Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Freestyle Inspiration

“Don’t worry about a thing, cause every little thing is gonna be alright.” -Bob Marley
Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, instead, by prayer and petition, with grateful hearts, present your requests to God.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a fantastic day today.
The other day I was reminded of a recent decision I made which I feel was a very big mistake, but now I have to live with this decision knowing I might not have this opportunity come along again. Facing the outcome of my decision and knowing I may have even upset God by not stepping out in faith as I should have caused me to start feeling anxious, stressed, and worried. These feelings almost never work out well for me. In this time of anxiety and worry my mom one again reminded me that “What’s done is done and there’s no reason to fret over it. Instead, just shift my focus towards the positive gifts I have in my life and look towards the future with hope. God still has an even better plan in store for you.” (Thanks Mom) 😊
I wonder if this was what Bob Marley was facing when he wrote this song? The battle of the unknowns, the not so great choices, coupled with the uncertainty of whether he would see another opportunity arise despite his circumstances. Anxiety and worry discriminates against no one. We are all susceptible to facing times in life when our worries, doubts, and fears tend to get the best of us, leaving us feeling downtrodden and bleak. Thanks be to God that we have God’s own words that remind is that we always have the very best advocate we could ever hope for to help remove these feelings from our spirits and Who can answer our prayers dispelling our worries, doubts, and fears. Praise God that when we can’t fully remember the scripture, Bob Marley summed the scripture up with music that we can quickly reference to help us remember God is helping us, and Great is our God who has given us so many promises in His own words that remind us that despite our doubts, fears, worries, and concerns, and despite our not-well- thought- through decisions, His promises and plans are meant to always work out so much better than our own plans could ever have come together and this truth gives us the best reason to sing, “Don’t worry about a thing cause every little thing is gonna be alright.”
Have an incredible day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Freestyle Inspiration

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me.”
“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” ― Mahatma Gandhi
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a superb day today.
To follow up on yesterday’s message, today’s message is written to give us a vision of what living Christ-like in our world today should look like.
As you continue to walk, along with a few more individuals, opposite the larger crowd, at first you all are walking close together. You all are joyfully praising and encouraging one another. However, as time goes by you find that the growing crowd going in the opposite direction has put distance between you all causing you all to lose sight of each other from time to time. When these times come you holler out above the crowd to remind each other that you are still there. Still, as time goes on the distance between you all grows larger and soon the hollering can no longer be heard and you start to panic a bit wondering how you are going to find each other again. Then, you remember scripture from the Bible that teaches you that all will know you are Christians by your deeds. You realize with this wisdom that you need to appear different in positive ways to ensure you are standing out from the crowd. You, as a follower of Jesus, are a light in the city on the hill illuminating all that is below and all around. Soon, as you live more and more like Jesus and less like yourself you notice that those you have lost track of are once more finding you. “How did you find me?” You start to ask them until you look them over once more and you realize that all of you are glowing like glorious beams of sunshine. All have recognized you because of your good deeds and your committed walk with Jesus.
We are supposed to look and sound different from the rest of the world to help others find their way to Jesus. If we claim to be Christians yet we continue to follow our worldly desires, chase down our flesh-driven cravings, and fulfill our sinful appetites, we are not displaying the fruits of the Spirit that Christ gifts us with as our Lord and Savior. Then we simply end up looking like imposters parading around throwing empty “Amen’s” and useless “Praise God’s” out into the atmosphere, and this hurts us and the people we love more than we could ever know. Be a dedicated and true Christian. If you aren’t sure how, ask God to show you. I promise you, He will not let you down and He will cause you to shine with His Holy Spirit for all the world to see.
Have a fabulous day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Freestyle Inspiration

(Photo found on Pinterest)

Proverbs 15:1 “A gentle answer turns away wrath.”
James 1:19 “Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a fabulous day today.
Yesterday at work I watch the annual mandatory training meeting all about the importance of customer service and how our attitudes towards our customers can make all the difference in the world. If we exude an attitude of frustration, irritation, and impatience then we will likely receive from them the same kind of attitude or possibly worse. However, if we choose to keep a positive attitude towards all of our customers,  no matter how difficult they may be to work with, then eventually they may very well come around and soften their own demeanor and even if they choose not to soften their attitudes, we can still walk away with peace in our hearts knowing we chose to stay patient and we chose to be gentle and calm in our interactions with those difficult customers.  The same can go for any relationships we have in our lives. Family, friends, co-workers, our children, and spouses. Even when they are being difficult, or even impossible, if we can take a quick moment to pray and ask God to help us stay at peace, be patient, and let them say what they need to say or express themselves the way they need to, God will be quick to answer and even quicker to help us. Let the memory you leave behind in the lives of others be a memory of the kind, gentle, loving, and caring person you always were to them. There are plenty of grumpy, angry, hateful, irritated frustrated, and miserable people in this world already. Let’s pray and ask God to help us be the very best version of ourselves that He knows we can be so that we can be sure that every day we are shining the much needed light of Jesus into the lives of everyone who surround us and everyone who we meet. And a big part of God’s answer to that prayer is His Holy Spirit He places within us that overcomes all the negativity that can come against us and that will try to take root within our hearts and spirit. Matthew 7:15-20 teaches us that we can recognize truly good people by the fruits that they bear (show us), let us daily walk close to Jesus and stay in prayer with God so that we can be known as genuinely good and Godly people by the good and beautiful fruit we show others. Smile as often as you can, laugh genuinely, hug the people you love, speak loving, gentle, uplifting, and encouraging words. Be the spark of light this world so desperately needs.
Have an incredible day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Freestyle Inspiration

“Create the life you love!”
James 4:2 “You do not have because you do not ask God.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a wonderful day today.
Creating the life we live is absolutely an attainable goal and a goal which we should all be striving for daily. If you’re anything like me, you know how creating the life you love isn’t going to feel as easy as it once seemed it would, because you have let work become your daily driving force just so you can get the bills paid. Now you have become so engrossed in your daily routine that you have forgotten what your dreams and passions are. In fact, some of those passions and dreams may very well have changed over the years. I love how this scripture found in the book of James so clearly echoes the positive quote for today about creating the lives we love. God wants us to ask Him for His good gifts to be showered upon us, but He wants us to ask Him with faithful hearts and with generous spirits. He wants us to give to others and to joyfully share our blessings with others. God wants to bless us and He wants to help us build and create the lives we love, all we have to do is come to God in prayer and ask Him for His help. His answers and provisions might look a whole lot different than we thought they’d look, but we can fully and one thousand percent know that our God is an Awesome God and His love for us is always unfailing and His plans for us are always for good. He wants to help us create and live lives we truly love so that we can also be a blessing to all those around us who need us. Creating a life we love starts with putting God and Jesus at the center of our lives and with seeking God and God’s calling for our lives first. That life we love, it won’t always be perfect, but it will always provide us a reassuring and spirit refreshing embrace when the trials and troubles come to find us reminding us that God’s love and gifts He gives us are perfect in every way and His perfect presence with us will always bring us peace, hope, wisdom, and guidance to navigate the good days and the difficult days as we journey towards and through this life we have created with God and His love.
Have an outstanding day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Freestyle Inspiration

(Photo courtesy of Delilah Higgins)

Esther 4:14 “For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a spectacular day today
I have read the last part of the above scripture in another way as well: “Perhaps you were born for a time such as this.” I think about young Esther and her position in life which made her a royal then her calling on her life to act in a way that could have cost her her own life to save the Jewish people who otherwise would have been killed randomly simply because one person thought that was a good idea. Can you imagine the pressure and the fierce courage it took Esther to make this request of her new husband, the king, to retract this inhumane order and to protect the people? This scripture reminds me often that each one of us are not here by mistake or by circumstance, we are here, in this time and in this place for a reason and for a purpose, and that purpose was designed exquisitely by the Hands of God. We may reminisce on times gone by wondering where the time went and wishing we could return to those times, but truly God wants us to smile about the good memories and be strong with the memories that sustain us, and He calls us to inquire of Him how He wants us to serve Him and honor Him in this time we are in now. He didn’t create us to give up or to make excuses as to why we simply cannot.  He did not put us here in this specific time for us to be silent or to shy away from important subjects. He created us purposefully and masterfully, for this moment in time to fulfill our unique calling in life all of which has a domino effect on others around us as well as future generations. When we find ourselves questioning why we have to face the things we are facing in this world today and wishing we could have lived in a more peaceful, less tumultuous time, we can take comfort in knowing that by God’s perfect design we are here, in this time and in this place surrounded by exactly who we are meant to be surrounded with and none of it is by accident. We are here to fulfill our own uniquely wonderful purpose making our own distinct mark in this world, which we pray will point others to Jesus and we have God to thank for His awesome plans that has put us here at just the right time and in just the right place to serve just the right people.
Have an extraordinary day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Letters to my children and to the people who love them

Joshua 24:15 “But if you refuse to serve the LORD, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a terrific day today.
“Dear kiddos and family,
You cannot serve two rulers at once, for in due time they will learn about one another and they will force you to choose. This is what Joshua is telling us all, just as he was telling the Isrealite people in his time. They could not worship, praise and sacrifice to idols and gods of their making and their ancestors making and claim to serve and worship God too. God is an Awesome and also jealous God who did not appreciate the “thanks” He was getting from His chosen people whom He had rescued from Egypt and for whom He had performed countless miracles to sustain them and to bring them to their promised land. Much the same way, God has provided for us countless blessings and numerous miracles and He does not appreciate when we choose to take those blessings and miracles for granted and instead we choose to worship and praise our own idols such as our addictions, our bad habits, perhaps our jobs, or even celebrities. We may even be making the very big mistake of making idols of our children and loved ones putting them before God. In the book of Joshua, he tells the people to choose who they will serve, made up idols and gods or God Himself, but they cannot choose both. That’s considered being a lukewarm Christian and therefore not a very passionate and committed way of serving God and certainly not any kind of way to say “thank you” to Jesus who suffered and died on the cross so we could be forgiven our sins. Choose today, as you read this letter, the better and more blessed portion. Choose today to serve and follow Christ and to serve and follow God. Choose today to commit your whole heart and all of your life and all that you have been blessed with to God. I promise you that you will never be sorry that you chose God and Jesus over all the idols and temptations of this world. I assure you, there will be a time when you will be forced to choose and you most definitely want to know what your answer is because your answer makes the difference about where you will spend your eternal life, and that matters so much more than you know.
I love you all
Love Ma!”
Have an incredible day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Letters to my children and to the people who love them

1 Corinthians 13:3 “If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a phenomenal day today.
“Dear kiddos and family,
With all that you do and all that you say, choose to let love be the driving motivation for you always. To this very day I know I wrestle with this myself, because I am so quick to be offended and even quicker to be ready to retaliate. Therefore, please know that this verse speaks very loudly to me as well. If we paused for a moment to imagine how awesome and beautiful this world could be if we all acted and spoke from a genuinely loving heart isn’t it inspiring to think that our own actions and words could possibly start this positive movement? We may think that we are just one or two people, but what if I told you that your one small act of kindness, gentleness, patience, or generosity, could very well snowball into an avalanche of more good leaving no room for evil or hatred to barge in. 1 John 4:16 teaches us that “God is love!” This is kind of a big deal to me as an eye opening statement. Read it again, “God IS Love!” If God is love then we can conclude that God loves us, God loves all of His children, God loves all of His creatures and all of His creations. God acts from love, speaks from love, gives from love, and rules over all the earth with love. This is how God wants us to also live and God knows its not always easy for us to act, react, or speak from love, but God will help us to remember to act and speak from love when we ask Him for help, and He will help us to learn from our mistakes and He will help us to do better when we have missed an opportunity to act and speak from a place of love. Loving others and living your life showing love to others does not make you weak, on the contrary it proves exactly how strong and how resilient you truly are. And remember, God IS Love, therefore if you find things or people seeping into your life that are contrary to God a.k.a. Love, then you can be sure that it’s time to come to God in prayer because He will help separate you from those things and people that aren’t there for good and that do not have loving intentions in their hearts. Learning to live, act, and speak always from love takes time, patience, and practice for all of us, but I can assure you that when you choose to live with love as your driving motivation daily, you will naturally feel more God given joy, peace, and happiness. Thanks to God and His eternal love for us all.
I love you all
Love Ma!”
Have a great day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Letters to my children and to the people who love them

(Photo courtesy of Sherryl Seal)

Romans 12:12 “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a terrific day today
“Dear kiddos and family,
Never underestimate the power of prayer. Too many people in this world “have not because they ask not” (James 4:2) Every situation you face in your life and every season that you walk through, you can find hope, help, strength, wisdom, guidance, and clarity when you ask God for help. The number of miracles that have come about simply by prayer alone would amaze you if you took the time to hear or read about them. For thus letter, I would like to share with you one example of how quickly and how miraculously prayer can work. About, wow 27 years ago, my step-fathers vintage car was stolen from outside our house. Immediately he called the police and filed a report, but after that there was not much more anyone could do but wait. As it so happened to be this incident took place on a Sunday and I was headed to church with my son and my youngest sister. I told our step-father we would be praying for God to help lead them to his stolen car. No sooner did we get to church and begin praying did God’s hands begin to move. Mind you this was 27 years ago so we didn’t get the details until we got home from church, but our mom told us that while we were at church our step-father was pacing the living room frustrated about the car. He happened to pause his pacing long enough to stare out the front door screen door.  As he watched through the door all of the sudden he saw a tow truck drive past one street over with none other than his stolen car in tow. He rushed to his car and drove quickly to catch up to the tow truck. He managed to stop the driver and let him know it was his car that had been stolen overnight. The police met him and the tow truck driver back at the house and soon enough our step-father had his vintage car back. When I asked about when all of this took place our mom answered, “probably about 30 to 40 minutes after you all left.” I figured it up and this was about the time we were in church praying for our step-father to be able to get back his stolen car. My well-known line I share with everyone, “Look at God!” Have you prayed about it? Wherever you are, whatever you are facing, however uncertain you may feel, God can fix it. He can turn things around, breathe life into long forgotten broken situations, and He is still very much in the business of bringing about miracles. Ask Him. He is more than ready, happy, and willing to help you.
I love you all
Love Ma!”
Have a fabulous day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Letters to the children I love and to the people who love them

Romans 12:2 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a spectacular day today.
“Dear kiddos and family,
Don’t follow the crowd! Don’t fall in line with what seems to be for good before researching what genuinely is truly good by God’s definition. Take time to truly read God’s truth and meditate on what you’ve read. God’s hands have provided us all that we genuinely need to survive and thrive from day to day, we, as humans, have done what we have historically always done- we have over complicated things, lots of things. This journey towards more convenient living and faster gratification, has led us farther and farther from God and from His natural and pure and good provisions for us that we forgot we can live with those things alone if we learned to rely fully on God. This world, too, with its easy and quick access to “information and knowledge” can far too easily lead us down a rabbit hole of incorrect information and cleverly spun false narratives that look like they make perfect sense to follow yet behind the scenes these narratives were created to pull us farther from God and closer to the lies of the enemy. To this day I can remember the fervent way my grandmother would preach to us imploring us to stay in God’s word and not to be deceived because she knew the terrible things that were to come. These lessons she repeatedly taught us replay themselves loudly within me often and I pray that my messages, as well as these letters, will always stay rooted in the hearts of my children and grandchildren. If you have ever had to strain something through a fine strainer, you know that the strainer let’s the unnecessary and not so good parts of your dish fall through the holes and down the drain or into the trash while the best part of the dish stays inside the strainer. God is our strainer and when we learn and make a habit of straining the information we gain and the narratives we are hearing through God first before we take it all to heart, we can be certain that He will help us retain what’s good by His truth and He will help us hold onto those lessons that we truly need to learn to grow, and He will ensure the negative, false, and misguided information will be filtered through His hands first, leaving us with only His wisdom and with the clarity to see the best path forward, which will likely be going against the crowd, and that’s perfectly fine.
I love you all
Love Ma!”
Have a great day today
I love you all
Love San 😀

Good morning ya’ll ministry messages: Letters to my children and to the people who love them

(Photo courtesy of Bubba Ratcliff)

James 1:2 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds…”
Good morning ya’ll
I pray that you have a superb day today
“Dear kiddos and family,
Life is filled with lessons for all of us to learn.  Through the celebration times and through the difficult times, all of those times teach us valuable lessons in our lives. Those lessons build upon who we are to shape us and mold us into who God knows we are meant to be. Through the lessons it can be easy for us to shake our fists towards Heaven and ask God “Why?” but this is not the question God wants you to ask of Him. What God is seeking to reveal to you is the answer to the question, “God, what do You want me to learn from this?” and “How are You trying to grow me in this season of my life?” God is always moving us higher and higher, from one glory to the next, but this movement in our spiritual journey cannot take place if we are not willing to find our courage and strength in times of trouble to get up after the knock downs of life and go back into the fight still willing to stand tall in faith. Trust me when I say I understand this well. I married my husband when I was 18-years-old. I knew he was sick with a terminal illness and when we were married I loved him so much I could not imagine losing him to death. I even pictured myself one day lying right next to his grave just so I would not have to leave him. However, when the time came and he left this world to go be with Jesus, I know only God gave me the strength to face his loss. God surrounded me with family, friends, and loved ones who helped me and supported me through that very difficult first few years of my husband being gone. Only by the perfect orchestrating of God’s plan was I able to overcome what was once seemingly impossible to face before. I grew from this time in my life and I came to understand that God was going to help me grow through so many other difficult, trying, and heartbreaking times still to come in my life. When you find yourself facing those very same kind of moments in your lives, remember to look to God for wisdom and guidance not just for pity and sympathy.  There is so much more God wants to do for you, He’s simply waiting for you to trust Him and to have faith in His perfect plan so He can move you higher and higher. Always one step closer to Him, to Jesus, and one day, home to Heaven.
I love you all
Love Ma 😀”
Have a great day today.
I love you all
Love San 😀