Walking His Call

This seems to have become a soapbox of sorts for me - reminding my dear brothers and sisters that we do indeed have an enemy.  One who seeks to kill, steal and destroy us and everything we hold dear.  One who works - diligently - to see us become ineffective for Christ.  One who would love to see our demise.  "Over-dramatic much, Jacqui?", you may be asking.  I don't think so. You see, I've seen this attack up close and personal.  I have been on the receiving end of it, and know it well.  It wasn't that long ago that I was in a fight to the finish with my enemy, and I believe it was - quite literally - for my life.  This I have had confirmed, to me, by one who walked with me through the battle. When God called me into ministry, I knew there would be trials and hardships.  I've yet to hear of a minister who hasn't had them.  There have been ups and downs, hard fought battles and times I've had to will myself to put one foot in front ...

I grew up in Memphis, TN. Home of the blues and the King of Rock & Roll - Elvis Presley.  I miss my family there. I miss seeing the fields of cotton and soy beans. I miss the food (though I'm glad I don't have it at my fingertips everyday). I miss the hospitality and charm.  What I don't miss is having an up close and personal view of real true racism every day. Until recent events many of my friends (who've never lived in the Deep South) thought racism was dead.  Oh if that were true, but sadly it is not.  Racism is a blight that spreads rapidly when fostered. Because that is what evil does. Yes, that's right. That's what I said...racism is evil. It is from the father of lies...our enemy - the Devil. If he can divide us...keep us from being unified...we'll never be able to march in force for the kingdom.  Racism has NO PLACE IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD, and should never be fostered in the heart of any believer. Sadly, this isn't the case a lot of times. I...

In the book of Genesis we find the account of the life of a young man named Joseph.  He was one of the babies of the family.  A young man who was deeply loved by his father, and despised by his older brothers.  Joseph was a dreamer of dreams. Joseph dreamed of his brothers (and father and mother) bowing down to him.  As you can imagine, this made the brothers ANGRY when he shared it with them.  How dare he think he would ever be greater than them!!!  He was the runt of the litter - a young upstart that needed, to their way of thinking, be put in his place.  What they didn't think was that maybe - just maybe - it could have been God giving Joseph those dreams. So, the brothers hatched a plan.  They decided their best bet was do get rid of him altogether, so after much talk about what should be done they settled on selling him into slavery.  And off Joseph went with the slave traders to Egypt... Joseph, I'm certain, wouldn't have chosen to be...

"Stay on the path I have selected for you." - Jesus Calling today I'm hearing this a lot from the Lord right now.  He speaks it to me through His Word, through His kids and through the writings of others.  It's become a bit of a mantra, and it really has to be because I can be a bit forgetful (and hard-headed - shocking, I know).  As I sat down this morning to spend time with Him, He reminded me again to stay on the path He placed me on.  It's a good path; I'm amazed at it still.  Yet, there I was this week reminding God of the call He placed on my life, and wanting to strive to make things happen on my own. So He reminds me again (I'm so thankful for His unending patience with me), and says, "If you will WAIT on ME, I will renew your strength..." "But God, my strength has been renewed!" <<< and I ponder >>> Oh wait, I remember just the other day when I was still a little tired from what life has thrown at me. <<...

"My entire body aches from mourning the deaths of my friend and her three children.  The memorial service was yesterday..." I wrote those words just a few short weeks ago.  My heart and mind have move past the depth of grief I felt that day, but the surrealness of their passing remains. I pray, when I think of them, for the husband and father left behind who is working to learn his new normal.  To have four beautiful lives stripped away so suddenly is a jarring, shocking thing.  I never want to have to experience that again.  Many people have asked me how the memorial service was, and my response is always, "horrible", but that is not the whole picture. There were moments of exquisite beauty too.  The moment that stands out the most was hearing this husband and dad declare the faith in Jesus his wife and children had, and how much they would want us to know Him.  Heather, the mom, was a friend and team-mate (she served on my worship team, and walked al...

Psalm 148:5,13 (really you should read the whole thing) "Let every created thing PRAISE THE LORD, for He issued His command, and they came into being.  Let them all PRAISE THE NAME OF THE LORD.  For His Name is very great; His glory towers over the earth and heaven!" As I've been processing this Psalm this morning I've been sitting on my couch watching Pikes Peak as a storm rolls over the top of it. It's an amazing sight to behold. From where I sit I can see Garden of the Gods at the base of the mountain, and on bad weather days the red rocks light up and stand in contrast to the gray all around them. I'm reminded that the "heavens declare the glory of the Lord".  All of these things stand as a reminder to me that the Lord is, indeed, worthy of my praise, AND that my praise to Him isn't an optional thing. It is a mandate - not only to me, but TO EVERY CREATED THING.  There is no opt-out for us. Why would we ever want there to be? This scripture ...

A mother's heart is a fearsome (causing awe or respect) thing.  The heights of emotion mine can reach has always astounded me a bit.  Since the time my boys came into this world I've been working to watch over, train, provide for and protect them as best I could.  I've nurture them and demanded respect from them (for me, their dad and everyone else they came into contact with)... I've made sure they had clothes to wear and that they took baths - regularly (even if they didn't see the point)... I've fed their physical bodies and the spirits with the Word of God. When I brought my firstborn home from the hospital, I was shocked that they would entrust me (not to kill) with this small human.  It was a bit better with my second, because I'd already manage to keep his brother alive for 5 years.  We have survived the bratty adolescent years with both my boys and have now come to the time where one has flown the coupe and the other is making plans...

Since posting my last blog about how God used a FICTIONAL story to speak into my life something I needed to hear (He is God, afterall, and can do as He pleases. He even used a donkey once to get the attention of someone - allowed the donkey to speak, He did), I've been seeing a lot and hearing a lot about how the book is heretical.  So we are all clear, heresy is defined as: belief or opinion contrary (in this case) to Christian doctrine (doctrine is a set of beliefs heard and taught by a church). Doctrine is where the water gets a little (or a lot) muddy.  This is because there are A LOT of doctrines floating around.  As a matter of fact each denomination, while it may be evangelical, has its own set of doctrines - much of the time the doctrines are the same on "what really counts", but there are differences none the less. This is why it is absolutely essential to KNOW what GOD'S WORD says, so you aren't taking someone else's word for His Word. I've read ...

I don't quite know where to begin... What I am about to share is deeply personal and very fresh, but in writing this out I'm working to unpack what the Lord has given me.  I'm bringing you along for the journey, because I know I'm not alone in this. Your details may be different from mine, but the theme is the same.  None of us are exempt from the pain this life - in a sin-filled world - dishes out, and all of us need to remember that God is with us, loving us, in the middle of it.  Recently Steve and I went to see the movie "The Shack", and it had a profound impact on me; as I write this there are many emotions and thoughts coursing through my system.  It's "just a movie" you may be thinking, and that is true, but I learned a long time ago that God can use whatever He wants to use to speak to those He wants to reach.    There is some controversy surrounding the movie. After all, God the Father "Papa" is portrayed as a woman for most of...