Maturity comes when you stop making excuses and start making changes.

Monday Motivation
Topic: Grow up
Luke 19:1-10
Zacchaeus was a very successful, corrupt tax collector. He wanted to see Jesus but when Jesus arrived the crowds blocked his view. He was short man and could not see past the crowds so he climbed into a tree to see Jesus and was blessed. Jesus looked up, called for him, and he came joyfully. Zacchaeus repented and The Lord blessed him.

Luke 19:2-4
"And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way".

Where Are You?

We spend too much time making excuses for why we do the things we do, and why we behave the way we behave.
We blame our parents, our children, our spouse, our culture, "the streets", society, men, women, the school, our boss, the government, our looks, our height, "the system", abuse, neglect...... the list goes on and on.  Rarely do we take  a moment and blame ourselves for our lack of maturity to stand by faith do what we need to do to move forward. We lack the maturity to trust God and know he is bigger than our list of hurts.

We must trust God more than we trust the people or things we "think" is holding us back. If God be for us who can be against us (Rom 8:31).

Some of us may have achieved all or most of our superficial dreams and do not think this word is relevant. I must ask, where are you in your walk with Christ are you still making excuses of why you haven't given your life completely? Are you allowing God to make changes or are you directing God where you are willing to change?

Some of us aren't where we would like to be spiritually or naturally; to get there we need to grow up, have faith in God and start allowing God to make changes in our lives. We have to repent and allow God to heal us.

The Tax Collector

Zacchaeus was a rich man. He was a chief tax collector employed by the Roman Empire. Tax collectors had to place a bid to be considered to obtain the position of a tax collector. The bidder would pledge the amount they were certain they could raise and any amount over that amount were their personal profit.

1. We know the Romans were smart in business and would take the highest bidder to ensure their profit. Which means Zacchaeus was one of the highest bidders.

2. We understand to become a wealthy tax collector he had to greatly multiply what he promised to collect for his profit.

It also says he was the chief, which means he was possibly the Vice President of collections. Zacchaeus reached that level by training  many others under him, how to be great extortionist.

Choices

Some of us are making choices to disobey God and are teaching others to do the same. Some of us are so consumed with personal desires that we justify our unrighteousness. We must be careful bringing others to sin by displaying our unrighteousness and teaching unrighteousness. We all have something we have done that wasn't right but we either tagged along or we convinced others to partake. We are teaching our children by our actions. They do what they see not what we say. If we are teaching others to sin we must repent and ask God to change our ways.

Zacchaeus was a short man. The average height of a male Jew in ancient times was ~5'6 inches. The bible makes emphasis on his height which means he was much shorter than the average. Standing on his tippy toes would not have helped him see Jesus in the crowd. Which would make him probably around 5 feet or less.

He was probably  ridiculed as a child and as a man for his height.  He probably chose that profession to get back at all those that stared and laughed when they saw him. He probably used that as an excuse when he was extorting his own people. It was probably seeking revenge for his insecurities.

One day Zacchaeus decided to grow up, he stopped making excuses, and started making changes. He heard Jesus was coming and was determined to see him. He didn't want to just hear him, he wanted to see him.

Although, he was blocked by the people in front of him he didn't allow his height to block his blessing. He climbed the sycamore to receive his salvation. Some of us have obstacles blocking our blessings. Are we making excuses or are we climbing the sycamore tree?

Luke 19:5-6
And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.

Zacchaeus received his blessing because he made up his mind that he was ready for The Lord to change him. He wasn't surprised when Jesus called him, he responded with Joy because he came seeking. He was ready to stop making poor choices and start making changes.

Luke 19:8-10
And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Repent

Zacchaeus came with a repentant heart. He didn't make excuses for his sin, he admitted his fault, offered up restitution, and was blessed.

If you have been living a less than righteous life come to Jesus with a repentant heart and watch him change you.

If you have allowed people, places and things to hold you back or keep you bound, trust God more than you trust what's oppressing you. Watch God work. He specializes in what we believe is impossible.

No more excuses!

Fauja Singh ran a marathon at age 101. Stop making excuses and start making changes!

Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman to receive a medical degree in the US in 1849.

Stop making excuses and start making changes!

Wenseslao Moguel was captured while fighting in the Mexican revolution. Without trial he was sentenced to be executed by firing squad and was shot 9 times once in the head. He managed to escape. He made a choice to live and not die.

Stop making excuses and start making changes!

Paul Templar's head was swallowed by a bull hippo, he could have accepted death but he leveraged himself out losing his arm and survived.

Stop making excuses and start making changes!

Sudha Chandran is an amputee and one of the most accomplished and acclaimed dancers of the Indian Subcontinent.

Marla Runyan is a three time national champion in the women’s 5000 meters. She won four gold medals in the 1992 summer Paralympics. In the 1996 Paralympics she won silver in the shot put. Marla is legally blind.

Beethoven created his greatest works when he was completely deaf. He completely lost his hearing the last 25 yrs of his life.

Helen Adams Keller was deaf and blind an earned a bachelors degree.

Jean-Do suffered a heart attack which left him with locked-in syndrome. His mind was perfect but his body was paralyzed from head to toe. He had function only in his left eyelid. He wrote a book by blinking his left eyelid when the correct letter was reached.

 Stop making excuses and start making changes.

You can do all things through Christ that strengthens you (Phil 4:13).

 

Pray:

 

Holy Father, Holy Redeemer. You are the great and powerful Most High God. You are most holy and everlasting. Forgive me for worshiping my pain more than you. Forgive me for giving my circumstance more power than you. Forgive me for not realizing you created me for your glory and any thing less is living outside of your will for my life. I am seeking to change my life and live a more abundant life in you Christ Jesus. Take me, I am yours, remove all fear from my heart and give me the courage to submit to you. I want today to be the last day I make excuses. Today I am climbing the sycamore tree so that you will see me and call my name, and come into my house, and bless me and my house. I repent of my sins and offer up a sacrifice of praise.

In Jesus name I pray.

 

God Bless you!
Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

 

Are you at the potter's wheel or are you full of air bubbles?

Thursday’s Awakening

Topic: Potter

Jeremiah18:4,6

But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel.

The process of pottery

God is our potter, we often hear that term and picture someone at a wheel with clay shaping the clay. Do we ever look at fine china or a vase and think about the potter or do we just see the vase? Do we see ourselves as pottery as we go along our journey of life? Do people see the potter when they see you or do they see marred clay?

When we are going through changes in our life and we confess that God is our potter and we are his clay, do we understand how clay becomes a work of art?

There are 8-9 steps to creating pottery; clay preparation, wedging, forming, drying, leatherhard, greenware, bisque firing, glazing, and glaze firing.

Stage 1 Clay Preparation

Clay preparation is the process of digging up clay from the earth and finding "clay body" to work with. God is looking for us, he is digging us up, looking for opportunities to show himself strong in our lives. He is looking for clay that has a perfect heart towards him (2Chr 16:9), clay that he can shape for his glory. God knew us before we were formed in our mother’s belly (Jer 1:5).

There are three major types of clay (earthenware, stoneware, porcelain), some are thin and weak, and some are thick and strong. Some can withstand lower temperatures and can withstand higher firing temperatures. All clay serves a purpose as no two pieces are the same. Some are china used for tableware, some are strong pots used to fill. All are important to the body.

Stage 2 Wedging

In the second stage, the clay goes through a wedging process. This is a process of kneading the clay into a ball, this is important as it removes air bubbles. Air bubbles can  cause the object to explode will ruin the entire work of art. God is often kneading us, rotating us, pressing us to remove those things that will lead to our demise. Air bubbles are equivalent to sin in our lives. Sin is similar to the air pockets in clay that expand and burst during the process of becoming pottery causing the object to explode. Sin swells us up and destroys us, the wages of sin ultimately lead to death (Rom 6:23).

Stage 3 Forming

After God has wedged us he begins to form us. This is when the clay makes it to the potter’s wheel to be shaped in the potters hands. Some of us yield to the potter and allow the potter to mold and shape us as he pleases. Some of us are resistant, but in the Potter’s skilled hands he is able to shape and mold even the hardest clay if he desires.

When the potter is shaping the clay he opens the clay making the center hollow. God opens us up, making our center hollow so he can fill us with his spirit. After the clay is open the potter begins “flooring” this done by creating strong a foundation in the bottom of the pot. Then the potter begins the process of “throwing” and “trimming” the clay. Throwing draws up the walls of the clay to shape the pot and “trimming” removes excess clay from the pot. During the forming stage the clay is pressed, squeezed and pulled into its shape. When we are in the Potter’s hands we will be pressed, squeezed and pulled, but we can rest assured, knowing he is preparing us to be his fine work of art. He is trimming off what we don’t need and building us strong walls and foundation to stand on his word. We have to say yes during our forming stage!

Stage 4 Drying

After the potter forms the clay, the clay must dry. The clay must dry in plastic; if the plastic is removed it will cause the clay to dry quicker. If the clay dries too quickly it will crack. Satan sees us in our walk with the Lord; he sees us drying in plastic and realizes we are weak and will try to remove that plastic hoping we will crack (1Pet 5:8).When God has formed us, we often will experience challenges in our walk, that will threaten to crack or break us. When we feel we are beginning to crack we must hold on to God’s mighty arm and his strong hand the hands that created us (Psa 89:13).

Stage 5 Leatherhard

When the clay is leatherhard the clay is partially dried allowing some flexibility to the clay. This is where the potter can refine the clay/pot by adding decorative elements. Once the clay is beyond this stage the clay can no longer change shape. During our leatherhard stage God will birth gifts into us to use for his glory (1 Cor12). Our gifts are those decorative elements that make us special to the body of Christ.

Stage 6 Greenware

Greenware is when the clay has completely dried and it can no longer be changed. Greenware is when we get to the point when we are standing firm on God’s word. We are walking by faith not by site. When are not swayed when false doctrines are preached into our hearing. When we are in greenware God hasn’t completed us, but we know who he is and we believe his word and we are standing firm on his promises.

Stage 7,8,9 Bisque Firing, Glazing, Glaze Firing

Bisque Firing is when the pottery is subjected to temperatures of 1800 degrees F (Water boils at 212 degrees F). God can trust us when he is ready to place us in the fire. He places us in the fire because he knows we can handle it. He knows that is the only way he can truly add his finishing touches on his masterpiece. The purpose of bisque firing is to allow a beautiful glaze on the sculpted work of art. If the object does not go through the bisque firing the potter will not be able to properly glaze the object. God sends us through the fire to bless us, to glaze us, to beautify us with his glory.

After he glazes us he puts us under fire again even hotter at 2300 degrees F to ensure the glaze is permanent. God is burning his blessings into us, ensuring no one can remove his blessings. Often we have reached a point in our walk with Christ and we fell he will now allow us to go through anything because we are living for him daily. Know that God has need of us in the field and it will cause us to go through the fire only so he can continue to bless us!

God is the Potter

God is the potter, we are the clay. God is powerful and mighty, just as a potter can create and recreate a beautiful sculpted work of art; our Father in Heaven can create a greater work of art. God is mighty and we must stop to recognize is sovereignty. God is Holy in word and in deed. God is greater than a potter creating china, vases, or pots. He is the greatest sculptor.

We must not allow air bubbles to cause us to explode.

We must not become so dense; we never make it to the potter’s wheel. We don’t want to be as clay marred in his hands and cause him to create a new pot.

We must allow God to remove sin, trim people out of our lives, and create a hollow center so he can fill it with his Holy Spirit.  We must allow him to send us through the bisque firing that we may come out as his beautiful sculpted work of art.  

We Are God’s creation?

Let go and Let God Create!

God Bless you!
Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

 

 

 

 

 

Live for the Applause......

Monday Motivation

Topic: Live Quiet, Mind Your Business, and Do your Job

 

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12
Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before. Then people who are not Christians will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others.

Lady Gaga has a song out that she lives for the applause. It is easy to allow social media and celebrities to dictate who we are, but only God’s word can guide us to who we are in Christ. We see fame and glory and we begin to desire (covet) that in our lives. We slowly begin to believe the world’s way is the best way.

We must understand there is only one that should get the applause and the glory. When we begin to desire the fame and glory for ourselves we begin to worship ourselves and value ourselves over God (Exo 20:3-4). This is why we have to be careful to feed our spirit and not our flesh. When we continually feed our flesh with what we see and hear on TV, radio, and social media we believe what we see and hear. Our light is to shine so that our Father will get the glory. If we are shining and they do not see our Father we are worshipping ourselves (Matt 5:16). When we feed our spirit with God’s word and God’s way we are fulfilled in ways applause from the world cannot provide.

We have to fill our minds with God and his word so that we can keep our eyes focused on him. The lust and desires of this world will only give us temporary satisfaction and we will lose out on eternal salvation ( Matt 16:26).  

God’s word says to practice being quiet. Meaning practice holding our peace; don’t create a stir every opportunity we have. This means don’t live for the world’s applause. Live for Jesus to say well done my good and faithful servant (Matt25:21). Live for God to call us friend (Jam 2:23, Isa 41:8, 2 Chr 20:7). That is the greatest applause, when God is pleased with our lives.

We should mind our business and refrain from meddling in others. If we find ourselves always busy and never accomplishing anything, we are busy bodies. If we are always meddling and prying in the affairs of others, we are busy bodies. The media has TV shows dedicated to gossip. The media has TV shows dedicated to reality TV, engaging us to watch, tweet on the lives of others. Minding others business has become integral to our culture, we begin to believe this is they way God has called us to live. We need to be more concerned with our Father's business in heaven and less concerned with affairs of this world.

God called us to mind our own business. We should not worry what the person next to us is doing, we should focus on what we should be doing. We should also mind our business in work and in our personal lives. We should work as if we are working unto the Lord regardless of what anyone else is doing (Col 3:23-24). We should work to let our light shine as God called us to shine (Matt 5:16). God will give us the reward when we work unto him.

God calls us to be quiet, to hold our peace.

The world tells us to live for the applause.

 

God calls us to mind our business, the world gives us media that constantly meddles in the affairs of others.

God calls us to work the world gives us get rich quick schemes.

Be quiet, mind your own business and work as if you are working unto the Lord.

 

Remember we are living to live again!

 

God Bless you!

Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

 

 

 

Calling for Prayer

TGIF's Prayer
Topic: Calling for Prayer

Luke 18:1
....men ought always to pray, and not to faint

Stats

667,097 homeless people in the U.S 100 million homeless worldwide Avg personal debt per citizen $49,536 800 divorces yesterday 2.1 million people are in prison in the US right now 770 million people in the world without safe drinking water North Korea opposes any religion. 6,000 Christians are in prison and face detention torture and public execution.   Most holy and righteous God you are the King of the universe. You are Lord Almighty, strong and powerful. You do all things well. We praise your name forever and ever. You are our strong tower in you do we seek and run to in time of need. You alone are exalted on high. We stand on one accord praying for this nation and the world. Your word says men should pray and not faint and we are standing in the gap praying for the homeless in this nation and in the world. We pray for the over 100 million men, women, and children that are living on the streets and in the slums all across the world. We pray for shelter for your people. We pray for protection for the homeless children. We come against predators seeking to use, abuse, and exploit homeless people especially homeless children. We pray for employment and housing for all people globally.  We pray for safe drinking water, food and shelter globally. We pray for wisdom, knowledge & financial planning in our households. You have called us to be the lender and not the borrower. Help us to move from debt to abundance. We come against debt and the bondage of debt in the name of Jesus. We loose financial freedom in the name of Jesus. We pray for marriages all over the world, for what you put together let no man put asunder. We pray for the health of marriages where vows have been made to you. We pray that you are the head of marriages and you enter into their hearts and minds and give them the courage and the strength to focus on you and allow you to restore that which is broken and destroyed. Help each and every married couple honor their vows to you and submit to your will, and allow you to minister to their hearts. We pray for restoration and true peace and joy in marriages. We pray for the wrongfully imprisoned nationally and globally. We pray that you send relief to those that have been wrongfully accused and imprisoned. We pray that they would be as Paul and Silas in prison singing hymns to you and saving other prisoners. We pray for the repeat offenders and the one time offenders that they would find you in prison and give their life to you. We pray for persecuted Christians all over the world. North Korea ranks number 1 in persecuting Christians. We pray for salvation for their leader Kim Jong-Un. We pray for salvation for the 2.5 million people in North Korea. We pray for protection for the 400,000 Christians in North Korea. We repent of our sins and anything we are doing to hinder our prayers. We cry out to you and request your blessing over all that has been prayed for. We pray that you would send your angels of protection to surround your people and heal as only you can heal. Deliver us most Holy God as only you can. Deliver and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We pray that you would protect us and keep us in your will. We are praying for salvation for our families and for the men, women, and children all over the world. We pray for peace in Jerusalem and peace all over the world. We love you and thank you for being God Almighty. We thank you for sending Jesus to save us from our sins  the Lamb of God. Psalms 27 The Lord is my light and my salvation so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident. The one thing I ask of the Lord the thing I seek most is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple. For he will conceal me there when troubles come; he will hide me in his sanctuary. He will place me out of reach on a high rock. Then I will hold my head high above my enemies who surround me. At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy, singing and praising the L ord with music. Hear me as I pray, O Lord. Be merciful and answer me! My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.” And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.” Do not turn your back on me. Do not reject your servant in anger. You have always been my helper. Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me, O God of my salvation! Even if my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will hold me close. Teach me how to live, O Lord. Lead me along the right path, for my enemies are waiting for me. Do not let me fall into their hands. For they accuse me of things I’ve never done; with every breath they threaten me with violence. Yet I am confident I will see the Lord ’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.  Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

Don’t allow a spiritual traffic jam to re-route your blessing

Thursday's Awakening
Topic: Don’t allow a spiritual traffic jam to re-route your blessing
Genesis 32:24-26
This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!”
But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

How bad do we want God?
Are we willing to fight for our blessing?
Jacob wrestled with God all night long until he blessed him. God dislocated his hip and he continued to hold on to God. Jacob continued to withstand the pain until God blessed him.

Many of us are in need of a blessing but we only hold on long enough until our hip is dislocated and we let go. We often give up too easily. Sometime we have to go through some pain before we will gain.
Usually we talk ourselves out of a blessing. We begin to speak against our blessing before it is able to manifest.

Sometimes our blessings are on its way to us and it hits traffic. Spiritual traffic jams often delay our blessing but. Keep the faith and know the traffic will eventually clear. A spiritual traffic jam is when the angel of the Lord is delivering our blessing and spiritual wickedness sees we are about to receive a blessing and tries to intercept it. The more we hold on to our blessings our blessings will continue to stay the course.

If we begin to lose hope during our spiritual traffic jams and begin to speak against our blessing our delay turns into denial. The same way we believed our blessing and it was on its way, we can speak against our blessing and it will never make it to us, its intended destination.

If we put an address in our navigation and we decide we no longer want that address and we change it will no longer navigate to its previous destination. It is the same with our blessings. When we pray for something then speak against it our power works both ways. When we pray for it, believe it is coming. When we pray against it, believe it is not coming.

“I will never get that _____” Believe you will never get it. “God never blesses me” Our words have power. When we speak, it begins to activate and will manifest. God told Adam to name all the animals and whatever he named them they were. We have the same power. When we speak our words have power.

Continue to pray, continue to hold on. Your blessing is coming.

Don’t allow a spiritual traffic jam to re-route your blessing. Trust that the traffic jams will come but they will soon pass (Daniel 10:12-14). While your blessing is caught in a spiritual traffic jam, hold on to God’s unchanging hands.

Examples of Holding On

Dr. Seuss' first children's book, And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street, was rejected by twenty-seven publishers. The twenty-eighth publisher, Vanguard press, sold six million copies of the book.

You can have 27 spiritual traffic jams but the blessing is still on its way.

Albert Einstein did not speak until he was four years old and didn't read until he was seven. His teacher described him as "mentally slow, unsociable and adrift forever in his foolish dreams." He was expelled and refused admittance to Zurich Polytechnic School. The University of Bern turned down his Ph.D. dissertation as being irrelevant and fanciful.

You have to know if God be for you who can be against you? It doesn’t matter what people say, it only matters what God says. Hold on until he blesses you.

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor for lack of ideas. Disney also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.

You are never too old to hold on for your blessing.

Colonel Sanders had the construction of a new road put him out of business in 1967. He went to over 1,000 places trying to sell his chicken recipe before he found a buyer interested in his 11 herbs and spices. Seven years later, at the age of 75, Colonel Sanders sold his fried chicken company for a finger-lickin' $15 million!

Hold on to God no matter the trial or tribulation. When our hip is dislocated, know that he is the greatest healer and we must continue to hold on. God will never leave us or forsake us. Although it may look as if the blessing isn’t coming continue to pray and the blessing will chase us down wherever we are.

Do we want God bad enough to hold on when we are in distress, tired, and weary?

Do we want God bad enough when our joints are dislocated and we can barely get out of bed?

Do we want God bad enough to wrestle all night long until he blesses us?

Matthew 5:6
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Receive the blessings of the Lord. Don’t put a new destination in the navigation because of a spiritual traffic jam.

Trust God and know if you are willing to fight for him you will receive him.

God Bless you!

Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

 

Who Are Your Benefits With?

Monday Motivation
Topic: Who are your benefits with?
Psalm 103

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,"
 

At a certain maturity in our career when seeking employment or pursuing a business venture we desire a good benefit package. We will either make enough money to pay for our own benefits or we will rely on a solid benefit package.

The benefit package is only as good as the employer. Certain jobs have certain benefits or perks. Before an agreement is made the terms and conditions are explicitly explained.

In entering in service with The Lord God lays out his benefit package, salary, growth strategy, goals, and the bonus plan for us to make an informed decision.

God is an equal opportunity employer and we will never be denied employment. Some of us look for fortune 500 companies to work for or we work for ourselves. Either option we are looking for benefits.

God owns the heaven and the earth there isn't a greater employer. When we decide to take a position in God's Kingdom we have lifetime benefits. Our stocks will never go down. Our retirement will be in tack. Our checks will always clear.

God's Benefits

God loads us with daily benefits. Psalm 103
God heals our disease
He removed all of our write ups, performance improvement plans, & breech of contract from us.
He knows our weakness and specializes in our weakness not in our strengths for he remembers we are as dust.

Psalms 103:2-6

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.

God knows us and he know the best position for us. He will never give us a task we can not handle and we will never do more for him than he will do for us. He knows the best coverage for us because he created us. God can heal our disease but we must obey him. If he says exercise we must exercise. If he says change our diet we must change our diet. He is still God but he is not wasteful. He is not going to heal us if we continue to destroy what he has created.

Psalms 103:14-16

For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.

God know us and he knows what we need. There is a cost to God's benefit package.

Cost of Benefits

Our cost for the benefit package is praise. Our co-pay is to obey God. Our deductible is prayer. Our coverage is written in his word.

When we wake we must give God praise. The angels in heaven give God praise throughout the day we are constantly receiving benefits and we forget to praise. We just inhaled give him praise. Our eyes just read this line give him praise. We just had a thought give him praise.

Obeying God is easy when we read his word. When we read God's word it feeds our spirit and gives our spirit the strength it needs to override our flesh. When our spirit is empty our flesh is filled and although we want to do right we haven't given our spirit any fuel to control our flesh. The only way to obey God is to feed our spirit as it will yield to the Father.

We must pray, prayer opens the door to let God into our life. Prayer keeps us in communication with our Father. Almost all relationships fail due to lack of communication. God communicates with us through his word and we communicate to him through prayer. One sided relationships are not fruitful.

Our cost for the benefit package is praise. Our co-pay is to obey God. Our deductible is prayer. Our coverage is written in his word.

Praise, Obey, Pray, Read

Pray

 

Lord Almighty, You are a father shows compassion to his children. You do not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is your steadfast love toward us. You load us daily with benefits. We bless your name today and forever. Forgive us for not reading our benefit coverage, forgive us for neglecting to praise you in all things. Forgive us for forgetting to pray. Thank you for employing us in your Kingdom. We are not worthy but you still love us with a steadfast love and we thank you for your love. We thank you for your benefits. We thank you for your remembering we are as dust. Help us to love you and obey you. We know sin is always before us. Help us to resist and submit to your righteousness. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen


Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

Drive Through Car Wash or Detail

Saturday Morning Praise
Topic: Are you going to wash this morning?
Isaiah 64:6
But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all our righteousness's are like filthy rags;

We have a ritual every morning we get up and we wash and clean our body & brush and floss our teeth. We wash because we know if we don't by the end of the day we will begin to have an odor. If we wait all week our body will reek.
Our mouth will begin to grow a yellowish to green coating on our teeth and gums and our breath will stink.
Our nails will have black grit underneath.
If we wait a month we will begin to look and smell as if we live on the streets.

It is the same spiritually. When we have not spiritually washed all week we begin to stink.
When we have filled our minds with dirt and filth all week, we expect one shower will cleanse us when we go to church on the weekend.

When we see the homeless we think we are better than them, we often feel pity for them, but we ourselves are filthy. We have not spiritually washed all week. We haven't allowed God to cleanse our minds or our hearts. We have filled our minds with dirt and filth and our actions and thoughts begin to smell.

Some of us are wallowing in mud week after week, month after month and never take a bath.
We are cursing our brothers and sisters.
We have attitudes a soon as someone says or does something to us.
We are angry, spiteful, demeaning, cunning, stubborn, & rebellious.
We are complaining, bickering, & gossiping.
We are lazy because our filth is weighing us down.
We are lying, stealing, & cheating.
We are fornicating, and engaging in immoral acts.
We are lusting after the flesh and things of this world.
We are haughty & vain, worshipping ourselves.
We are depressed, anxious, and fearful.
Yet we get up everyday, wash, and perpetrate cleanliness.

Only God can cleanse us and keep us clean. Only Jesus can change our hearts. The Holy Spirit will keep us from getting dirty after we are clean.

We don't go a day without washing naturally and we can't go a day without allowing God to cleanse us spiritually.

Only God can understand our errors. Only God can cleanse us from secret faults (Psa 19:12). Our  dirt in our belly button, behind our ears, and in between our toes are our secret faults. It's the dirt no one can see or smell but us.
It's the dirt inside the car, hiding behind the tinted windows, under the hood and in the trunk.

We have to ask God to sprinkle us with his water. When God cleanses us we shall be clean. When we keep ourselves in God's word and when we obey his Spirit we shall be clean.

Ezekiel 36:25
25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

In our righteousness we are as filthy rags, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, by perfecting holiness in the fear of God (2 Corinthians 7:1).

Let us draw near to God that he will draw near to us. Let us stop going through the drive through car wash and let's get our car detailed!
Let God under the hood & inside the car. Let him in our heart.
Let him clean our dashboards, trim, console, leather, & carpet. Let him in our thoughts.
Let him shine our windows & glass. Let him give us a facial. Let him give us his light.
Let him clean our pedals, gas tank, rain gutters and trunk. Let him guide our actions.
Lets stop shining on the outside stinking on the inside.
Let's be of one mind, the mind of Christ.

James 4:8
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

We were born in sin and shaped in iniquity the only way we can be cleaned if God washes us thoroughly from our  transgressions and cleanses us from our sins as it is always before us ( Psa 51:1-3).

 

Stop going through the drive through car wash and let God give us the ultimate detail package.

Stop smoking and putting trash in our car.

Let's get purged with hyssop, so we will be clean.

Let's get washed by God so we can be whiter than snow (Psalms 51:7).

Let God's air freshener, His Holy Spirit keep us clean.

Let's shine so everyone can see God's glow!

 Pray

God Almighty, you are the Most High God. You created us and only you know how to clean us. Forgives us for all unrighteousness. Help us to turn away from our wicked ways and turn towards you. Purge us with hyssop so we will be clean. Wash us so we will be whiter than snow. Help us to walk in your righteousness. Help us to have a desire and a thirst for you. We love you and we thank you for not cutting us off in the midst of our filth and giving us an opportunity to get ourselves detailed by you. Teach us to allow you to clean us daily. Spray your fragrance on us that we will have your aroma. In Jesus name we pray. Amen

God Bless You!

Read

Psalms 51:7, Jeremiah 2:22, Jeremiah 4:14, Acts 22:16, 2 Corinthians 2:14-16

 Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

Do you need a bit and bridle?

Thursday's Declaration
Topic: Do you need a bit and bridle?

The book of psalms is considered the heart of the Old Testament. Psalms means praise or hymns in Hebrew. Psalms 32 is described as a Maschil which means giving instruction.

Psalms 32:8-9
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go:
I will guide thee with mine eye.
Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding:
whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you.

Principal & Teacher

God is going to instruct us and teach us the way to go.
Instruction is a command. It is a one sided conversation. When God says go we should go. When he commands us to move we should move.

When we purchase and item that requires assembly it comes with instructions. When we read the instructions we assemble it properly and quickly. When we try to ignore the instructions, we assemble it with missing parts or it takes longer. How are we going to live our lives? Are we going to follow God's instruction and plan for us or are we going to assemble with missing parts?

When God gives instructions, keep calm and follow them. God's word says he would also teach us.
Teaching is explaining the instruction. When God teaches us, he causes us to gain an understanding. Instruction and teaching does not happen simultaneously. When we receive instruction the understanding may not come until years later. We gain an understanding through the experience. We can experience it by going through it ourselves, by hearing it, by seeing it, or divine revelation.

Think about an instruction God gave you and the understanding came later. Think about how it was a blessing you obeyed. Also, think about a time God gave you instruction and you didn't listen and the understanding and consequence came later.
Reflecting on that will help you say "yes" when God is giving you instruction in the future. It will help you to trust in his counsel.

Guidance Counselor

"I will guide thee with mine eye".

When God guides us he does this by advising us. Having a guidance counselor in everyday life is necessary. In high school and grade school they provide each student with a guidance counselor. The school knows that even though the kids have been given instruction and they are getting an understanding, they will face roadblocks . When those roadblocks arise the guidance counselor is there to provide them with the tools to bypass those roadblocks. The guidance counselor also anticipates potentials issues and gives them the tools to avoid or work through those issues. The guidance counselor also assist them with advancing to the next level. They are instrumental to their overall success. They keep a eye on them by reviewing their progress, ensuring they will continue to advance. They are also there when they fall to help them get back up and get back on track.

God is our guidance counselor along our journey. He will advise us and watch over us. We are not alone when he gives us an instruction, he sent us a Comforter. He does not leave us to fend for ourselves. He guides and directs our path. He picks us up when we fall and puts us back on track.

Bit & Bridle

 

When God is instructing us, teaching us, guiding us, and watching over us, he wants us to be obedient.

"Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding:
whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you (Psa 32:9)."

 

When we disobey we lack understanding, we are ignorant. We can't get an understanding until we obey, until we follow instruction.

 

They use a bit and bridle when guiding a horse or mule. A bridle is used to control the animal from the head to the neck. I don't want to get lost in explaining each part of the bridle but here are a few parts.

Crownpiece goes over the horse's head

Cheekpiece attaches to the crownpiece and runs down the side of the cheeks

Throatlatch prevents the bridle from coming off the head

Lip strap prevents the horse from grabbing the latch with his lip to remove it.

Blinders to prevent the horse from seeing peripherally

The bit goes into the mouth resting on the sensitive interdental spaces of the horses teeth.

Reins attach the bridle to the bit.

 

God is saying if he gives us instruction don't be like the mule that have no understanding. Don't be like the horse that needs to be guided and controlled with force, by controlling his head and pressing against the sensitive portions of his mouth to get him to obey. Don't have God give you a toothache for you to go to the dentist.

 

Plainly explained "Don't be dumb" rebellion is the a sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is a sin of idolatry (1Sam 15:23). When we disobey God we make ourselves a god and we begin to worship ourselves.

 

"Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about (Psa 32:10).

 

Anytime we sin against God we are wicked. God said we will have many sorrows when we are wicked. We will have many spiritual toothaches. We will have and abundance of pain, anguish and grief when we are against God.

 

If we trust him, follow his instructions, glean from what he teaches us, and seek his counsel, mercy shall compass us.

 

Mercy compassing us is, God's kindness, God's goodliness, God's favour, and God's faithfulness completely revolving around us. Its his favor and loving-kindness being on every side of us. Can you visualize every step we take his gifts are right there. His mercy is like the secret service sweeping the area, removing threats, giving us aerial and ground protection. Protecting us from harm, giving us provision, and working things out on our behalf.

 

After knowing that we have no choice but to do as the writer instructs.

"Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart (Psa 32:11)."

God is going to instruct us
God is going to teach us
God is going to guide us
During this time he is watching over us.
We are not going to need a bit or bridle, we are going to obey.
God is going to surround us with his mercy
We are going to rejoice in God!

 

Pray

Lord you are Mighty. You are the warrior who saves us (Zep 3:17). We love you and thank you for instructing, teaching, guiding, and surrounding us with your mercy. Forgive us for the times we required a bit and bridle. Help us to obey when we don't understand. Help us to know that understanding comes with obeying. Help us to completely trust in your direction. We sing praises to you, we rejoice with an upright heart. In Jesus name. Amen.

 Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

Wednesday Declaration/ Calling for Prayer

Wednesday Declaration
Topic: Calling For Prayer

 Yesterday stats as of 10pm
In the world there were 19,026 deaths of children under 5 yrs.

There were 105,154 abortions yesterday. 860 mothers died giving birth yesterday.

In the US there are 37.5 million people on anti- depressants.

Most Heavenly Father, King of the universe. You are the Most High God. You said men should always pray and not faint (Luke 18:1). We come to you with a humble heart offering up the sacrifice of praise. We love you Lord. We praise your holy and precious name. We magnify you on today.

 

We realize if you snatched your breath away for even five seconds from earth, oceans would evaporate and bleed into space, since without oxygen it would turn into unbound free gas; every building with concrete would turn into dust as your oxygen is what gives it its rigidity. We realize we would not hear you as our inner ear would explode due to lack of air pressure.

 

We realize if you take your breath away from earth for five seconds, everyone would burn from the sun as there would be no oxygen to block the UV rays, the sky would no longer be blue but would turn black. Without your oxygen every living cell would explode into gas instantly. We realize without your oxygen the earth's crust would crumble as it is made of 45% oxygen; therefore we would all have a free fall as the earth would crumble under our feet. We realize your oxygen supplies life and stability in everything we do. 

 

We recognize your sovereignty. We recognize your omnipotence. We recognize that earth can not survive without your breath for 5 seconds. Forgive us for not recognizing your grace. Forgive us for desiring things that have no value. Thank you for the air we breathe & the oxygen we need. Thank you for keeping your breath in the earth. We are not worthy to come before you, even in our righteousness we are as filthy rags (Isa 64:6). Your word says you looked for someone to stand in the gap and pray and there was no one (Eze 22:30). We are here today standing in the gap. Praying for the world and praying for the nation.

We are praying for the children of the world, that they would be free of cancer, deadly disease, physical abuse, & childhood suicide. Praying for complete healing in our youth, both mental and physical. Your word said with your stripes we are healed ( Isa 53:5). We come against bullying and homicide among our youth. 

We are praying that mother's would live and not die during childbirth. We are praying for healthy moms and healthy babies all over the world.

 We come against the spirit of depression and all mental illnesses in the name of Jesus. We pray that all men, women and children would prosper and be in health even as their soul prospers (3 John 1:2).

 

We come against the spirit of imprisonment. We come against the desire to commit crimes, habitual offenders, hoarders, men and women that desire abuse. We speak your right hand of righteousness over the lives of men and women all over the world. We loose right mindedness in your people. We speak right thinking in your people in the name of Jesus.

 

Most holy and righteous God please look upon our family, our household, our church, our town, our state, our country and heal as only you can. Deliver us as only you can.
Create in us a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within us. Cast us not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from us. Restore unto us the joy of thy salvation; and uphold us with thy free spirit (Psa 51:10-12).

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
God Bless you!

 Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here

 

 

God's Got It!

Monday Motivation 

Topic: God's Got It

Isaiah 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee;
yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

When you read the above scripture, read it slow and read it at least three times with the punctuation. I gave a lot of definitions in this post; I wanted to hopefully bring the text alive, the way God had given it to me. I hope you will be blessed by God's love in his scripture. 

God says fear not (fear is the absence of faith). Means do not worry, do not be afraid. He could have placed a period and made it a final statement after “fear not” but he continued. 

He placed a semicolon (;) which means there are two independent thoughts that aren't separate enough to require a period.

The reason we shouldn't have any fear is because God is with us.  

God loves us so much he wants us to really understand his point. 
Interestingly, The Lord still didn't add a period after that statement.

He added a colon. A colon (:) means the writer is separating two thoughts to further expand or illustrate the previous point.  He wants us to understand this point so much he further illustrates, to give us a vivid picture. 

“be not dismayed”

God is saying don't feel distress or stressed when something unexpected comes.

God is saying don't look away as if you are looking for someone to help and you don't know who is going to help.

Don't look in bewilderment.  

Don't lose courage.
Don't put your head down as if the fight is already over.
Don't give up.
Don't give in.
Don't have any doubt in his abilities. 

God not only doesn't want us to fear but he doesn't want us to stress over any issue because he’s “got it”. 

 Isaiah 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee:
be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee;
yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

God doesn't stop with don't stress, he doesn't put a period yet, he goes on to say that he is our God. He is our ruler.

He is our Creator.
He is Supreme to us.
He is our maker.
He is our Daddy!

He is saying his name is on the line. He is our God. HE said he will strengthen us. “He’s Got It”

Are you having a day where things didn't go exactly as you expected? 

Did someone give you some news that left you feeling a little discouraged?

Were you left thinking "really", "are you kidding", "You can't be serious?", " unbelievable"! 

Have you had any of those moments recently?

You know the saying "Be careful the company you keep" " you are who you hang with"

When we stay in God's company he transfers some of Him to us.
When he strengthens us, he gives us more of him. The more we stay with him, the more we have of him. 
God is the vine and we are the branch, we are connected to him, and all of our nutrients come from him. 
All of our ideas, thoughts, power, & strength come from Him. 

 

We now understand our existence is purely based on our connection to him. Without that connection we are dead, we are lifeless. When we are connected to the true and living, most powerful, Almighty God, we literally have nothing to fear, we have no stress.  

We have access to the best secret service in the universe, the top Doc, the best lawyer, and access to the World Bank.

We have everything we need in Jesus.  There isn't anything anyone, can say or do to us, that Our God cannot handle. 

He said he is our God. He said he would strengthen us. Meaning he would give us good courage, he would makes us stronger than before, he would establish us, he would fortify us, he would confirm us, he would cause us to prevail!!

 

Isaiah 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee:
be not dismayed; for I am thy God:
I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

God still wasn't finished he goes on to say "yea".

Yea means to introduce a stronger more accurate definition than the previous. God is saying, if we didn't just "get it" “that I Got it” I am going to emphasize it, and confirm it again, so we can further understand.

"I will help thee" did you hear Him?

It's that soft whisper when we are going through something and God says 
"I got it" 
"I will help you"  
"Give it to me".

We can't hear him if we are wailing, screaming, pouting or worrying. 

We can hear him when we get the news and we look up to the hills, where our help comes from, listen, and wait. 

 Isaiah 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee;
yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

When he says he will help us he says "yea" again, as if he knew we needed further confirmation.  

He says he will uphold us with the right hand of his righteousness. 
The right hand represents strength. It means the stronger more dexterous side.
God's strength is most powerful, even when we touch the hem on his garment we are healed (Mark 5:25-29). Not his garment, the hem attached to his garment. When God thinks, his thoughts appear. Our problems don't even need his strong side but he gives it to us. 

He said he would uphold us with his strongest strength. He could have said he was simply going to uphold us.

To understand his strength, he holds the water in all the earth in his palm (Isa 40:12).

God said he is upholding us with his right hand, not just his palm, his strongest hand.....means he is going to sustain us, keep us, maintain us, hold us, support us, and he is going to retain us.

 

Isa 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee;

yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

God doesn't want us to worry because he is with us.  He gave us a run-on sentence to tell us, HE is all we need!

He wanted you to know, fear not, don't be dismayed, don't stress or worry. 

Repeat until you believe and apply it.

God is with me. 

God will help me. 
God will strengthen me. 
God will uphold me. 

Be encouraged! God bless you!

 Jesus Loves You! Are you in need of salvation? Take the first step. Click here