My Crazy is Real

Today I will start the blog a little differently. I’m starting with the story. This story will show carelessness at its best. The story comes out of the book of Exodus 32. The children of Israel where the wilderness waiting on Moses who was at the top of Mount Sinai talking with God. Now God had shown his love for the children of Israel by delivering them out of the Egyptians. He did not allow the 10 plagues that he placed on Egyptians to affect his people (Exodus Chapters 7-12). He delivered them for the hand of Pharoah and his man as they were going to the land flowing with milk and honey by drowning them in the Red Sea (Exodus Chapter 13-14). Once in the wilderness, they cried out to him for food and he rained down manna from heaven (Exodus 16). God even gave them his  Ten Commandments as a law to govern his people  (Exodus 20). They had just received the Torah and  40 days out of Egypt with Moses taking too long to God that they made a request rather a demand on Aaron, Moses second in command and his brother. They wanted an image that they could follow. They became careless. Their carelessness will cost them their lives.

Their carelessness was forgotten that God loved them. They forgot that they cried out to God to be free from the Egyptians and he did it. They forgot that God kept them while the ten plagues hit the land. They forgot God walked them out of Egypt with gold, cattle and all the owned and even some Epygtians stuff and Pharoah did nothing but let them go. Even when Pharoah came for them God delivered a million people across the dry Red Sea and then drowned Pharoah and his men. Doesn’t that look like love? 

He did not finish there. He fed them with manna from heaven. God covered them with a cloud by and night. He kept his people when others could have killed them. So why did they think a Golden Calf would help them?

         WHAT IS YOUR GOLDEN CALF?

What is your golden calf? What is the thing or things that are taking the place of God’s love? Most of us would not look at it that way but that is what it is. If we are not fixed on God we are fixed on something. Often time this happens when we are going through a hardship. When things are not going the way we want them to and we mistakenly believe that God is not with us. That he has turned his back on.That he has left us alone and/or forsaken us.  This is not true. Actually, God is there watching everything. God is right there loving on you. He is right there directing you. He’s right there counseling you. He’s right there guiding you. We need to feel and see everything right now. We need God to show himself in a human way in every moment of our lives. That why we have a terrible tendency not trusting in his love for us.  That why I say carelessness kills.

Carelessness will kill us

 Carelessness leaves us in a place where we can’t comprehend, grow or see. Jesus spoke on this with the seed parable (Matthew 13). Then we will become resentful. We condemn God for not being there for us. We call God an absentee Father and then we acted like we are orphans. We go out looking for other things to replace God.   The Israelis used a golden calf. How many of us have a Golden calf in our lives? How many of us have replaced God with a thing? We replace God with your jobs, with money, or a house.  We replace God with social media likes and love. We want to be influencers on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. We have replaced God with people. We want people to like and love so bad that we will do anything and everything to get that temporary like or love. We replace God with places. We want to go here and go there and I want to do this and that in this new place. We’ve never contended or happy with where God has us. What God really wants us to be. What God desires for us.

As I finish this, My goal this year is teaching on being careful. You  know I got another acronym for you and here it is :

Caring

About

Real

Effective

Freeing

Unbelievable

Love   

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The love of God is right there with you every day. Every moment of the day.  God cares for you (1 Peter 5:7) God is about his business which is you (Luke 2:49). He is a very real living God (Jeremiah 10:10). He is effective in freeing you (Joh 8:36).  He’s unbelievable  (Luke 1:37). Last but not least, he is love (1 John 4:8). He is looking out for you in ways you will not know until you reach heaven and see the reel of your life played back to you. God’s love surrounds you in such a way that even the devil has to ask permission to touch you. He loves was a lamb sacrificed on a cross so you can become his child (John 3:16). We are now heir with  Jesus (Roman 8:17) and we can go to the throne of grace and ask for help (Hebrews 4:16).

 My sisters in your pain you may have forgotten that God loved you and your carelessness may have led you down the wrong road. I ask you to turn around and come back home. He is waiting for you. Just like the prodigal son’s father ran to him God will come for you. He probably already has because you are reading this blog. My sisters be careful with your life. It was worth saving.

The month of Septemeber will be the first month where I will deal with more that one subject. I will talk about strength and showing up. I believe they go together. Your strength comes from three places, God, you and others. This is like the accountability circle I talked about in August. God will always come first but this time you are second and others are last. The Bible has many scriptures that refer going to God for strength or he is our strength. I will use the scripture from Isaiah 40.29.  

They define strength as the capacity of an object or substance to withstand great force or pressure:. This is a what we go through daily.   Pressures that come in the form of marital issues, teen peer pressure, a bad health diagnosis, loss of a loved one, loss of a job you have worked at for years and the list could go on and on. The great force or pressures in our lives would take over us if it wasn't for God's strength,  We would give up and check out. We wouldn't get up in the morning, go to work or be there for our families. In verse 29 it says He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. God shows up to be a support system when it would seem we do not have one. He will assist us when we are faint. When we are drained of all of our strength. He gives us power. The ability to move forward even when we don't want to. He allows us to move little by little. Grace and mercy are there following us so no one gets to close behind us to push us over the edge. Your might have left you but he will increase you. 

God will give the words, people and rest to make it through. 

When my son passed I don't know how I could handle that trauma. I was 20  and my son died at 2 years old on Thanksgiving day. I need God more than ever but instead; I rejected him. He hurt me.  How could a  loving God take my baby away?  God didn't get mad at me but strengthened me. He was keeping me when I did not want to be kept. He was directing my footsteps to my strong tower even when I did not know where I was going. I can say sometimes I lost my mind and if God had not place people where he did I would not have made it. 

His strength goes beyond our weakness and deals with pain. He is there saying "I got it let it go". "I can heal it if you just let it go"." I'm here". "Rest my child".  2 Corinthians 12:9  states  "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."  God let Apostle Paul know that no matter the situations he was there with him. His strength is made perfect in weakness. My son death could have stopped me from living. I could have relived his death daily but God strengthened me. At my weak point, God's grace was enough. Every second until I could make a minute he was there. Then the minute turned into minutes. The minutes turned until 5 minutes. From faith to faith. I wasn't perfect but his strength was. 

Trust in the strength of God. It will get you through even when you don't know how you are going to make it.

 Accountability Circle.

God First 

God is the head of everything. There is not one thing created that he doesn't know when, how or why.  There is not a gift or calling given without his approval. God knows why we are where and the road we will take. We may not know but God knows. There are several people in the Bible that questions God's decision about choosing them for their assignments. Jeremiah is one. He was a young prophet insecure about his calling. God explained the  "Whys" in three powerful statements. 

1) I formed you.  

God knows why we were created for this time. We are not an accident, mistake or surprise. We are his wonderful arrival. God formed us, not our parents. Yes, they had to make us but God predestined the time, place and the people that would be in our world. God's plan was formed long before we got here trust he knows what he is doing.

2, I sanctified you.

Being sanctified means to be set apart.  They separate us for certain things because they will negatively influence your assignment. God has set us apart. The assignment could not happen without you. The kingdom of God needs you to complete it. God told Jeremiah, and he is telling you too.  

Another for sanctified means is approved.  God has approved you for your assignment. No matter what it is and who you will affect you we are approved for it.

3. I Ordained you

God has assigned everyone to do something for the kingdom. Whether you do, it is another factor. Some of us look at the mountain and complain about the climb and won't go (Jonah). We think either we can't, we aren't good enough or just don't want to do it. The assignment is your and you will complete it no matter what you think or do.

Others Second

The following scripture gives a clear understanding of how we are to help each other. Jesus the son of God our Savior tells us we need to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  You would think this would be easy. Loving myself how hard can that be. Inspect around we don't love ourselves so disliking someone else is easy. We are unhappy with ourselves most of the time because we are looking at other people and judging our selves by that standard.  We have to learn that we are all different and God likes it that way. He loves diversity because it promotes growth. When I love you because you are my sisters and not because we grow up in the same neighbor I am showing the love of God. 

When I am loving others like myself I can encourage, enlighten and empower them. I can pray for them and not expect anything in return. I can assist them with food or money by telling someone else the good deed I did today. Loving my family means just that love them.

You, Third

Last but definitely not least you. We are the apple of God's eye and we should also feel loved.  You were chosen, my sisters. He made you perfect for this assignment. He has been there from the beginning and will continue until the end. As we are a blessing to others God will send people to bless us as well. 

Jesus ministry did not run by him alone. He had 12 disciples. He had families that would allow him into their houses along the way to go to get a good meal and sleep from his long journeys  (Mary and Martha house to name one). Jesus had people that freely gave unto him without seeing him (Upper Room, the colt). Jesus was a minister too as well don't forget John the Baptist Moses and Elijah and the angels. We have so many ways God will show up to bless us that being loved should never be a question. Trust that no matter us how much you give out God has a supply to restore you. 

Accountability is not just a  word it is an assignment.