Whitnee's journey with Christ

Do you have a specific time when you hear God’s voice more clearly?

For the last year or so it seems like around the 1 or 2 am hour I hear God speaking to me in every way. Sometimes it’s the post I see after checking Instagram, a song, a late night conversation with Rico, and even hearing my moms television show.

This morning I woke up around 1am and heard from my coughing- so I did what I do every morning…I got up to suction her. She was watching Family Reunion on Netflix. I had seen that show before but I had not known the wealth of knowledge I would obtain from this show. I stayed up from 1am to 4am with my eyes glued to the tv. I don’t watch tv much but watching tv with my mom has been nice.

So in this particular episode Shaka’s grandmother, Madir, had a box of groceries for Shaka’s friend. Out of curiosity Shaka wanted to know who the food was for and why his pop tarts were in the bag. Madir explained to Shaka that his friends dad had recently been sick and out of work and times were hard for them so they didn’t have a lot of money to afford to buy groceries and other things. Shaka has no clue because his friend whom he had just played with moments earlier hadn’t mumbled a word. You would have never known he could have possibly be going to sleep hungry at night.

When Shaka found out he went to go deliver the food. He vowed to keep it a secret because he didn’t want his friend to be embarrassed by his assistance. When he got there he saw his friends shoes on the porch-they were run down and had a hole in the toe. As Shaka put the box of food on the porch he took of his shoes and left them on the porch and walked away with his friends shoes with a smile.

This episode truly touched my heart. It nearly brought tears to my eyes. The compassion of this young child reminded me so much of many persons reading today’s message. Many of you meet the needs of your neighbors daily and don’t know the impact you have in your communities.

We all have friends who have needed our help and when the tables turned- we have had friends who have helped us. Some folks are not as fortunate; they don’t have friends to call on. Or so they think.

My task is to tell as many people I can about my friend who is always around, He answers the phone 24/8, He never sends us to voicemail, He never pressed the ignore button, and He has never rejected a call. Some folks don’t know about this friend. Some who do know about this friend treat Him like a doll on the shelf that has been collecting dust. There should never be cobwebs growing on this friend. No sir, this friend will stick closer to you than a brother.

God created us to engage in corporate worship, instruction, encouragement, and friendship. In the midst of this pandemic there are people who are lonely, there are people who think my friend by the name of Jesus has abandoned them, there are some people who could really use a comforting word or to a step further a human touch. Sure we have to practice social distancing, the washing of the hands, wearing a mask, etc. but that should never stop us from helping someone in need.

The needs of God’s children at this very moment supersede the financial needs. There are many folks walking around spiritually dead, emotionally distant, and socially detached. God didn’t create us to be in isolation but to engage with one another. For some we may not be able to be together in person but it doesn’t stop of us from communicating.

One of the hardest thing about this pandemic was not being able to give people hugs like I would freely love to do. Giving air hugs is for the birds. I know by now my husband and kids are tired of hugging me but it has been my lifeline. Not everyone has a spouse or kids so how do we meet their needs? How do we show them we care if we aren’t physically there?

There are many ways to answer that question. The floor is yours! How would you answer the question above? How do you show people you care even if you aren’t physically there? How do you show them the love and support without physically touching them?

Encourage them by providing God’s word. Share stories with them and create memories whether it be via zoom, FaceTime, social media, standing ten feet apart, or whatever we have to help one another. Even if we can’t reach out and touch someone’s hand, we can still make this world a better place.

Hebrews 10:22-23 says Let is draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

Every Sunday I have heard something along the lines of “I don’t want to take for granted that everyone is saved or everyone knows the Lord as their personal savior”…. It’s right, every promise in the Bible is not meant for everyone.

So if we say we love our friends, our family, and our community why don’t we do our part to share God’s word. No we don’t have to go out preaching our teaching but it could start with just showing your neighbor that you love them. There is a senior citizen sitting in the nursing home who hasn’t been able to see his or her family in person since the outbreak of this coronavirus. What have we done to help comfort that person? Have we sent a card, picked up the phone, or prepared a basket for them?

I applaud the ones who have done their part to see that those in isolation don’t feel alone. I pray for those who have the desire but haven’t put the thought into action. No worries there is hope!

I feel a Sonny and Cher moment coming on. 🎤I got you babe, I got you babe 🎤

I’m glad I’ve got you my beloved sisters and brothers I Christ. Do you have my back? Will you help me reach those in isolation who feel all alone? Though man may not be there with them in person, God never left them. That is today’s message. Help me meet the needs of God’s children even if we are in isolation from one another for the time being.