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At every stage of a horse's training, he has to
overcome something. In the beginning, he has to overcome his fear of people,
being led in a strange contraption around his head and nose, being saddled,
having his feet picked up and trimmed and later having a man get up on his
back and ride in the most vulnerable spot on his body. The quicker he learns
to overcome, the faster he learns. He must not only learn to overcome, but to
overcome with a good and willing attitude. He learns not to buck, but to stay
calm and on the ground before he can ever be taught maneuvers. Then he is
introduced to many more strange situations before he finally becomes a
valuable and solid competitor. He cannot overcome something unless he comes
face to face with it. He can never become a valuable rodeo horse staying at
home in his pasture. He has to face bands, flags, crowds, and many other
situations and overcome them to become valuable. The more he overcomes, the
higher his value becomes. He either becomes an overcomer or he is overcome.
The word overcome then has a double meaning. If
he is overcome, he does not have the ability to conquer. If he becomes an
overcomer, he has the ability to conquer and to gain the superiority over. He
got the better of his fears and became a focused performer. His rewards will
be many and they will come in the form of winning money and awards.
A person will never know what they can overcome
until they are put into situations that they have never faced. Some
situations that we face leave us with the feeling that we are overwhelmed or
have been overcome. But, if we walk on, keep on and stay on target toward our
goals, we will overcome. When I recently read in Revelation where Jesus
Christ told John to write to the churches, I saw that all the rewards are for
overcomers. Read Revelation in Chapters 2 and 3 and see how many times it
says, " to him that overcomes I will give......". We cannot let the things
that come our way in this life overcome us. We must become overcomers. It is
like building muscles. You will not know how strong your muscles are until
you try to lift something. The more we face and conquer through prayer,
fellowship and the Word of God, the stronger we become. I can face things
today that I would have had a hard time facing when I was 20.
Remember that we cannot become overcomers until we
are faced with something to overcome and conquer. We must not let the
happenings on the news send us down, but rather let them send us closer to
growing in knowledge of God. Grace and Peace are multiplied through the
knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. (2 Peter 1:2) He is our source of
strength. The more we run to Him, the stronger we become. The weaker we
are, the stronger He becomes in us. His strength is made perfect in our
weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9) So, to become an overcomer is not to try to
"gut it out" and raise yourself up, but to submit and lower yourself to your
knees. Just as the great overcoming horse learned to trust his handler in
all situations, we must place our trust in the handler of our soul. He alone
knows our future. You may as well rest in Peace because His eye is upon all
those who have trusted in Him. He who watches the sparrows has my life and my
future in His hands. Osama Ben Laden was used of the devil to bring harm.
What the devil meant for harm, God is using for good. May you think of
yourself this week looking for situations to become an overcomer. Operation
Overcome will be completed in your life when:
Striving turns to release
Passivity turns to passion
Disaster turns to devotion
Trials turn into testimonies
Fear turns into freedom and faith
Challenge turns into commitment
and Control turns into Trust.
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