For Your Glory...

The other day I was caught up in worship while listening to "For Your Glory" by Tasha Cobbs. As I listened to the words of the song I began to feel conviction. I continued to sing the song, "For your glory, I would do anything. Just to see you. To behold you as my King... I want to be where you are..." And my stomach began to turn as the question presented itself, "Would you really do anything for my glory? Do you really want to be where I am?" As I began to say yes, the questions kept coming, "What if I call you to minister and show compassion to people who talk about you and mistreat you?" "What if I tell you to move to a place that is uncomfortable and unfamiliar to you?" What if I call you to give up the very thing you hold dear to your heart?" "What if walking in my will causes you to lose friends and loved ones?"
As I stood before God I had to reanalyze if I really meant the lyrics that I sang in worship to Him. I had to repent because as I started to answer the questions I realized I wasn't being honest and I had to stay before the Lord and pray as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane that His will, above mine, would be done in my life.
It is true, I want to dwell in the presence of God. I want to dance and rejoice in His glorious presence. And I want to be able to stand before Him honestly and tell God, "Yes, for your glory, I would do anything!" After all that God has done for me and delivered me from I want to present my life as a living sacrifice and always remain available to Him. My heart's desire is that I would always be able to say, as Isaiah did, "Here I am, Lord, send me!"
That isn't to say that it is always easy, I wrestle with my flesh daily and I have to fast consistently in order to keep my flesh and my own desires in check; however, it is definitely possible. I pray that as you listen to the words of this song (and any worship song) that you may be able to sing the words from a sincere heart!
Lord, if I find favor in your sight... Lord, please hear my hearts cry. I'm desperately waiting to be where you are. I'd cross the hottest desert. I'd travel near or far. For your glory, I would do anything. Just to see you. To behold you as my King... I want to be where you are!

Lord, are you there?

"And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age..."

There are times when we find ourselves in a position of complete darkness. No path to travel, no voice to follow, and no hand to hold. Praise seems pointless and worship doesn't seem to work. There will be times when this darkness, loneliness, weariness, etc... will be a result of your own "self-made distance" between you and God. And then there will be other times when you will be in a period of waiting when you haven't done anything wrong, you are praying, studying, and applying the word of God to your life but you just don't feel God near you. When you find yourself in situations like this (for myself, it is a lot more often than I'd care to admit) it is important to remind yourself of the promises of God.

"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Deuteronomy 31:8

The above promise was given to Joshua by Moses before Joshua was summoned to take over the task of leading the people of Israel into the promised land. It's important to note that if you read the entire chapter you will see that Moses was preparing Joshua to stand on his own. It was evident that Joshua was already a leader from the report he and Caleb presented to Moses regarding the promised land; yet from the time they left Egypt until now, Joshua was always able to rely on Moses' leadership. Now, as Moses was nearing the end of his life, he was equipping Joshua with the promises of God so that when the time came for Joshua to stand before the people and guide them in the way that they should go he would understand that it wasn't a burden he had to bear on his own. He could be confident in the fact that Lord had already gone before him and prepared a way. Furthermore, even in times of doubt, confusion, and weariness he could be confident that God was with him. And just like Moses assured Joshua, Jesus assures us in Matthew 28:20 that He is always with us. God recorded this promise more than once in His Holy word many years ago so that when we feel as if we have to stand alone, when we are unsure of which way to go, when we are called to be leaders in the midst of followers, that we too can rest assured that God has gone ahead of us and prepared a way for us. That even if we "feel" distant from God, His promise is greater than our temporary feelings and it is true that He will NEVER leave us or forsake us! He will be with us even to the end of the world.

Today my prayer for you is that you do not fear and that you are not discouraged! Command your soul to bless the Lord, command your heart to worship Him, and command your mind to trust His plan even if you can't hear His voice! The way is prepared. Step forth into your promise! I love you and as always you are in my prayers! For Love, Always!

...And He talks with me...

Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, "this is the way, walk in it."

It wasn't too long ago that I was fervently studying and praying, praying and studying.... I was fearful of making the wrong move and I felt as if God had stopped speaking to me but I was committed to trusting God's plan for my life even if I couldn't hear His voice.

Today, I just thank God for His voice and His direction!

I love this game!

Are you frustrated? Do you feel like you can't get it right? Are you consistently feeling convicted about something and frustrated that YOU ALWAYS have to be the one to do the right thing? Just remember, the Lord disciplines those He loves! (Hebrews 12:6)...

Honey, stop trippin! Does a coach go hoarse for a player with no potential? If you're still facing opposition then you're still in the game! #ForLoveAlways

Stop declining the call!

It is easy to get frustrated that God keeps calling you out of your mess and frustrating your fun. Heed the call, He's trying to prevent your downfall! You haven't gone too far or done too much. He is the master planner, He can take all of your mess and work it out in your favor!

Will you answer the call?

The Master is an esteemed author!

I came back just to tell y'all to stop replaying that hurt and those mistakes... Don't you know that right at this very moment the angels are giving God glory because of YOUR story! It was a mess but God has, is, and will make it a good one!

Ready or Not?

No introduction could do it justice...