The best way to know God deeper is to go into the secret place. The secret place where it is just you and him and no one else. You get to spend time alone with him and you get to say all that is on your mind. You feel his presence with you when you invite him in to your world and in to your life. He’s already there and will always be but when you acknowledge him it changes everything. You begin to be aware of his character and who he is to you and not everyone else. Who is God to you? What’s your relationship like with him? If you haven’t done it today or done it lately, spend time with him. Just you and him and no one else. You’ll become full, fueled, refreshed and prepared for the days ahead.

“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you”. Matthew 6:6

This is for all my people dealing with anxiety, overthinking, doubt etc. Whatever it is that hinders you from moving forward with your life. I get it. I understand. Don’t give up on yourself. Don’t think that you’re a failure. Don’t think you’re in your trial alone. Push yourself. Even as hard as it is, you have to. You have to keep going because you’re still alive and you won’t be in the place you are in right now forever. Who knows if what you’re dealing with now will help someone else later. Right now, breathe. Pray. Just don’t give up. You’re gonna be ok. God is with you. Keep going. Please don’t quit on yourself and use this opportunity to rely all that you are on Christ. You’re not a failure. You’re not a loser. You’re not incapable. All things are possible with God. It’s gonna get better. Trust me.

You’re ok.

Let them know how good God has been to you. Matter of fact, let yourself know.

You have air in your lungs and have woken up to see another day. You have another 24 hours to make the most of the life you’ve been given.

Go tell it on the mountain, on the rooftops, on stages and platforms. If you ever get a spotlight, all the glory belongs to Jesus.

Tell them how he set you free. Tell them how he gave you new life and washed away your sins. Tell them that you’re not the same you and old things have passed away and all things have become new. Tell them you have a reason for the hope that is in you. Tell them how God sought you and chose you.

Tell yourself.

Remind yourself always about the grace God has shown you. Tell yourself that you’re not alone and God has never left your side. Tell yourself that even in the midst of trial, you’re gonna praise God because he is walking with you through the storm. Remind yourself that you are a light in the world and have a purpose to shine.

Go ahead. Tell them.

Let the whole wide world know your first love named Jesus. Tell your neighbor, tell your friends, tell you cousins, your aunt, your uncle, your classmates, your co-workers, and even the cashier. Let them know you smile and have endless joy because of your salvation.

Never cease to be in wonder of your Father in heaven. He has so much in store for you that you don’t even know is coming. Just know, his way and thoughts are higher. He desires to be close to us and teach us.

Testify to them. Testify to yourself. Let it be known, the savior of the world has captured your soul and you will dwell with him forever.

“And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son”(1 John 5:11 NLT)

You have the the Son, so you have life. Go ahead and get lost in his goodness and his mercy. Fill yourself up with more of the Word and less and less of the things we desire from this earth. Yes I know, it’s easier said then done. That’s why when we tell ourselves out loud, we then start to believe again. When we listen to a teaching or even a friend encouraging us,we can start to believe again. We get inspired again from what we already know. You know the truth and the truth has redeemed you, yet we can live as if we don’t think God is right there next to us and that he is incapable of fixing any problem that we have. But wait. God doesn’t think like us. Thank God, that God doesn’t think like us. He tells us not to worry and and to always be praying. Let your soul rest tonight, knowing that God is in control of every aspect of your life. Cast your cares on him and lay and your burdens at his feet. He is the hope, the reason, the passion, the joy , the love of your testimony.

 ^“Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.” Romans 6:16

When we let our flesh take control of our minds, thoughts and actions it’s easy for us to go along with it until we realize that sin is a trap to keep us away from God. We are all sinners and should never think we’re too good to sin. It happens to everyone and anyone. When you sin, run to God. Only he cares enough to wash you clean and comfort you in your struggle. Only his spirit can give you the power to resist and choose God.

“Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. ¹³ Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. ¹⁴ Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace“. Romans 6:12-14

It can be so easy to lose yourself. You and I can forget who we are because you don’t have something we want yet. I remember today not feeling like myself and asking myself why I was doing what I was doing. I didn’t understand my motives but wanted to. I imagined myself having something that didn’t belong to me yet. I pictured myself with it as if it was already mine. I planned out my own timing for my life and when it didn’t happen today like I planned, I got disappointed. I got lost in a world that I made up in my own mind. I forgot who I was.

When we get wrapped up in a false reality we can easily forget our calling, desires, and passions- the things that drives us and make us who we really are. Just because you don’t have a boyfriend or husband giving you attention or the career you’d like or even the kids you want to have one day doesn’t mean that you are worthless and have no meaning. Those things are great to have but your true identity and purpose comes from God. Just because I don’t have certain things doesn’t mean I don’t have anything. It shouldn’t stop me from enjoying my life and living everyday as if I’m loved by my Father in heaven who I get to spend eternity with.

Always fight to remember who you are. You don’t want to go down the road of forgetting about yourself because that road tends to have discouragement, loneliness, and  cloudiness.

Have you’ve been fighting with God? The moment you want to take control into your own hands is when you think you are in control of your life and can plan/organize everything to happen to your liking. When we are running from God or trying to hide from him, he meets us right where we are. He may even break us a little just so our only place to look to is toward him. When you think you know what will happen, think again. God has his own ways and doesn’t reveal everything to us. So if you’re fighting with God, take a minute to reflect on what your fighting him for and you may just realize you’re in a battle that’s already won.

Trying to move on from your past? It’s not so easy. The memories are there in your mind and you can easily go back to them if you let yourself do so. How do you move on from people, a job, a comfort zone that you were so used to? Well, look at where you are now. What is around you that you can appreciate and pay more attention to? Because your mind is always thinking about something, why not dwell on the current blessings that you have right now. Yes you can appreciate the past since it is what brought you to your present but don’t be so wrapped up in your past that you don’t let yourself enjoy your present.

Yes you had to cut loose the things that weren’t right for your life. Whether it was people who said they loved you but treated you more like someone they knew they had to tolerate, or a friend who’s true colors were exposed. None of those people are worth your self-esteem being lowered to the ground because you weren’t appreciated by them. You recognized your worth and know that God made you great and you deserve to have your closest friends encourage that greatness within you and not diminish it. It could be that you left a job that you poured your heart and soul into. You noticed yourself being in a position where you knew you just didn’t belong there anymore and if God said ‘leave’ then it was time to go but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t heartbreaking to leave. Or it might be that you left something good behind. Maybe you were a part of something that brought you joy and made you excited to be a part of it but you needed to let that go also.

Everything in life has an expiration date even or own lives. “Three things last forever faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love”(1 Corinthians 13:13). It doesn’t say your job will last forever, or your friendship will last forever or the ministry you were a part of will last forever. God has a time and place for every circumstance we go through in life and the sooner we realize that everything has it’s season, the quicker we can learn to appreciate every minute of every day. We don’t know how long we will live in the city we’re in or how long that co-worker is going to work with us or if we’ll see our high school friends again. So my friend, lose yourself in the moments of your life. Wherever you are is an opportunity to learn something. Even if you don’t fully like what your doing at the moment or haven’t reached that certain goal yet, just know that if God is there with you and if you’re in His will, you are exactly where you need to be. Let your past prepare you for your future. Let yourself become better not bitter because of the lessons you’ve learned. It’s easier said then done but get ready because God is going to take you higher. Higher than your past has taken you, further than your past has taken you. You’re on an incredible journey and this is just the beginning of God’s story. He’s still writing with his permanent marker. No pencil, because the are no mistakes to erase.

“Prayer is never an acceptable substitute for obedience. The sovereign Lord accepts no offering from His creatures that is not accompanied by obedience”.- A. W. Tozer

I just realized that I can ask God to change the situation I’m in as much as I want but as long as I keep wanting to run away from what he has said to do, I am being disobedient. Walking in obedience means trusting that God will make change occur in my life in his timing .Obedience will bring me to the reality of not trying to control every aspect of my life. God will makes things happen when we choose to obey him. Why hide from God or choose to ignore him because he hasn’t done what you want yet? He has you right where you are for a purpose so walk in obedience and see God move.