2021-11-16
Mark 9:29 KJV
Are you facing a problem that prayer alone hasn’t yet solved? Do you have a loved one who has been taken captive by drugs, or alcohol, or some other destructive power? Try praying – and fasting. Sometimes the spiritual battle you’re in is so intense that it calls for denying the legitimate needs of your body and building up your faith through prayer and fasting so that you are able to prevail.
Jesus had told His disciples, “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also” (John 14:12 KJV), yet when the disciples were confronted with a demon-possessed boy with self-destructive tendencies, they were disappointed because they prayed and nothing happened. And when they asked Jesus why, He said to them, “This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.”
When the Jewish people were threatened with annihilation, only the king could save them. So Esther said, “Gather all the Jews…and fast for me…I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king” (Esther 4:16 NKJV). As a result, Haman, who had plotted their destruction, was hanged on his own gallows, and the entire Jewish nation was saved.
There are times in life when you must say no to your physical needs so that you can focus on your spiritual ones. Fasting sharpens your focus in prayer, fortifies your faith, prepares you to meet a challenge, and brings miraculous results. Fasting is about having single-mindedness in your search for God’s help – and it brings great results.
Soul food: 2 Chr 8-11; John 11:17-27; Ps 8; Prov 26:23-26
2021-11-15
2 Corinthians 9:8 MSG
If your sense of well-being comes from any source other than God – including yourself – chances are you will always struggle with insecurity. That’s why Paul wrote: “God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so…you’re ready for anything and everything, more than…ready to do what needs to be done.” Another translation puts it this way: “God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (NIV).
As long as you’re trusting in yourself, or others, you will struggle with uncertainty and self-doubt. But once you start trusting in God – what He can do in you, with you, through you, and for you – you begin to feel differently about yourself. Insecurity destroys your self-esteem by making you feel unqualified and undeserving. And here is the worst part: often it means you can’t be taught, can’t accept honest criticism, and therefore you can’t grow. The thing you need most – good input – becomes the last thing you’re willing to accept because you’re afraid to let anyone know you’re less than perfect.
Consequently, you find it hard to confront challenges and seize the opportunities that come your way. Deep down, you feel incompetent, unaccepted, disapproved of, and rejected. In short: Insecurity is an “inside job!” With that in mind, take an honest look at your life right now. Go ahead; it’s safe, no one else is looking! The only person who will benefit from this is you. Then turn to God and say, “Lord, everything I need to succeed in life I have in you!”
Soul food: 2 Chr 5-7; John 11:1-16; Ps 83:9-18; Prov 26:17-22
2021-11-14
2 Corinthians 3:5-6 NIV
Insecurity can sideline you. When you feel like you’re unqualified and unworthy of success, self-doubt can make you act in ways that sabotage your chances to be successful. The truth is, it’s impossible to live for long on a level that’s inconsistent with how you see yourself. And one of the biggest problems with insecurity is that it’s almost impossible to acknowledge, so you don’t deal with it and overcome it.
Why is that? Because you’re afraid that an admission of vulnerability will (1) weaken you in other people’s eyes, (2) empower and embolden your critics, and (3) give your competitors an advantage. Insecurity makes you keep others at a distance. It means living without the counsel and support of the very people whose input can help you to succeed. Bottom line: You have a hard time trusting other people because you have a hard time trusting yourself!
It’s not a new phenomenon. Recorded in the Old Testament, Zophar said to Job, “In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress” (Job 20:22 NKJV). Note the word “distress,” then think of the word “stress.” Your insecurity will whisper, “If people really knew me, they wouldn’t love me, respect me, follow me, invite me, or invest in me.” So…what’s the answer?
Paul has it! He writes, “Not that we are competent…to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent.” The first step to overcoming insecurity is to draw your self-worth from God and learn to see yourself through His eyes. And you can only do that by spending time with Him in prayer and reading His Word each day.
Soul food: Num 9:15-23; Exo 24:15-18; Matt 17:1-8; Acts 1:9-11
2021-11-13
1 John 4:7 NIV
When we watch celebrities move through multiple marriages and hop from one relationship to another, it reminds us that you can have charisma without character, talent without trustworthiness, and skill without staying power. A cartoon in a magazine showed a couple standing before a minister during their wedding ceremony. The minister, looking at the bride, said, “The correct response is, ‘I do,’ not, ‘It’s worth a try.'”
Love – in marriage and in any other relationship – requires unselfishness and commitment on our part. And contrary to popular opinion, it doesn’t come easily or naturally to any of us. Love is others-centered and self-sacrificing. The truth is that we’re all self-centered; in our own natural selves, we care little about making sacrifices for others unless we’re highly motivated and well rewarded.
That’s why the Bible teaches us that one of the secrets of having an intimate relationship with someone else is having one with God. John the Apostle writes, “Love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (vv. 7-8 NIV). And if you ask Him to do it, God will download that kind of love into your heart. Here’s how He does it: “God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Romans 5:5 NIV). This kind of love grows as we mature it. It develops as we feed it. It expands as we persist in it. Bottom line: This kind of love has staying power!
Soul food: 2 Chr 1-4; John 10:22-42; Ps 83:1-8; Prov 26:13-16
2021-11-12
Joshua 5:14 NKJV
In the New Testament, God emphasized different things to each of the seven churches in Revelation. Why? Because they each had a different assignment and faced different challenges. It’s wise to read good books and listen to good mentors and teachers, but don’t assume that what God told them is what He is telling you. There are times when you need to hear from Him for yourself. You may adopt certain principles, but you must get your plan from God.
That’s why it’s sometimes hard for God to get through to preachers. When He speaks to them personally, they give it an introduction, three points, and a conclusion – and preach it to others! And as a spiritual leader, there is another potential pitfall: trying to get “a word” for others because they happen to be bothering you. Let God straighten them out and get back to where you belong! Paul wrote, “We will boast only about what has happened within the boundaries of the work God has given us” (2 Corinthians 10:13 NLT).
Your authority and anointing depend on being where God wants you to be, doing what He wants you to do. When you’re driven by ego, or other people’s expectations, or a goal God gave to someone else, you’re setting yourself up to fail. You must hear from God for yourself. If you’re assigned – you’re confined! You can’t go where you like and do as you please, so ask God to crown your efforts with success. If you’re in the wrong place, doing the wrong thing, don’t let pride keep you there. Pray, “What does my Lord say to His servant?” Then, do it!
Soul food: 1 Chr 26:20-29:30; John 10:11-21; Ps 133; Prov 26:7-12
2021-11-11
2 Corinthians 2:11 NIV
One of Satan’s Favourite schemes is getting us to use legitimate things in an illegitimate way. During the wilderness temptation, he tried to take advantage of Christ’s hunger by saying, “Turn these stones into…bread” (Matthew 4:3 MSG). But Jesus knew the Scriptures, so He replied, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God'” (v. 4 NKJV). Had Jesus given in to His human impulses, He would have gone along with Satan’s scheme and forfeited His heavenly Father’s supply that was just about to arrive.
We all need money, but Satan will tempt you to cheat on your taxes, shortchange your customers, cut corners on the job, or withhold your tithe. We have all been created with the need for companionship and sexual fulfillment. But Satan will tempt you to fulfill those needs by having an affair or trapping you into online pornography. We all long to be successful in our career. But Satan will tempt you to achieve it through lying, manipulating, or blowing someone else’s light out in order to let yours shine.
One of his oldest schemes is to confuse our values so that good appears to be evil, and evil appears as good. So what’s the answer? Paul says, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:11 NIV). There is only one way to unmask Satan and defeat his schemes, and that’s through a close walk with God, a daily study of the Scriptures, and a consistent prayer life. That’s how you guard your mind, your mouth, and your morals.
Soul food: 1 Chr 23:21-26:19; John 10:1-10; Ps 99; Prov 26:1-6
