Bliss and Blisters

There is life beyond the grave

During my reading this morning I was struck by this simple but thought provoking statement, “There is life beyond the grave”. For many of us, we fear the events that will get us to this ‘beyond’ point. Even the many Christians that know the joy ‘beyond’ still have a healthy fear of dying. I wonder why this is? Do we not really believe, do we simply fear the unknown, or maybe it’s a combination of both.

As a Christian my main goal on earth should be to tell everyone about the love of Christ, encourage them to receive His love and repeat the cycle again but now with a team mate. Again, for many Christians including myself this is our main goal only a small portion of the time. If my thoughts could be displayed on the screen, it would look more like I thought life was only now. My heart craves things that have no real significance. So while I live my life only partially changed, my dear neighbors may find that life beyond the grave is not rosy.

What good is my faith if it has no works? What good is my faith if my fruit are sour, dried up, or plain ‘ol rotten? It can be difficult to stop thinking about ourselves in order to help others but it’s what Jesus and the disciples did for us. If we truly cared about what God cares about then maybe our nation wouldn’t be in such crisis. Maybe there wouldn’t be 147 million orphans. Maybe I would have a church home well-suited for my child that has special needs, maybe.

Jesus was never preachy. He met the people where they were and shared relatable stories with them. Yes, his stories had a message to share but for their benefit not the benefit of the building fund. He healed them-physically, emotionally and otherwise. He didn’t beat them over the head with the ten commandments. He led them, He fed them…He loved them.

There is life beyond the grave will you be proud of your legacy when you get there?

 

Because He Lives,

 

Kisha G.

My greatest ambition

If I’m not seeking acceptance from Christ, deepening my relationship with Him and sharing the gospel then I have to ask myself what has taken priority over Him. (Exodus 20:3, Matthew 6:33, Luke 16:13)

 

More often than I like to admit I find myself letting life’s cares take priority over deepening my relationship with the life giver.  What an oxymoron that is!  My greatest heart’s desire is to not only do things out of obedience but to do things because I desire to be with Him, because I passionately want to hear what He has to share with me and because I sincerely want to accomplish His agenda each day not my own.  Being the human that I am…I must admit that lately this has been my heart’s desire however life experience has taught me that we all go through lows and highs in just about every area of our life, wouldn’t you agree? 

 

Life is just better when we can find the ultimate pleasure in Him.  Everything else is like a teaser!  When we second place our relationship with Him, whatever is in first place leaves us wanting more of ‘usually’ an unhealthy thing.  At the end of the day, I am most fulfilled when I can sense that He led my day and I willingly followed!

 

And I leave you with 1 Timothy 1:15-19 (The Message version)

Here's a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I'm proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever.

 

Nakisha R. Guzman

New Life By Grace & Mercy

Sometimes you need to be reminded in the worse way of where you came from and who you used to be in order to regain correct perspective on where you are, who you are, where you are truly planning to go and why you do the things you do.  These reminders not only make you bite your tongue from talking bad about others or looking down on others but they also help you see the work that needs to be still be done in your life and the lives of those entrusted to you either via child birth, siblings, or community connections.  Keep your head level, stay with God, meditate on His Word, appreciate your NEW life in Christ and live to give God glory.  The world wants glory for the evil they do; crazy thing is not matter how evil the deed the Lord will always love His creation and want to see them in eternity…it’s really, truly up to the individual!  Choose this day who you will serve! 

 

Nakisha ‘Kisha’ Guzman

Proverbs 7 & 8

Proverbs 7 & 8

Proverbs 7 again creates a strong mental picture of how dangerous sexual sin can be.  The warning against this particular sin is so prevalent in the book of Proverbs; I am sure our heeding these warnings will be to our great benefit.  When we study, we receive greater understanding and with understanding we have the power to make better decisions.  Study The Word and grow in Christ.

Proverbs 8 speaks to the need to seek God in all we do…everyday.  It is really vital to our success, our peace of mind and our spiritual growth that we spend time in the Word, in prayer & fasting, and in fellowship with other believers.  We are not meant to live this life alone.  The more I seek the Creator instead of the creation the more I excel, the clearer my purposed becomes, and the less selfish I am.  Seek wisdom, get understanding and flourish.

Proverbs 6

Proverbs 6

This chapter really speaks to those free-loaders that want to do nothing but gain everything.  They want the good life at the expense of others ‘brow sweat’.  You know, it’s those folks who always have an excuse for why they haven’t paid their bill, gotten a job, gone to school and can never tell you what happened to the money you gave them last week.  I can’t say it better than verse 11 NLT (New Living Translation)-Poverty will pounce on you like a bandit.  Further down in this chapter the very wise Solomon tells of the 7 things the Lord detests (hates very much) they are:

Proverbs 6:17-20 (Amplified Bible)-“¹⁷A proud look [the spirit that makes one overestimates himself and underestimates others], a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, ¹⁸A heart that manufactures wicked thoughts and plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, ¹⁹A false witness who breathes out lies [even under oath], and he who sows discord among his brethren.”  Life is can be sweeter when we seek to please God and follow His guidelines for living. 

 

The remainder of the chapter gives some tips and warnings.  The tips are simple listen to the advice you parents give.  You can avoid ‘making your own mistake’ when you heed the tips of those that have been there and done that.  Lastly, it warns again to watch out for the lure of sexual relations with anyone other than your spouse.  It always leads to tons of hurt, loss, and even death.

In His Power,

Kisha G.

Seasons change, things can't remain the same

Most things in life are just for a season, a time period.  When seasons change, things around us change but sometimes it's hard to accept the change and other times it's hard to recognize the change.

The thing about change is that we must learn to adapt to it and thrive.  It's been the way of our world for well, forever.  Change will usually help a person to grow, teach them new things, test and stretch their comfort levels, and lead them to new beginnings hopefully better beginnings.

When we ignore our new season we can find ourselves working harder but not getting ahead, being very stagnant, unhappy, depressed, and ultimately in a state of confusion until we succumb, accept or embrace the change on the horizon.

I will be the first to admit, change is not always easy in the beginning but most of my change, well actually all of it has taught me something new, helped me to grow in different areas of my life, stretched my levels of comfort, and gave me new beginnings.

Recognize your season and embrace it...

In His Power,

Kisha G.

Proverbs 4

Proverbs 4

This chapter was all about wisdom and how we should be in constant pursuit of it.  When we take time to inject ourselves with Biblical truths, prayer time, and other avenues of learning, we can rest assure that it is time well spent and that it will yield great rewards in the future (near and far).  The hard part is actually making time to get this wisdom.  As a busy homeschooling mom of 5, time seems like it never stops for things that I really need to do or want to do.  However, this really isn’t the case though.  I make time for things that I think will benefit me, things that make me feel good, and of course, those things that will wreak havoc if not attended to immediately; I think the latter is called “the daily grind”.  Seeking wisdom takes me back to the earlier chapters that tell us how important good planning is.  When I plan my spiritual development time then I get it done.  When I don’t or when I neglect it, I say things like, “I’ll get to it before bed” or “I’ll do it at their quiet time” but this delay always leads to more and more delays until it just simply loses its place on the agenda…well, you know until tragedy hits.  It’s kind of like when someone gets sick.  They no longer want burgers, cokes, fries, and cookies, nope…When we are sick, we go to the healing foods like vegetable soups, fruit and vegetable smoothies and lots of water.  We should take a lesson from our body and nurture our spiritual life which is really nurturing our external life before the tragic need arises.

In His Power,

Kisha

Proverbs 3

Proverbs 3 and Luke 2 comments

Ok, so I am totally enjoying this personal devotional time.  You can never go wrong reading & praying about Proverbs.  Luke on the other hand is an in-depth view written by Dr. Luke that gives lots of details and makes lots of statements that I have to pause on and wonder why that thought was left in history for us.  I say all that to say that my postings on Luke may be slimmer in the beginning as it requires more time devoted to dissecting the real ‘meat’ of it all to gain significant understanding & enlightenment.

Proverbs 3 was just stuffed with life enriching wisdom…it should be, right…It’s Proverbs?  LOL  Ok so, to begin, the chapter let’s you know that remaining loyal and showing kindness will not only please God but turn the hearts of humans.  It makes sense though if I practice doing good to others in need (big or small) then people will remember me as a person who is loyal to my convictions and store me mentally as a person who has their back.  We all need people like that, right?  Verse 5 & 6 are vital to finding & maintaining mental peace while we live in this world, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.  Seek His will in all you do, and He will direct your path.”  Seriously, I pray about everything or at least I try to…when I go to get my hair done, when I’m planning vacation, when I need to know what is important for the day, and so on and so forth.  This really helps me to feel secure in my decision making because I know that with the Holy Spirit dwelling in me  then I will follow its lead and when things don’t turn out like I expected well, I can trust that I am still protected and that God knows best.  Verse 7 in paraphrase:  Don’t have the big head.  I made you!  Boast only in me (The Lord).  Verse 9-The subject of money is always a touchy subject so here it is in paraphrase, real brief:  Give God (the church) your first which is your best and then pay your bills and then give to the poor, needy and sick.  You will be blessed in ways that you could not conceive; you will be protected from things that you don’t know are coming.   Remember that old school acronym: J.O.Y. Jesus, Others, Yourself!   Verse 11-when you do wrong (outward display or inward heart sins); you get punished. ..Just like a parent does a child.  Discipline helps us to grow.  It’s painful, challenging and sometimes long but the other side of a well trained person is excellence. Verse 21-speaks again about the importance of good planning, I can’t stress it enough.  Planning makes for a smoother ride in every area of life.  Seriously, I can’t control all aspects of my toddler’s behavior but my ‘schedule’ makes for controlled chaos and I can deal with that!  I believe in setting goals, planning and asking God (sharing my heart with Him).  Like Joyce Meyers say’s, “I rather have 10% of something good instead of 0% of nothing “(I think I said that right)!

In His Power,

Kisha G.

Proverbs 2

I love Proverbs, don't we all need nuggets of wisdom to help us get through life and keep us on track!  I know I do!  I wish I had been more in tune in my early years but no looking back.

Verse 3 say’s Cry out for wisdom and understanding.  This say’s to me look young lady, don't think you can do it alone.  Don't think any concern is too small for me.  You have not because you ask not, and when your motives are wrong well...

Verse 7-11-When I practice godliness, faithfulness and integrity, I will be protected from the unseen, I will be filled with knowledge & good sense, He will guard my path and I will know the right course of action in any situation.  Doesn’t these promises just invigorate your being.  When I seek to be more like Christ then I can trust that the blessings & promises will follow automatically.  Verse 11 say’s Wise planning will watch over you.  I love this verse because I am a planner.  I do have day’s when I wing it and I have moments when I don’t plan.  I have had many times when I didn’t plan properly and things went awry.  Planning things like goals, dreams, career plans, marriage, children, daily agendas, exercise, Bible study, financial purchases and so forth have proven to make things go smoother in my life and my home.  Pre-planning also allows for more flexibility and put’s stewardship over all that God has given me!  Planning helps me to make sure that I accomplish the things that are truly important to me because with so many things vying for your time it is easy to get off track.

The remainder of the chapter speaks to the pride that one can muster up when they slip into an adulterous situation.  Please know that adultery is not just the physical act of the sexual encounter but it can include the lust of the eyes, the inappropriate conversations, the emotional relationships that feed you that aren’t coming from your spouse, the inappropriate emails & contacts one might engage in or view and I’m sure more can be added.  When our relationship with Christ doesn’t remain the main & most important thing in our lives, we will find ourselves in all types of situations that are unfruitful and that feed our sinful nature.  When we meditate on things that aren’t pleasing to God, we open the door to be captured by the seduction.  Only God can give us the wisdom and love we need to withstand the ‘big head syndrome’ and to overcome the ‘I need it however I can get it urges’.

In His Power,

 

Kisha

Proverbs 1 & Luke 1

This year I am working on reading Proverbs every day and beginning study in the Gospels.  Here are my thoughts on the specific areas that spoke to me during this season.

Proverbs 1

Verse 19-Do not be greedy for gain the pursuit will rob you of life.  This is so true. I spent many the years seeking careers based on the amount of money they would bring in instead of pursuing my God given passions.  I know many people who live their lives in the shadow of making big bucks.  Being blessed financially is not a sin, no it is a blessing so that you can further the Good News and help those less fortunate.  When we seek to use all our loot for personal gain, well that is where the problem begins.  When we seek money more than we seek God then we are really headed down the path of disappointment and major let down because nothing satisfies like the Heavenly Father.  Pursue the Creator not the creation.

Luke 1

Wow, I can expand (and I think I will later) on this chapter but my time now is limited.  It is so awesome and thought-provoking  Will re-read it and post again later.  I suggest you re read it and use commentary.  I currently read from the New Living Translation and use Bible Gateway to view it in other versions.

 

In His Power,

 

Kisha G.