For the Love of God!

It's true what Jesus said in Matthew 4:4, "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." If you truly want to live, if you truly want to feel ALIVE then you need the love of God. His word reveals what His TRUE LOVE for us looks like: "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends" John 15:13.  I had forgotten this as of late.  I've been running around like a chicken with my head chopped off worried about finances, work, finding a new place to live, ministry, what my next blog post should be, etc. and I've truly just been FULL of anxiety and fear.  Then I started talking to a sweet sister in Christ who always points me back to the Lord, and she reminded me that I needed to love and be loved. Seriously, I've never met this girl in my life and she lives hundreds or even thousands miles away in another state, but the God in her always shines through.  Thank God for her.  Through her I now have the Lord's peace and comfort upon me. I encourage you all as she encouraged me to stop and take time to love on the Lord and the people around you. 

If you're irritable, depressed, angry, moody, or feeling any other type of way then you need a REFILL on God's love.  God's love is what changes our hearts and our minds; it makes us no longer desire the sin that tries to ensnare us and helps us turn away without having the desire to look back; it heals those broken places in our hearts; it gives us wholeness, completeness, and safety. That is love. 1 John 4:18 says, "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."  God's love surpasses human knowledge. If your cup isn't full today then I encourage you to petition God to pour His love out on you. Tell Him you love Him and show your love for Him as well (by obeying His commands).  We can't earn His love, but if we do not spend time with Him then we cannot enter that place where we experience His love.  Below are some scriptures for you to meditate on that demonstrate God's love for us.  Let God's peace and comfort overtake you today and every other day!

John 3:16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 8:37-39 - No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ephesians 2:4-5 - But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved ...

Romans 5:8 - but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Zephaniah 3:17 - The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

1 Peter 5:6-7 - Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

Psalm 86:15 - But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness

True Love

There's No Such Thing as "Waiting on God"

You're not waiting on God. God requires us to be patient, but at no point does He make us "wait." Waiting is an idle activity.  When God has not yet given us something, He doesn't want us to just "wait."  God is simply using that time to PREPARE you.  So our wait time is not waiting at all--it's preparation.  If you find yourself waiting on God, then you're probably not doing what you need to be doing.

I find myself waiting often, and during those times I allow my mind to fill up with anxious thoughts, unbelief, and then I begin to lose hope. God doesn't want us to wait on Him; He wants us to prepare for whatever it is that He has planned next.  How do we prepare for the plans that God has for us?  It's quite simple actually--spend time with Him.  There will be so many fleshly and spiritual forces that will try to stop you from doing this one simple thing, but it's really the most important thing you can do for yourself. Get a journal, index cards, a pen, highlighter, worship music, and a Bible that you understand and dive in.  Some days you may just write to God like a pen pal.  Some days you will read the Word and He will give you deeper understanding. Some days you may dance for Him or fall on your face in worship.  Some days you may pray for others.  Some days you may do all of these things. Let Him lead you during that quality time that you spend with Him and listen for His voice.

The fact of the matter is though, if you actually spend your time preparing rather than waiting, you won't even think about that thing that you're waiting on--a marriage, a ministry, a new house, a new friendship, etc.  God wants us to focus on the now, on the current season.  I know how hard it is because I struggle with this every day. I struggle to do the simple things I should be doing every day even though I know they will draw me closer to the Lord. Often times I don't do it. And it costs me. It shows in the anxiety and fear that I still experience regularly rather than the peace and comfort that the Holy Spirit brings. The truth is, sometimes I just don't feel like doing what I need to do.  Most of the time that's the problem. Other times I 'm afraid.  Living for God carries weight and responsibility, and I'm not so sure I'm cut out for it.  But then again, I'm not.  Jesus has qualified me to do this thing, not me.

Keep your eyes on the Lord and let Him prepare you. Everything He calls you to do has a purpose, even if He simply tells you to rest. Walk out of the waiting room; no one is going to show up to call your name.  Step onto the obstacle course and let God prepare you for what is to come.

True Love

Only God Can Judge Me

Happy Snow Day fellow Hampton Roadians!  I'm currently enjoying my free day off by cleaning up the house, writing this blog post, and watching TV. This subject has been on my heart for quite some time, so I wanted to finally take the time to sit down and address it.

Oftentimes we will hear and see people say "Only God Can Judge Me"  in the forms of memes, tweets, Facebook statuses, and straight from the mouth! I've also seen many well known ministry leaders invalidate this statement and tell people that they're using it as an excuse to keep sinning. Today I want to look at this statement from a different point of view that I think will be helpful in understanding why this phrase is so popular.

First, I'd like to say that I agree with most ministry leaders who debunk the myth that ONLY God can judge people.  We as Christians actually ARE called to make judgments about people and really we have to make judgments about people all of the time.  For example, you're at a mutual friend's house when you meet someone that is interested in "hanging out" with you.  You exchange numbers with this person, but they never text you first, refuse to stay on the phone for more than a few minutes, and are yet to ask you on a date after a couple of months of talking.  However, this person will text you late a night and ask you to come over to their house.  What would you determine about this person's character from their actions?  I'll leave that to you to ponder, but I think you catch my drift.  Let's take it directly to our handbook (the Bible)  and see what God says about judgment in Matthew 7:4-5

"Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. "

From this scripture we learn that we are first to judge and reflect upon our own character, heart, and mind before we can approach someone else about theirs.  Even then, we must approach them as God leads us and in His love.  So WHY in the world is it that people get so offended when ministry leaders such as Heather Lindsey tell them that they shouldn't be having sex outside of marriage? Or that women should not be giving or accepting Valentine's day gifts from men who they're not married to (or at least seriously courting in my opinion)?  We know what Heather Lindsey herself has been through with men and we know that she doesn't sugarcoat the truth that God has called her to preach to women across the world, yet many women still get offended by her words ( she's just one example but this happens all of the time).  The simple answer is that many people who read her words are feeling condemned. They feel condemned because as the Holy Spirit tries to lead them to the truth, satan comes right behind Him and tries to drive a wedge  between them and that truth. And why wouldn't he? The Bible says that you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you FREE (John 8:32)!  Satan doesn't want you to be free from him!  It's extremely important to know that condemnation is not of God or from God as He has clearly stated in His word that "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1).  Those people who are believers are FREE from condemnation, but it doesn't mean that satan won't try to still attack them with it.  Condemnation is a tool often used be satan to separate you from the love of God and to keep you from repenting.  When you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior you have unlimited access to God's love, but satan does his best to keep you from knowing that.  Check out the definition of condemnation below:

satan is the one who gets into your mind and tells you to feel guilty, or tells you that you're going to hell for sleeping with your boyfriend last night, or that you're not good enough. God calls us by our names and He knows WHO we are and WHAT our purpose is. Do you really think He wants to use someone for His glory while simultaneously calling them a slut, murderer, a good for nothing, etc.? Absolutely not! Those are the lies of the enemy. When Christ died for our sins on the cross and we decided to accept Him as our Lord and Savior, our identity changed; it is now in Him and God loves us with the same love that He has for His Son.  The Holy Spirit comforts us and satan does his best to throw us into misery and confusion. Whenever you experience condemnation you must remember who you are: A child of God, made new in Christ, the righteousness of Christ, part of a Royal priesthood, etc.  Fight those attacks with scripture that tells you who you are in Christ.   So people who feel condemned often times become hostile because they feel attacked. The truth is, they are under attack but their adversary is not who they think it is.  A person who does not know God or maybe is in a season of distraction may not be aware or remember that it is satan who condemns and not God. So if Satan condemns then where is God in all of this? 

God uses the Holy Spirit to convict us.  Check out the definition of conviction below: 

When the Holy Spirit CONVICTS you, that means you have experienced a change of heart and mind. You recognize that the sin you're committing is truly not good for you and others that it may be affecting.  Conviction pushes you towards God, towards repentance, and AWAY from that particular sin.  I believe the conviction comes with a sense of peace and freedom rather than the guilt that condemnation brings.  Please keep in mind that if you have not accepted Christ as your Savior, then the Holy Spirit is not able to convict you of your sins.  Even if you do know God, satan will still try to overwhelm you with condemnation if you do not know who you are.  This is what a lot of people experience when God is trying to give them the TRUTH because satan does not want them to know the truth and truly change because of it.  

Have empathy with people who feel as though they're being judged and let your words be kind, gentle, and few.  Pray for them and cover them because they're under attack by the enemy.  God will lead you on how to help them, even if it's simply just keeping them in your prayers.  God is gentle, but He does not sugarcoat things.  These ministry leaders out here who are preaching the truth sometimes can come off as harsh, but they're human too and have our best interest in mind.  Keep them in your prayers as well!  I'm including a link about discerning condemnation from conviction that I hope will you going forward!

http://marriagemissions.com/discerning-the-difference-between-the-conviction-of-the-holy-spirit-and-condemnation-of-the-enemy/

True Love

Shame on Who?

It's on my heart today to share my struggle and journey as a person who is, according to the standards of the BMI chart, considered morbidly obese.  Yikes. It hurts to even write that.  But the fact of the matter is that my weight is not what has been hurting me my entire life--it's the way I've been treated because of it.  As crazy as this may sound, (or not) my weight has been my primary identity up until recently; it came before being black or being a woman in my own mind and others I guess because it was the most visible of my flaws.  I was always acutely aware of my weight and the grotesqueness of it due to the barrage of well meaning comments as well as snide remarks mainly coming from the mouths of my relatives.  Don't get me wrong--my family loves me, but they didn't want me to be fat.  They used a variety of methods to get me to lose weight from well-meaning encouragement that really just ended up being downright insulting ( "If you lost all of that weight, a lot of boys would like you!") to blatantly cruel words (like falling me a fata** out of anger). Calling me fat or fatty was always the first insult thrown when it came to disputes between me and family members that were my age.   It hurts to reflect on these things because my heart aches for the little girl that I used to be.  I grew up HATING myself because of my weight.  I never thought I could be considered pretty, I never thought that I would ever have a boyfriend, and I wouldn't even ALLOW myself to dress nice because I didn't think that I deserved it.  My mom would try to utilize shopping trips as an incentive to get me to lose weight but it never worked.  Beginning of the school year shopping trips ended with her angry and frustrated and me feeling awful about myself as this big, tall black girl that limited herself to t-shirts, jeans, and sweatshirts.

Although I was fat, I was actively involved in sports up until my sophomore year in high school.  I could run the mile (and  I even did it within the time limit to pass the school fitness test), play JV basketball, do suicides, and I even managed to do the flex arm hang for a couple of seconds.  I did all of these things at 239 lbs.  I had no major health issues or any minor health issues for that matter.  I was an active, healthy kid who loved vegetables, yogurt, and chicken as well as the normal junk food snacks such as chips, cookies and, candy.

I know that being overweight can lead to a higher risk of major health issues but shaming people, especially children, as a means of incentive or motivation to lose weight is demeaning and inappropriate. Luckily for me, I wasn't really made fun of for my weight by my peers. I was very easy to get along with and many people liked me as a person. But my family, who I love dearly, played the biggest role in how I felt about myself.  My self-esteem was very low for a long time and that issue propelled me into terrible relationships with males who did not care about me  and that just wanted to use me.  My clothing often showcased a little too much of my body (I'd wear low cut tops). But worst of all, every time I looked in the mirror I HATED who I was. However, everything I believed about myself was a LIE and I didn't realize that until I truly began to seek God.

You see, God knew me before I was created in my mother's womb (Jer 1:5) and He KNEW the physical, emotional, and mental struggles that I would face during my time on this Earth. But God sent His son Jesus Christ into this world to OVERCOME those struggles.  God gives me grace in every aspect of my life including any weight issues I have.  God still loves me and thinks I'm beautiful and even has a HUSBAND for me that will love me like Christ loves the church despite my weight.  God loves even the least of us, even when the world does not.  God set me free from those paper chains and my self esteem has greatly improved over the past few years. My value doesn't come from the inches around my waste.  Is it important to be healthy? Absolutely.  Do I need to eat healthier and be more active? Yes and probably moreso than the next person because of my weight and where it's centered on my body (my tummy).  But I am not less than because of my weight and I do not DESERVE less than for my weight. Christ died for big ole me too. And let's face it, EVERYONE needs to eat healthy and stay active; fat people do not need to be singled out as if they are the only ones who need to make healthy choices.  Sometimes I still struggle with my self esteem, and now that I'm  not so caught up on how I look weight wise anymore, new attacks try to spring up.  That's when I have to remember who I am...child of God, the righteousness of Christ, a part of a royal priesthood, and most importantly...LOVED.

With all of that being said, I commission all of you to love those people who you consider hard to love.  Many people consider fat people hard to love, but I press you to resist the temptation to shame them because of their bodies and instead seek God and figure out ways to love them. It will certainly be a challenge because many of us automatically think we must focus on a fat person's weight, but I urge you to focus on their heart instead.

True Love

The Freedom in Obedience

Freedom and obedience seem like oil and water to the naked eye, but if you dig deeper into your walk with the Lord then you begin to realize that their is real, everlasting freedom in being obedient to His word.  God wants the best for your life and my life, and He will give you the best life if you allow Him too  (Jer 29:11).  When I forgive others, when I apologize when I've done wrong, when I do the things that the Holy Spirit puts it on my heart to do, I feel peace.  That peace is a peace from God which surpasses all understanding (Phil 4:6).  Being obedient to God transfers your burdens in life off of your heart and onto God's.  We spend so much time worrying about things that we cannot change, yet we have know the very One who can. For example,  one thing that I continue to stress about regularly is my student loans.  I could buy a brand new 2015 Range Rover if my student loan debt was actually cash in my pocket. It's a ton of debt right? But I know that right now God has provided me with the job I have and the salary I have (I spent a year praying for this job and He finally gave me a VISION for it. I was unemployed for maybe three or four weeks before scoring the interview and I was hired at the end of it. Praise Him!) So if my current salary won't allow me to pay off my debt in full then God HAS to have another plan in place.  Why am I still worried again?  I do my part by paying my student loan payments on time every month.  The rest is up to God.

During times when I'm not being obedient to God, I know it is because I do not trust Him. Scripture tells us in John 14:23: 'Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him."'  God already loves us, but He is waiting on us to choose to love Him back so that He can come into our hearts and dwell there.  If we love someone, then we trust them.  If we trust them, then we obey them.  Trust is a part of loving someone, and when you do not trust someone, unfortunately, that is not love.  Obedience is definitely challenging especially when fear, doubt, worry, and similar feelings come into the picture.  I encourage you today to push through that and seek God out instead. If you struggle with obedience as I do, then I encourage you to try the following

• Spend time with God daily- set aside at least 30 minutes daily to listen to worship music, pray, and read the Word. Reading the Word especially and including God in that time (asking Him questions about the word and listening for His voice while you're reading) will leave you feeling peaceful and refreshed. 
• Ask God what is hindering your obedience- I oftentimes struggle with fear and anxiety that ends up overwhelming me and keeping me from stepping out and doing things that God has told me to do. I even end up doubting that I heard God's voice at all.  Find out what is hindering you and use the sword of scripture to fight back when it attacks (For example, when fear attacks me I use scripture to come against fear) 
• Stay connected-Being around like minded people who are pursuing Christ will help you stay motivated and accountable.  You are a part of the body of Christ and we need you to contribute what God has purposed you for. 

If you don't know the Lord yet and are ready to become a disciple of the Lord then pray this prayer:(which I borrowed from another website)

"Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen." 
See more at: http://www.allaboutgod.com/prayer-of-salvation.htm#sthash.5ilhCyAw.dpuf

If your heart is aligned with this prayer, then you have been saved!  Congratulations and prayerfully start searching for a church home! 


True Love