Lakisha, the Author

Daily Devotional – 4/24/14 “Ignite the fire!”

It’s amazing that you can read the bible for yourself, recite a few scriptures from your remembrance and call off a few of God’s commandments but you’ve yet to catch on fire for God. Yea, you’ve heard about the woman with the issue of blood who was healed, Job who lost everything but got it all back, the 3 Hebrew boys who were placed in the fire but didn’t get burned, Jonah who was in the belly of the whale but survived, the blind mind who received his sight, the child who was vexed with a devil but Jesus cast him out, etc., yet you’ve yet to get excited about the possibilities of the things God can do. Oh, that’s not enough? Well, let me bring it closer to home; God woke your ungrateful self up one more morning when you could have died in your sleep and gave you a reasonable portion of health and strength. If you look around, you’ll see that He gave you everything back you had on yesterday and you probably didn’t even thank Him for it. God bought you out of one more night of sin and has given you the ability to repent for them and you still won’t get excited. Yea, you might have sickness in your body, mind wandering, worrying about stuff, relationships won’t last and friends and family act funny yet you’re alive. You might not like the job you have but you got one. You might be tired of the house you live in or the car you drive but you got one. Oh, I just wish you’d get excited about the fact that God can and will do everything He promised. Yea, you got the facts about what He can do but you’ve yet to get on fire.

Didn’t God let you rest last night, allow your family to rise this morning and didn’t He give you the ability to drive to your destination? He healed your body of the pain that had you tossing and turning yet you won’t praise Him. He allowed your marriage to go from failing to favorable yet you won’t fellowship with Him. He blessed you with a car with that credit you got when you should have been walking yet you won’t worship with Him. Baby, if you’re wondering why God hasn’t shown up in your life; you may want to look at your praise. See, God inhabits the praise of His people which means if you aren’t praising Him, He has no place to reside. No, praise doesn’t mean you have to jump, dance, shout and scream but praise can simply be you thanking Him in the midst of your day, praying to Him while you’re driving in the car, singing about Him when you’re in the shower or calling out to Him while you’re lying in your bed. Yea, I know you have the facts about the Father but when will you light the fire? That kind of fire that makes you cry when everything is going right, dance without caring whose watching, laugh when folks say you should be sad or feel like running when no one is chasing you. Why won’t you ignite it every now and then? Yes, you have it because the bible says in Luke 3:16, “I baptize you with water, but He who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” The fire is there, you just need to add some fuel to it!

Daily Devotional – 4/24/14 “Wait!”

I’ve had my notepad up all morning waiting on God to move in my spirit with what He would have me to say to you today and yet nothing came. Then it donned on me, maybe there isn’t anything to say. Maybe today is the day you need to wait on God to move. Just maybe today is the day for you to wait on God to answer you before you make a mistake you can’t get yourself out of, create debt that you can’t erase or even say some stuff you can’t take back. Just wait. Yes, I get it, waiting is hard but so is writing a check your … well, you know. Don’t get to in a hurry and end up falling off into something that you might just drown in. Stop rushing to make a relationship with that person who has showed you over and over that they aren’t worthy of being called girlfriend or boyfriend, let alone husband or wife. Don’t rush to become a parent when you can barely take care of yourself. Just wait! You’ll wait on a bus or a ride yet you’ll rush God. You’ll wait on that dude that’ll come 2 hours late yet you can’t wait on God to move. Chile, relax yourself and wait. Haven’t you heard that all good things come to those who wait? Then what’s the problem? Psalm 27:14 says, “Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.” Psalm 31:24, “Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD!” And Lamentations 3:25-26 sums it all up, “The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.”

Daily Devotional – 4/22/14 “It isn’t always what it seems!”

Grow up! Stop whining! Stop with the woe is me pity party! Stop blaming God and stop blaming folk! If you would take a moment and really look at your situation, you might just see that it isn’t really what it seems to be. While you see a problem, God is trying to get you to see that it’s really just a moment to praise Him that you’ve been able to make it through it. While you’re simmering in your sickness, God is giving you a second to shout about the fact that you’re living and not dead. You’re looking at friends that have left but God is trying to get you see that they were really enemies dressed like friends. You’re looking at the bills that are past due yet God is giving you another opportunity to see and trust Him as your provider. You’re looking at that closed door yet God is showing you that the path you were about to take would do you more harm than good. Everything is not what it appears to be but it’s all about how you look at it. Stop thinking that everything that happens in your life is an attack by the devil or your enemy because sometimes God has to send a storm your way in order to remove some things that are hindering your walk and work for him yet you don’t see that because you’re so busy focused on the storm. See, God has to sometimes shake you in order to put things back into perspective but all you see is the hell that’s breaking loose. Be still and get what God is trying to give you and what He’s trying to get you to see. Your new boo, who said they’ll go to church with you, is now stopping you from going yet you’re still questioning why your relationship won’t work. Your girls, who aren’t really your girls, keep talking you out of going to bible study and you’re still questioning why you can’t understand God’s word. You get caught up in the gossip of everybody else yet you still can’t figure out why you can’t hear God speaking for yourself. When did God stop being top priority?

Yea, your life is hard right now but God hasn’t left you. Everything you go through with God has a purpose from God. All you have to do is look through your spiritual eyes and you’ll see. Pray and have faith that God will do what He said He would do (He keeps His promises) and wait because the bible says in Isaiah 40:31, “Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary?” In your spiritual waiting room, your spirit is strengthened and your weary soul is restored. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 tells us that although, “We are pressed on every side by troubles but we are not crushed. We are perplexed but not driven to despair. We are hunted down but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down but we are not destroyed.” Your temporary troubles aren’t always what they seem but you have to stop rushing and whining through them in order to see this. God has a purpose for everything He allows us to go through!

Daily Devotional – 4/21/14 “Easter is over, now what?”

Well, Resurrection Sunday (Easter) is over, all of the eggs have been found and eaten; clothes that were bought are now either in the dirty clothes hamper or on the floor of the kids room, the grass from the Easter baskets and candy paper is all over the house, pictures taken have been posted and statuses about just how much you love Jesus have all been seen but now what? Do you feel the same about Jesus today as you did yesterday? Will you even take a moment to post about God this week? Will you even darken the door of somebody’s church this Sunday? I mean, isn’t the sacrifice God made, by sending His only Son to die worthy of being celebrated every day? Isn’t the sacrifice Jesus made worthy of being mentioned more than just one day? Yes, you looked real pretty on yesterday and yes the children were even dressed real cute but did you teach them that Easter isn’t about rabbit, eggs and baskets filled with candy? I’ve read the bible and I even watched the Passion of Christ a few times and I’ve yet to see anything about a rabbit being sacrificed on a cross to bear our sins. Yea, I appreciated my Facebook timeline being filled, on yesterday, with the appreciation and the love you have for Jesus yet today it’s filled with mess. Don’t you get it? God isn’t concerned about the number of followers you have on Twitter, the friends you have on Facebook or the number of likes you get on Instagram because none of that will be counted at judgment. It won’t matter about the new outfit you wore to church on yesterday because God is looking at the heart, it matters for Luke 6:45 says “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” All I’m sharing with you on today is, don’t wait until it’s a holiday to give God the gratefulness He deserves because you might not see another one. Don’t wait until it’s convenient for you to serve God because you might not get the chance. Give God all He is due especially when He’s given you everything and most times you don’t even deserve it. Appreciate Him every day because even when you don’t He still blesses you beyond any man’s measure! Easter is over, now what?

Love, Life and Happiness Blog Tour

Riana:

I wasn’t expecting to meet anyone when I arrived at Shaw University. After my last stint at love, the only thing I wanted to focus on is getting through my first semester of college without any drama. That was my intentions, until I met Shawn Walker. At first I didn’t like him. He was arrogant and cocky; someone that I could easily despised, if he wasn’t so damn sexy. But one night changed my thoughts about him. I was able to let down my guard and be myself. Now, I have a second chance at love. Will I let myself love again, or will I continue to live in the past?

Shawn:

After my last girlfriend cheated on me, love was not on my agenda. I tried to escape it at all costs, until I met Riana Robertson. After thinking she was like every other girl, I easily avoided being around her but that night, when I saw what happened to her, I had to help her. I had to protect her. That night changed the way I felt about her and I realized I could fall hard for her but will our relationship survive once she finds out the truth about me. Or will I lose her forever…

Cheryl:

Falling in love is something I’d never imagined. I didn’t think love existed, mainly because of the way I was raised. Relationships were never in the cards, especially since I gave a chance on one, and it nearly destroyed me.

When I met Marcus Walker, I was only looking for a fling, nothing more; but the more time I spent with him, the more I realized he could be so much more. Not only has he helped me through my family drama but also with a situation I thought was way behind me. Now, I understand what love is and how powerful it can be. But will I let myself be loved, or will I continue to believe that love is not for me?

Marcus:

One thing I said I will never do in my life is fall in love. Being in love is great for some people, but not for me. That all changed when I met Cheryl Thompson.

At first, I thought she would be like the rest, just a one-night stand, but when I saw what she was going through, I realized she was much more than a fling; she was someone I wanted to commit to. Will I be able to trust myself and give her what she needs, or will I end up destroying her even more?

Sheena Binkley first discovered her love for storytelling when writing her first story for a class project at the tender age of nine. Since then, she has composed several short stories and numerous tales that are not only engaging, but simply entertaining. She is also a freelance writer, penning articles on various topics including education and entertainment. Besides writing, she loves reading, shopping, and spending time with family and friends. She lives in Houston (where the weather is always unpredictable) with her husband and son.

1. In five words, describe you as a writer?

Entertaining, exciting, unpredictable, quirky and romantic drama!

2. What is your inspiration for writing?

I have a vivid imagination, so I think that’s the inspiration I use to come up with storylines, characters, etc but I also think it’s my love for writing and being a reader that makes me want to create stories that are interesting and engaging.

3. What are some things that you have to have while writing?

My laptop or iPad (when I don’t feel like turning on my computer), food, and music. Music is the most important element because that is how I set-up scenes for my stories. Most of the scenes in my stories are based off of songs that I was listening to while writing. That is also why I have playlists for all of my books.

4. Where do you see yourself in 5 years with your writing career?

Even though I love the fact that I’m an indie author, I would love to be with a publishing company. Also, I would love to see one of my books on either The New York Times or USA Today best-sellers list.

5. Name five things that are on your bucket list?

1. To be a New York Times best-seller

2. Go to Disney World (which I plan on doing with my family next year)

3. Go to New York

4. Visit Vegas

5. Try zip-lining (which would be an accomplishment since I’m terrified of heights)

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7092860.Sheena_Binkley

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