CAN YOU SAY........... REALITY CHECK?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!...... WOW!

Okay, so I went to church this morning. I knew that God had something for me.

I was determined last night that I was going to be delivered from the place I'm in emotionally, physically, spiritually and financially. I was determined to get whatever I need to walk into a place of peace.

So I got up this morning, prepared myself for church, and because it was raining I was trying to decide whether to go or not. One mind was saying well, no one else is going so you can sleep in too, and the other mind was saying, no one else needs to be in there with you, you can still go.

So I got dressed and I went.. I'm so glad I did, God has a message for me. Now a little background on this..

I have been praying for deliverance, I have been praying for peace, I have been praying for change, advancement and healing.  I've been tempted to write the Bishop or call for that matter and ask him to pray for me.

Every Sunday, I pray that the opportunity arises for prayer and I will be there. I missed one opportunity, but I think I was supposed to.

I've been asking God, what am I doing so wrong, why is it that I can't get ahead, why can't I shed the past. Why am I still being hurt by. Why is it that I love others more than I love myself. WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN.

Well, everything  I had been praying and asking was answered on TODAY!

The message was - "Strategically Moving Forward" Joshua 1:2-9

Now this was a continuation of the past 3 weeks, but TO ME, this was powerful.

Message from Bishop Alan G. Porter

Now step 1 is - I MUST DEAL WITH REDEFINING WHO I AM...

• This means that how I've been acting may not be who I was designed to be.  I wasn't being myself, I was acting like somebody else.
• This means, where I was before has qualified me for constant movement.
• Deliverance and Freedom are two different things..
• Deliverance means - removed from, Freedom means - liberated - I AM FREE TO WALK INTO MY FUTURE.
• Deliverance brings me out - this is  a work of God
• Freedom takes me in - this is my decision, my work.

~ He says don't be afraid for more than you asked for
~You must look at yourself in a brand new way
~The new place requires new instruction

STEP 2 - I MUST ALSO GO THROUGH RESTRUCTURING AND RESHAPING

~ I am ALWAYS bigger than where I am..

• Don't get stuck with what was has to be
• We need to start challenging some of the things we do with WHY.

1.                 Why is this relevant in my life
2.                 Why do I keep doing this
3.                 Why is this a problem
4.                 Why, why, why, why, why....

• Ask yourself why.
• However, Restructuring can be painful sometimes.
• Sometimes during the restructuring process, God may add something to your life or He might take away something from your life.

STEP 3 - YOU MUST GO THROUGH RETOOLING

• Reorganizing
• Rearranging
• Replacing
• Fear and doubt must be replaced with strength and courage
• New orders require retooling for a new journey
• With vision people forget where they have been
• Vision keeps you moving forward.

This is all relevant for the following reasons.

1. We tend to want the preacher to pray for us, but we have to pray with FAITH.
2. We pray for deliverance, we already have it, we have to change our way of thinking and being.
3. As much as it may hurt, we have to stop holding on to people and things that will disturb and distract us
4. We have to pray and ask God's will . Our will has to match up with His will.

 Now, I can tell you why I'm excited. I'm excited because you never know how God is going to respond. Alot of times we pray and we expect God to answer us in "His voice". When we get quiet in prayer and meditation. Or we expect to open our bibles and see the answer staring us in the face.

But when your SPECIFIC prayer to God is answered in this manner. When your entire conversation with God was carried our in that manner then you KNOW that what God is saying was meant for you.

NOW, the hard part is going to be this, I have to change who I am completely. WHY? because how I am right now is not who I was designed to be.

So, its in the making...

Staying in prayer...

AS YET UNTITLED

There are alot of things going through my head right now, so I'll start at the beginning.

Church was very good this morning. We had a small ceremony honoring the "Legacies" of the church. These are the people who have been in the church 25 years or more.  I'm not sure if I've been there 25 years or not, but most of the faces I remember from when I was a child.

There was a deacon honored for 93 years of service. Now, this came with mixed emotions. None of them negative, however mixed. See, I remember when this man was able to walk to the front of the church and stand with the other deacons. I remember when he could stand up on his own and lift his hands.

He came in today and was pushed in, in a wheelchair, with another holding his legs up. He could barely walk in the pew and there were already 4 people trying to help him in his seat. I fought back tears. Looking at where this man is was to where he is now, and I continued to fight back tears. Not tears of sadness, but tears of joy.

Here is a man that God has allowed a long life, and even in his old age, he still serves God. He could have been one of the elders that curse, smokes, drinks and living out his last days the wrong way, but he manages to make it into the house of the Lord on Sunday. So this said to me, if this man can do it, why can't I.

Some Sundays I make an excuse to sleep late, or promise the Lord that I will read and listen to Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar and Charles Stanley... which I do, but being sleepy is not a reason to stay home from church.

If we look at all the times we go to work sleepy and have to stay there 9 hours or more, but we can't go to church for 3 and at least stay awake???????

I have learned something valuable today. My lesson for today was to never take life for granted. People die everyday. Some people die before they take their first breath in this world, some die shortly after. Some people die unfortunately as children or teens. Some die long painful deaths from disease, young or old. Some live a fairly decent life and make it to an older age, but some live, like this man, to be old, but still in his right mind.

He made need help with things, simple things, like dressing, bathing, even putting shoes on, but he is alive and still praising God.

God if you see fit, allow me some of the time this man has, and grant me peace and wisdom, so that my life and my experience will be a testimony.