Seek His Kingdom

TODAY’S VERSE
“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 14:17 (NIV)

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Matthew 6:33 (NIV)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
It is so easy to get trapped into this world’s system. Look at all the stress that comes because of the pressure to succeed, to be seen as significant, to be accomplished according to the world’s standard. Where did that all come from? When did we let ourselves get so duped into following such a ridiculous system? Paul says that the Kingdom of God is not a matter of this world system but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. I could write more but I would rather Jesus say it. Might God bless the reading of His teaching, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. – No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? – But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
 
TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear Jesus, forgive me for serving two masters. I say, “I love You” and yet I live as this world is all that really matters. I worry so much about things. Please help really understand what You mean to live in Your kingdom. Help me not to worry about this life but choose to love You instead. In Your name, Lord Jesus.
AMEN

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The Real Me

TODAY’S VERSE
“But be careful. Don’t let your heart be deceived so that you turn away from the Lord” Deuteronomy 11:16 (NIV)

“Think of yourself with sober judgment.”
Romans 12:3 (NIV)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
Self deception is at the root of many of our problems. Not only do we lie to all those around us, but more often we lie to ourselves. How often do we mask what is really bothering us? We pretend to love when we are bitter and wounded. We act brave when we are afraid. Dr. David Benner, in his book, “The Gift of Being Yourself” writes,
“At some point in childhood we all make the powerful discovery that we can manipulate the truth about ourselves. Initially it often takes the form of a simple lie – frequently a denial of having done something. But of more importance to the development of the false self is the discovery that our ability to hide isn’t limited to what we say or don’t say. We learn to pretend. We discover the art of packaging our self. – Our masks have become our reality, and we have become our lies. In short, we have lost authenticity and adopted an identity based on illusion.” You see God loves the real you! He knows your fears, your rage, your brokenness and He is waiting for you to give it to Him. There is nothing about the real you He cannot redeem! It is only when you let your heart be deceived and create a false self that you turn away from the Lord. Today, come to God as you are. Let Him touch the real you. Tell Him what you feel, what your think, what you have hidden from everyone else. When you do, you will find Him accepting, loving and able to set you free from all your fears of self exposure. Come to Him, the truth will set you free.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, I have hidden my true self from You and everyone one else. Fear, shame, anger, terror, disgust – so many emotions, buried it so long ago. I have tried so hard to be what everyone else has wanted and somewhere I have lost my way. Please, in Your love, gently peal back my veneer and bring me into Your light. Help me take off my masks and see myself as You see me. Help me embrace all of me as You lovingly embrace me even now. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN

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Grace

TODAY’S VERSE
“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you.”’
II Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
I never get use to God’s grace! Grace is God’s “unmerited favor” toward us who believe. In other words, He lavishes His love on you and me for no other reason than He “wants to”. His love is a perfect love. God’s grace is His purposeful manifestation of perfect love toward us. Paul came upon a tremendous burden in his life and he sought relief from God but he ended up getting so much more. He received grace from God that was sufficient to meet his every need. Gerald May, in his classic book, “Addiction and Grace” writes, “Grace is the invincible advocate of freedom and the absolute expression of perfect love. – For Christian’s, grace is the dynamic outpouring of God’s loving nature that flows into and through creation in an endless self-offering of healing, love, illumination, and reconciliation. It is a gift that we are free to ignore, reject, ask for, or simply accept. And it is a gift that is often given in spite of our intentions and errors. At such times, when grace is so clearly given unrequested, uninvited, even undeserved, there can be no authentic response but gratitude and awe.”  Today may you be conscious of His grace toward you. May you sense it in His attention, mercy, peace, strength and love He directs toward you. Today, might you truly hope in this, His grace will indeed be sufficient for what ever will come your way.  

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, how amazing is Your grace! Thank You that no matter what comes my way today, You promised that Your grace toward me will be sufficient enough to see me through. Thank You for your grace of love, of forgiveness, of mercy, of peace, of joy, of strength and of provision. I praise You for You are truly gracious toward me.
AMEN 

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Faith

TODAY’S VERSE
“According to your faith will it be done to you.”
Matthew 9:29 (NIV)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
Sometimes we get the picture that faith is some lame ridiculous kind of thinking. You know, sort of believing that getting the longer part of a wishbone will grant you a wish. That is not faith. That is superstition. You see faith is only as good as what you have faith in. You sit on a good chair and you have faith that it will not drop you to the ground. However you would not exhibit that same faith on a chair with a leg missing. Now we believe in the God of the universe. We have put our faith in Him and His love, wisdom and power. What better place to put it? Besides His attributes, we put our faith in His promises. God’s promises are true and we can place our trust in what He says. So what is troubling you today? What are you in need of? What situation has you stressed? Bring it to God. Talk to Him about your needs and desires. Apply God’s promises to your situation and then commit yourself to Him. Step out in faith and trust Him. Hear the words of Jesus for your life today, “According to your faith will it be done to you.”

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, thank You for Your love. Thank You for revealing Yourself to me. Thank You for all Your wonderful and powerful promises. Help me today to put my complete faith and trust in You. Guide and direct me this day. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN

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Your Presence

TODAY’S VERSE
“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”
Matthew 6:33 (NLT)

“One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.”
Psalms 27:4 (NIV)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
It is easy to get in a rut and seek second best. We seek to get by, instead of giving something our all. We seek to “try” instead of “do”. So often we get so caught up in what we think we “want” that we really miss what we “need”. It is that way in our Christian experience. So often we want the “results” of God” instead of “knowing” God. We turn our Christian walk into ritual, behaviors and experiences that bring us some sort of security that all is well instead of knowing Him and the peace that He can give. Larry Crabb in his book “The Pressure’s Off” writes, “Right now, at this very moment, you’re walking one of two paths through life. Either you’ve decided that what you most want out of life is within your reach, and you’re doing whatever you believe it takes to get it or you’ve realized that what you most want is beyond your reach, and you’re trusting God for the satisfaction you seek. You want Him. Nothing less, not even His blessings, will do.” He writes it another way, “You therefore live with uncertainty and pressure, and you demand to know the way to live that will make your life work as you want. You maneuver; you do not trust. You negotiate; you do not worship. You analyze and interpret to gain control over what happens; you do not depend. You seek the better life of God’s blessings over the better hope of God’s presence.” Today might we choose to know and enjoy God’s presence.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, I have sought Your blessings more than Your presence. I have sought what I can gain from knowing about You instead of knowing You. Help me to stop all the religious activity and striving to earn Your love and blessing and take the time to know You. Thank You, Father, that Your presence is the blessing I seek.
AMEN

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Walk In The Light

TODAY’S VERSE
“Jesus replied, ‘My light will shine for you just a little longer. Walk in the light while you can, so the darkness will not overtake you. Those who walk in the darkness cannot see where they are going. Put your trust in the light while there is still time; then you will become children of the light.’” – “I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.”
John 12:35-36, (NLT)
 
TODAY’S THOUGHT
Hiking in the darkness is vastly different than hiking in the daytime. Once on a primitive hiking trip I had to walk an injured person out of the woods to a hospital to get stitched up. It took most of the day. In order to catch up with the rest of the group we hiked back on an unfamiliar used trail during the night. Unfortunately, with so much use, my flashlight became very dim. What a hike! Roots, holes in the trail, cliffs, animals, ravines, what would be difficult to navigate in daylight became unbearable in the dark. Slowly, using what light we had, we eventually made it back to base camp. How? By focusing on the light! You see, in that six square feet ahead of me I could see where I was going. It didn’t matter that thousands of acres was in darkness, I only needed to see the six feet in front of me. Even though our flashlight was dim, no matter how hard it tried, the darkness could not penetrate the light I had. In today’s passage Jesus told us to, “Walk in the light while you can, so the darkness will not overtake you.” The darkness of sin, doubt, despair and confusion are always trying to trip us up so we have a choice to make. We can focus on the darkness or we can turn the light on! The majority of difficulty and darkness we will encounter in life will be a truth encounter. We will have a choice to make. Focus on all the lies and doubts that will attack us or to focus on the truth of God’s word. Jesus said, “I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.” Paul says it this way in his letter to the Ephesians, “For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!” Might we decide to “turn the light” of faith, His word and prayer today” living in the joy of knowing Jesus.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, You know how dark my world can become. Help me to remember to turn on the light of faith, prayer and Your word so I can navigate the trail You have in front of me today. I will move forward today, step by step, with faith, focusing on the light You give me. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN

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Send Me Out With Joy

TODAY’S VERSE
“How joyful are those who fear the LORD and delight in obeying his commands.– They are generous, compassionate, and righteous. Good comes to those who lend money generously and conduct their business fairly.”
Psalms 112:1, 4-5 (NLT)
TODAY’S THOUGHT
God intended us for joy. And he gave us a way to live that way. He gave us His command to love God and others. This is illustrated by the  Psalmist in his example of a joyful person. Notice the attributes the writer gives to them. He writes, “They are generous, compassionate, and righteous. Good comes to those who lend money generously and conduct their business fairly.” But somehow we get God’s commandments all mixed up. Like the Pharisees we make living for God more about tradition and legalism. And soon joy disappears. But what did Jesus say was the commandments we were to follow? Mark writes about a person who asked Jesus, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” Jesus answered him saying, “The most important one, is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” Tim Hughes, in his song, “God of Justice” writes it this way, “God of Justice, Savior to all – Came to rescue the weak and the poor, Chose to serve and not be served – Jesus, You have called us, Freely we’ve received, Now freely we will give – We must go, Live to feed the hungry, Stand beside the broken, We must go, Stepping forward keep us from just singing, Move us into action, We must go – To act justly everyday, Loving mercy in everyway, Walking humbly before You God – You have shown us, what You require, Freely we’ve received, Now freely we will give – Fill us up and send us out.” And He does, He sends us out with joy!

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, help me to see others the way You do. Help me to see the joy in loving You with all my heart, soul, mind and strength and in loving others in the way I want to be loved. Lord, fill me up with Your love and Your joy and send me out.
AMEN

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True Happiness

TODAY’S VERSE
“Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the LORD, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.”
Psalms 1:1-3 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
We spend so much of our time looking for happiness. We are searching for that one thing that will solve all our problems and bring us into a constant state of contentment. How many times have we thought, “If I just win the Lotto?”; “If I had a certain job”; “If I just looked different”. Fill in your own blank. We seem to look everywhere for lasting joy and yet it is right in front of us. In the very first chapter of Psalms, David writes about the secret to joy. He says it’s not found in the counsel of the ungodly, but rather real joy comes when we delight in God’s word and meditate on what He says. David Benner, in his book, “The Gift Of Being Yourself” writes, “Everything that is false about us arises from our belief that our deepest happiness will come from living life our way, not God’s way. Although we may say we want to trust God and surrender to his will, deep down we doubt that God is really capable of securing our happiness.” Is that how you feel? What is your reaction when you read, “But they delight in the law of the LORD, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do?” Do you believe God will bless you and give you deep joy by living according to His word or do you doubt that God is really capable of securing your happiness? You can’t believe both. Today, choose to follow God’s word and begin to meditate on it and apply it to your life. As you do, you will find joy.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, thank You for Your word. I ask that you would teach me and guide me through reading and meditating on what Your Holy word has to say. Help me find happiness, joy and true meaning as I come to You.
AMEN

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More Faith, Less Worries

TODAY’S VERSE
“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.”
I Peter 5:7 (NLT)

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)
 
TODAY’S THOUGHT
If someone offered to take all your anxieties away from you would you take them up on the offer? Or would anxiety, by its own nature, cause you to worry that the person would not be able to take care of your situation? Ironically, you would end up with a whole new set of worries! So what do you do when Peter tells you to give all your worries and cares to God? If you are like most Christians you just hold on to them. Sure you pray. You even begin to trust Him but as soon as anything moves, you go back to holding on to your cares all over again. The truth is that giving your cares to God takes faith. The author of Hebrews says if you have true faith, then it would necessitate that you believe God exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek him. That is what Peter meant when he said to cast all your cares on Christ. Why? Because, God exists and He will “reward” your faith in Him by caring for you. Can you imagine that? Next time you worry, start with the thought that God deeply cares for you! He cares for you with all the resources of His mighty power and wisdom. With that in mind, you can feel free to start today and give Him all your cares.
 
TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, You know how I worry and carry many concerns with me. Forgive me for my lack of faith. I know You reward those that come to You in faith, so I come now in faith believing that You care for me. I choose to give all my worries to You. I know You are all powerful, wise and loving, so I trust You with all the outcomes of this step of faith. I pray this in the powerful name of Jesus.
AMEN

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Be Filled With The Holy Spirit

TODAY’S VERSE
“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”
Ephesians 5:15-18

TODAY’S THOUGHT
We don’t know much about the Holy Spirit. We get saved, understand that we have the Holy Spirit and then get busy with life. We never take advantage of the relationship that we have with the Holy Spirit. But we cannot afford to be passive any longer. We were not meant to function without the aid of the Holy Spirit. Paul says we should be “filled” with the Holy Spirit. What does this mean? The key is in the comparison to being drunk on wine. There is only one way to get drunk. You get drunk by being “filled” with alcohol until the amount that you consume has you under its influence. This is not a casual drink that is in moderation. This is in excess to where you become drunk. So what is he saying about our life in the Spirit? Paul says let us have the same insatiable appetite for the guidance and fellowship of the Holy Spirit that a person does that chooses to get drunk on wine. When we meditate on God’s word, pray and commune with the Holy Spirit, we will begin to be “filled” or “under the influence” of the Holy Spirit’s leading in our daily living. It is interesting, however, that the tense is not a “one time” filling, but actually means “be filled and keep on being filled.” You do not get drunk on wine once for the rest of your life. The effect of the wine soon dissipates. To continually be drunk you have to continually drink the wine. Although the Holy Spirit does not leave us, in order to stay “filled” or influenced by the Holy Spirit, we need to continually stay in communication and fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Isn’t it time that we begin to experience all the ways that the Holy Spirit wants to help us?

TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear Holy Spirit, please forgive me for ignoring Your presence in my life. I ask You to guide me, lead me, commune with me and to fill me so that I am completely influenced by Your presence. I invite You to take control of my life. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN

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