Have You Got It?

Have you received the thing for which you most recently and fervently prayed? The answer should always be YES! Why? Because the Bible says so!Let’s read these Scriptures:Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. (Mk 11:24 NIV) Believe that you have already received what you need and faith operating in you will bring it to you! And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. (Mt 21:22 KJV) When we pray and ask the Lord to give us something based upon His Word, we must always mix our prayer with the faith that we have received at salvation. If you remain in Me, and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (Joh 15:7 NASB) Keeping God’s Word (the Bible) ‘before you’ means reading it regularly—daily—and memorizing and meditating upon it. As we make these habits a part of our Christian lives, we may ask WHATEVER we need, and it will be done. Hallelujah!Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. ¹⁵And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. (1 Joh 5:14-15 NKJV) Note first of all that this Scripture passage mentions our CONFIDENCE in God; this is crucial. Once, we have that confidence and we pray according to God’s Word—which is His will—then we are positive that we have received our prayer requests. Praise the Lord!But those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.. (Ps 34:10b CEB, emphasis added)Our Lord and our God, you are like the sun and also like a shield. You treat us with kindness and with honor, never denying any good thing to those who live right. (Ps 84:11 CEV, emphasis added)

Both of the verses above from Psalms say that we, as followers and disciples of Jesus Christ, will never be denied any good thing. What a joyous and blessed security our Savior has given to His children. God bless you!

We Shall NOT Lack

The Scriptures tell us that we shall not be in need nor have a shortage of daily provisions. In fact, the Bible says that we who seek the Lord won’t lack ANY GOOD thing. Wow! What a precious and powerful promise that is.

The young lions lack and suffer hunger; but those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing. (Ps 34:10 NKJV, emphasis added)

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give favor and glory, for no good thing will He withhold from the one who walks uprightly. (Ps 84:11 MEV, emphasis added)

The verse above goes on to say that NO GOOD THING will the Lord deny from those who walk uprightly. Hallelujah! This applies to believers because we are justified through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Jesus is our righteousness. (Jer 23:6) Also, spending time reading and meditating upon God’s Word cleanses each one of us daily. This means that we may claim this verse for ourselves.

. . . for His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. (2 Pet 1:3 NASB)

This passage in second Peter, above, is very clear that the Lord has already given to us everything that we would ever need for a righteous and holy life through our knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Rom 8:32 NIV)

This is a resounding declaration by the Holy Spirit that every believer who has accepted Jesus as their Savior and Lord has been FREELY given ALL THINGS. This is a mighty promise from God the Father to every believer. Believe it and stand upon it.

Rejoice in God’s promises and blessing to you, and worship Him with thanksgiving. You are blessed.

Being Strengthened & Established

As we live our daily lives as believers and followers of Jesus, there should come times when we are strengthened and established, or recognized, in our faith. Let’s take a look at some Scriptures concerning this topic:

For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established—that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. (Rom 1:11-12 NKJV)

Paul was writing to believers in Rome, saying that he wished to see them in order that he could impart [pass on] a spiritual gift to a number of them, and that he could encourage them in their faith—and be encouraged himself by them.

First of all, do you realize that praying for each other is encouraging?

And do you also realize that by praying for one another, we may reveal our own spiritual gifts and may even pass them on? Well, it’s absolutely true!

But I know that when I come to you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ. (Rom 15:29 NKJV)

Paul was confident that when he saw the believers in person, that he would be operating in the FULLNESS of the blessing of Christ’s gospel. What faith! This demonstrates the confidence of a man who relies completely upon the Word, and lives his life accordingly. Glory to God!

So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers. (Ac 16:5 NIV)

When we are strengthened in our faith, we can’t help but share our experiences and testimonies with others. When we do that, other people visit our churches in order to discover what is happening. Their curiosity is provoked, and they want to investigate for themselves.

When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. (Ac 19:6 NIV)

Praying for people, as you touch them, is a biblical and correct form of prayer. This verse tells us that when Paul did this, the people that Paul touched came under the influence and presence of the Holy Spirit. As a result these same people actually spoke in tongues and prophesied. Hallelujah! These are biblical results and we should be encouraged by them, and use them as our example.

A key tactic we can use to strengthen our faith is to read the Bible, and to the meditate upon it daily. God bless you.

Seek Good Not Evil

The Bible exhorts us to seek good and not evil on a daily basis. We’re encouraged to try to live at peace with others. Let’s have a look at some of those verses:

Do you want to live and enjoy a long life? ¹³Then don’t say cruel things and don’t tell lies. ¹⁴Do good instead of evil and try to live at peace. ¹⁵If you obey the Lord, he will watch over you and answer your prayers. (Ps 34:12-15 CEV)

Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, ¹⁷learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause. (Isa 1:16-17 ESV)

Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. (Amos 5:14 NIV)

No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you:
to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. (Mic 6:8 NLT)

Instead, desire first and foremost God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Mt 6:33 CEB)

There is a promise to us that if we seek good and not evil, and be at peace with others, we will enjoy a long life. Not only that, but the Lord says that He will be with us. Another promise is that the Lord will watch over us and answer our prayers. Wow! Those are wonderful promises that God is giving us and notice that these are very desirable blessings.

We are also exhorted to be humble. In other words, we should treat others with the respect that they deserve since all human beings have been made in the image of God.

Desire to see God’s kingdom and righteousness established, and when we do, every other blessing that we could ever desire will be given to us. So today’s lesson is: Live an upright and holy life, and reap the blessings that Jesus Christ purchased for everyone who would believe in Him. Glory to God!

Purify Yourself as Unto the Lord

Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. ³And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. (1 Joh 3:2-3 NKJV)

Just as the Lord is holy, He desires His children to live morally clean, wholesome lives guided by obedience to the Word of God.

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. (Col 3:4)

If we live a life of Christian purity and devotion now, ‘when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, we shall also appear with him in glory.’ This is a promise from God that shall absolutely be fulfilled.

That’s why it’s crucial that we keep our relationship with the Lord Jesus in good shape and current by reviewing ourselves daily. If we slip and commit sin, turn to the Lord in repentance, knowing that He forgives and provides repentance and the grace that we need to renew our commitment to holiness.

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. (Rom 8:18)

Living obediently for the Lord has its certain rewards. One day, we won’t even remember the pain and suffering that is a consequence of living on this sin-filled planet! All of the pains that we receive from human frailties, betrayal, abuse or wickedness will be as nothing when compared with the glories that will be revealed in the future to all who believe in Christ. Such glory is incomprehensible to us now but God promises that we will surely experience it. Glory to God!

Our Lives Reflects our Hearts

All of our actions—whether good and kind or hurtful and evil—flow out of our hearts.

As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart. (Pro 27:19 NIV, emphasis added)

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; ²⁴for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. ²⁵But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. (Jam 1:22-25, underscoring added)

. . . he who fashions the hearts of them all, and observes all their deeds. (Ps 33:15 RSV)

For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.” (Mk 7:21-23 NIV)

As the Bible tells us, we need to be obedient, active Christians who LIVE THE WORD every single day of our lives. Our lives will surely expose whatever is in our hearts.

This doesn’t imply that we’re perfect and never make mistakes. Absolutely not. It means that we start with a fresh slate every day, and continue loving and serving the Lord Jesus persistently and consistently.

When we do sin, we stop and repent before God. After we have received forgiveness and cleansing, we begin again in perfect fellowship and harmony with the Lord, our merciful Redeemer. Because Jesus lived on earth as a human, He understands the nature of temptation. (Heb 2:18; 4:15; Mt 4:1)

Because we know our own flaws and weaknesses, we’re able to extend mercy and encouragement to others. We know that as we surrender to God’s will and resist the enemy, he must flee from us. (Jam 4:7)

We serve our loving God and the body of Christ by praying for our fellow man, whether believers or unbelievers. We also pray for our civic and government leaders that God will lead them and send them wise counselors, and give us peace on the earth.

As we hide God’s Word and His precious promises in our hearts, our hearts will overflow with the joy, mercy, and love of God. Our faith will be nourished and strengthened. Our daily lives will reveal and replicate the condition of our hearts. Glory to God!

What Are Idols?

You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are all around you. (Deu 6:14)

Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. (Deu 8:19)

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. (1 Joh 5:21)

What is an idol? An idol can be a statue, a god or deity, a symbol, a hero, or an obsession. Hollywood and movie industry stars can be idols for people, as can a certain model of a car, or a favorite brand of watch or any number of other things.

The key is, what is the most important thing in life to you? What do you talk about the most? What do you think about and dream of daily? Around what are your goals centered? Are you determined to achieve riches and fame? Influence? Do you dream of becoming a political influencer?

Any of these things, and more, can become idols in a person’s life. But God’s Word warns us strongly to stay away from these things. Therefore, we need to take stock of our thoughts and to acknowledge what we value in our hearts.

A follower of Jesus would value their relationship with their Savior more highly than any other thing in their lives. Equally, Jesus’ followers would highly value the Word of God. And of course, we also choose to honor and to consistently obey the teachings of the Bible.

We may each joyfully pursue our relationship with our Lord, and endeavor to mature in faith in our Redeemer. Life is all about Him—not about us. Our true hero is Jesus Christ, our Savior. Glory to God!

Praise at the Sound of God’s Word

Today I’m meditating upon the importance of the Word of God. Let us continuously praise the Lord for His Word.

In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul. ⁴All the kings of the earth shall praise You, O Lord, when they hear the words of Your mouth. ⁵Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord. (Ps 138:3-5, emphasis added)

When the kings of the earth hear the words of God’s mouth, they will praise the Lord and sing of His ways. What an image!

All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before You. (Ps 22:27) All the people of the earth shall remember the Lord and turn to Him and worship Him. There is no doubt that this shall come to pass.

Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; all nations shall serve Him. (Ps 72:11, emphasis added) People shall be in such awe of God, that they will actually FALL DOWN BEFORE HIM in order to worship Him and to pay Him honor. This also reminds us that, one day, everyone shall serve the Lord.

Here are several Bible passages that talk about the wisdom of the Word of God:

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple . . . (Ps 19:7) God’s Word makes us wise.

You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me. (Ps 119:98) God’s Word gives us wisdom that enables us to be wiser than our enemies—and to thereby gain the victory. When we have memorized God’s Word, it is forever with us. Hallelujah!

The wise men are ashamed, they are dismayed and taken. Behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord; so what wisdom do they have? (Jer 8:9) This verse rightly asks the question: “Since they have rejected God’s word, what wisdom do they have?” The unspoken answer is: none.

Be sure to avail yourself of the wisdom of the ages and the wisdom that will cause all kings and all nations on earth to serve the Lord. Read and meditate upon God’s praiseworthy Word every day.

Be Generous

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. (Lk 6:35 NIV, underscoring added)

Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed. (Pro 19:17 ESV, underscoring added)

It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice. (Ps 112:5 ESV, underscoring added)

Justice means fair play, impartiality, objectivity or neutrality. The Scripture verse shown above (Ps 112:5) talks about a person who deals generously, lends to others, and conducts his affairs with justice. All of these character traits are traits of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our example. (See Phil 2:5; 1 Pet 2:21)

The Lord challenges us to test Him with our generosity just so that we will learn that we cannot out-give God! (Mal 3:10-12) It is the only area in which the Lord has instructed us to test Him. Just ponder that for a little while . . .

The Lord demonstrated His love for mankind by GIVING His only begotten Son to become our Savior. That was sacrificial love and sacrificial giving on God’s part, and anyone who is a parent understands that completely.

The focus of this article is about the call to believers to be generous—to live a generous lifestyle. And it’s crucial for us to understand that God the Father gave generously, and Jesus Christ gave generously, also.

And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ (Ac 20:35)

When we live a generous lifestyle while here on earth, in obedience to our heavenly Father, the Lord sees it and He places treasure in heaven aside for us as a reward. (Mt 6:19-21) God is most pleased when we share what we have with others, especially with those who are needy. (Mt 10:8; Heb 13:16)

Live generously and with joy! We believers are being transformed daily into the image of Christ, and this is simply one way in which we may cooperate with the Lord in our own transformation. (See Rom 8:29-30; Phil 2:13; 3:21; Col 3:10; 2 Cor 3:18) Blessings upon you!

God Blesses Our Food & Drink

How often do we realize that God protects us in many and varied ways, DAILY? He blesses even our food and drink! Let’s think about this and see what God says.

So you shall serve the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. (Ex 23:25)

God’s promise is to bless [sanctify, approve, validate] everything that we eat and drink as well as to remove [eradicate] sickness and disease from within us. If we truly believe and stand upon this promise of God, it will operate in our circumstances.

Why is God’s blessing upon our food important to us?

Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Ps 103:5)

God not only blesses us with the provision of food to eat, but by His blessing upon our food and drink, God renews our youth day by day, moment-by-moment!

. . . because they had not met the children of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them. However, our God turned the curse into a blessing. (Neh 13:2)

In Nehemiah 13, God not only set Himself against Israel’s enemies, but He also reversed the curse placed upon His people and He caused the Israelites to be blessed.

We are God’s New Covenant people and He has given us even BETTER promises than He gave to the people in the Old Testament! (Heb 8:6) It’s time to acquaint ourselves with what belongs to us through Jesus, our Lord and Savior!

I encourage you to read the Bible every day to collect and to meditate upon the blessings and precious promises that Jesus suffered and died to purchase for each and every one of His children.

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You are the Deciding Vote! In your life, you can make decisions that will help you and bless you.

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