Addressing Today’s Moral Crisis!

Hi There!!!

Although I’ve been M.I.A. on my blog site, I’ve been very present. Everything that’s been going on in our country have been affecting me I’m sure, just as it has affected you! Because I am not one to hide from dilemmas, I spoke about it quite extensively on my podcast, Praying The Word of God, for several weeks as well as on my other platforms.

For this reason, I also hid myself away for a little time to gain some answers and direction. I needed to know how we, as individuals fit into all of this, especially when most of us feel so powerless.

So I wrote my new book titled, Power, Influence, Prayer and Fasting! This book came from a sense of urgency I had for our country and for people in general. To simply put it, this book is a matter of moral ethics. I used my personal experiences with being set back, my relationship with my mom and the book of Esther to give readers a better understanding of the roles we play in each other’s lives and how positions and resources should be a testimony of God’s goodness not a means to exalt ourselves or abuse, neglect and restrict others .

What I found is that, when we are careless with our positions, with people and our resources, those around us do not get to experience God’s goodness. I wrote it in such a way that anyone could relate to it no matter what background or religion, which wasn’t difficult because concepts like morality, ethics, and right living are universal truths that transcends all our differences!!!

My new book is available now on Amazon as an ebook and the hard copy will be available on October 15th!

I do hope you feel compelled to read it and tell me how you can apply it in your own personal life and your community by writing a review once you’re finished

Prayer Series: Shipwrecked!

We live in a goal driven society!

However, this is not a bad thing because goals give us a sense of accomplishment and meaning to our lives. Because there are so many things I want to do in life; so many things I want to experience, nearly every year, I take a personal inventory of all the things I’ve set out to accomplish from the year before to see how close I came to meeting each goal. For the goals I don’t meet, they get added to the list of things to accomplish for the new year. I then come up with a strategy for how I can obtain what it is that I want to accomplish and begin my mission of executing each one. When I look back and see what I’ve accomplished, it makes me feel good that I actually completed what I set out to do and it makes me feel even better when I see that the strategies I used to complete my goals actually worked!

With that being said, there have been many, many seasons in my life where every goal that I planned for myself, failed right along with my carefully thought-out strategies of finishing them. Gone-down the drain! Now if you’ve had a season like that then you can easily imagine how that feels when what you set out to do doesn’t work out as you planned- you feel defeated, anxious about what’s going to be the result of your failed plan and who else will have to suffer because of it, confused about why your plans didn’t work out- and if it’s something you took a significant risk on, then you’re absolutely scared aren’t you; because you have no clue how far back you will have to go before you can see the light of day again!

(I want to let you know ahead of time that this message is a little lengthy but I promise you if you hang in there, you will find that this message and the prayer contained in it is for you or for someone you need to give this to)

In Acts chapters 27, we find a prison officer, a ship captain and the owner of the ship in a similar situation as they’re in the process of sailing to Rome. You see, the officer was sent on a very important mission and put in charge of making sure one distinct prisoner, who made an appeal to Caesar the Emperor, gets to plead his case. His only responsibility was to keep all the prisoners contained while in his custody and especially make sure the prisoner who made the appeal, successfully stands before the Emperor to be heard. The ship captain also submitted to going to Rome but he had his own responsibilities and plan on how to execute the mission. Since ship captains are experts at navigating through Seas, I’m sure he had a proven success plan that he was going to use for navigating to safe lands. Now, although the owner of the boat was not the expert at sailing, nor did he bare responsibility for anyone on the ship, he had the final say over when to sail because the ship belonged to him and he used it to take care of his own business. You see, outside of everyone’s desire to get to go to Rome, the owner had his own set schedule that involved stopping at several ports in a timely manner before getting there.

If you study the text, you can see, everyone had their own motives and strategies for accomplishing what they needed to accomplish for themselves while getting to Rome. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with this except for them failing to remember one thing; and they would need the prisoner who made the appeal to Caesar, to remind them of the greater purpose of their sail to Rome. However, it was only until things went from bad to worse, when they listened.

Although bound, this famous prisoner (who we know as the Apostle Paul) carried the greatest purpose of all the men on that ship and that purpose was to witness the Gospel to one of the most powerful men in the world for the very first time. Unfortunately, because he was considered a prisoner, his purpose and even his warning of an upcoming storm was overlooked by those in charge of him. Because of this, everyone in the ship (including the ship itself) suffered great loss until everyone else set aside their personal agendas and heeded the instructions of the man whose purpose carried the will of God.

You See, Paul knew they were getting ready to face great warfare through the opposition of the storm. While everyone else was focused on making sure they met their own deadlines and goals, because the message Paul had to deliver was so great and world-changing, he was able to discern that they were going to have several days of slow and difficult sailing and that they needed to move forward with caution and patience so that nothing would be lost in the process. Just as Paul foresaw, the winds became so violent, that they had to sail near the coast lines to avoid the open sea but even still they struggled great difficulty as the weather became dangerous to travel at all. Paul was bound and limited to what he could do but because he discerned the opposition, he felt the need to warn all in charge about the trouble they would face if they didn’t reach the nearest shelter. Paul specifically told the officers and the others, that if they went on sailing, they would suffer a shipwreck, loss of cargo, and danger to everyone’s lives. But no one wanted to settle at the nearest place because it was considered a poor place to settle during the storm and winter season and they wanted to be more comfortable if they chose to stop at all. So, they disregarded Paul.

Have you ever been in a season of your life where you were at a good momentum then you began to see certain things cautioning you to slow down but you didn’t want to because to you didn’t want anything to set you back?

I absolutely understand why they didn’t want to stop! They were goal driven! They were persevering! These men were not lazy people! They all had jobs to do and they were determined to see it out to completion no matter what storm comes! I know first hand that when your pursuing something important to you, it’s hard to listen to the advice of someone telling you to slow down!

Now the officer could have possibly convinced the others to listen to Paul because the officer had a certain level of respect for Paul but he still regarded Paul’s purpose and plan, as less than.   Ultimately, they all failed to recognize that although God’s Word was contained in the heart of a humble prisoner, it was still final authority! Because he saw Paul as someone with the least authority on the ship, the officer chose not to listen to Paul’s warning but instead he listened to the ship’s captain and the owner and sailed further up the coast of Crete to try to make it to a place they felt would be more comfortable for them. And the sailors actually thought they would make it because the wind and storm had calmed down for a time but then the weather abruptly changed back violently!

The scripture says, “… a wind of typhoon strength (called a “northeaster”) burst across the island” and blew them out to sea. The wind was so strong, the sailors couldn’t even turn the ship into the wind, and that is when they finally gave up trying to steer their course but they still tried everything in their power to keep the ship intact and strengthened. They bound ropes around the hull of the ship to keep it from falling apart and they lowered the sea anchor to try to keep the ship from being tossed around so much. But that didn’t work and the vicious winds continued to batter the ship, so the crew started throwing the cargo and some of the ship’s gear and threw it overboard.  Scripture says that this storm was so horrific, that it raged for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars; the people were drained and hadn’t eaten for days and they eventually lost all hope. They were out in the middle of the sea; waiting to die.

Have you ever been shipwrecked?

You may not have literally experienced the destruction of a ship at sea, sinking and breaking apart with you in it but has there ever been a season in your life where you were preparing for something you believe to be the next big move for you? You had everything secured and planned out! You’d been spending all this time pacing yourself and calculating how much time it will take you to reach this goal. Maybe you were planning a wedding. Maybe you were in the middle of furthering your education or in the middle of executing a new business proposal, then all of a sudden, as everything you planned moved in the right direction, your whole life went left! You go over in your mind of ways you could have gone around or avoided these issues altogether but here you are, out here in the middle of nowhere; with no sense of direction, no sense of survival, no plan B; just you inside of your ship with the storms of life attempting to tear you apart one piece at a time. You’re problems have completely consumed you; ripped apart almost everything you’ve been trying to build for yourself and all you have left are broken pieces of the thing that once safely held you together. Exhausted by all the beatings, the storm in your life seems to have blotted out every piece of confidence you had. You feel like God is absent, so you lose all hope and now you wake up every day simply waiting to die.

The prayer that I have today comes from being able to relate to this story. I’m saying this because prayers can come from various sources. Sometimes they’re motivated by a specific scripture and sometimes they’re compelled by stories and as we listen, we find ourselves relating to the characters or the situation- from this can come prayers. So, if this is you, Lets Pray:

Father,

After listening to this story, I feel like this is my life! I’ve been doing enough of my own planning and talking and maybe it’s time for me to sit and listen to you because my plans are no longer working for me. Please take my life and direct it as you see fit. Speak to me again and I will incline my ears to your instructions. Reveal yourself to me again! Everything I’ve planned for seems to be falling apart, and now my hope is fading. Show me how to get back to safe lands even if it has to be on these broken pieces.

This time I will heed your words because I now realize that that although you have given me the desires of my heart, you use them to serve a greater purpose than just in my life but my desires are to ultimately aide in the fulfillment of your will! I failed because I did not put care into the fact that I am suppose to live my life for your will to be done at the direction of your Holy Spirit. Looking back, I heard your Spirit cautioning me but I tried to rush to a place that was convenient for me instead of listening to your Spirit. I now see that the mission you’ve placed on the inside of me wasn’t just another goal to be scratched off of my to-do list. I now see that Making goals and pursuing what I believe you gave me to do wasn’t a bad thing but that somewhere down the line I made it more about how reaching my destination would benefit me than about how it would benefit the kingdom.

Forgive me for not placing enough value on the gift you’ve placed on the inside of me. Forgive me for being so caught up in how what I have to offer will benefit me to the point that I didn’t recognize that what you’ve placed down on the inside of me is supposed to set others free as well! Now I realize that what you have placed on the inside of me is not just for me and in fact it’s greater than me. And because of this I can’t move any old kind of way; it can no longer be my moves. Because what I’m carrying is for your glory I need to make God moves! Forgive me for not respecting the unadulterated power of the gospel, that’s wrapped up in my purpose; and for not seeing that it’s through my purpose that your gospel is delivered. Yet, my failure to follow and listen to you kept it locked up!

I now give up doing things my way and going in my own direction! Now I’m waiting for you! Please show me where to stand while I’m waiting. Help me to be patient with your will and that it is for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, help me to wait for it; because it will surely come and it will not remain behind!

Just like the men in the Scripture had Paul to warn them, help me to remember that I have Your Spirit to lead and guide me. Help me to see that your Word is right here in the middle of the storm with me. This season has broken me and at times I feel alone. Yet even in my solitude, you have not abandoned me! Because of the blood of Jesus Christ, I still have access to your thrown and you have heard every one of my groans! I now see that only you know the way I should go!

Although I can’t seem to see the sun shining through the dark clouds of uncertainty, I ask that you restore unto me the joy of your salvation! Reclaim your purpose for me for I am yours! Help me to rise again! In Jesus name, Amen!

It’s important for me to note that after about 14 days out at sea and the men had given up all hope of being saved, Paul stepped in and said,

“Men, you should have listened to me in the first place and not left Crete. You would have avoided all this damage and loss. But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down. For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me, and he said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.’ So take courage! For I believe God. It will be just as he said…”

I truly believe that every day God allows us to wake up to see another day, it’s because He’s giving us another chance to do better than we did the day before. If you are here today and your listening to this podcast, this is your day to do better, to choose better, and to pursue His will above your own. Of course, you should have listened to the voice of God because you would have avoided unnecessary damage and loss. But because you’re here, you’re alive, God has given you another chance so take courage! Even though your plans have been destroyed, even though you seem to have lost everything you’ve been trying to build for you and your family, even though you are barely surviving on broken pieces, you will not lose your life! Just like the angel of the God stood beside Paul, and said, ‘Don’t be afraid…” because “God, in his goodness has granted safety…”! If this story or this prayer resonated with you, maybe the Holy Spirit is telling you ‘Do not be afraid’, for God’s has granted you safety and his purpose for your life will surely come to pass! So take courage! Believe God! It will be just as he said!

*To hear the audio version of today’s message and prayer, click the icon below or listen on your favorite podcasting network!

Prayer Series: I Believe; Help My Unbelief!

So, today I want to say a prayer for those struggling with unbelief; For those who struggle with who God says he is and what he’s already done; for those who struggle with simply trusting Him… You know, and this is not a onetime prayer! We all need to ask God to strengthen our faith whenever we come into a situation that we’ve never been in before, or when there’s something we’re faced with that continues to contradict God’s word. I even suggest asking God to strengthen our faith even as we’re growing in Him. We all need a greater level of faith as we grow in God!

Often times when my faith is being challenged, I’m reminded of a story in the bible when a man from a crowd of people came to Jesus and asked him to heal his son who was, as, Scripture says, “a mute spirit” and wherever it seized him, it threw him down, causing him to foam at the mouth, gnash his teeth, and becomes stiff, often throwing himself into fire and water. Being frustrated with his disciples who had tried to cast out the demon before Jesus came, He said, to them, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.” The child came and threw himself at Jesus and began doing exactly what his father says he did. Then Jesus began to question the father about his son’s issues. Afterwards, the man said, “…if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” And immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

One commentary lets us know that, although Jesus was frustrated with the unbelieving and unresponsive generation of that time, his purpose was to encourage his disciples to a greater level of faith.

Are you in a situation in your life where you feel weak and powerless against what’s going on? Are you facing a mountain that seems impossible to climb? Are you in a season of your life where you have faith to believe God, but you are also struggling with unbelief? Are you like Peter who had the faith to trust God while walking on water, then you became intimidated by the very thing you once mastered, and as you looked down to find yourself doing something others have told you was impossible, you now are beginning to sink? If this is you,

Pray this Simple Prayer:

Father, I know that you are the one who has given me this measure of faith, so I will trust you to strengthen the faith I already have to help me overcome this trial in my life. Just like Jesus prayed that Peter’s faith may not fail (Luke 22:31–32), Father, please do not let my faith fail but keep my faith sustained. Restore unto me the joy of your salvation! I acknowledge that without you I cannot believe as I ought to. Help my unbelief.

In Jesus name,

Amen!

If you want to listen to more prayers in an audio version, they are now available in a free audio version  entitled “Praying  The Word Of God”, on Apple Itunes, Google, Spotify, Breaker, Castbox, Overcast, Pocketcast, Radio Public, and Stitcher! If you know someone who will be encouraged by these prayers, download and share it! 

Enjoy!

Prayer Series: Father Release Me From My Generational Pain and Bondage (The Prayer Of Jabez)

Have you ever felt ensnared by the life you were born into? Like the past issues from your parents or grandparents or even generations before, still linger in your life (In the Christian world we call them generational curses).

It’s like, you want to do better and go further in your life but you came into this world with such a deficit (very little life skills, skewed perception of others and the world around you, no healthy sense of self-worth, or self-regulation) and you feel like you’re always struggling to come out from the broken places that raised you. Or you may be prospering on the outside, all is going well with you from a surface level, but you still haven’t mastered the demons that linger within your heart and mind; negative and painful experiences that were passed down to you by a loved one or someone you trusted.

If we look over into 1 Chronicles 4:9-10, we see some of the tribe of Juda’s decedents, and in this passage, we find a man named Jabez who was considered more honored than his brothers but Scripture says his mother named him such a name because she brought him into this world in her pain.

His mother literally say’s “I bare him with sorrow” or “I bore him in pain”. Although most assume that his mother’s pain and sorrow came from her labor and delivery, it can also be assumed that her grief may also have come from other difficulties that pressed upon her. It’s believed that this book was written when Jews were actually being dispersed throughout Persia, which was a really difficult time for the tribes of Israel, and even more difficult for pregnant women and their children who were being scattered away from their home land and from all they knew and loved. So no doubt this time period places more emphasis on her pain and sorrow; which makes this story even more relatable to us!

Knowing what he knew about himself and where he came from, Jabez sincerely wanted better for himself. But I think he knew that his name was a reminder of the pain and sorrow his mother was going through while bringing him into this world. But he no longer wanted to carry that burden and he didn’t want that for himself! He no longer wanted to be seen as a product of his mother’s pain; instead he simply wanted to rise above the pain his mother bore him into. This is actually one of my favorite stories of the bible because it reminds me of my life and so many others like this.

And I love that the bible does not say that Jabez blamed his mother for labeling or assigning him to the pain and sorrow she experienced. Instead the bible calls him an honorable man and he simply wanted to be released from her negative experiences so that he can be blessed and turn back to his family and be a blessing to them! Scripture does not allow us to remember Jabez as a man who came from pain and sorrow. Instead, we are encouraged to remember him as the man who cried out to God and asked him for help!

He asked God to release him from his generational pain and sorrow but bless him and enlarge his territory. He prayed for God’s mighty hand to be with him; and to keep him from evil and harm. But if it does come, that it would not bring him pain and sorrow and hinder his growth. And Scripture says, “And God granted his request”.

I don’t think there’s anyone in this world who doesn’t want better for themselves and for their families even if they were born into something less than; Often times, we just don’t have the wherewithal.

So instead of us being upset and blaming our loved ones and others for passing on to us, their issues, in those times, this is what we should pray:

 

Father God, I cry out to you and ask that you release me from my generational pain and sorrow and bless me and enlarge my territory. I love my family, my community and my culture but I just want to grow past the pain I was born into. I want to grow past the bad behaviors and mannerisms that I was taught. I want to get out of the patterns of bondage, I find myself and many of my family and community members in because it’s not helping me grow into the person you say I am! Father, I pray for your mighty hand to be with me; and to keep me from evil and harm. But if it does come, that it would not bring me pain and sorrow and hinder my growth. Instead use what was meant to hinder me to strengthen and heal me, so that I may be your witness to those around me!

In Jesus name,

Amen!

As I go through this prayer series with you, I will post all prayers in the prayer section! Just scroll up to the menu bar, click the prayer link and there, you will find this prayer and others like this.

These prayers are also available in a free audio version  entitled “Praying  The Word Of God”, on Apple Itunes, Google, Spotify, Breaker, Castbox, Overcast, Pocketcast, Radio Public, and Stitcher! If you know someone who will be encouraged by these prayers, download share it! 

Enjoy!

Prayer Series: A Prayer For My Brothers And Sisters In Christ

Today’s prayer was actually written in my first book, Lord, Make Me Good Ground. I thought this prayer was important to add to my prayer series because life can throw us a curve ball at any moment and sometimes we get hit pretty hard to the point where we get knocked off course and forget who we are and what we’ve been called to do and we need to pray and ask God to put us back together. So, Like the prodigal son, we often need to need to go back to our heavenly father’s home so he can remind us who we are in him and who he is in us!

This prayer was inspired by scriptures from Colossians, Ephesians, Timothy, and Romans which was primarily inspired by the Apostle Paul during the inception of persecution of the church. These books were written predominantly to give the church a correct view of God and in His greatness and glory, rather than in the deficient view given them by the false teachers. Who God is and who we are in Him!

Let’s Pray:

Heavenly Father, I thank You for all of my sisters and brothers in Christ, and this is my continuous prayer for them according to Your Word:

As they continue their journey in life, I ask that You give them complete knowledge of Your Will, with spiritual wisdom and understanding so the way they live will always honor and please You as they bear your fruit and continue to grow in your knowledge which causes them to know You better (Col.1:9-11).

I also pray in accordance with Your Word that my brothers and sisters will be strengthened with all Your glorious power for the endurance and patience needed to be filled with joy and always thanking You (vs.11-12). Remind them, Father, that You have rescued them from the Kingdom of Darkness and taken them into the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus, who purchased their freedom and forgave their sins (Vs.13).  Help every person who receives this prayer, to follow and trust You through each test and trial, so their roots can continue to grow down into You so their lives and faith are built on the truth of what You taught them (Col. 2:7).

Father, help my brothers and sisters devote themselves to prayer with an alert mind and thankful heart (Col. 4:2). I pray that You give them many opportunities to share the Gospel of Christ and proclaim Your message as clearly as they should (Col. 4:3).  Help them live wisely and make the most of every opportunity (Col. 4:5; Eph. 5:16). Father, make my brothers and sisters strong and perfect, confident that they are following Your whole Will so they are sure to carry out the ministry you’ve given them (1 Tim. 4:11-16).

Flood their hearts, Father, with light to understand the confident hope You have given them (Ps. 90, 91, 92; Eph. 1, 2). Help them understand the incredible greatness of Your power, as they believe in You and Your promises. Remind them that this is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at Your right hand as head over all things (Rom. 8:11). In the light of happiness and the darkness of trials, let them remember Your Word that has been planted in the ground of their hearts so that it will strengthen, soothe, and calm their spirits and bring forth Your fruit.

Remind my brothers and sisters who pray this prayer that they are Your masterpiece and that You created them anew in Christ so they can do the good things You have planned (Ephesians 2:10). Because You created them to do good things, I pray that You empower them with inner strength from Your glorious unlimited resources. I pray my brothers and sisters continue to trust You so Christ our Lord may make His home in their hearts, growing their love for You, to keep them strong (Ephesians 3:17-19). And as they have overcome, may they further understand how wide, how long, and how deep Your love runs for them and that they may know that neither death nor life, angels nor demons, present or future worries, the powers of hell nor in the sky above or on the earth below…Absolutely nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from your love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:31-39). Father, I thank you that even now, you are enabling them to experience your love, power, and soundness of mind in a deeper way- completing the fullness of life and power that comes only from You. To you be all glory honor and praise!

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

As I go through this prayer series with you, I will also post this prayer in the prayer section! Just scroll up to the menu bar, click the prayer link and there, you will find this prayer and others like this.

These prayers are also available in a free audio version  entitled “Praying  The Word Of God”, on Apple Itunes, Google, Spotify, Breaker, Castbox, Overcast, Pocketcast, Radio Public, and Stitcher! If you know someone who will be encouraged by these prayers, download share it! 

Enjoy!

Prayer Series: Praying FROM A Place of Victory: Psalms 9

Today’s prayer is inspired by Psalms 9, possibly written after a victory over the Philistines. As you know, the Philistines were common enemies to the Israelites mainly because the philistines seen the children of Israel as a constant threat!  The Philistines were considered powerful and warlike and the power God displayed through the children of Israel was enough for them continuously antagonize the Israelites! So they constantly challenged the strength of Israel and often attempted to subject them Philistine laws to prove their superiority!

So, I use this as a prayer of victory whenever I feel under attack by our great adversary, Satan. As Scripture says, he is the one who “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”!

So when we pray this we are going to pray this FROM a place of victory. Which means, no matter where you find yourself this morning; whether there seems to be attacks on every side of you; bills piling up, the spouse or the kids are not acting right, depression and oppression trying to creep in… it doesn’t matter!

Through this prayer, We are reminding ourselves, the enemy and our circumstances that we ARE the victor through Christ Jesus!

Often times, Paul would do this. Paul would be somewhere in prison while proclaiming his victory over this world! And this is what we need to do! So, whether you feel like your in a battle or you’ve just came out of one, this prayer is befitting for us because it’s expressing praise to our God and it’s letting Him know that we appreciate and understand His worth which expands our awareness of who He is!

Lets Pray:

I will praise you Lord with all my heart! I will tell of all the marvelous things you’ve done! I will be filled with joy because of you and I will sing praises to your name oh Most High! My problems and worries and all that taunt me retreated; they staggered and died when you appeared. I thank you because you have judged in my favor. From your thrown you have judged in fairness. You have rebuked and destroyed the wicked and have erased their name forever! 

Because of you, my enemies are finished, in endless ruins. Every evil spirit, spiritual wickedness,  and principality of darkness that has come up against your Word has now been uprooted and are now forgotten! But you oh, Lord, my God and Father, reign forever! I Praise you because you are a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in time of trouble. I know you and the power of your name, therefore I trust you! You will never abandon those who seek you!

I will continue to sing praises to you oh Lord, the one who reigns in my place of worship.

I will continue to tell the world about your unforgettable deeds; about how you avenge the destroyer but care for the helpless and how you never ignore the cry of those who suffer.

Father, continue to have mercy on me and snatch me back from my tormentors and the jaws of death. Rescue me so that I can praise you publicly at your dwelling place; so that so that I can rejoice that you’ve rescued me! Let the enemy fall into the pit he has prepared for me and let his own foot get caught into the trap he’s set for me!

Arise oh Lord! Do not let the word you have spoken over me be defied or mocked! Make your enemies tremble in fear of you and remind them of their fatality!

In Jesus name,

Amen!

As I go through this prayer series with you, I will also post this prayer in the prayer section! Just scroll up to the menu bar, click the prayer link and there, you will find this prayer and others like this.

These prayers are also available in a free audio version  entitled “Praying  The Word Of God”, on Apple Itunes, Google, Spotify, Breaker, Castbox, Overcast, Pocketcast, Radio Public, and Stitcher! If you know someone who will be encouraged by these prayers, download share it! 

Enjoy!

Prayer Series: Prayer of Victory

I was inspired to do this prayer series because I wanted to inspire others to use God’s word as a guide for our prayer life. I use to think something was wrong with me whenever I didn’t have words to say during prayer. Sometimes I felt like I couldn’t articulate my words enough to describe my feeling and sometimes I simply had nothing to say. So, one day I started to just read the bible out load during my prayer time. I began to find out that the scriptures I was reciting were the very words my soul wanted to express. Then one day, I went downstairs to my office, found an unused journal and began this journey of turning scriptures that spoke to my heart, into my personal prayers to God! I believe this is so important because not only did I find myself being strengthened by the word of God, but I started to realize that God’s word had already spoken to everything concerning me! So this prayer series is meant to encourage others to seek God’s word concerning their lives and allow it to strengthen them!

Today’s prayer is inspired by Psalms 20. This particular psalm was written by King David for the kings of Israel. It’s not clear whether this psalm was written during a time of battle or some crisis in King David’s life. However, what we can gather from it is that even the greatest of men face trouble and no manner of worldly authority would exempt a man from it! For this reason, during times of trouble, it is smart for us all to seek refuge in the only one who reigns victorious over all!

This Psalm reminds us of several things: God is the only one who can empower us to overcome our challenges; that our safety lies in God alone; and that victory starts with trusting and relying on the mercy and grace of God.

So if you are faced with great trouble and distress in your life and you need divine help, here is a prayer using scriptures from Psalms 20:

Father,

In the time of trouble, please answer my cry. May you keep me and my family safe from all harm. Father I ask, in Jesus name, that you send me help from your sanctuary and strengthen me from your holy place in heaven. May you remember all my gifts and look favorable on my sacrifices. May you grant me the desires you have placed on the inside of me. 

Father, I come before your thrown and ask that you bless me indeed that I forget all my struggle and my toil in my mother and fathers’ house. Cause me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction. Make me flourish and grant me victory in the very places I suffered and struggled.

May I shout for joy as I hear of your victories and raise a victory banner in your name, oh Lord, my God! Thank you for answering all my prayers. I know that you rescue those you have anointed and answer them from your holy heaven, and rescue them by your great power!

Some boast in their finest possessions but I will boast in the name of the lord, my God! Those who boast in anything other God’s sovereignty will fall and collapse but I oh Lord, will rise and stand firm! Give victory to me Lord and answer my cry for help.

In Jesus name,

Amen!

As I go through this prayer series with you, I will also post this prayer in the prayer section! Just scroll up to the menu bar, click the prayer link and there, you will find this prayer and others like this.

These prayers are also available in a free audio version  entitled “Praying  The Word Of God”, on Apple Itunes, Google, Spotify, Breaker, Castbox, Overcast, Pocketcast, Radio Public, and Stitcher! If you know someone who will be encouraged by these prayers, download and share it! 

Prayer Series: A Prayer of Affirmation and Reassurance

Have you ever felt stuck during your prayer time with God? You know how you feel. You kind of know what you want to say but you feel as though your having a difficult time formulating the exact words you want to say.  Well, I want to let you know that nothing is more powerful than praying God’s word because His word has already spoken for us before we were even created! I believe that not only is God’s word is like that best friend who knows how to finish our sentences  but it is our super power! It fights the fleshly battles of life using spiritual weapons that God gave us and it is our hope and assurance, not only in the life to come but in our here and now!  And It doesn’t matter if your young, old, or inexperienced, anyone can do it. When you need Him, call on Him!

Even Jesus used the word of God to overcome this life! When we pray through the word of God, we are allowing God’s word to abide in us and as a result we will see His word manifesting in our lives! When we pray through God’s word, we are aligning ourselves with His Will.

And praying God’s word doesn’t have to be some fancy speech! God is deeply touched when we recall, through faith, His Truth back to Him. This lets him know that we are in agreement with Him. Not only that but God’s Word marks us on the inside, changes us, it builds us up and it testifies to the unseen spiritual realms and our adversaries who holds the final say in our lives!

For this prayer series, I wanted to talk about seeking God for affirmation and reassurance while transitioning in our lives. So, I was inspired by Joshua chapter one. As the Book of Joshua opens, Moses is dead and God gets it in His mind that the Israelites need a new leader. That new leader happened to be Joshua! After Joshua is appointed, his first duty was to have the Israelites, cross the River Jordan. Before advancing towards what God commanded him to do, God assures Joshua of what was given to him and he also assure him that he will be with him wherever he goes! I believe God’s affirming and reassurance was just what Joshua needed because he was about to go into territories he never lead before.

So if you are starting a new venture in your life and you want to know God is with you,here is a prayer using scriptures straight from Joshua chapter one:

Father,

As you were with Moses and as you were with his servant Joshua, I ask that you be with me. As you prepare and install me, as a leader in your kingdom, will you please give me every place where you set my feet because you are with me. As I do your will here on earth, let no one be able to stand against what you’ve called me to do all the days of my life. I trust that you will not leave nor forsake me!

Please help me to be strong and courageous in all you’ve called me to do. Help me to be careful to obey, trust, honor and worship you. Help me to not turn against your truth and your Way so that I may be successful where ever I go!

May I keep your words forever on my lips. May I meditate on it day and night so that I may be careful to do everything you reveal to me by your strength.

I believe that when I am careful to walk in your way,  I will flourish in all you call me to. As I am transitioning into the responsibilities you are giving me, help me to not be afraid and discouraged because you are my Lord and my God! You are with me wherever I go!

Thank you for hearing and answering me.

In Jesus name,

Amen

As I go through this prayer series with you, I will also post this prayer in the prayer section! Just scroll up to the menu bar, click the prayer link and there, you will find this prayer and others like this.

These prayers are also available in a free audio version  entitled “Praying  The Word Of God”, on Apple Itunes, Google, Spotify, Breaker, Castbox, Overcast, Pocketcast, Radio Public, and Stitcher! If you know someone who will be encouraged by these prayers, download share it! 

Enjoy!

Forgiveness & Growing Gracefully

 

I’ve always told others that I look forward to growing older but now that I am growing closer to middle adulthood, I started posing this question to myself, “Am I gracefully maturing as I age?” I started wondering if I was maturing like I’d like to or am I just allowing time to work its magic on my black hair that has all of a sudden been turning grey this year, by the way. I thought I was until a few years ago, my answer became a huge “No”! I say this because a few years ago, I was forced to deal with some childhood trauma that surfaced in my adult life. Side bar: The interesting thing about trauma is that it can be suppressed deep down in your subconscious self for many years, then one day, a situation comes along that unlocks those unwanted feelings you’ve buried most of your life and your faced with either reacting to them or confronting them. If we don’t deal with the trauma that surfaces in our lives, I don’t care how “dressed up” or “put together” we make ourselves, we are not walking in wholeness and can not present to the world the best version of ourselves! And this is where I found myself. So, I chose to confront my demons. I began looking over my life and examining things from my younger life that has been a hindrance to in my adulthood and I realized that I needed to start doing the work.

Truth is, I’ve been thinking about this now more than ever because I have four beautiful children to raise and I keep seeing myself through them, sometimes good and sometimes not so good. I see good things that I have instilled in them that will make them stronger and effective in life, I also see some characteristics of my quirky personality that have carried over into their individual lives. However, when I see my children, they also reflect back to me in some ways, things I lack or am weak in. Recognizing the fact that my children are a product of who I am and to some degree, a representation of my brokenness just as much as they are an illustration of my feats, caused me to make it my mission to learn how to grow in a healthy way as I age so that I can offer my children (and others I effect) the best version of myself. I began doing this by first learning how to address my past from a posture of forgiveness.

When I first began this journey, I looked back at those who I felt owed me for the things I lacked or silently suffered from. But this obviously kept me in tremendous bondage because no matter how much blaming I did, time could not be rewound. However, learning the true art of forgiveness helped me to see that when I truly forgive it provides me with benefits that helps me to move on such as:

• Healthier relationships.
• Improved mental health.
• Less anxiety, stress and hostility.
• Fewer symptoms of depression.
• Improved self-esteem.
• and other health improvements.

Forgiveness may seem like a common sense concept, especially in the Christian world, but believe it or not, there are a lot of people who don’t know how to forgive. When someone tells a traumatized or emotionally wounded person, “You just need to forgive so you can move on”, they make it seem like forgiveness is a concrete object that can erase an emotional problem. This is why there are many how-to books related to the topic of forgiveness. I truly believe that many people want more than anything to forgive and move one from past traumas but simply don’t know how. For me, I’ve always been told to just “let it go” but it took me years to actually learn how. For such a long time I believed that when you have truly forgiven someone, you don’t feel emotional pain from the offense but that couldn’t be farther from the truth! It it possible for us to forgive but still hurt! I know that the Bible emphasizes the need for us to forgive those who have wronged us but we need to place just as much emphasis on the process of forgiveness  which involves relinquishing the offender from the debt owed and learning to let go of emotional wounds so that we can truly be free to move on. Forgiveness is one thing but being healed from the pain of the offense is a whole other procedure that’s needed for our growth.

Unforgiveness keeps us in a posture that victimizes us even after the offense has taken place. Once we have mastered the art of forgiveness, we can then start the process of reflecting back on our lives in a more positive way which comes from a place of ownership (which is also part of the process of forgiveness). For this process, I am defining ownership as a posture of recognizing that moving forward requires me to release my debtor so that I can regain ownership of myself hence, moving forward in responsibility for myself (my actions, my thinking, my feeling). As a result, when we reflect back on areas of our lives that need healing or restoration, we are simply going back to that moment in life to reflect on what was needed for that time that may be affecting us in our present self. Once we have identified what we lacked, we can then move on to the next process which involves seeking provision in order to fulfill what we are lacking within our adult selves. This part of the process involves us taking full responsibility for self (because once we have forgiven, we no longer look to the offender or others to repair us). This is part of the process where we force ourselves to look at how things are still affecting us, then look at what we need to do to bring change into our lives.

With all of this being said, I wanted to invite those of you who have found yourself on a similar path and want to move forward in life with grace, confidence and everything else we need to reach our authentic selves. Here is a link to the introduction of my journey and please feel free to comments and share how you are moving forward in life through forgiveness and aging gracefully!

Feelings of Unworthiness/Undeserving

I was having a conversation on the phone the other day with a precious sister in the Lord. As we were making small talk, I reminded her that she and I share the same birthday month, and we wanted to know each other’s plans. I of course, have been thinking for months on what I want to do for my birthday so, without uncertainty, I effortlessly let her know that my plans consisted of me, spending a little time away in a serene environment so that I can relax by myself. I then returned the question to find out what her plans were. She too, need not any time contemplating her answer though her response was quite different. She quickly replied, “You know what, I try to forget my birthday! I don’t celebrate my birthday, I haven’t celebrated it in years, and it doesn’t exist to me anymore… I’ve just kind of done away with it…!” I can remember hearing the shame, guilt and self-condemnation in her voice as she justified her choice to not celebrate. I believe she heard it too as she followed up with the question, “Is that a bad thing?”

Not wanting to celebrate birthdays is not abnormal. There are many cultures and religions who choose not to partake in the revel of birthdays or other occasions one might consider to be special. So, her not wanting to celebrate her birthday was not a concern for me rather it was her reasoning behind why she chose not to celebrate. She went on to explain that she chose to denounce her birthday because of the bad memories that were associated with it. As a result, her way of resolving (by that I mean suppressing) the continuous internal conflict that transpired every year when her birthday came around, was to simply refuse to acknowledge the day she was born- which is a strategy we all use when we don’t know how to resolve, cope or confront past issues in our lives. After she explained to me her reasoning, we both chuckled because I completely understood where she came from and it was tickling to admit our truths out loud to one another. Being that I received a clearer reason for her not celebrating her birthday, I felt compelled to ask her if I could celebrate her. She allowed me to make arrangements even though she did not feel deserving or worthy of God’s goodness. Since I could relate to her, I shared my testimony of how God showed me that although I did not deserve his goodness, He thought I was worthy of Him expressing his goodness towards.

We All Have Times Where We Feel Unworthy, Or Undeserving

Truth is, we all will face a time where our lives will prove that we are undeserving of God’s goodness. Because we all have fallen short and failed to meet His expectations of righteousness, we don’t deserve to experience His love, grace or mercy. This is the main reason why Christ suffered and died in our stead- because we could not pay the price ourselves. The thing that’s worse than us constantly condemning ourselves, is that the enemy will help us remember the fact that we don’t deserve anything good from God, while allotting even more time trying to convince us that we are also unworthy of any good thing from God and that we have lost our value to Him and therefore, an insignificant being.  Although it’s healthy for us to know that we are not deserving of God’s goodness (so that we won’t boast in our own self-righteousness), God has proven throughout Scripture that we ARE worthy of his goodness!

We ARE Worthy Of God’s Goodness!

When I think of being undeserving yet worthy, I immediately think of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). This story is about a loving father who had two sons- one of which made wasteful and foolish decisions with his inheritance which left him destitute and seemingly worthless. He went back to his father’s house to plead for his father’s forgiveness and to come back as a slave. Instead the father overwhelmed him with hugs and kisses, called for his servants to dress him in a fine robe, a ring, sandals, and to prepare a feast. The prodigal son knew he didn’t deserve to be brought back in his father’s house as a son, so he hoped for a position as a slave. However, his father declared that he was worth more to him than a slave. This story reminds us that God found worth in us even when we don’t see it in ourselves! Scripture says,

 

“For our sake, he made him [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2nd Cor. 5:21)

 

The word “sake” means that it was for our benefit or advantage that Christ became a sin offering for mankind. The God Almighty has a special interest in us that is so significant, he chose to sacrifice his only begotten son in order to preserve us. Are you feeling worth anything yet? In another passage it says,

 

 “What is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet…” (Psalms 8:4-6)

 

We are but earthen vessels, made lower than angels yet our Heavenly Father saw fit to crown us with glory and honor. Not only that but He made us rulers over the works of His hands and put everything under our feet! I know you’ve got to feel like you’re a little bit worth something now?!

Sometimes it takes a while to get use to the fact that we are undeserving yet worthy of God’s goodness. No matter what we’ve gone through and no matter how far we’ve fallen, He loves us and we are valuable to Him!