A Prayer Answer Held Up

Good Afternoon Fam,

In what may seem like a continuation to yesterday's post, I wish to talk about the devil's angels once again.  I think it merits discussion to know that not only are there evil angels but to know they do serve a purpose in going against the will of God (at Satan's direction).  Without further adieu, let's go to Daniel 10:10-14.

(10) A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. (11) He said, "Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you." And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling. (12) Then he continued, "Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. (13) But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. (14) Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come."

Alright, so here we have Daniel who had lifted up his prayers to the Lord. An angel has come to answer Daniel's prayers, but notice something here.  The angel said that Daniel's prayers had been heard but he had been held up for 21 days trying to get to him to give him an answer.  What in the world could hold up one of God's angels from carrying out their duties....survey says....one of Satan's angels!

In verse thirteen, it references the prince of the Persian kingdom is what resisted him.  One thing to note is that a man (you and I) cannot war with an angel who is spiritual, so the prince is not mortal.  Thus the prince here was an angel in opposition of the angel sent by God.  It was not until Michael, an angel (referred to as one of the chief princes), came to his aide that he was able to get to Daniel with the answered prayer.

I once did a WFTD that talked about God going silent and prayers seem like they are not being answered.  Well today, I also want to offer you an alternative explanation as to why a prayer could be held up.  There is a battle going on that we do not see and while we may feel abandoned at times, there are still angels out there who are on the side of Christians.  Ephesians 6:12 says, it best:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Know that your prayers are not mere words falling on deaf ears.  There is a war going on and anything to get you to believe that God is not able to answer you is a victory for the enemy.  You keep sending up the same prayers and eventually you will get an answer.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

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Angels Aren't Always Good

Heeeeeeey Folks,

I how are you all doing?  Today, I do not want to be too long, but I want to share something with you that never dawned on me.  Did you know that Satan has angels too?  Let's go to the Word.

"The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him." (Revelations 12:9)

Typically, we all have the image in our minds that angels are on the side of God.  We always associate them with being good, having halos, and having wings however, this is not always the case.  Remember that Satan is an angel himself and it was not until he wanted take God's place that he and his cohorts (other angels participating in trying to take God's place) were thrown out Heaven.

In 1 John 4:1, it says "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world."  Anybody can be touched by an angel.  The question is whether that angel is being sent with an intention of your good or bad.

Be blessed folks.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Two Blocks From Main Street

Hello Family,

I hope that you are doing well this fine Thursday. Today, I want to talk to you life on your street.  According to the Free Online Dictionary Main Street can be defined as the "[a]verage businesses and households considered as a group".  If you remember, the past Presidential Election put heavy in emphasis on "Main Street" vs "Wall Street" (where Wall Street is for big business and the wealthy).

Why am I talking about this?  Well it is because the other day I was at work and received a phone call from a past co-worker.  He had been out of work since November 2009 and was looking for work.  As many of you may (or may not know) I was out of work from May 2009 until January 2010 of this year!  Yep, my family and I survived and God brought us through it all!  I had to move to Milwaukee, WI to find employment but the good news is that I found some.

I say all of this because I was just out of work and it is easy to get caught up in the day to day churn of life, therefore, forgetting what it was like being out of work.  Well that call woke me up really quickly and made me realize that times are still rough for a lot of people and I am blessed to even have a job right now.  When you are in your own little world and street, it's hard to understand what is happening two blocks over because you do not see it. 

I do not want to be misunderstood as bragging, but I count it all joy that the Lord has brought my family to where we are.  Had we not been in the trial that we are exiting, our faith would not have grown at all.  In James 1:2-3 it says to "(2) Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, (3) because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance."  We all have persevered something, but always remember that you are but a blink of an eye of being back where you were.  Always continue to learn and grow in faith and do not take God's blessings for granted.

Be blessed folks!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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JM: Made To Love

Hello family.  I do not have the embed video because it appears to be disabled, but today I want to share with you Toby Mac's "Made To Love": 

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBaX1T4VxOw

Enjoy folks!

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Are You Mad About Where You Are?

Hello Everyone,

The subject that I pose was triggered by something I heard Joyce Meyers say last week.  She said (and I am paraphrasing): 

You will never be where God has designed for you to be until you can stop being angry about where you think you should be.

It sounds like a mouth full but then I went "hmmmm.....".  That is good.  You mean to tell me that I have been clouded and jaded with anger because I think my life should be going in a direction planned by me?  When it boils down to it our steps should be ordered by the Lord (see Psalms 37:23).  Yes, I have been frustrated about how life has gone these days but who hasn't?

I think if I were to do a survey a lot of us would probably line up in the same line behind me.  This is a prime example of taking your eyes off of Jesus.  All it takes is a split second of lost focus.  When Peter got out of the boat to walk on water, he was doing fine.  It wasn't until he took his sight off of Jesus that he started to sink (see Matthew 14:25).  We all get distracted sometimes and a lot of the times we are the source of our own distraction. It is the moment where we can take a step back to analysis where we are with God to realize that our ways may not be His ways.

If you haven't had that moment yet, then I encourage you to take it after you read this message.  Do not beat yourself up over what you think, but build yourself up in what God knows and where/what He wants you to be.

Be blessed family!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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JM: Trust In You

Hello Everyone,

Right now the Jesus Musik video I would like to bring to you is called "Trust In You" by J.R.  Enjoy folks!

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Who's Giving You Advice These Days?

Good Morning Family,

I hope everyone is doing good this fine Tuesday. I am happy to be able to share with you what God has placed on my heart today.  Yesterday, I mentioned that last week was a spiritual struggle for me.  Friends and family are always there to give you advice and to encourage you, but it is important to note who has your ear.

As you probably have already experienced, there are a slew of people out there ready to give you their opinion and advise you on what you should do in certain situations.  It is very important that you pay close attention to whom you listen and not believe every person who has an opinion (see 1 John 4:1).  You see, there are just some individuals who are not qualified to give you advice on certain situations. Again this may seem obvious, but when you have problems on all four corners we tend to want an emergency rope thrown to us from any where.

So what qualifies a person as an advice giver?  That's easy.  Someone who has experienced what you are going through or who is on your spiritual maturity level!  Sounds simple enough, right?  Like I said, we can let some of the craziest folks give us some wacky advice.  Here's an example.  If I want to learn how to be a carpenter, I do not go to a chef for advice on how to build furniture (unless for some strange reason that chef is experienced in carpentry).  That just would not work.  Or how about when you ask for directions in a strange place?  If I stop at a gas station to ask for directions, if the person looks like they aren't sure, chances are you need to ask someone else for directions.  If they have not ventured to that part of town, then they probably cannot get you to your destination. 

My last example is from the perspective of being married.  I am happily married to my wife and I would like to boast in the name of Jesus that we have a great marriage :-) (hey if you're happy, you're happy).  Granted we have a great relationship, there are still times when we have to call on the advisement of others.  The biggest mistake that a married couple could make is calling on the help of someone who is not married. It does not matter if it is a Doctor with a PhD in marriage counseling.  Unless that Doctor is married and can know first hand what you are experiencing they can only give you theoretical knowledge and hypothetical advice of what they have learned.  Your best solution would be to talk to a married friend, couple, etc. who has been where you are.

The same thing applies to your spiritual walk as well.  We grow spiritually by talking to those who can minister and mentor to our souls.  You need to be very careful to what you let influence you because the very thing that sounds good may not be good for you.  Know the direction from which your advice comes so that you are positive about the direction you are going.

Be easy folks and have a good one.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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A How-To on Choosing a Church

Hello Family,

It's been a while, but I hope you all are doing pretty good.  Last week was a trying week and the devil had an 800lb guerrilla on my back but I shook that monkey loose! Thank you to all those who continue to pray for me and my family and to those who continue to encourage me.  I will definitely return the same support!

One of the last times we spoke, I mentioned us being in the hunt for a church in the Milwaukee, WI area.  Well I think this weekend our search came to an end and THANK YOU JESUS!   Trying to look for a new church is stressful and if you aren't careful you could turn into the individual searching for a new spouse at the wrong time!  We had been there before, but we had kept looking so we went back.  It just so happens that in yesterday's sermon, the Pastor talked about 3 things that preaching should do to you (the individual sitting in the pew).  Preaching should stimulate your Intellect, Emotions, and Will.

Intellect -  If you are sitting in a pew at a church you should be challenged to think.  You should have an "a-ha" or "aaaaah" moment.  It should be something that makes you look at things in a different perspective.  We should all be thinking and learning new things every day and this should not exclude the church. If your intellect is not being tapped into then how can you grow it?

Emotions - I have been to many emotion-filled church services.  If you have ever graced a church where shouting is prevalent on a common basis, then you know what I mean. I have been to churches where the music is uplifting, the spirit is high, people are crying and you can feel a great move of God and this is a good thing.  The preaching should stir our emotions and cause us to feel something because the Word now has penetrated our hearts.

Will - Now this one is a tough one and I think we as Christians tend to fall off the bandwagon. The preaching of the Gospel should make you want to do something about what stimulated your intellect and stirred your emotions.  You should feel an obligation to better yourself and others. You should feel like you have the responsibility to NOT let what you've learned go a different direction than you when you leave the walls of the church.  You should now have more WILL-power because of the preaching and service.

There are many times where I have seen lots of emotions in the church, but not much intellect stirring.  Granted, we all learn at different paces and we are at different stages in our walk with Christ, therefore, what works for me may not work for you.  Whatever ever it may be, you should look for all 3 attributes from a church.  If you don't get them from where you are then you are probably in the wrong place.

Be easy family and have a great one!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Keep It Fresh

Happy Friday!

We made it through another week and today I just want to encourage you to remember to "Keep It Fresh".  What do I mean by this?  Well, try to add some freshness to all that you do in life to break up predictable routines.  We all love routines - at least I know that I do.

I am not here to bash routines because they are good and they have their place, but there is always a bad side when there is too much of one thing.  For example, we are all told to eat a well balanced meal.  The reason is that you do not want too much of one type of food group.  Over time, the neglect of the other food groups and the over indulgence of one starts to have a bad affect on your body.  In this case, it would be a good idea to freshen things up a little bit...you know add some variety to your diet.

This holds true with your marriage, friendships, and other relationships.  You should do something different to keep those relationships from going stale and avoid the inevitable boredom. Christ wants this same freshness with us as well and we should be careful to NOT fall into repetitions in our walk with Him.  Mix it up a little bit and add some spontaneity to your prayer life....talk to Him about different things rather than the same old things (see Matthew 6:7).  The moment we get stuck in the rut of a routine is the moment we stop growing in the things of God and that is something we never want to do.

Be easy folks and have a blessed weekend!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Incompetent? Are you Serious?

OK, I typically do not do two posts in one day, but I have to get this one off my brain.  While I was reading my morning news on CNN, I ran across a few comments about a particular article.  In the comments section, someone made reference that God is incompetent. 

Errrrrrrrr!  God and incompetent in the same sentence?!  I understand that there are people who believe in God and there are people who do not believe in God.  I understand that and know there are some who will just not believe, BUT......for someone to call God incompetent tells me two things:

1. The person recognizes that God does exists, and
2. They do not claim to be an atheist.

An atheist would not give this description of God because to describe Him would to admit that there is one....that's not going to happen.  This leads me back to the point that the person recognizes that God was, is, and always will be. 

Something....I mean something must have gone really wrong for this individual to give God this type of description, because out of all things we know that He is all-powerful.  If anything He is all-knowing and no words exist in our language that could accurately describe the Lord.  I would only have to say that God tells us not to be lukewarm for Him.  In Revelations 3:16, it says "So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth."   In a nutshell, God rather for you to be on fire for Him or nothing at all.  To be lukewarm about Him is an insult.

Be careful of your thoughts and what you let come out of your mouth towards God no matter how you may feel "wronged" by Him.  God is still God and at the end of the day we still answer to Him.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:   http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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