Surrender to God..Resist the Devil...and he will run!

    Surrender to God! Resist the devil, and he will run from you.

James 4:7 (CEV)

      Worshipers, God is so good to us... He always gives us a way of escape from our troubles if we are willing to do two things, which are: (1) Surrender to Him, (2) Resist the devil, and he will run away from us quickly. People like to quote the second part of that verse and wonder why the devil stays around, but the enemy's nature is rebellion. He works in and through it, he thrives on it. Rebellion is just like witchcraft and he loves that, too. Rebellion, pride, and wanting our own way comes from hurt, pain, woundedness, rejection, bitterness, hatred, anger, rage, unforgiveness and all of those things that keep us in bondage. Those spirits hate the Word of God because they know that Jesus is the Word of God, and they cannot stay in the same place where He is in charge. So, they will do everything they can to keep us from getting the faith that comes from hearing God's Word and will try to change the Word, water it down, pervert it, and do all kinds of things to make us think that we are OK the way we are or even excuse our situations ...so they can stay around complete their assignment, which is to steal (our peace), kill (our purpose) and destroy (our soul). It grieves the heart of God when this happens, but they are doing it with our permission, because evil spirits are aware of spiritual laws and work when we are outside of them.



The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

John 10:10 (NKJV)

     But they don't have to...all we have to do is: Surrender to God, and Resist the devil. He cannot stand up to the Word of God when it's in our hearts. But we have to get tired of being tired...tired of being miserable, tired of being out of God's will, and tired of playing games and lying to ourselves because God knows what is in our hearts. We have to ask ourselves this question: Are we ready to obey God and have abundant life, peace, joy and all that God wants for us, or do we just want the turmoil to stop so we can continue doing what we want to do? Guess what...God will allow us to remain in that state of turmoil until we decide to surrender all to Him. Why should He deliver us and then allow us to turn around and partner with the enemy to self-destruct with His blessings?  Surrender to God...resist the devil, and he will run away from you quickly...it's in our hands.

     Remember, that there is nothing that we can plan for ourselves that is better than what God has planned for us!

     Listen to He Wants it All by Forever Jones:

A Heart That Lets Go

     December 31, 2009 was the International Day of Forgiveness. I had never heard of this before, but a friend sent an e-mail about it and it really piqued my interest. I posted it as an event in Facebook, because I wanted everyone I knew to participate. It did not require a special meeting place or preparation, only a heart to truly forgive everyone and anyone who had ever done anything to harm us, whether they deserved it or not. Many people responded, some did not, but it didn't matter to me, I knew that I had to take part in this event for myself. I had recently gone through a very difficult season of life and it seemed that most of the people who claimed to be my friends had abandoned me. A few of them actually turned out to be enemies, and one of them even tried to turn my family members against me. I had to make a choice to either return the evil, or completely let it go, so that Day couldn't come quickly enough for me.

    On New Year's Eve, I drove out to Dockweiler Beach, and sat down on a rock with a sheet of paper and a pen. I wrote down the name of every person that I could think of that I needed to truly forgive, and prayed for each one of them. When I finished, I took the list out to the shore, and send it away into the tide. It was so freeing to watch it go out, under the waves. I began to feel sorry for some of the people, because I began to see them as they were; that they really were unable to do any better than what they did. I thanked God for life, health and strength, and asked Him to help me to never do any of those things to anyone else. I found a seashell with holes in it, and put it on my bulletin board to help me remember the day.

     There is a line in the song entitled A Heart That Forgives by Kevin Levar says: " A heart that lets go is a heart that will know so much freedom". I thank the Lord for freedom today, so I can go on with my life. Forgiveness does not change what people have done to us, but it helps us to live our lives to the fullest.

     Be blessed...and forgive.

Thanks to Jeneen Harris for the top photograph...

What Are You Known For?

      What's the first thing that people say when your name or ministry is mentioned? Do you know what you are really remembered for?  After people read that wonderful book, see that powerful choreography or play or hear your "dope" poetry, what are people saying about you?  Our reputation is just as important as our talents and gifts. There are too many ministries today that are recognized as great, while carrying tainted reputations. Some of what is being said may be exaggerated, but if there is even a small amount of truth to it, it's time to think about what needs to be changed.

By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

John 13:35 (NKJV)

      It is one thing to be known for what we do, but quite another to be known for who we are. God is working on all of us, so none of us can point out anyone else's faults without first looking at ourselves. It's time for self -examination. If we find ourselves always snapping at others when we are stressed, maybe we are too busy, and need to ask for help. Moses could not lead the Israelites alone, he appointed elders to be in charge of the masses of people that he was responsible for getting to the Promised Land (Ex.18:25).  If we feel the need to talk about others behind their backs, we need to find out what is lacking in our own lives. We can make beautiful garments and put on grand productions, but weave tangled knots of confusion if our way of life does not match up to our craft.
 
      There is a dance minister on the East Coast who is well-known for his powerful ministry and exciting classes. He has danced with a renowned professional company in New York, and has his own company. The first thing people speak of after commenting on his phenomenal dancing is his graciousness towards everyone, and how they can't wait to be in his classes that are always full. Students don't want to leave his presence at the end of  class, because of what they receive from him spiritually as well as technically.  They feel loved, not abused. They are empowered, not dismantled.  People are drawn to him because of his loving heart. That is the ministry of Christ! Why have a fantastic public ministry, while behind the scenes people are being crushed by our behavior? Even if they never say anything about it, God sees what we do, and He hears everything that we say. Being a leader or having a title does not give us the right to harm anyone with our words or actions. We will have to answer to God for every person whom we have injured. If we are guilty of any of these things, we need to pray and ask for more of the fruit of the Spirit to be in our lives.

God's Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways.

Gal 5:22-23 (CEV)

Nothing is hidden from God! He sees through everything, and we will have to tell him the truth.

Hebrews 4:13 (CEV)

     It has been said that our gifts determine our direction in life, but our character determines how far we will go with our gifts. It's never too late to humble ourselves, check our reputations, make changes,  pray for healing and make amends wherever we can. Let's make sure that our names remind people of God's goodness!

A good reputation and respect are worth much more than silver and gold.

 Proverbs 22:1 (CEV)