Are You Losing Sight of Your Why? Do This.
Drenda Keesee • May 29, 2020
I used to waste a lot of time trying to change people instead of holding out the life-giving Word of God and letting people choose change for themselves.
How you invest your time really does matter, and what you choose does make a difference.
Here are some tips that the Holy Spirit gave me that have helped me be more effective for God’s Kingdom:
1. BE BIGGER THAN TIME STEALERS!
3. BE BIGGER THAN DECEIVERS!
5. BE BIGGER THAN COMPROMISE AND SIN!
You don’t want to play with anything that even resembles a stumbling block. (Yes, this even includes missing church and not reading and
studying the Word.) You are empowered to live a life that has no hint of sin! You are to have freedom from sin and live as an example!
I thought I could change people and keep them from making bad decisions. I would give everything I had—pouring out all of my energy and time to help someone—and when they chose to not follow God, I would face overwhelming discouragement.
I felt so ineffective as a believer and as a minister.
Have you ever felt ineffective?
That’s exactly what the enemy wants. He wants to distract you, deceive you, disillusion you, and derail your faith.
He wants to make you ineffective.
We all have been given only so much time. At the end of my life, I want to know that what I lived for—how I invested my time and effort—really mattered, that it made a difference, built a legacy, and left the world a better place.
The enemy will try to pull you off what matters and get you to invest in the wrong things, the wrong people, and the wrong choices and decisions to shipwreck your faith and your life.
Gary and I made plenty of mistakes while learning how to operate in God’s Kingdom in the early days of our ministry, (I'm so glad God is bigger than our mistakes.) but one big way the enemy was able to distract us was by getting us to take false responsibility for people and their choices.
Because of that, we were always dealing with dysfunction and problems instead of doing more of what really mattered. In fact, we almost quit the ministry over some of them!
More than 20 years ago, for example, there was a lady who would come to the altar for prayer on a weekly basis. I prayed for her every
week for freedom from evil, but she would come back week after week and month after month for the same prayer.
We tried to help her. We even gave her a part-time job at the church to help support her. We tried everything we could to help her family. It was discouraging and exhausting because things never got any better, and I couldn’t understand why.
Eventually, we discovered that she was intentionally deceiving us and living a very different life than she had portrayed to us. I have since learned that a person can never be free unless they
decide they want change in their life.
There were others, too. We had people who would come and disrupt worship services and try to draw attention to themselves. We once had a man come to a youth event at our home and start running all over our yard during worship time. And our cat chased him as he ran! When he came up our hill, he fell backwards and started rolling. No, I’m not kidding.
He rolled 40 feet and, when he stopped, our cat pounced on his chest and started pawing and purring. Needless to say, the youth were no longer worshiping God.
Each time these kind of things happened with people, I would ask God, “Why did you send us these people? What do we do with them? How could you put us through this week after week?”
God simply answered and said, WHO SAID I SENT THEM?
The enemy had been eating our lunch, and all along we thought it was God who was doing it.
In our lack of understanding, we were allowing people
to take the focus off of God’s Word and worship. Meanwhile, we were only becoming more and more discouraged thinking that God was not doing what He promised.
We must become wise to the enemy’s schemes to steal, kill, and destroy.
The devil will never give up his efforts to steal your time and distract you from what really matters.
When we neglect where we should invest our time and finances, and something goes wrong, God is usually blamed. This is a tactic of the enemy.
God is wise with His investments. You and I need to be too!
Shortly after these events, the Holy Spirit took me to an example in the ministry of Jesus where a rich young ruler proclaimed he had followed all of God’s commandments since childhood. Jesus then tested the heart of the rich young ruler before he was willing to take him on as a disciple. He told him, “Go, sell your possessions and give them to the poor, and come follow me.”
Jesus put a requirement on him that would hold him accountable and would show his heart and motive. Up to that point I had never really thought about how Jesus tested the hearts of men to reveal their real intentions and motives. We know now that if the ruler had followed Jesus, the reward would have been greater than anything it would have cost him.
But when his heart was tested, he was all about himself.
Jesus wisely saw this. Jesus didn’t invest His time in the wrong places!
The Bible tells us to “redeem the time for the days are evil.”
So how can you navigate through this time with wisdom and discernment so that you are investing where God would have you?
1. BE BIGGER THAN TIME STEALERS!
- Invest your time wisely.
- Become established in your faith.
We've all made mistakes, but at some point we must grow up! We can’t always just hear the Word of God; we must come to understand the Word. We understand by DOING IT, even when it’s not easy. - Avoid compromise.
There are no shortcuts to true success without living the principles of God’s Word.
2. BE BIGGER THAN THE WORLD’S DECEIT!
The Bible tells us that the natural man (or carnal man) doesn’t receive the things of God.
Colossians 2:6-10 says,
As you therefore have received Christ Jesus our Lord, so we walk in Him rooted, and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit (vain deception), according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and NOT according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
I have seen Hell prevail in people’s lives when Jesus is no longer Lord over their lives.
People betrayed Jesus, and people will also betray YOU.
People aren’t always faithful, but GOD IS ALWAYS FAITHFUL!
The disciples hung out with Judas every day in the ministry. Jesus knew Judas was cheating, stealing, and would betray Him, but the
other disciples had to decide whether they would follow Judas or Jesus.
other disciples had to decide whether they would follow Judas or Jesus.
You have to decide, too!
We all have to decide who to listen to and who to follow.
- Stay the course! Persevere with the Word!
What did God say? Do it! Stay with it!
- Keep sowing and growing.
Everything you do IS important and is, literally, sowing your future harvest.
Every action has a response of reaping, so make sure you sow good things out of a good heart. Live your life with purpose and make a decision to do it God’s way.
4. BE BIGGER THAN PROBLEMS THAT DISCOURAGE YOU!
Grow in grace. Grace is God’s ability and empowerment; it is not mercy.
You grow in grace by recognizing His power over your own rights. We are dead to ourselves, so we don’t use grace as a means to argue
our rights to live marginal lives, or play with sin.
our rights to live marginal lives, or play with sin.
Live in a God-empowered state where you don’t even want to have a hint of anything sinful in your life!
First John 5:17-18 says,
We know that whoever is born of God does not continue in sin, but he who has been born of God KEEPS HIMSELF, an the WICKED ONE DOES NOT TOUCH HIM.
We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may KNOW HIM who is TRUE; and we are IN HIM who is true, Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life! Keep yourselves from idols, dear children.
Some believers look at grace like teenagers look at turning 18.
Many teens think that turning 18 means that they come out from under their parents’ authority and are free to do what they want.
Instead of showing that they are adult-like and can honor their parents as a young adult, they are actually proving how immature they
really are. That’s the way a lot of Christians look at grace; but grace is not freedom to sin; it is freedom from sin.
really are. That’s the way a lot of Christians look at grace; but grace is not freedom to sin; it is freedom from sin.
studying the Word.) You are empowered to live a life that has no hint of sin! You are to have freedom from sin and live as an example!
When people start to justify playing around with sin, they get snared. Just admit it, quit it, and forget it!
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Learn more about how to overcome all that the enemy tries to throw at you in every
area of life in Gary and Drenda's Faith Over Fear Package.
In Shark Proof, Drenda combines her wit, humor, and life experience from 23 years in ministry to create a captivating book on overcoming one of the greatest problems we face: dealing with difficult people.
And, in Gary's Faith Over Fear 6-part series, you'll learn how to handle EVERY fear, so fear doesn't handle you.
And, in Gary's Faith Over Fear 6-part series, you'll learn how to handle EVERY fear, so fear doesn't handle you.
Reading Time 5 mins 08 secs – Faith does not usually disappear all at once. It happens slowly. A little distraction here. A little neglect there. A few days without feeding on the Word of God. A few moments of fear left unchecked. Before long, you may still remember what faith felt like, but you are no longer living from that place. That is what spiritual atrophy looks like. In the natural, muscles weaken when they are not used. You may remember being strong. You may remember what you used to carry or accomplish. But when the moment comes to use that strength again, you realize something has changed. The same thing can happen spiritually. You can remember the Scriptures. You can remember past victories. You can know the right things to say. But faith is more than repeating words. Faith is agreement with heaven. More Than Saying the Right Words Jesus said in Mark 11:23 that whoever speaks to the mountain and does not doubt in his heart will have what he says. The issue is not only what comes out of your mouth. The issue is also what your heart truly believes. Many people say, “My faith is weak.” But often, the real issue is unbelief. Jesus said faith as small as a mustard seed can move a mountain (Matthew 17:20). That means the problem is not the size of your faith. If faith is present, heaven has jurisdiction. Faith is not pretending everything is fine while fear still dominates your thinking. True faith is becoming so persuaded by God’s Word that His truth feels more real than the circumstance standing in front of you. The question is this: Are you in agreement with God’s Word? Or has fear, disappointment, or a past failure painted a different picture inside of you? The Enemy Works Through Pictures Fear always tries to create an image. A bad report. A painful memory. A failed attempt. A worst-case scenario. The enemy wants you to meditate on what could go wrong until fear feels more real than God’s promise. But every promise from God carries a picture too. Healing carries a picture. Provision carries a picture. Peace carries a picture. Victory carries a picture. If the picture inside you does not match what heaven says, your thinking has to be renewed. That only happens through the Word of God. Build Your Foundation Before the Storm Jesus said the wise man built his house on the rock. When the storm came, the house stood firm because it had a foundation. The storm is not the time to begin building. Do not wait until sickness comes to search for healing Scriptures. Do not wait until pressure hits your finances to learn how God’s Kingdom works. Build now. Meditate on the Word now. Mark 4 teaches us that the Word is seed. When it is planted in your heart, it grows over time. First the stalk, then the head, then the full grain. Faith grows the same way. As you continue feeding on truth, what God says becomes more real than what circumstances say. What Comes Out First Reveals Your Foundation When pressure suddenly hits, the first words out of your mouth often reveal what you truly believe. Fear speaks quickly. But faith speaks with authority. If fear has been leading your thoughts lately, do not live condemned. Recognize where you are and go back to the Word. Strengthen what has grown weak. Let truth become alive inside you again. Because when you are fully persuaded, you stop wrestling with whether God will do what He promised. You simply stand. You Can Start Fresh Today God’s mercies are new every morning. That means yesterday does not have the final word over your life. You are not trapped by past failures, past disappointments, or seasons where you felt spiritually dry. God is not asking you to live off old victories or old encounters with Him. He invites you to walk with Him daily, to be renewed daily, and to grow stronger daily. You are not stuck in spiritual weakness. Faith can be rebuilt. Strength can return. Your confidence in God can grow again. The same way muscles strengthen through consistent exercise and nourishment, your spirit becomes strong when it is continually fed with truth. Every moment spent in God’s Word is building something inside of you. Even when you cannot immediately see it, the seed is growing. You can renew your mind. You can rebuild your foundation. You can feed your spirit until faith rises again and God’s promises become more real to you than fear, pressure, or uncertainty. The enemy may look for an opportune time, but you do not have to live vulnerable or unprepared. When your life is built on the Word, you are not easily shaken by bad reports, changing circumstances, or unexpected pressure. You know where your confidence comes from. Build your life on truth. Stay spiritually nourished. Guard what you allow into your heart and mind. Listen to the Holy Spirit, and follow His direction day by day. And when pressure comes, you will not collapse under it. You will stand firm, anchored in the promises of God and confident that He is faithful to finish what He started in you. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for Your Word and for teaching me how Your Kingdom operates. Show me where fear, unbelief, or wrong thinking has taken root in my heart. Help me renew my mind and become fully persuaded of Your promises. Strengthen my faith, guide me by Your Spirit, and teach me to stand firmly on Your truth. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
Reading Time 4 mins 25 secs – Fear feels real. It talks loudly. It paints pictures. It rehearses worst-case scenarios. And if you do not know how to stop it, it will try to script your future before you ever get there. But fear is not truth. Fear is not fact. And through God’s Word, you can live free from it. Scripture says plainly, “ Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me” (Psalm 23:4a, NIV). Notice that carefully. It does not say fear is unavoidable. It does not say anxiety is your permanent condition. It does not say torment is part of your identity. It says, I will fear no evil. That means freedom from fear is possible. Fear Works Through Images Fear often begins with a thought, but it does not stop there. It immediately tries to form a picture. The doctor says something concerning, and fear paints the ending. The bank account drops, and fear paints the ending. A symptom shows up, and fear paints the ending. A problem hits your family, and fear paints the ending. That is how the enemy works. He presents an image and tries to convince you it is reality. But just because something enters your mind does not mean it is true. Fear is an imagination. It is an illusion. It may feel convincing, but that does not make it a fact. The enemy wants you to meditate on what could go wrong. God calls you to stand on what He said. The Real Battle Is at the Root Fear is often treated like the main problem. But fear is really a symptom. Like a fever in the body, it points to something deeper that needs attention. The deeper issue is what you believe. If fear keeps dominating your thoughts, then somewhere a lie has been accepted as truth. That is why the answer is not just trying harder to calm down. The answer is renewing your mind. You must identify the lie. Then you must replace it with truth. Second Corinthians 10:5 reminds us that we are to cast down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. That means you do not let fearful thoughts sit in your mind and build a home there. You reject them. You replace them. You do not fight fear by admiring it, analyzing it, or entertaining it. You fight fear by confronting it with truth. What You Are Anchored to Matters Life will always present moments that seem dangerous, uncertain, or impossible. The question is not whether you will face pressure. The question is what you are anchored to when pressure comes. If your confidence is anchored to circumstances, you will always feel unstable. Circumstances change. Reports change. Emotions change. But God’s Word does not change. Truth can hold you. Just as a climber trusts the anchor that keeps him from falling, you must learn to trust the promises of God more than the pictures fear is trying to show you. When your life is anchored to truth, fear loses its power to dominate your thinking. Renewing Your Mind Changes What Feels Possible There was a time when many things people now accept with confidence would have seemed impossible. Flight looked impossible. Certain athletic feats looked impossible. What changed? Knowledge. Training. Repetition. Confidence in a higher law. In the same way, many believers still live under the assumption that fear is normal, fear is wise, fear is protective, or fear is just part of life. But God’s Kingdom operates differently. In Romans 12:2a (NIV), it says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Transformation does not happen by accident. It happens when you retrain your thinking with truth. The world trains people to expect loss, danger, failure, sickness, and defeat. God trains His people to expect His faithfulness, His promises, His strength, and His victory. If you keep feeding on fear, fear will feel natural. If you feed on truth, freedom will become normal. You Must Replace the Picture You cannot simply tell yourself not to think about something. You must replace the wrong picture with the right one. If fear says, “This will destroy you,” answer with what God says. If fear says, “You are going under,” answer with what God says. If fear says, “You will never recover,” answer with what God says. Truth is the antidote. When God promises healing, provision, peace, protection, and victory, those promises carry pictures. They are meant to shape your imagination. Too many people meditate on everything that can go wrong. But faith grows when you meditate on what God has already said in His Word. The enemy wants your imagination captured by fear. God wants your imagination renewed by truth. Your Future Does Not Belong to Fear Many people have lived so long under fear that they assume it will always define them. It will not. You can be free. Your life does not have to be governed by fear of sickness. Fear of failure. Fear of rejection. Fear of lack. Fear of loss. Fear of the future. God did not create you to live tormented. He created you to live in His Kingdom, under His rule, with His peace, and in the confidence of His promises. The future belongs to those who believe what God says more than what fear suggests. So, start again. Open your Bible. Find out who you really are. Train your mind in truth. Reject the lie. Hold onto His promises. And refuse to let fear write a story God never wrote for you. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for not giving me a spirit of fear. Thank You for giving me power, love, and a sound mind. Help me recognize every lie the enemy tries to plant in my thoughts. Teach me to renew my mind with Your Word and to reject every imagination that rises against the truth of who You are and who I am in Christ. Strengthen me to stand on Your promises, speak with authority, and live in the freedom You have given me. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
Reading Time 4 mins 40 secs – If you want to see your future, take a look at your friends. Scripture says plainly, “Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33, NIV). That’s not a suggestion. That’s a warning. And the deception is thinking your good character will automatically change the people around you. Sometimes it can. But often, it’s the other way around. Who speaks into your life matters. Who challenges you matters. Who flatters you matters. Who you follow matters. All of it shapes where you end up. The Deception About Influence Many people fall into what’s called false responsibility. They want someone else’s success more than that person wants it for themselves. They believe they can fix, carry, or rescue someone who isn’t willing to change. You must understand something clearly: God sends people, and the enemy sends people. Not every opportunity is from God. Not every relationship is divinely aligned. One of the clearest warning signs is constant flattery. When someone continually builds you up without ever challenging you, pay attention. Flattery often hides motive. That’s why you must judge your friendships carefully. Fear Is Contagious, and So Is Courage Before Israel went into battle, Moses gave a striking instruction: if someone was afraid or faint-hearted, send them home. Why? Because fear spreads. Fear talks. Doubt talks. Unbelief talks. But courage talks too. Faith talks too. Vision talks too. The people around you will either magnify the obstacle or magnify the promise. They will either rehearse what could go wrong or remind you what God said. Choose wisely. Proof That Who You Follow Changes You After David defeated Goliath, King Saul pursued him. David escaped to a cave. Not a palace, not a resort—a cave. And 400 men followed him. The Bible describes them as distressed, in debt, and discontented. That doesn’t sound like leadership material. But something changed. Those same men became David’s mighty men of valor. They performed exploits. They accumulated wealth. They became strong, disciplined warriors. What happened? They followed someone who carried covenant confidence. They followed faith instead of fear. And they were transformed. Who you follow will change you, either for good or for worse. The Cost of the Wrong Circle You don’t have to make the wrong decision yourself to feel the consequences of being in the wrong environment. Association carries weight. When you attach yourself to people who are reckless, careless, or spiritually drifting, their choices begin to affect your direction. Influence is subtle at first. It doesn’t feel dangerous. It feels normal. Comfortable. Accepted. But over time, conversations shape thinking. Thinking shapes decisions. Decisions shape outcomes. That’s why Scripture says not to be deceived. The drift rarely feels dramatic in the beginning. It feels gradual. You may never intend to compromise your standards. You may never plan to move away from your convictions. But proximity has power. What you tolerate eventually influences what you participate in. This is not about isolation. It’s about discernment. You can love everyone. You can minister to anyone. But you must be wise about who has consistent access to your life. Because you don’t have to commit the act to feel the consequence of the association. Choose your circle carefully. Not Everyone Qualifies for Close Access There are people you minister to. There are people you love. There are people you encourage. But not everyone qualifies to be your close companion. Ezra warned Israel not to make treaties of friendship with those whose practices would corrupt them. The principle still applies: don’t make agreements with influences that pull you away from God. There are relationships you need to: Increase Maintain Or discontinue And you must discern which is which. The righteous choose their friends carefully. What Healthy Friendship Looks Like The right people in your life will: Encourage your walk with God Strengthen your faith Uphold your marriage and family Believe in you Challenge you past your comfort zone Correct you when you’re wrong A true friend will tell you the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. An enemy flatters. A friend sharpens. If no one in your life can correct you, you’re vulnerable. Hold Unswervingly Hebrews instructs us to hold unswervingly to the hope we profess and to encourage one another toward love and good deeds. “Unswervingly” means steady. Unwavering. Not drifting. The right friendships help you stay steady. The wrong ones slowly pull you off course, usually so gradually you don’t notice until you’re far from where you intended to be. Make a decision: as for you and your house, you will serve the Lord. And build your circle around that decision. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for guiding my steps and ordering my relationships. Give me wisdom to choose my circle carefully. Help me discern the voices that strengthen my faith and the ones that pull me away. Surround me with people who challenge me, correct me, and encourage me to follow You fully. Give me courage to walk away from anything that hinders my walk with You. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.