Month: October 2023

Sun Stand Still

Sun Stand Still

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Together with kindness and in understanding, let’s take this time to self reflect. I am here to inspire, encourage, and remind you that God has given us the most important weapon we have to fight the enemy, His Word.

Now let’s dress our soul like we dress our bodies, EVERYDAY!

Sun Stand Still

“Then Spoke Joshua to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel:”Sun stand though still upon Gibeon; and thou, moon in the Valley of Aijalon.” Joshua 10:12 NKJV

Covid-19 has infected more than 696 million people worldwide and killed over 6 million. This was truly like a movie scene straight out of Hollywood. Do you remember the 1951 American science fiction film from 20th Century fox, The Day the Earth Stood Still? Set in the Cold War during the early stages of the nuclear arms race, the storyline involved a humanoid alien visitor who comes to Earth, accompanied by a powerful robot, to deliver an important message that will affect the entire human race. It was a wakeup call for the people of earth. Can you see the correlation between the movie and covid 19? I believe both represent a message. Pandemics are nothing new to the world: plagues, Black Death, yellow fever, polio, AIDS, and Ebola are just a few on the history list.

the Bible says, “what has been, will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 1:9 NIV.

Joshua 10:12-14 contains one of the most amazing miracles of all time-it is the day the sun stood still. Can you see this scene from the scripture, the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down for a full day. There had never been a day like it before or since. The Good Lord heard Joshua. Romans 8:28 reminds us, that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. God had his reasons for listening and answering Joshua.

Joshua is best known as Moses’ second in command who takes over and leads the Israelites into the Promised Land after Moses’ death. He was personally appointed successor to Moses and led Israel in the conquest of Canaan after the Exodus from Egypt. Joshua is considered one of the Bible’s greatest military leaders for leading the seven-year conquest and is often held up as a model for leadership and a source of practical application on how to be an effective leader.

Let’s look at what this story is all about. The day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel: ‘Sun, stand still over Gibeon, / and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.’ / So the sun stood still, / and the moon stopped, / till the nation avenged itself on its enemies. . . . The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!” God miraculously provided twenty-four hours of light to aid Israel in destroying their enemy, the Amorites.

God performed a miracle, causing the sun to delay its “setting.” God stopped the motion of the earth. There is no way it can be explained, but the God who created the world and established natural laws is perfectly capable of all things. We may not have a scientific explanation of how God performed this miracle, but He did.

While we may not fully understand how this “long day” occurred, a miracle does not have to be scientifically proven—just accepted. Joshua prayed, and God supernaturally provided the light necessary for Joshua’s army to win its battle. The lengthened day was indeed unlike anything ever seen, but in Joshua’s mind the greater miracle may just have been that God heard him and answered such an amazing prayer.

Remember friends, we are each other’s keeper and the only time we should be looking down on someone is when we are helping them up.

Wake Up Everybody!

Wake Up Everybody!

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Together with kindness and in understanding, let’s take this time to self reflect. I am here to inspire, encourage, and remind you that God has given us the most important weapon we have to fight the enemy, His Word.

Now let’s dress our soul like we dress our bodies, EVERYDAY!

Wake Up Everybody!!

“God made two great lights-the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to cover the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:16-18 NIV

Wake Up Everybody, is an R& B song written by John Whitehead, Gene McFadden , and Victor Carstarphen. Originally recorded by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, with Teddy Pendergrass singing lead vocals on the title track from their 1975 album. They performed the song on Soul Train on November 22, 1975. The beginning music of the song draws you in, and as my head started bobbin and as the singer sang the words to the song, it got me thinking. Isn’t it amazing how there is nothing new under the sun and how this song is still relevant today. The song itself seeks to make all of us more consciously aware of what we are all capable of when we come together. In a world where poverty, violence, economic inequality, education, climate change, gender equality, discrimination, terrorism, mental health, homelessness, substance abuse, gun control, pollution, and crime are only a few of the problems facing the people of the world. The dictionary defines wake up as to cease from sleeping. It also means to become aware or make someone aware of something.

Here are some of the lyrics:

Wake up everybody no more sleeping in bed, no more backward thinking time for thinking ahead, the world has changed so very much from what it used to be, there is so much hatred war and poverty.

The song also reminds me of some of my daughter’s favorite books, that I would read to her when she was my baby. Do you all remember the Berenstain Bears?  You had Papa Bear, Momma Bear, Brother Bear, and Sister Bear, Since the 1962 debut of the first book, The Big Honey Hunt, the series has grown to over 400 titles, which have sold approximately 260 million copies in 23 languages. Not only did these little paperback books put a smile on my daughter’s face, as we read them over and over again, it represented real life experiences, full of the power of the family. They encourage the importance of saying let’s be aware of ourselves, let’s talk about it, and let’s see how we can make better choices. If you haven’t read one of those books in a while, I encourage you to go your local bookstore and head to the children’s section. With titles like: Messy Room, Picnic, Love their Neighbors, The Bears’ Vacation, Go to Camp, Catch the Bus, Patience Please, Get in a Fight, Kindness Counts, Chores, Junk Food, Take Turns, Too Much TV, and The Truth. Believe me friends, you are gonna find something to warm your heart and stimulate your mind.

On the first day of creation, God said, “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3), and light appeared as a thing separate from darkness. The phrase let there be light is a translation of the Hebrew phrase which is a literal translation for “Light, exist.” God is speaking into the void and commanding light to come into being. The Bible tells us that God created the heavens and the earth and everything else that exists by simply speaking them into existence (Genesis 1). His personality, power, creativity, and beauty were expressed in creation. The idea of light, existing first in God’s mind, was given form by the words “Let there be light” or “Let light exist.”

Consider this thought friends, the reality of the creative power of God’s voice has important spiritual implications that go well beyond the creation account itself. Light is often used as a metaphor in the Bible, and the word illumination (“divine enlightenment of the human heart with truth”) has to do with bringing things into the light. Spiritual illumination is a kind of “creation” that occurs in a human heart. “God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.” Jesus Himself is “the light of the world.”

Jesus reminds us in scripture that he is the light of the world, and whoever follows him, will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. When I woke up this morning, I did not have any doubt, I am just grateful for another day. When I look all around me friends, I can’t help but marvel at the genius of his hands. Tell me friends, are you awake? AMEN!!

Remember friends, we are each other’s keeper and the only time we should be looking down on someone is when we are helping them up.

1,2,3!!

1,2,3!!

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Together with kindness and in understanding, let’s take this time to self reflect. I am here to inspire, encourage, and remind you that God has given us the most important weapon we have to fight the enemy, His Word.

Now let’s dress our soul like we dress our bodies, EVERYDAY!

1,2,3!!

“Then Jesus was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” Matthew 4:1NKJV

As I think back on the concept of threes, 1, 2, 3, in my younger years, this was how God would to talk with me. When something was of great importance, he would show it to me in threes. This started in high school. On my first real job once my daughter was old enough for day care, I remember spending the first part of my day, calling schools, parents and checking on various services that would be beneficial for the families I serviced. After lunch, I thought to myself this would be a great day to go make a few home visits.

At one of the homes, I went to no one was there. I did see a sign on the front of the steel gate that read, Beware of Dog. Let’s just say for all practical purposes this was my first sign (number one) that God was talking to me. Sitting there in the vehicle, I took my time filling out the door hanger style information sheet. Once I got out of the car, I did notice that there was a dog on the porch.

Looking around I entered the gate and walked up the porch stairs to the front door (that’s number two). There was this tiny pup sleeping on a blanket in a basket. He was the cuties little pup you’d ever wanna see ya’ll. His blue eyes opened and locked with mine, as he yawned, stretched, and yelped for my attention.  I smiled down at him, giving him plenty of oohs, awes and baby talk. Getting back to my reason for coming to the door in the first place, I glanced over my contact information on the door hanger and then put it on the doorknob. I gave the pup one more glance and said, “bye, bye.”

When I turned around there was a momma Pitbull standing there and she did not look happy that I was first on the porch with her baby, and secondly that I was in her yard. (that’s three ya’ll) What does one do in a situation like this? Did I tell you she was looking at me like I was a king size doggie treat. In those precious seconds, I saw my life and that beware of dog sign flashing before my eyes.

Not wanting to show fear, I slowly backed away from her baby, as I moved ever so slowly down the stairs, still facing her.  Once I got on the other side of that gate and closed it, she went crazy. I thought she was going to take the gate down. I hurried up and got back in the car, relieved to still be alive and unharmed. I gave Jesus some praises and hallelujah’s all the way back to the office friends! He protected me. As I replayed that situation over in my head, I realized it happened all because I ignored the warning sign at the gate. I learned a valuable lesson that day, and throughout my career from that point on, I never made that mistake again.

Our lesson for today speaks about Jesus who was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. The word led implies following the will of another. To be led by the Spirit is to follow the guidance of the spirit, it is to be submissive to His will. There is no surprising God when it comes to anything. Even though His divinity was hidden in a human body, it took nothing away from what he already knew as the truth. The word goes on to say that when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward he was hungry. What are you like when you are hungry? Are you cranky, mean, lightheaded, or are you lie me, can’t think straight because your stomach growling so loud.

Let’s look at the Word in action through Jesus Christ as his response to the Satan with three statements: First,“it is written man shall not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from God’s mouth.” I am reminded of how powerful God’s Word is. It is life and strength. And when we do not have enough of God’s Word, we lose clarity and focus. Secondly, he told Satan, “thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”  Jesus is both clear and direct as reminds him who rules. God was on the scene before he was made to worship him. And thirdly, “though shalt worship the Lord your God and him only you shall serve.” Jesus, the God on earth reaffirms his position and authority. As tired, worn out and hungry as Jesus may have been, His spiritual muscles were working just fine.

Friends, through every test, depend on the Word of God to help you get through it.  Amen!

Remember friends, we are each other’s keeper and the only time we should be looking down on someone is when we are helping them up.

Good Health

Good Health

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Together with kindness and in understanding, let’s take this time to self reflect. I am here to inspire, encourage, and remind you that God has given us the most important weapon we have to fight the enemy, His Word.

Now let’s dress our soul like we dress our bodies, EVERYDAY!

Good Health

“Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.” 3John 1:2 NIV

In my younger days I did not worry about what I ate, what I drank, or exercising. Over the years I have done okay.  I have stayed active, some exercise, and trying to eat right. At this point in my life, I have recognized that our health is our greatest wealth and asset. Let me say that again. I said, “our health is our greatest wealth and asset.”  A healthy body gives us the strength and energy to achieve better results in every aspect of our lives.

Consider this friend, our overall health and well-being-emotional, mental, spiritual as well as physical should always be our number one priority. Without it, guess what? Nothing else matters. God has designed the human body so that it is a finely tuned instrument. It can endure a great many things, like fractures, cuts, bruises, pain, and stretches. However, we still must do our best to take care of the temple God has given us for this life.

Did you know that a major part of the Bible’s health instruction dates back to the time of Moses. Yet in our day, many researchers and medical doctors are stunned at the accuracy and effectiveness of its many provisions. Should they really be surprised at the omnipotence of God, After all it is His genius that designed and created the human body.

Here are a few reminders of what health wealth looks like from Philips.come.eg called healthy Corner.

W – Water.

I don’t know about you, but I definitely need to drink more H2O. Drinking enough water maintains the body’s fluid balance, which helps transport nutrients in the body, regulate body temperature, and digest food.

E – Exercise.

  • Regular exercising burns calories and helps you manage your weight. I try to get in three days a week of cardio and weights.

A – Attitude.

  • Start your day with a healthy breakfast. People who eat breakfast are less likely to overeat later in the day.
  • Get plenty of sleep.
  • Take a walk after dinner instead of watching TV.
  • Avoid using drugs, nicotine, and alcohol as a way to cope with negative feelings and stress.

L – Less stress.

It is a stressful world out there! Stress has become a part of our modern life and it puts our bodies in a heightened state for a long period of time, which can silently harm our hearts.

Look for ways to reduce stress, manage your time, connect with others, and spend time doing what you love.

T – Think positive. We must encourage our own souls, and that is where positive affirmations come in. Positive thinking can improve the immune system functions and decrease blood pressure.

H – Healthy eating.

  • Having a well-balanced and healthy diet can make you feel better.
  • Eat more fruits and vegetables.
  • Choose whole grains, like oatmeal, whole-wheat bread, and brown rice, seafood, lean meats, poultry, eggs, fat-free or low-fat milk, cheese, beans, nuts, and seed.

A Healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to be a struggle, it can be a creative adventure. Here’s to Good health!

Remember friends, we are each other’s keeper and the only time we should be looking down on on someone is when we are helping them up.

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