Daily Devotional – 5/18/12 “And you’re judging because …”

Let me guess, please just one guess! You’re perfect! Is that it? Well, that’s the only reason why I can see you judging others. Oh, that’s right – no one is perfect but God, his son Jesus and the Holy Spirit, so unless you’ve taken up one of these positions, get your mouth off of folks. You can’t honestly judge me because I made a mistake when you make them too. How can you possibly say what someone else is doing is right or wrong, when it doesn’t even affect you? You have no control over your co-worker’s choice in men, so stop criticizing her. You can’t stop your son from the choice he makes in women, so stop with all the negative comments. Don’t you know when you judge folk, God judges you? Yea, but the good thing about it is, you’re judged the same way you dish it out. Well, that’s what the bible says in Matthew 7:2, “For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” I know you can say what you want with the freedom of speech but the bible says in 1 Corinthians 8:9, “Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.” See, when you judge folk you are, in a sense, placing stumbling blocks in their way and when you do this you bring condemnation upon yourself because you’re the reason your brother fell which is why 1 Corinthians 8:12 says, “But when you sin so against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not perfect by any stretch of anyone’s imagination because I’m human. If you cut me, I bleed red blood, if I hit my toe, I might just cuss, if I get hurt, I have feelings and if something happens, I might cry. Just because God has bestowed in me a gift of delivering his word in an unconventional way, it doesn’t mean I have the right to judge you. See, although I am not a preacher standing in a pulpit on Sunday, I still accepted this calling on my life to be a teacher of God’s word and when I did I accepted the fact that I would be judged more harshly than someone who doesn’t. James 3:1 says, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” Don’t get me wrong, I still have my moments but that’s because I am a work in progress. Change isn’t an instantaneous thing, it takes time and work and through this change I’ve learned to get my mouth off of other folk’s lives. I don’t normally do the gossip thing because anyone who knows me knows that’s not me. If you call me for advice, I tell you the truth and not what you want to hear because Proverbs 12:17 tells me that “Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence, but a false witness utters deceit.” Stop telling folk they look good when you know they don’t. Don’t tell your best friend you’re happy for her when on the inside it’s far from the truth. Don’t go along with what the group is doing when you know it’s not the right thing because when 1 gets caught, you all get the same charge. If you are a friend or family member, you have the right to tell folks the truth and if they accept it with their mind and heart open, they’ll understand.

Plus, you can’t judge folk by what you see or their choices because you don’t know their reasons. This is why John 7:24 says, “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” See, just because you look at a situation through your eyes doesn’t make it worthy of your judging especially when you aren’t living right. Yea, you are looking through your eyes but when you look through the world’s perception, nothing is what it seems. You look at a woman who wears long skirts all the time and judge her but she’s covering scars from the many surgeries she’s had. You judge a woman for staying in a marriage with a man who used to cheat but what you don’t see is, this was the same man who held her during the night when she was crying from the side effects of chemo, who went to all her doctor’s appointments, cleaned up when she couldn’t keep food down and carried her when she couldn’t walk. You judge a man for accepting a woman back who walked out on him but did you know she was the only one to have his back when he lost his job and fell on hard times? You say, you don’t know how folks stay married for 50+ years but you didn’t see the hell they had to go through to hold on to the promise they made when they took their vows. Yea, you may see the choice but you don’t know the reason, so stop judging. You judge a woman for the tattoo across her chest but she got it to cover the scar from open heart surgery. You judge the young man standing on the corner because he should be in school but he graduated early so that he could work and help his mom who had her legs amputated from diabetes. You judge the young lady because she sometime comes to church in dirty clothes but she is doing the best she can, living with an alcoholic dad. You judge the lady at church who is always shouting when she was in a wheelchair for 6 months last year after a bad car accident but her legs work now and she has a reason to dance. If you took less time to judge and more time with joy, your praise would be different.

Stop judging folk! Stop putting your mouth on people’s lives because you don’t know what they have to live with. God has a purpose for you so don’t spend your time judging, gossiping, hurting others by your words and criticizing all the time. No one is promised the next minute, so enjoy the one you currently have. If you don’t think you have a reason to be thankful, stop and think about all the things you didn’t thank God for yesterday and if you still have those things today; you got something to be thankful for. If you don’t think that God loves you and you complain because he hasn’t answered your prayers yet, think about the families whose child’s body is riddled with cancer! If you can’t find a reason to praise God today, raise your hand to your mouth and blow and if you have breath, you’re living and that’s enough. Just because you’re not living how you think you should be doesn’t make you any less alive because someone is wishing for the blessing you’re taking for granted. You could be sleeping under an overpass or begging for money on the street but you’re not because you’re reading this. You have a reason for still being here, so find it and stop with all the foolishness that’s taking over your life. If you’re grown, your vocabulary should contain more than curse words and slang. If you respect yourself, your Facebook page should contain more than booty shots of you. If you’re grown with kids, you should be a role model for them and stop playing a role. If someone has hurt you or done you wrong, let God handle it because you’re fighting a battle you can’t win. Choose to be happy because it’s a mindset. Choose to smile because it doesn’t cost a thing. Chose to be you and not who folks want you to be because that’s all that matters! Judging others should only take place in a contest and not in everyday life! Judging comes from jealousy which jeopardizes the job that Jesus left for you to do and when this happens, your journey to joy is made rough and your living unjustified!

Daily Devotional – 5/17/12 “You may be down for a reason!”

Have you ever stopped to think that maybe God has you down for a reason? Just because you’re going through a storm it doesn’t mean that you’ve been a bad person or made more mistakes than others, it just means it’s your time to go through. God sometimes has to put us down to either jolt us back into reality or to protect us and I know you’re asking, “How can getting knocked down be for my protection? But go with, if you will. When a tornado comes, it does so with winds that can move buildings, topple trees, uproot houses from their foundations, relocate a person miles from where they used to be and kill folk in a matter of seconds, right? Well, what are you told to do when you’re in a tornado? Usually it’s to get to the bottom floor of whatever building you’re in, the lowest level of your house, or if you’re driving into a ditch or something similar, right? You’re told this in order to protect you from the stuff that is flying overhead, to keep objects from landing on top of you and to keep you out of harm’s way. Well, this is the same way when God is working. Do you question the weather man when he tells you to go, then why are you questioning God? I know you think you’ve been down too long but let God work. Yea, he saw when your so-called best friend pushed you into that ditch when she slept with your husband and you keep praying to get out of it but he hasn’t moved you yet because he knew that you’d be hurt by the stuff flying overhead, so he’s keeping you there until you’re stronger. See, if he raised you up the moment you fell, you wouldn’t heal right because you’d be too consumed with anger to ever love again so he had to leave you down there long enough for the open wounds to heal. Now, when you’re ready he’ll bring you out and it won’t matter what they did to you because what God did matters the most! When you see them out together, it won’t affect you like it would have months ago because God allowed your heart to heal, in his time.

See, sometimes we need to stop rushing through the storm and realize what God is trying to do. I know you’ve been praying for a financial breakthrough because it seems like you can never get your head above water but have you stopped to think that you’re not ready for an increase in your funds? It’s not because you’re not worthy of it but because you need to learn to manage what you already have. God knows if he sends you enough money to get you out of debt and back to solid ground, getting out of debt will be the last thing you do. You know how it is when you expect a large amount of money; you sit around making plans to pay all your bills off, get the car fixed and repair the things you’ve been putting off around the house but as soon as it comes you pay just enough to catch up, the major things forgotten and the rest is spent on ridiculous stuff you don’t need. You go out and buy $100 shirts, $90 jeans, $50 shoes, $70 makeup and God only knows the amount on food and for what? Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with splurging on yourself every once in a while but handle your business first. If you didn’t have a problem with Wal-Mart and Target before, you shouldn’t now because as soon as the money is gone, you’re back in debt, when you should have paid the bills off to get ahead but instead you paid just what you had past due which means when the new month comes, you’re past due again. God hasn’t removed the clouds from over you yet because you’re not ready.

I know, I know; you think you’re ready to be elevated and you just can’t understand why you can’t get none of the jobs you’ve applied for because you’ve done all the things you think you need to. God is simply saying, not yet. He isn’t saying this to punish you for the sins of your past because he doesn’t work like that, he is simply telling you to keep preparing for when your time comes. See, although I think I may be ready for a new job, God knows I’m not, well not really, because I’ve got accustomed to the laid back atmosphere where I am and really not ready to start over again but when it’s time for me to move, he’ll show me. This doesn’t mean that I should stop applying because how will I know when it’s my time if I never put in the effort. Another reason God hasn’t elevated some of us is because of the fear that we have when God ask in Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” However, with the economy being the way it is and companies closing, a lot of folks are concerned about getting a new job which might not last and then you’re left with no job and no income. So, it’s easy to say don’t be fearful but not being fearful is a lot harder than it looks. That’s why we have to have faith laid out in front of us like a bridge to walk on because 2 Corinthians 5:7 say, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” See, if we have unwavering faith to believe that God won’t leave us, he won’t and if we believe that with God and faith, nothing is impossible, it won’t be but we have to have this faith first and then walk. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” With faith, your path is lighted although through man’s eyes it looks dark. With faith, your hurdle is low enough to jump over but through man’s eyes it looks taller than a mountain. With faith, the ground is paved with no bumps or holes but through man’s eyes it’s filled with pot holes, bends and crooks. With faith, nothing is impossible but through man’s eyes, nothing is possible.

We have to have faith because faith gives us a solid foundation that allows us to stand without sinking and with this foundation we are able to be fruitful and being fruitful means we’re fertile and being fertile allows us to increase our favor having favor means everything we touch is filled with God’s fire and with this fire there is no fault because the Father has a fresh anointing flowing within us that prepares us to fight when the world is against us, stand when our legs want to give out, hold on when our rope is breaking, shout when we ought to be sick, dance when we ought to be dead, praise when we have pain, win when we should be weary, provide when we should be poor, love when we should be lost, help when we should be helpless, have courage when we should be crying, have hope when we should feel hopeless and live when we should be left! God is not forsaking you because you’ve been in your storm for a while; he just had a lot more dirt to clean off of you when folks meant bad for your life. God hasn’t given up on you because you’ve been down a long time, there’s just a lot of stuff still flying when all the crap hit the fan. God won’t let you be buried alive when folks have dug a dusty grave for you or sickness is ravaging your body, he’s just allowing you to rest there until your body is healed enough to handle the blessings he has waiting for you. Don’t give up just because it seems like the world is turning against you, that’s just God weeding out your enemies who are blocking the view of your blessings. Yea, you may be down and you may even feel like it’s been a while since you’ve seen the sun but just ride out the storm because when it’s all over and done with, God will allow you to walk out on dry land and everything you had before will be bigger, better and new! Don’t count yourself out, just yet because you’ve down because being down doesn’t mean you’re out; you’ve just tagged God into the ring to finish the last few rounds.

Daily Devotional – 5/16/12 “That mistake you made, well ….”

Get over it! Child, mistakes are made by folk every day! You weren’t the first to make one and you surely won’t be the last. Learn from the mistake or mistakes, let it go and move on. Stop beating yourself over the head and stop wallowing in it because the bible says in Psalm 37:24, “though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.” Yea, you will make a mistake, which means you stumble, but you can get over it! Don’t allow the mistake to keep you stuck in the same position for too long because the mistake has no power and the mistake doesn’t define your character, you do. So what if you used to be an alcoholic, so was Noah but look at how God used him after the mistake. So what if you used to be a prostitute, so was Rahab but God put her in Jesus’ path to be used in his work. So what you used to lie and steal, Matthew was a dishonest tax collector but God chose him as one of disciples. See, it doesn’t matter about the mistakes you made because if you trust God to do just what he said he’d do, he’ll wipe the slate clean every time. That’s why the bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Yea, God can take the mess you used to be and turn it into a masterpiece. He can take the drug addicted woman and turn her into a walking testimony. He can take the woman who used to prostitute herself and sleep with folk’s husbands and turn her into a Proverbs 31 woman. He can take a man who used to sell drugs, hurt folk for the fun of it and misuse folk because he could and turn him into a preacher of his word. God can take those who have been cast aside and make them rulers among men. God can take the person who others said would be nobody and make them a President over countries. God can take somebody like me, who was raised in the ghetto by a single mom who did what she had to for her children, who went to schools on the North side of town, who folks counted out because of the color of my skin, the texture of my hair and the shape of my body, ME, a simple nobody by the world’s standards; God cleaned me up, he forgive me of my sins, he takes those same sins and cast them into the sea of forgetfulness, he anoints my head, arms, hands, legs and feet daily and he makes me the person I am today; a vessel for his kingdom’s business. Yes, God can used folks who make mistakes because those mistakes make you stronger, they make you wiser, they make you better and they make you, YOU!

Don’t let folks label you with who you used to be because if you’re no longer making or living that mistake, it’s not you. You may have been a cheater, liar, alcoholic, drug addict, prescription pill user or even a backstabber but you’re not anymore so don’t allow yourself to be that any longer. You don’t have to wear a badge of your past mistakes because your past mistakes don’t matter to God because Isaiah 43:18 says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.” Folks can call you whoever they choose too because all that matters is what you answer too. Besides, sometimes making a mistake can lead you to something good. Sounds crazy but it’s true. You knew that relationship you were in was a mistake from the beginning but you got a beautiful daughter or a handsome son from it, so you got something good. Yea, you realized too late that buying that car was a mistake because you now you have an extra bill but you got reliable transportation to get back and forth to work or even a part time job, so something good came from it. Ok, so you made a mistake on a report that was sent to management, correct it and now you know what not to do, so you learned something from it. Don’t dwell on the mistakes you’ve made, learn from them, let it go and move on. Will you make another mistake, probably, but that’s because it’s life and stuff happens but 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.” Will you always commit a sin or make a mistake, probably not but no one is perfect so there’s a chance that you will but when you pray, daily, ask God to “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin (Psalm 51:2).” Baby, the mistakes you made are meaningless if you don’t make them anymore and if someone says they’ve forgiven you for them, don’t allow them to keep holding it over you. When you have been forgiven they must also forget because you can’t have forgiveness without forgetfulness. I know that folks say I can forgive but not forget but you can’t have one without the other because if you keep thinking about the mistake that hurt you in the past, you bring back that same hurt and anger which allows the devil an opening into your life. If you don’t believe me, read Ephesians 4:27 which say, “For anger gives a foothold to the devil.” I don’t make this stuff up, although I may reword it, it’s still true. In order to forgive, you and others have to forget.

That mistake you made, well it’s made now! Ask for forgiveness from God and anybody you’ve hurt, learn from it, let it go and move on. Stop allowing it to define who you are. If you used to steal, use those same skills and steal away to converse with God and study his word. If you used to lie down with anybody, use those skills and lie in God’s bed of righteousness with your mind stayed on him. If you used to be an alcoholic, replace the liquor with the blood of Jesus and drink it daily. If you used to be a drug addict, replace the addiction with love for thy brothers/sisters and pass it around. Don’t be bound by the mistakes of your past because God can clean you up and work everything out in your favor. Just because somebody thinks you shouldn’t have what you have because of how you used to look, look at God! Somebody said you should’ve been dead with all the crack cocaine you shot through your veins, but look at God working this. Somebody is questioning how you found such a loving husband after all the years of cheating you used to do, but look at God working this thang! Somebody is even trying to see how God could have picked somebody like you, who use to dance in night clubs, disrespect your mother, hurt your sisters, steal from your brothers, and lie when the truth would do; cleaned you up, gave you a new walk, a new talk, a new look and a new attitude and now you’re the minister of music, youth director, deacon, usher or trustee at the church but LOOK AT GOD WORKING THIS THANG OUT! See, not everyone that is close to you are close to you so even though they say they are proud of you, they don’t mean it but let God work that out. While they are busy counting your blessings, God is deducting from theirs and adding to yours. While they are counting you out and digging a dusty grave for you, God is simply adding pegs to your footstool and lifting you higher! So go on and let them talk about you, lie on you, scandalize your name, try to ruin your relationship, and keep on digging that ditch for you because when it’s all over with God has you covered so all is well! Just because I no longer look at what I used to be or how I use to look it doesn’t make me better, I simply see now how I am meant to be so I’ll be who God has made me and I will pray every day for God to “Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word,” Psalm 119:37.

Daily Devotional – 5/15/12 “You might be the reason for your storm!”

Nawl, no, no ma’am, no sir; God isn’t the reason for the storm you’re in! Have you stopped to realize that all the encouragement you’re receiving isn’t working because you’re still in and holding on to the same mess? You pray to God to get you out of the abusive relationship and then you go bail him out of jail. You ask to God to be the lawyer when you’re in court and then when he gets you off with just a warning, you get in trouble again. You’re praying to ask God to give you rest but every time somebody calls, you say yes instead of simply saying no because you’re tired. You allow your friends to get you in some mess and then they run off and leave you when the crap hits the fan but you go again. You pray for forgiveness when you sin, God forgives you and you commit the same sin again. You’ve got to stop getting yourself into places that you need help getting out off, all the time. Yea, I can give you God’s word all day long but if you keep causing the rain to pour in your own life, they’ll be meaningless to you eventually. Why, because you’ll stop believing in God’s power if every time you turn around there’s trouble, when God isn’t the cause of all of it. Yes, he promised troubled on this side but he didn’t say all your days would be. That’s why Jeremiah 29:11 says, “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.” Stop allowing the enemy to reside at your home sucking all of the life out of you, make a change. If your grown child is the cause of your stress because they are still staying at home running the house like it’s their domain when they can’t even buy tissue, put them out instead of allowing them to sleep all day when you’re out working day in and day out. You’ve done the job God gave you, which is to raise them up to be an adult. You are not responsible for taking care of him/her, the children and their baby momma/daddy. When your adult children have a family of their own, it is their responsibility to take care of them. No, I’m not saying don’t be there when your help is needed but stop allowing them to control your life. You can’t even go out because they’ve already filled your weekend with babysitting. If you got extra folks staying with you who only needed help for a few weeks that have turned into months and you don’t see them even trying to help themselves, give them a timeframe and put their butt out. You have a right to have a stress free home when the world you live in is stressful enough. Your home should be a place of refuge after you’ve toiled with worrisome coworkers, road rage drivers and attitude having children at the fast food places. Yea, this stress storm you’re in can be handled but you’ve got to cut off the source of the rain and don’t feel bad when you do.

God is an umbrella in the time of most of our storms but how can he keep up when as soon as he stops one you go right around the corner and start another one? You do know that mouth of yours is a big cause too, right? You always cry that God won’t come see about you when you’re so busy bragging about yourself that you don’t even notice you’re blocking your own blessings. Let me explain. You see in the Sunday program that Pastor Joe put Sis. Ruth in charge of Women’s Day and as soon as church is over you go running to his office to tell him how much better you can do it because you’ve been doing it for 5 years. God isn’t pleased with that! John 5:31 says, “If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true,” but you’re so busy raising yourself up that you don’t even allow God the opportunity. Then you get mad when man knock you down so easily and you have to wonder why the job you’re doing isn’t succeeding, well it’s because you’re the only one that thinks you’re great at it. Step down off the pedestal you’ve placed yourself on, take the cotton out your ears and listen sometime. Folks may be aware that you’ve been doing this job for years but they also notice the same problems that come along with it every year. If you can’t get anyone to sign on to help when you’re in charge, you might be part of the problem. Haven’t you heard that you should let your work speak for you? John 10:37 says, “If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me.” You get a position on your job that gives you a little authority and you act like no one can touch you and you wonder why you can’t be promoted. You’re so busy looking down on others that you don’t see your own self falling and then you don’t understand why no one is there to catch you. You fix a problem or issue that nobody else could and now you want everybody to know and then you wonder why no one asks for your help anymore. You got a little extra money in your pocket and when someone ask to borrow something, you tell everybody and their momma and now you wondering why your money is funny & change is strange. Child, shut up sometime! The bible says in James 4:16, “As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.” When you brag on yourself who knows this to be true, really? How do we know that you can do all you say you can? All we know is that you like the way your voice sounds because you’re always talking but if you let others boast of your good work, then we have a chance to know that you’re capable of doing this and that. This is why the bible says in John 5:32, “There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is valid.”

When you learn to keep your mouth you’ll give someone else the opportunity to brag on your talents and good works and you can keep your foot out of it when you’re bragging about yourself to the wrong person. Most times you are bragging to folk who want to see you fail, knocked down and being drug to hell and back but you’re so busy talking that you don’t even see it and now you’re surprised when your job is phased out and they are still working. You didn’t lose your job because God is opening up another door for you because you didn’t give him a chance too, but you lost your job because you couldn’t close your mouth. Yea, you’re the reason for the storm this time. When you are doing all that you should be doing and the work that you do is of great standing, it’ll speak for itself. You won’t have to say a word when your boss comes with the promotion you didn’t even apply for because your work has already claimed it for you. You won’t have to say a word when God starts to open up the doors for the career you always wanted because your work is speaking for you. You won’t have to say one thing when you realize that your raise was double what it should have been, but because you allowed your work to speak for you so God has already worked it out. You wonder how the VP of the company knows your name out of 500+ employees when you’ve never met – Your work introduced you. You’re wondering how the HR person at another company knew about the talents that you have – your work spoke for you! You’re wondering how you got the interview when there were 3 other people who had degrees and more years of experience – your work spoke up for you! If you are as good as you think you are, someone is noticing and you don’t have to say a word.

Stop putting yourself so far up that you’re too far to reach when you need help. Stop having your nose so far in the air that you can’t even smell when stuff starts to stink around your own house. Stop getting in other folks business and then cry when you get your feelings hurt. Stop wishing sickness on yourself just because you need a few days off. Watch what you say, the things you do and the folks you hang out with because it may play a part of the storm you’re in. God gave us the power to speak things over our life and if you keep saying you’re sick, broke, unhappy and miserable; these things become true. Speak sunshine when you see the clouds starting to form, speak joy when you see the hell coming and speak to God when you’re down. You got enough trouble promised without adding to it. When the devil knocks don’t go asking who it is but tell God to get it and watch him work it out. Plus, keep your mouth because he doesn’t need help.

Daily Devotional – 5/14/12 “It’s not right at the moment but it’ll be alright after while!”

Have you ever felt like the time is never right? You’re always broke even though you just got paid or something always happen as soon as you begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel? Well honey, it may not be right at this very moment but it’ll be alright after while! How do I know? Firstly, the bible says in 1 Peter 5:10, “In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.” Secondly, I know this to be true because I am a living testimony! See, God is saying although you may be weeping, hurting or down right now, it won’t last for 2 Corinthians 4:17 says, “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!” It may not be alright now but it will be! Yea, you may have more bills than money but your life isn’t over. Sit down and write out all the bills you have, the money you have coming in and then get to work. Cut out the stuff that you don’t need but you think you have to have, if only for a little while to get on track. Call and make arrangements with the folks you already owe and stick to it. Then, when you’ve been able to manage the little that you have, God will see that you’re capable of handling a little bit more, so he’ll increase your earnings. If the house you’re in is sucking you dry, let it go. If you’re putting more money into the car that you currently have that keeps breaking down, you could have paid down on another one. Stop going to the nail and beauty shop every week, go every other week and save a little. Stop buying the shoes just because you see them in the store window, walk on past and save. Stop adding more rims to the car just because you want to look like you got it going on, when the rims are worth more than the car and save. You can get out the rut that you’re in but you have to start. Ok, so the doctor said you have cancer, your kidneys aren’t functioning right, you need surgery or your blood pressure is high, now what? If it’s cancer or your kidneys, go through the necessary steps to fight it. I don’t know how hard it’ll be for you but if it can save your life, it’s worth a try. If you need surgery, push out the date as far as you can so that you can get yourself ahead while you recover and then do what you have to do to survive. If its high blood pressure or diabetes, listen to the doctor and do what needs to be done to prevent a heart attack, stroke or death. It might not be alright now but it’ll be alright after while. You don’t have to give up just because the doctor has a gloomy look on his face, beat the odds. Romans 5:3-4 says, “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.” In other words, endure the things necessary to get you well because during this time you’re strengthening your character which allows you to preserve in the face of troubles and once you’ve gained strength you’ve filled yourself with hope for tomorrow and with this hope you now have the faith to know that even though it’s not right at the moment, it’ll be alright after while.

Stop crying because you’re already suffering and things keep happening; cry because you know that although it’s raining now, the sun will eventually have to shine. How can I be sure the rain will stop? Well, because God told me in his word in Ecclesiastes 3:1 which says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” See, God said you’d weep but you have to know when weeping time is over. So what if your husband left you for somebody else 6 months ago, this isn’t a reason for you to still be crying over it now because if he left, he wasn’t yours to begin with. So what if you didn’t graduate with your friends, go to summer school and finish what you need to do and graduate then; don’t keep being mad at yourself but learn from the mistakes you made and don’t make them again. So what if you got put out from your house/apartment, you had to know it was coming so pick up your stuff and find somewhere else to stay. Stop wallowing in the pit of “woe is me” and do something about the situation you’re in. There isn’t any sense in crying because the milk is spilled, clean it up and buy some more. Luke 12:25 ask, “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” You know the answer is no, so then Luke 12:26 ask, “And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things?” You’re constantly worrying, then crying, then you’re praying and as soon as you finish praying you’re worrying again but why? Don’t you know all the stressing, worrying and crying you’re doing is only going to give you a headache and not a solution? This is the reason Psalm 55:22 says, “Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” I know it might not be alright now but it will be after while, so hold on. Stop giving up so quickly because it’s the easiest thing to do. Anything that is worth having should be worth working for because if it was easy and simple to get, you wouldn’t appreciate it. You know this to be true because momma always told me that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. God paid a price for our sins to be forgiven but he had to pay that price by sacrificing his only Son and do you think it was easy for him to do it? No, but it’s the only way for us to truly appreciate the price he paid. If it was easy for me to make a million dollars do you think I’d be conscious about spending it? No, but if it takes time, sweat and effort to get to a million dollars, I’d appreciate and cherish it more. If we give our kids everything they want so easily, how would they learn the value of hard work and dedication? If we never have to suffer with migraines then we wouldn’t appreciate the days we get up without one. If we never have to face a day of not knowing where the next meal is coming from, then we wouldn’t appreciate the food that’s always in the refrigerator.

We have to go through some strains, trials, tribulations and circumstances in order to appreciate the testimonies, blessings, healing and deliverance. We have to go through in order to appreciate things because going through makes us stronger and if we trust and believe in God, he won’t leave us in our time of need. See, God’s test is setting us up but not to fail but to succeed because in succeeding we get success and with success comes victory and victory makes us victorious over the enemy. So don’t run and hide every time the rain begins to pour because it’s just a storm and with any storm it has to end. Plus, the storm is not sent to wash our feet from under us but simply to wash off all the dirt that has been thrown on us by haters, enemies, folk that say we won’t be nothing, those wishing death on our life and those digging a dusty grave to throw us in. We have to go through the rain in order to come out clean and refreshed because once we’ve been refreshed we’ve been renewed and through renewal come endurance and enduring gives us assurance that we are ready to be elevated! I don’t know about you but every day I am asking God to enlarge my territory but in order for me to receive the increase, I have to be ready for it. So, I’m weathering the storm and I’m getting up every time the enemy knocks me down because I’ve got my first aid kit in my purse (that’s God’s word) to bandage up any cut or bruise I get when I fall. I’ve learned that it’s not about the times I fall that God is concerned about just as long as I get back up better than I was before! So, although it may not be alright right now, at this very moment, it will be alright after while!