Category: Entrée

Entrée

No More Duct Tape!

The Manna Chef

I went on a girls’ trip with my sisters last year, and we enjoyed some well-needed sister time.  On the way to one of our excursions, we boarded a tour bus that read, “Unforgettable…the best rides of your life.”  As I got onto the bus, I noticed that across the driver’s side was duct tape!  Yes, Sisters, duct tape was holding our bus together!  We made it to our destination, but I remember thinking, “Lord, please just get us there safely.”  I must say that the ride really was unforgettable though! 

It made me wonder, “How many times have we put duct tape on a situation to just make it through the day?”  You know those days—you are running on almost no sleep, but there is so much to do and everyone is calling on you today for help.  (And you can’t let them down.)  You’re exhausted, but you push through to show up for everyone else—even when your body is telling you to rest.  We know how to keep it moving even when we shouldn’t.  Sisters, you are going through your day with duct tape, trying to make something happen and wearing yourself down in the process.

There is a reason our bodies tell us when to slow down.  Whether or not we want to admit it, we do have limits physically.  We have to learn how to be still and rest.  There is a small, still voice that will direct our every step if we’ll just listen to it.  Ask the Lord for a better strategy to accomplish whatever He wants you to accomplish each day, and then ask Him to accompany you throughout the day.

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Entrée

Will You Be the One?

The Manna Chef

As we conclude 2025, I encourage you to take a look at just how much God has done for you throughout the year.  God truly is a Keeper, and He takes such good care of His children.  He has left nothing to chance concerning your life! 

For those Sisters who have encountered struggles throughout the year, please know that God has not forgotten you.  In Isaiah 43:1 (NKJV), God says, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.”  God has taken notice of everything that has happened to you this year.  And even when things have felt like they are to your detriment, Romans 8:28 says that they will ultimately work out for your good.  Don’t give up, Sisters!  Our God has the final say—always!

Those who know me personally know that I do not write a New Year’s Resolution with a long list of things I’m supposed to complete during the upcoming year.  God showed me many years ago that my “goals” were wearing me out because I had not consulted Him as I made that extensive list.   Why begin the year entangled in tasks that I have set?  I need to be free to move according to the Spirit of God, not distracted by never-ending to-do lists.  

So instead, I complete a “gratitude list” of all of the blessings that God has given me throughout the current year.  (And that list is immense!!)  Each year, I am brought to tears when I see just how much God really has taken care of me.  I am blown away as I reflect on each month of the year.  I cannot help but to feel incredibly grateful, humble, and loved! 

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Entrée

Don’t Wait, Part Three: Focus on the Promise

The Manna Chef

In parts one and two of this series, I shared some details about the journey of the children of Israel from Egypt as they approached Canaan.  If you missed either part, I encourage to go back and read them. 

In Numbers 14:1-4, the Israelites decided it would have been better if they had just died in Egypt or even in the wilderness than to continue the journey to their Promised Land.  They were even prepared to select a new leader and head back.  Keep in mind, they had witnessed God supernaturally save them.  He moved beyond the laws of nature and held the Red Sea back just so they could walk on dry ground. 

As they were headed to their Promised Land, they found out there were giants living in Canaan—on the land God had promised to them—and they were afraid.  Those giants were nothing but distractions to get the people to focus on the challenges instead of the blessings that God promised.  Did you get that?  They focused on the giants instead of focusing on the promise from God.

I have experienced some moments when there were obstacles in the way of what God promised to me.  I knew what God said, I just couldn’t figure out how to get to the manifestation.  (That’s its own entrée, how to move from the promise to the manifestation.) 

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Entrée

Don’t Wait, Part Two: Missing Out on the Promise

The Manna Chef

Sisters, if you missed part one, I encourage you to go back and read it.  We discovered that the people of Israel heard conflicting reports about their Promised Land.  Moses sent out spies to check on the land.  One spy, Caleb, returned with this report: “The land is amazing.  It’s all that God said it would be.  Yeah, there are some giants there, but we can beat them with God on our side.  Let’s go occupy our land!” 

But there was another report, one that wasn’t so positive.  That report said, “There’s no way we can get that land.  Those giants are huge, and we can’t beat them.  We’re like grasshoppers to them.  We’ll get devoured in that land.”  … So, guess whose report the people chose to believe?  Let me give you a hint, it wasn’t Caleb’s.  As a matter of fact, the people wanted to stone Joshua and Caleb!  They allowed fear to take the place of their promise.  And God took notice!

“How long will these people treat Me with contempt? Will they never believe Me, even after all the miraculous signs I have done among them?   I will disown them and destroy them with a plague.  Then I will make you [Moses] into a nation greater and mightier than they are!”  (Numbers 14:11-12 NLT)

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Entrée

Don’t Wait, Part One: Grasshopper Thinking

The Manna Chef

Sisters, how you think is just as important as what you think.  If your thoughts are shaped from fear, apathy, anger, or even hate, the choices you make will not manifest blessings.  They will lead you away from what God has promised.  You’ll find yourself spinning your wheels but actually getting nowhere.  So, let’s look at a Biblical example of this very thing: the children of Israel as they leave Egypt and head toward Canaan, the Promised Land. 

God rescued them from Pharaoh and the Egyptians in miraculous fashion.  And as they were on the way to Canaan, Moses sent spies to scope it out.  The spies made it to Canaan and found that, among the things that God had promised, there were giants occupying the land.  Two of the spies (Joshua and Caleb) came back with a good report.  In Numbers 13:30, Caleb said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” 

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