2021-01-04
Deuteronomy 11:12 NKJV
This year God will take care of you. Like a good father taking care of a child he loves, God will watch over you, never taking His eye off you. And He will do it “from the beginning of the year to the very end.” Who else can make such a promise – and keep it?
Your lawyer and your banker are normally available to you Monday through Friday, if they’re not too busy; otherwise, you can end up playing “telephone tag.” And if you get sick, unless you’re in critical condition you may end up on a doctor’s waiting list or fighting with your health insurance carrier. That’s not how it is with God! He guarantees you around-the-clock care.
But you have a part to play as well: “If you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve Him with all your heart and…soul…I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain [provision for all your needs], your new wine [joy and happiness], and your oil [the power and presence of God]. And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock [investments], that you may eat and be filled [blessing and success in your business and career]” (vv. 13-15 NKJV).
Bottom line: if you walk with God and honor Him in all you do, this can be one of the most blessed years of your life.
Soul food: Exo 4-6; Matt 4:1-11; Ps 90:7-17; Prov 1:5-9
2021-01-03
Deuteronomy 11:11 NKJV
This year look to God for your needs: “The land which you cross over to possess…drinks water from the rain of heaven.” No matter what political party is in power, what the interest rate is, or what shape the housing and job markets are in, believe God to supply all your needs. And He may use different people to do it!
Jesus said, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom” (Luke 6:38 KJV). God will use people to bless you, but He alone is your source of provision. You must never forget that.
When you look inside yourself, you become aware of your own inadequacy. When you look around, you become aware that others are fighting the same battles. But when you look to God, you discover He is “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV).
Do you remember the verse at the center of the Bible? “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man” (Psalm 118:8 KJV). Sometimes God will let you reach the end of your rope in order to show you that when you’ve nothing left but Him, He’s all you need!
Note the phrase “the rain of heaven.” That sounds like another promise God made: “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!” (Malachi 3:10 NLT). This year obey God, and the blessings of heaven will be yours.
Soul food: Ps 23; John 10:7-18
2021-01-02
Deuteronomy 11:11 NKJV
This year you will face some mountains and go through some valleys. And you need both. The strength gained from climbing and conquering your last mountain is what will get you through your next valley. It’s in the valley that the sweetest fruit grows. That’s because it’s watered by streams that flow from the mountains. Jesus said, “By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples” (John 15:8 NKJV).
This year Jesus wants you to be more fruitful in His service. And He tells you how: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5 NKJV). What kind of fruit is God looking for in your life this year?
Paul tells us: “When we live God’s way…He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard – things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely” (Galatians 5:22-23 MSG). So this year when you face a mountain or go through a valley, remember that God is with you.
Soul food: Exo 1-3; Matt 3:11-17; Ps 90:1-6; Prov 1:1-4
2021-01-01
Deuteronomy 11:12 NKJV
As you enter the New Year, read this Scripture and stand on it: “The land which you go to…is not like the land…from which you have come…the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord…are always on it, from the beginning…to the very end of the year” (vv. 10-12 NKJV).
For the next few days, let’s break this Scripture down. “The land which you go to possess is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come.” Egypt was the place of stress, sorrow, and struggle. But Canaan was the place of God-given success, self-worth, and spiritual growth. In other words, this year doesn’t have to be like last year for you. Why? Because “the Lord your God cares.”
Jeremiah said: “Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!’ The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him” (Lamentations 3:21-25 NLT).
David said: “His anger lasts only a moment, but his favour lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5 NLT).
You don’t have to dread what lies ahead. This year you can experience God’s love, mercy, faithfulness, goodness, and favour in your life.
Soul food: Rom 13:12-14:19; John 1:1-14
2020-12-31
Psalm 55:22 NLT
Are you burdened about someone you love? Have your efforts to help them failed? Let go, and let God deal with them! Letting go doesn’t mean you stop caring; it just means you can’t do it for them. Letting go isn’t about cutting yourself off; it’s about realizing you didn’t cause the problem, and you can’t cure it, and you can’t control it. It’s about letting others learn from their consequences. It’s admitting that this time the outcome is not in your hands. It’s not about blaming or trying to change the other person; but having the wisdom to recognize you can only change yourself. It’s “caring about,” instead of “caretaking.” It’s being supportive without trying to fix them, and instead of judging, allowing them to be a human being.
Letting go means instead of wading into the middle and trying to control every possible outcome, you allow others to affect their own outcomes. Instead of hovering and being overprotective, it’s about permitting them to face reality. It’s about accepting instead of denying. And rather than nagging, scolding, and arguing, learning to work on your own shortcomings. Letting go means instead of trying to adjust everything to your own desires, you take each day as it comes and cherish each moment. It means instead of criticizing and regulating, you learn to focus on the purpose to which God has called you. It means not looking back with regret on the past, and focusing instead on growing and living for the future. Letting go is about fearing less and loving more. The word for you today is – let go, and let God!
Soul food: 2 Cor 5:14-21; Phil 3:8-14; Ps 77:11-20; Prov 9:10-12
2020-12-30
Genesis 35:15 NLT
What should you do when you’re discouraged and afraid you’ve lost your way? That’s the question Jacob was facing. And when he turned his heart toward God, here is the answer he got: “‘Go up to Bethel…build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.'” So Jacob said to his household and all who were with him, ‘Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone'” (vv. 1-3 NIV).
Now, you may not be into idol worshiping, but what do you need to “get rid of”? Bethel means “the place where God dwells.” So Jacob went back to the place where he had met God, where he had received a vision of his future, and where he had first experienced the joy of living in a covenant relationship with the Lord.
Have you made a mess of your life? Then go back to Bethel, to where you first met God. Build an altar and place your life on it. Do what the Scripture says: “In view of God’s mercy…offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2 NIV).
Soul food: 2 Cor 6:14-7:1; Matt 3:1-10; Ps 116; Prov 31:30-31
