Author: marquitabp

To know me is to accept me, and to love me is to help me.
Posted on

Don’t Judge My Dirt

We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. (2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT)

Hi again…it’s me! Many of you know me, some of you don’t. But those of you who do know me, you may know me in facets. For example, I’m a party-er, although not so much any more. I’ve been drunk. I’ve cursed before. I’ve lied before. I’ve said some and done mean things, hurt people’s feelings (although very seldom intentionally), and I’ve done other nondescript things, that in the eyes of many religious and church folk, make me less than worthy of the call God placed on my life. I have to thank God for today’s sermon…because it definitely was mind-blowing and life changing. I got this revelation: you are made from dirt and you have dirt, but surrendering to God makes the seeds that grow in dirt (meaning you) available for his use…and He can handle your dirt-cleanse, change, and purify you.

We are earthen vessels (2 Corinthians 4:7)–the only hand-fashioned thing God created (Gen 1, Gen 2:7). But we are made from dust, or dirt. I love how God confirms things…today the speaker reiterated how it is dirt that has the harnessing power to take a seed and yield a product from it, granted if that seed is nurtured and labored over.

The revelation specific to this devotion is that we all have gifts (seeds), placed inside of us by God. Yet, if you are like me, you have dust and dirt that in the eyes of others, may tarnish that gift (obstructs that seed’s growth and usage). Yet the beauty of surrender, something I have been learning a lot about, is that God uses dirty things and people…yep us, those He hand-molded from clay and breathed the breath of life into, for His own plans and purposes. However the key to this is a willingness to be used.

It dawned on me today that I do not have to feel guilty any longer or judged for my dirt. Neither should you. God will use that dirt–things from your past, character flaws…quirks that make you, you, and He will clean them up and perfect them and you–a product of dirt made alive–if you surrender them all to Him. How can God use you to water the seeds planted in someone else if you refuse to surrender?

Just a thought…light shines through cracked vessels. Seeds grow in nurtured dirt. God’s perfecting hands cleanse away dirtiness, so that His light is not obstructed. Conversely, God’s light-His grace-makes those cracks in the earthen vessel (you) less visible, as long as you remain in Him so that He can use you.

So do you see the blessing in your dirtiness? God can shine light to nurture someone else’s seeds through your being a cracked (imperfect), earthen (dirty, made from dirt) vessel.

Posted on

Following After His Voice: A Lesson in Obedience

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. Genesis 12:1

I know it’s been quite a while since I last wrote. Lately, I’ve been posting my ‘devotions’ directly on Facebook. But today, I felt the need to write and share a little testimony.

Among the many things God has led me to do in my life, there are two things that weigh heavy on my heart, and the most current is my having to leave home and everything I know to move to New Orleans. You see, since the day I set foot back in South Carolina, I was stricken in virtually every area of my life. I commonly refer to the last 4 years I spent at home as my ‘wilderness experience.’ During that period of my life, I learned so many things, but I think the most paramount of those lessons were to have faith and trust God unrelentlessly.

So trust I did. I sought God about His desires for every area of my life–career, ministry, family, love, etc. This journey has brought me to this place, like Abraham (or Abram at the time) where I have had to leave everything I know and love behind: a brand new niece that has filled some of the voids in my heart, friends that have become family and their children that are my own nieces and nephews now, and my family. I knew I had no desire of staying in Charleston or even South Carolina for that matter, but that did not make leaving any less hard. I even left the place I feel is my true home, Atlanta, leaving some of the same things there, and I’m certain after this part of my journey, I’ll get back there.

Sometimes in life we are faced with those not so easy decisions: to follow our dreams and take the road less traveled, leading to ultimate fulfillment in Christ or to sacrifice those dreams and ignore our appointed purposes to remain comfortable. Trust me, there is nothing easy packing your whole life up and driving your packed to capacity truck, dog in tow, to a ‘foreign land.’ I knew no one here other than my linesister Ashley, my two uncles, and a little cousin. I left what I had grown accustomed to over the last four years, having everyone I love in a near vicinity and driving distance.

And today, this morning, I cried because my heart was heavy over having to leave them behind. Then God reminded me of Abraham. Abraham is the father of many nations, and right here in Genesis 12:1 is when God calls him away to become that very person! God spoke to me and reminded me of this, that I too, had to leave ‘home’ (Charleston, Columbia, SC, Atlanta) to go to a place that He had shown me, so that He can continue shaping me into the woman He called me to be. Like Abraham, I had to leave my appointed place (I believe, Atlanta) to go somewhere to be enriched (Abram leaves Canaan quickly after arriving and goes to Egypt–Genesis 12–and I will say with certainty that my time in Charleston definitely enriched me). Not once during his journey did Abraham doubt–yes, he got impatient and tried to make things happen his own way…and YES I’ve done that too, much to my discomfort in the end. Abraham–what God names Abram after He changes Abram’s name and reaffirms His promises in the covenant–gets to a place of rest in God’s word to him, that he quickly obeys from thereafter. Even in fear (he feared he would be killed for Sarai/Sarah because of her beauty both in Egypt and in Abimelech’s territory), God blesses Abraham. And upon Abraham’s return to his ‘home’–for him it is Canaan–God fulfills His promises to Abraham. Even greater than that, God has increased Abraham tremendously throughout his journey both in material wealth and in faith.

So I will be at ease, because not only did God bless Abraham’s end, but He blessed His entire journey! So I will remain encouraged and stay focused, because God wants to bless some people through me! (Gen 12:3) At this point, I have too much to lose, and life without God’s hand steering me is not really life at all…be blessed!

“I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” So Abram left, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. Genesis 12:2-4 NIV