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How To Believe In What You Think Is Impossible?

In my last post, I talked about how our beliefs have a tremendous impact in our lives. So many people hold limiting beliefs of what they’re capable of and what’s possible, which robs people of their full potential and the lives that they could live. I shared my personal experience of how changing my limiting beliefs and my way of thinking empowered me tremendously to transform my life after losing both of my legs and the function of my left arm.

When I began mastering my beliefs and my way of thinking, the restoration of my independence and my life has taken to a whole new level. Through the experience, I have learned that as long as you are convinced that you cannot do something, or that something is impossible, it really is true. But it remains true only as long as you hold on to that belief.

The link to my first post: https://ingalizdenyte.me/2019/08/27/what-beliefs-are-holding-you-back/

In this post, I want to continue: How to Change the Beliefs That Limit Us? How can we do that which we thought we couldn’t do?

What is a belief? A belief is nothing but what we consider to be true, what we feel certain about.

For the most part, beliefs are unconscious, and they come from the culture where we grew up, the philosophy of life, faith / spiritual beliefs, our life experiences or the opinions and experiences of those whom we trust and respect.

Essentially, beliefs are only assumptions we make about ourselves and others, about our circumstances and our destiny, about success and failure, and, other aspects of life. But are our beliefs really true? Unfortunately, the beliefs that we hold may be absolutely not true and they can jeopardize us.

How can I change my beliefs?

When you think you aren’t able to do something, answer to yourself:

How can you absolutely know that to be true? According to whom you are not capable of it?
Has there ever been a time when you thought you couldn’t do something and then it turned out it has not been the case?
What evidence do you have today which is the opposite of what you believe in?
If you would try to do what you thought you could not do, where would you begin?

2. When you face a situation that seems very difficult to resolve, something is impossible, instead of considering how big is the problem consider how mighty your God is.

Usually, when we encounter a problem, we first analyze what is happening, how difficult and how bad everything is, and we check if we can resolve it. And If the problem is beyond our ability to resolve it or it is out of our control we turn to God asking for His help.

BUT if we focus on how big the problem is and build our expectation of the result after the prayer based on our own understanding and viewpoint of what is possible, then it is hard to believe that we will receive help from the Lord after the prayer. “Well… I hope, but this problem is so big, I just can’t see how this can be resolved; I am too weak/too old/not educated/not capable and I don’t know if I can receive a job; he/she are way too stubborn and never going to change,” does it sound familiar?

And then doubt comes, fear and unbelief (and then we get the answer according to our faith). But this is a belief that is based on our assumptions, on our understanding, and not on the word of God. It is faith in our faith, not faith in God.

To me, one of the most prominent examples of what faith is – Abraham and Sarah.

Romans 4:18-22 says that Abraham, even though it seemed hopeless, he still in hope believed. It’s amazing that He did not even consider the realistic factors (that his body and Sarah’s body were way too old to give birth to a child and physically it was simply impossible). Abraham did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God and being fully convinced that what God has promised He was also able to perform. Sarah – accepted strength to conceive and gave birth to a child because she judged Him faithful who had promised (Hebrews 11:11)

Few details got my attention:

For Abraham and Sarah it was a decision to believe God. It’s a conscious decision.
They built their faith not based on whether it was realistic or believable to them what God has promised but based on WHO GOD IS – God is MIGHTY AND ABLE to do it and He is FAITHFUL to His word.

I personally experienced incredible evidence of the power of faith when I trusted God in hopeless situations and expected an answer, even if it was simply unrealistic to get the answer I wanted. So many times I was advised to think realistically and adapt to circumstances, but I did not want to live as circumstances allowed me. But there was no way to change these circumstances.

And I, feeling complete despair, decided to have a child-like faith that God is the one who is able to change my circumstances. I decided to rise above the realistic thinking and to believe that everything was possible for the Lord, because He created the Universe, and so He is able to change any circumstances. Every day in my prayer I continued telling Him that I knew He is able to do the impossible, and that I trusted Him. I was convinced of this and in hope expected for the answer.

And, you know, the Lord really did the impossible every time. No matter how unrealistic it was to fix those situations, change circumstances and get out of hopelessness, every time I witnessed inexplicable changes in my circumstances. I saw how circumstances changed in an absolutely incredible way, and I just cannot explain it in any logical way, except to tell you: “It was God’s miracle.”

Break your limiting beliefs by deciding to have faith, based not on your understanding of what’s possible, not on what you think how ‘realistic it is’, but having faith in God based on Who God Is and what He says in His Word – HE IS ABLE and HE IS FAITHFUL TO HIS WORD. No matter what in actuality is going on, you stand on God’s word and proclaim it. You proclaim your faith not based on what you see or what you think is possible, but based on what the word of God says.

3. While holding on to the belief that you can do all things with God and all things are possible with Him, shift your focus from dwelling on how complicated your situation is to seeking for a solution.

Our mind is like a computer – it will give the answer according to our command, which is it will give the answers to the questions we ask ourselves. So it’s critical to ask yourself the question that will lead you to the solution:

Where is the solution to this?
What would you advise your best friend to do if they were in your situation?
If you could do anything, what would you do to fix and improve this situation?
If you could do one thing to resolve this situation, what would that be?
How could you make it happen, what are the ways?

And then, while holding on to your belief that it is possible and you will have a victory, focus on what you need to do to improve your situation and take action.

Blessings in your journey and until next time! ~ Inga

P.s. I share my personal experience of my life’s transformation in my book “UNSTOPPABLE. It’s a Choice”. Grab your copy to be inspired and empowered to be unstoppable in your pursuits.

WHAT BELIEFS ARE HOLDING YOU BACK? WHAT IF THEY ARE NOT TRUE AT ALL?

27 Aug

Many people are not disabled physically, but I see how many of them disable themselves by living in the limiting beliefs of what’s possible, and what they’re capable of. 19 years ago, while I was in a recovery process after the life-altering car accident, I realized one thing that totally transformed the way I began seeing my physical limitations and, and that was the beginning of claiming back my independence and life’s recovery. I want to pass it on to you, so you too, could take a deep breath and spread your wings to the life that you meant to live.

When I fully realized that I no longer had my legs and my left arm was paralyzed with no chance to recover, I was devastated beyond my ability to describe it. It was pure unspeakable anguish and hopelessness. I just couldn’t see how I would be able to live without legs and only one arm. I had many questions about how I was going to take care of myself on a daily basis and live fully. There was one answer – I can’t do it anymore. My mom was helping me to get up, dress up, make a meal and basically, she had to help with everything. I can’t even describe how much I hated to be dependent on another person! But it seemed like this would be my reality for the rest of my life. There was no other way.

Six months after the crash, my mom and I stayed in the Orthopedic Rehabilitation Center to obtain artificial legs for me. I was told that it was impossible for me to walk due to my complicated physical condition. But I believed I would. In fact, I was confident without a doubt that I would. To the astonishment of those who considered it to be impossible I did walk, indeed. One day, as I was resting after my training, I suddenly realized, “Wait a minute. Why am I still asking mom to help me get up? It’s ridiculous – I can do such a difficult thing like walking with prostheses, but I still have my mom helping me with simple daily activities!”

See, in my mind (as well as my mom’s), there was a mindset that without legs and only one arm I was no longer able to do things, so I had to be helped. Now that I had achieved something that professional specialists stated to be impossible, there was a big question mark in my mind about what I was really capable of. Suddenly I realized that my limitations were only in my mind, in my beliefs. I was fully aware that I could do much more than what it seemed at first and I decided to push my limits. That day I declared my independence stating, “Yes, I can do it. I will figure out how to do everything on my own and will become fully self-sufficient.”

From then on, I started looking for ways to do everything on my own. First of all, the goal was to find a way to sit up by myself from a lying position, and with the help of a physical therapist, we found a way. I began figuring out ways of dressing up independently and performing various daily activities by myself. I didn’t allow myself to think whether I could or could not. My new mindset was – I can without a doubt, I only need to find a way how to do it. Instead of saying to myself, “I am disabled and I can’t do this anymore,” I would say, “Yes, I can and I will find a way to do this.” I began changing how I speak by eliminating phrases – “I can’t” or “IF I can”. I began refusing to receive any help from my mom (which was not easy for her to accept J ), and I gave myself no other option but to get it done without any help. When I needed to do something with one hand, holding on to the belief – I can and I will – I asked myself, “HOW can I do this? What is the way? What possible options are there to resolve this?” As simple as it seems, this is the key to how I am able to do things independently. Changing my mindset and asking myself the right questions are the keys to how I managed many of my difficulties in life and overcame all obstacles.

As I look back, changing my way of thinking was one of my biggest breakthroughs which empowered me tremendously and opened the doors to new opportunities.

Since that time, when my limiting beliefs of what I could do and what I thought was possible was replaced by new beliefs, and I began mastering my way of thinking, the restoration of my independence and my life has taken to a whole new level. A few years later, I traveled by myself from Lithuania to the United States to pursue my dream. Now it’s been 14 years that I live across the globe from my family, fully independently (I can take care of all my personal needs, take care of the household matters, laundry, shopping, cooking, going to work, etc.) My physical limitations are still the same BUT BREAKING LIMITATIONS IN MY MIND, IN MY BELIEFS totally transformed what I was able to achieve, and ultimately directed my destiny in a way that is beyond I could ever even dream of.

And what about you? I urge you to look inside yourself and test your deep beliefs. What do you believe and what are you convinced about that it may not be true at all, and this only stops you from trying, from achieving what your heart desires? What belief is holding you back from fulfilling your purpose? As long as you are convinced that something is impossible or that things will not work out for you, it really will be true. But this remains true only as long as you hold on to this belief.

Break through the beliefs that keep you locked in a cage. Do not allow your limiting beliefs to steal the life from you that you are called to live. In your life, there is much more that you can do, fulfill and enjoy!

How to change your beliefs and to do what you thought you couldn’t do? I will share in the next post. Blessings to you, until next time!

1 Comment

Posted by Inga Lizdenyte on August 27, 2019 in Uncategorized

Tags: achieve, answer, be free, beliefs, believe, breaking limiting beliefs, breakthrough, Change, change your mind, Coaching, convinced, destiny, disability, encouraging, freedom, hope, inspiring, limitation, living with disability, overcome, overcoming disability, overcoming obstacles, replace beliefs, underlying beliefs, yes I can

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HAVE FAITH? HOW CAN YOU SURRENDER YOUR PROBLEMS TO GOD WHOM YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN?

08 Apr

By faith. Faith is the key that opens the door. Faith is the bridge that connects us to God. Faith is what brings answers to our prayers. As a car without gas will not go anywhere, so a prayer without faith will not bear fruit.

I attended church for several years and heard many sermons about faith, but I learned to have unshakable faith only after a car accident, when I began to change my way of thinking and decided to rely on God and act based on my faith.

When I lost almost half of my body in a car accident, I found myself in a total despair. My family and friends showered me with unconditional love, but there was a dark hopelessness when it came to my future. Since my home city did not have any wheelchair access, losing my legs meant losing my independence and my life. At that point, I had no other choice but to have the faith like a child that God could do the impossible, and I began to live by faith. That’s when I began putting my faith into practice. My faith grew when I did not just hear or read about it, but when I began thinking and acting according to my faith. And I started seeing how the answers to my prayers were being fulfilled in an absolutely incredible way.

One of the highest values I have gained through hopelessness and difficulties is that they taught me to trust God and rely on Him more than on anything else, and therefore my faith has become stronger than ever before.

Now I accept every difficult situation as an opportunity to see the power of God and experience how He arranges everything in a precise order and timeline.

This week I am inspired to share one of my last testimonies and talk about faith. This testimony is connected with other testimonies that I have had over the years, which show how, according to my faith, the Lord has provided what I needed and when I needed it. Since I lost my legs in a car accident, I need to move in a wheelchair. Electric wheelchairs in the United States cost from $3,000 to $10,000 and even up to $30,000, and this is how the Lord took care of this need when I did not have that kind of money to buy a wheelchair and did not have medical insurance to obtain it. We recorded a video when this testimony took place; watch the video!

This video is about only one aspect of my life. Throughout the years, the Lord provided and took care of me in every aspect of my life. When 14 years ago I decided to leave my home country of Lithuania and fly to California to establish my life in the USA, people asked me how I would be able independently move around in the city in a manual wheelchair (it’s very hard when you can operate only with one hand), where I would live, where I would work, and in general, how I would survive there while my family is across the globe in Europe. I did not have answers to any of those questions. I said, “I will know the answers when I am already there.” I trusted that the Lord would provide everything I needed.

Many say “you are so brave,” but the truth is that it’s not that I am just naturally brave. My courage comes from fully trusting God. I relied on Him having absolutely no doubts. My mindset was not “I will see IF I can establish my life there” but “I will see HOW I can.”

I did not hope. I knew.

For many years, the Lord took care of me in an amazing way. In addition to my physical limitations, I also had no place to live, no money, no work, and no guarantees at all to establish my life in the USA, and I was never homeless, I’ve never had to look for work and I’ve never had the lack of what I needed; everything came to me at the time when it was needed. I was always surrounded by wonderful people and my friends’ circle rapidly grew. When I needed assistance with getting a ride or any other need, people graciously offered their help.

Also, I’ve never lost my job, even when in 2008 the USA had suffered a big economic crisis and countless people were losing their jobs and homes. It seemed that economic crisis like a tornado was sweeping everything it found on its way and it passed by me and never came even close to me. The Lord protected me from any disease, flu epidemics or harm.

My life is full of examples when various situations were solved inexplicably. Maybe someone will say “this is a coincidence,” but there are no such incredible coincidences, and there are so many of them that then I can say that my whole life is a great coincidence. I am confident that our faith creates these so-called random coincidences.

Our prayer and unwavering faith is a great power that can do the impossible. I completely trusted my God, was unshakable in faith and waited for the answer, even when it seemed that circumstances were absolutely hopeless. Of course, I did not sit idly just dreaming about a good life. I always persevered, made relentless efforts and worked hard to achieve my goals. But it is my God who has given me the inner strength, wisdom, favorable circumstances and the ability to create the life that I have now.

I have tears of joy in my eyes while I write this for you. Heavenly Father cares for those who believe in Him.

Mark 9:23: Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”

Philippians 4:6: Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

The Lord knows it all. He knows what is necessary for you. He knows the deepest pain of your heart. He knows your every thought. He comes on time and He is never late. Only we need to have unshakable faith and trust / rely on the Lord.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HAVE UNWAVERING FAITH AND TRUST THE LORD?

I could never understand what it meant to trust God until I found myself in a hopeless situation, and instead of succumbing to fear, doubt and depression, I decided to trust God with all my essence – with my heart and my mind. No matter what the real facts were around me, and what people told me, I still hoped for God to deliver me out of despair. I counted on God, as a child relies on his dad. It was a conscious decision to trust in the Lord. And I waited and expected for His response, no matter what.

As I was anticipating for the answer from the Lord, I began paying attention to how I felt and what was happening in my life after my prayers. And, I began to notice the change. Sometimes I was inspired to do something and acted upon my inspiration, and it led me to new opportunities. Sometimes other people influenced my situation and it created new circumstances and possibilities. Every change had its own sequence of actions and events, but the fact was right before me and I couldn’t deny it – I began seeing answers to my prayers! As it’s written in Psalm 37:3 “…Feed on His faithfulness,” I held in my heart how He would answer my requests and blessed me, my faith grew and I began being confident in the Lord more and more. Thus, I have learned to trust the Lord. With time my faith was developing. And no matter what circumstances I was going through, the Lord was always faithful. My confidence in the Lord never failed me.

Faith in God is not some superficial thoughts of some mystical power called God, who is somewhere high up looking at everyone and, perhaps, will help, or maybe not. The prayer of faith is not a superficial prayer as a mere ritual, while you are full of doubt, fear or anticipation of something bad to happen. Many have such faith, but it doesn’t do any good and such prayer does not bring any changes. In fact, quite often opposite happens – you get what you’re afraid of, as it’s written in Psalm 37: 8 “…Do not fret – it only causes harm.”

Trust in God is a mindset of the full confidence in the Lord allowing no doubt, no matter what is actually going on around you. Trusting the Lord / confidence in the Lord is an inner state of complete peace and confidence that your God will take care of you.

Faith is a certain way of thinking when you have a clear conscious understanding that our physical realm depends on the spiritual realm, and when you bring your need to God in the name of Jesus, there are changes in the spiritual world, and it will be manifested in the physical world.

Prayer is not a superficial ritual for you to feel better. Prayer of faith in the name of Jesus Christ has the power to change you and your circumstances.

There is a big difference between “Believe that God exists” and “Trust the Lord.” In other words, believing that God exists and trusting God/relying on Him, are two completely different things. When you have a close person in your life, who loves you very much, and whom you trust completely, and who you can rely on – what does it feel like when it comes to your connection with this person, what are your expectations from this relationship? You know that you can always count on this person, right? It’s the same with trusting God. It’s when you not only believe that God exists, but you count on Him, even if you do not see Him. To trust God is a choice. It’s a decision. And you can trust Him, because He does not change, He is faithful to his word.

FAITH IS AN ABSOLUTE CONFIDENCE

Many people are very quick to give up on their faith in God when, after the prayer, they do not get the answer they want. They come to the conclusion that God does not hear, does not answer, and that generally it’s pointless to pray at all, because prayer does not make any changes.

Many prefer not to hope too much so they don’t get disappointed if this does not happen. For many years I also had this kind of a mindset, because disappointments are very painful. But I learned that by doubting I can become my own enemy! We must make efforts to resist thoughts of doubts and anxieties and hold on tight to faith, because our doubts can jeopardize our ability to receive the answer to our prayer.

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. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. ”(James 1: 6-7)

Faith is not “I hope so …” and it is not “Well, maybe… we’ll see …” And faith has nothing to do with “If …” or how realistic it is to have what we pray for.

Faith is the absolute certainty that the Lord will give the answer, no matter what the situation is.

Faith is an inner knowledge and, finally, an absolute conviction, when you can say to yourself without a doubt: “It doesn’t matter that I have no idea how this can be solved.

But I know that my God is powerful, nothing is impossible for Him, and He will take care of everything.”

EXPECT FOR THE ANSWER

Just believing and believing with expectation are two different things. Faith with expectation is when you are absolutely sure that you will receive the answer, and this is just a matter of time. Since you do not know when this will happen, you expect a response any day, any time.

Suppose you believe that your friends or family members will come to visit you at some point. But how would you feel if they told you that they have bought tickets already, and everything is ready for the trip, but they won’t say when they will come, because they want to surprise you? You will not only believe that they will come, but you will also expect their arrival, because they can call you on any day and say: “We are already in your city, see you soon!”

When you live in expectation, your faith moves to another level.

This is the faith that brought incredible answers into my life.

Be strong. Be steadfast in faith. Those who trust in the Lord will not be ashamed!

Amazing Testimony. The Lord Knows Your Every Need.

27 Jul

Dear Friend,

It’s been a while since I wrote something on this blog. Life has been very busy with work and my project of preparing my book to be published, and other things.

But I never forgot about you. And now, when I wrote one of my latest testimonies to share it with others, I rush to share it with you as well. It is an amazing testimony about how the Lord takes care of our needs. I hope this will strengthen your faith and the Lord will speak to you.

Just recently, my friend made a birthday gift to me, a vacation to Jamaica. 🙂 So, my mom, Anzhelika, I went on our vacation. On the way to our destination, my manual wheelchair broke. Just as I began saying in my mind “Lord, why…? How am I going to move around in that gigantic resort in my broken wheelchair?” A thought came to me, “Go online and search for wheelchair rentals in Jamaica.” While we were traveling, I found a company in Jamaica that rents electric wheelchairs and began communication regarding the rental.

There was exactly the type of wheelchair that fits my needs, and in addition to the electric wheelchair for my daily use, the representative emailed me the picture of a beach wheelchair as well. I was so happy to learn they had it! When we were making reservations at the resort, we asked the manager if they had a beach wheelchair, and we were told that there was wheelchair access to the beach, but the hotel did not have a beach wheelchair. So, seeing that there was a way for me to obtain the chair to get on a beach sand was thrilling. But as I looked more carefully at the picture, I saw that due to my physical limitations it would be extremely challenging for me to get into it. Plus, the cost for both wheelchairs for a week would have been over $800.

To be honest, it was hurtful to know that I would not be able to get to the beach. For many years now I no longer say in my mind “God, I wish I had my legs…” but this time it was painful that I would not be able to go on that white sand beach and see the Caribbean turquoise sea. But then, I ‘swallowed’ the pain and decided that I would focus on all other things I would be able to enjoy. The resort was fantastic, and there were other fun things to do. I did not say anything to anybody nor did I pray. I just knew the Lord knew it all.

And, what do you think?:)

Upon our arrival, on the next day, we went down to the pool area and spent few hours enjoying our time. On our way back, I looked where Lifeguard station was and I could not believe my own eyes – there it was – a beach wheelchair! Anzhelika and I came to the lifeguard and I asked if that beach wheelchair was available to use. The lifeguard enthusiastically responded, “Yes, it is! We don’t know much about it as it’s new, we’ve never seen this kind of a wheelchair. Hotel bought it and it just got here yesterday. Just let us know when you want to use it and we’ll bring you to the beach!”

The hotel, which never had a beach wheelchair, purchased it and delivered it on the day I arrived.

As I am writing this story to share with you, my eyes are full of tears of joy. The Lord knows everything. He knows your every need. He knows the deepest pain of your heart. He knows your every thought. And, He comes right on time and is never late.

Be well, and until the next time.

Inga

UNSTOPPABLE