THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD HAS GREATER LEVELS OF HIS FAVOR AND BLESSING IN STORE FOR YOUR FUTURE

Oftentimes, people set their focus on what God has done in the past—how He parted the Red Sea or stopped the sun for Joshua or fed thousands of people with just a little boy’s small lunch. Yes, God has performed many AMAZING miracles throughout history. And it’s important that we give Him PRAISE, but at the same time, we also have to look forward to what God wants to do in our lives TODAY.

In today’s verse, Paul says that “in the ages to come” God would do things that EXCEED anything He’s ever done before. I believe that the “ages to come” is this day and time we’re living in RIGHT NOW. God wants to outdo Himself in OUR generation!

Remember, God is a God of INCREASE. Where you are today is NOT where you are supposed to STAY. He has GREATER levels of His favor and blessing in store for your FUTURE. Dare to dream BIG! Dare to keep a God-sized VISION in front of you! Dare to take hold of EVERY spiritual blessing He has in store for you!

Today’s Scripture:

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us…raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

(Ephesians 2:4-7, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

TRUST GOD, BECAUSE HE IS DIRECTING YOUR STEPS

We all have times when our plans don’t work out. We get delayed, interrupted and inconvenienced. It’s easy to get frustrated and fight against everything that doesn’t go our way. But, not every interruption is bad. Every closed door doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong. Every delay doesn’t mean you’re not where you’re supposed to be. There is something I call a DIVINE interruption where God, on purpose, will delay us to protect us from an accident. On purpose, He will close a door because it’s not His BEST. Sometimes, God will allow us to be inconvenienced so we can help someone else in need. We have to be willing to press through difficulty so we can be at the right PLACE at the right TIME.

The next time you’re interrupted, delayed or inconvenienced, don’t start thinking, “This is a pain. This is getting me off schedule.” No, get a new PERSPECTIVE. Look for what GOD wants to do because it could be divine INTERRUPTION or divine PROTECTION. Trust Him today because He IS directing your steps!

Today’s Scripture:

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

NEW BEGINNINGS START WITH OPENING YOUR HEART TO JESUS

Have you thought much about what you’re WEARING today? You probably took time this morning to select the right clothes and shoes for the day, but have you thought about what you are wearing SPIRITUALLY and EMOTIONALLY? Similar to taking off a coat, we can take off wrong ATTITUDES, emotional HEAVINESS, GUILT and SHAME. We can exchange our garments of sin and failure for HIS garments of SALVATION and RIGHTEOUSNESS. Notice that this verse doesn’t say you have to MAKE the robe of righteousness before you put it on. It doesn’t say you have to WORK really hard in order to earn RIGHTEOUSNESS. No, it’s GOD’S righteousness that He gives as a GIFT to us when we accept what JESUS did for us.

If you are wearing heaviness, guilt, condemnation or shame today, receive His gift of FORGIVENESS and allow Him to cleanse you and clothe you with His garments of SALVATION and His robe of RIGHTEOUSNESS. Today is a NEW day, and you can have a new BEGINNING by simply opening your HEART to Him.

Today’s Scripture

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul will exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness…

Isaiah 61:10, ESV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THE MOMENT YOU VERBALIZE A THOUGHT, YOU GIVE IT THE RIGHT TO COME TOO PASS

All through the day, there are two voices that compete for our attention – the voice of FAITH and the voice of defeat. You’ll hear a voice saying, “You’ll never rise any higher. You don’t have what it takes. You’ve reached your limit.” But if you listen carefully, you’ll hear another voice saying, “You are well ABLE. You can do ALL things through Christ. Your best days are still up ahead.” You are the one who gets to choose which voice has POWER in your life.

The moment you VERBALIZE a thought, you give it the right to come to pass. When you speak FAITH, you’re in agreement with God. When you speak defeat, you’re in agreement with the enemy. GOD-TALK brings God on the scene. Enemy-talk brings the enemy on the scene.

Why don’t you get in agreement with God today? The negative voice may be louder, but you can OVERRIDE it. You can take away all of its power by simply choosing the voice of FAITH. Choose to declare FAVOR, BLESSING and INCREASE over your life so that you can walk in the VICTORY the Lord has in store for you. It’s your DESTINY!!

Today’s Scripture

If only you carefully listen to the voice of the Lord your God…

Deuteronomy 15:5, AMPC

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

DON’T SETTLE WHERE YOU ARE, IT’S ONLY TEMPORARY

Notice in today’s verse that God did NOT say He would bring His people into a small land; a little place, tight or crowded. No, receive THIS into your spirit: Just as God brought the children of Israel into a GOOD and SPACIOUS land, so He will do the same for YOU! He wants to take you to the land of “MORE than enough,” a land of PLENTY of room flowing with INCREASE, GOOD breaks and OPPORTUNITY. He wants you to live in a land where you not only have enough for yourself, but you’re SO blessed that you can be a blessing to OTHER people.

If you’re not in a good and spacious place today, the challenge is: DON’T SETTLE where you are. This is NOT your permanent address! It’s only TEMPORARY. Keep STANDING, keep BELIEVING, keep pressing FORWARD and walk into the GOOD and SPACIOUS land God has in store for YOU!

Todays Scripture

“so I have come down to rescue them;…and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land…”

Exodus 3:8

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

WHEN GOD BREATHES IN YOUR DIRECTION, THINGS BEGIN TO CHANGE…..

In the original Hebrew, the word “SPIRIT” in today’s verse literally means “BREATH.” This scripture is saying that the BREAKTHROUGHS that are coming in our lives are not going to happen just by our TALENT, our CONNECTIONS or WHO we know. It’s going to happen because God BREATHES in our direction. God will shift the winds that blow HEALING, PROMOTION and RESTORATION our way.

How are you going to get WELL? The medical report may SAY it’s impossible. But when GOD breathes on you, HEALTH, WHOLENESS and RESTORATION are headed toward you. How are you going to accomplish your DREAMS? You may not know the right PEOPLE or have enough MONEY or feel like you have the TALENT. No, GOD is BREATHING and sending IDEAS, RESOURCES and the right CONNECTIONS your direction. If you will stay FAITHFUL and keep HONORING and OBEYING God, then SUDDENLY things WILL change. SUDDENLY, you WILL come into abundance. SUDDENLY, your child WILL turn around. SUDDENLY, you WILL get well. SUDDENLY, the breath of GOD will shift things in EVERY area of your life!

Today’s Scripture:

“…Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.”

(Zechariah 4:6, NIV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THE PEOPLE IN YOUR LIFE ARE NOT THERE BY ACCIDENT

Very often, we see POTENTIAL in other people that they can’t see in themselves. When you speak VISION into them, when you tell them what they CAN become, you can help set the direction for their life. Your words have the POWER to push people into their divine DESTINY. I believe that the reason some people are not living at their full POTENTIAL is because no one has ever spoken FAITH into them. No one has taken the time to say, “Hey, you’re GREAT at this. You’ve got a GIFT here. You’re going to do something AMAZING.”

I believe that one of our assignments in life is to call out the seeds of GREATNESS in other people. Look around at who God has placed in your life. They’re not there by accident. Take time to STUDY them. See what they’re good at. What are their GIFTS? What do they EXCEL at? Don’t just THINK about it, speak VISION into them. Tell them what they can become. Let your ENCOURAGEMENT ignite the GREATNESS on the inside. Help them rise up in CONFIDENCE so they can be all God has called them to be!

Today’s Scripture:

“…God…calls those things which do not exist as though they did.”

(Romans 4:17, NKJV)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

DELETE THE NEGATIVITY AND EMBRACE GOD’S TRUTH

Scripture tells us that there is a battle going on in our MINDS. Our THOUGHTS dictate our ACTIONS. That’s why the enemy will do everything he can to get you thinking in the wrong direction. Sometimes it’s not our own thoughts that are holding us back; sometimes it’s that we’ve BELIEVED the negative things that OTHER people have spoken over us. Those words are like SEEDS. If you dwell on them long enough, they’ll take root and become a REALITY. In life, there will always be people telling you what cannot be done, speaking negative things. Too often we latch on to those negative words and develop what the Scripture calls a “STRONGHOLD.” It’s a wrong thinking pattern that keeps us imprisoned in defeat and keeps us from God’s BEST. The way you break those negative strongholds is by REJECTING the lie and EMBRACING the truth of God’s Word. In other words, you have to CHOOSE to DELETE that negative file in your mind.

Today, why don’t you take inventory of your THOUGHT life? Ask yourself, “Where did these thoughts come from? Do they line up with what GOD says about me?” Break the negative strongholds and EMBRACE God’s TRUTH so you can be all that GOD has called you to be!

Today’s Scripture

For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.

2 Corinthians 10:4, NKJV

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THE BIGGER YOU MAKE GOD, THE SMALLER YOUR PROBLEMS WILL BECOME

In the Scripture, Nehemiah had a dream to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, but he didn’t have the money, the supplies or the manpower. What he had was incredible opposition. The city leaders were not for him. The critics tried to talk him out of it. He could have gotten discouraged and thought, “I’m not a builder or qualified. These obstacles are too big. I’ll never overcome these enemies.” No, right in the middle of that difficulty he said, “I CAN do this because the gracious hand of GOD is on my life.” He was saying, “The favor of God is making a way.” Again and again, he made this same statement, “The gracious hand of God WILL help me overcome.” He was constantly bragging on God’s FAVOR. In the end, he not only rebuilt the wall, but he did it in record time. It should have taken a year or two, but he did it in just fifty-two days.

When you’re always talking about God’s GOODNESS, that’s when you’ll see His FAVOR, His GOODNESS, and His PROTECTION in NEW ways. You may be in a tough time, but don’t MAGNIFY your problem. Magnify your GOD. The bigger you make God, the SMALLER your problems will become. Brag on God’s GOODNESS and move forward in His VICTORY!

Today’s Scripture

Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me…

Nehemiah 2:18, NLT

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD BREATHED HIS LIFE INTO YOU, AND HE DID NOT CREATE YOU TO BE AVERAGE…..

Did you know that God chose YOU before the foundation of the earth? Your Father is Almighty God. Before the worlds were ever formed, He KNEW you. You didn’t get here by accident. You didn’t just happen to show up. God breathed His LIFE into you. And He did NOT create you to be average. He didn’t create you to barely get by. No, He created you to EXCEL! Not only has He CHOSEN you, but He has EQUIPPED you with everything you need to live and THRIVE in this life. He has deposited seeds of GREATNESS inside EVERY person. But in order to tap INTO those seeds of greatness, you have to BELIEVE this and ACT on it.

Too many people today are going around with low self-esteem, feeling inferior, as though they don’t have what it takes. But that is living a LIE. And as long as we have a poor SELF-image, we’re not going to experience God’s BEST. In order to be all that God has CALLED us to be, we have to see ourselves as CHOSEN, VALUABLE and VICTORIOUS. Today, meditate on THIS truth. Let it sink down DEEP into your heart. Let it build CONFIDENCE and SECURITY in you. As you understand your VALUE in the eyes of God, you’ll be EMPOWERED to live the life of VICTORY He has prepared for you!

Today’s Scripture

Ephesians 1:4, NIV

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world…”