A COUPLE of STEPS BACK FROM HEAVEN

As my co-workers and I were conversing one morning, I jokingly said, “Mark, we could have hung out together in a former life.” He chuckled and responded, “Oh we can still hang out but you would have to take a couple of steps back from Heaven (paraphrased). 

Immediately, I thought about going back to my old lifestyle to “hang” out again. It seemed as if for almost a split second, I missed the fun I used to have. The night clubs, the parties; the no-end drinking; the drugs, and smoking cigarettes. The secular music of rap, dance and r&b; the clothes that showed everything! Oh yea! The bounty of boyfriends and companionship (that’s what I’ll call it!)! Oh yea! Woo-hooo! Tattoos of whatever I wanted! Spending my paycheck as soon as I got it; buying the luxuries of life! YEA BABY! No-holds barred with my tongue, saying whatever I felt like when I felt like it! Come on! Lettin’ ‘em all no that I ain’t playin’ and I don’t take no stuff! The feeling of freedom to do whatever the heck I wanted to ‘cause I lived in the land of plenty- the USA baby! I’mma’ do me! That’s whatz’ up! The…..

Right as I was on “the roll of fun” the Holy Spirit stopped me dead in my thoughts. “Dolores, must I remind you of the consequences of your “fun”? Immediately my heart sank and it was as if for another split second I was in the movie “Scrooge” and an Angel was taking me back through my life. 

…..the night clubs and parties: in which drinks were spilled all over my new clothes and shoes…the music that put me in a certain mood (rap= fighting; r/b= sexing; dance=body pain) the feeling of someone groping me all over my body and the sleazy cheap feeling that I had afterwards…. The running from fights and/or shooting…

…..the no-end drinking…that started before I went to class, yet while in class the burning smell from the curling iron with hair wrapped around it…not on the clients’ head…. The vomiting in a car or on the side of the road; the dizzy spells that lasted for days and the missing work because of my hangovers. The “don’t remember how I got home days…” The drugs that made my heart beat so fast …..that made my heart beat so fast (sorry, I forgot what I was talking about)…..with damaging memory loss. The feeling that I was so high that I was going to die! The smoking cigarettes until I almost died from pneumonia more than once….the coughing and hacking so hard until I was sure the lining of my lungs was in the sink…. The blowing of second hand smoke into my daughter’s face who suffered from allergies and asthmatic bronchitis.

….The wearing of clothes that got the “bad-boy’s” attention as they called me out of my name….calling my body parts the vile names of the world….The friends that really weren’t friends at all…. Illegal activities with jail along for the ride…the run-on sentences and bad grammar and punctuation! Ahh, you’re paying attention! ….
The abusive boyfriends …. The tears, hurt and pain until I thought I didn’t need to live….. And do it all over again the next day, week, or whatever….Is this what I considered “fun”? And yes, at the end of a day, going to Hell in a hand basket because I knew not Jesus Christ. But yes, I called it “fun” and “freedom”!

The Holy Spirit spoke once again, “Is it worth taking a couple of steps back from “Heaven”? NEVER! - I shook my head vigorously! Within all but seconds, I realized that “Heaven” is right here, right now on Earth through Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior! First through Salvation! No Hell for me! But there’s more to just not going to Hell, there's more to Salvation….No more shackles of demonic bondages of drugs, alcohol, or smoking! No more abusive relationships, no more anger or depression! Take a couple of steps back from: Deliverance, Restoration, Love, Joy, Hope, Peace, Wisdom, Favor, Insight, Revelation, Supernatural Blessings, Protection and His constant care and Guidance with kept Promise after Promise… along with answered prayer! I don’t think so! Let’s go bowling instead! Sunday after church football, what?! (Without gambling of course!)

….So wouldn’t you rather take a couple of steps TOWARDS Heaven? Are you headed in the wrong direction? Free is me, but it ain't cool if it comes with drama + despair!
I encourage you today to take the first step towards Heaven and receive salvation through JC! Whatever “fun” is to you right now, serving God is whatz’ up! Or whatever “slang” you decide you want to use, but taking steps backwards is never a good idea - in plain ‘ol English!
Scripture References: The Bible
With God’s Love, Dee-Dee McDuffie
**To my readers: - All jokes aside, it’s ok to have “fun” in life (as with the above passage with slang,, etc]…but have “fun” with Jesus. Everywhere. Everyday and Every way. Sincerely, Dee-Dee. Scripture References: John 3:16; See Mt/Mk/Lk for Jesus’ teachings; Ps 91; Ps 23; Ps 31; Pr 2, 3**

Look for my new book coming soon! I'm excited to share my testimony with you! It's not a secret, It's sharing! With Love, Transparency Shares (Dee-Dee McDuffie) .....To God Be the Glory!

A FUGITIVE

Fugitive (www.biblegateway.com) [partial]: Ezek. 17:21, one who has broken away in flight (Heb. mibrah); Isa. 15:5; 43:14, a breaker away, a fugitive (Heb. beriah), one who flees away. All rights reserved. Eastons 1897 Bible Dictionary

As I was conversing with co-workers one morning, one of them asked, “Dolores do you go to church?” As I pondered his question for a few seconds I responded. “Well, yes I go all the time, but if you are asking me am I a Christian, then yes I am.” Quickly he responded, “Well, I was just asking do you have a specific religion?” “No. I am non-denominational, I am a Christian- I follow Christ. I was raised Baptist, but now I’m non-denominational.” I replied. “That’s not easy to do…” my other co-worker chimed in. As I thought about it for a second in my mind, I told myself - “not really, it’s eas….” I caught myself mid-sentence and realized that it’s not easy to follow Christ to an unbeliever because they don’t believe. Some just don’t feel it’s necessary while others’ feel they should be able to do whatever they want, and yet others don't believe there is even a God.  But, as believers [one who follows Christ and his teachings and believes the Word of God as truth] grow and mature, it’s not easy for us either at times, but it is a choice that we make daily - to flee from all unrighteousness and pursue what is good. 

Later that evening, after I returned home from the course of the day, I pondered upon our conversation once again. As I began to write about my day, the show in the background caught my attention. “She’s a fugitive!” ….was blurted out of the television. I looked up from my laptop and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I’m a fugitive! I immediately thought about how there are two types of fugitives in our world figuratively speaking. People who are on the run or fleeing from God and people who are fleeing from Satan. 

So here I am a fugitive! I made a choice [with the “pulling” or “wooing” of the Holy Spirit] to run from Satan’s residence [Hell - eternal damnation], and accept in my heart Jesus as my Lord and Savior [Heaven- eternal life]. Daily, I decide to follow Christ [and His teachings] and “run” [fight the good fight of faith] from Satan’s lies, bondage, deceit, trickery and debauchery. I choose to allow God, not Satan to run my life! I once too was in darkness with drinking, smoking and drugs; destroying God’s temple. I too, succumbed to Satan’s bondages of abusive relationships and low self-esteem. I succumbed to anger, resentment and hatred in my heart toward others’. I also felt the shame and guilt of my youth and had very little hope for my future. A suicide attempt proved that I had very little hope for my future! I too succumbed to foul language as my primary language and gossip as my secondary one. I also succumbed to a poverty mentality and the other negative traits of my bloodline - discontentment, lying and deceit. I succumbed to the brutal treatment of the Enemy. Now, I submit to God’s way by the leading of the Holy Spirit. I receive His Forgiveness, Grace and Mercy; I receive an intimate relationship with the Most High and most of all receive His deliverance, restoration and refinement! I receive peace, joy, wisdom, favor, rest and much more! Praise be to the Most High!

I encourage you today to be a fugitive on the run from Satan and into the arms of the Most High! He’s able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that you could ask or think! There is peace with God - joy, love, healing, contentment, prosperity [financial peace] and much more! Decide today to do it God’s way! Live life abundantly through Jesus Christ - Lord and Savior. 

Praise Be to God and With God’s love,

Dee-Dee McDuffie

08/15/11

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Scripture Meditations

Psalm 23, 68, 112, 118

James 4:7 New International Version (NIV)7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
1 Timothy 6:11-16
Amplified Bible (AMP)

11But as for you, O man of God, flee from all these things; aim at and pursue righteousness (right standing with God and true goodness), godliness (which is the loving fear of God and being Christlike), faith, love, steadfastness (patience), and gentleness of heart. 12Fight the good fight of the faith; lay hold of the eternal life to which you were summoned and [for which] you confessed the good confession [of faith] before many witnesses. 13In the presence of God, Who preserves alive all living things, and of Christ Jesus, Who in His testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I [solemnly] charge you 14To keep all His precepts unsullied and flawless, irreproachable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Anointed One), 15Which [appearing] will be shown forth in His own proper time by the blessed, only Sovereign (Ruler), the King of kings and the Lord of lords, 16Who alone has immortality [in the sense of exemption from every kind of death] and lives in unapproachable light, Whom no man has ever seen or can see. Unto Him be honor and everlasting power and dominion. Amen (so be it).

Hell is a Curse Word

In my profession as a pastry chef, one thing I’ve noticed working in the “back of the house” is a profound amount of profane language. As a co-worker and I were talking one day, he stated, “It’s the nature of the business.” As I reviewed the thirteen plus years I have spent in this industry, it was then I realized it was commonplace to curse, drink and smoke amongst chefs due to the high level of stress. Well, at least that is the excuse most would give, including me. 

Even after I was saved, God had to address the stronghold of cursing the Enemy had on my life. Curse words rolled off my tongue with ease for many years and because of this, it would take extended times of prayer, fasting and constant repentance to break this stronghold. Initially, I tried to do this on my own without God's help and to no avail, began by spelling the word out so that I wouldn’t say it. Next, I would say words that rhymed with the curse word and finally I would say the first letter with ‘in’ on the end of it. God revealed to me that no matter how it came out of my mouth, it was still dishonoring to Him (1).

During the process of my deliverance, every curse word I would hear began to cause me to be extremely uncomfortable. As I reviewed what seemed to be a lifetime of cussin', many people that I encountered would tell me how “un-lady like” it was to speak profane language. It’s almost as if it brings the ugly out of us and the natural beauty (being created in the image of God (2)) disappears.

One of the most used words that I would hear whether in conversation or in the media was the word “hell”. During my meditation in the Word, I began to ponder upon these types of profane words. I contemplated whether they were actually profane because they were used in the Bible too. As the Holy Spirit spoke to me, He revealed to me it is in the context that we use these words that cause them to be profane. So, saying “__ naw!” is still displeasing in God’s sight. Have we become so complacent in our lives or Christian walk that we believe God is not concerned with how we use the words we speak as much as the words themselves?

One morning, I found myself using this word as I recalled an interaction with a co-worker. I immediately reminded myself (as I repented) that “hell” is a curse word. Then, like a ton of bricks - it hit me! Hell is a curse word! A curse is defined in the dictionary as follows: 1. swearword: a

swearword, obscenity, or blasphemous oath 2. evil prayer: a malevolent appeal to a supernatural being for harm to come to somebody or something, or the harm that is thought to result from this 3. source of harm: a cause of unhappiness or harm i.e. the curse of poverty. 
The latter definition is what hit me like a ton of bricks - Hell is the source of harm; a cause of unhappiness or harm… i.e. the curse of Hell.  Nothing good comes from a curse! I immediately thought of the place where Satan resides and the curse of spending eternal life there! Hell is a curse word! There are no blessings that come from using the word with our mouths and definitely not in residing there!

If on the other hand, Jesus came to give us life and life more abundantly 

(3), why do we call to (speak it out (4)) “Hell” every chance we get? What if we decided today, not to allow any curse words that destroy and dim our beauty to roll off of our tongues and decide that Heaven is where we would rather reside and call to it? Heaven cometh! In Jesus Name! (5)

Praise Be To God and With God’s Love,

Dee-Dee McDuffie
5/24/2011
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Scripture References:

(1) Ephesians 5
(2) Genesis 1:27
(3) John 10:10
(4) Proverbs 18:21
(5) James 3: 3-12

(1) Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.