WHERE IS YOUR FAITH

Here’s Petey! ❤

MATTHEW 6:25-33

Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?

28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

More often than not, when I hear people speak or when I am reading I hear what I call, “TITLES” in my head. This morning while reading it happened again. What I read was, “Where is you faith,” but what I heard was “Where IS you Faith?” Is your faith in yourself? Is in the government, your job, your bank account, your friends, or is it in GOD?

So many times because of disappointments, distractions, and let downs we tend to lose our faith in God or we just lay it aside not really realizing that it was ever missing. When we do that we unknowingly are putting our faith in ourselves or other things and not in God. Through the distractions and disappoints that arise in our lives the enemy has lulled us in to putting our shield of faith down. God does not want us worrying about anything at all. I know that is a hard thing to comprehend sometimes especially when life is hitting you hard but its the truth. We see from the scripture God is saying, “What are you worrying for, if I can feed the birds, if I can clothe the fields with beautiful flowers, then surely I can handle what you need.” Its our job to BELIEVE that, to put our faith and trust in Him and His word.

Philippians 4:19 And My God shall Supply ALL my needs according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus.

So today, I challenge you to ask yourself, “Where IS my faith, where did I lay it down?”

CHANTEEA

HAPPY “RE” NEW YEAR!

HAPPY "RE" NEW YEAR!.

HAPPY “RE” NEW YEAR!

Do not remember the former things nor consider the things of old. Isa 43:18

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Phil 2:5

Happy “RE”New Year!! I actually started this blog on New Years Day but due to unforeseen events I could not finish it. So January 2 was my second attempt to “RE” start what I had already started, and I was well on my way, got to the end of the blog and hit the wrong button and LOST IT ALL!!! So here I sit having to “RE” do it all over again!! Isn’t that where we find ourselves at the end of every year. Having to “RE”start things we had already started in the beginning of the year?

The prefix “RE” means to do again, to start over, or to turn around. Ha! Ha! Ha! Jokes on me right! God sure does have a sense of humor. At the end of every year we sit down and “RE”view the previous year. The progress we made, the obstacles we did or didn’t overcome. The promises we made to ourselves that we kept or didn’t keep. We make New Year “RE”solutions to better ourselves in the upcoming New Year. We are going to lose that extra 50 pounds, we are going to get out of debt, finish school, etc, etc,…But aren’t those the same goals we had in previous years? I mean seriously, take a look back over your life right now and ask yourself, “Just how many of those goals have I actually accomplished?” Do you find yourself having to begin all over again on goals that you set in the beginning of last year? Why do we have to keep “RE”starting over again every year? Good question, the answer is YOU CAN NOT BEGIN A NEW YEAR WITH AND OLD MIND. If you take your old mindset into the new year the only thing that will have changed is the date on the calendar.

The Lord spoke to me and said in 2013, THE NEW IS UP TO YOU!!! If you want to experience a NEW YEAR like never before then YOU have to do something about it! God had already given us everything we need to succeed in life. First of all He sent His Son Jesus to die on the Cross so that we could have eternal life. (John 3:16) With the acceptance of Christ and what He has done for us, we gain a NEW life and a clean slate. That’s called “RE”pentance. We have turned from the way we were living before we accept Christ and the sacrifice He made for us and we have a chance to start fresh. All the mistakes we made, are making, or are gonna make are forgiven.

Secondly, He has given us His word, with which we must “RE”new our minds. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the “RENEWING” of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Rom 12:2) The word of God has the ability to give us a NEW mind. Our old ways of thinking and doing things will change once we “RE” make our mind over with what the word of God says about us. When our minds are changed our lives will change. There is Power in the Word of God, but in order to experience that power working in our lives we have to work the word. How do you do that, you ask?

Your mind and life will be “RE” made over as you read and speak the word over your circumstances. Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. (Prov 18:21) You must search the Word of God for the scriptures that pertain to your situation and start speaking them over your life even when it looks like nothing is happening. On January 1, when I sat down to begin this blog the unforeseen circumstance wanted me to bring my old mind into the New year. The thoughts that I was having were screaming, “this year is gonna be just like last year, you are not gonna see anything different just more of the same struggle and fight, BUT, THE DEVIL IS A LIAR AND AIN’T NO TRUTH IN HIM! I know what promises God has given me concerning certain situations so when circumstances arise that scream otherwise its my job to STAND on what the Word says, even if I have to do so with tears in my eyes. You see its important that you watch your words and not speak against what God has promised. That is exactly what the enemy wanted me to do that day. He wanted me to agree with him that the only thing that had changed was the date on the calendar, he wanted me to give up on coming back and starting this blog all over again. He made sure I didn’t have the time to do it either. I may have had to wait a couple of days but you can best believe God had a plan.

IF you want to experience the newness of 2013 then you must realize that the “NEW IS UP TO YOU!” You must realize the new has to begin in your mind. Make a decision to search the word and watch your life change for the better.

Father God,

We come before You now asking You to forgive us where we have fallen short. We thank You for the gift of Your Son, as well as Your Grace and mercy. God the Your Word says that YOUR Grace is sufficient for us and YOUR strength is made perfect in our weaknesses. Help us God to accept that and press on towards the life You have predestined us to live. Empower us with Your spirit that we may do what we know to do when the enemy comes against us. Give us wisdom in all areas of our lives as we walk in the NEWNESS of this NEW year. Help us to realize that every test we have walked through in 2012 will bring forth a testimony to encourage someone else in 2013. We thank you for keeping us and all that You have done for us in the past, present and future in Jesus Name AMEN!

THE NEW IS UP TO YOU!!!!
CHANTEEA

IT’S THE THOUGHT THAT COUNTS

As a man thinks in his heart so is he…. Proverbs 23:7

Have you ever really paid attention to your thoughts? One of the definitions for the word thought is; the product of mental activity that one thinks. So what kind of activity do you have going on in your mind? In the book, The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne, she says that thoughts are magnetic and have a frequency. As you think a thought it is sent out and it magnetically attracts or brings to you on the sane frequency what you are thinking. She says if you want to change anything in your life change your thoughts. The bible puts it this way. Do not be conformed to the world, but transformed by the Renewing of your Mind. Romans 12:2

Your thoughts will transform your life either for good or for bad. If you are always thinking thoughts of lack then lack is what you will have in your life, If you think, God will supply all I need, I want for nothing then you will see that, that is what will come in to your life. It’s not a one time deal. You have to constantly think on the good things in life. Sure there are a lot of negative things going on in our lives, some that require our attention and some that do not. The choice on what to think is solely yours.

I love Christmas and I love to give, I love to be a blessing to people. Not just the people I know, but people I see in the stores. I wanna pay for layaways and groceries for people, I just want to bless people especially around Christmas. The problem, I don’t have funds to match that desire in my heart. As I was sitting here this morning talking to God about this very thing, the phrase, “It’s The Thought That Counts”, came to my mind. Now I am sure we all heard that saying before and we all know what it means but that is not how I understood that thought this morning. I understood it to mean the most important thing in what you are desiring to do is in YOUR THOUGHTS! Not the money or the lack thereof, but your thoughts. If all I continue to think on is how I want to give but don’t have the money then that is all that will manifest, “a want to thought” but if I choose to think the thought “GOD HAS BLESSED ME TO BE A BLESSING” everyday then someway some how God is going to make a way for me. I BELIEVE THAT!!! The key is staying focused and paying very close attention to you thoughts. Once you make up your mind to do this the enemy will get your mind on everything but changing your thought life.

Your most dominant thoughts are what you will have in your life. As a matter of fact your life is the sum total of your thoughts. Your thoughts are the lumber you used to build the world you live in. If you don’t like the way things are going in your life right now change your thoughts. Go to the word of God find out what HE has to say about your situation and think on that and watch you life change. I know I am.

Blessed To Be A Blessing,

Chanteea

PS……Leave me a thought below…. I have some shopping to do. 😀

I BELIEVE I CAN FLY

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. ISAIAH 40:31

I know it’s been a minute since I have written anything, I have been trying to gather my thoughts. I am still in the P.E.C.K.ing process and lovin it. Although I have hatched and am on my way to the “New Beginning” that God has for me, I have learned some things in the process. It is my prayer that you can learn from this process as well.

Sometime in August, I listened to Bishop Jake’s preach a message entitled, “Don’t Die In The Nest”. This was way before The Woman Thou Art Loosed conference. It’s funny how God had me to hear that message even before I heard “The Pecking Order and knew that I was a “Chick” that wanted out. I understand this message even more so now as it ties right in with what was preached at the conference.

Since I have hatched I’ve noticed lately that I have just been sitting in the nest not really doing anything, feeling comfortable, yet uncomfortable at the same time if that makes sense. The nest is a comfortable place, it was designed to be that way, at least for a while anyway. It was also designed to be a place of protection from the elements of the outside world, but it’s not a place for me to stay forever, especially after hatching. Now part of this sitting is necessary for my growth. As with any baby chick it is necessary to be fed by their parents. It is during this process that God has to hand feed me the necessary food and encouragement that I will need in order to gather the strength that I need to fly out of the nest. I have received some of this necessary nourishment while at other times just like a stubborn child I refused to eat what I knew was only going to help me.

God has begun to stir my nest because it has become a place of comfort. Sure I have hatched and I’m free, I’m out of the shell, but there is more to this then meets the eye. The process of life is always evolving. That New Beginning I talked about in my previous post, it can only take place as you spread your wings and fly out of the nest. Like the egg I had to peck my way out of was a place of frustration so now the nest has become the same. My Father is stirring the nest. He is saying it is time to spread your wings and learn to fly. Get out of the comfort zone or you will die here. Life will pass you by. I have noticed my self struggling to fly lately. So since I am a baby chick I decided to research the “Fledging Process”, which is the process in bringing up a young bird until it is ready to fly.

After the bird reaches a certain age the momma bird will start to fly over the nest with the food causing the baby bird to stretch upward out of the nest. As the baby continues to struggle to reach upwards its strength continues to grow. The baby will have days where it is ready to stretch and reach and days when it will say I give up, not today momma, this is too hard, but the momma never gives up on its baby, daily she encourages her baby bird with the reward of what is to be if the baby continues on in this process of fledging. Soon the baby bird will then have gained enough strength to hop out of the nest and take its first flight and once out of the nest the baby is rewarded.

After reading about the fledging process it all begin to make more since to me especially since I felt like I had hatched but wasn’t going anywhere. It almost felt like I was going back to place of frustration I mentioned earlier. I guess I didn’t realize that I would need to grow stronger in some areas before I could take off and fly. I needed to deal with some fears and other issues that were still trying to hold me down as well. I didn’t realize that the mistakes and struggles I was facing were actually there to strengthen me. They are a necessary part of the process of becoming all I am created to be.

I read the following quote today that kind of summed it all up for me. It’s by C.H. Spurgeon, taken from a book written by John Stotts entitled, The Birds Our Teachers. It reads:

“Brother, your failure, if you fail, will begin in your faith. The air says to the eagle, Trust me; spread thy broad wings; I will bear thee up to the sun. Only trust me. Take thy foot from off yon rock which thou canst feel beneath thee. Get away from it, and be buoyed up by the unseen element.’ My brethren, eaglets of heaven, mount aloft, for God invites you. Mount! You have but to trust him.

Isn’t that the key to it all? Trusting God. Taking that step of faith out into the unknown. Yesterday in church my pastor said, “Your Blessing is in motion.” How true is that. You cant just sit there and expect things to change in your life. You have to make a move. That requires trusting God. Sometimes we don’t make moves because we aren’t sure of where we are going or what lies up ahead but if we wait on God, trust in Him and spread our wings so we can fly He will lead us right to the place where we belong.

I don’t know what flying out of the nest means for you, it could be a new job, a change in your life style, a change in the way that you think. It could mean anything. I only know it’s time to step out. Its time to get moving. Time is running out. You have gained enough strength know and its time to spread your wings. God has been stirring the nest and just like the egg was an uncomfortable place so has the nest become such a place. Don’t let life pass you by my friend spread your wings and fly.

Soaring High,
Chanteea

NEW BEGINNINGS

Do Not Remember the former things Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. ISAIAH 43;18-19

WOW! Where to begin, there is so much that has transpired since my last post and even though I titled this post New Beginnings, I don’t know where to start. I guess at the beginning, huh? (LOL)

These past few weeks, well months actually, I have lived in a very frustrated place. I am not talking about my physical home I am referring to my spiritual and mental dwelling place. So many things were happening in my life that I just didn’t understand what was going on. It was like one thing after another and people were coming and going in and out of my life-like a revolving door. It through this sister for a loop. For months I struggled and wrestled with emotions that I thought were dead but somehow decided to resurrect themselves. Thoughts and thinking patterns that I knew didn’t belong there were surfacing inside and out and I was a mess. It was a silent struggle and it was strangling me. I knew that where I was was not the place I was created to be. I begged God to set me free this internal prison.

I had been paying on my trip to go to “Woman Thou Art Loosed”, since March of this year and I always refereed to this trip as “my appointment” with God. As time grew near and life got even crazier I cried out to God even more. I remember saying to God one morning, I am not going to Atlanta for a “sprinkle, tinkle or even a touch, and I am not going for form nor fashion so if I am not going to be changed when I go then, well I don’t wanna go. At first I got kinda scared after having prayed that prayer because I had paid all my money, LOL. God is faithful though and He heard every prayer I prayed during that time and saw every tear I shed. He’s so good.

On October 2, 2012 our church sat out for Atlanta, Georgia and I was in my own little world. Thinking, wondering and praying. Even though I had such high expectations about the trip, what I would experience in the upcoming days outweighed anything I could have ever imagined. We arrived in Georgia and pulled up to the hotel and my mouth just dropped! We stayed at the Omni Hotel which is connected to the CNN Center and the Phillips Arena. I had never been in anything like this in my life. It was pure excellence, to me anyway. I felt like I belonged there. I am not talking about moving to Georgia, what I am referring to has to do with a mind-set more than anything. One of the things I felt frustrated with was the feeling of mediocrity and being stuck in the ordinariness of life . So walking in the Hotel I had that moment of, “Now this what I’m talking about.”

The first night of the conference was where God would start to answer my prayers as Bishop Jakes began to explain to me why I had been so frustrated and feeling the way I have been for months. I sat in my seat in awe of God as He brought it all together and made sense of it for me. The title of the sermon was, “The Pecking Order.” He said God told him He was sending to Atlanta 25,000 “CHICKS” that wanted out. Listening to him preach and bring everything together as if he was in my head was like almost unbelievable. God was speaking to me and I knew it. The reason I was so frustrated and uncomfortable in that place was because I was outgrowing it. I had to experience all those things so I could begin to PECK my way out. Now when he put that picture of a baby chick pecking its way out, that’s when I lost it, you see about 12 years ago God told me life was like an egg. The memory of that conversation came flooding back to my mind. I am still trying to absorb all that has happened to me during that conference. God used speaker after speaker to reach me at the point of my need and I knew when I went back home I would not be the same. Oh, I love Him.

The conference was 3 weeks ago and I am still in awe of God and how He has started the “PECKING” process in my life. Yesterday I attended a Writers Workshop and I watched as God put me in the right POSITION, by giving me the EXPOSURE, and the COURAGE, to get the KNOWLEDGE for where He is about to take me. While at this conference I walked up to the Keynote speaker from 2 years ago and began a conversation with him. While this may seem like no big deal to you it was a stepping stone for me. It was my first real experience with the change that has begun to take place in my life. You see prior to going to THE WOMAN THOU ART LOOSED Conference I would have never walked up to this man and started speaking to him. I would have wished that I had the nerve to go up to him that’s about it. God put me in the POSITION and gave me the COURAGE and I acted on it. My prayer before going to the Workshop was Lord, put me in the right place at the right time to make that divine connection with the right person who can help propel me to the next level. That man right there was the answer to my prayer!!!!! He encouraged me for a few and then told me that there are people would PAY ME to write their speeches for them!! I had all I could do not to bust when he grabbed his cell phone out of his pocket and began to call this one man who was possibly looking for someone. The person didn’t answer but a voicemail was left for him. All I know is the divine connection has been made. I am living in expectation while I wait for that email or phone call. In the mean time I will give Glory To God as He works this out!!!

I am a CHICK that is PECKING her way out! I am forgetting everything that was behind me and I am pressing on towards what God has for me. I am not the same CHANTEEA I was before that trip to Georgia. Later for the junk. I was created for greatness and I am moving towards it. This Chick has hatched and is looking forward to the New Beginning God has for her!

Maybe you are in a place of frustration right now, you know that where you are is not where you belong and you’re trying to figure out how to break free from all that is holding you back. Trust God, He hears you and in due season, your answer will come. God has a NEW BEGINNING FOR EVERYONE!!

CHIRP! CHIRP!
CHANTEEA

When the Bottom of the Basket Falls Out

Timely advice is lovely, like golden apples in a silver basket. Proverbs 25:11

I am a basket lover. I could buy baskets for no particular reason than just the look. I have baskets for bread, decorations, and miscellaneous items. Baskets vary in size, shape, and décor. I wanted to use this analogy to illustrate the coming and going of what we hope for. Every day that the Lord allows us to wake we should be grateful. In fact, we should hope to live the next day because no days are promised. Every morning the Lord puts that little bit of hope in our basket just for waking up. Over the course of our day, hope may find its way into our basket through smiles, kindness of others or even conquering a fear. We make hope deposits in other people’s baskets as well. In the same way, hope drains from our basket in the form of dashed dreams, personal and financial losses, and just plain old enemy attacks.

What happens when the basket’s bottom completely falls out? How can the Lord put that new morning deposit in our basket? He can’t. How can we go about collecting those smiles, kind acts, and victories? We can’t. Imagine carrying a full grocery bag. The groceries represent our hope. The bag represents our basket. Now imagine that the bag completely bottoms out and the groceries fall everywhere. We can pick up the groceries (hope), but the bag (basket) is no longer usable. Sadly, some of us are still living our lives and practicing our faith with a bottomed out basket.

Consider the following biblical examples that involved hope baskets. The first one is in Exodus 2:3. A desperate mother had been hiding her precious baby for 3 months. She tried so hard to keep her son from death. When the knock of death came too close, she placed him in a basket and set the basket afloat on the Nile River. Because she placed her hope in a basket, Moses was well cared for as a prince and eventually able to completely save his people. In Matthew 14:20, Jesus demonstrated hope to his disciples by managing to feed over 5,000 people from 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread. After Jesus blessed the food and broke it, there were enough baskets for leftovers. If we put our trust in the Lord, he will bless it and multiply it so we have overflowing hope to share with others. Lastly, Paul spent most of his time in prison from sharing the gospel. Some of us are just held hostage to sin. God provided a way for Paul and He can do the same for us. Paul was lowered to safety by a basket and escaped death in 2 Corinthians 1:32-33.

A basket can be full of good things or empty. What condition is your basket in? At any moment and under any circumstance, we can willfully choose to pick up hope even if it’s on the ground. Many of us won’t do it because there is no longer a basket to store the hope. Prior to my recent move to California, one of my cherished baskets was damaged. Even though I had to replace my original basket, I didn’t grieve over the one I had lost. I knew I could get another basket, a better basket, a stronger basket. Today’s challenge is to pick out a new basket for yourself. Use the word of God to pick up some hope to put in there. Don’t forget to share the contents of your basket with other people. I hope the Lord blesses and multiplies your baskets!

Whatcha Worrying For, God’s Gotcha!

Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the Gentiles seek for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. MATTHEW 6:25-33

The message in church last Sunday was, “I am To Blessed To Be Stressed.” Let me just tell you, I have been screaming that all week! What is gonna take for me to fully put my trust and faith in God? How many times has He shown His love for me through answered prayer, but like the Israelites I seem to suffer from memory loss at times. God had brought them so many things yet they still questioned His ability to take of them. Why? Why do we continually worry about things when God has promised us in His word that He would provide for us. He will protect us, and He will make a way when there seems to be no way.

I Remember the back to back blizzards we had about three years ago. The world called it the “Snowpocalypse.” I don’t think I have ever seen that much snow in my life. Talk about worrying. I mean stress was kicking my butt…. What are you gonna eat, what if you cant make it to work, you know you have bills to pay, what if you lose electric, if you lose electric you wont have heat, and on and on like the pounding of a hammer it went and this was before the storm actually hit! God, the faithful loving, Father that He is, showed me some things during this time, that I am ashamed to say I must have forgotten. I have to have or why else would I even give worry the time of day now.

Honestly, I had been listening to the weather report all day the day of the first storm, and in the back of mind I thought its not going to be that bad. Well I was wrong. It was about 7 o’clock when I got off work that night and that’s when the reality of it had hit. They had issued a State of Emergency, all cars needed to off the road. Well I had to go to the store so I ignored that. Thank God there are several grocery stores I would pass on my way home because the first one was EMPTY! I mean ZIP, ZILCH, NADA! No bread, potatoes, milk, eggs, chips, meat, and even the produce section was bare. I have never walked into a store and saw anything like that. Fear really kicked in then. I called my husband and told him about the situation and he told me he had stopped to the store when he got off work at 4 and he had some stuff. Although that reassured me a little bit I wasn’t satisfied. My second stop was at Giant, and it was there I made out much better. They didn’t have much meat but that had much more food on there shelves. I made it home safe and sound and food in hand. I was happy.

Upon arriving home I learned my hubby had to go into work and most likely he would be stuck there. Well I didn’t like the idea of that at all. All I could think about was him out there on the roads and what if we lost electric. After seeing him off I made my way into my room to talk with God. It was there that I learned my first lesson. It seemed I had been praying about us not losing the electric more then anything else so it was during one of those prayers God spoke to my heart and said, “When you pray, believe that you receive.” My next thought was well I do believe so I just need to start thanking God that we will not lose electric. And that’s what I did. I started thanking the Lord from that point on that we would not lose electric. When it blinked, I thanked God, that it was going to stay on. During both storms we never lost electric on our street. The streets parallel to us lost it, but not ours! We kept our electric it never went out. The lesson I learned was sometimes there comes a point when you have to stop praying about a situation and just start thanking God for the answer. Some people may think that’s silly but not me. When you pray, you must believe that God hears you and if you believe He hears you then He will answer you so why not thank Him in advance for the answered prayer.

It was also during these storms that I took up a love for feeding the birds. There would be no work for me that week. I couldn’t even get out of my driveway. I was really worried, I had bills due that week and we needed more food so being out of work for a week was not really working for me. So since I was stuck in the house all week and had nothing else to do I fed them. I would put my boots on and walk in mounds and mounds of snow just to feed them. I popped popcorn for them and everything. (LOL) While watching them eat one morning the scripture about worrying and God taking care of the birds came to mind. Why do you question God’s ability to take care of you. Look at these birds, God puts it on peoples heart all over this world to set out feeders and watering stations for them so that they are well provided for so what makes you think He wont take of you? Silly me! I started thanking God for the provision we needed to get us through the week. My husband could get back and forth to work because his job let him use a vehicle with a snow plow. He is the Maintenance Supervisor in a huge housing development. People were coming to him and asking him to plow their driveways so they could get out. While he couldn’t do it on company time, he did it on his lunch hour and after work and they paid him!! He made tons of money that week and God had provided for us!

God is so faithful even when we question and doubt His ability to do as He said He would. Thank goodness He never gives up on us! So why do we worry? Why do we continually walk in fear instead of faith in Gods Word. He says in Philippians 4:19, that He would supply ALL our needs according to HIS riches in Glory. Why not rest in that instead of wrestling with fear, doubt and unbelief. Fear and faith cannot operate at the same time. We are so accustomed to taking care of ourselves so when situations arise and our ability to do so is question we become afraid and faith goes out the window. The truth of the matter is our faith should be in God anyway and not ourselves.

Look back over your life, can you remember the times that God has provided for you when you didn’t know how or where your provision was coming from. Those are the times you need to revisit and build your faith back to the point where you say, “Ya know what, I been here before and I know the Lord will make a way.” If He did it before He will do it again.

Father,

Forgive for putting our faith in our ability to provide for ourselves. Forgive us for worrying and doubting You and Your Word. It is only by Your grace and mercy that we have made this far. Thank You God that even when we are not faithful, You still are! Thank You for Loving us enough to never give up on us. Thank You God for making away when we see no way. In Jesus Name Amen.

STAYING FOCUSED

Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, LET US RISE UP AND BUILD. So they strengthened their hands for this good work. (NEHEMIAH 2:18)

So we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof; for THE PEOPLE HAD A MIND TO WORK. (Nehemiah 4:6)

It’s so very easy to start a project, the dilemma then becomes staying focused long enough to complete it. Ask me how know! (LOL) I have several things I have “started” writing about but never finished. I have papers and folders and notebooks everywhere. I have notes and greeting card ideas tucked away waiting for who knows what. Writing is something I have always wanted to do especially after becoming a Christian. You would think that since starting this blog I would have been on top of my game especially since I now have an avenue that I can share some of my work. Not the case. I used to call it “WRITER’S BLOCK.” Well this morning I have learned otherwise! It’s called PROCRASTINATION AND LACK OF FOCUS!!!!

It’s been a week since I posted my last blog, why, you ask? UHHHH, I don’t know what to write, by the time I get home and get dinner, clean up, and shower it’s late, you name it I can find an excuse to keep putting it off. I have heard people say several times, “you make time for what you really want to do.” I hate that sentence! (LOL) That’s not the case with me. I know my problem. I am a procrastinator and I am easily distracted. Take for instance this morning. I have been up since 6 o’clock and it is now 8:30 and in just that short period of time several distractions came up. First I put a load of laundry in and then got my coffee and sat down. While sitting at the table I notice my hummingbird feeder needed to be refilled, I can’t let Petey ( my nickname for him) drink old nectar. Then it was back to the laundry, and I noticed the other bathroom needed hand sanitizer so I had to get that. The hubby got up and it was time to make the bed after all I can’t stand an unmade bed. (LOL) I go back to the laundry room and what stares at me but clean unfolded clothes and pile of dirty clothes waiting to be washed. I ignore the sight for sore eyes, shut the doors and proclaim, “I shall return after I have finished my post!”

Lord, Help me stay focused has been a prayer of mine for as long as I can remember! My Pastor says it all the time. If you are going to get anything accomplished in life you MUST stay focused! Especially if it is a goal or desire you have. So why is that I have such a hard time. Why cant I be like Nehemiah, he knew what he had to do , he set his mind to do and despite the distractions that arose he got the job done. I know I wanna be a writer, my mind is set on that so why am I so easily distracted? Could it be my thoughts and feelings? Am I thinking too much instead of doing. After all a writer, writes not thinks, right…hmmmm or perhaps it’s my feelings, fear of failure, fear of success, just all out fear!!! In any case I see from the story of Nehemiah that the one thing he did was never take his eyes off of God and his purpose. He never lost focus. He stuck it out. So I will take a page from his book and persevere in prayer and direction from God and once I get that I will have reestablished my self with my goal, which is to have a post up at least every other day. 🙂

So what is it that you have lost your focus on? What is it that you are putting off doing. What dream or goal have you set on the back burner because of to many distractions in your way. Toady let’s go before God and ask Him for a fresh start. Lets ask Him to show us the distractions that are hindering us and how to handle them. I believe God has big plans for you and I but we must stay focused. The distractions are only sign that you are headed in the right direction. They only arise to get your eyes of God and where He is trying to take you. Just think of them as “DISTRACTIONS FROM DESTINY.”

Father, In the Name of Jesus, we ask you for a fresh start today. Show us the things we have allowed in our lives that distract us. Awaken all that You have placed within us once again and give us the tenacity and strength to push past all distractions from our destiny. Give us the Spirit of Nehemiah. Help us to become people of character, persistence, and prayer. Help us not to be just “thinkers” but to become “doers.” Once You have given us the plan and purpose for our lives may we never give up or allow ourselves to become so easily distracted that we forget where we are headed. In Jesus name we pray. AMEN

I have to tell you how thankful that I am to have finished this post right now without allowing anymore distractions to pull me away from this computer. But for now I must bid you a fond farewell because I have a FLY TO KILL!!!!!!!!!!! (LOL)

Here’s Petey! ❤

Can You Hear The Voice of Hope

Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumes, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, Therefore I HOPE in Him!
LAMENTATIONS 3:22-24

What does the Voice of Hope sound like to you? Have you ever heard it? It doesn’t have to be an audible voice. It could be the voice that comes from listening to another share their story. Especially if there story is liken to something you are going through and they are telling you how they made it.

One of the definitions for the word voice is, something likened to the speech as conveying impressions to the mind. That is what this blog site was designed to. As we share our life experiences and struggles it is our desire that the voice with which we speak is conveying hope in your mind. The kind of hope that says, you know what, if they went thru that and God brought them thru then surely He can do the same for me. God is no respecter of persons, (Romans 2:11) and He loves you just as much as He loves me.

One thing we lack in our lives is transparency. People don’t want you to know their struggles. They just want you to see them shining, later for the ugly parts of life. Just get to the good part. We see the effects and scars but the story of how they made it over is hidden out of fear of judgement or shame. I can only speak to you from my experiences and in return this should offer you some kind of hope. How can I give you directions to get to New York if I have never been there myself? Sure I can maybe sorta guide you but if I have actually driven there myself and I know the ins and outs of the city then surely that would give you a little more confidence in taking directions from me, wouldn’t it?

When you are going through things in life you need to find someone with which you can identify with. Someone that can say, “Hey, I been there and done that and because I made it through you can too.” A couple of years ago I found a lump in my breast and fear was waiting to greet me with thoughts of dying at a young age. I knew I had better get a hold of those thoughts or else they would overtake me and win. The first thing I did was search the bible for healing scriptures so I could speak them over my life, then I asked God to put a song in my heart to carry me through, and He did. The song was by, Dewayne Wood, it’s called “Let Go.” I also knew of some women of faith who had battled breast cancer and won so I read their testimonies. The purpose of doing these things was to feed my faith. I also went on the Susan G. Komen website to read the stories of women who had cancer. Doing those things gave me hope during that dark scary time in my life. Turns out it wasn’t cancer (Praise God!) but just in case it had been I was getting myself in the position to hear the voice of hope come from others experience.

When you see that someone else has overcome the same thing that you maybe be struggling with and they survived it, that gives you hope. I was listening to Bishop Jakes on TV the other day and He was talking about this very same subject. The man he was interviewing was talking about a time in his life when he had lost his job and had his car repossessed. He felt like he had failed his family. He was struggling on the inside and was too ashamed to tell anyone. He said, he would go to church and look around at all the people who he “thought” had it all together and he would leave church feeling worse than when he went in. Then one day he met a fellow who had been through the same exact thing he was going through and he shared his story of how he made it through that season of his life. Hearing this mans story encouraged him so much. It gave him some hope and placed something within him that said, “EVERYTHINGS GONNA BE ALRIGHT!” People love to share the glory but not the story that goes with it.

In your everyday life you may come across hurting dying people. I don’t mean dying from a sickness or anything like that. I mean dying for lack of hope or strength to carry on. All you have to do is look around they’re everywhere. The things you have been through in life may not have been all that good but like I said before God can use it for your good. Especially to help another person. No experience you have in life will God waste. Just take a look at Saul in the bible, he was a murderer, he killed Christians for a living. (Acts CHAP 9) Then one day God got a hold of him and not only changed his name from Saul to Paul but He changed his life forever. He was forgiven, his past was wiped clean, and he became a new person. That story alone should give you hope. Surely if God could give a person like Paul a new life, imagine what He could do for you! Paul went on to become the author of thirteen books of the New Testament and its in those books that you can find, if your listening, “THE VOICE OF HOPE!”

~~ Be Blessed ~~

Chanteea

LET GO ~ Dewayne Wood