january/february 2026

     Stop running. When these two words were spoken to me, it was as if the life I knew and was familiar with had vanished.  Stop running.  An awakening had happened in my spirit.  The search for the answers to all my troubles and pains had come to a sudden halt.  Stop running.  Everything that I thought mattered most began to fade away, and almost instantaneously, the realization and onset of what truly mattered began to reveal itself.   God, and because He loves His children so much, had sent His Holy Spirit to ask me again to follow Him, totally.  God wanted my “yes”.

     The “yes” that God was seeking involved me trusting in Him.  For a great portion of my life, I did what I wanted to do, moved how I wanted to move, and made a lot of messes in the process. Yet, it was only because of the grace and mercies of God that I’ve survived.  Many decisions I made were not presented to God beforehand, and the outcomes were very similar, saturated with failures and disappointments.  Still, God has provided grace, and I know it’s only because He loves me.  

     As a young boy, I called on the name of God, and asked for His help.  I now know that He heard me.  God’s hand has always been over my life, yet the time had arrived for me to stop running away from what His interest has always been in me; to submit totally and give Him my “yes”.

     Giving God my “yes” opened a window of clarity.  To my spirit, I heard the Holy Spirit whisper alignment, submission, forgiveness, peace, purpose, discipline, eternity, accountability, obedience, trust, faithfulness, power, courage, love, integrity, completeness,  favor, mercy, and grace.

     In the Bible, the word of God says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 (NIV).  I find it quite amazing that God continues to care for me as much as to send the Holy Spirit after me.  I gave God my “yes”, and in doing so, there wasn’t a huge fireworks display or opening of the sky.  It only involved me totally submitting and surrendering to God, and the calling He has on my life.  Giving God my “yes”   opened my eyes to what I had been running from; His total and unconditional love.  God wants a “yes”.