Trustworthy God

God resists the proud, but He gives an abundance of grace to those who humble themselves under His mighty hand (James 4:6). He loves the whole world, but especially His children (John 3:16; 1 John 3:1).

God gives His Saints, made righteous through the blood of Jesus, deliverance through all of our troubles (2 Corinthians 5:21). He hears our cries for help, stays close to the brokenhearted and heals those bruised in spirit (Psalm 37:17-18).

He loves those who honor Him with our life. He separates us from the penalty of our sin and remembers them no more. He understands our human frailties and has compassion on us (Hebrews 8:12; Psalm 103:12-14).

When life exhausts and discourages us with its many afflictions, God gives us hope and deliverance as we cry out to Him (Psalm 37:19). His love lifts us higher than the heavens (Psalm 103:11).

God gives us the fruit of our labors, which we accomplish through blood, sweat and tears. He turns our mourning into dancing (Psalm 30:11-12, 126:5). He collects our tears in His bottle and He avenges our suffering (Psalm 56:8; Romans 12:19).

We have no need to fret over those in our life with an evil intent or those who prosper in their iniquity. God takes care of every one of them (Psalm 37:1-2).

We can trust in Him with our whole heart, continue to work for His Kingdom, and He will bless us with the fulfillment of all of our efforts as He faithfully provides for all of our needs (Psalm 37:3).

Prayer:

Father God, we delight in Your presence in our life; we relish Your desires, which You place in our heart; and we trust in You to bring us success as we walk in Your will. We commit our every breath to Your service and acknowledge You before we take one step in the morning (Psalm 37:4-6; Proverbs 3:5-6).

We enter Your rest and wait on Your direction for each moment of our day. When we are tempted to worry, or to be jealous over someone else's blessings, we remember that You are always faithful, and that Your children inherit Your Kingdom as co-heirs with Christ (Psalm 37:7-11; Romans 8:17).

Thought for the Day:

God works out every negative trial for our ultimate good. - Romans 8:28

Freedom from Strongholds

  

When Satan tempts us with a fleeting thought, we have two choices: we can ignore and dismiss it or entertain and dwell on it. If we dismiss it, we are free from its bondage. If we entertain it, we are in danger of falling under its oppression; and those who are not Born Again risk the possibility of possession by demonic beings (2 Peter 2:18-19).

It only takes 3-6 weeks to develop both good and bad habits. These habits develop a stronghold in our soul, and often in our body as well. Breaking negative habits is often a difficult and expensive endeavor. Even if we push these negative habits into our subconscious mind and stop them for a season, current events may trigger these old feelings and habits again.

We will revert back to them as a form of comfort, rebellion or a desire to be in control of some aspect of our life. Each time these habits resurface, they deepen the scars in our soul, and it is increasingly more difficult to extricate our self from them (2 Peter 2:20). Life triggers issues from our past and we respond to current conflict with unhealthy behavior patterns.

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We can completely escape from the strongholds of these habits only as we surrender them to God for healing and allow Him to guide us to resolve the inner conflicts, which connect us to them. If we repent of our sins and relinquish control of our life to Jesus Christ, He will slowly replace the negative aspects of our personality and soul with His divine nature and spiritual fruit (2 Peter 1:4; Galatians 2:22-23; Ephesians 4:13).

Prayer:
Father God, Jesus Christ, our Prince of Peace, is our only hope and solution for freedom from this sin-cursed world. Help us to put on our new self in Christ and to walk in Your true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24). We look forward to being like Christ when He returns (1 John 3:2). People today close their ears to Your Truth, deceive others as they are deceived, and seek solutions for their problems apart from You (Jeremiah 6:10-14). However, You always give strength to Your people and bless us with peace regardless of the circumstances we encounter in life (Psalm 29:11).

Thought for the Day:

Only those who surrender their life to the Prince of Peace will ever experience true peace in this life and in the next.

Drawing Near to God

 

The natural world in which we live, and everyone in it, is held captive by sin. However, through faith in Jesus Christ we are given God's promised salvation (Galatians 3:22-23). Now, with a sincere heart, we can draw near to God. Our mind, sprinkled by the blood of Christ, is cleansed from a guilty conscience and the pure water of God's Word washes us clean (Hebrews 10:22).

We can only abide in God after we first seek Him and His Kingdom, and live in the truth that He lives in and through us. He will never, ever, for any reason leave us (Hebrews 13:5). As we wait on Him day by day, He grants us the grace to abide in Him. We rejoice in His fellowship and we work in His power. We completely give up our self to Him and live by faith in His faithfulness.

God allows trials to test our faith, which increases our perseverance through them (James 1:3). Thankfully, Jesus is both the developer and the perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Even the prophets of old knew that the righteous live by faith (Habakkuk 2:4: Romans 1:17). Since Jesus' faith and Spirit abide within us, we multiply the works of Christ on this earth (John 14:12).

The core truths of God's Word energize the authentic Christian and thrill our soul. First and foremost, we wait on the Lord, we live in His presence continually and we enter into His eternal rest on a daily basis. Once we completely surrender to Christ, God takes us up spiritually into His Holy Temple (2 Corinthians 5:1). We abide in His rest, and all of our work on earth is done only through Him.

Prayer:

Father God, even if other people refuse to believe in You, their unbelief does not make our faith in You worthless (Romans 3:3). Through the blood of Jesus, we become Your righteousness, and You wipe away our sins through Your love and forbearance (Romans 3:25). Help us not to grow weary or to lose faith in Your promises, but to remain strong in Christ's faith in us, as we give You all of the glory (Romans 4:20).

Thought for the Day:

We are justified and reconciled to God by faith, not by our own good deeds. - Romans 3:28, 4:14; Ephesians 2:8-9

God Never Fails

There are times in life when we feel devastated, overwhelmed and hopeless. We have no idea how to pay our bills, buy groceries or keep a roof over our head. If we keep our faith and hope in God, anything is possible (Mark 9:23). When trouble surrounds us and life is hard, we know that there is always a way out, because God loved us enough to lay down His life for us (2 Corinthians 4:8).

God has good plans for His righteous ones and there is always hope in our future (Jeremiah 29:11). We fear nothing, which life throws at us or people threaten us with. Full surrender to God’s will in every circumstance is the only way to stay sane. If we continue to strive for our own way, we will continue to feel frustrated and hopeless. Total surrender to God is the key to making sense of our circumstances.

If we call out to the Lord, and pray to Him for help, He never fails to hear us. Our cries always reach His ears (Psalm 18:8). Our Lord and Redeemer strengthens us and holds us up with His victorious right hand (Isaiah 41:10, 13-14). Surrendering our present and future to God, walking away from our worries and leaving them in His hands is the only way to dwell in His rest (Hebrews 4:10).

We trust in God, not in our family or friends, job or bank account, talents or human reasoning, church or neighbors. We can put too much pressure on others when we expect them to support us more than they already are. They will feel undue stress and push back or ignore us. We have to get our eyes off our self and onto God. Then He will keep us in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3).

As long as we are still alive, we have hope (Ecclesiastes 9:4). The Lord saves the brokenhearted and those crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18). He binds our wounds and carries our sorrows (Isaiah 53:4, Psalm 147:3). Our hope comes from God alone and He gives us rest for our soul (Psalm 43:5; 62:5). As we put our hope in Him, the Lord rescues us from our trials (Psalm 39:7; 2 Peter 2:9).

Prayer:

Father God, even when we take our focus off You in the midst of our tribulation, we know without a doubt that You are always there for us, loving us unconditionally and giving us the victory through Your death and resurrection. Nothing this world has to offer compares to the hope we have, which comes only from You (Psalm 62:5; Ecclesiastes 9:4). You are always on our side, ever loving us and drawing us closer to Your heart (John 6:44; Psalm 136:1).

Thought for the Day:

God gives us grace to live for today, but remember that tomorrow's grace will not come until tomorrow.

God Loves Us So Much

God always causes the Godly to flourish like a palm tree. We grow tall and He transplants us into His own Heavenly garden, so that we are under His personal care (Psalm 92:12-13). King David realized that throughout his lifetime. He never saw a righteous person forsaken or his descendants begging bread (Psalm 37:25). God provides for His children. He also blesses thousands of generations of descendants belonging to those who love and serve Him (Exodus 20:6).

Even in our old age, God uses us to produce fruit and to remain productive and vital. Our success honors the Lord because it shows the world that He cares for His own (Psalm 92:14-15). We get acquainted with God’s ways, and we put our trust in Him. He never forsakes anyone who seeks Him (Psalm 9:10). We hope in our Lord, because He keeps every promise He makes to us with as much certainty as He keeps the world He created in perfect balance (Psalm 146:5-6).

When someone threatens God’s beloved, He takes it very personally (Zechariah 2:8). We are precious in His sight (Isaiah 43:3). God gives justice to the poor and oppressed, and food to the hungry. He heals the sick, lifts the burdens of those crippled under life’s weight, protects immigrants and cares for both orphans and widows. The Lord loves His righteous people and is their defense (Psalm 146:7-9). Those who refuse to obey Him are oblivious of His wonders (Nehemiah 9:17,31).

We believe in God’s faithfulness, because He always cares for those who seek Him (Psalm 9:10). Jehovah made the mountains and heavens; and yet, is mindful of all mankind (Psalm 8:4-6). He gives His angels charge over us, so that we never stumble or fall (Psalm 91:11-12). He never sleeps, but watches over us day and night. He cares for us and defends us, keeping us from evil and preserving our life. He keeps his eye on us as we come and go, and guards us in all of our ways (Psalm 121:2-8).

Prayer:

Father God, we will never forget Your promises, Your mercy, Your grace or the marvelous works You perform (Psalm 111:4-6). Your loving kindness is forever and ever to those who reverence You. If we live faithfully in Your covenant and obey Your precepts, Your salvation is for us, as well as our children if they will accept it (Psalm 103:17). Your love stand firm forever and you establish your faithfulness in Heaven and earth and it endures forever (Psalm 89:2, 119:90).

Thought for the Day:

God's will is not achieved by momentary spurts of self-effort, but by a lifestyle of obedience to His loving presence in our life.

The Love of God

 

The intense love of God burns like a fire deep in our soul, warming us as we travel through this cold world of sin and degradation. Christ died so that we may possess this everlasting love (Romans 6:23). We are precious to Him and we bring Him delight by our obedience (John 14:15). Everything God gave to His firstborn Son, Jesus, He shares with us, His adopted sons. Jesus sacrificed His throne and crown for us, and He did not reserve His life or blood, but gave His all for us.

Only as we completely surrender our life to Him in return, will we come into perfect union with Christ within us.  We totally submit to the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. We live according to God’s divine will for our life (Ephesians 2:10), and find our fulfillment in our union with Christ. We seek only the will of God in our thoughts, words and deeds, so that He might be glorified in us, just as He was in Jesus (John 14:13). We completely dwell in His love (John 10:17).

We come to the day where we stop offending God with our sinful desires, because the Spirit sanctifies us from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:18). He gives us discernment and His Word, so that we can ascertain what will bring God glory. His righteousness pervades our life to the extent that we surrender our sinfulness to Him. We live in harmony with Christ in us through the anointing of His name. Our prayers are centered in Jesus’ name and our life is lived in the power of His name.

Our union also provides us with faith to believe in His faithfulness. We live in unreserved obedience to the Father (1 John 3:22). We pray with confidence in our intimate union with Christ. We sit silently in His presence, knowing that He knows what we need before we even speak it (Matthew 6:8). An abiding life of faith in Christ alone provides power to our prayers (John 15:9). We wait at His feet for Him to provide all of our needs according to His glorious riches (Philippians 4:19; James 4:3).

Jesus shares with us His life, His inheritance, His righteousness and His Spirit. He keeps nothing from us, but freely gives us all things (Romans 8:32). His love is an example of the Father’s love for us as well. Our sinful state magnifies the beauty of His sacrificial love, and His compassion changes us from the inside out. God is love and we abide in His love through His Son (1 John 4:8). As we completely yield our life to His will, we reap the abundance He died to provide for us.

Prayer:

Father God, help us to find the eternal dwelling place provided for us by Your love (Deuteronomy 33:27). Our soul finds its peace in the shadow of Your wings (Psalm 91:4). Cause us to hear Thy loving kindness each morning, for in You we place our trust. Fill us to the brim with Your Spirit, and cause us to know Your will for each moment of our life (Psalm 143:8). We want to abide in Your presence and in the fullness of Your joy (Psalm 16:11).

Thought for the Day:

God’s everlasting love promises us eternal blessings. – Psalm 21:6