I don’t believe in God just because I was told to. I believe because I’ve experienced Him for myself. His presence, His peace, and His power have proven to me that He is real and He is good. Faith isn’t about secondhand stories, but it’s about a firsthand encounter with a living God who continues to show up in my life every day.

As a new school year begins, we pause to cover every student whether in elementary, middle, high school, college, or beyond. These are more than just classrooms and books; these are future leaders, thinkers, and changemakers. Our children walk into schools that are often filled with challenges and distractions, but also with opportunities for growth and purpose.

Before they step into the halls, we declare God’s covering over them. We believe His Word that says, “The Lord will keep you from all harm. He will watch over your life” (Psalm 121:7).

Walking with God sometimes feels like the loneliest road, but it’s worth it. Compromise may look easy, and the world’s version of happiness may look appealing, but true joy is only found in Him. Guard your heart, because the enemy would love to pull you back. God’s grace is enough to keep you moving forward.

God not only calls us to live for Him, but He also equips us for it. And He doesn’t just equip us randomly; He equips us for the right season, at the right time.

Life pulls us in many directions; dreams we want to chase, responsibilities we must carry, and challenges that test our strength. We often feel unprepared for the demands of life, like we don’t have what it takes to handle the season we’re in. But Scripture reminds us of two unshakable truths: God has already given us everything we need, and He orders every season we walk through. That means we don’t need to fear lack, nor do we need to rush His timing.

God has already supplied everything we need to live in a way that pleases Him. His power is not distant or theoretical, it’s active, helping us every single day.

Rest is not a suggestion; it’s a command written into the very fabric of creation. God rested on the seventh day, not because He was tired, but to show us that rest is holy, necessary, and pleasing to Him. When we ignore rest, we live as if everything depends on us. But when we embrace rest, we declare that everything depends on Him.

“If it is not the Lord who builds a house, the builders are wasting their time. If it is not the Lord who watches over the city, the guards are wasting their time.” Psalms‬ ‭127‬:‭1‬ ERV

Life teaches us this truth daily: without God, our work is fragile, but with Him, even our smallest efforts are fruitful. We live in a culture that glorifies hustling, grinding, and building as if everything depends on us. Yet Psalm 127 cuts through the noise with a sobering truth: if God isn’t the builder, our work is in vain. All the late nights, the endless striving, the sleepless worry without His hand, it amounts to nothing. But when the Lord is the one building, our labor is not wasted, our rest is not stolen, and our legacy becomes eternal.

There is a kind of wisdom that can’t be earned through degrees, titles, or experience, it’s the wisdom that comes from fearing the Lord and seeking His will above all else. Proverbs 2 reminds us that God grants this wisdom to those who pursue Him with all their heart. The search for this wisdom isn’t casual; it’s as deliberate as searching for hidden treasure. And when we find it, it becomes a shield, a guide, and a safeguard for our hearts in a world full of counterfeit voices.

Being rejected by people can bruise your heart. Feeling unseen by people can make you question your worth. But being chosen by God, that changes everything. His choice outweighs every human rejection, His “yes” drowns out every “no,” and His presence covers every place you’ve ever been overlooked.

Declaration:

I will not measure my value by the approval or loyalty of others. I am loved, chosen, and treasured by God, and that is enough.

We can’t just speak about God, we have to live in a way that pleases Him. The standard is still holiness. We can’t afford to slip back into what He’s already brought us out of, and we can’t afford for Him to take His hand off us. May we remain different, set apart, and truly His.

One of the attorneys in my office walked past me joking and said, “We need to subpoena God, serve Him at the gates of Heaven, and tell Him the issues of our heart.” He was being funny, but something about that stuck with me. I started to think about how often we feel like we need to “bring God into court” when life isn’t going the way we planned. We want answers. We want explanations. We want our “day in court” to plead our case. But the truth is, God’s courtroom is always open and He’s already invited us to bring Him every concern, question, and frustration we have.

“Stay With Me. Keep Abiding. I See You. I’m About Shift It In Your Favor.” God hasn’t forgotten about you. Even in the silence, evening the waiting, He’s watching, working, and preparing the breakthrough. The enemy wants you to believe that nothing is moving, but God is saying, “Don’t let go now. Stay in position. Abide in Me, and watch what I do next.”

There are moments when words fall short. When the presence of God fills a room so heavily, all you can do is weep, worship, and wonder. Saturday night during our Jurisdictional AIM Convention, was one of those moments. The Spirit of God was so heavy in that place that even Bishop couldn’t formally dismiss service. And truthfully, when the Spirit of God steps in like that, nothing else matters. The order of service, the agenda, the program, all of it becomes background noise to the voice of God saying, “Here I am.”

What if God handed you the pen and said, “Write your own life. Your will, not Mine”? Most of us would skip the pain, dodge the delays, and fast-forward to the blessings. But what if the very things we would avoid are the very things God uses to reveal Himself?

If We Could Have Life Our Way is a raw and honest reflection on how our trials don’t disprove God’s goodness, they reveal it. Because true intimacy with God isn’t born on the mountaintop, but in the valley. This devotional invites you to reconsider what “the good life” really means when seen through the lens of grace, obedience, and unshakable faith.

God’s grace is powerful, precious, and purposeful, but it is not permission to remain where God told you to move. Grace delays judgment, but it does not deny it. If He’s calling you to change, don’t play with the time He’s giving you. Obedience delayed is not obedience at all.

It’s easy to say "yes" to God when the outcome looks like blessing, comfort, and open doors. But what about the "yes" that costs you comfort, familiarity, or control? The yes that stretches you, yet ushers in God's best?

We say we’ve surrendered, but some areas we keep taking back, especially the ones closest to our heart. For many, it’s relationships. But peace won’t come from control. It comes from trust.

“God, I still trust You.”
It’s not the loudest prayer, but it’s the realest one.
It’s the one you whisper through tears, when the answer is “not yet,” when your soul is tired and nothing makes sense.
It’s not weakness …….it’s surrender.
It means your heart is still aligned with His, even when the road is rough.
It means your love for God was never based on conditions……. it was based on faith.

Even when we fall short, God’s promises don’t expire. His plans for us are still intact, even when we feel like we’ve blown it. He already knew the missteps we’d take, and yet, He still chose us. He’s still showing up. He’s still making a way.

God is amazing. He will do exceedingly, abundantly more than you could ever ask or imagine, but it starts with putting Him first. Not just in the good times, but in the storms, the setbacks, and the moments when it feels like everything is falling apart. It’s an every day act, a lifestyle. When you make God a priority, He will make sure to keep you His.

Sometimes the hardest prayer in the world is: “Lord, not my will, but Yours be done.” Because in that moment, you surrender your desires to His sovereignty, trusting that His plans are greater than your own. It’s not giving up. It’s giving it over.

This reminds us that even when the journey feels long, when the answers feel delayed, or when the outcome looks different than we expected, it’s all still His will. Because He sees the whole story, the ending you can’t even imagine yet!