And Abraham Laughed……

Yesterday, on the 16th day of March 2014, my daddy preached at his church…. Now this would mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING if my father was a preacher with a divine calling on his life, but wait, he isn’t and doesn’t…. He is a retired Supplier Diversity Manager for a very large healthcare provider!! Anywho, before my daddy got up to the pulpit, I prayed that Lionel would decrease, and that The Holy Spirit would increase, and that his message would reach the audience where they are, and his words would manifest and be prevalent in our daily lives….. And I must say, I was pretty impressed with the message how it spoke to me directly!! 

My dad’s message came from Genesis 17. The key verses are Genesis 17:15-17 and they read:  God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”Abraham fell face down; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”

In our natural mind, we could not imagine a man 100 years old impregnating a woman age 90. Nor do we even want to think that our elders at this age are even sexually active…. GROSS…. Anyways, a little background, Abraham was a man of great faith. I guess in layman’s terms, when God said move…. Abraham jumped!! Point blank, he trusted God and he knew that God would provide his every need according to his will!!

Now, how many of us are Abraham minded? When the Lord puts it on our heart to move, how many times to we sit still and say “nall God, you cant be serious”…. Well this was the same reaction that Abraham had when The Lord spoke and proclaimed that Abraham would have a son at age 100…. Abraham straight up LAUGHED…. Now, God is not Kevin Hart, a man that LOVES being laughed at, because he is a comedian. The promises of God are straight up the truth, and no reason to laugh!!! But Abraham LAUGHED…. YET Abraham STILL had FAITH!!!

In our daily lives, we have to trust the word of God! We have to move when God says move, and when he says jump, we need to ask HOW HIGH?!? God always has a master plan that will enhance our lives more than we will ever know…. First Timothy 4:4 says “For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving”. When we can thank God for EACH AND EVERY thing that happens in our lives, regardless if we think it is good or not, the final product of the situation will be greater and grander than we could ever imagine. But we MUST trust GOD!!!

Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t always trust God as I should…. I don’t always move when he says move!!! But as I grow in Christ, I know that I will mature in him and will be able to honor his will and his ways in EVERYTHING that I do! I can see how God is moving in my life from day to day and I know that my future days are better than my latter days!!! And just the thought of BETTER DAYS is exciting!!! 

 

 

Domestic Violence Saved My Life……

I’m sure you’re looking at the title like this girl is CRAZY…. But hear me out!!!

In 2009, I married who I thought was the love of my life….. Not knowing Domestic Violence would end my relationship, I stayed in an abusive home, because divorce WAS NOT an option. He was very much so verbally and emotionally abusive, but our relationship ended when it got physical….. Well more physical than it was prior!!!

When I left him in 2011, I NEVER thought I would embrace such a fulfilling life. Matter a fact, I couldn’t imagine my life as a single mother to a toddler….. I was depressed, and pretty much an emotional mess!! But God!!!

Around April 2013, I started attending the most AWESOME church Chattanooga has to offer. After several sermons that Pastor Ware preached, I KNEW I had to get my life together, and serving God needed to be at the top of my to-do list! In Juneish, God put it on my heart not to drink in public, and in July, I was led to quit clubbing. I didn’t always obey, however, I did reduce my habits.

In this time, I began to lean on Christ more than ever. I started reading the Bible a little, but I was actively interested in what my pastor was saying…. The Holy Spirit filled me and I couldn’t go to church with out Pastor Ware being ALL up in my business. I cried, I was convicted, the Lord was speaking to me and healing me in areas I thought was healed.

I began to understand my worth, not only as a human, but also as a child of God. Matthew 11:28 says if you are tired of carrying heavy burdens, come to me, and I will give you rest! I took all my anger to God, all my insecurities, all my hopelessness, all my fear, my pain, everything that was keeping me from him, I gave it to him. I felt like a new woman, I KNEW that at that point, God had me covered. I KNEW that my life was destined to be AMAZING, because I was able to seek him and give my adversities to the ultimate healer. My life became new in him!!!

I was able to honestly accept Christ as my savior and mean it with ALL my heart. I’m no where near the perfect Christian…. I’m not holier than thou… I’m just an average girl that survived Domestic Violence, and is able to thank the Lord for keeping me, and blessing me in the midst of my mess. Thank you Lord.

If it wasn’t for Domestic Violence, I wouldn’t have a true relationship with Christ. I wouldn’t know how to trust God and how to depend on him. I wouldn’t be alive in Christ, as I am today!!!

Thank you Lord for saving my life and showing me true love!!! Matthew 22:44, paraphrased, says sit at the right hand of the Father and your enemies will become your foot stool. My exhusband, my heartache, my pain, all became my foot stool that drew me closer to Christ.

Thus, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SAVED MY LIFE!!!!

If you, or someone you know, is a victim of Domestic Violence, call the National Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) OR TTY 1-800-787-3224.

Coincidence…… Nah, that was Christ!!!!

I’m at the gym today, busted out a GOOD workout, 700+ calories burned, whew…. I WILL BE fit and fine by July!!! Anyways, I decided randomly to go to the other side of the gym to do some ab work. Then I said, maybe I will bust out a little lower back… Well I totally didn’t feel like doing the lower back things, but I went over and started doing my reps.

As I am doing my reps, a lady gets on the machine next to me and it squeaked a little. She asked if it was supposed to sound like that, I told her I didn’t know, I didn’t use the machine. She and I chit-chatted about our fitness journey, and the conversation turned to Christ. She told me about her daughter that attends Miles College (my old college) and some of the issues her daughter is enduring right now… She asked me to pray with her for her daughter…. I look like in the middle of the gym…. Well the conversation continued and I was able to encourage her, and assure her that her daughter is in GREAT hands as a child of God. Long story short, she and I talked about Christ’s love and she would like for me to meet her daughter.

So my question, was this coincidence, or was it all in God’s plan?

Coincidence is defined as a remarkable concurrence of events or circumstances without apparent causal connection. I mean, I really didn’t want to go do my lower back reps, and who would have thought that I would have met a lady that has a Miles College connection in little ol’ Chattanooga… In all actuality, I usually go to the gym at 10:30 on Thursday mornings… But this day, I went at 9:30AM, and had actually made plans with a friend to go at 8:30AM. Looks like a coincidence to me!

But wait, I don’t believe in those!!! God knew exactly what he was doing, when I was running EXTREMELY late!!!  I know that my steps are ordered by Christ. Ecclesiastes 3: 1 says: For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under Heaven. Also, Romans 8:28 says: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Today I was able to connect with a woman of God that was concerned about her daughter, and when she spoke to me, I was able to assure her that good things will come out of her daughter’s situation because she DOES love the Lord. I know that God used me to plant a seed today. Luke 8:15 says: Those seeds that fell on good ground are the people who listen to the message, and keep it in good and honest hearts. They last and produce a harvest.

If I were to believe that this was coincidence, I would not have faith in the works of God. We serve a POWERFUL God that can do exceedingly and abundantly above all we can ask or think. He has a plan for each and every one of our lives and as Ecclesiastes 3:1 says he has a “time for every activity” that we experience. It WAS NOT coincidence; it was the work of God! Mrs. T needed to hear my testimony about Miles College, she needed a “younger” opinion of her daughter’s situation, as well as she needed the words that I was able to deliver on behalf of the Holy Spirit.

As we think about all the things that happen in our lives on a daily basis, know that God has his hand in the midst of all of it! He gives us the option to choose, but in the through it all, our God is omnipresent and he knows how to direct our steps according to his will!