Revelation

I have completed my 22 days of Revelation!!!

It was truly a challenge to stay devoted but I did it and I am truly proud that I did. Yes! This book is very graphic in imagery, but I am intrigued by all that I have read. So how did your 22 days go? Did you finish? Was it challenging?

It isn't as bad to read as it had been portrayed to me previously. Let's go!!! What book should we read next?

The King's Daughter

P.S. I will post a thorough breakdown of my readings/notes in the coming days!

Happy New Year

My fellow sippers,

As the hours, minutes, and seconds count down until 2013 begins, I find myself reflecting upon 2012. I am so proud of the progress that I have made, but I am even more excited about what is yet to come. As many people set resolutions for the new year, I am vowing not to. I have tried the whole resolution routine and by February I have given up. I am trusting the guidance of my Heavenly Father, as He directs my path.

In the meantime, I am taking these last few hours to clean out my personal life of the unnecessary junk. This includes people who are not beneficial to me spiritually, mentally, emotionally, etc. I am deleting those unnecessary apps in my phone or the unnecessary trash in my purse. I am going on a cleaning spree! More importantly I am devising a plan for me spiritually...whether it be a morning walk while listening to my bible or whether it is a midday break with the King. I challenge you guys to do the same.

I look forward to the blessings and breakthroughs ahead and I hope that you guys are just as excited. Stay tuned as I will be posting new challenges and possibly a New Year's fast, as it is essential that we increase the energy that we exert into our spiritual journal.

Happy New Year!

The King's Daughter

A Little Cake With Your Coffee: Forgiveness

I was in conversation with someone recently when they stated how they aren't perfect. This statement alone made me evaluate "us" (Christians). There is a stereotype among my peers which they believe we have to be "perfect" to be considered a "Christian." I will be the first to admit that I am NOT without sin on a daily basis; although I would love to be sinLESS, it is nearly impossible. When I'm watching TV and a commercial comes on advertising a juicy steak, or succulent shrimp, and my mouth begins to water while my mind begins to crave those foods, I am sinning. How am I sinning? I am lusting...after food you say? Yes I am sinning because I am lusting after food!

Sorry I went off into La La Land :-)

Of course none of us are perfect! We all sin and fall short of His glory. As Christians, we have to understand that our Heavenly Father is forgiving, not once or twice, but constantly forgiving. When we wake up every morning, we wake up in a "perfect" state, but as the day progresses we become imperfect and sin has taken over; therefore, we end our days by asking for forgiveness, and He forgives. The imperfection is renewed into a state of perfection. It is so hard to fathom that someone could forgive over and over and over again, and never get tired of forgiving. We can't forgive the person who cut us off in traffic or the person who took that awesome parking spot at the store when they knew that we were waiting for that spot, BUT HE FORGIVES us for saying the horrible words or the gestures directed towards those individuals . We can't forgive the person who didn't pay us back the $5.00 that we let them borrow 10 years ago, BUT HE FORGIVES us for not paying our tithes at all! Hmmm...maybe we should begin to evaluate our system of forgiving and try to implement His way of forgiving into our lives.

Forgiving is a hard pill to swallow, (trust me, I'm just as guilty) because PRIDE holds us hostage to an unforgiving spirit. Well how can you put your pride aside? PRAYER! Hello! That's the first step to overcoming pride. Admit that your pride gets in the way and understand that you can't overcome pride on your own. Then ask Him to help you to forgive others the way that He forgives you. It's that easy!

Read what the Bible says:

Matthew 6:14-15 [NLT]

¹⁴ “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Matthew 18:21-22 [NLT]

²¹ Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone^[a] who sins against me? Seven times?” ²² “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!^[b]
23 “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. ²⁴ In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars.^{[c] 25} He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt. ²⁶ “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ ²⁷ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. ²⁸ “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars.^[d] He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. ²⁹ “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. ³⁰ But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. ³¹ “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. ³² Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. ³³ Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. ³⁵ “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters^[e] from your heart.”

 Ready to forgive yet?

With Love,
The King's Daughter

Heart Transplant-Seeking to have a heart like Christ

My fellow sippers,

I know I have gotten side tracked from my 22 days of Revelation, but I can more than reassure you that I have been keeping up with my readings. I will be posting some  updated notes on that soon.

A few days ago I experienced an amazing encounter with the Lord and I just have to share it with you!

There is a young lady (whose name shall remain anonymous) who I noticed had been trying to build a friendship with me for a while; however, I kept putting a wall up because I believe that I have all the friends that I need. I kept finding reasons to justify why I didn't want to be friends with her and I would literally lose all sight of God and become rude and mean to her. I would find reasons not to hang out with her, but for some reason it seems like she didn't get the picture that I just didn't want to be friends. One day my mom noticed how much this young lady had been putting forth an effort to build a friendship and my constant blocking of a friendship and she gave me a lecture about me needing an attitude change. She said that there was obviously something about me that this young lady liked and that she was gaining from the small talk I would have with her. Then of course my mother brought to my attention that I am suppose to be sharing the light of Christ with others and that my attitude was not Christ-like. Hmmm...ME? Not Christ-like? What? I didn't want to hear it at the time, but when I got alone the Lord slapped me in my face spiritually. That night I prayed the following prayer (or something close to it):

Transform my heart that I will not judge. Extend my hands to those who need me and that my heart will not see with the same sight as my eyes. Help me to be a friend to the friendless for the sake of Your Kingdom. Deafen my ear to gossip and mute my mouth from speaking ill. Let me be acceptable in Your sight.

Immediately after praying this prayer, I set my bible to audio and listened to the entire Book of James and found in the Bible that I was sinning just as bad as the man who kills and steals. Irony is what I instantly thought it was, but in actuality it was confirmation from the Lord. It was confirmation that I don't need to turn my hand away from others because of JUDGEMENT. Who am I to judge? I never know who will need me or more importantly who needs Christ. It's my duty to share Christ with everyone right? Read what James writes below:

My dear brothers and sisters how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?  For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting^[b] dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. ³ If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, ⁴ doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?
⁵ Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? ⁶ But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? ⁷ Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name^[c] you bear? (James 2:1-7)

 ⁹ But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law. (James 2:9)

James continues the book, writing  about the evilness of the tongue and I even felt convicted of that. Life is a journey that I am so happy to have grown to understand that I can't do on my own. I can't be ignorant to the Word of God, because it is truly the guide to life. I was sinning and not even realizing it. I did not know that blocking friendships was "ungodly." I am praying for a heart transplant, and I am seeking to have a heart like Christ.

With Love,
The King's Daughter

A Little Cake With Your Coffee

My fellow sippers,

What keeps you going throughout the week? How do you feed your spiritual appetite until refilling your cup on Sundays?

I am blessed to have been raised in a household with two parents who encouraged engagement with the Lord. I find myself now reading my Bible daily, talking to the Lord, writing what He speaks to me. I was always intimidated about spirituality because I THOUGHT that I had to be formal with everything. I thought that there was a certain way to read the Bible and to pray, but as I am growing and maturing spiritually I am learning that I can be as informal as can be. He accepts us as we are and there is not a particular formality to having a relationship with Him. So what if I hold long conversations with Him while driving or taking a shower? I don't always have to get on my knees to converse with my Heavenly Father. I don't always have to have a Bible in front of me, it's okay for me to read my Bible on my phone or to have an audio version of the Bible playing while in my car.

Something new that I've started is whenever I read a scripture that really speaks to me, I write the scripture on my bathroom mirror with a dry erase marker. By doing this, I am constantly reminding myself of what I've read and to implement it in my daily routine. I frequently visit my mirror in the morning, throughout the day, and typically before I go to bed at night. I have posted my personal prayers on my wall next to my bed so that it could be the first thing I see when I wake up and before I go to sleep.

It is important for us to constantly feed our spirit and it does not have to be formal. I do believe that we should reverence the Lord by kneeling down to pray, but He hears our prayers just as much if we're riding in the car.

Begin your mornings with a prayer and a daily dose of the Word. If waking up early is hard for you to do (as with myself) then spend your entire shower time in praise and worship. At all costs, make time for the One who gives you life, health, and strength each day.

-Be ENCOURAGED..BE ENGAGED...

With Love,
The King's Daughter

Take A Sip: Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus || Spoken Word

A few Sundays ago one of my pastors presented this clip prior to delivering his message. It stuck with me as I agreed with many of the reasons that the speaker listed. So of course I searched the title onYouTube because I was determined to show it to my family and friends. At any cost take a sip of coffee (or tea, hot chocolate, water, etc.) and watch the video below.

Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus by Jefferson Bethke




So what do you think? Leave a comment below with your thoughts!

P.S. I did a little research on the speaker, Jeff Bethke, and he has some pretty awesome videos and blogs that appear to be geared toward young adults. Check out his YouTube channel HERE and his webpage HERE and share with some young adults in your life. I will be highlighting more of his videos and blog excerpts in the Take A Sip segment of Coffee With The King more often.

In the meantime...INHALE! EXHALE! RELAX! and take a sip of coffee with the KING :)

Revelation...with the King [4-5]

My fellow sippers,

I hope you all are thoroughly enjoying the Book of Revelation. It is such an eye opener to myself as I read each chapter. So far I have covered chapters 1-5 and I am amazed that our Father has opened the eyes of John to see into the future. 

I have chosen to read Revelation in the Amplified Version. I suggest that those of you who may be struggling with some of the language in other versions try the Amplified, New King James, New Living, and/or American Standard Version.

My highlight for chapter 4 is the discussion of the thrones....

² At once I came under the [Holy] Spirit’s power, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with One seated on the throne! ³ And He Who sat there appeared like [the crystalline brightness of] jasper and [the fiery] sardius, and encircling the throne there was a halo that looked like [a rainbow of] emerald. ⁴ Twenty-four other thrones surrounded the throne, and seated on these thrones were twenty-four elders (^[b]the members of the heavenly Sanhedrin), arrayed in white clothing, with crowns of gold upon their heads. ⁵ Out from the throne came flashes of lightning and rumblings and peals of thunder, and in front of the throne seven blazing torches burned, which are the seven Spirits of God [^[c]the sevenfold Holy Spirit];

There is also a description of the four creatures surrounding the thrones.

-The Eagle

-The Lamb

-The Man

-The Ox

All of the creatures were described as "living" and they were "full of eyes all over and within" (v.8)...Sounds a little creepy right?!

Chapter 5 describes the scroll and the seven seals.

And I saw lying on the ^[a]open hand of Him Who was seated on the throne a scroll (book) written within and on the back, closed and sealed with seven seals;

² And I saw a strong angel announcing in a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the scroll? And [who is entitled and deserves and is morally fit] to break its seals?

³ And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth [in the realm of the dead, Hades] was able to open the scroll or to take a [single] look at its contents.

I felt like I was reading a leisure book as he described how he was weeping because no one was found worthy of opening the scroll and suddenly one of the elders told him to stop weeping because the Lion of Judah is worthy of opening the scroll. Then there was an opening between the elders and the four creatures and there appeared a lamb that was slain with seven horns and seven eyes. Imagine that...the lamb that was slain is worthy of reading the scroll. 

Furthermore, the description of the elders and creatures playing music and singing was something to imagine. They were rejoicing in repetition "You are worthy to read the scroll!" Even the angels were singing and rejoicing. 

Interesting thought to me...

This reminds me of the child who is always teased, taunted, bullied, slandered, and never chosen for anything...the child who never has an opportunity to shine. That child is now reigning and everyone who was on this child's side is celebrating his victory. 

So far that's what I have been gathering. Let's see what chapters 6-7 have in store!

With Love,

The King's Daughter

Revelation...with the King

Grab your coffee/tea/hot chocolate/or beverage of choice and get into the BOOK OF REVELATION!

I know that my initial plan was to provide my readers with a daily review of what I read in Revelation, but my schedule has been crazy hected this week. So here it is in a nutshell....

I have read Chapters 1,2, and 3 of Revelation and so far it is not "scary" to say the least. I am enjoying what I am reading as I believe that it is a process of revealing. I have been reading this book in New Living Translation (NLT), but I think that I will begin to read in Amplified.

What have I learned so far?

-This book is written by John.

-According to Revelation 1:1 "[This is] the revelation of Jesus Christ [His unveiling of the divine mysteries]." (AMP)

-Chapters 1-3 address the seven churches.

        *I am unsure if the seven churches are symbols of today's churches; however, I find it amazing that many of the issues being addressed by Christ are appearing in the churches today.

I must confess....I AM NO LONGER AFRAID of reading this book. I hope that you guys are finding interest in Revelation and that some things are being revealed to you. I suggest that you grab a handy book on understanding the Book of Revelation as you read along. I believe that since we are challenging ourselves to read that it is important for us to truly study and comprehend what we are reading, and not just reading words. Pretty much...SOAK IT ALL IN.  As I continue to read and study Revelation, I will post some study books that are helping me to thoroughly comprehend. In the meantime, get into the Amplified version as it is a great source for breaking words and phrases down for even the simplest person to understand. :)

With prayers,

The King's Daughter

Holiday Challenge!!!!

A few nights ago I was driving and listening to a radio show host discuss how we are living in the "the last days." He proceeded to list things from the Book of Revelation that are currently happening. Ironically, my pastor just spoke last week about double checking your bible and not believing all that you hear. I don't say that I didn't believe what the DJ was saying, but I wanted to read for myself.

*Confession*

I must confess that I have never read Revelation before. To be perfectly honest, I have been fearful about reading it because all that I've heard in church while growing up was frightening. I don't see the bible as frightening so I could never understand why pastors and ministers would make the LAST book of the bible sound so horrific. Now that I'm older and much more mature, I am ready to take on the book of Revelation. Therefore, I have created a 22 day challenge.

I am challenging ALL of my readers to read all 22 chapters of Revelation with me before the new year. By the new year, I mean JANUARY 1ST! All you have to do is set aside 22 days...they don't have to be consecutive days, but 22 days to read 1 chapter per day. Everyday that you have set aside to read, journal your thoughts and feelings. More importantly before you begin to read each day pray for a clear mind and an open heart. Share what you have read with your friends/family.

SUBSCRIBE TO COFFEE WITH THE KING! FOLLOW VIA E-MAIL OR GOOGLE+! TELL A FRIEND!

I will be blogging my 22 day experience on here so feel free to comment on posts and share your experiences...as much or as little as you would like.

What Are You Thankful For?

*Grabs Hot Chocolate*

Have a seat with the King....

 

This past Sunday I was working in Kid's Church and our lesson was about being thankful and the story of the Ten Lepers. Let's just say....I felt totally convicted after leaving out of KID'S CHURCH. As I was discussing with the children about being thankful I emphasized the following:

• When someone opens the door for you, you should say "Thank You."
• When someone picks up something that you dropped, you should say "Thank You."
• When someone gives you something that you really want, you should say "Thank You."
• We should tell the Lord "Thank You" everyday.

Okay so here's my question to you... HOW OFTEN DO YOU GIVE THANKS? I'm not talking about the usual "Thank You Lord for life, health, and strength." How often do you thank our Father above for the things that you really really really want and He gives it you? I'm guilty of being so caught up in the fact that I received what I wanted, that I often forget to tell Him "Thank You."

1 Thesselonians 5:16-18 states, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" [NKJV]. 

Hmmm...a thought to ponder right? "...IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS!" After Kid's Church ended and I was driving home, I began questioning myself. I told the children to say "Thank You" for everything, but I don't say it enough. The good thing is that our Father in Heaven is not like us. He is not holding a grudge against me for not saying "Thank You." However, He simply opened my eyes to see that I need to begin saying it more often. It should become so natural to me to say "Thank You" for everything and not the usual things. Even when I'm caught up in excitement, I need to pause for a quick second and say "Thank You Lord." Realistically, without Him all of me is impossible and the least I can do is give Him thanks. 

My challenge to you is to evaluate how often you are thankful and if you find yourself guilty as I found myself, and begin a routine of thanks.

Take A Sip:

GIVE THANKS!

REJOICE ALWAYS!

Read:

-1 Thesselonians 5:16-18

-Luke 17:11-19 (Ten Lepers)

(Photo courtesy of versifylife.com)

FAITH THE SIZE OF A mustard seed.

                                                            

My dear coffee/tea/hot chocolate sippers,

It has been a while since I have last posted; however, after the situation I experienced within the past two days I feel that it is best to share HOW GREAT God is.

So here it goes....

As many of you know, I have taken my certification exam TWICE! It is such a tedious task to accomplish, and it determines so much of my future. The fact of the matter is that I did not pass. When I received my results yesterday I lost every ounce of faith. To be perfectly honest, I was angry at God. "Why didn't you let me pass this test Lord? You know how important it is for me to pass." I had been praying since the day of the exam that His "perfect will be done." Realistically, I didn't want His perfect will to be done as much as I wanted my "perfect" plan to be executed.

I was devastated to read English 020 -- "Did not pass"...English 021--"Did not pass"...Heartbroken I was. I choked up at the thought of reading those words. Here I am...I failed the most important test of my life. My self esteem (on a scale of 1-10) went from 10 to 0! "Am I not as smart as I think I am?" Yes! Those thoughts hit my mind. I didn't want to talk to the Lord because I believed that He failed me.

After going to sleep and waking up, I was refreshed. Why? I was refreshed because I WOKE UP, alive and healthy. My family was well and I did not receive any disturbing news overnight. What I thought was the end of the world, was simply a test of my faith. I was taking a shower and talking to the Lord. Driving to my observation site and talking to the Lord. As I was sitting in a quiet classroom overseeing a group of 7th grade students as they took an exam, and in the QUIETEST environment, the Lord spoke LOUD AND CLEAR. He said to me "You only need faith the size of a mustard seed. A mustard seed my child is so tiny which means that you only need the smallest amount of faith. Don't you understand that I will provide for you the things that you need." Hmmm... Lord that's some mighty fine words to speak to Your recently discouraged daughter. He instantly showed me what I need to do and why I need to do it. Six months before graduation and I am switching my major from English Education to English with a concentration in Literature. My last semester of undergrad I will be spending my time gaining more knowledge needed to pass this test. Those gaps that I'm missing on the exam are what I am to learn next semester and even in my grad program. I tell you, God is so awesome and He never fails to show us that He is awesome.

Take a sip:
All you need is FAITH!
Your plan isn't His plan!
His plan is PERFECT!

Read:
Ecclesiastes 3:1
Matthew 7