Daily Devotional – 11/30/16 “Where are you planted?’

Matthew 7:16 says, “By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?” where-are-you-plantedReading this, I asked myself, “How many of us are producing edible fruit? You’re probably asking, “What do I mean by fruit? And how do we create fruit when we aren’t trees?” Well, the bible says in Psalm 1:1-3, “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither– whatever they do prospers.” See, as children of God, we ought to be like a tree planted by the river because a tree that is planted there have roots that runs deep enough to make it unmovable. And just like the tree, our roots should be so deep within God that no matter what happens to us, it doesn’t blow us like leaves.

Oh, you know how it is when things begin happening in our lives, we run like a leaf being blown in the wind. When trouble comes, we stop going to church. When death shows up, we grieve as if there’s no hope. When finances are out of whack, we start acting as if God isn’t our provider. But when we are rooted, our leaves of faith don’t wither when the seasons of life change. When the storm of situations show up, it won’t knock us out of our place. When the fire of burdens ignite, it won’t burn off our covering of faith because we’re rooted in a God who never fails! And when we bear fruit, it’s edible. What kinds of fruit? Galatians 5:22-23 says, “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” This is why, beloved, you are known by the fruit you produce. And trust and believe, people will know if it’s good or bad based on where you’re planted.

Daily Devotional – 11/29/16 “Trust the one who knows the game!”

For the last few nights, my husband has gotten me hooked to the TV show Flip or Flop. It’s about a husband and wife whose business is flipping run down homes for a profit. On one episode, they received a call from a young man, new to the business, who needed help learning the game. contractor-free-clipart-1They agreed to partner with him on a house but during the process the new guy would flinch every time there was money to be spent because he’d already said he was in over his head. His budget was $30K, they said $45K. He wanted to keep the old cabinets, they said they’ve got to go. He said $500 for new floors, they said $5000. Long story short, because he trusted them, they ended up making a profit of almost $40K each. What am I getting at? Had the new guy not trusted the ones who knew the game, he probably wouldn’t have made anything close to what he did. And for somebody reading this, you may not understand the plays being called in your life, but trust in the one who knows the game! I know you’ve prayed and it don’t make sense; surrendered and it still don’t make sense, cried and you’re still confused; meditated and still don’t know.

But don’t you trust the one calling the shots? And do you not believe in the one making the plays? I’m only asking because if you do then you ought to know by now that God has a purpose for the exact process you’re going through. Stop calling folk, they can’t explain it. Stop looking for help, it’s already here. Stop seeking for the answer in someone’s similar situation, it isn’t the same. YOU are going through because it’s your time. Your entire life is being shook up because God said it needed to be. So, hold tight while the remodeling of you takes place. Oh, it won’t feel good but trust the contractor because while you’re putting effort into why, you’re missing the blessing of … you could be broke down during your remodeling yet you’re still working. You could be out of commission yet you’re still popping. And you could look like what you’re going through but I see you and you still look fly. Whoever you are that’s going through the remodeling phase, right now, don’t walk away prematurely because it’ll leave you unfinished for business. Trust the process!

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Daily Devotional – 11/28/16 “Weakness is not defeat!”

I shared a small bit of devotion on last Wednesday and it simply said, some of you are suffering now because you’ve yet to divorce your past. Oh, you know I’m right. For some of you, the past showed up over the holidays with a new smile and the same lie and you fell for it. Some of you dreaded opening your eyes today because you realized, after laying down with your past last night that it still holds the same hurt. For some, it’s not even the past but it’s your present circumstance that has knocked the life out of you, leaving you walking around spiritually dead. Life, for some of you, even a lot of pastors, have left you literally dying, spiritually, because you’re afraid if you let people see you hurt, this time, they’ll do you like they did last time. If I shall be honest, a lot of you don’t even have anyone you can let your guard down with and it’s silently killing you.

See, you’ve always been the strong one and now you’re too ashamed to show weakness. You’ve been the encourager for so long that you don’t even recognize your need for encouragement. You’re always helping that now you’ve yet to see that it’s you in need. You’re always the one feeding folk (physically and spiritually) that you can’t even hear your own stomach growling. Beloved; when will you surrender, take your own advice, rest, sit down and when will you let go? I shared a status by Pastor Jay Patrick that listed some things pastors should do. Things like take Monday off, find someone you trust to talk too and stop comparing your life to someone else. And while he catered this to pastors, it fits for everybody because every now and then, you need to take a day off and relax or sit across from someone, maybe with a glass of wine and talk without fear of it being shared. And all the time, stop comparing your life to that of someone else. You will get tired but don’t allow it to burn you out. You’re entitled to need help but you have to then let someone in to help! You can’t do it all. Even the strongest has a weakness.

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