Pause (Radio Edit) P-1

The past three weeks have been a whirlwind of activity for me.  I've switched jobs and downsized from renting a half-double home to a new apartment.  My job search was well past the 2 years mark and I was getting quite discouraged.  My living situation changed when my former landlord informed me she was selling the building and I needed to make arrangements to be out of there by the end of July.  Yes July.  

Without saying I was in a near panic mode.  Where was I going to find a new job and a new place to live within three weeks time?  I recall something Jesus said to His disciples from the book of Matthew verse 19:26 "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."  My outlook on the whole of the situation changed.  I no longer was afraid of the unknown, but I instead focused on what I did know.  And that is, that God is in control.  With that in the forefront of my mind I went about the task of praying and waiting for the Holy Spirit to speak to me.

Less than two days later He spoke and loudly.  

Before I continue let me add that for the previous two years I, me, Darryl was out looking for jobs in any and every place I could get to.  My feet and public transportation took me to fast food restaurants, family restaurants, grocery stores, Lowe's, Applebee's, Amazon and even a pet store for hopeful employment.  With no takers.  Finally I stopped and realized the error of my ways.  Where was God throughout my constant searching?  He was there, yet, I had not asked for His direction.  Throughout all of this transitioning and activity my personal time with God had suffered.  It was then that I hit the pause button on my activities and sought words and direction from my Master.   

As I said in the line before this paragraph, within two days the Spirit of God spoke and loudly. 

He first directed me to apply or shall I say reapply for a job I had long since forgotten about.  Less than twenty-four hours later I was called in for an interview.  Within a weeks time I had a second interview and was offered a full time position.  Praise offering #1.  My apartment search was in full swing.  Before work I would search the want ads for listings and make appointments for after work or my days off.  Nothing as of yet, but I was hopeful.  Going into week number two after much prayer and waiting I had an apartment.  Praise offering #2.

James 1:17 states, "Every good gift and every perfect is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning."

How could I continue at the frenetic pace I was going and not soon realize I wasn't getting anywhere?

I could not.  However, when I did pause and listen, I then knew what I should do.

So, today, despite my new fantastic job and my more manageable apartment, I had to once again hit the pause button and say "thank you LORD."  Complacency can become an issue after receiving a blessing from God.  It is something that plagues those within the bible also, so the reality of it is true.  

In closing I would like to say don't let 'life', whether good or bad, keep you from hitting the pause button and sending up praise offerings to God for making it all happen.

God bless

            

Play (Radio Edit) P-2

At this late hour of the night, 1239 to be exact, sleep has once again eluded me and now I am trying to think of what to write for the second part of my Radio Edit trilogy.  

A blank page lays before me.  This blank page invites new words and/or pictures of expression.  Where do I go from here?

Do I continue on from a previous story or idea?  Or do I start fresh and anew?  

The possibilities become endless once the author starts putting pen to paper.  

Looking at my current situation and thinking about where I have come from, a theme had been presented to me "new beginnings".  Going through Old Testament scriptures I settle on the exodus of the nation of Israel from Egypt.  

Moses was about to lead the children of God on a journey to the land of Promise.  There was no map, no GPS and no Google earth to show them the way, and no one had been there prior to this moment.  So what happens when you go from the known to the unknown?  You simply have to trust the One who is leading you there.  

Exodus 13:21-22 (21) And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night.  (22) He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.

This new job and my new apartment are blessings from the God I serve.  However, it was not easy for me to leave a place I had lived in for almost 20 years.  Israel had been in Egypt for 430 years.  For that time it was all that we both knew.  Israel and I had become accustomed to our circumstances and limitations and our chains.  Hope had become an ember.  Change was not going to come easily.     

If you have read the account then you know that this journey was not without its difficuties.

But in the end reading from Nehemiah 9:12, 19b (12) Morever You led them by day with a cloudy pillar, and by night with a pillar of fire, to give them light on the road which they should travel.  (19b) The pillar of the cloud did not depart from them by day, to lead them on the road; nor the pillar of fight by night, to show them light, and the way they should go.

God never left their side.  He was a continual presence for His chosen before, during and after the move.  How much more so would God be to me?

As the people settled into their inheritance they remembered all that Jehovah had done for them. He  led them out of Egypt, the journey through the wilderness and overcoming the nations that had come against them along the way.  I am quite sure they could not have imagined all that they had seen or heard.  I could not have imagined all that I have seen or heard as the LORD led me to where I am now.  

So, in closing, let me say this blank page will not be filled with words or pictures that come from me.  But it will be filled with the words of my MOST HIGH God who is a perpetual presence in my life.      

After all He has been spot on so far.

God bless 

Untitled blogpost

God spoke to me this morning.

I was in a sound sleep and out of nowhere this voice says, "Go and claim what I have given you."

My eyes popped open and I turned to see what time it was.  It was 309 a.m.

My only response could be "Yes LORD."