Find A Christian Man

Category: Encouragement and Inspiration

Biblical encouragement for the seasons when you need strength, hope, perspective, or simply a reminder that God is still at work. Find Christ-centered inspiration to help you keep moving forward, stand firm in your faith, and face everyday life with renewed confidence in God and His Word.

  • Trust In The Promise

    The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 long years because they didn’t believe and trust God. He told them to go in, and to possess the land He had promised, but the spies that were sent to survey and check out the promised land brought back a bad report. They told the Children of Israel that the inhabitants of this land were huge like giants and very scary. Most of the spies held the opinion that they wouldn’t be able to overtake the inhabitants, and this is what they reported back to everyone. God’s people cowered in fear because they were afraid, they thought they’d be squashed like grasshoppers. They had been up against the giant of Pharaoh’s evil rule in Egypt, and God brought them out, but they chose to forget this. It’s pretty unbelievable to fathom that after all the extraordinary things God had done for them in the past, they doubted Him still. Instead of clinging to His unlimited ability and willingness to bless them, they chose to cling to fear. Some of us are making this same choice today.

    In Deuteronomy 11:8-9 (NLT), Moses told the Children of Israel, “Therefore, be careful to obey every command I am giving you today, so you may have strength to go in and take over the land you are about to enter. 9 If you obey, you will enjoy a long life in the land the Lord swore to give to your ancestors and to you, their descendants – a land flowing with milk and honey!” One of the things that we see right away in verse 8 is that the people would need strength to go in and claim what was theirs. Some of us have an attitude of a kid in a candy store. We see all of this yummy stuff that God has made available, and we want it all, but we can’t forget that spiritual strength is a requirement. Cultivating strength is the first order of business in a take-over.

    Moses told them exactly how to keep their strength up. He told them to obey God’s commands. If they did this, they would be strong enough spiritually to move in victory. When they were in the wilderness, one of the first telltale signs about their condition is that they were full of fear. They had not yet sufficiently put on a mindset of faith in God. If they had, they would not have allowed the evil report of the spies to deter them.

    God had promised the Children of Israel something great. The Creator of the Universe and all that we survey had spoken to them through Moses. Heavenly Father made a divine commitment to bless them in an amazing way. During their deliverance from bondage, God caused the Red Sea to open so they could cross to the other side. He fed them manna from heaven in the wilderness and blessed them to come out of Egypt with vast riches of the Egyptian’s treasures. They had gold, silver, and all kinds of beautiful and valuable things. This is what God did for them, yet, they would not press themselves to remember how Heavenly Father had delivered them.

    God wanted us to know this record in His Word so that we would have a firsthand account of what unbelief looks like; so we can witness how doubt and fear will cripple our efforts to move forward in strength. When we are not fortified spiritually, our faith isn’t where it needs to be, and we’re not in a position to take what God has given us. So many of us fail to get into position and assume the posture of a winner because our eyes are focused on all the things that provide an excuse for our immobility. We see God’s willingness to bless us in a very limited way, and this causes our faith to fail.

    I remember hearing a story of a man that had all sorts of physical ailments. He had a bad back. His knees were continually sore, he had a heart condition, and he also had several allergies. A well-known Christian healer came to his city, and the sick man made his way to see him. He told the healer, “Pastor, I’m a very sick man, but if you will ask God to just heal my back, I’ll be satisfied.” This may seem like a very humble request for an ailing person, but actually this man was refusing to stretch forth with the full brunt of his faith. He was asking God to do only a small fraction, because in truth the sick man only wanted to BELIEVE in a small fraction.

    Jesus Christ told us in Mark 9:23 (NLT), “Anything is possible if a person believes.”  Our God is so much bigger and greater than we can imagine. Ephesians 3:20(NKJV) tells us, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,” Heavenly Father deals in the exceedingly abundant. He goes above and beyond anything we can ask or think. In the case of the sick man, you might say that maybe he didn’t know any better, but God has made a way for us to always know better. He’s given us His Word, and it is available just about everywhere we look. So, ignorance is not an acceptable defense. It is an excuse for not studying and trusting His Word.

    Heavenly Father wanted to heal every part of this man, not just his back. This is what the healer told him. We need to prepare mentally, emotionally, and most importantly, spiritually to receive from God the kind of husband that will bless us wonderfully. If you are prepared, you’ll have faith that you have everything you need to take possession. If you are not prepared, you’ll acquiesce to believe that God isn’t going to bless you. This is fear at its worse. I encourage you to study God’s Word so that you know what is available through His amazing grace, then you will grow in spiritual strength and get more excited by the day about what Heavenly Father has in store for you.■

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “Trust In The Promise”, written for findchristianman.com©2019. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Matching Apples to Oranges Won’t Work!

    One of my favorite passages of scripture is Jeremiah 17:7-8(NIV). It says, “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” I absolutely love this scripture, because it holds jewels of truth. The diamond of it cuts right down to the core of what happens when we have a sold-out trust in Heavenly Father. I always try to visualize the kind of person this passage is referring to. What must a person go through in order to obtain a level of confidence like this in the Lord? I believe it’s the kind of confidence where God would stamp him or her with a brand of ‘fearless!’  How does one stay fresh and always hopeful? When everyone else is experiencing drought, how does this person continually bear fruit? These are questions to which you and I must seek the answers, because not only is this God’s standard for you, it is His blueprint for the person He desires as your spouse.

    It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that this is a spectacular person. The truth is that we’ve seen such erosion of Godly principles in the world, that some sisters have allowed a very cynical mindset to takeover when it comes to finding the right man. They have been so disappointed in the past that they won’t fully trust in God’s provision in this area. God won’t take us higher than we are willing to believe. But if we are fully persuaded and completely sold-out on His goodness, the extraordinarily wonderful thing about Heavenly Father is that He will exceed our expectations.

    Ephesians 3:20(KJV) tells us, “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,” Oh how I pray that you can get this into your heart. God works in the exceeding abundantly. This is His trademark, but He is also a God of consistency and order. With God, it is Spirit to spirit; Holiness to holiness; Faith to faith. It’s not apples to oranges. It’s apples to apples. He does the exceeding abundantly ACCORDING to the exceeding abundantly that is working in us. If you are not raising your sights to this level of faith, then you’re not going to see all that is available for you to see.

    This is why so many Christian women are disappointed in their desires. They are sometimes in the wrong place, talking to the wrong people, conversing about the wrong things; seeing the wrong things, thinking the wrong thoughts, and expecting right results. It doesn’t work this way. Faith to faith. You’ve gotta give God something to work with. Your arena has to change so that you can see a different picture—a higher picture than the one you’ve been seeing.

    The beautiful brother that is hardworking, pleasant to be around, pleasing to the eye, confident and strong, fearless, and continually energized by the power of the Holy Spirit—guess what? He’s not an abnormality in the realm of God’s treasures. He exists, and he is not in short supply. He’s a jewel of God’s truth!

    The Apostle James wrote in James 1:2-4(NIV), “2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”  The spiritual lessons and preparation to become a wife may prove to be a test of your faith; it is for many single Christian women. It requires us to pull down strongholds of negativity and doubt, and to see the areas of our lives that need to be strengthened in Christ before we move forward to the blessing of matrimony.

    What happens is that some of us make the mistake of being a little bit too desperate or hasty for love. We want the prize without the prep. We want oranges to match apples; and we ignore the advice God gave us in His Word.

    Changing arenas means that we move higher to a heavenly view, where our trust in God regarding marriage is unwavering. This is what makes a person like a tree planted by the waters. It’s when your confidence is in God’s provision, and you just know that He’s going to do what He promised.

    It may seem a far distance from where you’re standing today, and if you were to look at switching lanes on your own…forget about it. Thank God that Jesus Christ is the head of our lives! He’s Lord! He knows where we’re supposed to be, when we’re supposed to be there, and how to get us there. We need to relinquish the steering wheel altogether and let perseverance finish its work. The way to get this done is to ask Heavenly Father for the guidance of the Holy Spirit through the Lord Jesus Christ. John 16:13 tells us that the Spirit will guide us through Christ and tell us exactly what we need to know, so that we can tap into God’s treasures. Trust that God’s goodness never runs dry! Get yourself pumped for a change of scenery on higher ground. The Holy Spirit will help you move up supernaturally, so that you not only see all the wonderful blessings God has for you, but you’ll be able to reach out and grab them.■

    Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

    “Matching Apples to Oranges Won’t Work!”, written for findchristianman.com ©2019.  All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Don’t Break His Heart

    Many people live their lives from the outside in. They allow what is happening in their environments to dictate what is happening internally. For instance, if something happens at work and someone does something they don’t like, they allow this person’s actions to ruin their day. People often find themselves reacting negatively to situations and events that are going on outside of themselves. They become enraged if someone cuts them off in traffic, or if a person says the wrong thing to them. No longer do we, as a society, bypass simple offenses. In today’s environment, many of us are easily offended and wear our feelings on our sleeves, so to speak. When it comes to this tendency of reacting to the negativity in our worlds, the list goes on and on. We’ve approached a level of extremes, and people have adopted a very negative outlook on life because of it. So many are ill-tempered and constantly in a bad mood. This kind of pessimism is corrosive; it hinders the blessings that many of us desire to flow our way. A happy life with a wonderful spouse is absolutely achievable for the woman of God that desires it, but it’s not going to square with a negative outlook on life.

    God is opening His heart to us in amazing ways. Wonderful things are happening in the body of Christ. Our privilege and responsibility is to take on more of God’s nature and continue to renew our minds to His Word. This is required to grow in spiritual strength and have the relationship with Him that He desires. Looking at this in very basic terms, if you and I have love in our hearts for someone, we are concerned about their well-being. We want them to be happy, to grow, and to be productive in life. If we are at a level of abounding in the things of God, and we are witnessing His wonderful abundance, we want this for everyone else that we know. Wanting the best for others is a very important attribute of how the love of God in Christ behaves.

    The love of God in Christ will motivate us to want to see others rise to greater levels of growth and prosperity. This is multiplied to uncalculatable levels when it comes to God’s heart and what He wants for us. We are His children! We’re Kingdom Kids, so it makes sense that Heavenly Father desires that we grow in His nature. In Ephesians 4:13, He makes it clear that the end goal is that we measure up to the full and complete stature of Christ. In other words, the more of God’s nature that we take on, the more like Christ we become. Heavenly Father can then share more with us; and not only this, but spiritually we get to a level where there is such an ease in our communication and fellowship with Him.

    When other things, situations, and people are dictating our mood, it means that we are developing a habit pattern of internalizing potentially hazardous stuff. We’re allowing fear and all its cousins to get cozy in our hearts. That’s no good. Our bodies are the temple of God. The Holy Spirit abides inside of us. We must remember that marital partnership is a ministry, and if we’re not ministering to our own hearts properly through God’s love and power, we probably won’t have the spiritual strength to do it for someone else. When we guard our hearts and feed them a diet of positive thoughts and the promises of God’s Word, we’ll be amazed by the blessings we begin to attract.

    Ephesians 4:30-32 The Message (MSG) tells us, “Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly and thoroughly as God in Christ forgave you.” I know you have heard many Christians refer to the indwelling Holy Spirit as a gentleman. For some of us, it may seem odd to our ears to hear this, but with respect to sensitivity, compassion, and love, this statement is so true. The Holy Spirit is very gentle and loving. He rejoices in those things that delight the Father, and he is grieved by those things that do not.

    The Holy Spirit partners with us when our actions are those that represent heaven. These are the times when we really see his power in operation. The bottom line is that we can’t thrive when our hearts and minds are not conducive to the lively loveliness of the Spirit. God is interested in what is going on with our hearts, because that’s where the action is. It’s part of the reason that God placed the Spirit on the inside of us. It’s there that we need the most help.

    We’ve really got to come into consciousness about how we’re reacting to the world around us. If we’re in a bad mood all the time, and we’re angry or disappointed, God has a remedy for this. He tells us to renew our minds to His Word and to trust Him with all our hearts. We need to talk to Him daily, be very honest with Him, and then listen for His response. We need to pray and trust that He’ll help us reroute ourselves, so that we can begin to attract blessings and make the indwelling Holy Spirit feel right at home.■

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. 

     “Don’t Break His Heart”, written for findchristianman ©2019.  All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Turn from Your Past and Usher in A New Joy!

    The Apostle Paul said in Philippians 3:13-14(NLT), “13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” As workman of the scriptures, we are often warned to be sure to put verses of scripture in their proper context. It is helpful to know who the Lord has inspired the writer to write to, and why. Sometimes it is doctrinal, and other times it is rebuke and correction. Philippians 3:13-14 is a passage that is so timeless and far reaching in its encouragement that any context would be too small a box to contain it.

    From what we know about Paul, he laid it all out there for us. He talked about the challenges of being a Christian in such blatant terms, and he was so honest about the struggles of the flesh. He wanted to please God with all his heart, but he was at times bombarded with so many obstacles. This is always an area that really tugs at my heart, because I know what it feels like to take one step forward, only to be knocked two steps back. It can really do a number on you, especially when you don’t understand what’s happening and why. This is one of the reasons that I endeavor to encourage sisters in the Lord that might be going through some of the tribulations that I have experienced in life. I believe it is my calling to help educate, uplift, and encourage, because I know God will deliver us from all affliction. We just need to have faith.

    We must bear in mind that pain will thrive and increase in an environment that is void of faith; because sometimes, we are so distracted by what is happening in our lives that we forget about our faith and forfeit the hope it brings. The enemy sniffs out this waning, and then bombards us with one thing after the other, so that our senses are overwhelmed. We’re so busy trying to put the pieces back together that we wake up one day and find we have been overwhelmed to the point of numbness. We become numb to the Word of God, and we start to believe that our only recourse is to continue shutting down.

    If you’ve ever been abused emotionally, physically or mentally, this feeling of being numb seems very natural. We retreat to familiar patterns when anything like devastation or disappointment come into play, and we will often switch off emotions like hope, joy, and faith for fear that they will let us down. We feel like punching bags, and many of us are emotionally exhausted from the fight.

    The Apostle Paul’s Road to Damascus experience was a shock to his total being. If any of us had been in his shoes, we may not have survived it. As he recovered and pursued the work of Jesus Christ vigorously, he faced some pretty tough opposition and circumstances—some of which you and I can’t really imagine. He wasn’t a super human. He didn’t have super hero powers. He was just a man that knew in his heart that Jesus Christ is real.

    Again, he talked about the struggle of bringing his mind under the authority of Christ amid the danger and chaos he faced. He was a man that had committed unthinkable cruelty against the followers of Christ, but then he was converted; he became a believer of the Lord Jesus Christ! Can you imagine the emotional heaviness he must have felt when thinking about how cruel he had once been to Christians? He could have chosen to be numb, so that he wouldn’t think about it or feel those feelings. This is why the passage in Philippians 3:13-14 is so precious, because Paul admitted that he wasn’t where he knew he should be, but he was determined that his past was not going to keep him from running the race and receiving the prize. This has to be our stance as well.

    Paul encouraged us in love to never get tired of living for Christ. The enemy will try and use the complexities of our pasts to exhaust us, to paralyze us in hopelessness and fear. This can make a person want to remain in a cocoon, but God’s love will cast out this kind of fear if we let it. No matter how down we are, no matter what has happened in our lives; no matter what pains we are carrying in our souls, we can look to God and know that the Holy Spirit is within us working to will and do of God’s good pleasure.

    Our walks in Christ are being perfected. This means that we turn our focus away from the past, just like Paul did. We should hold on to God with both hands, trusting that His work within us will be a good one. We can release those emotions that are holding us back, grab on to the hope of Christ, and usher in a new joy in our lives. ■

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “Turn from Your Past and Usher in A New Joy!”, written for findchristianman.com©2019. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Go for the Gusto and Don’t Lose Steam!

    It truly is a discerning time—a time to get pumped and motivated to do some things differently. Numbers too great to count are those who still find themselves without a good man to call their own. This isn’t God’s Will, and it is so wonderful that many sisters in Christ are coming to this realization. You recognize that you do not have to sit idly by, paralyzed by doubt. You can mobilize the resources that God has extended to change the outcomes of your life. This is good news indeed.

    For many single women, it may seem that you’ve experienced this level of motivation and excitement before, and it appears to you that nothing was accomplished. This isn’t true. Whether or not you acknowledge it, you moved yourself closer to what God has promised.

    If we will be completely honest with ourselves, we have to admit that for a brief period we determined to go for the gusto, but then, when things did not turn around as quickly and clearly as we had hoped, we lost steam.

    Gusto is defined as great enjoyment, energy, and enthusiasm. All three of these, enjoyment, energy, and enthusiasm, are jewels. They are invaluable when it comes to holding our desires in our minds and hearts with faith and focus. Losing steam is exactly the opposite. It is a state of mind that is down, droopy, and doubtful. Unfortunately, this is where a lot of single Christian sisters end up. They spend just a short amount of time with gusto, and then quickly become deflated and unhopeful when there isn’t an immediate outcome of their efforts.

    To keep hope alive and gusto charging with full steam ahead, one of the most important transformations we must engage is a change in our expectations. God tells us in Romans 12:2 to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. This isn’t something we do once and then stop. It isn’t something we do for a short while, and then give up. Renewing is a perpetual process. It never stops. The sheer nature of the word ‘renewal’ demands that we recognize the things that are no longer working for us. Then we change them and institute things that the Word of God guarantees will work for us.

    If we’ve hit a snag, stall, or wall, the misfire is clue#1 that renewal is in order. This realization is truly necessary when we seek to change our expectations. We have to understand that what used to work for us is no longer doing the trick, or it could be that things we thought were working actually didn’t work at all. Whatever the case, we need to be clear that renewing means we’re willing to go back to square one and throw out what didn’t work. Then we need to reassess, reprioritize, and begin to rebuild. This allows us to realign our expectations in a way that places Jesus Christ at the helm.

    The reality is that it took time for us to get to where we are today in our walk with Christ and in our lives overall. And it will take time to give our faith the processing time it needs to yield different results—results that are within the wonderful destiny that God has predetermined for our lives.

    Again, going for the gusto means that enjoyment, energy, and enthusiasm are top notch in your mental and emotional state. It means understanding that you can’t sink to the bottom rails of sadness, apathy, and doubt. You are the master builder of your life. God didn’t give any of us the power and authority to rule over another human being. He gave us power and authority through Jesus Christ to rule and reign in our own lives. If you are a mentally healthy individual, you can decide what you are going to think, feel, do, and say. You can effectively change your thoughts and feelings to receive exponentially successful results. Know that this is not only doable; it’s your destiny to work this out through the power of the Holy Spirit!

    Once you decide that this is the time for you to go for it, recognize that faith does not respond to a whim or a quick notion. Faith responds to the authority of Jesus Christ. This means that your heart and mind must be fully persuaded in the goodness of God. This full persuasion is the thing that causes you to be happy in the face of setbacks and adversity. Being fully persuaded is the thing that causes you to have warm flutters of optimism in your spirit, because you know beyond knowing that God is going to back His promises in your life.

    Hosea 14:9 (NLT) tells us, “Who is wise? Let them realize these things. Who is discerning? Let them understand. The ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them.” When you recognize that this is a discerning time in your life, and that it’s time to go for the gusto, understand that you have the great privilege to measure up to the standard of Christ by matching your emotions and thoughts to the emotions and thoughts of the Holy Spirit that indwells you. When you do this, gusto is achieved, steam will continually flow, and the locomotive of your faith will be in full effect. Never lose heart. You can have what God says you can have! Keep the faith!■

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “Go for the Gusto and Don’t Lose Steam!”, written for findchristianman.com ©2019. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Small Things Matter

    As we mature in Christ, we will notice certain correlations or parallels in our journeys forward. One of those involves our level of fulfillment and satisfaction in life. It will match our confidence level regarding our own ability to impact the Kingdom of God. 1Peter 4:10-11 (NLT) tells us, “10 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 11 Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever!” Some of us feel a little insecure in this area, and we really do need to get this one under our belts before we embark upon marriage.

    A good place to start is to think about what you feel are your best qualities. Consider what makes you unique and special. The qualities that you are willing to cosign on your own behalf are also ones that will lead you down a more purpose-driven path. We will often make things more complicated than they need to be. Jesus Christ told us in Matthew 11:30 that his yoke is easy and his burden is light, but we still make the reality of walking in our purposes such a difficult thing. God never intended it to be.

    Romans 12:6 (NLT) tells us, “In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.” God created us, and predestined us according to the purposes of His own Will. He’s not slack in any way, and never misses a beat, so we can have confidence that we are uniquely specialized to carry forth something He has ordained. He made sure that we were born with everything we need to be a blessing and to influence and impact those we know and love for His Kingdom.

    A while ago, when my schedule was a little lighter, I’d stay up late watching cooking shows on TV.  Featured desserts were my favorite. I grew up around women that could sho’nuff burn in the kitchen. They didn’t need recipes. A pinch here, a sprinkle there; a cup of this, a teaspoon of that, and a masterpiece of southern cuisine was born. I never thought much about baking then, I was too busy enjoying the fruit of my kinfolk’s labor. My aunt’s pound cake would literally melt in your mouth, and I just always assumed the skill was beyond me, but one day something happened. My interest in those television shows had caught me by surprise, and I decided to give baking a try. Homemade Chocolate Chip cookies, Caramel Cake from scratch, you name it, I tried it.

    At first, my sweets were not such a treat, but after a while, I got the hang of it. “You put ya’ foot in this, girl!”  My family and friends often say after eating my homespun yummies from scratch. I’ll go through periods where I don’t bake, but something within me will say, “It’s time to get to it again.” The habit pattern of baking is now ingrained in my life because I’ve chosen to give in this way. Single or married, I’m committed to do it because it is one of the ways I endeavor to be a blessing. At one time I thought, “Father, being a blessing can’t be as simple as giving folks desserts.” But indeed it is. The Spirit reminds me constantly that I should never overlook the small or simple things, because they mean so much to others.

    Heaven rejoices when we honor God with actions to be a blessing. When we do things well and use whatever we’ve been given to bless folks, God receives the praise. This is why we can never hide what He has given us. A hunch or a casual interest can be expanded to an extremely important opportunity that positions us to live greater for God. So build your confidence in your gifts, talents, and abilities; use them for God’s glory, and watch how He causes them to greatly increase your fulfillment and satisfaction in life!

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “Small Things Matter!” written for findchristianman.com/blog/©2019.  All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • You’re All in, But Him, Not So Much

    Gifts of expensive jewelry, bouquets of beautiful flowers, and dinners at nice restaurants; these are the tangible things that a lot of us associate with a man who is really interested in the woman he’s seeing. Keeping it real, these things can’t hurt, but the true foundation of the relationship is actually how a man interacts with you. The ‘umph’ in a relationship is when both partners are validating each other’s thoughts and feelings. In other words, it’s when he lets you know undeniably, that you are the woman he honors above all others.

    Of course, we should never make any person our all in all. Only God deserves this place in our lives, but Heavenly Father wants every woman to experience what it feels like to be genuinely valued and appreciated supremely. The man that chooses her as the object of his affection has the distinct responsibility to validate her in this way, and she has the responsibility for doing the same for him.

    Relationships lasts when both people are mutual in their degree of willingness to share and interact with each other while having a goal of increasing their love and support in mind. If you’re all in, and the other person isn’t quite there yet, you’re probably not going to receive the validation you need, and you shouldn’t settle for this.

    God said in Jeremiah 29:11(NLT), “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord.  “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Heavenly Father has your back. He has a plan for you, and it is a good one. God only wants what’s best for us, and He knows what it will take to bless us. We can trust Him to take care of our needs, and we can know resolutely that He would not have us picking up crumbs on the floor when He has prepared a feast at the table.

    Be firm in your conviction to receive quality love, but also measure it against the love and support you’re willing to extend yourself. Recognize when you just don’t do it for the other person. Let him go in grace while you do the same. His refusal to be all in is a sure indication that he’s not yet capable of recognizing the jewel that is ‘you’. This isn’t a bad thing at all. You want someone who appreciates you and knows the importance of validating it in a loving and Godly way. So always remember that God wants the best for you and continue walking in faith until you receive it.

    Written for findchristianman.com©2019.  All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • It’s Just So Unfair!

    James 3:17 (NLT) “17 But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.”

    “I just can’t go to another wedding! My last single girlfriend just snagged a good man, and I don’t understand it. She hasn’t been on this Christian journey as long as I have, and I don’t think she’s as dedicated as I am. To make matters worse, she’s on her second go around, and I’ve never had a ring on my finger! It just doesn’t seem fair. Where am I going wrong?” This summarizes the sentiments of many sister-friends that are very frustrated. They’ve been single longer than they’d like and don’t understand why things are not working out for them.

    God provides for us a sure Word, a Word that we can count on no matter what, because God’s Word will never fail or falter. We can stand upon it and it will never let us down. In James 3:17, He tells us that His wisdom is pure. It is unadulterated. So when we see things that look to us to be unfair, we can rest assured that they may look that way, but God’s way is perfect.

    It is when we allow ourselves to indulge this sense that we are being wronged or unfairly treated in life that we make huge errors. The first mistake is forgetting that God’s wisdom is unfailing, and the second is neglecting that it does not show favoritism. This train of thought gains traction from our emotional responses, and once it does, it then has the power to affect our outcomes.

    God has told us to renew our minds for a reason, and one of those reasons is because the way we think plays a huge role in the amount of peace, abundance, and fulfillment we experience in life. Without putting ourselves in check, we begin to move in reverse and attract the exact opposite of the blessings we desire.

    The blessing of marriage is a spiritually forward, progressive, and higher level reality. Therefore, it stands to reason that it will require a spiritually forward, progressive, and higher level mentality and emotionality to build capacity for it. We can’t get there by indulging negativity and letting bottom feeding thoughts and emotions drag us beneath the realm of Godliness.  You can only get a higher functioning mind-and-heart set from trusting, knowing, and feeding upon God’s Word.  

    James 1:5 (NLT) tells us, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.” The same energy that we waste by thinking and reacting to doubt, we can reroute towards having faith in the generosity of God. Transitioning from single to married takes decisive steps, just like any other thing that we seek to do in life. If you’re doing something that you shouldn’t be doing, or you’re not doing what you should be doing, and you’re not quite certain where you’re veering off the path, ask our generous God if you can’t figure it out. He won’t be mad about it. Through the Holy Spirit, He’ll tell you exactly what you need to do in order to receive the blessing you so earnestly desire. ■

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “It’s Just So Unfair!”, written for Findingchristianman.com©2019.  All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Don’t You See It?

    Don’t You See It?

    Isaiah 43:15-19(NLT)
    15 I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator and King. 16 I am the Lord, who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea. 17 I called forth the mighty army of Egypt with all its chariots and horses. I drew them beneath the waves, and they drowned, their lives snuffed out like a smoldering candlewick. 18 “But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.19 For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?

    When was the last time you got excited…I mean goosebumps, stomach flip-flopping, jumping out of your skin excited? Do you know the Christian walk should provoke this kind of jubilance from us every day? Well it definitely should! If you’re not experiencing this, the next logical question is why aren’t you? We may not feel like skipping through fields of sunflowers every moment of the day, but we must identify this level of energy, vigor, and joy as God’s goal for us. Not only is it His goal that we remain in a constant state of joy, but He’s done everything that could possibly be done to make it available to us. It’s now our responsibility to reach out, grab it, and make it our own.

    It is easier to be depressed, upset, angry, and doubtful than to be excited about what God wants to do in your life, and most importantly, what He has already done. The things that God has promised us, He is willing, able, and ready to fulfill. What’s the hold up? It’s usually us. We are not believing Him in faith, but instead, we have trained our minds to wait with wishful thinking. We ask, “God, why don’t I have this? What’s wrong? Why are You taking so long?” Many of us are not exercising faith in God, or the things He’s promised.

    God is waiting on us to change, and the changes we need to make must be consistent with His Word. Faith begins in the mind. The mind is our thought-processing center, and God designed it to be very logical. We feed it data. It computes, programs, and then catalogs this data based on where we tell it to go. Does it go to faith? Does it go to fear? Does it go to work, play, family, chores…we tell it how to house and catalog the data we’ve allowed in its gateway. If we tell it to catalog data that isn’t logical or doesn’t make sense, the mind tells itself that we don’t really believe the data it’s received.

    Let me give you a visual of this as it relates to your faith. The mind knows that we will only act on data or knowledge we believe. So, your mind will not accept that you believe ‘God is good all the time and all the time God is good’ if you also believe He punishes you. You’ve already programmed your mind that punishment is bad, so it will not accept that good and bad are the same. Trying to believe this will cause you to be unstable, and you won’t be able to receive the results of faith that you desire, because you will not act upon something you don’t believe. It is equally true that you can’t desire the Will of God in your life for marriage, and not equally desire to walk in the purpose to which you’ve been called. If you believe in God’s Will for you, the evidence will be your attentiveness to do it.

    Romans 10:17(NLT) states, “So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.” And James 2:26 tells us that faith without works is dead. From these two powerful verses, you and I can gather that if our attitude doesn’t compute with faith and our actions don’t compute with faith, then faith is not going to come. This is a very simple statement of truth, but many are still perplexed about why they are not receiving the results of their faith.

    Aren’t’ you tired of just having a little bit of your needs met? Aren’t you tired of hitting and missing? If you have some habits you need to get rid of or put aside, why not just do it and get yourself aligned with faith. Let the Lord know that you want His power to emanate within you. You must want what God wants for your life.

    Ephesians 3:20 affirms that we serve a God that deals in the exceedingly abundantly. He goes above and beyond anything we can ask or think. Don’t expect to continue doing the same things and expect different results. See God bigger! He wants to do a new a new thing in your life, and you must do everything humanly possible to follow His lead.■

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “Don’t You See It?” written for Findchristianman.com©2019.  All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

  • Do Not Doubt What God is Doing In Your Life

    Do Not Doubt What God is Doing In Your Life

    You may be ostracized and isolated because you are a born-again Christian. Others within your circle of familiarity may band together, laughing and talking among themselves, and purposely exclude you. The person that is causing or has caused the most devastation in your life may be prospering wonderfully, and you, yourself, may be financially struggling. Perhaps the ex is living it up with the new person, and all you can do is watch by the sidelines, or maybe you were passed over for a promotion because of the color of your skin, and it was given to someone who flat out didn’t deserve it. These are situations that cut deep. They do not always seem rational or logical, and we can’t understand how the world can work this way, but it’s not for us to understand. Our responsibility and charge is to simply trust God no matter how things may look.

    The enemy wants us to doubt what God is doing. Just as the devil caused Adam and Eve to fall because they doubted God’s Word, the psalmist, David, reminded us that this too can happen to us if we are not watchful. Psalms 37 is probably on everyone’s list of favorites, and it is a powerful piece of wisdom and instruction. King David advises us in verse one, “Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.” The word “fret” conveys vexation and an incensed anger. It is a heated response of displeasure and annoyance. Many believe that David wrote this psalm as an encouragement to the Children of Israel, so they would not be angry as they witnessed the prosperity of evildoers. He warned them not to be indignant at the advancement of the wicked.

    Sisters and Brothers, this is such great instruction for us today, because some of us are so angry by what we see happening in the world. And when you couple this kind of anger with feelings of disappointment that many of us are wrestling with about our own lives, you’ve got a recipe that serves up an ample dose of doubt. If we’re going to get to that glorious place that God has intended for each of us to reach, doubt is the one thing we simply cannot afford to indulge.

    We don’t have the luxury of taking our eyes off the prize and casting them on what the enemy’s cronies are doing, because the moment we do this, we stand to lose out on the good things that God has planned for us. An angry response is a sure sign that our hearts are misplaced. When we get angry and allow our attention to be diverted to the prosperity that others seem to have, even though they may have it undeservedly, the underlying truth is that we’re doubting what God is doing in us and for us. He has plans to prosper us, and He has told us this in His Word.

    God has a way of handling evil doers and workers of iniquity. David told us in Psalm 37:2, “For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.” So don’t get tricked by the devil. Don’t be overly concerned with what is happening to them. Focus on what God is doing in YOUR life and cancel out any doubt in your mind and heart. Refuse to allow the enemy to steal your attention away from the victory that is yours to claim. This is where your attention must be.

    You don’t have to understand all the details that are happening in your life. Yes, things get crazy from time to time, but the Lord works in mysterious ways. Paul said in Romans 11:33 (NLT), “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!” Don’t lean on your own understanding, lean on God! He knows what needs to be done in order to get you from point A to point B. He knows what needs to happen to increase you and bless you spiritually, and in every other way. So, no matter what may come—no matter how things look, just stay in God’s face, and trust Him! He’s doing something good in your life!

    Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

    “Do Not Doubt What God is Doing In Your Life” written for findingchristianman.com©2019.   All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!