Tag: Personal relationship with God

Knowing Yourself

On October 1, 2019

KNOWING YOURSELF

“Know yourself! Be yourself! Love yourself!”

The above quote has become a personal motto I now live by. However, in this article, I want to focus on the importance of knowing yourself.

Before I can be me and love me, I have to know me, and that takes time. We don’t come out of the womb automatically knowing everything there is to know about ourselves as individuals. We learn as we grow. We discover as we go. We figure out what we like and don’t like, what makes us tick and motivates us. We realize our gifts and specialties.

Again, self-discovery takes time. Early in life we have no clue! Take me, for instance. What did I know about me when I was a little girl?

Well, I knew that…………………………

……….I was the daughter of Bill and Geraldine.

……….I was B.J.’s big sister.

……….I liked watching cartoons like Tom and Jerry, Scooby-Doo, Popeye, and The Flintstones.

……….my favorite TV show was The Brady Bunch.

……….I liked eating hot dogs, pancakes and Count Chocula cereal.

**My brother BJ and me on Easter Sunday in the 80’s**

……….although I was taking piano lessons, I didn’t really like playing the piano.

……….I wanted to be a really good singer like my mom.

……….I was quiet and shy.

……….I was scared—a chicken—a scaredy cat.

……….I was afraid of making mistakes, of being rejected, of being criticized and made fun of.

Those were a few of the things I knew and understood about myself when I was just a child.

However, what I didn’t know at the time was how special I really was. I couldn’t see that I was just as good as any of my classmates and friends. I didn’t realize that I had a specific purpose in life.

BUILD A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD

Fortunately, as I began to build a personal relationship with the Lord, He slowly opened my eyes. Psalms 139:14 says that I have been fearfully and wonderfully made by the Almighty God! Sometimes, as humans, we fail to see just how wonderful we really are. God carefully crafted each of us in His own loving hands from the brain, to the eyes, the ears, the nose, the mouth, the neck, the arms, the legs, the hands, the feet, the bones, the veins, the arteries, the blood, the heart, every organ, every cell. The human body is complex, and God did that!

Satan tries to fool us into thinking we are worthless and that our lives are a waste. He wants to convince us to throw in the towel and, worse, kill ourselves! BUT, NO WAY! NO HOW! God says, “I took the time to create you My child into someone special for a special purpose that will bring Me glory. You must get to know Me in order to know what that purpose is and to know the person I’ve created YOU to be!”

As I’ve grown closer to the Lord, I’ve also come to realize that being fearfully and wonderfully made is not just about the physical body, but about the inner man or soul—-mind, will, emotions. Psalms 139:13a (New International Version) says:

“For You created my inmost being…”

God created our inner beings. Therefore, we are unlike any of God’s other creatures. For instance, as humans, we think, rationalize, make judgments, and create. Every invention began in the mind of a human being.

WE BELIEVE THE BIBLE

Whether or not people still believe this theory, once upon a time, some said that humans evolved from apes. Needless to say, that is a lie! We believe the Bible! Genesis 1:26-27 (King James Version) say:

“²⁶And God said, Let us make man in Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

²⁷So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.”

As the verses state, we were created in God’s image to have authority over the animals, NOT to come from any particular animal. Instead, we were created to look and act like God here on earth as He does in Heaven.

God began revealing this truth to me of who I am once I accepted His Son Jesus into my heart. And He will do the same for you! All you have to do is make Jesus your Lord and Savior. Once you receive Him into your heart, get to know the Lord by spending time with Him in worship, in prayer and in reading the scriptures, and allow Him to show you the person You really are.

THE PRAYER OF SALVATION

If you haven’t accepted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, you can do so right now. I then encourage you to find a good Bible-believing church that will help you grow in your relationship with the Lord.

Romans 10:9 (New International Version) says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Please pray the following prayer:

Dear Jesus, I come to You confessing I am a sinner in need of a Savior. I believe You shed Your blood on the cross and died for my sins, were buried and rose again so I could be free! Please forgive me for my sins and the life I have lived. I confess You Jesus as Lord and accept You as my own personal Savior. According to the Word of God, I am now saved! Hallelujah! I AM FREE!

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY OF GOD!!!!!

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Humble Yourself

By Kimberly Joy

On March 13, 2018

In Humility

(THE KIMBERLY JOY SHOW: Humility Part 2)

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HUMBLE YOURSELF?
Humility is defined as “the opposite of arrogance and pride; an attitude that grows out of the recognition that all we are and everything we own are gifts from God.” According to Colossians 3:12, humility should be a characteristic of the christian man and woman. To humble yourself is to surrender, submit or yield to God.

As I shared in the previous article “I’m Just a Nobody: An Attitude of Humility,” John the Baptist was a great example of humility. He dedicated his life to doing the work of the Lord. He stood in the wilderness and preached the message of repentance to all those willing to listen.

He didn’t concern himself with what people thought about him. He was only concerned about pleasing God.

WHY DID PEOPLE COME TO HEAR JOHN THE BAPTIST?
Because John the Baptist was faithful to God, many people came to hear him. Perhaps they initially just came out of curiosity to see this man everyone was talking about. Maybe they wanted to see for themselves if he was as crazy as some people said he was. Regardless of the motive, once many heard the message, they believed! As a result, Matthew 3:6 says they confessed their sins, and John baptized them in the Jordan River, hence the name John the Baptist.

WHO WERE THE PHARISEES AND SADDUCEES?
Matthew 3:7 (New Living Translation) says:

“But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to watch him baptize, he denounced them. ‘You brood of snakes!’ he exclaimed. ‘Who warned you to flee the coming wrath?'”

Why would John the Baptist react that way? Let’s consider who the Pharisees and Sadducees were. During this time, they were two of the most powerful Jewish groups. Although they were considered religious leaders, many of them were hypocritical, self-righteous and didn’t show love to those who followed them. So, does that mean they were incapable of changing? No, not at all! However, in this particular scenario, John the Baptist knew these particular Pharisees and Sadducees were not being sincere. He knew they weren’t listening to him because they really wanted to change.

How did he know that? When you are humble before God, like John was, God will open your eyes to see things you otherwise might not see. God might also have you speak on some things that may make some people uncomfortable. Nevertheless, when God tells you to speak, you must speak, and that’s what John the Baptist did!

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RELIGION AND RELATIONSHIP?
In Matthew 3:8-9 (NLT), John continued speaking to the Pharisees and Sadducees:

“8 Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. 9 Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones.”

In the above verses, John the Baptist was pointing out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and Sadducees. To repent of your sins and turn to God means you are to begin living differently. You will live the way God expects you to live, not the way you want to live. It’s not about religion but about relationship. For instance, if anyone asks me about my religion, I have to say I don’t have a religion. Rather, I have a relationship with God. John the Baptist was humble because he had a relationship with God. In other words, he surrendered to God, talked with God, listened to God, and obeyed God.

On the other hand, the Pharisees and Sadducees only knew how to follow a set of rules and traditions. Plus, they foolishly believed they were pleasing God simply because they were descendants of Abraham and because they happened to belong to a special group. What they failed to realize is, just like Abraham had to have faith in God and a personal relationship with Him, so did they!

Personally speaking, I come from a long line of believers, intercessors, ministers, and pastors. Needless to say, I can’t ride into Heaven on their coattails. Just like my grandmother Eunice humbled herself before God and just like my mother Geraldine humbled herself and continues to humble herself, I must do the same. I must do it for ME!

(Left-Grandma, Top-Mom, Bottom-Me)

WHERE DOES HUMILITY BEGIN?
I want to encourage you to humble yourself before God. First and foremost, humility begins with confessing and repenting of your sins. In II Chronicles 7:14 (New International Version) the Lord says:

“If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

You may be going through something, or your family may be going through something right now that has you worried, concerned, and overwhelmed. Humble yourself before God and give it all to Him. Perhaps, there are parts of your life you haven’t totally surrendered to God. Perhaps you’re holding back out of fear or because it’s familiar and comfortable. However, at the same time you know God is calling you to draw closer to Him and to come up higher.

He has plans for you and blessings in store, but you won’t see any of them as long as you continue on the same path. So, let this be the day you decide to truly humble yourself before God, and watch Him do amazing things for you and through you!

THE PRAYER OF SALVATION
If you haven’t accepted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, you can do so right now. I then encourage you to find a good Bible-believing church that will help you grow in your relationship with the Lord.

Romans 10:9 (NIV) says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Please pray the following prayer:

Dear Jesus, I come to You confessing I am a sinner in need of a Savior. I believe You shed Your blood on the cross and died for my sins, were buried and rose again so I could be free! Please forgive me for my sins and the life I have lived. I confess You Jesus as Lord and accept You as my own personal Savior. According to the Word of God, I am now saved! Hallelujah! I AM FREE!

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY OF GOD!!!!!

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P.U.S.H. Chapter One

By Kimberly Joy

On March 7, 2017

In Prayer

As you continue on your journey in 2017, I encourage you to P.U.S.H.!

Yep! That’s right!

P.U.S.H.!

Pray…Until…Something…Happens!
I love that phrase! To some it may seem like a cliche, but to me it’s the truth! The first time I heard that phrase, it truly resonated with me! I find that as children of God sometimes we give up on God AND on ourselves too easily! However, what we must understand is that some blessings take more time to manifest than others. We’re on God’s schedule, not our own.

2 Peter 3:8-9:

“8 But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day.
9 The Lord isn’t really being slow about His promise, as some people think. No, He is being patient for your sake.”

So, we may think God is taking too long, but He says He’s right on schedule!

PRAY
The first word in the acronym (P.U.S.H.) is pray.
What does prayer mean to you personally? In other words, in your heart, what does it mean for you to be able to pray to God? Personally speaking, to be able to pray to God means I’m not alone. I can always talk to Him, day or night. How do I know?

Psalms 121:4:

“Indeed, He [God] who watches over Israel [God’s people] never slumbers or sleeps.”

So, I don’t have to feel bad about disturbing God’s sleep when I need to talk. He’s already alert, watching over me.

To be able to pray to God also means I have someone with whom I can share my deepest secrets. How important is that?! And when I share my secrets, I don’t have to worry about being judged or ridiculed. More importantly, when I share my secrets with God I know without any doubt that He won’t tell my business. He won’t get angry with me one day and broadcast what I shared with Him to the entire neighborhood! I can trust Him completely. With God I feel safe.

Let’s consider the dictionary definition of the word pray. I think it’s safe to assume that many people know that to pray means “to communicate with God; to make our petitions (our needs and desires) known to Him.” To take it a step further, as Christians, prayer is part of our covenant relationship with God. In the beginning, we see that God created the first man Adam to have open communication with Him.

Genesis 3:7-10 (This scene takes place after Adam and Eve chose to disobey God by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil):

“7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
8 And they heard the VOICE of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.
9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard Thy VOICE in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

When God created Adam and Eve, they automatically had an intimate connection with God. So, when they disobeyed God, they felt compelled to hide once they heard God’s voice. They recognized God’s voice because of their relationship and because they had spent time talking with Him. I compare it to a mother who knows her baby’s cry in the midst of other crying babies or a husband who recognizes his wife’s voice in the crowd.

When Adam and Eve sinned, it caused a rift between God and man and brought sin and death into the world. Nevertheless, we can be thankful for Jesus coming to this earth to serve as our Mediator and for bringing us back in right relationship with God our Father!

A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP
II Corinthians 5:17-18a:

“17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
18a And all of this is a gift from God, Who brought us back to Himself through Christ.”

For those of us who now have a personal relationship with God through His Son Jesus, we have direct access to God. Therefore, God expects and WANTS to hear from us. In fact, He loves it when we spend time with Him.

John 10:27:

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

In order for any of us to KNOW the voice of God, we must spend considerable time with Him in worship, in studying His Word, and in prayer. If we know God and His voice, then when another voice (like the serpent or Satan ) tries to speak to us, even just through our thoughts, we’ll know it’s not God! That’s why spending time with God in prayer must include LISTENING! Prayer is not a time to present a Christmas list to God as if He’s Santa Claus.

EVEN JESUS PRAYED
Matthew 14:22-23:

“22 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away.
23 And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there.”

Just like in the above verses, throughout the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, even JESUS spent time alone praying to God. He always acknowledged His Father and never did anything without His consent. As believers, we should follow His example. We must never get to a place where we think we don’t need to pray all the time or pray at all. Even if everything is going well, we should still honor God in prayer because, again, prayer goes beyond just asking God to bless us. Rather, prayer is a time to also listen to God. I believe Jesus spent time alone with God sometimes just listening. That’s how He stayed connected and in tune with God.

SHARPEN THOSE SPIRITUAL EARS
I know from personal experience that spending time with God in prayer sharpens our spiritual ears. For instance, several years ago I was informed by my doctor that I had to have surgery, which included a six week recovery period. However, there was one problem! I had just started a Statistics course as part of my Masters program. In fact, it was my FINAL class! There was no way I was going to be able to attend class, if I had to be on bed rest! The only logical explanation was to drop the course and pick it up the next quarter which would delay graduation. I didn’t want to delay things, but I couldn’t prolong the surgery. The night before I was going to drop the class, I asked God to tell me what to do. If there was any possible way I could stay in the class, GOD would know! That night as I slept I heard the voice of God say, “Stay in the class. There will be people who will help you.”

When I attended the Statistics class the next day, I informed my professor of my situation. He was extremely understanding and suggested I collect email addresses from some of my classmates, so they could assist me while I was out recovering. Not only were they willing to help me, but the professor decided to allow the class to take the midterm and final exams at home, which meant that I could use my books, notes and receive help from classmates.

I’ll never forget that experience! It blew me away to know that I heard God’s voice that clearly! More importantly, not only did I hear His voice, I obeyed Him. Although I didn’t know how things were going to initially work out, I had to trust Him anyway!

KEEP LEARNING
Furthermore, how do you build solid relationships and friendships? You spend time together engaging in meaningful conversations. That’s how you learn each other.

Just like in human relationships, when we spend time with God, we learn Him! To learn God is to know God, and to know God is to love Him even more!

(“The Kimberly Joy Show: P.U.S.H. Pray Until Something Happens”)

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