SO WHAT IS PROSPERITY?

Psalm 35:27 NKJV Let them shout for joy and be glad, Who favor my righteous cause; And let them say continually, “Let the Lord be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.”

I have good news today. God is pleased when we prosper.😊 But what does prosper mean in God’s eyes? I thought we’d have a look because it means more than we might think.

Strong’s Concordance (7965) for prosperity in this verse - Shalom: well, happy, healthy, prosperity, peace, friendly, complete, whole, welfare.

I hope that gladdens your heart because it did mine. It’s not God’s desire for us to be sick but He is pleased when we’re healthy and thriving, when we’re at peace when all is well and whole with a sense of welfare, when we thrive in every area of life, and that includes Him wanting our finances to prosper too. So we know it’s His will for us to have all of those.

Some people have thought God wants them poor or sick but it’s not what scripture says. Jesus spent a great part of His time healing and delivering people. We’re told it was God who blessed Abraham so much that he had tremendous riches! Paul writes that we have inherited the blessings of Abraham and I wonder if we’ve realised the implications of that? (Galations 3:13-14).

The world says if we have money and ‘things’ then we’re prosperous, but God says it’s far more than that because God takes pleasure when we thrive in every aspect of our lives. For instance it probably wouldn’t be much use to be a millionaire but not able to enjoy it because of illness!

God’s heart and His desire is for us to prosper and thrive in everything so we’re not only able to be blessed but to be a blessing to others, to bring glory to His name. 

So we need never wonder if it’s God’s will for us to be prosperous, or to be healthy and have more than enough, because He says it is, and if we’re struggling in any of those areas then we know we can go to Him with confidence knowing He’s willing and wants to put it right. That’s good news.😊 Amen.

SETBACKS OR SET UPS

Psalm 100:5 NIV For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Our circumstances may change from day to day, but thankfully our God does not. We need to always be reminding ourselves of that otherwise we might be tempted to listen to the enemy’s doubts and fears because of things that happen!

Sometimes we have what looks like setbacks but in God’s hands they become setups for Him to show up in a greater way in our lives. Joseph was a great example of constant setbacks in his life which seemed so unfair and would have messed most people up, but he remained faithful to God even when he was rejected by family, sold as a slave and later put in prison for something he didn’t do. The hardships and humiliation he must have endured can only be imagined but his God constantly showed him favour even in the worst of circumstances.

We read how the favour of God was on him and we read the same thing about us, that the favour of God is on us because of Jesus, even in our setbacks. It’s because God always has the last word if we keep our trust and focus on Him. When we say, “I don’t understand why these things have happened, but I trust you Lord”, we are opening ourselves up for Him to set us up for restoration and blessing.😊

So be encouraged today to know that when God is turning things around, which He has promised to do,  it’s always for our good, and we can rest in that truth whether it’s the middle of a dark night when we can’t sleep, or we’re in the thick of a difficult day.

God is a good God and He is faithful to us because He loves us beyond measure and nothing can change that wonderful truth. Thank You Lord. Amen.😊

Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash

WELL STIRRED

2 Timothy 1:6-7 NKJV Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Every Christmas around this time of year we had a tradition of making our own cake and then each member of the family would help to stir up the mixture to make sure it was well and truly stirred. Happy days!😊

The Apostle Paul in this verse though is talking to Timothy and reminding him to stir up the gift that was in him and I used to think it meant a particular gift he had been given but discovered the Greek says, to stir up the ‘grace’ of God. 

In 1 Timothy 4:14 he uses the same word for gift which is also the ‘grace’ of God. We’re also being told to stir up the grace of God inside us.😊

We have all been given the grace of God in order for us to be saved and we need it every day of our lives to walk in all God is wanting to give us. We know His grace is undeserved favour, it’s all of God’s riches given to us because of Jesus’ sacrifice, and we can’t do anything to earn it but we receive it by faith. Romans 5:17 (NKJV) reminds us that those who receive the abundance of His grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life. I think we’d all like to do that, don’t you?😊

Now we may, or may not have received the laying on of hands but we have all been given His grace and one of the benefits of His grace is knowing God has not given us a spirit of fear, but He did give us His spirit of power, of love and of a sound mind, but we have to receive it all by faith. We accept it as an accomplished fact. It’s ours, it’s yours and it’s in abundance. The enemy will try to tell us differently but we don’t have to listen to him any more. Jesus set us free from his lies and tyranny of fear.

So, I’m here today to encourage you to stir up the gift of grace, of God’s favour, in your life. Declare it out loud to yourself wherever you are throughout the day, grab a hold of it, and start stirring yourself up knowing it is a gift of God already placed in you.😊

We have it, so we can put it to work and agree with God’s word that we are a child of God saved by grace through faith; we refuse the spirit of fear and we stir up the grace of power, of love and a sound mind already inside of us. It’s all ours in Jesus name. Thank You Lord. Amen.

Photo: Annie Spratt on Unsplash

TURN THE PAGE

Psalm 46:1 NLT God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.

Well it’s another new week and some are on half term and some are not. Whatever we’re doing this week we can know that we walk through it with Almighty God, the One who watches over us and helps us to navigate whatever is going on.

Yesterday in church the preacher reminded us how with God there is always hope, because our God is greater than anything we’re being asked to deal with. God promises to be a very present help in our time of trouble and it makes no difference what kind of trouble it might be.😊

We can’t go by other people’s experiences because we’re not walking their walk, we’re walking our own and it will be different in each case. God does tell us all though to walk by faith and not by what we see or hear in the natural. He reminds us that faith is the substance of things hoped for, not yet seen. In other words those unseen things we’re hoping and looking for are still on the way, God is still working things out but they may take time.

Can I encourage us all to lift up our eyes to Jesus and His promises once again, otherwise we’ll get so bogged down with our circumstances we won’t be able to think and say what God wants us to. We’ll be tempted to speak negatively which is what the enemy wants!

Part of walking in the peace that Jesus came to give us, is to turn our eyes from our present reality, not ignoring it, but remembering that God can change our realities when we have faith. Even when our faith is at a low ebb we can always call on God for His faith because one of His promises is that He will provide all our needs according to Christ Jesus.😊

Whatever your story is at the moment, remember to turn the page, because God has written a lot more in your book which is yet to unfold and He has good plans for you.😊 Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking anything different because we know he is the father of all lies!

Let’s never forget God is for us and I pray the certain knowledge of that truth will sustain and strengthen us each day of the week to be the overcomers in Christ He has made us to be. Amen.😊

HOPE AND A FUTURE

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

When we receive news that we didn’t want to hear it’s good to remember that God knew all about it before we did and although we don’t know the whys and wherefores, we do know our loving Father holds us in the palm of His hand and He will never leave us alone.😊

When the three young men were thrown in the fiery furnace they found that Jesus came to them in the heat of the fire and broke off the chains that bound them and kept them safe . That’s a strong encouragement from God that He will be with us in the heat of our circumstances and keep us safe too because we’re His children and He holds us close to His heart. 

God says over and over again that He is our strength and shield, that in Him we can be strong to face whatever we’re being called to face. He reminds us that with His help we can take courage when we feel fearful because God is with us wherever we go. 

There will never be a day when we have to deal with things on our own, never be a day when God hasn’t gone ahead of us to smooth the crooked paths. There will never be a day when God is too busy to be involved in every intricate detail of our lives.  

Psalm 139 reminds us He sees us when we sit down and rise up. He knows when we feel upset and when we’re distressed by fears, and He encourages our faith to lift our eyes back up to Jesus who is our great High Priest who understands everything we’re dealing with, He is our very present help in trouble.

Yesterday we saw that whatever we have to go through, God is bringing us out the other side. He is holding us steady, and His plans for us have not changed but they’re always to give us a future and a hope, and not to harm us. Thank You Lord. Amen. 

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

NO FEAR IN THE VALLEY

Psalm 23:4 NIV Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

I have an old bookmark in my bible which says: 

‘The Lord is my Shepherd I need not fear the valley.’

Fear comes knocking on everybody’s door at some point and David had more opportunities to fear than most of us but he learned, through walking with the Lord, that he didn’t need to.

Why was that? He’d learned that no matter what giant he faced, no matter how many battles he had to fight, his God was with him and he had a covenant with Almighty God that covered it, that conquered it and that held him steady and secure. And we do too.😊

His God and ours is El Shaddai the One who is more than enough. More than enough to strengthen and help us overcome in every situation when our eyes are on Him. 

David ran toward Goliath, and told him he’d take his head off not because he’d already overcome a lion and a bear, but because of his God who was with him and His power. 

We have the Holy Spirit who raised Christ from the dead actually living in us, and we have a greater covenant with God than David had. How much more can we run toward our giants and tell them we don’t need to fear them, we won’t be intimidated, we will overcome them in the strength of the Lord, and with God’s help we will take their heads off and and they will be rendered powerless to hurt us.

Our fears may try to fill our minds but God says Jesus has put those enemies beneath our feet and we need to keep them there until they’re totally kicked out! Move them from our head to under our heel.😊

God is telling us we need not fear in any valley we’re going through, because He Himself is with us and He is all we need. His rod and staff are His Holy Spirit and His Word and their assignment is to comfort, strengthen and uphold us. We don’t set up camp in the valley because God not only brings us through, but He brings us out the other side. We are not victims. We are Victors through Jesus. Can somebody shout Amen today!😊

Lord we thank and praise You for being with us. You are bringing us out of whatever we are going through, and give You all the glory. In Jesus name. Amen.

CHANGE OUR LIVES

Romans 4:17 NKJV 17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;

Have you ever had a downer on yourself? I can’t do this! I’ve put on weight, I’m not good in company, I keep saying the wrong thing, I’m shy, I’m tired all the time! We’re talking ourselves down and drawing all those negative things to us.

Instead God wants us to think and speak what He says about us. “I’m strong in the Lord, He is renewing my strength so I can overcome. I have God’s wisdom, I’m healthy and filled with God’s joy and peace.”

Now we may not feel any of those things at that moment, but scripture tells us to call those things which are not, as though they were.(Romans 4:17) It’s about talking faith because faith doesn’t go by what we can see, it goes by what is not seen yet. We actually call those things into being by our faith filled words.😊 Faith is the evidence of things we cannot see. (Hebrews 11:1)

We can change our circumstances, our lives, by the words we speak when they line up with God’s word. One church I know of regularly speak these words over themselves:

“I am Blessed, Prosperous, Redeemed, Forgiven, Healed, Talented, Creative, Confident, Secure, Disciplined, Focused, Prepared, Qualified, Motivated, Valuable, Free, Determined, Equipped, Empowered, Anointed, Accepted, Approved, Not Average, Not mediocre. I am a child of the Most High God.
I will become all He’s created me to be. In Jesus Name.”

We may not feel like half of those things, and so often we want to call things like they are and say they’ll never change, but if we choose to do it God’s way we will speak His words out our mouths regardless of what we see in front of us or what we feel. 

What we keep hearing ourselves consistently say goes down into our spirit and changes us. It’s amazing how just speaking even a few of those words out loud over ourselves throughout the day lifts our spirits. I tried it! Let’s pin them up and keep speaking them so the enemy can’t feed us anything else!😊

When we do, we’re giving God the opening to change us from one degree of glory to another. I think we’d all like that, don’t you? Amen.😊

Photo by Eyestetix Studio on Unsplash

DO YOURSELF NO HARM

Acts 16:28 NKJV But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, ….

Paul and Silas were in prison with their backs beaten raw but they were still praising God when God broke the prison doors open with an earthquake! The terrified jailer was about to draw his sword to end his life, and bring disaster on his family, when Paul shouted out, “Do yourself no harm …” 

I was reminded in church recently to do ourselves no harm because Jesus is here to rescue us from whatever situation we’re in. We tend to think of self harming when people cut or starve themselves but it’s possible to harm ourselves with eating unhealthily or by being addicted to wrong things, even too many hours on the internet.😊

It’s also possible to harm ourselves with negative thinking which undermines our confidence or eats away at our faith in God’s promises. We may be tempted to think we can’t do something, which harms our future or stops us being all God has anointed us to be. We harm ourselves when we believe the enemy’s lies instead of God’s infallible word!

Perhaps we’ve all harmed ourselves at some point without realising it or recognising it, but today God is drawing it to our attention; to stop sticking swords in ourselves when He has provided us with a Saviour who delivers us from anything and everything that has the potential to harm us. He reminds us we are no longer condemned, no longer guilty or shamed, but declared righteous in Christ, no longer unwanted but loved and accepted by Him.😊

The jailer found that out when he went on to ask how he could be saved, and what started as two beaten up guys praising God in a prison cell, ended up with a whole family being wonderfully saved! Hallelujah!😊

So Lord Jesus we ask You to rescue us from anything that would cause us to harm ourselves today and bring us into that place of total peace and rest in You. Amen.

THE GLORY OF SUNRISE

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

My friend sent me some glorious pictures of yesterday’s sunrise up in Inverness. They went from the first peak of the sun, setting the sky on fire, to a steady revealing of its light as it reflected off the clouds, and the fields and trees began to glow. We don’t always get to see sunrises as spectacular as that, but it doesn’t mean they’re not happening.😊

In the same way God is doing things in all our lives when His light begins to rise over our circumstances. At first it’s so dark and we can’t see things ever being any different, but our God is the God of all hope and comfort. He is the God who brings light in our darkness and just as He gives us glorious sunrises He is doing the same thing in our lives.

As I looked at the series of photos she sent, I realised we don’t always recognise what’s going on in the background but it doesn’t mean it’s not happening! God paints the sky every morning with colour and beauty which is totally breathtaking, whether we see it or not. Why would He not do the same in our lives? …how will he not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?

Let’s lift our eyes upwards again today and thank God for all He is doing on our behalf, even though we may not be able to see it yet. He is painting something into your life and mine which will be breathtaking if we’ll take our faith and the time to believe Him for it and look for it.😊

What kind of beauty is it? It’s the beauty of loving relationships, of caring friendships, the wonder of peace in our hearts that’s beyond our understanding, it’s the deep security of knowing we’re accepted and loved by the One who paints the sky every single day with His breathtaking glory of colour and wonder, and it’s the miracle of His generous provision and protection every day of our lives.

Most of all it’s the beauty of being able to have a personal close relationship with the One who hung on a Cross for our sakes, to be one spirit with Him. Sometimes we forget, but today God is reminding us Jesus His Son, and the wonder of all He gives us, are rising and being revealed in our lives too.

Thank You Lord. Amen.😊

Photos: Courtesy of W.Girling 

GENTLE REMINDERS

Proverbs 4:5 NIV Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them.

I always enjoy reading helpful wise quotes so I thought I’d pass on some more I came across as we move into our week.

‘Be you.’ Sometimes we wish we were somebody else with their gifts or looks, but God made us the way we are, each one unique for a reason. God doesn’t make mistakes so let’s learn to enjoy all our quirky ways and ask God to use them for His glory.😊

‘Choose kindness.’ One of the best choices we can make each day is to be kind, not just to others but to be kind to ourselves, to not find fault all the time but remember we’re all a work in progress and precious to God.

‘Smile.’ We know one of the gifts of the Spirit is joy but sometimes we forget to unbox it and let it show in our smiles. When we do, it can lift up those we pass by or meet in a shop or workplace. Just smile!😊

‘Take time to make your soul happy.’ God tells us to rest for the simple reason that He didn’t design us to keep going without drawing breath. Let’s give ourselves permission to unwind and do something we enjoy.

‘Don’t overthink.’ This is easier said than done but it’s connected to the verse, ‘Be anxious for nothing, but in all your prayers make your requests known to God with thanksgiving.’ Lord help us do that!😊

‘Enjoy life.’ When life goes through tough seasons sometimes we have to stop and count our blessings and ask God to help us have a new perspective so we can enjoy the life He gives us, the little joys.

‘Collect beautiful moments.’ Have you had anything happen that made you smile, or lifted your spirits, or made you glad? Why not write it down and put it in a jar to open up at the end of the month to remind yourself of those beautiful moments. They’re so easily forgotten.😊

‘Good things take time.’ Next time we feel frustration creeping in because the thing we’re waiting for is taking longer than we thought, remember in Ecclesiastes it said everything happens in God’s timing and just rest in that.

‘Enjoy a mug of hot chocolate.’ Sometimes we just need some gentle reminders, and if any have struck a cord with us maybe we could find time today to enjoy a mug of hot chocolate. As we sit with our hands around a hot mug, let’s breathe in the lovely aroma and remember most of all God loves us and Jesus’ invitation to come to Him and find rest for our souls. Enjoy a few minutes with the Lord to unwind and thank Him for all His goodness and blessings in our lives.😊 Amen.

SMILING MAKES ME THIN

1 Thessalonians 5:16 AMPC Be happy (in your faith) and rejoice and be glad-hearted continually (always);

I saw this sign and it made me chuckle “Smiling makes me thin!” I think anyone who has tried to lose weight at any time would wish that statement was true, and there would be a lot of smiling people going around!😊

But we all know smiling helps us physically as well as emotionally, and our verse encourages us today to ‘always be glad hearted’. But how do we do that when things come against us or we’re sad about something?

Being glad hearted or rejoicing doesn’t depend on our outward circumstances being wonderful, but it’s an inner peace and contentment. It’s an inside job of having joy in our spirit despite what’s going on around us.

Every one of us who knows Jesus as Lord has His Spirit on the inside of us and He puts His joy, His peace and love within us when He comes. We can then choose to tap into those things when the pressure is on us to be miserable or depressed. Our verse reminds us to be happy in our faith and that’s because it’s our faith that overcomes the world, and whatever seeks to pull us down. (1 John 5:4). 

If we take our eyes off Jesus and all He has done for us we can find ourselves sliding down a slippery slope of despair but when we remember we are still a deeply loved child of God, forgiven and chosen by Him to be His special treasure, then we will be able to still rejoice and always be glad hearted because those truths have not changed one bit and they will last forever, through every up or down.

So next time something tries to steal our smile, let’s remember to tap into our inner joy and all that God has done for us in Jesus, and even if our circumstances are difficult or they haven’t changed, let’s choose to give Him thanks with a grateful, glad heart for all the blessings we do have.😊 Amen.

Have a blessed weekend, a glad heart, and keep smiling.x😊

Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash

GOD IS THE MASTER PLANNER

Isaiah 64:4 NLT For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!

When birthdays and Christmas are coming up a lot of people prepare all sorts of lovely surprises for their loved ones. It might be a box of small presents that make them smile or a bigger present they’ve been hoping for all year. It may be the preparation of a scrumptious meal but these things all take planning and preparation.

God is the Master Planner and we know His main plan has always been our salvation through the Lord Jesus coming to earth to be the sacrifice for our sins, for our healing, for our restoration and reconciliation to our Heavenly Father. What a glorious plan!

Psalm 31:19 NLT How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you. You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world. God doesn’t stop there though, because He also has plans for our every day lives, to bless us here and now because our verse says it will be before the watching world! He’s talking in our lifetime not in the sweet by and by. The CEV translation says it this way: You are wonderful, and while everyone watches, you store up blessings for all who honor and trust you.

God wants us to have a sense of expectancy, to stir our spirits up to look forward to seeing not just His goodness but His great goodness. It says He lavishes it on us because that is the heart of our God. He is generous to the enth degree but we have to honour Him and come to Him trusting in His promises, not second guessing them or thinking they’re for somebody else. When our trust is in God alone then they are for us, right now.😊

I hope that has stirred our faith today to know and believe God is actively working in the background of our lives, not only saving our souls for eternity which is huge, but to bring us into all He has planned and prepared for us at this time, from before the world was made, which is quite a thought!😊 Thank You Lord. Amen.

Photo by Andrey Soldatov on Unsplash

THANK YOU FOR THE VICTORY

Romans 8:31-32 NIV What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

When I woke up a bit bleary eyed this morning I had these five words going over in my mind, “THANK YOU FOR THE VICTORY” so I started speaking them out, over and over and over and over again. I had gone to bed asking the Lord to help me with my faith to overcome my doubts and fears over a certain situation because, as we know, we can’t overcome in our own strength.😊 The more I declared and thanked Him for the victory for a good outcome, even though I couldn’t see anything yet, the more my faith increased.

King Jehoshaphat was facing three enemy armies and you may be facing several enemies today as well. Enemies of doubt and fear, enemies of discouragement, overworked in your job, discord in your family, fears for the future, battling with loneliness or sickness, we all have different enemies we face.

But I have good news on every count because we have a Risen Saviour and Jesus has already won the greatest victory in history. Praise His name!😊The Holy Spirit reminds us that it’s our faith in Jesus that overcomes the world because Jesus defeated all our enemies at the Cross for us. He has declared we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. (Romans 8)

2 Chronicles 20:5-25 Jehoshaphat didn’t know what to do but he told God their eyes were on Him, because their trust was in Him. God told him He would fight the battle for him and not to be afraid or dismayed.Then Jehoshaphat told the worship singers to go out in front of his army as they prepared for the battle and we know the story, as they praised God, the enemy fought amongst themselves and were totally destroyed! Read the story.😊

God wants to encourage us all, whatever doubts and fears we have, whatever our past experience has been, this is a new day and God is for us not against us. He is reminding us He is fighting the battle for us. He only wants the best for us and as we put our whole trust in Him and thank Him for the victory in our situation, in advance, so we release His power, His angels, to fight for us to bring His victory into everything we’re dealing with.😊

Lord, we THANK YOU FOR THE VICTORY in every situation in our lives today and we give you all the praise because Your mercy endures forever and ever and we belong to You. Praise the name of Jesus. Amen.

HEAVY SUITCASES

Psalm 68:19 AMPC Blessed be the Lord, Who bears our burdens and carries us day by day, even the God Who is our salvation! Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!

If you’ve ever had to carry a suitcase up a flight of steps at the railway station, and then down again the other side to reach the other platform, you’ll know how heavy it can be and you’re glad to put it down!

In the same way we all carry suitcases through life jammed with burdens we were never designed to carry. I wonder what your suitcase is full of? Is it heavy with memories that burden you down, maybe it is full of regrets or hurts or unforgiveness? Maybe it’s full of family troubles or health problems, or how to pay the bills?

Whatever is in it, God wants to remind us He is our burden bearer. Are we trying to carry, or stubbornly holding on to what we need to let go of? Why not release the handle of your suitcase to Him and let Him have the full weight of it?😊

Our verse says He carries us day by day. It never says He carries us every now and again when He feels like it or when He sees we can’t manage. No, He carries us every single day but are we allowing Him to take the weight? If not, it’s like getting on the train but still carrying the suitcase!

When we worry and are anxious all the time it lets us see we’re not really trusting God to sort things out, that we’re still trying to be God in our own lives. We seem to think He’s not on the job so we feel we have to be! How silly can we be? As though worrying can change anything anyway!

1 Peter 5:7 AMPC Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. Did you notice the ‘all’ bit? Sometimes we do give God the cares but after a few minutes we grab the handle of the suitcase back again! 

It’s tempting to say we can’t help it, but that’s not true or God would be unjust to tell us to do it! God says to ask the Holy Spirit to help us with everything, so next time we catch ourselves carrying the heavy suitcase let’s ask the Holy Spirit to help us let go and allow Him to carry it instead.😊 Amen.

Photo by Kin Wai Cheung on Unsplash

YOUR HEART’S DESIRE

Psalm 20:4-5 NLT May he grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed. May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory and raise a victory banner in the name of our God.
May the Lord answer all your prayers.

When someone says something to us twice we know they’re trying to get our attention and we should be listening!😊 Well in the past few days I have been given Psalm 20 twice and I had the same thought, “I need to listen!” So what is God saying to us because His word is for all of us, not just for the odd one or two! 

We all have heart’s desires, things we are praying for, whether it’s for relations to be saved, health issues, family situations to be turned around or maybe as in our case for moving house, but they are all the desires of our hearts and God knows every one of them.😊

It’s interesting the psalmist prays that God won’t just give them their heart’s desire, but will also make all their plans succeed. That implies we need to have some specific plans in place before God can bring them about! Are they His plans or our plans? God is not vague, in fact when He gave Moses the design plans for the tabernacle they were incredibly specific.

We know we’re called to be imitators of God so what are our specific plans and desires? Have we written them down like it says to do in Habakkuk 2:2-3(NKJV), so we know exactly what we’re believing for, what our heart’s desire is? 

If we’re sick, our heart’s desire will be for total restoration, not a half hearted job. We need to ‘see’ ourselves well, with maybe a photo of us when we were healthy so we know what we’re aiming for. “Thank You Lord, You want me whole and well and Your word says by Jesus wounds I was healed. Thank You it’s manifesting moment by moment, even when I can’t see or feel it yet.”😊

If we are dealing with family upsets, we need a picture in our head of them all getting on well, not just ‘O God, help my family”. I believe the Lord wants us to be specific, to speak positive words over them.“Thank You Lord You are bringing restoration and reconciliation to the family. Thank You Lord You are healing the hurts and building bridges. You’re bringing the desires of my heart.” 

When we do that we’re showing God our faith, that we’re trusting Him to fulfil His promises and give us the desires of our hearts knowing He wants us to prosper and be in health even as our soul prospers. Thank You Lord. Amen.😊

Photo by Mohamed Marey on Unsplash

 

GOD DOESN’T MAKE MISTAKES

Hebrews 12:2 NLT We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

I was looking for some information and came across a comment underneath the answer - ‘AI responses may include mistakes.’ I’m so glad they admitted it because AI doesn’t always get it right!😊 

As I was thinking on that I realised afresh that our God does not make mistakes which is so reassuring. We all make mistakes from time to time including doctors and politicians, but not God!😊 

When God made you and me He didn’t make a mistake. When He chose you and called you He didn’t make a mistake. When Jesus died for us all He didn’t make a mistake either because He was looking forward to the joy set before Him. He saw the end result of His suffering which would be for each one of us who have chosen to put our trust in Him to be forgiven and brought into God’s family. Thank God!

God thought each one of us was worth dying for, and though we may make some mistakes His grace is so powerful that it’s strong enough to turn them around for our good when we love the Lord and are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28). What a wonderful God is our God! 

Jesus dying on the Cross probably looked like a mistake to those watching and the enemy thought he’d destroyed Him but scripture tells us not to go by what things look like! The end result was a glorious victory for our God and even though we may be tempted to look at some things in our lives and think God has maybe made a mistake, take heart because God knows the end from the beginning and He has a glorious victory for us on its way.😊

So as we go into our new week let’s keep our eyes on Jesus, no matter what is going on, or not going on in our lives at the moment. Be encouraged to know God’s ways and thoughts are not like ours but they’re far higher, far reaching, and they are totally motivated by His love for us and He doesn’t make mistakes.😊

Thank You Lord. Amen.

Photo: Immo Wegmann on Unsplash

KEEP GOING - DON’T GIVE UP!

Joshua 1:9 NLT This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Keep going. Don’t give up! How often we need to hear those words when life wears us down and we feel like we’ve had enough! Perhaps you feel like that at the minute? Maybe life has ganged up on you, or you’ve had more bad news and you don’t feel very inspired to do much. It might not even be that, but it’s just the treadmill of doing the same thing over and over again that has worn you down.

Whatever it is that has discouraged you God is constantly encouraging us through scripture to keep going, to know He is by our side telling us to be of good courage, to believe for the best, to know He is strengthening and upholding us.😊

In 1 Samuel 30:1-6 David and his men had faced a life changing defeat and the men were wanting to stone David, which was enough to discourage anybody, but David had learned to encourage himself in the Lord. He knew His God had not abandoned him and if he’d just keep going that God would come through for him. It was only 2-3 days later that he experienced an enormous victory and they reclaimed all that was lost and more.😊

Sometimes when we’re under attack and being pressured to give up, whether it’s giving up on a job or a project or on a relationship, pressured to give up on believing for our healing or something else that is taking a long time to happen, it’s the very time we need to hang in there. It could be only 2-3 days to our greatest victory but we’d never know if we gave in to the pressure and gave up believing for what God has promised.😊

Be encouraged to keep going, no matter what! God is fighting our battles for us but He does tell us to be strong and of good courage, to not be afraid, nor be dismayed for the Lord your God is with you. 

So strengthen the weak knees because you can do this with the help of the Holy Spirit. Keep going and whatever you do, don’t give up because God always leads us in victory.😊Amen.

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

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BE ENCOURAGED

Isaiah 59:1 NLT Listen! The Lord’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.

God wants to encourage us all today no matter where we’re at, or what we’re facing, or what has happened. He knows the end from the beginning and nothing takes Him by surprise. God has told us He has good plans to prosper us and not to harm us, a future and a hope, but it requires us to take up our shield of faith to grab a hold of that promise so the enemy can’t steal it from us.

Scripture is full of what God has promised us and He doesn’t lie, so we can have confidence to stand on His word in the face of whatever the enemy is trying to put on us. We can be so grateful that our God is supernatural and He is not limited in any way, shape or form, by our present reality. 

Jesus told Jairus's daughter who had actually died, to get up, and she did. He told lepers to be made whole and they were. Their present reality had to bow to God’s supernatural reality. How encouraging that is.😊 Jesus never said, “How awful, what are we going to do!” No, He knew He’d been sent to heal the sick, make blind eyes see, etc. so He did, and He is the same yesterday, today and forever!

Jesus faced earthly reality on a daily basis but He brought God’s heavenly reality, which is higher and more powerful than ours, into every situation because He knew His Father’s heart was to heal, restore, provide and turn things around for peoples’ good. I can personally testify to that.😊 

3 John 2 NKJV Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. I love this verse because it reminds me of what God’s will is for His children, so I don’t need to wonder.

Let’s stand together in faith for all that God has promised us and believe what Isaiah said that God will listen to our prayers and He will save us. He will save you. In Jesus name. Amen.

DON’T FORGET!

Colossians 3:15 NLT And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

Do you ever find you need reminding of things? You may have good intentions but then you forget to do what you’re supposed to do! It’s not even an ‘age’ thing because I was like it years ago but I have learned to write notes to myself and pin them where I’ll see them to remind me! Maybe you do the same?😊

In the same way I think we might need reminding of some of the things the Holy Spirit said through Paul in Colossians 3 (NLT). If you’ve not read it lately have a little look with me: 

10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.

12…you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 

13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 

Maybe it would be good to write them down and pin them up around the house because it’s easy to forget, whether we’re 4 or 94!😊 Earlier in the chapter Paul talks about taking off things like being greedy, sexual immorality, impurity, lust, anger, rage, spiteful behaviour, etc. but he tells us to put on our new nature.

If we’re honest, our new nature is much nicer so why do we want to hang on to any of the other stuff like unforgiveness and offence anyway? It only makes us miserable in the end! It’s time to let some things go, to take them off like an old worn out coat and put on our shining armour of righteousness which we’ve been given as a free gift instead. When we do we’ll find peace will come as a result. As Paul says…15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. And always be thankful. 

Why not have a read of Colossians 3 again and be blessed and maybe get your pen and paper notes out?🤣 Amen.

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WE HAVE A GOOD REPORT

Proverbs 15:30 NKJV The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, And a good report makes the bones healthy.

When we were at school we wanted to take home a good report to make our parents smile.😊 Now we constantly receive doctor’s reports, maybe job reports, or bank reports and some of them can be disturbing. But I have good news because we have a good report every day that should make us smile and it’s the Word of God which supersedes them all!

Our report says this:

God loves us with an everlasting love and nothing can separate us from His love.✔️

Our sins have been forgiven and cast away as far as the east is from the west, and God remembers them no more.✔️

God has given us His grace and righteousness as a gift so we can reign in life.✔️

Now everything Jesus has is ours as Joint Heirs with Him!✔️

By Jesus wounds we are forgiven and also healed.✔️

Our God is merciful and faithful and He will never abandon us or leave us without support.✔️

Our God will provide all our needs according to His riches in heaven by Christ Jesus.✔️

He has made us Over-comers, more than conquerors through Jesus.✔️

We are anointed and equipped and can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.✔️

We have the Spirit of the Living God, who raises the dead, dwelling on the inside of us.✔️

Jesus is coming again to receive us to Himself.✔️

Our outstanding report comes from God’s word and it goes on and on. You can read it for yourselves, but even this little bit of our report is wonderful beyond our imagination and you know what a good report does? Our verse says it makes our bones healthy and strong when we believe it! 

Let’s keep reading our report every day and find out what the rest of it says, till it sinks down into our bones, till it transforms our minds, and if we receive a bad report from anywhere else we can say with total confidence, “Ah, but I have a better and a higher report and even though I may not see it all yet I receive it by faith.”😊 In Jesus name. Amen.

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WHEN GOD MULTITASKS

1 Peter 5:7 AMP casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully].

I read this Snoopy quote yesterday and it made me smile: “I’m multitasking. I can listen, ignore and forget all at the same time.” I wonder if any of us do that, whether intentionally, or not!?😊

Thankfully, God is not like that because when God multitasks He always listens, He never ignores us and He never forgets what we’ve been saying. God cares about us more than anything we can imagine and His love never ends so when we go to His throne room we know He’s always available and ready to give us mercy and help, no matter what the circumstance, or how alone we may feel.

There are times we can be afraid to confide in someone because we think they’ll judge us or dismiss our concerns as silly or trivial, or too big to handle, but God already knows us inside out so nothing we tell Him will come as a surprise. God already knew what He was getting when He called and chose us, so we can trust Him to understand where we’re coming from.😊

Psalm 139 reminds us God knows what we’re going to say before we say it and He knows when we sit down or rise up, so no matter what we’ve done, or should have done, or how bad it was, or whatever worries us, God already knows before we tell Him, and He’s just waiting for us to admit it and let Him forgive us and put it right.

No wonder we can draw near to God when we know He’s like that towards us, that He’s not condemning us but His heart is to care for us and the things that trouble us. His heart is to lift us up and let us know that nothing can stop Him loving us. What a wonderful blessing that is!

Psalm 34:17 NLT The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles.

So next time we need someone to listen to us, who won’t ignore us, but who really cares about everything that’s going on in our lives, let’s go to Jesus, our wonderful High Priest who sympathises with our weaknesses and has done something about them, and leave all those cares with Him, knowing He won’t condemn us, or forget us or any one of our concerns.😊 (Hebrews 4:15-16)

Thank You Lord. Amen.

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ONE OF THOSE DAYS!

Hebrews 13:6 AMPC So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?

I expect we all have ‘one of those days’ from time to time and I had one the other day when I broke a tooth! I was given an emergency appointment at the dentist for the next day, but the next morning I was told it had been cancelled and no new appointments till next year! The lady was most unhelpful and I was somewhat ruffled!

A few minutes later I was hanging the washing out on the clothes line, muttering under my breath, when the line collapsed on the wet grass! It was at that point I knew the enemy was having a go and everything in the garden was not rosey!

None of us likes those times and it’s when we need to call on the Holy Spirit to give us grace to handle what’s happening. I certainly needed it at that moment!😊

It’s a bit like when we need to press the F1 button on a computer when we need help. We have a heavenly F1 button and we can call on F for Father, 1 for first. Who do you go to first for help? The Holy Spirit is within us and He is our Helper no matter what is happening. So I asked Him for help.😊 

Amazingly the first dentist I rang was miraculously taking new NHS patients and could see me next day! What a turn around! I ended up with a much better dentist than I had before.

Life gets to us all sometimes and finds our weak spots, but God is so gracious and forgiving and He still loves us even when we get seriously wound up! We may learn some areas we need to let the Holy Spirit work on in our lives, as I know I did.

So as we go into our new week, if you find yourself having ‘one of those days’, take a deep breath, press your inner F1 button for help and allow the Holy Spirit to step in and bring back some calm and peace and wisdom! He’s more than able to turn things around for us if we ask. Amen.😊

WHATEVER HAPPENS

Philippians 3:1 NLT Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.

As I was reading about Paul rejoicing as he was writing to the Philippian church I asked myself what am I rejoicing in today because, I don’t know about you, but we can get so caught up in the nitty gritty of our day that we forget to rejoice. Maybe you don’t feel like rejoicing, and you may think there’s not much to rejoice about because of the state of the world, or because of health or family issues.

But God wants to bring us up higher today to remember all the things we can rejoice about no matter what happens around us.😊

We can rejoice because God has forgiven us, because He has accepted us and called us righteous in His sight. Those things, all on their own, are a cause for huge rejoicing! But what’s next? 

We can rejoice in God’s provision and His wonderful care of us; in God’s protection and how He watches over us, and most of all we can rejoice because in His presence is fullness of joy. We all know it’s much easier to enjoy the ones we love when we actually spend time with them and interact with them. It’s the same with God.😊

In 1 Thessalonians 5:23 NIV God reminds us we are spirit beings, who have a soul, and we happen to live in a body, but the spirit is where our real life is, it’s the real ‘us’, and God’s Holy Spirit is joined to our spirit. That is where and how Paul could rejoice in the midst of prison, in shipwrecks, in beatings. He just had such an awareness in his spirit of who he was in Christ and all that Christ had done for him he couldn’t seem to not rejoice.😊

We may not be at that point yet (I know I have a way to go) but as Paul says, we leave those things which are behind, we press forward and we rejoice in all Jesus has done for us as we go.

Psalm 33:1 NKJV Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous! For praise from the upright is beautiful.

When things are tough in life, let’s remember we can still rejoice in God’s presence, in His provision, and in His protection and so much more! What a wonderful Saviour, and I hope it has helped you rejoice today.😊 Amen.

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

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STEADY THE KNEES!

Isaiah 35:3-4 NIV Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance with divine retribution he will come to save you.”

I read a sign which said, ‘Life without cake is possible but pointless.’ which made me chuckle.😊

Life without faith is also possible but pointless. We all look at situations and think some can change and others look impossible. We find all the reasons why they won’t or can’t be done, but that is when we are walking by sight! God calls us to walk by faith because it’s our faith that overcomes the world, not our doubts or human reasonings, because Jesus is the Author and Finisher of our faith.😊

God says we're on the victory side, that we are above only and not beneath, that all things are possible to him who believes! Matthew 19:26 NIV Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” When we look at the circumstances we can listen to our doubts, bow in defeat and say things will never change, or we can choose to believe Jesus and thank Him for the victory by faith.😊

The Lord is standing beside each one of us encouraging us to stand up, to put our armour on yet again and declare the victory Jesus has already won for us. No matter how we feel, I’m so glad we can say by faith that we are strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, because it depends on what Jesus has already done, not on how we feel or what things look like.

The Holy Spirit is right there, right now, to steady your knees that might feel wobbly, to encourage you to know you are strong in the Lord! He will rise up within you so you can walk by faith! Let’s poke the enemy in the eye together as we join our shields of faith and say we will overcome by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony, by the power of the Spirit of God inside us, because with His help He says we can! Amen.😊

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WEARING THE RIGHT BELT

Ephesians 6:14 NIV Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place…

Have you ever bought one of those belts that says it’s real leather but you discover it’s fake when you’ve used it for a little while? It begins to fall apart and it’s so disappointing!😊

God commands us to make sure we’re wearing the right belt each day because what we wear to hold our spiritual clothes up is important. He says to wear the belt of His truth and not some look alike, some fake truth someone has told us.

Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Jesus tells us His words are truth and that the truth will set us free. My question is, are we wearing the truth of God’s word to hold everything together in our lives? Is the truth we’re standing on straight from the word of God, or is it from man’s traditions, or man’s experience or from a report we have been told?

God wants His word to be the first and last word in our lives. If God says it then that’s it! If we don’t live by His truth our clothes will fall down round our ankles!😊 We often look at facts, or at what our experience has been so far, and we go by those so called ‘truths’. But God’s Word, His truth, is far more powerful than anything else we know. It changes lives and circumstances when we decide to believe it, and only it, because it is supernatural!

The truth is God loves us with an everlasting love, and has good plans for our lives regardless of what has gone before. The truth is God is as much our God in the valleys as on the mountaintops and His power is as real in one as in another. 

If we’re in a pit of despair God’s truth says He will lift us up and out, and put our feet in a broad safe place. (Psalm 18:18-19 NKJV They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the Lord was my support. He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me.) 

If we feel like nothing’s working or we’ve made too many mistakes, the truth is we are blessed going out and coming in, that we are surrounded by the favour of God wherever we go!

If we’re in financial difficulty the truth says God will provide all our needs. If our relationships are messed up, the truth is God can turn any situation around for our good. The truth is - nothing is impossible with God! 😊

Now, my question is, “Whose truth have we got belted around our waist today?” If we find we’re wearing a fake leather belt, let’s take it off and put on the real deal! Let’s deliberately make sure we’re wearing God’s belt of truth and know it will hold us safe, steady and secure through every circumstance of life. In Jesus name. Amen.

HOW TO DO THINGS

Isaiah 28:29 NKJV This also comes from the Lord of hosts, Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance.

We’ve probably all wished we were as wise as an owl at some point, but apparently they’re not as clever as ravens and crows, they just look wise!😊 

In verses 23-29, Isaiah has been talking about the wisdom of the way seed is sown and then harvested, and goes on to explain how it’s God who teaches the farmer.

What struck me is that God will come alongside us in our workplace, in our homes or wherever we are, to give us the wisdom we need, to teach us how to do the everyday things that need to be done. Even when things go wrong, if we’re listening for His nudge, we can ask Him to give us the right ideas as to how to make things work.

It’s like when we have to repair something at home, we know it’s good to pray first and ask the Holy Spirit for the best way to do it, or to lead us to the information that will give us the know how. We’ve often done that and suddenly things fall into place or God has led us to the information we needed. I’ve even laid hands on the fridge freezer and told it to stop making some weird noise and it’s stopped! 😊

God wants us to know He knows and cares about everything in our lives, whether it’s people or inanimate objects we have to work with. Jesus spoke to trees, He told Peter to go fishing and find their tax money in its mouth! He made extra wine for a wedding, He provided a picnic for 5,000 people when they were having time off to listen to  Him.

Whatever it is, relaxation, celebration, paying the bills, overcoming mountains, Jesus wants us to know and to see He can and will give us the counsel and wisdom we need for daily living. Isn’t that wonderful? We’re not muddling along on our own, we have Wisdom Himself living on the inside of us and He tells us to ask for wisdom and we can have it. (James 1:5)

I know I’ve probably missed it many times but God is merciful, and the important thing is to not give up but to keep asking and listening and we will have the victory. Let’s take advantage of His wisdom today. Amen.

TIME TO CHANGE OUR SHOES!

Philipppians 3:12-14 NIV  … but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Do you ever feel like you’ve got glue under your shoes? You just feel stuck! You want to move forward but for some reason it seems like you’re standing still or going backwards? If we feel like that then it’s time to change our shoes! By that I mean we have to change how we think and how we do things. 

As a person thinks in his heart, so is he.(Proverbs 23:7) If we think and say we’re stuck, we shall remain stuck, but if we ‘see’ ourselves as God sees us moving forward, growing in faith, then we shall.😊

God wants us all to advance, to go forward in every area of our lives. Romans 12:2 says to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. If we don’t change our minds about some things, to come into agreement with what God says in His word, then we shall stay stuck. What are we willing to change to go forward?

What we say about ourselves will determine the path ahead. When we speak God’s words into our future we are sowing great seeds to bring the harvest we want. But when we speak negative words we will just have more of the same stuckness!

Mark 11:23 NKJV For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.(Italics and underlining mine) This says we can have what we say, so what are we saying, what are we speaking into our tomorrows? If we want to advance inwardly, outwardly and upwardly, then we need to be speaking God’s word over our lives because the way we release our faith is by our words, followed by our actions.

When we speak Deuteronomy 28:12 we are speaking out an open heaven, that the Lord will bless all the work of our hands. We are changing our inward vision and it will show up outwardly, because we are saying what God says.😊 

When we also declare we are righteous in God’s eyes, that we are surrounded by His favour like a shield, that we have authority over all the works of the enemy, and so on, we are advancing into what God’s vision is for us.

God’s heart is to see us all advance, to walk in all Jesus died for us to have. So if we want to not be stuck anymore, let’s change our shoes by changing what we’re thinking and saying, and declare God is moving us forward till we receive the upward call. Amen.😊

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