Category Archive

Psalm 34:19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the Lord delivers him out of them all.

When we face afflictions, it doesn’t mean we don’t have faith, we did something wrong, or God is punishing us. Afflictions are a part of life (John 16:33).

There’s a devil, who’s constantly on attack. His job is to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). Regardless of the affliction, we have hope. Our hope is God’s deliverance. Everything from a minor cold to stage four cancer, God guarantees deliverance.

That’s where our faith comes in. We can either believe and receive God’s deliverance from whatever affliction we’re facing or, allow the affliction to unsettle our peace, take our joy, and destroy our bodies. Being a born-again believer doesn’t mean we’re exempt from problems, but it does mean we’re victorious over every problem.

When we face afflictions, just realize the faith fight is on. Put your hope in God and receive the deliverance that He guarantees.

Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Honor, reverence, and respect is also known as the fear of the Lord. It has nothing to do with being afraid of God. When we honor God, we position ourselves for wisdom. We position ourselves to receive wisdom in our finances, wisdom at our jobs, and wisdom in raising our children. Whatever area we need wisdom, it begins with our reverence towards God.

The world may look at God as a joke or think those who put their trust in Him are foolish, but when we’re wealthy, promoted, with a happy family, they’re the ones who will look foolish.

Let’s not participate in the minimizing of God or diminish the spiritual forces we have through God. Let’s continue to hold Him in high regard.

When a situation arises, there are three types of people. There are people with unbelief. They panic, stress, and worry about how to resolve a situation.

Secondly, there’s the partial believer. They may listen to a sermon or two and say they’re healed or all their needs are met but two hours later, when someone asks them how that situation is going, they speak a negative report. They let them know how hard it is and they don’t know what they’re going to do. They let them know how much pain they’re in and they let them know how stressed they are.

Finally, there’s the believer. The believer is all in. They’re all in with their belief and speech. They believe what God’s Word says. They believe that God’s Word will come to pass. Temptation or doubt may enter their minds, but they immediately rebuke those thoughts with the Word of God. They may be feeling pain every time they walk, but they periodically confess they are healed. They may see a shortage in their bank accounts, but they call themselves wealthy.

As believers, we want to be all in. Not partial or unbelieving. No matter how long it takes or how big the situation may seem, be all in with God’s Word, God’s ability, and the finished works of Jesus Christ.

Mark 4:14 The farmer sows the word…
20 Still others are like the seeds sown on good soil. They hear the word, receive it, and produce a crop—thirtyfold, sixtyfold, or a hundredfold.”

In the United States, for the past 34 days, people working for the federal government have not been paid. It’s a seemingly stressful situation. People don’t know when they’re going to get their next paycheck and bills are due.

A lot of people are complaining about the president or congress when in actuality, they never had any control over what they did anyway.

For the believer in this situation or any situation like this, it’s an opportunity for our trust to be put on display. Either we’re going to trust God to provide all our needs or complain like the rest of the world.

Our attitude should be an attitude of trust. When people see us doing our jobs (for free in this case) without complaining, they’ll wonder how we can remain so calm and positive. That allows us to share with them Who we put our trust in. Every day, there will be a temptation to complain, but we must resist.

In whatever situation we’re in, we can either trust God or complain about the situation. For positive results, trust in God.

Jeremiah 17:7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. 8 They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

John 1:16 (GNT) Out of the fullness of His grace He has blessed us all, giving us one blessing after another.

When we get a new house, we’ll gladly give God the praise. When we get married to our best friend, that’s another reason to give God the glory. When we receive a financial increase, we’ll rejoice all week long. The same enthusiasm we give God on major breakthroughs in our life is the same enthusiasm we should have on the “little things.”

What’s little to us may be big to someone else. Some of us overlook thanking God for that close parking spot because it’s not that big of a deal but for someone else, it’s truly a blessing because they have arthritis in their knees.  Some may see that $100 raise as insignificant but for someone else, that’s a Godsend because that’s the exact amount they need to pay their rent. Even appreciating our house/apartment has dwindled but, someone else must brave the cold because they have no roof over their head.

Even if it’s not that exciting to us or it’s normal routine, acknowledging God’s hand in the situation is vital. Throughout the day, begin thanking God for the most basic of needs and luxuries.

When we have a heart to please God, we’ll want to make sure we’re doing everything He tells us to do. Depending on the task, we may want confirmation that it’s really God. During those times, we can ask God for a sign.

For instance, if we believe we heard God tell us to move to another city, but we’re not quite sure, we can ask God to show us a specific sign. We can ask God to have that city randomly mentioned 3 times to us within the week and God will do it. While watching the news, He may have that city mentioned. That city may be mentioned by our friend in conversation. That city may be mentioned at a presentation at work. Coincidence? I think not. That’s God showing us a sign.

For confirmation in any area of your life, ask God for a sign. He did it for Gideon and He’ll do it for you too.

Judges 6:36 So Gideon said to God, “If You will save Israel by my hand as You have said— 37 look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said.” 38 And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew.” 40 And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.

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

Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

There are a lot of things that command our attention. We have work, our families, household responsibilities, and more. In the midst of all of that, there’s God. Now, if we say or have a mindset to put God first, our priorities should reflect that.

That means, if we’re not able to do a load of laundry so that we can spend time with God, so be it. If that means we won’t be able to hang out with our friends to go to a church event we want to attend, oh well. If that means, we’ll miss out on watching our favorite TV show that everyone will be talking about at work the next day, we’ll just have to miss it.

God understands all the things we have to do on a daily basis, but that doesn’t mean He should get pushed to the side. If we want God to prioritize us in our time of need, we should prioritize Him.

Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.  

God wants every believer’s light to shine. What does that mean? That means, being a blessing by generously giving to others, helping those in need, and walking in the love of God in spite of how others treat us.

Some people use this as an opportunity to boast. They want to let people know that their donation came from them. They want to let us know how much of a sacrifice it was to help someone else. They want to publicize the charity work they do for the poor. They’re being a blessing, but they have the wrong attitude.

Our attitude should be an attitude of love. We should genuinely want to see our fellow man do and have better. We should want to see them get back up on their feet. It’s not an opportunity to boast, but to show the love of God to all.

Be sure to shine and not show off.

Acts 9:20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?”

After receiving his sight, Saul immediately went to the same place and preached Christ to the same people he led before his Damascus experience. Think about that. Just a few days ago, Saul told these people to kill everyone preaching Christ and now, he’s passionately preaching Christ to them. How “hypocritical” was that?

In our own lives, we may be led to go into our old neighborhood, to our old friends, who knew how we used to be and preach Christ. We shouldn’t allow thoughts of being a hypocrite stop us from doing what we’ve been called to do. Since God’s been good to us and we’ve experienced blessing after blessing, shouldn’t we want everyone to know about our Lord? They may not accept the teachings of Jesus from an outsider, but they may receive Christ and repent, because they know us.

Don’t be ashamed to preach to your past. It’s not hypocritical. It’s vocalizing the manifestation of change.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

A lot of times, when we get overwhelmed with the issues of life, we get emotional. We begin to cry and plead with God to change our situation. We tell God all about our problems, hoping He’ll take pity on us, and change our situation soon. After 6 months of an unchanged situation, some of us get frustrated with God and lose hope.

As we can see from scripture, God doesn’t respond to tears. He responds to faith. Not just any type of faith, but bold faith. God tells us to come boldly to the throne of grace to receive help in our time of need.

Why boldness? Because as children of God, we should know what belongs to us. Everything from healing, finances to meet a need, to deliverance of addictions all belong to us. So, don’t cry about the situation because crying won’t cut it. Boldly approach God, according to His will, and declare what you need changed in your life.

Proverbs 7:21 With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, With her flattering lips she seduced him…23 Till an arrow struck his liver. As a bird hastens to the snare, He did not know it would cost his life….25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, Do not stray into her paths;

Let’s face it, people are attractive. That attraction can be the first step in the devil’s plan to ruin a loving marriage. If we’re not mindful, we’ll allow Satan to invade our thoughts with lustful and unholy things. Satan attempts to deceive us into thinking life would be better with the other person or no one would know. But as we can see from scripture, this deceptive thinking can ruin our lives.

We could get a divorce and inherit all of the terrible things divorce can do to ourselves, our families, and our finances. We could create a lifetime of trust issues in our marriage. We could create a deeper insecurity within our spouses. We could send the wrong message to our children. All of this can occur if we choose not to resist temptation.

If thoughts of adultery have entered your mind, remove those thoughts by literally saying, “I only desire my spouse” every day. If adultery has already been committed, receive God’s forgiveness, ask for your spouse’s forgiveness, and turn from that lifestyle and commit yourself to God and your spouse. Let’s not ruin the blessing God has given us.

Acts 9:6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

If we had our way, we’d want to know every detail of God’s plan for our lives. We’d want to know when, where, and how. Who wouldn’t? But often times, God gives us partial information. He’ll give us initial steps to determine if we’ll handle those instructions appropriately. Did we do what was instructed? Did we do it when He told us to do it? Did we have the correct attitude when we did it? All these things play a factor on when we get our next instructions.

Once partial instructions are appropriately completed, then we qualify ourselves to receive additional instructions that will lead us to God’s best for our lives. Matthew 25:23 says it this way, if we’re faithful over a few things, we can be in charge of many things.

What has God told you? Whatever it is, do it appropriately to eliminate any delay on God’s promise.

Hebrews 2:16 For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham.

All throughout the Bible and even today, people are in awe of angels. They see them as these big, powerful, beautiful beings. With all that we know about angels, it’s interesting to see how God doesn’t give aid to angels, but to the seed of Abraham.

If we belong to Christ, we are Abraham’s seed (Gal. 3:29). God prioritizes us, flawed and all, more than He does angels who worship Him day and night. That’s encouraging. That means, no matter what we’ve done wrong and no matter how far we’ve strayed, His hand remains available for us to grab. God is and will always be willing to help us in our time of need. He hasn’t left and He will not leave us to fend for ourselves. He is and He will always be there for us.

Receive God’s aid because He prioritizes you.

All throughout the world there are millions of people who join the military. They are told what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Their only reply to the command is “Yes, sir” or “Yes, ma’am.” They may have an opinion or question the task in their minds, but that doesn’t stop them from performing the task. They understand that’s their duty.

If individuals in the military can adopt that mindset, we can too except, we can obey the commands of God. When God tells us to go here on this day and do a certain task, instead of debating or disobeying a direct command, simply say, “Yes, Sir.” We may wonder how it’s going to work in our favor, but obey anyway. Unlike man’s military, who may get it wrong at times, God has a 100% success rate.

Take a note from the military by saying, “Yes, Sir” to whatever God instructs you to do.

Acts 13:4 Then Barnabas and Saul, sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. And John was with them as their helper.

John 16:23 In that day you will no longer ask Me anything. Truly, truly, I tell you, whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.

We all want answered prayers, but some of us are still using the same old method we heard of calling Jesus with all our problems.

***Before we go too far after looking at the title, when salvation is needed, by all means call on the name of Jesus, however, when it comes to our requests, don’t call Jesus.

As we can see, calling on Jesus is not the method we should be using. All our requests need to go to God in the name of Jesus. So, all those songs with lyrics like “Jesus is on the main line” and “Jesus will fix it” are inaccurate. God will hear and answer the prayer because it has been fixed by Jesus over 2000 years ago. Our healing, deliverance, new house, and outfit have been made available by Jesus, but our requests should go to God.

1 John 2:1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

When we sin, some of us feel like it’s necessary to beat ourselves up about it. We feel like we can’t have any fun, we need to punish ourselves, and we need to do a bunch of religious activities for the next three days.

Just so you know, that’s not necessary. Jesus is THE Sacrifice. Every past, present, and future sin we’ll ever commit has been paid for through Jesus’ sacrifice. There’s no need to sulk or go into depression for missing the mark. We simply should acknowledge His sacrifice, thank God that our sins have been forgiven, and move on and enjoy the rest of our day.

Understand that Jesus is THE Sacrifice and there’s nothing we can do to take the place of His sacrifice.

1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.

Let’s face it. Most of us can see people. Whether we’re married or not, we can be attracted to certain people. A woman can see a tall muscular man and be attracted and a man can see a beautiful woman and be attracted. God made us that way.

The key is to briefly admire their appearance without lusting. It’s okay to be attracted to a person just as long as we’re not lusting after them. We can see the person, admire their appearance, and move on. The problem comes when we’re staring at them, allowing perverted thoughts to dwell in our minds, and thinking about them later.

If we find ourselves lusting, we can seek the Holy Spirit to give us a plan to remove lust from within us. He may give us a confession during tempting moments, He’ll give us the strength we need to turn away, or provide a distraction.

Let’s keep our minds free from lust so that our focus can be on God and our current or future spouse.

2 Corinthians 10:12 We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise.

During the holidays, we see pictures of a seemingly perfect family having a great time opening gifts. We see marriage proposals, weddings, vacations, and children being born. After seeing all of this, we’re prone to compare our lives with what we’ve seen on social media. Satan uses these moments to attempt to make us feel bad about our lives. He loves to show us what we don’t have and how our lives are not as joyous as what we’ve seen.

It’s unwise to compare ourselves with others. What we’ve seen could be a lie. Things may appear joyous but in actuality, it’s tumultuous. But even if it’s legitimate joy in someone else’s lives, there’s no reason to minimize our own lives.

It’s a choice to be happy about our lives. It’s a choice to be joyous about the simple things like shelter, employment, and safety. Even if there’s something we desire within our lives, it’s a choice not to dwell on what we don’t have and to be grateful about what we do have.

Let’s maintain our joy by not comparing our lives with others and be content.

When it comes to executing the promptings of God, a lot of us are frozen in fear.

-We’ve been in a relationship a long time and we know God told us to propose but because of our past, we’re frozen in fear and continue to stay in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. We could potentially end up losing that person.

-We know we heard God tell us to apply for that supervisor position, but because we’re afraid of looking foolish if we’re denied, we choose to stay where we are.

We want our lives to get better and we want to experience God’s best. However, fear has robbed us from fulfilling our deepest desires.

This fear stems from not knowing or believing God will fulfill His Word. We must take a step of faith when fear is knocking at the door. We don’t know when or how God’s Word will manifest, but we believe that it will come to pass.

Don’t let fear run the show in your life. Thaw out and trust God.

Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Zodiac signs and horoscopes have been common in society for a long time. Some people swear by them. People go around telling people what their horoscope says, they establish or don’t establish relationships based on zodiac compatibility, and they take it to be the gospel truth.

As believers, we can’t fall into this trap. Just because the sign and our personality have a few things in common doesn’t mean we view it as law. Pharaoh’s magicians had commonality with Moses’ signs but, God’s sign prevailed. The truth about ourselves comes from the Word of God. God’s Word says we’re blessed, we’re victorious, and we prosper. We’re to be led by the Holy Spirit and not make decisions based on a zodiac sign. God should be our One and only.

What will you believe? A simple opinion of another person that could involve demonic forces or the Word of God?

Exodus 20:3 You shall have no other gods before Me.

1 Peter 2:1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

As we celebrate the greatest Gift that was ever given (Jesus), let’s honor that Gift by giving Him the gift of spiritual maturity.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could stop being hypocritical towards those who may not have it all together knowing, how we used to be? Wouldn’t it be great if we could be honest with ourselves and let go of that envious mindset we have towards our “friend”? How awesome would it be if we stop speaking evil (harsh, negative, or critical) altogether?

These are the gifts we can give to God and the gifts we can give to the world. Celebrate the Christmas season by giving your gift of spiritual maturity.

Luke 15:10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

We as a society, celebrate a lot of things. We celebrate when our child graduates school, we celebrate when our team wins a big game, and we celebrate marriage engagements.

With all these things to celebrate, a lot of us overlook the most important thing. That celebration has to do with salvation. When a person commits their lives to God, through Jesus Christ, all the angels in heaven are overjoyed. Meanwhile, on earth, we give them a 15 second hand-clap and go about our day.

The same enthusiasm we have over a team winning a game is the same enthusiasm we should have regarding salvation. Salvation is THE most important thing a person can do with their lives and it deserves more than a simple hand-clap.

Although it may not directly impact our lives, it impacts the family of God. So, pray for the lost, shake their hands when they make a commitment to God, and continue to pray for them as they journey through life. While we’re celebrating Christmas, don’t forget to celebrate salvation.

Luke 14:28 Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it? 29 Otherwise, if he lays the foundation and is unable to finish the work, everyone who sees it will ridicule him,

Although Jesus was speaking about the sacrifice of discipleship, He makes a practical point about budgeting.

In life, especially around birthdays and holidays, it’s important to have and keep a budget. If it doesn’t fit the budget, it doesn’t need to be purchased.

God desires that His children prosper in every way, including our finances, but if we’re so determined to overspend our money on “stuff,” He can’t get us to a true place of wealth. Wealth is where money works for us. Wealth is where we can give money away and we won’t miss it. Wealth is where we can truly be a financial blessing to others.

If we continue to spend, spend, spend, how can God entrust us with wealth? We’ll be enslaved to “stuff.”

Let’s continue to be led by the Holy Spirit to stay within a budget.

Look at our great Orchestrator. God caused a woman (Mary), to get pregnant by the Holy Spirit. The woman just so happened to be engaged to a man (Joseph) who is originally from Bethlehem. At the same time, she was pregnant, the Caesar just so happens to decree that everyone return to their own city for registration purposes. Seeing that Joseph was the soon to be head of his family, he and his very pregnant fiancé went back to Bethlehem. While at Bethlehem, Jesus was born. Coincidence? I think not.

Since the Pharisees didn’t do their research on where Jesus was born, they didn’t believe He was the Christ, which ultimately led to His death for the sacrifice for all our sin.

As we see how God orchestrated the life of Jesus, let’s look at our lives. If He orchestrated the life of Jesus to fulfill a prophecy spoken hundreds of years before, He can do the same for us.

God will cause what happened to us (good or bad), where we’re from, and what we experienced to work out for our good (Rom. 8:28). Don’t be concerned with where you are now. It’s just a temporary holding place in a great song. Our song is not over. If we can believe, God can cause this song, which He’s orchestrating, to become a masterpiece.

John 7:41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Will the Christ come out of Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?”

A lot of us think when it comes to spiritual matters, we’re “doing it for God.” That’s not the case. When we pray, read the Word, worship God, fast, etc., we’re not doing it for God. We’re doing it for ourselves. God implemented these things to better our situation. God will still be God regardless if we pray or fast.

If God prompts us to serve for Sunday service, that’s for us. God knows there’s a promise attached that says, whatever good anyone does, the same shall they receive from the Lord (Eph. 6:8). If God tells us to pray for an hour, that’s for us because God has wisdom He wants to download to us through the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 2:10). If God desires that we wake up earlier to spend time in His presence, that’s an opportunity for Him to deposit joy and pleasure in our lives (Psalm 16:11).

So, when we’re prompted to do something by God, don’t look at it like we’re sacrificing time and effort for God. View it as an opportunity for God to get something to us.

Matthew 6:3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

6 But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

John 15:11 I have told you these things so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid.

Joy and peace is something God desires for all of His children. He doesn’t want us walking around in defeat, worried, carrying cares, and in fear. He personally had Jesus give us these things through His Word.

God healed our bodies (Isaiah 53:5) so that we can enjoy this life.
God provides all our needs (Phil. 4:19) so that we won’t lose our peace trying to figure out how we’re going to make it.
All of God’s promises are “Yes and Amen” (2 Cor. 1:20) so that we can have joy and peace knowing, in this lifetime, with faith, everything God said will come to pass.

Everything God did was so that we can have joy and peace. Shake off the spirit of depression, sadness, and heaviness and receive and maintain God’s joy and peace.

Romans 8:25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

The believer’s life is all about patience. The promises of God are there (healing, needs, desires) and we want them now but, we often end up waiting on God and His perfect timing.

God often forces us to exercise patience and self-control. We often make our lives harder when we try to force a blessing into existence.

We know God told us to wait another month before buying that car but, we have the money and we must have it now therefore; we buy it now. What we didn’t realize is in another month, that same car may be $5,000 less. We know God to us to wait another year before marring that person however, the invitations have been sent and the timing seems perfect therefore; we marry that person. The year God told us to wait may have exposed something in our potential spouse that we need to consider before marrying them.

Just know when we’re waiting on the manifestation of God’s promises, He’s not withholding it from us but, He has perfect timing and He knows what’s for our good.

Galatians 3:14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

As a believer in Jesus the Christ, we are blessed. We’re not blessed because of what we have, what we can do, or how talented we are. That’s just fruit of the blessing. We’re blessed because of what Jesus has done.

Long before the sacrifice of Jesus, God made a covenant with Abraham and Jesus (Gal. 3:16). That covenant can be summed by saying, we’re empowered to prosper in everything we do (Gen 12:2-3; 17:6-8). If we’re not Jewish, we’re considered Gentiles. Prior to the sacrifice of Jesus, Gentiles had no right to God’s covenant. However, with our belief in Jesus Christ and all that He’s done for us, we have a covenant right to be blessed.

So, regardless of how it looks, regardless of what our bank account says, and regardless of how our family situation may be, we’re blessed. And our belief in that blessing in our lives can turn any situation into a prosperous situation. Believe, know, and confess that you’re blessed.

Genesis 6:14 Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; make rooms in the ark and coat it with pitch inside and out.

God told Noah to build an ark to withstand a flood when rain didn’t even exist. Some scholars say he was building the ark for over 100 years. Can you imagine the years of satanic thoughts that entered his mind?
-You look dumb right now.
-What are you doing?
-This is a waste of time.

Not only did he have to resist satanic attacks in his mind, but he had to close his ears to naysayers around him.
-How’s that ark coming Noah? (sarcastically speaking)
-He’s lost his mind.
-How can you feed your family by doing this?

Year after year, Noah had to resist the urge to quit, and continue to do what God told him to do. At the end of the day, Noah had the last laugh by saving himself, his family, and all the animals on the earth.

What “out of the box” thing has God told you to do? Have satanic thoughts or the negative words of people prevented you from following through with His instructions? If so, take a lesson from Noah and push all that aside and do what God said.

Regardless how long it takes and no matter how ridiculous it makes us look, God will ensure that He gets the glory and He will allow the naysayers the privilege of seeing the promise manifesting in our lives.

1 John 4:4 You, little children, are from God and have overcome them, because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

Our victory is based on who we belong to. When we make Jesus Christ the Lord of our lives, we belong to God. By belonging to God, we should experience victory every time over every situation. This guaranteed victory is not automatic.

If we’re walking around speaking doom and gloom over our situation, victory won’t be given because our mouth is canceling the victory. If we’re worried or fearful about our situation, victory won’t be given because our doubt is canceling the victory. But if we confidently know we belong to God and we know Christ, Who conquered all, lives inside of us, we’ll obtain victory no matter how bleak the situation looks.

Know Who you belong to and receive victory every time.

Psalm 41:1 Blessed is he who considers the poor; The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble. 2 The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive, And he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. 3 The Lord will strengthen him on his bed of illness; You will sustain him on his sickbed.

During this holiday season, a lot of us think about enjoying time with our families, eating great food, and giving gifts to loved ones. One thing we may not consider is the poor. A lot of poor individuals are alone. They have no family or they’ve lost contact with their families. It’s important for us to consider the poor.

Considering the poor doesn’t always mean volunteering at a shelter. There are several ways to consider the poor. We can provide a meal to that one homeless person we see every day on our way to work. We can go online and give to an organization that’s helping the poor. We can give canned goods to pantries. If time and money are limited, a sincere prayer for the poor will do.

It wouldn’t be God-like if benefits weren’t attached. God provided benefits based on our consideration of the poor. As we can see, there are benefits ranging from an empowerment to prosper to strength through illnesses.

Consider the poor to be a blessing to others.

God’s Word says, all things work out for the good. It doesn’t necessarily say for our good, but for the good. These things include, our mistakes, our unbelief, and our sin. God can work all of it out for the good. Let’s look at some examples.

What if Sarah and Abraham did the right thing and simply believed God for a child instead of trying to manufacture a child themselves in Genesis 15-16? We, as believers, wouldn’t know the genuine faithfulness of God. We would think once we messed up, God’s promise is canceled.

What if David never took the wife of another man then, had the man killed by putting him on the front line in a war? We wouldn’t know God will not only forgive us, but continue to prosper us (2 Samuel 12).

Even in our own lives, we’ve done some things that we can learn from. We’ve made some mistakes and learning from our mistakes is knowledge that can benefit someone else.

Let’s not use our shortcomings to wallow in guilt or take on condemnation. Let’s change our perspective and believe God can use our mistakes, unbelief, and anything else for the good.

Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Psalm 121:2 My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.

All our help comes from God. Our help doesn’t come from the government, it doesn’t come from our jobs, and it doesn’t come from our closest friends and family members. It comes from God.

If we should ever face a troubling experience, we should look to no one else, but God. Let’s allow Him to direct us to our answer, our comfort, and our relief.

It is God alone Who provides our help. He may work through people to provide us the help we need, but it will always begin with Him.

John 9:15 Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” Then they said to him again, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?”

Jesus did something so miraculous in this blind man’s life until the Pharisees were in disbelief. They asked him multiple times how he regained his sight. The man continued to declare it was Jesus.

By putting your faith in God, through the finished works of Jesus Christ, we’ll experience unbelievable manifestations as well. People will be in disbelief after hearing our testimony. People will wonder how we got out of debt in 2 years. People will be amazed at the fact that we’re getting paid less than we once did, but we’re still able to buy the house of our dreams. People will be in awe as we’re enjoying our lives when they know we were dealing with depression. And like the man in the scriptures, we’ll give all glory to God through Jesus.

God can do some miraculous things in our lives if we let Him. Open your heart, put your trust in Him, and believe that all things are possible with God.

John 7:1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.

There are some believers who think because God is with them, they can go anywhere and do anything without consequences. Unfortunately, believers have died thinking they can go through a pride of lions, hold poisonous animals, and intrude on tribal lands. As we can see, Jesus Himself, used caution before walking into a potential dangerous situation. John 8:28 tells us Jesus did nothing of His own initiative. He was led by the Spirit of God.

So, just because we hear stories of people witnessing in dangerous neighborhoods, ministering to prostitutes, or sharing the gospel in foreign countries doesn’t mean that’s what we need to do every time the situation presents itself. There’s nothing wrong with any of this. In some cases, we’re commanded to do these things, but be sure it’s God telling us when and where to go. Otherwise, we may end up in an unfortunate situation. It’s not living by fear. It’s applying the wisdom of God in our lives.

-Ooooo…that’s a nice car. I believe I’ve receive that car for my life, amen.
-That job makes a lot of money. I receive that job, in Jesus name.
-That’s a one of a kind outfit. I thank you Lord in advance for that outfit.

When something appeals to us, some of us immediately want to throw faith at it. We want to believe God for it, thank God for it, and declare it in our lives. That’s the correct process, but we may have missed one important thing. That’s knowing if it’s God’s will for us to have that particular thing. God’s ultimate will for our lives is in His Word. However, specific decisions we need to make such as accepting a job or not, will only be revealed through His Spirit (1 Cor. 2:10).

We may want the thing, but have we asked God if He wants this in our lives right now? He may have something better for us. He may have something that aligns more with our current budget. He may expose the faultiness of the product. He may know it will be more problematic for our lives.

Whatever we desire, simply present it to God. He’ll make it clear to us if the thing we desire aligns with His will or if it’s just an impulse feeling that won’t benefit our lives.

Proverbs 16:3 (AMPC) Roll your works upon the Lord [commit and trust them wholly to Him; He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable to His will, and] so shall your plans be established and succeed.

Psalm 130:5 I wait for the LORD; my soul does wait, and in His word I put my hope. 6 My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning— more than watchmen waiting for the morning.

In this fast paced, “got to have it now” time we’re living in, waiting almost seems unnatural. But, for the believer, waiting on God’s promises is a part of the process. It’s not always, but for the most part, we’ll have to wait for some period of time.

There are different reasons why we may have to wait on a promise. Most of those reasons center around maturity. Would we give a car to our 5-year-old child to drive? Of course not. We love them enough to know they’re not mature enough to handle a car yet. It’s the same way with God. He’s not going to give us something until we’re mature enough to handle it.

We may desire a thing, but in the process of waiting, the downside of having that thing may be revealed to us. We may see that the desire may be more problematic than we realize. In waiting, we may discover the desire is really a waste of our money. While waiting, God may reveal a boastful attitude we need to remove before we receive that desire.

Let’s not view waiting negatively. Let’s change our perspective and see how we can grow, mature, and get stronger while we wait.

Psalm 62:5 My soul, wait you only upon God; for my expectation is from Him.

God is our help. It’s not the government, law makers, fundraisers, or even the church benevolence fund. It’s God. Our hope, expectation, and confidence should be in Him. God can use one of these avenues to bless our lives, but our reliance should be on Him.

Problems occur when we rely on a certain person or entity to provide a need only God can provide. Marriages end quickly because a person is disappointed that their spouse couldn’t provide fulfillment. People become angry with the government and politicians because they didn’t do what they promised. People even degrade churches because they didn’t provide something for them or the community. It’s not up to our spouse, the government, or a church to provide a need or desire. Our dependence should be totally on God.

Wait, hope, and totally rely on God.

Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

People say they want to put God first in everything they do, but their actions may contradict their confession.

They want to put God first, but the first thing they do when they wake up is check their email, scroll through social media, or text a friend. Some may say they’re not a morning person. That’s understandable, but some of those same people get distracted by managing a family in the evening, watching their favorite TV shows, and again, scrolling through social media. The next thing we know it’s late, we’re sleepy, and we haven’t been in the presence of God all day.

If we have to lose sleep or shut ourselves up in a room to prioritize God, that’s what we should do because the benefits of prioritizing God outweigh all of those other things.

Psalm 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Luke 5:5 When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” 5“Master,” Simon replied, “we have worked through the night without catching anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.”

When Simon, a fisherman, finished fishing all night and didn’t catch anything, he obeyed Jesus. His experience told him, the more appropriate time to catch fish was at night, yet in the heat of the day, he obeyed the Master. Because of his obedience, at the most inappropriate time, Simon caught more fish than he could have imagined.

When God tells us to do something, even if it goes against our logic, obey. It could be in that inappropriate time we could experience the biggest blessing of our lives. Logic says, the best sales are on “Black Friday” in November; however, through our patience and obedience, God can cause an even better sale in the middle of March. Earthly wisdom says, the best time to sell a house is in the summer; however, God can cause a great sell in the dead of winter.

Don’t focus too much earthly logic, the appropriate time, or setting. Focus on God and He will make the most inappropriate time perfect timing for us.