THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHERE YOU ARE TODAY, IS NOT WHERE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO STAY

Oftentimes, people set their focus on what God has done in the past—how He parted the Red Sea or stopped the sun for Joshua or fed thousands of people with just a little boy’s small lunch. Yes, God has performed many AMAZING miracles throughout history. And it’s important that we give Him PRAISE, but at the same time, we also have to look forward to what God wants to do in our lives TODAY.

In today’s verse, Paul says that “in the ages to come” God would do things that EXCEED anything He’s ever done before. I believe that the “ages to come” is this day and time we’re living in RIGHT NOW. God wants to outdo Himself in OUR generation!

Remember, God is a God of INCREASE. Where you are today is NOT where you are supposed to STAY. He has GREATER levels of His favor and blessing in store for your FUTURE. Dare to dream BIG! Dare to keep a God-sized VISION in front of you! Dare to take hold of EVERY spiritual blessing He has in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us…raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

(Ephesians 2:4-7, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD PROMISES TO OPEN THE DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU IN YOUR LIFE

In today’s Scripture, Paul was writing these words while he was in chains in prison. He was arrested for preaching the gospel. Everything in his surroundings shouted “LIMITATIONS,” but instead of looking at his surroundings, Paul kept his eyes on the LIMITLESS God. He kept looking for the open door of OPPORTUNITY that God would have for him next.

No matter what “chains” you may FEEL like you are in today, remember, we serve a God who’s in the business of setting people FREE. Remember, He has equipped you with His POWER. He’s PROMISED to walk with you ALL the days of your life. When doors look closed all around you, when your surroundings look limited, when you feel like you’re in chains, remember, God is STILL at work in your life. Like Paul, keep your hopes UP. Keep EXPECTING. Keep BELIEVING. Pray for those opportunities to be OPENED to you. If you fall, get right back up and press forward with even GREATER determination to ACCOMPLISH the dream that God has planted in your heart. The prayer of the righteous avails MUCH, so keep PRAYING because He promises to BREAK the chains and OPEN doors of OPPORTUNITY in your life.

Today’s Scripture:

“Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains.”

Colossians 4:3, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN WE HELP OTHERS TO RISE HIGHER, WE ARE FULFILLING THE MISSION OF JESUS

It’s easy to be someone’s friend when they’ve got it all together, when they’re walking in BLESSING and PROSPERITY. Anybody can believe in people after they’re SUCCESSFUL, after they GRADUATE, after they’re PROMOTED, after they get their BIG BREAK. But, people need our prayer and support the most BEFORE they get their breakthrough. They need us to look PAST their faults and failures and see their POTENTIAL.

Most times, people just need a little bit of ENCOURAGEMENT to keep them moving forward. You may have some good ADVICE that could save someone a lot of heartache and pain. Don’t keep it to yourself. Pick up the phone. HELP them win. They may need to just hear, “I’m praying for you.”

Remember, you are the hands and feet of Jesus. When you help others rise higher, you are fulfilling HIS mission. Today, share your LOVE, SUPPORT and ENCOURAGEMENT. Invest LIFE in others, see their POTENTIAL, PRAY for them, and together, you’ll rise higher into the blessing God has for YOU!

Today’s Scripture:

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”

Ephesians 6:18, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

JESUS IS RISEN, THIS IS WHAT WE CELEBRATE TODAY

Jesus is Risen! That’s what we celebrate today and EVERYDAY! The cross is bare and the tomb is EMPTY. His VICTORY over sin and death provides EACH of us the OPPORTUNITY to start over—to make a fresh, NEW BEGINNING.

As Christians, we BELIEVE in new beginnings. Jesus gave us UNCONDITIONAL love and UNLIMITED possibilities. He doesn’t care what you’ve done in the past; He cares only about your FUTURE.

I hope that during this Easter season you find your way to a group of caring people, dedicated to worshiping the risen Lord, reaching the lost, praying for your needs and helping you discover God’s perfect plan for your life.

God Bless you all my friends, Happy Easter!

Today’s Scripture:

“He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.”

Matthew 28:6, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN PEOPLE COME AGAINST YOU, CHOOSE TO KEEP THE PEACE

I’ve learned that in life, some people are peace STEALERS. They feel like it’s their calling to aggravate you, try to make you look bad, and tell you what you CAN’T do. They’ll try to bait you into an argument to get you upset, annoyed and frustrated. But don’t take the bait! NOTHING is worth losing your peace over. They may THINK they’re getting the best of you, but in the end, God can use that to take YOU higher. When people come against you, choose to KEEP your peace. Choose to FORGIVE. Pray for that person because that’s how you DISARM the enemy against you.

Scripture says your battle isn’t against flesh and blood. In others words, that person isn’t your enemy; the accuser—SATAN—is your enemy. HE’S trying to bring division and get you upset. But when you choose to keep peace, when you keep walking in LOVE and keep a smile on your face, you are OVERCOMING his tactics. That’s how you WIN. Today, choose PEACE, choose to walk in LOVE, and choose the VICTORY God has prepared for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

Luke 6:28, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN YOU STAND AND FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH, GOD IS HONORED

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord! Many people today might find it difficult to see themselves as “good” in the eyes of God, but did you know that in the original Greek, this word means “STRONG” like a warrior? In other words, when you stand strong, when you are willing to fight the good fight of FAITH, you are giving God something to work with. HE is ordering your steps. He’s making a way when there seems to BE no way. He’s clearing a PATH for you, and He is DELIGHTING in you. That means He is PLEASED with your attitude of COURAGE. He is pleased that you are taking a stand for what is RIGHT. He is pleased that you are putting Him FIRST PLACE and relying COMPLETELY on Him. Remember, God loves your PASSION for Him. He loves it when you come BOLDLY to His throne of grace. He is HONORED when you stand and fight the good fight of FAITH. If you are facing difficulty today, know that God wants to lift you up and give you His STRENGTH. Receive it by FAITH today. Dig your heels in knowing that HE is ordering your steps; and when GOD is leading you, He’s ALWAYS leading you in the path of VICTORY!

Today’s Scripture:

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and He delighteth in his way.

(Psalm 37:23, KJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WITH GOD, IT’S NOT HOW YOU START, BUT HOW YOU FINISH THAT COUNTS

So often, when people make mistakes, they get down on themselves and think, “If only…” “I should have…” “What if…?” It’s easy to feel like you’ve missed the best plan for your life. That’s when people get discouraged and stop pursuing their God-given dreams. But understand today, just because you’ve made a mistake or failed in some way, that doesn’t cancel God’s plan. God never disqualifies you. He never says, “Go sit on the sidelines. You’ve blown it too many times. You’ve got too many weaknesses.” No, God ALWAYS gives you ANOTHER chance!

Some of the great people in the Bible made very poor choices. The apostle Paul started off as a murderer, yet his destiny was bigger than his mistakes. He ended up becoming a great leader and writing over half of the New Testament.

What am I saying? Our mistakes, our failures, our poor choices do NOT have to keep us from our God-given DESTINY. With God, it’s not about the way you START in life, it’s about the way you FINISH. Receive His grace today and embrace the BRIGHT FUTURE He has in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith

2 Timothy 4:7, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

CEASE FROM STRIFE, AND TAKE THE HIGH ROAD

In life, we’re always going to have critics. We’ll always have difficult people who try to upset us and steal OUR peace and joy. But, you don’t have to respond to every critic. YOU can decide to take the high road and let GOD fight your battles for you.

Sometimes, no matter what you say or do, there are people who aren’t going to accept you. They just don’t WANT to be at peace with you. In fact, when Jesus sent out His disciples to certain homes, He told them to always SPEAK PEACE over those homes. And then He said in effect, “If they don’t receive the peace that you’re offering, then it will come BACK to you.” That tells me that if you will do your best to be at peace with people, even if they won’t TAKE your peace, the GOOD NEWS is THAT peace will just come back to YOU. You’ll not only get YOUR peace, but you’ll get THEIR share as WELL! That’s double for your trouble! When you do the RIGHT thing no matter what is happening, God sees it and REWARDS it. Today, STAY IN PEACE, CEASE from strife, and take the high road. Sow good seeds into others and watch the harvest of blessing come to your OWN life in return.

Today’s Scripture:

“The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace and remain at rest.”

(Exodus 14:14, AMPC)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

DON’T GO BY WHAT YOU SEE, GO BY WHAT YOU KNOW

It says here in Romans 5:17, “We are to reign in life as KINGS.” When God looks at us, He doesn’t see us in weak, defeated, leftover positions. Not at all. God sees you and me as RULERS, as ROYALTY. We have HIS royal blood flowing through our veins.

You and I are supposed to REIGN. Do you know what that word “reign” means? It means “your time in POWER.” God said we’re to reign “IN LIFE.” That means as long as you’re alive, that is your time in POWER. You don’t have a two-year term like the Mayor or a four-year term like the President. Your term is to rule and reign EVERY SINGLE DAY, to be VICTORIOUS, to rise to NEW levels, to accomplish GREAT things.

Everyone has days when they don’t FEEL like royalty, they don’t FEEL powerful. On those days, if you can just remember to reach down and CHECK YOUR PULSE, and as long as you feel something beating, you can say, “it’s still my time to REIGN!” Let that be a reminder to put on a new ATTITUDE. Sometimes you have to do this by FAITH. By faith you need to WALK like a king, TALK like a king, THINK like a king, DRESS like a king, SMILE like a king. Don’t go by what you SEE. Go by what you KNOW. There is ROYALTY in your DNA. You have the blood of a CHAMPION, and you were created to REIGN in life!

Today’s Scripture:

“For if because of one man’s trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God’s] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).”

Romans 5:17, AMP

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WILL NEVER LEAVE US NOR FORSAKE US

It’s easy to look around at what’s happening in the earth today and be tempted to feel afraid or dismayed. Circumstances may seem overwhelming. Maybe your business is struggling, maybe you lost your job, maybe you’re struggling in a relationship or concerned about the economy. During times like these, it’s important to remember that God has promised that He will NEVER leave us nor FORSAKE us. In fact, not only is He WITH us, He has promised to STRENGTHEN us and HARDEN us to difficulties. That means, when tough times come, they just bounce right off of you. You don’t allow your circumstances to steal your PEACE and JOY. You have the attitude that says, “This may be a big problem, but my God is BIGGER!”

Keep in mind that the enemy isn’t after your checkbook; he’s ultimately after your PEACE and JOY. He knows that if he can get your JOY then he can get your STRENGTH. But when you stay connected to the Father through PRAYER and studying the WORD and declare His PROMISES over your life, you’ll be HARDENED to difficulties and STAY SAFE in the palm of God’s hand!

Today’s Scripture:

Do not fear [anything], for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, be assured I will help you; I will certainly take hold of you with My righteous right hand [a hand of justice, of power, of victory, of salvation].

Isaiah 41:10, AMP