‭I Chronicles‬ ‭4‬:‭10‬ And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.

Much attention has been given to the first part of Jabez’s prayer, but the end of it is perhaps the more unexpected part. After Jabez petitions the Lord for more land and wealth, it’s as though he understands the power that comes along with that and chooses to ask for spiritual boundaries. He wants to continue to honor God, probably for two reasons: so as not to hurt himself or others. 

 As we petition God for that new degree or career, or better vehicle, or more wealth or children, or a spouse, or any increase, we should also pray that with that increase we honor God. As we keep Him first, we keep ourselves from messing up our increase, and we continue to attract others to the God of our increase by demonstrating His love to them. So, pray for and receive your enlarged territory, as well as for continuing to prioritize God and heeding to His guidance.

Matthew 5:13 You are the salt of the earth: but if the salt has lost its savor, how shall it be salted? it is thereafter good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Based on these scriptures, it seems that God wants a distinction between us and the world. He desires for His people to be bright, flavorful, and exalted. Not so we can boast or brag within ourselves, but so we can attract others and lead them to Christ.

But…how are we supposed to attract the world if we’re broke and busted and think it’s okay? How can we attract others if we only socialize with those within the four walls of the church? How do we compel unbelievers to know Christ without demonstrating signs and wonders that can only be done by God through us? We can’t.

Christianity is not a cult or a clique. Christianity is a group of believers who agreed to be living billboards for the Kingdom of God. If our relationship with God is private, we’re actually going against the Word of God. Our relationship with God should be public and on display. Go!…and represent the Kingdom of God.

Luke‬ ‭14‬:‭16-18‬ Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’

On the earth the Kingdom of God can only operate through mankind. The Kingdom of God is ready for souls to be saved, ready for bodies to be healed, ready for the poor and homeless to be satisfied, and ready for God to be glorified in everything we do, however, some of us make excuses. 
We’ll make excuses as to why we can’t serve in the Kingdom of God. Some will say they have to work, their children participate in sports, or they don’t feel like it. The people who serve in the Kingdom of God have to work and their children may participate in sports. The difference between the person who serves and the person who makes excuses is, the person who serves prioritizes the Kingdom of God over everything else. 

Do you think that preacher felt like preaching when he extended the opportunity for you to receive salvation? Do you think that friend or family member felt like listening to your problems and frequently praying for you? They probably did not, but they were willing to serve something greater than themselves. 
Remove the excuses and be consistent in serving somewhere in the Kingdom of God. 

Psalms 89:21 With whom My hand shall be established; Also My arm shall strengthen him. 22 The enemy shall not outwit him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.
24 “But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him, And in My name his horn shall be exalted. 

These promises, along with some additional promises in Psalms 89, were made by God to David. Jesus is a descendant of David (Romans 1:3). According to Ephesians 2:10, we are in Christ, therefore, these same promises belong to us. Praise God!

Also, in Psalms 89:31-32 it says, “If they break My statutes And do not keep My commandments, Then I will punish their transgression with the rod, And their iniquity with stripes.” Since Jesus fulfilled the law and kept the commandments of God, and we’re in Christ, we don’t have to suffer punishment from God. Praise God!

In conclusion, because of Jesus, we are blessed to receive all the promises of God, but none of the punishment. Praise God for Jesus! 

Psalms 89:16 In Your name they rejoice all day long, And in Your righteousness they are exalted. 

Our righteousness is made possible through Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21). Through His righteousness, we shall be exalted. 

Self-righteousness, righteousness based on our performance or our good works, has a way of perverting exaltation. When we can say we did this good work or that good work, we tend to pat ourselves on the back and exalt ourselves over everyone who is not doing a good work. However, when we realize our best performance is like filthy rags in the eyes of God (Isaiah 64:6), we’ll learn to operate through the righteousness of Jesus Christ.  

We’re not exalted based on our righteous performances or our good works. We’re exalted through the only righteousness God accepts; the righteousness of Jesus Christ. 

Luke 12:7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 
Luke 12:24 Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? 

God calls us valuable. We may not think much of ourselves, but God finds us amazing. Our families may have disowned us or called us a mistake, but God declares we’re marvelous. How do we know this?  

First of all, He sent His only Son to reconcile us back to Himself. God didn’t have to send His Son to die in our place. He would still be God without reconciliation. God sent His Son to have His highest creation (mankind) returned back to Him.

Secondly, He’s focused on the intricate details of our lives to make sure we’re well taken care of. He and only He is concerned about each strand of our hair.

Thirdly, He finds us so valuable until He takes pleasure in meeting all of our needs. Some may have a little faith and some may have a lot of faith, but even when we had no faith, God managed to make sure all of our needs were met. He could let us struggle, but it pleases Him to please us (Psalms 35:27).

Recognize you are valuable. You’re not valuable based on what people said about you and you’re not valuable based on the materialistic possessions you have. We’re valuable because God called us valuable, and anyone who says otherwise is a lie and remains contrary to God’s Word.

Luke 11:2 And he said unto them, When you pray, say, Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, as in heaven, so on earth.

In Genesis 1:26, God gave man dominion in the earth. If anything is going to be done in the earth, including God’s will, it has to be done through mankind.

The will of God is not automatic. If the will of God was automatic, everyone one would be saved, healed, and everyone’s needs would be met. That’s why Jesus instructed us to pray that the will of God be done in the earth because without our prayer and authority, the will of God cannot be accomplished in the earth.

When we pray, thy will be done on earth, we’re releasing angelic forces to obey the voice of God’s Word for a particular area (Psalms 103:20). We’re allowing the power of God to destroy demonic strongholds and to encourage ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We’re allowing a heavenly lifestyle to manifest itself on the earth.

The will of God can only be accomplished through the dominion of mankind. Exercise your dominion and declare His will be done today.

As soon as we get a little distance from our former selves, some of us want to judge or criticize others for where they are. The same grace that was available for us in our time of need is the same grace that’s available for everyone who may not have it all together.

One responsibility of every believer is to extend grace to those who need it. People already know some of the things they’re doing may not be pleasing to God. They don’t need us to further beat them down with guilt and condemnation. They need us to let them know God still loves them, His forgiveness is available, and His mercy is new every morning.

Our example, Jesus, showed us how to extend grace with the woman who was caught in the act of adultery. Jesus was the only One Who was justified to stone the woman who was caught in the act of adultery, however, He extended grace and encouraged her to sin no more (John 8:1-11).

When people experience the genuine grace of God, the grace of God will compel them to live a life that’s pleasing to God (Titus 2:11-12). Starting today, extend the grace of God because we ALL need it.

2 Corinthians 5:14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

When we obtain a managerial position with a pay increase of $30,000 a year without any previous experience, that’s the blessing of the Lord operating in our lives. When we understand information easily and quickly and we don’t have to study as long to obtain the information, that’s the blessing of the Lord operating in our lives. When we can lose weight or gain muscle without going overboard in our workout regimen all while still enjoying great tasting meals, that’s the blessing of the Lord operating in our lives.

Notice, in all of these examples, we didn’t have to work extremely hard to receive our desired results. The blessing is designed for us to maximize our enjoyment in life. It’s designed for us to keep our focus on God’s plan and not our own agenda. The blessing of the Lord is there for us to live a blessed, stress-free life.

While others feel the need to work 3 jobs to stay ahead in their finances or starve themselves to maintain weight loss, we have the blessing operating in our lives.

Believe, receive, and declare the blessing of the Lord operating in every area of your life.

Have you ever wanted something so bad until you would do almost anything to get it? That’s idolization. 

John 7:38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

A river is never stagnant. It’s constantly flowing, bringing fresh water and nutrients into the area.

When we made the decision to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, new ideas and concepts should flow through our spirits. Fresh revelation of God’s Word should flow through our thoughts, speech, and behavior. We shouldn’t want to be stagnant, thinking we know it all and unwilling to change when the truth is in front of us.

A river not only impacts one area, but it impacts other areas by emptying itself into lakes and streams. Like a river, those fresh ideas and passion for Jesus Christ should not only benefit our lives, but benefit the lives of others, causing them to be refreshed, rejuvenated, and energized.

Allow that river inside us to flow freely impacting the Kingdom of God, impacting our lives, and impacting the lives of others.

Who wants to read the Bible when the game is on? I’ll pray a little bit later, there are things I have to do. Sunday is really the only day I get to sleep in…These are things our flesh will tell us on a daily basis.

Flesh is defined as all parts of the body dominated by sin. Unfortunately, due to Adam’s sin, our flesh is governed by the devil. Although our flesh is governed by the devil, for those in Christ, Jesus gave us the power to overcome and resist the devil (Luke 10:19; James 4:7).

There is daily struggle between our spirit and our flesh. Our spirit desires to grow in the things of God by spending time in His presence, reading His Word, and building our faith, but our flesh desires to do whatever feels good. Everyone’s flesh is different. Some people’s flesh desires to “get high,” while another person’s flesh desires to be idle.

In order to maximize our relationship with God, we have to fight our flesh. This fight will occur every day of our lives. We have to make a conscious decision to do what God says instead of doing what feels good. At times it may be difficult, but the benefits of defeating our flesh and honoring God are well worth the fight. Continue to fight and never give up.

Romans 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwells no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

As we continue to develop our relationship with God, the fruit of the Spirit should begin to manifest. The manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit will occur when we begin to make some adjustments in our lives. The spark for those adjustments takes place when we spend time in the presence of God and become doers of the Word.

Physical fruit doesn’t develop overnight and neither will our Spirit fruit. Don’t allow guilt and condemnation to weigh you down if you don’t respond with the proper fruit. Instead of focusing on the negative, praise God for the growth made.

We previously may have responded with hostility when someone cut us off while drivin, but we now respond with the fruit of self-control because we’ve made some adjustments. We may have responded with depression after not receiving what we desired when we desired it, but we now respond with joy because we’ve made some adjustments.

Whether it is small or great, make some adjustments to be a better representative of the Kingdom of God and to enhance the quality of your life.

Romans 11:29 For the gifts and calling of God are unchangeable.

From the time we were born, we had a calling or purpose for our lives. Regardless of how old we are, that calling has never changed. Everyone’s calling is uniquely different. No calling is the same.

Some of us are called to the same field, but our roles in that field will be different. Unfortunately, the world has magnified the responsibilities and salary within that field, but minimized the purpose. For instance, someone may be a lawyer making over $100,000 a year, but every day of work is miserable and they feel like something is missing in their lives. It’s because they’re not walking in their God-assigned purpose.

Some of us may already know our purpose, but we feel like it won’t produce the lifestyle we desire. We must realize our purpose is not responsible for our provision. That responsibility belongs to God. When we walk in our purpose, our purpose will allow us to make a greater impact in this world and allow us to live a life of fulfillment.

Discover your God-assigned purpose and boldly walk in it.

Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.

The Bible tells us we can be transformed by the renewing of our minds. What does it mean to renew our minds?

The renewing of our minds means we change the way we think and believe. We allow our thoughts and beliefs to line up with the Word of God. We replace all earthly knowledge, wisdom, and experiences with the Word of God.

Since the Word of God says all things are possible with God (Matthew 19:26), we remove every limitation from our thoughts and beliefs. Since the Word of God says we are healed (1 Peter 2:24), we receive our healing, and remove sickness/disease from our thoughts, beliefs, and vocabulary. Since the Word of God says we’re forgiven (Hebrews 10:12), we receive our forgiveness, and remove thoughts of guilt, shame, and condemnation.

Renewing our minds is a lifelong process. Every situation we face, small or great, will cause us to make a choice. We can either believe and accept what we see or replace what we see with the promises in the Word of God. Let’s renew our minds with the Word of God.

1 Corinthians 1:9 God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

We live in a world where it’s difficult to trust people. The Bible even instructs us not to trust man. With all this lack of trust going around, some people find it difficult to trust in this unseen God Who stated that He has our best interest in mind.

Trust was only created for God. Each time we’re let down by people we claim we trusted, it makes it more difficult for some of us to trust God. However, if we take our dependency off of man and give it to God, we’ll experience the faithfulness of God.

Each situation we face, we have a choice. We can either trust man (including ourselves) or trust God. Every time we choose God, it becomes easier to trust Him again because God comes with guaranteed faithfulness.

Trust God and watch Him be faithful.

John 6: 28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God. 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

In the time of Jesus, there were religious leaders who attempted to be made righteous or holy through their works of the law. In their mind, the more they kept, the holier they were. These leaders would disassociate themselves and judge anyone who didn’t keep the majority of the law.

Jesus understood that no works of the law would make us righteous, holy, or acceptable to God. Throughout Jesus’ ministry, Jesus showed the religious leaders where they failed in keeping the law (John 8:1-11; Mark 3:1-6; Luke 8:43-48). Jesus informed His disciples the only work we’re responsible for is believing in the One Whom God sent. When we believe in the finished works of Jesus, then we’re made righteous.

Unfortunately, there are still some people who believe that our works and behavior make us righteous. These same people feel the need to criticize or judge those who are not as “holy” as they are. They don’t realize the only thing that makes us righteous, is believing in the One God sent. Don’t allow anyone to condemn or criticize you regarding your behavior. When we truly believe and receive what Jesus has done, our behavior will change for the better (Titus 2:11-12).

Psalms 81:8 “Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you! O Israel, if you will listen to Me! 

The more we grow in our relationship with God and the longer we walk down this holy pathway, the more we pull away from things we previously did. We act differently, we speak differently, we think differently, and our minds are constantly being renewed.