Tag: #godfocus

EPISODE 321 GIVE ME FIRE

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The title of today’s episode: GIVE ME FIRE

There has to be toe-stomping preaching in order to save our souls. I long for the days when preachers were full of fire and not afraid to preach the word. I love for a message to step on my toes, because it makes me better and stronger. Today, too many churches have motivational speakers. But we need powerful messages that make us grow and not always the fluff of living our best lives. Sometimes life is hard. Jesus told the disciples that they would face hard things. It is not different for us today. But in those hard things, we grow and become stronger. With our new level of faith, we can be a beacon of hope in a dying world.

Unbelief is the new norm; people do not know how to have faith. The ministry has to start preaching with fire the things the church needs to hear about growing faith. They need to hear that it takes prayer and a lot of prayer to grow your relationship with God. People need to be told and understand that they are signing up for a life of service and sacrifice. Everything will not always be wonderful. Being a Christian is not about having a pampered, cushy life. People need to be taught that there is a difference in saying a prayer to check off a to do list for the day of Christian things and getting down to business and pouring your heart out to God in prayer. One is saying a prayer, and one is praying a prayer.

When we desire sermons that get on our toes, it means we want to grow in strength and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. The truth sets us free. The truth is hard to swallow sometimes. But it is always best for us in the long run.

The truth is like a medicine, bitter to swallow, but it will give you strength and make you stronger. I don’t know when it became the norm to not tell the truth, especially behind the pulpit. Be encouraged, there are real ministers of God out there and they are standing tall to proclaim the truth of God. If you know such a preacher, stand behind them, encourage them and back them in anyway you can.

We need the fire to be restored to the pulpit in order for it to be restored to the body. Our God is a consuming fire. The word consume means to destroy, ingest, swallow up, use, or utilize. Our God will destroy the things of our flesh. He will swallow up who we are and make us better vessels for his use. We have to be on fire, too, for the world to know we are different. In order for us to be a usable vessel for God.

Just like the burning bush in the desert. What made Moses go see what was going on, because it was on fire. The only one God spoke out of was the bush that was on fire. The only people today that God will truly use are those who are on fire for him.

We are the temple of the Holy Ghost; God’s fire lives within us. Only by allowing His fire to burn on the altar of our hearts, can we learn to walk in the light of his fire.

The Children of Israel had a pillar of fire that was a buffer between them and their enemy. If we keep the fire burning bright, it will keep away the evil of this world. They will not be able to look at us for the light of God that is within us.

People will know we are different and will be drawn to the warmth of the fire of God within us. We will be able to lead them to Jesus, the only one who can save them from the evil of this world and the evil inside of them.

God’s holy fire is important. The fire of truth will help us to understand the word of God. It will help us to know what God is calling us to do in this life. But if the fire has gone out in the church, then the people will starve. Their bones will become cold, and they will die.

Keeping the fire of God in our lives is crucial to our spiritual walk. It is also crucial to all those we will meet along the way that we are supposed to share Jesus. Pray for him to stoke the fire in your life. Pray for the body of Christ to catch on fire. It is the only way we will reach the world. Just like the burning bush, if we are on fire, they will come to see what God has to say through us. And through that word of God, many will be delivered and saved.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 320 OVERCOMING UNBELIEF

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: OVERCOMING UNBELIEF

Unbelief is a plague in the church today. Everything is by and through faith, so how do we grow faith?

Sometimes we can draw on past experiences where God has shown up in those moments we desperately needed him. We can be sure He will show up again. When I am sick and need healing, I remember all the times God has healed me. I will remember the times he healed others.

Growing up in a faith that believes in the laying on of hands. I have seen many miracles over the years. I watched my dad’s leg grow together one time when he had a bad cut. There is no doubt in my mind it was so deep that it needed stitches. But we battled through about thirty minutes of prayer. God came through with a healing miracle.

Other times we have to dig into the word of God and find inspiration.

There is a story for every situation that we face in life. The word of God has scriptures that will build us up and bring encouragement to our souls. There is nothing we face that others have not gone through and God brought them through it. Job’s story alone covers most everything anyone could suffer. But if we stay faithful and look to God, he will bless us for our faith in Him.

We can build our faith through prayer. Start with praise and transition into acknowledging what He has already done. Petition God for what you need. Then start thanking Him for it. We have to get into a spirit of prayer. This means really pouring out your heart to God and not just saying a few words halfheartedly.

Jude 20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,

It comes down to trust. How much do we trust God? Do we know in our hearts as well as our minds that he will answer our prayers? Many people will say he is able, but how many know without a doubt he will come through? If you know, you have faith, then it is just a matter of waiting until you see with your eyes what you know in your spirit. Faith is seeing light when your natural eyes see only darkness.

Think of it this way. Say you want to be a master piano player. You can study everything about all the people who were master piano players. You can study how the piano is made. You can study how many keys and how much a baby grand weighs, you can even learn to read sheet music. But if you do not put into practice what you know, you will never be a master piano player.

The same goes for our faith in God. We can read and study all about God. We can have knowledge about walking by faith. But until we try to walk by faith, we will never learn how to do it.

We must be firm in our belief that God will do what he has promised.

Prov 3: 5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

The word says for us to trust in the Lord with all our heart. This is what it means to fully trust. There is not a shadow of a doubt that God will do what he has promised. You know it with all your being. We cannot try to reason things out in our minds. God rarely answers the way we think. But he does answer. If we acknowledge him in all our ways, he will guide us.

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Merriam Webster dictionary defines – Diligently – a manner involving great or constant activity. With great determination, intensely.

We have to keep at it and stay focused on God and not our problems. The more we focus on him the stronger we will grow in our faith.

Let’s recap.

We can draw on past experiences to encourage us.
We have to dig into the word of God and find inspiration.
We can build our faith through prayer.
Practice- until we try to walk by faith, we will never learn how to do it.
We must be firm in our belief that God will do what he has promised.

I hope this has been an encouragement to you to hold on if you are believing God for something. Remember everything happens in God’s will and his perfect timing.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 319 REMOVING THE CANCER FROM THE CHURCH

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: REMOVING THE CANCER FROM THE CHURCH

I attended a church for several years that I loved. The people were genuine and really cared about others. We were the spiritual emergency room for the town and surrounding areas. We did our best to meet the needs. If they were hungry, we got them food. If their babies needed diapers or milk, we provided. It was a place that those who were broken by life could come for encouragement and to find healing through Jesus.

In today’s society, there are so many hurt and broken people. They will come to the church looking for compassion and help. It is our job to love them and help them to find healing for their body and soul.

However, too many churches are plagued by the cancer of legalism and judgment. They end up hurting those who Jesus called them to help heal. We have to be loving toward those who are unlovable. We are called to lead people to Jesus. If they come into a church then half of the battle is over, they are inside the building. Our buildings, we call churches, should be a place of hope for those that are lost.

Instead of loving and helping them, the “Bertha better than you’s” of the church with their judgmental attitudes end up hurting those people. They react to people with almost hatred. Many are driven by the jezebel spirit; they don’t want to give up their control. These hurt people end up going back to the world because at least some people in the world are accepting them.

Matt 5:44-48 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

The word perfect in this verse means complete. We are complete in Jesus and by doing good to the hurting world. Jesus was explaining to the disciples that it is easy to love those like you. But it is harder to love those that seem unlovable. Even the publicans and sinners honor and love those that are like them.

It is time to get outside the four walls and love them like Jesus. We are called by God to share God’s love with the world. Many have forgotten and got wrapped up in having a bigger building or a larger worship team than the church on the corner. We are in competition and still not accomplishing our mission?

These buildings and all that we build on earth will burn up. All that matters is that we point people to Jesus. So that they may find rest and salvation for their souls. Jesus didn’t come and die to give us a better way, only to have us to return to legalism and divisions.

JOHN 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

Nowhere in that verse does it say to hurt people by rejecting them. I know a wonderful woman of God that used to be involved in witchcraft as a teen. She when to three different denominational churches in her town. She was wearing black makeup and was dressed in all black. She went in and sat quietly and didn’t cause any kind of disruption, she was asked to leave and come back when she changed her clothes and washed off her makeup. This was a teenager that needed love and compassion. She needed those people to rally around her and to pour healing compassion out on her. Instead, they made her feel more rejected and alone. She felt like Jesus didn’t love her either.

By the grace of God, she found a woman that was a friend to her. A woman that loved her and prayed with her. Thank God she had a praying grandmother. But what happens to those who do not have a praying grandmother. Their soul ends up lost because the so-called church doesn’t like how they look. It is not all in the clothes it is all in the heart.

1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

By this verse, I have to question if some of these churches even know God. There is no love except the love they have for their little social group. God is getting ready to separate the wheat and tares. This type of behavior is a cancer to the body of Christ. It is causing spiritual sin sickness to continue, and this cannot be if the body of Christ is going to gather the end time harvest.

I know I talk about this a lot. I feel it is very important. There are many souls hanging in the balance. So many will be lost if we do not get rid of the judgmental, religious, legalistic, ways of doing things. Let us set aside religion and just love God and love people.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 318 PRAISE HIM IN THE FIRE

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: PRAISE HIM IN THE FIRE

When the fiery trials of life come to turn your world to ashes. God is there in your fire. He is not afraid of the fire, because our God is a consuming fire. He will not let the enemy win. We have to stand strong on the promises of God. He promised to never leave us.

Ex 14: 14 The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

What the enemy meant for destruction God will turn it around. Now is not the time to give up. We are in the fiery furnace moment. The enemy has turned up the heat, but we will not be destroyed. We need to have faith that he is going to burn off the ropes and set us free.

It seems everyone I’ve talked to in the last few days has serious things going on in their lives. The enemy knows we are on the verge of Jesus showing up in our fiery furnace. He is coming to set us free. But we cannot give in to the flames and allow fear, anxiety and worry to overtake us. We cannot allow the fatigue of being battle weary to cause our faith to falter. We have to stand strong.

What the enemy meant to burn down our lives, God will use to elevate us. Look at Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They were in the fiery furnace it was turned up seven times hotter. What were they doing? They were praising the Lord. I was in the middle of writing last night to film today’s video. I shared with a friend that I was battle weary. It seems like the enemy has turned up the intensity of his pressure to destroy God’s people.

She said God had been dealing with her to write about the intensity of the fire. She reminded me that the hotter the fire, the more we need to praise God. I wanted to share this fact with you.

When the enemy wants to turn your life into ashes, remind him that he has no authority over your life. God will quicken us, which means he will make us alive or revive us.

There is power in prayer. This is a Christian sentence we say a lot. But the statement is very true. Prayer clears the cobwebs that the enemy is trying to build in our minds. But Satan will not have his way as long as we stand against the enemy.

Praise is what invites the presence of God. The enemy wants to get us so downtrodden we do not have energy to pray or praise. But if we can find the energy to worship, the heaviness of the atmosphere will lift.

Is 61: 3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.

He takes the ashes that are left after the enemy burns down things in our lives and uses those ashes to give us beauty. He gives us joy for mourning and will lift the spirit of heaviness the enemy has tried to put on us. He will give us a garment of praise to clothe us.

Saul was tormented by evil spirits, but while music in praise to God was played, they left him alone. The enemy cannot stand it when we praise God. It is torment to him.

I know sometimes it is hard to face the fiery furnace. We have to remember that God is not afraid of the fire, and he will show up. He will remove our bondage and set us free. He will take our tragedy and turn it into victory.

When the three Hebrew men came out of the fiery furnace they received a promotion. They were elevated to be over the providences of Babylon. Hang on during these fiery trials, God is working on your elevation.

We are learning to lean and trust. Every level is about fighting the devil in a new way. He would love to tell us that we are defeated, that God doesn’t hear our prayers. God doesn’t care. But he has come along to late in the game to tell me that my God is not real. If God is real then all the promises in the Bible are real.

He promised to never leave us, he promised to lift us up, he promised to protect us from the enemy. Our God is real and there is no other like him. He can be fire when we need fire. He can be living water to quench our dry and parched soul when we need it.

We have to guard our peace and protect our joy right now. Because the darkness will overtake us quickly with its smothering oppression, if we do not stand strong and praise him in our storms.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EP317 DENOUNCE RELIGION / FOLLOW JESUS

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: DENOUNCE RELIGION / FOLLOW JESUS

I once had a person tell me they didn’t understand why I chose a religion that prevented me from doing sinful things. They suggested that I go to the Big Book of World Religions and pick something easier. I told them it didn’t work that way, there was religion and there is the plan of God for salvation. Religion is a waste of time. If you have a religion, you need to give it up. Jesus didn’t come to start a religion. Although the church world has made following Christ a religion and not a relationship.

Britanica.com defines religion-human beings’ relation to that which they regard as holy, sacred, absolute, spiritual, divine, or worthy of especial reverence.

According to this, religion could be the worship of anything you as a human being regard in high esteem and worthy of special reverence. In other words, people worship a lot of things. People worship animals, gold statues, celebrities, their accomplishments and status, false gods that man has created. All of this is idol worship. All the idols in the Bible, Baal for example is driven by a demon. Demons draw humans in to lifting up and worshipping things other than the ONE TRUE GOD.

I am sick of religion in the church that has divided God’s people. I am sure God is sick of religion. He came to give us a better life than religion. Think seriously about it for a moment. Jesus was killed by religious people. The ones that should have understood Jesus was the Messiah, was so wrapped up in the letter of the law and their fringe laws that they missed him. They were too wrapped up in their rituals.

Because of the blood of Jesus, I am no longer a sinner. I am no longer a slave to sin. That doesn’t mean that I am perfect and will not slip from time to time. But I have found that the more I am in God’s word and the more I pray the less likely I am to fall.

John 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

It is easy to get wrapped up in a list of do’s and don’t, but being a Christian is not about living by a list. It is not about living in fear that at any given moment, God is going to send a lightning bolt down and incinerate you for making a mistake.

It all comes down to relationship. If you have a relationship with Jesus, you will want to spend time with him. You will want to worship him. You will not spend time doing things that break His heart.

Think about it in terms of a bride. We are the bride of Christ. What kind of marriage would it be if we never talked to Jesus? If we never said nice things to him? If we betrayed his trust and committed adultery by following other gods. If we never spend time in his word, because that is his story, his love letter to help us to know him. That sounds like a marriage that would not last.

The Bible does have a bunch of things we are forbidden to do. We have to live by what the word of God says. God doesn’t put things in his word that he forbids for his benefit, but for ours. All sin leads to pain, heartache, destruction and death.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Our right to salvation is a gift from God. We do not receive this gift by choosing a denominational, religious set of rules. We receive salvation through the acceptance of what Jesus did on the cross. By being born again.

We cannot follow Jesus simply to escape hell. It will not work, because the fear of hell comes and goes with our choices. We have to choose Jesus because we are tired of bondage and want to be set free. We have to want Jesus to fix our brokenness.

Gal. 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

This says that we need to stand fast, but what does that really mean? It means that we need to be unwavering, hold your ground and be strong in your commitment in spite of all the reasons to waiver or give up. We cannot give up our liberty or freedom that Christ has given us to make us free and be entangled again into sin.

Every day we are given choices. Will we choose Jesus or something sinful that we know we should not do? Every choice we make leads to the next choice. We can allow God’s word to shine a light on our path so that we make the right steps, or we can choose to walk in darkness.

Following Jesus is not a religion it is a choice to have life as opposed to sin and death. Sin may look appealing for a season, but the glitz and glitter that satan paints it with wears off soon and we are left with the reality of what is under the glitz and glitter.

This is why we cannot choose a religion from the big book of religions. We have to make a choice to follow Jesus instead of following a religion. Only in Jesus will we have true freedom.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EP315 MIDNIGHT WATCH

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: MIDNIGHT WATCH

Midnight is the pivot point between night and day. At 12:01 AM it is morning, even though it is still pitch-black outside, it is the beginning. If we are wrapped up in worry or stress, we may not even notice the change. Things still look the same outside. Spiritually, we have to be in tune with the flow of God’s Spirit, or we may miss our midnight moment.

There are times we have to spiritually walk through that which seems dark. The enemy will press in and try to bind us up. I was reminded of this when I was reading the sixteenth chapter of Acts. It is the story of Paul and Silas in prison. There are so many lessons in this story. How many times are we in a situation that it seems like things are dark. Others will see those times and it will give them strength to face their situations.

Acts 16:16-18 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: 17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. 18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.

They did what God sent them out to do. It was their command to set the captive free. There was a woman who followed them for days. She had a spirit of divination. The words she said as she followed them were true. The enemy will tell the truth sometimes. But it was to distract people instead of encouraging them to listen to Paul and Silas. Paul grew tired of her and cast out the evil spirit.

That would appear on the surface to be a good thing. But to those who were evil and exploiting her by making money from her soothsaying. It was not good for them. They went and complained to the magistrates and had Paul and Silas punished. First, they were beaten and then thrown into jail. This is where it gets interesting.

Their choice of attitude determined the fate of the jailor and his family. If they had complained and whined about their beating and being thrown in jail. They would not have had an attitude of worship. Which invited the presence of God into their circumstances. They rested in his presence, and he sent an earthquake and an angel to set them free.

Acts 16:25-26 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.

This caused the jailor to wake up and see that he needed the god they preached, that he needed Jesus. He fell down at their feet and asked what he needed to do to be saved.

Acts 16:32-34 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. 34 And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.

What if at the pivotal moment at midnight, when things were about to change, instead of singing praises and trusting God they had a pity party? One would look at the other, My back really hurts from the beating. The other would say, Did you see the size of the guy that hit me? I don’t know if it’s God’s will for us to be doing this preaching thing. In their moment of pity party, the opportunity passed by to be a light to the people in that jail.

How many times do we miss our midnight hour miracles? How often do we not realize that the time has changed and it is a new day? We can be sure not to miss our opportunities by learning to praise in the good times and praise in the bad times. Our circumstances should not dictate our level of praise.

The level of darkness around us should not affect our level of trust. I am sure that not everyone in the jail was happy because they were singing. But they sang anyway. Because our miracle may be just what is needed to wake up the jailor and set him free.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 314 MAINTAINING TRUST

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: MAINTAINING TRUST

It is true that nothing happens to us that God does not allow. But when it comes to others in our lives, God will do what is best for them also. Grief is an interesting thing; everyone handles it differently. Job was overcome with grief at the reports of his lost family. He was sick in body and had lost all he had for a season. The enemy was allowed to tempt him and lie to him. Yet he never cursed God.

JOB 13:15 Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

Even though everything appeared to be going wrong, Job trusted God. He didn’t allow his circumstances to change his relationship. This is a lesson we must take away from the story of Job. We too cannot let the things happening to us to change our relationship with God.

If we trust him, we will walk through the tough things, knowing He will deliver us. We often wonder when he will move. Many do not doubt God’s ability, but we often grow battle weary. We often wonder when he will move. We may feel like he has forgotten about our situation.

There is nothing wrong with his memory. Just keep telling Him that you trust that he will see you through. Take things one day at a time. If necessary, one hour at a time or one minute at a time.

I am sure when Job was in pain from all the open boils on his body, he didn’t think God would ever move. I am sure the enemy fed his mind with lies about God’s love and compassion. If he really loved you, he would take away your pain. The enemy whispered.

But God knows what we have need of, and sometimes what he is growing in us spiritually is far greater than our situation. God is greater than our pain. It is not that he is trying to be mean. He takes no pleasure in our suffering. He will unlock the door as soon as possible. But we have to trust Him until that time.

Grab hold of the promises of God and do not let go. He is the giver of our peace. He is our healer, deliverer and the savior of our soul. Many want to acknowledge him as savior, but few want to surrender their lives fully to make him Lord.

Many down through the ages have asked when Lord, how long will you tarry? How long will my enemy appear to have the upper hand? How long will I be sick until I am healed?

Psalm 13:1-5 How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? 2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? 3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; 4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved. 5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.

David also asked how long. I want you to notice verse five, but I have trusted in thy mercy, my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. It doesn’t matter what we are going through right now; we know that God is in control. There is an expiration date; these circumstances will not last forever. Think back over your life. I am sure that there have been things that at the time were the hardest things you’ve ever walked through. Now they are a distant memory.

Stay strong, God has not forgotten you. He knows you are facing tough things. He is the one with the key to set you free. Just hold on, keep breathing, keep trusting, your miracle is on the way.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 313 DUCK AND COVER

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: DUCK AND COVER

The first thing to do when you are being attacked is to duck and cover. Think about someone throwing rocks at you, you want to find a place of protection. The phrase duck and cover was made popular during the 1950s as schools and people all over did safety drills. It means you get under something solid, like a table or desk, and cover your head.

While the enemy bombarded my mind with all sorts of attacks today. I had to duck and cover. In other words, I made sure I was under the shadow of his wings, and I prayed against the attacks of the enemy. I had to worship my way through his attack.

We all have days when the enemy tries everything possible to wear us down or wear us out. I only ducked for cover for a few minutes. Then it was my turn to wage war. After crying out to God, I took my place on the offensive. I started sending “God shells” back to the enemy in the form of scripture. He really hates it when we quote the word.

James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Devil, God’s word says if I submit to God, which I just did, then it says if I resist you, you must flee. It is time for you to go.

Psalm 84:11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Devil the word says that God is my sun and shield. In other words, He is my light and protection. He will not withhold anything good thing from me.

Isaiah 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

Devil, no weapon you can create will accomplish your agenda. The word says no weapon formed against me will prosper. This is my promise from the Lord, God Almighty.

I took the authority that God has given me and told him to leave my presence. He would not win. He only wins when we give in and start speaking negatively out of our mouths. When we feel defeated and tell ourselves there is no use in trying. And we voice those thoughts out loud.

2 Cor. 5:7 We walk by faith and not by sight.

It is in this verse that I often find strength. The enemy will attack us by how things may appear at the moment. But we have to open our mouths and say what God says,

Luke 10:19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Nothing shall harm us, because God is on our side. We cannot allow the enemy to attack us with fear. When he tries, we need to duck and cover. Duck down to our knees and cover our lives with prayer. God is there and will not allow us to be overtaken.

The entire Bible is about standing strong against our enemy. It is all about God’s covering. We are covered by the blood, baptized in His Spirit, and the enemy doesn’t have a chance as long as we remember who we are in Christ.

Romans 8:37-39 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We have nothing to fear. We belong to the King of kings who has all power. We are his, and he will not allow the enemy to overtake us. We need to be encouraged and stay strong. We need to say we are strong even when we feel weak.

It is a good thing to tell God that we feel weak and ask him to reinforce our strength. But we cannot show any weakness toward our enemy. When the enemy looks at us, he needs to see fierce warriors ready for battle.

His time is near; he is about to lose control of this world for a harvest season. We need to be ready for the harvest is ready. I feel it is one of my missions in life to encourage you to be strong. It is my prayer that you will be encouraged to stand strong. Find the warrior God put within you, and stand tall against our enemy. Do not let him gain ground in your mind. Because that is where he often wins his battles. Then we spend a lot of time and energy taking back ground that we gave up. When we should have reached down deep and resisted the enemy.

Be encouraged, it is never too late to put him in his place. It is never too late to rise up. Because anytime we go into the duck and cover prayer. Look out, devil, when we rise up, because we do not rise alone. Our God shows up to back us up.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 312 THE SCARLET THREAD

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: SCARLET THREAD

A tapestry is a piece of cloth that is used for rugs, curtains or blankets. They have intricate designs created by weaving different colors of thread into the cloth. These colors make pictures or beautiful abstract designs.

Our lives are often like a tapestry. If we stand back and look at it as a whole, we will see the masterpiece that God is creating. But up close, often we do not see the whole picture. We may feel at times we have failed or fell. That failure is a dark thread that we would like to remove from our lives. Maybe, when the white thread was used, we became too self-righteous. But it takes all the colors to create a picture.

Jer 29:11-13 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. 12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. 13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Not just anyone can sit down at a weaving loom and make intricate patterns. It takes someone who has practiced the art of weaving. Just like God has so lovingly planned out each thread of our lives. He has even allowed for the times that we have strayed and will put us back on track as if nothing happened. He has a plan and just wants us to say, “I trust you Lord.”

It is time we let go of the way we look at our lives. Jesus only cares that there is a crimson thread that shows we are his child. That crimson thread says we have given the tapestry of our lives over to the master planner and creator.

Thinking about a red string reminded me of the story of Rahab. She didn’t live a perfect life. She was known as Rahab the harlot. But after God saved her family from destruction, she married into the lineage of Jesus. Talking about a transformation.

The story goes that Joshua sent two spies into Jericho to see the strengths and weaknesses of the city. Jericho was in the area that God promised to Israel. They were going to take the city. The spies entered into the house of Rahab. As the soldiers of Jericho started to search for the spies, she hid them and helped them to escape.

She told them that she had faith in their God and asked that they spare her and her household. The spies told her to hang a red cord out the window. It would be a sign to the soldiers not destroy her or her household. They told her to get everyone inside and they would be spared. Those outside of the covering would be on their own. The cord was a mark of protection.

We too have a scarlet thread of protection, called the blood of Jesus. By accepting Christ, we defy the ruler of this world. Just like Rahab defied or betrayed the king over Jericho. When they went to battle, no harm came to Rahab or her family.

This too is a reminder of the Passover lamb that the Israelites put blood over the door of their house. Any house with the blood of the lamb, the death angel passed over and spared all inside. Just as Jesus’ blood is our covering from the enemy being able to destroy us.

We sometimes look at things in our life with regret. I am sure that everyone at some point has wished they had made different choices. We cannot go back and pull-out threads from the tapestry of our lives. There is no going backwards only forward. All that matters is the scarlet thread running through the fabric of our life. That gives us access to God’s forgiveness and grace.

God has many plans for us, he just needs our surrender. When we give our lives completely to him, he can turn an average weaving into a beautiful tapestry. When we live our lives to bring him glory, others will want to bring him glory also. We each have more influence than we know.

The scarlet thread is the symbol of atonement found through out the entire bible. If God has you in a season of reflection and sitting quietly with him. He is allowing you a moment to catch up and ask him to take you deeper into what he has for you. The quiet prayer season is not a time to pick at the threads of life. It is not a time to look back with regret at the mistakes. It is time to say, “I trust you Lord, I do not know what the end result will look like, but I trust that you will make my life a beautiful picture of your mercy and grace.”

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.

Look around us at the beauty of the world. The landscapes, sunrise and the seas. He created everything with amazing beauty and it will all be destroyed one day. How much more time and planning do he give each of us? He wants only what is best for us. He allows different seasons to shape us into the person we need to be to accomplish the life he has chosen for us.

Prov 24:16 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.

We all fall and fail when we lose our God Focus. The lesson is not always in the falling, but in the rising up again. It takes courage sometimes to get back up. But Jesus is there to give us a hand and pull us up, all we have to do it reach out and take hold of his hand.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 311 THERE IS HOPE

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: THERE IS HOPE

As I sit quietly in my office awaiting God’s inspiration for another day. I often pray for what you need to hear. How can I bring encouragement today? At times I feel like I keep saying the same things over and over, but some things need to be repeated.

Let me start by saying there is hope for every situation. God is our hope and we can depend on him to see us through whatever we have facing us. Grief is a powerful thing. Many get angry with God when they lose a loved one. But when I lost my husband of thiry-two years, I realized that he was God’s child too and for whatever reason God did what was best for him. He empowered me to walk through all the days since that awful day. But I still have hope in the Lord.

All around us people are suffering. I have had prayer requests this week about people trying to commit suicide. For those who do not know my story. I understand depression and suicidal thoughts from the enemy. I suffered from depression in my late twenties. Satan will come at us and get us to keep looking within, telling ourselves all the lies. I am miserable, I am worthless, no one would care if I wasn’t here. Nothing will ever get better. I am trapped and feel like the darkness is swallowing me up. The more we listen to that voice of the enemy the further down we spiral.

We were never meant to look within and analyze too much. We were not meant to isolate from others around us. God created us to be part of a community. He created us to connect with him and with others. Along with anxiety and depression the enemy has really amped up his fear game. Wanting people to be scared of everything.

All of this is contrary to the word of God.

2 Tim 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Fear is from the enemy. God will empower us if we can push past the darkness and ask for his help. Unless you have been in the deep pit of depression where no light and little air exists you would not understand. It is a place void of all hope. There is no peace there. All that you hear is all the negative things you tell yourself.

Soon you feel like there is no hope. Then we decide that only way out, the only way to make the total despair stop is suicide. That is a lie from the pit of hell. But God says there is a better way. He came that we could have life and have it more abundantly.

I fully believe if I had not had a good foundation of biblical teaching and a praying family I would not be here today. Once we hit rock bottom there is only three things to do. I had decided to not end it all. So I could wallow there the rest of my life in misery or I could start climbing out. It takes great strength to climb out. It is about changing our focus.

You may say, I am not strong enough. But you don’t have to have all the strength to do it all at once. Start with today, I am going to do something I didn’t do yesterday. Maybe it is getting out of bed. The next day maybe you take a shower and get dressed. Continue to build each day on your progress. Ask God for help. Do not isolate yourself from everyone. Especially those you know really care about you.

It is a long journey, but one worth the climb. I would have missed out on so much joy. I thank God everyday for my life. Do not feel like you are alone, email me and I will have my group of intercessors pray for you. Ask God for help. You have to fight and never give up.

It is all about changing your focus. God was always meant to be the center of our lives. When he is in his proper place everything else will fall into place. Do not be discouraged when the enemy throws things at you that appear to be bad. God is waiting to give you a breakthrough.

I John 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

We know it is not God’s will that we suffer from depression. If we ask for help and do what we can to get out, he will empower us to be set free.

Lam 3:22-23 It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

God gives us new mercies, new strength, new joy we can be renewed each day. We only need to find the strength for today and tomorrow will take care of itself. This is why I encourage you to keep your God focus. If I had kept my God focus, I would not have ended up in depression in the first place.

I am very grateful for my time in the pit of despair. It taught me a lot of valuable lessons and shaped me in ways that it took years to understand. God got me through that he can get me through anything. I have hope in Jesus.

Romans 15:13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

You can find strength and hope, so don’t give up. Stay strong. If you have someone suffering from depression in your life. Just love them, pray for them and encourage them when you can, but never tell them to just snap out of it. That is not helpful. If they could just snap out of it, they would. Jesus is our answer to every situation in life.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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