A Prayer for all of us!

Nobody can stop the wind from blowing. Whosoever that tries to
stop your Joy and Progress, God will destroy their powers in Jesus
name.

There are some people that nothing good has happened to them in
a long while, God is remembering you for good now in the name of
Jesus.

In every place you have been put to shame, God will lift and bring
you honor. All you have lost shall be restored in the mighty name
of Jesus.

Bishop Jake

https://www.facebook.com/tdjministry

The Waiting Room

Recently, I was at the doctor's office....in a waiting room.  The wait was long and as I sat in there waiting for the results of my test I was realizing how life is also a waiting room.  The duration of the time in the waiting room of life is often filled with anxiety, stress, worry, temptations, negativity and other self-induced emotions.  I want my waiting time to be filled with praises, joy, thankfulness and peace.  Negative emotions make the waiting time longer and less productive, but filling our hearts with thankfulness and joy may not change the results of a test, but it sure will change the way you handle those results! 

Being thankful is the best way to handle a waiting room!  I tried it and it works and by the way, the test results came back fine!

Quote for the day

Get in!

Get out!

or

Get run over!

by Joyce Meyers

Psalms 138:8

"The Lord will accomplish what concerns me."

Run for the Antidote!

If you suddenly were faced with a life threatening bite of a venomous snake or someone you loved had just been bit would you save them?  We all would say in unison "YES" and based on that yes we would each take what ever measure that saving a life would mean!  We would get as quickly as we could to the nearest hospital to receive the life-saving antidote....we would not walk to that treatment; we would not stop to post on Face Book about the bite we had just received from the snake; we would not take time to call our friends, send a picture from our Iphone's.....not a person in this world would do anything more than RUN and run as fast and as hard as we could to get the cure and to ensure that life would continue. 

So how about the days when you wake up in the morning and anxiety, depression, selfish emotions, or any other "bite" that Satan willing gives us to kill our spirits and to deaden our souls towards a God who has promised to never leave us or forsake us?  If you knew that there was a cure, an Antidote, for those deadly, poisonous bites that come from one who could care less about whether you live or die, would you take it?  There is an Antidote for the deadly poison of anxiety, depression, mourning, unhappiness and the many other forms that the fangs of sin.  That Antidote is THANKFULNESS!  I am deadly serious about this.  Try it sometime.  At the first pangs of that deadly bite of anxiety begin to be thankful.  Start by saying outloud:

•  "I am thankful I am alive!"
•  "I am thankful I made it this far!"
•  "I am thankful I am loved and have a God who cares about every detail of my life!"  
• "I am thankful for my dog who has blessed my life with love!""  

This life-saving Antidote comes from the Great Healer Himself who is God! 

So let's start from the beginning....if you were suddenly faced with a life threatening bite of a venomous snake would you run towards the antidote?  Or will you to continue to stroll along the path, stopping to inspect a small rock, or go on to text about that morning's coffee, Twitter about the color of the blue sky while you are slowing dying inside from the poison of fear, depression, lack of trust, self-induced addictions that will kill you.  Why would you delay the only true Antidote that can save you???  GET THANKFUL!  If I could offer a 100% money-back guarantee on the Antidote of thankfulness, I would and I would offer it for the rest of your life because it works!   Now go and get your thankful on!  The poison of Satan has a Cure and it is free of charge.....and it does come with a 100% guarantee!   I am thankful to be here writing this post today!  I am living proof that the Antidote works!!

Speaking blessings into another's life!

Recently, a new and dear friend of mine did something that really uplifted my spirits.  She spoke words of blessing to me.  Out of the blue, while we were working on a project together she said the words: "I really want what is best, good, and beautiful for your life."  Those words took me aback because they sounded so foreign since in today's society very few have the courage to actually wish the best for someone else unselfishly!  She spoke those words into my life from a pure vantage point, wanting nothing for herself, but everything for me!   I am still touched today by her words of blessing.  How many people do you come into contact with during the day could you say you spoke authenic, pure, and sincere words of blessing?  Those words were spoken to me over 2 week ago and today they are still touching my heart as I realize how good friends can truly benefit our lives and touch our souls!  Thank you, dear friend and today, "I really want what is best, good, and beautiful for your life as well!"

Proverbs 25:11 
Like apples of gold in settings of silver Is a word spoken in right circumstances.

Imagine an unfailing love!

Imagine being loved so much that it never fails, never quits, never walks away, never gets a divorce, never wonders why in the world you were the object of that love in the first place.....or even more astounding....NEVER looks away for one minute, one second in doubt, dismay, anger, impatience, boredom!!  If we knew love like this existed, wouldn't you want to sign the dotted line and claim it for yourself?  I did!  I discovered that God is a very personal, and loving God!  Here is a verse for today that should make each of us decide to take the road to discovering God's love:

Deuteronomy 7:9
Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands.

He is God!  He is faithful!  He keeps His promises!  He lavishes His unfailing love on us!  Not just for a second, a minute, an hour, or a year of time, but for thousands of generations!  Thousands!  I have been lucky in my lifetime to love for a period of time and even a strong love that I thought would last forever, failed miserably!  

I had it all wrong though.  God's love endures the test of time and notice the verse tells that those of us who love Him and obey the set of life rules that He loving wrote out for us to keep us from sin's consequences....well we will be filled to overflowing with the love He will lavish freely on us!  I needed to love God first.  Without knowing Him, without loving Him, I wasn't able to love myself which lead to my inability to love others.  

I am glad that God's love is so faithful and enduring that thousands and thousands of years can pass and He remains unwavering in His promises!

Verse for the Day

When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Thy consolations delight my soul.
Psalm 94:19

Helping without judgement

I was listening to Dr. Brene Brown last night and she absolutely challenged me to to do some life work on myself.  One of the powerful statements that she made was:

"When you cannot ask for help with self-judgement, then you never really help others without judgement of that person."

Wow!  That sat me back in my seat to think about this.  In Mark 12:31 it says: "The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."   I thought I had an understanding of this verse, but when I think about applying this principle to myself it looks like this:  I am in need and I refuse to ask for help because I am too proud to let anyone know I am struggling.  I care more about my self-image and the standard of perfection I am attempting to maintain.  One day, my neighbor comes over and tells me that they are struggling and cannot keep their house due to financial difficulties.  In keeping with how I treat myself, I look down on my neighbor for reaching out.  They should be able to figure it out without telling everyone are my secret thoughts and judgement upon them.  I may smile on the outside and appear to listen, but because of the prideful standard I think I am adhering to, I don't really show up for my neighbor's pain nor do I give them an authentic picture of who I am or who God is!   

So back to Mark 12:31:  Love your neighbor as yourself.  When you are in need, when you are struggling emotionally, sinking in a tragedy, overwhelmed by a parenting situation, or anything else.....BE COURAGEOUS and reach out!  Asking for and getting help is not a sign of weakness, but rather of incredible strength!   After all, how in the world can you show up for someone Else's pain, when you are too proud to even deal with your own!

Please take a moment to go to Dr. Brene Brown's website.  She has a real way with powerful statements and much of her work is worth reading!  Thank you Brene!  You made a real difference in my life!
http://brenebrown.com/

Extravagant Dimensions

I love my two sons!  Being their mom has been one of my greatest joys in my life!  There is not anything that I wouldn't do for them.  There isn't a day that goes by that I am not thinking about them.  There isn't a night that goes by that I am not fervently praying for them and asking God to bless them more than anything and with everything!  Today, I made the happy connection between my love for my boys and God's love for me, as His child.  Ephesians 3:17-19 is a tremendous prayer that Paul prayed for those he cared about.  It is truly should be the prayer we have for ourselves and for those we love as well:  "That Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite Him in.  And I ask Him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all Christians the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love.  Reach out and experience the breadth!  Test its length!  Plumb the depths!  Rise to the heights!  Live full lives, full in the fullness of God."  Now that is love!  Extravagant Love!  The dimensions are never-ending!  I love my sons and I feel like I love them extravagantly, but compared to the love of God it falls short of His far-reaching dimensions!  My prayer today is that I can remember that God loves me so much that He thinks of me all day long and wants what is best for me.  He wants to bless me beyond measure and wants to see me come to know Him in a way that I begin to be an example of His love to others!  So, to my two awesome sons, today I dedicate this blog entry to you and I pray that you may get to know the extravagant love of a God who can and will always love you more than I can!  EXTRAVAGANT LOVE...................

.....what a wonderful God we have, indeed!

How do we help those that are broken?

Today's thoughts come together in Isaiah 61:1.  When we are faced with the question, "HOW can I help someone who is in pain, grieving, or broken?"  The answer comes so simply in these words:  "The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me (you); because the LORD has anointed me (you) to preach good tidings to the meek; He has sent me (you) to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound."  Aren't these words just awesome?!  I often wonder how I can help someone trapped in self-medicating behaviors or someone who has just faced an overwhelming tragedy. Rule #1: Don't try to fix someone!  Instead bind them up with tender love and care, share the freedom found in knowing God, and to those who are bound by life and all of its cares.....well we should be sharing the victory that Christ gives when we release ourselves to Him!   Sounds simple, but in reality IT IS!   Have a extravagant day in the love of God for you!

The heart of the matter

Those of us in the field of helping other people know one thing always rings true:  Problems and the origins seem to all be universal.  Divorce, unemployment, financial issues, in-law problems, etc. all seem to be the same for everyone who experiences them.  Recently, I was observing leaves.  I noticed all the different types of leaves that we have in our yard.  Leaves are not all universal!  They are original and unique in and of themselves!  As I noticed this, I realized that this parallels with the originality of each person God created.  People are all unique and individual in and of themselves.  Yes, problems that people have all have similarities, but people are not equal to their problems!  Rather each of us is unique in the perspectives that we have!  The heart of the matter is this:  Those of us serving in the various capacities that help others must realize that once we begin to see people equal to those problems we have lost COMPASSION!  Compassion is the ability to see beyond a problem that person has and be in awe of each individual's uniqueness and originality!  We must never lose sight of how God views a person!  If we have, we need to go and collect some leaves today!  Ask God to reveal to you just how special each leave is that He has created!  He will restore to you a compassion for those people who are even more special to Him than all the leaves in the world! 

The God Whisperer

Good morning!  Today I was contemplating the Whispers of God.  We all know the TV show "The Dog Whisperer".  The host of the show does an amazing job re-training dogs who display behaviors that the owners cannot seem to change.  With the sound of a whisper, the host begins to work with a dog in an effort to re-train that animal and learn a new, and better behavior.  I have seen many episodes where a very aggressive, unmanageable dog is re-born into a well-behaved pet and all with the simple, quite whisper of the trainer!  We can have a similar experience with the God of the universe!  He whispers in the still of the night, or in the busy times of the day.  He whispers assurance, admonition, calls to action and once we train ourselves to hear those whispers and respond we are then re-born into a better way of thinking and behaving.  If your life has become unmanageable, overwhelming, filled to the brim with unnecessary chaos, then perhaps you need a session with our God and His Divine Whispers!  Take a moment today to be still and listen.  God talks, but it is up to us to listen!  He will transform you and renew your mind, but it won't be through yelling or talking over what you already are hearing now.  It will be in the silence that you will clearly hear that whisper from God and if you take the time to listen, you will be radically changed into a person who will reflect new and better behavior!  Time to go...I have to be still now and listen for my Whisperer.  Have a extravagant day in the Love of God!

The Withered Fig Tree

Greetings!  Today is a new beginning....one of starting a new blog and one of sending and receiving many blessings from this blog.  Sit back, relax, and enjoy....and when it is all said and done please post your thoughts so that I can do the same!  Awesome!
Today, I am going to sign in with a parable of the Withered Fig Tree. Have you ever thought of yourself as a withered fig tree?  I know this isn't a very flattering picture.  Well, Jesus has a few words to say about us being like a withered fig tree.  In Matthew 21:18-22 the story begins with Jesus walking back from Jerusalem with His disciples when He notices a fig tree covered with leaves, but did not have any fruit.  Now, I don't know about you, but if a tree has leaves and is providing shade I would have determined that it was a pretty decent tree doing the job of a tree, right?  Not, Jesus!  He pronouced judgement on the tree and said, "No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you!"  I would say that seems pretty harsh.  After all, if you have ever seen a fig tree they are quite beautiful and their leaves are broad and shady even if there is no fruit!  The gospel of Mark tells us that it was not even the season for figs!  My next question is:  "WHY Lord, would you curse something that wasn't producing even when it wasn't the time for it to produce?!"  This is where the beauty of the story comes into play.  The fig tress in Israel are unique in that theproduce small, green figs in the spring around the Passover. These "early figs" drop off as the summer fig is formed.  Are you seeing the whole picture now?  The absence of these early figs meant an absence of the summer crop which was the productive phase of the fig tree. 
Let's make this applicable to you and me:  The absence of the small, green "figs" on a leafy fig tree is a picture of unbelieving Israel who was professing fruitfulness to a God who already saw the true harvest of their works.  They had no spring figs, therefore there could be no summer harvest! 
We can be as pretentious as we want to while we strut around our broad, green, shady fig leaves boasting productiveness and fruitful works.  Our green leaves can make us look good and promising, but without the early fig crops we are doing nothing more than deceiving ourselves and living as hypocrites!
I challenge each of you today to check and see how your "spring figs" are doing!  Is there an abundance of life right now on your fig tree or are you growing only leaves at this point?  You can change that easily by asking our wonderful Gardener of Life to convict you of those pretensions and cause you to have a productive and authentic fig tree!  Withering figs trees are not an option!