Be Strong and Courageous

A daily dose of His Word and time with Him, makes a huge difference in the way your life unfolds. Following hard after Him brings a peace into your world and calms the choppy seas.

August's Message, Day 1:

“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:7-9 NIV

It's truly amazing what blessings pour forth from heaven if we are just obedient to His Word and to His ways. He does ask us to follow hard after Him, knowing His Word and pondering it often, and diligently doing what He asks. It takes effort, but the benefits are numerous. Prosperity and success is within our reach, and we can be strong and courageous in Him, without fear, and without discouragement, because the Lord our God is with us wherever we go. Nice perk. If you're struggling a bit with the events and direction of your life, getting to know Him and His Word just a little bit better goes a long way to clearer sailing ahead. 

Speak Life, Live in Truth

For Sunday:  Try to make positive strides to speak words of encouragement and life into all those around you. Know His Word and read it often. By faith, live always in His truth. His Spirit is always within you, guaranteeing your life with Him.

July's Message, Day 31: For Sunday

Live your life by faith. Live your life for Him. Speak the words you'd like to hear yourself. Start fresh this day and resolve to be different and make a positive difference.

Day 25:

Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin. Proverbs 13:3 NIV

And:
The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21 NIV

Day 26:

Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ...but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. James 3:5,6,8-10 NIV

Day 27:

Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks deceitfully. With their mouths they all speak cordially to their neighbors, but in their hearts they set traps for them. Jeremiah 9:8 NIV

Day 28:

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16 NIV

Day 29:

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: Ephesians 4:14-15 NIV

Day 30:

Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:5-8 NIV

The Divine Whisper is there to guarantee your place with Him. He is there to give you understanding to His Word. He is there to make you the person He created you to be.

Live by Faith, Not by Sight

The Holy Spirit lives within all believers to guarantee the day when our spirit will live with Him and we'll be given our new glorified bodies. This life is a life of faith, for our eyes can certainly deceive us, and we can only partially see the reality of all that God is and all that He has created.

July's Message, Day 30:

Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:5-8 NIV

God has given us the Holy Spirit, who resides within us, guaranteeing our salvation and our new glorified bodies that we receive at Christ's coming for the church, the rapture. As long as we are in these perishable bodies we are away from His intimate presence, but when we die, our spirit goes to Him, and at the rapture we receive our imperishable bodies for eternity. Yes, we await that wonderful and glorious day! We long for this day looking forward to it by faith, "For we live by faith, not by sight." Our sight only gives us a dim and partial perception of all that there truly is in all God's creation. The spiritual realm is invisible, and scientists also "believe" that much of our universe is made up of "dark matter" and "dark energy", unable to be visualized or easily determined, yet mathematical formulas tell us it must be there. Do not just trust in what you see, but have faith in what you believe and know to be true. 

The Author and Final Authority of Truth

What is "truth"? Truth is God and truth is His Word. Truth surpasses all logic and all proof and sometimes the only way to definitively know truth is to have faith in the origin of all truth - Him. Learn everything you can, know His Word well, and remember that truth lies in Him - He's the author and the final authority.

July's Message, Day 29:

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: Ephesians 4:14-15 NIV

As mature believers, we must know what God's Word says and what His Word means. Otherwise, it is quite easy for the world and the enemy to quickly deceive us into believing something contrary to God's Word, His truth, that by which everything else must be measured and subject to. Satan has perfected the art of half-truths, which are absolutely the most dangerous, since on the surface they sound logical and legitimate. One can only discern the error by careful analysis and true knowledge of His Word. This does not mean that the sciences or knowledge that we obtain from this world is all bad, for in fact, God is the author of everything in creation, and we are simply trying to discover and understand it all. You must continually use a balance scale to weigh the "facts" as it compares to His truth. Truth is greater than all logic, and greater than all proof, and sometimes faith is the only bridge bringing us to truth, surpassing all logic and proof. It may sound quite contrary, but remember, God uses the simple to confound those who seem wise in their own eyes. Learn everything you can and use every intellectual tool at your disposal to understand and make sense of it all, and at the end of the day remember to weigh it all with your faith in His Word.

Throne of Grace

Mercy and grace lie waiting in His presence. We can boldly enter into His throne room and become refreshed, renewed, and revitalized to make it through another overwhelming day of life. He says, "Come, come boldly in."

July's Message, Day 28:

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16 NIV

Christ made it possible for us to enter into the "Holy of Holies", the very throne room of God. The veil has been torn into two and we can boldly enter in to personally receive His unmerited mercy and grace. That's nice to remember when times get tough and we feel exhausted and overwhelmed with life. For most of us we need to knock on His door daily and enter into His forgiving and reviving presence. He says, "Come, come boldly, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Pure Thoughts, a Peaceful Heart, Bring Noble Words

Words come out of the wellspring of your heart. Focus on pure thoughts, a peaceful heart with no ill will, and let His Spirit direct your speech. It takes practice daily to stay in the right frame of reference.

July's Message, Day 27:

Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks deceitfully. With their mouths they all speak cordially to their neighbors, but in their hearts they set traps for them. Jeremiah 9:8 NIV

Here we see again, that it's more than what we speak, it's about what is in our hearts and minds. We can let the negativity come out like a deadly arrow and speak poison and lies, or maybe even worse, we can speak cordially, yet harbor ill will and let it fester and boil deep within us. The cure must begin in our hearts and in our minds, by striving to continually think noble and pure thoughts and have the, "love your neighbor as yourself," attitude. No, not easy, but we need to practice that every day. To tame the tongue and cleanse the mind and have a tranquil heart takes lots of effort. Let His Spirit direct your thoughts and words and bring peace to your heart. 

The Untameable Tongue

Impossible to quench, like a raging wildfire, our tongues bring praises and curses alike. To curtail the tongue requires quieting the heart and cleansing the mind with His Word and time with Him. You'll be thankful at the end of each day for what you didn't say.

July's Message, Day 26:

Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ...but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. James 3:5,6,8-10 NIV

The tongue is truly untameable, virtually impossible to continually control. Out of our mouths come a mix of blessings and curses, nurturing and poison, encouragement and condemnation, and hope and despair. As James states, "this should not be." Yet out of our mouths simply flow the thoughts in our minds. If we could get a reign on our thoughts, we might have a chance to reign in our tongues. It is only by continually renewing our minds, by washing them clean with His Word, that we stand a chance to control what comes out. If it is in our heart and in our mind, it will most definitely come out our mouth. So begin each day with a fresh cleansing of your heart and mind with His Word and time with Him. At the end of the day you'll be thankful for what you didn't say.