The Big If
The Big If
___________________________________________________________________________________
Joseph
If Joseph had not told his dream, he would not have been sold into slavery.
If Joseph had not run away from Potiphar’s wife, he would not have gone to prison.
If Joseph had not gone to prison he never would have sat on the throne of Egypt.
If Joseph had never sat on the throne of Egypt, the family of Jacob would have lived in famine for seven years and many may have died of hunger.
David
If David never had to kill a lion and bear in defense of his sheep, there would not have been a Goliath in his future.
Zacchaeus
If Zacchaeus had never climbed a tree to see Jesus, he would not have repented and Jesus wouldn’t have come home with him.
Daniel
If Daniel had eaten the king’s meat, he wouldn’t have been any different from the other slaves and never been chosen.
If Daniel had given in to the intimidation of his enemies and not prayed to the Lord, he would never have been put in the Lion’s Den.
If Daniel had never been put in the Lion’s Den, there would have been no miracle.
The Three Hebrew Children
If Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had bowed down before the image, they wouldn’t have been sent to the Fiery Furnace.
If the three Hebrew Children had never been thrown into the Fiery Furnace, the Forth Man wouldn’t have appeared, and they would have missed their miracle.
The Wedding
If the Wedding Party had not run out of wine, no one would have talked to Jesus.
If no one had talked to Jesus, there would have been no water turned into wine.
Legion
If Legion had not gone back home to his village and testified of the miracles of Jesus, there may have never been the stories of the Woman with the issue of blood, and the raising of Jairus daughter.
Paul And Silas
If Paul and Silas had not been beaten and thrown in jail, there would have been no midnight song.
If there had not been a midnight song, no one would have been set free.
If no one had been set free, the Jailer and his family would have never been converted.
Paul – Shipwreck
If the Captain had listened to Paul, there would have been no shipwreck.
If there had been no shipwreck, there would have been no washing up on shore and building a fire to stay warm.
If there had been no building of a fire to stay warm, Paul would never have become snake bit.
If Paul had never been snake bit, there would have been not conversion of many unbelievers.
Psalms 23
If it had not been for the Shadow of Death experience, the Psalmist would have not been so keenly aware of the Lord’s Presence.
If it had not been for the Enemies all around, making mocking, criticizing and creating fear, the Lord may not have chosen that time to prepare a bountiful table for him in the presence of all those enemies.
If Things Are Not Going Just Like You Think God Should Let Them Go… Trust Him Anyway!
He Always Has A Better Ending For Your Story Than You Can Imagine!
Psalm 124:1 If it had not been the LORD who was on our side…
Apostolic Expository Series
Christy Ballestero (My Beautiful DIL)
http://marciaballestero.com/
Pastor Anthony & Kim Ballestero, New Destiny Worship Center, Clearwater, FL (My Son)
Pastor Bryan & Christy Ballestero, Temple Of Pentecost, Raleigh, NC (My Son)
James Groce Blog – "Toward The Mark"
Kenneth Bow Blog
Kingdom Speak Podcast
Philip Harrelson – "The Barnabas Blog"
Verbal Bean Ministries
Holy Ghost Radio
The Ballestero Blog 
Wonderful. Praying for you.
Steve Epley
June 25, 2013 at 8:59 am
Thank you so much.
Martyn Ballestero
June 25, 2013 at 11:21 am
If a man had not lost his job in the early thirties (the great depression)… If that man had not moved his family to Gulf Hammock Florida and if he had not contacted Rev. D. L. Welch to come preach a tent revival… Then my great grandmother my not have heard the Jesus Name message for the first time and may not have been baptized in Jesus Name. Today there are many descendants of that revival in the Apostolic Faith including eight Apostolic Pastors or Pastors’ wives… Marcus Holt
Marcus Holt
June 25, 2013 at 9:20 am
Beautiful! I love how God works! Thank you Friend.
Martyn Ballestero
June 25, 2013 at 11:21 am
Love reading your thoughts, keep ’em coming!
Brian Enochs
June 25, 2013 at 9:22 am
Thank you Brother Ballestero! This has been the theme of my prayers since the beginning of this year!
Daphne
June 25, 2013 at 10:45 am
Thank you, Bro.
The reminders are endless, and so very true.
Allow me to add – If my wife and I had our son early in our marriage, we never would’ve learned that 19 years of waiting is but a moment to God. When it’s time to God, it’s time.
We never would have had the time or energy to devote to the children of others who needed someone in their life to fill a void.
If I’d never heard, “You have cancer”, I wouldn’t truly know how someone feels when their health crashes around them and I wouldn’t know how wonder it feels to be ‘cleared’… (for 6 years now)
If.
Thank God he allowed our paths to cross. Know you’re loved and prayed for.
Casey Jones
June 25, 2013 at 4:21 pm
What a wonderful slant on the “What ifs…” of life! We’re really quick to look at it the other way: “What if I lose my job and can’t pay my bills?” “What if this is something more than a virus?” “What if my spouse/children don’t live for God?” What a wonderful way to look at life’s adversities! The old song says,”But if I never had a problem, I wouldn’t know that He could solve them! I’d never know what faith in God can do!” Thank you once more for making me look at things in a much better way.
Crystal (Morris) Smith
June 25, 2013 at 11:30 pm
Awesome thought, wonderful post. I pray your feeling better. God Bless.
akismet-600b30ba9f667003866a1efea8c8994a
June 26, 2013 at 8:19 am
What a bouquet of thorns! 🙂
I always thought of the “What If’s of my own” especially in times of almost giving up! God has always a better plan than we do.
Such a wonderful testimony of mine which is worth sharing is that because of being a dying baby who were healed miraculously by a prayer of faith, my entire family including some of my relatives became the recipient of the Salvation offered by Jesus Christ. It’s a wonderful thing that a family belongs to one faith!
What If I didn’t have a terminal illness, my entire family wouldn’t be saved until now.
Gnehj L. Diones
June 27, 2013 at 12:33 am
Dear Bro. ballestero, thanks for your these posts, I’ve been truly blessed and encouraged by your blog and your ministry, you and your Father have impacted my life deeply. I appreciate your heritage you share with the rest of us!
Daniel Ballinger
June 28, 2013 at 9:59 am
An inspiring post, as always. You always have something powerful to say. I’m in charge of the youth newsletter at my church, and I was wondering how you would feel if I printed “Young Person, Is That The Best Deal You Could Make?” in it. I think its something that all Apostolic teens should read. I will, of course, leave your name on it.
Caleb R.
June 28, 2013 at 3:40 pm
Thank you and do with my blessing.
Martyn Ballestero
June 29, 2013 at 7:48 pm
Great post…”IF it had not been…” Is certainly better than, “IF only I would have…”
Bro Billings
July 12, 2013 at 9:34 pm