THE ANGELS CRY

Holy is the One Who Sits upon the Throne.

The Heavens are his tent and the Universe his home.

The beauty of creation made by His Voice.

The one who’s Spirit gives the breath of life.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy.

The Angels cry and so do I.

There are shattered dreams in this fallen world.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy.

The Angels cry and so do I.

A Baby gives a last goodbye.

A mother weeps for her child.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy.

The Angels cry and so do I.

In the midst of pain let your name be glorified.

Beyond this grief there is a master plan.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy

The Angels cry and so do I.

In His hands He holds a broken heart together.

He sends his peace that surpasses understanding.

Worthy is the One who’s greater than all wisdom.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy

The Angels cry and so do I.

In the midst of night, darkness surrounds me.

Jesus you are my guiding light.

The Angels cry and so do I.

Circumstance doesn’t change fact

 The angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy

The angels cry and so do I.

I can see God’s beauty in the face of Christ.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy

The Angels cry and so do I.

Lord let Christ be seen in me.

Help me to hear the whisper of your Spirit’s wind

Let your name be glorified with the works of my hands.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy

The Angels cry and so do I.

Holy is the Lord Who was and is to come…Holy and Perfect is He. He gazes into Eternity.

There Virtue will set you free.

The Angels cry Holy, Holy, Holy

The angels cry and so do I.

The Spillover

It seems like you can’t turn on your television or read a newspaper without hearing about border violence. Americans sit back and watch and shake their heads, unaware of a solution. Many are scared and frustrated. We see it. We hear about this violence that is spilling over. Are we safe? Are our children safe? The answer is no. We are not safe and if things keep on happening as they are it will touch us personally sooner or later. We wait silently waiting for a Savior (government officials) to step in and solve the problem. I was born and raised here in the Rio Grande Valley. I am often in awe of all of the churches that we have here. It seems like there is one on every street corner but yet hardly any members go out beyond the comfort of their church walls. We are living in a time where we don’t need to be scared or frustrated. We need to act. It is time for the church to cross denominational lines. It is time for the body of Christ to Unite. Has anyone ever heard the expression, “Divide and conquer? We have been defeated and divided for too long.

So many times we pray for God to send the laborers to spread his word. But we must realize WE are the laborers. So many times we pray for God to raise a standard. But We are the Standard! WE are the standard of morality and what we are accepting as a society is corrupting the morality of the next generation. God says that when the enemy rushes in like a flood that He will raise a standard against it. Did you really think that he wouldn’t ask us to get our hands dirty? We must stand for truth. It seems overwhelming and with no place to start. But let’s start with standing for what’s right. Let’s start with speaking for those that can’t speak for themselves. Let’s start with compassion. Let’s start with not being cowardly and let’s replace it with boldness. Let’s live a life of purity and worship in the midst of a crooked generation. Let’s put all filthiness aside and put on our robe of righteousness. It’s time to walk in Kingdom Authority. Let’s be The Church.



"When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up A standard against him." Isaiah 59:19

Turning 30

Why does it feel so odd turning 30?  The other day as I was filling out a form I asked somebody for the date. I suddenly realized that my birthday is on Saturday! I didn’t anticipate these strange feelings. Almost a feeling of a door closing behind me that I could never go back to. It almost feels as if the door has closed but yet I’m still holding onto the doorknob. It’s time to get uncomfortable and to move forward onto unchartered waters.   There was a time when I put restraints and contained Him in a box. Now I know that God is so big that He cannot be contained. A children’s song comes to mind. “My God is so big, so strong and so mighty there is nothing my God cannot do!” That’s when I realized that this is a new chapter in my life.

In this new chapter, all of the pages are blank. There are no limits to what God can do in this part of the story. I will have to be very careful to write the words “Glory be to God” on every page. This chapter will be illustrated by A merciful God who pursued me and didn’t give up on me.  May He paint his pictures with his strokes of grace. Suddenly the sun is setting on my twenties. I am now waiting for the sun to rise on a new decade of my thirties. I am reminded that physical beauty fades but the beauty that is given to us by God’s spirit will always remain. This is the time to really make myself beautiful with God’s Holy Word.  I can see everything becoming clearer. Life isn’t as complicated as I once had believed. The pieces of the puzzle are fitting together. I know the answer to a lot of life’s questions and what I don’t know I know that He will teach me. God’s word isn’t complicated. The answer I have found can be summed up in one name and that is the name of Jesus.

If someone is feeling empty only Jesus can fill that emptiness. Any sin that is overtaking your life you need to know that Jesus is stronger. Our toxic desires come from not having a relationship with Christ. The solution is living a God centered life and allowing everything else to fall into place. Things will not always turn out as planned or hoped for but rest in the outcome of knowing that God is in control. He is the only one that strengthens and fills with a peace that surpasses all understanding.  He will make sure that our pain isn’t wasted and turn everything that life can throw at us and use it for His Glory. So Lord dip your paint brush into my colors of pain and with your gentle strokes of grace make this story beautiful! All things were made by you, Lord and created for your glory. I lay myself down before you as a yielded instrument eager to be held in your hands. You gave me this birthday so I give it back to you. Here are my 30’s!

In the Silence..You are Speaking...

The Silence of God….is not really silence at all. He’s always speaking. It is us that stop listening. We allow our emotions to get in the way. Doubt and worry are sin. Sin always separates us from God. When my baby died I was so hurt and angry at God. But I was so worried about being a good “Christian” that I didn’t allow myself to accept the fact that I Was angry. I was deceiving myself. I could hear God speaking to me and I just shut his voice out. I wanted to wallow in my self pity. It was until I was honest with myself and before God that I admitted my anger that healing began. My mindset was shattered of Who I thought God to be. My faith was shaken. I didn’t know what I believed anymore. My thoughts were distorted. I allowed myself to be tormented by them.  So many times I had heard that depression or sickness couldn’t touch me. But I soon found myself sick with depression mentally and physically. There were times when I could almost feel my heart failing me. My body was showing symptoms of a heart that had been broken. Through it all I knew one thing, that I still loved God. He was still worthy of being praised no matter my circumstance. There were times I cried out in the midst of my pain. “God I’m angry at you! Why? God take this from me, I can’t do this. I can’t take it. I can’t hear your voice. If I have to live without hearing your voice then I would rather not live. God help me! God where are you? God you can’t leave me with my own thoughts I will surely die!”  In the midst of my pain He always reminded me that He would never leave me nor forsake me. I had lost my way. But He was the one that would help me find my way back. His precious Spirit comforted me and showed me that the feelings of depression would come and that they are very Real! Holy Spirit taught me that when they came. No matter how black the clouds were that I had to make a conscious choice and effort to resist. I must resist with God’s Word.  He also taught me to pay attention to what I was thinking and feeling. He taught me the importance of remembering and recognizing thoughts and emotions. Depression came and Depression went…in an ongoing battle…I resisted with the strength and wisdom of God’s Holy Word. Holy Spirit soon began to teach me that God wasn’t Who I thought Him to be. Holy Spirit showed me that He was greater than I could even imagine.  His ways were not my ways. He started to show me to look beyond the present and to look into eternity. If my mindset had never been shattered how could I ever break through a shallow relationship that I had with my creator. How would I ever go deeper, If I didn’t desire to know more about Him? How could he take me deeper? How could there be more intimacy if I didn’t ask those intimate questions about His person? People told me I had no right to go before the Throne of God and to question him. But you see I went to the Throne room crawled on his lap asked my Daddy questions and He answered me. He didn’t answer always. My Father told me that when I was old enough to handle his answer that He would. His love sustains me.  His love continues to carry me through.

John 14:26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

Why did Paul and Silas stay?

In Acts 16 Paul and Silas encountered a slave girl possessed by a spirit of divination who followed them around for days, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” Paul in his annoyance, said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” This slave girl was set free. Paul and Silas had angered her owners. God’s will always interrupts the plans of man. Paul and Silas are arrested having their naked bodies beaten and thrown in jail, and put in stocks.  At midnight they started praying and singing songs to the Lord. Then came a great earthquake that shook the foundation. Doors were opened and chains were loosed. While the Prison guard was about to take his life… Paul cried out and said we are all still here. The outcome: the prison guard and his family were saved and baptized! I used to often times ask myself the question, “Why did Paul & Silas stay?” Their chains had been loosed. The prison doors were open. It seemed like a perfect opportunity for freedom. I think most of us today would seize it as a perfect opportunity to escape. We would say of course it had to be God, He has delivered me! But Paul and Silas understood the ways of their Heavenly Father. They trusted that Our Father has plans to prosper us and not to bring harm. They understood that God was showing them something. He was demonstrating his Greatness to Paul and Silas, the fellow prisoners, and to us today. They understood that it was God who had set them free. But they also knew that even if the physical chains were no longer holding them there that they were still bound to Christ. God had them there for a reason, and even though it was not easy they trusted God. They allowed the desire to be set free to be overruled by God’s desire to see prisoners set free spiritually.  Their love for God and passion that they had to see God’s word furthered kept them there. They were no longer bound by chains but bound by their love for God. That’s the freedom that we have in Christ. Jesus Christ demonstrates this freedom at Calvary. He was not held by nails but by God’s love for us. His passion for us is revealed. Jesus gave his life for ours but will we give our lives for him?

 Note: Sometimes we will find ourselves in hospitals, prisons, etc. in seemingly "unfortunate" situations...but they are really opportunities for the Gospel to be furthered. He has annointed us to preach the gospel.

Phillipians 1: 12-14 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

Aggravation!

In this life you will be faced with people who have a tendency to get under your skin. Some may do it unintentionally while others do it very intentionally. Maybe they lie about you, maybe they do deceiving things to harm you or your reputation. And this kind of situation can be aggravating, heartbreaking, and frustrating. But rejoice, because even then God is doing a work in you. Whenever there is opposition, It means you are doing something right. His work is never done. And the work He started must be completed.
Sometimes we may want to run to a person’s arms of comfort. But they can’t provide the comfort that only comes from our Father in Heaven. We may want to take justice into our own hands or put justice into somebody else’s but it is only God who judges the motives of a heart. So we must not try to play the part of God. If God has allowed it He will use it to bring Glory to Himself. So what do we do? You may ask. We wait upon the Lord and we take it to Him in prayer. Only he can deal with the hearts of the hard hearted and prideful.  And He is the one who guides us into His ways of truth and honor. He is the one that sustains. He is the one who protects his children. He is the one that even warns us when someone wants to do harm to us.
But you see, if we were never put in harms way or put in a situation where we would be aggravated or hurt then we would never know  the Character or the Greatness of our God. If we lived a life of comfort and we were never uncomfortable then we probably would not pursue a deeper relationship with Him. How could our love grow If we were never tested? So many times I have had an emotional response to a situation like this..thinking that it was unfair and that I should have immediate justice. But even then God knew how I would react and He knows that my emotions sometimes get in the way. So with every situation that seems negative He is actually cleansing me of  selfishness and freeing me from my own emotions. We must remember that we are not led by our emotions but by the Spirit of the Living God. God is our perfect vindicator. So hand it over to Him. God is in control!

Are you uncomfortable?

Jesus came to provide comfort for the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. Today, you may feel down or  just very uncomfortable in your present situation. Maybe life is not turning out as planned. Maybe you are having to step out of your comfort zone to make ends meet. Whatever the circumstance is if you are uncomfortable then that is exactly the right place to be. Although it is tempting to moan and groan when we are going through hard situations..we must rejoice because God is doing a work in us…discomfort means growth. Discomfort means you will never again be the same. Christ says follow me. When you choose to follow him you will be uncomfortable and you will at times feel inadequate but during those times rely fully on God. He will lead you through..He didn’t promise it would be a piece of cake..but He promised peace in your present circumstance. A peace that surpasses all understanding. A peace that when people look at you and know your present circumstance that they will say Huh? And wonder by what power you are being sustained. The Power of God alone sustains and gives supernatural ability to endure. Being uncomfortable can make you want to cry, maybe make you nauseous but the more opportunities you have to be uncomfortable you will want to shout and rejoice because you know God is fulfilling the work that He promised to do in your life. Sometimes if we are not shaken we will refuse to move. In our pursuit of God it’s required for us to be uncomfortable because He is taking us from Glory to Glory..Whoo! Have a Blessed day and find rest in knowing   Romans 8:28-30 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.