I want to talk about a topic near and dear to my heart today. The topic that saved my life. The very reason this blog was brought to fruition…FAITH.
Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 NKJV
What is Faith? According to Hebrews 11:1 NKJV, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. Faith can also be described as complete trust or confidence in someone or something; a hope or belief. The Hebrew word for confidence is Bitachon, meaning to be at ease, to trust and to be confident. Think about when you put your trust in something or someone, there tends to be no doubt or disbelief in it, yet there’s also an assurance and certainty regarding that person or thing. This is how we ought to have faith in Jesus…with trust, certainty and assurance. This is the faith in knowing that He is the Son of God who walked this earth over 2000 years ago sharing the Good News and the message of God’s kingdom while also performing miracles including healing the sick, raising the dead and casting out demons (Matthew 10:7-8 NKJV). When Jesus laid down His life for us, dying on the cross yet was resurrected and is now seated at the right hand of Father God, His sacrifice forgave every sin/ iniquity and healed all of our diseases (Psalms 103:3NKJV). This didn’t just end in biblical times, we still have possession of the free gift of salvation that includes all of the above as our benefits.
In John 14:12-14 NJKV, Jesus says to His disciples, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works (in quantity) than these he will do, because I go to My Father (God). 13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. Well this doesn’t just apply to the disciples then, it also applies to the modern day disciples, who happen to be us.
Where there is hope, there is Faith. Where there is Faith miracles happen.
Anonymous
Years ago I put my faith and this scripture to the test. Around this time in 2014, I nearly lost my eye from a fall that shattered my orbital floor in my right eye. The doctors wanted me to get surgery even though I didn’t live in the area where the incident occurred. They informed me that they would need to go in, lift my eye back up and put a plate in to keep the eye stabilized. I refused the surgery because my FAITH was in my eye fully healing on its own. Sounds crazy, but I knew this situation was no match for God. Due to the incident, I no longer had right peripheral vision, was sensitive to light and my brain and eye were not communicating so basic function like walking straight and turning when someone says something to you was very limited. During that week I laid hands on my eye and prayed to God that my eye would heal on its own without surgery. I backed my prayer with Mark 16:18 “…they will lay hands on the sick , and they will recover” trusting that God’s word was true and would work on my behalf. Once I returned home, I went to an ophthalmologist to make sure my vision was still okay and my eye hadn’t dropped and everything with my vision checked out good. I’d forgotten to give my CT scans to the doctor until the end of the visit. He came back looking like he’d seen a ghost and based on the scans recommended me seeing the plastic surgeon and getting the surgery recommended by the other doctors. Again my FAITH was in my eye fully healing on its own without surgery.
Shattered Orbital Floor CT Scan Shattered orbital floor and loss of peripheral vision in right eye Two weeks after the injury
Within 2 weeks my eye looked as if the injury had never happened and I had full functionality. Fast forward to my 6 month check up with the ophthalmologist, my eye had fully healed on its own with no changes to my vision and without any surgery! The doctor’s assistant came in and said “You know you’re really lucky because someone came in with the same issue and had to lose their eye. I told her “that’s not luck, that’s God! I could’ve literally lost my eye and according to the doctors the vision in the other eye would’ve diminished too…But God! He performed not just a miracle but a medically documented miracle for me! How, you ask? Because of my Faith. While faith sometimes doesn’t make sense, it does in fact make miracles.
Until the next faith testimony..
To be a part of the movement, share your own faith story Here!
I hope this week has been faith filled for you! Last week we discussed planting and watering for God’s increase. The goal of that blog post was for you all to see that there are times when God will lead you to plant a seed into someone whether through a deed, a prayer or encouragement of some sorts. Then there are times when God will lead you to watering a seed initially planted into someone through the same means; all for the purpose of God giving the increase for that individuals’ healing, salvation or practical need, for His glory. This ties into what we will discuss today.
In a world where there are influencers at every click and church buildings on every corner, sometimes we think that doing that one small thing that God leads us to do is insignificant. Well it’s definitely not! The devil’s distractions are always fighting for every opportunity to be seen and entertained just so someone doesn’t carry out their God given purpose. This is where you come in. That one deed, prayer, word of encouragement or even a simple smile can make a world of a difference to someone experiencing the love of Jesus and the power of God in their life. So even though we see all these big names that people can listen to at the press of a button on a TV or computer, that does not negate the assignment that God may have given you just so you could reach that one person. There is no insignificant God given assignment! Everything that God asks of us has a purpose.
The Lord has made everything for its own purpose, Even the wicked [according to their role] for the day of evil.
Proverbs 16:4 AMP
Even in the smallest God asks/assignments, never think that what the Lord has you doing in your God given purpose is too small or insignificant just because it doesn’t come with a big name or huge platform. Not all callings come with a stage or a crowd. If what God has you doing is just for that one person that you met in passing then that’s significant! It’s bigger than us and bigger than what our human eyes can see. Everything we do led by God is working together for the good of ourselves and those connected to our “Yes” to God.
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
Romans 8:28 NKJV
There was a time when I thought what I was doing for God was on the lower level of importance until one day He showed me my thinking was all wrong. The Lord had given me instructions to put a prayer box on my desk at work. After I received the instructions, I took an old Amazon box and wrote the phrase, “Got Worries? Place them in the box! Prayer Changes Things”. I placed it on my desk with the expectation that the prayer requests would start rolling in. The interesting thing was that where my cubicle was located was very convenient for this cause. If someone was getting off of the elevator on my floor the first thing they would see was the prayer box in the entrance of my cube. I was excited! I just knew the prayers were about to start rolling in and create a move of God in the workplace. Well I put that prayer box on my desk January 2019. I would love to tell you that I had prayer requests in the first few weeks or even months, unfortunately no. Later that year, I had to go on medical leave for a couple of months after a surgery. Well when I returned, the prayer box was full! It was now January 2020 and I had prayers from the janitors, maintenance, contractors and even one colleague. I was shocked yet in awe of God. It sparked conversation about God with those passing by my cubicle and even prayer right there in my cube while on lunch break. It may not have happened in the timing I expected but that simple act of obedience that became a seed sown was planted and watered in the hearts of others and God increased into something beautiful before my very eyes.
That one small ask/assignment that God gave looked to be insignificant in my eyes but the way God increased it, it is still growing even though I no longer work there. Through those who have added prayer boxes on their desks, started & continued work prayer meetings & bible studies and even those who went on to share the love of Jesus outside of work. All of this through one act of obedience. So if you have a God ask/assignment that you are sitting on or delayed in taking action on, just do it, because you never know whose life, healing, salvation, or purpose may be attached to it. Remember there are no insignificant assignments!
Until the next faith story…
To be a part of the movement, share your own faith story Here!
I can recall the time when I would stress myself over wondering if I did what God asked me to do correctly. For instance, when God would lead me to pray for someone, encourage them, share my story or even buy them food, I would sometimes second guess if I did enough. I would think to myself, “Oh no I should have invited them to church, I should have given them my number so I can continue to talk and pray with them or I should have led them through the salvation prayer. I should’ve done more!” I can recall the internal battle I had after giving the loaf of bread to a family God led me to, as written in my blog post on Following the Voice of God. Even then God told me I could have gone to any house and He would have made it well. It was more about my obedience than anything so that He could continue to direct me in similar ways and use me as a vessel for His glory. Well I didn’t understand it then, but when God directs us to minister to someone whether through prayer, encouragement, providing a meal, etc., we don’t have to make sure we do everything in that one moment to disciple them especially if God has given specific instructions on how to minister to that individual. Consider seeing ministering as seed sowing/planting. For example, my encounter with the family I was led to give the loaf of bread to was a seed planted. I didn’t need to worry about not having done anything else during that exchange except what God instructed me to do which was just to provide the bread. That was the seed planted. I don’t know this personally but I trust that God sent someone else to water the seed that I initially planted and from there, God will give the increase and make it grow. This example is found in I Corinthians 3:5-7.
5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
I Corinthians 3:5-7
This scripture shows us that in this biblical scenario, Paul planted, Apollos watered and God gave the increase. So we never have to worry about trying to be a mini Jesus to someone or to a situation because God has already ordered the steps as He draws all men to Him (See John 12:32). Nothing is impossible for God, He can orchestrate a divine encounter that sets a person on the path of salvation and righteousness before they even realize. Just think back in your own lives. The people you ran into who gave you that encouragement in the exact moment you needed it. That person who just so happened to stop for you while you were stranded on the side of the road with a flat tire and before you know it, you two end up attending the same church and growing in God because of a seed they planted and someone else watered.
I can recall a friend from college and “my before living for Christ days” who used to throw these grand parties where I would bring my group of friends to hang out and enjoy. Well as I started truly walking in the things of God our connection phased out. Years later, he contacted me and told me he was struggling with faith and it was causing an issue in his relationship. He said he would watch my Facebook posts and figured I was someone he could talk to about this. God led me to share my testimony with him, sharing the faithfulness of God in my lowest moments of battling an unknown illness. I shared my story, sent a scripture, a local church option and a sermon a few days later and that was the extent of the conversation. He thanked me and told me he would continue to read and study what I shared. Fast forward 5 years to this year, he reached out for a professional contact he and his wife were looking for. I shared my contacts and he proceeded to tell me that I had been an extreme blessing in his life more than I knew. He mentioned how I played a part in getting him over the hurdle when he struggled with faith. He even shared that hearing my testimony gave him the mustard seed of faith that has grown so much that God has him and his wife on a journey doing things they could never have imagined. I recall reading the text and tearing up while thanking God for the reminder of why I continue to live my life for Him.
While I planted seeds into my friend, at some point in those 5 years the seed was watered and God gave the increase and is still increasing him and his family. Well, I also want to add that not only did I plant a seed for my friend but he watered a seed that God planted in me about this very blog of sharing faith to spread faith. Him sharing the impact of me sharing my testimony only gave me the full impacting vision of what God is trying to do through Faith Travels. My prayer is that each blog post and testimony shared is a seed sown on good ground in your hearts, that continues to be watered and cultivated for God to increase. Consider sharing your faith to spread faith, planting and watering seeds one testimony at a time.
To be a part of the movement, share your own faith story Here!
By a show of virtually raised hands, how many of you are going through a storm right now? Picture me raising my own hand right along with you.
A storm can be defined as a violent disturbance of the atmosphere; an uproar or controversy; a sudden attack; a direct assault.
If you think of this in the terms of things you may be going through, that violent disturbance of the atmosphere can be sickness in your body. That uproar and controversy can be friction with your family, marriage or relationship. The sudden attack can be on your finances while that direct assault can be blatant unfair treatment towards you at your place of employment. The storm can come in the form of many things, but it’s never about the storm itself, it’s about how you navigate THROUGH the storm. A quote by Charles R. Swindoll states, “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” It’s more about how we respond versus what has actually happened to us.
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”
–Charles R. Swindoll
How do you respond to the storm? What’s your attitude, your heart posture; how are you standing in faith to get THROUGH to the other side? I put so much emphasis on the word “Through” because of the meaning and the sheer hope behind the word. Through means “moving in one side and out to the other side of. The other side meaning, healing after sickness, restoration and reconciliation after family or relationship rift, financial breakthrough after a financial drought and recompense after mistreatment.
What does that look like as it relates to the word of God? The bible states in Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” This scripture lets us know even when the storms arise and look to be overwhelming, we must first and foremost, Trust God. Trust that whatever the situation is, it’s in no way shape or form bigger than the true and living God. Don’t lean on your own understanding of thinking this issue has the final say or that it won’t end in your favor, trust God who can direct your path through this storm, when you allow Him to by trusting Him over what it looks like. That means walking by faith and not by sight (See II Corinthians 5:7).
Trusting God also looks like Matthew 6:34MSG where it reads, “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes”. God is with you always so no matter the trials, circumstance, or situation, you can count on Him to help you walk through it to the other side.
Now that you are trusting God with that situation, your heart posture has to match by choosing joy and being at peace in the midst of the storm. James 1:2-4 NCV in God’s word says, My brothers and sisters, when you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience. Let your patience show itself perfectly in what you do. Then you will be perfect and complete and will have everything you need. Once you decide to choose joy in the midst of the trials, God can then make it joy because of the act of your faith (See Matthew 17:20).
My husband shared this story with me about the time he was driving one of our church leaders out of town to a conference. As soon as he got on the highway ramp towards the destination it started pouring rain to the point he could hardly see the road. He could have pulled over to the side of the road but he knew that was dangerous and could have led to another car hitting them due to lack of visibility. He preservered through the drive and before he knew it he was on the other side of the storm where the sky was clear and sunny with a rainbow reminder of God’s promise (See Genesis 9:13-16). As he looked out the rear view mirror he could see the storm behind him where it was dark, cloudy and pouring rain but coming THROUGH the storm on the other side didn’t look like what he had been through.
On the other side of the storm
That’s what it’s like walking with God through storms and trials. When you trust Him, count it all joy and walk in faith with Him through it, He will bring you out on the other side of victory, where it won’t look like what you’ve been through.
Until the next Faith Story…
To be a part of the movement, share your own faith story Here!
Today, I am not surprised that the Holy Spirit chose Peace to be the center of the topic. There is so much going on in the world today, seen and unseen, that peace is what most of us are striving for, trying to hold on to, or in the act of maintaining. The dictionary defines peace as “Freedom of disturbance; tranquility; the state or period in which there is no war or a war has ended.” War in this context, can be considered to be a battle or conflict. If we are being honest, some people reading this post are dealing with internal battles and conflicts at this very moment. Whether it’s the news disturbing your peace, social media comparison, family drama, relationship issues, sickness & disease, finances, or even grief; there may always be things that come to disrupt your peace, but that doesn’t mean we have to allow it. Let me explain…
In John 14:27, this scripture states, “Peace I leave with you , My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” In the context of this scripture, Jesus is sharing with His disciples that He is going away (See Luke 24:51) but God is sending His Holy Spirit to be with them, teach them all things, and bring to their remembrance things that He has said (See John 14: 25-26NKJV). This message was not just for the disciples then, it is also for us, as believers in Jesus Christ, now. Because of this written promise in God’s word, we are being told that the peace of having faith in Jesus brings perfect (complete; absolute; without fault) peace. This isn’t to say we will have an easy life with no troubles; yet its to say that Jesus is promising the perfect peace that calms you in every circumstance and gives you courage and strength to every challenge (SeeJohn 14:27AMP).
Peace I leave with you , My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:27 NKJV
This is the kind of peace exemplified in scripture when Jesus was sleeping on a boat in the middle of a violent storm. In Mark 4:37-41 NKJV, the Bible states, “And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they (the disciples) awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!””
Remember when I said, there may always be things that come to disrupt your peace, but that doesn’t mean we have to allow it. Well I ask you the same questions that Jesus asked His disciples:
Why are you so fearful?
How is it that you have no faith?
This is not to come off as insolent, this is to challenge you to know what you have in your possession when you are a Believer. The Bible says in John 14:12 NKJV,“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” Guess what this means, the same way Jesus commanded the storm to be still and cease, you have the same authority to speak to any disturbance to your own peace, no matter what it is. You can command that news report, that issue with comparison, the family drama, those relationship issues, that sickness or diagnosis, the financial issues, and that grief to all cease and calm in the name of Jesus Christ.
I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.
John 14:12 NLT
I’ll share a quick story with you. I was on a plane flying home from a work trip recently and the plane’s AC wasn’t working properly. On top of that, we started to have some turbulence due to the weather we were flying into. Because I hate being hot beyond my control in public places, I got up and went to the restroom. When I entered the stall, the turbulence began to get worse. As I held onto the handle in the stall I commanded the winds and the rain to cease and Peace Be still! I also declared that the AC will work properly in Jesus name. When I got back to my seat, I noticed the plane was cooling off and the turbulence had literally ceased. As I got comfortable in my seat to take an in-flight nap, I thanked Jesus for His faithfulness and for His promises that are always Yes and Amen (See II Corinthians 1:20).
God is no respector of persons (See Acts 10:34), He is a faithful Father who is ready to fulfill every promise in His word for us if we only believe. So the same authority that I walk in to receive God’s perfect peace, you have the same authority to walk in these same promises, you need only to have faith.
Until the next Faith story…
To be a part of the movement, share your own faith story Here!
Last week, I mentioned not to miss this week’s blog because it’s near and dear to my heart. Judging by the title you can tell just how dear to my heart it really is. You can also see that God actually gave me the title well in advance versus those eleventh hour revelations and 4 AM all-nighters per usual. That’s just like a loving Father; He knew the kind of reminiscing, processing and healing I would go through as I wrote this post, so He gave me time to rest in Him (See Matthew 11:28) prior to writing. I pray that those who can relate to losing a close loved one are comforted by this post.
This week makes 1 year of me losing the woman who raised me since I was a little girl, the woman who helped to shape my life and the matriarch and glue to our close knit family, my grandmother. Words can’t describe how big a loss this was to our family. Sometimes it still doesn’t seem real but the one thing I can take comfort in is knowing that I will see her again…because I know who she served; Jesus (See Joshua 24:15).
My reaction to the loss of my grandma was one that I couldn’t have expected because I thought when my grandma left this earth, they may have to put me in a padded room…But God. I’ll get to that part shortly though.
This is not your typical grief blog post. In today’s blog, I will share my life experience with my grandmother while she was living, in the midst of losing her and how I managed grief after she had gone to be with the Lord.
When I was young I practically lived with my grandparents. They kept me, fed me, clothed me and made sure I was in church EVERY Sunday. My mom worked full time and was in the Air Force Reserves so when I wasn’t with her or my dad I was with them. I was extremely close to my grandparents. So close that when my grandfather passed away, when I was in high school, I didn’t want my grandmother to be alone so I officially moved in with her. Though I saw my mom and little brother everyday, from the age of 14 through the majority of my college years, it was just me and her until I made the hard decision to transfer from my local university to finish my engineering degree at the main campus in another city. Most of my life’s decisions were centered around not being too far from my grandma. This included how far away I interned, which company I chose to work for after graduation that had locations in nearby states, work rotational assignment choices, and even where I decided to live after my job’s rotational program ended. I settled on a location just a 2 hours drive away from her and my mom since at the time, my mom was dealing with a health issue. I went so far as to pass up work promotions that were outside of close areas because I knew my priorities. I say all of that to say, family and my grandma was a top priority to me next to God.
Always by her side… Me and Grandma Circa 2016
My grandma was one of the healthiest seniors that I knew. She was up at 4 AM every day walking the neighborhood with a stick like it was her job. She was sharp with a sharp mind and a lot of sass. As the years passed my grandma had bouts with illness, knee replacements and other surgeries but always bounced back. I was there for each one of them. But last year was different…
One thing I have always been clear about was my God given assignment for the season. This particular season God let my husband and I know that we would be going on another mission trip to Peru together, leaving Oct 15th. He also opened the door to the opportunity for us to be co-speakers at the I’m Becoming Fearless Conference 2022 on Oct 8th. But there was one thing wrong…my grandmothers’ health was declining unlike any other time. During that time, I did what any intercessor (See 1 Kings 13:6 NKJV, NIV) would do and I went to war in prayer on my grandmother’s behalf. I was already feeling terrible and even guilty, if I’m being honest, that I wasn’t there with her like usual. Even though I was able to Facetime her, it just wasn’t the same. I wanted to rush up there for the quick 2 hour trip one weekend but God was leading me not to for some reason. I found out shortly after that there was something wrong with my vehicle’s front tire and it could’ve blown out while I was on the highway and only the Lord knows what could’ve happened…But God. This was a prime example of being led by the Spirit and not your flesh (See Galatians 5:16-18). That same weekend, I Facetimed with my grandma and even though I was feeling guilty for not being there, she told me she had a dream about me that I came into her hospital room, gave her her medicine and took care of her. After I got off the phone with her, I wept and thanked God for giving her that dream because only God could hear my hearts’ cry to want to be there for her.
A couple of weekends later towards the end of September, I was able to go see my grandma in person but she was not doing well. I went into the hospital room ready to lay hands on her, go up in tongues and call down fire from heaven for her to be well but in that moment I got a nudge from the Holy Spirit to just be a granddaughter that day. So I fed her as much as she would allow, cut and filed her nails and just talked to her. After leaving and seeing her in the state she was in, I told God please do not make me choose between the God assignments ahead and my grandma. Not that He was asking me to but I told God I couldn’t handle it if I was somewhere out of the country and something happened to her.
When I got home I sought wise counsel (See Proverbs 19: 20) from a trusted friend to understand how I needed to be praying over this entire situation. One thing the individual said to me was to ask the Holy Spirit what my grandma’s will was in all of this. Remember there is God’s will but we also have free will (See John 7:17). God responded to me that it was His will that grandma live to a specific age He mentioned that was beyond her current age. I knew His will always leads to life. I prayed concerning what her will was and God gave me a dream to show me exactly how my grandmother was feeling and the pain she was in. After that, I began to understand what may be ahead.
On a Tuesday morning, I received a call from my aunt telling me my grandmother had a massive heart attack. Doctors found it strange that the monitors showed she had the heart attack but didn’t feel it. The doctors stated she didn’t have much time. I asked my aunt to put her ear to the phone and I whispered some specific things to her the Holy Spirit led me to say, told her we will be fine and that I love her once, I love her twice, I love her next to Jesus Christ. I got off the phone and prayed then found out that she passed 8 minutes after I got off the phone with her.
My grandmother passed away on Oct 4th, 2022. The last thing she said to me when I saw her in person on September 22nd was “I love you once, I love you twice, I love you next to Jesus Christ. You take care of yourself.” While I was saddened after her death, I realized God had given the most beautiful gift, an answered prayer from years ago that He would prepare me before my grandmother left this earth and that I would be able to say “See you later” with no regrets.
My grandmother passed away on the 4th and there was still a God given assignment to fulfill on the 8th. I knew the devil would love for me to abandon my assignment but I was not going to give the enemy any satisfaction to take my grandmother prematurely (See John 10:10)and think I wasn’t going to fight back by fulfilling kingdom business. My husband and I ministered on the topic, This is the beginning of…The New Thing (See Isaiah 43:19). After I walked off the stage, I allowed myself to let go of the tears I had been holding all week in order to stay focused and through those tears I decided to live on serving others as she did when she was alive.
I’m Becoming Fearless Conference 2022
We celebrated my grandmother’s life at her funeral on Oct 14th. On that day I watched 12+ people give their lives to Christ because of how she lived hers. My message to our family was “Don’t die with her, choose to live for her! She has ran her God given race and now it’s time for us to pick up the baton and finish our own race. Keep running!”
Peru Mission 2022
The very next day I was on a plane headed on a mission trip to Peru where my husband and I ministered together again and saw countless people get saved, set free and miraculously healed. Again, I didn’t abandon the assignment because I chose to live for my grandmother. This was easier said than done but the way God covered and graced me during this entire time was truly beauty for ashes (See Isaiah 61:3). This was a pure testament of God’s grace is sufficient (See II Corinthians 12:9).
The loss of my grandmother taught me that God hears every prayer no matter big or small, current or past. He hears them. They may not be answered the way we want them to be answered or when we want them answered but He hears them and has a perfect plan that will work together for your good. I learned His grace is sufficient no matter the obstacle or circumstance. And I learned to never abandon the assignment because you don’t know whose life, whose next, or whose purpose is attached to it.
I will leave you all with this. If you are dealing with the loss of a loved one and struggling with grief, remind yourself of the promises of God. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted (Matthew 5:4). May God turn your sadness into joy, your sorrow into praise, and your distress into peace. Death is not final when you are a believer in Jesus Christ. For those who believed in Christ and passed away will be reunited with those believers who are still alive when Jesus returns (I Thessalonians 4:15-18 NLT). Take comfort in knowing that it’s not goodbye but rather see you later.
Until the next faith story…
To be a part of the movement, share your own faith story Here!
If it’s one thing I know about God, it’s that He knows how to “WOW” you when you least expect it. But before I share what the WOW was, I want to share my heart with you all.
As we have been discussing Obedience the past several weeks and sharing the testimonies I’ve personally experienced connected to it; I have literally been walking out faith and obedience myself on a week to week basis. This has included waiting for the Holy Spirit ( See John 16:13) to share what topic and testimony to blog on, just in time for Friday’s post. And when I say just in time, I literally mean receiving God’s clarity on the topic around 10/11 p.m. on a Thursday night and writing until 3/4 a.m. when I have to be up at 7 a.m. for work. Remember last week’s blog… well this is a perfect example of what I mean when I say “It won’t be easy but it’s necessary”.
Some may say, “Why do I do it?” My answer will always be, “Because this is bigger than me”. It involves me but it’s not about me. It’s about the glory of God (See Romans 5: 1-2). All of this is so that you can experience hand delivered evidence of God’s goodness and faithfulness in the lives of people you may or may not know so that your faith will grow and be shared with all who you encounter. Sharing faith…to spread faith.
“Because this is bigger than me. It involves me but it’s not about me. It’s about the glory of God!”
-A Faith Traveler
Remember that unexpected “WOW” I mentioned earlier, well as I was working on updating the blog, I stumbled upon the analytics and discovered that this Blog has reached 34 countries! Read that again…34 COUNTRIES !!! This gave me a whole new perspective on what it means to ” Go and make disciples of all the nations” (See Matthew 28: 16-20) . Going no longer just means physically being there. You never know how God will use something for His glory. This wowed me because in just under 2 months God has taken something I was disobedient with starting since 2016, helped me officially start the site in 2020 even though I was inconsistent and now in 2023, He has breathed on it to reach all who He has ordained it to reach. This goes to show you that it’s never too late to walk in obedience with God. But trust me, you want to be obedient the first time God asks.
The Faith Travels Movement has reached 34 countries
In hopes that you all have been enjoying what has been shared on this blog thus far, I wanted to share something exciting with you. As I share these faith stories and testimonies week after week, this blog was not meant to just be stories about me nor for my benefit. It was meant to share the faithfulness of God and the Good News of Jesus Christ from around the world. With that being said, I want to give YOU the opportunity to be a part of the Faith Travels movement and share your story. I have received several faith testimonies that have been submitted within the past few years and as the Holy Spirit directs the topics, I will share them. So expect to hear some powerful testimonies from across the nations.
If you want to be a part of sharing faith to spread faith, please Click Here to submit your testimony. You won’t regret being a part of this global move of God.
A prayer for every Faith Traveler,
Father God in the name of Jesus, I thank you for each and every person that reads this. I plead the blood of Jesus Christ over those eager to share, those who are reluctant and scared to share their story and those who are just passing by to grab an ounce of faith in their trial through someone else’s overcoming triumph. I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
In Jesus Christ name I pray. AMEN
Stay tuned for next weeks’ faith testimony. This one is near and dear to my heart so you don’t want to miss it!
I’ve been looking forward to talking to you all this week! This was a week where I was eagerly anticipating Friday just to see what God wanted to say to you today because he of course didn’t give the title until the eleventh hour. I realized everything that He has me to write for you turns right back around and serves as a faith reminder and strengthener for me as well. This has really been a week, but for those of you who had a smooth sailing week, Praise God! For those of you who had a directionally challenged week like myself, meaning the week didn’t know whether it wanted to go good or bad…keep your head up, Thank Jesus and know that tomorrow is another chance to count it all joy (James 1:2-3)!
If you haven’t realized it yet, we are still touching on the topic of Obedience. At this point, I’m sure we recognize that this topic is important to God. This is why throughout the past few weeks of blogging, I’ve had the opportunity to self-reflect on my own acts of obedience to God and if I am being honest; those acts of obedience weren’t always pretty nor easy to walk through.
Obedience isn’t always just an act of kindness, a gesture or a matter of not doing something that sins against God. Obedience can look like taking a new opportunity that is difficult and stretches you to build character, it can be walking with God on a healing journey to uproot the symptoms of perfectionism and parental wounds, it can look like forgiving someone who has offended or hurt you badly or even praying for that person who recently betrayed you. This is why when you’re walking in obedience, it won’t be easy but it’s necessary.
“It won’t be easy but it’s necessary…” This was the very phrase that God whispered to me years ago during my time of sitting in His presence in prayer one day. It is a phrase that often echoes in my spirit whenever I realize that I have entered into a new season ( Ecclesiastes 3:1) that feels difficult or rather uncomfortable. I think about when I was at my last place of employment and I was being overworked with 3 jobs in 1, overlooked for promotion and treated in a manner that a lot would say was unfair. Even after an almost 10 year career there at the time, I wanted out immediately! I started updating my resume, refining my LinkedIn profile and applying for jobs wherever they were posted. All of that just for God to tell me “No, not yet”. I would respond, ” What Lord, what do you mean “No, no yet”…this entire situation at work is stressful, humiliating and frustrating and I know you can’t possibly want me to stay in this.” From that point on, I didn’t hear much from God on that specific matter until I would see a job posting that would peak my interest. In my excitement of seeing something I was interested in, I would eagerly go to apply and then hear God unexpectedly utter “No, not yet”, yet again. This went on for months, and I had already applied for positions including those I was over-qualified for. Again, I was desperate to get out. Well the funny thing (funny now but not back then) is that I was denied from every single job I applied for. Every. Single. One. This definitely hurt but then I realized there must be a reason God is literally not allowing me to move on from this job.
I sought the Lord specifically on this matter and He shared with me that even though He didn’t intend for me to be go through what I was going through the way I was going through it; in the midst of it all He was with me (Deuteronomy 31:8, Matthew 28:20) and would work it out for my good (Romans 8:28). The devil was using (Ephesians 6:12) specific people to taunt me and make me prematurely leave a place where God was still growing me up to prepare me for the places He was calling me to in the future. Not to mention, I was on assignment at work outside of my actual job, God had me to minister to specific people including maintenance contractors, janitors, the cleaning ladies I loved talking to and those that would come by to put a request in my prayer box on my desk.
Fast forward to 3 years later, after being at that employer for now 13 years, God opened a door to a new opportunity, a new industry and a new career path. A position I literally WAS NOT qualified for on paper…But God! This was true evidence to me that God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. Though I didn’t see it at the time, God was building my character at my old job to prepare me for my new job and other future opportunities. He was strengthening my trust in walking with Him and His plan for my life, and positioning me for His perfect timing. It wasn’t easy but it was necessary.
I can recall one thing that God said to me in a different situation that is very much so applicable to this one, He said to me, ” Just because it’s not happening the way you expected it to, doesn’t mean you’re being punished…you’re being positioned.”
” Just because it’s not happening the way you expected it to doesn’t mean you’re being punished…you’re being positioned.”
-God
If you happen to find yourself in a place where you feel like things aren’t happening for you the way that you think they should and you are running into wall after wall, Look to God. If you have a feeling that there is more for you but you don’t see the path, Look to God. If you have a desire to live and walk out a purpose driven life, Look to God. The focus should always be Jesus(God) yet the path will be one intricately designed to take you from the test to the testimony and pit to the palace. It won’t be easy but it will always be necessary.
So I have to be honest with you. I definitely thought I would be starting a new topic this week. I started writing it out earlier in the week and God even gave me a story to go along with it, so I thought I would be finishing it up early and scheduling my post for Friday. Well as of 10:37pm on this good Thursday night, God has decided to give me something else to write about on the same topic of Obedience. I expect nothing less, because preparing a Holy Spirit led blog post on a weekly basis with a demanding work schedule, business, husband and daily life happenings, is a faith walk and act of obedience in itself. But I think of it like this, how can I minister to you on certain topics, unless I have experienced it myself.
I honestly believe God has me staying on this topic of Obedience for a very good reason. There are some of you out there who have yet to do the last thing God has asked you to do. How do I know…because this blog was one of the last things God asked me to do and He started asking me in 2016. But don’t waste time or follow my disobedience. Do it the first time God asks! Be that as it may, I will say if your disobedience clock is already ticking like mine was, it’s not too late for you to pick up where you left off and do the thing that God has asked of you. You have to always remember, it’s not about you and it’s bigger than you. Take my day for example, my work day was extremely rough and exhausting today but right before writing, I read one of my devotionals, and God gave me a sweet reminder through His word in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13
This literally gave me the encouragement that I needed to keep going because it reminded me that I am not doing this in my own strength but in God given strength to fulfill my God given assignment for whomever God wills it to be for. I echo what I said earlier for myself, it’s not about me and it’s bigger than me.
Obedience, in its simpler biblical definition, means “to hear” and “to listen”. This ultimately means to be informed and to take heed. So in order to be obedient or take heed to God’s instructions, you have to first be able to hear God’s instructions. This comes through spending time with God, through reading His word (II Timothy 3: 16-17), worship (John 4:24) and prayer (I Thessalonians 5:17). The more you learn the character of God (I John 4:8,16) through intimate time with Him, the more you will recognize when He is speaking to you (Joshua 1:8). This doesn’t mean that you will hear an audible voice like you are talking to a friend sitting next to you. I, myself, have only heard an audible voice twice in my life. Once while falling asleep behind the wheel right before heading straight into the guardrails on the highway (A story for another day). The other time is explained in my 3rd Blog post right before I received healing in my body. Both times were early in my faith walk, not that that makes a difference, but now I personally believe I don’t have to depend on hearing His voice audibly. That’s because I know His voice ( John 10:27) from spending time with Him so when I hear that still small voice ( I Kings 19:11-12) inwardly in my spirit, I don’t doubt that I am hearing God speak.
It wasn’t easy for me to fine tune to God’s voice. Early in my faith walk when I was bound home due to illness, I begged God to speak to me and give me instruction. I prayed, fasted and kept a journal of the prayers I wrote to Jesus. Then one day I heard that still small voice that said, ” I was always talking, you just needed to listen.” From then on, I kept a journal of when God spoke to me so that I could reference back when I had doubt it was Him speaking to me. Each time I had a doubt, I was able to go back to what God said and confirmed that it was definitely not just my thoughts. There were times when what God was saying to me was straight out of His word, yet it was a scripture that I hadn’t read before, so when I stumbled across it in the Bible, I would be reminded that I was hearing God clearly.
Soon God began to give me mini assignments when He spoke to me. He would have me relay messages of encouragement to people, give small donations or even give them a hug. The part that wowed me was the confirmation from those same people that said “that was exactly what I needed to hear”, “that was the exact amount I needed to pay a bill” and “I needed that hug because of how down I was feeling today”. All of this was helping increase my faith that I was hearing God clearly.
One day God took the obedience assignment to another level. He told me to go to the store and get a loaf of bread and go to Anders Blvd. I went to the store and grabbed the bread. Then I thought to myself, “Anders Blvd…I’ve never even heard of that street before, I must not be hearing right.” I put the name of the street in my iPhone GPS and come to find out, that street was literally less than 5 min down the street from my apartment. I was actually shocked! I grabbed the bread, jumped in the car and headed down the street. As I was driving down Anders Blvd, I was waiting for additional instructions on where to stop but I heard nothing. I saw houses with confederate flags and big angry dogs in their yard and was praying to God for those not to be the houses He wanted me to go to. Though, if it was those houses I know God would have me covered. I got to the end of the dead end road and got sad and frustrated because I didn’t know what to do next. I parked and called a friend of mine and told her what was going on and since I knew she had been walking with God a lot longer than I had, just maybe she would be able to hear from God on what I wasn’t hearing. She prayed for and encouraged me and got off the phone. Seconds later, she sends a text that said, ” Sorry Boo, God said this is between you and Him.
Following the Voice of God to Anders Blvd in Jacksonville, FL
I sighed and asked God to tell me what to do. As I looked up while still sitting in my car, I saw a taxi van and heard God say follow that van. I followed the taxi through the complex and parked a few vehicles down. I watched a guy wearing a fast food restaurant uniform get out and go into one of the apartments. I hesitated, took a deep breath and got out of the car; heading towards the same front door of where the guy entered. I knocked and then I heard a deep angry sounding voice say, “Who is it ?!!”. I replied, Umm my name is Sheena. He opens the door and says, “Can I help you” in a nicer voice. I replied with the only thing, I could think to say, ” I know this may sound crazy but God told me to get some bread and bring it here, by any chance do you need some bread?” He said ” Yeah, yeah we do need some bread. Thank you so much!” He opens the door and introduces me to his girlfriend. They both shake my hand, thank me and I head back to my car. Tearing up from the relief of completing the assignment, I drive off and start to have a flood of thoughts, thinking maybe I should have done more like pray for them or invite them to church but then I realized if God wanted me to do that, He would’ve said that. Once I got home and prayed about my encounter, God revealed to me, “it didn’t matter what house or apartment you stopped at, no matter where you ended I would’ve made sure it was well. All I needed was your trust and obedience.”
I share all of this to let you know if there are some things that you believe God is leading you to do but you don’t have all the details, follow the last set of instructions He gave and trust that once you are obedient to that portion, He will give you the next. Trust God and be obedient in following His voice/ instructions because at the end of the day…It’s not about you and it’s bigger than you.
Today I want to provide some encouragement to those who have a desire to walk out God’s will for their lives. Those who have been in a faith fight with their flesh between doing what God said and walking away from it all because doing that would be much easier. Well it may be easier to walk away for you, but think about the people who don’t even get a chance to choose Jesus because they never ran into you doing the very thing that God asked you to do, with them in mind. Think about the countless lives assigned to you that are waiting on that one act of obedience that can change their lives for the better, forever. Just think about it…
“Obedience is the Fruit of Faith”
Quote by Christina Rossetti
As Believers, we all make up one Body of Christ (1 Corinthians12:12-27). Meaning we all have our role in the Kingdom of God. Those roles won’t always look the same nor will they be of the same magnitude, require the same level of commitment, or include a platform or stage, dependent on the assignment and calling. One thing that is the same is the obedience that we must walk in to put ourselves aside and yield to a greater purpose bigger than ourselves. That purpose to go into all the world and share the Good News of Jesus Christ until all have heard (Matthew 24:14).
The reality of the call is that life gets in the way, distractions happen, and the devil doesn’t lay down without a fight even though we know how this story ends. This is why obedience to God’s call is so important. If we knew the lives that were attached to our “Yes” we wouldn’t drag our feet when it comes to staying the course. We wouldn’t allow the naysayers to paralyze us into not moving forward. We wouldn’t ignore doing the very thing that someone did for us to hear and know the truth. So for those running from God and their purpose, turn around and run back towards Him because walking with Him is the best place to be. To those running their God given race (Hebrews 12:1) and those who are just beginning, I have a message for you:
To the Intercessors and prayer warriors, keep getting up in the wee hours of the night to pray for the nations because your faith and prayers are moving God’s hand.
To the Evangelist, keep ministering to the loss, performing miracles in Jesus name and sharing the Good News to all who have ears to hear.
To the Prophet, keep warning the people of God and calling out that which is not of God, even when the world tells you otherwise.
To the Teacher, keep breaking down the Word to those who are hungry for understanding God’s word.
To the Pastors, continue to nurture and shepard your God given flock, raising them up to be disciples.
To the Apostle, keep planting and establishing churches where God leads.
To the Missionary, keep going to the nations to share the Good News.
To the Street preacher, keep sharing the truth on every street corner God leads you to.
To the family with the servants’ heart, keep feeding and clothing the poor and homeless.
To the Content creator, keep creating on all platforms for God’s glory.
To the Writer, keep writing blogs and books for the Kingdom.
To the Investor, keep funding the God projects and businesses.
To the Inventor, keep taking those God ideas and making them an innovative reality.
To the Person who loves people, keep serving, encouraging and loving on others, even when it’s not reciprocated.
To the Person texting devotionals everyday, keep doing what you are doing, even when you don’t get a response, because you are planting seeds that God can water and grow.
To the Person working on their 9 to 5, keep working in excellence, so when they ask you how you do it, you can credit the True and Living God.
To the Person who thinks the thing that God is leading them to do is insignificant, remain faithful and don’t despise small beginnings (Luke 16:10).
And To the Person who doesn’t know their purpose yet; keep seeking God until the appointed time, when He points you in a direction.
See we all have our part to play in the Body of Christ, much like my part of sharing this blog with you today, but it’s up to us whether we choose to fulfill it or not. God won’t force it on us, but when we choose to give Him our faith-filled “Yes”, He will make sure that He finishes what He started in and through us.
“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”
The Faith Travels 