…The righteous gives and does not spare.—Proverbs 21:26 NKJV

I once read a story in Guideposts magazine, a remarkable account of how love changed a person’s life. A Christian woman lived next door to an elderly lady who never came out of her house or even raised her window shades to let light into her home. This lady’s husband had died, and she herself had endured a stroke, which had left her lonely and bitter.

The Christian woman and her two young children began trying to reach out to the elderly recluse, but every time they did, she rejected their advances. They baked cookies every week for a long time and delivered them to their neighbor’s door. The first time, she opened the door just a crack, accepted the cookies, thanked them, and closed the door.

The neighbor’s response was not what the Christian woman had hoped for, but she lovingly persisted. And eventually love did work! The elderly lady accepted a casserole from her and said more than just a short thank-you. As the visits continued, the elderly woman gradually began to chat longer. Finally, one day, the Christian woman’s children picked some flowers from their garden and delivered them to their neighbor. Eventually, they all became good friends. The elderly lady got her life back. She opened her blinds, her door, and her heart, and she began to live again—all because someone who loved God was determined to love her.

Many people in the world today are just like the elderly neighbor. They have had sadness or difficulties in their lives and have become bitter. They seem to reject love, yet love is what they need most. Be a person who gives of yourself and your resources to reach out and show love to someone who desperately needs it.

Love Others Today: Do you know someone who is angry, sad, or bitter? How can you show love to that person?

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

…The upright shall dwell in Your presence (before Your very face). —Psalm 140:13

The fact that the Holy Spirit lives inside of us proves His willingness to always be available to speak to us and help us when we need Him. As we continue to grow spiritually, we will experience temptation, but God has given us the Holy Spirit to enable us to resist it and make right choices instead of wrong ones.

Nevertheless, no human being is perfect and we will make mistakes. But God’s forgiveness is always available to us through Jesus Christ. Receiving this forgiveness strengthens us and enables us to keep moving forward with God. It also puts our hearts at peace, sets us free, and helps us hear God’s voice clearly.

Feeling defeated and condemned by every mistake we make weakens us. Instead of using our energy to feel bad about ourselves, we should use it to make sure ours hearts are tuned to God’s voice as He leads us into greater strength and deeper relationship with Himself. His forgiveness and His Presence are always available to us through the Holy Spirit. As you seek God today, I encourage you to receive His love and mercy. His arms are open and He is waiting to spend time with you.

God’s word for you today: Remember that the Holy Spirit is always available to you.

From the book Hearing from God Each Morning: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. —1 John 2:15

Many today are far too attached to the things of this world. Our society is filled to the brim with commerce—there are stores on almost every corner. And everyone is busy making money so they can buy more things. God wants His children to be blessed with nice things, but the Bible tells us not to love them excessively. It is important to keep things in their proper place.

If you use what you have to bless others, God will see to it that you have everything you need and more. So your goal should be to enjoy the things God gives you and to share with others. This shows your love for the Father.

From the book Ending Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.—Matthew 18:21-22

Faith and trust in God is meant to be exercised more than once in a while or from time to time; we can live in faith at all times. With God’s help we can learn to live from faith to faith, trusting the Lord when things are good, and when things are difficult. It is easy to trust God when things are good, but when things are challenging and we decide to trust God, then we really develop character.

Psalm 34:1 encourages us to bless the Lord at all times. There are several other scriptures that tell us things to do at all times—resist the devil at all times, believe God at all times, love others at all times—not just when it’s convenient or it feels good.

Temptation is a frequent visitor in our lives and as long as we are here on earth, we will have to discipline our emotions, our moods, and our mouths, so that we remain stable and calm, and peaceful—whatever our situation or circumstances. That enables us to be in close fellowship with God and walk in the joy of His Spirit.

Since you can choose your own thoughts, when doubt comes, you can learn to recognize it for what it is, say, “No, thank you,” and keep on believing!

From the book Closer to God Each Day by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

If I [can] speak in the tongues of men and [even] of angels, but have not love (that reasoning, intentional, spiritual devotion such as is inspired by God’s love for and in us), I am only a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. —1 Corinthians 13:1

Most of the things we devote our time and energy to are things that are currently passing away, things that will not last. We strive to make money, build businesses, achieve great accomplishments, be popular, own buildings, cars, and jewelry. We want to expand our minds and see the world, yet all of these things are temporal. They will all come to an end.

Only love never comes to an end. An act of love goes on and endures forever. Thankfully, God allows us to have a lasting impact when He asks us to love others. Henry Drummond says that “to love abundantly is to live abundantly, and to love forever is to live forever.” In order to “love abundantly” and “love forever,” I encourage you to first receive God’s love for you…then you can walk in love toward everyone else.

Prayer of Thanks: Father, I am grateful that I can live my life in such a way as to have a lasting impact. Thank You for the power of love. Help me exercise that power and make an eternal impact by showing love to those around me today. Help me to always know what is truly important.

From the book The Power of Being Thankful by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

…But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart. —1 Corinthians 2:16

I reached the curb in front of the airport, where my friend would pick me up. I was calm and relaxed and thought of the great conversation we would have. To my surprise, she wasn’t there yet. That was odd because she’s the kind of person who is never late for anything. I remained calm and peaceful. I spotted what I thought was her car and took a step forward, but the car went past me, and there was a stranger in it.

Not more than three minutes had passed, but I realized I was anxious and worried. What had happened to her? Had she been in an accident? Did she forget me? From calmness to anxiety in less than three minutes, and nothing had changed—nothing except my mind. Worried thoughts struggled inside me.

I pulled out my cell phone and started to dial, when I heard a car honking, as she pulled up to the curb. My mind shifted once again to calmness, even joyfulness. How quickly my emotions had shifted in that short period of time.

My mind had quickly changed when my circumstances did. Sometimes I find it easy to hear God speak . . . and to believe without any difficulty. Yet at other times, worry and anxiety push their way into my mind. The Bible says we are to walk by faith and not by sight, but that day at the airport, I was definitely being led by what I saw. When we worry, we are not walking in faith and trusting God.

For a long period of my life, I had a critical, suspicious, and judgmental mind. That may seem normal for many nonbelievers, but I was a Christian. I was going along with the same thinking and mindset that I had known for years. It was normal to me—it was just the way I was. For years, I had no awareness that my wrong thinking was causing any problems.

Because no one had taught me, I didn’t know I could do anything to change my thought life. It simply had not occurred to me. No one had taught me about the proper condition for the believer’s mind. God offers us a new way to think and a new way to live.

God has called us to renew our minds (see Romans 12:2). For most of us, it is an ongoing process. We don’t control our thinking all at one time.

One day I read 1 Corinthians 2:16, where Paul says we have the mind of Christ. What could he have meant? I pondered that verse for days. I concluded that for us to have the mind of Christ doesn’t mean we’re sinless or perfect. It does mean we begin to think the way Christ thinks. If we have His mind, we think on those things that are good and honorable and loving.

I confessed to God how many times my mind had focused on the ugly, the mean, and the harsh.

In 1 Corinthians 2:14, Paul wrote, But the natural, nonspiritual man does not accept or welcome or admit into his heart the gifts and teachings and revelations of the Spirit of God, for they are folly (meaningless nonsense) to him . . . because they are spiritually discerned and estimated and appreciated. Yes, I thought, that’s exactly how it works. The natural mind—even that of the Christians whose minds are tampered with by Satan—doesn’t grasp what God is doing. Those things seem foolish.

We must remind ourselves that we have Christ’s mind—we have the ability to think loving and caring thoughts. We can defeat Satan’s attacks.

Holy God, I want to live with the mind of Christ. I ask You to enable me to think positive, loving, caring thoughts about myself and about others. Help me to see and think on the good things in life and not the bad. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

From the book Battlefield of the Mind Devotional by Joyce Meyer

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Let him turn away from wickedness and shun it, and let him do right. Let him search for peace (harmony; undisturbedness from fears, agitating passions, and moral conflicts) and seek it eagerly. [Do not merely desire peaceful relations with God, with your fellowmen, and with yourself, but pursue, go after them!]—1 Peter 3:11

Paul said, “I want to do what is right, but I can’t” (see Romans 7:15-25). He was a new person on the inside because he was born again, but he still had to resist the temptation to sin.

Paul explained that “the sin [principle]” (v. 20) continues to dwell in us. We want to do right, but we don’t have the power to perform it, because evil is ever present to tempt us to do wrong. Only God can deliver us from this tendency to sin; that is why we must ask Him to deliver us from evil each day.

From the book Starting Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

I am the Way.… —John 14:6

Many people are hurting so badly, and they are crying out for help. The problem is, they are not willing to receive the help they need from God. No matter how much we may want or need help, we are never going to receive it until we are willing to do things God’s way. In John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the Way.” What Jesus meant when He said, “I am the Way,” is that He has a certain way of doing things; and if we will submit to His way, everything will work out for us.

But so often we wrestle and struggle with Him, trying to get Him to do things our way. It just won’t work. How many times have people stood in front of me at the altar and told me all kinds of terrible things that are going on in their lives and how badly they are hurting yet they absolutely refuse to do what they are told to do to receive the help they need. Too often people are trying to find some other way to get help rather than by doing things God’s way.

The Bible plainly teaches that if we will learn and act on the Word, God will bless our lives. Let me give you an example. The Bible teaches that we are to live in harmony and peace with others and to forgive those who have done us wrong. If we refuse to do that, what hope do we have of receiving what we need?

I remember how difficult it was for me the first time the Lord told me I had to go to my husband and tell him I was sorry for being rebellious against him. I thought I would die on the spot! I realize that one reason we don’t always do what we are told to do in the Word of God is because it is hard.

If we don’t do what we can do, then God won’t do what we can’t do. If we will do what we can do, God will do what we can’t do. It’s just that simple.

From the book New Day, New You by Joyce Meyer

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Therefore encourage (admonish, exhort) one another and edify (strengthen and build up) one another…. —1 Thessalonians 5:11

God created Adam and Eve, He blessed them, then told them to be fruitful and multiply and use all the vast resources of the earth that He gave them in the service of God and man.

Are you being fruitful? Is your life causing increase? When you get involved with people and things, do they increase and multiply? Some people only take in life, and they never add anything. I refuse to be that kind of person. I want to make people’s lives better. I want to put smiles on faces.

We must all make sure that we are not like the rich man in the Bible who had so much that all of his barns were full with no room for more. Instead of giving any of it away, he decided that he would tear down the barns he had and just build bigger ones and collect more stuff for himself. He was a foolish man. He could have decided that he would use what he had to bless others, but he must have been a fearful, selfish man, who only had room in his life for himself (see Luke 12:16-20).

God called the man a fool, and said, This very night they [the messengers of God] will demand your soul of you; and all the things that you have prepared, whose will they be? The man was going to die that night, and all he would leave behind was “stuff.” He had an opportunity to make the world a better place. He could have added to many lives and put smiles on thousands of faces. Instead, he fearfully and selfishly only cared about himself.

Forget about yourself and start doing all you can to help others. Encourage, edify, lift up, comfort, help, give hope, relieve pain, and lift burdens. If that is your goal, you will be one of those rare individuals who actually make the world a better place and put a smile on every face.

Trust in Him: What are you going to do today to put smiles on faces? It won’t just happen—you have to be intentional about it. Listen for God to show you what to do and then trust that it will bless them…and you!

From the book Trusting God Day by Day by Joyce Meyer

http://www.joycemeyer.org

The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not lack. —Psalm 23:1

Being able to maintain a good attitude during times of suffering is a virtue, and it is very important, but continual suffering is not God’s will for anybody. The apostle Paul said he had times of being abased and times of abounding (see Philippians 4:12). We will go through difficulties in this life, but we can, and should, expect God’s deliverance along with a return to the abundant life.

We must never see God as a stingy god who would withhold something we need. Certainly, there are times when we don’t get what we want when we want it, but if that happens, God has a good reason. Perhaps the timing isn’t right, or we are not mature enough to handle it yet, or He has something better in mind, but it is never because He doesn’t want us to be blessed. That thought simply isn’t consistent with who He is.

Power Thought: The Lord is my Shepherd; I have all I need.

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Although He was a Son, He learned [active, special] obedience through what He suffered and, [His completed experience] making Him perfectly [equipped], He became the Author and Source of eternal salvation to all those who give heed and obey Him.—Hebrews 5:8-9

Ever found yourself in a situation where you did not take time to prepare for something at work or at church and you’re expected to do something? Your heart starts hammering, the butterflies in your stomach start flittering, and you quietly think to yourself, I’ll just wing it. You’re not prepared, but you’re hoping you can pull it off anyway and nobody will ever know.

Even if you do manage to deceive other people, you will know the truth and you won’t feel good about it. Down deep inside you will know that you did not do your best. You might feel relieved that you managed to get through it, but you did it in fear rather than confidence.

Even Jesus was trained and prepared by the suffering He went through. He was equipped for His office as High Priest through His times of preparation. If Jesus needed preparation in order to be equipped for His job, there is no doubt that we need the same thing. Sometimes the bitter experiences we endure are the best teachers we have in life.

Lord, I ask You to use all of my life experiences to shape me as they shaped You. I want to be a person of substance and godliness with something to give to others. Amen.

From the book The Confident Woman Devotional: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

For I am persuaded beyond doubt (am sure) that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things impending and threatening…nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. —Romans 8:38-39

To fully understand all the different facets of love, we must talk about the two kinds of love: the God-kind of love and man’s love. Man’s love fails, gives up; but God’s love does not. Man’s love is finite, comes to an end; but God’s love is infinite and eternal. Man’s love is dependent on favorable behavior and circumstances; God’s love is not. People place conditions on their love, but God’s love is unconditional.

According to God’s Word, He loved us before the world was formed, before we loved Him or believed in Him, or had ever done anything either good or evil. God does not require us to earn His love, and we must not require others to earn ours. As believers in Jesus Christ, the love we are to manifest to the world is the unconditional love of God flowing through us to them.

Loving people unconditionally is a very big challenge. I would be tempted to say it’s impossible, but since God tells us to do it, surely He must have a way for us to do it. Sometimes we pray to be able to love the unlovely and then do our best to avoid every unlovely person God sends our way. Learning to walk in love with unlovely people and learning to be patient in trials are probably the two most important tools God uses to develop our spiritual maturity. Believe it or not, difficult people in our lives help us. They sharpen and refine us for God’s use.

Love Others Today: “Lord, help me to love others today without imposing ‘ifs’ or conditions. Let me remember that as I do it, I’m being refined by You.”

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty.… —Ephesians 6:18

In the verse for today, Paul is basically saying that we are to pray in every circumstance, following the Holy Spirit’s direction, using different types of prayer in different situations. But how do we “pray at all times,” as the Bible instructs? We do it by keeping an attitude of thanksgiving and total dependence upon God as we go about our everyday lives, turning our thoughts toward Him in the midst of doing all the things we have to do and listening for His voice in every situation.

I believe God really wants us to live a lifestyle of prayer and that He wants to help us stop thinking about prayer as an event and begin to see it as a way of life, as an internal activity that undergirds everything else we do. He wants us to talk to Him and listen to Him continually—to pray our way through every day with our hearts connected to His and our ears attuned to His voice.

We often hear about a prayer need or think about a situation and say to ourselves, I need to pray about that later when I pray. That thought is a stall tactic of the enemy. Why not pray right that minute? We do not pray right away because of the wrong mind-sets we have about prayer. It would be easy if we just followed our hearts, but Satan wants to complicate prayer. He wants us to procrastinate in the hope that we will forget the matter entirely.

Praying as we sense the desire or need to pray is simple, and it is the way we can pray continually and stay connected to God in every situation throughout the day.

From the book Hearing from God Each Morning: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. Sufficient for each day is its own trouble. —Matthew 6:34

Most of us have enough to handle today without worrying about tomorrow. God will give you grace for today, but He will not give you grace for tomorrow until tomorrow arrives.

So often people worry about something that never happens. When you begin to think about the “what ifs,” the door opens for fear and worry. Some people worry so much that their worries become fear, and often the things people fear manifest in their life.

Do not allow yourself to dread tomorrow. Just know that God is faithful. It is comforting to know that whatever tomorrow may hold, He holds tomorrow. His grace is sufficient to meet the need. Do not waste today’s grace by worrying about tomorrow. Live one day at a time and you’ll be amazed at how much you can accomplish for Christ.

From the book Ending Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. —Romans 8:5 KJV

Romans 8:5 teaches us that if we “mind” the flesh, we will walk in the flesh. But if we “mind” the things of the Spirit, we will walk in the Spirit. Our actions follow our thoughts!

Let me put it another way: If we think fleshly thoughts, wrong thoughts, and negative thoughts, we cannot walk in the Spirit. It seems as if renewed, godlike thinking is a vital necessity to a successful Christian life.

Your life may be in a state of chaos because of years of wrong thinking. If so, it is important for you to come to grips with the fact that your life will not get straightened out until your mind does. You should consider this area one of vital necessity.

Ask God to help you learn to think thoughts that He would have you think. You cannot overcome any problem by determination alone. It is important to be determined, but determined in the Holy Spirit, not in the effort of your own flesh. The Holy Spirit is close to you. He is your Helper—seek His help. Lean on Him. You can make it with His help.

Give the Holy Spirit control of your life. He will lead you into the perfect will of God for you, which includes exceeding, abundant blessings, peace, and joy.

From the book Closer to God Each Day by Joyce Meyer

http://www.joycemeyer.org

I do not call you servants (slaves) any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing (working out). But I have called you My friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from My Father.… —John 15:15

One of the most important keys to effective prayer is approaching God as His friend. When we go to God believing that He sees us as His friends, new wonders are opened to us. We experience new freedom and boldness, which are both things to be extremely grateful for.

If we do not know God as a friend, we will be reluctant to be bold in asking for what we need. But if we go to Him as our friend, without losing our awe of Him, our prayers will stay fresh, exciting, and intimate.

A friendship involves loving and being loved. It means knowing that God is on your side, wanting to help you, cheering you on, and always keeping your best interest in mind. God loves you and desires your friendship!

Prayer of Thanks: Father, I am thankful that You have promised to be my friend. Help me to come to You in prayer, knowing that You love me and You are for me. Thank You, God, that I am never alone. You are my friend, and You are with me.

From the book The Power of Being Thankful by Joyce Meyer

http://www.joycemeyer.org

And you [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins in which at one time you walked [habitually]. You were following the course and fashion of this world [were under the sway of the tendency of this present age], following the prince of the power of the air. [You were obedient to and under the control of] the [demon] spirit that still constantly works in the sons of disobedience [the careless, the rebellious, and the unbelieving, who go against the purposes of God].—Ephesians 2:1-2

I find a great deal of comfort in thinking about who I used to be and who I have become. It helps me not to be discouraged when I make mistakes or find that I still struggle over some issues. I’m greatly encouraged when I consider where I started and where I am now.

In Ephesians 2, Paul described those outside of Christ. He wrote that unbelievers follow the prince of the power of the air, who is Satan, and they follow the way their master leads. In verse 1, he pointed out that all were once dead through their sins, but believers are now alive in Jesus Christ. He tells us we’re not governed or led by our lower nature—the impulses of the flesh.

Many Christians have trouble in this area because they haven’t learned to control their thoughts. A lady once told me, “It simply didn’t occur to me that I needed to direct my mind and keep it healthy and positive. If ministers preached or taught about the control of our thoughts, I never heard it. One day, however, I read an article about the power of thoughts, and God convicted me. That’s when I knew I needed to change my thinking.”

This lady said she drove down the street of a busy city and she spotted a sign, a cartoon of a car with big eyes for the front lights and tears flowing, and the words, “Please help me! I need an oil change.”

Continue reading Joyce Meyer – “I Want a Mind Change” →

…They who seek (inquire of and require) the Lord [by right of their need and on the authority of His Word], none of them shall lack any beneficial thing. —Psalm 34:10

Jesus said, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind (declare to be improper and unlawful) on earth must be what is already bound in heaven; and whatever you loose (declare lawful) on earth must be what is already loosed in heaven (Matthew 16:19).

As a believer, you have authority to live a life of victory and to forbid the devil to torment you. It is not lawful for him to destroy you in heaven, so it is not lawful for him to destroy you during your days on earth. Use the keys of the kingdom of heaven that Jesus has passed to you. Loose God’s blessings upon your efforts and bind the evil works that come against the fruit of your labors today.

From the book Starting Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Do you not know that your body is the temple (the very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received [as a Gift] from God? You are not your own, You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own]. So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body. —1 Corinthians 6:19-20

The word stress was originally an engineering term used to refer to the amount of force a beam or other physical support could bear without collapsing under strain.

In our time, the word has been expanded to refer not only to physical pressure but also to mental and emotional tension. As human beings, you and I are built to handle a normal amount of stress. God has created us to withstand a certain amount of pressure and tension. The problem comes when we push ourselves beyond our limitations, beyond what we were intended to bear without permanent damage. But like so many people, because I have things to do, I just keep pushing myself even though it is causing me physical damage.

Of course, when sickness tries to come on Dave or me, we immediately pray for healing. But if you become sick as a result of running your body down by pushing it beyond the limits God set for you to operate in good health, you need rest as well as prayer to restore your health. The boundaries He has set for us are for our own good.

From the book New Day, New You by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

And who of you by worrying and being anxious can add one unit of measure (cubit) to his stature or to the span of his life? —Matthew 6:27

Fear and worry are closely related. You might say fear is the parent of every kind of worry because every worry starts as a fear. The Bible clearly teaches that God’s children are not to worry. When we worry, we rotate our minds around and around a problem and come up with no answers. The more we do it, the more anxious we feel. When we worry, we actually torment ourselves with a type of thinking that produces no good fruit. Worry starts with our thoughts, but it affects our moods and even our physical bodies.

A person can worry so much that it makes them feel depressed and sad. Worry places stress on your entire system and causes a lot of physical ailments like headaches, tension in muscles, stomach problems, and many other things. It never helps, and it does not solve our problems.

We can worry about hundreds of different things, from what people think of us to what will happen to us as we age. How long will we be able to work? Who will take care of us when we get old? What happens if the stock market crashes? What if gas prices go up? What if I lose my job? Quite often, worry does not even have a basis or a nugget of truth to it. There is no known reason to even think about the things that worry and then frighten us.

The only answer is to stop worrying by placing your trust in God. He has the future all planned, and He knows the answer to everything. What we worry about frequently never happens anyway, and if it is going to happen, worrying won’t prevent it. God’s Word promises us that He will take care of us if we trust in Him.

Trust in Him: What are you worrying about? Cast your cares on Jesus. He wants you to trust Him with every thought, burden, and worry that you’re carrying because He’s fully capable of taking care of you (see 1 Peter 5:7).

From the book Trusting God Day by Day by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org