Just Cause

I’ve always loved words, which is one of the reasons I named my company Wordplay. I knew that depending on how you said certain things or the punctuation you used, could change the meaning of the exact same words. Just cause for instance could mean, just because. It could also mean a righteous pursuit or justified reason. We all seem right in our own eyes. We can always justify our actions.

After watching, “When They See Us,” I can see how everyone felt justified, yet it wasn’t true justice. Everyone had their reasons. Everyone had their excuses. Everyone had their perspectives and their biases. Personal motivation is a dangerous thing, and so is self preservation. We never really know what we will and won’t do until we find our backs against the wall. This is why it is so important not to judge, because everyone has just cause in our own minds.

Joy

James 1:2-4 Consider it nothing but joy, my [a]brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials.  Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace]. And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing.

Sometimes, its hard to see the good in everything. It’s hard to see the forest for the trees. Our challenges overshadow our faith. We have more frustrations than joy. I’ve learned that joy is a choice. Peace is a choice. We have to choose joy. We have to actively seek environments that feed our faith. We have to be mindful of who we are around. We have to guard our hearts and spirits. Today, my prayer is that you choose joy above all else.

It's going to be ok

Sometimes, we just need to hear the words. We need to know that our reality isn't always going to be our reality. We need to know that trouble doesn't last always. We need to know that everything is going be okay, no matter what it looks like. We need to know we aren't by ourselves in this struggle. Well, just so you know for your own peace of mind. It's going to be ok. 

This or That

I might be dating myself, but in the Fall of 1991, Black Sheep released a song entitled, “The Choice is Yours.” The hook was beyond catchy. The bridge still gets the party hyped, but the messaging is the same. The choice is yours. We will always have comparisons. We will always have options. You need to count the cost, weigh your options, and make the best decision for you. The choice is yours; You can get with this or you an get with that…

Too Late

We talk ourselves out of blessings. We declare that we've missed the mark. Despite the fact, we serve a God of second chances. We get discouraged by disappointment. We tell ourselves it's too late, when God whispers never. It's never too late to try again. It's never too late to start over. It's never too late to get it right. 

Too Little

We live in extremes. We go from hot to cold. We live in seasons of feast and famine. We teeter totter between wrong and right. The goal is always balance, but that requires preparation. What have we stored up? How do we live in lack? We know how to thrive in abundance, but how do we thrive in too little? The answer is not logical. In every biblical instance of lack and multiplication, there was sacrifice.  When Jesus fed the multitude, it was a boy who gave his last. When the widow was content with death, she gave her last cruse of oil. When Simon Peter was done fishing, Jesus told him to cast out his net. For some of us, the answer of how to thrive in too little is preparation. For others, the answer is sacrifice. Ultimately, we have to give what we have to God and let him multiply it. 

Too Much

1 Corinthians 10:13- There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

I think we have all had moments when we have questioned God. We felt like the walls were closing in on us, and it was all getting to be too much. We find ourselves in test after test with no room to breathe. We feel pressured. We get tired. We feel depressed. We feel like giving up, or maybe that’s just me. In these moments, I’ve learned to encourage myself. I remind myself that God will not put more on me than I can bear. I tell myself that God is faithful. I meditate on God’s word. Does it change my immediate situation? No, put it does change me. It helps me to stop operating out of my own strength and rely on God’s. So, when life feels like too much, remember there is always a way of escape.