The Big Bang

So by now we’ve all had time to process Tuesday’s east coast earthquake.  I was sleeping when I heard my dresser drawers shaking and when I woke up to investigate the noise I discovered my bed was shaking as well. I rationalized the shaking as street construction then I proceeded to go back to sleep.  When I  woke up some hours later and discovered that the shaking was an earthquake, I immediately got on my knees and prayed. I prayed because I recognized this as another “sign of the times” coming to fruition (Matthew 24:7-11). I thanked the Lord for His Word because without it His children would be blind. I also thanked Him for revealing His power to this dark disbelieving world. This world we live in where atheism is running rampid and there’s little distinction between believers and non-believers, God is so merciful that He will manifest His power in the form of a earthquake to WAKE UP His people and prove to the doubters that that the God of the bible is alive and doing well. That reinforces my belief that I serve an AWESOME God! Not to be a “Debbie Downer” but God truthfully could destroy this world in the blink of an eye (i.e. Sodom & Gomorrah and what happened in Noah’s day) but because He loves us so much He’s willing to continue to give us the chance to change from our ways.

Now as I said before I was physically asleep during the earthquake but the bigger question is was I spiritually asleep? As I continued on in prayer I prayed the Lord reveal the areas in my life that I was lacking spiritually. In all honestly what if this earthquake was Jesus coming back, would I have been called up with Him or would I have been left. Real Talk! Gods longsuffering is going to come to an end at some point and all the signs suggest that point is closer than we think. So the time is NOW to start living for Christ and examining those areas in your life where you need repentance and forgiveness. I challenge you to ask yourself if it wasn’t an earthquake on Tuesday and it was Christ coming back. Would you have been in the numbers called to be with Him or would you have been left to experience the destruction of this world!

This is awesome parable in relation to the topic Matthew 25:1-13. Let me know what you think!

“Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”  2Peter 1:10-11

Living to Live Again

Going Hard For Jesus

When I first heard this term used I thought; what in the world does that mean? Well now I’m beginning to find out. When I say I’m going hard for Jesus it means in a nutshell I’m honoring God with the fruit of my lips and the action of my body. Going hard for Jesus to me means, living out the word in the flesh as Jesus did. So what does that look like? Literally speaking, looking like Jesus to everyone who crosses your path. Is this what God desires of his children? YES! 1Peter 1:16 “but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy”. Is this to say we aren’t going to have our bad days or our days where we fall short? Absolutely! The key is that we are always striving to hit the mark not just accepting that we are failures and being cool with it. The same way we are a direct reflection of our parents or upbringing we are a reflection of our father in Heaven.

So what does my going hard for Jesus look like in my life?

Being obedient to the standards of living that He has set forth for me to live by.

Being willing to fight for the time to mediate on His Word and be in prayer.

Being content with the reality that if I’m living by Gods standards I’m not going to be in the “in crowd”.  

Being willing to honestly submit my transgressions to the Lord and others &repent of my sins.

Never shying away from opportunities to share about Christ.

Taking every anxiety and fear that creeps into my heart to our Father.

Well I could go on and on but I’d like to hear from you! What does your going hard for Jesus look like?

“For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. Out of all the peoples on the face of the earth, the LORD has chosen you to be his treasured possession” Deuteronomy 14:2 NIV

Living to Live Again

Quick Pick Me Up

One of the certainties in life is that you’re going to encounter storms. Some storms maybe caused by your own hand and other storms maybe God stretching your faith. Through every storm God is with you! Just a quick reflection from the book of Daniel. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego were all thrown into a fiery furnace that was heated seven times hotter than usual because they would not bow down and worship any image other than their own God.  After being thrown into the furnace bound in their coats and trousers, King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished to see four men walking in the midst of the fire unharmed and the fourth man looked like the Son of God! Then King Nebuchadnezzar called for them to come out of the furnace and to his surprise the hair on these men heads were not singed nor was their garments affected and the smell of fire was not on them.  

Be encouraged God is with you every step of the way!

Living to Live Again

Sincerity of the Heart

When I embarked on this journey a few years ago I really didn’t know Christ for myself so I felt like I was in a way “playing the part” of a Christian. As I’ve grown more in Christ I’m realizing that God not only wants our obedience in deeds but He most importantly wants to capture our hearts. We all know the verse in Proverbs 4:23 NIV “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life”. This is so true because the heart controls every thought, action and intention so if the heart becomes overtaken by the lusts of this world it can lead you straight into HELL. The Word of God served as the catalyst at making me see that I was in need of heart surgery. Hebrews 4:12 NIV “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart”. I heard this verse before but I never believed it or maybe I didn’t want to believe it but now I can testify to its validity. I came to realize that my heart was far away from God when I read verses about the attributes that Christians should exude and I was shocked that I didn’t possess ANY or I only displayed them at my convenience with a select audience. I was lacking attributes such as longsuffering, self control, kindness, patience and forgiveness was not in my vocabulary. Now when I started reading the qualities that God didn’t want me to have such as being proud, boastful, unforgiving, hating, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, envy, and revelries this was more where I fit in at. OUCE! So it became clear that I was in need of the Holy Spirit to start a work in me and transform this rotten heart of mine. The word says that people will know us by our fruit but if we are not bearing any fruit we need to make your we aren’t serving some other god. As my pastor likes to say (paraphrased), “What’s the point of being able to talk in tongues in church but you can’t speak to people outside of church”. God desires for His children to strive to walk as Jesus walked and when they stumble or fall short REPENT and get back on the path. Last year the Lord directed me to this sermon series by John MacArthur called the Master’s Men. It examined in detail the 12 disciples and it was truly eye opening for me. Each disciple before walking with Christ was in need of a heart transformation but as they walked with Jesus their hearts began to be transformed. God loved them despite their faults and worked in and through them for His glory. Long of the short God can use and transform you, no one is too far from His reach!

 I had a major breakthrough this weekend at work. I’m currently in the process of transitioning to a new position and apparently one of my former coworkers felt the need to (for lack of a better word) HATE on my new position in an open forum conversation in my absence. Now since the devil is crafty and he knows my triggers of course someone came to tell me what was said. Now the old me would have wanted to confront this person or I would have let a little of her business accidentally slip out in the conversation with the messenger BUT because my heart is overflowing with the Spirit I didn’t even feel the need to retaliate or offer a rebuttal. I’m finding out that when you’re filled with the Spirit nonsense just isn’t able to penetrate. So tonight I’m going to pray for that individual. To God Be The Glory!

Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. –Psalm 51:10

Living to Live Again

Trading Fierce Independence

 I was extremely blessed by this message when I read it on my friends FB page so I wanted to pass it along. Please take the time to read this message, you will be BLESSED!

"Elisha said, 'Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don't ask for just a few.'" 2 Kings 4:3 (NIV 2011)
Problems. I prefer to keep them to myself. Being fiercely independent, my instinct is to slam the cellar door shut at the first sign of high winds. In other words, no one's getting in until the storm is past. I'll let God in, no problem. But you — I keep out.
Over the years, God has challenged me on this independent approach, calling it was it is: pride. It's not overt arrogance, but by keeping others at a distance, it implies I'm all-sufficient and don't need your help. Plus, the insecure little girl in me worries that if you see weakness in my life, you'll question my competency.
As so, I've kept to myself, creating a prideful façade of control. That didn't work very well, however. Repeatedly, God has called me to a place of greater interdependence with others. He's worked miracles in my life when I've humbly asked for prayer. He's broken down walls of distance when I've allowed people to see the real me. I've seen His hand move at the request of my godly friends. It's now obvious to me God designed us to work together.
We are pieces of the same puzzle, and life makes more sense when we are connected. There's a story in the Old Testament that shows God's plan for interdependence. It's found in the book of 2 Kings and concerns a widow who had a big problem. She needed resources, but the coin jar was empty. Her husband died, leaving her with no means of support, and a pile of debts she couldn't pay. Creditors demanded restitution. Since there was no money, they planned to take her children as slaves.
Desperate, she sought help from Elisha, a man known to be set apart for God. Elisha asked her to do something unusual: go to all her neighbors and request empty jars ... lots of them. Then, she was to return home, take what little oil she had left and pour it into the jars. The widow did as Elisha instructed.
When she returned home, she started pouring. As each jar filled, her sons brought her another. They filled every borrowed jar with oil. Elisha then told her to sell the oil, pay the creditors and live off the rest. She did.
What I love about this story is that the quantity of the miracle oil was in direct proportion to the number of neighbors she asked for help. If she had asked five neighbors, that's how much oil she would have had. Ten neighbors meant ten jars. And so on. The more people the widow asked for help, the greater God's provision.
There's another part of the story not told by the Bible passage, but I can't help but wonder if it happened. At some point, the widow would have returned the borrowed jars. When she did, I imagine she would have told each neighbor what God had done for her, and how that neighbor played a part in the miracle. What a testimony that must have been! God could have worked a miracle in any way, but He chose to involve each member of that little neighborhood. I imagine they were never the same after being part of something so amazing.
This story speaks clearly to me. God often plans to meet my needs through others. Yet if I keep my problems to myself, I might hinder His plan to bless my friends and broadcast His faithfulness. I'm learning to deny the lies of a prideful spirit in exchange for a humble plea for help. I'm trading my fierce independence for God's plan of community.
Dear Lord, forgive me for the times I've kept to myself, believing I have everything necessary to solve my problems. In doing so, I may have missed Your plan for meeting my needs through others. Help me to identify pride and submit it to You. Help me to have a humble and teachable spirit. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Coke On The Rocks

Coke on the rocks has been a long running joke between my friends and I whenever we go out and the waitress asks what will I be drinking for the evening. I’ve always made light of my choice not to drink alcohol but lately I’m finding myself being questioned more and more by people about my decision. The truth of the story is between the ages of 18-20 I tried drinking and it just didn’t stick. That simple! It was an activity that just never became a habit and I just stop drinking on my own accord. With that being said, have I had alcohol here or there since 20. YES! Do I feel that God will condemn you for consuming alcohol at your Grammies 90th birthday party or celebratory event? NO, but the bible does warn against drunkenness. Ephesians 5:18 “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation: but be filled with the Spirit”, this is just one of the many verses that warns against drunkenness. Another verse that I often think of is, 1Peter 1:13 “ Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hopes fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to former lusts, as in your ignorance”. The part of that verse that always sticks out to me is the “gird up the loins of your mind and be sober’. I love that part because it tells us to be aware for ANYTHING that could cloud your judgment. That means wine, drugs, MEN/WOMAN, money, vanity, pride, ego and the list could go on and on. Jesus doesn’t want our minds being controlled by anything that is not of Him.

Now just because alcohol is not one of my vices doesn’t mean I don’t have any. The current battle I’m fighting is with FOOD. When I’m left alone with any substance that contains sugar I immediately morph into a magician and make it disappear. I can gladly say that this is a devil that’s about to be slayed in the name of Jesus! I empower you to take a look at the things in your life that may be clouding your judgment and submit them to God in prayer. If you feel lead, please share your comments and feedback. I would love to hear what your think!

“Be sober, be vigilant: because your adversary the devil walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” Peter 5:8

Living To Live Again

New Beginnings

Who Am I: I’m a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend and most importantly I’m a follower of Jesus Christ! People say I’m funny, loud, silly, caring, friendly and transparent with my feelings and thoughts. I’ve been Christian all my life but it wasn’t until two years ago that I actually started desiring to live for Christ. At that point in my life I wasn’t actively fellowshipping, reading the Word or living by the standards that God desires for his children. So long story short, I was doing ME! I thank God everyday for the transformation HE has and continues to make on my heart. Fast forward to the present, I attend an awesome church where I am spiritually fed weekly, I cover myself in the Word daily and to be honest I’m currently working on establishing a deeper relationship with the Lord outside of just saying grace before I eat a meal, thank you Jesus, God is good and you know the other catchy but true phrases we like to use when things are going well. I desire the type of relationship where the first thing on my mind when I wake up in the morning is to get in communication with the Lord and not what am I going to eat for breakfast. I striving to put God first in every situation not just the ones I’m comfortable with.

Why Blog: My prayer is to encourage and strengthen the walks of other babes in Christ through my daily struggles and breakthroughs. I would like to also have open dialogues about your struggles and breakthroughs so that we can grow in Christ together. I chose the title of the blog “Entering Through the Narrow Gate” based on Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it”. I’ve cemented this verse in my heart because it reminds me that it can be difficult to live and walk in a manner that pleases God but for those few who truly turn their lives over to God’s control will find a new life in Him. This verse also cautions me to stay on full alert for those attacks from the devil that could take me off the path that God has chosen for me. I’ve wanted to write a blog for some time now but the timing was never right but through God’s gentle nudges I decided this was the right time. Please excuse me in advance I’m not the most computer savvy person so any typo’s or posts that show up twice sorry :-/ Well I hope you will enjoy reading my daily blogs and I pray that it adds to your faith or you can add to mine.

~Living To Live Again