THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IT’S TIME TO GET A NEW VISION FOR YOUR LIFE

Are you ready for INCREASE? Are you ready to go to the next level, SPIRITUALLY, PHYSICALLY, and EMOTIONALLY? In this passage of scripture, Jesus is basically saying that you can’t go to a NEW level with an OLD way of THINKING. Many people hear the truth that God has MORE in store and something RESONATES on the inside. Their spirit comes into AGREEMENT with God, but often times, the natural mind will try to talk them out of it. Thoughts will come like, “It’s not going to happen for you. You’re not going to have a great year. You know what the economy is like.” Or, “You’re never going to get well. You saw what the medical report said.” “You’re never going to get married. You’ve been single so long.”

Friend, those are the OLD wineskins that you have to get rid of. This is a NEW season. What’s happened in the past is over and done. You may have been through some disappointments, you may have tried and failed, or things didn’t work out. That’s OKAY. God is still in control. It’s time to get a new VISION for your life. It’s time to open yourself to a new way of THINKING so that you can receive all the BLESSINGS God has in store for you.

Today’s Scripture:

“And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

(Mark 2:22, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD ALWAYS SHOWS HIMSELF STRONG ON BEHALF OF THE PEOPLE WHO SEEK HIM FIRST

Are you expecting to have a SUPERNATURAL year? Are you expecting INCREASE and ABUNDANCE? Notice this verse tells us that THE RIGHTEOUS, those who follow God’s commands, will be SATISFIED even in times of famine. Even when it looks like resources are slim, God has a plan to provide for His people. The scripture also tells us that God is looking for people who will be FAITHFUL to Him; people who will TRUST Him, people who will BELIEVE that He is the God of MORE than enough!

God always shows Himself strong on behalf of the people who seek Him FIRST-even during the most difficult times. No matter what you may be facing today, God wants to show Himself STRONG for you. He wants to MAKE a way where there seems to BE no way. He wants to SATISFY you and BLESS you ABUNDANTLY so that you can reach out and be a blessing to the people AROUND you. Take a step of faith today and begin to DECLARE His promises over your life. Declare that HE is the One who SATISFIES you all the days of your life.

Today’s Scripture:

“They will not be ashamed in the time of evil, and in the days of famine they will have plenty and be satisfied.”

(Psalm 37:19, AMP)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

YOU HAVE CREATIVE POWER IN YOUR WORDS, DECLARE WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT YOU

Your words have creative POWER. Just as God calls things that are not as though they were, we should also DECLARE what we want to see in OUR lives. In other words, you may have days when you don’t FEEL well, but don’t go around saying, “Ah, my back has been hurting me. I’m getting so old. I don’t think I’m ever going to get better.” When you SPEAK like that, you are speaking DEFEAT into your future. Instead, turn it around. Declare a report of victory by SAYING, “I may not FEEL up to par, but I know it’s only TEMPORARY. God IS restoring health unto me. I’m getting STRONGER, HEALTHIER and feeling YOUNGER. My BEST days ARE still up ahead.”

Remember, you’re going to get what you call IN to your life. You have CREATIVE POWER in your words, and you are PROPHESYING your FUTURE. Declare what GOD says about you – that you are BLESSED and you can NOT be cursed, that you are above ONLY and NOT beneath! As you call things that are NOT as though they WERE, you will see God’s wonderful PROMISES and BLESSING come to pass in EVERY AREA of your life!

Today’s Scripture:

“…God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.”

(Romans 4:17, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

YOUR FUTURE IS BIGGER, BRIGHTER AND GREATER THAN YOU CAN EVEN IMAGINE

God has planted seeds of GREATNESS on the inside of you, and He has PREDESTINED that those things in your heart come to pass. You may have had more than your share of unfair things happen in your life. You probably have plenty of reasons to just settle where you are. But understand, the depth of your past is an indication of the HEIGHT of your future.

If you’ve been through a lot of negative things in the past, it just means that your future is BIGGER and BRIGHTER and GREATER than you can even imagine. It’s your time to step out and EMBRACE all that God has for you! Are there DREAMS and PROMISES that you’ve let go of? Are there things that God has placed in your heart, but because of time, because of disappointments, you’ve given up on them?

TODAY is the day to give your dreams a NEW BEGINNING. Today is the day to allow FAITH to RISE in your heart. Remember, what’s happened to you is not nearly as important as what’s happened IN you, and you are STRONGER and WISER than EVER before. It’s your TIME; it’s your SEASON to move forward into the DESTINY that God has prepared for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“The vision is yet for an appointed time…”

(Habakkuk 2:3, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

AS A BELIEVER, NOTHING CAN KEEP YOU FROM YOUR GOD-GIVEN DESTINY

Life is full of things that try to push us down. We all face disappointments and setbacks. Maybe you got some bad news concerning your health or maybe a relationship didn’t work out. That was a setback. It’s easy to get discouraged or lose your enthusiasm or even be tempted to just settle where you are. But if we’re going to see God’s BEST, we have to have a “BOUNCE BACK” mentality. That means when you get knocked down, you do NOT stay down. You get back UP again. You have to know that every time adversity comes against you, it’s a setup for a COMEBACK!

Remember, as a believer, the same power that raised Christ from the dead lives on the INSIDE of you. There is NO challenge too difficult, no obstacle too HIGH, no sickness, no disappointment, no person, NOTHING that can keep you from your God-given DESTINY. If you stay in FAITH, then God will turn what was meant to be a stumbling block into a STEPPINGSTONE, and you’ll move forward as a CHAMPION full of FAITH and VICTORY!

Today’s Scripture:

“For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again…”

(Proverbs 24:16, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN YOU OPEN YOUR MOUTH AND DECLARE, YOU ARE PROPHESYING YOUR FUTURE

Notice that today’s scripture doesn’t say, “Let the redeemed of the Lord THINK so.” Or, “Let the redeemed BELIEVE so.” Of course, it’s important to think right and believe right, but something supernatural happens when we open our mouths and DECLARE a thing. You don’t even have to say it to anyone else, you can just say it to yourself—driving to work or in the shower—you can say, “The economy may be low, but I am BLESSED. I am PROSPEROUS. I will lend and NOT borrow.” “I may have had some setbacks, but I know those setbacks are a setup for a COMEBACK! This is still going to be my BEST year so far. The favor of God is turning things around.” You are PROPHESYING your FUTURE.

Remember, when you say what the Lord HAS done for you, when you declare that you are REDEEMED, you are opening the door for God to move on your behalf. The scripture tells us that He watches over His Word to PERFORM it. When you DECLARE His Word, when you speak His PROMISES, He is faithful to FULFILL them and lead you into VICTORY all the days of your life!

Today’s Scripture:

“Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has delivered from the hand of the adversary.”

(Psalm 107:2, AMPC)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IF YOU GIVE PRAISE TO GOD, HE WILL GIVE COURAGE TO YOU

PRAISE and STRENGTH go hand in hand. When you give God PRAISE, He gives you STRENGTH. When you thank God in advance for the answer, that’s what keeps you ENCOURAGED.

Remember, you’re not going to stay strong in FAITH by complaining. Complaining DRAINS you of strength and energy. You’re not going to stay DETERMINED if you’re talking about how bad it is. No, switch over into PRAISE. “Business may be slow, but Lord, I want to thank You that You PROSPER me even in a desert.” “The people coming against me may be powerful, but Lord, I want to thank You that You are ALL-POWERFUL.” PRAISE will keep you moving FORWARD!

So often we think, “I’ll give God praise after the problem turns around.” But if you don’t learn this principle to thank God in ADVANCE, you won’t have the strength you need to WAIT for the promise. Every morning when you wake up, start the day by saying, “Father, THANK YOU that my dreams ARE coming to pass. THANK YOU that this problem IS turning around. THANK YOU that You are BIGGER than this obstacle.” Keep PRAISING Him and keep receiving His STRENGTH so you can boldly EMBRACE the victory He has for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.”

(Psalm 28:7, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

FIND CONFIDENCE IN GOD’S LOVE, KNOWING YOU ARE A PERSON OF DESTINY

What an amazing thought: God knew you BEFORE you were even born! He saw your unformed substance and said, “I have a PURPOSE for this life. I have good PLANS for them!” You have been HANDPICKED by Almighty God to be here at this time in history! Sometimes we hear parents say, “We weren’t EXPECTING this child. They were a surprise. They were an accident.” No, that child may have been a surprise to YOU, but they weren’t a surprise to Almighty God. You may think, “Well, Mark, I was unwanted. I was an unplanned pregnancy.” No, you wouldn’t be here if God didn’t give LIFE to your seed. In God’s eyes, there is no such thing as being illegitimate. Remember, He knew you BEFORE you were ever born! Find confidence in His love knowing that you are a person of DESTINY, and you are part of HIS mighty plan!

Today’s Scripture:

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…”

(Jeremiah 1:5, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

BEING FAITHFUL TODAY, IS ANOTHER STEP TOWARD YOUR DESTINY

Great Bible characters didn’t live a life of great exploits EVERY day. They lived MOST of their lives the same way you do, taking care of the day-to-day things. Take the life of Noah, for instance. It must have been a great day for Noah when the rain finally started falling and his family raced onto the ark. And it was probably the high point of Noah’s life when God brought him and his family safely to dry ground after months on the ark. But compared to the 120 long years it took Noah to BUILD the ark, these brief chapters in his life were almost nothing. Noah had to keep his faith STRONG through all of those ordinary days while building the ark so that when God was ready to do something GREAT through him, Noah was ready TOO. What does God want to do through YOU? Being faithful TODAY is another step toward discovering His BEST.

Today’s Scripture:

“I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

(Matthew 17:20, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

KEEP YOUR HEART HUMBLE AND STAY CONNECTED TO JESUS

Do you need more POWER and STRENGTH in your life today? When you are CONNECTED to the Father through Jesus, you are connected to your LIFE source. Just as a branch is sustained by the vine it’s ATTACHED to, we are sustained by being attached to HIM.

If you think about how fruit grows, it doesn’t just happen overnight; it takes time and the right CONDITIONS. In the same way, the SPIRITUAL fruit in your own life develops over time, too. You might be tempted to get discouraged if you aren’t seeing “fruit” as quickly as you’d like, but be ENCOURGED today! If you’ll keep your heart HUMBLE before the Lord and stay connected to Him through PRAYER and STUDYING His Word, you’ll see that fruit begin to FORM in your life just as He PROMISED! You’ll see the fruit of JOY, which is STRENGTH. You’ll see the fruit of LOVE and PEACE, which will sustain you in the midst of difficulty. As you stay CONNECTED to Him, you’ll be EMPOWERED and EQUIPPED for EVERY circumstance, and you’ll live as an OVERCOMER in every area of your life!

Today’s Scripture:

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”

(John 15:5, NKJV)