We’ve learned that the enemy attacks our lives and takes our spiritual breath away if we let him.

 I: TWO ATMOSPHERES
Scripture teaches that there are spiritual battles all around, we live in two atmospheres.
a: One is a physical atmosphere that we can see, smell, hear, touch, and taste.
b: The other is a spiritual atmosphere. We cannot see it with the natural eye or experience it with the rest of our natural senses, but it is very real, and it is vital that we understand more about it.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. -Ephesians 6:12

God responds to atmosphere as well. He is everywhere—but He does not manifest His presence equally everywhere. God manifests His presence when the atmosphere is right. He loves a celebration. He loves the atmosphere of praise and of true worship from His people. The Bible says that God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalms 22:3). The word inhabits means He is enthroned or feels comfortable enough to sit down in the place where the atmosphere is filled with celebration, praise, and worship. When you fill the atmosphere with complaining, fault-finding, and murmuring, it’s not inviting to the presence of God. It has quite the opposite effect.
If you are filled with the Holy Spirit and He is dominating your life, He creates an atmosphere for His presence to dwell:

Galatians 5:22-23: when the fruit of the Spirit is in you, you create an atmosphere for the presence of the Holy Spirit. 
Ephesians 2:22: He dwells in You. You’re a vessel of the Holy Spirit and He will take you into His presence…
What kind of atmosphere does your life have? Are you attracting the Holy Spirit, or is the atmosphere just right for a demonic invasion?

I encourage each of us to create an atmosphere of peace around us and not allow the enemy to win due to annoyances, distractions, noise and more. Focus on the good.

#NoteToSelf

Desieray N. Brown

Genesis 1:3 “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”

When God said Let there be light, darkness was disrupted. We need to allow the light to disrupt the darkness in our lives. Some of us have been in darkness so long that we got used to it and when the light comes, it hurts. Don’t allow anger, hatred, domestic violence or giving up to be your normal because you sat in darkness. Anytime you sit in anything other than what God has for you, you have sat on your promise. At least if you stand in it, you are in position to leave it. Survival is not your success.. realize if you are sitting in your darkness first. I encourage you to get up and get out of that darkness. You have the power to rebuke anything that tries to dim your light. God wants you to shine!!

The biggest mistake we make is when we believe there will be a tomorrow. God gives us opportunity each and every day. What you do with that opportunity is your gift back to God. Put your pride aside, your guilt aside and your doubt. Step into the Light that God has created for you to walk in.

Desieray N. Brown

Have you ever asked for a second chance? It’s safe to say we all have! What’s great is God has enabled second, third and fourth chances by sending Jesus to die for our sins. His sacrifice allows us to be who we are meant to be in Christ.

The way we become who God wants us to be is by setting our hearts and minds on things above.

Colossians 3:1-2  (MSG)

He Is Your Life

3 ^1-2 So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.

When we fix our minds on Jesus, that is when everything falls in place for our good. No, it won’t be all smooth sailing. The enemy will still attack because he doesn’t want to see us succeed, especially in Christ. Just remember what you do for Christ will last. Continue to strive for a mind like Christ. Jesus knows our personal story because he is the author.

I encourage you to look at Christ when chaos and storms come. Let us refrain from looking at our issues and focus on the solution (Christ). When you seek Christ, you find peace. Your story may have started out bad, but focusing on the goodness of the Lord and living the life He has designed is turning you into a walking testimony.

People would rather sit and cry instead of asking God for forgiveness. The Lord wants to change your life. We can’t always try to be ready, we must be ready. When you have a cup that is not filled, you are creating space for something else to fill it up. When you are filled with the Holy Spirit, there is no room for anything else.

ACTS 19:2 “Have ye received the Holy Ghost after ye believed?” It sounds crazy to ask this cause it’s like saying have you been a negro since you been black? The scripture is saying these are 2 different experiences. The verse continues to say: “And they said unto him, “We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.”  If you don’t hear it, you can’t receive it. If you don’t know what God has for you, you won’t receive it. If someone told you that your Grandfather left you some money after he passed, you would go get it. But if nobody has ever told you that, it would just sit somewhere in a trust fund. Tell the Lord you want EVERYTHING that God has for you.

We must first Acknowledge that we are a sinner, Believe that Jesus is God’s only son and has chosen to die on the Cross for you and Commit yourself to a life of following Jesus and serving others.

Desieray N. Brown

2 Timothy 1:7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

Don’t be weary in well-doing, because God has a plan and will not leave you out. You don’t have to compromise your values, because God has a plan to use them. Jacob told his son’s they have to get out of the famine or they will die (found in Genesis 46). The things we are fighting about are minor and if we don’t come together and focus on the major, we are going to die. We need to take back what the true enemy stole and stop looking at each other as if they are the enemy. We must stop acting fragile and act like soldiers in God’s army. We need to say “GET BACK DEVIL!!” when he comes towards us… instead of backing down and being scared or timid at every little sign of defeat.  Remember that you have the Spirit of God in you and you have power over the enemy! We are in a famine for leadership. We got personalities, but not leadership, but God has a plan. Don’t give up your position, hang on in there!! The enemy doesn’t want you to be strategically placed in a position where you can make a difference.

James 4:8 Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you…

You draw near to God by building your relationship in prayer, praise and Worship to Him.

Worship is deeper than praise. Praise is giving thanks to God for what He did. Thank you God for putting food on my table, Thank you Lord for blessing me with a new car,  Thank you Lord for all you do. Worship is saying Lord If I didn’t have any food, if I didn’t have a new car, I just want to worship you for being God!!  God of my crisis, God of my circumstance and God of my dilemma. Forget the physical and connect to the Spiritual. God is here to deliver you. He can do anything, but fail. Give God praise for what He has done and worship Him for the things He is preparing to do in your life. 
I encourage you to stop thinking of HOW things will work out and focus on WHO will work it out for your good.

Desieray N. Brown

Your motives will determine if you move into your destiny. The wrong motives will never move God.

1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Claim Victory Now!! God knows your heart and knows what you are fighting for. You are a victor and not the victim, the head and not the tail. Tell Satan to take his hands off of your property and receive it back right now. Your destiny is marked for Greatness and Satan is mad. Take back what the enemy has stolen and Praise God on the way to receiving it back!! It’s yours!! Receive your deliverance and your blessings. You ae too Destined to be Denied. You will receive what is rightfully yours.

Give and it shall be given unto you.

A lot of times, folks come to church late because they only wanna come get the Word and skip worship and tithes because they are takers and not givers. The only thing that excites you is when someone is feeding you. “Bless me, feed me, pray for me”….. How you been saved 10 years and still wearing a diaper? It’s time to be potty trained. Ask for a miracle now. You can’t reap where you don’t sow. Grow up in your prayer, grow up in your praise….Grow up…. Spiritually.

If you can’t say Amen, say Ouch. You can’t get your kids to submit, if they haven’t seen it modeled.

Sometimes we give our kids everything great, except what it took to be great. We gotta teach sacrifice of praise. If God ordered praise on the menu, we ought to serve it no matter what. We always talk about kids nowadays, but whose fault is it? Ours! Grandmama nem prayed and praised God for what they had… Grateful, but gave their kids everything so they wouldn’t be without like them. It’s time to teach what it takes to be receive…  By giving!

In order to be effective in worship, we must enter into it… it’s not just going to come to you. You can’t catch the Holy Ghost, it’s not the flu, you seek it!! Give God the GLORY and watch what He will give you!!!

Matthew 7:7-8

⁷ Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

Romans 8:29-30 

²⁹ For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. ³⁰ And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

You are called into the Grace in which you stand. When you are called, you should become committed. You cannot walk away. Nothing stops you from fulfilling a true calling. You can run, but you can’t hide. There are 3 callings. You are called into your body(at birth), then called into the body of Christ(born again) and lastly called into your purpose(accept calling). If you get that third call, it satisfies your spirit.

Value who you are and what you have been called to.  Most people need validation from other people to appreciate where they are. So they give up their real purpose to pursue a purpose that draws attention because they are living off of the accolades of others, all because they never  clapped for themselves.

Not everyone is called to preach in front of a congregation, but that does not mean your calling is less than someone who is. You calling could be to teach or encourage youth to stay on the right path while coaching a sports team or just someone who allows their light to shine on others who need a Christ-like example to follow. Either way, you are changing lives and will be glorified. Some may feel as though they do not have a calling, but as long as you have breath…. You are called into Grace by the might of His Name.