I was recently crying to God and telling him about an ongoing area of struggle. I didn’t say it out loud, but I was thinking, “isn’t God tired of me coming and crying about this?” His answer to my unspoken question was Proverbs 28:13, “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.” I didn’t receive it as a rebuke instead I knew it was a loving reminder of His loving-kindness and mercy toward me. He was letting me know that He was pleased with my willingness to bring this sin before Him. I wasn’t trying to hide it. I wasn’t trying to make excuses for why it was there. I didn’t categorize it as a not so serious sin. I came clean before the Lord. My repentance and brokenness over this sin ushered in a flood of God’s mercy.
Do you have sins you are trying to conceal? I want to remind you you cannot fix or deliver yourself, that is God’s job. We will always have areas in our life that we need to work on. However, pride will convince us to hide those areas. There is no prosperity there, it will only leave us weighed down and stagnant. However, when we humble ourselves and confess our sins, turn away from them, God’s mercy meets us!
Be Blessed,
Anika
Recently I went to a party to celebrate a good friend. My intentions were to have a good time and lighthearted conversations. However, in having a conversation with one attendee, the Lord gave me some words of correction to share. I didn’t want to appear as a killjoy, but I knew I had to obey the voice of the Lord.
I felt bad when I woke up the next morning and wondered what the person thought of me. The Lord immediately convicted me and asked me if he could trust me to deliver His message. In that moment, God spoke to me and told me I should not place my reputation above obedience. Many times, we hesitate to speak the truth that could offend because we want others to like us.
As a servant of God, my responsibility is to deliver what He gives me without fear of the response. I cannot alter the message; I must deliver exactly what He gives me. My mail man doesn’t get caught up in my response to the package he delivers, nor does he try to change the packaging. None of that concerns Him. He just knows that his boss is expecting him to deliver the mail. I want to be faithful in delivering all the messages God gives me. How about you?
Romans 1:16 NLT: For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.
I woke up on my 41st birthday and one of the first things I did was rub my hand on my head looking for the sign He had finally answered this longstanding prayer request. I told Him that this would be the best birthday gift. I thought He told me He would do it, that this was finally my time. I was wrong. Sadly, the familiar bald spots created by alopecia and scattered hair met the touch of my hand. I felt the disappointment trying to overtake me, but I fought against it. I thought on the goodness of God, and where He has brought me. No, I’m not a millionaire but at 41 years of age, I am a rich and fulfilled lady.
I am living on purpose.
I am at peace.
I have true joy.
I am blessed beyond measure.
And I know God in an even more intimate way.
So I got up looked at my mostly bald head reflection in the mirror and a sang a song of rebellion against disappointment! Restoration of my hair will come, of that I am certain. In the meantime, this song will become my anthem because I will worship as I wait.
What will I do As I wait on you?
I will worship
I will worship
Time does not change your mind
You are not a man that you should lie
So I will worship
I will worship
The doubts are trying to silence me
Lord help my areas of unbelief
By faith I declare
I will see what you have promised
Because you are God!
You are faithful!
I can trust you
So I will worship
I will worship
What are you waiting for? What are you doing as you wait?
Be Blessed
Anika
With time, I get a greater revelation of my purpose. More doors of opportunities are opening for me to flow in that said purpose. It’s exciting and scary at the same time. However, for me, walking through those doors is the only option, even if I have to do it afraid. The word of God has transformed my life and brought me to a place of wholeness. I have a deep passion to teach the word of God to others, praying they will receive and allow it to transform them like it transformed me.
With that said, a friend invited me to do a mini teaching on Jehovah Shalom and help lead prayer for her phone prayer group. Please click on the link below to hear most of the teaching. My battery died, and I missed the last ten minutes of the talk but I trust what I captured will bless you! Do you know your purpose? Are you embracing it?
“And I am loved by you,” the more I sang those words the more aware I became. Each time I repeated that simple phrase, my spirit connected with the reality that love have consequences. The consequences of the father’s love for me are my freedom, my peace, my victory, just to name a few. How could I not worship when I experience this kind of love? I’ve said it before and I will shout it again, the expression, “Jesus loves me,” should not be reduced to just being the lines of a song. Instead we should allow it to be the life changing truth that it is!
We are in the season of reflecting on the death burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. All of which were motivated by the love of the father. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
What is your response to that kind of love?
Is it a willing surrender or is it continuous rebellion?
Is it a heart overflowing with thanksgiving or is it insipid worship?
Love can either be accepted or rejected. What is your choice?
I cannot deny the struggle that exists between yielding to what looks and feels good instead of submitting to the God who is good! This is a daily struggle that can only be conquered through a daily pursuit of God. Yes, I live in this world, but I don’t have to allow this world to live in me. I don’t have to become a slave to something that will perish. Oh, but what hope awaits those who choose God.
As I continue to meditate on 1 John 2:15-17, I ask myself what is my end goal? The words in vs. 17 arrest me, “The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.” How many times do we loose sight that there is more to come? There is an ever after and our choices now will determine how that statement ends. Will it be happily ever after or tormented ever after? 
Our choice to love the world and what it offers OR our decision to love God and pursue His will determines what our end will be. Choose wisely.
Be Blessed
Anika
Deuteronomy 30:19 New Living Translation (NLT) “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!