Monday, March 23, 2009

Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

[Nehemiah 8:10]

**********

And David danced before the Lord with all his might, wearing a priestly garment.

[2 Samuel 6:14]

“DANCE!  The Joy of the LORD is Your Strength”

Good Morning Beloved,

HAPPY MONDAY!…  

I’m feeling this one… “The joy of the Lord is your strength”.  That is so true!… a joy that just doesn’t make sense.  A joy about everything and nothing in particular.  Joy in the midst of struggle, joy in the midst of a “dry spell” where nothing seems to be “happening”.  I’ve learned to cherish the ‘feeling’, because circumstances try to numb our emotions, but the ‘joy’ is always there.  Sometimes the ‘fire’ of joy needs to be stoked.  What brings joy to your heart?  Where is that place that you can go physically, spiritually or emotionally that sets your spirit ‘right’? I can be in a really foul mood, and someone can say something, I start laughing and it’s over.  Doctors are learning more and more, what has been in the bible for centuries…

 
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.

[Proverbs 17:22]

I included a YouTube collage of  ‘Dancing Saints’ and, one of the ones that blessed me was a man dancing in his kitchen.  I’m not ashamed to say… I’ve been there.  Yep…dancing in the kitchen. I don’t know why we dance, I just know that whatever the circumstances good or bad, dancing is a release.  I find it interesting that dancing crosses cultural and racial divides.  One thing that our technology does is allow us to peek into cultures we may not see in our everyday surroundings.  As a Christian, it fascinates me to see churches in countries all over the globe, singing some of the same songs, and doing very similar dances.  Our expressions of worship, praise and adoration of our king… different and yet the same.  Not everyone is going to understand, that is fine.  Remember, David’s wife didn’t understand why her husband – the glorious King of Israel- was dancing in the streets like a peasant.  In her eyes, he shed his dignity, along with his priestly garments.  David, was excited because the ark of the covenant… the Word and promise of God, had returned to Israel. I don’t know what kind of dance it was, but whatever it was it was intense.  He was so happy that he came home bearing gifts, but was met at his own door with disapproving eyes and a critical spirit.  Ever had days like this.  You’re in a good mood, minding your own business, and here comes a wet blanket trying to dampen your spirit.  Well, we don’t have control over what someone throws at us, but we do control what we carry… and what we throw back.

… That Beloved is Good News…

U Blessed!

Have A Fabulous Day

Regina

(This is how I’m feeling this morning.. like dancing!)

I Get Joy When I Think About (What He’s Done For Me)

2008 Revival T Hands Of God Ministries Guest Speaker: Pastor Harris

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLjKbuEHZSA

*****

“Still Have Joy”, Tye Tribbett

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfJ2LZQbvs4

*****

“Dancing Saints”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Jgv6BS5jP4

*****

“This is the Day”, Fred Hammond

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5fXhoxJqQQ

Oil of Joy -Isaiah 61:3     Like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz, the storms of life can leave us broken, and it can be tough to continue. But God provides us the oil of His joy, to heal our hurts, and allow us to move on in Him.

Friday, December 12, 2008

The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and His disciples were also invited to the celebration. The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told Him, “They have no more wine.” “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”  But His mother told the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.”  [John 2:1-5]

“Celebration”

Happy Friday!   

Nothing like a good celebration.  I find it interesting that the very first public miracle that Jesus performed was at a wedding celebration. Turning water into wine().  A wine so good that,

“When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over.  “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”

Somehow, somewhere along the way in the history of the church, Gods’ people became viewed as dry, lifeless, no smiling creatures with no joy.  Fun was a ‘dirty’ word… having a good time synonymous with doing something wrong, and dancing was strictly frowned upon.  If anybody should have joy it should be those who serve a God as wonderful as our God.  Balance.. Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is a time a place for everything … Focus… years ago, I was attending a service where the minister asked everyone to take out a dime.  He told us to hold the dime up in front of us.  In the broad scope of our vision the dime did not take up much space, but when we moved the dime closer to our eyes our whole perspective changed until the dime was all that would could see.  That is how life is at times.  Something or someone can fill our vision to the point we can’t see anything beyond it.  I believe that is the reason many people commit suicide or generally check out of life… either mentally or emotionally.  They could not see or imagine life beyond where there were. Breakthroughs are happening constantly… don’t miss yours. The bible assures you that if you seek God… you will find Him….. Enjoy today.

Some Assembly Required -Proverbs 3:5,6     Life is complicated, and it can be hard to fit all of the pieces together. The Bible is our instruction manual from God for how to put our lives in order. December 7, 2008

(a Father/son dance-this is a video you don’t see everyday )

Friday, November 21, 2008

Faith Fuel - Romans 10:17 5 of 102   We need to have faith in God to get us down the highway of life, to the destination that God has planned for us. The Word of God is the fuel that keeps our faith moving along. January 1, 2007

Oh, be careful little eyes, what you see.
Oh, be careful little eyes, what you see.
There’s a Father up above, looking down in tender love,
So be careful little eyes, what you see.

 

Be careful little ears what you hear
Be careful little mouth what you say…
Be careful little hands, what you touch…

Be careful little feet, where you go…

Sound advice because what we give our attention to affects us… good and bad.  A little test… the next time you’re really aggravated, irritated and grouchy… do a quick mental note on what you’ve been watching and listening to.  I’ve done it and it is amazing.  Many years ago, a friend who is like a sister to me, moved in with my mom and me.  She was an exceptional ‘house-guest’, however, at the time she was into the group “Public Enemy”.  She would play this one particular song every morning….. every morning.  I believe it was “Fight the Power”.  I only remember the ‘errrr errrr  errrr errrrrr’ sound in the song.  It was very annoying.  Normally, she was very sweet and mild-tempered, but I noticed how different she was during this song.  Stomping through the house, slamming doors, cursing under her breath… just aggravated.  It was weird… she didn’t even notice she was acting that way …until I told her.  When she stopped listening to that song in the morning…she was normal.  What commands our attention?  When we hear ‘faith’… when we hear the Word of God, it will affect us for the good.  Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.  We should read the paper, listen to the news, keep informed on what is going on around us.  I believe our prayers are even more powerful and effective when we pray for specific situations.  I have adopted the habit of hearing from God first though.  I do not read, or listen to the news until I have either read something from God’s word, or heard something God-focused on my iPod.  My spirit has to have a Godly cushion to absorb the weight of one local, national or world-wide crisis after another that is reported.  God can handle it, and nothing escapes His notice… He knows the end from the beginning so nothing surprises Him.  Remember my boy Joseph?  I was reminded by a teaching yesterday of something I never thought about.  What would have happened if Pharaoh’s butler had remembered Joseph.  What possible motive would Pharaoh have had to release Joseph — a Hebrew slave accused of the attempted rape of the wife of one of his highest officials. We know he didn’t do it, but they didn’t have the benefit of Genesis.  It was looking really grim for Joseph and he could have given into despair.  He was in prison.  Loneliness, depression, violence, anger, and hopelessness was all around him.  He kept his faith in what he had heard about God as a child, as well as what God had showed him in his dreams.  Pharaoh began to have dreams that shook his foundation and he was desparate for an answer.  Now, he has a reason to need something… and Joseph was the only man in the land who had the wisdom and knowledge they needed to survive.  He made it.  We will too…. hold on to what God gave you, no matter how long ago it was that you received it…. it’s coming!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Psalm 95:

(“Joyful, Joyful” Sister Act 2)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_c_MHkba5c

HAPPY FRIDAY!!! YOU MADE IT!  Good for you!.  I realized this morning that the phrase “make a joyful noise” is mentioned 7 times in the book of Psalms.  Everybody can’t sing, but everyone can make a joyful noise… if not from their vocal cords… they use whatever works… isn’t that great.  My church gets very ‘lively’.  I know that there are some who don’t believe “it takes all that”.  People get excited over what is exciting to them (I know… thats deep huh?).  Those who attend sporting events (probably not golf though), can teach us how to make a joyful noise… just let their team score!  They get happy!  They dance, shout, fall out, hit each other, throw things…they just have a fit.  I think it’s cute.  What puzzles me is when these same people (the Christian ones), go to church with little or no emotion, and look disdainfully at those who are ‘raising the roof’.  Just think… the team that they are so excited about, one day, they are going to lose… but God… He never loses.  Their favorite player will retire… God is the Ancient of Days, He was before time even existed… and He forever will Be.  God is creator of all.  The earth is His footstool (Matthew 5:35). Ha!.. I find it funny that those who refuse to honor and serve God, don’t know that no matter how they feel about Him… they are at His feet, and that fact will never change… Ummm… I need a minute to think about that one… whew! OH YEAH!!!….

Monday, October 20, 2008

 
This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

Good Morning Beloved,

I pray that this day you walk in God’s favor, accept what God has given you and not miss the “small” blessings.  A few years ago, I made statement that still rings true today.  I told a friend that I have truly enjoyed my daughter and all of her stages.  When she was a baby, I can remember the diaper bags, huge pocketbooks, deluxe strollers and traveling up four flights of stairs to her baby sitter’s house.  When she reached elementary school I remember walking her to school and then to work.  Through the years, I remember traveling with her on buses until I was blessed with my car.  There have been many times of struggling and making due, but with God (and my mom’s) help, we have made it through some difficult days.  There are frustrating and stressful days.  Days like the time I had Jah dressed in her Christmas finery, (she was about 3 or 4) and she dumped a whole container of baby powder over her head.  Head to toe baby powder.  Instead of going totally ballistic… I grabbed a camera.  I still have that picture.  Now, it is a precious memory that makes me smile… the day it happened…. not so much.  There has always been a thought in the back of my mind that said, “enjoy this… these days will shortly be over”.  Find the humor in the situation.  We have lost family members and friends.  We still miss them, but now we can think about them and remember how they made us laugh and how they got on our nerves, which can bring us back to how they made us laugh. I remember Minister James Hughes, a former member of our church and my pastor’s nephew.  He was terminally ill for many years.  The year before he got really sick, our family and his went on vacation together.  He was a minister at another church at this time.  It was supposed to be their church trip, but everyone backed out but our family and his family, so we decided to go anyway.  We had so much fun.  “Jimmy” was a person who really knew how to enjoy life.  Even with sickness coursing through his body, it didn’t take over his spirit.  He laughed, and joked and teased the whole trip.  A couple of years later he was gone, but the memories we have of him live on….. Enjoy this day!

Share some Good News…..

… oh, I have some… Happy Birthday to our sister Janice Wellington… I worked under her many years ago, and she is hands down from that day ’til this the best boss I ever had!… She is a part of the ‘Soul Food’ family… Janice, may God bless you with many, many more happy ones.  Thank you for being YOU!

U BLESSED!

Have A Fabulous Day Everybody!

Regina

Friday, October 10, 2008

The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and His disciples were also invited to the celebration. The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told Him, “They have no more wine.” Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.” But His mother told the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons.  Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed His instructions. When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!” This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed His glory. And His disciples believed in Him. After the wedding He went to Capernaum for a few days with His mother, His brothers, and His disciples.

[John 2:1-11]

HAPPY FRIDAY!

I find it interesting that Jesus performed His first miracle at a wedding feast.  Many in today’s culture have hostile, dim, convoluted or just plain strange views of marriage, but it was (and still is) instituted and ordained by God.  It is His to change, redefine or throw out of a window.  He hasn’t done any of the above, so we need to leave it alone. Period. End of story. Marriage, is a picture of the covenant God has with us.  I’ve mentioned that before.  This morning though something else caught me attention.  Ever notice how much partying was going on in the bible?  Those folks really loved to celebrate didn’t they? They had no problem eating, drinking and dancing()……. yes, dancing!  If something is truly good, it should invoke some kind of a positive response… shouldn’t it?  When I’m thirsty, and I get a nice large lemonade/sweet tea mix at the neighborhood ‘carry-out’… WOW!I don’t eat the food much, but I’ll go in there just for the ‘mix’…  I have a smile on my face, and you know that I have just experienced something ‘good’.  If a drink can get that type of response, if my favorite artist, or my friends and family can get that type of response… how much more should my God get an even better response.  He has been better to me than any of the aforementioned (and they have blessed me tremendously let me tell you!).  Ecclesiastes tells us that there is a time for everything.  I’ve been around sisters and brothers in Christ who were not much fun to be around.  They were mean, depressed, arrogant, spiteful, tale bearing saints and those were their good qualities!  LOL!  Not a good representative of the kingdom, we gotta love them anyway.  It is possible to serve God, and effectively witness for Him without compromising His Word and in the right spirit.  That does not mean that everyday you’re Mary Poppins with an anything goes attitude.  It means even when called upon to deal with difficult subjects and situations… we can handle them with grace, wisdom and tact.  How?  Well it helps to remember your purpose… to point the lost to the Jesus, and be a witness for what He is in our life, and encourage and edify the members of the family of God in their personal relationship with Him.

Praise Party with Mary Mary and Tye Tribbett & GA

http://www.thefaithspot.com/videos/id_1420/

Still Have Joy – Tye Tribbett & GA

http://www.thefaithspot.com/videos/id_1421/

Stand Up“, church dance from the movie “Polly”

http://www.thefaithspot.com/videos/id_1422/

Church Scene from “The Blues Brothers“

http://www.thefaithspot.com/videos/id_1423/

Cartoonist’s Comment:

The way into the presence of God is through thanksgiving and praise. Grumbling and complaining will get you nowhere.

September 12, 2008

All who confess that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in His love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face Him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced His perfect love. We love each other because He loved us first.  If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And He has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.

^{[1 John 4:15-21]}

Happy Friday!  OUCH!… that smarts!  Love my Christian brothers and sisters?  All of them?  But Lord, some of these folks are ornery, surly, angry, nasty and just plain mean!  Love ‘em anyway.  That’s not natural.  Exactly.  Its super-natural!  The love of God shed in our hearts, gives us the capacity to love the unlovable.  Fear.  There are many definitions of fear.  Fear can be a good thing when speaking of being in awe of or respect for God.  The other fear – being scared- is something different.  That type of fear breeds torment and confusion.  To borrow a line from my dear Sister-in-Christ Melanie Best’s play, “Convicted:  A Christian”, that fear will have you scared to leave your house and scared to stay in it… the only place left to go… IS CRAZY!.  There are people who live and breathe CNN, MS NBC, Fox News etc.  These people live in constant fear and dread of everything.  No wonder they tend to have such a dim outlook on the world.  We need balance and levity.  Be informed, but protect your spirit from an overdose of morbidity.  Remember the times during which your bible was written.  Remember the times during which your bible was translated. Dark, grim times.  There were wars, famines, pestilences, tragedies, but the Word was the same.  It never changed.  It still said:

Ok… today was one of those mornings…. I was not late, but I was closer to being late than I wanted to be, so I decided to catch the bus rather than walk.  If you’ve ever ridden the bus during rush hour, you can imagine the scene… people crammed into each other… no one smiling…. some are sleeping… some just look mad at the world.  Then the bus driver and a passenger started talking, their talking led to laughter and the passenger nearly fell out of his seat laughing.  Another passenger that was close to them remarked,  ”It ain’t that funny”… he told her that he was laughing at the bus driver… she couldn’t hear all of what the bus driver was saying, she was reacting to the passenger.  Pretty soon I saw an amazing transformation, people from the front all the way to the back of the bus starting smiling…. they had no idea why..it was like a wave… this bus driver and passenger had completely changed the atmosphere… no wonder why the bible tells us that “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (Proverbs 17:22)“.  In the words of Nehemiah, “…Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10)

Change the atmosphere today for the good!

TAG!…… YOU’RE IT!

You are the apple of God’s Eye
You are fearfully and wonderfully made
You are an overcomer
You are a mighty warrior
You are blessed
You are compassionate
You are giving
You are prosperous
You are stunning
You are powerful
You are amazing
You are intelligent
You are fabulous
You are Holy
You are a beautiful work in progress
You are all that God says that you are…… the greatest of all of His creationsWhat do you have to do with this message?  Send it to 10 people in 10 minutes and get 10 million dollars? NOPE..just give Him praise

and

tell the Lord THANK YOU!