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Author: Sharon Ricks

And It Is So

And It Is So

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In one of my last posts, I spoke about letting God down by allowing my focus to be on others’ needs and not on Him. That has been on my mind a lot lately. My prayer is that I remain available to God, and to what He is calling me to do. That He can call on me at any time, and that I will respond. That is not always the case, but I am trying ya’ll.

I had a conversation with one of my sisters about being, “out of the box,” and what that really means. God has been calling us to do things that are so far out of our comfort zone that we no longer have a comfort zone. That is both comforting and disturbing at the same time. Comforting, because I know God is always with me, guiding me and protecting me. Showing me things about myself that still amaze me, and disturbing because I no longer know what being comfortable feels like.

In Acts 20:24 the Apostle Paul said, “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.” That is my goal…to glorify my Father, and to run my race–no matter what.

I don’t want to lean on my own understanding anymore. I want to be so totally dependent on God that I won’t make a move without Him. That’s my desire, and God’s word says He will give us the desires of our hearts. So, I am just believing that in the name of Jesus, it is so.

Until next time…

Be blessed

I Am Not Superwoman

I Am Not Superwoman

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Life has been a little hectic for me lately. And it has made me finally come to the realization that I am not superwoman. There. I said it. I don’t have to pretend any longer. Everyone now knows that I cannot do everything, or be everywhere. Whew! I feel better already.

I mean I had good intentions. I wanted to please God by being the kind of person that others could depend on in their time of need. But here’s the thing…we are supposed to help one another, but we are not supposed to be the only one people can call. That’s crazy thinking, and that’s the kind of thinking that is rooted in insecurity and fear. That’s the kind of thinking that will make your life miserable, and send you to an early grave. God did not call us to do that. There is a saying that says “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.” I don’t really know who said it, but the Bible kind of backs it up in Proverbs 14:12 when it says, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.” 

All I can say is that it seemed to make sense at the time. It has been difficult giving up my “halo,” but with God’s help, I am beginning to see the light.

What God showed me was that my priority had shifted, and He was no longer my focus…pleasing others was. Ouch! That hurt. I love the Lord with all of my heart, and pleasing Him is why I do anything. So…finding out that He was no longer my focus hit me deep.  I do not like feeling as if I have let God down. So, I have had to re-prioritize my thinking about things. I know that it is not about me being the one…but about me representing “The One.”  

Until next time…

Be blessed

It’s in His Word

It’s in His Word

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Part of going deeper in God is realizing that God didn’t give us a mediocre life. We were not meant to just go through life. We are supposed to LIVE life. His word says that we could have life and have it more abundantly. But here’s the thing…the only way to get that is through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

That scripture comes from John 10:10, and it actually says that the enemy (the devil) comes to destroy your life…literally. His job is to kill us physically and spiritually. But Jesus says, “I have come….” That statement right there changes everything. There is power in that statement. 

God didn’t let His One and Only Son go to the cross for nothing. And Jesus didn’t give His life so that we could live defeated and depressed. God loves us way too much for that. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, and ask Him to come into our lives…He comes. And not only does He come, but He brings a whole host of angels with Him.

But in order to take advantage of that, we have to work on our relationship with God. And working on that relationship is like working on any other relationship we have with anyone we care for. It takes spending time alone with Him, and trusting Him enough to be honest with Him. There never has to be any pretense With God. We don’t have to hide anything from Him, because He already knows everything about us. He is the one person who knows us better than we even know ourselves. And how about this…He still loves us.

But I don’t care how many times we hear that, we won’t get it until we get to know Him for ourselves. Spend some time in His word. Every plan, instruction, or direction God has for our lives is in there, and that’s the only way to find out who He is, AND who we are.

Until next time…

Be blessed

Refining Faith

Refining Faith

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God has promised us a new life. It doesn’t matter what you have done or where you have been, God’s promise is that if you give your life to Christ, He will make your life brand new. For just a moment, I lost sight of that promise. Now, don’t get it twisted. I am not talking about my salvation. I have no doubt that I am saved. What I’m talking about is, every now and then when life gets a little rough…my focus tends to stay on my problem—and not on my God.

I believe we are in a season of strengthening faith. I love God, and I know He loves me. I do not doubt for a minute that He will deliver me out of all my troubles. The thing is…we have to go through our troubles in order to get to the other side, and it’s that going through that can sometimes take us to that lonely place. The awesome thing about that though is that God already knows the plan. Even when we can’t understand we can trust that first, there is a purpose for everything, and second…God is in control.

First Peter 1:7 says, “These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.” Wow! That is so awesome. This scripture is saying that our faith is more precious than gold. Stronger and more powerful.

Before the refiner applies pressure, gold is simply a lump of ore. The refiner stirs and skims the gold to remove any impurities, and when it is just right, he lets it cool before sending it out into the world. That is what God does for us. He is the refiner. Our trials are what He uses to purify and strengthen us.

We will go through times of testing, but just know that God has promised to be there…right in the midst of whatever we are going through—good or bad. He never takes His eyes off of us, and for that I am eternally grateful.

Until next time…

Be blessed

My Dream, God’s Plan

My Dream, God’s Plan

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I am feeling the need to go deeper in the Lord. What I mean by that is, God is allowing me to see things from a different perspective. I think for the first time I am seeing that there really is nothing I can’t do when I connect my faith with His power. 

You know how it is when you know God is calling you to something, but you just can’t seem to get out of your own way. Well, I am realizing that I have been stifling my own creativity by not believing in my own dream. It finally dawned on me that the vision is for doing…not just for seeing. Wow…that was good even to me. I have been looking at the dream God has given me like it was going to magically appear. Ummmm…there won’t be any lucky charm moments. I can’t keep wishing and hoping. I have to be willing to do the work. 

Even though I have read what the Bible says about me, and the plans God has for my life, I am still finding it hard to walk in it. I have to get my mind to be in agreement with my heart, and my heart has to be in agreement with my spirit and it all has to be in agreement with God’s plan, and I am finding that if any one of those things begins to act independently of the other, it all gets out of balance, and out of order. That’s when I need the help of the Holy Spirit, because I know He will lead the way out, and show me the way to go.  

Right now it is time to step it up…to dig into God’s word like never before, and let myself believe in the dream that’s been waiting for me. 

God has so much for all of us…if we just let Him lead the way.

Until next time…

Be blessed

A Good Steward

A Good Steward

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Being a good steward is important to me. Recently I was reminded that everything belongs to God, and He basically allows us the opportunity to manage it. 

It’s like the story of the talents in Matthew 25. The master was going out of town, and he left the talents with his servants, and only two of the three did a good job of managing what he had been given. The third man was afraid, and ended up doing nothing…and that was exactly what he received…nothing. 

When I think about it that way, it makes me sad that I may be letting God down. It’s not that I am frivolous in my spending, or purposely wasteful, but by not consciously thinking about the things I spend my money on I am being careless with the things God has…and is trusting me with. When I started looking at how I was “managing” what God has given me…I saw how incompetent I am at times. I make sure my bills are paid, but then the rest of the time it’s like throwing money right out the window. When I look back at what I did with my money…I can’t really trace it. But I am determined to change that. 

Studies show that it can take anywhere from two to eight months to make or break a habit, and I am confident that I will have the victory. I have to be just as determined to keep trying as I have been to keep spending. The desire to do it is there, and the Bible says that if we delight ourselves in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our heart (Psalm 37). That seals it for me.

Ok, so now that God has me on board, I have to really work on getting my house in order. That means coming up with a plan to track my spending. I know it is not going to be easy, but I also know that God will never lead us down a path to a dead end. He will help me every step of the way. This whole experience is bringing me closer to God, and now that I think of it…maybe that was His purpose all along.

Until next time… 

Be blessed

God’s Hands

God’s Hands

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I am still so grateful for every single day God allows me to be on the face of this earth.

I woke up this morning feeling God’s hand holding me. I don’t know why…but, I just felt secure…safe. I know that He ministers to my spirit as I sleep (that’s probably the only time my mind is at rest). That’s one of the things I love about Him. He will never stop trying to reach us. So, I have to believe that whatever was on my mind when I went to bed last night is being taken care of by the Master. I have been striving to be as Paul says in Philippians 4:11, “… content whatever the circumstances.” (NIV) There is a beauty in being content. It says that I trust the providence of God.

When we believe that everything is in God’s hands it makes it easier to let go. I believe that as long as we hold on to “things” it blocks the flow of God’s plan in our lives. He wants to do big things through us. But, we sometimes get in the way. In our little finite minds we still think we have control over certain situations…and I guess in a way we do. We control our destinies in that we have the power of choice, and we can choose to believe or not believe—to follow Him, or not follow Him. More than anything, I want to follow Him. I want my life to reflect the love of Jesus Christ in everything I do, and I pray the same for you.

I pray that we all continue to walk in the newness that comes from a life that is sold out to God. I pray that His strength will help carry us through those times of trial, and those times when we want to quit. And finally I pray that we all begin to appreciate the gift of being in God’s hands.

Until next time…

Be blessed

Extremely Blessed

Extremely Blessed

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Whenever we are doing something for God, we are going to meet some opposition. I thought I was used to his tactics…that I was ready for it, but he has really been stepping up his game lately. And even when you are prepared, he still finds a way to insert his presence.

I was speaking to a friend… telling her about all of the things that were going on, and right in the middle of our conversation she stopped me and prayed for me. I thank God for the power of prayer. Sometimes, we will tell people to pray for us not really knowing if they will or not. I thank God for placing me with some powerful prayer warriors. I know that even when I do not have enough sense to pray for myself…they will pray for me.

I feel extremely blessed…not because of any material things, but because God has given me more than I even imagined. He has given me joy in the midst of my sorrow, peace in times of a storm, and friends that will be my BFFs forever. No amount of money could ever buy that, and I do not take that lightly. I am so grateful.

I don’t think my friend realized that what she did shifted the atmosphere…maybe she did.  For a moment, I was so caught up in the perceived obstacles that I forgot Who was in control. The Book of Proverbs says that when we trust and acknowledge God, He directs our path. Our Father does not give vision without giving provision. 

We just have to stay focused on God, keep moving forward, and allow Him to clear a path.

Until next time…

Be blessed

An Amazing Kind of Love

An Amazing Kind of Love

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Today, I just want to talk about how amazing it is to be loved by God. How totally and perfectly He loves us. His love caused Him to wrap Himself in flesh, come down from His place in heaven and die on an old rugged cross for us. What an amazing Father, and what an amazing kind of love.

And here’s the kicker…we don’t have to do anything to earn it. He loves us whether we even love Him or not. Most of us can’t even fathom that kind of love. Even as followers of Christ, we get so used to doing stuff that we forget that we don’t have to. All we really have to do is rest in God, and trust the power of the Holy Spirit that lives within us. That’s it. We don’t need to do anything else. 

When we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior, our place in heaven is reserved. We are sealed. We become co-heirs with Christ, and all that He has…we have. We can’t do anything to deserve it, or anything to keep it. It is our gift. That’s love. It’s the kind of love that doesn’t see faults, or mistakes. It just sees the possibilities of a life that was created in love.

God’s word in 1 John 4:16 says, “ And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” That statement brings me comfort. It tells me that I can step out on faith, and that I won’t be alone when I do. We never have to feel alone, or left out, or forsaken…God’s promise is that His love is there…always and I believe it.

Begin to live boldly and confidently in God’s love. 

Until next time…

Be blessed

Staying Connected

Staying Connected

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Not too long ago some of my old coworkers, and I got together for an afternoon to just reminisce and catch up on what has been happening with one another. What I found interesting is that whenever we come together, it’s almost like we have never been apart. There are never any awkward moments of silence. Actually, there are usually several conversations going on at once…just like family. The surprising thing is that we all began working together 15 years ago, and we still make getting together a priority. We have all made a conscious effort to come together every so often so that we don’t lose that connection. Someone in the group will send an email, and anyone that can make it…does. No pressure.

Before the pandemic, some of my family members would get together every month or so to just eat a meal together. Some of my nieces and nephews would have a cousin’s day, and some of them even have sister weekends. I have one friend that still texts me everyday just to say good morning…I love you…have a blessed day. I had another friend that would call me every few days, and when I would pick up the phone, she would start singing….lol. I really hope that she starts doing that again. I miss it. 

I am praying that we don’t lose that feeling of connectedness (Is that a word?). Life is so fleeting, and time goes by so quickly that if we don’t grab those moments…they soon disappear. 

So, the goal for the rest of this year is to stay connected. Let people know that you care about them. Don’t think about why they are in your life, just enjoy the fact that they are. That’s my goal, and I hope you make that your goal too.

Maybe I’ll call up my friend and just blast out a song today. 🙂

Until next time…

Be blessed