Monthly Archive

It makes no sense for a farmer to go into his field and expect to have vegetables without planting seeds. If he wants tomatoes, he’ll have to plant tomatoes seeds. If he wants cabbage, he has to plant cabbage seeds. If it makes no sense for a farmer, why do some of us still expect to have financial increase without planting financial seed into the Kingdom?

When we give, we’re giving to God and telling Him thank you. When we give, we’re also investing in our future. God promised that He’ll give it back to us in an overflowing manner (Luke 6:38). He promised all our needs are met (Philippians 4:18-19). He promised protection when we give (Malachi 3:10-12).

So, don’t get deceived into thinking that giving is for the foolish. We know what we’re doing. We’re setting up ourselves for a prosperous future.

2 Corinthians 9:7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

A life without compromise, truly devoted to God, is the best way to go. Whatever we compromise to becomes our master.

If we compromise holy speech and conduct to impress others, their approval becomes our master. If we compromise by eating that 3rd cookie, knowing we’re full, we display a lack of self-control and food is our master. If we cheat and steal to get ahead in life, that mindset and way of life becomes our master.

However, when we’re devoted to the Lord and do things His way, we’re letting everyone know He is our Lord and He not only guarantees success, but success without limits. When we do things God’s way, we can get good friends, self-control, uncompromised abundance, and so much more. Trust God’s way, let Him lead you, and you’ll never have to compromise again.

Daniel 3:15 Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”

Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, “Go back home. Because you believed, it has happened.” And the young servant was healed that same hour.
Matthew 8:13 NLT

Everyone else around us could be skeptics, but if we believe, it will come to pass.

We have to be mindful to not allow the world to negatively influence our beliefs. They base their beliefs on statistics, logic, or how they feel. We should base our beliefs on the word of God. If God’s word says it, it’s possible.

Magnify God’s word and His ability above everything else and expect change to manifest in your life.

But as for me, I will always proclaim what God has done; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
Psalms 75:9 NLT

We have to make up in our minds that we’re going to honor and give praises to God. It doesn’t matter what others are doing and how successful they seem or how much fun they appear to be having. We must have a conviction to serve the Lord.

The devil will throw all kinds of things in our faces attempting to show us we really don’t need God. He’ll try his best to make us think praying, reading the scriptures, or fellowshipping with others is not necessary. It’s during those times we must have “but as for me” moments.

Regardless of what’s going on around us and what others are doing or not doing, we’re going to honor and praise God. Even if our fellow Christians are doing something that seems righteous, if God specifically tells us “no”, we must prioritize Him. Go with God and you will never go wrong.

Philippians 2:4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Having consideration for others is something we should continue to work on as believers. They shouldn’t have to earn it and they shouldn’t have to show it first. We should be considerate because that’s part of God’s nature which is love.

If we’re considerate, we’re allowing someone else to go first in the store and we’re not blasting our music at night knowing people may be sleeping. We should also be considerate of people’s time so, we shouldn’t be late in starting or showing up to events. Division in society would significantly decrease if we considered other people’s opinions and not take them personally.

As you can see, consideration is beneficial to society and in developing our character. It’s not all about us. Let’s be considerate towards others.

A lot of our prayers state the following:
God thank you for this day.
I ask for wisdom at my job.
Protect me as I go to and from work.
Keep my children safe and protected.
Increase my finances God.
Etc.

We pray, but a lot of us don’t wait on a response from God. We’ll ask for wisdom, protection, and more, but instead of us waiting on a response on how to obtain those things, we move on to the next request.

Prayer is a conversation between us and God. Give God an opportunity to respond to your requests. He may give us our answers the moment we pray.
Take time and listen.

The Spirit shows what is true and will come and guide you into the full truth. The Spirit doesn’t speak on his own. He will tell you only what he has heard from me, and he will let you know what is going to happen. John 16:13 (CEV)

We know friends and family who have desires and have asked God for certain things. They may want healing in their bodies, increase in their finances, a new car, their marriage to be made whole, etc. Since we know what they desire, we should seek God to see if He wants us to be the answer to their prayers.

We may be full of faith and God prompts us to pray for the manifestation of healing in their bodies. We may have some extra money that God compels us to give to them. We may know a good marital counselor and God encourages us to send that information to improve their marriage.

Take the time to see if God wants you to be the answer to someone else’s prayer. It will bless the person and bring glory to God.

It doesn’t mean we won’t experience challenges, but we’ll easily overcome our challenges without being stressed out.

Matthew 10:8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

John 13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

These are instructional scriptures given to us by God. God doesn’t give us these scriptures to test us to see if we’ll follow them. He gives us these scriptures for a good reason.

When we obey these scriptures, we position ourselves to experience an amazing abundant life. God is our Creator and He knows how we should best function. He knows walking in unforgiveness, hate, and worry won’t do our bodies any good. It’s been scientifically proven these things lead to an early grave.

Certain instructional scriptures may seem weird, unnecessary, or foolish, but trust God has a good reason for us to follow them. We don’t debate with the car company who tells us how to maintain our cars, so don’t debate with our Creator Who knows the best way to maintain our lives.

The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted, “Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!”
John 12:12‭-‬13 NLT

When Jesus came, these people positioned themselves to praise. They got palm branches, walked to meet Jesus, and they shouted.

With us, God is ever-present. That means, throughout the day, we should always be praising God. We may not be led to get palm branches, but our praise should be continuous.

This also means, when we have a situation and we pray about it, we’re giving God permission to handle that situation. Since we know God is figuratively coming down our road to handle our situation, before saying “amen” we can praise God.

Praise God in the morning, praise God for His blessings, praise God for life. Make a conscious decision to keep yourselves postured for praise.

So the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord. -Joshua 9:14 NLT

Because Joshua and his leaders didn’t consult the Lord, they were tricked.

Consulting God on every move we make and everything we do is highly important. We only have a limited picture, but God sees it all. And because God sees it all, He can prepare us for things to come and traps to avoid.

We may think a business deal will be our ticket to success, but God sees that it will end miserably. We may think we should study a certain section, but God may tell you to study another section.

We should never get to a place where we’re too smart to consult God. He has our best interests at heart. Let Him lead you.

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.
Matthew 7:1 NLT

Some of us think a person representing God or Jesus needs to be spotless. Some people feel like it’s hypocritical to have a person who may smoke, drink, or curse giving God glory when they do well. I used to think the same way. But if God waited for everyone to be spotless or wrinkle-free before using them for His glory, He would be waiting forever.

It’s funny how we don’t have anything to say when an unsaved person does well and they thank everyone else, but God. But when a saved person praises God after doing well, we want to mention that person’s behavior and character. We want to say “If God was really the head of their lives, they wouldn’t be…” Who are we to judge and say who can give God glory or not? We’re not perfect. At least they’re glorifying God.

Everyone needs grace. God can use whomever He desires regardless of our opinion of their behavior. Let God be glorified by all.

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.
Psalms 94:19 NLT

Whatever we’re believing God for, the devil is on the other side throwing darts of doubt in our minds.

Satan will tell us it’s not going to happen, it’s not going to work out the way we think, or it’s not going to get better. When throwing these doubts, he’ll have us consider our age, our financial status, our health, our experience, and statistics. His goal is for us to throw away our faith and give up.

During these times we must rely on God’s comfort. Where is God’s comfort? In His word. When we look in His word and see our victory, that victory brings us comfort. So, receive by His stripes you’re healed, believe God always causes you to triumph, and know you can do all things through Christ to combat the thoughts of doubt.

A lot of us have made Jesus our Savior, but we also need to make Him our Lord too. Making Jesus our Lord means we do what His word says. It means His will becomes our will. Despite how we feel, what our logic says, and what society says, we follow His word.

This means making Him Lord over everything. It only partially benefits us when we make Jesus Lord over our family, but not our finances. Why make Him Lord over your marriage, but you’re going to try to manage raising children in your own strength?

Let’s do what His word says in every area of our lives. If a particular issue is not specifically mentioned in His word, contact the Holy Spirit and let Him direct you on what you should do in that area.

If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. -Romans 10:9 NLT

Gideon then crossed the Jordan River with his 300 men, and though exhausted, they continued to chase the enemy.
Judges 8:4 NLT

When fulfilling our God-given assignment, there may be times where we’re physically and/or mentally exhausted. We’re exhausted from working long hours getting our business off the ground. We’re mentally exhausted from having to maintain our faith and confessions despite what we see.

Although we’re exhausted, we have to keep going. We can’t give up and quit. God won’t put us in a position if He hasn’t graced us to accomplish the task.

Receive the physical and mental energy God has provided through Jesus Christ and push past exhaustion to manifest victory.

John 2:11 This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

John 2:23 Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him.

We can tell someone about Jesus and preach to them until we’re blue in the face, but some people won’t believe until they see a demonstration. They need to see that it was nobody, but God who did some of the things in our lives.

When they see our drama free life, our continuous increases, and hear our miraculous stories, they’ll have no choice, but to believe and give God glory.

Allow some people to get close to you so that they can get a front row seat of God performing the miraculous in our lives so that they can trust Him for theirs.

Society tells us to work hard, don’t stop, don’t sleep, and grind until we get what’s ours. Our logical mind tells us the more we work, the more we’ll have.

God’s word, on the other hand, tells us to rest in Him, trust in Him, and rely on the blessing. We’re to work, but only as the Lord directs us (Col. 3:23).

Doing it society’s way may get us what we want, but we’re also tired, some relationships may have been strained trying to achieve our goals, and our lifespan could be shortened because of exhaustion.

Under the blessing, we have sweat-less victories. Opportunities easily open up for people that trust in God. When we rest in Him, what took someone 10 years to complete may only take 2 years for believers.

Now, what are we going to choose? Logic or the Lord? I suggest the Lord.

Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, without painful toil for it.

Proverbs 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

When we have people who can speak an encouraging word in our lives, people who can tell us the truth in love, and people we can share our vision and shortcomings with, we have a good thing.

Having people around us that can sow into our lives is a method God uses to get things to us. We may be feeling down and God uses that person to send an encouraging word. God may use that person to confirm something He’s told us in private. To prevent selfishness, where we’re only in a position to receive, God will use us to encourage and give wisdom to others.

It’s a beautiful thing to have that person we can sharpen and who sharpens us. Don’t take them for granted because God uses them to help us overcome the issues of life and to help us be better people.

We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. -Romans 6:6‭-‬7 NLT

Whatever sin your flesh craves, you can stop. It’s not through will power or attempting to keep all the commandments. It’s by faith.

Faith is acting on what we believe. If we believe God’s word, we act on it through consistent confessions. Romans 6:10 says, when Jesus died, he died once to break the power of sin. If we truly believe that, during times of temptation, we’ll open up our mouths and declare, “(whatever sin), you have no power over me because Jesus broke your power over me through His death.” The thought to sin will come again. And again you’ll say, ” (whatever sin), you have no power over me because Jesus broke your power over me through His death.” You may have to do this 50 times, but you’ll win the fight if you don’t quit.

Now, there may be times where the temptation was too strong to overcome. That doesn’t mean anything. Don’t quit. Just apply your faith to God’s forgiveness. You’ll say, “I receive God’s forgiveness based on Hebrews 8:12 which says, He forgives my wickedness and won’t remember my sins ever.” It doesn’t matter if you feel forgiven. You just have to believe you’re forgiven.

Use your faith in God’s word to overcome the areas where sin has taken your life hostage. Let it go.