Category Archives: Loyal

BURN BABY, BURN!

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BURN BABY, BURN!

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the Knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His Divine power has given to us all things that pertain To life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue by which Have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be Partakers of the divine nature, having escaped The corruption that is in the world through lust. 2 Peter 1:1-4

 

Didjakno?  Today’s scripture text is penned by The Apostle Simon Peter! You know Peter, right? He’s the same cussin’ Peter who rejected Jesus three times, cut off the soldier’s ear, stepped out of the boat on the stormy sea and walked on the water to Jesus. Well,  now Peter is a self-proclaimed bond-servant, Divinely ordained and authorized to speak on behalf of Jesus Christ! Now this really excites me! Why? Because it assures me of the unfathomable Mercies of our Loving Savior and that nothing in your past has the power to keep you from fulfilling your Destiny! Now to me that’s a good place to praise God, huh?  Hold my mule…Halleleujahhhh!

We, having no right to such loving kindness, yet have been graciously endowed with His Divine Power and given everything that we need to escape the corruption of this world and to live a holy and godly life, not in heaven, but in this present world! Didjaheardat? Unbelievable, I know; but it’s True!

God has equipped true Believers with indwelling Power of The Holy Spirit, transforming us into His Chariots of Fire in this earth!

We  love to sing Donnie McKlurkin’s song, “We fall down, but we get up, we fall down, but we get up…because a saint is just a sinner who fell down, and got up”! Don’t get me wrong, I like that song too. However, we can get a little twisted in our mindset, (not to mention our Theology) because of the craftiness of the devil, and without knowing it, we can actually be masking a spirit of rebellion behind the cloak of faith!

“Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound…GOD FORBID!” Romans 6:1-2

As disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ, every one of us has been commissioned by God to reflect His Glory to this lost, dark and dying world. Yet, if we keep falling to the same old temptations over and over, flippantly counting on the favor of God to show up in our pit to rescue you out of the same old mess, how’s God’s Glory being manifested? #ijs!

According to The Holy Ghost, True Glory is manifested when a believer demonstrates righteousness thru faithful obedience. When you make a genuine commitment to deny the ungodly appetites of your flesh, rather than to bring reproach to the Name of His Lord and Savior, not only are you relying upon God’s Power to deliver you, you’re also proving your love and gratitude for all that Jesus did to redeem you back to your Heavenly Father.

Our journey to Heaven is plagued with unexpected, trouble, chaos and tragedy, however knowing that The Promise Keeper is able to open up pathways that you know not of, make ways out of no way, open doors that have been shut and carries us triumphantly  thru every valley to the mountaintops, fortifies our trust with Hope! As we experience His miraculous deliverances, it develops our confidence so much so that when our faith is challenged by difficulties, we don’t give up, we look up!

A true carrier of God’s Glory plants his faith in the Word of God’s Grace! Having done all to stand, stands therefore, steadfast, unmovable, always abounding, continuously expanding, exceeding all natural expectations, daring to taunt and frustrate the evil plans of the wicked, with holy boldness, testifying ‘Satan, I might have to Bend, but I refuse to Bow”!

NOW, YOU’RE JUS WHAT THE WORLD IS WAITING FOR!  #BOOM! GO AHEAD…LIGHT UP THE WORLD PROCLAIMING, ‘TO GOD BE THE GLORY! KEEP THE FIYA BURNING!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

WHATZ N YOUR HEART?

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WHAT'S IN UR HEART

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Deuteronomy 8:2-3 ESV

 

We’ve all been there! At some point in this journey, we’ve found ourselves, barraged by seemingly insurmountable odds stacked against us, huh? There I was, sitting there unsuccessfuly attempting to make a 911 connection to The Throne Room. This one, was a time sensitive—not later—but I need YOU right nah—Lord situation! As my eyes skimmed over to my laptop and I realized that somehow it was in the middle of running an unscheduled scan! Immediately, I understood what the Holy Spirit was trying to do in me.

Remember when you thought you knew, but didn’t really know? Exactly! It’s during these moments of mental confusions and conflicting emotions that we need the aid of Holy Spirit. According to Isaiah 11:2, no one but The Spirit of Truth and Wisdom, can scan the the inner most chambers of the human heart, assess the situation, identify the dangerous infectious viral components, quarantine and eliminate them before they’re able to contaminate our heart’s drive! WOW, and He was doing this way before Bill Gates or Steve Job! Awemaazing, huh? 

With that being said, once again I had to admit that before I could make a right connection with Jesus, I had to clear the line! No, God was not saying that my issue was not valid, but that there was an even more life-threating situation that demanded immediate attention. There was something crucial going on in my heart that I was not willing to confront and deal with at the root! Sometimes we do that, you know? We like to justify our rebellion by playing the blame game. “Lord, if they hadn’t….then I never would’ve …” But God wasn’t buying none of that!

There’s no denying that there’s something embedded in the DNA of humanity that resists repentance.  C’mon, don’t shout me down nah! #ijs!!!

It’s difficult for us to acknowledge that we’re at fault. It’s a whole lot easier for us to judge others by their actions and ourselves by our good intentions, huh? But God is not intimidated by our self-deceiving, willful, prideful hearts NOR IS HE IMPRESSED BY OUR CHURCH TESTIMONIES!

God strategically sets up unscheduled heart scans to illuminate potentially critial viruses that left untreated could result in the hardening of the arteries causing damaging blockages. For instance, that spirit of jealosy, envy, anger, resentment, bitterness and yessss the unforgiveness haboring in the crevices of your heart against someone, who probably doesn’t even know it! You know how fake the saints can be sometimes. Problem is, chances are before the end of the day, you’ll probably gonna need somebody to forgive you for something! The scripture is clear on this, if you don’t forgive others, neither will Your Heavenly Father forgive you your faults! (Ref. Matthew 6:15) OMG! Kinda sheds a different light on it, huh?

Beloved, I don’t know about you, but I NEED THE MERCY AND GRACE OF GOD, ALL DAY…EVERY DAY! Don’t look at me with that tone of voice, Y’all know I ain’t by myself!

I know it’s not always easy, especially when you’re the one who’s been hurt. But considering the repercussions, sounds to me like, by GOD’S Grace, whatever the offense, we just need to release it, drop it, leave it and let God handle it! God always knows everything about everything –and we don’t!

SO, WHAT’S REALLY IN YOUR HEART? #GOD REALLY KNOWS!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

TRIAL-SIZED gODZ!

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TRIAL SIZED gODS

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me. Exodus 20:3-5

 

I recognize that the mere suggestion of idol worship tends to rattle the righteous indignation in the spirit of a true Believer! As followers of Christ, we know how despicably foul such worship is in the nostrils of The Holy God of Heaven and Earth, RIGHT? And for the most part, we’d never consider breaking  such Holy Commandment! After all, we don’t bow down before carved images of God nor do we display at the entrances or scatter stone replicas of God throughout our homes or businesses, right? Yet, will closer investigation of our lives reflect closely guarded idols formed in the recesses of our most sacred imaginations?

According to the scriptures ‘O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.’ (Ref. Matthew 12:24)  Hence, while man will attempt to hide the true intents, insights and purpose for being, ultimately, his lifestyle will reflect the secret things of his heart and clearly define where their loyalty lies!

Do we worship our personal ‘trial-sized’ images of God?

Don’t look at me with that tone of voice! I see further explanation is in order! We have a tendency to make up our own images to represent who God is to us!  The problem is we will never be able to fit “The All Encompassing Is-ness of GOD” into the small-minded-frail-framed-carnal-comprehension of our temporal-flesh. In other words, it’s absolutely impossible for us to fathom “Unlimited Presence, Power, Perfection and Potential” within the limitations of our humanity!

While The Living God is Omnipresent, Omnipotent and Omniscient, HE can only be known through Divinely-Impartated-Revelation!

GOD reveals His character, His purpose and His plan for each of as we traverse through our individual life experiences. It’s the knowledge gained through following The Good Shepherd’s lead, cautiously climbing cloud-covered mountaintops and timidly trembling through the death-valleys of our everyday lives that we learn the rewards of faithful trust, patient obedience and the security of resting in The Eternal Hope!

Today’s takeaway?

Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his… 2 Timothy 2:19

Therefore, Beloved, as you continue to set the Lord before you, you shall walk in HIS Everlasting JOY!

AMERICA, WHO IS YOUR GOD?

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

GOD REMEMBERS!!!

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GOD REMEMBERS2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid, for YAH, the Lord, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation. Therefore with joy you will draw water From the wells of salvation. Isaiah 12:2-3

Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. Isa. 49:16

 

In light of the prevailing gross darkness, devastation and desolation taking place in our world today, I was incited to review the words of God’s Prophet, Isaiah, speaking to the remnant of God’s Chosen nation.

God’s people were facing eminent danger of massive destruction, yet we hear Isaiah offering a word of warning and a ray of hope that we’d do well to glean from today. The Prophet encourages them that no matter what’s happening around you, don’t be afraid, but keep trusting and praising our God!  Isaiah, knowing God inhabits the praises of His people, speaks to souls wearied by the consequences of unwise choices and reminds them that their only hope of deliverance was to remain steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of their Lord! (Ref. 1 Corinthians 15:58)

God is Holy, Righteous and Just! While He must punish the unjust, His Anger does not last forever! Unlike many of our earthly fathers, YAH is our Covenant-keeping God and remains a Faithful Father, Saving Strength, Shield, Provider and Redeemer to all who call upon Him! From His own Mouth, Abba Father promises to wipe away the tears from their faces and keep you in perfect peace because we trust in Him! (Ref. Isaiah 25:8, 26:3-4)

Beloved, when life is out of your control, rest assured, Jesus is always in control! The Eternal Word testifies that you are the apple of His eye and He has tatooed your name in the palm of His Hands forever. (Ref. Psalm 17:8; Isa. 49:16)

In the midst of these unsettling times,  there’s no denying the myriad of distractions that are attempting to cause even the most seasoned of saints to question whether or not The Sovereign Creator and Sustainer of All Life is really concerned about what’s going on down here amongst the gross darkness of a lost, unfaithful and rebellious world,  nevertheless, I adjure you to keep your eyes on Jesus, The Joy of your Salvation and your feet steadfast on THE WORD! Be confident of this very thing, He that has begun a GOOD WORK IS FAITHFUL TO COMPLETE IT UNTIL THE DAY OF JESUS CHRIST! (Ref. Philippians 1:6)

Precious ones, when you can’t see no way, why not confuse hell and praiz JESUS anyhow! Don’tchaknow? At the mere mentioning of THE NAME OF JESUS demons tremble and the angelic host is put on alert!

Ooooh Yeah!  TRUST2KNO, The Great and Holy One of Israel is closer than ever before! Hence, don’t ever forget that YOUR GOD REMEMBERS!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

ABOVE THE CIRCUMSTANCES!

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NGS Picture ID:1181432

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee. Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life. Fear not: for I am with thee:… Isaiah 43:1-5

 

One thing for certain, two things for sure: Life happens fast and furious! Preparing for the unexpected is a challenge for any of us! Saved or Unsaved, huh?

Yet as believers in The Lordship of Jesus Christ, we’re taught to do just that! The Word of God warns us that when faced with seemingly overwhelming circumstances, as believers, our first response must be to resist panic and anxiety! How many times has your circumstantial evidence threatened to destroy all hope for recovering the calmness that we once enjoyed walking in the comfort of God’s favor? #bothhandsup!

Nevertheless, time and wisdom have trained us that Satan delights in using  fortuitous turbulent winds and haphazardry waves of chaos, temptations and uncertainty to manipulate and vex the minds of unsuspecting sainted-souls of God’s elect.

From the beginning, The Master of Deceit, has proven himself quite adept in distracting our hearts away from what we know of God, derailing our commitment to trust and  giving way to questioning, doubt, unbelief and ultimately dissipating our hope-filled confidence into pits of of desperation, fear and despair! While it sometimes appears as if Satan has been declared the victor, it behooves you to not fall for the ‘ookey-doke’, and never ever underestimate The Power of God! 

TRUST2KNO, GOD IS SOVEREIGN!! Hence, your enemies can’t intrude into your life, except God allows! And the only way that He’ll permit the demons to invade your personal space, is to prove that His greater purpose excels far beyond your temporary pain and discomfort!

Therefore, Beloved, don’t believe everything you see! The enemy’s arsenal is flanked by confusion, isolation, intimidation and fear.  #AKA #FALSE EVIDENCE APPEARING REAL! Chances are, it ain’t what it looks like! Besides, God has not given us a spirit of fear, but as Children of Light, we’ve inherited HOLY GHOST POWER, LOVE AND A SOUND MIND! (Ref. 1 Peter 4:12-14) #Didjaheardat?

Regardless of what attempts to impede your trust and confident reliance on The Presence and Prominence of your Loving Heavenly Father, you cling steadfastly to what you’ve already experienced and sojourn safely through the murky rivers of Life! And even if, some water gets into your boat, keep in mind that your life is anchored in The Rock of Ages!

Faith in God’s Loving Care, gives us eternal assurance that  whenever/whatever the test, trial and trauma of life accost us, we can ride out the storms in quiet confidence that He Who called you ‘MINE’ Will NEVER LEAVE OR FORSAKE US! (Ref. Hebrews 13:5)

JESUS LIVED ABOVE THE CIRCUMSTANCES! SO, WHAT’S UP WITH U?

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

 

SUPER VISION!

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SUPER VISION

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.

So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey–the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. Exodus 3:7-8

 

Has God’s Promises ever seemed too good to be true? C’mon nah, I’m talking to some REAL-FOLK! Seriously! The reason being, our interaction with the physical world is naturally limited to the realm of our five senses! What we see, touch, feel, taste and smell is how we perceive the reality of the world around us! Unfortunately, there’s always much more going on than the natural man can conceive! For example, you can feel the breeze but what does the wind look like? Technicians can take a picture of a brain, but who can know the mind, BUT GOD! The stethoscope can hear the heartbeat, but can’t determine when you’re broken, hard-or faint-hearted! #ijs!!

Have you ever felt discarded or deserted, even by GOD? Well, let me assure you, you’re not alone! According to the historical events relayed in our scripture text, The Hebrews, God’s Chosen, who finding themselves smack-dab-n-da-middle of circumstantial evidence that most likely caused them to experience these very same emotions! For 450 years they lived enslaved to their Egyptian captors who took great pleasure in inflicting intolerable pain and suffering, intentionally rationing food and water only when they deemed necessary to keep them totally dependent upon their Hard Task Master’s will! Can you imagine the shame and hopelessness they, God’s Elect, having to endure the consequences of their rebellion and ensuing result of God’s Justice, with no end in sight? Howevrrr, even when they couldn’t detect His Presence, GOD’s LOVE abides Faithful!

 

Having lured His Servant, Moses to the backside of Mt. Horeb and startling him with a strange phenomenon, the Bush that refused to be consumed, God commissioned him to go tell “MY” people that ENUFF IS ENUFF!  (That’s contemporized AEC Version) “I’ve seen their oppression, I’ve heard their cry,  bottled every tear,  heard every prayer and NOW I AM COME to shut Pharaoh down and DELIVER you out of the hand of your enemy!” Not knowing whether or not his Israelite brothers would even listen to him, being a escaped felon hiding out in a foreign land, but Moses heeded God’s Word and shared it with his fellow-captives. Much to Moses’ amazement, the people grabbed hold to The Promise with all of their hearts and began shouting and dancing in the streets, celebrating the GOOD NEWS, believing that THE WORDS THAT MOSES SPAKE CAME STRAIGHT FROM GOD’S MOUTH!

Eventually, the message got to Pharaoh’s Palace, nevertheless, he took it as a grain of salt. After all, this was not the first time that these ignorant slaves had started these silly rumors in an effort to keep HOPE ALIVE! Pharaoh was convinced that it’s JUS FAKE NEWS! But for those who had endured 450 years of GOD’s SILENCE IN THE MIDST OF GROSS DARKNESS, IT WAS LIFE AND LIGHT!

 

The Bible says, “My Sheep know MY VOICE AND I KNOW THEM, AND THEY FOLLOW ME”! (Ref. John 10:27) “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17) When you begin to look beyond what your natural eyes can see and your vision is filtered through the lens of FAITH, YOU COME2KNO THAT IT AIN’T ALWAYS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE! While the world’s systems operates on the principle “I’ll BELIEVE IT WHEN I SEE IT”, GOD’s Kingdom operates by a higher standard, “I WILL BELIEVE TO SEE THE GOODNESS OF THE LORD IN THE LAND OF THE LIVING!” (Ref. Psalm 27:13)

When you place your personal trust in The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and The God of Jacob, faith opens you up to experience SUPER VISION, exposing things that are not seen as though they already exist! God’s Word is filled with exceeding great and Precious Promises that are greater than anything that the oppressor threatens! Oh, remember what happened to that arrogant obstinate Pharaoh and His Army? Right, THEY ALL DROWNED IN THE RED SEA! (Ref. Exodus 14:28-29) #ijs!!

 

BELOVED, WHEN WE TRUST GOD WITH ALL OF OUR HEART, MIND, SOUL AND SPIRIT, we discover POWER that’s out of this world that erupts A HOPE-FILLED PRAISE, an ABSOLUTE ASSURANCE THAT ‘I AM, WILL CERTAINLY BE WITH U’, and A CONFIDENT HOLY BOLDNESS THAT PUTS THE DEVIL ON NOTICE OF HIS IMMINENT DEMISE!

TRUST2KNO, NOT MATTER WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE, IF GOD SAID IT, IT’S GOTTA HAPPEN! Didjaseedat? YEAH, SUPER VISION!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann E. Caffee

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!

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UNDER CONSTRUCTION 2018.jpg

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Philippians 1:6

 

I wasn’t born and raised in the church like a lot of you. I was one of those who kinda fell up in the doors of the church after years of getting beat up and beat down by the devil’s abuse. But thanks be to GOD! The Gracious Compassion Savior took me in and saved me anyhow! Being naïve and overwhelmed with pure joy and gladness to be saved, I actually thought everybody would love, welcome, accept and celebrate with me, because they were so glad that I was now part of the family of God!

Needless to say, I was shocked to discover that people are still people—in and out of the church. I still remember Mother Annie Carter, (my 1st spiritual mentor) pulling me under her wing, warning me “Stay close to the praying part of the church, baby”.  At the time, I wasn’t quite sure what Mother was talkin about, howevrrrr, it didn’t take long for me to realize that only THE REAL TRUE GOD can make a saint!

Beloved, you see what I didn’t know was that the Church is a construction zone and the Master Builder is GOD! He doesn’t build His House with brick and mortar, but with flesh and blood (dirt and water)!  Through the Precious Blood of Jesus and the regenerating Power of THE WORD, Holy Ghost equips ordinary, imperfect people to do extraordinary exploits!

While, some of us just need a few minor adjustments, others may require little more or even a major overhaul. TRUTHBTOLD, most of us  are so jacked up by the time we got to Jesus that we need a longer stay in the furnaces of afflictions than others before we’re done.  So don’t be surprized when you get a little too close to a brother or sista and get pricked by a thorn!

Always remember, there’s some good in the worst of us and some bad in the best of us, okay?  Nonetheless, we are all under construction according to The Master Carpenter’s specs and all of us  need the same GOD to help all of us!

Even if your intentions are just and honorable, sometimes helping people can hurt you! The Scriptures back this up numerous times!  Yes, even the most sainted, faithful and committed servants of The High God can become entrapped, disenfranchised, hopelessly discouraged and find ourselves retreating to dark caves or the backside of mountains and valleys.  It doesn’t matter how long or how far you’ve walked with The Lord, any of  God’s faithful-elect, can find themselves overwhelmed by the cares of this world to the point that you’re tempted to just give up and leave the church! #shuturmouth!

But, before you do something foolish, can I remind you of this one thing? There is NO PLAN B!

We’re it! God chose us name by name to expand His Kingdom in the earth, fully ware of the challenges of this seemingly impossible task.  That’s why He sent Holy Ghost to equip you to overcome!  Yep,  The Holy Ghost is your personal trainer! He takes your everyday life, places you on pathways strategically designed to stretch and strengthen your christian character, develop your trust, build up your confidence and fortify your commitment!

While it may not always look like God’s anywhere to be found, HE IS ALWAYS RIGHT THERE preparing you for a glorious future!  (Ref. Hebrew 13:5)

 BELOVED, TRUST2KNO, HELL CAN’T STOP ANYTHING THAT HEAVEN STARTS! GOD COMPLETES EVERYTHING HE STARTS!  UNDER CONSTRUCTION? UUUHHH… REALLY…MAKE SURE YOU’RE WEARING UR HARD HAT! #Didjaheardat?

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

 Ann Caffee

THE LIGHT HOUSE!

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THE LIGHT HOUSE 2

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 
From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:2

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalm 46:1

The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. Nahum 1:7

 

One of those most prominent, yet illusive, desires of humanity is a sense of security! Thanks to our progenitors, Adam and Eve, the moment that we succumbed to Satan’s  diabolic deception, we got what we wanted but lost what we had! Scriptures reveal the absolute perfection that they enjoyed walking in The Will of Creator God! It’s nearly impossible for us to imagine but nevertheless, any and everything their pure hearts desired was readily available to them just for the asking, huh?  Howeverrrrr, the one thing God required of them was the same thing that the devil used to lure them away from what God commanded, faithful obedience!

Since mankind’s expulsion from The Paradise of The Garden Eden, we’ve been trying to find our own piece of peace in the midst of this sin-fated world we’ve been forced to inhabit. Adding insult to injury, from the moment Abel’s blood hit the earth, all of Cain’s descendants, were destined to sojourn throughout the earth, cursed and marked for The Righteous Vengeance of The Lord! This spirit of rebellion soon gave way to anger, spiraling into murder nailing the coffin shut for any hope of returning to the blissful state of innocence and intimacy that once endowed God’s Most Precious Creation!
Despite the culmination of 21st Century’s technological achievements and the once unimaginable creative creature comforts and conveniences, a quick glance at any day’s breaking news headlines, confirm that man’s aspiration for attaining such lofty state of uninterrupted serenity, equanimity and freedom from disturbances continues to evade us!

BUT! Thanks Be To GOD! Jehovah’s Loyal Love (refusing to be denied) ordained a Perfect Rest for anyone who cries out to Him earnestly, in sincere contrition for Salvation IN THE PERSON OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST! (Ref. 1 Peter 1:20)

Granted, looking back from this side of Calvary’s Cross, it’s more convenient and certainly more self-serving to blame the horrid conditions of our world on the careless apathy of our first parents. And, depending on the weight of the trial or struggle, we just might point our fist toward God.  #ijs! After all, HE’S GOD and HE could’ve stopped sin in it’s track, right? Yet  gratefully, Wisdom and Grace soon deter us from persisting in such foolishness!

The truth of the matter is that the seed of sin has regenerated, thus degenerating our morality, perverting our sense of right and wrong to the extent that we can no longer trust in the arms of flesh, particularly our own hearts!

BUT FOR THE GRACE OF GOD! HALLELUJAH 3X!!!

In the midst of these perilous times, we need to know that God has prepared (by HIS Own Hand), a safe haven for those of us, who will place our personal trust, confidence and absolute reliance in the immutability of God’s Righteous Character: Holy, Just, Truth, Honor and Omnipotent Power!

When life is raging beyond what you can weather and the billows of  trauma, trouble  and trials threaten to devour you, remember there is a prepared place of refuge from the gross darkness!  As we learn to walk faithfully and obediently abiding  in Christ Jesus, God opens a way of escaping  the cares of this world to dwell under the Wings of Adonai,  finding consoling rest and safety from hurt and harm in this life and the in life to come!

“The name of the Lords a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.” Proverbs 18:10

Beloved, the moment we make a conscious irretrievable decision to not lean to our own interpretations, but determine to acknowledge, from the seat of your soul, that regardless of all of the circumstantial evidence, God’s Unfailing Love shall never forsake you, you will begin to experience unspeakable Joy and overwhelming Peace that jus don’t make no sense! Didjaheardat? Awemaazing, huh?

YEP! TRUST2KNO, WHEN THE STORMS OF LIFE ARE AUDACIOUSLY RAVAGING YOUR SOUL’S PEACE AND THE FRENZIED SURGES OF UNCERTANTY ARE THREATENING TO MAKE YOU LOSE YOUR FOOTING, THERE IS A DEATH-DEFYING ROCK OF REFUGE, FOR THOSE WHO DARE TO COMMIT THEIR BEING TO THE FAITHFULNESS OF THEIR HEAVENLY FATHER, TO RUN BOLDLY TO THE LIGHT HOUSE…HIS NAME IS JESUS!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

 

CHANGE YOUR MIND?

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CHANGE UR MIND

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord Acts 3:19

 

I am straight Holiness/Pentecostal todabone; jus ask anybody who knows me in church! I mean, I’ll shout you down in a heartbeat! But guess what? The devil ain’t stud’n you getting your praise on shoutin’ and dancin’, flip’n over pews, in the church house, as long as you don’t change! That’s right, I’m talking about repentance! Don’t touch dat button!

Notice? You don’t hear a whole lotta preaching about REPENTANCE, lately!  Apparently it carries such a negative connotation that tends to provoke unpalatable feelings of fear, condemnation and frustration that some churches have opted out of traditional biblical teachings, preferring to  institutionalize a more contemporal all-inclusive perspective of church as a gathering apparatus for religious/social networking! SO, I totally getit! 

Howevvvvttttr, those of us who have already accepted the Gift of Salvation offered  through The Atoning Grace of Jesus Christ  need to realize is that while we  have been commissioned  to share  The Love of Christ,  none of us have been given the power nor responsibility to make a person repent, particularly by threatening  them that they’re going to Hell!   #Didjaheardat? “Done lost 1/2 my churrch!”

BUT!!!! IF  you let them know how good The Lord is and what He’s ALREADY done for US to make us right with God, there a good chance that they’ll want to know Him for themselves!

Before the days of name it and claim it, and blab it and grab it, when a true prophet spoke, the only thing he promised was the WORD OF GOD! Really, check your Bible? John the Baptist preached the same message every day, “prepare ye the way, repent and be baptized, for the Lord is at hand”. When The Apostle Peter left the upper room, filled with the Holy Ghost, he came preaching the same message, “repent”. Yall ain’t liking me nah, huh?

Some folk still believe repentance means going to the altar, echoing a confession and shaking the pastor’s/preacher/evangelist’s hand. But my beloved, genuine repentance is a matter of the heart and I don’t mean just feeling sorry. If you really want to experience authentic eternal fellowship with Jesus, you have to sanctify yourself through repenting from your heart.

2 Corinthians 7:10 explains, when a person truly repents, they’ll admit that they’re sincerely sorry for rebelling against God and living a sinful life; make a conscious commitment to change the way they live, turn their back AWAY FROM the devil and evil works, and TURN 2 JESUS, totally committing their lives to pleasing HIM and entrusting Holy Spirit to help them to keep their vow! 

Seriously, change your mind, change your life!

One of the best parts of repentance is taking back the personal power that we’ve allowed Satan to rule over our lives! Godly sorrow will make you stare the devil down and tell him in no uncertain terms,“No thank you, I don’t want to live like this anymore, it’s over! I DON’T BELONG 2 U, I BELONG TO JESUS! MY PAST IS COVERED IN THE BLOOD AND MY NEW LIFE IS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS! NOW , GET OUTTA MY FACE OR I’M GONNA CALL MY DADDY!

Beloved, don’t allow another moment of doubt, unbelief or fear cause you to forfeit the unimaginable blessings that God has prepared for us. (Ref. Jeremiah 29:11) The Bible says, the day you hear His Voice calling–just come! Didjaheardat? Can you hear HIM now?

C’mon SOMEBODY,  quickly! Please tell the devil, “ I CHANGED MY MIND!” GGGLLORRRAAA 2 GOD!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

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HONEST 2 GOD 2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. Psalm 139:7-10

O righteous God, who searches minds and hearts, bring to an end the violence of the wicked and make the righteous secure. Psalm 7:9

Sorry Father Adam, but once again this is on you! Because of our original progenitor’s high treason against the Righteous instructions given by The Creator of Life, we are all born naughty by nature! Thus, every human born into the earth since our fore-parents’ willful rebellion is corrupted by an innate disorder called iniquity! Now, don’t look at me with that self-righteous attitude! (Ref. Ps. 51:5) But, it goes deeper! Like Adam, the Glory of innocence that once covered us had now been disrupted by sin, exposing us to evil, guilt, shame and fear!

The precious intimacy with God that man once enjoyed in Paradise was violently yanked from him plunging all of creation into gross darkness and utter chaos!

Hence, there’s an inbred-inclination to cover ourselves with fig leaves attempting to hide from the Only True Source of Hope for deliverance and restoration!  The moment we allow our desire to satisfy the wickedness of self’s lust to take precedence over our desire to please God, the hedge comes down and all hell breaks out! And as they say, the rest is history, huh?

That’s why God hates sin! Don’t get it twisted like Eve and fall for the deception of the Tempter who caused her to doubt the sncerity God’s motives in placing certain restrictions on she and Adam! God was not  trying to control us! Nor is He arrogantly trying to keep us down! God certainly doesn’t want to keep us from enjoying ourselves!  God’ s reasons for setting boundaries for us is not even because He’s Sovereign Lord! And He is! But because God loves us so much He hates SIN!  God is HOLY and  SIN robs us of the freedom, peace and pure delight to openly commune with The Lover of our souls!

You do realize that God knew exactly where and what Adam had done when His Voice came walking through the Garden asking, “Adam, where are you?” God IS The All-Consuming Presence over space and time! There’s NO spot where GOD IS NOT! Someone once said, IF GOD MOVED TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT, HE’D BUMP STRAIGHT INTO GODSELF!

But do we also hear the pain of God’s Heart, knowing that He would have to evict His Family out of their home to keep them  away from certain eternal death and destruction...until JESUS came to our rescue? Do we realize that there’s no such thing as a little sin? SALVATION IS FREE BUT IT WASN’T CHEAP! #WOW! HONESTLY!

Yet, like David, sin perverts our mind and we foolishly assume that if we don’t tell God, He won’t figure it out!

Do you realize that confession benefits us more than it does God? “Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.” Psalm 119:67 Beloved, we don’t pray to inform God, but we pray to invite Him to step into our misery and fix our mess!

When we confess our faults (sin) to God, He’s able to heal our broken spirit, revive the brittleness of our bones and clear our hearts, minds and souls of the debris that’s left behind by sin’s breach! 

It was a good thing that God sent Nathan to uncover David sin, huh?  This allowed David the opportunity to repent honestly before God, liberating him from the burden, torment, tragedy, grief and condemnation that resulted from harboring secret sin in his heart and hindering him from enjoying the fellowship of God’s Presence!

If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 #Didjaheardat?

Jus wondering? When was the last time you had some REAL face2face time with God? THAT LONG, HUH? Well, last time I checked, JESUS WAS STILL SEATED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE FATHER, WAITING AND WILLING TO INTERCEDE ON YOUR BEHALF! SOOO, WHACHA WAITING 4? HONEST2GOD?

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee