JUST BE....................

Be still and know that I am God



Be still and know that I Am



Be still and know



Be still



BE



Can you just "be" and know that God knows whats better for you than you do? What has God done for you to just be? He's saved you, sanctified you, loves you unconditionally, washed your sins away, forgave you and forgets your sins, wonderfully made you, formed you in your mother's womb, knows how many hairs or no hairs that you have on your head, faithful to you even when you are not, has plans for you, watches you, disciplines you because He loves you and wants you to Himself, He died for you in the from of His only Son, Jesus...can you just be right now in this moment and trust in God that He has a plan for you...just be and let God be God because you are not and that's a good place to be. JUST BE!
-gravyjmm

TRUST

This is what the LORD says: "Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans and turn their hearts away from the LORD. They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, on the salty flats where no one lives. "But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they go right on producing delicious fruit.
-Jeremiah 17:5 – 8

Yes, just rock out and trust in God...it works

by the way, just in case you don't understand what Mike Sweet is singing, here are the words:

It's been said money talks If so what does it say? Four simple words we see every day
The rich, the poorHeaven is for those who choose Don't put your trust in money You'll lose (again and again)In God we trust In Him we must believe (He is the only way) In God we trust His Son we must receive (Tomorrow's too late, accept Him today)

-gravyjmm

Love Ya!

Hey...sometimes it's good to be reminded! There is only one God and only one faith and only one way to Him and that is Jesus. Maybe you need a reminder of just ho much God loves you! Remember just as He gave and gives to you...turn around and give it away.

-gravyjmm

"Fine & Dandy"...

“Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again--rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
–Philippians 4:4 - 8

It seems so easy to experience peace when everything is “find and dandy” but this is life and life is painful. God is always great, even when you or I want to question that statement…but how can you grow in the Lord if your life is “find and dandy”…answer; you can’t! In fact pain is good because God uses pain, struggles, and trials to bring you closer to Him and to grow you spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically while in the valley…if life were always so comfortable for you that would mean that you are lost in the world. If I am too busy with concerns of how to be comfortable here than I am not too concerned for what God loves and His agenda for me or this life. Choices Jerry Lee, choices! If you are going through some tough times right now, praise God. It is those times when we don’t feel like worshiping or praising God that it is precisely the best time to give God praise and worship because He is preparing you for whatever He has planned for you and God does not bring us to where He wants us to just drop us, trust and obey like the song says. God wants to grow you, love on you, give to you, take from you, bless you but He can’t if you are too busy with this life and its pleasures. God is a jealous God, He wants you but are you willing to be available for Him? Want peace? God is waiting for you to trust only in Him and not your wisdom or power…you are powerless, just admit it, it’s okay because you have limits, God does not.

-gravyjmm

It’s all about honesty as I am really writing this because I need to get out of my mind and into complete surrender to God in this moment. In 2000 when I arrived here at the ministry that God gave me, I was in full swing of my addiction and in complete denial of who I really was because I didn’t want to deal with my issues. I snowed every leader in this church and every member as well and I can’t understand how God would allow an addict, selfish, religious spirit church player as I was to be a minister in His church. Fast Forward 7 years! I have come through about everything imaginable and God has knocked me out of my denial and my addictions and has been moving out of religion into a relationship. I am still a work in progress and as I write this I am in the valley, where I seem to be staying as of late. Which isn’t bad because that means God is working on me and growing me for His purpose and if I wasn’t in the valley that would probably mean that I am comfortable and totally engulfed in the world. As I write this I believe that God is moving me and my family out of the ministry here in PSL and into another ministry. So here is where I am at…I am in a place that I have served for 7 years and I am thankful to God for what He done here through me and for me and for some reason I don’t feel wanted here anymore. On the other hand I have sent resumes galore, made tons of phone calls and e-mails, prayed without ceasing, made myself available, done everything that God laid on my heart to do and I am not receiving any response from any other church…none. Now I have been having communion with God quite a bit in these last few weeks and in fact, I have talked, shared, cried, shouted, questioned, asked, wrestled, done everything with God more in these last few weeks with than I have in 29 years of life. God has taken away everything around me that I would normally try to use to control my situation, my feelings, or the like and even my cell phone is shut off…in other words…GOD HAS MY ATTENTION. I haven’t tried to numb my feelings; I have just gone to God. I have taken things back 20 times but surrendered them over again 21 times. I have prayed openly with Him and I have said that I will do whatever He wants from and I will be available for His will and I won’t question, I will just do. See I want to know the outcome of my life and God wants me to just trust in Him and that He knows what is better for me than I do. Surrender and Submission is where I am at right now as I right this…I have asked God for signs and He is not showing me anything so I will stay surrendered and submit to whatever He wants. I feel right now that God is distant but His Word says that “never will I leave you or will I forsake you”…so I believe that I am just being tested because He is preparing me for something and that He has a purpose for me but I will learn that in His timing and not mine. It seems that I take things back from God 20 times a day but I surrender them right over 21 times. I am constantly asking to change the focus of my thoughts and keep me out of my stinking thinking and He is…praise God. Actually now as I type this, I am thankful that I am where I am at because I am okay right now in this moment and I am thankful for the valley because it is helping me to grow…God uses the opposite of what I think could help me grow to grow me. Imagine that! Dear God, I have tried to do it all by myself on my own power, and I have failed. Today I want to turn my life over to You. I ask You to be my Lord and my Savior. You are the One and only Higher Power! I ask that You help me think less about me and my will. I want to daily turn my will over to You, to daily seek Your direction and wisdom for my life. Please continue to help me overcome my hurts, hang-ups, and habits, that victory over them may help others as they see Your power at work in changing my life. Help me to do Your will always. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen…thanks for letting me share.

-gravyjmm

ROCK OUT IN THE NAME OF THE LORD

I love "Old School" bands that are Christians that rocked out to the Lord like this. Whatever happened to this kind a music?

-gravyjmm

always something here to remind me

As I sit here in my office and do what I do, I take a gander at my shelf and begin to look at some of my notebooks from back in the day at college. I particularly (Viva Dr. Bob) take a look at my Western Civilianization note book and I began to gaze over my notes and some papers that I wrote. WOW! As I look at what I wrote, I wander why I took that class. I took that class when I was 20 and I didn’t seem too interested in doing anything productive expect doodling and writing B.S. In fact as I think about if in the late 1990’s they gave award for greatest BS’er and “biggest waste of college loan money”… I would have received that award. I really wish I could go back in time and kick the junk out of myself, just an old fashioned butt whooping when I was 18, 19, 20, 21, years old…what a joke I was and man who did I think I was. I am so glad God kicked my tail and grew me up some. To quote my son “I growed up”, well I am not entirely there but I am certainly now living an honest unmasked life. Sometimes it’s good to have a reminder of what you were once; it certainly keeps me humble and reminds me of what my life is in my own hands instead of God’s hands. Most importantly it keeps me from pride and reminds me that I’m sick and I am nothing without Jesus. To quote a band that has naked eyes, "Always something here to remind me"...Thanks for the reminder!
-gravyjmm

Besides the song that King's X Sing:

What is Faith?
What is Hope?
What is Love?

Not the "Sunday School Text Book" answer. I am very familiar with what the scripture says but do you really know? If you know, is it eveident in your life, could I see it in you without talking to you? Would you agree with this:

FAITH is demonstrated by living one day at a time

HOPE carries us through hard times as i depend on God

LOVE is demonstrated by my sacrifical services to God and others

Read the warnings on labels!

What is S.P.A.M?
Spam is a canned precooked meat product made by the Hormel Foods Corporation. The labeled ingredients in the Classic variety of Spam are: chopped pork shoulder meat with ham meat added, salt, water, sugar, and sodium nitrite. According to Hormel: ''The ingredients are ground to a medium-coarse texture. Spices are then added to enhance the product's natural flavor. After the blending process is completed, the meat is mechanically filled into cans, sealed, and cooked in a ret ort oven. Upon leaving the retort, the cans are dried and transferred to the packaging area. A caser then automatically unscrambles and distributes the cans into the feed section, forms the corrugated tray, and loads the cans into each tray. The packed cases are conveyed through an automatic code dater and a shrink film tunnel. The sealed cases are then transferred to the storage and warehouse area to await shipment.''
Nutrition Information for SPAM (original style):
Calories per Serving: 170
Calories per Serving from Fat: 140
Serving Size: 2 oz.
Servings Per Container: 6 (large) or 3.5 (small)
Total Fat: 16g
Saturated Fat: 6g
Cholesterol: 40mg
Sodium: 750mg
Total Carbohydrates: 0g
Fiber: 0g
Sugars: 0g
Proteins: 7g
Vitamin A: 0%
Vitamin C: 0%
Calcium: 0%
Iron: 2%

Sounds good for the Atkins Diet but really after reading what was just read, one can assume that it’s probably not that healthy of a food choice. It’s amazing how you can read the label and figure out that if you were to eat an entire can of spam, it just wouldn’t be healthy for your system. It’s a no-brainer. Isn’t funny, though, we still read the labels and see that something is unhealthy for us but we still pollute our system anyway? Certain movies or magazines or certain conversations or certain internet sites or certain activities or certain choices that all have labels that say, “I will pollute your heart and mind or this activity may even cause death and destruction if you choose me.” Then we feel guilty or maybe we don’t really care until we get “caught” so to speak. It’s amazing, God gives us warnings but at times we still walk right into Satan’s trap and pollute our hearts and minds that God asks us to keep pure. You might say that’s easier said than done…but God promises us a way out...we just need to heed the warning. Is God trying to warn you of any dangers…listen to Him.
-gravyjmm

The Unforgettable Blog

I was just thinking how innocent and in a sense I am. Sometimes I am guilty of the crime that's now in hand. But if you give yourself to this the longest day and you give yourself, you give it all away, I thinking everything will alright. But, I'd like to be around in a spiral staircase to the higher ground. Well maybe not really, it just sounds good. I can't seem to let go of my fondness for U2 because if I could, you know I would... if I could, I would let it go…You making fun of my fascination well ah, don't talk to me…. Walk on by, walk on through. Walk till you run and don't look back for here I am…I'm sorry I can be sensitive, but I am doing it in the name of love…What more in the name of love? Except maybe a slideshow of a seaside town. Or how about some Coca-cola, football Radio, radio, radio, radio, radio, radio
-gravyjmm

Overrated Capt. Kirk Doritos

Ah…I have one thing to say about sleep…OVERRATED. Actually I don’t really believe that but I’m trying to psyche myself into believing it as my daughter thinks that sleep is not relevant at 1 and 3 and 5 in the morning. But what a joy she is especially after 47.5 hours of labor, I will say this…my wife is a trooper as I would have tapped out at an hour into labor because I don’t akin to pain even though Captain Kirk would disagree with me. Speaking of Captain Kirk, I’m not a “Trekkie” like my older brother but something that bugs me is for a character of Capt. Kirk’s stature, why did he have such a wussy kind-of –death instead of cool gotcha “Kahn” kind of death? His death by bridge didn’t seem fitting for his character but that’s an opinion from a non “Trekkie” person. Yes try Fiery Habanero Doritos and drink milk...as helps the soothing and I’ve gone cross-eyed.
-gravyjmm

Biscuits and Cornbread go with everymeal not just Breakfast!

Well this blog really has no meaning but just me blabbing about food. This will be my last blog for at least a week or 2 as my wife will be going into the hospital Monday and being induced for labor and I will be with her and I intend to take some time off and enjoy our new child. Okay so I am blogging about breakfast…as I write this on a beautiful Saturday morning, my breakfast consists of a Tabasco flavored Slim Jim, Pizzeria Combos, a chicken salad sandwich, and Life Water from Sobe. I have had many different combinations in my life for breakfast. One time I had a dish of spaghetti and meat sauce with cheese for BF and my mother-in-law thought that was gross…I asked her, “Does it taste different at night than the morning?” That answer is obviously, No. But I think somewhere back the day we were brainwashed to believe that only cereal, eggs, hash browns, sausage patties or links, and the like were just for breakfast…and that’s just dumb. What qualifies something for breakfast…anything that breaks the fast…hence the name “Breakfast”? My good friend “THE” George B. Hoyt introduced me to Reese Cups and Dr. Pepper for BF…that’s nutritional and it breaks my fast. Haven’t you ever had left over pizza from the night before…that rocks. I don’t count doughnuts as a BF food because that is a 24/7 food good for any and all occasions especially a fresh from the oven Krispy Kream doughnut which my wife doesn’t like and in which I told her that she was an un-American for say that. Anyways I’m big fan of all the so-called BF foods but don’t let society brain-wash you, a bowl of spicy Texas chili with onions and cheese will do the trick for BF. MEOW!
-gravyjmm

Today is Tuesday the 20th of February and my daughter is still making the choice to stay in momma’s belly but I am realizing that God’s always better at time than I am and to quote my son as he heard me mutter my frustration in my daughter not being born…”Daddy, God’s not done making her yet.”…Yes God used my little boy to humble me and I’m thankful for that.

Fa La La...Connect the Dots...

I akin to the term “sick of being sick”…having been sick for almost 2 weeks now has taken its levy on me and I am relieved that the sickness is going “bye-bye’s”. Amongst other news, it seems that as of today my daughter-to-be is still not wanting to come out of mommy and she is already being disobedient to daddy as I have talked to her through mommy’s tummy and have told her that she needs to come out and play but she is still enjoying the warm Jacuzzi inside mother. Hey! Here is a random thought from my 4-year old son…As we passed a police car the other day I asked my son if he knew who that was and his reply was, “Yep…that’s a police man, they shoot people and they help people.” That is quite the observation of a 4 year old. He also told me that he was scared that his sister would be born with out any teeth, which I had the break the inevitable to him that she wouldn’t have teeth, yet. Speaking of unsystematic views…I know that the color of someone’s skin or gender or ethnic background should never be how we or myself base my thoughts or opinions on, it should always be based on the person’s heart…from the inside out…but I wonder if people in this country are ready for a president named Barak Obama…just a thought. To the batmobile...
-gravyjmm

God always makes a way

Here are some random things I have come to discover as I have worked on myself in the 12 steps of Celebrate Recovery over the last year and half:


Faith is grounded in a relationship with God, who knows the way for me and promises to lead me on it. It is both my attitude and action towards God.

I am designed for dependence on Him.

Trying to get through this life on my own limited strength, knowledge, and resources leads to futility and a loss of hope.

No matter what limitation or circumstance I am struggling against, God can empower and equip me beyond what I thought possible.

God will make a way for me, perhaps in ways I don’t expect. And He does His best work when I am at the end of myself and admit it.

My walk with the Lord will be richer, more fulfilling, and more successful if I surround myself with people who are committed to support me, encourage me, assist me, keep me accountable, and pray for me.

I need to recognize the value and need for God’s wisdom in my life; I need to ask Him to show me and help me search for His wisdom actively. God always knows what to do, when I don’t.

I need to leave my baggage behind and let God have me. Holding onto my baggage from my past will hinder my journey with God – He can show me how to leave my baggage behind.

I need to take responsibility for my own life, own up to my faults, and accept blame where it is justified – and stop pointing my finger. It’s my responsibility to live a life which reflects Him and His principles.

I need to welcome problems in my life as gifts from God to help me become a better Christian for His Kingdom. God sees my difficulties different from the way I do. God’s way is not out of my problems but through them.

I need to accept pain as a part of life. Acceptance will help me live in God’s reality so I can adapt and change to the way things really are and learn to trust God.

God has a heart. He feels deeply, especially about me and my rebellion really hurts Him.

God knows and can identify with my sufferings because of Jesus. I need to view my problems as the next step in my growing relationship with Him.

When God makes a way for me, it usually takes time, so I must allow time for God to work. Time allows God’s healing ingredients to be applied in my situation. Time is a blessing, not a curse. I need to realize that even though I can’t see God, He is working behind the scenes. I must sow the seed He gives me and wait patiently for Him to water that seed to sprout and produce fruit.

I need to love God passionately with every area of my life, including my pain, my fear, and my despair. If I love God, connect to Him, and follow Him as He commands, I will value what He values and seek to do what honors Him and is best for me.

When I am in a bad situation, I must not pull away from God but draw closer. I need to love God in that situation. Invite Him into my feelings, thoughts, actions, and reactions. I need to immerse myself in His love and He will show me the way. God will make a way for me to the extent that I make a way for Him in my heart. God needs access to every part of me.

I need to realize that God wants the best for me. God has grace and mercy for me and is committed to work in me, with me. God loves me completely and He is going with me every step of the way. I need to listen attentively to God. I need to submit, wholly, to God.

God is always good and loves you very much. Blogactchalater

-gravyjmm

Over and Over and Over and Over and Over...

The implication of inconsistency is intangible to insanity. I sound pretty smart but not really. I thought it would be fun to say that. I think what I just said was, “The suggestion of unpredictability is vague to madness.” Which to me sounds like a college professor quote? Actually I like the discussion of insanity. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again and expecting different results each time. How many have I thought that I could control the situation by yelling, screaming, getting angry and getting my point across and being sarcastic and rude and still couldn’t control the situation. I many times have I been quiet about my spouse’s addiction, protected them by doing for them what they can do for themselves and thinking they would change with my help and lo and behold they were still addicts. How many times have I tried to forget my pain by drinking and drugging and the pain was still there. How many times did I think my problems would just go away and they didn’t? Well if insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again and expecting different results each time…then what is the definition of sanity? How about… “wholeness of mind; making decisions based on the truth.” There is only one truth that I know…that’s God’s word, Jesus. Read this acrostic from celebrate recovery about SANITY:

Strength
Acceptance
New Life
Integrity
Trust
Your Higher Power

Strength - With Jesus as my only source of life, He gives me the strength to face my fears of my past hurts, hang-ups, or habits that normally would fight, flee, or freeze. Psalm 46:1 tells me that, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear” Psalm 73:26 says, “My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” I basically cut myself from the power source and try to work on my own. A lamp can’t work if isn’t plugged in; like wise I go nuts trying to figure it all at on my own, relying my own strength and understating to live and I burn out because I’m not plugged in to the source…God. Choosing to allow my life to finally run on God’s power—not my own limited power, weakness, helplessness, or sense of inferiority—has turned out to be my greatest strength. Where I am weak, He is strong.

Acceptance – Romans 15:7 says,” Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” I need learn and understand to have REAL expectations of myself and others. God sees through my mess, pain, sin, guilt and saw that I was worthy saving. I need to have these same eyes for myself and others. The Serenity pray specifically asks God, “to give us the courage to change the things we can and to accept the things we cannot change and the wisdom to know the difference...” As you or I rely more Jesus everyday and moment by moment…we start to accept others as they really are, not as we would have them be! We accept our own responsibilities and stop putting blame on others.

New Life – the truth is, when you’re at the bottom, there’s no place but up. 2 Corinthians tells us, “…We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” The penalty for our sins was paid in full by Jesus on the cross. The hope of a new life is freedom from our bondage! 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! It’s awesome to know that Jesus came to give you a new life, you don’t have to hold on to your sins, pain, guilt, shame…He took them from you.

Integrity - We gain integrity as we begin to follow through on our promises. Others start trusting what we say. The apostle John placed great value on integrity: “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” Remember, a half-truth is a whole lie, and a lie is the result of weakness, shame, and fear. Truth fears nothing—nothing but a cover up! The truth often hurts. But it’s the lie that leaves the scars. A man or woman of integrity and courage is not afraid to tell the truth. Jesus says that truth will set us free and He gives us what we need to be truthful and live in integrity.

Trust – Proverbs 29:25 says, “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.” As we “let go and let God” and admit that our lives are unmanageable and we are powerless do anything about it, we learn to trust ourselves and others. We begin to make real friendships that last…the more that I became brutally honest with myself, the better the relationships I have made because I no longer hide and those that I am close with are the same…there is no judging or beat down…pure accountability and companionship - friends whom you can trust, with whom you can share, with whom you can grow in Christ.

Your Higher Power - Jesus Christ, loves you! “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us,” Romans 5:8. No matter what comes your way, together you and God can handle it! “And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out” (1 Corinthians 10:13). “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens” (Psalm 68:19). If Jesus is your Lord and Savior, He will help you in your time of trails.

Well that’s enough from me for now. Ask yourself…What I am doing over and over again and expecting different results and it’s just not working? There is hope! Blogacthalater.

-gravyjmm

sdfouawhvasn

So as the year begins dost doeth stuff! I tend to have a habit of noticing things as they occur as most tend to do! In the last the year or so there have been 3 or 4, I believe, Dictators who have died and there is one whom is very sick and soon to be deceased! Coincidence or Na! You be the adjudicator. I'm thinkin' na. There is always a reason that things happen but I don't have the answers. I just accept them. I not really sure where I am going with this but it seems to me that quite a few men who thought there were powerful are now pushing up daisies...hey food for thought. Anyways be sure to observe the things going on in the world…Maybe someone is trying to get your attention! Blog atchalater!
-gravyjmm

2007...baby! (literally)

Big happens’ in 2007…my baby girl will be born, I eventually turn 30, just maybe the Redskins will figure “it” out what that “it” is, Wrestlemania 23, my wife and I’s 3rd anniversary, and probably some other things but just can’t remember them right now. I am not sure what the New Year brings for you but I hope that you are blessed in this coming year…blog at ya later.
-gravyjmm