Pollinators
A squash that I was holding in my hand was pollinated by pollinators (usually bees). Another squash that was still on the vine started out strong, but because it did not get pollinated it died on the vine.
For some background, the male part of a plant (stamen) comes into contact with its female part (stigma) through pollinators and this then causes the vegetable to grow. As I was sitting with the Holy Spirit he said, “It is the same with believers. They first accept me as their personal savior and they are connected to me, but if they do not stay pollinated with the word of God they will eventually die”.
He reminded me of the scripture about the seeds that fell on different soils. `People listen to the message about the kingdom of heaven. If anyone does not understand it, the devil comes along and takes the message out of his heart. That person is like the seed which fell on the road. Some seed fell on the stony ground. That is like a person who hears the message and right away. He is glad to hear it, but it does not go down deep in his heart. He believes it for a short time. When trouble, or hard times come, he stops believing. Some seed fell among the weeds. That is like the person who hears the message, but he thinks about the things of this world. He wants to get money to be happy. These things push the message out of his heart. No good comes from it. Matthew 13:18-22. Some seed fell on good ground. Those are the ones who receive the word, retain it and put it into practice.
To keep ourselves growing and not dying we have to get pollinated regularly. How do we do this? We do it by studying the Bible, spending time in prayer, worshiping God, sitting with God, connecting with other believers and sharing the word. If we do not do this we will find ourselves like the scripture says, “The cares of this life will cause one to lose their life.” We do not want to end up like the dead squash. We want to be like the one that was pollinated! We want to hear Jesus say, “Well done thy good and faithful servant!”
Key points:
Staying pollinated keeps us fulfilling our purpose.
The pollen feeds our soul and keeps in alignment with God.
Without the pollen we die on the vine.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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The Steps
But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” Ruth 1:16-17, NIV
Don’t try and change the way your path is moving. When you make plans keep them, it is so easy to put off our family. For example: you made plans weeks in advance to go with family to an event, but the same day of the event you get invited to a party to meet a person who might be very influential in advancing your career. It is a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity and you are tempted to change your plans. God said for me to tell you, “That moment is a test.” He is checking your character to see how committed you are to your word.
God knows everything that is happening in the world. He has ordained who you will meet and at what specific moment. When we are walking and obeying his word, he brings to us what we need. He gives us instructions on what we are to do because he has already made a way. I am reminded of Ruth the Moabite in the book of Ruth. When her mother-in-law Naomi told her to turn back and go home, Ruth refused. Even though Ruth had no idea where she was going, or what would come of her life, she had determined that she would not leave her mother-in-law Naomi.
I’m sure that it would have been better and felt safer for Ruth to stay in her own county with her family, but God had placed in Ruth’s spirit a love for Naomi that no matter what happened she would not leave her. Naomi was concerned for Ruth’s future and she did not believe that she had anything to offer Ruth, so she was encouraging her to leave. God had a plan for Ruth that no one could see. But he placed deep within her spirit the willingness to follow his steps. When Ruth and Naomi arrived in Bethlehem they had no money. Scripture says that Ruth went and gleaned behind the harvesters so that she could get food for her and Naomi. As God would have it and without Ruth knowing it, she picked grain in the field that would later become her husband’s. Because of Ruth’s obedience to the spirit that was leading her she became one of the wealthiest women in Bethlehem. She married Boaz and gave birth to a son who became the grandfather of King David.
The future looked bleak for Ruth, but she trusted the Spirit of God that lead her to the fulfillment of her heart’s desire. The way God leads us to our destination is never the way we expect. It will always come with challenges and shadows of death, but he leads us right through them. Amen!
Key Points:
Stay true to the vision God has given you.
Your character will always be tested.
The worst moments always brings victory when you stay the course.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Negativity
As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him…Titus 3:10, ESV
I totally enjoyed watching Dr. Juanita Bynum’s @3With Me Bible studies. She would sit on the floor of her home at 3:00 p.m. every day and teach the word of God through Facebook live. Her messages were always so powerful, I would listen to them over and over again and take all kinds of notes. In truth, although she no longer does those FB lives I still go back and listen to those teachings.
A few days ago, the Holy Spirit told me to go back and look at the journal that I used for her teachings. I came across some notes on the spirit of negativity and I knew that I was supposed to give you some of the points I wrote down. Negativity is apart of our behavior because it is learned and it slips into our subconscious mind. The first response that comes out of our mind to our subconscious is negative because that is what has been put there.
When negativity is in our subconscious, that will be our first response until we chose to reject that first response in training our brain. The answer to changing our brain is setting goals and establishing who we are in Christ. A consistent prayer life defuses the negativity and stress because we receive the comfort of the Lord; even if things in our situation have not changed.
What happens to our brain when we operate in negativity? The moment a person express the slightest degree of negativity it increases negativity in both the speaker and the listener. We cannot listen to negativity and it not change us. When we sit and listen to someone who is constantly negative they are embezzling our life. They are stealing our life. Once the negativity starts messing with your brain it messes with our memory and cognitive thinking accurately. It hinders you from making right decisions. You can’t focus and you become scattered. It messes with your memory and causes you to forget who you are in Christ Jesus. It has been proven that the switch to turn off negativity is very difficult because the brain has been wired to absorb massive amounts of negativity.
What we hear and what we watch frames our thoughts and establishes who we are and what we do. Ten people full of negativity affected millions of people. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” Numbers 13:33 The whole community that came out of Egypt was affected by those ten people. The consequences of listening to that negativity stopped anyone over 20 years old from entering the promise land! They chose to listen to the negative report! Joshua and Caleb were the only ones who joined the youth to enter the promised land because they did not listen, or believe the negative report.
Christ calls us to be sober minded; which means to be sound in mind. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8, ESV We can change our information right now. Scripture says physician heal thyself, we can do this through prayer and fasting. For twenty-one days fast no negativity. Do not read anything negative, or listen to any negative reports. If anyone comes to you and starts to speak negative cut them off and tell them you are on a negative fast. The spirit of negativity is from Satan and if he can keep you in that space, you will never experience all that God has for you.
Key points:
Listening to negativity embezzles your life!
Negativity is a spirit from Satan.
Negativity steals the soundness of mind.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Dedication
And the chiefs offered offerings for the dedication of the altar on the day it was anointed; and the chiefs offered their offering before the altar…Numbers 7:10, ESV
A few months ago, the Holy Spirit had prompted me to do a vision book with my niece. She had come to visit and he had given me some instructions of what we were to do during our visit together. It is so amazing how God works! A few days after our visit together I was prompted by the Holy Spirit to listen to a message.
The message was all about “dedication” and what the word dedication meant. I knew immediately in my spirit that God was giving me instructions about the vision book. He was saying I would have to be dedicated to this vision for it to pass. The speaker was teaching from the passage of scripture Numbers 7:10-11. This is where Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle and had anointed and consecrated it with all it’s furnishings and now the Chiefs of the twelve tribes of Israel were dedicating offerings to God.
Dedication in Hebrew means: to choke oneself with a rope, to restrain, to restrict oneself. Everything that the Chiefs were dedicating to God for the tabernacle were strictly for the purpose of worshiping God. The items were holy and would never be used for anything else.
When God gives us a vision, we are not to just be passionate about it, but to remove all obstacles to pursue that vision. We must be willing to remove any obstacle that would obstruct us from completing the direction God has laid in our heart. The speaker said, when we are in a dilemma on how we should move, we can ask ourselves does this contribute to the vision? The vision God gives us is always bigger than what we could ever think, or imagine doing. If your vision is something you can do on your own, then it is not from God. What he gives us will always require working with hm and he will be the only one who gets the glory!
This reminds me of Moses when he sent his wife and their children back to his father-in-law for a season so he could be focused on the work God had called him to do Exodus 18:2. Now, I am not saying that we are to separate from our spouses, but we have to be so focused on what God has called us to do that we let nothing be a hinderance. I have found that getting up early in the morning while everyone else is a sleep helps me to get things completed. One morning while up working and praying the Holy Spirit said, “This is presenting your body, you are offering your sacrifice, your reasonable service unto God.” When we are dedicated to the vision God has given us and allowing him to work through us, we have surrender our complete will over to him.
Remember the scripture, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Romans 12:1 Dedication to the vision in love through the Holy Spirit is one of the ways we present our bodies to God, which scripture says is our “reasonable service.” Reasonable in Greek is lagikos which means rational or proper, or spiritual. Which is our worship to him. Obeying God is worship unto him! Amen.
Key points:
We worship God through our obedience to what he has called us to do.
In the same way that Jesus did not wavier from his assignment on earth, we are to emulate what he did in all that he has called us to do.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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What is in Your Heart?
The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. Luke 6:45
What have you put in your hearts? Are you repeating everything you hear? What you speak has a direct impact on your life. We have to be so careful about what we allow in our heart because we speak our heart and that is what we have in our lives.
Many years ago, I was teaching a young adults class at one of the churches I attended. One of the students in the class had a very troubled life. He would tell me that he was a thug and one day he came to church with thug life tattooed across his chest. As much as everyone tried to help him and pray for him, do you know what happened to him? He ended up in prison living the life as a thug. Our words are containers of power and we have to be so careful what we speak over our lives.
Our words are so powerful that even when we are dead and gone they still manifest in the earth. Joshua spoke over Jericho when he conquered it. The city was to be dedicated to the Lord so Joshua pronounced this solemn oath: “Cursed before the Lord is the one who undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho: “At the cost of his firstborn son he will lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest he will set up its gates.” Joshua 6:26
Do you know that exactly what Joshua spoke is what happened? In Ahab’s time, Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, and he set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the Lord spoken by Joshua son of Nun. What was spoken over Hiel’s life is what happened. 1 Kings 16:34, ESV Though the sin was Hiel’s, the consequence included the deaths of his two sons.
Scripture says to be slow to speak, quick to listen and slow to anger. James 1:19, ESV. The word says, “So shall my word be that goes out of my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and it shall succeed in the thing which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11. Our words are containers of power and whatever we allow in our heart…we have what we say. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Colossians 4:6, ESV And remember that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Royalty
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 1 Corinthians 6:19, ESV
My husband and I had the opportunity to visit Italy a few years back and we went from the Southern part down by Sorrento to the Northern area of Cinque Terre trying to cover as much as possible in a month. The one thing we noticed in all of the places we visited were the beautiful churches. It did not matter where we were, there were churches and the larger ones were called Basilicas. Most of them were so overwhelming that you could not capture all the beauty and the detailed work that went into the completion of the buildings with just one visit.
As I was reflecting on the scripture above, the Holy Spirit said,” Out of all those beautiful buildings you saw none of them compare to the beauty that is on the inside of you.” You know when the Holy Spirit gives you something like that you have to reflect and meditate. I thought all about what we had seen and the detail that went into those buildings. God showed me that even greater details have gone into every believer! Because everything that exists in our building comes from him and he lives inside of us.
He reminded me that all the work it took to get those buildings completed to look as beautiful as they are is the same work that he has done and continues to do in us. Every day and every moment we receive more of his glory and the transformation that is taking place in our spirit is coming forward. He reminded me that I was instantly changed in my spirit when I accepted him. However, my soul, mind, will and emotions continue to be transformed through my obedience to him.
He gave me the following examples. When a woman becomes pregnant; she is instantly a mother. Although she may not feel like it, she is still a mother. When the baby is born the mother begins to grow into motherhood as her baby grows. It is the same with a new employee in a new position. It does not matter whether the individual feels equipped, or make mistakes. They are still in that classification and performing the duties of that position. Everyday the individual grows and learns more about the position and becomes efficient in that position. It is the same way with us as we grow in the spirit with God. We can never look at how we feel, or the behaviors that we exhibit at times. They do not stop us from being royalty.
We should never judge ourselves according to our flesh, otherwise we give Satan an opportunity to take a foothold in us. Listen, we were changed instantly and Jesus paid for all of our sins long ago! We are royalty and everyday we are becoming more and more like our Father. As scripture said, “We can be confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Do not be Deceived
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, KJV
We love to entertain and have parties with friends and family. Several years ago, we had an International Party and everyone brought a meal from their country. It was a lot of fun! My husband decided to hire a magician to entertain the guests at the party. We had seen him before and I thought that by watching him closely this time I would be able to tell how he was deceiving the crowd, but I could not.
We can be deceived by people doing tricks, but the scripture above reminds us not to deceive ourselves. Basically, do not think that your sins against God will give you access to enter into the kingdom of God. He is a very forgiving God, but he makes it real clear that only those who have been washed, sanctified and justified in his name by the Spirit of God will enter his kingdom. Redemption has nothing to do with how we behave; it's all about our spirit being changed by Jesus. Jesus told Nicodemus, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. John 3:5-6, NIV Jesus did all the work at the cross. He was the perfect sacrifice.
Even if we were on our best behavior each and every day and treated everyone really nice, we would be deceiving ourselves; if we believe that our good deeds would get us into the Kingdom of God. Jesus wants us to know that the only thing that can save us is through him. He has made a way for us to choose and the choice is up to us. Scripture says, I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you an your offspring may live…Deuteronomy 30:19
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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God Heard, God Remembered
God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them. Exodus 2:24-25, NIV
I was reading over the story of Moses when I came upon the passage above. The Holy Spirit said, "Write it down.” I wrote the scripture down and then he began to share with me what it meant that he “heard and he remembered.” He heard their cry for help and he never forgot his covenant with Abraham. He just had to make sure the Israelites were ready for what was ahead before he moved them.
God said that when we pray for something, He examines to see if we are ready to receive what we are requesting. He will not move us or bless us with the next thing until we are prepared. He said usually there is a test to make sure we can handle what will come before us. Just as God heard Israel, He hears us to. He said if movement has not happen in our lives there is still some maturing that needs to happen. So, we need to stay on the vine a little longer!
My husband and I were ready to give our son a car at seventeen, but he was not ready to receive it. He had not taken any test or prepared himself to drive and therefore we did not give him a car. We “heard” our son’s request for a car and we “remembered” what he asked for, but we did not move until we knew he was prepared. We made sure that he had done everything necessary before we moved with giving him the car. How much more will God do the same for us!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Hear or Listen
But the Pharisees, hearing it, said, This Man drives out demons only by and without the help of Beelzebub, the prince of demons. Matthew 12:24, AMP
In the back of my mind I heard God give me a scripture for a specific topic for me to write about. I even talked about it with several people, but when it came time to write I could not remember what God had said. I prayed and asked God to bring to my remembrance what scripture he wanted me to use for this particular subject.
Later in the week the Holy Spirit gave me some topics to talk about on my social media channels. One of those topics was Hearing vs Listening. He told me to tell the people how to listen to him. As I was writing he said the people hear me, but they don’t listen. I immediately felt the prompting to look up the word “listen.”
Listen: Give one's attention to a sound. Take notice of and act on what someone says; respond to advice, or a request.
After sitting with this definition, I knew I had heard God, but was I truly listening when he gave me the scripture? I started to reflect on how the Pharisees and Scribes were always around Jesus. They had always heard what he said and saw what he did, but they were not there to listen; they were there to accuse him. In the Bible verse above, the Pharisees were with the people when they saw Jesus drive out demons from a man, but instead of listening and trying to understand what was happening, they accused Jesus of using the help of demons instead of the power of God.
I remember as a kid when my mom would tell me to do something. I would hear her, but I was not listening. She would have to come back and tell me again and again the same thing. But after a while, if I did not stop and listen and adhere to her instructions I would suffer the consequences of my behavior and would be disciplined. Many of the Pharisees and Scribes chose not to listen while Jesus was on earth and if they did not change their ways before their death, they would die in their sin.
Jesus offers us all the same opportunity while we are living today! That opportunity is to not only hear his message, but a make a choice to choose life. I pray that we will all move from just hearing the noise of Jesus Christ and listen to the message of Christ; for one day our opportunity will be gone!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Wisdom and Understanding
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding. Ephesians 1:7-8, CSB
So I had been praying asking God for knowledge, wisdom and understanding. I told God that I wanted to see past the obvious. I wanted to understand his word in a greater and deeper way. It is so amazing how God will answer your prayer. A few Sundays later at church our Bishop taught on “What God Has Joined Together.” He started the message with this scripture, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:17-18, ESV Which he immediately started with how do we see ourselves?
This scripture reminds us that where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom and in him we are free. We see with unveiled faces looking as in a mirror, because the vail of darkness is gone truth is revealed. We look in the mirror at the glory of the Lord because his Spirit lives within us. Scripture says, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? We are not our own. 1Corinthians 6:19, NIV
Instantly when we accepted Christ as our personal savior we were changed. Change does not occur because we decided to stop fornication, being idolaters, or adulterers, or abusers or thieves, or covetous, or drunkards, or revilers, or extortioners. We were changed because we are washed, we are sanctified, and are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
God was teaching me that I did not lack wisdom or understanding, it was that I was not looking at myself correctly. I was seeing myself with the veil on and not how Christ had changed me. I am transformed from the inside out. When we keep our focus on what we were, we remove ourselves from the position of where we are with Christ. He has already poured out on me all wisdom and understanding! I needed to change how I saw myself and to speak his word over my life. I have all the wisdom and understanding I need! I just have to believe what he has already done! We are complete with everything we need to go deeper in him. We just have to believe his word!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Write the Vision
And then God answered: “Write this. Write what you see. Write it out in big block letters so that it can be read on the run. This vision-message is a witness pointing to what’s coming.
It aches for the coming—it can hardly wait! And it doesn’t lie. If it seems slow in coming, wait. It’s on its way. It will come right on time. Habakkuk 2:2-3,MSG
I knew my niece was coming over to visit me and I wanted God’s direction in what he wanted us to do. I am a firm believer that every moment, God has a plan for us and it is important for us to seek out his direction. He gave me somethings to tell her and then he directed me to do a vision book with her. Interestingly enough that same week my sister had sent me a video from Terri Savelle-Foy whose message was about a vision book. God’s timing is always perfect!
In Terri’s message she was saying that we should ask God for big things that we could never do on our own; the big dreams. She was saying follow the scripture Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly more than all that we dare ask or think [infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes, or dreams], according to His power that is at work within us. So my niece and I went to Staples and got all the necessary items we needed to make our vision book. We set a template on a sheet of paper at the top we wrote “Prayer Requested” and towards the middle we wrote “Prayer Answered.” We put a place for scriptures and pictures after each title.
We both sat across from each other in my office and started this project. We had no idea how much work was involved. We worked for hours and I think we had some scriptures and a few photos. My niece left with all of her tools to continue her book. Later that night I was having a conversation with God about some of the things I was thinking about putting in my vision book. I felt like they were too materialistic and I asked God, “What is it that you would have me put in this book?” He woke me up and began to show me scriptures after scriptures of those he had given visions to and what the outcome was. He said, “I told Abraham that I would make him wealthy and that he would be the father of many nations.” Genesis 12. He then began to have me write down many names of those in the Bible whom he had given visions to that was a blessing to them and their families. I think I wrote over a dozen names!
When I got back to bed I guess I was still pondering my thoughts when my husband asked me what is going on in my head. He said, “I feel like there is a lot you are thinking about!” When I told him what was troubling my heart he said, “God wants to bless us, however, he does not want our focus to be on the material things that pass away, but on him.” A peace rested on my soul and I heard God say, “If you write down something that is not for you, I will not give it to you. I know what is best for my children.” Then I heard the passage again, “Write the vision and make it plain for with him and the power that is working within us, we can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine.” Write your vision!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Marching Orders #3
My husband and I were out taking a hike in this beautiful area. The vegetation was very lush and green. As we were walking we came upon a creek and to cross it you had to step on some slippery stones. I could see that the water was very low and it would be simple to cross. However, my husband said, “Take my hand and cross with me.” I said, “Nope! I got it!” I did make the first two stones, but by the third stone my foot slipped off and into the water I fell! I jammed my finger in the rocks and it begin to swell. We had to end our hike and get to a store to put ice on my hand.
My finger throbbed all that day and night so much that I went into emergency the following morning. They put my finger in a splint and when it was healed I was sent to physical therapy for six weeks to get my finger to stretch out correctly. The finger is still crooked, but it is a great reminder of what happens when you don’t follow instructions; even the very simple ones that are given.
God told Adam not to eat of the tree of “Good and Evil” in the garden. Obviously, Adam clearly told Eve because she told those same instructions to Satan when he asked her about the tree. Eve knew right from wrong. She knew the consequences of disobeying the instructions given by God, but she chose to follow her own will. Many times when we chose to disobey orders that are given. We think that we know the consequences of our choices, but in reality we have no idea of the impact they have on our lives.
Scripture teaches us that, “The husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Ephesians 5:23-24, ESV My husband gave me instructions when he said, “Give me your hand,” and I said “No!” I believe that if he had said, “Do you want to hold my hand?” maybe things would have been different. But because I chose not to follow the simple instructions, I suffered the consequences. When we honor those over us, as we honor Christ, we will only have the best results!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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How are you Stewarding your Gift?
Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord. And she made this vow: “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. 1Samuel 1:10-11, ESV
Hanna was barren and could not have children. Her husband’s other wife, Peninnah had children and she would taunt Hannah and make fun of her because the Lord had kept her from having children. I often wonder what God thinks of us when we take our gifts that he has blessed us with and we put down others who do not have the same blessings. Peninnah was putting down Hanna. She was making fun of her and thought she was better because God had opened up her womb. Peninnah’s blessings with children had nothing to do with her abilities, but with God’s graciousness.
We need to be very careful to keep our hearts humble and thankful for all that God has done for us. Hanna demonstrated a heart of humility. She prayed to God in her grief and she asked, “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.” Hanna’s heart was to God.
We read further in the scripture that God remembered Hanna’s prayer and he gave her a son whose name was Samuel. Hanna gave praise to God for her son and she did exactly what she vowed to God. She took her son Samuel to Eli the priest where he served God all the rest of his life.
This message is a reminder about how we choose to behave with the gifts God has blessed us with. Peninnah had received the gift of many sons, but she chose to flaunt that gift and to glorify herself. Hanna, on the other hand, understood the gracious kindness of God and she chose to honor him. God is looking at our hearts and we will be judged by how we steward the gifts he has given us.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Closer to God
Do you want to get closer to God? No, do you really want to grow closer to God? Perhaps you should wake up during the night watch. Throughout the day we talk to God while we are doing our work and holding down our responsibilities. But if you really want closeness with him, you will have to make a sacrifice and meet him during the night; when you are tired and sleepy.
Listen, I remember when I said to God that I wanted to know him more. I wanted a deeper revelation of his scripture and greater closeness with him. Do you know that he started waking me up between 1:00 AM and 3:00 AM in the morning? I mean I would really be awake! It was like someone had given me a shot of caffeine and I was wide awake! I would say to myself, “Oh, I am awake” and I would get up and go pray.
As I continue in this morning prayer, later he would wake me up between 12:00 AM and 6:00 AM and I would be tired! It was always a fight to get my body out of that bed. Sometimes I would lay there and say, “God is it time to get up?” I don’t even know why I would ask that question; except to stall for more time. Then he would just say, “Yes.”
Now I purposely go to bed early so that I can be ready for the night watch. You may ask, “Why does it have to be done during the night hour?” I thought about my husband and I and when we have our most intent conservations and determined that it was during the night hour. We lay in bed, share our thoughts with one another and fall asleep in each other's arms. None of that can happen in the middle of the day unless we are on vacation and we set a specific time for it, but even then it is different.
Closeness with one another is greater at night due to having less distractions. It is the same with our Father. Distractions for the most part are removed and he has our undivided attention to hear him speak. Seek closeness with God. Set your clocks and make an appointment to meet with our King! I would not recommend going in with a long list of things, just go expecting to meet with him and to hear what he has to say to you. It will be beautiful!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Wait and Check-in
…be quick to listen… James 1:19, NIV
Many of us walk around with these little control devices, that fit in our purse, pocket, or our jacket. They are know by most as a cell phone but in truth they are much more than a phone. These little devices have become so important that most people will not leave home without them. They tend to have no boundaries with getting our attention. They will interrupt any conservation or thought at any given time unless its owner turns it off.
Some time ago, I was at a coffee shop ordering some tea when my phone rang. I immediately looked down to see who was calling. I was in the middle of a transaction but I let this device take my attention away from the person in front of me to see what information it was brining to me. I paused and I checked in with the Holy Spirit to see if I should answer the call and He said not now.
Later that evening the Holy Spirit reminded me to check to see if the caller had left a message on my phone, and they had. When I listened to the message it was so powerful and so important for me that I was so glad I had not picked up the call. I needed to hear that message over and over again. If I had picked up the phone call, I would not have been able to give the caller my undivided attention and I would have missed some important details of the call. But because I waited I could sit and ponder the message and hear all that God was saying to me.
Every time our phone rings or beeps does not mean we are to give it our attention. Most of our phones receive more attention than we give the Holy Spirit who is right next to us. I heard the Holy Spirit said to share with the people to wait and check-in with me before they pick up the phone. If He does not give you an answer it means do not answer the call. Only if he says yes are you to give the caller on the other end your attention. God knows exactly what we need and many times the call is just a distraction to get you off course. Satan is always seeking someone to devour and our phones have become an instrument that he can use. Remember when you hear that phone ring before you answer…wait and check-in.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Marching Orders
I was having a conversation with God reading through the scriptures when the words “marching orders” came into my spirit. The words were actually, “obey your marching orders.” I also heard him say, “This what you are to write about for the week.” All kinds of scenarios came to mind, but I felt like God was saying something different. Then it hit me, he had given me some instructions on how to move with an assignment. I kept saying, “okay,” but I was not following the instructions. I actually forgot the instructions and was doing the assignment the best way I could. Here’s the best part; I thought I was perfectly aligned with God!
But just like God sent a prophet to Israel when they were disobedient, He does the same to us today. Hebrews 13:8 says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. I received a phone call from an ambassador of Christ with a “one minute” word. She said, “God told me to give you this one minute word.”
The message in part said when we are disobedient, we make way for evil to be established against us. When we are delayed in our obedience, it does not mean something is not happening. Partial obedience is still disobedience. The Roman Empire became empowered when there was no prophet or king in Israel. The Israelites had chosen not to follow the commandments God had given them and God did not speak. It was 450 years between the Old and New Testaments. During that time of disobedience something was still happening.
I immediately asked God, “Is there something that I am not being obedient in?” He immediately showed me and I repented instantly! Family, God is not playing. He is serious and means what he says. We are just so blessed that he is gracious and kind. I encourage you to take a moment and ask God if there are any areas of your life that he has given you instructions and you have disobeyed. When he brings revelation to you, repent and turn back to him in full obedience!
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14, ESV
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Stand in the Rest
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic power over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12, ESV
God has given me this new way of writing and how he wants these messages to be completed. He had me writing on the subject of rest, but I found myself wrestling with how to get the assignment finished. I was so frustrated and upset about not hearing the Holy Spirit speak to me with what to write. I had myself all worked up trying to figure everything out!
While in the midst of all of that emotional drama, my alarm went off reminding me that it was time to meet with God. I was tempted to try and push through the writings, but I stopped, shut the computer down and walked outside with my writing pad and pens. I sat for awhile in quietness and then begin speaking to the Holy Spirit about all my emotions and trying to get this project finished. He let me talk for a while and then my words just supernaturally went off to praying in the spirit!
All of a sudden, I was full of joy and praising God! My hands were lifted and tears were running down my eyes. There was a relief in my spirit. I could literally feel God lifting that heavenliness that was on my heart. He brought me words of comfort and gave me assurance that I was on the right path. He said, you just have to rest and be still. Stand on my word, what I said I will do, trust my word. If you feel that you have not received what you need ask me and move on in faith. He reminded me that trust in him is how I rest. The rest was so peaceful and joyful that I went out and took a walk! He gave me some instructions during the walk and I came back writing.
God has not called us to wrestle with our emotions, but to stand in his word. The emotional wrestling removes you from your rightful position of standing. When you are standing in the word, you will find peace in your soul and a joy knowing that God is handling whatever you are facing.
Take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand. What is God telling us to withstand? The wrestling with flesh and blood.
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Rest
…At the end of 150 days the waters had abated, and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat Genesis 8:3-4, ESV
In Hebrew: nuwach means to rest, to remain, to be quiet. God brought the ark to a place of rest. There are seasons in our lives when God will bring us to a place of rest. He will remove us from everything. I remember that Joyce Myer once told a story about a tea cup that was put in the furnace, then taken out and put on a shelf for a while before it was painted. Later it was put back into the furnace and then on the shelf to rest. Her story was like a parable of our own lives.
I remember when God told me to remove myself from everything I was doing at the church. He had me remove myself from Bible study and prayer groups. He literally sat me down and took me to a place of rest. He would not let me do anything. Everything became so quiet. I did not even know what to do with myself. When I think about the ark the water had abated and it had come to rest on a rock. I could not understand why God had brought me to that place of stillness. But just like the ark had another assignment, so did I. The ark could not fulfill its next assignment until it was completely still. Everything that was in the ark had to unloaded, but to do that the ark had to be at rest.
I could not hear from God and get to the place where he wanted without being still. I needed to be quiet in my spirit, but there were activities that were taking me away from what God wanted most for me. He needed to pour into me and it could not happen with me consistently moving.
Quietness came over me. He blocked all my friends and would not let me call or talk to anyone without his permission. As a matter of fact I still do that now and I love it! It was a time for me to learn how to sit and not just hear God, but to listen to God. I believe when God sits us down for a rest there is more going on in our souls than we could ever imagine. It is a special kind of rest that we cannot give ourselves. The ark could not rest until God removed all the water. Remember that when God removes everything from you, he is not trying to take something from you, but give something to you. Enjoy the season of rest that he puts you in!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Stand in Victory
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. Ephesians 6:11, ESV
You can read a scripture and hear it taught so many times and then all of a sudden you get what God is saying. I had read the verse above so many times, but never really understood that I was supposed to stand in the word of God when Satan throws his schemes my way.
The verse above says to stand in victory. It does not say fight. It does not say wrestle. It says to stand. When you read further in the chapter it says, For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Ephesians 6:12-13, My focus has always been on the fact that we are not wrestling with flesh and blood, but the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. I completely missed the message again to stand!
God is not telling us that we have to fight and wrestle, when we do those things we have moved out of our position of standing on the word of God. The enemy will use anything to tempt us to move from our position. That is his goal to get us to wrestle and fight, but the word says we have victory by standing on the word of God. When we find ourselves worked up we have succumbed to Satan’s schemes because with God our position is joy, peace, calmness in the Holy Ghost.
When we are in our armor every response is with the word and then we stand in victory. I have been in a season where God is making me keenly aware of every emotional feeling that I have. I hear him say to me, “What is this that you feel? Don’t react to those feelings, but lay them down with the word of God.” I know that I am in battle training and as long as I stay in the word I keep my peace and therefore I am in the correct position.
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Joshua 1:8, ESV
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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Our Prayers are Heard
Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. Daniel 10:12, ESV
Daniel had been fasting and praying because his heart was heavy for his people because of the treachery that the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all Israel had committed against God. It brought great calamity on the people. Daniel was seeking God for his great mercy on them.
In Daniel’s prayer he address all the wrong Israel had done to God. We have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. Daniel 9:5-10, ESV
Israel had sinned greatly against God and all the calamities that God told them would happen if they disobeyed, came upon them. Even though Daniel knew that the punishment was just and his people were wrong; he still sought God for mercy.
This story gives me so much hope and confidence in our God because it says in Daniel 10:12 that Daniel’s prayer was heard from the moment he set his heart to seek God. Daniel had fasted and prayed for 21 days, but the angel said the first day they heard his prayer God moved them to bring answers to Daniel’s request.
It does not matter where we find ourselves, or what situations we bring upon ourselves, it is never so terrible that we cannot turn to God with a repented heart and he not hear us. Psalm 66:19-20 says, “But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer.” Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer, or removed his steadfast love from me!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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