He’s always been there

Jeremiah 31:3 KJV
The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

Man, Daddy just keeps coming with the words I need. Following him is not always easy and most of the time pretty lonely. I feel like I’ve been alone my whole life; misunderstood and overlooked. So, lately, he’s just been reminding me that he’s always been there and he’s always loved me even when I felt abandoned and alone. I have to say in hindsight, it definitely makes sense because if it were not for him, I promise I would not be here. It is only by his grace and mercy and his strength that I didn’t give up and made it this far.

Through all of my mess. Have mercy. He was always there. He never gave up on me. At my lowest, he was there and continued to sustain me when I was ready to give up for the millionth time. I’ve done some stuff foolishly just out of sheer rebellion.

I had to put this in, lol. Why did Yet by The King Will Come play as I’m typing this? Baby! I broke. Tears falling, snotting, couldn’t breathe; all the ugliness, lol. I just had to give God the glory. He is not a God of coincidence. He is very intentional and he is serious about his babies. That’s me. 🙋🏽‍♀️

Anyway as I was saying, I used to do dumb stuff out of rebellion, just to get God to say something, feel something, do something. Any sin that I thought would hurt him and not kill me, I tried and he was still there. I remember one time, I was doing something I should not have been doing and I remember hearing a voice say, what would you do if I came right now? Oh boy! I stayed a little longer, but not much longer. I hightailed it outta there. At first, I was just like, I’m going to hell anyway, but he would not let my spirit rest. He was like nah, get up out of there. So eventually I left. He was there through all of my debauchery and he forgave me every time. Thank you, Jesus! Because Lord knows I was a hot mess. He is definitely long-suffering because he could have removed the hedge and cut me off a million times, but he didn’t. He held on to me and loved me back to him. Praise God! It’s still not easy, but I know I’m not alone and that’s enough for me. As long as he is still by my side, I don’t need anyone else.

He is there for you as well. No matter where you go, he’s there. No matter what you do, he’s there. There is a phrase they always use in K-dramas (sssshhh, don’t judge me), I’ve been waiting for you to look back and see me. God is there, he’s just waiting for you to turn back and reach out for him. He never left us, we ran from him. He’s still waiting. There is still time. Choose him before it’s too late.

Go in Peace

Hebrews 12:14 KJV
Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

I saw a Pastor say, what we’re not going to do is act like Jesus was soft. I can’t remember who it was, but that had me in stitches. Yes, Jesus was kind and loving, he was meek and humble, but what he wasn’t was soft. Do we keep forgetting how savage he is about his Father and his Father’s business? Matthew 21:12-13, And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. So please don’t get it twisted, he will get with you if you disrespect him or his Father or his children.

Yet, at the same time, he doesn’t want you going to look for trouble. All these keyboard warriors and narrow path gatekeepers out here spewing hatred and vitriol, they will be held accountable; believers and unbelievers alike. When Jesus gave the command for the disciples to go win souls for the Kingdom he did not say go fight battles. He did not say go wage wars.

Luke 10:2-8 KJV
Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. [3] Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. [4] Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way. [5] And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. [6] And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again. [7] And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house. [8] And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:

He forewarned them that they would be among wolves; people desiring to taste their flesh and kill them. We know the enemy hates the truth, that is why he has distorted so much of history that we don’t know what’s real or fake anymore. Who was really the bad guy of the battle in heaven? Was Satan trying to liberate his fellow angels from a tyrannical God or was God right and the enemy started a mutiny out of jealousy and greed? That’s how he can make so many people remain unbelievers. Just like he did in the garden. All he did was twist a few little words and made the complete statement of God false and Eve believed it. Appealing to man’s greed and desire to be in control, he thought he had set the plan of God on its ear. That’s where we come in, Saints! We are supposed to set the record straight. We are supposed to be the ones to shift the scales back to where they should be, by winning souls.

Instead, we want to be gatekeepers, but we’re keeping out the right ones and letting in the wrong ones. We are “Christians” idolizing wicked people and shunning those who are humble and righteous and desperately seeking the Lord. Let me tell you what the Lord told me some years ago. I’ve told this story before, but for anyone new who reads this, here you go. I was in a battle with my flesh for years. I was with a man that was not my husband. It is true that women will date men with potential and will try to stick it out because they know how great that man can be, but in hindsight, I really didn’t want to marry him. I just wanted to make it right “in the eyes of God”, lol. Ridiculous right? We had already had the kids and were living together off and on. During the relationship I endured a lot of infidelity and narcissism. When I was at my breaking point, I let him go. I couldn’t hold on anymore. Why should I keep trying to hold on to someone that doesn’t want to be held. The HS said because I held on to you when you didn’t want to be held. How I keep talking about we need to love our brothers and sisters back to Christ and through the transformation, this is what God wanted me to do. In the beginning I saw that man the way the Lord saw him, flaws and all, but he had a light in him that I knew would shine so bright if he ever took it out from under the bush. That’s how we should look at all of our brothers and sisters. He didn’t just bless us because we chose him. No, he blessed us all because we are his. We just have to accept the gifts. Anyway, after I let him go, the HS stood me in the mirror and told me that I was no saint in the relationship. That I was not perfect, but he also said that I had been disobedient which was far worse than anything that man had done to me. He told me that because of my disobedience, when I let that man go, I sent him back into the den of wolves; back into the enemies hands. That I was the closest thing to Jesus he would encounter in his environment and that’s why he wanted me to hold on. Cuz when I tell you, the HS just kept telling me “Hold on, I’m not done with him yet.” It was so much that I started to believe it was the enemy telling me that to keep me in bondage to sin. But I let him go and the HS told me that the decisions he HAD to make from now on were because of my decision to let him go. Ooooo baby, that stung. It still stings all these years later.

You never know how close someone’s breakthrough is just by looking at them. No one comes into our lives by accident or coincidence. Sometimes we are the closest thing they have to Jesus, but we turn them away or we do them wrong. How the disciples were always trying to turn people away from Jesus and he had to keep telling them, no let them come. There are people ready to end it all. Crying out to Jesus for a specific thing to happen so they know that he’s real and you could be the very one God wants to use, unless you ignore him. You may have been the last person someone saw before they took their own life, and you turned them away. We have to start thinking about all of our encounters that way. You never know when you’re entertaining an angel or if you will be a blessing to someone else. We’ve been programmed to only think about ourselves while simultaneously being inclusive. Make it make sense. We’re all about self-care, but you have to care about other people’s feelings and respect their beliefs. What? Make it make sense. I have to live in your delusion while you ignore and essentially poop on my beliefs and my feelings. That’s what the world has been reduced to. We, as believers, have to be the light up on a hill for people. We have to be the fortified city where people can come and take refuge. That is the peace we should be striving for. The peace the surpasses all understanding. That gets along with each other no matter our beliefs. Not always looking for a battle, trying to pick fights with people over religion. I learned a long time ago and I taught it to my children. All you have to do is plant the seed, God will do the rest. So you don’t have to be standing on a street corner on a soap box preaching, unless God told you to or going back and forth with people in the comment section. Sharing the Gosple happens in everyday life. Talking to that stranger at the grocery store. Conversing with the people you spend 8, 10, 12, 16 hours a day with at work. Spreading the Gospel looks like walking the walk. Now go in peace.

He is always there

Psalm 23:4 KJV
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Most Christians are taught the Lord’s Prayer as children. I’m no exception. We would say it church almost every Saturday as I was raised Seventh Day Adventist. I was taught anytime I was afraid to say this prayer as well or if I just didn’t know what else to pray. I’m not gonna lie, as a child, I did say the prayer mostly when I was afraid. There was a lot of spiritual warfare going on in my life as a child, I just didn’t know that’s what it was. The enemy was out to get me, but I would say that prayer and I would be able to sleep. However, the words of this prayer scared me to death as well. What do you mean, yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death? There are no mountains around here, how can there be valleys? And why does it have to be a valley of death? Like what? AND!!! How do you not fear in a valley of death? This part especially made no sense to me.

Of course with age and wisdom it begins to make sense. You understand that there is a war for our souls. We have to get in that fight and it can be scary. When you think about how many times the enemy has tried to take you out and how he tried to take you. When you think about all the times you were in the valley; that can be terrifying until you know who Jesus really is. Until you know how powerful our Father really is and how much power he gave to us to fight these battles and the enemy. On top of the fact that he is right there in the thick of it with us.

A lot of people get upset at the thought that God could allow us to go through some of the stuff we went through and claim that he’s there. If he’s such a loving God, how could he let me go through that? If he is so powerful, why didn’t he just stop it? I had those thoughts myself as a child. Having been the victim of sexual abuse my entire childhood, I could not reconcile the God I was hearing about with the one that was allowing these men to abuse me. For a long time, I walked away from my faith. If he didn’t love me enough to save me from those evil people, there was no need for me to be faithful and obedient or even believe in him.

Even in that, through all of my debauchery, he was still with me. He saved me from some pretty horrific stuff, mostly death, as I had tried to commit suicide several times. I could not handle having been defiled so many times by different men. I felt worthless and dirty. I felt like no one would or could ever love me or I would always put myself in dangerous situations; dating drug dealers and selling drugs, hanging around and dating killers. I have been in the middle of my fair share of shoot outs and drivebys, but God! It took for me to have my own children to really seek God and come out of that destructive mindset. I wanted better for my babies, despite who their father is.

God has rules and laws to protect us. Not to keep us from having fun. He allows things to happen so we learn who he truly is, to change who we are or will become. He allows things to happen because he loves us and wants us to turn to him and acknowledge him as Daddy. It made no sense growing up, but as an adult I am so grateful for everything I’ve been through. Had he left me, I would have died in my sin and would have no chance of redemption. He allowed me to go through to draw me closer to him and to expose my flaws & my purpose in life. It sounds pretty extreme, but what parent doesn’t chastise or correct their child for their own good?

His rod and his staff are the rules and laws, the barriers he set up for us as his flock, as his children. They are to guide us or save us. Have mercy. That is why shepherds have rods or staffs, they lead the herd with them or they use it to rescue them. Such is God’s word. It leads us or it saves us. In leading sometimes there needs to be correction, we, like sheep, don’t always listen and need a gentle reminder. If we keep being disobedient and going the wrong way, the reminder can be a little more forceful, both having the same intention, to get us back on the right path. The path that he has already mapped out for us that will lead us to the best grazing pastures and the freshest, coolest water. Have mercy. Just like he did with the children of Israel. Just like a good shepherd, he led them to the promise land and they didn’t want for anything. The promised land had everything they could possibly need to live and thrive, because that is the kind of God we serve. That is why he is a good, good Father. We just have to follow him and obey him. He will be with us through it all, protecting and guiding us; leading us to his perfect will for our lives….reconciliation with the Father in heaven.

Don’t give up now

1 Peter 1:6-7 KJV
Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: [7] That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

Let me put this disclaimer out first….this is for me first, lol!! When I tell you if it’s not one thing it’s another and I have found myself wanting to give up. Nobody said it would be easy, but nobody said it would be this hard either and the enemy keeps reminding me of everything I’ve been through in my life. He keeps taunting me telling me if God really loved me, he would not keep letting me go through all of this. Like, shouldn’t you have proven yourself by now? How much more does he want to pull out of you? He won’t even give you a break. Everyone else is just going on with life as usual and you’re here stuck in a Job/ wilderness season that looks like it will never end. He can’t love you. Curse him and die. Why would he lead you out of Egypt to let you starve and die in the wilderness? Life was better when you were a slave. These are all the things the enemy says to me.

And he said you would be a wife. You’re too old now, who’s going to want you? Look at the situation you’re in, who is even going to look your way? You lost all that weight from nothing. Nobody is going to want you with all that extra skin. You don’t look nothing like you use to. Men use to chase you. You’ll be single forever. You should have married one of them from a long time ago. They were the only ones that loved you. Then God sends you here around a bunch of white people, (please don’t be offended, this is literally what the enemy says to me to try and make me give up), they don’t even like your kind around here. I could go on and on. It’s taxing just to keep my mind on Jesus. Fighting to keep my sanity and hold on to my faith, when I have every right to give up.

Too many of our brothers and sisters are giving up. The fight has become too much and the enemy convinces you that it’s not worth it in the end; that you were better off doing everything yourself. We forget that our trials are only for a season. We lose our praise. We give up our joy. We allow the lies of the enemy to break through the tiniest crack in our armor and we slowly lose the will to keep fighting.

Jesus didn’t give up. He carried that cross all the way to Calvary. He knew the importance of his mission. If he can carry a cross to his death, even though at one point it became too much for even him, so can we. Because he died on the cross for us we have the power to overcome temptation just as he did. Because he died on the cross, we have the strength to carry on, just like he did. Because he died on the cross and rose again, we know that death is not the end. That through faith we will get to live with the Father in heaven when Jesus returns. We just have to hold on. Block out the lies of the enemy. Don’t listen to Job’s wife and his friends. Don’t go back to Egypt, God has delivered you from sin and bondage. Praise him in the midst of the storms and hold in. It will all make sense eventually and in the end you’ll have a seat at the foot of the Father once Jesus returns. Just hold on. Don’t give up now, you’ve come too far!!!

Come on home!

Hebrews 7:25 KJV
Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

God is so good. I don’t know any other way to say it. God, Daddy, Papa, Abba Father sent his only Son, an intimate and precious part of himself (like any child is to a parent) to die on the cross for you and me. No one else could do that. God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent and because God is all these things, of course his son would have these same qualities. So this great, great God sent his only Son as an ambassador for heaven. He sent him to survey the lands and prove to the people of his land and surrounding kingdoms, that he is a benevolent ruler and a mighty God. He didn’t send an army to conquer the gentiles and make them worship him as was the practice of most kings of this time. Instead he sent an innocent and gentle Lamb.

That in itself proves to ME how patient and merciful God is. He is a gentleman. He won’t force us to do anything we don’t want to do. Now for those of us that know him, he won’t force us but he will STRONGLY suggest, lol. But to those he is trying to woo, he is patient and gentle and kind. He takes his time and he is so thoughtful. He will send people to encourage you and plant the seeds of truth that he will water later. Let me tell you, I know this from experience. I grew up in the church but I didn’t know God for myself. I only knew the God they preached about. It wasn’t until I was much older that I developed a relationship with him and it was a love story. He pursued me. He wasted nothing, and I mean nothing to get my attention. No song that played on the radio, no encounter with people, neither my career was a coincidence. Everything he did was intentional and it lead me straight to him. It made me fall in love with him. He was there in my darkest of hours. He held my hand, he serenaded me, he wrote me love letters, he even gave me the space to love others. He was jealous but he allowed me the space to make mistakes to realize that no one would love me like he does.

He loved me and waited on me and still pursued me even though I cheated on him and ran away from him chasing other things to fulfill me. I was addicted to sex, I was a weed head, I was an alcoholic and he loved me in my mess, through my mess, and out of my mess. He was there the whole time whether I wanted him to be or not. The enemy had me believing that I was unlovable, that God would never forgive me. Using the god I met in church against me. That one I did not know, but the one that loved me in spite of myself…I knew him and I loved him and he loved me. So, I said all of that to say that it doesn’t matter what you’ve done or where you’ve been. You could have done the most heinous things against God, he will still forgive you and love you. Nothing you do will separate us from the love of Jesus so just come home. Just like the father of the prodigal son, he is waiting for you with open arms. Your inheritance is still waiting for you. He has prepared the grandest of feasts to celebrate your return. The angels will rejoice. He has been looking for that one sheep out of hundred that was lost. When you are found, he will rejoice. Jesus gave his life so that we would always have a way to come back home. He intercedes on our behalf. His blood covers our dirty, filthy sins in front of the Father and he was the only one that could do it. Not only is his life priceless, but it is eternal. It had to be to cover the thousands of generations that would come after his death. No mere mortals life could do that.

There is a way home and it’s through Jesus. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me, Revelation 3:20. He is waiting. Come home.

It’s all a choice

Romans 8:6 KJV
For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

The bible said what it said. First what does it mean to be carnally minded? Carnal means flesh. So to be carnally minded means you dwell on things of the flesh which is usually sin. The word says, For the wages of sin is death in Romans 6:23. Then it goes on to say; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. That is how we get the life and peace by being spiritually minded. It’s a gift for choosing God. For doing what he created you to do.

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven, Matthew 5: 14-16. We were created to be lights unto the world. We were chosen to show the love of Jesus Christ through our lives while sharing the good news. It’s that simple. It’s not easy, but it is simple.

God will never force himself on us. We blame him all the time for the wrong in the world, but we all have a choice. Most of us choose to be carnally minded. We prefer the things of this world over the things of heaven. We prefer the things that please our flesh over what pleases God and that is why the world is the way it is, because he gave us the right to choose and that can come in the form of greed, murder, and rape among other things. People have chosen to make the world the way it is and God waits patiently for people to choose him. He could have chosen to wipe out the evil people again, but what then would he do with the righteous? Would it not be like the devil said about Job, that the righteous are only righteous because God has a hedge of protection around them. Gore removed the hedge because he knew his son Job. He knew him and he trusted that even if he got frustrated or confused, he would not sin and would not turn away from him. He does the same for us. He gives us opportunity after opportunity to choose him, to accept his gifts, to accept all that he has promised and saved up for us.

But as always we have a choice. Who will you choose?

God knew what would yield the biggest harvest in your life

Matthew 13:31-32 KJV
Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: [32] Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Y’all, I can not make this up. Just two days ago, the scripture came from Matthew 13:33 and here we are again. This couldn’t be more straightforward and to the point. So let’s get it.

This is a message of encouragement for my brothers and sisters. The season you are in right now has been rough baby. It has stretched your faith, your sanity, and your patience to their limits. You have wanted to give up, give in , and wave the white flag, but you hung in there. You kept thinking, I didn’t come this far to give up. I’ve come too far. Even on your darkest days, you held on and kept pushing because you knew that what the Lord promised you is on the other side of this. You don’t know how he’s going to do it and you don’t really care, but you know that he will. You’ve been through so much, you’ve lost so much, and you sacrificed so much for this walk and there is no way you’re turning back now. You want to see what is on the other side of your obedience and your yes.

The little faith you’ve held on to all this time has been growing in the spiritual realm. It has dug it’s roots in deep. It has blossomed into this massive tree that will be able to feed, shelter, and protect sooo many of God’s children once you are released. Look up a mustard tree. We always talk about the seed, but have you seen what that tiny little seed turns into? It’s branches reach far. It foliage is dense to protect from the sun and predators on the ground. It feeds both beast and human alike. It can be used whole or in part. Once it has bloomed, it sprouts more seeds to continue the spread of the love and mercy of Jesus Christ. It bears more seeds as a testament to the word of God and believing and being obedient blesses not only the obedient, but everyone connected to them. Your yes, your obedience doesn’t just affect you. Everyone connected to you will be blessed. Everyone that comes in contact with you will be blessed. One seed has the ability to reach all the way to the other side of the world.

Don’t be discouraged. Don’t give up. Keep basking in the Son. Keep your face toward the hill. Stay in the presence of the Lord and let him tend to you like the precious fruit bearing tree you were meant to be. Let him nourish you with his love and mercy. Show the world what mustard seed faith turns into not just by telling the mountains to move, but by letting your light, your influence, your ministry, your anointing reach the hearts of many, turning them to Jesus Christ. Seeds are planted by the Father, covered by the blood (of Jesus Christ), fed by the Holy Spirit. If you are not part of THEE branch you will fall off, whither and die. Stay connected.

Stand now or fall later

Psalm 121:7-8 KJV
The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. [8] The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.

I can not make this up. I don’t always share the revelations and the messages God gives me, most of the time because they are just for me or I least I feel like they’re just for me. Some of them are quite personal.

^{Hebrews 4:12 says,
12} For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

And this is how. I feel a lot of times when the Lord give me a message. He’s fixing something in me. He’s tearing something out of me that I have refused to let go of or didn’t even know I was carrying, but it’s verses like these that he sends in the wee hours of the morning when I force myself to spend time with him (because a lot of times I just don’t feel like it), that make all the difference. These are the messages that bring me comfort and give me strength to keep pressing.

It doesn’t matter what it looks like. It doesn’t matter who it’s actually for. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been there. Everything is going according to God’s plan. It doesn’t matter how it feels, how many times you cry out and it feels like he doesn’t hear you. He gave us free will. We have the right to decide whether we keep holding on to the promises and love him and be obedient to him. You can choose whether you will allow him to do what he has panned in your life or you can go ahead and do it yourself. Yes, some stuff looks bad, like it’s never going to end. Yes, it doesn’t feel good, it hurts like hell. Yes, it feels like you’ve been on this roller coaster ride before and all he wants to know is will you trust him. Will you trust him enough to stay where you are no matter what? Do yo trust him enough to endure even when you’ve wept for more than a night?

He wants to know if you truly trust him or are just giving lip service, because now is not the time to be faking it until you make it. It’s time to take sides. It’s time to stop riding the fence. It’s time to either be hot or cold,lukewarmness is no longer an option. We have run out of time to keep procrastinating and putting God and our purpose on the back burner. If you haven’t noticed, the enemy is busier now than ever before. There is so much that is about to happen, either you’ll stand for Jesus Christ or you will fall for everything the enemy has planned.

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, James 1:2-3.

Your faith is being tested, your patience is being tested, your obedience is being tested, your love is being tested, your will is being tested…..will you stand? Can you keep holding on even though it feels like you’re drowning? He’ll make a way…no, he’s made a way, all you have to do is trust and believe and hold on. He’s got you. Always has, always will.

It may not be for you, but it will bless you

Romans 5:3-5 KJV
And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; [4] And patience, experience; and experience, hope: [5] And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

I’m telling y’all…as much as the enemy attacks me and my fam, the more the Holy Spirit strengthens us. You would think that just mere words wouldn’t be enough to bring peace in the middle of a storm, but it is quite obvious that the Holy Spirit is still urging us on. It doesn’t seem like it’s much, especially when we are holding out for the promises that he made us, but it’s always the right words at the right time.

It doesn’t feel good to go through and it feels even worse when you have to watch those you love go through and there’s nothing you can do about it. It’s these experiences that strengthen faith. You know that they have to go through just like we did to gain the knowledge of Christ and to have a testimony to share with the world about God’s goodness. Sometimes the trials we go through are not even for us, but being in close proximity draws us into the mix. However, we must remember that just as we are all afflicted during our trials everyone in close proximity to us will enjoy the same blessings as well. Hallelujah! Does that make sense? Just hold on. Joy cometh in the morning.

What do you hope your children will remember?

Proverbs 1:8-9 KJV
My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: [9] For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

I am not going to lie. As a child, I struggled with this. I had heard this scripture in church and I wrestled with it. My parents……my father was not around most of my life. During the most horrific years of my life, I didn’t know where my father was. My mother, since I was about 8 years old wrestled with her own demons. I had to grow up quickly. I didn’t have anyone to protect me so I relied heavily on prayer and myself and even that didn’t seem to work. So, I felt like my heavenly Father had abandoned me as well.

I never received any instruction from my father and my mother was not the type of person I wanted to be like, so who exactly was I supposed to listen to. Though my grandmother probably loved me, she berated me verbally and made me feel like I was nothing and would amount to nothing and she was in the church. Everything I learned, I learned by trying not to be like the people around me. That included all of the self-righteous people in the church who probably had the best intentions, but whose words and actions slowly severed my connection with God and lead me down a dark path.

So, who do you listen to when you feel like everyone around you is against you or just not for you? As most children do with similar stories, you make up in your mind to never be like the people who raised you and shaped who you are. You vow to never be whatever it was that they were to you , to your children. I tried my best to teach my children. I fell off the rails. I went too far in an effort to not be like those people. I hurt my children as well, but I know that I instilled a faith in them that would be unshakable. I gave them words of wisdom that I wish someone had said to me and that would always come back to them when needed.

There is no perfect science to being a parent, but there are things you can do to head in that direction. A personal relationship with Christ is paramount. Be the example to your children. Let them see what it is you’re trying to teach them. Give them a reason to listen to you. That whole do as I say not as I do is absolute bull. I grew up living a double life because of this phrase. Be the person you want your children to emulate. Be the person they can come and talk to about any and everything. Don’t let the world shape and form them, it is so much harder for them to return to the way they should go when the world has been their teacher and idol.

Everything our children become starts at home. Be the voice of reason and wisdom. Show them what a real relationship with Christ is. Show them what walking by faith and not by sight looks like. Show them applying the promises of God looks like. Show them how prayer changes things. Show them how important it is to be in the will of God. What it means to die to self daily. That will be the ornament of grace around their head and chains around their neck.