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Manna Issue 19
#1
Manna Issue 19

Psalm 18:29 With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall. 30 As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. 31 For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God? 32 It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. 33 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. 34 He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. 35 You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great. 36 You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.

David was only a mere shepherd herder when he discovered the power of God enabling him to do mighty exploits. Today we are going to tap into that marvelous power ourselves and apply it to our dieting attempts. With His help we can advance against a troop of calorie restrictions; we can scale the wall that we have before us which is a wall built by "I can't". We will take this wall down brick by brick is necessary, or in a moment of faith we will just down and out knock it down. We will truly learn that we can do all things through Christ Jesus who gives us strength. We will attempt then to fill our vocabulary with words that begin with "I can."

We start off today learning a lesson by very young children who were inspired to take the word I can't out of their vocabulary and hold a funeral for it. We too this day will learn not to mourn the word I can't and its passing, but to leap for joy with the word that takes it place, I can. The I Can't Funeral By: Author Unknown Donna's fourth grade classroom looked like many others I had seen in the past. The teacher's desk was in front and faced the students. The bulletin board featured student work. In most respects it appeared to be a typically traditional elementary classroom. Yet something seemed different that day I entered it for the first time. My job was to make classroom visitations and encourage implementation of a training program that focused on language arts ideas that would empower students to feel good about themselves and take charge of their lives. Donna was one of the volunteer teachers who participated in this project. I took an empty seat in the back of the room and watched. All the students were working on a task, filling a sheet of notebook paper with thoughts and ideas. The ten-year-old student next to me was filling her page with "I Cant's". "I can't kick the soccer ball past second base." "I can't do long division with more than three numerals." "I can't get Debbie to like me." Her page was half full and she showed no signs of letting up. She worked on with determination and persistence. I walked down the row glancing at students' papers. Everyone was writing sentences, describing things they couldn't do. By this time the activity engaged my curiosity, so I decided to check with the teacher to see what was going on but I noticed she too was busy writing. I felt it best not to interrupt. "I can't get John's mother to come for a teacher conference." "I can't get my daughter to put gas in the car." "I can't get Alan to use words instead of fists." Thwarted in my efforts to determine why students and teacher were dwelling on the negative instead of writing the more positive "I Can" statements, I returned to my seat and continued my observations. Students wrote for another ten minutes. They were then instructed to fold the papers in half and bring them to the front. They placed their "I Can't" statements into an empty shoe box. Then Donna added hers. She put the lid on the box, tucked it under her arm and headed out the door and down the hall. Students followed the teacher. I followed the students. Halfway down the hallway Donna entered the custodian's room, rummaged around and came out with a shovel. Shovel in one hand, shoe box in the other, Donna marched the students out to the school to the farthest corner of the playground. There they began to dig. They were going to bury their "I Cant's"! The digging took over ten minutes because most of the fourth graders wanted a turn. The box of "I Cant's" was placed in a position at the bottom of the hole and then quickly covered with dirt. Thirty-one 10 and 11 year-olds stood around the freshly dug grave site. At this point Donna announced, "Boys and girls, please join hands and bow your heads." They quickly formed a circle around the grave, creating a bond with their hands. They lowered their heads and waited. Donna delivered the eulogy."Friends, we gathered here today to honor the memory of 'I Can't.' While he was with us here on earth, he touched the lives or everyone, some more than others. We have provided 'I Can't' with a final resting place and a headstone that contains his epitaph. His is survived by his brothers and sisters, 'I Can', 'I Will', and 'I'm Going to Right Away'. They are not as well known as their famous relative and are certainly not as strong and powerful yet. Perhaps some day, with your help, they will make an even bigger mark on the world. May 'I Can't' rest in peace and may everyone present pick up their lives and move forward in his absence. Amen." As I listened I realized that these students would never forget this day. Writing "I Cant's", burying them and hearing the eulogy. That was a major effort on this part of the teacher. And she wasn't done yet. She turned the students around, marched them back into the classroom and held a wake. They celebrated the passing of "I Can't" with cookies, popcorn and fruit juices. As part of the celebration, Donna cut a large tombstone from butcher paper. She wrote the words "I Can't" at the top and put RIP in the middle. The date was added at the bottom. The paper tombstone hung in Donna's classroom for the remainder of the year. On those rare occasions when a student forgot and said, "I Can't", Donna simply pointed to the RIP sign. The student then remembered that "I Can't" was dead and chose to rephrase the statement. I wasn't one of Donna's students. She was one of mine. Yet that day I learned an enduring lesson from her as years later, I still envision that fourth grade class laying to rest, "I Can't".

Habits are our servants, not our masters. We can make changes in our behavior that will change our lives in positive ways. One of those ways is to pay attention to yourself every time you say, "I can't." Stop right in your tracks and replace that word with a positive thought. You might find that it takes a great deal of thought and effort to break this habit. You may not think that it is worth the investment, but as children of God you have an inheritance which is to yet to be claimed, and you cannot have it by denying the wonderful inheritance God has in store for you by using the words, "I can't." When I first began dieting, I said, "I can't exercise. My back hurts, my feet ache when I stand on them, and I am out of breath." But within a month I was so excited about my weight loss and from everything I had read I determined that I would have to introduce exercise into this picture if I expected the weight loss to continue. So, I said, "I can for ten minutes"; and I did! Then the following week, I said, "I can for fifteen minutes", and I did. On and on as I began to say the words "I can", I discovered that this was the truth. When I said before, "I can't," what I really and truthfully meant was that I don't want to. Ask yourself each time you catch yourself saying the word, "I can't", if what you really mean is, "I won't". Such a big huge difference, friends. That I can attest to. I had prayed to God to help me with weight loss, a seemingly impossible endeavor on my own, but He graciously, patiently and humbly led me to view how negative I had become in thinking weight gain during midlife was the best we could expect. God refused to listen to me say, "I can't," and I once again threw myself into the study of His Word and seeing all of the precious promises that He has said to us that with Christ we CAN accomplish anything and everything. When I looked for the positive's of the Christian Word, I began to see them like never before. And it was all due to the weight gain and the negative mindset that comes with it. Will you admit to being a negative person?

Is your weight weighing you down in more ways than one? You might need a tune up today. You might have to literally do as this group of children did and write your "I cant's" down on a piece of paper, and burying them somewhere where they will no longer haunt you. May they R.I.P.! Will you, when it comes to dieting, please take the time today to write down your biggest and most foreboding, "I can't" on a piece of paper and follow the directions in our inspirational story today and hold a funeral for it? Here is our assignment for this week. What would you like to do differently today? What specific action can you take to begin to climb out of an uncomfortable rut? What "I can't" CAN you get rid of today? If you have said, "I can't lose weight; I can't give up sweets, I can't follow a diet plan; I can't find a diet plan that I can stick to; I can't exercise; I can't find a diet buddy; I can't reach goal weight; I can't maintain; I can't, I can't, I can't," I want you to go write that down on a piece of paper. Pray about it and offer it to God. Place it figuratively at the foot of the cross, and then literally go take it and have a funeral for it. Say goodbye to it forever and do not bemoan or mourn it. Come back and write "I can" on a piece of paper. Find a passage in your Bible that is encouraging and powerful and place your "I can" there so you will keep track of the miracle that is about to occur. When we know that God has seen our change of heart, He will surely change our mind and our circumstance.

Paul said this in 1 Corinthians 16: "For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ." We have the mind of Christ, and Christ Jesus faced with overwhelming adversities never said to the Father, "I can't". Jesus came to set an example for us. We can certainly do all things through Christ who strengthens us! Now, expect something wonderful to happen. Don't just wish for it---watch for it. You have just exchanged defeat for victory. "Who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." That sounds like a pretty good exchange, doesn't it? Do you want your attempts at dieting to be made perfect? Of course you do! They say that the first step of any journey begins in the mind. For Christians the thought is conceived there, but the Spirit dwelling in us puts power on it. Put wings today on your thought of "I can." Because God knows you are well able to. Make your heart grateful that you listened and overcame. It is right around the corner. There are some days that we feel we are standing still and not making any progress. This is a lie. It is not the truth. Once you accepted Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior He began a good work in you which He is responsible to bring to completion. He is the Author and Finisher of our faith, and that includes the commitment you just made to eradicate the "I can't" mindset from your vocabulary. He has planted (authored) that idea and He will complete (finish) that within you. You can lose weight, you can keep it off, you can regain health if you replace your I cant's for His I do's and I can's.

I close with this great quote: "If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right."~ Author: Henry Ford If you fill your mind with spiritual words you will so condition your personality and change it that so God will and can operate in you. Take away each negative today and replace it with a positive from His Word. A great adventure awaits you! Father God, I need an attitude adjustment and I am coming to You for the strength and help that I need to become an overcomer. Forgive me of my doubts and negativities and grant to me the spirit of adventure and courage. Stop me cold when I dwell on I can't, and help me to move on toward the words I can which will be so pleasing in Your ears. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Amen ©2001-2007 www.gracetoday.com

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