I have no idea why I am still amazed by the timing of my Father's message. I know how He operates with me in that if I've felt something in my spirit that is from Him He will always send me confirmation. Yesterday I posted on Facebook that I am sooo loving this undivided attention that I've been able to give my family, especially my children. I never knew the feeling & the enjoyment of what I'd taken for granted. And though this time with my children may not last forever, the bond that has been created will... Thank You God, You are a bad Man. Today's FFTS is being borrowed from the devotional that I received today. When I saw my favorite scripture I knew that it is God's confirmation to me...He is an on time God ~ THAT'S WHY I LUV HIM LIKE I DO! Enjoy....
Choosing God's Plans
11 Aug 2009 ~ Tracie Miles
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
Several years ago, I was sitting in a management meeting, when my manager suggested we kick off the meeting by allowing each person the opportunity to say what they felt was their most important contribution to the company.
One by one, each person spoke, stating things like "to decrease overall expenses," "to lower headcount," etc. When my turn came, my heart fluttered, and I felt compelled to share that I felt my primary purpose was to counsel employees, encourage them, and help them work through personal or work related issues. You could have heard a pin drop in that room, as everyone stared at me with blank faces.
You see, the months leading up to this meeting, there had been a lot of issues going on in the company. There were office politics, power struggles, lofty egos, and people had been hurt.
As a result of my position, people would often come to me for guidance. God had been leading unexpected people into my office for weeks and opened the door for me to minister to believers and non-believers with the love of Christ. He'd also given me the desire and courage to be a light for Him, in an environment that didn't operate under Christian principles. He had ordained opportunities for me to share how Jesus gives true peace and acceptance, even when people and politics cause pain and disappointment.
My supervisor was not a believer, so he didn't appreciate my answer to his question. He wanted to hear how I was going to streamline procedures and improve his department, not what was on my heart, and as a result, our relationship went downhill from there.
A year or so later, I resigned from that position. The atmosphere had simply become too difficult, but more importantly, I knew God had been nudging me to make a change. I felt called to serve in ministry and to be a stay at home mom. All that time, I had been walking in disobedience.
When I resigned, it felt like a sacrifice. However, I quickly discovered that God's plan was so much better than mine. I realized that I had been unable to understand His plan, until I was willing to lay aside my own, and that I had to choose Him, before He could show me His will for my life. Had I simply said what I knew my boss wanted to hear in that meeting, I might still be working there, climbing the corporate ladder, and striving to reach my career goals.
But God had been working on my heart for years, preparing me for that moment. He had gradually shifted my desires to building His kingdom, more so than building my resume. He had inspired me to see the hearts of the people in my office, not just the problems in the people. And He had helped me to see that lasting success and happiness could be found in Him alone, not through my own accomplishments.
Was making that change easy? Or course not. Did I have to make difficult sacrifices? Most definitely. But was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY!
Regardless of where you work, you can make a spiritual difference in people's lives. Whether you work in corporate offices or a Christian ministry, when facing a difficult choice, you can trust that God has prepared and equipped you for such a time as this. Pray for strength to stand up for God's truth, even against all odds, and ask Him to lead you in your decisions.
Choosing Christ's plans, over our own plans, will always result in more peace or blessing than we could never imagine.
Dear Lord, it is not always easy to stand up for You in the face of opposition, or to make choices that seem outside of our understanding. I seek Your guidance, and Your divine wisdom and discernment regarding the decisions in my life. I do desire to do Your will. Thank You for never leaving me. Please help me to be strong in You, and for You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
~Stay Prayed Up! CLICK ON THE LINK
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Do You Remember?
Although it’s been over a month it seems like our beloved Michael Jackson is still on the minds of America and the world. Not a day goes by that something is not mentioned about him, his family, his talent, the dreaded Joe Jackson, etc. It seems like people just can’t get enough and I think it will be a loooong time before they will. It’s sad when you think about it but I believe if all of this “positive” attention had been poured on him when he was alive it probably could have prevented his death – you know it’s true that people just want to feel appreciated; we all do. You know the saying, “Give me my flowers while I am alive” and “People may forget what you’ve said or forget what you’ve done but they will never forget how you’ve made them feel.” Well on to my story…..When I think of the many MJ songs Remember the Time keeps creeping up into my psyche though it’s not one of my favorites; I’m an old school MJ fan from back in the Jackson 5 days, but I can give credit where credit is due. Recently while out and about this song kept popping up in my head. So travel with me down memory lane with this simple question, “Do you remember?”
Do you remember when customer service was really about making sure that the customer was satisfied? Do you remember when television had only a few channels and families watched wholesome TV shows? Do you remember when football in Buffalo had snow on the football field in the winter? Do you remember when football players played for the “love of the game” and not for the mega millions? Do you remember when a person gladly came out to “fill ‘er up” at a gas station and cleaned your windows while you waited? Do you remember when you could give your name, address and phone number and not worry about identity theft? Do you remember when people had heart and it really bothered them to do a person wrong? Do you remember when a child stayed in a child’s place and all it took was a look? Do you remember when children respected ALL adults? Do you remember when good old-fashioned soap and water did the trick? Do you remember when you could prick your finger and become blood relatives without the fear of HIV? Do you remember when sex was safe, or so we thought? Do you remember when a man opened the door for a woman because that’s how he was raised? Do you remember chicken and dumplings? Do you remember when going to the country, from Atlanta to Powder Springs took almost 2 hours? Do you remember when a man’s word was his bond? Do you remember that the homeless were just a few hobos living on the railroad tracks? Do you remember when songs were about how much I love you and not about what I want to do to you? Do you remember when we took care of our own and let grandmama, granddaddy, or our great grandparents stay with us because we could take care of them better than any nursing home? Do you remember when all stores were closed by 10:00 p.m.? Do you remember when church was CHURCH? Do you remember when you could shake your pastor’s hand EVERY Sunday? Do you remember when men were men and women were women? Do you remember when men looked like men and women looked like women? Do you remember when the teacher had permission to spank you? Do you remember when slips were worn with skirts and dresses? Do you remember when the whole family went to the drive-in movie? Do you remember when teeth were white simply because you brushed them? Do you remember when it was okay to drink & drive (or so it seemed)? Do you remember when it took a baby almost 6 months to roll over? Do you remember when cars were tuned up and spark plugs were replaced? Do you remember when computers were a “yeah, right” thing of the future? Do you remember when a fight only involved feet, hands and every now and then teeth? Do you remember when you could give a person a ride without fear of losing your life or your car? Do you remember when everybody had a 22 or 38 hid in the car or the house? Do you remember when a child knew NOT to mess with mama or daddy’s 22 or 38? Do you remember when Stevie Wonder’s braids were where his forehead ended? Do you remember when Black men would bend over backwards to please a Black woman? Do you remember when Black men TREATED Black women with respect? Do you remember when a date was JUST dinner and a movie? Do you remember when we truly respected our elderly? Do you remember when you pulled over to the store to use the pay phone? Do you remember when the person you worked for had respect for the person they worked with? Do you remember that all it took was knowing that mama or grandmama ‘don prayed about it? Do you remember…….? TGBTG
P.S."Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring - all of which have the potential to turn a life around" ~Leo Buscaglia
~Stay Prayed Up! CLICK ON THE LINK
Do you remember when customer service was really about making sure that the customer was satisfied? Do you remember when television had only a few channels and families watched wholesome TV shows? Do you remember when football in Buffalo had snow on the football field in the winter? Do you remember when football players played for the “love of the game” and not for the mega millions? Do you remember when a person gladly came out to “fill ‘er up” at a gas station and cleaned your windows while you waited? Do you remember when you could give your name, address and phone number and not worry about identity theft? Do you remember when people had heart and it really bothered them to do a person wrong? Do you remember when a child stayed in a child’s place and all it took was a look? Do you remember when children respected ALL adults? Do you remember when good old-fashioned soap and water did the trick? Do you remember when you could prick your finger and become blood relatives without the fear of HIV? Do you remember when sex was safe, or so we thought? Do you remember when a man opened the door for a woman because that’s how he was raised? Do you remember chicken and dumplings? Do you remember when going to the country, from Atlanta to Powder Springs took almost 2 hours? Do you remember when a man’s word was his bond? Do you remember that the homeless were just a few hobos living on the railroad tracks? Do you remember when songs were about how much I love you and not about what I want to do to you? Do you remember when we took care of our own and let grandmama, granddaddy, or our great grandparents stay with us because we could take care of them better than any nursing home? Do you remember when all stores were closed by 10:00 p.m.? Do you remember when church was CHURCH? Do you remember when you could shake your pastor’s hand EVERY Sunday? Do you remember when men were men and women were women? Do you remember when men looked like men and women looked like women? Do you remember when the teacher had permission to spank you? Do you remember when slips were worn with skirts and dresses? Do you remember when the whole family went to the drive-in movie? Do you remember when teeth were white simply because you brushed them? Do you remember when it was okay to drink & drive (or so it seemed)? Do you remember when it took a baby almost 6 months to roll over? Do you remember when cars were tuned up and spark plugs were replaced? Do you remember when computers were a “yeah, right” thing of the future? Do you remember when a fight only involved feet, hands and every now and then teeth? Do you remember when you could give a person a ride without fear of losing your life or your car? Do you remember when everybody had a 22 or 38 hid in the car or the house? Do you remember when a child knew NOT to mess with mama or daddy’s 22 or 38? Do you remember when Stevie Wonder’s braids were where his forehead ended? Do you remember when Black men would bend over backwards to please a Black woman? Do you remember when Black men TREATED Black women with respect? Do you remember when a date was JUST dinner and a movie? Do you remember when we truly respected our elderly? Do you remember when you pulled over to the store to use the pay phone? Do you remember when the person you worked for had respect for the person they worked with? Do you remember that all it took was knowing that mama or grandmama ‘don prayed about it? Do you remember…….? TGBTG
P.S."Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring - all of which have the potential to turn a life around" ~Leo Buscaglia
~Stay Prayed Up! CLICK ON THE LINK
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