Our world is broken, but God is not! We can have a happy ending with Him.

 

Devotionals for the Heart: Sustenance

God is My Sustenance
A devotional by Dr. Jessica B. Turner

“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.”—Psalms 63:1 (NIV)

Have you ever found yourself so thirsty that it’s the only thing you can think about?

You try to press on with what you are doing but your mind keeps wandering back to the fact that you need water, and you need it now! Suddenly, all your energy has shifted towards meeting this basic need. And when you get to take that first sip, it gives life to you!

Now, I want you to think back to a time when you felt this same way about God and His presence. Did you address it with the same dedication, stopping everything else to seek His face? Are you struggling to even recall such an incident? If I am completely honest with myself, my answers aren’t what I would like them to be either.

The reality is I’m lucky if I even realize that it’s God that I’m lacking while going through my day. Instead, if I’m not careful, I will turn to things of this world to meet a need that was never meant to be filled by anything other than God’s presence. It’s why so many other things often leave me feeling even more unfulfilled than before.

We live in a world that promises happiness in all the wrong places. We turn to social media to seek approval from others, and to validate that we are loved. We rely on the latest trends to help us feel attractive. We follow all the advice of the “experts” in attempt to be good enough. Yet, we always end up where we started: lacking.

Until we open our eyes to what David is sharing in Psalms 63:1, we will never be satisfied. We must recognize that God is what our souls are longing for, and only God can quench such a thirst. But what if we don’t yearn for His presence as David did? I believe most people don’t, especially in the beginning.

As a new believer (or someone who isn’t quite sure what they believe), it can be scary to spend alone time with God. Some of us are still carrying shame associated with our past while others may be at a loss for words, not knowing what to say or do in His presence. Instead of doing everything in our power to seek God, we subconsciously avoid Him because we don’t see ourselves as worthy.

Let me tell you something! You are enough as you are, and God cannot wait to spend time with you! He was so intentional when He created you and me. Relationship with us was so important to Him that He made us with a space in our hearts that only He can fill, and until we realize that, we will wander through this life feeling incomplete.

Today, I want to encourage you to pursue God’s presence. Ask Him to ignite a fire within you that only He can satiate. Trust me, He will be delighted to answer such a request!

Let’s Pray: Heavenly Father, thank You for creating me in such a way that my soul longs for You. Reveal to me when I am turning to worldly things to satisfy this yearning. Expose the things that have become idols without my knowing. Bring me back to You as my one and only source of fulfillment. Help me to seek Your face as David did and fill me with Your spirit so I can go out and do the work of Your kingdom here on Earth. I love You and I trust You. In Jesus’s Name, I pray. Amen.

Song of Reflection: “Thirst for You” by CeCe Winans. Listen to it here.

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Author Bio:

Dr. Jessica B. Turner is a wife, mom, and LSU graduate with a degree in veterinary medicine.

After practicing small animal medicine for six years, she traded in her stethoscope to become an online wellness coach, motivational speaker, and writer with a passion for mental health advocacy. This major life change was sparked after Jessica struggled with postpartum depression soon after she birthed her twin girls.

Along with Jessica’s career change came the discovery of who Jesus Christ really is and how He was the missing piece for her to be able to move forward in past trauma that she had suppressed for decades. Jesus walked alongside Jessica as she underwent a transformation like none other.

God transformed Jessica’s life from a broken mom who struggled with depression, anxiety, disordered eating, and PTSD from witnessing an attempted suicide, to using her experiences to make her a powerful vessel for Him. To this day, God enables Jessica to touch the lives of others through her often unfiltered, yet inviting form of storytelling.

Throughout this process of refinement, Jessica has shared her life story with the world through her social media platforms, in-person events, blog posts, and podcasts. She values the gift of transparency and has discovered that what so many people need to know is that they are not alone. Jessica has walked in their shoes, and she wants the world to know that Jesus is walking with them as well.

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Connect with Jessica:
Website: www.jessicabturner.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessicabturner/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicabturner/

Devotionals for the Heart: True peace and security comes from God

How to Overcome the World
A devotional by Chaplain Paul Anderson

“For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” –1 John 5:4-5 (ESV)

When I was growing up and living with my parents, saying grace at mealtimes, evening worship and going to church were essential parts of the family ritual. One of the hymns that was a staple in those moments was “Blessed Assurance”.

I did not fully comprehend being saved, at that time. I equated “Blessed Assurance” with security. I equated the ability to run fast and fight with a sense of personal and physical security. Those attributes did boost my confidence, but they did not bring the internal security that I anticipated. I was aiming at the wrong target and pursuing the wrong things.

While reading the Bible one morning, I stumbled into a text that gave me an epiphany. 1 John 5:4-5 (ESV) pierced my perspectives on peace, security and assurance. It reads, “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

I remembered the confident assurance in Romans 8:37-39 that nothing could separate us from the love of God. I remembered the verse in Romans 10:9 (ESV) that says “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” 1 Corinthians 6:14 resonated through my being in a new way. “And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.” The inference is that God is with us no matter what. That was the blessed assurance!

No matter what happens around us, to us, for us or with us, we can overcome the world (Romans 12:21)! Overcoming adversities defines a victor. That means that our lusts, addictions, bad habits, challenges and flaws could be overcome. When we fall short of God’s ideal, but we have faith in Jesus Christ, God will restore, renew and strengthen us. Our weaknesses become steps to victory. Our failings insure humility in preparation for the exaltations of the sanctified life.

We are safe in our success and even in the darkest seasons of our lives. As we overcome the struggles, we will rise into new horizons of faith and performance. Victorious living is not limited to the eternity after the second coming. Victory is ours today! Overcoming challenges forges stronger faith. Do not shirk from the obstacles that you may face. God is with you, no matter what! Confront all of the obstacles in your life with faith that you will succeed.

Please embrace this new year confidently, no matter what happens. Plan to plow through it with the assurance that you can overcome any challenges and thrive. God is with you, no matter what! Affirm your sense of being with the assurance of salvation. Let that confidence ripple through your daily performance, no matter what!

Practice articulating the words confirming your belief in Jesus as the Son of God who is alive.

Stay hopeful. Practice optimism. Employ enthusiasm and grind toward your goals. Complete the degree. Finish that project. Take that leap of faith and grow through your quests, no matter what!

Let’s Pray: 

Dear God,

 

Thank You for authoring eternity and our roles within it.

As with the prophet Jeremiah, fulfill in our lifetimes the thoughts that You have for us. Give us assurance and confidence that You will never leave us nor forsake us. 

Sanctify the impetus within us to be more like You and do more of the things that You did. Grow our faith and trust in You. Help us to light the paths of others and lead them to You.

In Jesus’s Name I pray. 

Amen.

Song of Reflection: “Blessed Assurance” (song) by CeCe Winans. Listen to it here.

~*~
Author Bio:

Chaplain Paul Anderson served for 20 years as a U.S. Navy Chaplain. Over 26 years of active duty, he was promoted through the ranks from Seaman Apprentice (E2) to his final rank as Commander (O5) in the Chaplain’s Corps. 

Prior to his Naval career, Chaplain Anderson pastored in the Allegheny East and Potomac Conferences of Seventh-day Adventists. His undergraduate preparation for ministry was completed at Washington Adventist University in Takoma Park, Md.

He has subsequently earned four graduate degrees: a Master of Divinity from Andrews University in Michigan, a Master of Education in Counseling and Personnel Services from the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland and a Masters of Sacred Theology in Religion and Culture from Boston University. His Doctor of Ministry degree was conferred by Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C.

Chaplain Anderson also completed four units of Clinical Pastoral Education at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He also holds certifications in Suicide Awareness and Prevention, Civil Mediation, Alternative Workplace Dispute Resolution, Temperament Analysis, Marriage Enrichment, Workforce Diversity, and is a certified Life Coach.

You may connect with Chaplain Anderson via email at this address, psanderson75@gmail.com.

Thankful Thursdays: God is Always There for you and me!

It’s Thursday and I’m thankful for the fact that GOD is always there!

Earlier this week, I had a rough night. It was well past midnight so it was too late to call most people that I knew who have expressed that they want to be there for me.

So, I decided to send a text message to my Bible study group members from church. I used the Group Me chat app on my phone to do this. I simply wrote, “Please pray for me.” Within minutes, one of the group members responded directly to me using the private chat function so that only she and I could talk.

She simply responded with a message on prayer that she found online. The original author is unknown. This is what the message said:

Prayer Is Not Passive.

Prayer is powerful. Prayer is purposeful. Prayer is intentional.

Prayer is active warfare that engages Heaven and exposes every snare and trap of the enemy. In fact, prayer has the power to destroy every generational bondage that has plagued your family for years.

Prayer destroys yokes. Prayer disarms the weapons of the enemy. Prayer disrupts the forces of Hell and engages the armies of Heaven. Prayer breaks cycles and dismantles curses. When you pray, darkness flees. 

When you pray, addiction is defeated. When you pray, rejection repels and no longer has authority over you. When you pray, bitterness breaks. 

When you pray, sickness and disease leaves. When you pray, God steps in and favor rolls out before you. When you pray, peace surrounds you and joy engulfs you. When you pray, Heaven hears you. 

Prayer is the key that unlocks doors. Decide to engage God. 

God is listening!

~*~

God knew that I needed to be reminded that He is always there for me and that He hears every single prayer. So He sent this message to me through another one of His servants who is a member of my church family.

This message on prayer encouraged and inspired my heart. I felt strengthened as I read it because I remembered that prayer should be my first and last resort when I feel troubled. Read Psalm 46.

Prayer is the ultimate lifeline because it directly connects us with the Creator of the Universe (God). He is higher than any earthly power. He is wiser than the wisest and the most able to help us in our time of trouble. Seek Him first!

In closing, I’d like to share a song by CeCe Winans. The song is called, “He’s Always There.”

Be encouraged, dear hearts. God loves you with ALL of His Heart!

Sincerely,

Alexis A. Goring
Founder of “God is Love” blog

Interview (Part II) with Summer Pearson, actress/singer/worship leader/missionary for God

Good day, blog friends! :) Since we last visited with Summer (yesterday), there's been a special happening: Summer’s first music video released last night (Oct. 5) on YouTube! It’s for her song “Promised (Never Alone)”. View it here. 

If you want to win a copy of "Love Letters" (Summer's debut album), enter the music giveaway contest by selecting the link to yesterday's post with Summer. 

Here's the link,

http://capturingtheidea.blogspot.com/2016/10/interview-with-summer-pearson.html

Enjoy this continuation of your visit with Summer! :)

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Interview (Part II) with Summer Pearson about her debut album “Love Letters”:

Alexis: Do you write all of your own songs on “Love Letters”?

Summer: Yes, every single one. (The songs started as journal entries)

Only one song on the album, “I Need You” was actually inspired by Vincent the producer. He was kind of playing around in church one Sunday and he heard a melody and he told me, “Hey, I think you should write to this” and I’m like “Okay.” So he starts playing a sexy melody and remember, Vincent produces but he’s also an R&B artist. So when he’s playing it for me, I start singing the words that I heard I my head and I literally thought that we were writing a song for him or one of his R&B friends.

“I want you” and “I need you” kept coming out and at the end of that session, he said, “Great! I think that would be awesome for your album.” And I said, “My album? You know I’m a Christian artist.” And he was like, “Summer, I know you’re a Christian artist.” He said, “I know you’re a Christian artist. I think that would work for your album.” But I thought we were singing this for some man or some woman.

So I had to go home and kind of reset how I was viewing the song and I actually got Scripture for that one. So if you hear it, the second verse references that Scripture about “One thing have I desired of the Lord…” (Psalm 27:4). But getting in the Word and really praying about it helped me to sing the song anew and it’s often one of people’s favorite on the album. I’m so glad that I was able to get past my initial blinders on that song and really cry out to God because you know, we really do need the Lord. The song becomes a plea to God like, “I want You. I really need You.”

Alexis: What is your dream for “Love Letters”? What kind of impact do you hope that it will make on your listeners?

Summer: One of the things that I’m hearing about the album from many different kinds of people already—it’s only been out for a couple of weeks—is that the music is universal. I completely embrace that, because when I was creating the album itself and even when we were trying to figure out the sound of the music, we didn’t try to fit the music into any one genre.

The producer I worked with, his name is Vincent Richardson “V.Rich”, he’s amazing and both of us have very musical backgrounds. We enjoy classical music. I like folk. I like country. I like Contemporary Christian. He’s an R&B artist. There were so many different influences coming together between the two of us in the room and we didn’t fight against that at all. So the beauty of it is that now is that it’s created a project that people from all walks of life, different age groups, different ethnicities who have been exposed to different things can grab a hold of the music and I love it.

One of the Scriptures on my vision board is Matthew 28:18-20, The Great Commission. God’s sending us out in the world to make disciples for Him and I’ve felt that was part of my calling for a long time. So I now have a project that can reach beyond my borders to places that I may never ever be able to go physically. It’s a dream come true and I believe it’s what God intended and that’s what I want for this project. I want it to get out to the far corners of the world. I want people to be inspired and uplifted and healed.

It’s a challenge like I mention in the song “Release” to forgive, especially when someone has wronged you and they haven’t even apologized for it. They might even not feel bad for it. But it’s worth taking the challenge. When you really pay attention to the effects that unforgiveness and bitterness has on you physically, mentally, emotionally, it is so much better to rise about that and let it go.

Alexis: Who are your role models in the music industry? Name the top three and explain how they’ve influenced your life as a musician. 

Summer: Whitney Houston was a huge inspiration. I know every word to every song. I love the way she sings. I love the way she felt music! So, she was one.

Two, I think CeCe Winans and a lot of people who listen to CeCe think that I remind them of her. She has a gorgeous voice. I’ve listened to her from the time I was a kid. But also I love her spirit and she’s maintained such a beautiful demeanor, reputation. She’s had quite a career. I love how CeCe has been able to put music out that can reach a lot of different people. She’s a big inspiration!

Kirk Franklin is similar to the prior two with the extensive career. I call him the Modern Day David (A person mentioned in The Holy Bible) because David wrote all of the songs. He’s an incredible songwriter and I respect his craft so much.

Jonathan McReynolds is a newer artist. I feel in love with his voice the first time I heard his voice on radio and immediately started watching on YouTube everything that was related to him. I bought his album and could not stop playing it. My kids were like, “Mommy, enough!”

He not only has a gorgeous voice, his songwriting to me is just so beautiful! It’s so real and it reaches down into me in ways that not everybody’s music does.

He’s also an inspiration because he’s one of those people who paved the way in Christian music when they don’t quite fit. He’s Black but he doesn’t fit into gospel music completely. He’s not necessarily Contemporary Christian in terms of what we would typically define as Contemporary Christian. He’s just creating the music that makes sense to him like what God gives him and I love it! There’s jazz in there, there’s rock in there, there’s so many great things in there!

Alexis: Tell us about how you made your first music video.

Summer: Heartfelt Pictures, which is a production company run by Denton Adams, produced the music video for me. His wife Nina did my makeup for the video. It was a phenomenal job and I was just so blessed because I didn’t have to ask for it. God literally put it on his heart to do a video for me and there will be more coming.

*...to be continued, Part III of this interview with Summer will be posted tomorrow (Oct. 7) to conclude this three-part interview series.
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Singer bio: 

Summer is an outstanding recording artist, radio personality, actress, and speaker. Summer is skilled at performing many musical styles, especially Gospel and Contemporary Christian. Her vocals are often described as beautiful, powerful, heartfelt and angelic. 

In Summer, there also lies a wonderful speaker and actress who connects with audiences of all ages and conveys messages with conviction and grace. She is reliable and professional in presentation, timeliness, and responsiveness. 



Summer has experience performing for corporate events, weddings, concerts, funerals, retreats, church services, and other events. She is accepting bookings through 2017 and welcomes the opportunity to work with you on your event.

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Buy Love Letters:

Summer's music is available for purchase in your iTunes store. 


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Connect with Summer:

Email - summerpearsonsings@gmail.com

FB - facebook.com/summersofficialpage

IG - summersofficialpage

Twitter - @summertimesings


YouTube- http://www.youtube.com/c/SummerPearsonsings