NO STRINGS ATTACHED

Posted on June 12, 2014 by #4GIVEN

Conditional is defined as imposing, restrictive, containing, subject to, or depending on a condition or conditions; not absolute. Unfortunately too many Christians believes that God’s love is conditional because they simply don’t measure up however; they fail to realize that God’s love for us is unconditional (agape). Although undeserved; He loves us in spite of our disobedience, our weakness, our sin and our selfishness. He loves us enough to provide a way to abundant, eternal life in Christ Jesus. His unconditional love for us is not with discipline however; it’s strong and quantitative enough to look beyond circumstances and human proclivities. So today know that our condition is not our conclusion. Despite the shortcomings and hot messes, trust and believe that God’s love is never dependent upon us. Remember, His love is not imposing, restrictive, containing, subject to, or depends on conditions. Rather, His love is absolute, infinite, unfailing, unilateral, uncalculating, regenerating, sacrificing, preserving, restoring, refreshing, and forgiving. Nothing-absolutely nothing-can separate us from God’s love (Romans 8:35-39)!

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READ ME PLZ!!!

Posted on June 10, 2014 by #4GIVEN

Hey you…yeah you. Stop blog scrolling just for a sec. I just wanted to let you know that God loves you and He wants to bless you beyond your wildest dreams!!! 2 Chron 16:9 says, “The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him”

Ok, you can now continue scrolling!!!

#TEAMcommit

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DON’T STOP DREAMING

Posted on June 9, 2014 by #4GIVEN

Last night, I attended my niece’s graduation commencement ceremony and out of all the speeches the one statement that hit me like a ton of bricks was stated by Alief’s superintendent, HD Chambers. He said, “Don’t let this victory be your greatest achievement!” Wow, what a motivating reminder! Like he encouraged me, I encourage you not to let your last victory be your greatest accomplishment. Your greatest blessing is always in front of you and never behind you! The bible says in 1 Corinthians 2:9-10a , “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him”— [10a] but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.” So today don’t stop dreaming and never stop loving! Yes, there are amazing things yet to be experienced by those who in this life receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. For those who are born again through repentance and faith in Him, the best is yet to come!

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All of me!

Posted on June 8, 2014 by #4GIVEN

“All of Me” was written by Toby Gad and co-written by John Legend. Although this song was written and dedicated to Legend’s wife, the undertones of this love ballet reminds me of the kinda love God has for us. Check out the hook and the biblical references; cause all of me, loves all of you. ( Romans 5:8) Love your curves and all your edges (Psalm 139:13). All your perfect imperfections (2 Corinthians 5:17), give your all to me ( I Peter 5:7) I’ll give my all to you (John 3:16). You’re my end and my beginning (Matt 20:28) even when I lose I’m winning (I Corinthians 5:21), Cause, I give you all of me and you give me all of you (Romans 10:9). I don’t know about you, every time I hear this song, I’m reminded of Jesus and His ‘All of Him’ sacrifice for me and all of humanity!!

#PRICELESS
#TIMELESS
#GRATEFUL

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101 REASONS TO SERVE GOD

Posted on June 7, 2014 by #4GIVEN

I serve an AWESOME God. Some may ask why do I believe this? Well here are 101 reasons why, I believe that my God is AWESOME; He is Perfect, Holy, Righteous, Loving, Kind, Friendly, Helpful, Protective, Caring, Sharing, Powerful, Mighty, Compassionate, Empowering, Discerning, Overwhelming, Consuming, Cleansing, Healing, Delivering, Restoring, Moving, Creating, Destroying, Smiting, Fulfilling, Distinctive, Comforting, Providing, Teaching, Training, Purifying, Freeing, Liberating, Preserving, Consigning, Reproving, Addressing, Confiding, Courageous, Victorious, Credited, Historical, Proven, Incorruptible, Unfailable, Infallible, Trustworthy, Protected.
Immune, Responsive, Privileged.
Honorable, Honored, Legitimate.
Reliable, Good, Reputable, Celebrated, Praised, Glorified.
Famous, Renowned, Loved.
Served, Worshipped, Sought, Needed, Required, Requested.
Beautiful, Living, Breathing, Alive.
Active, Amazing, Inspiring, Productive, Producing, Creative,
Abundant, Rich, Adequate, Decent, Modest, Pure, Real, Moral,
Wholesome, Safe, Beneficial,
Excellent, Eminent, Prominent, Remarkable, Extraordinary, Supernatural, Miraculous Forgiving, Sacrificing, and Astounding. Thank You Lord, for loving a scrub like me!!!

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R.O.I.

Posted on June 4, 2014 by #4GIVEN

Who is the greatest investor ever known to man? No, it’s not Warren Buffett, it’s Jesus Christ! When Jesus said, “Not my will” in the garden of Gethsemane, the proverbial tables turned in our favor. It’s almost like Jesus is now saying, “I went all in…..will you?” Go figure, any good investor desires a return on their investment, right? The law of reciprocity is certainly being implied! God has entrusted every human being with invaluable resources, gifts, and most importantly the Seed of the kingdom of God. We must invest (use) our gifts. When we do, God blesses us with even more. If we don’t invest (use) what He’s given us, then God takes away even what we He had entrusted to us. When we put money in the bank, we expect interest. When a farmer sows seed in his field, he plants the seed expecting it to produce fruit. God entrusts you and I with an amazing wealth of gifts, talents and resources – many of them spiritual and He expects a return on that investment. So today remember the greatest investment we can every make is not reflected in our bank accounts, real property records, IRAs , and/or 401ks. The greatest investment has and will always be people!! We demonstrate God’s love by loving God’s people.

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RENEWED MINDS!!

Posted on June 3, 2014 by #4GIVEN

What does it mean to renew our minds? Renewal of the mind denotes the understanding, or thinking power, regarded as to its moral activity. Moreover and soberly stated, Christian renewal imparts not only the will and power to do God’s will, but also the intelligence to discern it. Romans 12:2 says, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” In order for us to comprehend the things of God we must process and articulate certain things with the same mind of Christ. If we fail to see it from the infinite (spiritual) perspective we will most likely entrap ourselves in the finite (worldly) perspective. Our thinking must be changed (transformed) from old, ungodly ways of thinking into new, godly ways of thinking. What we know in our minds to be true forms a conviction in our hearts of that truth, and that conviction in our hearts translates into action. Therefore, we must first renew our minds.

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BACKGROUND CHECK

Posted on June 2, 2014 by #4GIVEN

When applying for any job most employers if not all will require you to answer the initial criminal disclosure question. (Answering “yes” does not constitute an automatic bar to employment; factors such as date of offense, seriousness and nature of the violation, rehabilitation and position applied for will be considered) If the rest of your application (work history, schooling and so forth) is a good fit, more than likely, the employer will eventually call the candidate in for an interview. Once the interview is complete and the employer determines the candidate is right person for the job, the employer in most cases will request a background check. Now just pretend God was looking for someone to fill the role for being the world’s Savior. How many people do you think would qualify after answering the spiritual criminal disclosure question, “Have you ever be convicted of sinning?” In short, not anyone. Think about for a moment. If God ran an employment ad it would most likely read; seeking a perfect individual that has never committed any natural or spiritual infractions. The candidate will be required to leave everything they love behind (family) and recruit 12 disciples, train them, heal the sick, raise people from the dead, fulfill prophecy, finish atonement, and render satan powerless. Additionally the candidate must wiling to be severely bruise for every human iniquity and wounded for every (past, present, and future) transgression. Lastly, the candidate will be lied on, falsely convicted, tortured, ridiculed, beaten, spat on, given a crown sharp thorns, nailed, stabbed with a spear, and left to die on a dead tree. Point is the Human Resource department most likely would not receive any resumes and if they did it would be rejected due the sin infraction. At the end of the day only God could meet the conditions for being the world’s Savior therefore, He chose to wrap Himself in flesh, be born of a virgin, and endure everything that was listed in the aforesaid mentioned job description to save someone like me.

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WHITE AS SNOW

Posted on May 31, 2014 by #4GIVEN

If we are honest, we would all acknowledge that we all have a sin condition. The bible says in Romans 3:23 that all fall short of God’s glory. Now don’t get me wrong, I am in no way rejoicing because I’m not the only one who has sin issues nor am I condoning sin rather, I am thankful for the grace that covers my sins!! Isaiah 1:18 says, “Your sins . . . shall be as white as snow.” Thankfully God’s grace is not reserved only for the VIP or the elect. Like God’s people in Isaiah’s day we too have the same assurance of God’s unmatchable, unbeatable, and unmeasurable grace in our lives. Although sin may stain our lives; when we repent and confess it, we have “the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of [God’s] grace” (Eph. 1:7). ­Jude 1:24-25 put it this way, “Now unto him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy. To the only wise God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”

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SELF-DENIAL

Posted on May 30, 2014 by #4GIVEN

Robert Magruder, narrator for the syndicated reality show Cheaters narrated a one-time special episode a few years ago. In this one-time special episode Cheaters detective observed Christians being self-centered, self-willed, self-dependent, self-righteousness, and self-sufficient. After a few days of precision surveillance they were able to gather enough evidence of the suspects spiritual infidelities and at that time Cheaters then decided to confront the suspects. At first everyone was in denial however, after the lead detective (Holy Spirit) reminded them of the scripture written in Luke 9:23, they began to realize that self-denial (confession/repentance) was the only way to restore true authentic fellowship. Scott Hahn once said, “Self-denial is not a mask for self-contempt, but the necessary means for achieving self-mastery; for self-mastery makes possible our self-giving and self-fulfillment. Sin is not wanting too much, but settling for too little. It’s settling for self-gratification rather than self-fulfillment.”

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