Category Archives: witness

AFTER THIS, LOOK 4 THE GLORRAA

after-this-look-4-the-glory-2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

And said to his servant, go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up and looked, and said. There is nothing. And he said, go up again seven times. And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, behold there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man’s hand. And he said, go up, say unto Ahab. Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass in the meanwhile, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. 1 Kings 18:43-45

 

It’s one thing to say that we trust God, but it’s how we endure the proving time that determines the genuineness of our trust! #Didjaheardat?

Life inevitably includes intervals of those pesty impositions I call ‘the dark times’! Like unexpected uninvited guest, trouble has a way of poppin in and staying way longer than we’d prefer! And to make matters even more unsettling, it’s during these seasons that we’re most likely to experience times when all evidence to substantiate that God is still with you and any sign indicating that He’s even listening to your prayers is essentially non-existent!

Knowing personally, it’s not easy watching our children’s lives being ravished by sickness and their youthful dreams and ambitions dissipated by helpless-hopelessness. But this is where the clichés that we so impressively sprout off to others are proven real or Memorex!  Beloved, the longer we walk with Jesus we discover that it’s in the midst of the storms that God reveals His Best Handy Work!  Who would’ve ever imagined that in spite of the dire forecast, The SON yet shines, leading and drawing us closer to Himself! Clearly, He’s determined, through any means necessary, to prove unequivocally that everything that the devil meant for evil, God can turn it around and make it work in our favor! (Ref. Romans 8:28)

Oh My! How my soul rejoiced that day, hearing that my son had given his life to The Lord during a bible study class the evening before! Little did I know that God would use this storm to woo him into seeking Him for himself , thereby positioning him for the miraculous showers of blessings that would follow! And most certainly, I never imagined as I was praying that God would stretch my faith and increase my knowledge of His Wisdom and Power, that I’d have to bury his twin brother to experience a whole new dimension of God’s Super-Sustaining Grace!

The Prophet Elijah teaches his young protégé that even when we can’t see no way to escape the very real threat of emminent destruction, we can yet trust God’s Heart and His Hands. God’s vision is far greater than 20/20. It’s from eternity past to eternity future! God watches guardingly over us thru The Blood stained eyes of Jesus. And through Divinely-inspired confident trust and quiet patience we discover the inexhaustible treaures God’s Faithfulness!

Today, you may find yourself plagued by all manner of maladies. Many of God’s people’s lives are being wounded and worn out by the insidious attacks of the enemies of God and  unfortunately, many are losing hope for life getting any better. But remember, anything is possible with God! TRUST2KNO, while our troubles have a predesignated date of expiration;  our prayers are eternal! #DIDJAHEARDAT??

As people of Hope, instead of surrendering to the pressures of circumstantial evidence, we pray; committing ourselves and our circumstances to our Omnipotent, Omniscient Omnipresent Savior and Lord! By doing this, we’re demonstrating to God that we are relying wholeheartedly upon His Love and the sufficiency of His Grace to sustain and deliver us! As we pray, God intervenes in His designated timing, turning everything the devil meant for evil—around for our greatest good and His Highest Glory! (Ref. 1 Chronicles 7:14)  #4REAL!

Don’t allow the darkness to deceive you. Could God be using the clouds to shield you from your enemies view, aligning you up for an unexpected miracle? (Ref. Exodus 13:21) I know it’s been a long night, but don’t give up!  They tell me, the darkest hour is just before the break of a new day. #Ijs!

Beloved, go take another look! SEEDAT? AFTER THIS, LOOK 4 THE GLORY!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

GOD REMEMBERS!!!

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

THURSDAYS’ PRAYERS!

PRAYN AND FASTING PIC

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Good Morning Family! GOTTA MOMENT! Great!  Once again, we encourage you to join in our weekly Thursday’s Day of Corporate Prayer and Fasting!  

We love You Lord, and I lift my voice, to worship You. Oh my soul, rejoice! Take JOY my King, in what You hear, and let it be a sweet, sweet sound in Your Ear! We adore Thee! We adore Thee, We adore Thee, O Lord! Let’s pray…
“Almighty Lord God, as we bow our heads and our hearts to thank you for this day we honor our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ for the privilege to enter into Your Throne Room confident that You welcome us and rejoice in the confident hope that You are listening to our prayers!

Heavenly Father, we thank you for our being able to see, and to hear, and to speak, and to feel, and to taste of Your goodness this day and every day.

We’re blessed because You, being Holy and Righteous continue to be such a loving forgiving God, and such an understanding and caring God. You have done so much for us and yet you keep on blessing us. Lord forgive us this day for everything we have done, or said or thought that was not pleasing to you. Abba Fahter, we are sincerely sorry, humbly repent asking for Your forgiveness trusting in Your Promise that You are Faithful and Just to give us.

We thank You for being The God of our Salvation, our Deliverance, Breakthrough and Provision.We’re thankful that because You know our frame, Your faithfulness and compassion allow You to look beyond our human frailties, faults and iniquities to see and minister to all of our need!

We pray for renewed strength, understanding and power that comes from a heart open to, depending and relying only on You. 

We pray that as Your eyes continue to search the hearts of mankind that you save the lost, and reclaim every back-slider and that You will place them and settle them into a church home today.Father, I pray for those who are unsaved, put a yes in their heart and in their mind that they will come to you today and receive You as their Lord and Savior.

Father we lift up every government official, education, financial, judicial, health care and spiritual leader, asking a special miracle for each and every one of them who are yet standing on the wall proclaiming Your Word under the conviction and anointing of Holy Spirit.

Father, we’re trusting and believing that you will Grace them to be the examples in their homes, churches and community that will cause everyone who comes into contact with them to fall in  love, trust wholly in and live their lives serving You!

Father, we commit our children, our children’s children and by faith, into Your providential care! Lord, we realize that You have a plan and purpose for their lives too and we have the blessed assurance that their steps are yet being ordered by Your eyes!

Heavenly Father, stir up the hearts and minds of those who are professing Your Name that they will have a desire for an even greater personal, intimate relationship with Creator God through fellowship of Holy Spirit that they might prove what is the perfect and acceptable will of The Lord Jesus!

Knowing that You Sovereignly Rule and Reign over the affairs of mankind, we pray and thank you for our President Obama and his family trust that no weapon that is formed against them shall prosper.

We ask that you continue to open the eyes of understanding so that your people are not easily deceived by those who would desire to entrap your children in bondage once again to anything that You have delivered us from.

Lord, I pray for every believer who is yet holding on to Your Hand by faith today, that You will release Divine power, Supernatural strength and health, provision, prosperity and protection. I pray also Father, that You will preserve them thru the tests that they must go thru and that You will bring them out wholly restored, renewed, refreshed and with the reward as You have promised them in Your Word.

Father, we rejoice now in confidence and quietness, trusting wholly that all workers of iniquity are trembling and suddenly departing in shame, turning their backs from Your people, because You have heard the voice of our weeping, our supplications and received our prayers as a sweet savor coming up before Your Sovereign Throne of Grace and Mercy!

Father,  we thank You, honor and praise You now, for  I believe that it is done!  In The Exalted Name of Jesus. Amen and It Is So!

DENY THE POWER?

The Earth Slowly Burns - Americas

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 2 Timothy 3:5

 

Never! Is probably the initial response of most professing-salvation-sanctified-sainted-souls, even at the mere suggestion that we’d be included in ‘those’. Right? BUT!  Have we ever considered the remote possibility, if you will, the collateral damage of being so pre-occupied with ‘getting’ that we lose sight of what God has already ‘given’?

Remember that Ol’ skool churrch song, “Count your blessing! Name them one by one! Count your blessing, see what God has done!”? Think about it? The Israelites were taught to sing songs that rehearsed their history as a daily reminder of God’s loving care, strength and power as He delivered them out of Egyptian slavery, lead them through the wilderness into The Promised Land! A practice, no doubt even in this bustling 21st Century culture, one might find tremendously buffering amidst the new norm of environmental chaos, anxiety and stress.

Just imagine the possible ramifications of a daily allotment of time designated specifically to reflecting upon all the many blessings that The Lord has already so mercifully and graciously heaped upon us. WOW! What inevitablemind-blowing heart-filled  sense of Gratitude, huh?

Could this be what The Apostle Paul was alluding to “according to the power that worketh in us”? (Ref. Ephesians 3:20)

Could a grateful heart pave the way for that “Greater than” we could ask or imagine? Could our pre-disposed poverty-mindedness and perverted sense of unworthiness, steeped in false humility be denying God the opportunity to show-off in our lives? Could we be guilty of having a form of godliness? GOD FORBID!

HOW GRATEFUL IS YOUR HEART? IS THAT HOW GREAT YOUR GOD IS? DENYING THE POWER? NEVER, huh? #juswondering…

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

WAYFARING WIT

WAYFARING WIT2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

How much better to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver! Proverbs 16:16

Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold. For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it. Proverbs 8:10-11

 

WOW! We’ve come a long way, Baby!

As far as the ingathering of information and the major technological accomplishments attained by this 21st Century New Millennium Age is concerned, undoubtedly, we’ve taken quantum leaps exceedingly well beyond the realm of possibility to even the most esteemed intellectuals and astute scientific calculus of days gone by.

In other words, (sigh)! It’s safe to say that knowledge abounds!

Unfortunately, the scarcity of wit, wisdom and truth is decisively profound! Generally the appeal for this degree of understanding is left to those few famished, disillusioned, disinfranchised, exhausted, wayfaring scavengers who wander off rush-hour-grid-locked-getting-byways and highways to worldly success and traditional religious rituals. For reasons, yet unknown, somehow some of us are being distinctly drawn to the under-passes, service roads, and trenches; seeking the hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places of The Kingdom of His Presence! (Ref. Isaiah 45:3)

Who knew that we’d be called to the Kingdom for such a time as this? Who knew that before we lived one day that our Master already had a plan, purpose,  and a hope-filled destination for our lives?

“It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.” Proverbs 25:2

Wisdom is calling!

“But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob; And you have been weary of Me. O Israel” Isaiah 43:22

“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” 1Timothy 6:6-8

“Congratulations! You finally got what you wanted, BUT… lost what you had”!

Didjaheardat? Missed it, huh? WAYFARING WIT!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

LET GOD RUB OFF ON U!

LET GOD RUB OFF ON U3

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Romans 8:29

The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. Psalm 119:130 

Back in my B.C. (before Christ) days, I met this very special lady. Subsequently, Ms. Annette and I grew as close as two peas in a pod. Whoever coined the phrase “a little bit of country and a little bit of rock n’ roll” had to have met my friend “Anna” (self-identification of her alter-ego). By day, Ms. Annette was a successful-sophisticated-know-her-stuff-RN. BUT! By nite, that Hattiesburg-Mississippi-Black Water-Country-Ebonic-Talk’n-parta’-down-like it was 1999-Anna would emerge! And guess who would try to hang-out right with her? Exactly!

Evrrrr noticed, that if you spend a lot of time around someone you admire, who happens to have a strangely-peculiar personality, the strangely-peculiar affect they tend to have on you? Startlingly, without my consciousness (until my kids so happily pointed out) my conversation conspicuously became sporadically seasoned with some of the same words, same dialect and same mannerisms as my friend. Obviously, a little bit of “Anna” had rubbed off on me!

It works the exact same way when it comes to strengthening your personal relationship with God!

As believers, the Father’s Plan is to mold us into the image of Jesus. The moment you are born again, Holy Spirit begins the process of Supernatural Empowered Transformation of our spirit until it looks just like Him. Spiritually, you were instantly changed on the inside; however the progression of outward change depends largely upon us.

The amount of time spent pursuing things of the Spirit correlates directly to our spiritual growth and development. If most of your time is spent satisfying the lustful desires of your flesh, inevitably your spiritual growth will be stunted! #ijs However, as you begin to separate yourself apart from the worldly things of life and dedicate more time to studying The Word of God, mounting habitual alone-time with Him, The Holy Spirit will ecstatically teach, guide and share Christ-Likeness with you. He’s gonna rub off on you until His ways become your ways!

The more readily you yield the more of you to Him, abiding in His Presence in prayer, meditating in His Word and surrending yourself in worship, you will be absolutely amazed at the miraculous change that will take place on the inside and out! I’m telling you, personally, you’ll hardly recognize that new man in the mirror! Seriously!!!

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. Isaiah 60:1 #Didjaheardat?

Ohh, by the way, guess who introduced me to Jesus Christ? Yep, Anna! THANKYA JESUS!

I “D-DOUBLE-DARE” YA! LET GOD RUB OFF ON YOU!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

ITZ ALL ABOUT THE CROWN

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SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. Revelations 2:10-11

 

PARDON ME, again! I know this isn’t religiously correct, how—evrrrr sometimes, it’s just hard!

Here you are, as the ol’ saints used to say, ‘living all u know how 2 live for JESUS’, with everything in you clinging to The Testimony of God’s Faithful Witness, who is TRUTH, YET …EVERYWHERE U TURN, U GOT TROUBLE BREAKING OUT!!! #WHADA…???

Seriously, none of us normal human beings enjoy suffering, right?
Nevertheless, life has taught you (and even the Word admonishes us) that those who Name the Name of Jesus must expect trouble. Afterall, even “Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered”! (Ref. Hebrew 5:8)

“Yeah, but but butt”…I feelya, okay? Yet, according to The Scriptures, God has Sovereignly linked suffering and glory into the lives of those who have confessed their trust in His Plan for our lives. Remember the words of The Apostle Paul? “As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Roman 8:36

I know, sometimes that doesn’t help MUCH! BUT! We have this confident assurance that before God permits sporadic seasons of tribulations He sets an expiration date before the test begin! Aren’t U Soooo glad, trouble don’t last always!

Beloved, there’s always a greater purpose behind our pain! And no, it ain’t always God punishing you for your disobedience! For His own reasons, God has elected to allow test, trials and trouble along the landscape of our journey to draw us closer to Him, to purify, purge and position us to partake of His Divine Nature—HOLINESS!

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18

This life has a way of putting you through the ringer, huh? But God has decreed, that nothing you will ever experiene can separate you from His Love! “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39

Rest Assured, GOD KNOWS!

Today, receive His Words to The church at Smyrna, as your very own! Don’t allow fear of this temporary situation to deter you from your eternal goal! The King of Glory has declared and decreed that I AM ALPHA and OMEGA! I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU NOR FORSAKE YOU. LO I WILL BE WITH YOU ALWAY!  FOR WHO CAN STAY MY HAND! (Ref. Rev. 22:13; Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:2o; Isa. 43:13) Didjaheardat? #WOW!!!

Precious ones,  endure persecution with fidelity, confident that “I AM THE RESURRECTION AND YOUR REWARDER! DON’T QUIT! YOUR CROWN AWAITS YOU!”

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

BOTTOMS UP!

 

BOTTOMS UP 4

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah. 1 Kings 17:15-16

 

We are a piece of work, huh? And living proof of the Loving Compassion of our Creator! #ijs

Seriously, no other god would put up with us for as long as The Living God of the Bible. Every morning we’re awaken to a brand new day filled with hopeful promises of  fresh Mercy and Grace. Every evening we lie down confident that He who never sleeps nor slumbers will watch over us, protecting and shielding us from dangers seen and unseen, sustaining our bodies, assuring that every particle of flesh and bone is in perfect alignment with its ordained purpose and functioning at the precise rhythm of its appointed origin, without any assistance from us. (Ref. Psalm 121:4) Awemaazin!

Nevertheless, at the first hint or threat that our circumstances aren’t going the way we think they ought to go, immediately we are stricken with an acute case of fatalistic-selective amnesia, forgetting that that Self-Same-God of The Universe Who has elected to be our Father also rules and reigns over the affairs of his most precious creation, humanity!

Unfortunately, our tendency to adapt to the world’s mindset that says, ‘if I don’t, nobody else will’, often lands us smack-dab-center–staged in the valley of despair victimized by fear of lack and hopelessly doomed to looming defeat and death. The truth of the matter is, God never intended us to live independent of Him in any area of our lives!

However, it’s the all-consuming task of our adversary, Satan, to keep us so pre-occupied with our personal comfort that it takes a conscious concerted self-determined humility to commit our entire being into the Hands of our Faithful Savior, fully trusting that He’s already provided everything that will ever be needed to prosper in this life and the life to come!  (Ref. 2 Peter 1:3)  OMG! #Didjaheardat?

As our scripture text unfolds, we see The Sovereign Teacher, using a season of severe drought and famine as the Lesson Plan, to test and strengthen the faith of both His servant Elijah and the un-named widow of Zarephath. The Prophet of God had oftentimes experienced the miracle working power of God’s Grace to deliver him triumphantly over his enemies. Yet when suddenly confronted by a new threat to take him out, finds himself hiding at the Kerith Ravine on the other side of The Jordan River being waited on by God-Sent Ravens. Then God orders him to leave that place and go to another place where he’d find a woman, who God had instructed to feed him. Being the obedient servant that he was, Elijah obeyed.  Howevrrr, unbeknownst to him, this woman was dealing with her own desperately dramatic circumstances. In fact, by the time Elijah got there, she’d made a decision to prepare this last meal for herself and her son after which they’d both die and it would all be over!

God is not limited to temporary situations, neither is His power diminished by our finite ability to accurately assess what, how, where or when He dispenses out miracles. Notwithstanding, God’s miraculous intervention is sometimes limited by our personal willingness to trust Him to do whatever He promises for us! Hence, we must take care to not miss our miracle because it doesn’t look like what we expect.

For instance, imagine if Elijah had allowed the outward appearance and the initial assumption of the woman’s distressing circumstances to direct his steps? He would’ve missed another opportunity to testify to the Glory of The True Source and Sustainer of Life! And, if the widow woman had allowed her wearied fluctuating state of emotions and even the reality of physical hunger to confine her to her own plan, she and her son would’ve missed their Divine Visitation!

The scripture also makes mention that God did not instantly pour down a whole barrel of oil and a full bin of flour. And we know that HE COULD’VE! However, each day The Good Shepherd supplied them with a sufficient portion of bread and oil from the bottom of the vessels! (Ref. Matthew 6:11) Apparently, it is the delight of our Heavenly Father to joyfully greet and so graciously meet the needs of those who offer their personal trust and confidence to Him one day at a time!

REMEMBER…THEY DID EAT! FROM THE BOTTOM UP!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee