Yesterday I had an appointment. I got there early, I pulled in next to this vehicle, I saw someone was sitting in the vehicle, I am not sure what they were doing, but I didn't think anything of it, since I was a doctor's office.
I sat in my car waiting to the time to get close and then I would head in. As I was sitting there, I heard a horn beep and I looked over at the vehicle next to me. It was an older woman who pointed at my window and gestured for me to roll it down. I did so and she says God told me to tell you that you are blessed. I was shocked and really fumbled for words, I didn't know what to say, but thank you. She backed out of her spot and then pulled back in. Again pointing at my window, I rolled it back down and she says God wants you to meditate on Psalm 23, she said now read it from the Amplified Bible. I said thank you and she left. I have never had that happen to me and I have to say it was an incredible blessing. Just remember next time God prompts you to say something to someone, don't pass it up, because it really affected me and it was amazing.
Psalm 23 (Amplified version)
The Lord, the Psalmist’s Shepherd.
A Psalm of David.
"The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, to guide and to shield me],
I shall not want.
2
He lets me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still and quiet waters.
3
He refreshes and restores my soul (life);
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
for His name’s sake.
4
Even though I walk through the [sunless] [a]valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort andconsole me.
5
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You have anointed and refreshed my head with [b]oil;
My cup overflows.
6
Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I shall dwell forever [throughout all my days] in the house and in the presence of the Lord."
As I read it again today, it brings tears to my eyes, because the Lord is my Shepard. God is so good and although times may be hard, He is faithful and He will guide you, the more we surrender the more He will guide us, but we must surrender to His will, His way and Him.
I have been blessed and God says I am blessed. What a word and I share it with you today.
Friday, March 10, 2017
This We Know
| "This We Know" Lyrics | |
| by Vertical Church Band | |
You are who say You are,
You'll do what You say You'll do.
You'll be who You've always been to us,
Jesus.
Our hope is in You alone,
Our strength in your mighty name.
Our peace in the darkest day remains,
Jesus.
This we know,
We will see the enemy run.
This we know,
We will see the victory come.
We hold on to every promise You ever made,
Jesus, You are unfailing.
Our God through the wilderness,
And our joy in the heaviness.
Our way when it seems there is no way,
Jesus.
This we know,
We will see the enemy run.
This we know,
We will see the victory come.
We hold on to every promise You ever made,
Jesus, You are unfailing.
We trust You,
We trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
We trust You,
We trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
We trust You,
Jesus, we trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
We trust You,
In all things, we trust You,
Your ways are mightier than our own.
This we know,
We will see the enemy run.
This we know,
We will see the victory come.
We hold on to every promise You ever made,
Jesus, You are unfailing.
This we know,
We will see the enemy run.
This we know,
We will see the victory come.
We hold on to every promise You ever made,
Jesus, You are unfailing.
Jesus, You are unfailing.
We trust You,
We trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
We trust You,
Jesus, we trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
We trust You,
In all things, we trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
Forever, we trust You,
We trust You,
Your ways are higher than our own.
Thursday, March 9, 2017
Doing verses Doing Nothing
I have heard it said before, that if God wants me to know it, that I will know it. I don't have to do anything to learn, it will just happen. I don't know why people write books, because they just don't have anything in them that I can use.
I believe all those statements are lies from the pit of hell, the devil does not want us to prepare for anything, he wants us to walk around blind to the truth. God has given people a gift of writing and helping others and if we say that it can't help us, we are buying into the lies of the enemy of our God and in doing so we are walking in spiritual blindness, because there are so many books there to help us and teach us the pitfalls of others and then helpful ideas, for raising kids, to having a godly marriage and so much more, but if we are not willing to learn, it just doesn't happen. We need to be willing to do the work that it takes.
A mountain doesn't climb itself, we must first go to the mountain to climb it, than we must be willing to climb, if we are not willing to do it, than why did we even go to the mountain. In our lives if we have taken on a challenge, we must be willing to do everything to complete the challenge, things just don't happen, we must act. I think there is a scientific theory about that, a force will not begin to move until acted upon, we need to put action to our words, we need to work at it and build it. In other words the mountain will not help you climb it, but God will help you climb the mountain. My devotionals today covered this and I will share them with you.
Pride Versus Love
with David Jeremiah
Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.
1 Corinthians 8:1b
The story is told of the time when a venerable Bible scholar met a young seminary student. When the old scholar asked the young student how his study of Scripture was progressing, the student replied, “Oh, I don’t spend any time studying. I trust that when I get in the pulpit God will fill my mouth with the words I should say.” The old scholar replied, “He will fill your mouth alright. He’ll fill it with the east wind!” Because of his lack of study, the young man didn’t catch the scholar’s point. In Scripture, the “east wind” referred to the furnace-like winds that blew in from the desert and withered all it touched (Genesis 41:6).
Perhaps the young student was trying to avoid the pride to which knowledge can lead. All knowledge? Of course not—Scripture presents gaining knowledge as a desirable goal (Proverbs 1:4; John 8:32). But knowledge, if displayed and used arrogantly, can certainly lead to pride. But on the heels of that warning, Paul provides an alternative: “love edifies”—edify meaning to build up, to strengthen. Pride destroys, love edifies.
Use your knowledge—whatever the subject or situation—as a means to love, encourage, and build up others.
Conceit is what makes a little squirt think he is a fountain of knowledge.
Unknown
I believe all those statements are lies from the pit of hell, the devil does not want us to prepare for anything, he wants us to walk around blind to the truth. God has given people a gift of writing and helping others and if we say that it can't help us, we are buying into the lies of the enemy of our God and in doing so we are walking in spiritual blindness, because there are so many books there to help us and teach us the pitfalls of others and then helpful ideas, for raising kids, to having a godly marriage and so much more, but if we are not willing to learn, it just doesn't happen. We need to be willing to do the work that it takes.
A mountain doesn't climb itself, we must first go to the mountain to climb it, than we must be willing to climb, if we are not willing to do it, than why did we even go to the mountain. In our lives if we have taken on a challenge, we must be willing to do everything to complete the challenge, things just don't happen, we must act. I think there is a scientific theory about that, a force will not begin to move until acted upon, we need to put action to our words, we need to work at it and build it. In other words the mountain will not help you climb it, but God will help you climb the mountain. My devotionals today covered this and I will share them with you.
Pride Versus Love
with David Jeremiah
Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.
1 Corinthians 8:1b
The story is told of the time when a venerable Bible scholar met a young seminary student. When the old scholar asked the young student how his study of Scripture was progressing, the student replied, “Oh, I don’t spend any time studying. I trust that when I get in the pulpit God will fill my mouth with the words I should say.” The old scholar replied, “He will fill your mouth alright. He’ll fill it with the east wind!” Because of his lack of study, the young man didn’t catch the scholar’s point. In Scripture, the “east wind” referred to the furnace-like winds that blew in from the desert and withered all it touched (Genesis 41:6).
Perhaps the young student was trying to avoid the pride to which knowledge can lead. All knowledge? Of course not—Scripture presents gaining knowledge as a desirable goal (Proverbs 1:4; John 8:32). But knowledge, if displayed and used arrogantly, can certainly lead to pride. But on the heels of that warning, Paul provides an alternative: “love edifies”—edify meaning to build up, to strengthen. Pride destroys, love edifies.
Use your knowledge—whatever the subject or situation—as a means to love, encourage, and build up others.
Conceit is what makes a little squirt think he is a fountain of knowledge.
Unknown
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
The Unordinary Weapon to Overcoming Negativity. By Graham Cooke
The Unordinary Weapon to Overcoming Negativity.
To walk in the fullness of all that life in God is, we have to fight. And this fight is with no ordinary enemy; it’s against the opposing force of negativity.
Negativity shows up in our lives in all shapes and forms. From negative emotions and thoughts to negative words and actions, we are constantly presented with the opportunity to say “no” to negativity so that we can live an elevated life.
“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace. (Romans 8:6)”
A mind set on the negative will kill everything it touches. It is hostile towards God and leads to death.
Any negative thought we have about ourselves or about anybody else immediately puts us into a hostile place in terms of our own relationship with God and works against His purposes. That doesn’t sound terribly clever, and gives us all the more reason to set our minds on the Spirit.
This unordinary fight requires unordinary weapons. The primary one being rest.
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
This kind of rest in partnership with God is an invitation to live without fear, anxiety, worry, and panic. And once cultivated, it’s our greatest weapon against all opposition and negativity.
We can live a life where we never need to react to something because we are always responding to Someone. When we respond to Him and His rest, there is no room for any negatives.
The key to cultivating this kind of rest is learning to change our mindset in terms of how we see ourselves, how we see people, and how we see our circumstances—showing all negativity the exit.
Every time we experience a negative, it is an opportunity to be led by the Spirit and dwell in the place that God has set aside for us.
‘Dwell’ in this sense can literally mean “to occupy,” so we are learning to occupy our place in the Spirit through the daily situations we face.
This gives us a constant decision that we get to make as we encounter different situations and people:
“Will I choose the negativity or will I occupy my rest in Christ?”
Just remember that when we occupy our rest in Christ, negativity has no power over us. This allows us to go to the places that God wants to take us in our development with Him.
So let’s be intentional about killing it in our thoughts, conversations, and actions. Let’s wage war on negativity because we are yoked with Jesus in rest!
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
Desire
Galatians 5:17 "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want."
We as Christians can have desires that are not of God, when those desires that are contrary to God's word, those would be considered sin. God is clear in Matthew 12:30 ""Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters." When we want to do our own thing, we are in fact justifying the desires of our flesh and not the desires of God. God calls us to follow Him, John 14:23 "Jesus replied, "Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them." and if we are going against what the Bible talks about in our homes, our marriages, our lives, we are not following God's commands. He has laid out a structure for us to follow, but when we say that it isn't easy or that this way is better than God's way, we are not following God, but self. Doing what I want is then a sin. I think we need to be clear what is a sin, because sinning against God isn't something to take lightly and I believe that it is becoming less of a bad thing and more of an acceptable thing. God says it is not alright and when does what God say, take the back seat, to myself?
I think when we dig into God's word, we will find out that selfishness is a sin. People who say they are not selfish, but desire to do what they want and not what God wants, well that is selfishness, that is putting yourself before anyone else and especially God. Being selfish is the end to many things, in a marriage if we are selfish, we make marriage all about what I feel, instead of it being about the other first. Love is not about what I receive, but what I give. When I am not giving to my spouse, I am in fact being selfish, because I am making it all about me.
This plays out the same way in or relationships with the our kids, if all that matters is me, then I don't worry about how my words affect them. God says I am to build them up, teach them, instruct them and teach them His ways. I can teach them, but if my actions are representing the very opposite than what I am saying, they will learn from my actions, because actions speak louder than words.
This goes to play in our jobs and so much more. When we are selfish, we stop thinking about how our words affect God and start saying things that only please us and even us wallowing in self pitty, doesn't please God, because it is about self. Have you ever thought about how your words affect those people around you?
Bottom line we are called by God to 1 Thessalonians 5:18 "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." So when we complain about things, we are not giving thanks, we are in fact sinning, because we are doing the opposite of what God has called us to.
I am not saying this because it is easy, but by changing the posture of our hearts, we change how we are daily, but it takes doing to have it happen. Things just do not happen by chance, God is in it all.
We as Christians can have desires that are not of God, when those desires that are contrary to God's word, those would be considered sin. God is clear in Matthew 12:30 ""Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters." When we want to do our own thing, we are in fact justifying the desires of our flesh and not the desires of God. God calls us to follow Him, John 14:23 "Jesus replied, "Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them." and if we are going against what the Bible talks about in our homes, our marriages, our lives, we are not following God's commands. He has laid out a structure for us to follow, but when we say that it isn't easy or that this way is better than God's way, we are not following God, but self. Doing what I want is then a sin. I think we need to be clear what is a sin, because sinning against God isn't something to take lightly and I believe that it is becoming less of a bad thing and more of an acceptable thing. God says it is not alright and when does what God say, take the back seat, to myself?
I think when we dig into God's word, we will find out that selfishness is a sin. People who say they are not selfish, but desire to do what they want and not what God wants, well that is selfishness, that is putting yourself before anyone else and especially God. Being selfish is the end to many things, in a marriage if we are selfish, we make marriage all about what I feel, instead of it being about the other first. Love is not about what I receive, but what I give. When I am not giving to my spouse, I am in fact being selfish, because I am making it all about me.
This plays out the same way in or relationships with the our kids, if all that matters is me, then I don't worry about how my words affect them. God says I am to build them up, teach them, instruct them and teach them His ways. I can teach them, but if my actions are representing the very opposite than what I am saying, they will learn from my actions, because actions speak louder than words.
This goes to play in our jobs and so much more. When we are selfish, we stop thinking about how our words affect God and start saying things that only please us and even us wallowing in self pitty, doesn't please God, because it is about self. Have you ever thought about how your words affect those people around you?
Bottom line we are called by God to 1 Thessalonians 5:18 "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." So when we complain about things, we are not giving thanks, we are in fact sinning, because we are doing the opposite of what God has called us to.
I am not saying this because it is easy, but by changing the posture of our hearts, we change how we are daily, but it takes doing to have it happen. Things just do not happen by chance, God is in it all.
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