Abiding TV

This week’s big question is this: What would it look like if we walked with God like our generation has never seen before? 

Dr. Tony Evans | Mar 05, 2019. Trials: The Test of Spiritual Growth

What if something good can come from your disappointment?

We all have wants and desires, but how do we avoid being controlled by them? Pastor Steven shows that because Jesus experienced thirst on the cross, our thirst can now ultimately be satisfied.

Join us for the powerful ministry of Bishop Keith A. Butler on the Live Your Faith program.

Bishop Butler is committed to teaching the Word of God without compromise and helping believers live their faith.

'Yahweh' from the album 'Faith + Hope + Love' released in July 2009.

Beloved. I am not a King without a kingdom. I am not a King without power. I am not a King without a scepter. I am not a dead King. I am the Risen King. 

Sing Hallelujah, My Child. I have won the victory. I am ALIVE forevermore. Death could not hold Me down. I am seated in Majesty above ALL principalities, powers, rulers of darkness and spiritual wickedness in high places. You have been translated from the kingdom of darkness into My Kingdom of Light. The world shall hear of My fame through you, My Child.

They shall stand in awe at My deeds. Let your praise fill the earth, My Warrior. You shall see My splendor like the sunrise; Rays shall flash from my Hand: My power is not hidden from you, Dear One. By My Spirit, I shall repeat My wonders in your day, and in this time, I will make them known. All power and authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Let not the enemy convince you otherwise. Fear not.

Your God reigns, He is clothed with majesty; clothed and girded with strength; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me, Beloved. Behold, I give unto you power to trample serpents and scorpions and over ALL the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means harm you. Have no fear, Beloved. The Sovereign Lord is your strength; I make your feet like the feet of a deer, you shall tread upon the heights. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

...Habakkuk 3:2O Lord, I have heard the report of you,
and your work, O Lord, do I stand in awe and reverence. In the midst of the years revive it; in the midst of the years make it known;....4His radiance is like the sunlight; He has rays flashing from His hand, And therein is the hiding of His power.

...Habakkuk 3:9The Sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to tread upon the heights.

...Revelation 19:6 And I heard a sound like the roar of a great multitude, like the rushing of many waters, and like a mighty rumbling of thunder, crying out: "Hallelujah! For our Lord God, the Almighty, reigns.

...Matthew 28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

I heard the Lord say,”Don’t make any rash decisions in this season.” The enemy would try and have your feet rush to folly. 

To have you busy and distracted so you forget to pray. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Most of the time, if we will still ourselves for a few minutes. We will get a sense of which way the Lord is leading. Just like the Scripture says: And thine ears shall hear a word behind the saying,”This is the way, walk in it”, when you turn to the right hand, and when you turn to the left (Isaiah 30:21). It really requires time and effort to get quiet and hear from the Lord, but He is so worth it. God’s words are more precious than rubies or gold.

And just as you have to dig deep to mine precious jewels. So you will have to dig into God’s word to excavate nuggets of truth. Little jewels that will change your life, and shift your circumstances. The word of God is life-changing, the word of God makes demons flee. In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (John 1:1). Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7). So if you study the word daily, live a surrendered life, submit to God.

You have just exponentially increase your rate of success over the enemy. The fiery darts will still come, but as a servant of the most high God, you are covered. No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me, declares the Lord (Isaiah 54:17). So take heart, I have overcome the world....

Tammy Lang Jensen

Monday April 1st 2019
Memorise: And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? For I have born him a son in his old age. Genesis 21:7

Read: Joshua 14:6-14(KJV)
6 Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the Lord said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadeshbarnea.
7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.
8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the Lord my God.
9 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the Lord my God.
10 And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.

11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.
12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said.
13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance.
14 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel.

Bible in one year: 
2nd Timothy 1-4,
Jeremiah 8:18-9:11,

Hymn: 
Sing hymn 8

Message:
Delayed promises and unfulfilled desires are common life occurrences, bringing about anxiety, disappointment, and hopelessness and, in some cases, untimely death.

Often, the devil uses delay as a deadly weapon to cause children of God to lose faith in Him and His promises, leading to despair. So deadly is this weapon that even Abraham, the father of faith, was caught in its crosshairs. Even after God had gone to great lengths to reassures him that He would fulfil His promise of Sarah birthing him a son, his attitude and response to God was still that of hopelessness. Genesis 17:17-18 says:

“The Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old , bear? And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!”

In Genesis 18:12, Sarah also manifested a similar attitude of unbelief to God’s promise that she would bear a son in less that a year. Elijah was so troubled with uncertainty that he asked God to take his life (1st King 19:4). Zachariah also showed his state of discouragement and hopelessness in his response to the message of the angel sent by God to announce to him that he would have a son in his old age (Luke 1:18). Even John the Baptist, because of his incarceration, sent a message to Jesus that conveyed his feelings of confusion and despair (Matthew 11:2-3). These examples show people who had concluded that their cases were closed and it was all over for them. However, in spite of their hopelessness, God still proved Himself a faithful keeper of His promises to them. In truth, what we often see as delayed promises, unfulfilled desires or closed cases are nothing but a misunderstanding of God’s timetable and divine principles. God never closes the chapter of an issue He has committed Himself to until it is resolved. Therefore, no matter what you are passing through right now, I am assuring you today that God is not done with you yet!

God is the Alpha and Omega who knows the end from the beginning, and He has the power to do all things. It is not in His character to abandon a project. He reconnected Moses to his destiny at the age of eighty. He destroyed the giant occupants of Canaan to fulfil His promise to Israel. He sent Jesus the Messiah as the Saviour of mankind, and He gives the Holy Spirit to all believers in Christ. God has promised that He will not leave or forsake you, so you can be sure that He is not done with you yet (Hebrews 13:5). He will surely bring His word to pass in your life, and He will see you through to the very end, to the glory of His Name. Praise the Lord!

Prayer Point
Father, please let Your will be done by bringing Your word to pass in my life in Jesus’ Name.

Open Heavens Daily Devotional Lessons was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical Churches in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.

As for me, God forbid that I should boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
—Galatians 6:14 (TLB)

What glory is there in the cross? It was an instrument of torture and shame. Why did Paul glory in it? He gloried in it because the most selfless act ever performed by men or angels took place upon it. He saw-emanating from that rough, unartistic beam upon which the Son of God had been crucified—the radiant hope of the world, the end of the believer’s bondage to sin, and the love of God shed abroad in the hearts of men. A lone man dying on a cross did more to restore man’s lost harmony with God, his fellowman, and himself, than the combined genius and power of earth’s mighty. With my finite limitations, I cannot fully comprehend the mystery of Christ’s atonement. I only know that all who come to the cross in simple, trusting faith lose all their guilty stains and find peace with God.

Listen to Billy Graham talk about the importance of the cross.

Discover Jesus and the power of the cross for yourself.

Prayer for the day
Like the Apostle Paul, Father, help me to glory in the cross of Jesus and more fully understand the tremendous meaning it has for me as a believer and for all who would come to its foot and kneel.

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.

Psalm 14:1

Most of us would never dream this verse could apply to us. After all, we’re believers! We’d never say that there is no God.

But maybe we should think again. It’s true that with our mouths we would never say something like that...but don’t we sometimes say it with our actions?

We say it by sinning just a little here and there and thinking it won’t matter. We’ll go to an immoral movie or have a gossip session about the pastor, ignoring God’s command to the contrary.

With our actions we’re saying, “There is no God.”

Psalm 14:1 connects that kind of thing to corruption. Whether you realize it or not, the more you act that way, the more corrupt you’re going to become.

Don’t make the foolish mistake of publicly proclaiming Jesus as your Lord, and then privately denying Him one little action at a time. Use wisdom in everything you do so that both your heart and your life shout loudly, “My God reigns!”

Scripture Reading:
Psalm 14:1-7, 15:1-5

But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
2 Corinthians 8:7, NIV

TODAY'S WORD:

The next time you feel overwhelmed by sickness, challenges or despair, remember that the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in you through Jesus. You may have been burdened by an addiction, fear or worry, but there’s nothing that can stand against the power of God. Rise up and declare by faith, “He whom the Son sets free is free indeed. I am restored and healed in the name of Jesus! No weapon formed against me will prosper!” Receive His truth, declare the Word, and activate His power within you!

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

God, I know that You have a wonderful plan and purpose for me. I want to be in "right standing" with You today. Show me your ways and teach me to walk righteously before you. Shine your light in my heart and give me strength and wisdom to pursue the path You have in-store for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.

— Matthew 5:13

I think it’s safe to say that most of what the world offers is tasteless—and I’m not talking about food. For example, most of the movies Hollywood produces and the way people treat each other in the world today are tasteless.

Usually when we see any type of behavior that is in poor taste, we are quick to blame “the world.” We might say something like, “What is the world coming to?” Yet the phrase “the world” merely means the people who live in the world. If the world has lost its flavor, it is because people have become tasteless in their attitudes and actions.

Jesus said we are the salt of the earth (see Matthew 5:13). He also said we are the light of the world and should not hide our light (see Matthew 5:14).

Think of it this way: Each day as you leave your home, you can add God’s light and flavor to any environment. You can bring joy to your workplace by being determined to consistently have a godly attitude, and through simple things like being thankful, patient, merciful, quick to forgive offenses, kind, and encouraging. Even simply smiling and being friendly is a way to bring flavor into a tasteless society.

I want you to try an experiment. Just think: I am going to go out into the world today and spice things up. Get your mind set before you ever walk out the door that you are going out as God’s ambassador, and that your goal is to be a giver, to love people, and to add good flavor to their lives.

The question each of us must answer is, “What have I done today to make someone else’s life better?”

Prayer Starter: Father, help me to add “flavor” everywhere I go today. Show me ways I can truly love and bless others…and represent You in everything I do. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Hebrews 9:22
And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission

The idea that sacrifice is the purchase price of freedom is not new. In the book of Genesis, we grieve as Adam and Eve hide in humiliation after eating the forbidden fruit. God, in His mercy, sacrificed an animal to cover their nakedness and shame.

In the book of Exodus, we watch as God set His divine plan in motion to free His chosen people. As the Israelites packed their bags and prepared to walk out of Egypt after four hundred years of cruel slavery, God commanded a curious thing. Each family was to sacrifice a spotless lamb and apply its blood over the doorpost. God set apart and spared His own at the sight of that dark stain.

Later, as the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, God demanded that an animal be sacrificed, that its blood be poured on the altar for the cleansing of their sin. The blood was the means by which the Israelites could experience communion and relationship with God.

For those of us who did not belong to the nation of Israel, we stood outside of this arrangement that God forged with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his descendants. Before the cross, we were far away from God, outside of this covenant, and without hope in the world.

But Jesus Christ was our Hope! He came as the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the earth (Revelation 13:8). When John the Baptist looked up and saw Him, he cried out, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Jesus came as the sacrifice for our sin.

When He went to Calvary, He shed His blood “once for all when He offered up Himself” (Hebrews 7:27). What the blood of goats and calves could not do, His blood accomplished. He “obtained eternal redemption” for us (Hebrews 9:12). Because of that sacrifice, every barrier, every separation, has been torn in two. We now have bold access to the Father!

We now have freedom to enter where we could not go before, to receive what we could not claim before. We have hope. We have salvation. We have life. Jesus, the Lamb of God, paid the purchase price for our liberty. His is the sacrifice that won our freedom.

Blessing:

Our precious Savior, we thank You for the sacrifice and for the blood that You shed to graft us in to Your covenant. Thank you for granting us access to every promise, every gift recorded in Your Word. Thank You for hiding our nakedness, for cleansing our sin, for bringing us into relationship with the Father, and for bringing us near. May we ever remember and always be grateful. In the name of our Redeemer, Jesus…amen.

Today's Bible Reading:

Old Testament

Deuteronomy 16:1-17:20

New Testament

Luke 9:7-27

Psalms & Proverbs

Psalm 72:1-20

Proverbs 12:8-9

2 Samuel 7:21-22

Whom do you trust? It isn’t easy to find many people who are true to their word. At some point, we all learn the hard way that anyone other than almighty God can disappoint us. Let’s look at the Lord’s character to discover why He can be trusted.

• He is the one true God. Back in Old Testament times, it was common for people to actually carve and worship a false god. Today, it is more typical to idolize something unseen, such as wealth, power, fame, or relationships. These can consume our passion, money, and time—and in the end leave us fruitless and empty. Jehovah, on the other hand, is alive and real, ready to be intimately involved in our lives.

• God is truth, and He is always faithful (John 14:6; 1 Corinthians 10:13). Unlike sinful man, the Lord is trustworthy—and everything that He says will happen comes to pass. Our sovereign God has all power and is in control of every situation.

• Christ loves us unconditionally. How can we ever doubt His love when He willingly gave His life in our place? And His love is based not on our behavior or status but on His character alone.

• The heavenly Father is unchanging. All of the above are timeless attributes that will forever be true.

God can be trusted. So don’t give Him just the easy concerns; rely upon your Creator for everything. He desires a personal relationship with His beloved and is able to guide each believer through life victoriously. In a changing, suspicious world, you have a Friend who is 100 percent reliable.

Bible in One Year: 1 Samuel 22-24

“By which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:4 NKJV)

The moment a believer truly comprehends that he or she has the divine life and nature of God, that individual will start to act according to that nature and will experience the abundant life.

Think of it this way: The nature of a turkey compels it to walk around and scavenge the ground for food. The nature of an eagle, however, is to soar through the air, feeding on the freshest of what the land and sea has to offer.

Now, you may have great aspirations for your turkey to soar and dine like an eagle, but its nature will always cause it to waddle its way back to scavenging and making its home where it is most comfortable.

All creatures act in accordance with their nature. Before you made Jesus your Lord, you had a sinful nature that came with a tendency for sin and immoral desires. However, when you were born again, you were given a completely new and divine nature. The life and nature of Jesus Christ now resides within you. But the choice is yours to believe you have this nature and to act on it.

For a Christian to act defeated is just as unnatural as it is for an eagle to scrounge like a turkey. Defeat is not part of your nature in Christ Jesus. You have the nature of an overcoming winner in life!

Confession: I have the life and nature of God. I am an overcoming winner in life. Through Jesus Christ, I have escaped the corruption that is in this world, and the Holy Spirit now gives me the life-changing revelation I need to live out the reality of these truths.

Author: Jerry Savelle

Proverbs 4:20–22

My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.

God has given us a sure way to receive the answers to our problems and challenges. It is His Word. Every answer or solution we need is found in the Bible.

Yet, many Christians are not walking victoriously in certain areas of their lives. This is because the devil continuously wages a war of distraction against them. He has managed to take them away from the one thing that can bring them victory—the Word. He will do everything possible to prevent them from opening the Bible because he knows that the Word will deliver them.

The distraction can be very subtle: A lot of things to get done, a lot of TV programs that interest you, or it may take the form of a big problem that makes you feel that you need to focus all your attention on it. The enemy knows that if he can get you to take your eyes off the Word of God, he can keep you from winning the battle.

When you are going through a tough time, it is not enough to know that God’s answer to the problem is “somewhere in the Bible.” Find the scripture in which God has promised the solution. Meditate on it until the truth of that scripture is revealed to you. When you do this, no demon or devil can prevent that word from God from bearing fruit in your life.

Even Jesus Himself used the Word to defeat the devil in the wilderness—“It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). The way to defeat the enemy is with “It is written…”

My friend, there is no substitute for the written Word. God tells us that we will find life and health if we give our attention to His Word and keep it in the midst of our hearts. So get into the Word and let God’s promises abide in you.

Our Father, As We Worship You, Here We Are & Have Your Way w/ lyrics
Our Father, As We Worship You, Here We Are & Have Your Way w/ lyrics

"Change Your Core" by Sarah Jakes Roberts
"Change Your Core" by Sarah Jakes Roberts
"Change Your Core" by Sarah Jakes Roberts

"Trusting God When It Doesn't Make Sense" Joyce Meyer Ministries
"Trusting God When It Doesn't Make Sense" Joyce Meyer Ministries
"Trusting God When It Doesn't Make Sense" Joyce Meyer Ministries

He which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus . . . 
—2 Corinthians 4:14

The resurrection of Christ brings hope. The late Emil Brunner once said, “What oxygen is for the lungs, such is hope for the meaning of human life.” As the human organism is dependent on a supply of oxygen, so humanity is dependent on its supply of hope.

Yet today hopelessness and despair are everywhere. Peter, who himself was given to despair during the episode of Calvary, writes in a triumphant note, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again into a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

There is hope that mistakes and sins can be forgiven. There is hope that we can have joy, peace, assurance, and security in the midst of the despair of this age. There is hope that Christ is coming soon—this is what is called in Scripture “the blessed hope.” There is hope that there will come some day a new heaven and a new earth, and that the Kingdom of God will reign and triumph. Our hope is not in our own ability, or in our goodness, or in our physical strength. Our hope is instilled in us by the resurrection of Christ.

Read about the evidence of Jesus’ resurrection.

Prayer for the day
My hope is in You, my resurrected Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! May I never despair, as I remember Your triumph and love.

And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18).

Every Christian is called to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Jesus said: “...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15), and everything we require to achieve this divine commission is already available to us. Recall what the Master said to His disciples in Luke 22:35, “...When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye anything? And they said, Nothing.”

When God sends you on an assignment, He sees to it that everything you require to accomplish that assignment is made available to you. All He needs is your commitment to His dream. You have to be determined that there’ll be no limit to how far you’re willing to go and do for the Gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. It’s the power of God to make sinners righteous. It’s the power of God to catapult the poor from obscurity and misery to a life of prosperity, glory, and excellence.

The sinner needs to know that Jesus already bore the penalty for his sins. The poor needs to know that they’ve been brought out of poverty, into prosperity and abundance. The sick needs to know that divine health is available in Christ; Jesus has taken away every pain; all they have to do is call on His Name. But Romans 10:14 says, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”

That’s where you come in; you’re the bearer of the good news of Christ’s salvation. Decide that through you, those in your world who haven’t yet known the Lord will hear and receive the Gospel. Like the Apostle Paul, take the call to preach the Gospel seriously; make it your life’s work.

Paul said in Romans 1:16, “...I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ....” Then in 1 Corinthians 9:16, he said, “Woe unto me, if I don’t preach the Gospel!” Have the same mentality about the Gospel, for it’s been committed to your trust.

PRAYER
Dear Father, I thank you for the glorious Gospel of Christ, through which life and immortality is unveiled. I’m convinced that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation; therefore, I’m committed to its spread around the world. Today, many are brought out of sin, into righteousness, and into the glorious liberty of the sons of God, as the Gospel is preached around the world, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

FURTHER STUDY:
1 Corinthians 9:16-18; Mark 16:20; 1 Timothy 1:11

1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:
Luke 8:40-56 & Joshua 7-9

2 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:
Matthew 26:57-68 & Exodus 40  

And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke.

Acts 2:18-19

You and I are living in the most exciting days this earth has ever seen. All around us God is pouring out His Spirit in preparation for the endtime revival that will bring this whole age to a glorious close.

Some of God's children are just standing by as spectators, watching Him work. Others, however, have become a vital part of it all. They've volunteered for service in this great end-time army. They've become what the Bible calls the servants and handmaidens of God.

Who are those servants and handmaidens? They are those who have committed themselves totally to their Lord. They are those who, instead of being content simply to be born-again children of God, have gone even further, stepping into servanthood out of love for the Father.

The servants and handmaidens of God are those who've said, "I want to be involved in what God is doing in this hour. I want to be His bondslave, available to do His bidding 24 hours a day."

Those who make that powerful decision are experiencing the great outpouring of God's Spirit that Peter spoke of in Acts 2. They are the ones whose Spirit-inspired words of prophecy and prayer are releasing the power of God upon the earth. They are the ones whose words are opening the way for the signs and wonders.

Do you want to be among them? You can be. God wants you to be. In fact, He needs you to be!

He needs those who will cut every cord that binds them to this natural world. He needs people He can call on in the middle of the night for intercession. People who will get up and do it no matter how tired they may be.

That's the quality and depth of dedication servanthood requires. It's a demanding role but its rewards are rich. Those who are willing to fill that role will be God's mouthpiece here on the earth in these final days. They will be vehicles of His Spirit and of His mighty power. They will be key players in the Holy Spirit's greatest earthly production.

Make a decision now to become one of them. Take the step of faith into servanthood today.

Scripture Reading:
Acts 2:1-21

The Lord woke me up to these words. I have had my people upon the threshing floor. There has been much thrashing around and complaining. 

But the very thing they are warring against, is doing them the most good. So when you suffer for my namesake, count it all joy. The very thing you dislike, the thorn in your side is bringing about a maturity in character. His winnowing fork is in his hand and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire (Matthew 3:12).

One thing I know about our God, is he will have his way. If you have invited him in or said,”Here I am Lord, use me!” Then the best thing you can do is breathe through the process. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5). The Lord will cut off every branch that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful (John 15:2). The Lord wants you to be lush, fruitful, mature and kind enough to help his people. He can change people without you, he is God after all. But isn’t it nice to be afforded the opportunity to be part of the process. To have the king of the universe trust you with his words. Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant (2 Samuel 7:28). Those who know your name trust in you, for you Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you (Psalm 9:10).

The Lord’s word is full of advice on how to be pleasing to him and a useful vessel in his hands. A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret (Proverbs 11:13). Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe (Proverbs 28:26). Those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf (Proverbs 11:28). And really no verse sums it all up quite like this one: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your path (Proverbs 3:5-6).

He will guide your path, and keep your feet from falling. You broaden the path beneath me so that my ankles do not give way (Psalm 18:36). Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble (Hebrews 12:12). So I decree and declare over you today: Strength, strength, strength; so the Lord can use you at your full potential. Nothing lacking, and everything right on time. So again I am reminded of the Lord’s heart cry. That you are a willing surrendered vessel in the hands of the Lord....HERE I AM LORD, USE ME!!!!

Tammy Lang Jensen

“All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need” (Acts 2:44-45 NIV).

No one sacrificed like the early church. In Acts 2:44-45, the Bible says, “All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need” (NIV). These early Christians didn’t just give their money. They were generous with everything they had. You could say they were radically generous.

What would happen through our churches if we were just as radically generous? The Bible says we’re stewards—or managers—of all that God has given us. We’re responsible to use our resources in a way that impacts the Kingdom.

God doesn’t just give you resources for your own enjoyment, but to make a difference in the world around you. God never blesses us just to sit on what we have. He blesses us so we can bless others.

That’s a hopeful, encouraging truth to remember throughout the year, because generosity isn’t something we only display at Thanksgiving or Christmas. Find ways to be radically generous, and make an impact on the people in your church, the people in your community, and the people God has strategically placed in your life.

Talk It Over

How would your life change if you became more radically generous? What would that look like?
When you struggle with generosity, what things make you hesitant to give more?
Based on the truth that God blesses us so we can bless others, what is one practical step you can take this week?

"Love never fails..."
1 Corinthians 13:8, NIV

TODAY'S WORD:

We all have people in our lives who are difficult at times. Maybe it’s someone you work with, a family member, or even your spouse. The Word of God clearly defines love in 1 Corinthians 13. It says that love is patient and kind. It doesn’t seek its own way. Love doesn’t keep a record of wrongs. And most importantly, love never fails. Notice that this chapter doesn’t talk at all about how you feel. God’s love isn’t about feelings. It’s a choice. You can choose to be patient and kind even when you don’t feel like it. You can choose to be good to someone even when they don’t deserve it. You can choose to overlook an offense. Remember, the Holy Spirit is our helper. We weren’t meant to do it in our own strength. Ask God to show you how to love others better.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love which never fails. Thank You for loving me so that I can be free to love others. Empower me, by Your Spirit, to walk in love no matter what I may face today. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.