It’s just a matter of time…

By: Fred Reid

Waddup folk?! This devotional is one of encouragement : ) The scripture will be Matt. 6:17-23 and while ALL of that is good, the main thing I want to focus on is the 21 verse:

“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”

HEAVY STUFF!! Not initially but lets take sometime to deal wid it hehehe

Basically what this scripture communicates to us is that things that we care about will captivate our heart. Now in context it is speaking of not putting too much stock in worldly acclaim (aint those the lyrics to some GC song we sang? Me and don don’t know no lyrics anyways so nevermind LOL) Aaaannyywaayyss it tells us to focus on things above and the incorruptible treasure The Father has prepared for us in Heaven. But even beyond that I’m going to deal with commitment to the things of the heart, this isn’t explicitly in the scripture so hopefully this makes sense still lol

Short Version: The things that you really care about tug at your heart and you make an effort to spend time with them and on them to make sure they are going well. Let The Father be someone you love with more than just your words.

Figured I’d switch it up on yall and put the short version in earlier, but I’d sho preciate it if yall still read the rest lol THINK ABOUT IT! You would be hard pressed to think of something or someone that you love and don’t spend time with. I LOVE basketball so I play often, whether video games, in the real gym, watching it on tv, the internet, or just walking around acting like I’m playing...shadow playing I like to call it lol. But where the inconsistency in the formula appear is sadly with my relationship with God. I claim to love Him ssoo much, yet I only spend 3-4 hours with Him once a week and have rather rushed unfocused “conversations” with Him through the week. Then I have the nerve to wonder why I can’t hear from Him about the decisions I need to make, why my situations and pains haven’t changed so on and so forth. I can’t expect things to change or get any better if I’m not doing anything differently. NOT spending time with The Father got me into my mess and now I think SAYING I love Him is going to get me out? MUST BE TWO SIIIDDEESS. Many Christians give into their temptations and blame it on God not being there when in reality they gave Him no real chance. To be NEW you must get more God in you, the only way to do that is to take Him in, the only way to do that is to be in His presence, which requires your time!!

Get out of the mindset that is takes God 20 mins, a slow song and a bunch of crying to stop by and speak to/touch you. Make time for The Almighty! Pray to God and sometimes just pause for Him to say something. Spend time reading the bible and ask Him to explain it. Fast! Listen to more gospel music, what some more preaching. Not only are you sowing a seed for spiritual growth (hehehe) but you are SHOWING God that you are really bout this life (hehehe). Think about how you’d feel if someone you loved didn’t give you much time; and when they did they were always asking for something. Just chill with God sometimes, He loved you enough to allow Jesus to die for you, so I’m sure He’d love some of ya time.

In closing (sounds like some preacher stuff lol) it’s all just a matter of time. Your healing, your blessing, your peace, your deliverance, its all WAITING ON YOU. YOU have to be in the spot to receive them. Easiest way to get there is instruction from God..actually that’s the only way lol. And the instructions come from the time ya’ll spend together. JUST TRY! It’ll be a lil awkward at first but the devil is a liar and wants to discourage you from intimacy with God. Stick with it! Don’t talk about it BE about it!

Over and Out : )

Being ‘bout that life

By: Monique Smith

Let’s dive in.

“For there has already been enough time spent in doing what the pagans choose to do: carrying on in unrestrained behavior, evil desires, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and lawless idolatry. So they are surprised that you don’t plunge with them into the same flood of wild living---and they slander you. (1 Peter 4:3-4).

We know that as a Christian, we have to give up A LOT of things that we once enjoyed. As we mature in Christ, things that once seemed very innocent and harmless to us, actually begins to convict us. Of course, to the ‘world’ we look foolish and we are so called “missing out on life”, but this is not true. To us, we know and understand the desires that Christ has for us, and we know that in order to fulfill our purpose in life, we can’t be “bout that life” any more. We’ve spent enough time being ratchet and out of control. So with that, like I stated earlier, we look foolish. People are shocked when we, as young college students/recent graduates, don’t participate in “normal” young people lifestyles. For example, today on my college tour with my students, some guys were completely amazed and shocked that I don’t use profanity! They swore that I was lying! People don’t believe us when we say we don’t want to club, drink, or party with the rest of them, and of course they pick on us and try to call us “whack” because we ‘have no life’. BUT, “If you are ridiculed for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.” (1 Peter 4:14).” Who CARES if people pick on you when you have the SPIRIT of GLORY and of GOD resting on you?! HUH? I would take that any day! And I do! What a privilege!! And we get all of that, by simply being obedient to God. So I encourage y’all to standout from the crowd and stay committed to your relationship with Christ. People will always talk about you, if you join in with them or not. So be yourself and be who God has already called you to be.

Prayer: Lord! You are great! You are marvelous! Thank you for your love! God, I pray that each beautiful person who is reading this becomes more consistent with his or her commitment to a “God First” lifestyle. Where we put the opinions of God first and not bend and give in to peer pressure. Lord thank you so much for rewarding us for standing out for you and for your precious spirit. Let us take confidence in your Word! We love you! In Jesus name! Amen!

If you haven’t heard this song. Check it out. It’s a huge encouragement on those days when being “left out” from the crowd gets you down.

“Sitting with me” by Mary Mary - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8U4pnckE2w

Wait for it!

By: Rickey Youngblood

So a lot of times, especially females, get bogged out about finding a boyfriend or a significant other to settle down with or be “exclusive” with. Now this is not to say that some guys don’t do the same thing as well but I think it’s a little more common with females.

I read the story of Ruth and Boaz and I’m going to give you little background information just in case you are not familiar with the story. Ruth married one of Naomi’s sons. Unfortunately Naomi’s husband and her two sons died and afterwards Ruth continued to live with her mother-in-law. Ruth then went and worked in a field belonging to Boaz. She caught Boaz’ eye and he asked about her. He was told by his foreman that she was very hard working and had been putting in MAD work in the field. As a result, Boaz instructed her to no longer work in the fields and to come and break bread with him and to hang out with his servant girls.

Ruth 2: 10-12 …..”Why have I found so much favor in your eyes that you notice me—a foreigner”? Boaz replied, “I’ve been told all about what you have done for you mother-in-law since the death of your husband—how you left your father and you mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. May the Lord repay you for what you have done….

Ruth 3:10-11 …..This Boaz speaking to Ruth…”This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after younger men, whether rich or poor. And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All my fellow townsmen know that you are a woman of noble character.”

In these two verses you can see that Boaz was impressed with Ruth’s character. Yes, her husband had passed away but she was not running around trying to find someone else. Instead, Ruth focused her attention on other things and when she least expected it God revealed Boaz to her. A lot of times we get so caught up in finding a significant other that we forget other important things. Yes, I am sure that Ruth missed her husband but she was more concerned with making sure that her mother-in-law was taken care of and as a result her actions and her kindness was noticed by Boaz. Boaz knew that this was the woman that he wanted and married her! Ladies and Gents, your Boaz and your Ruth is somewhere out there waiting for you! Ladies be patient and guys be on the look for that one girl that will catch your eye!

So I challenge myself as well as you guys to focus more on God and his word and in return he will reveal to us whatever it is that we want or need in due time. Most times when we try to take control of the wheel, we make wrong decisions that in the end cause us a lot of hurt and pain. But if we let God take control then he will steer us in the right direction!

Much Love!

Our BEST Friend

By: Rickey Youngblood

Proverbs 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

This is something that I have been struggling with for a while. This verse is so simple yet many times we neglect to seek God before making decisions; especially major decisions. As a result, a lot of times we find ourselves in predicaments that we are not sure how to get out of. It is important that we acknowledge God before making decisions because he is an all knowing God who looks out for his children. YA HEARD ME!!

Acknowledging God and asking for his guidance when making decisions can sometimes save us a lot of trouble in the long run. Often times we seek our parents, siblings, or friends for advice when we really should be seeking God. He will give us the answers that we need.

Jeremiah 33:3 Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we just don’t know what to do. We feel like we’ve done everything that we could possibly do and said everything that we could possibly say and nothing has changed. One question we should ask ourselves is… “Have I talked to God about this?” A lot of times we forget to take our burdens and our troubles to God. This makes me think of the popular hymnal “What a friend we have in Jesus”.

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

Remember that Jesus is our friend and he can be our BEST friend if we let him. He knows just what to say and how to say it. He’s the best advice giver because he holds all the answers. So I challenge you guys to try acknowledging God sometimes. It just might work out for you!

Much Love!

Desires of Your Heart

BY: Rickey Youngblood

Just about every day…well at least for me anyways, we find ourselves chasing after the wrong desires. Now it is very true that we are human and as human beings there will be things that our flesh will desire to do. But the question is, does this line up with God? And in most cases…it doesn’t!

Galatians 5:19-21 When you follow the desires of you sinful nature, the results are very clear; sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

WOW!! That was a lot! As college students and recent graduates, I think it’s pretty safe to speak for all of us in saying that we have found ourselves in at least one of these sinful acts or feelings, if not a few. Now it is inevitable that we are going to make mistakes but the question is how many times are we going to continue to make the same mistakes? Especially when we say things like “I gotta do better” or “Man, I’m not doing that anymore”. But yet we continue to do the same sinful acts over and over again. There should come a point and time where we are tired of living outside of God’s will and also realize that we are not going to be able to inherit the Kingdom of God unless we are willing to make some changes. For God said…

Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.

Now I don’t know about ya’ll but I want God to give me a NEW HEART! Because the one I got ain’t gettin it!! AMEN? AMEN!

Psalm 37:4-5 Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.

The part that I really like about this verse is the last part. It says “Trust him, and he will help you”. A lot of times we don’t want to do things because we feel like we can’t do them on our own or it’s going to be too hard for us to do it alone. But this verse specifically tells us that as long as we trust him, he will help us. Therefore, we don’t have to try and do this on our own. As long as we commit everything unto the Lord, he will help us along the way and in turn give us the desires of our hearts.

So if you feel like things in your life just aren’t going right and your feeling a little weary, just remember that if you hold on and commit everything you do to the Lord, he will give you the desires of your heart. I challenge you to do this and just see how things in your life will begin to fall into place. Trust and believe that he will do it and IT WILL BE DONE!

Much Love

BE MY STRENGTH

By: Rickey Youngblood

Since my father’s death, there have been plenty of times where I felt like giving up. I miss him so much that sometimes I just wish that I could talk to him and see him one more time. Losing a parent is definitely a hard thing to experience, especially if you had a good relationship with them. It’s kind of like losing a part of you. I am so thankful that I was able to come back to school and finish the semester and now I am moving towards graduation. I know that it is only by the grace of God that I am still in school and that I am able to make it through each and every day.

Isaiah 40: 29-31 He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.

This verse clearly says that God will give you the power and the strength that you need to keep going BUT it is only when you trust in Him that you will find strength. I know that there are many times we feel like giving up. Sometimes we feel like giving up on our jobs, job searches, school work, relationships, friendships, etc…but it is important to remember that when we are weak, we must trust in God and He will give us the strength to move forward.

I can honestly say that God has given me soooo much strength these past 7 months. Now don’t get me wrong….I have my moments and plenty of them! But I just whisper a prayer and ask God to give me the strength to pull it together and without a doubt, he always comes through for me. Although I no longer have my earthly father here with me, I will forever have my heavenly father and he provides me with everything that I need. My father’s death has affected my life and my mother’s life tremendously but I can honestly say that God has taken care of us through it all. He has placed people in my life and my mother’s life that have really been supportive in helping us maneuver through this situation.

Proverbs 3: 5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy path.

So I challenge you guys to seek God whenever you are feeling weak or just feel like giving up. He said that He would never leave us nor forsake us, so know that he will give us the strength to endure the hardships that we face here on earth. And always remember that things could be a lot worse than what they already are. So be thankful for the things that you do have and try not to take anything for granted.

Much Love,

Seed Time and Harvest Time

By: Fred Reid

I know I haven’t done a devotional in a while (shoutout to Mo tryna call me out because of it too smh) but there has been a lot going on and I wasn’t quite sure what to write about so I decided to go ahead with this one before I over thought it lol This one is about understanding the easy system that God has arranged for the believer to receive what they need. It’s as simple as seed time and harvest time, accompanied by believing and receiving. Let’s get biblical lol

Genesis 8:22 “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest and cold and heat and summer and winter and day and not shot not cease.

(NIV) As long as the earth endures seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease”

The main thing to focus on here is as long as the earth is in existence there will be seed time and harvest time. Now often natural things are examples of spiritual things, as pointed out in Mo’s previous devotional that natural things are only temporal while spiritual things are eternal. SSsoo what that means is the natural process of planting a seed an it bring forth something beneficial in due season is a way for us to understand how we can work what we need spiritually. As long as the planet Earth is here we are supposed to plant seeds for what we want. Now what farmer do you know that plants a seed but does not make sure its fertile ground? Does not nurture the seed to make sure its growing? Does not EXPECT harvest? These are all spiritual concepts.

In Genesis 1:11 God said: “…and the fruit tree yielding fruit AFTER HIS KIND whose seed is in itself upon the earth and it was so.” So from here we learn that each seed can only produce what type of seed it is. Don’t plant apple seeds expecting oranges. Simple right? So why sow time expecting money? The same laws apply for spiritual concepts. If you sow money you shall reap money! If you sow kindness, you shall reap kindness! Also don’t miss that the seed is within itself. You would be HARD PRESSED to find me an example of God giving someone something or blessing them with something that He made on the spot. What I’m saying is what you need is already made!! It’s already waiting on you! People often think they are waiting on God but really He (and your blessing, provision, deliverance, etc) is waiting on you! Waiting on you to be obedient and line up with the word and will of God so that the atmosphere will change and it will be the proper time to sow. And after the sowing (seedtime) will be the harvest time.

How to apply: Truth be told a lot of times we hear, and learn stuff at and in church that we don’t really know how to use so I always try to pass on applicable knowledge of what I know. Your need will be apparent for you. If you find that you don’t have enough money for your expenses, you have a seed. If you have a lot of things you want to do but not enough time, you have a seed, etc. Whenever you don’t have enough, you have a seed! People often try to take their seed and use it as provision. Not so! The seed must be planted! Once you put the money to good kingdom use you will find that it will blossom. Pay your tithes, offer even more money to your church and money will come to you out of no where..I promise! Spend more time with God and you will find that other stuff you need to do wont take as long, or some stuff will get moved off your plate so that you have more time for the things you enjoy. In Matt 13:13 Jesus says: For whosoever hath, to him shall be given and he shall have more abundance but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Seedtime harvest time. Sowing your seed produces abundance, living off of it, is like eating it, it takes away that you already have. (Read the 13^th chapter up to this point make it more clear I’m already too long/past my time lol)

Short Version: You don’t have to earn a blessing…it’s not possible!! You just have to be obedient and sow! If you sow nothing, you will receive nothing. If you don’t sow wisely, you won’t receive anything. Last but not least Gal. 6:7: “Be not deceived, God is not mocked, whatsoever a man SOWETH THAT SHALL HE REAP!” This is often used as a bad scripture, but from a positive light, whatsoever you sow, you are going to reap. If you sow bountifully then you shall reap bountifully…cuz God says so!

Over and Out : )

Let’s Talk about Faith bbaabbbyyy (lol)

By: Fred Reid

The fact that I used a secular song to refer to a key spiritual quality is probably unacceptable…but anyways let’s get to it lol

FAITH. The important yet hard to describe attribute of Christianity. Today hopefully I will be able to explain some of the things that I have learned about faith that ya’ll may already know or may be down to learn. Famous scriptures about faith are “without faith it is impossible to please God”(Hebrews 11:6) and “now faith is the substance of things hoped for, evidence of things not seen (Hebrewss 11:1)” but today I’ma deal with 2 Corinthians 5:7 “for we walk by faith and not by sight” and Luke 22:32 “But I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not”. No background really needed so lets just get to it.

In 2 Corth. 5:7 we see that faith is compared to our natural sight. Thus we should think of ONE of the aspects of faith as our spiritual sight. The same way if your eyes are not working so well you will struggle to get around and recognize whats going on, if your faith is not working so well you will struggle to make progress and recognize what God is doing. In a dark room you lack sight and thus you can bump into things..be going the wrong way or just be scared to move. If your faith is low, then you will be bumping to the same sin that God has delivered you from, going back towards your old lifestyle cuz that’s all you know and “maybe this God stuff just aint for me” and maybe even scared to move because “what if God aint there?” or “what if God wont do what you expect Him to do?” Without your faith at its proper level you wont even recognize a move of God or the surroundings He has you in. Blurred Faith says: how could God let this happen to me? Has he forgotten about me? This is too much for me to handle. 20/20 Faith says: God thank you for this opportunity to cultivate something in me. Thank you for letting me go through something so that I have an opportunity to be used by you, but also to see who you are…in action. Blurred Faith will have you turn around because your life wasn’t this bad when you weren’t saved and “it don’t take all that” “I’m only human and everybody makes mistake” while 20/20 Faith will realize that its only a matter of time before the Father comes to see about His child and with EACH PASSING MOMENT you are getting closer to be heal, blessed or delivered. Thus is makes sense that Jesus prayed that your faith fail you not. If you are able to discern what God is doing at this season in your life you will be able to hold on to His promise instead of complaining or giving up. If your sight fails you, you become dependent on others sight; and basically immovable.

How do I clear up my sight/faith?

1.) Read the word: the bible says “faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God” whatever you are hearing will affect your faith. If you are hearing good preaching (more often than just Sunday) then you will cultivate faith in God’s love, power and promises. If you are hearing complaining, ratchetness or false doctrine you will have more fear than faith. The saying goes “fear is FAITH in what the devil is saying”. Fear is OPPOSITE of faith, fear CONTAMINATES faith. But if you hear the wrong stuff you will feed your fear instead of your faith.

2.) Move on what you believe!- faith without works is dead if you hear all the good word and God Himself tells you that you will be successful and you wake up late each morning, eat and watch tv all day you will never reach your point of manifestation. YOU have to put works to what you believe. Back to the sight analogy. Its simple. If we are walking together and I tell you some shade is coming up; would you stay where you are hoping that it will come to you? Will the fact that I am RIGHT about what I’m telling you give you shade at the moment? No you will have to try to SEE it for yourself, and then MOVE towards the shade in order to enjoy its benefits. Once you hear something from God you must begin to see it for yourself, and then take the necessary steps so that what you are believing can come to past.

By NO means is it on you to bless yourself. But you must walk by faith enough to be in the spot where God’s blessings reside. He will guide you. He will make ways of out no way, you just have to go the right way. Open up ya spiritual eyes folk..have faith!!

Over and Out J

“Ring Ring”…. A Call to Holy Living

By Monique Smith

1 Peter 1: 13-21 (Holman Version)

Therefore, get your minds ready for action, being self-disciplined, and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. ¹⁴ As obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance ¹⁵ but, as the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; ¹⁶ for it is written, Be holy, because I am holy. ¹⁷ And if you address as Father the One who judges impartially based on each one's work, you are to conduct yourselves in reverence during this time of temporary residence. ¹⁸ For you know that you were redeemed from your empty way of life inherited from the fathers, not with perishable things, like silver or gold, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. ²⁰ He was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the times for you ²¹ who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

As Children of God, we are called to live above the influences of the world. Of course this is hard. Even after you are positive that you have overcame a certain sin/lifestyle, you can be tempted by that same thing, out of no where! For example, tonight, I chaperoned at the high school homecoming party….and for a moment all the music made me want to go to a club and twerk some’n. And this was AFTER I had read the above scriptures this afternoon. SMH. Through the power of God, I overcame my addiction of clubbing and haven’t had the desire to club in like 2 years. But tonight, I was strongly tempted! Crazy right? Anyways, back to the text.

Firstly in vs. 14, we see that we are called children of God. It’s a privilege to be called a child of God because we were once enemies! (Romans 5:10). Secondly, being a child of God and obedience goes hand in hand. We can’t expect much success operating in disobedience to God.

The scripture then tells us to not be conformed to the desires of our former ignorance. Those desires are desires of the flesh and are ignorant to the spirit of God because they separate you from your proper relationship with the Father. “Former ignorance” means before you made a decision to get things right with God and stick with it. This can mean your mindset from last, last month, or even five minutes before you read this. Whatever the case, we are charged with living above the desires and to be holy. Not only are we to be holy in our speech, our thinking, or Sunday morning antics, but in ALL of our conduct. Yes that means our actions on Friday nights and even Tuesday mornings on the job or in class.

We have been called—chosen, to be adopted into the household of faith and we are to be holy because Jesus is holy. Not because Peter suggests it, its because Jesus is holy. Being a Christian means being Christ- Like, so living holy is a requirement. Vs. 17 tells us to conduct ourselves in fear while we are here on earth temporally. (That gets me really excited to read about this living situation only being temporal!) But as stated by Don. P earlier in the week, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. So in our quest to live holy, wisdom has to follow because that is what the Word says. Vs. 18 says that we have been redeemed from our EMPTY lifestyles. Meaning before when we dwelled in sin and indulged in ALL the desires of the flesh, it left us empty at the end of the day. But our merciful God, agreed to restore us and fill our emptiness with his awesome spirit! How great is that! J

So to sum up this devotional, we have to be self disciplined in order to restrain our flesh from all its desires. We can’t control the flesh simply by attending church or bible study or even reading the Word. We have to apply the Word that was read to our lives and continually pray to God for help in these areas. God has given us common sense and the opportunity to ask for wisdom, so we can know the difference between our fleshly desires and His will. J Twas all I have folks! Onward to Holy Living!

We are Called

By: Blair Wright

Romans 8:24-39

Key Verse: “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Verse 31)

So recently, my mother called me after my grandmother had gone to the hospital and told me that the doctor’s had taken her off all of her medicines and that she could go any minute. And it was an immediate loss of faith in what God can do. I was in pain and I just began to accept what the doctor’s were saying without first going to God because he holds all power in his hand so no matter what the doctor’s say God gets the final call. So that led me to these verses.

I. Walk In Faith

A lot of times the faith is lost when we don’t see a product in what we are hoping for. Verse 24 says “For what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope?” Sometimes the results won’t be given in the timeline that we want in order for it to become a testament of our faith. A lot of times it’s a test of our faith and we fail because our patience is thin. In Hebrews Chapter 6 we find that it is through faith and patience that we inherit the promises. So even when we feel like we are at our lowest seek God in prayer because the moments when we have can’t find the words to say the Spirit will intercede for us.

II. Walk With Purpose

For we know, that ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD TO THEM THAT LOVE GOD, TO THEM WHO ARE CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE. Our battles have already been won, the moment that Christ gave up his life for our sins. If we walk in faith and remember that ALL things, even the things we presume as setbacks and pain and hurt, work for our good we won’t waste our time living in misery because the joy of the Lord is our strength and NO ONE can take your joy away. We were predestined us to be THE CALLED … to what walk justly in the will of God. Our purpose was given before we were here.

III. Know Who Has Called You

Key Verse: If God be for you, who can be against you? NO really who? Nobody is bigger than God. It is an insult to him if you think otherwise. A lot of times people will use your past against you. The things you have done, your weaknesses, etc. They will continue to make you voice and lift up the things that you have confessed as your sins which takes away from the time you should be using to lift up the Word. Leave the past behind you (*Timon voice –LION KING). Reiterating disappointments and setbacks is a ploy to decrease hope. The enemy comes to kill steal and destroy and since we are saved by hope (verse 24) that is his way of taking us down. Use the Word to battle the jeers that you face by those who are questioning your calling. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died … Nobody else matters!!! So remember God has called you and it is your job not to defend yourself but defend the name of Christ.

IV. Nothing Can Separate You From the Love of Christ

We are more than conquerors. Verse 36 says “For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” But Christ said Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. I think heaven is a good enough reward for anything that we must endure in this world. Keep heaven in view because nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord

Prayer:

Dear Lord,

Thank you for the many blessings you have poured in the lives of every person reading this. Thank you for sending your Son that we may have life more abundantly. We ask that you be with us as we strive to walk in faith and remember that with you no one can be against us. We pray that our purpose of walking in your will is seen by all as your light shines through us. We pray that we are living testaments of how good you are and that through us sinners may run to you confessing that You are Christ and forgiveness for their sins, and that other Christians will want to better their walk with you. Keep us from hurt harm and danger and if there be any lack in our lives Lord I ask that you send increase.

This and all things we ask in your precious name Jesus,

AMEN

LOVE YOU GUYS

Welcome to Wisdom

By Donovan Parker

I've been working on developing my relationship with Christ, more specifically my prayer life. Prayer not only BUILDS your relationship with God, but it can be viewed as the avenue to access the power of God. So one thing that I have really been trying to commit my focus on is how to reverence God. I have this complex that makes me not even want to send text messages with (God, the Word, Christ) beginning with lower case letters. Sure this may be weird, but it is my goal to be this conscious of the honor that God's name deserves in my daily actions, thoughts, and words. "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer." - Psalms 19:14

I feel even more pressed to come correct to God in prayer; He provides us with the greatest privilege in that we can talk to Him whenever we like AND He hears us all. In Bible study, we talked about different elements of prayer and I found out some things that I was missing in my prayer life. Beforehand, I interpreted being able to come to God whenever I needed to mean - however I needed. There is nothing wrong with this because this is what God asks of us … “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14 BUT …

I challenge you to look at it in a different light. Let’s take the Lord’s Prayer and look at the opening lines. We should view Christ as our leading example. Matthew 6:9 says “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” (In this particular verse, Jesus is teaching the disciples how to pray.) How then would there be much difference in what He expects of us? The term “hallowed” as defined according to Merriam-Webster means Holy, Consecrated; Sacred, Revered.

Throughout the Bible, the idea of reverencing God can be similarly paralleled to “fearing God.”

Psalms 111:9-10

⁹He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name. ¹⁰The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.

Welcome to wisdom.

Finally, James 5:16 says ¹⁶Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

Effectual: producing or able to produce a desired effect (Importance: We NEED God to not only hear BUT ANSWER our prayers.)

Fervent: exhibiting or marked by great intensity of feeling : zealous (alludes to the POWER that is accessed through Prayer).

In short, take the time to honor and reverence God when you first begin to pray. It will build your relationship with Him, and give you access to the power that He wants to share with you.

BE YOU….BEaUtiful

By: Monique Smith

This message is more for the ladies, but you fellas can benefit from it as well. Text is coming from 1 Peter 3:1-4. Initially, I was going to skip the first few verses about husbands and wives, but since we all are in hopes of being married one day, why not include them.

In the same ways, wives, submit yourself to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the Christian message, they may be won over without a message by the way their wives live when they observe your pure, reverent lives. Your beauty should not consist of outward things like elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments or fine clothes. Instead, it should consist of what is inside the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very valuable in God’s eyes.

Briefly, from the first few messages, we learn that as women of God, our lives should be so pure, holy, and reverent to God, that men will be drawn closer to Christ because of our lifestyles. I know this is speaking more to the husband and wife situation, but I also feel that this is relevant in other relationships with boyfriend/girlfriends and even friends. NO I am not saying that these scriptures should be used as an “excuse” to date someone who is living completely out of the will of God, so please do not misunderstand me. I am simply saying that our lifestyles should exemplify Christ so much so, that we should not have to plead with others to stop evil activities, but they will be so convicted by our pure lifestyles, that they will change their own. This goes back to the previous devotional about holy living and the charge we, as a CHOSEN RACE (1 Peter 2:9) have on our lives.

Now to get to the topic of this devotional, verse 3 tells us that we should not have to do all this extra stuff to make ourselves beautiful. This is a HARD one to take in. Considering our societies standards on beauty, it is so easy to feel less pretty or even ugly in comparison with someone else. But, we have to remember, we are NOT of this world, and our standards should not be that of the worlds. God tells us that our beauty should come from the heart, which holds the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit (that is of course if we are fearing the Lord and fleeing from evil). I LOVE that the beauty of the heart is imperishable! Proverbs 31: 30 tells us that “…beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised.” We can waste all our time getting our hair done (or cut) or buying new clothes and shoes to impress a guy/girl, but NONE of that matters. Like it really does not matter. If your heart is trash, if you have no reverence for the Lord, all that excess stuff that you are using to get attention will amount to nothing. Being 100% honest, this is a message that is SO easy to ignore. It’s so abstract and contrary to my nature to not want to change my hair or wear nice things to get attention and be ‘liked’ by a guy. But as God keeps bringing this to my attention, I am more and more convicted by it. I pray that each of you, take the time to pray for us all concerning this.

Prayer: Lord, thank you SO much for your grace, love and mercy! Thank you for your faithfulness and your Word! Lord, I ask that you touch our hearts and allow us to see how beautiful we are in your sight, JUST by being obedient to your Word. Reassure us that we have all the qualities that our future mate desires and that we don’t need to change anything to seek their approval. Lord, allow our lifestyles to be a prime example of purity and reverence to your holy name and help us all in our quest after you! In Jesus name, Amen! :)

I encourage each of you to spend more time with God this week and every week following this. If you read your Bible only twice a week, I encourage you to read 3 times this week. The Key to defeating our FLESH is to dilute it with God’s Word. How can you expect to beat your struggle if you only see God’s Word once a week?! #real