JUNK THE FUNK

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Before I begin today, join me and pause and pray for those picking up the pieces from “Sandy” today. From those drenched on the coast to those buried in snow westward. For the losses.

Today’s little thought…

How’s your mood?

Are you full of vim and vinegar this morning or are you more vinegary than "vimmy"?

Jon Homer Miller once penned

"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens."

To add to that, I use a little quote from John Maxwell from time to time when I am counseling and chatting with folks that “Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react.”

So ask yourself this morning, what “attitude” are you bringing to this day? How are you reacting?

GOD tells us that…

Psalm 118:24

24 This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us be full of joy and be glad in it.

Is that your view?

Is that your attitude?

Is that your reaction?

Trust me, I don’t come springing out of the sack most days with a “go get em” attitude; with a praise GOD proclamation, but I should.

I should be hitting the floor each day with an attitude of thanksgiving and joy!

Ephesians 1:3

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

But I get it.

We all have some negative things on our plates. We all suffer from a little chronic fatigue. Mix in a bluster of cold air and rain and you have the recipe for a groaner that is for sure.

But let’s not let this old world’s junk put us in a funk today what do you say?

Let’s seize control of this day by embracing a blessed perspective!

2 Corinthians 9:8 (NIV)

God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

Ephesians 3:20

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!

Just grabbing hold of those two little promises can make the funkiest of days fabulous.

What do you say? Let’s junk the funk and believe the blessings!

And have a great and blessed Wednesday!

I love you all.

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney

MESS YOU UP

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

I know I often recap the “goings on” from our FREEDOM gatherings with the Tuesday DISPATCH. And I could share so many stories from last night’s fellowship.

I could share about an amazing worship set led by our New “FREEDOM FOUR or SOMETIMES FIVE” band. I could share about some of the real challenges that dot that room and ask for prayers of encouragement and deliverance.

But instead I just want to say GOD never ceases to mess me up.

You see FREEDOM exists to provide a place to advance healing and recovery but there are seminal moments where GOD shows up and does some healing right on the spot. That was the case last night.

How else could I be sitting in the Wal-Mart parking lot around 10pm with a young man who just six weeks ago professed to me a deep skepticism, a deep cynicism and an atheist bent toward life and we are confirming in prayer his acceptance of Jesus Christ?

Didn't see that one coming!

THAT is GOD messing me up.

I will be honest; “we” didn’t do anything out of the norm for this young man. All we really did is show this young man that GOD loved him. That is it. No Bible thumping, no brain washing, we just loved him. We welcomed him, shared a meal with him and listened to him.

GOD AND GOD ALONE DID THE REST.

Like that old song,

“They will know we are Christians by our love”.

Like scripture says,

Hebrews 13:1

Stay on good terms with each other, held together by love. Be ready with a meal or a bed when it’s needed.

That was our part. GOD did the heavy lifting from there.

This young man even confirmed it! He made it perfectly clear. All "we" did was show him that he mattered and then GOD changed his heart.

I think far too often we (and especially me) get caught up in trying to be overly eloquent or sure we have the right scripture or profound word in order to make an impact rather than trusting GOD to deliver the right message at the right time through us through love.

We need to be reminded sometimes that our job is to take our cues from Jesus, follow that lead and leave the changing in GOD's hands.

Ephesians 5:1-2

Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that.

You see there were no bombastic revelations or lightning from the sky that turned this young man’s heart. It was GOD’s love shown by those that love Him to one who needed Him and that made the difference.

That’s it.

Simple.

But amazing!

Another sinner set free. Another brother added to the fold.

Another friend for eternity because of love?

That will mess you up!

So today, don’t discount the impact of your love, your kindness or your investment in others. You never know when the unexpected might happen and GOD messes you up too.

I love you all.

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney

GETTING IT TOGETHER

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

I was hanging out between services chatting with a couple of folks when I heard,

“Pastor I want to get “it” ALL together, I really do, it’s just I can’t seem to do it. How do you do it?

That always makes me chuckle, like I know how to get "it", much less keep "it" ALL together. (ha ha).

Truth is every time I even start to think I am getting “it” ALL together I quickly forget what “it” looks like or where I set it down for a second and lose track.

Just because I have Pastor on my business card doesn’t mean that I have this whole Christian walk thing down cold; far from it really. But when I get asked that question I give a pretty pat and a familiar recovery answer. “One day at a time.” It works for me.

Now I know that little saying is one of those tried and true clichés in recovery circles, but I do believe it has merit. In fact I am confident GOD endorses the “one day at a time” idea.

Matthew 6:34

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I believe Jesus gave this teaching to help us in this quest to get or keep "it" all together. I believe He knew we are really only capable of managing our “present”. He knew wecan’t effect the past and we certainly can’t impact or predict the future. So I believe Jesus was encouraging us to do the best we can with what we have right now. I believe He was encouraging us to...

Make the best decisions today.

Make GODLY choices today.

Choose to engage in activities and interactions that honor GOD and promote His agenda today.

Steer clear of dangerous influences and potential traps today.

Make today a GOD day. Right from the start.

I believe Jesus knew if we could do that, we could begin to string a few together and begin to experience a life is “more together”.

In fact, Paul made it even more simple.

Romans 12 1

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering.

That does keep it pretty simple doesn’t it?

It encourages us to “let GOD” keep “IT”ALL together for us. This takes US out of the equation and allows GOD to keep us on track and held together. And we know that plan is the right plan don't we?

Proverbs 13:6

A God-loyal life keeps you on track;

So let me encourage you today. Don't get so wrapped up in trying to get "it" or "life" ALL together today. Let's start with getting today off to a good start and trust GOD to hold it together for us. He has a plan for today and He will keep "it" ALL together.

Psalms 46:11

You know me inside and out, you hold me together…

Be blessed!

I love you all.

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney

SURELY

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Surely!

GOD uses this word a lot when it comes to us.

Don’t think so?

Proverbs 23:18

There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.

Jeremiah 15:11

The LORD said, “Surely I will deliver you for a good purpose...

There is power in the word surely isn’t there?

And no, please don’t quote me the old “AIRPLANE” bit…you know the one...

“Surely you can’t be serious…I am and stop calling me SHIRLEY”…(ha ha).

No, when GOD says surely, He is making an emphatic statement. There are no ifs ands or butts when it comes to GOD saying surely. Surely means with confidence! Surely means definitely! Surely means without a doubt.

So why do we doubt so much?

I mean when GOD says things like…

Psalm 23:6

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

…why do we say things like…

“My life is going nowhere. The Lord must not have a plan for me. I never seem to have anything go my way. GOD blesses others; I must have been left off that list.”

Kind of hard to figure out isn’t it.

But we all do it.

I mean GOD says…

2 Corinthians 12:9

....“I am all you need. I give you My loving-favor.

…yet we somehow believe GOD is holding out on us, forgetting about us, or intentionally leaving us wanting.

Kinda hard to figure out isn't it?

So let's do this.

Start taking GOD at His Word.

Because...

Psalm 145:13

...GOD always does what he says, and is gracious in everything he does...

So if SURELY He does what He says, then SURELY we can believe it don'tcha think?

I love you all.

Have a blessed and assured weekend!

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney

"I've GOT this"

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

I am going to share with you 3 of the most “dangerous” words in the English language.

Are you ready?

That wasn't them. LOL.

Here they are…

“I’ve got this”.

Not what you were expecting?

What were you shooting for? Booga booga bogga?

Trust me "I've got this" are 3 dangerous little words.

They imply the attitude that we are “done” or that we “have things well in hand” or that we “have it all together".

And when we start thinking like that, then we treading on some dangerous turf for sure!

However all of us from time to time fall into the trap of thinking we have things all together. I believe this is especially true when we have emerged from a tough time or have received a significant leg up or intervention from the Lord.

You know the scenario right? GOD rescues us. (That is what He does...)

Psalm 55:16

I call to God; GOD will help me. At dusk, dawn, and noon I sigh deep sighs—he hears, he rescues.

And during the crisis we are locked in!

We go to church, we attend our meetings, we remain accountable, we get into the Word and prayer but once the pressures begins to subside and “life” returns to normal, we started believing “I’ve got this” again.

We say things like…

“I really don’t need the meetings anymore Pastor”.

I

“I have heard that Galatians 5:13 thing enough, I got the gist.”

“I got it together now I don’t need all the extra stuff anymore.”

“I’ve got this…”

And if that is you, I just ask that you be careful!

The Word warns us of this sort of thing.

Proverbs 1:29

They went their own way…Fools die because they refuse to follow wisdom. They are content to follow their foolish ways, and that will destroy them…

Yuck!

Therefore we must on guard for the “I’ve got this” trap.

And I believe we fall into the trap because we relegate GOD to our 911 call. He is there for emergencies only.

But GOD is way more 24/7 than 911.

He loves it when we rely on Him for more than crisis. He is enthusiastic when we come to Him for answers and guidance. He wants us to constantly rely on Him. Instead of us saying “we got this”, He wants us to say, “You got this".

Psalm 62:8

Trust in, lean on, rely on, and have confidence in Him at all times…

So here is your chance today. If you are feeling pretty good about yourself and feeling like you have “got it”, remember you really don’t. Don't fall into the trap.

Instead, go to GOD and say, "You got this"...

Proverbs 2:6-8

…He’s a rich mine of Common Sense for those who live well, a personal bodyguard to the candid and sincere. He keeps his eye on all who live honestly, and pays special attention to his loyally committed ones.

Sounds like "He's got it".

Have a great day!

I love you all.

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney

BARRIER-FREE BLESSING

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

We touched a little on alignment yesterday; the importance of aligning our day, our purposes and our plans with those of GOD.

Got me to thinking about just how easy it is to “get unaligned”;about how easy it is to present ourselves to GOD “off kilter”.

Simply put, our SIN is the culprit. Let's not sugarcoat it.

You know what I am talking about right?

Those times when we are doing things that we should not do. Those days when our flesh, not the SPIRIT is calling the shots. Those times of misalignment when WE PUT ourselves in a place where God can’t fully demonstrate His love toward us.

Did you catch that?

When WE, not GOD, with our sin, put up "a barrier" to his blessing.

Unfortunately, however I believe we often confuse being out of alignment with being out of love. This was certainly the case with a dear sister earlier this week.

She had faltered. She was feeling isolated. She was fearful and tearful. She felt her sin had finally exceeded GOD’s ability to love her. She had erected a barrier between her and the LOVE of GOD with her sin and the devil was doing his best to reinforce it.

But as much as the devil tries, as much as OUR sin clouds OUR access to the Father, nothing can separate us from His love. Nothing.

Romans 8:38

…nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God...

GOD’s love for us doesn’t falter, even when we do.

Jeremiah 31:3

I have loved you with an everlasting love…

1 Chronicles 16:34

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

But that sure doesn’t stop the enemy from whispering to us and planting doubt about this unfailing love when we are out of alignment with the Father due to our sins.

Whispers like…

“GOD WILL STOP loving you because of that!”

“GOD’s has reached HIS tipping point, He is done with you.”

“How in the world could GOD love you? Have you seen, heard, and watched what you have been doing?”

Ever heard that voice? Felt that way?

And while it is all one huge lie it sure feels like the truth sometimes doesn’t it?

That is why it is so important for us to daily fix our thoughts and hearts on GOD and affirm ourselves in His love, His counsel, and His grace!

Try this.

Take a page from the Psalmist and affirm yourself this morning by confirming to GOD and saying to Him…

Psalms 119:78-79

…your revelation is the tune I dance to. Let the fast-talking tricksters be exposed as frauds; they (try) to sell me a bill of goods, but I (am keeping) my mind fixed on your counsel.

And let’s ...

Jude 1:21

…keep (ourselves) in God’s love

By doing that we will open this day "barrier free" to the amazing, everlasting, fully engaged and aligned LOVE OF GOD.

I love you all.

Have a great and aligned day!

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney