THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR SITUATION BY CHANGING YOUR WORDS

I want to encourage you today to watch what you are saying. Your words have creative POWER, and you can use them as a destructive force or an instrument of BLESSING. If you continually speak NEGATIVE words over your life, then eventual defeat will be the RESULT. In the same way, if you speak words of FAITH and VICTORY, you will see a harvest of BLESSING not only in YOUR own life, but also in the lives of those AROUND you.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

EACH DAY IS UNIQUE AND IRREPLACEABLE, A GIFT FROM HEAVEN ABOVE….

Sometimes, our days can be so full and busy that we forget how precious and fragile our time on earth really is. It can be so easy to allow LITTLE things to creep in and steal our PEACE and JOY. Maybe something didn’t go your way, or someone said something upsetting. Even traffic can cause us to get our focus off if we let it. But, we have to remember that each day is a GIFT. If we choose to focus on what’s wrong, we’ll miss out on the BEAUTY that each day has to offer.

I encourage you today; don’t let the precious moments of life pass you by. Don’t wait for holidays and birthdays to show people that you CARE. Remember, each day is UNIQUE and IRREPLACEABLE, a GIFT from heaven above. You have been given time that can be INVESTED OR wasted; hours that can be USED OR misused. That’s why the psalmist prayed to God, “Teach us to NUMBER our days.” He was saying, “Teach us to VALUE every moment we’ve been given so we can live a life PLEASING to You.”

Today’s Scripture:

“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”
(Psalm 90:12, KJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

CALL OUT THE SEEDS OF GREATNESS IN OTHERS AND STIR UP THE GIFT OF GOD INSIDE

Every word you speak MATTERS. Something you say may seem insignificant to YOU, but to someone else those words can be LIFE changing. When you use your words to LIFT someone’s spirit and speak words of VISION and LIFE over them, you are depositing seeds that will last throughout ETERNITY.

It’s especially important to speak vision into our CHILDREN. As a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher or friend, the children in your life need to hear on a regular basis that they can do something GREAT with their lives. As parents, our words carry INCREDIBLE weight. That’s why you should never put a child DOWN. Don’t ever say, “You’re slow, clumsy or dumb. Why can’t you make good grades like your sister? Why can’t you hit the baseball like your cousin?” Those words are SEEDS. They can take root and affect that child MANY years later. Too many people have been crippled by low EXPECTATIONS. But TODAY, all of that can change. Today, you can start to speak VISION over yourself and the PEOPLE in your life. Today, you can call out the seeds of GREATNESS in others and stir up the gift of God inside. Today, speak LIFE, speak HOPE and speak VISION!

Today’s Scripture:

“The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
(Proverbs 18:21, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN YOU FIX YOUR EYES ON THE UNSEEN, YOUR FAITH WILL NOT BE MOVED BY YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES

Every obstacle in your life is subject to CHANGE. It doesn’t matter what you may be facing, there IS an answer in the UNSEEN. The unseen is the SPIRITUAL realm where the PROMISES of God exist. Your FAITH brings those unseen things into this NATURAL realm. When you are FIXED on something, you can’t be moved. There’s a DETERMINATION that fuels your FOCUS. When you fix your eyes on the unseen—the PROMISES of God—your FAITH will not be moved by your circumstances, and you’ll eventually SEE those promises come to pass. Make the DECISION today to fix your eyes and mind on the PROMISES of God. MEDITATE on His promises until they become more real to you than the air you breathe. Declare that His promises WILL come to pass in your life. Declare that you have His FAVOR. Declare that you are MORE than a conqueror. Don’t allow fear and doubt to change what you are SPEAKING over your life. As you continue to FIX your spiritual eyes on the UNSEEN promises of God, you WILL SEE those things come to pass in the natural, and you will move forward into the ABUNDANT life the Lord has for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
(2 Corinthians 4:18, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

SPEND YOUR TIME WITH PEOPLE OF VISION WHO ARE GOING PLACES IN LIFE

The QUALITY of life is often determined by the quality of our RELATIONSHIPS. Do you know that you will become LIKE the people you associate with? If you constantly spend your time around lazy and undisciplined people, then before long, you’re going to be lazy and undisciplined. But on the other hand, if you associate with SUCCESSFUL people, then you’re going to be successful. If you spend your time with people of VISION who are going places in life, you will be INSPIRED to go FURTHER than you would on your own.

Take time to examine your FRIENDSHIPS. Ask yourself, do I want to be LIKE this person? Do I like their QUALITIES? Do they INSPIRE me to reach for NEW heights? As you choose to be around WISE people, you will become wise and walk in the abundant life GOD has for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.”
(Proverbs 13:20, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

PEOPLE WILL KNOW WE’RE HIS DISCIPLES BY THE LOVE WE SHOW

People aren’t going to know we’re His disciples by how many times we go to church or how many scriptures we can quote. People will know we’re His disciples by the LOVE we show one another.

The enemy tries to bring division throughout the Body of Christ by keeping us focused on our DIFFERENCES. When we’re critical and judgmental, we build walls that separate us. The Bible says in Ephesians 4:13, “We need to COME TOGETHER in the unity of faith.” There’s great power in UNITY! We can do a whole lot more together, as born-again believers, than we can do apart. Let’s decide to lay down our differences and come together in the unity of our FAITH in Jesus Christ.

Today’s Scripture:

“By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
(John 13:35, NASB)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WITH GOD, YOU DON’T HAVE TO FIGURE EVERYTHING OUT

A lot of times, we have our own ideas about how things should work out in life. But God’s ways are not our ways. In scripture, God brought water out of a rock. Jesus told Peter to go catch a fish, open its mouth, and there was the money he needed for taxes. Another time, God caused a young lady named Mary to have a baby without knowing a man. He is God. He can use things we WOULD expect, or He can make things happen ANOTHER way.

With God, you don’t have to figure everything out. All you have to do is BELIEVE. In fact, it says in Proverbs, “Lean not to your own understanding.” Sometimes there IS no logical solution. You’ve got to turn your mind OFF. If you’re constantly trying to figure it out, that’s just going to make you discouraged, depressed and frustrated. Just because you don’t SEE a way doesn’t mean that God doesn’t HAVE a way. Remember, His ways are HIGHER, and He is working behind the scenes for your GOOD!

Today’s Scripture:

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
(Isaiah 55:9, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IF YOU ARE TRYING TO PLEASE MAN, THEN YOU’RE NOT A SERVANT OF CHRIST

Paul was OBVIOUSLY not worried about trying to please the people around him. It’s not that he didn’t CARE about others. It’s just that he was focused on serving the LORD. Many times you may be too worried about what people think of YOU, which inhibits you from following God with your whole HEART. Instead, follow those God-given desires with RECKLESS ABANDON, because all that will matter in the END is fulfilling God’s PLAN for your life. You are called to serve God WITHOUT reserve, so fulfill His plan without letting others SIDETRACK you.

Today’s Scripture:

“Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
(Galatians 1:10, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WANTS TO BLESS YOU, AND GIVE YOU IN ABUNDANCE WHAT YOU NEED

Nothing moves the heart of God quite like taking the time and EFFORT to meet the needs of hurting and desperate people. When you focus on meeting the needs of OTHERS, you won’t have time to worry about your OWN needs – which is actually fine since GOD has promised to take care of YOUR own needs when you SPEND yourself on behalf of others. The Bible says that God wants to BLESS you and give you in ABUNDANCE what you need, so why WOULDN’T you give? Give anything and everything you can, whether it’s TIME, MONEY, PRAYER, or just a kind WORD. So if you want God to satisfy you with every good thing, go out and help somebody in NEED. GIVE YOUR LIFE AWAY!

Today’s Scripture:

“God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done.”
(2 Corinthians 9:8, MSG)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THE MORE YOU KNOW HIS WORD, THE MORE YOU KNOW THAT GOD IS GOOD

Do you know what PLEASES God? He’s not impressed by how much knowledge we have. He isn’t influenced by how many possessions we own. He’s not moved by our accomplishments; He is moved simply by our FAITH in Him.

Faith is a GIFT. It’s not something that has to be contrived or worked up. The scripture tells us that everyone has been given a MEASURE of faith. It also says that faith GROWS as we hear the Word of God. That’s why it’s so important to stay connected to a Bible-based church where the Word of God is being taught. It’s why we need to make time every day to read and STUDY His Word because that’s how you FEED your faith. The more you KNOW His Word, the more you understand that God is GOOD, and He rewards the people who SEEK after Him.

Today, take time to FEED your faith. MEDITATE on His Word and ask Him to ILLUMINATE your heart with His TRUTH. Trust that He is GOOD and has good things in store for your future because faith is what PLEASES God!

Today’s Scripture:

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
(Hebrews 11:6, NIV)