Graced To Do God's Will

Pslam 147:1 Praise the Lord ! For it is good to sing praises to our God; For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful.

A lot of us enjoyed praise and worship at church. They would sing our favorite songs that glorified God. It was a beautiful thing to see numerous people honoring God for the wonderful things He’s done.

Unfortunately with COVID-19, coming together to praise and worship God had to stop. The enemy has used this separation to stop some of our praise. The enemy realized some of us wouldn’t praise God unless we’re in a church setting.

That’s why we must initiate our own praise and worship to God. We can praise God before we start our work day at home. We can turn on our favorite worship song and sincerely praise God in the living room. As we perform tasks, we can praise God in our vehicles. Even before we go to bed, we can worship God.

The point is to be intentional about praise and worship. At this time, it’s no longer going to be given to us. We have to grow up and be responsible to make praise a priority. Praise turns our hearts back to Him and keeps us mindful of all that He’s done. Let’s praise and worship our God.

Proverbs 16:28 (CEV) Gossip is no good! It causes hard feelings and comes between friends.

We all have been guilty of spreading gossip. A friend or family member confides in us about a problematic situation and we go tell someone else. Not only do we tell someone else, we may give our opinion about the people involved.

Because our words have power, what we’re doing when we gossip is keeping that situation alive (Prov. 18:21). It’s like adding a log to the fire. Each person we tell, we’re fueling that negative situation. If we’re giving our opinion about the people involved, most of the time, it’s not favorable or true. We’ll say how terrible the person was or how foolish someone was. Again, with the power of our words, we’re speaking death over the people involved. And if what we’re saying doesn’t agree with God’s Word, it’s not true.

The best things we can do after hearing unfortunate news is keep it to ourselves and sincerely pray for the person and their situation. Let’s speak life in that situation and declare all is well with them and their household. As tempting as it is to tell someone else, nothing good comes when we tell another person’s business.

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

As much as we want Him to, God doesn’t respond to our tears. He responds to bold faith.

He doesn’t sit in heaven, looking at us crying in our rooms, and say to Himself, “aww, let me give them what they’ve been crying about.” He responds to our faith. He’s not insensitive to what we’re facing, but God can only operate by what He’s bound by: His Word.

And in His Word, He tells us to come boldly to Him asking for what we desire. That’s the Word He’s bound by. If He starts making exceptions to this person who’s crying over there and this person who’s sad over there, it would devalue His Word.

God and His Word run together. You can’t have one without the other. If He tells us to come boldly, no matter how we feel at the time, we must get ourselves together and follow His instructions He set in place to get our prayers answered.

I get it, situations are tough, but to experience breakthrough, there needs to be less tears and bolder faith.

When God blesses us with things, it’s for our enjoyment, but it’s also for Kingdom use. Kingdom use is not solely associated with things at a church. Kingdom use is anything God desires to use to build His Kingdom.

Some of us have been blessed with a new house, but we don’t want people to come over because they may dirty it up. Or, God blessed us with a car, but we don’t want to pick someone up because we’re attempting to limit the miles driven on our car. First of all, that’s selfish. Secondly, what if fellowshipping in our house or them seeing our generosity to pick them up is the turning point for them to be fully submitted to God? Our actions could be the sign they needed to see to know God cares for them.

Is it wrong for God to ask us to do something for His Kingdom if He blessed us with means to do it? Absolutely not.

We are the builders of the Kingdom of God and we’re the only people who can accomplish the will of God in earth. So, don’t limit God’s reach by attempting to preserve the blessings He’s given us. God doesn’t have limited resources. Use the blessings God has given us to advance His Kingdom.

 2 Corinthians 9:11 (NLT) Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank God.

Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. 11 For through wisdom your days will be multiplied, and years will be added to your life.

The fear (reverent regarding) of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. When we trust, lean on, and totally rely on God, wisdom will begin to download in our minds. When we act on this wisdom, it will help us live longer.

Wisdom, through the Holy Spirit, will tell us to go get a check up at the doctor’s office, stop eating so many sweets, start exercising, or drink more water. It’s been scientifically proven that these things help people live longer. Wisdom will also tell us to slow down while driving, turn right instead of left, or wait more minutes before leaving the house. This wisdom can possibly help us avoid a fatal collision.

As born-again believers, we have wisdom for EVERYTHING at our request (James 1:5). Why not maximize on this wisdom and enjoy a long prosperous life?

Psalm 112:5 Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice.

When we give gifts and tips at a restaurant, it’s usually based on what they’ve done for us. If they’ve been nice to us, we’ll usually have no problem giving a person a good gift or a tip. However, if they’ve treated us poorly, we’re reluctant to give them a gift or a tip.

Let’s change our perspective. Let’s not base our giving on what they’ve done for us. Let’s base our giving on the leading of the Holy Spirit. When we allow God to lead us on who to give to and what to give, we’re setting ourselves up for success. As we can see, anytime we give, we’re investing in a guaranteed return. We’re investing in a piece of good coming to us.

Sure, we can keep our money by not giving, but what good will that do for us or others? Let’s keep God’s goodness flowing in our lives by giving to others.

Proverbs 23:4 Do not overwork to be rich; Because of your own understanding, cease!

We’re living in a time where “hustling” is glorified. It’s a badge of honor for people to tell us that they don’t sleep because they’re grinding, hustling, or working extra hard to get money. As we can see, working ourselves to the bone to get rich is unwise.

Sleep, rest, and spending time with God and our families is very important. Money will come and go, but rest and time is something we can never get back.

Diligently working is biblical but overworking to get rich is not beneficial. Let’s consult God as we work. If He tells us to work late or get an extra job, that means He’s graced us to do it and everything will work for the good (Romans 8:28). However, if we’re overworking ourselves to get rich, we need to reevaluate our plans.

We can speak things into existence. Proverbs 18:21 says, death and life are in the power of the tongue and Mark 11:23 says, we shall have what we say. With all that known, by faith, we have the ability to declare what we want to see in our lives. We can speak a child into existence, command our finances to increase, speak divine healing in our bodies, declare a great marriage, etc.

Although we can speak things into existence, our corresponding actions must align with our faith-filled declarations. We can’t declare our youth is renewed like the eagle (Ps. 103:5), but only get 4 hours of sleep because we’re watching TV all night. We can’t command our blood pressure to go down and continue to eat a lot of salty foods and expect it to work. Our actions must align with our declaration.

God will give us corresponding actions to agree with our faith. He’ll tell us to stop watching so much news if we desire to be stress-free. He’ll tell us to start exercising more if we want to eliminate aches in our bodies.

We can declare things until our voice is gone, but if our actions don’t align with our speech, it’s unfruitful. Be sure your actions are agreeing with your faith.

James 2:17 (NIV) In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

1 Timothy 2:3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

Salvation is THE greatest thing we can receive on earth however, it doesn’t stop there. Since life goes on after salvation and we have to overcome obstacles and receive all that God has promised there’s something else we must obtain.

We must obtain knowledge of the truth. What is truth? John 17:17 says, God’s Word is truth. Based on this definition we can restate this verse to say, this is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the Word of God.

Salvation is freely given, but knowledge of the Word of God takes effort. We obtain knowledge by consistently studying (not just reading) God’s Word, communing with God, and hearing God’s Word through bible-based teaching.

So, from now until the day we die, we should be obtaining more and more knowledge of the truth.

2 Timothy 1:5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

Faith is what we need to be successful in life. It’s not faith in ourselves or in our abilities, but faith in God’s Word.

When we consistently place our faith in God, people will take notice because faith can be seen. It can be seen because people of faith are usually doing the opposite from what the world is doing.

When everyone is freaking out over something, people of faith are calm. When everyone is selling their stocks because of a crash, people of faith are buying stocks (as God leads them). When everyone is sad about a diagnosis, people of faith are excited to see the healing that’s about to take place. When we continue to get victory after victory after victory, they’ll have no choice but to see our faith in God and hopefully want to place their faith in Him too.

So, let’s continue to build our faith in God so it can be seen by everyone.

Genesis 1:3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Our Father used faith to create everything. He spoke things into existence by believing what He said. Through Jesus, we have that same ability. In the name of Jesus, we can speak God’s will in our lives. For simplicity, we can use our Father’s “Let there be” formula.

Let there be a great marriage between my spouse and I.
Let there be great management at my job.
Let there be divine health in my body.
Let there be a cure for coronavirus.
Let there be wealth and riches in my house.
Let there be ministers of the gospel to lead others to Christ.

We don’t have to use big fancy words to speak in faith. Just a quick “let there be” and an unwavering belief in what we said will work. Now, what will you declare?

Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.

1 Timothy 2:1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,

We’ve been instructed to pray for all. No one’s left out of all. This means praying for people who love you as well as praying for people who hate you. This means praying for people you like and praying for people you don’t like. This means praying for your best friend and praying for your worst enemy.

It’s easy to pray for people that we love and who love us, but it takes maturity to pray for people who hurt and hate us. When praying for people who hurt or hate us, we pray for their salvation (1 Tim. 2:4). We pray that they come into the knowledge of God (Eph. 1:17). We pray that the goodness of God will lead to their repentance (Rom. 2:4). We pray that they’re transformed by the renewing of their mind (Rom. 12:2). We use our authority to stop demonic influences from operating in their lives (Luke 10:19).

Think of how great this world would be if people would overcome pride, selfishness, and hurt, and sincerely pray for all. Let’s continue to pray.

Psalm 144:4 (ISV) The human person is a mere empty breath; his days are like a fading shadow.

As we can see, time is very precious. Unfortunately, there far too many people wasting their time in dead-end relationships. Some people have spent a year, 3 years, or 10 years with someone they don’t even marry. We can’t get that time back.

To avoid wasting time, here are some “hot and fast” questions a person can potentially ask within the first 2 months of communicating.
WARNING: These questions are for fearless people who shouldn’t be concerned with pushing the other person away, but ensuring their time is not being wasted.

1. Do you have and want to continue to build a relationship with God?
2. What are your intentions for dating/communicating with me?
3. Do you want to get married?… when (after being in an exclusive relationship)?
4. Are you an effective, transparent communicator?
5. Do you have or want to have children?… how many?
6. What are your goals and aspirations?
7. What are your expectations of me?
8. Are you looking for an exclusive relationship?
9. Are you a faithful tither?
10. Are you financially literate (operate within a budget, working to pay off debts, managing impulses)?

These are just a few questions to help you get to know someone a lot faster. If their answers don’t align with your core values or plans, you should politely let them know it’s not going to work out. Don’t waste time with someone hoping they’re going to conform to your standards. Ask the questions to see if they fit.

1 Kings 8:56 “Blessed be the LORD, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised through His servant Moses.

Everything God said in His written or audible Word, He will do. In fact, since there’s no time with God, it’s already done. Our belief in that Word (faith) will cause it to come to pass.

Since God’s written Word says, “by His stripes you were healed,” that settles it. We are healed of any sickness or pain. Since God’s Word says, “with long life You will satisfy me,” that settles it. We’re destined to have a long satisfying life. If God told us we’re getting that promotion, we might as well tell our family and friends about it because it’s ours.

Once again, it takes faith to bring it to pass. If we allow negative influences or circumstances to cause us to doubt, we won’t see manifestation. It also takes corresponding action (works) with our faith to bring it to pass (James 2:17). We must be willing to do what God says to position ourselves to receive what God promised.

Regardless, whatever God said, He will bring it to pass. It’s already done in the spirit realm. Use your faith to bring it in the natural world to enjoy now.

Jonah 3:1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three-day journey in extent.

God initially told Jonah to preach His message. Jonah disobeyed God and as a result of his decisions, he was swallowed and left in the stomach of a big fish for 3 days. Eventually, the fish vomited him up on land.

Here’s the good news. God can still use us even if we blatantly disobeyed Him. As we can see, Jonah’s purpose was not lost. God gave him a second chance. God instructed him a second time to preach. This time, Jonah obeyed God. The people believed the man of God, they turned from their evil ways, and God decided not to destroy the city.

Don’t ever think you’ve gone too far to be used by God. Your purpose is still on the table. Even after messing up a million times, we can be used by God to bring people to Christ, provide opportunities for others, or encourage someone else. God can use us even if we’re destined to spend the rest of our lives in prison.

Let that guilt and shame of your past go. Open up your spiritual ears to hear what God is instructing you to do and DO IT!!!

Revelations 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens, “It has come at last— salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth— the one who accuses them before our God day and night.

The one thing the devil attempts to do on a daily basis is make us feel guilty about “displeasing God.” God is not displeased with us, but the devil will use things we did or didn’t do to make us think that.

If we’re not saved, he’ll attempt to make us feel guilty about certain sins to make us feel unworthy to give our lives to the Lord. Once we get saved, he’ll guilt us into thinking God is not pleased because we haven’t read our bibles, listened to sermons, or prayed. When we start reading our bibles and listening to sermons, he’ll try to make us feel guilty by letting us know we could have done more.

God is not behind any of this guilt. That’s not His nature. He’s not going to guilt us into salvation, reading the Word, or praying. He desires that we establish and build a relationship with Him, but He’s not going to make us feel guilty. The Holy Spirit will remind us of ways to better ourselves, but don’t let the devil pervert this reminder and turn it into guilt.

So, if the devil or anyone else tries to make you feel guilty about something, rebuke them and declare no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).

Proverbs 10:17 Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life, but he who ignores reproof goes astray.

If God came down from heaven and began speaking to you about how to live, what you should do, and how to experience blessings, would you ignore Him? Would you walk past Him as if you didn’t see Him? Of course not. Most of us would listen to every word He says.

Well, in a sense, God is attempting to speak to us. He’s attempting to speak to us through His written Word. Unfortunately, some of us ignore it or prioritize something else. We leave God’s Word on the table collecting dust or our bible app is only opened when we attend church. If we can value His Word as much as we value TV series or social media content, we can experience God’s best in our lives.

Stop ignoring or putting other things in front of God’s Word. Get the instructions to a successful life by spending time studying God’s Word.

Psalm 103:2 Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— 3 He who forgives all your iniquities and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the Pit and crowns you with loving devotion and compassion, 5 who satisfies you with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

When some of us accepted Jesus as Lord, we’re happy that we got our ticket to heaven and we’ll miss hell. There’s more to salvation than this.

The benefits of salvation are having and enjoying abundant life now. It’s being able to communicate with God anytime we desire. It’s having access to God’s peace when we’re experiencing troubling times. It’s living a guilt-free life knowing God has forgiven everyone of their sins. It’s having more than enough so that we’re able to be a blessing to others. Salvation is being completely free from all fear. It’s having the right to divine healing from all sickness, disease, or pain in or on our bodies. God wants us to have it all.

Some of us were just fine with avoiding hell, but suffering here on earth. What kind of witness are we if we’re suffering more than the world?

Let’s exercise our faith and take hold of all the perks of salvation. Not just missing hell. Our goal before we die is to truly experience ALL of God’s promises in abundance.

Ephesians 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God,

The grace of God is something we don’t have to earn. It’s God’s gift to us when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. It’s unearned and undeserved favor.

What’s included in this grace package?
1. Reconciliation with God.
2. Forgiveness of past, present, and future sins.
3. Access to divine health through Jesus Christ.
4. Redemption from poverty, sickness, and death.
5. Heard and answered prayers.
6. Abundant (earthly) life.
7. Wealth.
8. The wisdom of God.
9. Prosperity in every area of our lives.
10. Eternal life with God and our Savior, Jesus.
…And more.

How could anyone deny this deal? It’s FREE!!! Once again, we don’t have to pray 5 hours a day, read a book of the bible a day, or live a perfect life to receive everything grace provided. When we receive Jesus as Lord, we get access to everything He provided. Faith is what takes everything grace has provided.

Receive Jesus and take everything He offers us.

Joshua 1:8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

We feed our natural selves around 3 times a day. It fuels our bodies for us to complete our daily tasks. A lot of us feed our natural selves consistently, but it’s even more beneficial to feed our spirit.

We feed our spirit with the Word of God. Studying and listening to the Word of God is very important. Feeding our spirit keeps us with a positive attitude, it helps us make the right decisions, and it encourages us to keep our faith in God. If we don’t feed our spirit, we’ll find ourselves making decisions based on how circumstances look or how we feel. Feeling and circumstances are temporary, but God’s Word is forever.

So, consistently feed your spirit the Word of God to maintain peace, joy, and wisdom.

We have desires. We may want a child, a car, a job, a spouse, or a house. That desire typically grows in our minds and we have to control ourselves from being anxious. We ask God for that desire and until we get it, we stay in faith. Finally, when we get the desire, we’re overjoyed.

As time goes on, that same desire we so desperately wanted may feel like a burden. Some of us may complain about raising that child we wanted. Our boss at that job we believed God for may be getting on our nerves and now we’re ready to quit. That house we were so excited about 2 years ago may become burdensome as we have to spend our weekends cleaning it up.

This feeling of being burdened by these previous desires is nothing more than an opportunity for the devil to minimize God’s blessing. Don’t let him bring you down by diminishing God’s gifts. Keep that same energy. Continue to be grateful for the things you prayed for. Things may not be operating the way we want, but it’s our role to find the good in those blessings.

Be grateful and don’t let anyone or anything stop God from getting the glory.   

1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

John 4: 39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.”

There are some who have been condemned by others to keep their testimonies to themselves. They have been conditioned to think that it’s bragging or not humble to tell all the wonderful things God has done.

As we can see, our testimonies can inspire others to believe. It will motivate people to make Jesus Christ their Lord. It will encourage people to put their trust in God. Our testimony can light a spark in someone to continue on even though they want to give up.

So, ask yourself this question… What spirit do you think is behind silencing our testimony under the guise of humility? Answer: The spirit of the antichrist.

Don’t let anyone silence you or make you feel ashamed about all the good that God has done. When you get that new job, tell people Who did it. When all your bills are consistently being paid, publicly give God the glory. When everyone else is complaining about their marriage, let them know Who causes your marriage to thrive. You never know who’s listening and how your testimony can impact their lives.

John 2:3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” 4 Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” 6 Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. 9 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 10 And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”

A request was made to Jesus for more wine. For the longest time, I assumed Jesus physically did something to make this miracle come to pass. I thought He touched, blessed, or waved His hand over the water in some way to make it turn into wine. He didn’t do anything besides provide instructions to the servants. As the servants obeyed Jesus, the water was turned into wine. This entire miracle hinged on the servants’ obedience to Jesus.

This is a prime example of how certain manifestations will come into our own lives. Once we’ve made our request to God, detailed instructions may follow. He may tell us to research something, meditate on something, or talk to someone. As we follow these instructions entirely, we’ll walk right into our miracle.

So, even if it seems foolish, far-fetched, or “beneath” us, obey God’s instructions to receive His promises.

1 John 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we already possess what we have asked of Him.

“Bow down, pray to God hoping that He’s listening.” -Tupac Shakur

Tupac made this statement back in the 90’s, but unfortunately so many (Christian) people still feel this way. They’re praying to God hoping that He’s listening. Where’s the confidence? When we pray to God, we don’t have to hope and wish that He’s listening. His Word tells us He’s listening. Not only is He listening, when we boldly come to Him, He will manifest that prayer.

It doesn’t matter if we’re asking for a better marriage, a new job, or a parking spot. He’s listening and truly desires to answer our prayers. Come to God about anything and everything and give Him the opportunity to answer your prayers.

Be sure to have a relationship with God and not religion or religious experiences.

The Differences:
People in relationship with God talk to God every day of the week, throughout the day. A religious person only spends time with God for a couple of hours on Sunday.

People in relationship with God read their bible daily. A religious person keeps their bible on the nightstand for decoration.

People in relationship with God read the Word of God because they want to know God more. A religious person reads a scripture or two just to “check a box.”

People in relationship with God seek His ways of doing things. A religious person acts and hopes God will bless their decisions.

People in relationship with God strive to honor God with their lives, behavior, and decisions daily. Religious people have the appearance of being holy in church settings, but they sin better than the world when no one’s looking.

Now that we understand the differences between a person who has a relationship with God and a person who is religious, ask yourself, “Am I religious or am I continuously developing my relationship with God?”

Religion: Isaiah 29:13 Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men.

Relationship: Psalm 119:147 I rise before dawn and cry for help; I wait for Your words. 148 My eyes anticipate the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word.   

Psalm 23:4 (MSG) Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I’m not afraid when you walk at my side. Your trusty shepherd’s crook makes me feel secure.

Every human being needs to feel secure. We want to have provision and protection. We can have that security with God, through Christ.

We don’t have to own an entire arsenal of guns, we don’t have to know the latest martial arts moves, and we don’t have to worry about where our next meal is coming from. When we rely on God, He’ll protect us and take care of all our needs.

Be secure for the rest of your life by allowing God to be your Shepherd.

James 4:11 Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?

From our president’s decisions to our little brother’s career path, it’s not our responsibility to judge. We may disagree or not prefer someone else’s decisions, but to say what’s right or wrong, based on our opinion, is judgement. There’s only One true Judge. That’s God. Who are we to judge?

What we can do is pray for people to make decisions that align with the Word of God. We can pray for the removal of demonic influences that cause them to make unwise decisions. We can pray their hearts are submitted to God. If they’re close to us, we can give them facts, wise counsel, or tell them what the Word of God says and let the power of God’s Word change their thinking.

Let’s not judge one another. It benefits no one and it doesn’t glorify God. Instead, pray for people to make wise, Spirit-led decisions.

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.

In God’s Word, there’s something for everyone. It doesn’t matter what we’re facing, we can benefit from God’s Word.

If we are facing attacks against our health, we can turn to 1 Peter 2:24 and declare by Jesus’ stripes we are healed. If we’re going through a difficult time in our marriage, we can turn to Ephesians 5:25-33 to learn our role in the marriage and we can turn to Luke 10:19 to understand our authority over demonic influences that are attempting to attack our marriage. If we need to make an important decision, we can understand how we should allow peace to be the deciding factor in what we should do (Col. 3:15). If we feel lonely, we can read in Deuteronomy 31:6 that God is always with us and He will never leave.

God’s Word can handle it all, but none of this will work if we don’t believe and act on it (James 1:22). So, read it, believe it, and receive it.

Deuteronomy 10:13 and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?

Everything God instructs us to do in His Word (in context) is for our overall benefit. God will still be God whether we obey Him or not.

God doesn’t need our money, but He instructs us to tithe and give an offering so that He can bless our lives (Mal. 3:10). It doesn’t impact God in any kind of way if we forgive others, but He instructs us to forgive to be free from anger and hurt feelings (Eph. 4:32). Forgiveness has also been scientifically proven to maintain a strong immune system. All the sins God instructs us not to do doesn’t benefit God. It benefits us. Through Christ, we’ve been forgiven of all (past, present, and future) sin, but sin has natural consequences that negatively impact our lives. For instance, if we consistently eat too much (gluttony), we may suffer the consequence of obesity, diabetes, and/or high cholesterol.

Understand that God’s instructions are not trying to take something from us. He’s the Creator of mankind and He knows what is beneficial for His creation. Trust that His instructions are best for us.

Psalm 19:11 (MSG) There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger and directs us to hidden treasure.

It’s extremely exciting when we hear the voice of God telling us to expect a blessing, but God does more than just tell us the things we want to hear. He also gives us warnings.

He may tell us to mentally prepare for difficult times in the next 6 months. He may tell us to be mindful of someone we call our friend who is taking advantage of us. He may tell us our spouse is cheating on us without any evidence. These are things we may not want to hear, but out of His love, God tells us anyway.

It’s not always the devil telling us things we may not want to hear. By knowing the voice of God we’ll understand when it’s God warning us and preparing us for our future.

Luke 10:33 But when a Samaritan on a journey came upon him, he looked at him and had compassion. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Take care of him,’ he said, ‘and on my return I will repay you for any additional expense’.

People praise the Samaritan for his wonderful acts of kindness, but in order for him to be extremely helpful, he needed a surplus of money.

The Samaritan needed money for bandages, oil, wine, and hotel fees. The Samaritan had compassion and out of his compassion mixed with his surplus, he was able to be a blessing to the wounded man.

In verse 37, Jesus instructs us to do the same as the Samaritan, but how can we help someone if we only have enough for ourselves? How can we help the poor, homeless, or abused if we only have the bare minimum? How can we be a blessing if ministers continue to stand in front of their congregation opposing prosperity?

We can have all the compassion in the world, but without a surplus of money, our compassion is limited. Believe God for financial excess to be the blessing He has called us to be.

James 1:20 (GNT) Human anger does not achieve God’s righteous purpose.

Emotional control regarding our anger is very important for any person. If we’re not in control of the emotion of anger, we can do something that can negatively impact our lives forever.

There are people who have gotten divorces because they couldn’t control their anger. Some of us have lost jobs because we couldn’t control anger. Some people turn to drugs and alcohol because they don’t know how to deal with anger. And unfortunately, some people have died due to a lack of control of their anger.

We control all our emotions by giving our cares, worries, concerns, and anxieties to God. Situations are going to come. When we let God handle our situations, we gain control over our emotions. Our flesh may want to abruptly leave, curse, punch, or even shoot, but by suppressing our anger and letting God handle those situations, He’ll perfect those situations and cause them to work out for our good (Psalm 138:8; Rom. 8:29).

Let’s do ourselves a favor and keep our emotions in check. It will benefit us for a lifetime.

Psalm 37:7 Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.

One of the hardest things we have to do is patiently wait on the manifestation of God’s promises. We see God’s promise in the bible or He told us it was coming to pass, but now we have to wait.

Most of us want God to speed it up, but He knows what’s best for us. He knows what we can currently handle, He knows our maturity level, and He knows how responsible we are. He’s not going to give us something too quickly and then we lose it or it destroys us. No, He’s going to make sure we’re ready for the promise and everything associated with the promise.

While we wait, the best thing we can do is to continue to thank God for the promise and position ourselves to be a good steward of the promise. We can read and make ourselves knowledgeable of the promise, we can seek wise counsel on how to maintain that promise, and we can meditate and see ourselves with that promise.

Don’t get discouraged. The promise will manifest. We just need to do our part and position ourselves for the promise.

Psalm 34:10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.

Seeking the Lord has its advantages. As we can see, when we seek the Lord, we’ll have no lack. There’s no lack in our needs, no lack in our finances, no lack in the number of children we desire, no lack in the number of clients we want at our business, etc. If it’s a good thing for us, God promises that we’ll have no lack if we seek the Lord.

So how do we seek the Lord? We go after Him. We submit to Him, we spend time studying His Word, we spend time listening to His Word through a good teacher, we spend time with Him in prayer, we make adjustments in our lives that honor Him.

Once we make the effort to seek Him, lack in our lives will be a thing of the past. It’s never too late. Seek Him today.

The easiest and hardest thing to do is totally submit our lives to God.

Prior to our submission, the thought of surrendering ourselves to God seems difficult. We feel like it’s too difficult to follow God’s commands and it seems like we’ll miss out on a lot of fun. You know who’s behind these thoughts? You guessed it, the devil. He’ll make it seem like total submission is a death sentence to our freedom and joy. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

For those who have submitted themselves to God, we realize it’s one of the easiest things we could do. What makes it so easy? God’s benefits. God makes sure our submission is not in vain. He makes sure we’re well compensated for our efforts. He knows some of things He requires will be difficult to our flesh, but as we consistently submit to Him, His benefits far outweigh the initial discomfort. The more we submit to Him, the easier it becomes.

Don’t listen to the lies of Satan. Submit every aspect of your life to God and reap the benefits of submission.

James 4:7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

1 John 1:2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.

For whatever reason, there are certain people who have a problem with the “prosperity message.” They feel like it focuses too much on materialistic possessions and not enough on holiness and worship.

It’s not just a message. As we see from these two verses, it’s God’s plan and desire for us. He wants us to be prosperous in every area of our lives. He wants us to be prosperous in our minds, in our health, with our families, with our finances, and more. This prosperity is not just for us. It’s so that we can be a blessing to others (Gen. 12:2). How can we help someone if we don’t have it ourselves?

For those who feel like it takes away from holiness or worship, why can’t we do it all? We can live a holy life worshipping God while we prosper. Don’t get mad at preachers or believers who desire to be prosperous. We’re simply aligning ourselves with God’s plan.

There are certain people who have a false sense of humility. They like to tell themselves that they’re nothing, but a worm that’s no good. They think God is pleased with them letting themselves and others know how low they are. Well, God doesn’t think so.

We are God’s creation, therefore, we’re fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). And when we make Jesus our Lord, we become a child of God (Ephesians 1:5). What good father wants to hear their child say how unworthy they are? It doesn’t matter what we’ve done or how far we’ve strayed, God still loves and wants the best for us.

Negative thinking about ourselves ruins our confidence. If our confidence is ruined, it stops us from receiving promises from God (Hebrews 10:35,36). Let’s destroy every negative thought we have about ourselves and replace it with what God says about us.

Luke 15:20 So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still in the distance, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. 21The son declared, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.

Job 22:22 Receive, please, instruction from His mouth, And lay up His words in your heart.

When we ask God for something, He may miraculously send it to us. However, it’s more likely He’ll give us instructions and a plan to get the thing.

When God gives us instructions, it’s beneficial that we follow them precisely. Following His instructions positions us to receive His promises and our desires. If He tells us on Monday to apply for a certain job on Wednesday at 2:00 PM, then we need to follow those instructions. We may get the job but even if we don’t, we’re displaying our faithfulness to be obedient to His plan.

Don’t allow fear, doubt, uncertainty, and logic to cloud your judgement. Obey His instructions and position yourself to receive God’s blessings.

Colossians 3:23 Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

Working unto the Lord doesn’t automatically mean working long and hard. Working unto the Lord means allowing the Spirit of God to show us how to work.

There will be times He’ll tell us to put our phone down and get off the internet and work. Other times, He may tell us to take a 10-minute mental break after every 2 hours of work. One day He may have us work 2 hours later. The next day, He may tell us to go home on time knowing, we have 2 hours of work that should be done. It’s all about obeying Him as we work.

Let’s not work ourselves to deliriousness thinking we’re working unto the Lord. Allow Him to lead us in when, where, and how we should work.

1 Corinthians 6:19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;

We like knowing we’re God’s property when it comes down to protection and blessings, but God’s property has another side. When we say we’re God’s property, we’re saying we don’t belong to ourselves anymore. We can’t do any and everything we want to do. We have to seek His approval.

Last year, we may have gotten drunk for our birthday, but knowing we’re God’s property, we don’t want to abuse His property with excessive alcohol. We may have been working long hours with little sleep to get an extra paycheck, but we don’t want to deprive His property of sleep. When we worry about something instead of giving it to Him, we’re mentally abusing His property.

Every born-again believer is the property of God. Be sure you’re doing whatever He tells you to do with His property.