What are You Doing with Your Angels?

Angels are talked about often. Most times, people have been made aware of their guardian angel. However, the angelic realm goes far beyond that. 

In Jesus' prayer in Matthew 6, He mentions "thy kingdom come, thy will be done, ON EARTH as it is IN HEAVEN." That is a pretty good indicator that earth is to operate like heaven. Some may believe that statement was from the time that Jesus was on earth forward, but that is not the case. The moment God put Adam and Eve in the garden, He established government and since God created heaven, it is safe to believe that He established His government on earth the same as in Heaven. (Check out Genesis 1:26-28.)

What I find interesting, is that when you look at the people of Israel and were established as nation, they had no king. It was known that God was their king. Under his dominion, there were 12 tribes. Each tribe had certain characteristics and responsibilities. If earth mimics heaven in its establishment of government, there are then different tribes of angels in heaven, since they were the ones who lived with God before we (humans) came into the picture. 

Messengers
We often hear of the messenger angels like when Daniel was fasting and waiting for an interpretation or when Mary had the announcement of her being the mother of the Messiah. But, there were also warrior angels. 

Warriors
The angel that delivered the message to Daniel said he was delayed and so Michael had to intervene and do some fighting so that he could get through. 

There are guardian angels but we think of them as little floating babes when in Genesis the angels that were put in front of Eden to guard it had flaming swords. 

Ministering
There are ministering angels that we hear came to Jesus after his temptation and to Elijah when he was in a deep depression because Jezebel wanted his head. (Women can be evil at times. j/k...not) 

There is an invisible realm with lots of activity around us that we are unaware of, but God wants us to have more sensitivity to that realm. He wants us to be aware that we are not alone and that we have a lot of backing. We have angels at our disposal. (Psalm 103:19-22, Hebrews 1:14, Matthew 18:10, Exodus 23:20, Psalm 91:11-12) It is worth reminding you that 3/4 of the angels stayed behind and chose God as sovereign ruler. 

Your angels are not some floating, fat-little babies. There are some angels that look pretty darn scary. (Check out their description in Revelation.) They understand what is at stake and their mission is to protect, guard, fight and minister to you. So...what are you doing with your angels? Are you using them or boring them to death? Are you giving them a reason to worship God along side of you, or are they having to cover their eyes because you're not living a righteous life? Are you keeping your angels busy? Are you releasing them on assignments to tear down strongholds, break curses, or minister to a family member or friend? Again, what are you doing with your angels?

If we would ask God to open our eyes to see the spirit realm, it would be scary. Most of us would want to stay blissfully ignorant and blind to the reality of what is going on in the spirit realm. 

Many struggle in life because they don't tap into it. They don't believe that they deserve that type of protection because of behavior or thoughts that they participate in. Is that you? The truth of the matter is that you are assigned angels. How many you gain over the years depends on your activities in the spirit realm. 

We focus on what we see, but God puts merit and worth to the unseen. When you love, the ripple effects are established and experienced for generations, as a matter of fact, for eternity. Whenever you do something out of love that shows compassion or brings healing, it is a catalyst for change that's felt in the spirit realm all the way to heaven...not just around this earth. Your angels are patiently waiting for you to send them to resolve, fight or bring comfort and healing to those around you far and wide. Are you using them? 

You are not to pray to angels. An angel from the Most High God would not allow it. They give glory and honor only to Him and would not take it. Only demons would accept that from you. When you're decreeing and declaring, you're also commanding. You're commanding a situation to be, even though at the present time it may not be. We have been given dominion. It was restored when Jesus rose from the dead and handed dominion back to us. You have the right as the daughter or son of the Most High God to command angels to do what they so long and want to do for you. Are you using them? What are you doing with your angels?

My prayer today is that you get deep revelation, that you can see this unknown fact in a dramatic way that it changes your life forever. Your angels are waiting for you, and the more you put them to work, and the more you step up into faith, the more will be added to you. We often hear, new level...new devil. How about instead we focus on, new level...more angels. Put your angels to work today. They're waiting. 

Balance of Faith

Whenever we hear the word faith, we automatically think of the definition believing without seeing. In our minds, we make it a mystical mystery. Yet we fail to see that we operate in faith everyday without much thought. We dismiss the power behind faith and explain it to ourselves and others as expectation. We think this is what is going to happen because it is part of the norm, or because we’ve worked hard towards this or that. In our foolishness we forget that expectation is part of faith. Both go hand in hand.

Life on this earth operates on faith. Even if our views are warped, it doesn’t change this power-principle that makes all things what they are. Everything around you that is in existence today is as a result of faith. Whether the outcome was good or bad, it required that a person move within a series of steps that purposed them to believe in their cause. We often wonder why our world is so off kilter and are inclined to blame politics, terrorism, war and anything else that is blatantly evil or wrong with our world. However, none of us stop to think that we contribute to the chaos because of our actions or lack thereof.

Ripple Effect
Each one of us generates a ripple effect in the vast ocean of life. Our lives are intertwined. We may never meet or speak to a person across the ocean, but our actions always affect others, be it good or bad. What does this have to do with faith, you may ask yourself. Faith thrust us into action. Faith has the potential to cause change, it also creates. It brings into existence things that were never there before. Think about it. The level of technology we have today is because of faith. Someone thought about it, believed they could make it a reality and stuck with it until it came to pass.

Perhaps you are thinking that you just don’t fit into that category of the adventurer who forged the path of advanced technology, but you do. Faith begins with small steps and grows each time you see what you waited for materialize. All of us possess it. However, many still struggle with the acceptance of the power behind it. We dismiss the validity, deny it because of past disappointments, or dismiss it altogether because it is not tangible.

Blind Faith
People do not have faith in God because they believe He is not real, stopped believing because something bad happened to them or a loved one, or refuse to believe because they cannot see Him (although some will acknowledge that there is some higher power out there). Yet they’ll readily place their faith on people they don’t know or have never seen.

How many of us have boarded a plane to fly half way around the world because we believe that the pilot has the right credentials? We’ve seen countless air crashes but continue to fly. We don’t know the pilot, we’re not even sure the guy we see when we enter the craft is the one behind the controls, yet in our minds we have ushered in feelings of belief and security.

Balanced Faith
Contrary to popular belief, God is love, tells us constantly how incredible we are in the bible and encourages us to live life to the fullest and in peace. When your first faith is in God, it balances out all other aspects of faith in your life. You understand who you are, you believe things will get better (even when it ‘looks’ like it is getting worst, and that outlook spills over to anyone who comes in contact with you…at least that is how it is supposed to be.

Perhaps you have not experienced balanced faith although you believe in God. Maybe you don’t believe in God and are skeptical. In either case, you cannot dispute the truth of balanced faith unless you’ve experienced it. Unbelief is so detrimental. It happens when we listen to different sources without questioning or experiencing for ourselves, or because we get hung up on a past mistake – often due to poor choices, our own, someone else’s or because of something we’ve witnessed.

Affirmation and Faith
Faith in God is a personal experience. It is a personal choice. He continues to affirm us no matter what stance we decide to take. Affirmation is so important throughout our lives. It motivates us to do the impossible, to love without limits, and to create in the realm of endless beauty. None of us can accept or embrace affirmation unless there is faith. Someone can tell you over and over again that ‘you can’, ‘you’re so talented’, etc, but if you don’t believe, it’ll slip right through the ears.

Perhaps you’re doing pretty well because you are an achiever and have a trail of blazing success…but, when all is said and done and you’re alone at night, does all of that grandeur cradle your soul, or do you find that you have a hollow-ache inside? It’s not enough to believe in yourself. It’s not enough to depend on others to empower you. Tangible as both may seem, we all know that time makes us all waiver and change.

Power of Relationship

When faith comes from within your spirit and its source begins with God, then you become a force to contend with. In order to get to that place, though, you have to throw unbelief out the window. One thing that blew my mind was when I understood what Jesus meant when he prayed, “Father I ‘know’ that you hear me.” He said those words with such certainty.

Most people don’t know - or let’s just say it - don’t believe that they are being heard. When you say you don’t know, what you’re really mean is that you don’t believe (because you don’t feel it). It finally hit me when I caught myself saying the same thing one day. I was able to say it with certainty because I had built a strong relationship.

Faith grows in accordance with your relationship with God. If your relationship is strong, your faith will be strong. If your relationship is weak, your faith will be weak. If your relationship is non-existent, your faith will always be lacking. Faith will never be balanced in your life unless you invest yourself into your primary, spiritual relationship. Your choice determines the type of life you’ll live. You can continue to limp in certain areas of your life, or you can begin to walk tall and confident in body, soul and spirit.

To hear truth and do nothing is just as bad as unbelief without experience. No matter what choice you make today or what you decide to believe, remember…truth always confirms itself with time. Balance your faith today and become the ripple effect that causes the tidal waves of change.

Either He is or He Isn't

There are times when we hit a juncture in the road and we question everything we’ve been taught and believe in. This often occurs when hardship or tragedy strikes us at the very core. It makes us question the sovereignty of God. In most cases, these raw moments become a benchmark for change.

A Broken World

In the United States, we pride ourselves in the freedoms that most countries do not have. However, there is a freedom that we all possess that surpasses all others. It’s called the freedom of choice. We are free to choose everything and anything for our lives. It’s our God-given right, and it is something He will not violate. This includes the choice to live a life with or without God.

We live in a broken world. To ignore that is foolishness. We all recognize that there is good and there is evil. However, for some reason, it’s become easier for many to blame God for everything and easily dismiss the reality of driving force behind what’s evil.

Unanswered Prayers

Our families had been healthy for the most part but a few years ago, a few things occurred that really tested our faith to the very core. One of those events was the death of my cousin’s 4 year old son; my nephew. You see our prayers weren’t answered the way that we expected. We prayed for healing. Our expectation was to watch him grow up to be a strapping young man.

Many of us call ourselves Christians but we really don’t understand what that means. Usually it’s a title we use to define our religion. Here is where most of us miss it. We go through the motions or traditions, but we often wonder if God is really out there, especially when our prayers go unanswered.

Either He Is or He Isn’t

It was during one of those junctures in my road that I questioned, I mean really posed the question to myself. Either He is or He isn’t? I was tired of hearing about what God could do, and I was tired of not seeing that in full effect in my life.

When I questioned this, it had nothing to do about my salvation. I knew I was saved. Acknowledging His existence was not a challenge. The challenge was to allow Him to work in my life and the choice to believe in His sovereignty in any case and trust Him in all and with all.

The easiest part for me was to accept sovereignty. The hardest part was to trust totally (an ongoing journey).

• To trust totally meant that my prayers had to change and become bold and daring and not continue to be wimpy and wishful.
• To trust totally meant that when I prayed, I had to hand it over and not obsess and stress over the situation.
• To trust totally meant that I had to relinquish total control or the illusion of control.
• Finally, my expectation had to become that the answer to my prayers were no longer restricted to my time line or the confines of my exact request.
  

AJ’s Legacy
I don’t know why my nephew died at such a young age. I believe the answers to my whys will become clear one day because living here is just a prelude. I will see AJ again and I look forward to watching him race with the angels.

In the mean time, I don’t let my unanswered questions weigh me down. What’s the point?

Here’s what I do know. I know that my nephew made an unbelievable positive impact in his 4 short years that many do not make in a lifetime. Other prayers were answered because of him. His ripple effects are still being felt today. That continues to bring me great comfort.

The Choice

Here’s something I live by.

I refuse to live a life stuck in the past, a life wondering about the future and a life scared to live in the present. How? …I’ve chosen to trust God.

Either He is or He isn’t…and for me…He is.

I Try to Notice

God shows me His power, His grace, His mercy, His love, His compassion, His beauty - everyday... I try to notice.

The reason I use the word ‘try’ is because my day can be harried or busy enough for me to miss out what is being shown to me every day - without fail. When the conscientious effort is made to notice, a smile touches my lips, peace is ushered in and connection to the heavens continues.

Each day, we catch a glimpse in our moments of light, as my sister Mayra says, where we’re reminded of His presence, joy, love and beauty.

How does that happen for you? If you’re not sure, let me share some of my insights and then perhaps you can share as well.

It’s in the small things. It’s in the kind words, the unexpected hug, the compliment or the 2 minute phone call from someone you love.

It’s in the routine. It’s in the comfort of coming home, sitting in an office, driving to the grocery and in the rules of engagement with others that those routines bring.

It’s in the obligations. It’s in the caring, feeding, educating and bathing of children. Their smiles, laughter, stories even challenges, bring a reminder of our God like no other.

God can be blatant and extravagant in his blessings and that’s when we most tend notice, really notice. To operate in that mode of extravagance will not give us the ability to survive the now and the present. We must notice the small, the routine, even the obligations, for God is always in all. To ignore that fact, that truth, imprisons us. There is no freedom – only religion.

God is not limited to the building, the pew, our beliefs or interpretations. He is ever present and in expectation for us to discover him, again and again and again.

Yes, God is ever present...just stop as often as you can and notice.

Curious Love

Do you know that nothing can separate you from God’s love? That statement will only make sense to you if you have a deep relationship with the Almighty. It will comfort you if you need to be reminded. It will encourage you, if you have fallen away from God or do not currently have a relationship with Him.

To understand God’s love is to experience it. One can try to explain it as best as one can, but experience brings it to a level where it cannot be denied. When you discover how deep God loves you, no one can shake your core beliefs. No one can change your desire to pursue the light of God’s love. Circumstances may rattle you but instead of letting go, you hang on because you know that depth of love is like nothing you’ve ever known before.

It’s such a deep and personal experience, that it becomes hard to explain, because it is simple to explain. The simple explanation of God’s love frustrates those who hear about it, because they do not understand. They do not understand because they focus on the bad that has happened in their lives and conclude that God is not love or cannot be love because He is to blame. Quite honestly, any of us would feel that way with that mindset.

It’s our human nature to want to blame God when tragedy happens because He could have stopped it. It’s our nature to blame God when circumstances happen that could have been changed by Him, even if it was because of our own doing. However, it’s also our nature to only pray to Him when things are going bad or we are desperate. Somehow we forget Him when all is well. And yet even when we forget about God, He waits patiently. Most of us would not bother with someone who forgets us constantly, but God actually is thrilled when we remember Him.

Instead of God being human and saying forget you when you reach out to Him in crisis, He gives His best to comfort you. His heart breaks because some things could have been avoided if you understood the authority you receive when you accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. You will never avoid bad stuff entirely, but you at least begin on an even field and then quickly move into the winner’s circle. What does that mean? It means that even when you lose in life, all is not lost.

There is always hope, when you understand, when you have accepted, when you embrace that God loves you and nothing that has happened or that you have done can change that. You may never understand the whys but you do know you are loved. It’s not a regular type of love. It’s a love that is deep and undeserving. It humbles you and it enraptures you.

It’s my hope and my prayer that you become curious of this love and that it encourages you to experiment just like you have with everything else in life. Hasn’t life’s motto been - before you knock it, try it?  Just talk to Him as you would a lover and a friend…constantly.

Romans 8:37-39 NIV

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

What Do You Bring to the Table?

When asked if you love someone, our instinctive reaction is to think about how someone makes us feel. We let memories that forged those feelings captivate our mind. We can actually smell their cologne, feel their last kiss and get all mushy inside. Although our initial thought was based on what we felt, we all get to a point where we understand and know that it’s more than that. It’s a verb. It is the constant action that gives validation to the words…I love you.

Unfortunately the expression, “I love you” has come across as empty words for many women. They heard these precious words but were shown quite the opposite. Many have suffered neglect and emotional, verbal and/or physical abuse or were enablers to men who never grow up and are still boys. Regrettably, a lot of our gals have not learned their value and believe that they don’t deserve a man that should treat them like a queen.

What does it mean to be treated as a queen? It means waiting for a man that will treat you with respect and honor that will support and complement you as an individual. It doesn’t mean that when you do find that man, you claim the right to maintain your broom lady persona with the pointy hat. Our mentality has been ‘I will not get burned again’ and so all men ( the ones that live with us, the ones that are dating us, the ones that will date us, even the ones who are consider dating us) are subject to our wicked wrath.

Perhaps if we’d invest more of our love affair with God, a lot of us would not continue to feel this way. You see your love affair with God will determine the thermostat of your most intimate relationship.

So the question is do you love God? I mean do you really love God; not just lip service.

Let’s start with why it is important to a man that you love God. The top reason for a man is because he wants to be with someone that is not afraid to receive love and respects him. I can see some of you cringing at the word respect because you’re thinking ‘I don’t need another daddy’. Let’s define the word respect. It’s a feeling of admiration, thoughtfulness or esteem towards someone. I think that is doable don’t you?

So how can a woman meet a man’s need to give love and receive respect? Well here’s the answer.

The ‘Does She Love God’ Age-Old Theory

Girl has relationship with God because…

Girl responded to God’s love, then…

Girl grows to love God, and…

Girl understands God’s love so…

Girl craves to be more like God, then…

Girl lives to reflect God’s love, and wala…

Girl is able to respect the way God commanded.

Yes you read the last bullet right. You see in the bible it was very clear. God said to man love your lady but he said to us gals, respect your man. Why is that? For the most part, we don’t have a problem with loving, we’re emotional beings. The problem for most tainted women is to receive love and bestow respect to the man who wants to love them. There are many reasons for that, but the one that floats to the top of the list is trust. Quite simply, you do not trust. You do not trust enough to receive love, therefore, you cannot respect, admire, esteem…forget about being thoughtful. What about the need to earn trust? That’s a reasonable question in any relationship and can only be answered by you.

Does your primary relationship include God, love and trust?

You see when you love God, really love God, the hardest decision you will make it to trust Him. I’ve heard some women say, it’s not hard to trust God…He loves me no matter what. That is a fact that most know and acknowledge but they live however they like. Imagine being in a relationship saying you love someone, but you continue to do things that hurt your significant other. Is that really love?This is where a lot of us miss the mark. We say we love God but our DO doesn’t support it.

When we love God, we understand the importance of surrender. Surrender puts us in a place of trust. However, surrender is not possible unless there’s an intimate relationship. When there’s an intimate relationship, God can unearth all the crappy stuff that we call luggage. He can help us acknowledge the hurts so we can heal or find the help to heal. He releases us from the bondage of low self-esteem because he provides the affirmation, validation and value that we seek as women. He takes it a step further and helps us discover our purpose, is thrilled when we finally walk in our destiny and remains on the sidelines to cheer us on. I even believe (my opinion) that He smiles when we walk like His queens, confident and bold strutting in our black patent-leather stilettos. (Okay maybe minus the 6 inch heels for some of us.)

A woman that knows who she is doesn’t need a man to complete her but welcomes a man that adds or complements her. When you strive to become the woman that God wants you to be, you position yourself to receive your man’s love and you understand the importance and balance that respect brings in that intimate relationship. That is what you bring to the table.

You will never know the depth of you, the potential within you or your uniqueness on your own. I bet if you think about it, you’ve probably tried everything else and you still come up empty. You look in the mirror and you don’t like what you see.

Don’t lose heart, make a change and start today. Fall in love with the One who loves you unconditionally and wants the very best for you.

Author’s Note:
I encourage you to cultivate and invest into your relationship with God. When you become real with God, He can't help but become real with you.

By the way, if you’ve never received the gift of God’s love for you, now is a good time to consider doing so. This simple prayer will grant that to you. (Lord Jesus I give my life to you; forgive me of my sins.) Yes that simple. Drop me a note. I would love to hear about it.

But I Love You

I feel really bad I haven’t spent enough time with you lately.
           But I love you…

I just can’t keep my head straight. There are so many things going on.
           But I love you…

Yea but it’s just that I don’t exactly do what I’m supposed to do all the time.
          But I love you…

You don’t understand. I just can’t be perfect. I have messed up a lot lately.
         But I love you…

I don’t get it. I’ve been angry with you lately. I’ve even questioned who you are.
         But I love you…

I pause in my misery of wanting to deserve…to earn your acceptance.
         But I love you…

How can you love me?     
         Because…Just Because….

It's in the Experience

Everyday we hop on a train or a bus trusting that the driver whom we don’t know will get us to our destination. We don’t think twice about boarding a plane and flying half way around the world because we believe that the pilot has the right credentials. Down we plop ourselves into any chair expecting that the legs are sturdy enough to hold our weight, and when we walk into any building that looks like it was built correctly the thought of cave in never crosses our mind. Heck, we’re even sure that our banks will hold our money, make it grow, and not skip out of town with it.

We do all of these things because over time experience has ushered in a feeling of belief and security that the results will remain positive for the most part. All of us willingly rely on people we don’t know or even see every single day and yet when it comes to God a lot of us have silent reservations. Christians become voiceless on this subject in fear that they may be misunderstood or labeled as “not having enough faith”. Those who claim not to believe in God or organized religion are quick to denounce a belief based on observation, very seldom from experience.

Reality is that life brings us through a series of events that challenge us, force us to assess who we are, or make us undergo changes we often don’t want to make. Experience compels us to weigh our beliefs and make choices at times based on faith. When you look at the word faith (believing in what you can’t see), and begin to dissect what it means, somewhere in the mix comes up the word certitude. This wonderful word portrays an array of emotions. Yes emotions…you know feelings, sensations, passion…

First word associated with certitude is conviction. Did you know that conviction comes from strong persuasion? Next is sureness; also known as confident certainty. What I love about these last two words is that certainty on its own is based on evidence. However when you put the word confident in front of certainty, it emphasizes that there is no doubt in the evidence. None of us can get to a place of strong persuasion or no doubt unless we get there by experience.

Why is experience so important? When we participate, not just observe life’s events, it actually teaches us, and what we are taught affects us. It is so much easier in today’s age to intellectualize everything especially religion, but God is not about religion. Man created religion. God just wanted relationship, that’s all He ever wanted. He understood the importance of connection and the effect it has when nurtured. Trust, belief, expectation and sureness are part of our daily lives, but only grow because of the consistency in our encounters.

Not enough faith is an indicator of relationship with God with limited experience. Denial or no faith is a sign of knowing of God and having no relationship experience. So why remain voiceless or faithless when all that is needed is experience?

Faith in God is not intellectual. It’s a spiritual, relational experience that is individual.

This Mama's Value

For the past 2 years, we have the privilege of watching this bird create a nest outside our living room window. What came to mind was when Jesus said, "look" at the birds of the air. He didn't start the sentence with "The".  He said look and that means that there must have been birds nearby that he pointed to.  He used a live illustration to get a point across. 

In Israel you have harsh conditions and it begs to make anyone wonder how birds survive. I remember when we were in the fortress of Masada, there were birds called Tristrams. When you look around there’s only desert for miles around. Where did they get food? How did they hide from the scorching sun? Where do they get drinkable water?

Considering the harsh winter we had, I was surprised my mama bird survived. I had to ask myself where did she go to survive the harsh winter and how did she sustain herself. 

Of course I went back to Jesus’ parable and as I read, I glanced up once again at the mama bird perched outside my window. Look at the birds of the air (in my case the nest), they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable then they? (NIV)

Most people will emphasize the message “not to worry,” but do not stop long enough to unpack the nugget that Jesus mentions right before that.  Are you not much more valuable then they?

You and I are valuable. We have value.

When you grasp how valuable you are as an individual, it ushers in the realization of how loved you are by God. The love of God is something many of us share but few of us experience. It’s hard to explain the depth of love. People cannot understand it until they experience it. You can be a Christian and not have experienced the depth of God’s love. I think that’s why this story is sweet, it’s nice, it’s hopeful but it carries no weight for many. You see, love doesn’t get quantified until there’s relationship. In order for me or you to feel value from someone, there has to be relationship and not just any relationship. The relationship has to be deep for there to be trust.

Here’s the beauty of this whole message though. God’s willingness to care for you is not based on the depth of your relationship with Him. However, your belief of His willingness is based on the investment you place in your relationship with Him. The more you know God (not ‘of’ God), the easier it will be for you to expect God’s goodness and provision.

So each morning when I look out my window, yea I can be reminded not to worry because He’s got it. But…I think I like the “I’m much more valuable” message a lot better. I am valuable to God. He views me with value. He thinks highly of me. I am precious to Him.

Today, slow down and look at the birds of the air. Smile and know that you are valuable and therefore, well taken care of.

It's Free, Yes FREE!

Every time I walked down into the basement, I heard the theme song of Jaws. It had been weeks since I started sorting through the quagmire of stuff that we had collected over the years.

The Dilemma

Like others who were brave enough to tackle the storage place of the home, I was faced with the dilemma of what to do with all the extra stuff. Then one day I felt something strongly in my heart and I decided to follow through with the idea. Like a crazy, determined woman I pulled all my “good possessions” out of the leftovers and put it to the side.

Tag Giveaway 

One Saturday morning I put up some signs my older daughter made for me. She wondered why I hadn’t put them up the night before and didn’t understand how the word FREE on her signs would catch folks attention. When the first car rolled up an hour before the official start time, she understood that mama knew best and thus began the steady stream of shocked individuals that came to our driveway.

The first woman caught sight of the decorative fences on the lawn and stopped to explain that she had just returned from Home Depot, once she was notified that they had run out of the same fences. She asked how much, even though the signs all the way to the house and on the front lawn said FREE. With a smile I told her she could take them. Perplexed she asked if I was sure, and as soon as I nodded, she happily gathered up all the fences and mentioned she would be back with the kids.

The Steady Stream

As cars and vans rolled up, we noticed a pattern that made us chuckle at the end of the day. Money in hand, folks came over to the table eagerly wanting to part with the green bills for the commodity of their choice. Each asked without fail, how much?

For four hours, I engaged in conversation with many neighbors I had never met.On e woman called 4 friends and came over twice. The first time she insisted I take $5 and gave it to my youngest daughter. The second time, she noticed the Joyce Myer books I had on the table and debated on which copy she needed. (It was incredible how many women got excited when they saw her books.) She tried to give us some cash for the second time and even insisted that I give it towards charity if I didn’t want to keep it. I stopped her asked her to let me bless her. With a grateful heart and radiant smile, the woman threw her arms around me and then happily walked away with her gifts.The older folks didn’t have a problem loading up their vehicles once I confirmed it was free. The younger generations, around my age, were conscientious not to take too much.

A man stopped by on his bicycle and asked three times, “are you sure you want me to take these? The frames are beautiful”. After I assured him he gathered all he could and happily pedaled away with his new frames under one arm.

Many people touched my heart that day. There was a woman with an oxygen tank who came out with her grand daughter and explained why she couldn’t get out much. She could not be exposed to other’s germs as her immunity system was very low. Again a Joyce Meyer book made it off the table as her alternative to church are TV and books.

One particular neighbor did stay for a while and by the end of our conversation, we had exchanged numbers.

As promised, the Home Depot woman returned with her three children. We found out that four years earlier, our community and my mom’s (swat) team had prayed for her youngest daughter. She was born prematurely weighing in at 12 ounces. I had the privilege of meeting little Gracie that day.

About Joyce

You may be wondering why I mentioned Joyce Meyers’ books. Well that morning as I was putting out all of the stuff, I felt in my heart that I should put out her books on one of the tables. It wasn’t my plan to give my Joyce books away. All her books are used as resources when I help other women. I went back and forth with God on that but finally gave in. Words can’t describe the kick I got out of watching and hearing women gush with gratefulness each time they took one of her books with them.

It’s FREE, Yes FREE

After a couple of hours, I realized something that nearly knocked me off of my lawn chair. I had experienced a taste of God’s joy when He gives and when people are willing to receive.

Why do I say willing to receive? Each individual asked the price, most if not all couldn’t believe there was none and tried to pay me anyway. It’s a lot like salvation. Everyone feels that there should be a price to pay. Even after they receive God’s gift, they still feel they have to do something to earn it.

It is human inclination to be suspicious and feel like everything has a price. Truth is everything did have a price at one time. I paid for it and gave it away. Jesus also paid for the gift of salvation and gives it away each opportunity He gets. (All you have to say is Jesus I accept your gift of salvation. Yes it’s that simple.)

For four hours I had to confirm that the items were FREE, Yes FREE, and there was nothing I wanted in return. It says that it’s better to give then to receive. I definitely concur.

Sometimes We Need Inspiration

In my search for movies, I usually look for something that will inspire me. The other day, I had the pleasure of watching the story of Mother Teresa. This sweet, little woman was a giant among giants in her time hands down. I had a lot of takeaways but wanted to share a few.

There’s Knowing and ‘KNOWING’

There is a difference between knowing God and ‘knowing’ God. We all know who the President of the United States is but we don’t ‘know’ him. Most of us can’t walk into the White House, kick off our shoes and have dinner with him. People know of God because they’ve heard many stories of him, but they don’t ‘know’ God intimately because they’ve never formed relationship. It’s easy to dismiss God when you haven’t made an effort to prove or disprove.

Mother Teresa KNEW God. Although it’s a known fact that nuns take vows and are considered married to Jesus, we miss the point of such dedication. We think that it’s solely for nuns and get hung up with looking at the religion and forget it’s all about relationship.

The Constant Talk

Throughout the movie, the girl would drop to her knees at a drop of a hat to pray. She must have prayed at least 50 times within the 2+ hours! Most could accept that because she’s a NUN. If a regular Christian would do that, they would be considered a loon fanatic. But here is what she discovered, that most never do. The constant talk towards heaven opened up a world for her that is available to everyone but only revealed to few.

We often think of prayer as a one way conversation when it is not. God is real and constantly speaks back. Why in the world would you pray to a God who wouldn't answer back? Unfortunately many people have the wrong story about God and don’t make the effort to find out the truth.

(By the way, God is not interested in the posture of your body when you talk to him. He’s more interested in the posture of your heart. You see relationship, whenever you desire one that’s intimate, comes from the heart. What this means is that you can talk to him anytime throughout the day without any kneeling and any scripting because he wants and craves your conversation.)

It’s All About Love

Naturally when you talk to someone constantly that you want relationship with, you just eventually love them. It’s part of the intimate relationship dynamics. The beauty of discovering God’s love is that it spills over to others.

Mother Teresa loved God and loved people but a lot of us fail miserably with the second one. Too many Christians are all about talk. She showed God’s love by her actions. Even when she was hurting, she understood her hurt would work itself out when she helped others through their pain.

Our playing field may not be India or the world, but we all know of people who are in need. We should be looking for opportunities to step in and love on them.

The Power of One

Many would say Mother Teresa’s calling is not mine. I do not have her destiny…but you do. We all have something we should be accomplishing in our lifetime. We were not put here to take up space and God makes no exception. We are all called to greatness and excellence. Our sphere of influence may not be as large as Mother Teresa’s at the moment, but it doesn’t mean we don’t have that potential.

What amazed me was how she started out as one person with one vision and how over the years it became contagious throughout the world. Her calling was simple - to help people in need…that was it.

Keeping it Simple

We often think that to accomplish something memorable, it has to be big and elaborate. Mother Teresa loved simplicity and she achieved all of her objectives because of it.

She started her dream with absolutely nothing tangible…NOTHING. She had no money, no location…not even a team to help her but that didn’t deter her. She began laying groundwork with what she did possess; her love for people and her talent for persistence and stubbornness. She wouldn’t quit and was relentless and made sure that all of the dreams that God had deposited into her heart came to pass.

The Faith Factor

When we board a plane, our expectation is that that we will reach our destination even though we don’t know the pilot personally. We don’t know if he has the right credentials. We don’t know if he’s in training (perhaps his first flight). We don’t know whether he’s sober or getting over the effects of sleeping meds from the night before, etc, BUT we have faith this man we DON’T KNOW will get us there.

You exercise faith every day for many things, but when it comes to God it eludes you. Ever wonder why you waiver with your faith in God or your faith for what God can do? Sometimes I think it’s because we’re scared of what he’ll do. It freaks us out to know he may just answer a little too greatly, beyond a shadow of a doubt, supernaturally and unexplainably. It’s easier to expect he won’t answer.

Over and over again, I witnessed throughout the movie answered prayers. I was amazed and Mother Teresa was not because it was her expectations. God would give her a MASSIVE dream and she would move forward, fully confident that if he wanted it done, he would provide…period, end of story.

It looks like an easy concept but it isn’t. There are those of us who know the turmoil that one goes through when you’re going from point A to point Z before that HUGE dream comes to pass. I think that she minimized the turmoil because she often reminded others and herself that the timing factor was not hers to dictate and she learned the art of patience and waiting.

Sometimes we all need a moment of inspiration.

There’s so much more that can be said about this incredible woman, but the fact is, she was incredible because she lived what she believed. She believed she was a representative of a God who loves and lived it out loud, unashamed and unapologetically. Her inspiration was the people around her in need. It kept her going.

Where is your inspiration? I believe inspiration is always around us but I think it serves a greater purpose when we live to inspire others.

Romans 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.