I thank God!

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Hello hello hello! Picture it:  You're sitting in church before the service has begun and one of the ushers runs in from outside and starts hugging everyone.  After she hugs everyone, she starts running laps around the sanctuary and saying (not yelling), "I couldn't do this last week."  The keyboard and the drums start up in what I'm going to call "Black-people-praise-music"and next thing you know, the service has begun!  Then, they sang How Great is Our God and remixed the joint. It was fantastic!  Then, the lady on the keyboard (who also had a microphone) started talking about all the things we should be thankful for like our jobs, our homes, etc.  So, this entry was partly inspired by that.

What are you thankful for?  In keeping with the African American tradition (by-the-way, I'm a Southern, Black girl in case you were wondering) of testifying...Giving honor to God who's the head of my life. To the pastor, missionaries, deacons, saints, and friends...and everyone else in their respective places.  I thank God for being saved, sanctified, and filled with the PRECIOUS Holy Ghost. Hallelujah! [The church (that's you) responds with "Hallelujah!"] I wanna bless the Lord this morning, church!  [Church responds, "Bless Him, sistah!"] He woke me up this morning.  Started me on my way!  He didn't let me sleep too late! [Choir chimes in unison "He woke me, woke me, woke me right on time!"] Kept me safe from SEEN and UNSEEN dangers. [Lady in the back who almost had a car accident on the way to church shouts, "GLORAYYYY!!!] Church, lemme tell you what else I'm thankful for:

1. The blood running warm in my veins (otherwise I'd be dead!)
2. Health and strength
3. The activity of my limbs
4. Not just "being saved" but what I was saved FROM! AYYY!! He saved me from being eternally separated from Him in that terrible place called hell!
5. The ability to talk to Him in prayer! 'Cuz He don' EVA get tired of me! He's concerned about me! [Lady in the back shouts, "Yeah, Lord!"]
6.  My family! Even though we don' always see eye to eye I'm THANKFUL!!!!!
*I run my own lap around the church. When I get back to my seat I say...*
7. Thank Ya, Lord, for my job!  That place that gives me an opportunity to do good deeds before folks to make Your NAME great!  To tell 'em 'bout You! And I thank YA (!) for the money You give me every two weeks when You allow my boss' left hand to grip that pen so he can sign that check!  Thank Ya for being my source! Even when I was unemployed You were still my source!
8. Thank Ya for helping me to love people that seem unlovable! When my Daddy turned his back on us, You were still there! Thank Ya, Lord, for helping me to still love him!  When my Momma flipped out, Lord, You kept me! Thank Ya for helping me to still love her, too!
9. Lord, I thank Ya for the food You provide! God, it hurts me that so many people in this world go hungry every day but I thank Ya for the money You bless me with to try to help feed some of them!
10. Lord, I thank Ya for my home! It may not be on Cribs but I thank Ya for a roof over my head, Lord! I coulda been in the shelter or coulda been foreclosed on or this thang coulda burned down but GODDDDDDDD You are so gracious!
11. When loved ones died, You kept my mind! Your Holy Spirit comforted my heart!
12. When I think of my friends that don' know Christ, and think of how long I've been praying for You to save 'em...Lord, I thank Ya in advance! I know You can do it!
13. When this world looks like there won' be a tomorah, I can think of the place that You've prepared for me and I thank Ya!!!!!!!!!! 


When I look back ova my life, and I think things over!!!!! Ahhh!!!!!!!! Glory to God! GLORAYYYY! He's so worthy of the honor! He's so worthy of the praise! Lord, I bless Ya! Lord, I magnify YOU! He's been so AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! to me!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT ARE YOU THANKFUL FOR??!!!!!!!!

Til next time,
U.M.

Letter to an Unsaved Friend

Hello there. You ever read a "Gospel tract"? They can really simplify the Gospel...sometimes too much. For one to have a better understanding of the Gospel it really takes the Holy Spirit to open one's eyes to understand the Truth. God can still use the tract in a person's life though. You ever given one of those Gospel tracts to a friend? Here's a letter I wrote to an unsaved friend I have. I haven't given them the letter but it really expresses my heart's desire...

Dear Friend,

I love you, and because I love you I have to share some truth with you. I'm in love with the God who saved my life. Literally. At the end of the day, my hope is in Him. He’s my Rock. I’ve been praying for you for years. Begging God to rescue you from being eternally separated from Him in hell. To open your eyes to show you that you need Him, that there is nothing you can do to save yourself, to realize that you are in desperate need of a Savior. He sent Someone to save you – Jesus. He was called the Son of God. Ya see, back then in that culture, to say that He was the Son of God was to say that He WAS God and put Himself on an equal level with God. But He is God! John chapter 1 clearly says this in the first few verses and then later in the chapter explains that the "Word" mentioned in those verses is Jesus and that He is God. Jesus was sent to Earth in the simplest way – he was born. Born of a virgin so maybe it wasn’t SO simple. But that makes it even more miraculous. Jesus knew exactly what His mission on Earth was – to teach people about God and how to have a relationship with Him; to teach about how much God loves everyone; to teach the right way to please God. He also did miracles and spoke prophesies to show that He was who He said He was. But forget all that – anyone could’ve done that. What made Jesus so unique is that He, an innocent man was sentenced to die. But He knew that would happen. That’s a part of why He came. Not JUST to die 'cuz that ain't so unique. Everyone DIES. He was to take on all the bad things that everyone had done and would do, every bad thought, and all – He was to take it on Himself and it was nailed to the cross with Him. It was very symbolic but very real at the same time. He wasn’t killed though – He gave up His life. He even said, “Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit.” Who does that?! He did! And to further prove that He was who He said He was (the Son of God; the Christ – Greek for the Hebrew/Aramaic word, the Messiah – all meaning, the anointed One), God raised Him from the dead 3 days later! And this Dude walked around and talked to people and continued to tell others about God. He even commissioned His followers to go and spread this news all over the world so that people would know and have the opportunity to be rescued from that eternal separation from God and to have the opportunity to have a real relationship with God. The kind that wasn’t possible after Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating the forbidden fruit. But now through Jesus, a kind of “Second Adam” we have another chance! Jesus’ followers spread that news, too, and baptized people to symbolize their new life. I heard that news, too. Many times growing up going to church and finally it all made sense. God opened my eyes and heart to see that this news was true and that I needed to confess with my mouth and believe in my heart that Jesus really was who He said and that He’d done what He was sent to do. At that moment, things didn’t change on the outside, but God began to do some things in my life and heart to make me more like Him. Making me better. Enabling me to please Him. Of course I still mess up cuz I’m human (everyone does!) but I have God’s Holy Spirit to help me. Jesus promised that He would send the Holy Spirit to always be with us and help us. The Holy Spirit even did something inside – He made my spirit alive so that I had that “born again” thing happen to me that Jesus talked about in John chapter 3. My life has been forever changed and I am forever grateful. And you can have the same thing happen in your life! I want that for you! GOD wants that for you! He wants everyone to turn things around and be saved from that eternal separation from Him according to what the Bible says in 2 Peter. That’s why I’ve been praying for you so that you can understand. Please consider what I’ve said.


You can give this letter to one of your friends if you'd like.  I won't hunt you down for plagiarism. :)

Til next time,
U.M.

Simple Evangelism

Well hello there.  Imagine this - you're sent to a foreign land (by God of course.  Don't go without His stamp of approval!), you've been fasting, praying, fasting AND praying, sharing the Gospel with the local people you meet, God saves some of them, He sends laborers, you all pray and fast more, you and the laborers share the Gospel with more people, God saves more...the more you depend on Him the greater the work He does using you in the foreign land.  People are accepting Christ, gettin' delivered and set free from bondage, people are bein' healed (inside and out)...God is doin' the work! Not you! Ah, isn't that refreshing?

Now before you go runnin' the aisles in your local church over this, think about it...have you even shared the Gospel with people you know?  Or people in your community?  Hmm...now, the LORD GOD HIMSELF can use you in some (if not all - I ain' tryin' to limit Him!) those same ways described above if you will depend on Him (all that prayin' and fastin' mentioned above).  As an urban missionary, it's easy to get stuck in a comfort zone and be satisfied with what it looks like God is already doing. Or even to think that He's not doing very much.  But oh, there are always WAYS to be stretched!  He is always ready and willing to do "exceedingly abundantly above all that we can ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20).  BLESSED BE HE! Will you join me on this journey?  To be stretched by the Lord as He uses us to share His GLORIOUS Gospel.  To be honest, He doesn't have to use us.  But isn't it a privilege to serve Him in this way?  It's the least we could do (1 Corinthians 5:20).  Ponder that...

Til next time,
U.M.