Every now and then I look in the mirror and Thank God for what I see staring back at me.

Part of it is simply appreciating what God knitted together in my mother’s womb (and I happen to be particularly pleased with my eyes 👀).

The other part, however, is what lies beneath, buried within me. First and foremost, I’m grateful for the presence of the Holy Spirit living there. He has been my faithful, holy ride-or-die, even when I’ve taken him places too shameful to admit. Because of him I have life — eternally and earthly — even though there were times I didn’t feel worthy of life and thought to take my own (how sad that I even thought to end the life I had no power to give).

Lastly, I simply appreciate how no matter how many times I fail, fall, am paralyzed by fears & doubts, and grow weary under the trials that come with life, my God has ALWAYS PULLED ME from the pit, cleaned me up, and whispered to my spirit — “It’s okay—I GOT YOU, My Child, ALWAYS AND FOREVER!!”

If you can relate, post a picture of yourself, give a shout out to your fav facial feature, and one thing you are especially appreciative of in your life!

Dear Brethren,

If the woman by your side doesn’t allow you to be open about the above things and spends more time trying to belittle you or attack your manhood, then you don’t have a woman by your side.

Know the difference between a woman who views her needs more important than yours. More than likely you’ll find this type to be less than a partner and more of a task.

This is not a woman bashing post. My brothers and sons need to know there is a difference between having just a female in their arms or beds versus having a woman whose character proclaims her virtue as wife material.

I really like this prayer and grabbed it from one of my daughters, Meka Mitchem. It speaks to how God’s children should WANT TO RELATE TO OTHERS.

It takes godly wisdom to come to the understanding that God designed us to be unique in our makeup so that when those who are His came together, they would be the example of what unity looks like for the unbelieving, and then be the draw that introduces them to Christ.

Some of us have a lot of work to do, but every little step taken towards following Jesus’ example helps shine His Light out into the darkness of this world.

May we learn the love language of the “One Another’s” – 1 John 3:11-4:12

For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

1 John 3:11 – 4:12

Go into any business (government, private) and you will be met by someone who lacks communication skills. Unfortunately, it seems like people are more interested in hearing themselves sound off about something than they are about creating a bridge that connects our humanity.

In fact, many of us might be surprised to learn that the reason doors were closed to a business opportunity or a personal relationship had more to do with our lack of communication skills than with what we had to offer. Even now, there may be people close to us who feel we could definitely use some improvement in this area (spoken & unspoken).

Sound relationships require us to develop good communication skills. No one wants to waste their Words on deaf ears, and no one wants to share information (especially on matters of the heart) with someone who refuses to, at the least, empathize or sympathize with them.

And it’s not just WHAT YOU SAY, but HOW YOU SAY IT — with your lips, your facial expressions, and your body language!

Sound communication has 2 skill requirements — that you develop (1) good listening skills and (2) good speaking skills (which includes repeating what you heard the person say). The measuring tool is how well you do both.

• Are any of your relationships suffering because of poor communication skills?
• With whom do you have a strong relationship and how does your communication style boost the relationship?
• Do you communicate from a place of hurt (woe is me), or a place of demand (you better acknowledge me), or desire to be known (what your character/principles are based on)?
• Are there any areas in your life where better communication skills can benefit or elevate you or another?

It’s a win-win when we learn how to Speak and Listen well to others. But, it’s personally enriching when we learn how to speak and listen well to ourselves ♥️🦋♥️ so we can communicate our care towards ourselves and others.

God created the woman with a capacity to give so much to help her husbandmen (Jesus, your marital husband, and your boss/work authority) and ENCOURAGEMENT goes a long way! Plus, it costs you very little to utter a few words that let him know you are one of his biggest supporters.

Men were made to lead, be strong, and be of good courage, but sometimes … they will find themselves struggling to lead, feel weak, and be discouraged by all the weights placed on their shoulders. They are no different from us when it comes to managing responsibilities and life in general.

Today is a good day to Encourage a man in your life with the Word of God.

Remind him of his God-ordained role (to govern and direct without a dictatorship mentality) and encourage him to invite God into every situation; and ask God to shine His Glorious Light into their day and provide guidance along the way!

#EncourageHim

#Pray4Him

#LetHimLead

#HelpMeetsKnowTheTruth

Have you learned everything you need to know about life?

Have you mastered every area of your life?

Have you learned all you can from God’s Word?

Are you so knowledgeable about scripture that you no longer need to be taught from the scriptures?

While a career might end one day or a degree require continuing education, life itself continues until you are no longer alive in the physical realm (never forgetting that there is spirit life after physical death).

How much more expedient that our personal spiritual education continue? I’d love to leave a monetary or material inheritance for my children and grandchildren but I confess that I put more emphasis on their spiritual inheritance (because we can take nothing with us into the spirit realm).

Age or Maturity? Agree? Disagree? On the fence?

I have many spiritual and physical needs. However, my greatest NEED is to elevate the biblical knowledge I have to the next LEVEL of spiritual growth. This is only possible by getting a better understanding of the knowledge I have gained and then apply it to every issue I face (spiritual and physical)!

Learning from the comfort of our home is a good place to start. My prayer is that as God shines his light into your heart through the teaching of his Word, may it move you to shine his Word out into the darkness of our world.

See more content from Senior Pastor Ray Stewart, Grace and Truth Baptist Church, on the Facebook link above or the website at https://GTCkc.org