"Let Not Your Hearts Be Troubled"

From: Boyd Bailey Ministries

John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

Peace of mind begins with peace with God. Inner peace is only sustainable when the created has made peace with its Creator. This peace with Providence comes in surrender to the Lord. It is not a negotiation, compromise, or deal with Divinity. Tranquility comes from trust, a complete capitulation to Christ. Peace with God brings the peace of God.

Peace of mind is a gift Jesus gives to all who will receive. He bequeathed His bountiful blessing of peace before He departed back to His heavenly home. When we have Jesus, we have all we need for genuine fulfillment. Peace accompanies His purposes.

It is this bond of peace that enables believers to come together with courage and conviction to accomplish Christ’s plan. The enemy shrinks back when followers of Jesus forgo fighting each other and unify in prayer, love, spiritual warfare, the proclamation of the gospel, and making disciples. Peace of mind propels us forward by faith to serve Him.

Just Chat With The Lord

From: Ambassadors For Christ International - John North

Ephesians 5:15-17 "Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the most of your time... So then do not be foolish, but understand what is the will of the Lord."

Make the most of your time. As you work to develop prayer habits, learn to turn your heart to God in those little moments of downtime. When you are waiting at the lights, or standing in a queue, or vacuuming, or mowing the grass. Turning to prayer at these times is not an obligation; it is an opportunity! 

It isn’t some big activity you are adding to your schedule; rather, it is using what is already in your schedule to deepen your walk with God and to lift others up in prayer. It only takes a moment to put a situation or need before the Lord and ask for His work in that circumstance or in that person’s life.

And it is cool also to just chat with the Lord about life and about your relationship with Him. This kind of open, frequent communication is what makes a relationship extra meaningful and deep, that puts it at the center of your life. Today God is inviting you to speak with Him often during your day.

Your Will be Done

From: New Life Daily Devotional - Steve Arterburn

Isaiah 55:8 "'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' says the Lord." 

People today are striving for personal improvement, self-empowerment, and inner strength. Yet, Christianity has a completely opposite way of thinking; it’s full of paradoxes. We die to live; we lose to find; and we surrender to gain strength.

When we stop trying to control the outcome of every situation and stop demanding that God resolve our problems according to our dictates, we unlock the door for God to show us His redemptive purpose.

Praying, "Your will be done" gets us out of God’s way and removes our ideas as to how things are supposed to work out in our lives, and allows God's ideas to take control. Spiritual growth results from trusting Jesus. A life of faith will enable you to trust God increasingly without knowing what’s around the corner.

Spiritual Warfare

From: Daily Disciples Devotionals

Ephesians 6:12 "For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in our midst."

We are in a spiritual battle every day for control of our thoughts. For some of us, the intensity of conflicting thoughts can torment us for hours. For others of us, we have learned such mind control that we do whatever it takes to press down those thoughts. Regardless of how we handle them, they are still there.

The only effective weapons that we can use are the ones given to us by God. The weapons of the flesh, such as mental imagery or positive thinking will not bring us the victory that God has for us. Many people use such tools and claim dramatic results, but the deceptions are dangerous. Let’s go for the real power and learn to bring our thoughts before Christ.

Two things you can incorporate into your daily routine will help you with this personal attack. First, open your Bible and read at least one verse in the morning. Use a devotional or a Psalm or Proverb, whatever works for you. Second, take what you have read and ask the Lord to put His words into your mind throughout the day. Let the Lord fight for you by letting Him have the control over your mind instead of trying to handle it yourself.

Under His Control

From: Adrian Rogers Ministries

Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth..."

God spoke the world into existence. He’s the One who keeps it going. He’s the One who is going to fold it up like a garment and tuck it away in a drawer somewhere. He regulates it; He rules it and He runs it.

When you pick up the newspaper and read something alarming, you don’t need to panic. God never says "oops!..didn't know that would happen!" 

Instead, remember Who has it under His control. He who flung the stars in space has the whole universe in His hands! First sentence in the Bible establishes that fact!

Respond To God's Initiatives

From: Ambassadors For Christ International - John North

Exodus 33:12-14 "Then Moses said to the Lord...'If I have found favor in Your sight, let me know Your ways that I may know You…And the Lord said, 'My presence shall go with you...'"

Christianity really only works right when we are responding to God’s initiatives. If our attempt is simply to live the way we think God wants, rather than a personal response to His presence in our life, we will struggle with frustration.

God is present and active in our life. But we must stop and pay attention and learn to recognize His presence and activity. God is speaking to us through His Word. But we need to change the way we read, so that we are not just reading content, but listening for the Holy Spirit’s voice coming to us personally through the Scriptures.

Ask God to meet with you in prayer right now. Ask Him to begin to help you be more aware of His presence and His initiative in your life. Make your whole life a response to God. Like Moses, say to God: "let me…know You."

Plan For Success

From: Joe Gibbs Ministries

Proverbs 16:3 "Entrust your works to the Lord and your plans will succeed."

There are many hundreds of methods out there for maximizing your potential in life, in business, in all kinds of areas. Some are sound, some are not, some are absolutely wonderful. But even the best can't help but be incomplete in spots. And none of us are able to follow them perfectly, even then.

So while we are wise to gather information and set our goals, to make our plans and chart our progress, we will meet days when not everything comes together. We will encounter challenges that weren't covered in the literature. We will feel the need to make adjustments and wonder why we hadn't noticed this sooner.

But that's okay—because our trust is not in methods and strategies. Any success plan that isn't submitted to God is destined for failure. Any person who thinks they can make it on their own hunches will find out otherwise, the hard way. But when we trust God to do His work in us, He can take even our missteps and turn them into positive gain. He will fulfill His purpose for you.

Changed Forever

From: Ambassadors For Christ International - John North

Isaiah 6:1 "In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple."

Isaiah was in the temple, where he probably often spent time. We don’t know why he was there or what he expected. But we know that God broke in on Isaiah’s awareness and allowed him to see God in the fullness of His glory. That encounter changed Isaiah forever. He would never be the same.

There’s so much that God wants to do in your life through His word, the Bible; He wants to transform you by the renewing of your mind. He also wants to empower you through the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. But in addition, there’s an aspect of the transformation He desires for you that doesn’t come by a renewed mind, or by greater dependence on the Holy Spirit, but only through a personal spiritual encounter with God Himself.

God may not give you the same kind of vivid experience that Isaiah had, but He will meet with you through His word and through prayer, maybe as you worship in church, or maybe even in a totally unexpected place. But I encourage you to begin asking God to reveal Himself to you personally.

Open The Door

From: Rick Warren Ministries

Revelation 3:20  "Here I stand knocking at the door; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into their house and eat with them, and they will eat with Me."

God gave you a heart, and he has placed in you passions, desires, and dreams. But unless they are under his control, they will be misused, they will be abused, they will be misapplied, they will be misdirected, and they will be wasted in your life.

God is a passionate God. The only reason you have emotions is because you’re made in His image. God has loved you with an everlasting love. No matter what you’ve done, He will always love you. That’s passion! When you spend time with God on a daily basis and you get plugged in, you can’t help but be passionate. You start to develop God’s heart for the world. You start to feel the way He does. Who you hang out with really does make a difference.

Jesus says, "Here I stand knocking at the door; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into their house and eat with them, and they will eat with Me." Jesus Christ has been standing at the door of your life knocking for a long time. But He’s not going to bust the door down. You’ve got to open it up.

Ongoing Education

From: Boyd Bailey Ministries

Psalm 25:5 "Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long." 

The way of the Lord is an ongoing education in eternal matters. It is a lifetime of study and learning from the Holy Spirit. A believer graduates from God’s spiritual school only after he graduates to heaven. Even the most fully developed disciple has the next stage of maturity to aspire to. 

Many lessons learned from the Lord are progressive and contingent on each other. The course of study Christ teaches His child this semester builds on what they learned last semester.

The core curriculum for a Christian is to rely on the faithfulness of God. The amount of time it takes for us to trust God with a troubled situation is an indicator of our growth in grace. The quicker we learn to thank God, forgive and rely on His faithfulness, the quicker we enjoy the grace and peace of our Heavenly Father. Our trust in the character of God builds His character into our life.

Assignment From Heaven

From: Boyd Bailey Ministries

Jeremiah 29:11 "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a future full of hope.'" 
 
God’s plan is what is best. It is a good plan. It may not seem like a good plan right now, but God’s plan is good. This apparent contradiction is where it gets confusing. A messy life is not always a fun life. Currently you may be experiencing heartache and hard times. His plan does not seem good in your current circumstance, but God is still good. 

So how can God’s plan always be good? This is a fair question. To answer this question accurately and fairly, we need to consider God’s long-term plan. To walk wisely today requires a reminder of hope tomorrow. It is our future hope with God that inspires us to live for Him today. Wherever Jesus is, there hope resides. When we have Jesus, we have hope.  

Current challenges are preparation for His prosperity, His hope, and His future for you. On the other hand, you may be living large right now. Life looks good. God feels good. His plans seem to be rolling out flawlessly. Use this time to go deeper with Him, because the realities of His plan for you go much deeper than a surface, spiritual sentimentality. 

Indeed, this is not our home. We are just passing through...on assignment from heaven; so explore and enjoy His eternal exit plan. It is full of prosperity, hope, and a future. We can trust that God’s providential plan works out for the purpose of His will.