Change is inevitably hard, but God. I always knew I had to be in his will however, I made choices and decisions contrary to His will. 

Growing up both of my parents were absent due to their own issues. My maternal grandmother raised me and loved me unconditionally. She always kept me in church and taught me all I needed to know about salvation. I had  everything I could ever want. However, I still yearned and searched for the love that my parents didn't give me. I had my first child at the age of 19.  May 2001, I walked across the stage four months pregnant determined to do what some said I couldn't do was to graduate, raise my daughter and enjoy life. I felt like I owed my daughter what my parents never gave me. But, my relationship with my daughter’s father didn't make it a year after her birth. I was so hurt and bitter I told him that, “I would never be with another man.” My words really didn't have much meaning to me when I said them. At least that’s what I thought.  But as Proverbs 18:21 says, “Life and death are in the power of  the tongue." As I look back, I realize what I spoke into my life.

As Christians, we must be careful what we speak into our lives. What I spoke quickly came into existence. I begin to reach out and change my circle of friends. I started going to alternative clubs and seeking any and every thing to numb my pain. I begin to  date women. I got so deep into this lifestyle I avoided some of my family. I particularly avoided my paternal grandmother who was a Pastor. I knew she would love me despite my lifestyle choices, but I also knew she wasn't going to play any games and she was going to bring to me the unadulterated truth. December 5, 2008, changed everything for me.

I received the official call that my paternal grandmother was called home to heaven. I knew how hard she worked to get there, however, I was sad and extremely hurt. Words will never explain the pain. When I came home from Miami, where my grandmother closed her eyes; I knew my life had to change. I knew that all that I was taught and believed was not displayed in  my lifestyle. And the woman I had been dating almost five years was right by my side. I had to pray and build courage to tell her I could no longer be in a relationship with her. I could not only hear my grandmother, but see her. She didn't haunt me, but she spoke into  my life more than she ever had while she was living. At the time, I felt like I had everything to lose and so much to gain. I ended the romantic relationship with that young lady, but I maintain a platonic and friendly relationship with her. In this decision I broke a generational curse. You see my mother also experienced an alternative lifestyle. I saw her living this when I  was younger. By letting go of my pain and the hurt and letting GOD become the center of my life, I broke a generational curse over me, my daughter and my future seeds.

I encourage anyone who is living and doing anything that keeps them bound to pray, seek God, and most importantly develop your own relationship with him. He will be your mother, father, friend, lover, your all and all; only if you let him.

We are on going into day 20 of our 21 Day Fast: growing DEEPER.   I believe you receive the most direction and  correction from the Lord while seeking Him through prayer while fasting. And I have received much correction during this period of fasting in many areas and one being my health. I have shared that during this fast I have realized my addiction and comfort in foods that are not good for me. Now, I do take particular care in the foods that I eat, but I have some weaknesses that I have not been honest with myself as to how they are not beneficial to me.

When we started this fast we were looking for a spiritual renewal as well as a physical renewal. The Daniel Fast addresses both of these areas. During this fast I have gained some much needed insight. I have realized that the cheese, mayo and tartar sauce  I love so dearly and are my guilty pleasures are not benefiting my total health.  And I realized that they provided a sense of comfort. In these 20 days  I have seen a dramatic and significant decrease in my abdomen. I am not bloated nor gassy as I normally am. And I have become more regular if you know what I mean. Yes, I have been enlightened. Due to my recent enlightenment,  I have made the commitment that I will reduce my intake of these foods that have caused me pleasure going in, but much discomfort going down. But that's how it is, the very thing that gives us so much pleasure is what ends up destroying us. And it isn't just me that have seen changes. One of the participants of the fast has said that her mental capacity has improved, she stated she seems sharper and have more clarity. The benefits of this fast greatly outweigh the sacrifice.
 
I am aware that this Intercession Tuesday is different from the normal, but God is concerned about every area of our life, spiritual and physical. So many of us are dealing with diabetes, high blood pressure, tumors, heart disease, stroke, and cancer are just a few of a growing number of health conditions becoming more common in our society , which remain rare in  less advance cultures. Many doctors identify our unhealthy lifestyles as an important contributing factor in the development of these conditions and causing us to not to live whole and full lives. And as the fast comes to an end, and life slowly goes  back to “normal” I would encourage you not to fall back into the trap of “busyness” of life, not being mindful of what you're placing in your body. Do not allow the comfort of food to distract you from your purpose. I ask you, how would improved health help you better serve the Lord? What dietary changes can you implement in your life that can benefit you to living a healthier lifestyle? How has your lifestyle contributed to  your poor health? What steps can you take to help insure your health remains good for years to come? To achieve the life Christ has purposed for you, your earthly vessel must be in optimal condition. 

I challenge each of you that have participated in the fast, or is in need of a physical change to challenge yourselves to live a fasted lifestyle. To ask God to assist you to make the necessary changes to live in better health.  It will be easy to fall back into the trap of “eating as usual” but I believe if you make an honest effort to keep focus on living a healthy life you will look as Daniel did, " healthier and better nourished than any of the others". (Daniel 1:15) and you will be able to live a life full of purpose.

If you are need of prayer, you can reach us  678.383.2885, submit a  request via our  Connect  Form or you may email us at [email protected].  Your request will be placed on our Prayer Wall.

◊Intercession Prayer◊

Heavenly Father, I thank You Lord for the new mercies by which You allow me to present my body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable, which is my spiritual service of worship to You. I am beginning to reap in my life the fruit sown in years of neglect and abuse against my body. Like many before me, I would  prefer to enjoy good health and a long life. But to achieve this goal, I recognize the need to repent from the way I have been treating the temple of the  Holy Spirit and practice better stewardship in the care of the body You have  given me. The Daniel Fast was an important part of that stewardship.  Lord, as I followed Your leading in my life and observe(d) the Daniel Fast, begin the  process of healing my body and restoring my health. Make me sensitive to what  You want to accomplish in my body and accept my body as a living sacrifice to You. I am delivered from the need to make food my comfort and I find comfort You dear Jesus. You will satisfy my mouth with good things so that my youth is renewed as the eagles according to Psalms 103:2-5. Therefore, I will fulfill the number of my days in good health and purpose. I render this flesh dead so that you may live in my life. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Happy Soul SONday Sancturians! Well we are in the final stretch of our 21 day fast: growing DEEPER and I must say that this has truly been one of the most challenging fast that I have done. I have fasted I would say for the past 10 years. I always do it at the beginning of the year and I will do it periodically throughout the year if I feel that I need to strip away distractions and hindrances to refocus my spirit. It had gotten to the point that it was somewhat easy for me to remove the meat and the sugar from my diet. But this year, I went a step further and I dug in deep and removed more comforts, such as animal byproducts which include cheese, milk, eggs. And all white products, which include, white rice, white bread etc. And I must say that my self-control has been challenged. But this is all for a good reason, right? I am denying my flesh so that my spirit can be fed. And as I have been challenged by my flesh for some gooey cheese I have dug in and prayed even more to bring my flesh under subjection and have been reading my word more.  And in my prayer time I have prayed for just about everything; finances, health, relationships and The Sanctuary. I have asked God to do and move in all these areas. But in my prayer time last Tuesday, I begin to wonder when God was going to move.  I told him I need a right now move, but I wondered if it was going to be right now. And that lead me to begin to study on how to get my prayers answered. And what I found changed the directions of my prayers.

When most of us pray, we pray for what we want and what we think we need, or the need to be delivered from a situation. I am guilty of it. Remember I said, “I have been praying for finances, health, relationships AND The Sanctuary”.  And if we look at how and what we pray for it is all about ME! Yes, we all are guilty of praying selfish prayers. And prayer is not meant for us to ask God to do what we want when we want and to be delivered at the time we want it. It is the highest privilege of a Christian. Prayer is meant to be a conversation between a child of God and his loving heavenly Father. And for Him to hear you, you must first be a believer. A personal relationship must exist. You must have accepted Christ into your life.  And we find this in scripture. After the blind man of John 9 was healed by the Lord Jesus, he made this profound statement in reference to prayer. First, negatively speaking, he said, "We know that God does not listen to sinners" (John 9:31). Then, positively, he said, "He listens to the godly man. . . ." God does not listen to the prayers of a sinner, but he does hear the prayers of a godly person. Then the healed man explained further what characterizes the man whose prayer God hears: he is the one "who does God's will.  Now this is not to say that God does not love the sinner and wants what’s best for him. Jesus was sent in the flesh for the sinner. So when the sinner prays the salvation prayer God hears him and he is automatically accepted as His child with full rights. And not only does God not hear the prayers of unbelievers, but he also does not hear the prayers of Christians who are backsliders, whose hearts condemn them, as we read in 1 John 3. God says to his people who are sinning, "Your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear" (Isaiah 59:2). So as God's children it is improtant to have a relationship and fellowship, which is expressed through prayer. Therefore, it is important that when we pray we are confessing. And prayer should besomething we do daily.

Once we have come into right relationship and fellowship with our God though our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit and we must have confidence and pray in alignment with our Father for our prayers to be answered. 1 John 5:13-15 says,

 "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him.

This simply means that you are secure in your salvation. You are a child of God with an assurance that you will have all of his inherited promises which include eternal life. Therefore, with this knowledge you are confidently approaching your loving Heavenly Father. And He is ready to listen to His child petitions so that He can grant them as long as you’re asking according to His perfect will for your life. Yes, this is the caveat. He will give it to you according to His will. So what is His will for your life? We know He wants us to prosper and live in natural wealth and abundance and have good health and a long life. His word is full of these promises. But he also wants us to prosper spiritually. John 3:1-2 says,  Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. So when we pray we should be praying for areas of our lives spiritually that need attention and healing and we should be asking how we can live within the will of God as in his will is peace, joy, love, prosperity and purpose. 

But if we honestly look back over our prayers we know that they are filled with temporal earthly things that are selfish, self-glorifying and full of what can God do for us and we touch lightly on what He wants for us. Let’s just be real about that. We have no interest in God's glory and purpose. Our mind is far away from the interests of the kingdom of God and all on what we can accomplish on earth. God is kingdom minded and don’t have time for that. 

Jesus told us to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all those things will be added unto us. He told us that those of the world run after these things, but we are to seek first the kingdom of God, meaning we are to pray for God's plan and purpose, not ours. We need to recognize what God is doing in this world and pray for the success and progress of his plans and purposes. When we study the prayers of the Apostles or the prayers of Jesus, we notice they have nothing to do with temporal things; rather, they have everything to do with spiritual matters. When we analyze the prayer Jesus taught us to pray, we notice there is only one little request for temporal things: "Give us this day our daily bread." Every other request is about spiritual issues: "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven," and so on. Our prayers are the exact opposite of the prayers of Jesus and of the apostles. Their prayers have nothing to do with money, health, or grades. God takes care of all these things because we are his children. Now we can understand how unspiritual our prayers are. We are so interested in our health, our welfare, our relationship, our clothing and all these other things that we get confused when we don't get what we prayed for. 

Suppose you prayed for a better job, but you were fired instead. You should go to God and find out what his purposes are for you. Ask God, "O God, may your purpose and plan succeed in this world." This is not to say that God is not concerned about our needs, he said "He would provide all our needs according to His riches in glory".  He has promised to be our deliver and strong tower in the time of trouble. So why should we concern ourselves and spend so much time praying and pleading for what He has promised.
 
And sometimes our prayer aren't answered because it's God's plan for us to go through it, to suffer through whatever it is we are experiencing. I know we do not want to hear that as there is so much prosperity gospel being preached and taught. But as mature kingdom citizens we must understand this. We may not like it, and we can fast and pray and try to get out of it. But God is not going to change his purpose. He is going to give us certain suffering. Peter writes, "Those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good." There is a suffering according to God's will. Why did God include suffering? So that we may be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ so that we can have fellowship with God.  In Romans 8:28 Paul writes, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. As we grow spiritually, we come to realize the  important role suffering plays in our spiritual life; suffering should bring about good in our lives. It should not have us mad, doubting and questioning if He loves us and turning our backs on him. 
 
I am guilty of this. If you know me or read through my blogs you know that I have experienced a lot of tragedy and suffering in my life. And when I would be in the fire I would question Him and wonder if he even loved me. But with each trial or circumstance I have seen the hand of God move, even when I was living outside His will.  With each move he was drawing me closer to Him for his purpose. And now that I am  living in His will for my life I have a clear view of what He was doing all these years. But this clarity did not come without many hours of prayer, fasting and supplication. And with this particular fast I have gone to new depths in my worship, my prayer life and in reading my word. What I have realized is that our prayers should not be selfish and self-glorifying seeking money, status, and fame; things that hold no eternal value. God ain’t got time for that. We should be asking, "O God, give me wisdom to know your word. “Lord, help me to forgive my enemy and those who despitefully mistreat me." O Lord, I am fearful. Give me courage that I may declare your word." “O God, I want Your will and not my will for my life”.  Our prayers should be about what can we do of service for His Kingdom.  We should be praying to live, be and do God’s will. These are the type of prayers that He has time for and He wants to answer.

The power of this MOMENT…
 
As a singer/songwriter,  musician I am one that is very sensitive to feelings and atmospheres.  Knowing  how to appropriate certain  sensations allows for you to be able to channel  those into a song, or if you are in church you do what is needed to shift that  atmosphere.  Being sensitive to what’s happening in the moment, in the present,  is what I have found to be key in ministry, and also very vital in personal  development.
 
Matthew 6:9-13
"This, then, is how you should pray: "'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” 

“Give us THIS day” highlights the importance of focusing on the now.  We know this topic is important to Jesus because this is not the first time that he addresses  it. In Matthew 6:34 Jesus said, “Therefore do not  worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough  trouble of its own.“
 
I’ll never forget when  this registered in my spirit.  I have always been one to defer responsibility  until a later time, if it’s something I don’t want to deal with in that moment.  This gave way to procrastination to take root in my life, until one day I had to  deal with it.  One day I woke up and realized that the responsibilities aren’t  going anywhere, the job must still be completed, but when I wait I just allow it  pile up.  This has been true in several instances, school, relationships and  career.  I learned overtime, that long-term success is a product of many  short-term decisions.
 
If we live in yesterday  we may become too overcome with guilt about what I should have done, what I  didn’t do, and what I could have done better.  If we are intoxicated by the  victories of yesterday we begin to build a monuments of our success and becoming  prideful and arrogant. 
 
If we put things off  until tomorrow we give way to laziness and procrastination.  

Whatever you have  dreamed about, saw for yourself doing, talked to God about in secret, or have  openly aspired to accomplish, there is no better day than TODAY to get started  in that direction.  Go confidently in the direction of your dreams, and start  today.  There is power in this moment.  There is power in seizing your TODAY.

~ Quentin Bethea

We are in the 13th day of our Daniel Fast: 21 Days of growing DEEPER. We are fasting and praying to seek a deeper, more intimate relationship with our Divine Creator so that we can live within his desired will for our lives. In our desire to walk closely we are increasing our time in prayer with Him. And in our prayer time with Him, I am sure that we have petitioned and laid many requests at the alter. And I know that God meant for us to pray and receive answers. 1 John 5:14 says, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if  we ask anything according to his will, he hears us."  And James 5:16 states, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much". However, for prayer to be effectual and to be, it must be in accordance with God's will. In other words, God will not hear any prayer that is outside or contrary to his revealed will. For example, when the prophet Nathan came to David and said, "Your son is going to die" (2 Samuel 12:14), David prayed with fasting for seven days. Yet nothing happened and the child died. God did not hear David's prayer because it was outside of and contrary to God's will, which had already been revealed through Nathan. How many people think that prayer is persuading God to do our will or trying to make God change his mind! But that is not what prayer is. Prayer means asking God to do his will which we have embraced. In other words, when we make God's will to be our will, our will will be done because it is his will, and his will is done always. If we can understand this truth, we can avoid much confusion and enjoy the best life God has for us.

The condition for effectual prayer, therefore, is that there should be no conflict between God's will and ours. We must learn to say, "To me to live is Christ and to die is gain." We must truly deny ourselves and want we want, take up the cross, and follow Him.  We must realize that the will of God alone is good, pleasing, and perfect, so that when our will conflicts with his will and he refuses to grant our petition, we can say, "Thank you, God, for not giving me what I asked for because what I requested was not your will. It was not good or perfect or pleasing." Jesus Christ was the man of prayer who always did God's will, so we must study his example if we want to learn to pray according to God's will. But most of our prayers may touch  briefly on the will of God, but most are outside of God's will. When we analyze our prayers and compare them with the prayers of Jesus in the gospels or the prayers of the Apostles, we discover that their prayers are very spiritual in nature. They speak about the kingdom of God and what is good for it, and rarely do we see prayers in terms of temporal things, such as money, jobs, or health. For example, in John 4:34 Jesus said, "My food," meaning his strength, his pleasure, his joy, is to do the will of Him that sent Him and his main focus was to finish his work." Thus, when Jesus prayed, he prayed according to God's will and what he prayed for, he received. Therefore, when we pray, our prayer should be:

◊Centered in the word of God, because the will of God is found in God's word.
◊We must be in right relationship.
◊We must come to God in faith.
◊We must pray in Jesus' name. 
◊We must pray with right motives.
◊We must be in agreement with God's will and God's people (where two or more are gathered).
◊We must pray without doubting.

True prayer promotes God's glory. It is saying to our heavenly Father, "Thy will be done." It is saying to God, "Not my will but thine be done." In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus said to his Father, "…your will be done." (Matthew 6:10). When we can say that with sincerity and trust, we have reached the turning point in prayer. God never abandons those who trust him. When we learn to say, It's not about me, it's not about you. It's about God and his will. The sooner we learn that, the sooner our prayers will touch the heart of the One to whom nothing is impossible. Let's pray today that you can walk in agreement with God's will for your life so that you may get that purpose life.

If you are need of prayer, you can reach us  678.383.2885, submit a request via our  Connect  Form or you may email us at [email protected]. We will place your request on our Prayer Wall and  petitions will be made.


Intercession Prayer for the Will of God

Dear Lord God Almighty,

I come to you humbly Father asking that your will be done in my life. Your word in Isaiah 55:9, says, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” And in response to your word I say, “I thank you for being above me and knowing what is best for me.” In this life, we are all searching for our purpose and asking for your will to be done. And we ask that you prepare us to be ready for it to be revealed and respond accordingly. I pray that I come to a point in my life where I dare ask you to reveal your will for me; You would put me in a place of acceptance of what you reveal to me. It may not be what I want, but it will surely be what I need in order to live a life fully invested in you walking in agreement with You. Let Your Holy Spirit give me our one desire and one purpose, to do Your Holy Will, O my God.  I adore Your holy and eternal nature. I surrender with all my heart to Your fatherly love. Lord, whatever is Your will, that will I do. I am completely open to Your plan for me. I desire to live only in You and to be guided by You forever. Grant that Your holy will be carried out perfectly in me. Do with me as You Will. Make my life useful to Your service. The only ambition I have is to humbly, and honestly do Your Will. I want to lift up Your Name Jesus, not my name. I want to make known the power of Your Holy Spirit, Jesus, I want You to claim me for Yourself, and use me according to Your Divine purpose. And no matter the job or task that You assign to me, I will be contented, and full of Joy, to do Your Holy Will, Jesus.

When fear attempts to consume me, be the destroyer of the fear by your perfect love for I know it casts out all fear. When you see that I am tempted to turn back and ignore your will, discipline my spirit and help me to see that you only want the best for me. Help me to realize that anything you bring into my life and anything You reveal to me is for my good. Give me a spirit of acceptance and a heart open to appointed will in my life. Most of all Lord let me never get so caught up in seeking You out for a revelation that I forget to seek you, just for you. Let me always desire to be with You above all things. Seeking your kingdom first and letting everything else be added afterwards. Letting your love surround me and cast out any of my fears or doubts. Help me to live in love with you, accept your will for my life and give me the proper response to your revelation. Let me lay down all worldly ambitions, give up my will to do Your Holy Will. Take my thoughts away from making money, or finding business opportunities. Take my desire away from seeking worldly wealth or fame. Take my eyes away from looking on vain worldly appearances, which are deceiving and misleading. Keep my thoughts on doing Your Holy will, not on seeking worldly material things, or vain worldly status.

Let Your Holy Spirit, Jesus, live in me forever, and give me Purpose, Hope, and Peace and Joy, and Eternal Life. For without You, I will perish.

In the name of Christ Jesus I pray, Amen.

January 20th is a special day in The Sanctuary.  We are celebrating 1 year of our Fellowship and Prayer Meetings. This weekend a year ago, the Holy Spirit brought three women into my home to pray for one hour. That one night was the defining moment in my life. The decision to have this meeting was not an easy one, it came on the heels of a major decision to leave my full time job with the State of Georgia in 2010. Yes, I left a good government job to take less money working from home. When I made that decision I had no clue as to where God was taking me or what he was leading me to do. All I knew was that I heard the Holy Spirit speak clearly to me. And what I heard was that it was my time to be in time. It was my appointed time for purpose.

We hear so much about living in purpose and finding purpose but we never hear much about being on time for purpose. This past Friday in our Friday Fellowship and Prayer meeting, we discussed the Samaritan Woman at the well and how this woman who had slept with 5 men, who she never married, and had one waiting for her at her home, had a divine appointment with Jesus…her purpose. This unexpected opportunity in her Kairos time led her to her divine purpose. What is Kairos? Kairos (ki-räs) is a Greek word that refers to the appointed time; the right time, the fullness of time, the time of opportunity for action or exchange, unrestricted by the passing of time; in the New Testament Kairos means "the appointed time in the purpose of God”, the time when God acts. There are many scriptures in the bible that speak to “appointed times” and one particular scripture that immediately comes to mind and that many refer to is: Habakkuk 2:2-3, “And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.  For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry." But what do we know about this appointed time? We surely do not hear much about Kairos time in our society as we are regulated by “chronos” (kronos) time, which is chronology. Chronology is a valuable tool in the hands of human beings. Chronology is a human attempt to structure the order of God's creation. Chronology is mankind’s attempt to measure time in an orderly fashion within God’s creation using external resources which makes us unconscious of those times in our lives when it is “our time.” Chronology is determined by flesh. Kairos is time determined by the Eternal Creator. Chronology is concrete. Kairos is intangible.  We get so caught up in the chronology of our necessities that we miss our Kairos. 
 
When I look back at when I heard from God that it was my time to move out of the comfort and convenience of my job and my life and walk into faith and actively begin to work the vision of The Sanctuary, my natural self was not in agreement. In my analytical logical mind, I knew the circumstances of my life were saying loud and clear that it was not a good time. The logical and natural order should be for me to remain on my job for a few more years, take care of some pressing needs and just work on the establishing The Sanctuary on the side. That would be the safest and more stable solution. But my spiritual self was saying that I had to look beyond my circumstances, what I could see in the natural and listen to the voice of God that was speaking loudly to my spirit. It was time to take my faith to the next level because as it was my time…my appointed time. And I made the decision to seize my Kairos moment. 

Now you must understand that Kairos is perpetual, meaning that it is continuous when you remain in the perfect will of God. When you remain in your “kairos”, your divine purpose will be manifested just as the Samaritan
Woman at the Well. And it will be a movement in your life that will not only affect you but those around you. Case in point, because I seized my Karios moment and left my position, it allowed me more time in prayer and in fellowship with my Creator seeking answers and direction. One night as I was crying out to God, wondering if I made the right decision, I saw the vision of The Sanctuary in my home. I was told to ask two particular women to meet for a Prayer Night. I was provided very specific instructions as to the room in my home and how to design it. And we were instructed to come in and just pray for one hour. I was little hesitant about opening my home in this manner as I protect the sanctity of my home. But I had to be obedient, this was bigger than me. I asked the women and they were in agreement. We came together on January 20, 2011 at 8:00 pm. We prayed for one hour, and we were met with the presence of God. Once the glory of God filled The Sanctuary we shared and became transparent about things that were hidden in the recesses of our minds and hearts. And because of the Fellowship I was instructed to go the word to get answers and solutions to the things we were dealing with, which resulted in us having Bible Study. And because God begin to do a literal and an immediate work in the lives of those who attended they shared their experiences with others. Those who did not live in Georgia wanted to participate, so we established the conference bridge and a Skype connection. We then begin to have requests to host meetings in other states and The Sanctuary went mobile. Eventually we had to create a website for those who were not on Facebook could remain connected and the social media aspect was established. And in my desire to be a true teacher of the word, I am currently a student at Liberty University pursuing a degree in Religous Studies. I want to  be shown approved to praech the Word of God. All of this is the result of that one defining moment. The Word of God is now being shared across the world from The Sanctuary virtually and in person. We have received data that we are not only reaching Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, Minnesota, California and so many other states, but the continent of Africa, Japan and Europe; all because I moved, not in my time but in God’s time. God has used The Sanctuary as a vessel to spread the Good News of restoration, hope, transformation, renewal, love and living in divine purpose. Just as The Samaritan woman had a defining moment at the well when she faced herself and the Son of God. I had my defining moment with that first Prayer Meeting in my home on January 20, 2011. Just like that Samaritan woman ran back to her to her  village and convinced the community to return with her to the well to meet this man Jesus, who had told her everything she had ever done. I have ran sharing the Good News of a man named Jesus that can heal, deliver, provide, protect and set you free! And as we celebrate our 1 year anniversary of the Friday Fellowship and Prayer Meetings I want to express my sincere heartfelt thanks to those three ladies who knelt with me on that first night. They gave me the confidence to pursue this vision. To those who have supported and faithfully attended the meetings, you all are some truly special people as I know that the Prayer and Fellowship meetings are an unusual concept for the kingdom but it is so neccessary. To see the manifestation of the prayers and the harvest from the rhema word that is planted in the lives of God’s people has been amazing. Yes, there have been many challenges and trials along the way but with each test it becomes a testimony that God uses for His purpose. Just like the woman at the well had her defining moment and found purpose in life beyond her circumstances, that night in January I found my purpose beyond my circumstances. 

Defining moments have the power to change you; if you allow them to. Defining moments, when they arrive your attitude toward them determines the outcome, the question is, are you open or aren't you? Many of us are concerned with the proper time as I was. But what is the perfect time? Who determines the perfect time? God! He is the creator of chronology, He existed before recorded time and will continue long after time ceases. God is the master of Eternity. God is the determiner, deciding the moment, people, and places to advance his purpose. God is the one who determines the Kairos. He has a time for everything. His word says, "there is a time for everything; a time to be born and a time to die; a time to begin and a time to end; a time to let go and a time to hold on; a time to start again and a time to quit; and a time to fight back and a time to defend." (Ecclesiastes 3:1-11). You may have no external indications of the kairos of opportunity, no visible signs, warning bells, whistles, or alarms, but you can discern the time by being in relationship with the Timekeeper. You will not be successful trying to do it on your own time, you may get things done but it will be the hard way. I encourage you to develop a woman at the well consciousness, and become aware of kairos opportunities. Your kairos moments are in the hands of God. Become a person open to God kairos time…open to His time. A person in His time has learned to live by the promptings and leading of the Holy Spirit to let one know when to move out of the way to see what God is doing. Become a person that is not driven by the human structure of time. Yes, be mindful of its usefulness and constraints but learn that when it’s God’s time, things F.L.O.W. easier. Learn how to get your Fellowship, Love, Obedience, Worship. This will help you to know your kairos moments. The Samaritan woman did have one hope that one day things would change, and she kept going to the well to fetch water at noon every day. She had a flow. She may have felt down, she may have felt angry or ashamed, but she got up and went to the well. She took a risk and spoke to Jesus. And that changed everything. She went from being a woman carrying empty vessels, a woman with a sketchy past people condemned and gossiped about, to becoming a woman of belief, of action, of value and that changed her community and a generation. She became herself a vessel filled and overflowing with Good News as have I. I have come to know just like that Samaritan Woman that being in His time will make you on time for your purpose!

HE gives me Courage....
Last night I watched a popular movie, one that I have seen many times. However, this time a particular scene really struck me. In the scene one of the main characters performed a spoken word piece about the courage to love. As she said the words, tears filled my eyes.

It takes courage to love again. When you've been hurt.
It takes pain and strength again
to pack it all away.
Somewhere, in all the pain,
someone has to have the courage
to be okay.
He gives me courage
to Love.
(Excerpt, Madea's Family Reunion)

I know all too well about this courage it takes to love...again. Actually, I probably know more about the fear that exists which summons the courage. Like many women (I speak from the perspective of a woman because I am one) I've been hurt, abused, misused, and tossed aside at some point in my life. Four years ago, I went through a divorce. I must admit it was one of the hardest things I've been through in my adult life. Despite all of my professional accomplishments that were occurring simultaneously, I felt like a failure. People like to compare a breakup to a divorce but there is something different when you make a covenant with another and GOD. When it ended I felt such a huge sense of disappointment, loss, and shame. I felt like I let myself, my family, and more importantly God down when it ended. It took many years and lots of prayer, but today I'm much stronger. It is a daily walk, but I thank God for the lessons. Often in the midst of pain we focus on the pain or the tragedy and not the lesson or the grace of God. We often look at life through our human eyes and not our spiritual eyes. God says, there is nothing the believer can do to separate themselves from His love. God says in your weakness, I am made strong. God says, all things work together for good for those that love God and are called according to his purpose. God says, I love those who love me. There is NO greater love than the love of our God. Yet, I also believe God placed us on earth, in relationship with one another, to be an EXTENSION of HIS love. Despite all the pain, mistakes, and shame of the past I was blessed most recently with a love, that I once believed was out of my reach. A love that I once believed I didn't deserve, couldn't happen for me, or was unrealistic. Through introspection, prayer, faith, family, and friends the dark veil of shame lifted and I began to see myself how God sees me. Despite it all, HE loved me. Who was I not to love myself or to feel unworthy of love?

When watching the movie, hearing the poem, my initial response was to think of my Love, my man. Because yes, he does give me courage to love. His patience, kindness, compassion, and unconditional love have given me courage. Why? He is an extension of God's love. "love is patient, love is kind..." When I really reflected on the poem, the "HE" that gives me courage to love is my Father, my Redeemer, the first to ever love me...God.

If you are going through, have gone through, or if you eventually experience heart break, I pray you know God's love. Let it strengthen you to maintain the Courage to love AND be loved.

LOVE..."...it always protects, always hopes, always trusts, always perseveres. Love never fails"

When in doubt, I encourage you to reflect on these scriptures:
1 Corinthians 13:5-8, Romans 8:37-39, Ephesians 2:4-5, 1 John 4:7-8, 1 Peter 5:6-7

Be Blessed!

◊You can read more inspiring and encouraging blogs by Jamila on her blog Beauty for Ashes.◊

If you have enjoyed this Testament...please consider passing the LOVE!

We are on Day 7 of our 21 Days Daniel Fast: growing DEEPER. We have completed our first week and I am sure as we reflect back over this first week we can say it has been quite the challenge to get adjusted to the new eating habits as well as the hunger pains. Take time now to reflect back on this first week. Ask yourself; in what ways have your physical desires directed your attention toward God and His work in your life? In what ways have your physical desires been a distraction? Where have you wanted to give in and how you can recommit yourself? 

We know that fasting can be challenging and it is hard to remain focused on those prayer goals that you have written in your journal. Fasting strikes hard at our 'fleshliness,' our fixation with the body at the expense of the soul. Fasting is a definite act of one's will to focus on God; thus, it is a form of worship or (oneness with God). The concept of fasting is an exercise of devotion and faith that, in some cases, brings us clarity and increasing closeness to God. However, fasting can be simply considered an act of worship and adoration with no other purpose than to attribute glory and honor to God. According to Matthew's account of our Lord's forty day fast, Satan attempted to get our Lord to worship him. Jesus responded to this attack in Matthew 4:10 by commanding Satan to depart for only God is worthy to be worshipped. Therefore, acknowledge God during your fast and worship Him. In this way you will be resisting the enemy to end this fast and drawing nigh to God; (James 4:7). Spiritual power is therefore released. Exercise discipline by perpetually acknowledging God and His power and worthiness to be praised and worshipped. Ignore the adversary, minimize your problems, and worship God over the circumstances, your flesh and the hunger pains. Seek him…grow DEEPER in your worship to Him.