Tag: Unity

Take Action

Today’s a new day! This morning I woke up to news of another mass shooting in America. More innocent bloodshed. Of course, our elected officials shared their thoughts and prayers for the victims. But that’s not enough anymore. Where is the action behind those thoughts and prayers? If we truly want to see real change, we must look at reforming our current gun laws and putting more money towards mental health care. We must take action.

My faith has always taught me that we are the hands and feet of Jesus. In James 2:26 scripture shares “Faith without works is dead.” I am not dismissing the power of prayer. We must always pray. But I just know that there are times when we are waiting on God to act, and God is actually waiting on us to take action. When we get frustrated and cry out to God “Why don’t you do something?”, if we stop and listen closely, we might hear God softly whispering to us, “I did do something. I created you.”

But that doesn’t take anything away from the power of prayer. You know what I did this morning when I heard the news of another mass shooting in America? I prayed for the victims and community. I prayed for smarter gun laws. I prayed our elected leaders would do more than just offer their thoughts and prayers. It’s past time to take real action. ~OC

0

Drop Your Stones

Today’s a new day! With all the division in the world, it’s easy to throw stones at those we disagree with. My hope and prayer is we will learn to love and respect everyone God allows us to meet on this journey called life. I pray we will drop our life destroying stones.

Drop the stone of Hate.

Drop the stone of Fear.

Drop the stone of Division.

Drop the stone of Unforgiveness.

Drop the stone of Racism.

Drop the stone of Selfishness.

Drop the stone of Pride.

Drop the stone of Comparison.

Drop the stone of Political Parties.

Obviously I could add more, but I believe you get the point. Drop any stone that is distracting you from showing the love and peace of God. Blessings. ~OC

0

End Racism

Today’s a new day! God is calling each of us to actively engage in the work of racial justice by eradicating racism, white nationalism and working towards racial reconciliation. There is no room for racism in our world. Will you take a stand? ~OC

What does the Lord require of you but to do Justice. ~ Micah 6:8

1

You Are In My Heart

Today’s a new day! I’ve looked back on it a thousand times. It plays on rewind in my mind. When did we become so divided? Family and friends divided over things that really don’t matter at the end of the day. Words spoken that have divided us and caused pain. Opinions over relationships. When did we become so divided? You are in my heart.

All this division has me praying and hoping for better days. Believing in healing days. Praying for those who choose opinions over friendships. Love keeps no record. You are in my heart

Would you love me across the political aisle? Would you love me if I worshiped in a different style? Would you love me if I thought in a different way? Would you love me if I chose a different lifestyle? Love keeps no record. You are in my heart.

What do we do with all this division? All this negative space between us. How can we come together and erase all that separates us? I am praying for better days. Believing in healing days. Love keeps no record. You are in my heart.


As I replay all this negativity in my head, I have nothing but love for all. I choose to look past the differences and embrace the beautiful diversity all around me. I choose to listen and learn. I refuse to hate and judge. Love keeps no record. You are in my heart.

I will not allow all this division to steal my joy. I will continue to pray and work for better days. Believing in healing days. Love keeps no record. You will always be in my heart. ~OC

0

God and Justice

Today’s a new day! As I study scripture, I have come to the conclusion that faith in God and a desire to do His will goes hand-in-hand with standing for social justice. Honestly, I do not believe you can have one without the other. You cannot fully walk with Christ without serving the the least of these and you cannot fully serve the least of these without an understanding and faith in Christ. Without Christ, you will never fulfill more than the surface-level needs of those you are trying to serve.

This is where Christians needs to take a stand. We should be a fortress for social justice. If we were truly following the scriptures, Christianity would be synonymous with social justice. I think our faith and social justice should be so intertwined they cannot be separated from each other. As Christians, we truly need to be the hands and feet of Jesus. We cannot just talk about the different issues that plague our country and world. We cannot continue to deal with every tragedy by just expressing our thoughts and prayers. No, as Christians we need to stand up for what’s right. Even if that means being challenged by society or other Christians for our beliefs. I believe social justice is close to the heart of God. ~OC

0

Dear Christian Community

As I scroll through social media, I shake my head at some of the things I read from the Christian community. A community I am part of, but often cringe at the post and comments of so many Christians.

As Christians we talk about the love, grace and forgiveness of God. We love to talk about redemption. We share stories from the Bible about amazing life changing experiences involving King David, the women at the well and Saul becoming Paul. The stories bring us hope. Unfortunately, I do not always see that lived out in the Christian community. Let me explain.

Recently Carl Lentz a former pastor at Hillsong NYC was hired by another church. I will not bore you with Pastor Lentz past troubles. There are plenty articles online. Based on some poor choices, Pastor Lentz has been out of the spotlight for the past few years. But as I mentioned above, he was recently hired by a church. According to some articles concerning this hire, Pastor Lentz has been working on rebuilding his family and himself. To me this is something to celebrate. There should have been articles encouraging Pastor Lentz in his new position. Instead, I saw post, articles and videos attacking Pastor Lentz and the church that decided to give him a second chance. A second chance. I thought we were supposed to celebrate second chances. God loves second chances.

I do not personally know Pastor Lentz. Have never met him, but I am praying God uses him and his family in a mighty way. Praying Pastor Lentz uses his life experiences to encourage and support others walking through their own storms. Praying he embraces the second chances in every area of his life. I for one will be rooting for him. I think God will to. ~OC

0

Today

Today’s a new day! A day filled with amazing opportunities and chances to serve. Do not miss out on the beautiful interruptions God has for you today. Blessings. ~OC

0

You Are

Today’s a new day! You are Worthy. You are Valued. You are Favored. You are Loved. You are Chosen. You are Called. You have Purpose. You are Equipped. You are Qualified. You are Enough because God Loves you and Chose you before the creation of the world. ~OC

0

My Jimmy Carter Experience

In September 2019, doctors had given me just months to live. It was time to knock some things off my bucket list. So Laura and I made our way North to Plains, Georgia, home of the 39th President of the United States. We were not going to experience a political speech by the former President. No, we were going to hear President Carter teach Sunday School at Maranatha Baptist Church. Something the former President has been for close to 50 years.

So as Laura and I walked around the beautiful street of downtown Plains, we met some of the nicest people. As we interacted with people, I kept asking what’s the best time to arrive at the church to hear President Carter? We heard everything from 4pm on Saturday to 6am on Sunday. So, Laura and I headed back to our hotel and decided to get some sleep. Then for some reason, we both woke up around 11pm. Since we could not sleep, we decided to go check out the line at the church. Let the adventure begin!

As we drove to the church, I prayed we would be in the top ten of people arriving and we would meet Mr. George. During our day in Plains, we kept hearing about this guy named Mr. George. Also everyone in town told us to say hello to Mr. George. I was excited to meet the man everyone called Mr. George. Now, let me explain the tickets. As you enter the church parking lot, Mr. George greets you and hands you a ticket. After receiving that ticket, your vehicle is unable to leave the premises. Why is this? Mr. George shared tour buses used to come by, pick up a ticket and then return on Sunday morning with a bus load of people. Definitely not fair to those who hung out in the parking lot all night.

So as we pulled up to get our ticket before midnight, we were able to meet the famous Mr. George. He asked were we were from and welcomed us to the church. Oh by the way, the number on our ticket was number 10. Praise God! As Laura and I settled into our parking spot, I decided I needed to talk with Mr. George. I am so glad I did.

I made my way over to Mr. George and asked if I could sit for awhile. I explained based on my health issues, I did not sleep much. I explained I might be up all night visiting. Not sure Mr. George believed I would make it an hour. Mr. George and I had the best conversations. He shared how he had known President Carter since they were youngsters. We talked about my health and Mr. George prayed over me. He even let me pass out some tickets. Around 4am Sunday morning, Mr. George looked over at me and said you really don’t sleep. Told you Mr. George.

Around 9am. Mrs. Jan, Mr George’s wife gave us instructions about what we could bring into the church and a few rules. I was a little concerned about walking through security. At that time, I had my voice amplifier, my feeding tube and my gastro pacemaker. Would this be an issue? As we got up front, security looked at my fluid from my feeding tube and shared I was good to go.

As we entered the church, Mr. George led us to seats. Third row middle aisle seat. Laura and I were so excited. A few minutes later, part of President Carter’s security detail asked us to come with him. We thought what’s going on? The Secret Service Agent led us to the front row. Are you kidding me! This trip just kept on getting better.

Not long after that President Carter and Mrs. Carter entered the church. President Carter engaged with the large crowd for a few minutes and started his lesson. I am sorry I cannot share word for word what the former President shared, but I do remember he spoke about loving, caring and serving others. Something the former President has truly lived out. After the service, Laura and I were able to say hello to President and Mrs. Carter and take a picture. It was a special moment An experience we still talk about today.

I have to be honest here. Meeting President Carter and Mrs. Carter was a wonderful experience, but I have to say meeting Mr. George and Mrs. Jan was the highlight of the trip for me. A few months after my miracle, Laura and I returned to Plains to see this incredible couple. Mr. George and Mrs. Jan are a special people. We still stay in touch with Mr. George and Mrs. Jan. Hoping to see them again soon. ~OC

0

Are You Ready For Revival?

As I continue to reflect on my time at the Asbury Revival, the fire for revival in my community as grown stronger. But what does that look like? As I have been praying, here are some things God has placed on my heart.

*Before revival can come to any community, there must be an increase in prayer. You might say a Revival of Prayer. We must make prayer a priority. Stay in prayer.

*We must sacrifice some things in our life. Instead of binge watching a tv series, take that time to pray. Sacrifice some worldly pursuits to truly hear from God. Stay in prayer.

*Make a new commitment to reaching a lost and hurting world. We must be willing to step out of our comfort zone. Lean into Jesus. Stay in prayer

*Ask God to reveal the sin in your life and then truly repent. Stop carrying your sin around like a backpack. Leave your sin at the Cross. Stay in prayer.

*Ask God to transform your life. Seek His purpose for your life. Walk it out. Stay in prayer.

*Stop being so busy with the things of this world. We are easily distracted from praying. Now is the time to pray and hunger after the things of God. Stay in prayer.

*Believe in the power of God. Expect Him to answer your prayers. Believe that God wants to bring revival to your community. Stay in prayer.

*Revival starts with us. It starts in our hearts. Be serious about praying and seeking God’s guidance. God wants to move in his churches and communities. Stay in prayer.

Are You Ready For Revival? ~OC

0

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑