What I Learned From The Dried Lemon Tree🍋

What I Learned From The Dried Lemon Tree🍋

by | Jan 14, 2024 | Christian Walk, Healing & Freedom

Due to some neglect, my lemon tree completely dried up. This lemon tree is no ordinary tree I purchased from the nursery. In a season of learning about seeds in the Kingdom of God from my spiritual father, Pastor Derrick D’souza, 4 years ago, I planted this seed from its fruit. I planted and watered this lemon tree, and seeing it grow was like seeing the glorious works of Yahweh.

With little understanding, I remember pruning it when it grew vertically because I wanted it to be a certain height so that it looked appealing.

A friend had come over, and as soon as she looked at the tree, she said, “Ohh, the tree is gone; you should throw it.” Now, she was not wrong; the neglect had dried all the leaves; it looked as good as dead, and watering it seemed like a waste of time. But I smiled at her and said: “It will come to life.”

Lemon Tree

Look, I don’t know anything about gardening, but I know how to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. I heard Him say these words to me: “It will come to life,” before it happened, and all I merely did was repeat those words.

After 15 days of faithfully watering the lemon tree, I noticed it had grown fresh leaves today. I laughed at the enemy, as good as dead, you said. The God of my father is a God of resurrection.

Two things I learned from the Lemon tree:

1. Being rooted in Christ

Even after months of neglect with no sunlight or water, the lemon tree could sprout back because it was rooted. When you fail, do not be disheartened. Just smile and say, “It will come to life.” Suddenly, you will see fresh green leaves – I call it the sweet, sweet grace of our Father in your life.

To be rooted in Christ means Jesus provides all the essential nutrients we need to grow and bear fruit and also provides the foundation we need to stand firm when we face trials or tough seasons.

“As you, therefore, have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.” Colossians 2:6-7

So, If the enemy tells you it’s over, know that your roots are strong enough for you to spring back.

2. God is working, even when you don’t see it.

You may not see any change in your situation right now, but know that God is working. Don’t settle for what the world has to say about your life; your God’s steadfast love never ceases, and His mercies do not end.

“Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23

Let His mercy locate you every morning.

Girl, what you invest your time in today will help you get through challenging times. Me pruning the tree made the roots stronger for it to thrive in a time of drought.

Similarly, as you spend time building your roots on the Word of God, you will thrive when others are barely surviving.

XOXO
Sheryl

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Why We Must Never Give Up Praying for Our Unsaved Family Members

Why We Must Never Give Up Praying for Our Unsaved Family Members

by | Dec 25, 2023 | Christian Walk, Healing & Freedom

Girl, are you the only believer in your family? You encountered the Father’s unconditional love, and you realised this is where your heart feels at home because you were always designed to be in union with your Creator. You experienced love, joy, peace, and deliverance, and you decided that there was no way you would go back to your old life.

However, you soon find out not everyone close to you is as excited about Jesus as you are. You realise that those close to you still want to live in the old way of life you decided to leave behind. Not only that but now you may find a lot of opposition from the people closest to you.

When you realise that it is a spirit operating behind them that hates you and is attacking you because the devil is so scared of you, you will be able to guard your heart against offense and bitterness. The Bible says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12 NKJV

Declarations

It is the enemy who wants you to give up

Even though the enemy may use broken people to attack and hurt you, the Word of GOD encourages us to pray for those who don’t know JESUS so that they, too, can come to the knowledge of the truth.

“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:3-4 NKJV

It is the enemy who wants you to give up. You may have been praying for your loved ones, and still, you see them making wrong choices, unwilling to listen and open doors for things they should have never done, inviting one storm after the other in their lives. You always pray, but you still see them in the same place with the same demons, and you wonder when everything is going to change.

Don’t be deceived into thinking that nothing is happening. The Word of GOD in James 5:16 NKJV says, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” Keep believing that your prayers avail much. Don’t believe the lies of the enemy.

As my spiritual mother, Prophetess Kim D’Souza, says, “Can you doubt your doubts? If anything, doubt the enemy but never doubt the Word of GOD.” The word of GOD says clearly in Romans 3:4 NKJV, “…..Let God be true but every man a liar.”

Give them a new name.

My spiritual father, Prophet Derrick D’Souza, says if you want to see a change in a person’s life, start by giving them a new name. We see in the Bible that only after Abram and Sarai’s names were changed to Abraham and Sarah did they birth Isaac and become father and mother to many nations. After Jacob’s (a supplanter) name was changed to Israel, meaning ‘Let GOD prevail,’ he received the covenant his father and grandfather had received.

If you want to see a change, start by giving them a new name. Call them the next Revivalist, JESUS Lover, Son of GOD, The Light, etc. Start calling things that are not as though they are, and you’ll see them come to pass on earth.

Do not allow discouragement/ disappointments and hopelessness to creep in.

I remember one time Prophet Shyju Mathew prophesied over a lady, saying, “The very fact some of your family members are alive is because of your prayers.” He added that they would have been long dead had you not stood in the gap and prayed continuously.

I learned that day that just because we don’t see a change in the physical doesn’t mean nothing is happening. The very fact some of your family members are even alive today is because of your fervent prayers. Beloved of the most high, let that encourage you!

Never stop fellowshipping with fellow believers.

Many times, when you go to church or prayer meetings, your loved ones may get irritated and attack you. But I want to tell you it is the devil; never ever give in to the lie that if you stop attending church or prayer meetings, there will be peace in your house, and no fights or irritation will happen. That is the tactic of the enemy.

Many will be offended by your choices, but you keep growing strong in the LORD. Increase your prayer life. No matter what, never leave fellowshipping with fellow believers. Never skip church. Skipping church will not bring peace in your house. In fact, it will give the enemy a free hand.

Don’t live to please people. You are called to live for the audience of ONE! When you honor GOD, the very people who dishonored you because of your choices will see HIS hand upon your life and come to you to know about this KING!

GOD is working behind the scenes for you

Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. Mark 11:24 NKJV

For the longest time ever since I became a believer, I’ve prayed for my biological father. He was a staunch non-believer with a hardened heart towards the LORD. Along the way many people too, prayed for my father declaring he would come to the LORD. Years passed by yet I didn’t see much change in him. Then last year, he had a brain stroke. While he was still in coma, my spiritual father Prophet Derrick D’Souza prayed for him and said that the LORD has reconciled my father to himself. Soon my father regained consciousness, and overtime I began to notice a change in him. While his memory and ability to hold conversations was still improving, whenever I would share about JESUS to him he would weep.

Many a times my father still is not fully aware of his surroundings, yet he is aware of GOD. His spirit immediately recognises praise and worship songs which he has not even heard before. And when the song stops, he turns around, looks at me and says, why did it stop? Keep playing it.

One day I sat next to him with a gospel song playing in the background. While listening to it he suddenly began to touch my feet as though he were pouring something on it. I asked him, what he was doing? He replied that he was washing my feet. In that moment, I realised he was seeing JESUS and was washing the LORD’s feet in worship. I told him that JESUS loved him. He wept bitterly and said, “I know, I love HIM too. He’s great.” Overwhelmed by the goodness of GOD, my father weeps when someone reads the word of GOD to him. Beloved, I realised many a times I allowed the enemy to fool me but now I know, even when nothing seems to be happening,our Heavenly FATHER is working behind the scenes and we must believe HIM and not the voices that discourage us or pushes us into disbelief. GOD not only brought my father alive from the hold of death but also from the hold of spiritual hell.

Daughter of the KING, let the joy of the Lord be your strength. One day, you will stand before the King with your loved ones and see how you not giving up made such a big difference!

XOXO
Nadia Feroz

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SEXTING: ‘Fun’ gone Wrong (FREE Resource)

SEXTING: ‘Fun’ gone Wrong (FREE Resource)

by | Nov 15, 2023 | Healing & Freedom

Soar Girls is excited to release a new short resource titled: Sexting: Momentary ‘Pleasure’ Gone Wrong

SEXTING is a dangerous form of texting that has globally become increasingly popular in recent years with adults and teenagers. It may seem like ‘momentary fun’ to our generation, but is actually a snare that can trap you.

Waiting

This Quick Read 7 Pager resource by our Podcast host Sheryl Gadre covers:

2 lies about sexting
2 truths about sexting
2 dangers of sexting
2 risks of sexting
2 legal implications of sexting and
2 ways to guard yourself

For a limited period, we are offering this resource for FREE. So go ahead, click the button below to get your copy.

XOXO

Team SoarGirls

Download

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Is My Waiting in Vain or Valuable? ⏳

Is My Waiting in Vain or Valuable? ⏳

by | Nov 4, 2023 | Healing & Freedom

“I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in His word I put my hope.”
Psalm 130:5

Waiting simply means delaying action until a particular time. Many of us relate the word “waiting” to worry, anxiety, impatience, etc. The truth is no one enjoys waiting; it makes us feel stuck and unable to move ahead.

It is like this- every time we buy a new equipment or gadget, it comes with an instructional manual, and most likely, we skip reading the manual and start using the product because “we just can’t wait.” After a while, though, we find ourselves going back to the manual because we have either messed it up or can’t figure it out.

We often feel that our waiting is in vain and feel the need to act on it quickly. I call it the “just do it, let’s see” syndrome, where we tend to act and then wait for the result, thinking it will somehow work out.

Waiting

But here is what I realized lately: living on this principle of “just do it, let’s see” means that we have no clue what the future holds and that the only way to live is to take whatever comes your way and work with it.

Ouch! It might seem cool initially, but it usually brings heartbreak, pain, and a feeling of failure. And this feeling of failure will also affect your confidence in decision-making in the long run. And at this point, if someone tells you to wait, you would roll your eyes and say, “No, thank you, it has never worked out.”

Well, it did not work out because we did not wait patiently to read and understand the user manual before we acted upon it.

Our waiting is valuable, not vain!

Genesis 7:24 says that the waters prevailed on earth for 150 days when Noah was in the ark, and if we continue reading Genesis 8, Noah was still waiting. Some say Noah was in the ark for a little shy of a year.

Now, for a second, imagine the end of the story where Noah could not wait anymore and got out of the ark looking for dry land. We would all be fishes, I guess!

What was different in Noah’s waiting?

He knew how the waiting would end; Noah remembered God’s covenant with him.

Girl, can I say this: Noah was not sitting in the ark thinking if he was ever going to see dry land. Because he knew that dry land was a promise, that is why he kept sending a dove out to find if dry land had appeared. His waiting was not in worry, and his actions were not in anxiousness but in rest that there will be dry land.

The Bible says in Isaiah 40:31, “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

Recently, I caught myself anxious and worried about waiting for something. At that time, I was reminded that I already knew how my waiting would end (according to God’s word).

Coming to an understanding that I am not waiting clueless for the universe to throw something at me at random, but knowing the victory is mine made me change the way I started waiting.

Here are 2 things I started doing to change my waiting from vain to valuable:

1/ Replace worry and anxiety with declaring the Word of God

When I get thoughts about the future and worry starts to take over, I quickly remind myself that the waiting is temporary and that the God I serve is good. He has a great plan for me and is faithful to finish what He started in me. Isaiah 35:4 (The Message version) has become my daily reminder to encourage myself that my God is not done with me yet:

“Energise the limp hands, strengthen the rubbery knees. Tell fearful souls, “Courage! Take heart! God is here, right here,on His way to put things right and redress all wrongs. He’s on his way! He’ll save you!”

2/ Wait in preparation and not hopelessness

The parable in Matthew 25 about the 5 wise virgins and 5 foolish virgins tells us that in our waiting, we must be prepared for the day of our breakthrough. In my understanding, the difference between the two sets of virgins is that the 5 foolish virgins were waiting in hopelessness, basically taking a chance.

They were waiting with an attitude, “If it happens, great; if it does not, I will go back to my old life.” I believe they knew very well how long their oil would last, but they did not believe the waiting would end well.

The Holy Spirit reminds me constantly that I need to add value to my waiting.

A few years ago, I desperately wanted a promotion. Someone told me if you want a promotion, then dress, talk, and act like you have already got one. Let me tell you, this change did not happen overnight; I did not just wake up the next day differently. That is because I hardly had any information about the role I wanted. I had to invest time knowing the skills required for the position and then start to learn and apply them until one day I fit the job perfectly. And that is when I got the promotion.

In the book Silent Season, the author Heather Lindsey shares a powerful key. She says, “I learned something very valuable in a silent season and that is that I shouldn’t be trying to build something when I was supposed to be cultivating my spirit. I was supposed to use that season to spend time with God, grow, and rest in Him – not step out on faith and try to do something out of His timing.”

So girls, if you have been waiting, can I encourage you to retrospect on your waiting? Knowing that we, the daughters of the Most High God, are born with a purpose to soar high, let our waiting not be without any faith.

Let our actions and plans during the waiting season not be random based on feelings but be strategic. Let us use this time to cultivate our spirits and grow. And when the day comes, we will be perfectly ready.

Let us add value to our waiting.

XOXO,
Sheryl Gadre

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Yes, It is God Who Allowed It!

Yes, It is God Who Allowed It!

by | Nov 2, 2023 | Healing & Freedom

▪ Even though he was God, He allowed himself to become nothing.
▪ He allowed His body to be broken and marred beyond recognition
▪ He allowed Himself to be mocked at, spat at, laughed at.
▪ He allowed Himself to be naked before men and suffer shame.
And He did it for you and me. So we can have a life and life in abundance (John 10:10).

movies

Now what makes you believe that…

  • The God who died for you allowed death of your loved one?
  • He who suffered for your sake allowed suffering to come in your life? (May be so suffering and pain can “teach” you something?)
  • What makes you believe that He who paid the price for your healing with His blood, allowed sickness and trauma to come to you.

God says in Jeremiah 29:11, I know the thoughts that I think toward you. Plans to prosper you and to bring you into a future and a hope.

God is good and whatever He does is good (Psalm 119:68)

And there is one thing I will not allow, God says, in Psalm 89:33-35, I will not allow My faithfulness towards you to fail.

So who allows suffering, sickness?

You can create the world around you with your words. The power of life and death is in your tongue (Proverbs 18:21).

According to 1 Peter 3:10 ( NLT), “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies.

It is a messed up idea about who your God is, that allows the devil to steal, kill and destroy.

Beloved, may your eyes be opened. Don’t allow what Jesus paid for!

XOXO
Author Kim D’souza

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I Have Been Making A Prayer 🙏

I Have Been Making A Prayer 🙏

by | Oct 9, 2023 | Christian Walk, Healing & Freedom

Of late, I have been making a prayer to God saying,

“May what I know, not limit you from doing what you can in my life.”

I realised many times we have too much knowledge in our heads – we know how church is “done”, we know which scriptures to quote, which song to sing, what prayer to make, and yet in all this, we limit God forgetting that He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we can ask, think or imagine.

my prayer

Once when Jesus was in the region of Tyre and Sidon and entered a house, there were two types of people who got a chance to encounter Him. One type represented those who knew too much “about Jesus”, and other who knew about Him, but moved beyond that knowledge, removing limits off God and thus received a breakthrough.

From there He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And He entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden ( Mark 7:24)

Jesus wanted no one to know that he was in this house, but these set of people in the region knew it. They knew too much. They had perceived the move of God and gathered. Some of them must have reached before Jesus. But the Bible doesn’t consider mentioning or highlighting any miracle that Jesus did for them. He came, and He departed.

But in the midst of all these, there was one Syro-Phoenician woman who also knew something about Jesus. She knew that He was not sent for her. But she didn’t allow what she knew to limit her from contending with God for a miracle for her daughter. And her great faith made Jesus grant her what she desired.

While there were many others in the house who could have received a healing from Jesus. In fact, according to Jesus, the healing belonged to them – it was their bread, but they allowed what they knew to limit the hand of God.

Beloved, I want to encourage you to take your limits off God. What impossible you can believe Him for, is what you will see Him manifest in your life.

Lord may my knowledge of you, not limit You from doing what You can in my life. May my knowledge of you not be stagnant, but may I grow in my revelation of who you are and what you can do!

XOXO
Author Kim D’Souza

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