After being gone from home for two weeks, we arrived stateside to a 24-hour delay of our flight home to Nashville. And better yet, American Airlines decided to give us a round trip, all-expenses-paid day trip to Long Island. Our not so luxurious, sleepy Holiday Inn Express with the air conditioner in the window was nestled between 3.5 starred, Bryant and Cooper Steakhouse and Long Island Sports Cars where you could pick up an Aston Martin or McLaren.
It really was a peaceful area with a gorgeous nursery across the street and exclusive shopping just a half mile away at American Manhasset with the likes of Cartier, Louis Vuitton and Dior.
We made the best of it. We ignored the 3.5 rating of restaurant next door. We joined a room full of Long Islanders for a very memorable New York kind of dinner! Delizioso!
After a long sleep, I wandered downstairs for coffee. This is where the kindest of a tiny, little old woman who couldn’t have reached four feet tall changed by day. She was bent over plagued by kyphosis, holding her own paper plate breakfast and coffee. She saw me coming but the elevator was three quarters the way shut. She paused to be kind. It was a struggle for her to stand and carry her load, but she paused to be kind. Her actions were so gracious! They changed my day.
Delays can be blessings. She delayed and blessed me!
I enCOURAGE you to embrace the delay and be kind! Stop. Pause. Maybe your seconds can change someone’s 24 hours!
So we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are unseen; for the things which are visible are temporal [just brief and fleeting], but the things which are invisible are everlasting and imperishable. (2 Corinthians 4:18 AMP)
Yesterday, we were in the National Archaeological Museum of Naples. We saw incredible mosaics that were uncovered from the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius and destruction of Pompeii. The mosaics pictured wealth, travel, and to be candid, the debaucheries of the times. I don’t know why the found “treasures” surprised me, but I could SEE why God who created all including Mt. Vesuvius my shake the earth with wrath, power, and total obliteration.
Today, we went to the ruins of Pompeii! It was massive. Think New York of the Roman Times! We saw store after store, house after house and road after road. To date, eighty fast food stores have been uncovered!
I saw intelligence. I saw progress. I saw art. I saw roads with lines in the stone where wheels had worn a path. I saw grooves in the stones where shop doors used to be. Yet the “thriving society” was gone within hours and days!
We are so very blessed in America! Pompeii reminded me of where we are now! Many think wealth and power are the most important things! One of the mosaics from yesterday pictured the rich and poor, all the same in death. We cannot take earthly wealth with us. We can take salvation. Many have forgotten God. The mentality is it’s all about me, me, me and what I want! Have we learned nothing?
I enCOURAGE you to enjoy today! Volcanoes, earthquakes, tornadoes and destruction are not choosey. They can hit anywhere and anytime. We are not promised tomorrow here, but with Jesus, we are promised an eternity with him.
Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD [with reverent awe and obedience] and turn [entirely] away from evil. 8 It will be health to your body [your marrow, your nerves, your sinews, your muscles–all your inner parts] And refreshment (physical well-being) to your bones. (Proverbs 3:7-8 AMP)
For He made Him who knew no sin [to be] sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2Co 5:21 NKJV)
The good news from Jesus is, “It is finished!” However, we are not! He made a great exchange when He stepped out of heaven into the human form of a baby, grew up, died on the cross and rose again. His job is finished. Ours is not. We must accept Him as Lord and Savior to receive the “great exchange.” When we follow after Him and read His word, we learn…
Jesus did not have to, but he did!
Jesus DIED so we could LIVE.
Jesus was ACCUSED so we can be ACQUITTED.
Jesus was PUNISHED in return we can be REWARDED.
Jesus SURRENDERED His life for us to CONQUER in ours.
Jesus was VICTORIOUS so we no longer have to live DEFEATED.
Jesus experienced great SORROW so that we may have great JOY.
Jesus was SHAMED so that we can reflect His GLORY.
Jesus was full of FAITH so we can live without FEAR.
Jesus was BEATEN so we can be HEALED.
Jesus was BOUND so that we can be SET FREE.
Jesus was CONDEMNED in order for us to be FORGIVEN.
Jesus was PUNISHED so that we could receive GRACE.
Jesus took on all SIN so we can become a NEW CREATION.
Jesus took on EVERY WRONG in order that we be MADE RIGHTEOUS.
Jesus took on every EVIL so we can experience ABUNDANT life.
Jesus was made a CURSE so we can receive the BLESSING.
Jesus was REJECTED and so we can be ACCEPTED.
Jesus was BROKEN and so we can be made COMPLETE.
Jesus went to WAR so we can live in PEACE.
Jesus was SAVIOR in order for us to escape DESTRCUTION.
Jesus was PUNISHED in return we were REWARDED.
I enCOURAGE you to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Be born again in Him and receive all His benefits. Live. Breathe. Be living the great exchange.
GOALS: You have tested my heart; You have visited [me] in the night; You have tried me and have found nothing; I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. (Psa 17:3 NKJV)
There are treasures in God’s word hidden in the Hebrew language that does not translate well into the English Language. Have a look and see. According to https://www.blueletterbible.org the following underlined Hebrew words mean:
You have tested my heart.
Hebrew word, bāḥan: To search out, to examine, to try, to prove, like metals, to look out, to watch.
You have examined me at night.
Hebrew word pāqaḏ, to attend to, muster, number, reckon, visit, punish, appoint, look after, care for review.
You have tried me and found nothing evil.
Hebrew word is ṣārap̄: to melt, smelt, refine, test, purify
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin.
Hebrew word, zamam: to meditate, have in mind, determined, the idea of murmuring.
Hebrew word, ʿāḇar, emigrate, leave ones territory, to pass over or through, alienate, be crossed.
Now what? How do we purpose to not to sin with our mouth? We murmur in place.
“You will also decide and decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And the light [of God’s favor] will shine upon your ways. When you are cast down and humbled, you will speak with confidence, And the humble person He will lift up and saved.” (Job 22:28-29 AMP)
According to https://www.blueletterbible.org, the Hebrew word for decreeis gāzar meaning, a royal mandate, a decision made judicially, a legislative resolution; to divide and separate. Declare by Hebrew definition is amar, meaning to say, to command and spar; score with a mark, scriber, number, recount , to be in front of, to front, boldly stand out, to be in sight, to bring to light, to manifest, to shew and tell, profess openly, report, announce and to make known.
I will do the right thing and stay in place.
I will murmur in place.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what comes out of it.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what I say.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what I do.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what goes into it.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what I eat.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what I drink.
I have purposed that my mouth will not sin by what I think.
My mouth shall not transgress.
I encourage you to murmur in place. Do not let your mouth take you to places you do not want to go. I have been there, done that and do not want to return.
Viva Magenta: Live. Breathe. Be murmuring in place.
Today, we remember and honor US military men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Our freedom was and is not free. We also thank those who have served and continue to serve in the US Armed Forces!
It is no accident, nor overlooked, that the key to our room and the seat where Holy Spirit taught me, were both my favorite magenta color! God wink! (Look close and you can see me seated in high places. What color am I wearing?)
by Tammy Phillips May 20, 2024
“The God of old is your dwelling place.” (Deuteronomy 33:27)
“You also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. (Eph 2:22)
For at least the past ten days, the Lord has been talking to me about staying in place (He is our place) and being seated in high places. He recently physically demonstrated His word to me.
We came to Nashville for a work event. We were given the most beautiful corner room on the twentieth floor. We overlooked downtown Nashville, with a 180-degree panoramic view from the JW Marriott to Cumberland River, including Broadway, the Bridgestone arena, the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Nashville Music Garden, and the iconic, AT&T building, better known, as the “Batman” building. We could even see the road that leads us home.
Talk about physically being seated in high places and a change of perspective that made me want to stay in place. Everything below was so small, and Insignificant. People were just tiny dots on the canvas of the city. Your name could have been Dolly P, Taraji P, or Tammy P, but from my view there was no difference! God sees us all the same and has the same message for us all…
Stay in Him.
For in him we live, and move, and have our being. (Act 17:28 KJV)
Stay rooted and built up in Him.
rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. (Col 2:7)
Stay in the light.
This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. (1Jo 1:5)
Stay in life.
In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4)
Stay in love.
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. (Pro 3:3 NIV)
Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, (Eph 1:4)
Stay in joy
Rejoice always. (1Th 5:16 NKJV)
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice! (Phl 4:4)
Stay in peace.
You will keep [him] in perfect peace, [Whose] mind [is] stayed [on You] because he trusts in You. (Isa 26:3)
The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace. (Exo 14:1, 14)
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body: and be thankful. (Col 3:15)
Stay in patience, the wait.
Be patient in tribulation. (Romans 12:12)
Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him. (Psa 37:7)
Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD! (Psalm 27:14 NKJV)
Stay in kindness.
And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (Eph 4:32)
Therefore, as [the] elect of God, holy and beloved, put-on tender mercies, kindness. (Col 3:12 NKJV)
Stay in goodness.
Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good. (Rom 12:21)
Stay in faith.
Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.” (Mark 11:22 )
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. (Pro 3:3 NIV)
Stay in prayer.
Be constant in prayer. (Romans 12:12)
Pray without ceasing. (1 Thess. 5:17)
Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving. (Col 4:2)
When we move out of the place where we are supposed to be “seated” in Him, we become out of line. Like moving from a place in faith to doubt, things get messed up. We have a place to occupy in Him. We are grafted into Him. He is the same. Like Israel, we are His and…
There is none like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to your aid, the clouds in his majesty. 27The God of old is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He drives out the enemy before you and commands, “Destroy!” 28 So Israel dwells securely; Jacob lives untroubled in a land of grain and new wine; even his skies drip with dew. 29How happy you are, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD?He is the shield that protects you, the sword you boast in. Your enemies will cringe before you, and you will tread on their backs. (Deuteronomy 33:26-29 CSB)
I enCOURAGE you to either get in place or stay in place in Him. The benefits are amazing. Just read the verse above. The benefits are meant for you, me, EVERYONE!
It’s a great place to be, “raised up together, and made to sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus … in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” (Eph 2:6, 22 NKJV)
“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven.“ (Matthew 5:44-45 CSB)
It was a quiet Tuesday morning. I had unpacked our luggage from vacation and was washing a few loads of clothes. I sat down to process the mail that had collected. Then I thumbed through a Talbots catalog I had received, and began perusing Talbots online for details, as the clothes washed.
Understand, I am looking at a catalog, when I heard the Lord say out of nowhere:
“PRAY FOR YOUR ENEMIES!
Pray for the one who stabbed you in the back.
Pray for the one who lied to you.
Pray for the one who lied about you.
Pray for the one who deceived you.
Pray for the one who betrayed you.
Pray for the one who wronged you.
Pray for the one who tried to destroy you.
Pray for the one who stole from you.
Pray for the one who cheated you.
Pray for the one who hurt you.
PRAY FOR YOUR ENEMIES.”
How’s that for a word from the Lord after a return from paradise?
Do I want to pray for my enemies? To be honest, no. Will I? No! I am not doing this alone. My husband and I will tackle this one TOGETHER!
“Again, I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:19-20 NKJV)
I enCOURAGE you to pray for your enemies because Jesus said so!
Pray by faith. Call those things that ARE NOT as though they were!
PS. Two days later, I was telling my son and daughter in law about “praying for your enemies.” My son said , “I just read that yesterday, Matthew 5:44.” God confirming His word to both of us!”
LALALA! Living Amazed!
Viva Magenta: Live. Breathe. Be praying for your enemies!
If you look close you might see a little heart in the sky!
by Tammy Phillips from the Turks and Caicos Islands
May 6, 2024
“The Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them. He remains faithful forever,” (Psalm 146:6 CSB)
My sister in Christ, Gina Suiter, loves cotton candy. She has told me about eating more than one cone in a day.
I like the idea of the treat and its variety of colors. I also really like sweets in general, but not the sweet sweetness of cotton candy.
Yesterday, as I floated in a cotton candy colored sea of vastness, the Lord decided to put on a show. He shared a variety of cotton candy clouds. There was the obvious fluffy cumulus clouds, but then there was also the most amazing cirrus clouds. They were long, wispy and everywhere. It was if the Lord told the angels, “It’s cotton candy day at work go have some,” and they all did. It appeared that multitudes came out and pulled the cirrus cloud from the cumulus clouds in every direction in the heavens. Remnants of their party also dotted the sky in the forms of altocumulus and cirrocumulus clouds. It was so nice to be invited to the party on my last full day in paradise. It was the sweetest day, a gift from God.
The day reminded me of God’s love, faithfulness, His creativity, and His GREATNESS.
I heard Him roar:
“Do you not fear me? This is the LORD’s declaration. Do you not tremble before me, the one who set the sand as the boundary of the sea, an enduring barrier that it cannot cross? The waves surge, but they cannot prevail. They roar but cannot pass over it.”(Jeremiah 5:22CSB)
“Or who enclosed the sea with doors When it burst forth and went out of the womb; 9 When I made the clouds its garment And thick darkness its swaddling band, 10 And marked for it My [appointed] boundary And set bars and doors [defining the shorelines],”(Job 38:8-10 AMP)
I enCOURAGE you to look up today and see the greatness of God. Fear Him. Be amazed and have the sweetest day!
Caroline Phillips runs a half marathon! You go girl!
by Tammy Phillips April 29, 2024
“Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime.”(John 4:6 NLT)
Yesterday’s wake time was 2 AM. I tried to go back to sleep until 4 AM. I finally arose and “sat at the feet of Jesus” for a while reading the word. I wrote for a little, but by 6:30 AM, I could no longer keep my eyes open. I went back to bed and set my alarm for 7:30 AM rise in order to get up in time for early church. When the alarm rang, I hit snooze. I did not want to move. It’s not like I had overexerted myself the day before. I had not competed in a half marathon (13.1 miles) like my warrior daughter in love, Caroline, who was nineteen weeks pregnant! I also had not walked marathon distance, the thirty-plus miles, like Jesus had from Judea to Samaria. I had completed a short workout, laundered one load of clothes, washed a few dishes, and sat on the deck most of the day working on the details of an upcoming trip. I was just just weary from lack of sleep.
On the way to church, I questioned the Lord: “Jesus, did you ever just get tired? Did you ever wake up after sleeping on a mat on the hard ground and announce that you were sleeping in? Did you always rise with pep in your step? Did you ever just feel worn out?”
I found the answer in John 4:3-6…
“So, he (Jesus) left Judea and returned to Galilee. He had to go through Samaria on the way. Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime.”
Jesus had journeyed about thirty-five miles. He was weary, tired, thirsty, exhausted, worn out, but that did not stop him from changing lives in Samaria. (See John 4:1-29) Jews refused to have anything to do with Samarians much less a woman Samarian, not Jesus. He did not let his weariness stop him from his divine appointment and doing the will of God.
“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses but was in all [points] tempted as [we are, yet] without sin.” (Heb 4:15 NKJV).
Jesus was tired but as the High Priest, he sympathized with the Samarian woman’s weakness! He sympathizes with our weaknesses. He knew I was going to be weary and want to stay home but guess what… If I had given into that temptation, I would have missed one of my divine assignments for the day, praying for our Pastor. When we sat down in church, what did Pastor immediately say? “Are you ever tired? I am tired. Pray for me!” God has the best comedic timing of anyone. I could only laugh and pray!
I enCOURAGE you to ask Jesus your every question. He always has the right answer. Was Jesus tired? Yes. What does he say to us when we are worn out?
“Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.’”(Mat 11:28 NLT)
When we are thirsty; He is our drink. He is Living Water. When we are hungry, He is our food. He is the Bread of Life. When we are weary, He is our rest, our refreshment. When we have questions, He is the answer!
Complete in Him 