Closer to God

Check out my article that is posted on EmpowerMoments today!

From the earliest I can remember, I have loved to learn. I was a voracious reader and read any and everything I could get my hands on. I was the child who wanted summer break to be over, so school could begin again. I read through encyclopedias and highlighted new words in dictionaries. I just wanted to know everything!

My spiritual journey has reflected the same characteristics. Even at a young age, I took notes on Sunday sermons. If something interested or intrigued me, I would research it more on my own time. My father, who was a pastor, would be the recipient of all of my curious questions on Christianity and the Bible. I loved attending conferences and workshops, and eventually my quest for knowledge led me to seminary.

Although we serve a majestic, holy and awesome God and will never be able to tap into the fullness of Who He really is, we have the privilege of getting to know more about Him every day. Our God does not stand off looking down on us. Through Jesus Christ, we are able to come close to the Lord and get to know Him intimately... CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST!

National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer in America. Thousands of churches, ministries, organizations, families, and people are making a special group effort today to pray. With so many issues plaguing our world... so many challenges facing our nation... so many troubles impacting our communities... so many crises capturing our minds... prayer is definitely in order.

I encourage you to take time yourself to pray today. Take some time to go before the Lord to intercede for this nation. Talk to Him about what's going on in your part of the world, ask Him for His wisdom and guidance with the issues that are impacting your sphere.

In addition to that, I would like to encourage you to pray daily. I don't mean rattling off a list of wants and needs, but intentional, purposed, faith-filled prayers. So often we (yes, me too!) pray for all the wrong reasons. We pray to get something, we pray out of habit, we pray out of duty...

Yet prayer can do so much when it is done correctly. ...The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. (James 5:16b NLT) Our prayers have power! Our prayers can change things for the better!

It was prayer that helped Moses navigate the Israelites through the wilderness to the Promised Land. Prayer sustained Jesus through His time of ministry and prepared Him to go through His crucifixion. The united prayer of the apostles created an atmosphere for the Holy Spirit to arrive. Prayer raised people up from their sickbeds, revealed the hearts of man to believers, rescued men from prison, and caused the foundations of our faith to be laid.

How has prayer impacted your world lately? Let's keep our hearts and minds in communication with the Lord not just today, but every day.

Verse of the Day: Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14

Working to Progress

In striving to be like Christ, sometimes I feel that the bar is set impossibly high. Yet, God's word instructs us to make Jesus our ultimate example in how to lead our lives. (1 Peter 2:21-25)

One facet of Jesus' character has be weighing on my mind lately. With the coming of Easter, I have been reflecting on Jesus' journey to the cross, and His response (or lack thereof) has been challenging me.

Jesus was falsely arrested. He was mocked and beaten by Jewish leaders. He was deserted by His disciples. He was questioned by rulers. Crowds, who just days before had heralded Him as their king, screamed for Jesus' death. Jesus was whipped, forced to carry His own cross, and nailed to that cross. All the while, He was being mocked, berated, and cursed.

He never said a word in anger.

He never opened His mouth in rage.

He had no accusing words, hurtful retorts, or vengeful speeches.

Jesus was nothing but respectful and gracefully went through the trial that He faced. He kept the end goal in mind, and remained true to His destiny.

Often, we go through trials and attacks - mind you, no where near the level of attack that Jesus faced. Yet, we "forget" who we are and say things out of character. We arm ourselves with vengeful weapons and go into defense mode. We snap and say things we don't mean. We hurt those who hurt us. We do things that we regret.

We are called to be like Christ. We are challenged to be more like Him.

I am working on having Jesus' character in the face of an attack. I'm working on keeping my mouth closed to nonsense and only speaking words seasoned with grace and respect. I'm working on recognizing the enemy and not giving him any ground in adverse situations. I'm working on keeping my end goal in mind, and staying true to my God-given destiny.

We are all works in progress. Let's just make sure we're working to progress!

Verse of the Day: For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:21

God Is So Good...

The story of 10 year old Willie Myrick has touched me so much! This young boy was kidnapped, but his song of praise led to his release!

I don't even care for the song "Every Praise", but the words are impacting me as I think about where this young boy could have ended up. God is truly our Savior, Deliver, and Healer. Every praise belongs to Him!

To read Willie's testimony CLICK HERE.

Don't Believe the Lies!

Today, I have a post featured on the EmpowerMoments blog. Below is an excerpt....

Ever since the fall of Adam of Eve, the devil has been trying his hardest to trick mankind into believing his lies. Every chance he gets, he whispers his falsities into our ears. And, it’s no wonder he keeps it up, we fall for his tales more often than not.

We continue to live in fear. We envy the lives of those we admire. We believe the lie that we are not worthy. We worry and stress ourselves out feeding into the story that things will not work out for us. We keep our dreams locked away thinking there is no way we will ever attain them.

All because of the lies of the devil. Lies we choose to believe over the Word of God....

Read the rest of this post HERE.

The Voice of the Lord

Recently, I've begun a study on the voice of the Lord. I'm interested in the intricacies and power that the Lord's voice has.

It was the voice of the Lord that created our universe. Think about it. God's voice alone formed our world! Whatever He spoke, happened. It was His voice that formed the planets, the stars, the trees, the birds, the oceans... Just His voice.

When God speaks, His words go into action.

His voice was revealed to Elijah as still and small. (1 Kings 19:12) Yet, it has made eternal impacts. It was the voice of the Lord that established the covenant with Abraham. His voice created the Law that became the foundation of Jewish life, and reflected the sacrifice that His Son would one day give.

What has the Lord spoken over your life? What words has He released for you?

No matter how things may look right now.... no matter how you may wonder how it could happen... no matter what circumstances are trying to come against it... God's word will prevail. He's said it. You can count on it.

In addition to that, the voice of the Lord may have been calling your name recently. Are you running to hear His voice? Are you making your way to get into the Lord's presence? Or, are you hiding from Him like Adam and Eve did? (Genesis 3:8)

When God wants to talk with you, it's imperative that you hear what He has to say. The same voice that created our world wants to talk to you, and you don't want to hear it? Don't let your fear, shame, or sin keep you from the presence of the Lord. Allow the Lord's grace and mercy to keep you under the sound of His voice.

Verse of the Day:

The voice of the LORD echoes above the sea.

The God of glory thunders.

The LORD thunders over the mighty sea.

The voice of the LORD is powerful;

the voice of the LORD is majestic.

The voice of the LORD splits the mighty cedars;

the LORD shatters the cedars of Lebanon.

He makes Lebanon’s mountains skip like a calf;

he makes Mount Hermon leap like a young wild ox.

The voice of the LORD strikes

with bolts of lightning.

The voice of the LORD makes the barren wilderness quake;

the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

The voice of the LORD twists mighty oaks

and strips the forests bare.

In his Temple everyone shouts, “Glory!”

Psalm 29:3-9

Stand Firm

First things first: Can I just ask for you all to forgive me? I apologize for leaving you blogless these past few months. It was necessary in the beginning, and then I just lost my mojo. I have no words. I am ashamed. I have prayed. God's forgiven me. Will you? I thank you in advance for your mercy.

On another note, I've missed blogging. I'm not sure if I will return to daily posts, though. But, I don't want to give up the blog totally. I will, however, be posting more regularly moving forward. I'm still figuring out how to make things work.

So, on to today's inspirational moment.

It seems like every single day there is news about how the church is being challenged to give ground to the world and accept the world's way of doing things. The church is consistently being asked to compromise what the Bible says for what is the current views of the day. And, far more frequently, the church is giving in.

I can only assume that many believers don't want to be seen as bigots or hateful or crazy or unreasonable. We don't want our friends, family members, co-workers, or society in general to place us in an unflattering light.

So, we find little ways to compromise. Maybe we misinterpreted that scripture on fornication. Perhaps a child really doesn't become a human being until a certain point during pregnancy. There are pastors who are gay now, so maybe the original thoughts on homosexuality were incorrect. God is so loving perhaps there are multiple ways to get into heaven.

Little by little, we keep giving in. Yet, how long until we have nothing left to stand for?

When Daniel was torn away from everything he knew and was chosen to serve a new king, he purposed in his heart not to defile himself with the king's provisions. (Daniel 1:8) There were other Jews who were taken into captivity as well. But Daniel was the one who chose to remain true to the Lord's will. He stood up for what he believed in. And the Lord showed him favor. Because of his stance, the Lord blessed Daniel with wisdom and insight far greater than anyone else in the king's service. (Daniel 1:19, 20)

Are you allowing the world to make you compromise what you know is right and holy? Are you standing for righteousness? Can the Lord count on you to stand firm in the midst of complacency?

Today, purpose in your heart to follow after God no matter who around you is giving in. Don't compromise what you know is right for the popular view of the day. The Lord will bless you and show you favor because of your faithfulness to His Word.

Verse of the Day: But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. Matthew 10:33