Our Stay in Detroit!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

We have been here in Detroit since Thursday. The weather has been very nice. Not much has changed here.

My sister and my friend, Lisa were remarking how on almost every corner is a church, a store, a dry cleaners, and aConey Island. It actually was quite funny to here this. The streets are still in need of repairs. That's such a difference from Arizona, where they keep that state up. They have the prisoners do it. But all in all, I still love this city and call it my home.

I actually was homesick. I told them that if I had a summer job, I would live here in the summer (June thru September) and go back to Arizona in the winter (October thru May). There is no place like home.

So Thursday, all we did was sleep almost all day. Sis. B's house where we stayed was wonderful. In fact, we called it the Sheraton at Sis. B.'s house. She was a gracious hostess and treated us well. We loved her and added her to the list of Detroit moms.

Friday's service was off the chain. I mean, God moved in a mighty way. I wasn't too happy about using this computer to read my notes while I preached. I will not be doing this again. I will always have Braille, even if I have to use a slate and stylus.

Anyway, I preached the "Lessons From the Cage" message. God allowed me to move in the prophetic like I have never before. At the end, I wasn't too sure about going to pray for people. After all, I am usually playing while altar call is going on. So, at first, all the other ministers prayed for those who came to the altar. But I ended up walking the floor, singing over the congregation, and praying for people. I was truly amazed at God. The women were truly blessed. That's all they talked about for the entire weekend so far.

My friend that I hadn't seen in 18 years came to the service. I was toooooo excited to see her. I mean, we grew up together. We played together. We went to Boblo (that was a Detroit park) together. She was my best friend. And now she's back! I feel like a hole that has been there for all this time has finally been filled.

After service, we--my friend A.N, me, my sister, Sis. B. and my awesome organist friend T.R.--went to Big Boy's. I truly missed that place. We ate and had a ball.

I'll write back about Sunday's service. I am still studying. For real, I am scared. I have never preached a Sunday morning service before. I am honored and priveleged that the Bishop would allow me to stand in his pulpit and preach on a Sunday morning, of all days, to his people. I am truly praying that God would move in a mighty way.

What’s Going On Now?

Ok. I really hope this works! This for me is a dream come true—to publish right from Word.

 

So, if it works great, I'll take this time to thank those who have read my blog—no matter how not up-to-date it is. I appreciate your feedback. God bless you all

 

I am on my way to Detroit, MI. I will be preaching at a Women's Conference this weekend. I hope to keep you updated on how things went. Please keep me and my sister in your prayers.

 

While I'm there, I'll get to see my friend that I haven't seen in, at least, 15 years. We were best friends growing up, and I think we're off to a great start all over again. I am so excited!!!

God's Unfailing Love!

“So instead of being negative and allowing your circumstance to dictate your life. Turn it around and kick your shoes off and instead of fleeing from your affliction, start feasting on your affliction.” by Apostle Bobby Torres

This has always been me. When the fire gets hot, I’ve always wanted to go. This was the case in my marriage for the past three weeks.

My heart was cold, hard, and negative words regurgitated from my lips. I was like a spewing fountain with nothing positive to say. I had planned on leaving and divorcing my husband and. I felt that all my reasons were justifiable and right. And, he finally knew it.

But on the inside, I was crying out to the God of marriages, healing, and restoration. I knew that if anyone could change the current situation, my God could! For this time, the majority of the problem wasn't him--it was me.

Psa 50:15 “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

He promised to deliver me. I was trusting Him to do so, cuz this was a matter that only He could handle. I felt I was losing and I was desperate.

Psa 145:18 “The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.”

I have found that in the midst of the fiery furnace, if I would be humble and be truthful, crying out to God for His salvation, He is a faithful, tender merciful God. I think we get into lots of trouble when we feel like we can handle it ourselves. We mess up, when we won’t wait on the Lord and, instead, trust in the arm of flesh.

Isa 40:30-31: “30Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Trials will come. Tribulations must take place. But they aren't easy. Sometimes, there are no words to say; there are no people who, without the Holy Ghost that will understand. Shux! Even you don’t understand why you’re going through that crazy trial sometimes. There is only your spirit man that can cry out to God. I am a witness, He (God) can and will hear your faintest cry!

And that is exactly what has happened. Yesterday, God brought the most powerful breakthrough that I have experienced in a long, long time. The Lord began to melt my cold, stony, heart like a ball of wax in his presence. Repentance and healing took place in this home, and once again, the devil has been defeated and my God has been exalted. (which is what I love to do!)

Matthew 24:12

Here is the outcome of a Bible study that I had earlier this morning.

Matt 24 12
"And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."

Iniquity—anomia. illegality, i.e. violation of law or (genitive case) wickedness -- iniquity, transgress(-ion of) the law, unrighteousness. In the Old Testament of the 11 words translated "iniquity," by far the most common and important is `awon (about 215 times). Etymologically, it is customary to explain it as meaning literally "crookedness," "perverseness," i.e. evil regarded as that which is not straight or upright, moral distortion (from `iwwah, "to bend," "make crooked," "pervert"). Driver, however (following Lagarde), maintains that two roots, distinct in Arabic, have been confused in Hebrew, one equals "to bend," "pervert" (as above), and the other equals "to err," "go astray"; that `awon is derived from the latter, and consequently expresses the idea of error, deviation from the right path, rather than that of perversion (Driver, Notes on Sam, 135 note) Whichever etymology is adopted, in actual usage it has three meanings which almost imperceptibly pass into each other:(1) iniquity,(2) guilt of iniquity,(3) punishment of iniquity.Primarily, it denotes "not an action, but the character of an action" (Oehler), and is so distinguished from "sin" (chaTTa'th). Hence, we have the expression "the iniquity of my sin" (Psalm 32:5
Iniquity—wickedness; injustice; crime; evil; sin; vice.

Wax—seta.
Cold--psucho psoo'-kho: to breathe, i.e. (by implication, of reduction of temperature by evaporation) to chill (figuratively) -- wax cold.

Love—agape. love, i.e. affection or benevolence; specially (plural) a love-feast -- (feast of) charity(-ably), dear, love.

I got some interesting stuff from this website
<
http://www.antipas.org/books/be_ye_transformed/love_shall_wax_cold.html
>
It's from a book Be Ye Transformed by G.V. Growcott. Wow! I've been repenting as I read.

"The latter days are to be days of unbelief. This is the testimony of prophecy. This is one of the great signs of the time of the end in the world and in the brotherhood." "Increase of unbelief frequently, almost always, takes the form of an assumed increase of knowledge -- a knowing better, a feeling of being cleverer than the instruction of God's Word." "Faith, or belief, as the apostle goes to great lengths to illustrate in Hebrews 11, is a vital, living force, a way of life, a power that made men stand alone in the face of the most violent enmity and persecution, and that led them onward to every form of accomplishment and heroism – (Heb 11:1)."

"The love of the many shall wax cold because the shadows grow thicker -- the sadness and instability of natural things deepens. All things today -- industrial, economic, national, and international -- are at a constant crisis, a constant tension. No one is happy, no one is satisfied -- and we are in great danger of absorbing this atmosphere of tension and stress."

"This is the great message: "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." (1 John 1:4-5) God is perfection in all goodness, and everything to do with God is on the basis of perfection. All that is out of harmony with God, is but darkness and sorrow in the end.
A joyful acceptance of this message in its fulness and depth is the first step in assuring a love that will never grow cold a clear recognition of the great issue between good and evil, light and darkness, life and death -- two ways, two camps, two services. We must decide which side we wish to be on, and bring all our life into harmony with that decision, testing all things by this rule. There are no neutrals, no middle ground, for --
"Whatsoever is not of faith is sin" (Rom. 14:23).

1 John 3:9
"To the natural mind this is contradiction, but by the mind of the Spirit we are led to see the deep wisdom and lesson of these words.
First, as John points out, perfection is the standard, and must be the standard.
God is all light. There can be no fellowship with Him except on the recognized basis of absolute perfection. The essential perfection of the sacrifice of Christ proves this.
But the more a man comprehends the beauty of holiness and the mind of the Spirit, the more he realizes the utter evilness of his own natural flesh and mind, and perfection constantly seems farther and farther away.
Any who say, or -- as is much more common -- who act on the basis, that they have no sin to worry about -- that they are "doing all right" -- who consider themselves quite acceptable to God -- who do not realize the necessity of constant effort and constant self-examination -- utterly fail to comprehend the standards of godliness and perfection that John is describing. Our highest attainments fall miserably short of the divine perfection of the beauty of holiness.
But still, "He that is born of God cannot sin." The thought of sin is abhorrent to him. He lives in love, in closeness to God.
Though he continually falls short of divine perfection, he continually strives toward it. His choice and desire are always in the way of Christlike gentleness and purity and love. He never condones or is satisfied with imperfection. He knows that to ever deliberately choose the way of the flesh in anything is to wound Christ afresh, who loved him, and died for him.

Any failure, any weakness of the flesh, immediately fills him with sorrow and remorse, and renewed determination to overcome. "He cannot sin."

"The way of godliness is an all-pervading thing. It must continuously control and motivate the whole life, or it means nothing. It is so easy to deceive ourselves by putting on a self-gratifying front of godliness and interest in spiritual things on some occasions, and relaxing into natural fleshliness at others.
But "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." To be godly is to be like God -- the same all the time -- a steady, consistent, spiritual shining, from hour to hour and day to day. Until it is consistent, our godliness is neither sound nor deep."

More on the Launching Out Series!

I'm telling yall! This is what's going on! God is doing some brand new stuff in the life of Sharonda B. Greenlaw.

It's not my time to lead worship. It's my time to go deep into new waters--waters that I've never treaded in before!

So, this weekend (that just passed), I had a Leadership Seminar at the NFB National Center. (NFB = National Federation of the Blind) To learn more about this great organization, go to:
www.nfb.org

Anyway, I took the plane, took the cab, and got there and back successfully! That's right! You heard it first here!
I know these might not be big things to others, but they're big to me. This person was one who was afraid to do this. I had bad memories of buses from when I was a child. I didn't even want to try them. I definitely never thunk (just kidding) I would be doing these things without some help.

Not being able to see is daunting enough when you are in unfamiliar surroundings. Some people never push past their own fears and misconceptions. They live in a world of comfort and ease. They know what's gonna happen at any given time and find that cool. But until you launch out, and push past all that, I promise that you'll never see the success and joy that's on the other side.

I am really happy! I don't know where I'm going. I don't know what my future holds, but I'm excited. I assume that travel will be a part. Yall! This is grand! So, since you are in my world, that requires you to be excited too!

Thanks for reading.

Me Crying Out to God

In the midst of all the great stuff that is going on in my life, my heart is sad tonight. I am sad to see the way my people are going… They seem to be going in a way where God is not allowed there.

He is not allowed in worship. He is not allowed there. He is not allowed in prayer. He is not allowed there. We talk about not having a spirit of tradition, but it is in full effect In our house. We talk about not having a Pharisee spirit, but it is in effect in our house. We talk about not having double standards, but it is in effect in our house.

GOD! Where are you? What is going on? How long will you allow this to happen? When will you change the situation?

I feel so dry> So empty. So sad inside. I go to church and nothing happens. I go to church for a charge to my battery, and nothing changes. What am I to do?

This is the cry of my heart. This is where I am right now. GOD! Help me! In everything that is going on, I want to do your will, not my own.

Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me.

I'm Launching OUt, Yall

Yall!!!!!

You will never guess what I did yesterday!!! I am so excited!!!!!

You know I got this absolutely cool GPS demo for my Nokia N82 phone. It's by Wayfinder. If you want to learn more about it, go to
www.talknav.com
Anyway, (drum rolls, please) I took the bus and used my GPS to go to a friend's house!! Yall, that's monumental for dus person.

Those that know me well know that if you would've asked me this a couple of months ago, I would tell you, "No way!" But I did it! And it was successful!
I got there with my God, my Rusty (guide dog), my GPS and my cane. I'm moving into this new thang that the Lord is doing!!! I'm so excited.

Happy New Year!

Just writing to wish everyone a happy 2009! We made it, y'all!!!!

I have many things to say and report. Many things that the Lord is saying. Many things that I am learning. I will do my best to get these things in my blog.

Thanks to all who have given feedback to this blog. I want to be a better blogger. And, since this is a year of change and breakthroughs into the many blessings, I'm sure I'll have a lot to report.

See ya in the next post.

Fwd: Another Victory!!

Date: Fri, 12 Dec 2008 21:38:36 -0700
Subject: Another Victory!!
Journal 12/12/08

Well, I wrote to report victory tonight. I want the whole world to
know that we have successfully moved into our apartment.! And, to me,
the most important thing is, I took the bus to and from work today and
yesterday!!!

I am so excited about this. Being born blind, you learn these basic
skills in middle school. But because I lived in Michigan and was
exposed to the ubus in the early days of my life during those
amazingly cold winters, I wanted nothing to do with bus riding. I
wanted nothing to do with orientation and mobility period.

But relationships are awesome. They can truly motivate you to go
higher and reach farther in your life. My two friens--and yes they are
really friends--J.L. And R.F. Have encouraged me to go farther than I
ever thought of going in my mO&M skills. These are two women who are
visually empaired, but they go everywher. And I mean EVERYWHERE! They
are really amazing.

I just wanted to report these things this evening and thank all those
who read my blog. No, I'm not an ongoing blogger. But I hope that the
things I list will be both inspiring and encouraging to all who read!
Thanks for stepping into my world with me and hanging out for a while.
Please keep the comments coming, as they inspire me greatly!!!

--

My Comback: Independence is on the Way

Today, as we prepare to move (God is a God of reconciliation!) I spent
time doing something that I should have done when we lived in
Scottsdale from 2006-2008. I should have been doing this when we lived
in our house in Detroit from 2003-2006. It should have happened when I
lived by myself on E. Alexandrine from 1998-2003. But in all these
places, I was unable to make this happen. In fact, it hadn't happened
since 1992, but tragedy struck and shut me down.
Yes, back then in 1992, I was cooking!!! It was nothing to find me
frying chicken, french fries, doing shake 'n bake chicken; Hamburger
and Helper and such like. But stuff happened that shut me down and had
me depressed for a while. Yes, I was so shut down that I have never
risen to my previous glory. Oh es, I have cooked from time to time.
Yes, I even had my own bakery business for a while and prospered. But
never have I been willing to cook on a continuous bases, not even for
my current husband. So all that has been kept from those days was
fragrant memories by my family who have tasted and seen that my food
was good.
So today, I spent labeling my spices. I felt so invigorated... Just
the thought of getting in their and doing this right! Soon, I'll be
writing and telling yall about the meals that I made.
Thanks for reading and sharing in my excitement!!!

--
Come, read and take a journey with me at
www.WorldOfShariG.blogspot.com

What's Been Going On....

>I know, I know! It's been forever and ever since I've posted. A lot has been going on too. I want to try and update you all.

First, I want to thank those who have left comments. You are my heroes!!! I appreciate you reading and even taking time to comment. God bless yall!

This post takes place in October. It was an ongoing issue that happened all year long off and on up until now. I'm using the pen of my sister, Leniqua, cuz... well, she's more eloquent than I. I will include my remarks in parentheses.

"I never really do this, but I wanna dedicate this blog to all women who thought they had found the man of their dreams only to find out it wasn't going to work out. Also, if you've had a dream or vision and it seems so close, you could almost taste it, then it was viciously ripped from you, this is for you. Most of my blogs do come from my heart, well they are birthed at my heart and expressed through my mind. But me sharing with you is part of my overcoming and obtaining another victory in my life; and knowing how it feels to experience unexpected loss, I will write this with the utmost care. So let's get into the word, shall we?

"One day, my prince will come.... OH! Is that him?" This is something every woman thinks when they meet a man that seems to complete them in ways others before them have failed. A hope begins to rise and dreams that seemed to have been brutally murdered begin to breathe the breath of life. Well, of course since we've been hurt before, we're cautious about the whole thing. Let him know we care? HECK NO! That's how "these men" gain the advantage over us; no, we have to be mysterious so we can stay in control of our emotions, right? *smiles* yes yes yes, I know.Well, then there comes the part where this "secret" grows to the point where it can no longer be contained. It starts showing in our countenance when we see this captivating man; we find ourselves caring more and more about what he thinks. So we take a courageous step forward, and no I dont use that for dramatization, when you've been hurt as bad as you have, it takes REAL courage and faith to open up again, right? Yes, once again, I know, it's ok. This is a scary place we've gotten ourselves into now; but seriously, it couldn't be helped. After all, we're not the ones that pursued; we dont do that anymore, we've already learned that lesson. And this man is quite persistant, isn't he? It's very hard not to yield to a man that seems to know what he wants and persistantly pursues, right?Well, you go on in life, changing nothing about yourself for this man, yet he remains. You have arguements and fights, but you two resolve them, better than you and any of his successors have. That's amazing isn't it. This has to be prince charming, right? Oh how situations have a way of building faith and hope! Even if he has yet to express his regard, his actions are SCREAMING way louder than any words ever could, huh? Then as if an answered prayer, he implies his regards verbally through the little things he says. JACKPOT! This has to be a go, yes? *smiles* Little do we truly know, sure we speculate, but we dont truly know that this next move is going to be riveting. All at once, it's over. You are asked to leave, to go, to stop. (Or he does something that you honestly can't believe. You're shocked out of your mind.) HUH? I'm sorry, are you not the same man that only a few days ago was saying that's not what you wanted? Confusion spreads like a flood through our minds and all at once we begin to sink. Feeling betrayed and hurt, we have to lash out one more time, unsure that we truly know this man that we use to connect with so easy, we are left wondering, "Did that last blow of my words (or actions) hold any affect?" Nonetheless, all hopes and dreams are brought to a bitter hault. All at once, we're left there holding a breaking heart. Now what?

Of course we have to go on and move on, which is what everyone around us will continuously remind us. They dont think of (or understand) the pain we might be experiencing (if you haven't had this process happen to you, how much can you understand); they forget how much love hurts. We start feeling incredibly stupid for allowing ourselves to think this could have worked. Satan has a field day with our emotions and minds. Sure, as a godly woman, we know that everything has passed through God's hands and it's for our good, but seriously, COME ON GOD! Right? Our minds start racing, we begin to think it was our fault. Being that above all, our relationship with God takes precedence, we search our hearts to see if we have violated His law and this is the punishment. Repentance flows as freely as the tears that wont cease; our cries are heard before God both night and day. But now what? Then we think, "Oh, I must repent for my spout of ill words because that's not what a woman of God would do." So, we repent and everything has been cleansed in the situation, except the pain in our hearts. Now what?

Well, this is usually where we stop being hurt and get MAD AS HELL! Am I right? I mean, seriously, there's only so much crying we're going to do. (Yes, this was me! Full of unforgiveness, anger, murder and hated every man that walked the earth. I thought they were stupid and insensitive. But in my spirit, I knew that only God could deliver me from this hard, dark, lonely, painful place.) What now? YOU STOP! You point that anger in the right direction... THE DEVIL! Because although everything has passed through the hands of God as being for your good, the devil has assembled with the foul spirits of bitterness, rage, man hatred, depression, murder, and anger, and they have cooked up an EXTRAVAGANT plan for your life now. Oh yes, they plan to run the show now.They've taken snapshots and wav. sounds of the things that mattered most, and they will play them back over and over again, all the while intensifying the pain. "Close your heart, you dont need this", "You can't trust people", "Revenge is sweet, just pray that he gets what's coming to him". Look at that, they even made is spiritual! "King David prayed evil on his enemies and asked for vengence...he prayed some pretty ugly prayers, take Ps. 18 for example.. yeah come on, let's go pray that against this man" Doesn't sound too bad does it?

OHHHHH... But this is just a distraction, women of God.The real enemy is NOT that man; yes, you read me right. Those spirits of bitterness, of anger, of rage, of male hatred... these are your enemies. The spirits of opression, depression, self hatred, and in some cases, lesbianism..these are your enemies that you need be praying against. Satan knows if he can divert your focus off of the real issue, he has more time to plant his seeds and build the wall enclosing your heart, so even the presence of God can't get in. OH SATAN, I'M SO SICK OF YOU! And yes, this is from a personal standpoint. Some of you might not be at this point yet, but I'm so soldier minded right now, I see this outlandish plot and I'm PISSED OFF about it!Woman of God, your war is not with flesh and blood. NO, it's in the spirit realm. Satan is trying to take you out! While you're turned preying on your assailant, he's behind your back stabbing you, trying to drain the life of God from your heart. STAY FOCUSED! It's only the life of God that has the power to heal, but He will only heal what you reveal. The devil wants to cover that pain with anger and bitterness, Don't do it! Yes, it hurts, but it takes a lot less time for God to go straight to the wounds than have to take the time to breakthrough months and years of bitterness. See what I'm saying?Yes, I'm directing this towards women, but man of God, the same goes for you. Cuz I know it's not only women who experience this, but I was just concentrating on them because I'm one!

People of God, the devil is out not to kill us so much physically, but he wants to suck the life out of our hearts. He's out to make a bunch of zombies: the living dead. Dont fall victim to this scheme.Keep it real with yourself and with God, "LORD I'M HURTING! HELP ME!" Dont lie to yourself and say, "I'm ok, i'll just get over it" It doesn't work that way, and we all know this to be true. The very thing you think you've gotten over comes back to haunt us given the right situation. I'm imploring you, just as I continually implore myself, AVOID THE SNARE! I spoke of this from a romantic relationship standpoint, but it goes for every part of life that requires your hope and faith. Hope keeps folks alive; the devil knows if he can take that... he's got him a new soul to hold on to. Give your heart, your mind, your will, and your emotions to God; He's the only one you can truly trust with them. The pain will pass, I promise.. just keep your eyes focused on God and He is more than faithful to thrawt the devil's plots and heal our broken hearts. God Bless."

Merry Christmas

Hey yall,
How is everyone doing? I hope that all is going well! Since I'm at work today, yes, at work, and I don't have any clients this morning, I thought I'd do a little blogging, amongst other things.

You know how I told yall that I was having the saddest day on Friday? Well, I kinda was still going through on Saturday. You see, God is so funny. He doesn't allow us to pick our days of deliverance. He doesn't let me say, "On Monday, January 7, 2008, I would like to be delivered from blah blah blah." No. In fact, God is so sovereign that He gets to pick the days and times to deliver us. We just have to realize that He's doing it because He loves us; surrender to His hand; and say yes to him. Well anyway, Saturday was my day of deliverance! Woo hoo!

Chris had told some folks that we bake cookies and that we would bake and sell them some. Well, I wasn't down with this idea. I wanted to do something else. So, I commenced to acting a plum out-and-out fool. I can hear some of yall saying, "You Sharonda? Act a fool?" Yes. Though it may be hard to believe. Even I act a fool from time to time. LOL.

Anyway, after hollering and screaming and trippin' to the max, I humbled myself. Said yes to my deliverance from resistance and inflexibility, and went on to bake cookies with Chris. Boy! I had the best time! That just took away all sadness.

We sang, laughed, danced around, etc., etc. We made oatmeal dough, peanut butter cookies, and chocolate chip cookies. Not only did we bake them, my family and other people ate and enjoyed them and we gave some away for Christmas!

Though the person didn't end up buying the cookies for various reasons, I didn't even care. I got my deliverance, we had loads of fun, and our house smelled like a huge cookie!

I got even greater deliverance too. You see, I used to bake a bunch in Detroit. I sold homemade cookies, breads, pizzas, pies, rolls and the like. But when I got to AZ, I just shut down completely. My family has been waiting for me to come out of my cave. I guess I'm emerging slowly!!!!! And the world says, "Hallelujah!!!"

Friday Nite Live!

As always, there's a lot to say. But since I've gone through a day of deliverance--thanks to God and my husband, Chris--I'll keep this post kinda short.
I was so blessed for the service last night! I mean I received a breakthrough as I stood up on the altar worshipping God.

You see, I've had the craziest couple of months. We, unexpectedly, had to get a car to get to all of our appointments. Then last week, we had to spend $1500 between the two of us getting teeth pulled. $925 was spent pulling three of Chris' teeth. He had been sick for a couple of weeks. His face was swollen and wasn't going down. He went to the doctor and then to emergency, only for them to tell him that he had an ear infection. On Monday 12/17, he went to the dentist and they told him that his tooth was the cause of this infection. They said that if he had waited just another two days, he would have landed in the hospital. Then two days later, we had to spend $522 ($300 I had to borrow) to get my tooth pulled. I thought the thing had a cavity; that's why I had a three-week toothache. But no. They said it was cracked severely and would be best coming out. $1500? How crazy is that in one week? Man! I felt like we should've put our name on the Adopt a Family list, cuz we don't have anything.

Anyway, I sat at work yesterday, not feeling quite festive. There was a Christmas party being held in our other building across the street. I asked if I could stay behind. I really was bemoaning my state. I tried to call and text people that are close to me. I thought, at least I could keep giving holiday wishes or just support and no one would ever know how I felt. In fact, I thought that even I could ignore my own feelings. But it didn't work like that. After all the texting and calling and leaving messages, I was faced with my feelings. Oppression. Depression. Even sadness.

I gave in to them for a few minutes. Even shedding some tears as I sat alone eating my lunch. But it was like I heard the Holy Ghost say, "Why are you crying? As long as you have Jesus in your life, you should be one of the happiest people on earth." My tears dried up, and I began to think about this. Yes, that's true. This holiday is a time for giving, and the greatest gift we could ever receive is the gift of joy and everlasting life, because Jesus lives in us and we are born again! (john 10:10)
That gave me strength, but I still had a bit of oppression last night when I arrived at church. In fact, I won't lie. I even thought twice about coming. But, I overcame my flesh and went anyway.

And while I was singing, the Spirit of revelation hit me strong. The Lord began to talk to me about the spirit of distraction.

The spirit of distraction is a part of the antichrist spirit. It is the antichrist that wants our focus and attention to be taken off of Christ during CHRIST mas. Thus, anti- Christ. If Satan can get us all focused on gift giving, holiday festivities, or to the other end of the spectrum--what I don't have, oppression, depression suicide, and whatever is all on that end--he has done his job. Let me reiterate this in another light. If Satan can get the saints to stop being focused on their prayer, intercession, worship, praise, reading the Word, to get us all wrapped up in cooking, eating, holiday festivities, shopping, etc., he has been successful at his job. If this same antichrist spirit can get folks all depressed, oppressed, sad, hopeless and the like, once again, he has been successful at doing his job.

So instead of getting on the defensive, or getting all upset as you read this post, I believe we should do some introspection and see where we fall in this spectrum. Unfortunately, I know that many saints fall on one side or the other. We lack balance. This means it's time to repent and get refocused.

This is what I did. I began to repent right there while I was singing. I am a warrior. I do violence on the devil. I'm not supposed to allow him to do violence on me! Wait a minute! This is not in order!

Instead of allowing Satan to be successful in my life. I began to warfare in my worship. And yall thought I was singing for your breakthrough! LOL. That's why I love praise and worship. It's a two-edged sword. While you're blessing someone else by your obedience, God is breaking through in my life because of my obedience. I began to do violence against the antichrist spirit that had come to attack me. Make me think of all the stuff I didn't have. Maybe things haven't yet changed in my physical world, but they sure did a big change in my spirit! As much as I love this time of year, my focus must be on Jesus--still doing what I know to be right; reading my Word, spending time with God; praying; and if necessary, even fasting. That's right, I said fasting.

Well, I've preached enough. I know my post will ignite some nervousness, and that's good. It's supposed to. At some point, we must be so focused that we don't get distracted by the activities of the world. We are of another world. Our citizenship is in heaven. We must be kingdom-minded. We must carry on the affairs of the Kingdom at all times. Now, let's not get all deep here. There's nothing wrong with gift-giving and having a good time. God has given us all things richly to enjoy! (1 Tim 6:17) I'm just saying, that we must be a balanced people.

I rebuke laxadazical spirits from my life and the lives of others who understand this word! I curse the spirit of the antichrist and the spirits of distraction from my life! Satan, you will no longer control my focus! I have risen with Christ! Therefore, I set my affections on things above, where Christ sits! I will not think on or be wrapped up in
things that are of this world. (Col 3:1-2

A Prayer Request

Can you believe it? I'm here for round two! Yes, I'm sleepy. It's just that I'm always so busy, I never get time to write. And writing is actually relaxing to me--the kind where I'm not stressed to do so. So writing at work isn't fun, cuz I've got to do it. But writing for fun is fun!!!!

I've got a prayer request and need help. So I thought that here would be the best place to post it. If you can help either by prayer or by action, thank you very much.

My mother and I work in the vicinity of the church. In fact, I'm only ten minutes away. She works on Jefferson. I work on W. Lincoln Street. We commute to and from work together, because it's easy and fun!!! Anyway, things are about to change within a week.

My mother is about to start working from home. I'm so excited for her. However, this puts my transportation to and from work in jeopardy. I have to be at work by 7:30 or so each morning. I get off at 4:30 each evening. Those times are a little bit flexible. So, I need help in getting to and from work. I am willing to pay for gas for that transportation--as the laborer is worthy of his hire; and frankly, I appreciate any and all help.
If this is something you would be willing to do on any weekday--Monday thru Friday--please either email me or call me.
I am ultimately trusting God for a breakthrough in this area. I need this breakthrough to happen this week. Thanks again for your help, either by prayers or by action.

God bless,
Sharonda
(623) 455-6492

Check This Out

Just wanted to find out if this will work. I would be so excited
if I did.
Sharonda Greenlaw and Rusty
Phoenix, AZ

Pensive Mood

Today, I'm meditative. I see my own flaws of being judgmental and
critical. The Lord has convicted me that I want everyone to live up to
my standards. And if they don't, I want to cut them off. Not cool.

Judgmental--tending to judge or criticize the conduct of other people.
Critical; condemnatory; negative; disapproving; disparaging;
hypercritical.

Hypercritical--excessively critical; captious. Marked by a tendency to
find and call attention to errors and flaws.

I have to allow God to be God and other people--my husband, my
coworkers,... anybody--be themselves. They don't feel, think and
believe like me. And they don't necessarily have to. I'm not talking
about that tolerance stuff where folks are afraid to call a spade a
spade or a sin a sin. I'm talking about knowing what God says and
committing that thing to prayer, instead of me always confronting it.

Is that wrong? Is that a crime? No. I may be right, but I'm not God.
Doesn't God have the power to change people? Didn't He change me?
Isn't He the one who is still changing me; convicting me? Yes. Well
then. Why do I stand in God's way? Just some of my thoughts...

Thursday's Devotion

I didn't wake up early today. However, when I did get up at 5:15, I
came right to the presence of God.

Hypocrite--an actor; to play a part; to pretend; a person who
professes beliefs that he does not hold; a dissembler; a phony; a
pretender; a beguiler; a cheater; a deceiver; a trickster. Someone who
leads you to believe something that is not true. A person who is
inwardly evil, but outwardly professes to be virtuous.

Jeremiah 17:9
The place of hypocrisy is an easy place for any Christian or
nonChristian to get into. We must daily come to God for examination of
our hearts.

James 1:21-26

If I say, "I'm cool. I'm alright" but I'm really messed up on the
inside; or if I say, "I know I'm a mess" and don't do anything to
change it, this makes me a hypocrite.

Wednesday

I woke up at the same time—3:52 This morning. I had the day off, so I was excited that I could really take my time with the Lord! Chris and I had planned yesterday to start today praying together at 4:30 this morning.

We read Psalm 84 and Proverbs 8:34-36

He started reading a few verses from Proverbs 9, about wisdom building her house and preparing a feast for all to come and enjoy.

Of course, that lead us to the New Testament Scripture about the feast where the guests were busy, so the bridegroom invited people from the streets. We read the one in Matt 22:1-14.

This passage from the story took me for a loop.

" 11 “But when the king came in to meet the guests, he noticed a man who wasn’t wearing the proper clothes for a wedding. 12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how is it
that you are here without wedding clothes?’ But the man had no reply. 13 Then the king said to his aides, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the
outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’"

I had never seen that part before. I was literally shaking. The Lord began to talk to me about preparation—it's an action word. The unprepared man went to hell.

As I began reading Matthew Henry's Precise Commentary, he put it this way—once again, I was floored.

"The case of hypocrites is represented by the guest that had not on a wedding-garment."
As confession went forth, we started talking about integrity. In order to be clean on both the inside and the outside, we must know that the Lord is looking and watching at all times. The Pastor might not be around; your husband; your wife; your parents; your best friend, etc. But the Father God is looking and nothing done in the dark will stay covered. It will be revealed.

Integrity—Character; who I am when no one is looking; honesty.

Tuesday's Secret Place

Today, I started with Psalm 63. I like to start with Psalms that will cause my heart to thirst more for God. Thin, I had to follow up on a Word the Lord hit me with while I was in the shower. Trust me, It blew me away!

1 Peter 5:8-10 (NLT): " 8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him,
and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters[a]
all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.
10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support,
and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation."

Satan is coming. He is on his job. That is a given. Trials are coming. That is a promise.

Neh 4:14 (NLT): " 14 Then as I looked over the situation, I called together the nobles and the rest of the people and said to them, “Don’t be afraid of the enemy! Remember
the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes!”"

Now, I must do my job and fight! I must fight for my husband. I can't give up and run away, which I'm so proaned to do. I must fight for my home.

1 Corinthians 7
Read the entire chapter in the New Living Translation (NLT). For me, this is a constant reminder in up-to-date language of what a Christian wife should be doing.

Tuesday's Secret Place

Today, I started with Psalm 63. I like to start with Psalms that will cause my heart to thirst more for God. Thin, I had to follow up on a Word the Lord hit me with while I was in the shower. Trust me, It blew me away!

1 Peter 5:8-10 (NLT): " 8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him,
and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters[a]
all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.
10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support,
and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation."

Satan is coming. He is on his job. That is a given. Trials are coming. That is a promise.

Neh 4:14 (NLT): " 14 Then as I looked over the situation, I called together the nobles and the rest of the people and said to them, “Don’t be afraid of the enemy! Remember
the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes!”"

Now, I must do my job and fight! I must fight for my husband. I can't give up and run away, which I'm so proaned to do. I must fight for my home.

1 Corinthians 7
Read the entire chapter in the New Living Translation (NLT). For me, this is a constant reminder in up-to-date language of what a Christian wife should be doing.