At this time last year, I kissed my granddaddy goodbye asking him to wait for me until I got home not knowing that as I sat at work, this time the day after he would be gone. Yea, I knew it was coming but boy what a change! Isn’t it something how fast things can change? Not only for the bad but for the good as well? You can go from being unemployed to having the job of your dreams or you can go from being married to a widow simply with a phone call. Isn’t that something? One minute your body can be wracked with pain and within a few minutes a pain pill can kick in and it all goes away. You can think your home is the happiest place on earth until a mistake ruins everything you’ve put together; what a change! This is why the bible says in Matthew 24:36, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”. I know, you think you got it all together. You got your goals set out, your vision written and your plans planned but then life happens and it all falls to pieces. You have your vacation planned and then the bill happens. You have your night planned and then your child gets sick. You have your day planned and then your car’s tire is flat. You have your speech prepared and then the meeting changes. Man, what a change! Yet, I’ve learned that through change whether good or bad, it’s all God because He tells me in Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope,” so I press on. Then my bible says in Proverbs 16:4, “The Lord has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble,” so I walk on. Then Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose,” so I get back up. Then 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellences of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light,” so I claim what’s mine. And then Psalm 138:8 says, “The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands,” so I work on! Oh, yes change comes but I’m called for this so I’ll stay calm and continue to carry the charge that I’ve been chosen to complete. What a change it is but I’m confidently continuing to get my crown.
Daily Devotional – 7/1/13 “God’s Benefits”
Oh, I bet you thought God didn’t offer a benefit package like your job does; didn’t you? You thought God wouldn’t give you healthcare, dental, vision and life insurance coverage but haven’t you read Psalm 103:2-4 that says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy?” When you’re sick, God has you covered with insurance that won’t lapse and all you have to do is simply say the words found in Jeremiah 17:14, “Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for you are my praise.” Yea, even if God doesn’t remove the pain from your body, He’ll give you slumber in order to rest through it and when it’s your time to be healed; then it shall come to pass because He has that type of health insurance that is never denied, too expensive or accepted at certain places because it is everywhere you need it to be. And just like healthcare, He has all of your dental needs covered which is why Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” See, this scripture says, ask which means you have to open your mouth to do it and I know that sometimes you allow things to be said that shouldn’t be, your repeat stuff that shouldn’t have been and you even let your anger get the best of you but Proverbs 13:3 says, “Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything.” Oh but that’s alright because then came along repenting which is like going to the dentist. Yea, when you repent you floss and get rid of all the mess that has tried to lodge itself in the cracks, you brush out all of that filth that was once stored in your mouth and then you gargle and spit out all of the stuff that shouldn’t have been there anyway.
God has your health and dental covered and it goes right along with the vision because if you can’t see clearly then how can you walk right? This is why Matthew 6:22 says, “Your eye is a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light.” But hold on because verse 23 says, “But when your eye is bad, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!” And if you have vision coverage and don’t use it then you’re to blame when it becomes impaired because Luke 11:35 says, “Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness.” It didn’t say that I needed to check to see if your light is shining but it says that you need to make sure. This is why He gives us His benefit package of strength to be strong enough to endure, to go on through, to test the spirits that we encounter on a daily basis, to see folk and things for what they truly are, to overcome what others didn’t make it through, to be able to go through cancer and other illnesses and then come out healed, to be addicted to drugs and alcohol only to be delivered, to be talked about only to be triumphant when it’s over, to be pushed down only to be picked up again, to be used only to be understood, to be victimized only to be victorious and to be picked simply for your purpose! Yes, God gives you life and life more abundantly so that after the time here is over, you’ll die only to live again!
Daily Devotional – 6/28/13 “Aren’t you tired yet?”
Aren’t you tired of being abused by the belittling words coming out of his or her mouth or being hit by the hands of the one person who promised to never hurt you? Aren’t you tired of being messy because others have what you want although you haven’t worked to get it? Aren’t you tired of hating on your sister because she has it to give every time you call? Aren’t you tired of downplaying someone’s shout simply because you haven’t tapped into the spirit that’s inside of you? Aren’t you tired of going to church every Sunday playing church? Aren’t you tired of laughing at their blessed dance when you should be dancing about the blessings you’ve received? Aren’t you tired of talking about folks? Aren’t you tired of using folk? Aren’t you tired of dipping and hiding with someone else’s husband or wife, don’t you want your own? Aren’t you tired of stealing what other’s work hard for when you can work and get your own? Aren’t you tired of always being the one begging or with a sob story? Aren’t you tired yet?
Well, you should be! All you have to do is turn on any news channel and you’ll quickly realize that the next moment of your life isn’t promised so when will you get it together? If you died today, who would give your eulogy, at what church? Would anyone have nice words to say or would they simply sit there because you never stood up for them. Would the life you live actually speak good things about you when you’re gone or that doesn’t matter now? Oh, you think you have time don’t you? Well baby, I may as well tell you now that Matthew 24:36 says, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only,” so you go on thinking that if you want. If you aren’t tired of being without, keep being without but if you are; do something about it. If you aren’t tired of playing saved, keep playing but if you are; you have right now to change. Haven’t you noticed that it’s not about you but it’s about the God in you? This is why Matthew 5:16 says, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Haven’t you realized yet that you should be intimidating the enemy and not your brothers or sisters or that you should be attacking the devil and not God’s power when James 4:7 says, “So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you?” When will you be tired of running when you should be reaping, tired of crying when you should be chosen, tired of wandering when you should be worshipping, tired of falling when you should be faithful, tired of being weary when you should be willing, tired of stumbling when you should be satisfied, tired of pacing when you should be partaking, tired of being a victim when you should be victorious, tired of being bound when you’ve already been bought and tired of being broken when you’ve been beautifully built? When? Aren’t you tired yet?
Daily Devotional – 6/27/13 “Keep playing!”
Keep playing with your ticket to Heaven and see if you won’t be left behind and keep playing with God’s commandments like you don’t see the signs. Keep playing with your life like you don’t think it’s real, acting like you got all the time; until your fate is sealed. Keep right on playing with this thing called life until you end up the one played and then you’ll wish you’d listened and your feet would have stayed. Yea, keep playing with passing bullets and your life flashing before your eyes and keep playing until you’re standing over the casket of the innocent one who died. Keep playing with those drugs that you keep pushing through your veins, snorting up your nose; just keep on playing with that alcohol you can’t get enough of until your eyes gets closed. Oh, just keep on playing with folk’s heart until they finally wise up and leave, and then you’ll be begging them to come back on bended knee. Keep playing with folk’s emotions when you keep lying like you care but as soon as they call, you vanish and can’t be seen anywhere. Keep playing with other folk’s spouses and thinking it’s a game because when the tables get turned, will you feel the same? Keep playing in other folk’s storms, laughing at their trials because baby your time is coming; God has your number to dial. Yes, just go right on playing and wishing hell over folk’s life because you’re simply making it harder for yourself when it’s your time of strife. Keep on playing and bragging about tomorrow and all your material things when Proverbs 27:1 says, “Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring.” Keep on playing if you want, this is your life but remember Matthew 25:46 says, “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Daily Devotional – 6/26/13 “It’s not about me!”
No, nawl, shoal ain’t, it can’t be about me! I’m talking about this Christian journey. See, if it was all about me then I would write a devotional every day to be admired by folks when the bible tells me in Matthew 6:1, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.” Yea, if it was all about me then I would find joy in bragging about myself but the bible says in James 4:16, “As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” Baby, if it was all about me, I’d place junk in your joy so your journey is jumbled, mix misery in your miracles so you’ll miss your mark, test your testimony with temptations so you tarry there, weaken your witnessing so that you’re weep and be weary instead of willingly work, put pain in your praise so that you get no peace, add bitterness to your blood so that you’re bound instead of blessed, feed your fear so that you forget about faith and fail instead of flourish, be foolish instead of fierce and a follower instead of favored. Oh, if it was all about me, I’d push you when you lean instead of propping you up, I’d let you stay down instead of picking you up, I’d laugh when you ask instead of trying to help, I’d be happy about your tears instead of wiping them away, I’d dance when you grieve instead of being there for you, I’d rejoice in your storm instead of holding a umbrella over your head and I’ll shout during your battle instead of helping you fight! If it was all about me. However, Nonetheless, Yet; I’m so glad that it’s not about me but it’s about the God in me because when I am nothing but a filthy rag God still finds me good enough to wipe with! When my legs feel like they can’t go on, I walk without stumbling! When my eyes are filled with tears, I can still see through my trouble! When my heart is hurting, it still has room to love! When my hands are tired from working, I still have strength to clap! When my mind is filled with mess, God cleans it out and gives me a message. When I feel like I am not worthy, God gives me work to do. When it seems like I’m not going anywhere, God opens up a new door. When it seems like pity is taking over, God gives me a praise for the things He’s already done. When I get to be too selfish, God gives me back all the things I haven’t even thanked Him for. When it seems like no one is listening, God gives me a platform to speak. When it seems like trouble is winning, God gives me a piece of the Trinity (that’s the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit) to usher me on through. When it seems like my obstacle is too big to go over or around, God gives me space right where I am to overcome it.
I better leave this alone but I feel a shaking in my spirit which means some chains of selfishness will be broken just by reading this. I feel a moving in spirit which means some changes will be made in somebody’s life today. I feel a pressing in my spirit which means some spitefulness, malice, meanness and hate will be pressed down not to be seen again just by reading this. Yea, it’s not about me for the bible tells me in Ephesians 2:8-10, “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Lakisha, the Author 