Your Plan, His Steps

We all have wanted to do things in our lives. Whether it is something as small as cleaning up the house, or as big as running for President.

Have you ever made a plan to do something in your life, and when it has been accomplished, look in the mirror in amazement that you actually did it?

Have you ever made a plan to do something in your life, you write down step by step instructions, but it never works out how YOU planned it?

The answer is quite simple:

A man's heart deviseth his way; but the Lord directeth his steps

- Proverbs 16:9 (KJV)

The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?

- Proverbs 20:24 (NLT)

The first scripture is simply saying that your heart plans the way (what you want to do with your life), however the Lord directs you on how to get there.

The second scripture activates your Faith by saying, since the Lord directs your steps to your goals, why try to understand why He is taking you the way He is taking you.

These two together simply say that while you make the plans of your life, trust in the Lord to direct you down the right path and do not doubt Him; for He is your protector and will not put you in harms way. If you reach road bumps on your journey, it is simply to learn something that you will need later when you get closer to your destination.

Which Mustard Seed Am I Using?

I present you with a question today. This question is to make you look inside of yourself and realize which one you have chosen.

                                           Which Mustard Seed have you chosen?
Mustard Seed #1                                                                                   Mustard Seed #2               

They look exactly the same. They are both small, yet powerful. Every seed has a purpose; however, it is how you use this seed that will make the difference in your life.

And Jesus said unto them, "Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have Faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you."
- Matt 17:20

The purpose of this saying, was to simply inform those following Jesus that if you have Faith, you can look at something as massive as a mountain and tell it to move, and it will move.

Mustard Seed #1 represents Faith while Mustard Seed #2 represents Doubt

Now what about those of us who utilize Doubt instead of Faith? How can you look at this mountain in your life and tell it to be gone if you doubt that it will actually move? You can not. It is impossible to move something when you doubt it.

We live out our lives saying, "I wish I had a better paying job," or "I wish I could do this," and we never accomplish those things because we do not utilize that mustard seed of Faith. We are doubting what Jesus can do for us, and in doing so, we cripple ourselves.

If we said, "I have faith that Jesus will bless me with a better paying job," and we do not doubt it at all, we can have that better paying job.

So while Faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains out of your life, Doubt the size of a mustard seed can bring failure and destruction in your life.

So my question to you....Which mustard seed are YOU utilizing?

Working in Faith...Let Go and Let God

                                            
Have you ever wondered why you talk to Jesus and ask Him to move on your behalf for any given situation and He does not seem to move. You wait and decide to ask again as if you are giving a friendly reminder. You wait and still nothing. So you go to Him again, yet this time you have a small dose of 'demand' in your voice.

My question to you is....Where is your Faith? How can you expect Jesus to move on your behalf if you do not believe in Him to do which you asked? What happened to Let Go and Let God?

What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath Faith, and have not works? Can Faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, and one of you say unto them, 'Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled,' notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?
Even so Faith, if it hath not works, is dead being alone. Yea, a man may say, 'Thou hast Faith, and I have works: shew me thy Faith without thy works, and I will she thee my Faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
But wilt thou know, O vain man, that Faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?
Seest thou how Faith wrought with his works, and by works Faith made perfect?
And scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believe God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by Faith only.
- James 2:14-24

This is a classic scripture that shows us that no matter what, when we ask of God that we need to believe that He will move on our behalf, because of our unwavering Faith. Faith plays a HUGE part in the works. When we continue to ask of Him, we are showing that we do not have Faith in who He is to help us or bless us.

Let us together as one big family under Christ help each other Let Go and Let God and increase each other's Faith and watch Jesus pour us out a blessing that we will not have room enough to receive it.

Walked In Your Shoes...Now What!!!

We all have heard someone say, "Walk a Mile in my Shoes."

                 

We have even been the ones to tell this to others. The whole purpose for this saying is to give the impression that the road you have traveled was not and is not an easy road to walk and that they possibly could not have done it. So when someone approaches us, we use this to symbolize that if the believe what we have gone through was so easy, to have them do it and see if they feel it was easy after.

Well your challenge has been accepted.....by Jesus!!!

Jesus was born for you...not in a hospital but a manger. 
He lived for you...sitting next to people you never would, did things for people you never would.
He was lied on for you...people said he was a blasphemer and had no right to do what He was doing
He was persecuted for you...they set a TRUE criminal free and tortured Him with whips and chains.     
He died for you...by carrying your burdens and sins in the form of a cross up to the hill on Calvary and was nailed on that cross.
  
He rose for you...to show that He was in fact the Son of Man and that he was able to walk a mile and more in your shoe so that you may have life more abundantly.
 

So next time someone approaches you saying how easy your life may be....remember someone who truly cares and loves you walked a great distance so that the road you are currently travelling on isn't quite as hard.

Let Me Transform You!!!

Have you ever seen the movie Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen?





I love this movie. The reason I love this movie is because "Faith & Jesus" is shown and no one notices it. This movie is an exact example of how we should be in our everyday lives. Let me jog your memory and set the scene for why "Faith" is shown:


The movie shows Megatron after Sam because Sam has something powerful within him. Megatron wants this, because he knows Sam is going to use it for good. Megatron knows that Sam is protected by Optimus Prime. Megatron & Co. kill Optimus Prime as he was trying to protect Sam. Sam finds out about the Matrix of Leadership and that he could possibly bring Optimus Prime back to life with this.





Sam sets out to find this Matrix of Leadership. He finds it and it disintegrates in his hand.


This is where things get interesting....


All hope seems lost. He takes his sock off, and puts the ashes in there. People begin to look at Sam confused asking him what he is doing and that he can not bring Optimus Prime back. He looks at them defiantly and says, "Yes I can, because I BELIEVE!" He begins his journey back to Optimus and is met with many trials and obstacles that he must maneuver and go through. He is then struck down and begins to pass away. As he is dying he is approached by the Primes who see that he will do anything and bring him back to life. Once he has risen, he uses the Matrix of Leadership to bring Optimus Prime back to life.


Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
- Romans 12:2



And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
- 2 Corinthians 3:18



Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come
- 2 Corinthians 5:17



Where does Faith & Jesus come in?





We are all born with something powerful to be used for the Kingdom of God; however Satan is going to do whatever he can in order to stop you. Jesus knowing how precious you are and what you have to offer to God, chose to lay down his life for you. The Holy Bible is the tool used to bring Jesus to life and spread the Good News until His second coming.





No matter what comes your way, you must have Faith that what you are doing is good and not let anyone change that, even those closest to you. When you operate in Faith, you will be met with trials and test to see if you can stand strong and be unwavering. Sometimes during this you will feel depleted and feel as if you are dying. Rest assured that you will be reborn and transformed into someone better and stronger all because of your Faith.


And as you rise as your new self, you will be able to continue on spreading that Good News of Jesus Christ until you see Jesus come back.

Stay Hungry!!

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
- Matt 5:6


There is a popular saying that goes, "A closed mouth does not get fed."


This is very true. You need food in order to nourish your body, feed it energy in order to keep you going. The same goes for your mind and spirit.


My Thought:
Even though a closed mouth does not get fed, an open mind still does.


- Thoughts by D.Hedge

The Consistent Role Model

We all have family, friends, celebrities, and authority figures that we look up and even wish to be like. We watch their every move and imitate everything they do. Then one day they do something so bizarre or wrong, that we are shattered and we feel that we have no one to look up to. We all want to look up to someone who never changes and will always be the same from the day we met them, to today, and forever. Look no further than Jesus.

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, an to day, and for ever
- Hebrews 13:8

So while we know that some of our role models change like the weather; why not go to the most CONSISTENT Role Model in the world.

- Thoughts by D.Hedge

No Pain - No Gain

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

- 1 Peter 5:10

When you read this you should be thinking No Pain - No Gain. This scripture is saying that you were called to have His glory, but before you are made whole you must suffer awhile. You have trials and tests because how can you help someone in need if you never experienced the same pain. Once you have been through the pain and learned the lesson from it, Jesus will come and make you strong, settle your spirit and make you perfect.


Can you endure your current pain to be made whole and gain eternal life.


- Thoughts by D.Hedge

The Perfect Blueprint

For every house is builded by some man; but He that built all things is God.
-Hebrews 3:4


When I read this 2 things come to mind. 


1. There are a lot of things built by man, which is why we call them man-made objects. 
2. God is the builder of all things that we see and do not see


What this translates to is that everything has a blueprint. The difference between God and us, is that, we all have blueprints that can be modified and destroyed; however God's blueprints are always perfect.


So with this being said, when we want to build something, why not first go to God and ensure it is in His blueprint for us, as we know that His plans are always perfect and can not be changed or destroyed.




Thoughts by D.Hedge

Y.O.L.O. - How are you Living?

YOLO (You Only Live Once)

This is the 'Motto' so many live by. This has become increasingly popular with the hip hop song entitled 'The Motto' by Drake.

These lyrics should not define the true definition of YOLO. The enemy (Satan) uses this saying as a temptation to say, "Hey..you only live once, so indulge yourself in these things in which you should not since you will be unable to when you pass away."

Ex: Adultery, Gluttony, Lying, Stealing, Killing, Lust, Vanity

However we need to change our outlook on this popular saying. We should see YOLO as Jesus sees YOLO. You only live once so the importance of living Christ-like and living a life pleasing to God should be heightened in our spirits as we only have one chance to gain the acceptance of Jesus and our Father who created us. You only get one shot at having your name written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

So since you only live once......

How are YOU living?

-Thoughts by D.Hedge

Mission: Possible

Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

-Matt 19:26

We try so hard to complete things that we want to or need to do that we forget that it is impossible for us to actually accomplish this. There are times in our lives that we have to realize that we can not handle this ourselves. It is an impossible task for us. When we have these moments, we need to look inside ourselves and see if we are abiding in Jesus and that Jesus is abiding in us.

If both are true then we can continue with our tasks knowing that all things we set our minds to WILL be done. If neither are true then we need to get right with Jesus, because until then our tasks shall remain impossible


I have yet to reach my full potential. As long as I abide in Jesus and Jesus abides in me, all things are possible.
(Repeat Throughout the Day)


Thoughts by D.Hedge

Introduction: A Look Inside the Mind of D. Hedge

First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone who has decided to read my blog. I decided to start blogging after my wife began to blog about our pregnancy, and with my Mentor (Earl Johnson) publishing his first book entitled:

"101 Life Lessons by EJ"

I believe I was given the gift of speech, so that I may help those who need help and I can put it in a way almost everyone could understand.

As stated in my description, the purpose for me blogging is to inspire, motivate, cultivate, and increase your "out the box" thinking.

We all have those few people who we can go to when we feel Depressed, Exiled, Down, Discouraged, Suicidal, all those other emotions that are not Joyous, Happy, Excited, Elated, Courageous, I want to be the person people can come to and lean on when they feel they have no one.

While putting my thoughts out there, I hope you all read these with an open mind and open heart. Take the time to really digest what I am saying and form your own thoughts on this as well.

My thoughts will mainly be spiritual in nature while relative to the Bible. I am a believer in Jesus Christ, who is, the Son of Man, the Living God, the One who died for OUR sins, and rose on the third day. While you read these with an open mind and open heart, I hope that this will in turn, increase your relationship with Jesus Christ, or become the stepping stone to begin a relationship with Him.

I take this as a honor for anyone who takes the time out of their lives to read this and I would like to thank you all in advance.

- Be Blessed

D.Hedge