Daily Devotional – 11/23/16 “Divorce or Delay?”

Some of you are suffering in your present because you’ve yet to divorce your past. Think about it. How well can a new relationship work if you keep allowing your ex to walk into your house when he/she feels like it, giving his/her two cents on what you should be doing? Every time you get ready to move forward in your new relationship, your ex shows up whispering sweet nothings in your ear. What you haven’t realized is, it’s only long enough to ruin what you’re in and then he/she is gone again. Well, this is the same for your present self because nothing will work as long as you keep letting the past show up anytime it feels like it. 

You’re an anointed being yet your past keeps reminding you of all the stuff you used to do, so now you won’t use the power of God that’s coursing through you. You want to do better but your past keeps letting itself in and with it comes the memories of who you used to be, making you think you can’t be anything more. Well today, I’ve come to serve you notice. Either you divorce the past or you’ll most likely find yourself in this same place, next year. It won’t matter how many resolutions you make, vision boards you create and goals you write down because you’ll still have the past in your ear. 

So you decide … divorce or delay?

Daily Devotional “11/22/16 – Clean your mess!”

Why are you constantly staring at the mess you’ve made? Why are you still walking around that pile of garbage like it’s going to take itself out? When are you going to get up and clean your house? Aren’t you tired of the stench? Aren’t you tired of walking around the junk? Are you not tired of moving stuff from one place to the other and still having no room? Then will when you get up, dry the tears and clean up? Please understand, I am not talking about actual garbage but I’m speaking in regards to the stuff you’ve allowed to taint you inwardly. See, you’ve allowed the hurt of your last relationship to stink up your heart and you’re wondering why no one would dare get close. You’ve allowed the loss of your job to jack up your attitude and now you can’t understand why no one will hire you. You’re still moving baggage from your last three relationships into your new one yet you’re having a hard time figuring out why it won’t work. You left your last church mad at the pastor and now you can’t stand any of them. And you’re allowing your past to hold you hostage in your present.

Baby, it’s time to clean up your mess. Yea! It’s time you stop crying over the spilled milk of stale memories and clean it up. It’s time you stop walking pass the garbage bag of guilt, throw it out. Open the closet and bring out those suitcases of suffering, it’s time to throw them out. That closet of chaos that’s holding the memories of past mistakes, throw them out. Those old text, dm’s and inbox messages; delete them. Those pictures, erase them. Stop stalking his/her page. Stop friending everybody he/she dates. Stop showing up at his/her church. It’s time to clean up. You stink! Baby, you stank! Have you seen the Febreze commercials that say, “You smell this but your friends smell this?” This the same way with you because you’ve become attached to the mess so you no longer smell that it stinks but it does. This is why you need to get up and cleanup!

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” – Proverbs 4:23

clean-up

Daily Devotional – 11/21/16 “Your Foundation”


foundationIt’s Monday and someone is still crying from last week. Angry because your storm is raging and you don’t know if you’ll make it through, this time. Depressed because it seems like you can’t win for the losses stacking up. Suicidal because you feel it’ll be for the best. Looking at your surroundings and even they don’t make sense. Constantly showing up at church, only to leave worse than you came. Need help but afraid and too prideful to ask. Need peace but don’t know what it feels like. Trying to understand but it’s making you more confused. Wanting to scream out, “what in the hell is going on,” but you really don’t want the answer? You want to ask, “why God,” but you know you’ll have to face the real truth. So what do you do? Do you read another translation of the bible that you still don’t understand? Do you ask for prayers only for them to pray for the symptom of your pain and not the cause? Do you ask for help, hoping this time it’ll help? Or should you stay in hiding, praying it’ll go away?

Well, beloved, I don’t have the magic answer to erase your pain, dry your tears or calm all your fears. I don’t have the potion that’ll instantly give you everything you need. What I might share, may not effectively work, at this moment but what I do have is God. Yea, I know you’re sick of being told to try Him but you need too, He works. I know you may be in an uncomfortable place and it’s hurting like hell, but do you trust God? See, I’ve found that after the tornado of circumstance blows through, tearing up everything you’ve known; you can rebuild. But that’s only if you’ve been built on a firm foundation. For the bible says in 1 Corinthians 3:11, “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have–Jesus Christ.” All you have to do is trust in God, who is your firm and unmovable, foundation. It doesn’t matter what it looks like, God is our promise provider and He never lets us down. You don’t have to believe me but read it for yourself in Isaiah 4:6 which says, “There will be a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and refuge and protection from the storm and the rain.” Whatever storm you’re enduring, God is able to ensure you’ll survive and rebuild. You simply need to reinstate your policy with Him and all it takes is a call from you. Call Him and see if He doesn’t work it out for you!