Grab a Shovel!


Yes you read that title right! The title is inspired by a post my cousin Craig Kenley posted. I asked if I could quote him.and he said “yes “. He said, “It’s a deep hole America and everyone has a shovel.” Now that’s is truth. We all have a responsibility in this mess called life. What do we do? The answer to that lies in which mess we are referring to.

There are a lot of ‘“Holes” out there. Which one do you find yourself in? There is a “Hole’ called “Depression”. There is another “Hole” called “lies and misinformation”. Oh my goodness! You could really open up a “can of worms” exposing all the types of “Holes” people fall into. Alrighty, let’s name some more: Financial holes, deceptive holes, political holes, censorship holes, addictions, affairs, evil sinister holes and the list goes on.

First I want to touch on the “Hole” America finds itself in right now. The “Hole” has been getting deeper and deeper for YEARS, but with the decline of common sense and intergrity in our country, it’s taken a nose dive. The country I grew up in is no longer recognizable. It really doesn’t matter what “Party” you are aligned with. Sinister greed and power infilterate all levels of our government. It is spiritual, whether you agree or not. It is what it is. Our Founding Fathers created a government with “checks and balances”: The President, Congress and Supreme Court. The darkness and censorship of truth, has infiltered all those branches of government to the point many can not be trusted. We have a Justice in the Supreme Count that can’t even define what a woman is. Is there any wonder that we are where we are as a country? Our current President and Congress care more about Ukraine than they do American citizens. The care more about the illegal immigrants than they do American citizens. This should NOT be! Our media spews out half truths and down right lies and people with no common sense just “eat it up”. Journalist have a responsibility to report truth! Do they? You tell me!

Yesterday I was at a birthday party in the late afternoon when someone said Donald Trump had been shot at a rally in Pennsylvania. I was stunned to say the least. I got my iPad and got on Twitter X to see what was happening. I also got on Facebook and there was nothing. Isn’t that a bit odd? One platform is censored, the other more for freedom of speech. We have a right to a free election. It is election season and our current President has had our borders open wide. Drugs, human trafficking and violence abound. The powers want those illegals to have a right to vote in our election. That should NOT be! Oh my word people! Open your eyes to what is and has been going on for a long time. Stop listening to the lies and start digging for truth. Don’t believe everything you hear. God gave you common sense and expects you to use it.

The devil is deceptive and is the father of lies. Are you listening to him? Whether it be politics, spiritual or personal, it’s time to get out of the “Hole”, whichever one you find yourself in. If you have your head in the sand, it’s time to get out. It’s past time!

I’m not saying be rude or offensive, I’m saying, learn how to have a civil disagreement without it ending a friendship. Learn how to win without cheating. Learn fairness, integrity, truth and practice those things. PRAY PRAY and PRAY some more! If you notice people struggling, whether it is spiritual, relational, or whatever….. you can help “dig them out” with encouragement. You can “throw a life line of prayer”.

Recently I had a conversation with someone who has been in a “hole” for eight months. I will not reveal the person or situation but I will say this, I told that person it was time to “get out of that hole”. I used the example of listening to the lies of the devil that are contrary to the Word of God. I used the example of them falling into a “hole of lies”. I said, “Every time you believe or accept another lie from hell it’s like the devil pouring more dirt on your head. Enough! It’s time to get out”. The person changed the subject and I said “O no you don’t! You are going to deal with this! It’s time”. Do you want to know what happened? As I prayed with this person, there was a breakthrough! Prayer changes things. It changes you and me. We don’t pray for our will but God’s Will be done. He knows what is best. Surround yourself with praying friends, family, people who care and want to see God’s best for you and your family. (That’s quite the run on sentence but sometimes it’s needed to keep the momentum) You can be that kind of friend for someone in a “hole”.

As for the mess our country is in. ..It is vital and I do mean vital, that we Pray for our country, our leaders, and our election process. It is vital that our elections are fair for the American citizens. I am not against those less fortunate, as a matter of fact I help cook for the homeless in our community each week and serve them in the elements (heat, rain, cold) It is a honor and privilege to serve others and I don’t take that lightly. However, flooding our country with illegals to use them for illegal votes is wrong! Silencing Americans is wrong. Inciting violence is wrong. The powers that may be and media are beyond hypocritical.

The Bible warns us about the last days and that is where we are. 2 Timothy 3:1-5 says, “You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!” ( ‭NLT‬‬)

There is no time like the present to surrender your life to Jesus. We can not fight this battle alone. It must be fought on our knees in prayer. We must live a life of obedience to God’s Word! God’s Word is contrary to the flesh and things of this world. God wants us to walk in love and kindness. Hate can’t drive out hate. Only love can do that. We must unite in prayer and love. The battle belongs to the Lord and He has already won it! There is a song we sing in church and part of it goes like this, “Almighty fortress You go before us, nothing can stand against the power of our God. You shine in the shadow, you win every battle. Nothing can stand against the power of our God.” I’m going to post a video link so you can hear the whole song. Sing it out! Rise up! Grab your shovels and dig! Help dig out friends, family and people fallen into “holes”. Help dig them out with prayer, love, encouragement, and common sense. When people are ugly, show kindness. Overcome evil with good! Now DIG!

Www.shannonkhinson.com

Something New

Image from YouVersion Bible App

I love when different things I’ve heard or read come together, fitting like a puzzle. As I sit here this evening just thinking, I see how our message at church yesterday, a message at a friends church and todays verse of the day on YouVersion app seem to all run together. The scripture for today is Isaiah 43:18-19, “But forget all that— it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” (NLT)

January is always fresh, providing a new start and a chance to part ways with any baggage from the past. Not that I personally have baggage, but I k now many who do. They would benefit from leaving old baggage and entering this journey of 2024 fresh and clean. I hope one day people can learn to forget the former things and watch God as He does a new thing in our lives. People get so hung up on problems that they can’t see past them.

Yesterday our sermon message at Central Church of God was titled, “What are you expecting?” In a nutshell: God has great plans for us, it rarely unfolds the way we think it should, but His ways are so much higher than our ways. He knows the beginning from the end. We can trust God with our issues and our lives. He knows what He’s doing. Trust Him. Check out the following scripture. “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29‬:‭11‬-‭13‬ ‭(NLT‬‬.) Here’s another one to check out. “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭28‬ ‭(NLT‬‬). These are good scriptures to hide in your hearts. We can trust God. I will tell you His timing is different but He is always on time. Wait for it.

After church a friend sent me her Pastor’s sermon notes. We went to that church for many years and I like their tradition of having a 21 days of prayer and fasting. She told me that it was starting today in case I wonted to participate. I do! The sermon title was, “Praying the Word over the want.” Whew! That’s a strong message right there. All three times the devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness, Jesus came back with, “It is written. …“. Jesus speaks the Word. He comes back with scripture to put the enemy in his place. Hebrews 4 12 says, “For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.” (NLT‬‬.) Jesus set an example for us to follow. Pray the Word of God!

Fasting is not a popular discipline today but the Bible does tell us to fast and pray. Fasting does not “strong arm” God into getting what you want. Rather it changes the individual that is fasting. It will change you. Dying to the desires of the flesh and saying, “Thy will be done”, is a sacrifice that is pleasing to the Lord.

I know of several churches doing a fast right now. One in Fort Mill, one in Myrtle Beach and Free Chaple in Georgia. I got on Free Chaples website last night and saw a map representing people participating in their fast around the world. This warmed my heart to see people hungry for God and desiring to go deeper in their relationship with Jesus. There is lots of religion in the world but not so much in the matter of relationship with Jesus. A relationship with Jesus is what changes everything. Relationships cost you something. No relationship is a one way thing. It involves time spent together. Time loving and listening. I’ve heard many people say they are busy or give some other lame excuse. Sorry people but there is 24 hours in a day. We can carve out some time to devote to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He paid the ultimate price for our salvation. He is worthy of our time, our hearts, our all. He loves us all so much. He gives us a free choice to choose Him. He already chose us.

Today marks day 1 of 21 days. I’d love for you to join me in this fasting journey. Let’s humble ourselves, pray and fast and watch as God does a new thing. If you read this and would like prayer, I’d love to pray for you. Leave a comment and I will lift you up to Jesus. He loves you more than you could ever imagine. God bless you all.

If you liked this blog post please subscribe and share. I’m thankful for this gift to share when God puts something on my heart. You can find my autobiography Rooted by the Water on Amazon. (Hard cover soft cover, and e-book formats.) I pray it gives you great hope and courage to surrender to Jesus. He is all you really need. All for the Glory of God.

Www.shannonkhinson.com