THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

STIR UP YOUR PASSION AND MAKE THE DECISION

One of the saddest things would be to come to the end of life and wonder what we COULD have become. “What if I hadn’t neglected to use the GIFT that God gave me? What if I had broken away from the PEOPLE who were causing me to compromise? What if I had CONTROLLED my temper and treated my spouse with RESPECT? What if I had taken that step of FAITH in my career and NOT played it safe all the time?”

You don’t HAVE to wonder. You can start TODAY. You can STILL become who God created you to BE. The QUESTION is, do you want it BADLY enough? You have to go AFTER what God has for you. Being passive and indifferent will keep you from your DESTINY. Stir your PASSION up and make the DECISION, “I’m going to PURSUE God and ALL that He has put in my HEART. I’m going to take steps to GROW the gift He gave me. I’m going to come up HIGHER.”

Today’s Scripture:

2 Timothy 1:6, NKJV

Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

AN UNCLUTTERED MIND IS A POWERFUL FORCE

All through the day there’s CLUTTER coming your way–disappointments, drama, stress, worry, guilt, jealousy. That’s why the Scripture tells us to GUARD our mind. You have to be PROACTIVE if you’re going to keep your mind in PEACE. Quit dwelling on thoughts that tell you everything you’re NOT. Program your mind with what GOD says about you. You’ve been WONDERFULLY made by God and are EXACTLY how you are SUPPOSED to be. Now get in AGREEMENT with Him. With a quiet CONFIDENCE, you need to have THIS recording playing in your mind: “I’m a MASTERPIECE. I’m ONE of a kind. I’m TALAENTED, EQUIPPED, and EMPOWERED. I’m FAVORED and have EVERYTHING I NEED to fulfill my DESTINY.”

When you start dwelling on what GOD says about you, it will AUTOMATICALLY clear out the clutter. Fear can’t stay where FAITH is. Discouragement can’t stay where HOPE is. Stress can’t stay where PEACE is. Guilt can’t stay where FORGIVENESS is. Mediocrity can’t stay where GREATNESS is. An uncluttered MIND is a POWERFUL FORCE.

Today’s Scripture:

Philippians 4:7, NIV

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

FAR-AND-BEYOND OPPORTUNITIES ARE ABOUT TO COME LOOKING FOR YOU

You may have a thousand EXCUSES for why you can’t accomplish your dreams and for why you should settle where you ARE because you’ve reached your limit. But God is saying to you what He said to Moses, “Is the arm of the Lord too short to DELIVER?” (Num. 11:23). No, the arm of the Lord WILL deliver you, PROVIDE for you, VINDICATE you, and PROMOTE you. He’s about to take you where you couldn’t go on your OWN.

In today’s Scripture, as King David considered his life, he was saying, “I’m not the BIGGEST, the STRONGEST, or the most QUALIFIED. I was a shepherd and look where You’ve TAKEN me.” He didn’t have to go AFTER it; it came after HIM. God has some far-and-BEYOND opportunities that are about to come looking for YOU. It’s the arm of the Lord reaching down to PROMOTE, to ELEVATE, to INCREASE you. As with David, you’re going to look back and say, “God, LOOK what You’ve done. I never DREAMED You would take me to this LEVEL.”

Today’s Scripture:

2 Samuel 7:18, NKJV

Then King David went in and sat before the LORD; and he said: “Who am I, O Lord GOD? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far?”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WE’VE BEEN DESIGNED FOR THE DIFFICULTY

The apostle Paul went through all KINDS of unfair situations. He was beaten with rods, falsely accused of crimes, lied about by others, put in prison for years, and shipwrecked. He could have been overwhelmed and crushed under the PRESSURE. Yet HE is the one who wrote, “THANKS be to God who ALWAYS causes us to TRIUMPH.” He UNDERSTOOD that God doesn’t let you face what you can’t handle. If you stay in FAITH as Paul did, you’ll discover you’ve been DESIGNED to withstand the pressure. You’ll find that the enemy can’t come up with a scheme to outwit the God who CREATED you. He can’t send a storm that’s so POWERFUL that your walls get blown down. You may be hard PRESSED, but you will NOT be CRUSHED. Paul was saying we’ve been DESIGNED for the difficulty. God has taken into account ALL the weight, all the TROUBLE, and all the bad BREAKS, and He’s given you the STRENGTH, the COURAGE, and the FORTITUDE to WITHSTAND.

Today’s Scripture:

2 Corinthians 4:8, NIV

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WILL WORK IT ALL OUT FOR YOUR GOOD

When you go through difficulties you don’t understand, remind yourself that God is your heavenly Father. If you have children, you know how much you love them and do your best to watch after and protect them. God is that way, but billions of times more. You are His prized possession. There’s nothing He cares more about than you. He has your best interest at heart.

You may have been knocked down, but be encouraged that our generous God is about to put you back on your feet. Sicknesses, betrayals, and disappointments don’t get the last word. God does. The difficulty is simply a setup for God to launch you to something greater than you’ve ever imagined. The process may be painful, but the purpose is well worth it. One day you’re going to look back and see how God worked it all for your good. Stay in faith. You’re going to come out promoted, vindicated, stronger, healthier, and to a new level of your destiny.

Today’s Scripture:

1 Peter 5:10, MSG

The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ–eternal and glorious plans they are!–will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN YOU CAN’T SEE WHERE GOD IS TAKING YOU, JUST TRUST HIM……

Everything was going GREAT in Job’s life, but then the bottom fell out. In a very brief period of time, he lost his HEALTH, his BUSINESS, AND his FAMILY. He didn’t understand it. He was a man of great INTEGRITY and FAITH. He was doing the RIGHT thing and the wrong thing happened. His friends told him it was HIS fault. His wife said, “Job, just curse God and DIE.”

Job could have gotten bitter and given up on LIFE, but he UNDERSTOOD that there are times in life when it doesn’t seem FAIR and you can’t SEE what God is DOING. You’re PRAYING, but it’s not working OUT. Rather than make a negative judgment based on one season of opposition, he kept an attitude of FAITH that EVENTUALLY led to an ABUNDANT place. He let GOD be his vindicator and not only saw his health RESTORED, but he came out of that difficult season with TWICE what he had before. When YOU can’t see where God is taking YOU, just TRUST Him.

Today’s Scripture:

Job 23:8, NKJV

Look, I go forward, but He is not there, and backward, but I cannot perceive Him.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

DON’T LIVE STRESSED, STAY AT PEACE KNOWING THAT WHAT GOD SAYS GOES…..

We all have situations that LOOK like they’re never going to work out. It’s easy to get discouraged and think it’s OVER. But God has the FINAL say. The medical report may be bad, but it’s NOT the last word. What God says GOES. You may have struggled with an addiction for YEARS, but God has the final WORD. You may have people who are trying to hold you back, but people don’t HAVE the final say. No disrespect, but neither the doctor, nor the banker, nor the financial planner is on the THRONE. GOD is on the throne, and what HE says goes. That He is FOR you is more than the whole WORLD being against you.

When you know that GOD has the final say, you don’t LIVE stressed over the medical report or try to manipulate or play up to PEOPLE to like you. You stay in PEACE, knowing that you’re NOT at the mercy of bad breaks, accidents, sicknesses, or PEOPLE who are against you. What God says GOES.

Today’s Scripture:

1 Peter 3:22, MSG

Jesus has the last word on everything and everyone, from angels to armies. He’s standing right alongside God, and what he says goes.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WILL WORK OUT HIS PLAN AND GET YOU TO WHERE YOU NEED TO BE

When Moses led the two million Israelites out of slavery into the desert and toward the Promised Land, I can imagine them asking him, “What ROUTE are we going to take? Where are we going to get FOOD and WATER? How will we PROTECT ourselves?” Moses answered, “I don’t know.'” Just because YOU don’t know how something is going to work out doesn’t mean GOD doesn’t have a PLAN. Moses had such a TRUST in God that he was COMFORTABLE not KNOWING. He took it one step of FAITH at a time.

When WE’RE trying to figure everything out and manipulate a solution, we’re being GOD. It’s very FREEING when you learn this principle that it’s OKAY to say as Moses did, “I don’t KNOW how it’s going to work out, but I’m at PEACE.” You’re taking yourself OFF the throne and putting God ON the throne. Take the pressure OFF. You don’t HAVE to know; GOD knows. He will work out His plan and get you to where you’re SUPPOSED to be.

Today’s Scripture:

Psalm 138:8, NLT

The LORD will work out his plans for my life–for your faithful love, O LORD, endures forever.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

BE MOVED NOT BY WHAT YOU SEE, BUT BY WHAT YOU KNOW GOD SAYS IN HIS WORD

We ALL face situations that LOOK like they’ll never change. We have BIGGER things in our spirit, and we KNOW what God PROMISED, but it seems like we’ve reached our limit in our CAREER. Our bank account says we’re STUCK. When we look at the medical report or at a broken relationship, there’s no sign of it IMPROVING. But the Scripture says, “The things we see NOW will soon be GONE” (2 Cor. 4:18). What we SEE is subject to change according to what God promises in His WORD. You can’t be MOVED by what you SEE; you have to be moved by what you KNOW He SAYS.

Are YOU believing what you’re seeing, or are you believing what you’re READING in God’s Word? What you SEE may be lack and struggle, but what God is SPEAKING to you is ABUNDANCE, HEALING, BREAKTHROUGHS, and new LEVELS. Don’t reduce what God’s PROMISED you to fit your faith. Stretch your FAITH and come up to HIS level. EVERY word He promises WILL come to pass.

Today’s Scripture:

1 Kings 8:56, NLT

Praise the LORD who has given rest to his people Israel, just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave through his servant Moses.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

ONE DAY, GOD IS GOING TO CONNECT THE DOTS FOR YOU

God gave Joseph a dream that he was DESTINED for greatness, but before that dream came true, he went through some very dark places. However, today’s Scripture shows how God connected the dots. Being thrown into the pit by his brothers led to being sold to Potiphar in Egypt, which led to being falsely accused and put in prison. In prison, he interpreted the dreams of the butler and the baker, which led to interpreting PHARAO’S dream and being put in charge of the NATION. Every step was divinely ORCHESTRATED and moving Joseph toward his DESTINY.

As was true in JOSEPH’S life, you have to BELIEVE that a disappointment, a betrayal, or a setback is part of God’s plan. It’s moving you little by little into your DESTINY. God knows what He’s DOING. What looks like trouble is really the hand of GOD. Keep doing the right thing DESPITE the trouble, and ONE day, God is going to connect the dots for YOU.

Today’s Scripture:

Genesis 50:20, NLT

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.”