In my last post, “Obedience is Better Than Sacrifice”, I mentioned situations where I was disobedient to God’s words, voice and messenger. I also mentioned that I regretted being disobedient as my disobedience led me into situations that were not pleasant and required God’s deliverance and power for me to overcome.

Let’s Talk about Saul’s disobedience to God’s commands and what it costed him. I will be referencing 1 Samuel 15:1-35. Feel free to grab your Bible and read along.

Verse one tells us that God sent Samuel to anoint Saul as the king of Israel and deliver a message to Saul. God, via Samuel, instructed Saul to destroy the Amalekites and their possessions. Saul gathered his army and set out to obey God’s commands. When he arrived, he was obedient because he set an ambush on the Amalekites. God had given Saul commands to destroy ALL of the people AND ALL of their possessions (verse 3). Instead, Saul told the Kenites to leave so they wouldn’t be destroyed, captured King Agag alive, gathered the best of the animals and possessions, and set himself a monument up in Carmel. As you can imagine, this was not pleasing to God. So God sent word to Samuel, once again, but this time, He was expressing His regret for making Saul the king of Israel for Saul had not been completely obedient to His commands (verses 10 and 11). In verses 13 and 20, you can read how Saul believed he had been obedient to God’s commands. In verse 22, Samuel asked Saul was it better to be obedient to God’s commands or to offer God a sacrificial offering. This question came about because Saul believed gathering the best of the animals and possessions would be great so he could burn them as sacrificial offerings to God. He believed the sacrificial offerings would be a great addition to obeying God’s commands. In verse 23, Samuel told Saul that due to his disobedience to God’s commands, God rejected him as the king of Israel. {Side note: from this verse, you can infer partial obedience to God’s commands is still viewed as disobedience to God. You can also infer that you need not add anything to God’s commands even if it seems good.} In verse 24, you can read that Saul admits to fearing the people and listened to their voices instead of God’s commands. {Let me drop a pin here. How many times have you listened to your mother, father, friend, pastor, mentor or anyone else instead of listening to God? You knew what you had been instructed to do, but for some reason, you needed the approval of your people or you needed their opinions regarding God’s business. Why is that? When will you stop questioning God’s voice and words that He gives DIRECTLY TO YOU? When will you realize that no one else’s opinion matters and you don’t need anyone’s approval outside of God’s?} Let’s get back to the Word. What was the cost of Saul’s disobedience? In Verse 28, we read that Saul’s disobedience led to God removing him as king of Israel and God placing someone else in the position. God was so disappointed with Saul that He even ensured Saul knew that He wouldn’t change His mind regarding His decision (verse 29).

Need more references for the cost of disobedience? Jonah’s disobedience not only landed him in the belly of a fish until he surrendered, but it also put the mariners in the boat with him at risk (Jonah 1: 1-17). Lot and his family were given specific instructions to escape the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:17). Lot’s wife disobeyed and lost her life (Genesis 19:26). Keve’s disobedience led to unplanned pregnancies, depression, disconnection from God, struggle, pain, trauma, and suicidal ideation to name a few things.

Do you see yourself in this post? Not you wondering why someone else got the job or promotion that you had desired. Not you wondering why you had been sat down and someone else raised up to take your place. Not you wondering what you had done to be in a certain predicament. Could it be due to your disobedience to God’s commands? Could it be that you decided to add your own plans to God’s commands as Saul had done? Could it be that you thought your sacrificial offering was actually obedience to God’s commands? Let’s go a step further. Is God regretting giving you the call, position, title, business, ideas, gifts, attributes? Is God at a point of stripping you of those things and changing His mind about your promotion in Him due to your disobedience? Is God raising up a replacement to carry out the commands He gave to you due to your disobedience? What will it take for you to make the decision to be completely obedient to God’s commands?

I encourage you to take heed to God’s voice, words, and messengers regarding any commands that He has sent you. I encourage you to act on any commands promptly and fulfill them completely as that is considered true obedience.

Read, dissect, and meditate on 1 Samuel 15: 1-35, Jonah 1: 1-17, and Genesis 19: 1-26.

Has God ever given you instructions and you didn’t follow them? Maybe you were having a hard time “making it make sense”. Maybe you felt as if your will and your way would be the best route. Did you regret taking your route? Did you eventually think, “I should’ve just followed God’s instructions”? Or maybe you decided to do a portion of the instructions instead of being fully obedient? Did you not know that completing a portion of God’s instructions is considered disobedience? Let’s Talk about being obedient to God’s Words, voice, and messengers.

At the age of 13 years, my interest in the opposite sex was on the rise, and I had began to give thought to the whispers into my ear regarding becoming sexually active. My mother was (and still is) a God-fearing woman who DOES NOT PLAY so I was afraid to have a direct conversation with her regarding my thoughts and the pressures I felt. I began attempting to find every way possible to throw hints at her regarding my desire to get on birth control, but she was not entertaining any of the hints. Needless to say, I finally acted on my thoughts and the pressure. Shortly afterwards, my mother began to repeat what I thought was a cliche phrase, “Obedience is better than sacrifice”. To give you some insight, my mother was (and still is) an intercessor who hears God’s voice. During my childhood, she would pray so loudly that even the passerbys in our neighborhood would hear her. When she began to say that phrase, I would casually brush it off mainly due to a lack of understanding and a disobedient spirit. That phrase eventually was coupled with, “Warning comes before destruction” which I must admit put some fear in my heart but not enough fear for me to become obedient. That disobedience led to my teenage pregnancy.

Let me give you some background on my upbringing. My mother’s main rule of the house was as long as we were under her roof, we would follow her rules. When our church had any type of service, my mother ensured that my sisters and I were in attendance whether we desired to be or not. At a young age, I received the Holy Spirit after tarrying on the altar during one of our church services (iykyk). After that encounter, God began to speak audibly and directly to me. As I grew older and started “smelling myself”, I began to become less interested in my relationship with God and more interested in fitting in with my friends. Fast forward into my adulthood years, as I was “laid up”, God simply said, “Don’t get distracted”. Needless to say, I was DISOBEDIENT to His voice, and shortly thereafter, I found myself in the worst space of my life. It took me years to overcome that space. I still wonder how life would’ve been if I had only been obedient to God’s voice and messengers. But even in that, God has been able to make the “bad” work out for His good (Romans 8:28).

Back to obedience is better than sacrifice. You can reference that in 1 Samuel 15:22&23. My mother was speaking the word of God not some cliche phrase. As mentioned, by this time, I had already received the Holy Spirit, but I was not in relationship with God or in the proper position to hear Him for myself anymore. I am sure that God had given my mother insight on my behaviors and given her the words to say to me. Let’s Talk about obedience! When I made the decision to fully surrender to God, I knew that obedience was essential. After all, I had been disobedient several times and saw where that had gotten me. I was (and still am) determined to live a fully surrendered and obedient life to God. As I’ve remained in the proper position to hear God’s voice, I’ve also remained obedient when He speaks to me. God requires us to be prompt when He speaks, and He also requires complete obedience. Now this isn’t an easy task during times when the natural mind and flesh attempt to override the Spirit. I am naturally a thinker, and things need to “make sense” to me. But as I’ve increased my trust and faith in God, I’ve witnessed that God’s words often do not make sense, and it’s not for me to attempt to make sense of them (Isaiah 55:8-9). Recently, I’ve found myself just focusing on being obedient and not attempting to rationalize what God is attempting to perform.

My only question for you today is: Are you willing to place your will down, pick God’s will up, and be completely obedient to God’s will?

I encourage you today to make your relationship with God your number one priority. I encourage you to position yourself into the proper alignment with and posture before God. I encourage you to receive the Holy Spirit. I encourage you to be obedient; for it is better to be obedient than to give a sacrificial offering (1 Samuel 15:22&23). You can rest assured that God will equip you to carry out HIS will for your life (Hebrews 13:21).

Read, dissect and meditate on the above mentioned scriptures as well as Proverbs 16:18-20 and Ezekiel 3:17-19.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, separate means to keep apart or to disconnect. I think I can speak for the both of us when I say we have been in situations where we became disconnected. You know that I’m here for the Real Talk so I’ll start by speaking from experience. I remember a time in my life that I was so driven that nothing could disconnect me from my focus, aspirations and determination. That connection was the reason why I rose above teenage pregnancy and eventually become a nurse practitioner. When I decided to obtain a master’s degree, my focus was God centered and family centered. I was attending church regularly, serving within the church, and pouring into my relationships with my family and friends. That was until I made a DECISION to lead a life that would please my flesh instead of striving to please God. As you may can guess, that DECISION led to major disconnections within my life. During that time of disconnection, I endured so much pain and trauma that I ended up at the lowest point in my life. But I thank God that my testimony did not end when depression and suicidal ideation overwhelmed me. I thank God that Goddie looked at that text message from me that read, “I wonder what heaven is like”, and came runnng to my rescue. I thank God!! Needless to say, I remained disconnected for some time even after that moment before I DECIDED to reclaim my focus and strive to become reconnected with not only God, but my family, my friends, and most importantly, myself. Reconnecting to God came via repentance, but I had to work hard to reconnect with myself and my focus.

Maybe you can relate. Maybe you became disconnected from your goals, dreams and aspirations. Maybe you became disconnected from your family and friends. Maybe you became disconnected from the person you knew yourself to be. Maybe you became disconnected from your drive and determination. Maybe you became disconnected from the True Vine (John 15:1). I am here to tell you that it does not matter how you became disconnected, where you became disconnected or when you became disconnected. All you have to do is realize that you’ve become disconnected and make a DECISION to reconnect. Let’s Talk about the True Vine!

And if you don’t know who I am referring to when I say the True Vine, I am referring to Jesus. The above mentioned situation was only one of the instances when I became “disconnected” from God and His love. Read this carefully, the Bible tells us that God will never leave us nor forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6). So I speak figuratively when I speak of a disconnection from Him. There is NOTHING that can separate you from God’s love. So Let’s Talk about love. According to first Corinthians chapter 13 verses four through eight, love: endures long, is patient and kind; isn’t envious, jealous, boastful, haughty, conceited, rude; does not act unbecoming; is not self-seeking or resentful; doesn’t take account of evil done; doesn’t rejoice at injustice but rejoices when right and truth prevail; bears all things; believes the best of every person; is hopeful; never fails. As a refresher, separate means to disconnect. So Let’s Talk about separation from God’s love. Let’s reference Romans chapter eight verses 35 through 39. Verse 35 leads with, “Who shall ever separate us from Christ’s love?” The passage goes on to describe instances that can cause a separation to include: suffering, tribulation, calamity, distress, persecution, hunger, destitution, peril, and sword. In verse 39, Paul reports that he was persuaded without any doubt that neither death, life, angels, principalities, things impending, things threatening, things to come, powers, height, depth, nor anything in all creation will be able to cause separation. I am sure that just as I have, you have been through or are currently going through a few of the above mentioned situations. I am sure that just as some of those things caused me to turn my back on God, they also caused you to turn your back on God. I am sure that just as God did not leave my side as He promised in Deuteronomy 31:6, He has not left your side either.

What will separate you from God? What will keep you separated from God and His love for you? Is that situation that bad to where you can’t see God moving within in? Do you think you are too far gone to be saved? I pray today that you will realize that even the disconnection has purpose and that God will use it for His glory.

I encourage you today to evaluate your life for any disconnections that may have occurred. If you find yourself disconnected from God, I encourage you to repent and turn back to Him.

Read, dissect and meditate on Romans 5:3-5 as well as the above mentioned scriptures (John 15: 1- 7, Romans 8:35-39, Deuteronomy 31:6).

Have you ever felt as if you should be doing more with your life? How many times have you felt unfulfilled? Have you received all of the blessings on your list and still felt as if “something” was missing? Have you ever felt so low that you did not have the desire to live any longer? Have you ever thought that depression had become too much and you gave up on yourself? Have you ever experienced suicidal ideation? Have those ideations ever turned into a plan or an unsuccessful attempt? How many new days, second chances, or failed attempts is it going to require for you to realize that YOU WERE CREATED WITH PURPOSE? Grab your Bible, and Let’s Talk!

In Jeremiah chapter one, verses five and six, you can read a portion of a conversation between God and Moses. In verse five, God lets Moses know that He knew him before He formed him in his mother’s womb; He sanctified him before he was born; and He ordained Him as a prophet of the nations. In verse six, Moses gives God excuses as to why he wasn’t “the man for the job” by saying he was young and had a speech impediment. In verses seven and eight, God reassured Moses that He would be with him, and He would guide him along the way. Let’s go a little deeper, in verses nine and ten, God anoints Moses’ mouth with His words and provides instructions to him. Eventually, God used Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery (Exodus chapters 3 through 14). This passage of scripture in Jeremiah should reiterate the topic of purpose. Just as God knew Moses before he was formed in his mother’s womb, just as He sanctified and ordained Moses before he was born; He did the same for you.

Let’s Talk about the transition from being known, sanctified and ordained to where you may be today. Let’s reference Ephesians chapter two. In verses one through three, you can read about how the influence of the world may have become a downfall for you. In verses four through nine, you can read that even throughout your desire to please your flesh, God loved you enough to allow you an opportunity to be saved. Verse ten reassures you that God had purpose in mind when He created you. So if this passage of scripture shows you what may have caused your transition from purpose to separation, do you not see what you need to do next if you are desiring to walk in your purpose? Accept salvation. Repent. Turn from any aspect of your lifestyle that you know is not pleasing to God. Build and sustain a relationship with God. You can start that relationship by praying, reading your Bible, and attending church services.

Prayer is a form of communication with God. Simply talk to God just as you talk to your friends and family members. Tell Him your thoughts, feelings, sins, desires, etc. Matthew chapter six verses nine through 13 offer a prayer that you can read if you do not know where to start. There is a preconceived notion that since God sees and knows everything so you do not need to pray to Him about your personal life, struggles, desires, trauma, etc. That is false. God cares for you (1 Peter 5:7). He is with you always, and He desires for you to come to Him in prayer constantly (Deuteronomy 31:6-8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). Pray consistently. Make prayer a priority in your daily schedule and at least start and end your day with prayer. As far as reading the Bible, make sure you read a version that you can understand. You can use the Bible app to sample the different versions before purchasing a hard copy of a Bible. Lastly, I encourage you to connect with a church and attend church services regularly. Once you find a church that is suitable for your liking, join the church by becoming a member. You may be thinking, “I do not need to go to church, Keve” or “That church did such and such so I will never go back to church”. I am here to tell you that you do need to go to church. The Bible encourages us to assemble ourselves with other believers often (Hebrews chapter 10 verses 24 and 25). You would be amazed at how many people are going through or have overcome the same issues as you. And as far as that statement about “church hurt” goes, the people may have done something in that particular church, BUT GOD DID NOT DO THAT TO YOU. You have to forgive those people (Ephesians chapter 4 verses 31 and 32). It was okay to leave THAT CHURCH not THE CHURCH. What I mean by THE CHURCH is the body of Christ (1st Corinthians chapter 12 verse 27). Find another church home and reconnect yourself to God and a church family.

Let’s Talk about your specific purpose. Just as God purposed Moses to be a prophet, He has a specific purpose for you. He will reveal that purpose to you and provide instructions regarding that purpose as you surrender to Him and grow your personal relationship with Him. For now, you can refer to what is called The Great Commission in Matthew chapter 28, verses 16 through 20 as your generalized purpose for God’s Kingdom. Ensure that, day by day, you are striving to be more like God because you were made in His image (Genesis 1:27).

Read, dissect and meditate on the above mentioned verses as well as 1 John 1:9, Matthew 4:4, Ecclesiastes 12:13&14, Psalm 32:8, Ephesians 1:11, Romans 8:29-30, James 1:5, and James 4:3.

LET’S TALK about the uprooting! According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, uproot means “to remove as if by pulling up”, “to pull up by the roots”, “to displace from a country or traditional habitat”. When I think of that word, I think of this year because God began to uproot all things within me that hindered me from fully serving my purpose for His Kingdom.

Prior to being intentional with my walk with God, I mainly wanted to please my flesh. I still wanted to walk in unforgiveness because “I hadn’t done anything wrong”. I still wanted to ignore the parts of me that needed to be healed. I still wanted to live life the way I had planned to live it. I still wanted to be luckwarm. I still wanted to please people. I still wanted love from all of the wrong places. I still wanted to rely on sex and alcohol as my coping mechanisms. I still wanted to suppress my emotions and remain “heartless”. I still wanted to pimp God and His Spirit when I needed or desired certain things. I still wanted to maintain control. Eventually, I could no longer resist God’s pull on my heart so I made a decision to surrender to Him and His will for my life. As mentioned in the “Walk with God” post, I began to consistently pray, fast, study my Bible, attend church, and listen for God’s voice. Shortly thereafter, God began an uprooting within my soul. He began to uproot unforgiveness, hatred, hurt, manipulation, pain, soul ties, strongholds, bad habits, false teachings, lust, addiction, etc.

What can the uprooting process look like? It will look like laying down your will and picking God’s will up; trusting God when you do not understand or see the way; speaking life when you desire to curse someone out; shutting up when you desire to speak or react; staying home when you know you don’t need to go certain places; identifying and dealing with the sources of your triggers; saying no when your flesh desires to say yes; allowing space when you desire to be close; praying for people instead of arguing with them; forgiving and forgetting instead of holding grudges; realizing that yes they were wrong AND SO WERE YOU; asking for forgiveness although you don’t feel as if you are wrong; walking away when God instructs you to; seeking God in all things instead of seeking your friends’ or your own opinion; fighting through anxiety, depression, and loneliness instead of surrendering to them; falling down and getting back up again; learning to fight (spiritually) all by yourself…just you and God; surrendering to being delivered from any negative coping mechanisms (smoking, alcoholism, fornication, pornography, etc); transforming from being heartless to addressing and working through your emotions; renewing your mindset; healing from your childhood traumas; being delivered from people pleasing; rebuking the devil’s attacks on your mind; BEING LEAD BY THE SPIRIT instead of being lead by your flesh!

The uprooting is essentially God pulling up your learned behaviors, thoughts patterns, etc and replacing them with His characteristics. The process can be PAINFUL, but it is NECESSARY. Through the uprooting, God begins to develop consistency, determination, longsuffering, endurance, love, patience, kindness, etc. within you. Being a person who was heavily in the world, I felt as if this process took me by force. The changes I endure, at times, are overwhelming, but I remain dedicated to God and trust His work. In my opinion, the most essential practice that aides in this lifelong process of uprooting is PRAYER (Philippians 4:6&7 and Ephesians 6:17&18).

What will it take for you to surrender to God? How long will you wait to make a decision to surrender to God? Are you ready to surrender to God now? Have you made a decision to live for God? Has the uprooting process began? Will you continue to sacrifice yourself for God’s purposes throughout this lifelong uprooting process? Will you continue to seek God’s face? Are you seeing the new you come forth? Are you being led by God’s spirit?

If God has began an uprooting within you, I encourage you not to look back (Luke 9:62), to press through the pain (2 Corinthians 4:17&18), know that the uprooting has a purpose (Romans 8:28), and pass the testing (James 1:2-4).

Read, dissect, and meditate on Revelation 3:14-21, Ecclesiastes 3:1-11, Jeremiah 31:28, Matthew 15:13, Philippians 2:5, 1 John 2:6, and 1 Peter 2:21-25.

For a little over a year now, I have been dedicated to maintaining an exercise regimen. At first, I went to the gym and threw workouts together. I did not have a routine or plan before arriving. But as I progressed in my fitness journey, I became more strategic with planning my workouts, but I was lacking one thing: cardio. I knew the benefits of cardiovascular exercises as I’ve been in the healthcare field for over 11 years. So eventually, I dedicated Tuesdays and Thursdays as my cardio days.

I like to compare the beginning of my fitness journey to the beginning of my process of true surrender to God. At the beginning of the journey, I was unorganized, prayed when I felt like it, read a scripture here and there and attended church when I felt like it. As the journey progressed, I became more disciplined in seeking God’s face by developing a consistent prayer life , reading my Bible frequently and attending church whether I felt like it or not. When consistency in my spiritual life developed, I noticed more progress in my physical body, and God literally became my personal trainer.

So on some of my cardio days, He would ask, “Are you walking with Me today?” I immediately knew that on that day, I was going to walk outdoors instead of going to the gym. I also knew that God would deliver a present timing word to me as He always did while I was walking with Him. He had became so consistent in doing so.

It was on December 15, 2024, that I realized that God was not only referring to me physically walking with Him when He asked if I was going to walk with Him. He was more importantly referring to my spiritual walk with Him. That question had little to do with the outdoor walks as He had spoken to me in the midst of working out in the gym. God desired and still desires for me to ensure that I remain consistent in taking care of my temple while remaining aware of my spiritual walk with Him as well. I need to make sure that I am evaluating my walk as it relates to meeting His standards. God also desires for me to continue to seek after His voice daily just as I do when I walk outdoors.

Are you walking with God? How is your walk with God? What does your walk with God consist of? Are you being consistent? Are you disciplined? Are you being intentional regarding your walk?

I encourage you on today to do a self-evaluation and identity any thing or person that may be negatively affecting your walk with God. Lay those things and people before God and accept His guidance. If you need to walk away, do so! If you need to cancel plans and refocus, do so! If you need to repent and rededicate yourself to God, do so! For He is always with you (Deuteronomy 31:6).

Read, dissect, and meditate on Deuteronomy 10:12&13, 1 Corinthians 9:24, 2 Timothy 4:6-8, Hebrews 12: 1&2, and Isaiah 40: 30&31.