Tag Archives: PROCESS

Below The Surface

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“Nothing changes if nothing changes”

As I was vacuuming the steps this morning, I noticed the railings.  It reminded me that I needed to repaint them.  Something said, “why not just take a damp cloth and wipe them off”.  I thought to myself why not.  As I begin to wipe them off, I was so disgusted at how much dirt was on the railings.  It was not even the fact that I needed to touch it up with paint but that it needed to be cleaned off. My youngest daughter was coming down the steps and I said do you see how clean this is?  She said, “was all of that dirt?”  I replied, “yes.  We were both surprised and disgusted. So, we know we need to clean them off more often.

I went back to finish cleaning the steps and as I was cleaning in the crease of the steps the Lord started dealing with me about how we are sometimes ok with just dealing with the surface things in our life. Dealing with the surface does not require much work nor does it allow us to walk in total freedom. We appear to look like we have it all together and we are a mess, we appear to be ok and when we are not, we appear to be happy and we are miserable or we appear to be well and we are really sick. We do not want anyone to know that we are silently suffering, and it is killing us.

“What is being manifested on the surface is the overflow of what has existed underneath”

The things that normally surface to the top are the things that have already being existing from within.  Currently we are in a pandemic and the death of yet another black man that has now started a Revolution is finally causing us to deal with what has always been. Racism at its best and a systemic system that needs to be broken. Although this did not begin with George Floyd, it has lit a fire to start the process of some necessary changes as well as healing. Our nation has appeared to be well and we have been sick for a long time. It is now starting to rear its ugly head.

For things to progress and change we can no longer just deal with the surface. What is on the surface is not the real issue and it will only bring temporary healing. We must dig deep and pull it up from the root. The system they created is working the way it is supposed to. Until a system that was never created for us changes and we get rid of the people who continue to work that same system, we will continue this same fight.

“Keep thy heart with all dilligience; for out of it are the issues of life” Proverbs 4:23

Before there can be a true change in a nation there also has to be a change within us.  This is also shinning a light on where we are individually and our need for change. The true work begins within. Then we can be more effective to the change in our homes, our community, and our nation.

My prayer is that you would allow God to deal with the root of those things that keep surfacing to the top, so that you can walk in total freedom and victory. That you would have the motivation and strength to do the work needed so that you can be free.

Song List

Give Me Some Room

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Be like a tree

“Stay grounded. Connect with your roots. Turn over a new leaf. Bend before you break. Enjoy your natural beauty. Keep growing”

by Joanne Raplis

A couple of months ago I brought all my plants home from work since we are now teleworking. I knew that I needed to repot all of them but kept delaying the process. Well what better time to do them, now that I have them at home. I would notice that the leaves would grow and then die. I knew that it was not getting over watered because I only watered it once a week. So, I figured it probably needed to be repotted.

To my surprise when I pulled it out of the pot I noticed:

1. How hard the roots were – they had formed into the container it was confined to.

2. Its barley had any soil left – it was not getting the proper nutrients

3. It was running out of room to grow.

Could it be that it was dying because it was suffocating and had no room to grow? That is was not getting what it needed to thrive?

“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ”

Philippians 1:6

So, I tried to spread the roots a part, but they were solid. I found a bigger pot and added some new soil. I placed the plant inside, added more soil to cover the sides, and the top completely, and then I watered it down good. Within a week, it looked very healthy, and it was growing like crazy.

God will allow things to change around you to force you to move or make the necessary changes because He knows that you want to do it on your own. Sometimes it is disguised in trauma, heartbreak, and pain. It is not to kill or destroy you, but to realign you and to make you better.

In this season God is healing you, redeveloping you and redefining who you are. He is expanding your territory and stretching your capacity. You want to be able to fit in the container that once held you.

My prayer for you today is that you would allow God to complete the process. That considering all that is going on around you, that you would still have hope to not give up and to keep going.

Song List

Continuing The Process

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“Enjoy the process! Know that it takes time, just be committed to doing your best each day”

– Unknown Author –

During this pandemic I have been working on getting the ground ready for my patio. I believe that one of the hardest things in this process is tilling the ground. You put in long hours, it is tiring, it takes up a lot of your time and your putting a lot of energy into it. If you have never done landscaping for yourself before, it is a whole lot of work. But once you have completed the process how amazing it is to be able to enjoy the fruits your labor.

Before I began to till the ground, I had to first map out the area where I wanted to put my patio. As I began to start tilling the ground, I came across different size rocks. There was still debris left from when they built my home, almost 7 years ago. Some of that stuff was still embedded in the ground.

After I tilled the ground I then had to use the rack to clear the area, shovel up the access dirt, put in a wheel barrel and put it on the other side of the house. Doing that over and over can take a lot out of you but your determination to keep going is what causes you to make it to the finish line. There were some places that I had to till more than once because it was not leveled out and there was still grass and roots that took a little more time with getting them out. I would occasionally look back to see the progress I had made, yet I still had a long way to go.

I realized though it was hard labor it was causing me to use muscles that I have not used in a long time. It was strengthening me in areas where I had become weak and loss muscle, it was stretching my capacity to be able to handle more.

In this season God is tilling the ground within us, within our hearts, within our minds. He is uprooting those things that have been embedded in us all the way back to our childhood. The unforgiveness against those who have hurt us and caused us pain. He is uprooting those negative images and words that has been spoken over us and to us. It is all a part of his purpose and plan that we walk in total victory, that we are made whole and free so that we can fulfill our purpose in Him.

” If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed”

John 8:36

My prayer for you today is that you do not stop in the middle of the process. That you would commit to the process, that you would see it through and that you would finish it. Don’t stop, don’t give up, keep going. You will be better because of it.

Song List

Breaking Ground

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“Healing doesn’t mean the damage never existed. It means that the damage no longer controls our lives”

Akshay Dubey

The other morning, I was working on my back yard, as I am preparing the ground to build my patio. I was trying to get some things done before this next rain comes. For anyone who has never done landscaping work, that tilling is not no joke and especially when you are doing it alone. It is hard, it takes a lot of time and energy. After you till the ground you must level it out and shovel away the access dirt. Depending on the territory this could be a long process

I am using my neighbors’ tiller and it ran out of gas. He was away, until that evening which is when the rain was supposed to come. I am the type of person, if I am trying to get something done, I will find another way around the roadblocks. I was doing fine until I came across another roadblock. I knew it was a rock because they are all in my yard. I was not expecting to pull out those two huge rocks. Boy did that take a lot out of me. They were so embedded in the ground and became a blockage for me. I had to use a shovel to dig around them just to get it them out.

As it is in the natural, so it is in the spirit…

“There is a void that only God can fill”

When I had finally got those out, I begin to feel the emotions coming. I heard the Lord say, “Sometimes the pain is so big that it leaves a hole, but you will heal” I went and sat down and broke down, like ugly cry break down, which was what I needed. It was a sign of release and I felt every bit of it.

I went back to patch up the hole and noticed I was not finished. As I looked closer, I saw that there was another rock. I pulled out some baby rocks a long with two more big rocks, which made the hole even bigger.  After that I did not have the energy, nor the strength to even continue.

That is what we sometimes experience when we go through trauma, experience heart ache and pain. Those things can become roadblocks or hindrances in our life that can cause our lives to be delayed. Delays are not always from the enemy or even from God. Sometimes we are our greatest enemy. We can be the very cause of our delay.

“Is there anything to hard for the Lord”
Genesis 18:14

I tried to see if I could patch up the hole again, because I needed to level the ground. The healing process can take years. In midst of our hurt, trauma and pain if we don’t continue the healing process, in our need for a quick fix we will turn to other things or other people to self-medicate the pain, which makes the hole even deeper. There is a void that only God can heal.

A blockage is an obstruction that makes movement or flow difficult or impossible. Once that blockage is removed it causes there to be a constant flow. When you can remove the roadblocks, barriers and rocks from your life just think how much more you will be able to flow, how much more you will be able to grow.

This is not going to be an easy process, but it will be worth it. Do not ignore it, feel it, take it in, allow him to do the surgery and allow him to fill the hole with his healing balm.

“Don’t rush the process, but don’t overextend your stay”

Commit to the process.. 

My prayer for you today is that you would allow God to complete the work in you during this season. That you would be honest enough and vulnerable enough so that he can completely heal you from any past traumas, hurts and pain that is still lingering.

SONG LIST

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=mH0oZ8Umdvc&feature=share
He’ll Take The Pain Away by Kirk Franklin

What In The World Are You Thinking

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Did you know that the very things that you are thinking can either cause you to go back, stay stagnated or to move forward?

Our thoughts are so powerful that they can either be a hinderance or a progress.

Where are you in the process of your thinking?

No matter how much you change your lifestyle, if your frame of mind has not changed you are destined to repeat the cycle. Change your mind, change your life!

You can put someone in a new home, but if their mentality hasn’t changed they won’t appreciate it.

Someone can continually go from relationship to relationship, but if their mentality hasn’t changed they will never be satisfied.

You can move to the other parts of the world, but if your mentality has not changed what you ran from will follow you.

We can get so caught up in changing the outward man with materialistic things, but yet our character still remains the same. Could it be because the way we think has not changed that our inner man remains the same. Are you focusing on the wrong things?

Today’s Word: 

Think

  • have a particular opinion , belief, or idea about someone or something
  • direct’s one’s mind toward someone or something; use one’s mind actively to form connected ideas
  • consider the possibility or advantages
  • have a particular mental attitude or approach
  • imagine

Scriptures on Thinking

Every thing that has been created in life began with a thought.  How you process the thought will channel the direction that your life will go in.

A person can be very creative and have great ideas, but if their thoughts don’t motivate them beyond what is in their head those things will never be brought to life.

What is your motivation?

How do you see yourself?

And where do you see yourself?

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used

when we created them”

Albert Einstein

There have been many times that I have had great ideas in my own life, but the things that I thought towards myself talked me out of them. My own doubt, fears, insecurities and the opinions of other people.

The power to believe in yourself is HUGE!

It wasn’t until the moment that I realized who and whose I was that I started believing in myself. My thoughts begin to change and it has changed the course of my life forever.

It has given me a different out look on life and has changed my perspective on how I look at things. Though I feel like I still have a long way to go, it’s a start and  I never want to go back.

Change Challenge: “Let It Begin In Me” Psalm 51:10

  1. Mindset– the process in the way you think
  2. Focus–  Whatever you focus on becomes a part of you. Focus on those things that will push you forward
  3. Motivation– channel in on the things where you are able to draw strength from so that you can create beyond the ideas, dreams, visions and goals that only stay in your head
  4. Plan– if you do what you have always done, you will get what you have always gotten. Out of your head, onto paper, into reality. Do you need to go in a different direction?
  5. Become- the thing in which God has called you to be.

In order for life to change there has to be a transformation in the way that we think.

GO AFTER IT and BE GREAT!!!!

 

 

 

 

The Unavoidable

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I remember when I was traveling to Knoxville, TN as I was going down the mountain there was always two sets of tunnels that I had to pass through. That was a land mark to let me know that I was halfway to reaching my destination. The thing is I couldn’t get to my destination without going through those tunnels. There was no short cut or any other route that I could take. Coming back home I had to go through those same tunnels. Though the tunnel can sometimes be dark and the way through seems narrow, it is unavoidable to get to the otherside.  Life is a mystery and it change with out notice. It can be very painful  and joyful  all at the same time. You can find yourself saying, “If it ain’t one thing, it’s always another”.  There are some things that we can avoid by the decisions and choices that we make. Then there are some times when life just happens and  no matter what we do the obstacles, the situations,  circumstances can’t be avoided. It is all part of the process to us becoming. It’s like baking a cake, if you leave out any of the important ingredients the cake will be a flop. No matter your destination you can’t get to it without going through the process. It is through the process that we are created and it pushes us to becoming  who God has called us to be. My encouragement to you today is don’t give up, but go through the process. Look beyond what you can see right now. There is something greater on the other side of the tunnel.

Not Just Yet

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I was taking a walk outside of my house and as I was looking at my Dogwood Tree, the first thing that I noticed was something white hanging from the limb of the tree. As I looked closer it was a cocoon, and as I looked at it more I noticed that there was nothing in it. Of course the first thing that I started to do was look for a butterfly, right? I figured it shouldn’t be that far from it. When I looked to the right of the cocoon, I saw some thing that caught me by suprise. It was the caterpillar,  but it was dead. How odd. I had never seen that before. I have seen where they have died before the cocoon stage, but never in the process. The thought that came to mind is, “Don’t die in the process.” Sometimes life can be very frustrating and overwhelming at times. We can become so impatient to the point that we some how think that we can help God out. Trying to hurry up our process, we miss crucial steps. We think that we are helping, but to find out that it’s  only causing more delays. We think jumping ship would be the easy way out, when in actuality it’s holding us up and prolonging our route. God never promised that it would be easy, but he did promise to be with us every step of the way. We have to be willing to trust Him when He has us in that holding position or the cocoon stage of, “Just Wait”. It is in the waiting that God is building our character, strengthing our muscles, equipping and preparing us for what He has called us to be. Yeah! I know you feel isolated and alone, but it is in this stage that God is molding you and making you into what His image.If we would just take a moment and let Him teach us all the things that we need to learn. If you come out before you are fully developed you could take the chance of not only aborting the whole process, but killing yourself in the long run.

The Mind of Christ

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When I have been burned, cut or had an accident that has caused some sort of pain, my 1st instinct is to try to find the source of where the pain is coming from, do what is needed to stop the pain and go through the healing process so I can get better. Yet our1st instinct when someone has hurt us is to retaliate. What can I do to make them hurt the way they hurt me? Pulls us out of character to the point that we become foolish. Retaliate 1st and recover later. What we don’t realize is that when operating in that manner we not only afflict more pain on ourselves, but cause the recovery time to become longer. Although there are different sources of pain you would think the methods would be the same. Find the source, address it’s need, heal from it and avoid it from reaccuring. But how many times do we find ourselves right back in the same place that hurt us the 1st time. Becoming addicted to the pain is not only scary but a dangerous place to be in. God did not call us to live a life status of a “Victim” Philippians 2:5 “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” Having the mind of Christ means there has to be a transformation which can only be done when we our minds are being renewed by the word of God. Just like we get up everyday and put on our clothes, we have to clothe ourselves with the word of God. The word of God has to become a life style. You have to put it into action in order for it to work.  Yes! We all have our moments, but it shouldn’t become our excuse. When we have the mind of Christ we no longer think and operate out of our flesh, but by his Spirit. So no matter the source of our pain our method changes from retaliate to trusting and allowing God to lead us in what we do and say.

Turn Around Tuesday

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Galatians 6:7
“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap”

2 years ago I had moved into my new home and I was given 12  Rose of Sharon to plant. I have never been much of a gardener, but I was now having to learn how. Being new at this I wasn’t really sure of what I was doing or how to even care for a plant let alone a garden. So I took the  instructions and the advice that I was given from others and decided to give it a try. I have found it to be very rewarding, fulling, and therapeutic even while  “In The Garden” as there has been so much that I have learned. It was a critical time in this season as spring was fastly approaching it’s end and waiting to see if they would even survive through the winter praying I would do right by them. When planting it has a lot to do with how you plant and where you plant them. Are they planted in good ground, planted in the right area, is it the right type of soil or environment for them?  Is there enough or too much sunlight, ext. These Rose of Sharon were partially grown with roots already so they were transitioning to a different location into a new source. I continued to follow the instructions that I was given which was to water them every other day unless we received a lot of rain and even if I didn’t see any evidence of life to not give up on them just yet. I continued this process until it was too cold for me to do so and I just prayed that they would survive through the winter season. Around spring as I was going around to check on them I noticed there were leaves growing on them, signs of new life. I was surprised that even though I planted all 12 of them at the same time that none of them looked the same in height nor in color. You can plant several of the same things  and they still not produce at the same time and what it produces can be different in size even when it’s of the same kind, but it doesn’t  cause it to loose it’s value in what it will produce. To everything there is direct timing and season. I was excited as one of them that I planted on the side of the house which was also the biggest of them all had started producing buds where I could even see the color that it would bloom. It made me wonder about the other one’s as some seemed to be slower than others. A couple of them I had accidentally cut while I was cutting my grass and I was devistated. They were having to some what start over and not knowing if they would even flourish again. Something in me said to keep watering them because they were only cut from the surface and the roots were still planted firmly in the ground. Just because you don’t see any evidence of life on the surface doesn’t mean that their isn’t anything growing under the ground. Some of the greatest things are produced in a dark place. Give it sometime to be produced. Eventually I began to see life again. Every seed sown will produce a harvest in it’s due season. It never produces what has been planted in the ground, but it increases in size. Good or bad you will reap a harvest of whatever seed has been sown. If you don’t want to see anything produced in the future be careful of the seeds that you plant into the ground.

Transformation Monday

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One of the things that I hate the most while “In the Garden” are the weeds. There are so many of them and they are so hard to get rid of. I could have just taken some out and no sooner then I turn around there would be more.   If you aren’t careful weeds can kill what you are trying to produce and creep up on you out of no where. Some weeds can appear to be a comaflouge as they can produce some beautiful flowers, but the nature of them is to destroy and take over whatever it comes in contact with.  Weeds are any undesireable or trouble some plant, especially one that grows profusely where it is not wanted.  It can almost be a daily process when trying to get rid of the weeds. There are some weeds that I have taken up that I couldn’t  believe how long and thick the roots were.  Some I ended up breaking because the roots were so deep that I couldn’t get to it all or I had to dig deep.  That meant that they had to have been growing underneath the ground for some time before it was produced on the surface.  The manifestation that you see in people’s lives has a lot to do with the things that were never taken care of before they set root and are now coming to the surface.  A lot of things happen or stem from our childhood. Things that should have been dealt with or given to us then and the lack there of resulted into us looking into and picking up unhealthy things.  Roots once set are hard to get rid of because roots run deep, but they aren’t impossible.  If you don’t destroy it from it’s root and get it at it’s early stages it will come up again and it will only increase in size.  Though the process can be long and painful it is necessary in order for you to grow healthy and remain free.  It’s not so much what you can see, but the thing’s which are not. If there are something’s in your life that you don’t like it’s root is underneath the surface.  Get to the root and kill it.