Lakisha, the Author

Daily Devotional – 1/25/16 “Lose your religion!”

Along this life’s journey, you may get to a point when you start questioning if the path you’re on is even worth it. Be honest! It may be because life has gotten hard, you’re struggling in your spirituality, you’ve been dealt a bad hand or it may be you just don’t know what you should be doing. Now, you’re sitting in between give up or give in. You’re torn over if you should or shouldn’t answer the call/text from your past because anything seems better than your present. You’ve had a brave face because it’s easier than telling someone about your struggle. Your cheeks are starting to hurt from the fake smile you’ve been wearing. You’re always too busy to talk but the truth is, you don’t want anyone to hear the pain in your voice. You’ve stopped posting pictures because you don’t want anyone to see the bags under your eyes from the sleepless nights. You haven’t changed your relationship status because you don’t want anyone to know that one didn’t work either. You’re afraid to ask for help because folk now days talk about you more than they pray for you. You’re tired of being told to hold on and let God do it. You’re tired of seeing folk blessings and yours haven’t showed up yet. You’re not trying to be petty but it’s hard to control it. Now what?

Well beloved, you may need to lose your religion! Yea, you may need to lose what you’re use to in order to get what you now need. You may need to let go of religion and get religious. See, religion is defined as people’s beliefs and opinions concerning the existence, nature, and worship of a God but religious means believing in and showing devotion or reverence for a God (dictionary). Religion searches for answers on the creator of creation but religious seeks the one who created creation for He has all the answers. Religion is your belief of God but religious means your belief in God. Religion means you practice Christianity but religious means you partake in Christianity. Religion means you try to figure out how God did it but religious means you’re faithful to God for doing it. Religion means you question things but religious means you testify of things. Religion means you got God but religious mean God has you. This is why you have to lose your religion and tap into being religious. Baby when you’re religious you walk through the valley of the shadow of death and you fear no evil, you stop leaning on your own understanding, you walk through darkness and don’t bump into anything, you minister to folk who talk about you, you pray for those who prey on you and you go through the struggle with strength and come out with your salvation intact. It may not feel good because then you’ll have to come out of your comfort zone but it’s worth it.

“Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one He has sent.”” John 6:29

Daily Devotional – 1/21/16 “Fight in the spirit!”

During bible study on last night, we dug deeper into prayer. What prayer means, how to pray and how to keep a prayer journal. It was great! See, I’ve come to realize that these battles of the flesh, I can fight them but I’ll never win because they aren’t my enemy. Yes, it’s easier to fight who we see but what about what we don’t see? The real enemy is of the spirit and he fights dirty and he gets dirtier the closer you get to being real with God. This is why the enemy uses us, folk, in the flesh to fight one another. See, if I stand and fight you, in the flesh, once it’s over we’re both tired and have now let our guards down for the enemy to attach to our spirit. And the reason we were fighting still isn’t resolved. Get this, when you’re fighting in the flesh; your opponent can see or predict your next move but when you fight in the spirit, they won’t know what hit them until it’s done. This is why you need to stop fighting in the flesh. The bible tells us in Ephesians 6:12, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.”

How do you win? You fight in the spirit. How do you fight in the spirit? With prayer, fasting and putting on the full armor of God. I’ve told you this before but Ephesians 6:13 picks up and tells us, “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” You don’t have to fight when folk lie on you when the bible says all you need to do is stand firm with the belt of truth around your waist, the breastplate of righteousness in place and your feet covered in shoes of peace. It doesn’t matter what they throw at you, hold up the shield of faith for it shall block any attack thrown your way. Stop worrying about what they try to drop on you when your helmet of salvation is mighty enough to keep it from penetrating your head. And you don’t have to lash out trying to match them word for word when you’ve been given a sword of the spirit to use on them instead; it’s called God’s word. Stop trying to fight your battle in the flesh. Although you might win the fight, the battle won’t be over until you conquer it in the spirit. Let prayer fight your battles because it’s only then you’ll get the W in your column.

Daily Devotional – 1/20/16 “Offer them a seat!”

I’ve learned on this journey that you’ll have more folk in the audience of your life who can’t stand you than those who say they support you. Yea, you’ll have folk mixed into the crowd who actually came to see if this will be the time you fail. There will be folks who say they are happy for you, downing you behind your back. Those who claim they will be there will never buy what you’re selling yet they’ll show up to eat and then have the nerve to want something free. Well beloved, it comes with the territory of your gift. You don’t have to believe these printed words, just keep living. There are people who show up on Sunday mornings, not for the preached word but to see if this will be the day you mess up. Folk on the job are waiting for you to say something wrong in the meeting. So called friends are waiting to get some juicy gossip on you. And here you are still trying to figure out how they got in. It’s simple; God allowed them access to you. Turn to your bible and read where it clearly states in Psalm 23:5, “You prepare a table before me, even in the presence of my enemies.” See, God has given your enemies access because He needs them to see His word being manifested in you. Why? Eventually they’ll stop hating and really start congratulating and maybe they’ll want to get to know the God you serve.

What do you do? Keep walking in God’s way and using your gift. Stop worrying about what folk say because there’s only fifteen dedicated folk in your congregation, your book doesn’t have as many reviews as theirs, your car is over ten years old, you haven’t upgraded your house yet, you’re still unmarried, your children didn’t go to college, your spouse isn’t like theirs and your event didn’t sell out. Stop focusing on why you keep bumping into naysayers or folk with the look of ‘I told you so’ in their eyes. Don’t put too much stock into those who make it their mission to knock you off your mission because God has granted them front row access but they can’t harm you, all they can do is look. For my bible tells me in Psalm 138:7, “Though I am surrounded by troubles, you will protect me from the anger of my enemies. You reach out your hand, and the power of your right hand saves me.” So be nice to those who wants to see harm come your way, be kind to those trying to make you stumble and smile at those who only say mean things about you because the bible says in Proverbs 25:22, “In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.” Beloved, when you don’t entertain the enemies, it makes them burning mad they didn’t get you. And when your anointing allows you to offer them a seat at your table, it makes them hot with anger they didn’t win this time either. Let them sit, they have no authority!

Daily Devotional – 1/19/16 “Discernment Detector!”

It was 2:52AM when our smoke detectors went off this morning. Now, we have smoke detectors all over the house yet the only ones that went off were one in the hallway and one upstairs. So of course my husband and I were jolted out of our sleep (them children didn’t even stir) to find out what was happening. Thank God nothing was wrong. Why those two detectors went off, we don’t know. Oh but you know this pricked at my spirit. Why? Because it reminded me that God is yet protecting us from unseen dangers. See, this afforded me the opportunity to know that God is still looking out for His children. It doesn’t matter that we can’t see Him; He’s still working thangs out in our favor. Oh, y’all don’t understand. Two detectors went off in different parts of the house but there was nothing wrong that we could see or smell with our natural senses but God was in the midst. Yes, I know folk’s will try to explain it but I don’t need an explanation because I know that even in the core of this cruel world, God is still blocking unseen dangers. Even when we walk into our home, God is covering us from unseen dangers. When we take for granted walking safely into our jobs, God is shielding us from unseen danger. When we don’t even look around before walking in and out of a store, God is yet guarding us from unseen dangers.

Those detectors going off reminded me of this. It refreshed in my spirit that God has also instilled in us detectors, it’s called discernment. Yea, we have detectors that’ll go off before we even notice anything is wrong. Oh but just like the batteries in your smoke detector, you need to make sure the batteries in your discernment detector are working, every once in a while. You need to be sure your discernment can sense the danger before you do, allowing you time to get out safely. You need to validate the sensors in your discernment detector to ensure it can still pick up on mess before it even makes it in your vicinity. You ought to be praying daily 1 Kings 3:9, “So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” Yea, I pray daily for wisdom and knowledge on my path of ministry but I sometimes forget about discernment. Yet I was reminded early this morning that I need to check my batteries. What about you? How’s your discernment detector these days? Don’t be quick to depend until you discern.

Daily Devotional – 1/18/16 “Pit experience!”

It’s Monday and someone is still mad about some mess from yesterday, you’re mumbling because you left worship service worse than you came, can’t sleep and on top of that you’re still upset because you sacrificed bill money for Christmas and children still ungrateful. You aren’t satisfied with the way things are going, trying to convince folk that you’re saved but your service don’t show it and now you’re at the end of your rope crying out to God to come and see about you, again. You probably got paid last week and funds still low, bill collectors still calling, children still begging, cable still off, car note still late and cell phone bill is hanging on by God’s grace but baby, trust God! Yea, I get it. You’re trying but it’s hard. You’re trying to pull yourself up but every time you reach out there’s nothing to grab and all you see is darkness. Well beloved, it may just be your time to go through your pit like experience. Don’t miss it!

What do I mean? In Genesis 37, if Joseph wasn’t thrown in the pit by his brothers, he never would have made it to the palace in Genesis 41. In Jeremiah 38, Jeremiah was thrown into an empty pit all because he was being obedient in his service to God yet he was spared and lived. See, sometimes you have to go into your pit in order to get out and make it to your palace and by palace I mean your purpose. Sometimes you have to go through your pit like experience in order for your faith to be tested. Will you pass? Oh, please understand; it won’t be easy but when has suffering ever been easy yet you have to push through. When a woman is in labor, there’s an indescribable pain yet she has to push in order to birth the baby and for the pain to end. When you break a limb, you have to go through the process before your healing manifests. And being Saints of God doesn’t exempt us from suffering yet suffering is what makes our sacrifice sufficient. Don’t give up because you’re in your pit, right now, but praise while you in there and then continue to praise when you get out. Don’t miss what your pit has to offer, it may be the blessing you’ve been praying for.

“So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while keeping the wicked under punishment until the day of final judgment.” 2 Peter 2:9