Restoring All Things Girls

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18   Rejoice always,   pray without ceasing,     in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. If you have not seen the movie "War Room", please go see it..  It is an excellent movie.  For the past few weeks my emphasis has been on prayer.  I do believe God is calling His people to pray. It is time for us to enter our prayer closet to make intercession for our family, our nation, co-workers and neighbors. It's time for us to fight on our knees.

I recently attended a community event in my home town.  It is an annual event which has grown in popularity over the years. Visitors from far as Philadelphia to New York attend the event. Looking for something to do I remembered from last year fireworks commenced the ending of the festivity. It seemed innocent enough so why not. It was very hot that day so I waited until evening to attend.  When I arrived on site I could not believe what I was witnessing.  It was as if I walked in to the pit of hell.  I said to myself, "Lord what in the world is this mess". It wasn't the family friendly environment I was expecting. I saw women walking around trying to be sexy, butts hanging, breast on display. Drug addiction with some of the women was clearly evident. The men didn't look any better.  My heart became so overwhelmed. All I could do is pray. It is the same feeling I have when I go to the Flee Market near Camden, a inner city neighborhood. In the faces of ...

Great things come in little packages.  Today at church I heard a sermon on fear and how it keeps you in your comfort zone. Fear is a thief because it robs you of so many things.  Fear keeps you from venturing out in to new things and hold you captive to old things. It confirmed so many things in my heart and gave me a new perspective on fear and how far reaching its tentacles.  Today's sermon was given by a young woman of whom is not in my circle of people I would choose to minister, but God used this young woman to speak into my life. Never judge a book by its cover.  Boy, did I have some repenting to do - Thank you Jesus for showing me the ugliness and evil of prejudging others. I believe in these last days God wants our focus, dependency, confidence and trust to be completely on Him.  As in a marriage we must forsake all others and cleave only to Him. Think it not strange the situations that seem to occur out of nowhere in your life.  I believe i...

My nine-year old came into the dining room this morning singing a nonsense song. She poured herself a bowl of generic corn flakes and then said, “Who doesn’t just love life? It is so wonderful. I love my life.” “What’s so great about it?” I asked. “I love the food, the way things are made (she patted the IKEA chair she was sitting on and then stared at her hand for a moment), the people I know. I love how hot it is.” It was 98 degrees already and my steaming cup of morning coffee made me sweat through my t-shirt. I kissed her on the cheek and squeezed her hard and wished I could bottle up that   joie-de-vivre. She went outside and discovered that the watermelon seed she planted beneath the air conditioner (where the water sprinkles out the back) had sprouted. She leaped into the air with her arms high over her head and her feet tucked up behind her (a move that in my adult world of aerobics is known as a tuck jump but to her is just childhood exuberance) and shouted, “It’...

John 4:23-24 “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God   is   Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

I saw you walking down the street this morning with your friend — carefree kids out of school for the summer, with the sun blazing and the whole day ahead of you. Maybe you were headed to the park or the swimming pool or the bookstore. When you passed me you were laughing — peals of laughter. A giggle so genuine that just the sound of it made me smile. Then I saw something you didn’t: the man leering at you from the corner. He was more than twice your age and the expression on his face as he stared at your bare midriff sucked the air out of my lungs. Everyone seems to have an opinion about young girls and their clothing choices. People — maybe even people who know you and love you — say things like, “See what happens when girls dress like that?” “Respect yourself.” “Cover up.” Here is what I’d like to say: It’s not the crop top. On another beautiful morning, many years ago, I went for a run in the city I’d just moved to, feeling happy and alive and suddenly so grown u...

We serve an awesome God!.  He meets us right where we are.  Yesterday I posted about the Samaritan Woman at the well.  Jesus purposely waited for this woman. This morning as I sat before the Lord in prayer, I kept hearing the words "Let it Go" over and over.  I had a vision of myself at church sharing my testimony of how God brought me through many things.  The last words I uttered in the vision is God restored me.   Just like the woman at the well, God can and will restore  you.  How does God restore us?  By loving us with an endless love and forgiving us of our sin. This is what He did for the woman at the well.  He simply loved her.  Gods love gives us the strength to let go of the pain of the past so we can walk into all that He has for us.  Spend time with God each day, be quiet and listen. His words are healing and life changing. If you need God to restore you or to help you "Let it Go", what ever it is, call on H...

John 4:1-45 I wonder if she spotted Him from a distance, a man sitting at the well alone— her well that she visited daily to fill the buckets and then haul them home. I wonder if, as she drew closer, she could make out Jesus’ face and recognize His nationality. A man, a Jewish man, sitting at her well? She gets closer and closer, probably confused. Probably a bit afraid. Then, Jesus speaks to her. An amazing thing is happening here in John 4. Jesus is breaking through at least three cultural and social barriers of His time: He is speaking to a woman, and traditionally, Jewish men were not to be seen conversing with women. He is speaking to a Samaritan, and as the scripture says, Jews had no dealings with Samaritans at the time (v.9). He is speaking to a woman He knows is an “adulteress”— a woman who has had more than one husband and was now with a man she wasn’t married to. Yet, Jesus speaks to her. A woman. A Samaritan. A sinner. Not only does He sa...