All You Can Do is Pray (1/31/2021)

SALUTATIONS: What it do yall? I don't know about yall, but I am just blessed to be able to fellowship with yall another week; blessed to have opened my eyes this morning, take another breath, and able to share that with my son and family. Look, some of yall go looking for negativity and misery. And guess what? You go digging in trash cans you're gonna find trash. Just because your week hasn't been the best, don't ruin someone else's. Sometimes Life hits you without warning; with nowhere to go and no one to turn to, sometimes all you can do is pray. This week we'll be discussing the need to stop stepping in our own understanding - trying to cut corners or find the fastest escape route, and start trusting God enough to know that the petition over our circumstance is the boat sent to rescue us from the floods Life occasionally brings. Let's get into it. As always, take time to review ALL of the Announcements, Healthy Living Tips, and other information detailed below, following the Reflections and Power in Prayer, whenever time permits. Your continued support is always appreciated. Keep spreading God's Gospel and feel free to share the Scripture of the Week with the hashtag SOW. Enjoy! **Disclaimer: Production and distribution days of the SOW are subject to change without warning**

PRAISE REPORTS: I'm thankful that this week my son's dad had enough free time to help me do some much needed decluttering and rearranging in my room. Honestly, if it were up to me, that project would've taken me most of the year, because I would've done only tiny sections each week. But God! That man pushed me past my limits to get some of my week's goals, plus some, done in 2 days. I'm also praising God for testimonies, love, and blessings in other people's lives. That might seem a lil weird to yall, but I've been blessed by some of these internet influencers. Yall heard of Tabitha Brown? She's a Black vegan who became insta-famous about 3 years ago from a viral video about a tempeh sandwich from Whole Foods. I've tried that vegan life twice. I've decided, God Himself will have to change my palate for me to try a 3rd. However, I just love her spirit. She's such a warm, joyful, person who exudes gratitude, and her family is a product of that. So, despite my disinterest in a plant-based diet at this time, I watch her videos because just watching her gives me laughter and brightens my day a little. And as Tab would say, "because that's my business." LOL. Look, if you cannot muster up a single thing to be grateful for, be thankful for your life. Consider the sight you have to read this message right now. God deserves our praise. Abba, Father, we thank you through our struggles, we praise you for our past trials, our current obstacles, and our future triumphs. Continue to mend our unbelief. Hallelujah, all thanks be to you! If you have a specific praise report, please share, because we “overcame [the adversary] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of [our] testimony” (Revelation 12:11). **NOTE: All praise reports are shared with reference to your name unless anonymity is specified**

PRAYER REQUESTS: I'd like to solicit prayers for me and my accountability partners. We decided that each week we'd share 3 goals we'd like to accomplish, celebrating all goals completed and acknowledging any in excess as a win. Collectively, we're looking for consistency, declutter, organization, mindset change, our purpose clarified, and visions brought to fruition. Our individual goals might differ slightly or deviate a bit, but overall, we're all seeking alignment with God, contentment, and peace. Let's continue to pray for one another and thank Yahweh for the victory while refraining from confessing the problem caused by the enemy; ALWAYS pray for the desired result, NOT the unfavorable outcome (refer to the book The Tongue – A Creative Force, by Charles Capps; you can download your FREE copy here https://rb.gy/niy4go). If you or someone you know needs prayer, let me know, and your request will be added to the following SOW. **NOTE: All prayer requests are shared with reference to your name and need unless anonymity is specified**

BE ENCOURAGED: NEVER lose sight of God amidst adversity… Ponder this: "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." (Aristotle). I'm no theological scholar, and even if I were a pastor or an expert on God's word, I would still advise you NEVER to take someone else's word as solid truth; "Study to show thyself approved" (2 Timothy 2:15), and CHALLENGE EVERYTHING by comparing it to the Word of God. If what you see, hear, or read does NOT fall in line with the Word of God, then it is NOT true... The rest of this day isn't promised, let alone tomorrow, so why not strengthen your faith TODAY? Feed your body healthy nutrition, be cautious of what things you allow your eyes, ears, and spirit to be exposed to (e.g., media, books, TV, music, etc.) so that YOU can start anew and become a better you NOW, rather than later. If you need someone to help you get there, or you're looking for an accountability partner, you've come to the right place. Here I am.
 
FEATURED SONGS OF PRAISE: "Go Tell It" by Resound (feat. RVA Choir) (you can listen to it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmDZDwY6bpo) and "Don't Pray & Worry" by J. Moss (you can listen to it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMwcoMYVVA4). I would also like to recommend Classical for Studying Radio on Pandora to better facilitate your meditation on the Word as you study, you can listen to that station here https://rb.gy/wtbmva.  

OPENING PRAYER: Yahweh, please let your presence set the tone for how this lesson will flow and how we will grow from it. Clear our mind and open our eyes, ears, and heart so that we may be decreased in self and increased in you. Fill us with your presence through the Holy Spirit to see as we look, to listen as we hear, to come into alignment with your word and your will, to receive, believe, and apply your truth, that we may be transformed by your intended message from this fellowship and become better as a result of it. In the name of Yeshua, Amen!
 
PASSAGE(S) – MATTHEW 8:24-26 (NIV), 21:22: "24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke Him, saying, 'Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!' 26 He replied, 'You of little faith, why are you so afraid?' Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm... 22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." 

**Unless otherwise indicated all Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible retrieved from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage**

REFLECTIONS: Lately I've been asking God to provide discernment, understanding, and interpretation when He gives me a vision or dream of significance because I always seem to have the wildest dreams. Anywhere from me being a different race, to being on a Jumanji mission, to trying to escape an alien invasion, or being panicked yet using quick thinking to survive a natural disaster. My dreams are usually vivid but details slip away with every waking moment unless my dream dealt with some type of apocalyptic scenario. Anyway, long story short, a few days ago, I dreamt that the dark clouds I thought was a storm came too quickly to outthink or run for cover. So I yelled to the people surrounding me, "All we can do is pray!" as we hurried into a huddle, closed our eyes, and prayed. When I opened my eyes, we were safe. I heard God say something to the effect of, "I saved you because you prayed and believed." A moment later, I was with my son and his dad, and the destruction began again, and once more I said "All we can do is pray." I believe I woke up after that. Nonetheless, out of my 39 years living, and numerous spiritually-inspired dreams, this is the first that God has spoken to me. It reminded me of how often, we see or know that a storm is coming, so we try our best to prepare for it or to beat it before it gets too bad. Or, we're amidst the storm, and we try everything in our power to patch the leaks, but the roof always caves.

Here's what I'm getting at: perhaps you're facing an upcoming struggle, so you research ways to prevent or counteract the problem. Or, maybe you're head-on in the trial and your loved ones are giving advice on how to pacify the situation, but the one bit of advice you know in your heart, you ignore - PRAY! Sometimes that thing is too deep, too strong, and too powerful to overcome with the tenacity we're already equipped with. Sometimes, the obstacle shows up so quickly and forcefully that there's little to no warning; like the 5 virgins whose lamps weren't prepared with oil for the bridegroom's arrival (read Matthew 25:1-10, NIV, here https://rb.gy/arclty), when the enemy attacks, we're unprepared to fight the battle because we're too busy trying to find armor through Google or Amazon. The reality is, sometimes, that battle comes unexpectedly, and it's so major that all you can do is pray.

What's the catch? 'I mean, I pray most of the time anyway.' 'My prayers are rarely answered.' Sound familiar? I told yall, every lesson I share is one I'm learning myself. I'm in this thing with you. The song "Don't Pray & Worry" mentioned in the Featured Songs of Praise, was written for me. I mean seriously, many of us pray religiously - habitually, but have a spiritual disconnect because there is no belief behind the petition. Hand raised, singing "guiltyyyyyyyy!" In my dream, I thought I saw a storm, but that storm turned out to be destruction. As I type, the Spirit is speaking to me... that mistaken storm represents the red flags that God reveals, and the quick destruction is the unfavorable consequences of ignoring the warning signs, or, being unprepared for a foreseen struggle. We often procrastinate on something that the Spirit - our intuition or conscience is leading us to do, again, I'm guilty.

Commercial break: This has no bearing on the lesson, but does anyone else find it interesting that the word conscience (inner voice acting as a guide to rightness or wrongness of one's behavior) is comprised of the terms con (persuade by use of deception) and science (the study of structure and behavior of the physical world through observation and experiment; a systematically organized body of knowledge on a particular subject)? Just a thought.

Definition Reference: (Definitions. Dictionary.com. Retrieved January 31, 2021, from http://dictionary.com)

Now, back to our regularly scheduled program. As yall may well be aware, the Israelites spent over 400 years in suppression, and an additional 40 years learning a lesson that could've been less than half that time had they prayed and trusted God to deliver. We also see in the Book of Isaiah, that the people often developed amnesia when it came to remembering their need to trust God for help in overcoming their unfavorable circumstances. They had replaced their confidence in God with trust in horses and chariots, armies and kings to lead them to victory (read Isaiah 31:1, NKJV, here https://rb.gy/zfkuke). Sometimes we forget that the battle was already won (read 1 John 5:4 here https://rb.gy/vwhm3z), so we turn to our assumed allies - we place trust in family, friends, alcohol, drugs, sex, and depression when the void could've been filled if we had just prayed and believed that our truest ally, God, would come through in the nick of time. We must stop selectively placing our trust in the tangible - that which we can physically see; in a webinar called Life on Fire Challenge hosted by Nick and Megan Unsworth, they teach "faith over fear" and point out that both faith and fear are the processes of believing in something you can't see. So, when you're praying, ask yourself this, "am I praying in faith, or am I praying in fear?" Often, when we pray in fear there is unbelief that God will not come through for us because we've attached the lie that something in our lives makes our prayers fall on deaf ears. As a result, we pray with no expectation of God answering, and we continue looking for relief everywhere else but in God. On the other hand, when we pray in faith, we pray with confidence, knowing that despite our lack of understanding, God will deliver according to His will and what is best, which isn't always beautiful.

Because He loves us, sometimes the answer to our prayer isn't a yes, nor is it deliverance. Rather, it is endurance, and resilience as He helps us walk through our storm, not over or around it. Think about the conflicts in the Bible: David was placed in the lion's den and God sent an angel to shut the lions' mouths (read Daniel 6:22, NKJV, here https://rb.gy/btafxa). Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were placed in a burning furnace but not even a hair on their bodies was singed (read Daniel 3:26-27, NKJV, here https://rb.gy/x0i3qq). The Israelites reached the Red Sea and God gave Moses the power to part it (read Exodus 14:21-22, NKJV, here https://rb.gy/5cbeal). Though wrongly accused, Jesus accepted His crucifixion so that we might have life everlasting (read John 19:28-20, 3:16, NKJV, here https://rb.gy/st1pvx). I could go on, but I won't. Do you see the common denominator here? Their cups were not spared, yet, God provided the BEST way through for the greater good of those who loved Him (read Roman 8:28, NKJV, here https://rb.gy/nxk8dz).

Sometimes when all we can do is pray is the only way out, it's because God is allowing us to go through our storm instead of stopping it. After all, the benefit to us is too great for Him to do otherwise. God works on us to make us stronger, sometimes the path to that strength is short, but putting trust in our own route creates a detour that leads to a lengthy, and often, unpleasant journey. When you find yourself in an unforeseen circumstance that hit you quickly and with a force that leaves you with more questions than answers, then perhaps God is telling you that it's time to build your faith and allow Him to grow you so that the next time you face surprise devastation, you'll remember that all you can do is pray. Instead of looking for the answers yourself, I admonish you to "lean not on your own understanding" and "in all your ways submit to Him, and He will [guide] your paths" (Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV). "[You] can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens [you]" (Philippians 4:13, NIV). When you get weary or doubtful of God's presence over that thing, ask Him to help you in your unbelief (read Mark 9:23-25, NIV, here https://rb.gy/aitwi8). Many of us mistake unbelief with disbelief; to have disbelief means that you don't believe in something one way or another. Unbelief, on the other hand, is when you lack spiritual faith. As we learn to focus our attention on the Lord, we're able to discern His hand in our lives and are more willing to trust His authority in and over our circumstances. As you take that thing to prayer, you must also "believe that you have received it" (Mark 11:24, NIV) so that God's hand in your life is not blocked by your unbelief. When all you can do is pray, remember that "with man, [beating the battle] is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26, NIV). #SOW

POWER IN PRAYER: POWER IN PRAYER: Our Father, our King, our Provider, our Friend, we praise your Holy name. We thank you for your unconditional love. We are grateful for your merciful grace. We thank you that we are not bound to nor limited by our past. We praise you for your continued warning signs and ways out of situations that are no good for us. Lord, help our unbelief so that when we pray, we leave that prayer in your hands without worry or concern for the next day, trusting in confidence that you've already worked it out for our best outcome. Lord, we ask for a discerning heart, and the spirit of interpretation for any vision or dream you may be speaking to us through. We thank you for the times you speak and you've allowed us to hear. We thank you for being with each person who sees and/or reads this message and the persons they stand in intercessory prayer for; develop our consistency, declutter our minds and our lives in every sense of the word, establish in us self-discipline and organization. Activate and accelerate a mindset change that is God-centered, clarify our purpose, and bring our visions to fruition. Help us to prepare ourselves by putting on the whole armor of God daily, so that when a storm comes we are prepared. However, if a storm ever shows up too quickly and too forcefully, remind us that all we can do is pray; as we pray in those trying times help us to also believe that you've worked it out. Father, do not allow our petitions to fall on deaf ears, hear our audible, inaudible, and incoherent pleas, and answer according to your will. When your timing and your answer causes us to question your authority, help us in our unbelief; bring us the peace that passes our carnal understanding so that we may be content in knowing that your way may not be beautiful, but it provides the best outcome. Give us the wisdom and knowledge to recognize the calling you have on our lives, and the strength and courage to step into it. May your Word become the permanent atmosphere of our minds so that every lingering negative thought and lie is dissolved. May your will be done in our lives, and may our trust in you be strong enough that we are genuine in that request. As your angels and Holy Spirit do your bidding on Earth and in Heaven, protect us and them with your recourse as you bind, loose, and cast out the demonic spirits of distraction, destruction, retaliation, revenge, and backlash. All these things we ask in the matchless name of Yeshua, Amen!

HEALTHY LIVING TIPS: Change begins within... I typically look for advice to share that would be helpful both to my readers as well as myself. I realize that sometimes, the information I share doesn't always meet each specific need of my audience, and for that, I apologize. I pray that you will at least be able to be inspired in even a small capacity to keep making healthy choices; whether it be reading with intentionality (e.g, self-help, educational, and inspirational literature), taking caution with the programming you watch, and listen to (e.g., refraining from TV, movies, and music that promote violence, exploit women, demean a specific group of individuals, or glorifies negativity), be sure that the activities you participate in, help to develop overall wellbeing, choosing an active lifestyle over a sedentary one, and/or eating and drinking healthier food and drink options, your decision to live healthy depends on the choices you make today and how they provide adequate sustenance to your physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional self. As always, stay safe and blessed!

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. I have been rallying interested volunteers for a neighborhood clean-up in Los Angeles. If you're interested in physically joining this crusade, donating supplies, and/or know of resources or contacts that can assist in this venture, hit me up.
2. If you or someone you know is a victim of abuse, I invite you to join my virtual support group via Zoom; we meet every 3rd Sunday at 2:30 PST. Just text "heal" to (323) 800-8616 to be added to our text notifications/reminders.
3. Help me get FMBS Inc. back active in the community yall! I'd like to start regular community beautification projects, homeless outreach, and live workshops that will provide guidance, mentorship, resources, and helpful information for at-risk youth. Here's the thing, I don't know how to do any of this, but I'm willing to learn; if you have any helpful information or affordable training opportunities please share.
4. Please take a moment to register your Ralph's, Food 4 Less, and/or Kroger Rewards cards to enroll your member number/phone number for the Ralph's/Food 4 Less Community Contribution Program to help Fostering Mind, Body, and Soul Incorporated (aka FMBS Inc., serving communities throughout Southern Cali since 2012) raise funds to give back to the community; for every purchase you make, a small % is given as a donation to our non-profit organization - your rewards points are NOT affected by this enrollment. To enroll, you must go to their website here http://www.friendsindeedpas.org/get-involved/ralphs-community-contribution-program/ and link your rewards cards and/or telephone numbers (Alt ID) to our organization each year, and we will earn money for every purchase made under your rewards cards. Your continued support is always appreciated. 
5. Update on my 1st children's book, Color Isn't Who I AM © 2019: Coming soon... to a bookshelf near you.
6. Be on the lookout for the relaunch of my non-profit organization, Fostering Mind, Body, and Soul Incorporated (FMBS Inc.). Although I am willing to carry out my plans solo, I would be remiss if I didn't extend an invitation to ALL willing volunteers to help me serve our communities by accepting a significant role as a committed and trusted board member, or a contributor of time (physical volunteer work), monies, supplies, and/or resources. My appreciation is extended to anyone that can help facilitate making an impact in surrounding at-risk and underprivileged communities throughout Southern California. Part of our mission is to help supply the homeless as well as needy families with food and hygiene bags throughout the year and especially during the holidays and to serve as mentors and/or advocates for at-risk youth and victims of abuse. Reach out to me regarding your interest in service or to arrange another form of contribution; contact me via email at fmbsinc_2012@outlook.com, or leave a voicemail and/or text at (951) 790-2127.

JOIN OUR CAUSE: Fostering Mind, Body, and Soul Incorporated (FMBS Inc.) is on a never-ending quest to locate deserving individuals to extend our services to. Therefore, we are always in need of monetary donations and/or contributions of hygiene items, sealed snacks, bottled water, seasonal items (gloves, scarves, blankets, umbrellas, sunglasses, sunscreen, lip balm, etc.), mini bibles, reading books, and so forth; our YEAR-ROUND mission is to serve homeless and/or needy individuals and families in underprivileged communities throughout Southern California. We also need DEDICATED volunteers and members – is this your calling? Eventually, when we have met our need for volunteers and board members, we will extend our services to assist and address some of the needs of our veterans and their family members. We are successful because of YOUR continued support. Please continue to back us up through participation, and/or by encouraging others to join our cause!
 
For more information about our organization contact fmbsinc_2012@outlook.com. 

 
Respectfully,

Tylesha "Tye" Allen    Behavioral Interventionist | Mobile Notary | CEO/Founder of FMBS Inc. ·         Mobile: (951) 790-2127 ·         Address: Los Angeles, CA ·         Website: http://www.ready411.weebly.com | http://sodbytye.blogspot.com   ·         Email: professional1_99@hotmail.com ·         Change begins within; work on becoming a better You ·         "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man." (Psalm 118:8)