I was awakened this morning, and when I looked at the clock it was 3:12am. I keep sermons on my computer of Bishop Dale Bronner, listening to them nightly that helps me go to sleep. This particular message was entitled Navigating the Challenges of Life and at and I was awake enough to hear the following:

• “Don’t make your age a problem.” Artist Grandma Moses (who did not sell her first painting until she was 90), Benjamin Franklin was 78 when he invented bifocals, Winston Churchill was 78 when he wrote his first book that won the Nobel Peace Prize in literature, Nelson Mandela was 75 years old when he was inaugurated president of South Africa after being incarcerated for 27 years. Michelangelo did not start his work on the Basilica until he was 72 years old. At age 95 Nola Oaks graduated from college with a degree in history. “Don’t limit God by your age…your best days are ahead!”
• “Quiet your ego, soften your heart, and open your mind.” Change your trajectory by following the guide of the Holy Ghost (God Positioning System), who will guide you unto all truth.
• Examples of events are losing a job or experiencing  the death of a loved one. Transition is the processing of the event, and involves the emotional, psychological, intellectual, relational and financial processing of change. Oftentimes it is not the event so much as it is the transition of the event, which fosters change.
• Why would God confine you to one little corner? He has so much more, which includes   potential, possibilities and opportunities.
  • What is potential?  It is the ability to do something.  Can you imagine yourself doing something you thought was impossible? The more you see yourself doing that, and the more frequent you envision it, the more clearer it becomes……It very well may be that imagination (root word is image) is more important than knowledge, for knowledge is limited to all we know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world in all there ever will be or understand (Einstein). Dream in vivid color as much as you can!
  • Opportunity it is all around us. It means simply the chance to do something.  Why do many not take advantage of opportunities? Be prepared to seize the portal of opportunity!
  • Possibilities…Inventions have one thing in common: they all started with an idea, and their inventors saw the idea as a possibility. Impossible is I’m possible. Be a possibility thinker, as Robert Schuler used to say.

In the next few hours I will be walking down the aisle of Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church to receive my Masters degree in Theological Studies from Palmer Theological Seminary. A journey I thought was impossible is becoming possible today. To my Professor I say thanks for your teaching. To my classmates I say thank you for your friendship and comradery. To God I say thanks for honoring your Word that with you all things are possible.

What an amazing day this is for me.

“…he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other.”  Mark 3:5

I am such a fan of the elevationchurch.org website, to the point I arrange my Saturday schedule to make sure I am home to view the worship service live at 5pm. Love to listen to Pastor Steve Furtick. His latest series is on functional faith, and  yesterday was the first installment. What stuck to me the most like words leaping off a page (in this context off the tv screen) was this (paraphrasing here):

What is the opposite of faith?  I heard fear, doubt…but the opposite of faith is certainty.

Faith has to take a stand…your faith will work when it’s stretched out.

I thought about exercising (what he used in his message), and how that enables one to function better, including those muscles in your body that aren’t functioning well until they are exercised. Spiritually speaking, what are parts of your life that aren’t functioning well, like the man’s withered hand? Are you willing by faith to stretch that out to God, expose it, show it to him in faith believing?

Here’s another stunner: do you have faith that is based or dependent on the outcome of a situation? If you do, then faith will be lost. Faith should instead be an outlook:

I don’t know how this will turn out, but I will praise you anyhow.

When this happens, faith is building and is shifted to a different focus: not the outcome, not the problem, but honoring God throughout the process, and trusting him as you stretch out into the unknown. That is functional faith.

I started thinking about myself. Many ideas I have, and I think about them a lot. At times that can be a good thing, but when you continue to think, and not implement, something’s wrong, or better yet, something is not functioning, but is withered, as it is not happening. It’s as if (to use Pastor Steve’s illustration) the idea becomes like fine china that is seldom used, but kept on a shelf, only coming out on special occasions. Implementation of the idea (in my context of writing is just putting ink to paper, translating the idea from mental abstraction to concrete reality) is challenging for me, to the point of thinking perhaps the idea is not a good one.

But I have stretched out, not only thinking of starting a blog but actually doing it. One blog turned into two: lucidity2015.wordpress.com was the first one. And it all started one Saturday morning, I stretched out. There was no certainty of whether or not it would be a success.  But I can tell you with certainty that when I look at a blank screen and make the attempt to create, it formulates into concreteness. I begin to come alive with watching words form on a screen, and what amazes me is I can do it at a fast pace.

All because faith was allowed to be stretched:

Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things[we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith    perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].  Hebrews 11:1 (Amplified Version)

God is waiting for us to move toward him, in faith believing the “it” can happen. Faith involves not knowing the outcome, but trusting God for it, praising him regardless of what the outcome turns out to be. That is faith in its functional form. Honoring God in this manner is everyday worship, as your faith takes a stand through stretching.

Be strengthenized in God…

 

 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Philippians 1:6

  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20

For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.  If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.          Romans 7: 15-17

I say to myself I must lose weight. I tell myself I need to exercise more. I say to myself eating healthy is the way to go.

Good news: lost a few pounds and started to exercise. Not so good news: healthy eating is not in full gear, and I need to exercise everyday.

I need to stop.

The need to stop is evident in all of us if we admit it. The will, the desire to do better is there, the difficult challenge is to not only think about implementing it, but have the stick-to-it element that will enable us to achieve it, reach the goal. Why is it we want it but can’t fully obtain it? Paul had a similar thought.

In the 7th chapter of Romans, Paul spoke of what should be done isn’t, and what should not be done is. He goes on to surmise that because of the sin nature we all have, we can’t do what we know is the right thing to do. We need help that will aid us to stop doing the wrong thing.

Further Paul presents another thought: Once Christ is received, the right can happen, as it is no longer him but the Christ that lives in him that enables him to do. Perhaps that is the true issue. Why is it that those who profess to be Christians have a daily struggle with stopping the wrong actions? You missed it. I just gave you the answer.

We struggle because we live life in our own strength, living life devoid of the ample assistance that is at our disposal if we only ask for it. If we stop stepping in, trying to resolve the problem with our limited reasoning and allow instead the Help to come, then the newness of life in Christ can begin.

There are songs being sung lately that speak of a profound thing. The power that raised Christ from the grave is the same power that lives in us, in those who profess and possess Christ.  It is in Him that we live and move and have our being, which includes the ability to stop. It is also where the start can begin.

  For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Philippians 1:21

Dying is not an easy thing to do, especially when you’re still alive! Paul was in prison, but yet he allowed himself to stop, allowing Christ to have center stage in all that he did, whether it was writing letters of encouragement, preaching, or being bound in prison, he stopped so Christ could begin, which allowed Paul to start anew. Dying to self to become alive. What a lovely concept! Challenging, but lovely nevertheless.

And so whatever your struggle is, allow yourself to admit that you may not have all the solutions, and that you may not be as powerful as you think. But also acknowledge there is Someone who can not only jumpstart you down the lane of complete wholeness, but is also completing the work he has already started in you…if you just stop.

Tomorrow I will exercise, purchase the healthy stuff, and eat right for four days, stopping in the process while allowing the Help, the Power, to start.

Be strengthenized…

The past week, including this weekend I have not gotten much sleep. I toss and turn, and on a good night I may get four hours straight hours of sleep before awakening and praying I can get back to sleep. Nevertheless, when morning came I was determined to get to the Sunday morning service in hopes of getting a word of encouragement. As always, the praise and worship music was great, and I believe the liveliness of it is what kept me awake. But when the sermon began, the quietness of the atmosphere lulled me to find the sleep I could not find the night before, only awakening and being frustrated in the process. As I prepared to leave that service to go to another I noticed the friend I was sitting next to (as prayer was going on) was crying. As what usually  happens when I notice this, I put my encouragement cloak on, so to speak, put my arm around her and attempted to speak words God was giving me. They were words of casting our care upon the Lord for he cares for you, what appears to be impossible is possible with God, ask God to help with our unbelief in faith areas where faith does not exist, having strength, and on and on it went, kind of  surprising myself of what I was saying,  but knowing it was God’s words speaking to her and not mine. We hugged each other and I left, looking forward to going to my favorite pizza shop for a lovely slice of hot sausage pizza with melting cheese, that would act as a sleeping pill so I could catch a couple of cat naps before going to the next service; it worked.

While at this church I sang songs with the choir. Here are some of the lyrics to three songs:

Victory Is Mine, Victory is Mine Victory today is Mine,  I told Satan to get thee behind,                Victory today is Mine!

                                                              Be and be not afraid, to reach for heaven

              He taught me how to watch, fight and pray,  and live rejoicing everyday…everyday!

Sunday night before turning out the lights I prayed for a full night of sleep and rest, that whatever was causing this restlessness would stop, if just for one night. I must say, the evening started off good, and then midnight came…

I must have been really getting into the sleep I needed because when the phone rang, I didn’t react quickly. By the time I got to the phone it stopped, but I noticed it was my son’s number. I thought he just wanted to say hi, as his shift at the hospital where he works as a registered nurse was during the night. What struck me though was the time: it was about midnight, and I thought something was amiss, particularly since I know he is aware of my sleep issues. I called him back but he did not answer. What seemed to be an hour of waiting for the return call (of course I was wide awake by then) was really only five minutes when he called me again.

While racing his motorcycle (which he did not have to do as he had a great day of racing) he decided to go one last time: it was one time too many, as he crashed, injuring ligaments in his shoulder and breaking his left leg in two places. Being in the emergency room for a few hours, the medical staff getting the swelling down which lessened the amount of pain he was experiencing, the doctors told him he would need surgery the next morning. The call ended with me asking he keep me informed as to what was going on, which he agreed he would do.

Please God, get me back to sleep…

Can’t tell you when, but I did eventually sleep; actually I overslept, which had me getting out of bed, stumbling to the bathroom and beginning the process of quickly getting ready. Ready to leave, I got on the highway, feeling the evidence of lack of sound sleep, thinking to myself to make sure I had my phone, and realizing I did not have it. This prompted me to get off the highway, go back home to get the phone, and start the travel again, this time the traffic, once on the highway, had tripled in size due to an accident farther down the road. While behind the wheel I asked God for help, but in the asking my head was overrun with thoughts of how to get to my son, being concerned if he was alright, needing to talk to my supervisor, wondering if my scheduled appointment would happen, etc., but then the prayer shifted to just saying to God who he was, what he has done, and trusting him with all this, and this is what happened:

• the rain stopped
• the  skies opened, just long enough for
• the sun to shine on me, and
• I remembered what I told my friend with
• the music and the lyrics of the songs listed above were loud in my head

and then I knew I’d be alright, and so would my son.

Now my ‘what about this and that’ no longer caused inner turmoil.  Peace entered in.

Was I still tired? Yes.  Was there still work to be done at the office? Definitely. But through it all, there was peace.

• My son texted me about the surgery; it was supposed to happen in the morning, but was pushed back to the afternoon. As of this writing, I am still waiting on an update.
• I discovered God has surrounded him with a great network of friends who came to his aid, while others offered prayers and words of encouragement via Facebook.
• yet others were changing their schedules to be with him at the hospital.

God is good, and I’m so grateful, which keeps my mind stayed on him, like the lyrics of Tye Tribett’s song Stayed on You suggests:

Ok, when troubl’ it comes my way, I’m not gonna fret, ’cause I know night becomes day. All things work together for the good, so I will trust and obey. ’cause even still, life could be worse, You’ve been so good, I give you all my worship, the storms of life will always go, But you give me perfect peace!                               I GOT MY MIND STAYED ON YOU!

And that is what the Stayed Mind concept is all about…stay strengthenized.

 

Today is Good Friday.

Usually this is a day of reflection of what Jesus did on our behalf. For many it is a solemn time. My pastor stated it should be just the opposite, a joyful reflection. Jesus was willing to step in and take our place of punishment for being born in and committing sin. We should have received the punishment we rightfully deserved. But because of what took place on Calvary we have victory, mercy and the gift of grace. But there’s more, so much more.

Many think that once salvation is receive that’s it. But Jesus, when he left the planet sent the Comforter, the Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us in every need and situation. As we live, there is God, who is forever available to answer the call of situations that need resolution, sicknesses that need healing, relationships that need mending, and the provision of peace we can’t explain for inner quietness, available for all who believe God is the One who provides.

All this and so much more Jesus provided while on Calvary; I suppose that is why this particular Friday is described as Good. Thank you Jesus as you continue to strengthenize us…

Here’s a verse:

My soul, waiteth thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. Psalm 62:5

What words jump out at you? For me it is the longest word of the verse: expectation. This word is defined in the dictionary as a belief that something is about to happen or is likely to happen. Expectation is synonymous with anticipation and the Hebrew word for expectation is tiqvah, the thing that is hope for, longed for.  In the longing is the thought of waiting, which is in the above verse.

What happens when we wait? For example, if we are in the checkout line at a store waiting to pay for our items, we stand still, don’t move until our turn comes. We eventually put our items down for the cashier to tally the total we are to pay, so we can take our items. What can happen while we are waiting in line?

For one, it is the experience of dread. The cashier is taking too long, and we start to think when will our turn come to get in front of the cashier. The anticipation may turn to apprehension, particularly when the register does not show the price of an item, and the cashier has to get the dreaded “price check.” (Uggghhh!) That only adds to more waiting. Then the process of checking out completely comes to a halt, ceases to operate, adding to frustration, causing you to wonder why you picked this line in the first place.

As it is in the checkout line, so it is in life. Psalm 62 is wrapped around God who is described as being our  defence, refuge, and strength. Because God is this and more, we shall not be greatly moved (or shaken or overthrown), while we wait. The underbelly of waiting on the Lord is the word faith, and is the main word of Hebrews 11:1, which  says

 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith is a conviction grounded in God, an assurance that our belief system in Christ will cause anticipation to become reality, and until it does we who believe will not be cast aside, because we choose to abide in the refuge of God, who provides salvation (verses 1, 2, 6, and 7,), power (verse 11), and mercy (verse 12).

So while you are in the waiting line of expectation, and (in your opinion) the waiting is taking an excessive amount of time, know that there is a purpose to God taking the time to do a price check, as it could be the price is too much for your life to pay for, deciding it needs to be returned to inventory for you to choose something much better.

Until the right comes along with His approval, wait I say on the Lord, standing still while being strengthenized in the process…

For years I have been struggling with the issue of sleep. When it is time to sleep and get rest, I go to sleep, but I don’t get much rest. From a sleep I had, it was discovered I suffer from sleep apnea. Apnea is defined as a temporary cesstation of breathing, and it can occur with people of any age, from  newborns to adults.  I have been sleeping with a machine for some years now, and while it has greatly improved the air flow while I sleep, I often awake during the night, and when my morning begins and I wake up for the day, I am tired.

So tired I have been for the past three days I decided perhaps I just need a day to get away from the usual way of doing life (another way of saying going to the office to work). Since the weather has been warm, I thought being outside instead of being in a windowless office would do the body good. But earlier this week I thought about something, and it seemed like God opened a spiritual window and showed me something.

One evening I was so tired I wanted to go to bed. The problem with that is that it was only 6:30. There was no way I could go to bed for the evening that early, as I knew at best I could get four hours of sleep in, and there would be a big possibility I would be wide awake at a time when many would be preparing to go to sleep for the night: 10:30. Then it would take me two to three hours to get back to sleep, tossing and turning every step of the way. Instead I decided to write.

My goal was to commit to writing at least an hour each evening and see if I could get some creative juices flowing. I discovered through opening up the bible and looking up some scripture that I wanted to write about would  start the process. The more I read, the more the focus seemed to shift away from being tired, and I noticed I was awakening. I noticed I was not so tired as when I came home, and when I looked at the clock instead of an hour it was now two hours later, and I felt better. What happened here, I thought. As I sat back in my chair trying to piece together an answer. I realized I was reading the living word of God, and the more I read the more I became alive. I felt as though God was saying “take in more of me, and I will cause you to live.” This kept happening. The next evening I did the same thing, and the awakening happened again. Then that spiritual window opened and I realized something. What happens when you are tired? For one, I don’t do anything, I don’t move much, I don’t think much, I don’t keep that commitment to write. I feel down, frustrated, and get tired of thinking about being tired, all things that keep me stagnated, far away from obtaining goals, feeling stuck in neutral. It is a subtle but effective way the enemy keeps me from reaching my God-given purpose in life.

And isn’t that just where the enemy would have me be? After all, if I am in stuck mode, I will not fulfil the purpose for which God has created me. The victory would not be reached. I surmised that there is a war going on, and if I’m going to win, I need the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, deep down within. What good is the Word of God to you if you do not know, if you don’t read? I had to admit that though I am tired, I must contend for the faith, and fight not on my own, but with  the knowledge of God’s Living Word through Jesus Christ, who is the Living Word.

What subtleties do you encounter that hinders you from truly living in Christ? Eating unhealthy, not exercising, and most importantly, not reading? Be challenged to fight the good fight of faith by knowing what God’s lifetime manual, the Living Word has to say. The only way you will know is to ingest a biblical meal, coming alive in the process.

Be strengthenized…

Sunday I had planned to be somewhere else for the afternoon, a place where I could be with friends I had not seen in a while, enjoy some good food and relax.

That didn’t happen. The host where the shindig was to take place was sick, and understandably needed to be in bed for much needed rest.

I later discovered God had a different plan, so I went to an afternoon church service where I volunteer my time by singing. Because I thought I was not going to be there I did not review the song list that had been emailed earlier in the week. But when I arrived, I found the list and reviewed it. I saw a song I had not sung in years: the National Black Anthem, Lift Every Voice and Sing.

For me, that has always been a tough song to sing: the musicality of the chords, for one, and the lyrics are so meaningful to a group of people that have struggled from slavery times of our country to the present. Anyone who sings it strives to sing it with the respect it deserves. I thought someone else was going to lead it, but she was not present. I was for the moment the only African American female in a band of mainly white musicians who did not know how to play the song, and I tried to teach them the chords. Oh boy, how is this going to turn out, I thought.

Here’s the good part. The musicians took on the challenge,  and for the most part found the chords and played the best they could; they respected the song. As for me, my respect of the song came from reviewing the lyrics and noticing they were wrong. Unfortunately, our music leader picked lyrics off the internet from a singer who recorded the song but revised the lyrics. (I don’t know why an African American singer who I’m assuming knew the history of that song would change the lyrics that meant so much to so many.) It was too late to reprint the church’s program, so an announcement was made that the song would be sung using the original lyrics, which the singer (me) had.

I felt I needed to represent. Represent my people through singing this song, presenting it to a congregation, the majority of which were of a different race. I felt  James Weldon Johnson who wrote the poem on which the song is based (music provided by his brother John Rosamond Johnson) would want his song treated with respect through the God-given sound of one generations later. I hope he was pleased with the effort of the band, the singers and I .

As I left the church, I walked away with a smile on my face. Only God could have rearranged plans, to get me to the church to sing so important a song that represented a time in history and remains so prevalent to this day. It represented God and His people. The band and the singers bonded together to represent, displaying what it means for all people to come together and honor God.

What can you do, to Represent?  Hope you find the path…

I wish I could describe to you what I am feeling and why I am feeling it, but right now all I can say is I am excited! This year many have said is a year of change. I so believe that to be true. In the past when I wanted to change there was always some type of blockage the stopped me in my tracks. But this year, something is different. I feel an atmosphere of freedom, as if God is saying “I am giving you the go ahead. Continue on.”

Earlier today I was thinking that I wish I could experience an audible voice like those of the Old Testament, where a question would be asked of God and he would answer audibly. I listen to testimonies from those being called into the ministry how they audibly heard the voice of God. I can’t say that has happened to me personally, but dreams have been occurring that I can remember when I awaken; beautiful dreams with a message of the greater is soon to happen. But I must caution you on one thing:

If you have been catching something similar to the above, the time is now, and it is not a time to sit idle, waiting for it to happen. The time is now to get prepared and ready. If you haven’t already done so, pray to be steered to the right avenue where the new job awaits for you, ministry is waiting to be launched through you, and a mentally and physically transformed you is about to be presented to the world! This is not a time to be asleep, and not a season to think and act like you did in the past:

 Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.  Isaiah 43:19

The first part of this verse is exploding with excitement, but look at the last part; it has the words wilderness and desert. That means there may be times that are difficult (wilderness) and dry (desert), as though it appears the “it” will not happen. but here’s the good part. Within this verse God promises it is he who will make a way during your wilderness experience, and there will be plenty to drink while in the dryness of the desert. But you must press on, having faith that God will get you through.

New things in 2016! Get ready to take a bold leap, ’cause though you may not be able to totally explain it, something’s about to happen;  can you feel it?

 

There is  a God who is for us and not against us. We have access to a God that is willing to do everything for us. Is that a problem for you? It may be, because while God is available, many do not pursue the supply he has for us. The bible says

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”       Philippians 4:19

Why is it that we don’t experience the supply? It may be that the emphasis is more on the need than the supply. For example, the need may be regarding being finances. It could be anything from paying one bill to making a decision of going into foreclosure and declaring bankruptcy. What would happen if we went to God and tapped into his supply? He encourages us to make our requests be made known to God, and in exchange he will give us peace that passes understanding (Philippians 4:6). But here may be what is happening: dwelling on the problem instead of embracing the solution of God’s supply.

Here is what I mean. Here are two prayers:

Prayer A: ” God I need help. Every time I think I am making headway, something else comes up. When am I ever going to get my head above water? When will the breakthrough come? How is it going to happen? How, why, when ……”

Prayer B: “God, you know what I need, but I know what you promise. You said you will supply my need according to your riches in glory by Christ Jesus. You said to give my requests to you and you will handle it. You encourage me to cast my cares upon you for you care for me. And so I am trusting you for who you are, and what you have blessed me with in the past, and if you did it before, you can and will supply me with benefits again…”

I hope you can see the difference. Prayer A is more a complaint of what is going wrong, and Prayer B is more acknowledgement. The difference between the two is emphasis. One prayer is emphasis on the problem, while the other prayer is emphasis on the infinite supply of God. Please don’t get me wrong I have “prayed” more “A” prayers than I can count, particularly when I believe I am in a crisis situation. But when I pray the “B” prayers, there is such a difference. The peace comes, and my mental chaos subsides, enabling me to continue on, though I don’t have answers or solutions.

In order to do the “B” prayers one has to have knowledge of what the bible says, which is a recording of God’s promises. Doing a study on what those promises are, and researching the many names of God like Jehovah-jireh (which means God my provider) will aid you in knowing more about God that can be incorporated in your prayers and daily meditation on him.

So be encouraged and strengthenized, and tap into God’s supply…what is your emphasis?