BIG Life Devotional | Daily Devotional for Women

We all seem to have a real space issue. If we can remedy this issue, life will start working! Interested? Listen up! James 4:7-8 (MSG) “Let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time.” God’s will is his plan. It’s his way. Scripture tells us his ways are higher than our ways, and his plans are to prosper us and give us a hope and a future. So, why wouldn’t we want God to work his will in us? Why would we resist him? Why would we insist on doing things our own way? Sometimes I believe it’s a trust issue. We are afraid we won’t really like God’s plan as much as our own, so we fight him. Other times I believe it’s simply a space issue. We’re busy doing our own thing just trying to make ends meet and we honestly forget we were never meant to do this on our own. We have been given direct access to our almighty creator, we have the ability to allocate his power through prayer, and yet we don’t. Instead we opt for worry over prayer. We opt for pity over power. We opt for our own 2nd rate plan instead of seeking the BEST way. We push him right out and we don’t even know it. Are you ready to try this thing God’s way? Are you ready to let him work his will in you? I’m telling you he’s been waiting for the opportunity to prove he has goodness in mind for you. He’s been eager to jump in the middle of your mess and start fixing, but you haven’t let him. Today, we let him. We let him work his will in us. How? Yell a loud NO to the devil and say yes to God. So, let’s put together that game plan for this Thursday. Whatcha say? First, we gotta remedy this space issue. We must create space for God. If we will create space for God in our lives, he will show up and do something awesome. But the truth is, we’ve cluttered and complicated our lives to the point that there’s just not a whole lot of room for God. And then we wonder where he is? “God, where are you in this whole mess?” And God says “Girl, you crowded me out a long time ago.” But what I love about our God is if we will offer him the slightest open door and invitation back into our lives, he will come running. He will be there in no time and he will snuggle right up to you. He never wanted to be distant from you. That was your own doing. And it happens so gradually and naturally that we don’t even recognize it. We elevate relationships that crowd him out. We fill our days with obligations, distractions, and noise. Now when there’s a moment not dedicated to something specific, we whip out our handy dandy little distraction device and we scroll. What was an opportunity for God to fill us up and work on our behalf is now replaced with our incessant need to stay connected while we are painfully DISCONNECTED. There’s no space for God. Where in your day is there an opportunity for God to speak clearly to you? When is there not noise and distraction? Have you crowded God right out of your life? Sleeping in until the last minute possible not leaving any real time for him? Resisting silence as if it’s some sort of cruel punishment to your mind. Refusing to slow down long enough to realize what you’re doing simply isn’t working. And not only have we allowed no space for God in our distracted, overwhelmed, stressed way of life today – we’ve created the perfect environment for our enemy to thrive. You bet your butt the devil plays in your distracted mind. He’s filling your head with negative thoughts, doubts and fears because you have left your mind unguarded. Your overwhelm is his opportunity to render you incapable of making your potential impact in this world. Oh yes, stay overwhelmed – then your intended work goes undone.

What is in your way? What is blocking you from moving forward in your life? Are you ready and willing to start climbing over that today? As a teenager growing up I used to bellyache to my mama about any little thing I didn’t like in my life and she would sit and listen, then once I was finished going on and on about how bad it was she would say “ahhhhhh, get over it.” Every time that was her advice. Get over it. What’s wrong in your world today? Will you get over it, or will you get under it? Will you rise above it, or will you lower your expectations, hunker down in fear and lay low while life passes you by? Why would you ever get UNDER your problems? Yet, that’s exactly what we do when we chose not to get over it. Whatever is in your way, I’m telling you today is the day to start getting over it. Start climbing. In Luke 19: 1-6 We read about a man who got over the things that were in his way. “Jesus entered and walked through Jericho. There was a man there, his name Zacchaeus, the head tax man and quite rich. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn’t see over the crowd.” What did Zacchaeus want? He wanted to see Jesus. And scripture says he wanted it desperately. When you want something desperately you’re willing to do things you wouldn’t normally do. What do you want desperately? Oh, there’s the problem. We’ve learned to insulate ourselves out of fear of failure and rejection so we’re not even allowed to want anything desperately anymore. We feel it’s safer to just “kinda” want something. If you only kinda want it and you don’t get it, then it only kinda hurts. We kinda live the life we want. We kinda find our purpose. We kinda feel fulfilled. We’re kinda getting better, but kinda not. And it’s all a result of kinda wanting it. Where’s your “desperately”? When you desperately want it, you’ll be moved to action. You’ll find the courage to do big things. That’s what Zacchaeus had. He had some desperate want in him. He wanted to see Jesus. But there was something in his way. Every time you desperately want something, there will be something else in your way. Obstacles are part of life. God never said it would be easy, in fact he promised you otherwise. He told you “in this world there will be trouble.” Well, he nailed that one didn’t he. Jesus you were right, in this world, I do have trouble and every time I really want something, there’s something in my way. Hey that’s life … and maybe it’s by design. Let’s pick back up in verse 4 of our story: “So Zacchaeus ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.” Zacchaeus was a small man. So small he couldn’t see over the shoulders of the people in front of him. The crowd of people was in his way. It was stopping him from that which he desperately wanted. So he did what could do, he climbed up in a tree. He climbed above the very thing blocking him from his vision. He climbed above it. Did you get that? He got over it. Just as my mama always told me – whatever your problem is, GET OVER IT! Mama, that was scriptural! Her advice was grounded in the words of Jesus. Get over it! Some of us need to do some climbing today. We’ve got a problem and we need to get over it – literally. What’s the first step in climbing? Well, you gotta get up, again literally. Your feet need to hit the floor. You can’t be laying around all lazy and drag butty expecting to overcome your obsta...

It’s the close of another month of life. Today is the final day of July 2018 . This is it. You will never, ever in all of eternity get this again. So the question is, what did you do with it? How will July 2018 be remembered? WILL it be remembered? Did you make it worth remembering? Did you make decisions and choices that will positively impact all your future days? Did you take photos that will outlive you? Did you make life better for someone else? Did you seize the moments and savor them, or did this month just pass? In Luke 12:48 Jesus tells a story and he says “When someone has been given much, much will be required in return.” You and I have indeed been given much this month. 31 days. That’s 44,640 minutes. Much was expected of us in return. The master wants to know what you have to show for what he has given you in July. What progress did you make? What did you enjoy fully? What do you want to remember forever? Each month on the final day, I challenge the women I get to mentor in BIG Life Mentoring to take a few minutes and review that month of life, then make a list of their successes. In essence we are making an account for what we did with what we were given. We are saying God, you gave me 31 days and this is what I did with them. There were 31 sunsets and 31 sunrises, how many of them did you take the time to watch? There were 31 opportunities wake up on time. 31 opportunities to create a good morning routine, how many of those did you nail? 31 opportunities to go to bed proud of the day of life you lived, how many of those days did you actually live up to your potential? Indeed, you and I have been given much this month. So, very much. Maybe God brought you through some pretty tough stuff. Maybe God is still in the process of bringing you through some pretty tough stuff. Well, that’s just that much MORE we have been given. More provision, more grace, more miraculous works of God on our behalf … he does expect something in return. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return. You and I stand together as the recipients of MUCH. So, so, so much. This month will go down as one of the most chaotic and overwhelming months of my life. July has left my head spinning. And I get to choose, was it overwhelmingly bad, or is my overwhelm from God’s provision and protection through it all? You see, you get to choose your overwhelm. We all have months we are overwhelmed, maybe July was one of those for you too. Choose now how you view it. God brought you through. Focus on that! God made a way. Focus on that. Gosh, look at all we have been given. And we’re just listing what we do see. Imagine all the behind the scenes work God did on our behalf through this that we’re not even aware of. Now, we have some things to do in return. In honor of this month of life which God has given us, how about we do 3 simple things to recognize all we have been given. 1. Spend time with him today. Go for a walk with Jesus today. Or go for a drive with him. Sip your coffee with him. Just dwell in his presence. Think of him. Talk to him. Sing to him. 2. Be grateful for what you have today. Look around at all your blessings. Remember, all of this is by the grace of God. All of it. The roof over your head, the clothes on your back, the family and friends you share life with, your job, your health. You are literally drowning in blessings, up to your eyeballs in all God has provided for you. Open your eyes wide and see it all for what it truly is and be grateful for it today. Whisper a million thank yous today with your awareness of just how fortunate you are.Wouldn’t it be a great idea to write him a thank you letter today? That’s exactly what your list of successes can be. A written list of “God, you gave me so much and this is what I did with it! Thank you.” 3.

Where are my people that like to shoot it straight? Don’t beat around the bush, don’t give me fluff, just tell it like it is? Well I hope you’re listening this morning, because today’s devotional is for you. We’re reading in Matthew 22 and Jesus is being trapped with a trick question by people who wanted to make things more difficult. The truth is “difficult” serves some people. Some people make a living by making simple things really difficult. And some people make their lives miserable by making everything more difficult than it really needs to be. So an expert in religious law (enter my own gagging motion here) lays out his snarky question to Jesus “Teacher, tell us, which is the most important commandment in the law?” And Jesus’ reply in verse 37 & 38 – “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself.” Well that’s not what they wanted to hear. And the truth is, that’s hard for us to hear today. Honestly it would be a whole lot easier to have a list of specifics like “wake up at 5 am – make your bed – and keep your toilets sparkling clean at all times.” But this whole “love God with your everything and love others as much as you love your own self” – oh dang, that’s hard. But Jesus’ reply is still true today, here’s the line up for this Monday. If you want to do this day right, LOVE GOD AND LOVE PEOPLE. This is the most important thing. Love God and love people. And here’s where we’ve potentially gone wrong. We’ve covered up the 2 most important things with all the details and routines. We’re just going through the motions and we’ve lost our heart to love. Maybe you’re even listening to this right now more out of obligation than out of an act of love for God. Are you seeking to check that “devotional” box on your daily checklist, or are you here to draw close to your creator and love him more? Gotcha there didn’t I? Ahhhh, yes, me too. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of our routines and habits and make everything seem like an obligation – ALL WHILE WE ARE LOSING THE HEART OF IT. God doesn’t need your devotional time. He wants your heart your soul and your mind. ALL OF IT. He wants all of it, all of you. Why? Because he ultimately wants what’s best for you and he knows YOU NEED HIM. Why do you need him? Because you were created to need him. You can never get this thing called life right without him. Maybe you’ve been trying to do this without him … and you wonder why it’s not working. It never will. The relationship won’t work without him. The business won’t work without him. The goal won’t work without him. Exhaust yourself trying, but you’ll see it’s true. Revelations 2:4 says Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Remember when you were once hungry for God’s word? When you would sit down and get lost in your Bible? When you would pour out your heart in prayer? Have you forgotten how you used to love Him? How you used to worship? Remember back when you weren’t so DISTRACTED. Ahhhh, yes, that’s a big word. Distracted. Are you so distracted that you’re unable to love the way you used to? Now let’s talk about our love for others. Do you remember a time when you used to do things for people from a loving genuine heart? When your yes was truly yes and you didn’t regret it 5 minutes later? Remember when you didn’t dread doing those loving deeds and acts? And now, it’s all a big chore. You have to cook for them.

This week in BIG Life Mentoring, we’re talking about willpower. Now what I don’t understand about myself is that I decide one way, but then I act another, doing things I absolutely despise. If I can’t be trusted to figure out what is best for myself and then do it, isn’t it obvious that God’s command is necessary? Does that sound like an entry from your journal? Your own battle with willpower and following through on your commitments. I’m here to remind you this morning that God fully understands your battle and he wants to help you. What I just shared with you are not my own words. That is scripture directly from Romans 7: 18-20. This is not only your battle, this is the battle of every living being. We make a decision, then we act against that decision and sabotage ourselves, doing the very things we said we wouldn’t do. This makes it obvious that God’s command is necessary. Do you have God’s command over your life? What is God’s command? It’s his strong position over your life. It’s his power outsourced to you through his Holy Spirit. And this is the key for every single one of us who struggle with staying strong and steady on the right path of life, making the right decisions and following through with our commitments … God’s command over us. Are you trying to do this on your own? Is it your own strength and might you’re relying on here? How’s that working out for you? Don’t you know God wants to partner with you in this? Your willpower will fail, His power will not. Your willpower is a limited resource, His power is not. With one cry for help and the next moment of complete surrender, you have access to an unfailing and unlimited power that will strengthen you and guide you in making the next right choice. I Corinthians 10:13 says “God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” What does this mean? This means you will be tempted. Likely the same exact day you make a commitment to start doing the right thing, temptation will come stare you down. It never fails when I make a 30 day commitment to not buy any extras, the very thing I’ve had my eye on for a purchase goes on sale. Temptation. I make a commitment to eat right and stay on plan and boom, family party with all my favorite goodies are sitting directly in front of me. Why? The temptation is everywhere. Have you ever noticed when you make a commitment to wake up early the next morning, you have the most restless night of sleep ever? It’s almost comical how ironic life can be sometimes. But what does that scripture say, with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape. God will always give you a way out. Always. Temptations will come, but God has already made a way for you to overcome the temptation and escape without utter destruction of your commitment. When your willpower is not enough, tap into his power. I’m serious here, if you’re trying to be healthy and your absolute favorite food is tempting you beyond your ability to resist, have you ever thought about praying about it before you stuff your whole face in that plate? I know that sounds foolish, but God tells us he will always provide a way of escape, maybe we haven’t been finding it because we haven’t been seeking it. We’ve been in full on surrender mode every time temptation shows up, all while the power to overcome has been within us. Have you been praying about your marriage and God has been convicting you of your mouth? You’ve been harsh with your words instead of loving. Then your husband goes and does something world class stupid and you’re about to fly off the handle … wait … God, provide a way of escape for me here.

In yesterday’s devotional, episode 76 titled “I’m Finally Ready”, we heard about two brothers who were fishermen, Peter and Andrew. When Jesus walked by them and said, follow me, they dropped their nets and followed him. We learned that it is the following of Jesus, the pursuit of Jesus that changes us. We do the following and Jesus does the changing. Today we’re going to dig a little deeper in this story and see how it applies to our own lives and journeys. I’ve been inspired by an old journal entry from a TD Jakes sermon on Matthew chapter 4. How many times have you dropped something, experienced some success, then gone right back and picked up that old thing again? Maybe it was a habit. You broke the habit, you were doing so good, then for some reason you picked it back up again and before you knew it you were right back where you used to be. Maybe it was an attitude. You changed your attitude and perspective. You were like a new person with a new and improved attitude and darn it felt so good. Then something happened and it took you right back to your old way of thinking and talking, then you found yourself worse off than you were before. I think if we’re being honest, this is the real life journey of every single one of us. We make progress, we taste success, then we relapse. And isn’t it harder the second time around because we now know what we can have, we’ve tasted it, we even lived it for a time and going back to who we were and how we were is painful. Have you ever lost weight, then gained it back? Have you ever ran a race, then stopped running? Have you ever slayed one of our challenges to simplify your life, then gone out and bought a bunch of stuff you don’t need? Or have you ever taken on the zip-it challenge with us and successfully restrained your tongue with no nagging, nit-picking or complaining for a period of time, then boom … you’re right back to running off at the mouth like a mad woman. We sure have a way of screwing this up don’t we? We make progress with one step forward, then it’s two steps back. Peter and Andrew did the right thing when Jesus walked by with an invitation to follow him. They immediately dropped their nets and followed. But let me tell you something, these two fishermen often went back and picked up their nets again. Jesus told them to drop it, but they kept picking it back up again. But Jesus didn’t give up on them. He saw something in them. He knew their potential. So he kept coming back for them. We’ve all relapsed before. Each of us have gone back and picked up something that God told us to drop. But God isn’t giving up on you. Even when you’ve given up on yourself, God isn’t. And you know why? He sees something in you. He knows your potential. Do you know how he knows your potential? Because he put it there. He filled you with potential to successfully live a big, beautiful life and he just keeps coming back to you time and time again with more opportunities to drop whatever you’re holding on to and follow him. God wants to lead you to something new, a new place in life or a new level of living. To get there, you will have to follow him. You can’t get there on your own. And where he’s taking you will be uncomfortable and unfamiliar. Your environment will be out of your comfort zone. And I know this, you will want to run back to what is safe and familiar time and time again, picking up those old nets that you laid down. But if you will stay the course. If you will continue to trust and follow God. If you are willing to get out of your comfort zone and dive into the deep end of the pool, God’s going to show you your potential. He’s going to show you what he’s seen in you from the beginning. Peter only saw himself as a fisherman. He was from a family of fishermen and all he knew ...

In Matthew chapter 4 we read about two brothers, Peter and Andrew. Peter and Andrew were fishermen by trade and they were out on the Sea of Galilee doing what they were always doing, fishing. Jesus walks by these two brothers and in verse 19 he says “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.” Their lives were radically changed the day Jesus walked by. An invitation was extended and what was their response? Straightway they left their nets, meaning right then and there. There was no delay. They went. Understand this, Jesus is here for you this morning with an invitation. An invitation to trust him enough to surrender your life fully to him. And what does that really look like? It looks like bringing all you worries, all your messes and all your stresses to him and saying, “I can’t do this without you. Help. My way doesn’t work, I want it your way.” Here’s what I really love about the story of these two fishermen, Jesus made the roles very clear. Your job is to FOLLOW. My job is to MAKE something out of you. Jesus said FOLLOW ME and I will MAKE YOU fishers of men. We get all caught up in the details of when and how, when all this time all we needed to do is follow him. Our job is to follow Jesus. Follow him. Pursue him. It is the pursuit of Jesus that changes us. It is our pursuit of success and our pursuit of money, our pursuit of status and our pursuit of approval that leads us astray. Pursue him. All along all we’ve needed to do was pursue Jesus and follow after him and all that needs to change in our life will change. The pursuit changes us. This is how we become who we were created to be. And we can begin that journey immediately. Jesus is extending his hand once again and saying “hey, I have this great life available to you. I have had these big plans in mind for you all along. Dad and i were in on this together and if you’ll trust me, I’ll help you. I’ll make something big out of your life. Come with me. Follow me.” How about an immediate YES this morning? How about you drop whatever it is you’re doing, whatever it is you’re clinging to so tightly and say “yes Lord, I will follow you.” I believe when we get our roles right, then we finally see the change we’ve been seeking. Follow me – that’s your job Make you – that’s his job It’s it reassuring to know you’re not solely responsible for making something out of your life? This isn’t all up to you. The pursuit of Jesus will lead you exactly where you need to go. Your job is to follow him. You say to me, okay well that all sounds good, but tell me exactly HOW do I follow Jesus. I think like that as well. I’m very practical. Tell me HOW to do something and I will do it, but you gotta be clear with me. HOW. Give me some steps here. I don’t know about you, but I haven’t seen Jesus walking by me lately. I’ve even been standing on the bank of a lake fishing just as Peter and Andrew were and Jesus didn’t walk by. So how am I suppose to follow him if he’s not walking by? I don’t feel like he’s been showing up? I bet every single one of us would drop everything we’re doing if Jesus literally showed up in our world today and spoke to us. But what if this whole “follow Jesus” thing was as simple as saying “hey God, I’m here. I’m seeking you. I want your way over my own way. I’m ready now.” What brings you to that place of being ready now? Failure. Disappointment. Delays. Oh yes, once again, all things work together for good. God is using your failure, your disappointment, and your delays to bring you to this place of finally being ready to follow him.

I often share the story of Abraham and Sarah, the couple in their 90’s unable to have children and then God shows up and says “ahhh, no … that’s not the way your story will end. I will give you a child and many nations will come from you.” You’re probably tired of hearing about this story at this point, so I will quickly move on to a few years later after Abraham and Sarah have their promised child. Life was now good, they have what they want. Their son Issac is growing up and he’s a good boy. He’s everything they ever imagined. Maybe that’s where you are in your life right now. Your reality today is what you once prayed for. God has been faithful. He has provided. He has made a way when there seemed to be no way. Look around you today and I bet you’ll find answered prayer after answered prayer. Now, what if God asked you to give it all up? What if the very thing he gave you was required as sacrifice? That’s exactly what God asked of Abraham and Sarah. This child for whom they had prayed, this miracle which God had given them, their hope and their future was now at risk. Genesis chapter 22 in my bible is titled “Abraham Tested”. I wonder if the current chapter in your life could be titled something similar. You’re being tested. Verses 1-2 says “Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” Yes, the son which Abraham had waited 100 years for, his pride and joy, his hope for the future is now being requested to be sacrificed by God. How do you even come to terms with that. What God? You want me to give up the single most precious thing you have given to me? Now imagine being the mama in this story for a moment. Imagine looking out the kitchen window and seeing your husband gathering wood. Wood for a fire. A fire that would burn an offering to God. A sacrifice. She must have known. She must have wanted with every ounce of her to run after her husband and son as they carried the wood to a mountain to build the fire. What a mother Sarah was. What an example for us today. She was willing to sacrifice the best she had for the greater good in full trust that God would redeem it. What if she would have held on too tightly. What if she would have done what every single one of us would want to do – go slap your husband, call him crazy, and grab your child. Then become bitter at God for even asking. But she didn’t. She watched as they walked away carrying the wood. She trusted God would follow through with his promise to not only give them a son but build nations from them. I wonder if we hold so tightly to that which God has given us that we restrict life from fully flowing through us. I wonder if we treasure the gift so much that the gift itself becomes more precious than the giver. I wonder if we really truly trust God with the very things which he gave us first. How tight is your grip? Oh I must admit, I have a death grip on some gifts in my life. I cling so tightly to that which I treasure and I sometimes hold back when God is telling me to let go. I have to wonder how much bigger and more beautiful some of the things in my life could be at this point if I would have loosened my grip. Why do I have to have it my way? Is this a lack of faith? What has God given you? Are you willing to let him fully have his way with your life and all that he has given you? Sarah watched her husband walk off to the mountains with her only son and a stack of wood to build that fire for a burnt offering. She trusted. Abraham bound Issac and laid him on top of the wood, then God stepped in. He saw his faithfulness. Abraham passed the test.

Mark 6 in my bible is titled “Jesus Rejected In Nazareth” Was Jesus the truth? Yes Was he who he said he was? Yes Was he doing good? Yes And yet he was rejected. And you’re shocked that you have been rejected? Surprised that you weren’t chosen – Passed over again. Oh come on. If Jesus was rejected, perhaps we should count it an honor to be rejected too. What should we do? Keep being true. Keep showing up. Keep doing good. Let’s read in Mark chapter 6 starting in verse 1 through 5: “Jesus returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” 3 Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.” ————- Notice it says because of their unbelief, Jesus couldn’t do any miracles among them? Are you praying for a miracle in your home? A miracle in your marriage, a miracle in your finances, and yet you don’t really believe? Your unbelief is shocking to Jesus and it is hindering the very miracle you seek. Maybe it’s not that you don’t believe Jesus cares about you, and maybe you don’t even doubt his power, but you’re “keeping it real” and the reality says THIS THING AIN’T WORKING. Not only is it not working, but there’s no way it ever will. Because of the continual state of this situation in your life, you’ve lost your belief that it can change. And honestly, that’s shocking to Jesus. He can’t believe that you don’t trust him with this. He can’t believe that you’re questioning his ability and desire to help you. But we’ve all been there. We’re disappointed. We’re frustrated. We’ve run out of time or money or patience and everything we’ve tried isn’t working. And maybe, just maybe, that’s right where Jesus wanted you all along. A place where his miracles are most needed. And my sister, all that is keeping it from happening now is your faith. God wants to know if you will BELIEVE today. You know what else shocks Jesus? How little we have done with all we have been given. We haven’t really tapped into the potential God has placed within us. We haven’t really stepped into the life Jesus Christ bought with his own blood for us. We haven’t fully unleashed our faith to go and be and do all that God created us to do. And quite honestly, that’s shocking to Jesus. Oh how he would move in my life if I just believed. And oh how he would move in YOUR life if you just believed. The situation that’s weighing heavy on your heart right now, what is it? What’s your impossible? What’s your frustration? What’s been taking way too long in your life? If you will just believe, Jesus will start moving. What keeps us from believing? I think most of us listening this morning believe on a surface level. We believe what we have been taught, but has it gotten down deep in our soul and changed our thoughts and our actions? The very thing that kept the people of Nazareth from believing is what keeps you and I from truly believing today. They were familiar with Jesus. They knew him as a carpenter. They knew his Mama. Now here comes the Jesus they knew preaching and teaching and doing all sorts of miracles. It was hard for them because they knew him too well. And this is where we find ourselves.

Now you know you’re listening to a totally unique podcast when the devotional was inspired by a song by Maclamore. Yes, the rapper. No, it’s not Christian music and yet here I am as a lover of Jesus who knows every word to many of his songs. And let’s take it a step further, his song Glorious is my morning alarm. Yes, I wake up to Glorious by Maclamore every morning. Last September we hosted a BIG Life Legacy Retreat in Oklahoma. We gathered to honor the life of our Catina, a leader here in Big Life who showed us all so darn well how to live. At that retreat we went out with a bang, decked out in tutus in the middle of the woods, creating a flash mob dance video. Yes, grown women with the average age of 40 and what song did we choose? Indeed Maclamore’s Glorious. At the end of the flash mob we have one huge epic paint fight standing in the river. Over 100 women were drenched in hot pink, turquoise and purple paint, shouting out the words “I feel glorious, glorious” … and we did. Now, on a side note, you should know the video of this epicness that we call “Trash the Tutu” is being released today. The long awaited premier is TODAY at 3 pm CST featured on the official BIG Life page on FaceBook. Just a bunch of women who love Jesus showing off our gangster moves and ending up covered in paint … yes, it’s worth the watch. Since hearing that song the first time, I knew it had to be a BIG Life theme song, I just never imagined I would also get to write a devotional around it. But why wouldn’t we. Listen to these words … Another morning, a morning, don’t let self get in my way I got my breath, I got my faith and I remember why I came I feel glorious, glorious Got a chance to start again I was born for this, born for this It’s who I am, how could I forget? I made it through the darkest part of the night And now I see the sunrise Now I feel glorious, glorious I feel glorious, glorious Isaiah 60:1 – “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. Another morning, a morning, don’t let self get in my way. Another morning is exactly what you and I have been given here. A morning where the glory of the Lord rises upon you. Now that is glorious!!!!! Another morning to not let self get in the way. Oh please tell me I’m not the only one who totally gets in the way of my own self on most days. I talk myself out of doing the things I know I should do. And I convince myself someway or another I’m unworthy of the good stuff in life and incapable of doing the hard stuff in life. Are you in your own way? God has this great big beautiful life available for each of us and he specifically made us and equipped us with everything we would need to step into our full purpose, and we just get in our own way. How are you in your own way? Is it your negative thoughts about yourself? Ahhhh, yes for most of us it’s all in our head. We convince ourselves for some reason we can’t. We tear ourselves down then tear ourselves into pieces with our self hate and loathing, all while the creator must be tortured watching his masterpiece be torn apart. Don’t you know YOU are his greatest masterpiece. You are his beloved creation. You’ve got to stop tearing yourself down. You’ve got to get out of your own way. How many times are we blocking our own blessings and breakthroughs by allowing fear and anger, procrastination and negative thoughts to get in the way. We grow weary and give up when it doesn’t happen fast enough for us. But the truth is, your journey may take a long time, but the time is going to pass one way or another. The time can pass as you get better and live up to your God given potential,

God wants to use you. He wants to radically change and bless your life, not just for you, but for your entire family. And this is why the enemy works so hard to stop you, it’s not just about you. You see if the enemy can just keep you stuck, depressed, overwhelmed, frustrated, and too busy then your whole family is negatively affected. There’s something IN you that God is going to grow and multiply. What is IN you? That’s what the enemy is fighting you over. It’s not about where you are – it’s about where you’re going and what’s next. Your unborn potential. That’s what is under attack. Things you don’t even know about yet. Plans for your life you’re totally unaware of. This morning I’ll be sharing a few entries in my journal from an old TD Jakes sermon titled Generations. The story comes from Genesis 17: 1-9 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, God showed up and said to him, “I am The Strong God, live entirely before me, live to the hilt! I’ll make a covenant between us and I’ll give you a huge family.” Overwhelmed, Abram fell flat on his face. Then God said to him, “This is my covenant with you: You’ll be the father of many nations. Your name will no longer be Abram, but Abraham, meaning that ‘I’m making you the father of many nations.’ I’ll make you a father of fathers—I’ll make nations from you, kings will issue from you. Perhaps you remember how the story ends. 99 year old Abraham and his wife Sarah finally have that baby that God had promised. What have you been waiting on from God? What do you do when God says nothing? When God’s waiting it out and you’re totally OVER waiting? This text shows God speaking to Abraham very clearly. I would like that. There have only been a few times I’ve felt God speak to me that clearly. Wouldn’t it be fantastic if every morning when we woke up we heard clear instructions from God on where we’re supposed to go and what we’re supposed to do. Well here’s what I didn’t know before. God hadn’t spoken to Abraham for 13 years. For 13 years, Abraham had prayed and searched for God and God had said nothing. God saw everything that had been happening to Abraham and said nothing. All while Abraham had been stumbling in his own efforts, making grand mistakes and big ol’ messes while God watched and said NOTHING. Maybe you’re in that season of praying and searching and God has been silent. Ahhhhh, yes. There are some truths God cannot introduce to you at earlier times because you have not gone through enough to see what God has for you. It’s when all your bright ideas have failed and your grand plans fall apart that you can hear God speak. WHY HAS GOD BEEN WAITING? BECAUSE YOU HAVEN’T BEEN READY. He has been taking you through the process to get you ready for the promise. The process prepares you for the promise. Don’t give up in the process and miss the fulfillment of the promise. You’re just being prepared. That’s what all of this is. Preparation. So here Abraham was at 99 years old, having made a real mess of things. He and Sarah were so desperate for the baby God wasn’t giving them that he had slept with his wife’s servant and had a baby with her. Well, that’s never a great idea. But when you’re desperate and God isn’t answering, whew we can come up with some cockamamie schemes and stir up some messes. And now at 99, God finally speaks to Abraham and says NOW I’m going to bless you. Here at the end of your rope where your ideas and strength have run out. Here in the middle of your impossible, I’M GOING TO DO THIS. Ahhhh, when God is ready to bless you, circumstances mean nothing. My sister, God’s about to show you WHY you went through all you went through. Your later days shall be greater than your former. Your good days are still ahead of you. You haven’t reached your peak yet. There’s still greater potential in you! It was too late for Abraham and Sarah to have a baby,

Today I want to talk to you about something so very important. We all like to feel good about ourselves. That feeling of pride, that feeling of “Yeah! I’m worth somethin’!” And the great designer of life has that feeling available to us every day of our life. He not only has it available for us, but he wants it for us. Every day of life he is hoping we will feel like a million bucks. And I love the way he designed it all. Oh how smart he is. We have to earn it. We have to earn that feeling of, “Man I’m proud of myself!” How do we earn it? We work! You have to stop wishing for easy and wish you were better. You get better when you work. There probably isn’t a single one of us who wouldn’t love to be single lottery rich. I mean, wouldn’t life be easier if we had a crap ton of money? And wouldn’t we all love that magic pill diet. Take a little pill for our diet, eat whatever we want, and lose the weight. I mean we all would love that. Sign me up for it! And wouldn’t we all love three magical wishes. I’m here to tell you that your life will change when your “I wish” is followed by an “I will work.” You want it? Work for it girl! Proverbs 14:23 says, “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads to poverty.” We all love to talk about all the things we wish were different in our life, but where does all that talk lead? It leads to poverty, and I’m not just talking about being poor. The definition of poverty is being inferior in quality or insufficient in amount. Does that define your life pretty well right now? Inferior in quality and insufficient in amount? Could it be because you’ve been wishing, but you haven’t been working hard. Scripture says hard work brings profit. Awesome! You wish for it, then you work for it. It’s not going to just magically fall in your lap or come knocking on your door. You’ve got to get up and work for it sister. Could God rain down all the money you need at this moment? Could he remove the extra 50 pounds you’re carrying around in a week? Could he send his angels to clean your house for you? Sure he could. But by great design of life, you want it you work for it. If you’re not willing to work for it then don’t be disappointed when you don’t get it. Many of us decided this year we’re going to work for it and we are. We see progress because we’re working. Our success is a result of a partnership with God where we do our part and then he does his. And it feels real good, doesn’t it? But for many others, perhaps even a greater number of us, we’re still waiting. When will your journey begin? You have some goals for this year, when will you get started on those? Ecclesiastes 11:4 says, “If you wait for perfect conditions you will never get anything done.” Are you waiting? Remember back when you first had the urge to do something about the situation that’s on your mind? Remember when you wrote that goal – Remember when the doctor told you change was necessary? Remember when you THOUGHT you were ready to change? Don’t you wish you would have gotten started then? Where would you be today if you would have just gotten started and stuck with it? Further than you are today, right? So why can’t today be the day? Why can’t today be the day you decide you don’t want to feel this way any longer, and you just do it? You change. You get to work. Nope, today’s not the perfect day, the weather’s not perfect, and heck, it’s Friday. I mean, who decides to change their life at the end of the week right before the weekend? You do! Are you willing to work for it? Your life will change when your “I wish” is followed by an “I will work.” Do you want to feel good about yourself? Do you want to feel proud? I know how to make that happen. Work for it, and work for it today. You don’t have to have a 10 step plan of how you’re going to work for it. I’m just saying do what you can today.

Proverbs 16:9, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” I want to start today’s devotional by inviting you to put your hand over your heart. Go ahead, right now, put your hand right over your heart. Do you feel that beat? You are alive for a reason. That beating is your purpose, that’s your drum, and you’re just going to start following the beat of your own drum. You are alive today for a reason. Now here’s the truth about that statement, and the problem that comes with it. When I tell you that you’re alive for a reason and that heartbeat is a sign of purpose, do you automatically start stressing out trying to figure out what it is? Do you feel the overwhelm and pressure of, “Ok, well why? Why am I alive? What is my purpose? What am I supposed to be doing? Oh my gosh! What if I’m too late? What if I’ve missed it? What if I’m screwing it up? What if I’m on the wrong path?” You’re not alone. That’s the way most people feel when we start talking about purpose. But Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” You see we don’t need to be all flustered and upset and overwhelmed and stressed out about why God put us on this earth and what our purpose is in this life, God is telling us, “Hey, don’t be so anxious about this. Hey, be grateful for this present that I’ve given you. Just come to me with your requests and let my peace fill you.” Maybe that’s exactly what you need today? You don’t need to go on some huge quest for your purpose, you need to decide not to be anxious about it and trust God with it. You’ve likely heard the serenity prayer; “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” Awesome stuff written many years ago. But there’s another part very few of us know, you may have never even heard it, and certainly few of us are living by it. Here’s the rest of the Serenity Prayer, “Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting hardships as the pathway to peace. Taking as he did, the sinful world as it is, not as I would have it, trusting that he will make all things right if I surrender to his will. That I may be reasonably happy in this life and extremely happy with him forever in the next.” Right there is the key to living well today and fulfilling our purpose. It’s living this day, today. Not worrying about tomorrow, but enjoying this moment. I will tell you, the way I have found my greatest purposes in life isn’t by stressing over them. It’s not even by reading a ton of books, but it’s quite simply by letting life flow through me. Is life flowing through you? Won’t you just breathe, trust, and keep your eyes open? Enjoy the ride and see what unfolds. And as you let life flow through you, it’s then that you begin to hear the beat of your own drum. May you have serenity today. May you not be anxious about anything. And may you remember Proverbs 16:9, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” You can have a million and one plans, but trust that it is God who establishes your steps. You don’t have to have this whole thing figured out. You don’t have to have a ten step plan, because guess what? Even if you do, it’s likely not going to work out the way you think it will. So, I’m inviting you to stop stressing over your purpose and just let life flow through you today. Overthinking kills your happiness. Insecurities kill your confidences. Doubts kill your possibilities. So stop thinking so much, stop tearing yourself down, stop playing little in your own life, stop questioning. Today, let life flow through you. Begin to notice the beat of your drum.

Romans 8:28 – And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. This has been one of my favorite verses for the past 20 years. A verse I committed to memory and repeat often. But over the past month God has truly revealed this scripture to me on another level and this morning I want to share it with you. Listen up, if you’re currently under pressure or stress, frustrated over the process, or in the middle of a mess, I believe God wants to speak directly to you this morning. Oh, I’m so glad you’re here! God causes all things to work together for good. I’ve always focused on two words here. All and Good. God causes ALL things to work together for GOOD. All good. In fact I would say it “it’s all good.” I’m all good. All this is good. And darn did I ever try to believe it. And typically it was all good. But I guess you could say life happened, people got sick, days were spent in the hospital, I witnessed pain. Pain like I’ve never seen before. I witnessed loss and anger and heart ache. I saw bad things happen to good people and I struggled with my normal response of “it’s all good.” All good … but there were some things that simply WERE NOT GOOD. So what do you do when it’s not good? No matter how you spin it, what you’re dealing with in your family, in your marriage, in your health, or in your finances is NOT GOOD. God said ALL things, but not this thing. It just can’t be good. And then God brought me back to this scripture, one of my favorites and pointed out another word. Together. All things work TOGETHER for good. This bad thing, this hard thing, this seemingly unfair thing works TOGETHER with all other things and creates the good we seek. What we often do is we single out this one event in our life and we say “this, this isn’t good.” And then we set up camp on that single event and life becomes overall pretty crappy. We get depressed. We even begin to lose our faith because God’s promise of “all good” somehow skipped over us. This is NOT good. Maybe you’re dealing with one of those “NOT GOOD” situations in your life. Me too. Here’s what we must do … remember it is a part of the ALL and let god put it TOGETHER. And when he starts working it TOGETHER, it will be good. God is a master mixer. He can whip up some amazing things in our life. And just like baking a cake, it takes all kinds of ingredients. And typically those ingredients on their own don’t seem remarkably good. Sit around and try to eat salt. Not good. Drink some vanilla extract. Nope. Here’s a tablespoon of baking powder. Not good alone. But worked TOGETHER, deliciousness. God uses EVERYTHING in your life … ALL things. And he works it together for good. Today, this “thing” may not seem good because alone it is NOT good. And it’s completely okay to recognize that truth. Gosh I used to feel guilty about that. But there’s no guilt here. Not all things are good. Sometimes and somedays can really suck. God sees the big picture, and it is good. We see this specific moment and we focus on this single ingredient and have a hard time understanding why. But your entire life isn’t defined by this day or this event. It’s all part of the recipe and God uses it ALL, then he works it all TOGETHER and you know what he makes … he makes something GOOD. All things work TOGETHER for good. I won’t single out this one bad ingredient and focus on it. I’ll let the master mixer work it all together and trust that in the end, it’s going to be good. Real good.

[guest host – Rebecca Casey] Well good morning beautiful. Welcome to Wednesday, May 2nd its a brand new day of life and we are never going to get this day again so thank you for meeting me here – I think this is the perfect way to start a new day. In case you didn’t detect the different voice this morning, my name is Rebecca and I am proud to be your guest host for today’s Good Morning beautiful devotional. For those of you who don’t know me I am on the Leadership Team of BIG Life mentoring with Pamela and I haven’t had a chance to guest host since we started the podcast. Oh I am thrilled to be in the studio this morning with Pamela. Today I want to share one of my most favorite verses with you. I John 4:4 Greater is he that is in me, than he that is in the world. That’s my GO TO when the going gets tough. When things aren’t all rainbows and sunshine, when the struggle is real… you know what I mean. When life gets overwhelming, we tend to forget the blessings in our life. With the kid’s ten different extracurricular activities, marriage or relationship problems, and juggling our finances it can be difficult to not be incredibly stressed out. The last thing on our minds is feeling blessed when we have 5 minutes to get to our next meeting. However, when we let this stress rule over our lives we forget to appreciate the small things. We might forget to say thank you to a coworker who went above and beyond, or drop the ball on communication in our relationship with God. Over time, we lose the gratitude and appreciation we have for the blessings in our life. The smallest things in our life are usually the most important. When we don’t waste our time complaining and being stressed over trivial things, we are able to better connect with God and see His many blessings. There is no reason to stress out, because the blessings the Lord has given you triumph over them. Did you hear that? The blessings triumph over the things that stress you out and so does He. He is greater. Don’t let your gratefulness diminish any further. Today take a minute and remember the blessings. Take a minute and say thank you. Take the time to smile at the cashier. You might be the only one who does that. Maybe your morning has started off crappy. Maybe yesterday was rough. How can you take the time to do something else to stop and say thank you, to stop and smile, to stop and count your blessings? Because our God is bigger than all the little stuff, bigger than the big stuff, bigger than the jerks, bigger than the sickness, bigger than that thing you are thinking of right now and I tell you we can do this today because of him.