Up, Up and Away
Cynde Layne Wilkerson
Casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you…. I Peter 5:7
 
“Up, up and away, my beautiful, my beautiful balloon” … those are the words that came to mind during the middle of the night while thanking the Lord for such a beautiful and anointed weekend. The exercise conducted at the conclusion of our women’s conference was something to behold. You would have had to see it with the physical eye to grasp the powerfulness of the moment as we watched our balloons from different physical placements outside, unite and soar collectively in one direction as they left our hands along with our cares. One balloon appeared to be entangled permanently, however, it shook itself loose and hurriedly followed and caught the others. We were absolutely left in awe; crying and shouting aloud while thanking God for allowing us to experience not only a release but His glory in action!
 
As I thought about the topic and the scripture for this morning, it makes the suggestion to take action. Cast; to cast or casting means to deliberately throw, fling, discard or get rid of; all of which are action words.  We cannot verbally say that we are going to give all of our cares, hurts and pains; our heartaches or our issues of the past and present without the act of actually giving them over to the Lord. Most of the time, we say that we have given them over when we really haven’t and we hold on to just alittle piece for whatever reason. We hear so often that we simply must let go and just have faith. Now, although it sounds easy enough, sometimes it’s a harder task to do, depending on how deeply rooted some of those cares may be.  Some may take abit more getting in and digging up of those roots because they have become so entangled.
 
I love how Peter speaks on how persecution and suffering can cause either growth or bitterness and how our response (our attitudes towards) and our reaction determine our outcome or the results. And how we have to make a conscious effort to decide to give over that which has kept us hurting, that which has kept us bound, so that we can become lighter and fly as God intended. We have to declare that I am no longer going to be bound and then cast all of them unto the Lord! He is ready and waiting to receive them and relieve you of them so that you no longer have to carry the load. Lay aside every weight that keeps you bogged down; that keeps you tired and listless (Hebrews 12:1).
 
I realized long ago that the difference between letting go and giving up is the faith in “who” you are releasing to.  Tell the Lord that you are releasing your hurts, your pains, your past, and that you are committed to casting all your cares right now; what ever they may be. Ask the Lord to help you to seek Him for guidance and allow Him to comfort your heart and ease your load. Let the Lord know you are tired and finished with carrying them.
 
Please know that we can go to the Lord individually to talk and release everything to Him.  He is reachable, obtainable, and always ready to listen. Hebrews 4:15-16, tells us “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” So cast your cares and release them to the Lord. Give it ALL to you today Lord because you’ll want to be free in order to journey with Him. You’ll want to be light for this wonderful flight in Jesus!
 
I am still as high as those beautiful pink balloons; free from my cares, free from my worries and concerns that took flight unto the heavens that afternoon. Up, up and away!
 
Now, watch me soar!
 
Until the morning, be blessed,
Cynde
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Only a Prayer Away
Cynde Layne Wilkerson
Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul. But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me. Ps 66:16, 19-20

Recently, I found on old cassette in my car with a compilation of songs I put together years ago. All of the songs have been ministering to me and I have thoroughly enjoyed listening to the early works of artists I love. While talking to the Lord this morning, words from one of the songs dropped in my spirit; one very simple, yet powerful phrase, “if you need an answer, just pray.” It was the perfect song to accompany what I’m feeling and wanted to communicate this morning; God is only a prayer away.
 
Now, it’s not that this is some new fangled idea because the Bible clearly speaks to prayer and supplication, as well as fasting throughout both the old and new testaments. However, in thinking back over events and the testimonies that rose up after concluding a 72 hour prayer shut in, I have seen and heard of God’s work on behalf of not only myself but for others as well. The testimonies of what prayer will do has been phenomenal.  So many had a testimony, including myself, and everyone wanted to tell of His goodness, His mercy and grace, and what He had done for us, not only collectively, but individually and how He heard and answered prayers because we had sought God. This in turn, incited others to praise with us while we gave all glory to God. The running, the shouting, the dancing, the praising, the worshipping, and the rejoicing were the results of that sharing. As David stated, “Come and hear, all that reverence God and I will tell you what He has done for my soul!”
 
In this Psalm, David praises God for His sovereignty and His power in the earth. He also wanted to acknowledge God for His favor , goodness and His mercy towards his people. If we could remember to just think on these things (Phil 4:8), we would remain excited, as well as grateful about what God is doing for us and His church on a continual basis. How could you not be overjoyed to hear how the prayers went out and returned with deliverance, healing, salvation, finances; whatever the concerns (Psalm 138:8), whatever the desires of the heart (Psalm 37:3-5), or whatever we were believing God for. We must, because it is imperative to declare His mighty acts and what he has done for us among the people. Whether they know Him personally or not... we must tell of His goodness.
 
God lets us know that no matter what happens in life, no matter the circumstances or the situations, He is only a prayer away. When we seek God in prayer, with a sincere heart and stand upright before Him, He has to honor His word. Truly, we serve a prayer answering God. We are known for quoting often that "prayer is the key and faith unlocks the door." I have no desire in quoting clichés but I want to be found believing that God will and that God can. This is what moves God; this kind of unfeigned faith and belief in who He is. I have been remembering Isaiah 65:24, and the Lord said to His servants, “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.”  I am excited and overjoyed about what God is doing not only for me but in the lives of His people!
 
Lately, I’ve seen unbelievable movement on the part of the Lord in my life and these things that were done, no man could have done. Clearly, the Lord has been showing me that it could be no other, besides Me, the Lord thy God. Honestly, if I didn't know Jesus, I might have been alittle scared, but I can tell you that I was overwhelmed and amazingly, in awe! It makes your faith levels soar to higher heights! It’s not that I don’t believe that He can, I am amazed at how He does things. There is absolutely no mistake in your thinking that only God could have done this. Why should we doubt when we see what He has done and will do for His people? I intend to keep myself in position for further blessings as I continue to walk upright before Him and be found doing what He has purposed for me to do. It’s just a matter of “pray and believe."  Keep moving and keep working and let God be God. If I keep my mind stayed on Him, I'm in perfect peace, His peace and concentrate on what the Lord has for me to do. Not worrying about what is going on around me because He knows all, sees all and is in control of all. He's got this!

In lieu of what I’ve seen transpired (and still watching) and how the Lord has been true to His word; knowing that He will never leave nor forsake us and how He will uphold us with His hand, we must just continual to praise Him for His faithfulness and His mercy towards us. David reminds us of that today, to tell of His goodness.
 
“Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul. He hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.”  
 
Remember He is only a prayer away!

Until the morning, be blessed,
Cynde
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