THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

SOME THINGS WE SHOULDN’T HAVE AN OPINION ABOUT OR IF WE DO, WE SHOULD KEEP IT TO OURSELVES……

In Numbers 12, Moses’ sister, Miriam, and his brother, Aaron, began to CRITICIZE him and question his LEADERSHIP. Perhaps Miriam felt Moses was getting some of the recognition SHE deserved. She focused her criticism on the fact that many years BEFORE, Moses had married a CUSHITE woman, a FOREIGNER. It was none of her BUSINESS who he had married, and BECAUSE of it, her skin suddenly became LEPROUS. That may SEEM extreme, but that is how much God dislikes it when we sow DISCORD and stir up TROUBLE. Fortunately for Miriam, Moses PRAYED for her, and God RESTORED her skin to HEALTH.

The apostle Paul says to mind your OWN business. It is NOT our business who others marry, what CAR they drive, or how they spend their MONEY. Don’t be a BUSYBODY, don’t be NOSEY, trying to KNOW everything. Some things we shouldn’t have an OPINION about, or if we DO, we should keep it to OURSELVES unless they ASK. It’s hard enough to run our OWN life. Don’t try to run somebody ELSE’S.

Today’s Scripture:

1 Thessalonians 4:11, TLB

This should be your ambition: to live a quiet life, minding your own business and doing your own work, just as we told you before.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD’S MERCY IS BIGGER THAN ANY MISTAKE YOU’VE MADE

When Jesus was on trial before His crucifixion, Peter DENIED that he KNEW Jesus THREE times. Peter was so bitterly DISAPPOINTED in himself, so ASHAMED of being a coward. Soon AFTER that, they CRUCIFIED Jesus. Peter never had the CHANCE to tell Him he was sorry. He had to live with the GUILT. But when three women found Jesus’ tomb was EMPTY, an ANGEL told them to go tell His disciples and PETEER that He was ALIVE. The only disciple specifically pointed OUT was PETER. God was showing us, “I don’t DEFINE you by your MISTAKES. I don’t cancel your destiny because you’ve FAILED.” And fifty days LATER, it was PETER who gave the inaugural message that birthed the CHURCH.

YOU may have made mistakes and failed, as PETER did, but you have to learn to FORGIVE yourself. Quit remembering what God has forgiven and FORGOTTEN. His MERCY is BIGGER than ANY mistake you’ve made. GOD is saying, “Get back in the GAME. You can STILL do what I called you to DO.”

Today’s Scripture:

Mark 16:6–7, NLT

…but the angel said, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!… Now go and tell his disciples, including Peter, that Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

CLOSED DOORS CAN’T KEEP YOU FROM YOUR PURPOSE

PEOPLE can’t lock you out of your DESTINY. GOD is your doorkeeper–NOT your boss, not your BANKER, not your NEIGHBOR, not your CRITICS, not your ENEMIES. They may SHUT a door, but GOD can take you right THROUGH it. He can make things happen that don’t make SENSE. He doesn’t HAVE to open it. He may not do it a traditional WAY. God can take you AROUND what’s blocking you. He can take you OVER someone who’s trying to stop you. He can move someone out of the WAY who’s holding you BACK. What God has DESTINED for your life will OVERRIDE anyone or ANYTHING trying to STOP you.

You just keep HONORING God, BEING your best, and HE will get you to where you need to be. Trust His TIMING. Don’t be IMPATIENT because a door hasn’t OPENED yet. God knows what He’s doing. He’s NOT going to let you miss out. Stay in PEACE; your time IS coming. Closed DOORS can’t keep you from your PURPOSE.

Today’s Scripture:

Psalm 18:29, AMPC

For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

KEEP DECLARING THE PROMISE AND GOD WILL MAKE IT HAPPEN

When Abraham received God’s promise that he and Sarah would have a SON, all the CIRCUMSTANCES around him said, “Your body is DEAD, and so is Sarah’s WOMB. There’s no WAY. It’s never happened BEFORE.” But here’s the KEY: He wasn’t MOVED by what he SAW. He didn’t consider his CIRCUMSTANCES; he considered his GOD. The next verse says that Abraham grew STRONG in faith by giving praise to GOD. He kept himself in an attitude of FAITH, of PRAISE, of THANKSGIVING, always considering how big GOD is, until his baby boy CAME.

You may have situations that LOOK like they’ll never work out. You don’t see how your BUSINESS will make it, how your HEALTH will improve, how your child will get back on COURSE. If you only consider what you SEE, what you don’t HAVE, or who’s AGAINST you, you’ll get discouraged and give UP. Keep BELIEVING when you’re not SEEING. Keep PRAISING, keep giving THANKS, keep declaring the PROMISE, and He will make it HAPPEN.

Today’s Scripture:

Romans 4:19, NIV

Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead–since he was about a hundred years old–and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

BECAUSE THERE’S GREATNESS IN YOU…..

In the Scripture, why did David’s father leave him out in the shepherds’ fields when Samuel came to anoint one of his sons to be the next king? Why did he look DOWN on David as not GOOD enough and disrespect him as UNWORTHY? Why was David’s oldest brother JEALOUS of him, and why did he BELITTLE David and try to hold him BACK? David wasn’t intimidating or a threat to HIM. But the ENEMY can see things in you that you may NOT see. The enemy KNEW David had seeds of greatness in him. He knew David was a GIANT killer. THAT’S why he came against David so STRONGLY to keep him from his DESTINY.

There may be obstacles trying to stop YOU now. You wonder why it’s HAPPENING. It’s because there’s GREATNESS in you. The ENEMY wouldn’t come AGAINST you if you weren’t a threat. Now do YOUR part and stay in FAITH. In this fight for your FUTURE, it’s not just UP to you. GOD is fighting FOR you. You WILL TRIUMPH!

Today’s Scripture:

Micah 5:9, MSG

With your arms raised in triumph over your foes, your enemies will be no more!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

THE OBSTACLE ISN’T CHANGING, BUT IT’S CHANGING YOU. THAT’S GOD’S PLAN WORKING…..

The apostle Paul asked three TIMES for God to remove something that was deeply TROUBLING to him. But God’s RESPONSE to Paul was, “My GRACE is SUFFICIANT for you.” God’s grace doesn’t mean He’s going to REMOVE the challenge or that the opposition will let UP. It MEANS He’s going to increase your STRENGTH, so that what you’re UP against becomes EASIER. NOW you can handle what you COULDN’T handle before. That COWORKER who used to get on your nerves hasn’t changed, but YOU’VE changed. You don’t let him steal your JOY. The OBATACLE isn’t changing, but it’s changing YOU. That’s God’s plan WORKING.

YOU may have situations you’ve been dealing with for a long time, and you’re TIRED and DISCOURAGED. Right NOW, grace is coming on you in a NEW way. God is breathing STRENGTH into you, fresh VISION, fresh PASSION, and a second WIND, so you can stand strong and OUTLAST what’s trying to STOP you. Receive His GRACE. It’s SUFFICIENT for ALL you need.

Today’s Scripture:

2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

EMBRACE THE GOOD THINGS GOD HAS IN STORE FOR YOU

In the Bible, it says that when any two of us agree, it shall be done. That’s a promise that when we stand in FAITH with another BELIEVER, God will do what He said. Well, I BELIEVE that principle is true even in reverse. When the enemy puts a thought in your mind, if you agree, then your AGREEMENT is what gives it the POWER to come to pass. But if you don’t agree, you turn it around.

The thought says, “Your children are going to get into trouble.” “No, I don’t agree. My children will be MIGHTY in the land. My children will fulfill their DESTINY.” You’ve just stopped that fear from coming to pass. The thought says, “You’d better not go out today. You’re going to have an accident.” “No, I don’t agree. God has a hedge of PROTECTION around me; a bloodline that the enemy cannot cross.”

Here’s the key: don’t come into AGREEMENT with the fear. If you don’t agree, the only way it can come to pass is if God gives it permission. And if God does, you can rest assured it’s NOT going to work against you! It’s going to work FOR you. Today, pay attention to what you’re coming into AGREEMENT with and don’t agree with fear. AGREE with His Word and EMBRACE the good things He has in store for you.

TODAYS SCRIPTURE:

Matthew 18:19

“Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done…..”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

KEEP BELIEVING AND LOVE THEM BACK ON TRACK

You may have a CHILD who’s off course. The GOOD news is that you trained them up to know the LORD. That FAITH was deposited in their SPIRIT. The promise is that in the END, they will NOT depart from it. It doesn’t say anything about the MIDDLE. They may take some wrong TURNS. It may not look like they’re NEVER going to get back on track. Don’t get discouraged. GOD knows how to get their attention. You keep PRAYING, keep ENCOURAGING, keep believing that SOMETHING is happening. Your DECLARATION should be, “They’re coming BACK. As for me and MY house, we WILL serve the Lord.

I’ve learned that EVERYONE is on a journey. Where they are NOW is NOT where they’re going to be in ten YEARS. Give them room to change. You can’t MAKE them do what’s right. Don’t always try to CORRECT them, give them a LESSON, or THREATEN them. Sometimes you just have to LOVE them. The SCRIPTURE says, “Love NEVER fails.” You can LOVE them back on track.

Today’s Scripture:

Proverbs 22:6, NKJV

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

GOD WILL TAKE WHAT YOU THINK INSIGNIFICANT AND TURN IT INTO SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY

In 2 Kings 4, things were so bad for the poor widow that the creditors were coming to take her two sons as payment for her BILLS. When she said she had nothing at ALL in her house, she didn’t realize she already HAD what she needed for the miracle. The PRINCIPLE is: Your talents and resources may SEEM like not enough, but when you use what you HAVE, God will MULTIPLY it.

Notice that she SAID she had nothing “EXCEPT” a small jar of oil. God is going to use what comes AFTER the “except.” “I have nothing except this small TALENT and a little TRAINING. I have nothing except a few CONNECTIONS.” God is going to take what YOU think is insignificant and turn it into something EXTRAORDINARY. When you come to the end of what YOU can do, when you don’t have the resources and run out of OPTIONS, you’re in the perfect POSITION for God to show OUT in your life. God’s about to do something UNUSUAL, something YOU couldn’t make HAPPEN.

Today’s Scripture:

2 Kings 4:2, NIV

Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” “Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THE MIRACLE IS ALREADY IN MOTION

Sometimes when we pray, and it doesn’t seem like anything is HAPPENING, the enemy makes a lot of NOISE, talks a lot of TRASH, but it’s JUST a roar. It’s like the enemy is MOCKING us and saying, “You’re not FREE from this addiction, you’ll NEVER get well, your KIDS will NEVER get back on track.” Just stay in FAITH, keep PRAYING, keep BELIEVING. I’ve heard it said the enemy makes the MOST noise and stirs up the most TROUBLE when he’s on the way OUT.

The SCRIPTURE says, “Hold fast the CONFESSION of your FAITH.” You have to hold fast to what GOD put in your HEART. There are forces CONSTANTLY trying to convince us that what GOD said is never going to HAPPEN. “It’s been too LONG. There’s no SIGN of it. Just ACCEPT that it’s not going to work out.” Don’t BELIEVE those lies. In the UNSEEN realm things have ALREADY changed. The MIRACLE is already in MOTION. It’s just a matter of TIME before the MANIFESTATION shows up.

Today’s Scripture:

1 Peter 5:8, NIV

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.