We have a guest speaker, John Franklin, at my home church speaking on prayer and revival through the month of May. It’s been more than a blessing so far. It’s been challenging and life-changing for me.

The first week, John talked about where we are as a nation. All evidence indicates that we are under the judgment of God. This week, he talked about how God’s people should respond.

John pointed out that certain modes of thinking and behaving can cause us not to hear or respond to God correctly. So, from time to time you and I need to have our circumstances and our perspectives altered in order for these modes to be broken. Only then, will our relationship with God become dynamic and we become vessels useful for His service.

I thought about the ruts I get into that have me chasing my tail around and around in circles. One rut I find myself in most is being too “busy.” Sometimes I’m so busy that I lose my perspective on life and ministry. I end up spinning my wheels instead of accomplishing the will of God in my life. But I can’t seem to break-out of the rut no matter how hard I try. I know what I need to do---what behavior I need to change—so I make my promises to God accordingly. For a few days, I find relief. But then, after a short period of time, I find myself back in the same old rut.

I know better really. I know that I can’t change my behavior or my perspective no matter how hard I try. That’s God’s job. Only the One who has created us can re-create us. And He’s the only one who can get us out of a rut—so no need trying to pull yourself up by the bootstraps.

According to Mr. Franklin, the first thing you and I need to recognize is how our ruts not only steal our peace and joy; distract us from being effective, give us a false perception, and keep us from hearing God, but they can lead to sin. Not always. But even if they don’t lead to sin, they are not good for us. They can sap our time, energy, and witness. “So how do we break-out of a rut?” John asked? I sat on the edge of my seat anticipating the answer. “We must repent.”

“Repent!” I thought to myself. “That can’t be it. I try to confess my sins daily, and I’m still stuck in a rut.” As I tuned back in, John was defining the word repentance. “It’s a process over time of requiring energy to acquire God’s perspective of my sin until I see it as He does.” In simpler terms, to “confess” means to agree with God about my sin. Hummm…it’s not until I see my sin as God sees it that I truly “get it.” Get what, you ask? Get how it breaks the heart of God who has been nothing but good, loving, kind, and gracious to you and me. In other words, until I come to the point of grief and am sickened by my sin, I will not turn away from it. I’ll only return time and again.

That’s only the first step toward repentance, my friend. There are a few more steps to take before we become passionate about our relationship with God again and become clean vessels He can use—perhaps to bring about revival---not only in our own hearts but in the heart of America.

Stay tuned!

Labels: According to Micca

“Ring-ring.”

“Hello?”

“Get the camera and get over to Mitch’s condo as fast as you can.” The voice on the other end of the phone was my husband’s. I thought I had trained him not to scare me like he just had, but apparently, I was wrong. Before I could ask “why” my mind quickly filled with all sorts of possibilities that might explain the panic in his voice. Let’s face it. When a condo owner is only 22, a lot can go wrong from lack of experience or lack of responsibility.

As I searched our bedroom drawer for the camera, my husband explained the situation. Mitch’s heating and air unit had not been working properly so Pat called the “fix it” man and met him at the condo. What they discovered was surprising.

The elderly man that lives below our son was having trouble with his unit, too. For weeks, his heating and air man worked to fix his unit—but without success. The reason the worker was unsuccessful is because he was trying to fix a unit that wasn’t broken. Oh, the old man’s unit was broken alright right. But the heating and air guy wasn’t trying to fix his unit. He was trying to fix our son’s!

I understand that people make mistakes. I certainly make my share. It wasn’t that the so called professional didn’t know what unit went with whose condo, but in three weeks time he never once caught on that he was working on the wrong unit! In the south there is only one response to this type of situation. We say…“Well…bless his heart.” Which translated means, “somebody should have gotten him professional help as a child because his light may be on, but nobody is home!”

The worker cut the wires to Mitch’s unit, and then, rewired and connected them to the old man’s thermostat inside of his condo. The old man now had control of Mitch’s unit which led to his complaint. “Dad, I can’t turn my air off! It just keeps running and running.”

The old man continually ran what he thought was his unit but the temperature in his condo never cooled. Hummmm??? However, you could hang meat in Mitch’s condo. The damage was estimated between 700-1000 dollars! That’s why my husband asked me to bring the camera. We wanted our guy to fix our son’s unit but we needed evidence that the responsibility belonged to the old man’s fix-it guy. Thankfully, he agreed to pay the bill.

I don’t mean to be too hard on this poor guy. I often get my wires crossed too. And my friends and family respond with, “Bless your heart.” But the truth is I haven’t met one single person yet who didn’t have a few loose wires. I guess it’s what makes us interesting. It’s definitely what makes us human--right?

Labels: According to Micca

There seems to be a pattern to the way children view their mothers. When we are five years old we want to be just like her. When we are ten, we think we can out smart her. When we are thirteen, we are convinced we are smarter than our mothers. At seventeen we want her opinion about everything but without her knowing it. By the time we marry and give birth to our own children, we’ve become best friends with our greatest mentor.

My mother wasn’t perfect. But I don’t dwell on her imperfections. In fact, they don’t even come to mind when I think of her. Instead, I recall how loving and sacrificial she was. I don’t think she had a decent wardrobe until I graduated from high school. She always stood up for me—even when I was unaware of it. She could be trusted too. I learned that my girl-friends didn’t always have by best interest at heart, but my mother did. When I chose to listen to her, I found she was always right. People say that I look and act more like my mother than my other siblings. I take that as a compliment.

Today, I pester my children the way my mother use to pester me even though I swore I never would. “Are you reading your bible? Did you brush your teeth? Sit up straight. Be sure and say, “thank you.” Did you do your homework? If you wouldn’t marry him, don’t date him. Don’t eat so much junk. Make good choices, they determine your future. And wear a coat!” She always meant well because she loved her children, and so do I.

Every Mother’s Day I fret over what to get her…a meaningful card, flowers, a nice pair of ear-rings. This year I think I’ll give her what every mother longs to have from their children…my honor and blessing. I’m not sure how I’m going to offer that just yet. Perhaps I’ll write down what she means to me and then put it in a frame. Maybe, I give her a blessing of some sort throughout the year. I haven’t decided just yet. You could help me by sharing your ideas about how to honor and bless your mother. I’m sure other readers would love to hear your ideas, too. Then each of us could choose from a bouquet of ideas! Come on you creative thinkers…let’s bless our mothers!

Labels: According to Micca

This section from, The Grandmother’s Bible, by Dawn Scott Jones, spoke to me today and I wanted to share it with you.

“We long to be first, to be the center of attention, to have control. We hate to admit it, but we can struggle with insecurity and jealousy and sometimes become threatened when others succeed. We find secret satisfaction when our rival fails. We yearn for significance, to accomplish something great.
But Jesus redirects our earthly rationale by teaching us that being great means serving, choosing to be second, stepping out of the limelight so someone else can shine. We are on our way to greatness in God's perspective when we roll up our sleeves and offer our gifts wherever they are needed.”

This attitude of “being on top” is not only seen and felt in the secular world but in ministry, too. Why—because we are fleshy people. Our flesh side or our human side longs to be number one, the shining star, the top dog. But the truth is there is only one super star and His Name is Jesus Christ.

We are all His supporting actors in a story not about us, but all about Him! If we really want our name to go down in history, we must step into our God-given roles making the star forever look good.

With this mindset, I’m able to fight my human side that longs to be first, and fight for the cause of Christ among the multitudes who are also striving to make our great God known. Besides, ministry is NOT a competition. We are all on the same team seeking to score one for the kingdom of God. Seeing others in ministry as competitors should raise a red flag.

The Word of God says that envy is rooted in evil.

“The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21)

When you and I seek to be on top or feel threatened by others success, then we are allowing our sinful nature to control us. On the other hand, those who are walking in the Spirit of God will bear the fruit of the Spirit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Gal 5:22-26)

Whether you work in ministry or the secular world, as children of God this is how we are to live. We are to view others as teammates, not competitors, working toward the same goal—lifting up the name of Jesus. This quote by Ronald Regan sums it up. “"There is no limit to what a man or woman can do or where he or she can go if he/she doesn't mind who gets the credit." That’s success according to God’s economy because it allows us to work together as teamates as build the kingdom of God.

Labels: According to Micca

Last weekend I had the privilege of serving alongside some amazing women of God. Amy Carrol and I traveled to Hixson, Tn to speak at a women’s conference at Dallas Bay Baptist Church. The women’s ministry directors, Amy and Angela had a wonderful vision for the weekend. The theme was Live, Love, and Laugh—and that’s just what we did! Their hearts for God and women to have an on-going relationship with Him was evident in all their hard work. Angela, out of obedience to God, challenged us by sharing a personal struggle she and her husband are going through. Then, she worshiped God by singing the most beautiful song. Angela reminded us that whatever we go through in this lifetime is only temporal. But God is eternal. He should be all we long for.

Stephanie Parson from GA was our worship leader. Usually Stephanie sings with a group called, Freedom’s Call ,but last weekend she sang alongside of a group of women from Dallas Bay. Stephanie has an amazing gift. Even though she was center stage, all eyes were on God. I’ve served with Stephanie before in GA and it was such a joy and privilege to have that opportunity again this past weekend. She is a precious lover of God.

The best way I can think of to describe the weekend is that God showed up and out. We had a great time. We laughed and we cried but most of all we were changed. After sharing about the fears we have as women that prevent us from truly living as He intends, Amy spoke about finding rest in God—both physically and spiritually. Then, I closed the weekend challenging the women to lay all the pieces of their lives at the feet of Jesus so that He can make our lives complete in Him.

I strongly believe that when God’s Word is shared, it deserves a time of response. The truth is God is the true communicator—is He not?! I asked the women at the end to come forward in response to what God has been speaking to their hearts. 56 women responded. Several surrendered their lives fully to God. They confessed sin, asked for rest, cast off their fears, confessed that God was enough, and longed to fly above their circumstances on the wings of the Most High God! From this response, I have no doubt that God truly communicated to the women and brought hope, healing, and change.

Sometimes I have to pinch myself. It’s hard to believe that God allows me to be a part of His work let alone speak His Name. But then, I recall his disciples were but simple men just like me. (Except I’m a woman of course!) Serving God often feels to me like it must have felt to the disciples. As Jesus moved through town to town, he invited his followers to go with Him. They ate with Christ, slept with Him, and watched Him minister to many. So for me, I’m just hanging out with Christ like they did. I go where He goes. I sleep where he sleeps, and I watch Him minister to the needs of women today. And in every place we go, I stand in awe and wonder of my God; my Savior; and my King.

Labels: According to Micca

Welcome! I realize that my devotion today may be hard to swallow. I understand. No one likes hardships, and yet, no one is exempt from them. God’s Word teaches us that adversity is one of His greatest tools for shaping us spiritually.

I have to confess…I want to be mature spiritually. I just don’t want to be shaken nor do I want to go through a trial to get there. But these are the ways of God. Perhaps this story might explain it better. God really is at work in your life and mine—not trying to destroy us—but to make us a thing of beauty…a display of His glory!

“There once was a little piece of wood once complained bitterly because its owner kept whittling away at it, cutting it, and filling it with holes, but the one who was cutting it so persistently paid no attention to its complaining. He was making a flute out of that piece of ebony, and he was too wise to cease from doing so, even though the wood complained bitterly. He seemed to say, “little piece of wood, without these holes, and all this cutting, you would be a black stick for ever—just a useless piece of ebony. What I am doing now may make you think that I am destroying you, but, instead, I will change you into a flute, and your sweet music will charm souls and comfort many a sorrowing heart. My cutting you is the making of you, for only thus can you be a blessing in the world.”

If you’re going through a hard time right now, think back on a past hardship in which God brought a new song from a painful experience. Ask Him to do it again. Then, rest in His care as He finishes this melody and never forget…He is faithful!

Labels: According to Micca

Hip-Hip Hooray! I just got my braces off today!! After two years of speaking like Daffy Duck, spiting like a baseball player, and not being able to eat my favorite food in the whole wide world—popcorn, I’m free!! I must say it was worth it all. I love my new teeth! It took a long time for the dentist to convince me to correct my under bit. My top teeth set inside of my back bottom teeth. It was really bad. I didn’t realize just how bad it was until I saw the before and after pictures. I screamed out, “Good golly Miss Molly, why didn’t someone say something sooner??!!”

I’m one of those people who will tell another that they have something in their teeth or a foreign object is hanging from their nose. I’m that way because I would want to know if it were me. So, if you ever see me in one of those conditions, please speak up!

To complete my new look, I also got a haircut with an extra added touch. My hair is now cut in a cute bob where the back is shorter than the front. The sides hang in an angle. It’s very edgy. To add that extra something, I had red highlights added—just a few here and there. When I arrived home, my daughter screamed, “Oh, my, gosh! I love your hair!” That’s when the thought hit me that I may have gone overboard. My concern was confirmed when my husband got home.

His reaction to my new “do” was right in step with his conservative personality. “Well, what do you think?” I inquired searching his blank face for clues. “Did you get a tattoo to match?” He asked. “No.” I responded calmly with my hands on my hips. “I had my belly button pierced instead.”

I didn’t really have my belly button pierced, but I did add red to my hair. Besides my husband everybody else loves it! In fact, now that he’s use to it he likes it too.
We all need a new and improved look every now and then—right? Even an old barn needs a new coat of paint once in a while. Changing my hair or buying a new outfit always makes me feel good. It’s a great way to lift the spirits without eating and adding extra pounds that eventually leave me depressed again. So if you need a pick me up today, change your eye-shadow or lip-stick shade. You know, how we wear the same colors there too, girls. Maybe buy yourself some new summer sandals or new ear-rings. Go crazy and add an extra shade to your hair color. If you do, I’d love to see a photo. I’ll be updating mine soon!

Labels: According to Micca