What HAS to be done?

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns." ~ Exodus 20:8‭-‬10 NIV

In Exodus 20, God set up the Sabbath for His children for a reason. He knew that things like rest, margin, and dependence on Him would ultimately lead to better, more thriving lives for believers.

As author and pastor Pete Scazzero often says, our greatest and highest calling is to commune and be in fellowship with God. All the other things on our to-do list are extra, nice-to-do’s. But we should be clear, they are NOT have-to-do’s.

It doesn’t matter what it is, it doesn’t matter what culture you live in or work in, nothing HAS to be done today. There are preferences, traditions, and man-made deadlines imposed on our lives, but they are just that – man-made preferences, traditions, and deadlines.

What does God call us to do? The answer is found in Matthew 22:36-40. We are to love God and love others. Point blank period.

If you find yourself stressed out today, ask yourself: am I doing the things that God is calling me to do? Or is my schedule filled up with nice things that ultimately could be put off for simply communing with Him?

God bless,

J.W.

Feed My Lambs

"So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?' He said to Him, 'Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.' He said to him, 'Feed My lambs.'" ~ John 21:15

My Pastor always says, when you prioritize the things God cares about, God will prioritize the things you care about.

My question is, what are you prioritizing?

Is your calling and purpose focused on you and what you want to do? Or is it focused on what God cares about, i.e. His people?

Jesus told Peter, if you love me, feed and tend My sheep (John 21:15-17).

What are you prioritizing today?

God bless,
J.W.

People Pleasing (Part 1)

"Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." ~ Galatians 1:10

One of the things I had to be delivered from in my life is people pleasing.

Often times, we're so caught up on pleasing people, or making them happy, or not disappoint them, or tip-toeing around them, that we end up not doing the things that God has called us to do.

But make no mistake - to please God, you will have to disappoint people.

It's inevitable. There's no escaping it.

The quicker you learn that lesson, the quicker you can walk into your destiny.

More to come!

God bless,
J.W.

Follow The Leader (Part 8)

"The Lord had said to Abram, 'Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing... So Abram went, as the Lord had told him." ~ Genesis 12:1-4

Often times, following God's calling requires us to leave that which is familiar or comfortable to us.

In Genesis 12, God told Abram to leave the land, people, and household with which Abram was most familiar and to go to a new, foreign, unfamiliar land.

While that command may have been a tough pill for Abram to swallow, after the command was a promise. God promised that if Abram obeyed, He would bless Abram and make his name great (in fact, he would change Abram's name entirely).

But in order to receive the promise of God, Abraham had to obey the command of God - that is, the command to leave the familiar and enter the unfamiliar.

So, the question is, how uncomfortable are you willing to be? And if the answer is not very, then are you really ready to follow God's calling on your life? You can't complain about how slow things might be moving if you're not ready, willing, and able to step out on faith when He tells you to.

God bless,
J.W.

Follow The Leader (Part 7)

"But since you refuse to listen when I call and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand, since you disregard all my advice and do not accept my rebuke, I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you." ~ Proverbs 1:24-26

Proverbs 1:24-26 details the consequences of not heeding God's call on your life. 

Oftentimes, we let fear of stepping out on faith stand in our way. 

But... truth be told, the fear of not doing what God says should scare us even more.

God bless,
J.W.

Follow The Leader (Part 6)

"As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. 'Follow me,' he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him." ~ Matthew 9:9

Recently, I relocated, along with my family, across the country, to the west coast.

In the process, I'm sure there were some who might have wondered, why? Why move all the way across the country? Why uproot your entire life to move to a new foreign place?

Well, it's simple.

Like Matthew, when God calls, there should be no hesitation. When He tells you to do something, you should respond.

It's just that simple.

More to come.

God bless,
J.W.

The Assignment Bureau (Part 4)

Too often, as Christians, we get caught up in ritual and tradition. What worked for one generation, one group, or one person often becomes the standard by which we judge what is of God and what is not.

But God assigns to each of us a unique calling – meaning, everyone may not understand that which God has assigned you to do.

"For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body . . . We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us." - Romans 12:4-6

Don’t let others talk you out of your assignment just because they may not understand it. At the end of the day, it’s not for them to understand. If it was, God would have given it to them. But He didn’t. He gave it to the person to which it was assigned.

God bless,

J.W.

The Assignment Bureau (Part 3)

In Numbers 4, God gives specific assignments to 3 different families.

“Assign to each man the specific things he is to carry,” He commands Moses and Aaron (Numbers 4:32). “At the Lord’s command through Moses, each was assigned his work and told what to carry” (Numbers 4:49).

Likewise, God has a unique assignment for each one of us. We are NOT to do what everyone else is called to do. Rather, God holds you accountable for the things He’s called YOU to do.

More to come tomorrow.

God bless,

J.W.

Blessed To Be A Blessing

"I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing." ~ Genesis 12:1:2

As blessed as we are, often times, as Christians, we forget what our true purpose is. Our true purpose isn't to attain money, wealth, or success. It's not to be famous, influential, or powerful. It's not even to fall in love, get married, and have children.

Ultimately, we are put here on this earth and blessed by God to be a blessing to others. As Maya Angelou says, "I've had rainbows in my clouds and the thing to do, it seems to me, is to be a rainbow in somebody else's cloud (link)."

God bless,
J.W.

Do What You Love, Love What You Do

A friend of mine has a saying - "Do What You Love, Love What You Do!"

Each one of us has an obligation to pursue that to which God has called us. Even if you're stuck in a career or job you don't like or don't think you should be in, all it takes is small baby steps to bring you from where you are to where you want to be.

God has called each of us to do something special. We owe it to the people who will be positively affected by what we do to pursue our calling. Those things that you love to do are key to finding your purpose.

Do what you love and love what you do!

God bless,
J.W.