Michael J Burchett Ministries

” KEEP WATCH AND PRAY, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT GIVE INTO TEMPTATION. FOR THE SPIRIT IS WILLING BUT THE BODY IS WEAK.” MARK 14: 38

You and I have uncompleted work to do here on this earth. We each have a purpose that is unfulfilled. As we go about our lives there seem to be roadblocks at every turn. There are always pressures from the outside. There may be sickness, disease, ridicule, persecution, physical harm and many other worldly and spiritual attacks thrown our way. The way we fight against this turmoil in our lives will determine how we deal with and how we finish the plan our God has set for each of us. We are told through scripture that the Spirit is willing, but the body is weak. Therefore, we must keep watch and pray. We must never give into temptation. Our lives must be full of God’s word. Jesus must be a major player in our lives. For without the Holy Spirit guiding our every step we will accomplish very little. This is a spiritual battle, and we need the strength God has given us through his Holy Spirit here on earth. We must keep up the fight and never give up! Remember, we can do all things through Christ who gives us each the strength we need to overcome. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” AND HE BECAME DEEPLY TROUBLED AND DISTRESSED. HE TOLD THEM, ” MY SOUL IS CRUSHED WITH GRIEF TO THE POINT OF DEATH.” ” MARK 14: 33 & 34

In Mark 14: 33 & 34 Jesus was talking with some of his disciples just before he was to be turned over to be crucified. Even Jesus became distressed and troubled at times. He was on this earth and was born a human just as you and me. Jesus knew his mission. He knew what was going to happen. He also knew that God, at any time, could save him. But that was not God’s will. Instead, the plan was to save us. Every situation that you and I confront is nothing in comparison to what Jesus went through. He has already walked in our footsteps and has already gone through the hurts, persecutions, sadness and all other human feelings we go through. We should never feel bad that we feel these emotions. They are a part of the way we live. However, we should not act upon them. Instead, we should trust in our Lord Jesus to go to bat for us. He knows what it is like to hurt. He knows what it is like to be ridiculed and laughed at. He wants the best for us. We should pray and thank him each day for what he has done for us. Jesus is Lord! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” IF YOU MAKE THE LORD YOUR REFUGE, IF YOU MAKE THE MOST HIGH YOUR SHELTER, NO EVIL WILL CONQUER YOU; NO PLAGUE WILL COME NEAR HOME. FOR HE WILL ORDER HIS ANGELS TO PROTECT YOU WHEREVER YOU GO.” PSALM 91:9-11

The love and the protection of our Lord God in heaven is never ending. He is always with us. He has a plan for each of us that I believe was created before we were even born. As his children he wants us to be faithful and succeed in all that we do. No matter the trials or the temptations we face he is always there. When Jesus left this earth he sent the Comforter, the Holy Spirit to live with us. He talks to us; he directs us and protects us with his small still voice from within us. We must continuously be conscience of his voice. We must not only be able discern his voice, but we must be able to take directions and act upon them. If we go to him in times of need, if we live within his shelter then he promises that all will be well. No evil will overcome us, and no sickness will come near our home. We are continually in his favor. Our faith must allow to live in his shelter and our faith must allow us to go to him first when we have problems. Our faith must allow us to act upon his word. If we do, then our Lord God in heaven supplies us the tools for a safe, long and justified life here on earth. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” YOUR UNFAILING LOVE, O LORD IS AS VAST AS THE HEAVENS, YOUR FAITHFULNESS REACHES BEYOND THE CLOUDS.” PSALM 36:5

The love of our Lord God in heaven is interpreted in many different ways. To some it is taken for granted. To others it just isn’t possible. And yet there are some who just don’t believe. As we continue to build faith, our trust in him becomes stronger and stronger. Although we may never realize just how much our Lord loves us, we are able to understand that his love is so magnificent that it is greater than we can ever imagine. He loves us so much that everything you and I do, outside of his will for our lives, breaks his heart. We are his children, and he doesn’t want us to be hurt or to hurt others. He doesn’t want us to need for anything or to be sad or sorrowful. He has given everything for his children just as you and I do for ours. However, his love for us is so strong that he gave his son, Jesus Christ, to save us. He allowed Jesus to go through hell on earth just for you and me. WOW! What a message of love. With faith and trust in our Lord God we can do all things because he is always with us and loves us beyond the heavens above. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” EVERYONE WHO BEIEVES IN HIM IS DECLARED RIGHT WITH GOD.” ACTS 13:39

Is it possible to be right with God without belief in him? I think most of would say the answer to that question is a resounding NO! We are all sinners in this world. We all do and say things that our Lord is not happy with. However, if we have come to the point where we accept him as our Lord and Savior then we know him personally. We know that all we have to do, when we find ourselves in a sinful position, is to go to him and ask for forgiveness and our sin has been blotted out, just as if it had never happened. That gift of forgiveness is a huge part of keeping us righteous with God. Those who do not know him will fail to even think of the Lord in such circumstances. Their sins are held against them, and they will continue to act upon sin after sin. So, to believe in God is to have faith in the unseen. We must act upon that faith by stepping out and trusting our God in heaven to help us in any way he desires. We must “believe that we receive because God is our source.” PRAISE THE LORD THROUGH ALL SITUATIONS!

YES, OUR PROTECTION COMES FROM THE LORD, AND HE, THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL, HAS GIVEN US OUR KING.” PSALM 89:18

As we focus upon our Lord each day, we are reminded of his death on the cross and of the miracle of his rising on the third day. He rose and he walked with his disciples once again. And then, he went to set at the right hand of God in heaven. What a gift our God has given us. Through Christ we are strengthened, we are given hope of eternal life, we become faithful in things unseen and trustworthy of the one who gives us life. As we follow in his footsteps, our attempts please our God. When we make a mistake, he is right there to pick us up and make us right again with his forever forgiveness. We are able to walk through this world with our heads held high with the confidence that our Lord is always faithful. As our faith and our trust in Jesus grows, our confidence continues to grow, and we realize that we are forever victorious in him. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” CAST ALL OF YOUR CARES UPON JESUS AS HE CARES FOR YOU.” 1 PETER 5:7

Any struggle we have or any mountain we must climb we have the opportunity to go to God in prayer and lay it at his feet. When we do this, we must be sure that we actually leave the problem with him. We must give him the opportunity to actually work in our life. If we pick our struggle up and take it with us upon completion of our prayer, then we are not allowing the Lord to deal with our situation. If we pick it back up and take it with us, we then once again try to solve the problem ourselves. Leave your request with the Lord and begin to praise him for the answers. He does work in our lives if we do not become obstacles and stand in his way. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” DEAR CHILDREN, IT IS VERY HARD TO ENTER THE KINGDOM OF GOD. ” MARK 10:24

” Then who in the world can be saved?” THEY ASKED. JESUS LOOKED AT THEM INTENTLY AND SAID, “humanly speaking it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.” MARK 10: 26 & 27

Our Lord never promised that after receiving him as our Lord and Savior that our lives would be a bed of roses. Jesus could not have made it any clearer about the troubles his children would face in this life. However, there was a saving grace. His birth into this world, the persecution and the ridicule he endured while he was on this earth, his death on the cross and then his resurrection to be seated on the right hand of God in heaven. All of this took place so that you and I could overcome and live with strength, joy and peace in him. So that we could enter his Kingdom, spotless and clean, due to his forgiveness. With faith we are able to overcome our troubles. We are able to overcome every mountain that we face. But how is that possible? It is possible because Jesus has already conquered each and every one of those mountains for us. He has walked in our shoes; he was persecuted for you and I and he died a terrible death so that we would not have to die. With Jesus we have life everlasting. With God all things are possible. We must have the faith to believe this and put his many promises into action in our lives. Remember, we can do all things through Christ who gives us the strength. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” DO NOT BE AFRAID FOR I HAVE RANSOMED YOU. I HAVE CALLED YOU BY NAME; YOU ARE MINE. ” ISAIAH 43:1

Our Lord God knows everything there is to know about each of us. He knows our quirks, how many hairs are on our head, our names, our thoughts, and most of all, our hearts. As each of us go to the Lord in prayer each day, we should do so in a very personal manner. He is our personal Jesus. He is there to help each of us personally get through our struggles, daily decisions and our days in general. He provides us a shoulder to cry on. He is a person who will listen to our thoughts, words and temptations, without interruption. He will console us when we need to be consoled. He is everything we need in this world, but he is the only one who can fulfill what we need. Each of us are different people. We have different desires, needs, requests, struggles, temptations and concerns. Our Lord stands by each of us to fulfill each and every one of those issues. He knows us by name and loves us enough that he paid a price so that we each can live. All we have to do is believe and trust in him. Is this easy. NO! He never said it would be. In fact, he tells us it is very hard. But if we love him, pray to him and continue read and meditate upon his word we will begin to trust him in the small and large things in our lives. Remember, he is our personal Jesus! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE IF A PERSON BELIEVES.” MARK 9:23

WOW! What a wonderful gift our Lord has given us. All of our dealings with our God in heaven are on the foundation of faith. Each and everyone of us must take the time to build upon our faith. We are to make it stronger. In order to make our faith stronger we must dedicate a portion of each day to reading and meditating upon God’s Holy Word. To strengthen our faith we must begin with a renewed mind. We must display moral excellence, self control, patience, kindness and a charitable heart. Putting all of these ingredients together help us to create a strong faith. With a strong faith all of the possibilities are endless with our God. But we must believe! And to believe and not doubt we must make our faith unmovable. This is an everlasting building process. We must be persistent and never give up. We must not become discouraged but remain strong in prayer and God’s word. Remember, anything is possible with a person who believes. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” WHOEVER WANTS TO FIRST MUST TAKE LAST PLACE AND BE THE SERVANT OF EVERYONE ELSE.” MARK 9:35

We should all have a servant’s attitude. When Jesus was walking this earth, he was constantly serving others. He was always doing things that helped others. You and I, as we follow in the footsteps of Jesus, should reflect those same attitudes. We should not only reflect the attitudes of serving but we should actually serve others with joy in our hearts. To many people this comes easy but to others it can be a struggle. Serving can come in many forms. We should pray to our Lord before serving and ask his help. We should ask how we can serve. He will put serving opportunities in our paths. When we see them, we should make the most of them. Serving allows us to not only help others in a physical or financial way but also allows us a place in a person’s life and opens up opportunities to present Jesus where he is needed. We should be watchful and be sure we walk through the doors that the Lord opens for us. We may not always have the finances or the talents to help but we can always offer comfort, wise words, scriptures and so much more that our Lord has blessed us with. Always be ready to serve and to serve with joy! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” BUT YOU, O LORD, ARE A GOD OF COMPASSION AND MERCY, SLOW TO ANGER AND FILLED WITH UNFAILING LOVE AND FAITHFULNESS.” PSALM 86:15

As a human being I have done many things in my life that I am not very proud of, and I continue, at times, to stray from the path that God has set me on. Over the years there were even times that I feared the anger of the Lord after I sinned. In my mind I could not come to the realization that my God in heaven loves me so much that he could continually forgive me for the sins I committed. As I continued to build my trust in him the Lord always forgave my sins. He has provided situations in my life which he shows his compassion and mercy. He has put others in my life that have helped me to better understand how gracious he is. He has shown me that he is not an angry God but a loving God, a compassionate God and a God who is patient. His love is forever faithful. He continues to show his patience as we all wait for his return. As we strive to be better and to follow his example, we all stumble but we can all rest assured that he knows our hearts and is always there to pick us up, forgive us and set us back on his path. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

“GET AWAY FROM ME SATAN, he said. YOU ARE SEEING THINGS MERELY FROM A HUMAN POINT OF VIEW, NOT FROM GOD’S. MARK 8:33

This scripture reflects Jesus talking directly to Peter after Peter had reprimanded Jesus for telling the disciples that he was going to die and be raised again in three days. Peter was not looking at the situation through the eyes of God. He was looking and believing from a human point of view. Because of this he didn’t understand why what Jesus said was going to happen. He didn’t know the final outcome. Jesus couldn’t allow doubt or fear to stand in his way. You and I are much like Peter. Sometimes we allow doubt and fear to get not only get in our way but in the Lord’s way. When we begin looking at things that happen through our worldly eyes, we see things completely different than the Lord is seeing them. We get in the way and the Lord won’t allow that to happen. When that does happen, we need to take a step back and pray. We must get back on his righteous path. We must believe in all of God’s promises! We must never allow doubt to get a foothold. As followers of Christ, we are to serve him. We cannot serve him if we are allowing our fears of this world to take over. We must stay strong in the Lord 24/7. We cannot let ourselves become vulnerable to Satan or the beliefs of this world. Stay close to God and he will stay close to you. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” BUT THOSE WHO TRUST IN THE LORD WILL FIND NEW STRENGTH. THEY WILL SOAR HIGH ON WINGS LIKE EAGLES. THEY WILL RUN AND NOT GROW WEARY. THEY WILL WALK AND NOT FAINT.” ISAIAH 40:31

The strength of our Lord God in heaven gives us so many great opportunities. He refreshes us each day with a new strength that provides us with a renewed mind and desire to satisfy him. With his wisdom and understanding he allows us to get up each morning refreshed and ready to go to work. With Jesus in our lives, we have hope and a desire to spread his word. We have a renewed desire to reach his end goal which is to bring others to Christ. We must remember that we can do all things through him who gives us strength. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” THE PERSON WHO STRAYS FROM COMMON SENSE WILL END UP IN THE COMPANY OF THE DEAD. PROVERBS 21:16

When God created each of us, he gave us a brain. The brain is a great gift. It was created to help us to learn how to speak, walk, run, work, plan, play and think. God gave us a brain to help us to communicate with him. He also gave us each a free will. We are free to think what we want to think, say what we want to say, plan what we want to plan and work where we want to work. We have choices in life, some of which are very difficult and need the help of our Lord and others that are easier and left to us whom God has created in his own image. As we grow older and live longer on this earth the common sense that God has given us grows as well. For example, we are taught along life’s journey, either by experiences or by others, that fire is hot, and we should not put our hand in it. We are taught that ice is very slick and that we should be very careful when walking or driving on it. We are taught many things by which common sense becomes very important in our decision making. I truly believe that God looks down on us at times and literally laughs and cries at some of the decisions we make in life. He has provided us with common sense. We should always use it to help make decisions in life. Sometimes we just need to take a step back, take a deep breath and take our time in making decisions. God has blessed us all with a brain, the ability to learn, and common sense. Let’s pray each day that our Lord helps us to live by using his wisdom and common sense to help us make wise decisions. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” STUDY THIS BOOK OF INSTRUCTION CONTINUALLY. MEDITATE UPON IT DAY AND NIGHT SO YOU WILL BE SURE TO OBEY EVERYTHING WRITTEN IN IT. ONLY THEN WILL YOU PROSPER AND SUCCEED IN ALL YOU DO.” JOSHUA 1:8

The word of God has been given to us so that we know the heart of our God in heaven. It is full of prophesies and promises. Our God in heaven has given us the greatest gift he could possibly give us. It begins with an explanation of how the world began and ends with a foretelling of how the world, as we know it today, will end. Along the way the Lord has provided us with guidance on how to live our lives with success in this world. It is a road map to living in peace, strength, wisdom, understanding, love and patience. It has all been set right before us. As Christians all we have to do is to read it, meditate upon it and do as it tells us to do. Seems simple, right? Well, what may seem simple may be one of the hardest things to do. It takes a huge amount of energy, faith and persistence to live a life as it is presented to us. As we pray each day we should always ask our God in heaven for guidance and understanding in our day to come. We should ask him for more wisdom and knowledge in understanding just what he is asking of us. As we read his word we should take the time to study each word carefully and with prayer. We must understand that living the word of God is much more than just reading it everyday. It is understanding what the Lord is telling us an then putting into action. The word of God should become our way of life. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” DON’T BE SELFISH; DON’T TRY TO IMPRESS OTHERS. BE HUMBLE, THINKING OF OTHERS BETTER THAN YOURSELF.” PHILIPPEANS 2:3

Just how hard is it to humble yourself before others? There is nothing we do in the name of Jesus that comes easy. We live in a world of self-centeredness. In most cases we are brought up as children to better ourselves in life. Many times, this involves lying, cheating and using others to make ourselves look better. We step on each other in many different ways in order to get to the top. We want others to see us with riches and with power. For us to get to the top we sometimes hurt others. We are taught from a very early age to look out for ourselves because nobody else will. However, that is not what Jesus taught. That is not how Jesus lived. He taught that we should serve others. He displayed that characteristic as he walked this earth. He was always serving others. He was humbled and he died the worst possible death. Why? Why did he put himself through all of this pain and anguish? He did it because of you and me. He loves us so much that he was willing to come to the earth and submit to the worldly ways of those who thought they knew more. He submitted to those who wanted to be at the top, who wanted others to see them as important and knowledgeable. For us to follow Jesus we must be able and willing to submit. We must be able to think of others before ourselves. We must be able to serve others both physically and spiritually. We must be able to throw away our worldly ways and pick of the tools that Jesus has provided. We must throw away anger, envy, jealousy, lying cheating and selfish-ambition and pick up love, compassion for others, serving others and demonstrating the ways of Jesus. We can do this, but it takes a total commitment to our Lord and Savior. It takes a lot of prayer and a lot of patience. It takes a lot of re-training. Let us all take a step back and look at how we lead our lives getting rid of all unfaithfulness and re-tooling with the things of the Lord. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

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

If we step back and take a look, we can see that we clearly live in a world that is filled with hate, anger and rage. We live in a world where life is being diminished to a point that it seems to mean nothing to take the lives of innocent women, children, brothers and sisters. But is that what God wants us to do? It is very easy to get angry with someone and shout loudly at them. It is easy to spout angry and unjustifiable words to those we get angry with. However, what is the end result of anger and rage? Those actions will usually end with hurt feelings, destroyed relationships, grudges, physical harm and sometimes even death. As followers of Christ, we are not to lose our temper or display ourselves as unruly and harmful. Instead, our Lord wants us to be peaceable, loving, and caring. We are to display our displeasure with others in such a way that is representative of our Lord. Before we spout out words that we will not be able to take back, we should train ourselves to take a step back, go the Lord in prayer and ask for his guidance. Take the time to set patiently before him and wait for him to answer. Anger is not worth losing those around you whom you really love and care about. We should be careful of our words and actions. We should not be burning bridges but building bridges. We shouldn’t be tearing apart relationships but instead be building them up. We should never lose control but always be in control. If we have allowed the Lord to be a consistent part of our lives and we listen carefully to the Holy Spirit, we will stay in control. Always remember that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” DON’T SAY, ” I will get even for this wrong.” WAIT FOR THE LORD TO HANDLE THE MATTER.” PROVERBS 20:22

As we continue our journey in following the Lord, we must be able and willing to follow his lead and to do as he asks us to do. This is not always easy. As we follow the Lord and go through all of the growing pains, one of the hardest characteristics to follow is that of patience. I don’t know about you, but even when I think I am being patient, I am not. We are spirit beings living within a human world. It is so easy to take on human characteristics as we live in the world. After all, we are surrounded with the world and all its ways. What we are instructed to do is to focus on the Lord and not be deterred from his path. We are not to change our course because of what we see going on around us. Instead, we are to keep our eyes on Jesus and follow his ways. In many cases we are asked to be patient before him and wait upon him. It is not easy to set back and watch all of the evil going on. It makes us feel like we should step in and take charge. Doing this can sometimes lead to disaster in our lives. We are all so blessed to have our Lord right beside us at all times to pick us up and clean up our messes. We need to stay the course. We need to stay in prayer, stay in his Word and meditate upon it. We need to give our God in heaven all of the praise and glory he so richly deserves. If we keep Jesus first in our thoughts and actions each day and we patiently wait upon him to work in our lives, we will become so much stronger for it. Stay strong in Jesus, keep the faith and pray hard! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” THE LORD DIRECTS THE STEPS OF THE GODLY. HE DELIGHTS IN EVERY DETAIL OF THEIR LIVES. THOUGH THEY STUMBLE THEY WILL NOT FALL, FOR THE LORD HOLDS THEM BY THE HAND.” PSALM 37: 23-24

Our Father in Heaven is a detailed God. He knows every detail of each of us. He knows how we think, how we speak, how we respond to good and bad situations, what our talents are, what we are thinking and what we are going through every day. He knows exactly how much we can handle in our lives. Because he knows our every detail he wants to work in every detail of our lives. No matter the size of a problem, our God is always by our side. We may get off of his path or stumble through a problem but if we remember that his presence is right beside us and we turn and ask for his help, then he will pick us up, dust us off and put us back on the path. As children of God, we must be able to step out in faith and allow God to work in our lives. We must trust him to hold our hand through our toughest battles. We must remember him first in all things that we do. He is always there for us so we should be willing to be there for him. We should trust him and honor him for all of his protection and grace. We should love him unconditionally just as he does us. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” THE LORD DIRECTS OUR STEPS SO WHY TRY TO UNDERSTAND EVERYTHING ALONG THE WAY? ” PROVERBS 20:24

Our Lord makes it clear to us in many passages within his word that he is with us in all things. Proverbs 20:24 is no exception. When Jesus went to sit at the right hand of God, he sent us his Holy Spirit to live within us. The Holy Spirit directs us in the direction we are to go and helps us along the way of our journey. Sometimes we just don’t understand the direction he may be sending us or understand the words he may want us to say to someone. He has a reason for everything because he sees the whole picture. He knows the final outcome. As I follow the Holy Spirit, I have found that it is not for me to question but to follow. When I begin to question God, I find that I am interfering with his plan which in turn makes it harder for the Lord to work in my life. It is sometimes very difficult to follow the Lord and his instructions for our lives. But if we trust him and believe that he is directing our steps then why waste our time in questioning what he is telling us to do? To understand our Lord, we should stay in prayer and when we get our answers, we should have no doubt it is our Lord leading us. We should know that we know. There should be no hesitation. Stay close to God! Stay in his Word! Build up your faith and continue to trust his ways. All things from God will line up perfectly with his Holy Word. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” DON’T BE AFRAID. JUST HAVE FAITH.” MARK 5:36

Jairus had come before Jesus to ask him to come and lay his hands on his 12-year-old daughter so that she would be healed. Great crowds were following Jesus at the time. Suddenly a woman with an issue of blood touched his garment and she was healed. Jesus took the time to stop and search for her. I am sure that Jairus thought this time was like hours. However, he was patient before the Lord and waited. In the meantime, messengers came to tell him that his daughter was dead. At that moment the message from Jesus was ” Don’t be afraid. Just have faith.” When they arrived at the home of Jairus, Jesus wouldn’t allow anyone to go into the room where the daughter laid except for Peter, James and John and her mother and father. There could be no doubt allowed in the room. Jesus surrounded himself with those of faith and the result was a miraculous healing. It is important for us to realize that where there is faith there can be no doubt. When we are going through a crisis in our lives, we should surround ourselves with those of faith. Doubt will do nothing but tear our faith apart. Our faith must be as strong as the faith of Jairus. It doesn’t matter what things look like but what matters is our faith in the capabilities of our Lord and Savior. Our faith cannot be allowed to waiver. We should do as Jesus did and surround ourselves with those of great faith in our times of trouble. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” EVEN CHILDREN ARE KNOWN BY THE WAY THEY ACT, WHETHER THEIR CONDUCT IS PURE, AND WHETHER IT IS RIGHT.” PROVERBS 20:11

How our children act is often times reflected back upon our parenting skills. We want our children to be good representatives of our families. The same goes for the family of God. We should be living our lives in such a way that reflects his word. We should be living a life full of peace of mind and strength no matter what we might be going through. The world is watching us closely to see just how we react to problems and times of trouble. It is easy to be taken in by the world and the ways of the world. So, we must surround ourselves with the Word of God. We must live our lives as a reflection of his word. We should meditate in his word and pray and praise him each day. We should spend more time with the Lord than with the world. This is not easy. It takes a true dedication to Jesus. Our lives should be dedicated to him. After all, we are his family. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” 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

Joshua 1:9 is a great scripture and a wonderful command from our Lord. It is very hard to follow some of the commands of our God when we haven’t trained ourselves up to do so. We should compare it to great athletes who train for athletic events. They build their bodies up little by little until they are ready for whatever event they are training for. They don’t just decide to run a race one day and the next day go run it. They train for it. We should do the same. How can we possibly believe our Lord for things that we are not trained to believe for? It is very hard to get saved on one day and the next day believe God for a huge miracle to happen in our life. For one thing the enemy attacks us quickly with doubts, worries and fears. We must know how to overcome those attacks. We need to train ourselves to believe for the little things in life and then work our way up to the larger things. We need to know how to study God’s word and how to meditate upon his word. Our God never fails us. He is always with us. However, we sometimes miss his answers to our prayers because of doubt, worry, fear and unbelief. We shouldn’t be ashamed of this. His disciples did the same things. They had to learn. They listened intently to his instructions and tried to do as he instructed. We must do the same things by surrounding ourselves with his word and his promises. We must learn to believe in his promises and in the fact that he does answer our prayers. The more we study and meditate upon his word and his promises the stronger our faith will become. The more we pray to him and praise him the stronger we will become. So, let us train ourselves up in the Lord. Let us begin to believe in the unseen things of our God and not just the visible things of this world. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” YOU CAN MAKE MANY PLANS BUT THE LORD’S PURPOSE WILL PREVAIL.” PROVERBS 19:21

The Lord’s purpose for my life will always prevail. As long as I am following the Lord and doing what he tells me to do his will for my life will prevail. I may have other ideas and try other things but his will always win out. A plan for my life was put together before I was born, and it is God’s will that his plan be put into action. In my situation it has taken a little longer. I had my own plans and goals that I thought I needed to accomplish. I did accomplish some of these goals and the Lord used them to help shape the life that he had so graciously designed for me in the beginning. My God in heaven loves me just as he loves you. He had a plan for me just has he has one for you. We may not totally understand what that plan is in the beginning but if we read and meditate upon his word and use his Holy Spirit for direction then he will put situations before us and place people in our lives that will help to form the ministry, he wishes to be carried out in our lives. We must have a faith that allows us to believe in him. We must be able to step out in that faith and allow him to work in our life. Remember we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL SITUATIONS!

” THE RIGHTEOUS PERSON FACES MANY TROUBLES BUT THE LORD COMES TO THE RESCUE EACH TIME.” PSALM 34:19

When I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, he never promised me that I would have a life without troubles and struggles. He never promised me that everything I do would be turned to gold. What he did promise is his everlasting protection. In every situation that I face, every trouble I have to conquer, my Lord is by my side. I have to be reminded a lot that when Jesus went to be at the right hand of God, the Holy Spirit was sent. The Holy Spirit is with me in all things and through all things. He is with me in good and bad times. He is by my side to help me make wise decisions and to keep me on the right path for my life. My problem is that I don’t always listen to him. I sometimes forget that he is with me and try to conquer on my own doing things that only cause me more problems. However, if I just take the time to listen to him, I can save myself a lot of time as well as pain and suffering. But if I do get myself into trouble, he is always right there to bail me out. The Lord reminds me to continue to make him a part of my life. He must be my lifestyle, the way I live my life everyday. He must be the first one I think of when I have a mountain to climb or problems to overcome. With the Holy Spirt with me I can never go wrong. I just have to train myself to listen and depend upon him. He is always there to pick me up when I fall! PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” BUT YOU DEAR FRIENDS, MUST BUILD EACH OTHER UP IN YOUR MOST HOLY FAITH, PRAY IN THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND AWAIT THE MERCY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, WHO WILL BRING YOU ETERNAL LIFE.” JUDE 1:20-21

Fellowship with other believers is vital to a successful life here on earth. It is important that we as brothers and sisters continue to keep each other faithful in God’s word. We should build each other up in our most holy faith. Our Lord God in heaven sent us his precious Holy Spirit to help to guide us in and through all things. He is with us always. When we pray, we must pray in the power of the Holy Spirit. We must take time to listen to what the Holy Spirit is telling us. As we continue to build ourselves up in the power of the Holy Spirit our faith and trust will continue to grow more powerful. Our confidence in our Lord will grow, which will allow us to build up the confidence of others. The Holy Spirit lives within us. He should be our life. We should be thinking of him in everything we do and say. With him we are successful and full of joy. Without him we are defeated. We must work hard with the power of the Holy Spirit until our Lord Jesus Christ brings eternal life. Never let down your guard. Always be faithful in all you do. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” ALL GLORY, MAJESTY, POWER, AND AUTHORITY ARE HIS BEFORE ALL TIME, AND IN THE PRESENT, AND BEYOND ALL TIME!” JUDE 1:25

We have a God in heaven who was, is and will be forever present. Our God has never changed. However, because of sin he has had to alter his plan so that you and I can be saved and become his forever. Our God is deserving of all glory and power and majesty because of his everlasting authority. He was in charge in the beginning, is in charge today and will be in charge forever. We are so blessed to have a God who loves us so much that he sent his only son to this earth to take on all of our sin and to die a horrific death on our behalf. When we read and meditate upon God’s glorious Word, we must take it personally. Jesus didn’t come to this world to just die for someone else, but he came to die for each of us personally. He is a loving and forgiving God. He has and continues to give us each an opportunity to follow his ways, to live our lives as he lived his life. We are living in his time of grace. However, his time of grace is running out. If you have not received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then please take a moment and pray this prayer: “Dear Lord, I love you. I believe that you died on that cross and shed your blood for me. I accept you as my Lord and my Savior. Take me now and mold me to live my life as you lived your life on this earth. Thank you, Jesus! In Jesus Name, Amen.” PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” WHEN THEY CALL ON ME, I WILL ANSWER; I WILL BE WITH THEM IN TROUBLE.” PSALM 91:15

As we read through God’s great Word, we find many promises. We can all rest assured that our Lord does not fail on any promise he has made. The foundation that you and I must build in Christ is a great foundation of faith. We are asked to believe in things unseen. We are asked to totally trust in our Lord God in heaven. The Lord is very clear in Psalm 91:15 where he tells us that when we come to him in prayer, he will answer us. He is with us in our troubles. However, we must believe that we receive. We don’t need to continually pray for something over and over again. Once we take it to the Lord, we are to leave it with him with total confidence that it has been answered. Instead of taking the prayer back to him and praying over and over and over we should go to him and thank him each day for the answer. We should display our faith and trust in him. Building our faith is something that we should do continually. We should make it a habit to act upon our faith so that God can work in our lives. He does not force himself upon us. He will not work in our lives unless we give him permission. We have our own free will to act. Let’s use that free will to build our faith and allow Jesus to work in our lives. PRAISE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!

” EVEN IF THE FOREST SHOULD BE DESTROYED AND THE CITY TORN DOWN, THE LORD WILL GREATLY BLESS HIS PEOPLE. ” ISAIAH 32: 19-20

It does not matter what we have going on in our life. It doesn’t matter how terrible our problems seem to us. We can always find someone else who has greater difficulties than we do. But problems are problems no matter their size. Our Lord looks at each of us as individuals and does not compare us to anyone else. He has set his standards through his word and compares us to that and nothing else. Whatever mountain we are trying to climb he is with us. He takes each of us and our problems and works with us individually. Yes, he might use someone else to help in our situation, but he deals with us one on one. We each have a different level of faith. The stronger our faith the larger our mountains seem to become. The Lord wants us to use our faith. He wants us to take a step forward in our faith. When we do that, he is always there to help. It is important to remember that he greatly blesses his people in all things. We must recognize that the Lord our God in heaven is in total control. When we watch the news of the day we should watch with great confidence in the Jesus. We should watch with a godly attitude and not one of fear, for the Lord is returning soon. PRASIE THE LORD IN ALL THINGS!