Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! WOW ~ a new year, new beginnings, possibly new friends, new loves (meaning a hobby, a precious baby, or your first home purchase). With each year we shed the old and bring on the new. Perhaps some of you are shedding bad health and deciding you are going to be healthy; or you have shed living in debt and have become debt free. Whatever you are gaining new in 2015, remember to be Thankful for the old.  The countdown has already begun!

It's All About Me!

Having a baby out of wed-lock can be a load to bear as well as raising them alone! It's not foolish to wait until you get married to have sex. It is foolish to have sex before you get married!

You ask, why should you get married before sex? We are creating a generation of children who do not know how to have healthy relationships as well as instilling in them respect, morals and values. It's also necessary to have two people in a relationship; because one compliments the other in raising children, educating your children, and loving your children so they too can pass on the family values!

There is no such thing as old-fashion parenting! To value your child's well being, education, spiritual growth and health is not a thing of the past. By marrying in the presence of God and man, before anyone has sex and children, it will drastically reduce sexual diseases, illegitimate children, parental neglect, and government assistance.

We make mistakes in life, but choosing to get pregnant is not a way to trap a man. It is selfish, immoral, and speaks insecurity. Your children are not toys we play with, but human beings who, again, need nurturing, educated, loved and to feel secure!

So become a woman of spirituality, strength, wisdom, confidence, and grandeur~ then you will attract the same in a man!

Everything is permissible (allowable and lawful) for me; but not all things are helpful (good for me to do, expedient and profitable when considered with other things). Everything is lawful for me, but I will not become the slave of anything or be brought under its power. Food [is intended] for the stomach and the stomach for food, but God will finally end [the functions of] both and bring them to nothing. The body is not intended for sexual immorality, but [is intended] for the Lord, and the Lord [is intended] for the body [to save, sanctify, and raise it again]...........You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own]. So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body. I Corinthians 6:12-20 AMP 

1 + 1 = 1

"I really need to get back in school, but I cannot make up my mind in what field I would like to major in. I know who will have the answer ~ my Mom", the husband says. "Oh OK", the wife says. "I will be glad to help you." The husband responds, "Naw, I'll talk to my Mom about it." 

When we value Mom/Dad’s opinions over our wife’s than we devalue our wife; and again if we value Mom/Dad’s opinion over our husband’s than we devalue our husband.  Mom/Dad, best friend, girlfriend, etc. are not who you need to confide in for answers to decisions in your marriage ~ or your personal business.

How about existing burdens that was in place before he/she made the commitment to marry; such as child support, student loans, back taxes, credit card bills, etc. Nope, when you marry, again, you become one, and everything is the responsibility of the husband and wife. So if you feel you do not want to enter into a union that has baggage, then remember to do your homework first. If you truly love this person, then pull your sleeves up and get prepared to move mountains ~ together!

It’s not a deal breaker, it’s your attitude towards it. Don’t get married if you are not mature enough to understand we are not perfect and your spouse will not be perfect either; so focus on the good in them and you won’t notice the bad.

It’s not a game nor is it something we can get in and out of with ease - - - - like changing our clothes. We tell ourselves, “No I don’t like this one, so I’ll get rid of him/her and take the next best thing!” Not a good idea; and it shows your character. Some of us are not aware we have insecurities and some are; whatever the case, commit to something and the first thing to commit to is Jesus Christ. He loves us perfectly and when we seek Him daily for His love; then we are able to love our spouses the way He loves us. It’s a win-win situation.

Marriage is not a thing of the past. We need the husband and wife relationship back into our culture; and our children, who will become the leaders of this world, do too! 

But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave [behind] his father and his mother and be joined to his wife and cleave closely to her permanently, And the two shall become one flesh, so that they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has united (joined together), let not man separate or divide. Mark 10:6-9 AMP

WWJD?

How many of you would be willing to turn the TV off for a month and find other ways to be entertained and resourceful?

The assignment will be instead of looking at the TV for your ideal lifestyle, look outside your door. How then can you be entertained and resourceful? Smiling at someone, assisting someone with housework who is recovering from cancer or cooking some meals for a single Mother who just had her second baby are some ways we can do the will of God.

If you are financially blessed, pay a light bill for someone for a month. God is not asking you to judge them or say, “They can get up off their lazy butt and work like I can and pay their own light bill!” He’s asking you to make a difference and be an example instead of small talk that means nothing.

We look to TV for our clothes, relationships, the ideal woman we want to be (comparing ourselves to other women; which is a NO-NO), the financial status we would like to have, and in our minds, the easy way of living. Is there really an easy way of living? Hiccups happen; however, when we are of sound mind and body, we can endure them with ease!

It’s time to STOP, look both ways before crossing the street. We have become so complacent, our brains are not being used to the fullest potential; nor is our ability to do GOOD to others!

How God anointed and consecrated Jesus of Nazareth with the [Holy] Spirit and with strength and ability and power; how He went about doing good and, in particular, curing all who were harassed and oppressed by [the power of] the devil, for God was with Him. Hebrews 10:38 AMP

I Haven't Forgot!

Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer, Santa Clause is Coming to Town, Here Comes Santa Clause ~ I just want to name a few of the songs our children are singing today.

Many of them do not know The Drummer Boy, O Come all Ye Faithful, Silent Night, We Three Kings, or Joy to the World ~ which are songs that speak of Christ~ the words also speak of the Joy the Christians felt at His birth.

We have gone so far in left field, no one appreciates nor have been introduced to these songs about a Savior born to save us from our selfish, destructive ways ~ And we are becoming selfish and destructive - - - whether to our selves or to our country.

All is not lost. It can be restored; just begin with less receiving and more giving, fellowship with neighbors, and daily read the bible. Good should prevail over evil! Christ wasn’t born for naught!

And while they were there, the time came for her delivery, And she gave birth to her Son, her

Firstborn; and she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room or place for them in the inn. And in that vicinity there were shepherds living [out under the open sky] in the field, watching [in shifts] over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord flashed and shone all about them, and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people. For to you is born this day in the town of David a Savior, Who is Christ (the Messiah) the Lord! And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]: you will find [after searching] a Baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Then suddenly there appeared with the angel an army of the troops of heaven (a heavenly knighthood), praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest [heaven], and on earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased [men of goodwill, of His favor]. When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing (saying) that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us. Luke 2:6-15 AMP

What Are You Wearing Today?

All of the young teenage ladies who are all but collapsing daily with being in competition (not with other women, men, or even celebrities), but with themselves. Evaluate yourself and yourself only!

Take a long good look at you! Who are you anyway? Ask yourself that question, and if you for one second hesitate, then you don’t know who you truly are. If you answer quickly with I am _________________and fill in your name; that’s not what I am asking. We put on clothes with what the world wears, we put on makeup with what the world wears; we put on images of what the world portrays! But is it really you?

Many of you are probably frustrated by now wondering where I am going with this. Are you clothed in peace? If you work at being peaceful, you will very seldom have conflicts, doubts, chaos, and disruption. Are clothed with Love? The bible says, “Perfect Love cast out fear!” (I John 4:18); which means God loves us perfectly, with no conditions and when we love him also, we know without a doubt, all is well! Are you clothed with self-control? Can you control your anger when bad talk is going around about you? Well can you? 

It's a blessing to look nice and feel good about you, but that is not who you are. Those clothes we put on daily is not who we are, the hair styles we wear are not who we are, the fancy shoes we wear are not who we are. Now that you have a little bit of clarification of what type of answer I am looking for ~ now I will ask it again, “Who are you?”

idolatry, participation in demonic activities, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other kinds of sin. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Here there is no conflict with the law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. If we are living now by the Holy Spirit, let us follow the Holy Spirit's leading in every part of our lives. Galatians 5:20-25 NLT

God's Helping Hand!

Father I ask for forgiveness from you and ALL of those whom I have hurt; those I remember and those I don’t. I pray in Jesus name that moving forward, I pray first about EVERYTHING AND for EVERYONE unto You before I decide to take anything into my own hands. I truly need Your helping hand upon me at ALL times, so that I can love the way you love, show compassion the way you show compassion and pray the way you pray in order to keep peace and be peaceful! In Jesus Name I pray! And so it is!

Opposites Attract

This is so important and necessary, so necessary that I’m going to emphasize relationships again; this time more direct!

In an intimate relationship we enter into; our concept is to change the other person to be like us or to our liking.  We don’t like the way they dress, we don’t like the way they eat, we don’t like the way they throw their clothes in the floor, or we are serious and they like to tease and laugh!

When you try to put magnets together that are alike, you can force it all you want and they will not come together; however, if you put magnets together that are opposite, they connect instantly!

I do not own the rights to this photo 

I have also attempted to change someone before God made me realize I had faults too. When we focus on someone else’s faults, it takes the attention off of ourselves ~ or so we think. I know when I am around someone who is constantly degrading someone else; my attention is actually on the person who is pointing the finger more than on the person who the finger is being pointed at.

Rewind the tape! So when did you become perfect? I only know of one perfect being; which is Jesus Christ - - - - - and He surely didn’t go around condemning anyone by saying, “You need to change how you dress; or you need to change your hair cut”. He saw the good in them, showed them compassion; and loved them.

I do not own the rights to this photo 

Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, never haughty or selfish or rude. Love does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong. I Corinthians 13:4-5 TLB

Easy Now!

So you got into an argument again with your spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend, whoever, your significant other is. I know when I was married, it was not enjoyable to always be in conflict ~ unkind words, punches being thrown, holes in the walls, etc. A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.(Proverbs 15:1 NLT)

Constant conflict wears you down, hurts, and also causes health problems as well as being unhealthy. If there is strife and confusion (arguing and hurtful name calling, and back biting) in your home,  you are allowing Satan in your house and he enjoys seeing your home being destroyed. (I also understand that hurting people hurt other people, whereas, we cannot keep holding on to our past and expect to have a prosperous future)

As the Word says the thief comes only to kill, steal, and destroy; and Christ said, I came that you may have life and have it in abundance to the full until it overflows (John 10:10).

I knew I could not live like that anymore, my health began to fail in addition to my other afflictions, I didn't want to come home, nor did I feel it was something I was willing to fight for. If you are experiencing this in your household, PLEASE stop it now and turn to Christ. Seek a bible based church, a spiritual Christian who will encourage you in love, and pick up the bible and begin to turn yourself around first - - - - -if you haven't already started, it's time! Then your spouse will follow!

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Romans 14:17-19 NIV

Stop the Fiery Arrows!

"Did you see that young girl come to church wearing that revealing dress?" Someone said during service. Maybe, just maybe that's all she had to wear. She came to the right place for love, acceptance and a kind word! However, fiery arrows were being shot at her from every angle.  

Many of our young teens and women already feel vulnerable and to come to church; however she is dressed is the first step to her life being transformed!

So the next time you see a young lady dressed (in your eyes as inappropriate) give her a smile and tell her she is beautiful! Then, your light will shine ~ just the way God intended it to!

nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:15,16