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Showing posts from March, 2024

Walking in the Newness of Life!

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  Walking in the Newness of Life Scripture: Romans 6:4 “ When we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and shared his death. So, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the wonderful power of the Father, we also can live a new life. ”  Living a new kind of life is now possible for the believer who understands and practices these wonderful concepts. We have seen how the Spirit of Christ seals us, how we must choose to be controlled by him in our thought life, and how we can put to death the misdeeds of the body by the Spirit of Christ. The reality of Paul’s insight—“ I was put to death on the cross with Christ, and I do not live anymore—it is Christ who lives in me. I still live in my body, but I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself to save me. ” (Galatians 2:20)—becomes more of our everyday life experiences. The Spirit of Christ overpowers the old self so we can walk in newness of life. In fact, our lives become hidden in Christ: “ For you died, and your

PRAY!

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  Alleluia! Lord Jesus, you are alive forevermore! The good news of your resurrection fills my heart with joy! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen

Giving Equals Investment!

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  Giving Equals Investment Scripture: Matthew 6:20–21 “ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. ”  THE TWO BIG REASONS TO GIVE 1. Giving is your investment in eternity.  It is your eternal investment account. The Christian life is all about giving, and we are not just talking about money. Giving includes giving one’s self, time, talent, and treasure. Only two things will last for all of eternity: God’s Word will endure forever, and the souls of people will live forever in one of two places. Everything else perishes. Everything you and I can see and touch is going to perish. Our relationship with Jesus Christ will determine  WHERE  we live in eternity. How we spend our time, talent, and treasure will determine  HOW  we live in eternity. 2. Giving is the MAJOR GATEWAY  for God to work big time in the life of the believer now! To enjoy the

PRAY!

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  Your kingdom come, O Lord. I love you, Lord Jesus, and promise to serve you always. Amen.

Be Genuine!

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  Be Genuine Scripture: James 1:22 “ Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ”  The other day I had the opportunity to observe a mockingbird. Mockingbirds are known for their ability to mimic the sounds of not only other birds, but also the sounds of insects. The call of a mockingbird can be deceiving. Scripture warns us not to be deceived spiritually, but to “ Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? ” (2 Corinthians 13:5) Jesus spoke harshly of the Pharisees, referring to them as hypocrites, people who pretended to be something they were not. There are people who wear the label “Christian,” but their “walk” is inconsistent with their “talk.” Scripture says, “ Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit

Supersede!

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Today's  His favor lasts a lifetime. Psalm 30:5 Supersede God’s favor upon your life is not for a few years, just for when you’re in your twenties or thirties. No, His favor is for as long as you’re breathing. We can all look back and see these moments of favor where God opened doors we could never open. He had you at the right place to meet your spouse. He promoted you when you weren’t next in line. He healed you when it didn’t look good. The good news is God never does His greatest feats in your yesterdays; they’re always in your tomorrows. Yes, we should celebrate and be grateful for what He’s done. But He’s taking you from glory to glory. Your future is going to supersede anything you’ve seen in the past. The Scripture says, “You haven’t seen, heard, or imagined what God has in store for those who love Him.” That’s why we can live with expectancy, excited, hopeful, and full of praise. You’re about to step into one of these moments of favor that takes you to a new level of your

Guarding Our Hearts at All Costs!

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Guarding Our Hearts at All Costs Scripture: Proverbs 4:23 “ Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. ”  When we come to Christ, we give him our hearts in worship. This lays the foundation for all that follows in life. “ If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. ” (Romans 10:9–10) As soon as we trust in Jesus Christ, alone, as our Lord and Savior, we are sealed by the Spirit of God, and we are justified and made acceptable to Almighty God. Now that we are secure in him, we are in a position to do the works he has prepared for us to do. We are counseled to “ Let the message of Christ dwell among [us] richly as [we] teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in [

Awaken Faith!

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Today's Scripture And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. Matthew 8:26 Awaken Faith We all face dreams and obstacles that seem too big for us, but God has all the power in the world. The key is our faith. God works through our faith. If you believe little, you’ll receive little. If you think small and talk small, you’ll get stuck where you are. The Scripture talks about different levels of faith. In Matthew 8, the disciples were in a boat with Jesus when a huge storm arose and the waves swept over the boat. They woke Jesus up and cried out, “We’re about to die!” He responded, “Why do you have such little faith? You’ve seen the miracles I’ve done. You know I can do anything. Why are you still stuck at this low level of faith?” If you’re going to reach the fullness of your destiny, it’s not going to happen with weak faith, doubting faith, or average faith. It’s going to take great fa

Our Hope!

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Our Hope! Scripture: Philippians 3:20–21 “ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. ”  It is amazing to think we are only passing through a temporary world, knowing the real world awaits us when our “time bubble” breaks, thrusting us into the eternal paradigm. We have the assurance that our citizenship is in heaven and that is where we are heading. In the meantime, we have the prospect of Jesus Christ returning at any moment. This is truly a blessed hope! How encouraging to know that we will be freed from the foolishness of the wisdom and rulers of this age. I can hardly wait, in God’s timing, to receive a glorified body like the glorified body of Jesus Christ. This body will be beyond anything you and I can think or imagine. “ Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kin

No Limits!

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Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel. Psalm 78:41 No Limits When God brought the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, He told them that they would make it into the Promised Land, but along the way through the wilderness they had delays, setbacks, and opposition. They got discouraged and started complaining. “What are we going to eat? How are we going to survive? The people in the land look like giants. We don’t have a chance.” The whole time, God was whispering, “I’m in control. I have provision for every season. I’ll defeat those enemies for you.” But they let the doubt and what they saw talk them out of what God promised. They limited God, and that generation never went in. What we do in the face of doubt and negative voices telling us God’s promises are not going to work out will determine whether we see the fullness of our destiny. God allows us to be in situations and puts things in our spirit that are too big for us to work out on our own. Let

Kingdom View of Money!

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Kingdom View of Money Scripture: Psalm 19:9–11 “ The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. ”  The Bible warns us about the deceitfulness of riches. I have come to the conclusion that money is like a rattlesnake. It has to be handled carefully. It is paramount we understand and take to heart what the Scripture says about money. If we are not careful, it can become the god of our life. In fact, we are counseled to desire God and his Word more than riches. Here are some passages that tell us the same thing. In Proverbs we learn, “ Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold. ” (Proverbs 8:10) Job tells us, “… and assign your nuggets to the dust, your gold of Ophir to the rocks in the ravines, then the

Joy in the Journey!

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Today's Scripture You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound. Psalm 4:7, ESV Joy in the Journey Too often we’re going to enjoy life when we accomplish a goal, when the kids are raised, when our spouse changes, when we get the promotion. Our joy is always in the future, when we cross another finish line, so we’re always rushing to the next thing. The problem is there’s always something that keeps us upset. The enemy would love to deceive us into enduring life but not enjoying life. Having children but not enjoying them. Being married but unhappy about our spouse’s flaws. Having a house, a job, and opportunities, but always having some reason we’re not happy. The key is to find joy in the journey. You’re not there yet, you’re still waiting for things to improve, still believing for that promise, but in the meantime you’re enjoying where you are while you’re on the way to where you’re going. You can do that because the Scripture says that the joy

A Comforting Truth!

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A Comforting Truth Scripture: Isaiah 43:1 “ Now this is what the Lord says. He created you, people of Jacob; he formed you, people of Israel. He says, ‘Don’t be afraid, because I have saved you. I have called you by name, and you are mine.’ ”  How comforting to realize that God knows us by name. He has created us, formed us, and even fashioned our hearts individually. “ He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works. ” (Psalm 33:15) Each of us is unique and special, created for fulfilling a specific purpose. Our priority must be to discover what we have been designed for, so we can find God’s purpose for us. Then we can be busy doing the works he has prepared for us. “ For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. ” (Ephesians 2:10) When we are used for our designed purpose, we can live the abundant life. We must listen for the voice of the Shepherd, “ The one who guards the door opens