Some of us need to wear a sign; Caution, Hot Steam! Because when we vent, we’re just plain mean! We don’t care what we say or how it affects others. If it feels good, do it!

Have you noticed how many people are infected with anger? I’m no expert, but I do know that anger is an emotion. The dictionary defines it as; a strong feeling of displeasure and belligerence aroused by a wrong. That pretty much sums it up right there. If we feel we’ve been wronged in any way, we get angry.

Driving seems to bring out extreme anger in everyone. If you’re reading this and haven’t experienced that, please tell me your secret. I’ve been praying and someone cuts me off in traffic and I immediately yell, “OMG, are you blind! Jerk!” I laughed when I realized how quickly I went from ‘holy’ to ‘unholy’. Busted! That’s called venting.

So I woke up at 2:30am because Walts c-pap mask was whistling and I just couldn’t go back to sleep. It’s not his fault, right? I mean, he didn’t intentionally make it whistle like a tea kettle and wake me out of a sound sleep. I nudged him gently the first 3 times, but the 4th time, I felt like pushing him out of bed. I didn’t! But I wanted to!

As I lay there begging God to PLEASE help me fall back to sleep, I felt the Lord stirring me into a word study about anger, how to correctly handle it like He would. The first thing I thought of was the whining children of Israel and how the earth opened and swallowed them up. It made me so very thankful that Jesus became our mediator or I’m pretty sure we’d see more of that!

Psalm 4:4 says, “Be angry, and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still.” That right there is the hardest thing to do. To lay quiet and think it through before you open your mouth. I believe the venting part is what gets us into trouble. When we spew our venom on everyone around us because we’ve been wronged, people get burned.  If you’ve ever had a steam burn, you’ll understand this, because when you vent a boiling pot, whoever is standing in the way will feel the affect of it.

Make a choice to think the best, not the worst. When something you can’t control causes anger to boil up in you, take a deep breath and release it to the Father. Choose to forgive and walk in love. No, it’s not easy. Sometimes it’s near impossible, but it’s all based on what and how you choose to think about it. I personally don’t want to carry someone else’s anger with me.

I believe what we do with our anger is what causes us to sin. If we become hurtful to others, we’re not walking in love, we’re not forgiving and those were two HUGE things Jesus said to do. You may remember what was done to you, but if each time you think about it, those angry feelings accompany it, you haven’t forgiven. When you can discuss it without those feelings attached to it, you’ve allowed the healing balm of love to destroy it’s hold on you.

Father, I’m sure I’ve caused people to be angry with me. Please forgive me! I ask that whoever I’ve offended or hurt with my words would find healing in Your word. I know I’ve definitely vented more often than I should have. For all who have been steam burned by my venting, I ask forgiveness. I release all these emotions to You, Lord. I humbly ask You to continue teaching me how to deal with all of this so that Your love would show through more than anything else. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

I’ve always been a proponent of healthy thinking! The bible is so clear about becoming what we think on and meditate on. As a man thinks in his heart, so is he! When someone comes to me and tells me they’re discouraged, depressed or distraught, the first thing I ask them is, “What have you been thinking about?”

Colossians 3:15 ERV just happened to be the verse of the day, but wow. When I read it, I realized that is exactly what I was thinking about today. “Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking. It is for peace that you were chosen to be together in one body. And always be thankful.”

Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because He trusts in You.” You can’t say you trust God if you’re worried and freaked out about what you see in your natural realm. Trust in God is the only way to have and keep your peace.

I can be having a panic attack about a situation or something God is prompting me to do. The minute I focus on God and speak what HE says instead of what I see, peace rushes in to my heart and changes the external things I face, or puts them in perspective. I challenge you to train yourself to think on the promises of God each time something threatens your peace.

Be Prepared

Living in Florida, we’re always under threats of hurricanes. You can’t wait till the last minute to stock up on supplies or you’ll be hard pressed to find things on the shelves. In the same sense, don’t wait for a crisis before you get what you need to get through it. Begin a word study right now and begin writing scriptures down that you can access in time of distress or temptation. Whatever you’re facing, there’s a Word for that!

If you’re facing a financial issue, go to your favorite bible app and pull up the word supply. Write down each verse that applies, or copy paste it to a word document. Title it, Provision, then each time you’re tempted to panic, pull it out and read it out loud so your ears can hear it. “My God will supply all my need according to HIS riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” I belong to Jesus, so I’m provided for. You can even write up a prayer using the Word and declare it over your finances.

Father, I take time today to flush my mind of all thoughts that are not of You. I speak Your word today over my spirit, soul, mind and body, and I say, line up with what the Word says about you! You are more than a conqueror! You are a king and priest before the Lord and your words have power over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will by any means hurt or harm you. As I renew my mind, I thank You that peace is mine, prosperity is mine, healing is mine. Whatever I need, You’ve already provided. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Have you ever been in a crowded and noisy place and distinctly heard your name? I was at the mall a while ago and that happened to me. I turned around to search for the person responsible, their voice sounded so familiar.

I woke up this morning to a familiar voice. No, not Walt, I heard the Spirit of God nudge me awake so we could just love on each other. Psalms 3:4, David sayid, “I cried to the LORD with my voice, And He heard me from His holy hill.” Again in Psalm 120:1, “In my distress I cried to the LORD, And He heard me.” and Jonah 2:2, “I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction, and He answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, And You heard my voice.”

How exciting! It doesn’t matter how you cry out, he hears! How awesome is that! Whisper his name, Jesus. Call out his name, Jesus. SHOUT OUT HIS NAME, JESUS! It doesn’t matter how you say it, be assured he will come running to rescue you, provide comfort, healing, deliverance, whatever you need at that moment, he’s your ‘go-to guy’!

As I type this, I’m full and overflowing with the joy of his sweet presence. Just do it. Close your eyes and say his name over and over. See what I mean? He’s only waiting for you to call his name. No agenda! No requests! Just his name and no other. He said if you seek me you will find me if you seek me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13) His presence is all we need! Enjoy him today as he enjoys you.

Father, I’m so thankful for Your son, Jesus, who loved me so much that He gave His life for me. I cherish that wonderful, beautiful and matchless name, Jesus. No other name can do what that name does. This morning as we meet, I just want to say thank You for the gift of life You’ve given me, and I offer mine back to You, to serve You wherever You see fit. May I be a reflection of Your compassion and love. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Matthew 11:28-30 ERV, “Come to me all of you who are tired from the heavy burden you have been forced to carry. I will give you rest. Accept my teaching. Learn from me. I am gentle and humble in spirit. And you will be able to get some rest. Yes, the teaching that I ask you to accept is easy. The load I give you to carry is light.”

I love these words that Jesus spoke. It was an invitation to the Jews that there was a better way, an easier way, that way was Jesus. They had struggled so long to keep the law that could not be kept, forcing them to make sacrifices for their sins. Jesus offered a complete, one time sacrifice-Himself. His teachings were of love, peace, patience, kindness, humility and meekness.

This morning as I thought of the many times I’ve struggled with personal weaknesses, inner turmoil, impatience, anger and a plethora of other emotions, it occurred to me that in trying to work it all out myself, I was not accepting the sacrifice He made for me. Each time I took it into my hands and worked to make it happen, I was saying, “I got this!” But when I took my hands off and said, “Please take this!” He worked and I rested.

My thoughts have always been, “I can’t just give up and let go! God expects me to something!” But the truth is, He really wants me to rest in the work He’s already done for me. He did it so I wouldn’t have to. Why can’t I get that through my thick skull!  Because if I just give up, I’m admitting defeat. I can’t just lay down and die! But isn’t that what I need to do?

It’s ok to trade our sorrows for joy but our control for His? Complete and total trust in an unseen God? It’s ok to ask for help on things we can’t do in ourselves, right? But if we’re able, we shouldn’t bother God with it. Not true at all, is it. Everything we need for life is found in Him. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Jesus, I accept Your teaching. “Just as I am without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me. And that thou bidst me come to thee. Oh Lamb of God I come. I come.” I take what You offered, the complete sacrifice for all my sins. I yield and submit my life with all of the bad and good. I relinquish control. I relinquish my inabilities for Your ability. My plan for Your plan. Today, I commit myself to Your rest and I thank You. Amen

Revelation 14:13 ERV; Then I heard a voice from heaven. It said, “Write this: From now on there are great blessings for those who belong to the Lord when they die.” The Spirit says, “Yes, that is true. They will rest from their hard work. What they have done will stay with them.”

Psalm 34:19 says, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

I love that word, all. It’s encompassing and uncompromising. No exceptions. Everything and nothing less than. No buts, if, ands or maybes. No, at times. Never is not in there.

Although it comes with a guarantee, it is not without a key ingredient; TRUST. Proverbs 3:5-6 says; Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. 

So there are three things I’d like you to see and meditate on today:

1. ALL
2. TRUST
3. LISTEN

You will have afflictions, but listen to the voice of the Lord, trust Him in everything, He will deliver you and direct your steps. Whatever you’re going through, God knows. He simply wants you to step into His presence and worship Him, trust Him even when it doesn’t make sense and don’t do a thing until you’ve heard from Him and received direction.

Father, I’m right in the middle of ‘this makes no sense’ and ‘nevertheless’. I will turn on my GPS and give you control. You can see up ahead when I cannot. You know the plans You have for me and I trust in You. There is nothing and no one who will ever come close to loving and caring for me as You do. I give You complete control of my life. ALL. For Your glory and honor and in the name of Your son Jesus, Amen.

Yesterday morning before heading to church, I was spending some time meditating on the Lords faithfulness, goodness and mercy, silently dialoging with His Spirit. Suddenly I heard this verse, found in John 12:24, “It is a fact that a grain of wheat must fall to the ground and die before it can grow and produce much more wheat. If it never dies, it will never be more than a single seed.”

I can hold onto a single seed forever, but it won’t produce until I plant it. It’s not enough to feed one person, let alone a family. Some of us have looked at seeds as a way to feed us, but God had much bigger plans in mind when He talked about the seed. There is purpose in the seed, but it can only be realized when you release it into the ground. Most of us want to be in control instead of releasing it. We become hoarders instead of trusters.

I’m guilty! It’s hard sometimes to release our last bit of control of something God has asked us to let go of.  Mothers have an especially hard time with this. The extreme difficulty of releasing children into a wicked world when we just want to protect them and hold on to them. But that’s not healthy, is it? We must release them and trust the Father to watch over them and keep them. We must trust God with what He has loaned us, knowing that what we’ve invested in them will return a hundred fold, now, in this lifetime.

Everything God places in our hands is not ours to keep. Sometimes we don’t know the DNA of a seed until we plant it. Truth is, until we release what’s in our hands, we will never know the fruit it will yield. So today, let go of your seed. Every prayer you’ve prayed, every child you’ve raised, everything God’s given you, release it and watch and see what God will do with it.

Father, thanks for the seed! I release it to You today. I refuse to go check on it or dig it up to see it’s progress. I will wait patiently for the time when it comes back and brings fruit with it. It will be a lifetime food source, this seed. I will use it to feed others and cause them to grow and trust You with their seed as well. It’s in Jesus name I pray, Amen.

My heart was very troubled this morning by everything going on post election. I was led to read Ephesians 4 and wondered if Paul had actually seen ahead to our day. Let me remind you of what he said;

“I have something from the Lord to tell you. I warn you: Don’t continue living like those who don’t believe. Their thoughts are worth nothing. They have no understanding, and they know nothing because they refuse to listen. So they cannot have the life that God gives. They have lost their feeling of shame and use their lives to do what is morally wrong. More and more they want to do all kinds of evil. But that way of life is nothing like what you learned when you came to know Christ. I know that you heard about him, and in him you were taught the truth. Yes, the truth is in Jesus. You were taught to leave your old self. This means that you must stop living the evil way you lived before. That old self gets worse and worse, because people are fooled by the evil they want to do. You must be made new in your hearts and in your thinking. Be that new person who was made to be like God, truly good and pleasing to him.”

And again in 2 Timothy 3:1-5;

“Remember this: There are some terrible times coming in the last days. People will love only themselves and money. They will be proud and boast about themselves. They will abuse others with insults. They will not obey their parents. They will be ungrateful and against all that is pleasing to God. They will have no love for others and will refuse to forgive anyone. They will talk about others to hurt them and will have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. People will turn against their friends. They will do foolish things without thinking and will be so proud of themselves. Instead of loving God, they will love pleasure. They will go on pretending to be devoted to God, but they will refuse to let that “devotion” change the way they live. Stay away from these people!”

I didn’t write it, Paul did. Let me say this to those who may say, ‘Walk in love! Accept! They don’t mean it! They’re just hurt. We need to be in unity!’ Paul says, “Stay away from these people!” We are Love if the Holy Spirit lives in us. We must ALWAYS walk in love! But in the last days, there will be a clear dividing line between believers and unbelievers. Stop trying to ‘fit’ in. Who you yield yourself (your spirit) to, you will be obedient to that master.

If you find yourself being sucked into the masses, turn around and walk the other way. It’s far better to be trampled in the crowd headed toward hell, than to follow blindly because you don’t want to ‘stand out’. Hot or cold, no lukewarm. Do not tolerate evil! And that can come in the form of a religious spirit as well. It’s time to stand for God and God alone! Love shines bright in any crowd, but that love should be healing the sick, raising the dead and casting out demons. Take that, devil!

Father, I forgive the hateful words of others. I pray blessings on them! Forgive them, they don’t know what they’re doing. I ask Your Holy Spirit to show them the error of their ways and that Your love would be so bright, it would blind them so that they could see the truth and it would set them free. Father, I pray for President Obama as he leaves office. Protect him and give him wisdom. For President Elect Trump, that You would give him wisdom in the days ahead. That YOU would make America great again. Humble us and bring us to our knees as a nation, that we may serve You only. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Romans 8:16-17 GW-The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  If we are his children, we are also God’s heirs. If we share in Christ’s suffering in order to share his glory, we are heirs together with him.

So many people aren’t sure of anything. They’re not sure of the future. What’s going to happen to our nation, our rights. Will what we have be taken from me? But let me assure you of one thing; if you are a child of God and the Spirit of God lives in you, you are an heir of God and a joint heir with Christ. There’s a promise you can hold onto! You may share space in this world, but be assured, you are not of this world!

Let’s not forget what Christ suffered while he was on the earth. Rejection, ridicule, attempts on His life, betrayal, and misunderstandings. Religious leaders tried to trick and trap Him, laughed and mocked Him. He was spit on, slapped and beaten. Took 49 lashes that peeled the skin from His back. Suffered at the hands of the very ones He gave His life for. And this verse says that if you’ve suffered anything like this, you will also share in His glory.

Being an heir means you have access to the good stuff. You don’t have to live in poverty anymore. You don’t have to be sick anymore. You have access to everything Jesus has to give you, all you have to do is receive it. Come boldly to the throne of grace that you may obtain mercy and find grace or favor in your time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

Thank You Lord for saving me and setting me free from the curse. I submit myself to your Lordship. If I must suffer because You suffered, You will give me the strength I need to make the journey. I trust in You. You said You’d never leave me nor forsake me and You have not. My hope is in You. I wait patiently for You because what You started, You will finish. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Psalms 63:1-8 NLV “O God, You are my God. I will look for You with all my heart and strength. My soul is thirsty for You. My flesh is weak wanting You in a dry and tired land where there is no water. So I have seen You in the holy place. And I have seen Your power and Your shining-greatness. My lips will praise You because Your loving-kindness is better than life. So I will give honor to You as long as I live. I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul will be filled as with rich foods. And my mouth praises You with lips of joy. On my bed I remember You. I think of You through the hours of the night. For You have been my help. And I sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings. My soul holds on to You. Your right hand holds me up.”

The greatest gift God gives me is his Word. I love it more than life. It brings such peace, joy and contentment. In the middle of so much strife in the world, I know that when I call, He answers me. I’m never alone-NEVER! I can close my eyes in the middle of the fiercest storm and tune into His voice. It speaks peace and calms my soul.

What about you? Is God the first thing you think about in the morning? Do you think of Him in the night? What do you feed on for breakfast? Is physical food the only thing you devour? Are you constantly praising Him? Do you remind yourself of what the Lord has done for you? Is your focus on the problem or on the problem solver? Are you so wrapped up in how bad things are that you forget the goodness of the Lord?

Lord, I thank You for Your Word. It is alive. It is enough. As I feed on You and Your Word, show me great things that I don’t have revelation of yet because I want to know more and more of You. There are so many things I don’t know yet but I desire to know of You. You are my King, You are my Lord, You are all I need. Bless Israel, oh Lord. Help me to remember that today it’s about You, Lord. Not the elections, political agendas or media mayhem. As you said in Psalm 91, I will look on, but it won’t affect me because You are my dwelling place. I will hold fast to my peace.

Psalm 138:1-3, I will praise You with my whole heart; Before the gods I will sing praises to You. I will worship toward Your holy temple, and praise Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word above all Your name. In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul.

Praise, it’s the oil in us that lubricates the atmosphere and invites the presence of God. It’s what reminds our spirits just Who is in charge. Regardless of the chaos that appears, it’s our worship that restores peace.

Have you ever been through a battle that totally wiped you out? I have! Do you know what I did? I forced myself to my feet and began to give Him praise. It was hard at first. I didn’t ‘feel’ like it at all. I just wanted to pull a blanket over my head and lay down. But the Holy Spirit reminded me that I was still here, still standing, and that as long as He was in me, I’d have the power over the enemy every time. Wow! That made me praise Him even more.

We seem to forget that we’ve not been promised NO battles; we’ve been promised the victory, something we must fight for. Verses 7-8 says; Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and Your right hand will save me. The Lord will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever; Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

Thank You Lord that You are with me. Though the battle has been real and I stand before You this morning extremely weary, yet YOU are my deliverer, my fortress, in YOU I will trust. YOU have extended Your hand to me and lifted me from despair. YOU are my shield, my strong tower. YOU revive me so that I may continue to praise and worship You this day. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.