PRAYER: Assurance

Please be encouraged by knowing that God hears our prayers.

Psalm 145:19
He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

Psalm 6:9
The LORD hath heard my supplication; the LORD will receive my prayer.


Psalm 18:3
I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.

Psalm 66:20
Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.

Proverbs 15:8
The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.

Isaiah 30:19
...he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.

Jeremiah 29:12
Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

PRAYER: Authority

We have been given the keys to the kingdom.

Matthew 16:19
And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
This gives us the authority to bind and loose.
To bind means to restrict, stop, hinder, fetter, check, hold back, arrest, or put a stop to.
To loose means to untie, unbind, unlock, liberate, release, forgive, or free.
Prayer and confession are ways to use this authority.
Binding and loosing will help us in the area of deliverance.

WARNING: This does not give us the authority to change God's will. Remember when we pray we are to be in agreement with God's will.

We must know and operate in authority.
Jesus gave his disciples power and authority over all devils.
Matthew 10:1
And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

We have authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions (Luke 10:19).
Luke 10:19
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Some believers suffer unnecessarily because they fail to exercise our authority. When you pray agree with God's will, believe, and use your authority!

PRAYER: Agreement

Prayer is one of the most powerful weapons believers have. Prayer is our communication with God. Prayer connects us to God and allows His power to flow to us in any situation. Words are used to convey our thoughts. The words of God are the thoughts of God. We are releasing the mind of God when we pray and confess His Word. God’s Word released through our tongue will cause His power to manifest in our lives.We build ourselves up in faith when we confess the Word of God.
Our great God has a specific plan for each of our lives. We must study the Word of God in order to know the will of God. Studying the Word will also reveal his promises. Understanding His will and promises will motivate us to pray.

However we must comprehend that his thoughts are not our thoughts and his ways are not our ways.
Isaiah 55:8-9
8For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
9For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.


We need to articulate the thoughts of God by praying and confessing His Word.
Here is what God thinks about you and what he wants you to do:
Jeremiah 29:11-12
11For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
12Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
The thoughts of God are peace and prosperity. They are designed to bring us to an expected end. That should be enough right there to excite us about our lives and God's plan. Take comfort in knowing that there is an expected end. Please know that in the end we, as believers, WIN!!! Don't focus on the middle and what it looks like but celebrate and live well because in the end YOU WIN!!!!


Our faith is released through our words.
Mark 11:23
23For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.
Key things to remember from this scripture is to say it, don't doubt, but believe.

One of the most significant reasons for praying God's Word is the fact that God watches over His word to perform it.
Jeremiah 1:12 (King James Version)
12Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.

Jeremiah 1:12 (New Living Translation)
12 And the Lord said, “That’s right, and it means that I am watching,[a] and I will certainly carry out all my plans.”

If God is watching over his word to expedite (hasten) it, does it not make sense that when we pray to God that we confess his Word?

Waiting and Patience

What God says about waiting and having patience:

It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassion fails not. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore I will hope in Him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.
Lamentations 3:22-26


For ye have need of patience, that after ye have done the will of God, ye may recieve the promise.
Hebrews 10:36

But those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31

Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, wait I say, on the Lord.
Psalm 27:14

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.
Psalm 37:7

Wait on the Lord, and keep His way.
Psalm 37:34

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
Psalm 46:10

But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete lacking nothing.
James 1:4

2 Corinthians 4:7-18

Purpose for Our Weakness
verse 7
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power be of God and not of us.

Spiritual Reality
verses 8-9
We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.

Purpose for Our Suffering
verse 11
For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

The Answer for Christians
verses 13-15
And since we have the same spirit of faith according to what is written, "I believed and therefore I spoke," we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. For all trhings are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.

God's Promise About Our Affliction
For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at things which are seen, but at things which are not seen.

Greatest Lesson Learned

From my Tevin experience, I have learned that the bottom line is:
God's Will, God's Way, and God's Timing

His Will
God allowed Tevin to have adrenoleukodystrophy, it was HIS WILL. Please understand that it is not God's will that we remain in a constant state of sickness, however he allows unfavorable things to occur in our lives for specific purposes. This disease has no cure the prognosis is death within 18 months. Because there is no cure God made sure that in no way would man get any glory in this situation. God allowed us to be in this situation so that men could see His works--that's His Will. John 9:3 says:...but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. God's ultimate will for our lives is that men may see his glory in and through our lives. Jesus said it best in Mark 14:36, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will. Please understand that God's ultimate desire and will is for us to have health and eternal life, however he allows us to face certain situations to demonstrate his power, faithfulness, mercy and glory to the world.

His Way
This by far was my toughest lesson learned. I am a control freak. I like to have everything planned out and everything to follow the plan. I need to know everything in advance and I want everything done a certain way, preferably my way lol. Well after I got over the issue that this situation was God's will, I immediately started to question how would men see God's glory. In my opinion I thought God would get the greatest glory if He miraculous healed Tevin in this life on this earth. Well that was my way. Obviously God had another way. God decided that it would be best to heal Tevin through death on this earth. As I argued with God about His way and my way (sounds strange, huh?), he politely led me to Isaiah 55:8: For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. With that said of course that was the end of our (God and I) discussion about that.

His Timing
According to all the reports about this disease, the average was death within 18 months after the onset. Well Tevin lived years beyond that. God had to show us that no matter what doctors, research, or anything else says, He is in control and things are done in His timing. At one point I felt like God was being cruel because He was not healing Tevin, but allowing him just to stay in the same state for years. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says it best: To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven. One fruit of the Spirit that we don't like to talk about much is long suffering. However this is a fruit of the Spirit. If you feel like you have been waiting a long time just remember God is developing fruit in you so that men may see His glory.

All of us have issues that we are dealing with in our lives. I am here to witness to you that your answer is in your submission. Submit to God's will, way, and timing. I guarantee you that the minute you do that you can face any giant, go through any storm, survive any fire. WARNING: this will not always feel good to you. But you will find God's love, peace, strength, and joy. Of course I miss Tevin, but I am at peace in Jesus. I am not proclaiming this to be an easy task, I am saying you are able to do it with God. He is awesome and that's all I know. :)

Be Encouraged Ministries

Love All You Can

The last school program Tevin fully participated in had a fifty's theme. His class sung the theme song from Happy Days. One of the lines from the song says, "I'm gonna love her all I can." Another thing Tevin would ask us, as he was losing his abilities, is "Are you loving all you can?"

This was yet another awesome move of God. God's greatest commandment is that we love him and each other. Just imagine how emotions flared in our family as we all dealt with Tevin's illness in our various ways. However, it was extremely hard to stay angry with each other or be depressed when the person at the center of the drama is saying, "Love all you can."

We must continue to love and love in spite of. We can be really rude, mean, and cruel to one another. We are charged to love no matter what. Sometimes we have to put aside the things that are displeasing to us or uneasy, because in spite of it all God still requires us to love Him and one another.

"And abide faith, hope, love, these three, but the greatest of these is love." I Corinthians 13:13

The Message

The year Tevin was diagnosed with adrenoleukodystrophy, his Easter speech was titled The Message.


I have a message
A message of cheer
Christ Jesus arose
Glad Easter is here!


As Tevin's condition worsened, he got many visitors. At this point he had lost his vision, but not his ability to speak. Whenever he sensed a new person in the room, he would ask, "Can I tell them my message?" I always answered yes. Then he would proceed to tell them his Easter speech. This was absolutely amazing because at this time he had trouble remembering my name and other personal facts about himself. However, Tevin at the age of six had no reservations about sharing the gospel of Jesus
Christ with everyone in which he came in contact.

Sometimes we are allowed to go through certain situations to encourage and bless others. It is not always about us and what we may be feeling as we are going through. As Christians we are designed and called to tell everyone we meet about Jesus Christ.

All I Know

My son, Tevin, was diagnosed with a terminal illness which affected his short and long term memory before completely disabling him. In the midst of losing his memory he asked if the choir was going to sing "Our God is An Awesome God." I asked him why did he want to know. He said, "because that's all I know." At that time in 2002, I did not understand the significance of Tevin's reasoning.

A few months after his death in March '08, I heard the song. I thought of the conversation Tevin and I had in 2002. God immediately spoke to me and said that is all you need to know.

Many times we get frustrated, angry, depressed, or worried about the situations and circumstances presented in this life. We want answers. We want to figure things out. At that very moment God assured me through Tevin's answer that all we need to know is he is AWESOME!

I encourage any of you who may be going through anything. We may not know how the situation will turn out, but be assured our God is awesome. Just believe that God is awesome. Just trust that God is awesome. Just KNOW that God is awesome!