Fear can prevent us from taking actions.

Remember God is always by your side, so have no fear.

Trust in God for help.

Give him praises for fulfilling his promise in the past.

God’s light illuminates the journey and helps guide us in our decisions.

We have freedom in his presence.

When we do thus say the Lord,

He will set us free from fear.

Deliver us from shame.

Guard and defend us.

Show us his goodness.

Supply what we need.

Listen when we talk to him.

Redeem us.

All we must do is try him.

To fear the Lord means to show him deep respect, reverence and honor.

Worship him and keep his word.

Be obedient, how we speak and treat others.

A person who wants peace cannot be argumentative or contentious.

During our time of seeking his protection, God promises to be the source of POWER, COURAGE and WISDOM

I have been going through for the last couple of weeks. So many distractions, being pulled left and right. I have been weak in my flesh and exhausted. Fill my cup, Lord.

Have you had a moment of weakness or suffered a moment of lack of faith?

You feel discouraged, you just didn’t feel like it and you didn’t understand WHY?

Your emotions are tested and triggered at home, in traffic, on job, in grocery store and even in church.

You ever felt empty and alone? You prayed and prayed but nothing from God.

Thinking those that can depend on you, you can depend on in your weakest moment or just a little comfort to fill you up.

Your weakness seems to be an inconvenience to others who are used to you leading, doing, and taking charge.

I come to encourage you today:

Philippians 1:27 summary states: STAND FIRMLY IN THE POSITION God has you in.

The lord is my shepherd, I shall not want, EVERY SINGLE TIME, YOUR CUP RUNS EMPTY, GOD WILL FILL YOU UP WITH EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEED, he knows the GREEN PASTURES and the STILL WATERS that will restore you!

FAITH THAT HAS NOT BEEN TESTED CAN NOT BE TRUSTED.

TRUST IN GOD AND IN HIS WORD.

Psalm 23 reads God will:

Lead and provide.

Refresh and strengthen.

Renew and lead in the right path.

Give you courage..

Keep you safe.

And you will have Victory over death.

Trust and obey.

I cry, when I need to.
I laugh, when I need to.
I get vexed, when I need to.
I keep quiet, when I need to.
I speak up, when, I need to.
I follow, when I need to.
I lead when, I need to.
I pray because I have to.
I give thanks because it’s what we should do!

You can follow a crowd, but can you follow just one?

When you embrace your intentions for living, you can live on your own terms and create a life of meaning and purpose. God did not give us the spirit of fear, but of Love, Power and Sound Mind. Know that when the storms of life start raging, we can always count on God, for he will forever be with you, He will never leave nor forsake you.

Be strong and be of good courage, stay in line with the word of God. As stated in Isaiah 30:21 “and thine eyes shall hear a word behind thee, saying this is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand and when ye turn to the left”. Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart: and lean not unto thine own understanding in all ways acknowledge him and he shall direct your path”. Exodus 14:14 “The Lord shall fight for you and Ye shall hold your peace”.

Trust the Process, continue to walk on a straight path of righteousness. Ignore the distractions sent to block your vision. stay focus on the road ahead, there will be contracts, assignment and award to discourage you. stay in the right lane. welcome the unknown but delegate accordingly. What you allow will be. Trust the Process and you will always come out in VICTORY.

Do you know what happens when you SHOW UP?

You defeat the doubters; you give greater opportunities to those who dream and work hard. You give hope to those who came before you and didn’t succeed or came as close. You change the norm, you leave a trail of history, memories of fun, joy, togetherness and intentions for excitement.

As long as you continue to believe, stretch your faith, change your mind and depend on your faith alone, there is nothing that you cannot accomplish no matter the circumstances continue to SHOW UP!!!!!

Time and time again, the saying is two heads is better than one, but does.
that apply when you already have the strength of two individuals for yourself.
or is that a vein. Often life is complicated when you have a partner and the
other partner is not as strong as the other, especially when it comes to the
opposite sex. I saw a post that stated a powerful couple is a dangerous couple.
which is true! When couples complement each other in everything and play their
roles, the future of success is impeccable.

As women we are taught to be domestic, take care of the house, bear fruit,
and be submissive. In these times we have taken on a lot of additional roles
that were not by choice, but by force. It sad because its more common for the
women to be the head of the house now more than ever. It takes nothing for
women to demonstrate the roles of both partners and is very unfortunate. As I
speak for myself, its more convenient to “just do” it then to
“expect” or “ask”. Less of an argument, communication and
productivity. Would I dare say some men, have less ambition, never taught, or
have had the experience?

I grew up in a 2-parent home, not my biological father but my dad, who was my
mom’s common law husband, was very domestic in all areas of life. I recall he
was employed Keller Hospital, worked on cars during his spare time, cooked,
cleaned, 42 year retires veteran, fished, dipped and dapped in construction,
planted flowers, comb my hair when needed, took me shopping, all things needed.
he stepped up and showed out, without a fuss. I learned a lot from him. He taught
me how to drive at a early age, everything he did, he included me, ” No
Handicaps” was his motto. He would tell me never let no one handicap me.
Always do better than the one who taught you, never let anyone insult your
intelligence. Today, I don’t know if that was a good thing or bad thing.

I was recently told that I am ” Instantly Intimidating”. So,
people don’t want to be around me or feel very uncomfortable in my presence. It
does not bother me at all, all I can say is it’s one of those, get to know a
person for yourself. Now I’m not going to dummy myself down for anyone. It’s
either you love me or leave me alone. If you feel intimidated, then that’s
personal and has nothing to do with me, but please come correct, please! One
thing for sure, I’m keeping it 100% real with myself first.

I can also admit, being strong has its pros and cons. The pro is that I
depend on me! I Stand on my integrity, and I love to work hard. The Cons are:
if anything goes wrong, I cannot blame anyone but me. I don’t feel like I can
count on anyone, I always feel like I must protect myself and my possessions.
It makes relationships difficult at times, when one lacks more than the other
but gets “COMFORTABLE”. It complicates things that make it hard to
communicate, difficult to understand and irritating because sometimes you must
cuts some balls. But hey what good is another strength if you have your own!

For a Friend!

How many times in our lives do we create things without understanding the cause or effect of it? Unknowingly, we are called out on it but defensively we justify our actions, not knowing the real revelation. Have you just gone on about your daily routine, just doing what you think is normal productivity, causing no harm or danger to anyone. Just thinking this is your usual way of life. No one is telling you that you’re wrong or right. Most people would call it ” Things we like to do”. For example, I am a shopaholic, I am an impulsive- obsessive shopper. If I see it, I must have it, if I don’t purchase it, it weighs on my consciousness until I purchase it, knowing, I have no room and I may or may not wear. My shopping addiction is so bad that he has affected others. My family knows that if I’m upset, I need retail therapy, and everyone is going to do their best to make sure I make a trip to a store. Now for me it’s a coping mechanism, but to my family it’s easier for them to agree, then disagree and it’s a little less stressful environment for them, but they deal. For Me, I love new things and I love to dress up but its obsessive. Well, I have come to realize that my obsession is a way of acting out in an unconscious decision if I need it. When I was young, my family was not able to purchase a lot of things or I was that child who almost never got new sneakers or new clothing, most of the time for me everything was handed down, or from a thrift store. So as a young girl, one of my missions was to grow up to purchase new clothing or and to dress up whenever I wanted. I remember playing dress up in my mom’s clothing, mixing a combination of my mom shoes and my clothes or vice versa. Who would have thought it would turn out to be a fixation of my comfort, something so small turned into something so delightful. The core of my habit was I was bullied for not having the finer things or I was seen wearing the same outfits over and over. Did I just trip on the stick when I was younger, fantasizing in the experience of overcoming what was an innocent experience turned into a situation of habit, self-doubt and obsessive behavior. The hoarding of shoes, clothes and accessories mirroring my hazed self to manifest self-actualization of this behavior. What we silently discover as youth becomes a mechanism of habit in our adulthood. Interesting, we all have tripped over some sticks.

Jesus is the True Vine

Christ is the vine.

God is the gardener who cares for the branches to make them fruitful.

The branches are referred to those who claim to be the follower of Christ.

The fruit branches are true believers, who’s living will is to procedure fruit.

Then there are those “other “branches who are unproductive, uncommitted, and will is to divide from Christ the vine. Those followers will be separated, cut off and tossed aside.

Jesus makes 2 different decisions when he is pruning:

1. Cutting Off– for the branches that bear no fruit, these branches most times infect the rest of the tree and will try to block the efforts of God followers.
2. Cutting back-Fruitful branches are cut back to promote growth, in otherward we are disciplined to encourage our character or to increase our faith.

When a Vine produce” Much Fruit” God is glorified, He sends the sunshine and the rain. He constantly natures each tree and prepare it to blossom.  

Are you producing much fruit? Do you believe the science is the study of living and why it’s important? Are you receiving the nourishment of life? Are you reaping the harvest:  When things are going well, we are excited, upbeat and uplifted but when we are in a hardship we are depressed, down and destructive, but if we remain Christ, we receive him as our Lord and Savior, does what says the Lord, continue to believe the good news and fellowship in the community of believers as a body of Christ. We begin to experience the consistent Joy of the love of Jesus Christ. The Harvest and The True Vine!

The quietness of the room, the cramping of my folded hands, the heat from the breath of my words, the throbbing pain in my knees, the tears falling down my face, the moisture running out of my nose, the sound of my desperate voice, the repentance of sin, the gratefulness, the worship, the praise, the request of his presence!!!!! PRAYER!!!! HE IS HERE!!!!

What is Prayer? Prayer is an inner line of communication between you and God. Prayer is your inner contact with wisdom, understanding and inspiration. Prayer is your inner awareness that the spirit of truth, of which Jesus spoke is not only of you but what is within you.

Do you know the Power of God’s prayer should not be taken lightly; this is because it is what Jesus Christ left us to communicate to God. Do you know that God will help us use our suffering to strengthen us and glorify to him? so when we pray, we should pray often, with confidence/without ceasing, then we are utilizing the power of prayer.

Have you ever been in a tight spot? Feeling as a prisoner! Imagine yourself as Peter or being in a situation that has put us in an unexpected tight spot. We are ready know that God uses our suffering to strengthen us, so that we may glorify him.  In this case Peter was at the mercy of King Herod, who had James, the brother of John executed. During Peter imprisonment, the church continued to pray to God for him and they prayed without ceasing. What does it mean without ceasing: Romans 12: 12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation: continuing in prayer. Don’t ever come to point in your life that you abandon the hope of God, do not give up on prayer.

Matthew 7:7– Ask, and it shall be given to you, seek and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

Surrender in your tight spot, keep living in your tight spot, learn to navigate in your tight spot, knowing you have just invited the presence of God in your situation maintain your integrity knowing if God brings you to it, he will bring you through it. Be encouraged.