Bread of Life, JIL

” MANY WILL SAY TO ME ON THAT DAY, LORD, LORD, DID WE NOT PROPHESY IN YOUR NAME, AND IN YOUR NAME CAST OUT DEMONS, AND IN YOUR NAME PERFORM MIRACLES? AND THEN I WILL DECLARE TO THEM, I NEVER KNEW YOU; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.” MATTHEW 7: 23 & 24

Judas Iscariot powerfully reminds us of the horrific possibilities within every human heart. While he called Jesus’ “Rabbi”, there is no record that he used the term “Lord”. Sadly, he shows us that we can claim allegiance to Christ without ever truly believing in Him as our Lord and Savior. We see these people everyday who profess to know Jesus but do so only for their own gain. We know those who profess to know Jesus on Sunday but then go out and live a life quite contrary to what they say they believe. How many of us attend church regularly and give Jesus intellectual praise but we don’t give him our hearts? How many calls him King, only as a way to achieve their own thrones? Judas gave Jesus an evil kiss before they took him aways. What kind of a kiss are we giving him? PRASIE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” I TELL YOU THE TRUTH, YOU WILL ASK THE FATHER DIRECTLY AND HE WILL GRANT YOUR REQUESTS BECAUSE YOU USE MY NAME.” JOHN 16:23

The name of Jesus is very powerful. It is the name that makes the devil and his demon’s scatter. It is by the name of Jesus that you and I have become saved, forgiven and healed. It is by the name of Jesus that you and I talk with our God in heaven. Jesus is our mediator. He communicates our every word and identifies each of us to our God. Jesus has been given all authority and is our strength, wisdom and understanding. We must involve Jesus in all of our decision making and all of our communication to our God in heaven. Without Jesus we are lost. We are not heard. We won’t, don’t and will be unable to understand. We will not be healed, forgiven or saved. The name of Jesus is all powerful. He should be the center of our focus and the identifier in our lifestyle. When people see us, they should see Jesus. When people see how we live our lives with truth, honesty, trust, love and faith they will be seeing Jesus. Stay close to his word. Stay close to him each day. He should be our life 24/7. When he is, we see results that reflect joy, peace and understanding. We are better able to cope with our lives here on earth because of our trust in him and the hope he brings to each of us. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” HERE ON EARTH, YOU WILL HAVE MANY TRIALS AND SORROWS. BUT TAKE HEART, BECAUSE I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD.” JOHN 16:33

When we became saved, our God did not promise us a life without trials and temptations. He did not promise us a life on this earth that would be free of sorrows or sickness. What he did promise us was peace, understanding and wisdom at our request. When Jesus came to this earth, he overcome the world. He defeated death, sickness, disease, temptations and trials of all kinds. All of the attacks of the devil have already been defeated and cannot conquer us, unless we allow them to. If we don’t live our lives in Christ, then we are just inviting these trials and temptations to live in our lives and overcome us. We cannot be overcomers without Jesus. But with him, we can live a life of victory and joy because of what he did for us. Until we transfer to the next life we will continue to be attacked by the devil and his demons. The devil has been defeated and he knows it, however, he wants to take as many with him to hell as he can. He wants to deter us from our Jesus and what our Lord wants for us. Let us not make Christ’s sacrifice for our life useless, but instead let us come to him, pray to him, believe in him and live lives that are powerful because of what he has accomplished for us. He loves us without conditions, and we should love him, believe him and trust him! We are overcomers through Christ who gives us strength! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” THOSE FALSE TEACHERS ARE SO EAGER TO WIN YOUR FAVOR, BUT THEIR INTENTIONS ARE NOT GOOD. THEY ARE TRYING TO SHUT YOU OFF FROM ME SO THAT YOU WILL PAY ATTENTION TO THEM.” GALATIANS 4:17

Just as Paul was concerned that the Galatians were no longer focusing on what the Lord Jesus had done for them, so you and I should also be concerned that there are those in this world who are trying to take our focus from our Lord Jesus and turn it to what this world believes. It is so important that we keep our faith strong in these last days. The world around us is producing great evil and disguising it as truth, making it easy to follow. We should stay close to our Lord in prayer and meditate in his word, in an effort to see what really is going on. We should test everything we hear against the Word of God. If it doesn’t match up, then we should do away with it. Through the Holy Spirit, God has given us the ability to overcome this world. He has given us the tools we need in order to survive. If we just ask and believe we receive then he will give us understanding, wisdom and knowledge. He will give us strength and protection in our earthly journey. The Lord is with us and always goes before us. No matter what we are going through we must understand that we are not alone. The Lord is right there with us! We should take the right road and not the wrong road. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” YES, I AM THE VINE, YOU ARE THE BRANCHES. THOSE WHO REMAIN IN ME, AND I IN THEM WILL PRODUCE MUCH FRUIT. FOR APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING. JOHN 15:5

Jesus is the vine of life. Anything attached to him will live and grow, be happy and be strong. Anything that falls away from the vine of life will die. A branch that falls from the tree is a dead branch. It cannot live because it has become detached from its source of life. It receives no water nor nutrients from the vine. The same with our Lord Jesus. We have been given a choice. We have the choice of life with the Lord or the choice of death with the world. We can stay attached to the vine of life and be a good steward of what he has given us and continue to live our lives in line with his word, or we can fall from the vine and live our lives as the world dictates. Our Lord is very clear in what he tells us. He wants us to be a part of his family. In doing so we will continue to build faith and trust in him. We will depend upon him for how we are to lead and live our lives. We will continue to read and meditate upon his word and learn from him. We will continue to pray to him his promises and believe that we receive them. We will dedicate everything we do to him and when we do, he will bless us, he will bless our businesses, our families and our lives as a whole. He is our source. There is no other. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” IT IS NO LONGER I WHO LIVE, BUT CHRIST LIVES IN ME. SO I LIVE IN THE EARTHLY BODY BY TRUSTING IN THE SON OF GOD, WHO LOVED ME AND GAVE HIMSELF FOR ME. I DO NOT TREAT THE GRACE OF GOD AS MEANINGLESS.” GALATIANS 2:20-21

We are literally living in Jesus as he lives in us. As we read his word and meditate on it, we begin to live our lives as Christ intended. Our eyes are opened to his conditions and how he lived his life when he was walking this earth. When he left this earth, he sent to us the precious Holy Spirit of God to direct us and to guide us. When Jesus died and went to set at the right hand of God, he did not leave us defenseless. He sent us the advocate to help us and protect us. He gave us the ability to pray to God in heaven through the powerful name of Jesus Christ. He left us with great power to live our lives with great joy and strength. The problem is that many people do not believe. Many read his Holy Word but never put it into practice in their own lives. We must have great faith. We must never doubt His ability to strengthen us and protect us. No matter our circumstances we should continue to believe and confess his promises. When we do, he honors them and is with us always. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” FOR THE SCRIPTURES SAY, IT IS THROUGH FAITH THAT A RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS LIFE.” GALATIANS 3:11

Our Jesus died upon the cross in order for each of us to have life. He died that our sins would be forgiven. He died that our bodies would be healed. And he died so that we could be saved. However, it is our faith that leads us to our Lord. It is our faith that allows us to accept Jesus and what he did for us. Without faith we will believe nothing Jesus did for us. Without faith we have doubt, worry and fear. Without faith we live a life of distress. Our faith is vital to our lives in Jesus. A strong faith not only allows us our salvation, healings and forgiveness of sins but also allows us to step deeper into his mighty promises for our lives. Our faith allows us the resources and tools he provides us to live lives of joy and not sadness and fear. It allows us to live a life with a bright future including everlasting life with him. Our faith must be strong. We must continue to build upon it. Let us not allow the devil to steal any portion of our faith. Stay strong and believe you receive because our God in heaven is our source. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” WHEN PEOPLE DO NOT ACCEPT DIVINE GUIDANCE, THEY RUN WILD. BUT WHOEVER OBEYS THE LAW IS JOYFUL.” PROVERBS 29:18

I believe we are seeing, in today’s world, just what happens when there is no law and order. We see people running wild with ideas that hurt themselves and others. It is so important that we do not allow this type of living to become our way of life. As Christians we should be joyful and live lives of faith and trust in our God. Our God is a God of order and not disorder. He is not a God of confusion, lying, cheating, deception and fear. Our lives should reflect him in a world of disarray. We are children of the living God in heaven, and we must reflect his standards in our lives. Stay close to him in prayer. Never allow the devil to deceive you. Always be alert in Jesus! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” VICTORY COMES FROM YOU, O’LORD. MAY YOU BLESS YOUR PEOPLE.” PSALM 3:8

Our victory comes from our Lord. We should never run from a fight with the devil. We should always stand tall in the face of the adversary and fight with the tools our Lord God has given us. Our faith must continue to stay strong, and our actions must stay honorable. Our fight has already been won but our actions should confirm our belief that our Lord is the victor. Because of his victory the devil cannot defeat us. Let us celebrate our victory with praise and thanksgiving to our Lord God in heaven. Let us never take our eyes off of the end result. The battle has been won! Thankyou Jesus!!! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS! WE ARE THE VICTOR IN THE NAME OF JESUS!

” THIS IS MY COMMAND- BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS! DO NOT BE AFRAID OR DISCOURAGED. FOR THE LORD YOUR GOD IS WITH YOU WHEREVER YOU GO.” JOSHUA 1:9

Fear and discouragement will ruin what the Lord your God has for you. If you are fearful to take a step of faith, then you will miss out on great rewards from your Lord. If you become discouraged with your life and are unable to find your way through Jesus, you again will miss out on great rewards from the Lord. As we live in this world the Lord is by our side step for step. The devil knows this and works hard at throwing fear and discouragement our way. It is easier to become entangled in the ways of the world than it is to recognize the attacks of the devil. The devil wants us to be poor and in submission to him. He will never give up. We can never give up either. We must stay close to our Lord with prayer, meditation in his word and putting his promises into action for our lives. Every time we take a step of faith in trusting the Lord, we put another dagger in the heart of the devil. We stop him in his tracks. We cannot allow him to control our lives. He is of this world, but we are just visiting this world. We are not here to be controlled by the devil but instead we are here to control the devil. We cannot do this if we do not surround ourselves with the ways of our God in heaven. Remember, we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” COMMIT EVERYTHING YOU DO TO THE LORD. TRUST HIM, AND HE WILL HELP YOU.” PSALM 37:5

Everything we do in life is done for a reason. We do it for ourselves, our colleagues, our boss, our family and many other reasons. Scripture tells us that we should commit everything we do to the Lord. And when we do, we are to trust him to hear us and to help us. We all want to do the right things in life. When our lives are committed to living a life for our Lord then we need to depend upon him for the smallest of things. We should always be thinking of our Lord first. When we think of him first and trust him to help us then things will turn out for good and not bad. We all go through trials of many kinds but with the Lord in control we always get through. Remember, we can do ALL THINGS through Christ who strengthens us. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” ANYONE WHO BELIEVES AND IS BAPTIZED WILL BE SAVED. BUT ANYONE WHO REFUSES TO BELIEVE WILL BE CONDEMNED. THESE MIRACULOUS SIGNS WILL ACCOMPANY THOSE WHO BELIEVE. THEY WILL CAST OUT DEMONS IN MY NAME AND WILL SPEAK IN NEW LANGUAGES.” MARK 16: 16 AND 17

Our Lord is coming back soon. Are you ready? Are you living a life that is surrounded by the ways of the Lord or are you leading a life of fear, anger, doubt and worry? Our Lord does not want us to be leading lives on this earth that are going to harm us or those around us. He wants to help us and make our lives better. We can speak the word of praise to our God but are we living a life of honor and truly glorifying him or are we living a life that represents evil? We live what we speak. We need to think positively and live our lives as such. This is not easy. The devil will attack us from every direction with doubt, with fear and with worry. But through all of this WE MUST BELIEVE. We must speak his promises for our lives and live in those promises! If we do this, there is no fear! Speak life and not death! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS- SPEAK LIFE AND NOT DEATH!

“HOW GREAT IS OUR LORD! HIS POWER IS ABSOLUTE! HIS UNDERSTANDING IS BEYOND COMPREHSION! PSALM 147:5

“MY GRACE IS ALL YOU NEED. MY POWER WORKS BEST IN WEAKNESS.” 2 CORINTHIANS 12:9

When we believe with faith that our God’s power is absolute and that his understanding is way beyond what we can comprehend, then our trust in him will become real and his work will begin. We must yield to him and let him work in our lives. When we doubt, worry or let fear take us over is when the devil begins to win the battle. We must be able to trust God in all situations, but it is when we are weak that we are most vulnerable. When we are weak is when we sometimes feel we must find a way out of our troubles, sicknesses and diseases. That is when we try to find ways and do things on our own. It is when we reach the end of the rope that we better understand that all things are in God’s hands and that he is in total control. It is then that we yield to him and trust him and depend upon his strength, knowledge and wisdom. We must remember that his grace is all we need. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

“WE ARE HUMAN, BUT WE DON’T WAGE WAR AS HUMANS DO. WE USE GOD’S MIGHTY WEAPONS, NOT WORLDLY WEAPONS TO KNOCK DOWN THE STRONGHOLDS OF HUMAN REASONING AND TO DESTROY FALSE ARGUMENTS.” 2 CORINTHIANS 10: 3-4

Sometimes as we plug through our daily lives, we feel helpless. We feel like there is no end in sight. The devil just keeps throwing rocks at us and when they hit us, they hurt. There just seems to be no end to our troubles. We get ourselves over one hurdle and another quickly shows up. I have learned throughout the years that if the devil is attacking hard there is always something great at stake. It is difficult as humans to continue to move through difficult times. However, we have an answer. His name is Jesus. He is always with us. He tells us that he goes before us. All we have to do is believe and receive. Sometimes we just need to grasp onto Him and never let go. We can’t get through troubles on our own. We are in a spiritual warfare, and we cannot win with human efforts alone. We need to use God’s mighty weapons to knock down the evil coming against us. We need to be obedient to what the Holy Spirit tells us. We need strong faith and a positive attitude. We can rest assured that our God in heaven never, ever fails us! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” THE SPIRIT ALONE GIVES ETERNAL LIFE. HUMAN EFFORT ACCOMPLISHES NOTHING.” JOHN 6: 63

It is when we depend upon ourselves and others that things run wild and turn out for the worst. It is when we depend upon the Lord our God that things turn out for his good for our lives. It is when we diligently pray to our God in heaven and completely trust in his answers that our lives turn out for the best. He loves us and will never put us in a situation that we cannot withstand. However, we always need his help. We always need him closely by our side. We must always believe and receive from our God in heaven and never doubt or fear the things of this world. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” FOR THE KIND OF SORROW GOD WANTS US TO EXPERIENCE LEADS US AWAY FROM SIN AND RESULTS IN SALVATION.” 2 CORINTHIANS 7:10

We all have felt sadness in our lives. However, the sadness that the Lord wants us to experience will result in salvation and joy. When we are going through any kind of sorrow, we must be able to look past what is directly in front of us and see the joys ahead. We need to look through the trials and see the opportunities. If we are able to get past the emotions and look into the reality of God, we will be able to see and experience the joys he has for us. He uses his sorrows to create opportunities for us to testify to others and win souls to Christ by talking about his love and goodness. We should not be so overcome by our trials that we miss the opportunities he has created for us. We must stay focused on him. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

“WHY WAS THIS MAN BORN BLIND? WAS IT BECAUSE OF HIS OWN SINS OR HIS PARENTS SINS? IT WAS NOT BECAUSE OF HIS SINS OR HIS PARENTS SINS, JESUS ANSWERD. THIS HAPPENED SO THE POWER OF GOD COULD BE SEEN IN HIM. WE MUST QUICKLY CARRY OUT THE TASKS ASSIGNED TO US BY THE ONE WHO SENT US." JOHN 9:3-4

Who are we? We are the children of the living God. Just as this blind man had been born with this disadvantage you and I have our own crosses to carry. Sometimes we concentrate on the weight of the cross forgetting our missions. We should focus on our Lord and not the problem at hand. It is how we handle our disadvantages and problems that count. Are we thinking only of ourselves? Are we feeling sorry for ourselves? Or are we looking to our Lord God for the answers, thanking him for the life he has given us and working to be the best testimony we can be. We are all different and all have our own problems. However, we all have the same God who can help us through. We don’t know our final chapters, but our God does. We must trust him and believe in him for the answers and results. We must be patient before the Lord and wait for him. He is on a completely different time schedule than you and me. TRUST, BELIEVE AND RECEIVE! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” FOR THE MORE WE SUFFER FOR CHRIST THE MORE GOD WILL SHOWER US WITH HIS COMFORT THROUGH CHRIST.” 2 CORINTHIANS 1:5

As we surround ourselves with the ways of our Lord, we increasingly desire to live our lives in his ways. Living a life for Jesus is not the most popular thing you can do. There will be persecution from the devil whether we like it or not. There will those who walk away from us or not associate with us at all because of our beliefs. Because of the way we believe we will be attacked in many different ways. There will be sickness, accidents, family problems, diseases and many other bad things that will attack us and those we love. We must remember that it is how we respond to these things that count. If we are living our life for Christ, we must be able to put all of these things in perspective. We must remember that we are being attacked because of him. He was attacked and treated poorly while walking this earth and we, his followers, will be attached as well. However, we are comforted by God’s promises. He tells us that the more we suffer for him the more he will comfort us. We must believe, we must trust, and we must have strengthened faith. If we do, then we will be able to live through the suffering because of God’s comfort given to us through Christ. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” STOP BEING ANGRY! TURN FROM YOUR RAGE! DO NOT LOSE YOUR TEMPER- IT ONLY LEADS TO HARM.” PSALM 37:8

As a human being it is easy to become angry. When we become angry it is also easy to hold a grudge or become very difficult to forgive and then forget. But the Lord tells us that anger and rage can do nothing but hurt us. We will say things that hurt others and say words that cannot be taken back. It isn’t easy to hold back how we feel. However, when we feel the anger coming on if we just begin to turn our focus on Jesus our anger will begin to subside. We will begin to remember that we are to be servants and not always to be the one who is served. To accomplish this alone is more than difficult. We need help. Our Lord tells us that he is with us always. He goes before us and clears the way. We can do all things with Christ by our side, but we can do nothing without him. Focus on him and pray to him always and he will clear the trail before us. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” OUR HEARTS ACHE BUT WE ALWAYS HAVE JOY. WE ARE POOR BUT WE GIVE SPIRITUAL RICHES TO OTHERS. WE OWN NOTHING, AND YET WE HAVE EVERYTHING.” 2 CORINTHIANS 6:10

We possess it all. Even though we may experience turmoil in this life we are able to have joy, peace and understanding. We are able to give that joy, peace and understanding to others. We are able to reach out and hand spiritual riches to those who are so desperately in need. With faith in our Lord, we are able to stand on his promises with the assurance that he never fails us. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” THE LORD IS CLOSE TO ALL WHO CALL ON HIM, YES TO ALL WHO CALL ON HIM IN TRUTH.” PSALM 145:18

When Jesus was taken up to sit at the right hand of God, our Lord sent the Holy Spirit to live within us. Our bodies are the temple of God. We should recognize that our Lord is always close to us. He lives in us. It is important that we clean his house daily. When we do, we are able to call on him in truth and able to believe and receive from him. Pray to him, ask for forgiveness and walk a life of truthfulness! Our Lord is close to all who call on him in truth! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

“FOR WE LIVE BY BELIEVING AND NOT BY SEEING.” 2 CORINTHIANS 5:7

” THOUGH OUR BODIES ARE DYING, OUR SPIRITS ARE BEING RENEWED EACH DAY.” 2 CORINTHIANS 4:16

The spirit world is real. It is not fictional. Our God in heaven is a spirit. You and I are spirits who live within human bodies. As we get older our earthly bodies begin to deteriorate. The Lord tells us that even though our human temporary bodies are deteriorating our spirits are being renewed each day. Our spirits will continue to be renewed and go on and on and we will eventually leave this earthly tent and receive a new body. We must live our lives by believing and trusting God. Our faith must be strengthened and will be strengthened by living in the spirit and not in the world. We must be strong and not afraid to live our lives as God wants us to. If you have not accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, the time has come. Accept him, believe him and trust him. The time is now and not later. Jesus is returning soon. When he does it will be too late. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” ‘THEY REPLIED, ‘ WE WANT TO PERFORM GOOD WORK, TOO, WHAT SHALL WE DO?’ JESUS TOLD THEM, ‘ THIS IS THE ONLY WORK GOD WANTS FROM YOU. BELIEVE IN THE ONE HE SENT.’ JOHN 6:28-29

If we believe in Jesus, we will have the desire to talk about him and live as he wants us to. When we talk and live in his ways others will take notice. Let us all be doers of his Word! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” NOW FEAR THE LORD AND SERVE HIM WITH ALL FAITHFULNESS.” JOSHUA 24:14

Our God in heaven has blessed each and everyone of us by giving us the opportunity to live a life upon this beautiful earth of which he created. It is an honor to have been given a life on this earth. It is an honor to be a child of God and to serve him and to represent him. It is an honor to be blessed with the many miracles he performs each day. It is an honor to be the recipient of his love, understanding, wisdom, knowledge and truthfulness. It is an honor to have the opportunity to receive his salvation and the opportunity for eternal life. Our God did not have to send his one and only son to die for us. He could have just washed his hands of all mankind and left us to rot in our own evil desires. But he didn’t. Why? The reason is simple for God. He loves us! There is not a single person that our God does not love. There are people upon this earth who do not love him. They deny him and smear his name. Yet he continues to love them and give opportunities for salvation. Our Lord is returning soon. When he does return it will be too late for those who have rejected him. The time is now! We are to love him and serve him with all faithfulness. The window of opportunity is quickly closing. Jesus is returning soon. Are you ready? PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” BE ON GUARD. STAND FIRM IN THE FAITH. BE COURAGEOUS. BE STRONG. AND DO EVERYTHING WITH LOVE.” 1 CORINTHIANS 16: 13-14

Following our Lord is a constant struggle. Some think that when they accept Christ as their Lord and Savior everything will come up roses from that point on. Oh, how mistaken they are. When you become a true follower of Jesus the devil fights you even harder than before. In fact, in my experience, the harder he fights me the more I know that something good is about to happen. The Lord has given us instructions as we walk through each day. We are to be on guard. Never let down. Always be prepared for action. We are to stand firm in our faith. We should never waver. We should know the promises of God and stand upon them. Our faith should be constantly growing stronger, and it can only grow stronger when we allow it to. We must study and meditate upon his Holy Word and put his promises into action. We must stay strong and do everything with love. We must put our anger behind us. We must love others and deliver the message of Jesus in love and not in fear or doubt. Our Jesus loves us and gives us every opportunity to live our lives in him and with him. Always be prepared! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” GOD IS OUR MERCIFUL FATHER AND THE SOURCE OF ALL COMFORT. HE COMFORTS US IN ALL OUR TROUBLES SO THAT WE CAN COMFORT OTHERS.” 2 CORINTHIANS 1: 3 & 4

Our God in heaven has a plan for each of us. We all are allowed to go through different struggles in our lives. As we confront any troubled times we must continue to trust in our Lord. The definition of TRUST is to have a “firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something.” Just how do we believe and trust in someone we have never physically seen? We must stay in faithful prayer. We should be able to ask our Lord for his help. Remember, ask and ye shall receive! For the Lord to be able to work in our lives we must put forth an action that will allow him to do so. We must take steps of faith. It is important that we stay focused on his Word and surround ourselves with and meditate upon what he promises. Everyone on this earth is human and is unreliable in some way shape or form. We are not perfect. We can only promise and deliver on so much before we run out of abilities to do so. However, our God in our source of all comfort. He doesn’t want us sick, or afraid or worried. If we are then we are unable to focus on his plan for our lives. We are unable to focus on comforting others in their needs. We must develop a firm belief in the reliability of our Jesus, in his truth for our lives, and in his ability and strength. His promises never fail! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” WHEN I AM OVERWHELMED, YOU ALONE KNOW THE WAY I SHOULD TURN.” PSALM 142:3

We all become overwhelmed at times. We all lead busy lives and sometimes our lives become so filled with the things happening around us that we can become overwhelmed. What do we do when we become frustrated with our lives and with things happening around us? What do we do when bad things happen to us? Where do we turn? Who do we turn to? The Lord our God tells us that he alone knows the way we should turn. If that is the case, then we should always turn to Jesus first. He is the way! He has the plan and knows exactly what is best for us. He and only he has the answer. We can search over and over and, in every corner, but we will not find anything or anyone other than Jesus with the answers. He has been given all power from our God in heaven. He knows the plan set forth for each of us. We must be able to trust him and have faith that is unwavering. The more we surround ourselves with him the more trust we develop in him. We must surround ourselves with his word and not focus on the things of this world. We should not focus on our illnesses, our financial instabilities or the persecutions going on around us. But we must stay focused and listen to him and put his plan into action within our lives! He has the answers! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” BUT, THE HOLY SPIRIT GIVES BIRTH TO SPIRITUAL LIFE.” JOHN 3:6

Our triune God consists of our Father God, his Son (Jesus) and the Holy Spirit. Most of our struggles come from the spirit world and not from this world. These spiritual forces are beyond our control and most definitely beyond our ability to overcome. For the most part we don’t understand, or in some cases do not believe, that there are spiritual forces at all. However, our Lord has sent his Holy Spirit to live in us. His Spirit allows for the birth of the spirit life within us. The Holy Spirit guides us, give us strength, wisdom and understanding. The Spirit allows us direction in our lives and takes us by the hand to lead us through the spirit world around us. We must make ourselves aware of the Holy Spirit on a continuing basis. We must surround ourselves with the word of God. We must stay in communication with our God in heaven by prayer through our Lord Jesus and we must praise our Lord daily. We must, at times, slow ourselves down and listen to what the Spirit is telling us. The Lord has never and will never leave us defenseless. But we must listen to his still small voice. He has given us the Holy Spirit who gives us birth into the spiritual life. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” AS A FACE IS REFLECTED IN THE WATER, SO THE HEART REFLECTS THE REAL PERSON.” PROVERBS 27:19

AS WE LOOK IN A MIRROR, WE SEE A REFLECTION OF WHAT WE LOOK LIKE. HOWEVER, THAT REFLECTION IS NOT WHO WE TRULY ARE. PROVERBS TELLS US THAT WHO WE REALLY ARE IS REFLECTED FROM THE INSIDE AND NOT THE OUTSIDE APPEARANCE. THERE ARE MANY WALKING AROUND TODAY WITH A FALSE APPEARANCE. THEIR ACTIONS ARE WHAT TELL THEIR STORY. ARE THEY CARING? ARE THEY LOVING? OR ARE THEY ANGRY, NOT TRUTHFUL AND DISPLAY UNTRUTHFUL THINGS ABOUT OTHERS? OUR LORD WORKS IN AND THROUGH THOSE WHO ALLOW HIM TO. HE WILL NOT FORCE HIMSELF UPON THOSE WHO TRULY HAVE OTHER DESIRES. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE, AS CHILDREN OF GOD, ALLOW HIM TO WORK THROUGH US AND PRODUCE RESULTS. IT IS OUR ACTIONS THAT TELL OUR TRUE STORY. IT IS THE HEART FROM WHICH OUR REAL PERSON IS DISPLAYED. WE SHOULD ALWAYS TAKE A MOMENT TO LOOK AT THE RESULTS WE ARE PRODUCING. WHAT ARE WE SHOWING OTHERS.? ARE WE ALLOWING THE LORD TO WORK IN US AND THROUGH US? WE NEED TO SURROUND OURSELVES WITH THINGS OF THE LORD AND NOT THE WORLD. WE SHOULD KEEP OUR HEARTS FRESH WITH THE PRESENCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT WHO LIVES IN US. HE DESIRES TO USE US IN HIS PLAN. THE ONLY WAY HE WILL NOT IS IF WE DO NOT ALLOW HIM TO. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” TRUST IN HIM AND HE WILL HELP YOU.” PSALM 37:5

Truly trusting someone is sometimes very difficult. Trusting in the ways of our Lord and Savior is easy when we read about how we should trust. However, when we are to put it into practice it is not quite that easy. When we find ourselves in very difficult situations, we should have enough faith to trust in what our Lord tells us. We should be able to stand up in the face of fear and loudly speak God’s promises and quote scriptures of healing and strength for our lives. We must believe that the Lord does not want us to suffer or be frightened. He wants us to live with a peace of mind. We can only live in peace if we truly trust him. Our faith must continue to increase. We must have faith, build upon our faith and continue to strengthen our faith. When we do, trusting our Lord becomes much easier. PRAISE AND TRUST THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!