How ya livin' ? 1.31.15

REAL TALK from KB: Lord have mercy!!!! I just heard T.D. Jakes say - too many of us are seeking recognition and don't meet the requirements!

Whoa - that right there is a powerful statement....not to run any inventories outside of my own but how many times have you witnessed blatant hypocrisy because Pastor so -n-so or Evangelist whatchamacallit's  walk and talk looked like 12:30 on a watch?

I'm not saying you have to be perfect - none of us are....I'm saying that people need to see you struggle and wrestle with your demons...there needs to be a level of person connection and identity (think of why God (Christ) in flesh)

People need to know and see their teacher, preachers and evangelists are making earnest efforts....don't be so saved, sanctified and pious that you become "NO EARTHLY GOOD!"

The two-faces of man By: KB © 1.31.15

“Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). Christ has come, died for our sins, and has risen from the grave. He has opened the way for us to be reconciled to God and has proclaimed for us the day of salvation.

I read this passage this morning and I had to ask myself if I was "all in" ? Have I made it past the doors? Am I "souled" out?

Keeping it real...some of us never really make it 10 feet from where we first received Christ. We're content to rest in the knowledge of Christ but never fully committed to doing the work it takes to renew our minds.

Ephesians 4:22 - 24    …22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit,23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.…

What shows a "new self" in your life? When people see you do they see or hear God? Do you quote scripture and your life reflects something contrary?

I just want you to be mindful of your state and position - Satan was once an archangel and Judas was with the disciples........

You cannot serve two masters - there is no room for dichotomy  in Christ Jesus - are you all in?

Extra BY: KB © 1.29.14

Galatians 6:8 - 10     …8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. 10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.

When is the last time you did something for someone; not out of a sense of obligation? I’m not talking about a commitment to “pay it forward” but a random act of kindness…

Speaking of random, I ask this question because I've been battling a zombie state due to lack of sleep. I've been heading to 7-11 for their exotically and elaborately named coffees. This morning was no different. I stumbled out of my car in deep thought about something I was planning to write. As I exited my car I noticed a homeless guy huddled against a building trying to get some sleep. I also noticed how several people just ignored his presence. I didn't ignore him; I saw him; I opted not to disturb his peace…for all I know, like me, he could have been deep in thought and prayer. I entered the store but instead of my usual coffee and donut…I loaded up on the “real” breakfast foods and brought myself a milk. On my way back to my car…I excused myself for intruding on the homeless guy’s peace but I handed him the breakfast food….

I know there is going to be a number of you who are going to find fault with me for sharing the story…but I’m sharing it to illustrate a point. The point being, we have so much, we take so much for granted…I've been going to the 7-11 for a couple of days this week; when you look at it I’m throwing money away…the stuff I buy is not a necessity. Today the Holy Spirit revealed that to me and the money that I would have normally wasted on something frivolous went to something noble and right!  So, think about this little story the next time you have a few extra coins…

How ya livin'?

Pray , not Prey! What are you feasting on? BY: KB © 1.28.15

Once again God shows up and shows out in my life….so I was sitting here thinking about writing a series of posts on prayer. In the midst of my praying about it, among praying about other things, I stop to read a devotional.

Here’s what it quoted: 1 John 4:1-2   Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 

The commentary goes on to state that the Holy Spirit is not the only spirit at work in this world and that we should pray to be able to recognize the Holy Spirit.

James 5:15 – 16    …15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

How ya livin'?

Why do you persecute me? BY: KB © 1.28.15

https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Futmost.org%2Fhow-could-someone-so-persecute-jesus%2F&t=How+Could+Someone+So+Persecute+Jesus%21

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit..

Can you recall just how many times you've read or seen these words in your faith walk? Do you know what they mean? Do you know just how you, personally engage in this act?

So, once again Oswald Chambers - My Utmost for His Highest has done it again....taken me to a place of deep thought and reflection about what it means to grieve the Holy Spirit. I've become keenly aware of some of the behaviors that prevent me from experiencing God in all His glory and fullness.

Ephesians 4:30   And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Genesis 6:6     The LORD regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.

Psalm 78:40     How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the wasteland!

Isaiah 63:10    Yet they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy and he himself fought against them.

John 3:33     Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful.

Ephesians 1:13     And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,

1 Thessalonians 5:19    Do not quench the Spirit.

Hebrews 10:29    How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?

The aforementioned are passages of scriptural examples of how we grieve the Spirit and what the outcome of our actions may look like...

How ya livin'?!!!

Introductions Are Necessary! BY: KB © 1.27.15

Praise God that I am NOT the dressed up mess I was a month ago!!! He, God that is, took a life situation and turned it around to show me my reflection….I didn't like what I saw and I know He wasn't pleased or He wouldn't have revealed it to me, he would have let me sit in my mess….

But when I came to myself: Luke 15: 16 – 18    The Parable of the Prodigal Son
…16 "And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him. 17 "But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! 18 'I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;…

Psalm 119:59   I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.

Hosea 2:7    She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them. Then she will say, 'I will go back to my husband as at first, for then I was better off than now.'

Luke 15:16   He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

Luke 15:18   I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.

Acts 12:11    Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen."

Have you been introduced to you?

Feeling This Today!!!!

Fussin’, Cussin’ and Complainin’ BY: KB © 1.27.15

Have you ever really listened to yourself during the day? What do you hear? After the New Year I became keenly aware of my speech. Some days I'm full of jokes and laughter; I speak kindly to my family and friends but for the most part all I heard was grumbling. Whereas I'm aware of it and I catch myself and correct it...I'm still in that "mode". When I catch myself getting negative, I stop and I pray, in that instant! I have to because it's easy to focus on what's wrong and what I want....and those were my solutions to the problems. Not at any point in time in my grumblings did I ask myself "What is God calling for and what can I do to fix it?"  My solutions and my grumblings were rooted in selfishness plain and simple....I wanted what I wanted, when I wanted it and like a petulant child I tend to let God and everybody else know.

Philippians 2: 14   Do everything without grumbling or arguing,

Romans 12:2   And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Philippians 4:11   Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, [therewith] to be content.

Negativity will quickly consume you if you allow it to take root.

My new mantra – God id good all the time, and all the time God is good.

Low Battery By: KB © 1.26.15

I’m getting a late start this morning. I had to stop and buy a cup of liquid energy – coffee!!! I did absolutely the bare minimum all weekend and I am still exhausted. I had 2 hours of sleep on Saturday night…I’m not complaining…I was doing what has been placed on my heart to do and I love it! I’m just writing a big lead in to my point…what to do when your energy wanes?

Philippians 3: 13-15    …13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you;…

When I read this passage my mind flashes back to an Olympics marathon race many years ago where a runner was far behind the pack…the lights had gone out, the majority of the crowd had gone home but the brothers heart would NOT let him quit.

The Pulpit commentary describes this passage as thus:     Verse 14. - I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus; rather, with the best manuscripts, unto the prize. The first preposition, "towards," expresses the aim; the second, "unto," the end of the race. The high calling; the upward, heavenward calling. God is calling us all upward, heavenward, by the voice of the Lord Jesus, who is the Word of God. Comp. Hebrews 2:1, "Partakers of the heavenly calling." The words, "in Christ Jesus," are to be taken with "the high calling." It is God who calls: he calls us in the person of Christ, by the voice of Christ, "Come unto me." "It was his will that thou shouldst run the race below; he gives the crown above. Seest thou not that even here they crown the most honored of the athletes, not on the racecourse below, but the king calls them up, and crowns them there" (Chrysostom). 

What are you running toward? Is it you high calling or is it your demise? Are you trying to make your will God’s?

How ya livin’?!!!!

Revitalized

Something for your Monday....I needed the energy this morning - my devotional readings helped to illustrate how we don't notice when our energies and focus shifts from God.

How Ya Livin' ?!!!!! BY: KB © 1.25.15

A friend put me up on  Bishop Carlton Pearson some many years back. He was still doing the revivals at Azusa when I got hooked; I remember watching one of his videos where he's talking about one of the old church mothers checking on his salvation. He said she would ask "are you still yet holding on son?" The question lifted my spirits because I've known many a church mother in my lifetime. I hated being on their bad side but MY GOD!!!! what a joy their correction has come to mean today.

As a result of my own spiritual awakening; I'm asking myself the question on a regular basis.

I felt it was time for a quick check in.....it's almost the end of January....how many of you are still full throttle in your resolutions? What's slowing you down or stopping you?  Are you being true to God, yourself and others?

Now it's one thing to have an intellectual understanding of things and it's quite another to live them out....

How ya livin'?!!

Have Thine Own Way BY: KB © 1.24.15

Have you ever wanted something so badly that you were willing to do just about anything to get it? Have you had "that thing" within your reach only to have it disappear just as quickly as it appeared, leaving you feeling stupid, dejected and questioning all the "work" it took to get "that thing"? I often teach that what we actively pursue will be the very thing that will cause our demise...and demise I mean what we will allow to interfere with our relationship with Christ.

Let me start by saying this...I try to read  and reflect on at least two daily devotional; my personal favorite is by Oswald Chambers. I read My Utmost for His Highest on a regular basis: I've actually read it several times and each time I read it more is revealed. Today's reading was about making room for God.

He paraphrases Galatians 1: 15 by over simplifying the passage a bit  by shortening " When it pleased God…" but you'll get the gist as you read further.

Oswald's introduction to his piece totally relates to my questions:

As servants of God, we must learn to make room for Him— to give God “elbow room.” We plan and figure and predict that this or that will happen, but we forget to make room for God to come in as He chooses. Would we be surprised if God came into our meeting or into our preaching in a way we had never expected Him to come? Do not look for God to come in a particular way, but do look for Him. The way to make room for Him is to expect Him to come, but not in a certain way. No matter how well we may know God, the great lesson to learn is that He may break in at any minute. We tend to overlook this element of surprise, yet God never works in any other way. Suddenly—God meets our life “…when it pleased God….”

We all want what we want when we want it...now and not later. When things don't happen the way we have mapped out and scripted in our minds, we tend to ask, "When, God, when?" Like we can really rush God! We need to grow in the area of trusting God instead of focusing on the "how and when?" If joy and peace are missing from your life  you're not trusting God: plain and simple. If you're mentally overtaxed and you're beat up by stress and worry, you're not trusting God.

Our tendency to play God, wanting to be in His business can be detrimental to your Christian walk. Sometimes knowing too many details can be detrimental. I continue to struggle with impatience frustration and disappointment because I was like Sergeant Joe Friday , wanting the facts . God had to teach me to leave things alone and quit feeling that I needed to know everything. I had to learn to trust God,  who knows all things and accept that some questions may never be answered; I still struggle with this from time to time but I've come to know that we our relationship with God and His revelation to us comes alive when we refuse to worry.

REAL TALK - This push me-pull you relationship, tension, dynamic (whatever you want to call it) only serves to demonstrate the true power of Christ. We have free will and free reign to make decisions but when we develop a genuine relationship with Christ ...we can ask, wait and then look at the situation and say "Nobody or Nothing but God could have made this happen!"

How ya livin'?

Gratitude

I am so feeling this today!!!!! The song just fell on me like rain

2 Timothy 3:16 BY: KB © 1.24.15

Have I mentioned just how much I love Oswald Chambers and the devotional My Utmost for His Highest? I have read the book from cover to cover several times now and like the Bible, each reading brings new insight and revelation. God is truly a wonder.

Bringing me to my point, a saw this little blurb posted in the margin of the devotional:

An intellectual conception of God may be found in a bad vicious character. The knowledge and vision of God is dependent entirely on a pure heart. Character determines the revelation of God to the individual. The pure in heart see God. Biblical Ethics, 125 R

I was struggling with my focus and prayer this morning, that was until I muted the sound of the television and spoke the words my heart was feeling but I could never seem to articulate. A fact which ties me to the reading.

 I was constantly intellectualizing God. I would quote and discuss scripture with the tenacity of an orthodox rabbi but the word hadn't made the two foot jump from my head to my heart and my words, thoughts and deeds often reflected it.

A series of life circumstances caused my knees to bend in a way that they have never been positioned. These same circumstances sloughed the callus from my heart. At this point I not only understood, I felt, I emoted and most important I lived the word...the word actually became living waters...REAL LIFE

God is meant to be lived, felt, breathed, spoken and demonstrated......

How ya livin'?!

Gotta Keep It 100

REAL TALK from KB: Don’t let what you want prevent you from truly seeing what you need!

God provides everything you need when you’re listening to Him and receiving His wisdom, protection, and provision. However, if you’re missing out on God’s blessings, identify why that is so you can do something about it.

Psalm 81:10–12 sheds light on  what may be blocking your reception of God’s resources for you. “I, the LORD, am your God, . . . open your mouth wide and I will fill it. But My people did not listen to My voice, and Israel did not obey Me. So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their heart, to walk in their own devices.”

How's your walk with God? Are you living in opposition  to Him? Either you're going to obey  and walk and talk like you know God or you're not! You’ll either trust and obey Him, or you’re going to ignore Him and rely on your own resources. Many believers miss out on God’s best because they’re unwilling to have faith in Him 

You'll pray and praise in one part of your life and then you limit the power of the praise....DO YOU TRUST GOD?

BOTTOM LINE

Oh Magnify The Lord!!! BY: KB © 1.23.15

It has been sort of an unusual week for me and it’s not over yet…..that’s not a complaint or a judgment it’s actually a praise report. I've had some things happen this week that, in the past, would have normally made me frothing at the mouth, rabid angry. Note, I used the terms “in the past and would have.” These things are used in the past tense because the level of though and praise that I have far outweigh anything else. Oh magnify the Lord!!! God is greater than my circumstances.

Psalm 34: 2-4  …2 My soul will make its boast in the LORD; The humble will hear it and rejoice. 3 O magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together. 4 I sought the LORD, and He answered me, And delivered me from all my fears.…

This morning, when I got to my office, I did something completely different. I broke my routine…y’all know how I love routine and structure…I’m the type of person who has to plan spontaneity…but today I didn't turn on my radio. I took extra time to sit with God. I took extra time to read more of His word….and you know what? I felt a praise rise up in me that could not be contained.

Funny thing, the very thing that I thought would break me…that I fixated on and wrestled with was my Jacob moment…I fought that thing and it blessed me. I can’t go back…to borrow a few words from Dr. Martin Luther King:  I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land.

As I shared a few days back….it is impossible to be in the presence of God and remain the same!

How ya livin’?

Thank You Friend

I’d like to take a few minutes of your time today to say a few words of thanks to Barbara Tucker….thanks for the words of encouragement…yesterday. I love the fact that the word is once again “living” in my life. I am grateful for the living water. I am grateful that MY purpose and calling have been revealed and most of all I am grateful for friends who know me…my faults and frailties and who love me in spite of all my character defects because you look past all that and know my heart

love ya right back

: )   KB

Transformed BY: KB © 1.23.15

Praise God!!! I read this and all I could do is praise God....

As you know I make it a habit to read several devotional in my "quiet time" in the morning. I love Oswald Chambers so just imaging how I felt when I actually read  the detail of my own spiritual awakening laid out:

Transformed by Beholding

We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image… —2 Corinthians 3:18

The greatest characteristic a Christian can exhibit is this completely unveiled openness before God, which allows that person’s life to become a mirror for others. When the Spirit fills us, we are transformed, and by beholding God we become mirrors. You can always tell when someone has been beholding the glory of the Lord, because your inner spirit senses that he mirrors the Lord’s own character. Beware of anything that would spot or tarnish that mirror in you. It is almost always something good that will stain it— something good, but not what is best.

The most important rule for us is to concentrate on keeping our lives open to God. Let everything else including work, clothes, and food be set aside. The busyness of things obscures our concentration on God. We must maintain a position of beholding Him, keeping our lives completely spiritual through and through. Let other things come and go as they will; let other people criticize us as they will; but never allow anything to obscure the life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). Never let a hurried lifestyle disturb the relationship of abiding in Him. This is an easy thing to allow, but we must guard against it. The most difficult lesson of the Christian life is learning how to continue “beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord….”

How do you reflect Christ in your life?

How ya livin'?!!!

Humbly Yours....

I just want to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to everyone who reads and supports the blog.

Thank you to all the anonymous readers in Germany, France, India, Malaysia, Canada, United Kingdom and Hungary.

Humbly Yours

KB       :  )

The greatest gift…. BY: KB © 1.22.15

People who know me, know that I like routine and structure: what can I say, I’m a creature of habit. This morning I did something a little different on my way in to work; instead of listening to my familiar songs on my radio I threw on some songs of gospel praise….and guess what? I started thinking about God’s love and How He demonstrates it to and for us and I began to just quietly cry at the magnitude and the spans of it all.

After I got my thoughts together I began to reflect on some ways that love was demonstrated and spoken of in my daily life. I once had someone tell me, in anger “Sometimes love is not enough!” I’ve had people say they “don’t understand it….”  I've seen domestic violence, comforted people who have been crushed by infidelity, spoken to people who were content with being in a position that compromises them and their integrity….I could go on but I believe you get the gist.

Now, let me first get into this by saying…I am by NO MEANS a saint, nor have I been without fault, flaw and shame on this subject of love. I used to pride myself in the fact that I NEVER cheated on anyone that I was involved with….I recently discovered that this is THE BIGGEST LIE I ever told myself. I cheated on my greatest love GOD! I allowed anything and everything to take me away from my redeemer and my sustainer.  I was happy to give those titles to whomever and whatever had my heart. I now fully understand the Scripture Proverbs 4:23  Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

What I really want to talk about is: What if God treated love as cheaply and nonchalantly as we treat it? What if He subscribed to “love is not enough”? What if He was subject to serve based on how He felt? What if He had to know everything before He acted? – Jesus’ most human moment for me is when He is in the Garden of Gethsemane Matthew 26   …38 Then He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me."39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." 40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour?

Two things happened in these three verses –

First:  Jesus showed His humanity.  In His human moment He spoke fear and lack of understanding…yet He resolved to operate in faith (the ultimate demonstration)

Second: The disciples demonstrated how we walk and yield to the flesh on a regular basis. How can you and why do we sleep when we know that we’re on the cusp of something epic? Why do we allow things to distract us?

If you’re unsure of what love is, and believe me we are so far off the path that we are recreating Sodom and Gomorrah, read 1 Corinthian 13

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

It’s a selfish act to tell someone how, when and why to love you………just be open to it, say thank you, reap the blessing and watch how your love will grow as a result.

How ya’ livin’?

Help me to hold out BY: KB © 1.21.15

I've shared the fact that a certain set of unpleasant circumstances gave birth to my spiritual awakening. As difficult and as painful as the ordeal was I got through it and now I celebrate the fact that I am no longer the same. It is impossible to be in the presence of God and remain the same.

Exodus 34: 29-35     29 Moses came down from Mount Sinai, carrying the Ten Commandments. His face was shining brightly because the Lord had been speaking to him. But Moses did not know at first that his face was shining. 30 When Aaron and the others looked at Moses, they saw that his face was shining, and they were afraid to go near him. 31 Moses called out for Aaron and the leaders to come to him, and he spoke with them. 32 Then the rest of the people of Israel gathered around Moses, and he gave them the laws that the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.

33 The face of Moses kept shining, and after he had spoken with the people, he covered his face with a veil. 34 Moses would always remove the veil when he went into the sacred tent to speak with the Lord. And when he came out, he would tell the people everything the Lord had told him to say. 35 They could see that his face was still shining. So after he had spoken with them, he would put the veil back on and leave it on until the next time he went to speak with the Lord.

Think of the transfiguration in Matthew 17 and ask yourself…has my change come?

How ya livin’?!

The Good I Want To Do? BY: KB © 1.21.15

Man! Yesterday was a full day….there’s just something about coming off a holiday that makes a stressful situation that much more stressful; this fact is only intensified by the fact that I work with a population of folks who are disenfranchised and look to others to be empowered, so their lists and anxieties grow when the caregiver is absent. Then, I’m driving home with “eleventy nine” other people who just want to get home….I have to say that I attempted to let the expletives fly but the Holy Spirit didn't allow me to give into my flesh….I can say it’s not for the lack of trying because I had several instances where I felt justified…but each time I ended up praying for my frustration….which leads me to my point of the day.

How can I say I represent Christ when I continue to indulge in hypocrisy? Note I used the word indulge, I do so because my actions are a choice! Plain and simple and I can choose to live in conflict or I can choose to live in peace. Conflict comes when I choose to operate in self-will.. 

The apostle Paul summarized self-will and the conflict that ensues in  :  Romans 7:15-20 New International Version (NIV)

15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

So what am I supposed to do?

Ephesians 4 : Instructions for Christian Living - 17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.

20 That, however, is not the way of life you learned 21 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Please note the fact that it doesn't say…fuss, cuss, complain, blame or judge…..it’s all about love people

How ya livin’?

What profits?!!!

REAL TALK from KB: We hear this all the time:  For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

seriously y’all ….God is STILL about the work of blessing people….I’m blessed to wake up every morning. I’m blessed to seek His face….

I’m blessed whether I share the stupid pictures of stacks of money or a preacher with some caption pasted over his head.

Funny how we forget things when we see money!!! Maybe we don’t have any because we see it more than we see God!

Jus’ sayin’!!!

Make your mess your message BY:KB © 1.20.15

I’m about to share a little bit more about myself….again, I keep my business my business but every so often something comes along that I feel people need to read, hear and know that it’s a common experience and they can get through it.

With that being said, here goes: I returned to college in 2004 to get my BA. I was urged to do so by my mom and sister. As 2004 approached, (remember I don’t make resolutions, I set things in motion in such a way that I cannot back out and set myself up for failure) I signed student loan papers and set the wheels in motion. I graduated in 2006 with my BA in Humanities with an emphasis in Creative Writing; my mentor for my senior project, an author, teacher, musician and fellow NY’er, RIP Danny Cassidy. 

I graduated with a mindset to change the world one reader at a time. I continued to expand my blog on social justice issues but I allowed the day to day pressures and a small bout with cancer, 2 major surgeries and 5 years of medication- I had every possible side effect, the illness, relocation and subsequent death of a partner in the midst of that, to shut me down and stifle my creativity.

Fast forward 8 years and I’m still struggling with keeping my writing going. I’d write a piece here and there but nothing with the verve that I once possessed. Then I met someone who reignited the passion that had been dormant because life put it on hold. I began writing based on pure, raw emotions and I felt myself come alive in the process….the situation ended just as quickly as it began…reality and life showed up again…but I handled the situation much differently this time…

First, I’m a person of strong faith and strong conviction and I had two choices…I could allow the situation to make me or I could rely on my own devices and let it break me. I had “checked out” on my faith, my faith knowledge, and had gotten off the path of my serious faith walk in prior situations and circumstances. I had a nodding acquaintance with instead of an intimate relationship with Christ.

 I began looking at me….my faults, fears and frailties…and I placed them at the feet of God. I went after God and the things of God with the same determination that I sought to fulfill my own needs...I gave my needs to Him as well…and guess what?!!!   I’m still writing!!! I’m writing even more…I’m writing even better and my writing is being shared in a way I never thought possible.

Make your mess your message and know that your joy should never be dependent upon your circumstances!!!!!

Be Still BY: KB © 1.20.15

It's funny how the Holy Spirit shows up to confirm the word of God. After speaking to someone who was struggling I wrote the motivational blog - Draw Me Near....to help deal with what to do when God seems far away.

So today I open my laptop to do my own daily devotions and the word is "When God is Quiet".

I'm writing this to say that God is never quiet we just need to quiet our hearts and minds to see and hear Him in the stillness.

Psalm 19:1 says “the heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands, day after day they pour forth speech ... ” Creation is continually speaking on behalf of God.

What are you looking to and listening for? If you're looking at man and listening to people who don't know God and his works you're always going to miss the message. If You're listening with a critical ear, bent on  hearing and serving a self-will, you will change God's message...

God took these factors into consideration in communicating with us, this is why we're told to be still and know! There are times of prayer when we need a miracle to come in like the rush of the wind to deliver us from harm but for the most part we are called to sit with and commune with God - "…10 With all my heart I have sought You; Do not let me wander from Your commandments. 11

Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.  12 Blessed are You, O LORD; Teach me Your statutes."  Psalm 119:10-12

Jesus said in Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” When God is silent in your life, maybe He’s growing a hunger in you for the “real” Him. 

What are you hungry for? Does it satiate you?

How ya livin'?!

Stubborn Self-Will BY: KB © 1.19.15

I was house sitting this weekend..and I'm exhausted. There is nothing like sleeping in your own bed in your own surroundings...creature comfort.

I wanted nothing more than to be lazy today doing nothing and I attempted to do just that but I kept getting a nagging sensation to get up and do what I was called to do...get up and deliver a message. The thought kept saying "if you continue to do nothing your life will continue to manifest the fruits of your labor" ...NOTHING! To be honest, I want to live a life...pleasing and acceptable to God; I want to honor Him in everything I do. I want to live out  the scripture Psalm 19:14 - let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.

People who are running on self-will usually depict God and speak of God as a mean old man who will only be nice to them if they measure up to His standards, but nasty to them if they don’t.  First wrong move! People try to superimpose their standards over God's. They see His standards as too high and too much work. They think the potential for pleasing Him is impossible, so they have resigned themselves to living outside of grace.

Question: How and why would you serve a God that you could never please?

If we believe it impossible to please God we begin to do things out of a sense of obligation attempting to curry favor. If  we feel guilty it is because we are guilty. We have broken God’s laws or conscience tells us  and we know it. The Bible says that we are not unique in this;  the whole world is guilty before Him (Romans 3:10-20). The Bible teaches that we have all fallen short of His standard (Romans 3:23), and because we are guilty (disobedient) we deserve to be chastised (Romans 6:23). An infinitely holy God must show His displeasure with sin. People living on self-will  will be quick to criticize and to attack God and His word at this point.  Maybe you've heard “See, God is rigid and intolerant.” The critics are right to a certain extent. Sin cannot enter His presence nor can God allow you to operate in it.  He must judge it. But what the critics fail to see is that He is also loving, gracious, merciful, and kind, and that those traits motivate Him to forgive us and us to serve Him.

How ya livin'?!!!

Quitters Never Win BY: KB 1.18.15

As some of you may know, I've spent the better part of last week battling the flu, AGAIN, I found out that this year's flu vaccine was only 23% effective and I work with a very large homeless population so I'm grateful it was only a mild case of the flu. Fear not, I wasn't just sitting idle during my down time: I came up with the brilliant idea to set up a website to provide motivational messages for people who just like to start off their day with a bit of positivity. I launch the site today - I had a few technical difficulties but I got it up and running none the less. I'm praying that God will cause the site to increase.

I finished my T.D Jakes book (still on point for my new year's list - 1 book a month; I'm actually half way through my second book). I can't recommend the book enough Can You Stand To Be Blessed - read it!

My thoughts today are about quitting, giving up, throwing in the towel...whatever you want to call it. I see it as a MAJOR character defect rooted in extreme selfishness. Now, on some points we know what we want; that's a fair assessment, but is our knowing in line with God's plan and purpose or is our knowing rooted in our emotions and desire for immediate gratification?

Psalm 40:1-17 ESV  To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie! You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told. ...

Habakkuk 2:1-3 ESV  I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint. And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

Isaiah 40:31 ESV   But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Psalm 27:13-14 ESV  I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

Just about every instruction from God to man has been to watch and wait. If one of God's people is in immediate danger He moves but for the most part it's us operating on instruction and direction from God.

Please not that not one time in any of my studies, I could be wrong but I don't believe it's the case, did God ask anyone how he/she felt about what He was asking/telling them. Not one time did He ask what anyone thought...

Bottom line, you either have the faith big and strong enough to trust God or you don't. Just know, every time we add to instruction or change instruction we are blocking a blessing. Just know,  every time we add to instruction or change direction we are showing disrespect to God....funny thing is, God is going to get His work done, we have the choice to do it out of love and just enjoy the goodness of God or we can be made to do it and grumble and stumble through the process and miss out; only to have to repeat the process at some other point in life until we get the lesson.

Where did we every get the notion that everything is supposed to feel good and that we're supposed to like it? If we were talking to a child with this mindset we would call them several different kinds of "spoiled." What do you think God sees when we act this way?

Romans 8:28 says -  28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Whose purpose are you operating on? Are you quitting just short of your promise just because "it" doesn't look or feel like what you've planned?

How ya livin'?!

My Revelation BY: KB © 1.17.15

I'm sitting here listening to a dog snore; I'm house sitting and my sister has three very pampered pooches. As I sit here listening to the dulcet (NOT!!!!) snores I'm looking at various posts and pics to kick off my inaugural website page.  Funny thing, the pages began to form a mental pattern in my head...and a word just dropped into my spirit.

In my perusing I noticed that my picture choices began to focus on the word love and the word began to resonate in my mind and spirit. I began to think about what the word love meant to me and how it applied to my life...and it just dawned on me and I was floored, to the point of praise,  by what was revealed. It dawned on me that the capacity and the depth of my love is also my cross....now, it may sound a bit odd but hear me out. People who know me know that I am not the warm, fuzzy, free hug type of person....it's not part of my character or outward personae. But, the people who know me ALSO KNOW that I have been both blessed and burdened by my capacity to love....look at my job and how I approach ministry and service. Love is a blessing because I know it's from God and I do not treat it lightly. I rarely say the words "I Love You " because of the magnitude and the sanctity of the words and what they can mean to someone. Love is a burden, and by burden I don't mean a bad thing like I'm put upon in a mean way, I mean it is the weight of my service, because I love hard...I have received a gift that allows me to see and feel hurt in others and I love them until they are able to love themselves.

Matthew 5: 1-12  Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, 2 and He began to teach them, saying:

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness,

for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.  

12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Luke 9:23 New International Version (NIV)

23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.

What is your cross? What is both your blessing and your service?...keeping in mind that service is a gift to God because of your love for Him.

How ya livin'?!!!

Thinking about this more and more BY:KB © 1.16.15

How many times have you given someone a pass only to have them repeat the same behavior? How many times have you allowed someone to verbally or emotionally abuse you and you dismiss their actions with “that’s OK” or just move on without them ever apologizing or you acknowledging you’re hurt? I’m not talking about holding a grudge…EVERYONE should find it within themselves to forgive….what I’m attempting to address is internal work…because we can only control what we allow in our space we have no control over the other party.

I’m rehashing this post from December because it resonates in my spirit today:

TV's NCIS fans should be familiar with Gibbs’ Rule Number 6: Never apologize. It is a sign of weakness. Maybe, just maybe this is why his character is a loner and a 3 time divorcee.

In Love Story Ali McGraw: “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.” 

Why do we give people a pass... maybe it's because we don't want to acknowledge our part in the foray or to acknowledge our own shortcomings....

Bottom line IMMATURITY is what keeps us stuck in old behaviors and view apologies a form of weakness. IMMATURITY is what tells you that an apology is a form of groveling. Sometimes demanding an apology from someone or offering an apology to someone taps into THEIR feelings of self-worth and vulnerabilities. ... I'm going to attempt to elaborate on this concept for you by discussing the mindset of a batterer (yes...a batterer. Now don't get me wrong I'm not saying that immaturity will lead to battering but it will lead to dysfunctional communication) A batterer will lash out when something or someone disturbs their self-perception. So will a person who can't accept or offer an apology. When the situation arises they see themselves as weak or vulnerable and BAM!!! you're off to the races in an argument....sometimes it flashes like a grease fire!

The process of apologizing or accepting an apology unbalances our fragile sense of omnipotence. It means we have to face that we are human after all, and that means humbling yourself and owning up to our mistakes and setting them right.

If you’re unwilling and unyielding in apologizing, remind yourself of these two things:

1. Apologizing doesn't denote inferiority, unworthiness, or weakness. It doesn't mean you’re groveling. People who demand that you assume such a position don’t want an apology; they are asking for submission, and with that we’re in a different position.

2. An apology conveys a simple message that puts you in sync with your humanity and the injured party: An apology says, “ I see and I care about your well-being”.

1 Corinthian 13: 1  If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

How ya livin’ ?!!!

Get in where you fit in.....

People I am starting something new...I'm going to be sending out motivational messages.  email me your cell number and email if you want to be included

kb.prose@gmail.com

Please note that the messages will be sent from the email address upwardlykb@gmail.com

First Fruits BY: KB © 1.15.15

Man! I'm at home battling yet another bout of cooties but I am also praising God for the opportunity to rely on Him for sustenance. I have to say whatever form of viral hell I picked up is extra powerful, I woke up drenched in sweat yesterday and for a minute, I didn't know where I was, but I remain in praise.

I had to change my bed linens and do my laundry because I didn't want to lay a clean body on contaminated sheets so, I mustered up enough energy to get so basic housekeeping done....so now, I'm lying in a nice clean bed and enjoying my book....which brings me to my point T.D. Jakes has done it again. I'm at the very end of the book and I truly hate to release the writer and the writings but T.D. ends the book just as big as he started. He ends with the story of the ten lepers being healed. He started off the story discussing on how God designed things to return to Him. He used examples of how corn fields bloom and give back; how bees pollinate and give back; how streams flow into rivers, etc... T.D. Jakes illustrates how we are all connected and how we have the choice to give back; He also notes that the process of giving back denotes that you understand not only your calling but your purpose. Imagine that! Knowing your purpose!!!!

James 1: 16 -18   …16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. 18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.

Yes, we can enjoy blessing but how many of us know that a blessing is just a temporary thing if we never stop to acknowledge and celebrate the ONE who caused it to happen. If we never get too the place of celebration we will constantly be driven by our needs and desires. We will constantly live in peaks and valleys of emotions.

Getting to the story of the ten lepers, ten men were healed but only one returned to Jesus. Ten men were celebrating restoration but the one that returned was made whole because he stopped to acknowledge the source of it all rather than praise in the moment.  (I hope this makes sense, I'm trying to convey this as best I can) Let me take you to another example using the scripture that God used to describe himself He said "I AM the great  I AM" which means His provision is not impacted by time. So to put it in terms that we can relate to...say you had an amazing birthday party when you were six years old and you're now forty six.....you start your story with "remember that time." When you know that things of God are  returned to Him you speak of His provision in the moment saying "God is!" even if that thing has not manifested itself , you faith knows that God can and God will and He is always active in the present I AM....I AM...I AM

Are you acting as a "first fruit"? Are you bringing your gifts back to God? (Remember the story of Cain and Abel?) Do you know your purpose or are you content to receive without ever giving back?

How ya livin'?!!

Cooties

I came home from work  sick, sick, sick....headache, stomach ache, sore throat...I can say I haven't felt this baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad in a very long while. I work in an environment where illness is unavoidable.

Needy? Think about your choices BY: KB © 1.14.15

I’m on this “sharing” vibe at the moment. I've been sharing more about who I am as a person and what motivates me in my writings and spirituality; sure, I periodically shift focus but for the most part my writings have been about staying the course and what I am learning/ know about God….today is no different.

So, in the spirit of sharing, I grew up in a household of extreme domestic violence and as a result I suffer from a form of PTSD as well as some major character defects…I was a child with rage. I had intense anger and violence problems. I managed to get the violence under control but the anger, while I was no longer raging, I projected anger and I harbored intense resentments. Now, don’t get me wrong…I still have anger but it’s directed in a healthier outlet … I have a low tolerance for ignorance and people playing dumb. I have a very, very low tolerance for social injustices and people who benefit from it and play on it.

I went from being angry to being a quiet storm. I was very volatile…I didn't know what would set me off…so I would “flash” on people…which brings me to my point….a pic my cousin posted. This pic is soooooooooo very true for me and it is also what prompted my shift in focus and heart.

Matthew 4:1 -11  Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“‘He will command his angels concerning you,
    and they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”

7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.”

11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

My point?!!! The enemy appears when there is a lack….when we feel we’re most in need. Remember what I've been sharing and it’s been right in sync with the book by T.D. Jakes that I grabbed over the Christmas holiday, that the enemy uses us to destroy us. He does so by utilizing our egos or our insecurities….no matter which venue the end is the same, THE END

What are you in need of?

How ya livin’?!

Prayer Changes Things BY: KB © 1.13.15

Good Morning good people! I am beyond tired; I woke up several time during the night, normal for me, but, I did not get a fit sleep so I’m exhausted.

Today I’m going to break from my normal routine of quoting authors and throw out some candid moments and insight from my life and how it relates to what I read and write. Yes, you read that right! I’m going to break my cardinal rule and reveal a little about myself; I do so to demonstrate that I walk my talk. If you've noticed when I write I always say “we” or “myself included” to let you know that I’m not just talking, I struggle with the same situations but I seek to solve them through my faith and I share what I've learned in the process.

As some of you may know, my past 5 years have been FULL, when I say full I mean FULL of trials. I was diagnosed with cancer after a routine exam showed nothing. I've undergone radical surgeries that have left my body looking like the Bride of Frankenstein. Sexuality notwithstanding I am still very much a woman and there’s a certain level of natural vanity and desire to “be normal” attached to my DNA. I've lost a partner of 16 year, albeit the connection was often contentious, we found a way to regroup and make it work for a number of years. Fast forward, I attempted to date only to fail miserably; I can say so without shame, I wasn't ready and I should have recognized the fact that I wasn't but all of the aforementioned was on my back, pushing my emotions hard. All of which brings me to this word for today…….LOSS

The way I see it is that I had one of two choices in my “distress” I could allow it to make me bitter…hell! I was already there and it wasn't serving me well at all or I could use it to make me better. I have often said and I will continue to say that MY FAITH IS UNSHAKABLE! Now, I know you’re asking “why were you bitter if your faith is unshakable?” The answer is simple, I forgot it was there! I was so focused on what I needed to do, what was going on, what people were thinking, how could I make them OK with my mess that I simply forgot to look to God. It’s easy to get distracted when life shows up. Life is like that one friend you have to entertain all the dang time!!! You’re having a good time but you are so exhausted and grateful when that person goes home. I came to the place where I was like Atlas …and since I wasn't working out Atlas shrugged ß(yes, that’s a play on a literary title). I had to realize that I wasn't “working out” spiritually and the weight brought me to my knees; once there I knew what I had to do. Prayer changes things!

Psalm 34:17-20 ESV     When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV      But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

2 Corinthians 1:3-5 ESV     Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

I made note of something that Robin Roberts said while she was sharing her cancer battle in the public eye….she said “her mother always told her to allow God to make her mess her massage.” Man oh man…what a story arc I've provided for the book of KB.

Just know that God is bigger than whatever presses and stresses you!

How ya’ livin’?

Taken From: My Utmost For His Highest - Have You Ever Been Alone with God? (1)

When they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples. —Mark 4:34

Our Solitude with Him. Jesus doesn’t take us aside and explain things to us all the time; He explains things to us as we are able to understand them. The lives of others are examples for us, but God requires us to examine our own souls. It is slow work— so slow that it takes God all of time and eternity to make a man or woman conform to His purpose. We can only be used by God after we allow Him to show us the deep, hidden areas of our own character. It is astounding how ignorant we are about ourselves! We don’t even recognize the envy, laziness, or pride within us when we see it. But Jesus will reveal to us everything we have held within ourselves before His grace began to work. How many of us have learned to look inwardly with courage?

We have to get rid of the idea that we understand ourselves. That is always the last bit of pride to go. The only One who understands us is God. The greatest curse in our spiritual life is pride. If we have ever had a glimpse of what we are like in the sight of God, we will never say, “Oh, I’m so unworthy.” We will understand that this goes without saying. But as long as there is any doubt that we are unworthy, God will continue to close us in until He gets us alone. Whenever there is any element of pride or conceit remaining, Jesus can’t teach us anything. He will allow us to experience heartbreak or the disappointment we feel when our intellectual pride is wounded. He will reveal numerous misplaced affections or desires— things over which we never thought He would have to get us alone. Many things are shown to us, often without effect. But when God gets us alone over them, they will be clear.

"We can only be used by God after we allow Him to show us the deep, hidden areas of our own character. It is astounding how ignorant we are about ourselves! We don’t even recognize the envy, laziness, or pride within us when we see it. "

I've come to realize that  -We don't see them because we hide behind them and we rename them as positive traits embraced by the secular world and we embrace them as positive attributes.... KB

Hologram BY: KB © 1.11.15

Man oh man.....T.D. Jakes is really letting me have it today. I'm on the chapter that carries the title of the book: Cay You Stand To Be Blessed....

All I can say is MY GOD!!!!! I was on pg. 87 where it read: "We have weeded out all the women who say they want a husband and children but don't want to cook, care or clean. We have weeded out all the men who say they want a wife but don't want to love, provide and nourish! Most people are in love with the image of success, but they haven't contemplated the reality of possessing the blessing."

My mind immediately flashed to the word and the concept of a hologram. If you remember a while back some promoter came up with the idea of having a Tupac hologram perform at Coachella and more recently there was a Michael Jackson hologram performance. People lost their collective minds for the performances ....how does this relate you ask?  More often than not we are willing to sell ourselves just to protect and project an image. We really don't put a whole lot of stock in the thing as long as we are perceived a certain way. We don't care about that thing as long as OUR need is being met. In other words our hologram may appear to the outside world as the genuine thing but it's really a bunch of nothingness.

Now, I'm not begrudging anyone their success...I truly believe that we have a responsibility to God and to share our successes or at the very least the knowledge of how we obtained success.

Luke 12:48    ......... From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Are you in a holding pattern for your success? What is required of you? Are you willing to do it or are you perfectly content with a hologram?

Does it bring life? (pt.2) BY: KB © 1.11.15

I've been reading this most amazing and thought provoking book which has helped to feed and nurture my spiritual awakening. This book has literally served as leg braces, transforming my unsteady oft unsteady spiritual gait.

T.D. Jakes got me with these sentences today "The search for God is a primary step into worship. We never search for things we don't value."

Huh?!!! Did he really say that? We absolutely look for things we don't value...but we do it because we don't value God enough to put in the work necessary to live a transformed life. We want to believe we're in control. We want to identify with Christ but want to stop just short of the cross.

Seriously, we can and will associate ourselves with things that don't bring life (dead thing) all day every day. T.D. says "We have become a nation of priests who spend too much time touching the dead and not enough time washing our hearts with pure water....If we would reach new levels in worship, then we wouldn't be able to touch dead things!"

Numbers 19:13  13 Whoever touches the body of anyone who has died, and does not purify himself, defiles the tabernacle of the Lord. That person shall be cut off from Israel. He shall be unclean, because the water of purification was not sprinkled on him; his uncleanness is still on him.

Now, I'm not talking about running anyone's inventory, I'm talking about YOUR INDIVIDUAL  spiritual walk. Will that "thing" you're focusing you attentions on be a help or a hindrance to you spiritually?

We have become comfortable drinking tainted waters and we have divorced our consciences as a way to develop immunities. We have placed other things on the throne and keep Christ on the cross; meaning instead of placing Him on the throne we are constantly asking Him to atone for our sins. We'll talk about and sing about faith all day long but we cannot tap into it because are heart and minds are preoccupied with the things we have placed on the throne and we don't have full access to God because of it.

What have you allowed to be exalted over God?

How ya livin'?!!!

Can You Stand To Be Blessed

https://books.google.com/books?id=lvN0Qnj9lCIC&pg=PP6&lpg=PP6&dq=chapter+6+Can+you+stand+to+be+blessed&source=bl&ots=qvVczM20PY&sig=zn-Z_AFrp7Nkknz1a6JuWySjI9Q&hl=en&sa=X&ei=8I-yVODMF8m1oQTHvoJI&ved=0CCEQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=chapter%206%20Can%20you%20stand%20to%20be%20blessed&f=false

Chapter 6 is awesome - a must read!!!!

Business As Usual BY: KB © 1.10.15

You know, I've been giving this a lot of thought ...and I know that I have been guilty of the behavior I'm about to discuss; the title of this piece says it all.

I've been talking about compassion and empathy for a while, today is no different but I'm going to address how these traits are important.

I've often heard that "hurt people hurt people" there is no reason to be judgmental. Distancing ourselves from such people would seem to be a form of self preservation, but, if we do,  we should do so in love and with compassion. Compassion is defined as a "keen awareness of the suffering of another coupled with a desire to see it relieved." Hurt people hurt others as a result of their own inner demons and struggles. Avoid the pitfall of judgments, indicting the individual as bad; they have already internalized the thought and are acting accordingly. Who's to say they are bad people; they have been hurt, they are in pain and they deserve compassion.

Given the fact that hurt people hurt people you can expect them to lash out but the fact that they have been hurt does NOT give them a pass on apologizing! Most hurt people subscribe to  the classic movie quote  "Never apologize ... it's a sign of weakness." and they see it a just that weakness; it's the person's way of maintaining power.

However, taking the person's pain and hurt into consideration, I still have two personal pet peeves about these behaviors. I dislike the dynamic of the "ash out and shred" and then resume conversation as if the thing never happened  and the vague, half- apology in which the person says they are sorry for “what happened” or sorry for “the way things turned out” instead of sorry for “what I did” or sorry for “what I said”. 

Apologies are necessary for healing  BOTH SIDES of the slight

Proverbs 6:2-5 New International Version (NIV)

2 you have been trapped by what you said, ensnared by the words of your mouth.
3 So do this, my son, to free yourself, since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands: Go—to the point of exhaustion—and give your neighbor no rest! 4 Allow no sleep to your eyes, no slumber to your eyelids. 5 Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.

Numbers 5:5-7 New International Version (NIV)

5 The Lord said to Moses, 6 “Say to the Israelites: ‘Any man or woman who wrongs another in any way[a] and so is unfaithful to the Lord is guilty 7 and must confess the sin they have committed. They must make full restitution for the wrong they have done, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the person they have wronged.

Can you acknowledge your wrongs? Do you have empathy and compassion for others? Do you apologize stating your wrongs? Do you owe anyone an apology?

How ya' livin'?!