“And I knew that any words and actions in this moment, like all moments, spoke powerfully of the God within me” _Author Unknown

This quote is profound. We have to be very careful of those moments. The moments where we can either pass the test or we can fail to show the God within us. When we fall short (and we will sometimes) we must be quick to repent. God is fully aware of our sinful nature and everything we do, but because Jesus lived perfect, died, and rose again, He has already purchased our perfection. God sees us as perfectly righteous in Christ. In God’s eyes we have been perfected by virtue of being joined to Jesus by faith, which frees us from needing to earn approval through perfectionism, from God or anyone else. Thank God for Jesus and the free gift of grace, God who knows everything, knew that it would be impossible for us to earn! So even though we may sin, we can be forgiven, saved, sanctified, and changed. This does not give us a free pass to sin, like Apostle Paul, we should pursue perfection and holiness because that is what Christ has called us to be. We will never be a model of perfection in this life, because this journey is a process of sanctification as we continue to learn to walk in Christ’s ways. One day we will be perfected, but in the meantime, God wants us to surrender to the work of the Spirit within us and to the commands of Scripture so that Christ can keep working in us to make us more like Him. Remember God promised us He will never leave us. He is always with us, even when we fall short. We may leave Him because sin will tear us apart, but He is always there waiting to welcome us to repent and return. We cannot let our sinful nature or this world’s chaos distract us from focusing on God. Pastor Joseph Prince stated, “We should be less sin conscious and more Christ conscious.” I agree. The devil, who is the father of sin, loves for us to focus on our wrongs instead of Christ’s righteousness. God wants us to proclaim His goodness to the world. We want others to be drawn to the Good News of the Gospel because they see it alive in us, through our triumphs, trials, and also in spite of our imperfections. It is easy to praise God and do a victory dance when God answers prayers the way we expect, or He gives us what we want when we want it. However, can we press on and praise Him even when things look tough or we don’t get what we want? Can we admit that God is our strength in our weakness? Better yet, can we praise Him for just being God? If we can do these things, then others will be drawn to God, because of the light they see in us, regardless of our situation, circumstances, or our shortcomings. God is our strength for today and our hope for tomorrow. If we trust this and focus on God’s plan for our life, His purpose, His perspective, He will guide us through our journey. And we can expect our journey to be full of peace and joy, moving forward to obtaining the ultimate prize, eternal life. Knowing this we can press on!  Love and Blessings….

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2)

“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus had also laid hold of me” (Philippians 3:12)

“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 1:6)

I have felt the pain of losing my mother, father, sister, and brothers. I have loss family members and friends. At times I  have felt abandoned and alone in the wilderness. I have not, thank God, felt the pain of losing a child. Sadly, I know parents who have. It is a lonely feeling to find yourself in the middle of a crisis or situation that you can’t explain or do anything about. I would not be honest if I said I never cried out, why Lord why? But God tells us there are some things we will never know because His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:9), and some of His plans He keeps sealed until the end of time (Revelation 10:4). But still the burden may seem more than humanly possible to bear. We need answers and we ask God why is this happening? The questions we should be asking is to ourselves, will we worship and follow God even if He does not meet our expectations? Will we follow Him even when we feel forsaken? Will we trust Him with all the challenging events of life and live in faith? Even in the midst of suffering and pain will we still pray? I now understand that the Lord uses all things to accomplish His purpose for our lives. The Lord even uses evil things that come from the evil one (Proverbs 16:4). Understanding does not make the hurt or the pain any less. And of course understanding does not make us not miss our love ones. These are hard moments and we just cannot handle this type of suffering without God, our Savior (2 Cor. 1:3-4). God is always wise, always good, always trustworthy, and He is always with us (Psalm 34:18), (Isaiah 43:2). It was only when I humbled myself and allowed the Holy Spirit to fill me completely, that this new understanding brought peace and joy in spite of my losses or circumstances. 2 Cor. 12:9). I had to ask myself, who do I think I am? Jesus, who was innocent, went through so much suffering for us. Am I who was born in sin better than Jesus who was sinless? The Father abandoned Christ while Christ bore our sins on the cross (Matthew 27:46). It was the greatest price that could be paid for our sin, Christ’s suffering (1 Peter 4:1-2).Though forsaken, Christ remained faithful (Luke 22:42). So now when tragedy's come, instead of asking God why, I lean on Him for strength, I let Him dry my tears (Rev. 21:4), and I continue to trust and pray. This is where my peace comes from. I believe God does not get angry when we have questions but there is a blessing choosing faith without questions. It leads to full surrender and peace (Philippians 4:6). Don't take my word for it, read God's Word! My prayer is that each and every one who is reading this will receive this unexplainable peace that transcends all understanding, no matter your situation or circumstance. Love and Blessings...

Those of you who are going through a storm, I have good news. The. Storm. Cannot. Stop. You. I know it seems the wind is coming at you in every direction but what you can’t see is that the wind is blowing you into the direction of God’s plans for you. What may look like a mess right now , is a miracle about to happen! I know it seems the rain will never end but we know that after the rain, comes the rainbow. Hang in there! Rainbows often indicate that the rain has passed. A rainbow is a symbol of hope, inspiration, and promise. If you are in the middle of a storm, and you are waiting for the rainbow. Remember anything magnificent often requires a battle, struggle, and patience. I urge you not to give up because that is the only way the storm will win. Peter walked on water until he took his eyes off Jesus! We all have been through, are going through, or will go through our own personal storms in this life. And in these times of pandemic and uncertainty, the entire world is going through a storm. However, we must choose to trust God and focus on Him. So much is happening and sometimes we may lose focus, but as long as we are willing, Christ is waiting and ready to catch us. Remember Peter did not sink when he took his eyes off Jesus because immediately Jesus reached out to save him. He will do the same for us. Storms can sometimes feel so overwhelming, as if you are drowning and there is no way out. It can seem like one big hopeless mess. Don’t panic. I have learned from experience that all miracles look like a mess in the beginning. Keep holding on, keep praying, keep trusting, and keep your focus on God instead of the storm. The storm is a setup for your comeback!!! Believe it, claim it, prepare for it. I don’t know about you, but I am thanking God in advance! Love and Blessings…

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremy 29:11)

” I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.” ( Genesis 9: 15-16)

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”  “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,”(A) he said, “why did you doubt?” ( Matthew 14: 28-31)

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
(2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

“But now, this is what the LORD says– he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” ( Isaiah 43:1-2)

“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)

Because we live in a world of modern technology, information is right at our fingertips. We also have the opportunity to learn from those among us who are wise and full of wisdom. However, just receiving information is not enough. Once we obtain information, it is our choice on weather we use it, how we use it, and when we use it. Some choose to do nothing. Others take it in and use it to make smart decisions, they have the ability to determine who is trustworthy, they seem to always have the perfect advice for a situation. The world calls them wise. If they are young, the world says they are wise beyond their years. They have wisdom. When this gift comes from God, it is called discernment, and it is a kind of wisdom that comes from insight as much as from learned experience and knowledge. In the Christian faith, it comes from the Holy Spirit, and is a way of having insight in determining the true nature of a situation, person, or thing.
People with the spiritual gift of discernment have it, though wisdom and discernment can be given to those who ask for it as well. Discernment is a tool God gives believers as they walk through life, though it must be understood and the believer must follow the Lord’s leading to be useful. Discernment is given by the Holy Spirit, it can allow someone to know whether a demonic of heavenly influence is over a person, place, or event. Discernment is a gift that can be requested, used, or ignored. A good example is the Holy Bible. It is our guide for daily living, it has all the information we need to live a Christian life. However it is no use if we ignore it or if we read it but do not apply it to our lives. In the New Testament, there are many verses about the difference between worldly wisdom and true discernment, warning Christians to lean on the Spirit for guidance rather than what the world says is right and wrong. In 1 Kings, 3:9, God offered King Solomon anything in the world and his answer was, "Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil.” God granted him this wisdom. And because of his wisdom and his ability to discern, he became famous and a rich man.
Discernment starts with prayer. Just like Solomon requested wisdom, the believer should ask the Spirit for guidance and discernment. We should also be willing to learn from those who are older and wiser. Consulting God in prayer, asking wise believers for their input, and reading the Scripture helps cultivate a spirit of discernment. Applying this wisdom is where the life of a believer makes the difference. Think about it, Solomon with all his wisdom, did not apply this wisdom when it came to his wives, and we see how that turned out.Christians who use spiritual wisdom, and listens to the Holy Spirit will show the characteristics of someone wise and Christ-like. Jesus showed discernment. He also taught and emphasized not seeking the wisdom of the world, which clouds true discernment.Contrary to what some may think,you don't have to have a PHD to have discernment. The wise Pharisees and Sadducees, the religious leaders of the time, were unable to identify Jesus Christ as the Messiah because they were too wrapped up in their own knowledge. As my mom used to say, "to smart for your own good." However those that the culture viewed as uneducated, simple, or foolish saw the truth. Jesus even said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children.” (Matthew 11:25). The more wisdom and discernment a Christian exercises, the stronger his or her faith. When we obtain and use our gift of discernment, we are able to determine what is right, good, and God’s will. We manifest our love for God and others just like Jesus. Love and Blessings...

Proverbs 8:5 "O simple ones, learn prudence; O fools, learn sense."

Job 12:20 - “He deprives of speech those who are trusted and takes away the discernment of the elders.”

Philippians 1:9-10 - “And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,  so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.”

Hebrews 5:14 - “But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

We all have had to deal with difficult people at some time, even within our families. Although no one enjoys dealing with difficult people, they do test our obedience to God and His Word. Difficult people can help us grow in the fruits of the spirit, build our patience, and our character. Joyce Myers calls difficult people “sandpaper” people. She says God uses them to smooth down the rough edges in our personality. I agree. We can either let them smooth our rough edges or snatch us out of character. We get to make the choice. The closer our relationship with God, the harder it is to be snatched out of character. I didn’t say it is impossible, but it is harder when we want to please God. We know God desires us to love the unlovable, be kind to the unkind, be patient in the face of ugly impatience and bless those who are cruel. His glory shines out of us into the darkness of people’s soul. Lord have mercy, it. is. not. easy to love some people. We cannot do it if we rely on our emotions. We can only do it when we rely on God and the Holy Spirit living within us. It is easy to love those who love us, help those who help us, and appreciate those who appreciate us. However that is not what scripture teaches us. According to scripture, we should love everyone, even our enemies. Trust me this does not mean we are to be foolish. Sometimes we have to love from a distance. Sometimes as hard as it may be, we have to love people enough to give them up. Not give up on them, but trust God enough to give them up to Him. We can continue to pray for them and at the same time guard our hearts. We cannot let anyone, or anything steal the peace we receive from our Lord Jesus. With that being said we must seek God to know when its time to trust Him enough to let them go. And we must continue to pray for them while we set boundaries. The one thing I know for sure is we need to show mercy and grace to all, even those who we think don’t deserve it. Why? Because Jesus does it for us every day even though we don’t deserve it. We may have been sandpaper people at some point in our lives (and some of us still are) but Christ loves us unconditional. We all need the grace of God in our lives. God wants us to love each other the same way that He loves us, unconditional. Love and Blessings…

“But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” (Matthew 5:44-45)

“Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” (Colossians 4:6)

“Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” (1 Peter 3:9)

“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he love us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved). (Ephesians 2:4-5)

We are living in a time now where there is no tolerance for violating an individual’s constitutional rights. We are told that we live in a free society and certain boundaries have to be accepted. And to some that means any and everything goes. Here’s the thing though, scripture tells us although we live in the world, we are not of the world. (Romans 12:2). What that means for Christians is that we should live by Gods standards and not the worlds. However, living by Gods standards does not make us sinless. And it certainly does not give us the right to judge others. I have said and have heard others say we should not confront anyone about their sin, because we are not supposed to judge others. We love to quote Jesus and say let him who is without sin cast the first stone. So true. But do we say this to avoid a difficult, but loving, responsibility as a Christian? Where is the line between being biblically discerning versus being judgmental? If you see your child about to run in front of a speeding car, you will do everything in your power to warn him. If you see a brother in Christ about to ruin his life by sin or by believing false, damnable doctrine, love should motivate you to do everything possible to warn him, right? Many people cite Matthew 7:1 about not judging others, but they never bother to read down to verse 6, where Jesus says, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine”. He was talking about people who can be dogs and swine! To obey verse 6, you must make some judgmental decisions about the person’s character!  We judge someone wrongly when we criticize them out of jealousy, bitterness, selfish ambition, or some other sin, rather than seeking to build them in Christ. We judge someone wrongly when we set up human standards, rather than holding to God’s Word as the standard. Paul devotes two chapters to this problem. In Romans 14, vegetarian believers were judging those that ate meat. Others observed certain days as holy and judged those that did not. In 1 Corinthians 8, the problem was not eating meat but eating meat that had been sacrificed to idols. But these are areas where the Bible does not give definitive commands. It is wrong to take our personal convictions in such areas and set them up as standards to judge those who do not share our convictions. We certainly do not want to be like the Pharisees who were focused on outward appearances, but their hearts were far from God. They judged others while they neglected God’s commandments and held instead to the traditions of men (Mark 7:6-9). We judge someone wrongly when out of a self-righteous spirit, we criticize. Perhaps you have insight on a matter that the other person lacks. Or, you have never struggled with a problem that the other person struggles with. We judge someone wrongly when we do not first judge our own sin before trying to help them with their sin.  That is Jesus’s point in Matthew 7:1-5. He does not say that it is wrong to help your brother get the speck out of his eye, but rather, before you try to do so, deal with the log in your own eye. One example I love is if you went to an eye doctor to remove a speck from your eye and he had a log protruding from his eye, you wouldn’t want him to touch your eye! If you haven’t removed the log from your own eye, you will come across as arrogant and lacking in compassion if you try to help a brother with his speck. Removing our own logs has a way of humbling us! I worked with a girl once who was always sending someone to hell based on what they did or said. We judge someone wrongly when we make a declaration about their eternal destiny. The Bible gives many tests that we can apply to ourselves to determine if our faith is genuine (1 John). We can also apply these tests to others. Jesus said, with regard to false teachers (Matt. 7:16), “You will know them by their fruits.” If a man’s conduct or teaching is not in conformity with Scripture, you may rightly conclude that at best, he is an immature believer. At worst, he may not be saved. But in the real, only God knows the heart.

Also, keep in mind that it is a sin to judge another person in your heart, even if you keep your thoughts to yourself. Judgmental words eventually will flow out of a judgmental heart, but the sin begins in the heart. There is a huge difference between being judgmental and making judgments, especially if you are trying to save a soul. I have found checking your motive and checking with God keeps the judgmental spirit away. Love and Blessings…

Romans 14

“Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. ² One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. ³ The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. ⁴ Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

⁵ One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. ⁶ Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. ⁷ For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. ⁸ If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. ⁹ For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

¹⁰ You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister^[a]? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. ¹¹ It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”^[b]

¹² So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

¹³ Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. ¹⁴ I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. ¹⁵ If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. ¹⁶ Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. ¹⁷ For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, ¹⁸ because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

¹⁹ Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. ²⁰ Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. ²¹ It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

²²So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. ²³ But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.^”