The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Friday, July 3, 2020.

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. 3 John 1:4

Doing Better

One of the proudest moments of a parent’s life is when they see their child do the right thing. It happened to me not that long ago. I was watching my son playing, and he knocked over his water. This is typically not a big deal, but like many little kids, he had developed a habit of knocking things over and then walking away from them. This often left delightful surprises for his mother and me lurking throughout the house, waiting to be found. So we have been trying to get him to pick up after himself or at least notify us when he has made a mess.

This day I was watching from across the room out of his eyesight when he knocked his drink over. He stood up, looked around, and seemed as if he was going to move on to another toy away from the mess he made. Then it happened. He stopped himself, stooped down, picked up his cup, and started patting the floor as if he was drying it. When I walked over, he looked up at me and said, “Daddy, I fixed it.” My heart just melted as I looked at the pride in his eyes of having done the right thing.

Friends, when John was writing the above words to his friend Gaius, whom he had introduced with being a disciple of Christ, he had the same joy of a parent seeing their child do the right thing. John had been told that even though he was not there, Gaius was still living out the faith and walking in the truth. Friends, it is up to us every day to live out the gospel and walk in the truth. Every day we have the opportunity to live and love in the ways of Jesus or turn our backs on the faith. When we live and love in the ways of the Lord, we are an excellent example of what true lived faith looks like. So every day, walk in the truth. You never know who is watching.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Thursday, July 2, 2020.

The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. 2 Timothy 4:18

Jump

Jump! That was what I heard from across the playground. When I turned around, I saw a little girl at the top of a playset crying and her father standing on the ground with open arms. As is often the case, while playing, this little girl had gotten a little out of her depth. I imagine she was having a great time, and then suddenly she looked and realized that she was in a place she did not mean to be. The playset was higher than she thought it would be, and she didn’t know how she was going to get down. As she stood there, with tears in her eyes, standing on the ground was her father telling her to jump towards him.

It was at that moment that the girl had a decision to make. She was in a bad spot, but the alternative didn’t look appealing at all. She could stay on top of the playset trapped, or she could jump and hope for the best. As she stood there contemplating her decision, her father just kept saying, JUMP. She had to decide if she trusted her dad enough to catch her if she jumped or if she would just stay where she was. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and jumped into her father’s waiting arms. He gave her a hug, put her down, and she ran off to play some more. Her father went and sat back down on the bench he had been sitting on before and watched his daughter live her best life.

Friends, we, from time to time, find ourselves in the same position that the little girl found herself in. We are off living our best lives and suddenly look up and see that we are out of our depth. We look around, not sure what to do, and then we hear the words of our father, jump. What’s interesting is the little girl never called for her father, he showed up when she was in trouble. In the same way, our heavenly father is always watching and stands at the ready to save us from all evil and terrible situations. You don’t always have to call on the father. You just have to listen out for him. He sees your distress, and will always invite you to jump towards him.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Wednesday, July 1, 2020.

I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born, I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations. Jeremiah 1:5

From The Beginning

I loved my shop class in high school. It wasn’t my favorite class, but I did enjoy going. There was something fun about being in the shop, using the machines and building things on the day to day basis. On my first day of shop class, I had picked out the tools I wanted to use and was ready to go, but we had one problem, the teacher. Our shop teacher sat us down gave, each of us a piece of paper, and told us to draw what we were going to build. You see, in his shop class, you didn’t touch any materials without first having a design for what you were going to make.

So we all sat there vigorously sketching out what we were going to build. Wanted to get right to work, I drew what could generously be described as a couple of stick figures and handed it in. The teacher looked at me and said, “Not good enough.” I was floored. I had put at least 6 minutes into this design, how could it not be “good enough.” Seeing the look on my face, he started asking me questions. How long is this going to be? How wide is it going to be? How much weight does it need to support? How big is this opening? Who wide of a dowel do you need to create that pass through? On and on he went, and I realized it wasn’t good enough. That’s when he stopped all of us from drawing and explained what it meant to build something to specifications.

Building something to specifications means that you have to think through everything about what you are making before you build it. You need to know the exact measurements, exact tolerances, and everything else about what you are building and what it is intended to do so that it won’t fail at the worst possible time. If you do the specifications upfront, you can create exactly what you need. Friends, God built each of us according to specifications. He knew ahead of time all we would need to be so that we could accomplish our mission. So when things get tough, know that you were built to specification from the beginning, and no matter what happens, you will not fail.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Tuesday, June 30, 2020.

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33

Addition By Subtraction

Like many busy people, I keep a calendar. My calendar tells me everything I need to know. It tells me when I have a meeting, when a meeting has to end, when I need to pick up my child, and dictates so many details of my life. There was just one problem with my calendar, it was so full that it never seemed like I was getting anything meaningful done. I was going here and there and doing all types of stuff because it was on the calendar, but when I looked back on my weeks, I was busy and productive, but I was not getting what I wanted to get accomplished done. What I realized was to really get the things done that I needed to get done I was going to need more time. That was when I decided to make a change.

One day I made the decision to empty my calendar. I literally erased everything on it and started over. When I started over, I made a change. As opposed to filling my schedule with things to do, I wrote down my priorities for the week first. By looking at my priorities first, there were some things that no longer made it onto my calendar. Now tasks and events on my calendar had to make a cut before they got on. If they didn’t move me towards the goals for that week, they didn’t get on the calendar. Suddenly, my calendar now had more time on it to do things that had meaning, not just things that filled time. Now I had the time to do the things that really matter to me.

Friends, our lives are like my calendar. Sometimes they are very busy and productive but not moving us forward. We want to do different things, but we just can’t find the time. That is when you need to do some addition by subtraction. The bible tells us that if we seek God first, he will add everything else that we need. I want to encourage you to take a clean slate look at your life. Make God your first priority and then fill the rest in around that. When you do that, you will find that you have more clarity, more time, and suddenly a more fulfilling life. By subtracting everything else and starting over with God, you will get all the additions that make life worth living.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Monday, June 29, 2020.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

Following Your Gut?

I used to get lost all the time. It wasn’t that I didn’t have a good sense of direction, it was something entirely different. I consider myself to have a good sense of direction, so I would never ask for directions. This isn’t the worse thing, except I was willing to trust my gut in places I had never been to. If I landed in a new city on business, I didn’t need a map I could figure it out. Sure, I had never been there before, but I figured what’s the worst that could happen. Then one day, I found out.

I was in Philadelphia, a city that I have visited often, but somehow I got turned around. I was actually hoping on the highway on my way home when I went the wrong way. Typically that wouldn’t be a big deal, but this time there was a catch. I was low on gas. I knew that if I went my way, there was a gas station on the way, but I got turned around, went in the wrong direction, and ran out of gas on the highway. As I walked up the off-ramp to find a gas station to fill my car, I made the decision that I was going to buy a GPS as soon as I could find an electronics store.

Friends, many times in life, we waste a lot of time trusting our gut. We think we know what is best for us and assume that we know the way. The problem is there will be times that we find ourselves in unfamiliar territory, and our gut isn’t going to cut it. Your gut can get you where you have been, but it won’t be enough to get you to the next level. When you are trying to get past your limitation, it is time to lean on God. While you may know the last level well, God knows the next level and the one beyond that. To get to your destiny, you don’t have time to “figure it out” on your own. If you are going to get to where you are going, you are going to have to lean on God, trust his directions, and follow him instead of your gut.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Friday, June 26, 2020.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:5

Flashing Lights

Toddlers now have the best stuff. Last week my son’s new toothbrush came in, and I have to admit I was a bit jealous. When you look at the toothbrush, it looks like all other toothbrushes, but it has a secret. Embedded into the handle of his toothbrush is a little button. When you press that button, the handles lights up and blinks a two-minute light show. The idea is to get him to brush his teeth for two minutes, so when the light starts blinking, he starts brushing. Then when the light stops blinking, he can stop brushing. Now that is the intended use, my son has changed it.

My son loves the light so much he has decided that he will only brush his teeth if we turn off all of the other lights. So every night at bedtime, we turn off all the lights in the bathroom and say light it up. That is my son’s cue to press the button and start brushing his teeth. We laugh, giggle, and have a great time right up until the light goes out. That is when my son yells, AGAIN! It is not that he wants to brush his teeth again. He just wants the flashing lights on again because when the lights are flashing, everything for him is better.

Friends, we are called to be flashing lights. As believers, we are called to not just be functional, but to also be flashing lights. We are not called to just do our jobs well, or go to school, but to be light when there is darkness at work or in school. We should be the people who light up the room, bring joy to the situation, and are always reminders that hope is available. So remember in every environment, let your lights flash so well that when your light goes out, everyone gets together and shouts, AGAIN!

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Thursday, June 25, 2020.

“They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord. Jeremiah 1:19

Exit Strategy

As a fan of boxing, I know that there is more to a boxing match than knockouts. You see, a good boxer isn’t just looking to punch someone out, they are looking to win the fight. Winning a boxing match requires one thing above all else, that you don’t get knocked out. I have seen talented boxers after talented boxers lose fights because he didn’t realize that he needed a strategy that went beyond hit the other guy really hard. The limits of the “hit the guy hard strategy” are pretty obvious. First off, if you punch them with all you have and they don’t go down, you have a problem. Secondly, if the person you are fighting is trying to knock you out too, you may not be able to take all the punches. That’s why, in a fight, you need an exit strategy.

An exit strategy is very simple. When things get too rough for me to handle, the exit strategy is the way that I have planned ahead of time to get myself out of here. A good exit strategy accounts for three things. First off, a good exit strategy realizes that your opponent wants to win as much as you do, and that could be a problem. Secondly, a good exit strategy accounts for the fact that the enemy may be stronger than you are. Finally, a good exit strategy is on-demand. It realizes that at a moment’s notice, you may need to get out of the fight.

Friends, the Lord promises to be our exit strategy. When you start following God, you will find yourself in some difficult fights. The enemy will want to test your faith, circumstances will test your strength, and life will often test your patience. When things get too tough, call on the Lord. The Lord promises that when things are too much, He will rescue you. He is the exit strategy that ensures that the enemy will not prevail when you are doing God’s work. So don’t just prepare to throw blows, also know your exit strategy.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Wednesday, June 24, 2020.

I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Take Notes

I consider myself a person with a decent memory. So in school, when I would go to class, I would sit, listen, and go about my business. That strategy served me well for quite some time. Then Clarence Jacobs transferred into my school. Clarence was a nice guy, but I had an issue with him. He was getting better grades than I was. I didn’t begrudge him, but I have a bit of a competitive streak. So every time we got an exam back, and I glanced at Clarence’s paper, and he had a higher grade than me, it drove me nuts. I had to know how Clarence was doing this.

One day, I asked Clarence if I could see his exam. Clarence had bested me again, and I was going to find out how. As I read his answers, I realized that his answers were just better than mine. He had a flair for including details that just were not in my exam answers. I would have the big idea and a few details while Clarence would have the big idea and extensive details and support. I was amazed, so I asked Clarence how he remembered all of these things. Clarence told me he has a horrible memory, so in class, he takes comprehensive notes, so he doesn’t have to try and keep it all in his head. The things I had forgotten, Clarence was writing down, and the results spoke for themselves.

Friends, if you want the best results in life, you are going to have to take notes. Often, we miss out on the promises of God because we are doing it from memory. We have the big idea, and we have the details that we can remember, but we are missing the finer points. We are missing out on joy in all circumstances, a peace that surpasses understanding, and hope in the midst of uncertainty because we missed the details. Friends, Jesus has overcome the world, and we can too, we just have to have notes on what the word says when we face trials. So don’t just settle for a passing grade, get an overcoming grade by taking notes.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Tuesday, June 23, 2020.

Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:5

Keep Your Head Up

When I lived in New York City, I worked across the street from Rockefeller Center. Being so near to an entertainment venue, I got to see a lot of things. I saw the launch of Disney movies, numerous performers that were playing there, the world-famous Rockettes, and of course, the annual lighting of the Christmas tree. As great as all of those things were, they came and went. What I enjoyed most at Rockefeller Center was something I walked by every day, the statue of Atlas.

The Atlas statue depicts the Greek Titan Atlas holding the world on his shoulder. Every day as I went to the office, there was Atlas holding the world on his shoulders. As I looked at Atlas, I would also look at the people walking around me. Like Atlas, many of the people I walked past looked like they had the weight of the world on their shoulders. The looked like problems, difficulties, and life was just weighing them down. Their shoulders would be slumped, and their heads hanging slightly down, just like Atlas.

Friends, the weight of the world is too much for us to bear. It will bring us down because we were not designed to carry the weight of the world. We were designed to overcome the world. As believers in Christ, we are not made to carry, we are made to overcome. We were made to overcome problems, triumph over issues, and conquer difficulties. When we carry them, they bring us down, but when we overcome them, we are lifted up. I want to encourage you to keep your head up. Don’t let the weight of the world burden you. When you believe in Jesus Christ, you are an overcomer. So keep your back straight and your head up. You are not carrying the weight of the world, you have overcome the world.

Be Blessed,

Rev

The Daily Dose with Dr. Daryl L. Williams

A Word every day to get you on your way!

Here is the Daily Dose for Monday, June 22, 2020.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

It Can’t Wait

I am a natural-born procrastinator. It has been a part of my personality since I was born two days later than expected. Like most people who procrastinate, I have the best of intentions at the beginning of everything. It is my plan to get things done, and typically get then done early, but it rarely works out that day. I always have a reason. Sometimes it isn’t the perfect time. Other times there is something else that is more important right now, but I will get to it. Finally, there are the times that I just don’t feel like it, and before you know it, I have procrastinated into another pressing deadline.

What I have been learning as I try to break the spirit of procrastination on my life, is if something is essential, it can’t wait. The crucial things in life have to be done right now. They can’t be done when you are in the mood, when the time is perfect, or after you get these other things out of the way. When something is important, you do it when you don’t feel like it, you make the wrong time the right time, and you put the nonessentials aside so you can do what you have to do.

Friends, I am glad that God is not a procrastinator. God loves us so much that he didn’t wait for us to get it together, he had Christ die for us while we were still a mess. God looks on us with such loving kindness that he steps in, saves us, protects us, and keeps us right now. But remember, God has saved each of us for a purpose. God has saved us to do his work and his will. He has saved us to do great things that will bring glory to him. So the next time you think about putting something off that God has called you to do, remember God would never put you off. Now get to work, because what you are called to do simply can’t wait.

Be Blessed,

Rev