Daily Devotional – 2/12/20 “For I know the plans…”

God has a plan for each of our lives. No, for real, He does but most of us don’t believe it because it isn’t manifesting like WE think. We’re looking at where we are, currently, and don’t believe God can perform miracles there. We’re looking at our condition and believing the enemy when he says, God won’t dwell there. He’s a bold face lie! God dwells everywhere, and He hasn’t forgotten us. But sometimes, we may have to endure a place before we get to the place.

In Jeremiah 29, Jeremiah wrote a letter, from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the exiles and to the priests, the prophets, and all the others Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. He tells them, this is the word of God concerning you.

Jeremiah 29:5-9, “Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease. Seek the prosperity of the city to which I have sent you as exiles. Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for if it prospers, you too will prosper.” For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Do not be deceived by the prophets and diviners among you, and do not listen to the dreams you elicit from them. For they are falsely prophesying to you in My name; I have not sent them, declares the LORD.”

See, the people of Israel were in Babylon being held captive BY GOD’S DOING. However, the fact they could receive a letter, build, start families and increase; signifies although they were being held captive, they weren’t being treated like prisoners. Some of you, you’re in an unfamiliar place but you still have the ability to produce. You simply need to get out of your own way and head. Stop looking at the place and believe God’s promises. Sure, it may be what you want, you may have planned to be further ahead by now or in a different place in your life; but what if this is God’s doing. For Jeremiah goes on to say in verses 10-14,

“For thus says the LORD, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place. ‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. ‘Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. ‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. ‘I will be found by you,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’”

You may not hear God but He’s still listening, providing and protecting. Why? Because of the thoughts He has towards you. Yes, your current place may not be familiar, but the ground is still fertile. Your current place may not be Jerusalem, but God’s power is still justified. You need to trust HIS plan. Stop listening to people who don’t even have God’s ear. If you want to know the plans God has for you, ask Him and He’ll show you. David says in Psalm 40:4, “How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, and has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.”

#SurvivingMe

I didn’t understand what God was doing when He gave me the assignment of Surviving Me but now, it makes perfect sense.

This Night of Worship was amazing. I’m grateful for my husband, family and friends who supported this assignment. There were those who didn’t leave until they sowed a seed (THANK YOU)! Those who hugs allowed me to know, my work was not in vain. Those who cried with me and those who simply believed. I’m thankful.

For those who couldn’t attend, here are the videos.

Part 1

Part 2 – This one is sideways but the sound is good. LOL

I pray you are blessed by it.

“And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.” — Luke 1:45

#SurvivingMe

I didn’t understand what God was doing when He gave me the assignment of Surviving Me but now, it makes perfect sense.

This Night of Worship was amazing. I’m grateful for my husband, family and friends who supported this assignment. There were those who didn’t leave until they sowed a seed (THANK YOU)! Those who hugs allowed me to know, my work was not in vain. Those who cried with me and those who simply believed. I’m thankful.

For those who couldn’t attend, here are the videos.

Part 1

Part 2 – This one is sideways but the sound is good. LOL

I pray you are blessed by it.

“And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.” — Luke 1:45

Daily Devotional – 2/11/20 “Keep the same energy, playa!”

In Acts 16, Paul and Silas are imprisoned after casting out a demon from a young girl, people were using to make money. Bible shares she was filled with a spirit of divination (the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown by supernatural means). Afterwards, Paul and Silas dragged before the authorities who ordered that Paul and Silas be stripped, beaten and thrown into prison. You may know the end of the story but while Paul and Silas were in prison, they prayed and sung songs to God. It didn’t matter their current location, their heart and sound still belonged to God.

Some of y’all are in a place you don’t deserve to be in and neither have you done wrong. Maybe you’re in a dark place because of you; either way, stop being angry at God. Instead, ask Him for forgiveness and change your sound. Instead of pity, pray. Instead of focusing on your suffering, sing. Your heart and sound should still belong to God, no matter your location or situation.

Anyway, while they sung and prayed, God sent an earthquake that shook the foundation of the prison, opened the doors and the chains. Paul then converts the jailer, goes home with him and his entire household. The next morning, the magistrates sends an order to “release those men.” The jailer tells Paul and Silas, but Paul tells them, “They beat us publicly without a trial and threw us into prison, even though we are Roman citizens. And now do they want to send us away secretly? Absolutely not! Let them come themselves and escort us out (Acts 16:37)!”

In other words, keep the same energy playa. These men, in authority, had no right to strip, beat or imprison Paul and Silas; but they did. In front of a crowd yet they want to release them silently. Nawl baby. You restrained me publicly, keep the same energy and release me, publicly. Look, I know vengeance belongs to God, He’ll fight for us and He’ll handle our enemies; I’m not taking away from God’s power. Neither am I telling you not to forgive, love your enemies and pray for those who spitefully misuse you.

However, there are some folk, in your life, who keeps apologizing privately but will blatantly antagonize you publicly. Tell them, keep the same energy. Those who only show up when there’s a benefit for them and not to authentically support you; tell them, keep the same energy. Aw, you had the audacity to tag me in a post when you’re in your feelings but now that you’ve found out your folk lied, you want to apologize in messenger. No boo, keep the same energy, playa and tag me in the apology too. Stop giving passes to folk because they’re familiar, y’all grew up together, you respect them, they’re in authority and you don’t want to hurt their feelings. You don’t have to be mean about it, but you need to mean it.

This year we’re getting out of our own way, we’re stepping into all God has for us and we’re letting go of those who mean us no good. That begins by reevaluating our circle of relationships. Stop putting your good energy into folk and situations who got good energy but won’t give it to you. Depleting your energy dims your light.

In four days …

In four days, I’m stepping out on faith and out of my comfort zone to do something God gave me last year. I’m hosting my very first ministerial event called Surviving Me. If you follow me on social media then you’ve seen the posts, but I wanted to share it here, for two reasons. One, so you’ll know and two, to encourage somebody to trust God and do it. Yes, it may be scary but if He gave you the plans; He’ll also provide the people, place, provisions, protection and peace.

See, I never had intentions of doing this because Surviving Me was only a scene in my book Broken but then I started getting messages about it and God wouldn’t leave me alone. I wrote it on a sticky note and pinned it to the wall in my Prayer Room and left it. God was still tugging at my heart, so I told Him, if this is meant, you make the way. Be careful what you tell God (LOL).

A little about Surviving Me. God and I are calling this, A Night of Worship: Divorce Edition because it’s designed almost like a divorce trial where we, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, prayer, song and God’s word; will divorce everything that causes us to abandon or abort our purpose. It is our prayer, that through this service, we divorce flesh and marry spirit. We divorce anger, bitterness, low self-esteem etc. to become who God has called us to be. Because let’s face it, sometimes, we’re our own worst enemy.

For this night, there is no cost and no registration fee; only a night of worship. There will be three speakers. Rev. LoTarsha Dillard, Arbeny Hunter and myself. There will also be prayer, praise and worship, a welcome and solo. I’ve scheduled two hours but fully intending to allow God to have total control.

Am I nervous? Yes, but not fearful because God gave me the vision and I trust Him enough to go forth, believing He’s going to see it through. I believe He’s going to prick the hearts of those who need to be in attendance and even those who He’ll send to sow into it. In other words, I’M BELIEVING and TRUSTING GOD. Y’all, I never want to be in the spotlight, but I know this event is not about me. It’s for some young lady who will be in the midst. It’s for somebody’s sister who is on the verge of giving up, but they won’t because their sister will come home telling them about #SurvivingMe. It’s for a mother, pastor, preacher, first lady, teacher, CEO, educator, guidance counselor, therapist, janitorial worker, warehouse worker, forklift driver, business owner, author, nurse, doctor, fire fighter, EMT, pilot, manager, etc. who feels hopeless, lost and their faith is falling.

Together, we’re SURVIVING ME!

If you’re in Memphis or surrounding areas, join us. If you are unable to attend, please send your prayers and if you would like to sow a seed, you may do so via cashapp ($RevKisha) or paypal.me/authorlakisha. If you’d like to order a Surviving Me Journal, click here or for any questions, you may reach me at authorlakisha@gmail.com.

Trust God. I did and in four days …

Luke 1:45, “And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”