Archive for Spiritual Development
Stand Firm Against the Enemy
Posted by: | CommentsToo often in life, we fall prey to the attacks of the enemy. We allow the enemy to take blows at us and before long, we find ourselves coming up short.
The adversary will cause you to make small changes in your faith. He’ll trick you into thinking that you’re taking a step forward when you’re really taking two steps backwards.
Satan will come at you with all sorts of negative defeating thoughts. He’ll make you think that you’re not equipped to accomplish your dreams and goals. He’ll cause you to look at the circumstances around you and make you adjust your faith based on what’s happening around you.
But I want to encourage you to stand firm. Don’t budge to the left or to the right. Don’t negotiate the terms of what the Word of God says. Instead, stand firm on what you know is true.
The scripture says in Ephesians 6:13, “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand, stand.”
That means you must block the blows of the enemy with the armor God has given you which is His Word. In the unseen realm, Satan is firing rounds of doubt, insecurity, fear, failure, weakness, defeat and worry into your mind. But you have to block those rounds with what God’s Word says about you you.
God’s Word tells you that you’re equipped. You’re more than able. It says that Read More→
Nail It To The Cross
Posted by: | CommentsAre you holding on to past hurts and pains? Maybe you’re bound by the cares of life. Like hoarders, many people tend to collect excessive amounts baggage that needs to be thrown out. Overtime, we tend to allow these pressures to cause unneeded stress and burdens.
But know today that it’s not the will of God for you to go around bound by your troubles. It’s not His will for you to carry the burden of past heartaches or failures.
Apostle Paul says in Galatians 2:20 that we’ve been crucified with Christ. In other words, when Christ was nailed to the cross, He bore all your burdens and sins. Anything that’s holding you back whether it be fear, past hurts, failures, addictions, unforgiveness, complacency, make a decision to nail that to the cross.
I Peter 5:7 says to cast all your cares on the Lord for He cares for you. Notice the scripture didn’t say some cares. He’s not selective. He doesn’t want to only take the small tasks. He didn’t say send the easy problems my way. No, the scripture says all cares.
We serve a big God who can handle big problems. That friend that may have let you down, God wants you to forgive them and nail that to the cross. That past failure that has been eating at you, God wants you to leave that burden with Him on the cross.
This past Sunday I was at church. And when they let out for service, they gave everyone an opportunity to go up and write down on Read More→
The Still Small Voice
Posted by: | CommentsGod can speak to us in many ways. For some, He speaks through other people or prophets, such as He did in the old testament. Others look for signs and wonders. And for some, He simply speaks through the written Word of God.
But if you allow Him to, He’ll speak directly to your heart. You have access to a direct revelation from the Lord. He spoke to prophet Elijah as a still small voice, other translations described Him as a whisper.
He didn’t speak as a mighty wind. He didn’t speak through the fire. He didn’t speak as a roaring thunderous voice ringing from the heavens, neither did He speak through the storms. No, He spoke as a still small voice.
The good news, my friend, is that when Jesus came on the scene the old was passed away. In the old testament, the people had to seek a prophet in order to hear from the Lord. But you and I no longer have to go seek a prophet to hear from the Lord. No, we have direct access to hear from Him.
If you allow Him to, He’ll speak to you as that same still small voice that Elijah witnessed. But too often, we’re cluttering our minds. The the radio is blasting. The television comes on for entertainment as soon as we enter the house. Other times, we’ve got people speaking to us and deterring our focus. And It’s not that God isn’t speaking to us, it’s just that we can’t hear Him because other things have our attention.
You would think He would speak as a thunder ringing out of the heavens Read More→
Wait On The Lord
Posted by: | CommentsWhen faced with setbacks in life, we tend to look all around us, and it can seem as though God is nowhere to be found. And in the interim, sometimes we fall into the negative mindset.
You might look to the left of you and find obstacles there. You might look to the right of you, and see disappointment. You may look behind you, and find failure or regret. And if you look ahead, you may see a dead-end future.
But be encouraged today, the Lord God sees your troubles. He hears your cry for help. He’s not ignoring you, He hears the prayers of the righteous!
When it seems like God is not moving at the pace we want Him to move, we find ourselves taking matters in our own hands. We find ourselves calculating and mapping out a plan of actions when often times God wants us to wait.
On the contrary, when we do wait patiently on the Lord we find ourselves growing weak and faint. While waiting, we discover that our strength is put to the test. But God sees you and He’s waiting on that right time to deliver you into the next dimension of life.
The scripture encourages us in Isaiah 40:31 that those who wait on the Lord will renew there strength. They will mount up on wings as eagles. They will run and not get weary. They will walk and not faint.
And I heard an interesting fact about eagles. Eagles sit on the edge of the Read More→
Whose Counsel are You Seeking?
Posted by: | CommentsThere are times when we come to a fork in the road. When this happens we find ourselves seeking direction.
The problem comes into play when we seek the wrong people for directions. If were not careful, we’ll find ourselves even further from the destination than when we began.
Too often, this happens in life. You come to a fork in the road where you have the choice to either go left or right. Many of us ask our friends, we ask the neighbor, we may even go as far as to seek a counselor.
While it’s good to be open to their ideas and opinions, we should not forget who the ultimate counselor is. If you follow the wrong counsel, nine times out of ten you will find yourself deeper in trouble.
Make no mistake, God appoints people in the earthly realm to give you direction. But they are not to substitute the Lord’s counsel. Their advice should line up with the plan God has for you.
In fact, Proverbs 3:5-6 bids you to trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. But in all of your ways, acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.
Notice the scripture didn’t say to seek man only and man will direct your path. It didn’t say to rely only on the psychiatrist or the physician. No it says to seek the Lord and He will direct your path.
Isn’t it amazing that we serve a God who orders our steps? Remember, He has the road-map. He’s is the ultimate Guide. And without Him we’re lost. Even Read More→
Where Is Your Treasure?
Posted by: | CommentsOne of the greatest downfalls that we have is putting our treasures in the things of this world. Yes, it’s human nature to delight in things of this world but when you passionately place your desires in the things of this world that displeases the Lord.
The scripture says that wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Too often many people go about it the wrong way. They put their treasure in that sports car or that mansion or they put their hopes in being popular with the “in crowd”. But God wants you to seek Him with all your heart and in turn He will provide you everything you need. The scripture says to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you!
Don’t put your treasure in the approval of man. No, remember God is the ultimate approver! He is forever uplifting!
He is the greatest treasure you can have. He’s constantly assuring you in His word that you have the favor of the Lord. He says you are above and not beneath. He says that you’re more than a conqueror. He assures you that all things work together for the good of those that love the Lord. My friend, I don’t know any greater treasure than that.
Now here’s the key: It’s not wrong to desire things of the world, It’s human nature. But the key is not to idolize the things of this world. Don’t over-indulge in trying to gain Read More→
The Prayer of God’s Ultimate Will
Posted by: | CommentsOne of the hardest things to do in life is to pray the prayer of God’s ultimate will for your life. Often times, we pray for specific things in life and forget that God has a plan laid out for us.
And when we don’t see answers to those prayers, we get tempted to get discouraged and lose faith.
The thing to remember is that your steps are ordered by the Lord. The scriptures say He knew everything you would ever be or accomplish before you we’re even born.
I believe the reason God doesn’t answer some of your prayers is because He already knows that there is something greater in store for you! However, the reason He doesn’t perform the blessing right away is because He’s waiting until we’re ready to receive that blessing. But that’s another article.
In Matthew 6:10 Jesus’ gave us a sample prayer to pray. In that prayer, He says, “let Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. “
Therefore a great prayer to pray when asking God for something would be, “Lord, if it be in your will I would like to have it but if it’s not in your will, please give me the ability to accept and realize that you’ve got something greater in store!”
We should make the declaration, “Lord, no longer my will but let your will be done in my life.” I believe it takes a great deal of faith for us to relinquish the keys to our everyday life and let God be the captain of the ship.
I always say, “if it’s not in the will of God, I don’t want it.” This is a powerful statement and Read More→
There’s Power In The Tongue!
Posted by: | CommentsDeath and life [are] in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. – Proverbs 18:21
In the beginning, God spoke everything into existence. In Genesis 1, He said, “let there be light,” and there was light. In Mark chapter 4, He rebuked the winds and spoke to the sea “Peace be still,” and the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
All throughout the scriptures, He’s constantly affirming positive words as to who we are. You are more than a conqueror. You are the head and not the tail. You are above and not beneath. Even, Paul said in Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”
You may wonder, what do all these passages have in common? They are all instances when God is speaking something into existence. Paul is affirming that regardless of his situation he has learned to be content. He speaks in confidence that he(you) can do all things through Christ which strengthens him(you).
But isn’t it a good thing that we serve a God who speaks good things over our life? Even since the beginning, every creation that God ever made was created through speaking it into existence. After He created light, He created space and water. He did all this through verbally speaking. We know through all this that there is power in the tongue.
You see, the good news is that God has given you the authority to speak good into your life. But the fact of the matter is, whatever you speak over you is what’s going to come into existence. If you go around saying that you’ll never Read More→
Take Out Some Time
Posted by: | CommentsI heard a story about a busy working man. His son walks into the room and asks, “Daddy, how much do you make per hour at work?” The father responds, “Twenty-Five dollars an hour, son.” So the son walks away.
It so happens that the kid gets five dollars allowance once a week. After five weeks, the son walks in his father’s room and lays twenty-five dollars on the dresser and says, “Okay father, give me one hour of your time.”
This story goes to prove that people around us need love and attention. Especially those who are near and dear to us. But do you realize the importance of an intimate relationship with Christ?
Isn’t it good to know, that even though we neglect spending time with God, He’s always there for us. He never changes or wavers. He’s loving enough to simply wake us up each morning. He grants us brand new mercies regardless of the fact that we ignore Him day in and day out.
Just like the kid in the story above, God wants us to spend time with Him. It can be in the form of a morning prayer before you head out the door. You can simply read and study the Word of God- Or you might even take time out to Read More→
What Are You Feeding Yourself?
Posted by: | CommentsWe live in a world today where we consume so many things. With technology, we’re given so much at the grip of our hands. We go home at the end of the day and there is so much to entertain us that our minds aren’t stimulated.
As soon as we get home, there’s the television to occupy our attention. For some, the internet has become the main focus of time.
With so much to consume our time, we have to ask ourselves is all this feeding us for the good or for the bad? I understand that everything we do should be done in moderation. But you have to realize that what goes in is going to come out.
What you choose to focus your time and attention on, is what you will reap more out of life. If you focus your thoughts on thoughts of negativity, thoughts of insecurity, or thoughts that cause worry and anxiety, then you’ll walk around depressed and fearful.
But the good news is that we have a choice on what we focus our time and attention on. For instance, if you study the Word of God daily and have an active prayer life, then that opens up the door for God to bring more increase into your life.
I love how Isaiah 55:8-9 says, ‘” My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”‘
Therefore, if you’re looking for increase, make a choice to study the Word of the Lord. The Read More→
