Morning prayer

I am sitting in a starbucks slowly sopping on a medium hot chocolate and reminiscing on Sunday's message about the spiritual discipline of silence and solitude. In my mind, I also have thoughts about Robin Williams and the suicide. A co-worker told me knife marks were found on his hands and something about a belt being used. It hurts because I wonder what desperation and what pain could make someone want to think about taking their own life. These are the people I want to encourage. Some people might look at the rich and famous and think that they have it all and live perfect lives. I look at them and I think that they are as human as all of us, but have to deal with living up to a supreme image of having everything all together. And if something in their lives should go wrong they fall under the condemnation and judgement not just of one or two opinions, but thousands, only to try to reshape themselves and get back to work to forever live up to a supreme image. How burdensome! I remember praying for success. By the time I was in fifth or sixth grade there was more or less three famous options I grappled with: to be a famous writer, athlete or singer, but  my worldview of fame, seeing Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and all these other mega stars meant countless trips to Disney land, All you can Eat Buffets and graduating from wearing hand me downs.

My favourite movie from Robin Williams was the classic Mrs. Doubtfire. I previewed some youtube videos of him and watch him so happy and rejoicing when he won an Oscar. I love seeing people smile. I am reminded in his smile how his soul and life is precious to God. Every soul, every life! I pray for the rich and the famous because they are just like everyone else, the only difference is the money and assets which can cause a divide in relationships and other problems. |

Lord I pray for those that are hurting or that feel desperate and see no way out of their circumstance. Whisper truth into their ears that you love them and gave your only son Jesus to die for them and that life is not found in the abundance of things. No amount of clothes, shopping, food, money or even family or friends can make someone happy, but there is a Creator who created each and everyone of us to be in relationship with them. And if they are searching for something, just try you. Tell God everything on your heart and ask Him to come into your life and change your heart. Be honest and don't think that your wrongdoings, mistakes or sins make you unworthy to ask for forgiveness or to talk to God. Prayer is talking to God. There is no secret formula to it.

Well, as my whip cream has now melted into the hot chocolate and the hot chocolate is becoming warm, I would consider it time for me to go and head onto work.

Lord give me strength-I want to do things in your strength with the help of the Holy Spirit and not mine because then I just get frustrated and at times where mercy should be rendered I don't render it. Lord help me to love as you do and as I begin my day and think about all that I have to do I know that worry is not an option.

This has become my new verse that I will have to memorize and just let grow inside of me as I have often been known to be anxious:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition present your requests to God.

And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

I AM READY

I thank you that you are always here and you promise never to leave me or forsake me and that's what I love best. I love that I can trust you and you remain that beam of hope in my darkest times. This world today there is no surprise it is chaotic. Lord sync my heart with yours  to be passionate about those things you are passionate about. I thank you for those gifts and ideas that you have instilled within me and given me to use for the ministry and I pray that all those who love you will rise up and not be complacent in their faith, including myself, but will use them to demonstrate your love and share the gospel with others. Lord we want to be a people that demonstrate not only in words but in deeds. Lord we want to be a people that are on fire for you and not cold or lukewarm. I want your love to resonate and revival to burn all over the world bringing people to you. Give me eyes that see time as opportunity, time as limited, time as needing to be redeemed and people as wanting to be loosed from whatever bondage of pain, depression, homelessness, or whatever bondage they are in. I pray that in everything I will not dear but once entertain ideas of thinking of myself highly and if the slightest thought or temptation yet comes into my mind, bring scripture to mind that I might recite everyone has fallen short of the glory of God that I may be reminded of my human frame, but as I see humility and above all wisdom grant me those desires of my heart. I want to change people's perspectives on life I will go in the power and might of the Lord and not in my strength which is useless. I believe I can and will do all those things that you have called me to do not in my own effort but through Christ who strengthens me. Most importantly Lord I AM READY

to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
    and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

(Luke 4:18-19)

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

When things go utterly wrong or just not the way I expect them to go, I will give God thanks because I know that it's an opportunity for me to trust God more, although I must trust Him everyday, but when things go wrong I have to really just remind myself that God knows why things are the way they are or why certain expectations don't get fulfilled.

Sadly today I made a promise based on an expectation that I really thought would be met. Unfortunately, I didn't get the opportunity I was hoping to get. I still know that God is a God of possibilities, so instead of complaining or sulking I say thank you God and I'll see how you will bring me through this stage in my life. I know your Grace is sufficient.

short prayer

I think about the future and I don't really know Lord where to turn or what to think. Refresh me! I want to know you on a deeper level and just learn how to rely on you in everything. Restore your favour! Grant the desires of my heart according to your will in Christ Jesus. 

Shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you'll land among the stars

This week I was watching a video and I noted the inspirational saying if you shoot for the moon, even if you don't get to the moon you'll land among the stars. This saying means so much to me because it speaks about determination and having a mindset to persevere and aim high. There have been times in my life where I set my expectations so low because I just thought I wasn't good enough in comparison to others, but I have always had this determination despite failures to get back up again when life threw its stones at me. This week I have made a decision to shoot for the moon, to always shoot for the moon in everything, even when I feel less qualified because God works in mysterious ways and as I continue to change my mindset to think like a champion that will allow me to live life like a champion. Well, this is my thought for today!

Reflections 2014 -Lies the Enemy Told

Time is the one thing we can waste, but can never get back...once it is gone , it is gone. I am not sure where I am in my faith journey. I pray for a rekindling of love in my life. I want to love God with all my heart, mind and soul so and others unconditionally. There have been some rough times in my walk with the Lord and times where I feel I almost abandoned our relationship because of distractions. God I am asking you to be the center of my life, the middle, the core. I want to know you on a deeper level than ever before. I know I haven't been the best Christian and I have stumbled at times. I came to the point where I was ready just to throw in the towel because I thought every mistake I was making was only proving how bad I was and only bringing you shame. I had difficulty admitting I was wrong or at fault and put on a mask that I didn't make mistakes as a Christian. The more I made mistakes, the more guilty I felt the more I tried to avoid blame and justify my actions to save my goal of a perfect image.

Not only that, but I couldn't keep up with the idea of failing at anything. I was becoming concerned about what others think and not realizing that I couldn't live my life worrying about what others thought about me. Otherwise I would always be trying to live to make others happy, which is impossible, suppressing myself as a unique person and living a miserable life.

I am coming to that realization now and truly understanding that I am unique, and God has designed me with a uniqueness as God has designed everyone else with their own special qualities. In moments of silence and deep reflection I understand I can't make everyone happy and that not everyone will like me or be a friend. I am now realizing that only what God thinks of me should matter and be the final word.

For the majority of my life and as long as I can remember I have lived in fear of something and I haven't really expressed myself as an individual. I think back to my early childhood years in the first and second and maybe third grade where I had the imagination, personality, and belief that I could conquer it all. So what happened?

Over the years I gave into lies and thoughts that I could never be any more than my current situations. My family struggled and although I found a love and passion for the creative arts in the midst of my struggles, I battled with believing I could succeed. Finances were not on my side, I only held onto dreams and visions and missions to do something great in this world. Someday I was going to be writer that would win big and write the best seller book of all time.

Yes! many a times I talked myself out of writing. I compared myself to others too much and kept thinking I was too old to do anything as I aged gracefully. I said I couldn't do it and that I couldn't be like other professionals that had made it big. The thought was partially true: I COULD NOT be them because I COULD only be me.

I can only be the person who God created ME to be. I also heard that what we think and tell ourselves, what we feed our minds is what we begin to believe. It is kind of like the self fulfilling prophecy isn't it? r Well, I had began to believe that I wouldn't surmount to the highest of highs, and that my achievements were only temporary, it could never blossom into anything more.

[BREATHE] A new start for me and I have said this many times before, but now I realize I have nothing to lose and everything to gain for living with a renewed perspective, for being honest with myself about my insecurities, for letting God take control. I can only count a single moment in life where I decided to give God full control, but then took hold of the drivers wheel and tried to steer my life in another direction when the obstacles came.

I have decided not to feed into the lies of I can't and only believe that I can from now on. My favourite scripture is Phil 4:13 I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me and I believe this wholeheartedly.

Most importantly, I have decided to be honest with who I was, who I am and what I desire to be. I will not be a follower, but I will be that natural born leader that God has created me to be. I have decided to communicate with my Heavenly Father about everything, since He knows it already.

I want my prayer to God to be even stronger than before, than the time I prayed for this mysterious man. I say mysterious because I didn't even know him, but after reading an account on an accident he had  and the pleas from a friend for donations to cover hospital and travel costs after the man had slipped into a coma. I prayed that night...Remember Lord? It was the first time I felt a sense of real power. I can't put it into words, but I was telling God to wake him up and believing that God was right there hearing my prayer, like I was talking to a friend in person.

I was happy to hear the man had later woke up and came  out of his coma and I was encouraged knowing that prayers had been answered. I was determined to pray my way through everything from then on. Lord, I want to go beyond and deeper in living by faith, until that day my faith literally becomes sight.

Lord, help me to use the gifts and passions you have blessed me with, not only me but for everyone to realize that God has created them uniquely. May my writing serve to glorify your name, to encourage the discouraged, to bring people out of depression, to touch hearts, to melt hearts, to inspire and motivate, to do everything possible and most importantly to show people that there is a God that loves them and wants a relationship with them. I will not give into any lies of the past, present or the lies that I may rear their ugly heads in the future. I will not tell myself lies or feel guilty by lies the enemy told. I will live from this day forth and from now on in the re newness of mind and see each day as if it is were my last and live each day as if it were my last so that I can begin to live for what really matters: YOU. Amen!