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Galatians 5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision avails anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which works by love.

As a believer, we all want to be used by God and receive our desires from God. God’s Word tells us we can heal the sick, raise the dead, and perform miracles like Jesus (Matt. 10:8; John 14:12). God’s Word also tells us we can receive the desires of our hearts (Mark 11:24). At the end of the day, we want to experience supernatural results.

To obtain supernatural results, we must have faith (Rom. 4:16). But as we can see, faith works by love. Some of us believe God for the supernatural to take place in our lives, but we have bitterness, anger, and hatred in our hearts. That’s why some of us aren’t experiencing the supernatural. How can we say we believe God for our marriage to be made whole, but we have hatred towards a parent? How can we say we believe God for a new job, but we’re envious of a friend who appears to be enjoying his career?

We can’t have faith in God meanwhile, harbor emotions contrary to God. Experience supernatural results by walking in love and removing negative emotions today.

Luke 10:27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'”

Jesus was so impactful in the earth due to His love for God and His love towards us. ~Smith Wigglesworth

Jesus loves the Father and He loves us so very much. This love compelled Him to push His agenda aside and honor the Father with His life and sacrifice Himself on our behalf. Jesus’ love for the Father stopped Him from dishonoring God by falling into temptation. Jesus’ love for people compelled Him to stop and heal the sick wherever He went. Jesus’ love kept Him on the cross when He could have called angels to smite everyone doubting, mocking, and beating Him. Jesus’ love was a difference maker.

Jesus commands us to love the Father and love people. If we can develop the love that Jesus had towards the Father and towards others, we can accomplish similar goals of Jesus and more (John 14:12). Our love for the Father will keep us from engaging in activities that go against His nature. Our love for people will see a hurting person, and with compassion, declare healing in their bodies. This is how we make an impact in the world.

Love is how we make a difference in the world. Faith works by love (Galatians 5:6). No love, no faith. No faith, no manifestation of miracles. No miracles, no hope. Love is all we need.

Psalm 91:1 Whoever goes to the Lord for safety, whoever remains under the protection of the Almighty, 2 can say to him, “You are my defender and protector. You are my God; in you I trust.”

Psalm 91:11 For He will give His angels charge concerning you, To guard you in all your ways.

Isaiah 54:17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn.

As human beings, one of the biggest needs we have is security. Wherever we go, we want to know that we’re safe and our families will be safe.

In so many ways, God has vowed to keep us safe from all hurt, harm, and danger. God protects us, His angels protect us, and He told us no weapon formed against us shall prosper. The question is do you believe Him?

To maximize on God’s protection plan, we must believe that God can and will protect us. This protection plan won’t work if we doubt God’s ability to protect us. This protection plan won’t work if we feel like we need to help Him out by over-doing it with natural security (alarms, weapons, etc.).

We must believe God loves us. By knowing that God loves us, we can be convinced that He will protect us. Leave the fear of being vulnerable behind and receive God’s love accompanied with His protection.

Whether we believe it or not, everyone has faith. There’s a lesson of faith all around us.

A good example is when we’re at a red light. When we’re at a red light, we have to have faith that people won’t disregard their red light and cause us to have an accident. A lot of  us do this mindlessly. When our light turns green, we’re not worried or fearful that people will run the red light. We truly believe that people will stop at a red light.

If we have faith to believe that people will stop at a red light, how much more faith should we have in God fulfilling His promises in our lives? It’s the same process.

The reason we have so much faith in people stopping at red lights is because we’ve seen them stop time and time again, therefore, we have boldness to begin driving when our light turns green. God has fulfilled His promises to us countless times in our past, therefore, there should be a boldness to place our faith, hope, and trust in God. Don’t be afraid or worried. What God said He will do, will come to pass.

Exercise this red light faith with God.

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God has dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Before the problem presented itself, the solution was already provided.

Before some of us knew we would be unemployed now, provision was already provided. Before some of us realized we would have trouble in our marriage, peace within our marriage was made available to us. Before some of us knew we would have a disease in our bodies, healing was made available for us.

Some of us were really surprised by some of the problems we’re facing. It really took us back. Our problems may be new to us, but they weren’t new to God. God made a solution to our problems before the world was created.

Our solution was made available to us by Jesus Christ. Through His sacrifice, everything wrong was made right. Satan was defeated and all power was given to Jesus. That’s why Paul can boldly say, “Thanks be to God Who always causes us to triumph in Christ Jesus.”

Understand this, we may not know when or how our situation is going to get better, but we have hope in God’s Word, that a solution is available to us.

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms. 4 For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love

Have you ever wondered why the things we crave are usually against the will of God?

For instance, God wants us to do everything without grumbling or complaining, but it feels so good to complain. God wants us to love our enemies, but it just seems right to hate them. God wants us to abstain from gossip, but it seems so fun to talk about other people’s lives, especially, if it’s negative.

These cravings are a product of our flesh. Due to the fall of Adam, our flesh became an enemy to God. It opposes the will of God in all areas. The world calls these cravings “natural” and ‘we shouldn’t have to fight natural feelings.’ That’s why it’s acceptable to have sex before marriage, be homosexual, have entire magazines and TV shows dedicated to gossip, and destroy our perceived enemies.

To honor God with our lives, daily, we have to fight these cravings. This may include not staying at his/her house overnight, not going to that bar, or not watching that video or TV show. We’re telling our flesh “No.” It’s not impossible. God’s grace is sufficient enough to overcome any desires of our flesh (2 Cor. 12:19). Rely on His grace and honor God with your life.

Galatians 5:17 For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to one another, so that you do not do what you want.

Proverbs 23:7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, says he to you; but his heart is not with you.

What we think about ourselves is what we become. If we think we’re less than, unequipped, unqualified, ignorant, or insecure then that’s what we become. Not only how we think about ourselves is what we become, but how we think about a situation is how it becomes. If we think the situation will never change, get worse, won’t work in our favor, or won’t benefit us, we’ll get tragic results. Toxic thinking produces a toxic life.

There is thinking that lines up with the Word of God and there is thinking that lines up with how we feel. How we think determines how we act. If our thoughts line up with the Word of God, we are guaranteed a successful life and we’ll walk with the mindset of victory. If our thoughts line up with how we feel, our lives will be on a roller coaster and we can expect disappointment.

If we want a prosperous peaceful life, our thoughts can’t contradict our desires. If we want our desires to manifest, our thinking must change to constantly agree with the Word of God.

Psalm 34:12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, 13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.

A prosperous life or a turbulent life hinges on our speech. We can have faith, pray continuously, and read our Bibles often, but if our everyday speech is negative, we’ll cancel everything our faith is attempting to obtain.

We believe to be healed from a sickness, but as soon as someone asks how we’re doing we say, “It’s been rough. I feel weak. I don’t know when I’m going to get better.” That kind of speech contradicts what we believe. Our flesh wants to vent about things that are happening in the natural and receive sympathy, however, venting and sympathy never healed anyone.

During challenging times or in times of confusion or uncertainty, it’s best to confess the Word of God over the situation. The Word of God, coming from our mouths, has enough power to change any situation.

If someone is competing in an event or has a performance, we’ve heard the phrase “practice makes perfect.” The more we practice, the more we’ll perfect our performance.

Practice is beneficial when it comes to spiritual matters as well. When we practice and develop a routine of consulting and being led by God in seemingly minor things, the better we’ll be at discerning His voice when major decisions need to be made.

We can start anywhere at any time. We can ask God what He wants us to wear for the day or ask God what we should eat for lunch. Consulting God in minor things also gets us into a habit of going to Him first in all our decisions. It may seem too deep to do all of that, but practice makes perfect. When we need to decide if we should quit our job to start another or whether to get surgery or take medication, we’ll have better clarity from God on what to do.

Practice consulting and being led by the Spirit of God in every area of life.

Romans 8:14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.

Isaiah 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land;

Obedience alone will not birth a blessing, but obedience positions us to receive the promises of God.

There is a belief in the body of Christ that if we obeyed God and did everything right, at some point in our lives, our prayers will be answered. This kind of thinking eliminates grace and faith. There’s no need for grace and faith if our obedience alone will get us what we want. What happened was we saw how people conducted their lives with God in the Old Covenant and applied that same way of living in the New Covenant. In the Old Covenant, it was all about what we had to do for God. In the New Covenant, it’s all about what God has done (past tense) for us.

In the New Covenant, grace, faith, and obedience work together. Grace allows us to undeservingly receive all the promises of God. Faith is the currency we use to obtain those promises, and obedience to the Holy Spirit positions us to receive the manifestation of those promises.

For every promise, believe that grace has made it available and obey the voice of God.

Genesis 2:16-17 “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.””‭‭

The command of not eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was given to Adam, and Adam alone. Eve was not created yet. 

Genesis 3:3 “but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ‭‭

When Eve was speaking to the serpent, she told him that God said that they couldn’t eat, nor touch the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or else they would die. Based on Genesis 2, God didn’t say anything about not touching the tree. 

In Genesis 3:6, we discover that Adam was with Eve when she was conversing with Satan. Right there was a prime opportunity for Adam to minister and correct his wife on God’s command, but he did not. He allowed the conversation to continue with false information. As we know, Satan entices Eve to touch and eat of the forbidden fruit. After she touched the fruit and realized she wasn’t dying, she ate it, and gave it to Adam which created the fall of mankind.

This situation could have been avoided if Adam would have ministered to his wife and told her what God actually said. Men, it’s important to be the head of the household and minister to our wives. If we won’t open up our mouths and tell our families the truth in God’s Word, they’ll believe a lie somewhere else. Women, if he’s being led by God, be receptive to his role. With love and being led by the Spirit of God, men it’s time to operate in our authority and be ministers in our own home. 

Ephesians 2:8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

We are saved by God’s grace when we believe in the Lord Jesus. It’s not by any goodness of ours but, it’s a gift called grace.

During Christmas, a lot of us receive gifts from friends and family members. We didn’t do anything to earn that gift but, we receive it anyway. Salvation is a gift from God. We didn’t do anything to earn it but, it should be received all the same.

People often want to complicate salvation. They want to create additional objectives prior to being saved. Some think we have to be baptized, speak in tongues, and live a sin-free life for a period of time before we get saved. Only believe.

Salvation through grace is good for everyone. Grace humbles those who are tempted to have a boastful disposition and at the same time, grace makes it easy enough for the “worst” sinner get saved. Don’t over-complicate it. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved (Acts 16:31).

Romans 8:1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

Condemnation is that guilty shameful feeling we get when we’re not living up to the holy standards of God. There is no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus. Outside of Christ Jesus, where the Law is located, there’s condemnation. If there’s no condemnation to those in Christ, who lets us know we’re not living up to the holy standards and commandments of God? Satan.

Satan is known as the accuser (Revelations 12:10). He’s always showing us flaws in our way of living. If we’re not honoring God in our lifestyle, he’ll make us feel bad about that. If we’ve been divorced, he’ll make us feel ashamed. If we haven’t been to church lately, he’ll make us feel guilty about that. Even if we try to get it all together and do everything we know is right, he’ll show us areas that we’ve missed; leaving us feeling like we’re not good enough.

The reason why there’s no condemnation in Christ Jesus is because Jesus fulfilled the Law, Jesus took our shame, and Jesus took on our past and future sins. If we live our lives through Jesus, there’s no reason to feel condemned about anything. We may not be perfect in this area or that area, but Jesus was.  Therefore, we’re perfect in the eyes of God.

So, anytime we get that guilty feeling for not living up to the holy expectations of God, rebuke the devil and thank God for Jesus.

Ephesians 6:16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

When Jesus fulfilled the Law and sacrificed Himself for us, Jesus stripped Satan of his power. Satan can’t make us do anything. The only “power” Satan has is an attempt to influence our minds. The Bible calls it fiery darts or flaming arrows.

The strategy of Satan is to influence and convince us that God’s Word won’t come to pass in our lives. If we place our faith in God to be healed of a certain disease, Satan will attempt to convince us that this disease runs in our family and we’re going to battle it for the rest of our lives. If we’re standing in faith for a new car, the devil will give us all the reasons why we don’t deserve a new car.

To counter the attack of Satan, we confess the truth in God’s Word. Confession doesn’t make things come to pass and it doesn’t speed up the time we receive our desires. Confession combats thoughts of doubt and unbelief. When Satan attempts to tell us we’ll be battling that disease forever, we confess by His stripes, we are (not going to be) healed (Isaiah 54:5). When Satan gives us reasons why we shouldn’t have that car, we confess that we are the righteousness of God and all of God’s promises to us are “Yes and Amen” (2 Cor. 5:21; 2 Cor. 1:20).

Every time a thought of doubt or unbelief enters our minds, it’s important to confess the truth of God’s Word. If not, doubt will slowly devour any amount of faith we have in God’s Word. Keep doubt at bay by confessing God’s Word.

2 Corinthians 4: 13 It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak,

Prior to receiving a promise from God, there are a lot of behind the scene things that occur that most people don’t know about.

The first thing we did was pray. That’s the easy part, but it’s necessary. From the time we prayed to the time we received our desire, it gets a little more difficult. In the in between stages, we had to believe God made this promise available to us through Jesus and maintain our belief. That’s easier said than done. There are thoughts and situations that tempt us to doubt or give up on that desire. If we told people what we believe God for, we may have had to block negative commentary. To maintain our belief, we may have had to continuously confess that we’ve received that desire and read that promise to ourselves from God’s Word.

One of the biggest things we had to do was terminate anxiousness and employ patience during delay. We don’t know how long it’s going to be before we physically receive our desires, therefore, patience is necessary to maintain a positive attitude during delay.

Finally, being led by the Holy Spirit, there were tailor-made steps, fitted for our desire, we took and although they may not have made sense, we did it anyway.

These are the basic things that went on behind the scenes prior to receiving that desire. If you’re in the in between stages of receiving that desire, I encourage you to keep pushing. If you never experienced standing in faith for something, I encourage you to follow these steps to receive your promise from God.

Hebrews 6:12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

Matthew 25:45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

From bullying, to racism, to a lack of compassion, people have mistreated people since the beginning of creation (Cain & Abel). Since social media has invaded our lives, we see more of it around the world.

Every time we mistreat someone in some way, we’re mistreating Jesus. When a person laughs and talks about that overweight person, they’re mistreating Jesus. When a person bullies another person for whatever reason, they’re mistreating Jesus. When a person mistreats or abuses their husband or wife, they’re mistreating Jesus.

As believers, we are called to love and to serve one another (John 13:35). When mistreatment is going on around us, we don’t have to participate. In fact, our lack of participation may lead others to reconsider their actions.

There’s enough hate and mistreatment in the world for two lifetimes. Let’s be rebellious and do something uncommon. Let’s love, serve, and respect one another.

People lived under The Law in the Old Covenant and there was a different way of doing things. In the Old Covenant, salvation was dependent on our performance and behavior.

When Jesus walked the earth, He performed and taught under The Law. So, in Luke 18 when a man asked Him what he must do to be saved, Jesus gave him a list of commandments he had to perform.

Luke 18:18 Then a certain ruler asked Him (Jesus), “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”… 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and mother…

If we’re not mindful of the time period when Jesus gave him these instructions for salvation (the Old Covenant), we’ll think that we, living under the New Covenant, have to perform all these commandments to receive salvation. These commandments are beneficial, but they’re not the prerequisite to receive salvation.

We know this based on Acts 16:30 where the same question was asked, but there was a different response.

Acts 16:30 Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.”…

Under the New Covenant, we must believe that Jesus is Lord. It’s not about keeping The Law or performing all these rules and regulations. It’s not about what we can do. It’s about what Jesus has done. Jesus kept The Law and He died for our sins. Our belief in what He’s accomplished on our behalf undeservingly awards us salvation. Let go of The Law and receive Jesus.

Inspired by Pastor Creflo Dollar

Colossians 2:10 So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

When we’re in Christ, we are complete. There’s nothing missing, borrowed, or broken in our lives.

We are whole, but the devil will try to convince us otherwise. He’ll have us thinking that a husband/wife will complete us or a child will complete us. He’ll even show us a better career that will make us complete. Once again, only in Christ, are we complete.

If we can concrete this revelation into our souls, this will keep us from running after people and stuff thinking that it’s going to fulfill our lives. So, even if we don’t have a husband or a wife, we’re complete. If we don’t know one or both of our parents, we’re complete. If we don’t have the career we truly desire, we’re complete.

Only believing in our wholeness in Christ, are we truly complete.

There’s a lot of us that want to do God’s will, but we can’t determine if the voice in our head is God or ourselves. Our desires can be strong at times. Everything within us may desire something. During that time, it’s imperative to discipline our flesh and consult God.

God, do You want me to do ___________? -OR- God, do You want me to have _____________?

Wait for a response. If God doesn’t say “No”, that IS NOT an indicator He wants us to have that desire. God will answer us in one way or another. If He hasn’t given us an immediate response regarding a certain desire, it’s best if we don’t do anything. If that desire is still pressing, we should quiet ourselves and our surroundings and present it to Him again.

The key is not to be anxious for anything (Philippians 4:6). Our desires may say it’s right to have and it makes sense in our head to do this or that, but if God hasn’t responded and we don’t have peace within ourselves, it’s not the will of God.

With every decision in our lives, take the time to consult God.

Proverbs 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.

Matthew 11:30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

When we get saved, we’re not guaranteed an absence of problems, trials, or issues. We’ll still have to deal with the occasional supervisor who seems to be taking their frustrations out on us and we’ll still have to deal with the delay of our desires, and the issues of life. The scripture tells us when we come to Jesus, our burdens will be lightened, but not absent.

What we are guaranteed is victory over situations. We may have to go through some things, but everything we face we’ll have victory over it. That angry supervisor will have to change their attitude, change their place of employment, or God will put us in a better position. If we totally rely on God and walk in our authority while facing these light burdens, we gain wisdom, maturity, and testimony of God’s faithfulness.

Don’t be deceived into thinking we’re exempt from problems because we’re saved, but when we face problems know that we’re guaranteed victory.

2 Corinthians 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, who always causes us to triumph in Christ, and makes manifest the fragrance of his knowledge by us in every place.

Luke 15:22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

The story of the Prodigal Son is a parable of a backslider who repented, returned back to God, and God graciously forgiving and accepting us. There are certain details within the Prodigal Son story that highlight God’s attitude based on our return.

One of those things is God’s excitement towards our return. Although the son spent all he had and sinned against God, the father threw the returning son a party. Notice, the father wasn’t upset, he didn’t bring up his past, and he didn’t give him a lecture. The father loved him, received him, and gave him the best.

There are some who believe that after we repent, there’s a period of time where we have to earn God’s trust and get back into His good graces. God’s not like man. He doesn’t have to see if we’ll behave before He’ll do anything good for us. The fact that we returned to Him is good enough for God.

Don’t allow anyone to discourage you or crush your spirits in your quest of recommitting your life to God. He’s excited for you, He’s forgiven you, and He desires that you receive His love and His best in every area of your life.