Sow Your Tears; Joy Is Coming

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

Psalm 126:5-6

The verses taken from this psalm reminds us today of the true strain a Christian must go through to live according to the will of God… This road isn’t an easy road to travel nor is it something that we can just take up and conquer without much effort… When you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior you are already battling the desires to live a life of sin; however, this fight only intensifies and is what leads the writer to inform you that you will “sow in tears…” The bottom line is that this course of life isn’t for the weak at heart; this excursion was never promised to be easy and will in fact test your faith and resolve. In living a life pleasing to God, we must do a 180-degree turn from what we are accustomed to doing naturally… The things that come naturally are the things that we must cut off, so we can definitely understand the thought in this passage that informs us that this journey will not be smooth… There will be days in your life where you want to give up, there will be times when you feel like all hope is gone, there will be moments when you feel the weight of your changes and desire to revert back to the easy path of life… The verse starts off by saying, “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy…” The psalmist is speaking to us today to let us know that you are assured to cry sometimes, you are assured to be down sometimes, you are assured to feel weak sometimes, but you must ignite your faith in your weakest moment, you must ignite your faith when everyone has turned on you and know that you will indeed reap joy or the benefits of your labor… God says that when we labor in the Lord we will not labor in vain… Understand that as long as you are committed to adhering to the will of God, as long as you are committed to following Him, none of your labor will be in vain… He will hear your cry, He will answer and He will deliver on HIS TIME… 

Weep, plant, believe and conquer…

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

Acts of Love Display Christ

Sow Righteousness; Reap Mercy

"Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you." 

Hosea 10:12

Even though you may appear to be in the vineyard alone, sow the seeds that you desire to reap in your harvest… As a child of God, we are tested to think outside of the box, step out on faith and walk in the trust and belief that His desires will produce unimaginable results… Remember that when Jesus was speaking amongst His disciples He declared in Matthew 9:37 that "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” I raise these two verses to highlight the importance of sowing and reaping as it pertains to the body of Christ. Regardless of the things we experience or the events we face, we must sow the seeds of Christ wherever we go. In today's focus verse, Hosea was called by the Lord at a time in which the house of Judah was carrying on in disobedience… People we doing everything except the right thing and Hosea has been charged to remind people that they must align themselves with God. No matter what the crowd or majority is doing, you must adhere to your calling and represent Christ wherever you and to whomever you encounter. This is what is meant by sowing in righteousness and reaping mercy. You must sow your relationship with Christ, showing people Him through you. You must reap mercy, withholding judgment and punishment of others for the sake of them coming to know Christ. We all are charged to break the fallow ground, the time is now for us to stop conforming to the standards of the world or what makes people comfortable. The time is now for us to show up and show out for Christ demonstrating that He is and that we align ourselves with the only true king. You may not get accolades when you take this approach, you may not be recognized or appreciated at the moment, but take comfort in knowing that by doing this you are sowing the seeds which will reap eternal rewards. Your labor is not in vain, let's get to work!

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

We Are One In Christ

For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 3:27-28

In Christ, there are no classifications or factions; your past doesn’t determine your standing or the group that you are associated with… It never ceases to amaze me that the most segregated time in our societies and communities is the time in which we go into the church to praise & worship…. Paul wants you to remember that the world classifies you on your abilities; however, in Christ, you are classified through your acceptance of the offering that Christ extended from the cross… There is no difference between you or me in the body of Christ; yes we all have different gifts but your importance in the body of Christ is no less significant than anyone else… This is why Paul says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek…” The biggest stumble block found in churches is the people who attend them… You have people who think they are better than others, people who think they have the right to look down or despise others and Paul is trying to set the record straight… The bible records that “all have fallen short of the glory of God…” 

We all have a path we have traveled, we all have done things that we aren’t proud of and we should be thankful just to have the opportunity to enter His courts with praise… Jesus went to the cross for all mankind (even if you say He did for you then that just shows that you were in need of saving)… Paul’s letter to the church of Galatia shines a powerful light that needs to be seen by the men of yesterday and today… There is no color barrier between races in God’s kingdom; there is no hierarchy between males and females within the divine will of God as it pertains to His saving power and extension of grace. Traditions in the church have caused us to push God out of the church, we have said that you can’t do this (women can’t preach), or you have to come to church like this (no jeans and women can’t wear pants). Today we need to revaluate our lives; we need to stop following tradition and start following the will of God… Paul is charging the church to realize that there is no racial profiling, no sexism within God's house! He created man and woman, there is no difference in nationality or ethnicity. 

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

God Always Fulfills His Promises

The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant.

Psalm 25:14

In times of despair, we must learn to hold to God’s unchanging hand, knowing that through our fear (reverence, honor and admiration) of Him we will be kept and brought through whatever trial or hardship we face… The “secret” of this life lies in our relationship with the Most High God… It was the fear of the Lord that led Jesus to the cross and the defeat of sin and death… It was the fear of the Lord that allowed Peter to stand up and preach a word that saved 3,000 souls; it was the fear of the Lord that allowed David to pick up 5 smooth stones and defeat Goliath… When you are going through in this life, rely on the secret of God’s power… The enemy doesn’t know how to contend and fight against God, so He tries to get you to denounce His authority over your life… The secret that Satan doesn’t want you to know is that he is powerless; the secret that the enemy doesn’t want you to know is that Christ has already freed you from the penalty of sin and bondage… You were made in perfection and clothed in the very image of God, when you call on the name of the Lord there is power and grace imparted to you that breaks strongholds, heals and redirects… The secret to living is found in your reverence of the Lord… This is why the Psalmist says that when you fear when you obtain this secret that “he will show them his covenant…” God will write the vision and make it plain for your life; He will give you the desires of your heart and wipe your slate clean… 

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

Be At Peace And Let God Work

Acquaint now thyself with God, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.

Job 22:21 

Today’s devotion is centered around two very vital points which we must come to understand as we journey through this life. The first is that we must know God more intimately each and every day of our lives. This requires a desire to grow, mature and develop in the very will of God. To acquaint thyself with something is to open yourself up, expose your past or submit to. God is waiting for you to open up to Him, He is waiting for you to expose the skeletons in your closet and He is waiting for you to submit to the divine plan that He has for your life... We will face obstacles in life; however, when we are acquainted with the Lord we are able to trust Him, continue to worship Him and hold on to His unchanging hand… It is only through this acquaintance with the Lord that your mind, body and soul can be at peace… You can accept the challenges of life, you can face the most daunting of tasks and you can endure the severest of storms because you know who God is and more importantly you have grown in knowing what the scriptures say, “I will never leave you nor forsake you…” 

I challenge you today to find peace amidst your storms today, find peace within the relationships you have with an adversary, find peace in the most hostile of environments… The storms and struggles which you face today are a direct reflection of the growth and maturation that you have undergone in your intimate relationship with the Lord… Despite knowing that this scripture today is true, we must understand also today that we must be careful in listening to those who surround us in times of misfortune as this is the second point of today’s devotion. Job’s friends said that he must have erred in some way or fashion, but we see later in this poetical book that Job was called on to pray for his friends due to their lack of intimacy with the Lord… Today’s scripture has a twofold meaning that we need to apply to our lives as Christians… This passage taken from the book of Job reminds us how we can be at peace within ourselves, but more importantly that we must be guarded with what we allow to enter our ears and thus our minds. 

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

God Has The Power

...Thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all.  Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

1 Chronicles 29:11b-12

Make no mistake about it; all power resides within the hands of the man above… Take a moment and think about all that Jesus endured for us. Think about when Jesus was mocked, beaten and whipped; think about when He was nailed to the cross and pierced in His side… Jesus went through a great amount of pain and ridicule; however, the bible says that 3 days after He gave up the ghost and hung His head, that He rose with all power in His hand… Although it appeared that the enemy won, Jesus informed his disciples of who is in control at all times and has the power. Matthew 28:18-20 says, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” As we recall the great commission and circle back to our focus verse, let us remember that all power resides with God. Nothing is too hard for Him and nothing will ever defeat Him. 

These verses taken from the book of Chronicles reminds us that we must have our priorities set in life; we must exalt the Lord above the earth as our head and center of our being… We must give God glory for every good and perfect gift (riches and honor) comes from above… Even when we are faced with times of despair, the writer reminds us that “thou reignest over all and in thine hand is power and might…” Remember that when you feel down, remember that when you feel out, remember that when you want to give up. Despite what the situation looks like, despite how you may feel in the moment, remember that God has the power and your victory is assured.  We know that we do not have the ability unless it is provided to us through the grace and mercy of God… When Paul was afflicted with a thorn in the flesh he is recorded as saying that “three times” he prayed for it to be removed by God told him, “my grace is sufficient…” 

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!