HAVE YOU EVER DESPISED GOD?

This morning while watching Bill Winston he was preaching about Faith. Today, however he taught from Numbers 11. The teaching was interesting to me as I never in my life thought that I despised the Lord. I love the Lord with all my heart and soul, yes I do, and I am sure you will say the same. However, read the following scripture and think to yourself have you ever complained about something God blessed you with or provided for you:

Numbers 11:18-23 "18 “Tell the people: ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow, when you will eat meat. The LORD heard you when you wailed, “If only we had meat to eat! We were better off in Egypt!” Now the LORD will give you meat, and you will eat it. 19 You will not eat it for just one day, or two days, or five, ten or twenty days, 20 but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it—because you have rejected (despised KJV) the LORD, who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?”’”

21 But Moses said, “Here I am among six hundred thousand men on foot, and you say, ‘I will give them meat to eat for a whole month!’ 22 Would they have enough if flocks and herds were slaughtered for them? Would they have enough if all the fish in the sea were caught for them?”

23 The LORD answered Moses, “Is the LORD’s arm too short? Now you will see whether or not what I say will come true for you.”

When we are not grateful for what we have and we groan and complain about the things God has blessed us with, we are despising the Lord. Merriam Webster defines despise as: 1: to look down on with contempt or aversion 2: to regard as negligible, worthless, or distasteful

How could we ever look down on the Lord with contempt or regard him as negligible? The Israelites did it in the wilderness and I am sure we have done it to. We despise the Lord when we do not take him at his Word and believe Him! Bill Winston used this example, lets say someone has a tumor and they go in for surgery to have the tumor removed. You are admitted into the hospital, put to sleep and when you come to the surgery is over, you are bandaged and hooked up to an IV. The doctor tells you the tumor has been removed and you believe the doctor at his word. You didn't see the surgery, you didn't see the tumor be removed, you don't even know how it happened. Yet, you believe the doctor at his word and you went and told people about the success of your surgery and what the doctor did. Now what about God?

The bible says in Isaiah 53:5 "But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." (KJV)

3 John 1:2 "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." (KJV)

Now that is the Word of God. You are healed and you are prospering in good health as your soul prospers.

If you are walking around claiming sicknesses and diseases, you are despising God.

Jesus died that we may have life and have it more abundantly to the full in every area of our lives. He also blesses us according to our faith. So what you have right now has been given to you according to your faith and also because of the words you have spoken. Now we were all given the same measure of faith it is up to us to develop it and increase it in our lives.

Before you start to complain about the things God has blessed you with (your children, your job, your home, the food in your fridge (even if its just ramen noodles or peanut butter and jelly), your car, clothes, shoes etc. Try thanking and praising God. What I gather from Numbers 11 is that complaining and groaning to God's ears means that we despise Him! 1 Thessalonians 5:18 "give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (NIV)

The will of God is for us to give thanks in ALL circumstances.

Be blessed and be a blessing,
Epiphany Essentials

FOOT LOCKER UNCF SCHOLARSHIP

To apply and for more information visit:

http://www.uncf.org/forstudents/scholarDetailSGA.asp?id=589

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Epiphany Essentials

BLACK HISTORY FACT

The Shakespeare Memorial Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon honored Ira Aldridge with a bronze plaque. He is the only African-American actor to receive this tribute.

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Epiphany Essentials

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Always dream and shoot higher than you know you can do. Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself." William Faulkner

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Epiphany Essentials

ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE: 95 YEAR OLD WOMAN SETS WORLD SPRINT RECORD

From the huffingtonpost.com

Ida Keeling is the world's fastest nonagenarian.

The 95-year-old Bronx native set a world record at a track meet in northern Manhattan last week, running 60 meters in 29.86 seconds, according to ABC News. She's the oldest woman to do so.

At 4-foot-6 and 83 lbs Keeling says she has always been the oldest person at her meets. That might be because she didn't even take up running until she was 67.

From ABC News:

Active and healthy and living alone in her Bronx, N.Y., apartment, she could pass for 75. She says she feels even younger.
"Like a puppy," she declares. "I feel younger now than when I was in my 30s and 40s and had all those problems. Then I was aged!"

Continue reading here http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/22/ida-keeling-95-year-old-woman-running-record_n_826541.html

Be blessed and be blessing,
Epiphany Essentials

WHAT'S AT YOUR CENTER?

I am currently reading The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I arrived at a section regarding writing a personal mission statement however, before writing it the book encourages the reader to determine what is 'At The Center'. The book states "whatever is at the center of our life will be the source of our security, guidance, wisdom, and power.

Now I will admit that right now as of today I can say that God is ever increasingly becoming my center. Had you asked me last year my answer would have been God but I would have been oh so wrong. As I realized from reading the book that my center was self and friends.

"Each of us has a center, though we usually don't recognize it as such." Many people are one of the following:

• Spouse-centered
• Family centered
• Money centered
• Work centered
• Possession centered
• Pleasure centered
• Friend/Enemy centered
• Church centered
• Self centered

None of these are the correct center for anyone to choose. However, many of us have chosen one or more of the above unknowingly. "By centering our lives on correct principles, we create a solid foundation for development of the four life support factors (security, guidance, wisdom, and power). Reading this as a believer the light bulb immediately went off in my head that my correct principle that should be the center is GOD!

While I will not break down the description of all the centers, feel free if you are interested to purchase the book and read it for yourself. I will share an excerpt from the book as an example.

"Suppose tonight you have invited your spouse to go to a concert. You have the tickets; your spouse is excited about going. It's four o'clock in the afternoon.

All of a sudden, your boss calls you into his office and says he needs your help through the evening to get ready for an important meeting at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

If you're looking through spouse-centered or family-centered glasses, your main concern will be your wife. You may tell the boss you can't stay and you take your spouse to the concert in an effort to please him/her. You may feel you have to stay to protect your job, but you'll do so grudgingly, anxious about your spouses response, trying to justify your decision and protect yourself from your spouses disappointment or anger.

If you're looking through a money-centered lens, your main thought will be the overtime you'll get or the influence working late will have on a potential raise. You may call your spouse and simply tell him/her you have to stay, assuming (s)he'll understand that economic demands come first.

If you're possession-centered, you might be thinking of the things the overtime income could buy. Or you might consider when an asset to your reputation at the office it would be if you stayed. Everyone would hear tomorrow how noble, how sacrificing and dedicated you are.

If you're pleasure-centered, you'll probably can the work and go to the concert, even if your spouse would be happy for you to work late. Your deserve a night!

If you're friend-centered, your decision would be influence by whether or not you had invited friends to attend the concert with you. Or whether your friends at work were going to stay late, too.

If you're enemy centered, you may stay late because you know it will give you a big edge over that person in the office who thinks he's the company's greatest asset. While he's off having fun, you'll be working and slaving, doing his work and yours, sacrificing your personal pleasure for the good of the company he can so blithely ignore.

If you're church-centered, you might be influenced by plans other church members have to attend the concert, by whether or not any church members work at your office, or by the nature of the concert - Handel's Messiah might rate higher priority than a rock concert. Your decision might also be affected by what you think a "good church member" would do and by whether you view the extra work as "service' or "seeking after material wealth."

If you're self-centered, you'll be focused on what will do you the most good. Would it be better for you to go out for the evening? Or would it be better for you to make a few points with the boss? How the different options affect you will be your main concern."

"As a principle-centered person, will stand apart from the emotion of the situation and from other factors that would act on you, and evaluate the options. Looking at the balanced whole 0f the work needs, the family needs, other needs that may be involved and the possible implications of the various alternative decisions - you'll try to come up with the best solutions, taking all factors into consideration."

"As a principle-centered person, you see things differently. And because you see things differently, you think differently, you act differently. Because you have a high degree of security, guidance, wisdom, and power that flows from a solid, unchanging core, you have the foundation of a highly proactive and highly effect life."

As I was writing this I realized that based on the situation our centers may differ. We may waiver from center to center above. Nevertheless for success in life and a peaceful life all decisions should be based on our principle-center. I have chosen my principle-center to be God.

Again, I ask you What's At Your Center?

Be a blessing and be blessed,
Epiphany Essentials

BLACK HISTORY LITTLE KNOWN FACT

Soccer phenom Freddy Adu was the youngest athlete to play in a professional American sports league.

Be blessed and be a blessing,
Epiphany Essentials