THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

START TALKING TO YOUR MOUNTAINS ABOUT HOW BIG YOUR GOD IS…..

Words have CREATIVE power. They can be very HELPFUL like electricity. Used the RIGHT way, electricity powers all KINDS of good things. But electricity used the wrong way can harm or even kill you. It’s the same way with our WORDS. Whether we speak positive OR negative words, we WILL reap what we SOW. If you’re always speaking words of defeat and failure, you’re going to live in a pretty miserable WORLD. USE your words to CHANGE your negative situations and fill them with LIFE.

The Scripture CLEARLY tells us to speak to our MOUNTAINS. Maybe your mountain is a sickness, a college debt, or a floundering business. Whatever YOUR mountain is, SPEAK to that obstacle. The Scripture says, “Let the weak say, ‘I am STRONG!'”; Start calling yourself HEALED, HAPPY, WHOLE, BLESSED, and PROSPEROUS. God is a MIRACLE-working God. Stop talking to God about how big your MOUNTAINS are and start talking to your mountains about how big your GOD is!

Today’s Scripture:

Proverbs 18:21, NIV

The tongue has the power of life and death.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

STOP LOOKING BACK. YOUR GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS ARE OUT IN FRONT OF YOU

The prophet Samuel invested YEARS of his life pouring his heart and soul into mentoring Saul as the king only to face the great disappointment of seeing Saul be REJECTED by God for his disobedience. Perhaps you spent years investing in a RELATIONSHIP that didn’t last, years working toward a DREAM that suddenly ended, YEARS of doing the right THING only to have it fall apart. Samuel was heartbroken and rightfully grieved. YES, there’s a season of mourning. When you go through a loss or a disappointment, you don’t have to be super human and not feel ANYTHING. But you can’t let a SEASON of mourning turn into a LIFETIME of mourning. At some point, you have to QUIT looking backward and move FORWARD. God has a NEW dream, a new RELATIONSHIP, a new BEGINNING. God has a David already lined UP for you, the greatest king who ever LIVED. Your greatest JOYS, your greatest VICTORIES, your greatest ACCOMPLISHMENTS are still in your FUTURE.

Today’s Scripture:

1 Samuel 16:1, NIV

The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GIVE GOD A GREAT RETURN ON WHAT HE’S GIVEN YOU….

God has given EACH of us a gift to do certain things WELL. Maybe YOU can just naturally figure things out TECHNICALLY or lead a class without thinking TWICE. It’s just part of who you ARE. Those are GIFTS that God has INESTED in you, and He expects a RETURN on His INVCESTMENT. Today’s Scripture shows the PRINCIPLE that if you don’t take the time to DEVELOP your gifts, to maximize your TALENTS, then what you have will be taken AWAY. But when you’re INTENTIONAL and PASSIONATE to study and HONE that skill, more will be GIVEN to you. Do you have gifts that are being underutilized? Stop making excuses, putting it off, and waiting till ONE day when you’ll take steps of faith out of your comfort zone. Your one day may never COME. TODAY is your day. Don’t live life PASSIVELY. Stir UP what God put in you. DEVELOPE those gifts. Give God a great RETURN on what He’s given YOU.

Today’s Scripture

Luke 19:26, NLT

‘”Yes’ the king replied, ‘and to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.'”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GET GOOD AT EMPTYING OUT THE NEGATIVE…..

No matter what AGE you are, you can be YOUNG at heart, full of FAITH, ENERGY, and CREATIVITY. Your spirit NEVER ages. It doesn’t have to get old and grouchy. You can stay young in SPIRIT. The way that happens is to give NO place to the negative. Get in a habit of emptying OUT any offenses, knowing that GOD is in control and will do what He PROMISED despite what comes against you. Empty out the worry and anxiety. If you made a mistake, EMPTY OUT the guilt. If you didn’t do your best, EMPTY OUT the regret. If you were upset because you didn’t get the credit you deserved, EMPTY OUT the self-pity. If you had a bad break, and you don’t understand why, EMPTY OUT the questions. Don’t try to figure it out. If you get good at emptying out the negative every DAY, you’ll be STRONG, VIBRANT, full of FAITH, and full of JOY.

Today’s Scripture

Proverbs 14:30, TLB

A relaxed attitude lengthens a man’s life; jealousy rots it away.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

YOU HAVE TO STAND OUT IN THE CROWD

How badly do you want that PROMOTION at work? Badly enough to get to work EARLY, to do MORE than what’s REQUIRED, to take that extra COURSE online to sharpen your SKILLS? If NOT, you don’t want it BADLY enough. You have to stand out in the CROWD. Today’s Scripture says that Daniel “DISTINGUISHED himself.” He was so EXCELLENT in his work, so SKILLED, so SHARP, and had such a great ATTITUDE that he stood OUT among ALL the other young men. The king gave him a position of great LEADERSHIP. It doesn’t say, “GOD distinguished Daniel, made him stand out, made him excel.” It says that Daniel distinguished HIMSELF. He was willing to do what the other young men WOULDN’T do. It wasn’t so much that he was more TALENTED or more GIFTED; it was the fact that he WANTED it more than they did. The QUESTION is, how big is YOUR want-to?

Today’s Scripture:

Daniel 6:3, NIV

Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IF YOU’LL USE WHAT GOD HAS GIVEN YOU, HE’LL MULTIPLY IT

When David went out to face Goliath, all he had was a slingshot and five smooth stones. It looked INSIGNIFICANT, ordinary, and certainly nothing SPECIAL. But God BREATHED on him, and he DEFEATED Goliath and became the king of Israel. All Moses had was an ordinary STICK, something he found on the ground, yet when he picked up that rod and held it in the air, the Red Sea SUPERNATURALLY parted. Samson was SURROUNDED by a huge army. All he had was the jawbone of a donkey. But he picked UP that jawbone, God BREATHED on him, and he defeated a THOUSAND men. Do NOT despise the day of small BEGINNINGS. Don’t look at what you have and say, “I can’t do anything GREAT. I don’t have a lot of TALENT.” If you’ll use what GOD has GIVEN you, He will MULTIPLY it. He will not only bring your DREAMS to pass, but He will do MORE than you can ASK or THINK.

Today’s Scripture:

Zechariah 4:10, NLT

“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD IS YOUR VINDICATOR

With social media, so many people can hide behind being anonymous and say hurtful, critical things to try to make you FEEL small, unattractive, and not GOOD enough. At times it may seem as though there’s a CAMPAIGN against someone, but it’s USUALLY just a handful of bullies, haters, and envious people. You can’t STOP that from coming, but you CAN ignore it. Let it bounce right OFF you. The trick of the enemy is to try to deceive you into THINKING about it all the time, and then it contaminates your LIFE. Don’t let the poison IN. Don’t even bother to READ it when it gets negative. Don’t call a friend and ask them what someone might be saying about you. Don’t let your heart be troubled; let GOD take care of it. You don’t HAVE to defend yourself. GOD is your VINDICATOR. Just run YOUR race. Stay FOCUSED on moving FORWARD, and HE will take care of the REST.

Today’s Scripture

John 14:1, NKJV

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

YOU HAVE AN EXTRAORDINARY DESTINY

In Exodus 1, Moses was born into trouble. God used Pharaoh’s dark decree that the midwives should kill all the male Hebrew babies and threatened the life of the baby Moses to get Moses to where HE wanted him to be. Hidden in a basket among the reeds along the riverbank, Moses was discovered by Pharaoh’s daughter and taken and raised in the palace. The TROUBLE was a part of God’s PLAN. In the palace, Moses learned the BEST of Egyptian civilization and was prepared by ROYALTY to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. God KNOWS what He’s doing. You may not LIKE it when trouble comes your way. It may not be FAIR, you’re uncomfortable, but that trouble is taking you to the next level of your DESTINY. Don’t be surprised if you face extraordinary CHALLANGES. It’s because you have an EXTRAORDINARY destiny. As He did with Moses, God is getting you PREPARED for GREATER blessings than you can IMAGINE.

Today’s Scripture

Isaiah 8:10, NIV

“Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted; propose your plan, but it will not stand, for God is with us.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

YOU’RE NOT ON YOUR OWN. THE GOD WHO CONTROLS THE UNIVERSE WILL TAKE CARE OF YOUR ENEMIES…..

God was about to take the Israelites into the PROMISED Land, but there were seven nations in their path that were bigger, stronger, and more POWERFUL than the Israelites. Moses didn’t know what they were going to do. In the NATURAL they could NEVER defeat them. But God told them, “You don’t have to fight this in your OWN strength. I’M going to go BEFORE you and clear the PATH. I’m going to DEFEAT your enemies so all you have to do is WALK in and TAKE the land.”

We all face situations where the odds are against us. It’s easy to think, This sickness…this debt…this addiction…these people coming against me are much more POWERFUL. Don’t worry. God is going before you right now CLEARING the path. He’s making things happen that you COULDN’T make happen. On your own you may be OUTNUMBERED, but you’re NOT on your own. The God who controls the universe says HE will take care of your enemies.

Today’s Scripture

Deuteronomy 7:1, TLB

“When the Lord brings you into the Promised Land, as he soon will, he will destroy the following seven nations, all greater and mightier than you are.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

GOD HAS GIVEN US SELF CONTROL, USE IT TO TAKE CONTROL OVER YOUR EMOTIONS……

When you let your FEELINGS control you–anger, impatience, lust, a negative attitude–your walls of defense are DOWN. The enemy can come in and run your LIFE. God has given us SELF-CONTROL. Quit saying, “I CAN’T stop it. It’s too HARD.” You HAE the ability, but self-control is like a MUSCLE. If you never DISCIPLINE yourself to walk away when you feel like taking the EASY way out, then your self-control MUSCLE is very WEAK. You have to start EXERCISING it by saying NO to your flesh. You have a DESTINY to fulfill. But as long as you are controlled by these ordinary IMPULSES, God can’t release the AMAZING things He has in store for your FUTURE. SPIRITUAL maturity has NOTHING to do with how many years you’ve been in church or how long you’ve known the Lord. It has EVERYTHING to do with what kind of FRUIT you are displaying. Are YOU ruling over YOUR emotions?

Today’s Scripture

Proverbs 25:28, NKJV

Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls.