Devotions - Prayer
Better Than Everest
By John Piper
We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)
If you live inside this massive promise, your life is more solid and stable than Mount Everest.
Nothing can blow you over when you are inside the walls of Romans 8:28.
Outside Romans 8:28, all is confusion and anxiety and fear and uncertainty. Outside this promise of God’s all-encompassing future grace, there are straw houses of drugs and pornography and dozens of futile diversions. There are slat walls and tin roofs of fragile investment strategies and fleeting insurance coverage and trivial retirement plans. There are card-board fortifications of deadbolt locks and alarm systems and antiballistic missiles. Outside are a thousand substitutes for Romans 8:28.
Once you walk through the door of love into the massive, unshakable structure of Romans 8:28, everything changes. There come into your life stability and depth and freedom. You simply can’t be blown over anymore. The confidence that a sovereign God governs for your good all the pain and all the pleasure that you will ever experience is an incomparable refuge and security and hope and power in your life.
When God’s people really live by the future grace of Romans 8:28 — from measles to the mortuary — they are the freest and strongest and most generous people in the world.
Their light shines and people give glory to their Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16).
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The Bible never says we won’t have negative thoughts, emotions or desires, but it does says we can have victory over “the flesh” if we choose to continually walk by faith.
“Blessed is a man who perseveres under the trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” James 1:12
The sin that makes God cry is being committed daily, not by pagan workers of iniquity but by multitudes of Christians—
**the sin of doubting God’s love for His children.
Jesus Christ was God in the flesh, and according to the book of John He wept when those closest to Him doubted His love and concern. (John 11:35)
*That was God incarnate at the tomb of Lazarus, crying over friends who failed to recognize who He was.
Jesus spoke to God in the presence of those around him. He wanted them to see that God is in the midst of their pain and hurt.
**God is present in our pain and suffering. He mourns with us when we are sad; he limits himself to feel these losses with us. He does listen to our cries when we are hurt.
Jesus says: “Here I Am.”
“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away .” Revelation 21:4
Time and time again Christ’s dearest associates on this earth doubted His love for them.
*Think of the disciples in a storm-tossed boat that was taking on water.
*Jesus was in the stern of the boat, sound asleep. Fearing for their
lives, His followers shook Him awake and then accused Him of outrightunconcern. “Master, carest thou not that we perish?” (Mark 4:38).
*How their accusation must have grieved the Lord! That was God Almighty in their boat!
How could He not care?
***But whenever men take their eyes off the Lord and concentrate
instead on their circumstances, doubt always takes over.
*Jesus was astounded! He said:
“How can you be afraid when I am with you? How can you question My love and care?”
Christians today grieve the Lord in this matter even more.
Let us look for His exceeding mercy and love, admit the sinfulness of our unbelief, and recognize who He is!
In John 11:25 Jesus makes what may be His most COMFORTING claim of all:
“I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE“.
Lord, Help my faith to sit solidly on Biblical Truth. Thank You Jesus! Amen
Read More Ephesians 2;10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
God rested on the 7th Day of his work.
Gen 2: 2 On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation.
** God didn’t rest because he was tied, but because it was a blessed day?
*Activity does not indicate productivity.
*Action does not mean production.
*Just because it looks quiet now does not mean God has stopped work in your life.
He has not abandoned the project.
*Just because you cannot see anything happening does not mean nothing is happening.
God is still on the throne and He is doing a work in your life.
* He has not stopped working.
*He is still working.
Remember you are the clay and He is the potter.
It may look like the more you have prayed the more nothing has happened. Not so. The Master is at work and He is working on a masterpiece. Masterpieces often take awhile.
You are beginning to ask.
*Has God forgotten me?
*Is He acting on my prayer request or requests.
*Has he changed his mind?
Remember He is not man to lie or the son of man to change His mind.
Philippians 1:6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
Jesus the same yesterday, today and forever. He is the Ancient of days. Strong as ever. More than reliable and dependable forever.
*He is still God even though you cannot feel or perceive Him.
*He is still God even though you have not seen the miracle.
*He is working for your good.
You may not see it now but in the end you shall see that all along He was working for your good.(Romans 8:28)
If Jesus, who was God in the flesh (1 Tim. 3:16), could humble Himself and value our good above His own welfare, then we should certainly be able to do the same. It can happen when we die to self and live to God.
Prayer is seen by God in your actions. It is what “We Choose” to do each day.
You ARE GOD’S MASTERPIECE!!!! (Ephesians 2:10)
Lord, thank You for hearing my cry for help. Thank You for Your steadfast love, which rescues me from my restless wandering and leads me in the straight way. Amen
Read More- Psalm 139:13–16-For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Some years ago, God began to speak to me about the marvel of the physical body, about the marvel of my own body, that it is a masterpiece of divine workmanship(see Ephesians 2:10). And I began to be concerned that I treated that masterpiece right, that I did not abuse it, that I did not neglect it.
Your body has a very special purpose.
- God provided the material in the depths of the earth. He fashioned it together.
- He had a blueprint before it ever came into being, and He worked it out in every detail.
And, you know, the purpose for that body, the supreme purpose is to be God’s temple – the temple of the Holy Spirit.
The Most High doesn’t dwell in temples made with hands. We can’t fashion a building that will hold Him, but in His infinite grace and mercy God predetermined that He would fashion a body and that that body would become His dwelling place.
Paul says, in 1 Corinthians 6:19 “Don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
Thank You Jesus, that I am Your child, heir, established, anointed, sealed by You and a citizen of heaven-Chosen, Holy, Blameless in You, forgiven. Yes, I have hope, purpose, redemption, been shown the incomparable riches of God’s grace, have access to the Father, have a new attitude, new lifestyle and have been called by YOU! What Love! Amen (See Ephesians 1:4, Ephesians 2:1-10)
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What is the key to success and victory when the enemies aligned against us seem too great to overcome? It may seem unlikely, but here is one answer: giving thanks.
Revelation 12:11 tells us we defeat the enemy by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. What might that testimony sound like? “Give thanks to the Lord, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
Thanksgiving is our song for every battle. It is a key to our victory!
Do you see the tremendous potential of giving thanks to release God’s miracle-working power in our lives?
A beautiful example of this principle is in the story of the ten lepers who met Jesus in Luke 17, verses 12–19….
- All ten lepers were cleansed.
- All were healed physically.
- But something completely extra—and the most important thing of all—happened to the one man who returned to give Him thanks.
Jesus said to him in verse 19: “Rise and go, your faith has made you well.”
So you see, there was an important difference between the nine who were healed physically and the tenth who came back to give God thanks. He was not merely healed physically, but he was saved. His soul was saved. He was brought into a right eternal relationship with God.
The same is true in our lives. Giving thanks for blessings already received sets the seal of permanence upon them.
Lord, I want to commit myself fully to this principle of giving thanks in all situations. I offer my thanksgiving as my victory song to You, O Lord. Amen.
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God wants us to be intentional about our thankfulness every day.
God wants us to develop this spiritual habit, one that is reflected in the life of a radical believer.
The truth is, the more deeply you understand God’s love, the more grateful you’re going to be.
The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”. That’s radical gratitude. In all circumstances give thanks, because it’s God’s will for you.
You can thank God in every circumstance because God is in control.
He can bring good out of evil. He can turn around the stupid mistakes you’ve made. No matter what happens, God isn’t going to stop loving you. There are a hundred things to be thankful for in any circumstance, even when the circumstance stinks.
Radical gratitude — being thankful in all circumstances — is God’s will because it creates fellowship. Gratitude always builds deeper relationships between you and other people and between you and God.
Whoever you want to get closer to, start expressing gratitude to that person.
If you’ve taken for granted your husband or your wife, or your parents or your friends, you need to start doing what you did when you first met them: Express gratitude. Write little notes of kindness and encouragement. Make calls or text during the day, just to tell him or her that you’re thankful. Do the things you did at first. The reason you’ve lost that lovin’ feeling is because you stopped doing the things that created that lovin’ feeling early on, and you take each other for granted.
Do you want to build your small group? Don’t just go to small group. During the week, text them, email them, call them, write them. Say, “I’m grateful for you, and here’s why.” You’ll find that the more grateful you are for your group, the more your group will bond.
The Bible tells us to “encourage one another and build each other up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).
As you build others up, you’ll find that God builds into your life as well through your deep relationships with him and others.
Lord, give me a deeper respect for you and the encouragement you instruct us to give others in building up of your body. Help me to have a heart of gratitude in all circumstances. Amen
Read MoreGod crafted us to reflect His image, not create our own.
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Psalm 139:13-14
Living fully in the knowledge that we are one of God’s wondrous works is our greatest praise to Him!
It’s in becoming our truest, God-created selves, reflecting His image in the gifts and wiring He’s given us, that we’ll connect most deeply with our Creator and with others.
John 7:15 “And the Jews marveled, saying, How does he know so much when he has not been trained?” 16 So Jesus told them, “My message is not my own; it comes from God who sent me. ”
Jesus received His wisdom and knowledge by direct revelation from the Spirit of God rather than by the teachings of man.
• Jesus had been learning, but not through man.
• The Holy Spirit was His teacher.
Jesus had to be taught the things of God.
Jesus’ spirit man was 100% God and had all of the wisdom and understanding of God in it, but it was manifest in natural flesh. It wasn’t sinful flesh but it was flesh, nonetheless, and had to be educated.
Jesus was not taught by man, but He was taught by the direct revelation of the Holy Spirit. The knowledge was within Him but it had to be drawn out.
At the new birth, a born-again man’s spirit “is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” (Col. 3:10).
“We have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16), and “an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth” (1 Jn. 2:20).
All of these things are a reality in our spiritual man. However, just as Jesus had to be taught, so we must draw this wisdom and knowledge out of our spirits and renew our minds with it (Rom. 12:2).
This is one of the main ministries of the Holy Spirit to the believer.
Through the new birth, we have received the mind of Christ in our spirit man and are in the process of growing in wisdom by drawing this knowledge out of our spirits and renewing (or reprogramming) our minds. This wisdom has to be drawn out by faith, time spent in the Word, and prayer.
A changed life convinces people of Christ’s power.
One of our greatest testimonies is the difference others see in our life and attitudes since we have believed in Christ.
Lord, I long to walk in freedom and to become the person you intended me to be when You wove me together. Help me be authentic, instead of shape-shifting to please others or to attain an impossible image. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read More“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” —Acts 1:8
*This power is for a purpose. It is not power to be crazy or power to do weird things.
* It is power to be a witness . . .
* Power to have the courage to tell someone about Jesus Christ . .
* Power to tell people about what Jesus has done for you. CROSS!
The Holy Spirit did not make His first appearance at Pentecost.
Gen. 1:2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
The Holy Spirit is also shown to be doing the Father’s work throughout the Old Testament and Gospels.
*However, the Spirit arrived in the upper room with a fresh mission from the Father.
In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit empowered individuals for specific tasks.
*For example, Bezalel’s God-given wisdom and craftsmanship enabled him to become the Tabernacle’s chief architect (Ex. 31:1-5).
*Men called to proclaim God’s word (Isa. 61:1; Ezek. 2:1-4).
When the Lord wanted a job done, He chose someone to do it.
*Then the Holy Spirit equipped him or her for the task.
God gave power only to certain people and didn’t necessarily remain with them long.
Indicating that the Spirit’s involvement with believers would be different than before, Jesus told the disciples, “He abides with you and will be in you” (John 14:17).
God’s Holy Spirit had come alongside the disciples during their time with Christ. But following the completion of Jesus’ work on earth, He would dwell within them.
Since Pentecost, EVERY BELIEVER HAS received the Holy Spirit.
*If Jesus is the vine and we are the branches, then the Spirit is the sap equipping us for the Christian life.
***Furthermore, He no longer comes and goes but rather remains permanently.
He seals us in Christ—proof of the promise that we are forever in God’s presence.
Eph. 1:13And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
At salvation, you receive the same spirit that you will have throughout all eternity.
*It will not have to be changed again or cleansed again.
*It has been sealed with the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13) and is therefore sanctified and perfected forever (Heb. 10:10, 14; 12:23).
Jesus lives in the spirit of believers.
All that He is will be available to you if you will depend on Him instead of your own abilities.
Thank You God for Your indescribable gift-“The Holy Spirit”. Thank You that the Holy Spirit has awakened me from spiritual death. Amen
Grace is at the heart of the Christian faith. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than at the cross of Christ.
It is grace that the Son of God took on flesh, and grace that he taught us how to live — but it is especially grace that he died on the cross in our place.
Here are five biblical truths about what Jesus accomplished on the cross.
1. The death of Jesus was for his enemies.
God’s love is different than natural human love. God’s love is Agape Love which is the only love essential to human survival. (Romans 5:7–8).
2. The death of Jesus purchased a people.
The death of Christ was effective in its purpose. And its goal was not just to purchase the possibility of salvation, but a people for his own possession. Hear Jesus’swords: “All that the Father gives to me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out… And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day” (John 6:36, 39).
3. The death of Jesus is on our behalf.
Jesus’s death was substitutionary. *That is, he died in our place. *Jesus died the death that we deserved. *Jesus bore the punishment that was justly ours. (1 Peter 2:24).
4. The death of Jesus defines love.
Jesus death wasn’t just an act of love, it defines love.
His substitutionary death is the ultimate example of what love means, and Jesus calls those who follow him to walk in the same kind of life-laying-down love. (1 John 3:16).
5. The death of Jesus reconciles us to God.
Justification, propitiation, and redemption — all benefits of Christ’s death — have one great purpose: reconciliation.
*Jesus’s death enables us to have a joy-filled relationship with God, which is the highest good of the cross.
Paul writes, “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him” (Colossians 1:21–22).
Thank You Jesus for the forgiveness you have for me– which was purchased at the cross. Help me too, to extend that forgiveness to others for your Glory. Amen
Read MoreWhat if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written,“That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged.” (Romans 3:3–4)
By John Piper
Our concern with truth is an inevitable expression of our concern with God. If God exists, then he is the measure of all things, and what he thinks about all things is the measure of what we should think.
Not to care about truth is not to care about God. To love God passionately is to love truth passionately. Being God-centered in life means being truth-driven in ministry. What is not true is not of God.
Ponder these four sets of texts on God and truth:
1) God Is the Truth
Romans 3:3–4 (God the Father): “What then? If some did not believe, their unbelief will not nullify the faithfulness of God, will it? May it never be! Rather, let God be found true, though every man be found a liar.”
John 14:6 (God the Son): Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.”
John 15:26 (God the Spirit): “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness of me.”
2) Not Loving the Truth Is Eternally Ruinous
2 Thessalonians 2:8–12: “They will perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.”
3) Christian Living Is Based on Knowledge of the Truth
1 Corinthians 6:15–17: “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? May it never be! Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a harlot is one body with her?”
4) The Body of Christ Is Built with Truth in Love
Colossians 1:28: “And we proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, that we may present every man complete in Christ.”
May God make us passionate for him and for truth.
Amen
Read More“But remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your forefathers, as it is today” (Deut. 8:18).
“The greater our success, the greater the risk of us thinking too highly of ourselves.”
“Adversity is sometimes hard upon a man; but for one man who can stand prosperity there are a hundred that will stand adversity.”
Oswald Chambers wrote, “Sudden elevation frequently leads to pride and a fall. The most exacting test of all to survive is prosperity.”
• Each of us must view success as a gift from God.
• We must learn to see all of our successes as a gift from God, not our own achievement.
The Lord is the source of all success, all elevation, all blessing.
If you have a good mind and a healthy body, if you live in a land of opportunity, if you have a good education, if you’ve had a few breaks go your way, then you have much to be grateful for – and no cause for arrogance.
You didn’t achieve success; you received it as a gift.
I have learned it is better to learn humility voluntarily, than involuntarily!
True Meaning of Workplace Success
5 Truths for our Work being our Worship
1. Belief in the reality of God who has spoken, making the word of God the basis of our understanding and action.
2. Therefore, operate by faith in the Word of God, knowing life in the workplace is just as spiritual as the time we spend in worship.
3. The result is, having confidence in God’s calling and His gifting’s, that makes work worth while and fulfilling.
4. So, God is glorified in the workplace.
5. Resulting in, success being measured by faithfulness to Christ, following him in obedience.
Nothing that happens on earth can ever change the Word of God.
“Heaven and earth will disappear, but My Words will never disappear”. Mark 13:31
5 Myths When Missing God as our Pilot
1. Belief in self – it is all about me!
2. Therefore, we operate from one’s limited perspective.
3. The result is, self-confidence with arrogance leading you.
4. So, the workplace centers on man’s achievements alone.
5. Resulting in, success being measured by pride in material wealth.
Paul tells us: “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you” (Rom. 12:3).
Read MoreBy John Piper
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11)
How shall we fight for joy?
- Realize that authentic joy in God is a gift.
- Realize that joy must be fought for relentlessly.
- Resolve to attack all known sin in your life.
- Learn the secret of gutsy guilt — how to fight like a justified sinner.
- Realize that the battle is primarily a fight to see God for who he is.
- Meditate on the Word of God day and night.
- Pray earnestly and continually for open heart-eyes and an inclination for God.
- Learn to preach to yourself rather than listen to yourself.
- Spend time with God-saturated people who help you see God and fight the fight.
- Be patient in the night of God’s seeming absence.
- Get the rest, exercise, and proper diet that your body was designed by God to have.
- Make a proper use of God’s revelation in nature.
- Read great books about God and biographies of great saints.
- Do the hard and loving thing for the sake of others (witness and mercy).
- Get a global vision for the cause of Christ and pour yourself out for the unreached.
Lord may we all experience more and more of Your Joy in our lives and families. Help us spend some time giving back to others the joy you have given us. Amen
Read MoreDoes our heavenly Father favor certain of his children?
When it comes to salvation and his wonderful promises, God treats ALL alike but He also puts his special favor on those who respond wholeheartedly to his calling and yield their lives to him entirely!
God is all knowing, therefore He knows the good and the bad, those who seek him an those who don’t. If you truly seek him with your heart and through your actions then he will have a place for you in heaven!
Our heavenly Father puts a special garment on those who completely give him their heart:
“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness” (Isaiah 61:10).
* True saving faith’s object is Jesus alone
* True saving faith results in a changed life.
W are to be looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith! When Satan comes and points at some weakness in our heart, WE have every right to answer, “My God already knows it all and he still loves me! He has given me everything I need to attain victory and keep it.”
(See 1JN 4:4 for Fighting From Victory)
The Lord leads each of His children along a path that is uniquely tailor made for him or her. Comparing is not only wrong; it is also meaningless.
**Don’t look for affirmation in the wrong places; your own evaluations, or those of other people.
*The only source of real affirmation is the Lord’s unconditional Love.
JESUS died for your sins, so that He might clothe you in His garments of salvation. This is how the Lord sees you: radiant in HIS robe of righteousness.
When the Lord disciplines you, it’s never in anger or disgust; it is to prepare you for face-to-Face fellowship with HIM throughout all eternity.
Romans 8: 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?
* Paul provides us with a very descriptive manifestation of all that is for those who are in Christ Jesus;
Romans 8:
1. No condemnation! (vs. 1)
2. Live in the Spirit (vs. 9)
3. Life because of righteousness (vs. 10)
4. Are children of God (vs. 14 & 15)
5. Have hope (vs. 23-25)
6. Experience God’s good working (vs. 28)
7, Are called, justified, and glorified (vs. 30
8. Are more than conquerors! (vs. 31 &37)
9. Will never be separated from the love of God! (vs. 35)
This is an amazing Chapter full of the promise that God gives us- His children.
YES WE ARE GOD’S MASTERPIECE. Amen Thank You Jesus!
Read MoreIf we’re only loving in order to change the other person or the circumstances, our motivation is totally wrong.
That’s conditional human love, and not God’s Love at all.
*If selfishness is motivating us, the fruit of our actions will be rotten.
“Love…does not seek its own…” 1 Corinthians 13:4-5
It’s something quite amazing to know that no matter where I am, where I go or what I do, God is there... I don’t have to run, and there’s no place to hide… He sees and knows ALL!
* Don’t hide. Come to Him. He is calling unto you. Come to your Father and talk to Him, He’ll understand. He knows everything. He controls everything even if He seems silent sometimes. He’s watching with compassion… waiting for you to come to Him.
Psalm 139:7–10. “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence?If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths[or in Sheol, or in hell], you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me; your right hand will hold me fast.”
God’s presence is His Spirit.
*God told the prophet Jeremiah that He fills all things, that He fills the heaven and He fills the earth.
It’s not the visible, manifest form of God that fills the heaven or the earth, but it’s that invisible, imperceptible presence of God the Holy Spirit which permeates the entire universe.
*No matter where we go, that invisible hand is stretched out to hold us.
*No matter how far we may sink down or how high we may rise, we cannot go below the level of God’s presence or ascend above it.
God’s presence is always with us.
*He hears every word we speak;
*He knows every thought.
*He said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
God is omnipotent (all powerful), omnipresent (everywhere), and omniscient (all knowing). He is everywhere, in everything.
And through it all, He keeps us and loves us as His own. What a blessing!
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” (Psalms 139:23-24). Amen
Read MoreSo now the case is closed. There remains no accusing voice of condemnation against those who are joined in life union with Jesus the anointed. Romans 8:1
We each have moments when we start feeling overwhelmed by condemnation. Thoughts run through our heads like, “I wish I hadn’t done that,” or, “I could have done that better.”
You know, sometimes, after you’ve gone through the process of prayer, repentance, forgiveness, release, and so on, you have to choose to just shake it off.
If satan can’t keep you from repenting, he’ll try to trap you with a worldly sorrow that is non-productive; it paralyzes you with feeling terrible about yourself and a sense that you’ll never be anything significant.
But this is not God’s desire for you. Godly sorrow leads to repentance, and repentance leads to redemption.
When something like this happens, there are steps we can and should take – we forgive ourselves, we forgive others, we make things right if we need to. But then there comes a point where we simply have to shake it off. We can’t walk around dragging garbage and baggage.
We have one Justifier; we have a Redeemer. If we wallow in the mess we were caught in or a past situation, then we hinder the Redeemer’s anointing from activating in our lives. When we release it, God silences the accusing voice of condemnation, just as our opening verse says. “There remains no accusing voice”.
A little further in the Romans 8 passage, we read these amazing words: “You have received the spirit of full acceptance, enfolding you into the family of God, and you will never feel orphaned; for as He rises up within us, our spirits join in saying the words of tender affection, ‘Beloved Father.’ For the Holy Spirit makes God’s fatherhood real to us as He whispers into our inner most being.”
God wants to root out the orphan spirit in you and in the entire Body of Christ. He wants you to recognize that you are not a victim and that you don’t need to get caught in the trap of victimizing yourself. You are called to be whole, and you are unconditionally loved.
Father, I thank You that today we will feel totally accepted. Help us to reach a place where we feel accepted by You and by others. Thank You for uprooting the orphan spirit from our hearts. I thank You for this movement of the Holy Spirit bringing renewed passion for God as we recognize that we can feel close to Him, that we are 100% accepted. Help us remember that we are never alone and that God has never left us. We decree that we are not orphans; we belong to our heavenly Father. Amen.
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