I read that religion is humanity’s attempt to reach out to God. It said that religion involves human effort to become acceptable to God or to give meaning to one’s life. Christianity does not involve humanity’s attempt to reach God, but rather God’s attempt to reach humanity. Christianity is centered on a personal relationship between our creator God and His human creation. It’s about a loving God who initiates the relationship by revealing who He is to His human creation by coming to us in the person of Jesus. The number one enemy of Christianity today is religion. It was so from the very beginning. Jesus did not offend sinners, He offended the religious men of His day. In the person of Jesus, religion and Christianity tackled head-on. How can you distinguish religion from authentic Christianity? First, religion loves ritual. Religion delights in the status quo. Change makes it uncomfortable. Religion is a commitment to a system of beliefs, attitudes and practices. Second, religion responds to challenge with intimidation. Challenge religion, and it will attempt to intimidate you into submission. What does an attorney do when he suspects that truth may not be on his side? He buys time, attacks procedure and assassinates character. Religion is defended the same way. What about Christianity? Christianity loves the truth. Aristotle defined the truth as “saying of what is that it is, and of what is not that it is not.” In other words, truth has a standard, and is not relative. Also, Christianity responds to challenge with boldness. Why? Because knowing the truth and embracing it gives you courage. When religion and Christianity clash, what happens? Many times, people come to know Christ. When Peter and John were arrested for the first time, five thousand people were saved! Don’t be afraid when your faith is challenged by religion. It could be your opportunity to save a soul! While the religions of the world falsely require you to do something, be a good person, or observe certain rituals or traditions to get right with God, we Christians know that Jesus already did what was necessary for our Salvation. What He did was pay the penalty that God, who is holy, justly requires for sin which is death. Because of the death and resurrection of Christ, we can have eternal life. But being a Christian is more than being assured of God’s forgiveness and going to Heaven. We should not use the grace of God to indulge in sin. God wants to work with us so we can live life as He originally designed us to live. Living life by His design is the only true pathway to the purpose, meaning and significance we all desire. Religion keeps you in chains, but Christ has set us free! Love and Blessings…

John 14:6 of the Bible, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Romans 11:6 “And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.”

Romans 4:4-5 “Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.”

Deuteronomy 4:29 “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

Don’t let what the world calls a failure be the end of your story. When we walk with Jesus, His power lives within us. The Word shows us that sometimes success only comes after failure. Moses, Elijah, Paul, Peter, David, and Rehab all failed forward. But they, as we must do, continued to walk with the Lord. Jesus is our power source. You can’t say you have faith when you give up after one failed attempt. Pick yourself up and try again! Plug into your source by studying the Word, praying, fasting, and worshiping. The truth is we can’t lose as long as we are walking with Jesus. Thanks to our God, we have the victory through Jesus Christ. When we walk with Jesus, His power lives within us. When it’s your season, no giant can defeat you! No fire can burn you! No battle can turn you! No mountain can stop you! No situations or circumstances can stop you. They may slow you down, but they cannot stop you! Scripture tells us that there is a name above all other names. That name is Jesus. He has the power! All we have to do is tap into it. Whatever circumstances, trials or tribulations we are facing, they are just names which are all under one greater name, Jesus Christ! I don’t know about you but I know where my power comes from. There is power in the name of Jesus! Love and Blessings…

“Therefore God has highly exalted Him and has freely bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, that at the mention of the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of those in heaven, those on earth and those under the earth and that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the Glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

“I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13)

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It does not matter what emotional or physical battles we face, when we tap into the wisdom of the Word of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit, we are guaranteed victory! Our test becomes a testimony. Our ashes turn into beauty. Our faith overcomes our fear. Then we experience real freedom!! Love and Blessings…

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)

Visit emanne.org to receive more food for the soul!

Something I read in one of my devotions last week resonated in my soul. So I have been pondering on it and talking with God about it. I am thankful because I have become steadfast in standing on God’s promises and what He speaks to me, no matter what the enemy throws my way. I know His voice. That is a good thing, but what the devotion was teaching is how we should always fight the enemy with God’s written Word, not just what we think God said to us. Because there is no mistaken what is written. That’s what Jesus did. “It is written”, He said when the devil tried to tempt Him. Jesus also knew the voice of God He stayed in communion with Him. But in His time of temptation, He declared, “It is written.” In the first temptation, the devil challenged our Lord Jesus to prove His identity, saying, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread” (Matt. 4:3). It is interesting that our Lord did not rely on what His Father had audibly spoken over Him at the River Jordan? A voice had come from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). Yet, the Lord did not point satan to the spoken word of God. Over and over again, He declared, “It is written.” Now, if the Son of God used “it is written” to defeat the devil, how much more do you and I need to use it. Our Lord Jesus Himself showed us what to do when we are under attack by the devil. Three times He was tempted by satan in the wilderness. Each time, His response was the same, He quoted the written Word of God. Against each attack, His response was to say, “It is written” (Matt. 4:1–11).

When negative thoughts come our way, we must not give them time to take root in our heart. This correlates with the wise saying that you can’t stop birds from flying over your head, but you can surely stop them from building a nest on your head. We can’t stop the enemy from attacking our minds, but we can surely defend ourselves with the written Word. God’s Word is infallible, unshakable, and everlasting (Isa. 40:8, 1 Pet. 1:25). We can combat the enemy’s attacks, by sticking to the pattern our Lord Jesus shows us in the Bible.

Discouragement, weariness, disillusionment, shattered dreams, and unrealized goals are some of the devils favorite weapons he uses to disturb our peace. But the truth is that the enemy can only use what we allow him to use. We can go to the written Word, where God tells us that He left us with peace. No devil, you cannot have my peace, for it is written! Speak it and satan will flee just as he fled from Jesus! Love and Blessings…

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)

Some may wonder why there are people born with challenges. The world calls them disabilities or handicap. But are they? This much is clear, every human being is perfectly made by God. God is sovereign over all the earth, including the womb. He has orchestrated our very conception and existence, and every child born is fearfully and wonderfully crafted by Him. Scripture is actually filled with those who are physically handicapped. Jacob walked with a limp for the rest of his life after his midnight wrestling match with an angel. (Genesis 32:22-31). Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan was lame in both feet. (2 Samuel 9:1-12). Even Paul suffered from an unnamed “thorn” in his flesh. (2 Corinthians 12:1-10). In addition to their challenges, all of these had something else in common: not one of them was miraculously healed. So many times we gravitate toward the miracles of the Bible, and there were many. But there were many more who lived day to day with all kinds of indignities, pains and disabilities. A lot of people live today without a miraculous healing. But who is to say that the power of God cannot be even more dramatically displayed in the life of one who struggles and despite their challenges still remain steadfast. I believe the power of God is displayed all around us, in the lives of exceptional people who never experience a life-changing miracle, but are examples of godliness. They are exceptional because they are patient, kind, and treats others graciously. They love others with the love of Christ, all while enduring their challenges. That is exceptional! We know God is a God of miracles, nothing is impossible for Him. However these people are not changed. I believe there is a reason because we serve an intentional God. He makes no mistakes. Everything and everyone has a purpose. Could it be they are not changed because their purpose is to change us? They are examples of how we should live no matter our temporary setbacks. Maybe their purpose is to change how we react, feel, help, and think about others that are different from what we call normal. Think about it. Love and blessings…

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (Psalm 139:14)

Father God, although we may not always understand our circumstances, you do. You are glorified in every situation and season. Nothing is to difficult for you. So today, we just want to rest in that. We acknowledge that you are in control, and because of that, we don’t have to fear tomorrow. Today, we choose to sit in your presence and marinate in your goodness. We give you all the praise and the glory. We worship You. In the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.

The world we live in is full of uncertainties. We are overwhelmed by health issues, financial disasters, relationship crisis, or unexpected grief. Someone we love is suffering from drug abuse or battling some type of addiction. As I write someone has lost their job, and do not know how they are going to feed their family or keep a roof over their heads. The struggles are real. These are not good things. They are unwelcome realities, and sometimes our emotions take over as we process them. But we must not give in to our emotions. We still have our hope which comes from the Lord. Romans 8:28 begins with “We know”. In this scripture, God is not only telling us that all things will work out for our good, but He begins by telling us that we should know this. So no matter what is going on around us, we must claim God’s promise with total confidence and hope.  
Hope in the Bible does not mean maybe. Biblical hope refers to sure and certain expectations, which because they are still in the future, create in us a sense of belief that may not make sense to everyone. It may not even make sense to us. We just know it’s going to work out for our good. We may not know when or how, we simply know. We know this because God’s Word says so in Romans 8:28. We know this because our Redeemer lives. We know this because we have eternal life. We know Him. We know His truth no matter what lies satan, the world, or our flesh tries to feed us. We Christians should not live on might or maybes, but the Word of God. Faith and hope gives us the ability to tackle life with confidence no matter what the circumstances, because we know that the trustworthy promises of God are just as real and even greater than the circumstances surrounding us. We may not get to choose our crisis or problem, but we can choose our attitude and how we respond. Instead of giving up, we can speak that things may appear to be against me, but God’s Word said “all things” will work out for my good. We can say that simply because “we know”. Love and Blessings…

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28)  

“But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” (Romans 8:25)

On my last post I was transparent about the pity party, melt down I experienced. I am convinced it was because I took my eyes off God for a pair of seconds. A pair of seconds is all the enemy needs to talk you out of your victory or a miracle. He will have you believing how you feel and what your eyes are focused on. Where are you looking? Now is the time more than ever to keep our gaze on God and glance at the world. When I look at the world I see hatred, fear, pain, and panic. When I look at God I see love, protection, peace, and power. When I look at the world, I see desperation, death, and destruction. When I look at God I see eternal life, there is no fear, I walk in the authority and power He has given me. When I look at the world, I see lies, injustice, sickness, and the enemy. When I look at God, I see truth, healing, strength, and wisdom to defeat the enemy, seen or unseen. So l choose to keep my gaze on God who has given us power over all things, ALL THINGS! Where are you looking? Love and Blessings…

“Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!”
1 Corinthians 16:11

“Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” Luke 10:19

“That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:5

I read somewhere that spiritual conversations were on the decline. Some reasons were political and some were because of relationship disagreements. It was said “God talk” conversations were to high stake, forcing people to realize certain things about themselves or changes they needed to make within. It seems in today’s society we don’t want to offend anyone by even mentioning God. Well, my people I believe God talk is what we need now more than ever. We Christians can’t claim victory over the enemy if we are walking around scared to proclaim where our help comes from. We have victory only because He was victorious! We are here to tell the Good News of Jesus Christ. That is why God talk is so important. There are souls to be saved. The world needs us to exercise our faith. If not now, then when? People need to see beyond the darkness of the world into God’s wonderful light. To see beyond their crisis to the brightness of better days. We need to share the Word with those who are anxious and afraid. God talk assures them there is help and happiness ahead. Some blessings come soon, some come later, and some don’t come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, thank God they do come! God talk helps to develop our spiritual vision to see possibilities instead of problems. It helps us to trust God’s hidden workings and live in peace with His Plans. I challenge you this Holy Week to have a lot of God talks. And not just God talks but God walks as well. Jesus gave us a gift we can never repay, the gift of Salvation. This week let us take the time to pay it forward and give a gift that will touch someone’s heart. It can be any act of kindness, even a little God talk to soothe a soul. Love and Blessing…

“He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” Mark 16:15 NIV