How To Recover Wasted Years

HOW TO RECOVER

WASTED YEARS

A Paradigm Shift From Damaging

Philosophies to God’s Plan and Desire

For Your Restoration

DR CHRISTIAN MARK

HOW TO RECOVER WASTED YEARS

A Paradigm Shift From Damaging

Philosophies to God’s Plan and Desire

For Your Restoration

DR CHRISTIAN MARK

Copyright © 2018 Christian Mark

Published by Dr Christian Mark Publishing at Smashwords

First edition 2018

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The Author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the Author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

Published by Christian Mark using Reach Publishers’ services,

Faith-Power Kingdom Centre.

(God’s Time For Nations Outreach Ministries.)

Johannesburg South Africa.

Email:info@apostlechristianmark.org

Website:www.apostlechristianmark.org

Website: www.reachpublishers.co.za

E-mail: reach@webstorm.co.z

P O Box 1384, Wandsbeck, South Africa, 3631

Unless otherwise stated, all biblical verses quoted are from the King James Version.

Contents

Dedication

Introduction

1. Wasted Years

2. Repent and Accept Forgiveness

3. Leave the Baggage of Your Past Behind

4. Think Like You

5. Don’t Quit, Don’t Give Up, You can Win Again

6. Your Restoration is Guaranteed

7. Dare to Understand Your Purpose

8. Your Destiny is in Your Decisions

9. The Laws of Change

10. Eliminate Time Wasters

11. Partner with the Holy Spirit

12. Rekindle Your Vision

13. Eliminate Your Excuses

14. Set Your Goals

15. The Concept of Environment and Association

16. See Yourself as a Solution and Debtor to Posterity

17. Believe

18. Increase Your Attraction Value

19. Put Your God Nature to Work

20. Celebrate Every Achievement and Live Without Regret

21. Distribute Your Blessings

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who through His death, burial and resurrection brought immeasurable mercy and unfathomable grace to me, to the extent of making me an heir of God. Thank you Lord Jesus.

And to my mother, deaconess Stella Abigail O. Mark, who refused to abort me when my biological father was sick unto death and pressure was on her to do so. She fasted for three days for my salvation when I was caught cold as a little gangster by the things of the world at the age of sixteen. And through that prayer I was restored to my Heavenly Father (Papa God) and became a preacher at the age of seventeen years. What a great story! I am eternally grateful to you, my dearest mother.

And to members of the FAITH-POWER KINGDOM CENTRE whose love, loyalty and persistently high expectation of me in pursuit of deep revelatory knowledge born out of divine illumination keeps me abreast of my responsibility to hunt for depth. I am committed to helping you become who you were created to become.

To my best friend and lovely wife, Pastor Pat Latsi Mark, who has been a strong support and confidant. Your humility, love and peaceful character resonate serenity which has enabled me to write this book without obstruction. THANK YOU.

Introduction

There is nothing as thought provoking and discouraging as wasted opportunities, privileges and years. And nothing is more provoking than hearing a renowned teacher, college professor and motivational speaker, who happens to be an expert on time management, tell you that time lost or wasted can never be recovered. More especially if you have wasted as many opportunities and time in the past.

So many are downcast, despondent and have given up in life just at the thought of wasted years. Go to the cemetery; a lot of people lying dead could have lived up until now if they knew that wasted years could be recovered. Some died out of frustration, some who could not take it any longer took their own lives. While some that are still alive are a mere bunch of walking corpses.

If you beam a searchlight on the minds of over seven billion people in the world, you will see a staggering number of frustrated lives due to constant regret of the past, or wasted years.

I honestly believe that the reason God created human eyes to be in front is to tell us that looking behind will never increase the speed of our journey to a better future. Nothing stops a great potential and destiny like constant regret at the past. God has advice on this note: ‘Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old’ Isaiah 43:18 (King James Version). Let us see the Amplified Bible: ‘Do not [earnestly] remember the former things; neither consider the things of old.’ The truth is that God cannot tell you to leave your past behind or forget the things of the old if He has no new thing in mind or plans for your future. Whenever God talks about leaving the past or something behind, He has something greater in mind for you. Until you leave, you cannot cleave.

There is good news for the many that wallow in this ‘donkey philosophy’: namely, that lost opportunities and wasted years are gone forever and cannot be recovered.

‘Jesus said unto him, if thou canst believe all things are possible to him that believeth’ Mark 9:23 (KJV).

Truth be told, you CAN recover your wasted years. Here is what God says concerning your wasted years:

‘And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you’ Joel 2:25.

Whose Report Shall You Believe?

Therefore quit sitting down, stand up and get ready to run. Yes, so many years have been wasted and the shame seems indelible. The shame that seems indelible will make you comfortable and famous. The man who was shamed for denying his master three times later became famous for the first massive conversion ever recorded in the Bible: SIMON PETER. Acts 2:14-41.

This book contains a comprehensive answer to the yearnings of your heart on how to rise, dust yourself off and still be relevant in the world. The book is on mission to alleviate the grief and regrets of so many unsung and would-be heroes of their time. And may I remind you that every great person who has ever been mentioned in the heroes’ hall of fame was once discouraged and with a regrettable past. Without the past, the future is not complete. Without the past, there won’t be testimony for the future.

Don’t read this book just for reading’s sake. Rather study it, as so many life transforming and recovery instructions will be given.

Sit down, fasten your seat belt and let us have a ride through the crucibles of the past into a winning destiny and desired future. I believe you can fulfil all that God created you to fulfil. You were born to achieve greatness.

Chapter

One

WASTED YEARS

Wasted years can be referred to as wasted opportunities, time or youthful life. Although they mean different things to different people as our life experiences and challenges are not the same, the truth is that they have the same thing in common: bad feelings about the past and regrets that at times that can be sheer torment, heart-aching and to some extent demoralising. One thought provoking and bitter experience is your family seeing you as a ne’er-do-well, society writing you off, and friends at times talking about you and qualifying you with some disgusting and demeaning adjectives; and the worst of it all, onlookers saying they knew there was nothing good coming out of him or her.

Your scene could be a wasted business empire, money, jobs, relationships and hopes. Have you ever regretted the past so much so that you wish the hands of the clock could be turned back? Have you ever come to a point in your life where nothing seems enticing and attractive anymore? Or have you ever wished you were dead? You are not alone in this hurting thought of a wasted past. The world is filled with such sad stories. Even the Bible is filled with sad stories of people who had the experience of wasted years. People like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ruben, Moses, Samson, David, Jabez, Peter and many more.

Let us look at Abraham’s experience: ‘Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee. 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shall be a blessing. 3 And I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed 4 So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran’ Genesis 12:1-4.

Let us clear up this popular misconception that God called Abraham at the age of seventy five. That is not true. God called him long before he was seventy five years old, as we shall see in the scripture. Abraham was dwelling in Ur of the Chaldeans before he moved to Haran and finally to Canaan. God called Abraham even before he went to Haran. The book of Acts of the Apostles reveals this in a long speech of the martyr Steven. And he (Stephen) said: ‘Brethren and father listen, the God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia before he dwelt in Haran and said to him Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred and from thy father’s house, unto a land I will shew thee"’ Acts 7:2-3.

God called him even before he went to dwell in Haran. Abraham was only seventy five when he was leaving Haran to finally obey the call; he was not called in Haran. However, do not be confused when you see an account in the Old Testament which is different from the New Testament. People of the Old Testament never had the clear understanding of divine mysteries. In the Old Testament Jesus Christ was concealed, but in New Testament He is revealed. That is why we New Testament believers have more insight into divine mysteries than the Old Testament believers.

Looking at the story of Abraham leaving his father’s house at the age of seventy five and trying to begin a journey into destiny, one would give up on such a misfit, so to speak. To make his case worse, he was not yet a father at that age. To someone reading this, Abraham was a huge joke at seventy five – when his peers were going into retirement he was about to begin his life. I can imagine someone being surprised at this too-strange-to-be-true story of a man made in God’s image like you. Life is not fair, is it?

The truth is for God to say to Abraham ‘I will bless you’ shows that he had wasted the most meaningful years of his life in vanity and failure. At that age he represented failure and should have been written off by society. But you see, even if your past is nothing to write home about, God still has a plan for you. Nobody knows a product better than the manufacturer. Some manufacturers buy what you call waste because they see what you cannot see in the waste. God is our manufacturer and He alone knows what He put inside of you. If God could tell Abraham in his old age to start the journey of his destiny, then there is something about you that you do not know. He had wasted so many years of his youthful life, yet God was not bothered by it. Do you know that while you worry about what you have lost, God is concerned about what you will gain in future.

Another significant figure to look at is Esau. Many people have used Esau in illustration as a man who lost his opportunities in life without blessing. But that is a half-truth as the Bible has it all in the story of Esau and Jacob:

‘And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his elder son and said unto him, my son; and he said unto him, behold here am I.

2 And he said, behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:

3 Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;

4 And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.

5 And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.

6 And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,

7 Bring me venison, and make savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.

8 Now therefore my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.

9 Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father: such as he loveth:

10 And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.

11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:

12 My father peradventure will feel me, and I seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.

13 And his mother said unto him, upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.

14 And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved.

15 And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon her son Jacob:

16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:

17 And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of the son Jacob.

18 And he came unto his father, and said, my father: and he said, here am I; who art thou my son?

19 And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that that thy soul may bless me.

20 And Isaac said unto his son, how is it that thou has found it so quickly, my son? and he said, Because the Lord thy God brought it to me.

21 And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.

22 And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, the voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.

23 And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau’s hands: so he blessed him.

24 And he said, art thou my very son Esau? and he said, I am.

25 And he said bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine and he drank.

26 And his father Isaac said unto him, come near now, and kiss me, my son.

27 And he came near, and kissed him: and he smell the smell of his raiment and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of the field which the Lord hath blessed:

28 Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:

29 Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be everyone that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blessed thee.

30 And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau