Testimony

Growing up in a Southern Baptist church, I always looked forward to testimony service. It was the one time besides announcements and “the welcome” that the members got the mic. Depending on who got the mic, determined how entertaining the service would be that day. You never knew what people were going to thank God for doing, or even give credit to God for doing in their lives. As I grew older, I began to recognize the importance of sharing my testimony. It really wasn't me as much as it was to encourage those who hadn't made it to the testimony stage yet. They were just being tested. Every opportunity you are given to share what God has done in your life, do so. You never know how your testimony can bless someone else.

Advance

Isaiah 40:31 …but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

I’ve never been a runner or an athlete for that matter. I hated running laps in P.E. In fact, I do not like anything that involves sweating or exertion. I’ve always heard Isaiah 40:31 and wondered what it must be like to run and not grow weary. When Nipsey Hustle died, I kept hearing, “the marathon continues.” The work must continue. The legacy must live on. We must advance. Advance simply means to move forward in a purposeful way. Are you moving forward in every area of your life? Where are you stagnant? Why? What do you need in order to advance? The answer is to put your hope in God. God will renew your strength, and then you can advance.

Afterglow

There is nothing like a sense of accomplishment. Everyone needs to take a moment and celebrate small victories. I tell my kids on Friday, “you made it through the week.” I tell my co-workers, “we made it to Friday!” Sometimes, its just making it through that phone call, that difficult conversation, that appointment, that meeting or that moment. Life can be so intense. We need to breathe. We need to sigh. We need to relax. We need to unwind. The afterglow comes after we take that moment. Its when you look at the freshly cut yard. Its when you finished cleaning your home. Its when you've taken a shower at the end of a long , trying day. Bask in today’s accomplishments. Bask in today’s victories. Bask in today’s afterglow.

A Mother's Psalm

psalm- noun a sacred song or hymn, in particular any of those contained in the biblical Book of Psalms and used in Christian and Jewish worship.

If you've ever read the Book of Psalms, you know that the content ranges from joy to desperation. There are high notes and solemn ones. There are moments of encouragement and moments of despair and hopelessness. Motherhood has moments of pure bliss and confusion. There are days when it all seems like too much. There are days when we we feel like giving up, and there are days when we feel like its all worth it. A mother's psalm isn't always a  top ten hit. Sometimes, its another sad love song. And sometimes, its a reminder that you're every woman. A mother's psalm is whatever song you choose to sing. It's remembering that motherhood is not a singular journey. Its reminding yourself that you were blessed with a divine gift. A mother's psalm is your personal praise.

Restore

Joel 2:25-32 (NKJV) “So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame. Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel:
I am the Lord your God And there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame.

Profess

I want to tell you a story about a tin can. My husband and I had a friend of ours make us two custom cans with the names of our future kids on them. At the time, we were just dating. We knew we wanted to get married and have kids, but we just weren’t there yet. This can sat along side 4 other tin cans with our names on them. We celebrated anniversaries and other milestones and still the cans sat. We moved and packed the cans away without a second thought. The cans sat for years. Three to be exact. Then, on resurrection Sunday we pulled out one of those cans and stuffed it into an egg for a gender reveal.

Sometimes, we pray. We decree. We declare. We profess and nothing materializes. Our hopes and dreams sit on a shelf. We pack them away without of a second thought, because they just haven’t come to pass. Well, I’m here to tell you that one day you will unpack that dream. You will pull your “hope” off the shelf, and it will be relevant in due season. Just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it’s never going to happen. Just because you don’t feel it doesn’t mean that God didn’t hear you. Profess your heart’s desire. God is always listening.

Purpose

I can't imagine what God felt like to realize that he was born to die. We are all born to die, but to know that you will die tragically for a crime you didn't commit...that's hard. His death had a purpose. His pain was not in vain. His life was a ministry. Many of us don't understand why our paths have taken us through the valley instead of the mountaintop. We don't understand our pain. We don't know why we hurt or why we hurt others. Life seems like there is no rhyme or reason.

There is a purpose in every tear, in every misstep, in every mistake, and in every regret. There is a lesson in your heartache. There is a seed of maturity in the soil of your doubts and fears. There is a ministry in your series of unfortunate events. There is life in your spiritual death. There is purpose in your pain.