NEW BEGINNINGS

Jeremiah 29:11-For I know the thoughts I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give a future and a hope.

The number 8 represents New Beginnings and August just happens to be the 8th month. I don’t know about you, but I am ready. My family and I have been through a difficult season but as of yesterday, it’s over and as I am speaking for our life I am also proclaiming the change you experience is leading to your New Beginning! As you pursue the New Beginning God is going to bring forth in your life, I hope the following acronym for the word FREEDOM will assist you as you begin your new journey. Why this acronym.? Because it’s the song “Freedom” by Eddie James that the Spirit of God has brought to my mind.

For it is in your relationship with a loving, redeeming God, where you will find the freedom you desperately yearn for.

F: Follow Him forward

Romans 15:5 (NIV)–May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus… We move forward in your process of change.

R: Repent readily

Jeremiah 18:9 (MSG)–But if they repent of their wicked lives, I will think twice and start over with them. What a great translation! When we repent, God will think again and start over with us. Start over. Don’t wait another moment – repent

E: Earnestly Pray

Ephesians 6:18 (NLT) Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.Prayers are incredibly powerful. They are the foundation for change.. As you earnestly pray, you’ll find yourselves empowered. pray persistently, remain alert, and consider your Christian brothers and sisters everywhere, we are on this journey together.

E: Enjoy the journey

1 Samuel 2:1 (NLT) Then Hannah prayed:“My heart rejoices in the LORD! Oh, how the LORD has blessed me! Now I have an answer for my enemies,as I delight in your deliverance.

We will have a number of reasons to rejoice this year. Don’t focus so much on your destination or you will forget to enjoy your journey. Enjoy God’s journey. He has planned a perfect path just for you.

D: Devour His Word

Hebrews 4:12 (NIV) For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. God’s Word is the ultimate food for our thoughts, it nourishes our soul and it is a map for our journey. Dive into God’s truth and devour His words.

O: Open your heart and mind to His truth

Proverbs 3:5 (KJV) Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. If you want to grasp God’s truth, pray for an open heart, and an open mind, so you can receive the truth, know the truth, and obey the truth when you hear it. Be prepared, The Lord will speak.

M: Make new friends and move mountains

Colossians 3:12-13 (KJV) Put on therefore the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, if any man have a quarrel against any; even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. As we walk in godly love for one another, by forgiving, encouraging, and helping, we will find the strength to do what we think we could never, ever accomplish. We need the power of the Spirit, and the power of one another. He knew the value of loving and supporting relationships. Let us learn from His example.

Father God, No matter how many times we may have fallen short of our goals in the past, may we be reminded you are a God of tomorrows. You have a plan to prosper us, and to give us a hope and a future. With You all things are truly possible. May we trust You to do what You do best…love us. I ask that you would instill deep inside every one of Your children a new hope and greater level of trust as we take our steps forward toward our future. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

He Will Lift You Up

“So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.”  -1 Peter 5:6

The Song by The Afters “Lift Me Up” comes to mind. Have you ever felt like you were in a pit of despair.? There are times I have felt like giving up but He reminds me just as the song says, “when I fall down or hit the ground He will always lift me up with His unfailing never ending love.” If you read through the Bible you will see many times He lifted people up. There are many examples Esther, Joseph, and David are just a few, and just like them, God is going to lift you out.

While doing my personal devotion today God told me that where I am right now is not where I’m going to stay. There are brighter days up ahead, days  filled with favor, promotion and increase.  As I continue to walk uprightly before Him, there is no good thing that He will He withhold from me. He is going to lift me up with His love. Thank you Lord and He wants to do the same thing for you. “The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down.” Psalm 146:8 I know what it’s like to be “bowed down”–to feel beaten, depressed, weighed down and defeated. If you’ve ever felt like that, this promise from God is for you, as much as it is for me. Job 22:29 says, “He will save the downcast”.

I am guilty of these things at times and taking notice as I say this.. STOP! —Going around talking about your problems and how bad things are, or how it feels like you’re never going to make it.—-

God gives us a song of victory!

If somebody asks you how you’re doing, your attitude should and answer should be, “I’m too blessed to be stressed and I’m continuing to  moving forward in strength and power.” I have a great mentor friend whom I have heard say many times praise precedes the victory! Remember that God is enthroned on our praises. When you magnify and lift Him up, He will lift you up out of your despair. He sets our feet on solid ground- Psalm 40:2.

Move forward in joy and victory in every area of your life! Hold on to His promises. He is Faithful!

“But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” -Isaiah 40:31

“Father God, help me to turn to You in humility and honesty, and lift me up the way that only You can. Show me who I should seek out for prayer support, and deliver me from the negative feelings that would hinder me from receiving their help. I don’t just want to survive, Lord–I want to thrive!  Thank You for putting a new song in my heart. Thank You for lifting me up. I choose to sing and be grateful today for the life of blessing You have in store for me in Jesus’ name! Amen!”

“Jesus with Benefits”

“I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” – John 15:15

“Friends with Benefits” Is a popular term, isn’t it? A nice, easy, hearer-friendly way of implying you have sex with an unespoused partner. Isn’t it something so ironic that when you say ‘friend’ it is supposed to be a person whom you get along with. Isn’t a friend someone you respect, serve, love, protect and guide?

It’s disheartening as to how that term has been maliciously defiled when it is used for that phrase. Friends are purposed to be people who want what is good and nurturing for you.

A term that should be used more often and hopefully one day will  replace the other term is  “Jesus with benefits” . Have you ever heard the term.?

God gives us many benefits! When you have made Him your friend, your Lord and Savior, you have put yourself in a position of eternal gratitude to Him. He gives us so much to be thankful for. Meditate on His goodness, faithfulness and blessings in your life, it will change how you see the world.

Choose to have a relationship with Christ.

Focus on the fact that He saved you and set you free, the benefit is the challenges and obstacles in your life will begin to fade away. Psalm 103 says that He “crowns you with love and compassion and satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed.”

No matter what you may be facing today, don’t forget His Benefits! God wants to satisfy you with good things in life. Turn your thoughts toward The One, He is a true friend with benefits, He will fill you with His peace and strengthen you to live as an overcomer in every area of your life.

Check your heart. How’s your friendship and Lordship with Jesus?

Become His friend.

“Father God, I humbly come to You today. Thank You for receiving me just as I am. I choose to focus on Your goodness and believe You have so much more in store for me.  Develop in me the core values that  align my heart with yours. Thank you for the benefits you give me daily because of my relationship with you. I honor You and bless You in all that I do in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

BE POSITIVE

“Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS; and again I say REJOICE!” -PHILIPPIANS 4:4.

Does your life have a positive or negative effect.?

There are definitely people in the world who are ‘Positives’ and others who are ‘Negatives.’  It is close to impossible to live a life that is unaffected by other people. The attitudes and opinions, like pollen, blow into our lives, shaping our perspective and influencing our thoughts and decisions.

Who’s influencing you.?

Have you ever heard the saying, “People are like elevators some will take you up and some will take you down.” It’s important to be careful of who you are allowing to influence your life and not only that but to be mindful of the way you live because ultimately you are influencing others.

Are you being a positive or negative influence.?

We can’t sharpen each other by being negative all the time or living a negative life. When one godly person’s life sharpens another person’s, it’s a good thing! It yields a harvest of mature fruit over time. I can think of at least several instances in my life when I allowed the negative influence of others to sway my better judgment. We live in a terribly negative world. But we can’t blame everything on the world we live in, we have to be mindful of our own temperament. Being positive trying to find the best in the worst is a good choice. God is well on the side of positivism.  Having a negative, fault-finding, bitter attitude is a sin. –Numbers 11:1 Choose to Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS; and again I say REJOICE! PHILIPPIANS 4:4. If you’re rejoicing, ALWAYS, then I can’t really see any room for negativism, can you?  God says Do not fret or have any anxiety about ANYTHING – which seems pretty straight forward to me. Being negative corrupts good character. Seek out the protective, positive resources God has graciously given you and move forward living a life that has a positive effect.

God’s word says: Whatever is true; and honourable and good; and just; and pure; and lovely; and kind and gracious – think on these things (fix your minds on them!)- PHILIPPIANS 4:8.

Grow in exercising the kind of Christlike influence He wants you to embody in your life and in your relationships. You may not always be a joyful person but choose to live a positive life.  Help to move people closer to the cross instead of further away.

Believe

“Anything is possible if a person believes.”- Mark 9:23

ANYTHING. That’s why it’s so important to have an attitude of expectancy every single day.

Truly that is one of the biggest problems in our Christian walk and growth. So many times because of our circumstances or situations, we fail to act like God’s Word is true. We claim to believe in God, but how often do we actually believe God? Do we take His words to heart.? Do we believe in His promises to us? Do we believe in His ability to make miracles happen.?

We are not supposed to be just hearers of the word but doers. James 1:25 says “But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.” In other words if you believe it, yet fail to do it, it looks like you do not believe it. Does it not.?

If we say we believe God, that means we believe His Word, because God and His Word are one. You CANNOT believe the Bible and NOT believe God. If we believe God’s Word, there should be NO hesitation in doing what His Word says to do . If we SAY we believe everything God says in His Word about us and we really do believe. Then we need to act like it and DO what God has asked us to do to overcome our problems, our sicknesses and our fears.

It’s time to make faith an “action verb” and kick it up a notch!
In Ephesians 1:3-8, we discover that we are “blessed, chosen, adopted, favored, redeemed and forgiven.”

Do you really believe that?

Then start declaring it! – Declare God is who He says He is and God can do what He says He can do. Declare that you are who God says you are and that you can do all things through Christ because His Word is alive and active in you. When you say what God says, you begin to think what God thinks. Does that mean bad things will stop happening? No. But you will experience many more victories than losses because the Word of God is at work in you.

Rely on God fully! Never doubting! Become the person God intended for you to be! He is with you through it all!

“And we … are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18 If we want God to move in our lives, we have to approach every day filled with faith and hope.

Have an attitude of expectancy every single day.
Believe in His goodness today and take a step of faith toward the life of blessing He has prepared for you!

“Father God , thank You for Your hand of blessing on my life today. I open my heart to You and trust that You have a good plan for me. Give me a heart filled with faith and hope today in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

CHAOS

“Speak evil of no one, . . . be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.” -Titus 3:2

Are you spending a lot of time trying to avoid chaos or getting out of it.? We live in a chaotic world full of people living chaotic lives. Many are out there living in desperation, yearning for some kind of escape from the mess they’ve made of their lives.  There is an answer for the messy chaos. The answer is Christ. Our God is a God who can bring order, peace and glory out of chaotic, confused and hopeless situations. The devil has been trying to bring disorder and chaos to our lives since creation. -Genesis 1:1-2 Order is not natural.

When I consider my home or the daily challenges in life, I’m astounded at how quickly it can descend into chaos and how long it takes to restore order. Order requires intervention; it does not happen naturally. Not only have I considered my home or daily challenges but sometimes the chaos in our lives is caused by sin. That sin may have to be revealed and dealt with before the chaos will be done away in our lives. The truth is no matter what the sin is or no matter how bad a situation is or how chaotic, if we will bring it to the Lord He can manifest resurrection power to bring order out of chaos. God majors in taking care of chaotic situations.

DON’T GIVE UP!

GOD CAN AND WILL bring peace and order where confusion and disorder reign! Look at the nation of Israel in Exodus 7-14. When God said it was time to bring the Hebrew people out of Egypt, Pharaoh objected. His nation’s economy depended on the Hebrew workers, so Pharaoh didn’t want to lose them. God sent 10 plagues to convince him. Pharaoh’s magicians  duplicated the first two plagues. But they could not reverse any of them. They could cause chaos, but they could not restore order. Only God can do that!

Look to God, He is ready to speak peace and bring order if you will receive it. With effort, you can bring order to your life, but none of us can bring order out of the emotional and spiritual chaos of our lives. He only restores order to chaotic situations when we live as God intended—speaking no evil, being peaceable and gentle, and showing humility to all.

Father God, our world and our lives do have much chaos and confusion. Please restore our souls. Help us to live as You want us to live—loving others. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

Independence

Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.-1 Peter 2:16

Today is the 4th of July! Independence Day. I usually write something about Freedom but this year I want to talk about the word Independence. In a day and age when independence is praised, I wonder if it’s really a good thing when it comes to our relationship with God. Some of you may have trouble depending on anyone but that mindset truly hurts the ONE who longs for you to depend on Him so that you don’t become spiritually independent. What does that mean? It means living outside the restraints of God’s will and choosing to please ourselves instead. As a believer what would lead us to think we can take matters into our own hands. Have you ever made that mistake.? I know I have. Just because we may want what we do not have or would like things in a different way doesn’t mean we can. We are supposed to deny ourselves and obey God. –Luke 9:23 

Don’t let your personal satisfaction become a priority in life. It will lead to deception and get your mind off track. The enemy will paint a beautiful picture that is untrue of how things will be if we just make some changes to our circumstances – in school, our relationships, our job, marriage, or even our lifestyle. Which will lead us to start believing the lie that our life isn’t complete with Christ and that gratification can be found elsewhere. -Ephesians 1:3

Check your desires through the will of God or hold onto the truth that God’s grace is sufficient –2 Corinthians 12:9.

If you don’t, you will make the choice by acting independently without Him. It’s easy to be fooled so be careful! You might make a decision that sounds right, looks good, and seems harmless when in all actuality you are taking your departure from God’s good and perfect will for you, that could be uncomfortable.

You may find it delightful for a little while walking outside of God’s plan but that is how it is with sin. Sin is doing what we want instead of what God wants and for a while you may have some temporary pleasure but here is your !!WARNING!! eventually that sin will turn to despair and possibly even disaster.

Make a decision to stop being spiritually independent and turn back to God.
Remember He has all you need. -Ephesians 3:18-19

As you celebrate this Independence Day make a declaration to stop being spiritually independent and turn back to God. This day in age it is important that we become Spiritually dependant on God!

Alignment

“I have chosen the way of truth; Your judgments I have laid before me. I cling to Your testimonies; O LORD, do not put me to shame! I will run the course of Your commandments, For You shall enlarge my heart. Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes, And I shall keep it to the end.” -Psalm 119:30-33

A horrible accident  that resulted in my grandmother’s C2 in her neck to be fractured got me thinking about staying aligned with God. Why.? Because there are different types of fractures that can result in surgery but hers will heal on its own because it stayed aligned. And that’s just it. The bibles says “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”- Romans 8:28 She was in position for healing because she stayed in alignment.

Alignment is a crucial issue for us as God’s people. When the Lord is getting ready to do a new thing we have to be in position, and sometimes that requires Him repositioning us because He wants us in the right place at the right time.

Are you in proper alignment?

Alignment is a very simple concept that has to do with your soul’s attitude towards God. At any moment in time, you either sincerely care about pleasing Him or you do not. If you do, then you are in alignment with Him. The Bible is full of stories of people who had to move in order to align with God’s plan and I’m certain their transitions were not easy. Look at Abram and Sarai, they left their relatives in Ur; and then Moses he had to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt; what about Nehemiah, he had to travel from Persia to Jerusalem. In the New Testament, Peter had to go to Cornelius’ house in Caesarea; Paul had to sail to Rome; and God had to scatter the disciples – Acts 8:1 so they would fulfill the Great Commission.

We prefer comfort and the familiar but faith is a journey, and it often leads us to places we would never choose on our own. So I find myself pondering and questioning, Do I have myself in alignment to receive from God.? Is He calling me to a shift in any way.?  

Am I in the center of God’s will.? Because that is where I want to be. The only way to find out is read the Bible consistently; pray fervently; to develop a submissive will, and expect to hear His voice and the key to hearing God’s voice lies in your willingness to obey.

He gives us clear directions if we truly desire to know His plan for us.  He will reveal it.  Alignment has nothing to do with perfect behavior, it is about our soul’s attitude towards God. Whenever we step out of alignment with God, we can instantly become realigned with Him by correcting our soul attitude.

He is beckoning you to align with His will, and know this…. His greatest blessings await you when we make the faith journey. – Deuteronomy 5:33

Put His preferences above your own.

“Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me.”-Psalm 119:133

Stay Aligned!

Repentance

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” -1 John 1:9

Many understand the term repentance to mean “turning from sin.” This is not the biblical definition of repentance. It’s more than acknowledging wrongdoings. In the Bible, the word repent means “to change one’s mind.” Acts 26:20 says, “I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.” That means true repentance requires a change of mind and heart. Then we gain a fresh view about God, about ourselves, and about the world.

Conviction of sin is one of the most uncommon things that ever happens to a person. Jesus Christ said that when the Holy Spirit came He would convict people of sin.-John 16:8 The Holy Spirit stirs our conscience and brings us into the presence of God, and we are bothered by sin because of our relationship with God. When you have asked God for forgiveness make the choice to be the opposite of who you were and what you were doing previously, by the grace of God. Repentance always brings us to the point of saying, “I have sinned.” The surest sign that God is at work in your life is when you can say that and mean it.  Anything less is simply sorrow for having made foolish mistakes— a reflex action caused by self-disgust.

2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “If my people who are called by my name HUMBLE themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Examine yourself to see if you have forgotten how to be truly repentant. Repentance should be as important a practice to your Christian life as prayer or reading the Bible.

Turning away from sin and turning to God for forgiveness requires a motivation by your love for God and the desire to obey His commandments.

Repentance is a must in your life as a believer.  It’s a way of saying “I’m sorry,” to our merciful and gracious Father in heaven.  Our God is absolutely amazing and the fact that He is willing to forgive us every single time we sin (with exception of the unpardonable sin) shows us how patient He is and just how much He absolutely loves us all!

Godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation… —2 Corinthians 7:10

Take God at His Word

“I am convinced that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it through to completion” -Philippians 1:6

What is faith? Faith is not perfect character or integrity. Faith is not a hunch. Faith is not positive thinking. Faith does not believe everything will work out. Faith is not responding in emotion or feeling to miracles and signs.  Faith is taking God at His Word. By doing so Abraham became a model of faith for all believers. His life demonstrates how we benefit from believing what God says despite the evidence to the contrary. James 2:23 says “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith. He was even called the friend of God.”

If God takes another direction we can not fear, even if we don’t understand. Why.? Because He knows What He Is Doing!

Stand on His promise to you. The scripture says “I am convinced that God, who began this good work, will carry it through to completion”! It is your responsibility it to confess it! Let it renovate your life.

“Be made new in the attitude of your mind.”  But let me warn you: you will be challenged. The Devil doesn’t want you to be free, so he will whisper old lies to you. He’ll try to discourage you and accuse you. He will bring up your past to haunt and harass you. There will be times when circumstances seem more real than life itself,  but God’s Word is truer than anything else. Sometimes the choice may be difficult but even then choose to walk by faith. I may be telling my age here but, have you heard of “Revival in The Land” by Carman. You can probably find it on youtube. It’s old school but I particularly like the part where the devil is reminded of his future.I felt a leap in my Spirit watching it.  With that being said, when the devil tries to remind you of your past, remind him of his future! And start confessing your faith.

Taking God at His Word isn’t knowing that God can, it’s knowing  that He will. Keep Standing! Declare the truth of the God’s Word and act on that truth. Take God at His Word! “WALK BY FAITH NOT BY SIGHT”-2 Corinthians 5:7