Do What? Believe - Part 3

Copyright 2011 - Min. Deidre Campbell-Jones


Now, I mentioned in the last message that there were be 2 more messages coming, so today's topic is no surprise to me, but I didn't know how I was going to wrap an intriguing, informative message around "Belief".

But after yesterday and this morning, I can now say that today's message is inspired by 2 people: my son; and one comment by a girlfriend.  I hope my friend won't be mad, but you know what? I love her, and I BELIEVE enough in what I've learned to take the risk and say it, and hope she loves me enough to get over being mad at me!

I'm going to start with my son who is 6 3/4 years old.  On the way to school this morning, just rolling down the driveway, I heard him say from the backseat: "Turn with me to Matthew 21." Surprised, I chuckled and turned to look at him, and there he was with my big ole bible open on his lap.  Then he said, "No, I want to start with Genesis.  So he turned there and began to read...

"In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth..."  And, he read all the way down to the 11th verse.  I know because I had him repeat that he read "Genesis, one through eleven."

So then I asked, "what did those scriptures say? What did you learn from what you just read?"  And here's his phenomenal answer:

"I learned that whatever God says comes true."

Wow!  Amazing!  I asked what else he learned but be he insisted (in a deliberate and slow sentence), "I don't know what else I learned from what I just read."

But if we as adults and Believers could only learn ONE thing from the WHOLE bible, it should be that whatever God says comes true!  And that's what we need to believe about EVERYTHING we read in the word of God! God does NOT waste words!

Now I am NOT talking about "faith" - we, each one of us have been given a measure of faith.  We already have a faith that is pleasing to God.  And, we already have enough faith to walk on water, to move mountains, to heal the sick, raise the dead and cleanse the lepers.  We are of little faith, and that's good enough.

When the disciples said, "Lord, increase our faith," Jesus didn't answer with "Ok." He answered by saying "If you have the faith of a mustard seed you can speak to this mountain and say be ye removed into the sea and it should obey you."  Meaning, you don't need your faith increased - a little bit of faith is as powerful as it needs to be.

Now let me interject here because a preacher named Bill Winston, just came on TV as I was typing the previous paragraph, and in introduction to his show he just stated that the reason many Christians are not receiving their inheritance is because they are not believing God's word.  And then he said, "Faith doesn't have anything to do with it."

Now that's God! 

And let me tell you what else is God... (I have got TOTAL goose bumps right now!)  I didn't ask my son why he said, "turn with me to Matthew 21" this morning.  But just now the Holy Ghost told me to turn to the book and see what it said.  I came into the chapter from the back of the book, so when I got to chapter 21, I started at the end.  I didn't look at the verse, I just started reading the first writing in red, here's what it said:

"Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."

And when I looked at the chapter verse to write it here, guess what it is?? You can't guess, so don't try! It's Matthew 21:21!!

Wow, look at God working!  Do you believe God's word?

I'll ask again: Do you believe God's word?

No, do you really believe God's word?

No, you do not and I haven't either.  We think we do.  We assume we do. We say we do and even are ready to fight someone if they say we do not.  Ok, let's fight... because the things you have already received in life are proof of what you have believed - good AND bad.

Yesterday I heard Paula White say, "Your actions prove your belief."  I say, so do your words.

You have faith, I already told you that.  But you also have too much doubt to make your faith "substantial." Hebrews 11:1 says, "NOW faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." 

Your faith has been made unsubstantial, if there is no evidence of the things you have been hoping for.

Bill Winston just said, "Nothing can stop you but you."  I say, "Nothing can stop you but you're own mouth, your own doubt and your own unbelief."   Doubt makes your faith unsubstantial.  Release doubt and you will release the manifestation of your blessings.  It's not up to God to make the things you're praying for manifest.  It's not up to God to make your blessings manifest. 

What are you waiting on God for!? HE's WAITING ON YOU!!! 

Scripture says, those who "wait on the Lord will renew their strength and rise up like the wings of eagles." But it doesn't say "those who wait on the Lord will receive what they are praying for, hoping for and believing for." Waiting on the Lord only makes you stronger through the wait!

Many Christians (me included) always say they are believing God "for" something, like, "I'm believing God for my healing."  Bill Winston just said as I was writing that sentence that, "You need to open your mouth and tell the devil, 'I believe God's word, and His word says, "By His stripes I am healed and so in Jesus name, I AM HEALED!'"

I am not making this stuff up!  Me, God and Bill Winston are trying to tell you the same thing, right now!  In fact, Bill is closing his message and saying goodbye by reminding us of what Mark 11:23-24 says.  You can buy his message and verify what I'm saying for yourself - it's entitled "Receiving Our Inheritance," It is the 3rd installment in a series called, "Possessing your Inheritance."  But his program is over now, so it's just up to me and the Lord to finish out my message to you.

I am trying to expose the doubt and unbelief that is eating up your blessings like a worm in a garden; like locusts in a field.  You MUST perceive what your blessings are, believe that God's blessings are for you and learn how to receive those blessings.

You can call it a formula, a 3-step plan, power points or whatever you like.  But if calling "Perceive, Believe, and Receive," a "formula", turns you off so much that you can't hear it, understand it or follow it, then it doesn't matter what you call it, you will still be struggling to get your prayers answer and you will still be wondering why.

When you read Joshua 1:8 "This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate therein day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then you shall make your way prosperous and and you shall have good success."  You don't say, "Oh that's a formula - I can't do that, I don't believe those work."  But if you don't actually do all thost things in that scripture, then you are treating it like a formula that you don't believe will work.

You see, Joshua 1:8 IS a formula.  It's God's formula for success and prosperity.  And if you don't believe formulas work, then you will prove yourself right because your believe determines your prosperity and success.

Mark 11:23-24 is also a formula.  It's God's formula for having whatsoever you ask for.  And if you don't believe formulas work, then that very scripture will prove that you will have whatsoever you believe in your heart, and you won't receive what you're praying for.

Listen, I know that I only put this fully and wholly into practice between September 13th - September 16th. But just because I have only one testimony that this formula does work, doesn't mean that it doesn't really work or won't work every time!

On the 13th I prayed and asked God for a Ford Escape Hybrid (or what was most fuel efficient), and I made up my mind to believe that I would get it.  I didn't know when, where or how, but I refused to doubt.  On the 14th I confessed that belief to witnesses at church, and I refused to doubt.

On the 15th I decided to have a "crazy faith day."  But this time I not only had faith, but I specifically refused to doubt.  I squashed doubt and spoke my prosperity aloud all day - no matter how crazy I sounded.  I had exactly $0 in one account and $6 in another.  I transferred $4 over and yelled at the devil (laughing by the way) that I was walking in abundance and to leave me alone!  After the transfer I praised God (out loud) for His abundance and for the multiplication of my finances.

It was a battle, but I fought that doubt-infusing-devil with praise, worship and the word of God all day long.  Then on the 16th my mother called and said she'd told the Lord if she got a raise she'd use the extra money to by me a car. She then said she'd gotten the raise and for me to start looking for that "Ford, I'd talked about a year ago."  On the 19th I drove off the lot with a 2010 Ford Escape.

Now, you might say "Yeah but you had your mom buy your car - everybody don't have that."  No you're right.  But I didn't know I had that either when I decided to believe and not doubt.  My car came from my mother but my blessing came from God.  Her raise came from her job, but her blessing came from God.

She told the Lord what she wanted and whether she knew it or not, she had no reason to doubt it wouldn't be so.  I told the Lord what I wanted, and even with reason to doubt, I wouldn't let myself do it.

I don't care if your bank account says $0 - Get mad at the devil and yell at him, "Jesus, though being rich was made poor so that I could be rich and the blessings of the Lord makes me rich!"

I don't care if your credit score says 509 - Get mad at the devil and yell at him, "Jesus came that I can have life and have it more abundantly! I am walking in abundance!"

I don't care if you'd like to pay off your house but don't even know if you'll be able to make the next payment - Get made at the devil and yell at him, "God made me the head and not the tail, the lender, not the borrower! I will NOT lose my house and I WILL pay it off!"

I don't care if your body is wracked with pain and symptoms and the doctor's report is all printed out and official looking - Get mad at the devil and yell at your body, "Jesus is my healer and by His stripes I am healed! Pain, disease and sickness you must Go, right now in the name of Jesus!"

And I don't care what your emotions and feelings say! You CAN help your feelings, they do NOT have to control your reactions or your mouth! - Get mad at the devil and yell to your own soul (which is your mind, will and emotions), "I CAN do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me! And the joy of the Lord is my strength! I am walking in strength and joy in Jesus name!"

And then keep on yelling and reading God's truth until you believe it and do not doubt in your heart!

When Peter walked on water and then took his eyes off of Jesus and began to sink, he yelled out, Lord save me.  Initially he'd told Jesus, if it's you, Lord, bid me come.  And Jesus said "come."  Obviously Peter believed that he could walk on the water if Jesus said to come, because he did it.  But when he began to sink it was because he'd looked around at his circumstances - the howling wind and whipping rain - and he began to believe what his eyes were telling him.  Both times Peter's actions proved what he believed.  When he believed he could walk on water, he did.  But when he believed he would sink, he did.  And when he called to Jesus for help, they two walked back to the boat.

Jesus immediately saved him when Peter called out for help, but he said, "Oh, ye of little faith, why did you doubt?"  Peter already had a mustard seed of faith.  It was his faith AND his belief that held him atop of the water.  But it was his doubt and unbelief that caused him to sink.  Obviously Peter had faith because he did walk on the water.  And obviously Peter did have doubt because he started to sink. So you MUST know that you can have faith AND unbelief at the same time!

When I purposed in my heart to have faith and squash unbelief, my faith shot off like a rocket!  I promise you, September 16th was the day that I should have tried walking on water!

If you were drowning and I couldn't jump in the water to save you I would understand your panic.  But if you could hear me yelling, "Hold your breath, relax your body, and float to the edge!"  You would have to fight through your panic, fight through the feeling that you were going to die, believe me and try.

You wouldn't have time to yell back, "that's a formula, I don't believe in those!"  You wouldn't have a thought that that was too much to do and maybe you'd try just holding your breath.  And you wouldn't really yell back, "I'm already doing all of that, and it's not working!"

I'm not saying it would be easy.  I'm not saying you wouldn't feel scared, and still feel like you would die.  But if you had a tiny bit of faith that it might work, you might try.  But if you didn't believe it would work, your body would still succumb to those feelings and you still might panic and go right back to flailing and drowning.

I was drowning.  We were all drowning together.  I put the pieces of God's formula together and I tried. I held my breath, relaxed my body and I floated to the edge.  Maybe I'm still hanging on the edge and not out of the water yet, but the water is still rough out there! I'm not jumping back into the rapids of doubt to save you - I can't.  I won't co-sign and agree or commiserate with doubt because even though it was only one time, I have finally seen what faith and belief will do when there's no doubt holding faith back! 

And I'm yelling at you to try!

Get mad if you want to.  That's fine.  But if it still seems like I'm telling you way too much to do or I'm just spouting off a bunch of steps, acronyms and formulas, then ignore me and consider the words of a 6 year old boy: "WHATEVER GOD SAYS COMES TRUE."

If you believe that your health, your wealth, your house, or your spouse are true blessings from God then why would God be so cruel to take it away, or say you weren't ready for the blessing that he gave and let you lose it?  No, if you feel your blessing is dieing like a bad marriage, or stolen like poor health, or destroyed like bad credit then guess who is the culprit? Only the devil who only comes to steal, kill and destroy.

You are already BLESSED.  Now you need to know how.  Read His word and find out.
You are already BLESSED.  Now you need to believe it.  Read His word until you do.
You are already BLESSED.  Now you need to learn how to receive it.  Read the final message in this series.

Power, love and peace, ya'll -
~Min. Deidre

Do What? Part 2: Perceive

Copyright 2011 - Min. Deidre Campbell-Jones


In the last message: "Do What You Do" - I got feedback from one friend that it was a real "beat up" message.  And of course, that message was not intended to be a beating!

I mentioned that I've been hearing a lot of people saying they feel like they already are doing all that they're supposed to do.  And that's not meant to target any one person as if to say "You are doing something wrong." Absolutely not!

I am saying that in the last month alone I have heard 5 people say the same things.  That means people (myself included!) are feeling beat up already and at their wit's end as to what to do about it!

God feels our frustration! And, He's even more frustrated that our answers are here for us, but the "cares of this world" choke out the word like thorns choke out good seed in a harvest! (Matthew 13:19-23)  Verse 23 says: "But he that receives seed into the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; which also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundred-fold, some sixty, some thirty."

Joyce Meyer always says she wishes she could unzip people and pour the word down in them.  Well, I suppose if I could "beat" my friends with the word, and maybe give them some kind of spiritual amnesia where they would only remember God's word, that'd be awesome. But it doesn't work that way.  And I really don't want it to work that way.  I want us all to really get it without any beat downs from the world (our the word of God!) and get our blessings!

I was going to blog-on today and try to soften the blow of the apparent beat down in the previous message. But then I heard two messages this morning that said exactly what I wrote yesterday in "Do What You Do". And as I began to write God told me, "Don't ever apologize for the Word I give you!"

Well, I'd rather withstand getting beat up by my friends and loved ones than God, so I'm foraging on with part two of these messages: "Do What? Part II: Perceive"

Our blessings are no accident.  But yet, we have some unspoken list of possibilities and reasons why we haven't received the answers to our prayers.  They are ALL false!

• We do not skip through life on a wing and a prayer, hoping that we'll please God enough that He'll choose to bless us. 
• There is no formula for life, or prayer or the repentance of sin that acts like a combination lock, opening our blessings from heaven. 
• There is no check list of rights and wrongs that we must complete before God will approve of us and release our blessings. 
• We do not have to figure out how to increase our faith before God will manifest our blessings. 
• And finally, God is NOT waiting for us to learn how not to squander our blessings before He gives them.  He is NOT waiting and holding out on us because He knows we're not ready.

The meaning of "repentance" is to "turn away from."  And the mental picture you would have if you were a Jew and spoke Hebrew would be to "change your thinking."

We must repent and turn away from this list of thinking regarding our blessings and we must turn towards Kingdom thinking.  That's why Jesus constantly said, "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand."  Translated into today's understanding this would say:

"Don't think like the world, think like God because His Kingdom is in your control!"

Or... Romans 12:2 "Be not conformed to the ways of this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."  We are born into this world and from our first breath as infants we are trained and raised into the ways of the world.  It's all we know and understand.

But our understanding, and our perception of our blessings has to turn away from the world and turn towards the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. (Matthew 6:33)

Recently I was blessed with a new car.  I have been praying, asking and hoping for that particular car for a long, long time.  But getting blessed with the car was not an accident of timing.  I know my friends and especially my family are thrilled that this blessing has finally come through for me.  But that's just it, it didn't just "finally come through."  God didn't suddenly say, "today is the day, your lucky number was pulled in the blessing lottery!"  No, the truth is, I KNOW I have figured out some things, and I purposefully manifested the blessing of that car through what I've figured out.  And that is what I want to share with you in these next few messages.

I know it sounds basic, academic and too good to be true, but I have figured out what to "do."  Now, I'm not saying God has a check list of "do's and don'ts", before He'll  bless us, but there are do's and don'ts in the spirit realm just as there are in the natural.

We know in the natural we don't embezzle money because it's illegal.  We don't cheat people because it's immoral.  We do save because it's safe.  We do invest because it's smart.  These are the types of do's and don'ts I've figured out in the spirit realm. 

In the previous message I said the 3 main things we must do are to perceive, believe and receive. And, to "perceive" means to "understand". 

So, here's what we must "perceive" regarding God's blessings:
(I have scriptures for each item in this list so if you want them, let me know)

1. Understand that God has already provided everything we need for life and godliness.
2. Understand that we walked under the window of Heaven's blessings when we accepted Jesus by faith.
3. Understand that we release our own blessings from the treasures we store up in heaven
4. Understand that everyone has already been given a measure of faith and we are already pleasing to God; already forgiven and already called and chosen for a great and powerful purpose.
5. Understand that we are the seed of Abraham with the promise of receiving land, health, long life, riches, wealth, healing, prosperity, protection, wisdom and abundance in THIS life.
6. Understand that your needs are automatically provided and your wants and desires are to God's good pleasure to give you.
7. Understand that your blessings don't just go to you, they go through you. You are not blessed just so you can be made fat, but so that you can make others fat also. That you are not intended to just be great but to do great things for others.  It ain't about you (period). It's about you (and...)

God said he would supply all our need according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus.  This means that His riches for us already exist, and that by believing in Jesus we have automatic access to God's supply for our needs.  And there is no qualifier on what those needs are.  Whatever we need is what God will supply. 

When we focus on our needs through (ineffectual) prayer, and in striving to accomplish them in life under our own power, efforts and understanding we become "needful" like Martha regarding her sister Mary.  When we are needful, we are full of need.  When we strive for our need, we cancel out God's grace to supply our need.  It is the same counterproductive activity as when we strive for increased faith. Striving to increase our faith implies that we do not have enough faith.  Then when faith is required, we are burdened with a deep-seeded doubt as to whether or not we have enough faith to manifest what we are hoping for.  Doubt counteracts our faith. But when we have faith with no doubt pulling against it, we have no weight to keep our faith from accomplishing what we intend it to.  That is why Philippians says, "Laying aside every weight that so easily besets us..."

Imagine this for me:  Proverbs says our blessings are in Heaven.  Imagine a heavenly realm with all our blessings stored up in there.  Just for imagination sake, let's say there's a spouse, a house, kids, cars, land, property, job, career, a fat 401k, investments, businesses, jewels, good friends, travel and most of all - the greatest treasures of all - opportunities to save souls and deliver lives.

And underneath this heavenly realm is each one of us.  We each have a heavenly realm above us like a upstairs floor in the unseen sky above our heads.  And our lives are this linear path underneath.  Now above us, let's say in every year, there are periodic windows, or portals in which if opened the treasures above will pour out from the heavenlies into the natural.  And every year there are windows of opportunities for us to receive the blessings we desire.  If we do not walk IN GOD'S WILL, then we are not walking under these windows.  And if we are walking in God's will, then we can have access to the treasures He has laid up for us there.  Also, we are able to add to and store up those treasures in our heavenly realms through our prayers, words, tithes, offerings, gifts, seeds, and giving - all 7.

Each one of these activities: prayers, words, tithing, offerings, gifts, seeds, and giving, is like a key that will open the portal when we need it.  Faith turns the key and receives what is desired from that heavenly realm.  In the natural we follow Mark 11:23-24 and by faith it opens the windows of heaven and pours out what we are hoping for according to Malachi, chapter 3.

And if we follow these things - all these things - with no doubt, fear, strife or unforgiveness to counteract our faith, then it doesn't matter whether we are ready to receive our blessings or not.

Remember the prodigal son? He received his blessing before he was ready - before its time - simply by asking for it. And then he squandered it in sin and riotous living. But he came back to his father and still was given more! He wasn't punished by his father for squandering it! And the son who stayed home; doing what was "right" and what he "thought" was required of him was ticked off, demanding why he didn't get the same treatment as well. And the father told him, you too could have had it at any time.  But you didn't ask like your brother did.

It is in our relationship with God - our mutual prayer and communication, study in the word, wisdom and understanding - that we become ready.  But whether we're ready or not, our blessings will always follow the laws of prosperity just like our feet must follow the laws of gravity.

To perceive we must see something with the revelation of it's meaning and application. I can tell you what you must perceive, but you really have to read the bible, spend time in the word, spend time with God and be fed by a pastor in order to receive your own revelation and understanding.

I am not an ordained pastor.  But according to scripture a pastor is a person - given by God - to feed you with knowledge and understanding.  As your friend and loved one - that's really all I want to do - is to share with you the benefits of the knowledge and understanding I have received from God Himself.

Jesus said there are those who have ears, but do not hear.  I pray you "hear" this message because faith comes by hearing (not increases, but "comes", in order that your hopes would manifest!)  And Jesus said there are those who have eyes, but do not see.  I pray you "see" what I'm trying to convey in this message because God's word says to stand and "see" the salvation of the Lord.  And when you've done all that you can do, just stand.

So, what should you do? Do ALL that you can - no matter how much, no matter how hard - and then stand on the true, living and powerful word of God.

Power, love & peace, ya'll -
~Min. Dez

Do What You Do

Copyright 2011 - Min. Deidre Campbell-Jones


What are you doing?

What are you praying and hoping will happen to you and for you in your life?

What you are doing and what you are praying for are directly related and connected.  If you are NOT getting what you are praying for, what is it you are NOT doing?

Luke 6:47-49 says: "Whosoever comes to me and hears my sayings, and does them, I will show you to whom he is like: He is like a man which builds a house, and digs deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that hears and does not is like a man that without a foundation built a house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great."

Are you doing or not doing?

And if you are doing, what are you doing?

Do you feel like you are standing on a firm foundation, but then when "it" gets too hard, do you falter and shake, whither or fall - going right back to your old thinking, old decisions or old ways in which to run away from or "escape" the storm?  A firm foundation doesn't even shake the house - it goes through the beating of the stream!

See, I'm writing this message today because lately I have heard so many people (at church, friends and Christian associates), saying that they feel like they are doing what "they're supposed to," or doing "what God wants them to," or are "trying to do what's right," but they just are not getting the results they know God has for them.

And you know what?  I wasn't getting the results in my life that I knew God had for me either.

But I did know that I wasn't doing everything I could do, or all that I was supposed to do or all that God wanted me to do or all that God considered to be right.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like I was sinning or doing anything unrighteously - nothing like that at all.

But I knew something was missing.  I knew that if something wasn't working the way God said it should, then I wasn't doing something that God said I should.  I didn't say, "I feel like I'm doing that already."  Instead, I dug back into the word to figure out what I should or shouldn't be doing according to God's word.

See, Jesus is the Rock of our Foundation.  John 1:1 & 14 says, "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory as in the glory of the only begotten of the Father).  Jesus is the Word, and reading the Word of God (the Bible) is how we build our foundation firmly upon The Rock.

Let's think about dirt a moment.  Dirt (or earth) surrounds rocks.  It is made up of fine particles of soil, pebbles, gravel, sand and small rocks.  But it is not a rock.  If we equate the rock as the Word/word, then the dirt may be made up of small portions of the word, mixed in with other stuff, and therefore not as solid or firm as a rock.

Are you hearing and reading and believing the word of God for yourself, or are you basing the foundation of your belief with a shaky and shifty, second-hand, hearsay mix of a little bit of God's truth and a whole lot of worldly, natural facts?

Is your strong, unshakable faith in God mixed with (weakened by) what the world says, what your senses says, what your education says, what your intellect says, what your feelings say, what your eyes say, and what the people, doctors and news reports around you say?

What does God say?  You have to find out for yourself before you can actually do what God says.

Remember, the scripture in Luke says that there are those who hear the word and do it, and those who hear the word and do not do it.

If indeed you are getting your healthy dose of "daily bread", then are you eating that bread? Are you chewing and swallowing the Bread of Life everyday?

So often people get overwhelmed by God's "commandments."  They think, or even assume that it's all too much to do.  And preachers and teachers can inadvertently add to those feelings when we constantly say, "God wants you to..." or "You need to..." or "Scripture says you should..."

And you know, that may be true.  But I say, life is FAR more overwhelming than any list a preacher/teacher will give you to do from the word of God!

Yeah, there may be "a lot" to "do"such as: read, study, give, believe, love, forgive, meditate, pray, say, tithe, praise, worship and repent. (Breathe!)  But, all those things are encompassed in one overall commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind and all your soul, and love your neighbor as yourself."

Do you love yourself?  Do you love your neighbor? Do you really love God with ALL your heart, mind and soul? Do you really even know what that means or is it now just an empty phrase the same as saying you love your dog or your favorite food?

I know I may not be making many friends or keeping any friends when I say this, but if the itemized (and condensed) list of things to "do" is overwhelming to you, then you are essentially breaking the cardinal rule; the first and greatest commandment given by Jesus Himself.

Think about it this way: What if you developed a relationship with your spouse or significant other in the same exact manner as your relationship with Jesus?

• What if you learned about your spouse or potential spouse's background, life and interests with the same interest and dedication as you have in reading the bible? Same difference...
• What if you listened to (and followed) what your spouse wants from the relationship and how much they care about you the same way you listen to God when you pray?  Same difference...
• What if you only asked, took, demanded or even spoke to your spouse when you needed something or where in trouble the same way you pray to the Lord?  Same difference...
• What if you spent time with and enjoyed your spouse's company in the same way you attend church or even with the same frequency?  Same difference...
• What if you spent only one hour a week (maybe) in the company of your spouse and while you were there you were distracted, bored and in a hurry to be done the way you are in church? Same difference...
• What if you hated your spouses family and friends and didn't want to ever hang out with them - or even get to know them the same way you feel about fellowshipping with the body of Christ? Same difference...
• And what if you were truly intimate with the Lord the same way you were intimate with your spouse!? What!? Same difference...

Do you know how to be intimate with the Lord?

Do you even know what gifts God has for you and what promises he's made to you? Do you know what you have inherited as a child of God? Do you know that your inheritance is for this life and not just for the afterlife - eternal life?

Do you even know if what you want for your life is what God wants for your life?

We want, want, want so much from God; but give, give, give Him so little in comparison.

What are you doing (or not doing) to get the life you want?

God wants to give you what you want.  God says He will give you the desires of your heart.  He places the desire upon your heart and then He desires to fulfil that desire. God wants to give you what He's promised  to you, and in fact, He already has. 

Your blessings have already been given to you!

But God has also already established a way for you to get everything you need and the desires of your heart also.  The problem is, we either don't perceive; don't believe or don't receive them.

To "perceive" means to understand.  But how can you understand if you don't know?  And how can you know if you don't learn?  And how can you learn if you don't study? And how can you study if you aren't taught?  Scripture says it this way: faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. But how can they hear without a preacher and how can they preach unless they are sent?  It all boils down to hearing and doing - just like Luke 6:28 says. There is a missing link however. Believing must be mixed with the hearing and doing, hence: perceive, believe and receive.

1. If you want to perceive, or understand God's calling, purpose, promises, blessings, prosperity, abundance and health for your life then you have to read, study and be taught by a pastor and other believers.  It truly seems like such a small sacrifice to me, with the guaranteed promise of huge benefits!  Psalm 103:2 "Bless the Lord, Oh my soul, and forget not all of His benefits."

2. If you truly believe God's word for your life, you must speak it and never doubt it.  Faith mixed with unbelief only negates your faith and renders it powerless! Doubt is the counter-weight to the power of your faith. They are oil and water and will never mix!  Mark 11:23 "For verily I (Jesus) say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be removed and be cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that which he says shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he says." Don't doubt; and do believe!

3. If you want to receive God's blessings for your life you have to accept them with praise and thanksgiving! Any time someone blesses you with a gift that you really want, don't you say "thank you!?" Once you believe what God has for you then receive it like you would someone handing you a gift - say that you receive God's promises out loud! When you speak God's word from your own mouth, your own ears hear and your heart believes and your thoughts act upon those beliefs. Scripture says, "Out of the heart a man speaks."  You must speak the word of God that your heart believes.  Mark 11:24 "There for I (Jesus) say unto you, what things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them and you shall have them."

Now, you could choose to be like King Naaman (II Kings 5:1-14) who had leprosy and didn't want to do what the prophet told him to do to get healed.  Naaman thought he'd change the prophet's directions to make it more acceptable to him.  He figured the Jordan river was too nasty and it would be the same difference - or better even - to go either to the Abana or Pharpar rivers in Demascus.

I suppose you could modify what I've suggested you do, just as King Naaman attempted to do.  Or I suppose you could decide not to do all the steps above, just as Naaman could have decided to dip 5 times in the river instead of 7 like the prophet said.  But you know, I am not accountable for what you decide to do.  As a maidservant of the Most High God; ordained; consecrated and taught by Him, I am only held accountable for what I tell you according to the word of God.  And let me tell you, I wouldn't tell you anything if I didn't know it was of God Himself.

And I'll tell you this also, like I said before - I was guilty of thinking God's word wasn't working in my life the way the word said it should.  But instead of saying I was doing all that I thought I was supposed to do, I dug in, studied for myself, learned more, believed more, did more and doubted less.  And I stayed in it, prayed in it and praised my way through it.

And now I am receiving in the natural that which I perceived and believed in the spirit.

If you are continually confessing, "I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me," and "The joy of the Lord is my strength,"  then, get happy in Christ and get busy actually doing ALL those things Jesus says to do!

And don't tell me "it's all too much to do!" What if Jesus, said to you (regarding answering your long list of wants, desires and prayers), "it's all too much to do!" 

But the truth of the matter is, it's not up to Jesus anymore.  He's done all He's needed to do... He did it ALL on the cross over 2000 years ago! That's why He announced, "it is finished" BEFORE He hung His head and gave up the ghost! 

ALL the "doing" is now entirely up to us!

Personally, I don't care how long the list is. I'm doing all that Jesus says to do, and I'm going to receive all that my heavenly Father has for me in this life and in the next.

So, what about you? What are you doing?

Power, love & peace, ya'll -
~Min. Dez

Break Time is Over!

So, lately I've been needing a break.

I've been feeling like I just need a break from all the trials, tribulations and persecutions of life.  I needed a break from all my troubles.  I needed a break from all my cares and worries.

But instead of "casting all my cares upon Him, because He cares for me...
And instead of being "anxious for nothing because my Father in Heaven knows what I have need of...

I kept complaining, muttering and declaring that I needed a break!

Here's what I got instead:

• Two broken shoes in one month - and I have never broken a shoe ever before,
• Two broken car windows that now won't roll down,
• I broken laptop that I gave away, and now have to use the broken desktop w/no sound card,
• A broken ring I inherited from my late mother-in-law that now has 2 missing diamonds,
• 1 broken earring,
• And most recently, 1 broken strap on my LV book bag,

...and all since August.

Well, now I declare: BREAK TIME IS OVER!

Mark 11:23 and 24 says: "For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be removed, and be cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he says shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he says. Therefore I say unto you, Whatsoever things you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them."  Basically, we get what we say.
 
You know, we are created in the image of God our Creator.  We are created in His likeness.  And God SPOKE into being all that He created.  By that same token, we too create our lives into being by what we say.  Yes, our words have that much power.  And when we say things like "That just kills me," or "That chaps my hide," or "That makes my blood boil," or "Give me a break," after time, we get what we say.
 
Well, break time is over! Besides, think about it - even at work, when you take a break, you simply take a momentary respite and go back to the exact same thing you were doing before the break.  The concept is that we should step away from work to replenish, refresh and renew our energy and get back to it. It's time to do that with our words.  We need to replenish our words with good instead of negative.  We need to refresh our thinking and renew what we say.  If we're going to "re-do" anything at all we should focus on RE-JOICING!
 
That's right, to rejoice means to refill our joy!  And if we get what we say and we start speaking nothing but joy - what do you think our lives will become? JOYOUS!  Instead of a break, say "I need some JOY!"  
 
The end of Nehemiah 8:10 says, "the joy of the Lord is our strength." So, when you need strength to carry on; when you need strength to deal with your cares; when you need strength to ease your anxiety, you need to rejoice! That's what gives you strength. 
 
Easier said than done, right?
 
Let me borrow a bit of teaching and pass it on to you...  JOY is not an emotion.  It is not a feeling.  It is a power and a fundamental attribute of God.  "In His presence is the fullness of joy."  To get joy - or to rejoice, we must spend time in the presence of God.  And not just through praise and worship, but actually by reveling in the holiness of His nature.  Holiness is "wholeness" - revel in the wholeness of who God is.
 
I'll give you a hint.  Here are the 7 attributes of God I have researched:  God is TRUTH, Numbers 23:19; God is GRACIOUS and MERCIFUL, 2 Chronicles 30:9; God is MIGHTY, Job 36:5; God is RIGHTEOUS, Daniel 9:14; God is FAITHFUL, 1 Corinthians 1:9; God is GOOD, Matthew 19:17; God is LOVE, 1 John 4:8.  God is Holy - and when we focus on the wholeness of who He is, we are focusing on His holiness.
 
Bask in who God is.  Be still and know that He is God.  Revel in His abilities: Creator; Savior; Provider; Healer; Bridegroom; King... Eat lavishly of the fruit of His nature: wisdom, joy, peace, power and hope.  And guess what, since we are created in His image, we are created in the likeness of truth, grace, faith, love, wisdom, joy, peace, power and hope!  Now that is a refreshing better than any coffee break!
 
Break time's over - speak your peace and REJOICE!
 
Power, love & peace, ya'll! (2 Tim. 1:7)
~Min. Dez
 

The Attack-back 7 - Umoja Sermon 3

© 2008 by Deidre Campbell-Jones (AKA ~Min. Dez)

You have been wounded. You have been hurt. There is serious damage to your psyche, your soul, your being, personality and self-esteem. You’ve been so lied to about yourself and who you are, that now, you not only believe the lies, but you perpetuate them. You are hurting and it’s time to find out why.

The enemy has used your family, your friends, educators, lovers, bosses, co-workers, strangers and even yourself to shoot flaming, poisonous arrows at your self-worth, your spirituality and your life. He is out for one thing: to steal, kill and destroy. He will use any means necessary to steal your joy, kill your spirit and destroy any ability you have to live the life you were meant to. He will stop at nothing to steal you away from Christ; physically kill you dead in this separation and destroy any hope you may have of eternal life.

Many of his attempts to do this are benign, innocuous, overlooked and seemingly harmless – until we begin to turn our face toward God. As we become closer to the creator and the source of all life and hope, the enemy will up his efforts to end your life and make you feel hopeless. Then as you accept Christ as your Lord and Savior, realizing that there is no God but the one, true living God and that He was born of flesh, lived an example for us all as Jesus Christ, bled and died on the cross as the one pure sacrifice for our sins and then rose again so that we might have eternal life through Him – the enemy will balk and try to buck you off your spiritual high-horse with renewed effort, interest and vigor.

It is in this stage we find ourselves confused by the “new” God we serve. You see before coming to Christ – we all serve the enemy. He is a god we know and understand and are comfortable with. Then once we turn to Christ and our old god turns on us, we tend to blame the one true God for the new source of pain and trials in our life. Some even turn away from the Lord, convinced that all of their grief started once coming to Christ.

This is exactly what the enemy wants. He wants to lure you back into that easy way of life when he had you in his control and didn’t have to think about you. He didn’t have to cause damage to your life because your life was already lost and separated from God.

But the enemy is not that slick. “Greater is He who lives in me than he who lives in the world.” God is above whatever the enemy can throw at you. “You can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens you!” And no matter whether you are a new babe in Christ; just born again and still drinking spiritual formula or whether you have been weathered and aged in the scriptures, eating the toughest meat of His word – the enemy can launch a new attack (or revive an old one), and unless you know how he works you’ll be caught unaware, with no spiritual leg to stand on.

There are seven stages to this attack and your attack-back if you have enough fortitude to be aware of them:
1) Deny
2) Full-frontal blast, heavy damage sustained
3) Duck & cover
4) Stand and withstand more damage
5) Repel
6) Hit & miss
7) Charge and attack-back


1) Deny
The analogy: Until you get hit with the heaviest ammunition you can stand, you’ll deny you’re under attack. You’ll be seemingly oblivious to the fiery darts of the enemy’s lies whizzing past you. You may sustain surface burns and grazes but no serious damage until you feel the sting of shrapnel in a sensitive area. You may even undergo repeated hits to the same unhealed wound before you realize you’re under attack. But even then the damage may be so slight you will more than likely deny the true source of the attack. It is common that you may make up excuses or justifications for the damage done. You may even try to bandage up the wounds but in most cases, people just say “it’s nothing, it will heal by itself,” and leave the wounds open, exposed and prone to infection.

The reality: You may have been told you are worthless, stupid or ugly. It may seem as if everyone you come in contact with treats you as if you are incapable, ignorant and insignificant. Someone breaks up with you with a sneer of contempt; you are passed over for a deserved promotion, raise or job and your worthiness is never even considered. Friends forget your birthday, family members patronize you and strangers seem to take advantage of you. You’ll start to make a change in your life, start to accomplish something for yourself, start to act better, be better or even understand the Lord better and those closest to you will shoot you down. They think they know you or remind you of who you used to be. They’ll say you can’t start that business, can’t go back to school, can’t do that job, can’t be that person or can’t serve the Lord because of what you’ve done, what you do, who you were or who you are.

The Truth: These are the enemy’s fiery darts of lies and you are in denial as to the truth of their damage!

2) Full-frontal blast; heavy damage sustained
The analogy: Suddenly you notice after being hit once too often in the same wounded area that there is a tiny little dart impaled in an open, gaping wound of our soul. You pluck that arrow out and look for the source of the damage – you look to family, friends, coworkers, bosses, strangers and whoever else only to recognize soldiers in the army of your pain. But when you get too close to the general you find yourself staring back into the muzzle of an AK-47. You turn to run but it’s too late, you are hit square in the back and nearly too wounded to stand and run again before you are unbelievable hit again! The enemy is relentless!

The reality: You have made up your mind that you are not worthless, you are not hopeless and you do not have to live the lies all your life. You boldly confront your family, friends, coworkers, boss and even strangers with your new truth. Yes, you can start a business you tell the loan officer at the bank; yes you can go back to school you tell your friends; yes you can do the job you tell your boss, yes you can serve the Lord you tell your family. And when they jeer, sneer and snort with derision and contempt; when they dismiss you, dis you and miss you for that raise and promotion you dig in your heels, and make up your mind to take that next step and instead… your identity is stolen and your credit is shot, your student loan is denied and your transcripts are lost or worse you fail a class; you don’t get promoted you get laid off; and your ex shows up with the temptations of life and you find yourself wavering and easily slipping back into the old habits and ways.

The Truth: Life is no accident! Those struggles and pains are not proof of what you can’t do; they are proof that the enemy wants to keep you from accomplishing what God really has for you!

3) Duck & cover
The analogy: You run from the attack and duck behind the nearest cover of safety. All you need is time to recuperate from your wounds and reassess the situation. You realize you need a new battle plan and yet, you even contemplate retreat. This battle is more than you can handle – perhaps you are outnumbered and out gunned? Perhaps you are not equipped to even fight, let alone win. You are about ready to raise up the white flag and give up the fight for good.

The reality: Retreat is exactly what you do. You stop trying. You stop talking to family and friends and probably even stop talking to God. You keep your head low at work (if you still have a job) and just “Yes, Ma’am” your way through to a peaceable day. You do just what you need to do to stay under the radar and avoid detection. All the while you are confused and on the verge of tears. Life seems hopeless. You consider maybe those lies are true. You become depressed by the possibility that they really are true. You’ve given up the fight, you’ve given up hope and very nearly you wish that some how you could give up on life as well.

The Truth: Remember I said the enemy wants to kill, steal and destroy you? Depression and thoughts of “disappearing” or worse – even suicide are the enemy’s fatal attempts to succeed. If he can separate you from God, separate you in the midst of your sins and then kill you dead in your grave – he has won, and that is his only goal. He will not stop until he can accomplish that – but he can’t do it unless YOU let him! Give into depression and you are giving him permission to take your life!

4) Stand and withstand more damage
The analogy: And so somehow you get a glimmer of hope – your life is not over yet, there is something left to live for and you are better than that. You stand, ready to jump back into the fight, but still you are out numbered and out gunned. But this time you look the rifle down the barrel and you take the hit. Low and behold, you didn’t die! And so you take another hit. The hits keep coming and yeah, they hurt, yeah, you even think you will die – but amazingly you do not, no matter how much the bullets keep flying. You continue to stand and take it.

The reality: You can call it rebellion or grace or maybe just an encouraging word from a loving friend, a Sunday sermon or an angel of mercy. Slowly but surely you’ve decided you will not let the enemy have his way… your family can believe what they want to about you, your boss can promote that person with less experience than you – he’ll see the truth soon enough. Your friends can betray you – it’s their loss and that boyfriend, well you don’t need him “no how.” And yet they keep talking about you, crap still happens to you, the fiery lies of the enemy are still being hurled at you… but low and behold, you really aren’t dead yet! Yeah, it hurts, yeah it’s wrong, but even you are amazed you are still standing and withstanding all that mess!

The Truth: You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you! God does not want to see you fail or falter! And just like the poem, “Footsteps” God is carrying you through even when it doesn’t feel like it or seem like it.

5) Repel
The analogy: You are buoyed and encouraged by the renewed strength but when you get tired of being hit you reach out and realize like an old Kung Fu movie you have snatched one of the enemy’s arrows out of the air before it hit its intended target. And you look at it with bewildered amazement. Try it again you tell yourself. And sure enough, you catch another one. Then you bat one away, then you knock one down. Those fiery darts can’t land any more! Each time one misses its mark you are encouraged all the more! Your back is straighter, your shoulders are squarer, and you are empowered!

The reality: One day you are tired of your mother’s criticism and before you’ve even thought about a response you find yourself telling her for the first time, no - she’s wrong, you have changed and will continue to change for the better, even if she can’t see it. What? Where did that come from? You find yourself standing up to your boss, and meaning it. You find yourself defending those unwarranted overdraft charges at the bank and they remove them, depositing back your money. Some how life is turning around and you feel stronger, invigorated, and hopeful and yes, empowered to be the person you know you can!

The Truth: Truth is sinking in. You are beginning to see yourself through God’s eyes! And what God sees in all of us is a capable, beautiful, wonderful creation! His creation, created in His own image! Now you are realizing you have to defend that image, protect it and nurture it!

6) Hit & miss
The analogy: You are so encouraged by the deflection of the enemy’s attacks that you delve into the armory, pick out your own weaponry and attempt to launch a defensive strike. The attacks keep coming and you fire back. You keep firing but your shots don’t land. You consider whether or not you were really meant to be on the front lines. It’s too late for target practice – it’s either hit or miss and it seems all you can do is deflect the enemy’s hits and miss your own.

The reality: You’ve made up your mind! You’ve gone to God’s word, you’ve read Psalms 139 and you believe God’s promises for you. You know God loves you because He’s brought you this far. He’s kept you even in the midst of trials and tribulations and you know He will never leave you or forsake you. You take the knowledge of that truth and you hurl it at your attackers who laugh in your face. You are determined to show them that God does have a purpose for you, but even you begin to wonder. The more they laugh the more you consider what if they are still right even after all this.

The Truth: You know God loves you and has a purpose for you, but your flesh still tries to tell you otherwise. You’ve seen proof of God’s love but the truth is you still haven’t seen enough proof of the truth you feel for your own life. You are really beginning to wonder if you can walk by faith and not by sight because what you see still ain’t right!

7) Charge and attack-back
The analogy: Hold up, wait a minute! You realize you have been a foot soldier trying to defeat the general! You realize you need a General of your own and you go to the Master for the master plan! He gives you whole armor of God; He gives you weapons of mass destruction and He gives you the keys to the Kingdom! This battle is not yours to fight it’s His and His alone! And with His covenant you can send the Lord into battle for you! That’s your armor, and that’s your best weapon! God’s got your back and He charges into the fray ahead of you! The battle is still vicious but the taste of victory is already sweet!

The reality: Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world! You realize there is nothing any man (or woman) can say or do to you to change the fact that God loves you, God wants you to succeed and God’s got it all under control! You cast ALL your cares on Him and find out; God is faithful to keep His promises! The devourer is defeated before you. Your enemies don’t have a leg to stand on. The attacks keep coming but you see them for what they are now: weak and ineffectual. The enemy is using the sins and weaknesses of others to play upon your own sins and weaknesses. You pray for those who come against you and watch as roaring lions become like mewling kittens, and their jagged claws become meaningless scratches.

The Truth: God has not given the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind! What is there to fear but fear itself and God said fear not. When you see God in the midst of all you do, when you ask God into the midst of all you do, there you will find the God in you! And through God, there is nothing you can’t do!

Graspers! Umoja/Sermon 2

© 2008 by Deidre Campbell-Jones (AKA ~Min. Dez)

I've realized that I've spent most of my adult life grasping at life. And, like a kid in a bet, grasping at straws, I keep pulling out the short end of the stick.

Then it dawned on me that there are probably a lot of us "graspers" out there. Some grasp at love, or acceptance or security; notoriety or career. Yet others may be like me - grasping at several aspects of life aspects all at once - because for me career and acceptance seem to be inseparable.

There are even those who grasp at religion or grasp at faith like life-vests thrown from several different ships - not knowing which one came from the ship that will take them home. The Bible calls these individuals "searchers" and some of these searchers believe in an "unknown God." You know them as well as you may know yourself. A searcher is reluctant, almost adamant about not being an atheist, but is comfortably agnostic with phrases like "I'm very spiritual".

A spiritual searcher is touched by the spirit of God, the force of a "higher power"; angels as protectors, and mystical forces that compel the "universe" is if it were a sentient being. You can recognize these searchers through comments like, “angels are watching over me” and “I’m not going to put that out into the universe.” Both comments have nothing to do with Christ and are misleading as to the true spiritual nature of the speaker.

You can also recognize a “Life Searcher” because we tend to wander aimlessly from job to job, career to career and seem flaky, unfocussed, indecisive and almost incapable of managing our own lives. Some may actually be recognized as brilliant, talented, capable or smart - but their lack of any substantial life roots may negate what they are truly able to accomplish.

Put them both together and you've got a "grasper" of exponential proportions - an individual who is lost, lonely and confused in their own skin. This is an extreme case for sure, but all of us at one time or another has lived within some area of our lives on a “grasping” scale from mildly hanging on to scratching and clawing.

And no matter what range you or I fall within, there is just one rope to hold on to.

Many of us are lost when it comes to true biblical spirituality because we cannot grasp the fact that God loves us. We cannot grasp that fact that a loving God would “let” so many terrible things happen. We have difficulty grasping the Word of God. We have difficulty relating to such spiritual mumbo-jumbo as a God who became a man by being born of a virgin, dying on a cross and then being raised from the dead. We have a hard time grasping that this person would forgive us – or even that we need forgiveness in the first place – after all, we’re good people, we try to be kind to others and do what’s right – how could a loving God send a person like that to hell? And speaking of hell – that’s another subject we have a problem trying to grasp.

Setting all that aside, however, and no matter what we do or do not believe, I believe the biggest challenge for everyone is grasping the fact that God does have a purpose for lives – that there is a higher purpose for each and every one of us.

So grasp onto this: God is a loving God and God loves YOU! How do I know He loves you, even though I don’t know you? Because God loves me and you don’t know the kind of life I’ve lived or what I’ve done either.

Grasp onto this: God gave all mankind free will. We have the freedom of choice when it comes to loving Him, choosing Him and believing in Him. And God does not take away the choice of anyone to choose sin. Sin and the destruction of this world are not because of God they are because of the sin of mankind – a mankind that chooses not to accept God. You see, the definition of “sin” is separation from God.

Now grasp onto this: A loving God does not "let" such terrible things happen - mankind does. It started from the dawn of mankind in the Garden of Eden – man chose sin over God, evil over good, death over life. It was like the opening of “Pandora’s Box”. We chose to open it and closing it now is too late – sin and evil have been released into the world. So what’s the alternative? God can help us navigate the mess of this world. God still loves us enough to help us through the sin of our lives, the sins in our lives and the mess we’ve created of his beautiful creations.

Oh yeah, grasp onto this too: God created us and loves us. He made you the way you are for a reason! He did not create you as a sinner; you were born into sin, born of flesh – a flesh corrupted by sin. But God is a deliverer and a restorer! He wants to restore you back to His original grace! He will deliver you from your sins no matter how terrible you think they are and he will restore you back to the beautiful creation you ARE. You see, God sees you as beautiful and wonderful! Why? Because He’s already forgiven you! Psalms 139 says we are fearfully and wondrously made! God doesn’t make mistakes, people do! You are not a mistake!

And there’s one other thing I want you to grasp onto: Psalms 139 also says that God has a purpose for you! He has a plan for your life – and trust me, it is wonderful! Beyond what you can imagine! How do I know? Because God had a plan for my pitiful, jacked-up life that I had messed all up and let others mess up for me, and once I discovered that plan I realized it was more wonderful and more phenomenal than anything I could have imagined for myself!

But first I had to learn to see myself through God’s eyes. Then I had to believe in what I saw through God’s eyes. You see, it’s been too many years I believed the enemy’s lies about me. You know those lies – you believe them about yourself too. You’ve heard them through family, through friends, through lovers and spouses. You’ve heard them through bosses, through potential bosses and employees that wanted to be bosses. You’ve heard the lies all your life and now you tell them to yourself – just like I did. You’ve believed the lies for so long that it’s hard to even recognize the truth and the truth becomes a lie to you. That’s how the enemy wants it – to keep you separated from God, separated in your sins and as good as dead.

But if you can grasp onto nothing else, then grasp onto this – you are not the sum of all your parts. You were created in the image of God. And that image has been covered, masked, concealed, warped and twisted into an unrecognizable shape by pain, heartache, sickness, struggle, evil and the stench of death from the pit of hell. For most of us our lives have been a living hell at one point or another and we can’t even imagine there is a heaven here on Earth – a heaven that is meant for us to live. Abundant life – isn’t that the after life?

No, the promise of abundant life was meant for you and me, right here and right now. Come to the Father – whether you recognize Him or not. He recognizes you! Grasp on to Him as tight as you can! You’ve got to hold on tight because the enemy will try to strip you away with those same old lies you are comfortable hearing. Just hold on to the Father and let him strip away the pain, the heartache, the sickness, the struggle, the evil and especially the stench of death from the pit of hell! Let God replace that stench with the sweet savor of life!

Let God help you see your own life as a sweet incense unto Him – Grasp onto God and let Him wipe the fog from your eyes so you can see truth, hear truth and even taste the truth! Taste and see that the Lord is good!

Continue to be a grasper and grasp onto God!

Plansational! - Umoja/Sermon 1

© 2008 by Deidre Campbell-Jones (AKA ~Min. Dez)

There is a life that all of us want. No matter who we are, how we were raised, how much money we do or do not have and even what race, ethnicity or country we claim.

We want love. We want safety. We want the basic comforts of life – home, food, clothing, and warmth from the cold. And, I believe there are certain luxuries of life that we all want as well. For some the list may be short, for others a bit longer. But deep within I think there is a neglected, hidden, suppressed and/or unacknowledged hunger or yearning inside us all to accomplish something of our lives and selves.

Some people have recognized this yearning seemingly from the onset of their lives and set out to accomplish it – and many have, I’m sure. You can look at people in your life, celebrities and personalities in the media and notice them right away. They are the ones who seemed to have had an inkling they were meant for greatness and stopped at nothing to be great and push for greater. Or they may even be that teacher, friend or family member who simply made up their mind what they wanted in life and methodically went about accomplishing that with a contentment and determination that has obviously prevailed.

I think even of women in India and Africa – two poverty ridden countries with hardly an ability to accomplish, have or be anything other than to stay alive from day to day. And yet in one country a woman’s deepest, deepest desire for herself is to be the kind of breadwinner and mother that can provide a safe home and enough food for her family. She longs to be good enough at something, or able enough at any thing to do this for her children. Conversely in another country, a woman with (what would be considered “nothing more than”) a single room hut with a dirt floor, a bit of corn meal and goat’s milk; is proud of that hut because she built it herself and is content with life as she knows it because of the goat she owns and the care she’s able to give her family because of it.

We all want something out of this life we have been given – we all want to be something. Even the most evil being, the most selfish, uncaring parent, the most driven and angry individual still has the same source of desire behind what they do or do not do in life.

And so for those of us who are good, fair, decent and trying to do the right thing in life, what hope is there for us as we look upon those who seem to have it all together and seem to have accomplished that innate desire to be exactly who they are meant to be? We may wonder if there is any hope for us at all. I know I have.

I have wondered if it was simply fate – that some people were destined to be great simply because of some cosmic luck of the draw or divine destination. I’ve compared them to grains of sand that were “blessed” enough to be on the surface – exposed to the warmth of the sun, the constant wash of the sea and the appreciation of all who gazed upon them. While I was forever banished to the dark, lonely, murky and uneventful layers underneath them. Too deep to even be dug up and possibly used for good – like building a sand castle of purpose that would finally expose me to the surface.

I have also wondered if there was some unknown decision, word or thing I did as an impetuous, head-strong youth that had messed it all up. Was it that time I shook my fist at God without having known Him at all? Did I piss Him off and seal my fate right then and there? Or maybe it was that audition I blew off because I was tired and weary of the possibility of being rejected once again, or that interview I purposefully blew simply because I didn’t like the environment or the person I might work for?

Somehow I’ve been sure that either I missed my chance to be somebody or it was never meant for me in the first place. And yet even with that prevailing thought, I’d still always been left with the aching desire to accomplish something. I’m sure I have prayed a 100 times that if it wasn’t meant to be then why didn’t the Lord remove the desire from me? Yet even in the midst of praying that prayer, I still hoped it wouldn’t be so. I hoped beyond hope that there was something meant for me even while wondering if there was any sense in hoping at all.

Well, after way too many years wasted in hoping, I have finally – finally learned that there is hope and it comes in the form of a plan!

Proverbs 16: 9 “Man devises his plan, but the Lord directs his steps”

In one little scripture, just a few words long, I found hope enough to fill a universe! How had I missed it? Not just in God’s Word but in life itself? It seems so simplistic, so obvious and so much like what my own mother and father should have said or were trying to say… why didn’t they say it as plain and as clear as this to me every day of my life from the first day I entered school!?

But I was in my 40’s, already married (twice) this time with a loving and wonderful husband and finally the mother of my first child. You would have thought I’d already discovered this simple truth by the way my life looked on the outside. But on the inside I was an empty, purposeless wreck! And my single driving, motivating factor to find something to fill the empty me within was that I didn’t want my new son to one day learn the truth about his mother.

I had been filling in a memory book for him and got stumped on the line: “What does your mother do?” What did I do? Who was I? Was I to put “stay at home mom” when my heart longed for so much more? Did I put “business owner or entrepreneur” when I’d never made any money at all from my well intentioned business ventures? Did I put “writer”, even though I wrote my butt off only to fill a 4-drawer file cabinet with my efforts?

In order to fight the depression that was looming, I turned to the book of Proverbs for answers. And let me tell you, I hand wrote down every single scripture that might possibly be an answer!

I went to the book, looking for scriptures on business, on accomplishments and on life purpose. I didn’t know if they would help me find what I was looking for but I was determined to somehow find what I was looking for!

It would be cool if I could say that after 16 chapters of this, I landed on the 9th verse and instantly saw the light. But the truth is I methodically stuck to my goal – not really reading or comprehending the words, but skimming them for signs of what I was searching. Once I saw a word, like “plan” or a phrase like “devises his plan”, I wrote the scripture down and went on to the next.

Once I’d completed the whole book, I went back and read the scriptures, highlighting those I thought were applicable to me. Step two still did not reveal that awe inspiring tingle of revelation when I came across verse 16 and 9. Again, I had a purpose – to weed out what didn’t fit. And I did this at the expense of still not fully understanding what was applicable about the scriptures I left behind that might fit.

Finally, step three. I analyzed each left over scripture. I studied each one in depth for understanding and application before moving on to the next. And, because this process was so involved, it took me several days before I got to the chosen one. And because the enemy is hard at work trying to keep us all from discovering that we are indeed purposeful, meaningful, worthy beings in Christ, I must admit I didn’t recognize God’s truth in this scripture at first. I told myself I needed to complete all of them and be thorough in order not to miss anything – in order not to miss my blessing of truth.

Well, I didn’t. Somehow God is always able to whisper through the screaming lies of the enemy. And the truth of the matter is – God wants to bless us! (Malachi 3:10) and His greatest blessing to us is for us to know how wonderful each and every one of us is (Psalm 139:14-17). Even more importantly He wants to give us the desires of our hearts (Psalm 145:18-19), and the way He chooses to do that is through us and the things we decide we really want to do (Proverbs 16:9).

Malachi 3:10 says: Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

God is testing us – challenging us and giving us an “I double-dog dare you” to try me right now and “prove me now herewith.” And just what is it he wants us to prove and see if he’ll really do? He wants us to see if He won’t open up the windows of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there won’t be enough room to hold it. The only provision in this scripture is to tithe – bring all the tithes into the storehouse. Simple – regular, consistent, cheerful and generous tithing.

The problem with this is that we don’t believe God will do this for us. And it’s not so much that we think God is a liar – not at all. It is because we are somehow convinced - usually because of past experience – that we don’t deserve God’s blessings and that this promise is not meant for us. We have the proof – we’ve never received the blessings of our heart before so why now?

The answer is because we don’t feel worthy of God’s blessings and we don’t know the heart within us that is worthy of God’s blessings and why. But we are worthy and the reason why we’re worthy is because God doesn’t make junk! We are His amazing creation like an artist who creates a masterpiece and the owner is the only one who hates it, despises it and thinks it so ugly we hide it in a closet – never fully appreciating its worth and beauty.

Proverbs 139 verses 14-17 say “I will praise You; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are Your works; and that my soul knows right well. My substance was not hid from You, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes did see my substance, yet being un-perfect; and in Your book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. How precious also are Your thoughts unto me, O God, how great is the sum of them!”

Simply put, God loves us. He knows our very soul, every hair on our heads and the desires of our hearts. And, He loves us anyway! He created in each of us a beautiful, capable being with a specific purpose for each and every day of our lives. And, he thinks so much of us that he wants us to fulfill that purpose. He wants to bless us with the purpose of our lives. An abundant life here on Earth! We are worthy of His blessings, simply because he loves us enough to bless us!

Accepting this is not easy though. I went through an exercise once in which I would rather stand in the mirror and cry rather than look myself in the eye and say “You are beautiful. You are a marvelous creature in Christ and you are worthy of His love!” It took me two weeks or more before I reluctantly did it. It has taken me two years or more before I’ve finally believed it. And because it took me so long to believe it, it is only just now that I have been receiving the blessings promised to me in Malachi.

Almost exactly three years ago, I had a dear woman, whom I have still not met face-to-face tell me that the book of Malachi was a challenge for us to “pray big”. We have heard the verse “ask and it shall be given, knock and the door will be answered,” but we knock too tentatively to be heard and we ask so hesitantly I’m sure that its not given until we ask boldly enough to believe we will get.

Think of a father and his young son. The boy says “Dad, I want a bike” and the father says, “Keep your grades up, keep your room clean and stay out of trouble and maybe for your birthday, you’ll get a bike.”

You know that father really wants to give the bike to his son. And that son is then determined to play by the rules, stick to the guidelines and get that bike. The closer it gets to his birthday; he is more and more confident that he’ll get it, simply because he knows he’s done all that was asked of him.

It is with that same mentality that God wants to give us the desires of our hearts.
Psalm 145 verses 18 and 19 say, “The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.”

As believers we are the children of God. And like children we can call out for our Father in Heaven and He’s right there with a spiritually comforting “Yes, Child. What can I do for you?” And if we know the truth and trust the truth of promises in God’s word we can ask of Him in confidence. It is the same kind of confidence that the child has in knowing that if he screws up, he’s going to have to suffer the consequences. And this scenario, the consequences are simply obstacles to our blessings. In truth, we don’t get blessed and we can’t receive our blessings because of the obstacles we place in our own lives through ignorance, neglect, fear and lack of faith. And all too often the deepest desires of hearts fall to the wayside simply because we do not acknowledge them, ask for them, think we are worthy enough to get them and do not know how to get them.

So, here’s how to get the desires of your heart: “pray big and dream bigger.” Make a plan for your life as big as you can envision it and pray boldly asking the Lord, that if you promise to do your part – tithe, and honor him through the person He created you to be, would he please give you the desires of your heart - name them, envision them and spell out a detailed a plan for getting them. Then watch and see if the Lord doesn’t guide each step you make toward accomplishing that plan.

Proverbs spells it out in more ways than one. 16:3 says: “Commit your works unto the Lord and your thoughts will be established.” And 16:9 says: “Man’s heart devises his way but the Lord directs his steps.”

Are you ready to be lead? Are you read to get to a destination where your dreams come true and you feel worthy enough to live the live you’ve always wanted? Then trust in the everlasting promises of the Lord’s word. Make yourself a plantastic goal and get ready to live your life plansationally!