Daily Devotional – 4/17/13 “God I surrender it all!”

This song has been in my head since yesterday and even when I got ready to write this devotional, it wasn’t the topic that I wanted to write on. Then I had to realize that this isn’t about me because I am simply a sinner who is forgiven which makes me worthy enough to even have a thought to write about. See, surrender means an act of relinquishing control or possession to somebody or something, which simply means, for the sake of this devotional; giving control or possession of your worries to God. So, I looked up the lyrics to this song and the first verse says, “All to Jesus I surrender; all to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, In His presence daily live.” I now understand that there are things that we all need to surrender in order for us to live, breath, praise, magnify, forgive, help, pray and even grow.


    This pain in my body, God I surrender it all.
    This hurt in my heart, God I surrender it all.
    These bills with no money, God I surrender it all.
    The judgment from folk who are no better, God I surrender it all.
    The lies being told on me, God I surrender it all.
    The unemployment status I’ve been in, God I surrender it all.
    The dead end job or the promotion I’m praying for, God I surrender it all.
    The drug or alcohol addiction, God I surrender it all.
    The power I feel from abusing or misusing folk, God I surrender it all.
    The way I degrade my body, God I surrender it all.
    The cancer, lupus, MS, heart disease, arthritis, kidney failure/disease; God I surrender it all.
    The sinus problems, asthma, bronchitis, migraines; God I surrender it all.
    The doors that are being shut in my face, God I surrender it all.
    The suicidal thoughts, God I surrender it all.
    The marriage that isn’t really a marriage, God I surrender it all.
    The pressure to fit in, God I surrender it all.
    The cursing, stealing, cheating and the lying, God I surrender it all.

What will you surrender on today? What will you truly surrender? The final verse of this song sums it all up, “All to Jesus I surrender; now I feel the sacred flame. Oh, the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory; to His Name!”

“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. James 4:7-8”

Daily Devotional – 4/16/13 “Get in line!”

I know that you’ve heard or been told that you’re next in line for a miracle but you can’t get the miracle that’s yours if you won’t get in line. You’ve probably even been told or read in your bible that God will even make the last first but how can He make you first if you’ve never been last? So, stop all the whining about God not answering your prayers. Stop acting like you’ve been the only one knocked down, lied on, used, abused by the hands of folk who say they love you, stabbed in the back by folk who smiled in your face, stepped on by folk you helped up and even talked about by folks you’ve prayed for because you’re not. However, this is all part of your process to your destiny. Yea, see; God can’t give you the miracle that has your name on it because you’re too busy allowing folks to skip. You keep handing out the blessing that’s meant for you and sometimes you miss your miracle because you’re too busy turned around being in other folk’s business that you miss your turn. (And you got the nerve to be mad at God.) You’ve been last for a while and God is trying to make you first but every time He gets ready to touch you with His anointed hand, you’re out of place. It’s like your boss coming to your desk to give you a promotion and each time he comes you’re at your co-worker’s desk gossiping. Eventually he’ll stop coming to your desk and visit the co-worker who is always at theirs. Stay in your own lane sometimes. Stay in your own line sometimes. Mind your own business sometimes.

All, I’m trying to tell you is; in order to get your miracle you have to first get in line. How do you do this? It’s simple, be the person that God has ordained you to be. You don’t have to be like folk but live so that folk will want to be like you. How do you become first? It’s simple too; rejoice when you’re in the last position. How do you get your miracle? Magnify God when man wants Him minimized, be meek when you want to be mean, be God’s messenger when you want to keep up mess and be merry and merciful when you should be miserable. How do you get to be first? Face your fears with the faith that your favor is filled and you have not been forsaken or forgotten but formed on a foundation that keeps your feet from falling and makes you fierce enough to fight. Yea, your miracle is coming so hold on! You won’t always be last so hold on! Stay in line and keep your faith until your time comes.

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