Not Until You Bless Me

“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.” Genesis 32:24-26

I have asked God for His blessings in several different areas of my life. Some things are more urgent than others. Although I have not seen every prayer fulfilled, I will not let go until God blesses me. I believe that there are going to be trials where every bone will ache in your body, where every day seems to put you on wits end. There will be days were you think you will make it through without having to fight only to find out that the night has brought another story. There might be nights where sleep is hard to find, and there might be nights where all you can do is sleep. Through it all, it is imperative to hold on until you have victory. Do not let go until ye be blessed. As I’ve heard it said before, Just keep holdin’ on. Just keep holdin’ on.

Now and Later

"And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people, bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,...There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah." Genesis 49: 29 & 31

As I was reading this passage, it dawned on me that Leah was blessed after her death. If you are not familiar with the story of Jacob, Jacob was in love with Leah's sister Rachel. He served 14 years in their father, Labon's house for Rachel, seven of those were required after Labon deceitfully gave Leah instead of Rachel. So Jacob was first married to Leah who blessed him with many children and then to Rachel whom after years of being baron was finally able to give Jacob two children.

Jacob sorely loved Rachel while Leah had to sit back and suffer the wounds of a woman unloved. All she wanted was for her man to love her like he did her sister. Leah even bribed her sister to let her have Jacob for one night with her [Leah]. Still, Jacob's love was unwavering.

Well, Rachel died in child birth and Leah's death was not mentioned except in the verse above. But, ultimately, Leah got her man. It was with her that he was buried. Although she was not alive to receive it, but her blessing came about after her death.

I believe we will all have blessings come to pass and prayers filled after our death. We don't live for the blessings to stop the moment we die, but we are building up an alter, sacrafices to God so that He may look down and bless continually. We sacrifice so that the blessings can be passed on, now and later.

Experience

When a guest walks into the church and feels excited about what they've experienced, then we have made a step toward remarkable. When they truly anticipate the next visit, then you know what they have experienced is memorable.

Anthony Had A Good Day

Anthony had a wonderful day in school today. He received three stars and stayed on green all day. He almost completed all of his work and his teacher said that although he needed more time he was working hard. Great job little man! I am proud of you.

Healed!

As I sit here and recover from my sickness, I reflect back on where I was a year ago. Do you know, last year I got sick 15 times. Each time required me to pay a $20 copay in addition to the cost of my medication. Often times, I walked away spending $100 per visit after the office visit and medication. When you get sick twice in one month, $100 is a lot. That is a lot period!

Last year I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, Osteopenia, Anemia, overactive thyriod, and after all these years I became allergic to penicilin. It seemed like almost everything I ate or touched gave me an allergic reaction. On top of this, I was told that I would need surgery for my cystic fibrosis. If you don't know what all this means, don't worry. All you need to know is that it is as bad as it sounds. As you can imagine, it was a tough year for Anthony and myself.

I sit hear tonight, beaten up by this sickness I have been battling but I am blessed because I already received a healing. I have not gone back for testing on any of these things except for the overactive thyroid, but I have been healed. Actually, I joke that I have been overhealed.

Fibromyalgia is when you have pain in your muscles. It also affects your thinking. There was a point in time last year when I didn't want to be touched because it hurt too bad. I didn't want to be prayed for because that would require for me to be touched which woud cause horrible shooting pain that would radiate through my entire body. I no longer have the pain and haven't had it for months. Fibromyalgia goes in cycles, but it has been over 6 months since I have had any pain. I am healed.

Osteopenia is a form of Osteoperosis. It is a lack of calcium in the bones. I was one point away from having Osteoperosis. Last year, by bones would hurt and it was hard for me to heal after the accident I had a year before. My bones no longer hurt. And trust me, you know when your bones hurt. It's worse than the pain in the muscles because there really isn't any medication that can help elivate the pain. I am healed.

Anemia is when you lack iron in your blood. I almost killed Granny, Anthony and myself last year because I passed out while driving and stopped in the middle of an intersection after church one night. The low iron level would make me dizzy and I would pass out just as quickly as you are reading this. Also, I got cold really easy. I never left without a jacket and always wore boots. I would get cold on a summer night. I could never sleep with a fan running or I would get sick. I believe God overhealed me on this one. I kid you not, but I get serious hot flashes. I am only 27. I should not be getting hot flashes. I can even ride in the same car as Sis Sabrina who must have the cold air going at all times since she is hot blooded. She even admitted I was healed on this one because I asked her to turn the air on the other day.

I can't remember the symptoms of the overactive thryoid and although I don't think I am allergic to penicillin, my doctor still won't give me penicillin (which is why this sickness won't go away). As far as the cystic fibrosis, I can't really explain but this one scared me more than the rest because it required surgery. Let's just say, I don't need surgery and I am normal again. Thank you Jesus.

Sometimes I need to remind myself of the miraculous healing that God has done in my life. Especially during a time like this when I am sick, it appears to be getting better although I am feeling worse in the process. God has healed me!!! Not just once, but in 7 different ways. Six were physical healings and the 7th was a spiritual healing. How could I not believe in God's healing power when I've only been sick 3 times this year!

That's My Business

"...Any church involved seriously in serving others must become risk takers. Spiritual risk is the healthy child of biblical faith. It is the day-to-day, responsible, obedient action of the Christian and the church motivated by the love and grace of God. That's our business as the church people of God. We honor God by having enough faith to take some risks in the process of investing in people...But the biggest losers are often those who fail to take any risk, for while they limit their potential for loss, they also have no chance to reap the rewards."
- Gary L. McIntosh, Beyond the First Welcome Visit

Why do we outreach?

Because that's our business as children of God

Why do we witness?

Because that's our business as children of God

Why do we push beyond the four walls of the church?

Because that's our business as children of God

Why do we push out of our comfort zones?

Because that's our business as children of God

We as church people of God have a responsibility to take risk in souls. IT'S OUR BUSINESS. It's our job and we are backed by an Almighty Employer that will supply us with the resources to complete our job, on time. We have a deadline. It's up to us to decide if we are willing to take the risk.

Recovery

I see the light at the end of the tunnel!!! I believe I am on my way to recovery from this sickness that I have had for over two weeks. This is my fourth day on antibiotics and at first I was worried because this morning was worse than yesterday. But my head doesn't feel like I have two freight trains slamming it from different directions. I can think!!! Yes! My cough, however, is not much better so I am praying that it will cease soon. The cough alone will me the death of me. Just Kidding. I am so happy about my head clearing that I had to blog my excitement.

He Gives Us Hope

Hebrews (Amplified)
18) This was so that, by two unchangeable things [His promise and His oath] in which it is impossible for God ever to prove false or deceive us, we who have fled [to Him] for refuge might have mighty indwelling strength and strong encouragement to grasp and hold fast the hope appointed for us and set before [us].
19) [Now] we have this [hope] as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul [it cannot slip and it cannot break down under whoever steps out upon it--a hope] that reaches farther and enters into [the very certainty of the Presence] within the veil,

Guesterize You Church

"Guesterizing your church occurs when you make guests the most important people at your church on Sunday morning. It means responding to their needs in a manner that causes them to enjoy their time with you. It means giving superior service so that they want to move beyond the first visit" -Gary L. McIntosh, Beyond the First Visit

I am not a writer. I like numbers, figures, formulas, logic! I like to know there is an answer at the end of that problem, even if the answer is infinite. So, writing has never come easy to me. I'd rather talk than write. I read an email I wrote when I first started at my job and I couldn't believe how horrible it was. My grammar was atrocious. I started every sentence with "I will".

My boss on the other hand can spit something out in a heartbeat. Seeing how easy it was to her, I asked her if writing has always been her strong point. She said she took a class in college about technical business writing. She had learned in the class that we need to write in a form that our reader can understand. Duh! You would think that would be so easy, but read some of the emails I get at work (including my own) and you'd be amazed.

Well, dealing with our guest has the same logic. Make them feel welcome in a way they understand. Have you been guesterized?

Joy

"For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning."

Psalm 30:5

1 Corinthian 6:19-20

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

A Word

If I may take this moment to have a word with you. It is almost 3:00 in the morning and I have been having personal time with God in prayer. I have tossed and turned all night after I went to bed sick, so I know there is a word that God wants me to share.

When I woke up in bed this morning, God told me to go pray. I pray in my front room which is why I had to "go" pray instead of get down and pray. Well, I didn't want to get out of bed. So I fought it. As I began to cover Anthony up (the nights are getting colder), Anthony in his sleep said "pray". Well if that is not a check in the spirit. So I have been praying.

In my time of prayer, God basically said to me to not worry when only a few people show up to prayer meeting. Think of this as a time for you to have better prayer. With more people there are distractions, when there are two or three you can get down to business.

God is not saying that unifed prayer with the whole church is not powerful, because it is. He is saying not to worry about others because He has a blessing for us and He is granting us the time in prayer with Him.

And the Fruit Tree Yields Fruit

“And God said let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth and it was so.” Genesis 1:11

“For every tree is known by his own fruit…” Luke 6:45


When I was growing up I had an apple tree and an orange tree. I can remember running around the fruit trees or waiting for the next fruit to fall. I remember thinking to myself that if only I could shake the tree the fruit would fall faster. I couldn't wait to see the fruit of that years yield.

My girlfriend has a lemon tree. I remember the first time that I went to pick some lemons and I pricked myself on the thorns. I had no clue that lemon trees had thorns. After she saw me cut myself up, she said one of the boys could get the lemons for me. I think she got a kick out of me looking so helpless. I know I did.

Either way, each tree had a fruit. Each tree yielded fruit of its own kind. I did not find apples on the lemon trees or lemons on the apple trees. The apples were on the apple tree and the apple tree yielded apples each year. The oranges were on the orange tree and that tree yielded oranges each year. The same goes for the lemons or any other fruit yielding tree.

The same also goes for people. Let’s say that the apple is a soul winner, the orange is a prayer warrior and the lemon tree is a gossiper. If each tree yields after is own kind, then the efforts of your yield will show in your harvest. The fruit of a soul winner will likely share the desire of the soul winner. It will have learned the importance of a fruitful yield after seeing year after year of sowing and reaping souls. The genetic make up of this person began with each outreach the parent took them on or each invite one friend saw another friend give. The importance of wining a soul was transcribed into their thinking with each yield. The prayer warrior began to genetically make up the fruit of their yield with each prayer, each moment of intercession, or each time they were seen on their knees crying out to God. Likewise, a gossiper was created with each new piece of gossip. Thorns were placed around the thoughts of that individual and a desire to prick or to hurt were yielded. Each fruit yields after its own kind.

We need fruits of all kinds because some fruit provides a powerful source that another may not contain. For example, a prayer warrior is most effective in prayer, but may not be as effective in giving a bible study. Or a soul winner feels most at ease when witnessing to someone on the street, but may not do as well in working the alter. Each fruit requires water and food to grow, and each fruit will provide you with some essential vitamins. But diversity brings strength and growth and a yield of different kinds. However, we must consciously yield the fruit of the Lord because the fruit of our efforts will yield a product that ends up looking like us.