THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

YOU ARE AS HAPPY AS YOU WANT TO BE

Every day is a GIFT. The longer I live, the more I realize how VALUABLE each day is. We’re not going to BE here forever. It’s easy to live uptight, frustrated, and WORRIED, but in the BIG picture, most of the things that are UPSETTING us don’t really MATTER. Is it worth losing your JOY over bad traffic or something someone said that was OFFENSIVE? If you found out you only had a day to LIVE, you wouldn’t even pay ATTENTION to many things that upset you now.

If you let a grouchy boss or a bitter relative keep you from being HAPPY, it’s YOUR fault. You are as HAPPY as you WANT to be. You have to put your FOOT down and say, “This is the day the LORD has made. I’m not going to let what PEOPLE do or DON’T do, what they say or don’t SAY, or what I HAVE or don’t have keep me from being HAPPY. I’ve made up my MIND. I’m going to ENJOY this day.”

Today’s Scripture:

James 4:14, NIV

What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

WHEN YOU GIVE GOD PRAISE, YOU’RE PUTTING HIM ON THE THRONE

When we face situations for which there’s no logical solution, it’s EASY to live worried. That voice starts playing in our head, “What are you going to DO? What if it doesn’t work OUT?” Our answer should be, “I don’t KNOW what to do, but I know the One who DOES.” We know we don’t HAVE to make everything happen in our own strength. We don’t have to have it all figured OUT or even lose SLEEP. We KNOW God is on the throne. We know He’s fighting our BATTLES.

When we WORRY, and our mind is going in circles, we’ve lost our connection to our source of STRENGTH. You have to reconnect to GOD. Today’s Scripture says that when you give God PRAISE, you’re putting Him on the THRONE. Life is too SHORT for you to live worried, overwhelmed by problems, upset because somebody hurt you. Take that OFF the throne and put God back ON the throne. Quit dwelling on the negative and start PRAISING. God inhabits your PRAISES.

Today’s Scripture:

Psalm 22:3, NKJV

But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

LET OTHERS KNOW THAT WHAT GOD DID FOR YOU, HE CAN DO FOR THEM TOO

In John 5, Jesus healed a man lying beside the pool of Bethesda who had been crippled for thirty-eight YEARS. Why did He tell him to take his mat WITH him? After ALL THOSE years, that mat was dirty, ragged, and probably STUNK. Why didn’t Jesus tell him to get RID of it? Because that MAT was there to remind him of what GOD had done. It was part of his STORY. Whenever people asked him, “Why are you carrying that ugly old MAT?” he would say, “No, this is a BEAUTIFUL mat. It’s a reminder that God HEALED me.”

The reason God leaves mats from our PAST is not only that WE’LL remember what He’s done, but so we can tell OTHERS. The mat means you’re HEALED, you’re FORGIVEN, and you can WALK again. You may still have your MAT, but that’s simply to remind you of the greatness of our GOD. When you see OTHER people who need healing, let them know that what God did for YOU, He can do for THEM.

Today’s Scripture:

John 5:8, NLT

Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

…BECAUSE YOU HONOR GOD, YOU WON’T JUST SEE HIS FAVOR, YOU’LL SEE HIS PROTECTION

When you are a person of INTEGRITY, HONORABLE and TRUSTWORTHY, God will keep you from mistakes and wrong turns you can’t SEE on your own. Because of your INTEGRITY, God stepped in and kept you from the TROUBLE, from COMPROMISE, and from HEARTACHE. He’s guarding your PATH. Some of the temptations you RESISTED–it wasn’t that YOU were so strong and said NO–GOD was holding you back because of your INTEGRITY. There is a BLESSING on your life that protects and GUARDS you because you honor GOD. You won’t just see God’s FAVOR; you’ll see His PROTECTION. He has a SHIELD around you. He’s keeping the fiery darts from HITTING you. He’s not LETTING the temptation overtake you. He’s pushing BACK darkness. HE’S closing doors that would be HARMFUL, shutting off the wrong PEOPLE and wrong OPPORTUNITIES. If you want to keep that shield UP, you have to keep your INTEGRITY. Be TRUTHFUL, be HONEST, be a person of your WORD, and be somebody that can be COUNTED on.

Today’s Scripture:

Proverbs 2:7–8, NLT

He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

PEOPLE ARE GOING TO KNOW THE LORD IS ON YOUR SIDE

You may have some OBSTACLES in your path today that have you feeling STUCK. There’s no WAY you’ll get well, no way you can pay off your HOUSE, NO way to go back to school. It’s a SETUP. God is about to display His awesome POWER, not just so YOU can see it, but so OTHER people can see it. When David says that God prepares a feast before you in the presence of your ENEMIES, that’s NOT private. God is going to show out so the opposition and the CRITICS will ALL see you promoted, HONORED, in a position of INFLUENCE, in a public DISPLAY. That’s why you don’t HAVE to prove to PEOPLE who you are or waste your time trying to CONVINCE people who are not FOR you to LIKE you. Keep running YOUR race, honoring GOD, and at SOME point, He’s going to show out in SUCH a way that your critics can’t DENY the favor on you. People are going to KNOW the Lord is on YOUR side.

Today’s Scripture:

Psalm 23:5, NLT

You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IF PEOPLE ARE CONTROLLING YOU, IT’S NOT THEIR FAULT; IT’S YOURS

Some people are experts at putting their DEMANDS on you and trying to keep you doing and saying what makes THEM happy. They play upon a false sense of responsibility, and thinking that says, “I’ve got to keep THEM fixed and cheered up. I have to CALL every day or they’ll get UPSET. If I show them how much I CARE, they’ll be my FRIEND.” You need to KNOW that the only thing you really OWE people is to LOVE them. That doesn’t MEAN you have to keep EVERYONE happy or let people put their DEMANDS on you. That’s carrying a debt you don’t OWE. ALWAYS be respectful and KIND, but if you go through life trying to please EVERYONE, the one person who WON’T be happy is YOU. Come out from UNDER that debt.

If people are CONTROLLING you, it’s not THEIR fault; it’s YOURS. You have to make a CHANGE and have a boldness to follow what’s in your HEART. Go the extra MILE, but don’t be a PEOPLE PLEASER.

Today’s Scripture:

Romans 13:8, NKJV

Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WANTS TO SHINE HIS GLORY THROUGH YOU AND MAKE YOU AN EXAMPLE OF HIS GOODNESS

As the Israelites were about to cross the Jordan River into the PROMISED Land, God told Joshua, “TODAY, I will begin to make you great in the eyes of all the ISRAELITES.” God was saying, “Joshua, this is your MOMENT. I’m about to ENDORSE you. People are going to see the GREATNESS I’ve put in you. You’ve been in the background serving Moses, being FAITHFUL, but TODAY you’re coming into the FOREGROUND.” Not long after that, Joshua led the Israelites into the Promised Land, and “THAT DAY” the Lord established Joshua as their LEADER.

God has a “THAT DAY” for YOU, a time when He will cause you to stand OUT, where you will accomplish things you never dreamed you could ACCOMPLISH. You will KNOW it, and the people around you will SEE the greatness in you. You have TALENT, CREATIVITY, ABILITY, COURAGE, and STRENGTH, and it’s going to come out in a GREATER way. God wants to shine HIS glory through YOU and make you an EXAMPLE of His GOODNESS.

Today’s Scripture:

Joshua 4:14, NLT

That day the LORD made Joshua a great leader in the eyes of all the Israelites, and for the rest of his life they revered him as much as they had revered Moses.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THE OBSTACLE MAY BE BIG, BUT YOU HAVE THE FAVOR OF ALMIGHTY GOD, SPEAK GRACE TO IT

God put a dream in Zerubbabel to REBUILD the destroyed temple in Jerusalem, but people were AGAINST him and got a decree from the Persian king that forced him to STOP. For YEARS it looked like it would never HAPPEN, but then he heard the prophecy in today’s SCRIPTURE. He was saying, “I have this big MOUNTAIN in front of me, but it’s about to become a MOLEHILL.” How would it HAPPEN? Other translations say by shouting “GRACE to it.” Another word for “grace” is “FAVOR.” He was SAYING, “YES, this obstacle is big, but I have the favor of God to OVERCOME and FINISH this project.” He didn’t talk about his MOUNTAIN. He talked to his MOLEHILL.

When YOU face challenges, speak FAVOR over them. Look at your BANK account and speak FAVOR to it. Speak favor over your HEALTH. Speak favor over your PROMOTION. It’s not ENOUGH to just PRAY about it or JUST believe. What’s going to turn the mountain into a MOLEHILL is by speaking GRACE to it.

Today’s Scripture:

Zechariah 4:7, MSG

So, big mountain, who do you think you are? Next to Zerubbabel you’re nothing but a molehill. He’ll proceed to set the Cornerstone in place, accompanied by cheers: Yes! Yes! Do it!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IF YOU WILL ‘ONLY BELIEVE’, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE

In Scripture a man came to Jesus and said, “My little daughter is very sick. She is close to DEATH. Will You come to my home and pray for her?” Jesus agreed. But along the way He kept getting stopped, one interruption after ANOTHER. Finally, word came back to Him saying, “No NEED to come. You’ve waited too LATE. The little girl has DIED.”

The people were upset and very DISTRAUGHT. But JESUS said to them in Luke 8:50 “DON’T be afraid. If you will only BELIEVE, the little girl will be WELL.” Notice the phrase, “Only BELIEVE.” Jesus went to the home, laid hands on the little girl, and she came back to LIFE.

Are YOU facing a situation that seems impossible? In the natural, you don’t see HOW you can get well, or how you can overcome the ADDICTION, or how your FAMILY can EVER be restored? God is saying to YOU what He said to THEM, “If you will only BELIEVE, I WILL turn the situation around. If you only BELIEVE, breakthroughs ARE headed your way!”

Today’s Scripture:

“But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, ‘Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well’.”

(Luke 8:50, NKJV)