For a wide door of opportunity for effectual [service] has opened to me [there, a great and promising one], and [there are] many adversaries.

— 1 Corinthians 16:9 (AMPC)

Quitting is not an option for confident people. You must decide what you want or need to do and make up your mind that you will finish your course. You will experience some opposition no matter what you attempt to do in life. Remember that the whole goal of fear is to stop you. Fear wants you to run, to withdraw, and to hide. The apostle Paul said that when doors of opportunity opened to him, opposition often came with it. Confidence believes that it can handle whatever comes its way; it doesn’t fear what has not happened yet.

The apostle Paul was given a job to do, and he was determined to do it even though he knew that it meant imprisonment and suffering. He kept his eyes on the finish line, not on what he knew he would go through. He said he wasn’t moved by the opposition, but that his goal was to finish his course with joy. Enjoyment is not possible if we are afraid all the time. Fear brings present torment concerning future situations that may not happen anyway. Paul knew that whatever did happen, God would be faithful to strengthen him so that he might patiently endure it.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, no matter what I face today, I am determined to stay the course and not retreat. Strengthen me for the battle that I might finish whatever I start, amen.

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Whoever finds his [lower] life will lose it [the higher life], and whoever loses his [lower] life on My account will find it [the higher life].

— Matthew 10:39 (AMPC)

Life is like a maze sometimes, and it is easy to get lost. Everyone, it seems, expects something different from us. There is pressure coming at us from every direction to keep others happy and meet their needs.

When we attempt to become what others want us to be, in the process, we may lose ourselves. We may fail to discover what God’s intention is for us because we are trying so hard to please everyone else and yet are not pleased ourselves.

For years I tried to be so many things that I wasn’t, and I got myself totally confused. I had to get off the merry-go-round and ask myself: “Who am I living for? Why am I doing all these things? Have I become a people-pleaser? Am I really in God’s will for my life?”

Have you also lost yourself? Are you frustrated from trying to meet all the demands of other people while feeling unfulfilled yourself? If so, you can choose to take a stand and be determined to know your identity, your direction, and your calling—God’s will for your life. You will find yourself by drawing close to God, finding His will for your life, and doing it.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, help me find my true identity and purpose in life, found only in You. Help me to not be swayed by the opinions of others and guide me in Your will for my life, amen.

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 I have fought the good and worthy and noble fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith [firmly guarding the gospel against error].

— 2 Timothy 4:7 (AMP)

One of the most important traits a Christian can have is determination. A child of God who refuses to give up is one who will enjoy victory. Jesus endured the cross for the joy of the prize awaiting Him (see Hebrews 12:2), and we should do the same thing.

Persistence is necessary, because there will be difficult times in life. Jesus never promised that when we start following Him, we’ll no longer deal with problems. Life isn’t always easy, but God is always with us. Going through challenges instead of giving up is what makes us strong.

When you feel weary, remember that God is with you and that He is the strength you need to make it through to the finish. Receive His strength now as you wait in His presence.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, please help me to be determined and persistent in following You, most especially during difficult times. Help me to receive Your strength to make it to the finish line, amen.

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 …Let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us, looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus…Just think of Him…so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds.

— Hebrews 12:1-3 (AMPC)

It doesn’t take any special talent to give up, lie down on the side of the road of life, and say, “I quit.” Any unbeliever can do that.

But once you get hold of Jesus—or, more accurately, He gets hold of you—He begins to pump strength, energy, and courage into you, and something strange and wonderful begins to happen. He won’t let you quit!

You may say, “Oh, Lord, I don’t want to go on anymore.” But He won’t let you give up, even if you want to. So, keep looking to Jesus and follow His example. When you do, you will keep pressing on no matter what comes your way.

Prayer of the Day: Lord Jesus, please give me strength, energy, and courage to keep going even when I feel like giving up. Thank You for not letting me quit, amen.

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Either make the tree sound (healthy and good), and its fruit sound (healthy and good), or make the tree rotten (diseased and bad), and its fruit rotten (diseased and bad); for the tree is known and recognized and judged by its fruit.

— Matthew 12:33 (AMPC)

Jesus said we would be known by our fruit, which means that people can tell who we really are on the inside by what we produce with our lives and by our attitudes.

Jesus not only talked about love, but He showed love by His actions. Acts 10:38 says He got up daily and went about doing good and healing all those who were harassed and oppressed by the devil. His disciples saw Him daily helping people, listening to them, or letting His plans be interrupted in order to help someone who came to Him with a need. The disciples saw Him make sure they always had money set aside to help the poor. They also witnessed Him being quick to forgive and showing patience with the weak. He was kind, humble, and encouraging, and never gave up on anybody. Jesus did not merely talk about loving people, He showed everyone around Him how to love. Our words are important, but our actions carry more weight than our words.

The single biggest problem we have in Christianity is that we listen to people tell us what to do—and we even tell others what to do—and then we walk out of our church buildings or Bible studies and do nothing. It doesn’t matter what we think we know. The proof of what we know is in what we do.

I must constantly ask myself, “What am I doing to actually show love?” We can be deceived by knowledge, according to the apostle Paul (see 1 Corinthians 8:1). We can become blinded by the pride of what we know to the point where we can never see that we are not really practicing any of it. We should all make sure there is no gap between what we say and what we do.

Prayer of the Day: Father, please help me to trust You, not only for the things I desire but also in the process of attaining them. And teach me to maintain a positive attitude of faith, praise, thanksgiving, and positive expectation through every situation, amen.

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For as he thinks in his heart, so is he….

— Proverbs 23:7 (NKJV)

Years ago, I learned an invaluable lesson: Whatever we focus on, we become. That simple statement taught me a great deal. Wherever we put our energies or our attention, those things will develop. Another way I like to say it is, “Where the mind goes, the man follows!”

If I begin to think about ice cream, I will soon find myself in my car pursuing ice cream. My thought will stir my desires and emotions, and I will make the decision to follow them.

If we focus only on the negative things in our lives, we become negative people. Everything, including our conversation, becomes negative. We soon lose our joy and live miserable lives—and it all started with our own thinking.

You might be experiencing some problems in life—not realizing that you are creating them yourself by what you’re choosing to think about. I challenge you to think about what you’re thinking about!

You might be discouraged and even depressed and wonder what caused it. Yet if you examine your thought life, you will find that you are feeding the negative emotions you are feeling. Negative thoughts are fuel for discouragement, depression, and many other unpleasant emotions.

We should choose our thoughts carefully. We can think about what is wrong with our lives or about what is right with them. We can think about what is wrong with all the people we are in relationship with, or we can see the good and meditate on that. The Bible teaches us to always believe the best. When we do that, it makes our own lives happier and more peaceful.

I have a great life—and a loving husband and children. And I am privileged to be used by God to bless millions of people around the world through the wonderful ministry He has given me. But life isn’t perfect, and if I had allowed the devil to fill my mind with negative thoughts—as he once did long ago—I would have been defeated.

I want to focus on God’s grace and give thanks for all the good things in my life. I don’t want to focus on what I don’t have.

An old friend used to quote this saying: “As you wander on through life, brother, whatever be your goal, keep your eye upon the donut and not upon the hole.” Too many people focus on what’s not there and what’s not right.

All of this is to say that our thoughts largely determine our destiny. Our thoughts also determine our happiness. That is why Proverbs 23:7—today’s scripture—is one of my favorite verses. Thoughts are powerful. They aren’t just words that flow through our minds. So, it is very important for us to decide what we will allow to rest inside our minds.

We must not forget that the mind is a battlefield. We must always remember that our adversary will use it in any way he possibly can to trap us.

We can’t have a positive life and a negative mind. Our thoughts—our focus—is what determines where we end up.

Jesus, our friend and Savior, wants our minds to be filled with positive, beautiful, and healthy thoughts. The more we focus on those things, the more readily we defeat Satan’s attacks.

Prayer of the Day: God, I ask You to forgive me for focusing my thoughts on things that are not pleasing to You. I pray that You will help me fill my mind with thoughts that are clean and pure and uplifting. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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I will clothe his enemies with shame, but his head will be adorned with a radiant crown.

— Psalm 132:18 (NIV)

Today’s scripture gives us the impression that the psalmist Asaph isn’t having a very good day, and that’s okay. Every day of life isn’t perfect, and there are times when it is good to be honest with God or someone else about the way you feel. Most of the time, if one Christian asks another how they are, the answer is “Fine,” but they are not always fine. They say they are fine, because they think they are expected, as Christians, to be fine all the time. Asaph felt as though God was rejecting him forever and that He was angry with him, and he wrote about it.

We should not complain constantly, but there is a way to be honest about how we are feeling without being negative. Trust God always, but don’t be phony or pretend to be fine when the truth is that you aren’t fine at all.

Sometimes the best way to rid yourself of negative feelings is to talk them out. The psalmist David did this regularly with God, and it was okay. He was also a man of great faith. Don’t feel that you always have to be fine, marvelous, amazing, and wonderful, or that you cannot admit when you are having a rough time and your emotions are not joyful. Even Jesus said, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46 NIV). He also said, Into your hands I commit my spirit (Luke 23:46 NIV). Even though He felt forsaken, He knew that He wasn’t.

Prayer of the Day: Father, I am grateful that I can always be honest with You about how I feel, yet at the same time never stop trusting You. Help me to be honest with myself about my emotions, amen.

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 …But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart.

— 1 Corinthians 2:16 (AMPC)

When we invite Jesus to come into our hearts, the Holy Spirit makes His home in us. From that position in our hearts, which are the very centers of our beings, the Holy Spirit begins a purifying work in our souls (our minds, wills, and emotions). Our minds tell us what we think, not what God thinks. The Holy Spirit is working in us to change that. We have to learn how to think in agreement with God, how to be vessels for God to think through. Old thoughts must be purified from us, and new thoughts—thoughts from God—must become part of our thinking. Our emotions tell us how we feel, not how God feels about situations, people, and the decisions we make. According to Psalm 7:9, God tests and tries our emotions. He works with us until we are not moved by human emotion alone, but by His Spirit.

Our wills tell us what we want, not what God wants. The will overrides emotions and even thoughts. We can use it to do the right thing even when we don’t feel like doing them. We have a free will, and God will not force us to do anything. He leads us by His Spirit into what He knows will be good for us, but the final decisions are ours to make. God wants us to regularly make decisions that are in agreement with His will, not our wills. As these three areas of our lives—mind, will, and emotions—come under the lordship of Jesus Christ and the leadership of the Holy Spirit, we will become increasingly mature as believers.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, please help me to surrender my mind, will, and emotions to You. Show me how to allow Your Holy Spirit to purify me and guide me into Your will, amen.

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But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”

— 1 Corinthians 2:9 (ESV)

We rush to get every new upgrade available for our computer and phone. We spend money, wait in lines, do whatever it takes to have the newest and best. We are very aggressive about having the best equipment available, but are we as aggressive about having the upgraded life Jesus offers us?

The Bible says that the path of the righteous gets brighter and brighter every day (see Proverbs 4:18). This means God is always drawing us toward better and better things. He continually offers upgrades, and we should be determined to have each one of them.

Living the best life God has for you will require some effort on your part. You will need to educate yourself on the life He offers and what it truly means to be born again. As a child of God, you have an inheritance and you have certain rights and privileges, but if you don’t know about them, you will never enjoy them. We educate ourselves through Bible study, reading good books about biblical principles, spending time with God, and being in community with other people who are seeking God as we are. We also need a lot of patience because God is usually not in a hurry. He is always working in our lives, but we are not always aware of it.

Simply going to church once a week doesn’t necessarily help you attain the upgraded life you desire. It helps, but you will have to also seek God diligently every day of your life, not just once or twice a week. God has provided countless tools for us to help us grow, but we must avail ourselves of them. I want to challenge you to set aside at least 45 minutes to an hour a day and call it your “God Time.” Make it a goal, and if you need to begin with less time, that is okay because gradually you will desire more. During that time you can study your Bible, talk to God in prayer, listen to a Bible teaching, read a book that will help you understand the Bible better, or simply sit in God’s presence and receive His love.

If you do this diligently, you will find over time that you have changed and are enjoying yourself and your life much more than ever before. Any good relationship requires time, and your relationship with God is no different. God has so many wonderful things in His plan for you, and during this time you will learn what they are and how to access them. You can’t use what you don’t know you have! For example, you have a Helper, who is the Holy Spirit, and He is with you all the time.

Anytime you need help with anything, all you need to do is ask. This and many “other wonderful things are yours in Christ, so get busy learning about them and start enjoying the upgraded life Jesus died for you to have.

Prayer of the Day: Lord Jesus, I know You have many good things planned for me. Help me be determined to seek the upgraded life You offer. Teach me to use the tools You have provided and to spend time in Your presence every single day. I love You so much, amen.

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Persecutions, sufferings…I endured, but out of them all the Lord delivered me. Indeed all who delight in piety and are determined to live a devoted and godly life in Christ Jesus will meet with persecution [will be made to suffer because of their religious stand].

— 2 Timothy 3:11-12 (AMPC)

In the beginning of my ministry, I had a dream that I was driving my car and approaching a flooded bridge. I stopped, looking first at the water-covered bridge, back where I had been, and to the side of the road, trying to decide if I should park, retreat, or keep moving forward. Then I woke up.

God used that dream to show me that there will always be opposition when pressing toward a goal. There will always be opportunity to park and go no farther or turn around and give up. It was up to me to decide each time if I would give up or go on. That dream has helped me many times to press on when difficulties came, and I was tempted to quit. I have decided that even though I don’t always do everything right, I will never quit! Determination will get you a lot further than talent. So, if you feel you lack in talent, take heart. All you need to win in life is more determination than anyone else you know.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, today may have its challenges, but I am determined to press on following Your will. By Your grace, I will go the distance and never quit, amen.

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My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is steadfast and confident! I will sing and make melody.

— Psalm 57:7 (AMPC)

In order to experience victory in our lives and achieve great things for God, it is crucial that we choose to be determined. The Bible says that Jesus steadfastly and determinedly set His face to go to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51 AMPC), and we can do the same thing as we live for God. If we are going to accomplish anything worthwhile, it is important we “steadfastly and determinedly” set our face in that direction and not give up.

When you receive Christ as your Savior and Lord, Satan will oppose you at every turn. He wants you to give up! The devil is not going to roll out a red carpet for us just because we decide to receive Christ. But Jesus has already overcome the devil. Satan is a defeated foe. His opposition is not strong enough to stop you if you are close to God, walking in His strength and will for your life.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that everything in life should be easy for us. Ask for God’s help, receive His grace, and be determined to do the will of God, to stay positive and happy, and to walk in the peace of God no matter what.

Prayer of the Day: Father, please help me to be determined to accomplish great things for You. Strengthen me to not give up, even when facing opposition.

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 …It is more blessed [and brings greater joy] to give than to receive.

— Acts 20:35 (AMP)

One of the very best things you can do to make any day better is to take your focus off of yourself and begin looking for ways to help and serve others. It is a heavenly paradox: The more you help others, the more you are helped. This is why Jesus said that it is more blessed to give than to receive.

Rather than complaining about your problems or your terrible day, take some quiet time with God and contemplate how to solve someone else’s problems and brighten their day. Think of them, pray for them, and ask God to give you a fresh idea of how to bless them. Putting others first is a revolutionary new outlook on life that will bring you the peace and joy that only God can give.

Prayer of the Day: Dear Lord, help me to trust in You and not worry about the future, and to know and understand that when I focus on tomorrow, I waste today. Thank You for reminding me to take one day at a time, amen.

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For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.

— 2 Timothy 1:7 (AMPC)

The only way to conquer fear is to confront it and to do the thing you are afraid of. If you don’t, you will be a prisoner all your life.

When we do confront things, we always find that the worst part of the fear was in our minds, and the reality of the thing wasn’t as bad as we had imagined.

If you truly want to be free, understand that facing a fear is better than being afraid all your life. Fear is a terrible burden to live with.

Bravery to overcome life’s fears comes when you ask God for His help, trust He is with you, and face that fear head-on.

Prayer of the Day: Father God, please give me the courage to face my fears, and the faith to trust in Your guidance. Help me overcome the burden of fear and live freely in Your love, amen.

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Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

— 1 Peter 5:8-9 (NIV)

In the United States, there is an over-the-counter medication advertised as the medicine to take at the first indication of a cold, to keep it from getting worse and becoming full-blown. I take a lot of vitamin C if I have a scratchy throat or a runny nose because it often keeps me from getting worse. Catching something before it goes too far is wisdom.

I recommend that anytime you even begin to feel fearful about anything that you immediately begin to pray and confess, “I will not live in fear.” You will see amazing results. When we pray, God hears and answers. When we confess His Word, we renew our own minds and come into agreement with His plans for us. No matter what God wants to do for us, we must agree with Him in order to receive and enjoy it (see Amos 3:3). We must learn to think like God thinks and talk like He talks—and none of His thoughts or words are fearful.

This thought—I will not live in fear—will help you become courageous rather than fearful. Call it to mind the instant you begin to feel fear and meditate on it even during the times when you are not afraid.

By doing this you will be even more prepared to stand against fear when it does come.

Remember that it will take time; be committed to stick with it until you see change. I still say, “I will not live in fear.” Say it as soon as you feel fearful about anything, and you will be able to keep fear from controlling you. You may still feel fear, but you can move beyond it by realizing that it is merely the devil’s attempt to prevent you from enjoying life or making any kind of progress. Do what you believe you are supposed to do even if you have to “do it afraid.”

Prayer of the Day: Father, help me to trust in You and to have courage to face my fears head on. Renew my mind in Your Word and help me to overcome my concerns, amen.

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Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].

— Hebrews 11:1 (AMPC)

“I will not fear” is the only acceptable attitude we can have toward fear. That does not mean we will never feel fear, but it does mean we will not allow it to rule our lives. The Bible says that God has not given us a spirit of fear (see 2 Timothy 1:7).

Fear is not from God, but faith is! We should remember to do everything with a spirit of faith. Faith is confidence in God and a belief that His promises are true. Faith will cause a person to go forward, to try new things, and to be aggressive.

Be firm in your resolve to do whatever you need to do, even if you have to “do it afraid”! To “do it afraid” means to feel the fear and do what you believe you should do anyway. Stand in faith, be thankful for God’s promises, and boldly pursue what God has put in your heart to do.

Prayer of the Day: Thank You, Father, that I can live in faith and not in fear. Regardless of the difficulty of the situation I may be facing, I will choose to do what You have called me to do, even if I have to “do it afraid.” Thank You for giving me the strength that I need.

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For this very reason, adding your diligence [to the divine promises], employ every effort] in exercising your faith to develop virtue (excellence, resolution, Christian energy), and in [exercising] virtue [develop] knowledge (intelligence).

— 2 Peter 1:5 (AMPC)

Adapted from the resource Starting Your Day Right – by Joyce Meyer1 MIN READ

Sometimes we have to make a few adjustments in our lifestyle to follow wisdom. We may have to say no to too much activity. Hebrews 11:1 teaches that faith is the assurance of things we do not see now. But, like God, we can call “those things that be not, as though they are” (see Romans 4:17). This spiritual principle applies in the negative realm as well as in the positive realm. So, we may need to make some adjustments to the things we say.

If you feel that it is hard to get up in the morning, don’t say, “I am too tired.” Get all of that weak, tired, wimpy, quitter, give-up talk out of your vocabulary. Instead, say, “Because the Lord is my strength, I can do whatever I need to do today.”

Prayer of the Day: Lord, help me to follow wisdom and make whatever adjustments to my lifestyle that need to be made. Help me to speak words of faith and trust in Your strength to overcome any challenges that come my way, amen.

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For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (good news) of Christ, for it is God’s power working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance. . .. For in the Gospel, a righteousness that God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]. As it is written, the man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith.

— Romans 1:16-17 (AMPC)

Faith is a word the apostle Paul used often in his writing. When writing to the Thessalonians, he wanted to know about their faith. While the word faith means belief or absolute trust, it’s more than that—the word also implies loyalty and commitment.

Faith means being convinced that something is true. In 1 Corinthians 15:17, the apostle told the Corinthians that if Jesus did not rise from the dead, their faith was meaningless. He was saying that all they believed was utterly useless. True faith acknowledges that the message of Jesus’ death and resurrection is true.

True faith begins when we’re receptive—when we’re willing to listen. It starts with a kind of mental assent—it seems reasonable that it’s true. But that’s not true faith. True faith happens when we say, “Not only does it make sense to me, but I’m willing to stake my life on it.”

Paul taught from Habakkuk 2:4, saying that the just—the righteous—shall live by faith. One way to think of the just is to think of those who were “justified,” or made right, by the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. If we are justified, it means that God treats us as though we are not and have never been sinners. He treats us as His own—His beloved children. Instead of being God’s enemies, we’re His friends. Instead of fighting Him, we serve Him.

When God calls us just, or righteous, we enter into a relationship of love, confidence, and friendship. We need not fear or worry because there is no punishment for us.

When Paul says in Romans 1:17 (AMPC), the man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith, he means that those of us who have been made right with God live by our faith. That is, we live by our trust in the God who reaches out to us.

This is where many must fight the wiles of Satan. Instead of focusing on all God has done for us, they listen to the devil whisper, “Do you remember when you lost your temper?” “You’re worried about paying your bills, and if you worry, you don’t have faith, right?” “If you’re supposed to be a Christian, how could you have said what you did?”

The torments are there, and the devil never passes up the opportunity to remind us of past failures. All have failed, and we will continue to fail, but when we do, we can repent and move on.

I went through a particularly difficult time several years ago when there was absolutely no joy or peace in my life. Unhappiness filled most of my days. I repeatedly asked the Lord what was wrong with me, really wanting to know what my problem was . . . no kidding around. I was working so hard to please the Lord and trying to be the kind of Christian I thought I should be, but I certainly didn’t feel like any progress was being made.

Then one day, I came across Romans 15:13 (AMPC) in a box of scripture cards: May the God of your hope so fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound and be overflowing (bubbling over) with hope. That was it! I got it!

I had plunged into doubt and unbelief, allowing the devil to torment me with his evil lies. As a result, I had become negative, grouchy, short-tempered, and impatient. I was making myself miserable, and the devil was thrilled at the stronghold he had over me!

This scripture changed all of that old thinking! I knew the answer. Jesus loved me so much that He not only forgave all my sins of the past, but He also looked ahead and forgave me for those moments of weakness when I’d fail in the future. I’m not referring to deliberate sin, but to human weaknesses, those times when I just don’t live up to all the truth I know.

“Just think,” I told my husband, “2000 years ago Jesus not only died on the cross for all my sins before I even knew Him, but for all of my sins and failures until the day I meet Him face to face.” That was such a powerful thought to me.

Then I pondered the words of Paul quoted at the beginning of this devotion: For in the gospel, a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith] (Romans 1:17 AMPC). I finally understood the concept of living from faith to faith. I don’t have to allow Satan to sneak in with questions or unbelief. I can live every moment moving from faith to more faith to more faith.

Prayer of the Day: Lord Jesus, I am in awe of Your love for me, which is so great and so powerful that You not only died for all my sins before I was born, but You’ve provided for all my weak moments in the future. I am so thankful to You for Your love, and I rejoice in Your holy name, amen.

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A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure.

— Proverbs 16:9 (AMPC)

When your day doesn’t go as planned, do you get irritated because someone or something has interrupted you? I know I do at times. What if we would see these changes in our plans as divine opportunities rather than interruptions that irritate us? Could that last-minute request from a friend for help be an opportunity to serve Christ that would produce more good fruit in our lives than our original plan? Would a one or two-hour delay perhaps end up putting us in the right place at the right time for an opportunity we would have missed had we refused to change our plan?

There is nothing wrong with having a plan—as a matter of fact, I think it is wise to do so—but we should be ready at any time to drop our plans and follow God. He often gives us opportunities to help someone or to follow Him in an adventure that will bring blessings into our lives, but we can easily miss out on His better plan if we are not willing to “let go and let God lead.”

There are also times when what seems like an interruption is God’s protection from some unseen danger we would encounter if we continued in the path we had planned. Can heavy traffic that disrupts our plan save us from being in an accident? Could the airport delay be a blessing in disguise? The answer to these examples is yes, and if we will trust God with things like this and believe that our times are in His hands (see Psalm 31:15), we will enjoy more peace and have less stress.

Prayer of the Day: Father, help me follow Your lead at all times. I want Your will to be done in my life, and I want to always be available for You anytime You need to use me to further Your will. Help me to never miss a divine opportunity with You!

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No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

— John 15:15 (ESV)

We all need to be corrected at times and I believe God’s desire is to speak to us and the correcting Himself before using other people or situations to correct us. Correction is one of the most difficult things to receive, especially when it come through others, so God prefers to first help us deal with matters privately. But, if we do not know how to let Him correct us privately or will not receive it, He may correct us in more public ways. One time we were ministering in a foreign country. I was in a restaurant trying to convey to the waiter what I wanted to eat, but he did not speak much English and I did not speak his language at all. Frustration soon became evident in my attitude and tone of voice. I was behaving poorly in front of people who knew I was in that country to minister and, of course, my example to them was important.

I knew I had behaved badly, but God wanted me to really know, so when Dave and I returned to our hotel room, Dave mentioned the incident and said I had not set a good example for others. Although I knew he was right, and I knew God was using him to make sure I fully realized how important my behavior is, my inclination was to point out that Dave had acted similarly before. Had I done that, I would not have genuinely received the word of correction and then God would have had to correct me some other way—perhaps in a way that would have been more embarrassing or painful. Begin to pray and ask God to help you receive correction from Him and to help you recognize when He is sending correction through others, knowing it is always for your good.

Prayer of the Day: Father, I come to you today, seeking Your guidance and Your loving correction. I know I am not perfect, and I ask You to help me recognize Your voice and to properly receive correction from You. Thank You for Your faithfulness and love. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

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 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord, for I hide myself in you. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

— Psalm 143:9-10 (NIV)

David prays in today’s scriptures that God will lead him on level ground. I have always thought of this as a request for God to keep him emotionally stable. David was being pursued by his enemies and declared that God was his hiding place. When I pray, I often ask God to hide me in Him. We are kept safe in Him.

David had many opportunities to become flustered and allow his emotions to affect him in negative ways, so he prayed that God would keep him level or stable. Emotional stability is very important. We all have emotions, but we should not let them have us. With God’s help, we can learn to manage them instead of allowing them to manage us. We can live beyond our feelings by knowing and acting on God’s Word rather than on the way we feel.

We cannot do this by willpower alone; we need God’s grace. We need His help and power because emotions can be very strong, and without God’s help, they will lead us in wrong directions.

Have you been allowing your feelings to control you? If so, begin today to ask God to lead you on level ground.

Prayer of the Day: Father, I am sorry for letting my emotions lead me at times and I ask You to keep me stable and lead me on level ground.

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