Acting on God’s Voice

Hello SALT. This is a quick, but vital lesson. Ok, not so quick. 

Listen and obey what God tells you.  Even “Godly” people say things that may contradict. Here’s one of my personal examples:

     In regards to Sickle Cell (chronic hereditary blood disorder) and this season, God has told me that “His Grace is Sufficient for me.” He’s had several corroborating scriptures to practically leap off of the page so that I didn’t miss and mess it up. Scriptures that I already knew yes, but of which I had to be reminded in this season (if you want them, let me know and I’ll send them to you). Now, I know He’s told me about His Grace... but so many people of faith come to me with “By His stripes...” and encouragement about having faith. 

    Are they wrong? Am I right? Well, the answer is, “yes”, and “no”, and “not exactly”.  I always listen to what these people are saying, even if it is completely inapplicable. Why do I listen when I know it’s not for me? A few reasons. Random order:

1) God may be using that moment to increase their confidence for evangelizing, or prophesying.

2) It’s ALWAYS good to hear scripture. It just is. 

3) Checking my spiritual barring. Same season? Mission changed? Am I still hearing “My Grace…?”

4) God may be working on my patience. My flesh, which does not like to waste time, wants to simply say, “that’s not for me, remember Paul’s thorns?”

5) Their intentions are pure. 

6) Spiritual maturation is not something you can gauge, by human means. Since we do not have the tools to accurately assess this, we shouldn’t try. Only the Holy Spirit can, and should, do this. Now the problem arises because we CAN see areas of spiritual immaturity. Mostly in others and seldom in ourselves. It’s a foolish thing to try to get someone who is not spiritually mature to understand that God works on countless, shifting seasons, and on simultaneously moving planes. It is difficult for them to understand that while God is consistently telling them that, increasing faith = their breakthrough healing, at the exact same time He’s telling me about His sufficient grace.

Of course both of these situations are mutually correct and accurate. But, it depends on the seasons, and the walks.

We love you, and we are praying for you.

Pastor, Dr. Erroyl and Sis. Pinky

SALT- Saved Anchored Living Transformed

Sis. Pinky’s Prayer: Help us God to learn to discern the season we’re in and the seasons others may be in so we may say things of the Spirit and not of the flesh.

In Jesus’s name, 

Amen

“Throw your hands in the air!”

I Throw Your Hands in the Air

In Acts 27 - Paul, other prisoners, and sailors find themselves in the midst of a great storm. There came a point when the winds were so strong that the sailors could only take their hands off of the wheel (v 15), lest the ship be tossed and broken.

There are many lessons to be learned from this event in history. 

1. Listen to advice from Godly people to avoid the storm.
2. Don't follow the majority simply because they make logical sense.
3. Some storms can be avoided.
4.  If you wind up in the storm, lighten the load - extra baggage does you no good in a storm.
5. Know whose you are. There is an abundance of knowledge, protection, relationships, opportunities, and blessings just from that knowledge alone.

The lessons that you can get from this scripture go on and on (The WORD is rich y'all)!

Primarily, but briefly, I want to focus on this one fact;  You cannot drive a ship well (safely, accurately, without serious danger) while in a storm. Even though smaller storms are easier to navigate through, and the repercussions are not as great, a small storm can seriously injure.  The size of the storm, and severity of the repercussions from the outcome, typically have a directly proportional relationship. In other words, the bigger the storm is, the more damage it can do... potentially. 

The ship in the example represents your life. As with the ship, your life has a purpose, route, and a destination. They both have a captain, a crew, and passengers.You, your family and friends, and those folks that are just along for the ride. They both have luggage, and baggage. Some things you need, and some you do not. And, they both WILL encounter storms.  

Knowing that there are storms coming can be scary. But, that also gives us the opportunity to prepare for the storms, and the opportunity to learn what to do while in the storm. Here the crew tried everything to make the situation better. Eventually it was realized that the best thing to do was take their hands away from the wheel, and allow the storm to drive them. We have to get to a point sooner or later when we realize that God is in control of the storm!  Prov 16:9  says that a man makes plans, but God makes the way. We must realize that the storm was designed by God to accomplish a purpose. Maybe to get your attention, maybe to warn you, maybe to begin or end a relationship, or maybe to call you home to glory. Regardless though, we have to take our hands off and let Him guide. Trusting Him while in the storm might be difficult, but it is vital. We tend to, just like the crew from the scripture, try everything first and eventually release the control. This surrendering is what God wants. It’s obedience. God honors this and this is when we are in His divine will. Let go of the wheel!

By the way, while your hands are off the wheel go ahead and raise them a little bit higher and give God some praise.

We love you, and we are praying for you

~Pastor Erroyl and Sis Pinky

SALT

Father, 

Help me to take my hands off the wheel in every aspect of my life. Help me to surrender and praise You for being Alpha and Omega! 

In Jesus’s name we pray, 

Amen

It takes two baby.…Do your part!

Many times we will say things like "the Lord needs to do a work in me". And while that is certainly true, sometimes what that statement does is give us a cop-out to doing the work we need to do.

The Scriptures say "Faith without works is dead" James 2:26. Because God lives outside of time, He has already begun the work in you. That is evidenced by the fact that you know work needs to be done. He placed that desire to "get it right" in you, He placed the people and situations in your path.    

That was His part. The first part for you is to believe. That is the faith. The next part -the work... Some people find it easy to work, and others find it easy to believe. You must have both. Why, because work without faith is just work... So yeah, it takes two baby.

I love you and I am praying for you. 

~Pastor Erroyl

SALT