Singles Chalkboard – Page 8

As the (jive) turkey turns…

Time for another episode of Jive Turkey-ville! I’ll tell this story with the names changed to protect the innocent (and guilty). 😀

“Ginger” has been baptized in Jesus’ name and filled with the Holy Ghost for over 10 years. Early in her walk, she was a little unstable (as most of us are) and ended up falling for a guy, “Tyrone” who was “churched”, but not saved. Ginger was so smitten, she nearly considered backsliding! Tyrone ended up breaking her heart anyway, which was likely God’s way of delivering her. Although she was hurt, Ginger knew it was best.

On occasion, Tyrone would call her to say “hi”. During one of these instances, he tried to get Ginger to let him come by for dinner (sigh, that tells you a lot right there). Disgusted, Ginger stopped answering the calls and they stopped for the next few years.

Recently, the phone rang–Ginger didn’t recognize the number, thinking it was a family member. Oh, gobble-gobble, now!!! Tyrone was on the other end!! Regretting she answered, Ginger was curt but polite. Tyrone was very pleasant, though, asking about family, what she’d been up to and things along those lines. Ginger found herself enjoying the conversation and thinking, hmmmm…maybe this dude has changed. He suggested lunch since he’d be in the area, so they agreed to Friday.

As Ginger read the Word that week, a couple of Scriptures came up.
“As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to his folly” (Proverbs 26:11). Also, Joshua 9 where the usually astute leader and his men were fooled in part because they did not “…..seek council from the Lord” (v. 14b). She didn’t think much of the “warning” until talking with the Lord during her prayer time. The Lord was telling her NOT to meet up with Tyrone..rather invite him to church.

When he called to firm up plans, Ginger let him know that she couldn’t make lunch and invited him to church. He heartily agreed and she was nervous, but excited that a soul would be coming to the house of prayer.

Sunday came and “surprisingly” dude never showed up. Nor did he call to explain what happened or come to church on his own. And funny, the calls stopped, as well. Umm hmm…anyone else smell jive turkey?

OHHH… and going back to the firm-plans call, after Ginger declined, homeboy emphatically stressed he had taken that Friday off and assured her he could still meet her. We can’t say what was on his mind, but I wonder if he had a bag packed thinking he’d be spending the weekend with his sandal dangling off his toe..who knows? LOL!!!

So while Ginger was a little miffed that Tyrone was still up to his old tricks and how she almost fell for them, she realized she followed the voice of the Lord and stayed in His divine will for her. That’s a blessing!!

Bottom line: temptations will come, but the Lord provides a way of escape
(I Corinthians 10:13) to those who choose the use the hatch!

Be blessed family!

Blen

Pic courtesy of: http://www.joystickdivision.com/2008/11/happy_thanksgiving_from_joysti.php

5 Sep 201119 Dec 2015

BlenCouragesU5 Comments

Declaring independence from “foolishmess”

Hey family!

It’s been another minute, I’ve been a little busy running, but it’s all good. It’s wonderful to be busy!! Ladies, I wanted to share a recent experience or maybe test that echoes the importance of prayer, and exercising wisdom so your are free from “foolishmess”.

I was at a conference at a hotel where a handsome guy from across the aisle and I made eye contact and smiled. Very nice. After the conference let out, as I went to run an errand, we ran into each other. He very politely asked what I was doing later, where I was going to eat and could he “holla at me” (hmm) after my errand. As I was going, the Lord gave me the foresight to pray before I talked to this guy. I told the Lord is this was going to be frippery, he needed to just go away.

As I made my way back from my errand, I heard “yo, yo, YO!” I turned around and it was Dude. Now remember, I’m quite grown; I haven’t seriously been called “yo” probably since I was in high school and didn’t like it then. After this, Dude asked me to call him. Not on his cell, but the room he was staying in!!! On top of that it was in hushed tones! Yall can draw your own conclusions on what Dude was thinking. What kind of monkeyshine is that? Men are still “ackin’” like this who are over age 35? Seriously?!

While I was disgusted by Dud, I mean Dude trying to run a game on me, I thank God for helping me to think and recognize the trick of the enemy. He likes to send a decoy you when you’ve been waiting and trusting God for your blessing. Let’s review the highlight–well lowlight reel in this guy’s game.

1) Any man who really wants to approach a lady will NOT address her by “yo”. And a real lady won’t answer to that, either. That 106 and Park talk is not àpropos for a virtuous woman whose price is far above rubies (Proverbs 31:10).

2) When a man wants to get to know you, he will ask you for YOUR number and pursue you, rather than him telling you to pursue him. That’s against the natural order of things! By nature men are hunters and like a challenge. They don’t value anything handed to them! Genesis 29:20 says Jacob worked seven years for Rachel, but it seemed like a few days because of the love he had for her. That’s what I’m talking about!!!!

3) I know this is obvious, but is worth a revisit. No man should act like he’s worried about seeing you in public. I have heard, “oh he’s shy” and “sometimes you have to help them along”. I don’t discount shyness or advocate women giving men a hard time “just cuz”. There is NO excuse for Dude to be looking over his shoulder and whispering while talking to you. That’s code for married, engaged, attached, or scouting out his next prey.

Single ladies, I so know the exasperation of waiting to get a Boaz only to get a Bozo! Pray about your encounters with guys, so you’ll react with wisdom rather than emotion. James 1:5 says God gives wisdom liberally for the asking. Why make foolish, emotional decisions unnecessarily? Better to not get into a situation than get caught out and live with the consequences.

With God’s help, do NOT be the low-lying fruit that a man can come by and pluck off the vine. The sweetest fruit is at the top of the tree and requires some work by the person who wants it—it’s okay to let him work for it. Know your worth and trust that good and perfect gifts come from God (James 1:17). If the gift doesn’t fall in that category, it’s NOT from God—-reject it, keep waiting and renewing your strength like Isaiah 40:31 reminds us! Your blessing is enroute!

God bless you!

Blen

Pic courtesy of http://www.rocas.com.mt/cRubies.html

4 Jul 201119 Dec 2015

BlenCouragesU14 Comments

Get in your single happy place..

Hey family!

It’s that time of year again where everything is hearts, flowers, candy and couples. Depending on where you are in your single comfort zone, this “holiday” can either be depressing (who wants that?) or a blessing (I’m thinking yes on this)!

You can volunteer at a shelter, rest home, soup kitchen or hang out with your single friends. Pray for other singles and couples. Babysit or offer eldercare for a couple to be able to get some time together. You reap what you sow! Sow good seeds!!!

Dessert for one — The perfect ending to a solo dinner!

If it’s possible, get some good takeout, make a decadent dessert, treat yourself to a massage or buy yourself something pretty! And it doesn’t have to be expensive–personally, I love a great scarf, hat, or any smell-good perfume or bath salt. Of course, if you can squeeze in a pair of shoes, a shiny trinket or a purse–go for it! 🙂

Yes, I know that things don’t bring you happiness or help with the loneliness, heartache, and occasional pain of not having a loved one–I get that. Only Christ’s perfect love can ease the pain of a lonely heart. I am grateful though, that God has blessed me to be in my “happy single place”, and I am FINALLY living as Paul told the Philippians “….for I have learned, in whatever state I am in to be content” (Philp. 4:11). Being content is a process, and sometimes takes awhile, in part because we don’t want to do things His way {guilty}. Eventually, though, the Lord does get His way, so it really is better for us to yield early and often to shorten the painful process. It’s also best to be about your Father’s business, yielding to His will for your life, and taking care of yourself until the Lord blesses you with a mate, rather than wistfully wishing someone brought you flowers. Hence the suggestions for being busy, or getting your own gift.

Bottom line: When God is ready to reveal my intended to his missing rib (me), with God’s grace, I’ll be ready. Until then and even after the man comes, Jesus will always and forever be my first, true and best love. Period.

God bless you always!

Love you,

Blen

12 Feb 201116 Dec 2015

BlenCouragesU6 Comments

Intercede for those in need..

Hi all,

Some time ago, I heard a man of God talk about generational curses. I didn’t think a whole lot about it at the time, but it’s a topic that warrants some brain time. Think about some of the issues that have happened to various members of your family or friends. Some have been in prison, hooked on drugs, been abusive, been abused, cannot hold a job, get into and pursue, unhealthy relationships, continue attracting the wrong persons….the list goes on. Isn’t there something we can do about this? ABSOLUTELY. It’s called intercede!

The power of intercessory prayer is so important. The Bible is full of examples where people interceded on the behalf of others.For example, Abraham interceded on behalf of Sodom (Genesis 18:20-33), Moses for Israel (Exodus 32:11-13), and even Jesus for us! (John 17:6-26). When we pray in faith, believing that God will move the mountain, loose the bands of wickedness, set the captive free, heal the sick, deliver that sister, save that cousin, send emotional healing to a friend, send a financial blessings to the needy, stop that woman from settling, make a man act responsibly, reconcile relationships, bless someone to be saved, stop an accident, strengthen a saint——there are so many strongholds that can be BROKEN when we intercede in the mighty name of Jesus! How many times have YOU been on the receiving end of someone praying on your behalf? As I think about a particular stronghold in my B.C. (before Christ) days, I KNOW someone prayed for that thing to be broken in my life. One day the stronghold was there…the next day it wasn’t! Look at God!

I got to thinking about some of the issues I’ve seen in my own family and how we attribute it to being lazy, unlearned, youthful foolishness or say–“hey, his mother did it, so…” “or..that runs in the family”. While the aformentioned may be true statements, isn’t it about time, people of God, that these things STOP running in our family? Is the power of the blood of Jesus strong enough to overcome any and all plans of the enemy and his minions? Then let’s stop sitting passively and get into prayer action mode. Find a fellow believer to touch and agree with in faith! Go up for prayer and stand proxy for the situation that’s overtaken your family/friends. Turn down a plate, knowing God will honor your sacrifice!

As a result of some of the things that have taken place in my own family, I decided to petition God to break any and all curses over my family, as well as over the lives of others. I’m excited about the changes that will take place—even though I don’t see them right now, since now faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). In addition, with God’s grace, I will also try to remember to speak life, rather than death (Proverbs 18:21), about the situations I’m believing God for. I sometimes wonder if we pray in faith, just to talk negatively about the situation with our family and friends. I’m sure that delays the blessing unnecessarily. Time for that to stop, too!

As 2010 draws to a close, let us all take the time to pray in faith that generational curses will be and stay broken for our friends, family loved ones, and for everyone who is affected by the enemy’s tactics. When folks see how able our God is in the deliverance department, I do believe they will be asking “what must I do to be saved?” Amen? Amen! I’ll be waiting for the victory report!

In closing, I want to thank you for blessing me with your presence on this blog. Your hits, comments and kind words have been a blessing to the readers and myself. May God bless you and those dearest to you with his BEST blessings in 2011 and always.

Love,

Blen

30 Dec 201019 Dec 2015

BlenCouragesU4 Comments

Learn from the burn….

Hey family!

I was flying down the highway at 65 m.p.h (well maybe closer to 70-ish), on my way to my family’s dinner. I sped along, it seemed like the Lord tapped me on the shoulder and pointed out a posted sign that said “Speed limit 55”. I apologized to God and tried to follow the laws of the land.

As I attempted to slow my roll, the other vehicles whizzed on by me without any regard to the sign. The thought came to me that everyone else was going over the limit and not getting caught…why should I obey? Then there was the “keeping up with the flow of traffic” reasoning. And when discussing this with a friend, in the spirit of justification, she said “well, the police would have to pull everyone over–they were all breaking the law.” Ummm yes, that will go over well with the officer–NOT!

Looking at this on a natural level, there are a couple of lessons in this. First, as people of God, unless the laws are in direct conflict with God’s word, we are required to obey earthly ordinances since God has established law and order through people as Romans chapter 12 tells us. Thus our civil laws ARE God’s law. So when we break the law by exceeding the speed limit, we are breaking God’s law.

The other thing is, speed limits are posted for protection. Obviously, there has been some thought, research and sadly, in some cases, accidents that went into the decision for the limits. Who are we to decide the law is not for us and override it? Sometimes we get stopped by an officer who has mercy and lets us go with a warning. Sure, we’re careful for a few weeks, slow down when we see someone who is pulled over, but then we slip back into the heavy-foot habit. And once we see the lights flash in the rearview mirror and get a COSTLY ticket–we get upset with the officer who stops us?

Spiritually speaking, God has established certain codes of behavior for us to follow because as the ultimate “law maker”, He knows the repercussions of us going over the limits He provides. How many times have we been warned in prayer, through God’s word, a sermon or talking with someone who has experience in the area we speed in? Have there not been times when we’ve seen people “pulled over”– entangled in situations that were caused from not heeding the God’s word? We slow down, but then as we see others disregarding the Word and moving to their destinations quickly, we think, well, maybe I should go that way–nothing happened to them. Psalm 37:1-2 tells us different. “Fret not yourself because of evildoers, neither be envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.”

The truth of the matter is, as tempting as it is to go outside of God’s will to get what we want, it will only get us a costly “ticket” later on. I think back to the times I got into God’s permissive (rather than His divine) will, and NOTHING good came out of it , except, of course the lessons I learned from the chastening. (“Now no chastening for the present seems to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” Hebrews 12:11). While the lessons learned are invaluable, I don’t want to always “learn from the burn”–I’d rather heed the posted signs and warnings aka God’s Word through whom/however He brings it.

Bottom line, with the grace of God, let’s do our best to stay within the boundaries God has given us. Following what God has given us in the “66” (His Word) will bless and protect us, honor God, help us to be that light on the hill and keep us from the “burn” both here and eternally.

God bless you!

Blen

Photos courtesy of:

http://tell.fll.purdue.edu/JapanProj/FLClipart/Medical.html

http://www.laserveil.com/police/radar/

http://www.therockchurchranch.com/