What kind of sowing are you doing?

The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.
James 3:17-18 New International Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
Now I know why righteousness is so hard to find: there aren’t many peace sowers! Just watch those around you and you’ll see what I mean. Heavenly wisdom is full of the fruits of sacrificial action, the action of sowing in peace. That’s a powerful reminder to me that wisdom is not what you know, but indeed it’s what you sow! AND, in knowing what not to sow. Because you can’t change the spiritual or natural laws of “sowing and reaping!” You will reap what you sow. Are you sowing for a loving peaceful harvest? Or are you sowing worldly wisdom, which really isn’t wisdom in the long run, but is instead folly. God wants us to embrace His Godly wisdom, not the world’s wisdom.

MY PRAYER…
Holy and Wise Father, thank You for demonstrating purity, peace making, consideration, submissiveness, mercy, good fruit, impartiality, sincerity, and most of all love through Your Son Jesus. I ask You to continue to fill me with Your power and the courage to demonstrate those qualities as I seek to live more like Jesus.
In Jesus’ name I pray.
Amen

Does God’s light shine forth from you?

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.
Ephesians 5:8-11 New King James Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
We must let His light shine forth from us, not our light we have none of our own, but the light of the Lord that is within us. Oh, how Jesus loves to give good gifts to us. He has given us a Helper, a Teacher, a Guide, a Comforter, and a Counselor to help us cause that light to shine forth. Call on the Helper, the Teacher, the Spirit of Truth, and find out what is really acceptable to the Lord. Call on the Helper to strengthen you with His power and might so that you can stand against the works of darkness and expose them, not fellowship with them. You can’t be a beacon if His light don’t shine through you! In order for His light to shine through you must first make Him your Lord!

MY PRAYER…
All Mighty Father, Thank You for sending us the Holy Spirit through Jesus. Thank You for not leaving us alone, but instead giving us a Helper, a Comforter, a Guide, a Teacher, and a Counselor. Help us Lord to be strong and strengthen us Lord through Your might by the Holy Spirit that is within us. Lead and guide us Holy Spirit into all truth that we may be filled with all the fullness of God in our inner man. That we may bring glory to the Church and to Christ Jesus for ever and ever. In the mighty name of Jesus, Lord I ask and pray and I give You all glory and honor forever.
Amen

Nothing is impossible with God!

The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. – Luke 18:27

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
Right now you and I are standing face to face with situations in our nation that need to be changed. Some of those situations look totally impossible. But they’re not. Because this country belongs to God. He’s the One who brought the United States of America into existence. He had a special purpose for it. He needed a country where the gospel could be preached freely and not suppressed.
It was God Himself who stirred the heart and mind of Christopher Columbus and planted within him the dream of charting a new course to the West. Columbus said so in his own journals: “It was the Lord who put into my mind (I could feel His hand upon me) the fact that it would be possible to sail from here to the Indies. All who heard of my project rejected it with laughter, ridiculing me. There’s no question that the inspiration was from the Holy Spirit because He comforted me with rays of marvelous inspiration from the Holy Scriptures….”
Who brought Christopher Columbus to America? God brought him. This is God’s nation. He raised it up, and it’s not going to be taken away from Him. He had America formed for a reason and that reason is His plan for us not some man’s.
The next time you’re tempted to look at situations in this country as impossible, remember who it belongs to. Remember that we are to humble ourselves and pray for our country. Then you can discover America just like Christopher Columbus did—by faith. Did you know that the USA was right in the middle of JERUSALEM?

MY PRAYER…
Glorious God and Almighty Father, I look forward to the day when people from every language, tribe, and nation, join with the angels and the 24 elders around Your throne and worship You in joyous praise. I am anxious to see the mansion you have for me in Your House. Father, help us to become one with our brothers and sisters around the world, that we might worship You as Your church, not many different churches. Lord, help us to reach our neighbors and share You with them. Lord, prepare us, prepare our hearts, for that glorious day when You come to take us home to be with You forever! Lord, we give You ALL praise and ALL glory forever.
Amen

Know this: God has not given us a spirit of fear!

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
1 John 4:18 New International Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
What is there to fear about man, he can only kill your mortal man he cannot kill your spirit. What is there to fear if God sent His Son to die to redeem us? What is there to fear if we know we cannot be separated from the love God has for us in Christ Jesus? What is there to fear if God is on our side? What is there to fear except ourselves? Since we are His children, rather than run from Him in fear, we need to bow before Him in reverential awe and thanksgiving, knowing that He who hears our prayers is also He who loves us and casts away our fears. We need to run to God not from Him. We need to run into His protection always. His protection is awesome and always available. You need to read and meditate on Psalm 91. You need to make this your place of refuge in life’s storms.
Fear is the opposite of ‘Faith’, you cannot be in faith toward God if you are in fear.

MY PRAYER…
Loving Father, I thank You that I can revere and worship You without fearing Your wrath. Thank You that I can revere Your word and yet not be terrified by my inadequacies and failings. Thank you that I know from Your Word that when I mess up I can run to You and ask for and receive forgiveness. May Your love in me produce a closer likeness to Your holiness, righteousness, justice, and mercy than all the laws, threats, and judges in this world combined.
Through Jesus, who ransomed me from sin, I pray.
Amen

I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you!

If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
John 14:15-18 New King James Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
Oh, how Jesus loves to do good things for us. For those who believe in Him. Notice that He was talking to believers and not the unsaved. He said He would send another Helper. A helper, the Spirit of Truth, the Comforter, the Counselor, The Guide, the Teacher, The Holy Spirit. Jesus made sure we would not be alone. He had the Father send us back not just a good gift, but the best gift! A gift that the world, those who have not made Jesus their Lord, can not receive, know, or see. But we have Him, He dwells in us so that we are not alone (orphans). He is the promise that Jesus will return for us in that “Great Day”! Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed? There is another gift of the Holy Spirit subsequent to the new birth. Many have not received this, because they either do not know about Him or they have been taught wrong.

MY PRAYER…
Precious Lord Jesus, Thank You for sending us the Holy Spirit. Thank You for not leaving us alone, but instead giving us a Helper, a Comforter, a guide, and a Counselor. Thank You Lord for sending the Spirit of Truth to lead and to guide us until You return for us. Thank You Father that on the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit was given for all those who would believe and those who receive will be baptized in fire and with power.
In the name of Jesus, Lord I give You all glory and honor.
Amen

Do you wear the shield of faith in God’s Word?

As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.
Psalm 18:30 New International Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
He is a Shield whose Word can be trusted, His Word is always true and will never return void. His Word will always accomplish that for which He has spoken and sent it and when we speak it and send it in Faith it will do the same for us. If His flawless Word for us is to accomplish what He sent it to do and His presence is to be our shield and our defense from the enemy, then we must take refuge in Him, trust in and rely on Him, . We can NOT believe what we see, hear, feel, taste, or touch in this world around us. Neither can we believe the reports of others. If they are not in line with His Words, they are but false reports! Only His Words are the “True Report.” Even and especially when they do not line up with the natural reports we are receiving from other sources. God’s Word even asks: “Whose report will you believe?” Remember, God calls those things that be not as though they were. And then they are!

MY PRAYER…
Holy Father, I thank You and praise You for who You are and what You are. I thank You Lord that You are a loving Father, whose only desire is to give good things unto His children. I thank You my God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I trust my soul and future to You. You are my strength and my shield and I pray that Your name will be exalted in my life. Thank You Lord for protecting and guarding my family, my church, and myself from the Evil One and for keeping us physically safe and whole as we serve You in this race. Help me Lord to increase my faith. In the name of Your Holy Child, Jesus, I pray.
Amen

Have you buried the ‘old man/woman’?

Buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.
Colossians 2:12 New King James Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
We were buried (positionally-spiritually) with Jesus through baptism according to scripture (if you are born again). This is symbolic of the death of the “old man”, the carnal fleshy man who’s father was Satan because of the fall of Adam. This old man was born with a sin nature because of the fall in the garden, he is a sinner by nature – no matter how good you think he is or who your parents were! I didn’t say that the Bible did, Romans 3:23. This old man had to die before our new man could take his place (2 Cor. 5:17, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.) It is this new man that is spiritually (positionally) risen with Christ. It is our faith in Jesus Christ and what HAS (past tense) already done for us that makes all this possible. Nothing else can make us a new creature in Christ. NOTHING!

MY PRAYER…
Father, I just want to take this time to thank You once again for sending Your Holy Son Jesus to make a way for me to be reconciled unto You. I thank You that because of His blood on the Cross my sins have been not only been forgiven but forgotten, washed away as far as the east is from the west. Thank You Father, for washing me with the water of Your Word (Jesus) and for casting my sin as far as the east is from the west. Thank You for clothing me in Your robe of righteousness through the blood of Jesus. In Jesus’ name I pray.
Amen

Are you the righteousness of God?

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.
Galatians 2:20-21 New King James Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
Are you bold enough to declare that you are the righteousness of God? Paul was, I am! The Bible says I am! What is Paul saying here? If you’re in Christ and He’s in you (you’ve made Him the Lord of your life), then by your position in Christ (spiritually) you were crucified with Christ on the Cross. If you were crucified with Christ then you are dead (positionally) to sin, to the law (Mosaic-Old Testament), to sickness and disease, to death itself. And being dead, you need to bury the old man (he’s supposed to be dead!) and begin to live by faith in Jesus. In other words quit doing those things that the old flesh man did that are sinful, those things that cause sickness, those things that bring death. You are supposed to be raised in the newness of life through the Holy Spirit of Christ. Paul says righteousness (right standing before God) does not come by the law (keeping the Ten Commandment’s , or the Mosaic Law, or by doing good works!) It doesn’t matter how ‘goodie 2 shoes’ you are, How often you go to church, who your parents are, unless you are IN Christ you are a Sinner!) I didn’t say that God’s Word did! For if the law could bring righteousness then why did Christ have to die. Accept it, you are righteous only because of the blood of Jesus washing away your sin through your acceptance of Christ as your Lord. Nothing else you can do will remove your sin except accepting by “Faith” what Christ has already done for you! And living the life of Christ by Faith. Christ (JESUS) is the ‘ONLY’ way to the Father and Heaven, there is NO other Way!

MY PRAYER…
Holy Father, Father of my Lord Jesus, thank You for what You made possible through Jesus. What the law could not do because it was weak through the flesh, You did by sending Your own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh. Most Holy Father, I thank You for Your Son, Jesus, and for the love You had for us while we were still sinners. I Thank You that You no longer hold that sin against those of us who believe in Your Son and have made Him Lord of our lives. I thank You that by His Blood I have been made the righteousness of You and that I can come boldly before Your throne of grace at anytime and receive mercy. Thank You Jesus.
Amen

How do you recognize the followers of Jesus, the true (Authentic) Christians?

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you , so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
John 13:34-35 New International Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
How do you recognize the followers of Jesus? How do you know who the true (Authentic) Christians are? How do you separate the true Christians from the one’s claiming to be Christian, but are really just religious people punching a time clock? Jesus said they (the Authentic Christians, the ones who are Christ-like) love each other just as He loved the disciples. In the immediate context, this means He was willing to give sacrificially and selflessly by dying for them on the cross, and He was also willing to love selflessly and practically by becoming their servant and even washing their feet to show them how they must be. His ministry reveals what a Christian is to be like…ALL the time, not just on Sunday mornings in church. He also said in His Word: “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Heb. 10:25) In the book of Acts they met daily from house to house. Imagine that, they were doing His Word! Imagine if we all read, understood, and did the Gospels, and committed to love each other in the same way Jesus showed His love to His disciples! Are you a disciple of Jesus, a true (Authentic) Christian, or are you just a religious social (Counterfeit) Christian? You are a true (Authentic) Christian if you love the Brethren all the time and bear the fruit of a Christ-like life. Otherwise you’re only a social Christian, a religious counterfeit.

MY PRAYER…
Father of Compassion, Mercy, and God of all grace, I thank You for teaching me to love through the example of Your Son Jesus. May my words and actions reflect some resemblance of His love toward Your people today. May I learn to walk, talk and live the life that He lived everyday of my life. Father, help me to not be a religious counterfeit like the Pharisees and Sadducees. Through Christ, my Great and Glorious example, I pray.
Amen

Are you quick to listen and then slow to speak?

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
James 1:19 New International Version

THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY’S VERSE…
Hit the gas pedal on your ears, but have a dual caliper, double cylinder, anti-skid, power assisted disc brake on your tongue and your attitude, and don’t let anything anger you without seeking God first. Let the email or text that angers you sit there three or four days before responding to it and then make sure you read your answer, re-read it, re-read it, and edit it, then re-read it again, and then pray in the Holy Ghost about sending it. Better yet just delete the offending email or text and any reply that you were going to send and then praise God and pray for the sender. It would be better if you just deleted it, prayed for the person who sent it, and forgot about it. This says the same thing as James says above, except in more modern terms. Now if we would just do it, wouldn’t we all be so much more blessed! Next time a brother or sister, or for that matter anyone, says or does something that could anger you stop for a moment and ask yourself this before you do or say anything: “What would Jesus do right now?” “How would Jesus handle this” There were times when people wanted to stone Him and He just turned and walked back through their midst and walked away. He didn’t repay anger with anger, instead He used love.

MY PRAYER…
Mighty and Holy God, You are incredible beyond my comprehension. Father God, help us to understand Your ways. How You put up with all the drivel, the senseless, and hurtful speech that I and Your other children spew out is beyond my understanding. I ask that You release Your Holy Spirit to convict our hearts and help us to guard our lips from any form of hurtful, harmful speech. Lord, I want my voice and my actions to be as much if not more Yours than mine. Make my thoughts as Your thoughts and my peace as Your peace. This I pray through Jesus.
Amen