Devotions - Prayer
This Christmas Eve, I ask—
1.”What would be your best gift of all to receive?”
After much thought about material things it finally came down to: “the need to needed” and the “assurance of God’s love” for me as well as my wife and family members. ” TO BE LOVED ” WOULD BE MY GREATEST GIFT to receive.
2. “What would be your best gift to give to Others?”
My goal in this –is to give my love I have received from the Lord to others and be bold this season to Lift Up JESUS and His unconditional love He has for all that ask. “TELL OTHERS I LOVE THEM”
So my grown-up Christmas list would have one simple wish. That every person would truly understand the outrageous grace gift that God offers to each one of us. All we have to do is open that gift in faith.
Christmas is when the gift came to earth wrapped in swaddling clothes.
I wish that everyone who hears the Gospel message would comprehend the one way love that God demonstrated. Instead of turning His back on sinners who deserved just that God chose to reach out to His creation with a radical plan for forgiveness. A plan that is unlike any other religion in history.
Man made religion always demands something to earn salvation.
God’s plan for redemption requires the lost to bring nothing to the table other than their sin and the need for salvation. Nothing.
God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
This Christmas Serve your spouse, family and friends instead of waiting to be served by them. Everything starts with Love by responding in a Christ-like way.
Your- healthy relationships places focus on others and not yourself.
Father, open the eyes of my heart. I see that for that to happen there must be the bending of the knee, the imploring of the Spirit in prayer, so that truth becomes vital and compelling. Help me love my wife Laura and never treat her harshly. Help me Love from a Pure Heart Lord. Help me respond in a Christ-like way to love my children, Grandchildren, Family and friends. Amen
How do we stop stressing and stop living an excessively busy lifestyle?
God just wants us to be about “One Thing” – HIM.
God only wants the best for us, He had His Son Jesus lay down His LIFE for you and me.
John 10:10 The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.
Life is made up of hurdles that are invisible, that impact us and are undeniable.
Reading Psalms 46, 47, & 37. The Lord reminded me that no matter what battle I’m in, and how it looks, to always trust Him. Song praises, no matter what…REJOICE! because the Lord will provide the victory.
Psalm 47:1, 5–6 Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets. Sing praises to God; sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises.
That’s the Bible’s picture of the response that’s appropriate to God in His power and in His glory.
The one specific word that sums up that which God’s greatness, grandeur should provoke from you and me is the word praise, but a very all-inclusive kind of praise, a praise that occupies every part of our physical body, a praise that occupies all our faculties.
“Clap your hands all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.”
*That’s something more than just religious respectability.
*That’s a total response of our redeemed being to the Lord in His greatness.
*Clap our hands; shout to God.
Then it says, “God has ascended amid shouts of joy, … amid the sounding of trumpets.”
Shouts and clapping of hands and musical instruments are all required to sound forth the praise of God.
And then it goes on, “Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises.”
You know, it’s a theme, “Sing praises, sing praises, sing praises.” That’s how we have to respond to God.
John 10:12 “I (Jesus) am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep (us sinners).”
Thank You Lord for deliverance, for shining your light on the areas that I need to work on while praising You, “the good shepherd”. Amen
Read MoreActs 6, the newfound church had exploded into existence and discovered their first problem: they had a great deal of money!
All of its members were selling their land and possessions to give to the needs of others, but some of the widows in dire circumstances were being overlooked.
The Holy Spirit moved the apostles’ hearts to choose seven men to solve the problem.
That job seems easy enough, doesn’t it? If I were one of the apostles, I would have called for the accountants in the church, the financiers, the treasurers, the bookkeepers – those who had experience with handling and dispersing funds. That would seem the logical choice, wouldn’t it?
But the apostles had different criteria. In Acts 6:3 we find the qualifications: “Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.”
Wow! The implication here is that the men who were selected were men devoid of themselves, having been filled with the Holy Spirit.
*They were wise because they were surrendered to God, and because of this, God chose them for the task. Can you guess what happened next?
The matter was settled and the widows were taken care of from that day forth.
God doesn’t need the best-of-the-best to change the world; He can do it all by Himself.-–Yet, in His mercy and love, He has decided to allow us the opportunity to leave a mark on our sphere of influence for His glory.
*So be encouraged, friend; you don’t have to be the best-looking, the smartest, or the most talented person in the world to gain God’s approval.
READ: Acts 6:1-7
Here in this scripture we find that not just anyone was set as a leader, also the choosing of a leader wasn’t based on human standards but by Gods standards.
Amongst all the leaders they chose only the individuals which were the most filled with the Holy Spirit.
Wait!! If there is only one Holy Spirit, how can one have more than the other?
*Well the reason why one has more than the other is based on how far into God is the individuals heart.
*See how can a person that strives everyday to seek God & another that is unstable & can not stay committed be considered equal in the Spirit?
*They cant because the unstable person isn’t sure of who they are or there identity.
So if they are unstable the Holy Spirit can not be in them because they don’t believe.
**But on the other hand the individual that seeks God knows who they are, they know their identity, they will not be knocked over to easily.
**They surrender their entire heart to God, the door to their heart is wide open for the Holy Spirit to come & dwell in them & work thru them! Lets say they had Godly Values. Do we?
That is why they were chosen! So let there be no envy if one is not ordained, for it is not ones duty or time. It is not up to us but up to the Holy Spirit- it is His decision.
Let The Lord lead and guide you in the workplace and at home as a great leader and rely on him. Keep your identity in Jesus. Let Him direct you. Amen
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The Life now in our hearts is totally pure, incorruptible and holy because it is God’s Life and not our own.
“And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach…” Colossians 1:21-22
Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
How do you walk in the Spirit?
*The way you do this is through living by, conducting your actions according to, and following the leading of the Word of God as quickened to you by the Holy Spirit.
*The Holy Spirit and the Word of God agree perfectly because the Holy Spirit is the one who inspired the written Word of God.
Denying the flesh will not result in walking in the Spirit.
*Walking in the Spirit will result in denying the flesh.
As we experience more of the presence and power of the Spirit of God, then the influence of the flesh is diminished.
Victory must come in this order. We don’t walk in the Spirit as a result of overcoming the flesh, rather overcoming the flesh is the result of walking in the Spirit.
Man can no more get rid of the power of the flesh on his own than he can get rid of the power of darkness without light.
*We have to receive the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives by grace and then the union with the Holy Spirit breaks the power of the flesh.
The key to breaking the dominion of the flesh is to appropriate the power of the Spirit through faith, while the flesh is still causing us problems.
Lord, Help me let the Holy Spirit lead me each hour of each day. Help me see more clearly that it is no longer I, But You that lives in me. Amen
Read MoreI praise You because You made me in an amazing and wonderful way. What You have done is wonderful. I know this very well. You saw my bones being formed as I took shape in my mother’s body. When I was put together there, You saw my body as it was formed. All the days planned for me were written in Your book before I was one day old (Psalm 139:14-16).
We tend to find our identity and worth in the fact that we are chosen by someone.
The knowledge that I am chosen frees me to serve Him whole-heartedly and boldly without bowing to the unrealistic expectations imposed by others.
The knowledge that He created me allows me to embrace the gifts He has given me and encourages me to strain every choice, every decision through the filter of God’s perfect plan for my life.
Knowing whose I am draws my attention away from both the critics and the cheerleaders in life, and fixes my gaze on the only one I have to please … God.
We come to Jesus alone. There are no “group rates” when it comes to knowing God. It’s always one-on-one and very personal.
Just think of it! God Himself supervised our formation. We were created in love – for love – with a specific and holy purpose in mind.
We can rejoice with the Psalmist who wrote, “Know that the Lord is God. He made us, and we belong to Him; we are His people, the sheep He tends” (Psalm 100:3 ).
Knowing whose we are settles our souls and directs our steps toward the path God intended when He shaped us. You and I were created as a living, fleshed out representation of God’s love.
Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God(That holy religion which God has sent from heaven) is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness(Pardon of sin, and holiness of heart and life) peace(in the soul, from a sense of God’s mercy; peace regulating, ruling, and harmonizing the heart.)and joy in the Holy Spirit(In a word, it is happiness brought into the soul by the Holy Spirit, and maintained there by the same influence).
John 17:3 Now this is eternal life(The salvation purchased by Christ, and given to them who believe): that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
Father, I want to know You and find Your plan for my life. I choose to see myself through Your eyes of love, forgiveness and grace. I want to be the person You created me to be. Thank You for loving me. Help me to walk each day in the knowledge that I am Your child. Amen.
Taken from John Piper:
As the Hebrews were promised the land, but had to take it by force, one town at a time, so we are promised the gift of self-control, yet we also must take it by force.
The very concept of “self-control” implies a battle between a divided self. It implies that our “self” produces desires we should not satisfy but instead “control.”
We should “deny ourselves” and “take up our cross daily,” Jesus says, and follow him (Luke 9:23).
Daily our “self” produces desires that should be “denied” or “controlled.”
That path that leads to heaven is narrow and strewn with suicidal temptations to abandon the way. Therefore Jesus says, “Strive(agonize to enter through the narrow door” (Luke 13:24).
We get a taste of what is involved from Matthew 5:29, “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you.” This is the fierceness of self-control. This is what is behind the words of Jesus in Matthew 11:12, “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force.” Are you laying hold on the kingdom fiercely?
Paul says that Christians exercise self-control like the Greek athletes, only our goal is eternal, not temporal.
“Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable” (1 Corinthians 9:25). So he says, “I pommel my body and subdue it” (1 Corinthians 9:27).
Self-control is saying no to sinful desires, even when it hurts.
But the Christian way of self-control is NOT “Just say no!” The problem is with the word “just.” You don’t just say no. You say no in a certain way: You say no by faith in the superior power and pleasure of Christ. It is just as ruthless. And may be just as painful. But the difference between worldly self-control and godly self-control is crucial. Who will get the glory for victory? That’s the issue. Will we get the glory? Or will Christ get the glory? If we exercise self-control by faith in Christ’s superior power and pleasure, Christ will get the glory.
Fundamental to the Christian view of self-control is that it is a gift. It is the fruit of the Holy Spirit: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace . . . self-control” (Galatians 5:22–23).
How do we “strive” against our fatal desires? Paul answers: “I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me” (Colossians 1:29). He “agonizes” by the power of Christ not his own. Similarly he tells us, “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live” (Romans 8:13). “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of hosts” (Zechariah 4:6). We must be fierce! Yes. But not by our might.
“The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the LORD” (Proverbs 21:31).
And how does the Spirit produce this fruit of self-control in us? By instructing us in the superior preciousness of grace, and enabling us to see and savor (that is, “trust”) all that God is for us in Jesus. “The grace of God has appeared . . . instructing us to deny . . . worldly desires . . . in the present age” (Titus 2:11–12).
When we REALLY see and believe what God is for us by grace through Jesus Christ, the power of wrong desires is broken.
Therefore the fight for self-control is a fight of faith.
“Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called” (1 Timothy 6:12). amen
Read MoreAnd this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ — to the glory and praise of God”(Philippians 1:9-11 NIV).
Think of somebody who irritates you — maybe somebody you’ve got a strained relationship with or who just rubs you the wrong way. Two questions for you:
- One, do you pray for that person?
- Or do you just complain and grumble and nag and nitpick?
If you prayed more, you’d have a lot less to grumble, complain, nag, an$d nitpick about. It’s your decision.
Does nagging work? No. Does prayer work? Yes.
So why do you do more of the thing that doesn’t work than the one that does?
Pastor Friend of mine always says: “It is better to Bless others then Blast them”.
Paul says in Philippians 1:4,“Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy”.
Paul didn’t just pray for people in his life. He prayed with joy!
- Positive praying is more effective than positive thinking. All the positive thinking in the world isn’t going to change your husband or your wife or your child or your friend or your situation.
- Positive thinking can change you, but it won’t change somebody else. But positive prayer can make a difference in someone else.
Do you want to know the quickest way to change a bad relationship to a good one? Start praying blessings for the other person! It will change you, and it can change the other person.
Paul even told us how to pray for others: “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ — to the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:9-11).
From these verses, we can learn to pray for the people in our lives in four ways:
- Pray that they will grow in love:“This is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.”
- Pray that they will make wise choices: “… so that you may be able to discern what is best …”
- Pray that they will live with integrity: “… and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ …”
- Pray that they will become like Jesus: “… filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ — to the glory and praise of God.”
Pray these for yourself and anyone else in your life, and watch how God turns around the relationship you thought was hopeless. Nothing is impossible with God! Amen
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…So that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. Romans 6:6
Christian, why would you play with sin?
- Has it not cost you enough already?
- Burnt child, will you play with the fire? What! When you have already been between the jaws of the lion, will you step a second time into his den?
- Have you not had enough of the old serpent? Did he not poison all your veins once, and will you play at the cobra’s den and put your hand in the dragon’s lair a second time?
- Did sin ever yield you real pleasure? Did you find solid satisfaction in it?
- If so, go back to your old drudgery, and wear the chain again, if it delights you. But inasmuch as sin never gave you what it promised to bestow but deluded you with lies, do not be snared by the old fowler: Be free, and let the memory of your enslavement prevent you from entering the net again!
It is contrary to the designs of eternal love, which are all focused on your purity and holiness; therefore do not run counter to the purposes of your Lord. 1 Thess. 4:4-5
Another thought should restrain you from sin. Christians can never sin cheaply; they pay a heavy price for iniquity. Transgression destroys peace of mind, obscures fellowship with Jesus, hinders prayer, brings darkness over the soul; therefore do not be the serf and slave of sin.
There is still a higher argument: Each time you serve sin you are “crucifying once again the Son of God . . . and holding him up to contempt.”(hebrews 6:6)
Can you bear that thought? If you have fallen into any special sin during this day, it may be that your Master has sent this admonition this day to bring you back before you have wandered very far.
Turn to Jesus afresh. He has not forgotten His love for you; His grace is still the same. With weeping and repentance, come to His footstool, and you shall be reunited in His love; you will be set upon a rock again, and your goings shall be established. Because Jesus Loves You-He made You to bring Him Glory and in return we will have PEACE! Amen
Read 1 Thess. 5:16-19 and see God’s will for you!
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I wonder what those ten men, those ten grown sons of Jacob, talked about during that journey from Canaan to Egypt. I have an idea that it might have been the same things we would have talked about had we been in their sandals. I also believe these men were beginning to be broken. Perhaps they spoke of how much they missed their brother, Joseph. With Benjamin now among them, maybe they felt this was a good time to express their sorrow over their past actions and, together, sincerely request God’s power and protection.
I so want to believe that God was starting to melt their hearts before Him! In fact, that’s the beauty of this story as it progresses. We’re led to wonder what exactly they were thinking.
We so desperately want to cut to the chase to see the happy ending, but we must wait. Because there’s always something to learn along the way.
When we’re on our journey from Canaan to Egypt:
- We tend to be negative rather than positive.
- We tend to view life horizontally rather than vertically. We tend to be resistant rather than open to that which is new and unexpected.
- We need some course-correction techniques to break those habits!
Three techniques that will help:
- Recognize and admit your negative mentality. So much of the cure is in the confession. Immediate correction begins with honest admission.
- Force a vertical focus until it begins to flow freely. I have never seen a habit just lie down, surrender, and die; we have to make a conscious effort if we hope to break longstanding habits. If you are negative today, chances are very good that when you wake up tomorrow morning you’re still going to be negative. Force a vertical focus. Look to Jesus!
- Stay open to a new idea for at least five minutes. Don’t try it for an entire day; you might panic. Just take on your day five minutes at a time. When something new, something unexpected, confronts you, don’t respond with an immediate “Nope! Never!” Wait five minutes. Hold off. Tolerate the possibility for five minutes. You will be surprised at the benefit of remaining open. Every sin starts with a lie.
I’ve not seen a habit just lie down and die. It takes conscious effort to break it. But we do fight From Victory, not For Victory. (1JN 4:4) Jesus had Victory over all at the Cross for you and I. We must Choose Him as our Lord and Savior! Amen
We must not only be “hearers” of God’s Word, but “doers” also.
When God brings someone to mind, be sure to follow through with whatever He tells you to do for that person.
“Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead…”James 2:17
Believer, Become What You Are
Romans 12:1–2, I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Believer, you died and the new you is alive, and you are God’s. *The whole of our Christian life is learning to become — by God’s Spirit — what we already are in Christ.
*These verses show us how this newness in us comes to life in our everyday choices.
We need to be honest with each other in sharing our shortcomings as well as our victories.
*When we are real and transparent with others, we give them the freedom to “remove their masks” in our presence.
“It is better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.” Proverbs 16:19
The key to success or failure lies in doing things at the word of Jesus.
Peter said, “at thy word I will let down the net.” God’s words always get results.
Luke 5:5, “And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.”
Serve the Lord with gladness!
As Jesus leads and guides you today, ask Him to show you someone who needs an extra special blessing that you can fulfill.
“And do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. But the greatest among you shall be your servant.”Matthew 23:12
God hears our cries, and He answers our prayers so that He will receive all the glory as we grow together in His Word and journey toward living “so that” lives.
Heavenly Father, thank You for hearing the cry of my heart. Thank You for answering that cry because You are faithful to Your Word. Help me hear and obey so that You will receive all glory and honor and praise as I reach out to others in need. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read MoreI have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to My voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. – John 10:16
Hearing and responding to Jesus’ voice is the key to having a two-way relationship with God.
It is the difference between having religion and a relationship.
*Can you recognize God’s voice in your life?
*Are you listening to the Shepherd’s voice?
*Do you respond when He calls?
**Ask Jesus to help you increase your ability to hear. Give more time to spending quiet moments in His presence reading His word to hear His voice. He wants to be your Good Shepherd.
And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not (Mal 3:18).
When Moses led the people out of Egypt he had several crisis moments during those forty years.
His greatest crisis was when he came back from the mountain and discovered the people had made a golden calf. It was after this he came to a profound conclusion.
“Then Moses said to him, ‘If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.’ What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” (Ex 33:15,16).
The difference between a Christian and a non-believer should be that the Christian brings the presence of God with him to work.
However, this is not always the case. A Christian can shut out the presence of God by his behavior.
*Like the Israelites who experienced great miracles in their lives but began to worship idols, we can move away from God.
Sin separates us from God.
His presence moves away from us. Moses realized, he too had to have the presence of God with him to lead such a people.
The prophet Malachi was saying a day is coming when you’ll be able to recognize a clear difference between the righteous and the unrighteous
*Ask God to fill you with His overflowing presence in all you do today.
Imagine our “feet” as representative of our “souls”. When we make wrong emotional choices, it’s like stepping into a mud puddle.
*We don’t need a full bath (to get saved again) in order to become clean, but we do need to wash our feet (recognize and repent of wrong choices.
“Jesus said to him, ‘He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet…'”John 13:10
Thank You Jesus that You are the Way the Truth and the Life and nobody comes to the Father except through You. Help us to become more and more like You Jesus. And to do this help us to come to KNOW You more and more each day. Help us to see and create the time needed to get to KNOW You more. Amen
The “new willpower” we receive when we’re born again is the key to our Christian walk. We can now choose to either live God’s Life…or our own.
“So choose life in order that you may live…by loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him.” Deuteronomy 30:19-20
“He’s the centerpiece of everything we believe, faithful in everything God gave him to do.” Hebrews 3:2 (MSG)
The author of the book of Hebrews wrote.
These believers were in danger of losing their focus on Christ as their deliverer. People had begun putting their trust in prophets, angels, and even Moses. So in Hebrews 3, the people are reminded that Jesus is the only one worthy of trust and is where our faith should be centered.
The writer of Hebrews wanted Christians to stop putting themselves, other people, or material items, at the center of their attention, and instead draw their gaze back to Jesus.
Just like the people of that time, we can quickly get distracted, become busy, and inadvertently make our obligations and celebrations the focus of our attention.
We gradually become self-centered instead of Jesus-centered.
“Jesus said to him, ‘If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.’ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, ‘Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!’“ (Mark:9:23-24).
*Unbelief in Jesus (NOT believing in Jesus) is a turning away from Jesus in order to seek satisfaction in other things.
And BELIEF in Jesus is coming to Jesus for the satisfaction of our needs and our longings.
It’s one thing to believe in Jesus. It’s another to make Him the center of our lives.
When we make that important choice and remember to focus on Him and be thankful in all things, our hearts and lives stay in balance.
This Thanksgiving (and every day), let’s praise God and commit to making Him our focal point—“our centerpiece”.
When we choose to make Jesus the emphasis of our holidays and our lives, we are blessed with the most beautiful centerpiece of all.
See Colossians 2:2-3 and 1 Thess. 5:16-19 in your Holidays.
Lord, I never intended to put You on a shelf and allow life’s distractions to alter my attention on You. Give me the spiritual desire to stay intently focused on You during this holiday and into the new year. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read MoreIn everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18
One of the things that made people such dynamic Christians is the fact that they chose to see life from God’s perspective.
In the worst of situations, they find new insights to praise and thank God.
The Bible tells us that we are to give thanks in everything, the good things AND the bad things. In Psalm 50:23, God says, “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me.”
In the hard times, thanksgiving is difficult. It is definitely a sacrifice to thank God in our troubles, but it is so very necessary.
Thanksgiving honors God, and when you and I honor God, He honors us (1 Samuel 2:30).
How is your thanksgiving factor? Are you facing tough times? Have you been griping and complaining about the things in your life that are hard, lonely and frustrating? Jesus is there:
- He knows about it,
- He is over it, and
- He cares for you.
Without question, Jesus has a purpose in every trial and tribulation.
Start today to live a life of thanksgiving. If you will do it, your attitude will change, the people around you will be blessed, and Jesus Christ will be glorified and honored.
Thank You Jesus, Help me share this joy of thanksgiving this Holiday with all I encounter. Amen
Give THANKS ALWAYS! Ecclesiastes 7:14 “Enjoy prosperity while you can, but when hard times strike, realize that both come from God. Remember that nothing is certain in this life.”
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Only God’s Love can disarm the emotional bombs of generational hatred and vengeance that keep igniting all over the world.
“Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all transgressions.” Proverbs 10:12
“That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies…” Joshua 7:12
*It matters not how strong you are.
* It matters not whether you have the greatest resources and talent.
*It matters not if you have the best plans and procedures.
*It will all fail if you have a break in your armor.
This is the message God told Joshua when he attempted to go against a small army at Ai, which was the Israelites’ second battle in the Promised Land.
Sometimes we try to figure out why we are not successful in an endeavor.
*We look at all aspects of our performance to see what went wrong.
Sin makes our armor vulnerable to attack from Satan, who then gains permission from God to attack us in the area where we have failed to uphold righteousness(moral orderliness).
*If we break down in moral purity, satan comes in and establishes a stronghold.
*If we give place to bitterness and unforgiveness, we will break fellowship with God and others.
*If we become money-focused, we will fall into greed and deception.
****It is a vicious cycle.
Examine your armor today (Ephesians 6:10-20).
Verse 6:11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
- Watch your thoughts; they become words.
- Watch your words; they become actions.
- Watch your actions; they become habits.
- Watch your habits; they become character.
- Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.
#3 from the 8 truths to master life.
I sincerely ask the Holy Spirit to show me what I need to do and empower me to follow through in obedience.
Result: I am released from my need to control everything.
I am “Free.”
*The reason for this is that I now trust God, Who knows all, and He has promised those who are meek, that they will inherit the earth. Faith in God has freed one from the burden of trying to push, manipulate or force, in order to get one’s way.
Read–Jeremiah 9:23,24.
Lord help me to develop the same Character you have which is found in Matthew 5:3-12. Give me discernment this day to understand the Beatitudes a lot more this week. Amen
Read Moreby Os Hillman
“Jesus answered: Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?'” (John 14:9).
The disciples had been with Jesus for three years. They’d seen miracles – dead men came back to life, the sick were healed, and water was turned to wine. These were but a few of the hundreds of miracles they saw Jesus perform. However, even after these experiences, they lacked one important thing – intimacy with Jesus. They didn’t really know Jesus. See John 17:3
This must have been a great disappointment to Jesus. He’d invested so much into developing a close and intimate relationship with the twelve. Consider that they spent three years with their Master. They learned about Him during those years. However, they had knowledge without intimacy.
They experienced God’s power individually and He even performed miracles through their own lives. Sometimes it is easier to do the work of God without the intimacy with God.
A friend once commented about the current condition of much of the mainline churches today: “You’d think the trinity was the Father, Son and Holy Scriptures versus the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There’s never been a better description of the Church today.
But, alas, this is a challenge to my own walk with God. It is easy for me to fall into this trap of working so hard for Jesus that I forget to work with Jesus.
Jesus desires intimacy more than works. He tells us in John 15:5: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.” Whatever works we do must be a fruit of our intimacy with Him.
Lord, help us not to just know about you. We desire to know you. Amen