By: Tamika M.

As I was walking down the street, leaves crunching under my feet, looking out at the goodness of God's creation, I can not help but be thankful. Although 2020 has been rough, and there have been many challenges all around, the truth we can rest in is that God is God, and God is good! I am reminded of the passage in Psalm 7:17, which reads:

We are to praise the Lord for who he is, not just for what he can do, not only when he moves according to our will; thanksgiving is a state of mind and a choice that we choose to make. We can choose to wallow in our problems, or we can choose to rest in the cross. We can focus on what is going on around us, or we can keep our focus on heavenly things. 

If I can be honest, life will give us plenty of things to concern ourselves with: money, relationships, and the economy. We can find these things being our focus and not the work and will of God. But if we learn to be content and to trust God no matter what we are facing, thankfulness becomes our heart's response.

Theres a quote by AW Tozer that says:

Thankfulness and gratitude are things that we can do even in our lowest times, even when our lives may not look the way we expect them to look. When we practice thankfulness, we point back to the truth that God is greater, God's plan is bigger, and God is still and will always be in control.

So friend, as we go through this holiday season, I encourage you to be thankful. Thankful for life, thankful for health, thankful for Christ. Learn to practice thankfulness even in small things because a heart of gratitude points away from us and straight to the Father.

By: Tamika Mahomes

​Here I am...
Sitting back at the computer, writing yet another blog...
If I am honest it's hard, with everything going on, I still feel it is not the right time to come back...
But while I realize that it might not be the right time, I know that in this time, especially in this time, the gospel must be preached...
God's word must go forth...
And this blog must continue.
For on this blog, I share Jesus, and on this blog, I invite others to share Jesus, and while there is a world full of chaos the truth is that in the midst of the chaos Jesus is still moving, he's still working, and he is still calling us to him.
So here I am one more time, resting on God's truth even in the midst of the hardest times.
Friends, I invite you to reflect on this very scripture that brings me hope even in a time such as this.

The peace of this world is fickle, but the peace that comes from our Father is everlasting, and in God's peace, we can find rest.
While this time is hard, and while we are desperately searching for change, let us find rest in the truth that God and God alone is in control. 

By: Tamika Mahomes

As we are experiencing the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, many of us are now adapting to a new reality of being bound to our homes and mandated to social distancing. And while this sudden limit of socialization has caused frustration, boredom, and some confusion, this is a time not to focus on what we can't do but rather what we can do. While this time has forced us to a place of rest, focus, and reflection, it is a time where we can maximize growing in what the Lord's will is. 

In today's passage, we see Paul reminding us that we must not waste time but instead make the most of every opportunity. So I ask you today? What are you making of this opportunity? Are you spending your time binge-watching shows on Netflix? Are you spending your time seeing how much online shopping you can accomplish? Are you spending your time scrolling social media? Or are you spending this time to grow yourself and develop into the person that God is calling you to be?​

Watching TV, scrolling social media, it all seems like a way to pass the time, but the truth is the more time you spend pouring those things into your soul, the more those things begin to control and lead your life.  Could you imagine if you instead spent those hours in the Bible? Could you imagine how we would grow as God's sons and daughters? Our time is not meant to be wasted but rather we need to make our time so precious that we refuse to allow non-essential things to distract our essential relationship with God.

In closing the passage, Paul reminds us not to be foolish and to understand what the Lord's will is. To understand what the Lord's will is, we have to be close to the Lord; we have to read, know, and understand his word. Church every Sunday and listening to online sermons is simply not enough! In order to see change, we must understand it begins with intentional time with the Father. Psalm 19:7 says:​

​God's word converts or changes the soul. When we are in the presence of the most high, we have no choice but to be changed and transformed. God's word calls us to be different, it calls us to be set apart, and it calls us to be more like him. So today friend, I challenge you (and myself), to put down the remote, put down the phone, put down the distractions and turn to Jesus, turn to the WORD and ask him, Father, how can I spend this time to be more like you. Let us allow this time to be time unwasted.

​By: Tamika Mahomes

When we reflect on the passage in Matthew chapter 5, Jesus is preaching the sermon on the mount. When we arrive at verses 13-16, we see Jesus sharing the reminder that this thing called Christianity is a religion worth sharing, as he shares that his followers are to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

While sharing the gospel is necessary, it is something that many followers of Christ shy away from! We often shy away for fear of rejection; we shy away because we don't want to offend; we even shy away because we don't want to face the backlash. ​The Bible reminds us that when we serve Jesus, the world may get angry, the world may not agree, and that if we choose to be pleasers of the world, we can not walk in the true fullness of life with Christ.

While fear may keep us from walking as the salt of the earth and the light of the world, we must rest in the simple truth that when we share Christ with others, we are essentially taking the focus off of us and putting the focus on Christ.

When we live a life of true surrender unto the most high God, we allow our convictions to lead us to a place where our commitments can't hold us. We develop an understanding that this world is not our home, and our obedience to the Holy Spirit is more important than any commitment to this world.

​To be salt of the earth and light of the world, we first have to know who the Word is, we must understand what the Word teaches, and we must draw near to the Word's instructions. If we do not have the light in us, we can not show the light to the world around us. John 8:12 reminds us of this truth, as is says:​

“...I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” (KJV)

When we allowed the Lord to speak to us through his Holy Word, we allow the light within us to transition to the darkness that is around us. Will you allow the Lord to use you today?​

By: Tamika Mahomes

Temptation is anything that tempts us to take our eyes off God. Jesus never said temptation (worry) would not come, but the Bible reminds us that while it may happen, Jesus is our way of escape. When we find ourselves caught up in our problems, we can miss Jesus, but when we find ourselves caught up in Jesus, we can forget about our problems. 

Verse 34 closes with Jesus a reminder, not to worry about tomorrow for tomorrow has enough worries of its own. A reminder that problems on this side of heaven are inevitable, and life will always give us reason to worry. Instead of being consumed in worry, we can fix our focus on God's truth, his word, and his ability to speak to even the biggest and hardest situations in our lives. Isn't it amazing that we can rest in knowing that while tomorrow is full of issues and concerns, we do not have to worry because God is in total control!

Today my friend, I want to leave you with this; do not get so caught up seeking the kingdom of your problems that you forget to look after the kingdom of God. Worries come and go, but Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore. ​I encourage you to keep doing your part in looking to Christ and let God do his part in looking after you! 

By: Tamika Mahomes

When the new year begins, it is common to find ourselves in a place of reflection. We look back on the last year, the ups, the downs, the expected, and the unexpected. When we begin to examine where we were and where we want to be, we open ourselves up to the opportunity of change. Change starts in our mind; it begins with knowing and understanding that our experience does not have to determine our future circumstances. God's word reflects this truth.

In looking at today's scripture 2 Corinthians 5:17, the Bible shows us that once we truly have an encounter with the Lord, we become new. The newness in Christ requires a change in us. We transform our thinking from allowing our past to define us, to letting God's word to guide us. God's word tells us the truth; God's word shows us wisdom; God's word gives us understanding. When God transforms our mind, he transforms our life. 

As you look back over 2019, I want to challenge you to reflect on the state of your heart. Have you allowed your old way of thinking to shape who you are and who you will be? Have you determined in your mind that your current situation is your forever reality? Or have you allowed God to speak to you? Have you let God show you that newness in him requires a change in you? 

2 Corinthians 5:17 says that in Christ, old things are passed away, and in HIM (yes, HIM, not YOU), all things are new. Without question, without requirement, without limit, God allows you to be made new in him. The truth is, life can change you, or Christ can change you. We ought not to get to a point where we allow life, people, or circumstances to attain our focus so much so that God can not lead us in a different direction. When we stop allowing life to guide us, and we start allowing Christ to guide us, we can rest in the truth that we can relinquish control and rest in him! 

As you look back on 2019, I know you may feel you have more questions than answers, I know people may have let you down, I know that you may have had more bad times than good. But I also know that God wants to move in your life, I know that God brings peace to any storm, he brings change to any willing heart, and he even makes the dirtiest, ugliest and messiest things new. If you start knowing him, he will begin changing you, Will you let him? ​