GET TA STEPPIN...

Well here it is January 30th, my last blog was in September. It's amazing how time flies especially when your DISTRACTED!! When I started blogging I had hoped to do one a week... Ha ha! I am going to commit afresh to this goal.  We'll see... ;)

So, I am in a very interesting season in my life - sort of in limbo - if you will. I have a vision & a promise from the Lord yet I feel trapped & paralyzed. Gripped with fear, procrastination, uncertainty and to be quite frank - DOUBT. Do I doubt the power & promises of God? Absolutely NOT - I know He is faithful & well able to perform that which He's spoken. The doubt & unbelief is in myself. When I think of the dreams God had placed in me I feel so inadequate, unequipped, and unqualified. I know the Word & who He says I am - I know I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me. BUT when the rubber meets the road and its time to step out in faith, like many in the Bible, I come up with every excuse in the book. I don't have this, I can't do that, etc. We can even make our excuses sound so spiritual... My famous quote "God is still pruning and purging me, I'm not ready yet, I still have too much pride!" Yes there is a season of pruning & preparation, there is also a season to get out of the boat and walk into what God has called you to. If we're not careful we can get stuck in the preparation station and never step out!

It was brought to my attention today that we can be waiting for God to move and while we are looking for, and waiting for Him to do it, we miss Him as He actually does it!!! That's deep! The Lord used a brother in Christ to speak some things to me that have really been eye opening and in so many words has caused a "GET TA STEPPIN" to arise in my spirit!! I was also reminded of the parable of the talents in Matthew 25 - what a GUT-WRENCHING thought that the man who did not use the talent that was given to him was thrown into darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. WOW!!! This dude was thrown into HELL because he did nothing with the talent Jesus gave him.... Read it for yourself...

In conclusion, He doesn't call the equipped He equips those He calls and as we take the first step He will give us the next and the next. We have all been gifted with talents & all He requires is for us to use what is in our hands. I end with these profound words my brother spoke over me today..."You are looking for something to happen that has already taken place in the Spirit realm....He already prepared a place at the table for YOU, just come sit down and Dine!!" WOW!!!

"GET TA STEPPIN"

Abide or Die...

The other day I had to go to one of our (LifeBUILDERS) properties to let someone in, we are in the process of renovating a house. Growing up the fence of this house were the prettiest purple flowers I ever seen! I walked over to take a moment to "smell the roses" if you will! I begin to pull some of the weeds surrounding the flowers and I realized I accidentally pulled the branch that was connected to the flowers ;( I was bummed!! I went back just a few short hours later to lock up and the flowers were completely wilted and almost dead - already!!!

I had a very vivid - real life picture of John 15, especially verse 5 - I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.

Apart from Him we can do absolutely NOTHING! What was amazing to me is that these flowers that were once so beautiful, vibrant and full of life were completely lifeless, wilted and almost dead - within moments of being disconnected from the vine!

So it is with us, the moment we allow sin and things that are unpleasing to the Lord we disconnected ourselves from the vine. The moment we do that - we are no longer abiding or living in Him. How quick and easy it can be at times to skimp on our devotion time or listen to this person gossip or allow offense to build up. Those things suck the life out of us and soon, if not quick to repent, we find our self lifeless, drained, sapped of the vibrant life God infuses to us while we are connected to Him and drawing from His Spirit in our secret place.

BUT GOD!!  He is a God of RESTORATION and He does make ALL THINGS NEW!! Been feeling a little disconnected!? Time to repent and reconnect, He is the Master Gardener and is waiting with open arms to prune you back into shape!

Any branch in Me that does not bear fruit [that stops bearing] He cuts away (trims off, takes away); and He cleanses and repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit, to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit. John 15:2

Complain and curse God or draw closer and conform to His will...

We pray it often... Oh Lord, I just want you, I just want to know you more, Your ALL I NEED. We even qoute the verses like 1 Corinthians 2:2 -For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified and Philippians 3:10 that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, becoming conformed unto his death. And it's great to pray that and wonderful to qoute such verses, dont get me wrong I'm not minimizing those things. But is He REALLY ALL we want, does He truly satisfy our every longing? In the deep recesses or our hearts are we yearning for MORE? Something more than "JUST JESUS" to fill those empty voids we have inside of us... A relationship, money, power, prestige, you name it. What do you crave more than the presence and satisfaction of the true and living God Himself?


As I was meditating on this the other morning, I heard that still small voice - "If I were to strip you of EVERTHING and EVERYONE would I be enough... Would I TRULY be ALL you want and ALL you need?" We bark our lists of demands off to God and heep our pride and arrogance before Him as if He is our genie in a bottle and when He doesnt answer when we want Him to we distance ourselves from Him with our pity party, woe is me attitude. As if we are hurting or punishing Him; we are only hurting ourselves.


These words began to ring in my spirit as well...
"When things aren't going your way, when your prayers have gone unanswered, when theres no money in the bank and you feel as if everything is crashing in on you - will you complain and curse God or will you draw closer and conform to His will?" In the words of Joyce Meyer "Complain and remain or praised and be raised!"


Though the fig tree doesn’t bloom and there’s no produce on the vine; though the olive crop withers, and the fields don’t provide food; though the sheep is cut off from the pen, and there is no cattle in the stalls; I will rejoice in the LORD. I will rejoice in the God of my deliverance. Habakkuk 3:17-18(CEB)