The Secret of the Lord

This speaks so much depth and truth. Many speak on His love and grace which is a big part of who God is. His word tells us that very clearly. We are to love God with all of our  being and love others fiercely while not compromising His truth that is in His word. He is also a Holy, Just, and Righteous God who deserves our reverence and respect. There is a lack of Fear/reverence for God in the hearts of we as His people that should not be. If God is Holy and He tells us in His word to be Holy as He is Holy then we must consider what Holiness is in the eyes of God. If God called us out of darkness into His marvelous light....He desires that we walk in His light and truth.  There is no darkness in Him because He is a Holy God. Does being Holy in the sight of the Lord make us perfect? No it most certainly does not. As long as we are in this human body none of us will ever be perfect but we must not use that as an excuse to not follow His command of being Holy as He is. We must strive toward Him and away from sin that so easily besets us . Yes, we make mistakes, but thank God for the sweet Holy Spirit who convicts our hearts when we do and draws us to repentance and change.

This verse says the SECRET of the Lord is with those who FEAR HIM and He shows/reveals His covenant to them. Could it be that we don't reverence or respect God enough to know His secrets...to know the deeper truths? Have you ever read a context in scripture and when reading it just didn't understand it ? I know I have, and then I went through some stuff and got closer to God over time....then one day I'm reading this same scripture and it's like I finally Get this truth that I didn't get before....Secret REVEALED...WOW moment..... Praise the Lord!

Perhaps we just want to stay in our comfort zone so that we don't have to give God all that we are bc it requires sacrifice........it requires saying no to some things and YES to God. Perhaps we want to stay in the outer courts of praise because it's easy to Praise Him but worship becomes alot more intimate alot closer to the Holy God and He will begin to speak ....In those deep worship moments of our life....He will begin to prune....He will begin to cut off those things that should not be, are not bearing good fruit ,and that don't belong......when we worship Him with our lives we will move past the outer courts of praise and into the inner courts of worship first.....just as the priest in the old testament had to be prepared to enter in to the Holy of Holies.....God prepares us as His children over time!

 Back then if the priest  went in the temple impure and sinful they died which is why they had to send them in with a rope around their waist so they could pull them out if they did die in there...think about
 that a minute....they could not stand or physically live in the light of His Holiness, presence, and truth if there was sin in their heart. Thank God for Jesus and His grace .... If it weren't for Jesus...where would we be? ...thank God that He tore the veil and made the way for us to have forgiveness and grace through faith. So very thankful for the cross that He died on so that we could have the opportunity to choose abundant life that only comes through Him. But doesn't he tell us to die daily to ourselves and to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh?  We are not our own but bought with a price. We were created to worship Jesus, but how much time do we give to God in a day verses what we give to everything/everyone else in our lives? Are we worshiping someone or something else other than Jesus? I'm including myself in this to y'all.

God prepares us and prunes us for the Holy of Holies though. Yes His Heart is for us....which is exactly why He calls us to this place....this point of surrender....Deeper waters  but a higher place of glory in Him.....this SECRET place  (y'all I'm not talking about worship in a music church kinda setting right now....I'm a worship leader.....love to worship Jesus in song, but talking about life worship to God) He wants us to know Him deeply like He knows us.  It requires surrender and obedience. Obedience that sometimes goes against what are flesh wants. Obedience that sometimes upsets those who are in compromise to the word of God. I get it.....over the last year God has been doing a major pruning in my life and I've had to get rid of stuff, but being in His presence and right standing with Him matters more to me than those things. Thankful that He's still working on me.Sanctification is  life process, so I know that I have a lot more to learn and a ways to go. 

His word tells us that He is a consuming fire. Last week in prayer..I kept hearing God say......I'm calling you higher so get ready for the fire 🔥......fire is hot...fire hurts.....it sometimes even breaks your heart bc people will receive what your saying the wrong way.......fire purifies you .... Fire draws you closer to the light of His presence and while you love others with a Christ like love .....you begin to leave no room for compromise so you care more what’s God thinks and says about you then what people do.

Speaking of singing though, last week God put this song on my heart that we sang back in the day at Rose of Sharon Camp called Surrender....Many of you have probably heard it.....but part of the lyrics were ...."I'm giving up MY rights" .....Wow ....y'all....I remember me many years younger listening to the worship leaders pour this out at camp and the conviction of the Holy Spirit begin to gently whisper.  . " Have you surrendered all, Crystal? " I was brought up in Church......I read my Bible and prayed some.....I dedicated my life to God many years before that.....but had I given all of who I was? No.....not really.....only parts of my heart. I still have a long way to go, but thankful for the opportunity every day to get closer and closer to Jesus. I want to know Him more and tremble at His word. I love God, but never ever want to loose fear/ reverence for Him. I want to know His secrets found throughout His word. I don’t want to compromise, and I don’t want to keep Jesus in a box. Hes a great big God who desires to take us out of our comfort zone to grow us And show us more of who He is. If we really yearn to know Him we can’t stay where we are but we must allow God to transform us into the children of God that He’s called us to be.

Anxious For Nothing 2019

I’ve never dealt with this type of anxiety much until this past year. So much happened in 2018 that had me tightly holding onto my seat bracing for what was to come next. My son, Luke, was diagnosed with autism, I had health issues, ectopic pregnancy, grief……it was just so much at once….more than I could handle.  I hate anxiety, and know that it is not from God!!! I know that God’s word tells us to Be anxious for nothing, but in all things by prayer and supplication present our request to God!!! I feel like I do my best to do that, and have many times over asked God to take this awful heavy feeling from me but thus far He has not completely taken it, so I’m doing my best to stand on His promise for Peace that passes all understanding until it comes to past in my life. I’m casting my cares on Him believing for a breath of fresh air and weight to be lifted off of my shoulders and placed onto His. I’m hoping and believing for FREEDOM and HEALING that can only come from Jesus!!! Sometimes, I catch myself thinking and praying for God to just rescue me. But that’s the thing…..He already has!!! He’s done that for all of us who choose to receive Him as our Savior. Despite the chaos of life, He’s always there with us if we’ve invited Him to be a part!!! He’s there to guide us when we don’t know the next step to take, teach us the right way when, once again, we’ve failed, hold us when we just need a warm embrace of comfort and peace, carry us when we don’t have the strength to press on and keep walking……He’s there!!! So often, we expect God to just get us out or remove us from a situation when God is saying let ME walk you through this, let me teach you as we walk together on this road that leads to joy after the mourning and a rainbow after all the rain.

Some days are good and I feel like I am completely past things while others are excruciating and heartbreaking, so I get so frustrated with myself as I feel like maybe I’m not surrendering all over to God like I should or I’m not doing something right so I go through and repent  of everything even that which may be hidden in my heart that I’m unaware of. Asking God to search our hearts and unveil anything that could be potentially keeping us from a closer walk with Him never hurts. I do have to be careful in these moments to make sure that I am recognizing Satan’s lies of discouragement that make me feel like I want to just throw in the towel and give up altogether. I can’t keep my head in the sand either as It would be naive and foolish of me or any other Christian to fall for the lie that Christians never go through anything. That is the farthest thing from the truth. Satan is against God and His Kingdom so he will stop at nothing to keep God’s children worn out and downtrodden. The good news is Jesus overcame so we do too!! Our God truly is greater than Satan or any demonic force that may try to cloud our vision or keep us from a closer walk with Jesus!!! We win, and are made victorious by the word of our testimony and the blood of the Lamb! Thank God for Jesus!!!  I am reminded of scripture as I write this:

Romans 8:38-39~ 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.

No one, Nothing, No situation or circumstance, No demonic force, Zip, Zilch, Zero can separate us from the Love of God!!! Yall that is such a powerful truth!!!

So here’s the challenge and I would love nothing more than for you to join me on it in 2019!!! ~EVERY time Satan whispers in our ear another lie, we combat him with God’s word that is sharper than any 2 edged sword. Easier said than done, I know, but we CAN do this. You will need some index cards or a notebook to write down verses that pertain to your situation. For example, Every time we become anxious about something we can remind ourselves and Satan that we focus on good reports with this verse.

Philippians 4:8~ Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

When our hearts feel like we need to make a rash decision, we recall this verse:

 Philippians 4:6  “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”

Making decisions on a fly always gets us into trouble.

When Satan tries to beat us up over something, we can remind God of His word and thank Him for comfort in those moments.

Psalms 94:19-In the multitude of my anxieties within me,
Your comforts delight my soul.

When Satan wants to steal your voice:

Proverbs 28:1-The wicked flee when no one is pursuing, But the righteous are bold as a lion.

These are just examples, but you can add as many as you’d like. I know that Jesus combat Satan by using His word when He was tempted in the wilderness by him, so this is definitely an effective way to pray.

May 2019 be the year that we focus on God’s word, hunger, and thirst after Him and His righteousness,  and remain steadfast in Prayer more, more, more, so that we can truly be anxious for nothing!!

My Grown Up Christmas List

Seriously today I have really been thinking about how blessed we are. Life is not perfect, but it is filled with overwhelming love from God, family, church family, and friends and that truly is the Best Gift and answered prayer a girl could ask for!!! I got to thinking though, “what does my Christmas List look like this year?”  God is faithful to meet our needs and make a way for our desires in His timing regarding material things, so I can’t say that any of that is at the top of my list this year. As a child, my list was very materialistic, but as an adult, it has matured over time and that just doesn’t seem to matter as much anymore. Of course, it’s nice to have cool things, but what is better then what money can buy are the things that only God can provide!!!

I could only describe my heart for this years Christmas and beyond as hopeful for more of God’s peace, love, and presence in mine, my family’s, and church family’s lives, as well as the entire Body of Christ!!! I’m talking the real deal, the genuine, tangible, freedom that could only come from Jesus!!! Prayers are being lifted up that there would not be one that would settle for less than God’s Best in every area of life. May we walk and live FREE in Jesus, so that we would not compromise His word, but hide it in our heart and not sin against Him. Hopes are high that we would wholeheartedly surrender all to Jesus holding nothing back, and be a people that are real, genuine, sincere…..meaning what we say and saying what we mean. Knowing from a personal standpoint how difficult this can be at times, my heart prays and desires that we would be gentle and loving and kindhearted, and not complain even when life gets rough around the edges and tries to attempt to cut into our core. Satan will always try, but as long as we keep Jesus at the Center of it all…..He will never have a place there or be able to wreak havoc upon our lives……Jesus, be our stronghold and refuge.

Yall, FREEDOM is on my list this Christmas!!! Jesus calls us FREE, and that is an incredible truth but unless we walk in it then the words don’t matter much as there is no weight to them. Satan is cool with us knowing that we are free in our head but not accessing that Freedom in our heart. It’s not until we begin to recognize who we are in Christ and begin to take authority over Satan and his schemes that he becomes SCARED!!! So, next on my Christmas List is that we would RECOGNIZE and LIVE our lives as Children of God knowing that we have an inheritance in Jesus and walk in it.

My Hearts prayer this Christmas also is that we as God’s children would not worry so much what our worship looks like to others. Yes, Yes, Yes…..I know, all things in order. God truly is a God of order, but if we feel a shout rising up out of our Spirit or a push to Jump or want to make a LOUD Joyful noise….lift our hands, bow down….whatever the form of worship….then WHY DON’T WE? We worry too much about what man thinks and not enough what He thinks. Listening to the voice of God and being led by His Spirit will never take us astray. God deserves everything that we have to offer and so much more. I don’t want it to be said of me that I sit back and let the rocks cry out in my place. My Daughter came up to me last Sunday and told me that she would love to dance and sing, but she was scared to during worship service because she was worried what others would think. That broke my heart as I found myself repenting for being guilty of feeling the same way at times. What are we in the body of Christ teaching our Children when we come in to warm the pew never stepping out of our comfort zone and into new heights with Jesus? Are we setting the example of a passionate fiery heart for more of Him or one that just wants to go through the motions so that we can go eat lunch? God desires that we be excited about our Praise and Worship to HIM!!! We just recently came back from youth convention and I love going there and to camp, because there is such FREEDOM TO WORSHIP!!! No one is looking at you because we’re all to focused on Jesus to worry ourselves how others are worshiping. That is truly how it should be!!!

As the old song says,
“Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full, in his wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of his glory and grace”

Our children learn from us, how we set back so reserved in our seats going through the motions of worship on Sundays without true sincere care for God and who He is in our lives. They see it all. They see when we’re walking in religion and not in a true relationship with Jesus Christ. I know, because sad to say….. I have been there before….and its pure bondage. So another Prayer on my Christmas List is that we would all make our hearts right with God and pray for pure motives. I pray that we would be obedient to His heart in all things as worship truly is a matter of the heart and worship does not just happen in the church house, it happens throughout our days as we live our lives in service to Him!!!

I also pray that we would realize that it truly is and should be ALL ABOUT JESUS!!! My team and I lead worship at church and I tell them all the time that I don’t even have a desire to be on stage if God is not in it, because we can not change peoples hearts. Only God can do that!!! Thank Jesus that He lives inside of us and is a great God!! It’s His anointing that breaks every single yoke of bondage. Any service that we can offer to God or others must involve Him being in the center of it or it is of no effect. He brings the eternal impact on individuals lives.

Another prayer is that we would GO DEEPER into our relationship with God each day. The truth is, the closer we get to God the more our desire of the world begins to fall to the wayside. Often, we Christians, still want to hold onto a little piece of the world, and we make excuses for it because it’s a pleasure of ours when God is calling us to lay it all down at His feet and forsake it all for Him!!! Sometimes Jesus is just a part of our life and not the whole of our life. I pray that we would make Him our whole life from this Christmas Season on.

Another prayer for Christmas is for joy and peace. For many of us, this year has been nothing short of rough, tough, and heartbreaking. I know for my family, we have taken some hard hits, and despite them, we are so thankful and blessed but some peace and joy from the Lord sounds great right about now and that is the benefit of being HIS. He offers these gifts freely. All we have to do is ask. I pray for all of you this Christmas that despite your circumstances or trials of life, you will feel Jesus in Your midst embracing you with His great love, the joy that is our strength, and peace that passes all understanding.

I also pray that my children and yours would be happy and blessed this Christmas season and always, and that they would understand the true meaning of Christmas knowing that the true gift is the greatest giver EVER, Jesus Christ!!! May you all have the merriest Christmas ever knowing that Jesus is in your midst, and He loves you and me beyond what we could fathom in our minds. Believing for joy in EVERY season knowing that He is walking this life out with us!!!! God bless!!! 

Praise and Thanksgiving

Picking up the pieces of ashes, of loss, of heartbreak and allowing God to breathe life where death has been is tough, but God can and standing on His promises that are yes and amen knowing that He will in His perfect time fulfill them. Life is a waiting game right now, a process of grief and many stages that I never wanted to have to endure again, but yet here I am and God is still God and He is still good even when I feel like I am not facing the grief like I should…..is there any right way to face it really? One may try to run but can’t hide for long because you will be found and if not careful overtaken by it like a tidal wave in the Ocean. Thank God for Jesus who is riding this tidal wave with me in the midst of this very dark storm. I know that I am an overcomer by the blood of the Lamb and word of my testimony, but getting my emotions to line up with His word has proven to be the most difficult ever. There’s a time for everything under the sun, and I guess this is my time to just cry (Ecclesiastes 3:4)…..can't wait for the victory and joy that is just around the corner concerning this particular situation. It’s so close but yet so far. His faithfulness keeps hope alive in my spirit!

Psalms 106:1~ “Praise the LORD.Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.”

The best way to combat discouragement like this is through Praise and Thanksgiving. When we place our eyes on Jesus and look to Him we find a peace that embraces our hearts and passes all understanding. Reflecting on where God has brought us from, and how much He has blessed us with gives us a great appreciation and should make our hearts desire to shout His praises!!! We all truly do have so much to be thankful for!!! Satan loves nothing more than to take our focus off of Him and set it on our problems. When that happens, Thanksgiving usually goes out the door.

Our praise truly is a weapon against the enemy who intends to discourage our hearts in every way. There is something about Praising Jesus that makes the devil Mad!! Praise is a bold stance declaring that God is great!!! Standing firm makes Satan weak in his knees. Knowing His word and who we are in Jesus terrifies Satan. Praise is a weapon!!!

Hebrews 12:28-29~Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.”

I end with the above verse. We serve a Holy God who is Jealous for all of us and deserves every ounce of praise and worship that we can offer up to Him!!! He is deserving, we are undeserving, but His grace made us deserving so we should hold great thankfulness in our hearts toward Him and all that He has blessed us with!!

Challenge~ Thanksgiving is just around the corner and while we should be thankful daily, this is a great time to reflect on all we are thankful for!! Let me encourage you to write a list of everyone and everything that you are thankful for!!! If you are discouraged feeling like the world is caving in around you, let this encourage you!!! If you are encouraged, I pray that your encouragement increases. Most likely the list will be way longer then you expect. Give God praise for all on your list!!!

Let’s pray!!

Dear Heavenly Father,
I want to thank You for who You are and all you’ve blessed me with!!! You didn’t have to, but you did, and I am thankful beyond words for Your grace and love toward me!!! I praise and worship You!!! In Jesus name, Amen!!!

* I hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving!!!! This month and next month, I will only be sending out one devotion for each month due to the holidays!! Enjoy your family time!!! God bless!!! Love yall!!!*

Chicken Fajita Bowls

Here is a simple recipe that the family will love.

You will need:
1 Packet of Chicken Fajita Seasoning

1 lb of Chicken Breast
1/2 of a bag of the Mixed Pepper and Onion Blend found in the freezer section

1 Can of Rotel drained

1 Can of Pinto or black beans drained
1 Package of Spanish rice

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Place the chicken and pepper blend in the crock pot along with the seasoning. Add 1 cup of water. Stir it all up until all seasoning is liquefied and the chicken is covered in it. Cook on low for 6 hours as by that time it will be so easy to shred.

Cook the rice according to the package. Shred the cooked chicken while rice is cooking. Pre-heat oven to 350. Spray cooking oil on a small casserole dish, and mix everything together except the shredded cheese. Once all is mixed, top it with shredded Cheddar cheese and put it in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is completely melted. Serve and enjoy.

Faith Over Fear Week 3

With Halloween just around the corner, I thought it very fitting to talk about it this week. As stated last week, we as parents are called by God to guard our children’s hearts as well as ours. It’s a blessed responsibility and one that we should not take lightly.

As a child, I NEVER went Trick or Treating!!! I know, I know, I know…..I’ve heard it all….the gasp, the “WHAT?”, the “are you for reals?” , but I am so very serious. My parents did not want to expose my heart to evil things that would fill my heart with fear. They had our best interest at heart, so they took us to the Hallelujah nights on Halloween at our church and they were TOP NOTCH FUN!!! Hallelujah nights are the churches way of glorifying Jesus on a night that is so dark. There was yummy food, games, candy, fun, and a safe place for us kids to enjoy the night. I didn’t feel like anything was being taken away from me because these were treasured memories with my family and church family and my parents, as well as children’s pastors, were teaching us why we don’t participate in Halloween.

This was one way that my parents felt they needed to guard my heart, and now that I am a parent….I am not going to lie….every single year Halloween comes around, its a struggle for me. It is major spiritual warfare in my heart. We mainly do the church Fall Fest and Trunk or Treats, but we have gone around the neighborhoods before. The thing about that is there is always going to be someone dressed in a costume or a house decorated to the max with scary Halloween decor that terrifies the children. Not to mention, I feel very convicted by the sweet Holy Spirit about it. That is exactly why from this year on we have made the decision to just stick to the church events. We honestly should have been doing that anyway, but again its easy to get caught up and be persuaded by mans opinion of it. I want to set the boundaries now while they are young so that they are clearly defined lines as they continue to grow, learn, and discern.

Kids, teens, and adults alike are fascinated by witches, ghost, vampires, power, and it’s heartbreaking to me that parents don’t know the depth of the spiritual darkness that is influencing our society so it’s downplayed as if its all just fun and games not realizing that doors are being opened to the demonic when allowing children to watch witchcraft and things that are of the like. There are those that just think everything is pretending when it’s not. This is exactly the lies that Satan desires that we fall for so that we continue opening the doors and allowing him access into our homes and families.

My mom was telling me that when we were preteens, we all went to youth convention together at the Opryland hotel and she was shocked to find out that in another ballroom they were having a witch and warlock convention. I’m not talking about a costume party, I’m saying a real deal witch conference. People crack up at you when they find out that you believe that witches are real, but if you read the Bible, its clear as day in there. God’s word does not lie. Yes, they have powers, but Jesus holds even greater powers ……power to save…even those who are in the deep dark trenches of Satanic witchery. As one of my Facebook friends stated, “if Christian parents knew the testimonials of ex-witches who were delivered and set free by God and also what these witches used to do on Halloween night…they would not allow their children to participate at all.” We have counseled and prayed for teens that have messed with the demonic and know that it is very real, but Praise the Lord, God delivered them and set them free from it all. Our God truly is greater!!!

It’s awful because even outside of Halloween, Fear and spiritual darkness infiltrate everything. It’s in children’s movies, schools, and sometimes sadly even in the churches. Hollywood slips it into lighthearted movies to make it seem like its just for fun, but it goes so much deeper than that. God’s word tells us that we perish for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6) so its time that we as parents dig deep into God’s word and ask Him the truth about all of this.

To every true power that God has, there is a counterfeit power that Satan puts out there…..Jesus has prophets and Satan has fortune tellers/ psychics. The difference between them is the source in which they are getting their information from. The Holy Spirit or as many call Him the Holy Ghost takes residence at the point of Salvation in a Christians life and Satan has Familiar Spirits that people believe to be ghost (Read 1 Samuel 28) The Holy Spirit is the real deal truth leader whereas familiar spirits are veiled and deceive individuals into believing that they are encountering a loved one that has past on from this life.

We must be careful and prayerful with what we allow into our home and children’s hearts through eye and ear gates. There is no fear in perfect love and perfect love cast out ALL FEAR!! (1 John 4:18) Why would He want us to fill our hearts with fear? Fear is the opposite of His Love! Parents, let's pray for God to give us discernment regarding all of this. Pray that as our children grow and learn that they to would gain discernment that will keep their hearts recognizing the truth of God’s word from the False tactics of Satan.

Some would say that parents with this stance are dogmatic, but we are just trying to follow what God tells us in His word to do. It’s truly not an easy road….this is so controversial, but we must pray and ask God what His heart and word says on the matter because our opinions are not going to amount to anything in the end. It will truly be the question of how did His word stand up to the ideology that we taught our children? What did the scriptures tell us to be the truth? It’s His truth that sets us free (John 8:32) not our opinions. Our opinions are usually what holds us captive to our selfish desires and in rebellion. 1 Samuel 15:23 tells us that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. That is a scary place to be….in rebellion to God. When we have an opinion that is dead set against God’s word…..that’s rebellion. I don’t have any desire to be in that state, but sadly I’ve been there. We would all be lying to ourselves if we said that we haven’t. We’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God! (Romans 3:23) Thank God for Jesus who is MIGHTY TO SAVE and who loves us all desiring that we would worship and serve only Him!!!

Teaching our children about all this early will help build their faith up in Jesus as they will know that no matter what tries to influence or scare ….Our God is greater than any of it. We don’t have to teach them to run toward the fear, but we can lead them to stand boldly in the face of it with His Great and Perfect Love!!! It is my prayer that you don’t hear my opinion but that you seek out God’s heart in this through His scriptures. I know that I have a very long way to go, and don’t always get it right. He’s still working on me that is for certain so I pray that I have covered this with much grace as well as truth from His word. Let’s pray!!!

Dear Heavenly Father,
Open my heart to Yours and help me to search Your word for the answers and truth that we need to serve, teach, and lead our family. Build up our faith and help us to stand boldly in the face of fear knowing that You are indeed by our side. In Jesus Name we pray, Amen!!!

Here are a few resources as well by Becky Fisher:
Kids In Ministry
Monsters In My Closet
Challenge: Search this out for yourself and ask God to open Your heart to the truth that sets us all free.

Faith Over Fear Week 2

Mark 4:35-41
On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”

Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”

Wow!!! These scriptures speak volumes to my heart!!! Has your home ever just been in chaos and all you hoped and prayed for was Jesus to speak peace to the storm but you weren’t seeing an end in sight? Fear grips a heart easily in those moments when it looks as if it will never be over. Faith decreases all the while the fear is ever expanding. Why do we allow fear to squeeze our hearts so tight that we feel like we can’t breathe? Obviously, it’s not of God, but directly from the pits of Hell. Satan desires nothing more than to play with our mind and feed us lies that sadly we tend to fall for sometimes.

James 3: 13-18 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Gatekeepers

Did you know as women of God we are gatekeepers in our home which means we must watch what we allow into our home? Are we allowing fear, anger, envy, bitterness, selfishness or peace, love, gentleness, grace, and good fruits? What are we watching on TV or allowing our kids to watch? What are we listening to or permitting our children to listen to? What we feed will only get larger. If we feed fear and anger then it will come out of us. I’ve often heard the song” be careful little eyes what you see, ears what you hear, for the Father up above is looking down in love….” It’s true for all of us. We must stop the devil and his lies in their tracks at the point of attempted entrance.

Proverbs 31:31~Give her of the fruit of her hands,
And let her own works praise her in the gates.

So Inside our homes, are our works praising us? Are we setting the example to our kids of a loving gentle wife and mom or a drama queen? Children pick up on these things so quickly and sadly sometimes begin to imitate the actions they see. Regretfully, I know that I have come off as the latter mentioned before, and had to repent to the Lord for it too. I’ve also prayed with a heavy heart for God to change me and make my heart more like His, tenderhearted and loving so I have portrayed both examples with the prayer that they will see the good more. As humans were not ALWAYS going to get it right, but God does see what our heart strives for and our intents.

Safe Haven

Have you ever heard that we moms are the heart of the home? That is a well-spoken truth, and exactly why we must set the example for our children of how they should live physically, spiritually, and emotionally. As I sit here and write, I am ashamed at how often I’ve gotten this wrong. I’ve flown off the handle more times then I’d like to admit. I’ve let fear surface in my heart of what could happen…..the what-ifs have played and replayed over and over in my mind and I didn’t recognize at the time that it was just Satan trying to keep me from what I was supposed to be doing.

Proverbs 4: 23 tells us to guard our hearts for it is the wellspring of life. As parents, we also have the blessed responsibility to guard our children’s hearts as well. If our children see our hearts as frantic fear mongers or bitter and hateful then that is what they will reflect. We can not allow Satan to paralyze us with fear. As mommy’s, God calls us to create a safe haven for our husband to come home to every day as well as for our children. I won’t pretend to have all the answers for this, but I will share what I have learned over time. How do we create a safe haven in our homes?

1. We pray and remain in God’s word daily!! We Welcome the sweet Holy Spirit to come in!! As Christians, He already lives on the inside of us, but pray that He will direct and guide you in every way concerning the home.

2. We tidy our homes to make it comfortable for everyone. No home is perfectly clean when children are in the mix, but it doesn’t have to look like a war zone when the hubby walks through the doors. We can teach our children to help in the toy pickup time. Family Teamwork while taking care of the home is of great importance.

3. Light a candle and make a good family dinner!!! When I think of a safe haven, I think of inviting good smells, food, and family time. Eat at the table together with your family. Sometimes we make the exception of eating in the living room, but most days that is our time to share our day and just spend time with each other. We all truly need that time together, and I hear that your children get better grades when they have family dinner time. It’s also a great relationship builder.

4. Play Praise and Worship Music throughout the day. Yall, this is a FAITH BUILDER!!! I am telling you that I know this from experience when we open our home to Jesus and glorifying Him, it truly does create an atmosphere of peace, love, joy, and freedom. Pray and declare God’s word while it plays and while you’re cleaning, and tending to the children. My little boy has been doing great with sleeping through the night lately, but there for a while, he was struggling with it. God spoke to my heart to leave the praise and worship playing in his room during the day, and it made the world of difference for him at night time. Seriously yall, when God is glorified in our homes, Satan can not linger around taunting us. He has to go! God’s PERFECT LOVE cast out ALL fear!!! (1 John 4:18)

Have you ever saw the movie, War Room?  Pricilla Shirer, closer to the end of the movie finally gets a hold of what the elderly lady had been trying to teach her throughout it, and she takes her authority in Jesus name and begins rebuking Satan and telling him to leave their home as he has no place there!! Here is the clip!!

When I first saw this movie, I cried, because I have done the VERY same thing at The Fowler home. My neighbors most likely thought that I was Cray Cray, but you come to the point when enough is enough and you finally do get down to business. As God’s daughters, we must take our authority In Jesus, Submit to God, Resist the Devil, and then he has no other option but to flee from us. (James 4:7)

Ladies, it’s time that we take back our homes by the authority of Jesus Christ. We can no longer sit back and allow Satan to TRY to steal, kill, and destroy what God is doing in our home lives. The Home is the first and greatest ministry that God gives to parents. If you’re in leadership at church, that is awesome….I am too, but there is no greater ministry then the lives that we lead in front of our children and spouse. They see the best and the worst of us. Let’s pray for our homes right now that we as parents would choose to walk out our faith to overcome our fears.

Dear Heavenly Father,
We thank you for our homes and family. Please forgive us for the times that we have fallen short and accepted fear over our faith. May your great love abound in our homes like never before. Change us from the inside out, and take away every spirit of fear. In Jesus name, we pray, Amen.

This Weeks Challenge: Implement the list above into your day and home life. Allow God to do a work that only He can. Ask Him for more wisdom on how to create a Safe Haven at home, and then be obedient to what He tells you to do. Let’s build up our faith by encouraging ourselves in the Lord by remaining in His word and in prayer.