Faith

We were at a class and the topic of discussion that came up was about faith "what does faith mean to me" to be exact.   After spending some time thinking about what faith means to me I came up with what I believe is the accurate definition of what faith is in my life.

Faith

"A peaceful and confident journey, trusting and knowing that Jesus is walking with me while God is ahead of anything that I face whether good or bad but either way ending with the gift of eternal life"

What would our life really  look like if we actually lived this out?  What effect will this have on your marriage? Imagine waking up each morning, opening your eyes to see Jesus right there ready and waiting to walk out the day with you.  What would that feeling be like? Would you feel intimidated, confident, nervous, on guard, safe, loved?  How would this change your actions, behaviors and responses through the day? 

 I mean, we say we have faith but  we wait to encounter difficult situations to pray out to God often seeking resolve for what we go through but how about if  walk out in faith ahead of time?  Think how different our lives would be, how many setbacks  we would  avoid, how many arguments would we prevent if we actually walked out the faith we speak about, pray about and learn about.

I challenge you to start your day imagining Jesus walking besides you each day so that you can enjoy a peace that surpasses all understanding, so that you can experience true relationship with our Father during your time here on Earth.  Psalm 121:8  says "The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore" Let us embrace this scripture and really believe what we say we believe as God is already ahead of anything we can encounter.

A Transparent Marriage

Are you really trusting him?

Are you really trusting him with your marriage, children, finances and other relationships? Do you see God as something out there somewhere in heaven, or do you truly see him as the God of provision (whom you may develop a real relationship with)?

The reality is that most people will die and God will have always been a stranger - even for people raised up in the church or to those who convinced themselves they believed in Him but never took the next step.  When we are open to creating an intimate relationship with God, our life continues to change on this pursuit.  A true relationship with him means confiding in him when it comes to even what appears as nothing worth discussing. These talks range from every decision you make like a simple purchase, job offer, friend in your life, business deal or even raising children. You are God's child and friend. Nothing you could ever do will separate you from His love due to His grace.  Regardless of how many times we think our sins and behaviors push us away from Him, His love for us will never end, it is unconditional. He is there to walk with us through our valleys and storms. He is our strength when we are weak and our provider in times of need. When allowed, He will be there to listen patiently and reveal His desires for our lives, all in due time. 

God asks of us one thing- to take a step of faith. All He wants is for us to give Him a chance. God is perfect and there is not a single thing about you that he doesn't already know and accept. He loves you, all of you and just wants to accompany you in fulfilling every single need in your life. All He asks is that you allow him be console you during your heartbreak, pain or struggle. 

When you get a taste of the love God has for you, it is only then that you accept nothing less. You will reach a point of understanding that no one can ever love you in such a way- not your spouse, your children or your parents. Put Him first and you will see the dynamic of all your relationships shift due to His perfect plan.

 

Remember, your life is a reflection of God's love, He want to bless your marriage but you have to give him access first. God is not invasive. God is not that person that will invalidate your feelings or criticize you for making certain decisions as if you should have known better. God is just that friend that picks up the call at 2pm or 2am and listens.

A Transparent Marriage

www.atransparentmarriage.com

Glory to God!

I have heard the phrase "Glory to God" many a times and just now it made me question what does that really mean to us? I believe when you say "All Glory to God" you mean "I couldn’t do this great thing without his consent, I am just a servant who comes to show his magnificent power over this situation".


You see, when an actor gets an Oscar or Grammy, when an athlete wins the Super Bowl or the World Series you hear "I want to thank God" The thing is when you hear that statement you should really be hearing The Lord make a bold statement of His power. All credit goes to him by His will and power.

Can you and I say "I give glory to God for my marriage"? That what He brought you together was to show His glory on earth by bringing two different individuals into a binding contract with Him to create life, to be the generational curse-breakers and the servants for His glory for future generations.


In whatever you do, giving glory to God is realizing He made you for a purpose. Show your spouse that you are here to serve your family, friends and community.

A Transparent Marriage
www.atransparentmarriage.com

Who do you serve?

In this day in age its easy to call yourself a believer, that by accepting Jesus you are transformed, that you are filled with the Holy Spirit. Yet many continue to do the same thing as before.

Being in Christ is a new thing, a born again experience, a chance at a renewed life not for what you are living for but for choosing to live with a Godly purpose. To be first is to be last and to be last is to be first. Being reborn needs to be done from a heart of a servant.  He came to serve not be served.

As a believer and follower, we are called to be His servants, yet we continue to serve a worldly God.

So I ask, who do you serve? Do you serve the God of lies? Do you serve the God of money? Do you serve a God of selfishness? 

Who is really the God you serve?

A Transparent Marriage

www.atransparentmarriage.com

Finding our treasure!

How about if daily you decided to take an inventory of your deeds, to make sure you do good because when you go home to your eternal life you want to make sure you are rewarded, You don’t wanna look around and think "had I only did this or that on Earth I would have earned that and that in Heaven", be led by  that feeling of pleasing the Lord in all your ways versus impressing man so that you can hear “Well done, good and faithful servant You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!" Matthew 25:21.

Heaven is real! Jesus died for us to live eternally, that is so crazy, still to this day we are awe of the ultimate sacrifice, a sacrifice that easily goes unnoticed as we live each day. A sacrifice that we don’t deserve, a sacrifice that will guarantee us free entry through heavenly gates some day. 

Wow, Wow, Wow. Can you just imagine the magnitude of what that means? People will mock us, will put us down and will talk about us because we know something they don’t know yet. We found the ultimate treasure and It has the name of Jesus.

A Transparent Marriage
www.atransparentmarriage.com

New normal?

Get used to the "new normal".  Everyone is talking about it and spreading a tremendous amount of fear about our new normal with Covid-19 surprising us early in the year 2020 but how about we choose to say "Get used to a new reset" instead?  Enough already of dwelling on the fear that the world will never be the same and feeding into society's standards of the unseen and what's normal to them.

A definition for reset is set again or differently. How about working towards making our future better by resetting our habits, resetting our priorities, resetting our time, resetting our focus, resetting our goals. Think of how would the world look like after achieving that instead of wasting time fearing the worst by simply choosing to reset our mindset.

What if, the new normal they keep talking about turns out to be that people are kinder, there is less crime, families are closer and that relationships are healed?  So what if we may have to wear a mask for longer than we thought and learn to be extra careful as the country reopens. If you are blessed to open your eyes and take a breath each morning the possibilities are endless for the kindness you can spread each day. Be encouraged to spread kindness and hope, it does not cost a dime and it is of immense value to those around you and yourself if you open up to be the light in someone else's darkness.

In the face of crisis we have witnessed over and over how the world comes together showing love and being of service, the resilience people show is inspiring. This is a perfect time to be just that, to show the world how resilient we are and that we accomplish more if we work together in one accord. 

Be the one who joins the movement of love, hope and kindness instead of the one spreading fear of the unknown. While we don't know what three, six or twelve months looks like down the road, know one thing, if you opened your eyes this morning, you have purpose and another shot at resetting your mindset from fear to faith.

A Transparent Marriage
www.atransparentmarriage.com

Stepping stones that lead to God's miracles

There are miracles taking place all around you, but are you aware? Do you realize that Gods word says you have not because you ask not? James 4:1-2. We have the power to tap into that scripture any time we are in need of His provision in our life. God knows our hearts He knows our motives, He knows we are flawed and that we are sinners but yet his grace pours over our lives.

Faith the size of a mustard seed is sufficient to move mountains for His miracles to overflow our life, Mathew 17:20. God will allow the testing of the enemy just like He did with Job to grow us, to teach us, to mature us and to see our true heart and once that happens, He will suddenly reward us for being obedient and will spring us into a new season where the harvest is abundant.

Today, I encourage you to find some stones that lead to His miracles. Stones you ask? Yes, stones, for us stones look like this this:
Fill atmosphere with worship songs, we go to the word and remind God of His word and promises over our lives believing the miracle is ours before it comes to fruition.

We look at the enemy in the face and command Him to flee because we are covered by the blood of Jesus and He has no power, we really tell him “Get the Hell out devil and take your demons with you” and He sure does, all fear, worry and anxiety go with him.

Then as pastor Todd from Transformation Church says in His faith series “Faith finds friends” we find at least three friends, three prayer warriors to pray with us, over us and believe with us that God is the God of the impossible, He will grant us the miracle we are believing for and we surrender, completely surrender all our cares and desires to Him and only Him.

Lastly, we have go to verses of Gods promises over our life and write them down so that when the enemy attacks we pull up the verses of His promises for the battle. Being prepared will stop the fear of the enemy in its tracks. Habakkuk‬ ‭2:2-3‬ says Then the Lord replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.” We sit still and wait patiently for Him to work His miracles and get ready to receive and give Him all the glory.

You have not because you ask not! True Story, our test became our testimony.



A Transparent Marriage
www.atransparentmarriage.com