must pray and speak the Word of God. If the Word of God says that we have joy, then we should believe in our heart that we have joy. Oh, it can’t be that easy, right? Actually yes, it can be, because when we speak forth God’s Word, it brings us power. What do I mean? Death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love it will eat its fruit (Prov. 18:21). One example of this would be an individual who is constantly speaking negative. If negative words constantly come out of our mouth, then we can’t expect good things to happen; but if we speak the Word of God, then we are able to receive the benefits of that Word. The key to this is to first give our lives to Jesus Christ and develop a relationship with God through Him (Jesus).

We can’t be unsaved or out of relationship with God and expect good things to happen in our lives. Salvation is more than opening up the Bible a few times and reading Psalms. What is needed is that connection, and that connection can only come from being in constant communication with God on a daily basis. If no one has ever talked to you about giving your life to Jesus Christ, first let me tell you why you should do it. You should give your life to Christ because God loves you. Did you know that God loves you enough that He sent His only Begotten Son (Jesus) to die on the cross for all your sins? Because Christ died for your sins you can have everlasting life. You will find this scripture in John 3:16: For God who so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Now in order to benefit from this beautiful gift that God has given, you must first confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that He died on the cross and God the Father raised Him from the dead on the third day so you shall be saved (paraphrase, Rom. 10:9). You can say something like this when you pray: "Dear, Father God, I love you, and I come humbly before you this day. I believe in my heart that you sent your Son Jesus Christ to this earth to die for my sins on the cross and you raised Him up on the third day. God, I am a sinner, and I ask that you will forgive me for all my sins right now in the name of Jesus. Father God, I want to make Jesus Christ Lord over my life. I repent from all my sins right now in the name of Jesus, and I look to you for your guidance and direction from this day forward. Amen." You don’t need to be in church to pray this prayer, but if that’s what makes you feel more comfortable, then I encourage you to do so. You may not recite the same exact words that I gave you, but they may be similar.

If you have decided to pray this prayer at home, I recommend that you find a Bible-teaching church so you can learn about how to develop your relationship with God and build a strong foundation for your life through His Word. Allow God to be your guide in this area. Once you have found a church, participate in every Bible class that you possibly can. I also recommend that you stay in the Word day and night while you’re at home in order that you may have good success (Paraphrase, Josh. 1:8). Start out with the book of John and follow the Romans Road (Rom. 3:10, 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, 10:9–10, 13). Reading the book of John, you will be able to learn about Jesus Christ’s ministry as you begin your Christian walk. The Romans Road will show you that even though man is still a mess, that’s you and I; Christ still loved us all enough to die for our sins. Not one of us is perfect even those of us who do follow Christ. God is not looking for perfect people He’s looking for willing people; those of us with a willing heart and spirit to serve Him. God is looking for people who are not afraid to tell others about Him and His saving grace.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. The more questions you have, the more you will learn. I recall feeling like I would never understand the Bible. The enemy had me deceived into thinking that it was too complicated. I didn’t feel comfortable asking questions, and I thought my questions were stupid, so I kept the questions to myself. I would pick up the Bible one day and come across something I didn’t understand and close it back up. Then I would not pick up the Bible again for months. Have you ever heard people say there are no stupid questions except those questions that are not asked? I have learned that even pastors still must study on a consistent basis. My advice to you is to not do what I did, but ask God for clarity on what you don’t understand, and He will reveal it to you. If God has done this for me and for so many others, why wouldn’t He do it for you too? When you go to Church, you should hear confirmation about the things you are praying about and reading on your own.

In the beginning of the Christian walk, some people make the mistake of thinking that just because they have accepted Christ they will no longer have problems. That is not true. It doesn’t matter who you are—you will go through some things. "Missionary Paula, if that’s the case why should I follow Christ?" Is this your next question? Well, "Didn’t Jesus Christ suffer on the cross for you and me? Are we greater than Christ?" No, we are not! "So how can we expect not to go through some challenges in our Christian walk?" What’s important to know, however, is when Christ ascended into heaven, He sent us a Comforter (the Holy Spirit) to be a helper for you and me. The Holy Spirit can help us get through whatever circumstance that may arise. Christians go through struggles, but Christians don’t have go through struggles all alone. Why is that, Missionary Paula? What makes a Christians struggle so different from anybody else? Well, Christians have access to God through Jesus Christ! Most Christians rely on God and not man to deal with their circumstance (Prov. 3:5).

This is when our faith begins to be tested and where the enemy attempts to steal our joy. I cannot paint you a pretty picture of this because then I would be deceiving you. It’s not always easy to go through tests and trials, but when we have Holy Spirit to turn to; it’s easier to handle any situation before us. What’s happening in some churches is that new believers are not clear about what happens once they have accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. Then when these individuals come up against their first struggle, they end up discouraged and leave the church. This happens because the individuals feel that they were misled. I say look at it like this: God the Father sent His Son to die on that cross for you and me. Here, Jesus was perfect, never committed any sin, and He had to die in order that you and I may live. If we hear someone preaching and he or she never talks about the suffering of Christ, then it might be wise ask about that part of it. If all we ever learn is about how good everything is, how will we know how to handle the not so good things when they come along?

Job was one man who suffered greatly and he was a true believer and follower of God. Now check this out. God allowed Satan to test Job. See Job 1:1–12. The enemy took Job’s children, took his land and livestock. Then Satan attacked Job’s body, but Job never once cursed God (Job 1:13-22, 2:1-13). Even when everyone else in Job’s life told him to curse God and die, Job refused to do so and he stood on God’s Word. Job held on to his faith in God and he made it through the test. Now because Job was faithful, God blessed Job with a double portion of what he had lost. There was also a man named Abraham first known as Abram whom for many, many years could not conceive a child with his wife, Sarah first known as Sarai. Sarai became impatient while waiting to conceive a child with Abram. Then Sarai came up with what she thought was a brilliant the idea which was to give her servant Hagar to Abram in order that she may obtain a child through her (Gen. 16:1-3).

Now check this out, prior to Sarai convincing Abram to conceive a child with Hagar, God appeared to Abram and made a covenant with which pertained the promise of a son that would be conceived with his wife Sarai read Genesis chapter 15. In Genesis chapter 17 God speaks to Abram again about the promised son and now a name change. This is when Abrams’ name changed to Abraham and Sarai was to be called Sarah. In the beginning Abraham thought in his heart that it was impossible for him and Sarah to conceive a child due to their ages. Then God stated that, the two of them will conceive a son together and the son is to be named Isaac. The covenant was not just about the promised son but it also pertained to the promise land. If you read Genesis chapter 18 when the three men appeared to Abraham telling him about the promised son; you will also see that Sarah laughed when she overheard the words because she was well passed childbearing years and thought the idea was ridiculous. However Abraham and Sarah eventually conceived the son that God had promised many years before. Although Sarah had become impatient in waiting, God still blessed her with a son because of the covenant with Abraham her husband.

Now watch this extraordinary act of faith by Abraham. When Isaac was a young boy, God instructed Abraham to sacrifice his son after all the years it took for him and Sarah to conceive a child together. Guess what? Abraham was still willing to trust God and did what thus say the Lord. Abraham told no one of what God had instructed him to do. All anybody knew was that Abraham was going on a journey to make a sacrifice to the Lord in worship; nobody but Abraham knew what the sacrifice was going to be. Abraham went up to the mountain and built the sacrificial altar and placed the wood upon it. Then Abraham bound Isaac his son and laid him on the wood. Abraham then stretched out his hand with a knife to slay his son, and the Angel of the Lord spoke to Abraham saying, Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me (Gen. 22:12).

Faith is crucial in having joy in any circumstance. If we do not have faith and do not rely on God, then we will find ourselves in a constant battle. What is faith? Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11:1). Missionary Paula, how can I have faith in something or someone that I cannot see? The only thing I can tell you is to just do it. Trust in the Lord and know that His Word will never fail you. It says in God’s Word that it’s absolutely impossible to please God if we do not have faith (Heb. 11:6). If this is an area of weakness for you, then I suggest that you pray for God to help you as I had to do. Go to the Word and study the faith scriptures. Hebrews 11 is a good place to start. Read the stories about Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Daniel, Job, and Paul; each of these men had extraordinary faith. Focus on how these men used their faith to see themselves through their struggles, and you will see what I mean. Actually what I’ve been hearing lately is that we all have a measure of faith and all we need to do is activate it. The only way I know to activate anything in the Word is by speaking it.

I didn’t have a clue about having a relationship with God or having joy and victory in my circumstance. I use to crumble at the first sign of trouble that was headed my way. When I was living in North Carolina, the church that my family attended had assigned all members a book to read titled: A Whole New You: written by Dr. Tony Evans. What I learned (not applied at the time) from reading Dr. Evans’ book is instead of crying over my circumstance, I needed to go to God and ask Him what to do in my circumstance. During this particular time, my family was struggling financially; and for the first time in my life, I was living in a house with no running water. The city had ordered our water to be turned off for nonpayment of the water bill. We had to ask neighbors if they would give us water so we could cook and wash up. This was a very uncomfortable situation for me. I had never been through anything like this before, and I wasn’t sure how to handle it. One thing I did decide was that I would not call anyone up to help bail us out as I so often had done in the past when we got into trouble. Then one day my sister-in-law on my husbands’ side called me on the phone. I believe one of the children may have said something about the odor coming from the bathroom and my sister-in-law heard what was said. That’s when she asked, What’s up? To make a long story short, my sister-in-law deposited the money in our bank account the next day so that we could pay the bill. I will talk more about North Carolina later on.

I was twelve years old when I prayed the prayer of salvation, and somehow I was never clear about needing to have a relationship with God through Christ. Let’s put it this way: nobody ever broke it down so that I could understand what it all meant in the beginning, and I ended up leaving the church for a time. Later on in my adult years when I finally returned to church, I just took up space in the pews. I was physically there, but nothing really stuck with me at the time. I didn’t begin to truly understand anything about God or my purpose until the year 2007 in North Carolina. I still didn’t have the complete picture of things before leaving, but once I returned to New Jersey, God began to reveal more to me little by little.

Oh! Missionary Paula, the Bible is too hard for me to understand. I can’t read or study it on my own. Well, the truth is you can’t do it on your own. You have to ask God for His help. We can do nothing apart from God, we all need His help. When you hear the voice that’s telling you that you can’t do it, just know that Satan is telling you another one of his lies. Don’t you dare believe Satan’s lies! It’s just another one of Satan’s tricks to keep you from your destiny. Satan doesn’t want you to get into the Word of God because then you will know the truth, and he doesn’t want you to know the truth. For years I told myself that reading God’s Word was too difficult for me to understand on my own, but I didn’t give up and now I can share what I’ve learned with you.

There was even a time that I wouldn’t go out with the evangelist from church to minister God’s Word to people because my thinking was "How am I able to teach others about His Word?" Then before I realized it while I was living in North Carolina I grew to love going out on the streets and into the nursing homes to minister the Word of God to people. I also found that I was enjoying every word I came across in the Bible, so don’t worry, you can do it too with God’s help. You just have to humble yourself and ask God for understanding. "Missionary Paula, you keep talking about having a relationship with God and understanding His Word in order to have this joy you speak of. Well, what does joy actually mean?" Well, joy means to rejoice, to shout. Joy is gladness, exultation, exhilaration of spirits. Joy is a delight of the mind, from the consideration of the present or assured approaching possession of good. This definition was found in The American Dictionary of the English Language by Noah Webster.

When my family attended church in North Carolina, the pastor and ministers all liked to refer to the Bible as our playbook for living a Christian life. Professional ball players have playbooks that they follow every season in hopes that they will be successful and win the championship every year. We as Christians can use God’s Word to be successful in obtaining the crown of salvation. Think about it, the professional ball players use a playbook that shows each player which way to go and what to do. The Holy Bible is no different it accomplishes the same thing but brings about a much better result. The Word of God is the truth that was written by inspired men of God, so everything that is written in it you can and should believe to be the truth.

Making a decision to do something that we think is okay just because it appears to be an easy solution to our problem is not okay. If we do this, the result won’t last. Believe me; you do not want to go there. Now if we do things the way that God instructs us to do them, it might take longer to get there, but the end result will last. Then we will be glad that we did it God’s way and not our own. It is always good to check with God first instead of having to answer to Him later on. Believe it or not, it could be something as simple as taking the wrong job. A lot of people would think that the job that pays more money is always the answer, but sometimes it can be the wrong answer. Missionary Paula, I have a mortgage, one child in college, and another child ready to graduate. I need the job that pays more money, so I can take care of my family.

I understand; it’s easy to get caught up in looking at the tangible things in life. The point that I am trying to make is, sometimes God will have us to accept a lower-paying position because there is something that He has in mind for us. This is why communication and prayer with God are so important. We have to learn to stop looking at the bills in front of us and look at God in the circumstance. Just know when we hear from God and choose to ignore Him, we will find ourselves in a struggle somewhere down the road. Believe it or not, if God instructs us to take a job that pays less, He already has a plan to take care of everything else that we need even if we don’t see it at the moment. Read Matthew 6:33, we are to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; then all things (that we need) will be added unto us (paraphrase).

"What are you saying, Missionary Paula? I have to trust God even when I don’t see where the money is coming from?" Yes, that is exactly what I am saying to you. One of the biggest mistakes that some of us often make is thinking that we can do what we want and God will come and bail us out when we get into trouble. Wrong answer! God does not work that way, not when you’re constantly making the same poor decisions. I am telling you this from personal experience. I am currently unemployed with no medical coverage. I am ineligible to collect unemployment and ineligible to collect welfare. I do get Social Security disability for my daughter because her dad is currently disabled, but that’s it. It’s by the grace of God that I am able to have the things that I need for now. I continue to hear other people telling me what they believe will help to get me out of the situation, but I need to hear from God about my situation.

In North Carolina, when God told me to rely on Him to provide all my needs, I allowed myself to be pressured to do what was contrary to His instruction. After failing to listen to God’s instructions, our family ended up back in New Jersey in November of 2008. Don’t miss out on your blessing because you’re too stubborn to listen to God like I was. Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying that I am not grateful for what I do have because I am very grateful for I have at the moment. My family was about to be on the street again for the second time in four years, but God provided a way of escape. The point that I am making is after all the mistakes that I have made, I have to start over from scratch and that takes a while. I am currently a student and I’m working on my bachelor’s degree in business administration. My concentration is office management with a minor in entrepreneurship.

My current assignment/job is to write this book. I have paid a heavy price more than once for disobedience, and I have to stop listening to what other people think is best, and do what God says to do. I am not saying when people give advice they are trying to steer us wrong, but if God spoke something to us, we must follow what God said to do. What someone is telling us to do might sound good, but we have to know for ourselves, that it’s what God would have us to do. If God is instructing us to do one thing and we choose to do something else, how can He help us if we get stuck? If we choose to follow self, then we can’t expect to call on God and be delivered out of our circumstance. The situation that we just created is brought on by our own doing, not God’s. Now this doesn’t mean that God will abandon us; but we will have to first learn our lesson, repent, and ask for forgiveness.

Things like this often occur in the beginning stages of Christianity because the individual was either not taught properly, or he/she is struggling with submitting to God (which you will see I did over and over later on). Salvation is a choice. God will not force Himself on anyone. God will only extend the invitation, but it’s up to you and to accept that invitation. Let me ask you this: when your natural parents raised you, weren’t there some house rules set in place for you to follow? When you were growing up didn’t your natural parents expect you to listen to what they told