The following prayer was recorded on Thursday night 3.28.12 at a Destiny Family Center prayer meeting…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsXvrpz3ED8

To watch this video on the RSS feed, click this link.

Make Me A Legend

Chapter 6: Hurry Up And Find Rock Bottom

The Turning Point

Once you’ve really been there, you will always remember rock bottom as the Eden of your re-creation! Even though right now you may be gasping for air, only a few seconds from flat lining your way into eternity, rock bottom is a wormhole in the core of hell that transports the dead back into the land of the living.

While rock bottom will always be the low mark of your life, it is so much more—rock bottom is the starting location for your next exciting journey. So no matter how bad things might be going in your life right now, go ahead and free your heart to hope again! This moment is the end of your life as it has been to this point, but it need not be the end of you. Change your perspective! Be optimistic about all the suffering you’re going through, for this can be the start of something wonderful—it can be all upward from here, if you just do the right thing at rock bottom.

In my own life, I’ve been shocked with how fast God can shift the momentum back in my favor. It’s nothing for God to work a 24-hour miracle! It doesn’t matter how far down you’ve fallen; if you’re serious about returning home, this is the moment when God steps in like a superhero to the rescue. He’s been waiting for this moment all your life, and here it is! Father is livid with your enemies! He’s been anticipating the rock-bottom prayers you’re now praying. He’s never forced Himself on you before today, but if you’ll open your heart, He’ll rush in like a gale-force wind! Open the doors and windows as wide as possible—let the fresh, spring air in! This is a new season in your life!

Swooping down out of nowhere, it would seem, with His bare hands He will tear apart everything that has been making you cry. Stop trembling in fear! You’re safe now. You’ve come under the omnipotent protection of God. Just reach out and take your Father’s hand. Be still for a moment and let Him have a look at you. God specializes in fixing broken people and shattered circumstances. God is the restorer of broken dreams and the giver of new ones! No broken person is broken beyond repair. Every person is fixable! Yes, God can fix you!

Your thoughts?

I just prayed for you. With much love…

Dream Big,

Chuck

PS: Get your (second edition) signed copy of Make Me A Legend!

It’s been a while since I’ve played a worship video with this degree of lift. But before I show it to you, let me tell you why it’s so special.

It’s 3:40am right now. For the second night in a row, I’ve been awake since about 1:30am. So tonight (this morning), I decided to get out of bed and go into my prayer closet.

This has been a very challenging week for me.

Just when I feel like my most intense battles are behind me, I wander onto a battleground so fiery, it punches the life from my lungs.

My greatest weapon (and yours) in such times, is our prayer closet.

All of these verses are true. God is the WATER we long for (and need). He is the One who gives us true REST. He gives us PEACE. He renews our STRENGTH. In the prayer closet, He eats a meal with us in the presence of our enemies. He is our SHELTER, our REFUGE, our place of SAFETY, and our God.

Here is the worship video I’m playing in my prayer closet this morning… as I find water, rest, peace, strength, shelter, refuge, and safety.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7U-eCIb6gM

To watch this video on the RSS feed, click this link.

How beautiful this love, You would lay down Your crown
Surrender Your throne in heaven, so that I could be found
How awesome is this love that conquered the grave
Love that can move the mountains, yet knows me by name

It’s unbreakable, it’s undeniable
Nothing will ever, separate us

Your love is higher than the skies up above
Your love is wider than what I can dream of
Your love is deeper, it’s the greatest of all

Holy are You Father
A love like no other
So vast like the universe
Is Your love, is Your love

Beautiful song, beautiful moment with God… meditating on His Love for you and me. I’m praying for you while I’m awake, calling out the names of my friends and family here in my hometown, and throughout the world.

Does it seem like YOU are surrounded with challenges today? Don’t just stand there exposed to the onslaught of your enemies. Make a PRAYER CLOSET on your battlefield, meet with God… and watch what happens. He is a God of miracles to those who trust in Him!

With much love…

Dream Big,

Chuck Balsamo

Ps: Today’s image from Ricky Sorenson

Happy Wednesday!

This has to be the most electrifying stadium I’ve ever seen!

The game: Virginia Tech vs. Miami @ VT’s Lane Stadium, last Saturday, October 8.

The situation: Down 38-35, Miami takes a time out on 4th and 10 at the 45 with 5 seconds left in the game.

And the crowd went CRAZY!

Have you ever seen anything like this before? What I would have given to be in that crowd at that moment!!! I can’t imagine the goose pimples running all over those hyped fans. It gave me chills, just watching it from my computer screen!

Watch this video and then let’s talk about…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blzftASduNc

If the video doesn’t appear on your device, click this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blzftASduNc&feature=player_embedded

This video reminds me of…

Make Me A Legend Chapter 11

Celebrate Your Progress

Celebrate what you want to see more of. —Thomas J. Peters, American writer

Frenzied Fans and Home Field Advantages

Everyone loves to watch a huge crowd of maniac fans as they elevate their team into a never before seen phenomenon of strength and skill! Most of us have been right there when sports history was made at least a time or two, knowing that our hyper raving pushed our beloved teams over the edge during their defining moments!

More than likely, everyone has experienced the sheer pleasure of cheering like there was no tomorrow, and we just knew that if we fans held anything back in the stands, our dear players would be mutilated on the field right in front of our eyes. What a rush of adrenaline! We could not hold back; they needed us like they needed their lungs and legs, and when it counted the most—we always came through for them!

So many professional athletes commit to their profession primarily because of the very enticing multimillion-dollar contracts. But really, how many of these athletes would want to compete in professional sports without stadiums and fans? Imagine you are Tom Brady, quarterback for the New England Patriots, and you’re playing that crucial game of the season against your arch rival, the Indianapolis Colts, in an empty stadium without television coverage—not one moment of applause, no mascot or cheerleaders, not even a small delegation of family and friends.

There you are with nothing but the sound of colliding pads and the heavy breathing of your teammates and opponents. Even with all the money in the world, who could get energized about this game? Sure, there would still be a few fanatics who would keep on playing for the “love of the game” and a few more who would stay dedicated for the luxury it affords. However, we must wonder how much time would pass before many of these non-applauded superstars would start looking for something else to do.

Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12).

Truly two are better off than one; they do help each other succeed! Anyone who falls alone is definitely in real trouble! I hate to see people all alone, struggling to encourage themselves day after day without a single fan. Fans create the ambiance of a universe worth living in. Just like the soundtrack of an Academy Award-winning film, fans are the unassuming essence many fail to appreciate, yet everyone feels the sheer immensity of their contributions.

Life is so much more animated when people are screaming their heads off on our sidelines. Whenever circumstances turn bleak, our trusty fans help us bust a miracle! Fans are the mysterious blast of energy behind all underdog wins. Every scrape, bruise, and break is no big deal—as long as we can feel just five minutes of thunder in the stadium! Thanks to our fans, we are always conscious of how amazing we already are and how much more amazing we are on our way to becoming.

Special Thanks to My Frenzied Fans

It is a well-acknowledged fact—Green Bay Packer fans are legendary in professional football, going so far as baring naked bellies painted in their team colors and raving like lunatics through entire games at sub-zero temperatures! I know it is hard to believe, but some of my frenzied fans are even more fanatical than that! If you didn’t know any better, you would think I pay my friends to cheer for me. They never hold anything back. Whenever I stumble and fall, they never let me stay down longer than it takes to catch my breath. I can’t share about frenzied fans without publicly appreciating mine:

Dear friends, what a blessing you have been to my family and me. You have carried us on your shoulders with pure love and high expectations. Again and again, in the face of certain tragedy, you have gifted us with victories beyond belief. Thank you for always making an exaggerated big deal over every small sign of progress. Whenever our confidence ran out, you gave us yours. No matter what we’ve faced, your enthusiasm was always more than we needed to rise above our critics and drive forward with our God-sized dream. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” God bless every person who has ever given even just a cup of water to us! I only hope that we are as good to you and others as you have been to us.

Take some time to thank your fans today!

Consider how you will become a better fan to the people who are counting on your cheers!

Your thoughts?

A shout out to Jacob Dobscha for posting today’s video on his google+ account. He inspired this blog!

Today’s photo from

I just prayed for everyone. I’m cheering loudly!! With much, much love…

Dream Big, Live Bold, and Make A Difference!

Chuck Balsamo

Ps: Have you read the most recent Make Me A Legend book reviews on Amazon? WOW! Stop waiting, order your SIGNED copy on this website now!

5:30am

It’s a lovely Saturday morning, my family sleeps, the room is mostly dark, lights on dimmer… just barely burning. Like almost every morning of my life… I will awaken the dawn with my early morning devotions. With my worship and prayers, this sunroom is becoming a holy sanctuary (again)… the angels are here to dance on the ceiling fans, an awareness of God is taking over this entire house!

And for the next few hours, I will pray and sing… and read from my Bible… and write in my journal. This is the secret place where I write my sermons, where I find inspiration for my greatest blogs… this is where I download (from God) the paragraphs for my books… it’s where I electrify my loving, happy, and hyper spirit!

Like an eagle looks directly into the sun as he rides in the high places on the rising winds… it is in this place, where Clark Kent becomes Superman.

History belongs to the people who know God more than they know anything or anyone else.

We must be perfectly consistent with our devotions, not aiming to change the world with one grand act, but with a legendary, daily routine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1DFBr-pd0E

Have a beautiful weekend. I just prayed for you. With much love…

Dream Big,

Chuck Balsamo

Ps: Have you read the most recent Make Me A Legend book reviews on Amazon? WOW! Stop waiting, order your SIGNED copy on this website now!

Happy Monday!

Thank you for stopping in for today’s very special blog. Drum roll please! After many weeks of careful, prayerful, and highly intensive negotiations, I am very pleased to make the following historical announcement:

On Thursday afternoon, I became an official AUTHOR of Destiny Image Publishers!

The contract we signed is unheard of for a first time author. I’m promised a release date of no later than August and as early as April!

Here are just a few of my many Destiny Image fellow authors: Please visit their websites!

Heidi Baker

Reinhart Bonke

Juanita Bynum

Morris Cerullo

Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda

Dr. Mark Chirona

Randy Clark

Kim Clemment

Bobby Conner

Graham Cook

Billy Joe Daughtery

Mark Dupont

Lou Engle

Gene Edwards

Francis Frangipane

James Goll

Bill Hamon

Dr. Rodney Howard Brown

TD Jakes

Bill Johnson

Rick Joyner

Terry Law

David Ravenhill

Oral Roberts

RW Shambach

Dutch Sheets

Steve Shultz

Tommy Tenney

Steve Thompson

Lance Wallnau

And NOW…

Chuck Balsamo

Thank you God, for making me far-fetched promises… and keeping every one of them! Thank you for loving me, even when I was not lovable. Thank you for saving me from an empty, sinful, and hopeless life. Thank you for giving me the gift of salvation, the presence of your Holy Spirit, and 20 years of unmerited blessing! You have blown my mind again, for the millionth time! I love my relationship with You more than anything else in this entire universe!

For more information about my coming book, Make Me a Legend, please check out the book blog archive.

As you may know, I’ve accumulated 204 college credit hours over the past 8 years! This week, I am sending my 107,000 word manuscript (doctoral dissertation) to Life Christian University. They tell me the grading process takes several months… and when it’s over, I will receive my Doctorate of Ministry!

According to Wikipedia, the Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree is, according to The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS), a doctoral level degree oriented toward ministerial leadership often in an area of applied theology, such as missions, evangelism, church leadership, pastoral psychology or the psychology of religion, church growth, church administration, homiletics, or spiritual formation.

Under Association of Theological Schools (ATS) guidelines, one needs to have completed the equivalent of 3 years of full-time ministry after the initial theological degree, normally the Master of Divinity (M.Div.). If the initial theological degree is not equivalent to the M.Div., preliminary coursework may be required before entering a D.Min. program.

The purpose of the Doctor of Ministry degree is to enhance the practice of ministry for persons who hold the M.Div. degree and have engaged in ministerial leadership.

The D.Min. program requires the equivalent of usually one full year of academic study and the completion of the doctoral dissertation or project. Normally, the degree requires from three to six years to complete.

This is a very exciting time for my family, and for our church family and friends! Thank you all for believing in us, praying for us, and serving with us. Together, we are on the brink of changing the world!

Here’s a great song for this moment: Desperation Band, Overcome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sjYWrpNoCs

I just finished praying for you (with tremendous passion), hoping you really feel the difference. Please leave your comments here on this blog site so that we will always have a record of your beautiful additions.

Make this a most triumphant Monday! Do something FUN, it’s the Christmas season, remember?

With much love…

Dream Big, Live Bold, and Make the Difference!

Chuck

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