THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

AS BELIEVERS, WE HAVE ACCESS TO GOD 24/7

As BELIEVERS, we have the HONOR and PRIVILEGE to enter boldly into God’s presence. Scripture says that we can come to His throne of grace and receive His mercy. Because He LOVES us, He has given us unlimited access to Himself 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

But notice that today’s verse tells us that we shouldn’t just come any old way to God. We shouldn’t come empty-handed to the King of kings and the Lord of lords. What can we bring? What do we have that’s WORTHY of Almighty God? Our PRAISE. Our THANKSGIVING. Our WORSHIP. We are to enter His gates with an offering from our hearts of ADORATION because He is WORTHY!

We have to understand, PRAISE isn’t just about singing songs on Sunday mornings. Praise is the expression of GRATEFULNESS to Father God for Who He IS and all that He has DONE. PRAISE gets God’s attention. Praise is a powerful TOOL in the life of the believer because God INHABITS our praises! When we enter His presence the RIGHT way, He enters our CIRCUMSTANCES, and when God shows up, the enemy MUST flee! Today, enter into His gates with THANKSGIVING and open the door for Him to move on your behalf!

Today’s Scripture:

“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.”

(Psalm 100:4, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

IN A SINGLE MOMENT, GOD CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE

One thing I’ve learned is that God doesn’t always work on OUR timetable. In fact, He RARELY does. But in a single MOMENT, God can change your LIFE! All throughout scripture, we see examples of how God was working behind the scenes and INSTANTLY turned things around for His people. Scripture tells us He is the same yesterday, today and FOREVER which means He can INSTANTLY turn things around for you, TOO!

You may be going through some difficulty today but be ENCOURAGED because your times are in GOD’s hands. He wants to ACCELERATE things in your FAVOR. He wants to take you FURTHER than you dreamed possible and work in your life in ways BEYOND what you have ever imagined.

Let this TRUTH sink down into your heart today. Resist discouragement by speaking His WORD over your future. Keep STANDING. Keep HOPING; keep BELIEVING because He IS working behind the scenes. He’s going to ACCELERATE your times and lead you into the life of VICTORY He has for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“My times are in Your hand…”

Psalm 31:15, NASB

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

SALVATION IS A GIFT FROM GOD THAT CAN NOT BE EARNED

We serve such a LOVING, GRACIOUS and GENEROUS God. He LOVES you so much that there isn’t anything He wouldn’t do in order to have a relationship with you. The Bible tells us that sin separates man from God. But God doesn’t want to be separated from us. That’s why He sent His Son into the world—to pay the penalty for sin so that you and I could LIVE in eternity with Him.

So many people today think they have to EARN their way to Heaven. They think they have to be “good enough” or “do the right thing” in order to be accepted by God. They want to “clean up” before they come to Him. But notice what today’s verse says—SALVATION is a GIFT from God. You can’t earn a GIFT. You don’t pay for it. You can only receive it by FAITH. If you’ve never made Jesus the Lord of your life, I encourage you to RECEIVE this free GIFT. Let Him fill you with His eternal PEACE and JOY so that you can live the ABUNDANT life He has for you.

Today’s Scripture:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.

Ephesians 2:8, NKJV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THIS DAY, GOD HAS SOMETHING AMAZING IN STORE FOR YOU

I love the promise that God gave to Joshua. He said, “Joshua, today I will begin to make you great in the eyes of all the Israelites.” He was saying, “Today, I’m going to start releasing more of My favor, My blessings, My increase.” But notice, there was a set time that God began to release favor in a new way.

Friend, God wants to do the same thing for you. He wants to release His blessings and favor in such a way that it makes you a great parent, a great spouse, a great leader, a great employee, a great friend, a great businessperson. He is saying to us what He said to Joshua, “This day, I’m going to begin to make your name great. This day, I’m going to begin to release My favor in a new way. I’m going to open doors that no man can shut.” It is a set time of God’s favor. Get ready! Make room in your thinking. Stay open to Him and keep an attitude of faith and expectancy because this day, God has something amazing in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“That day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him all the days of his life…”

Joshua 4:14, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

NOT EVERYONE CAN GO WHERE GOD IS TAKING YOU

Your destiny is too BIG to accomplish on your own. That’s why it’s so important to be connected to the right PEOPLE. We have to understand that God has already arranged for CERTAIN people to speak FAITH into you. He has already placed people in your path that will INSPIRE you, CHALLENGE you, and help you accomplish your DREAMS. The reason some people NEVER reach their highest POTENTIAL is because they never get away from the WRONG people.

Recognize today that not EVERYONE can go where God is taking YOU. You’ve got to CONNECT with people who understand your DESTINY and can call forth your seeds of GREATNESS. You don’t have TIME to spend on people who are always pushing you down, telling you what you can NOT do, or never giving you their APPROVAL no matter how hard you TRY. Friend, life is TOO short to drag people along. If you will get the WRONG people OUT of your life, then God will bring in the RIGHT people so you can fulfill the DESTINY He has in store for YOU.

Today’s Scripture:

“A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

(Proverbs 18:24, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

ACTIONS SPEAK ‘LOUDER’ THAN WORDS, BE AN EXAMPLE OF GOD’S LOVE

Oftentimes we try to “win” people over by telling them all about what we know or explain how THEY should act. We may have good INTENTIONS and really WANT to help people, but in reality, it’s OUR life of excellence and integrity that speaks to the hearts of OTHERS. In this particular Scripture, Peter is writing to women who received salvation after they were married and whose husbands were not yet believers, but the principle applies to EVERY believer.

The first thing people should notice about us is our LOVE, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, GENTLENESS, STRENGTH and JOY. People are going to know that we’re believers when we’re HELPING other people, meeting needs, and BLESSING people with our words and ACTIONS. We were created to make a difference in the lives of others through our LOVE for them. True love is seen in our ACTIONS—giving our time, our money, an encouraging word. When you show LOVE, you are showing GOD to the world.

So let your light SHINE, be fun to BE with, be good-natured, be KIND. You are the salt of the earth. Make people THIRSTY for what you have. Behind the scenes, pray for their salvation and be ready to share the message of the gospel when the time is right. Remember, actions speak LOUDER than words. Be an EXAMPLE of God’s love so you can effectively win OTHERS to Him!

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE:

…your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over.

1 Peter 3:1, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

ACTIVATE FAITH BY SPEAKING GOD’S WORD

Anytime you are facing adversity or problems, the first line of defense needs to be in your MIND. If you allow FEAR to come in and take root in your THINKING, it becomes a stronghold that affects EVERY part of you. But when thoughts of fear come, you don’t have to “sign for the package,” so to speak. Instead of activating fear by DWELLING on it, believing it and SPEAKING it, you can turn things around and activate our FAITH.

How do you ACTIVATE faith? In the Bible it says that the Word of God is LIVING and ACTIVE, sharper than a double-edged sword, able to divide soul and spirit. When the enemy tried to tempt Jesus, He gave us the example of how to respond. He said, “It Is Written!”

Instead of going through the day worried, thinking about how it’s not going to work out, start thinking about what God says.

ACTIVATE FAITH by speaking the Word of GOD. Let it sink down inside of you and TRANSFORM your being. Always remember, His Word is ALIVE, His Word is TRUTH, His Word is your WEAPON. So take hold of His PROMISES and find where it is written!

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE:

Jesus answered, “It is written…”

Matthew 4:4, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

LET’S BE THE LIGHT OF JESUS IN THE WORLD

When you see someone who is struggling, a co-worker who is discouraged, a friend who is not up to par, how do you respond? Our words can be what keeps a person going; our compliments can put a spring back into their step. Now more than ever, we need to automatically let the ENCOURAGEMENT flow. We need to tell others how much we LOVE them, how we VALUE them, and tell them that they are TALENTED and CREATIVE. Always remember, with your words you carry life-giving water. You carry HOPE, HEALING, encouragement and NEW BEGINNINGS, and you can pour it out everywhere you go.

Today, choose to speak encouragement. Choose to speak VICTORY and FAITH. Instead of telling people what they’re doing wrong, instead of pointing out all their faults, find what they are doing right. Focus on the GOOD. There are already enough critical, judgmental people in the world. Let’s be people who lift up others and restore them. Let’s be the light of Jesus in the world.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE:

Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.

Proverbs 12:25, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

PUT YOURSELF IN POSITION FOR A MIRACLE

I know a man who was BELIEVING to pay his house off. It was a standard 30-year mortgage, and he had 23 years left. In the natural, there was no way he could do it. But he was BOLD enough to say, “Father, I want to thank You that You are Jehovah Jireh; the Lord my provider. I know my job is NOT my source. YOU are my source. It may LOOK impossible, but I know You can DO the impossible.”

Several years ago, he received an inheritance from a family member that he had never met before. He didn’t even know they were related. He was able to not only pay HIS house off, but he paid a friend’s house off as well. What was that? EXPLOSIVE BLESSINGS!

Friend, when you BELIEVE God, you position yourself for a MIRACLE. When you obey His commands, you set yourself under the open windows of heaven. When you DECLARE His WORD, you open the door for Him to move on your behalf. Keep STANDING, keep BELIEVING, keep SPEAKING and see the VICTORY and BLESSING He has in store for YOU!

Today’s Scripture:

“It is written: ‘I believed; therefore I have spoken.’ Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak.”

(2 Corinthians 4:13, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

PLACE YOURSELF IN AN ATMOSPHERE OF VICTORY AND SUCCESS TODAY

Are you facing challenges today or feeling overwhelmed by your circumstances? Perhaps what you see on the OUTSIDE doesn’t match what GOD has placed on the INSIDE of you. The key is: don’t sit around in self-pity, depressed or discouraged. Go out and find someplace you can DREAM and connect with Almighty GOD. Go to the park and watch the SUNSET. Look up at the stars and think about His GOODNESS. Take a break from the ENVIRONMENT that seems to be holding you back. Find a place that INSPIRES you, a place where you can MEDITATE on His WORD and let your FAITH be elevated. Stay in a good, Bible-based church where people are going to build you UP and NOT tear you down; a place where people are going to CHALLENGE you to rise HIGHER and become all that God has CREATED you to be.

Some people get home from work every night and watch the same depressing TV shows week after week. Some have a steady diet of “NEWS” every night, then wonder why they feel so depressed all the time!?! Go figure!!! Do NOT let that be YOU! If you’re going to enlarge your VISION, you’ve got to get out of a limited/negative ENVIRONMENT. Put yourself in an atmosphere of VICTORY and SUCCESS and move forward in the GOOD things God has PREPARED for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”

Mark 1:35, NIV