Graced To Do God's Will

Psalms 19:8 NLT The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living.

God’s commandments are for us to obey. As we obey, we position ourselves for better living. This scripture says we’ll have joy for doing what’s right and we’ll have insight on what we’re meant to do and be.

For the record, for new covenant believers, we’re not talking about obeying the 613 laws of Moses. We’re talking about obeying the commands of Christ (Rom. 1:5).

Obeying the commands of Christ include believing in the finished works of Jesus (Rom. 16:26), loving each other (John 13:34), and forgiving one another (Mark 11:25-26). There’s more, but the point is as we obey, we become better vessels for the Kingdom of God, better people, and and fulfill the purposes God has for us.

To get the best out of life and stay away from guilt, shame, and condemnation, obey God’s new covenant commands.

Romans 5:11 NLT So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Through Christ, every born-again believer is a friend of God. It’s not because of our efforts or our obedience that makes us friends. It’s Christ and His sacrifice alone that makes us friends of God. Thank You Jesus.

Since we’re friends of God, there are certain perks we have that other people don’t have. One perk is no punishment. God’s not punishing us when we miss the mark. There are natural consequences, but the punishment was put on Jesus (Rom. 3:21-31).

Secondly, our friendship with God provides a closeness with God (Prov. 18:24). In any situation, God will always be close to us and will help us in our time of need. He is nor will He ever be too far from us.

Proverbs 17:17 says, a friend loves at all time. So, as a friend of God, we’re promised to be loved by Him at all times. That means He loves when we’re doing things correctly and when we’re missing the mark. He loves us forever.

We are His children, we are His chosen ones, but we’re also His friends. Praise God for Jesus who made all this happen for us.

Ephesians 1:17 NLT asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

We push our children to have a good education in the natural. It’s more important for them to have spiritual wisdom. Where education stops is where wisdom begins. Wisdom is knowing what to do when you don’t know what to do. And since spiritual laws supercede natural laws, it’s better for them to have spiritual wisdom over natural education.

The best way to guarantee they have a good spiritual education is to pray and confess this verse over them.

Prayer: God, I ask that my children receive spiritual wisdom and insight so that they grow in the knowledge of You, in Jesus name, amen.

As our children get older, this wisdom will teach them to rely on God in every area. They’ll rely on God while studying for a test, in sports, and in choosing their friends.

Praise God we have access to this wisdom where we and our children get to grow in the knowledge of God.

Isaiah 32:18 KJV And My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;

God wants us to experience peace in every area of our lives, including our homes. So many people are experiencing strife, drama, and toxicity in their homes. Some married couples are arguing continuously and parents are not getting along with their children. This is not God’s desire nor His best for the family.

If you’re not experiencing peace in your home and you’re a born-again believer, you can stand on this promise. Daily, we can confess “I have peace in my home based on Your word that says, Your people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.” We can make these confessions in the morning, at night, after an argument, and when everything is going well.

If we can’t have peace in our homes, where can we have it? Declare peace in your home and don’t settle for anything less.

Satan is masterful at implementing hypothetical scenarios in our minds. His goal is to get us to fear and doubt God’s word.

Here are just a few:
-After watching the news about layoffs.
Satan: What if you lose your job and don’t have a way to pay your bills?
-When a spouse doesn’t respond to a text/call promptly.
Satan: They may be messing around with someone else.
-After taking your child to school.
Satan: What if there’s a mass shooting at the school?
-After giving money in the church.
Satan: They may use everyone’s money to buy the pastor a new car.
-Before leaving the house at night.
Satan: You heard how they’re robbing people at gun point.

Whatever scenario that enters our minds that doesn’t agree with God’s word is sent by Satan and it’s a lie. Those thoughts need to be thrown out AND replaced with the truth in the word of God.

If we’re willing to receive them, God has truths for us to think about instead of demonic hypothetical scenarios.

The Truth:
God supplies my needs (Phil. 4:19).
I give my cares about my spouse to God (1 Peter 5:7).
God perfects everything concerning me including my children’s safety (Psalm 138:8).
What they do with the money doesn’t concern me. When I give, it’s being given back to me (Luke 6:38).
I’m not afraid. The Lord will personally go ahead of me. He will be with me; He will neither fail me nor abandon me” (Deut. 31:8).

Which will you choose to dwell on? The hypothetical scenarios of Satan or the truth in God’s word?

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

Jude 1:23 NLT Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives.

Some Christians have took it upon themselves to say God hates this group of people or that group of people. These are lies. God doesn’t hate people. God loves all His creation.

Nowhere in the bible does it say we’re to hate sinners. We are to hate the sin, not the sinner. We’re to hate lies, not the person who is lying. We’re to hate homosexuality, not the person engaged in homosexual relations. We’re to hate adultery, not the person committing adultery. If we find ourselves hating the person, a demonic spirit has influenced our minds.

Like God, we are called to love everyone. And since we love everyone, we should want our brother and sister rescued from the bondage of sin. It’s ultimately going to be up to them if they want to be freed, but we can do our part in assisting in their rescue.

Our part includes, removing demonic influences that are influencing their decisions (Luke 10:19), praying for godly influences to minister to them (Hebrews 1:14), encouraging them on a regular basis (Proverbs 27:17), and telling them the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15).

We shouldn’t want to see people destroying themselves with sin. Let’s be vessels for God and assist in their rescue from sin.

Jeremiah 31:3 NKJV The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.

God’s love is everlasting. It’s doesn’t stop for anyone or anything. God loves people who will never love Him back. God loves the atheist who chooses not to believe in Him. God loves the liar, the homosexual, the fornicator, and the adulterer. God loves people who say they’re going to do better, but never seem to get it right.

God loves the abuser and the abused. God loves the prostitute and the pimp. God loves the drug addict and the drug dealer. If you’ve been in church all your life or never been at all, God loves us all the same.

Love is God’s nature. It will never stop. His love produces goodness, grace, and mercy in the hopes that we will turn to Him and never turn back (Rom. 2:4). Know this, God is not angry with you. He loves you both now and forever. Receive His love.

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.
Romans 5:6 NLT

We ALL were utterly helpless at one point in time. We didn’t know what to do, which way to turn, who to talk to, or where to go. Eventually, we humbled ourselves and realized we can’t do life without God. We realized we needed a Savior who can save us from ourselves and our situation. That’s when we received Jesus.

Thank you God for Jesus. He helped when we were utterly helpless. We were deceived into thinking we were doing right, but we were wrong. Thank You for showing us our faults and revealing that You died for our faults.

This gospel is too good not to share. If you know anyone who is utterly helpless, do them a favor by pointing them to Jesus. He can help ANY helpless situation.

2 Corinthians 2:14 NKJV Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

Nowhere in the bible does it say that we’ll win a few and lose a few. God’s word for the new covenant believer says we ALWAYS win in Christ.

Certain situations may not be favorable, but it doesn’t mean we’ve lost. We may have lost a job, experienced the premature death of a loved one, or had financial depletion, but that’s still not considered a loss because our story is not over. God can bless us with a better job, give us peace in knowing our loved one is in a better place, and give us financial increase.

Stop saying “if I win or lose, I’ll still give Him the praise.” It sounds spiritual, but it’s not scriptural. Through Christ, we always win.

2 Corinthians 3:5 NLT It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God.

When interviewing for a job, they ask for our qualifications. We usually inform them of our education, degrees, and experience. This makes sense for a job. When it comes to sharing and ministering the gospel of Jesus Christ, people may want to know our qualifications. It should be one answer; God. It shouldn’t be answers such as, I’ve been saved for 7 years, I speak in tongues, I tithe, and I sing on the praise team. No, God is the One who qualifies us to share and minister the gospel.

We may have been saved for one week and have more revelation of God’s word than someone who has been saved for 20 years.

When sharing the message of Christ, some of us may be questioned by our friends. They’ll say, “Who are you to tell me about Christ? Didn’t we get drunk together last year?” Or, “How can you tell me to repent? I know how you used to be.” We’ll simply let them know we’ve been qualified by God.

Any born-again believer is qualified to share or minister the gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s not our good works or years of good behavior that qualifies us. It’s God alone Who qualifies us.

Psalms 139:5 NKJV You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me.

God’s word tells us that He has a hedge surrounding and protecting us. We won’t benefit from this hedge of protection unless we believe this hedge exists and it’s meant for us.

If we feel like we have to protect ourselves, that’s a lack of faith in God’s hedge of protection. If we’re in fear about going certain places, that’s a lack of faith in God’s hedge of protection. Have faith in this unseen hedge of protection.

This hedge is also available to our children. We no longer need to worry about our children in school. Until they develop their faith, we can use our faith in God’s hedge of protection surrounding them. This will keep us in peace as we drop them off at school.

God has a hedge of protection surrounding us. Believe His word and reap the benefits of this hedge.

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

Faith is more than believing. It’s believing God’s word and acting on our belief. How do we act on our belief? Mainly through confession. When we say the same thing God says about us in His word, we’re acting on our belief.

A person can think they believe they’re healed based on 1 Peter 2:24 which says, “By His wounds you are healed.” If we ask them how they’re feeling and they say, “I’m sick as a dog,” they don’t have faith. They’re not saying what God said. They’re saying what they truly believe (Matt. 12:34). A person in faith would say, “I believe I am healed.” They’re not denying sickness. They’re choosing to believe God’s word above the sickness. They’re ignoring the sickness and saying what God says.

The same rule applies in our finances, our marriages, or any other promise of God. If you see what God says in His word, believe it’s for you AND act on that belief through confession. Don’t let what you see and how you feel change your belief in or confession of the word of God.

Proverbs 2:6 NLT For the Lord grants wisdom! From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

We all need wisdom for something. It could be at our jobs, in parenting, in growing a business, or in school. Regardless of the area where wisdom is needed, the Lord will provide wisdom if we ask (James 1:5).

Once we ask, we must be willing to follow His instructions even if they don’t make sense. We may need wisdom for our business, but God may instruct us to forgive our parents who mistreated us. To the logical person, they’ll wonder what forgiveness has to do with their business? If that seems too weird to follow, we’ll be stuck in ignorance or not experience God’s best in our business. Those who’ll follow God’s instructions will gain the wisdom needed for maximum success in business. For the example above, God’s word tells us to forgive. When we don’t forgive, our faith is contaminated and our prayers for wisdom are hindered (Mark 11:25).

Human wisdom is not enough to be highly successful. Only the wisdom of God can help us in every area of our lives.

Genesis 3:5 NLT “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”

Satan deceived Eve into thinking she was missing out on something by saying “your eyes will be open” and “you will be like God.” Because she didn’t want to miss out, she deliberately disobeyed God, ended up in a worse predicament, AND caused Adam to do the same.

Satan is still deceiving people into thinking they’re missing out on something. What people think they’re missing out on varies. Satan deceives people into thinking they’re missing out on another religion that predates Christianity, another way to salvation besides Jesus, or “fun.” If we think we’re missing out on something, we’ll go against the word of God and end up in a terrible situation.

God’s word is the truth. Don’t be deceived into thinking you’re missing out on anything outside of His word. Anything outside of the word of God is a lie and Satan is behind it.

2 Corinthians 5:9 NLT So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please Him.

The goal of every born-again believer is to please God. We don’t please God by keeping the law and we don’t please God by staying in a church 24 hours a day. We please God by doing what He says through His Spirit.

We please God when He tells us to work diligently at the job, but we also please Him when He tells us to stop working even though there’s more work to be done. We please God when we go and worship Him at church on Sunday and we please Him when He directs us to spend time with our family at the park on Sunday. Pleasing God is not limited to traditional things like praying, reading the bible, and going to church. Pleasing God is anything we do where His Spirit is directing us.

Let’s please God by trusting Him and doing what He says.

Luke 18:19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “Only God is truly good.

God is always good. This is a reason to rejoice and celebrate Him. The reason we don’t celebrate His goodness as much as we should is, we minimize or fail to identify His goodness.

The fact that we’re alive is a sign of God’s goodness. Unless a traumatic event happens, most people are not shouting for joy because they’re alive. We look beyond that goodness and are demonically influenced to focus on what we don’t have. Satan will try to have us focus on not having the amount of money we want, not having a spouse, or other seemingly negative things. Satan’s goal is to steal God’s praise.

Let’s bring it back to the basics and think about the goodness of God and give Him praise. God’s goodness includes: being alive, healthy, walking, talking, food, shelter, clothes, clean water, employment, excess money, transportation, valuables, going to point A to point B without getting killed in a robbery or a car crash, experiencing God’s love through family and friends.

Some of us may not have everything seen above, but we can give Him praise for what we do have. God is good and don’t let the devil tell you otherwise.

1 John 5:21 NLT Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.

Social media, Netflix, TV, video games, socializing with friends, a relationship, and making money. These are things that could be taking God’s place.

Does this mean we can’t play video games or watch Netflix? Of course not. It’s means there should be some balance. If we binge watch 6 hours of Netflix, but only read the verse of the day in our bible app, our day was imbalanced. God should get more than a couple minutes of prayer and few seconds of reading for the day.

More importantly, like everything else, we should let God’s Spirit lead us. If He says only play video games from 10:00pm – 12:00am, video games are not taking God’s place. If He tells us not to go out with our friends for the night, when we obey, our social life is not taking God’s place. God may even approve us binge watching 6 hours of our favorite show, but since He’s leading us, Netflix is not taking God’s place.

It’s in our best interests to trust Him and not allow anything to take God’s place.

Romans 8:37 NLT No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

Despite how things appear, through Christ, we’re victorious. In our jobs we’re victorious, in our ministry we’re victorious, in our marriages and finances we’re victorious. Anything we’ve been called to do or to be responsible for, we’re victorious.

Victory is NOT automatic. We must look at negative situations in the face and declare we’re victorious. If we allow negative situations to cause doubt and unbelief in our hearts, we’ll either fail or not obtain everything God has for us.

Faith in God’s word for overwhelming victory is what’s going to cause us to experience overwhelming victory. Don’t focus on anything else but God’s word, and you’ll experience victory in every area of your life.

2 Corinthians 1:20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.

Every promise from God is still available to every born-again believer. It doesn’t matter how old we are, how many times we went to prison, how many times we’ve been married, or our financial status. God’s promises are still on the table for the taking.

THE ONLY thing stopping us from receiving what God has for us, is us. When we don’t believe God’s word about something, based on a natural perspective, we’re intentionally leaving a promise on the table.

If we think we’re too old to have a baby because science says so, we’re choosing to believe science instead of the scripture that says with God all things are possible (Matt. 19:26). When we choose to remain single because of failed relationships, we’re allowing fear to win instead of believing that God will give us the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4). When we think we have to hustle to get ahead financially, we’re deciding to not believe God’s word where it says, the blessing of the Lord makes one wealthy without toil (Prov. 10:22).

Don’t allow your past, the world’s perspective, or fear to rule. Believe God’s word and take EVERYTHING God has promised you through Jesus Christ.

Psalm 40:4 Oh, the joys of those who trust the Lord, who have no confidence in the proud or in those who worship idols.

When our trust is in the Lord, we’ll experience numerous amounts of joy in our lives. Trusting in God means doing things His way. When we trust God or do things His way in our marriages, in parenting, with our finances, or anything else, we’ll have joy in our marriages, in parenting, or with our finances.

When we add our own ways of doing things, that’s when our joy turns into sorrow. When we do it our way, we may think we’re winning, but we’re headed for destruction (Prov. 14:12).

Experience infinite amounts of joy by trusting in the Lord and no one else, including yourself.