Daily Devotional – 4/10/12 “What in the world is going on?”

The enemy is surely busy in this world! With the amount of killings happening on a daily basis, the way children are acting when they try to be an adult instead of a child, the way parents are no longer being parents because they are too busy acting like a teenager themselves or they have taken their hands off their child(ren) and with all the diseases and sickness in the world, I’m surprised God hasn’t come back to destroy it already. Folks walk around acting like they have tomorrow to get themselves together when tomorrow isn’t promised to anybody. Why do you think the bible says in 2 Peter 3:10, “But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.” You walk around hating on other folks blessings because you feel like God isn’t blessing you but have you stopped to realize that you might be the one blocking your own blessings? If you got mess in your heart, filth on your lips, lust in your eyes, death on your tongue, hurt in your hands and you walk in deceit; you are blocking your blessings. It’s like bowling and each time you get ready to roll your ball down the lane it never reaches the pins its intended for because something or someone always gets in its way. Well, it’s the same way when God gets ready to send a blessing your way. When you lie on folk, you are getting in the way of your blessing. When you misuse people, you are getting in the way of your blessing. When you put your hands on folk to hurt them, you are getting in the way of your blessing. When you get caught up in other folk’s mess and problems, you are allowing them to get in the way of your blessing and when you allow other folk to cause you to sin; you are allowing them to get in the way of your blessing. At some point you’ve got to get right in order to unblock the pathway to your blessings and if I may make a suggestion, you’d better do it now before you won’t have a chance too.

Even the best Christians won’t make it past judgment day because while you may be at church every Sunday, your heart isn’t. Yea, you may pay your tithes every Sunday but as soon as you get around the naysayers who say, “Chile, I ain’t paying no tithes because it goes to the Pastor anyway,” you join in and agree; you’re paying in vain. When you can stand in God’s house talking about folks, cheating with the deacon/usher, cursing like you’re in a bar and dressing like you walk the streets, you are getting further away from God’s grip. I know, you think just because you’re young, you’re healthy, you pay your tithes, you go to church on Sunday and you pray; that you got it all together or that you got time but baby, read the obituaries, watch the news and listen to some other folks talk and you’ll soon realize that on your best day you’re still sick enough to die. See, death doesn’t have a respect of person because he has to visit every one of us. If you don’t believe me, then go visit St. Jude and LeBonheur and look at some of the kids that are battling rare forms of cancer, read about the young children that died of heart attacks when they’re heart hasn’t even been beating long enough to be wore out or Google car accidents and find out how many of those folks were healthy and just driving home when their car was hit by a drunk driver or they fell asleep at the wheel. Time won’t stand still while you decide to get yourself together. If you know that smoking is killing you, stop. If you know that the drinking you’re doing is affecting your life, stop it. If you think you can’t live without snorting or shooting up cocaine, keep doing it because you won’t have long to live with it. If you have to wake up to pills only to be put the sleep with some (that are not prescribed to you), keep doing them because one time you won’t wake up. You need to get it together because with the way things are happening, in this day and time, you might not have as much time as you think.

Why do you think that your husband will continue to stay around when you treat the dog better than you treat him when the bible says in 1 Corinthians 11:9, “Man wasn’t created for woman but woman for man.” Why do you think your wife will stay around when you make it known to the world that you can’t be faithful when Hebrews 13:4 says, “Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.” Why do you get to jail and call on God when you’ve taken a man’s life over something that you could have walked away from when the bible says in Exodus 20:13, “You shall not murder.” We are quick to come to God when trouble comes in our lives but where are you when everything is good? Why do we have to wait for things to happen to us before we reach out our hands to God? Doesn’t he deserve our praise when things are good? You shout the loudest when your light bill is due and the money is few but you’re quieter than a church mouse when the income tax check comes. You had your own amen corner when your car was broke down but then won’t even come in the rain when God blesses you with a new one. You were crying uncontrollably when husband/wife left but then stand there yawning when they come sliding back. But Ephesians 5:20 states “Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This doesn’t say just when it’s convenient for you or when you feel like it.

Your problems shouldn’t dictate your life. Your problems shouldn’t determine the way you praise. If you don’t comb your hair, it’ll show by your tangled hair. If you don’t bathe, it’ll show by the smell of your body. If you don’t change your clothes, it’ll show by the stains they have. If you don’t pray, it’ll show in your relationship with God. If you don’t study his word, it’ll show by your walk with God. If you don’t trust God, it’ll show by your test and if you don’t praise God, it’ll show by your testimony. The world and the people in it is changing everyday which is why you need to have a relationship with God who never changes. With all the stress the world has to offer, you should want a relationship with a stress reliever who is better and cheaper than a massage. When your body is aching with pain, you should want a relationship with a pain reliever that’s better than Tylenol. When your mind is racing and you can’t fall asleep, you should want a relationship with the best sleep aid that won’t give you side effects like Ambien. God never changes and he never fails, try him before it gets too late!