AUGUST 27; GOD OF SECOND CHANCE..
Psalm 34:6 ‘this poor man cried and The Lord heard him and delivered him out of his troubles.’
DAILY READING ; Luke 1:57-80; Ezekiel 35-36; Isaiah 59
Jemeker Hairston and her husband Daff were once established as Los Angeles’ biggest cocaine dealers and lived an opulent lifestyle. They ruled the tough streets of South Central L.A and the FBI called Jemeker, the “Queen Pin”.
Soon after she gave birth to her son, her husband was shot and killed. Jemeker, then went into hibernation for a while. She later opened an upscale hair company in Hollywood, and while pretending to run a legitimate business, she actually used It as a front for her growing drug business. Eventually when the FBI uncovered her activities, she went on the run for two years.
In 1993, they eventually tracked her down and arrested her when she attended her son’s 6th grade graduation ceremony. The arrest was a wake-up call as she faced being sentenced to life in prison. At this point she turned to God, promising to serve Him, if He would get her out of the mess she was in. Soon she gave her life to Christ and turned a new leaf.
To her surprise when the court ruling came, she received a far lighter sentence than she ever expected. Ideally, she should have gotten a life sentence, but rather she was given 180 months and was released even before serving out her full term in jail.
Today, Jemeker now serves as an evangelical minister at Second Chance Ministries in South Central, Los Angeles. According to Thompson, her ministerial mission is to show others that, through God, they’ll always have a second chance in life. In June 2010, she released the story of her life in a book titled ‘Queen Pin.’
Psalm 34:6 says ‘this poor man cried and The Lord heard him and delivered him out of his troubles.’
We serve the God of a second chance, who prefers to mend rather than to rend. God is a potter who is able to turn that which is marred into something amazing. We have to realize that God is more interested in our rescue than our condemnation. His desire is that we draw closer to Him, so that by His Spirit He can lead us out of every wrong track and give us another chance at greatness.
When Jonah disobeyed God’s first instruction and suffered the consequence of disobedience, God still gave him a second chance.
Jonah 3:2 says ‘Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:
Though Jonah had messed up the first time, God still spoke to him again the second time and gave him another chance. And because Jonah became obedient God used him powerfully.
Indeed when we stop running from God and begin to earnestly obey Him, our lives become the canvas where He paints His incredible glory.
God is patient in giving us second chances—and the good news today is that no matter how desperate or hopeless any situation may seem, it is never too late. God is able to turn things around and give you a change of story. Miracles can still come out of what looks today like a mess.
There is no situation God cannot turn around for you. There is no pit He cannot bring you out from. there is no prison He cannot break you out of. Indeed when God is on your side, everything is possible.
Throughout the Scriptures we saw how God changed people’s names and gave them a change of story. And when God changes a man’s name, He erases the stigma of the past and gives him a fresh start.
No matter where you are, no matter what you have done, no matter where you have wandered,. you can have a fresh start. God can still make miracles out of your mistakes. It doesn’t matter where you have been, what matters is where you are going. You can arise out of every mediocrity and obscurity and move into God’s grand plan for you. But it all starts with your mind because as a man thinks in his heart so is he.
Your change of condition will be a result of your personal decision. The door of destiny is only shut against those who refuse to take a step forward.
It doesn’t matter that what your past may have been or even how mediocre your present situation, there are still greater things ahead. The key to experiencing a change of story is by renewing our minds through God’s Word. Indeed when our heart is filled with the Word, we will begin to see new possibilities, we will have the faith to believe for greater things and we will see amazing manifestations of God’s goodness in our lives.
PRAYER: LORD, I praise You for all Your goodness in my life. I am truly grateful for Your mercy, which has kept me this many years and continues to keep me today. I thank You for continually manifesting Your glory in my life in Jesus name.
Quote Illuminate your world for you are a star destined to shine. WORDBITE 222.