There are No Short Cuts

For many of us, finding time to study and meditate on the word of God is hard to do. And the reason it is hard to do is because there are so many different things, people, and or events vying for our attention. Whether you realize this or not, our unwillingness to make His Word a priority is killing us. We know the effects malnourishment has on the body, yet we still neglect to feed our Spirit Man. Somehow we have bought into the lie that one meal a week is all we need to make it through. It's all we need to have the strength to stand, to weather the storm. Beloved, I am here to tell you today, don't believe the hype. Paul said to the Church of Phillipi and today I say to you, "Work out your salvation...!" The victory you desire will not be won on the sidelines. You will have to work for it and it does not come cheap. 

In Joshua 1:8 we are instructed to study...continually. To meditate on it (The Holy Writ) day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. (NLT)

There are five things I would like to draw out of this text. 

• Number 1 - Notice that the verse referenced begins with the word study. To study something is to devote the devotion of time and attention to acquiring knowledge on, to look closely at or investigate in order to observe. Beloved if all you do is read the scriptures you have missed the mark. We are commanded to study it! To dig deep, to look closely at, to ask questions of it and seek the Lord for the answer to our questions. 

• Number 2 - How often should we do this? Continually, for to continue in something suggests that there is no end to it. 

• Number 3 - And after we have studied, we are told to meditate on it. To keep what we have learned always at the forefront of our mind. It should be what we focus on. In fact, our focus should be so intense that this Word finds itself deeply planted within our hearts. 

• Number 4 - The end result of both our studying and meditation should be action. No longer do we study the word and speak the word, we live it! According to Joshua 1:8 this is the only way obedience is possible, and it is the result of our studying that we find ourselves obeying out of love (relationship) rather than obligation. 

• Number 5 - The last thing that happens as a result of the hard work put forth is the promise. The promise of being prosperous in all we do. Please know that I am not speaking of the prosperity of men. No beloved, I am speaking of the wealth that comes from being in right relationship with the Father. The wealth that manifest's itself in the grace, favor and mercy of God.

I know your schedule is busy and that you really don't have time to do all of this. Beloved, what you don't have time not to. So before I leave you, let me encourage you to take it one step at at time. 

So where do you start?

1. Download a bible app
2. Select a book.
3. Listen to one chapter each day at least five times a day. 
• Once in the morning when you wake
• Once on the way to work
• Once during lunch
• Once on your way home from work
• Once before you go to bed at night
4. Jot down any questions and or observations you may have.
5. Pray and ask God for the answer to your questions
6. Pray and ask God to help you use what you have learned in your life 

Until next time...

Starved!

I will never be able to comprehend how there is a famine in a land where the word of God is so readily available. But even though this is something I cannot comprehend, it is my reality. Is it because the truth espoused in the word of God does not so easily align with the life we have made for ourselves? Or is it that those of us charged with proclaiming the word have watered it down so much that it no longer has its power?

Whatever the reason, it's time for a change. It's time to get back to proclaiming God's word 

When It's to Good to Be True

I have always believed that if we listen carefully and trust the voice speaking softly in the wind, our steps would lead us to the exact time and place where our present meets our destiny. Today, this is my reality. After being promoted, well actually fired, I find myself in place that seems too good to be true. I say this because I cannot believe God has placed me in an environment where growing, stretching and failing forward is the norm. Where open arms greet me every which way I turn and the staff willingly volunteer both their time and talent to ensure that all is well for our student's return. 

This is experience is so foreign to me that I have found myself asking what have I done to deserve such favor? As a believer, I know the answer to my question, nothing. There is nothing I will ever be able to do to warrant neither the grace nor the favor God has shown me. 

So for now, I will be content in the place I find myself and I will trust God to lead me as He has in the past. And when the trial comes, and I know it will, I will hold fast to the promises He has made and the victories He has already achieved in my life.

Until next time....Be Blessed