The Blessing Of The Lord

The Blessing Of The Lord 

Ever since I started my insurance business earlier this year, I have developed a habit to help safeguard my success. To the best of my ability, I will pray and read the Bible out loud to ensure my financial success. To some, this habit may come off as a bit superstitious. Maybe it is my way of manifesting what I want to see like many gurus have recommended. Living on a 100 percent commission basis is a constant faith walk, where I depend on God's favor to bring me the provision I need at all times. But sometimes I noticed that my habit of saying God's word can morph into something else. Often times I fall into the trap of thinking that I am forcing God's hand to move on my behalf by simply reciting scripture. I especially love to read Deuteronomy chapter 28 and Judges chapter 1, because deep down I think those scriptures are really effective at bringing me what I want. I call those my daily blessing scriptures. Today while supervising my daughter in her online class while trying to get in my daily recital one of those God thoughts popped into my mind.

In the midst of one of the busiest times of my day, (getting all three kids logged into remote learning) one thought cut through my inner noise. It is God that COMMANDS the blessing in my life, not me. That one word commands caused me to stop and recall the scripture I read yesterday morning. Yesterday the Spirit guided me to Psalm 33:8-12 ESV and this is the part that really stood out to me.

"8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

 9 For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.

10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing, He frustrates the plans of the peoples.

11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as His heritage!

Yesterday I meditated on the thoughts that God is so powerful that He frustrates the plans of entire nations. There is nothing that is impossible for Him to do. The idea that God needs ANYONE to fulfill his purpose is laughable. Therefore I can place my trust in the All-Powerful one that rules in heaven. For God SPOKE and it came to be, He COMMANDED, and it stood firm. Fast forward to today and I was gently reminded that I'm not the one commanding the blessing by just recited a scripture. But it is God Himself that is commanding the blessing in my life. Reciting and meditating on His word is still a good thing. But I shouldn't fall into the trap of manifesting, which takes God out of the equation and puts the Lordship on me instead. 

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The Sin Lying At Your Door

 The Sin Lying At Your Door

There is a new documentary out on NetFlix called The Social Dilemma, if you haven't watched it yet please do. In this documentary, the founders and workers behind the biggest social media companies, like Google, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter make some startling revelations. One of the most mind-bending is that the algorithms that control our news feeds are designed to feed us whatever will keep our engagement the most. Outside of cat videos, the feed serves up a never-ending consumption of fear, anger, and convenient facts that supports our chosen world views. One of the by-products of this is a world where people are becoming offended at the "other side" and hate grows unchecked. This has led to people getting manipulated, attacking, and killing others with a different point of view. I know many will say I could never do anything like that. Or could you?

The Bait

Offense in the noun form is the Hebrew word skandalon. Skandalon was the name of the part of the trap to which the bait is attached. It has also been defined as a stumbling block (Psalms 69:22 and in Rev 2:14. When Balaam advised the king on how to trick Israel to sin, skandalon was used then. Lastly in Matthew Mat 16.23 our Lord perceived a snare laid for Him by Satan. 

In these times that we live in, it can be easy to become offended by injustice and rightly so. Because the Lord loves justice and mercy we as Christians love it as well. When we see a video of a police officer beating or killing a civilian over a traffic stop we should be offended, pray, and seek justice. When we are constantly fed a stream of police injustices with justice seeming to move slowly or not at all. Something more dangerous can start to form. What lies directly behind offense waiting to come into our hearts is hate. Whereas offense can seem minor and insignificant, it has the ability to morph into something far more dangerous. Hatred leads to violence and death. Hatred in the guise of justice is one of the most terrifying forms that it can take. 

Instead of looking at someone through the eyes of Christ and leaving vengeance in God's hands. Offense and Hatred prefer vengeance to be dealt with by us instead, leaving God out of the equation. In Genesis 4:1-15 we find the story of Cain and Abel. In this story, both Cain and Abel offered sacrifices to God. Because Cain was a farmer his offering was much harder to produce because God had cursed the ground. Abel offered the firstborn of his flock, which was the required blood sacrifice God needed to cover sin. On its face, Abel seemed to have the easier sacrifice and Cain was angry and offended that God rejected his hard work. It didn't seem fair at all to Cain. So God comes to Cain and asks him "why are you so sad"? If you do the right thing you will be accepted. But beware for sin lies at the door and its desire is for you. God warned Cain about letting the offense fester because the sin of hatred and murder were ready to come into his heart. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened and the Bible goes on to record the first murder in human history.

We live in a generation of people constantly getting offended from serious topics like political views, racial inequality, and the pandemic. People get offended over minor things like masks, Christmas and holiday greetings to you name it and people will be offended by it. This division and hatred has started to bleed into the body of Christ. We must remember that no matter what is going on in the world around us. We are not to be separated by skin color, class, or political affiliations. If your brother in Christ has an opposing viewpoint that offends then pray. Never get to the point where you begin to hate and take pleasure in bad things happening to someone that thinks differently than you. We are called to be and think on a heavenly scale. It doesn't mean that we don't work for racial equality or for the unborn. In all things, we are called to love. Do not allow Satan to cause you to stumble and fall in this area.

I'll leave you with a passage from Psalms 119:164-165 "Because of your righteous judgments, great peace have those who love Your law. and nothing causes them to stumble."

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A Hope That Does Not Disappoint: Making The Transition From Works To Faith

Checklist 

Tell me if this situation sounds familiar to you. You receive a promise from God, and you know with every fiber in your being that this promise is especially for you. To make sure that the promise will come to pass you begin to do the things that are required to see the promise come to fruition. 

1. Prayer
2. Fasting
3. Removing sin and living holy
4. Wait for the promise to come

But instead of the promise appearing, trouble comes instead so the list gets longer

1. Prayer
2. Fasting
3. Removing sin and living holy
4. Asking for others to pray and fast
5. Wait for the promise to come

Now surely the promise will make its appearance right. But no, frustration and doubt have stepped into the process instead. This causes the list for the promised manifestation to get longer still.

1. Prayer
2. Fasting
3. Removing sin and living holy
4. Frustration
5. Doubt
6. Repent for doubting
7. Wait for the promise to come

What if I told you that God's checklist may look a lot different from ours? What if the things required for the promise to appear in our lives requires an unexpected journey instead

1. Tribulation
2. Perseverance
3. Character
4. Hope
5. Faith 
6. Love
7. Promise

The Wait 

The apostle Paul in writing to the church in Rome used Abraham as an example of waiting on God for what appeared to be an impossible promise. Twenty-four years had passed from the time God first mentioned to Abraham that he would be a father (Genesis 12). By the time Genesis 17 comes around Abraham is 99 and Sarah is 90, physically there is no way that a child can come forth at this point. Just like them, in our lives, there have been promises that seemed absolutely impossible to come to pass from a natural standpoint. But what God asks of us is to believe in Him instead of ourselves. First God would change Abram's name to Abraham to reflect the promise of the father of many nations. Sarai's name would also be changed to Sarah the mother of many nations (Genesis 17). At this point, Abraham and Sarah had already gone through their promise checklist. Just like us, out of frustration of waiting on God to fulfill His promise, they decided to try and make things happen themselves by their own works. 

 Yes, it is good to pray and do all those things. But don't put your hope in the doing of the checklist to make the promise appear. The timing of all things is in God's hands, our part is to put our trust (faith) that what He promised, He is able to perform. So whether that be a promise of marriage, healing, a child or etc. God does not disappoint! "Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured, out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Romans 5:5).

God versus You 

When did Abraham finally become the father of many nations? Was it when Isaac was born or when he believed? Well, the word says this:

"I have made you a father of many nations, in the presence of Him whom he believed-God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist a though they did; who contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken. "So shall your descendants be". And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised  He was also able to perform (Romans 4:17-21)."

Who is able to make the promise come to pass, God or you? Your faith, your hope, your promise is all centered and founded on the belief that God is. Because God is good, because God loves you, because God is faithful to keep His word your promise will be fulfilled. Continue to pray and fast and seek God's face, but always remember that the promise is based on God's ability to perform not yours. "But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6)."

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Stick With The Plan

Don't Open That Door

Have you ever found yourself so engrossed with a show that you start yelling at the tv or is that just me? Let's say I'm watching a thriller and there is a group of people that are trapped by a psychopath trying to kill them. The group's leader has a plan for escape and it is a good plan and everyone is assigned their role to play to be able to successfully escape. Accept there is always that ONE person who when faced with the pressure of uncertainty goes their own way. Thus ruining the plan that would have allowed them to live. But instead, they chose to follow their own way and end up dead. As the viewer, we get to watch from a top-down view as the characters play their roles. It is always that one nitwit that wants to check out the random sound from a secret room that I find myself yelling at. From my vantage point, I can see what awaits them behind that closed door, and I'm screaming don't do it!

In the movie of my life, there have been many times where I was the nitwit that caved under the pressure of the uncertainty of not knowing how things will play out. My problem is that God who knows the end from the beginning has the plan. Seeing how He is God and I am not, God in His sovereignty chooses to not tell me the entire plan. Often times God will only tell me what I need to know in order to take the next step. Then He and all of heaven and hell wait to see what choice will I make. Will I stick with the plan that He has revealed through the Word of God and prayer? Or will I choose to investigate the random disturbance that I think may lead me out of my dilemma? 

The Plan 

Going back to the Bible we read of the journey of the children of Israel out of Egypt in the book of Exodus. There is an interesting truth nugget tucked into Exodus 13:17. "Then it came to pass when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt". I have lived long enough now to know that I have been no better than the Egyptian Israelites many times in my life. The Lord brought me through trials to prepare me for His promises. At those times in my life, I can see how God was using the trials to strengthen me in the faith. However, there is always some kind of opportunity to abandon the unseen plan. Many times I tried to take the easy path because I don't like pain. Sometimes the Lord blocked me for my own good, but other times I suffered the consequences of going my own way. 

Once someone accepts Christ as Lord and Savior the process of maturing begins. A simple way of understanding it is that God has to start the process of getting Egypt out of us. If God gave us the easy path of glory in Christ Jesus we would fail. Because we have a strong enemy that will fight and try to derail God's plan for our lives. Satan is not going to let people just ooh and awe over your life and give praises to God, as much as I wish he would. No, our lives become living reminders and glory receptacles of the power of God when the unsaved look on us. Because God's plan is to put on the full display of the kingdom of heaven in your life. Our part of that plan (purpose) is to display the glory of God and make disciples of all men. Therefore the wilderness journey is something we all have to go through. It is designed to prepare us for a life of faith. In order to make it out, we first need to trust God and stick to the plan even when we can't see it.

He Is Always Working 

Both of those elements, trusting God and following His commands require faith. What is faith? "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony"(Hebrews 11:1-2). An easy way of understanding the concept of faith is trust. Trust that the same God who delivered you before can do it again. Trust that God loves you and because He loves you He will make a way like waters flowing from a rock. That trust in God is not built upon an easy path, it can only be done in the Wilderness way. The good news is that when that reservoir of faith is built up in you and you start consistently choosing God's way over your own way. God will start to lead you out of the Wilderness because now you are ready. Now you are a good soldier prepared for the fight of conquering the promise land.

I'm going to leave you with a portion of Deuteronomy 8. When you get a chance I highly encourage you to read the whole chapter. Because one day after you have passed your tests the Lord your God will anoint you and be with you as you enter the land of promise.
"And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you" (Deuteronomy 8;2-5).

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Rooted and Grounded in Love

The Rose Vine

Spring is here and for many people that means the gardening season has arrived. For me, spring is a fresh start to build on what did well in my garden last year and correct some mistakes that were made in the previous seasons. This year my plan was to move a rose bush that was planted in the middle of my backyard. I originally thought I had a bush but found out that it was a climbing rose, and with nowhere to climb the limbs just drooped over dragging onto the ground. I picked out a spot along my fence that got plenty of sunshine and would allow for the rose's vines to climb and spread along the fence and trees. This move would involve digging up around the roses root system and transplanting to the new spot.

I figured that little project wouldn't be too bad, maybe 30-40 minutes of work and done. What I didn't realize is that unlike rose bushes whose roots only go down maybe 8-10 inches into the ground. Climbing roses can go as far as 18 inches down and spread outward! What I thought would be a quick project turned into 3 hours of digging into clay soil trying to get to the end of the root system of my roses! Long story short I gave up after over two hours of digging with no end in sight, way past the 18 inches mark! I cut the roots at the lowest mark and transplanted the vines and prayed that the roots will overcome the shock and dig deep and grow again.

In Ephesians 3 there is a prayer that the apostle Paul writes for the reader of Ephesians. The gardener in me noticed one particular phrase that popped out for me. "That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height; to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge. That you may be filled with all the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:17-19). Let's view those verses using gardening as our lens.

Planting the Seed of Faith

Many times Christ used the analogy of planting, farming, and gardening to describe how to grow in God. If you ask me I think gardening must be one of God's favorite all-time activities! The first part of our verse says "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith". Well then, how does Christ come to dwell in our hearts? When a person becomes saved they are born again from incorruptible seed "having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever (1 Peter 1:23)." Remember that the sower sows the word of God in our hearts and those of us that received that word are considered good ground (Mark 4:20).

Once we get past salvation and receiving the word, we now have to navigate life and Satan throwing everything at us to uproot the word that was planted. Growing in Christ will involve developing the root system that will allow us to withstand the cares of life and the wiles of Satan.

Digging Deeper: Surviving the Scorching Sun

In order to survive the withering heat of summer climbing roses will develop deep root systems that do two main things. The first is that the roots dig deep and cling to the earth so that when strong wind storms come they will not be uprooted and blown away. The second reason is that deep in the earth water can be found below the surface allowing for the vine to survive bouts of drenching heat so that the vine can survive the temperature changes and wait for when the weather becomes cooler. Paul's desire for the reader of Ephesians is that they would become rooted and grounded in the love of Christ. With that grounding in love comes an understanding of how deep and wide the love of Christ goes into a believer's life. That understanding of Christ's redeeming love will guard your heart against the trials of life.

In discussing the sower in Mark 4, Jesus mentioned that some would receive the word with gladness but when the sun came, the plant was scorched because it had NO DEPTH of earth. Tribulations and trials will come because of the word planted in our hearts. There is no way around that. In order to endure the scorching heat which will pass, the roots of the word and the love of Christ have to go deep into our very being. Jesus said that the ones that didn't make it had no root system in themselves so only endured for a time (Mark 4:17).

Digging Deeper: Planted by the Rivers of Living Water

Blessed is the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law, he meditates day and night (Psalms1:2). For that person will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also SHALL NOT WITHER; and whatever he does shall prosper (Psalms 1:3). In order to enter into the kingdom of God, a person has to be born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5). So what exactly does that mean to be born of water and the Spirit? Taking it back to basic gardening concepts, a plant needs water in order to survive and flourish. In order to flourish where would a believer (plant) get the water, it needs to be full? 

In Isaiah 33:21 it says "But there the majestic Lord will be for us a place of broad rivers and streams, in which no galley with oars will sail". God has made clear throughout scripture that He is the living water, the river that flows throughout our being. Jesus during the last supper told the disciples that He would give us another Helper, the Holy Spirit. In fact, the Holy Spirit is our seal and guarantee of our heavenly inheritance (Ephesians 1:13-14).  In talking with the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus talks of the Holy Spirit as the living water.

"Jesus answered and said to her, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, Give Me a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water. The woman said to Him, Sir You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and livestock? Jesus answered and said to her, whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. (John 4:10-14)."

Flourishing Fruit

The ultimate goal of the Christian life is to be filled with the fullness of God. In doing so we will produce much fruit that the Master can use to spread the kingdom of God. You know what is the beautiful thing about fruit, besides being delicious? Fruit can be replanted and reproduce more fruit according to its kind. God can use your life to produce much more than just what you see around you. Despite what you may feel right now continue to dig deep and become rooted and grounded in Christ our Lord.

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Heaven's Test Kitchen Part 1

The Prep Work

A couple of days ago I had a conversation with my cousin who runs an online bakery business. We were talking about the shortages with finding key ingredients for baking like flour, sugar, you know the basics. Because of the shortages, the baking had to be paused until supply lines open back up again. My cousin then mentioned something that I found to be really profound. During the course of baking a batch of cookies, some come out looking perfect and some come out looking, well not that great. The end batch that goes to the customer and is posted online is only the best of the best. The rest of the cookies are placed in the family cookie jar. Those cookies are studied to find out what went wrong but are eaten anyway because nothing goes to waste.

In Heaven's test kitchen lives are prepped and prepared to be put to the Master's use. In the service of the kingdom, no individual life belongs to himself or herself. Each life dedicated to the Master is to be used in service to others and to advance the kingdom of Heaven. In some of the best restaurants in the world, master chefs have something called a test kitchen. Recipes are born after multiple trials and errors to develop the perfect taste and texture before getting put on the menu. These tests are not done out in the open for the public to see. The master chef chooses the ingredients to go into the yet born recipe. These ingredients are thrown into all kinds of trials. They then are broken down, thrown into fire and water until the refining process is complete. The end result is a dish that has the chef's name placed on it as a signature dish ready for the public to consume.

God's refining process can feel lonely, disorienting, with all semblance of control having been lost. At least that is the perspective of the one going through the fire. However, the view from on high is quite different."Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver. I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it; for how should My name be profaned? And I will not give My glory to another (Isaiah 48:10-11). 

Every saint in the kingdom has been called to be an image-bearer of Christ Jesus. "Then God said let Us create man in Our own image, according to Our likeness (Genesis 1:26). But because of sin, there are some things that have to be purged from our hearts and consciences in order to be fit for the Master's use. We as believers in Christ represent the glory and name of God here on Earth. If our lives reflect the consequences of our own whims, our own pursuits, and our own glory then God's name is profaned in front of the world. As ambassadors of Christ we were made to bring glory to our Lord, and one defining trait about the great I AM is that He will not share His glory with another, and that includes you and me.

The Baking Process

"He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men so will bring offerings in righteousness, (Malachi 3:3)". On its face, the thought of being purified through fire is pretty frightening and something that I wouldn't voluntarily submit myself to. The times that I have spent in God's furnace were crushing and in many ways broke me down to my core. I would never want to go through those experiences again to be truthful. I can honestly look back and say that I am not the same woman that I was before the fire. His fire is all-consuming but God knows what temperature our lives need in order to come out pure. The American Heritage Dictionary has an interesting list of the meaning of the word refine.

1. To reduce to a pure state
2. To remove by purifying
3. To free from coarse, unsuitable, or immoral characteristics
4. To become free from impurities
5. To acquire polish or elegance
6. To use precise distinctions and subtlety in thought and speech.

God is preparing His people to rule and reign with Him on Earth one day. "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on Earth (Revelation 5:10)." The purpose of refining is to prepare heirs worthy of the responsibility to rule as kings in the next life and to minister as priests now in this life. Because God is a good Father, He will not entrust to babes the authority that comes with ruling in the kingdom. "Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father (Galatians 4:1-2)". Therefore it is to our benefit when we endure trials and come out of them. Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him (James 1:12)". There will come a day when the trials will end, and for those that make it out of the Wilderness, there is great reward on the other side.

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Fake News

Do not be deceived by fake news

"Thus says the Lord of hosts: Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless; they speak a vision of their own heart, not from the mouth of the Lord. They continually say to those who despise Me, The Lord has said, You shall have peace; And to everyone who walks according to the dictates of his own heart, they say, No evil shall come upon you." For who has stood in the counsel of the Lord, and has perceived and heard His word? Who has marked His word and heard it? Behold a whirlwind of the Lord has gone forth in fury, a violent whirlwind! it will fall violently on the head of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until He has executed and performed the thoughts of His heart. In the latter days, you will understand it perfectly." Jeremiah 23:16-20 NKJV

Imagine with me for a second that you owned a washer machine factory, and your company made the best washer machines on the market. To help people get the most out of their machines you wrote an instruction manual detailing how to care for the washers, and what not to put into it. For a while, everything is going great for a season. Then some strange complaints start to pour into the customer service department. Company salespeople have gone around and told customers that heavy rocks can be put into the machines without any bad side effects. On top of that lie, the salespeople have informed the customers that no matter how they abuse the machines and try to make the washers do things it was not designed to do, that the maker will honor the warranty and everything will turn out fine. Now ask yourself, what would you do as the company owner to those salespeople?

In the 23rd chapter of Jeremiah, God is pouring out His complaint with the false prophets that are telling the people lies in God's name. Instead of turning the hearts of the people toward God they were encouraging and participating in wickedness. Instead of leading the people toward God they were gathering followers to themselves by telling them prophetic dreams that made everyone feel good. The result is instead of following God, the people were following these rock star prophets, which had made them worthless. A prophecy that does not originate with God is divination. True biblical prophecy always points the recipient back to God and can either correct, comfort, or strengthen. Divination always points the recipient back to themselves and will encourage sin, pride, and stubbornness

In this age be careful of the teachers and prophets that you listen to. Satan ministers can transform themselves into teachers of light. Remember the warning that Jesus gave concerning the end days. "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying I am the Christ and will deceive many."Matthew 24:4-5. Just like how the false teachers came in Yahweh's name and turned the people away with false visions so it will be now. False teachers and prophets will come in Christ's name, telling people that Jesus is the way of life. But these false prophets and teachers will lead many astray because sometimes they "proclaim the name of Christ". The warning that Christ and the apostles preached over and over again concerning the end times was, do not be deceived. Every prophecy, teaching, dream, and vision has to be judged by the word of God.

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Please Don't Forget Me

Do This In Remembrance Of Me

"For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me. In the same manner, He also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes." 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

If you have ever read through the Bible, you will notice that God is really into memorials. After crossing the Jordan, God instructed the Israelites to grab 12 large stones from the midst of the river to mark it as a memorial. The reason is that humans have a tendency to forget the milestones of the previous generations. When Jesus told the disciples that every time they drank the wine and ate the bread it was in remembrance of Me. The beautiful thing about communion is that you can take it at home between you and God. I decided to take communion this past weekend with my children.

After the initial Mom what is going on questions, my son finally asked me the most important question. "Mom, why do we need to take communion? At that moment as the children stood around the dining room table, each with their own round cracker and a glass of grape juice, I answered. We do this to celebrate and remember the sacrifice that Jesus did for us on the cross. Jesus died so that we could live with Him in heaven as part of His family. That is why we eat the bread. We drink this juice to remember that His blood heals us, and cleanses us from our sins that separated everyone from God.

I don't know if they fully understood the ramifications of what I said. But in that moment the dining room became a sacred space connecting my little family with the Divine. Now we have a new family tradition of remembering the Lord's death till He comes again.

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Choosing To Trust Is The Key to Entering His Rest

Childlike Trust

As many of you know I am a mom of three beautiful children. Last week the children's father called to tell them that he was going to get them a yummy surprise. Thiana my youngest was particularly excited because her daddy always gets her the best treats. While the kids were waiting for their dad to come over Thiana was starting to get a bit hungry. She said mommy when is daddy coming, I'm really hungry? I said do you want something to eat while you wait for your dad to come? Yes, can I have some square cereal? I said you sure can. As I was preparing her cereal, Thiana had another question. Mommy if I eat this cereal I won't be hungry for daddy's surprise. Your right, you probably won't have room to eat daddy's surprise if you eat now. I watched as Thiana was faced with this moral dilemma, as concern washed over her little face. Mommy, I don't want any cereal I will wait for daddy to come. Are you sure sweetheart? Your daddy may be running a bit late. Yes mommy, Thiana replied I will wait for daddy.

Twenty minutes later Thiana comes back to my office and climbs into my lap. Mommy when is daddy coming, I'm really hungry? Your daddy will be here just like he promised sweetheart. Doesn't your daddy always give you yummy things when he promises? Yes, said Thiana but I'm really hungry now! But if I eat the cereal I won't be able to eat the surprise. Are you sure daddy is coming? Well, baby, you know that your daddy loves you very much right? Yes mommy, said Thiana. Then because your daddy loves you, he will come with your surprise. But if you want I can always get you cereal while you wait. What would you like to do, for it is your choice Thiana? Then I will wait for daddy to come, I won't eat the cereal. Certain in her choice and convinced that her daddy loves her she hopped off my lap and went to play with her sister.

As their Dad got delayed, Thiana went through the choice of eating now or waiting for the surprise at least 3 more times that afternoon. Each time I told her that her father loves her and he will keep his promise to his little girl. Despite the hunger pains she was going through, each time Thiana chose to wait, and declared that daddy is coming. Finally, the long-awaited moment arrived when Daddy came bearing all kinds of treats. Thiana got a big juicy cheeseburger that looked almost bigger than her head, as well as some lollipops and snack cakes. As she dug into that big cheeseburger, with meat juices dripping down her chin she smiled and said I'm glad I waited, Mommy.

Trusting in the Prophetic Word

Whenever God sends His word to us, we as believers are immediately faced with a choice to make. Do we believe in the divine word that was sent or do we find our own way to meet our needs? Thankfully in all things God has provided an example to us of what not to do while waiting. The writer of Hebrews said " TToday if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion" Hebrews 3:15. During Israel's Wilderness (waiting) season "God said that they tested Me, tried Me, and saw My works for 40 years, so I swore in My wrath they shall not enter My rest" Heb3:9-11. Do you remember that saying that God will not give us more than we can bear? Well, that principle applies to when God asks us to trust Him with the right time for the promise to appear. 

When we were new believers, did you notice that God often came through for you quickly? Sometimes in the most dramatic and spectacular fashion imaginable. Those deliverances left no doubt in your mind that God was with you and for you. As you begin to mature in the faith, He started to put you in situations where the wait is stretched out a bit longer. In an ideal situation, you would have recalled how God came through the last time and held out and trust that He would come through again. This cycle continues over and over again with each delivered promise bringing us to another level in Christ. Hopefully, while we wait on God, we begin to rest on His promise, knowing that if He did it before, He will do it again. That rest during the wait is what keeps us from working to make something happen in our own strength.

Let's go back to the example of the Israelites and what not to do while waiting. The journey during the Wilderness kicked off in spectacular fashion. A pillar of fire guided their way by night and a cloud by day. This lead them to the Red Sea miracle where God forever put their former life behind them, by parting the sea and drowning Pharoah's armies. God was doing everything possible to show them that the people could trust Him just like their forefathers did. Apparently, God didn't build up enough trust for the Israelites because it quickly went out the window a mere THREE DAYS after the Red Sea deliverance. The Israelites complained about the bitter water as if God wouldn't supply water for them. For it was God that took them on that route! This dysfunctional cycle of miracle, complaining, disobedience, repentance, and miracle continued until the final culmination of the mutiny of the 10 bad spies. At that point, God had enough of the relationship and decided to start again with the next generation.

Entering His Rest

So what stopped the Israelites from entering the Promise Land? The writer of Hebrews said that an evil heart of unbelief caused them to depart from the living God. In every scenario where the Israelites faced a dilemma, instead of holding fast to the promise that God would provide, they would despair and act out. Now, what does unbelief look like to God? Unbelief says to God I don't trust You, and because I don't trust You, I don't believe that You will do what You said. Remember unbelief stops the hand of God from acting in your life because it also leads to rebellion. Recall the first human sin in the garden Genesis 3:1-5. God had provided for Adam and Eve for probably years in a perfect environment. Then Satan comes along and causes Eve to lose trust in God's motives and provision for her household. Thinking that God was now untrustworthy she took the matter of knowing good and evil into her own hands. The result, God's provision was canceled out and they were kicked out of Paradise. When Jesus was traveling in His hometown, He could not do many mighty works because of their UNBELIEF Matthew 13:58. 

"A promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. The word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it, for we who have believed do enter that rest" Hebrews 4:1-3. Remember that God will equip you to perform the duties He has called you to do. If you feel during your waiting that your faith is running short, then ask Him for faith. "For by grace you have been saved, through FAITH,  and that NOT OF YOURSELVES, it is the GIFT of God, not of works lest anyone should boast" Ephesians 2:9. If you find yourself questioning God that is ok, He can handle your questions. In fact, it is better to take your questions to God and have a difficult conversation with Him, rather than letting Satan talk to you about your questions. We have a great High Priest that can sympathize with our weaknesses. Our High Priests tells us to come boldly before the throne to find mercy and grace to help in our time of need, Hebrews 4:16.  

Hasn't God performed so many miracles in your life up until now? Remember that your heavenly Father loves you. He has given you a great high priest in heaven, and Christ lives to make intercession for you. Lastly, God has given you His Spirit that lives and dwells inside of you as proof that you are His child. God will come through for you. Wait and trust in His timing, for He knows when you will be ready to receive. For the blessing of the Lord maketh one rich and He adds no sorrow with it Proverbs 10:22.

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Freedom From Lust Part 2

Lust and Dating

Hello again, if you are new to this blog I highly encourage you to read part one before reading this post. Entering the dating scene after ten years of being in a rocky marriage was terrifying. Because although my marriage wasn't ideal by any standard, it was familiar. To me familiar equaled safe. Now instead of taking the time to heal, recover and figure out who I am in Christ. I searched for someone to anchor me in the midst of all of my uncertainty.  Dating with a broken heart is never a great idea, but I did it anyway. On one level it felt good to know that I was desirable and wanted, but what I quickly found out, was that desirability seemed to be the main thing. I was bombarded with different offers, some from really respectable gentleman and some from straight-up perverts. However at the end of the day, it appeared that in order to be in a relationship sexual immorality would be required.

I knew what God's word said about waiting and not being unequally yoked with unbelievers. Although I saw God's provision in other areas of my life I didn't quite trust Him with my love life. So for a season, I did things the world's way. Dating the world's way made me feel really empty because I gave away the most permanent and precious parts of me to temporary people. I also found out that in order to date "successfully" my heart had to change in a way that I did not like. In order to guard my heart, I had to become cruel, and standoffish in order to keep a man's attention. I hated the person I was becoming, someone that can use and throw away another person's affections in order to protect myself from hurt while searching for the one. Cruelty, lust, selfishness, lack of self-control, impurity are all characteristics of Satan. I should not have been surprised that since I was doing things the world's way, I would begin to take on the world's characteristics. Let's not forget I was not fully divorced before I began dating, so I can add adultery to the list of sins that I was quickly piling up.

One of the beautiful things about God is His grace and mercy. I began to seek God's face because I had no peace in this area of my life. During this time the Lord revealed a new dimension of Himself to me that I truly had never known before. God was showing me in His word that He would be my anchor in the midst of my storms. Instead of trying to forge my own path that was leading to nothing but rebellious wilderness wanderings, God offered me another way. If I would humble myself, repent and submit to God, He would become not just my Healer, but my Husband too! One of my favorite scriptures during this season of testing was Isaiah 54. I used to say verses like this to myself over and over again. "For Your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name, and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of the whole earth. For the Lord has called you, like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, like a youthful wife when you were refused, says your God. For a mere moment I have forsaken you, But with great mercies, I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; But with everlasting kindness, I will have mercy on you, says the Lord, your Redeemer."Isaiah 54:5-8 NKJV

Lust and Singleness

Eventually, God gave me the command to stop dating and to let Him choose my mate. This was a hard edict for me to accept, but I did it for the most part lol. At first, it was a struggle just learning to accept that it is ok to be alone but not lonely. Those two concepts are not the same thing. One of my biggest fears was to end up alone, but what I was really afraid of was the feeling of loneliness. My main coping mechanism for loneliness was porn and masturbation. Just like how alcoholics drinks to stop feelings of depression or fear, I used masturbation to get that dopamine high to cope with life. The closer I got to God during this time the more convicted I got of this sin, that I had since my teenage years. I found myself in this cycle of wanting to please God in this area and giving in almost all the time to my flesh. However, God knew exactly what to do to get my life to change. He made my life harder!

One of the amazing concepts of going through a Wilderness is that it is the place where God can purify, edify, and change a person into becoming more like Christ. Through the various trials that came, I learned about pressing in and developing a real everyday fellowship with God. The closer I got to God the more sensitive I became to the areas of sin in my life. I can honestly say for the first time, I truly began to see the ugliness of my sin and the depravity of my flesh. I was the temple of the Holy Spirit yet I was committing sins that were defiling the temple where God's Holy Spirit dwelt. I was no better than the Israelites that God spoke out against in Ezekial 8. The Lord made clear to me that I could no longer view pornography, commit masturbation and keep in fellowship with Him. I had to stop but how?

At first, I did it out of sheer will power and scripture. Satan is never going to let anyone just walk in purity without a fight. In the beginning, I had to learn to resist with scripture and prayer. I took to heart James 4:7-10 "Therefore submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up." I said scriptures like this every time I got thoughts to indulge my flesh. Soon as I committed to obeying God in this area, He gave me more advice on protecting my purity. I became sensitive to the music I listened to and the shows I watched. I love playing music as I do chores like dishes or cooking. One day while washing dishes I was listening to Normani's song "Motivation". I'm not sure if it was during the song or immediately after but I noticed that my mind was bombarded with lustful thoughts. Images from past sexual encounters played in my head and I had to really fight to get the spirit of lust to leave me alone. 

That moment was hard but a great object lesson in protecting my eye gate and ear gate. I couldn't just play anything I wanted anymore. My flesh HATED the thought of restricting my music and the things that I saw. But Satan uses those things to harass and entice men to sin. It makes no sense for me to make my life harder because I value the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life more than anything else. Jesus said in Matthew 5:27-30 NKJV " You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell".

Deliverance From the Spirit of Lust

Little did I know that through all this that God was laying the ground work for me to gain complete victory over the spirit of lust. I found that now the time periods between repentance and sinning were growing longer and longer. Which for me was HUGE progress, but still there were times when it felt like an unsatiable urge would just consume my thoughts for HOURS at a time. I would pray to the Lord about what to do about it. Because I didn't understand why would that still be happening to me if I was controlling what I saw, hear, and I was feeding on a strong spiritual diet? Then one day I came across a teaching by the late Derek Prince called blessing and cursing. The sermon was about how Christians can still be afflicted by demonic forces that can cause sin and other unexplainable bad things to happen in their lives. I have always been wary about talks about demons and the like, the concept is scary and I wanted nothing to do with it. I figured that I wasn't under a curse because Christ became a curse for me when He hung up on the tree. But there was still this "thing" that afflicted me when I least expected it. So due to an odd series of events that happened to me over the prior two weeks, my mind was open to hearing this concept of deliverance from demons.

The presentation was simple and straight forward. Due to sin, demons are able to attach themselves to an individual causing them to be bound to that particular sin. But because Jesus has all authority now, we as believers can exercise that authority and rid ourselves of these demonic guests. Basically, the process was repent of sin, let the Holy Spirit guide if there are any other areas that need repentance, and command the demon to leave in the name of Jesus. That is the short version of the sermon I will post a link here to the full video. That is what I did I told the spirit that I repented of the sins of lust, sex, and masturbation and due to that, they no longer have the right to reside in my body. Then I commanded them in the name of Jesus to leave me now, and for good measure, I also plead the blood of Jesus against it. At the time I did this I was cooking in my kitchen, maybe in hindsight I should have been alone somewhere in my room in a quiet place. But I have kids and there is no such thing as a quiet place in the afternoon. But in the end that didn't matter. First I started burping really loud obnoxious burps. That freaked me out because I was doing this by myself and didn't want anything weird to happen on an Excorcist level if that makes sense.

I started praying harder because it felt like I was making some kind of progress. The burps turned into a nauseous feeling like I was vomiting something up from my stomach. I could feel the thing or things leave my body. When they were gone it was an incredible feeling of lightness and cleanness. Ever since that day, my walk with the Lord has been dramatically different. I no longer had a live-in saboteur pressuring me to give into my flesh all the time. Now when the bible talks about no longer being a slave to sin, and to be holy for I am holy, I am joyful because it is now possible to do. It is possible to live a holy life as a living sacrifice before God. Now although I still have the sin nature and I will always have the possibility to sin. I don't have to practice sin on a daily basis like I was before. Christ paid a huge price to redeem me from sin, and now I can fully enjoy this gift from my Savior.

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Let Go of the Seed: Planting Season is Here

Let Go Of The Seed

Have you ever felt that God placed a call on your life? When I say a call, I mean a specific task or duty that you just can't seem to shake. Often times God calls His children to go out and spread the kingdom message to the world through the gifts that He has placed within us. Usually, when we as believers hear the phrase call of God, our minds immediately drift to preaching in the pulpit. And for some us, that very well may be true. God's kingdom needs evangelists, apostles, prophets, pastors, and teachers to expand the kingdom and equip the body of Christ. But God's kingdom does not consist of just pastors and teachers. The kingdom of Heaven needs writers, singers, artists, teachers, and business people as well. The truth is that the body consists of many members each performing their God-ordained tasks to expand Heaven's kingdom on Earth.

Scattering Your Seed

To each of us was given a God placed call on our lives for His kingdom purposes. Think of the call of God as a seed placed in your care. To everyone in the kingdom, God has given a seed tailored made for your unique abilities! I find it so amazing that the God of the universe has decided to partner up with His children to spread the kingdom of Heaven! In order for that seed to be successful and grow, it requires our obedience to our Heavenly Father's directions. You must sow the seed that has been entrusted in your care, and God will take care of the rest. Jesus said in Mark 4:26-29 "And He said, The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know-how. For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

To those that obey the call of God and plant the seed, there will come many blessings and rewards. God will prosper and multiply HIS SEED, in your life, not yours. This is where the hard part comes into play. There were many, many times in my life where I wanted God to bless and multiply MY SEED. I would ask God to bless MY dreams, My plans, My wants, and MY desires. To be honest with you those dreams I harbored had nothing to do with the kingdom of God. My plans were exactly that; MY plans for building the life I wanted. You know what happens when you ask God to bless the work of your hands with YOUR SEED? Nothing but silence, you don't get heaven's results, you get your own. There were times that I could claim success, but it came with heartbreak and sorrow. I was responsible for tending and caring for the seed that I planted. It was like when God kicked Adam and Eve out of the garden. They no longer had God's blessing on their seed in the ground, instead, they had to toil and labor for meager fruit. For the ground would no longer give them its strength.

What happens to the believer that lives their entire life never planting the seed that was entrusted to them? Jesus tells us in Matthew 25:24-28

"Then he who had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours. But his lord answered and said to him, You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming, I would have received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

You Reap What You Sow 

Jesus makes it very clear what happens to unprofitable servants in the kingdom of Heaven. the seed that entrusted to the lazy servant by the Master was given to the good servant instead. So it will be with us, to those of us that will sow the Master's seed. God will bless the work of our hands and entrust to us even more seed to grow. You find this principle in farming. At harvest time the farmer keeps back some of the harvests to use for future plantings. Ultimately the choice is ours, we can sow and be profitable or hold on to the seed and have it taken away! 

After a very tough Wilderness (outer darkness) season, I finally yielded my life to God's plans and purposes. God renewed His call and placed a seed in my hands. If you are a gardener, you know that there is no such thing as an instant harvest. In Genesis God told Noah that " While the earth remains seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter, and summer, and day and night shall not cease. ( Genesis 8:22) Once you plant your seed there will be a period of time before you see the results. Do not look at other people during this time and start comparing harvests and seeds. Everything takes place in cycles in farming, planting season, rainy season, and finally harvest season. Now that you have the seed you must plant it before the Lord sends the rains to water His seed in the earth. So let go of the seed in your hand and watch for the harvest that the Lord will bring in!

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Is Masturbation A Sin? My Testimony on Freedom From Lust and Pornography

The Path To Masturbation and Pornography

This post is a little bit of a confessional for me and ripping away of the veil of pretenses. I have struggled with lust for most of my life. It was always my secret sin because as a girl growing up in a very strict Christian home lust was one of the worst sins I could possibly commit. I can’t tell you the number of times it was drilled into me at home and at church that I was to remain chaste, pure and a virgin until my wedding day. The only instruction that I was given was to keep my legs closed and I won’t bring dishonor to my God, family, and myself. This advice was extremely frustrating because although I and countless other girls were given the advice to keep our legs closed. The same due diligence didn’t appear to be given to the guys. There was this silent acknowledgment that boys will try and seduce me because at the end of the day boys will be boys. The problem is that this left me to be the sole gatekeeper to my chastity and didn’t address the issue of girls want sex too.

My experience growing up was something akin to living a double life. I had a heart for God and was very active in the church. I delighted in reading my Bible and learning about God and His ways. But on the other hand, I struggled at night alone in my bed with intense urges to masturbate. For the most part, I was able to keep the unexplained urges away until one night while watching tv in my bedroom I stumbled onto Cinemax at night. As I stared at the images on the screen I felt my conscience tell me to turn it off, that what I was watching was wrong. But at that moment something stronger than my conscience overruled it, and my body began to respond to what I was watching on the screen. That night led me down the path of being in bondage to pornography and lust.

Lambs to the Slaughter

I believe one of the biggest reasons why the instruction to just keep your legs closed fails to work time and time again, is because we live in a society that worships Love and Sex. In ancient times it was really easy to see what gods and goddesses reigned supreme in a society. Temples to goddesses of sex and pleasure were easy to find in times past. Although those societies have come and gone the spirits behind the deities still exist in our day. In today’s society, the worship of love and sex is saturated in our culture. Especially in American culture, the worship of love and sex is written about in our books, movies, songs, and fashion. In fact, it is not unusual for companies to advertise using a sexy model or actress because sex sells. The society we live in idolizes sex and as a result the spirits of lust and pornography reign virtually unchecked.

This is why giving a young girl or boy advice to just keep it in your pants or keep your legs closed never worked. Because even if on the outside a young person can refrain from sin, once you are behind closed doors like I was, the pull to masturbate (self-love) was always there. I was given physical natural advice to tackle a spiritual problem. Thus I never was told how to deal with this spiritual reality that was all around me. The more I watched porn and masturbated the more guilty and bound to sin I became.

Christian Watching Porn

I want to take a moment to talk about the corrupt nature of pornography in very real terms. When I first got hooked into pornography it was similar to the story of what you would hear a drug addict say about drug addiction. In my experience the initial climaxes I experienced when I was first watching porn were mind-blowing. But as time went on the intensity of the climaxes grew less and less. Which led me on a search for more intense pornography to get the same level of climax that I experienced in the beginning. This resulted in hours of watching pornography late at night and just like most drugs I couldn’t go to sleep at night until I masturbated. As I opened myself up to spiritual darkness each day, it led me down a path where masturbation wasn’t enough. I had to experience sexual interaction with another person. This led to phone sex on late night chat lines with complete strangers. The end result led me to want to meet and fulfill my sexual fantasies with another person.

During my descent into darkness, God never stopped reaching out to me to repent. I was still “saved” but my sin was separating me from the God I served. As time went on the thoughts and intents of my heart were on sex all the time. The irony of all this is that sex is a sacred act given to man by God himself. It is meant to be enjoyed wholeheartedly in the confines of marriage. What I found was that the reality of having sex never lived up to the fantasies I had in my head. I was never satisfied with my sexual encounters. It was by the grace of God that I didn’t get pregnant or catch a sexually transmitted disease. There was a part of me that was still terrified of being labeled a Ho, so I never racked up a high body count per se. However, the spiritual darkness grew within me every time I acted out on my lust.

Lust and Marriage

When I got married, I stopped watching pornography. I had reconnected with God enough that I no longer watched porn on a daily basis. But the part of me that was supposed to enjoy sex was broken. I still masturbated when my husband wasn’t around out of habit and as a way to relieve stress. I couldn’t connect with my husband the way I was supposed to. In many ways, my ex-husband suffered from the same fate as me. The culture we live in today glorifies sex. So now there are two broken people in a marriage that don’t know how to be one flesh the way God had originally designed it. Because I never was completely delivered from the bondage of lust, thoughts of prior encounters or porn I had watched before would pop up during intimate times with my husband. Instead of truly connecting, my mind would wander to what stimulated me before, which ended up cheating both me and my husband of God’s gift. Fast forward almost ten years and my marriage ended because of infidelity and other issues. I was left broken and devastated and in this state, I attempted to reenter the dating scene after twelve years off of it.





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