Sharing the Journey

Season greetings! I’m sharing these words straight from the pages of my journal. With the exception of the poem at the end, this was written July 16 th of this year, but I believe all of it was meant for this blog at this time… I realized tonight that each time God speaks to me and confirms His words spoken in my life, I drift away.   It’s crazy how that happens. It’s like a kid obediently walking into a large department store at Christmas time holding tightly to Daddy’s hand. He hesitates as he walks past all the shiny, glittering displays but he’s got Daddy’s hand still to bring him back into focus as they continue on their way through the store. They’re going to see Santa! It’s the thought of this promise that keeps the child holding Daddy’s hand. Daddy knows where the promise is, where Santa is. Finally, they turn a corner and Daddy whispers, “We’re almost there. Hold on to me so we can take our place in line to get the promise.” But as the child looks up, he can see Santa

As we enter into the holiday season, I ask that you prayerfully consider " From The Shepherd's Heart: A Devotional " when shopping for family, friends, co-workers, and co-laborers in the ministry - anyone you want to encourage through the Word of God. If you click the above link, your order will come directly to me, the author, and will be shipped out within two business days. Shipping and taxes will be my gift to you. Thank you for your support! Be blessed!

I’m sitting here with my computer wondering if I should be writing up a blog post or just a quick message to my friend. But I believe that she and I are not the only ones that need this word of encouragement. Many of us are experiencing the same thing but secretly believe we’re the only one. So, while we sit and fight private battles, the enemy is in a corner watching and laughing as we beat ourselves up, and God is bidding, “Give it to me.” Anyone who has been a Christian for more than a day or so has most likely heard Proverbs 3:5-6, which reads in the New King James Version (NKJV), “ Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”   The New International Version (NIV) has the word “submit” in verse six where our previous version says acknowledge. I think the wording, of both versions, have left some of us confused. Let me explain why. When someone tells me to acknowledge anoth

I want to share today with the one who, like me, can see the end and has faith to get there, yet are seeing little to no movement towards the end they see. I KNOW God has a plan for me. It is a good and awesome plan. I’d even say it’s a mind-blowing plan. I KNOW this. There is no doubt in my mind that He is going to do some great things for and through me. I KNOW this because I know the God I serve. He is faithful even when I am not. (2 Timothy 2:13) “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor the son of man that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19 NKJV) He has spoken great things concerning me personally, and I believe. My problem has been (but is no more) one similar to Abram and Sarai prior to the name change of Genesis 17. They believed God, but decided He needed some help and created Ishmael. I’ve been trying to help God and make things happen in my own strength when He has neither asked for nor ne

I’m am here to put my faith out there for all to see. I will no longer hold back in fear on the things I believe and the God I believe. I’ve been doing that long enough and it is benefiting neither me nor anyone else.   I have determined my ultimate goal is to one day hear my Father say to me, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” I will not hear that if I continue to draw back in fear for He takes no pleasure in the one who draws back. (See Hebrews 10:38) Many years ago (and I’m ashamed to say how many but it was a long time) a dear friend told me I was afraid of success. I thought he was stupid. How can anyone in their right mind be afraid of success – especially someone like me who thrived in the spotlight. But through the ensuing years, God has allowed me to learn a few things about myself. One was why I craved the spotlight (a hard lesson to learn and even harder to get over), and another was why I was afraid of success. Yes, my friend was correct. If there was any do

            Earlier this week I shared that I was bone tired. And I was. I still am. But I feel it is important to also share that though I’m tired, I’m not dead and I have not quit. I allowed myself to focus on myself – my feelings, my fears, my desires, me. But as a child of God, that is not to be my focus. I’m to keep my eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith. (Hebrews 12:2) When I do this, instead of declaring I’m tired I’ll declare, “I am troubled on every side, yet not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)             God has a plan for my life, just as He has a plan for every individual’s life.   But He doesn’t always tell us the plan. Instead, He tells us to trust in Him with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding; in all our ways acknowledge Him and He will make our paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6) The Word goes on to tell us in verse seven, (KJV) “Be not wise

  I know this is not something a good Christian is supposed to do, but I have to. I am throwing up my hands in surrender because I am tired. I mean, I’m a down in my bones tired. Every part of me – physical, mental, spiritual – all of that is just tired. I don’t feel like I have the strength to move forward, but I’ve got too much sense to turn back. Only, I’ve discovered that if you don’t move forward, by default you automatically drift back.             Living for Christ in a world that both refuse to acknowledge Him or respect those that do is like rowing upstream. You’re working against the currents of society. But you know to float downstream is death. You row and you row until you feel you can row no more. But the moment you stop rowing, even if it’s just for a brief rest, you find yourself floating downstream, losing the ground you’d worked so hard to gain. It’s not what you want to do, but by simply not fighting the current, you float backward.             That’s why it’s

I’m laughing at myself as I read my “title.” It seems the only time I write and post here (because I’m writing all the time) is when I’m starting over or beginning again. But pray with me and for me that this time I’ll get some traction and keep moving forward instead of getting stuck and stalling out. Today’s restart was the culmination of several things. First, I know I’m called to write and speak; not so much to share God’s word as in a preacher or teacher, but to motivate the chosen by and through the Word of God. I’m to push others in ways I’ve wanted to be pushed giving them the strength and a desire, to continue their Christian journey. Second, in church this morning, I was reminded that God has given me a gift and I am to use that gift for His glory and for the betterment of His people. Also, this same woman-of-God reminded me that in addition to the gift, God blessed me with a spouse that believes in me and has allowed me to remain at home and walk in that gift. To f

I want to take the time to apologize to my readers and followers for the disservice I’ve done here with my blog. As you know I’m a work in progress and progress appears to be rather slow. But thank God, it’s progress, nonetheless. I apologize because in calling my blog “Sharing the Journey” I committed to sharing with you the ups and downs of my Christian journey, hoping to make your journey a little smoother. But I have not done that. I’ve allowed myself to get caught up in the “what if’s” and other silly little things and have not written what I should when I should. Please forgive me and pray that as God continues to work on me, I will be faithful to both Him and you. This particular post is a result of this morning’s quiet time. When God called me out of my full-time job in July of 2012, I asked Him, “What now?” He answered, “Seek me.” I replied, “Okay. What else.” He again answered, “Seek me.” And that’s pretty much all He has said since. He may throw in another word or two

Last night, I had the privilege of attending and participating in a worship service where the Spirit of God was allowed to have His way.  The preacher came from Daniel 3:16-18: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.              His sermon title was from verse 18, “But If Not.”  The preacher reminded us that God is able to heal. He is able to deliver. He is able to bless us and work miracles. But if not…  Would we still praise Him? Would we still worship Him? Would we still serve Him? Like most present, I answered his questions with a hearty “YES!” After all, I have been there and done that and even wrote about it

Half way through my workout this morning my head began to throb mercilessly and I was certain I was going to be sick. I rushed to the bathroom and began to pray even as my mind wanted to worry. I hadn't had a migraine in a while and certainly not one that came this quickly or violently. All I could think was "God help." As the nausea subsided I tried to rejoin the workout but with the lights and the music I couldn't. I retreated outside thinking I'd call Aaron to come and get me only to realize I'd left my phone and my eye glasses inside. All I had was Jesus. And guess what, He was enough. After class ended, I retrieved my glasses and other belongings while trying to hold back the tears. Finally I made it home. I wanted to call someone, but Jesus said, "I'm here." I tried to plan my next step while also trying to figure out what brought it all on. Jesus said, "Trust me." Once I finally got my emotions under control, I realized the

Just the other day I wrote “I Am Not My Own”. Today, I was reminded of that fact again because, in all truth, I forgot. Just that quick. And I know it’s not just me that can get a revelation of God and His truth today, and tomorrow have no memory of it. I used to talk about the Israelites and how they grumbled and complained while in the desert. Not many days after leaving Egypt, loaded with gold and silver they’d effectively looted from the nation, they complained about a lack of provision. HELLO! Did you not see what God did back there? Have you already forgotten the plagues? Have you forgotten how God distinguished between you, His chosen people, and the Egyptians during those plagues? Have you already forgotten how the death angel passed over you and killed every other firstborn in Egypt? How could you so quickly forget who God is and complain? Today, I ask myself the same thing. I’m not complaining; I’m just not doing. I have been blessed to be a housewife for many yea

  For as long as I can remember I’ve been something of a know-it-all. Not in a boastful, prideful sort of way (I hope), but in a… hmmm. Maybe it was boastful, in that I have always craved attention.   (Amazing what you learn about yourself when you sit down and allow God’s Holy Spirit to reveal Himself and thereby reveal the true you.) Anyway, I don’t remember a time where I didn’t want to be seen and recognized. I didn’t want to be looked over. Maybe it’s a middle-child thing; I don’t know. What I do know, is when I asked Jesus to be Lord of my life, I had to forget what I knew, and I definitely had to (have to) get over my desire to be seen and recognized. I’ve been a member of God’s family now for twenty-eight years – I’ve been a church member most of my fifty-two years but the two are not the same – and that lesson is finally beginning to hit home. You see, in the beginning, I wanted Jesus to be my savior. I did not want Him to be Lord.   Merriam-Webster defines Lord as

For as long as I can remember I’ve claimed Matthew 6:33 as my life verse. In the King James Version, it reads, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Talk about an easy task. But the talk was the only easy part about it. Someone once told me there are three stages of salvation. Stage one is a desire for fire insurance. This is the stage where you realize you are a sinner and bound for hell, but God. This realization leads you to ask Jesus to come into your life and save you from your sins. You need a savior from the fires of hell. This is stage one. (Bear with me and we’ll return to Matthew 6:33.) Stage two of salvation is the desire for blessings stage. Not everyone makes it to this stage because to get here, you have to learn a little more of the God you’ve invited into your life. It is obtained after you read your Bible or go to church and hear verses like Matthew 6:33, Psalm 37:4, Ephesians 3:20, Matth

Yesterday, Facebook reminded me of a post I’d shared in 2017. I’d shared the words of Bishop Reginald Davis who advised, “Be careful how you treat and speak of the Lord's anointed. You don't have to like them, but God will judge you for your disrespect.” I’m almost certain that when I originally read that, I thought, “Wow. That’s deep.” Posted it then moved on. But it was a warning I should’ve taken to heart. I have a fairly-good working knowledge of scripture and I’ve been in church long enough to know how things should go. So, when I thought things were not going as they should in my home church, I voiced my displeasure – to anyone who would listen. Of course, when there is a problem within the church or any organization, you look at the head. As a result, my whining and complaining often targeted my pastor. Now please know, I love my pastor. He is a wonderful man of God who rightly divides the Word of Truth. I have no doubt He loves the Lord and has definitely been called to