Every time I tried to make it on my own….
All those lonely roads that I have traveled on….
When the friends I had were no where to be found….
There was Jesus – love this song, take a listen –
Naw…She Dirty!
I have come to the conclusion that some people just want to have a problem with you. Jesus could come down himself , put his arm around you and give you the thumbs up sign, and someone will be like….”Naw she dirty, she ain’t right.” lol smh
No worries to all that….pressin’ on!
Salt Shaker
What is the purpose of salt if it only stays in the shaker? Amen? Amen.
Labor of Love
I so completely love this song that is sung by Point of Grace. This song paints such a vivid picture about Mary giving birth to Jesus.
I am so glad that Mary did not act a fool when the Angel came upon her and told her what was to come in the weeks and months ahead. I am sure that she wasn’t completely thrilled, but with a yielded heart she walked out this magnificent purpose that God ordained especially for her.
The song speaks of Mary and Joseph, and then describes the baby in her womb as the …..
Maker of the Moon, the Author of the Faith, one that can make the mountains move…..wow this makes me wonder…. what I am holding in my spiritual womb that has yet to be birthed? What are you holding dear friends that will affect your community, the nations, the world? While it is an honor to be used of God, sometimes we are not completely thrilled, it is uncomfortable and inconvenient. Talk about inconvenient, Mary was to be married to Joseph and then boom! She is pregnant. Joseph probably looked at her crazy at first and you know how towns people are….creating a past that you were never even an active participant in and you have to live with the lies. Ohhhh, but the grace that is bestowed by God!
Sometimes we don’t even think that we can do what we are being called to do. The absolute truth is that you will not experience the grace until you start walking it out. God’s grace is not active in our hesitancy, His grace becomes active when we begin to fulfill the purpose that He has laid before us. He gives us the grace to do what he has purposed…..
Think…..what is your labor of love?
My Hope In You Alone
Too many people put contingencies on God. I will serve him if I get this, or I will do this if God blesses me with that. Brats. How many parents would reward their children for doing absolutely nothing? Not many, well at least not many good parents would. The same is with God. He is an awesome Father, but he is not going to just pass out blessings for disobedience. Why is it that the people who acknowledge God the least, expect the most from Him?
The words of this song spoke to me in such a grand way. It sums up how I feel about God even in the midst of tears or in the sunshine of my happiest moments, I know that God is my only Hope. Beyond what I see, beyond what I feel, He is my Everything.
Is he your everything? Even if you don’t get that job, that husband, the wife of your dreams….will He be your everything?
When the car is broken down, when the kids are sick or when illness looms at your door, is He your everything?
When times are good, when money is flowing, and the wind is at your back, do you remember who created that wind and still recognize that in the middle of abundance wealth, health, love…..that all of that is nothing without the everything-ness of God? (yes I just made a word lol)
I could go on forever, but this song is truly the anthem of my heart for this season in my life and probably for many more to come. Enjoy.
The Greatest Gift
I went shopping last weekend for a hat, yes just a hat. There was such a hustle and bustle about the stores with people hacking their way through their Christmas lists. What should be fun for them seemed stressful. Here are some things that I heard:
I have to get this for Suzie and Tommie wants this but I can’t find it.
I am so stressed out.
I don’t have time to get all of this done.
I am tired.
I will have to wait until next week’s paycheck.
Let’s get this done so we can get the heck out of here.
This made me sad. This is not what the Christmas season is about. If this is you, I challenge you to do something different this year. Why not spend more time with family gatherings or going to Christmas programs, or having a movie night to watch Elf and play board games, how fun is that? I made up my mind a long time ago that I will not be bogged down with gift giving this time of year. I am not cheap and I love to give gifts from my heart throughout the year, not just because of the pressure of the season.
I don’t know how many times I have heard people say that they “they are going to buy Christmas”, or “my kids are going to have a Christmas”…..
With or without gifts….there is Christmas and I long for others to understand that the greatest gift of Christmas is a warm and loving heart toward one another the whole year through.
Peace to you and yours,
Got Heart?
Christianity has become this over the top, super positive, squealing at the top of your lungs, extra chipper way to be and if you are not like that then you are not a Christian and certainly don’t have the joy of the Lord. Christians can be introverts and extroverts, quiet and gregarious, but there is one thing that should be the same and that is having a heart being modeled after God.
Praying Too Much
I know that this is going to sound like a contradiction considering that my last post was about praying, but sometimes I think that people pray too much. As I scroll down my Facebook newsfeed, I read how people are praying about this and praying about that, but these are the same people who do so much dirt to others. How do I know? I know, because I have been a recipient of some of the deceit that has gone forth from these praying folks. The good thing is that we all acknowledge prayer as a change agent, but when are we going to change? When are we going to become a just one facet of what we are praying about? Okay you pray, wow….you look really holy…BUT when are we going to be holy? Great, you are praying for someone who hurt you or someone that you just don’t like…but you can’t pray for someone and still wish that they get their Karma. As a matter of fact if you doing that then you should probably be praying for your own wicked heart. Another thing that just kills me is that some people don’t believe in God, but when they need something for themselves or their children, they request that someone pray for them? Well, if you don’t believe in God…who exactly do you think is going to consider or even answer your prayer? That is a whole other post about how God is NOT a Band-Aid for you to pick up and use when life gets rough. God is about relationship and he wants a relationship with you. Which takes me back to praying…..sincere, heartfelt prayer is powerful and should not be taken for granted but at some point in time we have to become the compassion, healing, the understanding, the deliverance, and the strength that we pray.
A Church Prop
The picture below is a traditional pulpit. It is not a prop, it is not a weapon by which people can be destroyed by being preached on rather than inspired by the Word of God. This pulpit is not a place to play dictator to those who trust you for healthy leadership. This is not the edifice by which to womanize or draw people into what you are NOT only to leave them broken while you continue to bring deliverance to others and just leaving the very people that you hurt for spoils. We are now living in a time where people think that being a minister or pastor is hereditary rather than an actual calling from God. Just because your grandfather’s grandfather’s grandfather on both sides of the family were both pastors does not necessarily mean that you should be. This pulpit is an entrusted place. It is sacred and unfortunately far too many in and out of the pulpit have forgotten that. I am not saying that the person that stands behind this has to be perfect, but can we at least say that we are yielded and acting according to God’s perfecting power? Only the people that stand before this and stand behind this can bring the reverence back to what this really is and until that happens people are only going to see a piece of wood, a bookrest, a prop…..not a place of power by which the Word of God is delivered and people are transformed.
May God be with us all….
Emerging From the Wilderness, Don’t Look Like Where You Have Been
Last summer I went on a hike through a nature trail. What I thought was a fun idea turned out to be quite the adventure. On the hike there were views of rolling of hills, skylines, enchanting ponds just off the paths and at times a deafening silence spanning the rolling green canvas. The hike was rewarding overall, but as I emerged from the trails there were some clear signs that I have just been in a forest. I had scratches on my legs, face, and arms where tiny branches snapped back or didn’t move at all…oopsy me. Unbeknownst to me, I served as a buffet for some tough critters who fought through the layers of bug spray to grab a taste of my skin….ugh! Bottomline: I made it through, but the problem is that I looked like where I have been, in the wilderness. While the hike was good for me physically, I had a lot of explaining to do when I attended a dinner party later that evening.
Spiritually speaking, we will all have at some point what is called a wilderness experience. The wilderness experience is a place where we can go through loss, being alone, confusion, a bad relationship, rejection, and the list goes on. Through all of those things, however, this experience can produce a deeper faith in God and endurance to “run on and see what the end is gon’ be. So often, when we go through storms, we turn to too much food, hang on to something too long, stop praying, stop reading the Word, or turn to other unhealthy habits that can affect us in the long run.
Oh goodness, there is soooo much that I want to expound on about the wilderness experience, but let me bottom line this now with the purpose of this particular post…..
The wilderness is not comfortable. We don’t always understand why we go through it, but it is as necessary as that breath you just took and what you learn, gain, and lose in the wilderness is preparing you for where God is taking you. What I have learned while on the verge of emerging from my own wilderness is that it is so very important to take care of yourself while you are in this in experience. While you want to take and apply what you learn there, it is important not to look like where you have been. Don’t allow this experience to damage you (gain weight, emotional and physical problems, bitterness, depression, a guarded heart, etc) in a way that you cannot stand or operate in your purpose after you emerge…….
What do you do if you find yourself in what may be a wilderness experience? You need to check into the best GPS system ever for direction….Prayer to God and His Holy Word!!! If you “stop” or sit down in the wilderness and yield to your circumstances you will die there, your purpose will die there….get up, get moving and seek God for His direction!!!!! Ready, set, go! Hey you are not moving fast enough lol….move!
On the Journey…….