Category Archives: Church

Happy New You

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Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1Thessalonians 5:23)

     This is the time at the beginning of a new year that we tend to start thinking about things that we want to change or reorder in our personal lives. Some of us may want to lose thirty-five pounds, take better care of our health, spend more time with the family, or travel to a place that we have never visited. These are all things that will help us to develop a new perspective of our lives. It creates in our mind, a “happy new you.”

    As we explore what it means to create a happy new you, it is comforting to know that God wants the same for our lives. God wants our mind, body and spirit to be kept pure until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. However, with all the issues that we faced from 2020 to this point — a world pandemic, viral mutations, food and supply shortages, political unrest, police brutality, racial tensions, mass unemployment, mass shootings, unprecedented home foreclosures, and increased domestic disputes — these kinds of issues can make it challenging to think about a new you.  Yet even in the midst of these world and personal challenges, we can make ourselves over; with the help and grace of God, “All things are still possible with God.” (Matthew 19:26) 

     To do so, it will be important for us to examine ways to look closely at how we manage our mind, body and spirit. The mind is a crucial component of our being that we have to learn to manage with care. It is the gateway that will inform our entire system. What we think is critical to how we develop a new way of living and being. Proverbs, chapter twenty-three and verse seven says, “For as he thinks in his heart so is he…”  How we think determines if we will be sick or well, happy or sad, prosperous or poor.  

     Our mind, which houses the seat of our emotions, is connected to every major organ in our bodies. This is the reason that it is so important what we think. Our minds have to be fed good and wholesome things in order to be healthy. If we sit around daily complaining about our lives, feeling sorry for ourselves, taking in negative news all day, telling ourselves that we will never have the life that we imagine, and that nothing ever works out for us, we can be sure that our mind will give us what we ask for. It will communicate with every system in our body to tell it to respond to our language. So meditate on wholesome readings, autobiographies, poems, self help materials, and music that are in line with our faith. Seek ways to enjoy life daily through fun activities with the family, spending an evening out with like-minded friends sharing intimate conversation and ideas. 

    The human body, which is made up of eleven systems, is a complex and intricate creation. As I have been engaged in the study of Anatomy and Physiology, I really have come to realize how our bodies function that we  live in daily not being fully aware of just how intricate we are made. We are masterpieces of the great wisdom of God. Whatever we mess up in one system of the body affects every other system in the body. These bodies are not robotic machines: they are delicate, which means that what we put in them to become a “new you” is critical. In this country, we have gotten away from food as medicine; but through the present day natural health movement, we are seeing a resurgence of the original intention of God. From the beginning of creation God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” (Genesis 1:29)  

     God planned from the beginning that our food choices would be medicine for the body. The leaves of the tree were meant for healing. (Revelations 22:2) Many of the known diseases and illness in this county are directly connected to lifestyle and food choices. We have to take steps to add more fresh organic fruits and vegetables to our diet. Practice drinking half of our body weight in water daily. Yes, I really did say, “half of our body weight in water daily.” Water flushes toxins out of the body before they have a chance to affect the system negatively, and it transports valuable chemicals, nutrients and minerals to the cells. It helps to eliminate waste, regulates the body temperature, protects tissues, organs and joints, moisturizes the skin, aids in the digestion of food, and nourishes the heart and the brain. Water: it just does the body good! 

     Stop making excuses for not getting enough sleep. Let’s stop bragging about only getting three hours of sleep per day like it is a badge of honor. Sleep is a mysterious experience created by God that is used to help repair and heal during the resting moments; even our sleep has rhythms. Sleep is the pathway for dreams and visions that God uses to show us new opportunities and new ways of life. Sleep deprivation is another precursor to illness and disease in the body.  

     Get at least thirty minutes of exercise daily. Movement of the body moves chemicals in the body system that are necessary for them to function properly. Even when we can’t get outside on a regular basis, we can walk around in the house. Sit on the floor or in a chair and do some light stretching of the body to move the muscles. Take good care of the skin as it is the largest organ of the body system. What we put on the skin does matter. Toxic things that are put on the skin can have an adverse effect on our internal organs once absorbed by the skin. Read labels. Just because it is a dollar and on sale does not mean it is going to be good for us. Invest that dollar in the use of more natural products for external and internal use, such as coconut and olive oil. 

To nourish our spirit, there is nowhere else to go, but to the Creator of  our being. We are the expressed image of God in the earth. (Genesis 1:26-27)  The moment that we move away from the source of our creation we will malfunction.(Genesis 3) From our creation, when God blew the breath of life into our being, we became a living spirit.(Genesis 2:7) Relying on anyone or anything other than God, we will surely abandon our life source. To develop our spirit, we need the Holy Spirit and the word of God. The Holy Spirit and the word bring life. (Luke 11:13; John 6:35; Romans 8:1-2) The word and Holy Spirit are like the air that we breathe. It is important to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to develop times to read the word daily. I appreciate the age of technology and the use of electronic Bibles, but I believe that due to the crucial times that we are living in, we have to make sure that we have a Bible in our homes so that when things get shut down in our world, we don’t have to shut down because we can’t get the word of God. Purchase Bibles for our children and grandchildren and teach them the reason that it is important for them to have one, and get back to BRING IT TO CHURCH when coming to worship. Let’s start a movement of getting back to bringing the Bible to church!  

    Prayer is the way that we draw close and commune with God. The Bible tells us that it was Jesus’ custom to seek God early in the morning. (Mark 1:25) Early morning is a good practice because it gives us the opportunity to connect with God before we interact with our family and the rest of the world. Early morning opens us to center our being so that we clean our souls and get clear instructions on hearing from God throughout the day. Prayer is the key to building our relationship with God. It helps us to see the world with new eyes and brings us to conscious awareness of our state of being, surroundings, and reactions when dealing with others. Prayer even has a direct correlation on our brain and nervous system. 

     As we move forward into a new year, we can all have a “happy new you,” but we have to be willing to make changes in our mind, body and spirit, knowing that all heaven is helping us and cheering us forward. Have A Happy New You!~Peace 

Faith or Fear: What Will It Be During Covid-19?

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“But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend, I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. “All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob, little Israel, do not fear, for I myself will help you,” declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” Isaiah 41:8-14 NIV

As the year 2020 is about to come to a close, I have been astonished by the level of fear and the billions of dollars spent to maintain the fear. COVID-19 came in like a whirlwind around the world and cascaded like a domino effect causing the loss of life for many. We have not seen this level of devastation in our lifetime. Though I am not a conspiracy theorist, I am one who enjoys researching issues and world challenges to look at both sides. There are questions that I have about COVID-19. 

 The bulk of the information that many Americans have received regarding COVID-19 has been through mass media. Though at times helpful for protection and survival, much has been presented with sensationalism and fear that have gripped the world in ways that we have never seen. Our hearts go out to families around the world who lost loved ones in this world pandemic.  

One of the enemies in the last days that has been a part of history since the beginning of times that we will have to contend with is chemical and biological warfare. Even now, the church has been silent on this issue. We have no think tanks in place with persons who are researching and compiling information to help leadership structures to understand these weapons and teach the church how to prepare as much as possible. Even during the times of Moses, God alerted him and gave him a plan and specific instructions for the confession, consecration, isolation and deliverance of His people until an ancient pandemic would pass over. (Exodus 12) 

I have been listening and watching, and there has been no real clear response or directives of the mind and heart of God from spiritual leadership about how God wants to prepare his people during this time. It is interesting that much of our directives as a church has come from the government and local municipalities, regurgitated in booklets and pamphlets put out by the church; but, the church as a whole has been silent and passive on articulating how to prepare God’s people during COVID-19, and how to prepare during chemical and biological warfare in general that has and is going to hit the earth.  

He or she who has an ear to hear, understand this: there is no cure-all for viruses. There will be other viruses. The nature of viruses is that they mutate and become more sophisticated once they enter a host. Viruses cannot reproduce outside of a host because they do not have the powerful cellular makeup of a host. Viruses need bodies, animal and human, to spread their deadly force.  

Now that a COVID-19 vaccine that has so few human testings is rolling out in America, many are glaring with excitement as if it is going to be a cure-all for viruses with no definitive data to prove the outcome of success. Will a vaccine be created every time a COVID mutates and becomes more deadly than the original strand? What if the viruses that are being developed for biological warfare to wipe out communities and people groups are used, and the creators of the virus have the wisdom to stop the spread, but fail to use it until the enemy’s goals are met?  Just questions that I hope will get the church to start thinking deeper than what is being presented in mass media. Chemical and biological warfare is here. It is an evil tactic of governments and nations to rule the world. Yet, the church as a whole has no prepared plan to grapple with these issues and come to the table of discussion and at least have the dialogue. 

The nation of Israel had to deal with enemies of many nations who used similar tactics for many generations. Nothing is new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:4-11) At times, those enemies were used as a tool of God’s judgment against immorality, inhumanity against mankind, earth violence, and disobedience to God’s commandments. However, when the nation of Israel would go through a time of confession, repentance, consecration and rededication, God would always restore them back into His presence. It was then that they were able to stand strong against any enemy and prosper in their endeavors amid great challenges and warfare. God has never been one who failed to keep His promises to His people. When God makes a covenant, that covenant will never be broken from generation to generation. (Exodus 6: 5, Leviticus 26: 45, Deuteronomy 7:9, Psalm 105:8-11) 

As people of God, we must allow the Word of God to inform us regarding world crisis. As we seek God in prayer, God will give us His mind and heart, and show us how to bring clarity, revelation and direction to His people in critical times in the Universe. The prophet Isaiah reminds us that we are the children of Abraham, who was a friend of God; and, God will never forget the friendship that he had with Abraham, and the promise to cover and protect his children. (2 Chronicles 20:7, Isaiah 41:8, James 2:23)  (Genesis 12:1-4, Genesis 22:17-19)  God will intervene with anyone or anything that would come against the children of Abraham; God will protect when all around us is great turmoil and crisis. Listen to one of God’s promises through the prophet Isaiah:  

 “Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all.” Isaiah 41:12 NIV 

The prophet Isaiah encouraged them to walk in faith and not fear because God was going to be with them. These words are powerful in light of the viral enemy of COVID-19 that we are facing right now that is wreaking havoc on the bodies of many people across the world.  But I want to ask the community of faith, “How will we stand? Will it be faith or fear?”  As followers of the ways of Jesus, we are Abrahams’s children; then, and now, we serve a God who is covering and protecting us. Have no fear; only believe the Word! God is our help, and a very present help in this time of trouble as we close the year 2020. (Psalm 46:1) 

 What will it be, fear or faith? We must choose!!!  

 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 NIV 

Ideas for the church to consider to discuss historical pandemics, chemical and biological warfare and give a biopsychosocial and biblical response during pandemics: 

  • Create think tanks in our religious systems to include allopathic doctors, nurses, biologists, virologists, sociologists, chemists, herbalists, metaphysicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, pharmacists and prophets to explore the crisis and science of the age, while exploring the Word of God to give the best physical and spiritual plan for educating and preparing the church during world crisis and pandemics.
  • Develop wellness ministries in every church or denomination. 
  • Invest in viral and immune system training for every church. 
  • We must think, think, think about “new normals” when it comes to how we manage our being during these times. We have to live in a constant state of awareness about our surroundings — how we engage in simple things such as planning meals, where we eat, where we travel, what we bring into our homes, how we wash our bodies, faces and hands, what we put on our bodies, and safety and survival preparedness for our homes.
  • Encourage more training and degree programs in natural medicine in colleges and institutions of higher learning, since natural medicine is the original medicine of the Creator of the Universe and is still relevant today and always will be during world crisis. (Genesis 1: 11-13, Genesis 1: 29-31)

Reference for Further Study:

Boyle, Francis. (2005) Biowarfare and Terrorism. Clarity Press, Inc

Harper, Matthew. ( 2020, November 9). Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech is strongly effective, early data from large trial indicate. Retrieved on December 16, 2020, from https://www.statnews.com/2020/11/09/covid-19-vaccine-from-pfizer-and-biontech-is-strongly-effective-early-data-from-large-trial-indicate/

Mertens, Gaetan, Gerritsen, L., Duijndam, S., Salemink, E., Engerlhard, I.  ( 2020, March).  Fear of the coronavirus (COVID-19): Predictors in an online study conducted in March 2020. Retrieved on December 17, 2020, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0887618520300724

Miller Judith. (1998, September 19). Biological Weapons, Literally Older Than Methuselah Retrieved on December 16, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/1998/09/19/arts/biological-weapons-literally-older-than-methuselah.html

O,Reilly, Lara. (2020, November 4). How the world’s biggest advertisers are spending (or not) as industries adapt to the coronavirus pandemic. Retrieved on December 16, 2020, from https://digiday.com/marketing/how-the-worlds-biggest-advertisers-are-spending-or-not-as-industries-adapt-to-the-coronavirus-pandemic/

Porter, Jon. ( 2020, March 30).  Facebook invests $100M in journalism as COVID-19 makes it more vital than ever. Retrieved on December 17, 2020, from https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2020/3/30/21199358/facebook-investment-journalism-grants-100-million-dollars-advertising-spend

Vidyasagar, Aparna. What Are Viruses? ( 2016, January 6). Retrieved on December 16, 2020, from https://www.livescience.com/53272-what-is-a-virus.html

The Call for Conscious Peacemakers

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“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. Matthew 5:9 NKJV

For those of us here who remember the height of the Civil Rights Movement, often we can recall the struggles that we endured as Black people to gain equal liberties. Our movement hit the national stage, and everyone could see the tactics employed by the Jim Crow system and the violence that was inflicted upon a people who wanted to be recognized and acknowledged as human beings who deserved equal rights in this great country called “America.”

There are numerous accounts of the stories told about how the early civil rights workers and protesters had to learn to practice conscious peaceful resistance tactics that would help them to overcome evil with good when they were traveling in dangerous territory. As we have been able to look back on some of these scenes when we see the clips of our historical past, they are riveting and heart wrenching to watch; but, we see the benefits and the victories of what can be accomplished when we are willing to live and practice a lifestyle of conscious peacemaking. 

Often our ancestors would sing songs such as “We Shall Overcome” and “This Little Light of Mine.” They had internalized Jesus’s message and were walking as Jesus did when he faced the cross of Calvary. Many in our community knew that they were bearing a cross for another generation. Many of our ancestors knew that they would not make it into the promised land of victory, but they stood in the face of violence and hatred as peacemakers. 

Jesus has been our model of peace. He lived his life on the earth in calmness and quiet contentment about the mission that was set before him. When we read the scriptures, we cannot miss his examples of overcoming evil with good and sleeping calmly in the midst of storms. 

Even in this Twenty-first Century amid a Covid-19 ladened world, God is calling us to a lifestyle of peacemaking. Not only are we being called to peacemaking, we are called to pursue peace with everything within us; and, as much as it is in our power, we are encouraged to live at peace with everyone.

Peacemaking is creating a world that recognizes all human beings as equals and deserving of mutual respect that we each want for ourselves. It is giving the same treatment that we want. To be a peacemaker means to be at rest, quiet, silent, serene, and content within ourselves and our situation, without resorting to violence or rage to solve our problems and disagreements. It is an agreement to end hostilities and to live free from quarrels and unrest.

However, we are living in a world where violence and rage have become the norm for handling disputes and disagreements to the point that when we become so uncomfortable with someone else’s choices, decisions or position of authority, we act out in violence with our thoughts, words, attitudes, and our actions. When we live out of a life filled with internal insecurity personally and corporately, we want to control everything and everyone around us in order to feel secure. It is possible to live in a world that is peaceful, if and when we make the decision to become a peacemaking individual, family, school, business, organization, city, church or nation.

God has called us to go into the world and be peacemakers, but not pursuing the temporary peace that the world has to offer. The world’s message says, “As long as everything is going well and it is going the way that we want, we will have peace. As long as we get entitlements that we feel that we deserve based on our ethnicity, class, status, and income, we have peace.” However, as soon as these things are threatened, we engage in internal and physical war.

Even if we don’t get peacemaking right every day, we have to keep trying to walk in peace until we find ourselves not being rattled by every situation or the things that people say or do. To be a real peacemaker, it will be imperative for us to go within and examine ourselves to make the changes necessary to bring ourselves under the controlling influence of the Holy Spirit and end the war within.

Now let’s set the record straight: Being a conscious peacemaker does not mean that we do not speak out against injustice and inhumanity. It does not mean that we become doormats for everyone to step on. On the contrary, it means that we speak out with love, assertiveness, and conviction in our hearts that every human being has been placed on this planet to enjoy certain benefits and rights without the use of war, violence, intimidation, bullying, oppression, force or control. It means that we do not destroy lives because we cannot get our way, or by forcing others into conditions and behaviors that will break the human spirit. 

Peacemakers are careful how we think, speak and act. Daily we make a conscious decision to practice peacemaking, privately and publicly. We cannot hide the ugliness of the internal war in our souls, and the planning and plotting of human demise, and it not radiate in the physical realm. The energy of hatred and violence can never be hidden. Today, we are being called to be conscious peacemakers!

  • To be conscious peacemakers, we have to watch our frame of mind when we are faced with situations and challenges that are beyond our control.
  • Stop and think before we speak.
  • Listen for what our body and mind are telling us. It will alert us when we are in internal war.
  • Don’t fret over things that we cannot control. God never meant for human beings to control each other.
  • Get rid of any sin or failure through confession and prayer.
  • Settle disputes and misunderstandings calmly. 
  • Watch our tone of voice.
  • Take the time to speak the truth in love.
  • Look for opportunities to be a peacemaker in our homes, work environments, schools, communities, governments, cities and world.

    For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. (Romans 8:5 NKJV)

Disrupters of Peacemaking

  • Misalignment and harmony with God
  • Unhealthy need to oppress and control people and situations
  • Unhealthy pride and arrogance
  • Broken expectations
  • Disagreements that become disagreeable
  • Continuous trials and test
  • Overworking
  • Sin
  • Failure
  • Fear
  • Hearing the word “no”

Prayer:

Heavenly Father,

Search our hearts for war and give us the willingness to bring a ceasefire to the internal wars that are destroying the fabric of our world. Give us the mind and heart of a peacemaker. In Jesus mighty name~Amen 

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (John 14:27 NKJV).

A Criminal Mind In A Spiritual House

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“Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?” The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.” Genesis 4:6-12 NIV

I have never committed a crime in community a day in my life, but I have always had this affinity towards people who needed a second chance to get it right. I have worked in the criminal justice system, and in acute mental health care with persons with mild to severe mental illness as a clinical therapist. At one point in my career, I was providing treatment service specifically to men who were reentering the community from jails, prisons, or mental health institutions. They had committed crimes, some of which I will not mention in this writing. Let’s just say, they went really low.

No matter what crime they had committed, I would always refer to them as “Mr. _______” when addressing them. It was my desire to model dignity and respect, and to let them know that I honored them. There was an approach that I would take at the beginning of every new group session; I would say, “Listen up gentlemen. It is my pleasure to walk with you on this journey of change, and I am looking forward to your success. In my hand I hold a legal document. It is the document that a judge expects from me every month, and you are going to write your own report for me. I will only put on it what you decide that I need to write.” These men would look at me like, “Say what?” “Yes,” I would say again. “You are going to decide for me what you want on the report.” 

“So, if you are not going to participate in treatment, you are going to write that down. If you test positive for any illegal substance, you are going to write that down. If you go out and commit another crime, you are going to write that down. Now, if you have made a decision to give your life a second chance, and work your butt off to do something different with your life now that you have this opportunity, you are going to write that down with commendation, celebration, and graduation for a job well done. There is one stipulation: you can write down lies, but I will not turn the report in. You must only write down the truth. So think real carefully every week and month about what you want written down before I hand over your written document to the judge.” 

“This document is your story of a new life or the same old criminal mind. You have a choice. In me, you will have example, support and cheers. I can not teach you how to be a man, but I can teach you new skills to manage your mind, body and spirit, and how to model the characteristics of a human being: kindness, love, respect, dignity, pride, and a spiritual way of being that can translate any where you go, even in your own family. As you think about putting on a new life, remember, a criminal mind will not work in a new spiritual house.”

Demon spirits are real.(Mark 1:21-28) The only way that they are legal to operate in the earth is that they need an open human vessel — a vessel that has opened his or her mind for demons to live out their desires. As spiritual beings living in a body, even the Holy Spirit would be illegal to live within a human heart and mind without an open invitation. (Revelations 3:20) From the point of salvation, through the name of Jesus, as the Father reveals revelation and discernment, I have come to know His heart and mind, and I have a desire to know Him more daily, and to make His heart known to others in order to distinguish His heart from the heart and mind of satan and demon spirits that work within the soul. 

Every soul, before coming to the way of Jesus, committed some type of spiritual crime against their own soul, and even some committed crimes by breaking laws in the community. (Ephesians 2:3, Ephesians 4:28) What I so love about the Father is that he is merciful and compassionate in His dealings with humanity. (Psalm 145:8-9) He will take out an old criminal mind, and replace it with a new spiritual mind that is set on righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (I Corinthians 2:16) He will open humans to the second and third heavens to give insight into the cosmic spiritual war for the souls of humanity in the earth. (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) As human beings come into this awareness of the cosmic war, there should never be an apology made for exposing and casting out demons whose mission is to kill, steal and destroy. (Luke 10:17, John 10:10, I Peter 5:8, Revelation 12:10)

The assignment and mission of the church is to expose demons and cast them out; however, the church (not all of them) is now in agreement with demons (1 Timothy 4:1), giving them permission and alignment to commit crimes against Abba Father. There is no regard for the damage that these entities will go through to lead a soul to get what they want.

Let’s take a brief look at Cain. A curse came on his family line because his parents (Adam and Eve) aborted the will, way and presence of the Father. (Genesis 3) They had a solid spiritual relationship and understood the Father’s heart and mind.(Genesis 3:8) However, another voice convinced them that the Father was holding out on them, and they needed more, and that the only way to get more was to compete against the Father. This voice that spoke to their mind was subtle and crafty. This is the way that it moves. No matter what body it operates through, it will be crafty. It operates in the dark, but can appear as light. (2 Corinthians 11:14) Cain, I believe, still had a foundation laid in his heart that knew right from wrong. Remember, his parents spent time in the presence of glory daily with the Father. They just walked away from the glory, but they knew the glory. Cains parents taught him lessons, I am sure. They may even have shared how they fell away from the presence of the Father, and how they had to get back in fellowship again.

Cain had a premeditated criminal thought that came to his mind while coming from and living in a spiritual household. The demon spirit of murder was on his mind against his own brother along with some other demon spirits, anger, envy and jealousy that rose up in his heart against his own flesh and blood. Look at what the Father of heaven did. He had a therapy session with Cain to let him know that he could see clearly what was in his heart. He said, “the criminal act that you are about to commit is standing at the door of your heart desiring to take you down. Do what is right and you will be accepted, but if you don’t do what is right you will not be accepted. The demon of premeditated murder is at your door. You, Cain have the power of rule over it and cast it out.” (paraphrased). Cain did not heed the intervention session lead by the Father of the Universe. He continued to nurse his crime within until it was manifested in the murder of his brother Abel.

The Father is always standing at the door of the heart of every human being to provide the therapy that leads to righteousness and truth. There never has to be a need to give into another voice that goes against His counsel. When the Father steps in He will bring a new destiny, a second chance to get it right, and give human beings a house that is full of His Holy presence so that humans become the spiritual power house that they were created to be. (1 Corinthians 6:19, Acts 1:8) The Father does admonish that a criminal mind cannot live in a new spiritual house, the mind must be changed. (Romans 12:1-2) I believe that as a human being, I get the opportunity to write my own legal document that demonstrates my progress in treatment, and when it has to been presented to the highest judge of the Universe. (Revelations 3:5) I want to be able to here that judge say, “ Well done, well done.” How about you? ( Matthew 25:23) 

Remember, a criminal mind cannot live in a new spiritual house without contaminating it. You and I have the power to rule over anything that tries to enter the heart and make it right!   

I offer some ideas for implanting change and awareness of the reality of demon spirits in the earth, and how to cast them out to keep the heart pure and clean.

  1. You have to gain knowledge of how demon spirit operate in the mind, by starting with your own. You have the power to cast then out of yourself, and then you are going to see clearly how to recognize, and cast them out of others who want to be free. Not everyone wants to get rid of demons because they benefit from their activity in their lives.
  2. Spend some time reading carefully the Gospels of Jesus.
  3. Get support for the broken places in you soul ( Issues: family, relationships, appetites and needs)
  4. Every 90 days, engage in heart examinations to see what is operating in your life and be willing to release it.
  5. Seek out professional support when necessary for issues that are difficult to overcome.
  6. Develop the habit of reading books that will enlighten you by authors who have experienced knowledge regarding demonic spiritual warfare.
  7. Ask God to break the spirit of fear over your life, and connect you with ethical  teachers and preachers who are engaging in deliverance ministry without compromise.

References for Further Study and Reflection:
Maldonado, Guillermo. Inner Healing and Deliverance
Ramirez, John. Destroying Fear
 

The Church Has to Get Out of Bed with Immorality

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“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power, God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit. Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 NIV

DEFINITION:

Wikipedia defines immorality as the violation of moral laws, norms or standards. It refers to an agent doing or Immorality is normally applied to people or actions, or in a broader sense, it can be applied to groups or corporate bodies and works of art.

Prior to the age of twenty-six, I really did not think that there was anything wrong with having a sexual relationship outside of marriage. I opened up the sexual door early, and had my first child out of wedlock at the age of 14. If you have been following my life narrative, you may know that I have shared that as I progressed to my early young adult years, I came to the ways of Jesus at the age of 26. I was dating a wonderful young man who treated me really special. He indeed was the perfect gentleman. He bought a ring to signify our love and engagement. He did not just get any kind of ring; it was a special made, no jewelry store brand, hand designed. It was beautiful. He was an awesome guy. When I accepted Jesus during the course of our dating, one night while in my spiritual study class in church, a lesson was taught on “fornication.” I was thinking to myself, “What in the world is fornication?” I believe that I whispered to the person who was sitting next to me, “What is fornication?” The person shared that it was engaging in sex with someone that you are not married to. I said, “What? Get out of here and stop yo lying.” I learned more from the teacher as the evening progressed.

I went home that night, and I could not get that lesson out of my mind. I was restless because I knew that I was living and enjoying sex outside of marriage, Lord have mercy! It took me about a week before I could have the conversation with my male friend after this class. I said to him, “You know, I am saved now, and I just learned something about sexual relationships that is new to me. I think that you and I need to refrain from having sex.” Needless to say, we both struggled after this conversation with putting abstinence in place. However, I was still under heavy conviction. I was no longer comfortable. 

I shared with him again that I knew that God had something planned for my life, and I had to live life to follow God’s plan. I could not continue this lifestyle, and I was not ready for marriage at that time. I had come through a difficult and painful relationship prior to him. The conviction in my heart was so strong. It almost seemed unreal. It was painful and heart breaking to end this relationship, because he and I both wanted it; but, there was no agreement about our progress. He and I departed ways in peace, but sadness. Even though I made the decision to end the relationship, my commitment to abstinence was a work in progress. I never looked back.

I ultimately made a vow of abstinence until my current marriage to allow God to cleanse my body, retrain, and renew my mind about sex, my life, and the direction that God was leading. I put in place an accountability partner who was much like an AA sponsor who walked with me through some difficult and heated moments. I had lots of offers (cars, rent, trips, jewelry, furs, houses, money, plush hotels) from many suitors after making this decision, and I stayed the course of my decision.  God provided a way of escape. (1 Corinthians 10:13) After some years of living in the plan of God and abstinence, God brought a wonderful man in my life who I have been marriage bed undefiled faithfully to now for twenty-five years. (Hebrews 13:4)

What I came to understand during those early years was that God has a standard for holiness. I was being set apart for a work, and the integrity of his will had to remain pure in my life. He opened up my understanding to show me the church at large, and the impure state that it would progress to. God said, “My people are not faithful; they are going to sleep with many lovers, and contaminate the house that I desire to live in.” I did not quite understand this message during that time.  I was still young in the faith, and was trying to get a handle on the visions of seeing so much uncleanness and vile things entering the church. God continued to say, “I desire purity, but you are going to see an impure generation that will teach and model uncleanness in my house. Immorality in all forms is going to become a normative culture for my people.”

The vision that I saw that day is now here. There are people, leaders, and churches that have not made a quality decision about getting out of bed with immorality in all forms (not all of them). Many are promoting immorality, and training a new generation of leaders that it is acceptable behavior in God. The church is now lukewarm about teaching and dealing with immoral lifestyles and behaviors that have contaminated generations. It is now acceptable culture to practice unholiness and still lead in the church with celebration. There are instances when I have witnessed leaders in the Body of Christ having a wife/husband, and two or more bed partners in the congregation or community at the same time, and these leaders were being celebrated in the religious community as heroes/sheroes. People were praising their peaching and teaching gift above the lifestyle. (Revelations 3:14-22)

Violations of pastoral ethics, and abusing authority against vulnerable persons in congregations is now becoming a common place for extracting sex and money with no conviction, and many are sadly deceived that these leaders still have an anointing on their lives. Many in the Body of Christ, God showed me, will not be able to distinguish the presence of the Holy Spirit from charismatic counterfeits, and witchcraft spirits that are going to hit the church in record numbers without conviction due to the fact that there is no solid biblical teaching protocol to bring clarity on this subject. (2 Timothy 3:16)

Many needy and weak-willed woman are going to prey on male leaders and dishonor devoted and committed wives with no mercy or correction. (2 Timothy 3:6) The Jezebel spirit is going to get bolder, brasher, and stronger in male or female personalities who are going to disrupt whole churches with the spirit of seduction, and have no mercy for the damage that they commit. Families and marriages are going to be destroyed by this spirit. (1 Kings 19:1-18, Revelation 2:20-23)

Some are going to enter marriages, both male and female, under pretense to hide same sex attractions while engaging in the lifestyle secretly in the marriage, and upon exposure or coming out will leave a broken family behind who had no idea of the lifestyle until it came to the light. I have had to counsel many through this level of brokenness on both sides without judgement. Just human beings who desired healing and restoration.

People in the church are going to find it comfortable to persecute preachers and teachers who come with a pure message of holiness, healing and deliverance because the church has gotten addicted to spiritual contamination (not all of them). Even the spirit of fear is going to be so great that people are going to be afraid to connect with truthful messages because the enemy has built into the fabric of the church, and leadership a spirit of fear, control, manipulation, and brainwashing (coercive persuasion). There will be the fear of loss of leadership, membership, livelihood, and positions in the church so people will bow down to this spirit. Immorality is the spirit that will be in the atmospheric realm of many out of alignment with the Holy Spirit churches in cities, states and regions where immortality has been sown into the mind, hearts and behavior of leaders and people. (2 Timothy 4:3, Ephesians 2:1-2 NKJV)

God revealed the illicit course of my early life to show me the depravity of the church. God will withhold power from the church until the church cleans up immortality. It has to get out of agreement with unholiness. 

The lesson that I learned about my own life so many years ago in that spiritual class was not being screamed or yelled at me by the teacher. The Word of God was taught with such gentleness, compassion, lack of condemnation, and judgement that I was able to see the error of my living through the narrative. My heart was changed, and my mind was corrected in truth and righteousness. (James 3:17)

It is time for the church to get out of bed with immorality and stop making excuses for staying connected to anything that is not going to lead to the will and heart of God’s power and blessings over the church. Good preaching and teaching without holy living only creates an atmosphere where people are more focused on the gift of the preacher or teacher, and not on the power of living a clean and set apart life. In fact, the spirit of immortality flows down from the leader to the people when this spirit is in the church. The river of the Holy Spirit flows in purity and abstinence from unrighteousness. The church has to get back to teaching holiness and holding the Body of Christ accountable to the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. The church has to get out of bed with immorality, and say, “it is time to depart ways and not look back.” (2 Corinthians 4:2)

I offer ideas that can help the Body of Christ to examine the ways that immortality has entered the church, and move towards repentance, purification, and to have conversations about creating holy standards personally and corporately.

  1. Don’t live any longer in fear of dealing with your sin. Find a trusted friend that you can talk to or seek professional counseling. Your issues could be rooted in a deep emotional trauma, wound, struggle or soul tie.
  2. Find an accountability partner who has been healed and delivered who is not actively engaging in intentional sin. People who share the same sin will not have the power to break that sin from your life.
  3. Don’t allow anyone to convince you that you don’t need to name and acknowledge your struggle. You will stay as sick as your secrets. A person who holds a lot of secrets holds a lot of sin in their spirit, soul, and body.
  4. Recognize a Jezebel spirit by reading on the subject and understand that this spirit moves in quickly to get close to the leader at the highest level of the church. It needs to get in at this level to infiltrate the entire church. Don’t mistake this spirit only operating through a woman, men carry this spirit too.
  5. Engage in a season of individual and corporate reflection and cleansing through confession prayer services.
  6. Learn to recognize the fruit of the Holy Spirit and the fruit of immortality. The enemy can manifest in contaminated signs and wonders appearing like light.
  7. Declare and get in agreement with a lifestyle of holiness as the only way for a child of God to live.
  8. Don’t condemn and judge others. You don’t know the whole story. Walk a child of God through any restoration or healing that they may desire.


    References for Further Study and Reflection:
    Eckhardt, John.     Deliverance and Spiritual Warfare Manual
    Greenwald, Gary L. Seductions Exposed
    LeClaire, Jennifer. The Spiritual Warriors Guide To Defeating Jezebel

End the Spiritual Wars and Take Peace to the World

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“Let’s Take Peace To The World

Prophecy Given to Rev. Sharon S. Cheek

November 14, 2020

I heard the Spirit of the Father say that He is getting ready to release power, but He is not going to just release power where there is uncleanness and spiritual wars in His house among people who are naming His name, but not living with His heart. He said He is coming with glory and to release power on those who have given up the war in their souls. 

The Father says it is time for His children to rise up and take His peace to the world. It is time for His people to seek Him for what real peace should look like. Father says, in His peace there is no pretense; we will not be able to fake it. He is going to make a separation. All who will not put on His Spirit for real, He is about to make a separation.

Father says He is getting ready to uncover everything that is unholy in mind, body, spirit, intentions and motivations. He is getting ready to move in power. He says it is time for His people to end relationship wars. Do you not know me? Do you not know my Spirit and my heart? Did I not tell you that I am peace?  But you have rejected my peace. (John 14:27) You came up with your own brand of peace. Do you think that I really dwell where people make a practice of hatred? Where my people make a practice of hatred, tell them I am not there. I call my people to repentance, and to clean their hearts of pride, arrogance, indifference and everything unclean, and let the peace that I gave them, not the peace of the world, to dwell within. Tell my people that I dwell where my people are calling on my name in their hearts; that is where I will be, says God.

Word for Meditation:

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27 NKJV

“So the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” Genesis 4:6-7 NKJV

“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,” Ephesians 2:1-2 NKJV

“O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether. You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You. For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You. Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God! Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men. For they speak against You wickedly; Your enemies take Your name in vain. Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies. Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalms 139:1-24 NKJV

“And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.” I Corinthians 6:11 NKJV

A Call For Justice In the House of God

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“But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Amos 5:24 NKJV

To the Church of the Living God Throughout  America and the World, 

In these critical hours of the church there are times that we are compelled by the Holy Spirit to share a message from the Lord. What is the responsibility of the Church? It is written, “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-15 NIV

Today I bring concerns from the Holy Spirit regarding the state of the church that must be addressed. 

The United Nations gives this definition in its charter of Crimes Against Humanity: Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (Article 7 ) Crimes Against Humanity

  1. For the purpose of this Statute, ‘crime against humanity’ means any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack:

A physical element, which includes the commission of “any of the following acts”:

  • Murder;
  • Extermination;
  • Enslavement;
  • Deportation or forcible transfer of population;
  • Imprisonment;
  • Torture;
  • Grave forms of sexual violence;
  • Persecution;
  • Enforced disappearance of persons;
  • The crime of apartheid;
  • Other inhumane acts.

On this week, September 23, 2020 our hearts have been saddened by the decision of the court regarding no real justice for Breonna Taylor who was fatally shot by Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officers Brett Hankison, Jonathan Mattingly, and Myles Cosgrove, on March 13, 2020. A state grand jury indicted Hankison not for Brenna Taylor’s death, but on three counts of wanton endangerment for endangering a neighbor with his shots.

We witness daily the criminal acts of those who took an oath to protect and to serve our communities against criminal violations. We know that there are many good police officers in this country; but for those who have been done wrong, justice ought to be the order of the day. We stand and believe that there is a higher court of law and a higher authority who sits high but looks low, and justice will be served. It will be served in a way that only God can do it. We can trust this. We can trust the sovereignty of the Supreme Justice. 

Breonna Taylor was our daughter. She is a reflection in the mirror of every Black Woman, young and old, in this country, because it could have been any of our daughters or nieces. Her senseless death, along with the deaths of other black and brown Americans, ought to be taken to the World Court as crimes against humanity. 

We are on the verge of one of the most critical elections in America, to cast our vote to oust one of the most irresponsible presidents in our modern-day history. The highest office of the land has perpetrated so many violations against humanity that we are appalled by it to the point that we share our discontent through social media, over coffee and even at the dinner table; we shout the affirmation, “Trump must go!”

It is interesting that we can see clearly the behavior and mindset of an autocratic leader, President Donald Trump. While I am not a Trump supporter, I am challenged by our insightful assessment of the psychology of President Donald Trump, but we fail to see the sick psychology of the church who will not acknowledge and repent of its sins. We find it easy to call out Trump, but we can’t see the mind and behavior of the church to the point that we will call out its crimes against the people of God and his church. Let’s look really closely and perform this little exercise. Let’s close our eyes for a minute. Look closely at President Donald Trump.  Do we see him? Now, let’s open our eyes.  What do we see? President Donald Trump is a mirror reflection of the state of the church. President Donald Trump is a lesson for the church and its behaviors: egoistical, narcissistic, ruthless, manic, schizophrenic, insecure, greedy, conniving, secretive, exploitative, neurotic, and psychotic — not to mention being abusive to women, young girls and boys, the disabled and the aged. 

It is interesting that we call for justice against police brutality (and we should) and bring them to the court of justice, but we do not call for the brutality that gets perpetrated in the church of God. Now we reward criminal behavior. We reward ballers and shot callers, quiet con artists who get people to do their dirty work while they sit back in the cut and appear innocent, and then we come up with a planned narrative to protect them. We allow them to do whatever they want to do with no checks and balances or discipline. 

We don’t call for justice against the brutality against woman, children, the aged and young boys and girls in the church. Many of us are witnesses to the secret plots and plans of leaders who masquerade in hypocrisy and use their office to try to manipulate, control, force, and enslave others who will not bow down to their tyranny. Many are persecuted and ostracized who will not become complicit to unrighteousness. 

Are we now training new generations of leaders that we are turning into vipers and more of the sons and daughters of hell than the previous generation before them to be loyal to unrighteousness? Is this the sick psychology and state of affairs that we want to pass on as the legacy of the church of the living God? 

Today, I call the church not to the World Court, but to the Court that is higher than all Nations. I call the church to the Court of the Most-High God, ruler of all nations, judge of all humanity, and I file charges on His behalf against the church for crimes against God’s people and God’s house. I call it to criminality for these acts:

  • Character assassination;
  • Sex crimes against youth, children and young boys;
  • Persecution for being obedient to the Word of God;
  • Manipulation of the minds of the young to play on their naivety;
  • Sexual brutality of woman in churches;
  • Exploitation of the gifts of God in others;
  • Emotional trauma;
  • Psychological torture, brainwashing and control;
  • Spiritual abuse of authority;
  • Breaking pastoral ethics among colleagues 
  • Aggressive and shaming language;
  • Extortion of God’s property; 
  • Ostracizing for nonconformity to wrong;
  • Robbing the poor to get rich;
  • Nepotism at the exclusion of others;
  • Age discrimination and exclusion from service without adequate preparation and restorative council;
  • Fear mongering;
  • Spiritual slavery and corruption;

To the people of God, it is time to hold the church responsible for crimes against the children of the living God and His church. It is time to call the church to order and confront its sins. I CALL FOR JUSTICE in the house of God. I call for holding leadership at every level accountable to the Word of God. I call for confronting the spirits of greed and pride that leaves God’s people financially depleted, broken, disillusioned, perplexed and trampled over with no real vision, treated like second-class citizens and provided no real care for its spiritual and emotional well-being. There are fellowships whose trust has been shattered, but they are expected to pick up the pieces and start over again to build trust that may never be fully regained. I Call For Justice. I Call For Justice in the House of God! 

Prophecy given to me (Sharon S. Cheek) on September 27, 2020. Here is a word from the Lord: “I have seen the hands of your leaders. I have witnessed their conspired story to cover up crimes against my people and my house. Tell them this is what the Lord says: What they plan in secret, I will reveal openly. My way is that they teach the sinner to return to me in brokenness for their sins. The sinner who plots to protect another sinner, and does not call that sinner to me, what they think is hidden from me planned in the night, I will uncover their sin in the broad day light. For three sins and for four, I will not relent from holding leaders responsible for its crimes against my people and my house,” says the Lord.

“Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord. “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 23:1-4 NIV

It is time to make demands for protecting God’s children and God’s house from the tyranny of spiritual, psychological, physical, emotional, social, political and economic crimes. It Is Time To Call The Church To Justice!