{"id":22,"date":"2010-07-20T00:00:01","date_gmt":"2010-07-20T00:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html"},"modified":"2010-07-20T00:00:01","modified_gmt":"2010-07-20T00:00:01","slug":"the-years-of-the-locusts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html","title":{"rendered":"The Years of the Locusts"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Divine Restoration &amp; Catherine Ponder continued:<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">The years which the locust has eaten symbolize those periods of your life that have <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">seemed empty of good, or even filled with trouble.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>They can be periods that you were <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">inclined to look back on with bitterness, condemnation or deep hurt.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>God promises to <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">restore our good and God will restore yours, too, if you will change your <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">thinking about those difficult periods.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Those periods of apparent loss of good can be restored to you with accrued interest, when you begin to believe they can.&nbsp;&nbsp;Write the word <em>gain <\/em>over all the pages of your life!<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&nbsp;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">Think back on those painful periods and say to yourself: &#8220;That was not loss.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>That <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">was actually an experience of gain.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>I gained something good from that experience, <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">because I learned something from it.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>I grew through it and so I pronounce it growth. <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">I pronounce it gain.&#8221;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&nbsp;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">You cannot forget these times until you first restore them to their rightful place in <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">your own thoughts and feelings.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>They cannot be shut out; they must be mentally and <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">emotionally restored.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>That is why they stay with you and why you cannot forget them.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>They must be restored in your thinking as years of growth and learning and therefore years of good &#8211; regardless of appearances.<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&nbsp;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">In one sense the past cannot be changed; but mentally and emotionally the past can be <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">lifted up and recognized as a time when you were growing into greater understanding <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">and wisdom &#8211; a time that opened the way for you to experience greater good.<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&nbsp;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">You would not be the person you are today, you would not have the love, the under<\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">standing, the maturity, the depth, the compassion, the soul-searching desire for more <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">of God&#8217;s goodness in your life &#8211; if you had not had the past experiences you have been <\/font><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">condemning.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Out of the past you have grown, matured, unfolded and expanded your understanding and your world.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>So do not try to run away from the past.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Do not condemn it.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Just try to put it in its rightful place in your own thinking. <span>&nbsp;<\/span>Those experiences were for <\/font><font size=\"3\"><font color=\"#000000\"><font face=\"Times New Roman\">good, because through them you came forth into &#8220;a larger place&#8221; in your understanding.<span>&nbsp; <\/span><br \/><i><br \/><strong>Release all anxiety, condemnation or negativity of yourself or others about your past<\/strong>.<\/i><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&nbsp;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">Just as God is in your present, so was God in your past.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>God was with you when you were having the experiences you now feel were wasted.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>God was there, helping you grow, leading you through those experiences (whether he seemed to be or not) toward fulfillment.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>If God was with you, bringing you into greater good, how could the past have been evil, futile or wasted?<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&nbsp;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">So let the years that the locust has eaten now be restored to you!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>They were the way your soul took to reach your present level of understanding as a child of God.<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\"><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">&#8220;<em><strong>Today is the day of my amazing good fortune<\/strong><\/em>.&#8221;<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\"><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">Prosperously Yours,<\/font><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><font color=\"#000000\" size=\"3\" face=\"Times New Roman\">:)Lee<\/font><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Divine Restoration &amp; Catherine Ponder continued: The years which the locust has eaten symbolize those periods of your life that have seemed empty of good, or even filled with trouble.&nbsp; They can be periods that you were inclined to look back on with bitterness, condemnation or deep hurt.&nbsp; God promises to restore our good and&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":229,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,6,1,2,7,3,4],"tags":[9],"class_list":["post-22","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-acknowledgement","category-communication","category-personal-growth","category-professional-development","category-relationships","category-success","category-wealth","tag-inspiration"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Years of the Locusts - Have a Magnificent Day!<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Years of the Locusts - Have a Magnificent Day!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Divine Restoration &amp; Catherine Ponder continued: The years which the locust has eaten symbolize those periods of your life that have seemed empty of good, or even filled with trouble.&nbsp; They can be periods that you were inclined to look back on with bitterness, condemnation or deep hurt.&nbsp; God promises to restore our good and&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Have a Magnificent Day!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-07-20T00:00:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The MEGA Coach\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Years of the Locusts - Have a Magnificent Day!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Years of the Locusts - Have a Magnificent Day!","og_description":"Divine Restoration &amp; Catherine Ponder continued: The years which the locust has eaten symbolize those periods of your life that have seemed empty of good, or even filled with trouble.&nbsp; They can be periods that you were inclined to look back on with bitterness, condemnation or deep hurt.&nbsp; God promises to restore our good and&hellip;","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html","og_site_name":"Have a Magnificent Day!","article_published_time":"2010-07-20T00:00:01+00:00","author":"The MEGA Coach","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html","name":"The Years of the Locusts - Have a Magnificent Day!","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/#website"},"datePublished":"2010-07-20T00:00:01+00:00","dateModified":"2010-07-20T00:00:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/#\/schema\/person\/7449a096ccdc7d8664a8baa38d58ca44"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/2010\/07\/the-years-of-the-locusts.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Years of the Locusts"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/","name":"Have a Magnificent Day!","description":"Daily Inspiration, Good News, Daily Hope and Encouragement","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/#\/schema\/person\/7449a096ccdc7d8664a8baa38d58ca44","name":"The MEGA Coach","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/868\/868c7158feeb1701d858503f712298fcx96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/868\/868c7158feeb1701d858503f712298fcx96.jpg","caption":"The MEGA Coach"},"description":"Lee Papier is a business and life coach in the human potential field. For 30 years he has studied what motivates human\/spiritual beings. His life passion focuses on inspiring people to grow, awaken and actualize their divine potential. As co-founder of the Power of Acknowledgement organization in the eighties, Lee and his mentor, Michael Wyman shared a powerful technology to uplift people to achieve their dreams. In 1985, Lee and Michael served as motivational coaches for the New York Rangers working directly with Craig Patrick, who was assistant coach on the legendary 1980 US Olympic Hockey team. Lee also founded Insights to Excellence, Inc., a sales and management consulting and training organization. He developed and presented seminars designed to empower people to actualize their full potential, both personally and professionally. Lee's has two passions. As The MEGA Coach, his focus is to inspire people to live the divine plan of their lives. In addition, Lee is a Wealth Advisor in financial services and retirement planning. He provides effective financial solutions that guarantee protection, security and financial freedom. Lee graduated with a B.A. in Economics from the University of Rochester and an MBA in Finance and Human Resource Management from the University of San Diego. Lee uplifts people to make each day a masterpiece. In his blog, Have A Magnificent Day!, Lee offers daily boosts of inspiration to help you start your day with a ray of hope and positive thoughts.","sameAs":["http:\/\/%20"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/author\/themegacoach"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/229"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/haveamagnificentday\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}