Not So Quick!

In my meditation time this week I came across a scripture that was familiar to me, but God showed me a different side of it. This new perspective certainly pushed me back on my heels a bit.

 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.  (James 1:18-21/NLT)

I've often experienced verse 18 being used to address how we interact with each other.  Teaching us that when we are working to manage our relationships with each other we should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to get angry. However, upon this particular reading of the scripture, God turned it towards my personal relationship with Him. I began to hear the following questions . . .  Have you done this in our relationship? Are you quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry when I speak to you?

Honestly, this was a hard moment for me. It was a moment that layers were pulled back and I was exposed. Because being in this place with the Father is not unfamiliar to me, I knew exeactly what God was trying to accomplish in this moment. God was challenging me to GROW. He wanted me to see myself and know that yes there have been times that I didn't listen, that I interrupted His voice with my own, and that I've even gotten angry with God because of His instructions. And because He has me writing this blog on the topic, I know that I'm not the only one.

Beyond having this reflective moment of evaluating my own reactions to God's voice and instructions, He also tied in the later part of verse 21. He made sure that I understood that not only was I to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry, but I had to be sure that I was humbly accepting the word He already planted in my heart. There are some things that God has already spoken that I must continually humbly accept, because that very word has the power to save my soul. There are some things that I already know to be true that I have to keep at the forefront of my mind and make sure that I'm being consistently obedient to observe. And again, I know I'm not alone.

I pray that my transparency today allows you to see this scripture in a new light for your own life. That it causes you to be honest with the Father and sparks radical change in your relationship with Him. I pray that today begins a new journey for you in your walk with Christ, one that is open, honest, receptive, and fiercely obedient. May you reap all the benefits of your obedience in this season.

Be Present

God has allowed me to write posts concerning the Spirit of Honor and sharing the love of God with those around you, but this post turns the mirror inward.

There are times in our lives where we have to take moments to reflect and receive the love that others are pouring out for us.  We have to pause from the busyness of life and "just be".

We all have the same amount of time in a day . . . 24 hours . . . 1,440 minutes . . . . 86,400 seconds . . . but my question to you is . . . What are you doing with the time God has graced you with?

Are you so busy with the activities of life that the days of the week go by faster than you can remember? Do the birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays seem to come faster and faster each year? Do you find yourself putting off that one thing God keeps reminding you to do for Him, because you have just one too many things on your plate?

If so . . . . I want to recommend that you take an evaluation of your life and how you allocate your gift of time.  Time is one of those things that we cannot exchange, return, or save.  Time is a free gift from God, but we have to be good stewards over what God has given us.  We have to make an effort to set our priorities to reflect God's priorities for our lives, according to His will.


John 10:10 (AMP) tells us . . . . The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).

The thief (a.k.a. the enemy/the devil) will try to get you to fill your 86,400 seconds every day with so many things that you will just be going through the motions of life.  This is how he steals, kills and destroys your time.  You will have life, but you won't be enjoying it.


Be determined . . . . Not to just EXIST… but LIVE! Enjoy life and be present in the moment. Soak in the goodness of God that He shares with you in the small things in life each day. 

God intended for you to experience and enjoy life to the point of it overflowing with His goodness, favor, joy, love, peace, and glory. 

The 86,400 seconds of today, only last for today. They will never be seen again, so make them the best moments of your life . . . TODAY!

Breakthrough . . .

We all get to points in the journey of life that things seem just a little more difficult than others.  In those times I often reflect on the season which God has me in.  In those times of reflection, I realize that often the difficulties that I'm experiencing are associated with the pressure that is needed to breakthrough to the next level in the journey.

I think the pressure we experience is necessary in our lives to get us to face the reality (sometimes even the hard reality) that things have to and are about to change.  Just reflect for a moment . . . . if it had not been for the pressure you've experienced along the way would you have. . . .

• Changed Jobs or Career Paths
• Went Back to School to Pursue that Degree
• Ended that Relationship
• Decided to Follow Your Dream Instead of the Money
• Decided to Begin/Strengthen/Deepen Your Relationship with God

The pressure is necessary to get us to the next step, level, and dimension of the journey that God desires for us.  So when things seem to get tight, uncomfortable, and downright ridiculous, know that you are just on the verge of a breakthrough.  You are on the verge of a moment in your life that will redefine you, reestablish you, and propel you into your destiny.

A lot of things in life are about one's perspective.  Choose the positive perspective in the difficult times.  When you feel the pressure coming on, glorify and worship God for all He has already done and all He is about to break loose in your life. Focus on His ability and not your inability, for with Him you can withstand the pressure that you are experiencing.

God is AMAZING!!! And I'm thankful for the moments in my life where He allowed the outward pressures to push me to greater inner depths with Him.  But I know that in this season . . . . it's time for another BREAKTHROUGH . . . 

Where is the Oil?

As I sat watching a popular reality t.v. show with my beautiful Mom, this statement was made. . . "Where is the Oil?" and it struck my spirit, so here goes . . . . . 

So . . . the funny thing is . . . as Believers, often times when someone calls out "Where is the Oil?" our first reaction is to go looking for the physical anointing oil.  However, in this instance, the search for the oil is one of a spiritual outpouring that is being sought.  It is the search for that intangible deposit of the anointing of God in a person's life and the release of that anointing as they go forward in ministry.

This type of oil can only be obtained by spending time in the presence of the King of Kings, living one's life striving for the holiness that is required for a pure anointing to rest on you, surrendering and consecrating your gift for God's use, and understanding how to step out of the disguise of performance into true ministry.

Don't get me wrong, the physical oil is necessary, but it should not be a substitute for the spiritual oil. The physical oil should be a representation and a reminder, to those who anoint themselves with it, of what God has already done in those private moments of our lives.

When you can stand operating out of the purity of your ministry gift, understanding the purpose of that gift, understanding how God can use it and move through you to minister to others, and desiring nothing more than to give God glory with your gift . . . . at that very moment, you will begin to pour out the spiritual oil (anointing) that's on your life.  At that moment, people will be able to see the conviction in your heart and know that you truly believe what you are singing about.  At that moment the words of the song that you interpret through dance become alive and have a spiritual impact on those who witness the ministry.

Know that God can use your artistic gift, whatever it might be, to minister to His people.  He can use your gift to deliver every spiritual gift . . . salvation, healing, deliverance, restoration, peace, love, etc. to those who have open hearts to receive you as you flow under the anointing of God that's on your life.  

Please be encouraged today to not take the importance of the spiritual oil for granted. It is great to have a talent and to perfect and disciple that talent, but ooooh how much greater is it to have the anointing of God on your life so that your talent then becomes ministry.

The Realm of Impossible

Over the past several weeks I've been feeling this shift in my spirit into the realm of impossible. You may ask … "What are you talking about?" … well let me explain. 

The realm of impossible is that place where all that you've dreamed about accomplishing feels a little out of your reach, but you determine within yourself that you are just going to step out on faith with God, knowing that with God all things are possible. So stepping over into the realm of impossible takes faith, courage, determination, and a desire to become all that God has destined you to be, without backing down.

Don't get it twisted … opposition will come. There will be challenges and situations to deal with in stepping out to accomplish all that you are dreaming of, but in this place of the "impossible" your faith in God has to be unshakable so that you can continue to move forward in spite of any opposition that might come. You have to believe without a shadow of a doubt that God is the only one that can manifest impossible things and you trust Him to do that in your life.

As I continue to walk out this dream of Rebirth Arts, renewing my mind with the word of God is a key part of the process.  Over the last week or so the Holy Spirit has been directly me back constantly to the Amplified version of Philippians 4:13:  I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency].  I know this is just God's way of saying . . . . Trust me, I've got your back!

My prayer is that by sharing this with you, that it encourages you to believe that God can do all that He has promised to you and given you a desire for in your heart.  I hope that it gives you the push in your spirit to just . . . . jump all the way in with God.

So . . . . when you see me . . . . know that I've stepped over into the realm of impossible and I'm going after all that God has in store for me and Rebirth Arts.

A Grateful Heart

As I sat catching up with one of my sisters-in-Christ about her recent missions trip to Africa, I could not help but to begin to think how truly blessed we are and also about how many things we often unknowingly take for granted.

I began to think on some of the things that she shared:

• What if I had to walk for miles without shoes …
  
• What if I couldn't go to school because I lived in an area where no one wanted to come and teach …
  
• What if my family was so poor that they couldn't afford any of the basic necessities to sustain life (housing, food, water, clothing, etc.) …
  
• What if the only life I knew was one where I grew up in an orphanage, never truly becoming familiar with the touch of another human …

As a sat there becoming overwhelmed with God's love and grace I could not help but to think that I need to take the time be more aware and more grateful for all that God has blessed me with in my life, even the little things. My reflection began to put a lot of things in perspective.  It confirmed for me that the situations and challenges that we might face in life, although they may be difficult, could be even more difficult, challenging, and even life threatening.

I don't want to take for grated that I have a safe and secure place to rest my head; that there is running water when I turn the handle on the faucet; that God provides the financial means for me to be able to sustain life . . . . this list could go on and on.

I just want to encourage you with this post to take a few moments of your busy day to reflect and express your thankfulness to God about the "little things".  As you reflect, think that your "little things" could be something very big to someone else who has to live with out it.

                             

A Lifestyle of Worship

"Worship Cannot be Rehearsed" ~ Co-Pastor Elena Robertson

Worship is truly about the position of our hearts toward God and not about the outward displays that we typically associate with worship.  True worship is birthed out of your relationship with God and the steps that we've taken to truly surrender ourselves to be lead by the Spirit of God.  When we truly surrender to God and His plans for our lives, worship then becomes a lifestyle.

When worship becomes just the way that we operate on a daily basis, we will begin to notice greater displays of the "fruits of the Spirit" as mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) being manifested in our lives.  The deeper we take our relationship with God and desire to manifest the "fruits of the Spirit" the deeper our worship unto God will become.  

As we deepen our relationship with God, we become more and more aware of His free gift of grace and understand all the more how God steps in and makes up the difference for us in so many areas of our lives. As we gain this revelation, we can lift our hands in surrender and cry out to God in worship, because we are reminded of just how good God has been and all the things He has brought us through, shielded us from, and favored us with.

I encourage you today to take your relationship with God and your worship unto God to the next level. There is more that God desires to pour out upon your life; however, He is looking for those who want more of Him above all else.  These are the true worshipers (John 4:23-24 NLT).

Did I Go Left?

Many times in our walk with God we ask the question … Did I go left, when I should have gone right? At the heart of this question is the desire to know that we are operating in the will of God.

Rebirth Arts is one of the largest faith walks I've had the honor of taking with God to this point in my life. I find myself often in prayer seeking direction from God, by way of the Holy Spirit, to confirm that the decisions we make, the engagements we accept, the classes and workshops we offer, the staff we bring on board, etc. are in the will of God and what He desires for Rebirth Arts.  My hearts desire is to truly fulfill God's vision and do it with the very best of my ability, so that God can then do the supernatural. 

Even in my seeking, I've also found that there are just some steps that you have to take in faith, trusting God and knowing that He will meet you on the other side and won't let you fall. In those moments of truly stepping out on faith, I've experienced God's overwhelming presence as His way of confirming -- yes, you are exactly where you are supposed to be.

So, be encouraged, at those times in your life when you begin to question, did I go left and I should have gone right .… wait on the presence of God and the peace of God to comfort you and you will know without a doubt that you are exactly where God wants you to be.  Strive to dwell in His peace and all else will fall into place.  God has great plans for your life.  Continue to seek Him and trust His directions.