Graced To Do God's Will

Proverbs 16:2 All a man’s ways are pure in his own eyes, but his motives are weighed by the LORD. 3 Commit your works to the LORD, and your plans will be achieved.

There are some who believe every task must be direct orders from God. Some won’t move unless they clearly hear the voice of God. There will be times where God gives us direct orders that we must follow to a “T” however, there are God-inspired plans and ideas that enter our minds. Sometimes, they seem like our own.

There’s nothing wrong with having plans and ideas just as long as we run those plans by God. For instance, we may have an idea to sell our house or invest in a certain stock. Our responsibility is to consult God about those ideas. He’ll tell us yes, no, or not now.

Just because an idea entered our minds doesn’t mean we have to squash it and just because it enters our minds doesn’t mean we have to immediately act on it. Present all plans and ideas to God, and let Him approve or deny them.

Proverbs 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.

1 Corinthians 11:24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

Communion is not a spooky religious time where we turn off the lights and have a serious attitude. It’s a time to reflect and celebrate the sacrifice that Jesus made.

We not only remember His physical sacrifice. We remember what His sacrifice did for us spiritually. His sacrifice made us righteous. His sacrifice freed us from all our sin. His sacrifice gave us victory over poverty, sickness, and death. His sacrifice released the blessing of Abraham on our lives.

We don’t need to wait on our church leaders to take communion. If we have a piece of bread and some water, in the comfort of our home we can take communion and reflect on what Jesus has done.

So when taking communion, reflect and celebrate the sacrifice of Jesus.

Lamentations 3:22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

When we’ve done something wrong and missed the mark with God, we believe punishment should be attached. We’re willing to accept the punishment. If we did the crime, we should do the time.

That’s not the case with God. God’s not punishing us. God is merciful. Mercy is where we deserve punishment, but don’t receive punishment. God’s not punishing us because all the punishment for every sin imaginable was placed on Jesus. He took our punishment for sin so we wouldn’t have to. There are natural consequences for our actions (i.e. rob a bank and we’ll go to jail), but it’s not God punishing us.

When we truly comprehend that there’s no punishment for our sins, it helps us appreciate Jesus a little bit more. Thank God for Jesus because it was He Who took our punishment for all our sins.

2 Corinthians 5:21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

God’s Word identifies every believer as the righteousness of God. Through Christ, every believer is righteous. It’s easy to say, we’re righteous or holy when we’ve been honoring God with our lifestyle, behavior, and attitude for a while. But it’s difficult to state our identity when we know we’ve missed the mark or when we know we haven’t been honoring God with our choices.

Regardless of what we’ve done or where we are in life, it’s important to confirm our identity with the truth in God’s Word. If we don’t confirm our identity, the devil will attempt to confirm it with lies. He’ll tell us we’re a terrible person, God doesn’t love us, or we’ve missed our blessing. These are all lies.

Saying we’re righteous may be difficult, especially when we’re fresh off of missing the mark, but it’s who we are. Whatever we’ve done and however far we strayed, God loves us and we are His righteous children.

Psalm 50:15 and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

Deliverance is still available with God. We don’t have to settle with where we are or accept our current situation. We can call on God and He will deliver us.

He may deliver us instantaneously. If we have an addiction, the taste for that addiction can leave immediately. It’s possible.

God may deliver us through a process. During this process, God will give us steps to take. As we obey His instructions, even if they seem illogical, we’ll reach our goal of deliverance. This may take some time so, be patient and trust the process.

God may deliver us using another person. God can call someone to use their power, their ability, and their influence to help us. He may have them speak encouraging words into our lives. He may have them give us wisdom. God may have them use their resources to deliver us. Don’t dismiss or discredit another person. God may be using them to deliver us from our situation.

We’re not stuck. If we want deliverance, deliverance is available with God.

2 Chronicles 20:20 Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in His prophets and you will be successful.”

There’s been an attack against the prophet or preachers of God. Satan has used people to attack their character, their integrity, and their legitimacy. There’s a thought that if we’re listening to preachers, we’re weak-minded or can’t think for ourselves. Some will tell us we’re fools for listening to these “crooked” preachers.

True men or women of God have our best interests at heart. They’re hearing the voice of God, studying the Word of God (in context), and speaking on the behalf of God. By listening and applying their teaching to our lives, we position ourselves to be successful.

Now, preachers are not perfect. They miss the mark and need grace like everyone else. But we don’t trust the preacher. We trust the God in the preacher. If what they’re telling us doesn’t align with the Word of God, we can dismiss that statement. If they continue to make questionable statements, we may need change who we’re listening to. That’s why it’s so important to know the Word for ourselves.

Let’s not hinder our success by lumping every preacher with those who publicly missed the mark. Have faith in the God-inspired word that comes from your man or woman of God.

Ephesians 5:20 Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

God has blessed us with a lot of things. He’s blessed some of us with a good job, a house, and children. Some of us experienced spectacular miracles in our lives. He allowed some of us to walk out of a horrific accident or He allowed us to get probation when we were destined for prison time.

With all the good things God has done in our lives, some of us only focus on the negative. We focus on what we don’t have or what could be better. We’ll haphazardly thank God for our house, but magnify the fact that we don’t have another bedroom. We’re happy we have a job, but we’re hyper-focused on wanting a higher salary.

Don’t be ungrateful. There’s nothing wrong with wanting more, but it’s a problem when wanting more consumes us to the point where we can’t recall what God has done or what He’s doing in our lives now. God’s always doing something good for us. We’ve just gotten numb to His goodness and we’re always looking for what’s next.

Let’s renew our minds to be grateful for all that God has done in our lives.

John 9:1 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.

This man had a problem since his birth. The disciples wanted to know who sinned, he or his parents. Jesus responds, neither sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.

We all have some problem we’ve dealt with since birth. Some were born with physical problems such as speech impediments, bone or muscular issues, deafness, etc. Some were born with sin tendencies like, alcohol addiction, depression, a judgmental spirit, etc. Some were born with natural problems such as, poverty, abusive parents, or a lack of support.

Regardless of the problems we were born with, if we submit to God, His works will be evident in our lives. We can see God’s works when a person who had a speech problem becomes a keynote speaker. We can see God’s hand on someone when the doctors told them they wouldn’t walk, but now, they’re running marathons. God’s works can be revealed in a person when the abuse was meant for evil, but God used it for His glory by having them share their overcoming story with others (Joyce Meyer).

Don’t let any problem from birth stop you from being all that God called you to be. Trust Him and watch any problem get turned around for our good.

Romans 8:14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.

There are some who are led by their feelings. They’ll say, “I feel like no one loves me, this feels like the right time to get married, or I didn’t buy the house because I felt bad energy.” There are some who are led by logic. They’ll say, “the most logical thing to do is to sell, the most efficient way to complete the task is to start earlier, the smartest thing to do is to wait until the price drops.”

As believers, we shouldn’t be led by either. We should be led by the Spirit of God. Regardless of how we feel or how logical it sounds, every decision we make (big or small) should come from the Holy Spirit. We should ask God what’s best. Whatever He tells us to do may go against how we feel or go against sound logic, but He knows what’s best for us.

Trust the Holy Spirit above feelings and logic. It will work out better for us in the end.

Galatians 6:9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Our harvest (God’s promises to us) depends on our sustainability. It’s not in the hands of someone else and it’s not situational. Every promise from God depends on our endurance.

Time can seem like an enemy to our faith. Some of us have been waiting on God to manifest our prayers for a long time. Some of us have been waiting for so long until we wonder if God heard us or if the thing we prayed for was God’s will for our lives. If it’s in the Word and it aligns with life and godliness, it’s for us.

Here’s some good advice…Don’t Quit! Never give up! Believe that you have received that promise. Envision yourself with that promise. Just know, every delay works in our favor. If God made us a promise and we continue to believe Him for that promise, His Word guarantees we’ll have that promise.
Only believe.

John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

The devil has done it again. He’s perverted a positive biblical term and put a negative spin on it.

Jesus refers to believers as His sheep. In today’s world, the thought of being a sheep is insulting. For the world, a sheep is nothing more than a follower who can’t think for themselves. The devil has used this negative spin to influence people’s minds not to follow Jesus. He’s made them feel like they’re more empowered if they think and do for themselves.

Believers being sheep is a good thing since Jesus is our Shepherd. A shepherd guides their sheep along the right path. A shepherd protects his flock. A shepherd provides everything for their sheep. Read Psalm 23. Who wouldn’t want this type of service from Jesus?

Don’t be influenced by the thoughts and ideas of Satan. Following Jesus is the way to go. Let Jesus be your Shepherd and be proud to be His sheep.

Joel 2:25 And I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, and the consuming locust, and the cutting locust, my great army which I sent among you.

When it comes to God, nothing’s destroyed. It may appear destroyed or look hopeless, but nothing’s actually destroyed. By placing our faith in God, any situation can turn around for our good.

Our marriage, our relationship with our children, our finances, etc. can all be turned around.

Some situations will be turned around instantaneously, but other situations may take time. Regardless of how long it takes, if we put our faith in God and keep it there, any situation can be positively restored.

Jonah 2:2 And he said: “I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction, And He answered me. “Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, And You heard my voice.

In our worst predicament that we may have put ourselves in, if we call on God, He will hear and answer our cry.

We may have seemingly destroyed our marriage by committing adultery. We may have scarred our children with our words. We may have blown our finances on a bad investment. We may have been foolish and gotten ourselves incarcerated. We may have even rejected God for a period of time. Regardless of the situation that we’re in, we can call on God, and He will respond.

God hasn’t disowned or rejected us. He will comfort us, give us the wisdom we need for that situation, and give us the strength to go through that situation.

If you’re going through or just got out of a terrible situation, call on God and let Him help.

Matthew 7:12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

This is a simple scripture to understand, but the practice is often overlooked.

Some of us treat people poorly. On social media, some of us feel bold enough to negatively comment on a person’s picture, video, or a person’s actions in the video. Through text messages, some of us gossip about others. In relationships, men and women abuse and misuse one another. There are parents who mistreat their children. With all this negativity that’s being sowed, no wonder some of us don’t have good relationships with our friends, spouses, or children.

There are some who react to others. If someone treats us poorly, we feel justified to treat them poorly. This is a trap! We open the door to be mistreated in the future if we react and mistreat the person who mistreated us. Some people call it karma.

If we want a better life and a positive atmosphere for ourselves, for our family, and for this world, it starts with us. We must do our part to treat people like we want to be treated.

Hebrews 13:20 Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Some of us view doing the will of God as only doing some big noticeable thing. We may think it only consists of going on a missions trip, starting a homeless shelter, or starting a non-profit for underprivileged youth. This is the will of God, however, the will of God doesn’t have to be a big event.

The will of God is doing anything God instructs us to do. The will of God may seem small and insignificant, but nevertheless, it’s the will of God. It may be turning right instead of turning left, going for a walk after work, or going to bed earlier than normal.

If we’re always thinking the will of God is some big event, we may get frustrated or think we’re not fulfilling our calling because these big events may be so few and far between.

Recognize and be excited that when we obey God’s instructions (big or small), we’re doing the will of God.

Ezra 10:10 (AMP) And Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, You have acted wickedly and broken faith [with God] and have married foreign (heathen) women, increasing the guilt of Israel. 11 So now make confession and give thanks to the Lord, the God of your fathers [for not consuming you], and do His will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from [your] foreign (heathen) wives.

When we’ve missed the mark, the first thing a lot of us want to do is feel guilty. We tend to feel bad about the decisions we’ve made, which ultimately leads to condemnation.

Here’s a tip from the Word. After we’ve missed the mark, begin to praise and thank the Lord. Thank the Lord for His never-ending forgiveness we have through His Son Jesus. Thank God for His mercy. Thank God that we are not consumed or punished when we miss it.

Everything in us will tell us to feel guilty about what we’ve done. Others will even tell us to take a moment to feel bad about our decisions. Giving into guilt doesn’t give God glory. What glorifies God is acknowledging all the things (love, grace, mercy, forgiveness, Jesus) He’s made available to remove the guilt of sin.

From now on, whenever the mark is missed, give God praise and glory.

John 8:10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

Some Christians feel justified to condemn others for their behavior based on how long they’ve been saved or how “good” they’ve been. If Jesus, our example and the Only perfect person ever didn’t condemn others, what makes some of us think we can condemn others?

Condemnation is an act that leaves a person feeling guilty or ashamed. Jesus had a justifiable right to condemn this woman caught in adultery. Instead of condemning her, He displayed grace and mercy towards her. At the same time, He didn’t condone her sin, but He redirected her by saying “sin no more.”

Mixing grace, mercy, and redirection lovingly corrects unrighteous behavior. These are the tools a person needs when they know they’ve done wrong.

The next time someone has missed the mark, don’t condemn them. Show love, grace, mercy, and redirection towards them.

Romans 8:38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There’s no limit to God’s love. God’s love goes beyond our fears, our behavior, and beyond our thoughts. God made Himself to be love just for us. Everything He does is based on His love for us.

God sent His Son, Jesus, to be sacrificed in our place because He loves us all. God loved us enough to have His Son’s flesh to be torn from His back so that we can be healed. God loves us enough to supply every one of our needs. God loves us enough to give us any desire that pertains to life and godliness. God loves us to be our Father, our Comforter, our Protector, and our Help. God’s love for us made Him a one-stop shop. Everything we need or want was made possible through His love.

There’s not one thing we can do to stop God’s love. We could have hated Him for a period of time and He still loves us. We could have committed the worst crimes in history and He still loves us. Even if we never receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, He still loves us.

Know that God loves you with an everlasting unmerited love. Receive His love today.

Matthew 9:29 Then He touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith will it be done to you.”

Matthew 12:37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

What we believe and what we say will shape our identity, our world, and will dictate our future.

Let’s look at an example regarding our emotions. If someone believes they’re just an emotional person, according to their faith about themselves, they’ll be an emotional person. If someone says, they can’t control how they feel, the law of confession is released and they’ll have what they say.

Faith and confession shapes all aspects of our lives. If we say we’re broke, we’ll be broke. If we believe we can’t be married because we don’t believe we’ll be faithful, we’ll never experience the beauty of marriage. Even something simple like saying we’re not good at math means we’ll never excel in math. On the contrary, if we believe and/or say we’re prosperous, faithful, and intelligent, we’ll become what we believe and say.

Let’s evaluate our lives. If what we’ve been saying and believing is contrary to the Word of God, that’s the main reason why we haven’t yet experienced freedom from certain bondages.

John 8:42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. 43 Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.

Jesus tried to let these religious Samaritans know in so many words that He was sent by God and He is greater than anyone else who came before Him.

As Jesus speaks, the Pharisees attempt to converse with Him using natural logic. They’re not even on the same page. Jesus is speaking spiritually, but they are responding logically. If the Pharisees would’ve believed and taken Jesus at His Word, they would have been in right standing with God. They chose not to believe based on a disconnect between what Jesus was saying and their logic.

Some of us (believers and unbelievers) do this today. We attempt to understand spiritual things using natural logic. We’ll never understand spiritual things using our natural minds. The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned (1 Cor. 2:14). If we can’t fathom what the Bible or ministers are saying logically, we’ll choose not to believe.

We can only understand spiritual things through our faith. Every spiritual thing requires belief that goes beyond our logic. It may not initially make sense or it may be difficult to comprehend, but choose to go past your logic and believe.

Deuteronomy 8:7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.

God has great promises for us. One of those promises is being in a position where we lack nothing.

Think about that for a minute. The mortgage/rent is paid, the bills are paid, we have plenty of food, and our bank accounts are steadily increasing. God not only wants us lacking nothing financially, but He doesn’t want lack in any other area of our lives. He wants us to have a great marriage, peace in our minds, and a healthy body. He’ll even be a parent if we lack an earthly parent (Psalm 68:5).

Some may think having all we want and need is impossible however, when we place our faith in this promise, God must deliver based on His Word. Believe that you have received a life where you lack nothing.

Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

When we read these verses, we usually think about forgetting the negative events of our past and reaching towards the prize set before us in our futures. These verses don’t specify forgetting negative events only. It says, forgetting the things that are behind. That means bad and good things of our past.

It’s easy for us to understand why we shouldn’t think about the negative events of our past. We’ll open old wounds, we’ll allow sadness to set in, or we’ll harbor unforgiveness in our hearts. Not dwelling on seemingly positive events of our past may be a little harder to understand.

Dwelling on positive events of our past may not allow us to appreciate the present or our potential future. We’ll compare our now to our past and not fully appreciate what God is doing now. We may recall how we or someone else used to be and be disappointed in what we see now. We may fantasize and romanticize our past and doubt we can experience that same level of joy in the future.

Does this mean we can’t think about anything in our past? No. It’s simply telling us to not let the past hinder, cripple, minimize, or distort what God is doing now or what He can do in the future.

John 6:69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Although the disciples were hand-picked by Jesus Himself, it took time for them to truly believe. Prior to their belief, they observed Jesus in action preaching great sermons and performing wondrous miracles. It came to a point where the disciples had no choice, but to believe Jesus was the Messiah.

A lot of us do or have done the same thing. We hear about Jesus, but we won’t fully believe until we get a full revelation of Who He is and experience Him operating in our lives.

Unbelievers go through the same thing. They too must get a full revelation of Who Christ is to them. As believers, we shouldn’t get upset or frustrated with people who haven’t fully given their lives to Jesus. Give them some time. Let them experience the true love of God through Christ. Pray that they get a revelation of Who Jesus is and experience miracles in their lives. So much so until they have no choice, but to believe.

Psalm 16:11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Have you ever felt like blah? Does it seem like life has become mundane and there’s no real excitement? It’s probably because there’s a lack of joy in our lives.

The only way to replenish our joy is to spend time in the presence of God. This time doesn’t have to be religious with incense and candles. It’s simply thinking of the goodness of God. It’s recalling all that He’s done. It’s asking Him what we should do about a certain task. It’s thanking God in advance for the things we’ve prayed for. That’s spending time with God.

Being in God’s presence produces the promise of joy. We’ll experience joy in the simple things like, watching the sunset, playing with our children, or finding humor with people at work.

So if your joy is waning, go replenish it by spending time with God.

John 6:44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.

There’s a big push in the church, based on the great commission, to bring people to church for salvation. Salvation is the greatest experience a person can have, but we must remember we can’t make people accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. We shouldn’t guilt or condemn someone into accepting Jesus as Lord and we definitely shouldn’t scare them into salvation using the “you’re going to hell” card.

The only way people will genuinely accept Jesus as Lord is if God draws them. We’re instructed to preach the Gospel and show them the way, but only God can draw them. This drawing doesn’t have to be in a church. God can draw them in a hotel, in the middle of a work day, while they’re in prison, or a minute before they’re about to commit suicide.

Just know it’s our responsibility to get people excited about salvation, but it’s God Who draws.

John 6:38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

Throughout our lives, there’s always going to be a struggle between our will and the will of the Father. We may want to stay, but God may be prompting us to move. We may want to get divorced, but God is telling us to stay.

If Jesus, our example, didn’t come to do His own will, but the will of the Father, we should discover God’s will for our own lives.

Knowing God’s will doesn’t come automatically. It takes continuous communication with God. Once knowing God’s will, the fight is on. We must resist the urge to do our own will or get sidetracked from doing God’s will.

Let’s find out what God’s will is for our lives and do just that.

John 6:26 Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”

God initially gets our attention by blowing our minds and we have no choice to admit that it was God. He’ll supernaturally drop some charges we may be facing, reduce our debt, deliver us from a terrible situation, or open doors of opportunity.

Those mind-blowing events will have us going to more church events and wearing our “Blessed” t-shirts. Although this is great, those types of blessings may not come as frequently or be as spectacular as they once were. They may slow down. If we’re not mindful, we’ll become spiritual junkies itching for our next blessing.

This deceleration requires us to deepen our relationship with God. God wants more from us than our hands out. He wants a relationship. He wants us to tell Him about our problems, He want us to take His advice, and He wants us to get to know Him better.

Let’s not only associate ourselves with God because of what He can do for us. Let’s associate ourselves with God because we truly desire an intimate relationship with Him.

Numbers 13:33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

How we see ourselves, is how we’ll appear to others.

If we see ourselves as small, insignificant, or unequipped, that’s how we’ll appear to others. If we see ourselves as unattractive, unintelligent, or unable, that’s how others will view us. On the other hand, if we see ourselves as kings/queens, prosperous, and capable, we’ll be just that. If we see ourselves as confident, complete, and courageous, we will be that in the sight of others.

How we want people to see us is how we need to see ourselves.

Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Some of us want to make prayer a big long event in the morning or at night. That’s fine if that’s what you desire, but it doesn’t have to be. Prayer is simply communicating with God. We can do this throughout the day.

We can pray while driving to work, we can pray during our lunch break, and we can pray while working out at the gym. We can pray over our bosses, we can pray God’s protection over our children, and we can pray for peace in a certain situation. Whatever comes to mind or whatever we see that doesn’t line up with the will of God, we can talk to God and apply our God-given authority over that situation.

Don’t wait to pray or feel like it needs to be an event. Talk to our heavenly Father throughout the day.

James 5:16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

When we truly understand that every prayer we pray that aligns with the Word of God will come to pass regardless of how long it takes, we become unstoppable. It’s literally a super power.

We can just go around praying over anything. We can pray that our finances increase, our hair grows longer, and our strength is revived. This is a good time to intercede on the behalf of others. We can pray for their unborn baby to be blessed, we can pray that they get a revelation of who they are in Christ, and we can pray they’re disciplined in their finances. Don’t just limit this power to people. Nothing’s off limits. We can pray that a dying tree comes back to life, we can rebuke insects from entering our house, and we can declare no issues with the car.

Use this power throughout the day and expect to see positive results in your environment.

Ezra 8:21 Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river Ahava, so that we might humble ourselves before our God to seek from Him a safe journey for us, our children, and all our possessions.

Have you ever been in that confused place and you don’t know what to do next? When clarity is needed, start a fast. A fast is not the most popular solution for clarity, but if done correctly, it can be the most impactful.

As we see in this scripture, a fast requires humility before God and a seeking of God. During a fast, we must approach God with a “You’re my only option” mindset. We strip away things that appeal to our flesh (food, TV, social media, etc.) and actively pursue the voice of God. A fast benefits our lives, our children’s lives, and it accomplishes God’s will in the earth.

We don’t have to wait to be prompted by our church to fast. We can fast whenever we need clarity.

Psalm 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

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

These scriptures go hand in hand. The common theme in these verses is “good.”

Everything God does or doesn’t do is for our good. When we immediately get what we prayed for, it’s for our good. When there’s a delay in the manifestation of our desires, it’s for our good. When we didn’t get what we wanted, it’s for our good. Everything God does is for our good.

When we understand the wisdom behind God’s timing, we’ll go through those times where it seems like nothing’s happening with joy. We’ll realize God’s not being unkind or punishing us. He’s simply waiting for the most opportune time to display His goodness in our lives.

He wants good for us and don’t you forget it.

Psalm 1:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

We get excited about prosperity, however there are seasons to prosperity. Every season is not the season of prosperity. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.

There are seasons of reaping a harvest (prosperity), but there’s also a season of sowing which includes: learning, investing our time without immediate results, and simply being patient and waiting. We celebrate the season of prosperity, but we discredit the season of sowing. There’s real benefit in the season of sowing.

The things we obtain during the season of sowing are everlasting. The things we learn can last for a lifetime. The time we invest in being a blessing to others can have an everlasting impact. The time we spend waiting on our harvest is a time we can deepen our relationship with God.

Let’s not discredit the season of sowing. It can greatly impact our lives.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

One fruit of the Spirit is self-control. Self-control is needed in a lot of areas.

For a healthy body, we need to have self-control regarding our eating. For a productive work day, we must control ourselves with the amount of TV we watch at night. To have a healthy relationship with our children, we need to control ourselves with how often we discipline our children.

Luke 16:10-11 says, “Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. If, then, you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will entrust you with true riches?”

When we pair self-control with faithfulness, we can see how it impacts our future. If we don’t have self-control regarding our spending habits now, how can God entrust us with that great financial increase we’ve been praying for? If we overwork ourselves because we don’t know when to stop, how can we be faithful to that spouse we’ve been believing God for? A lack of self-control can hinder the manifestation of our prayers.

Receive everything God has promised by being led by the Spirit and practicing self-control.

Hosea 6:3 Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord . His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, Like the latter and former rain to the earth.

As believers, our ultimate pursuit in life is to deepen our relationship with God by growing in the knowledge of God.

Knowing God is a provider, healer, deliverer, forgiver, etc. minimizes thoughts of doubt. We don’t question if He can, but by spending time with Him, we know He can and He will.

We all have busy lives, but it’s important to set aside a portion of our day to get to know God a little bit more.

The bills are overdue, the car is about to be repossessed, the children seem to be sick every other week, fatigue has set in, and it seems like there’s no end in sight. What do we do? One thing we can do is thank God.

From a natural perspective, it seems foolish to thank God because it seems like everything is going wrong. But from a spiritual perspective, it’s beneficial to thank God during tough seasons.

We’re not thanking God for problems. We’re thanking God while we’re going through the problems. We thank God for a healthy body to work to pay a portion of our bills. We thank God for the funds to pay for the bus if our car gets repossessed. Thank God the children don’t have a terminal disease. We thank God for His strength that got us through the day. If we can’t find anything to be thankful for, we can thank God for Jesus.

Our thankfulness in troubling situations changes our perspective. Instead of focusing on everything that’s wrong, it reminds us of all the good God has done in our lives.

So, in every season, be thankful.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,

8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The best way to better any relationship is getting to know the other person. It’s no different when bettering our relationship with God. How do we better our relationship with God? By getting to know every part of Him (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) through intimate time in His Word and conversing with Him.

There are several benefits through our knowledge of God. As we see, an abundance of grace and peace can be obtained through the knowledge God and Jesus. Wisdom and revelation comes through the knowledge of Him (Eph. 1:17).  Finally, all things (needs / desires) that pertain to life and godliness come through the knowledge of Him. Obviously, getting to know God is important.

Let’s stop all the theatrics and religious duties and build an intimate relationship with God by getting to know Him more.

1 Samuel 2:1 “My heart rejoices in the Lord; My horn is exalted in the Lord. I smile at my enemies, Because I rejoice in Your salvation.

Hannah could smile in the face of her enemies because of her expectancy in the salvation of the Lord.

When we face various attacks from the enemy (Satan), we should smile. We don’t smile because the attacks are fun and exciting. We smile because there’s an opportunity to experience the salvation of the Lord.

We get to see how God’s going to save us from certain situations. We get to see how God will provide for us. We get the see the miracle working power of God.

Although it’s natural to get upset or frustrated with problematic events in our lives, don’t get frustrated. Change your perspective and smile and expect to see the salvation of the Lord.

Judges 15:15 Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.

18 Because he was very thirsty, he cried out to the Lord, “You have given your servant this great victory. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” 19 Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned and he revived. So the spring was called En Hakkore, and it is still there in Lehi.

After Samson killed 1000 men with the jawbone of a donkey, he was thirsty. Once he communed with God and drank from the water God provided, Samson’s strength returned and he was revived.

In our own lives, we will have to fight. We’re not fighting physically like Samson, but we will have to fight spiritually. Like Samson had to destroy 1000 men, we may have to destroy 1000 demonic thoughts a day (2 Cor. 10:5). One thought may be a thought of worry about how we’re going to pay our bills. Another thought may be a thought of lust. They’ll come one after another. After fighting for so long, we may be mentally exhausted.

In the scriptures, one metaphor for water represents the Word of God (Eph. 5:26). When we commune with God and spend time in His Word, we too can be strengthened and revived. We’ll get the strength to continue on from day to day until we get what God has promised.

So, if you’re feeling mentally, spiritually, or even physically fatigued, spend time with God and His Word and expect your spirit, soul, and body to be strengthened and revived.

Psalm 91:5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, 6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

There’s a lot of reasons to fear. We can fear someone harming us, we can fear getting sick, we can fear going broke, we can fear failure, etc. With all these reasons to fear standing before us, it’s still a choice to be afraid.

With God on our side, there’s a lot of reason not to fear. Throughout His Word, He’s told us numerous times to not be afraid. He’s told us He’s with us, He protects us, He’ll fight for us. With all these promises from God, some of us still choose to fear. Either we’re going to believe in His promises or be afraid that His promises won’t pan out.

Make the decision today that you’re not going to be afraid of ANYTHING anymore.