Happy New Year Friends!

My friends, I truly thank God that I'm still  alive. We have faced so many challenges this year, but with the help of the Lord, we weathered the storms. At some points, it felt like 2020 would NEVER end, but now, here we are rapidly approaching 2021. 

Is it just me or does it feel like time has sped up? Of course, I know that it hasn't, but the fact is that time is ALWAYS moving, so it's critical that we use it wisely and not take it for granted. It's almost time for us to put 2020 in our rear view and start looking forward. 

As we prepare to enter into a new year, my prayer for myself and each of you is that the Lord will help us with the difficult situations that will surely come in our lives. I hate to be the one to break the news, but when the clock strikes 12:00 on January 1st, all the problems of 2020 aren't just going to go away. So I also pray that the Lord helps us make changes where they are needed and that He helps us to move ahead in new hope and let go of past failures and disappointments. I pray that He helps us to become the people He would have us to be. We don't know what the future holds, but we do know who holds the future. So while things in the future may be uncertain; we know the one who holds the future will always remain constant.

Jesus, may your abiding love give us strength to carry out Your dreams for our lives and may You lead us into new avenues of possibilities and compassion that reaches out to others. As we trust, pray, and rest in the Lord in 2021, let's stay focused on the word that tells us, "So we do not look at what we can see right now, the troubles all around us, but we look forward to the joys in heaven which we have not yet seen. The troubles will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever" (II Corinthians 4:8, TLB).

Praise God and Happy New Year!

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

Jesus the Real Gift of Christmas!

 Happy Holidays, Friends! Today I would like to share something my oldest son wrote. He said that he put into words what he had been studying. I was blessed by it and I pray that you all will be also.

Much of the ways we celebrate Christmas comes from our family traditions. But how often do we really, really celebrate Jesus' entrance into our world, or even think deeply about the true spirit of Christmas? The spirit that is meant to light up our hearts the way some decorations light up the tree.

Christmas is the day we celebrate the entrance of the eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, all righteous, all holy and glorious God into our world.  Now if we stop and consider that fact, and then read Luke 2:12, “Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” For those of you who may not be aware, a manger is a trough or open box for livestock feed or fobber.

So, what’s wrong with that picture? The God of all ages; too glorious to look upon; the God before whom Moses and Isaiah fell down on their faces is in a filthy stable. Isaiah 9:6 says, "For unto us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." The person with those titles is in a filthy stable. Not in a palace or in a beautiful crib befitting the Son of God, but in a cold stinking stable lying in a common feeding trough used by beasts of burden.

God humbled Himself before us so that we would realize that there was nothing He wouldn’t do to bring us into a relationship with Him.

Today, Christmas is based on an exchange of gifts.  However, the tradition of exchanging of gifts began with our Heavenly Father.  The greatest gift came from Him! For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son (John 3:16). This year, let's not get so caught up in getting that perfect gift for someone else that we forget to accept the ultimate gift the Lord is offering to us - a one-on-one relationship with Him.

With all that said, let the Church say amen and… AMEN!

And of course, Merry Christmas and May the Lord tremendous bless your New Year!        

Reason for the Season!

Reason: a cause, explanation, or justification for an action or event

I heard a sermon on Sunday with the topic of, "Unto Us." I found it to be very encouraging, so today I want to share some of it with you. During this Christmas season the true reason for the holiday - and the one we should be lifting up - is, more often than not, the one that we leave out of it. While shopping for gifts this season, it's important that we remember that we have already been blessed by the Heavenly Father with the very best gift we could ever have, want, or even need. Isaiah 9:6 tells us," For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God. The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

This child that was born is our Savior, and oh how we need a savior, a deliverer, redeemer, and a rescuer - especially right now. This year has not been an easy road - we have been weighted down with trouble, sickness, people being turned away from hospitals because there's no room (does that sound similar to another Christmas story?!). Suicide on the rise and the world at large is in the midst of a great pandemic. I say again - oh how we need a savior, a deliverer, and rescuer. He's here for us - all we have to do is open our hearts and make room for Him to brighten our day and lighten our heavy load. 

The scripture goes on to say "Unto us a son is given." For God loved the world so much that he gave his only son so that anyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16 TLB). You see this holiday it's not about food, shopping and any of the other things we have turned Christmas into. It's about the child that was born and the son that was given.

His name shall be called wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God. A counsellor that knows the answer before you can even ask the question. Can you see why He's called wonderful? There's no problem He can't solve. For in Christ dwell all the wisdom of the Godhead bodily - the Spirit of Wisdom and of  Understanding, as well as the spirit of counsel. Jesus is indeed our wonderful Counsellor. 

He's also called the Mighty God. He's all powerful; omnipotent. He can do everything because nothing is too hard for Him. His name is also called, The Everlasting Father. He's our Alpha and Omega; our beginning and our end. His name is also called The Prince of Peace. Oh how we need the Prince of Peace right now. The death rate is at an all-time high; people have lost their livelihoods; there is a shortage of joy and an even greater shortage of peace. Thank God that our Prince of Peace will give us comfort and tranquility that surpasses all understanding. He will keep those whose minds stay on Him in perfect peace.

Remember, Christmas is all about the child that was born, the son that was given, whose name is Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. He's the best gift you could ever get or receive and He's FREE!! All you have to do is ask. Let's be sure that we don't forget to always acknowledge the TRUE reason for the season.

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

Stay Connected to the Vine!

Connected: join together, unite, associated in the mind

Pruning: trim by cutting away dead or overgrown branches or stems, especially to increase fruitfulness and growth

Last week my husband pruned a couple of the trees in our yard. When he was done, he took the cut limbs and set them out by the road to be picked up. Within three days, those limbs had turned brown. They were dying, because they were separated from the tree that gave the life. They were no longer receiving nutrients, there was no substance available to feed them. As I looked at those limbs, I couldn't help but think about how it's the same way in the spiritual realm - when we are separated from the vine or the tree of life (which is Jesus), we quickly die spiritually because we are not being feed. For those limbs, it took about three days for them to go downhill... for some of us, we could be just one day removed from church when things start to get squirrelly!

John 15:4 tells us, "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me." When things start to brown within us because we've separated ourselves from the Lord, keep verse 6 in mind: "If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." Don't mess around and get burnt!

Just as my husband was doing in the natural, in the spiritual world the Lord will prune us back when needed - even if we are producing. Think about it. When you're gardening, you prune your trees and flowers because it allows them to increase in fruitfulness and growth. The same thing happens for us - the Lord prunes us so we can grow and bring forth more fruit, more love, more peace, more joy, more kindness, and more patience. And that's not all - John 15:7 also tells us: "But if you stay in me and obey my commands, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted" (TLB). More peace, joy, love and my requests granted?! Well, you can't beat that with a stick!

How awesome is God's love for us? But it's critical that we stay connected to the vine. He said "I am the true vine." He wants us to stay joined to Him. So stay connected my friends!

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

Delays are for a Purpose!

Delays: Causing some thing to occur slowly
Purpose: Intentionally

In the sight of God things doesn't really take a long time. Consider what the word tells us in 2 Peter 3:8, "one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." We are sometimes so impatient. We start to feel tense and anxious wondering how long can this or that may take. For example, am I the only one who occasionally gets a little frustrated waiting when food is being brought to them or waiting behind a slow car in the fast lane. What about waiting on the doctor when he/she is running behind?! We live our life in such a hurry to get to the next place or the next thing.

While most of us are in a hurry, God is usually not. When there's a delay, there's always a reason - even when you don't see it. The Lord always has a plan and a purpose for everything - including things that feel like inconveniences for us. Let me share this example: Mary and her sister Martha were waiting on Jesus to come and heal their brother Lazarus. When Jesus finally showed up days later, Lazarus had died and Jesus was accused of taking too long to get there. Martha went so far as to say if Jesus had gotten there faster, her brother would not have died. But you see, Jesus delayed on purpose, He said this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the son of God might be glorified. Jesus always has a plan and a purpose. We all know the story - Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. The end results were awesome.

God is developing us by making us wait, because delays help build patience and trust in our lives. Delays also reveal our true motives. Waiting has a way of bringing out the best and the worst in people. We may not understand why the delays, so my friends lets learn to develop an attitude of gratitude because we never know what the Lord is sparing us from or what blessing He has in store for us as we wait. The good news is, God never asks us to wait alone. He's always here with us! Remember, stop trying to fix and/or speed things up, just trust and depend on Jesus!

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

Be Thankful ALWAYS!

In Ephesians 5:20 the Word says, "Give thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Just look at how often we should give thanks - "ALWAYS." Now take a minute to think about what always means. When you got dressed this morning, did you think to give thanks for your shoes?  How many times have you complained about not having "anything to wear" while staring at a closet full of choices? Friends, stop grumbling and give thanks for all things always, so we can create the right environment to keep a thankful heart.

Daniel 6:2-3 tell us, "And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm." Now what do you think made Daniel have such an excellent spirit? Daniel had built the right environment of thankfulness around him and that environment carried an excellent spirit.               

We know that people plotted against Daniel; the King went so far as to make a firm decree that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions. Despite this decree, Daniel kept doing what an excellent spirit does - he continued to give thanks. The Bible tells us that Daniel opened his window just as he had always done, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God. And we know that Daniel ended up getting cast into the den of lions... but we also know who prevailed in that situation! If we keep building the right type of environment through being thankful, it won’t matter what the test is - we will be in the best place to overcome it!

Being thankful always must be a habit. Of course, when we first set our minds on doing this, we might not be as good at it as Daniel. However, if we can consciously think about it all the time, we'll find that the more we think about it, the more we will do it and we will eventually get to a point where it’s second nature, we'll simply give thanks always without even thinking about it.

Psalms 34:1 says "I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth." We must bless the Lord continually. We must also make a consciously decision to give thanks in everything, so that we can generate this environment of thanksgiving and our God that delivered Daniel, can (and will) also deliver us, because we have learned how to keep a thankful heart! 

With all that said, let the church say Amen… and AMEN!

Afflictions have a Purpose!

 Afflictions: hardships and trials

All Christians have afflictions -- if you think about it, either you have had afflictions; you are in the midst of an affliction; or just keep living -- you will most certainly face affliction. The good news is that all of our afflictions have a specific purpose behind them. Psalms 34:19 tells us, "Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all." Not only does He deliver us out of those trials, but He also comforts us throughout. This allows us to comfort others who are facing affliction AND allows Him to reshape us into His image and to take us to the next level.

The Lord occasionally uses affliction to bring us back to Him. David said "Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word." David also said "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statues." After experiencing  some trials and hardships, David later said, "The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver." Like David, we are all guilty of putting God on the back burner every now and again, but the Lord knows just how to bring us back to Him. So Praise God for the afflictions that bring us closer to him!

The Lord also uses afflictions to test us. You may be familiar with the story of Job and how the Lord allowed him to be afflicted... a few times! Job complained mighty, saying, "God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over into the hands of the wicked. I was at ease, but He hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken me by the neck, and shaken me to pieces, and set me up for his mark" (Job 16:11-12). What's important is that Job's suffering was not random or without purpose. The Lord was reshaping Job by getting those things out of his heart that was not like Him. But I'm pleased to report that the end results were awesome! Job eventually passed the Lord's test(s) and he came out on the other side with twice as much!

Remember my friends, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory" (2 Corinthians 4:17). God is not trying to kill us; He only wants to perfect us because He loves us!

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

Worship Before You Get The Miracle!

 Worship: to honor, the expression of such reverence

Miracle: an unusual event. An intervention in the natural universe by God

It's so important that we remember to worship the Lord for our miracle before we get it. When praises go up, blessings come down! I know that most of us like to praise God after we have received the miracle, but when you praise God in advance, it's like saying, "I've got total confidence in knowing that what I've asked for is going to come to pass." The word tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God, so let's put our faith into action and praise God before our miracle happens.

That's what blind Bartimaeus did, as he was sitting by the highway begging. When he heard that Jesus was passing by, he stop begging and started worshiping. He began to cry out, saying, "Jesus thou Son of David, have mercy on me." Even though many of the people around "charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he receive his sight" (Mark 10:46-52).

Need another example of worshiping first? Okay: "...there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live." "...When Jesus came into the ruler's house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose." (Matthew 9:18, 23-25). That ruler praised God in advance and as a result, his daughter arose.

Those are just two quick examples, but they are all throughout the word of God. Remember, we don't need to wait for the miracle before we begin our worship - worship before the miracle and you will see just how fast you will get your miracle!

Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

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

Serve the Lord with Gladness and Thanksgiving!

 Gladness: Being happy, being willing to help, grateful, joy and pleasure.

Thanksgiving: An expression of one gratitude, a celebration.

I realize that there is a lot going on in this world today, in fact, it’s enough to blow your mind, but I think it's important that we keep in mind that we didn't start those things and we can’t finish them. Of course, that's not to say that we shouldn't pray for our country - we absolutely should - especially as we see murder, sickness, fires, hurricanes, covid-19, and the flooding going on in the world - and that's just the short list! However, after we have taken those things to Jesus, we must leave them at His feet. This allows us to move forward and serve Him with gladness, with joy, and pleasure as His Word has instructed us to do. We should never allow serving God to become a chore. Instead, let's strive to always serve him with an attitude of gratitude.

In the amplified version of Psalms 100: 1-5, David gives us some amazing advice:

"Make A joyful noise to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come before His presence with singing! Know (perceive, recognize, and understand with approval) that the Lord is God! It is He who has made us, not we ourselves (and we are His)! We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name! For the Lord is good; His mercy and loving-kindness are everlasting, His faithfulness and truth endure to all generations."

Serving the Lord with gladness and thanksgiving is easy! We can accomplish this by mentioning His Name to others and by acknowledging all the wonderful things He has done for us. Our God is awesome and truly worthy to be praised, so my friends I invite you to magnify the Lord with me, and let's exalt his name together!

                                                                                                                

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

Why Worry - Just Pray!

 Worry: To be concerned or troubled, to irritate

The Word of God clearly teaches us not to worry, but I know this is often easier said than done. It may be human nature to worry, but remember, it’s not God's nature for us to do so. We would all be much better off if we would learn to lean on God and ask Him for help. He cannot take care of our problems, worries, or our concerns until we learn to turn them loose and give them to Him.

I once heard Joyce Meyer say, “Worry is like a rocking chair - it's always in motion, but it never gets you anywhere.” When we worry, we torment ourselves and it wears us out - mentally, physically, and emotionally. And you know what? After we've worn ourselves out, we still haven’t fixed or changed the problem! Let’s do as the Word says in 1 Peter 5:6, "Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon Him; for he careth for you."

Do you think Peter was worried after he was put in prison? Although most of us would have been, it seems obvious that he wasn’t, because Acts 12:6-7 tells us that "Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains... 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." The saints of God weren’t worried, instead, they were offering up prayers without ceasing and God delivered.

Worry is the opposite of faith. Worry is caused by not trusting in God to take care of whatever our situation may be. We must humble ourselves as the Word says and trust God in all things. Of course, things are going to come up that causes us some concern, but that’s when we have to turn it all over to God and say, "Lord, I trust you to make the right decision for me."

My friend mother would always say, “if you are going to pray - why worry? And if you are going to worry - why pray?" We must learn what our responsibilities are and stop trying to do God’s job! Worry steals our time, our peace, and our faith. Let’s save ourselves some time and give our concerns, our troubles, and our irritations to God. 

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

The Time to Pray is Now!

Pray: to make a request in a humble manner, to address God with adoration, supplication or thanksgiving.

If there was ever a time to pray, it's now! We're seeing rampant murders without justice, storms back to back, major fires that have been burning for months... we have had so many deaths from the coronavirus (and it's on the rise again) and from natural causes that it feels like we will never see the end of these things. So my friends, if there was ever a time to pray, it's now. In fact, the word tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to "pray without ceasing."

Sickness is all around us - there are so many people with cancer and with heart disease - to the point where their heart is failing because of stress, depression, and the anger that's eating them up on the inside. People are depressed because they can't feed their children and stressed because there's no money for bills. If there was ever a time to pray, it's now! It's praying time. There is so much anger and hatred on the rise because people don't want to or can't cope with things they can't control. 

Even though it seems like there's trouble on every side, we don't have to be distressed. We often get confused because we don't know why things are happening as they are, but as children of God we should never give up and we should never quit. Instead, we need to go to the source of everything without ceasing and make our requests in a humble manner. Address God with adoration, supplication, and thanksgiving. If there was ever a time to pray, it's now! It's praying time.

We must continue casting all of our cares upon Him for He careth for you (1 Peter 5:7). There's no problem that God can't solve. His ear is not so heavy that He can't hear, His arm is not so short that He can't save. If there was ever a time to pray it's now! It's praying time.

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

Is Your Foundation Sure?

  Foundation: the base or support

Sure: trust worthy, without doubt, certainty

When you are building a house you must have a blue print and that blue print shows us exactly how to build that house and exactly where everything should go. With any building that goes up, one of the most important things that’s needed is a solid and firm foundation. If that foundation isn't sure and solid, you’re going to get cracks, things are going to shift, and we will have major issues on our hands.

You know where I’m going with this, right? Just as it is in the natural, so shall it be in the spiritual realm. In order to build a strong spiritual foundation, we have to build it on things not of this world, but on the things of God. If we don't, our foundation will crack and crumble the minute there’s a little wind blown in our direction - i.e. when we’re put into a difficult situation. However, if we have built our foundation up by establishing a strong prayer life, study time, praise and worship, then we will be able to stand on God's word which will never fall or crack instead of being utterly destroyed by storms.

Laying a good and strong foundation takes time and obedience, but believe me when I say, the benefits are worth it. Luke 6:47- 49 tells us that "Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings and doeth them, I will shew you to whom be is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid a foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.” Hopefully it goes without saying that the rock is Christ.

Let's be wise master builders. Don’t forget that as we are building our strong and sure foundation, we are really drawing closer to the Lord. As we draw closer to Him, He will draw closer to us!

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

Seven Steps for Walking in Success

 Success: Achievement of something intended or desired

As we prepare to enter into a new year, I would like to share with you seven steps for walking in success. The success I’m speaking of is spiritual success. While natural success is quite wonderful, but it’s only temporary. What the Lord wants us to do is reverse the order of how we typically do things - seek spiritual success first and then allow the natural success to automatically follow. For instance, when you take a new job you might first have to take an entry level position. However as you are faithful and work hard in that position, you will get promoted and the raises will start coming, - after you have done what is required. On the spiritual side, when you start walking in the circle of success, achievement will come and the Lord will elevate you with things that no man can take away.

Let's talk about those seven steps:

1.  Keep a personal relationship: The Lord must be first in our lives; We must spend time with Him. After all, how can we get to know someone if we don’t spend time with them? We should also always confess Him as our Lord. After all, Jesus loved us enough to give His life for us. Roman 5:8: But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 

2.  We must have a prayer life: as we have discussed a number of times in the past, we must "pray without ceasing." (1 Thessalonians 5:17). That’s our method of communication with God, therefore we should be in constant contact with Him. 

3.  Study God's Word: we must study the word of God to get a solid foundation; as 2 Timothy 2:15 tells us: "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 

4.  Be Faithful: God loves faithfulness, so if we say it, we need to do it (see this previous blog for more information on 'walking the walk!'). We must be faithful to keep our focus on what He wants, faithful to keep His word, and faithful in small things as well as big things. 

5.  When we fall down, we get up: We must stay strong, even when we get knocked down. As Proverb 24:16 tells us, "For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again; but the wicked shall fall into mischief." Micah 7:8 says, "Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me." 

6.  Deal with the things in our old heart: as you see that old worldly nature start to manifest itself in your life, don’t bury it - deal with it! Confess it, repent of it and ask the Lord to wash you in His blood. 

7.  Practice your spiritual growth: As we grow in our knowledge and principles of the word, we must practice them. With growth comes change! My friends, it's time now to "be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves" (James 1:22).

These seven steps will help us to walk in the circle of spiritual success!

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

God Should Be Our Top Priority!

Priority: something given special attention.

God is concerned about everything that concern us - without exception. He cares about the decisions we make, because if we don’t make the right ones, He already knows what the end result can be. He wants to led and guide us as we make all of our decisions, instead of us trying to make them on our own. After all - He knows what’s best for us. If God didn’t love us, He wouldn’t care about the decisions we make, but the fact is, He does love us. The bible tells us, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye” (Psalms 32:8). The thing is - He can’t perform His word if we don’t go to Him first.

Putting God first is realizing it’s all about Him - that means EVERYTHING! It's also realizing that we couldn’t bat our eye or wiggle our toes if He didn’t allow it. Think about it - we're doing God a great injustice when we seek out everybody else first when we have a problem to face or a decision to make. What's worse - when things don’t work out in our favor - that's when we come back to Him. How would YOU feel watching or experiencing your child doing the same thing to you?

Let me share an example with you: Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, to view the country. They returned to Joshua and said unto him, let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai. They went up thirty-six of the men were killed and the rest of them ran for their life. The word says the hearts of the people melted, and became as water. It was then they cried out to God (Joshua 7:2-6). If they had gone to the Lord first, perhaps, they would have known that sin was in the camp. That's just as example, but honestly, we don't really have to go far that back; we can simply look at our own lives and see that we're just as guilty.

Always keep in mind: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).

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

Open Yourself Up to Change!

Changes: to make or become different, the act, process, or result changing.

2020 has been a year of changes - a year like nothing we have ever experience before in this life time. But I'm here to tell you that God is a miracle-working God and He can use all these situations to prepare us for something better. I once heard Joel Osteen say, “what you thought was a setback is actually a set-up.” We must embrace the changes and acknowledge that God is the head. We have to tackle the tasks put in front of us with love and thanksgiving in our hearts. Instead of trying to fight things we don’t understand; things we can’t fix anyway - just trust and believe that God is ordering our steps.

Accepting change is a choice, of course and it often costs us something to change. If you think about it, change often comes at inconvenience times. That’s because God is checking our attitude to see if we are going to agree with His master plan. Let’s look at the situation with the virus, we can’t go as freely as we might like (at least some of us!) and we have been asked to wear masks and to social distance. It’s an inconvenience to some of us, but it comes a time when it's imperative that we stop thinking about ourselves. If we could accept the changes as they come at us, then we stand a greater chance of seeing the good in them. If all else fails, and we can't see the good - then let's just agree to trust God - He won't lead us astray.

Some people don’t like change because they fear the unknown. Others don't like change because it interferes with their lives and can make them feel like they've lost control - especially those who are creatures of habit. Those folks tend to love routine and procedures and may be more open to change if they understood the reason why they were being made to change or if the change was their idea.

Let’s take Jonah for example: God told him to go to Nineveh and preach to the people so that they would change their wicked ways, but Jonah resisted and went his own way. Jonah resisted God’s plan for change that was about to take place, and as a result, he got swallow up by a great fish. The fact is there can be consequences to not accepting changes, and in Jonah's case, think about all the lives that would have been lost. Jonah spent three days and nights in the belly of Hell and when that fish spit him out, he went to Nineveh and preached. The people turned from their wicked ways, cried out to God and God changed His mind and saved them all... all because Jonah opened himself up to change.

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

Words of Wisdom

Wisdom: insight, knowledge, a wise attitude or course of action

Wisdom is so important. It gives us instructions, it cries out for us, it guides us, and it instructs us in every arena of our life. Wisdom is always talking, are we listening? (Proverbs 4:7) Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore, get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

Words of Wisdom:

• Enjoy prosperity whenever you can, and when hard times strike, realize that God gives to one as well as the other - so that everyone will realize that nothing is certain in this life -- except for our savior Jesus Christ.

• Finishing is better than starting! Patience is better than pride! Don’t be quick tempered – that is being a fool.

• See the way God does things and fall into line. Don’t fight the facts of nature. The facts are –Jesus is the head of all things; He’s got it all in control and it’s all working together for our good and His Glory.

• Tackle every task that come along, and if you fear God you can expect his blessing. We can expedite our tasks if we tackle them without murmuring and complaining.

• I want you to trust me in your times of trouble, so I can rescue you, and you can give me glory.

• If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.

• When the horse is stolen, it is too late to lock the barn.

• Give generously, for your gifts will return to you later. Act 20:35 says, “It’s more blessed to give than to receive.” Besides that, God loves a cheerful giver.

• He who loves money shall never have enough. The foolishness of thinking that wealth brings happiness! The more you have, the more you spend, right up to the limits of our income, so what is the advantage of wealth - except perhaps to watch it as it runs through your fingers!

Here is my final conclusion: fear God and obey his commandments, for this is the entire duty of man. For God will judge us for everything we do, including every hidden thing, good or bad.

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

The Twelve Foundations, The Twelve Stones and The Twelve Apostles! Part 3

Today, we will wrap up our discussion of the twelve Stones. I pray this information will bless you as it has blessed me.

8.  The eighth Foundation of the wall of the New City is to be a Foundation of Reparation. When God gave His Torah-Truth, His Moral Law, it was broken outwardly on the stones that Moses cast from his hands, and it was broken inwardly on the tables of human hearts when man sinned. The Apostle Matthew’s name is inscribed in this Foundation. His name meaning the gift of God. The Beryl, the embellishing Precious Stone. The Beryl stone means to demolish, impoverish, to break on pieces, and to destroy. The Apostle Matthew with the Beryl Stone bears witness outwardly to Christ’s great works of Reparation which He does within the penitent heart.

9.  God Planned that the ninth Foundation is to be Correction. The Foundation of Correction Bears the name of the Apostle James, (Son of Alphaeus,) and is embellished with the Topaz Stone. The name James is inscribed on this Foundation, his name meaning to supplant, to circumvent, to restrain. The Topaz Stone which conveys the idea of a pasture, a pleasant place, satisfaction, or a dwelling place, it also represents Christ Sincerity in the heart, which influences it to feed on the Resurrected Christ’s illuminating Truth.

10.  God has ordained that there is to be a tenth Foundation – His Sureness. The Foundation of Sureness Bears the name of the Apostle Jude (Lebbaeus Thaddaeus) and is Embellished with the Chrysoprasus Stone. The Lord’s Tenth Foundation is sure, firm, mighty and strong. Apostle Jude name means the heart, the vital principle of thought, reasoning, understanding, will, and judgement. The Chrysoprasus Stone represents something of usefulness and of a strong sharp, permanent smell. The meaning in the name of the Stone teach us that the Sure Foundation of the Lord’s Mighty Stream of Righteousness and Judgement is adorned with permanent usefulness.

11. In God’s Plan for the New City, the eleventh Foundation is to be the Salty and Sweet Waters of Truth. This Foundation Bears the name of the Apostle Simon Zelotes and is Embellished with the Jacinth Stone.  Salt is both corrosive and preservative. The Spiritual, Corroding Works of Christ’s Sea Salt of Truth will preserve His Seeds of Truth until they can take root downward and bear fruit upward. The Sweet Flood Waters of the Rivers of the Spirit will moisten the Seed of Truth, causing them to take root downward and bear fruit upward. Apostle Simon name means to have excessive devotion to someone and to be ardently devoted to a purpose. The beautiful Jacinth Stone mean to be conspicuous. The Lord Salty Sea Water of Truth and His Sweet River Waters of Truth will be noticeable and obvious for all creation to see, to perceive, and to observe.

12.  As the final Foundation to the New City, God determined that the twelfth Foundation is to be Instruction. This Foundation is adorned with the Amethyst Stone meaning to dream, to make strong, and to restore to health. We will dream or have a true vision, and we will be made strong and be restored to perfect spiritual health when we give Christ His rightful privilege of being the Perfect Governor or Head of our life. This Foundation of Instruction is inscribed with the name of the Apostle Paul, which means little. The word little means least, small, to bend or stoop; it also connotes something of insignificance and meanness. Paul considered himself small, the least of the Apostles and Saints.

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

The Twelve Foundations, The Twelve Stones and The Twelve Apostles! Part 2

Today, we will start with our fourth Stone. I hope these Stones will be a blessing to you as they have been to me.

When God, in His Wisdom, determined and planned the New City to be the Eternal Dwelling Place for His Son, Jesus Christ and His Bride, He set in a Foundation of Blood, which bears the name of the Apostle John embellished with the Emerald Stone. Christ's Blood always has been the Lord Foundation for Salvation of all things. The name John mean Jehovah has favored or the favour of God. The Stone in this Foundation is the Emerald, meaning to glisten and shine. The Emerald, with it's breaks and fractures and with it's glistening and shining light, bears witness to the breaks, cracks, and splits Jesus Christ suffered on the cross.

The fifth Foundation of the New City wall, is to be The Power of God Word, that bears the name of the Apostle Philip garnish with the Sardonyx Stone. All things rest upon Christ the word for their support or Foundation. Christ, the Eternal Word, created all things through His Exalted, Glorious union with the Father. The Apostle Philip name means dear, beloved, deep affection. Philip name fits so well with the love that is manifested by Christ who continues to uphold a sinful creation, giving it a chance to accept Him. The Sardonyx Stone, with it's horns and nails, bears witness to Christ Powerful Hands, with His Horns and Nail of Light, that support the New City and that, also, have written the Moral Torah-Truth in the heart of His Bride into the City.

The building of the New City was planned by God with preciseness, and it's Sixth Foundation is to be Good Works. Bears the name of the Apostle Bartholomew and is embellished with the Sardius Stone. Jesus went about doing good, bringing forgiveness, life, health, happiness to all. The Apostle Bartholomew's name means to accumulate, a bank, a terrace, the meaning of his name makes it an appropriate name for the Foundation of Good Works. The Sardius Stone beautifies the Foundation of Good Works,  meaning to be rosy red;  to show blood in the face. We must allow the Lord to form His Foundation of Good Works in our moral development, now, in this life.

The Seventh Foundation of Counsel, that Bears the name of the Apostle Thomas and is garnish with the Chrysolyte Stone. The Counsel of Jesus Christ and the Apostles and Prophets, as it is revealed in and through God's word, forms this Foundation. Individual believers must allow Jesus Christ to lay His Foundation of Counsel in their hearts. Apostle Thomas in inscribed in this seventh Foundation, his name meaning to be complete and to be jointed. The Chrysolyte means a stone, millstone or stumbling stone. How infinite is God Divine Wisdom that arranged to put His Counsel together with the Apostle Thomas name and the Chrysolyte Stone.

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

The Twelve Foundations, The Twelve Stones, and The Twelve Apostles! Part 1

Many of us may be familiar with the twelve Apostles, the twelve Stones in Revelation and some of the nature of Jesus Christ, but have you ever pondered how they all fit together? Recently, I was reading Revelation 21, where John was describing the New City or the New Jerusalem. In verse 19, he was talking about the twelve Stones and the twelve Apostles. I knew that the Stones and the names of the Apostles had a special meaning, but I wanted to learn about  those meanings - so I went searching. I found the information that I was looking for in a book written by Rev. B. R. Hicks, a well-known pastor and author. Here’s what I found:

The Twelve Foundations, the Twelve Names of the Apostles of the Lamb, and the Twelve Precious Stones unite to form one beautiful revelation of truth about the Lord Jesus Christ as the Supporting Structure of the New City. The number twelve tells us that God’s Perfect Governmental Ruling Power has reigned in every aspect of building the New City.

The first foundation in God’s Eternal Plan for the New City is the Lord Jesus Christ as the Judge, the Divine Decider of good and evil which brings to an end doubts and disputes, and He gives definite, unmistakable determination to a penitent soul so that it can stride forward in God’s Purposive Will, according to His master plan. This Foundation has the name of the Apostle Peter inscribed on it, and it is garnished with the Jasper Stone, the polished and prominent stone. Peter’s name signifies the spiritual nature or Rock-Strength and firmness of Christ that we must have in order to defend the LORD’S divinely ordained position as the Just Judge. The Jasper Stone, with its polished, prominent nature, teaches us that we are to adorn the first Foundation of the Just Judge with bright, shining gratitude, which makes His decisions prominent before others. Hebrews 10:42 says, “And He commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is He which was ordained of God to be the judge of quick and dead.”

The Second Foundation in God Eternal Plan for the New City – is Wisdom that bears the name of the Apostle Andrew – with the Sapphire Stone. Proverb 3:19 says, “The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he establish the heavens. “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get Wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” (Proverb 4:7.) Wisdom’s ministry is present to reveal the “Truth that now is,” confirming the Justice of the Just Judge, the Devine Decider. The name of the Apostle Andrew is inscribed on the second foundation of the wall. His name means - Manly or Strong. Andrew was manly, strong, forceful, and determine to protect the Living Torah – Truth from obscurity and from remaining unknown. The second Foundation is garnished with the second Precious Stone, the Sapphire. The word sapphire means to scratch, to mark, or to inscribe. When Andrew found Christ, God’s Wisdom who had been made Flesh, he used his manly strength and his Sapphire Stone to adorn the Truth about Wisdom, which he so greatly inscribed the truth in his brother Simon’s heart that he came to Christ. Unless people realize how necessary it is to have this second foundation in their heart, they will be disinterested and disinclined to make the effort to obtain it.

The Third Foundation of the wall of the New City is – Repentance. Repentance bears the name of the Apostle James (son of Zebedee) with the Chalcedony Stone – which means the Hollowing Out. Hebrews 6:1 says, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God.” The name of the Apostle James, is inscribed on this third foundation because it fits with the Principle of Repentance. The Chalcedony Stone, which beautify the third Foundation, also fits with Repentance. It means to hollow out, when sin is cleaned out of the old heart through repentance, the heart is hollowed out so that there is room or a place for God’s Master Plan and Purposive will to abide.

Come back next week for more of the 12!

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

Yes Jesus Loves Me!

Love: Intense affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties

As children most of us sang a song that said, "yes Jesus loves me." Although many of us might think of this as a "children's song," it's important that we remember that the words of this song still hold very true today even though we are adults. The song goes on to say, "because the Bible tells me so," not only does the Bible tell us so, but the Lord also shows us everyday, in every facet of our lives that He loves us.

I know we have all heard the poem about the footprints in the sand, but let me refresh your memory, just in case:

"One night a man had a dream... 

He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord, and Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; One belonged to him, and the other to the Lord. When the last scene of his life flashed before them, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life, There was only one set of footprints. 

He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life. This really bothered him, and he questioned the Lord about it. 'Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, You would walk with me all the way; But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, There is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why in times when I needed you the most, you should leave me.' 

The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child. I love you, and I would never, never leave you during your times of trial and suffering. When you saw only one set of footprints, It was then that I carried you."  (Margaret Fishback Power)

Jesus' love for His precious children has not changed; He still wants to carry us during our times of trials and suffering. But, He’s a perfect gentleman - He will not force Himself on us - we must allow Him to do so.

"Yes Jesus loves me, yes Jesus loves me, yes Jesus loves me - for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong, for they are weak but He is strong."

The Lord loves us so much; He’s just looking to show Himself strong in our lives. It doesn’t matter what the situation is - He’s only a pray away. Yes, Jesus loves YOU!

With all that said, let the Church say amen… and Amen!  

When a Man's Ways Please the Lord!

To Please: to make (someone) happy or satisfied; to make a choice about what to do, have, etc.

The Bible says, "When a man's ways please the Lord, He maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him" (Proverb 16-7). Today, let's spend a little time talking about Joshua and how he pleased the Lord. Joshua's life is a great example for us to follow and he left a profound legacy for each of us. Joshua was faithful to the Lord and his faithfulness kept the children of Israel faithful all his life. We need to be sure that we are living our lives more like Joshua - setting a good example for our children, our employees, our co-workers, and our fellow Christians.

As a result of his faithfulness, Joshua had favor with God. If we do what Joshua did, we will get the same results he got ("same God right now, same God back then" right?!). The Lord told him in Joshua 1:8, "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

It's obvious that Joshua did as the word said, he was focused and obedient. We can see that by the way he went out to fight a battle. The Bible tells us that God fought for them. It also tells us of how the Lord cast down great hailstones from heaven upon their enemies, and how Joshua had favor with the Lord, so much so that when they were fighting in battle that "he said in the sight of all Israel, Sun stand thou still upon Gibeon and thou, moon in the valley of Ajalon." And my friends, the sun stood still, and the moon stayed until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies (Joshua 10:11-13).

We may not be fighting a physical war, but we've all got some sort of battle going on - on the inside and on the outside. Some of those battles might be small and some probably feel like giants, but just as the Lord fought for Joshua and Israel - He will bless, fight, and protect us, but of course - we must stay the course! We do this by staying in His word and meditating on it day and night. We must also ask  for directions and be obedient when He directs us; i.e. we must accept the assignment He gives us. When we are pleasing unto Him, He will make our way prosperous. Remember, the walls of Jericho fell down with just praises unto God!

I’m sure that some of those in the battle were worried and that some were afraid, but the Lord took down every giant and there were no survivors. We can experience that same success and overcome our battles when our ways please the Lord. Whatever your battle might be, the Lord is saying the same to us as he said to Joshua - be strong and be courageous!

With all that said, let the church say amen... and AMEN! 

Patience is a Virtue!

Patience: the quality of enduring, the ability to bear trails without grumbling.
Virtue: a commendable quality, a particular moral excellence.

Patience is truly a commendable quality. Today, it seems like we live in this microwave generation where everyone wants everything right now. While most of us realize that we are not always going to get what we want right away, we still get restless when it feels like things aren’t moving fast enough. We start getting restless and as a result, some then start asking the Lord for patience. My friends, I’m here to remind you that patience always involves the experience of dealing with obstacles and some delays. When these situations come about, that’s what allows our patience to have a chance to grow, so once you ask, you have to learn to let it grow instead of trying to squirm out of it.

Patience is needed in our lives in order to be successful - in the working world, and/or as a spouse and a parent. One way to practice patience is by letting go of things outside of our control. This lets you live with less stress, frustration and anger. Regardless of what other people think or say, you have a choice of how you allow things outside of your control to affect you. You are the source of that frustration.

Having impatience can lead us down a road of disappointment and disgust which will eventually cause us to give up on waiting for God like Sarah and Abraham did in the book of Genesis. Patience can be hard to master but developing this skill can really help us in life. Just think, where would we be if God had not been patient with us?

When others let you down or irritate you (and they will!) be patient with them. Practice love and stillness, because those people are growing just like we are. Always bear in mind that life is a process that you can liken to a ladder - you must climb it one step at a time!

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

Our Heart Will Deceive Us!

Deceive: To mislead by falsehood, to lead unto error.

If I’ve heard it once, I've heard a thousand times, "God knows my heart!" And you're right, my friends, He definitely does - but let me share with you what  Jeremiah 17:9 says about our hearts; "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Well let me tell you, only God knows - He knows our every thought and every hidden motive. I’m sure that you've heard people say, "I’m following my heart." If I could give you one word of advice it would be -  don’t follow your heart; follow Jesus - He’s the only sure thing.

Our heart is so deceitful that sometimes we think that we can actually deceive God Himself, but let me tell you - that's impossible, especially when you consider what the Word says in Hebrews 4:13, "Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do."

We certainly know how to deceive others - we know how to make things seem perfect on the outside, when corruption is working on/through us deep inside. For instance, our heart might have us thinking that we are doing something good when we unload other people’s dirty laundry on a friend. This is not being a friend, it's only the imagination of deceit. We can put smiles on our faces and mislead man, for they only focus on what they see, but not the Lord: "...for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).

The Lord knows what’s in our heart and in Mark 7:21-23 He identifies thirteen things that are evil and defile the man: "...evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness."

So with all those things in us, it’s easy for our heart to deceive us. God wants to give us a new heart and create a right spirit within us, but first there is some thing we have to do. We must invite Him into our heart as our personal savior and acknowledge the fact that those 13 evil things are there. We must then repent for them and He will give us a new heart. After that, we have to get busy in prayer so that the word of God can starve your old heart and feed your new heart until it comes into the likeness and image of Jesus Christ.

Jesus loves us and He is more than willing and able to help us get rid of those things that are not like Him. Thank God for Jesus!

With all that said, let the Church say amen… and AMEN!    

There's Rewards in Giving!

Giving: to cause to have or receive
Rewards: something given in return for good or evil

Giving can touch other people's lives in ways that some of us may never experience. It can also expand our circle of concern to include others. Besides that, the bible tells us that God loves a cheerful giver: "But this I say... He which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart; so let him give, not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:6-7).

Consider this - even God Himself gave - and I'm not talking about the multitude of things that He gives us daily. He made the ultimate sacrifice - He gave His only begotten Son, so the least we can do is to practice giving ourselves. Not to mention, there's rewards in giving and giving doesn't always have to be monetary giving. As Matthew 10:42 tell us, "And if as my representatives you give even a cup of cold water to a little child you will surely be rewarded" (The Living Bible). Your Reward: You shall be rewarded by the Lord Himself.

If we are really willing to give, then it's not important how much we have to give. God wants us to give what we can and not what we cannot. We should always be willing to share with others if we have extra and can help them. And then at some other time, those same people (or even someone else) will be able to share with us when we are in need. Your Reward: When we are in need, others will be a blessing onto us.

The Words command us to "share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help" (Isaiah 58:7). Your Reward: He will heal and protect you - "your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind" (Isaiah 58:8). What an awesome reward!

Keep sowing your seeds, for you never know which seed will grow and blossom - perhaps they all will! Your Reward: You will have more than enough, because it's possible that all of your sowed seeds will grow!

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

Life Won't Always Be A Bed Of Flowers!

Flowers: a state of blooming or flourishing

I was sitting outside this evening just admiring God's beautiful creation and I began to think about all of the things that are going on in the world today and about the path that God has set out for us. The fact is that the path that God has for us won't always be smooth - it's not likely to be a path free of obstacles and set backs.

We often think that just because we're Christians, everything in our lives is going to go smoothly. My friends, God didn't promise us a smooth path. However, He did promise that He would never leave us or forsake us - which means that He's with us even in the tough and rocky times, just as He's with us doing the smooth times.

In times like these, we have to remember that the joy of the Lord is our strength. So while we can't move the obstacles or avoid the setbacks, we can find strength and encouragement in the Lord and His word. Hebrews 13:5 tells us, "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." It's imperative that we continue to be prayerful and share the love and the word of God with others - for that's how we get and share strength.

I'm beginning to understand that these circumstances are not reasons for us to lose faith and hope in God, but instead, we should draw closer to Him, because it's in these times that God wants to carry us, so let's draw closer to Him. He also said that goodness and mercy would surely follow us all the days of our lives, which means that He's there in the good times and the bad times (all the days of our lives).

Saints, we serve an awesome and powerful God! Remember, what James 1:2 says, "count it all joy." Please notice that the author didn't say that only great things would happen to us, he simply said count it all joy, so that lets us know that although life may not always be blooming or flourishing, if we count it all joy, that joy will be the strength we need to survive anything the world throws our way!

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

Count It All Joy!

Count: To command with official authority, to consider

James 1:2 says: "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations." However, we sometimes lose our joy. I'm not talking about the joy that you might have by getting things on the outside; I'm talking about that joy you have on the inside that you allow to work through you on the outside.

Nearly everyone wants joy, but we often look for it on the outside. Getting a new car won't give you the type of joy I'm talking about; buying a new house can make you happy for a minute, but it still won't get you the kind of joy I'm talking about.

This joy comes from within and we must get the right thing on the inside of us - that thing that will in turn make us radiate with joy. When we have that type of joy, things that might be going wrong on the outside don't affect our joy - because it's on the inside working through to the outside.

Not everyone has joy... some people are happy - usually because something good has happened. But when you get the joy of the Lord on the inside, it doesn't matter if something does or does not happen - you are happy anyway! James 1:2 doesn't say to count it all joy... when you get a new house or a new car... no, it tells us to count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations, such as being lied on, laugh at, and despitefully used.

We put this joy to work by commanding with official authority the Word of God. The world doesn't give us this joy - no, it comes from the Lord. And when we understand that, we can speak to our trials and tribulations and STILL have joy! We won't have to consider them as problems, instead, we can command them to be joy. But first, we must put the Word of God in us. We can conquer any situation by staying in prayer and by speaking the Word -- things like, "the joy of the Lord is my strength," and "this joy that I have the World didn't give it to me and the world can't take it away!"

Stay in the presence of the Lord, my friends because, as Psalms 16:11 tell us - "in thy presence is fullness of joy."

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

Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself!

Neighbor: fellowman, one living or located near another.

Mark 12:31 tells us; "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourishes and cherish it. Some people don't want to love others, because of the potential of being hurt, but I'm here to tell you that it is more dangerous not to love them. That's because God is love and He commands us to love one another.

Given the current state of the world, now is the perfect time to show the type of love that Jesus is talking about in Mark 12. We may think that we can make it in this world by ourselves, but the fact is, we cannot. We need each other. It's easy to see that love is not always shown in today's world - if we were really loving our neighbors there would not be so much killing, hatred, bitterness, and anger among us.

One might wonder who is my neighbor? Well, let me answer that for you: your neighbor is anyone you can share God's love with. We are not only required to love those who are similar to us, but all whom God places in our path. Additionally, along with those placed in our path, we must also love our enemies and pray for those that talk about us (imagine that!). Those people are our neighbors too, so we must show God's love to them as well. We have gotten so far away from the Golden Rule "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" that loving each other feels foreign.

Let me share this example with you: A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his raiment, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. By chance there came down a certain Priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite (also a Priest), came upon the same place, looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan (people that were hated) journeyed by. That Samaritan came to the place where the wounded man was and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine. Then he put the wounded man on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was a neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go and do thou likewise. (Luke 10: 30-37). When we show love unto our neighbors, we are really demonstrating our love toward God.

Love is the key and God is love, so let's love our neighbors as ourselves.

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

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!      

Goodness, A Fruit Of The Spirit!

Goodness: excellence, virtue

Today, I would like to share with you one of the fruits of the Spirit - the fruit of Goodness. Goodness is a virtue that we must all possess - not just in words where we talk about it here and there - but in action so that fruit can work on the inside of us. Once it's working down in us real good, it will reflect on the outside.

Someone might be thinking, "what do you mean when you say fruit of the Spirit?" What I'm talking about is the nature and character of a person. Think about it like  it's a fruit tree: once that tree grows up and those roots are deep enough, it begins to bear fruit. Similarly, when the Spirit grows deep enough on the inside of us, we should bear fruit as well - doing good, acting good, and being good. 

Dr. James Hamilton said it best: "Goodness is love and action. Love with its hand to the plow, love with the burden on its back, love following His footsteps who went about continually doing good,"  In Acts 10:38, the bible tells us how Jesus went around doing good - He actually sought out people to show His Goodness to. When He healed the blind man, when He touched the lepers, when He touched and healed little children - He didn't send someone else, He did it personally. Showing Goodness should be a hands-on, personal and up-close performance.

Let me share an example with you so that you will know how the Lord wants us to show Goodness. Joseph's brothers put him in a pit, took him out and then sold him. Joseph was sold to Potiphar, who was an officer of Pharaoh, but the Lord  showed him goodness and he was a prosperous man.  After Joseph got out of prison for something that he didn't do, Pharaoh made him governor over all the land. There came a time of great famine across all of the earth and Joseph's brothers had to come and buy food from him - only they did not know that he was their brother. Joseph, on the other hand,  recognized them and remembered everything they had done to him. He could have had them killed, but instead he showed them Goodness by giving them food. He eventually made himself known to them and moved his father and all his brothers and all their families to Egypt with him where he took care of them in spite of what they did to him - now that's Goodness!

My friends, it's imperative that we show the fruit of the spirit - Goodness - to everyone that we can, in all the ways we can, whenever we can.

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

We Are On A Mission!

Mission: an assignment or task to be carried out

We are on a serious mission -- to get back to our savior. On this mission we are and will continue to be given commands. It's so incredibly important that we don't turn to the left or to the right - instead we must remain focused.

That's not to say that we don't or won't make mistakes (an error arising from human weakness). Sometimes these mistakes are a result of misunderstood motives, misjudged appearances, and misplaced trust. These things happen, so it's imperative that we stay focused. Proverbs 14:12 tells us, "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."

Let's take the military for instance - when a soldier is sent out on a mission, he or she has been sufficiently trained, and they don't allow themselves to become distracted. Distraction from their main focus could cause them their life. They are always watching and waiting for the right moment to carry out their assignment. The Lord has also equipped (or trained) us. Ephesians 1:3 declares, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ."

He equips us with His word, His spirit, and the power to pray. Our mission is to get His word first for ourselves so that we may be a witness unto His people. We are commanded to go and teach and preach the word and also to help others. We must remember the Lord did not save us just so that we could live comfortably, happily, and self-centered. No, we have a mission! We have a mission given to us by the ultimate Commander-in-Chief and that's to take His message of salvation into the enemy camp. We must never forget that we are on an assignment and we cannot let ourselves get caught up in the cares of this life. When we do, we become easy prey for the enemy, which results in mission failure.

Jesus fulfilled His assignment when He came to earth to do God's will; to save sinners, to bring everlasting righteousness, and to destroy Satan's works. Now it's up to each of us to complete our assignment. Our Commander-in-Chief loves each of us to the point that He died for you and me!

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



 

What Love Does and What Love Does Not Do

Love: unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for others.

I know that most of you are familiar with that song that says, "what the world needs now, is love, sweet love, that's the only thing there is just too little of." Have you ever stopped to think about just how true that little verse is? Can you imagine how peaceful and loving this world would be if love was shown as God intended it to be? Children would not be killing parents and parents would not be killing children. There would be so much less hatred, less robbing, and fewer killings, instead we would be sharing the real love of God.

Let me take a few minutes to share with you a few things about love:

• Love is a commandment and not a request. 
• Love is kind
• Love is greater than faith, greater than hope
• Most importantly, God is love

1 John 4:11 says, "Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another." Not because they do good things for us, and not because they boost our ego - but out of a pure heart.

According to 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, here's what love does:

1. Love suffers long. We have to get over these things we have in us - you guys know we're not trying to suffer long, we have no patience or time for that, right?! But that's not like Jesus because Jesus is love.
2. Love rejoices in truth
3. Love bears all things
4. Love endures all things
5. Love covers a multitude of sin. 

My friends, we ALL need this kind of love!

Conversely, here's what 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 tells us that love does not do:

1. Love does not vaunt itself. 
2. Love does not behave unseemly
3. Love does not seek its own
4. Love thinks no evil

In other words, Love is never haughty or selfish or rude, love does not demand its own way, it's not irritable or touchy, it does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice it when other do it wrong! WHOA! I know I'm still working on some of these things - what about you guys??

Thank God that He is loving, extremely patient, and eternally kind. Remember, God so loved us, so we ought to love one another!

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

Instructions and Results!

Instruction: Command, directions, an order
Results: Effect or consequence

Today, I would like to share some instructions - or you could call them words of wisdom. Regardless of what we choose to call it - words of wisdom or instructions - how we choose to follow it has consequences. If we wholly follow the instructions of the Lord, there will be tremendous results. I bet you can guess what the consequences are when we don't follow the instructions of the Lord (one word: Jonah). Anyway, it's critical that we remember that faith without works in dead. That means in order to receive the results (or reap the benefits), you must do the works (or sow the seed).

Let me share with you some instructions you can follow in hard times:

Instructions:

1. Run from anything that gives you the evil thoughts that we often have, and stay close to anything that makes you want to do right.
2. Have faith and love for those who love the Lord and have pure hearts.
3. Don't get involved in foolish arguments which only upset people and makes them angry. As people of God we must not be quarrelsome, we must be gentle, patient teachers of those who are wrong. Sometime as teachers you don't have to say a word, people will see what you stand for and believe in just by your talk and your walk.
4. Be humble when you are trying to teach those who are mixed-up concerning the truth. If we talk meekly and courteously to them they are more likely, with the help of the Lord, to turn away from their wrong ideas and believe what is true.

Remember that we cannot force people to see things our way and we cannot change people - that's not our job or responsibility - but we are to approach them in the way God said in His word. People may or may not accept what you say, but if we stand steady and leave nothing undone, the Lord will stand with us.

Results (these are the consequences after we have followed directions):

1. The Lord will give you the desires of your heart.
2. You will be blessed in the city, you will be blessed in the fields, you will be the head and not the tail. 
3. The Lord will deliver your life from destruction (the pits of hell) and crown you with loving kindness and tender mercies.
4. He will be a very present help in our time of trouble. He will protect us, deliver us, and fight our battles for us. No weapon formed against us will prosper, He will hide us under His feathers, He will even hover over us like a mother hen hovers over her chicks. 

The bottom line: in the end, if we follow His instructions as He has laid them out for us, we will receive Eternal Life!


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

Words of Encouragement!

Encouragement: to inspire with courage and hope; stimulate

We have to remember my friends, "This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalms 118:24). To rejoice means to feel or show great joy or delight. So this scripture tells us that we should be feeling and showing great joy every single day! That means we should be doing this over and over again - even when we may not understand everything that is happening to and around us right now. No matter what, we still must stand and rejoice, because of who God is, and we must continue to be strong and stay encouraged in the Lord.

We are in a season that we have never walked through before. The majority of us have never seen businesses closed and so many people out of work as we see today. Despite this, we must be and remain encouraged and thank God that we are still alive and well. We must not complain about how tired of things we are, because it could certainly be worse. Instead, let's focus on what the Lord has already done for us, and be mindful of how gracious and merciful He is; how slow to anger He is and of the great kindness that He has shown to us. My aunt was just telling me the other day that she stays encouraged because she still has eyes to see, ears to hear, a mouth to talk with and feet to walk with. So let's take a note from my aunt and be inspired with courage and hope!

Let's encourage ourselves by thinking on the wonderful things that God has already done and the wonderful things the Bible tells us about ourselves. Things like "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made..." (Psalms 139:14), and "I can do all things through Christ which strenghteneth me" (Philippians 4: 13). Don't forget about "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us" (Romans 8:37) and "In every thing give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thessalonians 5:18). How can you not feel encouraged when you read all of those words of truth?!

Remember my friends, "For His anger endureth but a moment; in his favor is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (Psalms 30:5). So no matter what we (and the world) are going through right now, we can rest assured that joy will come in the morning.

I hope these words of encouragement will stimulate you with courage and hope. God loves us and none of what's going on is a shock or surprise to Him!

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

What Is Everyday Faith? (part 2)

Faith: belief without proof; trust

Today, I want to tell you a little more about what I mean when I say "everyday faith."

Let's say that we have the faith to believe that we can get a big, fine car or a beautiful mansion. Those things are amazing blessings, BUT let me ask you this - how will they help you eternally? After all, you can't take those things with you when you leave this earth. What's really going to help us eternally is knowing, understanding, and believing that God is working in our lives, along with the understanding that whatever is going on in our lives is a part of God's master plan - even if it's unpleasant. Even when it feels like the pain is too much - the knowledge and trust that He will see you through is the kind of everyday faith that God wants us to have.

Let's take Noah, now he had that everyday faith. When God warned Noah of the coming flood and told him to "make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch" (Genesis 6:6-14). Noah believed God and began to build an ark as he was told. Noah and his family labored on the ark for 120 years. That's a LOOOOOOONG time to hold on to some faith! You have to know that people laughed and talked about him, but Noah had that everyday faith. He knew that God was right there with him to protect, to provide and to give him strength to build the ark - in spite of what others said and thought. And when the flood did come, Noah and his family had a place to ride it out because of their everyday faith.

On the other side of the coin, we don't want to be like the children of Israel. They saw God do miraculous things. They witnessed the Red Sea part as they walked across on dry land. They watched as Pharaoh and his army tried the same thing, only to be drowned in the same water that stood apart for them. It seems to me that when you behold an awesome miracle like that, you should have no problem having everyday faith. Yet they murmured and complained about not having water and not having food. What part of that sea parting that made them think that God wouldn't take care of them? That's a simple lack of everyday faith, my friends.

If you take away one thing from today's post, I hope that it's the knowledge that we must trust God each and every day and rest assured that He is right there with us, always. As Hebrews 13:5 tells us, "for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."

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

God Bless Mothers!

As I often do for Mother’s Day, I would like to share this poem, written by our resident poet, Ms. Shonta Alexander.

I heard my Grandmother say many times; "Give me my flowers while I yet live, so that I may see the beauty of them." You know, once our moms are no longer with us, flowers (and anything else we might do for them) are really of no avail to them. So it's important that we be mindful to show the Moms in our lives how much we love and appreciate them everyday - not just this Sunday on Mother's Day!

Today, your showing of appreciation could be a simple phone call that goes like that famous song, "I just called to say I love you!" It could be some kind words like, "Mother, I appreciate you and all the sacrifices you made for me," that are said exactly when she needs them. Or maybe it's a nice surprise she receives in the mail like her favorite perfume or a bouquet of flowers that brings a smile to her face. Whatever you decide to do, never miss out on the chance to tell your Mom just how special she is - because she truly is. Without her, there would be no you!

MOTHER PRAYED

When I think of my mom on this Mother’s day

I think of all the things that I would lovingly say

Like thanks for your concerns and all your prayers

Not just for me but for all your heirs

You went without food so that we all could eat

You made sure we came first and you took the backseat

You dealt with so much pain just to get us up and grown

Then by the grace of God you moved out on your own

Everything you did, you did it for us

You never complained; you never caused a fuss

How grateful I am when I look back today

On how you sacrificed and how you made a way

For us to grow strong, Independent and smart

To not just be good but to have a good heart

Late one night thru the crack of your door

I saw you bowed onto the floor

Down on your knees in a special way

Thanking the Lord for another day

Another day your children survived

By the grace of God, is still alive

And from then on, I would always say

My mother prayed for me both night and day.

Be blessed my friends and Happy Mother's Day to you all!