My soul, wait only upon God and silently submit to Him; for my hope and expectation are from Him.

— Psalm 62:5 (AMPC)

James 4:7–8 (AMPC) gives the best advice on how to wage spiritual warfare: Be subject to God. Resist the devil [stand firm against him], and he will flee from you. Come close to God and He will come close to you.

When you humble yourself in the presence of the Lord, He will exalt you and lift you and make your life significant (see verses 9–10). God will show you how to resist the devil. Spend time in God’s presence and do whatever He tells you to do!

Prayer of the Day: Lord, please help me to stand strong in every situation, good or bad, knowing You are right there with me through it all, amen.

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He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from troubles.

— Proverbs 21:23 (AMPC)

Words fuel good moods or bad moods; in fact, they fuel our attitudes and have a huge impact on our lives and our relationships. If we speak positive and good things, then we minister life to ourselves. We increase the emotion of joy. However, if we speak negative words, then we minister death and misery to ourselves; we increase our sadness and our moods plummet.

But thankfully, we can control what words we speak and the quality of our lives. Why not help yourself first thing every day? Don’t get up each morning and wait to see how you feel and then talk about every feeling you have to anyone who will listen. If you do that, you are giving your emotions authority over you. Instead, get up praising God for His goodness in your life. Let words of thankfulness fuel a life of peace and joy.

Prayer of the Day: Father, thank You that I can choose what kind of attitude I am going to have by choosing to speak words of life each day. No matter how I feel or what is going on around me, I’m going to encourage and strengthen my spirit, not my flesh.

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Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life].

— Proverbs 18:21 (AMPC)

If we ride to work with somebody and gossip about our boss and talk about how we hate our job and what a stupid place it is, we will have a bad day. The Bible says, A man’s [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil] (Proverbs 18:20 AMPC).

Clearly, we will have to eat our words, so we need to talk about the right things to be happy. If we murmur and gossip, we will eat the fruit of death. But if we speak life, we will eat the fruit of the Spirit (see Matthew 12:37). Choose to eat good fruit today.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, thank You for Your forgiveness and help me to quickly forgive others, just as You forgive me, amen.

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To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.

— Ecclesiastes 3:1 (ESV)

I want to urge you to enjoy every season of your life, because each one contains something beautiful that you don’t want to miss.

Life, it seems, is always changing, as well as the people around us. We also change as the years go by. Let’s embrace each change and look for the blessing in it, because our times are truly in God’s loving and capable hands.

Prayer of the Day: Father, I know that change can be good and that it keeps life fresh and exciting. Please help me and guide me to a place of accepting life’s changes with grace and gratitude, amen.

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He changes the times and the seasons….

— Daniel 2:21 (AMPC)

Years ago, I enjoyed a good job as part of a church staff. I had a thriving ministry, a regular paycheck, and plenty of opportunities to do what I loved and felt called to do. Then there came a time when God spoke to me about leaving that job and taking my ministry “to the north, south, east, and west.” I heard Him say, “This season in your life is complete; I am finished with you in this place.”

In my heart, I knew God had spoken. Nevertheless, I had a mixture of excitement and fear about starting my own ministry. I wanted to venture beyond what I had known to that point, but I was afraid of making a mistake and losing what I had. I wanted to see what God would do, but I was afraid to take such a big step into unknown territory.

Sometimes God gets finished with something and we keep hanging on to it. My spirit wanted to step out, but my flesh wanted to stay. I had a lot of security in the position God was calling me to leave, and I didn’t want to give it up. But eventually I did obey Him and today I enjoy ministry around the world. Remember that God changes things and when He does, we must be willing to follow His leading.

Prayer of the Day: God, please help me as I listen for Your voice. Please lead me when I need to make changes in my life, amen.

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Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

— 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

The promise of new beginnings is abundantly clear in Scripture. The good news is not only that this promise provides benefits to new believers in Christ, but that it is available to us as often as we need it. The one requirement for its fulfillment is that we let go of failure and take hold of the new beginning God offers us.

I have needed to apply this promise to my own life recently. I believe God has asked me to do something, and although I agree with Him and get started well, I seem to eventually fail, and then I need to start over again. My two choices are to feel guilty because of my failure or to begin again. I choose to begin again, and if you need a new beginning, I pray that you will do likewise.

No matter how you need a new beginning in some area of your life, Jesus has His arms outstretched and is waiting for you to let Him help you begin again.

Prayer Starter: Father, thank You for new beginnings. Help me let go of the old and start fresh without feelings of guilt and failure. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Do not [earnestly] remember the former things; neither consider the things of old.

— Isaiah 43:18 (AMPC)

God offers us a new life, a new nature, and a new beginning. God seems to love new things, and His Word encourages us in many places to let go of the past. Perhaps you didn’t get a good start in life, but you can have a great finish! God has a plan for your future, and it is a good one. Let go of what is behind you and press toward the good things that are ahead.

One of the best ways to let go is to stop thinking about the past and stop talking about it. The more we think and talk about a thing, the more impossible it is to forget it and move on. Whether your past was wonderful or tragic, it is over, and what you have left is today and the rest of your life! Give yourself fully and completely to the life God is offering you now. Today is the first day of the rest of your life, so make it a good day.

Prayer Starter: Father, thank You for a new beginning. Help me let go of the past and embrace the future with enthusiasm.

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Do not [earnestly] remember the former things; neither consider the things of old.

— Isaiah 43:18 (AMPC)

God offers us a new life, a new nature, and a new beginning. God seems to love new things, and His Word encourages us in many places to let go of the past. Perhaps you didn’t get a good start in life, but you can have a great finish! God has a plan for your future, and it is a good one. Let go of what is behind you and press toward the good things that are ahead.

One of the best ways to let go is to stop thinking about the past and stop talking about it. The more we think and talk about a thing, the more impossible it is to forget it and move on. Whether your past was wonderful or tragic, it is over, and what you have left is today and the rest of your life! Give yourself fully and completely to the life God is offering you now. Today is the first day of the rest of your life, so make it a good day.

Prayer Starter: Father, thank You for a new beginning. Help me let go of the past and embrace the future with enthusiasm.

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Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

— 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

When we have been deeply wounded in our soul, we can struggle with identity as a result, meaning that we go through life feeling we do not know who we truly are. This can cause us to feel confused, purposeless, or directionless, empty, and unsatisfied no matter how hard we try to find fulfillment. One reason our woundedness has such a negative effect on our identity is that it causes us to want to hide our true feelings and to hesitate to express who we really are.

For example, if someone is afraid to be vulnerable, she may pretend to be tough, confident, and self-sufficient to keep others from viewing her as weak or needy. This type of pretending to be something we are not or presenting a certain image that does not accurately represent us can be a temptation to everyone who has been wounded. Our hunger for acceptance and approval may cause us to try to alter our personalities to try to be what we think people want us to be instead of feeling free to be our true selves.

The chameleon is a lizard-like animal that can change its color so it will blend in with everything around it. Chameleons do this to protect themselves. If their predators can’t distinguish them from a log or a leaf, they can’t hurt them. Although people cannot change colors, we have our own protective mechanisms, one of which is to develop false identities to guard ourselves against rejection or disapproval.

Those who fear rejection often become people pleasers, doing what they think others want them to do instead of becoming their true selves. That is sad, because we are never truly free until we are free to be ourselves.

The world urges us to conform to its image. It tells us what we should wear, how we should style our hair, what kind of car we should drive, how much education we need—and on and on. We sense intuitively that if we do not measure up to the world’s standards, we will not be accepted.

God loves and accepts us unconditionally, and when we receive Jesus as our Savior, He makes us new. All the old pressures we have felt melt away. We no longer have to feel guilty about old mistakes. When God makes us new, we become like fresh lumps of spiritual clay. The world wants to fashion us in its image, but the Holy Spirit wants to mold us into something new, to shape us in such a way that we can fulfill God’s amazing plans for our lives. In Christ, we are finally free to be our true selves, and that’s the best person we can possibly be.

Prayer Starter: Thank You for loving me unconditionally and for making me new. Thank You that I am truly free to be who You made me to be—free to be myself, amen.

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Depart from evil and do good; seek, inquire for, and crave peace and pursue (go after) it!

— Psalm 34:14 (AMPC)

In our strife-torn world, do you ever long for a few peaceful moments? That is what God wants for you. He instructs you in His Word to live in unity and harmony and to pursue peace.

Why then is it so difficult to get through a day without being invaded by the spirit of strife? Satan works through the weaknesses in your flesh to keep the atmosphere in your life and the attitudes of your heart in continual turmoil. He seeks to draw you away from peace and into strife, which brings devastation and destruction.

But God’s power is greater than the devil’s power, and when you come against strife in the name of Jesus you render it powerless to rob you of the peace and joy that is your divine inheritance. Take a few moments in the quiet of this evening to enjoy the wonderful peace and presence of God.

Prayer Starter: Father, I come against strife in the name of Jesus. Help me walk in the peace and joy that is my inheritance from You, amen.

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Fill up and complete my joy by living in harmony and being of the same mind and one in purpose, having the same love, being in full accord and of one harmonious mind and intention.

— Philippians 2:2 (AMPC)

Paul was aware of God’s wonderful plan for His children. He wanted everyone to receive the best God had for them, and he knew that would be impossible if they did not live in harmony. We are repeatedly taught in Scripture to live in peace. In the Bible, Jesus Himself is called the “Prince of Peace” (see Isaiah 9:6).

God has clearly instructed Dave and me that we must keep strife out of our lives and ministry if we want to be successful at what He has called us to do. In order to do so, we must be generous with forgiveness. We must refuse to let bitterness take root in our hearts (see Hebrews 12:15). We cannot allow ourselves to be offended or remain angry. This means we cannot follow our feelings; we must press past feelings and do what God asks us to do.

Sometimes God asks us to let something go and not even mention it; at other times He requires us to confront and communicate openly about situations. Communication often clears up confusion and brings balance to situations that cause conflict. Lack of confrontation opens the door for greater misunderstanding and strife.

Prayer Starter: Lord, help me to be generous with forgiveness and keep strife out of my life. Show me when to be quiet and when to confront, and give me strength for both, amen.

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Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.

— Psalm 5:3 (NLT)

Many times, the way your day starts is the way it is going to go all day. This is why the devil tries so hard to get us in a bad frame of mind early in the day. Have you found the enemy trying to make you mad, using something—anything—to get your mind full of sour thoughts before the day has really started? He tries to get you upset about traffic or the possibility of a long line at the bank or the doctor’s office before you have even left your house!

But you can make your mind up early in the morning to enjoy each aspect of your day, whether everything goes the way you planned or not. The mind is the battlefield. Start choosing right thoughts early in the morning, and you will begin to walk in victory.

Prayer Starter: Lord, I want to hear your voice first thing every morning. I trust You to guide me with right thoughts and I expect to enjoy my day, amen.

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The sheep that are My own hear My voice and listen to Me; I know them, and they follow Me.

— John 10:27 (AMP)

Prayer is meant to be a conversation. When you’re praying, make sure to listen to what God tells you either through His Word or as a direct revelation to your heart (which will always line up with the Word of God).

Communication is a two-way street. It doesn’t consist of one person doing all the talking while the other does all the listening. You may have to develop an ability to listen, but God has some very awesome things to say if we learn to hear Him.

God has invited us into a relationship of fellowship with Him. It is to be an intimate relationship in which we share absolutely everything. God is not someone we visit for one hour on Sunday morning and ignore the rest of the week unless we have an emergency. He is someone we live with. He is our home, and we can be comfortable with Him.

Prayer Starter: Thank You, Father, for speaking to me and listening when I pray. I want to recognize Your voice and to hear You speak all throughout the day, amen.

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You shall walk after the Lord your God and [reverently] fear Him, and keep His commandments, and obey His voice…

— Deuteronomy 13:4 (AMPC)

Once we begin listening to and hearing from God, it is important to obey whatever we hear Him say. Obedience increases our quality of fellowship with Him and strengthens our faith. We might say, “Practice makes perfect” when it comes to hearing and obeying Him. In other words, we become more and more confident as we gain experience. It takes a lot of practice to reach the point of complete submission to God’s leading. Even knowing that God’s ways are perfect and that His plans always work, we still feign ignorance sometimes when He asks us to do something that requires personal sacrifice, or we might even be afraid that we are not hearing clearly and therefore too cautious to take action.

Don’t be fearful of sacrifice or of making a mistake. There are many things in life that are worse than being wrong. Jesus said, “Follow Me.” I firmly believe that when we have done our best to hear from God, then we must “step out and find out,” if we truly are hearing His voice or not. Shrinking back in fear all our lives will never allow us to make progress in our ability to hear from God.

He did not say, “You take the lead, and I will follow you.” I have learned that we may as well do quickly whatever God says, because if we don’t, I can guarantee that we will be miserable.

When our children are learning how to walk, we don’t get angry when they fall down. We realize they are learning, and we work with them. God is the same way, and He will teach you how to hear from Him if you walk in faith and not fear.

Prayer Starter: Father, I want to hear Your voice and follow your lead. Please help me to not get out ahead of You, amen.

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And now, Lord, for what do I expectantly wait? My hope [my confident expectation] is in You.

— Psalm 39:7 (AMP)

It’s easy to look at your struggles in life and get discouraged. If you look only at your obstacles, it’s easy to lose hope. Maybe you’ve been diagnosed with a serious illness and feel you won’t recover. You might look at your bank account and feel hopeless. You may drive to work and think, There’s no hope for a promotion. And that is exactly what the devil wants you to do. He knows that if he can keep you hopeless, you cannot move on with bold faith, and you’ll miss God’s great plan for your life.

Resist the temptation to look at what you have lost or don’t have—choose to look at all that God has done, is doing, and will do. When you do, hope will come alive, joy will increase, and your faith will grow. When you live in the garden of hope, something is always blooming. Instead of believing the lie that things are hopeless, choose to declare, “With God, there is always hope!”

Prayer Starter: Lord, help me to resist the temptation to look at what I’ve lost or don’t have but instead, keep focused on what You have already done in my life, amen.

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Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

— Romans 12:2 (AMPC)

Renewing your mind is not like renewing your driver’s license or library card, which can be done quickly and doesn’t have to be repeated for months or years. Renewing your mind is more like undertaking the job of renewing and refurbishing an old house. It doesn’t happen quickly; it takes time, energy, and effort, and there is always something that needs attention.

Don’t fall into the trap of believing you can renew your mind by thinking right thoughts one time. To get the mind renewed, you will have to think right thoughts over and over again, until they become rooted in your thinking—until right thoughts come to you more easily and naturally than wrong thoughts.

You will have to discipline yourself to think properly, and you will have to guard against falling into old thought patterns, which can happen very easily. When it does, don’t feel bad—just start thinking rightly again. You will eventually come to the place where wrong thoughts make you uncomfortable and they just don’t fit right into your thinking processes any longer.

Let me be quick to say that you should not feel condemned if you are struggling with your thought life right now or if you face struggles in the days to come. Condemnation only weakens you; it never helps you make progress. Anytime we recognize that we are allowing wrong thoughts into our minds, we should ask God to forgive us and continue pressing on toward our goal.

Celebrate every victory because it helps you to not feel overwhelmed by what still remains to be conquered and remember that God is very patient and long-suffering. He is understanding and will never give up on you.

Prayer Starter: Father, I want to renew and transform my mind. I trust that You will be patient with me and guide me as you practice right thinking, 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)

One of my favorite things to say is, “Where the mind goes, the man follows,” because the way you think determines the way you live.

If you think you’re going to be defeated, then you’re going to have an attitude that leads to defeat. But if you choose to think about God’s promises, you’re going to have a faith-filled, expectant attitude.

Yesterday, you may have let your mind focus on the negative— what you can’t do, how badly you’ve messed up, all the things that could go wrong—but today you can submit your mind to the Word of God. You can actually choose the thoughts you are going to dwell on.

With the help of the Holy Spirit, you can change your thoughts today. You can choose a better, more positive, more fulfilling life.

Prayer Starter: Thank You, Father, for helping me think positive thoughts. I am grateful that I am not a prisoner to negative thinking and that I can choose happy, and joy-filled thoughts, which will lead to a more fulfilling life, amen.

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Now am I trying to win the favor of men, or of God? Do I seek to please men? If I were still seeking popularity with men, I should not be a bond servant of Christ (the Messiah).

— Galatians 1:10 (AMPC)

Have you ever felt that you could not be everything that everybody wanted you to be? Have you ever known deep down inside that you really needed to say “no” to a lot of people—but the fear of displeasing them had your mouth saying, “I’ll try,” while your heart was screaming, “I can’t do it!”?

Sometimes, insecure people say “yes,” when they really mean “no.” Those who succeed at being themselves don’t allow others to control them. They are led by a bold heart that knows God loves them, not by the fear of displeasing others or being rejected by them.

We should not get angry at people because they place demands on us, because in reality it is our responsibility to order our lives. Thankfully, we can be secure in Christ and bold enough to say “no” to people when we know it is the right thing to do.

Prayer Starter: When I am in a situation, Father, where I am tempted to overcommit to something or someone even though I don’t have a peace about it, help me to be secure enough to say “no.” I thank You that my security is found in You, not in pleasing others.

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 For sighing has become my daily food; my groans pour out like water. What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me. I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil.

— Job 3:24–26 (NIV)

How many times have you said something like this: “Oh, I just dread having to work in the yard this weekend,” or “I’m really dreading the Friday afternoon meeting with my boss”? Most of us have made remarks such as these when we know we must do something we do not enjoy. What we really mean is that we do not look forward to the task ahead of us and would rather not do it. But when we dread things, we drain ourselves of strength, perhaps without realizing that’s what we’re doing.

Dread is a symptom of a negative attitude, not the fruit of a positive attitude, and it affects our joy in a negative way. Dread is also a close relative of fear.

We can’t feel dread and joy at the same time. We all enjoy doing some things more than others, but we can choose to remain joyful and upbeat even while we do things we don’t particularly like. When we stay happy and positive, we usually do things faster and better, and we can then move on to other activities.

Whatever you need to do today, even if you are not looking forward to it, decide right now that you will not dread it. Instead, ask God to help you do it with a positive attitude. Don’t let an item on your to-do list decrease your joy, because “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (see Nehemiah 8:10).

Prayer Starter: Father, help me not to dread anything, but to have a positive attitude toward everything I need to do. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Come close to God and He will come close to you….

— James 4:8 (AMPC)

Not everyone is willing to pay the price required to be close to God. Not willing to simply take the time required or make the investments needed for spiritual growth. God doesn’t ask for all our time. He certainly wants us to do things we don’t consider “spiritual.” He designed us with bodies, souls (minds, wills, and emotions), and spirits, and He expects us to take care of all these areas. Exercising our bodies and caring for our souls takes time and effort. Our emotions need to be ministered to; we need to have fun and be entertained, and we need to enjoy being with other people. Our minds need to grow and be renewed daily. In addition, we have a spiritual nature that needs attention. To stay balanced and healthy, we must take time to take care of our entire being.

I believe the whole issue of intimacy with God is a matter of time. We say we don’t have time to seek God, but the truth is that we take time to do the things that are most important to us. Even though we all have to fight distractions every day, if knowing God and hearing from Him is important to us then we will find time to do it. Don’t try to work God into your schedule, but instead work your schedule around time with Him.

Getting to know God is a long-term investment, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t get instant results. Be determined to honor Him with your time and you will reap the benefits.

Prayer Starter: Father, I want to get more intimate with You. Help me to keep the distractions to a minimum and help me to make spending time with You my first priority. I pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.

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