Daily Devotional – 10/31/14 “Friday’s prayer!”

It’s Friday but have no fear for God has received your plea. He has! Oh, you thought He wasn’t listening? Someone told you He didn’t hear the cries of a sinner, He can’t hear your pleas from way down there; well they lied for 1 John 5:14 says, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” And not only that because then 1 John 5:15 picks up and says, “And if we know that he hears us–whatever we ask–we know that we have what we asked of him.” See, you can’t let what folk say to you stop you from going to God with your request; go with the confidence that it’s already done. Stop waiting until man has validated your prayer because they’ll water it down with mess and by the time it makes it to God’s ears it’s so full of misery, God don’t know what you’re praying for. Stop waiting on people to pray for you, pray for yourself sometime especially when you’re able to. God said approach me with confidence and then “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith (Matthew 21:22).

Oh, you don’t know how to pray; it’s simple, just have a conversation with God but the bible says it like this … “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Matthew 6:9-13” God is waiting to hear from you about you! He doesn’t need to hear from Pastor all the time about your ailment, go to God on your own behalf and see if He won’t work it out. Even on this Friday. Prayer changes things Saints! I didn’t just read about it because I know for myself. I didn’t have to ask anybody because I tried it.

My Heavenly Father, as I petition your throne I must first thank you for another day. Thank you for blessings and for your grace. Now, God I thank you for the person who is reading this now and God I ask you to increase their prayer life. God, for those who don’t know how to pray; I dispatch the anointing of the Holy Spirit over their lives now to intercede on their behalf to move in a mighty way. God turn living room into altars so that prayers may go forth. God, I ask that burdens are lifted and that lives are changed on this day to never be the same in a good way. Right now, I am standing in the gap praying for all those who are unable to pray for themselves and a special blessing for my nephew today because he is on my heart. Amen.

Daily Devotional – 10/30/14 “Turn it over Thursday!”

It’s Thursday and you know what that means right? Yep! It means its turn it over Thursday! Yea, you may be going through, the enemy may be standing outside your home beckoning you to come out, your storm may be brewing over head and you just came out of one, car may be on its last good tire, cut off notice for MLGW staring you in the face and you barely got enough for gas, food and the medicine you need and you just got paid but turn it over! Wife acting like she ain’t got good sense, husband acting like a stranger you don’t know, children acting like you didn’t birth them and family acting brand new but turn them over. Folk on the job trying to make you lose your religion, church folk constantly acting like they have already lost theirs and the world won’t find any but turn it over! For Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Never worry about anything. Instead, in every situation let your petitions be made known to God through prayers and requests, with thanksgiving. Then God’s peace, which goes far beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your hearts and minds in union with the Messiah Jesus.”

Yes I know it’s easier to worry but why worry about when God says He’ll take it if you give it to Him. Why are you stressing yourself out over things you have no control over when God says give it to me, let me handle it and I’ll let you rest. I get it, it’s easy for me to sit at this keyboard and give you encouragement when I’m not in your shoes, going through what you’re going through but I’ve been through a few things and trust me when I tell you, I ain’t finished going through. Is it easy for me to always give it over to God, no but I’ve learned (the hard way) that when I do, He makes it all better. Beloved, please understand … “In every way we’re troubled but not crushed, frustrated but not in despair, persecuted but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed, 2 Corinthians 4:8-9.” So on this Thursday; stop trembling and tarrying in that terror, get up out of that trench of turmoil without tumbling over the trials you’ve already triumphed above and turn it over! You made it to another day which means God has a purpose for you! Find it and then use it! Turn over that “I can’t”, “Sickness won’t let me”, “No money” “They said I can’t”, attitude and do it!

Daily Devotional – 10/29/14 “I’ll help you, will you help me?”

It’s Wednesday and someone is wobbling from the weight of the world that seems to have you weighed down but why won’t you sit it down? Why are you trying to carry it all by yourself? I know you want to act like you got it all together but how is that working out for you? You don’t want people to see that you’ve been wounded in your battle, so you’d rather wander around like you’re in the wilderness whispering your witness because it’s now whack instead of seeking Godly wisdom. Well, how long do you think that will last? Don’t you know the enemy is watching and he’s sitting back rejoicing over the fact you’re letting your guard down? Don’t you understand that now you are more vulnerable to the enemy’s attacks because your flesh is weaker than it was before? And yet all you have to do is sit down that weight you’re trying to bear alone. Who said you had to do it by yourself anyway? Galatians 6:2 says, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Why as Christians are we so prideful? We don’t want to ask for prayer, don’t want folk to see us cry and, don’t want to go to the altar out of fear that someone may think we need God’s help when the truth of the matter is … we do! Stop being ashamed to ask for help and if you are afraid to ask for help out of fear of what others say then you are around the wrong type of Saints!

See, as Saints, we have to understand … the bible says to help carry one another burdens, not take on! Read this carefully. We are to help one another. It’s like, I see you sitting on the side of the road with two buckets of water. I stop to see what you’re doing and you tell me, you’re drinking water from one of the buckets in order to make it lighter to carry. Now, I can do one of two things. I can either help you carry one of the buckets or I can sit down and help you drink some of the water and take on some of your water weight. (Did you catch that?) The better of the two would be to help you carry the bucket of water and I’ll tell you why. 1. I didn’t take on the excess water I needed to consume to make the bucket light enough for you to carry. 2. You still had water in both buckets which mean you don’t have to make this trip again (before time) which you would have had you drank the water. We have to help one another! It’s our charge as brothers and sisters in Christ for the bible says in Romans 15:1, “Now we who are strong have an obligation to bear the weaknesses of those without strength, and not to please ourselves.” Because when it all boils down and simmer away; it’s not about us anyway!

Daily Devotional – 10/28/14 “Stop wishing and work!”

It’s Tuesday and it’s cloudy (where I am) and someone’s soul is just as cloudy as the sky because you’re mixed up over some things that you’re experiencing. You can’t seem to figure out why certain things are happening to you. Why can’t you get well? Why does the death angel seem to know your family well? Why is cancer attached to your family’s genes? Why aren’t you being blessed like others? Why can’t you smile like them? Why can’t you this? Why can’t you that? Well baby I’m going to tell you like this … Stop trying to figure out what you can’t fix, stop asking for stuff you don’t want to work for, stop wishing in other folk’s stuff, stop wanting other folk’s blessings and stop day dreaming in other folk’s dreams! You can’t ask for a blessing and then not expect to work for it. That’s like me expecting my check to be direct deposited even though I’ve called in for the last 2 weeks with no time accumulated to cover the time I need to be off. See, I can’t realistically expect God to just freely hand me a blessing without having to work for it when 1 Corinthians 3:9 tells me, “For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.”

Yes, I know you’re tired of being sick and you want to cry out like Paul did asking God to remove your thorn from your flesh but didn’t you read what the Lord said to him in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” Yea, I know you’re fed up with visiting the cemetery but baby we all have an appointed time of death. I get it, you’re tired of being without, get up and do something about it. Stop wishing and crying over what others have because it might not be all what they make it seem to be. The enemy can make blessings look just as good. This is why you have to be careful of the person’s blessing you’re wishing for because you might just be wishing for a spirit you can’t handle. Don’t be too quick to wish for my blessing because baby, you might not be able to handle the storm I endured to get the car I got approved for, the same way I might not be able to handle what you had to endure to get the blessing you have. That’s why I’ll rejoice with you for your blessing while rejoicing for mine. Get up out of your pity this morning and stop waiting on something to be dropped in your lap if you haven’t done anything to get anything. You have another opportunity to get the blessing you need and want, if you pray and have faith but the bible says in James 2:26, “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.” You have to get up and get it! It’s not dependent on someone else work, faith, and blessing; it’s all on you! Stop wishing and work!

Daily Devotional – 10/24/14 “Saints … help more!”

What if you laid down on last night and didn’t get up? Would your life have been meaningful?

What if you were in an accident and needed someone to care for you? Would you have someone there? Without hesitation, might I add, because you’ve been there for someone else?

What if you were sick and needed someone? Can you honestly say you’ve cared enough about someone for them to return the favor?

If you were broken down on the side of the road and called for help, would they come?

If you needed money and asked to borrow, would they give?

If you needed a place to stay, would they open their doors?

I’m only asking these things because the bible says that in order to get a friend you have to first show yourself as friendly. But isn’t it strange that as Christians we don’t show Godly love to one another like we should and don’t do Christian things to and for one another like we could? I mean the bible says in Proverbs 17:17, “A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need,” yet we’d rather walk past each other on the street. We try to figure out if the person who is doing the begging really need what they are begging for, when it’s really not our place, instead of helping them with they ask you for. We either help or don’t but don’t question their need.

See, you have to understand, it’s not about the person you help for the bible says in Luke 6:38, “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full–pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.” Don’t you get it! Your giving isn’t about the person you’re helping. Your helping isn’t about the act and your serving shouldn’t be for glorification from man because you should know by now that Proverbs 19:17 says, “If you help the poor, you are lending to the LORD–and he will repay you!” This all goes back to studying your word. We should be helping one another because it’s what we are supposed to do. This is why I said earlier, we need more Saints! Then we wouldn’t have church folk being all up in church folk business because then church folk would sit their tails down somewhere. Help more and maybe you’d hush more!