bible

Situational Faith

by 4myluvs89

I listened to a clip the other day and was still thinking about it as I woke this morning. If you’ve never heard of Travis Greene, you should give his music a try. In the clip I referenced earlier, he was sharing a portion of his testimony and how he came to write the song, “Made a Way.” So as not to spoil your research, I won’t tell it all, but his situation was such that only a touch from God could make a difference.

In that clip, he shared that he wrote the song based on what God had done in this situation, not what he could’ve done or didn’t do. I often talk about giving God glory in advance, but even this testimony caused my ears to perk. In the midst of bad news, he sang about how God made a way. Sure enough, he’s able to stand firm on it and, years later, it’s still strengthening his faith.

I’m sure someone reading this may be thinking, ‘well, he didn’t do that for me,’ and the truth is that God doesn’t do that thing for everyone. Travis’s testimony was his and his alone so his faith would increase. He was walking out John 20:31 in a situation where the Lord continues to answer Luke 17:5. While the Lord God may have not given you this testimony, yours, too, will be for your good and God’s glory.

READ: Psalm 118:5-7; John 20:30-31; Luke 17:5-6

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/MimVg0OMGvA?si=oCbMdq6sTd_UNiPb “Made a Way” by Travis Greene

When to Give Up on God

by 4myluvs89

Mannn, let me tell you – I’ve had a week. Oh, for sure, it’s not the worst week ever, but still, it’s been a doozy. I’ve been on a new, temporary job for about two weeks now and I do thank the Lord that the negative stress level is minimal. It has it’s downfalls, but doesn’t every job? If you don’t think so, we’ll just agree to disagree upfront, LOL. I contemplated listing the things I could remember that caused me to feel so downtrodden this week, but I’m going to skip that part and get to the ‘when and why’ of our topic.

All throughout the bible, there are stories of trials and tribulations. My brother often jokes me about how much I’d reference the Book of Job over the years. It’s hard not to revisit Job’s story. He endured so much and was blessed even more. But for most people, it’s hard to read Job’s story from the beginning and feel better anytime soon. Here is where I submit to you that we have got to recognize that our lives, too, are but pages on a book, yet to be written.

When we read any book, it usually never gives the ending at the beginning. So, we have to read it, just as we have to live life. One of the biggest delusions about this, though, is that life is supposed to be lived out at the same speed. How soon we finish a novel is dependent on how long we decide to sit down and read it. Eventually, we’ll read to the end and can move on to another book. We get one life to live and there is no other book to move on to (it’s life and death). If you’re not a fan of Ms. Shirleen or are unaware of her altogether, this would be a great introduction to her. She submits to you that she is going to live her best life and I submit that we all should do the same.

Living our best life is encouraged in the Book of James, Chapter 1. Verse after verse provides a stark reminder that the time to give up on God is never. I will be the first to tell you over and over. I choose to be your friend today and tell you that nothing is ever so horrible or traumatic that it warrants an unexperienced or broken relationship with God. We will fall and mistakes. We will become weary and afraid. Bills will come due and money will be short. But God. Friends will hurt us and family will betray us. Still God. The Lord is faithful. Never give up on God.

READ: Job 19; James 1

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/B2YHvIam5vY?si=OEXfSSgE8pPaNe5P “Faithful Now” by Vertical Worship

Clouds and Streets of Gold

by 4myluvs89

Wow! What a blessed morning I’ve had! The song I’ve attached for you today! May I suggest you listen to it several times over. Undoubtedly, some of you may have heard it before, but there’s nothing like a fresh breath of air to change your perspective.

And after all, isn’t that the majority of what life’s about, perspective, that is? As I was reading the Word this morning, I had to pause so that I could take a picture of the beautiful cloud hanging outside my window. Yes, I said “hanging” because that’s truly what it was doing (Job 26:7-9/14). I have no sense of memorization when it comes to these things, i.e. the scientific names of clouds, etc., but I do love that the Lord’s blessed my daughters with the gift of being able to tell me. They both love science in their own regard, but I digress…

I recently revisited the idea of wealth with my daughters and I can tell you that my focus was on them knowing that it is not in money. We need money, yes, but the wealth that involves knowing the Lord Jesus Christ for yourself is unlike any other. We are never indebted because of it, it is not on a borrow/barter system, and it can never be taken away from us.

During lunch yesterday, we encountered an old man who blessed me by sharing with us words about his love for Jesus. He’d been at the table near us a while, having had, assumably, finished his meal, and I wondered why he was still just sitting there. I have a tendency to do that, contemplate the why’s of other people’s lives, that is ;-). After some time, he turned to us and inquired about the two beautiful twins I had with me and asked how we were doing. I clarified for him that many people think they’re twins, but they’re not, thanked him for his kind compliment, and shared that we were doing just fine. He proceeded to ask me if he could tell me about his Jesus. Yep, that’s exactly what he asked. I smiled and said, “you sure can!” While I can tell you that our waiter was nice and attentive, it didn’t escape me that during this time, he seemed intent on blocking this man from speaking to us, especially about that topic. One could see it as him just trying to ensure we weren’t being bothered during our meal, but I tend to see the spiritual aspect of it and know that Satan was at work trying to block the exchange of giving God glory. I’m actually glad the old man persisted in speaking to me/us because his words were so comforting. He was obedient and I was intent on being attentive.

What he said to me/us was that Jesus was wonderful. He proceeded to tell me/us that Jesus “makes a way when there is no way.” He assured us that God would provide all of our needs. I thought for sure he was going to sing every lyric of this song, LOL, but he settled on saying that Jesus would pave up streets of gold just to bless us. Now, that may do nothing for the average person, but I received it with open arms.

I’m passing it on to you. I come to you with a humbled heart and I’m telling you that Jesus WANTS to bless you. I share it with you with so much fervor that it’s truly unbelievable on my end because it is NOT what I aimed to blog about today. God changed my thoughts so that you could be reminded and assured that “he makes a way where there is no way.” The one who hangs the clouds in the sky can change your life. Read his words and be open to a new perspective. Allow the Lord to bless you with abundant wealth today.

READ: Psalm 1:1-6 and Jeremiah 7:1-7; Matthew 6:33, 2 Corinthians 9:8, and Ephesians 1:3

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/cWLm6z42Gk8?si=EB0vuIfR_hjjOyhl “My Jesus” by Anne Wilson

I Prayed for You Today

by 4myluvs89

As I read in the Book of Colossians this morning, the thing that was pressing and so beautiful on my heart was just to say this prayer for you today. This prayer is even for the people who may never come across this post. That’s just how important it is – to pray for people I don’t know.

I ask that God “give you a complete understanding of what he wants to do in your” life and for “him to make you wise with spiritual wisdom” so “the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and you will continually do good, kind things for others. All the while, you will learn to know God better and better” (Colossians 1:9b-10, NLT).

That’s it. Simple, beautiful scripture turned into prayer. As you read it, consider going back and praying it over people you don’t know, including me. This is just one way I’m able to share the love of Christ with you, so I thank you in advance for praying for me, too.

READ: Psalm 18:28-30; Colossians 1

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/1MalHvbSL5U?si=KqwNrzKHBs26WFF- “Who’s Gonna’ Tell Them” by Marvin Winans

They’ll Drink When They Get Thirsty

by 4myluvs89

“You can love a person crazy, but you can’t make them be what you want them to be.” I came across that in one of my journals this morning and don’t readily know if I paraphrased it or not, so I opted to put it in quotations for the sake of giving credit to the seed-planter. It’s certainly a wise note and one that definitely makes you think about the effort you put into another person or people.

It kind of mirrors the phrase about leading a horse to water, but not being able to make them drink, don’t you think? It’s plausible that the horse just wasn’t thirsty at the time, but at least you put them in a position to fulfill their thirst when ready. This is what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us by providing his Word. In the Book of John, Chapter 7, Verse 38, we read, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water’” (https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Thirst). God provides his Word to us in hopes that we will, eventually, receive it (drink) and live according to his will.

Think on that today as you decide what to read, where to go, and what to say to whom.

READ: Exodus 17:1-7; 1 Corinthians 10:3-4

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/TxSxay_ZpQo?si=3mYxXxfSgQA5CLAM “Holy Water” by We the Kingdom

Pray FOR Your Enemies

by 4myluvs89

I don’t know about you, but sometimes it’s hard to pray for my enemies. That word in and of itself is such a huge dynamic. A quick search on the internet defines an enemy as “a person who is actively opposed or hostile to someone or something.” I don’t think that definition puts forth enough power, but it’ll do for all intents and purposes.

Psalm 58:6a used to be one of my favorite verses: “Break their teeth in their mouth, O God!” New King James Version. Now this verse puts forth power! David prayed with fervor and sincerity and he shared with God all of his fears and frustrations when it came to his enemies, especially those he knew to be enemies of God. He even included himself (Psalm 51:1-2). David recognized he was an enemy of God, too, when he sinned against the Lord. When I look at praying through this lens, it lessens the desire for my enemies’ teeth to be cracked and reminds me of other scriptures I could pray.

Ezekiel 36:26 is one of those scriptures. You called it – I’m not including it so that you can look it up for yourself. I love these moments that we share, LOL. In that verse, we’re reminded that we all are or have been an enemy to someone whether we know it or not. Sure, we’re an enemy of someone who may have no true validity in naming us as such, but in their heart, that’s who we are to them. More importantly, though, we all are or have been an enemy of God and his categorization is never skewed. So, this verse helps me pray for my enemies, not against them.

As you listen to today’s song choice, consider what the artist is saying before they really move into the song. I can never listen to her testimony as though it’s just a part of a song and I pray it blesses you in that way or even more. God wants to show us mercy and so much more takes place in our lives when we allow him to do so. Pray for your enemies today and allow the Lord to give you peace.

READ: Psalm 51; 2 Corinthians 5:17

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/2U0n_foreyc?si=LsKYJ8EfbkWaS0uw by Mercy/Tremble Medley featuring Ahjah Walls and Housefires (Official Music Video)

Concealed Carry Permitted

by 4myluvs89

I took special notice of an email this morning that referenced concealed carry. I thought to myself, how relevant that is for this day and time, not only for physical weapons, but the weapons of spiritual warfare?

We live in a day and age where gun violence is a daily topic. I’m of the mindset that guns themselves are not the issue, but the person holding it from the other end. And don’t even get me started as to whether or not the status of their mental capacity should even come into play and to what degree. If the powers-that-be had 100% control, there’d be no Veteran or prior service military member able to purchase, let-alone be able to carry, a weapon of any form, shape, or fashion. To hinge on that being a primary deciding factor is unfair in so many ways, but I digress, so let’s agree to table it for another day’s discussion.

For today, let us determine that we can and will carry around not one, but many concealed weapons all day, every day. In the Book of Psalms, verse 11 of Chapter 119, it reads: “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” In doing so, that is, hiding the Word in our hearts, not only are we setting ourselves up to remember not to sin against Jesus Christ, but we are, in fact, compiling weapons of warfare. We can be assured of this because of 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, where we’re told and reminded that we do not wage war against the flesh nor are our weapons of the flesh. This thing is spiritual and we can freely carry around a “divine power to destroy strongholds!” There is no application, no background check, no hinderance from any perceived or active mental illness, and every weapon owned is free of charge.

I implore you today to open your Bibles and begin to stockpile your weapons. Let every word from God provide you with ammunition against the enemy, the true enemy of God, which is Satan. When the flesh of Man begins to come against you, strike down the enemy within him. Take captive any thoughts of inflicting bodily harm and, instead, use your spiritual armor to wage war against the enemy.

READ: Isaiah 54:14; Ephesians 6

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/jEK6_rz26z0?si=-kV-t4FafsX5kyXx See a Victory by Elevation Worship

Get Beyond Seeing with the Naked Eye

by 4myluvs89

This is a subject that followers of Christ tend to frequent over the course of their lifetime. It’s most often noticed by those of us who spend an enormous amount of time within the physical walls of a church. It’s extremely easy to move from the forefront of our minds to the rear that we, in fact, are the church. In a nutshell, we can get so busy doing the work of the church (Acts 2:42), doing the work of the Lord (Revelation 3:8), doing the will of the Lord (Matthew 28:19-20), that we actually begin losing sight of the Lord (Revelation 2:4). This is what happened in the case of the prophet Balaam.

I recently watched a sermon where the pastor taught from the book of Numbers. For the life of me, I can’t remember the focal point, but if I do before this ends, I’ll be sure to reference it for you. During the sermon, though, my focal point became Balaam. I didn’t recall seeing his behavior as it was described in the sermon, so I wanted to refresh my own understanding of the scriptures. In all honesty, this is what we should do following any sermon, lesson, devotion, etc. We need to seek the wisdom of God so that we become not clever, but wise. We cannot hold any man fully accountable for what he teaches or what we take away from his teachings. God will do that for us all. But, I digress.

As I began to read through Numbers, I wondered why God was doing what he was doing to Balaam. At this point, you already know I’m not going to give you the entire chapter’s explanation. This is the blessing – you get to go and read it for yourself. I will say that I felt some type of way because, at the onset, Balaam was being obedient to what the Lord had said. I found myself furrowing my eyebrows because how could he be wrong for actually listening or was it that he heard the Lord wrong?

I’m happy to say that it doesn’t take much for me to be grateful for a mustard-seed’s worth of an understanding because that’s all I got. Balaam hadn’t done anything wrong YET. God wanted Balaam to be so in tune with him that he would only say what God told him to say, only do what God told him to do, and not waiver. God wanted to help Balaam avoid fulfilling the yet. It took God speaking through a donkey for Balaam, so what do you think he’d do for us?

It’s a wonderful, absolutely humbling feeling to be able to hear from the Lord. It’s ten times the rush when you hear some things so clearly. But when we begin to walk out what we’ve heard from the Lord, we can become complacent in the work. We can begin to hear less and less from God because we’re focused on the last thing that was said and, eventually, we lose spiritual sight because we’re only seeing with the naked eye. 

There are some things, my friend, that God has told you to do and you need to begin looking for him with your spiritual eyes. Continue to do the work the Lord has given you, but don’t lose sight of him trying to pause you to give you clarity for the next steps along the way. Be blessed. 

READ: Numbers 22-25; Ephesians 4:11-15

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/31PyNIGh3Oc?si=GzxymXnraGZggNFu Michael Ketterer, “Spirit Lead Me” 

Hurt, Harm, or Danger

by 4myluvs89

I grew up with so many ‘sayings’ and hearing so many ‘ole wives’ tales’ that it just ends up being something that I still do – saying things without necessarily thinking of where they came from or why whoever said it began saying it. And, yes, sometimes we do it even in prayer. That’s a topic for another discussion. Our focus today, though, deals with a conversation I recently had with my youngest daughter.

I often asks my children how their day went, regardless of their location. Different things happen at school that can bring about certain emotions, yet a similar thing taken place at Walmart might’ve not phased them at all. Believe it or not, having your feelings hurt at the mall has a different effect than, let’s say, having your feelings hurt in the McDonald’s drive-thru. I don’t know why that is, I just know it’s true. 

So, after listening to my daughter explain to me that things went well for her earlier, I responded by telling her I was so very grateful to God that things were good. I followed by telling her that, as far as my prayers, I ask God to continue to keep her and her sister safe from all hurt, harm, and danger. I wanted her to know that I’ve begun to recognize more and more that, as they grow older, there’s less and less I’m going to be able to do any of that, protect them, that is, from all hurt, harm, and danger. I transitioned to talking about the fact that there’s truly only one person who could do that and even he won’t always do it. That’s when I began to wonder why is it that we speak something we know isn’t guaranteed? It’s all fine and well to ask for it, but we can’t hold God to it. I’m of the mindset that anything he won’t block is certainly not because he can’t, it’s just that he won’t. And the reasons are given to us over and over throughout scripture. God, in his infinite wisdom, gave us Psalm 23:1-6 because he knew we’d need it when Romans 5:3-5 came a’knockin.’

The truth is that we will experience hurt, whether it be physical or emotional. We will encounter situations that are harmful, and we will, inevitably, make decisions that could put us in some serious danger. Psalm 27 begins with a reminder that the Lord is our light and salvation and proceeds to talk about the when’s. “When” evil people come and “when” foes attack are just the beginnings of trials that we’ll face. It doesn’t say at what age or where, just that “when” it begins, we are to remember that the Lord is a fortress.

So, as I pray for my children and you pray for yours (or whoever else you want to plug in), let us still ask the Lord to protect them from all hurt, harm, and danger. If you weren’t saying it, consider adding it to your prayers. If you were and just didn’t know of any scriptures to reference, now you have some to fortify your stance. While we know that God may allow some trials, we can rest assured that he’s already prepared a place of refuge. We need not fear or be afraid.  

READ: Psalm 121:7-8; Proverbs 22:3

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/Bq8PzU2W8VI?si=4CBld3EKWaSs4Nfe William Murphy, Everlasting God

When the Others are Allowed

by 4myluvs89

Once again, God gave people time. Today’s blessing comes from the Book of Amos, where two years prior to the massive earthquake, the Lord gave Amos a message to give to the people. Only this time, the message wasn’t for the people of Israel, but their neighbors. It was for the ones who’d “sinned again and again” (1:3b) by beating “down…people in Gilead” (1:3d). This time, it was for the ones who sold Israel into slavery and continued to break their treaties – yes, they would be punished. Still, there were others. Others who “chased down their relatives” (1:11d) while others used their swords to rip open even pregnant women. 

There are so many take-aways today. Give yourself the time and benefit of re-reading this so you understand more clearly that God will allow us to be who we are and either judgment or blessings will follow. It’s exactly what took place here and will continue until the Father returns. 

During this time, God allowed violent nations to overtake Israel because of the sins Israel committed. None of this could’ve happened to Israel had God not removed the hedge of protection He had around Israel. The people from Tyre, Damascus, Gaza, Edom, and Ammon were given a prophetic warning from Amos two years prior, but Israel was given 25 years. 

Time and time again, the Bible is clear on the fact that we get the opportunity to choose. We are always the others being allowed at one point or another. I’d venture to say that God gives us a right to choose every hour of every day. The Bible says as much in the 30th Chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy, verses 19-20. It’s like when we receive our driver’s license: we have a right to drive, but we now have a responsibility that we did not have while we were in the passenger’s seat, and with that comes the reality of consequences. Rarely do we want to discuss or have to face the latter. 

Today, I want to challenge you to consider what hedge(s) of protection you aren’t recognizing. Where is God covering you now and where has He covered you in the past? Then consider the years that have passed and where in there were the signs that the uncovering took place. As you look back over your life, ask God to give you discernment as to what went wrong and why. What message did He send where He gave you time to pray, but you chose to go the other route anyway? 

We must make no mistake about it, a good parent chastises the ones they love. God will always send us a messenger and a message. He will give us warnings and time before He allows the reckoning. Begin to see what your testimony could look like today and obey the voice of the Lord.

READ: Hosea 1, Amos 1, and Deuteronomy 30:10-20, New Living Translation

LISTEN: https://youtu.be/HGwtyFQrzb0?si=kPGljs0ojIXFDM0d Reverend Clay Evans, I’ve Got a Testimony