When I reflect on my time in the wilderness, I see a woman who was holding on by a thin thread. I see a woman who was hurting, physically and mentally. Her world as she knew it had suddenly come crashing down, and she felt like she was drowning. This woman was so overwhelmed that it was hard to breathe some days. Some days she thought she could not take any more. Some days she just wanted to give up. But. She. Did. Not. That woman is me and I am so thankful God did not allow me to give up. Sometimes the boldest thing we can do is take the next breath. I have learned that taking the next breath is easier when you build up your spiritual stamina.  

I think about Elijah the prophet. God appointed this man to go before Kings, bringing the message of warning and repentance. By speaking the prophecies of God, he made enemies, but his enemies could not overpower him. He was a man of deep faith. His spiritual stamina had to be strong. However, this one time it seems his spiritual stamina had weakened. I have read it many times trying to figure out why. Scripture says his enemies could not touch him. So, I guess it is because he was human. We all can relate to that. Scripture says that God had just done an amazing thing, showed up and out for Elijah. And right after, the queen of Israel, Jezebel, threatened Elijah’s life. He was frightened and he fled for his life. He went out into the wilderness to pout. He claimed he was alone, and he sat under tree and said, “I have had enough Lord.” You would think he would have no fear after what he just saw God do on Mount Carmel. But before we judge Elijah, if we are honest, we all have been guilty of forgetting how God showed up in past situations. I thank God He has been helping me work on my spiritual stamina. I work on it every day. Because like Elijah I am human, and I want to make sure it is strong. Spiritual stamina strengthens you and when you are faced with difficult situations; you are calm, and you act so. You can rest, breathe, and wait on God to show up.  

Your health, your finances, your children, your spouse, your job, whatever the situation, may have you feeling tired, frightened, and overwhelmed. You feel like you are alone and that no one understands. You jump over one hurdle and just when your feet are adjusting to walking again, a new hurdle appears. You cry out that I have had my share of troubles; it is someone else’s turn. You may sometimes want to say as Elijah did, I have had enough Lord. You just want to give up. Do. Not. Give. Up! Do not be like Elijah and forget how faithful God has been through past trials and troubles. Stop, rest, and breathe. God’s response to Elijah’s moping was, “get some rest, eat some food, go back the way you came, and find the others who serve me to support you.” Then the Lord sent an angel to Elijah. The Lord will place the right people in our life who will pray, support, and help us through challenging times. Do not be like the woman I was and refuse the help. It is also important to work on building spiritual stamina before the trials and troubles come. We must strive to develop spiritual stamina so when a problem occurs, you do not react out of emotion but out of wisdom. Stay connected to God. Study His Word. When we experience moments or seasons of complete and total despair, it is important that we know God, so we can hear His voice. We must be still and breathe. And that is when God refills, replaces, and empowers. He renews our faith. He replaces fear with hope. He empowers us with strength to go on, strength we did not even realize we had. Giving up will no longer be a choice!  

Love and Blessings… 

“Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. So, Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.” Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it, and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” So, he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. There he went into a cave and spent the night.” (1 Kings 19:1-9, NIV)  

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9) 

“But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31) 

All my life I had to fight (in my Color Purple Sophia voice). I am a woman. I am African American. I am a mother. I am much, much more, but those three has had me raging war more times than I can count. I am speaking in terms of physical battles in this world. How many times have I said, what do you mean a woman’s place? or Yes, I am black, beautiful, and proud of it! And if you really want to make me salty, mess with my child! Even today I will fight these battles should the need arise. (so, what if my child is a grandpop, I am still his mother!) Do not judge me. 🙂 Unfortunately, we are born into this world with battles we sometimes cannot see. And often it is the enemy behind what we do see. The hardest battles are those we cannot see, the spiritual warfare and the battles within our mind. Sure, we understand the circumstances and situations that the enemy uses to destroy us. We can accept the truth of how the enemy uses the world to lure us in and to tempt us. We can understand to some degree that the battle in the spiritual realm is ongoing and real, even though we cannot see it. But, to get a grasp on what is going on within our own hearts and minds can be the hardest, most exhausting, battle of them all. Some prefer not to deal with spiritual warfare; it is too scary and frightening, so they prefer to ignore it. As a result, the enemy is winning; just look around. Pandemics, murders by those who were sworn to protect, racism, hate, division, all fueled by fear and panic. And there is still sex trafficking, missing kids, domestic abuse, homelessness, hunger, and so much more! It makes me want to cry. But crying is not going to change the fact that this is much more than it appears to our natural eyes. We are in a spiritual war. We know God is in control, but we are his soldiers. We must put on the whole armor of God and we must be “vigilant and sober” as scripture says. We must look beyond the surface and ask God to open our spiritual eyes. One thing the enemy does is distract you while he is doing his dirty work. We have to stay focus! The enemy will come where there is an opening, he will fit in where he can get in. If God, the Father, allowed His Son, Jesus Christ to be tempted by Satan then chances are you will have to deal personally with the enemy at some point in your lifetime. When the enemy attacks you, he will try to hinder you from being able to progress from point A to point B in your walk with God. He will use your family, friends, or anyone else he feels can get to you. He also will start playing mind-games with you to try and throw you into mental torment and separate you from your spiritual connection with the Lord. The enemy will try to tell you that you have committed the unforgivable sin, God does not love you, that you are not smart enough, pretty enough, that you are just not good enough. And he will keep at you until you start to believe him. Then he will persuade you not to study and read your Bible because he knows you will see how much God does love you and that you are more than enough. He knows that is where your strength to fight comes from. Scripture tells us he would come to seek, kill, and destroy! The battle, the struggle, the war, the fight goes on in our thinking, emotions, and our feelings.There is a struggle, a wrestling match being fought inside of us. It is between satan’s deceptions and God’s truth. The good news is that it is a battle of victory for those of us who study, apply, and strive to obey the Word of God. I am telling you, satan is an expert at deceiving people. Beware when feelings and thoughts are not in harmony with the scriptures. It is God’s Word that will tell you if your thoughts and feelings are from Him or satan. You may ask yourselves, why do I even want to fight? We must fight to receive the victory God has already given us. You think the devil is going to give up without a fight? God gave the land to the Israelites, but they had to fight for it. And as long as they obeyed God, they were conquerors. The most important gift Jesus has given us is salvation. Once we have it, it cannot be taken away by satan or man. However, if we want the life God intended for us here on earth, to live life abundantly, we must fight the enemy for it and live victorious in Christ. Every day victory is achieved by knowing, believing, and understanding the battles that we are enduring daily. We can be passive or active in the battles. I choose to take my sword up and put on my armor of God. I want everything God has for me! I choose to fight! Our defense is to know, understand, and obey God’s Word. Examine everything by God’s Word! We have the power of God operating on the inside of us through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. The enemy is no match for those who know who they really are in their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We are God’s soldiers. Do not be afraid because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world! (John 4:4) I am not scared to fight; I have read the ending of ‘The Book” and I know who the victory belongs to! Love and Blessings… 

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of the world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Ephesians 6:12) 

“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) 

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” (1Peter 5:8-9) 

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” (Ephesians 6:10-11) 

“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”(2 Thessalonians 10:4-5) 

“But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.” (2 Thessalonians 3: 3) 

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) 

“For the LORD, your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” (Deuteronomy 20:4) 

“I [Jesus] have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33) 

If we ever ask ourselves these questions; What have they done for me lately or what’s in it for me?, then we need to meditate on the scriptures below.

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful (Luke 6:32–36).”

 ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)

Have a great weekend and spread some love! Love and blessings to all.

When we pray and ask God for something, we must listen for instructions. For example, are you praying for health or financial miracles? Are you are waiting for a health or financial miracle to drop in your lap? If so, you are missing it. Not saying it cannot happen because we know God is still in the miracle working business. I cannot begin to tell you about the miracles God has graced me with. But what we must know is that God performs health and wealth transfers every day. Ask me how I know? Glad you asked. Because every day I walk into a God’s health transfer. It was never like one day I was in pain and could not walk and boom, the next day I was miraculously healed. It took listening to God and following His instructions. It took believing it even though I could not see or feel it. And it took waiting for it to manifest. Listen, Jesus said we are already healed, and we know we are wealthy because our Father owns everything. So, what we are really praying for is the manifestation. I read somewhere and I think it was Jerry Savelle who said, “I would rather walk continuously in supernatural health than ever need a miraculous healing” The same is true of financial blessings, if we walk continuously in supernatural financial blessing, we will never need a financial miracle.” That just makes sense to me. Walking into continuously supernatural blessings requires following God’s instructions. All through the Bible, Old and New Testaments, there. has. always. been. instructions. 2 Kings 4:1-7 tells us how God used Elisha, one of His prophets to help a poor widow. The woman’s husband died leaving her poor and with a debt she could not pay, and the creditors was threatening to take her two sons as slaves. God could have miraculously changed the heart of the creditors or gave her an instant financial blessing. But instead Elisha instructed her to use the only thing she had, which was a little olive oil. He told her to borrow empty jars from her friends and neighbors. Then go into the house and shut the door. He told her to pour the olive oil into her jars and set the jars aside. She did exactly as she was told until every jar she had borrowed was filled. And then and only then did the little olive oil stop flowing. Then Elisha instructed her to sell the olive oil to pay her debts and there was enough money left over to support her and her sons. This is what I call walking in continuously supernatural financial blessing. No more lack because she followed instructions! And in 2 King 5 we hear about Naaman, who was a mighty warrior although he suffered from leprosy. Elisha, this same man of God tried to give Naaman instructions to follow so that he would be healed. Naaman became angry and left. He did not want to follow instructions; he wanted an instant miracle. After being convinced by his officers, he followed Elisha’s instructions and his flesh became as healthy as a young child. This is what I call walking in continuously supernatural physical blessings! He could have been healed sooner if he had followed instructions! But I am not judging. A lot of us could have been healed sooner or received that financial breakthrough sooner if we had followed instructions. God uses people today to give us godly advice, knowledge, and wisdom, but even the best advice is worthless if we do not take it to heart. Jesus’s parting words to his disciples was to instruct the disciples on what they should do in His absence. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” (Mark 28:19-20). These words are also intended for us. After Jesus had risen, He had a conversation with Peter. Jesus tells Peter to “Feed my sheep.” (John 21:17) These instructions are also intended for the ministers and ministries (shepherds) in today’s world. Some are following these instructions, and some are not.

God often speaks to us through the Holy Spirit to our spirit. The Holy Spirit will give us wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, courage, knowledge, comfort, and instruction. If we want to walk continuously in supernatural financial and physical blessings, we must follow God’s instructions. No matter what it looks like through our natural eyes, if God says do it, do it, If God says do not do it, do not do it. And do it exactly how and when He tells you, not how and when you feel it should happen! If we move ahead of God, it will not last, God will not bless us with things that we are not ready to experience. (that is how the devil works, and it does not last). If we move behind God, we may miss the opportunity or blessing. If we do not move at all, because of fear or lack of faith, we are stuck, then the enemy does a happy dance because he knows we will not see the manifestation. And If you ever feel you are not hearing from God, and you are not sure what to do, go to the instruction book God left us, the Bible. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” (2 Timothy 3:16) I love to read and meditate on Psalm 1:3. I know if I follow God’s instructions, my fruit will come forth, in my season and whatever I do will prosper. It all comes down to listening to God because there are always instructions!

“Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:8)

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:” (John 10:27)

“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)

“But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer.” (Psalm 66:19)

“12:1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 12:2 “This month is to be your beginning of months; it will be your first month of the year. 12:3 Tell the whole community of Israel, ‘In the tenth day of this month they each must take a lamb for themselves according to their families – a lamb for each household. 12:4 If any household is too small for a lamb, the man and his next-door neighbor are to take a lamb according to the number of people – you will make your count for the lamb according to how much each one can eat. 12:5 Your lamb must be perfect, a male, one year old; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 12:6 You must care for it until the fourteenth day of this month, and then the whole community of Israel will kill it around sundown. 12:7 They will take some of the blood and put it on the two side posts and top of the doorframe of the houses where they will eat it. 12:8 They will eat the meat the same night; they will eat it roasted over the fire with bread made without yeast and with bitter herbs. 12:9 Do not eat it raw or boiled in water, but roast it over the fire with its head, its legs, and its entrails. 12:10 You must leave nothing until morning, but you must burn with fire whatever remains of it until morning. 12:11 This is how you are to eat it – dressed to travel, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.” (Exodus 12:1-11)

“These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan—that is, in the Arabah—opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth and Dizahab. ² (It takes eleven days to go from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea by the Mount Seir road.)³ In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the Lord had commanded him concerning them.” (Deuteronomy 1-2)

“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)

“For the Lord’s portion is His people; Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance.” (Deuteronomy 32:9)

“Instead of your shame you will have a double portion, And instead of humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion. Therefore they will possess a double portion in their land, Everlasting joy will be theirs.” (Isaiah 61:7)

“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9 As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.” 10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.” (2 Corinthians 9:8-10)

“These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” (John 14:25-26) 

There was a time doing my God journey that I would pray for something and then I would wait for God to deliver my request. I would wait and wait and wait. And then I would pray again, thinking God did not hear me the first time or I did not pray long or hard enough. God heard me the first time. In fact, before I opened my mouth, He knew what I was going to ask. The problem was I did not hear God. What I have realized is that when we make our request known to God or He just wants to bless us, (because He is good like that), we must listen for instructions. There. has. always. been. instructions. Adam and Eve were told what they could do and what they could not do. Did they listen to God? No. And now we suffer the consequences for their disobedience and sin. The night of the Passover, specific instructions were given to the Israelites so they would be protected. The Bible does not say it but in my mind, I can imagine that there were some who did not follow instructions and perished along with the Egyptians. I say this because while traveling in the wilderness, they were given instructions by God and scripture tells us they were a hardheaded people. And for this reason, eleven days of travel turned into forty years. All but two of the folks that started out on the eleven-day journey were dead and gone 40 years later. They never made it. You get my point? You can really mess things up not only for yourself but for your family and generations to come when you do not follow God’s instructions. There. are. always. instructions. Love and Blessings…

“I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” (Psalm 32:8)

“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:6)

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In the dictionary the diversity of uses and meanings combined with the complexity of the feelings involved makes love unusually difficult to consistently define, compared to other emotional states. However, the Apostle Paul tells us exactly what love is; Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). Apostle Paul says love never fails, does that mean love never ends? The Greek word translated “fails” in the NIV is related to a verb meaning “to fall.” By saying, “Love never fails,” the Bible means that God’s type of love will not fall or falter. It is constant forever. It is an Endless Love.

We humans are so desperate to find Endless Love that we pursue it more than anything else in this world. More so than money or fame. That is why we look at these people who seem to have everything and wonder why they are unhappy. Why they are not content. It is because they don’t have the one thing that they long for, that we all long for, Endless Love. We want this Endless Love so badly, we make wrong decisions, turn to the wrong people and things in pursuit of it. We are so desperate for it we do terrible things and then we suffer the consequences. The realities of life can teach us harsh lessons. And just when we think we have learned our lesson, we wander aimlessly trying to find it again. As parents we are blessed when we have this endless love with our children. I will love my children as long as I breathe. Sometimes we can even find it with friends. I have Endless Love for my friend/person who I can’t image life without. Some families are fortunate, they have this Endless Love even if the family is dysfunctional. My brother went to his eternal home this week. He was not a perfect man, but he was a perfect brother to me. I was his favorite sister. He was my broro. (hero). I have loved him all his life, unconditional. I will love him all my life. He is no longer physically with me, my heart aches with missing him, with memories of him, but most of all my heart is still full of love for him. My brother and I have Endless Love. If you are really blessed, you have that Endless Love with the man/woman in your life. If you do not yet, there is nothing wrong with being optimistic. There is nothing wrong with taking a chance on Endless Love and risking being hurt. Life is full of risk everyday.. But please be careful and give it some thought, because the wrong person can destroy the little pieces of hope that you store within. Guard your heart. Let God lead you and not your emotions!

This week when sadness and grief threatened to take over my thoughts, I think about the Endless Love of Jesus. He loved me even before I loved Him. Jesus loved me enough to die for me! He believed I was worth saving. He said He would never leave me or forsake me. He loves me unconditionally. He sits on the right-hand side of God and intercedes on my behalf. He is my way maker, provider, comforter, healer, and my peace in times of trouble! He is my strength when I am weak. Why in the world would I pursue meaningless relationships in this world when I have the Endless Love of Jesus?!!! Because of His love for me, I am not ashamed to proclaim my love for Jesus! I don’t want to be selfish with this love, I must tell you that Jesus offers this Endless Love to all. You just have to accept it. Sisters and brothers, not one person has to walk around believing they have no one that loves them. Not one person has to long for this type of love. Jesus is love and His love is endless. Please read todays scriptures. Please help me share God’s Word. Love and Blessings…..

 

For a long time, I believed the saying, “God never gives you too much for you to bear”. That is not true. God will give us assignments that we on our own can’t handle. It is God’s strength and His grace that equips us to handle our assignments. Sometimes God’s assignments can be completed in a moment or a season, like praying for someone or a financial gift. Then there’s the difficult assignments? In the Bible, you will see that difficult, long-term assignments were the norm rather than the exception.  Abraham was given the assignment of leaving his home country for another land not knowing where he was going. Moses was given the assignment of telling a hard-hearted Pharaoh to let God’s people go. Jonah was given the assignment of preaching to Nineveh.  Hosea was given the assignment of marrying a prostitute. Paul was given the assignment of being an apostle to the Gentiles knowing that he would suffer terrible things for the cause of Christ.  And let us not forget about our Jesus who was given the most difficult assignment of all, living a sinless life, and bearing the sins of the world. People didn’t always want these assignments, just as we sometimes don’t want ours. But those who walked with God and had faith, eventually accepted their assignments. They understood that the assignment advanced the purposes of God in this world. When it’s clear that God wants us to do something difficult, we must be obedient. We must trust that even if we feel we can’t handle it, that God can. He will equip us and give us everything we need to fulfill the assignment!

I know this because there have been times in my life where I looked back and wondered how in the world did I do that or as Mahalia Jackson would sing, how did I make it over! I realize now I didn’t do that, it was not me, but God! One of those times was in 2005, my mother suffered a stroke. She was paralyzed on one side and diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. This changed her life forever. God put in my Spirit to be her caregiver and to not leave her in a rest home. I did not know how I was going to do it, but I chose to be obedient. It changed my life, as I knew it. Anyone that has been a caregiver or knows someone who is, understands it is physically, mentally, emotionally and financially draining. The next years were challenging to say the least. My siblings and I have never been close, but my mother’s illness pulled us further apart. And even though I chose to accept the assignment, I was hurt, angry, and I resented my siblings. I felt they were not doing their part. They resented me for their own reasons (that’s their story to tell). It was a hot mess! I had to be a caregiver and deal with all these emotions. I was angry and frustrated, I cried a lot. Then one night while I was walking the floor, crying and venting about my siblings, God stopped me dead in my tracks. I could hear Him clearly say to me, “why are you angry with your siblings? I gave you this assignment, not them”. And just as clearly, He sent me to my Bible and scriptures on Moses and Pharaoh. Scripture says God hardened Pharaohs heart. He needed Moses to keep going back to Pharaoh so He could show up and show out! Pharaoh mistakenly thought that he was in control. However, God put him in the place of being an Egyptian leader for His purpose. This is the very reason I don’t get distracted by politics. They may think they are in control, but trust me, God is on it! God has a purpose for everyone, including those who resist Him. In the end God will get the glory no matter the person because God is the Giver of purpose in every life whether they live for Him or not. Our job is to pray for them. 

The lesson I learned was that when God gives us an assignment, and we accept it, we can’t get resentful and look to other people for help. We look to God. That is how God gets His glory. That night, God freed me from all that and it was wonderful! It was my assignment and I can tell you that I have never been the same spiritually! There is no way I could have done that assignment myself! He kept me strong. He made sure we had everything we needed, even though I had left my job to take care of her. He put who I needed in my life when I needed them. My mother lived like a queen until the day He took her home! God will cause people to be blessed because of your obedience! He kept me healthy even though I was diagnosed back then. Never had any symptoms until after my mom went to her permanent home! Tell me God won’t sustain you when you are on His assignment! What I have learned is we don’t have to worry about the how’s, when’s, why’s, or what ifs. God will provide the resources, time, and the anointing. Kingdom assignments only requires our obedience, God provides everything we need in our lives once we accept. I am not going to lie, being a caregiver was not easy most of the time. It was a challenge but also so rewarding! God gave me the opportunity to love on my mother the last years of her life. I would do it all over again! Long-term assignments are more challenging because they require long-term commitment and determination. I’m thinking about difficult assignments like family life, leadership roles in the body of Christ, or difficult ongoing circumstances related to your health or your finances.  These assignments need huge amounts of grace from God because our human willpower will run out. Difficult assignments sometimes will mean that you give up your ideal of a nice, controlled, comfortable life. Your life may seem out of control and you feel overwhelmed. Matthew 16:24-25 says, “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it”.  Joseph just came to my mind. This man had an assignment that was not only difficult but would last his lifetime. I can’t imagine what Joseph was thinking when he found out his wife-to-be was pregnant. In that era, the only explanation for pregnancy, was that you had been with a man. Believing this Joseph still wanted to make things easier for her. Joseph didn’t want her to be stoned to death; he didn’t even want her to be disgraced. So, he planned to send her away secretly. But then the angel explained to Joseph that he shouldn’t fear violating his righteousness by taking Mary as his wife, because the Child within her was of the Holy Spirit. Once God made clear to Joseph that he was supposed to marry Mary, Joseph was willing; he accepted that assignment from God.  Scripture calls Joseph a righteous man. He also was a compassionate man. Reading about Joseph, tells me he was a man of God. In calling Joseph, a “righteous man”, Matthew is saying that Joseph was faithful to the Old Testament law. He brought sacrifices and meditated on the law day and night (Psalm 1). These qualities made Joseph the type of person who could receive a difficult assignment from God. He was the type of person who had learned how to submit to the will of God. Trust me, this was not a surprise to God. He knew just how Joseph would react when he found out that Mary was pregnant. He knew this because He had prepared him for this specific assignment. He was able to prepare him because Joseph seeked Him and was a righteous man.  I talk about Joseph’s difficult assignment here because Joseph shows that our walks with God should prepare us for the difficult, challenging assignments that God might give us. We must discipline ourselves for the purposes of God and nurture the qualities in our lives that will help us when the difficult assignments come. It is also important that we stay connected to God. When we abandon ourselves to the will of God, like Joseph did, we may lose the life we always wanted for ourselves, but we will find the life that God wants for us. And that life will be more satisfying. I know the assignment had to be difficult for Joseph, but look at the reward, Joseph had been given the honor of being the earthly father of Jesus Christ! God always rewards us when we are obedient! Kingdom assignments always further God’s purposes, even if we are not sure exactly what purpose they serve! Limited information is not a sign that God doesn’t know what the future holds. God is Almighty and all knowing, He knows well what each day holds. When God withholds information from us, it causes us to stay close to Him, to depend on Him, to lean on Him moment by moment, day by day. If we miss our assignment, we miss out on our blessings and everything that God has for us. We miss out on the anointing, insights, revelations, and the transformation our assignments bring. I can look back and see the purpose for just about everything that I have been through, each one leads me to where I am now. The pieces of the puzzle fits! I am enjoying the journey! My desire is to hear God say, “well done my good and faithful child”. Mark Twain said, “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” I believe this to be true. God’s assignments draw us into His plans and purposes for this world and our lives. Sisters and brothers, obedience is better than sacrifice! Please go to “Food for the Soul” and read today’s scriptures. Meditate on them and seek God’s purpose for your life if you don’t know already. Please share and help me spread God’s word. Love and Blessings…

The Conflict Within our Conscience

Greetings and Blessings to my sisters and brothers in Christ Jesus. All glory and praise be to God our Father, who is truly the Author of our faith. I must say it is an honor to step in for my mom Curleen Johnson and write an inspirational and encouraging blog for her website Emmanuel at http://www.emanne.org And if you hadn’t had a chance to visit, please go visit and support, tell a friend to tell a friend.

The topic God gave me this morning was dealing with internal battles or conflict as I like to call them. You might ask why conflict and not battles? In essence they are kinda the same with different definitions. A battle can be defined as a combat in warfare between two or more armed forces, or combatants. And we know that the scriptures tell us that the battle is not ours, but the Lord. I like to think of a battle as between two or more people or spirits. A conflict to me is more internal, meaning you don’t necessarily have to have another person or spirit involved to have conflict. The dictionary says conflict is a serious disagreement or argument. And I don’t know about you, but I have had plenty of those in my own conscience. Paul wrote this on the subject:

Romans 7:15-20 (GW) “15 I don’t realize what I’m doing. I don’t do what I want to do. Instead, I do what I hate. 16 I don’t do what I want to do, but I agree that God’s standards are good. 17 So I am no longer the one who is doing the things I hate, but sin that lives in me is doing them. 18 I know that nothing good lives in me; that is, nothing good lives in my corrupt nature. Although I have the desire to do what is right, I don’t do it. 19 I don’t do the good I want to do. Instead, I do the evil that I don’t want to do. 20 Now, when I do what I don’t want to do, I am no longer the one who is doing it. Sin that lives in me is doing it.”

This conflict is sin, the flesh versus the spirit. Like I said earlier we all have dealt with this type of conflict at some point in our lives. The good news is, the answer to resolve this conflict begins with turning to God. Unfortunately, many like myself have turned toward the creations in this world to help us with the conflict. That could be money, legal and illegal drugs, alcohol, sex, people, etc.; the list goes on and on. The point is we have become too dependent on ourselves to figure out a solution when God already has it.

The Holy Spirit revealed to me that this conflict that we all face just didn’t start with us. It began in the Garden of Eden; it began with the fall of man and has exercised its wicked intentions throughout each generation. We may want to do what is right, yet we find ourselves doing the wrong things that end up hurting others and ourselves.

Genesis 3:22-24 (GW)
” 22 Then the LORD God said, “The man has become like one of us, since he knows good and evil. He must not reach out and take the fruit from the tree of life and eat. Then he would live forever.” 23 So the LORD God sent the man out of the Garden of Eden to farm the ground from which the man had been formed. 24 After he sent the man out, God placed angels[a] and a flaming sword that turned in all directions east of the Garden of Eden. He placed them there to guard the way to the tree of life.”

God did not intend for us to have this conflict within our conscience. This doesn’t mean we can point fingers at Adam of Eve, our parents, family, spouse, children, friends, co-workers, society, etc. etc. etc. It is no question it is easier to blame someone or something else for our issues or troubles, or simply try and ignore them all together. But we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. I have certainly been guilty of pointing the finger at everyone but me for my struggles. All that has done is left me feeling guilty and depressed over my actions. Since we are aware of good and evil, knowing the knowledge of good and evil doesn’t have to be the end all. Jesus came and took our sins, our conflicts and our discord from the Father, to reconcile us back to the Father through His blood. So why do we still have this conflict?

Genesis 4:4-8 (GW)
“4 Abel also brought some choice parts of the firstborn animals from his flock. The LORD approved of Abel and his offering, 5 but he didn’t approve of Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry and was disappointed. 6 Then the LORD asked Cain, “Why are you angry, and why do you look disappointed? 7 If you do well, won’t you be accepted? But if you don’t do well, sin is lying outside your door ready to attack. It wants to control you, but you must master it.” 8 Cain talked to his brother Abel. Later, when they were in the fields, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.”

We must learn to master our thoughts, don’t allow sinful words and thoughts to enter our holy place (mind). God advised Cain that he should rule over this conflict, because if he didn’t sin lies at the door. Unfortunately for Cain as is the case with so many others, myself included, Cain allowed the conflict within his conscience to cause him to kill his own brother. I have never killed anyone, but I have hurt people and took them for granted, all because I tried to deal with my conflict as opposed to giving it over to God and allowing Him to give me the victory over my conflict. The saying “the struggle is real” is often one of my favorite sayings. But how about this, “the VICTORY is real” also. The scripture says “we are more than a conqueror” that means we not only achieve victory, but we are overwhelmingly victorious. So, if the struggle is real, so is the victory!

Hebrews 10:22-24 (GW)
” 22 We have been sprinkled with his blood to free us from a guilty conscience, and our bodies have been washed with clean water. So we must continue to come to him with a sincere heart and strong faith. 23 We must continue to hold firmly to our declaration of faith. The one who made the promise is faithful. 24 We must also consider how to encourage each other to show love and to do good things.”

Again, the answer to resolving the conflicts within our conscience begins with drawing near to God! Now when we draw near to God, we can’t be fearful and tip toe and go half in/half out. We must be full of faith and draw completely into God if we hope to have these conflicts in our conscience purged from our lives. God offers us a clear conscience, a conscience restored from sin by the blood of His Son. So, when these thoughts that cause conflict begin to arise, we can hold fast and believe that God has empowered us with His WILL to do the right thing toward all people in all situations. ((REPEAT)) we can hold fast and believe that God has empowered us with His WILL to do the right thing toward all people in all situations. The last part of that scripture says we must encourage each other to show love and do good things. Have you ever been having a rough day, and then someone walks by you and says something encouraging to you? I have, and it made me feel good. It was a joyful experience. So, I try as often as possible to bring joy to others through action or words from the Lord. Joy is great medicine for conflict.

In closing, I thank my Father which is in Heaven for this brief yet powerful message of dealing with the conflict in our conscience. All glory belongs to God who is all knowing and all powerful and there is none like Him!

Proverbs 3:5-8 (ERV)
“5 Trust the LORD completely, and don’t depend on your own knowledge. 6 With every step you take, think about what he wants, and he will help you go the right way. 7 Don’t trust in your own wisdom, but fear and respect the LORD and stay away from evil. 8 If you do this, it will be like a refreshing drink and medicine for your body.”

Just as most of us pop an Advil, Tylenol, Aleve or whatever prescription you use for a headache. Try trusting the Lord for those spiritual headaches or conflicts and watch it heal your mind, body and spirit. Be sure to read today’s Scriptures in FOOD FOR THE SOUL. Love, Peace & may your joy be full!