Hello everyone I am so excited about today`s topic... We will be visiting a place called ... FEAR
Fear : An anxiety caused by real or possible danger or pain.
We the people... are afraid of everything from spiders , heights ,cats , saying no, being told no, taking risks, investing our money, investing our time, failure, success, God , Satan, death, life, letting go, holding on and sadly enough most of us are afraid of our own shadow. When we live our lives gripped by fear it not only stunts our growth it also hinders those around us.
As a young child I visited the neighborhood pool; my other cousins loved these outings , but because I did not know how to swim I would convince them to bring their little brothers and sisters along ... So I could monitor them in the "baby pool". This was a surefire way to get in the water but not have to worry about drowning because the water was not deep enough to accomplish this.
Sad to say that one fear, multiplied like Gremlins do when they are too exposed to water. I now found myself afraid to ride a bike unless it had training wheels or was on the back with someone else, Did not go roller or ice skating because I was to afraid to fall, didn`t try out for cheerleading because I was not pretty enough, passed on basketball because... you guessed it... I was too afraid to miss a shot ; so I never even attempted to launch one due to fear of being ridiculed. The one thing I did enjoy was track ... How interesting that I perfected RUNNING.( That is another blog for another day )
Fear will cause you to miss out out on ; not only your life but those close to you also. I soon began to realize that the seed of rejection caused me to become afraid , but now the spirit of Pride has prohibited me from moving forward. The two really do go together... just like goodness and mercy follow you , so do pride and fear.
Pride says I will not do it because you will not laugh at me, but how can you overcome that which you never even confront. I spent a many a days and nights alone because I was too prideful to call someone, Missed out on outings because I was too prideful to ask for a ride... .And then had the nerve to get mad when everyone talked about all the fun they experienced. It was not their job to remember that I didn`t have transportation, but it was my responsibilty to remind them, by asking for assistance.
Old saying goes a closed mouth does not get fed... same with God.. yes we know He knows all things and our thoughts afar off, but if you don`t open your mouth , He may not open His hand. We learned how to ask for all the wrong things but when it comes to that which is beneficial we tend to get spiritual lockjaw. And why because we are so afraid that Jesus will say no , even though He promised to never leave you or forsake you, provide your every need and give you the desires of your heart.
Today I would like to encourage you to move from Fear Boulevard to Freedom Avenue, there are new territories you have been equipped to conquer and until you change your address you will find yourself on a dead end street wondering why all of your neighbors have left the hood.
Our past is a place to visit from time to time only to remind us to move forward. It is not a timeshare, vaction getaway or a resting place.. May we all today seek for ways to move from fear to there....
Hidden In Him
Pretina J. McNeil
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Election of Rejection
Good Morning all , it`s been a New York minute since my last post, thank you for waiting on me to hear From God before you hear from me. Today I would like to share concerning something we all have experienced at least once in our lives. REJECTION...
Rejection means when one is denied, dismissed, refused, discarded or thrown away : to be considered unuseful anymore. The Bible speaks of election, adoption and being predestined.
Election: (Romans 8:29) ... One who is chosen
Adoption: ( Galatians 4:5) ... To take into ones family enabling them to become an heir
Predestined: (Ephesians 1:5) ... To mark out beforehand
Which brings me to the word "Pre" which also means before... I always wanted to ask my mother where did she get the idea as far as my name was concerned. About 7 years ago I found out that in Greek .. Tina means " Christian" and since Pre means before.. My name actually means before I became a christian I was destined to be a christian... That is good news to me. I was teased as a child for having such a unique name , but after being on facebook , I realized that there are at least 6 other women with the same name residing in New York and even to the uttermost parts of the world.
Hold tight this train is still moving , we are just taking our time to enjoy the view as we travel.
I was adopted into a family at age 8 that I knew very little about ... yeah we had things in common but they were not my biological family who brought me home from the hospital , changed my diapers , took me to pre school or combed my hair . They began to build relationship with me as I dwelt among them, but only to the degree of how far they wanted the bond to grow; or as far as their hearts would allow.. I honestly missed the closeness one experiences when you are there from inception , but I do not for one minute THINK that God was not aware of who I would spend those 6 years with thus calling them my family. Even today I still call them on their birthdays, pray with them over the phone and love them like we were born from the same parents.
There were challenges as in any family, I grew up around some of the most intelligent, creative, funny and fashion forward people you could ever meet. But something was still missing... so at times I did get the leftovers, hand me downs and at other times I didn`t get things unless someone else got it first... This brought about a little competition and alot of accusation, I was labeled as " the copy cat". I had no control over these things , but it still did not stop them from occuring.
Which brings me to this place . More often than we care to admit we have been rejected, we were not picked on a sports team, for a part in a play or production, passed over for a solo in the Christmas pageant, refused by the neighborhood jock or denied by the " pretty" girl. Either way we have all come to know what it feels to called a " denominator" when our greatest desire is to be considered the "numerator". These feelings can become a strength to push some forward ; while becoming stress for another who is emotionally drained by the refusal .
The GREAT news is that God is not like man , He will take the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, He will allow you to be born into a family where you were once the butt of their jokes to being used for His glory..... The guy who dumped you 2 days before prom, the coach that called you short stuff, the teacher who said you would never amount to anything .... and the worst of all... a parent or close relative who degrades you with words like " you are just like your mother", or you will be a bum just like your daddy. If we release God.. He can use these things as fuel , but when we don`t these things can shape and mold us into a lump of low self esteem or will cause one to become a pile of pride.
Back to God... He chose the Jewish people to show the world about relationships that are pleasing to Him, Many rejected Him... so because He is God and can do whatever He wants , when He wants to. He said ... I will provoke them( Jewish people) to jealousy and use a people (Gentiles) who were once not my people to bring my people back to me. What am I saying ? Please do not be discouraged because another human passed you over for something that they percieved to be greener grass ; only to find out it was mere astroturf.
Do not allow what you may percieve about yourself to cause you to believe God can not use all the hurt , pain, disappointment, anger, blunders and shortcomings for His glory.... truth be told you are the perfect candidate for Him to use .... we are all products of rejection. We often allow the cares of this world; what we should of , could of, or would of done to stop us from moving forward. God chose us before the foundation of the world , gave us all things that pertain to life and godliness and as we agree with Him .... we can accomplish the plans He has for us.
My prayer today is that we spend not another second being angry at others, ourself or even God for what He allowed to occur... what you have been through will be used to assist another in their breakthrough. Rejection for a time may seem heartwrenching... But the Lord that we serve will place those who once looked down at you ,at a table and began to show them and the world that although you percieved him or her as of ignoble purpose , I have called them Ambassodors, Royalty, Conqueror and My Friend..... These same people you once put your mouth on.... will one day stand in the presence of and speak to dignitaries, kings and all manner of people of prestige .... who too; were at once : disappointed, hurt, frustrated and without hope. i.e. REJECTED.
Lastly as God places you out there DO NOT be boastful, like ... yeah God will show you I am somebody, He didn`t save us to show people how good we are , He died that we would show people how great He is....
Rejection means when one is denied, dismissed, refused, discarded or thrown away : to be considered unuseful anymore. The Bible speaks of election, adoption and being predestined.
Election: (Romans 8:29) ... One who is chosen
Adoption: ( Galatians 4:5) ... To take into ones family enabling them to become an heir
Predestined: (Ephesians 1:5) ... To mark out beforehand
Which brings me to the word "Pre" which also means before... I always wanted to ask my mother where did she get the idea as far as my name was concerned. About 7 years ago I found out that in Greek .. Tina means " Christian" and since Pre means before.. My name actually means before I became a christian I was destined to be a christian... That is good news to me. I was teased as a child for having such a unique name , but after being on facebook , I realized that there are at least 6 other women with the same name residing in New York and even to the uttermost parts of the world.
Hold tight this train is still moving , we are just taking our time to enjoy the view as we travel.
I was adopted into a family at age 8 that I knew very little about ... yeah we had things in common but they were not my biological family who brought me home from the hospital , changed my diapers , took me to pre school or combed my hair . They began to build relationship with me as I dwelt among them, but only to the degree of how far they wanted the bond to grow; or as far as their hearts would allow.. I honestly missed the closeness one experiences when you are there from inception , but I do not for one minute THINK that God was not aware of who I would spend those 6 years with thus calling them my family. Even today I still call them on their birthdays, pray with them over the phone and love them like we were born from the same parents.
There were challenges as in any family, I grew up around some of the most intelligent, creative, funny and fashion forward people you could ever meet. But something was still missing... so at times I did get the leftovers, hand me downs and at other times I didn`t get things unless someone else got it first... This brought about a little competition and alot of accusation, I was labeled as " the copy cat". I had no control over these things , but it still did not stop them from occuring.
Which brings me to this place . More often than we care to admit we have been rejected, we were not picked on a sports team, for a part in a play or production, passed over for a solo in the Christmas pageant, refused by the neighborhood jock or denied by the " pretty" girl. Either way we have all come to know what it feels to called a " denominator" when our greatest desire is to be considered the "numerator". These feelings can become a strength to push some forward ; while becoming stress for another who is emotionally drained by the refusal .
The GREAT news is that God is not like man , He will take the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, He will allow you to be born into a family where you were once the butt of their jokes to being used for His glory..... The guy who dumped you 2 days before prom, the coach that called you short stuff, the teacher who said you would never amount to anything .... and the worst of all... a parent or close relative who degrades you with words like " you are just like your mother", or you will be a bum just like your daddy. If we release God.. He can use these things as fuel , but when we don`t these things can shape and mold us into a lump of low self esteem or will cause one to become a pile of pride.
Back to God... He chose the Jewish people to show the world about relationships that are pleasing to Him, Many rejected Him... so because He is God and can do whatever He wants , when He wants to. He said ... I will provoke them( Jewish people) to jealousy and use a people (Gentiles) who were once not my people to bring my people back to me. What am I saying ? Please do not be discouraged because another human passed you over for something that they percieved to be greener grass ; only to find out it was mere astroturf.
Do not allow what you may percieve about yourself to cause you to believe God can not use all the hurt , pain, disappointment, anger, blunders and shortcomings for His glory.... truth be told you are the perfect candidate for Him to use .... we are all products of rejection. We often allow the cares of this world; what we should of , could of, or would of done to stop us from moving forward. God chose us before the foundation of the world , gave us all things that pertain to life and godliness and as we agree with Him .... we can accomplish the plans He has for us.
My prayer today is that we spend not another second being angry at others, ourself or even God for what He allowed to occur... what you have been through will be used to assist another in their breakthrough. Rejection for a time may seem heartwrenching... But the Lord that we serve will place those who once looked down at you ,at a table and began to show them and the world that although you percieved him or her as of ignoble purpose , I have called them Ambassodors, Royalty, Conqueror and My Friend..... These same people you once put your mouth on.... will one day stand in the presence of and speak to dignitaries, kings and all manner of people of prestige .... who too; were at once : disappointed, hurt, frustrated and without hope. i.e. REJECTED.
Lastly as God places you out there DO NOT be boastful, like ... yeah God will show you I am somebody, He didn`t save us to show people how good we are , He died that we would show people how great He is....
Monday, August 23, 2010
The Weight of the Wait..
Today I would like to talk to you about waiting on God... a subject we can all relate to you ... because until Christ returns we will all be waiting on something from God while at the same time waiting on God to return.
Wait; defined by Websters dictionary is as follows : To remain until something expected happens . To anticipate, watch for , abide, tarry , pause, or stay up for.
It makes me think of Christmas , the release of a movie you wanted to see or the process in which one waits for the delivery of a child. In all these instances you must, remain, watch for, abide in
, tarry and raise your anticipation level.. Sounds good right , well then why is it so hard as a society for us to wait ? glad you asked...
We as people are impatient , in my sanctified mind I believe God put Adam to sleep when bringingforth Eve so he could not try and take credit for anything let alone put a manner of time on the process. God as we all know is outside of time He always was and there was never a time when He did not exist.. Humans have problems with time because we understand that it eventually slips through our hands. But what we also forget is that a new day is a whole other opportunity to use the time set before us.
We try and do everything in one day thus burning ourselves out or on the flip side is we waste our day only to be frustrated and try and blame it on people, places, or things. We live a life of waiting ... so why do we have spiritual temper tantrums when we ask God for something but feel like he lost track of time ? we wait on seasons to change, prices to go down, the sun to go down, traffic lights, other people, paychecks and refunds just to name a few. We spend a considerable amount of time waiting in line at the bank, grocery store, movie theatre and let`s not forget about Black Friday when we wait in line for another, tv, appliance or video game.
We witness accounts in the Bible of how everybody had to wait at one time or another, our microwave society says.. God I want it right now ! ignoring the fact that there is a process to everything, telling God he is taking too long reminds us that we are focusing on what we don`t have a lot more than appreciating what we do have. Truth be told you know as soon as we get something new we can`t enjoy it because we are already thinking about next years model. This is why families are divided, weddings that cost an arm and a leg have now cost a heart and head full of brokeness, bitterness and turmoil.
It is so funny to me that we like to rush everybody else but take our time when doing things ? I have found that alot of my decisions; whether it was a purchase from a store or a job choice
turned into impulsive thinking and can easily cause one to make rash decisions that sometimes leave you hurt or with a rash.
If Abraham and Sarah would have waited on God they would not have had to deal with the weight of Ishmael.. they took the counterfeit over the benefit.. God in His infinite wisdom and mercy said since I am not a man that I should lie, I will deliver on my promise even though you tried to help me out. So Isaac comes just as God promised but the distress that was brought into all of their lives could have been prevented.. I am in no way judging them because I fall short in areas that I should be further along in, but I don`t like whippings so whatever I can do to prevent forest fires I will do so that my plan to help God out does not blow up in my face.
This brings us to the weight issue... Weight is defined like this: Heaviness, a burden or the force of gravity acting on a body. So the force we place on ourselves due to impatience can cause us to carry things that do not belong to us. As a single parent back in the day I would go grocery shopping and attempted to bring as many bags in at a time that was possible ... because I wanted to make the least amount of trips. only to find my fingers throbbing, back hurting and on an occasion or two the bags would break and I would even lose some of my groceries...
What am I saying ? as we wait on the Lord to fulfill His promise, may we WAIT on God, may we see what pleases Him, see what He likes and do it , may we speak well of Him as well as those he created for His good pleasure. May we feed the homeless, encourage the brokenhearted, listen without the intent of trying to fix another person. May we not be so in a rush to get inside that we miss the beauty of what is outside. Someone today is wishing they had a bed , while others are complaining that they need a bigger bed. Someone is in the hospital dying because they didn`t have medical insurance to care for them. While I am complaining about how long I had to wait for the doctor.
In closing I pray that we would trust in the process of the promise , but not more than we trust in Him who made the promise. Today may we not think that the only reason Christ died was to make us filthy rich, someones spouse, to be a mother or to make a name for ourselves. We already have names; we are called... Disciples, Children of the Most High God, Ambassadors for Christ, Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation, Set apart and Friends of God.
Lord Today may we not put weight on ourselves, while we wait on you.
Wait; defined by Websters dictionary is as follows : To remain until something expected happens . To anticipate, watch for , abide, tarry , pause, or stay up for.
It makes me think of Christmas , the release of a movie you wanted to see or the process in which one waits for the delivery of a child. In all these instances you must, remain, watch for, abide in
, tarry and raise your anticipation level.. Sounds good right , well then why is it so hard as a society for us to wait ? glad you asked...
We as people are impatient , in my sanctified mind I believe God put Adam to sleep when bringingforth Eve so he could not try and take credit for anything let alone put a manner of time on the process. God as we all know is outside of time He always was and there was never a time when He did not exist.. Humans have problems with time because we understand that it eventually slips through our hands. But what we also forget is that a new day is a whole other opportunity to use the time set before us.
We try and do everything in one day thus burning ourselves out or on the flip side is we waste our day only to be frustrated and try and blame it on people, places, or things. We live a life of waiting ... so why do we have spiritual temper tantrums when we ask God for something but feel like he lost track of time ? we wait on seasons to change, prices to go down, the sun to go down, traffic lights, other people, paychecks and refunds just to name a few. We spend a considerable amount of time waiting in line at the bank, grocery store, movie theatre and let`s not forget about Black Friday when we wait in line for another, tv, appliance or video game.
We witness accounts in the Bible of how everybody had to wait at one time or another, our microwave society says.. God I want it right now ! ignoring the fact that there is a process to everything, telling God he is taking too long reminds us that we are focusing on what we don`t have a lot more than appreciating what we do have. Truth be told you know as soon as we get something new we can`t enjoy it because we are already thinking about next years model. This is why families are divided, weddings that cost an arm and a leg have now cost a heart and head full of brokeness, bitterness and turmoil.
It is so funny to me that we like to rush everybody else but take our time when doing things ? I have found that alot of my decisions; whether it was a purchase from a store or a job choice
turned into impulsive thinking and can easily cause one to make rash decisions that sometimes leave you hurt or with a rash.
If Abraham and Sarah would have waited on God they would not have had to deal with the weight of Ishmael.. they took the counterfeit over the benefit.. God in His infinite wisdom and mercy said since I am not a man that I should lie, I will deliver on my promise even though you tried to help me out. So Isaac comes just as God promised but the distress that was brought into all of their lives could have been prevented.. I am in no way judging them because I fall short in areas that I should be further along in, but I don`t like whippings so whatever I can do to prevent forest fires I will do so that my plan to help God out does not blow up in my face.
This brings us to the weight issue... Weight is defined like this: Heaviness, a burden or the force of gravity acting on a body. So the force we place on ourselves due to impatience can cause us to carry things that do not belong to us. As a single parent back in the day I would go grocery shopping and attempted to bring as many bags in at a time that was possible ... because I wanted to make the least amount of trips. only to find my fingers throbbing, back hurting and on an occasion or two the bags would break and I would even lose some of my groceries...
What am I saying ? as we wait on the Lord to fulfill His promise, may we WAIT on God, may we see what pleases Him, see what He likes and do it , may we speak well of Him as well as those he created for His good pleasure. May we feed the homeless, encourage the brokenhearted, listen without the intent of trying to fix another person. May we not be so in a rush to get inside that we miss the beauty of what is outside. Someone today is wishing they had a bed , while others are complaining that they need a bigger bed. Someone is in the hospital dying because they didn`t have medical insurance to care for them. While I am complaining about how long I had to wait for the doctor.
In closing I pray that we would trust in the process of the promise , but not more than we trust in Him who made the promise. Today may we not think that the only reason Christ died was to make us filthy rich, someones spouse, to be a mother or to make a name for ourselves. We already have names; we are called... Disciples, Children of the Most High God, Ambassadors for Christ, Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation, Set apart and Friends of God.
Lord Today may we not put weight on ourselves, while we wait on you.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Saving David
Good Morning to all, it has been a couple of days but as promised we will look at the life of David...a man after God`s own heart. For most of us we understand how it is to be part of a family and be the youngest child. You are usually the one who inherits all the hand me downs, gets the smallest piece of chicken and is also more times than we care to remember the family flunkie...
David was the youngest of eight sons born to his parents, he was from the line of Judah and his gran dparents were Boaz and Ruth. David found himself hand picked by God and then developed by his father into being a shepherd at a young age. A shepherd is not just another term for a glorified babysitter a shepherd cares for the needs of the sheep. He provides for, watches over , feeds and protects it ; not just from it`s attackers but also from itself. In his boot camp which I like to call it David was learning to fully rely on God while having some others rely on him. He did not take this assignment lightly.... the scripture does not declare this but in my sanctified mind I would like to think that David probably cared for the sheep better than he did for himself... he placed the needs of those in his care higher than his own desires.
Maybe sometimes he didn`t eat , to ensure they were well fed, maybe he lost sleep because he was concerned about them or maybe he arose early because he just could not stand the thought of being out of their presence for too long.... either way I truly believe he loved those sheep , even to the point of rescuing them from those who were much stronger than them ,only meant them harm or worst wanted to eat them alive ... He was even used to fight off the attacks of a bear and a lion.
David was a musician anointed by God to play skillfully on the harp ... see (1 Samuel 16:14-23). He was a psalmist who was the author of many heartfelt prayers to God in song which many of us recite and sing about even on today. He was brave , intelligent, dedicated and handsome just to name a few. Many of us know " David " like people , they seem to have everything but are still unfulfilled... His most stunning attribute to me was his relationship with the Lord.
He was chosen over his seven brothers to accomplish God`s will in the earth, which reminds me that when God does the picking you know you are on the right team... as a child we used to play everything from Dodgeball to Hot peas and butter to Red Rover... we all wanted to be picked by the cute guy or the popular girl , just so we could somehow feel closer to them....that`s a whole other blog yall. Lol.
He was chosen by God because God knew his heart, He knew when he would be strong, when he would stand tall and all the times in between and still chose him... so what I am saying is the only thing that qualifies us to do anything for God is what Christ has already done in sacrificing His life for us. The Lord can and will use anything or anybody to get His work done in the earth, a taxing Pharoah, stuttering servant, disobedient father , a prostitute , a donkey and water that gushes from a rock... so please beloved... don`t ever feel you are not useful to or usable by God.
So God begans to grow David up ... people became jealous namely the king who was in office at the time whose name is Saul... It is interesting to me that someone can see the potential in you but will only use you if they can benefit from it .Sadly enough when they are done with you they either dismiss you like you were a lowly servant or worst begin to despise you to the point to where they want to take your life. I often say the same people you give the power to elevate you will be the selfsame ones who are ready to dethrone you.
So David finds himself being elevated in mans sight as he is being prepared to take over the positon of the one who first liked him.... enough to risk his life for and now who wants to throw a spear at him. The kings insecurities coupled with his disobedience made ready a righteous recipe for God to push His plan forward. Some times we are wanting to be promoted and God is saying "hold on" I have some things in line and if you would wait on Me. I will remove the stumbling block and all you have to do is walk into the postion I have predestined for you.
We can read of Davids great exploits, victories as well as his defeats but I loved the fact that when he blew it he ran right back to God who gave him life and repented... Many of us fall short and feel it is so bad God could never use those mistakes or us... causing us to run and hide a sin that we think is secret but is yesterdays news in heaven.... God is well aware that we are made of dust... He made us , He knows how far we will go , when we will shrink back as well as how long our dedication to Him concerning a matter will last . But I rejoice in knowing He is God enough to not blow his top when I fumble the ball.
One of the most memorable accounts of David`s life was his affair with Bathsheba... now before you say I knew she was gonna bring that up... just keep reading I brought it up not to put him on blast but to say God uses everything to His advantage . Many don`t tell of their failures , most testimonies are about : money, cars, new jobs , and other materialistic things... do we only acquaint favor with outward blessings ? what about favor when we fall sexually and God doesn`t put our business out in the street ? or how we act at work with a psalm 23 screensaver while we are the one stirring up the mess instead of stirring up the gift ? . Well you get what I am saying right ?
David had all that was needed that pertained to life and godliness, but saw someone who belonged to someone else and set his affections on her ... he pulled a Malcom X, " By any means necessary" on Uriah . First he told the brother to go home and sleep with his wife ; knowing that he himself had been with her ... and when the man refused he set it up so he would be on the front line and die... then David could have Bathsheba as his wife. It shows us to what great lengths one will go to get something they want ... again in my sanctified mind I believe if he would have asked God ... maybe just maybe God would have worked something out... I`M JUST SAYIN... who knows either way he took matters into his own hands forgetting that not too long ago someone wanted him dead.
My prayer is not that we be perfect because flesh is real and people have free will, but I do believe that the closer we get to God the more He will cause us to see , we do not belong to the kingdom of darkness anymore ; nor do we have to do busines as usual... scheming, plotting, planning and literally executing to have a desire fulfilled. Personally if I have to assasinate you to get with you , then I don`t deserve to be with you.
We all have things we are believing God for and that`s how it should be believing GOD. Man can never give us something he never had the power to afford us. Wait on God... His track record is trustworthy. Let`s look at David but not at the expense of ignoring our own lives, may we find fulfillment in knowing that He who begun a good work in us is well able to complete it on the day of Christ Jesus.
Yahweh.... help us to get out of our own as well as ... Your way.
David was the youngest of eight sons born to his parents, he was from the line of Judah and his gran dparents were Boaz and Ruth. David found himself hand picked by God and then developed by his father into being a shepherd at a young age. A shepherd is not just another term for a glorified babysitter a shepherd cares for the needs of the sheep. He provides for, watches over , feeds and protects it ; not just from it`s attackers but also from itself. In his boot camp which I like to call it David was learning to fully rely on God while having some others rely on him. He did not take this assignment lightly.... the scripture does not declare this but in my sanctified mind I would like to think that David probably cared for the sheep better than he did for himself... he placed the needs of those in his care higher than his own desires.
Maybe sometimes he didn`t eat , to ensure they were well fed, maybe he lost sleep because he was concerned about them or maybe he arose early because he just could not stand the thought of being out of their presence for too long.... either way I truly believe he loved those sheep , even to the point of rescuing them from those who were much stronger than them ,only meant them harm or worst wanted to eat them alive ... He was even used to fight off the attacks of a bear and a lion.
David was a musician anointed by God to play skillfully on the harp ... see (1 Samuel 16:14-23). He was a psalmist who was the author of many heartfelt prayers to God in song which many of us recite and sing about even on today. He was brave , intelligent, dedicated and handsome just to name a few. Many of us know " David " like people , they seem to have everything but are still unfulfilled... His most stunning attribute to me was his relationship with the Lord.
He was chosen over his seven brothers to accomplish God`s will in the earth, which reminds me that when God does the picking you know you are on the right team... as a child we used to play everything from Dodgeball to Hot peas and butter to Red Rover... we all wanted to be picked by the cute guy or the popular girl , just so we could somehow feel closer to them....that`s a whole other blog yall. Lol.
He was chosen by God because God knew his heart, He knew when he would be strong, when he would stand tall and all the times in between and still chose him... so what I am saying is the only thing that qualifies us to do anything for God is what Christ has already done in sacrificing His life for us. The Lord can and will use anything or anybody to get His work done in the earth, a taxing Pharoah, stuttering servant, disobedient father , a prostitute , a donkey and water that gushes from a rock... so please beloved... don`t ever feel you are not useful to or usable by God.
So God begans to grow David up ... people became jealous namely the king who was in office at the time whose name is Saul... It is interesting to me that someone can see the potential in you but will only use you if they can benefit from it .Sadly enough when they are done with you they either dismiss you like you were a lowly servant or worst begin to despise you to the point to where they want to take your life. I often say the same people you give the power to elevate you will be the selfsame ones who are ready to dethrone you.
So David finds himself being elevated in mans sight as he is being prepared to take over the positon of the one who first liked him.... enough to risk his life for and now who wants to throw a spear at him. The kings insecurities coupled with his disobedience made ready a righteous recipe for God to push His plan forward. Some times we are wanting to be promoted and God is saying "hold on" I have some things in line and if you would wait on Me. I will remove the stumbling block and all you have to do is walk into the postion I have predestined for you.
We can read of Davids great exploits, victories as well as his defeats but I loved the fact that when he blew it he ran right back to God who gave him life and repented... Many of us fall short and feel it is so bad God could never use those mistakes or us... causing us to run and hide a sin that we think is secret but is yesterdays news in heaven.... God is well aware that we are made of dust... He made us , He knows how far we will go , when we will shrink back as well as how long our dedication to Him concerning a matter will last . But I rejoice in knowing He is God enough to not blow his top when I fumble the ball.
One of the most memorable accounts of David`s life was his affair with Bathsheba... now before you say I knew she was gonna bring that up... just keep reading I brought it up not to put him on blast but to say God uses everything to His advantage . Many don`t tell of their failures , most testimonies are about : money, cars, new jobs , and other materialistic things... do we only acquaint favor with outward blessings ? what about favor when we fall sexually and God doesn`t put our business out in the street ? or how we act at work with a psalm 23 screensaver while we are the one stirring up the mess instead of stirring up the gift ? . Well you get what I am saying right ?
David had all that was needed that pertained to life and godliness, but saw someone who belonged to someone else and set his affections on her ... he pulled a Malcom X, " By any means necessary" on Uriah . First he told the brother to go home and sleep with his wife ; knowing that he himself had been with her ... and when the man refused he set it up so he would be on the front line and die... then David could have Bathsheba as his wife. It shows us to what great lengths one will go to get something they want ... again in my sanctified mind I believe if he would have asked God ... maybe just maybe God would have worked something out... I`M JUST SAYIN... who knows either way he took matters into his own hands forgetting that not too long ago someone wanted him dead.
My prayer is not that we be perfect because flesh is real and people have free will, but I do believe that the closer we get to God the more He will cause us to see , we do not belong to the kingdom of darkness anymore ; nor do we have to do busines as usual... scheming, plotting, planning and literally executing to have a desire fulfilled. Personally if I have to assasinate you to get with you , then I don`t deserve to be with you.
We all have things we are believing God for and that`s how it should be believing GOD. Man can never give us something he never had the power to afford us. Wait on God... His track record is trustworthy. Let`s look at David but not at the expense of ignoring our own lives, may we find fulfillment in knowing that He who begun a good work in us is well able to complete it on the day of Christ Jesus.
Yahweh.... help us to get out of our own as well as ... Your way.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Defending the Offended
PARDON THE INTERRUPTION... I KNOW I PROMISED I WOULD SHARE MY THOUGHTS ON DAVID TODAY... BUT GOD HAD A DIFFERENT PLAN.
Today I will write about something that is deserved by no one, afforded to everyone , recieved by many, reciprocated by a few and often withheld from all the rest ... FORGIVENESS
Forgiveness = An absoultion , pardon, acquittal, exoneration, dispensation or reprise. In other words to forgive someone is to restore them to a place as if they had never offended you.
Offense = A sin or crime, to cause resentment, anger, displeasure or hurt. To attack yourself or another in such a manner that would cause them to be violated to a point of retaliation.
Defense=Resistance, protection, safeguarding, precaution, stand or to preserve. In other words it is the act of taking a stand on behalf of yourself or another to prevent one from being hurt.
Many of us have heard the sermons, read the scriptures, preached it to one while withholding from another. forgive, forgive forgive ... Honestly if it was that easy we would not have such a hard time doing it ... forgiving someone says I am letting you as well as myself off the hook for what transpired.
It is interesting to me that we often forget this is the VERY reason Jesus Christ came to this earth... ( Matthew 1:21) To save the people from their sins.. i. e. to FORGIVE. Humanity is all for justice when it is the victim , but for the death penalty when it concerns another person. How does one hold back the very thing they need most in their lives ?... Sometimes we feel a person has to deserve forgiveness, NO we deserve death but God in His infinite wisdom and mercy said... I am going to give them what they need, not what they have earned because of disobedience... (Romans 6:23)
You may be saying , but you don`t know what they did and how that made me feel... and to a certain extent you are right in saying, but I do know what betrayal feels like because I have done it, first to God and then to people... I truly believe people treat God like they treat other human beings... Some of us ignore God, so we ignore people, some of us have lied to God, so we lie to people, some of us , if we are honest are mad at God which in turn makes us mad at people.... but what if we did a self examination only to find that we are mad at ourselves.
We think at times it is up to us to fulfill our destiny , this is only partly true... how can you fulfill something you didn`t even have the power to start ?... As a child we had to pray a prayer that said "now I lay me down to sleep"..., who lays themselves down to sleep without God intervening ? .... guess that`s another blog for another day ... Many say I am gonna get myself together and then I will follow God , in actuality you are already following , you are following the god with a little g, that makes you think you are in control of your life instead of following Him who was lead to a cross to die that you may live.
Scriptures states in Matthew 18:7... Woe to the world because of offenses ! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offenses come... what is Jesus saying ?....It is inevitable that offenses would occur due to the current state of the world , the lust of the flesh and the Devil at work in the earth. But woe to him who yields his body as an instrument to be used in Satan`s symphony. So do whatever is ever necessary to discipline yourself to resist this temptation.
Verse 15 goes on to speak of what happens when you do give in... He gives us clear instruction on how to rectify the situation...Go to your brother and keep it between the two of you !.. if he listens , well done , problem solved.
But if he does not hear, take 2 or more witnesses, if he so refuses to still heed ; tell it to the church. after all this is done and he still does not want to conform, let him be as a heathen.
I believe the problem for us is ; first off most of us will not go to the person who offended us we run and tell that... to the first person who will listen... secondly we tell 2 or more but not for the sake of reconciliation but for character assassination, so by now there is no need to take it to the church because its all over the church... the grapevine has produced "sour grapes" which has turned into "whine" because we have trampled on one another instead of squashing the matter in decency and in order. Lastly the person who may have gone home to their secret place and repented and was going to apologize at Wednesday night bible study, no longer has to be kicked out the church because now the offender has become offended and has left the building on their own.
Christ instructs about how many "times" we must forgive . He gives us a number while at the same not really giving us a number . His declaration is to do it as many times as YOU need to. To who has been forgiven much ; can forgive much, happy people, draw happy people, angry people draw, angry people, broken people, draw broken people... truth be told we are all forgiven people who have lied, been lied to , ignored, done the ignoring, angry ,broken humans whose only desire in the words of Mary. J Blige is to... be happy.
In closing I would like to say I no longer have the desire nor strength to throw stones at others because my hands are too full of my own rocky situations...
Love you to Life
Tina...
Today I will write about something that is deserved by no one, afforded to everyone , recieved by many, reciprocated by a few and often withheld from all the rest ... FORGIVENESS
Forgiveness = An absoultion , pardon, acquittal, exoneration, dispensation or reprise. In other words to forgive someone is to restore them to a place as if they had never offended you.
Offense = A sin or crime, to cause resentment, anger, displeasure or hurt. To attack yourself or another in such a manner that would cause them to be violated to a point of retaliation.
Defense=Resistance, protection, safeguarding, precaution, stand or to preserve. In other words it is the act of taking a stand on behalf of yourself or another to prevent one from being hurt.
Many of us have heard the sermons, read the scriptures, preached it to one while withholding from another. forgive, forgive forgive ... Honestly if it was that easy we would not have such a hard time doing it ... forgiving someone says I am letting you as well as myself off the hook for what transpired.
It is interesting to me that we often forget this is the VERY reason Jesus Christ came to this earth... ( Matthew 1:21) To save the people from their sins.. i. e. to FORGIVE. Humanity is all for justice when it is the victim , but for the death penalty when it concerns another person. How does one hold back the very thing they need most in their lives ?... Sometimes we feel a person has to deserve forgiveness, NO we deserve death but God in His infinite wisdom and mercy said... I am going to give them what they need, not what they have earned because of disobedience... (Romans 6:23)
You may be saying , but you don`t know what they did and how that made me feel... and to a certain extent you are right in saying, but I do know what betrayal feels like because I have done it, first to God and then to people... I truly believe people treat God like they treat other human beings... Some of us ignore God, so we ignore people, some of us have lied to God, so we lie to people, some of us , if we are honest are mad at God which in turn makes us mad at people.... but what if we did a self examination only to find that we are mad at ourselves.
We think at times it is up to us to fulfill our destiny , this is only partly true... how can you fulfill something you didn`t even have the power to start ?... As a child we had to pray a prayer that said "now I lay me down to sleep"..., who lays themselves down to sleep without God intervening ? .... guess that`s another blog for another day ... Many say I am gonna get myself together and then I will follow God , in actuality you are already following , you are following the god with a little g, that makes you think you are in control of your life instead of following Him who was lead to a cross to die that you may live.
Scriptures states in Matthew 18:7... Woe to the world because of offenses ! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offenses come... what is Jesus saying ?....It is inevitable that offenses would occur due to the current state of the world , the lust of the flesh and the Devil at work in the earth. But woe to him who yields his body as an instrument to be used in Satan`s symphony. So do whatever is ever necessary to discipline yourself to resist this temptation.
Verse 15 goes on to speak of what happens when you do give in... He gives us clear instruction on how to rectify the situation...Go to your brother and keep it between the two of you !.. if he listens , well done , problem solved.
But if he does not hear, take 2 or more witnesses, if he so refuses to still heed ; tell it to the church. after all this is done and he still does not want to conform, let him be as a heathen.
I believe the problem for us is ; first off most of us will not go to the person who offended us we run and tell that... to the first person who will listen... secondly we tell 2 or more but not for the sake of reconciliation but for character assassination, so by now there is no need to take it to the church because its all over the church... the grapevine has produced "sour grapes" which has turned into "whine" because we have trampled on one another instead of squashing the matter in decency and in order. Lastly the person who may have gone home to their secret place and repented and was going to apologize at Wednesday night bible study, no longer has to be kicked out the church because now the offender has become offended and has left the building on their own.
Christ instructs about how many "times" we must forgive . He gives us a number while at the same not really giving us a number . His declaration is to do it as many times as YOU need to. To who has been forgiven much ; can forgive much, happy people, draw happy people, angry people draw, angry people, broken people, draw broken people... truth be told we are all forgiven people who have lied, been lied to , ignored, done the ignoring, angry ,broken humans whose only desire in the words of Mary. J Blige is to... be happy.
In closing I would like to say I no longer have the desire nor strength to throw stones at others because my hands are too full of my own rocky situations...
Love you to Life
Tina...
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Garden of Delight
Good Morning all, today I would like to share my thoughts on the subject of being fulfilled ; not content, not satisfied but fulfilled... We will take a look at two of three men in scripture who had everything that pertains to life and godliness and yet found themselves still searching.
Adam: The First Man
David: The Favored Man
Solomon: The Futile Man
Let us begin with Adam many of us are familiar with the creation story... Adam was created in the image and likeness of God with the ability to exhibit compassion and forgiveness, rule in authority and have dominion over the earth , just to name a few. He ; along with the trees , beasts of the field and birds of the air were made from the ground. No one could take credit for their coming to be ... except God.
God prepared the Garden with all its splendor and amenities, so that when He placed His son there all Adam would have to do is name the animals and enjoy the place he was in. There were two trees in Eden, The tree of Life which is rather self explanatory and The tree of the knowledge of good and evil which speaks of man`s will and his obedience.
Many of us can attest to this today that we could be smack dab in the midlle of the land of abundance and yet have the nerve to be discontented... and yes we know this is because of the fall. Adam had a intimate relationship with the Father, they conversed with one another, he was placed in a deep sleep and presented a helper comparable to him, he didn`t have to go grocery shopping, always had company , did not have a bunch of people vying for God`s affection .... but was yet unfulfilled.
We are creatures of habit and whatever peaks our interest can easily drive us away from a place of purpose, looking for the next quick fix. Adam found himself lured away by his own desire to have the very thing that God wanted to withhold, not because God is a taskmaster or wants us to be puppets, but as the saying goes... Father knows best. Many blame Eve but Adam knew what God told him and the desires of his heart coupled with an opportunity, brought about the fall ... Eve could not push Adam to do anything that wasn`t already pulling on his heartstrings. In his pursuit of happiness he ate of a fruit that turned out to be sour grapes to say the least ...Thus bringing about man`s desire to control his own destiny.
Now let`s look at the wisest and richest man ever to live: Solomon, being the son of a king twice over ; first the King of Glory and then king David.. we find him in the book of (Ecclesiastes chp 2). pouring out his heart like a drink offering ... He was not satisfied with his intellect even though he knew more than everyone besides God of course... Speaking from experience people who are intelligent need to pray for balance, the more information we recieve ; the less information we retain.
Why ? glad you asked... because we do not take the appropriate amount of time to digest what we have gathered, and immediatley find ourselves seeking to gather more data ... So as it is with the grave and a barren womb ... we are never satisfied. He was learned in the sciences, history, philosophy, literature, religion and the learning of languages , just to name a few... but still felt like something was missing... Putting on the mind of Christ and allowing our minds to be transformed by the Word of God is our only line of defense....as knowledge puffs up , humility decreases.
Next we find him pursuing everything from the pleasures of the world, to real estate, to drinking and frollicing . I am in no way saying God does not want us to enjoy life , But this world is not designed to provide us with the totality of happiness, if it were so most of us would never want to leave, thus forfeiting the gift of eternal life in heaven. (Psalm 16:11)
Many have tried and are yet failing to live the life designed for heaven while still on earth . Prestige , fortune, and notoriety which is closley assimilated with being "notorious" seem to be our goals . Have we become more concerned about owning a business than serving in the Kingdom and being about our Father`s business ? And at what expense ?... grieving the Holy Spirit or worse the of losing our souls ? Solomon had more than everybody else and still felt like Whitney Houston.. he had nothing, nothing, nothing...
Solomon had tactical military units, male and female servants... herds and flocks of insurmountable proportions, but may have become so consumed with sitting at the table and being served... that he forgot, even as king he too was a servant. He was thirsting for the one thing that could quench him ... God, but chose to reject the living waters from the Fountain of life in order to drink from the cess pool of self absorption.
He engaged in many forms of entertainment and laughter only to still be depressed. I can attest to this truth... about 18 months ago I had to see someone to address my bout with depression... I put it off as premenstrual, to maybe if I got married , to cut your hair off, which in OT testament times was associated with mourning; to oh just lose some and you weight you will feel better... WRONG. After still attending church regularly, fasting, praying, bible study, and denial I had to admit while
self deception was taking place in my life , my failure to address it was taking the place of my life.
As a young child I was the class clown, telling jokes for the sole reason of disguising my pain.. I recently found out that comedians have a very high suicide rate... due to the fact that while they are making you forget about your cares for that moment in time, they are actually being tormented by the selfsame thing they are urging you to get over.
May we take a page or 2 from these men and their lives and learn that while we are on this journey called life, may we not go on a ego trip trying to accomplish on earth that which God has already settled in heaven.
Log in tomorrow as I share what`s on my heart about King David... See ya then; same time, same blog channel.
Tina...
Adam: The First Man
David: The Favored Man
Solomon: The Futile Man
Let us begin with Adam many of us are familiar with the creation story... Adam was created in the image and likeness of God with the ability to exhibit compassion and forgiveness, rule in authority and have dominion over the earth , just to name a few. He ; along with the trees , beasts of the field and birds of the air were made from the ground. No one could take credit for their coming to be ... except God.
God prepared the Garden with all its splendor and amenities, so that when He placed His son there all Adam would have to do is name the animals and enjoy the place he was in. There were two trees in Eden, The tree of Life which is rather self explanatory and The tree of the knowledge of good and evil which speaks of man`s will and his obedience.
Many of us can attest to this today that we could be smack dab in the midlle of the land of abundance and yet have the nerve to be discontented... and yes we know this is because of the fall. Adam had a intimate relationship with the Father, they conversed with one another, he was placed in a deep sleep and presented a helper comparable to him, he didn`t have to go grocery shopping, always had company , did not have a bunch of people vying for God`s affection .... but was yet unfulfilled.
We are creatures of habit and whatever peaks our interest can easily drive us away from a place of purpose, looking for the next quick fix. Adam found himself lured away by his own desire to have the very thing that God wanted to withhold, not because God is a taskmaster or wants us to be puppets, but as the saying goes... Father knows best. Many blame Eve but Adam knew what God told him and the desires of his heart coupled with an opportunity, brought about the fall ... Eve could not push Adam to do anything that wasn`t already pulling on his heartstrings. In his pursuit of happiness he ate of a fruit that turned out to be sour grapes to say the least ...Thus bringing about man`s desire to control his own destiny.
Now let`s look at the wisest and richest man ever to live: Solomon, being the son of a king twice over ; first the King of Glory and then king David.. we find him in the book of (Ecclesiastes chp 2). pouring out his heart like a drink offering ... He was not satisfied with his intellect even though he knew more than everyone besides God of course... Speaking from experience people who are intelligent need to pray for balance, the more information we recieve ; the less information we retain.
Why ? glad you asked... because we do not take the appropriate amount of time to digest what we have gathered, and immediatley find ourselves seeking to gather more data ... So as it is with the grave and a barren womb ... we are never satisfied. He was learned in the sciences, history, philosophy, literature, religion and the learning of languages , just to name a few... but still felt like something was missing... Putting on the mind of Christ and allowing our minds to be transformed by the Word of God is our only line of defense....as knowledge puffs up , humility decreases.
Next we find him pursuing everything from the pleasures of the world, to real estate, to drinking and frollicing . I am in no way saying God does not want us to enjoy life , But this world is not designed to provide us with the totality of happiness, if it were so most of us would never want to leave, thus forfeiting the gift of eternal life in heaven. (Psalm 16:11)
Many have tried and are yet failing to live the life designed for heaven while still on earth . Prestige , fortune, and notoriety which is closley assimilated with being "notorious" seem to be our goals . Have we become more concerned about owning a business than serving in the Kingdom and being about our Father`s business ? And at what expense ?... grieving the Holy Spirit or worse the of losing our souls ? Solomon had more than everybody else and still felt like Whitney Houston.. he had nothing, nothing, nothing...
Solomon had tactical military units, male and female servants... herds and flocks of insurmountable proportions, but may have become so consumed with sitting at the table and being served... that he forgot, even as king he too was a servant. He was thirsting for the one thing that could quench him ... God, but chose to reject the living waters from the Fountain of life in order to drink from the cess pool of self absorption.
He engaged in many forms of entertainment and laughter only to still be depressed. I can attest to this truth... about 18 months ago I had to see someone to address my bout with depression... I put it off as premenstrual, to maybe if I got married , to cut your hair off, which in OT testament times was associated with mourning; to oh just lose some and you weight you will feel better... WRONG. After still attending church regularly, fasting, praying, bible study, and denial I had to admit while
self deception was taking place in my life , my failure to address it was taking the place of my life.
As a young child I was the class clown, telling jokes for the sole reason of disguising my pain.. I recently found out that comedians have a very high suicide rate... due to the fact that while they are making you forget about your cares for that moment in time, they are actually being tormented by the selfsame thing they are urging you to get over.
May we take a page or 2 from these men and their lives and learn that while we are on this journey called life, may we not go on a ego trip trying to accomplish on earth that which God has already settled in heaven.
Log in tomorrow as I share what`s on my heart about King David... See ya then; same time, same blog channel.
Tina...
Monday, August 9, 2010
I Have A Dream...
Good morning all , after a not so restful night of sleep, I have been graced with seeing a day I have never witnessed and will never see again; So I intend on making the most of it. Scripture tells of that in the last days God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh....(Joel 2:28). We will experience the release of visions, prophetic utterances from sons and daughters as well as men dreaming dreams which brings me to today`s blog.
Dream is defined in this manner: A sequence of images etc. passing through a sleeping persons mind. We know that dreams can come from our own selfish desires , but today I would like to touch on dreams that originate from Him who gave us every good and perfect gift from above.
I can clearly recall the first dream I was given soon after I was born again... The Lord literally said to me... I will speak to you in dreams because you talk too much in the day time... I was like ok cool and He has kept His word . Twelve years later He is still speaking to me in that manner even though I have learned to talk a little less. lol.
Scripture gives us many accounts of people who were spoken to in dreams.. from Joseph: Jacob`s son to Joseph the earthly father of Jesus Christ. Let`s talk a little about Joseph and his brothers who despised him, not so much because he was a dreamer and told them the dreams, but Jacob loved him more and showed it outwardly. And if you read a little closer in ( Gen. 37:2) you will see that Joseph brought back a bad report to his father concerning his brothers.... (that`s a whole other blog) There is no better way to disrupt a family quicker than by showing favortism... I actually believe this still exists today in the church, we get mad because God is showing favor to another and we become like Josephs brothers and begin our premeditation of character assasination.
We see how Aaron and Miriam were jealous of Moses their "brother" ... they even tried to say it was due to the wife he married , but deep down inside it was because of his intimate relationship with God.. Saul and David had a great relationship until Saul begin to see the favor of God on the young mans life... how interesting that one minute people see greatness in you , but as soon as God starts moving , they begin to despise you... So it was with Jesus , so it shall be with me and thee.... it yet baffles me that today we hate on each other while telling unbelievers that we love them . If only we could celebrate one another , fulfill our assignments and maybe, just maybe we would not have so much extra time checking and inspecting everyone elses work in the vineyard...
Okay back to the dream , Joseph was showed twice as an confirmation basically what God purposed to do which was: to use him as a deliverer and sustainer to his family when they would need it most. The problem here is that Joseph was given the Genesis i. e. "Beginning" of the dream and the Revelation i.e. "Ending" of the dream . God in His infinite wisdom withheld the Psalm i.e. "Middle" portion to test Joseph to see what was in his heart (Deut. 6:4).
Just like the children of Israel the humanity of our christianity causes us to think we can be exited out of one place and immediatley enter the promise land without GOING THROUGH THE WILDERNESS... The trip that should have taken 11 days lasted 39 years .... although the people were released from bondage geographically; mentally, emotionally and spiritually it was as if they had never left.
Just as God did with them , Joseph and even Nebuchadnezzar , (Daniel 4) . He shall too do concerning us... We find out the fabric of ourselves when wrinkles of acceptance need to be ironed out, stains of envy and unforgiveness have to be washed from our hearts all the while impatience has to once and for all be hung on the cross to DIE and not to dry.
I am well able to go deeper with this matter , but I know you get the point .So I will close by saying Yes God gives dreams but He does not reveal the process because we would : run back to the world (John 6:59-69) or run from the assignment (Jonah) ... either way, we will still have to face that which is in front of us or He will bring it right back in our face so we can deal with it properly. Ignoring something or someone may cause you to believe ... you are done with them or it , but I have learned in my 40 years on this earth..... That the same ladder we ascend upon to get to the top will be the same one we have to descend upon while being humbled.
Many times we get it twisted like God is doing us a favor by using us, when in actuality we ought to count it a privilege and and honor to be chosen to do His bidding in the earth... As with all things God has a greater purpose and it shall be fulfilled.
Father , we first thank and praise You... that You created us to be in relationship with You, sharing your heart , ideas and will for our lives as well as allowing us to be a part of seeing other people prosper in the things you have placed in their care. Somewhere between your promise that occured in our dream or for some... dreams; we have chosen to only look at the beginning and end , neglecting the most vital part the process in which you are changing our hearts. Lord when the dream manifests itself... may we who recieved it, not be the only recipient of its fruition. Please forgive us for trying to "help" you in matters where you didn`t ask for our opinion, but only our obedience. Forgive us for hindering the progress because of envy, jealousy or self exaltaion. We give the dream back to you that it would used for the purpose intended... In Jesus Name we pray... Amen
Dream is defined in this manner: A sequence of images etc. passing through a sleeping persons mind. We know that dreams can come from our own selfish desires , but today I would like to touch on dreams that originate from Him who gave us every good and perfect gift from above.
I can clearly recall the first dream I was given soon after I was born again... The Lord literally said to me... I will speak to you in dreams because you talk too much in the day time... I was like ok cool and He has kept His word . Twelve years later He is still speaking to me in that manner even though I have learned to talk a little less. lol.
Scripture gives us many accounts of people who were spoken to in dreams.. from Joseph: Jacob`s son to Joseph the earthly father of Jesus Christ. Let`s talk a little about Joseph and his brothers who despised him, not so much because he was a dreamer and told them the dreams, but Jacob loved him more and showed it outwardly. And if you read a little closer in ( Gen. 37:2) you will see that Joseph brought back a bad report to his father concerning his brothers.... (that`s a whole other blog) There is no better way to disrupt a family quicker than by showing favortism... I actually believe this still exists today in the church, we get mad because God is showing favor to another and we become like Josephs brothers and begin our premeditation of character assasination.
We see how Aaron and Miriam were jealous of Moses their "brother" ... they even tried to say it was due to the wife he married , but deep down inside it was because of his intimate relationship with God.. Saul and David had a great relationship until Saul begin to see the favor of God on the young mans life... how interesting that one minute people see greatness in you , but as soon as God starts moving , they begin to despise you... So it was with Jesus , so it shall be with me and thee.... it yet baffles me that today we hate on each other while telling unbelievers that we love them . If only we could celebrate one another , fulfill our assignments and maybe, just maybe we would not have so much extra time checking and inspecting everyone elses work in the vineyard...
Okay back to the dream , Joseph was showed twice as an confirmation basically what God purposed to do which was: to use him as a deliverer and sustainer to his family when they would need it most. The problem here is that Joseph was given the Genesis i. e. "Beginning" of the dream and the Revelation i.e. "Ending" of the dream . God in His infinite wisdom withheld the Psalm i.e. "Middle" portion to test Joseph to see what was in his heart (Deut. 6:4).
Just like the children of Israel the humanity of our christianity causes us to think we can be exited out of one place and immediatley enter the promise land without GOING THROUGH THE WILDERNESS... The trip that should have taken 11 days lasted 39 years .... although the people were released from bondage geographically; mentally, emotionally and spiritually it was as if they had never left.
Just as God did with them , Joseph and even Nebuchadnezzar , (Daniel 4) . He shall too do concerning us... We find out the fabric of ourselves when wrinkles of acceptance need to be ironed out, stains of envy and unforgiveness have to be washed from our hearts all the while impatience has to once and for all be hung on the cross to DIE and not to dry.
I am well able to go deeper with this matter , but I know you get the point .So I will close by saying Yes God gives dreams but He does not reveal the process because we would : run back to the world (John 6:59-69) or run from the assignment (Jonah) ... either way, we will still have to face that which is in front of us or He will bring it right back in our face so we can deal with it properly. Ignoring something or someone may cause you to believe ... you are done with them or it , but I have learned in my 40 years on this earth..... That the same ladder we ascend upon to get to the top will be the same one we have to descend upon while being humbled.
Many times we get it twisted like God is doing us a favor by using us, when in actuality we ought to count it a privilege and and honor to be chosen to do His bidding in the earth... As with all things God has a greater purpose and it shall be fulfilled.
Father , we first thank and praise You... that You created us to be in relationship with You, sharing your heart , ideas and will for our lives as well as allowing us to be a part of seeing other people prosper in the things you have placed in their care. Somewhere between your promise that occured in our dream or for some... dreams; we have chosen to only look at the beginning and end , neglecting the most vital part the process in which you are changing our hearts. Lord when the dream manifests itself... may we who recieved it, not be the only recipient of its fruition. Please forgive us for trying to "help" you in matters where you didn`t ask for our opinion, but only our obedience. Forgive us for hindering the progress because of envy, jealousy or self exaltaion. We give the dream back to you that it would used for the purpose intended... In Jesus Name we pray... Amen
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Steroid Saints
Hell everyone.. My name is human "being", not human doing. I was having a conversation with the Lord and I began to repent about the fact that I did not "encourage" people as much as I think I should. I then was reminded that the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts as He wills. See 1 Corinthians 12.
Way too often we think that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" literally means we can do all things... it ought not be so; we are equipped to do all that the Father has willed us to do. None of us are Jesus... we are not the Omnipotent, Omniscient and Omnipresent One. We have power from on high, not that of our own strength, we have the mind of Christ which was first yielded to the Father , And we can only be in one place at a time.
If I was gifted in 4 areas and excelled , but was slack in another does that negate the power of God in my life ? certainly not. I think we spend ourselves trying to be everything to everybody all the while neglecting one person which is OURSELVES.
Christ loves people but knew enough to steal away with the Father so His relationship would culminate. If we keep running around thinking because we sing , we have to sing all the time and everywhere we will become burned out lightbulbs instead of being light to the world.
If you have been called to minstry which we all are, do your job, stay in your lane... The Pastor is learning how to be the Pastor , God will help him accomplish that task. If you preach do it according to the measure of faith given you.. He already has someone named Jakes, Jones, Bynum, Warren and Meyer... just seek to be the best YOU.
Also, if you don`t extend grace to yourself to be human you will in turn withhold it from others. I had to repent for being mad at people if they werent performing at a level that "I" set for them, but when I fell I wanted a grace party, after party and parade...
What am I saying beloved ? ... simply put.. cut yourself , and the rest of the world some slack, we all have shortcomings and none will be perfected till we see Him face to face, Until then lets celebrate the diversity of gifts and leave the transformation process up to God in our lives as well as in the lives of others.
The minute we stop trying to impress God and people will be the second the captive which is usually ourselves will be set free. I know it sounds good to say " I don`t care what others think of me, but is that really true?, first off we should care as representatives of the God of glory, but secondly. it does matter... this is why we brush our hair and teeth , wash our bodies as well as our clothing, clean our vehicles and our homes.... presentation matters.
Scriptures declares to us to Trust in the Lord... Prov 3:5-6
And not to put our trust in man, ( PROVERBS 28:26) but we often think its other people; when that man is the one you see when you look in the mirror..
Way too often we think that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" literally means we can do all things... it ought not be so; we are equipped to do all that the Father has willed us to do. None of us are Jesus... we are not the Omnipotent, Omniscient and Omnipresent One. We have power from on high, not that of our own strength, we have the mind of Christ which was first yielded to the Father , And we can only be in one place at a time.
If I was gifted in 4 areas and excelled , but was slack in another does that negate the power of God in my life ? certainly not. I think we spend ourselves trying to be everything to everybody all the while neglecting one person which is OURSELVES.
Christ loves people but knew enough to steal away with the Father so His relationship would culminate. If we keep running around thinking because we sing , we have to sing all the time and everywhere we will become burned out lightbulbs instead of being light to the world.
If you have been called to minstry which we all are, do your job, stay in your lane... The Pastor is learning how to be the Pastor , God will help him accomplish that task. If you preach do it according to the measure of faith given you.. He already has someone named Jakes, Jones, Bynum, Warren and Meyer... just seek to be the best YOU.
Also, if you don`t extend grace to yourself to be human you will in turn withhold it from others. I had to repent for being mad at people if they werent performing at a level that "I" set for them, but when I fell I wanted a grace party, after party and parade...
What am I saying beloved ? ... simply put.. cut yourself , and the rest of the world some slack, we all have shortcomings and none will be perfected till we see Him face to face, Until then lets celebrate the diversity of gifts and leave the transformation process up to God in our lives as well as in the lives of others.
The minute we stop trying to impress God and people will be the second the captive which is usually ourselves will be set free. I know it sounds good to say " I don`t care what others think of me, but is that really true?, first off we should care as representatives of the God of glory, but secondly. it does matter... this is why we brush our hair and teeth , wash our bodies as well as our clothing, clean our vehicles and our homes.... presentation matters.
Scriptures declares to us to Trust in the Lord... Prov 3:5-6
And not to put our trust in man, ( PROVERBS 28:26) but we often think its other people; when that man is the one you see when you look in the mirror..
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Meeting of the "Mines"
GRACE AND PEACE TO YOU FROM OUR RISEN SAVIOR AND LORD JESUS CHRIST. JUST CHECKING IN TO SHARE SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN BRANDED ON MY HEART FOR SOME TIME NOW.
WHEN WE WERE BORN WE WERE BORN INTO SIN . I AM NOT MAKING THAT UP IT`S IN THE WORD (PSALM 51 :5). THINK ABOUT IT WE WERE SELFISH, VYING FOR EVERYONES ATTENTION. WE WOULD CRY TO GET WHAT WE WANTED AND SOME OF US STILL DO IT TODAY. WE WENT TO SCHOOL AND THOUGHT ALL OF THE TOYS BELONGED TO US .IN OUR HOMES WE DIDN`T WANT TO SHARE FOOD,CLOTHING,HAIRBRUSHES OR OUR PARENTS WITH OTHERS,THUS LEADING US TO LIVE A LIFE LED BY THE "MINE "MENTALITY".
THE ONLY THING THAT IS TRULY OURS IS OUR SIN AND RARELY DO WE TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR IT! LET US STOP BLAMING THE MAN, THE SYSTEM, OUR CHURCH, MAYOR AND ANYONE ELSE FOR THE WAY WE BEHAVE. NOW BACK TO WHY I AM REALLY WRITING.
PEOPLE, PASTORS AND PARENTS GOD HAS" LOANED "US OUR FRIENDS, CONGREGATIONS AND CHILDREN . SOME WHERE ALONG THE WAY WE TOOK OWNERSHIP THAT WAS NOT RIGHTFULLY OURS ! (PSALM 24:1) CLEARLY STATES :"THE EARTH IS THE LORD..S AND ALL IT`S FULLNESS,THE WORLD AND THOSE WHO DWELL THEREIN". SO WHAT HAPPENED TO US PUTTING OUR CHILDREN ON THE ALTAR AND LEAVING THEM THERE?WHEN DID WE DECIDE BECAUSE SOMEONE ATTENDS OUR CHURCH WHICH IS REALLY NOT "OUR" CHURCH BUT THE VICTORIOUS CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST THAT THEY ARE OUR PROPERTY.
CHRIST HAS MADE US FREE FROM THE BONDAGE OF SLAVERY NEVER TO BE ENTANGLED AGAIN BY SIN. SEE (GALATIANS 5:1) SO SINCE JESUS HAD MADE US FREE THROUGH THE GIFTS OF SALVATION HOW IS IT THAT WE HAVE BECOME SO TERRITORIAL CONCERNING OTHER PEOPLES LIVES?.
NOW DON`T GET ME WRONG I TRULY UNDERSTAND THE UNDER SHEPHERD AS ONE BEING APPOINTED BY GOD TO TEND TO THE SHEEP, AS WELL AS BEING ONE WHO IS UNDER THE GREAT SHEPHERD THEMSELVES. BUT IT IS THE JOB OF THE MESSIAH TO TAKE CARE OF THEM. THIS IS WHY WE TRUST IN THE MASTER AND NOT PUT SO MUCH PRESSURE ON THE PASTOR.
PEOPLE GOD HAS GIVEN US FRIENDS ,NOW THESE ARE NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH THE ONES WE PICKED OUT FOR YOURSELVES, BUT THOSE WHO ARE ORDAINED TO SUSTAIN. SEE (PROVERBS 17:17). SO WHY IS IT THAT WE GET ALL HUFFY WHEN OUR FRIENDS GET OTHER FRIENDS BESIDES US AND BEGIN TO TRIP? THERE IS SURELY ENOUGH OF YOU TO GO AROUND. GONE ARE THE DAYS THAT WE SHOULD SEEK OUT FRIENDSHIPS BASED ON WHAT WE CAN RECIEVE FROM THE OTHER INDIVIDUAL . A FRIEND IS FRIENDLY ENOUGH TO CHECK YOU WHEN YOU ARE WRONG AND WISE ENOUGH TO KNOW WHEN TO ONLY LISTEN AND NOT SPEAK !
SOMEHOW WE HAVE TAKEN THE POSSESSIONS GOD HAS PLACED IN OUR LIVES AND TRIED TO "POSSESS" THEM , WANTING THEM TO CONFORM TO WHAT WE THINK THEY SHOULD DRESS, PRAISE OR ACT LIKE. THAT IS WHERE WE ARE OUT OF ORDER. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS MORE THAN ABLE TO TRANSFORM SOMEONE ELSES WHILE DOING THE SAME FOR YOU.
PARENTS I HAVE NOT FORGOT ABOUT YOU. I FEEL SO STRONGLY BECAUSE THE WORD HAS TO BE GIVEN TO ME AND RECIEVED BY ME BEFORE I DARE PASS IT ON. I HAVE CHILDREN OF MY OWN WHO ARE TEENAGERS NOW AND THE LAST THING I WANT TO DO IS EXASPERATE THEM ABOUT GOD. SEE (EPHESIANS 6:4) TRAINING UP A CHILD DOES NOT MEAN TORTURING THEM WITH YOUR SET OF RULES. GIVE THEM SOME AIR TO BREATHE, DO WE NOT REMEMBER WHEN WE WERE RUNNING AROUND CAMPAIGNING FOR THE DEVIL? AND DID NOT GOD SHOW US MERCY ? EXTEND THE SCEPTER OF GRACE TO YOUR CHILDREN.
IF THEY DON`T FALL THEY WILL NEVER KNOW FOR THEMSELVES THAT GOD CAN RAISE THEM UP.,IF THEY DON`T MAKE MISTAKES HOW CAN THEY RECIEVE AND RECIPROCATE FORGIVENESS. IF THEY DON`T HAVE THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST THAT WE DESIRE OR THAT IS LIKE YOURS, MAYBE WE NEED TO CHANGE OUR DESIRE. OUR CHILDREN ARE INDIVIDUALS; PLEASE BEGIN TO TREAT THEM THAT WAY, NOT SHOWING FAVORITISM BUT ALLOWING THEIR GOD GIVEN UNIQUENESS TO BE DISPLAYED.
CHRIST HAS ALLOWED D US TO BE "MANAGERS " NOT RULERS, MAY WE RENDER TO GOD WHAT IS HIS AND FREE HIM TO COMPLETE THE GOOD WORK HE BEGAN IN OTHERS (PHILIPPIANS .1:6)
WHEN WE WERE BORN WE WERE BORN INTO SIN . I AM NOT MAKING THAT UP IT`S IN THE WORD (PSALM 51 :5). THINK ABOUT IT WE WERE SELFISH, VYING FOR EVERYONES ATTENTION. WE WOULD CRY TO GET WHAT WE WANTED AND SOME OF US STILL DO IT TODAY. WE WENT TO SCHOOL AND THOUGHT ALL OF THE TOYS BELONGED TO US .IN OUR HOMES WE DIDN`T WANT TO SHARE FOOD,CLOTHING,HAIRBRUSHES OR OUR PARENTS WITH OTHERS,THUS LEADING US TO LIVE A LIFE LED BY THE "MINE "MENTALITY".
THE ONLY THING THAT IS TRULY OURS IS OUR SIN AND RARELY DO WE TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR IT! LET US STOP BLAMING THE MAN, THE SYSTEM, OUR CHURCH, MAYOR AND ANYONE ELSE FOR THE WAY WE BEHAVE. NOW BACK TO WHY I AM REALLY WRITING.
PEOPLE, PASTORS AND PARENTS GOD HAS" LOANED "US OUR FRIENDS, CONGREGATIONS AND CHILDREN . SOME WHERE ALONG THE WAY WE TOOK OWNERSHIP THAT WAS NOT RIGHTFULLY OURS ! (PSALM 24:1) CLEARLY STATES :"THE EARTH IS THE LORD..S AND ALL IT`S FULLNESS,THE WORLD AND THOSE WHO DWELL THEREIN". SO WHAT HAPPENED TO US PUTTING OUR CHILDREN ON THE ALTAR AND LEAVING THEM THERE?WHEN DID WE DECIDE BECAUSE SOMEONE ATTENDS OUR CHURCH WHICH IS REALLY NOT "OUR" CHURCH BUT THE VICTORIOUS CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST THAT THEY ARE OUR PROPERTY.
CHRIST HAS MADE US FREE FROM THE BONDAGE OF SLAVERY NEVER TO BE ENTANGLED AGAIN BY SIN. SEE (GALATIANS 5:1) SO SINCE JESUS HAD MADE US FREE THROUGH THE GIFTS OF SALVATION HOW IS IT THAT WE HAVE BECOME SO TERRITORIAL CONCERNING OTHER PEOPLES LIVES?.
NOW DON`T GET ME WRONG I TRULY UNDERSTAND THE UNDER SHEPHERD AS ONE BEING APPOINTED BY GOD TO TEND TO THE SHEEP, AS WELL AS BEING ONE WHO IS UNDER THE GREAT SHEPHERD THEMSELVES. BUT IT IS THE JOB OF THE MESSIAH TO TAKE CARE OF THEM. THIS IS WHY WE TRUST IN THE MASTER AND NOT PUT SO MUCH PRESSURE ON THE PASTOR.
PEOPLE GOD HAS GIVEN US FRIENDS ,NOW THESE ARE NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH THE ONES WE PICKED OUT FOR YOURSELVES, BUT THOSE WHO ARE ORDAINED TO SUSTAIN. SEE (PROVERBS 17:17). SO WHY IS IT THAT WE GET ALL HUFFY WHEN OUR FRIENDS GET OTHER FRIENDS BESIDES US AND BEGIN TO TRIP? THERE IS SURELY ENOUGH OF YOU TO GO AROUND. GONE ARE THE DAYS THAT WE SHOULD SEEK OUT FRIENDSHIPS BASED ON WHAT WE CAN RECIEVE FROM THE OTHER INDIVIDUAL . A FRIEND IS FRIENDLY ENOUGH TO CHECK YOU WHEN YOU ARE WRONG AND WISE ENOUGH TO KNOW WHEN TO ONLY LISTEN AND NOT SPEAK !
SOMEHOW WE HAVE TAKEN THE POSSESSIONS GOD HAS PLACED IN OUR LIVES AND TRIED TO "POSSESS" THEM , WANTING THEM TO CONFORM TO WHAT WE THINK THEY SHOULD DRESS, PRAISE OR ACT LIKE. THAT IS WHERE WE ARE OUT OF ORDER. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS MORE THAN ABLE TO TRANSFORM SOMEONE ELSES WHILE DOING THE SAME FOR YOU.
PARENTS I HAVE NOT FORGOT ABOUT YOU. I FEEL SO STRONGLY BECAUSE THE WORD HAS TO BE GIVEN TO ME AND RECIEVED BY ME BEFORE I DARE PASS IT ON. I HAVE CHILDREN OF MY OWN WHO ARE TEENAGERS NOW AND THE LAST THING I WANT TO DO IS EXASPERATE THEM ABOUT GOD. SEE (EPHESIANS 6:4) TRAINING UP A CHILD DOES NOT MEAN TORTURING THEM WITH YOUR SET OF RULES. GIVE THEM SOME AIR TO BREATHE, DO WE NOT REMEMBER WHEN WE WERE RUNNING AROUND CAMPAIGNING FOR THE DEVIL? AND DID NOT GOD SHOW US MERCY ? EXTEND THE SCEPTER OF GRACE TO YOUR CHILDREN.
IF THEY DON`T FALL THEY WILL NEVER KNOW FOR THEMSELVES THAT GOD CAN RAISE THEM UP.,IF THEY DON`T MAKE MISTAKES HOW CAN THEY RECIEVE AND RECIPROCATE FORGIVENESS. IF THEY DON`T HAVE THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST THAT WE DESIRE OR THAT IS LIKE YOURS, MAYBE WE NEED TO CHANGE OUR DESIRE. OUR CHILDREN ARE INDIVIDUALS; PLEASE BEGIN TO TREAT THEM THAT WAY, NOT SHOWING FAVORITISM BUT ALLOWING THEIR GOD GIVEN UNIQUENESS TO BE DISPLAYED.
CHRIST HAS ALLOWED D US TO BE "MANAGERS " NOT RULERS, MAY WE RENDER TO GOD WHAT IS HIS AND FREE HIM TO COMPLETE THE GOOD WORK HE BEGAN IN OTHERS (PHILIPPIANS .1:6)
Are you ready to die ?
THIS IS THE DAY THAT THE LORD HAS MADE LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT. (PSALM 118:24). STATISTICS FROM JULY 2005 SHOWED THAT APPROXIMATLEY 6,446,131,400 PEOPLE WERE ON THE PLANET EARTH AND OUT OF THAT NUMBER 155,OOO DIE DAILY.
WHY AM I TALKING ABOUT DEATH ? BECAUSE IT`S REAL AND IT IS ALSO INEVITABLE. THE DICTIONARY GIVES THIS DEFINITION OF THE WORD DIE IN THIS MANNER; TO STOP LIVING, DEPART, EXPIRE, FADE ,DISAPPEAR OR TO PERISH.
PEOPLE SPEAK OF DEATH SO NONCHALANTLY THAT I BELIEVE WE HAVE BECOME TO WELCOME IT MORE THAN THE GIFT OF LIFE ITSELF. PEOPLE ARE KILLING THEIR PARENTS, WIVES, NEIGHBORS, STRANGERS ,BABIES AND SOME EVEN ATTEMPT TO TAKE THEIR OWN LIVES.
ONE STATEMENT THAT PIERCES MY HEART IS: WHEN I HEAR OTHERS SAY "I LOVE YOU TO DEATH".THIS IS PROFOUND BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THERE IS POWER IN THE TONGUE AND THOSE WHO SPEAK WILL EAT THE FRUIT OF THEIR SPEECH. AGAIN THIS IS WHY WE LOSE FRIENDSHIPS AND OUR LOVED ONES LIVES ARE BEING SHAPED BY THE WORDS WE SPEAK. PEOPLE WILL KILL EACH OTHER, CHEAT ON ONE ANOTHER AND BECOME POSSESSIVE BECAUSE THEY LOVE SOMEONE TO DEATH.
BIGGIE SMALLS WHICH IS ACTUALLY A OXYMORON WAS AND IS STILL ONE OF MY FAVORITE RAPPERS. HIS CREATIVITY WAS UNMATCHED AND HE LIKE MANY OTHERS LIVED A LIFE OF STRUGGLE. HE USED HIS WORDS TO HIS ADVANTAGE AND WAS ABLE TO PROVIDE FOR OTHERS IN A MANNER WHICH HE NEVER REALLY EXPECTED. BUT DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT THE SAME TOOL YOU USE TO HELP YOU, CAN ALSO HINDER YOU?
ANY BIGGIE FAN WILL TELL YOU THEY REMEMBER THE INTERVIEW WHERE HE STATED : HE WAS PARANOID AND FELT LIKE SOMEBODY WAS TRYING TO KILL HIM. HE EVEN HAD A CD COVER WITH A PICTURE OF A HIRSCH ON THE FRONT OF IT. PEOPLE WE MUST GET OUR LIVES RIGHT WITH GOD ! . TODAY IS NOT PROMISED. MANY PEOPLE AROSE ON SEPTEMBER 11TH THINKING IT WOULD BE JUST ANOTHER DAY AND FOR MANY IT WAS THEIR LAST.
WE GO TO FUNERALS TO MOURN THE LOSS OF OUR LOVED ONES AND FRIENDS BUT DO WE REALLY KNOW IF THEY WERE SAVED ? DO WE JUST TAKE FOR GRANTED THAT BECAUSE SOMEONE ATTENDS CHURCH THAT AUTOMATICALLY QUALIFIES THEM TO ENTER INTO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN ?. MOST PEOPLE WHO ATTEND THESE FUNERALS DON`T NORMALLY WORSHIP IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD, OTHERS WERE BROUGHT UP IN CHURCH BUT GOT GROWN AND FORGOT ABOUT GOD. WE CAN`T JUST CALL ON JESUS WHILE ON A AIRPLANE, WHEN A FIGHT AT A PARTY BREAKS OUT OR WHEN THE VERDICT IS ABOUT TO BE READ !. IF JESUS IS GOING TO BE LORD HE HAS TO BE LORD EVERYDAY NOT JUST WHEN ITS CONVENIENT FOR US.
NOW BACK TO MY POINT, ALL ROADS DON`T LEAD TO HEAVEN AND WE NEED TO STOP TELLING PEOPLE THAT. MAKING THEM THINK THEY CAN JUST LIVE ANYWAY AND CALL THEMSELVES CHRISTIANS , WITHOUT RECIEVING THE CHRIST WHO DIED FOR THAT RIGHT. I HAD TO CONFESS ,REPENT AND ACCEPT THE AWESOME GIFT OF SALVATION. NOBODY IS EXEMPT. HOW DARE I THINK I COULD LIVE MY LIFE ON EARTH AS AN ENEMY OF THE SAVIOR, BUT STILL WANT A FAVOR FROM HIM LIKE WE WERE BEST FRIENDS?
WHEN PEOPLE DIE WE ALWAYS SAY R.I.P. BUT IF THEY ARE IN HELL THEY ARE NOT RESTING OR IN PEACE. AND IF THEY ARE IN HEAVEN THEY ARE WORSHIPING THE LORD. WHEN WE DIE OUR SOUL HAS A FINAL RESTING PLACE AND IT IS NOT AT THE CEMETARY. LET`S JUST BE REAL ABOUT DEATH WITH ONE ANOTHER .
TELL YOURSELF, THEN TELL YOUR FRIENDS THE TRUTH (JOHN 14:6) SAYS : JESUS SAID TO HIM "I AM THE WAY,THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE". NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH ME. GOING TO CHURCH DOES NOT MAKE YOU A CHRISTIAN ANY MORE THAN GOING TO KFC MAKES ONE A 2 PC. AND A BISCUIT. WE TELL EACH OTHER EVERYTHING FROM THE LATEST GOSSIP TO WHERE WE GET OUR HAIR DONE WHY WON`T WE TELL THEM ABOUT THE ONE WHO DIED THAT THEY MAY LIVE?
IN CLOSING I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY I KNOW EVERYONE WON`T AGREE WITH WHAT JESUS SAID, BUT I WOULD RATHER BELIEVE IN HIM AND HIS SACRIFICE .THEN TRUST HIM TO HELP ME WITH THE THINGS I DONT UNDERSTAND. THAN TO REJECT HIM TODAY AND BE SEPERATED FROM HIM FOR ETERNITY .(ROMANS 10:9-10).
FRIENDS DON`T LET FRIENDS GO TO HELL !!! .
WHY AM I TALKING ABOUT DEATH ? BECAUSE IT`S REAL AND IT IS ALSO INEVITABLE. THE DICTIONARY GIVES THIS DEFINITION OF THE WORD DIE IN THIS MANNER; TO STOP LIVING, DEPART, EXPIRE, FADE ,DISAPPEAR OR TO PERISH.
PEOPLE SPEAK OF DEATH SO NONCHALANTLY THAT I BELIEVE WE HAVE BECOME TO WELCOME IT MORE THAN THE GIFT OF LIFE ITSELF. PEOPLE ARE KILLING THEIR PARENTS, WIVES, NEIGHBORS, STRANGERS ,BABIES AND SOME EVEN ATTEMPT TO TAKE THEIR OWN LIVES.
ONE STATEMENT THAT PIERCES MY HEART IS: WHEN I HEAR OTHERS SAY "I LOVE YOU TO DEATH".THIS IS PROFOUND BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THERE IS POWER IN THE TONGUE AND THOSE WHO SPEAK WILL EAT THE FRUIT OF THEIR SPEECH. AGAIN THIS IS WHY WE LOSE FRIENDSHIPS AND OUR LOVED ONES LIVES ARE BEING SHAPED BY THE WORDS WE SPEAK. PEOPLE WILL KILL EACH OTHER, CHEAT ON ONE ANOTHER AND BECOME POSSESSIVE BECAUSE THEY LOVE SOMEONE TO DEATH.
BIGGIE SMALLS WHICH IS ACTUALLY A OXYMORON WAS AND IS STILL ONE OF MY FAVORITE RAPPERS. HIS CREATIVITY WAS UNMATCHED AND HE LIKE MANY OTHERS LIVED A LIFE OF STRUGGLE. HE USED HIS WORDS TO HIS ADVANTAGE AND WAS ABLE TO PROVIDE FOR OTHERS IN A MANNER WHICH HE NEVER REALLY EXPECTED. BUT DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT THE SAME TOOL YOU USE TO HELP YOU, CAN ALSO HINDER YOU?
ANY BIGGIE FAN WILL TELL YOU THEY REMEMBER THE INTERVIEW WHERE HE STATED : HE WAS PARANOID AND FELT LIKE SOMEBODY WAS TRYING TO KILL HIM. HE EVEN HAD A CD COVER WITH A PICTURE OF A HIRSCH ON THE FRONT OF IT. PEOPLE WE MUST GET OUR LIVES RIGHT WITH GOD ! . TODAY IS NOT PROMISED. MANY PEOPLE AROSE ON SEPTEMBER 11TH THINKING IT WOULD BE JUST ANOTHER DAY AND FOR MANY IT WAS THEIR LAST.
WE GO TO FUNERALS TO MOURN THE LOSS OF OUR LOVED ONES AND FRIENDS BUT DO WE REALLY KNOW IF THEY WERE SAVED ? DO WE JUST TAKE FOR GRANTED THAT BECAUSE SOMEONE ATTENDS CHURCH THAT AUTOMATICALLY QUALIFIES THEM TO ENTER INTO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN ?. MOST PEOPLE WHO ATTEND THESE FUNERALS DON`T NORMALLY WORSHIP IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD, OTHERS WERE BROUGHT UP IN CHURCH BUT GOT GROWN AND FORGOT ABOUT GOD. WE CAN`T JUST CALL ON JESUS WHILE ON A AIRPLANE, WHEN A FIGHT AT A PARTY BREAKS OUT OR WHEN THE VERDICT IS ABOUT TO BE READ !. IF JESUS IS GOING TO BE LORD HE HAS TO BE LORD EVERYDAY NOT JUST WHEN ITS CONVENIENT FOR US.
NOW BACK TO MY POINT, ALL ROADS DON`T LEAD TO HEAVEN AND WE NEED TO STOP TELLING PEOPLE THAT. MAKING THEM THINK THEY CAN JUST LIVE ANYWAY AND CALL THEMSELVES CHRISTIANS , WITHOUT RECIEVING THE CHRIST WHO DIED FOR THAT RIGHT. I HAD TO CONFESS ,REPENT AND ACCEPT THE AWESOME GIFT OF SALVATION. NOBODY IS EXEMPT. HOW DARE I THINK I COULD LIVE MY LIFE ON EARTH AS AN ENEMY OF THE SAVIOR, BUT STILL WANT A FAVOR FROM HIM LIKE WE WERE BEST FRIENDS?
WHEN PEOPLE DIE WE ALWAYS SAY R.I.P. BUT IF THEY ARE IN HELL THEY ARE NOT RESTING OR IN PEACE. AND IF THEY ARE IN HEAVEN THEY ARE WORSHIPING THE LORD. WHEN WE DIE OUR SOUL HAS A FINAL RESTING PLACE AND IT IS NOT AT THE CEMETARY. LET`S JUST BE REAL ABOUT DEATH WITH ONE ANOTHER .
TELL YOURSELF, THEN TELL YOUR FRIENDS THE TRUTH (JOHN 14:6) SAYS : JESUS SAID TO HIM "I AM THE WAY,THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE". NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH ME. GOING TO CHURCH DOES NOT MAKE YOU A CHRISTIAN ANY MORE THAN GOING TO KFC MAKES ONE A 2 PC. AND A BISCUIT. WE TELL EACH OTHER EVERYTHING FROM THE LATEST GOSSIP TO WHERE WE GET OUR HAIR DONE WHY WON`T WE TELL THEM ABOUT THE ONE WHO DIED THAT THEY MAY LIVE?
IN CLOSING I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY I KNOW EVERYONE WON`T AGREE WITH WHAT JESUS SAID, BUT I WOULD RATHER BELIEVE IN HIM AND HIS SACRIFICE .THEN TRUST HIM TO HELP ME WITH THE THINGS I DONT UNDERSTAND. THAN TO REJECT HIM TODAY AND BE SEPERATED FROM HIM FOR ETERNITY .(ROMANS 10:9-10).
FRIENDS DON`T LET FRIENDS GO TO HELL !!! .
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Satan Knows your Name
Grace and peace to you,from Him who is able to keep you from stumbling And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,To God our Savior,Who alone is wise,Be glory and majesty,Dominion and power,Both now and forever Amen.
I went out today for a much needed walk,at first I wished for a companion but before I could finish the thought the Lord said: I will walk with you.so off we went and i was listening to Him and He was listening to me and after singing some praise songs I began to decide how much longer I would walk.so i said to myself two more laps and I will head back home,but this time before I finished my thought satan said very clearly "Tina ". immediatley the Holy Spirit said do as I say,"I" will let you know when it is time to go home.
I feel the need to explain ,if we are truthful we will admit that there are 3 voices we hear:Gods,Satan and of course our own.(keep reading I aint crazy)I was also reminded of a line from a Tyler Perry movie that stated: " It is not what people call you,but what you answer to".so at that instance I had to make a choice to answer Gods voice,my own or listen to the enemy.way too often we lean on our own understanding, ignore God and then blame the devil.
Stay with me I am making a point real quick,in a day and time when people are naming their children crazy names we want to be sure that they can live up to those declarations .in biblical times people knew to name their children in accordance with what they would become.(now if you are thinking of some crazy name for your child,I pray that you would take into consideration the backlash that they may recieve because of your attempts of being unique or creative).
Enough from me,let us go to the word(Genesis 17:1-5) a familiar passage of scripture tells us of how God gave a name change to Abram which means "Exalted Father" to Abraham meaning"Father of nations".Likewise his wife also had a name change from Sarai meaning" princess" to Sarah which means "Mother of nations."(do you see the increase here?)
Genesis 33:24-28 speaks of Jacob which translates to" deciever".His name was changed to Israel after wrestling with God.this is so cool because we know whenever we try and wrestle with Jesus it is already a fixed fight.the great news is that when we surrender not only have we had an intimate encounter ,but we come out a changed person.God wanted to show Jacob that in the midst of falsehood and deception God "IS REAL'. Jacob was used to conning people and before God could use him mightily there were some things that had to be "dislocated " in this mans life in order to represent God effectively.(WE CAN ALL THINK OF SOME THINGS WE ARE STILL TRYING TO ARM WRESTLE WITH GOD ABOUT ,BUT THAT IS A WHOLE OTHER BLOG!!!)
Daniel 1: 1-7 tells of four young men who were in Babylonian captivity;they had been given Godly names at birth but when they were" relocated' their names were changed to go along with their enviornment. be mindful of where you are taking THE HOLY SPIRIT although God is omnipresent it does not mean He wants to go to some of the places we take Him. Daniel which means"God is my Judge''is renamed Belteshazzar meaning"Lady protect the King".Hananiah meant:The Lord is gracious his new name became Shadrach meaning 'I am fearful of the God". Mishael=Who is what God is? is renamed "I am of little account.you see the pattern here? Lastly Azariah=The Lord has helped Me is now going by Abed-Nego not a bad negro but "Servant of the the god Nebo". your surroundings can easily strip you of your identity.but whatever state you are in you must not let change of scenery block your vision.
You can check out for yourself in the new testament how Saul of Tarsus became Paul="small one" actually just study the book of Acts and you will see how God can use whomever He pleases, however He pleases and whenever He PLEASES ! while you are at it do not forget about our brother Peter who walked on water as well as hand in hand with Christ and whose life was never the same.
The main point of this blog is to remember although satan knows your name,he only can call you by your old name according to your past, so if someone called you : stupid, ugly ,crazy a female dog or even a garden tool it is up to you whether you will respond to that name.One of the biggest lies ever told to mankind was "sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me". there are people today not living up to the call on their lives because of what someone called them in their past or even what someone called them today.
If you have recieved Christ as Lord and Savior you have a new name.How do I know this to be true because scripture declares that Jesus name means "He will save them from their sins!" He has written your name in the Lamb.s Book of Life., He knew you before you were formed in you mothers womb. He has given you the right to be called Sons and Daughters of God. He said your name would no longer be" fosaken' but He has called you His friend and His bride.
If you dont know him for yourself it is easy as ABC: ADMIT THAT YOU ARE A SINNER, BELIEVE HE DIED AND ROSE AGAIN AND CONFESS THAT HE IS LORD AND BESIDE HIM THERE IS NO OTHER (ROMANS 10;9-10).
Satan wants to keep you bound in your thinking and Christ has set us free from who and what we used to be .when He calls you,YOU REALLY DONT HAVE TO ANSWER. AND AS HE REMINDS YOU OF YOUR PAST YOU REMIND HIM OF HIS FUTURE!!
I LOVE YALL TO LIFE ,TRUST GOD BECAUSE HE CHANGES NOT.
PHIL. 4:4-13)
I went out today for a much needed walk,at first I wished for a companion but before I could finish the thought the Lord said: I will walk with you.so off we went and i was listening to Him and He was listening to me and after singing some praise songs I began to decide how much longer I would walk.so i said to myself two more laps and I will head back home,but this time before I finished my thought satan said very clearly "Tina ". immediatley the Holy Spirit said do as I say,"I" will let you know when it is time to go home.
I feel the need to explain ,if we are truthful we will admit that there are 3 voices we hear:Gods,Satan and of course our own.(keep reading I aint crazy)I was also reminded of a line from a Tyler Perry movie that stated: " It is not what people call you,but what you answer to".so at that instance I had to make a choice to answer Gods voice,my own or listen to the enemy.way too often we lean on our own understanding, ignore God and then blame the devil.
Stay with me I am making a point real quick,in a day and time when people are naming their children crazy names we want to be sure that they can live up to those declarations .in biblical times people knew to name their children in accordance with what they would become.(now if you are thinking of some crazy name for your child,I pray that you would take into consideration the backlash that they may recieve because of your attempts of being unique or creative).
Enough from me,let us go to the word(Genesis 17:1-5) a familiar passage of scripture tells us of how God gave a name change to Abram which means "Exalted Father" to Abraham meaning"Father of nations".Likewise his wife also had a name change from Sarai meaning" princess" to Sarah which means "Mother of nations."(do you see the increase here?)
Genesis 33:24-28 speaks of Jacob which translates to" deciever".His name was changed to Israel after wrestling with God.this is so cool because we know whenever we try and wrestle with Jesus it is already a fixed fight.the great news is that when we surrender not only have we had an intimate encounter ,but we come out a changed person.God wanted to show Jacob that in the midst of falsehood and deception God "IS REAL'. Jacob was used to conning people and before God could use him mightily there were some things that had to be "dislocated " in this mans life in order to represent God effectively.(WE CAN ALL THINK OF SOME THINGS WE ARE STILL TRYING TO ARM WRESTLE WITH GOD ABOUT ,BUT THAT IS A WHOLE OTHER BLOG!!!)
Daniel 1: 1-7 tells of four young men who were in Babylonian captivity;they had been given Godly names at birth but when they were" relocated' their names were changed to go along with their enviornment. be mindful of where you are taking THE HOLY SPIRIT although God is omnipresent it does not mean He wants to go to some of the places we take Him. Daniel which means"God is my Judge''is renamed Belteshazzar meaning"Lady protect the King".Hananiah meant:The Lord is gracious his new name became Shadrach meaning 'I am fearful of the God". Mishael=Who is what God is? is renamed "I am of little account.you see the pattern here? Lastly Azariah=The Lord has helped Me is now going by Abed-Nego not a bad negro but "Servant of the the god Nebo". your surroundings can easily strip you of your identity.but whatever state you are in you must not let change of scenery block your vision.
You can check out for yourself in the new testament how Saul of Tarsus became Paul="small one" actually just study the book of Acts and you will see how God can use whomever He pleases, however He pleases and whenever He PLEASES ! while you are at it do not forget about our brother Peter who walked on water as well as hand in hand with Christ and whose life was never the same.
The main point of this blog is to remember although satan knows your name,he only can call you by your old name according to your past, so if someone called you : stupid, ugly ,crazy a female dog or even a garden tool it is up to you whether you will respond to that name.One of the biggest lies ever told to mankind was "sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me". there are people today not living up to the call on their lives because of what someone called them in their past or even what someone called them today.
If you have recieved Christ as Lord and Savior you have a new name.How do I know this to be true because scripture declares that Jesus name means "He will save them from their sins!" He has written your name in the Lamb.s Book of Life., He knew you before you were formed in you mothers womb. He has given you the right to be called Sons and Daughters of God. He said your name would no longer be" fosaken' but He has called you His friend and His bride.
If you dont know him for yourself it is easy as ABC: ADMIT THAT YOU ARE A SINNER, BELIEVE HE DIED AND ROSE AGAIN AND CONFESS THAT HE IS LORD AND BESIDE HIM THERE IS NO OTHER (ROMANS 10;9-10).
Satan wants to keep you bound in your thinking and Christ has set us free from who and what we used to be .when He calls you,YOU REALLY DONT HAVE TO ANSWER. AND AS HE REMINDS YOU OF YOUR PAST YOU REMIND HIM OF HIS FUTURE!!
I LOVE YALL TO LIFE ,TRUST GOD BECAUSE HE CHANGES NOT.
PHIL. 4:4-13)
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