Excuses Only Satisfy the Person that Makes Them!

Excuse: An expression of regret for failure to do something.

Have you ever considered how excuses really only satisfy the people who make them? Seriously - take a minute to think about that. Do you REALLY think the person you're making those excuses to is pleased or happy with them? Not likely. However, luckily for you, we as people didn't just start making excuses, no - this all started with Adam and Eve in the garden! Back in Genesis 3:11, God asked Adam and Eve, " Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?" Next thing you know - the excuses were born - "And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat" (Genesis 3:12-13). If you know that story, you know that God wasn't pleased with Adam and Eve's excuses then and He's not pleased today with our excuses.

More often than not, when God calls people into His service, they resisted by coming up with a lot of excuses. Moses, for instance, was a perfect example. God told Moses, "Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt" (Exodus 3:10). God even went so far as to say, "...certainly I will be with thee" (Exodus 3:12). What more could a person ask for?? You would have thought that would have been good enough for Moses, but NOOOO! In Exodus 4:10, Moses starts in with his excuses - "And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue;" and the Lord shuts those excuses down in the next verse: "And the Lord said unto him, who hath made man’s mouth? Or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? Have not I the Lord?" Moses' words were truly an expression of regret for failure to do something (aka - an excuse!)

We so often fail to realize that whenever the Lord tells us to do something, He has already equipped us with exactly what we need in order to get that job done. It's time we stand strong in faith! Stop trying to pass the buck. You know, we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We are really better off than we think; we just need to look through the lens of gratitude and be very thankful that the Lord chose to use us in natural things as well as spiritual things.

Let's remember to give the responses of Mary and Isaiah. When the Lord said, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Isaiah answered, "Here am I; send me" (Isaiah 6:8). When the Angel said to Mary, "And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS;" Mary replied, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word" (Luke 1:31 and 38). Friends, let's leave our excuses by the wayside and walk in faith!

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!      

We Need Much Wisdom!

Wisdom: knowledge guided by understanding

Wisdom is a highly regarded and cherished attribute in the Bible. It's so important that we get and use it and as James 1:5 points out - it's very easy to get: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."

We need wisdom in every aspect of our lives and it's right there for the asking! Jesus is the source of it - in fact Christ is wisdom. We don't need to seek wisdom from this person or that to see what they think, we should instead seek wisdom from the Lord. Afterall, it is His master plan, and He is the orchestrator of it all.

The Word of God tells us that wisdom is crying out in the streets, in the openings of the gates, and in the high places (Proverbs 1:20-21). The question I pose to you is - Are we listening? 

In 2 Chronicles 1:10, Solomon prayed; "Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?" This prayer pleased God so much that not only was Solomon given the wisdom and knowledge that he asked for, but he was also given riches, wealth, and honor like no other king before him:

"And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king: 

Wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like."
2 Chronicles 1:11-12

I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind being on the receiving end of such! And the awesome thing about it is that the Lord will do the same for us if we will ask for it as sincerely and humbly as Solomon.

Let me share with you two points:

1.) Wisdom can and will deliver us from evil. Proverbs 2:10-13 tells us that, "when wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: to deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things, who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness." Wisdom can and will lead and guide us from evil, but we must pray for it every day.

2.) The rewards of having and using wisdom are given to us in Proverbs 3:2 and 4: "...length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee. So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man."

There are so many benefits to having and using wisdom. It can teach us how to raise our children, how to respect our spouses in marriage, and even how to manage our finances and make sound decisions. So I say again - I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind being on the receiving end of such!

My friends, I leave you this week with Proverbs 4:7, "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding."

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!             

Turning a Negative into a Positive!

Negative: Expressing denial or disapproval
Positive: very confident; absolutely certain; not negative

Last month I helped out at a golf tournament that my brother hosts once a year to aid the Clearview Golf Course in East Canton, Ohio. I was so impressed with the owner (as well as my brother) at how the owner had turned his negative situation into a beautiful golf course. The owner had a love for golf, but was unable to play because he is a man of color and back in 1946 that was simply not allowed. In high school he was allowed to play because of his skills and his ability to teach other students how to become better golfers, however after a stint in the Army during the war, when he return to his hometown he was not allowed to play on any of the local courses.

His love for the game of golf inspired a desire to plan and develop his own golf course - a course that was built without the aid of any powered equipment. His efforts to acquire bank financing were met with rejections, but that still did not deter his determination to accomplish his dream. He had two friends who were doctors and a brother who gave him the much needed financial support which enabled him to purchase the land he needed and to get started on his dream.

To make a long story short - this gentleman was able to build his own beautiful golf course. Over the course of time, he was able to buy the two doctors and his brother out and maintain and operate a very successful business. My brother, Jessie had the opportunity to met Mr. Powell and was touched by his major accomplishment. At that point, he made a commitment to help by bringing in revenue to help support Clearview. Mr. Powell has since passed on, but his lifelong dream is still going strong.

When I heard of the struggle and how Mr. Powell turned a negative situation into a positive dream, it touched my heart as well and reminded me that we can do the same thing. We are not building a golf course, but we all have some kind of negative situation that we could change our attitude about and with the help of the Lord, turn it into a positive. This is a perfect example of the old saying, "where there's a will, there's a way!"

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!

Prayer is Not a Request, It's a Command!

Prayer: a devout request

Having a prayer life is so important because that's how we communicate with God. Without proper communication, relationships tend to fall apart. Take, for example, a marriage - if a husband and wife don't communicate, their marriage will fall apart because there is no connection. The Lord wants us to stay connected with Him. That's why having a prayer life is a command and not a request. Of course, the Lord doesn't need our prayers in order to perform His will in our lives. However, the act of prayer is a display of humility and a reminder that we are not in control!

In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, the word tells us to pray without ceasing. In other words, pray all the time. Prayer should never be our last resort, friends. It should be our first response, because it's really our secret weapon. We can't be everywhere, with our eyes on everyone we love -- but our prayers can! My friend shared a story with me about how the Lord woke her up in the wee hours of the morning one day and she knew that she needed to pray, so she did. The next morning, her daughter called and told her she had just been in an accident and had been hit head-on. Praise God, the only damage to her was from her air bag. What a blessing! My friend's prayers were already there in place. We can't be everywhere, with our eyes on everyone we love -- but our prayers can!

When we pray my friends, we must believe we are going to receive. Acts 12:5 tells us, "Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayers was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him." Verse 7 continues on to tell us, "And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands." When Peter went where the saints were praying and when they opened the door, they were astonished (surprised) to see him there. That's exactly what they were praying for, and  when God answered, they were amazed! When we ask God for something, let's make more of an effort to believe that we are going to receive!

Remember, complaining won't fix things and it won't solve any issues - but prayer can and prayer will change things. Pray and believe and you will receive, after all prayer is not a request, it's a command!

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!