Doing It Like a Queen – Discernment

She had great wisdom to know how to handle any situation.
When I initially read this statement, a few things came to mind. We could easily speak about the way we deal with people… but as I thought deeper though all these things are equally important one thing did come to mind.

Knowing when to fight and when to wait .

Thinking deeply about Queen Esther and the decision she made she knew exactly how to do this. A bit of context on her story – Queen Esther found herself in a situation where she was physically speaking the only one who could save her people, and with this she took a massive step. She placed herself not only in a difficult situation, but the decision she made to confront the King about the planned massacre, if rejected would cost her her life (Read Esther).

We may never face a situation such as that of Queen Esther, but we too have our own battles and we must know how to judge each situation. When it is the time to go before God in purpose and fight for what we want, and when it’s a moment of humility and we must trust in our God.

Each situation brings about different requirements of how it should be dealt with, and we have to have wisdom to know what each situation is demanding from us.

Sometimes the easiest thing to do is fight and do purposes of faith, to try to gain what we want with our own strength in hope that we will successfully “shake Gods throne” and make sense of what we are being faced with. At times it’s easier to recite Bible verses, and believe that “this fight is the Lords…” when in truth the situation requires an act of faith.

“Okay, I get it Peniel, but how do I know what to do?” Simple, seek Gods guidance. Ask Him what He would have you do in that situation. If necessary He will inspire you with a purpose of faith, or He will encourage you to invest in other things and persevere in faith or He may even be silent. Baring in mind His silence isn’t a free pass for us to just do what we think is best. In those moments of silence continue to seek, and He will guide your every step – How? Through His Word of course. What has He been saying to you recently? What is the Word He has been allowing to play in your mind? That’s what He wants you to focus on.

You must understand that If now is a moment to allow God to act, this does not mean you are not in faith or even not revolted. It just means that that is what God requires from you in this moment. It’s so important we get this right, because getting this wrong can lead to frustration, anxiety and even malice towards God.

One of the hardest things to do when you’re far from God is to posses the ability to discern – to truly understand what He wants you to do. There will be times in life where you will need to distance yourself from everything and everyone, cancel out everyone’s opinions and stop to listen to what God is saying. That separation from everything that distracts you, and takes away from what God is showing you is at times necessary. The only way to be able to discern what God expects of us in different situations is when we are close to Him. The closer we are, the clearer His voice is and the more we discern when He is speaking.

Seek for Gods direction in everything, and He will show you what you must do in every moment in your life. You’ll hear Him loud and clear. Until next time …

2019 – The refining process

Setbacks are opportunities for God to propel you into who and where He wants you to be.

Sometimes we think that because things seem to be going in the opposite direction to what we planned, or because we’ve been setback that now we are “at the back of the queue.”

No! That’s when you are at the front of the queue, because it’s in the difficulties and setbacks of life where God is watching you most. Where He is observing your every move. Your attitude towards your problem, and current situation. That’s what changes everything.

When we choose to make the most of every situation we face in life with FAITH and total dependence on God… when we comeback from those “setbacks” we will find ourselves even further ahead and better off than where we were before, because we choose to make the most of the situation with God.

The God you serve is a God who loves to use setbacks, these are the moments where He shows Himself strongest in our lives – if we allow Him to. The moments that shape us and change us for the better if we allow them to. These are the precious moments that change everything, the moments we never forget.

Wherever you are in life at this current moment in time, even if it feels as if you’ve taken 10 steps back. Continue to look ahead, sometimes the best way to fast track ahead to who and where we want to be, is by being put in a position where we have no other choice but to cling to God… and grow. It’s at our lowest that we seek God the most, and those moments spent on our knees before Him is when He can orchestrate the work He’s been wanting to do within us for the longest time.

No matter what remain in faith. However long or quick it takes, if you remain FAITHful He too will be faithful to you too.

The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in Him. Psalm 37:23 NIV

“But who do you say that I am?”

It was a simple question that Jesus asked His disciples, yet those words carried so much weight. So much so that that question has been on my mind the last 3 days.

Today Jesus is asking me and you the same question – “Who do you say that I am?”

Its one thing to verbalise who I think or believe Jesus to be, and its another thing to show it. It doesn’t matter how deep my belief in Him is if when things aren’t going to plan, I’m so worried, afraid or doubtful that I allow my situation to get to me. In other words – Jesus doesn’t just want us to say who we believe Him to be, He wants us to show it. And this happens when we choose to trust Him rather than panic. When we choose dependence over independence, and fight the urge to act recklessly and take matters into our own hands.

We don’t really answer this question when everything is rosy and going according to our plans, we answer this question through our choices and reactions when everything is seemingly “falling apart” or things are “taking too long.”

This revelation isn’t to make us feel bad or even correct us. The solution is simple – in moments of difficulty, when life just isn’t doing what you’d like life to do (lol), or you feel there are delays left, right and centre allow Jesus to be who you say He is. Don’t try and do a “quick fix”, don’t speed the process or take the lead. In fact take a step back and allow Him to live up to all your expectations, let Him be who you say He is. And you’ll see things soon work out perfectly – maybe not as you imagined, but even better.

Although He may be silent… He is never absent!

Lately, I haven’t been writing much… I guess because  everything that was going on around me started to affect me inside without me realising. Not to mention that the less I gave the less confidence I had in what I was giving! There were times I wrote a blog post but second guessed it and didn’t post it!

No matter what is happening around us we can’t allow it to get inside of us, because that’s when confusion, anxiety, doubts, fears ….. (and the list is endless) arise! We can’t allow this but simultaneously when we find ourselves in these moments of vulnerability we can’t allow the lies of the devil to put us down!!

He will come and make you believe that you are the opposite of who you are, you start to second guess your capabilities, your ability to succeed, you as a person and even your communion with God. Let’s be firm in who we are and what we are capable of doing.

Instead of allowing myself to become some sort of anxious mess, I decided to focus on God and that even in the times I may not hear His voice to remember that although at times He may be silent…. He is never absent!

 

Doing It Like a Queen – Feed Your Soul

 

She required those closest to her to be just like her – she wasn’t friends with just anyone!

For me friendship is a very important thing. Naturally I’m a reserved person, I don’t let people in easily. Not in a sense that I completely close myself off from others, but in a sense that there are sides of me that I only allow those who are close to me to see. Personally, I like this about myself as I don’t even do it on purpose, but it does mean that I can easily control my relationships.

Requiring those around you to be just like you isn’t necessarily personality wise, as when it comes to friendships more often than not our closest friends are people who are our polar opposites. Rather it’s having people around you who have the same vision to grow and move forwards. I have my circle of friends, but even within that circle their is another, one which consists of my closest friends. Which are those who have the same vision to be closer to God, to grow spiritually, make the difference, serve God, save souls and do His will, with passion!

We may not all be going in the same directions in the future, but what causes me to keep them close is what they have inside of them rather than what they have on the outside. For me this is important, as they are constantly able to add to me and vice versa.

Growth Like Natural Hair…

Someone once told that growth is like transitioning to natural hair.

To begin with it doesn’t look so pretty, you’ve got natural roots and straight ends, not to mention this causes your hair to break if you don’t give it the attention and care it needs. Plus regular trims, not forgetting what seems like truck loads of money you have to spend on products for transitioning hair, but when you start to see real growth and your natural curl pattern coming through it proves to be worth it.

2016 isn’t just the year my hair went completely natural but its also the year I learnt a lot about myself and God. I came face to face with some of my biggest fears, and learnt that I have traits that feed them to be bigger and stronger than they are. But I also learnt that in Matthew 28:20 (one of my favourite verses), when God said He would be with me until the end of age… He meant that. At a point in my life where I felt like I was losing myself, and instead of seeking the guidance of the only One who could help I relied on myself. I would of understood if He left me aside, but He never stopped speaking to me and trying to work in me. And the moment I allowed Him to open my eyes to where I was headed He swooped in and did In 21 days what I had struggled to do for 5 months.

This year hands down should have been the worst year of my life, but how could I say that with what He has managed to do in me? It wouldn’t be fair.

I entered the year and 2016 was full of promise, but more than once I questioned why it seemed like 2016 and  2015 had met up and made a bet on which would be the more challenging year (lol)! I spent most of this year purifying a damaged faith, and rebuilding self-belief. I spent most of this year fighting demons I never even knew I was up against and preserving my salvation like it was all I had left in this world.

2016 was full of goals and breakthroughs when I first planned it, but as I draw to the end of the year I’m glad things turned out the way they did.

1. I know myself more than ever before – my strengths and (I’m happy to say) my weaknesses.
2. This year has been my year of preparation, we’ve all got to go through the darkness before we get to the light!
3. My relationship with God and MYSELF is like nothing it’s ever been before.

So much like transitioning to natural hair, this year I had to do some transitioning of my own. I had to rebuild my confidence in my faith and and the same way I had to trim my hair a couple of times I had to cut somethings out of my life. It’s taken a lot of my focus, attention and a load of care but I started to see growth. But, I want more … I guess the same way I’ll be focusing on regrowing my edges in 2017, spiritually speaking I’ll be establishing everything I have learnt this year! 2017 I know for a fact won’t be any easier… but I also know I’ve grown stronger and with God in control 2017 is my year of Everything, a year of Greatness and Sacrifice! 🙂

 

My hair after transitioning for just over a year

Journey to Mount Sinai – part 2

Reading about Moses lately has left me wondering what qualifies a person to be chosen by God. Moses doubted a lot, more than you would expect one of the greatest leaders to ever walk this Earth to doubt (Read Exodus  4  ). But despite this I believe Moses’ problem wasn’t that he thought God couldn’t or that the task ahead was impossible for God, but rather God couldn’t through him.

But Moses did something that often we find hard to do – he exposed himself to God, or better yet unmasked himself. He didn’t hide his fears, doubts or lack of self belief and consequently without realising it he was making himself even more qualified to be used by God to set the children of Israel free. He stood on the mountain the place of sacrifice as he exposed himself, and sacrificed himself.

So now think with me, how many times do we not doubt God and what He can do, but rather what He can do through us? How many times do we allow ourselves to doubt before even giving God a chance to work through and even in us?

If you are fearful, if you are afraid, if things are getting harder and you want to give up… expose that to God. Tell Him, make Him aware of what is happening within you, because when we do this we also open a door for Him to remove these fears. We open a door for Him to exchange those doubts for certainty. And even more through our humbleness we become qualified to be used by Him.

Moses was not perfect, nor was he brave and courageous to begin with. Don’t get me wrong he was strong (as many of us are), but he was not yet strong enough…. yet even that he didn’t hide from God.

I am more like Moses than I ever thought I was, but just like Moses if I am fearful, afraid, lacking faith, unable to see past Egypt (obstacles) I must make my voice heard to God, and as I make my journey to the top of Mount Sinai bit by bit sacrifice these emotions – as did Moses.

 

Seeing Jesus

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Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?  Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.  Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.

John 14:8‭-‬11 NKJV

Some people find Christianity to be at times long and complicated. Jesus and God then God and Jesus …. the Holy Spirit. How does it all make sense?? But here Jesus explains it so clearly that if we would only stop, meditate and be in Spirit we would hear His voice in these words. And receive the clarity we long for.

When you see Jesus you have seen God, He is the only way to God. After years of silence God decided it was time to give mankind a chance an opportunity to return to Him. How?? Through the ultimate Sacrifice; our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus became the way to God, it was through Him that we could once again approach God, have our prayers heard and answered and see the power of God. It all began with first seeing Jesus.

Phillip stood before Jesus and yet did not recognise Him for who he was, He struggled to see Jesus. Huh? But he did see Him?

He saw Him physically, but He did not see Him for who He truly was – the son of God.

How does this relates to you and me?

When I gave my life to Jesus it was because for the first time in my life I saw Him, the story of the Man who died on the cross to carry all my sins and set me free made sense. It was no longer a sad story, it wasn’t even a story! It became truth, it touched me and I finally understood how precious I was to my God.

 In every UCKG Helpcentre is written the words “Jesus Christ Is the Lord.” I stared at those words for most of my life, and they never meant anything to me. But when I opened my heart and fought to understand those words began to mean something to me. For the first time in my life my eyes were open to see Jesus.

I hope you understand what I’m passing here. Jesus can never be just a household name, a good man who gave His life for you or a reason to eat easter eggs and exchange gifts every year. You must fight for your belief in Him to go so much deeper!

Understand this, once your eyes are opened to see Jesus your eyes are open to see God. Sometimes we even believe In God but never see results of this faith why?? Because we have not allowed ourselves to see and acknowledge Him in and through Jesus. This is deep. Too deep.

So today when I see the words “Jesus Christ Is the Lord” these words have meaning and truth. What about you? Can you say the same?

Through His eyes…

So far out of your comfort zone you didn’t understand what I was doing. You wanted to run away from your calling from what I had given to you, but soon you realised I don’t make mistakes. Everything I do I do to perfection…. so the work I am doing in you is being done to this same level of perfection.
I put you in the position I did fully aware that you would try to hide, I knew that the only way to take you to the next level… the only way to work in you was by placing you so far out of your comfort zone you could never go back.

There you discovered so many ugly things. You discovered traits and old habits you had never really killed. You’ve seen yourself at your worst, you’ve been through what you never imagined you could experience. But I allowed it.  You didn’t run from the truth, you ran to it and consequently you ran to Me … you allowed Me to work.

The work isn’t over yet, the work I am doing in you is a never-ending one. You didn’t see it whilst you were in the process but everything has grown and matured you, but now I want to do more. I want to take you further and my fire to burn more.

This year has taught you that sometimes I will place you in the most uncomfortable situations so that you can learn who you are. To expose your imperfections, not to put you down but through your exposure if you choose humbleness, will come excellence. 💕

  
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up. James 4:10 GNTD

God face to face

Preserved = maintain (something) in its existing or original state.

When God created Adam and Eve in His mind He already thought out what He wanted us to be. Before I was even born or conceived God had already thought of me. He had and still has a plan for humanity, He knows how each and every individual fits into this plan.

When we suffer, live in pain, suffering, have a life full of problems, are always stressed etc we’re not living out the life He wants for us. But when  we receive His Spirit, we meet Jesus face to face just like Jacob did. And He is able to preserve our lives. Meaning He can maintain it to be how He always intended it to be. We can finally have the life He had planned all along. We can return back to our original state, understanding our purpose here on this Earth.

Jacob understood this. He knew that now he had seen Jesus, met his Saviour his life could and would never be the same.

“Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “I have seen God face to face, and my life has been preserved.””
Genesis   32:30   MEV