THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

OPEN YOUR HEART AND RECEIVE GOD’S MERCY

Isn’t it good to know that no matter what happened yesterday, no matter what you said, no matter what you did, God’s MERCY is new for you TODAY? Mercy is EMPOWERING. It gives us the chance to let go of the our mistakes and move forward in Him. We have to always remember that God is not condemning us. Romans tells us that there is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ. God wants to LOVE us and EQUIP us to OVERCOME in this life.

Do you need NEW MERCY today? Receive it by FAITH. You don’t have to beg God to forgive you. He forgives you the FIRST time you ask, but it’s up to YOU to RECIEVE that forgiveness. Open your heart today and RECEIVE His mercy. Let Him wash over you with His PEACE and JOY. Then choose to extend that mercy to OTHERS. Remember, you are God’s REPRESENTATIVE in the earth. As you show His love and character to OTHERS, He’ll pour out His blessing on YOU and use you in ways you never DREAMED!

Today’s Scripture:

“The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.”

Lamentations 3:22-23, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THOSE WHO SCATTER SEED GENEROUSLY, REAP EVEN MORE…

Every command God gives us in His Word is for our GOOD. He is a good God, and He works ALL things together for our good because He LOVES us. He wants to BLESS us, MULTIPLY us and fill us with His exceeding JOY and PEACE, but we have to do OUR part. We have to obey His commands in order to set the blessing into MOTION.

One of the best ways to see the blessing of God operating in YOUR life is by sowing a seed of your TIME, ABILITIES or RESOURCES. Proverbs says that those who scatter seed GENEROUSLY reap even MORE. That’s because when you give, God promises that it will come back to you in ABUNDANCE- pressed down, shaken together and running over. But, you have to freely RECEIVE in order to have something to GIVE.

Remember, giving is tied to RECEIVING. I have found that the more I freely RECEIVE from God, the more I desire to freely give to OTHERS. Today, I encourage YOU to keep your heart and mind open to what God has for YOU. Look for ways to SOW seeds. Freely GIVE and set the blessing in motion in YOUR life today!

Today’s Scripture:

“…Freely you have received, freely give.”

Matthew 10:8 NKJV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN YOU CHOOSE GOD’S PLAN, YOUR FINAL CHAPTER CONCLUDES WITH YOU FULFILLING YOUR DESTINY

Did you know that God has ALREADY recorded every part of your life from the beginning to the end? He knows every disappointment, every loss, every challenge; and the good news is that with Christ, your story ends in VICTORY! God has written out a plan to BLESS and PROSPER you. When you choose HIS plan, your final chapter concludes with you fulfilling your God-given DESTINY. Here’s the key: when you go through a disappointment, when you go through a loss, don’t stop on THAT page in your life. You’ve got to DECIDE to keep moving FORWARD. There’s another chapter in front of you, but you’ve got to be willing to take the next step.

Sometimes, we get so focused on what DIDN’T work out that we stay stuck, RELIVING the disappointment. If that’s you, recognize that you’ve been on that page long enough. It’s time to LET IT GO and turn the page to the NEW chapter God has in store. You may not UNDERSTAND, it may not have been FAIR, but REMEMBER, the NEXT chapter is full of BLESSING, full of FAVOR, and full of VICTORY! Make the decision to LET GO of the old so you can move forward into the ABUNDANT life God has in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”

(Psalm 139:16, NLT)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD’S GRACE WILL BE THERE AT EVERY STAGE OF YOUR LIFE, TO HELP YOU DO WHATEVER YOU NEED TO DO

In this day and age, many people are filled with worry about their FUTURE. They live stressed out, wondering, “What’s going to happen if I get laid off?” “How am I going to handle it if my loved one doesn’t make it?” Or, “My parents are getting older. How can I take care of them and my own family at the same time?” Here is the answer: God’s GRACE is going to be there at every stage of your life to help you do WHATEVER you need to do. God’s grace is what SAVES us, but that’s not all. His grace is His ENABLING power. His grace will give you the STRENGTH, WISDOM and FAVOR to accomplish what you could not normally accomplish on your own. His GRACE is SUFFICIENT for whatever you need in your future.

If you’re in a difficult marriage, if you’re raising a child that’s hard, if you’re facing a sickness, one thing you can count on is that the GRACE of God will be there. Receive it today by FAITH, and let Him EMPOWER you to walk through the difficulty into a place of VICTORY in Jesus’ name!

Today’s Scripture:

“But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.”

1 Corinthians 15:10, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WANTS TO MAKE YOU NEW. HE’LL GIVE YOU A FRESH START…..

When God puts a DREAM or a PROMISE on the inside of you, He deposits within you EVERYTHING you need to accomplish it. He wouldn’t give you the desire to do something without giving you the ABILITY to fulfill it. In fact, the scripture tells us that GOD gives us the desires of our heart. In other words, HE puts the desire inside of us and then works WITH us to bring it to pass.

Oftentimes, people set out to accomplish their DREAMS, but they face a setback or disappointment, and then they feel like their time has passed. But know this: no matter WHERE you’ve come from, no matter WHAT’S happened in your past, God wants to make you NEW. He wants to give you a FRESH START. If you feel like you’ve missed OPPORTUNITIES in your life, if you feel like your time has passed, remember, today is a NEW day. You are a NEW person, and God has NEW OPPORTUNITIES in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“And He Who is seated on the throne said, See! I make all things new…”

Revelation 21:5, AMPC

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GIVE GENEROUSLY TO OTHERS, GOD WILL MULTIPLY THOSE SEEDS

Did you know that when you give to others in need, the Bible says it’s like giving directly to God Himself? When you step out and bless OTHER people, you are HONORING and BLESSING the LORD. The scripture tells us to give our BEST, to give GENEROUSLY. In other words, STRETCH yourself. Go out of your way. It may be uncomfortable to walk over and pay for someone’s gas, but that’s being GENEROUS.

I encourage YOU today, LOOK for ways to give generously and meet the needs of others. Remember, people have many different TYPES of needs. There may be someone who needs some ENCOURAGEMENT. Give GENEROUSLY when you give that encouragement. There may be someone in your life that just needs a FRIEND; they need some quality TIME. Give GENEROUSLY of your time and POUR into that person. As you give GENEROUSLY to OTHERS, God will multiply those seeds in YOUR own life in return!

Today’s Scripture:

” …The righteous give generously”

(Psalm 37:21, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL MOTHERS, ON THIS, YOUR SPECIAL DAY TODAY

Mother’s day is a SPECIAL day we set aside to let our moms know how much they mean to us. On this special day, be sure to tell YOUR mom how much you love HER and how much you APPRECIATE all she has done for you. PRAISE her for her dedication to her family and for her tireless efforts on YOUR behalf.

If you are not sure what to say, let GOD’s Word inspire you: “Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her. There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!” (Proverbs 31:28-29)

Today’s Scripture:

“So give your father and mother joy! May she who gave you birth be happy.”

Proverbs 23:25 , NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

DON’T USE YOUR WORDS TO ‘TALK’ ABOUT YOUR SITUATION; USE YOUR WORDS TO ‘CHANGE IT’

One thing I’ve learned is that God calls the things that are not as if they ALREADY ARE. He doesn’t call you what you are; He calls you the way HE sees you. That’s because He creates with His words, and you do, TOO.

The first time I stepped up to the podium in front of a large audience to make a speech, I was afraid. I felt unqualified, inexperienced, and intimidated. The whole time, on the inside, I could hear that still, small voice saying, ‘Mark, you are well ABLE. You can do ALL things. You HAVE what it takes. You are STRONG in the Lord.’ God was calling me something that I was NOT. I was not strong and bold and confident. I was weak, insecure, and intimidated. Somehow, I had the FAITH to believe what GOD said about me. And it didn’t happen overnight, but little by little, I BECAME what God called me and I actually discovered that I LIKED public speaking AND, I was GOOD at it!

Today, follow His example and call things that are not as though they ARE. Look through your eyes of FAITH and call it like YOU see it. Don’t use your words to TALK about your situation; use your words to CHANGE your situation. Keep speaking words of FAITH, keep PRAYING, keep BELIEVING and keep moving FORWARD into the bright future He has for YOU!

Today’s Scripture:

“God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did”

(Romans 4:17b, NKJ)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WE CREATE ‘OUR’ WORLD, WITH OUR WORDS

Scripture tells us that there is creative POWER in the words we DECLARE. In the same way that God created the world with HIS words in Genesis 1, WE “create” our own world with OUR words. We can create an atmosphere of PEACE, JOY, POWER and LOVE with our words, or we can create an atmosphere of strife, confusion and defeat.

Today, I encourage YOU to use your words to open the door for God to MOVE by declaring His Word over YOUR life. Declare that His strength IS at work in you. Declare that NO weapon formed against you is going to prosper. As you declare God’s WORD over your life, you’ll see it come to pass. You’ll feel His STRENGTH, JOY and VICTORY rising up inside of you so that you can embrace the life of BLESSING He has prepared for you.

Today’s Scripture:

“Now may the Lord’s strength be displayed, just as You have declared”

(Numbers 14:17, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

TURN THE PAGE AND SEE THE BLESSING GOD HAS IN STORE FOR YOUR LIFE

Did you know that God has already written out the story of your life? He’s written out plans for your GOOD, plans to PROSPER you, plans for PEACE. That doesn’t mean that you won’t go through negative situations. It means that God will use everything you go through to move you forward TOWARD that good plan.

When things happen that we don’t understand, it’s easy to think, “Why did this happen? Why did this friend betray me? Why did this company lay me off? Why didn’t I get that promotion?” You can’t let the things you don’t understand keep you stuck on the same page in the story of your life. You have to DECIDE to TURN the page so that you can see the VICTORY waiting for you in the NEXT chapter.

If you are facing a difficulty today, know that God’s plan is to turn it around and use it for your GOOD. The story of your life is NOT over! Keep moving FORWARD, keep BELIEVING, keep HOPING, keep FORGIVING because your days are written out for GOOD, and it’s time to TURN THE PAGE and see the BLESSING HE has in store for your life!

Today’s Scripture:

“…all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

Psalm 139:16, NIV