HEART OF THE MATTER

Category: Uncategorized

  • THE SPIRIT OF REJECTION IS NOT A SHIELD OF PROTECTION

                    Many of us have built walls to protect us but it is also a wall that blocks us from advancing where God has called us. The spirit of rejection consumes us with fear that we can’t walk in the freedom that God provides. It convinces us that we are better off alone and without instead of the prospering life that God wants to give to those who trust in him. The spirit of rejection can start in the womb from the circumstances that surround the birth of the child. Unwanted pregnancy and uncontrolled pregnancy are open doors to the spirit of rejection. This is a spirit that holds you in hurtful places, not allowing you to flourish because it robs you of your freedom. It reminds you of your pain so that you won’t truly triumph into your victory season. It makes you have a victim mentality rather than a victory mindset. The attacks in our lives can leave us broken, and the enemy knows our weaknesses that is why we can’t trust our instincts in those times of trying and we must surrender to God those places where we are operating in fear or worry. Shielding yourselves from something that you can’t see coming is an impossible thing to accomplish. God provides protection and direction for the believer. Resting in the Lord will kill the noise of the enemy. “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7-10). Submitting means surrendering to the word and the will of the Lord who then protects you and position you to triumph. The word works when you work it. Many of us think that we can operate outside the will of God, and everything will go well for us. Which is not a true statement because it doesn’t align with truth. “Seek first the Kingdom of God and all of his righteousness and all things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33). The spirit of rejection is not a shield of protection, it is rather a spirit that keeps you bound rather than dwelling in the spirit. “Where the spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.”

                    God paid a hefty price to see his people set free. And when man gave authority over to the enemy. Jesus came and took it back and gave it back to man to rule and reign. We are more powerful than we think and more blessed than we know. “Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits.” (Daniel 11:32). Allow God to train your ear to hear and your heart to understand. Freewill permits you to live how you feel. Following Christ requires you to follow God’s will. “Let his Kingdom come. Let his will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10). God is for you.

                    The spirit of rejection is not a place for you to hide but it is a place for you to decide rather or not to trust God in the overcoming. Jesus said, “in this world, you will have trouble but take heart! I have overcome the world.”  We too shall overcome, if we trust in the Lord with all of our heart and lean not on our own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5-6). God has accepted us into his freedom to give us life and life abundantly. But the spirit of rejection robs, kills, and destroys and the choice is yours.

    Have a great day, peeps.

  • DESIRE WITHOUT DISCIPLINE IS DANGEROUS.

    DESIRE WITHOUT DISCIPLINE IS DANGEROUS.

                 We all have desires in our hearts that we want to accomplish. Many of us have effortlessly tried to achieve our desire, while others have tasted what they were after. It is the very thing that drives us to succeed in the work that we would like to achieve. Whether the desire is to own a home, start a business, embark on a new career journey, go to college, get married, have children, or even deeper desires that reign heavily in the heart of many people, the desire to be loved, seen, protected, admired, and so on. The Oxford Dictionary defines desire as a strong feeling of wanting to have something or wishing for something to happen. And with desire being our drive, we tend to make it happen, unaware of the dangers of the pursuit. Desire without discipline is dangerous and unhealthy. Desire will burn inside of you until it is fed. When our desires become the leading factor in our lives, we open ourselves to destruction because of the lack of control that can lead to encountering such experiences. We tend to ignore the warning signs or turn a blind eye to bad behaviors. This will cause us to encounter dangerous territory even when we have the right desire but no discipline.

     According to the Oxford Dictionary, discipline is the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behavior, using punishment to correct disobedience. Many of us lack self-control in many ways in our lives. And where there is no self-control, problems arise. And some of us ask ourselves how we got here and must accept that our lack of self-control led us to darkness and destruction.

    Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” There is protection and correction when you delight yourselves in God. He will lead and instruct as you pursue his purpose and his promise. He will guide you on the right paths for his namesake. Even running after the things of God and not abiding in God is dangerous and will lead to destructive choices and behaviors because everything that looks right isn’t right.  We all have desires; desire drives us to the finish line, but desire without discipline is dangerous.

    David, the king of Israel, had the desire to have intimacy with Bathsheba, another man’s wife, and because he showed no discipline in his pursuit, he caused pain to all parties involved. ( 2nd Samuel 11:2) His desire without discipline put him in a bad situation and caused him to stumble onto a path of darkness. But God, who is faithful in his love towards us, led him back on the right path after David’s repentance, and what he once desired became his, the right way.

    God will give you your heart desires if you walk according to his will and his way. (James 4:2-17) Desires drive us to our destiny, but without discipline, it will cause us to stumble onto a path of destruction.

    Have a great day, peeps.

  • WHERE’S YOUR FOCUS?

    This morning while driving to work I was pondering about the goodness of God. I thought about the storms that we have in life and that sometimes when storms arrive in our lives that they are not always the enemy. God may be allowing things to happen to strengthen our trust in him. “Trust the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5). As I was meditating on the thought. The event with Peter walking on water rose in my spirit. A storm was occurring when the disciples saw someone in the distance. They became terrified because they thought it was a ghost, and they cried out in fear. “But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Peter still unsure, but having a relationship with the Lord said, “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” And Jesus said to him, Come. Peter stepped out of the boat at the Lord’s command and walked on water towards Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out Lord, save me!” Peter’s fear magnified because he took his eyes off Jesus. He stopped focusing on the Savior and started focusing on the storm. He started to pay more attention to what was going on around him than to the one who called him.

     Yes, it matters where your focus is when you are walking with God. There will be times when the walk gets scary because the storms are roaring louder than the Savior. But remember that the one who called you is faithful. (1st Thessalonians 5:24). Your perception is everything in life. How do you view what you are seeing? Peter could have allowed the storm to keep him from reacting to the Lord’s command. He could have ignored the grace that was granted to him to walk on water. But hearing from Jesus he stepped out of fear into faith to find that amid the storm the Lord was there. “Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” I believe the storm was used in this event to strengthen the faith of Peter so that when Jesus left the world, he would know no matter what comes, the Lord is with me. “I will never leave you nor will I forsake you.”

    Our focus is so important when going through life. What we see often shapes our mindset and encourages what we become. Keeping our minds stayed on Jesus keeps us in perfect peace. And to keep our minds we must fix our sight. The more we focus on God the better we are at trusting in him as we journey with him. Faith is the substance of things hoped for but the evidence of things unseen. Faith is a muscle that must be exercised to be built up. If you don’t find the opportunities to walk in faith, then you will never see the goodness or the greatness of God who has called us to walk by faith and not by sight. Peter asked for what was granted to him. However, it would take faith for him to see it. It’s going to take us stepping out of our comfort zone into the confrontations of life to see the unseen manifest. We are overcomers, but we cannot overcome what we have conformed to unless we seek opportunities that allow us to do so. Faith can only be caught if you are focused on who’s leading.  “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.” (Hebrews