Power to Overcome

by Joyce Meyer - posted May 21, 2013

But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you . . .  — Acts 1:8

No one’s life is everything he or she wants it to be. We all have challenges and struggles, sometimes even heartbreaks and tragedies. I have never met one person who could honestly say, “My life has always been every bit as wonderful as I always dreamed it would be.”

God’s job is not to make us happy or to give us the lives we’ve always hoped for. Often, we so desperately want unsaved people to become Christians that we tell them their lives will be better if they will just receive Jesus. In many ways, this is true, but sometimes we paint such a rosy picture that we lead people to believe they will never have another problem again for the rest of their lives and everything will be wonderful if they will simply ask Jesus to be their Lord and Savior. This is not true.

Jesus did not come to give anyone a life of leisure; Jesus came to give us abundant life, but not a trouble-free life. Part of the abundance He offers those who belong to Him is the power of His Spirit to overcome what others cannot.

As believers, we have the power of the Holy Spirit to help us deal with circumstances differently than nonbelievers do. When we are in Christ, we are supernaturally anointed to live our natural, ordinary lives in supernatural ways. We can be at peace in the midst of a crisis, and we can be positive when everything around is gloomy and depressing.

Why? Because we can choose joy, peace, positive attitudes, and stability. We can overcome the negative situations that are part of life, but we must choose to do so.
Love God Today: “Lord, thank you for the power of the Holy Spirit to help me deal any circumstance that comes my way.”

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer. Copyright © 2011 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords. All rights reserved.

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submitted by: Keturah

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The Follower's Investment

"...store up for yourselves treasures in heaven...

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Matt. 6:20-21

The encounter began one way but ended in quite another fashion! One can only imagine the response of the disciples as they listen closely for Jesus' answer to the rich young ruler who has surprised them all with his abrupt entrance as he runs to Jesus and falls on his knees. His question reverberates through the ages of time: "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Perhaps Peter already began to formulate the answer that Jesus will surely give. He may also have begun to imagine what a relief it will be to their common purse to have someone like this as their companion. Jesus' response opens up a conversation which we have need of even though it is very contrasting to popular preoccupation with the presumed advantage of having wealth. Jesus places a higher value on following Him than on keeping the treasure for oneself! "Go and sell and give" are the primary words in Jesus' prerequisite to the invitation "then come and follow me".

Not only is the rich young ruler baffled (and turned away!) by this response, the disciples themselves were amazed at this totally controversial reply of Jesus. This passage in Mark 10:17 through 31 opens up an essential conversation. Jesus inserts the " impossible with men and possible with God" phrase. That is a loud clue that nothing about this whole episode follows the patterns of natural (and popular!) thinking. Peter seeks confirmation from the Lord that the decision of the disciples to "leave everything" has been right for both the "now" and the "forever" phase of life. Jesus solidly affirms the relationship of "leaving" to "receiving". He reveals to them (and to you and me) that treasure in heaven as well as rewarded provision on earth are His commitment to His followers.

Laying up treasure in heaven is real. That word "treasure" in the original language fits our modern vocabulary of wealth portfolios; it means "deposit and wealth". Laying up treasure in heaven is more than just poetry confined to church. It is the essential revelation to what really matters! "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." The Apostle Paul, whose total life exemplifies "leaving for the sake of" declares the reality of anticipated, eternal rewards as he writes his final letter to young Timothy. (II Tim. 4:6-8) Treasure in heaven "makes $ense" of life which is so short and eternity which is so l-o-n-g! Being involved with our Lord in "the eternal" is an essential measurement for our investments of time and talents. Eternity is near. A prophetic understanding will have eternity at its very core. Let's restore the declaration so popular in a previous hour to the walls of our lives and hearts: "Only one life 'twill soon be past; only what's done for Christ will last!"*

With rejoicing,

Rev. Peggy I. Kennedy

www.TwoSilverTrumpets.ca

"Sounding a prophetic voice to Canada and beyond..."

*from the poem by C.T. Studd (italics added)

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God's Kindness

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. (Titus 3:4-5)

How did the kindness of God appear? Through the life of Jesus Christ. That's the greatest, most complete picture of kindness we'll ever know. God saw a whole lot of hurt, brokenness and despair. He saw people with no hope of breaking free from pain and suffering. And so he sent his Son to the rescue. There wasn't any logical reason for him to do that. No one deserved his kindness—we really brought the suffering on ourselves (see Romans 3:23). But thankfully, God didn't treat us like we deserved.

Do you understand why we didn't deserve God's kindness? Titus 3:3 offers an explanation: "At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures … " The word that really sticks out to me here is "enslaved." That's what sin does to us. Like a prisoner shackled and chained in the deepest, darkest dungeon, our disobedience—our desire to do things our own way rather than God's—stood between us and freedom. We were deceived by the things the world said would make us happy—clothes, cars, popularity. And we were captives to the lusts of our flesh. But when we accepted the truth—that true life comes only through Christ—the chains were broken and we were set free.

God knew what we needed before we even asked for it. That's kindness—the ability to recognize the needs of others and take steps to meet those needs. Kindness is understanding. It's compassion.

What About You?

1.  Besides giving you salvation, what are some other ways God has shown you kindness? Make a list of them.
2. Read the list over, then write a letter to God thanking him for all the different ways he's been kind to you.
3.  Ask God to help you recognize his incredible kindness more and more.

 

Source: http://www.christianitytoday.com/iyf/2002/junjul/15.10.html

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April Fool's...Revisited

The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." Psalms 14:1

April Fool’s Day…a day made internationally famous because it is “widely recognized and celebrated as a day when people play practical jokes and hoaxes on each other”. But beyond the “tricks” of this day, the Bible has a lot to say on what it means to be a fool.  I was surprised to discover over 50 references* to the nature of a fool in the English Standard Version of the Bible alone!

Perhaps one of the most well-known reference to a fool is found in Psalms 14:1: The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." I used to think that this verse was referring to the atheist who refuses to acknowledge that there is a God who created this world.  But I have come to understand that there are many more ways to say in our heart“There is no God”. Attitudes of doubt, fear, complaint, ungratefulness, pride, strife and unforgiveness testify to the world what we are saying in our heart.  Because these attitudes often result in behaviours that are not in keeping with a Spirit-filled life, we are essentially saying in our hearts – if not our lips - “There is no God”.  God’s power, His Spirit, His grace and His provision is insufficient…therefore He does not really exist.

As we enter into the second quarter of what has been a God-empowered year, perhaps now is a good time to check our heart condition.  What message is “our heart”, our priorities and our actions sending out?  Ultimately we are either declaring there is no God or there is a God -  a mighty, loving, powerful, promise-keeping, sin-delivering, grace-giving, fate-controlling and all-sufficient Father God  - and I am His beloved child.

Family, let’s not be “fooled” today or any other day!

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http://www.openbible.info/topics/fool

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