A Healthy Spirit Doesn't Happen by Accident

People take supplements because they know that the food they eat on a regular basis does not contain all they need to be their healthiest selves. Beloved, if the only time you sit at God's table is on Sunday you cannot and will never be your healthiest self. You need bible study and the teaching of the word throughout the week to help you stay the course. 

Having a hard time making this happen? Change what your tuned in to on the drive. Moody (90.1) provides an excellent source of solid biblical food. Another way to access great spiritual food is to utilize the podcast app on your phone. Many men and women of God have used this app to make their weekly sermons available to the general public. Some of my favorite heralds are Treadured Truth by James Ford, The Urban Alternative by Tony Evans, Living a Legacy by Crawford Lorrits, and Summit Life with J. D. Greear. And last but not least, read your bible and ask God to help you with your understanding. However, if you are overwhelmed by this task, the Bible app has many great short bible study series to help you approach this task in a more systematic way.

Remember remember your ability to apply the Word of truth to your life is your responsibility. And this is one that should never be left as the sole responsibility of those with a title and a formal call to do so. Beloved that is why we, and not just our teachers, are encouraged to..."be diligent to present yourself (ourselves) approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." ‭‭II Timothy‬ ‭2:15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Until next time....

When We Let Our Light Shine

Moses in Genesis 3:3 was intrigued by a bush that was on fire and not consumed. Beloved, if you would just allow the Lord to have His way in your life, the fire within you would also piqued the interest of those around you. They too will turn aside and seek to know more about this great wonder before them. 

Therefore, I beseech you my brethren, to..."Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good deeds and moral excellence, and [recognize and honor and] glorify your Father who is in heaven.” MATTHEW 5:16 AMP

No More Spoon Feeding, It's Time Prepare Your Own Meals

Today in Sunday school we were encouraged to put down the expositor. To pick up our bible, our bible dictionary and our concordance and to trust that God will, with enough sweat equity, open up our understanding. We talked about how the genre of the text informs our understanding and why you should never read anything out of context. In study we are to consider the times in which the text was written and the audience it was written to if we are to get a more accurate picture. Lastly, we are to bring both our questions and our insights to class so we can sharpen each other. 

We were studying Psalm 104 until the shift happened. The Spirit wanted us to know the reason the Psalmist was able to praise as he did; and it was because he knew God's word and made it his business to know it. 

Leaders it's time to stop preparing the meals and teach the people how to cook and eat for themselves. Truly, this is the only way they will be able to fulfill The Great Commission. To put it more plainly, in order to reproduce, you must already be that which you are trying to recreate.

 

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

Inspired to Death

The people of God desire the word of God. 

This statement was inspired by a young college student who had recently attended a Christian service that proved to do anything but that. In fact, she said, "If preachers can't come up with anything other than an inspirational messages then maybe they should just read from the word for their sermons." 

Unfortunately, her sentiments are not just hers alone. There are many people who feel the same way. People who are tired of listening to messages Sunday after Sunday only to live in defeat week after week. Messages that possess no power because they have no word. Messages filled with the wisdom and cliches of this world that leave its listener both starved and void of hope. Messages that do not provoke us to walk in holiness, but deceive us into to believing that our willful sinning is covered because we professed belief in Christ one day.

Beloved, have you not heard; have you not read? For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12) In other words, you cannot spend time in the presence of God and not be effected. Whether His presence causes you to repent or run for the hills, you will be impacted; and if where you go each week to feast on the word of God does neither, then maybe it is time to move on. Maybe it is time to move to a house where the word of God is preached with both clarity and truth; and the result of such teaching is the power of Godś word being manifested in your life´s walk. 

Until next time

Oh Snap, It's Time to Pray

What do you do when someone comes up to you and ask you to keep them lifted in prayer?

You stop everything you are doing, and Pray Now! 

You do this because life happens! You do this because you will forget. You do this because something about the way you live has caused this person to humble themselves; and come to you, and ask you to intercede on their behalf. You do this because this is the will of the Father for you in that moment. 

So from this point forward, I beg you beloved, to never take another request for prayer lightly. For the person who has asked you to pray believes in their heart of hearts, that you are truly a friend of God; and as His friend you not only have direct access, but you have His ear! Now if that's not something to shout about I don't know what is. 

I know, you don't know how to pray; you're not good at praying in public. Beloved do not believe this lie. For the same power that raised Jesus from the dead resides in you. And as a result of the power within you, you can boldly speak life to a dead situation; you can put 1000 to flight; and you can change the very atmosphere by your mere presence. 

And this is why it is so important not to allow the enemy to steal this opportunity. 

Don't worry about needing to know what the need is. Simply trust God! Believe that He will give you both the strength and the words to pray. 

So the next time someone ask you to keep them lifted in prayer, remember to: PRAY NOW! Amen

I Forgive You, I Think

"I forgive you!" 

I've said it, you've said it, everyone has said it; but when we say it do we really mean it? Do we really understand what is required of us? I ask this because in the sentence above forgive is a verb, in fact, it is an action verb. And our many years of schooling has taught us that action verbs requires us to act, to do something. 

Let's do a quick four question self assessment:  

1. Do I wish someone would hurt the person who hurt me? Matthew 5:44

2. Do I treat those who have wronged me differently when I'm around them? Romans 12

3. Have I refuse to help someone in need simply because they have done me wrong? Romans 12

4. Do I speak ill of a person who has wronged me? Philippians 4:8

If you answered yes to any one of these questions beloved, you are walking in unforgiveness! For even God provides for both the sinner and the saint. Matthew 5:45

The truth is, forgiveness has more to do with us then the person we are required to forgive. You see, God told us in His word that if we don't forgive others, He won't forgive us (Matthew 6:15); which clearly means that there is a cost, an extremely high cost might I add, for unforgiveness. 

So wait no more! It's time to forgive that brother and or sister who has done you wrong; who has planned evil for you; who has damaged your reputation and who wants nothing more than to see you fall. Forgive them because God commands it. Forgive them because your eternal destiny depends upon it. Forgive them, forgive them, forgive them!

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, most gracious and precious Father, I come to you today asking for the power to walk in forgiveness. Release me Father from the hurt, the pain, and the torment that resulted when (say their name) broke my heart; and did that which was  unexpected. Give me the strength to follow your example. Provoke me to pray for (say their name) when I don't feel like it. Help me to pray that (say their name) will receive a change of heart and that as a result, he/she will experience a transformation that can only come from an encounter with you. Release (say their name) Father to walk in the love, joy and peace that only comes from your presence. Forgive (say their name) of all his/her sins. Lead him/her down the path of righteousness for your name's sake. Let your word be hidden in his/her heart and make it to be a hedge of protection about him/her so that he/she will not sin against you. Show him/her the error of his/her ways and bring him/her to the place of repentance. In Jesus name I pray, Amen. 

Why We Must Wait

“I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise to carved images.” Isaiah 42:8 NKJV

These are the words I hear the Lord speaking to me in an effort to quiet my wrestless spirit. A spirit that simply can't make sense of my unsuccessful attempts to become gainfully employed again. A spirit which has decided, without my permission, to tell the truth and to expose what I truly put my trust in. 

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Matthew 6:24 NKJV

In an effort to encourage those going through a financially difficult time, I remind them that God is Jehovah Jireh and that they only need to trust Him to do what He said He would do. But the truth is, these words are easy to say when you know the date and time of your next deposit. The real test of your faith comes when you are called to stand on His word, especially when there is no deposit date in sight. 

As a result of my experience lately, I am forced to ask myself a few questions: 

1. If everything in your life falls apart, will He still be God? 
2. We He still be the same Jehovah Jireh you challenged others to believe in? 
3. Will His power to do the impossible at a moments notice diminish simply because of the storm your are currently facing?  

Absolutely not; for He is and always will be God. He is the author and finisher of our faith, the One who sits high and looks low; and He is the One whose thoughts towards us cannot be numbered. He knows the plans He has for us; and it is He who has designed these plans. Plans, according to Jeremiah 29:11, that will cause us to not only prosper, but to have hope for this life and the life to come.

So as I reflect on my many attempts to use my earthly connections to land a job, I am constantly being reminded of His words, "I will not share my glory with anyone." Nope, not even that well intentioned supervisor who has called in every favor he could to help you secure that new position.

You see, our God is a jealous God and as a result, He cannot and will not allow another created thing to obtain the praises that so rightfully belong to Him. Can He cause men you do not know to favor you? Of course He can. Can He provoke your enemies to bless you? Absolutely, He can. But let us never forget beloved this one thing, we serve a God who loves to show Himself mighty in our lives; and that is why He takes pleasure in showing out before the masses who counted you out.

Therefore, we must be content with where He has us. We must trust that He sees our need and that He will provide. For mighty is the God we serve and great is His love toward us. 

Be patient my friend. Be patient are the words I hear the Lord speaking to my soul. Be patient and see the salvation of the Lord.

Until next time...