Listening With Your Eyes!

Recently I have focused on learning to do better in my relationships with others.  One key component of improving relationships is communicating in a more effective and compassionate manner.  Achieving this goal involves changing the way I listen to people from passive listening to active listening which means listening with more than my ears, with my eyes.  Yes, this means I stop everything I am doing so I can look at what a person is saying to me.  Looking at people with intentionality and observing how they are behaving when speaking to me, helps me better understand their message.  I can determine if there are their signs of stress, if their hands are saying something to me, if they are worried, and so forth.  Listening is more than just hearing the words the person is speaking; their emotions and physical behavior are just as critical.  

Today we focus on communicating via e-mails and texting without consideration for the importance of a face to face conversation with the other person.  Listening with our eyes forces us to make time for face to face meetings, to give the person a sense of value by demonstrating your willingness to set everything else aside and listen with your eyes.  

I thank God that He listens with his eyes, He watches over me caring for all my needs seeing the pains and struggles and responding appropriately.  He listen’s with His eyes and makes time for me even when I don’t realize He is there.  Praise the Lord!

Whether at work, school, or home take the time to listen with your eyes!  Just a little advice to go! 

Spirit of Discernment!

As believers we often neglect to adhere to the principles taught in the word, discernment is one of those.  The fast paced world in which we live, often leads to our taking action before we discern the situation and proper course of action based on God’s will for our lives.   

We have the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us to help us discern situations we encounter on a daily basis.  We can't make those discernments if we don't yield to the Spirit or even recognize the power it provides us. 

There is a point in our spiritual relationship where we recognize God is directing us and then act upon that direction.  We learn not to lean on our own understanding, but to pray and ask for the Lord's assistance as we enter into critical decisions.  We analyze the situation seeking to understand the people involved, the circumstances, the options, and the direction God would have us take.   Once we discern the direction God wills for us we can focus on making it happen.  

Focusing on God’s direction is not always easy as we are often prone to act in accordance with our own will versus His.  However with practice, patience, a determination to listen for God’s still voice, and prayer; we can focus on staying in line with God so as to fulfill His plan for our lives.   Just a little advice to go! 

In God's Time!

Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary." - Isa. 40:31

God's word is not intended for the weak of heart, for those who stress out and are inpatient.  God's promises are true and His word never returns void.  But His plan corresponds to His timing and not ours.  If we wait on the Lord we learn to become faithful, steadfast, and patient.  We move forward knowing that while the answer seems like it may never come, it will come in accordance with God's plan and not ours.

My wife and I have been married for more than 31 years and have truly come to understand the meaning of waiting upon the Lord and gaining the strength that comes with that waiting period.  We continue to redefine patience with every storm we weather understanding that it is not so much about what we want and when we want it, as much as learning to trust God to act how and when He needs to.

The storms have strengthen us to the point where we strive to help strengthen other couples who are much younger and are weathering storms we have experienced in the past.  For many of these couples our experiences offer an opportunity to learn and grow.  Helping them, helps us to grow stronger and more determined in our faith.

In the end, we are certain that those who wait on the Lord will receive an answer to their prayers.  He strengthens the faithful so that they mount up with wings like eagles, run and not tire, and walk and not become weary!  Just a little advice to go!

Breaking The Yoke!

The yoke binds the oxen leading them in every direction their master chooses depriving them of their freedom.  Like the oxen we find ourselves yoked by the sin that haunts us from the day we are born into this world.  Many believe these sins to be a curse we cannot overcome, a curse that has become generational.  The yoke has bound them for so long they fail to realize it can no longer control them, that they can simply choose a different path.

Christ has come to deliver sinners still every day they march forward repeating their sins believing they can never break free of the yoke that bounds them.  This is where you and I as believers come in; we are called to share the message of Christ as the key that unlocks the yoke and sets the captive free.  Our walk with Christ provides illumination for the lost to see that there is a way to overcome the curse and be set free.

Celebrating Christ and the fruits of the spirit will draw others who are seeking the joy that we have.  We can share the wisdom of God's word to those who are hurt, broken, and in despair.  We become the messenger for the one and only creator, ensuring that others know that their yoke has been removed, the curse has been broken, and they have been set free.  There is no generational curse Christ can't overcome, no burden he can't carry.

Together we can be the light that shines in the darkness revealing there is no yoke for those who choose  the Lord as their Savior.  We can be the voice that shouts from the mountain top that the yoke has been broken, that in Christ we are truly free!  Just a little advice to go!

Overcoming Negativity Through Christ!

The negativity we encounter on a daily basis can be destructive if we fail to understand its impact on our mental, emotional, and spiritual well being.  Negativity is a reality of every day life; how we respond to it determines whether it impacts us or we impact it.  First let's get a better understanding of the impact negativity has on us.

On the mental side, negativity has been demonstrated to impact the brain function by creating the release of  a large number of stress related hormones and neurotransmitters which increase our blood pressure and heart rate.  Tests where people have been exposed to negative words or pictures demonstrate the brain reacts negatively to this stimuli and the person becomes anxious and even depressed.  Negative verbal communication spreads with more people engaging in negative comments.   The end result is a continuously growing negative environment that takes its toll on those who have to endure it.

As our mental capacity begins to deteriorate so does our ability to control our emotions and with the induced stessors come a loss of emotional intellect resulting in behaviors that create alarming situations.   Those negative situations quickly spread negativity to others perpetuating itself by creating more and more negative situations.  

When mental capacity and emotions deteriorate because of negativity, the cognitive dissonance many experience creates confusion and stress leading to a state of panic, anxiety and subsequent depression.  The inner man, the Spirit, finds itself in conflict with the physical man and the battle begins.  It is a battle that the spirit can easily lose as scripture tells us the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.  Overcoming the flesh requires an overpowering spirit which one can only achieve by practicing positive behaviors.  For the Christian that means recognizing that we are empowered by His Spirit and Word.  When we abide in Him and His word abides in us, our Spirit can overcome the flesh and move us from a world of negativity to one of positivity.  Yes, as believers we have the ability to remain positive in all situations because His word gives us that authority.

God's word teaches us that in Christ we can do all things, we can be new creations moving from the negative to the positive, we can ask and receive, we can be more than conquerors, we can surrender all, we can overcome evil with good, we can lean on His understanding, we can become the light instead of darkness, we can be joyful in hope, we can be patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.  Yes in Christ we can overcome negativity and turn our lives into a positive contagion that spreads to all whom we come in contact with.  Take the step to being a positive light in this world of negativity; Christ can get you there!  Just a little advice to go!

Grace and Truth in Christ

Grace and truth is what Christ was full of as he came to this world to carry out the direction of his Father. So too, must we be full of grace and truth as we attempt to carry out God's purpose for our lives.

Grace and truth is what Christ possessed when he came to this world to carry out the direction of his Father. So too, must we possess grace and truth as we attempt to carry out God's purpose for our lives.

Grace is unmerited favor, yes that favor and kindness that that we do not deserve but God grants us through the ultimate sacrifice of the blood of his son Jesus Christ. Jesus came full of grace and truth knowledgeable of the fact that man could only achieve salvation through God's grace.   Jesus came knowing the truth that he would have to die a painful and terrible physical death, one that He did not deserve but had committed to, if we were to have any chance of achieving salvation.  Grace and truth guided Jesus' walk on earth enabling him to complete his mission and start us on our journey towards salvation.  

The truth is that because of Christ's sacrifice we can stop sinning and start living the life principles outlined in His word. Grace gives us the opportunity to move pass the sin and learn through our walk with Him to repent.  That is true repentance, when we stop sinning because we have learned to overcome it through the strength of His Spirit.

God's grace is never ending but the truth is that if we do not stop sinning, then there is no repentance, no learning and no opportunity for forgiveness.  Without forgiveness we fail, suffering the consequences of our sin and the misery that often accompanies it.

Truth appropriately starts us on the walk towards repentance and spiritual development. Grace gives us the opportunity to learn the truth, accept it, and make it the impetus for change. Change begins when we stop sinning, whatever it may be. Repentance is the first step on that journey towards spiritual growth and salvation and it begins with grace and truth.  Just a little advice to go.

Respectfully,

Dave Hernandez

From The Inside Out

In Matthews, Jesus speaks about how the mouth speaks from the abundance of the heart.  Our hearts represent our inner being, who we really are.  They reflect our deep seeded realities and in spite of our efforts to conceal our true identities, our hearts give us away.  We present an exterior that reflects what we want others to believe us to be, despite of the realities of who we are.  How can we justify this type of existence knowing that God is intimately familiar with our hearts.  He knows who we really are and patiently waits for us to grow into the person he needs us to be, that person we often feign being but fall short of becoming.  

John Maxwell teaches that your outside will never convert your inside but that sooner or later the inside person will surface and people will see us for who we really are.  He challenges us to become that person God wants us to be on the inside, so that our outside person reflects God’s love.  

Corey Brooks, the Mayor of Newark, New Jersey tells a story about an elderly inner city woman who taught him that the world he saw outside of himself reflected his inner being.  If your inside reality is sinful and out of sync with God’s principles then that is what you will see around you.  But if your inside person is aligned with God’s love, faith, and grace; you will see a world full of opportunity and promise.  There is good reason to make sure that our inside person is truly that wonderful, faithful, and loving person we aspire to be.  God can help us get there if we are willing to stop pretending and start changing from the inside out!  Just a little advice to go!