#217 - Let God WIN Through YOU!

Good morning! :) All is well here in Columbia, SC. I've been meaning to post a "prego" picture....since I haven't gotten around to it, I'll at least give you an update! :) I am almost 33 weeks pregnant.... that means only 5 more weeks until I am full-term (38 wks)....technically 7 more weeks until my due date of October 3rd. Trinity is definitely growing and ACTIVE! She has been kicking a TON. I have had a great pregnancy. Praise the Lord, I haven't been sick at all (I'm redeemed from sickness). Other than the need for the occasional nap, I have been pretty good. Sleeping at night has been a bit interesting. For those of you who have been pregnant, you know what I mean! It's like trying to roll over with a heavy bowling ball on your stomach! Arghhhhh! I must admit, yesterday was quite a day. I commented to Tyler, "If I could just take off my stomach for an hour... or even just a few minutes, that would be so wonderful! I'll put it back on... but if I could just have a quick break. Breath normal, not be so heavy." 5, 6, 7 weeks seem like a long ways away yet to continue to be pregnant. Do I sound like I'm getting antsy? OK... preach to me, I need it! "Amy, enjoy ever step of this time. Don't wish it away. You will soon be in a different phase, taking care of a newborn. Enjoy this time with Tyler Junior and with your husband. This will be the last time Tyler Junior is an 'only child.' Enjoy it." 


Ok.... Ok... good preaching! :) I need to hear it sometimes! :) Well, we are going to get started into the Word. I actually did follow today's scheduled reading and got into the Psalms schedule, so let's go!

Psalm 41:1-3 - BLESSED (HAPPY, fortunate, to be envied) is he who considers the weak and the poor; the Lord will deliver him in the time of evil and trouble.² The Lord will protect him and keep him alive; he shall be called blessed in the land; and You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. ³ The Lord will sustain, refresh, and strengthen him on his bed of languishing; all his bed You [O Lord] will turn, change, and transform in his illness.

Proverbs 31:20 - She opens her hand to the poor, yes, she reaches out her filled hands to the needy [whether in body, mind, or spirit]. 

Did you ever realize what POWER there was in helping the poor, needy or weak? I remember hearing my mom tell me about my dad giving money to a man on the street. If I remember correctly I believe they were in California visiting my brother. Where there were homeless everywhere, streets lined with different men and women, hands out, asking for money or food. The question came up, "How do you know they aren't going to use the money for drugs? How do you know they aren't a phony and do this for a living? There are so many of them, everywhere, we can't give to all of them." My dad's response was simple, "We cannot control what they do, we can only control our obedience to the Word." At that moment, my dad had felt led to give to that specific man on the street. From there, it was as if he was lending to the Lord. As it says in Proverbs 19:14, "He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and that which he has given He will repay to him." My dad was walking in obedience & a leading he was prompted to follow. 


As we read Psalm 41, we see how GREAT being a blessing and considering the poor really is. Not only is it the right thing to do, but in doing so, the Lord in-turn will sustain, refresh & strengthen us if we are sick, if we come down with something. The LORD will refresh us! The Lord will change & transform the illness to healing! The Hebrew says that it will be overturned, turn about, be reversed, be overthrown! The illness brought on by the enemy will be OVERTHROWN! Boo-yah! God sees. God sees when we give to the poor. God sees when we are kind to the poor. The Proverbs 31 woman opens her hand to the poor. She reaches out to the needy. Whether in body, mind or spirit, she helps them, she offers her assistance, she gives them food, or friendship, whatever is needed. 


If sickness comes upon our body, we can put God in remembrance of His word as it says in Isaiah 43:26, "Put Me in remembrance [remind Me of your merits]; let us plead and argue together. Set forth your case, that you may be justified (proved right)." We can remind God of our merits, our deeds or actions we have done to honor Him. Isaiah tells us to DO IT! We are not being selfish to REMIND GOD. We are putting Him in remembrance of what His Word says. It shows action on our part. It shows that we know His Word. It shows faith & diligence to put Him in remembrance of His Word. Then we are to STAND. Stand on His Word. Stand on His promises. Stand, without wavering. Stand!

My desire, My will is health & wholeness. Don't give up children. Don't give in to the enemy. What the man of God said was true, 'My children give up too easily. They need to fight.' Yes. Fight the good fight of faith, that includes the fight against the enemy. You have everything you need to win. The will to live & the will to win is key. If my children give in to the enemy, they tie My hands. Don't give in to defeat. STAND! Stand! Be strong & courageous  & STAND! Put on your armor, take up your shield & sword & stand. If you feel weak, STAND! Watch MY strength come upon you to STAND & FIGHT! Your stand shows Me your faith. Your stand coupled with My strength & power & your will to WIN! Let the weak say, 'I AM STRONG.' Their strength comes through Me. I will show Myself strong. I need you to stand so I have someone to win through!

Let God win through you! Stand. Fight. Watch your victory come to pass! If God's Word says it, will you believe it?

#175 - Divine Sense of Purpose

Good morning! Hope you are doing well. If you are feeling a bit down or out of sorts, the Word is there to encourage, lift up, and give you answers to whatever it is you may be going through. The Word truly does have the answers we are looking for! Let's get going.

Eccl. 3:1, 3b, 11a - TO EVERYTHING there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven: .... a time to break down and a time to build up... He has made everything beautiful in its time. He also has planted eternity in men's hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy]...

Where are you at in life right now? Are you happy? Are you sad? Are you experiencing frustrations and valleys? Or, are you on a mountain top of success & accomplishment? Debt? Or financial abundance?

Ecclesiastes begins with the Preacher talking about the great abundance of wisdom & material things in which he was living. He decides to apply himself to seeking out what appears to make others happy. In chapter 2, you'll see that he builds houses, vineyards, pools, brings on servants, gathers silver & gold, wine. He acquires great substance, and even remained wise is says in verse 9. Whatever he desired, he acquired. At the end of his pursuit for happiness, he concluded that it was all vanity and amounted to nothing.

A man of such great substance, but joy did not come from the acquiring. Joy did not fill the home filled with so many 'things.' Chapter 3 then dives into talking about the 'seasons.' There is a season for everything. Sowing, reaping, mourning, dancing, peace, war, etc. Seasons. Seasons do not last forever. Seasons pass. Praise the Lord! Are you tired of the cold winter? Spring & life are coming! Buds on trees, flowers in bloom! Summer is coming! Beaches, pools, sand, grilling out. Summer is coming.  Seasons last for a period and then the tide changes.

Have you been in your season for awhile? Are you ready for the change? Have you been in a time of 'breaking down' and you are just thinking, "When is it time to build up? When is it my time to win? When is it time for joy, abundance, fulfillment?" Your season is coming! Your season to win is upon you! Wait it out. Don't quit.

Make sure your motives are right. We see this preacher pursuing every material thing, yet it did not bring fulfillment. Eccl 3:11 answers a question, and brings clarity to what our focus should be, let's re-read it: "He also has planted eternity in men's hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy]..." A divine sense of purpose has been placed in YOUR heart & mind! A DIVINE sense of purpose! Nothing but God can satisfy that yearning you have in your heart & mind. God Himself, has placed a divine sense of purpose on the inside of you. In the flesh, you may yearn for the house. You want to move from an apartment to a house, you want to upgrade your vehicle, you want bills and bill collectors not hanging over your head, you think that just to accomplish and move up in those areas, you will be happy. Only to arrive to that place and there be something else, something new.

A divinely implanted sense of purpose which only GOD can satisfy. Success in your business, will be futile. Success in your job, futile. Success in your finances, futile. Unless the underlying focus for ALL you and I pursue is to fulfill the purpose and calling that God has placed on our lives! To purge the underlying things that we "think" will make us happy, and pursue with fervor His purpose. Helping people. Changing lives. Drawing people to His Kingdom. Pursuing with excellence the calling He has placed on our life, the specific way He has called us to make a difference for the Kingdom. We were ALL put here as a piece to the puzzle of God. God's big master-plan, and WE have a part to play. We have a job that needs to be done.

An unhealthy focus on "acquiring things" can pervert our ability to pursue with purity of heart. In our purity of heart, in our pursuit of God, the other things will eventually follow. His desire is to bless His children! His desire is to provide. He is a good God! But we must not stray from our first love. We must not stray from the pursuit that only God alone can satisfy. Pressing in to Him. Pressing in to the One who makes all things possible, the One who gives us life, air to breathe, love.

A divinely implanted sense of purpose. What is yours? Are you pursuing it? Go make YOUR eternal difference in the world. God accomplish YOUR purpose! It is YOUR SEASON! The tide is changing for you! Take a deep breath. It's your season! It's your time! 

#154 - Will you Abide?

Good morning! :) It is a BEAUTIFUL day out! Don't you think?! And this is the day that the LORD has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it!!! AMEN?! :) We all have so much to be thankful for! We woke up breathing, we have food to eat, we have clothes on, we have people who love us, we have a roof over our heads! What an abundance we have to be thankful for! Let's jump into some LIFE-GIVING Word!

John 15:7 (kjv) - If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. 

I looked up abide in the Greek.... here were several of the definitions that were listed: to remain, to not depart, to continue to be present, to last, to endure, to wait for. Those are such revealing definitions for the word abide. As we abide, stay in God, stay in Christ Jesus, stay in the Word, stay grounded with Jesus as our Rock.... as we do that.... are we WILLING to WAIT? Are we willing to endure, to last? Here in this verse the "timing" is not promised, but it does say that what you shall ask SHALL be done for you! In the meantime, are YOU & I willing to be patient for it to come to pass?

Tyler was telling me a story this morning at breakfast. It was about 2 different families who had deformed children. One set of parents woke up EVERY MORNING and EVERY NIGHT, they THANKED GOD that their child was normal! Every day, despite what they saw, they thanked God that their child was whole! They "called things that are not as though they were" like it talks about in Romans. They did this every day for FOUR YEARS! You know what happened? Because they abided, because they were patient but persistent, one day during that 4th year the child's deformities just completely lined up. The child was completely normal! The other family? They did the same thing, except they did it for 14 YEARS! 14 YEARS! They thanked God for their child being whole with no deformities. After 14 years, one day, BAM, it just happened! Everything lined up! Everything was whole.

As I still wait for goals to come to pass in MY life, I'm reminded about this questions, "Am I willing to be patient? Am I willing to be persistent & consistent, staying in faith until MY GOALS come to pass?" Because, bottom line, they will come to pass. If I continue to abide in my Father and allow His Word to abide in me, those goals, desires & dreams WILL be done! It says it in HIS WORD! Last I checked, God's Word is authority! God's Word is the bottom line! God's Word has the last say! Therefore if I can just ABIDE -  to remain, to not depart, to continue to be present, to last, to endure, to wait for - MY Goals to come to pass, THEY WILL!

Am I a PATIENT enough person to ABIDE! To continue to be persistent & consistent? To not grow weary, to not loose heart, to not grow faint in the pursuit. IF I will just ABIDE, God's Word promises that whatever I ask SHALL BE DONE! So, as I wait, I need to make sure I continue to abide in God, in the Holy Spirit, and continue to allow HIS WORD to abide inside me. His Word to continue to be the lamp that I walk by, the lamp that guides my every day. And like both families with the child who had a deformity, I MUST be TENACIOUSLY PERSISTENT!

Will you join me?

#138 -Do NOT Grow Weary!

Well... I began to read and journal this morning and after reading Proverbs 8... felt led to some reason to go read the Beatitudes... or if you remember... the "Blessed's" that Jesus talked about in the Sermon on the Mount (beginning in Matthew 5). So... as I began to read it was quite interesting. As you know, I usually read out of the Amplified, and it amazes me how things are so amplified. Here's how it starts out... 

Matthew 5:3 - Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous--with life-joy and satisfaction in God's favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the poor in spirit (the humble, who rate themselves insignificant), for theirs is the kingdom of heaven!

Proverbs 8:35 - For whoever finds me [Wisdom] finds life and draws forth and obtains favor from the Lord. 

It goes on through verse 12, and continues talking about the "Blessed." SEVEN times throughout this part it lists out how the "blessed" are "happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous--with life-joy and satisfaction in God's favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions." Seven times it repeats itself. Before it even gets to the "feeling" or "the who." ie: Blessed are the "poor in spirit", Blessed are they that "mourn", Blessed are the "meek", etc... 


As we read over Matthew 5:3-12, it is pretty amazing. Before even getting to the "subject" of each verse, we can see what our take should be on LIFE! We are BLESSED. We are spiritually prosperous. WHY? If we are born-again, know that we are going to heaven when we die, have the Holy Spirit living inside of us... we are BLESSED! WHY else? As a believer, we have GOD's FAVOR. God favor's us! His plan is to set us up to WIN! He wants YOU & I, His children to WIN! He's positioned us in a place of favor! WHY ELSE? We have God's SALVATION. Despite what is going on in our day to day life, ultimately we have won the ULTIMATE prize. Our eyes have been opened to our need of a Savior. We have chose Jesus Christ to be the Lord of our life! We have chose Jesus to be our Shephard, to guide us, to lead us. We have chose Jesus to be #1. We have chose Jesus to guide our decisions. When we have a question, we CHOOSE to say, "What would Jesus do?" As a believer, what should I do? So before Matthew 5 verse 3 even gets to the subject of "what person" it is even talking about, it is telling us first of all, reminding us of WHO WE ARE! We are the BLESSED! 


What else? REGARDLESS OF OUR OUTWARD CONDITIONS. That was a kicker to me. Life happens. And with life, their is a continual learning curve. Life happens. But REGARDLESS of our OUTWARD Conditions, circumstances, we can know the outcome for us is FAVOR. Whether money is tight, the outcome is favor. Yah, we may need to learn how to get our finances in order, but we can thank God for favor. Maybe it's family, friends, children, job, car, house, clothes, health... whatever the need, whatever the CIRCUMSTANCE OR CONDITION, we can be thankful that we have FAVOR. "Satisfaction of God's favor." That is good stuff. We may know the end from the beginning, but sometimes not see everything that is going to happen along the way. But praise God that we CAN know that the "duration", the "path", the "journey", the "day-in/day-out" for US, GOD's CHILDREN, includes favor. We can have SATISFACTION of GOD's FAVOR. During those days when you just feel a little bit discouraged... you feel like you are going through the motions, the little things you are doing is going unnoticed... or the little things you are doing have not yet catapulted you to the destination where you desire to be, just KNOW that God's Favor is upon you. Continue being faithful in the little things and it is a PROMISE in God's Word that when you are faithful in the little, you will be given much. Prove yourself now. Prove yourself faithful. God has GREAT and mighty things in store for you. Do not grow weary in well doing. Do not grow weary right now, while you are in the midst of doing what seems like the "menial" tasks that need to be done. Do NOT grow weary. Continue! Continue my friend. God will SHOW HIMSELF STRONG! 


Great and mighty things are in store for you. Do not grow weary!