You are who God says you are!

I’ve encountered quite a few people over the last couple of weeks that God is taking into their next level. It’s interesting because in most of the cases, those same folks are struggling with whether to move or stay, what their next steps should be, and their faith. I know what that feels like. I know what it is to be hearing God say go, while your flesh and your mind are saying ‘don’t move too fast.’ I know what it is to question why God would choose you for a certain task when you have always been in the background. I even know what it is to know that God is shifting you and just be plain scared to take the step. But today, God told me to encourage and remind you that you are who He says that you are!

For those of you that are struggling to move forward because you can’t escape your past, God says, “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!” (Rom. 8:1) If you have confessed your sins and accepted Him in your heart, you are FORGIVEN! God has cast your sins as far as the east is from the west and remembers them no more. That’s what the cross was all about! Your “old man was crucified with Him so that the body of sin would no longer dominate [you], so that [you] would no longer be enslaved to sin. (Rom. 6:6) Don’t allow anyone else to keep you in bondage to your past. You are a new creature in Christ, old things are passed away. You are who God says you are…REDEEMED!

For those of you that God has been challenging to move forward in ministry or in jobs or in assignments and you struggle to see yourself there, God says “For [you] are His workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so that [you] may do them.” (Eph. 2:10). Don’t you know that God knows your end from the beginning? He has a plan for your life that will test you, grow you, shape you, strengthen you and bring you to a place of completion. Not only that, but He chose you for this! Only you can do the assignment that He has given you. Only you can run that church, open that business, and get through to that set of people. Don’t allow anyone to talk you out of your promotion. You have too much to do!  “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give it to you.” (John 15:16) You are who God says you are…CHOSEN!

For those of you that have been lost, depressed, or bound up for so long that you have made it your home, God is calling you to freedom. He is looking at you like He looked at the children of Israel and saying, come out! “I am the Lord. I will free you from your oppression and will rescue you from your slavery in Egypt. I will redeem you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment.  I will claim you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God who has freed you from your oppression in Egypt. I will bring you into the land I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as your very own possession. I am the Lord!’” (Ex. 6:6-8) Those are some serious promises! Interestingly enough, the children of Israel couldn’t receive that when Moses told them. They were too wrapped up in their struggle. But God wants you to know that if you will release your struggles, your sadness, your old thoughts to Him, He can release you from bondage. You see, where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty! There is joy and restoration. There is even supply and provision. You just need to be willing to release it and receive what God wants to do. Because whom the Son sets free is free indeed! (John 8:36)  You are who God says you are…FREE!

I need you to understand that God doesn’t see you like man. He isn’t looking at you and seeing your failures and your struggles. He’s looking at someone that He made fearfully and wonderfully! He’s looking at His child! He’s looking at His image and the temple of the Holy Spirit! He’s looking at His best work and He’s completely and totally in love with you. In fact, He loved you so much that “He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believed in Him would not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) How dare anyone tell you that you are crazy, not worthy, not smart? How dare the enemy attack your mind and try to convince you that you won’t make it? God says you are His righteousness through Christ Jesus! You are His ambassador! You are who God says you are and that’s amazing! Feel His love today and move forward into the great things that He has for you! “And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ!” (Phil. 1:6)

AMEN

Courage to shift

God has been talking to me lately about following His instructions, no matter how it may look to me. You see, I have the type of mind that immediately starts thinking of the consequences and effects of any instruction or decision. So you can just imagine how much God has to work with me on a daily basis! It can be difficult to see yourself the way God sees you. I mean, He sees you in completion, where you see a work in progress. He sees you in purpose, while you see a journey to finding yourself. He sees you leading and you are comfortable following. It's amazing to me when God gives me an assignment that I cannot possibly imagine myself completing but I accept, He gives me what I need to complete it. Today, God is challenging you to trust Him at His word. He is challenging you to accept what He is calling you to do without doubt. He is challenging you to stop putting yourself and Him in a box and go forward. It's time to be courageous and change your direction.

God took me to Deuteronomy 2:1-3 today and it completely blew my mind. You see, I studied this book pretty extensively last year but just missed this entirely. But when God talked to me about changing my focus from my limitations to His power, He took me straight back to it. It reads, “Then we turned around and headed back across the wilderness toward the Red Sea, just as the LORD had instructed me, and we wandered around in the region of Mount Seir for a long time. “Then at last the LORD said to me, ‘You have been wandering around in this hill country long enough; turn to the north.” (NLT) God had me to read it in 3 or 4 different translations and then He said to me, ‘Do you see what can happen between my instruction and your obedience?’ Ummmmm…what? Imagine my face! So let me give you a little background. Moses is recapping Israel’s journey and reminding them of why they ended up in the wilderness and why the older generation would not see the Promised Land. He basically sums it up to the people’s rebellion and disobedience. So as I re-read these three verses, the Lord showed me 3 things that He wanted me to share with you.

First, the people were going in the wrong direction and had to turn around. You see, at the end of Deuteronomy 1, Moses reminds the people of how God told them to go through the wilderness towards the Red Sea but they thought it better to go through the hill country and fight the Amorites instead on their own and they lost badly. So after crying before the Lord, they decided to go God’s way instead. Sometimes, the other way looks better, right? It looks quicker and it looks manageable, whereas God’s way looks filled with challenges and time. But can I tell you that when you go the other way, you never win. You always have to double back and do what God has said so you might as well start there. So, the first thing is, if God gave you an instruction and you chose your way, turn around now.

God then pointed out to me that when they shifted gears and headed in the direction that God wanted them to go, they encountered the wilderness along the way. Could it be that even when God tells you to do something, there will still be challenges to face? The old saints used to sing, “Nobody told me  the road would be easy but I don't believe He brought me this far to leave me.” It’s true! The wilderness is no fun! Sometimes, God will separate you and have you in a place where it's just you and the “stuff” that He is working out of you. Notice, that they wandered around in that place for a long time and God was silent...but they stayed there until He spoke. I know that this place is difficult but God is getting ready to take you somewhere. So the second thing is to stay where He sends you until He tells you to move.

This is hard stuff, y’all! It's so much easier to do feel good posts but God is growing you and me to our next place. He wants you to know that He is with you and that you have the courage to change your focus and direction. So the last thing He pointed out to me made me shout! “Then at last the LORD said to me, ‘You have been wandering around in this hill country long enough; turn to the north.” (Deut. 2:3) Another version says, you have gone around this mountain long enough! There comes a point where God pulls you out of the wilderness, out of the pruning, out of the struggle and says, it’s time to go the next level. He made a point of letting them know that He was there the whole time. He saw them in the wilderness and timed the experience. Once they had seen and gone through what He needed them to, He directed them north! Up! So the last thing is, stop wandering around that mountain and move forward.

Obeying God is not going to be easy all of the time. There will be challenges and times of pruning and refining but God is right there. When the Israelites tried to do it their way, they failed. But when they let God lead them, they ended up going north. They ended up on His track and His plan. Do you have the courage today to shift your focus and change your direction? Do you have the strength to trust the plan that God has for your life? I promise that if you do, you will begin to see yourself the way He sees you and you will find yourself on the way to your promised land!

Open the Door...

I’m uncomfortable when God gives me a word like this and tells me to not pretty it up and just give it. But I’m going to be obedient and pray that whoever it’s for will receive it! Today, I’m talking to those of you that have been on the verge of breakthrough for a long time but just can’t seem to cross over. I’m talking to the folks that the enemy has figured out and uses the same methods and tricks to keep you in bondage. I’m talking to those of you that that have been given an assignment or calling but doubt has kept you from walking fully into it. Today, God told me to tell you to stop walking in circles and open the door!

Too many times, I hear people talking about what can’t be done - how the circumstance is too much to overcome or the assignment is too great. Your natural eyes take over and you find yourself trapped in an endless cycle of praying, thinking you have overcome, saying yes, enemy distracts you, you start seeing the problems and issues again and you’re back to praying for deliverance.  I have been around that mountain myself so many times, it’s ridiculous.  But recently, God really allowed me to see that cycle and how beatable it is if you just allow Him to free you. The problem is that you like to be in control, or at least think you are. It’s much easier when you can say, “I tried this or I did this and it just didn’t work” instead of putting the problem, assignment, issue in God’s hands and letting Him handle it. Well, it’s time to stop trying so hard to solve your own issue and let Him do it. Can I just tell you that it feels so much better to be free? I mean really free where your heart is light and your spirit is in tune! Where what others say or do doesn’t affect what God is saying to you.  Where you trust what He sees in you and go with it instead of coming up with excuses. Seriously, you can have that freedom. God WANTS you to have that freedom and He’s ready for you to have it. How do you get it? Open the door.

He took me to Revelations 3 and I got scared! He sent me to the last section of the chapter, where He is talking to the Church at Laodicea. This is the lukewarm church, y’all! Christ is not pleased with them and says that He will vomit them out of His mouth. Not good!! He began to show me how displeased He is when He says something and His people go the other way. He showed me how many of you have been speaking one thing but living another. You can’t proclaim victory but live out defeat. You can’t speak life but believe death. You can’t testify freedom and walk in bondage. It’s just as bad as being lukewarm. God wants you to be what He says you are. He wants you to be victorious, healthy, and prospering. So He told me to share Revelations 3: 18 – 21 in the Message translation with you and invite you to walk into your true freedom.

“Here’s what I want you to do: Buy your gold from me, gold that’s been through the refiner’s fire. Then you’ll be rich. Buy your clothes from me, clothes designed in Heaven. You’ve gone around half-naked long enough. And buy medicine for your eyes from Me so you can see, really see. “The people I love, I call to account—prod and correct and guide so that they’ll live at their best. Up on your feet, then! About face! Run after God! “Look at Me. I stand at the door. I knock. If you hear Me call and open the door, I’ll come right in and sit down to supper with you. Conquerors will sit alongside me at the head table, just as I, having conquered, took the place of honor at the side of my Father. That’s my gift to the conquerors!”

He’s talking to you, conqueror!  It’s time to open the door and invite God to handle it ALL. It’s time to stop living that same cycle over and over again and come out in victory! It’s time to have the freedom that He wants for you. No more getting up every morning and putting chains on like clothes. No more going back to that old thing because you’re scared of the new. No more letting the enemy trick you with the same weapons. Christ is knocking at the door and all you have to do is open it!

Amen

Freedom!

I have been trying to put into words what I’m feeling today for almost an hour. I tried just about everything to pretty it up so that it would read right and wasn’t overly personal but God just reminded me that He called me to transparency in this blog. He told me to just write. So I am and I pray that what is on my heart will minister to you in some way.

I am free today. It’s not because every bill is paid or I am headed on a 2 week vacation. It’s because God sees me. It’s because He loves me enough that He wanted my heart to be whole and my spirit lifted. You see for the last 2 years, I’ve been carrying weights. I’ve been carrying the heartache of church hurt. I’ve been carrying the sadness of lost friendships. I’ve been carrying the worry of family separation. I’ve been carrying the strain of lack. I’ve been carrying the pain of other people’s choices. Some weights I picked up gradually and some were piled on. Some I picked up willingly and some were placed on me. But I carried them. Sometimes I did it well and with a smile on my face and sometimes it showed and it wasn’t always pretty. I kept hearing God say to relinquish control and let Him do it but I just couldn’t. I can’t tell you how many times He showed me Matthew 11:28 – 30. “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (NLT) I have read it in every translation and shared it with many but it was always temporary.

Don’t get me wrong, I was still praying and serving but there was a weight in my heart that I had made my constant companion. My praise wasn’t as free as it used to be. I didn’t have a run in my spirit. I had moments of release but it wasn’t true freedom. And then God had enough and so did I. I was tired and the weights were too heavy. God had given me an assignment to do and I was so distracted that I couldn’t hear anything He was saying. All I could hear were the chains clanking together. All of this might sound dramatic but God has me sharing it for a reason. Some of you need to be free. Some of you have been carrying some things that are not yours and it’s time for release. God told me on a Saturday morning that I didn’t have to carry all of those things anymore. He told me that I just needed to focus on Him and He would take each one. And do you know, I felt each one come off? He set me free…really free! I felt John 8:36 in my soul! The Message translation says, “So if the Son sets you free, you are free through and through.” Isn’t that good?!

What about you? What have you allowed to weigh you down? Is it family situations? Is it anger or bitterness? Is it unforgiveness? What is it? Because it’s time to move forward from that thing. It’s time to get unstuck and get back to living your life in freedom. It’s time to stop pretending that you haven’t been affected by some hard things in your life and be honest enough to ask God to free you. It’s time for wholeness. It’s time for freedom. It’s time for restoration. God can do what no other can. But here’s the thing, you have to let Him. I pray that you know what it is to jump with joy, run with freedom, and sleep in peace. I pray that you know what it is to have God fill every crack in your heart, take every weight and uplift your very spirit. I pray that you know what it is to walk in your calling without fear, move into your next level without doubt and be your best you without comparison to others. I’m a witness that God is willing and able to do all of those things. To God be the glory for the great things He has done, is doing and will do!

Amen…

Have Your Way, Lord!

Have Your way, Lord! Every Sunday someone says some version of this powerful statement at some point in the service in just about every church. In fact, many of you say it in your prayers daily. But here is the question that God put before me today. Do you really mean it? I almost got indignant!  God, what do You mean?! I want You to move and do what You do! His response? 'Well, then trust Me!' I began to think about what He was asking me. Am I speaking and talking like I truly want God to have His way in my life or does it just sound good to say? What about you? Could it be that you have made it a churchy thing to say but you aren't really putting the faith behind it? For a lot of folks, me included, it's time to get out of the way and let God REALLY have His way.

I immediately thought about Isaiah 55:8-11 where God speaks to Isaiah about how He thinks. It's truly one of my favorite passages and a promise that I stand on. He says in the Message translation, ““I don’t think the way you think. The way you work isn’t the way I work.” GOD’s Decree. “For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think. Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth, Doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, So will the words that come out of My mouth not come back empty-handed. They’ll do the work I sent them to do, they’ll complete the assignment I gave them.” Do you see what the Lord is saying here? Do you understand that He is telling you that though you may not understand how He's working in your situation and circumstance, if He said it, He will finish it?! It's a reminder that you can't do what God can do! You can't bring that child home but God can and He can orchestrate a series of events to make it happen that you never could have put together. You can't get that spouse on one accord with you but God can and He can make it so that the years that you lost battling are redeemed back. You can't make that pain go away but God can and He can make it so that you don't look like what you've been through. Have Your way, God!

God reminded me this morning that He is a present help! I can rely on Him! I can release control of people and situations that are distracting me. I can stop trying to figure it all out and simply let Him have His way. Jeremiah 29:11 spoke to me as I was meditating and praying on this word. “This is GOD ’s Word on the subject: “I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.” (MSG) It's an assurance that you can trust God to handle it all. When you say, "God, have Your way!” you can trust Him to take care of you through the process and that you will come out with the good future He has planned for you. I don't know about you but I feel a praise break! Have Your way, God! Have Your way in my home, in my finances, in my marriage! Have Your way in my workplace, in my church, in my relationships! Have Your way in my life! And when you release that control and ignite that trust and faith, you will see deliverance, joy, peace and restoration! Have Your way, God!

Amen

I BELIEVE!

Over the last few weeks, I have been celebrating who God is! It's just been on me to share with some and remind others of how great God is. It hasn't been a difficult task because He shows me daily how faithful and good He is. But today, as I sit home with a sick child, I heard the words 'what about now?'. Isn't that something? When all is right in your world, God is amazing and awesome and you can't stop giving Him the praise. But what about when you can't see a way out? What about when your child is sick and you can't help them? What about when your check says one thing but your bills say another? What is your response then? You see, it can be challenging when everything hits at once. But as I laid across my bed and prayed, I heard the simple chorus of one of Damion Murrill and Siloam's songs echo through my mind. It says, "I believe." And that's what it comes down to today. No matter what the enemy says, your response must be, "I believe!"

I was led to the story of Thomas in John 20. He was not around when Christ appeared to the disciples after His resurrection so he was doubtful when his brothers told him the story. “They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.””(John 20:25 NLT) Does that sound familiar? Isn't that what happens in your mind when you face a new and different test? Even though you have seen God work in so many other situations, this new one seems too big, so you struggle to trust God until you see the end result. Your flesh will always tell you to look at circumstances with your natural eye. But aren't you grateful for a Savior that will meet you where you are? “Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.” Then he focused his attention on Thomas. “Take your finger and examine my hands. Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don’t be unbelieving. Believe.”” (John 20:26-27 MSG) You see, that's the kind of God I serve! He knew Thomas, just like He knows you, and He didn't lash out. He didn't put Him down or berate him. No, He met Thomas right where He was and brought Him out with a lesson! Jesus told him to stop doubting and believe. What more is He saying to you and me? I believe...

“And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.””(John 20:28-29 NKJV) There is a blessing in trusting and believing what you can't see. There is power in knowing that what God has done before, He can surely do again. Do you believe that God can take what you can't see and bring about miracles? The last two verses in that chapter remind us of that.  "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:28-31 NKJV)

Isn't God faithful? He gives you what you need and more. Do you see that just by believing, you have gained life? Do you see that by believing, you will see miracles? Do you see that by believing, He will meet you where you are and give you divine lessons that will carry you forward in life? I declare to you today that I believe! I believe that you have what you need! I believe that you are healed! I believe that peace is yours. I believe that your joy is restored! I believe that the word God spoke to you will come to pass! I BELIEVE! May your faith be stirred up and your belief strengthened as you watch God work miracles in your life...

Amen

There's NOBODY like The Lord!

You may have noticed from my last few posts that I am delighting in who God is! In all that I have going on in my life with family, work, church, ministry, God continues to show me who He is. He continues to remind me that if I keep my eyes on Him, I can’t go wrong. Yesterday, I was listening to Maranda Willis singing “There’s nobody like you, Lord!” and it blessed my soul! I thought about how easy it is to get caught up in what man is doing. You can’t wait to hear a word from a famous preacher. You don’t have time to study your bible or go to church because your boyfriend or girlfriend want you to do something. You can’t make a move without so and so’s approval. But I’m just here to testify today that there is NOBODY like the Lord! The old folks used to sing, “can’t nobody do me like Jesus” and it’s true! He is a provider! He is a deliverer! He is a healer! He is faithful when you can’t see your way. He is a friend when you are alone! There is NOBODY like the Lord! I want to encourage you today to keep God at the forefront in everything you do and those problems and circumstances that seem so big will begin to shrink. There’s NOBODY like the Lord!

Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise His holy name.
 Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.
 He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.  He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.  He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly.
 He revealed His character to Moses and His deeds to the people of Israel.
The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever.  He does not punish us for all our sins; He does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For His unfailing love toward those who fear Him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.  He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. The Lord is like a father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him. For He knows how weak we are; He remembers we are only dust. Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die.
The wind blows, and we are gone—as though we had never been here. But the love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear him. His salvation extends to the children’s children of those who are faithful to His covenant, of those who obey His commandments!  The Lord has made the heavens His throne; from there He rules over everything. (Ps. 103: 1-19 NLT)

I love how David celebrates God and this is what my heart led me to share with you this morning.  I pray that you put yourself in David’s shoes and declare these things in your life. I pray that those of you that have been so caught up in people pleasing, and chasing position will remember that the God you serve is the ultimate promoter and position creator. He is God all by Himself and above Him there is no other! I pray that those of you who have been struggling in relationships because of selfishness or low self esteem will turn your focus away from what isn’t happening in your life and towards a God that is compassionate and unfailing in His love!  I pray that those of you that are having a hard time living the way God has called you to because others keep reminding you of who you used to be, will rejoice in a God that doesn’t deal with us like we deserve! I pray that those of you that just need a reminder, will praise the Lord with your whole heart and never forget all that He does for you! Saints, there is NOBODY like the Lord!

“So—who is like Me? Who holds a candle to Me?” says The Holy One. Look at the night skies:
    Who do you think made all this? Who marches this army of stars out each night, counts them off, and calls each by name— so magnificent, so powerful— and never overlooks a single one? Why would you ever complain, O Jacob, or, whine, Israel, saying, “God has lost track of me. He doesn’t care what happens to me”? Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening?
God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.  He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath. And He knows everything, inside and out.
He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts. For even young people tire and drop out, young folk in their prime stumble and fall. But those who wait upon God get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles, they run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind. (Is. 40: 25-31, MSG)

There’s NOBODY like HIM!

AMEN