Return To The Lord

Return To The Lord

RETURN TO ME

Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Return to Me,” says the Lord of hosts, “and I will return to you,”, says the Lord of hosts. —Zechariah 1:3

God’s arms are always wide open to embrace His children. When we are in fellowship with Him He holds us close to His bosom. When we move away from Him, He still keeps His arms open and out calling us to return. Like the prodigal’s father, He waits patiently for our return. He doesn’t find us, shake us and demand us to account for our whereabouts. Instead He looks out over the horizon for our return.

Hoping, but not forcing. Waiting, but not pressuring. Ultimately He gives us free will. We choose when and if to return. And when we do, He promises to return to us. He is a gentleman who doesn’t force Himself upon us. God has to see us move of our own free will. That element of choice is intrinsic in His relationship with us.

Returning to God is a practice we will have to engage in over and over in life. The point is not how many times we return to Him, but that we make the effort to do so each time it is necessary. Perhaps you need to return to Him physically—recommitting to meeting with Him in church on a weekly basis. Perhaps you need to return to Him emotionally—determining to trust Him in a difficult time. Perhaps you need to return to Him spiritually—committing to regular prayer and time spent in His Word.

God made the ultimate way for us to return—through His Son, whose death on the cross allowed us to approach the throne of grace with confidence (Hebrews 4:16). Are you ready to return to Him today?

Prayer: Ask the Lord to revive your desire for His Presence , His word, and prayer.

Scriptural Reading: Zechariah 1:1-6

Return To The Lord

The Fellowship Of Believers

The Fellowship Of Believers

THE FELLOWSHIP OF BELIEVERS

And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. Acts 2:44

“Fellowship” is a great word that Christians often use. But do we know what fellowship originally meant to the early church? The word “fellowship” used in Acts 2 is the Greek word (koinonia.) It is a difficult word to translate into English because of its many shades of meaning. Its can be translated “fellowship,” “communion,” “community,” “communal,” and “friendship.” The word encompasses so much that believers do together.

But fellowship is more than socializing. Anyone can socialize. The idea of fellowship is that we come together to commune with God and commune together. It is when we get together and talk about the things of God. And God loves it when we talk about Him with each other. Fellowship is praying together, serving together, giving, and reaching the world for Christ. It is what we do together as a family of God.

And fellowship with God and fellowship with others go together. When you are walking with God, then you will want to be with God’s people. And if you don’t want to be with God’s people, then maybe you are not walking with God, as you ought to. Because I have found that the closer I am to God, the more I want to be around godly people, and the more I want to influence others to live godly lives.

Our Christian life is sustained by fellowship. The times we spend together with other believers enrich our lives. Through fellowship we create accountability relationships. We open up our lives to each other so that we can be corrected when in the wrong. Let fellowship be an important part of your life this year.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to inspire your heart to love and serve others.

Scripture Reading: Acts 2:42-47

The Fellowship Of Believers

Cost Of Unbelief

Cost Of Unbelief

THE COST OF UNBELIEF

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. Hebrews 11:6

How is your faith quotient? On a scale of 1 to 10, where would you rank yourself? Every day, I marvel at the faith most of us exercise without even thinking about it.

We drive our cars 100-120 kilometers per hour with an oncoming car doing the same with only a white line and six to eight feet separating us. We place our faith that every car will not cross into our lane. We fly on airplanes that take us over oceans, trusting the pilots with our very lives. We ride on thrilling amusement rides that take us several stories

into the air and travel fifty to seventy miles per hour down a winding slope. We trust the operators of that ride with our own mortality.

There is a great irony in the fact that we can place our faith in such things but cannot place our faith in the hands of our Creator. God got angry with one of His priests named Zechariah when he questioned His angelic messenger about his wife becoming pregnant with John the Baptist.

Zechariah was struck mute because of his unbelief for nine months until the birth of John the Baptist. What consequence have you suffered from a lack of faith? Jesus is always looking for faith on the earth. Is there an area in your life where you have not been able to trust God? Why not repent of your unbelief and place your faith totally in His hands today?

Prayer: Bind and cut out the spirit of unbelief from your heart; ask the Lord to increase and strengthen your faith.

Scriptural Reading: Hebrews 11:1-6

Cost Of Unbelief

Cast Down Your Nets

Cast Down Your Nets

BUT MASTER…

Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” Luke 5:5

Have you ever argued with God? One of the first sermons Jesus ever gave was from a boat. It was Simon Peter’s boat. Jesus used a businessman’s business to preach the Gospel. However, Peter had to first make his business available to the Master. When he did, something wonderful happened to his business.

You see, Peter’s fishing business was in trouble. They had just fished all night and caught nothing. Nevertheless, Peter made his boat available to Jesus to use as He wished. Jesus used it to preach to the multitudes. After Jesus used Peter’s boat for His purposes Jesus did something interesting for Peter. He blessed his business. However, Peter almost missed the blessing because he began to argue with Jesus. Something inside of him made him reconsider Jesus’ instruction. Jesus rewarded his obedience. “When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signalled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink” (Luke 5:6-7).

We see a number of Kingdom principles we can apply in our work lives in this story. 1) We must be willing to let God use our work-life for His purposes. 2) We must not look at circumstances and argue with Jesus when His instruction seems to contradict what we have seen or experienced already. 3) We must obey the Lord.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to come into your business and give you ideas to move me to the next level.

Scriptural Reading: Luke 5:1-11

Cast Down Your Nets

Build On The Rock

Build On The Rock

THE FOUNDATION

Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded upon the rock. Matthew 7:24-25

There is a great impact that awaits you whether you obey the sayings of Jesus or not. But I trust that you are a wise person, who will do as Jesus commanded and walk in love at all times. By obeying God, you are building a foundation for your life, which Satan cannot cause to crumble under your feet.

The rains and the floods would be test trials, negative events and circumstances that enter your life. Winds blow and beat upon the house of the person that does the word, and it remains standing because it is founded upon doing the words of Jesus.

The decision whether or not to walk in love will determine whether or not you can endure the tests and trials that beat upon your house. Note that the winds and floods came against both houses. One fell and the other did not. Clearly, the difference was whether or not one was obedient to the sayings of Jesus. And His greatest saying was that you love one another.

When you walk in the love of God, you are establishing a solid foundation for your life. It is a foundation that cannot be shaken by the tests and trials of life. And since it cannot be shaken, when the storm has passed and the dust settles, you will remain standing firm on the Word of God, and see His blessings manifest in your life.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to renew your desire to love and serve Him; receive His grace to live a life of love all your life.

Scriptural Reading: Matthew 7:24-29

Build On The Rock

The Love Test

The Love Test

THE FAITH TEST

“If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me, I could hide from him. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship as we walked with the throng at the house of God.” Psalm 55:12-14

Betrayal is one of the most difficult tests that we will ever face because it involves being wounded by someone we trust. It’s hard not become bitter when a friend or family member wounds us. It takes a lot of Christ-like grace to forgive a traitor.

You have probably faced the Judas Test yourself. Every day you and I work in a marketplace that is rife with betrayal, deception, duplicity, and treachery. Perhaps you have been betrayed by your boss or a co-worker. Or perhaps somebody betrayed a confidence or stabbed you in the back. It may have been someone you’ve gone to church with or prayed with – someone you trusted as a brother in Christ.

The Judas kiss stings worse than a slap across the face. Almost every leader I know has experienced that sting at one time or another. Yet God is watching to see how we respond to the Judas Test. If we pass the test, He can take us to the next level, the next test. If we fail, we’ll probably have to repeat the test until we learn to forgive.

The Judas Test is God’s graduate level course in faith, designed to reveal our maturity and faith: Are we willing to trust Him enough to forgive the Judases in our lives? The book of Hebrews warns, “See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (Hebrews 12:15). When we refuse to forgive, we risk missing our divine promotion.

Prayer: Ask the Lord for grace to forgive all those who have wronged you in the past. Receive the healing of the Lord.

Scriptural Reading: Psalm 55:8-14

The Love Test

When The Devil Attacks You

When The Devil Attacks You

WHEN SATAN ATTACKS

When the Philistines heard that David had been crowned king of Israel, they tried to capture him; but David was told they were coming and went into the stronghold. The Philistines arrived and spread out across the valley of Rephaim. Then David asked the Lord, “Shall I go out and fight against them? Will you defeat them for me?” 2 Samuel 5:17-19

When you are about to enter your destiny, there is always opposition from Satan designed to prevent you from fulfilling your destiny.

When Jesus was born, Herod tried to kill Him. When Jesus was baptized and fasted 40 days, Satan came to tempt Him in an effort to derail His destiny. When David was anointed king over Israel, God’s destiny for his life was revealed for all to see. So, Satan raised up the Philistines to try and kill David’s destiny.

However, in response, we see David do two things. First, he retreats to his stronghold. It is a place of protection. It is a quiet place. Second, he inquires of God. It is here that he inquires of God for the strategy to defeat his enemy. God reveals it to him and he goes on to defeat the Philistines. In fact, David never lost a battle because he learnt to inquire of God for the strategy to defeat his enemies.

Do you know God’s intended destiny for your life? Beware of Satan’s strategy to attack you in the place of your destiny. His desire is to take you off this divine path.

We must follow David’s example in response to the enemy of our souls. We must retreat to our stronghold, seek the Lord, and listen for His voice. Then, we will fulfil the purpose for which God created us.

Prayer: Bring your life and destiny under the cover of the blood of Jesus, and declare divine protection in Jesus’ name.

Scriptural Reading: 2 Samuel 5:17-25

When The Devil Attacks You

When Adversity Comes

When Adversity Comes

ADVERSITY

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” 2 Corinthians 4:8-10

It’s hard to find anyone in Christian history who became a great leader without earning an advanced degree at the University of Adversity.

John Bunyan (1628-88), the author of The Pilgrim’s Progress, grew up in poverty and taught himself to read. As a young man, he struggled with feelings of not being forgiven by God and was tortured by visions of eternal punishment. His devout wife helped him overcome his fear, but then, while she was still in her twenties, she died of a sudden illness. In his grief, Bunyan devoted himself to preaching. The English government, however, repeatedly imprisoned him for preaching without a license.

On one occasion, Bunyan was sentenced to three months in prison, but when he told the officials he intended to go on preaching, his sentence was extended to 12 years. John Bunyan experienced God’s presence in a special way while he was in prison. In fact, it was in his cell that he penned his enduring classic, The Pilgrim’s Progress. It’s a book that could only have been written by a soul that was refined by the fires of adversity.

A. W Tozer once wrote, “It is doubtful whether God can bless a man until He has hurt him deeply.” God has a mission for your life and mine. But before we can carry out that mission, we will often go through the school of adversity. If this is where you find yourself today, ask God to give you His grace to walk through this time with you. He has promised He would never leave or forsake us.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord for Your ever-abiding presence; by faith I declare that everything in my life will work out for my good.

Scriptural Reading: 2 Corinthians 4:1-12

When Adversity Comes

Obedience To Strange Instructions

Obedience To Strange Instructions

STRANGE INSTRUCTIONS

And this is love: that we walk in obedience to His commands..2 John 1:6

A distinguished Indian evangelist named Sadhu Chellappa was on a mission trip to a village north of Madras, when in the middle of the night he suddenly sensed God speaking to him: “Leave this house quickly and run away!” That was not exactly a convenient thing to do. But Chellappa was accustomed to accepting even strange instructions from the Lord without argument, so he dressed quickly and ran into the darkness.

After a while, he was in the open country. As he passed beneath a large tree, he felt God tell him, “Stay here and start preaching!” Now, even for an experienced evangelist, this was puzzling – because there was no one there to preach to. Why did God want him to preach to an empty field in the middle of the night? But he stopped under the tree and began preaching the gospel.

Finally, he reached the point at which he called on his unseen listeners to give their lives to Jesus. He was surprised to hear a voice from the top of the tree and see a man climb down, crying. The man tearfully gave his life to Jesus. When Chellappa asked why he was in a tree out in the middle of nowhere, the man admitted, “I came here to hang myself.”

How is your obedience quotient? God calls us to be obedient to that still small voice inside that can direct us to do what God wants us to do. Jesus was obedient in all things. “For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:19). God can do exceedingly great things through one man or one woman who is willing to be obedient to His voice.

Prayer: Ask for His grace today to be obedient to His voice.

Scriptural Reading: 2 John 1:4-12

Obedience To Strange Instructions

Examine Your Heart

Examine Your Heart

IS YOUR HEART RIGHT?

Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my mind and my heart. Psalm 26:2

Doctors recommend regular check ups to make sure our bodies are functioning properly. Though we might not even realize something was wrong, an undetected problem could potentially cause serious health issues. The same is true of our relationship with the Heavenly Father. He desires that we seek His truth daily, allowing Him to shed light on anything that hinders our walk.

And, just as some people are nervous about seeing their physician, we might feel fearful of inviting the Holy Spirit to examine our lives. It can be frightening to realize the truth about our sin and see ourselves as we actually are. And furthermore, knowing that God will require our repentance and obedience may also cause discomfort in our lives.

But the rewards are great. First, our Father removes any spiritual “blockages” that impede a close walk with him. Second, we gain greater intimacy with the Lord and with others. Third, our energy is renewed as resentment, fear, and other ungodly attitudes stop draining us; serving God becomes a joy instead of a duty. Fourth, regardless of circumstance, we experience spiritual freedom through forgiveness. All of these benefits lead to deeper fulfillment, peace, and joy!

Maturity is a lifelong process. The Father will continue to grow His children until He brings them home. Seek God’s wisdom and truth, and ask Him to reveal anything holding you back from a beautiful friendship with Him. He wants to walk closely with you all of your days—and eternally.

Prayer: Invite the Holy Spirit to search your heart and remove everything blocking the flow of His life and power into your life.

Scriptural Reading: Psalm 26:1-12

Examine Your Heart

Born For Good Works

Born For Good Works

CREATED FOR GOOD WORKS

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. —Ephesians 2:10

When Jesus told the parable of the talents, He was letting us know that each of us has a special purpose in life, and God expects us to cooperate with Him so that it is fulfilled. All three servants in the parable are given various talents, which represent the individual’s gifts and resources. The servants who put their gifts to good use and were productive were rewarded by the master. They were given more resources and greater responsibility.

But one of the servants was so fearful and self-centred that he buried his talent and was totally unfruitful for the master. Jesus calls him a “worthless servant.” If you are a child of God, He has blessed you with special gifts that He expects you to use for His glory. If you don’t know what they are, ask Him to reveal them to you. Ephesians 5:15 AMP says that we should “live purposefully” and make the most of our time. You have a job to do!

There may be people in this world right now who will never receive the gift of salvation unless you take your place in the Body of Christ. It’s my heartfelt prayer that you will make a decision today to cooperate with God’s plan for your life and align your will with His. If you do, God’s promise in Psalm 138:8 belongs to you: The Lord will fulfil his purpose for you!

Prayer: Ask the Lord for more grace to fulfil His special calling for your life.

Scriptural Reading: Ephesians 2:1-11

#GW2018

Born For Good Works

Restored Joy

Restored Joy

RESTORED JOY

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Psalm 51:12

Each of us remember moments or periods in our lives when things have gone wrong or when we did some things that really messed up our lives or the life of someone dear to us. Although we may have recovered from the incident, memories from it still keep us in an emotional prison. Regardless of who we are, we all deal with such issues one time or the other.

Rather than allowing the devil to manipulate incidents in your past to harass you with feelings of rejection and failure, you need to know who you are in Christ and hold your head up. If what occurred in the past was a sinful act that you committed, the remedy to it is not guilt; the remedy is the blood of Jesus. In His blood, we have the means to get our sins washed away. When He cleanses away your sin, He really does erase the sin from your spiritual slate board.

Sometimes the memories have to do with bad things that people did to us in the past. They could be terrible acts of wrong that you were made to undergo by people who were more powerful than you or even people who were close to you. The remedy to your painful memories is not fear and rejection; the remedy is the Holy Spirit. He is able to make all things new in our hearts and in our minds. He is able to neutralize the poisonous effects of our past experiences and give us newness of life.

Today, you can break free from your past prison and enjoy the sweet liberty that comes from the presence of the Lord.

Prayer: Break loose from the prison of negative past experiences, and receive newness of life from the Lord.

Scriptural Reading: Psalm 51:1-19

Restored Joy

We Are Seated In Heavenly Places

We Are Seated In Heavenly Places

SEATED IN HEAVENLY PLACES

And raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6

What does it mean to be seated in heavenly places? It means that we are now able to enter into God’s rest. To be seated means to rest. When we sit in a chair, we rest our physical body. To be seated in heavenly places with Christ is to enter an “inner rest.” Our spirit and soul can be at rest because of the good plan God has for us.

One definition of rest is “to be at peace or ease,” “free from anxiety or distress.” Rest is freedom from worry and frustration which develop because of our works in trying to do what only God can do. It is freedom from excessive reasoning, struggle, fear, and inner turmoil.

We are to abide in the Lord. The word abide means to “dwell,” “to remain in a place.” When we abide in Him, we can rest, trust, lean, and rely on Him in this place of protection. The promise of God’s peace is not made to those who work and struggle in their own strength but to those who sit, rest, and abide in Christ.

There are those who have learned the blessing of entering God’s rest. They are seated with Him, and they have learned to abide in their place. If you are struggling, take a seat and rest. Your place has been there waiting for you to occupy it all along.

Prayer: Release the blessing of peace, joy and prosperity into your life; by faith, enter into the rest of the Lord.

Scriptural Reading: Ephesians 2:1-11

We Are Seated In Heavenly Places

No Matter How Things Look Don"t Give Up

No Matter How Things Look Don’t Give Up

DON’T GIVE UP

Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God. Psalm 42:11

As human beings, we all have our moments of discouragement and doubt. It is not unusual for even the most spiritual people to have their days of doubt. Moses, that great prophet of God, on one occasion at least, was overwhelmed by his circumstances. After he had witnessed the consistent disobedience and murmuring of the children of Israel, he was grieved in his spirit and said to God, “I’m fed up. Just kill me. I don’t want to deal with these stubborn people another day.”

The prophet Elijah, after his contest with the prophets of baal on Mt. Carmel, heard that Jezebel was seeking to take his life. He was so overwhelmed by his circumstances, so discouraged, so uncertain, and so filled with doubt that he said to God, “Take my life.” Jeremiah, the great prophet, faced it as well. He was ridiculed and harassed for giving out the Word of God. Because he was tired of the pressure he was facing, it made him want to stop giving out God’s Word altogether.

Even the great apostle Paul had moments when he was discouraged. He wrote to the church at Corinth, “We were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life” (2 Corinthians 1:8).

You are not the only one who has ever faced doubt or uncertainty, or has been perplexed as to why God did not work in a certain way. It is comforting to know that even the great prophets and apostles of God also got discouraged sometimes. So don’t give up. It is in your moment of weakness that the power of God is made perfect in you.

Prayer: Ask the Lord for strength to overcome discouragement and despair Satan will bring your way.

Scriptural Reading: Psalm 42:1-11

No Matter How Things Look Don"t Give Up

The Joy Of The Lord Is My Strength

The Joy Of The Lord Is My Strength

THE JOY OF THE LORD

And these things we write to you that your joy may be full. 1 John 1:4

It is tragic to go through life with a stone face. The enemy has convinced too many into thinking that they need to be always somber and serious in order to be a Christian. Don’t fall for that trick. God wants you to be joyful and happy. In fact, He prescribes laughter as a medicine for our souls.

The joy of the Lord is our strength. It is God’s great prescription for living a long, healthy, and happy life. Recent studies have shown that a joyful disposition boosts the body’s immune system, reduces stresses, reduces the risk of heart attack, and even acts as a natural tranquilizer. Those are health benefits everyone needs. The “medicine” of laughter is within everyone, but you may need to start taking it before it works in your life.

It is important to note that the joy of the Lord is not simply bursting into laughter because you heard a funny joke. Neither is it a fake pretense at being happy or giggling senselessly. The joy of the Lord has a spiritual source. It is produced by the Holy Spirit and is produced from within our hearts by Him. Because it is supernatural in nature, it cannot be controlled by our circumstances. Three factors influence our joy:

•   Our salvation. We are joyful because our sins are forgiven, and our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

•   Our security. We are joyful because we know that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. We are safe in Him.

•   Our service. We are joyful because we allow the Holy Spirit to use us to touch other people’s lives. Our lives are useful.

Prayer: Thank the Lord for His joy unspeakable; ask Him for more of His joy in your heart and that of all your loved ones.

Scriptural Reading: 1 John 1:1-4

The Joy Of The Lord Is My Strength

The Heart Of Worship

The Heart Of Worship

THE HEART OF WORSHIP

But rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness. Romans 6:13

The heart of worship is surrender. Surrender is an unpopular word, disliked almost as much as the word submission. It implies losing, and no one wants to be a loser.

Surrender evokes the unpleasant images of admitting defeat in battle, forfeiting a game, or yielding to a stronger opponent. The word is almost always used in a negative context. Captured criminals surrender to the authorities. In our competitive world, we’re taught to never quit trying, never give up, and never give in, so we don’t hear much about surrendering. If winning is everything, surrendering is unthinkable.

Yet, the Bible teaches us that rather than trying to win, succeed, overcome, and conquer, we should instead yield, submit, obey, and surrender.

And by surrendering to God, we enter into the heart of worship. This is true worship: bringing pleasure to God as we give ourselves completely to him. Surrendering is best demonstrated in obedience as you cooperate with your Creator. You say, “Yes, Lord” to whatever He asks of you.

In fact, “No, Lord” is a contradiction. You can’t claim Jesus as your Lord when you refuse to obey him. Peter modeled surrender when, after a night of failed fishing, Jesus told him to try again: “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” Surrendered people obey God’s Word, even when it doesn’t make sense.

God is not a cruel slave driver, or a bully who uses brute force to coerce us into submission. He doesn’t try to break our will but woos us to Himself so that we might offer it freely to Him. God is a Lover and a Liberator, and surrendering brings freedom, not bondage.

Prayer: By faith, receive the grace to surrender totally to God and separate yourself from any habit hindering your walk with Him.

Scriptural Reading: Romans 6:1-14

The Heart Of Worship

The Power Of Love

The Power Of Love

LOVE

If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners’ love those who love them. —Luke 6:32

If you only love on and off like a light switch, you do not love others like God wants you to love. Jesus said, “If you only love those who love you what credit is that to you?” His point is this: anybody can love those who love them. Becoming a master lover means you learn to love the unlovable. It’s when you love people who don’t love you, when you love people who irritate you, when you love people who stab you in the back or gossip about you.

This may seem like an impossible task. That’s why we need God’s love in us, so we can then love others. When you realize how much God loves you – with an extravagant, irresistible, unconditional love – then his love will change your entire focus on life. If we don’t receive God’s love for us, we’ll have a hard time loving other people. I’m talking about loving the unlovely, loving the difficult, loving the irritable, loving people who are different or demanding.

You can’t do that until you have God’s love coming through you. You need to know God’s love so it can overflow out of your life into others.

Love must become your lifestyle, the habit of your life. But it starts with a decision. Are you ready? Your life is worth far more than you think, and by learning to love others with the love God gives you, you will have an influence far greater than you could ever imagine.

Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to stir up the love of God in your heart so that you will walk in love the rest of your life.

Scriptural Reading: Luke 6:27-36

#GW2018

The Power Of Love

Remember The Lord Your God

Remember The Lord Your God

REMEMBER YOUR GOD

You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today. Deuteronomy 15:15

After God brought judgement upon the world through the Flood, He remembered Noah. Though He had dealt harshly with the world and rebellious humanity, God remembered Noah. Later we read that when Noah and his family landed on dry land and stepped off the ark, Noah brought an offering to the Lord. So not only did God remember Noah, but Noah also remembered God.

That is something we need to do: remember God. We need to remember all that He has done on our behalf. The scriptures exhort us to remember our Creator in the days of our youth. Not only are we told to remember the Lord when we are young, but we are also told to remember Him when He blesses us with prosperity. The Lord cautioned Israel about the dangers of taking His blessings for granted. It is easy to remember God when we are surrounded by trouble and need help. However after the Lord sends help to get us out of our predicament, we turn around and go on our merry way without pausing to thank Him.

Many of us have forgotten where we were when Christ found us. All too soon, we have forgotten the times of despair we were in until the Lord came our way. We have forgotten the days of tears and darkness when our lives had lost all meaning till the Lord stepped in and turned on the light.

As Christians, we are to remember the Lord in our days of blessing. Why don’t you spend sometime today to remember the Lord for all that He has done for you?

Prayer: Count all your blessings, and give thanks to God for how far He has brought you.

Scriptural Reading: Deuteronomy 15:12-18

Remember The Lord Your God

Peace Be Still In Your Life

Peace Be Still In Your Life

PEACE BE STILL

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Thessalonians 1:2

To see us through life’s difficulties, God provides us with His protection and peace. But protection doesn’t mean that troubles won’t occur.

God’s peace is not dependent upon the calming of our circumstances or the removal of external pressures. It doesn’t mean the absence of conflict either. His peace comes in three ways.

•   First, Jesus Himself becomes our peace. He is the Prince of Peace. He does not just give peace; He is peace. When we receive Him into our lives, we receive peace into our lives. The source of peace is Christ Jesus Himself. He gives us peace through His presence, His power, His provision and His protection.

•   Second, when we’re in a right relationship with the Lord, we have the ability to live at peace with our fellow man. Through Christ, we have the power to choose forgiveness, to keep no record of wrongs, and to show love to our enemies. Living a life that is free from all bitterness and strife releases us to live our lives in wholeness.

•   The third way His promised peace comes is through the transforming work of the Holy Spirit. As He works within us, He helps us to see life from God’s point of view. Instead of being overwhelmed by the daily challenges of life, we learn to trust in the Lord and to rejoice in His grace. That brings us a sense of inner tranquility.

As a child of God, you will experience the daily obstacles and struggles common to all humanity. But even though you are not immune to life’s day-to-day challenges, you have the power of Jesus Christ to help you win not only the big battles, but the little daily battles as well.

Prayer: Thank the Lord You for His peace that surpasses all understanding; command troubling situations in your life to be still.

Scriptural Reading: 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12

Peace Be Still In Your Life

Always Be Thankful

Always Be Thankful

BE THANKFUL

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6

Don’t worry about anything. Worrying doesn’t change anything. There’s no such things as born-worriers; worry is a learned response. You learned it from your parents. You learned it from your peers. You learned it from experience. That’s good news: The fact that worry is learned means it can also be unlearned. Pray about everything. Use the time you’ve been worrying for praying. If you prayed as much as you worried, you’d have a lot less to worry about. Take any problem you face to God.

Thank God in all things. You should always pray with thanksgiving. One of the healthiest human emotion is gratitude. It actually increases your immunities; it makes you more resistant to stress and less susceptible to illness. People who are grateful are happy. But people who are ungrateful are miserable because nothing makes them happy. They’re never satisfied; it’s never good enough. So if you cultivate the attitude of gratitude, of being thankful in everything, it reduces stress in your life.

Think about the right things. If you want to reduce the level of stress in your life, you must change the way you think; the way you think determines how you feel. And the way you feel determines how you act. So if you want to change your life, you need to change what you’re thinking about.

When we no longer worry, when we pray about everything, when we give thanks, when we focus on the right things, the Apostle Paul tells us the result is, “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Prayer: Bind and cast out the spirit of fear and anxiety from your heart, and thank God for all His numerous blessings in your life.

Scriptural Reading: Philippians 4:1-7

Always Be Thankful

Always Seek To Please God

Always Seek To Please God

SEEK TO PLEASE GOD

The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. Lamentations 3:25

A middle aged polygamous man was saddled with the impossible chore of pleasing his two wives. One of the wives was old and the other was young. Each of the wives claimed to love him very much and desired to make him look as they liked. Now the man’s hair was turning grey, which the young wife did not like as it made him look too old for her husband. So every night when she combed his hair, she would pick out the grey hairs from his head. The elder wife on the other hand loved to see the husband’s grey hair because it made him look his age and she did not like to appear older than her husband. So every morning when she combed the hair of her husband, she would take out as many black hairs as possible from his head. With each wife ‘lovingly’ trying to turn the husband into the kind of man they liked, the husband soon found himself completely bald.

The lesson is simple. If you accept everybody’s view of who you are supposed to be, you will end up losing what you have. You can’t please everybody. If you try to please everybody you will lose your true identity. The only one you must seek to please is God.

There are many people with good intentions for you, but none of them know your purpose and destiny. You can’t live your life on the advice of friends and loved ones. Go to the scriptures and find out the ways of God. Spend time in prayer to find out what the Lord wants you to do. Nurture your own walk with God so that you can hear His voice. Seek the Lord with all your heart and you will find His will for your life.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to guide you on the path He has chosen for you, and empower you to live for His glory and purpose.

Scriptural Reading: Lamentations 3:22-25

Always Seek To Please God

Always Seek To Please God

Always Seek To Please God

SEEK TO PLEASE GOD

The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. Lamentations 3:25

A middle aged polygamous man was saddled with the impossible chore of pleasing his two wives. One of the wives was old and the other was young. Each of the wives claimed to love him very much and desired to make him look as they liked. Now the man’s hair was turning grey, which the young wife did not like as it made him look too old for her husband. So every night when she combed his hair, she would pick out the grey hairs from his head. The elder wife on the other hand loved to see the husband’s grey hair because it made him look his age and she did not like to appear older than her husband. So every morning when she combed the hair of her husband, she would take out as many black hairs as possible from his head. With each wife ‘lovingly’ trying to turn the husband into the kind of man they liked, the husband soon found himself completely bald.

The lesson is simple. If you accept everybody’s view of who you are supposed to be, you will end up losing what you have. You can’t please everybody. If you try to please everybody you will lose your true identity. The only one you must seek to please is God.

There are many people with good intentions for you, but none of them know your purpose and destiny. You can’t live your life on the advice of friends and loved ones. Go to the scriptures and find out the ways of God. Spend time in prayer to find out what the Lord wants you to do. Nurture your own walk with God so that you can hear His voice. Seek the Lord with all your heart and you will find His will for your life.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to guide you on the path He has chosen for you, and empower you to live for His glory and purpose.

Scriptural Reading: Lamentations 3:22-25

Always Seek To Please God

God Cares

God Cares

GOD CARES

Give us day by day our daily bread. Luke 11:3

Why is that this all-knowing, all-powerful, omnipresent God who created the entire universe would care for you and me? As Job said, “What are people, that You should make so much of us, that You should think of us so often?” (Job 7:17).

Why would God care about our needs—even our wants? Why would He commit Himself to providing our daily bread?

Many reasons could be cited, but I will throw out one that is significant: because He loves you. And guess what? He loves to bless you. Our God is generous. He is not stingy. God loves to bless you.

Jesus said, “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom” (Luke 12:32). Yet He taught us to pray, “give us each day the bread we need” (Luke 11:3). Notice Jesus did not say, “give us each month the food we need,” or “give us each year the food we need.” Otherwise, we probably would call on Him only monthly or yearly. Instead, God arranges things in such a way so that we must depend on Him on a daily basis.

But another thing we acknowledge when we pray, “give us each day the food we need,” is that everything we have comes from God. Of course you can work hard. You can save and invest wisely. And you can buy your own food and clothes and pay for your house or your car or whatever else. But here is what you need to remember: It all came to you from God, no matter what. Deuteronomy 8:18 reminds us, “And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth.” The point is to acknowledge that everything you have comes from God.

Prayer: By faith, declare that God shall supply your every need according to His riches in glory.

Scriptural reading: Luke 11:1-13

God Cares

God Cares

God Cares

GOD CARES

Give us day by day our daily bread. Luke 11:3

Why is that this all-knowing, all-powerful, omnipresent God who created the entire universe would care for you and me? As Job said, “What are people, that You should make so much of us, that You should think of us so often?” (Job 7:17).

Why would God care about our needs—even our wants? Why would He commit Himself to providing our daily bread?

Many reasons could be cited, but I will throw out one that is significant: because He loves you. And guess what? He loves to bless you. Our God is generous. He is not stingy. God loves to bless you.

Jesus said, “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom” (Luke 12:32). Yet He taught us to pray, “give us each day the bread we need” (Luke 11:3). Notice Jesus did not say, “give us each month the food we need,” or “give us each year the food we need.” Otherwise, we probably would call on Him only monthly or yearly. Instead, God arranges things in such a way so that we must depend on Him on a daily basis.

But another thing we acknowledge when we pray, “give us each day the food we need,” is that everything we have comes from God. Of course you can work hard. You can save and invest wisely. And you can buy your own food and clothes and pay for your house or your car or whatever else. But here is what you need to remember: It all came to you from God, no matter what. Deuteronomy 8:18 reminds us, “And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth.” The point is to acknowledge that everything you have comes from God.

Prayer: By faith, declare that God shall supply your every need according to His riches in glory.

Scriptural reading: Luke 11:1-13

God Cares

Take Responsibility

Take Responsibility

TAKE RESPONSIBILITY

Whoever has no rule over his own spirit, is like a city broken down, without walls. Proverbs 25:28

If you want to see real progress in your life, you have to step up and take responsibility for the things that God has placed in your care. This is the beginning of maturity. Don’t blame your circumstances, your husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, your boss, employees, pastor or government. Don’t even blame the devil or witches and wizards. Your sin is your fault and your attitude is your product.

Certainly, the world system can contribute to our difficulties. People who dislike us can create lots of problems for us. And the environment we live in may be full of negativity and deep-seated challenges. Our family and past may even be a liability to us. All these challenges are real and accepted. However, these are not the only reasons for our failure to do things that God wants us to do.

The real reason for human failure is rooted in our attitude. God did not create humans to be passive and powerless. He did not create us to just allow life’s circumstances to control us. In the creation mandate of Genesis chapter one, He commanded us to ‘have dominion.’ To have dominion is to take charge and rule. Take charge of your mind, your attitude and choices. Don’t just sit around and blame people who are also trying to live their own lives.

To move forward, you must take charge of your own negative attitudes. You must take charge of your tendency to make bad choices. You must take charge of your tendency to procrastinate. You must take charge of your fear. You must take charge of your poor human relations. Don’t allow circumstances to determine your future. God has given you the power to determine your own destiny.

That is the way to move forward. Take charge and move on!

Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen you to take control of your life, and over everything that concerns you.

Scriptural Reading: Proverbs 25:21-28

Take Responsibility

Self Control

Self Control

SELF-CONTROL

A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls. Proverbs 25:28

People with self-control master their appetite. They do not let their cravings master them. Unless you master your appetite for sex, food and other pleasures you will get nowhere in life.

People with self-control watch their words. They put their minds in gear before opening their mouths: “Be careful what you say and protect your life. A careless talker destroys himself.” (Proverbs 13:3)

People with self-control restrain their reactions. How much can you take before you lose your temper? “If you are sensible, you will control your temper. When someone wrongs you, it is a great virtue to ignore it.” (Proverbs 19:11)

People with self-control stick to their schedule. If you don’t determine how you will spend your time, then others will decide for you: “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16)

People with self-control manage their money. They learn to live on less than what they make and they invest the difference. The value of a budget is that it tells your money where you want it to go rather than wondering where it went! “In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.” (Proverbs 21:20)

People with self-control maintain their health. That way they can accomplish more and enjoy their achievements: “Learn to appreciate and give dignity to your body. . .” (1 Thessalonians 4:4, MSG)

In what areas do you need to develop self-control? The disciplines you establish today will determine your success tomorrow.

Prayer: Bring your desires, passions and appetite before the Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you self-control in every area of your life.

Scriptural Reading: Proverbs 25:21-28

Self Control

Serving From The Heart

Serving From The Heart

SERVING FROM THE HEART

And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, Deuteronomy 11:13

Repeatedly the Bible says to “serve the Lord with all your heart.” God wants you to serve Him passionately, not dutifully. People rarely excel at tasks they don’t enjoy doing or feel passionate about. God wants you to use your natural interests to serve Him and others.

How do you know when you are serving God from the heart?

The first sign is enthusiasm. When you are doing what you love to do, no one has to motivate you or challenge you or check up on you. You do it for the sheer enjoyment. You don’t need rewards, or applause, or to be paid, because you love serving in this way.

The opposite is also true: When you don’t have a heart for what you’re doing, you’re easily discouraged.

One other characteristic of serving God from your heart is effectiveness: whenever you do what God wired you to love to do, you get good at it. Passion drives perfection. If you don’t care about a task, it is unlikely that you’ll excel at it.

On the other hand, the highest achievers in any field are those that do it because of passion, not duty or profit. When you serve the Lord with all your heart, you do it with the spirit of joy and excellence. God has given you His best, you must also give Him your best.

Prayer: Ask the Lord for the spirit of excellence and creativity to serve in His house.

Scriptural Reading: Deuteronomy 11:8-17

Serving From The Heart

Forgiven To Forgive

Forgiven To Forgive

FORGIVEN TO FORGIVE

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32

Jesus taught us that our generous and constant forgiveness of sin should be the natural result of our understanding of the forgiveness that God has extended to us. Forgiven people should be forgiving people.

In The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus instructed us to pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” He was saying, “As you are receiving the forgiveness from God for the wrong that you have done, be sure to extend the same forgiveness to others who have wronged you.” It is a spiritual cycle – God starts it with us and we pass it on to others.

Because we are often on a quest to find things that are perfect, we tend to be intolerant of people who are not as perfect as we want them to be. We want the perfect husband. The perfect wife. The perfect church. The perfect friends. The perfect children. And we don’t find that perfection, because the people we expect to be perfect are just like us. They are flawed just like us. They have their weaknesses, just like us.

A man once came to the great preacher John Wesley and said, “I never forgive and I never forget.” Wesley replied by saying, “Well, sir, I hope, then, that you never sin.” We have to recognize that we sin and that people sin against us as well. We fail people and people also fail us. We are not perfect people living in an imperfect world. The truth is that, we are imperfect people living in an imperfect world.

Are you willing to be judged with the same judgement that you judge others with? Aren’t you so thankful God does not deal with you according to your sins? Show your gratitude by forgiving others as you have been forgiven.

Prayer: Thank the Lord for the grace of forgiveness; receive the grace to forgive those who have sinned against you.

Scriptural Reading: Ephesians 4:32

Forgiven To Forgive

He Knows Your Name

He Knows Your Name

HE KNOWS YOUR NAME

I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. John 10:14

The Lord is not just our Shepherd, He is our creator. He is not a hired laborer who has been given the task to watch over the sheep of another. He is both the Creator and Owner of His sheep.

The Shepherd knows His sheep. He has intimate knowledge of all His sheep. He knows us by name. He knows our personalities. He knows our strengths and weaknesses. He knows our dreams. He knows our fears. He knows our aspirations. He knows us so much that He can read our innermost thoughts even before we construct them into ideas. Nothing about us escapes His attention.

Not only does He know our natures, but He knows our needs. Don’t forget that the Lord Jesus knows what it is like to be human. He knows what it is like to face the limitations of humanity because He lived amongst us and experienced what we experience. He knows what it is like to feel the pressure of temptation. He knows what it was like to experience loneliness, sorrow, and pain.

Today, you can come to Him with all your concerns and pour out your heart to Him in prayer. He is ready to help and guide you. He is more powerful than your enemies so you can trust Him to deliver you from the hand of those who seek to bring you down and destroy your life. Your Good Shepherd cares about you. He knows what it is like to be a sheep. And He knows what you are going through. He wants you to trust Him today with your cares. He wants to lighten your burden. He wants to make you glad today.

Prayer: Cast all your burdens on the Lord, and ask Him to give you rest from all your struggles.

Scriptural Reading: John 10:7-21

He Knows Your Name

Hold On To The Truth

Hold On To The Truth

HOLD ON TO THE TRUTH

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me. John 14:6

The Bible says that Jesus was full of grace and truth. Truth is not a principle. Truth is a person; truth is Jesus Christ. Notice Jesus says, “I am the truth . . .” He doesn’t say truth is a religion, or a ritual, or a set of rules and regulations. He says “I.” Truth is a person.

This is what separates Jesus Christ from every other leader of every other faith. Other leaders have said, “I’m looking for the truth” or “I’m teaching the truth” or “I point to the truth” or “I’m a prophet of truth.” Jesus comes and says, “I am the truth.”

A lot of people say, “I think Jesus was just a great teacher.” But He couldn’t just be that: No great teacher would claim to be God if he wasn’t. Either Jesus is conning 2.3 billion people, who believe a lie, or He is a lunatic, or Jesus is who He said He was. Everybody’s betting their life on something. We are betting our lives that Jesus is who He said He was.

What do you do with the truth once you’ve discovered it? Four things:

1. Believe the truth!

2. Do the truth – Truth is not just an intellectual exercise; it’s something you obey.

3. Stand for the truth – The Bible tells us our responsibility is to never oppose the truth but to stand for it at all times.

4. Spread the truth.

Jesus is the truth. Let everything you do reflect your love of the truth.

Prayer: Ask God to open your heart to the truth, to walk in the truth and to spread the truth.

Scriptural Reading: John 14:1-6

Hold On To The Truth

The Lord Has Provided

The Lord Has Provided

GOD WILL PROVIDE

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

There is an amazing, incredible and all-encompassing promise in Philippians 4:19 regarding provision: “God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” Note the first two words: “God will . . .” It doesn’t say, “He might meet your needs,” it says, “He will meet your needs.” It’s written as a fact; God is staking his character and his reputation on it.

Then the Bible says, “God will meet all. . .” It doesn’t say, “I’ll meet some of your needs.” It says all. Now, understand that it doesn’t say, “I’ll meet your needs.” There is a big difference between needs and wants. As a parent, do you give your kids everything they want? I hope you don’t. You don’t do that because you love them. And your heavenly Father loves you. He’s not going to give you everything you want because if he did, you’d be spoiled to death.

He won’t give us everything we want, but he will give us what we need. Then why do you have financial needs? Did God fail? Did he lie? Exaggerate? No! With every promise, there is a premise; there are conditions and requirements. When God makes a promise, he says, “I’ll do my part and you do your part.” God’s wisdom, his financial principles are clearly laid out for us in his word. We must give generously to receive; ask in faith to receive; and walk in obedience to the Lord to enjoy His favour.

Prayer: Bind and cast out the spirit of poverty from your family, and release the grace of divine provision into your life.

Scriptural Reading: Philippians 4:10-19

The Lord Has Provided

Giving Faithfully

Giving Faithfully

GIVING FAITHFULLY

Honour the LORD with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase. Proverbs 3:9

God promises to meet all your financial needs, if you ask Him for help; learn to be content; and practice giving in faith. There is a universal law called the principle of sowing and reaping. If I sow criticism, I’m going to reap criticism. If I sow generosity, it’s going to come back to me, and I’m going to reap generosity.

Every farmer knows this. A farmer has four sacks of seed in his barn and he looks at his empty field. He doesn’t complain, “There’s no crop! I wish there was a crop!” He just goes out and starts planting seed. When you have a need, what you plant is a seed. It seems illogical that when I have a need, I should give. That’s why it requires faith. God says, “My ways are not your ways.”

Why did God set it up that way? He is the most generous giver in the universe, and God wants you to learn to be like Him. He wants to build character in you. The Bible says, “Honour the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce.” (Proverbs 3:9, NLT). This is the principle of tithing. It’s the principle that says every time I earn an income, the first 10% goes back to God.

Tithing is an act of worship. When we bring our tithe to God we’re saying, “All of it came from You anyway.” God says, “Put Me first in your life and watch what I do.” You may think you can’t afford to tithe, but the reality is, you can’t afford not to.

Prayer: Release the blessing of financial abundance for all the seed you have sown into the Kingdom of God.

Scriptural Reading: Proverbs 3:1-12

Giving Faithfully

Follow The Instructions Of The Lord

Follow The Instructions Of The Lord

FOLLOW THE LORD

You shall follow what is altogether just, that you may live and inherit the land which the LORD your God is giving you. Deuteronomy 16:20

Once we have heard the voice of God, we need to follow. The word “follow” means to deliberately decide to comply with instruction. It is a deliberate choice for the child of God to follow the voice of the Heavenly Father. We need to deliberately decide to follow the Lord’s instructions and to do what He tells us to do.

As you get to know the Lord better, you will come to realize that when He calls you, it is always worth obeying. When He says something, it is for your benefit.

If He says, “Go this way,” it is because He has green pastures and still waters for you. If He says, “Stop! Don’t do that,” it is because He is trying to protect you from potential danger, possibly something that is even life-threatening.

The fact that God speaks to us is clear through the pages of Scripture. To some, like Moses, God spoke audibly. To others, like the prophet Elijah, He spoke quietly on at least one occasion.

Often we look for the big events, earth-shaking circumstances in which God speaks. And many times He is speaking to us, but it is in a still, small voice. We should try turning off the television, the radio, and the telephone and just listen.

With all the noise in our world, with all the information that bombards us, we can hear all the voices but miss the most important voice of all. Maybe one reason we don’t hear Him is because we never stop and listen.

When God almighty speaks to you in that still, small voice, do you listen? Do you follow Him?

Prayer: Pray for an obedient heart to follow the Lord with all your heart.

Scriptural Reading: Deuteronomy 16:18-20

Deut 16:18-20

18 “You shall appoint judges and officers in all your gates, which the Lord your God gives you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with just judgment.

19 You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show partiality, nor take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.

20 You shall follow what is altogether just, that you may live and inherit the land which the Lord your God is giving you.

NKJV

Follow The Instructions Of The Lord