Trust That God STILL Loves You!

David remembers what God has done before and he now calls on Him again. David says that in his haste, that he thought that he was cut off from the Lord.

Perhaps there was a time that you called upon The Lord but find that for various reasons, you don't call upon Him as frequently as in times past?

Perhaps there's someone reading this that may think that because of some misstep or mistakes or downright wrongful living, that your prayers are not heard or that you are disqualified for The Lord's love and blessings?

Well I'm here to tell you that when you gave your life to God, you became part of His family and He does care for you and He STILL loves you and He does protect you!

Yeah, I too have wavered from time to time. Yeah, folks talk about me, both in my face and behind my back. I've been laughed at, not taken seriously and I've been ridiculed. But, I had to get beyond man's ways and man's words and I had to trust God's Will and God's Word!

Today, in spite of what I may have done on yesterday, I KNOW that when I call on the name of The Lord  that He hears and He moves and He protects and He loves me!

Guess what, the same applies to each and every one of those who have come to God, those who have given their lives to Him by way of the redemption made by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. C'mon back and call on the name of The Lord again!

"Oh, how great is Your goodness, Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men! You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence From the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion From the strife of tongues. Blessed be the Lord, For He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city! For I said in my haste, “I am cut off from before Your eyes”; Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications When I cried out to You. Oh, love the Lord, all you His saints! For the Lord preserves the faithful, And fully repays the proud person. Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord." (Ps 31:19‭-‬24 NKJV)

Not My Wisdom, But the Power of God!

“And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.”

(1 Corinthians 2:4-5 KJV)

The "Little" Matters

Oftentimes we aren't handling "the little" very well, so when "much" comes, we're not ready.

Jesus says, “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones." (Luke 16:10‭ NLT)

Morning Glory

Morning Glory, it doesn't take a church building, a congregation or musicians...it just needs a willing spirit and a seeking heart!

There's just something about starting your day with a Hymnal during your early morning praise and worship. Reading and meditating on His Word and then singing (humming in my case), soul cleansing and inspiring hymns that really puts things into perspective.

Here's one of those Hymns (Chorus only):

"Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone,
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives!"

May you be blessed as I was blessed on this morning. Have a great weekend!

Who's Praying Right Now?

Intercessors, are you interceding? Prayer Warriors, are you praying? Church, are you at your Post on the wall?

Our neighborhoods, cities, states and our nation is in need of prayer. Now is not the time for the people of God to be silent!

Upon your walls, Jerusalem, I have stationed sentinels; By day and by night, they shall never be silent. You who are to remind the Lord , take no rest, And give Him no rest, until He re-establishes Jerusalem And makes it the praise of the earth. (Is 62:6‭-‬7 NABRE)

Let Not Your Confidence Be Shaken!!

Put this song in your heart.

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus' name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

His oath, His covenant, and blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When every earthly prop gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found,
Clothed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne!
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

Push Forward

What God has placed upon you is way more powerful than what the enemy has placed in front of you. #PushForward - Rev. Rodriguez

Do You Have "Bounce-ability"?

Do you remember years ago they used to have these things called Super Balls? When you bounced it on the ground, it’d go 30 or 40 feet high. Why? Because the center of a Super Ball was a tightly compacted, solid core. That’s what gave it its bounce-ability.

When your core is solid in God, you have bounce-ability. You bounce back from stress faster. You bounce back from problems faster. You bounce back from grief faster. You bounce back from crisis faster. You have something solid in your life that doesn’t change, and you worry less.

The Bible says in Philippians 4:6-7, “Instead of worrying, pray .... It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life” (MSG).

It Is You!

Don't let the opinions of others prevent you from living the life that Jesus came to secure for us. God created you, rescued you, Called you, gifted you and sent you!

Why are you concerning yourself with the judgement and concerns of those who can't and oftentimes won't do anything for you other than try to convince you that "It Ain't You?"

Announce again today, "I AM CHRIST'S SERVANT!" Now, get back on track.

Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant. (Galatians 1:10 NLT)

Check Yourself

When we live our lives led by pride and presumption (entitlement), then we must also know that following close behind is shame and sorrow.

“First pride, then the crash— the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.” (Proverbs‬ ‭16:18‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

Longing for Restoration of Former Health and Life

Everyone, at some point in his or her life, will face a severe crisis. The crisis may be dealing with health, finances, relationships, employment, children, or any number of other areas. Some people will even face many/multiple crisis. Ultimately, though, none of us can avoid this fact of life: tragedies do happen.

Many times during crisis, we often bear the pain and seek for solutions within ourselves or from friends. Our hearts long to return to the former days before the crisis struck, before our lives changed so much. A desire stirs within our hearts to get a fresh start, a new beginning. At that time, we must make a choice: Who will we turn to for help?

Have you come to the point to where you could take no more...

• no more pain
• no more disrespect
• no more isolation from your family
• no more rejection by your community
• no more false accusations
• no more alienation or refusals

We have to get to where we long for the preciousness of God's daily care and protection.

Job's response: “Oh, how I long for the good old days, when God took such very good care of me. He always held a lamp before me and I walked through the dark by its light. Oh, how I miss those golden years when God’s friendship graced my home, When the Mighty One was still by my side and my children were all around me, When everything was going my way, and nothing seemed too difficult." (Job 29:1‭-‬6 MSG)

Though Job understandably wished God would turn back time, note what he missed and longed for the most: the presence and guidance of God. God’s presence and care, His watchful eye, are the greatest blessings on earth. They are far greater than any material prosperity we may enjoy. When we are facing our own tragedies or battles, whether great or small, we need to remember the greatest blessing of all: the presence of God in our lives. He is always there for us. He always hears and answers our prayers - in His time and in His way. God's Word is full of encouragement and assurance for His children. We need only turn to His Word or get down on our knees to access ALL that God has to offer.

Be blessed on this day that The Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Let's Come Clean!

Wow!!! How scary it is to know that because of our mindsets, even the best work that we do for The Lord can become corrupt. We could be wanting and working to serve God yet still be horribly off course. It's difficult to remain pure in mind because it's so easy to convince ourselves that what we are doing on Sundays outweighs our lifestyles during the rest of the week.

However, even the best that we offer and do for God is defiled when we dishonor those who have been placed in leadership; when we dishonor our marriages, cause strife in the family, lie or discredit our brothers and sisters. Our work comes to nothing when we are two-faced, conceited and arrogant. When we act this way we are not representing Christ at all.

To come clean means that we don't just wash our hands, but that we wash our thoughts, wash our motives and wash our hearts!

Let's Come Clean!

"To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good." (Titus 1:15‭-‬16 NIV)

Worship

Power, Protection and Rest is found in the presence of God.

How do you get into God's presence? Have you done so before starting your day? If not, will you begin today?