God Is In Control!

A little something to ponder………………
These are the favorite words of a dear friend of mine. Whenever he encounters a difficult situation, he comforts himself by saying “God is in Control!” When I first met him I could see by his anointing that he has spent a lot of time with the Lord but because I was having a very difficult time in my own life I was not eager to always except him saying to me that God is in control! As the Lord used him to minister to me, I begin to have an appreciation of his theme words. Often times we have trials and tribulations and circumstances that seem originally designed just for us and we feel that no one could ever understand what we are going through. Because we all have our own cross to bear, we think that our problems are authentic but I am here to serve you notice.
There is nothing new under the sun and the same afflictions that are in you are also found in your brothers and sisters. There are no new problems or trials or tribulations that the enemy have created. He is using old tricks, traps and snares to hinder the Christians from accomplishing their mission here on earth. Our job is to encourage one another to keep it moving! Keep going in God! Don’t give up and don’t give in!! When you reach a situation that seems unbearable…speak the words of my dear friend and remind yourself that God is in Control!!! There are many things that the Lord will give the enemy permission to do to you just so that God can get the outcome from you that He is desiring. I know you are waiting for me to back this with the word of God so here it is. Go with me to Jeremiah 29:11. The Lord was making it clear that HE knows the plans that he has for us. It is not the plan of God for you to be depressed, oppressed, miserable, disgusted, in poverty or none of those other negative things. He sent His Son so that you may have life and that life more abundantly! There is no reason for you to think that God has turned His back on you or forsaken you because that is NOT His plan concerning you! God has big things in store for you and if He didn’t He would have told you!

God is in Control!!! God has a plan and He is working the plan in your life. Just keep pressing forward. When you come to an obstacle, don’t hesitate and don’t break just go through. When it gets dark and dreary and you find yourself crying in the night, just look to Jesus and remind yourself that you are a victor and not a victim! Keep speaking to yourself and say, “I won’t bend and I won’t break because My God is in Control!” God said that He is our Alpha and our Omega, our beginning and our end. If He is indeed our beginning and our end then surely He knows what we are going through and how we are going to get out of it. My dear sisters and brothers, this is a fixed fight and you are destined to win! All you have to do is allow God to work His plan in you.

Yes my brethren God is in control and all you have to do is trust Him with your life!

Saved by Grace!

A little something to ponder.........

So often we hear Pastor’s, Preacher’s, and Teacher’s say that we are “Saved by Grace”. When you really look at that for “face” value, you find out that the statement is very profound and divine.

Grace is unmerited favor or undeserved favor. God’s Grace is the expression of His goodness toward the undeserving.

The Bible speaks of God’s grace from Genesis to Revelation and each one of us have at some point or another read or heard of the Grace of God but have we really examined His Grace or do we really appreciate all the Grace that has been shed upon us?

Ephesians 2:8-9 states that “For by Grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” This passage of scripture lets us know that there are NO works or good deeds that we could perform that would merit Grace. Divine Grace is just like the Holy Ghost, it is a gift of God! Your being saved has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that you are a good person or that you were a horrible person or anything in between. The plan of Salvation was designed and commanded of God and him alone. I don’t care how much you try to give, do, or be, the only thing that will save you is God’s divine Grace! The God we serve needs no help and He doesn’t want your bribes to get what you want. God wants your life! God wants us to serve him fully and completely with our whole life not just portions or segments. By serving God fully and completely, your faith will be strengthened and you will learn to lean and depend solely on God and God alone.

God’s Grace has extreme value and must be appreciated, just because we know that we serve a Grace giving God does not mean that we have the liberty to continue to sin. Roman 6:1 lets us know that we should not continue in our sin assuming that Grace will abound. We must make the conscience effort to please God with our hearts, mind, and lifestyle and by doing so, we will find that any trials, tribulations, obstacles, or road blocks will be cleared through the divine intervention of God’s Grace.

Restore unto me the Joy!

A little something to Ponder............

David in all his might and glory, many times found himself in compromising positions. One situation that comes to mind is when he sinned with Bath Sheba. Of course David was looking for some type of way to conceal his sin, but sin, no matter how discreet, can never be hidden. The word tells us that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God-(Romans 5:12) - but the word also lets us know that there is a remedy for our sin.

Brother Donnie McClurkin spoke the remedy in a song that says it best and that is “We fall down but we get up”. The Word of God has reminded us time and time again about sin and its vices but we still submit to human nature and allow ourselves to be captivated by the sins of this world. For those of us that want an escape from the weight and burden of sin, we must first acknowledge that we have sinned, that we are in the wrong and that we have come short of the glory of God. The Church at Corinth made the same mistake that we still make today, and that is, they refuse to acknowledge their own sin. Spiritual pride had consumed their minds and they were trying hard to ignore their sin rather than confess their sin. In order for the road of restoration to begin, we must first acknowledge that we have sinned. Sin has to be exposed in order for it to be uprooted. Paul had to write a letter to the Corinthian Church and make it known that he knew of their sin in order for them to acknowledge their own sins
(I Corinthian 5:1-10). Nathan had to confront David and expose his known sin and in return, as an acknowledgement of his sin, David wrote Psalm 51 confessing his sin and pleading for mercy with repentance unto God. God has a way of escape for our sin, and the formula is to first acknowledge that we have sinned, then repent from our sin and after that enjoy RESTORATION in God. Once you have thoroughly repented from your sins, expect your joy, expect your happiness, expect peace of mind, and expect God to move on your behalf. The Bible says that “THE JOY OF THE LORD IS OUR STRENGTH” (Nehemiah 8:10). After repentance, comes restoration bottom line.

Yes, we fall down but we get up. So with this in mind, acknowledge, repent, get up, dust yourself off, and go on in God better then you were when you fell.