Growing
Okay, I’m giving a disclaimer right now…I am a little over the top with my garden. This is the first year I have ever planted a summer garden and I am super excited! I seem to notice every little thing that happens to my plants. I always hear God speaking to me in the garden and I love it!
A few days ago, I looked at my cucumber plant and I noticed that one of the vines had attached itself to the trellis I have in the planter box. I wanted to train the plant to grow up this trellis so that I would have more room in my planter box. I was so excited that the plant obliged me and did it on its own without me guiding the vine.
Of course, this made me think of us. I wondered how excited God must get when we just follow what He has set up for us. Everything in this world comes from God and do you know that we are the only creation that does the opposite of what He tells us? We are the creation that He loves the most yet we are the hardest to get to be obedient. I could not tell my cucumber plant what to do but it figured it out. Perhaps we should take a little more time to please God by seeking Him first and surprising Him with our obedience.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMoEcr3koSqRbqVma5EGWgA/videos
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
Who is Mastering You?
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew 6:24, NIV).
“Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?” (Matthew 16:24-26, ESV)
How can we tell what is mastering us? If we are following after Jesus Christ and doing what Scripture says, then He is our master. But if we are saying we accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, but are still living according to our fleshly desires, we are liars and the truth is not in us.
A simple way to tell what is mastering us is to use these questions as filters:
1. Do our actions align with the Bible?
2. Do we have peace in our spirit about this action?
3. Does our action align with the character of God?
4. Who will get the glory by this action?
If we run all of our actions, behaviors, and even our thoughts through these filter questions, we will know who or what masters us. Jesus did not come to condemn us, but to give us an abundant life. “…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10, KJV). He wants us to enjoy this life as we walk in obedience to Him so we can live eternally with Him.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMoEcr3koSqRbqVma5EGWgA/videos
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
Your Goliath
As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him. 1 Samuel 17:48-50, NIV
I was listening to a teaching about David and Goliath. The teacher said that Goliath was David’s problem. He said that no one knew about David until Goliath was a problem for Israel’s army. The teacher then asked “What is your Goliath?” It became so clear to me that without Goliath, David would not have been famous. Goliath was one of David’s problems to solve.
This teaching made me think about how I handle problems that are like a Goliath to me. I usually try and prevent those problems at all cost or I am quickly trying to figure out how to get rid of it. We do not want problems. We do not look for them and when a problem comes we go on the hunt as quickly as possible to get rid of it. Many of us go to God and we ask Him to take away the problem.
I wonder if the problems that we face are the ones that we were sent here to solve. We are always looking for our purpose, but we never expect it to come in the form of a problem. David became King because there was a problem with King Saul. Ester became queen because there was a problem with Queen Vashti. Jospeh became second in command to Pharaoh because there was a problem with drought in the land. Moses became a leader because there was a problem with slavery of God’s people in Egypt. Whenever there is a problem a solution must be found. If you look around our world the most successful businesses are solving a problem.
God has ordained each of us to be here at this very moment because He has placed in each one of us the answer to problems that the earth has. We must spend time seeking God to find out what the problem is that we are suppose to solve. When we solve the problem people will pay us for the answer. We must remember that when the problem comes we should not run away, but do like David. Go to God in prayer and then quickly run towards the battle. Remember the answer resides in us.
There is not one problem that comes to us that we have not already been provided with the answer. The answer is always waiting on the problem to get there. King David, Joseph, Queen Esther and Moses were already on the earth waiting for the problem to arise. God had already put the answer in them and He has done the same with us!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMoEcr3koSqRbqVma5EGWgA/videos
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
Be Who You Are
It all begins with an idea.
My husband had a minor in/out surgery procedure. His surgery was at 10:30 so we arrived at 10:00. What I did not realize is how nervous my husband was about his procedure. He chatted with everyone that was in the waiting room. I am not the talker so I chose to sit quietly and just listen.
My first reaction was to try and have him speak softly to those ladies that he was chatting with so that he would not disturb the other individuals waiting for their treatment. But what I noticed is that everyone was listening and seemed to be enjoying the conservation he was having with the two individuals.
Everyone acted as though they were involved intently in reading their books or on their phones but they were actually using those means as a distraction for themselves. I saw people chucking to themselves when my husband conservation lead to something funny. As I observed the different reactions from those individuals it made me realize that God ordained my husband to be there at that time to bring joy to some other individuals lives.
The more I reflected on the situation, the more I realize that our different personalities are a gift from God. We should always strive to be who God made us to be. I can never be the talkative, funny, joyful person that my husband is, he has this way of making everyone laugh. I can only be the person God made me to be. I will rarely ever walk into a room and strike a conversation with strangers because that is not comfortable to me. But my husband will rarely ever write a blog about what he experienced. Despite our difference no gift is better than another. We all have beautiful gifts given in our personalities that will draw others to Christ if we just be who God made us to be.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMoEcr3koSqRbqVma5EGWgA/videos
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