Been There Done That

Lift up every voice and sing.  God is on your side and when God is on your side there is nothing that can stand against you.  The victory is yours, now that is good news. You are a child of God and He is always looking out for you, that is better news.  Jesus died on a Friday, and rose again that Easter Sunday with all power in His hand so that you and I could live this life more abundantly, that is the best news.  Lift every voice and sing because you are highly favored and covered by His grace and mercy. God is with you today!

Good day to you all!  Do not let adversity determine your faith.  Walk knowing that your footsteps are guided, and even if your journey takes you through the valley of the shadow of death you have nothing to fear! God is with you today!

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33

It can be difficult to find your way in a new place.  We have modern conveniences such as GPS,

and Mapquest, that make it a little easier, but there are still times when finding your way can be difficult. Early explorers would send a scout ahead in order to survey the land.  Once the scout would bring back the report that everything was ok up ahead, the explorers would move the rest of the camp forward into the land.  The person sent to scout the land had to be trustworthy, and they had to be brave. They had to know whether or not the land would be able to sustain the people that were coming in, and they  had to know if there would be enough food to make sure that no one would go hungry.  You could not let just anyone scout out the land ahead.

Dear Reader the good news today is that God has been there, and done that.  I know that you may be facing a challenging road ahead. You may have planned everything perfectly, but there have been some detours that have put you in a new land that you were unprepared for.  Dear Reader, I want you to walk with confidence in the new land because Jesus has already scouted the land.  God will not send you into a place where He is not planning to provide for you.  You may be experiencing heartbreak, and despair, but Jesus wants to let you know that He has been there and He has done that.  You may be experiencing betrayal, but Jesus wants you to know that He has been there and done that.  Your path has already been cleared.  Don’t be bothered by the smoke, because if you are seeing the smoke, that is because God has already put out the fire that is up ahead,  Dear Reader do not let this world intimidate you.  Do not let this world tell you that the God who created everything, does not exist.  Jesus wanted to make sure that we know that He has already defeated this world, so if we are with Jesus then we too have the victory.  Fear not Dear Reader God has already made a way for you, and He will provide all of your needs. Do not fear any situation.  Smile at adversity knowing that your Lord and savior Jesus Christ has been there, and done that.

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed

The Glass is Always Full

It is a wonderful day that we get to share today.  God is making a way for you, and He knows what you are going through.  Know that God is with you no matter what the situation looks like and no matter what people think.  Understand that there is a blessing in the midst of your storm. Understand that God develops His best pictures in a dark room.  Understand that God is at His strongest when you are at your weakest!  If you understand these things then you  will know without a doubt that it is a wonderful day today!

Good day to you all!  The point of it all, is that God loves you!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

We have all heard the question asked, “Is the glass have empty, or is the glass half full?”. I have pondered this question on occasion myself and I have always seen the glass as half full.  What may seem like a bad situation is just the eve of a good situation. A hard beginning is just the set up for a great ending.  The credits never roll on the exciting part of the movie. The bigger they are the harder they fall. I try to look at the bright side, but it can be difficult at times.  Especially when the water is removed from the glass.  The glass used to be full of water and now half of that water is gone.  I used to have a good job, but since I lost that job, I feel like half the person I used to be.  I used to have a beautiful relationship, but now that they left me, I only feel half full.  I used to have dreams, but my dreams have evaporated like water, and not my cup that used to be full is now half empty. My cup no longer runs over.  It is easy to see the cup as being half empty.  It is easy to see the cup as being half full.

Dear Reader I want to hit you with a technicality today.  I want to let you know that technically, the cup is always full.  Understand that when the water goes out of the cup, it is only half full of water.  However when the water which you can see goes out, the air that you can’t see comes in.  Without the air pressure that comes into the glass the water that you can see would just float away.  Dear Reader you may have lost a job that you can see, but there is a God that you can see that is holding you down.  You may have lost the relationship that you can see, but God wants you to get closer to Him so that He can hold you down even though you can’t see Him. Just because you can’t see it, doesn’t meant that it is not there.  Dear Reader I am here to tell you today  that when  you have a relationship with God, your glass is always full.  As a matter of fact, when you seek God, your glass is always running over.  People may look at your glass and think that you don’t have enough.  There are those who will look at your glass and tell you that you “almost” made it. Dear Reader you have everything that you need.  There is no need to worry, because even though you can’t see it, your glass is always full. You have worried long enough, and you have shed enough tears.  Your weeping has endured through a very long night, but Dear Reader your sun is rising and joy comes in the morning .

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed

I Have Lost My Mind

When the praises go up the blessings come down!  Even in the midst of confusion, when the praises go up the blessings come down!  Even in the midst of thunder and lightning, when the praises go up the blessings come down!  We serve an awesome God who does not sleep and does not take a vacation.  We serve a God who is always looking out for His children, and He is worthy to be praised. God is so good that we should not let anything keep the praises from going u! Praise Him because He is worthy!

Good day to you all! God is speaking to you in many ways, but you have to know how to listen! 

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  Galatians 2:20

If you are reading the subject title of this post, I don’t want you to be concerned about my mental health.  This is not a declaration of my insanity.  I am writing to you today with all of my senses in place, yet I tell you that I have lost my mind.  I tell you this because when it comes to some of the things that I used to do, if I were to compare them to the things that I do today, the old me would think that I was crazy.  The old me would be ready to lock me away in a padded room. It was Jesus who made the difference.  Understand that when you follow Jesus closely you do things that are not what the world expects.  You love the ones that the world does not want.  You feed the ones that the world says not to feed.  You listen to the ones that the world says should have no voice.  When you are in step with Jesus you are out of step with the world, so it is a good chance that if you are following Jesus and the Word of God the world is going to give you some funny looks sometimes.  It is not your fault.  When you dedicated your life to Jesus, you took your old mind away, and got a new mind.  You too have lost your mind.

Dear Reader I want to encourage you to lose your mind.  Your mind may be conditioned to this world.  Your thoughts may be conformed to the way that this world thinks.  However, God will throw away what is old so that He can create what is new.  When you are born again everything is new.  So when you forgive someone that has done the unforgivable, or when you love someone who has called you an enemy, it may seem like you have lost your mind.  Well, Dear Reader, I dare to say that you have lost the mind frame that you once had, and it has been replaced with the thinking of Jesus Christ.  Jesus forgave in the middle of pain.  God is faithful to us even though we are not always faithful to Him.  It is ok to step outside the box, and do some things that you normally would not do.  When you smile at the ones that seek to harm you, or when you pray for the ones that curse you, it may look funny to some people, but to God it makes perfect sense.  Dear Reader do not let anyone lead you back into your old way of thinking.  You can let them know that you may have lost your mind, but your new mind is better than ever!  Celebrate the new you!  Celebrate the freedom of salvation!  You are no longer chained to the ways of the world.  In the name of Jesus you have lost your mind, but your new mind is much, much better!  Follow Jesus example Dear Reader, and bless someone today!

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed

The Balancing Act

It is another day that we have been blessed with!  Let us lift up every voice and sing!  There is so much for us to do today.  Someone needs a hand, and you happen to have a hand free.  Someone needs a smile and you just happen to have a glorious smile.  Someone just happens to cross your path who needs a path to the cross, and you are just that person that can change their life.  Be a blessing today, because today is the day that we are blessed with!

Good day to you all!  There is something about the name Jesus!  Just the mention of the name of Jesus can turn circumstances around and dry up your tears.  Call on Him, and He will be there for you!

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content Philippians 4:11

I remember going to the circus and seeing the men and woman that could walk on the tight rope.  It was amazing to see them walk across such a narrow rope that was stretched high above the floor.  I wondered how this was done so I researched a little and was amazed by what I found.  The tight rope walker keeps his balance by keeping his center over his support.  So as long as his center of gravity stays directly over the rope, even though the rope is narrow the man or woman will not fall.  Now, as simple as that sounds it takes years of training in order to get it right, because if you do not concentrate on where you are putting your balance you will fall off the tight right.  It takes a lot of training, and discipline in order to get it right, and stay balanced. 

Dear Reader I want to encourage you today to maintain your balance.  Sometimes we get a little off center.  Sometimes we don’t believe in our support.  God is with you even though the road to your success may be as narrow as a tight rope that is stretched high above the floor.  Yes, it may seem like you don’t have enough room to walk, and it may seem like you are going to fall off at anytime, but Dear Reader, I want you to concentrate of keeping the center of your life on your support.  If God is lined up with your center then you will maintain your balance.  We see people falling off every day, and the key to why they are falling off is that they are focused on everything else around them.  They are not centered on God, and everything else that they think can give them balance only makes them fall.  The rope may be narrow, but when God is your support, it doesn’t matter where you put your feet, you will not fall.  Ask Peter when he got out of the boat.  Jesus told him to walk towards him, and he was able to walk on the water.  God will support you.  God will keep you balanced.  Your enemies will watch in amazement while you walk.  Some of them will buy a ticket to the show just to see you fall (and won’t they be disappointed because with Jesus even when you fall you can’t fail).  It may take some time and some discipline in order to get it right.  You won’t be perfectly balanced all the time, but the good news is that when you fall, and we all fall at some point, God provides a safety net to keep you from hitting the ground. Dear Reader don’t let anyone doubting you take your concentration off of your walk.  Sometimes life can be a tight rope walk, but when your footsteps are guided you won’t have to worry about the balancing act.

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed

2 Days

Be determined that your faith is stronger than your circumstance.  Walk today knowing that God’s blessings will always be on time, and will always be more than enough to get you through.  Make the decision that God’s will is your direction, and there is nothing in this world that can separate you from the blood of Jesus.  When you do these things you will find that you will hear God’s voice clearly and you will feel a certain closeness to Holy Spirit.  Walk in the light and darkness will fall at your feet like the shadows.  God is with you today!

Good day to you all!  This is the day that the Lord has made, and there is an unmistakable feeling of the Spirit moving today!  Give us this day our daily bread and let us hold on to our faith which can sustain us through all circumstances.

But when Jesus heard this, He  said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.”  Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.  So when He heard that he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was. John 11:4-6

The above verse is describing the reaction of Jesus when He heard that His friend Lazarus was sick.  It is in stark contrast to what we think about when you think of Jesus being for us in our time of need.  Here we have Jesus upon hearing the news of the death of His friend, not moving in a hurry, but staying where He was for another two days.  Verse 5 says that He loved Lazarus and his two sisters, but then verse 6 says that Jesus remained right where He was for two more days. Imagine being in a bad situation and getting word to a friend to help you out, and instead of coming immediately they waited a two hours. We know from the story that by the time Jesus arrived in Judea that Lazarus had been dead for four days. The story of Lazarus is a perfect example of Jesus not coming when we want Him to come, but He is always right on time.  We say that all the time, but I think about the agony and anticipation that Mary and Martha must have gone through waiting on Jesus to arrive.  I imagine the pain that they felt as they waited and Lazarus finally passed away. Those must have been two very long days.

Dear Reader I want to encourage you through your two day period.  I know that it may seem like  your two days have lasted for several years. It may seem like your call to Jesus has fallen on deaf ears. I know that you are waiting on Jesus to arrive.  It may seem like you are in a dead situation.  Dead dreams, and dead relationships that all started with a sickness that could have been cured.  Well let me tell you the good news about two days.  Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days, but Jesus spoke to Lazarus and told him to walk out.  The world may have pushed stop, but when Jesus is on the way the stop button becomes the pause button, and His Holy finger is about to press play. I want to encourage you while you are waiting on Jesus to come.  I want to help you get through your two days, and never give up on God.  Never give up on you.  Your situation is not meant to harm you. When your situation is turned around it will be unmistakable the God was in the mix.  It will be so obvious that it had nothing to do with you and everything to do with God that you will become a shining example of His love.  Your enemies will rejoice during your two days.  However, they may be dumping the Gatorade too soon.  Death got to celebrate for two days when they buried Jesus, but it was day three that we remember so well. On day three Jesus walked out of the tomb with all power in His hand.  Jesus defeated death so that you and I could have life.  Dear Reader stay strong during your two days and praise His name today!

You are beautiful, loved and blessed

John Reed 

A Moving Experience

Your beauty was declared long before you were born, and is so deeply embedded in your spirit it would take a lifetime to experience it all.  Take time to understand your own beauty.  Take time to understand your own perfection.  God’s blueprint is all over you, so never let anyone label a variation of design as a flaw.  You are beautiful at all times.  You are God’s child at all times.  You are under the watchful eye of your creator.  Fear not!

Good day to you all!  There is a lesson for you to learn today! The reason that we go through what we go through is so that we can pull the lessons out of life and apply it to tomorrow!

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus  Philippians 3:12-14

Over the weekend I moved to a new apartment.  I must say that it was mentally and physically one of the most exhausting things that I have done in a while.  There is so much involved, but in the end it was the best thing that I could have done.  The apartment that I was moving from has changed over the time that I had been there, and it was no longer a nice place to live. When I told my neighbors that I was moving they all said that they understood, and that they wanted to move as well, but they didn’t know when they would.

Dear Reader, I want to encourage you to have a moving experience.  Understand that when you have had enough of what the world is giving to you.  You can move on.  I want you to know that you don’t have to take negativity lying down, Dear Reader, you can move on.  When you are watching everything that was once good, now turn bad, and you realize that you didn’t have any business there in the first place.  Don’t put it off for one more minute, it’s time for you to move.  Pack up and don’t look back. You have shed tears for too long, give heartbreak your notice to vacate and move.  You have been frustrated for too long, tell frustration that it is time for you to move on!  Once you move closer to God, and away from the traps of this world, you won’t even bother looking in your rearview mirror. Get closer to God every day, and move away from those things that are seeking to bring you down. Never forget that you are a child of God.

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed

Such a Beautiful Sky

Take a moment to look around and notice all of your blessings.  Take a look around and notice that God has brought you a mighty long way.  Take a moment and see that everything that you need is right in front of you.  There is so much to give thanks for that if you had a thousand tongues you could not praise God enough.  When the praises go up, the blessings come down.  Be blessed today!

Good day to you all! If you find yourself in the middle of the storm without an umbrella just know that God does some of His best work in the rain. Remember if there was no rain, the sky would be devoid of rainbows.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. Psalm 50:2

There is something to be said about the beauty of the sky when the sun is rising and when the sun is about to set.  The sky is so beautiful that it would be hard to doubt that there is a God in Heaven who created it all.  There is such a beautiful array of blues that mix with purple and oranges that blend with blues.  An untrained photographer would not have any trouble shooting a perfect shot of sky during dusk or dawn. Upon closer examination of what makes such a beautiful sky we find something very interesting.  When the sun is rising or setting the earth is an angle where the sunlight reflects off of all of the pollution in the air, and it is the reflection and the refraction of the sun’s rays that create the beautiful colors that we see.  It is the pollution in the sky that contributes to making the sky as beautiful as it is.

Dear Reader I want to encourage you to embrace your beauty.  That does not mean to be vain, but it does mean that there is beauty in you despite what you have been through.  The world may see the beautiful creation that you are, but upon further inspection if they only knew what God had used to bring that beauty out.  If they only knew what it took to bring out that smile every day.  If they only knew what tears had to fall in order to build up your strength.  Dear Reader right now you may feel like all of the pollution that is in your life is making your situation ugly.  However, let me tell you that what may be pollution to you, God is reflecting to show someone a beautiful sky.  What may seem like tough times for you, God is showing someone His power and grace through your situation.  Dear Reader there is a ribbon in the sky for you because God loves you so.  Do not give up on you!  Do not give up on love! Your sun is not setting, your sun is rising and someone watching see’s such a beautiful sky in you!

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed

Love Under New Management

Lift up every voice and sing! Give God your best praise because He is worthy.  There is someone who is praying for you right now.  There is someone who is asking God to be on your side today.  Someone is on bended knees asking God to send a Heavenly Host to protect you from anyone or anything that would seek to harm you on this day.  God is listening to those prayers and He will be with you today and always. Lift up your voice and praise Him for His goodness.  Praise Him for being faithful to His children.  Once again, God is worthy to be praised.

Good day to you all!  Where is your concentration today?  What are you focused on?  Remember that thoughts become things, so be careful of what stays on your mind!

Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:18

You deserve somethin' better, " I kept tellin' myself
Just be patient, true love you'll find
I finally found someone who became my friend
And in a matter of time
Real love stepped in-“Love Under New Management”-Miki Howard

Sometimes a change of management is needed.  There are times when the old way of doing things is not working the way that it ought to work.  Sometimes we get stuck in a particular way of doing things because those ways have become habit and are now comfortable.  We don’t even have to think about what we are doing.  The current management is happy with the results, but upper management is not pleased.  The home office is looking at the big picture, and it says that a change needs to be made immediately.  The home office sends down a referendum for sweeping change.  There is a note that says that current management is making the company look bad.  The current management is not treating its workers right, and it doesn’t care about the customers.  Something has to change.  New management is needed.

Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him. John 14:21

Experience is a good teacher
It takes someone like me to know
All the little games people tend to play
Some call it love
It never has a chance to grow-“Love Under New Management” Miki Howard

Dear Reader I want to encourage you to embrace sweeping change.  God wants us to love each other as He loves us.  God wants us to love unconditionally, and forgive unconditionally.  The world was not managing love correctly so the home office in Heaven sent down a reformer by the name of Jesus.  He brought about sweeping changes, so now love is under new management.  Dear Reader you may need to make some sweeping changes yourself.  I know that I have had to make some sweeping changes to the way that I love, and forgive.  Dear Reader the old way just wasn’t representing the Jesus that loved me so now there is love under new management.  Jesus set the example when they beat Him, and hung Him on the cross and as they mocked Him, Jesus asked God to forgive them because they did not know what they were doing.  How many times have we thought that we were unable to forgive someone, all the while forgetting who has forgiven us. You are not a bad person, your love just needs new management.  Forgive the way that you want to be forgiven.  Love the way that you would want to be loved.  Let us not love in word and talk, but in deed, and truth.  In other words, talk is cheap, and actions speak louder than words.  God’s love is eternal and covers you every day.  Try as hard as you can to make the love that you give reflect the love that you have been given.

You are beautiful, loved, and blessed

John Reed