Daily Devotional – 1/12/12 “Think back but don’t look back!”

As we journey on this Christian walk we will go through all types of things that will try to throw us off our designed path. You do know that the path you’re walking is designed just for you, right? Well, the bible says in Romans 8:29 “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” See if God has already predestined you for greatness, because being like Jesus means you’re destined for greatness, don’t you think the devil knows? Now, if the devil knows this then he has a responsibility to make sure you don’t make it to that greatness. He will throw things into your way that’ll make you want to turn and look back at your past life. He’ll throw struggle in your way so that you can look back at all the easy times you had in the world to make you want to turn back. He’ll throw sickness in your way to make you look back on all the healthy days you had in the world, to make you want to turn back. He’ll throw more bills and less money in your way to make you want to revert back to the days when you had more money in your pocket, from doing wrong, than you had time to spend it. He’ll throw a friend in your path that party all night on Saturday because they don’t have to go to church on Sunday, to make you want to go back to the old you. He’ll even throw that fine sister or brother in your path to make you want to revert back to being carefree and careless instead of a husband or wife. Well, I am here to tell you to think back on your past life but don’t look back. Why? Because when you look back, you might just go back. See, the enemy will make your past road look all smooth and easy and better than the bumpy road you’re walking now that you’ve chosen God, but it’s actually just a painted scene that he’s showing you. The enemy will make the grass from your past look dark green, healthy and worth standing on, when you look back, while the grass you’re currently on has a few dead spots, weeds and even a few bugs; but it could just be a green light shining on a brown patch.

When you choose God, you choose life but life with an occasional struggle because the struggle makes you strong. See your storms, tests and the trials you endure they are not to take you out but it’s to build your faith that God can do all he said he can and believeth to know that he will. The bible says in Job 14:1 “Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble,” so God isn’t picking on you but he simply letting you know that not all your days will be good but they’ll be worth it. How can you appreciate the sunshine if you never see the rain? How can you appreciate the car you have if you’ve never been without one? How can you appreciate being healthy if you’ve never been sick? How can you know what it feels like being up if you have never been down? How can you appreciate the extra money if you’ve never been broke and how can you appreciate the job you have if you’ve never been without? God doesn’t knock you down to leave you, but he does it because he wants to know if your praise is the same. It’s like you winning the lottery and now you have family and friends coming from everywhere to get a piece of it, but when you were struggling you couldn’t offer free food and get a crowd. They are using you, right? Well, that’s how God feels when you only call him during the struggle going down but not on the easy climb up. Have you ever wondered why folks sing, “I’m climbing up on the rough side of the mountain, and I’m doing my best to make it in?” Well, if you climb up on the rough side then you’ll have the smooth side to slide down on. Climbing on the rough side also gives you bumps to hold on too and grooves to place your feet in to push you up higher. Climbing on the rough side will make you appreciate the top when you make it because it was a struggle to get there. You know when you sacrifice hanging out and friends, the late night homework and the stress of passing a test, that’s climbing the rough side of the mountain, but getting that diploma and/or degree after you’ve worked so hard, that’s sliding down the smooth side. The months of chemo, surgery and radiation for the cancer that’s attacking your body, that’s climbing the rough side of mountain, but hearing the doctor say cancer free is sliding down the smooth side. Losing momma or daddy is climbing the rough side of the mountain but knowing the pain they endured is over is sliding down the smooth side. Stressing over where your child is when they are in the world, on drugs and alcohol and constantly being in jail is climbing the rough side of the mountain, but seeing them walk up that aisle to sit in the chair and dedicate his life to Christ is sliding down the smooth side.

The life you’ve chosen with God isn’t easy but is worth it and looking back over your past life won’t change the things that happened back then and while it may have been easier in the world, you were still paying a price. With God the reward you get is eternal life but with the devil it’s an eternity in the pits of hell’s fire. See, after you’ve done all that you were supposed to do, for God, “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34) ,” but for those who choose the world, “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41).” Being in the world may have perks but it also has a price but God paid that price when he died on the cross but in his dying we gain protection and through God’s protection we get promise and God’s promise gives us praise and praise gives us power and power gives us potential and through this potential we get purpose! So when you want to turn to look back over your past, don’t! Simply think about it and how God has brought you from where you used to be, to where you are now and be thankful. I know that you have some bad days but if you write a list of your bad and good, the good should outweigh the bad and even if they don’t PUSH! That means Pray Until Something Happens!

“But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. O my Strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love. Psalm 59:16-17”

Daily Devotional – 1/11/12 – “Cut it off!”

I look at people who have had limbs removed and I sometimes wonder what type of adjustments they had to make in order for them to live afterwards. People like those who use to walk but are now confined to a wheelchair or those who lost a hand in a work accident. I would imagine that life would never be the same but at the same time; I would assume this change had to be made in order to save their life. If you had an infection in your finger, wouldn’t you cut it off to save your hand or if you had an infection in one toe, wouldn’t you cut it off to save your foot? I would guess the answer would be yes. You have to sometimes remove the dead or dying stuff from you in order for you to live and I found this to be the same in your spiritual life. The bible says in Matthew 5:30 “And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” See, you are holding on to a boyfriend/girlfriend that means you no good they are slowly killing you. You know that boyfriend that comes around when you get paid and then sucks you dry and leave you and your children hungry and now you have to beg and borrow to live? He’s killing you. The girlfriend that always want this and need that and she doesn’t care that you have to work 16 hours to provide for her or even sometimes steal to satisfy her selfish need. She’s killing you. The job that is requiring almost every moment of your life, the 10 hours you work on the clock and then the 5 more you spend working at home; it’s killing you. You need to cut it/them off so that you can live. You do know stress can cause your hair to fall out, acne on your face, heart attacks, and strokes and even can make you go crazy? In other words, it can kill you. Cut it off. If your electric bill is through the roof, then cut off the lights. If your child (ren) can’t abide by your rules, cut them off. If your friends can’t get with the change you’ve made for yourself, cut them off. If the job can’t understand you have a life outside of work, cut them off. Stop trying to please everybody while you are slowly dying.

You’re riding in the car with your boy to go to a sports bar to watch a game and you know that he is always into trouble and has even gotten you into a little bit, but he’s your friend. While riding, you all get pulled over because the car tags are expired but before the officer can get to the window, he tells you he has a small bag of marijuana in the car. He doesn’t want to go to jail again, because he’s already on probation so he asks you to take the charge. What will you do? Or maybe it’s your girlfriend. She’s a little on the wild side but you all have been friends forever, so you can’t turn your back on her. She asks you to go to a party with her and you agree. You get to the party and realize, after walking in, that this could be a bad situation. She’s drinking like normal and is surrounded by a group of guys. You’re trying to watch her while also trying to be aware of your surroundings. She disappears for a while and you find her passed out upstairs in a room with 2 guys and the environment is quickly changing. You’re trying to fight these guys off to get her out of there and when you finally do, you’re shaking and in disbelief that she would actually put you in this type of situation. Then, you got to go home and explain all of this to your husband who is trying to figure out why 2 married women would be at a party like that anyway. But she’s your friend. Would you continue to hang out with her? Again the bible says in Mark 9:43, “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.” See, while you are trying to hold on to that friend that keeps getting you in trouble or dangerous situations, you’d better cut them off. While you are trying to hang on to this person, they are causing you more harm than good and I’ve found out that a true friend will never put you in a bind or bad position. A true friend would know you and wouldn’t ever betray the trust that the 2 of you have. A true friend would know you don’t like crowded clubs and parties, so they wouldn’t invite you. A true friend would know that you don’t do drugs, so they wouldn’t do them around you. A true friend would know they can tell you anything and you wouldn’t tell a soul.

Sometimes you have to cut off things in order for you to move. If you got into a hot air balloon, the only way for it to fly you have to release the hot air and cut the strings that are holding it in place. It’s the same way with your Christian walk. In order for you to move to a higher level, you got to release the hot air and cut the strings that are holding you down. That person that keeps telling you that you won’t amount to nothing is blowing the hot air and they are holding you down because you’ve started to believe it. Now, every time you go to apply for a new job that’s a step up from the one you got, you hesitate. Cut the strings and release the hot air so that you can fly above. Isaiah 40:31 says “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Don’t you know that God is all you need? When folks mean stuff for your bad, God is working it out for your good. When folks keep pushing you back, God is saying just wait. When folks keep stepping on you, God is saying just hold on. When folks hate on you, God is saying let them do it because I got you covered. Deuteronomy 28:13 says “The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom.” See, God is saying even though you maybe be at the end of the line now, it won’t last because I will turn the line around and make you first. Just because your name is at the bottom of the list, it doesn’t mean anything because I can make the last page first. Not everyone that is close to you are close to you. (You’ll get that later!) Let me repeat what I’ve said before. Somebody you know, that’s probably the closest to you, doesn’t think you deserve the job you got, but look at God. Somebody you know is still trying to figure out how you got approved for the house you got, but look at God working. Somebody is wondering how you made it through heart failure with the life you lived when others, they feel are better, died but look at God working this. Somebody is questioning how you manage to survive when you have no job but look at God working this thang! Somebody is even trying to see how God could have picked somebody like you, who use to be a drug addict, alcoholic and whoremonger, clean you up and now you’re the Youth Director of your church, but LOOK AT GOD WORKING THIS THANG OUT! See, while they are trying to figure it out, God has already worked it out. While they are counting your blessings, they are adding theirs to yours. While they are counting you out, God is simply adding pegs to your footstool and lifting you higher! So go on and tell them to 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 surely well! Because when I no longer look at what I used to be or how I use to look, I see how I am meant to be. God said he has made me the lender and not the borrower, so in this New Year, make a vow that all that means you no good will be cut off. All that hurts and hinders you from God’s will and stops you from being who you are destined to be needs to be cut off. Deuteronomy 28:12 says “The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.” Isn’t that good news? For God said, YOU WILL RULE OVER MANY NATIONS BUT NONE WILL RULE OVER YOU (Deuteronomy 15:6)! That makes me worthy of God’s calling on my life, what about you?

Daily Devotional – 1/10/12 “Ungrateful!”

I read a friend’s status on Facebook this morning that said “You don’t know what you have until it’s gone, but the truth is you knew exactly what you had; you just thought you’d never lose it,” and this got me thinking. Wow! How many times do you take things for granted and then wish for them back? “Oh, I wish I had momma here to hug,” but how many times did you actually hug momma when you had her? See, all those times she told you that you would miss her when she was gone is playing over and over in your head now that you can’t pick up the phone to call her. The times when she would call you and ask for a favor and you’d brush her off because you got more important things to do, well, it’s eating at you now. But, what can you do? You hate to pump gas, wash your own car, get the oil changed or get a flat tire fixed, but you pushed away the one person that would do it all for you. You were tired of him smothering you, so you say, but in actuality it was your friends talking in your ear. They asked, “Girl, why does he always call you when we hang out?” But they were just mad because they didn’t have anyone caring if they made it to their destination, had enough money or made it home safely, so they hated on yours. But instead of you appreciating him for caring, you ran him off. Now, each time you pump gas and its 20 degrees outside, you pray for God to send him back. But baby, he has moved on with his life and enjoying the company of someone who appreciates him.

You’re acting upset because your dog ran away when you know you were barely caring for him anyway. You wouldn’t take him for walks, to the vet or feed him 2 days straight and you have the nerve so say you don’t know why he would run away. Child, please! How can you expect a dog or even a person to stay when they are not being treated right? The bible says in Matthew 7:12 “In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you.” You expect a smile but all you give is a frown. You expect a hug when all you offer is a handshake. You expect love but all you got to give is hate. It’s like you expecting a steak dinner but you only gave $3, life doesn’t work like that. Haven’t you heard, “You get back what you put out?” If folk see you helping all the time, they’ll be quick to help you when you need it, but if folk always see you as being a hindrance to others, they’ll be a hindrance to you. Luke 6:31 says “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.” If you constantly do folks wrong, they will get tired of it and leave. I know the bible says folks should turn the other cheek when they are done wrong (Matthew 5:39), but we only have 2, so eventually you’ll turn your back. Why would you consistently subject yourself into a situation that always leave you hurt? You have to stop treating folks like crap and then expecting them to stay around because when you take them for granted, there is someone waiting to grant their request. Somebody will miss this, so let me say it again. While you are taking him/her for granted, somebody is waiting to grant their requests. Hebrews 13:16 (The Message Bible) says “Make sure you don’t take things for granted and go slack in working for the common good; share what you have with others. God takes particular pleasure in acts of worship – a different kind of “sacrifice” – that take place in kitchen and workplace and on the streets.”

Sometimes the things we take for granted are not taken by death but hurt can sure make you feel like it. May I suggest that you stop taking things for granted that you claim to care about because it/they might not always be there? Yea, you got your mind now but you can lay down for a nap and wake up without it. You got a great job today, but the company can close tomorrow. You riding in your car now but in a blink of an eye, a wreck can happen and completely wipe it out. You walked out the house mad at your spouse and too mean to kiss them goodbye and then you receive a phone call that a heart attack claimed their life. James 4:14 says “How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog–it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.” You may know the blessing that you have and you may even take it for granted because you don’t ever think that it can be gone, but ask the mother who had to bury a child or a husband who buried his wife of 40+ years or the steel worker who cut off his hand. God has blessed you with an amazing gift of singing but you complain every time sometime ask you to do a solo. The bible says that if you don’t use your gifts, then God will take them and give them to someone else. If you don’t believe me, read Matthew 25:14-30. But if you use what God has given you, for good, then you’ll hear God say “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” Isn’t this what we are all striving to hear? Well done? If God has given you a heart to love and you choose to hate, then hate is what you’ll get. If God has given your hands strength to help and all you do is sit on them then you get no help. If God has given your legs strength to walk and all you do is complain when someone calls your name, you may just lose the ability to walk. Proverbs 27:1 says “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.” Cherish what you have. Love who you are and those around you. Stop waiting until tomorrow to apologize, to end a feud, to make peace because only God knows what tomorrow holds. Do it now while you have a chance because telling them while standing over their casket won’t do you any good, they can’t hear it.

Being ungrateful takes you out of God’s grace and being without the grace of God is like being in a tornado with no shelter.

Daily Devotional – 1/9/12 “What are you filled with?”

I read a quote from my neighbor this morning that said, “Whatever you are overflowing with will spill out when you are bumped (Ravi Zacharias).” This made me think because as Christians, I would imagine that whatever we are filled with will spill off on others when we bump into them or are in their presence, right? So I ask the question, “What are you filled with?” If you are filled with anger because your spouse made you mad on the way to church, then you give off anger to your fellow church members for Proverbs 29:11says “Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back.” But, if you are filled with love because that’s the way you are supposed to be, then you give off love when you mingle with folk for John 13:34 says “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”

Philippians 1:9-11 says “I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God.”Now salvation is defined as the act of saving or protecting from harm, risk, loss, destruction; and God does this for us, so he is filled with salvation. Then he fills us with this salvation, when we accept him into our lives, in order to save and protect others who have not accepted him yet. But if I am a sinner and every time I walk by you and you are complaining, why would I accept what you are offering? If I am a sinner and every time I bump into you and you are gripping because you don’t have money, then how can you tell me that God is a provider and make me believe it? If I am a sinner and every time I talk to you, you have gossip on your lips about your brothers/sisters, you are supposed to love, how can you tell me that God wants us to love one another? If I am a sinner and every time I see you, you are complaining about the sickness in your body, then how can you make me believe that you have faith in God’s word? You have to be overflowing with the love of God and his word in order to spill it into other folk’s lives because for the most part, the closest a doubter, sinner or backslider gets to God is through you. But if the stuff that you’re filled with smells and sounds like garbage when it overflows, then you will probably only have those around you who smell and sound like the same thing, which means you are conforming to the world instead of having the world conform to you. Through salvation you gain strength and through strength you get saving power and this power gives you purpose and this purpose gives your life meaning and through meaning you get mercy and with mercy comes grace and grace, God’s grace is more than enough.

But if you can blend so easy into the world, like a chameleon blends into their surroundings, then you may need to read your bible more. When you become filled with worldly stuff, then God’s business gets pushed to the back. 1 John 2:15 says “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”You’ve know that when you try to provide the same amount of attention to 2 things at the same time, one will suffer. It’s like you trying to blow air into 2 balloons at the same time. When you take your mouth off of one, the air releases so the only way for you to get one the size it needs to be, you have to continue to blow into it, which means the other one will be left out; at least until you finish with the first one. This is the same way with trying to serve God and the world. When you focus on the world, then God’s plan for your life is placed on hold until you are finished but will you finish in enough time to go back and get God and if you do, will he still be in the same place you left him? 2 Corinthians 13:5 says “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.” How do you examine yourself? You have to do the will of God and follow his commandments. When you go even when you don’t feel like going, you’ve passed the test. When your friend calls with problems and you pray for them instead of gossip and you don’t tell their business, you’ve passed the test. When you do God’s will because it’s what you’re supposed to do and not for recognition, then you’ve passed the test. When your money runs out and your faith doesn’t waver and your knees don’t buckle under the pressure because you know that God will do what he said he would then you’ve passed the test. After passing the test, you are rewarded and God’s reward is much more than man can offer, so you have to be careful what you allow yourself to be filled with. If you leave garbage in your house for too long, eventually you’ll start smelling it in every room. Well if you leave hate on the inside for someone, bitterness over something that happened and malice towards someone who hurt you, eventually these things will begin festering inside of you until they consume your insides and then your overflow will be tainted and who wants to be around a bad-smelling person? Folk will avoid you like you have a contagious disease and if the room suddenly clears when you walk in it, then you need to fix what you got coming out of you. Being around a person whose overflow is tainted is like spilling red wine on your white shirt, it creates a mess. You have to be aware of the things that you’ve allowed to consume your insides and let them out. The same way your body gets rid of waste daily should be the same way you get rid of worldly waste from your life. You’re able to do this by praying for your enemies, letting go of hate, stopping spreading gossip and lies and becoming a better soldier in God’s army.

I pray for you my brother and my sister daily. I don’t have to personally call your name and your situation because God knows all. In Ephesians 3, Paul talked to the Gentiles about the purpose that God had given him, which was to minister to them the word of God. See, Paul didn’t think he was worthy of the position, but God did, so Paul was obedient. In Ephesians 3:14-19, Paul offered a pray to the people and even though I am not Paul, I, too, don’t feel worthy of this gift, but God did, so I must be obedient to him and his will. This prayer fits so perfectly for what I want for each of you so I have to share it. God wants us to love one another because if we love each other then we can love him. We have to fill ourselves with the word of God along with faith so that when someone bumps into us that may be having a bad day, week, month or year; it’ll spill onto them and make them well. When we fill ourselves with God, all we have to offer is love because God is love. Overflow with God so that your face may always have a smile, your walk may always have joy, and your hands may always offer help and your heart may always show love.

(Paul’s prayer which is my prayer to you)

“My prayer for you, “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen”


Daily Devotional – 1/7/12 “Be Still”

I got up this morning and I thought I was going to have my devotional done early, but nope, I couldn’t think of one thing! I prayed and I still had no idea, so I put the computer down, fixed breakfast and nope, still nothing. So, I watched a movie and washed my hair and now I’m sitting down at the computer under the dryer still with no clue. But then all of a sudden, God’s said, be still. I thought to myself, be still, but I still have a devotional to write yet I obeyed because in my reading this morning I found that being obedient to God is better than any offering or sacrifice that you or I can ever give (1 Samuel 15:22). Then I realized that God was telling me to tell you, today, to BE STILL! You are pacing trying to figure out your next move, when God says he already has it covered. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).” You are already stressing about tomorrow’s worries when you haven’t even given a thought about today but Matthew 6:34 says “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” You are anxious and running around from here to there and for what? BE STILL! Philippians 4:6 says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” See, God is trying to do something in your life, at this very moment, but you’re moving too fast to catch it. God is trying to tell you something but you’re too busy to hear it. Slow down because you might just be missing out on a blessing that you’ve been waiting for. Can you remember being young and your mom has gotten you dressed for church and she tells you to be still and don’t move until she is ready to go, but instead you go and get into something and mess up your dress or shirt and now, she is mad which means you’re in trouble?

With God, it’s almost the same. He won’t be as mad as momma but you get the gist of what I’m saying. The answer that you’ve been waiting for, it’s coming but be still. The confirmation that you’ve been praying for, it’s coming just be still. That husband or wife you’ve been wishing for, they are coming just hold on and be still. Stop trying to rush God, stop rushing for things to happen and stuff to change because usually when you rush you make a mistake. Let God do what he said he would, in his own time. Just be still. Psalm 37:7 says “Surrender yourself to the LORD, and wait patiently for him. Do not be preoccupied with [an evildoer] who succeeds in his way when he carries out his schemes.” This is simply saying; stop trying to keep up with the Joneses because if you look closely at them, you’ll see that all they got didn’t come from God. While you are working sun up to sun down to get a house like Jody has, she is barely making ends meet to keep it. While you are spending every dime to wear Polo like your friends, they are stealing theirs. When you take matters into your own hands, you remove them from God’s hand. I don’t know about you but I’d rather be in God’s hands than Allstate because they may let me down. When you worry it’s like saying you don’t have faith that God will be there. But I can tell you that he’s better than Visa because you don’t have to take him in your wallet, he’s everywhere you’re trying to be. He’s is better than Aleve because he will give you all day relief. He’s better than Nyquil because he can give you a peaceful sleep. God is better than Nationwide; he’ll be more than on your side because he will be your front, back, side, top and bottom. God is better than Goody’s or BC’s because he’ll ease your pain faster than they can. God is better than State Farm because he’ll be there even before you call him. All you have to do is trust him. Proverbs 3:5 says “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” When you depend on folks, they can let you down but if you depend on God, he’ll never fail.

While you are putting all your trust in folks, you should be putting your trust in God because then he’ll screen everyone that comes into your life. With God, it’s like having a security checkpoint in your life at all times. You know how you go through the security checks at the airport and they check everything to make sure you are no danger to them; well God is your security guard, if you allow him to be. I know you’ve heard this but it’s true, if you place your heart in God, all the folks that come into your life will have to go through God to get it. Once they go through God, they should come out being a new creature with love in their heart and joy on their lips. But, if you give yourself to anybody that comes along, you’ll soon be filled with holes and just like a bucket that has holes in it, you’re no good. Think about the cartoon Tom & Jerry and the time when Jerry filled Tom with holes and every time he took a drink of water, it all came running out of him. Well, if you keep allowing folks to take a part a of you every time they walk out of your life, you’ll soon be filled with holes and by the time the real person for you comes along, you won’t be able to hold anything inside. Stop rushing, stop pacing, stop worrying and be still! When you stop running from God and the will he has for your life, you’ll see everything in a whole new light because the light that God has isn’t dim and it doesn’t ever need recharging or replacing. Be still and let God handle your problems. Try it, if just for today and if you like it, try it again tomorrow and the next day. God never breaks a promise, he never fails and he’s always there.