Wisdom, strength, power... and the silent trap of pride

Have you noticed some of the most gifted people end up making some really bad decisions?

It's not that they don't know better. Sometimes, their gifts create a certain confidence that makes them believe nothing can make them fail. That kind of confidence that births pride and gradually replaces dependence on God.

Listennn. Being gifted is a blessing, but if our gifts aren't anchored in humility, those same gifts can become the very thing that leads us away from God. 

The Bible reminds us that some of God's most gifted servants were also those who stumbled the hardest when pride entered the picture. Let's take a look at a few.

Samson, the strongest judge
(Judges 13-16)

Samson was one of the most gifted men in the Bible. God gave him supernatural strength unlike anyone before or after him. Yet somewhere along the way, Samson began to believe he could live carelessly. He treated his calling lightly and assumed his gift would always remain with him.

Spiritual discernment: Lessons from a dream

D'you know it's possible for something to look spiritual, sound convincing, and still not be from God?

Not everyone or everything that appears to represent Christ actually does, and not every spiritual experience is from God.

This is why every believer MUST know God for themselves, know his Word for themselves, and develop the discernment to recognize truth from deception.

I had a vivid dream one night that reinforced these truths in a very significant way.

A man stood before me who looked very much like how people often imagine Jesus would look like—long brown hair, full beards, wearing a white robe. 

When I looked into his eyes, I was confused at the dullness I saw in them. There was no light or life in those eyes. 

In a lifeless voice, he said, "Don't tell people I'm coming. I'm not ready to come yet."

In the days and weeks that followed, I kept replaying the dream in my mind and reflecting on the total absurdity of it. After further reflection, the Bible and the Holy Spirit helped me pull several important lessons from this encounter. Here are three that I think every believer needs to hear:

1. Know the Lord for yourself. 

Know his voice. Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep hear my voice.” Build an intimate relationship with God so that no one can deceive you by impersonating him. When you truly know him, you’ll recognize what is not him. I’ve never seen Jesus in person, but I knew the man I saw was not the Jesus I knew and loved, the Jesus that dwelt in my heart. 

In Rev 1:14, John said that Jesus's eyes "were like blazing fire". So those dull eyes? That was not Jesus. There was no light whatsoever in that presence. 

2. Know the Word for yourself.

In Matt 28:19-20, Jesus said to go into the nations of the world and share the good news of the gospel. John 14:1-3 and Rev. 1:7 also clearly say that he's coming again. No one knows the exact time, but his return is certain. And it is SOON. We have been commissioned by Jesus himself to preach the gospel and announce his second coming.

So the words, "Don’t tell people I’m coming," directly contradicts Scripture. When you know the Word, you won’t be easily misled. There's nothing that delights God more than seeing people hear the good news about Jesus and receiving him as their Lord. Sharing the gospel and leading others to Christ is close to God's heart. 

3. Be discerning.

Test the spirit. Don’t accept everything just because Jesus’s name is attached to it. If it doesn’t align with the Word of God, then it's not from God. It’s false teaching. There are many ideas that sound convincing, even intelligent, but are empty and hollow. Col. 2:8 warns about this—about deceptive and hollow philosophies.

Jesus mentioned in Mark 13:21-23 that false messiahs and false prophets would arise and perform signs and wonders with the goal of deceiving people, even the elect if that were possible. The enemy can appear as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14), and many will be deceived because they don’t know the truth for themselves.

So, friend, my encouragement to you today is to seek him with all you've got. Read his Word—not just as part of a routine, but to actually know him through it. Ask the Holy Spirit to sharpen your discernment. Because the more intimately you know God, the easier it becomes to spot what isn't him.

In a time when so many voices are competing for our attention, may we be believers who remain sober, grounded, and discerning until the day Christ returns!

#becomingavessel

"Earnestly will I seek thee." Start your day in God's presence

I never thought there would come a time in my life when I'd be an early riser on purpose, and an eager one at that. I enjoyed my beauty sleep too much. Until the Lord took matters into his hands and started waking me up before dawn.

It all began when I became more intentional about seeking the Lord and spending quality time with him. As I spent more time with him, he began to awaken in me a deep longing to fellowship with him before sunrise.

David expressed a similar longing when he wrote, "O God, You are my God; earnestly will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You..." (Psalm 63:1).

Well, my life hasn't been the same ever since. I’ve become the better version of myself before sunrise. Why? Because I've already spent the first waking moments of my day in the presence of the Lord. The rest of my day feels different. It's not that life suddenly becomes perfect or life's problems disappear. It's that my heart is already firmly planted in him before the chaos of the day arrives.

Isaiah 26:3 says "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You."  When my mind is fixed on him first, his peace follows me throughout the day.

People sometimes look at me and assume I probably have a somewhat easy life because I'm usually cheerful and in good spirits. What they don't see is where that inner peace comes from. It comes from starting my day with Jesus.

And I truly believe it's one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself—starting your day with the Lord.

I'm not saying every day will automatically become easy. You'll still have responsibilities, still face disappointments, and still encounter difficult people and unexpected challenges. But something changes when you've already been with God.

Everything becomes different—your perspective, your attitude, your responses.

When you read the Gospels, you'll notice that this was Jesus' pattern as well. "Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed" (Mark 1:35). If the Son of God intentionally made room for uninterrupted communion with the Father before the demands of the day, how much more should we?

Can you meet with God at noon? Absolutely. At night? Of course. God is available every moment of every day. Yet there is something uniquely beautiful about those early hours when the world is still, the notifications haven't started, and the noise hasn't filled your mind yet. There's a stillness that makes it easier to hear his voice and simply enjoy his presence.

So if you've convinced yourself you're not a morning person, well, don't let that label keep you from what God may be inviting you into. I used to believe the same thing and nothing would've convinced me otherwise. Now I see those early hours as one of the greatest gifts God has given me.

You don't have to begin with long hours. Start with fifteen minutes. Maybe thirty. Be consistent. Make room for him before you make room for everything else.

As David prayed, "Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You do I trust; cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to You" (Psalm 143:8).

There's no better way to begin a day than in the presence of the One who already holds it!

#becomingavessel

Let your light shine

Ever played hide and seek as a child? Squeezed yourself into a closet or crawled under a bed, hoping no one would find you?

Even now as adults, we sometimes do the same—look for places to hide. When life feels overwhelming, when the noise becomes too much, or when we're tired of dealing with people, a quiet space can feel like a relief. And honestly, sometimes that quiet is exactly what we need🥲

Sometimes, the places we hide might be a shell we retreat into. A wall we build around ourselves. A way of keeping our distance from others so we don't have to be seen.

Now while there's a time for solitude (speaking as an introvert who cherishes her times of solitude), God didn't create us to stay hidden, did he?

Jesus explained in Matthew 5:14-16 that we are the light of the world. A lamp isn't supposed to be hidden under a bed or tucked away in a closet. It's placed where it can shine and give light to everyone around it. If a lamp remains hidden, how can others benefit from its light?

In the same way, God has placed his light within us so it can be seen. Through our words, actions, encouragement, and love, others should be able to see him at work in our lives.

This message speaks directly to me, because anyone who knows me knows I don't like to be "seen". I'm a quiet mover—I get things done and slip back into the background. But I'm learning it's okay to step out when God leads. It's okay for others to see the light he has placed in me and the good works he's doing through me, so that he—and only he—gets the glory.

I'm still learning, which is why I'm here to encourage you to step out too.

Don't spend so much time hiding that you forget what you were actually created to do. 

Step out. Let God use you, and let your light shine for others to see.

#becomingavessel