Who Knows? God Knows!

Trust: believe in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of.

Encourage: give support, confidence, or hope to (someone).

Deuteronomy 29:29 tells us; "The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law." The word also says, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding" (Proverb 3:5). Those scriptures may be easy to quote, but I bet that we can all testify about how hard they are to live by - especially when tragedy and loss touch our lives. It's in those moments when we don't understand that we find ourselves asking "why?" My friends, when you don't have an answer for "why," then suffice it to say  that God knows. And in His infinite wisdom, there will be times when we pray and He gives us answers, and there will be other times when we pray and He gives us peace.

In those tragic moments (and really all the other moments too), simply ask God for what you want and then thank Him for all that He has already done for you. If it's His will for you in that time, then you will experience His peace... and prayerfully, that peace will surpass all understanding. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live for Him. We truly serve an awesome God!

Always remember in this life, there will be rain, but the sun will also shine. So in those times of rain, remember that God knows and that He is working things out for our good and for His Glory. 

Just a few words to encourage you that God sees, hears and knows all things. Put your trust in Him.

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

Prayer is Not a Request, it’s a Command!

Prayer: a devout request

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

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

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

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

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

Don't Let Anyone Steal Your Joy!

Joy: a source of happiness, gladness of heart

In our day-to-day existence, there are just so many things that can steal our joy if we allow them to. The fact is, there will always be situations and circumstances, but it's important that we refuse to allow those situations and circumstances to steal our joy. You see my friends, Satan knows that if he can steal our joy, we will walk around in anger, depression, and even fear. And then before you know it, those things will try to consume our lives to the point that it feels like there's no source of happiness and no gladness of heart... no matter where we are or what we are doing. This is the reason why we must refuse to let anybody steal our joy.

Nehemiah 8:10 tells us: "Then he said unto them, go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength." You see, true joy is not the things of this world - it's not because we get a new house, a new car, or a fat bank account. If it were that simple, the suicide rate wouldn't be so high, and we wouldn't see or hear about so much bad news. We simply cannot allow ourselves to lose our joy - because we don't control ANYTHING! Our job is to put and keep our focus on the one who can give us true joy and peace. The world didn't give us this joy, so why should we let the world take it away??

Of course, every day won't be filled with ice cream and cake. Let's face it, our children, our spouses, our co-workers, our finances, every pain in our bodies, and even some of the people right next to us in the Church will try to get the best of us. But I'm here to tell you that we must count it all joy and turn it over to the one who has all the answers... and is truly the only one who can fix it. When we give it to Him, He will turn our sorrow, our anger, and our distractions into JOY. But first, we need to do our jobs - refuse to let anyone steal our joy!

Let's stay focused on our source of happiness - He wants us to have gladness in our hearts. You don't have to take my word for it - you can read it for yourself! "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore" (Psalms 16:11).

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