Draw Near

James 4:8 "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded" 

Your relationship with God is the most important relationship you will ever have...if you haven't developed that relationship you'll have a "like never before" feeling when you do! God is waiting on you, He's ready to welcome you with open arms! Humble yourself before him...commit to Him Give yourself to Him then be ready and willing to follow His commands.

Not sure where to start? Do an inventory on your life! Evaluate everything/everyone that you encounter daily, weekly, monthly, etc. Describe each of your 5 closest friends in one word and you've got a description of who you are! If anything or anyone hinders your relationship with God you must remove it! There is nothing...NOTHING that should come before God. You can't clean your hands then go touch unclean hands.   

Worship song of the day: Give Me You - Shana Wilson 

Deuteronomy 31:6 "Be strong and

Deuteronomy 31:6 "Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you" 

How refreshing is it to know that God is ALWAYS with you? Even better He goes before you to clear the way so that you can actually make it through!  

This is the perfect way to start the week...no matter what the devil throws your way know that God is there to block it! He said it in His word, if He said it He will do it and we can believe it!
So go into this week with confidence in God and in yourself knowing that whatever you are faced with your faith will not be shaken.  No weapon formed against you shall prosper.
Although you may not be where YOU want to be but you are exactly where God has called you to be let HIS will be done. Don't worry...you can't worry and trust God...all is well!

Worship song of the day: All Things are Working by Fred Hammond (The Gospel Soundtrack)

Isaiah 40:31 "But they that

 

Isaiah 40:31 "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"

 

The Bible is full of encouragement, confirmation, comfort, wisdom, conviction, and etc. I love this scripture because it is a reminder than no matter how tough the road becomes God renews our strength. It is not by your own strength that you are making it through your trials. Have you ever looked back on something and said "Whew! I don't know how I survived that?" The answer to your question is God's strength provided through His grace and mercy!

 

What an awesome AWESOME God we serve.

 

I just want to remind you today that God give you strength one day at a time...He gives you what you need exactly when you need it and a not a second sooner. Your strength will not be of benefit to you if you fail to acknowledge and deal with your weakness. Do not be overcome by your weakness...it should not define who you are nor should it determine where you are going and what you will achieve.

 

Think of your weakness as a seed that will ultimately develop into your strengths which means you can't ignore...the catepillar would never become a butterfly if it just accepted being on its belly as its final destination. It is at your weakest point where God is strong; encouraging you through His word to keep going! 

 

Acknowledge where your strength comes from TODAY before it's too late...don't let Delilah cut off your hair! (Judges 13-16)  

1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without

 

 

1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing"

 

There is a popular saying "When life knocks you down you are in the perfect position to pray". As for me, with my spiritual growth over the years, I find myself praying and fellowshiping with God more frequently throughout the day. So, I like to think in terms of "when life knocks you down you are in the perfect position to PRAY HARDER".

 

I'm from Vicksburg, MS but I live in Houston, TX. I've driven back and forth several times in which the first few times my GPS took me several different ways; however, my destination remained the same and I eventually made it. With that being said, everyone has a different walk with Christ and a different path laid out for them that should ultimately lead us all to the same destination. Do not let life's challenges discourage you, continue to pray for God's direction and discernment trusting that everything will be fine.

 

With so many things going on in the world today it is imperative to look to the Father with humility and gratitude in whatever situation we are in. HE is the creator of ALL things which means He also controls all things we just have to step back and let Him do it. The fact that we are still here shows that He favors us and has purpose for our lives, for that I am humbled and grateful. Grace and Mercy has surely followed me all the days of my life! With planes disappearing, children dying, oil spilling, land sliding, fires burning uncontrollably, and etc. I will continue to pray, praise, and worship because that is all God asks of me.

  

Motivational Monday

Psalm 20:4 "May He give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed"

Know that God is the one who gives you the desires of your heart and directs your dreams. It is only through Him that you are able to succeed in all that you do. If He called you to do it He will see you thru it by providing all the tools needed to accomplish it. Reach for the stars in Him nothing is unattainable...He is the creator of all things. 

So when you feel like you can't do something trust in the one who can do all things. Commit to Him, believe in Him, Trust in Him. 

Freedom FRIDAY

FUTURE GLORY 

Romans 8:18 "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" 

As my family and I prepare for the unexpected burial of my grandfather G.T. Clay Sr. we all seek to find peace with the fact that he is really gone. I found myself sitting at my grandparents house for the hours waiting to hear my grandfathers footsteps coming up the stairs, after returning from an errand (usually the grocery store), before coming to grips that he wasn't returning. The thoughts in everyone's mind begin with the question WHY...Why him? Why now? Why didn't he warn us? Why wasn't I there? and the reality is we will never know why, but that didn't stop us from searching for the answers and looking for clues. 

My dad brought to my attention my grandfather's Bible, in it I found the above scripture underlined in red and dated 3.10.14 under the subtitle "Future Glory". After reading this over and over several times I then found peace in knowing that my grandfather was now better than ever. As I kept reading I finally came to one of my favorite scriptures Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose". 

For me, I am confident in knowing that God had called my grandfather home because he had completed the assignment given to him. It says in Job 14:5-6 "You have decided the length of our lives. You know how many months we will live, and we are not given a minute longer. So leave us alone and let us rest! We are like hired hands, so let us finish our work in peace" NLT. 

My grandfather's work was finished and he had been set FREE of the sufferings of this present time!! 

What joy and peace I have found in knowing that God is in control and is taking good care of my papa. There is nothing more or less that anyone of us could have done to to prevent God's will from being done. My grandfather had a purpose and according to God and His timing he fulfilled his purpose. 

R.I.P. G.T. Clay Sr. 

I love you, 

Kim

   

Thankful THURSDAY

2 Corinthians 12: 9 "And He said to me "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness" therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me" 

I'm most thankful for God's Grace, which is simply God blessing us despite the fact that we don't deserve it. The idea of grace completely blows my mind every time I think about it. I can give you a ton of reasons why I don't deserve anything God has blessed me with, but He does it out of His love for me. WOW! Jesus spared His life for me (and you) so that I (we) could experience life as it is today...that's a debt we can never repay. If God doesn't perform another miracle that would be just fine because He has already done enough. 

In our weakest moments we must be reminded of God's grace, knowing that it is then that God has an opportunity to manifest in our lives. We are not on this path alone and for that we must be grateful. It's always refreshing to know that someone always has your back and that's the kind of God we serve. He said in His word that He would never leave us nor forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6) So when faced with problems react with thankful prayer and challenge yourself to see God in ALL situations. 

#thankfulThursday 

Won't He Do It WEDNESDAY

Proverbs 10:22 "The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, and He adds no trouble to it" 

God is a miracle worker! When you have faith...RADICAL faith.... you can expect a miracle. God will strategically place you in some things so that He can SHOW you who He is and what He can do. What God has in store for you is secure no matter what you do or how many wrong turns you take God continues to lead you to a place where He can bless you. Rest in knowing that God is in control...sometimes He may test you but He'll also direct you straight into a miracle!

I can recall a time when I was in undergrad...it was the end of the semester and I had mismanaged my money (go figure lol). Rent was due and I had no clue how I was going to pay it and asking my parents for it was out of the question. I wasn't perfect, but I had been faithful in my walk with God. I had been fasting, praying, and studying the word continuously. When I think back the fact that I didn't have my rent money didn't phase me at all. As I was preparing for a final I got an email from the business office that a $1000 refund had been sent to my bank. Please be reminded that it is the END of the semester, finals week to be exact. I called the business office and to my surprise it was a scholarship that I had been awarded that they neglected to post funds for previously. Now I had my rent money and a little bit more! 

That was truly a "WON'T HE DO IT" moment. 

That was a perfect example of God being an all knowing God before I even went to Him in prayer He had already worked it out. That's something only HE can do! 

TESTimony TUESDAY

Hebrews 11: 1 "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen"

Faith is simply believing and trusting in God's character...He is who He says He is (Exodus 3:14), He will do what He says He will do. Exercise your faith TODAY by believing that God will fulfill His promises although you can not see it. As believers we must do as the word says and walk by FAITH and not by sight.

Testimony Tuesday: 

Having faith in God and trusting God goes hand in hand. I have always had a problem trusting God and LISTENING to His voice (I had no problem hearing Him I just didn't listen...there is a difference). Which was strange because I so quickly put my trust in man; listening AND believing close to everything I was told. Needless to say things weren't going well for me and God, being as loving and caring as He is, showed me my faults. I had unknowingly lost my way and neglected the most important relationship in my life. I then created a small group called "Whispers of Faith" with 3 of my closest friends who had the same struggles as I had in an effort to strengthen and uplift one another spiritually. It was an AMAZING experience and we had some awesome fellowships, but then the fire went out. Here I am today stepping out on faith with this blog hoping that I can encourage others while I encourage myself. The seed is planted now lets see what grows! 

MOTIVATIONAL MONDAY

It's a new day!! 

Don't sit around worried about what happened yesterday or what will happen in the future don't stress about who left you or mistreated you, but rest in knowing that God (El Shaddai) is more than enough...He's everything you need Him to be...a provider, a comforter, a confidant, a friend, a counselor...you name it He can be it!! We all have problems but we don't have to let our problems have us!!! Have Faith...keep loving, keep seeking, keep praying, keep trusting, keep believing (Romans 8:28)

#motivationalMonday