Be free

“For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Don’t judge me, but I love the movie Frozen! It is up there with some of the greatest animated films I’ve seen. It has so many great points and characters moments that are so profound. The one that I absolutely love is when Anna sacrificed herself for her sister Elsa even though the issue of being frozen was done by her sister Elsa. It was Elsa’s love for Anna that brought her back to life. All of this happened after Elsa was revealed to have those secret frozen powers.

HERE IT IS…

You can try and hide all you want to whether good or bad what’s in you will come out. I don’t want anyone to know I love God the way I do. I don’t want anyone to know I believe he is the one true living God. I don’t want people to know I pray all the time. You know what’s funny about that is those same people are probably doing the same thing. Let it be known that if it had not been for the Lord in your side you don’t know where you would be. It’s not for them it’s for Him.

Didn’t cha know

“Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭28‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Are you listening? Don’t you know anything? These are the questions that are being asked in this verse. Almost insulting to ask something like that to someone. It has always been said that there is no such thing as a dumb question. I agree because if you don’t know (even though you should) you don’t know. However, to me there are certain things I would like to question in its entirety. How can you ever say God doesn’t see or hear you? How can you let those things come out.

HERE IT IS…

Wait, Wait before you start talking about me to bad saying I don’t know what you have been through and how things happened. Let me remind you that;

“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.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭29‬-‭31‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Read it again!

If It Had Not Been

“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation,”
‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I have watched the movie Shrek Forever After and I love it as it incorporates a bunch of fairytales and fables. But something stood out to me in this movie where Shrek got so fed up with the way his life was going that he wished he was never born. He wanted to start fresh. He wanted a redo. He wanted to be who he thought he should be and not what he had become. He was a new husband and a new father and a community name. He was a protector and friend. He wore a lot of hats.

HERE IT IS…

What would life be like if Godfrey didn’t save you from that accident? What would life be like if he wouldn’t have healed your body? What would life be like if he would have let it happen? What would life be like if he DIDN’T let it happen? Thank God for Jesus that he died on Friday and got up early on Sunday morning. Surely he died. Surely he rose. If it had not been for that I don’t know and don’t care to know where I would be.

In the cloud

“But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.”
‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭26‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I was looking at some old pictures of friends from high school I have on social media and it started to bring back old memories. It was fun to reminisce about those things. But as I started to think about it I realized that those memories were triggered by the pictures that I saw. I didn’t just remember all of those memories and honestly I probably wouldn’t be able to do it without the pictures. It was the pictures that triggered those memories to come back to me.

HERE IT IS…

Truth is we have a lot going on in our life with work, kids, spouse, family, church, football season. Sometimes we will be in a space where God speaks and we don’t write it down or record it. The Bible tells us of Gods promises to us and records a lot of the things that happen. Even if I won’t be able to read it again. Even if I won’t be able to hear it again. God sends his spirit to remind us what he has said to us. We have the spirit to record and hold on to the things God has said about you. He will come and trigger those things at just the right time. It’s in the cloud.

Sound the alarm

“Sound the trumpet in Jerusalem! Raise the alarm on my holy mountain! Let everyone tremble in fear because the day of the Lord is upon us.”
‭‭Joel‬ ‭2‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It wasn’t to long ago that a video was being used and viewed millions of times of the HBCU Benedict College band playing a song. While the whole band was there and was holding their instruments. It was the horn section that received the accolades. The trombones were playing a song and the soloist William Bilial goes off. The sound of the trombone had people yelling with adoration. People pushing in encouragement. Swaying in appreciation. It was amazing to watch and to hear.

HERE IT IS…

What will be your reaction? What will be your emotion? What will be your countenance when you hear that sound. When the music direction of JC University stands up and prepares the horn section for there moment. The glorious moment of his return. Will you sway in anticipation? Will you rock to the boisterous sound? Will you jump on excitement? Or, will you scramble in fear? Will you freeze in disbelief? Will you stop tremble of the sound? Get ready, because the day is coming when the horn section will blow. What will be your response?

Coverage vs complaining

“Jesus traveled throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭4‬:‭23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

182 square miles. 640 acres. 470 square kilometers. That’s how far Jesus traveled through the region of Galilee. This is just the area of the region of Galilee. This is not the distance he walked. Just the area of the region he was walking and covered spreading the word of His father. That is a lot of ground to cover and also a lot of talking as well. He was teaching, healing every kind of disease and illness. He didn’t have a car or a horse drawn carriage. My Jesus walked everywhere.

HERE IT IS…

You ever look at the luxuries that you have compared to what people used to have and even to this day still don’t have, and wondered to yourself if you could make it? Some people find it hard to get up and go to church, or support someone, or go to the gym. But will pay someone else to deliver their food to them. If Jesus can walk a whole region we can at least show up and participate in the fellowship of church. You don’t have to walk, you can drive or Uber. The next time you get ready to complain about how rough it is. Think back to walking a whole region teaching, preaching, healing and delivering.

On Earth as in Heaven

“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭KJV‬‬

I used to be one of those people that would ask someone to do something and then explain to them how I would do it. If they didn’t do it that way I would just do it myself. Now!? I am content with asking someone to do something and letting them do it. As long as it gets done I am fine. Why? Because I may do it one way but they don’t think like me and the truth is that they may have a better way to do it better. There is now need or reason to over complicate things by trying to explain to them how I would do it unless they ask and or don’t know.

HERE IT IS…

Jesus was asked how they should pray and we land at the second line of his prayer. This allows us to see what should say. 1. Acknowledgment of who God is. It allows us to make Him the center of the prayer. 2. It shows us to ask that not only His will be done, but do His way. “Thy will be done on earth, as it is done in heaven.” I don’t want to try and tell you how to do it. I don’t want to give my advice. I don’t want you to consider me. Do it here, on earth, like you would do in heaven. Because whatever I do down here will fade away. What You do in heaven stands forever. So God do what You do up there, down here.

Keep on keeping on

““Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Persistence – firm or obstinate continuance in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.

What makes you keep going? What makes you continue to go after something that is seemingly difficult? To the point where people think you’re crazy. People think you have lost it. People keep trying to tell you and make you believe that whatever it is you’re trying to achieve or create is not worth it. Is it the feeling of accomplishment? Is it the feeling of failure? Is it thinking that this will help or change something in your and others lives? I would encourage you to keep going. I would encourage you to stay the course.

HERE IT IS…

Keep seeking. Keep asking. Keep knocking. It may be a 100 no’s but all it takes is one yes to make things happen. Keep asking God, and do the work. Keep seeking God, and do the work. Keep knocking on Gods door, and do the work. He still has the ability to make things move in your favor. He still can make what other people seem crazy make them feel like they were crazy for not believing. God will use you to bring others to Him because of what they think shouldn’t and couldn’t happen. Keep asking. Keep seeking. Keep knocking.

Signs

“For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken,” says the Lord, who has mercy on you.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭54‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Can I help us just for a moment? I know that you feel you are going through a tough and tumultuous time. I know it seems like everything you do is just not working. I know you feel like you don’t know what to do. Problem over here. Problem over there. When you feel like you want or need to know but it seems God is silent. He is not saying nothing. You ask him for a peek or a glimpse that it will get better, and nothing is said. You ask why. You ask what did I do. Can I just make through this please?

HERE IT IS…

What I like about this scripture is that God speaks to us in signs. Read it again because he speaks to us through Isaiah to tells us he won’t leave us. His love will be there. But God your silence can be hard to handle. I believe God tells us to look for the signs. “The mountains may move and the hills disappear.” He is telling us that even when we don’t see him or hear him, we can still see him and hear him. If the mountains move even a little it will be heard. If a hill disappears it will be noticed. So even the n these times where you don’t feel him just look for the signs. He hasn’t went anywhere he just needs you to see him in what he is doing.

Searching

“Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him.”
‭‭1 Chronicles‬ ‭16‬:‭11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I have spent precious time looking for something that I had lost. I’m talking about tearing rooms apart and lifting pillows and even moving furniture to find this thing I lost. I have even spent so much time looking for it and in the process finding other things that I had lost before and forgot what I was originally looking for. I have taken breaks from looking and started again. I have gotten to the point where I said to myself, “I haven’t had it this long I guess I don’t need it.”

HERE IT IS…

The funny thing about looking for something is that we end up finding it in a place that is obvious, a place we looked before and didn’t see it. Or, it wasn’t even lost at all we just didn’t remember where we put it. Search for God continually. Why? Because in searching for him he will put things in front of you that you thought was gone. He will show you things you never seen and having you moving things out your way that you thought you couldn’t. Search for him. Go find him, continually and he will show up.