Picture taken by Savannah Squyres

“In God We Trust” is the American national motto, but is this really a reality in our lives?

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Proverbs 3:5-6—“T rust in the Lord with all your heart, do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.” (NLT). I have discovered in my own life that it easier to memorize these verses than to believe them.

A few months ago, I sensed the Lord leading me to take a few weeks off from work to rest. Taking leave and remainining in the same environment would have defeated the whole purpose of resting. I made a decision to spend time outside the country. During my time of preparation for the trip, I had to put so many things in place to avoid any “disaster” from occurring while I was away. The amount of preparation for what I was leaving behind was more overwhelming than that of my travels ahead. Thoughts of aborting my travel plans were my constant companions. It took divine intervention to continue with the trip. Common sense was saying I should not leave. Thank God I did.

In the plane I felt like a helpless chick. I was not in control of the plane. If anything happens to the plane , God forbid, there was nothing that I could do except to call on the Name of the Lord. After all, He is my refuge and His everlasting Arms are under me (Deut. 33:27). The penny finally dropped that I had a false sense of my abilities. I am not Josephine the Almighty, but He is. I mean God the Almighty, The King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He created the universe and sustains everything by the mighty power of His commands (Heb.1:3). So, I have learned to let go and let God.

Not worrying may seem irresponsible. How can I not worry when I don’t have money in my bank account? How can I not worry when things are not going well in my relationships? How can I not worry when everything is going wrong? It is called trust. He says we should cast our cares on Him because He cares for us. (1 Pet.)

I ask you to spend some time with Him like Mary. Let go of some of your responsibilities for some time (with wisdom of course). Like Martha and me, you will realise that some of your responsibilities are false responsibilities. Let us sit at His feet, the better choice, and allow Him to be God Almighty in our everything.

Picture taken by Savannah Squyres

“It is more blessed to give than to receive” Acts 20:35 (NIV)

Every time I heard this verse, it was mostly during the tithes and offering messages at church. My understanding of this Scripture was recently challenged.

I was sitting next to a guy in the plane who complained of a stiff neck. Each time he turned to talk to me, the poor guy looked like a robot. We were on a seventeen-hour flight. The stiff neck started about six hours into the flight. For the majority of the journey, I could only offer sympathy. Just as we were about to land, I felt the Holy Spirit leading me to offer him more than sympathy. The Holy Spirit impressed upon my heart that I should pray for him.

I don’t usually pray for strangers—especially in a public place. When the impression came, I did everything I could to disregard it but to no avail. Finally, I threw in the towel. I asked if I could pray for him and he said yes. There was no instant healing, but I could tell from his look after I finished praying that something had shifted.

The Lord reminded me of the Scripture in Hebrews 13:2 (NLT), “Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it.” Whether that guy was an angel or not, I do not know. My hope is that He recognized how special he is to Jesus because of the willingness of a stranger to pray for him in his time of need..
After all, how many strangers offer to pray for you?

Most of the strangers we meet will not be angels, but if we offer them kindness, a smile, a prayer or a kind word, they may start feeling like angels are near. Let us be His Hands and His Feet to the world that so desperately needs Him.