Power Tools: Prayer & Praise

Hello All!! It's been a while since I blogged! I've been super busy with work and family. But I've got a great message to share now that I'm back!

I want to pose a question this morning: Do you realize how much power you have? I'm talking about the kind of power to change situations you are in right now, power to change your atmosphere on the job, power to change the outcome of an illnesses that doctors may have diagnosed you with and power to get out of a financial situation that you may be trapped in. Yes you have the power to do this ALL! But it's important to realize that this power comes from God. When we invite God into our life we receive the power to do an abundance of things.

So how do we get this power? Easy...through prayer and praise. During bible study last week the pastor talked about making sure that we take time to pray in the MORNING everyday before we step out and face a new day. We when receive that covering from God during prayer there is nothing that get in our way to get us off track for the day.  For Psalm 91:4 says "He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection." In addition to prayer, praise is another great power tool. This morning on my way to work I had the best praise and worship in my car. During that time I was able to reflect on God and get in a state of mind where there is nothing or noone who can make me have a bad day! Psalm 35:2 says, "I'll tell the world how great and good you are, I'll shout Hallelujah all day, every day"!!

RECOGNIZE the POWER you have and USE IT EVERYDAY!

Be Blessed:)

One of my FAVORITE SONGS right now! In The Middle - Isaac Carree

Are you consistently checking in?

Today I wrapped up my reading of 1st and 2nd Kings. I was so happy to finish reading these chapters, because it seemed like the people of Israel continually disrespected God. Hezekiah tried to steer the people in the right direction, but as soon as he died his son reverted the people back to disobedience. Then finally Josiah comes along and begins to again steer the people in the right direction. Upon finding the "Book of the Law" the people read it in it's entirety and pledged themselves to the covenant. I was so happy to see that the people had finally turned from their evil ways. As I begin to read more about King Josiah and all that happened during his reign, it became so clear all the favor that can be bestowed upon you when you seek God FIRST and follow in his footsteps consistently. It also became clear however that when you don't check in with God concerning any and every decision in your life the consequences that can come of that. For 31 years Josiah had faithfully walked with the Lord, seeking his advice in all that he did. Then one day he decided that he was going to go into battle without seeking God's advice. He died in that battle against King Neco of Egypt, and his death was unexpected and very surprising to many. King Josiah's death is a reminder that we should be CHECKING IN with God on every decision that we make in life. We should never gain too much pride that we feel like we only need or want to hear God's advice on certain situations, and others we choose to handle on our own. This lesson hit home with something that I read yesterday in my "Daily Walk" reading that challenged people to spend more time in prayer with the Lord. So I'm passing the challenge on to you. Every time you get in and out of the car today, spend a few seconds in prayer. Show God how serious you are about seeking his wisdom and advice in all that you do.

Proverbs 3: 5-6, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path"

Don't Ignore the Warning Signs!

This subject, "Don't Ignore the Warning Signs", is one that I can't stop thinking about. Right now I am reading the book of 2 Kings and it amazes me how many warning signs God sent Israel before they were finally taken into exile. For almost 300 years Israel had sinned against the Lord, yet God continued to look out for them by sending them warning signs of what would happen if they didn't turn from their evil ways. In all God sent 18 prophets, all with a different message in hopes of persuading Israel to start obeying God again. Reading this chapter has made me think about two things. One being,"What a mighty God we serve" It feels so good to know that we serve a God who is willing and able to guide us along the way, and give us warning signs when we steer away from his path. My favorite bible verse, Jeremiah 29:11 states, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." I love this verse because it is a reminder of what we can receive if we follow God. However it is also a warning that of what will happen if we steer away from him. Unlike Israel we must not ignore the warning signs. We should constantly be listening for the Lord's voice to make sure that are lives are aligned with his will. Be Blessed!

Jeremiah 7:23-"but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command you, that it may go well with you".

Learning to WOTL...

When I first saw this acronym, it took me a while to realize what it meant. Then after reading the rest of my devotional for that day I learned that it stands for "Wait On The Lord", which really made me stop and think about the benefits of learning how to wait on the Lord. So many times we seek God, asking for things that we feel we desperately need and when he doesn't immediately bless us with those things we become impatient. Right now I am personally seeking God's favor on something that I have been praying about for almost 2 years now. After waiting for nearly 6 months and still no change I began to come impatient, and then it hit me...instead of focusing on how long it is taking God to answer my prayer, I should think about what God is trying to teach me during this waiting period. Often times God will use your waiting period as a time to "refresh" and "renew" your relationship with him. I have since learned that we must be like David when waiting on the Lord. David had been anointed king at the age of 16, however he didn't become king until the age of 30!! 14 years seems like such a long time, but David didn't dwell on that time. Instead he used those years as an opportunity to develop his walk with God, all the while believing that God would one day fulfill his promise. Psalm 27: 13-14 says, "Yet I am confident that I will see the Lord's goodness while I am here in the land of the living; Wait patiently for the Lord, be brave and courageous, yes wait patiently for the Lord. So my challenge to everyone as you go about your day seeking God's favor, don't become impatient with God. Stop and think, "what may God be trying to teach me during this waiting period?"

Have a blessed Wednesday everyone and know that you're blessing is ON THE WAY!
**Lamentations 3:25-"The Lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him"

Shake, Shake, Shake....

As a child I remember learning and singing, "Shake, shake, shake..shake the devil of". At the time I really didn't know what it meant, but as I got older I learned to appreciate the words in that song, especially during experiences like the one I had Sunday. My day started out great; I got off work and immediately begin getting ready for church. I was so excited to be able to attend The Worship Center's new 10a.m. service. As some of you know I work overnights, and don't get off until 9:30 in the morning, so being able to head right to church without having to wait around until 11 was very exciting for me. Upon arriving this usher rushes in behind me as I am about to walk in the sanctuary. She informs that I have a huge stain on my dress. The first thing I think is, "Oh shoot I'm going to miss the choir singing my song!!!" Anyhow the usher is very nice and escorts me to the bathroom to try and get it out. We scrubbed and scrubbed and that led to a big wet stain on the dress. By this time I have already missed praise and worship and I'm starting to get very frustrated. I remind myself to calm down. For getting upset is exactly what the devil wants. It's at that time that I begin to shake him off. I then begin thinking of ways to try and dry the dress (the usher even offered to put in their dryer). Thinking that would cause too much trouble, I decided to just stand by the front window, with hopes that the sunlight would dry it. That didn't work. The dress was satin and the stain was still there. After realizing that there was nothing else to do, I wanted to start crying. I was really forward to being be able to fellowship and hear a good word, and now my plans had changed. But you know what I didn't cry. I just kept shaking the devil off. I wanted him to know that he was not in control. I was still going to receive a word. I came home and found a sermon on TV. And to my surprise the pastor was preaching about a topic that I had just prayed to God for clarification for. The morale of this story, is that as we go about our day things may come up, and things may not go as we planned, but we shouldn't get mad. We should simply "shake the devil off" and let him know that the man above is in control and always working on our behalf.

**Romans 8: 28-"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"

Have a blessed Monday everyone & remember: You are too Anointed to be Disapointed!