Mrs. PIE

Rising Through Faith: Embracing Gratitude, Prayer, and Renewal

• Shelley Jeffcoat • Season 3 • Episode 57

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Can embracing gratitude and faith truly transform your life? In our latest episode of the "Rise Again" series, we kickstart September with a deep dive into the power of worship and prayer. I reflect on the immense peace and presence of God that can be felt through intentional spiritual practices. We also shine a light on our heartfelt initiative for the International Academy of Smyrna, where we provide essential care kits for fifth graders in need. Don't miss out on the exciting announcement about our upcoming Rebirth live prayer event in Georgia, and remember to join our Thursday prayer calls, especially if you're a healthcare worker or first responder.

Ever felt drained by a toxic environment, whether at work or home? Discover the transformative concept of "dying to self" and how it can fuel personal renewal amidst life's challenges. This episode offers practical tips on maintaining spiritual strength, such as starting your day with prayer and seeking divine guidance to rise above negativity. We draw inspiration from Psalm 41, which underscores the themes of renewal and restoration, offering a pathway to navigate through stress with faith and resilience.

Finally, we study the profound messages of Psalm 41, highlighting the blessings and protections it promises. Let’s grow together in faith and support each other through the challenges of life. Tune in to be inspired and uplifted!

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Speaker 2:

Thank you, I don't know. I know you see it. I know you see it. God thought that I was worth it, and I see it. Oh yeah, I see it. And I'm telling you they watching yeah, I know you see it. I know you see it. God thought that I was worth it and I see it. Oh yeah, I see it. And I'm telling you the real world tonight the reason why I won't be a step up like I do is cause I Feel like I'm gonna shine a light on me. The reason why I talk real big like I do is cause I Feel like I'm gonna shine a light on me, and I'm not saying that everything is perfect, but I Feel like I'm gonna shine a light on me. Yeah, so, even women. I'm not saying that everything is perfect, but I feel like God is shining on me. Yeah, so, even women, I'm not your man because I feel like God is shining on me. Thank you.

Speaker 3:

Good morning y'all. Let me just turn on my music. Writes quick, writes quick. For those who are asking me what this is, it's called Silky Music and it's just instrumentals that I play in the background. It kind of keeps my environment focused on God and all those things. So I'm so grateful we've made it to another Thursday and y'all. We're kicking off September with the series called Rise Again, and I'm excited about this. I'm always excited, I'm always so grateful, lord, that you would allow me to see another Thursday. Allow me to use this platform, allow me to be used to just bring your word out, and I'm just grateful for any and everybody who joins us.

Speaker 3:

Faithful Tracy, as I call her. I think there's something to be said about when you dedicate your time to worship or prayer or anything like that. It really does show up in your life, in your walk, and uh, and so, as I was preparing to come on this morning, I was just, you know, I was just stepping back to thank God about kind of where I am in my walk with him and uh, encounter that I had yesterday that involved another person, so I wasn't feeling crazy Like somebody else experiences with me, but every now and then, I don't know if you need this, but every now and then I need the Lord to be like pop up on the scene, lord, because some stuff's acting real crazy and I need you to tell me like this is real. And he did that and I'm grateful that again here, despite whatever is going on in the season of life that you're in for anybody who watches these programs or listen to us wherever you're catching it, whether it's on the Facebook streets or on LinkedIn or YouTube or Parade Deck or audio whatever. Wherever you catch these sessions or you listen to these words, I really pray that September, especially for those of us that need the encouragement to rise again through our troubles. So God bless you and we're going to get into it y'all. So just a couple of quick reminders. I normally I pray, I play, pray, come on Lord.

Speaker 3:

Normally I run the promo videos for our care kits. Care kits are our way of supporting a local school here. So for those of y'all who are looking for information, you can go to graceandgroupmediacom and you'll get. It's an Amazon wishlist and we're trying to help fifth graders in the International Academy of Smyrna and I'm really just trying to help them get some hygiene products. You know everybody doesn't go home to a full cupboard and schools don't have all the inventory that they need. So we're trying to help where we can. These are really low cost products. So this is just a way for you to help support the kids in our community. So it'd be great if you guys could chip in and do that.

Speaker 3:

And then also, I wanted to remind those of you who might be joining me on Saturday in person here in Georgia for our Rebirth live in-person prayer event and, again, so grateful to God that he is blessing, come Out of the Wilderness ministry and giving us the support of churches like Eastgate Church, and so we'll be on their campus delivering this in person. And whoever comes, that's who we're going to pray for. I'm not a person that I don't show up just because of the numbers. Y'all. I'll show up and pray Like I'll come on and teach, even if it's me and the Holy Spirit and one angel, okay. But I encourage you if you're in the Georgia area. Again, you can find that information on graceandgritmediacom. It's free. By the way, it's at Eastgate Church on the 7th this Saturday from 10 AM to 12. And it's going to be an amazing, powerful session.

Speaker 3:

All right, now let's dive in. As I said, we're in the series session. All right, now let's dive in. As I said, we're in this series, we're in week one and also in alignment with another shift we've had in the prayer group is that on Thursdays y'all know, you see the scroll Every Thursday one o'clock and seven o'clock we have a prayer line that y'all can call into, whether you're in the US or the UK. It's called Three Praying Sisters Tracy Atkinson, who's on the chat right now, she's also one of the praying sisters and we hold that as a space for 30 minutes where we just meet up and pray, and so that's available to you. But we've also shifted so that in the series going forward and that's one of the promos that you saw that we want to be more intentional about supporting specific groups. So this month of September we're going to be praying for healthcare workers and first responders. So if that's the community that you work in, or maybe you're a friend to that community, you support that community, we invite you to come and join these calls. We're going to be leaning into praying for those groups.

Speaker 3:

Now I've said all the things. This week, again, we're going to kick off with Rise Again and Rebirth in Christ and I was going to start with sharing a couple of scriptures, and the first one is I'm going to share my screen because, again, I want for those of y'all who are looking for additional, maybe looking for additional points of reference or Bible study, y'all I wanted to share John 3, verses 3 through 7, and then I'm going to share something else and I think I'm going to take a different turn here, based on what the Holy Spirit just gave me. So I'm going to be obedient. So John 3, verses 3 through 7, and I've said this before and I think I've even read this out during one of our live prayers earlier this week this is where there's a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, where Nicodemus, as the scholar, the thinker, is asking you know, how can a man be born again when he's old?

Speaker 3:

When Jesus is saying truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God and see there is important, see there is important, right. And then Jesus answered again unless one is born of water and the spirit being the Holy Spirit, he cannot enter. So you have to be able to see, but you also have to be able to enter. So there's two different things that's happening in play here that I didn't see. So thank you, lord, for the spirit of revelation. And as we're learning together and we're pressing into the word, lord, I ask that you'll continue to teach us. But there's two different things here at play.

Speaker 3:

And then I want to share something we can use in the quote real world. Okay, so the first thing is what it talks about being born of water, that's baptism in the Holy Spirit. For those of y'all who don't know what I'm talking about, for those of y'all who are the learned scripture folks, you know what I mean. But when the Lord is talking about spiritually, seeing the kingdom of God is so important for us to understand. You have to have that line of sight. You have to be able to see what's happening spiritually so that you know how to respond in prayer right, or if you have a specific assignment or a gifting, whatever, you have to be able to see the kingdom of God, see what's happening, and you can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Speaker 3:

The second thing is what I want to call out about entering into the kingdom of God. So when we look at the word the Bible in itself, it really is. For me, it's like a governance book, if you will, of the kingdom of God is best way I can put it and getting access is only through receiving Jesus and through the power of the Holy Spirit. Then you can discern and see things that are happening around you and then entering into that space. So, when we're interceding for our families, you know we're praying for brother so-and-so, cousin so-and-so, or auntie so-and-so, or you're praying for your children, or you're praying for yourselves, or whatever. You know the power and enablement, what allows us to do that. It is because the Lord Jesus sacrificed because of that, because of his blood, that we have access to, but it doesn't mean that you can enter into. It's very different, and that's why it's said two different ways First you seek, then you enter two different things. So, all of that being said, there's another verse I want to share. I'm just dropping these little doohickeys in here so y'all can go back, and, as you're in your own Bible studies, I want you to go back into the Word and ask the Lord what it means for you about giving you the ability to see, spiritually, what is happening around you, so that you can respond in prayer.

Speaker 3:

The second thing, though, is. There's a verse, it's second Corinthians, 5, 17. And it talks about if anyone is in Christ, he's a new creation. The old has passed away before the new has come. And then we're thinking about rebirth.

Speaker 3:

Now we're thinking about rebirth is there are things you know for those of y'all who are Bible scholars or just believers who've been in church for a while and we talk about dying to self. You ever hear your pastor or your teacher talk about? You know having to die to self, especially if you're in any kind of ministerial work. You have to die to self daily work. You have to die to self daily. So dying to self daily. So what that means is it's literally having to put off your old self. Like the way we respond, the way we speak, the way that we see things, the way that we treat people, we literally die to self every day. You have to have a renewal of your mind every day, every single day.

Speaker 3:

So now I'm going to mind every day, every single day. So now I'm going to give you an example and then I'm going to share a Psalm that I think is going to be very powerful. That's going to help you. Don't judge me, or judge me if you want, but I'm going to give. I like to give you real world examples so that you can apply it in your life. If I come up here and just throw scriptures at you, you're not going to pick up what I'm saying. So I want to and I'm trying to be as vulnerable, visible and honest with y'all as possible so that we're growing together, right? So, judgment aside, because we're going to learn together. So dying to self looks like for me. This is something that I have to practice.

Speaker 3:

So in my day job, I have to go physically into an office every Wednesday, and every Wednesday morning, before I go in, I'm usually listening to, or listening to or sometimes watching my spiritual mother as she is teaching. Again, don't judge me Spiritual mother is someone who is God, assigns to you that you learn from and all those things, whatever right. So just dropping the things, but I typically listen or I'll watch her in the morning on my way in because of the timing. So really, I'm like prayed up and I'm on fire on my way into this office space. Before I get to the building, when I park my car, typically the last voice that I hear is a prayer that's coming out of her mouth, and so when I walk in, physically walk in the building, I'm on fire.

Speaker 3:

But because I get there a couple of hours before generally anybody else comes in, when folks start to come in, I tend to remove myself. I kind of work in a bubble and because I'm still on fire, right, I seclude that's the right word myself so that I can still burn, right, I'm still walking, my mind is still set on Christ. So the work that I'm doing for those first few hours, it's just amazing the amount of. So the work that I'm doing for those first few hours is just, it's just amazing the amount of creativity and results that I'm getting, cause I'm still in that fire, I'm still in that mode, I'm still in that mindset, I'm still connected, I'm receiving everything, I'm getting the downloads, I'm getting all the things right, even if it's an email that's like, okay, nasty gram, whatever, you know he, he gives me the grace and even in my response I could see it working.

Speaker 3:

But as soon as people start to come into the office, the environment changes, right, the environment changes. So every Wednesday, usually, because I remove myself from the situation I usually have, lord sends people to me and whatever reason, for whatever reason it is that I am the person that people kind of come and talk to you about anything and everything, right? So I end up kind of being not it's not like a dumping ground, but I'm just the person that people will vent to share things. And I tell you it could. There is at least about an hour space where it feels like there's just a lot that's being shared and I get caught in that cycle where now I'm hearing this and I'm answering to stuff and we're talking about stuff and that fire, that purification, that purity that I had at 7 to 9 am is like it's been interrupted by noon. You ever going, you ever going to work and you've been prayed up and you singing them songs and you filled up and then, you know, email comes where a person come and says something. All of a sudden you're like, oh man, I've been knocked off and here I go. So it's a cycle. And every time I leave the building on Wednesday afternoon, right, I'm in my car and I'm now repenting. Lord, forgive me if I've said or done anything. Lord, reframe my mind. So I see the cycle that happens, right.

Speaker 3:

So dying to self in this case means that I still in the middle of my day y'all, and I'm emotionally exhausted because of the stress and the environment that I am in. Because when you are, you know, when you start off like you're on fire. You prayed up, you still have to be in the court world, right? So you get dropped into these situations and they're one of two things that happen. One, you become your environment. Or two, you counterbalance your environment, which is exhausting work. So by the time you try to fight that environment, by the time you come to the end of your day, you're tired. That's why Christians are tired, and it becomes so easy for us believers to just go along, get along and fall into the other group. Rather than counterbalancing who we are in these situations, rather than being the odd one, it's easy to just be the one that just yeah, girl, and fall into the whole thing. It's really easy to fall into that mindset.

Speaker 3:

So dying to self means that you, literally you're the counterbalance your attitude, your responses, the words you say. You have to die to your flesh every day. That's what it looks like on the job, if you will. And so by Wednesday night I'm just tired because mentally I've gone through, I've watched this process play out. But what's so amazing is that Wednesday night, then the Lord, I'm just telling y'all because maybe this will help you if you're dealing with and it's not just job, maybe it's for you when you go into a situation with a family, you're going to family events and you see it happening and you don't want to just fall into the environment and just become the environment. We're meant to be the light, right, so we're not supposed to just fall into the environment and just become the environment. We're meant to be the light, right, so we're not supposed to just fall into and just be like everybody else. But there's a work that happens where we die to self. You know you want to say the words and you want to feel the feelings, but y'all, we're past that. We're past that now. So, rising above that and even in the middle of these counterbalances, rising above that, and what's so good is that the Lord gives you the strength and he gives you scripture to help you, amen. So I want to share this Psalm that he gave to me this morning. It's Psalm 41, and I am going to share my screen and I am going to read it out, because I think this is going to bless us.

Speaker 3:

And again, this month of September. We are focusing on rising again and renewal and restoration, all the things. That's what we're doing, right? If there's something that you have started, it doesn't matter. Let me tell you something where God has you, he puts you there for a reason, but we have to know how to die to self right so that we don't get swallowed up by our environment. We don't get swallowed up in anything toxic, y'all. We are the light. You have to be armored up, if you will.

Speaker 3:

That's why I started out by saying the way I start my Wednesdays before I go into this building, I'm armored up, I'm on fire, ok, on fire, ok, before I step into the environment, my flame doesn't go out. It might flicker, right, it might flicker because of the things that are happening, but by the time I come back in the car, lord, god, forgive me. Lord, god, help me. Father, forgive me if there's anything I've done. Confession, right, father, forgive me if there's anything I've done and said today. And I start blessing those who hurt me, y'all. I know it sounds crazy. And I start praying for people. Lord, bless so-and-so. I pray that you'll give her peace. Bless so-and-so. Give them satisfaction. I start praying for folks who hurt me. I know it sounds crazy, but I promise you then it builds you up. So now let me share my screen and I'm going to give you Psalm 41. And again, I think this is going to. It's not just for me, so I'm not going to hide the word, I'm going to share it with you. So this is Psalm 41. This is the ESV version. Y'all know I'm the A Shelley version guy one. This is the ESV version. Y'all know I'm the A Shelley version guy girl.

Speaker 3:

So it says blessed is the one who considers the poor. In the day of trouble, the Lord delivers him. The Lord protects him and keeps him alive. He's called blessed in the land. You do not give him up to the will of his enemies. Now, just these first two verses, the way that he was showing me. We think about considering the poor, not just people who don't have financial needs, but sometimes the poor are people who lack him, people who are poor in spirit, right. Poor in mind, right. So blessed is the one who considers the poor. It doesn't say gossip or tear them down. It considers the poor and in the day of the trouble, the Lord is going to deliver us. Him meaning us, women, men and women, right? Verse two the Lord protects us and keep them alive, and he's called blessed in the land. So when I come in 41, in Psalm 41, again this word is for me, in the same way it's for you, and so I speak this out over myself.

Speaker 3:

Verse three talks about the Lord sustaining on our sick bed. In his illness. He restores us to full health, y'all. So that's another whole prayer point, um and I. I even pray this out when I um I also for me. I find that because I'm so emotionally exhausted, I take to my bed real early on Wednesday nights, right, and. But he restores me to full health Thursday morning, right.

Speaker 3:

As for me, he said in verse four oh Lord, be gracious to me, heal me, for I have sinned against you. Because, let's be clear, all of us are doing it, y'all, we're all sinning against him. Verse five my enemies saved me in malice. When will he die and his name perish? Some people just don't want to see you win, it's true. And when one comes to see me, he utters empty words, while his heart gathers iniquity. When he goes out, he tells us abroad.

Speaker 3:

So this is again, being mindful that if you're the person that people are coming to, sometimes they're just coming to dump empty words, gossip or complaints or anything like that, like not talking about folks who are literally bringing you to troubles, and you pray together. That's different right, not productive right. But you got to be mindful that there are people who are going to come to you with just saying nonsense, nothing but understand that in their heart they're gathering stuff so they can go and tell about it. Okay, verse seven it says all who hate me whisper together about me. They imagine the worst for me. Right, that's just life, right. People are going, people, you know, people are peopling, if you will.

Speaker 3:

Now, verse eight it says they say and so he starts to break it down, david, he starts to talk about, you know, a deadly thing is poured out on him Some of the schemes that people have, right, he won't rise again from where he lies, even my close friends. So this is more around. You know, any sense of betrayal. Even my close friend, in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me. The enemy will work that way. He'll, you know. He'll use people right, who have a willing. They also have a willing spirit to be used. Let's just be clear that they want to do this and they'll lift their heel against you or their turn on your.

Speaker 3:

You know all the things Verse 10 says, but you, oh Lord, be gracious to me, raise me up that I may repay them. But this is. This isn't about you doing judgment against other people, because sometimes the repayment that the Lord tells me to do when someone hurts or lies or gossip or says something nasty, you know what sometimes the repayment is Is the Lord telling me to pray for them. Yeah, I told you it was crazy, because he still wants souls delivered. Remember, we're the light, right. We are not supposed to become the environment that we're in right. So by this I know that you delight in me. My enemy will not shout and triumph over me, but you have upheld me because of my integrity and set me in your presence forever. Your presence forever. Blessed be the Lord, god of Israel, for everlasting and everlasting. It's being set. I'm going to stop sharing being set in his presence forever.

Speaker 3:

I started out with John 3 and I told you that there's two things. First, you see the kingdom of God, you enter the kingdom of God. There's two things. So being set in his presence means you would have entered into, you're in his. You're apart, right, you are set apart and you are in his kingdom. Two things neither things you can do without the power of the Holy Spirit.

Speaker 3:

Psalm 41 is where you go to when you've gone through some things. Go through some things on the job or with your family or whatever, right, where you really need to just come in here and speak and release the words. And so, instead of going to the Lord and saying Lord, so-and-so did such and such to me and my supervisor did X, or my husband did this and my auntie did this, instead of going that way, you take the verse, you take the word Psalm 41 and you play it back to the Lord, because it ends with victory for us. It's always. You know. Lord, show me what I need to change in this cycle so that I don't repeat the behaviors next week or next year or next month. Right, show me, because I don't want to go back to where I was, that you've delivered me from all of these things. You delivered me from evil, and I don't want to go back to the way I used to think about myself, y'all, or even about the people in the environment. I hope that helps y'all. I hope that helps you. So again, we're rising again. It means that we are moving to the next level, we are shifting and I hope that you're coming with us because I refuse to go back, but there's so much to be learned. God gives us these experiences.

Speaker 3:

I tell folks listen, I don't know God because I know the Bible. I don't know God because I can read a scripture. I don't know God because I go to church. I don't know God because you know I'm sitting in a special pew, like you know a lot of folks, like we. I've been in this pew. My family's name is on this pew. We've been going to this church for 50.

Speaker 3:

I don't know God because of those things. I know him. I know the Holy Spirit because I'm experiencing him every day, because he is the reason that I can rise again. I know the Holy Spirit because I watch him work, his work through me. I watch him be glorified through my life, through the experiences that I have with him. I know Tracy, I know Audrey, because I have experienced life with them, right? Not because I've seen their names and places and I might've gone to an event. You understand what I'm saying. So I want to encourage you that you get to know and have a relationship with the Holy Spirit so you can experience him. You can experience him, not just know God.

Speaker 3:

So, lord, I thank you for this September rising.

Speaker 3:

Again, I thank you for your word this morning. Lord, I thank you that you are encouraging all of us to seek you out in the way that we encounter people in every environment that you place us, that we will continue to be the light for those who have been tired or exhausted by any of these physical experiences, as they're with other people or God. I pray that you will strengthen all of us, but give us all of us God for anything that we have said or done or thought about those who have hurt or harmed us. And, lord, even erase anything that came out of our mouth that would destroy or tear anyone down. We don't want that, lord. So forgive us for anything that we have said in anger or even in exhaustion to our kids, our spouses, our friends, anyone in the marketplace, anyone that we've encountered because we don't know. We don't know sometimes we're encountering your Holy One.

Speaker 3:

So, lord, I ask that you forgive us and just help us to get our minds right. Help us to really be your witnesses on the ground. Lord, god, but more than anything, Lord, to just seek you out and we desire to have a much better relationship with you. Let this be a day that's a new day, a restart and a restoration for all of us. Pray for everyone who is healing right now from health issues, from losses, lord God, in any sort of way, for parents who are so worried this morning about children heading into school, or God and what. I just pray that you will give us just peace today in your name. We pray Amen, amen, y'all. I'm so full, I'm so full. Thank you Lord, thank y'all so much for watching.

Speaker 3:

Please don't forget, if you're on the YouTube streets, to like the video, because that's how we get other people to be able to watch it and see it. You know we want to get the word out. That's why we're on these streets. We want to get the word out. So I will be back next week, don't forget. You can call in today's Thursday one o'clock or seven o'clock PM, eastern standard time. The phone number is scrolling. It's free, there's no charge and there is no seed needed. You can call from the US and the UK and I hope to hear your voices later today. All right, y'all, I love y'all. Take care.