Give It Up!

One day, a man came to Jesus looking for the key to eternal life. This man was a person who followed after the Law from when he was a child. The Bible points out that he was rich and he had the status of a ruler among the community. This man was wise enough to see that Jesus had insight that other leaders of the day had not attained.

However, Jesus expertly tapped into the young man's weak spot:

Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. Luke 18:22, 23

 

This young man could not give up everything to follow after Jesus. Even though he recognized the wisdom and power Jesus had, he could not give Jesus full reign of his life. He could not give up his title, his money, and he possessions for the eternal life that Jesus had for him.

 

What do you have in life that is precious to you? It may be your job, your car, your status in your church, or your beautiful home. Can you honestly say that those things aren't more important to you than your relationship with Jesus? If He asked, would you freely give it all up for Him?

 

Today, check your heart. Are you holding on to something that God is asking you to let go of? Are you placing something of this world as your first priority instead of your Savior?

 

Don't miss out on your eternal blessings for the temporary things this world has to offer! Allow yourself to put Jesus first, so you can reap the heavenly rewards that never expire. No matter how dearly you held the things you give up, they can never match what the Lord will give you in return.

 

Verse of the Day: And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting. Luke 18:29, 30

 

 

Stay Faithful!

This past week, my church has been reading the book of Nehemiah. This man of God was a bold, determined, prayerful man of God. I encourage you to read his story. It has definitely helped push me back into what I know God has placed in my hands.

When Nehemiah heard about the state of the wall of Jerusalem, he was so moved that he gave up his distinguished position in the king's palace and travelled back to Jerusalem to make things right. He gathered together the people of Israel and inspired them to work as a team to rebuild the walls.

There were people who ridiculed Nehemiah's mission. There were naysayers who dissed the quality of his work. Enemies sent up threats to attack his efforts.

At every turn, Nehemiah consulted the Lord in prayer. His resolve to stay prayerful kept him from making mistakes. His connection to God maintained his strength and resolve to finish what had been placed on his heart.

Nehemiah's faith led him to do what would have seemed impossible. With his leadership, the group was able to rebuild the walls of the city of Jerusalem in fifty-two days.

What did God lay on your heart? What moved your spirit so much that you knew God was calling you to action? What 'wall' is waiting on your rebuilding touch?

Don't allow the haters, the detractors, or your enemies to keep you from completing what God has placed in your hands. Stay faithful to what you have been called to complete. You are in the midst of walking out a miracle. You can't give up!

Today, purpose in your heart to keep going. Stay prayed up, so you can finish the work. God gave you the project. Don't let it fall to the wayside.

Verse of the Day: So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work. Nehemiah 4:6

My Apologies

I have been missing.

I am sorry.

Originally, I was just going to be taking a break to complete my master's degree. I got it. (Hallelujah!) Then, I was taking a break to recover.

One week turned into two. Two weeks flipped into a month. Before I knew it, several months had passed, and I had not returned to writing.

It wasn't for a lack of desire. I love writing these posts. I enjoy praying and asking God what to share. I consider it a blessing to be able to use my gift to inspire, equip, and uplift the body of Christ.

Yet, I allowed complacency, laziness, and procrastination to steal these last few weeks from us. I apologize to you, and I have apologized to my Heavenly Father. I am so thankful for your words of encouragement and inquiries about the status of this blog. It meant so much to me to hear that you all missed your "Morning Ti". I pray you can forgive me. I ask you to keep me in your prayers moving forward.

Morning Ti, anyone?

See you in the morning!

Tiara

Afternoon Ti: Lift the Savior Up!

Often, when Jesus ministered to someone they could not contain their gratitude and told everyone they knew about what He had done:

Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you. And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it. But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country. Matthew 9:29-31

And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him. And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee. Mark 1:27, 28

The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? John 4:28 29

Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel. Mark 5:19, 20

How often do you share the greatness of what God is doing in your life? It's one thing to share during a testimony service with other Christians. But, how often do you share God's marvellous works with everyone you know?

You may share stories of your blessings - but do you give God the credit? Do you exalt your Heavenly Father to the point where others want to learn more about Him?

Today, I want to challenge all of us to put Jesus on blast. We should broadcast His goodness to all we know. We should share His wonderful works with our friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers whether they know Jesus or not.

Today, let's give God His just praise, so others can see how great God really is.

Verse of the Day: And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. John 12:32

What's Going On?

I would like to apologize for the missing and late posts recently. I am now in my final semester (yay!) of school, and my classwork has doubled. So, for the next 8 weeks I will not be posting devotions on the regular.

I will definitely try to at least post twice a week to be somewhat regular, but I thank you for your understanding in advance.

I can at least post something today...

Throwback: It Doesn't Matter... God's Plan Will Prevail!

Looking back at posts can be refreshing. The post below just encouraged me all over again about the goodness of the Lord. God is faithful!

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This morning in my devotions Psalm 33:11 was my focus scripture: But the Lord’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken. (NLT)


This verse blessed me so much! In spite of how much things appear to be out of order, late, or even non-existent, God's plans for me will continue to stand firm! What He has ordained for me will come to pass! I don't have to be concerned about what is or isn't happening, who is or isn't acting right, or what I do or don't have. The Lord's plans will stand firm.

Whatever you may be going through, hold on to what God has spoken over your life! Don't give up out of frustration or fear! The Lord's plans will override whatever obstacles, interruptions, or detours that hit your path. In fact, the very thing that is frustrating you may be a part of God's omniscient plan.

Take heart and know that the Lord always has the last say. Even if we messed it up ourselves, we cannot stop God's plans from unfolding. If He said it, He will do it!

That just made my week! I can smile both inside and out knowing that God's plans are the ones that will prevail. Hallelujah!

Verse of the Day: Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ... Philippians 1:6

Wednesday's Word: Love Is A Verb

This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. We must not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing what was evil, and his brother had been doing what was righteous. So don’t be surprised, dear brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.


If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead. Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them.

We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything.

Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.

And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us. who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.
1 John 3:11-24 (NLT)

Have you been showing love through your actions?

Have a great day!