The Church Within You!

Trusting in the LORD with all our hearts is the opposite of doubting God and His word. Trust in and rely confidently on the LORD with all your heart and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. Pro. 3:5. Trusting in God is a conscious dependence on God, much like leaning on a tree for support. The command to acknowledge Him means to observe Him and get to know Him in the process of living...

Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. "A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:" Pro. 1:5 It is good to share your insights and the wisdom of things you have learned. The Book of Proverbs speaks of wisdom and the importance of gaining as much as possible and...

MY SOUL THIRSTETH FOR GOD. "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, my God." Psalm 42:1 Water is essential for the satisfaction and wholeness of life. True believers will hunger and thirst for God and His grace, blessing, and supernatural activity. Blessings, Presiding Elder Barbara Hayes SY Jesus Calling | FLSB

When God says go, we should prepare to leave without question. Despite what it may look like, grab what you can and move. God may be telling someone to move on to the next thing or to trust Him in a new adventure. Hesitation has caused many to miss out on their blessings from God. When the LORD spoke to Abram, He called him to leave everything—home, family, land. Abram moved forward without even a...

Bring Me all your feelings. Fear and anxiety can wear you down if you allow them to. These attacks can come at you unaware, freezing you in place. At those times we must affirm our trust in God and know that He already knows what we are experiencing and is there to keep us anchored. Turn them over to Jesus, He can work them out on our behalf! Blessings, Presiding Elder Barbara Hayes SY Jesus Calli...

Life is full of choices . We've all made good choices and bad choices, wise ones and foolish ones. Proverbs 2:6 says, "For the LORD gives wisdom, and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding." God gives us wisdom and victory but not for drifting through life or acting irresponsibly with His gifts and resources. If ever in doubt seek the LORD first and foremost before making th...

Sometimes through affliction, God intends to create endurance in us, which produces proven character, and proven character produces hope.  Hope, like faith, is only as good as its object just as our faith can only lead to salvation if it is faith in God. Blessings, Presiding Elder Barbara Hayes TWFYT | LAB | TEC

Never allow anyone or anything to compromise your walk with the LORD your God. Satan will place obstacles on your path. You either step over them or go around them, but you do let them hinder you in no way, form, or fashion.  Put distance between you and the world. If you are a confessed Christin honor God by staying true to His Word, by your faith, and by living life according to the Word of God....

Expecting Good Things From God. Some say that expectations from God can be shaped by faith in God and knowledge of God's will—hope and future, strength, rest, love, peace, and meeting one's needs. This is what Is. 30:18 tells us; Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore He will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him! Bl...

Jesus, He is the Lover of my soul. He took my place back at Calvery, only He hung on that rugged cross. He died so that I might live. He is The Lover of my Soul. He died so that we might live. This is the positive aspect of our identification with Christ: We not only died with Him but we also were raised with Him so that we might "walk in the newness of life" (Rom. 6:4). Therefore, I am...

AFTER THIS MANNER ... PRAY . With model prayer, Christ indicates areas of concern that should occupy prayer. 1) Steal away to your personal space. 2) Do not use vain repetitions, as the heathen does. Why? Because they think they will be heard because of their many words. So do not babble on, and on. Talk to God, and tell Him all about your needs. He already knows what you require, even before you...

Trust Me in all your thoughts. "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." Ps. 20:7 Our trust should be in the LORD God, who knows everything and sees everything. The Word of God helps to overcome thoughts of negativity. It addresses fear, self-doubt, and self-criticism. Phil. 4:8 says: "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true,...

The mentors you take advice from help to shape you. If you are blessed to find wise leaders, good role models, and positive friends, they will speed you on your journey. Blessings, Presiding Elder Barbara Hayes TWFYT

Come, learn what it means to be a child of the King! Your richest duty is devotion to your Father who Art in Heaven. The Creator is calling to His children to come and spend time alone with Him. to seek His Face, to enter into His presence with joy, singing, and praise. Be still in His presence listen for that small still voice to speak to your heart. Come and know that He is God. Blessings, Presi...

For we speak and act from the overflow of our hearts. Jesus used the illustration of a tree to remind us that fruit is always true to its character. An apple tree can only produce apples, not oranges, therefore a good person produces the good from within their heart, not evil. The heart , the center of our being, determines our outward behavior and deeds and must be changed or converted. Without t...

The importance of why you should not judge! Jesus' statement reminds us that we reap what we sow and how much we sow. If we judge others, we will ourselves be judged. If we forgive, we shall be forgiven, but if we condemn, we shall be condemned. Jesus was not talking about eternal judgment but about how we are treated in this life. Blessings, Presiding Elder Barbara Hayes SY Jesus Calling | WS...

"That's Jesus' Way of Telling me He loves me." Do you remember when one of the Church Mothers' calls to service was done in song? There was no music, just that sweet voice would fill the entire sanctuary, and everyone would start filling in the seats as they knew it was prayer time. Let's sit back and take a trip down memory lane. Blessings and enjoy! Elder Barbara Hayes

Distractions can be your family members, like my family who continually interrupt me to look at old photos as I write the description for today's devotional. "Ma, look at this one..." LOL Distractions can cause you to lose focus on the most important things in your life; family, and work. They can also be caused by a loss of interest in the primary activity, an inability to pay atten...

An invitation to try before you buy. This invite also contains a promise to you. Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! If we trust in Him, He can help us with our feelings. We have the assurance that God is near to us when our hearts are broken and our spirits are crushed, whether we feel like it or not. This is not a promise with conditions attached to it;...

Come Rest With Me A While: The LORD said, "I Am with you, I will never forsake you. I Am your friend when you are lonely. I'll be your bridge over troubled waters, your Spiritual Bread when you need filling. I'll be your rest when you grow tired and weary. Even lions may get weak and hungry, but those who look to the LORD will have every good thing. Ps. 34:10 Blessings, Presiding Elde...

Why does God choose weak people to do His Will? The Bible tells the stories of many people who God chose to do extraordinary things, even though they had weaknesses: for instance, Moses had a speech impediment, yet God used him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. And not just Moses, what of Esther, Nehemiah, Jonah, and Gideon who hid in a winepress when an angel appeared to him? Do not let what y...

"You shall not be afraid of the terror by night," These Words are quoted from Psalm 91:1. Letting us know that underneath the Shadow of the Almighty , we have a secure, hiding place. Jesus pictured Salvation by describing chicks hiding under the wings of the mother hen, v4 "He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge;" If ever you feel as if...

Fear thou not; for I am with thee; be not dismayed; for I am thy God. Isaiah 41:10. "Hold My Hand". We can claim the promises of this verse for ourselves. We must not fear other humans because God is with us, to impart the grace and strength needed to face all the circumstances of life; to help us through crises as our source of peace; and to sustain us and be our advocate. All we must d...

Would you be ready if God needs you to do something for Him today? Would you be willing? In Damascus, there was a disciple named Ananias (Acts 9:10) who received such a call in a vision, his reply was "Yes, LORD." Here's a question to ponder ... Would you be prepared if God needed you to do something for Him today? Blessings, Presiding Elder Barbara Hayes WSB | TWFYT

First, what makes a good mentor? I recall Rev. Mary, a former Chaplain of Children's Hospital Boston saying, "Active listening is an important key". Another is empathy , being able to stand in the shoes of another. TWFYT notes: "The understanding, experience, and wisdom of mentors help us solve problems we would have a hard time handling independently." Take a listen to tod...