Month: August 2019

In your life, what do you see?

Do you see the giants of opposition or the promises of God? Jesus said, “If you believe, you will see the glory of God” (John 11:40). But, if you don’t believe, you won’t see His glory. You will simply follow in the faithless footsteps of the children of Israel. You will find yourself wandering in the wilderness, when you could have been enjoying the Promised Land. You and I can choose to walk by faith. We can choose a different spirit–one that believes God in spite of the negative circumstances around us. Remember, nothing is too difficult for Him. The God who can part the Red Sea, rain bread down from heaven, and bring water out of a rock, that same God can do miracles in your life IF, you will only believe, trust Him and follow Him fully.

God leads

God doesn’t just lead us out of trials but sometimes he leads us into trials. A trial is a difficult circumstance allowed by God to transform my conduct and my character.
Resistance escalates before victory arrives. You cannot take things getting worse as a sign God is not working.

Remember Moses, the Israelites and Pharoah’s army and the Red Sea? God was very specific to tell Moses where to go. God led them to a dead end! But what happened? He saved them and justice was served. God always wins! We are on God’s team too! So no matter what resistance you are receiving today and no matter if it looks like a dead end, God is working! Trust Him!

BIBLE STUDY TODAY

“Having your mind transformed daily…”

The key to having what God wants you to have is learning to think like He thinks. And Romans 12:2 teaches that we are transformed by the renewing of our minds. I’ve discovered several ways we need to change our thinking so we can live with the mind of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:6).

We need to change our thinking about…

God. It’s so important for us to know who God really is. He’s not an angry God, and He’s not “harsh, hard, sharp, or pressing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant” (Matthew 11:30). God loves you, and if you know how much He loves you right now, then you’ll have hope that the things in your life that need to change can be changed.

Ourselves. If you don’t like yourself, you’re going to have difficulty in every area of your life. Don’t demand perfection from yourself. No one is perfect, and no matter what we do, we usually don’t think it’s enough: we don’t pray enough, work hard enough, study the Bible enough, etc. God spoke to my heart one day and told me, “Joyce, you’re never enough, but I’m always more than enough.” That’s why Jesus came! Believe that in Christ, there’s more right than wrong with you, and you can do whatever you need to do in life through Him (2 Corinthians 5:21; John 15:5; Philippians 4:13).

Trials, or the hard, painful things we go through in life. Habakkuk 3:19 says God is our strength and He will help us to “walk [not to stand still in terror, but to walk] and make spiritual progress upon [our] high places [of trouble, suffering, or responsibility]!” James 1:2-4 encourages us to “consider it wholly joyful…whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials,” because “the trial and proving of your faith” are what God works through to make us “fully developed…lacking in nothing.”

The level of importance we put on what others think about us. It’s easy to let what others do and say affect us, and to feel like “If you don’t like me, my day is ruined.” But the truth is, if we’re more concerned with being a people-pleaser than a God-pleaser, we won’t become what God created us to be and do what He’s calling us to do (Galatians 1:10).

I want to encourage you to study scriptures that reveal God’s true character and His heart for you. And dare to believe that there’s nothing in your life He can’t change—including you!

Hell was never meant for mankind

Matthew 25:41

Hell was never intended for mankind, only Satan and his angels. Mankind now chooses to enlarge hell by not choosing Jesus.

People ask, “How can a loving God send anyone to hell? But A Better question is …. “How could anyone reject such a loving God?”

Satan destroys people’s lives and then blames God, BUT GOD GIVES YOU A CHANCE NOW! You Can Choose Jesus Right Now!

Pray with me now.

Dear God,
I’ve messed up. I ask you to forgive me for all of my sins. I believe you died for my sins and I receive you, Jesus, as my Lord and Savior. Come into my heart and live there forever. Thank you Jesus for saving me. Amen!

Prayer for today

Father I lift up anyone up to you in prayer those who are enduring great hardship, fighting all kinds of battles and those experiencing pain in their lives. Although they may be struggling to stand in their faith, they have become weary and need a touch from You!! I pray that You will give them a very real sense of your presence in all that they are going through. I pray that You will fill them with your peace and will open their eyes to know that You are with them despite the fierce storm that is all around them. Help them to continue to walk in trust knowing that You will never fail them and that your divine purpose in their lives cannot be stopped by the enemy of this world. As I these things in Jesus precious name. Amen and Amen.

Daily encouragement

Good day All!

Every day, situations in our normal routines call us to be the light of Christ in darkness. Let’s rise ready, right where we are, with what we have. Let’s see people where they are, meet their needs and be the hands and feet of Jesus. This means seeing others instead of always looking out for ourselves. For some of us, it means being a better spouse and parent, a kinder neighbor or a more engaged church member.

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer ~ Romans 12:10-12.

Rising ready may mean buying lunch for a friend who just lost a job, offering to do some shopping for a neighbor trapped at home with a screaming newborn, taking the time to listen to a heartbroken friend whose husband was just diagnosed with cancer. Maybe it’s visiting an elderly person, tipping a waitress who is praying for a breakthrough, or maybe it’s simply calling a friend just to say you care. It may mean going through your closet and giving clothes to the local women’s shelter. When you’re rising ready, you will discover the pure joy of giving and blessing others.

What is HOPE?

Hope

What is hope? Is it a wishy washy maybe or a kind of unsure optimism? The modern idea of hope is “to wish for, to expect, but without certainty of the fulfillment; to desire very much, but with no real assurance of getting your desire.”

In Scripture, according to the Hebrew and Greek words translated by the word “hope” and according to the biblical usage, hope is an indication of certainty. “Hope” in Scripture means “a strong and confident expectation.” Though archaic today in modern terms, hope is akin to trust and a confident expectation.

Hope may refer to the activity of hoping, or to the object hoped for—the content of one’s hope. By its very nature, hope stresses two things: (a) futurity, and (b) invisibility. It deals with things we can’t see or haven’t received or both .

Romans 8:24-25 For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one also hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

Biblically, from the standpoint of the object hoped for, hope is synonymous with salvation and its many blessings, past, present, and future, as promised in Scripture. This is true even with what we have already received as believers because these blessings come under the category of what we cannot see. We may see some of the results, but it still requires faith and hope. For example, we do not see the justifying work of God, the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to our account, nor do we see the indwelling of the Holy Spirit when we are saved, nor our co-union with Christ. We believe this to be a reality, but this is a matter of our hope. We believe in the testimony of God in the Word and hope for the results in our lives.

In summary, hope is the confident expectation, the sure certainty that what God has promised in the Word is true, has occurred, and or will in accordance with God’s sure Word.

What you seeking?

“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.” Matthew 6:33

What are seeking first in your life? The truth is there is no hope – no future or security – apart from seeking God first and resting in His arms. And the only lasting prosperity and peace comes as we walk in step with His Spirit. Why do we not trust Him to fully guide our path? And why do we seek His plan for our life without bothering to first seek Him?! God’s plan is for us to be restored to Him and glorify His name as we love Him with all our heart. All other plans regarding the specific circumstances of our existence flow out of His plan for a loving relationship filled with worship.

Seek first the Kingdom of God! Yes, He has promised a glorious future – not necessarily a future free of trouble, but a future filled with “the peace of God which transcends all understanding” Philippians 4:7, a future where we can learn real prosperity by “being content in any and every situation” Philippians 4:12. But this future can only be had by those who seek Him with all their heart. Let’s allow God to be the all-consuming top priority of our life. Let’s diligently seek Him in times of quiet as well as in the midst of the endless multitude of daily activities. And let’s be filled with hope and encouraged by His promise that as we faithfully seek Him with all our heart, He will be found!

More Jesus

John 3:30 never gets old “He must become greater; I must become less.” It is a constant reminder that must be remembered each and every day. He must become greater; we must become less. It’s hard a truth to swallow when tempted by the flesh or when enduring hurtful or annoying situations, but an important truth nonetheless. The more time you spend with the Lord, the more Christ-like your character will become. It’s not always easy, in fact, most times it can be pretty painful, but it’s so, so worth it in the end. If God is trying to do a work in you, if He’s trying to transform you or remove something from your life, do not resist it. By resisting, you’ll only be making your life incredibly difficult. If you want to become the man or woman He has called you to be, He must become greater and you must become less. Your flesh must decrease and He must increase.