What Do You See?

Vision is the ability to see beyond what your physical eyes allow. The impact of vision upon our lives is much more important than sight. Sight is the ability to see with your eyes but vision is the ability to see with your heart. The talented musician Stevie Wonder amazes me with his music even without sight, he could still see through his heart God’s plan for his life.

It would be quite a poor life if the only way we could see is through our physical eyes. Majority of the inventions that now provide life’s comfort will never have been created. Every inventor must first see his invention through his heart before we see it physically when it is completed. God gave vision to everyone – it is the greatest gift that God gave to man.

My question for you today is what do you see? Do you see farther than your eyes can capture? Or are you one of those that lack the heart to believe until you can physically see. The very core of the Christianity is faith - the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things un-seen. It is only by seeing through your heart what is not yet physically manifested that we can be creative and make our ideas a reality.

Vision is very important and an integral part of our destiny. There must be a vision for every company, church or household. In every entity, there must be at least someone who can see with their heart and who can hear from God. Without vision, there is no pre-determination of what the purpose or goal is. And if you don’t know where you are going in life, all roads will lead you there!

The ability to have a vision for our lives and our existence produces diligence, persistence and focus. Once we can see with our hearts where we want to go all we really need is a plan to get there. Circumstances may come that try to get us off course but we know what we have seen with our hearts so getting back on track is easier to do.

What do you see? What is God showing you concerning your life and your family?

Old and New; Law and Grace

I strongly believe that you cannot be under the law and under grace at the same time. I know some people believe they can merge the two but honestly trying to do that will be like talking out of both sides of your mouth. How can we be under the law and accept God’s loving grace at the same time? If we are under the law, why are we not sacrificing bulls and goats on our front lawn?

The Old Testament is a pre-cursor to the New. Even a pagan that is familiar with the English language understands that New replaces Old. The Old tells us how we arrived at the New. The New Covenant came into effect when Jesus Christ died just like your will cannot go into effect until you pass away. Trying to live under the law is a futile effort – you will fail. The effort will wear you out! Sinning is something that we can never – in our own flesh – get rid of. The only way that we can be saved from the Law of Sin and Death is through the death of Jesus Christ who knew no sin.

As born-again believers, our emphasis should be not what we are doing but what Christ did on the Cross for us. We cannot earn our salvation – it is a gift from God so no-one can boast. You are not saved because you know God – God does not need to take your class! You are saved because He knows you. All the “works” we are doing here on earth that we think will earn us mileage to get into Heaven is a waste of time – the passage into Heaven cannot be earned. Without faith, pleasing God is impossible. You must believe God is who He says that He is and He will do what He says He’ll do. God wants a personal relationship with each and every one of us – a relationship that will change and transform our lives. God will always reward those who diligently seek Him.

What we are doing makes no difference and has no bearing. The reason a lot of people try to hold on to the doctrines of the Old Testament is that the New is based entirely on Love, Faith and Hope – believing in what you cannot see physically. We can follow the Old Testament word for word but if we have no faith, we can't please God.

Once we are saved and out hearts are renewed, action and behavior change is a by-product of that. We don’t have to force ourselves to change – what we believe changes us. Trying to live according to the law will leave us defeated and exhausted.

Jeremiah 29: 11-14

“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. 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 seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you” declares the LORD, “and I will bring you back – to the place from which I carried you into exile”.


God knows the end from the beginning. He knows your future and my future. He is always with us and He will see us through regardless of any obstacles we may encounter in this life’s journey. He has wonderful plans for you and for me; we simply need to give our lives over to Him and trust Him completely. He is our eternal Hope and Comfort and He is always there to answer when we call. We may not get the response that we’d like – but He answers all calls in His time.

Even when we stumble and when we fall, He restores us anew and gives us a brand new beginning. The gift of God which is Salvation is ours to keep forever. I don’t know about you but that makes me feel kind of special. It makes me think I can do anything and be anything I want to be. The word impossible is no longer in my dictionary. All things are possible for those in Christ Jesus. People will marvel and ask how you do it. Others will swear that you had Energizer Batteries in your system. But God makes the impossible possible.

God has great plans for us. It time to start on the right journey and stop wasting time circling around a mountain we were not meant to be around.

Acceptance

One of the major reasons why there is conflict in the world today is simply lack of acceptance. We refuse to accept others as they are and we are anxious to tell them how they need to change to be just like us. If Jesus Christ can accept us and die on the cross for our sins, what is accepting one another compared to that?

In order to win people over to Christ, we need to walk alongside with them. We cannot lead people if we cannot empathize with whatever state or circumstance they are in. In order for people to believe in the message that we share, the message must be evident in our lives. We must get to a point with others where there is trust. Consequently, in order for me to trust you, you must accept me – just the way that I am. Don’t try to change me and don’t try to tell me who I ought to be. What I would be and who I am has already been predetermined by God.

We are called to accept one another just as Christ accepts us (Romans 15:7). When we do that, God is glorified. Even amongst us Christians, there is a great amount of disunity. We refuse to show a loving attitude towards one another because of man-made rules that have set us apart. Truth be told, our lack of acceptance has a lot to do with our level of faith. It should be that the more we grow in faith and come to know Jesus, the more accepting we would be of others. As Christians, we must strive to be united in spirit and in purpose.

Acceptance requires love for one another. Loving others requires the Holy Spirit – we can't do it in isolation. When we genuinely accept others, we are able to care for them and display the character of Jesus. When people see that we care, our message is evident in our actions not merely in our words. We need to continuously watch ourselves and guard against prejudice towards others. We must learn to accept others as Jesus Christ accepts us. Remember He said “ Come as you are”. God first loved and accepted us just the way that we are.

Lift Up Your Eyes To The Hills

Where do you look to in times of problems? What are you saying to yourself when life gets tough? The truth is when trouble arises we would be looking to someone and saying something. We would either be looking at others around us to come to our assistance or saying negative things to ourselves about the issues we face.

It is true that we are all God's hands and feet and getting help from our friends and family is a good thing but the first place we should turn to in times of need is to God. This is necessary to ensure that the right connections come our way. Not every help we are offered is the right help. When we find ourselves in tight places, we need to rest in the comfort that God is in control of the situation and we will get through it.

I have often said negative to myself in the past when bad things happen. I put myself down and believe I don't deserve any better. But as I studied the word of God, I realised that God wants the best for me. He cares about me and will always be there for me. The fact that I go through hard times does not make me a bad person - it just makes me real. The bad times are meant to develop my spirit and make me stronger.

It is important that we look to the right place and speak the right words when things are not going well. This allows God to move on our behalf - supernaturally. As David said in Psalms 121, we need to lift our eyes to the hills because that's where our help comes from. It comes from the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let our foot slip and He will never slumber as He watches over us. He watches over us and He is our shade at our right hand. The sun will never harm us by day nor the moon by night. He will keep us from harm and watch over our lives. He will watch our coming and going for now and evermore - Amen.

Unity Does Not Need Uniformity

I remember hearing once from a man who was on the verge of separating from his wife. His defense - they had nothing in common. They were from two completely different backgrounds – she was from a broken home and he from a somewhat intact family. I could recall thinking to myself at the time that there may be some validity to his thinking.

Many traditions demand that backgrounds be thoroughly investigated before man and woman are united in marriage. In fact in some cases, certain ethnic groups cannot be united. If you ask why, no-one has an intelligent response, it just has always been that way and we cannot change it. We can’t do anything different – we must keep doing it the way it has always been done. And if we choose to do it differently, it’s bound to fail because we ventured outside the pattern.

Now I know better. I now fully understand that for people to get along means that they have a common goal but not necessarily a common methodology or background. For people to agree and succeed, Christ must be in the centre of it all. Even if we are from the same clan or enclave, if Jesus is not in the midst of it all, we are doomed to fail. I have learnt that we can be united even when we are nothing alike. It’s our differences that make us unique and make us valuable.

I may be from India and you from Kenya – it does not really matter. It’s our love for all that’s of God and the common goal to glorify his name in all that we do that makes a difference. It’s God that determines the kind of unity that we will have regardless of how uniform or un-uniform we are. For there to be real unity, the purpose and goal must be the same. We don’t have to come from similar family backgrounds, like the same foods or come from the same village. Our parents do not need to belong to the same clubs or need to have attended the same ivy league school. We simply need a common goal.

So you best believe I called my friend and told him what I’ve learnt. Told him the truth he needed to hear because at the very least, I knew we had God in common and in reality that’s all we really need.

Rest in God's Peace

Sometimes we worry over things that we can do nothing about. 80% of the time we could have spent simply resting in the comfort that God is in control of our lives, we spend worrying about the cares of life – money, friends and careers.

We need to get to a point where we can give total control of our lives to God - a time where we fully understand that certain things are completely out of our control and worrying or pondering upon them does no good and do not change a thing.

By God’s grace, I have finally reached the realization that worrying simply wears me out. If I lose my job today, I’ll get another one. If you don’t love me, somebody else will. If I lose this house or home, God will provide another. I have learnt to stop worrying and discovered that entering into God’s peace is the solution to any problem that I might face in this realm.

The word of God in my heart chases away all my fears. It eradicates all worry and feelings of inadequacies. It makes me whole. I pray today that you will discover the power in the word of God. It will transform your entire life if you will only believe.

Learning The Most Valuable Lessons In The Toughest of Times

Life lessons can be difficult to bear sometimes. Some potholes that we hit during life's journey can thow us for a loop. We suffer various setbacks like a divorce or the death of someone who you thought will always be around. The place you've worked for years turns on you unexpectedly and you are laid off. You lose your home, your car and your livelihood. All the creditors come calling and you are suddenly facing bankrupcy.

I've had some real potholes in my life but through it all I held on to the knowledge that "All things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose". The sorrow that I suffered helped strengthen my inner man. Things that used to bother me before and ruffle my feathers do not bother me anymore. I learnt to be content whatever state or circumstance I find myself in. I have discovered that God is able to make the bad turn out good.

I suffered great pain from my experiences but at the same time discovered how not to be bitter at anyone or at life. Instead the desire to use my adversity to help and encourage others has become stronger than ever. To use my life as a lesson to help bring people from darkness into light. So when I tell people never to give up - I promptly let them know that my life has not always been peaceful. It is possible to find peace after you have been hurt and are grossly disappointed with life.

The value of hardship and correction cannot be over-emphasized. It definitely brought me into the light of a new life and if I could do it all over again - I will go through the pain that I went through just to learn the invaluable lessons I have now learnt. When you are down in the valley and have no one to turn to and no where to go, you have no choice but to look beyond humanity and turn to God. I found that at that time and ever since that time, God is simply enough. In reality, you learn more from mourning than from rejoicing. You find great wisdom in the bad times than in the good times.

God will often allow stuff to happen to us so that he can get our attention. If you take the time to look at any great man or woman, you will find their lives have all been shaped by pain. We really are of no use to God until we have been hit by pain. Pain intended to remove from us all those parts of us that cannot be used. Pain to separate the wheat from the chaff so that when all is said and done we can come forth as pure gold.

See It; Be It

We all have dreams and dreams can come true. If God showed you something in your spirit, it does not matter what you circumstances are right now or how many things or people may come against you, whatever God showed you will surely come to pass. God word never fails and it refuses to fail in your life – Amen.

However, it’s impossible to achieve something you can’t conceive. You must first see it to be it. Sometimes what we see can be so big and scary that we think it can never happen and that our minds are simply playing the games with us. But we should never be scared by our dreams. These dreams are placed into our hearts by God and he has given us everything that we need to fulfill them. If there are resources that we need, God will make the divine connections possible.

Divine connections will allow people that will get us closer to our dreams come our way. We will meet people who compliment our strengths. As we develop a “can do” spirit, we move closer to our vision for our lives. As we understand and appreciate the impact God has on our lives and his hold and control of everything we aspire to be, we can tap into his strength and his glory. In turn, we excel in life and the glory and magnificence of God shows in our lives.

Pass Through Your Troubles

Life can be rough on us. We all go through situations we wish would not happen. People we care about pass away, relationships are broken and we fall prey to ill-health and disease in our bodies. Tough times seem like they’ll never end especially when you are right in the middle of your circumstances.

One thing is certain – bad things can happen to anyone. So if you are going through a difficult time right now, don’t blame yourself. Even though your action or lack of action may have landed you where you are right now, understand that what is happening to your life could happen to anyone else. No-one has the art of living perfectly crafted out. We all make mistakes and unfortunately the consequences are ours to bear. But we can refuse to bear the effects of our mistakes alone. Walking with God will ease all the pressure and the pain.

For those who are fortunate to have a trouble free life, be a shoulder to cry on. Don’t stand in judgment of others – telling them what they should have done or where they should have gone. Just be there – sometimes quietly – saying nothing.

The Bible tells us in Isaiah 61:7 that even if we have a great deal of trouble and contempt in our lives, with God our inheritance will be doubled and our joy will go on forever. I’ve made mistakes, lived through mistakes and still dealing with the aftermaths of some of my mistakes today but God helps me pass through it. I can choose to build a mansion around the errors that I’ve made or I can pass through it, continuing with the Lord and trusting Him with all my heart. Knowing that He will never leave me or forsake me even when I am lost.

Pass through whatever you are dealing with. Don’t let it drown you or overtake you. The Lord is your strength as you persevere and hold on.

The Storm is Over Now

I remember the story in the Bible of when Jesus was asleep on the small fishing boat and a storm began to brew. The disciples that were in the same boat as him were afraid. The passengers following on the other boat must have been simply out of their minds. I mean if people right next to Jesus were afraid, I wonder how they must have been feeling! They woke Jesus up frantically, wondering how in the world our Lord could be sleeping at a time like this. Jesus simply got up and demanded that the waves be still. He created all nature and He controls all things.

That is how we sometimes feel when the storms in our lives are raging. We start to panic and sometimes turn away from the only one that can calm the storms. We lose all perspective on how the God we serve is much bigger than any problems that we might face.

The same way Jesus commanded nature to be still, I pray tonight that He will supernaturally calm all the storms in your life. Whatever trials and tribulations that you are up against are not match for the power of God. I pray for you tonight that the peace of God will flood your heart and soul and trouble will cease and be no more. I pray that any strongholds such as addiction, habits and issues that plague your life will all become a thing of the past from this point on. I pray in the mighty name of my Almighty God that no weapon that comes against you shall prosper and that every tongue that rises against you shall be condemned.

From this day on, your life shall be one of victory and that you will come to know real joy and peace as God intended for you. All the great plans that He has for you and you alone shall be yours. Any power of the enemy on your life or anything that belongs to you has been broken today. I pray that evil will venture far from you and goodness and mercies shall follow you the rest of your life.

When Will You Believe?

If you are one of those people that have to see in the physical before you believe, you will have a hard time accepting Jesus Christ. Even some of the disciples who saw him in the physical and walked with him for three and a half years had some doubt how much more we that have never caught a glimpse of him. But I have learnt that the power you cannot see is often much stronger than what you can see.

Faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things unseen – the whole Christian faith is based on things we cannot see yet believe whole heartedly. Personally even though I have never seen God neither do I have a picture in my mind of what He looks like, I have witnessed His magnificent power in my life and in the life of others over and over again. God is continually at work and even when I cannot see Him – I feel His powerful presence.

The presence of the Holy Spirit is similar to the actions of wind, air or electricity. The wind blows the trees and we see the leaves move but we do not actually see the wind itself. We breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide but we cannot see the air. We see the effects of electricity when we flick a light switch but do not actually see the electricity. It’s impossible for the world, humans, plants and animals to simply be here by chance, the beauty and complexity of the earth and the brain is enough to convince anyone that a supernatural power is at work.

To hear from God, we need to have our spirits tuned to hear from him. Some have claimed to hear God speak to them like you and I would have a conversation but I haven’t had that privilege. I talk to God through prayer and I listen to him through my spirit.

If you are yearning to hear from God so that you can believe, you have it wrong. I know Paul had a supernatural meeting with God and anything is possible but if you would like to feel God's presence, you need to first believe.

Repent and Move On

You may be going around with your head hung low – feeling like you’ve made so many mistakes and that your life is not worth much. I have good news for you. That may be what you think but I can assure you God thinks about you very differently. Even with all the mistakes you have made, God encourages you to come to Him so that you may receive your healing.

It’s God’s wish that none of us should perish. All of us are called to do one thing or another to his glory. Should your life amount to nothing? Should all the wonderful gifts, talents and treasures laid inside of you go to the cemetery when you die? It’s important that we understand that life in Jesus Christ is one of continuous repentance. We cannot afford to build castles around our mistakes. We need to repent of them and move on.

If you need extra convincing, read the stories of Saul and his successor David in the Bible. Morally David was much more questionable that Saul. Saul never had the moral issues that David had. But David had one thing going for him – he continually repented and moved on. While we humans focus on outward appearances, God looks at the heart. Even though Saul did not have the problems that David had, he had a filthy heart.

Give your heart to God – make yourself accountable to Him. What is in your heart is more important to God than the way things may appear. Don’t let people tell you that the regrets you have should somehow signify the end of your life. We’ve all made errors in our life however the degree of the consequences we suffer may be different. Either way, when there is still breathe, there is room to repent and move on with life. Count your experiences as lessons of life well learned and move on.

No One is Perfect - Not One

We all have flaws – none of us is perfect. People are always quick to point out what’s wrong with you, ignoring all the things that are wrong with them. We have to be careful not to allow anyone kill our self-esteem. Some love to criticize others in order to make themselves feel better. Others are just mean- spirited and never see anything good in anyone but themselves.

Sometimes it feels as if they are just waiting to see you make a mistake – so they can say “See I said it; I told you he has problems”. But God knows how we are because He made us that is why He made Salvation a gift so that no-one can boast. You can’t earn it so thinking you may be the best thing since sliced bread does not help. You can’t buy it so those that think that their material wealth is an evidence of their faith lose out. It’s a gift for those that are humble enough to:

A) Accept it.
B) Know that they are flawed and need God’s grace every day.
C) Those that know the only way to Salvation is simply believing and receiving Jesus Christ and also committing to follow Him as Lord and Savior.

We are all a work in progress – no one is there yet. We are all running a race and each race is unique. God is not finished with anyone of us. God accepts you flaws and all. Don’t worry if people fail to accept you because they think that you are not up to par. It’s never about what others think – It’s about what God thinks. His approval is all that you need. If you have bad habits you want to break, ask God to help you with them and He will. With God by your side and His love in your heart, you are on the right track no matter what anyone might say.

Find Your Mission For Life

More than ever now, I am searching desperately for that special thing that God has created me to do. I am anxious to finally move into my purpose after walking circles for so many years. I believe in my heart that God made me for something great and unique such that no-one can do what I was made to do the way that I’ll do it. No one can give to the world what I have. There’s only one problem – discovering that one thing amongst many.

God made me incredible even though I may be flawed in some ways; He made me perfect. He put incredible gifts and talents inside of me to share with the world. Whether I will eventually share those things or take them to the grave is now up to me.

The same applies to you. God hid special gifts in a place you could never miss it – inside you. He wants you to spend time in His Presence to get directions so that you do not waste any more time wandering around a mountain you have no business being around. He needs you to grow and develop your faith such that you can begin to see yourself exactly like He sees you and created you to be.

It’s time – the time has come to take a step of faith. Let’s start doing what we were created to do and start being who we were created to be. We will never find real and true joy until we feel like God is using us for His purposes.

The Gains Far Far Outway The Cost

In life we all face persecution – more so when we are believers. Our faith is kind of like a persecution magnet. You face non-stop criticism because there are certain things you won’t do and certain places you won’t go. You are labeled anti-social. People start to read meanings into every good thing you do. If you are too cheerful, they wonder why you are not as depressed as every one else is and why you refuse to retaliate when you are disrespected. They wonder why you won’t gossip at work and engage in un-necessary small talk – the list is endless.

While being a Christian should never be looked at as a means to financial gain, I have found that those who believe in Jesus Christ, the totality of His work at the Cross and who diligently apply themselves are whole. They may not be living in the lap of luxury – they may even appear as poor from a financial perspective but their lives are blessed. When I refer to Christians, I am not necessarily referring to those that think wretchedness is a part of the Gospel or those that are so stuck in tradition that they do not understand that even when the purpose is the same, the methodology will continue to evolve.

One thing is certain, even with all the people who can be against us as believers, there is a lot to be thankful for. We have certain privileges that only our faith allows. We have unlimited access into the presence of God and someone who is always there to share our highs and lows. Personally, I look at life differently now. I have joy – I work hard; my life is tough but I have the peace of God in my heart. There is nothing quite like it. For once in my life, I am indeed whole. I never cease to thank God for his love for me.

Suffering - A Common Language

Regardless of your ethnic origin, the color of your skin or the language you speak, we all have one thing in common – we all go through pain. We’ve all been through pain and anguish, disease and death, trials and tribulations. Each and every one of us knows what it feels like to hurt; when life does not seem worth living.

During some tough times in my life, I longed for someone to stand by me. I wished that someone would simply hold my hand and never say a word but communicating the only thing that mattered – “You are not alone – I am here with you”. But simple yet powerful help can be impossible to find amongst friends and family. The truth is most times, the only help that matters must come from above.

I believe there is purpose to suffering. Through suffering we grow and we learn. We learn the voice of God and we know for sure what is not of God. We gain a deeper perspective about life and why we are here. When we are hurt, we sometimes run from God instead of running to God. In my tough times I cannot imagine living without the love of Christ. Quite frankly, I now understand it’s the only thing that kept me alive.

With God’s love it is possible to find peace in suffering. We can have joy even in hard times. We can gather the strength to go on. Whatever you may be going through right now understand that it's part of your story and your journey. God will definitely see you through it.

Quitters Never Win

Let’s face it – life is tough. Nobody hands out anything to us for free and the road to success is definitely not a gravy train. Things get difficult and the temptation to give up is forever lurking. At the first sign of trouble we are tempted to give something great to someone lesser because we believe we cannot hold on and weather the storm.

We’ve all been there – we’ve all had episodes of the “I’ve Had It!” syndrome. Nothing seems to be working out and we are at our wits end. We look for help and all we find are people telling us that if things don’t work out, just quit. We become quitters and we start to raise a generation who will also be good at quitting. We quit because we ignorantly believe that newness sill be better. We look at our situation and are desperate for a fresh start – something else.

The truth of the matter is we get better through the errors that we learn. When we quit prematurely, we learn nothing to take us to the next class and end making the same errors all over again. There are some lessons that are important to learn because when things get rough and we hit potholes in our lives, God is trying to get our attention and equip us for the destiny he has for us.

The people marched around the walls of Jericho murmuring and complaining. The Israelites were in the wilderness for a very long time also grumbling and complaining in conjunction with criticizing the leadership. In each case, God was busy working on the hearts of men. Sometimes our attitudes are not quite ready for the things that God has for us or maybe we start to believe our own press and fail to understand that all we are is due to the presence of God in our lives. Either way a lesson must be learned and unfortunately it is one that can only be learned through hard times.

A great man of the Bible once said – “It is good that I was afflicted”. Imagine if the people had quit walking around the walls of Jericho on the sixth day – they would have missed their miracle which was right round the corner.

No matter what you are going through in your present situation – do two things:

1. Give thanks to God in spite of it all.
2. Never give up – keep going on as positively as you can possibly do under your circumstance until you draw your last breath.

See Yourself As God Sees You

We need to begin to see ourselves as God sees us. Sometimes we are our own greatest critic and we continually put ourselves down. If we cannot see anything good about ourselves, what do we expect others to see? It’s time to put away our broken self-image and start viewing ourselves the way God does.

God has good things in store for us but we must be able to conceive these things first by faith before we can receive them. We have to be in a state of expectancy from God – understanding that even though we cannot see anything in the physical, God is always at work in our lives. It’s impossible to become something that we never believed. Start believing in your God today – your issues may be big but you serve an even bigger God.

God is always ready to do a new thing in our lives – gives us a brighter tomorrow but we have to take the limitations off of Him. We should start putting a very important word after our negating sentences such as “My father is not saved – Yet”. Give room for God to work. We are made in the image of the Almighty – how awesome is that? We are children of a King and it’s time we start acting like it. We should imagine how prince and princesses behave and be a prince or princess.

Substituting Relationship For Religion; A Growing Tragedy

We often get preoccupied with our religious activities – bible study today and prayer meeting tomorrow. We belong to all the committees and are active members of the board. We believe we must baptize a child when it’s born and we partner with various religious broadcast ministries thinking that all this actions can substitute the relationship we need to have with Jesus Christ.

Religious activities are all man-made. All Jesus wants from us is an intimate relationship with him. He never called for a Mo in the middle. He wants to be in continuous relationship with us. He created us and loves us as we are. All the religiosity we focus on will not earn us a place in Heaven. The only thing that guarantees us a place in His Holy presence is the acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior and understanding that He died to take away the sins of the entire world.

Focus on the religious efforts rather than God puts non-believers off from coming to Christ. We complain about what people wear and what kind of music they like. We forget that it’s not the music but the lyrics that make the difference. We say women cannot wear pants and cannot cut their hair short as if God cares about the way we style our hair. The list of Do’s and Don’ts are endless!

It’s time to move into a relationship with God that is not based on Do’s and Don’ts. It’s time to stop focusing on rudimentary issues and move forward as a body of Christ. Forget all the denominational man-made religious pandemonium that has become a big part of being a Christian. I would be one of the surprised ones if we are segregated up in Heaven based on our denomination.

Religion does not improve one’s level of spirituality; I believe it actually hinders it as we exhaust ourselves by focusing on our sins and not the victories God has brought us through. If we are genuinely filled with the Holy Spirit, we become so engrossed with the things that God has lain on our hearts that we suddenly realize that we do not even have time to be doing the things we are not supposed to be doing.

Exercise Your Faith

I went back to the gym last week and have been going one day on and one day off. The muscle aches I got after the first day were astronomical. If not for my gift for persistence, I would have quit straight away. My legs and arms ached and my abdominal muscles felt like someone had driven a bobcat over it. I had done some weight training in the past but I had not lifted anything over 36 pounds in over 18 months. My muscles had simply atrophied because I had not been using them.

Our faith works exactly the same way. If we fail to listen to the word of God consistently, read our Bibles and pray, our faith atrophies. We lose the fire we once had in our bellies for God’s presence. We stop going to church and let our guards down. Eventually we become mince meat for the enemy of our souls – we become easy targets for the devil prowling around looking for whom to devour.

We need to continue exercising our faith so that we can be spiritually strong – just like we exercise our muscles so we can be physically strong. I love the Lord and I want to do great things for Him, but I also human and need to pray everyday and listen to the word of God preached everyday.

If you have allowed your faith to stop growing due to lack of exercise, pick up your Bible, slot in a CD and start exercising your faith again. Just like working out your muscles – once you start exercising your spirit, you should never stop.

Yesterday is Gone, Your Future Starts Today

We all have things we have done or said that we regret. People that we knew in a past life that are still our friends today but they no longer fit where we are headed. They are our friends because we share a past we respect but have no place in the future goals we intend to pursue. They hold us to a past we no longer are interested in or possibly ashamed of nevertheless we hold on to them. Maybe they give some kind of comfort as a backup plan because our future seems too scary to face. Our goals are so different from where we have come from so we hold on to them as a security blanket.

Others will always define us by what we were or where we are today but thankfully God sees us as what he ordained us to be and what we will become because He is the kind of God that sees the end from the beginning and He knows we will get there before we actually do. Relationships that fail to share common goals can be dead weight. Sharing past history can diminish the ability to proceed into greater dimensions. The best relationships to nurture are with people who know where you've been and share your excitement for where you are going.

Yesterday is gone and the past is over with. We cannot rewind life but we can surely re-plan it. We can move ahead with new dreams and new goals appreciating the past, learning from it but at the same time burying it for good.

Good luck to you as you move on to the bigger and better things that God has planned for you.

Guard Your Thoughts

There's a famous saying that goes like this - "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he". We are our thoughts. We ultimately become what we think. We are a sum total of all our thoughts. We cannot think apples and manifest oranges. Life just does not work that way. Our thoughts are like hidden seeds that manifest into plants that represent the seeds - the sad thing is that the plants are our lives, out there for all to see.

Our thought life can be likened to a garden which if not properly cultivated will result in a garden full of weeds. Good thoughts will result in good results and bad thoughts will ultimately result in bad results. We mus continually review our thoughts and get rid of all the useless thoughts that will get us nowhere.

I've heard people say that the reason they are the way that they are is because of the circumstances they have had to live through. But circumstances do not make us, they show us who we really are. We can change our circumstances by changing the way that we think. Our thoughts will eventually define our character because in truth our thought and character are one and the same.

We must all learn to be masters over our thoughts by deciding what thoughts we would entertain in our minds and thoughts that will not be welcome. We can change defects in our character by taking note of what we allow ourselves to think.

Faith

The Bible explains faith to be the substance of things hoped for - the evidence of things not seen. Faith is misinterpreted today. Some believe that if you have more material stuff, it must mean that you have faith others think faith is speaking in tongues and being slaughtered in the spirit. In reality, real and sincere faith has nothing to do with what you have or the spiritual gifts that you display.

Faith is simply believing that God is alive and that he rewards all those who diligently seek him. Faith is believing totally in God and being completely dependent on him. It means doing the will of God and making sure the things He has asked us to do becomes our priority. What does He want us to do? God's requirement of us is simple - to have faith. The Bible clearly states that without faith, it is impossible to please God. We were never asked to seek outward indications of faith - a new car or a new house. We are asked to seek God first and all other things will be added unto us.

Every day we need to ask God what He would like us to do and where He would like us to reach. Real faith is not static - it lives, grows and is displayed through love. Faith is not something that you need to convince yourself that you have; it’s something that you develop through hearing the Word of God and living through experiences in daily life. Faith grows when you go through situations and you know for certain that if not for the love of God, death should have claimed you. You know for sure that only a loving and faithful God has seen you through.

While We Are Here.......

I don't know about you but lately I have been plagued by thoughts on how to make my presence on earth count for something. I guess they are thoughts that come with age. As I get older, I have suddenly begun to think beyond myself. I constantly think of the things that I do or say and how they can affect the people around me. What could I be saying that can leave an impact for generations to come? What could I be doing that can make a difference in the lives of my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren?

That is where a legacy comes in. I want to be more than just a paycheck. I want my children to do better than I did - to make more of their lives and leave an even bigger legacy to their children. I was talking to my 10 year old this morning about my dreams to start a business and she agreed with me saying when I grow old and pass away, there is something for her and her sister to carry on.

I constantly pray for God's direction. I need to hear from him what path I need to take so I can be in his perfect will. While we are here on earth, we need to make the best use of the time. It's not how long you live for is what you do while you are alive.

I pray today that all our lives will count for something - not just anything but a live that glorifies the Almighty God. So people can see us and want what we have. So our lives can be a testimony to the power of God. So His kingdom can come down into this piece of earth that is our bodies.

God Answers All Prayers

I always wondered why tragedies happen - why some people pray for a family member to get healed and they get their healing and another family with faith also pray and their loved one dies. I wondered why a small baby would pass away and why a drunk driver would hit another driver who was sober and simply going about their business and the drunk driver walks away without a scratch whilst the sober driver is paralyzed for life. The list goes on and on.

The truth is I don't have an answer but I know that God answers all prayers with 3 answers - Yes, No and Wait. Sometimes we get the answer we want with a Yes and we are thrilled but when God says No and Wait we get agitated. We simply have to trust and accept that when He says No - He knows what's best for us and He can see things in the future that we do not have the power to see in the now. When He tells us to wait, it's because He knows that having our prayers answered immediately will be detrimental to our well-being. That if He answered right away, we would not be ready to handle the answer.

We need to trust God even when our prayers are not answered from our perspective. We must understand that not getting what we prayed for is in our best interest. Our lives are in the hands of a loving and just God and all we need to do is pray and let him do the rest. Let's hand over the reign of our lives to Him and let Him take control.

As soon as we can get to a point where all we simply do is present our wishes to Him (He sees our heart anyway and knows what we need even before we ask!) and wait for him to do his will - we live in peace and we can have joy no matter what. Even when tragedies happen and we are grossly disappointed and we are hurt and confused, we still know that God is in control and with Him on our boat, it can never sink.

Lord, Help Us With The Enemy Within Us

It’s very possible for us to be our own worst enemy. Looking back I am amazed at how far I’ve come. I never forget to thank God everyday for my life and for literally saving it. We often are our won greatest critic and sometimes we really need to give ourselves a break.

Most of the things that affect us adversely are not things others have done to us but what we have done to ourselves. In life, people will always do us wrong and treat us inappropriately but it’s our reaction when things don’t go well that makes a wealth of difference. I was listening to a famous preacher who likened our spirit to a well and how people are continued trying to fling stones into it by what they say or what they do. People he identified as “slingers” - those who try to clog up our wells.

It’s important that we deal with issue regarding others appropriately. We should never be our own worst enemy due to stuff that’s happened to us in the past. We can’t treat ourselves badly because of something someone said to us when we were 7 years old. We need to be our greatest supporter and hero. We need to see ourselves not as others view us but as God sees us. We need to release the past to God and give him all the ashes from the past so we can receive the beauty of the future.

We can’t stop people from being mean and hateful but we can control our reactions to them. We should never take a negative comment to heart. We should never let it take root such that we begin to question our own self-worth, lose confidence and start on a downward spiral into despair.

If we look around and all we see is negativity, we need to plant seeds of hope, and encouragement in our own hearts using the Word of God. We need to use the Words of our Father for inspiration. Relying on others for a pat on the back or acknowledgement can leave us very disappointed.

The Seed Principle I

There is a fundamental basic principle to every thing that has life – it’s the Seed Principle. Before you see a great big oak tree, there must have been an acorn seed. Whatever goes in to a human being must come out. All the functionality that is required to create an oak tree is placed inside of an acorn. But not all acorns get to be an oak tree. Some die to environmental conditions and others may germinate and start strong but lose strength somehow along the way.

It is impossible to plant corn and expect to reap oranges – it does not matter how much to wish it and pray for the oranges, it just won’t happen. So also are the thoughts that we allow come into our minds. Out thoughts are kind of like seeds and because we are human we can have good thoughts and bad thoughts. If we allow the good thoughts to thrive and we nourish them, it would manifest in goodness on the outside for all to see. If on the other hand, we invest in bad and ungodly thoughts, we will reap the rewards of that also.

Our thoughts are more important than anything else because they are essentially where the chain reaction of a good life and bad life can begin. No-one can see my thoughts until I speak or write them down. My words are powerful but my thoughts are definitely crucial. How I think will determine what I say and consequently what I do.

Seeing the importance of our thoughts, we need to make everything that we think come under the obedience of Jesus Christ. If a thought is not in line with the Word of God, don’t give it the time of day. Destructive thoughts will always enter our minds but we need to be spiritually in-tune with the Word of God and recognize them for what they are. That still small voice will alert us when we attempt to give any credit to thoughts that will yield no positive results.

Take control of your thoughts today – they are the seeds to your life. Good thoughts bring forth good things; bad thoughts will always return disaster.

The Fear of Failure Has Lost It's Scare

Often out of ignorance, we find ourselves drowning in situations we ought to be walking on. We fuss and fight over the simplest things and we fret over issues that we should never have given a second thought to begin with. I personally have experienced that most of the issues I inflate and blow out of proportion are all due to fear. We all have a comfort zone and anything or anyone that attempts to move us out of our comfortable area comes across as a threat and we simply do what comes naturally - we fight back.

Living in fear can make us emotional baskets. Fear sets in when we lose faith and we do not trust. The kind of fear that stays in the back of our minds all time questioning and second guessing everything we do and say. It's time to stop giving into fear and start trusting and believing in God. He tells us never to fear because He is always with us and He will never leave us or forsake us. He will be with us until the very end. When we choose to live in fear, it means our faith has taken a back seat and fear is at the wheel of our lives. It becomes impossible to be who God created us to be and we cannot make the most of all He has given to us or has planned for our lives.

I am learning day by day to trust God because He has promised to go before me and prepare a way for me. Knowing this allows me to face my fears head on instead of looking for places to hide. Through God's word, my inner spirit is constantly being strengthened and I can stand tall and strong. It's not that I do not feel the sense of fear and doubt sometimes - far from it! It's just that I fully understand that through it all, I am never alone.

There will always be trouble and strife. Trials will come and they will go. Life will throw some things at us that will seem too much to bear. The enormity of some of the issues that we deal and have to live with should never be minimized but we can rest in the asurance that God will never give us more than we can bear. I have had some real potholes in my life. My life has not been an easy ride - external and internal. There were times that I almost lost my mind. Some days, getting out of bed was virtually impossible and on others - I simply wished I could end it all.

God may not always delivers us from all our troubles when we want Him to but He walks alongside us through every single one of them. I don't know about you, but that consoles me a great deal. He took fear and doubt out of my life the day His Son died on the Cross for my sins.

You Can Win With What You Have

If you don’t find out who you are, people will be quick to tell you who and what they think you ought to be. For those of us that are fortunate to have children, it’s important to tell them repeatedly who they are and the image in which they were created. The importance of self image cannot be over-emphasized. We will continually face criticism from others and if our foundation of who are is not firm, being criticized and picked on can have lasting and damaging effects.

We place way too much importance on how others see us and what they have to say about us. It causes us to paint a picture of ourselves that is not accurate. Our opinion of who we are must line up with the way God sees us or we are bound to have serious self-esteem issues. We must believe that we are valuable and that we have something important to contribute to this world that no-one else can give quite the way that we can.

God never lost sight of any of us – he died for the sins of the whole world not just the “called” ones. We may refuse him and reject him but he never loses sight of any of his children. He sees us as winners and believes in us more than we often believe in ourselves. We can win with what we’ve got. Everything that we need to succeed has been placed in the one place that we could never lose it or miss it – inside of us. So I challenge you today to reach deep down inside and grab the tools that you have to work with and start working out the dreams inside of you. If people have sown negative seeds into your life and emphasized on all the wrongs and none of the rights - it's time to let those things go and focus on how God sees you. You are precious in his sight regardless of what others may be saying. It does not matter where you've been - all that counts is where you are going.

Press on and focus on the prize. You’ll surely win if you don’t quit!

The True Meaning of Success

I used to believe success was having it all – the houses, the cars and all the comfort that money can buy. I have been thoroughly educated and am happy to see that I find true comfort in what describes a person as successful. My definition of success seemed to me far-fetched and unattainable. Let’s face it – I am not about to become a millionaire anytime soon and the true meaning of my faith is not a means to financial gain. My chance of having all that money can buy has certainly gone out the window.

The things that mean the most to me – money cannot buy. Important to me are my health, the joy and peace that come with knowing and having a relationship with God, my family and the handful of people I have come to know as my friends. Real success is found when we overcome all the circumstances that life throws at us. When we refuse to lie down and die in silence despite the twists and the turns that life can take. Some of the greatest men and women the world has ever known had a lot to overcome. Abraham Lincoln was raised poor, Booker T Washington was a black man borne into a world filled with racism, Bill Gates - the owner of Microsoft was a college drop-out and Michael Jordan was thrown off the high school basketball team and was told by the coach he didn't have what it took to play the game. Real success, I have found, is not having it all. It’s simply understanding the purpose the Creator has for your life and doing it to the best of your ability and with all your heart and soul.

Everyone can attain success but a certain amount of narrow-mindedness is required. Knowing what you believe and believing what you know is paramount. Knowing that your being successful does not mean that you have more money than every one else or you have reached a goal that no-one else has. You are successful when you have done the best that you can do – not comparing or measuring your achievements against what others have done.

You become successful when you find out what you were created to do; learn everything you can about what you were made to do; roll up your sleeves and concentrate on what you were created to do and do the best you can at what you were created to do.