Author Archives: Christina

About Christina

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Blessings to all that are viewing this. My name is Christina Cruz-Mendez. I am a Senior Pastor at Mission United International Church in Yonkers, NY working along side my husband Juan A. Mendez Jr. Senior Pastor, currently residing in Canton, Georgia. We have been together for 29 years with 2 children that God has blessed us with. Makes us the family of four - "JusChrist4". I have been a Christian and active in ministry for about 22 years now. Through all the rocky and smooth roads in life I am eternally grateful that God has brought me this far in life to share with the world what He is doing in me, through me and for me.
November 7, 2018

ROOTS

By Christina

You will keep the peace, a perfect peace, for all who trust in You, for those who dedicate their hearts and minds to You.
Isaiah 26:3 (VOICE)

I hate the things that keep me up at night.

Mind things. Mind battles. Unsettling situations.

Words. Life. Changes. Processes. Thoughts.

I have been meditating and reading since 3 am this morning and have this blog to share—roots.

They are my thoughts. Personal thoughts. Private thoughts. They are unseen. Hidden and underground. Just as I was reading in a book by Joel Olsteen called “Next Level Thinking”.

I went to chapter 9 titled, “Get The Contaminants Out” which are thoughts. Unhealthy thoughts, bitterness, resentment, anger, frustration…. all the things that didn’t go right. It’s the little things that get you the most sometimes!

“Catch all the foxes, those little foxes, before they ruin the vineyard of love, for the grapevines are blossoming!”
Song of Songs 2:15 NLT

He kept speaking about the unseen by describing the roots that feed a tree. It’s not so much what happened, it is the thoughts that follow what happened! We think and think and rethink and replay words in our mind! That is a difficult process to sift through especially when words are contrary to your belief system.

But that belief system must be transformative.

It cannot conform. It cannot remain the same.

Emill Bridges this weekend at “Total Victory” conference in Charlottesville VA said, “You cant have grace and stay the same!”

There’s no way!

“If we keep going in and out of where we must REMAIN IN GOD, then we will always go up and down!”

That fluctuating emotional realm can be so draining. That’s why we can’t allow it to govern us. We can’t stay here. We can’t stay the same. We have to go there… where God prepared our wellness and wholeness. We have to THINK THE RIGHT THINGS and cast aside the remuneration that human form has been so conditioned to practice.

We must get RID of the roots that can poison the tree.

The roots are thoughts.

Just as you can’t see roots, you can’t see thoughts.

The roots feed the tree.

The thoughts feed the mind.

They must be healthy. And whatever is negative, frustrating, aggravating, unforgivable or unforgettable—WE MUST LET GO!

We have to move on because God gives us grace for each season. To me things may not always work in my favor, but I have to trust that God is bringing me to live in His favor.

My roots have to be so DEEP IN GOD! That it feeds my mind, my life, my soul, my actions, my steps, my ways, my everything! That my convictions are not based on feeling good, great or grief—but that it is based on the Word! That my convictions are based on His ways.

Those are the roots I need.

To be rooted IN Christ.

To have my thoughts IN Christ, so that I am kept in perfect peace.

Does that make sense?

Christina…… “You have risen above adversity but now you have to RISE HIGHER!”

Right roots (thoughts) will help you achieve that.

Verses:

“Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”
Colossians 2:7 NLT

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”
Proverbs 4:23 NLT

3 Comments | posted in Celebration, Encouragement, Inspiration, Love, Recovery, Restoration, Rise, Trust

October 29, 2018

Divine Differences

By Christina

For You shaped me, inside and out.
You knitted me together in my mother’s womb long before I took my first breath.
I will offer You my grateful heart, for I am Your unique creation, filled with wonder and awe. You have approached even the smallest details with excellence;
Your works are wonderful;
I carry this knowledge deep within my soul.
You see all things; nothing about me was hidden from You
As I took shape in secret, carefully crafted in the heart of the earth before I was born from its womb. You see all things;
You saw me growing, changing in my mother’s womb;
Every detail of my life was already written in Your book;
You established the length of my life before I ever tasted the sweetness of it.
Psalm 139:13-16

God is so detailed with us.  He made us to perfection. We could never doubt that His work is proven and so carefully orchestrated for our lives. He knows it all, made it all and done it all.  Every detail, nothing hidden. He shaped us from the inside out. He saw the beginning from the end.  How wonderful that is to know.  God did that all for each person that has ever lived and for how long that they did.

Each unique. Each one special. Each one crafted. Each one lovely.

I looked at a set up that my daughter did this evening in my house while I was cooking and I thought of this.  I reflected on the creativity. I thought of our differences. They are divine. God makes us all different. She took all the pieces that I had set on the server just to switch out the runner for a rose gold match and when she put everything back –the SAME stuff –it was different. I must admit that it was even BETTER! I thought to myself, “How creative this girl is!” The way she put each piece. The wood fixtures, the candles, the picture frames –and very different from the way I had it previously displayed.

Everyone is creative like that.  Able to do something completely different from the next one.  We all bring something to the table.  A special touch.  The way that we arrange things.  The way that we exchange. The way we express. The way that we look, think, feel and act! We are all different.

There are no two people that are identical. Not even twins. There is something different about them. We can have so many things in common with our partners or the bestest of friends but still there will be something different. That is the way it is supposed to be. That is what makes our world so colorful. That is why it is always best to be who YOU are and who God created you to be.

You have something so authentic that you bring out in life and when you share it more, you can touch the world around you. Sometimes people end up hiding themselves all their lives because they are so uncomfortable with who they are. They don’t love themselves enough or even see how others love them. But if more people begin to understand and embrace their identify, the more colorful life will be. This also helps to encourage others to follow in their own footsteps.

There is enough darkness passing through this earth.  Now is the time that we need this uniqueness about ourselves to emerge. Now is the time that we need to be even that much more effective, influential and inspiring with our authentic variations of style and personality. Now is the time that we should shine the most in our individual expressions and divine differences.

It is not time to hide behind the scenes because of the hindrances and challenges that try to spoil our identify. We live loud. We live bold. We live with love. We live with acceptance and courage. You may not impact them all –but you will definitely impact someone and that is enough. That is why He made you just the way that you are and through each passing day, week, month and year –you become a better version of that divine creation. Dare to be different. Stand out from the batch humbly, gratefully and thankfully.

We are just passing in this journey to go from glory to glory.

As the Psalmist declared:
I will offer You my grateful heart, for I am Your unique creation, filled with wonder and awe. You have approached even the smallest details with excellence;
Your works are wonderful….

1 Comment   |  tags: , | posted in Emerging, Encouragement, I AM, Identity, Inspiration

October 23, 2018

This Is Pretty Cool

By Christina

I have seen the kinds of tasks God has given each of us to do to keep one busy, and I know God has made everything beautiful for its time. God has also placed in our minds a sense of eternity; we look back on the past and ponder over the future, yet we cannot understand the doings of God. I know there is nothing better for us than to be joyful and to do good throughout our lives; to eat and drink and see the good in all of our hard work is a gift from God. I know everything God does endures for all time. Nothing can be added to it; nothing can be taken away from it. We humans can only stand in awe of all God has done. What has been and what is to be—already is. And God holds accountable all the pursuits of humanity.
Ecclesiastes 3:10-15 (VOICE)

God did make everything beautiful in its time.  It is so hard to say that in the rough times.  But now I know and now I see why.  I could only appreciate even more what He is doing in my now season and I am extremely grateful.  I am joyful.  I am thankful.

As we are approaching the close of this year with two more months left to go…I am gazing at all my surroundings and saying, “God did that!” To say the least right–this year has been a pure madness for me.  I had left in January in a season of mystery.  The only thing I knew was that I had to wait for the “what’s next” moment.  I knew it was coming because I pushed myself to tempt God with a move.  I acted on faith and I left the familiar to a place of a real unknown.

It’s been rough.

I started some real momentum in June, only to become completely depleted of life again. It was the last 18 years on steroids.  It was all packed into 3 rough months.  I mean really rough.  It became a season of doubt for me. Then my doubt became my trust. I had to trust the unknown. I had to trust the storm. I had to trust the loss. I had to trust the absence. I had to trust the void. I had to trust that God was leading me through all of that to prepare me for my REAL season of REST!

Well who would have know! But God.  And not only that but He went above all that. In fact during my prayer walk at lunchtime I told him ”You really surprised me! You went over the top!” LOL

Like this is beautiful! It’s nice. It’s lovely. It is exquisite to me.

“One persons opinion of you doesn’t define you. Bleed it out.
Even Jesus doubted Himself –He prayed.
Season of doubt! 
Trees are full of leaves.
In the autumn leaves begin to fall off.
In the winter, there are no more leaves, it is bare.
Even in winter with no leaves, it is still a tree. 
Once spring comes, leaves come again.
They come again to strengthen us.
For this season will pass Christina.” 
Pastor Olusegun Akinkugbe
City of God Glasgow
Scotland

When we experience such a deep drought, it does cause us to doubt. But it took a season like THIS for me to be able to REST for real. It allowed me to experience the Hand of God in great measure. It allowed me to experience NO LACK! It brought me deeper into the things of God. It got me to hear His word in EVERY season of my life. He kept speaking in various ways. It propelled me into a place of pure trust and pure hope that would inevitable lead me to the place of such an overwhelming victory! It’s nice. It’s really amazing.

Wow! All I can say is in this place as I am gazing at my surroundings, “God, It is pretty cool here! Real cool! Thanks for this. You knew what was best and I needed it.”

It is a season to take territory of this.

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October 14, 2018

Hmm My Testimony

By Christina

I was having brunch today with some very important people that God has put in my life and they started to ask us questions….
How did you and your husband meet?
How did you feel about all of this?
What was your view with him coming to Christ?
What about you?

Well–I also pick up this book from Annie F. Downs called “Remember God” and she talks about the importance of her reflecting on all the things that God does and continues to do. So this was a perfect time for the questions to come my way. I can reflect and really see that I didn’t know my purpose. I didn’t know what would make of my life. I had thought I would be some elementary school teacher or something like that. But God’s plan was for me to teach His word. Either through writing or by communicating on any level that He would have for me. In a woman’s meeting, church service. out on the field, testifying to people or any other means –even international.

Most recently, I had the opportunity to share that on a video tapping for TBN Salsa that will soon air across 144 countries in just a few weeks. So I remember God! I have a testimony. He has done great things in my life.  He is continuing to do that now and I know that there is just so much more to come.  It is absolutely amazing.

God does that! He is just amazing, awesome, awe-inspiring in every way.  I love Him. But most importantly –HE JUST LOVES ME!

I can remember very early on in life that things weren’t working out in our favor as a family.  Mom moved us out–me, my brother and her.  We spent the majority of the time on public assistance and my mom trying to get as much work as she could. With the absence of my dad and no real presence in our life after that move, things became worse.  It was an awkward separation that left me wondering…. always wondering AND wandering without a purpose. I didn’t really have anyone sharing to my face that I could be something of value like that.

I disliked life. I disliked our family situation. I disliked myself and everything about me. I didn’t see any value or purpose at all. I just cared less. So I just thought to WASTE my time with meaningless things. Anything.  Like poor relationships, smoke, drinks, lousy parties with people I would never see again.  I had no purpose, no direction, no focus and I was so so sad all the time. I was a miserable and an extremely angry person. I had so much frustration of my past.  I was hateful. There was nothing in me to want to continue except that God was keeping me.

I remember when I finally had an encounter with God. I was so touched because I truly didn’t want to live like this anymore. It is horrible to live with no sense of purpose, love or happiness.  But then that moment opened for me. And even though there were still many trials up ahead for me to face, the fact that I had God in my life only kept me more secure in Him.  His word had power. His voice had authority. His ways had overtook mine.  There was nothing else to do but surrender to the God of my life.

The Dr. told me today –you need to share your testimony because it is powerful.  You have a story to tell –so tell it.  Here is me doing that on a quick blog as I shared so much in my first book “Rebuilt: Beginning the Ending.” God is doing so much. I am blessed. I am favored. I am grateful and I am super thankful for who He is. He has given me a tremendous testimony. I will share it more and I will share MORE! I hope you will share yours too because there is so much more to come.

“At least there is hope for a tree:
if it is cut down, it will sprout again,
and its new shoots will NOT fail!”
Job 14:8

With Love,

Christina

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