Daily Devotional – 4/12/13 “Casting call!”

Hear ye! Hear ye! You have been invited to join my crew! It’s a lifelong commitment but it doesn’t take a lot of your time. There is no rehearsing because your moves should come naturally. There is no cost to join and you won’t even have to wear a uniform. No, you don’t have to submit pictures because I don’t care how you dress or wear your hair. No, you don’t have to bring a resume or a list of your previous experience because that doesn’t matter to me either. I don’t care about your past mistakes, whether you have tattoos or scars on your body because I’ve made my share of mistakes too. It doesn’t matter if you have kids out of wedlock, gotten divorced, sometimes curse, drink, smoke or sleep around because who am I to judge? You got a little pain or sickness in your body, that’s ok too; you can still join. So, will you? Will you come? Will you join me?

Oh, I guess you’re wondering what my crew is, right? Well it’s call the “Can’t help it crew.” No, we don’t wear t-shirts or jackets that broadcast our name because it shows on our face. We don’t have to tell folks who were are because our praise goes before us and makes the introductions. We don’t even have to even wait for an invitation because our works open the doors. Yea, this crew is something else but well worth the effort.

    Here are the requirements of joining my crew.

  • When the world tries to beat you down to make you cry and you wear a smile instead and they ask you why, tell them you can’t help it.

  • When the doctors give up and say they’ve done all they can do and you should prepare to die; live instead and when they ask you why, tell them you can’t help it.

  • When folks break your heart with their lies in order to make you feel less than who you are but instead of hating you love again and they ask you why, tell them you can’t help it.

  • When you’re struggling to provide for your family and folks ask you why you’re shouting when everything is wrong, tell them you can’t help it.

  • When you’re unemployed and still living, barely making it and still giving, filled with hurt and folks digging ditches trying to cover you with dirt and they ask how you can still praise, tell them you can’t help it.

  • When momma/daddy is gone, spouse tripping, kids acting strange and you’re tempted to do thangs for a little piece of change and you don’t, yet you still push on and somebody asks you why; tell them you can’t help it.

  • When you go instead of giving up, pray instead of play, worship instead of worrying, be happy instead of hellish, will help instead of hinder, be joyful instead of jealous, devoted instead of defeated, victorious instead of a victim, anointed instead of an alcoholic, delivered instead of a drug addict, a worshiper instead of a whoremonger, worthy instead of worldly and a blessing instead of a backslider; then you can truly say when folks ask why you shout or praise like you crazy that you just can’t help it.

Yea, see; it doesn’t take much to join this crew but you have to be willing to tell folk you can’t help it when you praise God for the things He’s has done and even for those things He hasn’t done. You have to be willing to tell folk, I JUST CAN’T HELP IT, when they ask you while you’re shouting in the middle of your storm. And when they are wondering how you dance with all the hell on your back, tell them I just can’t help it! So, are you willing? Will you join me? Will you be a part of my “Can’t help it crew?”

Daily Devotional – 4/11/13 “Pawn Shop Religion”

Do you have it? Do you even know what it means? Well, let me break this down for you. See, when I heard this from a Pastor the other night, of course it piqued my curiosity so I wrote it down and then the wheels started turning. I thought about all the things I knew about a pawn shop and how it related to spirituality and here’s what me and the Holy Spirit came up with.

When someone goes to a pawn shop they are there to pawn, sell or buy something. So, having a pawn shop religion mean you sometime pawn or sell your spirituality. Still don’t get it? Well, you know how you pawn your beliefs when you meet that girl or dude for “lunch” when they aren’t your spouse, when you sell your “stuff” to the highest bidder to have a few dollar bills in your pocket or when you pawn your commandments and judge your fellow brothers/sisters, lie when the truth will do, kill folks spirit with negative talk, hate instead of love, being a hellmate instead of a helpmate or doing wrong when you know it’s wrong instead of doing what’s right. Now, when I say you pawned these things, it’s because you left your Christian self somewhere for a time period and then picked it back up later. Yea, you pawn your Christian self every time you steal without buying, hold anger against folks you say you love, refuse to help even when you have help to give, abuse and misuse those around you, say you forgive but continually bring it up, get drunk or high, sleep around or lie and cherish material things. Yea, you sell your Christian self every time you walk into God’s house with the intention of not giving Him praise, when you sit on your butt without giving Him the thanks that He is due, when you stand at the altar with a heart full of mess, when you’d rather buy a bottle or a bag instead of giving a few dollars to the church, when you talk about God’s anointed or when you pull folks down because you’re jealous of their blessings. Don’t you realize that the satisfaction you get from pawning stuff only last until that money is gone because then you have to figure out a way to get the stuff back you pawned before they sell it? Well pawning your Christian self is the same way. Yea, you’re satisfied with the feeling you had with him/her until you get to the car and snap back to reality. Yea, you’re satisfied with those items you stuck in your bag until you’re in the back seat of a police car. Yea, you’re satisfied with hurting folks until you’re on the receiving end of it. Yea, you’re satisfied with all of the momentary things until you see that the time on your pawn ticket is about to expire (that’s your life) and you’re standing at the window (that’s Heaven’s gate) looking upon the face of the pawnbroker (that’s God) trying to talk your way into getting an extension on your pawn only to find out your stuff (that’s your seat or your name in God’s book) has already been sold. Then what? Will having a pawn shop religion be worth it then?

“You’re not getting by with anything. Every refusal and avoidance of God adds fuel to the fire. The day is coming when it’s going to blaze hot and high, God’s fiery and righteous judgment. Make no mistake: In the end you get what’s coming to you—Real Life for those who work on God’s side, but to those who insist on getting their own way and take the path of least resistance, Fire!” Romans 2:5-8 (The Message Bible)

Daily Devotional – 4/10/13 “Spring cleaning to revive your dead life!”

Yea, it’s spring and not only is it time for spring cleaning but it’s also time for some spring revival. No, I don’t mean at your home but I mean in your head, heart, body, life and spirit. See, clean means not dirty or free from dirt or impurities. Unadulterated clean means containing no foreign matter and morally upright clean means just that morally pure and upright. Now, revival means a renewal of interest in something and recovery revival means the revival of life, consciousness, or full strength. With the definition of both of these, that should be enough right now for you to clean out all the dirt that’s causing the detour to your destiny and the mess that’s making you miss the meaning of God’s message. Yea, it’s time you did some spring cleaning to revive your dead life! You don’t have to broadcast it to the world but you need to renew your faith because it has flat lined. You don’t have to tell me but you need to clean out your heart because it has hardened full of hell. You don’t have to be baptized again but you need to renew your spirit because it’s shaky and struggling to survive. You don’t have to stand in the shower but you need to clean your body because the battle has left you bruised, bitter and broken instead of bringing you out better, bold and blessed. Yeah, you need to do some spring cleaning to revive your dead life!

Start by wiping the dust from your eyes so that you’ll see that you aren’t all that and a bag of chips. Yes, you have faults too and the world doesn’t owe you so stop acting like it. If you need, want or got to have it; work for it. Next, wash out your mouth and stop with all the woe is me or won’t nobody help me talk, stop talking about other folk because they don’t look like they’re struggling, stop judging and work on that cursing because the last thing someone wants to hear is a nice dressed young man or woman talking like a sailor. Next, you need to pull up your pants or pull down your skirt and your shirt. No one wants to see your underwear and if you’re over 30, I really don’t want to see your stomach or your thighs. If truth shall be told, I don’t want to see the stomach, breast, thighs, butt and underwear of no one of any age. Next, you need to clean up your spiritual attitude. Yea, it’s alright with me if you don’t go to church (because you’ll be judged by God and not me) but stop complaining about the church that you don’t even attend. I don’t want to hear your opinion about where the tithe money is going, what the pastor is doing, what the members aren’t doing and who Sis. So & So is sleeping with. Get your life together! Baby, you need to do a little spring cleaning to revive your dead life because even though you’re living and breathing, you’re still dead if your spirit isn’t right. You need to clean out the junk and get your joy back. Revive that spirit and get your shout back. Clean out that garbage and use your gifts. Revive your heart and get your happiness back. Clean out that old stuff that’s spoiling your sleep and renew your strength so that you can stand and not stumble, serve instead of sitting, stay instead of sinking and succeed instead of suffering. Clean out the crap that’s causing you to condemn instead of conquering, be cruel instead of comforting and complaining instead of commending so that you renew your character instead of conforming to the changes that cause conflict in your Christianity. Yea, it’s time for you to do some spring cleaning in order to revive your dead life before you’re dead without a life to live!

“He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5

Daily Devotional – 4/9/13 “Are you paying God?”

It’s a fair question, are you paying God? I don’t mean with money because you can’t send that to God but the money is supposed to be for the upkeep of His sanctuary or worship place. I don’t mean through sacrificial offerings because they can’t be sent to God. What I am talking about is with praise. You do know what praise is, don’t you? Praise is defined by the dictionary as words that express approval or admiration for somebody’s achievements or for something’s good qualities. Praise in the bible is giving thanks, again, for somebody’s achievements or for their good qualities. So, if God is the good God you always talk about, why don’t you praise Him? If God is the one that makes you “blessed and highly favored,” why don’t you praise Him? If God is the one that makes you say, “I can’t complain because it wouldn’t do any good anyway,” then why won’t you praise Him? I mean, you sometimes post about Him on Facebook, repost about Him on Instagram, retweet about Him on Twitter, yet you won’t praise Him in the open. All He asked you to do is “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” Well, that’s what Psalm 100:4 says. Yet, you walk into the church house mean mugging the ushers, rolling your eyes at the mothers, talking about the deacons, can’t stand your fellow pew members, laughing at the choir director and judging the pastor and you got the nerve to wonder why you’re having it so hard. Psalm 150:1-2 says, “Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!” Yet, again we go into God’s sanctuary; that’s the church, acting like He owes us when He was the one that got you home from that party you had no business being at anyway, He allowed you be able to get up the next morning with all the things you need to function, in your right mind to allow you to get to His sanctuary and you have the nerve to sit in His worship service with an attitude. You spend the whole service texting your boo whose still mad at you, checking to see who posted what or whose following who, checking the score of the game or nodding and you still think that God is punishing you for all the hell you’re going through. No baby, it isn’t God’s fault for some of the mess you got yourself in yet He still brings you through it and you won’t even repay Him with your praise. You were the one that bought those shoes too little and now you can’t even stand to read His word. You were the one who stayed up all night and now you can’t even stay up long enough to hear the message. You were the one talking when you should have been listening and now you’re wondering what the scripture was.

Baby, Honey, Boo, Chile, Girl, Dude, Mister or Miss; It’s time to get this thang right! It’s time, right now, to give God what He deserves and that’s praise. Psalm 66:2 says, “Sing about the glory of his name! Tell the world how glorious he is.” You shouldn’t have to be pumped up to praise God. You shouldn’t need music to make you shout. You shouldn’t need a prayer partner to pray or somebody encouraging you because you can do it all yourself. You shouldn’t need a church house to get your praise on because your house has 4 walls, a roof and a floor that works just as well. You don’t need an altar to repent because the side of your bed works just fine because 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” You have all you need to pay God but YOU HAVE to pay Him. It’s like having the money in your pocket for your light bill and your lights get cut off. Just because you have the money doesn’t mean they know it but you have to pay them. It’s the same with God. Just because you have praise in your heart, it means nothing unless it comes from your lips! Try it sometime; no try it all the time and you might like what you get in return.

Daily Devotional – 4/8/13 “My Table!”

Growing up I never understood why God would prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies. I mean, who wants to dine with someone who means us harm? Then, as I got older and I read the scripture in Psalm 23:5 that says, “You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings,” I started to get it. See, when my enemies come I had to realize that they only come to make me stronger. Will they try to cause me harm, do me wrong, drag my name through the dirt, judge me when I’m doing right, judge me when I’m doing wrong, criticize me to bring me down, make me feel good just to knock me down, smile in my face just to make me cry later, go with me while I’m going up just to laugh at me when I may fall; yes but that’s their job. However, God prepares for me a table, in their presence that allows me to make it. Yea, when my enemies bring gossip, God passes me His grace. When they try to fill my bowl with mess, God will replace it with His mercy. When they place hate on my plate, He’ll cover it with a helping of His Holy Spirit. When they give me grief, God will give me His glory. When they try to drown His message with misery, God will maintain me with His magnificence. When they try to sprinkle salt on my spirit, God scatters it with His scriptures. When they try to fill my cup with temptations, tests and trials; God trades my thirst for those things with my testimony. When they’re drizzling deceit on my destiny for dessert, God declares my deliverance instead. When they offer complaining instead of coffee, God instead gives me confidence to drink. When they try to leave longsuffering for leftovers, God will leave me His love instead. Oh, when my enemies try to mock my table, God will simply magnify my mind for His ministry. When my enemies threaten to turn over my table, God will turn that trouble into thoughts for my teaching. Even when my enemies try to knock over my table, God will keep kneading me with His knowledge.

Oh, I thank you God for preparing my table and pushing me because you know that I’m able. I thank you God for dining with me because you knew exactly who I’d be. I thank you God for filling my cup with blessings and allowing it to overflow because you knew that I’d need a little more room to grow. I thank you God for never taking your hands off of me because you knew the things I’ll encounter even when I can’t see. I thank you God for being my food when I hungry, water when I’m thirsty, shelter in my storm; thank you God for the table and keeping me safe from harm. Yea, now I get it and I truly understand and I thank you God for being all that I need and for just being that Man. I thank you for the oil that anoints this old head of mine because it allows me to let my light for you shine. I thank you God for letting me stand in the face of fear knowing that you’ll never leave yet you’ll always be near. Thank you God for my table!