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TODAY’S INSPIRATION:PRAYER & FELLOWSHIP

I am a Pastor’s kid. I have prayed as long as I can remember. Before eating and at bedtime. On Sundays at church. I knew to pray over my food, “Lord thank you for this food”,  and at night, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.” Y’all know what I’m talking about, the cute safe prayers. I am so thankful that about four years ago, I realized the power of prayer through fellowship with our Lord. It was doing the worst storm of my life. I was broken; physically, financially, and mentally hurting. I lost everything and I was desperate. Because of my sinful pride I told no one. Thankfully I knew enough about God to know I could turn to Him. I prayed morning, noon, and night. Most of the time I was in so much pain all I could do was pray. Not the cute, I don’t want to mess up my make-up prayers, but the ugly, swollen eyes, snotty nose prayers. I opened myself up completely to God, surrendering myself to Him. God heard me. And I heard Him. I began to fellowship with Him. As I’ve said, I knew about God, but I did not know Him personally. I seeked His face through prayer, I had conversations with Him. Not like before when I would ask Him for something, and then say amen. Or when He answered my prayers and I would do a quick, “Thank you Jesus!” God’s desire is to fellowship with us. Thank God we can have a relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. When we are born-again, we are birthed into a relationship with our Heavenly Father. There is a difference between a relationship and fellowship. Some biological relationships go days, weeks, months, and even years without speaking or fellowshipping with each other. Yet still the relationship exists, even though fellowship is absent. Fellowship is a level beyond relationship. Fellowship is a matter of choice. The Bible speaks more of fellowship than it does of relationship (1 John 1:6). “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1Cor. 1:9).

During my storm when I first started to fellowship with God through prayer, there was so much negative stuff going on in my head. But I still knew His voice. He said His sheep would know His voice (John 10:27). I am thankful that He was still my Shepherd even though I had been lost. Through prayer, God heard me, and He began to heal and restore me. Then God led me to Warrior Nation Ministries. Through this ministry I learned the importance of fellowship and prayer. Prayer connects us to the power of God, which is necessary to defeat spiritual enemies, and to manifest the blessings and promises of God. The early believers knew prayer was vital. The day of Pentecost started with a prayer meeting (Acts 1:8). The disciples continued to pray as they spread the good news of Jesus around the world. I think about out of all the things the disciples could have asked Jesus to teach them, they asked that He teach them to pray (Luke 11:1). They had walked with Him for years, seen Him perform miracle after miracle. Yet they did not ask Him to teach them how to heal, how to raise the dead, or how to feed thousands of people with little? No, they asked Him to teach them how to pray. They had witnessed when Jesus prayed, things happened. Prayer was an important part of Jesus’s life. Scripture tells us how Jesus prayed or went alone to pray apart from the disciples ( Luke 5:16). Jesus prayed because of His relationship with the Father. Jesus’s relationship with the Father was the power that brought salvation to man. In Luke 11:2, Jesus does not say if you pray, He said when you pray. He expects us to pray. When we take time to pray, we take time to connect with God. To reach God in prayer, we need to take time to fellowship with Him. I used to wish I could pray like some folk, lengthy prayers with big words. Now I know that prayer is having a conversation with God, coming to Him humbly and without pretense. Listening as well as talking. Sometimes I can just sit in the mist of His presence with no words. It’s amazing how the Holy Spirit will intercede when we don’t have words to express ourselves. The Holy Spirit will help us to know what to pray and how to pray, He will help us with all kinds of prayers and request (Ephesians 6:18). When we go to our Father God in prayer and fellowship with Him, He gives us discernment, guidance, and wisdom. It is good to intercede and lift each other in prayer, but we need to know how to go to God ourselves. When we are overwhelmed, hurting, and going through challenges and tribulations, prayer is the answer. We should fellowship with God persistently and pray to Him about all matters. Nothing is too big or too small to discuss with the Lord. The Bible tells us that our prayers will be met with God’s delight (Proverbs 1:8, Psalm 149:4). The act of prayer and fellowship with our Father leads to the peace, patience, and perseverance we all so desperately need. Love and Blessings…

TODAY’S INSPIRATION: GOD IS STILL IN CONTROL!

I have no words for the craziness that is happening in our world today. I feel sad and disgusted but at the same time I see God working. Sisters and brothers we can’t allow others ignorance and hatred to cause us to forget that God is still in control! True faith is keeping your eyes on God when the world is falling apart. The Lord sent me to these scriptures so I’m going to meditate on them. Love and blessings…

“He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” (Daniel 2:21)

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6-12)

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.”  (Philippians 4)

TODAY’S INSPIRATION: A NEW THANG!

We can proclaim what we are not bringing into 2021 but unless we change from within, it’s just words. Everything, and I mean everything starts from within. We cannot expect different results if we continue to do the same thing. To stop the cycle, we must change the way we think. And please do not let 2020's trials, disappointments, and pain make you bitter, they were life lessons, let them make you better. Some things are God problems and only He can solve them. Our job is to pray, trust, and obey His Word. As my son said, "God is doing a new thing, New Year, New Season, New Normal! Thank God for the NEWNESS of life!" We don't want things to go back to "normal". God was not pleased with normal. In spite of everything, if you are reading this, you made it through 2020. Some did not.  So let us be thankful and rejoice in the Lord for His mercy and grace that is new every morning! In 2021 we are going to let God take the wheel. It may not be easy for some, but if you allow Him, the Holy Spirit who lives within us, will guide us. I am expecting great things in 2021 for those who love the Lord. Be open for spiritual transformation! God's doing a new thang in 2021,let's be ready to receive it, mind, body, and soul! Love and Blessings…

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2)

"And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins." (Mark 2:22)

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." (Isaiah 43:10)

"The Lord watches over those who obey him, those who trust in his constant love. He saves them from death; he keeps them alive in times of famine. We put our hope in the Lord; he is our protector and our help. We are glad because of him; we trust in his holy name. May your constant love be with us, Lord, as we put our hope in you." (Psalm 33:18-22) 

TODAY’S INSPIRATION: GOD’S TIMING

Some things I had planned for 2020 never happened. And some things I did not plan happened. Some good, some not so good, and some just downright devastating (COVID-19). And yet I am going into 2021 with high expectations and big plans. It is human nature for us to attempt to control our circumstances. We plan to make things happen and we plan to prevent things from happening. Sometimes we ask God for things, and even though we believe He will answer our prayers, we try and help with the plans and the timing in which He will grant them. Guess what? God does not need our help. Our heavenly Father has His ear to our hearts desires and request, and He puts His plan into action, His plan at His timing. There is an old saying, “when we plan, God laughs.” I don’t know about that but scripture says there is an appointed time for everything. We humans have the tendency to want what we want when we want it. And sometimes what we want is not good for us at that particular time or maybe we are not ready. God knows the desires of our heart and if we seek Him first, He will give them to us at the appointed time. When is the appointed time? God’s timing often feels like a long, desperate delay. But God’s timing is perfect. Why? Because He is all knowing, and we are not. God’s perfect timing does two things; It grows our faith while we are forced to wait and trust in God, and it makes certain that He, and He alone, gets the glory and praise. Because Christ is supreme above all and we are complete in Him, we have all we need. God knows the desires of our hearts and He delights in giving them to us, even more than we can imagine. God loves us and wants to bless us abundantly; all He wants from us is to trustingly keep our feet on the path He sets for us to walk. Life will bring sorrow and pain, trials, and tribulations. But God will also bring seasons of victory and triumph, healing, and laughter. God will bring restoration in His own way and in His own time. And speaking from my experience, He will give you more than you ask for. That is why despite 2020’s challenges, I can step into 2021 expecting God to do great things in my life. I pray as you prepare for 2021, you too will be encouraged my brothers and sisters. Trust our Father God to provide all your needs and desires. Trust His timing. 2020’s adversity is God’s opportunity to usher us into a season of peace, prosperity, and blessings! Happy New Year!

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.” (Jeremiah 29:11-12)

“Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O Lord, You know it all.” (Psalm 139:4)

“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)

“Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

“Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.” (Psalm 27:14)

TODAY’S INSPIRATION: PRAY

Prayer is the best place to reveal our true feelings. Unlike humans, God is not fooled by our attempts to disguise our true feelings, to put on a false smile, to cover our anguish with pretty words. We can bring Him our hopes, fears, doubts, even our anger. God already know us better than we know ourselves Sometimes all we need is a place to express ourselves without fear of reprisal or judgement. Jesus understands that. In our Father we will find mercy, not punishment, comfort, not reproach. Prayer operates as a safeguard against acting on our feelings. I’m sure Jesus didn’t feel like going to the cross, that is why He asked God that this assignment be taken from Him. But just as quickly He said “your will, not mine.” Jesus prayed until God strengthened Him and waited until His feelings were in line with the Father’s will before leaving the garden. Life’s trails and storms will wreak havoc on our feelings. But passionate prayer gives us and outlet to express them and bring them in line with God’s will before moving ahead. Luke 22:42 Philippians 4:6 2 Corinthians 5:7 Proverbs 28:26 1 John 3:20 Proverbs 3:5-6 Romans 8:28 #prayerispowerful #praywithoutceasing #faithoverfeelings

TODAY’S INSPIRATION:GIFTS FROM GOD

Happy Birthday Jesus!  Lord what gift could we possibly offer You, You who own everything? What would make You happy? Is it forgiveness, gratitude, more time studying your Word? Spreading the Good News? I believe these things will please you. This CHRISTmas may we give God the birthday gift that will keep on giving. Spending more time with Him in prayer, growing in our faith. Loving one another and helping those in need. Who else do you know that gives gifts on their birhday? Lord thank you for waking me this morning on Your birthday. Thank you for giving me my first gifts of the day, lungs to breathe,  eyes to see, the ability to walk, and a heart that beats. Help me today to use these gifts to love , help,  and to see all Your beauty in this ugly World. Help me today to keep my gaze on you and my glance on the world. And when I do glance at the world, help me to help somebody see You through my eyes! You are an awesome God!!! Merry CHRISTmas brothers and sisters. As we celebrate today, let us remember to invite God to His birthday celebration! He is the reason for the season! Love and Blessings…

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)

“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:11-12)

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”  (Isaiah 9:6)

“On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.” (Luke 2:21)

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

TODAY’S INSPIRATION:PRESS ON!

 “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)

TODAY’S INSPIRATION: PRESENTS OR PRESENCE?

Pin on God's Words

Most of us love to receive presents. Gifts are an expression of love and caring for each other. When the wise men brought gifts for baby Jesus, it was an expression of joy over His birth. When we give presents to each other on Christmas day, it should also be an expression of our joy over the birth of Jesus. The beauty of Christmas is not in the presents but in His Presence. I believe anytime we show love for one another, it pleases God. However sometimes we get so caught up in the presents, we forget the reason for the season, the birth of Christ, His Presence. God has already showed us that the most precious gift cannot be bought or sold. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). In giving us this gift, God gave us His Son’s Presence. And all He wants is for us to spend time with Him. The reward we get from God’s Presence is far greater than any present we could ever receive. And passing His Presence on to others is the most valuable gift we can give. Material things come and go and then can come again. But we can never get time back, which is why it is so precious. Nothing is as important as spending time in His Presence. Nothing is as precious as spending time with each other. Christmas is a time to celebrate the gift of Jesus. What better way to celebrate this amazing gift from God than to spend time in His Presence? Scripture says we should seek God first and to do that we must spend time with Him. Life becomes peaceful and we get this unspeakable joy when we welcome the goodness of God’s constant Presence living within us. Christmas is a great time to spread this joy by giving our presence to others. The greatest gift I have ever received was the presence of my best friend when I really needed her. She has given me much, but her presence in my life, has been a blessing. Even though at this time we may not be able to physically visit, this did not catch God by surprise, He has provided ways for us to stay in touch. We can take the time to call, facetime, text, email, or even write a letter. As Christians, we should demonstrate more fellowship, compassion, and care for one another. This Christmas season and throughout the New Year I pray we take time to grace someone with our presence. Presents are good but our presence is priceless! Have a very merry (Christ)mas brothers and sisters! Love and Blessings…

“After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:9-11)

“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:13-15)

“Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always.” (1 Chronicles 16:11)

TODAY’S INSPIRATION:QUESTIONS?

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...