Category Archives: Purpose

The Urgency of Faith

12 Monday Jul 2021

Posted by in Christianity, Emotions, faith, God, God the Father, God's Plan and Purpose, Grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Jesus, Blood of Jesus, New Covenant, redemption, Prayer, Purpose, The Bible, Tracy Gatewood, Tracy Gatewood Faith, Tracy Gatewood Prayer

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” So faith comes by hearing (what is told) and what is heard comes by the preaching (of the message that came from the lips) of Christ the Messiah Himself.” Romans 10:17 AMP

“But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?”. Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” Romans 10:17 NKJV

Recently (like very ……… this morning in fact) I heard a respected evangelist state that the ONLY way someone can have faith is through hearing the Word of God. This means that a person cannot have faith for anything unless they can attach a person (Jesus), or a scripture verse to their circumstance. I found this comment to be very interesting.


Faith is a very powerful force for without it, we cannot please God, in fact it is impossible. (Hebrews 11:6 ) Because we are living in such challenging, even urgent times, most all of us need to have an All Access Pass to Faith.

Well what is faith ? I use this definition from the Amplified: The leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, Wisdom and goodness. The assurance, confirmation and title deed that are possessed when we trust Him.

So what do the unchurched have in their emotional arsenal since they cannot possess true faith ? They have HOPE. Hope is a confident expectation of good in every situation. Hope is a great thing to possess. Actually I believe that Hope is probably second only to faith however hope is based in emotion which is tied to the Soul. (Mind, Will, and the Emotions) Although very useful, being hopeful can still be like being ‘positive’ . No One paid a price for your Hope but a BIG price was paid for your Faith. Faith is tied to the Spirit. Hope Helps but Faith Wins.

Faith is actually anchored into someone real – JESUS. One can actually bolt themselves onto the knowledge that they are God’s Beloved and He is working behind the scenes to bring all circumstances to good for those that love Him and that are called according to His purposes. (Romans 8:28 ) (News Flash: We are all called according to His purposes if we have accepted His Son as Savior).


The understanding that the only way to obtain true faith is through hearing the Word of God should expose renewed urgency to the cause of sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As if it were not already urgent enough, for people to actually mentally survive natural disasters, losing homes, deaths of loved ones to Covid or other maladies, and economic misfortunes – the only way to survive these extreme challenges is to rest in an unwavering faith, secured by the most powerful substance available and that is the Blood of Jesus.

To gain understanding of the payment made with the Blood of Jesus is to realize the level of sacrifice directed by God the Father to the only One that could make the exchange for our sin to save me and you. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary, a virgin. (Luke 1:26-38) This allowed for a bypass of the blood line of Adam, which was a bloodline of sin. Jesus’ bloodline was required for Him to be without any sin – He had to be perfect. This was the only way that He could qualify to be the once and forever sacrifice to God on behalf of you and for me.

Jesus accepted this assignment while in Heaven from the beginning of time. He was not murdered, He laid down His life. He was/ is omniscient (all knowing) and knew exactly what would happen to Him. This is just one of the many, many reasons that we worship and exalt the name of Jesus. He is Lord and Savior of all and He earned the office of Christ – the Anointed One. This is why He was called Christ Jesus after the Resurrection, when He officially ascended into the office.

1 In many separate revelations [[a]each of which set forth a portion of the Truth] and in different ways God spoke of old to [our] forefathers in and by the prophets,

2 [But] in [b]the last of these days He has spoken to us in [the person of a] Son, Whom He appointed Heir and lawful Owner of all things, also by and through Whom He created the worlds and the reaches of space and the ages of time [He made, produced, built, operated, and arranged them in order].

3 He is the sole expression of the glory of God [the Light-being, the [c]out-raying or radiance of the divine], and He is the perfect imprint and very image of [God’s] nature, upholding and maintaining and guiding and propelling the universe by His mighty word of power. When He had by offering Himself accomplished our cleansing of sins and riddance of guilt, He sat down at the right hand of the divine Majesty on high,

4 [Taking a place and rank by which] He Himself became as much superior to angels as the glorious Name (title) which He has inherited is different from and more excellent than theirs.” Hebrews 1:1-4

Faith is a gift reserved for those in relationship with the Almighty. Let us remain acutely aware that the sharing of our faith in Jesus is the only conduit by which the people that do not know Him, may access the sustained promises of the Divine.


Tracy Gatewood
Sacred Ramblings
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Author: Doorways of Grace: My Uncommon Journey to Healing, Wholeness and Meeting Jesus

To the Ones on the Fence

07 Sunday Apr 2019

Posted by in America, Christianity, Emotions, God, Grace, Healing, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Pro Life, Purpose, redemption, the Spirit, Wisdom

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Fairhope baby 2

In Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, there are 10 complete pages,  87 verses per page,  devoted to the word ‘child’ or ‘children’. Children are clearly on the heart of God the Father, and Christ the Son. As I ponder all that is currently happening in the ‘Right to Life‘ movement and the ‘Right to Choose‘ movement, it seems, from a Christian perspective, to boil down to One Thing – What would Jesus instruct a woman to do with the life of her unborn child?  Clarifying question isn’t it but too simplistic? I don’t think so –

Psalm 139: 13-16 AMP   A Psalm of David
“For You did form my inward parts; You did knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will confess and praise You for You are fearful and wonderful and for the awful wonder of my birth! Wonderful are Your works, and that my inner self knows right well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was being formed in secret (and) intricately and curiously wrought [as if embroidered with various colors] in the depths of the earth [a region of darkness and mystery]. Your eyes saw my unformed substance, and in Your book all the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape, when as yet there was none of them.”

King David’s Psalm pays homage to the Father for forming him before the beginning of the earth, actually “knitting him” in the womb of his mother. The Amplified version further emphasizes that he was embroidered with various colors, meaning David, as are we all, is a unique fabric ‘intricately and curiously’ made by the hand of God with individual skills, spiritual gifts, talents that are given to us by the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:8-10).

To know Jesus is to understand that He returned to earth in a “flesh tent”  for the redemption of all of mankind, to give each an eternal life that could not be attained through any other means. If we know Him, we are now considered a ‘child of God’ and given a re-birth, not caused by the will of flesh, or the desires of man.

John 1:12-14 AMP 
“But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the authority (power, privilege, right) to become the children of God. That is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) – His name. Who owe their birth neither to bloods, nor to the will of the flesh (that of physical impulse), nor to the will of man (that of a natural father), but to God. [They are born of God!] And the Word [Christ] became flesh (human, incarnate) and tabernacle (fixed His tent of flesh, lived awhile) among us; and we (actually) saw His glory [ His honor, His majesty] such glory as only begotten son receives from his father, full of grace (favor, loving-kindness) and truth.” 

Why would someone displaying the highest degree of value of the existence of human life and souls, Who lived solely to die  – be approving of taking the life of a child before it is ever given the chance to see the light of day?  A person knitted together in a womb with a soul; mind, will, and emotions, uniquely fashioned by the hand of God for specific and extraordinary purposes to be accomplished upon the Earth? Can a Believer embrace abortion and still truly Believe? Search your heart.  I say no. Emphatically no.

On the eve of Easter, I will share two verses that describe the sacrifice of our Lord, the One that died to give life eternal:

Isaiah 52:15 [ For many the Servant of God became an object of horror; many were astonished at Him] “His face and His whole appearance were marred more than any man’s and His form beyond that of the sons of men, but many were astonished at Him, ” ….. ”

Isaiah 53:5 “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement (needful to obtain) peace and well-being for us was upon Him and with the stripes (that wounded Him), we are healed and made whole.”

Understanding the terrible price that Christ Jesus paid to redeem and then ratify through resurrection, mankind’s ability to have a life eternal – would He approve of a woman’s right to end a human life – a life for which He paid the ultimate price?

I pray for the ones on the fence, in the throes of this decision, that you turn to Jesus and not to self. I pray for the ones that made the decision to choose death, that the voices of  condemnation and suffering over “the choice” would cease and you would now raise your voice to stopping this bloodshed – and speak for the voice of the one silenced – until you see them at Heaven’s gate.

Tracy Gatewood
Sacred Ramblings
All Rights Reserved  2019

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Author: Doorways of Grace: My Uncommon Journey to Healing, Wholeness
and Meeting Jesus

 

 

Ministry Matters: Why the Marketplace Should Incorporate Ministry Leaders into Their Sphere

14 Wednesday Nov 2018

Posted by in Disasters, Fear, Leadership, Prayer, Purpose, Salvation, the Spirit, Tracy Gatewood, Tracy Gatewood Prayer, Wisdom

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Dr. T.L. Lowery

From the beginning of opening business social media accounts, as a marketplace professional, I have been intentional about incorporating pastors and para church ministry leaders into my communities as “followers”. The Why is very simple. We need each other. The Marketplace needs and benefits from the influence and insights of mature spiritual leadership, ministry leaders depend on the skills and resources delivered from an innovative Marketplace to move their visions forward.

In the spring of 2011, I witnessed this relational need during a time of total devastation. In the transition back to my hometown of Tuscaloosa, AL, I watched, stunned, as meteorologists began frantically broadcasting during a “perfect storm” of atmospheric collisions resulting in an EF-4 tornadic holocaust that cut a 6 mile long swath of devastation killing 56 and taking out 12% of the physical buildings in the city. Immediately, church and lay and marketplace leaders moved into overdrive to save lives and rescue thousands of citizens. It took 3 years for the city to recover. Observing this concert of ministry and marketplace blending forces to create unified chords of hope, healing and restoration was a breathtaking, life altering event. (May 2011: Sacred Ramblings, Equip the Bride:  https://wp.me/p1zoxs-k )

I witnessed the church and para church ministries immediately respond to citywide trauma by creating individual “city halls” each with their own leadership structure, and systems of communication and distribution channels to serve the recovery efforts with speed and efficiency for each “embassy”.  Its Ambassadors; spiritual and marketplace leaders worked in different capacities;  the spiritual leadership moved quickly to provide an efficient platform of infrastructure from which to work providing staff, physical space, communication and distribution channels while marketplace (and then government) moved with speed and agility, providing vital resources of people, time and money through this stabilized infrastructure to create, innovate, and restore order as quickly as possible.

If you are a business person and feel that a church or para church ministry leader may not be a fit for your Linkedin account, I respectfully submit – this is misguided. Incorporating these leaders into your “sphere” is not just for the purposes of disaster prep. You need them and they need you. People in ministry have accepted the highest call. It’s far easier to become a University professor, a real estate practitioner, an attorney or a business owner, than walking out the vigorous testing journey required for accepting and walking out a ministry career call.

Most spiritual leaders are highly educated, but more importantly – they hear from God and have the ability to move and operate from a spirit driven perspective. This form of operating system is crucial for survival now and will be more so in the days ahead. If you had someone on your board that could accurately provide advice that could avert a really bad decision saving thousands would it not be worth it, even if it did not appear they possessed the technical experience to make those decisions?  You can have this.

Job 32:8 “But there is (a vital force) a spirit [ of intelligence ] in man, and the breadth of the Almighty gives men understanding. ”
Proverbs 2:8  “He hides away sound and godly Wisdom and stores it up for the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with Him): He is a shield to those who walk uprightly and in integrity, That He may guard the paths of justice, yes, He preserves the way of His saints.”
Proverbs 24:5-6 “A wise man is strong and is better than a strong man and a man of knowledge increases and strengthens his power. For by wise counsel you can wage war, and in an abundance of counselors there is victory and safety.”

But this relationship model goes both ways. In 2013-2015, I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. T.L. Lowery multiple times as well as attend his 70 years of Service Celebration at the T.L. Lowery Foundation in Cleveland. A stream of internationally known pastors stepped to the podium to praise and thank him for his many achievements. Dr. Lowery was a prolific healing evangelist in the 50’s and 60’s, using a “canvas cathedral” housing 10,000 people in every city that he reached during a 17 year period. ( Impartation video:  https://youtu.be/FsIXkxT578I  )

T.L. Lowery, Ph.D, held one earned doctorate, and was awarded two more.  He pastored two churches, one in his home town of Cleveland TN, the other in Washington DC. (The latter, the National Church of God, is currently led by his son, Stephen). Dr. Lowery built a Christian school, started a bible college and seminary, built homes for the elderly and established the T.L. Lowery Foundation. He authored 87 books, edited 3 magazines, wrote multitudes of teaching articles and traveled to over 100 nations.

A prolific Apostolic and prophetic teacher, he brought multitudes to Christ through his life’s work which was more than enough but not for him. In addition to pastoring, teaching and writing; T.L. Lowery was a leader in civic organizations, serving faithfully in his community and nationally –  an Ambassador to Project One for the United Nations, and in local leadership roles for the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, the United Way and Rotary. Yes, the great T.L. Lowery was also a Rotarian! He died at the age of 87 on February 21, 2016.  Interestingly, this date was one year to the day Rev. Billy Graham died as well as Doug Coe, founder of the National Prayer Breakfast. Three American evangelical leaders died within a 12 month period on the same date.

Marketplace professionals with access to ministry leadership should ask themselves how they can incorporate these leaders into the business realm. Ministry leaders – how can you incorporate yourself into the business arena as well as become proactive in your efforts to build relationships within and outside of your current sphere of influence? How can you establish yourself as a community leader outside of your “embassy”?  The strength of the fabric in our community’s is dependent on the number of threads effectively sewn between ministry and marketplace leadership.

tl-lowery-2-e1542210059689.jpg

Dr. T.L. Lowery and Tracy Gatewood following a fiery preaching session in 2013.  On that day, the devil didn’t have a prayer anywhere in Mississippi!

Tracy Gatewood
Sacred Ramblings  All Rights Reserved

Related Article: Equip the Bride: https://wp.me/p1zoxs-k&nbsp

This article appeared on Marketplace & Ministry  (WordPress)
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Author: Doorways of Grace: My Uncommon Journey to Healing, Wholeness and Meeting Jesus  (Amazon 2015 )