Here’s to you, Leviticus
A few days before 2019 hit I decided to venture out to accomplish a goal that I’ve always tried but never completed. I looked at my “YouVersion Bible App”, Saved Plans and saw “ Reading the Bible in a year chronological order”. In that moment I remembered that in the latter part of 2018, I found the chronological plan and saved it. I’ve attempted the cover to back reading numerous times but always stopped at one specific book. It’s probably a book I’ve avoided, but let’s first discuss the books I’ve read so far. Overall, I have enjoyed the readings. I have read Genesis and Exodus a couple of times but this time was a different. Thus far my eyes have been opened to God’s character, His nature and His love for a people, who truly will never be able to love Him the way that He loves them. In January, I read through Genesis, and Job and this month I finished Exodus. I loved reading Genesis because it just puts God in a different perspective for me. I see how He used people who were unworthy of His choosing to bring forth His plan from the beginning of time! I know for many Christians we only think about grace when We look at the New Testament. But listen, God was graceful throughout the entire Bible! God’s promise to Abraham was that “if you walk blameless before me then I will fulfill my covenant with you.” In my eyes Abraham was not blameless. He had a son out of wedlock and lied a couple of times but when it came down to it He was willing to give up His promise at the word of God! That right there is what made Abraham righteous. He might have missed the mark a few times but God knew that in his heart he was blameless. Grace was shown in the fact that God even blessed Ishmael, God saved Lot and His family( at the pleading of Abraham), God saved Noah and his family… There’s so many more examples but you get the drift. Grace in itself is undeserved favor— listen the children of Israel received grace ten times over! Alright that was the good stuff for me- there were days where I would read like 3 days ahead because it was so engaging. The Book of Job was the best soap opera every, lol. Man, looking at Job’s experience I saw myself and saw how God’s way can never be understood by our human mind. Job opened my eyes to seeing God as “Sovereign”. But now I’ve come upon a book that I’ve probably only read like 3 chapters of in my whole Christian walk… that book is Leviticus- To be honest, I’m not looking forward to reading this book but I know that it’s pivotal when we look at God’s relationship with the children of Israel. When I think of Leviticus—> I see God undoing the 400 plus years of assimilation that happened in Egypt. Where a people that were chosen to be God’s possession have to re-learn what it means to be His. God had to teach them His ways by showing them the error in their ways. Tomorrow will be the first day of Leviticus so at the end of the book I want to share my experience and see if the above conclusion is right! What I find so interesting is that even though it was my desire to read the Bible chronologically God has used His word to reveal exactly what I need in this time… It just shows us that sometimes what we think are “our desires” is really the desire of God manifesting in us! Then again isn’t that what we want—- we want His desire to be ours–– we should be so entwined that we can’t separate the two. So here’s to confronting things that might appear daunting to us yet we know that God will use it for His glory and our edification. Here’s to Leviticus— P.S this was written in the beginning of the month, I am happy to say I am almost finished with Leviticus and I can’t wait to share what the Lord has been showing me! With love through Christ, Nadesha
Remember Your Training
My husband(Kashk) met an incredible veteran while he was stationed in Alaska. He and his wife took Kashk under their wing and treated him like a son. We now call him Pop. Pop would spend Sundays at the dinner table with his wife, Kashk and a few younger soldiers sharing war stories. Let’s just say that Pop has been through a lot. His stories will make you laugh until your stomach hurts one minute then have you crying a river the next. Pop is a great example of a warrior and a Christian. We truly love him! One of things he would always say to Kashk and his friends was “ Remember your training.” Reminding them that in the midst of whatever they face in their Army career to remember what they were trained to do. Yesterday, the Lord led me to read something I wrote in March. It helped me to see that the Lord is telling us to, “ Remember our training.” Many of us currently are or have been in training. We are facing different struggles and obstacles that require us to utilize all the Lord has been teaching us. Okay, so maybe you didn’t know that you are in training but I have to tell you that you are. If you look at your life through God’s lens you will see that everything you’ve gone through is a teaching moment. This realization will change your WHOLE LIFE. Stop looking at your past with shame and guilt, learn from it. God wants us to activate the Word He has shown us and do what we have been trained to do. Instead of employing those “skills” we’ve gained ,we shrink back in fear like victims running from a predator. Think about what would happen if we took every experience and examined it: “ God, what can I learn from this,” or “God what could I have done differently.” Throughout the children of Israel’s journey to the Promised Land they struggled with remembering their training. Every time they faced an obstacle they complained, it’s like everything God did for them vanished from their memory. The children of Israel had provision amnesia. They forgot that God was with them. He was a pillar of cloud in the day and fire by night. God provided everything they needed on their journey. He even parted the Red Sea and they walked on dry ground. Let those images soak in your mind for a second. Through the cloud he gave them shade in the day so that the sun wouldn’t burn them and the fire was a guiding light at night. When they came to the Red Sea, their greatest obstacle thus far, it became a path to the other side. If only some of us would see that sometimes our greatest obstacle is the path to the other side. The Lord used this exact moment to destroy the Egyptians while preserving the Israelites. The “sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on the dry land, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and on their left(Ex 14:22).” There is no human explanation for this miracle, but it was a sign to them that God was with them. God always has a way to remind us of His presence in our lives. That is not for His benefit, because He doesn’t need anything from us. The benefit is solely for us! In times where it seems like all hell is breaking out around us…. He’s saying “Remember your training!! Was I not with you all this time, why would I leave you now!” When we encounter situations that require us to employ faith and endure, God’s word should be a comfort for us. Not just His written word but the manifestation of His word in our lives! We cannot forget the Word that have been revealed to us! On numerous occasions a particular scripture has stuck out to me, but in that moment I didn’t recognize it’s significance. Time passes and all of a sudden BOOM, a situation happens where that word is just what I NEED! Life is about endurance and God gives us the tools to endure whatever comes our way! But remember endurance doesn’t always look the same. I might be enduring on my knees pushing my way through while you are standing up with your hands lifted! What matters is that our eyes are fixed, on Jesus, the living word! Endure! Remember your training. With tears running down your face, broken, uncertain of what’s next remember your training! God has already given you everything needed for godliness! Last week, I struggled to remember my training. In the midst of the test I couldn’t see pass how I felt. I couldn’t see pass my anger and I made a choice. Subconsciously, I negated my training and reverted back to my former self. Someone who was not free through Christ but someone who treasured her flesh over her spirit. But when the Lord checked my spirit and corrected me, I humbled myself in repentance. What helped me to repent was my training. I remembered David who expressed to God that he had sin against God and no one else! 5 years ago it was David’s repentance in Psalm 51 that snatched me out of a place of guilt and shame! Although that experience was difficult I thank God for the lessons He taught me through it. Remembering our training requires that we use our ears to listen, eyes to see and hearts to believe. It’s not just about reading your bible everyday, but allowing it to take root within you! We must be doers of the Word, not allowing our hearts to become callous. . Remember what God says. He has already prepared us for what we are going through, it’s up to us to apply it! You shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness
#Transparency Thursday
Good morning, I just wanted to share what has been going on for the past week. People always say when the Lord speaks to you it is always for you first before it is for anyone else. I found this to be true over the past two weeks. Everything I have written about on ” Bloom in Journey” I have been tested on. The Lord brought certain situations to me, where I had the opportunity to choose Him or my self. I must confess that in majority of the situation I chose myself. I chose to go with my feelings over what God’s word says. My external experiences had more power over me than the Spirit of God that is within me. Needless to say, I was very disappointed in myself and I really felt defeated! I felt like I would never pass the tests when they would arise again. But even those thoughts were a plan of the enemy, hoping I would forget that God’s mercies are new each morning. I humbled myself before the Lord and repented. As I spoke with Him I said something that really put my struggles in a nut shell and a weight was lifted. This was because I understood why I was failing the tests. I knew that other opportunities would come for me to exhibit the love of God and I had to be ready to war with my flesh when the time came. Like I said in my introduction, this is about growing and edifying each other and being transparent is part of that. This week I failed the test the Lord brought my way because I chose to obey what I felt instead of what His word said. Believe me when I say, I literally heard the Holy Spirit say ” remember love is kind, take the lower seat, forgive, let it go” and my flesh said “no”. It got to point where it became easier to listen to how my flesh told me to respond than the voice of the Holy Spirit. The voice of my flesh became louder than the Holy Spirit. However, I am thankful that God met me right where I was and shook me by using a the preacher at church on Sunday reminding me to ” Remember what He said” and to “S.T.A.N.D”. This is how we stand : Saturate yourself in the word, Think good thoughts, Apply the word to your situation, Never lose sight of the enemy’s tactics and last Don’t get it twisted( We can’t allow our circumstances to diminish the authority of what’s within us). So I am ready again for more tests, asking God for the strength to choose the road less traveled! To not give in to my flesh but to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Let this scripture be a Reminder to you and I : ‘Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. ‘ Romans 6:16 What’s so crazy about all of this is my next blog post will be about this same thing which I wrote last week Monday but I didn’t post. Before I could post it God tested me on it! It shows us that we are responsible and held accountable for everything the Lord reveals, shows, teaches or gives us! We must decide what we will do with it. Will it be on good soil, among the rocks or among the thorns. Unfortunately, this time it fell among thorns. But guess what seeds can be replanted on good soil. When they begin to grow they will BLOOM AND NOT WITHER! Let’s pray! Press Play! With Love through Christ, Nadesha P.S trying something new with the voice recorded prayer. I really hope this is a blessing!