THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

FOCUS ON HONORING GOD, DO WHAT’S RIGHT, AND YOU’LL SEE HIS BLESSING ON EVERYTHING YOU DO

Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is FREEDOM—and God’s FREEDOM is free for everyone! It doesn’t matter what your nationality or heritage is, or who your family is. It doesn’t matter how much money you have or don’t have; God wants you free from EVERYTHING that would hold you back from your relationship with Him!

God wants to pour out His abundant BLESSING on all who honor Him and do what is right. In fact, the Bible says in Galatians that in Christ, there is no Jew or Greek or even male or female. That means God’s not judging you based on physical conditions. He’s looking at your HEART. He’s looking at the GIFTS He’s placed inside of you.

Don’t let the enemy lie to you and tell you that God is blessing everyone else but you. Look for the ways He is pouring out blessing in YOUR life. Thank Him for His ACCEPTANCE, LOVE and FREEDOM. Focus on HONORING Him and doing what is right, and you’ll see His hand of BLESSING in EVERY area of your life!

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE:

“…God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.”

Acts 10:34-35, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

NOTHING CAN STOP YOU FROM CONSTANTLY SPEAKING GOD’S WORD

When you wake up in the morning, do you EXPECT the goodness of God in your life? Do you set the tone of the day for SUCCESS, FAVOR and BLESSING with your words? Scripture tells us that life and death are in the power of the tongue. That’s why it’s so important to declare PRAISES to God all throughout the day. Things may be bad all around you, people may be negative, complaining and discouraged, but don’t let that spirit rub off on you. The worse it gets, the BRIGHTER you’re going to shine. The good news is that no matter how you FEEL, no matter what’s going on AROUND you, you can choose your WORDS. There’s nothing that can stop you from constantly speaking His Word!

Today I encourage you, be DETERMINED to set the tone for your day, week, month and year by PRAISING God and speaking words of FAITH over your future. Remember, when you put God FIRST, He promises to HONOR you. He will pour out His FAVOR on you and lead you into LIFE, HEALTH, STRENGTH and BLESSING all the days of your life!

Today’s Scripture:

“I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak his praises.”

(Psalm 34:1, NLT)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT HAPPENED IN YOUR HISTORY, IT’S TIME TO FORGET WHAT LIES BEHIND

Are you focused on forgetting the past? Many people don’t fully understand what that means. They wonder, “How can I forget something that’s happened to me?” But one definition of the word forget is to “disregard intentionally or to overlook.” What this verse is saying is that you have to choose to DISREGARD your past so that it doesn’t keep you from moving FORWARD. That means the good AND the bad. Even our past VICTORIES can sometimes keep us from rising higher. If we don’t LET GO of the old, we’ll NEVER be able to embrace the NEW.

It doesn’t MATTER what’s happened in your history, it’s time to FORGET what lies behind. Make the choice today to look FORWARD. Trust that God has a better FUTURE in store for you. TRUST that He’s working behind the scenes on your behalf. As you forget what lies behind and press forward, you will see the ABUNDANT life the Lord has in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“…I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.”

(Philippians 3:13, NLT)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD’S SPIRIT LIVES INSIDE OF US, REVEALING TO US THE HEART AND THOUGHTS OF GOD HIMSELF

Who do you share your deepest secrets with? Most people only share their inner thoughts with those who are closest to them. People they TRUST. People they’ve gone through EXPERIENCES with. Do you know who God shares HIS secrets with? Today’s passage goes on to say, “Who can know a man’s thoughts except his own spirit?” As believers, God’s Spirit lives INSIDE of us, revealing to us the heart and thoughts of God HIMSELF.

God wants you to know what He THINKS about you. He wants you to know about the PLANS He has for you. He wants to show you things you’ve never seen, heard about, or even IMAGINED. You are His child, but you are also His FRIEND. You are His closest COMPANION. He wants to walk with you, talk with you, and SHARE with you. What a wonderful, amazing thought — we can know God’s thoughts because we are ONE with Him. Open your heart and allow Him to share His deep SECRETS with YOU today.

Today’s Scripture:

“That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.’ But it was to us that God revealed these things by His Spirit. For His Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.”

1 Corinthians 2:9-10, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

FAITH, OBEDIENCE AND TRUST ARE THE KEYS…..

Few people paid attention to those blind men sitting by the side of the road that day when Jesus passed by. No one gave them much of a chance – but Jesus DID! Christ has such great COMPASSION and MERCY, and it’s important to remember He still has it TODAY. Too many times, people see obstacles not DESTINATIONS, and that keeps them from taking a chance and BELIEVING in this great mercy of God. When you have the FAITH and OBEDIENCE to step out and TRUST Him like those blind men, then you open yourself up for His LOVE and COMPASSION. He REWARDS those who TRUST in Him. When you step out in FAITH, He WILL open doors for you and make your path STRAIGHT.

Today’s Scripture:

“Two blind men were sitting beside the road. When they heard that Jesus was coming that way, they began shouting, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!'”

(Matthew 20:30, NLT)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

RAISE YOUR LEVEL OF EXPECTANCY AND GOD WILL POUR OUT BLESSINGS AND FAVOR ON YOU

What are you expecting today? Are you expecting to rise HIGHER in life? Are you expecting good BREAKS? Are you expecting GOODNESS to follow you everywhere you go? If you are EXPECTING to get the short end of the stick, your own wrong thinking will keep you in mediocrity. Remember, God will meet you at the level of YOUR expectations. Pay attention to what you are thinking about and make the choice to believe God for GOOD things. Every day, imagine there are BLESSINGS, FAVOR, INCREASE and PROMOTION in your path. They already have YOUR name on them! It’s just a matter of time before you come across them. Start CONFESSING every day, “Something GOOD is going to happen to me today.” Stand strong when trouble comes, knowing that your best days ARE ahead. Believe that God’s blessings WILL overtake you! Expect GOODNESS and MERCY to chase you down. If you’ll learn to RAISE your level of expectancy, God will pour out His BLESSINGS and FAVOR on you. You’ll rise to NEW levels, and you’ll live the life of VICTORY He has in store.

Today’s Scripture:

“Surely goodness and loving-kindness will follow me all the days of my life…”

(Psalm 23:6, NASB)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

AS A BELIEVER, GOD PROMISES THAT NO GOOD THING WILL HE WITHHOLD FROM YOU

What do you need from the Lord today? Do you need PEACE, PROVISION or GUIDANCE? The Word of God promises that no good thing will He withhold from those who walk blamelessly before Him. Now you may be thinking, “Mark, I’m not perfect. How can I have a blameless walk?” The Good News is that when you receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you AUTOMATICALLY have a new, BLAMELESS walk. The past is erased in God’s eyes. And sure, you may make mistakes from time to time, but 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Understand today that God WANTS to pour His FAVOR and HONOR on you. If you feel like there is anything in your life that you need to be cleansed from, go to the Father today and CONFESS it to Him. Let Him make you NEW so that you can receive the good things He has in store for YOU!

Today’s Scripture:

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

Psalm 84:11, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

RECOGNIZE AND THANK GOD FOR HIS ABUNDANT GOODNESS IN YOUR LIFE TODAY

Have you ever had an experience where you were just overwhelmed and amazed by God’s GRACE and BLESSING? It is our prayer that if you haven’t already, you SOON will have the remarkable blessing of seeing His transforming POWER in ACTION. Paul described in his letters just how ASTONISHED he was by God’s grace. If there is ever a time when something just doesn’t quite seem to make LOGICAL sense, it may very well be GOD’S work in your life. He is such a BIG God who is so full of GOODNESS, GRACE, BLESSING, FORGIVENESS and MERCY—we cannot even scratch the SURFACE of His greatness. All you can do sometimes is stand back and be OVERWHELMED by His deep, abiding LOVE. Begin to RECOGNIZE and THANK Him for His abundant GOODNESS in your life.

Today’s Scripture:

The grace of our Lord [His amazing, unmerited favor and blessing] flowed out in superabundance [for me, together] with the faith and love which are [realized] in Christ Jesus.

1 Timothy 1:14, AMP

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

BE STILL, KNOWING THAT GOD IS IN CONTROL

We ALL have to make numerous decisions throughout the day. When you face a DIFFICULT decision, did you know you can ask GOD to lead you in the right direction? You’ll be AMAZED at the insight you get from relying on God instead of striving to find the answers on your OWN. If you’re constantly trying to figure things out and make things happen instead of waiting for GOD’S timing, you’ll wear yourself OUT. Instead, why don’t you come back to a place of REST, knowing God IS in control. His ways are HIGHER than ours. If you’ll TRUST Him to do things HIS way, you’ll see His BEST plan for your life unfold. When you feel worried or uptight, that’s the time to say, “God, give me Your WISDOM to make GOOD decisions. I REFUSE to worry. I’m staying in PEACE, knowing that YOU are in control.”

Today’s Scripture:

“Cease striving and know that I am God…”

Psalm 46:10, NASB

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

MAKE TIME TODAY AND EVERY DAY, TO SPEND WITH JUST YOU AND THE LORD….

If you’ve ever said to yourself, “I don’t even have time to think,” then you know how hard it is to CONCENTRATE when you’re being bombarded with noise from all sides. It can be even harder to hold on to PEACE when we don’t make time to read His Word. God doesn’t often shout to get our ATTENTION. Instead, the Bible says that He speaks in “a still, small voice” (1 Kings 19:12), which means we need to listen CLOSELY. What can you do to put yourself in a position to hear GOD’S voice? The key is to MAKE TIME every day away from the busyness and distractions. Find a room in your house, outside under the trees, or some other place where you can be STILL for a few minutes each day to spend time with HIM. As you spend TIME with Him, He will renew your SPIRIT and restore your PEACE.

Today’s Scripture:

…he leads me beside quiet waters.

Psalm 23:2, NIV