“Never Give Up!”

Here’s a thought for today: “NEVER GIVE UP!”

Many of us had beautiful dreams as a child. Dreams of how life would be and the things we would do. Some of those dreams were childish because we were children. But, some of those dreams were real aspirations to do something great in this life and to push past what’s before you right now.

I am here to tell you today, don’t let go of those dreams. They are still in you and they are still waiting to see their realization come to pass. Life may get hard sometimes in the race before us, but keep pushing on. Believe God has your best in mind always, and NEVER GIVE UP!

God bless you!

“Father God, It’s to You we pray!” | A Prayer for Today

Father God, Sometimes in this life we just don’t understand everything that’s going on around us.  We have ups and we have downs, but through it all, You remain the same.  Thank You for being our source this day and every day.  Thank You for holding our hand through the turbulent tides we face.  Thank You that You have continually kept Your promise to never leave us, nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).  Thank You for bringing us through.

Father God, our hearts are opened before You.  Nothing is hid from You.  We take great comfort in that because we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that You know us better than we know ourselves.  You are our Lord.  You are our King.  You are sovereign in all Your majesty and power.  You are our leaning force, our shelter to run and hide in the time of the storm.  You are He who loves us beyond measure in spite of our faults and shortcomings.

Father God, we love You so much.  You are the One who deserves all the glory and honor.  Without You we are nothing and apart from You we can do nothing.  Our life is in Your blessed and mighty hands.  We are praying for Your help throughout this day.  Help with life, help with the decisions and choices that we make, help in every situation and circumstance we may face.

Father God, we are asking You to bless our homes, bless our families, and please remember the unsaved members of our families.  We are praying for hearts to be opened to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior.  We are praying for hearts and minds to be sensitive to Your holy call.  Thank You for the grace and mercy that You have bestowed upon each one of us this day and every day.  Thank You for another day that You have kept us.

Father God, it’s to You we pray and it’s in Your hands we commit every one of these prayers.  You are our trust and our stay.  You are our comfort through this day.  You are our peace even when we don’t know what to do.  You are where we lay each burden down and know and believe that You are just, faithful, and true.  You are the God of all righteousness, and to You be the glory forever and ever.  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, we pray, AMEN!

Edited Image by Arnie Bragg from Pixabay

“I will be his God, and he shall be my son!”

 

Everything that we could ever need can be found in our relationship with God. The inheritance is in our relationship with You through our Lord Jesus Christ. When we are found in Him, He shall be found with us.

Father God, Help us to realize the awesomeness and the severity of the promises Your power of relationship holds in our lives. For those of us in You, remind us that You alone are the Sovereign end of all. You stand as the only true God who we can always trust and everything we need can be found in You. For those who don’t know You yet, Father God, we are praying for shackles to be loosed in their lives. We are praying for scales to fall from eyes that they might see You, and all of Your glory. That they might know that if they want a future of eternal life, they must come to You through Your dear Son, Jesus Christ, to secure that relationship. Help us all to keep our feet firmly planted in the promises, in the love, and in the relationship that You so willingly offer to those who seek You with their whole heart, mind, and soul. In Jesus’ mighty name, AMEN!

Text Free Image by Ralph from Pixabay

“God can turn any situation around…”

 

GOD CAN turn any situation around and get the glory out of our lives. “To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.” Isaiah 61:3

“I will wait till my change comes!”

 

I don’t know God’s plans for you. And, I don’t know all that He has planned for me. But one thing I do know is He is sovereign and has control of everything pertaining to each and every one of us. It is better to wait on the Lord than to chase what is fruitless and futile. Even if we are in the valley of affliction, and don’t quite know which way to turn. Turn where He is turning. Go where God is leading. Wait on Him and trust Him to bring your change to past. “All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come,” Job 14:14. The change Job was looking for may be different than the change you or I are hoping for, nonetheless, wait till it comes!

“What is Man…”

Father God, thank You that You are mindful of us this day and every day. Thank You that Your hand of mercy has raised us up this day and the power of Your Holy Spirit is walking with us through this day. Thank You for Your daily love, compassion, and faithfulness that is at work in our lives. Thank You for just being the great and glorious God that You are. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, AMEN!

Confident in God!

There is always something about the stories where the underdog comes out on top, where the least of all becomes the greatest that sends chills of inspiration up the spine.

The story of David and Goliath has long evoked a sense of awe at the victory won and the hope of possibility in the soul still in the fight facing his/her own giants. The fact of the matter is that many things in this life which we face day to day can at times seem too much to bear.  Our worries don’t necessarily have to be against the biggest guy around.  Just the struggle of making it one more day, another try at giving it your best shot, can make it really hard for some people.

That’s why this article is not going to focus on the beast Goliath was or how David brought him down with just a stone and slingshot.

Nope. I want us to focus on the confidence that David had in God.

To me, it doesn’t matter if what you face is big or small. Sometimes the hardest stuff is the routine, small stuff that gets on your nerves every single day and makes you want to throw in the towel and quit.

Yes, David did the impossible in the name of the Lord. But, what I have found out in my own life is when we have that same confidence in God in every area of our lives, big or small, God tends to step in and work it out for us.  And, you know it was Him because that very area in life that used to be a source of hardship and frustration now becomes a place of peace and productivity.

David, before confronting Goliath, declared, “The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine,” (1 Samuel 17:37, emphasis mine).  I want us to focus on “He will” of that statement.  David expressed in those two little words the amount of confidence he had in the God he served.

Confidence in God is the key no matter what. Many times we misplace our confidences in the things and the people we see around us, allowing them to become our focus and control when God should be at the forefront of the battle with us.  Over and over again we are told in His Word, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man,” (Psalm 118:8); yet, man seems to always get more of our attention and we wonder why we falter in the battle and don’t end up standing as victor over the giants and circumstances we face.

We have to rely more on God than anything else in this world. He truly is the only one who can get in there and fight with us and for us and bring us to a victorious end on the other side.

Below are some reminders to trust God and have confidence in Him no matter the size of anything we face. Knowing this will improve our day to day struggles in life and turn them into day to day victories.

  • “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” – Proverbs 3:5
  • “Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.” – Isaiah 26:4
  • “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.” – Psalm 37:3
  • “Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you.” – 2 Chronicles 20:17
  • “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” – Corrie Ten Boom
  • “Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times.” – Martin Luther
  • “So many of us limit our praying because we are not reckless in our confidence in God. In the eyes of those who do not know God, it is madness to trust Him, but when we pray in the Holy Spirit we begin to realize the resources of God, that He is our perfect heavenly Father, and we are His children.” – Oswald Chambers

Words To Live By – “Rest In Jesus!”

 

“THAT’S IT, I HAD IT!!!” We have all had those moments in life. Don’t lose your cool, lose your problems instead. Jesus invites us to “CAST” everything on Him because He “CARES” for us! Take that encouragement with you as you go through this day. Make it up in your mind that whatever irks you, gets under your skins or makes you want to wash your hands of it all, give it to Jesus and let Him help you with this day!!!

Father God, thank you for Your Sovereign hand at work in my life today. Thank You that you are willing to be my burden bearer and my heavy load sharer. Thank You that you are concerned enough about me to lend me Your ear to hear my prayer requests that come up before You. You are an awesome and amazing God. Time and time again You work to pull me through. I am ever so grateful for every drop of Your love, Your peace and Your anointing in my life. Apart from You, I can do nothing and without You I am nothing. Into Your hands, I commit every prayer request. In the name of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ, I pray – AMEN!!!

“Embracing the Promises of God!”

 

Are you just saying, “AMEN!” to the preacher and the message or are you really getting into an agreement with the words coming forth from the mouthpiece of God?  Do you think the songs that are sung, which carry His good word and lifts your soul, do you think they are just to make you feel good for a moment, or are they truths binding themselves on your heart because you can see with eyes of faith what God really wants to do in your life?  Do you think the words written in that Holy Bible are just a collection of tales to temporarily inspire you or are they moments in the lives of others God is using to show you that He can do the same thing for you?

It’s one thing to hear messages, read the Word, and listen to the songs about the promises of God, and it’s another thing to grab hold of them for yourself and believe with a fervent grip that they are for you, too.  Embracing God’s promises is saying, “I may not have it now, but my faith is tied to what God already spoke over my life.  With my physical eyes, it may not currently be before me, but with my spirituals eyes, I am persuaded that God will do what He said He would do, and I embrace that truth!  I choose to hold on to what God said over all else!”

Embracing is active participation in claiming the promises of God for your life.  God gave mankind a will and He won’t force you to believe His promises, but oh how sweet it is if you do.  He puts it out there, and many times He gives evidence that it will happen (and sometimes He doesn’t), but it is up to each individual heart to not only accept it but to hold on to what He spoke for dear life.  That’s why Hebrews declares, “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)” (Hebrews 10:23; emphasis mine).   The word “us” in that verse lets us know that it is our personal responsibility to lay hold of everything concerning our faith God speaks, including His promises.  If you believe that God is faithful, then believe that He will faithfully follow through with all that He spoke concerning you!

God will do His part without fail.  Our job, when the unwelcomed interruptions of life come, is to keep on embracing that truth when facing whatever is before us.  Today, get a hold of the promises of God for your life and refuse to let them go.

“These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.” Hebrews 11:13