Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 5 Focus Day 5 Promises

“And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified [declared free of the guilt of sin]; and those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity]. What then shall we say to all these things? If God is for us, who can be [successful] against us?”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:30-31‬ ‭AMP‬‬

God has an incredible track record of keeping His promises. Since, He is eternal, has no beginning (like birth or being created) or no end (like death), God is still holding at 100% of the promises He made, He has kept and fulfilled 100% of those promises. I realize that we are waiting on a few more, but given His track record of thousands of years since creation, I am trusting, believing and with great excitement, as well as reverence, preparing and waiting with confidence, that the rest of His promises will come through, too.

But the promise that changed my eternity is what Jesus did for me on the cross. He paid my debt for my sin, while I was a sinner, He conquered sin and death, just like He said He would, and while He is in heaven preparing a place for me, He’s telling our Father all about me but covering my sin with His righteousness so that our Father only sees, the me, that He created, not the me, that I made a mess of. They are discussing how madly in love they are with me and how they can not wait to share the home they made, just for me. My God is the perfect picture of promises made and promises kept.

My friend, the same is true for you, if you would just believe that God is who He says He is, that you are who He says you are and that it matters enough to you, to get in His word and define that, for you. Get in His presence and talk to Him. What a privilege it is to have access to God anywhere and anytime. You have VIP passes, with no restrictions to God’s ear, His heart, His chest to lean against, His lap to crawl up on and His embrace.

The only thing standing between you and God is your hard head and hardened heart. The world did that to you, not God. God is waiting on You, you are not waiting on God. God never left you. That’s a fact and a promise.

Lord, help us get a true vision of the promise keeper that You truly are and help us see ourselves as You see us. In this world, there is much confusion and false narratives about You but the Bible stands as a written witness to what a loving God You are. That You never change. You are ever constant in this world that is like shifting sand beneath our feet. I pray that we place our trust in the promise of who You are. That we stop looking to the world for heavenly answers. Amen.

“Who is the one who condemns us? Christ Jesus is the One who died [to pay our penalty], and more than that, who was raised [from the dead], and who is at the right hand of God interceding [with the Father] for us. Who shall ever separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? Just as it is written and forever remains written,
“FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE ARE REGARDED AS SHEEP FOR THE SLAUGHTER.”
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors and gain an overwhelming victory through Him who loved us
[so much that He died for us].”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:34-37‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 5 Focus Day 4 Truth vs Lie

“Who are you?” they asked. Jesus replied, “ I’m exactly who I have claimed to be from the beginning. I have many things to say in judgment concerning you. The one who sent me is true, and what I have heard from him I tell the world. ” They didn’t know he was speaking about his Father. So Jesus said to them, “ When the Human One is lifted up, then you will know that I Am. Then you will know that I do nothing on my own, but I say just what the Father has taught me. He who sent me is with me. He doesn’t leave me by myself, because I always do what makes him happy. ””
‭‭John‬ ‭8:25-29‬ ‭CEB‬‬

We live in a time where information is at our fingertips at a click of a mouse or mouse pad. But that does not mean that the information that we have access to is true. So how do we know what or who to believe with so much information to sort through? Simply put, our Bible and the Holy Spirit that lives inside of every believer will guide us, if we read the Bible and give into the Holy Spirit.

Let me explain. There are many more owned Bibles than read Bibles. There are many more lip service believers than sold out believers, that depend on the Holy Spirit to decipher a truth from a lie. I know this to be true by mere observation of the world I live in today. The Bible is clear on what God created, who God created and why. Yet the world is confused about their identity. The world does not look to God for truth, it looks to what is trending on social media and popular for the moment.

We can’t really have an intelligent conversation about it if you have not read the Bible and what it says about it. When an unbeliever says the Bible is not true. I ask what part, point out to me what you’ve read that isn’t true. I do not recall, one answer, in my 33 years of being a Christian that the person in dialogue was able to point out a thing. So these conversations ended typically with, how about I give you a place to start reading in the Bible then we’ll talk. I also do not recall anyone that took me up on my offer that did not eventually become a believer. The others left indignantly as if I offended them somehow. Though, unfortunate, I always prayed that someone could reach them better than me. I am not everyone’s cup of tea but I am okay with that because I know who God is to me, Who I am to Him and why that matters. I’ll be me and let Jesus worry about saving the people.

Lord, I pray for any of us that me be in the middle of sorting out truth from lies. Whether it be biblical truths or just sorting out the crossroads we face in every day life as humans. That we would pray for the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to Your truth, wisdom and power as we dig into the Bible for answers. Help us find a mentor to guide us when we do not know where to start. Thank You Lord for who You Are and helping me become all that You created me to be. Amen.

“So Jesus was saying to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word [continually obeying My teachings and living in accordance with them, then] you are truly My disciples. And you will know the truth [regarding salvation], and the truth will set you free [from the penalty of sin].””
‭‭John‬ ‭8:31-32‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 5 Focus Day 3 Covered

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves…
The Lord God made clothing from skins for the man and his wife, and he clothed them.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭3:7, 21‬ ‭CSB‬‬

When we mess up, the first response is usually to hide just like Adam and Eve did in the garden. There’s something to be said about going to things first ever mentioned in the Bible. Every time I start at the first mention, of any topic I am studying, I learn not only how relevant the Bible is today but how cyclical humanity is.

In the beginning, when Adam and Eve sinned, disobeyed God and bought the lie, hook, line and sinker from the devil, the Bible says, “they hid… they sewed together fig leaves… and covered themselves.” We do the same thing or at the very least, want to do that when we mess up but maybe as a seasoned believer you’ve already learned it’s best to go straight to Father with your sin. After all, He is the only remedy to our sin. When we try to cover our sin, it looks just as awkward as sewn together fig leaves over our bodies and I bet if we were to be honest, our man-made coverings like guilt, condemnation, shame, denial, anger, fear, frustration, depression and more tangible coverings like addiction, promiscuity, over eating, workaholic…. (you get the idea) aren’t exactly a good fit, they completely makes us uncomfortable in our own skin. We find ourselves avoiding God all together and completely avoiding looking ourselves in the eye in the proverbial mirror. Can I just let you know that you or I are not hiding it from God any better than Adam and Eve did in their day?

Fast forward to after God has a conversation with Adam and Eve, explaining their consequences and banishment to the lovely place we call “the world as we know it” today. But before God banishes them, He covers them with His covering, made by Him, just for them. It does not specify in the text but there is a covering that I envision and that is the Armor of God.
I highly recommend reading the whole armor of God in the Amplified Version of the Bible. Here is a snippet: “Therefore, put on the complete armor of God, so that you will be able to [successfully] resist and stand your ground in the evil day [of danger], and having done everything [that the crisis demands], to stand firm [in your place, fully prepared, immovable, victorious].”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6:13‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Imagine if Adam and Eve had stood their ground and obeyed like this verse declares.

Read Ephesians 6:10-20 Amplified version.

God knew that Adam and Eve needed His supernatural covering and that nothing man-made was going to survive the battle for redemption ahead of them and us. God had a plan right from the beginning of the first mention of disobedience. He took the mess they tried covering themselves up with and covered them with a custom covering, for now. Until these earthly bodies fade away and we receive our perfect body that will last for all of eternity in heaven.

I believe God sent them out of the garden with His spiritual covering equivalent to the armor of God spoken of here in Ephesians 6, until He returned as Son of man and Son of God at the garden of Gethsemane. That blood of Salvation from Calvary covers our sin today until Jesus returns to take us home. We are covered by Him today as we battle through this fallen world together. You are covered by what you pray in agreement to like the blood of Jesus and the armor of God. You are covered by the Holy Spirit who is the guide God has given us until He returns.

My family’s Paraphrased Version of the Armor. We pray this every morning.
Lord, I pray that the helmet of salvation would cover my mind and filter out anything that is not of you from my eyes, my ears and my mouth, thank you for the breastplate of righteousness that covers my heart and everything that keeps me alive and productive, I choose to buckle the belt of truth around my waist that holds me and my armor together, I step into your shoes of peace, I choose to walk in peace with You, God, others and myself, I lock my shield of faith in place with yours and other believers, Lord, to extinguish every fiery dart from the enemy, not by faith in myself or others but my faith in you, Lord, I hold up my sword of the spirit which is the word of God, dividing good from evil, truth from lies and bone from marrow to defeat the enemy and fight for truth. I am covered by you, Lord. Amen.

“You forgave your people’s guilt; you covered all their sin. Selah”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭85:2‬ ‭CSB‬‬

“Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not conceal my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah Therefore let everyone who is faithful pray to you immediately. When great floodwaters come, they will not reach him.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭32:5-6‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 5 Focus Day 2 Identity

“Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭139:13-16‬ ‭MSG‬‬

God, You, created us with such great joy and delight. You loaned us to our family for a season until we would be with You in paradise. What a concept. To fully identify with this verse and believe it is a huge milestone in our faith-walk level of maturity. Not to just see these verses as poetic masterpieces but to see ourselves as the Uncreated One’s living, breathing, reflection of His favorite design.

Maybe your parents encouraged you in believing that you are loved, purposed and valued. Maybe your parents made you feel like a mistake, a burden or unwanted. Either way, you and I were on loan to them.

You are not a mistake. You were made for a specific purpose by God before he began to shape your baby toe. The rest of the world may not understand your place in this world but it’s not their job to figure that out, it’s yours. Once you do, your whole view will go from darkness to light.

Lord, help us look to eternal You for our identity rather than this temporary world. This is not our final destination, You are. Help us identify, with Your guidance, who we are to you and why that matters. May we never accept the lie of being a mistake or unwanted, by people that were supposed to love us. May we be grateful for those that pointed us to You. Amen.

“See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children — and we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it didn’t know him.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭3:1‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 5 Focus Day 1 My God

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1:1-4‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Who is God to me? Have you ever really pondered the relationship you have with God or the depth of it? If someone were to ask you who God is and why do you believe in Him, do you have an answer? I pray you do, and if you don’t, I pray that you study His character, His integrity and His heart, until you sense His heart beat as you lean against His chest. I pray you feel the very breath in your lungs from Him as you sense His cheek against your cheek. I pray that He becomes the safe place that you run to instead of thinking He’s an angry God that you have to run from, every time you mess up.

My God, our God is the uncreated one who created every living thing with a few simple sentences. But for us, His beloved, He formed us with His very hands and breathed life into our lungs. We are His image bearers with His very fingerprints engraved in our skin as He shaped us ever so delicately before placing us in our mother’s womb. How precious the thought and care He took to design each of us. No one, no not one, will love me, like my God, my Creator and my Savior. My God created the light to consume the darkness before He would allow me to be here. My God has been providing an environment for me to thrive in long before I got here.

Lord, I pray that we do not miss the details in which you brought us to life to have a relationship with You. That every detail of the preparations You made to provide us everything we need for an abundant life here, while on this temporary journey. How much more do we have to look forward to, when we get to heaven? Heaven, where sin and death are defeated for all of eternity. Help us, Lord, keep our eyes on You and what you have created so that we have that hope, that light inside of us to share with others. Amen.

“All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.”
‭‭John‬ ‭1:3-5‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 4 Nothing Wasted Day 7 Clocked into Purpose

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2:10‬ CSB

It all looks good in verses, sermons and devotionals, but how do we clock into purpose? We can not apply what we do not know and or if we do not understand the why behind the do, or the how behind the apply.

Be careful, as we grow in Christ, to not be condescending towards someone who is not where you are yet. Be in tuned and always remember the wretch you were before you point out others wretched behavior.

I’m going to break it down; the how to clock into purpose steps. This is simple but it is a process. Everyone’s process is different. The first goal is to commit to never stop taking these steps through the process. The second goal is to allow yourself to be shaped and molded by the process rather than try to reshape the process to make it more comfortable. It’s okay if it’s uncomfortable. This is where the learning takes place.

Clocking into purpose will be familiar because it aligns with how God designed you. Your sinful nature, also known as the flesh, will fight you every step of the way to fulfilling your purpose, so be ready for the fight. Just remind yourself to be on the right side of the fight for your purpose.

Here are the steps:

Know who God is to you.
Know who you are to God.
Know why that matters.

These 3 simple steps will take the entire span of your life, while you’re on loan here, to master, but it will give you the confidence for and about eternity.

Next week we will discuss 7 areas to focus on to help us define who God is to us, find our identity in who He says we are to Him and learn why that matters in the process.

Lord, we are a mess without You. Thank You for the process. Thank You for taking my messy self and making something beautiful out of my mess. Help me focus on getting to know You and me better so that I understand the quality of life that my relationship with You brings to me and those around me. Amen.

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 4 Nothing Wasted Day 6 Dare to dream

“But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait eagerly for it with patience and composure.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:25‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Nothing crushes our dreams like traumatic experiences and basic adult responsibilities. As a child we dream big about what we will do when we grow up. Some kids have the joy and privilege of a home that encourages their dreams, some have parents who to try to control their dreams, some have parents that want you to pursue THEIR dreams instead of your own and some parents crush their kid’s dreams with abuse, negligence and abandonment. Regardless of what kind of childhood you had, you can still dare to dream.

We’ve covered so much in the past 4 weeks about distractions, giving our battle to God, grieving and facing what we have lost and now placing what belongs in the past, in the past, while learning from it, embracing our present, by living with the reality of our now, to looking forward to a hopeful future. None of this is possible without leaning consistently on God’s strength. If we lean on our own strength we will burn out.

I challenge you to dare to dream like you did as a child. Dare to live a life of passion and purpose. I dare you to ask God to break your heart for what breaks His. I dare you to start something you put off that you can’t stop thinking about. I dare you to dream.

Lord, the hints of what makes us who we are, because of who You are, started in our childhood. I understand that not everyone grew up in an environment that nurtured and developed their uniqueness. I pray that we remember our dreams of our youth, that the opportunity to develop that purpose and passion would be ignited inside of us once again so we could be walking out the journey made just for us. Help us, Lord, dare to dream, with that child like faith. Amen.

“It’s not that I have already reached this goal or have already been perfected, but I pursue it, so that I may grab hold of it because Christ grabbed hold of me for just this purpose. Brothers and sisters, I myself don’t think I’ve reached it, but I do this one thing: I forget about the things behind me and reach out for the things ahead of me. The goal I pursue is the prize of God’s upward call in Christ Jesus. So all of us who are spiritually mature should think this way, and if anyone thinks differently, God will reveal it to him or her. Only let’s live in a way that is consistent with whatever level we have reached.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭3:12-16‬ ‭CEB‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 4 Nothing wasted Day 5 Embrace the present

“If you decide that it’s a bad thing to worship GOD, then choose a god you’d rather serve—and do it today. Choose one of the gods your ancestors worshiped from the country beyond The River, or one of the gods of the Amorites, on whose land you’re now living. As for me and my family, we’ll worship GOD.”
‭‭Joshua‬ ‭24:15‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Every day we wake up here on this earth we we wake up with a choice. Will we embrace the day with God as the leader or the co-pilot?

We cannot embrace this day, fully seize the day if we do not understand the mission. Like I have stated before, we are on loan to the world until our creator calls us home to heaven. Each day we are given here on earth has purpose. A very specific, intentionally-designed purpose, a journey designed just for you. You will impact other people and their journey. Embracing your daily moment means putting God in the driver’s seat of the day while learning and living out your purpose. If you have not learned what your purpose is then that is step one. Find out what makes you feel alive and accomplished. Find out what keeps you going when everything in you wants to quit.

The best way to find out what your purpose is, is to get out of the driver’s seat first thing, the minute you open your eyes, before you pull the covers back or your feet hit the ground, simply offer God the driver’s seat and get out of His way. Humbly seek His will for the day. You will be surprised at how quickly God leads you in the best of the best scenic routes in life. Will there be bumpy roads along the way? Yes. Will there be some fatalities? Yes. But wrapping your arms around God while He is driving is much safer than taking your hands off the wheel to reach for God in the middle of life’s crisis’s.

You are more equipped to face this day than you give yourself credit for. God is right there, ready to take the keys so you can enjoy the view, learn the best route and reach your final destination. God is such a gentleman and believes in the freedom to choose Him out of sheer trust and love, that He’s not going to snatch those keys out of your hand.

Lord, we can be such control freaks that rather than embrace our days we put a white-knuckle-grip on them. Help us choose You and rest in handing over our keys and let You take us where we need to go. Whether it be mentally, emotionally or physically, we choose You to lead the way. This world is full of distractions, detours and even disasters but when I choose to embrace You, I choose to embrace my days with eternity in mind. Amen.

‬‬ “My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are antithetical, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence?”
‭‭Galatians‬ ‭5:16-18‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive. Week 4 Nothing wasted Day 4 Accept the past

“If we claim, “We don’t have any sin,” we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from everything we’ve done wrong. If we claim, “We have never sinned,” we make him a liar and his word is not in us.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭1:8-10‬ ‭CEB‬‬

If we are to accept our past, we must admit to what has happened and face it. I have also learned that holding onto any unforgiveness towards myself, God, or other people will cause my mind to give that person or situation free rent space in my head.

If we are focused on the things from the past, that we cannot change, it robs us of giving attention to our present moments that actually have the most potential for better choices. In this present moment, we have the opportunity to apply what we have learned from the past rather than repeat the mistakes we have made. However, if we beat ourselves up over what we have done in the past, it will take up mental space to accomplish what we can do with our present moment.

We cannot talk about accepting the past without discussing the injustice, abuse and unfair treatment from others. Especially, those that were supposed to love us or vowed to be there for us forever. Betrayal like that hurts, causes wounds in the heart that are hard to process. Those wounds become battle scars for the next battle. I hope this gives you a little groundwork for healing when I share this about forgiveness.

Let me tell you what forgiveness does not mean:

It does not mean that what happened is okay with you or that you condone the behavior.
It does not mean that you have to keep a relationship with this person.
It does not mean that they are set free.
What it does mean:
You do trust God to bring justice to the situation and allow the battle to belong to the Lord.
You get to set the boundaries. You are in total control of how, if at all, this person is back in your life.
You get that free rent space back in your head so you can live your best life, right now. You are free.

Lord, there are no secrets between us, yet we keep things from you as if there were. Help us include you in our offenses from the sin in our own lives as well as the unfairness, injustice and hurts brought in our lives from others. Help us forgive quickly, accept our past for what it is and live in the present with wiser perspective. Amen.

“Let all bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander be removed from you, along with all malice. And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4:31-32‬ ‭CSB‬‬‬‬

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 4 Nothing Wasted Day 3 Look forward to the future

“Let God grant what is in your heart and fulfill all your plans. Then we will rejoice that you’ve been helped. We will fly our flags in the name of our God. Let the LORD fulfill all your requests!”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭20:4-5‬ ‭CEB‬‬

I love planning. My favorite thing is to sit down and make lists to check off for the day and conquer the list. I also like having a full calendar to conquer. It makes me feel accomplished and maximizes my waking hours. Unless, of course, life throws a curve ball to the face and nothing or only part of the task lists get done. Then I beat myself up mentally and verbally until guilt takes over and I feel worthless. What I have to do is find balance in the planning, allow flexibility but, most importantly, I need God and His heart at the forefront of my planning. It took me years to apply this. I mean after all, I’m a fairly good planner, I want to succeed, I want everyone around me to succeed but the reality is that if God is not in on it, it can be a really good plan but that does not make it a God plan.

Does this mean we stop planning and just throw caution to the wind? Lord knows I would discombobulate at the thought of that (insert nervous giggle here). What it does mean is that when God is on our mind and pleasing Him matters more than our plans, our plans will align more and more with His plans. Over time we learn to adjust to the surprises along life’s journey so that we can prioritize properly according to God’s plans and recognize divine appointments over man made appointments.

The most important part of our plans is including God in them. The next most important part is making room for adjustments. Lastly, make time for rest. Us planners can pack a schedule full of good things but that doesn’t necessarily make them God things.

Lord, You are the uncreated one that created everyone. We are your greatest plan. It only makes sense that finding out what plan and purpose you have chosen for us will succeed. Help us align with that unique purpose You designed for us. Amen.

“Mortals make elaborate plans, but GOD has the last word. Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good; GOD probes for what is good. Put GOD in charge of your work, then what you’ve planned will take place.

When GOD approves of your life, even your enemies will end up shaking your hand.

We plan the way we want to live, but only GOD makes us able to live it.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16:1-3, 7, 9‬ ‭MSG‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week4 #nothingwasted #future

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 4: Nothing Wasted Day 2: Live in the present

“Who among you by worrying can add a single moment to your life?”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:27‬ ‭CEB‬‬

Living in the present is much more achievable if we can leave the past behind us and plan for the future without worrying about the future.

Whether you have a train wreck behind you or sweet little bunny path full of sweetness for a past, your past is done. All you can do is embrace what is in front of you because as we learned from our grief week, it is all temporary. If we dwell on and beat ourselves up about the past or stress about the future, we rob ourselves of what is in front of us.

We can learn a lot from the past by simply pulling out that “ugly journal” we discussed in prior weeks and write down every time we freaked out about something that ended up turning out better than we ever imagined. When you start to stress, read and remind yourself that everything is going to be okay. I also like to add that it may not be the okay I planned for but it will be okay.

When you find yourself uttering the words, “could’ve”, “should’ve” or “would’ve”, stop, say out loud “Not productive, not going to help me.” Rather than verbally bash yourself and put yourself in a position to not be able to change what’s done, give yourself advice on how you will do it differently. That’s all you can do is learn from it and do it differently next time. Then trust God in the process.

By removing the weight of your yesterdays and the heaviness of the uncertainties of tomorrow, from your today, you can live in the present. If you’re a professional worrier, make it a point to become a warrior of prayer. Turn every worry into a conversation with God. Tell Him exactly what you are concerned about and then stick to what is directly in front of you, right now.

Toby Mac once said something so profound that really helped me get the concept of living in the present moment:
“We worry about tomorrow like it’s promised”

Lord, we are a work in progress but we are also your vessel of spreading the good news. Help us be more aware of what we bring into our present moments that do not belong there. Help us focus on the gift of this day and show up for every divine appointment. Amen.

“Therefore, stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:34‬ ‭CEB‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week4 #nothingwasted #live #present

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 4 Nothing Wasted Day 1 Learn from the past

“The Lord is the one who made a road through the sea for you to cross. You went on a dry path in the middle of the deep water. He led the enemy’s great army, with their chariots and their horses, to chase you. They all fell down and the water drowned them. Their lives finished, like the flame of a lamp that stops burning.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭43:16-17‬ ‭EASY‬‬

If there is but one thing that I can testify to is this: God does not waste one thing. God has the absolute most stunning track record. No matter what I have experienced, the comeback has always been better than the setback.

We can learn from the things in our past. Especially, if we consider our survival rate at this point is 100%. To clarify, if you are breathing, you have survived 100% of what is behind you. This week our goal is to go from surviving to thriving.

If I am to be honest, I forget that in the process of the issue, challenge, loss or whatever is causing me concern in the moment. I still worry myself over things that have not happened. I feel the weight of the decisions being made. In the face a moment, not knowing, what was about to crush me, in ways I had never imagined. Yet, every time I get out of the way and God has HIS way, He makes a way, out of no way.

What I considered a set back, at the time, I look back and see God setting me up for the next comeback. I can label certain seasons a victory now but when I was in the middle of it, it sure did not seem like a victory. What I have learned while being more mindful of God’s track record, than mine, is that He does not waste a hurt, a struggle or my emotional pain. Everything in my timeline is shaping me for my next.

We, as Christians, get blindsided when we think that once we believe in Jesus, that we somehow get a problem free life and a get out of hell card. We will face problems. (James 1:2-6) We might as well accept that. Let God in on it, if we want the best outcome from it.

We serve a God of passion and purpose. Once we align ourselves with that truth, we get an internal peace that surpasses all understanding. (Philippians 4:6) We experience the gift of peace, from God, in the storm, if our focus is on Him. But if we focused on avoiding or eliminating the storm our peace slips away. (Isaiah 26:3)

Lord, help us lean not on our own understanding when life throws us problems. Help us lean into Your presence and promises so that Your peace and strength can carry us through those storms in life. Help us turn it all over to you for our own good. Amen.

“The Lord did all that for you, but now he says, ‘Forget those things that happened a long time ago. Do not think about past events. Look! Now I will do something that is new! It is already beginning to happen. Surely, you can recognize it. Yes, I will make a road through the desert. I will make streams in the wilderness.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭43:18-19‬ ‭EASY‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week4 #nothingwasted #learn #past

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 3 Day 7 Grief: New normal

“King David longed to go to Absalom, for David had finished grieving over Amnon’s death.”
‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭13:39‬ ‭CSB‬‬

When we lose someone we love or a season comes to an end that brought us much comfort and joy, we grieve. How we grieve matters. Avoiding grief will catch up with us eventually. If you are reading this and have not read Days 1-6 of week 3, I highly recommend doing so now. Do not avoid the process of grieving.

Before you go thinking that I do not understand loss, let me share a few of my most painful losses. At 4 years old, I watched our home burn to the ground with all of our belongings in it. Shortly after, my parents divorced. At 9 years old my father was murdered. At 10 years old my mother married my first of many abusers. I have lost people I loved to suicide, I thought that I could have saved. I have had 2 miscarriages. I lost my grandparents, my mom and my father figure within 5 years of of each other. I lost my best friend of 40 years unexpectedly to a heart condition (she was 50). I have lost relationships I thought would never end. Friendships with people and families had come to an abrupt end with no conversation as to why. I have known great success and great loss to the point that I feared being homeless.

In all of that pain that I experienced, of losing so much, I realized how temporary anything but God is. I have accepted that death is inevitable for anything or anyone that carries breath in their lungs. Death will take me by surprise but it does not have to take me down to the point of losing my life before my time is up. There is no way to escape death. We will experience it ourselves one day and will likely experience losing someone we know and or love to it. The most hopeful thing I’ve ever been offered is an eternity beyond this life; an eternity with the one who created me and loaned me to earth for a time; an eternity with no more tears, no more sadness, no more sickness, no more broken relationships and no more death. We are all on loan here from the moment of conception to death. Maybe that’s why the two greatest commandments are:

to love God with all of your heart, all of your mind and all of your soul. 2. To love your neighbor as yourself. With those two commandments the goal is to know our Maker’s voice when He calls us home. We want to treat everyone kindly while they’re on loan to us because we never know when their time is up.

In my opinion, birth is a sign of God’s gift of life while death is reminder of the timeline most of pay no attention to. As a believer in God, I can accept the timeline He gives me because I know it doesn’t end here. Therefore I must tell others that are still here about eternity and share this hope with them.

Lord, death is the most painful part of life, this side of eternity. Help us honor the living and the time our loved ones were on loan to us. Help us process grief in a way that brings honor to the ones we say goodbye to, for now. Amen.

“Then David got up and he washed himself. He put on clean clothes and special oil that had a good smell. He went into the Lord ‘s house to worship him. Then he returned to his own house and he asked for food. They gave it to him and he ate it.”
‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭12:20‬ ‭EASY‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week3 #grief #acceptance #newnormal

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 3 Day 6 Grief: Acceptance

“There is a right time for everything that we do under the sun. There is a time to be born. And there is a time to die. There is a time to plant seeds. Then the seeds will grow and they will become plants. And there is a time to pick the plants.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:1-2‬ ‭EASY‬‬
“There is a time to weep. And there is a time to laugh. There is a time to be sad. And there is a time to dance.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:4‬ ‭EASY‬‬

When the fog begins to lift, reality sets in, and we’re squinting to find the light in the darkness, this is the beginning of acceptance. It is not stable at first but each day we take a step in the direction of our reality is a step closer to living with this loss. It does not mean that we won’t experience the other steps in the grieving process ever again. It just means they will reintroduce themselves with different levels of intensity at different lengths of time every time We are reminded that our loved one is not here.

What it does mean is that I loved this person while they were here and I will miss them deeply. My faith tells me, reminds me of the timeline they had, I have and others too. My faith also reminds me that I will see them again. I rest in this hope while I build up the strength to live life without them. I find ways to remember them well and share the impact that they had on my life. I choose to live and embrace the people I have around me and let them in on my pain. I choose to not isolate and choose to embrace the plan and purpose God has for me while I walk out my own timeline. None of us know when our time is up. Nobody makes it out alive, therefore, this loss should come as no surprise, it absolutely catches us off guard and it does come with pain and sorrow. While I work it all out through grieving what and who I have loved when it’s their time to go I will hope again and cherish the memories.

Lord, help me accept my loss in a way that shows my deep love for them while acknowledging the empty space they leave behind. Lord, fill that space with comfort, peace, love and joy. Help me carry on without them as I finish my own journey. Help me allow others permission to grieve how they need to. Help me walk in hope for the future here on earth and hope in eternity. Amen.

“Yes, you will have trouble like this for a short time. But after that, God will make everything right. He is completely kind and he will always help you. Because you belong to Christ, God has chosen you to live with him in heaven for ever. You will join him in that beautiful place. Then God will make you well again. He will make you strong in your spirits. You will be able to stand strongly. Yes, God rules with power for ever! Amen! This is true!”
‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭5:10-11‬ ‭EASY‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week3 #grief #acceptance #hope

Nobody Makes It Out Alive Week 3 Day 5 Grief: Depression

“I hear your waterfalls make a noise like thunder. It seems like all that water is pouring over me and it knocks me down to the ground.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭42:7‬ ‭EASY‬‬

Depression from loss is normal. It would be odd to not be sad when someone we love so much is no longer with us. It would be out of character to not be sad when a situation we found joy and contentment in has now ended abruptly or unexpectedly. To the same extent that we loved is the extent we will experience sorrow when that person or situation is gone. That sorrow is temporary but cyclical at times. We eventually learn to balance the sadness from our loss with the demands of living.

This becomes a problem when we stay in that sadness and not learn to find away to live without them or the situation. Though everyone grieves at different stages for different lengths of time, we must live, while we grieve. Ease ourselves back into the familiar routines that use up space and time that would be used to rehearse the pain. Part of our healing comes from living again as well as going from surviving our loss to coping with our loss. You might have doubts right now because it’s still fresh but it is possible. So, if you’re trapped in the process of depression, if you’re so immobilized by the pain of your loss that you can hardly get out of bed, make a sandwich or enjoy the many dishes of food brought to you by friends and family, it’s time to find a grief counselor. It’s time to think about asking for help. You are not as alone as you feel. God is with you, weeping with you and there are grief counseling groups, therapists and grief resources available to you. Friends mean well but they’re usually not equipped to help you out of depression. There are coping skills that a professional grief counselor can provide, if you’re willing.

The atmosphere of depression typically sets in the week after all of the arrangements have been made, the services are done, your autopilot has turned off, you do not have to be strong for anyone else, all of the company has gone home and you’re surrounded by food that will spoil before you can finish it, a card-box full of condolences and funeral arrangements. The tears flow and you fall asleep on a tear soaked pillow or worse you choke back the tears because you’re afraid once they start, you won’t be able to stop them.

This depression, this sadness will pass. And when it does, it does not mean that the person you love and lost is forgotten. It means, that you grieved and it’s time to learn how to honor their time here while you honor the time you have left with the ones still here.

Cry as much as your body tells you to. It will release toxins and help cleanse away the pain. Get into a grief group or at least meet with a grief counselor. But whatever you do do not try to battle this alone. Do not let the sadness convince you that you’re alone.

Lord, this stage of grief is so confusing and a blur when we look back on it. Help us reach out when the heaviness of our loss goes from normal, temporary depression to a clinical kind of depression. Trigger something in us to know when to ask for help. Lord, we thank you for never leaving us though we may feel like You’ve abandoned us. Feelings are not fact, they are like an indicator light on the dashboard of our car that help us navigate through our life journey. Help us respond accordingly in the best way, for the best outcome. Amen.

“God will take away all the tears from their eyes. Nobody will ever die again. Nobody will be sad again. Nobody will ever cry. Nobody will have pain again. Everything that made people sad has now gone. That old world has completely gone away.’”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭21:4‬ ‭EASY‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week3 #grief #depression

Week 3 Nobody Makes It Out Alive Day 3 Grief: Anger

“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭22:1-2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Anger is so appropriate after denial, isn’t it? Facing the injustice of death of a loved one or an end to a situation we thought we could count on forever. Rage begins to bubble for various reasons when we realize that the loss is irreversible. We start thinking of how unfair it all is, what we would’ve done differently had we had the chance. That sinking feeling that however our last moments were spent with that person we will not have another chance for a do-over.

The key for me in this stage of grief is to get it out by writing in my ugly journal. Yes that’s a real thing. I have a journal that my pen has gouged through, scratch marks that looks like a crime scene as well as my most unedited thoughts.. While other pages have words that would be rated with parental advisory in them. This journal is not for anyone but God and me. God, already knowing and understanding my pain, my frustration, my tear stained pages, He is the only one that gets the “why” behind my anger. He is the only One of whom I can trust in my own fragility to get me on through to other side.

Anger is normal. What is not normal or healthy is to let it live inside of you. If we allow anger to live inside of us, it will grow and it will slowly move every other necessary emotion out of us until we can’t process in love.

If you struggle with anger, get help to learn how to undo it’s damage to yourself and the ones living around you. Once someone is gone, through death or loss, or a season with them is over, our responsibility from here on out is to take care of our health and well-being as well as the people still with us. It doesn’t mean that we forget the person we lost. What it means is we find gratitude for the time we did have with them. Resting on anger for too long will not only destroy our current relationships but will destroy us too.

Lord, help us process our anger in a healthy way and show us how to get on the other side of it. We might wrestle with it more than once on this journey, but Lord, we don’t want it to consume us and the relationships we still have. Amen.

“Go ahead and be angry. You do well to be angry—but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4:26-27‬ ‭MSG‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week3 #grief #anger

Week 3 Nobody Makes It Out Alive Day 2 Grief: The delusion of denial

“Be kind and patient in a way that everyone can see. Remember that the Lord is near. Do not worry about anything. Instead, pray to God about everything. Ask him to help you with the things that you need. And thank him for his help. If you do that, God will give you peace in your minds. That peace is so great that nobody can completely understand it. You will not worry or be afraid, because you belong to Christ Jesus.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:5-7‬ ‭EASY‬‬

Most, or close to all, experts agree that the necessity to process loss is vital to being able to function physically, emotionally and mentally without the person or thing that they lost. Watching a loved one go through the process of loss and grief can be challenging. Many times we don’t know how to respond to our own grief so we fail at supporting others through theirs. Whether your watching someone you love process their grief or working through your own grief, reach out, listen, hug, cry but whatever you do, do not do nothing.

I am high on the list of people that when I do not know what to do, I do nothing. I shut down and am comfortable pushing everyone away, when I’m hurting. I tend to go silent if someone else is hurting for fear of saying something the wrong way and worse, being responsible for making them feel worse. I’m learning ways to break that habit of going silent when people I love are hurting. Go ahead and steal these if you struggle with this too. The first thing I do is reach out and acknowledge their loss. A simple: “I’m so sorry for your loss.”The other thing I do is follow up and let them know I’m thinking of them. It goes something like this: “Hey, I was thinking of you today. I’m available if you need to talk.” What I don’t do anymore is ask how they’re doing. That question triggers me so I just stopped saying it. Grieving people need to grieve at their own pace. If you’re genuine, just be available. You don’t have to fix it, or preach at anyone or force them through the process. Everyone grieves differently. So by giving yourself and others permission to go through the process at your/their own pace is typically well-received. The fact is it hurts. Let the pain of the loss be felt without judgement or guilt. We/they eventually get through the pain to acceptance but there are some more steps in the process to get there. Be patient with yourself and with others that are experiencing loss.

The denial step gives us a minute to protect ourselves from the pain coming as a result of losing someone or something that we love. However, if we sit in denial for too long it becomes a delusion that no longer protects us but lies to us about reality. This distorts our ability to make the best decisions in the middle of our pain. Denial is part of the process but is meant to be temporary. It’s intended to give us a minute to catch our breath from the big blow to our gut and heart. Catch your breath my friend but don’t stay here too long. If you stay here too long, it will hurt you and the ones living around you, in the long-run.

Lord, help us through the steps of grief with your word and promise of peace. We believe that in due time we will be able to honor the time we had with our loved one that has passed or be grateful for the season we had with a specific thing but while the loss is still fresh, we are hurting. We can’t face this without Your comfort and peace. Help us take the time while in this step of denial to find the strength within us to face this loss. Amen.

“Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:8-9‬ ‭MSG‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week3 #grief #denial #delusion

Week 3 Nobody Makes It Out Alive Day 1: Grief

“When I have trouble, your promise gives me peace in my mind. It makes my life strong again.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭119:50‬ ‭EASY‬‬

Grief, just the word brings a sense of heaviness to our hearts. Grief represents many painful parts of our life. It is a part of life and is usually associated with death. Death of a loved one, death of a season, death of a relationship. Many things that we once thought would last forever, brought to an end. This is the heaviness of grief.

One will not live too long before they experience it. Yet, we avoid it, deny its existence and pretend it will go away if we ignore it. However, we learn at some point it needs to be faced, if we want peace.

Rehearsing the events leading up to the loss doesn’t help because something always triggers the pain associated with it. Pretending like it doesn’t hurt doesn’t work because we hurt alone. The only way to process grief is to face it.

I’m not an expert but I have practiced healthy processing of grieving and unhealthy processing of it. I can assure you that processing your grief in a healthy way will not only help you but will allow you to help others in their grieving process. Since grief is inevitable, it would be best to learn how to face it.

“In her original book, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross referenced five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. … There is, however, healthy and unhealthy (unresolved) grief, and being able to recognize if help is necessary is important.” (Better Help, March 18,2021, Buckly, medically reviewed by Deborah Horton)

Here is a link for you to learn where you are in the grieving process and when you should seek medical help: https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/grief/understanding-the-stages-of-grief/

We are going to face the stages of grief together this week.

Lord, help us grieve in a healthy way so that we can be of support to one another in loss and pain. We look to You God for truth and real application to not try to live amongst the dead but embrace the living. Amen

“We thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, because he is so good to us. As our Father, he is very kind to us. He is our God who comforts us in every way. Whenever we have trouble, he comforts us. Because of that, we ourselves can comfort other people. When they have any kind of trouble, we can comfort them, in the same way that God has comforted us. Christ himself received much pain, and God comforted him. As Christ’s servants, we also receive the same kind of pain. But, God also comforts us very much, because we belong to Christ.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭1:3-5‬ ‭EASY‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week3 #grief

Beautifully Broken by K.Howard

Week 2 Nobody Makes It Out Alive Day 7 Battle to Acceptance

“So, nobody can say that God should still punish us. Nobody can say that, because Christ Jesus himself died on our behalf. And God raised him so that he became alive again after his death. Now Christ is sitting at God’s right side in heaven. He himself is praying to God on our behalf. Christ will always continue to love us. Nothing can stop that! We may have troubles. Things may make us sad or afraid. People may do bad things to us. We may have no food or no clothes. There may be great danger. People may even try to kill us. But none of these things can stop Christ from loving us.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:34-35‬ ‭EASY‬‬

Have we truly accepted the gift of the cross? Do we comprehend that God is not mad at us but that He’s mad at the devil for deceiving us? Do we embrace the overwhelming, radical, reckless love of God?

Have you ever received a gift and refuse to open it? Ridiculous thought, right? But every day, that we choose that earthly kind of love concept, when we think about Jesus, that’s exactly what we do. There is nothing like fully accepting God’s love for us. It is a gift that has no end in sight. We cannot out sin God’s love for us if we believe.

Put your hand over your heart. Close your eyes. Focus on the rhythm of your heart. That’s the beat of God’s love pumping life through your body. It’s the gift of life, a life meant to be loved by their God. Will you choose Him today? He has already chosen you. That beating heart is proof that you have purpose.

Lord, we receive the gift of life today with a fresh perspective and sense of purpose. Remind us when we lose sight of that to just lay our hand over our hearts and thank you for our purpose, whether we know what that is yet or not. We believe that You are who You say You are, that we are Your beloved, that You are our forgiver of our sins. Have Your way in us, Lord. Amen.

“I am sure of this. Nothing can stop God from loving us. Death cannot do that. Life cannot do that. Angels cannot do that, nor can demons do that. Nothing that happens to us now, or that will happen in a future time can do that. No powerful spirits can do that. Nothing that is high above the world can do that, nor anything that is deep down below the ground. Nothing else in the whole universe can stop God from loving us. Because of our Lord Christ Jesus, we know how much God loves us. Because God loves us, none of these troubles can ever beat us. He makes us win against them.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:37-39‬ ‭EASY‬‬

#jointhejourney #writer #journey #author #khoward #k4gsus #beautifullybroken #nobodymakesitoutalive #devotional #seizetheday #week2 #thecross #believe #acceptance #live #love

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