“Thank You for the “no’s” | Moya Pugh–Part 2

Here there BCU Family!

You can access the podcast here, or click on the avatar below, as you refer to the show notes below for the highlights. We pray the content blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the podcast!

Podcast highlights:

  • We continue our conversation with my friend, Moya Pugh, founder of Sister 2 Sister International Women’s ministry.
  • Moya and I connected via a work event, and in chatting, we discovered our mutual love of Christ.
  • Last time, we talked about christian conduct, ministry, and being a safe space.
  • This time, Moya and I talk about waiting on God, our plans vs God’s plans, and finding love after 40!

KJV Scripture References

Psalm 100:2

Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His presence with singing.

Philippians 4:6-7

6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 3:20

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us..

Proverbs 18:22

Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord.

Luke 11:11-13

11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

Moya and her husband, Lawrence ❤️💙

BCUFam, what resonated most for me, is that sometimes we get more “no’s than “yeses” when requesting certain things from God. Because our finite minds “think” we know what’s best for us, the no’s may seem like punishment or the enemy blocking our blessings.

On the contrary, we have to remember that because our grace and glory giving God is our sun and shield, He will not withhold any good thing from those who walk upright before Him (Psalm 84:11). So if it’s good, and His will, we will get what are asking for. Otherwise, there is something God is protecting us from, hence being grateful for the “no’s”. I will admit, that “no” does not always feel good in the moment, but once we realize that God has better, we will give thanks through the tears, and continue serving the Lord with gladness. Amen? What stood out for you? Please leave a comment so we can continue our conversation!

Moya and I have more to cover, so please stay tuned for our next segment, as we leisurely walk through the next part of her story of God’s purpose and plan for her life. In the meantime, Let’s pray!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before You today, thank You for the words of wisdom and correction You have provided. While we may not always understand every decision You make on our behalf, we know You, Lord, are a good, good Father and You always do what is best for us. So we thank You Jesus, for the “no’s” and with Your help, will continue to serve You while we wait, and declare Your goodness, for You are God and You are GOOD! It is in Jesus name, we pray and thank You, Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram. Also, if you so inclined, join us Thursday nights––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, Pandora, and Spotify!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Story time |Getting(re)acquainted with BCU

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, once again I recorded the content via video! The audio link on the BCU avatar below is a brief explanation that the podcast is on YouTube this week. Please tune into the podcast video (click here), and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • With the grace of God, we are in the first full work week of 2024 and we thank God for His mercy and grace!
  • Last time we were together, I shared two lessons from 2023…and I promised to share one more with you.
  • For this podcast, since we have so many new to the BCUFam, I share a bit about me, and, then, I tell you about an important reminder from God—and I share it via video! Please click here and I’ll see you there!

Scripture references

Exodus 14:13-28

13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.

14 The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

15 And the Lord said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward:

16 But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

17 And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them: and I will get me honour upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

19 And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:

20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.

21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.

24 And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the Lord looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians,

25 And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians.

26 And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.

27 And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea.

28 And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them.

Exodus 15:1-2

 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

2 The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

BCU Fam, with the grace of God, I am looking forward to sharing this year with you! Let’s do what we can to be a blessing to everyone we come in contact with, and to give God praise for everything. Amen? Amen!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before You today, we thank You for allowing us to see a new year! Great is Your faithfulness, and we thank You for Your lovingkindness toward us! It is my prayer that You will bless each person who is tuned in to the podcast video today, and You will meet whatever need they have, be it emotionally, spiritually, mentally, physically or financially. We thank You Lord for healing, delivering, saving and setting people free in the name of Jesus. We thank You, Jesus, for making a way out of NO way and taking care of all our impossible situations! We thank You for helping us to hear Your voice, Jesus, and for helping us to do things Your way, so that we are pleasing to You. We ask that You strengthen and keep us, and we will be careful to give You all the glory, honor and praise, that belongs to You, in Jesus name, we pray, Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, and many of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Story time | Lessons from 2023

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, I recorded the content via video which is RARE for me! 😆 But it is the end of the year, so why not try something a little different, right? The audio link on the BCU avatar below is a brief explanation that the podcast is on YouTube this week. Please tune into the podcast video (click here), and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • With the grace of God, we are at the end of 2023, and we thank God for His mercy and grace!
  • For many of us, this is a time to recount the defining moments we experienced throughout the year.
  • For this podcast, I am sharing a few lessons the Lord taught/reminded me of via video. Please click here and I’ll see you there!

Scripture references

Proverbs 21:9
It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.

Proverbs 15:1

A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.

Romans 12:18

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

James 5:16

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Galatians 6:1

Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

I Corinthians 13:13

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

BCU Fam, this was a blessed AND challenging year for many of us, myself included. In all things, we give God praise for His goodness and mercy toward us. I am so grateful for all of you, and will do what I can with His help to continue to keep encourage your hearts so we can #StayOnTheWall together! Let’s pray!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before You today, we thank You for all of the lessons you have taught us this year. It is our prayer that you help us to know how to speak to, respect and prayerfully approach one another, so that you are glorified, honored, and praised in our speech and actions.

Thank You for helping us to be a safe place for someone to come to when they do have a confession. Help us to prayerfully hear what they are saying without judging unrighteously, and to respond in a way that will correct and restore those who desire to do differently. We thank You for blessing each and every person here according to Your riches in glory, and we will give Your name glory and honor, in Jesus name, we pray, Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, and many of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Great and mighty is our God!

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • We are now days away from the day many set aside to celebrate the birth of Christ. (Note, There is NO biblical reference mentioning when Christ was born. We’re just glad He came).
  •  As we meditate on the miracle of His birth, and how/why He came here to save mankind (see John 3:16), the preparation and circumstances for Jesus’ arrival were orchestrated perfectly.
  • Years ago, God gave me this simple, yet powerful post that truly showed me how and reminded me of how powerful He is! Please listen, reflect and rejoice on the magnitude of our God!

Scripture references

Prophecy: Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to Me, the One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.”

Situation: Joseph & very pregnant Mary are in Nazareth/Galilee about 70 or so miles away from Bethlehem and likely had no reason to go there. Until…Let’s go to Luke 2:1-3.

1And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.

2This census first took place while Cyrenius was governing Syria.

3So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.

Solution: Caesar declares a tax and all people, including Joseph and Mary have to make their way to their own/home city (and with no modern transportation, I might add. Now to Luke 2:4-6).

4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,

5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was great with child.

6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.

Lesson: God used a carnal government official to make His Word/promise come to pass. He’s that powerful!! Psalms 62:11 says, “God has spoken once, twice have I heard this: power belongs to God!” That’s something to get excited about!

BCUFam, Proverbs 21:1 declares, “the king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever He will.” When we think about that, it helps us to understand who God really is and how He organizes circumstances to accomplish His will. While we may not understand or like our current situation(s), with His help, we need to trust He knows what He’s doing. In fact, Paul reminds us that “..we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose” (‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭28‬). While the individual situations that happen in our lives may not feel good, once the Lord finishes His masterpiece, ALL things will work together for good! With the grace of God, we’ll just hang on in here together and let the Lord have His way! Amen? Amen! Let’s pray!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before You, as always, we say thank You! Thank You for reminding and illuminating us about the birth of Your Son, Jesus, through the Scriptures. We thank You, Lord because You are strategic and because all Your ways are perfect, You arranged everything according to how You wanted them to happen, so that You are glorified, honored and praised, and Your will and purpose was accomplished. Because of this, we know we can trust You with the details of our lives as well.

Some of us are going through some things we do not quite understand, Lord, nonetheless, we want to lean on, trust in and depend on You! We want to hear what You are saying to us, and with Your help, walk in the steps You have ordered for us, Jesus. Psalm 37:23 reminds us the steps of a good man are ordered, and You delight in his way. Please bless us to follow Your way, so that Your perfect will is done, You are honored, and eventually we will hear,”well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of the Lord.” We thank You for each and every person here today, we ask You to bless all who are listening and thank You for continuing to bless and keep us, in Jesus name we pray, Amen.

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, and many of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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