Elevate Your Day with Andi and Brian Hale

Andi & Brian Hale
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Andi and Brian bring you daily devotionals to help elevate your day!

  1. Aug 10

    Purposeful Pain (Purpose Through Pain) Day 5 of 5

    From Purpose Through Pain by Chidi Wosu After a long day at work, I remember feeling heavy pain in my stomach. I was going to blow it off, but after being coerced by a loved one to go to the doctor, I relented and went to Urgent Care. Twelve hours later I found out I had a major issue that would require surgery. Terrified, I started the stint to look for the right doctor to perform my upcoming surgery. Now, almost a year after this incident happened, I realized had I not felt that pain, I would have never recognized there was an issue. It’s very similar to what Paul writes in Roman 5:3-5. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. We should rejoice in some of the moments that cause us pain. Why? It’s because in those moments we are shaped into the people God wants us to be. Have you ever been through something and afterward you became stronger because of it? It’s because that pain has purpose! We should be more focused on what God longs to teach us, rather than why something is happening to us. I later learned that if I never felt that pain, the issue could have caused very extensive damage that would have been irreversible. When I think back on it, I rejoice in that initial bout of pain because it actually saved me from something more serious. When God takes us through life’s valleys, there is always something that can be used in them for our benefit.

  2. Aug 10

    Jesus Take The Wheel (Purpose Through Pain) Day 4 of 5

    From Purpose Through Pain by Chidi Wosu There is an old saying in churches that reads, “Jesus take the wheel,” which simply means that in life, God should be in the driver’s seat as we submissively follow His direction. I saw a very funny meme online that said, “Jesus take the wheel, but not that wheel.” A driver was missing the front wheel of his car as the rim scraped the pavement. Sometimes in our lives, we ask for God to be in control, but we want to do it our way. We want to grow in our spiritual lives, but we are not willing to do it the way God wants us to do it. 1 Samuel 8:6-9 – But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.” With the Israelites in the Old Testament, God wanted to be their King, so He appointed priests to rule over them. However, the children of Israel wanted a king so they could be like everyone else. They wanted to do it their own way. How many times did we want to do it our own way? We date the wrong person because we want to be married like everyone else. We don’t go into ministry because we want to be like everyone else. We plan expensive trips and events to post online to be like everyone else. However, God wants to do things His way. He will let you do it your own way, but God’s way will eliminate unnecessary pain and hardship from you. You can’t want God to “take the wheel” and get frustrated in your circumstance when He doesn’t take the wheel you want. In life, there are always going to be things we want. There will always be things we would like God to do our way. However, there is a blessing in following how God wants us to navigate through life. It is hard, but do not get caught up in what everyone else is doing; understand what God is trying to do in you. There is so much blessing in being in God’s perfect will. Trust Him that all things will work for your good.

  3. Aug 10

    The Desires Of My Heart (Purpose Through Pain) Day 3 of 5

    From Purpose Through Pain by Chidi Wosu Working in a stressful environment like corporate always causes major sugar cravings. I remember one day oddly, I really wanted chocolate. This is very unusual for me because I don’t typically eat chocolate, and it’s not really my favorite guilty pleasure. After a meeting, my friend and I headed to the snack stash to indulge in a popular chocolate bar. As we walked to the drawer, what had previously been filled up with chocolate bars, was now completely gone! How many times in life have we gone to familiar places to find something we needed to fulfill a desire? We go to relationships to find unconditional love or jobs to find fulfillment, and when we seek them out, we come up empty and unable to satiate the true desires of our hearts. One thing I noticed about Psalms 37:4 which reads, “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart,” is that when you find your pleasure in God, He ends up changing your desires. When you delight in Him, His desires become your desires. Because I couldn’t find the chocolate, I went to someone on my floor who always knew where the chocolate was. I quickly lamented to him about how all the chocolate was gone. I knew he knew where the chocolate was because I often saw him go to the stash and get candy. I saw him do it so much that I started too. Every time I would see the chocolate he liked, I saved one for him and put it on his desk. Delighting in the Lord requires sacrifice. A part of us needs to give Him our time and our devotion so that we can understand His ways. Just like I knew the ways of someone I worked with, when you spend enough time with God, you will start to understand how He operates. When you understand what gives Him joy, you can give Him what He desires. Just as I gave my co-worker chocolate because I understood that was something he appreciated, we should look to God’s word to see the things He loves. God loves our faith; He loves our worship and praise. When we spend time with Him, we start to recognize what brings God joy, and we can offer it to Him. Before I had a chance to ask, my coworker invited me to take some chocolate from his stash because I always left chocolate on his desk. When I went to take it, he ended up giving me a handful of the EXACT chocolate I was looking for. God says in His word in Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” This is even more relevant when it comes to giving to God! When you give to God, He will bless you far beyond what you thought you even could ask for. Before you even open your mouth, He will give you the desires of your heart because He knows our hearts. Seek to understand God, give to Him and watch the blessings flow down from heaven and out of you!

  4. Aug 10

    God's Perfect Timing (Purpose Through Pain) Day 2 of 5

    From Purpose Through Pain by Chidi Wosu One Valentine’s Day, I attended an event with ladies I knew from a church organization with which I was associated. As the ladies trickled into the cozy Italian bistro to their assigned seats, they began to converse and eagerly look at the menu to order food. One of the ladies was in the midst of getting ready for the event. In order to prevent everyone’s food from being delayed, she ordered her food while she was on the way to the restaurant. How many times in life have we been in situations where we are getting ready for our destination while also praying towards a promise? God might have given you a business idea, and as you are getting ready by reading books, saving money, and gathering a network, you are also requesting from God that your business be successful. Some of us are preparing to be married as we pray for a mate. We might be preparing to follow God’s purpose while simultaneously putting in a request for that purpose to be fulfilled. Habakkuk 2:3 – For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. It’s easy to get into the mindset that I shouldn’t put in a request to God for something until I’m “ready.” Meaning, until I have all the resources for my business, I shouldn’t ask God to help to start my company. Until I have all the aspects of being a Proverbs 31 woman, I shouldn’t request for God to give me a husband. Until I have every detail of my life together, I shouldn’t ask God for a wife. I believe that as God prepares us for where we are going, He also wants us to pray for where He is taking us! Just as David wasn’t a king when God called him, God ended up qualifying him to be a king through the preparation He did in him. We don’t have to wait until everything is ready for God to see us as ready. As we prepare, we should always be praying for the preparation and the promise at the same time. I remember when the woman finally walked in, the waiter walked to the table at the exact time she was taking her seat. She actually ended up being served first at the table! I say this to say, when we prepare and pray for what God promised us, He will align it so that everything happens in perfect timing. The woman at the event was not early or late, she was RIGHT on time. This is how God works. He’s on time.

  5. Aug 10

    Depression To Joy (Purpose Through Pain) Day 1 of 5

    From Purpose Through Pain by Chidi Wosu During the holidays, I always go to Pittsburgh to see my family. Since my mother and father reside there, the whole family comes down to spend the most wonderful time of the year under the same roof. One night, while soundly sleeping, I was awakened to the sound of birds. I woke up almost immediately from the loud and distracting chirping of robins. Once I was fully up, I realized it was still the dead of night. In fact, it was still dark outside, and the sun would not rise for the next seven hours. To add to the mystery, it was the end of December. Two questions then came to mind: first, why are birds up north in the winter, and second, why are they chirping at night? Since I was wide awake, I decided to do some research. There are two reasons robins sing in the middle of the winter at night. Those two reasons have to do with how the robin defends its territory. First, robins sing at night to fight disturbances in their territory. When God gives you a promise, the enemy will always try to come in the form of doubt, fear, or confusion to try to steal that promise away. When this happens, we have to continue to believe God for our promises or the territory that He has given us. In Luke 1:37 it says, “For no word from God will ever fail.” If God has promised you something, you have to remind the devil what God has promised you in the wake of fear and doubt. Don’t let the devil distract you from the destiny God has for you. The second reason they sing in the winter is to protect their territory. Due to the land having substance, the robins protect it even in the winter because of the nourishment the land provides. Sometimes, we get tired of praying and seeking God when we don’t see anything growing. Just like in the winter when things seem barren, we can get frustrated with protecting what God has given us. However, in His word in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, God tells us to pray without ceasing. This means that even in the moments when we don’t see anything happening with the promise that God gave us, we should continue to pray and rely on God for that promise. Psalm 18:46-49  – The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation— the God who gave me vengeance and subdued peoples under me, who rescued me from my enemies; yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me; you delivered me from the man of violence. For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations, and sing to your name. You may be in a season where you are doubting what God has promised you. It may seem like everything happening in your life is the opposite of what God has promised you. However, hold on to what God has told you! He has more for you than you can even imagine. Don’t give up and hold fast to your territory. The land is yours. He’s given you the grace to defend it because He has taught you how to praise regardless of the circumstance of your season.

  6. Aug 4

    God is a Better Lord Than You (Heart Rehab) Day 5 of 5

    From Heart Rehab by Jerry Flowers Jr. One of the most familiar and hope-filled passages of Scripture is Jeremiah 29:11: “‘I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (NIV). God knows the plan. It’s not about you, your efforts, or your strength. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God was telling the people of Israel,I got this. I already have things organized for your life. I have plans, and they’re not bad plans, so you have to trust Me. God is in your future today. God knows your tomorrow today. Maybe the reason you’re so stressed is not because of everything that’s going on outside you. Perhaps you’re stressed because of the warfare that’s going on in your heart and mind. Your plan and God’s plan are in a battle. That’s why you can’t sleep or your head hurts, why you’re not hungry or you overeat, why you work out so hard but never seem to feel any better, or why you just binge-watch shows. The reason you can never be at peace is because on the inside you’re trying to be God! Remember, “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8 Guess what? God is a better Lord than you! When you want things to turn out a certain way, you’re trying to take God’s job. What you’re ultimately telling God is that you don’t trust how He will write your story. In verse 1 of Psalm 91, the psalmist says, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (NIV). “Dwells” in Hebrew isyashab, which means “to remain” or “abide in.” So, when you understand that the Lord is your refuge and you make the Most High your root system, no harm will overtake you. God is running things. He is in control. When God is your root system, He nourishes you. God is not just your resource; He is your source. Dear Heavenly Father, help me remember that You control the outcome. I trust You more than my own efforts. Right now, I surrender everything to You. Heal my heart and direct all my steps. In Jesus’s name, amen.

  7. Aug 4

    Red Flags (Heart Rehab) Day 4 of 5

    From Heart Rehab by Jerry Flowers Jr. Endless ser­mons and podcasts and books rightly tell us that the safest place to be is in the will of God. But how do you know God’s will for your life? How do you identify God’s hand on a thing instead of your own? One way God lets us know that something is not His will is through warnings. He cautions us. He shows us red flags. But here’s the hard thing: It’ll be tough for you to see the spiritual red flags when you have already decided what you want God to say! Let’s look at Acts 16:6-8 in The Message: [Paul and Timothy] went to Phrygia, and then on through the re­gion of Galatia. Their plan was to turn west into Asia province, but the Holy Spirit blocked that route. So they went to Mysia and tried to go north to Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn’t let them go there ei­ther. Proceeding on through Mysia, they went down to the seaport Troas. Look at these two words: “their plan.” Paul and Timothy’s plan was to turn west. We all make plans, right? A plan to marry that person, to start that business or ministry, to move to this place. In Paul and Timothy’s case, the Holy Spirit blocked them—not once but twice. God was telling them, My will is not here, and My will is not there. Paul, I need you to go on through Mysia. How many times does the Holy Spirit block us? Yet when things don’t work out for us, we tend to take matters into our own hands or find our own reasons: I’ve got to keep push­ing. This is just bad weather. The devil is doing this. 1 Corinthians 2:9-13  reads “But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.” Can you identify the blocking of the Holy Spirit? Remember, you can’t have the rewarding if you overlook the warning. And whatever you don’t deal with in this season will show up in the front row of your heart in the next season. Dear Father, give me the wisdom and guidance to know Your will. Help me be someone who loves You and who is fully submitted to Your will so that I can glorify You. In Jesus’s name, amen.

  8. Aug 4

    Don't Forget To Remember (Heart Rehab) Day 3 of 5

    From Heart Rehab by Jerry Flowers Jr. Is your mind crowded by worries, what-ifs, and lies? Sometimes our minds have a death grip on the hypothetical and a loose grip on God’s historical. We fail to think about what God has done; instead, we focus on what we fear might happen. If you battle with overthinking or if hypotheticals plague your mind, recall the following Scrip­ture passages and remember, as Moses cautioned the Israelites: Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. (Deuteronomy 8:2 NIV) Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. (verse 11 NIV) The psalmist wrote, “I will remember the works of the Lord; surely I will remember Your wonders of old” (Psalm 77:11, NKJV). After Jonah disobeyed God and ran away from Him, only to find himself sitting in a fish’s stomach acid, he prayed, “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple” (Jonah 2:7 NIV). The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us: “Remember your Cre­ator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come” (12:1 NIV). During the Last Supper, Jesus told His disciples to remember: “He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me’ ” (Luke 22:19 NIV). How do you fight overthinking and worrying? You remember! You remember how far God has brought you: I used to scroll through porn on my phone, but now I’m studying Scripture. The breakup of that relationship was so painful! But God has helped me see that it wasn’t His best for me. I remember the fear and worry about whether I had enough to pay the next month’s rent. But God provided. Don’t overthink. Remember! Lord, remind me of where I was before You found me. Remind me of how You’ve shown me Your holiness and Your might in my life. In Jesus’s name, amen.

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Andi and Brian bring you daily devotionals to help elevate your day!

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