He took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him and struck the waters and said, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” And when he also had struck the waters, they were divided here and there; and Elisha crossed over. 2 Kings 2:14

Picture this, Elijah had been a mentor and friend to Elisha and suddenly he witnesses him being taken up in a chariot of fire. Can you imagine? Now, he’s left alone with a memory and a mantle that belonged to his friend.

He had seen things, but even before he began following Elijah, he had heard things about this man. A man who knew God and was unafraid to call out his demands. In fact, the previous chapter shows the king sending men to kill Elijah and he called down fire to consume the captain and his 50 men. Boldly confident and trusting in God and unafraid to speak up for what he had a right to.

Is there any wonder that the first thing he does after this is to strike the water and in a bold questioning statement says, “Where is the God of Elijah?” He wasn’t willing to settle for life as it once was, he wanted the double portion of what Elijah carried. The same demands Elijah placed on the power of God, Elisha now requires the same.

And God honors his boldness and the waters divided and Elisha crossed over.

Nothing gets Gods attention like those who have faith in Him.

And Jesus answered saying to them, “Have faith in God. Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you. Mark 11:22-24

You can’t demand things if you don’t believe that God is able. But if you believe and refuse to doubt regardless of what you hear, see or feel, Jesus said it, it will be granted.

Elisha’s demand was not out of line. Neither is yours. God is no respecter of persons and Elisha knew this. The same God that listened to Elijah, listened to him as well. Thus the question was thrown out and the answer tossed back. Basically God was saying, ‘I’ve got your back and will back up what you say.’

And that is what God is saying to you as well, “If you will believe in My power, believe I Am that I Am, what you ask according to My Word will be given to you. Healing, My Word! Provision, My Word. Protection, My Word. Believe in Me.”

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. John 14:12

I see what You’re doing, Father. You’re asking me to surrender all of my unbelief and trust You completely. Alright then. I believe, help my unbelief. I know that You are well able and willing to keep Your word to me. I will place a demand on every financial seed planted for a return on my investment. Not just 7 fold, but a hundred fold return. Signs, wonders and miracles will follow me because I believe. It’s in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

“In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part.” Matthew 6:14-15 MSG

I believe that prayer is an exchange, not just dialog. We can’t download onto God and leave. Thats like having a discussion with only one person talking, never giving the other person a chance to express how they feel.

Many marriages in the world today operate like this and wonder why they’re failing. I call that, selfishness! When I feel my opinion matters more, I devalue the person I’m talking to. If I’m unwilling to listen, I’m unwilling to learn. I’m not always right, even though I may think I am. I need to hear what God has to say. I need to see things the way He sees them, but how can I if I’m the only one talking and I only see part of it?

I’ve seen people want something so badly that they refuse to listen to ANYONE else. They’ve made their minds up that its what they want, they turn their back on the church, the pastor, their leaders and marriages, all for the sake of what they want. 2 years later, they’re miserable, but too proud to admit they made a mistake, they refuse to return, to humble themselves and ask forgiveness.  So they remain stuck in the rut of self deception and sadly, the Deceiver keeps them from receiving everything they need from God.

I want more then that! I want to sit in God’s presence and ask if I’m wrong. I want Him to be honest with me, to correct me, reprove me so that I may be quick to ask forgiveness, to humble myself and say, ‘I’m so sorry!’ I pray as David in Psalm 51, “Have pity on me, O God, in keeping with your mercy. In keeping with your unlimited compassion, wipe out my rebellious acts.” I fall on the Rock of my salvation even though it bruises me as I do, those marks will heal only as I obey.

God’s heavenly throne is eternal, secure, and strong, and his sovereignty rules the entire universe. So bless the Lord, all his messengers of power, for you are his mighty heroes who listen intently to the voice of his word to do it.  Bless and praise the Lord, you mighty warriors, ministers who serve him well and fulfill his desires. I will bless and praise the Lord with my whole heart! Let all his works throughout the earth, wherever his dominion stretches, let everything bless the Lord! Psalm 103:19-22 TPT

Did you know you’re a mighty hero? You are! Those who listen intently to the voice of His Word and sets themselves to do it, are mighty messengers of power and Gods mighty heroes.

Let’s take a few moments to bless and praise the Lord right now. Father, we lift up our voices to worship and adore you. You’re loved. We pour out our love on You this morning and thank You for Your great faithfulness to us. Thank You for Your goodness and grace. Thank You for leading and guiding us into all truth, for showing us we belong to You and the power we possess because of who we are in You.

It’s so important to know how very much we’re loved and needed in His Kingdom. Without our voice, His Word wouldn’t be spoken in the earth. God would have no way to physically touch people without our arms and hands. He needs us every moment of everyday to declare His name in the earth. It’s a partnership. An exchange of value and worth, ours for His.

So today as you live your life, remember that you are His hero each and everyday. He loves you so much and is constantly there for you, blessing and keeping you each step you take. Let Him know how grateful you are.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

The same way a loving father feels toward his children—that’s but a sample of your tender feelings toward us, your beloved children, who live in awe of you. Psalm 103:13 TPT

I was thinking of how much God loves me, how gracious and merciful He is every single day. I’m so grateful. Lord knows I don’t deserve it–none of us do! Yet it’s that very love that we long for. It’s that love that we keeps us seeking to find a way to be near to Him.

My daddy loved his girls! We adopted my brother 4 months before he died, but he was very proud to finally have a son. I was the ‘middle’ child, always in trouble, always pushing the limits, trying his patience. But I never, ever doubted that he loved me.

He mostly loved me with the paddle, but just as Solomon said; If you withhold correction and punishment from your children, you demonstrate a lack of true love. So prove your love and be prompt to punish them. Yeah, I definitely showed he loved me!

So I’m in awe of a God who doesn’t let me get away with anything, but constantly and consistently proves He loves me and desires me to be the best human I can be. My daddy has been out of the picture for over 52 years, but I miss his hugs and his discipline. He was in no wise perfect, but he left me in the care of a heavenly Father who is a perfect Father.

But Lord, your endless love stretches from one eternity to the other, unbroken and unrelenting toward those who fear you and those who bow facedown in awe before you.
Your faithfulness to keep every gracious promise you’ve made passes from parents, to children, to grandchildren, and beyond. Psalm 103:17

“Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; Before they spring forth I tell you of them.” Isaiah 42:9

Those things you’ve been through, the hard things, the things you questioned and asked, “Why?” Yes those things! The sleepless nights, the sense of brokenness, loneliness and loss. Those are the ‘former’ things.

But did you notice He said, “they have come to pass,”? That means they were ordered, necessary, part of a plan that you had no clue was a set up to the new things God is declaring over you today.

Not only that, but BEFORE they happen, He will tell you of them. Did you read that? BFORE they happen, He will tell YOU!

I say to you my wounded friend, those who have been carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders-LET IT GO! God created you for purpose-HIS!!! Surrender your load. Take off your old clothes and put on your new ones. His plan is to bless you, but you’re so focused on what you’ve lost, that you can’t see that you’re standing right smack dab in the middle of the most wonderful things yet.

Father, give us new eyes! Let hope arise in the hearts of Your children as they begin to worship You today and praise You for the past, but rejoice in their future. You always had a plan and even when we were too self absorbed to see it, it was there all the time. We love You Lord and give You the glory for this new road we’re on, because it leads to You. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Little children, you can be certain that you belong to God and have conquered them, for the One who is living in you is far greater than the one who is in the world. They belong to this world and they articulate the spirit of this world, and the world listens to them. But we belong to God, and whoever truly knows God listens to us. Those who refuse to listen to us do not belong to God. That is how we can know the difference between the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit. 1 John 4:4-6 TPT

Have you ever felt frustrated because people weren’t picking up what you were putting down? You can speak the Word of God directly out of the Bible and they just don’t see it? That’s because the spirit of deceit is alive and well in the world. 

How do we deal with that? You don’t! It’s not your job to convince people you’re right and they’re wrong. It’s your job to speak what the Spirit of God says, it’s His job to open their eyes to see, their ears to hear and their heart to obey. You do your job, He will do His. Not in your timing, in His.

I was thinking about Ezekiel 37 this morning. You remember when the Lord took Ezekiel to the valley of dry bones, right? The first thing He asked was, “Can these bones live?” I’m sure Ezekiel was thinking, “Is this a trick question?” At least that’s what I’d of thought. But he answered, “Only You know, Lord!” What came next? God told Ezekiel what to speak to the dry bones.

We don’t know if the seeds we planted are still dead in the ground, but we can speak according to the Word of the Lord and those dead seeds can live again. You can’t see them, they are still in the ground. But we can speak water to the seed, sun to the seed, seed grow! Then watch and see what the Lord will do with that seed. 

This means the one who plants is not anybody special, nor the one who waters, for God is the one who brings the supernatural growth. 1 Corinthians 3:7 TPT

In each circumstance, with each person, your role may be different. The Holy Spirit will show you what to do and when to do it. If you want to be productive in what you do, do it under the leadership and guidance of the Holy Spirit. He alone knows what’s going on and what is needed. You’ll be a whole lot less frustrated if you know you’ve done what you were asked and the rest is up to Him.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

And have you forgotten his encouraging words spoken to you as his children? He said,

These verses took me back to the days of my youth when the hand of my daddy was on me more often than I thought necessary.  But today I stand before you, not a child, but an adult who knows the value of correction! Those days helped me know I was loved. They made me understand the difference between right and wrong and strongly urged me to make right decisions in my future.

I didn’t always love studying the Word until the Holy Spirit began to lead me into truth. The revelation He brought was so sweet that I couldn’t stop reading, couldn’t stop listening, didn’t want to stop doing it.

Those words, “And when he draws you to himself, it proves you are his delightful child.” That’s what He is saying when He draws you in to soak in His presence or speak softly in your spirit. He delights in you. You’re His special treasure.

I’ll take the training for that. I’ll take the correction, the discipline, knowing that I am loved and that You delight in me. Because I’m loved, I can love others who aren’t like me, who don’t agree with me. I can love because Love is in me. I won’t forget the why! I won’t forget that time spent in Your presence overflows onto those around me.

Until Next Time,

Sandy G

So consider carefully how Jesus faced such intense opposition from sinners who opposed their own souls, so that you won’t become worn down and cave in under life’s pressures. After all, you have not yet reached the point of sweating blood in your opposition to sin. Hebrews 12:3-4 TPT

Jesus had a goal, to overcome sin, take it on Himself and become a sacrifice for all sin so that we would no longer be separated from fellowship with God. He went through all of that for you and me. He never gave up. Never quit His mission. He did it for every person on the face of the earth, born and unborn, those who would receive Him and those who would deny Him. Those who would choose to do their own thing and those who would pick up their own cross and follow Him.

We think our life is over when someone unfriend’s us on social media. We get so caught up in the trivial things that we forget our purpose on the earth. And what is that purpose? Love. To be a light in the darkness. To love where there is none. Not as men love, but as God loves.

It’s easy to go to church and love those who love us, but Jesus didn’t call us to church. He called us to Love out there, in the world. We’ve become soft. Perhaps there is a reason behind the closing down of churches the past few months. We’re no longer relying on others to make us feel good about God, we are seeking to know God on our own.

Love in it’s very essence is active. It doesn’t sit idly by when there are things to do. They feed the hungry. They heal the sick. They raise the dead. They’re unafraid of failure, for they know that Love wins every time. It knows that when evil is present, love conquers all.

Where Love goes, it changes the atmosphere so that faith can grow. It causes people to hunger for truth. If you want to be a difference maker, let Love have it’s final work in you.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

Your hand-to-hand combat is not with human beings, but with the highest principalities and authorities operating in rebellion under the heavenly realms. For they are a powerful class of demon-gods and evil spirits that hold^[c] this dark world in bondage. Ephesians 6:12

Spiritual warfare is not fighting to get a victory as humans do. It’s contending for the victory Jesus already won for us. It’s not begging God for what you need, it’s reminding your enemy what God’s already provided. It’s neither asking God to heal us, but reminding the thief what was done when Jesus took those stripes on His back.

So often I see Christians talking about the problems they see in the world, but they don’t speak to them. Let me remind you of this; your victory and outcome will be determined by your prayer time not your social media time. If you’re speaking just to be heard, or if you’re trying to convince others of the ‘truth’, your words will fall on deaf ears unless they’ve been saturated in prayer and God’s released you to say it.

When your territory is being threatened, hold up the shield of faith, grab the sword of the spirit (Word of God) and remind the thing that’s threatening you that its a done deal. Don’t suffer silently when the power of life and death is in your tongue.

If you own a home but someone came and told you its not yours, what would you do? More then likely, you would show them your title deed and be done with it. But what if they didn’t leave? What if they got a corrupt lawyer who had a sheriff in his pocket and they tried to evict you from your home? I’m sure you would think it was a nightmare, right? The thought of having to hire a lawyer and go to court for something you own is ludicrous.

Yet we have handed over our title deed of healing and provision. We just accept every accusation that Satan throws at us. We’re easy to deceive because we don’t pick up our Bible and find our promises. Jesus, our advocate, intercedes for us night and day and we feel we don’t have to do a thing. We get upset and angry at what is happening around us, but we’re too lazy to contend for what is already ours.

Lord, forgive me for my many sins. For my anger over things I’m unwilling to stand in the gap and pray over. For being too busy reading the problem, fretting over the problem and talking about the problem, that I’ve closed my mouth of authority and power over all the power of the enemy.

As I sit in Your presence this morning, cause me to have eyes to see, ears to hear and a heart to obey. I can’t speak for anyone but me, but I will be Your mouthpiece in the earth over the things that are troubling. I will trouble the trouble and call things that be not as though they are. You are well able to keep what I’ve committed to You.

Principalities and powers, demonic forces that have been loosed over this nation, the spirit of lawlessness in the hearts of men and women and complacency in the body of Christ. I serve you notice to cease and desist from your evil plans. I call the Kingdom of God onto earth. May the church, Your bride, wake up and take up her lamp, being a light for all to see. It’s in Jesus’ name and for Your glory I pray, Amen.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

“But forget all that–it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” Isaiah 43:18-19 NLT.

VISION- its what God intended each of us to live with. He even said that if we don’t have vision we would die. About 20+ years ago while at a prayer retreat, I had another kind of vision. It was the face of Jesus like he was peering through the ceiling. He spoke these words to me, “Keep your eyes on me! I will direct your steps.”

I’ve had plenty opportunities to focus on what was going on around me. For someone with A.D.D., distracted is a way of life! I believe that our focus determines our direction which determines our success. When my focus remains fixed on Jesus and I follow closely behind him, the road he makes for me will be a road I would not have seen or chosen had I gone alone.

I love that about the Lord. My journey is always new, exciting and adventuresome. Trust me when I say that keeping my eyes on him has been an adventure! He does not stand still for long. 🙂

Your walk with God has the potential to take you where you’ve never been, doing things you’d never imagine doing. It’s your choice, but who better to do exciting things with than God.

Moses never imagined that his journey would take him into the very presence of God. David went from keeping sheep to slaying a giant to reining as king.

Every great adventure in the Bible had an invitation and a ‘yes’ involved before the story took place. Are you in a position to hear, answer and step outside your comfort zone to engage in God’s adventure with you?