Resurrected

In the words of Aaron Lewis, “It’s been awhile.” Thank you, to my readers whom have reached out and encouraged me through the quiet. I wouldn’t call it writer’s block. Being that we serve a God who is always working and who constantly brings us from Glory to Glory there is always plenty to write about.  I guess you could say this disciple has simply been in a season of listening. 

“The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens; he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.” ISA 50:4

(Now here is the part where I’ve messed up my fonts and just keep going, to get this blog out, imperfections and all, regardless of how badly this makes my ocd twitch.) 

In the beginning and throughout the majority of the “season of listening,” I was really feeling “stuck.”  Finances were dwindling. I even considered getting a new higher paying job and leaving the church behind. It wasn’t until arriving in a place of total desperation, fully reliant upon our Sovereign Lord, that breakthrough finally came in the form of my tax check. Although it’s arrival was 6 months late, the IRS had told me it would be December before it was processed and released. Praise the Lord! 3 months ahead of time and just in time for me to pay some things off, pay some bills down decreasing my monthly fixed obligations and paying other bills ahead. The timeliness of this check also provided opportunity to give back and sow into needs/ministries that didn’t exist back in March when that check should’ve arrived. In my midnight hour, He provided so I could bless others in theirs.  How perfect is His timing?!!! How great is our God?!   🙌🏼❤️🙌🏼❤️🙌🏼❤️🙌🏼

He who stands outside of time is always right on time. As a mentor shared with me a few months back, I wasn’t stuck. I was positioned.  We can trust and know that when we are in the palm of His mighty hand, great things are bound to happen, no matter what the day may look like. 

Our Bella got to ring the bell, completing her chemotherapy treatments recently. 💛🎗️  She is undergoing pt and will soon be fitted with a prosthetic. God continues to walk with the Campbell’s every step of their Sarcoma journey. Please continue to lift them up in prayer as Bella’s body begins to adjust to life after chemo at 8 years old and they readjust their lives to a new norm. They have taught me so much about enduring through the suffering and walking in faith. They taught me that with Jesus we can stare death straight in the face and know God is going to bring life to the situation.  Because that’s what He does. That same resurrecting power that resides in Jesus is in us too!!! 

On August 22, God put me in the right place to prove just that.   I was heading back to work from my lunch when I thought I seen police outside a friend’s house. Naturally, I turn in that direction, placing me on a route back to work I hadn’t taken since April 12th. The day I seen the coroner removing my friend’s body from his garage as I had passed by. 4 months had went by and yet I still drove a different path until that day. 

A couple of blocks down the road, with the trap houses I use to frequent in full view, I came upon an emergency situation.  An individual we serve at The Alley Kitchen was in the road screaming, “She’s dead! She’s dead,” while a gentleman pulled a body from the car and placed her in the road, there on Laurel street by the tracks. I stop. Declaring as I step out my car and race to the scene, “Jesus, I’m counting on you. That same resurrecting power, I’m counting on.” I assessed the situation, got the victims name, and told the man to call 911, immediately performing cpr.  There was nothing. No heartbeat. No breathe. Vickie’s eyes rolled back in her head, all the while her devastated sister is looking on.  As I’m doing compressions and rescue breaths Im praying. “Come on Jesus. Do what only you can. By that same spirit. Now Jesus,” when I feel her heart begin to beat under the heel of my palm!” On the next set of breaths, she vomited in my mouth.”  I finger sweep and start to lose her again.  At that time the gentleman passersby takes over compressions while I do the breaths and help arrives.   First responders take over and I’m sent on my way.   By the time I make it to work Im a distraught mess.  Did she make it?! There’s someone elses puke taste in my mouth! Oh my gosh that just happened!  Did she die?!   So grateful for Holly, Peyton, and John that day. Peyton rushed to the dental office her Mom works at and brought me back some mouthwash, while Holly walked with me as I processed the moment, and John prayed for me, Vickie and her sister Leann, as well as the medical team we prayed were still working on her. It would be days before I would know that Vickie made it. Me and Jesus, we saved a life that day. In a location where I used to deal death and dope, God placed me to bring life and hope. 

How amazing is our God? ! 

A month ago I was blessed to meet up with Vickie and her sister Leeann.  She is looking forward to meeting her great grandbaby being born this month and to spending the holidays with her fam. She still has some health hurdles to overcome. Keeping her heart regulated with a pacemaker hasn’t been easy, but she’s alive and her doctors are working to keep her here with us for quite some time. 

Vickie gave me that picture of Mary you see above. Not knowing how special  Mary is to our family. Not knowing I gave my step mom candles bearing the same pic of Mary just after Maw-Maw passed last Thanksgiving. Not knowing just how beloved Mother Mary was to our Maw-Maw and is to me.  “the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me.” Luke 1:49  

Great things like resurrecting a wretch like me to be an instrument of His Glory and Grace. Great things like bringing break through and life to dead finances. Great things like bringing life and restoration to a body where death and cancer lived. Great things like bringing life to a once dead relationship I had with my eldest daughter. 

Just look what happens when we call upon the God of Mary who’s favor rests upon the lowly.  He is the same God as He was then.  He is the same God!!!!!

 That Same life giving Spirit lives in Us!!!! When we begin to live from that authoritative place as His sons and daughters, walking out our faith, there’s no stopping what He can do. 

Just days after me and Jesus brought Vickie back to life, I found myself inside the Jackson County Jail, as a volunteer with Residents Encounter Christ, spending my weekend with other volunteers and 30 female residents incarcerated there.  Over 25 ladies rededicated their life to Christ that weekend while 3 made first time decisions as they begin to know and embrace the fullness of His love for Him. It was after this weekend the Lord placed a call in my heart to lead a Sunday chapel inside the jail with these women.  This hasn't been allowed since CoVid. A few have been trying yet doors never opened. It seemed this service was dead in the water. CoVid, staffing shortages, you name it. It wasn’t happening. Except, God told me it would. God told me he was going to use me to bring the gospel to these women 2 years ago when I began Zúme discipleship. God told me again 2 months ago. So when nothing seemed to happen. I smiled and waited patiently, continuously putting feelers out there, casually bringing it up when conversations allowed for it.  That happened again this week. This time the conversation was with one of my dear “Naomi’s” husband who just so happened to have a meeting with the sheriff and jail commander the next day. 

Can you guess what happened? That’s right! God showed up and the doors have been opened. Resurrected Ministry is up and going and our first outreach will be Nov 20th, hosting chapel inside the Jackson County Jail. 😭🙏😭🙏😭 

“I’m calling on the God of Mary who’s favor rests upon the lowly.”   You’re the same God!!!!! Hallelujah!!! Let me just tell you about our Jesus.  

We all are familiar with the mind blowing miracle He performed raising Lazarus to life after having been dead dead for days.  It’s in this story that the vision and mission, even the name for my ministry, Resurrected, came to life. Before Jesus could perform the amazing task of raising Lazarus back to life, the bystanders and looky lous had to do some work.  Jesus commanded them to move the stone away. 

Did you know those stones weren’t round? Did you know they weighed anywhere from 2000 to 4000 pounds?!!!! And les not forget their geographical location, and the weather in the desert.  These folks had WORK to do before Jesus could do his thang and they work wasn’t done there. As if working together to move the ridiculously heavy and lopsided tomb stone wasn’t enough, there was still more treacherous work to do after Jesus brought Lazarus back to life. Maybe this is why Jesus wept back in verse 35? Maybe he feared we wouldn’t do the work necessary in order for him to be able to bring forth life? Maybe he feared we didn’t have the faith to obey as the last bit of work wasn’t heavy work but a dirty stanky job I doubt Mike Row would even do. Jesus instructed them to remove Lazarus’ grave clothes.  Remember what Martha said? He’d been dead and decomposing for 4 days.  Those fragrances used at death were now pungent and rotting. Those cloths seeping and reeking of decomposition. Jesus, in His authority, could’ve easily made those cloths fall off. I mean he calmed the seas and brought death to life, right? Yet, it was important for the followers to do this dirty - stanky yet NECESSARY tasks in order to bring Lazarus back to the fullness of new life and it is my heart’s cry and mission to do just that with Resurrected Ministry, to do the hard and heavy work, the dirty-stanky work, so that Jesus can do what only He can with a life. 

“For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭49‬ ‭NLT‬‬

His timing is perfect. His ways are life-giving.  Be obedient.  Endure through the suffering. Know He’s got you in the palm of His hand. Do the work so He gets to show off. He’s worthy of it all. 

#blogger4jesus #womenevolve #resurrectedministry #sameGod #samepower #towatchatreegrow #lifeabundantly

My girls and I

Vickie and I

 The Cambells with Bella, ringing the bell at church!