WilliamHowell.us

Some things in life are better left unsaid. We are so quick to say our own piece of what we believe yet we don’t gather all of the facts before we throw them all up on other people. That has been the reason I haven’t written in the last few days. I would go to type something and save it as a draft yet end up deleting it. Why? It is better left unsaid.

What would happen if we did the same in our everyday life?  We type out our thoughts in our own mind, review, perform the spell check and grammatical errors before hitting publish. We read it again and decide to trash it instead of publishing it. Our world would be free from the issues that we have!

I want to challenge both you and me to not publish unless it is appropriate to build those around us up instead of tearing them down. 

I went to the dentist to get my cleaning done. This is not my favorite thing to do. As a matter of fact, I have had my share of dentists and orthodontists visits in my time on this earth. I know the importance of oral health and I decided that I needed to go in. Honestly, I wasn’t impressed with the hygienist that I had. She wasn’t very friendly at first and I felt like I was going through an interrogation with all of the questions regarding allergies, health issues, etc.

One of the questions that she asked me was regarding the surgeries that I have had. I told her that with a cleft palate, I have had my share of them. I kid you not the next question actually happened. “What happened? Were you born with it?”  I have to be honest with you that I was speechless for a few seconds. Someone who works with oral health did not know what a cleft palate was kind of scared me. This was the first for me! For those who do not know what it is, let me share with you this definition;

The past six months or so, I have been preparing for the Security + exam through CompTIA. In order to understand why this is worth writing about, I must take you back to 2017. I had been looking for a job with no prospects. On a whim, I went to a career fair at a local college where I met a recruiter for the New Horizons Learning Center. It was here that I began realizing that my new career field. I started looking into what it would take and by the grace of God, I was able to get a grant to take courses for three different certifications.

During that time, I was contacted about a job with CSRA that would be a great fit and I could come on while I was working on my certification. The problem was, I did not have the clearance that I needed. I took the courses while I waited for the clearance to go through and was able to complete them. I did not pass the tests when I first took them. I was close many times, but could not seem to clear that hurdle.

I got the call for me to start at this job and I could start when I was ready. I went ahead and started though I had not gotten the certifications done. The pressure was on because I had agreed to get the certifications in a set time or I would have to look for employment elsewhere. During this time, I found out that I was the last person that was hired that did not have a clearance automatically. Talk about God’s favor!

Once a month from November 2017 to April 2018, I took and failed every exam. I was truly disappointed every time. During this time, I was also having other issues. I have to say, this was a very stressful time. I often questioned if this was the right direction. I kept looking back at the favor of even getting this job, let alone working for the time I did without the certification. Then, on April 18, 2018, I finally passed my Network +!

I was so excited. A great weight was lifted off my shoulders. I took a very short time off then started on my Security +. Why? Because I knew it would open more doors. I studied from May to October and took the exam. I failed on the first try. Good grief! It was like a repeat. However, I did not let that get me down. I decided to give it some time and take it again. Well, on February 8th, with God’s grace I passed my exam.

I know that it may not mean a lot to you. For me, it is a reminder of God’s grace when we are persistent. Read this passage about the widow from Luke 18:1-5;

Then Jesus told them a parable to show them they should always pray and not lose heart.  He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people.  There was also a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’  For a while he refused, but later on he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor have regard for people, yet because this widow keeps on bothering me, I will give her justice, or in the end she will wear me out by her unending pleas.’”

When we are persistent, God listens to us. Believe me, it is not easy! It is hard. However, when God gets us through it we can look back and thank God that He got us through it.  What are you believing God to get you through in 2019?

I was reading in Mark 9 this morning and came across this passage;

“Six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and brought them up on a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; and His garments became radiant and exceedingly white, as no launderer on earth can whiten them. Elijah appeared to them along with Moses; and they were talking with Jesus. Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, ‘This is My beloved Son, listen to Him!’ All at once they looked around and saw no one with them anymore, except Jesus alone.” Mark 9:2-4, 7-8 NASB

I would have loved to have been in on that conversation. Elijah, Moses, and Jesus on a mountain top speaking to one another and no one thought to write down the conversation. I wonder what they talked about. I wonder where this conversation could have gone in such a short time. Why was there a cloud obstructing the meeting? Was this a top-secret mission? Was were only Peter, James, and John allowed to go?

Peter, James, and John were among the very few that were able to enter into the inner circle of Jesus. They were with Him with many of the miracles, dined with Him, walked with Him, and yet were not perfect. Just with Peter alone, we all know that there was no way in our religious circle that he would be allowed to hang with the King of kings. Just think, though, Jesus allowed these three into the very personal part of His life at a critical part of what was to come. Still, the vagueness of this conversation still keeps me wondering what was said!

My hunch would be that Elijah, Moses, and Jesus were talking about what was to come in the next short period of time. No one really knows what was said, but I would have loved to have been in on that conversation What do you think was said?

I was reading about the Exodus today and something jumped out at me that I really hadn’t paid attention to fully before. I noticed it, but it did not fully make sense to me until today. All throughout the first few chapters, Moses responded to the Lord about his inadequacies. For example, Moses responded to the Lord’s direction in Exodus 4:10;

“‘But Moses said to the Lord , “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” ‘ Exodus 4:10

How often do we feel the same way when God puts a dream or a desire in our heart? How many times do you or I have a task that is given to us yet we do not feel qualified to do it? It is then that God reminds us that He will give us the strength and will qualify us to do what He has called us to do.

‘I can do all things through him who strengthens me. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. ‘
Philippians 4:12-13

It is a reminder to us that no matter what desire or dream that God has put into our hearts, He will give us the tools to accomplish. What inadequacies do you need God’s help in?