The Real

Jeremiah 9: The Abuse of Covenant as a Privilege Leads to Destruction

2017-01-29T14:22:00.000-05:00

As a ministry leader in training, I cannot stay silent regarding the state of American society and the hypocrisy of Christians who do not see the injustice and wrong in the changes impacting the livelihood of others from various beliefs, ethnicity, races, gender, and sexual identities.

This past week I've been drawn back to Jeremiah 9, a text that I explored from the perspective of the marginalized, but this time I'm drawn to the message for the privileged.

Jeremiah 9 exposes Yahweh's reaction to being tired of saving and redeeming his people who claim to love and believe in his covenant, but actions reflect nothing of his ways. The offenders Yahweh addresses are the privileged, the people of the covenant, "Pure Hebrews."

Judah was a place where people of various backgrounds lived, however the Hebrews were the higher tier of society and oppressed those who did not fall into their identity.

The covenant that Yahweh created with the people of Israel was grounded on communal law. That's the whole point of the 10 commandments. How the nation of Israel developed as one under the beliefs and laws of God. This is the same nation that came to know Yahweh as a God of justice and righteousness by being freed from their own mistreatment and oppression, yet here they are in Judah after years of not living out their covenant, oppressing and mistreating others. Natives of foreign lands, people of lower economic status, those who did not fall into their lineage were suffering at the hands of the privileged.

1 O that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears, so that I might weep day and night for the slain of my poor people! 2 O that I had in the desert a traveler's lodging place, that I might leave my people and go away from them! For they are all adulterers, a band of traitors. 3 They bend their tongues like bows; they have grown strong in the land for falsehood, and not for truth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me, says the Lord. 4 Beware of your neighbors, and put no trust in any of your kin; for all your kin are supplanters, and every neighbor goes around like a slanderer. 5 They all deceive their neighbors, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongues to speak lies; they commit iniquity and are too weary to repent. 6 Oppression upon oppression, deceit upon deceit! They refuse to know me, says the Lord.

Jeremiah 9:1-6

Jeremiah 9 introduces us to God's disgust and vocalized lament towards those who oppress and act out of his covenant.

7 Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: I will now refine and test them, for what else can I do with my sinful people? 8 Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks deceit through the mouth. They all speak friendly words to their neighbors, but inwardly are planning to lay an ambush. 9 Shall I not punish them for these things? says the Lord; and shall I not bring retribution on a nation such as this? 10 Take up weeping and wailing for the mountains, and a lamentation for the pastures of the wilderness, because they are laid waste so that no one passes through, and the lowing of cattle is not heard; both the birds of the air and the animals have fled and are gone. 11 I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a lair of jackals; and I will make the towns of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.

A nation that constantly cried out for help and claimed to be the people of God, but their actions never showed it. At this point Yahweh decided to let Judah as whole fend for themselves. The destruction he had been saving them from over the years could no longer be avoided, and Judah would soon fall to the same fate of Northern Israel.

20 Hear, O women, the word of the Lord, and let your ears receive the word of his mouth; teach to your daughters a dirge, and each to her neighbor a lament. 21 "Death has come up into our windows, it has entered our palaces, to cut off the children from the streets and the young men from the squares." 22 Speak! Thus says the Lord: "Human corpses shall fall like dung upon the open field, like sheaves behind the reaper, and no one shall gather them." 23 Thus says the Lord: Do not let the wise boast in their wisdom, do not let the mighty boast in their might, do not let the wealthy boast in their wealth; 24 but let those who boast boast in this, that they understand and know me, that I am the Lord; I act with steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth, for in these things I delight, says the Lord. 25 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will attend to all those who are circumcised only in the foreskin: 26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab, and all those with shaven temples who live in the desert. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.

Yahweh commands the women to teach a lament because it will be the only thing helpful in the upcoming days of destruction. Women held no power in this time and essentially were marginalized. Yahweh is advising the privileged to learn from the marginalized and let go of the idea that their privilege will save them. The same oppression and mistreatment they forced upon these marginalized groups would now fall upon Judah as a whole, and no one would be immune. The marginalized would hold the advantage from the viewpoint of knowing oppression, knowing resistance, and knowing survival. If the privilege had any sense, they would do well to listen, learn, and follow the marginalized to survive the impending doom.

How do we know Yahweh is targeting this message to the privileged? Verses 23-26 points it out to us plainly:

23 Thus says the Lord: Do not let the wise boast in their wisdom, do not let the mighty boast in their might, do not let the wealthy boast in their wealth; 24 but let those who boast boast in this, that they understand and know me, that I am the Lord; I act with steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth, for in these things I delight, says the Lord. 25 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will attend to all those who are circumcised only in the foreskin: 26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab, and all those with shaven temples who live in the desert. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.

Yahweh calls out to the wealthy, the wise, who in this time were priest and other political leaders, and the mighty meaning those of power. Then specifically calls out those who are circumcised, meaning those of "pure lineage", the children of Israel, the children of the covenant. Yahweh makes it clear that while these various nations of the desert may not bear the mark of his covenant, the true offenders are those who do bear the mark of circumcision. They may claim to be his children, but their hearts show otherwise.

SO WHY AM I SHARING THIS?

America has been digging itself into a hole since its conception. Claiming to be one thing for everyone, but it's actions only benefit a few. As a nation full of diversity in every facet, marginalization and oppression are huge issues that fail to be acknowledged and addressed.

More specifically, as a nation that claims religious freedom, the reality is that it's simply not true. Christianity holds the privilege, and I'll further that to say mainstream (white) Christianity holds the privilege, because there are other theologies within American Christianity that fail to be respected and acknowledged.

This is where the issue lies. Too many Christians claim to this covenant, the one the Christ represented, but not many live it out. Just like the Hebrews in Judah, Christians have oppressed and turned a blind eye to plight of the marginalized in its own country. Am I saying all Christians are like this? No. But let's not be in denial that it's still majority.

58% of Protestant/Other Christians voted for Donald Trump

81% of White Evangelical Christians voted for Donald Trump

(Stats from:https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/11/08/us/politics/election-exit-polls.html?_r=0)

Majority of those who cling to the covenant of Christianity voted for not just a person, but a representation, values, and beliefs of hate, fear and oppression. All of which are in direct violation of what Christ represented and what a "real" Christian is called to be.

Just like the privileged in Judah, the privileged of America has abused the covenant of Christianity to justify its privilege at the expense of the quality of life for others. And just like the Judah, America is now falling to its own destruction because of these things.

To Marginalized Groups

Sadly as we have seen in this first week of the new administration, we are still being persecuted and will still have to fight no matter what. However, that same burden is our strength. We know how to survive, we know how to fight, we know how to resist.

It is totally unfair and there is no justification for this mistreatment. If anything Jeremiah 9 shows that the God the privilege claim to know and reflect, is not the same God of the covenant, and simply calling yourself a Christian isn't enough.

Communal law is the foundation of the covenant, from the Old Testament to the teachings of Christ. The living covenant has always been about loving others fully, treating them with respect, making sure that everyone has, and choosing to love beyond our personal pain, biases, and experiences.

Please know that the majority that claim this covenant are not representative of it. There are Christians out there that stand against injustice, and for the fair treatment of all.

Conclusion

We are in for dark times ahead. Beyond the President, the people we have in the positions of power are not in for the greater interest of all, and the people that voted him in support that. That's the reality of what's happening.

We are witnessing the Abuse of Covenant as a Privilege that is now ultimately leading to Destruction. We are in for the fight of our lives. No generation has escaped the burden of the fight. Now it's our turn.

This is your moment to decide which side you are going to stand on. When history talks about this era, which side will you have to say you stood on. The marginalized are going to fight because we have no choice but to fight. Our survival depends on it!

However, to those of privilege, those who cling to your covenant so dearly, are you going to choose to show it in action?

When God commanded the people to lament in Jeremiah 9, it was much bigger than just grief. Lament encompasses a cry of not just pain and suffering, but one of accountability. It is a way to signify to society that the people are not fine with what's happening. Every march, protest, vigil, petition, safe haven, and act of resistance is a lament being pushed forth to let those of privilege and power know that the people are not OK with what is happening.

To be in communion with God is to be in communion with community. To be in communion with Christ is to be in communion with his love and resistance against hate. Covenant does not equate privilege or immunity from suffering , it demands action of its values for all.

Are you going to say you're a Christian or are you going to BE a Christian?

The Power of Lament for the Marginalized: A Sermon for Empowerment

2016-12-14T07:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Dec. 12th, I was able to share my final project in my Intro to Old Testament class. The entire semester we have been working on a paper that explored a text of our choice. The project was an opportunity for us to bring it to life in today's society.

My paper focused on Jeremiah and the role lament played for marginalized communities. For my project I thought it was only appropriate to explore what a lament may have looked like for those groups in Jeremiah 9 that had to cope with societal destruction in addition to their daily oppression.

My inspiration came from Kendrick Lamar's song, "We Gon Be Alright." Thus, the name of my sermon is We Gon Be Alright. I have provided the transcript below the video. Thank you for your continuous prayers and support of my journey. I only hope to share all that is shown to me! God Bless!

We Gon Be Alright

Text: Jeremiah 9: 23-26

²³Thus says the Lord: Do not let the wise boast in their wisdom, do not let the mighty boast in their might, do not let the wealthy boast in their wealth; ²⁴but let those who boast, boast in this, that they understand and know me, that I am the Lord; I act with steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth, for in these things I delight, says the Lord.

²⁵The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will attend to all those who are circumcised only in the foreskin: ²⁶Egypt, Judah, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab, and all those with shaven temples who live in the desert. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.

In Jeremiah 9 we encounter a tale of privilege and oppression. The children of Israel have used their covenant and privilege to justify the oppression of the marginalized living in Judah. Yahweh sees the unjust actions of those who claim to be his children, and gives Jeremiah one of the darkest death prophecies we see in this text. After damning Judah to death and destruction, he orders the women to come mourn and teach a lament. And in the final verses that were read, we hear God say that he is going to judge Israel as they have judged and mistreated the marginalized within their community.

I can only speculate what the marginalized groups in Jeremiah were thinking once they heard that more death and destruction were coming their way. I can imagine that if they were to raise up a lament in that moment, it would share a similar sentiment to the lyrics of Kendrick Lamar's We Gon Be Alright.

Alls my life I has to fight,
Hard times like God
Bad trips like: "God!"
Nazareth, If I'm messed up
Homie you messed up
But if God got us then we gon' be alright

Lamar starts off his song referencing one of the most popular and powerful lines from the Color Purple delivered by the character Mrs. Sophia, “ALL MY LIFE I HAS TO FIGHT.” His intro perfectly captures the despair, the frustration, and pain of marginalized groups trying to survive. But also in the same phase of despair, Lamar says, “But if God got us then we gon’ be alright.”

The marginalized in Jeremiah 9 had to be thinking the same thing. They had publicly heard God denounce Israel for its poor communal values and the oppression of their people. So while there was no sight of good things to come, they were aware that God stood on their side and against injustice.

Going back to Lamar’s song, as he progresses his lyrics began to evolve from a place of despair to a voice of empowerment as he recounts some of the most traumatic injustices experienced by blacks in America.

Wouldn’t you know, we been hurt, been down before,
When my pride was low, lookin’ at the world like, “where do we go?”
And we hate Popo, when they kill us dead in the street for sure,
I’m at the preacher’s door
My knees getting’ weak and my gun might blow but we gon’ be alright

The people of the marginalized nations that Yahweh mentioned in this text knew hardship. They were familiar with the lament of low places and death. From the ancestors of Hagar, to the Moabites who were discriminated against early on, survival and overcoming the depression of oppression was no new challenge. And although the anger may have never subdued from their mistreatment, in this moment through Jeremiah’s prophecy, they came to know God as one of justice and righteousness.

I can hear them chanting in their waking up “We Gon be Alright.” In their daily living, “We Gon Be Alright.” In their crying out of the injustices carried out against them, “We Gon Be Alright.” In the denial of recognition from Israel, “We Gon Be Alright.”

We see ourselves in the marginalized groups in Jeremiah 9 because they shared the same fight we’re still battling today. If anything we should look at these groups in Jeremiah and the lyrics to Lamar’s song and realize that our hope should never rely on the means of the offenders to bring justice, but the constant factors that have always showed up and showed out: 1. God, and 2. Community.

We are not wrong for feeling the anger and despair we experience. We don’t deserve to be treated less-than the majority. And most importantly, God does not agree with these actions and communal lifestyles, and he stands in support of the marginalized.

So as times seem to get darker with no sight of improvement in future, remember we’ve been here before. The things that were intended for our death as a people, failed. It doesn’t take away from the sting of life, but we know how to survive this. It is in our blood, our ancestry, and as long as we stay together as a community and fight injustice together, “We Gon Be Alright.”

To the innocent incarcerated brother, “We Gon be Alright,” to the sistas stepping up on the front lines to be the movement fighting for change and the vessel of healing within our communities, “We Gon be Alright,” To my LGBTQ brothers and sisters continuously fighting to be accepted and respected for who they are, not who they are expected to be, “We Gon Be Alright,” To the allies willing to fight against the evils of the privileged and stand with the marginalized, “We Gon be Alright,” To the black and brown bodies walking in fear of being the next hashtag while still fighting to survive in this world, “We Gon be Alright.”

We may have to live through the destruction of this world, but we are not damned to be succumbed by it. God has got us! Do you hear me? Can you feel me? We Gon Be Alright!

Realizations in a Time of Suffering, Injustice & Revolution

2016-07-06T22:49:00.000-04:00

As I prepare for bed, these were the final thoughts that ran through my head about our current times.

We all have a role to play, and it's not to tear down anyone taking a stand in their call and fighting for the cause. No a change and revolution isn't going to happen with marching alone or prayer alone. It requires a cohesive unit individually functioning in their call and collectively working with intention towards the cause of equity, justice, and human rights.

I know my role I'm a healer. That's why I do everything in my strength to create spaces for people to grieve, work through trauma, and heal. There is not a bone in my body not capable of doing so. I dare not slander any other role, because God knows I don't have the strength and power to carry those things out, but my sisters and brothers that do... I commend you!

The fighter is there to be the strength and resistance when most can't, the activist is there to be the voice when we feel too stifled, the teacher is there to educate and pass on the legacy and charge of this never ending work, the writer is there to document truth and history so we never forget! There are so many more roles that I couldn't cover if I wanted to.

What's not going to work is criticism of any of these callings because they all matter and they all have impact. I encourage everyone to find your place and step BOLDLY in it. Find what makes you feel alive, comes naturally and is a part of who you are. Step into that greatness and donate it to the cause. We need every willing spirit to step up to plate. Find your place and ground yourself firmly in it! Take your place and stop allowing others to dictate your footsteps that they'll never walk! Lead from your place so that others see it's possible! And make sure you give back so that the cycle NEVER ends.

It's time to take our rightful places in this world and fight the hell we are faced with daily, but we have to respect each other and allow each person to bring their gifts to the table.

Don't place a basket over your flame. Burn and let no man put you out. The time is now...

1 Corinthians 12The Message (MSG)

Spiritual Gifts

12 1-3 What I want to talk about now is the various ways God’s Spirit gets worked into our lives. This is complex and often misunderstood, but I want you to be informed and knowledgeable. Remember how you were when you didn’t know God, led from one phony god to another, never knowing what you were doing, just doing it because everybody else did it? It’s different in this life. God wants us to use our intelligence, to seek to understand as well as we can. For instance, by using your heads, you know perfectly well that the Spirit of God would never prompt anyone to say “Jesus be damned!” Nor would anyone be inclined to say “Jesus is Master!” without the insight of the Holy Spirit.

4-11 God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! The variety is wonderful:

wise counsel

clear understanding

simple trust

healing the sick

miraculous acts

proclamation

distinguishing between spirits

tongues

interpretation of tongues.

All these gifts have a common origin, but are handed out one by one by the one Spirit of God. He decides who gets what, and when.

12-13 You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you’re still one body. It’s exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive.

14-18 I want you to think about how all this makes you more significant, not less. A body isn’t just a single part blown up into something huge. It’s all the different-but-similar parts arranged and functioning together. If Foot said, “I’m not elegant like Hand, embellished with rings; I guess I don’t belong to this body,” would that make it so? If Ear said, “I’m not beautiful like Eye, limpid and expressive; I don’t deserve a place on the head,” would you want to remove it from the body? If the body was all eye, how could it hear? If all ear, how could it smell? As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it.

19-24 But I also want you to think about how this keeps your significance from getting blown up into self-importance. For no matter how significant you are, it is only because of what you are a part of. An enormous eye or a gigantic hand wouldn’t be a body, but a monster. What we have is one body with many parts, each its proper size and in its proper place. No part is important on its own. Can you imagine Eye telling Hand, “Get lost; I don’t need you”? Or, Head telling Foot, “You’re fired; your job has been phased out”? As a matter of fact, in practice it works the other way—the “lower” the part, the more basic, and therefore necessary. You can live without an eye, for instance, but not without a stomach. When it’s a part of your own body you are concerned with, it makes no difference whether the part is visible or clothed, higher or lower. You give it dignity and honor just as it is, without comparisons. If anything, you have more concern for the lower parts than the higher. If you had to choose, wouldn’t you prefer good digestion to full-bodied hair?

25-26 The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don’t, the parts we see and the parts we don’t. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance.

27-31 You are Christ’s body—that’s who you are! You must never forget this. Only as you accept your part of that body does your “part” mean anything. You’re familiar with some of the parts that God has formed in his church, which is his “body”:

apostles

prophets

teachers

miracle workers

healers

helpers

organizers

those who pray in tongues.

But it’s obvious by now, isn’t it, that Christ’s church is a complete Body and not a gigantic, unidimensional Part? It’s not all Apostle, not all Prophet, not all Miracle Worker, not all Healer, not all Prayer in Tongues, not all Interpreter of Tongues. And yet some of you keep competing for so-called “important” parts.

But now I want to lay out a far better way for you.

Life in Love Means No More FEAR

2015-05-04T15:01:00.000-04:00

1 John 4:17-19 The Message (MSG)

To Love, to Be Loved

17-18 God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ’s. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.

19 We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.

It was so ironic that today I didn't wear my No More Fear bracelet and my coworker reminded me of living without fear.

Fear is the underdog and the elephant in the room at the same time. Everyone thinks little of it, yet knows it has a large presence. It's the forbidden emotion to feel, but has the greatest impact if gone ignored. Most importantly where fear exists, love does not.

Love is very important to me. I want to experience it in every facet of life. However, from time to time I indulge in fear. I knew fear could paralyze you, but it wasn't until reading this scripture that I realized I wasn't living a life of love if I included fear.

Fear will make you Judge/Doubt instead of Trust

Fear causes bitterness in the face of new opportunity

Fear causes blindness in reality

Fear causes Hate/Death instead of Love/Life

Today I realized that we are being called higher to really fall in love with life. It's time to stop fearing the very intention of the life we are to live. I'm so consumed with not knowing the next step that I can't hear or see the love in my life right in front of me.

How can God give me the desires of my heart, a life I can truly love, if I can't stop covering my eyes out of fear to see it?

There is more to life than progress, there is Love. If you become too obsessed with progress you will miss out on all the love right in front of you. In love all is ok, all is right. No more fear...

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched; they must be felt with the heart. - Helen Keller

It'sTime to Grow Up - Let's Get Real About Purpose

2015-03-26T18:08:00.000-04:00

I know before I have said Romans is my favorite book in the bible, but now I think my 2nd favorite book has got to be Ephesians. In my last post my meditation came from Ephesians, and it has continued to be my meditation. If you are going through any kind of transition in your life, Ephesians is a great book to read.

So on that note, as I meditated today on needing guidance in this period of transition, I read Ephesians 4. As I read the chapter I realized that we have to grow up at some point.

We are all working towards a greater cause, and if we are serious about walking our journeys we have to decide if we are going to leave old mindsets and behaviors behind in order to continue the journey. For me, God spoke clearly about trials and fear. I can't run away every time it gets hard or seems really new and scary. I have to choose whether I am going to work past my fears or allow them to end my story early.

You may need to decide the same. How often do you turn around because the road becomes too unfamiliar? You can't run from who you are and who you are destined to be. Right now God is calling us to grow up and get serious about the calling on our lives.

We have different journeys but it is our responsibility to make sure we are all walking them. It's time to be more mindful of your words and actions towards others. It's gets hard sometimes and what you say or do should not make your journey or the next journey harder.

This life is bigger than us and it's a privilege to live it! So now I'll leave you with the scripture. It's time to grow up folks!!!

(Ephesians 4:1-32 MSG)

In light of all this, here’s what I want you to do. While I’m locked up here, a prisoner for the Master, I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!—on the road God called you to travel. I don’t want any of you sitting around on your hands. I don’t want anyone strolling off, down some path that goes nowhere. And mark that you do this with humility and discipline—not in fits and starts, but steadily, pouring yourselves out for each other in acts of love, alert at noticing differences and quick at mending fences.

You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness.

But that doesn’t mean you should all look and speak and act the same. Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift. The text for this is, He climbed the high mountain, He captured the enemy and seized the booty, He handed it all out in gifts to the people. Is it not true that the One who climbed up also climbed down, down to the valley of earth? And the One who climbed down is the One who climbed back up, up to highest heaven. He handed out gifts above and below, filled heaven with his gifts, filled earth with his gifts. He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor-teacher to train Christ’s followers in skilled servant work, working within Christ’s body, the church, until we’re all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God’s Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ.

No prolonged infancies among us, please. We’ll not tolerate babes in the woods, small children who are an easy mark for impostors. God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.

And so I insist—and God backs me up on this—that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God but with reality itself. They can’t think straight anymore. Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion.

But that’s no life for you. You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything—and I do mean everything—connected with that old way of life has to go. It’s rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you.

What this adds up to, then, is this: no more lies, no more pretense. Tell your neighbor the truth. In Christ’s body we’re all connected to each other, after all. When you lie to others, you end up lying to yourself. Go ahead and be angry. You do well to be angry—but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.

Did you use to make ends meet by stealing? Well, no more! Get an honest job so that you can help others who can’t work. Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift. Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly and thoroughly as God in Christ forgave you.

God is Building a Home, and You Belong Here

2015-03-20T07:06:00.000-04:00

Today I finally sat down to journal for a bit and through my writing I discovered I was becoming unsure if I was achieving my purpose right now. I was beginning to think that I would return home to the U.S. in three months and still not have my life figured out. So after expressing myself, I did what I know to do when I need to listen...I went to go read some scripture.

I came across a chapter in Ephesians that reminded me of something important; It wasn't long ago that we all started our respective journeys, and because of this God is still preparing us. He is still building our home and even in the midst of construction, we still belong here. So even though I feel like I am floating from place to place figuring things out, I belong right where I am because it's by God's doing that I am here.

So I've decided to share this scripture with anyone else who may need to read this post today! Hang in there!

Ephesians 2 The Message (MSG)

He Tore Down the Wall

2 1-6 It wasn’t so long ago that you were mired in that old stagnant life of sin. You let the world, which doesn’t know the first thing about living, tell you how to live. You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief, and then exhaled disobedience. We all did it, all of us doing what we felt like doing, when we felt like doing it, all of us in the same boat. It’s a wonder God didn’t lose his temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, he embraced us. He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah.

7-10 Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t play the major role. If we did, we’d probably go around bragging that we’d done the whole thing! No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both the making and saving. He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.

11-13 But don’t take any of this for granted. It was only yesterday that you outsiders to God’s ways had no idea of any of this, didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. You knew nothing of that rich history of God’s covenants and promises in Israel, hadn’t a clue about what God was doing in the world at large. Now because of Christ—dying that death, shedding that blood—you who were once out of it altogether are in on everything.

14-15 The Messiah has made things up between us so that we’re now together on this, both non-Jewish outsiders and Jewish insiders. He tore down the wall we used to keep each other at a distance. He repealed the law code that had become so clogged with fine print and footnotes that it hindered more than it helped. Then he started over. Instead of continuing with two groups of people separated by centuries of animosity and suspicion, he created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody.

16-18 Christ brought us together through his death on the cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father.

19-22 That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.

The Spirit Series Finale - Part 5: Protecting the Spirit

2015-03-17T15:40:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! As usual I apologize for the extremely long delay. A lot has changed in my life and in a very short period of time, but you can learn about these changes on my new blog: My Living Abroad Journeys.

However, in the mean time I would like to bring closure to our Spirit Series which was a very important topic. If you are just starting or catching up you can find the previous posts here:

We have explored what the Spirit is, how to take care of it, communicate through it, and love through it. Now the most important thing to do next is protect it.

So why is protecting the spirit so important? Well if you don't protect it, you will leave it vulnerable to any and all attacks! The bible speaks of the Fruits of the Spirit. These are things that the Spirit produces when it is protected and constantly engaged.

Galatians 5:22-23 New Living Translation (NLT)

22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Remember how we talked about how the Spirit can feel lost, confused, broken, or even dead in Part 2? Well, it is because you are producing "dead" fruit. When you choose to engage in that pointless argument, seek revenge, proceed to cuss someone out, or allow your emotions to get the best of you, you are producing dead fruit.

Of course there are more actions that can be added to the list, but the focus should be that you are allowing things that are not good to penetrate your heart, mind, and Spirit. Eventually that means that your actions and way of life will also be corrupted.

This is not healthy and it isn't they way God intended us to experience life. The hard part is that we know we will encounter things daily that will threaten our spirits. So in order to keep our spirits from dying, we must protect it. How? Well let's look at some more scripture!

Philippians 4:8 New Living Translation (NLT)

8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Now this is easier said than done right? I mean it is clearly hard to think on something lovely when someone has taken your parking space, stolen your credit card information, stomped on your last nerve, or just made things entirely too hard. However, isn't it better when we don't engage in these negative behaviors?

That person you just told off is now plotting revenge worst that you ever anticipated. Or the outcome may not have played out the way you wanted it. Now you have wasted time, energy, and self-control on things that produced nothing good to your life and the lives of others.

The reality is that yes, sometimes we will make bad choices and still fall short, but I love that this scripture proposes a goal. It says "Fix your thoughts on...," which means Aim to think about these things. That means you should practice getting in the habit of thinking and acting on truth, not lies/opinions/perceptions. It means aim to act in an honorable or respectful way. Act and think out of love. All the positive things you admire should be the things you think and focus on when life threatens your Spirit with negativity.

It is your choice to and ability to do this, and that is not only worthy of praise, but also protects your spirit! If you are protecting your spirit, ultimately you are choosing to live in the Spirit, which is what we were destined for.

Understanding the physical is great, but we are not limited to it. When we choose to engage our Spirits in our everyday living we begin to see differently, think differently, and love differently! New possibilities expand and we are constantly learning and growing. We learn more about ourselves, other people, our purpose, dreams, abilities, and most importantly God!

So my hope is that through this series you have started the journey to learning about the Spirit of God in you! The life that you imagined and dreamed of is right over the hill but you have to seek it out. Engage with your Spirit, take care of it, communicate through it, love it and everything around you, and always protect it! I love you and I hope this series has been a blessing because it truly did bless me. As always I love you and stay tuned for more from my new blog, and new blog posts here too!

The Spirit Mini Series Part 4: Love in the Spirit

2014-11-11T16:11:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the little delay in posting, but I am back and we are continuing where we left off with our Spirit series. If you are new to these posts here are the first three parts to the series for you to catch up on:

Today we are going to talk about Love in the Spirit. Love is a very interesting concept and has been a part of society since the beginning of time. Usually when we think of love we think of it in a romantic sense, however when we talk about love in the spirit, it goes much further beyond the romantic phase or the societal idea of love.

As stated in the Ten Commandments our greatest requirement is to love. Love God, love ourselves, love each other, love our bodies, love our purpose. But what is it to really love? I think we have ask ourselves this question constantly to explore the depths of love, and the love that God requires of us. 1 Corinthians, Chapter 13 provides a great reminder of the kind of love God looks for us to strive for in our everyday living.

1 Corinthians 13: 1-7 New Living Translation (NLT)

Love Is the Greatest

13 If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it;[a] but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

This scripture not only represents God's expectation of us, but this represents love on a spiritual level. That is why the Bible constantly emphasizes having a right heart, because the spirit of God is housed within the heart. Because God is love, our spirits and spiritual living must also represent love. Ultimately the spirit cannot be in balance if your heart is not balanced. So what does this all mean? Let's break down the scripture a little bit more.

God's love is never intended to be hard, but personally I do believe it challenges us, because God constantly challenges us to grow and be better. That's why I love this scripture because it doesn't romanticize it, it emphasizes practical application.

Love is patient even when our very last nerve is ready to explode, love rules over every emotion and action that results in hatred, and replaces it with kindness.
Love reminds us that we do not need be jealous of someone else because their is enough prosperity through God for us all. In the same sense there is no need to boast on what you have to battle insecurities because we all have access to what we need.
Love is not constantly in an irritable state and doesn't need to constantly remind others or even yourself of how many times the world has wronged you. Love doesn't hold on to these things. It doesn't indulge or secretly celebrate when vengeance is attained, but only when the truth is revealed because healing can come from truth.
Love never quits, meaning on others and yourself. It never stops believing in the greatness of life, the possibility, and the purpose. It instills hope and encouragement to its surroundings, and it survives through any and every circumstance.

Love through this perspective allows you to love through God's spirit, not through the inconsistencies of our flesh. Just like we discussed in Part 3, loving yourself and others in the spirit allows you to communicate and have a different perspective also. You are now seeing yourself and others in the spirit, not on the surface.

When you love in the spirit, it allows you to see the hearts and spirits of others. It helps you to be more patient and kind to the person who seems angry or hateful because you see their heart and spirit. While you may not agree, it allows you to be more understanding of their behaviors because you can see their wounds, and their perspective.

So instead of speaking to their flesh which may be their hateful words, need to slander you, inability to listen to anyone, huge need for attention, struggle with addiction, coldness or lack of opening up, and other circumstances we encounter when interacting with one another; you speak to their spirit, to their heart and understand that their actions is not a reflection of who they really are. You are patient with them because you understand that just like God helps you to grow and become better through loving you and exhibiting the same traits, that you can help them to do the same by loving others as God loves you.

Just as important, love in the spirit allows you to accept and love YOURSELF at every point of your life, good and bad. It reminds you to be patient with yourself, be kind to yourself, and have faith in yourself. God did not choose you to live this life if he didn't think you could do it! You learn to love yourself through every circumstance when you love in the spirit. This is something that I am constantly challenging myself to do.

Lastly before I get ready to end this post, I just want to emphasize why love in the spirit is much more stronger than love in the flesh. Just like verse seven says in the scripture above, it ENDURES through every circumstance. When we try to love according to our own standards, we tend to give up. We aren't able to love ourselves like we need to and we give up on our dreams, lives, and purpose. We give up on others and lose hope in humanity, relationships, and overcoming. That's why it is important to love in the spirit, because if we aren't, then we really aren't living. Our spirits and lives began to slowly die.

So challenge yourself to love in God's spirit. Take this scripture and apply it into your life. Look at things, yourself and others from this perspective. Make it your desire to share the same love God bestows upon you everyday upon others.

Our next edition in the series will discuss Protecting the Spirit. We've discussed various components of life in the spirit, but it is also very important to protect it! So stay tuned for Part 5 and as always thank you for your support! Be Blessed!

The Spirit Mini Series Part 3: Communication in the Spirit

2014-10-14T18:36:00.003-04:00

com·mu·ni·ca·tion noun \kə-ˌmyü-nə-ˈkā-shən\ (Merriam Webster Dictionary)

: the act or process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors to express or exchange information or to express your ideas, thoughts, feelings, etc., to someone else

: a message that is given to someone : a letter, telephone call, etc.

God communicates with us in two major ways: the Bible and the Holy Spirit. As you know we will be discussing the latter today. However, I want to emphasize that there are no set amount of ways that God communicates with us in the Spirit. In fact the way he speaks to me can be different from how he speaks to you, and he can/will appear to you in many ways. So the main focus of this post is to bring awareness to some of the main mediums in which we communicate in the spirit.

When I first asked for guidance about what to share with this post, God highlighted two very important components to communicating in the spirit:

Prayer
And Listening

As highlighted in the definition above, communication is the process of transmitting information to someone or something else. That means it requires a giver and a receiver, a two-way street. It's the same thing when we communicate with God, and how he communicates in the spirit. It requires us to sometimes speak and go to him, and then we also have to listen sometimes and receive.

Prayer

So how do we go and speak to God as the initial giver/provider of information? Prayer. Prayer simply consists of you going to God and sharing thanks or petitioning for a cause, or various other reasons. The are numerous ways to pray, traditional liking leans towards kneeling with your eye closed and talking to God. However, prayer can be verbal in non-traditional ways such as while driving in your car, walking down the street, through song, poetry, and in addition various non-verbal ways such as writing, meditating, and even what we like to call "thinking to ourselves. It pours over into listening because it is all linked, however I want to emphasize how important it is for us to take initiative to start the chain of communication to God. Prayer is our way of being and staying connected to God. It's a way of protecting ourselves, and our spirits by focusing on talking with him, staying connected. For instance, think of some of your best relationships, (friendships, romantic, work, fitness/sports, etc...) and evaluate why they are so strong.

What is the communication stream like?
How often do you communicate with one another?
Is it always verbal?
Do you feel like you have a secret language?

You begin to realize how much you have to invest in building those relationships, which is a reflection of a large investment in communicating with those people. Communication allows us to get to know someone better, understand not only the communication styles, but who they are and how they function. Communication begins in a very physical, tangible mode, but evolves into an intangible, spiritual level where words and body language aren't necessary. That is due to the gained understanding of the person's internal being.

Ever feel like that with God? He doesn't always have to send his messages verbally to you, or through physical signs, you can just feel him speaking to you, feel his spirit talking to you? Or even turn it around, you don't always have to speak verbally or through body language to him. He can simply read, hear, and feel your heart and instantly know what you are saying to him. He can see your spirit and automatically know what you are communicating. That's prayer.

All of this is attainable through prayer. But just like you invest in people relationships, you have to invest in God's relationship with you. Remember his spirit lives in you, right in your heart. So in a sense you have to learn how to communicate with yourself and, (here is the next great point!!), LISTEN to God in you.

Listen

Listening plays a major role in your ability to pray as stated earlier. Communication is a two way street, and just as we are required to speak up, we must listen also. And just like there are various ways to pray, there are so many ways to listen.

Some of the most common ways we can listen include:

Verbally
Through the body
Through energies
Through our hearts
The Supernatural

Now before we dive into these areas a little deeper, I want you to read them from the perspective of listening to God's spirit in you. Afterwards, I will connect how being able to listen through these mediums will also allow us to listen to other people's spirits.

Verbally

God will send people or even his own voice directly to us as a response to our prayers. Sometimes you have people come up to you and just say the right thing you needed to hear, or sometimes you hear a song randomly that just speaks to your heart and your situation at the time, and then sometimes in the silence of a moment, or the loudness of a commuter train you will hear God's voice clear as day speak to you.

To provide a quick example, I have experienced God speaking to me verbally through someone else and from him directly. A woman from my church called me randomly Sunday evening to say she was here for me to talk to whenever I needed to, and that God brought my face to her saying that I needed someone. Now mind you, the last two weeks my heart and spirit have been down because I have felt very alone, misunderstood and invisible. I felt like the people I wanted to talk to were nowhere to be found. To be clear this is not a jab to my closest friends, they are amazing, but sometimes you want to talk to a new face, a new mind, someone that you believe you are connecting with. However, all these people were not responding to me, or just had not been in touch.

Now mind you I never verbally spoke these things to God, but because I am connected to him and usually in constant communication with him, he read my heart, he saw my spirit and listened. He sent me someone as a response to my petition.

Body

God's spirit can also speak to our bodies to relay a message. Thinking back to Part 2 when we were talking about Chakras and the connection to our bodies, God really speaks to our bodies on matters that are causing blockages in our spirits and connection to him.

Think about it, have you ever gotten so angry that you got a headache that you could not get rid of? That is God speaking to us through our bodies to try and get us to release unhealthy energies and blockages. Ever been unsure of yourself, not having the best confidence in yourself, or feeling nervous and then your stomach starts to hurt, or your digestion isn't the best? Yup, you guessed it, that is another way God is communicating through your body to tell you to pay attention and address your mindset because it is impacting your spirit and ultimately your body.

When we fail to listen to God speaking to us in various ways, it reflects on our bodies. Now to be clear, every sickness is not because you are neglecting God's message or you have issues, but when you are aware of negative behaviors and energies you have been harboring there is a high chance that your body is now suffering because the imbalance in your spirit.

So the next time you are not feeling well, I challenge you to evaluate any emotions or thoughts you have been harboring and if it's affecting how you feel. God may be speaking through your body to address these imbalances and blockages.

Energy

You ever just sense or pick up on good or bad energy from someone else? Well God does too. From personal experience it is when God seems to be at a distance that I become more aware of the energy I am carrying. People will distance themselves from you if they sense bad energy, just like you distance yourself from people that are in a "bad mood." Internally, we go back to that disconnected feeling, or we tend to say we are feeling "off", and I believe that is God trying to tell us to check the energy we are carrying.

Energies work hand-in-hand with the body so you can also refer to what we talked about above in conjunction with energies. When you feel like you are carrying "bad" energy it will reflect in your body, mindset, and mood. Energies directly impact the spirit, so God will always speak to you about the energies you carry because it impacts his connection and ability to communicate with us.

The Heart

The heart is a very common and powerful way for us to listen to God. Remember God's spirit lives in our hearts, so this is his home, his common place within us. This also means that when God speaks to our hearts, it causes us to see and react to things differently that what we may want to out of logic and impulse. The heart is a great way to silence what the mind is telling you and listen to what God is telling you. However, it can be one of the hardest modes to listen to because we allow so much to be filtered in and out of our hearts.

My counselor gave me an excellent exercise to do that has helped me to train myself to be more aware and listen to my heart. It has essentially trained me to listen to God's voice speaking in my heart, which as stated before, I feel like is the most powerful mode of communication in the spirit besides prayer.

You pose a yes or no question that you want to ask God. So first go somewhere that you won't be interrupted and sit. Take in your environment and be aware of where you are at the moment. Then ask the question. After asking the question, proceed by saying, "My mind says..." and state everything that comes off the top of your head until you don't have anything left to say. Next, take a deep breath, look around and take in your surroundings again. Then state the question again, but this time say, "My heart says...", and place your hands on your heart and begin to say what you feel is coming from the heart.

Usually when I do it, I feel a tug at my heart and my stomach when speaking form the heart, and my responses are usually much more peaceful and from a better state of consciousness. This exercises helps train you to silence yourself, so that you can hear clearly what God is speaking to your heart.

Once you get comfortable doing this, you will begin to naturally be more of aware of your heart and how God speaks to you through it. You will listen to it more and essentially act from it more. But we will go into more detail about this later...

The Supernatural

I won't go into too much detail on this area, because it will have its own post in the future. However, I do think it is important to know that God speaks through supernatural mediums such as dreams, visions, signs, miracles and angels.

However, there is much explanation that needs to be laid out before I can really dive into this area, so let's save this for a later post in the series for you to look forward to!

The BIG Point

When you look at all the things we addressed on how God speaks to us, he also gives us the ability to connect with each other in the same way. Once you are more aware of communication in the Spirit, you can communicate with others through God's spirit. You can listen to someone through their verbal messages, body language/illnesses, the energies they carry, their heart, and you may even have dreams about someone with a message God has placed in it for you to receive.

Communication in the spirit is our main vital to God, but it also allows us to connect and exist with one another beyond our physical state. Think back to the beginning when I asked about your strongest relationships. How many of them are strong because of communication physically, versus communication in the spirit. When we communicate in the spirit with God and one another, it allows us to see each other in a different light. Instead of seeing things we don't like or understand, we see each other for our hearts, energies and most importantly our spirits. We listen to those things and begin to speak to those things in one another.

So that person you don't like, you may begin to see the pain behind the energy they carry in their hearts, and as a result you may be willing to speak more love into their life because you see who they are, not their situation.

Which leads to my next point and our next installation in the series. Love is a huge component of our spirits, not just because the spirit lives in our hearts. In order to be fully in tune with God's spirit we must be fully aware of and in tune with love.

So stay tuned for Part 4 of our series: Love and the Spirit!

The Spirit Mini Series Part 2: Taking Care of the Spirit

2014-10-04T08:00:00.000-04:00

John 15:1-8The Message (MSG)

The Vine and the Branches

15 1-3 “I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn’t bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

4 “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me.

5-8 “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.

When you have a connection to someone or something it becomes a part of your being. As mentioned in Part 1 of the series, without it things just don't feel right, flow right, and in a way feels/becomes dead.

I want you to do an exercise where you will need to jot down on a small piece of paper the following responses:

Quickly think of something you are connected to or have been connected to in the past. How did it feel when that connection was strong? How did your life feel? How did your mind feel? Your body?
Now in that same sense, how did it feel when that connection weakened or was even broken? Again how did your life feel? How did your mind feel? Your body?

Now looking at those responses compare the difference between when a connection was strong and when it was broken/weakened. Answer to yourself quickly, what did you do to maintain a strong connection? Keep these things in mind as you read through this post today.

I would like to highlight three major requirements I have learned throughout my journey about taking care of your spirit:

Connect to God's Spirit
Learn how to nourish your spirit
Communicate with and through your spirit

These three behaviors have proven to be crucial to my day-to-day connection with God and my spirit. Going back to the exercise you did a little earlier, when I have gone without doing any of these three things, there is an immediate difference in how my day flows and how my mind and body handles it.

So let's hop into these three areas!

Connect to God's Spirit

As I briefly mentioned in Part 1 of this series, connection is a crucial factor in how your spirit will feel and function. More importantly, your spiritual connection to God is the foundation to how your spirit will grow and function in every aspect of your life.

My pastor spoke from the passage above this past Sunday, John 15:1-8 and made a very good point. Many of us who claim to be connected to God are only attached. We go through traditional rituals on Sundays, and maybe pray or try meet the "standards" of what a "righteous" person should be/look like and it ends there. There is no additional effort to get to know God beyond that point. In no way am I saying church is pointless, but it is only one aspect of spiritual living. There is much more of an investment that has to be made in order for you to come into greater spiritual development and understanding.

When you are attached, you manage to get by in life, but you also manage to continue carrying the aloof feeling inside, the doubt or uncertainty of whether you are really living the good life God promised you. Attachment allows you to see and go along with God's doing, but it does not allow you to engage, understand and connect with it.

That is where the difference falls. A connection provides understanding, eliminates doubt, and allows you to not just go with the flow, but engage in it. So what does it truly mean to engage? According to Dictionary.com Engage is defined as occupying oneself, or becoming involved. That means a connection requires action, involvement, not idol behavior. Which leads to my next question... So how do I connect with God's spirit?

You get involved, learn about the spirit so you can learn how to connect with it. Learn about God so you can learn how to connect with him! I wish I could give you a step by step tutorial on how that works, but it honestly looks different for each person. However I can recommend some books that really helped me to learn more about my spirit and God's spirit:

The Bible (in stores everywhere, or on your phone, tablet, etc...)
Anatomy of the Spirit by Caroline Myss, PH.D.

These two books really helped me to understand what the spirit is composed of and how to build a better connection. It will seem intimidating, but it is well worth challenging yourself. The spirit is a part of you, so just see it as learning about another part of yourself that has been dormant.

Understanding the anatomy of the spirit helps you to understand its purpose, process, and its "warnings" in a way. When I first embarked on my journey I came to understand my spirit better through the knowledge of Chakras. There is a huge connection between Chakras and your spirit. Remember your spirit carries energy, and so when you block one of those energy streams, it impacts your spirit. Which leads to point two, nourishing your spirit.

Learn how to nourish your spirit

A huge part of nourishing your spirit requires ridding of any and all blockages in it. Linking back to the scripture, this is "cutting" yourself of the branches that are dead and not producing life. Even when you think of weight loss, it's not just about working out and dieting. A huge part of weight loss that goes unmentioned is the detox aspect. Ridding the body of bad toxins, and crap that causes blockages.

So the first step to nourishing your spirit is to give it a detox. Face and rid of all of those bad energies, that have caused blockages. Below is a brief explanation of the Chakras, and then I will explain how working to unblock them will help to create a healthy flow of energy, power and life through your spirit.

Chakras

The chakras serve as the energy centers in our body. There are seven of them: (Information provided by Mind, Body, Green)

The Root - Represents our foundation and being groundedLocation: Base of spine in tailbone area.Emotional issues: Survival issues such as financial independence, money, and food.
The Sacral- Our connection and ability to accept others and new experiencesLocation: Lower abdomen, about 2 inches below the navel and 2 inches in.Emotional issues: Sense of abundance, well-being, pleasure, sexuality.
The Solar Plexus- Our ability to be confident and in control of our livesLocation: Upper abdomen in the stomach area.Emotional issues: Self-worth, self-confidence, self-esteem.
Heart- Our ability to loveLocation: Center of chest just above heart.Emotional issues: Love, joy, inner peace
Throat - Our ability to communicateLocation: Throat.Emotional issues: Communication, self-expression of feelings, the truth.
Third Eye- Our ability to focus on and see the big pictureLocation: Forehead between the eyes. (Also called the Brow Chakra)Emotional issues: Intuition, imagination, wisdom, ability to think and make decisions.
Crown - The highest Chakra, this represents our ability to be fully connected spirituallyLocation: The very top of the head.Emotional issues: Inner and outer beauty, our connection to spirituality, pure bliss.

As you can see by their emotional issues, a lot of these issues are what become blockages. We hold on to events, hurt, anger, words, guilt, and shame in our lives that they block the energy flow that we need to keep our spirit healthy, strong, and alive.

A great way to help identify what the blockages are in your life is to make a list, draw a picture, or both of all the painful events, words, guilt, shame, and anger you have experienced in your life from birth to the present. Write it all down. Write down things you have said and done to hurt yourself, and write down things others have said and done to hurt you. Write it or draw it out. You need a visual, a way to keep track and honestly face your blockages.

Once you have it all written out you can clearly begin to identify what energies in your spirit have become blocked as a result of the hardship of life. Once again great books to assist in this process are:

Anatomy of the Spirit by Caroline Myss
And You Can Heal Your Life by Louis Hay

These two books not only help to identify blockages, but help you to start working through them which leads to Step 2 in the process of nourishing your spirit...healing.

Once you finish stripping your spirit of all these blockages, it still isn't ready to go out and face the those same enemies that created them, it must heal and regain its strength. Just like a wound, once it's cleaned it still isn't all better, it has to heal.

So how do you heal? You go into those now raw areas of your spirit, admit your weaknesses, work on accepting who you are and who you are trying to be, affirm those things, and strengthen them on God's promises. A huge part of this stage is self-acceptance and also understanding who you are in Christ. God did not make you to be nothing, he made you in his own image! Even when that got tainted he sent Christ to make it all new for us again, so discover your greatness!

As I said before, for me You Can Heal Your Life by Louis Hay helped me to do this TREMENDOUSLY. Yes all caps because that's just how powerful it was in my acceptance of myself and my ability. However, you can always seek out other mediums to help you in doing this. If you have a counselor I encourage you to go to them requesting exercises and practice working on your areas of need. There are support groups for these areas and so much more, so however you feel the most comfortable, do it! The important part is being engaged.

Healing is a constant process, it never ends. However, it is very important to understand God's power to heal and how to go find your healing in him. All of this is possible through connecting and communicating through the spirit.

Which leads to the last step in nourishing your spirit, communication. However, communication is so important that I have decided to dedicate an entire post in itself to addressing it. So stay tuned for Part 3 - How to Communicate in the Spirit, for tips on how to build a steady stream of communication through the spirit!

As always thank you for your support, and your openness to my journey! Be blessed and remember to read, share, and comment!

The Spirit Mini Series: Part 1 - What is God's Spirit?

2014-09-28T15:30:00.000-04:00

Hello Everyone!

So thank you for joining me for this mini series on the Spirit! As I said before, I do not know everything and I cannot possibly cover everything, but I can share what I've been led to learn in hopes that it may kick-start someone else's journey!

Let's hop into it!

Before we start on this journey of exploring what the spirit is and its role in our lives, I think it is important to look at some definitions so we can understand what the current perspective is, and what we may have been taught.

Definitions:

Miriam Webster:

spir·it

noun \ˈspir-ət\
: the force within a person that is believed to give the body life, energy, and power
: the inner quality or nature of a person
: a person

The Bible

The term spirit in the bible appears many times and in many facets, however the three ways that really stand out to me are:

Spirit as breath/life: Isaiah 42:5 Living Bible -- The Lord God who created the heavens and stretched them out, who created the earth and everything in it, who gives life and breath and spirit to everyone in all the world, he is the one who says to his Servant, the Messiah[a]:
Spirit as power: Judges 14:5-6 MSG -- Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother. When he got to the vineyards of Timnah, a young lion came at him, roaring. The Spirit of God came on him powerfully and he ripped it open barehanded, like tearing a young goat. But he didn’t tell his parents what he had done.
Spirit as connection to God: Romans 8:9-11 MSG -- But if God himself has taken up residence in your life, you can hardly be thinking more of yourself than of him. Anyone, of course, who has not welcomed this invisible but clearly present God, the Spirit of Christ, won’t know what we’re talking about. But for you who welcome him, in whom he dwells—even though you still experience all the limitations of sin—you yourself experience life on God’s terms. It stands to reason, doesn’t it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!

The combination of the dictionary and the bible make a great foundation for understanding exactly what a spirit, and God's spirit is.

The reason I separate the two is because not everyone chooses to carry the Spirit of God in their lives, meaning they commit to other spirits to provide their source of energy, power, and life! When evaluating your own spirit it is important to ask where do you draw your energy from? Do you rely on sources and things that are temporary, shaky in foundation, or inconsistent? If so, that may be why you find yourself feeling lost, uncomfortable, unbalanced, and disconnected somehow. Even those who believe they rely on the Spirit of God may not realize they rely on other things more such as the spirit of fear, anger, hurt, etc...

It is crucial to understand how to identify who/what you are giving your life/power/energy to.

God's spirit on the other hand does all that the scriptures above say:

God's spirit lives, no thrives in all that accept him into their hearts! It is his breath, his life that breathed life into us! The heart is the core of our physical being, so in the same sense God's spirit resides in our hearts. That is why love is the greatest requirement of all who accept Christ into their lives. The essence of his spirit is love, and so the entire essence of of being should be love too. God's spirit speaks to us through our hearts, moves us through our hearts, and even communicates to our bodies through our hearts. But we will get into that a little further down the road!
God's spirit gives us unspeakable power, if we allow him to.The scripture above uses the story of Samson as an example. Samson was not powerful due to his own means, it was only through the Spirit of God that he was able to demonstrate such amazing acts of strength and power. Another example is Adam and how God gave him the power to name every creature on the earth and to remember them individually! The same thing with Solomon, through God's Spirit and power he was granted wisdom. Essentially, if God's spirit truly resides in us, so does his power, a power that we seldom tap into and are aware of.
God's spirit is a means of connection and relationship with us. If we are truly beings of God's Spirit, then we learn and live life in more ways than one. Having his spirit in us allows us to learn how to communicate with him in various ways, and then it also allows us to communicate with others who are also of his spirit in means that are beyond the physical understanding. Isn't that amazing?! It allows you to learn about God's Spirit and life on his terms so that you can see beyond the daily interactions of your physical life. For example, communicating with God in the Spirit allows you to have a greater understanding of why certain things happen. The good and the bad, his spirit allows you to see how everything has it's purpose, every moment has meaning, and how each encounter/lesson lines you up for the next step in your journey. So much so that trying to see life through our human eyes will no longer make sense. You find the greater meaning in life and your purpose when you are living through God's spirit. You still sin, have bad days, have great days, etc... but your understanding of it all extends further that your physical perspective.

When you are in constant connection, awareness and agreement with the Spirit, you begin to live life in a brand new, almost unexplained way. When you are not in agreement with God's Spirit you will know because it is reflected in your mental, emotional, and physical health, along with your ability communicate with God, yourself and others. The spirit is an aspect of your being that has to be taken care of, nourished. Just like you grow relationships, knowledge, careers, goals, etc... you must grow your Spirit also.

So how do you take care of the spirit?...Well stay tuned and I will share with you a couple of ways how!

I hope this has jump-started a curiosity within yourself regarding the state of your Spirit, and the state of your life. As always thank you for the support, be blessed, and until next time...

The Spirit Mini Series

2014-09-26T07:03:00.001-04:00

Hello everyone!

I want to explain quickly why I have not been posting, and then alert you of a mini series God has placed on my heart to share.

First and foremost, my apologies in being so dormant in my blogging these last couple of months. Part of it was my own laziness and stubbornness, and then the great part of it was God's timing.

These last few months have been life changing, full of growth, and full of exploration. I've never seen my self development accelerate at such a high speed. A large part of that has come due to my new understanding of the Spirit. I am still learning so much, but what I've already gained was such a life changer that I believe God is now placing it on my heart to share with you.

So over these next couple of weeks I'll be sharing a mini series about what I've learned about the Spirit. I do not know everything and I cannot possibly cover everything, but through signs I've received lately, I believe it's time for me to share what I do know.

So I hope you are as excited as I am for the Spirit Mini-Series! I pray and hope that it will be as much of a life changer to you as it was to me!

Staying With What Is Now: Accepting Who You Are In the Moment

2014-06-07T13:47:00.001-04:00

I am guilty of never stopping to appreciate the moment. It's always onward and upward. Always pushing myself for the next great thing, or living out that untapped potential I have. My life tends to be disappointing to me because I know I am not living what I am designed to be. Not because I am not trying, but because it is not that time yet.

I think a lot of us suffer from this syndrome. It's one of the bad habits that comes along with the gift of foresight. Anyone that has been given a dream or a vision suffers from the anxiety of waiting to see it come to pass. So much so that you may miss what's happening or meant to be grasped right before your eyes.

Yesterday was a very rough day for me. Not only was I not feeling well physically, but I was also feeling ill mentally. I was feeling the best about myself, and what value I was adding to world. I felt like a failure, like I wasn't doing or being enough and then I got this devotional from Small Straws:

June 6, 2014

SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by MARSHA BURNS:

Beloved, you are always transitioning from what was into what is coming. To avoid the confusion that transition brings, you have to stay with what is now. Stay present with Me to see what I am showing you right where you are. Take each moment as it comes and be open to the current spiritual work. Having righteous thoughts, motives, and actions is a full-time job. Do it well, says the Lord.

Psalms 101:7 He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; He who tells lies shall not continue in my presence.

I ended up talking to my sister a little later that day after leaving work early. Out of her own testimony she said something that just stuck out to me, "I always ask myself how well are you using your time Amber? If it were my time to go, would I be pleased with how I lived out that day?" She continued on to ask me, "If you can't appreciate who you are now, how can you teach any child to do the same in the future?"

She was right. As passionate as I am about making people, specifically children feel good about themselves, love themselves, and discover their potential, I cannot truthfully teach these things if I cannot learn them for myself.

I can't want more or the next step if I don't like who and where I am now. God's plan is designed to have value in each day, a message in each step. The habit of saying, " I will love my body when I'm skinny, I'll love my life when I have the right career that reflects my purpose, I'll feel like I have and can give value when I see the world changing from what I give to it," it has to stop.

The person who I am now, not there yet but grown a lot, that's who I need to embrace. That's who I need to accept, love, and extend grace to. I need to stop treating her as if she isn't doing enough, like she is failing her purpose. I need to give her credit for her determination, the genuineness of her heart, her courage to be transparent about her strengths and her weaknesses. I need to admire her desire to give of herself to help someone else see the value in who they are.

If I can't learn to give grace to myself, love myself, and soothe myself in the gritty part of my journey, how can I go on to help fully equip a child, or an adult to do the same for their own journey? Similar to my last post about PAIN, if I can't stop to see what God wants to learn in every stage, there is a lesson that I may miss that will be needed for my future.

While it's not pretty, it's not ideal, and it's not my shining moment, this moment right now with all of its ambiguity, pain, and weariness, may be more powerful that any future glory I may receive. A moment that the world may need to see.

That's where it becomes so crucial for us to stay with what is now, learning and accepting who we are in the moment. My desire is that my life will speak life into someone else, but how can it speak if I remain silent and ignorant to its existence?

How many of us are waking up everyday, living what we think is life, but ignoring it completely? How many of us are so busy trying to become what we think is greatness, that we fail to see the greatness in our journey, good, bad, happy and sad? There is so much work that has to be done until we see the fruits of our greatness fulfilled. This moment right now is great although it doesn't feel like it or look like it. But in order to see that, learn that, and grow from it, we have to be in the moment.

Who I am right now is with purpose. So are you. Hang in there and don't be so quick to think about the future and how to get there faster. Instead try to see what lesson God is trying to teach you where you are right now. Learn it and then live it. You never know who may be watching you right now and seeing you as a teacher.

It's not easy, and it definitely isn't clear, but it has purpose. Each day has purpose, but you can't learn it if you are looking to fulfill tomorrow's purpose before it comes. Stay with what is now, accept yourself and live in the moment. Your tomorrow depends on it!

There's a Lesson In Everything: The Truth About Coping With Pain

2014-05-26T21:37:00.000-04:00

John 8:32 --- And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Pain stinks. Everyone knows pain, handles it differently, hates when it happens to us personally, but yet we still can't seem to empathize and allow each other to cope with pain.

"Ashley, what are you talking about?" Well people experience variations of pain every single day. Some in small amounts, other in larger portions. However, I always wondered why we don't allow ourselves to hurt? As a child you aren't encouraged to cry or be sad because parents don't want to see that hurt, as a teen pain equals weakness, and as an adult people treat it like it's just plain dangerous. We admit that no one is perfect, yet when it comes to our pain, trials, and tribulations we expect everyone to be Superman.

If you look deeply, there is a common theme in every sentence above; pain is uncomfortable and no one wants to confront pain if it takes them out of their comfort. We want pain to happen according to our standards and expose no weakness. Even Superman has a weakness.

Pain is inevitable, that's the truth. More importantly no one can escape pain. The truth that we need to accept about pain is that it happens and we don't know how long it will last.

My sister told me this weekend during random conversation," There is a lesson in everything, and sometimes you have to stay there until you get it."

WOW! Seriously, that resonated so deeply with me. See I have been in a season of pain. PAIN. Coming from all angles of my life, not just one. I mean I have been in my pain for so long I started to become bitter, angry, and my heart cold. Anyone that knows me, knows that I do not have cold heart. I felt like I was just targeted, like Joseph who was betrayed by his brothers. His brighter days didn't come for years. I had been wondering how people like Joseph and Job did it. How do you go through so much hell for so long and not come out worst than you were before it all happened? You can't escape that kind of pain, and also that's the kind of pain that people see and run from, so having someone to reach out to isn't always convenient either.

I mean I was plain out pissed. God what is it that you want from me, what am I not doing right, who is against me, what did I do to deserve this? See I am still in my season of pain, I haven't been raised to my throne yet like Joseph, or blessed triple the amount I've ever had like Job. I am just an ordinary person in our society trying to cope with my pain by acting like it's not there because no one likes and wants to be around pain.

I have been disgusted with myself that I haven't escaped the pain because I didn't feel adequate enough to be around others while being in it. Who am I to take my painful self around others? My best friend and myself have a running joke that someone has a voodoo doll of me somewhere or that I have the bad luck touch. lol

While it is funny to joke about, I feel like we all kind of find ourselves in our pain and confused as to how we got there and why we can't seem to get out. Human logic of coping with pain is to get out of it, escape. However, now that I have been here for a while and after hearing my sister I wonder if God's logic about pain is to experience it and learn why it exists.

I mean think about it, the greatest lessons we learn about ourselves isn't when we run from new experiences, it's when we get through them, try to them. So why do we think running from our pain is a proper coping strategy? Sometimes we stay in pain for a long period because there is something we have to learn or gain from going through that pain.

Since having that conversation with my sister this weekend, I have started to look at my pain through a different pair of lens and wow what I see is different.

So Ashley what's the point? I know I am long winded lol, but the point is that we shouldn't be so quick to push people to be strong, to get over things, to act like pain isn't there because it may be that we have to hurt for a while to see what God couldn't show any other way. Don't judge people and make them feel weak for being in a season of pain. We each experience variations based on what is customized for us. Your week may be a year for someone else, and that doesn't reflect poorly on them because of that. The best thing you can do is be supportive, be an encouraging word, be a shoulder to lean on, be a tissue, be a sponge, or just be there for someone. They need a cheerleading team through their season, not a list of solutions to help for an early mission abortion.

Our society tells us pain is wrong and to be avoided, but our growth, purpose and spirits require pain in order to reach fulfillment. So the truth about pain is that it's unavoidable and sometimes for that purpose. It is not be avoided, but conquered. There is no way to dictate how long you will be in pain, but you can dictate what you learn from it and if you will allow yourself to grasp what God may be extending to you through your pain. Don't shame yourself for your pain, it does not make you less of a person but can potentially make you an even greater person. I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes. Be Blessed!

The Best Way Out, Is Always Through - Robert Frost

When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong

2014-05-11T11:13:00.000-04:00

MSG - Matthew 7:1-5“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.

In a world full of reality shows and life mottos like "YOLO, I keep it 100, or I keep it real," we are failing at actually living a REAL life. Now when fighting videos are encouraged, verbal attacks commended, and mindless behavior endorsed becomes the "norm" for a culture, we ought to be concerned.I see it, I've done it, and if we continue to allow it to not just exist, but thrive, we have to ask ourselves what life are we really living?

You are probably wondering where this is coming from? Well, honestly it's from a lot of observation, and a need to speak out on it. We speak out and cry no judgement, equality everyday in our lives through our social media and news outlets, but everyday when we are presented the opportunity to truly keep it real we turn a blind eye.

There is no way any of us can a live a productive, "real" life if we are constantly pointing out, condemning or judging everyone around us on how they live their lives. There is no way you can really know how you are living, if you are becoming complacent, and if your priority lies in the lives of everyone else.

It's like Matthew 7:5-1 (see above) says, "It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part."

That's all our social culture is, one big show, not reality. Think about it. We live in a society where we turn to Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, or any other outlet to find comfort, vent, keep it real, or feel relevant. However, once the phones power down and the computers shut off, we are left looking at our reflections in the mirror wondering what I am I really doing for myself? What does my life really mean? We are so consumed with keeping it real for the sake of the public eye, that we lose all realness in our lives.

We find it easier to look and point out the flaws in everyone else's life because looking at our own pushes us into a depressive slump. It brings out the Hypocrite in us. How we claim to have these extravagant lives, be these extraordinary people, yet our day to day behaviors rely on pointing out the flaws in everyone else. We are the people that create our haters and have to convince everyone of the life we are living instead of just living it.

Everything that we preach, we become the opposite of it. Everything that we claim to be and know we don't. Everything that we say is real, is truly an illusion. According to society's ideal of real, we all fall terribly into an episode of, "When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong."

So what can you do to really keep things real? Don't be a talker, be a do-er. Now this factor alone does not suffice, because you can still end up doing things that do not realistically depict who are you, the REAL you. Like this scripture says, you can start by pulling the plank out your eye before reaching for the splinter in someone else's.

One of my favorite stories from the Bible is the story of Jesus being asked to condemn the woman who had committed adultery and needed to be stoned,(as in rocks being thrown--I know you were thinking the other way ) The Pharisees called themselves "keeping it real" and confronted Jesus saying that he would be breaking the law if he did not order her to be stoned. Well most people always focus on how he says he who is without sin throw the first stone, but what I like is how the Bible says Jesus doesn't immediately respond, he just begins to write something in the dirt. We never knew what he wrote, but whatever it was had to be so truthful, and so REAL that the Pharisees were forced to look at their own lives, which resulted in them walking away angrily, but without any further comment about this woman. The Pharisees had a, "When it Keeping it Real Goes Wrong," moment.

Now imagine that... What if every time we went to "keep it real" with someone else, we were called out too? How many of us would be so quick to jump aboard the cultural toxins bandwagon? We are all guilty of it, but how many of us are keeping it real with ourselves and correcting it?

We can't expect to receive healthy relationships, mind-blowing opportunities, and incredible growth if our pointer finger is always positioned outward instead of inward. The realest thing we can do in our lives, is improve ourselves so that when we do go to help improve others, it's coming from a sincere, realistic, and loving place, not out of hypocrisy.

I urge you to evaluate your life, and see how much of it do you spend trying to look or be something that you are not? How often do you need to hawk on the lives of others in order to reinforce your ideas about yourself? In comparison, how much do your words match your actions? And are they actions you are truly proud of?

We have to choose what things about our culture is worth being caught up in. There are a lot of cultural toxins out there, and when we embrace them, it leaves our judgement clouded. Luckily, God doesn't expose us when we are living a lie, he leaves that up to us to address with his help. However, we should still be aware that our truths can always be written out just like Jesus did to the Pharisees.

So ask yourself, are you really keeping it real with yourself? Or are you caught up? Just make sure what's written in the dirt matches what's lived in your day-to-day life. Be aware of yourself before you try to make someone else aware of their life!

Exploring Commitment to Your Connections

2014-05-03T20:20:00.001-04:00

Commit everything you do to the lord. Trust him, and he will help you. (Psalms 37:5 NLT)

So lately things have been really weird and inconsistent in my life and how I look at it. Right now as I type this post from my phone I don't have much clarity. What I have started to see is the cause to the emptiness I feel a lot.

I'm always looking for a solution to all the gaps in my life. All the loneliness and emptiness I feel. I'm all for change and adventure but even still there is a part if me that hates that I can't see where anything is headed and it's relevancy.

It's almost like I'm speeding through life trying to find the answer to a solution that is already solved. I have days where I hate being alone, I want to be around people. Then I get around people and I still feel alone plus awkward.

While it may not show, I have to search deep a lot of times for the energy and enthusiasm to venture out and meet people. That adventurous side slowly fading away. And then there is the whole employment situation. I finally have a job now and the sense of connection I thought I would get is still nonexistent.

So where does that leave me and anyone else who identifies with these feelings? Confused!

How can you be connected to so many things, places and people, yet still feel empty or incomplete? There is no commitment.

We get new things, new opportunity and expect it's existence to change our entire life, but in reality we have to invest a level of commitment on our end that says we are willing to see it through even when we feel pretty blind.

We have to commit when we don't feel like it, are unsure, scared and confused. It exposes a level of commitment that we aren't giving to God.

He already knows we aren't strong enough to commit 100% to so many things. That's why he wants us to commit them to him. But the reality is that it's hard to commit to the unknown.

Every relationship (work, school, romance, friendship, family), they all become hard when there is something we just can't see or understand that will allow us to fully commit. In addition, in these moments we find it hard not to fully commit it all to God because that's like putting your eggs in one basket. So what do you do?

Well ladies and gents, that's where I currently stand. Evaluating which connections are worth committing to, and committing all of them to God for help when I'm in situations like this.

I have a choice to make. What will I commit to? And will I also commit those things to God to help fill these voids?

You have the same choice to make. I can't tell you what will happen, part of that means committing to the unknowns.

I do know you can't be connected to the world and God's purpose on your life without being committed to it. And anyone or anything in your life should be committed too. Pray for me as I pray for you on our journey.

Also stop and pray for those suffering in our world. It's a lot everywhere and we should not fall blind to it! Be blessed!

Having Obedient Faith

2014-02-06T16:44:00.000-05:00

“What I’m trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Don’t be afraid of missing out. You’re my dearest friends! The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself."

Luke 12:29-32 MSG

Hello everyone,

I know it has been a very long time since I have spoken to you all, and honestly it's because I allowed life to keep me from what I love. However, I am human and I do as best as I can to commit myself to writing so please be patient with me!

Well, as I begin this post I feel a lot like Robert Frost, "In three words I can sum up everything I learned about life: it goes on." Life for me this past year and few weeks of 2014 "ain't been no crystal stair." While a lot of good happened to me, it was the things taking place that people could not see that sent me into one of my deepest spirals of despair. So bad to the point I almost gave up.

I finished my Masters last year to find myself still unemployed and back home. Not the idea lifestyle of a 25-year old. I finally got a break with a fellowship in D.C. (which I greatly appreciated), but what a lot of people didn't know was that I was living on a below-minimum wage paycheck. All the while my car was still having troubles, one thing after another would break and I was still barely living off of my check.

Things got so bad, that I couldn't feed myself. I went some days without eating anything if much at all. I was so angry, that I couldn't provide for myself, that I was in debt with numerous friends because I could not provide for myself. That all I wanted to do is get a job working in the community for good and that it is so much harder to do good than choose fast money.

I was so mad at myself and with God. How could he let me suffer like this? How could he watch me try and try and try, yet watch me break, cry, and hurt so much? Why couldn't I just catch a break? By the end of the year I was in so much despair, those closest to me could literally sense it. They could see the carelessness, the lack of initiative, faith, and joy in me. I just didn't care if God didn't care.

The funny thing is that even when you think you have lost all of God's presence in you, he is still there the size of a mustard seed. That seed spoke to me and told me not to give up, and through God's grace I gathered enough courage to repent and push into the new year. So here I am in the new year, with some courage, some faith, some optimism, trying to be obedient in my faith believing that God would come through. I got an interview, then a 2nd interview, then a 3rd interview! Oh my look how God is working! This is not to patronize God, but this is seriously how I felt. And then I didn't get the job, and my fellowship ended, I was unemployed again.

Still I wasn't discouraged, I said,"Well now I can fully invest my energy in searching or a job, I'm in D.C. so hey I can do this, I'll be back on my feet in no time. And then it happened. I was robbed at gun point. My purse with all of my personal documents gone, my security gone, my optimism gone. In one moment everything I trusted God to rebuild in me was stripped from me.

I was numb, seriously! The night it happened I didn't react emotionally. It didn't hit me until mid-week and then even then it hit me in spurts. I just couldn't understand I was so tired and angry. Angry that someone tried to take my life over money when all I want to do with my life is make a difference in the lives of others. How dare that young man take it upon himself to threaten my life, not knowing what it is capable of. God why me again?! Why can't I catch a break? Why can't I be like my friends with jobs, or why didn't I come out of school with a job? Why are things always seemingly harder for me to achieve than when I look around?

So I had to head home. So here I am now in NJ, trying to recollect my life. Get a new license (still feeling down), get social security card (still feeling down) and then it happened. I figured since my lights in my car hadn't come on, I could chance trying to get my car to pass inspection. So I pull into the lane and I starting shaking and I am so nervous. I know over a car right? I was, and I think it was in that moment that I truly surrendered genuinely. I know God was probably insulted because it took a car going through inspection for me to TOTALLY let go and rely on him and only him. Just me and him, not everyone else and their lives. I said, "God I don't have my anointing oil anymore because it was stolen, but please please let me pass God I need this." I felt something in my heart change, I'm still not sure what it is, but I have a feeling it represented a shift in my life.

Needless to say I passed inspection, but that's not it. I also discovered I received my federal return today so I will be able to pay my rent when I return tomorrow!!! I was so overjoyed. For the first time in a while I laughed with joy, not because anything was funny, not because I was in search of relief, but because of JOY. I was so happy.

I say all of this to tell everyone that it is hard when life comes at you full force and you can't catch a break. It is, but the worst thing we can do is start basing our faith on what we see, not on our obedience to believe in God and his ability and his promise to us. He sees all and he would not doom us to suffer forever. So whoever it is that is out there like me, searching for a way out, searching for joy, start by finding obedience to your faith. Believe in God and his giving and he will come through when you need it.

I love you all, thank you for sharing my journey with me! Be blessed!

Confirmation Overnight: Small Straws and the Trumpet 10/29/13

2013-10-29T07:54:00.001-04:00

So really quick I just want to show how God will speak if you listen. I wrote a post yesterday about believing in the unseen and relying on God's sight. Well look at today's Small Straws and The Trumpet. Nothing else needs to be said!

Faith Tabernacle

October 29, 2013

THE TRUMPET by BILL BURNS:

The Lord says to many of you: "You are better than you think you are. You are a far greater benefit than you think you are. You have not failed. For, I am with you and I am guiding you. You are a blessed one. You are a royal diadem. You are a jewel in My hand. So, you've been through the fire, but the fire is that which makes the jewel strong; it brings forth the beauty of that stone; it releases the power of My kingdom. So, change your mind today. Do not believe what has been spoken of you by others or by the evil one, or even by your own reckoning. Believe in this moment that I know you. I have not forgotten you. You belong to Me, and I belong to you. So, change your countenance and become happy in My kingdom-full of joy, full of blessing, full of that which I have put in you."

SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by MARSHA BURNS:

In a vision I was looking through a small rectangular window at a starry sky, and I watched the moon begin to rise above the horizon. I realized that it was a full moon, coming into full view, and giving its full light. It was so bright that the stars were eclipsed by its light. And, I heard the Lord say, "Behold My Church! She is rising to her manifest destiny. Her light is the reflection of My glory." Ephesians 4:13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

http://ft111.com/

It's the Simple Things: Seeing Life Beyond the Physical

2013-10-28T19:52:00.000-04:00

2 Corinthians 4:18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at
See the beauty in change. Taken outside my home in D.C.
the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

It's truly amusing how life comes at you, how lessons are learned, and epiphanies discovered. Being a commuter now on the Metro allows me to have more thinking time, more freedom in my thoughts.

As I rode to work this morning I remember feeling kind of lost. Not physically, but spiritually, mentally, and kind of focus wise just lost. My life had derailed a little and I wasn't sure how and what needed to be done to fix it. I said, "God just give me a sign."

You see I have been overwhelmed with arranging the next step in my career post-fellowship, managing my feelings of attraction that are being held captive by constraints placed by someone else. So much that I need to get together, so much I need right now, so much that I need to fix within myself.

And then it happened, time froze. I looked at fellow metro riders all tired, all busy in their minds, all of us caught up in what we have convinced ourselves to be the high level agenda. At that moment I got my sign. I got the answer to my many questions like, "Why am I not good enough?", "Why am I still fighting so hard too achieve my goals? I'm tired!"

As "Simple Things," by Glenn Lewis rang through my headphones, I too realized it's as simple as looking past all of what I see to those things that are unseen. The reason I always tend to find myself lost every now and then is because I stop seeing the things that last much longer than any concern, any pain, or confusion the world may bring.

If my life were to be based on how I have always seen things, then I would not be living at all. I was the young girl caught in a whirlwind of depression, anger and suicidal thoughts/behavior. I have never found it easy to see my own worth, potential and gifts. I have always seen construction in my reflection, not the evolution of life.

That's why I can never set an agenda of what my life should be. God is the reason I am still fighting for this unknown greatness that I can't see but I can feel like adrenaline running through me. He has always managed to see the power, beauty, and purpose in my life. Things that to the eye of a stranger may go unseen.

People don't walk up the street and see my testimony on my skin everyday. I don't see the little girl who believed she had no purpose but yet wakes up everyday with the vision in her heart and mind of being that mirror to help children everywhere see those same things that go unseen. I have to be reminded just like I was today.

I don't understand the things I see everyday. I may never be able to. Everything that is seen is rooted in something that goes unseen right before our eyes daily. However, if I dare to see the unseen I know now I can be quickly reminded that it is the unseen that has paved my life, led me to this point, and guides me everyday in chasing after things that have yet to happen.

It's really that simple. That's why faith is so important, that's why it is composed of all that is unseen. We don't see it there, but yet we can feel it when we know there has to be better, or we can't be doomed to our current state. It's that hope for something much more than our eyes see day to day.

I can't measure my effort, success, or value by what others are limited to seeing in me, or even me in myself. If I can trust and believe in the same power that brought me through every period of darkness or tiredness, a power I couldn't see but knew it had to see me, then I can definitely continue to hope in those great things that are unseen waiting to be revealed.

So don't allow yourself to get caught up in the turmoil of yesterday or today. Don't limit yourself to only what you see physically. Everything great that has ever happened to us, we didn't always see coming physically. We saw it through the faith in the unseen, hope for a breakthrough.

There is nothing wrong with me, I am nothing to be ashamed of, I am not a failure because I am not where "I" thought I would be. My life is not limited to only the things I can see. There is so much waiting to reveal itself that is currently unseen. If that makes me a fool to you, then that is fine because I would rather believe in things unseen than believe that the things I see right now is all that my life is limited to.

It's the simple things in life. The beauty of a past scars and laughs, the ambiguity of the present, and the faith in the future that pushes us to go on. If God brought you to where you are now, what makes you think he won't take you farther? Don't live life constrained by things that are seen, instead rid of any limits and trust in the unseen. It's just that simple...

Love you all, thank you for your continuous support and encouragement. Be Blessed!

You Have to Let Go. Be More than Enough for Yourself!

2013-06-12T22:20:00.000-04:00

I sat here tonight thinking about how much I needed God to help me give up a vengeful heart for Lent. I'm still thinking about how a part of my heart refuses to let go. However, deep down I know it's not good, not healthy, and not worth it.

When life hurts you it hurts you bad. That pain can linger and linger as long as you allow it. It's hard it really is. Think about it... You count:

Every person that was hateful and didn't care
Every person you trusted and betrayed you
Every person who is praised by the world, but evil to you
Every person that lied on you
Every person that treated you based on what they heard not what they knew

You count until you run out of the space, time and energy for it. Then you look at yourself, you don't even know who you are anymore. Physically this pain, anger and pride has taken a toll and the mirror reflects a stranger. Your mind, thoughts, and focus...GONE. All consumed by the desire for revenge.

You have wasted time questioning God why it happened to you? Why hasn't the truth been exposed? Why aren't they prosecuted? Why am I not happy?

The tears well up in your eyes, knots form in your gut, and yet pride still won't let you release the pain. The truth is:

People may never acknowledge their wrongdoings
You may never hear I'm sorry
They don't want to hear the truth
They don't want to hear your story
They don't want to be at peace and want to keep you from obtaining yours

So that's why it's not worth using your life to fight to prove to others who you are, what you've been through, and where you are going. There is always someone who doesn't want to know the real you. Here's what you can do. Remind yourself of who you are in Christ. Find comfort in knowing that everything you are and will be is under God's design.

It may take a lifetime for some people to understand. If God, who made you to be everything you are, is content with you, why aren't you?

I have to ask myself that. Why am I trying to be more than enough for others, when I need to be for myself?

1 Corinthians 4:7-8

The Message (MSG)

^7-8For who do you know that really knows you, knows your heart? And even if they did, is there anything they would discover in you that you could take credit for? Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing? You already have all you need. You already have more access to God than you can handle. Without bringing either Apollos or me into it, you’re sitting on top of the world—at least God’s world—and we’re right there, sitting alongside you!

Gosh, if I spent my life trying to get others to see my heart, I would miss out on the opportunity use it. I would miss out on being happy at any point in life, not this fantasized moment of redemption. Life is going to hurt sometimes....badly. However, I can choose to be content with myself through the good or bad, OR waste time pleading my case to a jury who has already made up their mind. The great thing is innocent or guilty, God is the judge with the final say so.

So my health being in ruins due to this vengeful attitude is not worth ti. The depression, anger, physical unhappiness with my weight from a lack of motivation, being the victim, and being upset over people and things I cannot change...it's not worth it.

But I change me. I can be damn proud of me. Hopelessly in love with me. My own drill sergeant, and my own cheer squad. If I can be content with all these things about me, then I can be content with God's plan for me and those destined to share it with me.

I'm sharing this because someone out there needs to hear this. Quit wasting time crying over those who have uprooted themselves from your garden. Stop being angry over weeds popping up in your harvest, just use weed killer. Instead focus on providing nourishment to your garden, so that you can grow as God sees fit to do so.

Let it go...it's not worth it! Instead learn to be more than enough for yourself, God already sees it that way. God Bless!

Alignment of the Heart & God's Will

2013-04-16T22:47:00.001-04:00

I found myself these last couple of days panicking about a job, where I will land after graduating from grad school in the next 4 weeks. As fear dominated my heart, the latest events to happen in the world, my school, and in the lives of friends made me realize I am focusing on the wrong thing.

I want to make a change in this world. I want to share myself with the world; my mind, my heart, and my passion. I want to help heal the hurt in this world and I want to help others achieve their full potential. I want to help bring communities together again and make them safer. I want to help children recognize their worth and experience real love.

Tonight I realized I want to be a living testimony. I don't just want a job to ease my worries of surviving financially. I want a fulfilling purpose making a difference around me. So now my prayers have changed. I want to be placed somewhere I can make this difference, bring about change. I want to wake up every morning knowing that I am fighting to make a positive difference in the lives of everyone around me.

Gandhi said it best, "We must be the change we wish to see."

Continue to pray for our world and continue to ask how can you make a difference. Then run after that answer will full passion. I believe we can change our world for the better, so let's put our egos to the side and go after it!

An End to Lent & Easter 2013: It's Not Enough to Understand Grace, We Must Live In It - Romans 14

2013-03-31T07:00:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! I hope your lent season went well! My experience was breathtaking as I learned so much about God's grace, what it really is and how important it is to live in it. One of the biggest problems I think we face in our living is that we understand and reach out for grace when we need it, but we fail to provide it to others in our everyday living.

If you are just tuning in, I will give you a brief summary of what I have come to understand of grace and DISCLAIMER: There is probably so much more that can be said about grace that I will fail to mention!

Grace to me is this overwhelming feeling and action of love, understanding, patience, humility and it's free of judgement. Time after time God gives his grace to us, as we are sinners believer or not. No matter how many times we may disagree with God, hurt God, anger God, he never reacts out of any of those feelings. The one who judges all, never seems to come down with a heavy hand but instead bestows Grace upon us out of love.

Everyone usually identifies with this grace and boasts on its goodness. However when it comes to whether or not we share this same love, grace and mercy with one another a great division occurs. Many of us find it hard to give grace to others because they may have hurt you, angered you, disagreed with you, went against your moral belief, or another personal reason. And in that instant we forget the same grace that God shared with us when we were on the chopping block. We become caught up in ourselves and our actions end up without love.

When God sent Jesus to die for us, that was his ULTIMATE GRACE. He saw it fit to give his only son, the only human form of perfection to exist, in exchange for our freedom from sin. Meaning before we were born God was aware of our sin, all the pain, disappointment, anger, and disagreement we would cause, yet he still found it fit to love us and not hold these things against us...Grace.

Even after understanding this sacrifice made for us, we still put on our robes, grab our gavels and play the role of a judge, dictating what is wrong in the lives of other, condemning others to hell, spatting out hateful terms just to get our point across, to justify our morals, ease our personal pain hidden under our agendas, and to establish order in a world where we identify ourselves as the image of perfection or "holy living." That quickly we forget the grace that saved us and loved us when we didn't deserve it, didn't know "order", and we fail to share it with others. Grace is rooted in love and when we fail to show grace to others we fail to love.

I found myself this weekend so sad, sincerely sad and I felt empty. I witnessed so many people on social networks such as Facebook share so much hatred to each other, use hateful terms and called it justifying the will of God. Our first and most important role is to love and it was absent from what I witnessed. It wasn't a problem of dictating what's right or wrong, sin or not, it bothered me to see us forget that we are all sinners and just as God does not judge us for our actions we are not to judge each other.

I think we forget grace so much sometimes that whatever message we are trying to send to each other becomes lost in our anger, morals, self righteousness and stubborn attitudes. When in reality it's not our job to dictate how someone lives their life as a judge, but to use our own lives out of love, grace, mercy, and humility to glorify God's essence.

The reason our world is existing how it is, is not solely based on sin, it's also because we fail to embrace God and reflect it in our lives. Those of us who believe we know God become blinded when our actions become rooted in self-righteousness instead of grace and love. But I thank God for knowing how we are and providing guidance in every situation. He led me to Romans 14, a chapter you don't tend to hear a lot, but the message is crucial to our current existence.

Before I leave you with this scripture, remember that God is aware of all that we do, Christ is God's grace and he was given for us. When we choose to judge, we choose to step out of grace and take on a role we were not intended to hold. As we celebrate Christ's life and his Resurrection please know that it is great to understand God's grace, but to live in his grace is an even better experience! Let's aim to love each other before all things, live in grace and understand that when we choose to judge and condemn others, we invite them to do the same to us. Love as you would want to be loved! Happy Resurrection Sunday!

Romans 14

The Message (MSG)

Cultivating Good Relationships

14 Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently.

^2-4For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume he should only be a vegetarian and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christ’s table, wouldn’t it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didn’t eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table. Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with God’s welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help.

⁵Or, say, one person thinks that some days should be set aside as holy and another thinks that each day is pretty much like any other. There are good reasons either way. So, each person is free to follow the convictions of conscience.

^6-9What’s important in all this is that if you keep a holy day, keep it for God’s sake; if you eat meat, eat it to the glory of God and thank God for prime rib; if you’re a vegetarian, eat vegetables to the glory of God and thank God for broccoli. None of us are permitted to insist on our own way in these matters. It’s God we are answerable to—all the way from life to death and everything in between—not each other. That’s why Jesus lived and died and then lived again: so that he could be our Master across the entire range of life and death, and free us from the petty tyrannies of each other.

^10-12So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother? And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister? I’d say it leaves you looking pretty silly—or worse. Eventually, we’re all going to end up kneeling side by side in the place of judgment, facing God. Your critical and condescending ways aren’t going to improve your position there one bit. Read it for yourself in Scripture:

“As I live and breathe,” God says,
“every knee will bow before me;
Every tongue will tell the honest truth
that I and only I am God.”

So tend to your knitting. You’ve got your hands full just taking care of your own life before God.

^13-14Forget about deciding what’s right for each other. Here’s what you need to be concerned about: that you don’t get in the way of someone else, making life more difficult than it already is. I’m convinced—Jesus convinced me!—that everything as it is in itself is holy. We, of course, by the way we treat it or talk about it, can contaminate it.

^15-16If you confuse others by making a big issue over what they eat or don’t eat, you’re no longer a companion with them in love, are you? These, remember, are persons for whom Christ died. Would you risk sending them to hell over an item in their diet? Don’t you dare let a piece of God-blessed food become an occasion of soul-poisoning!

^17-18God’s kingdom isn’t a matter of what you put in your stomach, for goodness’ sake. It’s what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and you’ll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you.

^19-21So let’s agree to use all our energy in getting along with each other. Help others with encouraging words; don’t drag them down by finding fault. You’re certainly not going to permit an argument over what is served or not served at supper to wreck God’s work among you, are you? I said it before and I’ll say it again: All food is good, but it can turn bad if you use it badly, if you use it to trip others up and send them sprawling. When you sit down to a meal, your primary concern should not be to feed your own face but to share the life of Jesus. So be sensitive and courteous to the others who are eating. Don’t eat or say or do things that might interfere with the free exchange of love.

^22-23Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don’t impose it on others. You’re fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you’re not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe—some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them—then you know that you’re out of line. If the way you live isn’t consistent with what you believe, then it’s wrong.

Lent 2013: Where are Your Accusers?

2013-02-24T08:00:00.000-05:00

John 8:4-11

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁴“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”

⁶They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. ⁷They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” ⁸Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.

⁹When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. ¹⁰Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

¹¹“No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

Judging has been a major theme for me this year as I journey to release my vengeful spirit. After reading The Shack, I decided to read GRACE by Max Lucado to help me along the way. As I started the 2nd chapter, the scripture above was used to introduce the concept of "the God that stoops."

Now I heard this story before as a child and in sermons but never did it strike me from the angle it did this time. I always saw it as Jesus putting the Pharisees in their places, but I never understood how much lies in this story. Here was a woman who was caught in adultery and dragged to be judged and stoned by people she didn't know, never hurt and they were completely unaware of her story. No one knew the details but everyone was ready to cast a stone.

I love how Jesus just so calmly speaks and stoops to write in the ground at the same time making some very important points. Then he says it, : "All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”, and no one can throw. So one by one they all trail off, while being reminded of their own sin and imperfections. Now being that Jesus was perfect he could have gotten up and lectured this woman on her sin, he could have picked up a bunch of stones and had target practice, but he simply said "Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” and all she could say was no Lord. And then he tells her that he doesn't either and to go live without sin.

There is so much I love in this passage, the main point being that who were these people to accuse someone else when they weren't without sin. There was only one perfect person and even he didn't condemn her, so who are we to try? Jesus stooped down to her level to fight on her behalf, how great a love. It made me ask myself: Ashley where are your accusers? No where to be found, because no matter how much someone may feel they have the right to judge and punish me based on their perceptions they are sinners too. Just like they choose to judge me for that they do not know, someone else is doing the same to them. I have no accusers and it made me feel for those who proceeded to judge me because they were ignorant to their own sin. If they were aware, humility would prevent them from judging.

It also corrected me. Who am I to judge anyone else? I cannot be an accuser, I am a sinner. It really forced me to think twice before I proceeded to judge someone or something. What's even greater in this story was that after the whole ordeal, Jesus simply told her to go live her life. Imagine that! Don't judge yourself, just sin no more and choose life. And I loved that she walked away and obeyed. Why is it so hard for us not to judge ourselves so hard after sin? If we truly want to be forgiven, it is already done. So why can't we move on with our lives? I just loved that it is really as simple as letting go and living life.

As I said before, we spend too much time living in the past and worrying about the future, but never existing in the present. So the next time you find yourself being judged pray for those who judge because they do not realize they are not your accusers. If you find yourself leaning to judge, ask yourself who are you to accuse? This message can transform lives. A community without judgement looking to overcome tragedy, find healing and live through love.

What am I saying? If you find yourself like me trying to overcome revenge, ask yourself, Where are my accusers? Forgive them, forgive yourself and proceed to live life that freedom of love and forgiveness. Destruction never fixes a problem, but making things right does.

Thank you again for sharing this journey with me, all I ask is that you share this message with at least 1 person, you never know he needs it and the lives it could change! Be blessed & I love you all!

Lent 2013: A Brief Reminder

2013-02-23T12:36:00.000-05:00

Sometimes all it takes is a small reminder, a song or a quote to strengthen your faith. No matter what you may be going through, do not allow "self-nominated accusers" get to you. God has the final say in ALL things!

Lent 2013: Giving Up a Vengeful Spirit and Accepting Grace

2013-02-20T23:11:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone!

Sorry it has taken me a while to post again. I am still balancing out grad school life but come May 2013 that chapter will end! :^) Anywho, this year I felt led to give up a vengeful spirit for lent. God brought to my attention that I was still carrying around a lot of hurt and anger about people and situations that were far into my past. It has not been easy, but already the clarity that I have received is slowly changing my life in ways I didn't expect it to.

Leading up to the lent season, the prayer group for my program had been reading The Shack by William P. Young, which is an amazing journey of a man who has to face a major tragedy in his life to find forgiveness, clarity and healing in order to truly "live." As I read this book I soon realized I had my own tragedy that I had refused to address but had no problem holding grudge against. This grudge had become so strong that I dreamed about getting revenge, telling it like it is, telling the truth, and confronting those who had turned on me, stabbed me in the back and judged me based on what they heard not the truth.

Yet in the process of reading The Shack, I realized that I too was judging out of pain and anger. My counselor explained to me the issue with our ego, the voice that demands justice in our minds. Our ego wants to address those who harmed us, demand justice and show them whose boss, but in reality people will go a lifetime unaware of the pain they cast on others. Some will never care, some will never apologize, but that doesn't mean we can't forgive and move on.

One of the biggest issues of holding a grudge is the reality that we haven't forgiven ourselves. Many of us are really angry at ourselves for allowing someone to hurt us, allowing ourselves to end up in that situation, be that stupid, and the list goes on. However, once we forgive ourselves, we can openly forgive those who have hurt us. We can appreciate the freedom that comes with it, and understanding that it is not our place to judge because our judgement is unstable and we do not dictate justice. Once you can let go of living in your past and worrying about your future, you can exist in your present.

Next thing you know, you are living! God loves us and he does not desire that we hurt and suffer, but sometimes God won't step in to protect us from everything because certain things must come to pass so that the new can exist. Hardships usually produce blessings and if we do not endure them and allow them to clear out what is old, we cannot accept what is new.

For me God could not expose real love to me while my heart was so hardened by my past, but since I have let things go gradually and forgiven myself and others the concept of love is brand new to me. It's like I am looking at life through a new pair of eyes, and taking in my everyday life moment by moment has made me appreciate things so much more. Every laugh makes me appreciate the person who shared it, every conversation is appreciated because that meant someone wanted to listen, every solemn look that has been greeted by a hug makes me feel cared about. And then I stop and look at it all at once realizing this is real love. Living it and breathing it everyday, but I couldn't see it before through my hate, anger and pain.

The reality is that people are going to hurt us in this life, but those feelings of pain can never overpower love. We will get angry and we will still feel the scars from our hurt but we can choose to confront our tragedies, heal those open wounds and love to overcome. There will be days that I still get angry but I can still forgive. I don't need revenge. I don't need justice. I just need real love. That's all!

So I hope that whatever it is that you are giving up for Lent this year, it transforms your living. This is my journey and all I can hope for is that someone else is inspired to let go too. Stay tuned, greater things are to come!