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!