4GIVEN

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Don’t think for a moment that God is blind. Proverbs 15:3 says, “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good” and “No creature is hidden from His sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13).

There are over 100 different names of God that enumerate His various qualities, but most are more familiar with these names: Jehovah-Jireh (God our provider), Jehovah-Nissi (God our banner of victory), Jehovah-Shalom (God our peace), and Jehovah-Rapha (God our healer).

In Genesis 16:1-13, we discover a not too popular name of God given by a not too popular person that confirms that God is not blind. Do y’all remember Hagar’s testimony? After she became pregnant with Abram’s baby, Sarah began to mistreat her. The Bible doesn’t go into the details, but the abuse was enough to cause the slave girl to run away into the dessert—alone and pregnant in a foreign land. Away from her people. Without any resources.

So there was Hagar in the dessert, collapsed beside what I imagine to be the lone water source amongst miles of sand and rock. She was so very alone. Suddenly, a heavenly being appeared to her, and they started chatting. After explaining her current situation, the angel instructed her: “Go back to your mistress and submit to her. […] You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery.”

Hagar didn’t question him. She didn’t beg the angel to have God provide another way. Instead this Egyptian slave girl said, “I have now seen the One who sees me” (v. 13). On a side bar, Hagar is the only person in the Bible—male or female, Jew or Gentile—who’s named God personally.

In closing, El-Roi (the God who sees) is not blind to our plight. Nothing escapes His divine notice nor His watchful eye. Our current situation has not taken Him by surprise, although it may have taken us by surprise. God sees our suffering, God sees our need, God sees our tears, but more importantly, God sees our victory (Jehovah-Nissi)!

We can rejoice knowing that God sees us and like Hagar we too can say, “I have seen the One (Jesus) who sees me.”

#BeStrong

I recently had my DNA 🧬 tested (23andme) and discovered some interesting facts about my genealogy/lineage/heritage!

Outside of my ancestral lineage being traced back to beautiful Africa, I discovered that one-half of my ancestors derived from the Arawak groups of indigenous people of South America and of the Caribbean.

Interestingly enough (total shocker🚨), I also discovered that a significant portion of my ancestral lineage derived from Northern Asian, Northern Indian and Pakistan. Even more shocking than this; I also share an ancient paternal lineage with Pharaoh Ramesses III.

Now, the first thing my wife asked me after I stuck my chest out and demanded to be called king was, “Is he the same Pharaoh that held the Israelites in captivity for over 400 years?!” You know me, without conducting any research, I fired back, “Of course not!!!!”😇

Although, it may be cool to share a paternal lineage with a king, but what’s even cooler is that we all share a maternal and paternal lineage with the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev 19:16). Romans 8:17 says, “And since we are His [God] children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory…..”

Genealogy, is a big deal to God. Through it we discover that God: cares about history, He interacted with real people, He used imperfect people to fulfill His purpose, He cared about persevering families, and He is acutely aware of our past, but is more excited about our future!!

God chose Abraham to be the father of a great family that would be a blessing to every nation. This blessing came in Abraham’s greatest descendent, Jesus Christ, who came to redeem sinful humanity and allow them access into God’s family, a spiritual family (Galatians 4:4-5). And that is one of the marvelous truths about our lineage–God welcomes us into His family and John 1:12 communicates this beautifully, “But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

God not only cares about families, but He wants us to be a part of His Heavenly family tree🌳!!

I Am Somebody.” is a poem written by Rev. William Holmes Borders, Sr. and he was the Senior Pastor at Wheat Street Baptist Church and civil rights activist in Atlanta where he campaigned for civil rights and distinguished himself as a charismatic spokesperson for the city’s poor and dispossessed.

I remember after reciting the pledge of allegiance, we would immediately recite the words of this poem:

I Am

Somebody

I Am

Somebody

I May Be Poor

But I Am

Somebody

I May Be Young

But I Am

Somebody

I May Be On Welfare

But I Am

Somebody

I May Be Small

But I Am

Somebody

I May Make A Mistake

But I Am

Somebody

My Clothes Are Different

My Face Is Different

My Hair Is Different

But I Am

Somebody

I Am Black

Brown

White

I Speak A Different Language

But I Must Be Respected

Protected

Never Rejected

I Am

God’s Child

I Am somebody.

After reciting this poem aloud, I vividly remember feeling better about who I was a child and later in life, who I was becoming as a man!

I don’t think the administrative nor teaching staff fully recognized the positive impact this poem had on this knuckle head!

You see, back then I didn’t fully recognize the power behind these words and how they contributed in building my adolescent confidence and with out fail, these words (at least bits and pieces) still resonates within me today.

Through them I’ve learned to better appreciate who I am to God by understanding who I am to Him: I am His beloved child (I John 3:1), I am valuable (Eph 2:10), I am chosen (Eph 1:4-6), I am redeemed (I Peter 1:18-19), I am new person (2 Cor 5:17), I am a friend (John 15:15), I am an ambassador (2 Cor 5:20), I am a member of Jesus Christ’s body (Eph 3:6), and I am exceedingly loved (John 3:16)!

I believe that Rev. Holmes wrote this poem under the conviction of the Holy Spirit and through spiritual enlightenment he vividly discerned that ‘everyone’ is ‘somebody’ to God regardless of their individuality, size, appearance, color, race, social, or economic status.

#BeStrong

Mary and Martha were close friends with and followers of Jesus. Together with their brother Lazarus, they had Jesus over for dinner on more than one occasion. Yet, on one particular visit the sisters chose two very different roles, and the way that Jesus responded to their choices is a very enlightening lesson for us today.

In Luke 10:38-42 we find that while, “Jesus and His disciples were on their way, He came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to Him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered,” you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Prioritization is the activity that arranges items or activities in order of importance relative to each other. In the context of this biblical story, we find that Martha’s priorities were acutely different than Mary’s priorities.

When Jesus made it to the sisters home in Bethany, Martha initially demonstrated hospitality by welcoming Jesus into the home she shared with her sister Mary. But then she immediately began scurrying around doing different tasks she thought needed to be completed to accommodate their distinguished Guest. Meanwhile, Mary chose to rest at the feet of their distinguished Guest in lieu of helping out with any of the chores.

The problem with Martha is not that she is busy serving and providing hospitality. Certainly Jesus commends this kind of service many times, notably in the parable of the Good Samaritan that immediately precedes the story of Mary and Martha. The problem with Martha is not her hospitality, but rather her ability to prioritize. Her lack of prioritization caused her to become worried, bothered, and distracted. The word translated “distracted” in verse 40, comes from the Greek word “perispaó” and it has the connotation of being pulled, dragged in different directions, too busy, distressed, or to be over-occupied.

Martha’s lack of prioritization left no room for the most important aspect of hospitality — gracious attention to their distinguished Guest. In fact, she breaks all the rules of hospitality by trying to embarrass her sister in front of their Guest, and by asking their Guest to intervene in a family dispute. She even goes so far as to accuse their Guest (Jesus)of not caring about her (Lord, do you not care…?).

Let’s be honest, most of us have asked God this question! When we don’t properly prioritize our lives it’s easy to be pulled, dragged in different directions, too busy, distressed, encumbered, and over-occupied. This is what drives a wedge in our relationship with God.

I am not sure why Luke’s story is left suspended. We really do not know what happened next — whether Mary and Martha were reconciled, whether they were all able to enjoy the meal that Martha had prepared, whether Martha was finally able to sit and give her full attention to Jesus. Having said that, I believe we can safely opine they all enjoyed themselves because, the God we serve never ends on a negative.

In closing, David’s spiritual position with God in Psalm 27:4 mirrored Mary’s physical position with Jesus! The paraphrase says, “I’m asking GOD for one thing, only one thing: To live with him in His house my whole life long. I’ll contemplate his beauty; I’ll study at his feet.”

God doesn’t want us distracted, He wants us focused. He doesn’t want to be sequestered to a single part of our life, He wants to be the substance of every part; the logic behind every choice we make — He is our first priority!

It’s of no coincidence that, we all go through trials and difficult times in life; things happen to us that tend to squeeze our joy and test our faith in God.  At times we may feel lost, stagnant, and hopeless in the world. We may feel empty and also like God has either abandoned or He is ignoring our prayers!

Having said that, we should never count God out!!!

In Ezekiel 37:1-10; Ezekiel receives a vision in which he is taken by the Spirit of the LORD to a valley full of dry bones.  Ezekiel was guided to walk around the bones.  Ezekiel said that there were many bones, very dry.

The LORD’s question:  Can these bones live?  Can the condition of these bones change?  Is there hope for these dry bones?

In vv. 5-6 God commanded the prophet to speak to the dry bones: “Speak to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’ ”

Obviously, what happen in vv. 7-8 probably shocked the sandals off Ezekiel’s feet when heard the rattling sounds: “The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as complete skeletons. Then as I watched, muscles and flesh formed over the bones. Then skin formed to cover their bodies, but they still had no breath in them.”

In v.9 God commands Ezekiel to prophesy to the breath: prophesy to the breath and say to it, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath and breathe into these slain, that they may live.” Ezekiel obeyed the voice of the LORD to speak to the dry bones. (v.10).  He proclaimed the word of the LORD and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet a vast army.

WHOA, I hope you didn’t miss that, because I sure didn’t! God will change your current condition and when He does, you’ll know Him better, you will know that He is the LORD and there is nothing He can’t do in and through your lives!

Although healing, revival, refreshment, restoration, reconciliation, promotion, and positive change may tarry; all these things are certain to those who believe.

There is unequivocally nothing ambiguous about the God we serve!! He knows what He is doing, He knows the season in which to do it and the only thing He ask us to do, is to walk by faith and don’t count Him out!

Let me rhetorically ask you: Can your bones live?  Can the condition of your bones change?  Is there hope for your dry bones?

I encourage you to prophesy and breathe Ephesians 3:20-21 over your life and into your dry bones 🦴 today: “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

#BeStrong

Quiet as it’s kept, we are our own worst critics! We fail to recognize that, we critique ourselves in so many ways that our entire world exists within a bubble we created for ourselves. Some of us hold ourselves to a high standard of perfection and when that standard fails to be met we replay the same words over and over again in our mind. Words like, “I’m not good enough”, “How could I be so dumb” “I never get it right” – which ultimately tear us down and make us believe lies that strip us of our self-worth and sabotage our progress and hinder our growth.

When we unrealistically self-imposed high expectations it causes us to turn on ourselves with nasty, self-deprecating words, it is then that we become our very own worst critics.

Constructive criticism aids in learning, training, and development, but when it’s not use to accomplish these things it becomes a malicious act of judging unfavorably or excessive faultfinding.

God loves people and wants the best for them and yes, He points out faults, shortcomings, and sins that help to build us up not tear us down.

Please hear me, our speech to ourselves and others should be always edifying. First Thessalonians 5:11 says, “Therefore encourage one another and build up one another.” Hebrews 10:24 says, “Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.” And Galatians 6:1 gives the primary motivation for criticizing—with a warning: “Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.”

When we self appraise and/or give an appraisal about someone else, make sure that it’s grounded out/in of love! Ephesians 4:15 says, “Speak the truth in love!” It doesn’t matter if you are critique yourself or someone else, Godly criticism is always true and more importantly, loving. It comes from a humble, caring heart that desires positive change! It is not bitter, condescending, insulting, or cold-hearted.

Therefore, my word of encouragement is to stop beating yourself up! I am all too familiar with the condemnatory spirit of perfectionism and how it sucks the life out of us and those around us.

Fact remains, we are all imperfect in some way or another and we must learn to embrace and grow from our imperfections so that in turn we can be gentle and empathetic with ourselves and others.

I got good news for you, God knows that perfect people do not exist. We all fail (Romans 3:23), but God’s love for us is bigger than our failures and shortcomings. God loves imperfect people and we will never be consider a depreciating asset! God’s love for His children is unconditional, wholehearted and incessant. There is nothing we can do to make God love us more and there is nothing we can do to make God love you less.

At the end of the day, we can’t escaped accountability, but we must be cognizant of how to manage self-accountability! We must be mindful of our language because language is very powerful. It’s a declaration to what is true.

So,monitor and be mindful how you are talking to yourself because you are listening. If you don’t want to feel a certain way, all you have to do is remember what God says about you and stop listening to what you are saying about you!

#BeStrong

Why do we need a savior! Well, before we answer that question, first let’s explore a few characteristically traits of a savior. A savior is someone that delivers, redeems, rescues, and of course, saves! According to Webster Dictionary, a savior is defined as one that saves from danger or destruction and one that brings salvation. Ah ha; whoop there it is!! We need a savior because without a Savior, sin would literally keep us physically and spiritually separated from God!

Unfortunately, the god of this age (devil) has duped so many into believing they don’t need a savior. According to 2 Corinthians 4:4, “The god of this age has literally blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that can’t see the light [treasure] of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

It’s incumbent upon everyone to recognize that only the Savior Jesus Christ can bridge that gap between God and man. We need a Savior because we are all sinners and all fall short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23). Every day, we need to repent of our sins that are laid bare, and even our secret sins of worry, unrighteous anger, gossip, closet drunkenness, lustful thoughts, and impurity. With that said, let’s scroll down to 2 Corinthians 4:7. Paul writes, “But we have this treasure [light] in jars of clay to to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”

The treasure Paul is referring to is the Gospel because it contains rich truths, and an abundance of them; comparable to gold, silver, and precious stones! Metaphorically, the jars of clay represents man which was made out of dirt, dust, and sand. These are very common elements which have no significant value until it’s filled with the light of the Gospel!

In a nutshell, the new eternal life of the resurrected Jesus Christ was breathed into jars of clay, which were dead in trespasses and sins. And also, the Holy Spirit of God took up permanent residence within our weak, mortal frame, from the moment we trusted Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of sin and life everlasting. The almighty Creator, who caused, light to shine out of darkness, is the One Who has shone in our hearts to give us the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ – so that His life may dwell in us, and His love may to shine in us and through us, so that we become messengers of His grace and show forth the excellency of His power to unbelievers that remain blinded and dead in their trespasses and sins.

Henceforth, the reason we need a Savior!!!!

#BeStrong

People, money, and material things do not complete us! The absolute only thing that can complete us is Jesus Christ!

I know some of you may be thinking, well my husband and/or my wife completes me, right? Well, not so much! Colossians reminds us that, “So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.”

You see, when we fully accept that we are only complete in Him as married and single people, then we will fully recognize our ability to do great, amazing and remarkable things.

According to the Bible, we should not have any problem with doing what God said we could do. It clearly says, in Philippians 4:13, “I can do EVERYTHING God asks me to with the help of Christ who gives me the strength and power.” The key to unlocking this strength is our faith and trust in God’s word! We have to take a diligent stand through reminding ourselves, that we will no longer limit the abilities of Christ in us because we realize who we are, and who gives us the strength and power to #BESTRONG despite the climate and atmosphere of the world around us!

The challenge that some of you face in understanding and embracing this concept stems from guilt, shame, and sin!You may have said to yourself, “I am not good enough! How can I be in Christ and Christ in me?” Well, let me be clear, no one is good enough and no one truly deserves their position in Christ, but God’s grace and mercy has afforded all of us the opportunity to become adoptive sons, daughters,

and beneficiaries of Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death and victorious resurrection (Ephesians 2:8).

Brothers and sisters, we are not going to be complete in Christ some day—we are already complete in Christ! And what remains for us to do is to walk daily in that completeness by believing that it is true: JESUS COMPLETES YOU!! He is your complete forgiveness, complete righteousness, complete favor, complete protection and complete strength!

So please don’t focus on the lack you see in your life. Focus instead on how in Christ, you are COMPLETE in EVERYTHING at this very moment. And instead of weaknesses, lack and defects, you will see His strength, wholeness, soundness, goodness, and completeness manifesting in you for the rest of your life!

#BeStrong

Your story was incredibly written by an incredible God and much like the pattern to every story structure we will all experience twists, turns, ups, downs, highs, lows, joy, and pain! However, God is such a fantastic Author, He purposefully embedded in each of our story line an unlimited supply of His grace, mercy, and love!

David confirms in Psalm 139:13-16, “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body

and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life [story] was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”

We should all be grateful that God is not, the Author and punisher, rather He is the Author and finisher of our story. Hebrews 12:2 remind us, “Looking unto Jesus, the Author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” In His book, ‘New Morning Mercies’ Pastor Paul Tripp, PhD wrote, “Thankfully I am not the author of my own personal story. Your story isn’t an autobiography either. Your story is a biography of wisdom and grace written by another. Every turn he writes into your story is right. Every twist of the plot is for the best. Every new character or unexpected event is a tool of his grace. Each new chapter advances his purpose.”

We are literally turning pre-written pages and I know it’s somewhat difficult to embrace the depth of this concept, but it’s true! Ephesians 2:10 aids in our understanding by reminding us that, “We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

When I read scriptures like that, I am in awe that God has a master plan for us. He has given us the privilege of living in close communion with Him to discover the many amazing facets of His character, and He has made us the conduit through which He can accomplish His will, plan and purpose here on earth.

It’s intrinsically clear; our life is not the small, insignificant story we often believe it to be. Nor is it the huge deal that is all about us that we sometimes make it into. Our life is a story amazingly written by and for our Maker, who wants to glory in His accomplishments and make us more like His Son. So, the drama that comes our way is designed to change us and transform us into the person He has made us to be, even before we came to be!

The letter of our story was pre-written by His hands and we don’t need to panic or fret or pull our hair out (those of you with hair) when we can’t control what’s happening in our world, more less, the world around us!

I don’t know about you, but as my story continues, I want to testify through to the very last chapter that, even though impatience tried its best to take a hand at re-writing my story, all of the in-between chapters of waiting developed me and deepened my love, assurance and reliance for Almighty God, my Author, finisher, and prefecter.