I am so honored to feature the writing of Donielle Robinson. Donielle has such a servant’s heart and has been a huge blessing to my family. She has willingly babysat my children, offered words of encouragement and read just about every post I have published from when I first started blogging. The Lord has done a great work in her and the process continues. I hope you are as blessed by this post as I was.
This weekend, my friend Jill decided to come and make my house cute which is a prayer answered. We were able to fix up a few things and make my house look cute. We did not finish everything, but we made some major improvements. My room now looks like a hotel. We worked on several projects including my dresser. She painted my dresser and found that some of the drawers needed additional screws and fixed them. I didn’t even know they were broken. This reminded me of how God works in our lives.
When we have a yes in our spirit, and embrace God’s will for our lives, He fixes areas we didn’t even know were broken. Like my dresser,we do not know it’s broken or we may get so used to living with a deficit that we don’t think things will change. This year has been a year of brokenness for me from my phone to my health (and other areas). I am thankful for the brokenness because God has delivered me from long standing issues, answered prayers and increases my faith. So as you wait for prayers to be answered,situations to change,etc embrace the process. Learn. Grow. Be challenged. Ask for help. Praise Him in Advance. Find your hope knowing God is in control.
Psalm 100:1-5 NIV
Shout for joy to the Lord , all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his ; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
With summer only a few weeks away, I realize I am a little late getting on the spring cleaning bandwagon. However, whatever the season, purging and cleaning is always in order. As I have been doing just that, the Lord has been ministering to my heart and showing me some spiritual correlations.
The first step for effective cleaning is facing the mess, acknowledging the need to clean. Admitting that I need to be cleaned (purified) requires humility. It can be painful to face the mess and quite honestly it can be extremely overwhelming, but God gives grace to the humble. Most cleaning experts say it is unrealistic to try to clean our house in a day. The same is true in the spiritual; purification is a process. God doesn’t expect you to get it all together in one day and He certainly doesn’t expect you to do the cleaning. You cannot fix yourself. However He requires us to surrender, allowing Him to begin the process.
Most of us are willing to acknowledge that we need to get things in order. We may say in vague terms, “Oh I know I am not perfect and there are things I need to work on,” but we stay stuck at just talking about it. We don’t begin the process of giving it to God, allowing Him to begin the process of purging and healing us. You may ask, where do I begin? I encourage you to spend some time in prayer and ask the Lord to show you the areas in which you need to be cleansed, the things that you may be holding on to; anger, resentment, unforgiveness, worldly mindsets…just to name a few. Be deliberate about pausing long enough to hear God’s response.
Scripture to meditate on
Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God,And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Note: While this scripture was written by David after He was called out for His sins with Bathsheba, I believe that His earnest cry and repentant heart is applicable to those who desire to be cleansed from whatever is not like God.
Be blessed!
Anika
Hannah creating one of her artistic works.
God said. There was. And it was good. That pretty much sums up my God. The one who has the ability to speak something out of nothing. Create light out of darkness. I read Genesis chapter 1 through different lenses this morning because I read it thinking about some things that God has spoken to me. Things that if I look at it in the natural they seem impossible…nonexistent. But my God, the very God who created the heavens and the earth defies human logic and breaks through every boundary to bring into existence what He wants. He not only speaks and it happens, but when it happens it is good! As I read that very familiar passage of scripture I was encouraged. Encouraged to believe that if He created in Genesis 1, He can still create opportunities for me today. He can create openings in doors that are shut and even create a door that was not originally there. Encouraged to believe that it will be exactly as He has spoken as I grab a hold of it by faith. Encouraged to believe that as I pursue the purpose for which I am called, it will all work together for my good!
Reread Genesis 1 and reflect on the following questions
-What specific promises has he made to you that seems impossible?
-When you think about what God has spoken, do you see it as impossible because you are thinking about your own limitations? Is God asking you to do it in your own strength or His?
Be blessed!
This serving Jesus thing… well it can get quite UNCOMFORTABLE.
Honestly it can.
IT IS.
There is no hidden agenda with Jesus. He puts it all out there from the beginning. .. “You must be willing to give up all to follow me. “
This is an exclusive relationship, no room for my idols.
NO
ROOM
FOR
ME.
He is totally not interested in this copilot business
He asks that I relinquish control and give Him the wheel and get in the back…way back
I must surrender my will and accept His
I must die to myself so that I can live in Him
I must embrace suffering and make of my life a daily offering
But even with all that I have to lose
I rejoice in all that I have gained
Because serving Jesus well it can get quite ADDICTIVE
Honestly it can.
IT IS
He takes my yes
And does more with me than I could have imagined
He hears me when I pray
He sees my tears
And always reminds me that He is on my side
So there is NO NEED TO FEAR
I am constantly receiving confirmation of His love
He has provided beauty for my ashes
Redeemed my past and gave me
A life that will last
FOREVER
I have been praying and asking the Lord to give me a heart to evangelize at a greater level. I want a heart that is not always looking inward but one that is looking outward for those that need Jesus. It is so EASY to get stuck on Anika; my fears of rejection and what others think of me. As I pray and study His word I see that effective evangelism requires death to oneself. So I leave you with this question, “Are you dead enough?”
ARE YOU DEAD ENOUGH?
Many times as Christians we are afraid of speaking and living the whole truth.
Why?
We are afraid of the response.
We are afraid of how others will become offended because the words we speak
And the way we live highlights their sins
Then they lash out
And our feelings get hurt
We take it personal and we shrink back
Why?
Because we are not dead enough
Yeah cause see it is no longer I that live but Christ that lives in me
But maybe
Maybe my death is not a reality
And I have to be honest and say
I am not dead enough
Not dead enough to myself
Not dead enough to recognize that I have been given a mandate to Go
A mandate that takes the focus off of me and puts it all on Jesus
A mandate that asks me to let my light shine,
A light that highlights the darkness of sin
The very light that should be a reflection of Him
His attitude
His courage
His love
His words
And when I am dead enough
I recognize that it is not my words that I am speaking
Consequently I know that they are not rejecting me
But they are rejecting the ONLY one that can set them free
So when I am dead enough, I shake off the rejection
And say, ok on to the next one.
I got my instructions. They were clear.
I am not going to keep on asking for confirmation
I got enough
Cause see
That asking for confirmation thing
Well that was me trying to delay what I know you told me to do
That was me allowing my fears to be bigger than my faith.
But today I am looking fear square in the eye
And telling it
NO. It’s more like COMMANDING it
To GO
To loose it’s hold.
Because God has big things He wants to do in and through me
I believe it
I receive it
I declare it
So then I go to PRAISING like I have lost my mind
But really I have
I am letting go of thinking too much
Thinking my way out of what you have promised
Thinking I am less than, forgetting that I was called before I was born
Thinking about what others think of me; paralyzing me
Thinking it’s not perfect enough so why even try
In my crazy loud I don’t even know what to do with myself PRAISE
I magnify you
I declare your goodness
I rehearse what you have done for me
In my praise I laugh
Laugh because you have given me beauty for ashes
Laugh because you have redeemed my life from destruction
Laugh because you chose me
YOU
CHOSE
ME
I laugh at the enemy
Because He tried, REALLY HARD
BUT
HE
DID
NOT
WIN
So yeah
You gave me instructions
They were clear
And I say yes
Yes I believe it
Yes I will do it