Monthly Archive

Psalm 27:10 When my father and my mother forsake me, Then the LORD will take care of me.

Some of us had to grow up without a father or a mother. Some of us had mothers and fathers who weren’t good at their jobs. They may have put other people before us, disowned us, or abused us. Regardless of how our earthly parents were, God obligated Himself to take care of us.

If we need a strong father, He’ll be our strong father. If we need a nurturing mother, He’ll be a nurturing mother to us. If we need wise counsel, He’ll be our source of wisdom. If there’s anything we need or want, He’ll be our supplier. If we need someone to simply listen, He’ll be that too. Whatever we’re lacking in our lives, God will be that for us.

Don’t hold a grudge against your parents. Forgive them and allow God to be the success to their failures.

Romans 8:21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

The corruption of creation causes this world to have incurable viruses, inclement weather, plants that cause us to hallucinate if ingested, and UV rays from the sun that can damage our eyes and skin.

Some like to blame God for creating the world like this, but it’s not His fault. Because of sin, creation has been corrupted. Some say a “fallen world.” Corruption usually doesn’t occur all at once. Corruption is a slow process. Eventually, you’ll see the negative impacts of corruption.

The good news for believers is we have authority over creation (Gen. 1:26). This authority was taken from us because of sin, but Jesus got it back (Matt. 16:19). If creation around us appears to be corrupted, let’s use our God-given authority to align it with the Word of God.

Remember, corrupted creation is not God’s fault and like the undo button on a word document, use your God-given authority to undo corrupted creation.

There are so many people out there who are “seeking truth.” The Bible is clear, God’s Word is truth.

What some people are seeking is their truth or truth that suits them. That’s not truth. That’s their opinion. Everything within a person may tell them something is right, but if it’s not backed by the Word of God, it’s just a thought, opinion, or feeling.

Our role is to align our thoughts, beliefs, and opinions with the Word of God. If it’s not confirmed by the Word of God, it’s not the truth.

Psalm 119:160 The entirety of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.

Psalm 119:50 This is my comfort in my affliction, For Your word has given me life.

When we’re going through, go to God’s Word. The Word of God has enough power to do four things at once:
1. Encourage us.
2. Empower us.
3. Keep our attitudes positive.
4. Change our circumstances.

It doesn’t matter if the situation is dealing with our finances or overcoming depression, God’s Word can help. Find a promise in God’s Word that counters our problems, believe it, and expect your life to line up with God’s Word.

God’s Word is not a fairytale. It’s real and can change anything if we’re willing to believe it.

Romans 8:38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God has something called all inclusive love. God loves us when we’re doing good and following His commandments and when we’re failing miserably and hadn’t picked up a bible. God loves us when we’re giving to the needy and He loves us when we’re as selfish as selfish can be. God loves us when we’re being a blessing and He loves us when we’re spiteful.

From one extreme to the other, God’s love stays the same. No matter how we feel about ourselves, God’s love is ever present. Some of us can’t even fathom this type of love, but it exists and it’s for any of us who are willing to receive it.

Receive this love and don’t let anyone else, including Satan, tell you differently.

Psalm 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

After reading this verse, some may conclude the reason they haven’t received a certain desire is because the desire wasn’t a good or good enough thing. That’s true for some desires, but not for all.

After waiting an extended period for a desire, the devil may pervert this scripture and deceive us into thinking that the desire wasn’t a good thing. We’ll stop believing for it but in actuality, the desire was something God truly wanted us to have.

Go to God to confirm if a desire you’re believing for is something He wants for us. If God approves our desire, through His Word or through peace, don’t let anything (including delay) stop you from receiving that desire. If there’s no peace with that desire, understand God has better.

Psalms 27:5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

It sounds nice to say when we get born-again, we’ll never experience anymore issues or trouble. But, that’s not true.

Notice, this scripture says, “in the time of trouble.” That means, there’s a time where trouble will enter our lives. No one likes trouble. It can be mentally, physically and emotionally exhausting. The good news is we’ll experience trouble, but trouble will not defeat us. The trouble will be big enough for us to notice, but through Christ, small enough for us to overcome.

No matter how “good” of a Christian you’ve been, trouble will come. Don’t get frustrated or be afraid. Face it. With God’s help and faith in His Word, we’ll overcome trouble every single time.

Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

All of us have needs and desires. Some of us want better marriages, obedient children, peace, or a better job. Regardless of what we want, that desire can become the focal point in our minds. We’ll think about it often and we’ll go through a million scenarios on how we can get it. If we’re not mindful that desire can become an idol. Instead of going after God, we’ll put all our energy towards getting the desire.

God’s Word says when we ask for the desire, believe that we received it, and put Him first, anything we need, or desire will be given to us (Mark 11:23-24; Matthew 6:33).

With that understanding, let’s put our focus on Jesus. Let’s celebrate His sacrifice. Let’s seek God and see what He wants us to do. Let’s be led by the Holy Spirit. Let’s go after the things of God and as we go after Him, our needs and desires will find us.

James 4:7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

What’s stopping you from submitting your entire life to God? Do you feel like you won’t have enough fun? Is it too strict? You don’t want to let God or yourself down if you fail? Are you ashamed? Would you feel like a hypocrite? Or, you simply don’t feel like it?

Whatever the reason is, you didn’t get that from God. Those types of thoughts are demonically influenced. Satan will use any tactic that seems logical or emotional to keep us on the outside of submission. He knows the day we go all in for God, our lives will improve, the Kingdom of God will get stronger, and we’ll have more influence to lead others to Christ.

Don’t stay on the outside. Come on in. God’s not asking us to be perfect. He simply wants a willing participant to work through. If you fall off, get back up again. If it seems too difficult, extend grace to yourself and don’t live by the law. If you get distracted, refocus and get back in the game.

Submit your life to God and watch God do amazing things with you and for you.

1 Chronicles 16:15 Remember His covenant forever, the word He ordained for a thousand generations—16 the covenant He made with Abraham, and the oath He swore to Isaac.

For those of us who truly depend on God for everything, we may not recall all the things we’ve prayed for. With that in mind, it would be beneficial for us to make a list of things we’re standing in faith for. On that list we can have our car, new house, child, and anything else we desire. We make a list to thank God in advance for answering our prayers.

Don’t let anyone make you feel bad because you have a list. It’s not a wish list. It’s a faith list. Just because some people have a false sense of humility and don’t ask God for anything doesn’t mean we’re wrong for making a list. They’re the ones not taking full advantage of what God provided through THE ultimate sacrifice in Jesus.

That faith list can also come in handy when our desires manifest. We can transfer the desires from our faith list to our manifestation list. The manifestation list allows us to look back on all the prayers God has answered. During tough faith fights, it will encourage us to see how many promises God has provided. We can also show others our manifestations to encourage them to keep their faith in God.

Make a list to remember and motivate yourself and others.

Psalm 105:5 Remember the wonders He has done, His marvels, and the judgments He has pronounced,

Romans 8:34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

For us, Jesus was whipped, beaten, spat on, and crucified. For us, Jesus died. Because Jesus took our place, the punishment of sin was fulfilled (Isaiah 53:6). One would think that Jesus has done enough, and He can relax on the right side of the Father for eternity. But, He’s not done helping us out.

Jesus is interceding for us. Interceding means to intervene on behalf of another. He hasn’t interceded (past tense) and He didn’t intercede one time. Jesus is interceding (continuously). Every second of every day, Jesus is interceding to the Father on our behalf.

Every sin we commit, He’s letting the Father know His blood paid for that (Eph. 1:7). Although some of our actions are unrighteous, He lets the Father know our belief in His sacrifice makes us righteous (Rom. 3:22). Although we should be punished for some of the things we do, Jesus lets God know He already took the punishment for our foolishness (Rom. 3:24).

This is just another reason to be grateful for Jesus. He’s done so much for us already and He’s still acting on our behalf today. Let’s praise Jesus for what He’s done and what He’s doing right now. Praise Jesus!!!

Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

To get our prayers answered, God’s Word tells us to believe that we received our desires, when we pray, and we shall have them. There’s no need to pray for the same thing multiple times because in 1 John 5:14-15, it tells us He hears us. And since He heard us, we will eventually possess what we request.

From the time we pray, to the time we receive our desires, is usually a waiting period. During that period, we thank God that we believe that we received those desires. For instance, if we prayed for a car on Monday, on Tuesday we’ll say, “God, I thank You I believe I received my car.” No matter how long it takes, we believe that we received our car every day until it materializes. This goes for anything we desire that aligns with the Word of God.

Remember:
1. Ask God for the desire(s).
2. When you ask, believe that you received what you asked for.
3. Thank God we believe that we’ve received that desire until it manifests.

Follow these steps and get your prayers answered every single time.

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.

The devil wants to kill us, and everything associated with us. The good news is, he can’t destroy anything without our consent. We give him our consent through our words or actions contrary to the Word of God.

The devil places thoughts in our minds that go against the Word of God. If we don’t combat those thoughts with the Word of God, they will negatively impact our lives.

For instance, after seeing symptoms of a runny nose and a cough, a thought will come that we’re sick. Is that what God’s Word says about us? No! His Word says we’re healed (Isaiah 53:5). We have a choice. We can say, “I’m sick” or “I believe I’m healed.” The devil wants us to say we’re sick in order to destroy our health, but we need to resist Him by casting down every thought against the knowledge of God and bringing every thought to the obedience of Christ. In other words, we need to say what God says about us. The devil uses the same tactic to attack our finances, our marriage, our children, and anything else God blesses us with.

As soon as a contrary thought enters our minds, we need to open our mouths and declare the truth, which is in God’s Word. Resist Satan with the Word of God.

2 Corinthians 10:5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

Whether we know it or not, our faith is being applied to something. We’re either believing the Word of God or something else.

For instance, we can believe by His stripes we’re healed (Isaiah 53:5) or, we can believe the doctor who says we have an illness that will require us to take medication for the rest of our lives. We can believe nothing is impossible with God (Luke 1:37) or, we’ll always have a minimum wage job because of our limited experience or education. We can apply our faith in the truth that our children shall be delivered (Prov. 11:21) or, have faith that our children will be wayward for the rest of their lives.

What will you believe? Will you believe the Word of God or believe in earthly facts? I suggest believing in the Word of God which has the power to change facts and circumstances in our favor.

Genesis 15:6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

Psalm 119:68 You are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees.

If we don’t know anything else, it must be settled in our minds that God is good.

He’s good to us. He’s good for us. He works out everything for the good (Romans 8:28). He’s just a good God. Unfortunately, some people like to blame Him for bad situations, but that’s not Him. That’s Satan attacking our lives. God is good.

People think because God can stop bad situations from happening, but He doesn’t, He’s not that good of a God. We must realize because of sin, we live in a fallen world and trouble will come (John 16:33). But the trouble that’s allowed can be for our good if handled correctly. Trouble can force us to turn to God, place our faith in His Word, and increase our patience. Like weights during exercise, trouble can strengthen our souls (which is a good thing).

Don’t allow anyone or any situation stop you from believing that God is good.

A lot of us go on YouTube or Google to figure out how to do something. Meanwhile, we neglect the One who can teach us all things.

Through God’s Spirit, we can learn anything we desire. We can learn how to fix our cars, create great recipes, or properly parent our children. Whatever we need to learn, we can learn through the Holy Spirit.

So, don’t be so quick to run to YouTube or Google to discover how to do something. Let the Holy Spirit teach you.

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

I will fear no evil. What is evil? Evil is the opposite of what God has promised. Evil is sickness, poverty, and premature natural death. Evil is strife and hatred. Evil is hurt, harm, or danger to us or to our family. Anything God didn’t approve for our lives is evil.

With all this evil swirling around us, God’s Word instructs us to not be afraid. We’re not to fear because God is with us and He’s greater than any evil that attempts to come our way.

So, we have a decision to make. Will we live in fear because of the evil surrounding us or will we remain in peace trusting that with God, evil will not prevail in any area of our lives? You choose.

Psalm 118:24 This is the day that the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Some of us allow our circumstances to define our day. If everything goes our way, we’d say we had a good day, but if we faced adversity we’d say our day was difficult.

The presence of adversity shouldn’t determine our viewpoint. Jesus already told us we would face trials, but in that same verse, He also told us to be cheerful (John 16:33).

Every day should be a good day for multiple reasons. If we look closely at our day, we’ll determine no matter how many obstacles we faced, there are more things that went right than wrong. We could have had only 4 hours of sleep, spilled coffee on our clothes, were late to work, dealt with a moody supervisor, got rear ended on the way home, and realized we forgot to defrost the chicken when we got home and still say we had a good day.

How???…. It’s a blessing to say we woke up and we have enough money for a luxury item like coffee. We’re employed, we have a car, and we weren’t seriously injured in that crash. It’s awesome to say we have a home and food in the refrigerator. We haven’t even mentioned other things like we can walk, talk, and breathe. Let’s not forget about spiritual things like God’s new mercies every morning, God’s promises, and God always being with us.

As we can see, God’s goodness outweighs the difficult every day. Don’t magnify the problem, identify the good and have a good day.

2 Corinthians 5:7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Some people think in order for prayer to work or to really praise God, you have to feel something. That something those people are trying to feel is nothing more than an emotional experience.

When we pray or praise God, we may get emotional at times, but that emotional feeling is not a prerequisite for God to hear us. God requires faith. There’s no feeling in faith. When we pray or praise in faith, we believe God heard us and we believe whatever He promised will come to pass. That’s it. We don’t have to cry or make ourselves emotional. We simply believe and act on what we believe.

Don’t try to make yourself feel something. Just pray and praise in faith knowing He hears us and will deliver on His promises.

Joel 2:12 “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.” 13 So rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the LORD your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.

There are so many people who think God is angry with them. He’s not. He loves us and He’s waiting on our return. It doesn’t matter if we’re angry with God or if we didn’t want to conform to His ways, He still loves us and is waiting on our return. It doesn’t matter if we’ve been gone for a week or for a decade, He’s waiting for our return with open arms.

There are people who feel ashamed or unworthy to be in the presence of God because of what they’ve done. That deceptive feeling is a trap to push us away from God. He’s still there and wants us to return to Him. Even if we pushed God away, He loves us enough not to force Himself on us. He’s simply going to love us from a distance and wait for our return.

Don’t fall for the enemy’s tricks. Return to God in whatever state you’re in, receive His love, and expect your life to drastically improve.