Graced To Do God's Will

John‬ ‭17‬:‭22-23‬ And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

Have you ever heard someone say, “I’m not perfect.” That may be true for world, but for the believer, that’s a lie.

Because we are one with the Father, we have been made perfect. Perfection has nothing to do with our behavior or conduct. Perfection has to do with our placement. Because God is perfect and we are in Him, we are perfect.

Let’s renew our minds to this truth that we are perfect. Receive this perfection that Jesus bled and died for.

Psalm 40:9-10 I have proclaimed the good news of righteousness In the great assembly; Indeed, I do not restrain my lips, O LORD, You Yourself know. I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart; I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation; I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth From the great assembly.

How many of us can honestly say that we consistently and continually proclaim the good news of righteousness? We ALL should be improving in this area. God has been too good to us to keep His goodness to ourselves. God has been too good to us for us to be ashamed to thank Him openly in a setting outside of church.

Every time we think about the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made just for us, we should publicly thank God. Every time we tell a story about something good happening in our lives, the credit should go to God. Every time we recall the covering and protection of God, we should thank God Himself and not use replacement words such as luckily, gratefully, thankfully.

This is not a condemnation message. This message is to encourage the believer to be proud of this loving God Who spared nothing to get us back in right relationship with Him.

Acts 16:17 Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.” 18 She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment.

Although Paul was annoyed by the woman, he did not deal with the woman. Paul recognized and dealt with the wicked spirit within the woman.

There may be people who attempt to purposefully annoy, irritate, or cause drama in our lives. The ex-girlfriend who attempts to irritate the new girlfriend or the boss who overworks and is overly critical of his employees. Instead of attacking the person who is causing the drama, attack the spirit within that person. In Luke 10:19, Jesus gave us dominion over all the power of the enemy. Like Paul, we have the ability to cast any wicked, negative, or hateful spirit out of a person.

As born-again believers, use this Christ-given authority to conquer any wicked spirit that may be troubling your life.

In the following verses, Jesus prays for His disciples:
John 17:11 Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.
13: But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.
15: I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.
17: Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.

When we make Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, we too become disciples of Christ. In this prayer, Jesus prays that His disciples be one with the Father, have their joy fulfilled, be protected from the evil one, and sanctified by God’s truth. If there is anyone who can get their prayers answered by God, it’s Jesus the Christ.

If we would be willing to believe and receive, we can be assured that we are one with the Father. There should be no questions about our salvation. We can be assured that in whatever circumstance we face, there is an opportunity to have joy. We can be assured that we are protected from the evil one and anything associated with the evil one (robberies, shootings, or assaults). And we can be assured that it’s okay to be different because we are sanctified or set apart for the Kingdom of God.

Jesus prayed this prayer for His disciples, those who are willing to follow the ways of Christ. Will you be His disciple and receive the benefits from the prayer of Jesus? It’s up to you.

Psalm 30:5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.

Proverbs 3:3 Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart. 4 So you will find favor and good repute In the sight of God and man.

As we can see, we not only have favor with God but, we have favor with man. Favor means to give special regard to; to treat with goodwill; to show exceptional kindness to someone. Sometimes, it means to show extra kindness in comparison to the treatment of others; that is, preferential treatment. Like anything we receive from God, we need faith to receive favor. Grace, through Jesus Christ, has made favor available. Our faith allows us to possess and expect this favor.

Since we have this favor, it’s time to recognize when we receive this favor. Favor is operating in our lives when someone pays for our meal or groceries. Favor is operating in our lives when we receive a close parking space at our destination. Favor is operating in our lives when a friend or family member thinks of us after being asked if they know anyone who is looking for a job. Favor is operating in our lives when a certain process (hiring process, healing process, debt freedom process) takes a certain amount of time but for us, the duration of the process is significantly shorter.

Recognize and expect the favor of God and man in your life. When you experience the favor, give God a shout of praise and thanks.

Numbers 22:21 Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials. 22 But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him.

28 Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”

God allowed a donkey to speak to Balaam. That conversation with the donkey eventually led Balaam to repentance. If God allowed a donkey to speak to have a man repent, how much more should we be attentive to hearing the voice of God through the people surrounding us?

God has placed people around us. Some of those people seem “qualified” to give spiritual advice and some of them don’t. Regardless of who the person is, we should tune our spiritual ears to hear the voice of God. God can speak to us through our children, our parents, our teachers, our co-workers, or through a random person we’ve recently met.

Don’t discredit the voice of God coming from the person based on the person’s age, history, or status in life. Be attentive and hear the voice of God and do what He says.

2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

We live in a world full of limitations. Our car can only go so long until it needs gas. Our cellphones can only go so long until the battery needs to be recharged. We can only go so long until we need to reenergize ourselves with sleep.

If we’re not mindful, we will place these worldly limitations on God. We’ll think if God blessed us with one thing this month, He won’t be able to bless us with another thing. God is limitless. He is never short on blessings, power, deliverance, or healing. If we would take the limits off of God and believe, we can receive a new car, new employment, and a new house in the same month. All things are possible with God.

Take the limits off the ability of God. If He did it before, He can do it again and again and again.

Inspired by Pastor Benny Perez

Introduction: Naaman had leprosy.

2 Kings 5:10 Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.
11 But Naaman was angry and went away and said, Behold, I thought he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and heal the leper.

14 Then he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, as the man of God had said, and his flesh was restored like that of a little child, and he was clean.

There are several things we can learn from this passage of scripture.

The first thing we can learn from Naaman’s life is, what we’re believing God for, may not come in the form we expected. For instance, we may think God is going to financially impact our lives by having someone send a random check in the mail. God may impact our finances by allowing us to receive overtime at our employment. Naaman expected Elisha to perform this great miracle over him to be healed. Elisha simply gave Naaman instructions.

Secondly, we learn that every promise is not going to be handed to us. James 2:20 says faith without works is dead. Like Naaman, we may have to follow the promptings of our man of God or the Holy Spirit to receive our promise. The bible instructs us to be doers of the word and not just hearers (James 1:22).

Finally, we must believe. Naaman could have consulted with his logic and tried to make sense of a man being clean by washing himself in a public pool. In spite of the weirdness of our instructions, we have to believe that when we follow God’s instructions, our desires will manifest themselves.

Consider the life of Naaman the next time you are waiting on the manifestation of your desires.

2 Chronicles 30:18-20 For a multitude of the people, many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the good LORD provide atonement for everyone who prepares his heart to seek God, the LORD God of his fathers, though he is not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.” And the LORD listened to Hezekiah and healed the people.

To cleanse oneself before eating the Passover was a part of the Law of Moses. The Law of Moses could not be changed or conformed. The Law had to be fulfilled. But even in the midst of the Law, there was something that attracted the mercy of God. That something was sincere prayer. Although the people ate the Passover without cleansing themselves, because of Hezekiah’s prayer, God allowed mercy and healed the people.

We are no longer under the Law. We are under grace. If prayer attracted mercy in the midst of the Law, how much more will it attract today? If mercy was granted through an unchangeable Law, how much more will He grant through grace? Through prayer, we can receive anything we desire (no limits).

Continue to pray to reap the benefits of the blessing for your life, continue to pray to see the benefit of the blessing impacting the lives of others, and continue to pray to see the will of God being implemented in this earth.
Let us pray.

2 Chronicles 29:27-29 Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the Lord began also with the trumpets and with the instruments ordained by King David of Israel. And all the congregation worshiped, the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; all this continued until the burnt offering was finished. When they had stopped offering, the king and all present with him bowed themselves and worshiped.

We are instructed to give however, our giving is not based on the Law (Luke 6:38). Our giving is based on our love, admiration, and thanksgiving to God (Matthew 6:19-24). The more God has done for us, the more we should be willing to give.

For those who participate in giving, it’s more than a “box checked” on Sunday. Giving is an opportunity for us to praise and worship this awesome God who allowed us to have an abundant life through His Son Jesus. Giving is an opportunity for us to thank God for everything He has made available through His Son. Giving also allows us to participate in God’s plan to bless our lives. Although we are not under the Law, the overflowing blessing found in Malachi 3 is still available to the giver.

So, when we give, let’s worship, praise, and thank God for all He has done for us. Keep this in mind the next time you participate in this great adventure called giving.

1 John 4:19 We love him, because he first loved us.

Since we are made righteous through Jesus and not our works, what changes for us? As we have the revelation of God’s flawless love for us, we decide to love Him back (1 John 4:19). Loving God back is making Him Lord. When we love Someone, we prioritize Him, we seek His presence and consistently spend time with Him; we do things that please Him, and, when we’re all in, we commit our lives to Him (1 John 5:3).

Psalm 107:20 He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
Us. Let go of past mistakes, choosing instead to seek God and be patient with ourselves as He develops us. Let’s no longer live under guilt and condemnation knowing that when we surrender ourselves to Him, God grants us full redemption and restoration (Jeremiah 33:6-9).

Them. Let’s Love people, and not judge them. We each have a different trajectory in our relationship with God. So encourage people, pray for them, be honest with them about what honors God, and do good for them even when we feel they don’t deserve it (John 13:35). Why? Because He loves us beyond our comprehension (1 John 4:7-10).

Refer also to: 2 Corinthians 5:15-21, Romans 3:21-29, 5 and 6, Deuteronomy 30:1-6

Romans 3:21But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

God loves us as we are. How do I know? John 3:16 says that God loved the world so much that He gave His Best (Jesus) for us; His Love is not based on our actions.

God sees all believers as righteous (Romans 5:19). Once we accept Jesus as our Savior (accept that Jesus is God’s Son and He died & rose again for us), we are made righteous. I was righteous even when I was fornicating, when I murdered, when I was deceitful, when I was gluttonous, when I was judgmental, when I was selfish, and in the midst of every other action I did after I was saved ~ L.S.

Unsure about that righteous standing? Think about this: what did you do to deserve to be saved? Nothing, but accept what Jesus had already done (Ephesians 2:8-9). So, if all we had to do was accept Him, then why would we assume our works would now alter that status? For where sin abounds, grace does that much more abound (Romans 5:20-21). God’s goodness is not an excuse to continue in unholy activities, but rather to bring us to the epiphany of how much God loves us as we are, flaws and all.

Refer also to: 2 Corinthians 5:15-21, Romans 3:21-29, 5 and 6

2 Corinthians 12:9 And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

There are some things that we cannot accomplish just by using our natural strength or will power. For instance, some have unsuccessfully tried to stop smoking for years, or have tried to deliver themselves from pornography or gluttony.

When we get to the end of our own strength, some of us continue to force our will power onto the situation to accomplish the goal or we’ll give up, count it as a loss, and feel like we won’t ever accomplish our goal. But, to those who receive this humbling experience and trust in the Lord, the strength of Christ becomes evident in their lives. When we say to ourselves and to our Father that we cannot accomplish a goal on our own and we need His strength to overcome, the power of Christ begins to operate in our lives.

Whatever goal you’re attempting to accomplish (big or small), don’t do it in your own strength. Humble yourselves and rely on the power of God to see you through.

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself also in the LORD; and he shall give you the desires of your heart.
Stage 1: Desire
First, God grants us the desires of our hearts. Most of us look at that scripture and see only one interpretation: that God gives us what we want. In addition to that interpretation, consider another: God places specific desires in our hearts. Any desires that contradict the Word of God are not God-given desires. So, search the Word to determine all that we have access to such as love, healing, children, peace, joy, financial wealth, and more. And if wanting to know your purposes (there may be multiple), ask God to reveal and make them clear to you.

Psalm 20:4 May he grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed.
Stage 2: Plans
Once determining our purposes and desires and confirming them in the Word, we should make plans. Prior to, during, and following making those plans, we should be seeking God. We should give God full access to our plans.

Proverbs‬ ‭16‬:‭24 A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.
Stage 3: Steps
Next, we seek God for the steps to fulfill those plans. Seeking Him to make our plans is important, and seeking His guidance to fulfill those plans is imperative as well.

Luke 12:31 But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
Stage Overview
Throughout it all, continue to seek first the kingdom of God. Never allow the fulfillment of desires to be prioritized over God. Seek relationship with God in addition to His counsel. Be obedient as He grows us preparing us for the fulfillment of our purposes and the manifestations of our desires.

Psalms 32:8-9 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse or like the mule, Which have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, Else they will not come near you.

Have you ever seen or met that child that won’t do anything unless there is a reward in it for them? The Word of God compares this type of mindset to the mindset of a horse or a mule. Some believers seem to only obey God’s instructions when it benefits them. What about obeying God just because He’s God? What about heeding His instructions because He is our Lord?

Far too often, we only obey God when we can see a benefit. If we don’t see a benefit, we sometimes proudly walk in disobedience. For instance, God instructs us to love and pray for our enemies. He also tells us to forgive one another. On the surface, most people can’t see the benefit of following these instructions, therefore, they walk around filled with bitterness, hatred, and are unwilling to forgive.

What type of witness of Jesus Christ would we be walking out while being full of hate? How can we be unforgiving and yet say that we’re walking in love? There is a benefit attached to our obedience, however, the benefits are greater than us.

Let’s be obedient just because our Father wants us to.

Psalms 30:5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.

The anger or wrath of God was poured out on Jesus Christ. Every negative thing we should have experienced, Jesus received on our behalf. That anger was only for a moment. Because Jesus fulfilled the will of God, God is no longer angry with Jesus and He is no longer angry with us. Jesus paid the penalty of sin so that we can experience the blessing.

As we can see, included in the blessing is a lifetime of favor from God. Favor is God raising up someone somewhere to use their power, ability, influence, or finances to help us. As born-again believers, if we believe, we can expect to experience a lifetime of God’s favor.

Secondly, we can experience a lifetime supply of joy. Yes, we will experience trouble, however, we can rejoice because Jesus has overcome the world (John 16:33). And because we are joint heirs with Christ, we too have overcome every troubling experience we’ll ever face. So, be joyful because of God’s favor. Be joyful because we overcome. Be joyful because of the wonderful blessed life we get to experience because of Jesus Christ.

Psalm 9:10 And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

When we partially trust God, we allow Him to take control over certain areas of our lives while we feel the need to control the other areas of our lives. Partial trust promotes arrogance. Partial trust literally tells God we can do a better job at taking care of ourselves than He can.

Partial trust also promotes self-effort. We begin to do things we feel are necessary to protect or do for ourselves. We start carrying guns everywhere we go for physical protection. We withhold our feelings from a potential spouse in order to protect our emotions. We work an extra 15 hours a week to provide for our families. All these things are done because of our lack of trust.

Completely trusting God forces us to take a step of faith. It takes faith to release everything into God’s hands. It takes faith to let go of past hurts, mistakes, and failures and allow God to lead and guide our lives. We can go on living our lives partially trusting God and God will allow us to live this way. However, when we partially trust God and attempt to control a large portion of our lives, we allow unnecessary stress, drama, and/or disease to invade our lives.

Let go of everything and completely trust God.

Psalm 91:11 for He will command His angels to protect you in all your ways.

In 2 Kings 19:35, one angel destroyed 185,000 men. The Word of the Lord says God will have His angels (plural) to protect us. That means we have at LEAST two angels protecting us who are capable of taking out at least 370,000 men, therefore, there is no need to worry about someone hurting or harming us. If we believe this promise, we can expect God’s protection through His angels.

Psalm 103:20 Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word!

Angels obey the voice of God’s Word. When we get born-again, the Spirit of the Lord dwells in us (1 Cor. 3:16). When we, the believers, speak the Word of Lord over our lives, we can expect God’s Word to be fulfilled. If we believe this promise, we can speak and expect to receive every promise found in the Word of God.

Hebrews 1:14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Throughout the Word of God, angels delivered messages to God’s people. As heirs of salvation, we become God’s people and are now able to receive messages from God through His angels. If we believe this, we can expect to experience direct messages from God.

Never underestimate God’s angels. Through the angels of the Lord, we can receive God’s protection, the fulfillment of God’s promises, and a direct message from God. Believe and receive this truth for your lives.

Matthew 22:36 Teacher, which kind of commandment is great and important (the principal kind) in the Law? 37 And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intellect). 38 This is the great (most important, principal) and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself.

As we begin 2015, let’s start it off by obeying the second greatest commandment; love. Love one another enough to forgive your brother and sister. Love your brother or sister in spite of the pain they have caused you in the past. Continue to love the person in front of you even though they are not displaying the love of Christ.

As we continue to display the love of Christ, we mature as believers by focusing on God’s purpose for our lives instead of what someone else has done to us. We also compel others to mature and learn more about this love we display through Christ.

Love. It seems so simple but, it’s one of the most powerful forces on this planet. Love, and take your Christian journey to a new level.

Be blessed and love.

Luke18:12 ‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14 “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Throughout the Word of God, it instructs us to pray, fast, and meditate in the Word of God (1 Thessalonians 5:17; Matthew 6:16; Joshua 1:8).

Some believers have a tendency to magnify the amount of time they spend praying, fasting, or meditating in the Word of God. It’s as if they feel holier or more spiritual due to the amount of time they’ve spent in prayer or in the Word of God. This feeling of holiness because of the amount of time we spend in prayer, fasting, or in meditation positions us to boast in ourselves, boast among others, or become self-righteous. A person who spent 2 hours in prayer is not holier than a person who spent 2 minutes in prayer.

Jesus made us holy and righteous and there is no amount of time we can spend to equal what He’s done. If we’re led by the Spirit of God, which we should be, we should pray, fast, and meditate in the Word of God until He instructs us to stop. One day it may be 20 minutes the next day it may be an hour.

God knows our schedules and He knows what we need. Be led by the Spirit of God in the amount of time you pray, in the amount of time you choose to spend in the Word of God, and in the amount of days you choose to fast.

It’s not about the time, it’s about our heart towards God.

Psalm 27:5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock. 6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

There are a few things we can learn from these two verses. The first thing we can learn is there will be a time of trouble. Regardless if a person has been saved for 20 years or 20 minutes, we all will experience a time of trouble.

However, in the time of trouble, there is hope. For the believer, God Himself hides us and sets us up on high places. Due to the fact that God has set us up on high places, we are lifted above our troubles. We have to believe this truth. We can’t stare at our problems and circumstances surrounding us and think they will eventually affect us. We have to believe that although our problems are present, they will not negatively impact our lives.

Finally, because we’re lifted above our troubles, a sacrifice of joy and praise to God should flow through our lips. We’re praising God for keeping us above our troubles; we’re praising God for honoring His Word, and we’re praising God that all things (troubles included) will work for our good.

As we approach the New Year, many of us will have resolutions that range from working out to deepening our relationship with God. Both are beneficial, but the latter is more important.

When we start our journey in deepening our relationship with God, we start off good by going to church weekly, reading a chapter a day in our Bibles, and praying more often. However, by the middle of the year, we start losing our focus. We become distracted; we start making excuses as to why we can’t go to church, and the time we once allotted for praying and reading the Bible seems to disappear. In actuality, we start placing other things before God. We start prioritizing our schedules, activities, and vacations above the Kingdom of God. By the end of the year, we count it as a loss and say, “I’ll start next year.” This is a trap set by the enemy.

Now that we are aware of this trap, let’s not make the same mistake in 2015. Our relationship with God can be as deep as we want it to be. Let’s stay consistent in the things of God all year-long. Our consistency or faithfulness in the things of God, allows us to be sensitive to His Spirit to receive direction, overcome internal challenges, and be more of a blessing to others.

Why wait until 2015? Start today!

1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

Colossians 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in it with thanksgiving;

When we pray, we should not just “go through the motions” by saying, “bless this person and bless that person.” When we pray, we should believe, realize, and know that what we say, will manifest itself.

Prayer is not just speaking words to God with no confidence. Real prayer is truly believing that what we say, will manifest itself. Secondly, we should be listening to what God has to say to us. When listening to God, He will direct us to the manifestation of our prayer.

Let’s stop trying to check the box with prayer. Let’s believe that what we say, will come to pass and God is continuously giving us instructions for our next steps.

Let’s pray.

Psalms 23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.

If we would allow God to lead, guide, and direct our lives, we would realize that God has prepared everything we will ever need for this life. It’s not going to be prepared, it’s already prepared.

Many times, people want to prepare a table for themselves. They want to pick the college they want to go to because of its notoriety instead of going to the college God has prepared for them. They want to work at a certain job because of the high salary instead of having a career God has prepared for them. They want to be in a relationship with someone because of how it makes them look instead of being with the person God has prepared for them. We want to prepare a table for ourselves, but have God bless it. It doesn’t work that way.

The things that God has prepared for us are attached to our purpose. When we receive what God has prepared, we walk in our purpose and when we’re walking in our purpose, God is pleased. Stop working so hard to prepare something that’s already prepared. Rest and Receive what God has prepared and eat well.

Luke 2:10-11 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

The greatest gift to mankind is Jesus Christ. God sent His Son to be more than “fire insurance” preventing us from going to hell. Jesus is everything to mankind.

Through Jesus, we have the opportunity to receive salvation. Through Jesus, we are exempt from physical and spiritual death. Through Jesus, we are healed from every sickness, disease, or pain in our bodies. Through Jesus, we are delivered from the curse of the law. Through Jesus, we are forgiven from all our sins. Through Jesus, we can have a personal relationship with God. Through Jesus, we have an Advocate and an Intercessor. Through Jesus, we are heirs according to the promise of God. Through Jesus, we have Spiritual Guide. Through Jesus, we can have everything we will ever need or desire. Through Jesus, the grace of God, the love of God, and the mercy of God was released on mankind.

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ, just remember, everything we have is because of Jesus.

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ into this world, we should also celebrate His accomplishments. Jesus suffered and endured unimaginable pains while taking our place at Calvary.

The following verses in Psalms 22 gives us a glimpse of what Jesus endured:
-I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. (‭Psalms‬ ‭22‬:‭14‬)
-My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death. (‭Psalms‬ ‭22‬:‭15‬)
-I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. (‭Psalms‬ ‭22‬:‭17‬)

As we can see Jesus was ridiculed, tortured, and in great pain. God sent His Son Jesus into the earth to endure these sufferings and accomplish this goal just for us. Praise God for Jesus Who was not only born but, endured great suffering so that we can become the righteousness of God.

Psalm 17:4 Concerning the works of men, By the word of Your lips, I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.

The enemy is out to destroy us. Like Job, the enemy is out to destroy our lives, our families, and our businesses. However, when we confess the Word that came forth from the mouth of God, we strengthen our faith to know we are protected from the destroyer.

These are just a few scriptures we can stand on to reassure ourselves that we are protected by God Almighty:
-Psalm 121:7 LORD will keep you from all harm– he will watch over your life;
-Psalm 91:10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.
-Psalm 41:2 The LORD protects and preserves them– they are counted among the blessed in the land– he does not give them over to the desire of their foes.

Continue to confess the Word of God regarding His protection and live a fear-free life.

Hebrews 4:11 Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

It takes a conscious effort to rest in the finished works of Jesus Christ. We see the promises of health, deliverance, wealth, etc. in the Word of God but at this time, we may not be experiencing the manifestation of those promises. Due to not seeing certain promises, our flesh feels like it needs something to do to speed up the process.

On the spiritual side, to speed up the manifestation of our promises, some may feel like they need to read the Word of God more, pray more, or fast. Praying and reading are fine but, if our mentality is to pray and read to speed up the delivery of our promises, we’re operating out of the flesh.
In the natural, to speed up the manifestation of our promises, our flesh may be compelled to do additional things that God did not instruct us to do. For instance, if someone is believing for healing in their body, they may be compelled to take extra vitamins, drink popularized tonics, or go to the doctor multiple times. Or, if someone desires to speed up the promise of wealth, their flesh may be compelled to work longer hours or invest in a “get rich quick” pyramid scheme. If the Spirit of God did not instruct us to do these things, we’re operating out of the flesh.

Once again, it takes effort to rest in the finished works of Jesus Christ. Whatever we’re standing in faith for, believe it and receive it. After that, whatever the Spirit of God instructs us to do, do that and no more.

Inspired by the teachings of Pastor C. Dollar

Psalm 16:7 I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.

In life, there are some major and minor decisions we have to make. Many of us seek counsel from close friends or family members. Seeking counsel from our friends and family members is fine but, God desires to be included on our list. In fact, according to Matthew 6:33, He desires to be first on our list.

Some of us may have a difficult time discerning God’s voice from our own. We eliminate this difficulty by forcing ourselves to spend time with God. We force ourselves to spend time with God by detaching ourselves from the world (technology, TV, etc.). The more we make an effort to spend time with God, the easier it becomes to hear His voice.

It’s very important to develop our relationship and communication skills with God. God has every answer we need, for every decision in life. Start seeking God; the best Counselor.

Mark 11:24 “Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.

1 John 5:14 This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, 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 have the requests which we have asked from Him.

As we can see from these three verses, we can expect to receive everything we desire from God. The corresponding action to expectation is preparation.

For instance, if a couple prayed for a child, the corresponding action to their prayer, prior to going to the doctor, should be decorating the baby’s room with a crib, buying bottles, and diapers. Another example includes if a person prayed for employment. Prior to obtaining employment, the corresponding action to their prayer should be buying the necessary clothes for the job, adjusting their body to wake up early by setting an alarm for 6:30am, and going to bed at a decent hour.

If we truly believe that God hears and answers our prayers, we need to prepare ourselves for the manifestation of that prayer. A lot of the times, believers pray and they’re hoping (crossing their fingers) their prayers get answered. Then, if the prayer gets answered, they’re excited and surprised when, in actuality, they should have been excited the moment they prayed.

Don’t allow doubt to enter your hearts by delay. Whatever you believed God for, prepare yourself to receive that desire.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven:

Unfortunately, we live in this impatient society where we have to get answers, obtain solutions, or discover the next step immediately. This impatience sometimes trickles into receiving the promises of God. Before we can completely thank God for one promise, we’re looking for the next one. We may have received a degree, now we immediately want to know when and where we’ll be hired. We may have just gotten married, now we’re immediately looking for our dream house.

Patience is the key. One thing we must realize is, when God blesses us, He has more than us in mind. It’s all in the timing. For instance, we may be looking for a career in one city/state but, God has opened up a career opportunity for us in another location in order to be a blessing in the lives of people we haven’t even met.

Let’s take our time and truly enjoy the blessings God has poured into our lives. Let’s not be so hasty to move on to the next thing. God operates on a different schedule. Let’s be in tune with His schedule to maximize the blessings in our lives and in the lives of others.

1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.

Whatever obstacle we’re facing, God enabled us (past tense) to overcome it. To overcome the obstacle in front of us, we have to use the authority God has given us. Our authority is our faith.

Jesus showed us how to use our authority in Luke 8. In Luke 8:23-24, an obstacle in the form of a storm was in front of Jesus. Jesus used His authority and by faith He rebuked and overcame the storm. Some people may say He was able to rebuke the storm because He’s Jesus, the Son of God. However in verse 25, after rebuking the storm, Jesus looked at His panic-stricken disciples and asked “Where is your faith?” In other words, Jesus asked, how come you didn’t use your faith to rebuke the storm?

It doesn’t matter if it’s a storm, a troubled marriage, low finances, or rebellious children. Whatever obstacles we face, God has enabled us to overcome it. Exercise your authority and overcome that obstacle.

Lately, the message in the body of Christ is about grace and its wonderful benefits. Praise God for grace because without it, we would all be lost. In order to get a full understanding of grace, we have to look at grace’s prerequisite. The prerequisite of grace is mercy.

Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

After Adam sinned, mankind was destined and justified for hell. God loved us enough to have mercy on us. Mercy says, although we’re wrong and should be punished, another chance will be granted. Since God knew we couldn’t achieve perfection on our own, He sent the embodiment of grace, Jesus Christ, to save mankind. Because of God’s mercy, everyone has the opportunity to experience His grace.

Praise God for His mercy! Without His mercy, grace would not exist.

Matthew 9:29 Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”;

Whatever we need or desire is going to be according to our faith and our faith alone (what we believe).
Notice, this scripture does not say it’s according to our finances.
It’s not according to our education.
It’s not according to our employment experience.
It’s not according to our criminal history.
It’s not according to who we know.

Everything we need or desire is going to be according to our faith.

Also, it’s not according to your mother’s faith or your pastor’s faith. Your needs/desires are according to YOUR FAITH.

Faith is believing every need or desire has been (past tense) made available to us (the believers) through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Even though we can’t observe the need/desire with our five senses, we believe it’s available to us.

Receive your needs and desires by exercising your faith and removing all the “limitations” the world has placed in your mind.

Inspired by Pastor B. Winston

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

When some of us think of blessings, we think of a house, car, or money however, there is much more to a blessing besides materialistic things. A blessing can positively impact the character of a person.

The following blessings are in heavenly places:

There is a delivered smoker, alcoholic, or drug user in heavenly places. There is a saved and set free son or daughter in heavenly places. There is a fearless representative of God in heavenly places. There is a minister in heavenly places. There are people doing God’s will in heavenly places.

Never be discouraged about what you see in yourself or what you see in a person. All these blessings and more that impact the character of a person are in heavenly places. Our faith in what Jesus has accomplished releases those blessing into the physical world.

Remember, the blessings in heavenly places mean more than materialistic things. The blessings in heavenly places include people’s lives.

1 Peter 4:10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.

In the past, believers have defined grace as unmerited favor. The unmerited favor definition of grace is true but, there are so many more areas of grace.

Grace to Bless: 2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all-sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;

The grace of God is available to supply us with everything we need in this life. When we rely on God’s grace, we don’t have to be worried or afraid of not having because the grace of God supplies all of our needs.

Grace to Overcome: 2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

Paul was going through a difficult time in his life. God spoke to Paul and informed him that His grace was enough to help him get through this difficult time. When we rely on God’s grace, God’s grace will help us get through our difficult times.

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

This is the most important area of grace. Salvation is not something that happened automatically. It was a gift that was given to mankind through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. When we rely on God’s grace and not our self-effort, the grace of God allows anyone to receive salvation.

Grace has various forms. Understand and apply each form of God’s grace in your life.

Mark‬ ‭4‬:‭37-40 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”

With His faith, Jesus changed the atmosphere. Jesus caused a stormy situation to turn into a peaceful situation. The storm did not obey Jesus because He was the Son of God. The storm obeyed Jesus because Jesus had faith and He understood the authority mankind has in the earth (Genesis 1:26). Jesus understood that the magnitude of His faith can move mountains and change the atmosphere (Matthew 21:21).

We too can operate in the same type of faith that Jesus operated in. In fact, the Word of God says, we can do even greater works than Jesus did (John 14:12). With this in mind, wherever a stormy situation is, our faith can change the atmosphere.
If we or someone else is in an abusive situation, our faith can change the atmosphere for the better.
If we or someone else is being mistreated, our faith can change the atmosphere for the better.
If our neighborhood is filled with drug dealers, prostitutes, and violence, our faith can change the atmosphere.
If our nation is under attack by terrorism, racism, and poverty, our faith can change the atmosphere.

This is our world. God gave us dominion over this world. If we want to see a change in our lives and in the world, our faith is going to be a catapult for that change.

Work your faith.

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Genesis‬ ‭1‬:‭26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

Contrary to popular belief, God is NOT in control. Mankind is in control. As we can see from the scripture above, God gave mankind dominion over everything in the earth. Psalm 8:6 says, God gave mankind dominion over everything He created. We see mankind’s control in the earth in the life and death of Jesus. Jesus pushed His Godhead aside, operated in this earth as a man, and died as a man to redeem mankind.

Another way we know mankind is in control is through the concept of prayer. If God was in control, why would Luke 18:1 instruct us to pray? If God was in control, He wouldn’t need us to pray. He would do whatever He wanted whenever He wanted. The reason we pray is to allow God’s power to operate in this earth through us. Everything God does in this earth has to be done through a person.

Religion will tell us, God is in control. That sounds comforting until something goes wrong. Then, people want to blame and lose their faith in God for allowing a tragic event to happen. Everything that happens in this earth (good or bad) is because of a man.

What does this mean for us? This means we need to start using the authority Jesus gave us in Luke 10:19 and change the world. Renew your mind to this truth…God gave mankind control over everything (the weather, finances, death, etc.). Besides the will of another person, God has given us dominion over everything. Use this dominion to change your world.

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On part 1 of Bounce Back, we mentioned how it’s important to overcome the problems we bring upon ourselves. We must realize whatever we’ve done or will do, God has forgiven us and He still desires to bless us with an abundant life beyond what we can imagine.

Today we’ll mention the problems brought on by the enemy. The enemy himself has no power (Colossians 2:15). The only thing he can do is promote bad behavior with thoughts, ideas, and suggestions. At times, people are influenced by his suggestions and they end up emotionally and/or physically hurting us. For instance, some people may be influenced to cheat on their wife or intentionally disrespect and belittle their husband. In trying times like those we have two options: 1. We can become depressed, sulk in our miseries, hurt others because we’ve been hurt, or never trust again. OR 2. We can trust God and know He sees everything we’ve been through. We can continue to love and forgive the people who hurt us. We can believe that our latter days will be greater than our past.

The choice is up to us. It’s time for believers to fulfill the promises God has for us. God wants us to let our lights shine. We can’t let our lights shine by living a bitter miserable life. Bounce back from the hurt. Bounce back from the pain. Bounce back from everything that attempted to detour you from the blessed life God wants you to have. Bounce Back!

Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” 11 The LORD of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress.

The Word of God informs us we will have trials and tribulations in this life. The trouble in our lives may be self-inflicted or it may be the work of the enemy. Regardless of how the trouble arrives in our lives, we have to be resilient. We have to be able to stand firm in our faith receiving God’s deliverance over our troubles. We have to renew our minds and bounce back from those trials. We have to trust that the blessing of God is operating in our lives versus magnifying the secondary effects of the trouble.

For instance, someone may have been a rebellious person when they were younger. As a result of their rebellion, they received a felony that will be on their record for the rest of their lives. That person has two options:
1. They can give up, start hustling, live a mediocre lifestyle, and work at a dead end job.
OR
2. They can trust that the blessing is operating in their lives regardless of what they’ve done and they can believe ALL things work together for their good.

The choice is totally up to them. The choice is totally up to us. Don’t allow troubles, failures, mistakes, and problems to get in the way of the life God promised for you. God promised us this abundant life and nothing (no sin, no problem, or mistake) will remove that promise.
Bounce Back!

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” (‭Joshua‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬ NKJV)

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