Why are you serving God?

Such a good question to ponder. Is it so that He will give you gifts? Maybe so He will bless your situation? Hoping He will make life easier for you if you are serving His sheep? We can give away only what we’ve first received. The reason we can love and serve God is that He first loved us. The more we are aware of and experience God’s love in our own lives, the more likely we are to respond in love by serving Him. If you want to want to serve God, the key is to get to know Him!

What does it mean to serve God? God has entrusted you with talents not only for your pleasure but to advance His kingdom by using them to be His hands and feet. These gifts, abilities, and strengths that you are blessed with are from God. Recognizing God as the source, helps you to understand the responsibility to get out there and serve your family, your friends, your community and church with the sole purpose of glorifying God. We serve and glorify God by sacrificially serving others.

Why do people not serve the Lord with their given gifts? Crazy right? Someone has all these amazing talents and then chooses not to use them?? Maybe they just don’t know how to get started. Could be that they aren’t sure of what they want to do. Possibly, it relates to a fear of failure or commitment. Sadly, it may be due to selfishness and a lack of love for God and others. It comes down to this, it is a failure to recognize that your resources are a gift from God, entrusted to you, for His good pleasure as well as your own.

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As we move out of our comfort zones, God increases our faith by revealing new opportunities for growth, not only in ourselves, but also in His Church.  It is amazing to see what He can do when His power is at work within us. Then we begin looking for the doors He’s opening rather than shoving our way through the one’s He’s closed already. God does not want to work only in you. He wants to work through you. The Lord doesn’t call the equipped; He equips the called!! God used all sorts of people with similar doubts to change history. For example, Moses didn’t think he was a leader or speaker, but God enabled Moses to bring Israel out of Egyptian slavery. David was the youngest and most insignificant of all his brothers, but God worked through David to defeat a giant and made him a king! Paul murdered Christians before he met Jesus, yet God used him to become one of the most articulate and highly-regarded church planters in history!!

We serve Jesus, because He restored us to God by His perfect sacrifice. Our sacrificial service to God  is simply a legitimate response to all that He has done for us. We can love and serve God is purely because  He first loved and served us through Jesus Christ. The more aware we are of this and experience God’s love in our own lives, the more likely we are to respond in love by serving Him. If you want to want to serve God, get to know Him!

have faith in the darkness

How to remain faithful when God throws us into uncharted territory:

READ YOUR BIBLE;

It is the lamp for your feet. The guide on your path! The answers we are crying out for are stitched and bound together, waiting for us to open it!

PRAY:

Even Jesus prayed! He fell on His face in the garden and He called out to our Father ALL day and night upon the mountain! Don’t you think if our Lord and Savior needed to pray, we should too?

TRUST:

Do not forget His promises; cling to them. He will not forsake you.

BE STILL:

He’ll ask you off the boat, but He will not let you drown. There will always be waves. Jesus wants you to walk above it. He’ll reach out for you just like He reached for Peter.

He KNOWS;

The plans He has for you! He knew you and He CHOSE you. You are not a mistake. You are carefully, fearfully and wonderfully made. He knit you together with promise and intention, and stitched you together with hope and love. You’ve got this because HE’S GOT YOU. You can walk upon the waters. You can climb over the mountains. YOU are a mighty warrior.

daily devotion

Don’t loose heart no matter how hard your battle. God gets the glory when we fight the good fight and win!! Maybe we do not win the way we thought we would, but we win in the way our deliverer has designed for us!!

Have faith friend!! He can take down whatever falls in your path. It only fell there because He allowed it. He knew you would become even more amazing when you dealt with that boulder that just missed running you over. So get out there, change your perspective and do something for Jesus!!

You have a choice today. You can give up and give in OR you can look up at our galactic God in awe and worship Him. Tune your life in to the sounds of the Father!! Tune your life to the beautiful songs of worship!! Tune your life in to Jesus!!

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daily devotion

My faith is not based on sight. It is based on the knowledge that my God can do anything!! It is not a feel good faith like a warm blanket on a cold night. It is the knowledge that my God is supernatural! He does great and wonderful things. My faith is based on the truth that He has always loved me more than I could ever imagine. He came to take the punishment I deserve, so that we can spend eternity together. He wants to help me grow. He wants me to be more than I think that I can be. My Savior came and healed my broken heart, my anxious soul found peace in His love and my eyes touched to now see the world through His eyes. He is always there by my side. He always covers me with favor as if with a shield.

His command has changed me. He has given me courage when I only felt fear. He washed me clean when I knew how dirty my life had made my soul. He gave me strength when I felt I could no longer get up again. When I responded to His call, He restored my life and brought me into His loving embrace. These things I cannot see with my human eyes, but through my faith in Christ, my spiritual eyes have seen great and miraculous changes. This faith comes from the free gift of grace from Jesus Christ. He offers it to you. Accept His love!! Let Hi m be your live! Choose Jesus!!

Friendly Reminder

Do I even have what it takes to fulfill my calling? Why would anyone, especially Christ want my presence in this situation? I am not qualified to help anyone in any situation. I would probably defeat the purpose of this healing or this challenge of uplifting. Ugh!! I am to broken to help anyone. The Lord did not mean me when He asked for servants. How could He? He needs real strong Christians.

Friend, we have all had these defeating thoughts. Where you are may not be where you want to be. God is waiting to use you!! He can use you!! HE KNOWS exactly who you are and how your heart to follow Him can be a blessing to the Kingdom. He will use you if you let Him. Our God is incredible! Do not belittle His strength and abilities. He has used murderers, alcoholics, thieves, adulterous men and women…all to glorify Him. Nothing you have done is new to Him. Nothing you can think of yourself in a negative way can change how much He loves you and wants you to walk with Him daily.

I know you doubt. I know it is hard to be patient and see how He can use you. Don’t let your faith weaken while you wait. You will get there!! Remember where you WERE and how far you have come!! Look where you are headed!! Remind the devil, he cannot bring you down. Nope, you have already accomplished so much with God!! You have come such an incredible spiritual distance!! Rock the faith in what He has planned for you in your future!! Let’s Praise God!! Keep strong confidence in what The Creator has designed for us!!

Hebrews 13:6 “So we can confidently say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

Christian REJOICE!

REJOICE!! You are a child CHOSEN by God!! You know that thought makes you smile because it is 100% true!! He has chosen you for a special purpose, to bring forth fruit.

As I have been looking toward the new year in front of me, I want to give you the same challenge I have given myself. It has been in the form of a question. What am I going this year to further glorify my Savior and the Kingdom of God?

Jesus died for me. He died in such a violent and degrading way. It hurts when I think of all the pain He went through because He loves me that much. How could I not want to serve Him now? What can I do to minister to those that He puts in my path? I want to magnify our magnificent God!

So in this season of uncertainty, how can I make a difference for The Lord? I know I will continue to study His Word. I must open my heart to hear His direction and focus my eyes to areas where He may want me to work. I am His hands and feet. I am here to serve Him. I am going to have to look for new ways that are allowed in this season of social distancing. I must find ways to share His love through the confines of a mask and limited contact. I know it is possible…

Jesus taught love where He was most hated. He brought healing where there looked to be no hope. He breathed life into the unliving. There is nothing Jesus cannot do, even during a pandemic. With God I have faith this can be a year of revival! May we all find small ways to encourage others to grow closer to our Living God.

My prayer today

“Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” Philippians 3:13

Dear Lord, I come to You in Your powerful name, the name of Jesus, lifting these beautiful friends up to You. May You Lord consume them with Your mighty strength and love. May their minds be completely focused on You and the work You have assigned them. As the new year approaches help them to see the path You have set out for them. May they forget the things that are not of You and focus their thoughts on You. We love You Lord. We thank You for today. Please keep our hearts and service devoted to You this coming 2021 year, All Praise and Glory to You, our Holy King. In your precious name I pray, amen.

alone

Elijah was alone in the desert. All by himself, in the desert, alone. I am talking no nothing around, no market, no coffee shops, no falafel trucks, no park to watch kiddos play. He was in a place so removed from society that for him to eat birds had to bring him food! I have lived in that spot. I do not mean literally in the desert being catered to by ravens. I mean hurting in such a deep way that kept me so far emotionally from the world around me. It is a dark, desolate, empty and deserted place where you feel so insanely alone. Sadly, I know that at Christmas time more people seem to find that secluded spot. With this China Virus keeping so many in quarantine for weeks on end added to the Christmas funk and an infinite number of other factors that can find you in that pit of despair. Death of a loved one, loss of a friendship, a move, reduction of workforce, sickness, a breakup, overload of bills, watching someone you care deeply about going through something painful…so many paths that all lead you to the same place of isolation and withdrawl.

Friend, do not allow this new normal to rob you of your intimacy with God and what He could show you in the days to come. Whisper the truth to yourself in these difficult times to remember that ultimately, this season, though now different, still brings with it ETERNAL HOPE in the person of Jesus Christ. Sometimes God brings you to this place, so you will remember He is there for you. He is greater than any hurt you can imagine. I am NOT discounting any of your pain. It is 100% real and it hurts like heck!! You may even feel you are truly drowning and no one can save you. Let me tell you, HE CAN.

Lift your hands. Reach up to Him. Share your tears and sadness. He can take it. The holiday may not look exactly as you might want it to, but please don’t allow grief or bitterness to steal joy from you. YOU ARE LOVED AND WANTED. Your REAL Christmas gift was born in a humble stable to homeless parents. He was honestly hated by many, felt alone in a crowd, knew betrayal and loss. He CHOSE to die for YOU, so you could live with Him FOREVER!! If this is you please reach out. If this is someone you know, please hold them tight. Share Jesus with them and bring them light into their darkness.

You are not alone.

Take my hand.

I am reaching out.

Let me pray for you.

I am here for you.

Jesus wants you to know how much He loves you.

Don’t stay in the darkness, suffocating…

Please…you matter.

I love babies. I REALLY love babies. I am so in awe of how God puts these little people together so perfectly and each one is incredibly unique. Babies have been born since Adam and Eve were created and not one little child has ever been from a mold. They are all original, priceless and beautiful little bundles of life.

As special as all babies are, one baby will always stand above them all. One so perfect, so precious, so pure, born to ordinary parents who were without a home at the time. This bab was wanted and feered by thoses who had heard of this prophesied babe. The heavens rejoiced when His firlst breaha was taken! The angels sang as they could now look upon the serene face of this Prince of Peace.

Luke 2:20 “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.” Can you imagine the emotions these lowly shepherds must have been filled with ? To have been some of the very first to SEE the King of Kings and Lord of Lords after His humble birth. An unassuming stable housing the most important baby ever born. All glory and honor and praise lifted high for this little bundle of cuteness that would bring salvation to the world through His glorious grace and blood. What an honor to have been bestowed upon them. They must have been overwhelmed!! I imagine their hearts must have been overflowing with divine delight!! I am sure they could not keep it quietly inside themselves. They had to share the good news to the world!! JOY TO THE WOLD!! THE LORD HAS COME!!

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Coffee thoughts

Why do people think that when you become a Christian, your battles are somehow softer? True, we do have mightily fortified armor as we trudge through the gruesome struggles before us. That is a bonus…A REALLY GREAT BONUS, but when you choose Jesus and you put your trust in Him, you are gong to still feel every single emotion involved in your situation. The difference is when you have your confidence securely in who He is…the enemy’s plan won’t overtake you. Worry is fear, and fear is NOT from The Lord!! It is the enemy’s way to uncover a treacherous path releasing a curse of terror, anxiety and anger in your life. It brings you to loneliness, grief and isolation. If instead you trust in The Lord, give your pain and hurt to Him, He will open the way for HIs promises to come to pass in your life. Trusting God is NOT A FEELING BUT A CHOICE!! That choice will determine the outcome of your life.