Celebrate Your Freedom

"You have been set free from sin…"
(Romans 6:18, NIV)

This weekend, we celebrate Independence Day in America. July 4, 1776 was the day America declared independence from Britain, but the battle for freedom went on until 1783—seven years later. Even though the people declared their freedom in 1776, they had to stand and fight for many years before the British would accept and recognized the United States of America.

In the same way, we have to declare our freedom and determine to stand against the opposing forces in our lives. We have to declare our freedom from addiction, poverty, sickness, and lack. We have to stand and fight until we fully experience that freedom and peace that God has promised.

I love what the early colonists did once they signed the Declaration of Independence. They read it out loud in public. They published it in the newspaper. They spread the word. They continued to declare and celebrate even though they were in the midst of the battle.

Whatever battle you may be facing today, declare that you are free. Declare that you are an overcomer. Celebrate the victory that is on its way! As you stand strong and celebrate your freedom, you will experience His victory and true freedom all the days of your life!

Heavenly Father, thank You for setting me free in every area of my life. I declare today that nothing can hold me back. I declare that I am free from sickness, poverty, lack, and addiction. I declare that You have set me free and thank You for freedom in every area of my life. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ten years ago, a tornado leveled Carbondale Assembly of God in Tulsa, Oklahoma. With help from the community, Carbondale bounced back, and today, they are passing on the blessing. Under the vision and direction of Jeff Walker, Carbondale's youth pastor, the congregation gives one AG church a renovated youth building each
year.

Entering the third year of this mission's makeover program, Walker felt the Lord leading Carbondale to do more. He contacted the Oklahoma District office and requested their help in locating a church in need of a total renovation.

After prayerfully considering numerous applications and a few on-site visits, Turley Assembly of God, located just fifteen minutes away, was chosen for the complete church makeover. According to Turley AG's pastor, J.J. Jennings, the congregation was meeting in a 50-year-old building, and they simply did not have the money or
means to update.

Although there was surprise and excitement on learning they had been chosen, Jennings admits that the congregation was a little apprehensive handing over the keys. "Many were nervous beforehand; we just didn't know what they were going to do," he says.

Jennings and the Turley AG congregation handed the keys over to Carbondale on Thursday, May 28. A host of volunteers laid 900 square feet of tile, ripped out walls and carpet, put up new drywall, painted and brought in new furniture before returning the keys on Wednesday, June 3. However, the blessing did not stop with renovations to the physical church building. Carbondale also gifted the Turley AG youth group with a youth pastor, and have committed to pay his salary for one year.

After revealing the new facilities, previous feelings of apprehension were completely gone. "Everyone was in awe.  Many of the ladies kept saying how beautiful it all was," shares Jennings, "We had some of our people crying because of how blessed they felt."

Jennings is excited about how the makeover will help the congregation, not only inside the church walls, but in reaching outside. This past Saturday, just ten days after the renovation, Turley Assembly of God opened up its newly renovated doors and hosted an open house for the community. Amazingly, a parade was already scheduled to pass right in front of the church the same day. Turley AG took advantage of the face time by offering free hot dogs and handing out flyers to those passing by.

"No one knew we were having a parade," Jennings comments on the convenient timing, "God just works things out." Approximately 45 people came through the open house, and more than half of that number had never attended the church before. Jennings reports that several of those visitors attended Sunday services the next day.

Walker hopes other churches will latch onto this vision of renovation and take it to their own communities, no matter how big or small they are. He explains that even a little bit of paint, clean gutters, and a mowed lawn can make a huge difference.

"I would just challenge other churches to look outside the box, find other churches that are in need, and stretch out their hand to help. Too many times we work against each other instead of with and for one another," shares Walker, "It's not about numbers, but about  sharing the love of Christ."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as the pagans do, who think that their gods will hear them because their prayers are long. Do not be like them. Your Father already knows what you need before you ask Him" (Matthew 6:7-8 TEV).   God created you and so He wants you to be the real you. By being authentic when you speak to God, you worship Him as your Creator. For years I copied the prayers of other people. I noticed they used certain words and even a special tone of voice. I imitated all the religious clichés: "Lead, guide, and direct us, O Lord." "Bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies." "Bless the gift and the giver." In New Testament times, prayers were wordy, meaningless rituals. There was no spontaneity, no genuineness. But Jesus says don't get caught up in ritual prayer. You don't have to use fancy language. You can't impress God with fancy language, and you shouldn't be trying to impress other people, either. I love to hear new Christians pray; there's no pious pomposity. They haven't learned the clichés yet. They just say, "Hi, God. It's me." That's how you make contact with God. You just talk with your heavenly Father about what's on your mind. Just pray your heart. Reveal yourself. Imagine I walked in the door one evening and my kids said: "O, almighty procreator of our family. How wonderful thou art, who sovereignly deposits our allowance to us. Oh, the majesty of thy wonderful self! We beseech thee to come eat dinner with us." I'd check their temperatures to see if they were sick! I don't want to hear that. I want them to say, "Hey! Dad's home. Good to see you, Pop!" I'm not saying to be flippant in prayer, but that's how you make contact with God. You just talk with him in a genuine and heartfelt way.

 

 

"When I was a little girl, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and extremely burned toast in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his toast, smile at my mom, and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that toast and eat every bite!  

When I got Up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the toast. And I'll never forget what he said: 'Baby, I love burned toast.'  

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his toast burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, 'Debbie, your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides-a little burnt toast never hurt anyone!'

 

You know, life is full of imperfect things.....and imperfect people. I'm not the best housekeeper or cook.  

What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults - and choosing to celebrate each other's differences - is the one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.  

And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of GOD.

 

Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where burnt toast isn't a deal-breaker!

 

By the Grace of God, when I can forgive other’s imperfections, it becomes easier for me to forgive my own!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What Moves God

"And when He saw their faith… "
(Luke 5:20, KJV )

Do you know what moves the hand of God? This may surprise you, but God is not moved by complaining and self-pity. He’s not even moved by our needs. Yes, He is concerned about our needs, and yes, He wants to meet our needs, but we have to do our part and invite Him to work in our lives by exercising our faith.

When Jesus walked the earth, oftentimes right before He healed someone, the Bible says something like this, "When He saw their faith…" And so I ask you today, can God see your faith?

When God sees you doing everything you can to get well; when He sees you getting to work a little earlier because you really want that promotion; when He sees you bypass the cookie jar because you’ve been believing to lose weight; when He sees you bite your tongue to keep the peace in your house; when He sees you help others when you really need more help than they do; when God sees your faith, that’s when extraordinary things will begin to happen. Faith opens the door for God to move, so demonstrate your faith today and watch the hand of God move in every area of your life!

Father in heaven, thank You for the gift of faith. I choose today to exercise my faith and invite You to move on my behalf. Keep me close to You, search my heart and remove anything that is displeasing to You. I bless You today and always. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

¹ The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
      The skies display his craftsmanship.
 ² Day after day they continue to speak;
      night after night they make him known.
 ³ They speak without a sound or word;
      their voice is never heard.
 ⁴ Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
      and their words to all the world.

  ⁷ The instructions of the Lord are perfect,
      reviving the soul.
   The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy,
      making wise the simple.
 ⁸ The commandments of the Lord are right,
      bringing joy to the heart.
   The commands of the Lord are clear,
      giving insight for living.
 ⁹ Reverence for the Lord is pure,
      lasting forever.
   The laws of the Lord are true;
      each one is fair.
 ¹⁰ They are more desirable than gold,
      even the finest gold.
   

 ¹² How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart?
      Cleanse me from these hidden faults.
 ¹³ Keep your servant from deliberate sins!
      Don’t let them control me.
   Then I will be free of guilt
      and innocent of great sin.

 ¹⁴ May the words of my mouth
      and the meditation of my heart
   be pleasing to you,
      O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

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"This means tremendous joy to you, I know, even though you are temporarily harassed by all kinds of trials and temptations. This is no accident—it happens to prove your faith, which is infinitely more valuable than gold" (1 Peter 1:6-7 PH).     In order to build your faith, God will give you a dream, then He'll urge you to make a decision, but then He'll allow a delay, because in the delay He matures you and prepares you for what is to come. The truth is you'll have difficulties while God delays. This isn't because He doesn't care about you or that He's forgotten your circumstances; rather, it's one of the ways He pushes you toward the deep end of faith. As God delays, you'll face two types of difficulties: circumstances and critics. This is a natural part of life. God designed it this way because He knows we grow stronger when facing adversity and opposition. When Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt into the desert toward the Promised Land, he had one problem after another. First there was no water. Then there was no food. Then there were a bunch of complainers. Then there were poisonous snakes. Moses was doing what God wanted him to do, but he still had problems. David was anointed king, and then for the next several years he was hunted down by Saul. Joseph had a dream of becoming a ruler, yet he was sold into slavery and thrown into prison on a false charge where he languished, forgotten. Imagine the difficulties Noah had building a floating zoo! The Bible says that when Moses died, Joshua was appointed the new leader. Moses led the people across the desert and then Joshua led them into the Promised Land. Did he get the easy part? The Bible says that when the Israelites entered the Promised Land there were giants in the land. Even in the Promised Land there were problems! God does this because He is building our faith and character. When we finally come to a place where the difficulties become so bad, where we've reached our limit, where we've tried everything and exhausted all our options, it is then that God begins a mighty work through us: "I know, even though you are temporarily harassed by all kinds of trials and temptations. This is no accident—it happens to prove your faith, which is infinitely more valuable than gold" (1 Peter 1:6-7 PH).

 

My dear children, let's not just talk about love; let's practice real love. This is the only way we'll know we're living truly, living in God's reality. It's also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves.

 And friends, once that's taken care of and we're no longer accusing or condemning ourselves, we're bold and free before God! We're able to stretch our hands out and receive what we asked for because we're doing what he said, doing what pleases him. Again, this is God's command: to believe in his personally named Son, Jesus Christ. He told us to love each other, in line with the original command. As we keep his commands, we live deeply and surely in him, and he lives in us. And this is how we experience his deep and abiding presence in us: by the Spirit he gave us.

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