Daily Devotional – 2/20/18 “Mistakes happen!”

As a writer, I sometimes find myself reading things before I post or publish them, over and over. I will read, line by line to ensure there are no mistakes and wrong place punctuations. Yet, sometimes once I release it for the world to see, I will spot a mistake. This doesn’t mean the work or the post is any less valuable but there are some things I miss and/or messed up. Why am I telling you this? Because no matter how many times you start over, try to be right, read over stuff or even think before you speak; there is a chance you will make a mistake. It happens and regardless of the safeguards set in place, mistakes can happen. For me, I can hire an editor but a mistake can happen. Why? Because there is nothing or nobody perfect but God. Due to this, you’ve got to stop beating yourself up over something that happened. Yes, it happened. Sure, you said you’d never go again. Okay, you called him/her and flesh took over. You drank more than you said you would. You hung out with old friends and did some things you hadn’t done in years. MISTAKES HAPPEN!

And when they happen, it doesn’t mean your effort was in vain; reality is, stuff just happens. However, my question to you is, what are you going to do about it? For me, I edit my body of work or my post and publish again. I get up, dust myself off and try again. I apologize and try again. I own up to my mistakes and try again. I ask God for forgiveness and I try again. I forgive myself and try again. What I don’t do, I don’t count my mistakes because that will drive you crazy. What I do, I try again. What about you? What will you do? You’ve made the mistake, now what? You have to start over again, will you? Understand this ma’am/sir, every mistake you make isn’t a sin. Sometimes you were just plain stubborn, hard head and stupid resulting in your actions costing more than it was worth. Will you forgive yourself? For the bible shares in James 3:2, “Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way.” If it were that easy, we’d all be ‘greater than’ but because we’re aren’t, we have to deal with the ‘equal to’ that solves the matter at hand.

Daily Devotional – 2/19/18 “So I prophesied!”

Today, I am changing what I speak. No longer will I wish for things I want, I shall prophesy to them. Today, I am changing my talk from that of suffering to that of sanctification. Today, I will no longer stand around and watch the dead areas of my life but I will prophesy to what God commands. See, when Ezekiel was taken to the valley of bones, he saw what his natural eyes comprehended. He saw bones which signified death. As Ezekiel walked through the valley, his eyes availed him to see dry bones, an indication that the bones had been there for a long time. In fact, human bones can take years to actually dry out so when God asks Ezekiel in Ezekiel 37:3, “Son of man, can these bones live,” Ezekiel answers and says, “Lord GOD, only you know.” His answer isn’t suggestive of him not believing but he’s looking at what is in front of him. If it were you, standing in a valley of bones that have been there for longer than a decade, what would your answer be? Yet God says in Ezekiel 37:9, “Speak a prophetic message to the winds, son of man. Speak a prophetic message and say, ‘this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so they may live again.’”

At first, Ezekiel places the matter back into God’s hands (God, only you know) but now God is placing the matter into Ezekiel’s mouth, “Speak a prophetic message son of man.” Thus leading me to ask beloved, what dead thing are you looking at that God has commanded you to prophesy too? What area of your life has God commanded you to speak to yet you’re being deceived by your natural eyes? Because Ezekiel declares in verse 10, “So I spoke the message as he commanded me, and breath came into their bodies. They all came to life and stood up on their feet–a great army.” It doesn’t matter what it looks like, with God’s power and your strength to prophesy that which is meant to live will. In this valley were the bones of folk who were disgraced, even after death. I know this because in Israel, being unburied was a disgrace to the dead. But God has the power and gives you the ability to prophesy and raise up what others have thrown away, shamed, discredited and/or humiliated. All you have to do is be willing to open your mouth. As for me; what you thought was dead, what you tried to shame, what your words tried to dishonor and your actions condemn; I’ll just stand there and declare, “SO I PROPHESIED” and watch it resurrect. So I’ll prophesy and watch what you said wouldn’t survive, live. So I prophesied…

Daily Devotional – 2/15/18 “Have mercy God!”

Y’all, there is something wrong. When another teenager can take a loaded rifle into a school and murder others, there is something wrong. When violence, in our communities are on the rise, there is something wrong. When the prison systems are being filled to capacity yet there is no money for reforming our youth AND adults, there is something wrong. When a person can get harsher punishment for marijuana than they can for murder and molestation, something is wrong. When bars are filled but parent/teacher meetings are empty, there is something wrong. When casinos are packed but not worship service, there is something wrong. Please understand, this isn’t a religious problem; it’s a world problem. Yes, prayer changes things but the bible says without work, faith is dead. Sure, your prayers are good when I’m going through but one time, can you come and see about me? Yes, I thank you for posting your condolences on my Facebook wall but will you show up and offer me a shoulder to lean on? I appreciate your congratulations but can I also get some support? Of course, likes and shares are good but will you reach out when you see my language changing instead of taking a screenshot and putting it in a group text?

I guess what I am asking is, will you notice if I wasn’t having a good day? Would you notice if I wasn’t acting like myself? Could you read between the lines and decipher my cry for help? Do you not get that even on Valentine’s Day, there were people suicidal? Do you not understand the many children who are contemplating suicide because nobody is taking their cries of help seriously? Do you not grasp the many women and men who are living in hostile environments? Do you not comprehend the many pastors and ministry leaders who can barely afford to pay their bills yet they show up, well put together and with a message to help you? All I want you to understand is this. There are people who look well on the outside but slowly dying on the inside and they are afraid to ask for help. There are people you work with, every day, who are functioning alcoholics. There are teachers who hide a stash of pills because they need them to make it through the day. There are leaders who are fearful of failing so they’ll do anything to succeed. Something is wrong y’all and if you just happen to be one of the ones who is doing fine, at this moment, help somebody else. But if you’re the one who needs help, ask for it.

Daily Devotional – 2/14/18 “Love is …”

On this Valentine Day, I will not spend the time telling you what you should or shouldn’t do or feel. Instead, I’ll share with you what the bible says about love.

“If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

-1 Corinthians 13:1-13

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

Daily Devotional – 2/13/18 “I’m willing to wait!”

Here it is, Valentine’s Eve and while there are stores filled with teddy bears, candy shaped hearts, cards of love and flower shops and jewelry stores overflowing; the sad reality is, some of you haven’t felt loved in a long time. It’s not that you haven’t tried, you have but you still find yourself on the receiving end of hurt. You’ve fasted and prayed but still feeling fatigued and passed over. You’ve tried the relationship thing, sometimes giving the same person chance after chance and still nothing. You’ve tried to deal with the past demons who keep showing up but you can never seem to quiet their voices. You’ve even tried to forget the past mistakes but they keep popping up in your thoughts. Well beloved, before you make a rash decision tonight to accept the chocolate, respond to the “hey” text, take them up on their offer of dinner or open the door to your past; stop and think. Before you get under the influence of drugs, alcohol, peer pressure, lust and/or plain stupidity and do something you might regret; stop and think. You don’t need a warm body, a shabby promise or a generic gift to make you feel loved; love your doggone self.

Sure, it’s easy for me to say when I have a whole husband at home who loves me but baby, I love me too. Because the fact of the matter is, some of you have spouses too and yet you still don’t feel loved. And it may not have anything to do with said spouse, it could be an inward battle with self but aren’t you tired of fighting a battle you cannot win? If you are then maybe you ought to get like Jacob and stop fighting and instead cling desperately to God declaring, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” See, Jacob’s battle wasn’t about him winning against God because we all know God has the power to overcome us but his fight with God was simply testing Jacob’s ability to endure the struggle. Sure, it’s hard when you’re ready to be loved. It’s a struggle when you’re ready to be in a good, honest and worthy relationship but will you endure the struggle? Jacob endured the struggle and because he did, God changed his name to Israel, which means God rules. Will you hold on and wait until God permits for your name to be changed? Even if that means going through another Valentine’s Day alone, will you hold on until God blesses you? Because I’ve found that waiting, although it’s hard, has its purpose. So today, I will declare … “I am strong enough to wait on what I deserve because I’d rather wait for what’s mine than rush it and regret it!”

“I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, and in His word do I hope. Psalm 130:5”