Graced To Do God's Will

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

When things are tough, some believers tend to go deeper with God. We pray more, we read God’s Word more, and we may fast. As time progresses, God answers our prayers, and life gets better, some of us take our foot off the gas.

When it was rough, we prayed daily, but now we only pray a few times a week. When our marriage was at the point of divorce, we were in God’s Word often. Now, we read it a couple of times a week.

Let’s remain all in. Keep getting close to God despite what we’re facing. Don’t let the breakthrough cause you to lose your zeal. The fact that we experienced breakthrough is reason enough to keep getting close with God. Don’t stop. Keep growing in the knowledge of God.

2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Revelations 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, who deceives the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

There are people who believe they’re doing what’s best for them, but everyone else can see that it’s not going to end well. That’s a deception. There are people who feel like a certain parenting style is what’s going to be best for their children, but the bible tells them otherwise. That’s a deception. There are people who think quitting their job to start a business is going to be profitable, but they haven’t checked with God. That’s a deception.

We shouldn’t do anything that doesn’t agree with the Word of God or disturbs our peace (Col. 3:15 AMP). Now, if we believe, with all sincerity, that God told us to do something that appears foolish, keep going. But if our actions are based on logic or feelings, the devil can use these things to deceive us.

Let’s evaluate our lives and the lives of those closest to us. If we’ve been operating from a place of deception, stop, and talk with God to see what’s best for your life and for the lives of those around us.

Proverbs 11:14 Where there is no guidance the people fall, But in abundance of counselors there is victory.

There are people close to us who engage in foolish, unwise, and ungodly behavior. We see how their poor decisions are negatively affecting their lives, but we don’t say anything.

We don’t say anything because we’re afraid we may lose a friend or appear judgmental. We’d rather keep the peace and let them suffer than tell them the truth. If they’re a good friend, they’ll know we’re coming from a place of love. And if we’re a good friend, who wants the best for them, we’ll be honest with them.

Do something to help somebody. Give them wise counsel, biblical advice, or prayer. If they don’t listen to our advice, that’s their choice. We can say within ourselves that we attempted to help. And as God leads us, be willing to help them again and again and again.

Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.

We may submit our lives to God, but there are daily demonic forces that are constantly trying to uproot our submission to God.

Those forces know what our flesh likes. It may be a flirtatious attractive woman who knows we’re married but doesn’t care. It may be a sale on a dress, but you and your husband agreed to not spend anymore money. It may be an old boyfriend or girlfriend who contacts you out of the blue when you feel lonely. Or, it may be an unruly coworker when you just told yourself you were going to be patient and kind.

Regardless of what tempts us, we must continue to stay submitted to God’s plan. That’s going to require us to say no, do nothing, or be by ourselves at times, but it’s for the best.

As we stay submitted to God, we’ll reap the benefits of our submission. It may not always be tangible. It may be stronger will power to say no, not being moved by our feelings, or being more disciplined.

Continue to stay submitted to God and don’t be distracted.

Belief and faith are similar, but not the same. Belief and faith are two sides of the same coin.

Belief vs. Faith Example

Belief: A person has food in front of them. They believe, with all sincerity, that if they eat the food, they won’t die of starvation. Daily, they believe that if they eat food, they won’t die of starvation. By the end of the month, if not earlier, they’re starving but still believing if they eat food, they won’t die of starvation. Eventually, that person dies of starvation. The food was there in front of them and they believed they wouldn’t have died of starvation if they would’ve eaten the food, but they died anyway.

Faith: Faith is a person believing they won’t die of starvation if they eat the food and acting on their belief by picking up the food and eating it.

We can genuinely believe God’s Word. We can believe He’s healed us, He protects us, and nothing is impossible with Him. However, we won’t see the results of our belief until we act on our belief.

We act on our belief through confession. For instance, when we’re faced with sickness, we believe by the stripes of Jesus, we’re healed (1 Pet. 2:24). We act on that belief by declaring, by His stripes we’re healed and ignoring the sickness. It’s the same response to any other situation. Find out what God’s Word says about that situation, believe God’s Word about that situation, act on that belief through confession until what we desire in God’s Word comes to pass.

Belief can only take us so far. It’s the acting on what we believe that turns our belief into faith.

By Apostle Fred Price

Romans 10:10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

2 Corinthians 4:13 But having the same spirit of faith according to that having been written: “I believed, therefore I have spoken,” we also believe and therefore speak,

Proverbs 2:7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly;

A simple definition of wisdom is, knowing what to do when we don’t know what to do.

For believers who choose to submit themselves to God, we have an endless supply of wisdom available for us. We access this wisdom by faith. When we don’t know what to do, we take this scripture and say, “Father, I thank You for the wisdom You’ve stored up for me in this situation and now, I receive the wisdom for ___________ (fill in the blank).” We confess this daily until we know what to do. At the same time, we’re allowing the Spirit of God to lead us. The Spirit may lead us to read a book regarding the situation, talk to a specific person, or research the topic on YouTube.

Regardless if it’s in business, parenting, or a major decision, by faith, the wisdom of God is available for us.

Numbers 7:3 And they brought their offering before the Lord, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders, and for each one an ox; and they presented them before the tabernacle. 4 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 5 “Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing the work of the tabernacle of meeting; and you shall give them to the Levites, to every man according to his service.”

Some people still have a problem with giving their tithes and offering to the church, and it’s understandable. They worked long hours to get this money and they don’t want to give it away to “some preacher.” Understand this, our tithes and offerings are given to the Lord and for the work of the Kingdom of God. It’s not meant to make the preachers rich. (Now, if we’re led to give to the man or woman of God, that’s fine, but the money is meant to advance the Kingdom of God.)

The Kingdom of God consists of ministries all across the world and it’s no different than any other business. Ministries need to pay the electricity, water, and gas bill. They need to pay property taxes and the mortgage. They need to pay for cameras, lights, technology, etc., to reach people everywhere and they need to pay the staff.

If we don’t give, how do we expect the Kingdom of God to advance? How can ministries advertise to reach the lost without any money? Sure, people can preach on corners, but they’re limited to the people in that neighborhood. We can reach a whole lot more through TV and technology, but that takes money.

So, don’t view it as giving your money away. Look at giving as investing in the advancement of the Kingdom of God with a guaranteed return (Malachi 3:10; Luke 6:38).

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.