Take One Step

“And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
‭‭II Corinthians‬ ‭12‬:‭9‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

It’s becoming a routine for me to walk in the evening. To commit to the walk, I tried fooling myself into thinking, “You’re not exercising; you’re just walking 😂.”

Now, this does not mean that I don’t love to exercise, but there are days you just don’t feel like working out, even if you love to. So, this mindset was supposed to help me curve that mindset. Did it work? Absolutely NOT. And I realized it recently when I didn’t feel like walking. My brain was computing how far I had to walk for EXERCISE. 🫣

However, I pushed past the feeling of “laze” and started my walk. Within five minutes, I forgot I didn’t want to. I was dancing along to my gospel music and having a time.

Then I thought about how this mindset of determination and discipline should be implemented when we don’t feel like praying or reading our bibles. I also recently experienced this. Sitting up at midnight, unable to sleep, I decided to pray. But it felt like hard labor, and my mind said, “JUST STOP; this is not making sense.” But I repeatedly said, LORD HELP ME, and within minutes, I prayed for probably an hour.

Consistency in faith requires just that—the determination to be consistent. We have a promise that in our weakest moments, God is our source of strength. So take the first step, and he will strengthen you to take many more. Make sure to read 🤓 and pray 🙏 today.

arise

You Are Stronger

The Bible says in Ephesians chapter 1 that we are blessed with ALL spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. However, often, the word blessings to us only means physical or tangible things.

But even when we struggle to pray, we are blessed with the power to overcome that struggle in Christ. When we struggle with resentment and unforgiveness that we may not be aware of at times, we are blessed with the ability to discern it through prayer and surrender it to God. When we are faced with the struggle of lust, we are blessed with the power of the word to cut away the ungodly desire.

When we feel weak, we are strong because we are no longer dependent on our strength to carry us but on the strength of Christ. #arise

We Are Serving One or The Other

In having a conversation tonight, I realized how and why it is so easy for us to sin. And I’m not talking about the “big sins” our minds may run to but to sin in general.

We often do not consider that we live in a world where if we are not serving one – God, we are serving the other, the enemy. Because we can logically explain things, we have created a center ground where we think certain things are okay, even though they don’t give glory to God. And, of course, we will find examples like the following

– so when I go to the beach, am I giving glory to God? Or how can I give glory to God?

Answer: Going to the beach is part of our human experience and enjoyment, but that does not mean it creates a place to do anti-biblical things, like wearing a monokini or extra tight and short trunks for the men. We are still supposed to represent Christ. We are still to shun the appearance of evil. We are to cause still not a brother or sister to stumble through lust. So, though the act of sea bathing or the motion of going to the beach does not directly require hands up and praying in tongues, the very life we lead at this location is supposed to bring honor and glory to God.

It’s the separation of faith and place that makes sinning as easy as it is. There is no middle ground. We are either serving one or the other.

Isolated and Preserved

Recently, I conversed with someone who had not spoken to me since January of this year. The last phase of my life they were aware of was me recovering from a surgery I had last December and, of course, before that, still coming down from the emotional “high” of losing my parents and marriage of one year in seven months. So, in short, they last spoke to me in episodes of pain.

Now it’s December, and in our conversation, I realized that my “isolation,” which, for me, was solitude, was deemed escapism. I was thought of as “in a corner licking my wounds,” but in reality, God was doing something new. Transformation, I could not imagine. Because it was a video call, when I shared the good news, I realized there was no rejoicing but rather questioning of the growth. Maybe I am growing too fast, or maybe “Why is she growing?” was the thought, but I found it interesting to see the person’s response.

That’s when I realized that sometimes, God has to preserve you from those who may present themselves as for you. You will know who truly loves you, not only when you are down but when you begin rising again. The genuine people in your life will rejoice to see you triumph after trauma.

Sometimes, that season of separation is God’s way of preserving the promises that he wants to establish in your life because he knows in the presence of some, it can be damaged, interrupted, or tainted. So, if you are facing such right now, don’t be sad for such a season. Excite yourself to see what God has next.

Keep Growing

In times past, when I knew someone was judging me or had an opinion that questioned my character, I felt hurt and rejected. For days, I walked around like I was carrying the world on my shoulders. But through trauma work, with God’s help, I now find myself grateful in those moments. I find myself smiling and saying thank you, God, for blessing me. Because I refuse to be mentally controlled by the misguided desires of others to have what I have, that’s sent forth in the form of judgment and “ridiculing” opinions.

Sometimes, when people are pointing fingers at you, it’s because they wish they were in your shoes. Do not allow their grim fete of hope to place a mental questionnaire before you. Once you are working along with God, then you are right where you need to be.

KEEP GOING AND GROWING.

They Were Wrong But Were You?

Sometimes we can be caught up so much in how much we’ve been hurt, we neglect the fact that we may have equally inflicted hurt.

I remember the Lord had me apologize to a pastor and ministry that caused me great pain. To me, my response was deserved but to God my response was pride. So in order to cultivate true humility, he allowed me to put my emotions aside and think about how I may have caused disappointments or pain to another. The pastor was so moved he cried and also apologized, following my apology. Sometimes, it’s not about feeling right but about being right in the eyes of God.

This will not always be the case but introspection is needed to be clear on the differentiation of circumstances and response.

• Candace

You Are Not Alone

Sometimes we can find ourselves in a season where we are totally alone. Not that there aren’t people around but either, they are not interested to hear us or God has not given the release to let them into this season of transformation.

This can leave us feeling extremely lonely at times and if we are not careful, the need to be seen or heard will cause wrong connections. Though this will take a conscious decision, remember that the Lord is with you. As you transition this season, you will learn total dependence on Him, a gift that cannot be shaken. Another season will come where the right people will be aligned. However, for now, He is teaching you total dependence on Him. So as painful as this may be, allow yourself to be submitted to the process and lesson. You will be blessed in the end. #selah #christian

Be Diligent on Social Media

Social Media entertainment has been a blessing to many. Having a place of escape in your hands brings its “good” elements. However, this said entertainment has a downside. Because persons do pranks and many content creations sometimes seems unrealistic, we are becoming very desensitized to different situations.

Recently a young lady shared videos of her having severe morning sickness and the different things she had to do, to deal with it. The top comment was, “this is not your first baby. Y’all doing too much”. The commenter discredited what this individual was going through.

Granted I know people do things for clout and that’s why I have my discrepancies about content creation, since it leaves no room for privacy. We can ostracized someone in a life and death situation and think they are doing something for clout. Persons have died on social media lives because the viewers thought they were joking. People have committed suicide on social media live because people thought they were doing things for clout and they’ll be alright. Some persons have even encouraged others to commit suicide on lives and when they did, deemed them as foolish.

The so call bright side of the web is also becoming very dark. So what am I saying? Simple. Try not to be become desensitized. Make a conscious effort not to be brainwashed by the trends and content that is being pushed. Still see people for people. Still understand that people need people. Still feel empathy when necessary. All in all be wise while using the web.

The Presenting

And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
Romans 6:13 NKJV

To present means to formally give something to someone according to the Mirriam Webster Dictionary. With this in mind, let’s look at the aforementioned verse. To reiterate the potency of the point made, I will rewrite according to the meaning of the word present.

We are admonished to not formally give ourselves (whoever it applies too, be it spirit or person), as instruments to unrighteousness but rather to formally give ourselves as instruments of righteousness to God. In the KJV it says to not yield oneself, which translates to the same as the NKJV. In the final analysis, we are not suppose to give over ourselves to unrighteousness. So why do we? The Bible says,we are a slave to whom we serve (paraphrased), yet we still slave after the things of the flesh. Knowing that the end result is death. If not physically, mentally, emotionally and all the other “ally’s” we can think about.

Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?
Romans 6:16 NKJV

The following verse (14), states, sin shall not have dominion over us. If we are to look at this verse individually, sinning presumptuously can become a norm because we’ll believe, though we sin, sin has no hold on us. However, this verse is in conjunction with the former. When we do not PRESENT ourselves to unrighteousness, then sin shall not have dominion over us. Once we submit to sin, sin will rule (have dominion) our lives.

As would have been stated in my last post, overcoming is not merely dependant on supernatural occurrences (the hand of God moving) but also on earthly surrender. If we do not surrender and or submit to holiness, then holiness will not fully be realized in us. It’s save to say that sin is a matter of choice. Who do you choose to surrender, submit or obey? Somehow living righteous is always expressed as being difficult and I believe because its seen that way, there’s an automatic expectation of failing. I’m not saying there won’t be challenges in striving to perfection but if we love what we do, then doing it becomes easy. That is, if we love Christ and a life in Christ, then living out the characteristics of such lifestyle will also become easy.

I’m writing this piece as a personal expression and encouragement on a public platform because I know I’m not the only one who struggle at times. I place emphasis on saying, TOTAL SURRENDER. This is my heart’s desire and it will never fade from wanting to deeply know the heart of God.

Do you wish to know him as well? Tell me about your journey in the comment section and as always if you need prayer support, I’m always available to pray for you. We are to bear each other up in love. Send an email at arisewoman@gmail.com or what’s app at 1 868 3471762.

ARISE!

Waow – Relational Talk

I could not find another suitable title for this piece, hence the name. It may be a bit unprofessional but it depicts exactly how I feel, so I kindly ask that you bare with me just this once. *smiles*

For my ardent readers, you would most likely know that I had a very difficult past with friendships. It was not my best avenue of experiences, both in and out of the church but particularly that of the church. This left me wondering, how do I maintain bonds or even create them with persons who may give the red flags. Be honest.  We all see the red flags and I don’t mean the ones we dig up for but rather the little things that may not resonate well with our spirits. It is taught in churches across the world, love your brother and sister (which is the right thing) but we are never told to be wise about it or which is healthy or not. The minute you pull away you are branded as not being Christian like.  I can vividly recall an experience of mine, where a Pastor knew me to be best friends with someone and upon finding out  the friendship was broken, bugged me to rekindle it until I did and ended up getting bruised again. You can imagine how sick I felt. That’s because, according to him, I was not being a “Christian” by detaching myself from a very strong person of God. That’s the catch. She was indeed active and Holy Ghost filled but there was a big but. Something still was not right, which later revealed itself to me. I didn’t know my decision to back off was a good one until I came across these verses, TODAY.

2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 KJV

And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.  Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

This letter was written to the church of Thessalonica but as we know is meant for our adhering even today. Within that friendship some things had me uneasy, since they showed signs of “none Christianity” and after much expression of these issues, seeing no change, I decided it would be wise to stay away and love her from a distance. Initially I had to FORGIVE her and as I did, loving her all over again became easy but it was from a distance. That was me, not counting her as an enemy but did also admonish her as a brother (sister), when the opportunity presented itself. It did not end there however. As I tried to be a “Christian” (inverted commas used for a reason), I began entertaining another Christian “friend”. And there were the red flags again. What was I to do? I backed off *chuckles*, though it did hurt me to.

However, as I read these words today something great struck me. Not because a person goes under the name ” Christian “, means we are meant to be there friend. We can be our brothers keeper, praying for them, ministering to them but still not create a FRIENDSHIP. Just to clarify if you thought those verses meant unbelievers, see the explained verses in the AMP version.

2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 AMP

But if anyone [in the church] refuses to obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he may be ashamed. Do not regard him as an enemy, but simply admonish and warn him as [being still] a brother.

Although persons may attend almost every church service or be active in church committees, they may still have issues to deal with and would not be conducive to uphold good friendships. You may ask, if we were all to shun them, who will be their friend. One, we are not to shun them but we wise in relating to these persons and two, God knows exactly who to align them with. If it happens to be you, be rest assured, he God, will grant you the wisdom for the friendship. However, for persons who like myself were or are trying to hold on to friendships because you were (are) trying to be a good Christian, though the hurt is terrible, nothing is wrong with letting go. As a child of God be reminded to pray when dealing with these issues, since you will not want to develop and habour hate or cause confusion. But letting go WITH A GOOD HEART ,is not a sin. It is biblically sanctioned.

This is a touchy issue and requires total guidance from the Holy Spirit but once you know you are spirit led, do not listen to the external voices that may want to stare you in the way they think is best. God knows best and will never stare you wrong. So walk away if you need too. WITH A GOOD AND CLEAN HEART, WALK, love them as a brother, admonish them but remember you can keep (clean -emphasized) distance.

ARISE!!!

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