Look up!

The Lord has so many attributes and abilities that I love. He is a provider and a protector, healer and sustainer, friend and father. He is quite simply and yet so deeply amazing! But there is one aspect of God that has always spoken to me and met me at my lowest moments and it is this: He is the lifter of my head! If you have ever been in worship with me, you have heard me acknowledge God for this because it is so real to me. Many times, before I could get to victory or joy or peace, I needed to know that God was with me and He always started with lifting my head up. There is nothing like when someone you love puts their hand under your chin and lifts your head. It means they were paying attention and care enough to not let you stay in that hard place. That’s what God does!

When David was running from his son Absalom, he was overwhelmed by what had happened in his life. His situation had turned for the worse and left him reeling and surrounded by enemies. He was completely outdone with what was against him but then he remembered Who he had in his corner.

“But You, O LORD, are a shield for me, My glory [and my honor], and the One who lifts my head.”

‭‭PSALMS‬ ‭3:3‬ ‭AMP‬‬‬‬‬‬

There will be many times in your life where the bad seems to outweigh the good and the enemy looks to be winning; where it seems like you just cannot get a break.  But can I just encourage you today that the Lord is ready and prepared to lift your head in even the darkest of moments? What does that mean? It means that He takes your focus away from things that are beneath you. It means that He actively puts His hand on the place where your thoughts are. But most of all, it means that He is right beside you. He’s close and aware of your issues and situations. He is covering and protecting you all in that action of lifting your head.

You will come to realize, as David did, that God is bigger than what is against you. Stand strong, Saint! There is great power in knowing that you serve a God that won’t let you wallow in what opposes you but instead calls you to look up at what is ahead of you.

Amen

Nothing!

I just wanted to jump on today and remind you that there is nothing impossible with God. Nothing deep or super spiritual to say, just a reminder for those that need it. This is not one of those churchy phrases that people have said in church for so long but isn’t really in the Bible. This is the straight Word of God from the mouth of the angel of the Lord.

“For with God nothing will be impossible.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭1:37‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Did you catch that? Nothing! There is no incurable, no complete failure, no cannot make it. The very definition of nothing is “not anything, no single thing”. That means, if it is the Lord’s will, anything can turn around, be healed, change, be repaired, be re-started. Please stop letting people speak an end to what God said would live. Please stop believing a lie of the enemy when the truth of God reigns. Please stop speaking doubt when the promise of God is a guarantee.

Now you might look at this statement and struggle because there have been things in your life that have not worked out the way you thought it should. You’ve declared this statement to be conditional because some people have still died, some marriages have still broken up, and some hardships have still lasted a long time. Here’s the truth of God’s word. It’s His plan and not yours. What you have deemed the right outcome is not and what you think should be done doesn’t necessarily fit. You see, God works according to His ultimate plan and it has a lot of moving parts. Even if something seems like it will work best for you, it may not fit into the overall purpose that God has. You have to be open to how He handles every situation. Sometimes the miracle is in the length of life. Sometimes the breakthrough is in the peace you feel. Sometimes the victory is that you lived to tell the story. Be encouraged today that no matter the outcome, NOTHING has outsmarted, outworked, or outdone the Lord! He can handle it all.

Amen

Oh, Saturday!

Hey family! Happy Resurrection week! What a great time to celebrate the victory of Jesus Christ. There is great power in remembering that great victory can come after crushing pain. As I reflected on this week, God instructed me to tell you that it was necessary. I heard your immediate question, “What was necessary?” I asked it too! His answer was immediate as well: Saturday.

“The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate.” (Matt. ‭27:62‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

The “next day” in the Resurrection story was Saturday - the day after Jesus’s devastating death and the day before His extraordinary victory. It is the least talked about days in the 3 day stretch, mostly because the Bible doesn’t say much about it. The verse I highlighted is the first in a 4 verse section that talks about that day and that just about sums it up. (Read Matthew 27:62-65) Here’s the thing about Saturday! A whole lot of you are right there. You are stuck between the instruction and the manifestation, the deep loss and the joyful recovery, the yes and the purpose. It’s an extraordinarily hard place to be in but yet you don’t have permission to quit. There’s no answers but yet an expectation that you hold on and be strong.

You see, the Bible doesn’t mention directly what Jesus or His disciples were doing on that Saturday. We only see what the enemy was doing. We only see the plotting and the attempt to make sure Jesus doesn’t fulfill His promise. The Lord highlighted that fact for me so that I could encourage you. You see, the enemy needed a follow up meeting to try to ensure his victory but the Lord did not. He said it, everything happened as He said it would and that settled it. Yes, Saturday would have been filled with grief and despair for the disciples but there would have also been expectation that just maybe Jesus would do what He promised. Though we don’t know for sure all of the details, we know that it was not an easy day. What about you? Though this season has been extremely challenging,do you still have your hope? Do you still trust the word you received?

Listen, fam! I need you to wait out your Saturday! Don’t get distracted by the enemy’s desperations and distractions. Instead, remember the promise that the Lord made you. He told you that you would make it to the other side. He told you that you would finish. He told you that He would heal you. He didn’t say that it would always be easy but He did say there would be victory. He did say that He would be there until the end. Don’t lose hope because there’s no step by step guide. Why? Because you have The Word and in the end, He wins every time!

Amen

Fix it!

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another [your false steps, your offenses], and pray for one another, that you may be healed and restored. The heartfelt and persistent prayer of a righteous man (believer) can accomplish much [when put into action and made effective by God—it is dynamic and can have tremendous power].” (JAMES‬ ‭5:16‬ ‭AMP‬‬)

If you have been in church for any length of time, you’ve probably heard and said part of this scripture at least a million times. The King James says “the prayers of the righteous availeth much”. Remember now? Well, today, I was drawn to the first part of the scripture and it tapped me on the shoulder and started speaking. I am going to be as brief as I can but I really believe that the Lord is calling for maturity from the saints, especially when it means acknowledging and correcting your own faults.

It is much easier to see what is wrong with other people, right? How they hurt you or what they said and we forget that often there is another side and another perspective. Now, I am not talking about those clear situations where it is easy to see the victim and who was wronged. I’m talking about what often happens in friendships when something happens that is left unresolved or not discussed. It’s challenging because in those situations, silence has often won the battle. “I’m waiting on her to say something,” or “He ought to know how I feel so I’m not going to say anything.” Sound familiar? But James 5:16 challenges us to account for OUR own sins and missteps not just the other person’s. What would the world be like if we all held ourselves accountable for what we missed or got wrong?

Can I challenge you today to fix it? Whether it is a face to face, a phone call or a Marco Polo, identify those relationships in your life that you left unresolved, and do what you need to do to make it right. Sometimes an apology is all that is needed. Let me clarify! I’m not telling you that you should go searching out old relationships that the Lord has released you from but I’m referring to the ones that you know didn’t end correctly. Time passing doesn’t always mean resolution has taken place.

Be honest with yourself about those situations! Did you misinterpret? Is there another side or possibility? Did you misunderstand? Look closely so that you can do your part in fixing what might otherwise stay broken. Why are you asking me to do this, Ebony? Because the other key part of that verse is the answer. So YOU will be healed and restored. The resolution is for you and your wellbeing more than anything else so your prayers can really be effective because your heart is pure and your hands are clean. Let’s be willing to do the hard stuff so that we can reap the good benefits.

Amen

Be You!

Can I just encourage you today to be who God has called you to be? In this age of social media, where people feel comfortable giving opinions from the safety of their phones and Facebook accounts, you must be confident in who you are. Listen, God does not make mistakes. He doesn’t create messes and He doesn’t waste His time and energy making things that don’t matter.

“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” ‭‭(Genesis‬ ‭1:31‬a ‭NKJV‬‬)

Some of you have been tricked by the enemy into thinking that you don’t have value or that it is too late for you to make an impact. But the truth of the matter is that God created everyone for a specific time with a specific purpose. He gave everyone a measure of faith and a gift and He expects you to take advantage of it. When He made you, He looked at you and said it was good. Don’t allow circumstances, opinions, a job or a bank account stop you from living out that word that He spoke over you. Don’t let what happened keep you from using your gift. Don’t let who you have lost hinder your progress. You are needed right now, with all your quirks, creativity and uniqueness! God made you exactly that way and it was very good. Be you!

Amen

Issa inventory!

For the last couple of weeks, my church has been fasting for “the come up”. You know, asking God to show us and grow us in the areas of our lives where we need to come up. It’s been challenging and enlightening at the same time. Well today as I was waking up, I heard the words “cut off”. Yep, it’s okay to start getting nervous! It’s smack dab in the middle of the Lenten season so I guess it’s appropriate to look at the places, things, people, etc that are no longer adding value or causing harm to your life.

Let me pause here though before I go on. This is not an exercise in pettiness. I am not giving you permission to cut up because you haven’t been mature enough or bold enough to make a decision and stand by it. Nope, this is an opportunity to take inventory of your life and identify the leaks, excess, and lack. You know, the places where your joy and peace have been slowly draining out, the places where you have filled your hard places with overeating, overspending, and overfilling your calendar, and the places where you just don’t have anything left to give.

Here’s the thing with cutting off what is not good for you. It is not about the other person, the thing or the place. It is about you and your growth. It is about recognizing where you may have allowed access to your heart and spirit that should have been denied or limited a long time ago. It is about moving on from what is no longer helping you to advance. There are several places in the Bible that talk about pruning but the words of Jesus are the most profound to me. “He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and He prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.” (John‬ ‭15:2‬ ‭NLT‬‬) I would encourage you to read the whole chapter but my point is this.  The things that have to be cut off are not things you don’t care about or enjoy. Nope, they typically mean something to you. Notice that Jesus said that the Father cut off every branch of “mine” that didn’t produce fruit. They weren’t random branches, folks!  But they were the things that were no longer beneficial for growth. Today, it’s time to take stock and then take action. Whether it’s cutting off or cutting back…do it! It’s for your good!

Amen

What to do about change...

Change is inevitable. People will change, circumstances will change, even your mind will change. It is a part of life that is unavoidable and hard. I mean, what happens when something changes that you are used to having or happening? Do you throw a fit or throw in the towel? What is your response?

I have been tossing these thoughts around in my head over the last several weeks as I looked at my life. I have searched and searched for the most comforting answer and still been left without much comfort. And then, I was reminded of a verse that the church has completely worn out on the scale of churchiest phrases. But in it, I found a peace that I had not previously understood.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”(Hebrews‬ ‭13:8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬)‬‬

Take a minute with that! I mean, really take it in and SELAH. No matter what your bank account says, Jesus is the same! No matter what your marriage feels like today, Jesus is the same. No matter where you go, Jesus Christ is the same. Regardless of what happens to your routine, He is the SAME!  Come on! He is the same yesterday, today AND forever! So many times, this is where you miss it, you react with your emotions when God is trying to get you to see His consistency. He wants you to see that in a world that is constantly changing, you can count on Him to give you stability.  

Listen, change and I have been spending a lot of time together recently! However, this short and immensely powerful verse has shown me that I don’t have to worry. Why? Because regardless of how my plans, life, crew, etc. change, the God I serve doesn’t. Stop worrying about who or what comes and goes and put your trust in the One who promised to never leave or forsake you.

Amen