What makes listening to the NEWS today so difficult is the constant distortion of the truth. My natural nature is to whine, complain, or heave a knee-jerk criticism. Walking in the Spirit of God requires that we listen, repent, and be willing to forgive as we have been repeatedly forgiven. We are challenged to consciously choose to believe in Jesus as Lord of ALL things, ALL the time. With a renewed mind, we discipline our thoughts, as we purpose and choose to delete any thought that does not agree with what God says about us or about the situation we face. How did Jesus respond to rejection? Did He voice disgust, or did He point His finger at the responsible person? “Shoulding” on them or myself is a form of blame or self condemnation. Coulda, woulda, shoulda ends with “Forgive me Lord” for assigning blame.

No matter how repugnant what we hear is, it is our responsibility to aptly discern whose voice we choose to tune into. We must acknowledge God in our midst. If we all stopped to THINK and ASK the Holy Spirit to speak truth to us in every disturbing situation….WISDOM would guide us. “One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” ● What does God see that I don’t? ● What word would honor God ? ● Who do I agree with? ● What good can God make of this? ● What revelation can I gleen? ● What does God value most in this? Humbled by Grace

ASK, RECEIVE, and APPLY the wisdom downloaded. Be fair, listen more, speak less, and condemn NOT. Ask self to be still and listen for His still small voice. Be obedient, and hold your tongue before it offends God, the Left, the Right, or the Middle. Listening to the news challenges the critical voice in us all.

As His people, we choose to reflect Christ and shine a light in the present darkness. We choose NOT to get our panties all in a bunch because “those people” are not saying or acting according to how I would run things! We are accountable for every word we speak. Are we too quick to judge? “They should have! They could have. They must be deceived?” In God’s eyes, it is NOT them versus us. The truth is that we are deceived in our hearts, as that is where all sin begins. Denying our sin makes us a liar. Pride, bitter anger, and revenge are in us, not outside of us. The challenge is for us to pause in all situations and speak, knowing that our audience of ONE knows all. If we lean on Him, the Holy Spirit will enable us to choose words laced with His grace. “Peace and Grace to you.” The power of that simple prayer covers it all. Over Thinkers

Being on fire for God is not a hyped up feeling. The fire is His subtle presence fleshing out when faced with choices. Be prepared to give a reason for your faith in God. Your story is for His glory. It is about His love, His Power, His purpose, His all-inclusive redemption plan. It is not about you, your appearance, education, title, ethnicity, brokenness, or ability. It is about Jesus and His finished work, His call, His gift, His plan to deploy your unique talent, and personality to reach those that others ignore. Speak the truth and allow the Holy Spirit to work through you to inspire, convict and spread the Good News. The only word that counts for eternity is the name of Jesus and your personal invitation to invite Him into your heart. ❤️ Jesus loves you, and He has a plan for you.