Lakisha, the Author

Daily Devotional – 2/14/17 “Create in me, oh Lord!”

Love doesn’t hurt people but it is those people who have been hurt who do. Yes, I know it’s cliché to talk about love on Valentine’s Day however, there are a lot of people who have never felt genuine love from anyone. It doesn’t matter how many relationships you’ve been in, if you are harboring an unhealed wound, i.e. hurt, you won’t be able to allow genuine love in. This is why you always lash out, especially on days like today. This is why you start arguments when you don’t know how to respond to the affection he/she is given you. This is why you have trust issues that makes you go through phones and social media accounts. This is why you get upset at small things like him/her liking other people’s photos or them not responding to you right away. Why do you think you act out when they go out with their friends? It’s because you’ve been hurt and your mind takes you there, thinking they’ll hurt you too. So you set out to hurt them before they hurt you.

Beloved, what happened to you? Who hurt you? Who made you feel unloved? What turned your heart to stone? Why is the wall up? Who did it? And why haven’t you forgiven yet? These are all the questions you need to answer in order to get free. Aren’t you tired of carrying around a heavy heart? Are you not tired of crying over the same stuff? Are you not ready to come out of the hurt and dark place? Aren’t you ready to know what good love feels like? Even Anita Baker got it for she says, “Ah, many days it goes unspoken but this desire never seems to go away. It’s gonna take much more than hope to bring you close, I think I’ll pray – I want to know what good love feels like.” What about you? Are you ready?

Dear God,

Help me to forgive those who hurt me so that I may love and be loved again. Remove this heart of stone and create in me a new heart, restore the joy God. Search me and remove everything that keeps me on unsteady ground because I’m tired of carrying this heavy load of a battered heart. I need more of you so that I heal from the inside out. I need more of your love within me that I might love myself, first. Do it for me God!

Amen

Daily Devotional – 2/10/17 “Make me careful!”

Yesterday, I came across a song on YouTube titled, “Make me careful,” being sung by Tamela Mann. I’d never heard it before but in the lyrics she says, “Much is given, much is required yet I am a servant but sometimes I get tired. I won’t complain, this is my prayer; a job I must do until I am over there. Make me careful of what I’m asking for. Make me careful of what I’m praying for.” See, many times we ask for things, in prayer, without realizing the cost. We get in the midst of darkness and instead of seeking God who is the light, we begin bartering, asking for things we think we need yet never really taking into account what comes with it. What do I mean? With a new house or car comes new responsibility of paying and taking care of it. When you open a business, it requires a lot of your time. When you accept God’s call on your life, it comes with demands that sometimes overshadows your personal life. When you pastor a church, it comes with the personality of every person you shepherd. When you ask God for the blessing, you also get the burden. This is why we have to be careful of what we ask for. We have to be mindful of praying for stuff while in a crisis that we can’t handle when it is over. Because beloved, there’s some blessings that come with chains, hurt and pain. There’s some gifts that come with groans and some elevations with enemies already attached. And if you aren’t careful, you’ll end up cursing your blessing. This is why you have to be careful because you may just get what you ask for.

Dear Lord,
Make us careful of the things we ask for that we may not be able to handle. Lord, even when we think we need that which we are praying for, make us careful to not ask for stuff that takes us out of your will. Lord, block anything that hinders your call on our life. Make us careful so that we only receive what you have for us. Lord, we know that what we receive becomes what is required of us so let us not ask for things that will dampen the light within us. Block anything we ask for that brings more harm than happiness, more worry than wonders, more stress than strength, more pain than praise, more tears than testimonies and more burdens than blessings. Lord God, make us careful that we don’t ask for what we can’t handle. Make us careful that we don’t seek stuff we can’t hold. Make us careful that we don’t move too fast into something we aren’t ready for. Lord, make us careful so that we don’t miss what you have for us trying to get what’s not meant.
Amen

Daily Devotional – 2/9/17 “Stop running and heal!”

Yesterday I told you that you are wounded but not out. And this is true, if you stop running. I know you made excuses but the fact still remains, you are wounded. I don’t care how you cover it up, you’re wounded. It doesn’t matter how fancy you dress it, you’re wounded. You can talk with the big, fancy words, you’re wounded. Work at the prestigious job, still wounded. Own your own business, wounded. Pastoring a church, still wounded. Married or dating, yep you are still wounded. And your wound won’t go away simply because you’ve covered it. If anything, you are making it worse. See, when you have a wound, the doctor sometimes tell you to apply some ointment but leave it uncovered. This is because covering a wound allows a scab to grow quicker and although a scab closes off the wound to protect it from infection, it doesn’t necessarily mean it is healing. Think about it. Have you ever removed a scab only to find the wound isn’t healed? That’s due to the scab slowing the growth of new skin cells needed to heal the wound properly. You don’t have to believe me, look it up. When all you really need to do is clean it, apply some ointment and leave it open. Ok, you don’t want folk to know you have open wounds but aren’t you tired of buying bandages that aren’t helping?

Look, you don’t have to broadcast your wounds but it’s time you stop running from relationship to relationship, from church to church, from apartment to apartment, doctor to doctor and bed to bed. Stop running every time your feelings get hurt, it’s time you get healed. And the first step is acknowledging you have a wound. Next, you clean it by washing away folk and things who can potentially infect it. Next you add the oil of prayer and fasting that prevents harmful particles from getting in. And then you follow that up with connecting to someone who has access to refill your oil when it gets low. This can only happen when you stop running and hiding. And you will but it’ll only happen when you get tired of bandaging the same wound that’s been bleeding for 15 years. It is then you’ll become like Jonah who was tired of being tossed around in the belly of darkness, reaching for protection but not finding it and peeking into the face of death and he knows your name. It is then you’ll stop running and start crying out for the bible says in Jonah 2:1-2, “Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from inside the fish. He said, “I cried out to the LORD in my great trouble, and he answered me. I called to you from the land of the dead, and LORD, you heard me!” You’re wounded and not out but you are also not healed.

Daily Devotional – 2/8/17 “Wounded but not out!”

You want to know why you feel like you do. Want to know why you can’t seem to get through. You really want to know why you wake up refreshed and energized but it doesn’t last. It’s because you’ve been wounded and instead of getting help, you’ve tried to fix it yourself. So now you’re trying to hide but bleeding over everything. You’re trying to push but you’re getting weak because you can’t replace what you’ve lost. You’ve even tried to stitch yourself up only to end up infected and feeling worse. On the verge of dying spiritually because you are too stubborn to admit, you can’t do it by yourself. Depressed and suicidal because you’re hurting and don’t know how to make it stop. Beloved, you’re wounded and you need help. Stop running. Although you were hurt at one church, online ministry won’t fix you. You need to attach yourself to a place of worship with a leader who has the oil to mend your broken pieces. You have to stop running and surround yourself with some folk who have the power to pray over your shattered pieces and they become healed. Stop running because a few somebody hurt you when the right somebody can give you the love and covering you need.

Instead of running, stop and speak to your pain saying, I may be wounded but I’m not running. Instead of running, stop and speak to your hurt saying, I may be wounded but I’m not giving up. Instead of running, speak to the dark places and say, I may have been injured in the dark but today I’m looking for the light. Instead of running, speak to your wounds and declare them healed. Instead of running, speak to your dry places and declare them revived. Instead of running, speak over yourself and declare you victorious. Instead of running, decree I’m wounded but I’ll live and I’m wounded but not out! For the bible says in Psalm 147:3, “He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.” Child of God, I don’t know what wounded you. I am not aware of your situation. I don’t have a clue to your circumstances. But I know a man name Jesus who can do it for you. Do what, you ask? Whatever it is you need. Yea, you may be wounded but you’re not out! All you have to do is stop running.

Daily Devotional – 2/7/17 “Where is your crown?”

Woman, where is your crown? I ask this question because there are too many women, of all ages, acting as if you aren’t royalty. Young lady, where is your crown? I ask this because I am sick of seeing women and young women degrading themselves for the sake of love when in hindsight it’s only lust. Woman, where is your crown? Do you not know that your inheritance is relying on you? Do you know understand that the favor of your household is on your shoulders? Girl, where is your crown? It’s time for you to suck it up, he’s gone now. It’s time for you to shake it off, you made the mistakes. It’s time for you to move on, he wasn’t worthy of you anyway. Come out from hiding, it’s time for you to live and that starts with taking your life back. I don’t care what you did last night, today is a new day with fresh anointing and grace. And now it’s time you fix your crown. I can no longer sit back and watch a generation of women going in the wrong direction. No boo, I have a responsibility to try to save you. Whether you take my direction or not, I have been charged by God to give them to you. And as a woman, I will no longer sit idly by while life continually knocks the hell out of you. As a women with a mother, sisters, aunts, a daughter, nieces, cousins, church family and friends; I can’t just stand by and watch you fall.

So, I’ll tell you, you’re worthy until you start believing. I’ll tell you, you don’t deserve abuse until you get out. I’ll tell you, God made you to be wives and not just girlfriends and baby mommas until you get it. I’ll tell you, you’re an heir to royalty until you walk in it. And I tell you when God is not pleased. Because there are too many of us, women, not wearing the crown we deserve. Therefore; get up, get dressed, pat down your weave, fix your wig or comb your hair and adjust your freaking crown. Stop trying to fill the void left by your daddy, you can’t. Stop patching the holes in your heart with another trifling man, it won’t work. Stop forcing him to stay, let him leave. Stop with the suicidal thoughts of I’m not good enough, you are. Girl, don’t you want your crown that’s waiting on you? Then no more foolish behavior. No more attacking another woman. No more low self-esteem. No more cutting yourself just to feel pain. No more covering your body in tattoos and no more hiding behind the mask. It’s time you get your crown. The bible says in 1 Timothy 2:10, “For women who claim to be devoted to God should make themselves attractive by the good things they do.” Step into your rightful place, woman! It’s been waiting for you but this time when you step in, go for your crown and be the best doggone you ever!