Something Greater
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,” (Ephesians 3:20, ESV).
I’m scrolling through all these different devotionals trying to figure out what to write next. I know that I am in alignment with God because He has helped me work out my schedule for the month and this is my writing day. At times, although we are in alignment with God it can still feel like we don’t know what we are doing.
I’m asking the Father if what I am writing is what He wants me to write and say to His people. It is very quiet and I am sure He is answering me but I can’t hear Him. I don’t want to waste the day so I can feel myself getting anxious. I know I feel this way because I want everything to work according to the timeline I have in place.
This thought makes me laugh and I think of a minister in our church on “message recap:” Minister Cindy Cain. She said, “We all want the ‘immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to God’s power that is at work within us,’ but we don’t want to let go of our own thoughts and plans.” God is simply saying, “Let go of your plan because I have something greater.” I guess it is time for me to let go of my plan and give over to Him so I can see the greater.
Father, thank you for showing us that even when we are working on the project you have given us, we can still get in the way. We release our desires and we say, “Have your way” because we definitely want the experience of Ephesians 3:20 from you. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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No purpose too small
Nehemiah was a Jewish man who worked in a Persian palace as a cupbearer more than a thousand miles away from his home of Jerusalem. A cupbearer would bring the King his wine, after tasting it to make sure no-one had spiked it with poison. Nehemiah served the king regularly with a joyful spirit.
In the twentieth year of the King’s reign, Nehemiah’s brother and some other friends had come from Jerusalem and they begin to share with Nehemiah about the condition of their homeland. They told him that they had a temple in Jerusalem, but the temple nor the people living the city had any protection because the city walls were a wreck. When Nehemiah heard this report he was devastated and began to weep. For four months he fasted and prayed before God about the condition of his home.
When Nehemiah went to serve before the King he noticed Nehemiah’s countenance was sad and he asked Nehemiah what was wrong. When Nehemiah shared with him about the wall of his country the king asked him what he needed. Nehemiah prayed to God and then he answered the King. Nehemiah asked for an extended leave of absence to go to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall. He asked the king for supplies for the wall, for lumber to build himself a house and an armed escort of soldiers and charioteers for a round trip of more than 2,000 miles.
Up until this point in Nehemiah’s life he was content with what he was doing, but God had placed another purpose on his heart. Sometimes we can feel like what we are doing has nothing to do with impacting the kingdom of God, but as we see in the story of Nehemiah that is so far from the truth! At first glance, one may think that the job of a cupbearer was not serving any purpose for the kingdom. However we learn that because Nehemiah had served diligently and well for the king; the king had come to love and respect him. The king asked Nehemiah “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill?” This can be nothing but sadness of heart.” (Nehemiah 2:2)
When Nehemiah shared with the king his heart the king granted all that Nehemiah had requested. If Nehemiah had not served faithfully in his responsibility he would not have been in the position to request the resources needed to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem that would protect the temple and the people.
We may never understand or feel like what we are doing is for God’s purpose. However, our responsibility is to do our very best at whatever we have been assigned. We must remember that no matter where we are right now, God has purpose in it! He is working it out for our good and for his glory and it will impact the kingdom! Amen!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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My recently published books are now available at:https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Life%27s+Journey+volume+2+Jacqueline+Crooks&language=en_US&ref=nb_sb_noss
Fear of the Answer
The Lord is my light and my salvation… Psalm 27:1, ESV
When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles,[a] they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going. John 6:16-21, ESV
I have been letting the book of John play in the background while I do my work. Every now and then something that I have heard before seems to jump out at me. This time it was the verses above. Jesus was the answer to the storm that the disciples were experiencing, but they were afraid of Him.
I began to wonder how many times we have been afraid to move because of what we see in front of us, not recognizing that right in front of us could be the answer. The disciples were so afraid that they were not even going to let Jesus in the boat and He was there answer. Did you see that once Jesus got into the boat they were immediately at their location? They had been struggling with the storm making very little progress, but when they accepted their answer they were delivered in that moment!
The scripture above gives us clear direction of why we should never give into fear. David wrote why he does not fear. I broke down the first part of that verse and looked up the words so we could have a clear understanding of why David spoke those words. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
LORD: someone or something having power, authority, or influence over; a master ruler
Light: the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible
Salvation: preservation or deliverance from harm, ruin, or loss, (ones salvation) a source or means being saved from harm; deliverance from sin and its consequences, redemption, deliverance, saving, help, reclaimed LIFELINE, preservation, conservation , means of escape
In essence, David was saying that the LORD was his master who had power, authority and influence over him. He gave him insight, made things clear and brought revelation to him. He preserved, saved, redeemed, kept him from harm, and delivered him from his sin which provided a way of escape.
David made it clear that the LORD was his master and that He provided for his every need. There was no reason for him to fear anything in his life because nothing could beat his master! Who is your master?
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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My recently published books are now available at:https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Life%27s+Journey+volume+2+Jacqueline+Crooks&language=en_US&ref=nb_sb_noss
Spiritual Maturity
My husband and I were driving back from Santa Barbara and we had Pandora playing some 60’s and 70’s song. The songs took us back to times when we were younger; we had so much fun talking about them. But then this song “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” came on and my husband said, “You know, when I was younger listening to this song, I had no idea they were talking about an intimate relationship.”
Isn’t that something? At his age, when he first heard the song, all he could comprehend was a deep friendship with this male which made this lady feel like a woman. As I reflected on his comments it made me think about reading the Bible. When we are young, we get one interpretation of what the Bible is saying. When we become a teenager, we get another understanding of what the Bible is saying. And when we become an adult, we understand a completely different interpretation of what God is trying to say to us.
The reading of the Bible is based on life experience and when we only read it a few times in our life we miss all the important messages that are there for us to grow. The Bible is our road map for life and if we don’t refer to it daily, we will miss our blessings. Our minds can only comprehend based on our experiences and the Holy Spirit can only reveal to us at the maturity level we choose to enter in.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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My recently published books are now available at:https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Life%27s+Journey+volume+2+Jacqueline+Crooks&language=en_US&ref=nb_sb_noss
The Bus
My husband and I took a trip to Boston Massachusetts. While we were there we took a pre-paid bus ride that took us to all the fun historical spots. We really enjoyed it because you could get on and off the bus at any stop to visit that location, then get back on and head to the next location.
A few weeks ago the Holy Spirit reminded me of a teaching that he had brought to me about moving in the moment. The speaker was talking about how important it is to be in the now moment and for us to move when God prompts us to. The analogy that was used to explain this lesson was the “bus.” When a bus comes to the spot where we were waiting, we usually have about 60 seconds to make a decision to get onto that bus. The bus driver usually will not say anything; he will just open the door. It is up to us to decide whether or not to get on the bus.
It is the same with the Holy Spirit, when He prompts us to do something we usually have about 60 seconds to say, “yes” before the door is closed and then it would be too late. Delayed obedience is not obedience. When we think of the bus ride, we get onto the bus and the driver takes off. The only thing we have in common with the driver is that he is headed in the same direction that we want to go. The driver never asks us for gas money or directions on how to get to the location.
Earlier this week the Holy Spirit prompted me to do a taping on this subject. In the middle of the taping the Holy Spirit said to me, “When you say yes to me and get on the bus, I am the bus driver.” Did you get that? Of course my mind went crazy! If we could just remember that the Holy Spirit is the bus driver in anything we do with Him, then we can fulfill every assignment with Him in complete peace!
When we are concerned about the our health, finances, careers, children, provisions, or whatever comes up in our lives, we can literally rest! It is the bus driver’s responsibility to get us to our destination! Our bus driver never asks us for our help in providing anything concerning the ride. Many times the bus driver will make stops, pick up and drop off people along the way. That is exactly what happens as we journey on our path with God. He brings people in and out of our lives for seasons. Most people are not meant to go with us through the complete journey. The only person we can be guaranteed that will see us to our destination is the driver. Have you gotten on the bus?
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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Do we Recognize God?
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:24
We had been in Canada for five days and every day the weather was different. The weather went from freezing cold to heavy rain, to thick fog, to extremely windy and then to snow. I wondered why we were allowed to experience so many changes in weather so suddenly in our short visit!
I felt as though God was trying to show me something. While mediating on that thought, the only thing that came to me was that it must have been God speaking to me, but was I listening? He said, “The weather has changed five times, but did you notice that it was through me? I never truly noticed God speaking because I was consistently looking at my phone to give me the latest weather predictions.
I heard God say, “I want you to see that I am here with you. I want you to know that I am in control, that I am all powerful and will take care of you. I want you to have a relationship with me; ask me. People say that they can’t see me or hear me, but I am always speaking.” God consistently demonstrates himself to the world, but we do not notice. We get too focused on man providing information that we miss that our Father is speaking. As I think about it, I’m a bit embarrassed because I chose to look at my phone for a prediction instead of asking God; who knows everything.
The more I reflected on the rapid weather changes it reminded me of the different seasons we have in our lives. We were in Canada for my nephew’s wedding and while I witnessed the ceremony, my mind reflected back to when he was just a toddler learning to walk. His mom would walk behind him to make sure he would not fall. I wondered where the time had gone! So many seasons of life had happened to get him to this point!
Wow! I thought about my nephew’s life, the weather, and our heavenly Father! My nephew is a toddler all over again and God is walking beside him to guide him through a brand new season of his life! In the beginning his parents were a God-like figure to him (in that they took care of him in everything) until he could develop into his own relationship with our Father. Today that changes for him. He is now with a wife and in a new season of life. He will experience all the different seasons in this journey, but God will be with him every step of the way.
God is speaking. He has never left us; no matter what season of life we are experiencing. He is right by our side. He wants us to lean and depend on Him because He knows what is up ahead for us.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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Gandhi
Spiritual relationship is far more precious than physical. Physical relationship divorced from spiritual is body without soul. Mahatma Gandhi
My son and I were having a great discussion when in the midst of him responding to a question, he quoted the statement above by Gandhi. My first thought was wow I am proud of this perspective. Later as I meditate on the statement, it hit me this is the only way we can have a relationship with God, this is what God wants us to have with Him. Many of us get so focused on what appears to be the urgent need in our life that we forget to even ask God about a deeper spiritual relationship with Him.
It seems natural that this would happen because we have grown up in such a “me” world. Think about it, we learned from the time we were babies that crying helped us feed our physical need. Studying hard in school gave us the grade we desired and once again fed that flesh. When it came time to excel in our working career, we put our physical foot forward working hard to make the income we wanted and get that next promotion. Everything we went after was to meet our physical need.
It is no wonder the world is in such turmoil, many have lost their soul. Satan has deceived us into believing that the only thing that matters is feeding this physical flesh. When the truth is we need the spiritual relationship with our Father more than anything. Jesus is consistently inviting us to have a relationship with Him. The Bible teaches us that Jesus is a spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. We cannot worship God with our flesh because He is spirit. The quote above says that Spiritual relationship is far more precious than physical in truth it is vital to our enteral life. The ending of the quote goes on to say Physical relationship divorce from spiritual is body without a soul…
If we go back to Genesis God said let us make man in our image and He created man. Man did not become a spiritual being until God breathed life into his nostrils. Without the breath of life, the spirit from our God the body was dead.
The same holds true today without relationship with God through Jesus Christ, we are dead. We are a spirit, that lives in a body with a soul(our mind, will and emotions) Without that relationship with our Creator we are dead.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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Crying (2)
For I cried to him and he answered me! He freed me from all my fears. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. Psalm 34:1,6
Crying; weep, shed tears, sob, wail, be in tears, cry one's eyes out, cry one's heart out, cry as if one's heart would break, bawl, howl, snivel, whimper, whine, squall, mewl, bleat; lament, grieve, mourn, keen; Scottish greet; informal boohoo, blub, blubber, turn on the waterworks; British informal grizzle; literary pule, plain.
My tears to God were answered in the Word of God. I was so broken in my soul. Everything around me was good, but my soul was in a state of despair. At that moment I could literally understand how the wealth of this world could never comfort the brokenness of the soul.
The wealth of this world is for external use, but only the word of God can feed the internal soul. We can read all kinds of self help books and they will encourage us for a season, but the Bible heals the soul! When we are healed on the inside it changes our perspective to the outside world.
I love that the scripture says David cried unto the Lord and He delivered Him from all of His fears. David went after God, he sought God and God delivered Him. When we seek God through prayer and reading of His word it will deliver us from anything this world can bring to us. God delivered David from all His fears!!
I told God I want to be delivered from all my fears. He showed me that my fears come because I don’t believe Him in that area. David believed God in every area of his life. When he cried out to God, God delivered him from all his fears.
Family, there is nothing wrong with crying. God gave us those emotions and tears, but take them to God, seek after Him and He will deliver you!
Father,
Thank you for reassurance that when we come to you, you hear, deliver and answer us. We just give you the highest praise. To you be glory and praise amen!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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My recently published book Life’s Journey is now available at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VYJKJ9K/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_6Z95ANB487AMDF3VTDP9
CRYING
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no for can withstand] Psalm 91:1, AMP
I was up early crying out to God. I felt the Holy Spirit say, “Stay in the bed next to your husband and pray.” As I being to pray I felt no connection at all to the Holy Spirit. Literally, the feeling of desperation, loneliness and hopelessness came over me. I was spiraling down in my feelings and I could feel them leading me to a this place of hopelessness. I cried God, Jesus, help me! But I continued to go to that place of despair.
I got up out of the bed and headed downstairs. I got on my knees and just begin to pray in tears, “God help me!” My mind started to focus on all the mistakes I had made the previous day, and how I may have hurt other people. I could feel everything in me sinking. I just cried out all the more, “God I need you! I know you are here! I know you are my God! Why is there this desperation and loneliness in my soul?” I heard the Father say, “Read Psalm 91.”
I picked up the Bible and began to read Psalm 91. I got through the first four verses and I felt that I missed something so I started at verse one again. There it was “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no for can withstand]”. Immediately after reading those words I heard the Holy Spirit say, “Do you trust God enough that you won’t allow your feelings to dictate your position?” My feelings had so overwhelmed me that I was questioning my position with God!
Dwells: reside, live, have one's home, have one's residence, be settled, be housed, lodge, stay; informal hang out, hang one's hat, put up; formal abide, be domiciled, sojourn; archaic bide.
When we accept Christ as our personal savior we live in Him. He is our home. I was questioning my home. I was saying God where are you? I allowed my feelings to cause me to believe that I was not stable and fixed under the hand of God. See, Satan uses our feelings all the time to move us out of our position. God has not moved. My place of residence had not moved. I allowed my feeling to make me believe God had moved.
As I sat meditating He showed me that every time I opened my heart to pray I moved into the sacred place of the Most High. I may not have felt Him at all, but the truth is the only way we can have a conversation with God is in the Most Secret place.
I began to thank God for all the mistakes I had made. For everything that looked like a failure to me. For all of His wonderful plans because they had brought me to this place. Every movement had put me in His presence and caused my heart to search for this intimate relationship with Him.
Family, every move has a purpose. We can be confident that no matter how we feel in the depths of our soul, our home is in Him. When we open our hearts to pray we are in the secret place.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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My recently published book Life’s Journey is now available at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VYJKJ9K/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_6Z95ANB487AMDF3VTDP9
Do Your Plans Align?
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:6, ESV
I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in the California International Marathon. It had always been on my bucket list but I was not sure when that would happen. The opportunity came sooner than I expected. Our church was doing a capitol campaign and wanted to raise money for a local school close to our church. They team up with the CIM in Sacramento and asked for volunteers to run the marathon or do the relay. So I signed up!
I have always enjoyed running not only for the exercise but it is one of the ways I spend time getting counsel from God. He always talks to me on my runs. He actually told me on one of my runs that it was time for me to enter into some of the official races. At that time our church had not yet announce the Capitol Campaign with CIM. I said okay but had no idea what race He was talking about.
Its funny because I could not imagine myself running 26.2 miles in one day! My maximum daily run was seven miles. However, I found that as I went through the training program I could actually run more miles. I got so excited about the challenge to go further that I started to doing my own training plan instead of following what was provided for me. I found that doing things on my own brought me a lot of pain. I started to have pain in my knees and I was so bummed. When I checked with our training instructor it was clear that my plan was what brought on the problem.
This totally reminds me of how we chose to live our life and not consult God. He is the one who has given us the breath of life. We live and breathe through the breath from Him. He has given us the instruction manual the Bible to help us get through life. Yet many times we refuse to look in the Bible or even ask Him for direction. We want to follow our own path…and then when trouble comes we run to Him. I love the scripture above that says God will never leave us nor forsake us. We may leave Him but He is always there waiting for us to come back…He watches us fall and until we ask for help, He will not intervene. I pray that this will remind you to take the trips with Him instead of on your own.
Father,
Thank you that you are the Master planner. You have everything set inlace for us. We ask for your help to quiet our voice so we can hear you loudly and follow your plan. We know that what you have established for us is better than anything we can imagine. To you be glory and praise in Jesu name amen!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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FISHING LESSONS (1)
“He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s.” Lk 5:3 NKJV
Lesson one: Invite Jesus into your boat. That’s the starting point! Always! Nothing has greater influence on your personal success than whether or not you have Jesus Christ in your life. By himself, Peter fished all night and caught nothing. But when he brought Jesus on board, he caught more fish than he had ever caught before. Now, Jesus never performed a miracle without a purpose. He always used His miracles to illustrate principles. So this incident teaches you what to do when you’ve failed, or when your best is not good enough. For Peter, his boat represented his livelihood. When you’re a fisherman, your boat is your business! It’s significant that Peter invited Jesus into his business, and Jesus used it as a platform for his ministry. Are you willing to do what Peter did? If you are, the Lord will bless your business! Indeed, he’ll bless anything you give Him. If you give Him all your life, He will bless all of it. But if you give Him just part of it, He will bless just the one part. And here’s another thought: Having Jesus in your boat eliminates the fear of failure and reduces your worries about the results. When Peter made Jesus his fishing partner, the results were incredible. But don’t miss the sequence. First, Peter used his boat for Jesus’ purposes. Then Jesus blessed Peter’s boat and used it to take care of all Peter’s needs. Jesus said, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (Mt 6:33 NLT). Did you get that? “Everything you need.”
SOURCE: The Word For You Today
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
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My recently published book Life’s Journey is now available at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VYJKJ9K/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_6Z95ANB487AMDF3VTDP9