THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

LOOK OUT WITH YOUR EYES OF FAITH, YOUR DELIVERER IS COMING!

God is a mighty DELIVERER! Today, you may feel afflicted, overwhelmed or burdened by the cares of life. Know this: God is working to bring you OUT of that difficult situation. It may not be in the way YOU thought, but you have to trust that God has YOUR best interest at HEART.

Afflictions can take on many forms—a sickness or hardship, a temptation, a difficult coworker or contentious family member. There are so many things that can come against us. Remember, those afflictions are only TEMPORARY. Stand in FAITH today believing that God IS on your side. It doesn’t matter what your CIRCUMSTANCES look like, why don’t you get up every morning and say, “This is the day that the LORD has made; I WILL rejoice and be GLAD in it!” You may not feel like rejoicing in the MOMENT, but if you’ll look out with your eyes of FAITH, you’ll see your DELIVERER is COMING. As you stand and trust the Lord, He will EMPOWER you to overcome ALL of those afflictions, and you’ll see His hand of BLESSING in EVERY area of your life.

Today’s Scripture:

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.”

(Psalm 34:19, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

SET YOUR DAY IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION, BE THANKFUL

Did you know that every morning you have the opportunity to set the tone for your WHOLE day? When you put God FIRST and decide to go out with a grateful ATTITUDE and a POSITIVE frame of mind, not only will you FEEL better, but you’re going to draw in the GOOD things of God. You are paving the way for SUCCESS and VICTORY. But if you get up thinking, “Man, life’s a drag. Nothing good EVER happens to me. It’s going to be a lousy day,” then you are going to ATTRACT defeat, failure and mediocrity.

Today, CHOOSE to set your day in the right direction. Find something to THANK God for. If you have to, make a list of all the GOOD things in your life and post it on your bathroom mirror. As you continually CHOOSE to set your mind on HIM first thing in the morning, you’ll pave the way to VICTORY and enjoy the GOOD things He has in store for YOU!

Today’s Scripture:

“In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”

Psalm 5:3, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GO OUT EVERY DAY EXPECTING GOOD THINGS

Everyone goes through seasons of WAITING. A lot of times, people just sit back and wait for God to do EVERYTHING. But, you have to remember to do YOUR part and make PREPARATIONS. You have to TALK like it’s going to happen and ACT like it’s going to happen. Some people might say, “Well, what if I do this and it DOESN’T happen?” But I say what if you do and it DOES happen? And even if things don’t turn out the way YOU had hoped, you’d still be better off living your life POSITIVE and HOPEFUL than you would to go around down and discouraged.

I love what David said in the Bible, “God, my times are in YOUR hands.” He was saying, “God, I don’t know when it’s going to happen, but I know You know what’s BEST for me.” I’m going to go out today EXPECTING good things. And even if it doesn’t happen, I’m not going to go to bed all disappointed. I’m going to go to bed knowing that I’m one day CLOSER to seeing my DREAMS and DESIRES come to pass!

Today’s Scripture:

“…Prepare the way for the Lord…”

(Isaiah 40:3, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN YOU’RE WAITING THE CORRECT WAY, YOU’RE ON THE LOOKOUT

Are you waiting for God to do something in your life? One thing I’ve learned is that waiting should NOT be a passive thing. When we’re waiting the CORRECT way, we’re on the LOOKOUT. We TALK like what we are believing for is going to happen. We ACT like it’s going to happen. We’re making PREPARATIONS.

It’s just like when you’re expecting someone for dinner; you don’t wait until they show up before you decide to start cooking. Most likely you start early in the day. You make sure the house is clean, you go to the grocery store, and maybe buy some flowers for the table. You make PREPARATIONS because you’re EXPECTING someone. Well, that’s the attitude we need to have while we’re waiting for God’s PROMISES to come to pass. As you put ACTIONS behind your PRAYERS, your faith comes ALIVE and opens the door for God to move MIGHTILY on your behalf.

Today’s Scripture:

“…faith without works is dead.”

James 2:20, NKJV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WALK AND LIVE BY FAITH AND SET YOUR MIND ON HIGHER THINGS

Sometimes when people look toward the FUTURE, they don’t see how they will EVER rise higher or fulfill their DESTINY. That’s because they are looking at things in the earthly, NATURAL realm. But if we’ll set our minds HIGHER, if we’ll set our minds on things ABOVE, we will have a DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE.

We walk by FAITH and NOT by sight. In other words, we have to BELIEVE it before we’re ever going to SEE it. If we walk only by what we see in the NATURAL realm, we can easily allow circumstances and FEAR to keep us from moving forward. But when we set our minds HIGHER, we are walking by FAITH, and we can see things GOD’S way.

Make the DECISION to set your mind on things ABOVE. Focus on the GOOD things God has in store. Be DETERMINED to close the door on fear and doubt and choose to listen to that INNER prompting of the Holy Spirit. WALK and LIVE by FAITH and set your mind on HIGHER things!

Today’s Scripture:

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”

Colossians 3:2, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

OUR GOD IS GREATER THAN ANY STRUGGLE WE FACE

We all go through seasons of difficulty and face storms in life. But during those times, we have to REMEMBER that Almighty God is GREATER than any struggle we face! He’ll take those challenges and use them to STRENGTHEN us, but we have to do OUR part and take a step of FAITH toward the VICTORY.

Think about the caterpillar before it becomes a butterfly. When it’s wrapped in its dark cocoon on the backside of some tree, it doesn’t look like it has many OPTIONS. But inside that cocoon as it becomes a butterfly, it doesn’t just sit and wait for someone to come and let it out. No, that butterfly knows that it has to make a MOVE if it’s going to be set FREE to fly. In the same way, we have to DO something to get out of the confining places WE are in. We have to PRAY, we have to BELIEVE, and we have to PRESS THROUGH to victory.

Today, no matter what YOU may be facing, remember HIS GRACE is sufficient for you. His STRENGTH is made perfect IN you. He has given you EVERYTHING you need to OVERCOME in this life. NOW is the time to break free and RISE to NEW levels because He has VICTORY and BLESSING prepared for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness’…”

(2 Corinthians 12:9a, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

YOU ARE CREATED FOR MORE THAN TO JUST GET BY–YOU ARE CREATED TO THRIVE!!

So many people today are living in “survival” mode. They have a mentality that says, “If I can just make it through…” or “If I can just get by…” Of course, there are some seasons that are more difficult than others. Sometimes it’s challenging to get a VISION for the future. But if you are constantly living with a survival mentality, you are missing out on God’s BEST. Scripture doesn’t say, “Jesus came so you could survive.” No, it says that He came to give you a FULL, ABUNDANT life!

If you are living in survival mode right now, I believe that today can be your turning point. If you’ll take a step of FAITH and begin to DECLARE, “My days of survival are OVER; my days of THRIVING have BEGUN,” then I BELIEVE God will meet your FAITH. I believe He will open an UNEXPECTED door. He’ll pour out His FAVOR and BLESSING on you. He’ll make a way where there seems to BE no way! Even if you’re in a tough time right now, REMEMBER tough times do NOT last, but the Word of the Lord stands FOREVER. Begin to DECLARE what God says about your circumstances because you are created for MORE than to just get by—you are created to THRIVE!

Today’s Scripture:

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

(John 10:10, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

ANSWER THE DOOR FOR JOY

When you WAKE UP each morning, God sends you a special delivery of JOY. It comes knocking at your door. When you get up in FAITH and make the declaration that “this is going to be a GOOD day,” do you know what you just did? You just ANSWERED the door. You just RECEIVED the gift of JOY that God SENT to you. The problem is that some people never ANSWER the door. Joy has been knocking for months and months, years and years saying, “Come on! LET ME IN! You can be HAPPY! You can ENJOY your life!”

Make up your mind that You’re going to ANSWER THE DOOR for joy. Wake up every morning and say, “Father, THANK YOU for another beautiful day. I’m going to be HAPPY. I’m going to ENJOY this day. I’m going to brighten somebody ELSE’S life. I RECEIVE Your gift of JOY, today!”

Today’s Scripture:

“…Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.”

Psalm 30:5, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO SATISFY YOUR INNER THIRST

In the NATURAL, every day, we get THIRSTY. Water is what we need to sustain LIFE. When we are out in the heat or exerting our bodies PHYSICALLY, even MORE water is required to keep us hydrated and functioning OPTIMALLY. SPIRITUALLY, we need water every day, TOO. We need to refresh our HEARTS and MINDS as much as we need to refresh our bodies. Jesus said, “I am the LIVING Water. If you drink of Me, you will NEVER thirst again.”

During the day, we all have things that come against us SPIRITUALLY. We all feel the HEAT, so to speak. It’s easy to get upset or stressed out, but that’s when you need to take a two-minute break and go drink of the LIVING WATER. Get quiet and say, “God, I NEED You. I’m asking You, God, to help me stay STRONG. Help me to stay in PEACE.” Remember, Jesus is the ONLY one who can truly SATISFY your INNER thirst. TURN to Him, RECEIVE from Him, and you will find REST and refreshing for your SOUL. Anytime you need to, just TAKE A DRINK!

Today’s Scripture:

But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.

John 4:14, NKJV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

LET GOD TAKE THE WHEEL…

Have you ever noticed that people will go to great lengths to do things that make THEM HAPPY? They will work hard towards their GOALS or achieving a desired RESULT. They DELIGHT themselves in THEIR accomplishments. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying YOUR work but God wants us to delight ourselves in HIM. He wants us to find JOY in serving HIM.

That word “DELIGHT” actually means “to make SOFT and PLIABLE.” It gives the picture of CLAY in the hands of the POTTER. God wants us to be FLEXIBLE with Him and allow Him to MOLD us and make us into HIS image. That’s when He can USE You and that’s when He will give you the DESIRES of your heart!

Today’s Scripture:

“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:4, ESV