Daily Devotional – 3/17/12 “Just be satisfied!”

Why are you never satisfied with the way things go, the way things or folks look or even the way things turned out? You do know that things could be worse, right? Yea, while you’re constantly putting your husband down because he leaves the toilet seat up, be thankful that he’s not going up against your head. While you are constantly putting your wife down about how she looks, you’d better be thankful she isn’t looking for someone else. While you’re constantly nagging your kids about the C they got in their class, be thankful they aren’t smoking the C, cocaine. While you’re complaining about their rooms being dirty, they could be in a dark alley using some dirty needles while shooting up. While you’re complaining about the way you look in the mirror, you ought to be glad to have eyes to see, a mouth to complain with, a body that you can look at and health and strength. You ought to just be satisfied with what you have! Just be plain ole satisfied because while you’re taking these blessings for granted someone is begging for them. You complain about the free, clean water you have when other folks have to fight for theirs. You complain about a free education, when folks have to die for theirs. You complain about the dirt on your floor when some folks are thankful to have a floor to sleep on. Child, you’d better wake up and be satisfied with what you got! Hebrews 13:5 says, “Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”

Somebody is praying for a day with no sickness and you’re well and still complaining. Somebody is praying for a car that won’t keep cutting off in the middle of rush hour traffic, yet your car is brand new and you still want more. Somebody is grieving from the loss of a loved one, yet you got your family and you still complain. Baby, you’d better be thankful for what you got and satisfied because it could all be gone in the blink of an eye. Your life could be worse because you could be sleeping under an overpass or in an overcrowded shelter but you’re not. You could be getting up at 4AM to catch a bus to work that takes you and hour and a half to get there but you don’t. You could be standing for hours in the unemployment office each week but you’re not. You could have a child at Lebonheur who the doctors have given up on but you don’t. You could be burying your husband/wife today, but you aren’t. You could be doing chemo, radiation or dialysis 5 days per week but you’re not, so be satisfied with what you have. Yea, I know you may have migraines but it could be a tumor. Yea, I know your daughter works your nerves but she could be working the streets. I know your son talks slang like he doesn’t have any good sense but he could slang drugs. Philippians 4:11-13 says, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

See, God has placed you into whatever situation that you’re in, not be torn down or cast out but for you to be stronger. God knows what you can handle because he made you who you are. Look at the test he put Job through! So be satisfied with the Saturday nights you spend at home with your family when you don’t have the money to go out because God may have spared your life from a drunk driver. Be satisfied with being able to look upon the face of your family even though they only come over to borrow because they could be stealing to get what they need. Be satisfied with the rain that falls because it could be fire from God for all the sins we commit. Be satisfied with the friends you have because they could be enemies wishing death over your life. Just be satisfied for 1 Timothy 6:6-8 says, “Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.” Be satisfied with what you have because you could wake up tomorrow with nothing. Be satisfied with who you have because they could be gone today. Be satisfied with whose you are because you’d be far worse off without him.

Daily Devotional – 3/15/12 “Borrowing when you should be buying!”

Don’t you know that God has made us the lender and not the borrower because he has all that we need? Well, he also made us the lender because when you borrow from folks they have a hold over you and this hold can drain you of the life that God has destined for you to live. If you don’t believe me, go borrow something from somebody and see how things play out. Call your sister or brother and borrow $20, if he or she is the type that never let things die, you’ll forever hear about it until you either pay or die. It’s sad, right? This is why God says in Proverbs 22:7, “The rich rules over the poor and the borrower are the slave of the lender.” Now, just think about the house you’re currently borrowing from the bank (yea you’re borrowing until it is paid in full), don’t you get up every day to go to a job that you really don’t like, to pay them their monthly payment? See, they have this hold over you because as soon as you miss paying them, they start calling to get their merchandise back. I know that in order to get a house or car you have to borrow from the banks and mortgage companies but God didn’t make it so that you would have to work forever paying off debt. If you know that house is not something you can afford, rent. If you know that car note will push you farther into debt and even further behind, then save to buy you a car for cash and ride the bus. Romans 13:8 says “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.” Live within your means and then mean to live. If you spend every day of your life working the only rest you’ll find is in death and this is not what God wants for us because Ecclesiastes 8:15 says, “So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun.” When you enjoy life it shows in EVERY part of your life including your work. Don’t get so caught up in trying to live in the biggest house and trying to drive the flashy cars because those might just be the death of you.

Now that this has been said, let me drop something in the spirit of folks whose borrowing other folks husbands or wives, they are not yours! Yea, I know you think because you are dipping and hiding from other folks that God isn’t seeing, but he is. Why are you so complacent (that’s satisfied) with borrowing when you should be buying your own? I don’t mean buying with money but I mean with prayers, fasting and preparing yourself to receive the blessing that God has for you in the form of YOUR husband or wife. You do know that when you borrow you’ll have to eventually give them back to their rightful owner, right? While you’re sleeping in a cold bed all alone, they’re at home snuggling on the couch watching a movie. While you are settling for celebrating Valentine’s Day on 2/15, they’re at home enjoying their. You do know that no matter how many times they tell you they are leaving, they don’t actually mean it and even if they do leave, what makes you think you’ll have something that’ll stop him from leaving you? You settle for second best because you feel like that’s all you’re worth when God has made you in his image which makes you an heir to his kingdom and that makes you worthy for more than a late night booty call. And just to throw this in for free, God says in Proverbs 6:29, “So is he who sleeps with another man’s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished.” Women, please don’t think that leaves you out because it holds true to you too because the commandment say in Exodus 20:14, “Do not commit adultery.” Stop borrowing other folks stuff and buy your own. Wait for God to send your blessing and you do have one because God made a woman for every man and when you join together as husband and wife, you become one flesh.

Plus, I’ve never found it to be worth it to borrow something you actually need anyway. It’s like borrowing air when you need air to live. I don’t mean big things like houses and cars, I mean small things. It’s like you borrowing a pen or pencil every time you need one, buy some to keep for yourself. If you need something you don’t have and you’re able to, buy it! God has given us all we need to be the best at whatever we do. He has given us a gift and Proverbs 18:16 says, “A man’s gift makes room for him and brings him before great men.” See, the God given gift that you have, if it is used, will open doors for you that you didn’t know existed. Look at Tyler Perry who went from being homeless and sleeping in his car to now hosting parties for the President, owning his own plane and one of the richest men in the world. His gift of writing and making folks laugh made room for him to grow. Look at Oprah Winfrey, who gifts of talking made her into one of the richest women today. Look at the many singers and actresses who were discovered because their gifts made room for them. God has given you a gift but you have to decide to use it. 1 Peter 4:10 says, “God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.” I know that you are now wondering if you have been blessed with a gift and your answer is in 2nd Timothy 1:6 which say “You received a gift from God when I placed my hands on you [to ordain you]. Now I’m reminding you to fan that gift into flames.” See, God chose you to be blessed with whatever gift he has given you because he knows you can handle it. I know at times the going might get hard and you may want to give up, but hold on. I know that sometime you want to throw in the towel, but baby take that towel, wipe the sweat from your forehead and stick it back in your pocket and walk on because even when you’ve been knocked down and the counter is almost to 10 all you have to do is tag God in and he’ll finish the fight for you. If you are still not convinced that you are worthy of the gift that he has given you, read Romans 11:29 that says “God never changes his mind when he gives gifts or when he calls someone.” Why, because he made you worthy of your calling and you are worthy because you are God’s child. You don’t have to settle for the scraps and the leftovers because God has made you the lender and not the borrower. Just because you have a little debt and you may be living paycheck to paycheck now, it doesn’t mean that’s the way it has to be. Sit down and make a budget and stick to it. Stop acting like you have something to prove to folk who are also struggling. The only reason why you can’t see their struggle is because they know how to cover it up. Yea, I may dress like I got money and I may even walk like it but that’s because I don’t have to look like my circumstance. I may have cancer in my body but I don’t have to wear a shirt to broadcast it. I may not have a job but that doesn’t mean I have to post it on Facebook every day. I may even be without food but it doesn’t mean I have to look like it. I’ve come to realize that God will send a blessing when you least expect it and God says you have not because you ask not. Stop borrowing the things you should be buying by now. You are worthy of all you think you deserve, so go get it. Because borrowing leads to begging and begging leads to backbiting and backbiting leads to backsliding and backsliding leads to bad choices and bad choices leads to you being battered with bruises by those who you borrowed from that now have you bound.

Daily Devotional – 3/15/12 “Shed the old!”

Have you ever wondered why a snake shed his skin? I’ve thought about it but never looked it up until this morning and this is what I found. Now, before you read this I must let you know that it speaks right to my spirit and the way God was taking me this morning with this devotional. See, I had already given it a title before I even started writing and then he dropped, snake, in my spirit. Please don’t get me wrong thinking that I am referring to anyone as a snake but I’m sure there were some things you did in the past that made you feel as low and dirty as one, but who am I to judge? But this is what God is given me and I must be obedient. For in my searching, I found that a snake shed their skin to allow for growth, as well as to remove parasites along with their old skin. Isn’t that something? I know you’re wondering how this ties into a devotional, but go with me. When you accepted Christ into your life, you become a new creature because he took all of the old stuff you used to do, all the old things you used to be and all the bad places you used to go and threw them into the sea of forgetfulness – thus shedding your old skin. All the dirt folks threw on you, God removed when he shed your old skin. All of the scars you got from being drug through hurt and pain by family and friends, God removed when he shed your old skin. All the hate folks spoke over your life; God removed it when he shed your old skin. All the tear stains, on your skin, from crying yourself to sleep at night; God removed it when he shed your old skin. (I don’t know about you but I feel something stirring in my spirit) See, when you shed your old skin you’re taking off all the things folks thought about you, you’re taking off all the old stuff you used to think about yourself and you’re stepping into the new skin that has no scars, no bruises and it shines like gold. The new skin fits you perfectly because it was made just for you. Yea, you used to be a drug dealer, so what, now deal in the works of the Lord. Yea, you used to be an alcoholic and drug addict, so what, now you’re addicted to being a better Christian. You used to lie on folks and with anybody who smiled at you, so what, now you lie at the feet of Jesus because he promised to give you all you need. You used to steal from folks, stores and whatever you could get your hands on, so what, now you steal away to study God’s word. This means you’ve shed the old skin and stepped into the new skin that’s free from all the mess. In the bible, 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” But it’s when you’ve accepted Christ! See, it doesn’t matter that folks don’t believe that you’ve changed because your actions will show it. Once you’ve put on the new skin, your walk isn’t the same because you no longer walk with a limp. Your talk isn’t the same because you no longer talk like you don’t have sense. Your living isn’t the same because you no longer live like you have no place to go. Your giving isn’t the same because you no longer walk pass folks that are begging on the street. Yea, when you put on the new skin, everything about you looks new. You don’t have to change the color of your hair for folks to see the change because they’ll see the glow from your new skin. This glow is the light of God shining from your heart. God said in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” You’ll have the light of God shining through you! Humph! I find this as great news because as I kept reading about the snake it says when the old skin is shed, however, it doesn’t look exactly the same as its replacement. It takes on a nearly transparent appearance. This goes back to what I said before, the light of God shines through you, for all to see, when you put on your new skin.

So why are you holding on to the old skin? You know that it’s time for you to shed it because it’s dry and cracked all up yet you’re still trying to make it look new but you can add all the lotion to it you want, it’s still old. You know that you’ve outgrown the club scene but your friends keep calling you to go and instead of being honest with them you keep going. You know you want to go to church on Sunday’s but you’re too afraid of what others will think, so you stay home. You don’t want to drink and smoke any more but you keep hanging out with the same crowd and every time they pass a bottle or joint around, you take it. But child, if you want to make it to the place that God has prepared for you, you’d better let the world go. See, when you shed the old skin (the world), you get the new skin (God) and he promises in Genesis 28:15, “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” When you shed the old skin, you get strength and protection because Psalm 28:7 says, “The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.” When you shed the old skin, you get joy. Romans 15:13 says, “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” When you shed the old skin, you get the Holy Spirit and with the Holy Spirit you have direct communication with God even if you never mumble a word because Romans 8:26 says, “At the same time the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we don’t know how to pray for what we need. But the Spirit intercedes along with our groans that cannot be expressed in words.” This alone is reason enough to shed the old. You have to stop holding on to messy things, messy folks and messy situations that keeps you from doing the will of God. You’ve got to get out of the old patterns that you’re in that keep pulling you back into the world. You’ve got to stop trying to hold on to the old skin in order to receive your new skin. If the person you’re with isn’t down for your change, that’s ok because you can’t change folks but you can allow them to see the change in you and once they see the change, they’ll have to make the choice of changing to match you or leaving and if they leave they weren’t yours to begin with. Let go of folks or things that you’ve borrowed because if you have someone blocking the true blessing God is trying to send you, how would you get it?

Daily Devotional – 3/14/12 “Oh, it’s just Wednesday!”


Oh Lord it’s Wednesday, the middle of the week and it’s your loving kindness and guidance that I seek.

See, I’m patiently waiting for Friday but its taking it’s time because, Lord, I need a break before I seriously commit a crime.

Dealing with lazy children who gets a vacation from school, which means I leave them, sleeping in my house and they’re eating all my food.

Why couldn’t I be a teacher so I can have a break & sit on my tail? Oh, maybe because God was trying to spare my life from a jail cell.

Humph! Now I have to get up early and drag around quiet as a mouse, trying to keeping from making a lot of noise and waking the entire house!

Don’t you sometimes want to pout like you’re a child’s age because then you have to drive in heavy traffic while controlling your road rage?

Only to make it to work to find co-workers with frowns on their face, like they didn’t just experience God’s mercy and his grace.

When he woke their butt up and put air in their lungs and even gave them a brand new day with the Sun that he hung.

But, no, oh no, they take it for granted and don’t even thank the Man, when he could have allowed them to be buried under 6 feet of dirt and sand.

They walk around all day with their face stuck like they have sour candy in their jaw and heart as cold as a block of ice that you have the hardest time to thaw!

But why are grown folks so rude and mean when God is blessing them, didn’t they read Ecclesiastes 3:1 that says there is a time for everything?

Ecclesiastes 3:4 says there is “a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,” because if you keep your heart happy now you’ll stay happy when the crap hits the fan.

Oh 5PM where art thou when I need you so, so bad so I can shut off this computer, get my keys and grab my bag.

So, I can go home drop my bags and kick off these shoes; grab the remote, a blanket and a bottle of wine to relax away my blues.

I guess since it’s just 10AM, I’d better do some work maybe the time will move on, oh who am I kidding it’ll creep by so I’d better get on this phone.

You do know that you can laugh; yes Christians can have fun too; so stop acting like because you’ve accepted God into your life there isn’t anything you can do.

God wants you happy with a smile on your face and in your heart because it allows others to see his works in you and that’s a great start.

So enjoy the day, the week, the month and even enjoy the year before you’re not able too. Laugh, love, live and dance like there’s no one watching you.

Happy Hump Day my friends, may it be blessed and filled with laughter, joy and peace and may all of the pettiness, hate, back stabbing folks mean for your life cease.

God has given you a gift and he woke you today to use it, so get up and hold your head up high and do as he sees fit!

I’ll pray for you and I’ll hope you’ll pray for me; and stop stressing so much just get the blessings God is sending and be all that you can be!

Daily Devotional – 3/13/12 “Stop hiding!”

Mr. Thomas and Mrs. Lacy Ackright are a couple who have been married for about 8 years and they seem very happy; they have a house, 2 children, 2 cars, jobs, money in their retirement accounts and even in their savings. They go to church every Sunday, she is on the Usher Board and he serves as a deacon and is always willing to help. When the Pastor started the Couple’s Ministry at the church he asked them to be apart because everybody wanted to know the secret behind the “great marriage” they portrayed. He is always a gentleman; opening doors, pulling out chairs and helping her with her jacket, providing for his family and can always be counted on – you know things like that. She is the type of wife every guy wants; she never complains when he watch sports or has his boys over, she cooks dinner regularly, fixes his plate and keeps the house up – all the things a woman is supposed to do. Their kids are well-behaved, do well in school, play all types of sports and really involved in the church. They seem to have it all together and even folks who weren’t married were a little jealous. One particular Saturday afternoon, the news broke a Breaking News story about a shooting in this upscale neighborhood. The news reporters didn’t release any names nor had a lot of information only to say that the house belonged to the Ackright’s. Now, the folks in the town are asking questions, “Was it a robbery or home invasion” or “Who would hurt such loving people?” However, by the 10PM news, the story was out that Mrs. Ackright had actually killed Mr. Ackright. Wow! No one, not one person, ever expected this but the children did. Why? Because their father was a monster behind closed doors. Yea, he was perfect to all those who he came in contact with but too his family, they barely recognized the man he used to be because the man he’d become was far worse than words could describe. No one knew what caused the sudden change but it happened and it was bad, worse even! See, folks only got to see what the family wanted them to see. They didn’t see the bruises under their clothes or the small limp the son had from being kicked down the stairs. They didn’t notice the pain behind the smiles of the daughter when they spoke to her. They never saw the fear in the eyes of Mrs. Ackright when they asked how she was doing or how she flinched when someone grabbed her arm. No, all the world saw was the perfect picture that was painted because they wanted to conform to the world. They did all they could to keep the war inside of their home instead of asking for help because folks had labeled them as perfect and no one wanted to ruin the image of the “perfect family” but the image ruined them. They lost themselves by trying to please everybody else.

We’ve become so good at putting up fronts that we don’t realize that they are slowly killing us. We’d rather go hungry than to admit we don’t have money in our pocket. We’d rather run out of gas instead of asking a friend to borrow $20 until pay-day. We’d rather allow ourselves to be killed at the hands of an abusive spouse rather than ask for help because we don’t want the world to know we’re suffering. But I’m here to tell you, right now, at this very moment that everybody is struggling in some kind of way. While you are so busy trying to keep your co-workers from knowing they are busy trying to hide it from you too. But, as Christians, if we never stumble how can we show someone who hasn’t accepted Christ that this world won’t sometimes get crazy and hard? How can I tell a sinner that he can repent and God will forgive them if I act like I never sin? How can I show a doubter that God is truly real if I never show them how he changed me? Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” I don’t have to go around bragging about being broke but that doesn’t mean I have to look like it either. If God says he will supply all my needs according to his riches and glory (Philippians 4:19), then why should I doubt that?

Isn’t it crazy how we tend to put on blinders to certain things until something really bad happens? You know your friend is in a dangerous situation but you’d rather not say anything because you don’t want to hurt their feelings. But baby, the bible says in Proverbs 27:6 “Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.” See, sometimes the truth can hurt, especially from a friend, but like any wound, it’ll heal. Stop trying to sugar coat the fact that her husband is a cheater or an abuser. Stop beating around the bush when you need to tell your friend you saw his girl out with somebody else. Proverbs 12:22 says “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight.” When you act faithfully in your telling, God won’t allow you to be hurt. Now, I didn’t say that your feelings wouldn’t be hurt but I said you. When you tell lies, you may be able to get away with it momentarily but the truth will eventually come out. Don’t believe me? Read Luke 8:17 which says “For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.” When you buy a gift for someone don’t you eventually get it from its hiding place in order for it to be given? Well, it’s the same with lies because the truth will have to one day be given to the person you’ve been lying too, so why even lie to begin with? I know that sometimes you tell a little lie to keep from hurting folks feelings but it’ll come back to bite you. You know how you allow your friend to go out looking like rainbow bright instead of telling her the truth when she asked or how you let your boy leave the house and you knew his pants were too tight. Yea, you’ve done it before to keep from hurting folks feelings but you’d rather lie when the truth would do. Stop it!

Stop hiding behind the truth and take off those shades so that you can truly see. Be honest with yourself and then be honest with those around you. This doesn’t mean be rude but just be honest. I don’t expect you to act like a therapist solving everyone’s problems but you should be able to listen to a friend without being judgmental and then giving them advice without being harsh. You can’t be mean, rude and unapproachable and expect to have friends because in order to be a friend you have to show that you are also friendly. God didn’t create us so that we would be alone. Why do you think he created Eve for Adam or a mate for even the smallest of animals? Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 says “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” See, we were made to be companions and friends for one another to be there during the good and the bad, when you’re broke and when you strike it rich, when you’re sick and when you’re well and when you’re up or trying to get back up. With true friends, it doesn’t matter about the time in between or the months we may go without speaking because it’ll pick back up right where we left off. True friends don’t have to wait for an invitation to come over or even have to ask for permission to open the refrigerator. True friends know when your voice doesn’t sound right or your walk doesn’t look right. True friends can read between the lines and can even tell when your day is off through a text message or email. True friends know how to keep secrets and give real advice when it’s warranted. True friends are gifts from God and I cherish and I thank you God for my companion and for my friends, my true friends.

“I may not have the strongest back, but I’ll surely pull you up when you fall. I may not have all of the answers but I’ll answer when you call. I may not be rich but if I got it and you need it, I’ll share. If you need a shoulder to cry on, ears to listen and arms to hold you, I’ll be right there. I’ll be your leaning post for those days that make you stumble and I’ll be there to catch you when life makes you fumble. I’ll bring you medicine and juice on those days you may be sick and I’ll be right there through the thin and when the going gets thick. Even if you don’t see me on your worst day, I’ll be standing behind you; I’ll be the one whispering “God got you covered” and “he’ll see you through.” I’ll stand in front of you so you can use my shirt to wipe your tears and I’ll be right there with you calming all of your fears. I’ll go to the doctor with you and if you want to be alone, that’s ok because I won’t go far; I just go outside to pray so I’ll be waiting in the car. On those nights you have to pace because you may feel all alone, just call me and we’ll talk until you fall asleep on the phone. On the days when you feel like your cross is too heavy to bear, just know that I’ll always say I’ll be right there. I may not be a perfect Christian because I’m an unfinished work of art so if I do something wrong, charge it to my head and not my heart. See, God has made me who I am and he adds favor to me every day so I’m just trying to be acceptable to him by what I do and say. Love me for who I am and for whose I am because I can’t be anyone else so I’ll continue to be me and always be yourself!”
                                      Lakisha