Daily Devotional – 11/8/13 “Let me tell you …”

When I say that waiting on God will pay off, it’s because I know. See, my sister has been dealing with this thing called Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN) and it’s often called the suicide disease because the pain can make you want to do just that and for months I’ve had to watch her suffer. Now, this is my twin sister, the other part of me and the one that God saw fit to attach me too so for her to suffer means I suffer but I promised her I wouldn’t stop until I found someone to help her. So, I made appointment after appointment, sent emails, had others sending emails and making phone calls, cursed out doctors, sat in emergency rooms for hours and most of all I prayed. I prayed for her healing knowing that God would eventually send it so I waited, we waited. We waited and we prayed. Well, a few weeks ago a young lady from John Hopkins, in Maryland, called and scheduled an appointment for 11/21/13 but this didn’t feel (to me) like God’s answer so again we waited. Oh but then on last week, a lady called and when I answered she said, I got your email about your sister and I think we can help. I said I’ve heard that before being that we’ve been to numerous neurologists here with no answer. She said well Dr. Mericle can help her because he is the best in the country when it comes to treating TN but we’re in Nashville. I told her, ma’am I don’t care where you are because I will get her there. She said, we happen to have a cancellation for next Thursday (which was yesterday) at 2pm, can you get her here. I said, ma’am if you needed her there today, I would get her there. Needless to say, we get to the doctor’s office in Nashville and from the time we signed in, filled out paperwork and waited, I could feel God moving. See, first off his name is Robert (my granddaddy’s first name) and secondly his last name is Mericle (close enough to Miracle to me) and then from his assistant, to the nurse practitioner to the doctor everyone understood exactly what she’s been dealing with. Whew Lord! I wanted to shout in that man’s office but shouting isn’t one of the gifts God blessed me with so I praise Him through my words. However, I know that this has been what she has been waiting on and I know for a fact that it’s nothing but God. For my bible tells me in Isaiah 40:31, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Then 2 Corinthians 4:8 says, “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.” But wait because then Habakkuk 3:17-18 says, “Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the LORD! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!”

Oh, that’s enough because I may be struggling in my finances, yet I shall not be without. I may be drinking tears for water yet my weeping won’t last. I may be heartbroken at the moment yet my God is a heart fixer. I may have a few storms in my life yet God covers me. I may lose a few friends and loved ones yet God never leaves. I may get burdened down in my trials yet God is my strength. I may not always see my way yet God is my light. I may sometimes do wrong yet God forgives me. I may not always know my worth yet God continues to bless me. I may not always do what I know I should or go where I know I am supposed to yet God still uses me. Yea, I may fall at times yet I can still get up. Yea, so called friends may have dug a dusty grave for me yet I shake off the dirt and rise. Yea, sickness may be attacking my body yet I’m living. Yea, my road may be longer and my fights may be harder yet I’m willing. Oh, I feel my help on this morning! God is working on your behalf so just wait!

Daily Devotional – 11/6/13 “Keep pushing!”

I truly believe that your storm gets harder, when it seems like everything is going good because the devil has been allowed to see into your future and knows the blessings that are about to come and it is now his mission to make sure you don’t make it to get them. See, just like when God allowed the devil to test Job, He did so because He believed, no scratch that, He knew that Job’s faith was unshakeable, unbendable and unbreakable because Job had proved it over and over. So, my question now is, why can’t we have faith like Job? I mean as soon as our fight gets too hard, we throw up our hands in defeat although you’ve yet to be hit. When the fire gets a little too hot we back out the kitchen although you’ve yet to be burned. When the struggle gets real as we know it does, we wave the white flag in surrender although we’ve yet to be tagged in. Why do we give up so easily? The doctor says cancer, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, lupus, sickle cell, kidney problems and such and we hang our head in defeat although you’ve yet to hear the treatment options. As soon as the loan officer says no or the hiring manager says you weren’t selected this time you leave mad without even recognizing it wasn’t yours to begin with. When that man or woman walks away from you, you got the nerve to roll up in a bed and cry instead of realizing they didn’t belong to you in the first place.

WTF … Where’s the faith? Yea, you may be reaching for my dream and it seems like it’s out of reach but don’t stop reaching. Yea, you may have been declined this time but your yes is coming so don’t stop. Yea, you may have been knocked down but you’re not out so get up. Yes, folks may see the scars from being stabbed in the back from folks who promised to do you no harm, they may see the scars on your knees from you constantly praying to maintain, they may see the scars on the front on you from being drug to hell and back on your good day, they may see the marks on your shoulders from carrying the weight of the world or they may even see the scars on your feet from standing on them for 12 hours trying to provide for your family; however, but, nonetheless, God picks you up every time you get knocked down, dusts you off and stands you back up in order for them see your strength. Chile, God got you in this thang and if He wanted to take you out of it, He would have by now so you go ahead because it could be worse. You could look like the pain you feel, you could look like your past mistakes, you could look like those names they call you, you could look like the nobody folk said you’d be, you could look like the nothing folk said you’d do in life, you could look like that statistic society has deemed you, you could look like that crack that should have taken your life, you could smell like that alcohol that could have claimed your life or even look like all the mess you’ve encountered BUT YOU DON’T because God has you looking like you’re looking and it looks pretty good to me! So, get down off your soap box, get out your pity pit, get away from miserable folk and keep pushing. Get out your feelings, off Twitter and Facebook and keep pushing. Get folk out your ear, face, inbox and text message and keep pushing. Get out your own way, stop blocking your own blessing and find the faith that you’ve packed away and keep pushing! It may not look like it now but God has a purpose for whatever you’re facing but you’ve got to keep pushing to get through it.

Daily Devotional – 11/5/13 “There’s still time!”

I just happened to look back at my devotional for the same date on last year and would you believe it’s still relevant right now. On 11/5/12 my devotional was entitled “You still got time” and the year before on 11/5/11, it was “What’s blocking your path” and still today I ask, what’s blocking your path because you still got time! Time to live instead of acting like you’re dead, time to serve God instead of man, time to go right instead of always choosing left and time to move to get what’s yours. Isn’t that something? I mean with all the things that are happening in this crazy world from folks getting mad at being laid off to come back and shoot people, folks walking into schools and killing children, cancer is on the rise, bullying is taking over not only in schools but on jobs too, health care cost steady going up and paychecks are going down, saints are hiding and sinners are out in the open, family hating on one another and friends are becoming enemies.. I mean, what is really going on? Church has become a business for profit instead of being in the business of praise and then those who are in the church raise more hell than the ones outside the church. We want to blame the preacher for all the problems when you need to realize that your salvation depends on you. See, the pastor is responsible for teaching God’s word but you have a responsibility to study it. How can you honestly know if what the folk who stand behind the pulpit on Sunday is saying is true unless you open your bible? And how can you pass any test without first studying to take it?

Stop blaming others and please stop blaming things for you not getting what or where you need to be. Ok, so what if there is something blocking your path? Either you move it or you go around but don’t just sit there. If you know the interstate will be closed for the next hour, are you going to sit there or find an alternative route? Then why are you allowing an obstacle to stop you? Yea, I get it; it’s hard, you’re tired of trying, you’re tired of being turned down, you’re tired of getting nothing you ask for; so what? Oh, you’re going to give up but then what purpose would that serve? If whatever you’re standing in front of isn’t helping you, you may want to change what or who you’re looking at. All I am saying is; you need to stop playing with God before your time runs out. While you’re spending all your time trying to get yourself together, your time may just be too far spent before you’re able too. Baby, God doesn’t choose you to do His will because you are perfect but He chooses you with your flaws because those are perfect for the job He needs to fill. Don’t you know that if God waited on perfect folk, His will would never get done because NONE of us are perfect? Why don’t you allow God to clean you up because once He does, all the stuff folk throw at you won’t dirty your spirit although it might stain your clothes. The next moment of your life is not guaranteed, so stop waiting! Live YOUR life and stop blaming it on the obstacle instead choose a way to make it obsolete.

Daily Devotional – 11/4/13 “Wait!”

I’ve been sitting looking at the computer screen trying to figure out what to write about today. Trying to figure out another way to tell you what I always tell you. Yea, you know that things will get better, that trouble doesn’t last, that your joy will come, that things will get better if you hold on, that God hasn’t left you, that your test is only temporary, your storm has to end and all that but what do you do in the midst of waiting? What do you do in your storm? What do you hold on too while all hell is breaking loose? What do you do when you still can’t sleep after praying? What do you do when you feel like you’re all churched out? What do you do when it seems like all you’re doing is smiling to keep from crying and too tired to keep up the front that everything is alright? What do you do? Well, to be honest with you … I don’t have all the answers but I can tell you that giving up isn’t an option. Nope! Giving in isn’t available either, so what now? What will you do? (I’m asking you?) My husband asked me the other night, what do you do when you keep praying for the same thing and still haven’t gotten an answer? I told him, you stop praying and wait because if you keep asking it’s like you don’t believe you’ll get whatever it is you ask for. See, many times we keep going to God with the same prayer request but how do you feel when you keep getting the same email or voicemail from the same person asking you the exact same thing every time? This is the way God feels (I suspect). God heard you the first time, so wait. Wait until He answers for 1 John 5:14-15 says, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.” So, just wait. Oh, you may be facing something terrible now and you have a hard time understanding why you have to go through it but why not you? Are you too good to not go through trouble? Are you anymore worthy that you don’t have to go through hell when Jesus did? Baby, you haven’t faced nothing compared to the torment He endured for us, so just wait. Wait on your answer. Wait on your deliverance. Wait on your breakthrough. Wait on your promotion, the answer to your loan request, the healing you so desperately need or whatever it is you’ve asked for. Stop rushing God and wait. However, while you’re waiting pay attention and take notes because you may be missing the real reason you’re going through the situation you’re in. I’ve learned that no matter what you’re facing; there is a reason for it and obviously God deemed you worthy enough for this test because He knew you’d studied enough to pass it. So don’t fail it now that it’s almost over. Yea, you may be tired and can barely hang on or in there but just wait. Your pay off is right around the corner. Don’t miss it turning back, giving up, letting go or giving in. Wait!