Shalom,

Today I want to share again from Joseph Prince's "Daily Grace Inspirations" devotional!

Jehovah Shalom Is Your God

Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen. Romans 15:33

I’m sure you want the Lord to manifest Himself as the God of peace when you are fearful. So let’s go deeper into what the “God of peace” means.

Don’t forget that Paul was Jewish, so when he said “the God of peace be with you” he was saying “Jehovah Shalom be with you.” “Jehovah Shalom” is Hebrew for “the God of peace.” Now, the first appearance of the name Jehovah Shalom is in the Old Testament story of Gideon in Judges 6.

As we read Gideon’s story, we discover that the Midianites terrorized Israel day and night, descending upon them like a swarm of marauding locusts and destroying their crops and pillaging their livestock. Fearful of their cruel enemies, the Israelites hid in dens and caves in the mountains.

It is no wonder Gideon was petrified and hid himself at the bottom of an abandoned winepress to thresh the measly stalks of dry grain he had somehow managed to scavenge. He was bound by fear and overcome by all the news of terror that surrounded him.

In the midst of Gideon’s fear, “the Angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, ‘The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valor!’” (Judges 6:12).

When you find the expression “the Angel of the LORD” in the Old Testament, it usually refers to our Lord Jesus in His preincarnate state. Jesus Himself appeared to Gideon when he was in the pit of fear and called him a mighty man of valor. Isn’t that amazing?

Are there moments when you feel besieged by fear? When you hear reports of terror or exposure to some virus, do you feel fearful and anxious? Has fear driven you into hiding? The truth is, regardless of how you feel, when our Lord Jesus looks at you right now, He sees you as a mighty man or mighty woman of courage.

Isn’t it amazing how our Lord looks at us? It’s not how we see ourselves that defines us; it is how our Lord Jesus sees us that defines us. That’s why we read His Word. We read it to discover what His Word says about us. My friend, no matter what state you are in right now and how messed up your life might be, the Lord Jesus sees the best in you.

He sees your potential, your gifting, your call, and your destiny to do great things in this life! And as the ending of Gideon’s story shows, He will guide you and cause you to be a testimony of His protection as you trust in Him and see yourself and your situations through His eyes.

AMEN! Here is Brooke Ligertwood with "Bless God":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom, 

I LOVE today's "My Utmost For His Highest" devotional by Oswald Chambers!

The Never-Failing God

For He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. — Hebrews 13:5

What line does my thought take? Does it turn to what God says or to what I fear? Am I learning to say not what God says, but to say something after I have heard what He says? “He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”

“I will in no wise fail thee” (rv) — not for all my sin and selfishness and stubbornness and waywardness. Have I really let God say to me that He will never fail me? If I have listened to this say-so of God’s, then let me listen again.

“Neither will I in any wise forsake thee” (rv). Sometimes it is not difficulty that makes me think God will forsake me, but drudgery. There is no Hill Difficulty to climb, no vision given, nothing wonderful or beautiful, just the commonplace day in and day out — can I hear God’s say-so in these things?

We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing, that He is preparing and fitting us for some extraordinary thing by and by, but as we go on in grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, in the present minute. If we have God’s say-so behind us, the most amazing strength comes, and we learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways.

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "Coat Of Many Colors":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share from Kenneth and Gloria Copeland's "Faith To Faith" devotional!

Free From Fear

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

What would you think if I told you that you could live without fear? Would you believe me if I said that despite what you saw on the news tonight, you could be perfectly at peace? Impossible? Unrealistic? No!

You see, fear isn’t just a reaction to external circumstances. It’s a spiritual force. It begins inside of you. And it is totally destructive. In fact, fear is Satan’s primary weapon. He moves in response to fear, the way God moves in response to faith. He challenges the promises of God with it.

An excellent example of this is found in Matthew 14 when Jesus invited Peter to come to Him on the water. “But when he [Peter] saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me” (verse 30).

What enabled Peter to walk on the water? His faith in the Word of Jesus. What caused Peter to sink? He saw the wind boisterous and he was afraid. It wasn’t the wind that defeated him, it was his fear of it! He looked at his circumstances, gave in to the fear, and the result was defeat. If Peter had kept his focus on Jesus, his faith would never have wavered. All the blustering and blowing in the world couldn’t have drawn him off course.

Faith is developed by meditating on God’s Word. Fear is developed by meditating on Satan’s lies. Such fearful meditation is called “worrying.” Don’t do it!

The Word of God is the sword of the Spirit. Use it to fight Satan every time he comes against you. Hold up your shield of faith and quench all of his fiery darts. Speak words of faith and fear will depart.

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "Tear Off The Roof":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I LOVE today's "Faith Food" devotional by Kenneth E.Hagin!

In His Image

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness . . . . So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him . . . . — GENESIS 1:26-27

For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people . . . . — PSALM 149:4

If man is made in the likeness of God, and God is a Spirit, then man, of necessity, must be a spirit.

God made man for His own pleasure. He made man to fellowship with Him. Man is not an animal. Man is in the same class with God; otherwise, he couldn’t fellowship with God.

Did you ever try to fellowship with a cow? Cows are in a different kingdom than you are in. They are in a different class. You can’t fellowship with them.

But we can fellowship with one another. And we can fellowship with God, because we are in the same class of being as God.

God is a Spirit. And man, created in the image and likeness of God, is also a spirit being.

Confession: God is a Spirit, and I am a spirit. I am created in God’s image and in His likeness. I am in the same class of being as God. I can give God pleasure. I can fellowship with Him.

AMEN!! Here is Pat Barrett with "Praise The Lord Forever":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I absolutely LOVE our Spoken Word Church devotional for today! 

Screen Doubters

Screen doors prevent obnoxious insects from entering your home. You must assertively screen out people who are carriers of the virus of doubt and unbelief.

Boldly protect your ears and life from absorbing talk that does not edify and build.

"But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men."  (Matthew 16:23)

"A little leaven leaventh the whole lump."  (Galatians 5:9)

AMEN! And this is something that only YOU can do in your life! Do whatever it takes to protect your heart and  mind so that hearing from Holy Spirit will not be hindered! The BEST way to do this is to maintain a heart of GRATITUDE! Here is Brandon Lake with that very song!

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share again from Kenneth E. Hagin's "Faith Food" devotional! I want to remind you that this blog is simply providing nuggets of knowlesdge of the Word to add to your own personal study of the Word! 

Working In Me

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. — PHILIPPIANS 2:13

Another translation of this verse reads, “For it is God who is at work within you . . . .”

I like to put Philippians 2:13 together with First John 4:4: “. . . greater is he that is in you [and that means me] . . . .” God is in me!

What is God doing in me?

He is at work in me.

What is God working at?

Both to will and to do of His own good pleasure.

What is His own good pleasure?

His pleasure is that I have everything the Word of God says I can have — that I do everything the Word of God says I can do. God is enabling me! God is in me, and my spirit rejoices. My heart is glad that I can turn God loose in me. I can let God have right-of-way in me. I can put God to work even to a greater degree in my life.

How can I do this?

First, I can do it by believing in my heart that God is in there, and that the Word of God is true. Then, I can boldly confess with my mouth, for I will not enjoy the reality of what the Word states is mine or what I believe until I confess it with my mouth. The Bible teaches that “. . . with the heart man believeth . . . and with the mouth confession is made unto . . .” (Romans 10:10).

Confession: God is in me. God is at work within me. God works through me!

HALLELUJAH! Here is Brandon Lake with "God Is Not Agsinst Me":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I LOVE today's devotional by Andrew Wommack!

His Will Is In The Word

John 17:17 'Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.'

In this prayer, Jesus prayed twice that the Father would keep His disciples from evil. Then He reveals the way that God will accomplish this - through His Word, the holy scriptures. Anyone who desires to live for God, reject the devil, and reject the world's system, must know God's Word.

We must study the scriptures, for they reveal the will of God for our actions and attitudes. To be filled with the knowledge of God's will, we must be filled with God's Word. God's Word is His will! Those who are ignorant of God's Word will be ignorant of God's will.

Knowledge of God's will is foundational in developing Christian conduct and character. There is no way we can fulfill God's will if we don't know what it is. The starting point for any Christian is understanding God's will for his life. How can a person obtain such knowledge? The first step is to desire it. Jeremiah 29:13 says, 'And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.' People ask the Lord for knowledge of His will but don't receive it because they aren't seeking with ALL THEIR HEART. No one who has ever sought the Lord with all his heart has ever been disappointed.

The Holy Spirit is the dispenser of God's wisdom. It is through Him that we know the things God has revealed to us. One of the primary ministries of the Holy Spirit is to reveal God's will to us.

There is no way we can walk worthy of the Lord and please Him if we don't know His will. Furthermore, we can't be fruitful without the knowledge of His will. God has provided all that we need to be successful and victorious in this life. Believe His Word.

AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Your Word":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

 I REALLY LOVE today's "Faith Food" devotional by Kenneth E. Hagin!

The Law Of Life

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. — ROMANS 8:2

Dr. John G. Lake went as a missionary to Africa in 1908. The deadly bubonic plague broke out in his area. Hundreds died. He cared for the sick and buried the dead. Finally the British sent a relief ship with medical supplies and a corps of doctors. The doctors sent for Lake to come aboard. They asked him, “What have you been using to protect yourself?”

“Sirs,” Lake replied, “I believe the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. And as long as I walk in the light of that law of life, no germ will attach itself to me.”

“You had better use our preventatives,” the doctors urged.

“No,” Lake said, “but I think you would like to experiment with me. Take some of the foam that comes from the victims’ lungs after death, and examine it under the microscope. You will find the masses of living germs remain alive for a while after the man is dead. Fill my hand with the foam and examine it under the microscope. Instead of remaining alive, the germs will die instantly.”

The doctors made the experiment and what Lake said proved true. When the doctors expressed wonder at what caused it, Lake told them, “That is the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.”

Confession: The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "Tear Off The Roof":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Oswald Chambers' "My Utmost For His Highest" devotional!

Unquestioned Revelation

And in that day ye shall ask Me nothing. — John 16:23

When is “that day”? When the Ascended Lord makes you one with the Father. In that day you will be one with the Father as Jesus is, and “in that day,” Jesus says, “ye shall ask Me nothing.” Until the resurrection life of Jesus is manifested in you, you want to ask this and that; then after a while you find all questions gone, you do not seem to have any left to ask. You have come to the place of entire reliance on the resurrection life of Jesus which brings you into perfect contact with the purpose of God. Are you living that life now? If not, why shouldn’t you?

There may be any number of things dark to your understanding, but they do not come in between your heart and God. “And in that day ye shall ask Me no question” — you do not need to, you are so certain that God will bring things out in accordance with His will. John 14:1 has become the real state of your heart, and there are no more questions to be asked. If anything is a mystery to you and it is coming in between you and God, never look for the explanation in your intellect, look for it in your disposition, it is that which is wrong. When once your disposition is willing to submit to the life of Jesus, the understanding will be perfectly clear, and you will get to the place where there is no distance between the Father and His child because the Lord has made you one, and “in that day ye shall ask Me no question.”

AMEN! Here is UNITED with "Say The Word":

Shalom In Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Jerry Savelle Ministries devotional!

From Disaster to Victory

But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. Genesis 50:20 NKJV

If you knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that your present adversity was going to turn into a glorious victory, would you give up and quit?

In the hands of God, the very thing that may look like a total disaster today can turn into a wonderful victory tomorrow. He can turn your tears of sorrow into tears of joy. And even while you are under attack, you can have joy in your heart and laugh at the devil because you know you already have the victory and will come out stronger in the end.

Joseph was a man who went through decades of adversity and unimaginable loss. But he held fast to a vision God had given to him as a young man. In the end, Joseph saw that vision come to pass as he was put in charge of a nation.

I don’t know what trial you may be going through today, but if you will exercise your faith and allow patience to have her perfect work, you will experience the Lord’s compassion and mercy. In the natural, you may be facing a disaster, but God can use the very situation the devil has brought against you and turn it into the greatest blessing you have ever experienced.

Choose to continue standing in faith. You have everything to gain by standing, and everything to lose by quitting. Don’t give up. Don’t quit believing the Word. God’s Word will bring you from disaster to victory.

Confession: I believe God will turn every adversity and disaster in my life around for my good. I will stand in faith and trust God to bring me from disaster to victory.

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "Turnaround":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I LOVE today's "Daily Grace Inspirations" devotional by Joseph Prince!

Be Forgiveness-Conscious

Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies. Psalm 103:2–4

Not too long ago, I was driving out for lunch with my wife, Wendy, and for some reason, every time she made a passing comment, I found myself snapping irritably at her or making an unnecessarily provocative remark.

Have you had one of those days?

When I reflected on why I was so irritable, I realized it was because I was actually feeling guilty about a couple of matters from earlier in the day. I hadn’t necessarily done anything wrong, but I’d just allowed a little bit of guilt to creep into my heart and unconsciously allowed condemnation to come in.

My friend, when you are walking under a cloud of judgment, you can become a really unpleasant person to be around. Trust me, I know what I am talking about. Even if you are an author of books about God’s grace and forgiveness, there can be moments where condemnation creeps into your heart and you are completely oblivious to it.

I thank God that when Wendy asked me if there was a reason for my irritability, He gave me that moment of clarity where I could see the condition of my heart. And praise Jesus for a discerning and perceptive wife who didn’t take my remarks personally and knew something was not right with me. I remember telling her to let me know the next time she noticed such behavior from me, because it’s so easy to slip into condemnation and guilt.

When you’re under guilt and condemnation, all day long you can feel lousy, and all your answers have a sting in them. That’s not the abundant life, and you know what it all comes back to? It comes back to having a constant sense of God’s forgiveness over your life. Instead of taking in and harboring all the guilt, condemnation, and judgment, we need to stand secure in our perfect forgiveness in Jesus.

There is a redeeming quality to being forgiveness-conscious, as opposed to being conscious of your failings, sins, and mistakes. When you are forgiveness-conscious and see your failings on the cross of Jesus, you receive power to break out of your irritability, impatience, and short-temperedness with others. You receive power to break out of your eating disorders, addictions, and anxieties!

When you realize that we don’t deserve God’s forgiveness and grace yet He gives it to us anyway, this revelation of His unmerited favor changes us from within. It dissolves the knots of anger and impatience in us that have built up over the years and frees us to enjoy God’s love and to show it to others!

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "That's Who I Praise!":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

We saw yesterday that sickness and disease is NOT the will of our Heavenly Father for us! SO what to do? Today's "Faith Food" by Kenneth E. Hagin should help!

Himself Took . . . And Bare

That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. — Matthew 8:17

In our text today, Matthew is quoting Isaiah 53.

When I first understood what this verse really meant, I rejoiced in it. Because when I read it, I was able to emphasize the word “our.” Jesus took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses. I am included in that “our”! He took my infirmities, and bore my sicknesses!

At this realization, I felt as the elderly woman did who suddenly turned up missing in London during World War II. Her neighbors didn’t see her in the bomb shelters during enemy air raids, so they assumed she had either been killed or had left town. When some of them saw her on the street several days later, they asked her where she had been. She answered that she hadn’t been anywhere.

“But what did you do during the bombing?” they asked.

She said, “I just stayed in bed and slept.”

“Weren’t you afraid?”

“No, after I read in the Bible that God neither slumbers nor sleeps, I decided there wasn’t any need for both of us to stay awake!”

Since Christ Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses, there isn’t any need for us to bear them. Jesus bore them so that we might be free!

Confession: Because Christ took my infirmities and bore my sicknesses, there is no need for me to bear them. I accept what Jesus has provided!

THIS has always been one of my favorites! Do YOU seriously believe the promises in the Word of God for YOU? I hope this helps! Here is Brandon Lake with "Kids":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I believe that you will LOVE today's "Faith Food" devotional by Kenneth E. Hagin!

Only Our Diseases

He was despised and shunned by men; a man of pains, and acquainted with disease; and as one who hid his face from us was he despised, and we esteemed him not. But only our diseases did he bear himself, and our pains he carried: while we indeed esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. Yet he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement for our peace was upon him; and through his bruises was healing granted to us. — ISAIAH 53:3-5 (Leeser)

I want to boldly state that it is not the will of God my Father that we should suffer from cancer and other dread diseases that bring pain and anguish. It is God’s will that we be healed!

How do I know? Because healing is provided for us under the New Covenant.

Isaiah chapter 53 gives us a graphic picture of the coming Messiah. This chapter deals with the disease and sin problems that confront the Church today.

God dealt with man’s body, as well as with his spirit and soul. God laid our iniquities and our sins upon Jesus — and Jesus bore them. God laid our diseases and our sicknesses upon Jesus — and Jesus bore them. Why? So that we might be free!

Confession: Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, bore my sins and iniquities. So I don’t have to bear them. He also bore my diseases and pains. So I don’t have to bear them. Because of Jesus, I am free. By His stripes, I was healed!

AMEN! Here is Brooke Ligertwood with "A Thousand Hallelujahs":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Rick Renner's "Sparkling Gems From The Greek - Volume 2":

WHEN CAN YOU BEAR ANOTHER'S BURDENS?

Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. — Galatians 6:2

Not so long ago, a precious woman in our congregation came to church looking sad and depressed. It was unusual to see her this way, because she was normally cheerful and full of faith. She sat in her chair, dropped her head, and began to weep. I wanted to go to her right then, but she had come into the service late, and I was on stage getting ready to step up to the pulpit to preach.

As I delivered my message, I kept glancing in her direction to see if she was still crying. Her head remained clutched in her hands, and I could see that she was sobbing about something that was greatly burdening her heart. When the service concluded, I went with my pastoral staff into the foyer to shake hands with people who were leaving the service. Soon she appeared in the line with heavy red eyes and a countenance that told me she was heartbroken over something.

I pulled her out of the line and called for my precious wife. Soon the two of them were sitting alone at the far end of the foyer where they could talk without anyone overhearing the conversation. The woman told Denise that her husband, who had been delivered from alcoholism, had started to drink again. That weekend he had been violent toward her and verbally abusive toward the children, acting like the old man he used to be. The woman’s heart was simply crushed, but by the time she and Denise were finished talking and praying together, her face had lightened up, her countenance had changed, and it was evident that God had stirred hope in her heart for her family.

I often think of how many church members come to church burdened by the cares of life. Perhaps the burdens they carry are due to finances, marriage, friendships, a problem at work, a child who is rebellious or who is running from God, a death in the family — the list of potential problems people face goes on and on.

It saddens me to think of the vast number of churchgoers who come into their church services feeling the weight of the world on their shoulders. These people wish that someone would help them or pray with them, but no one ever asks how they are doing. Never having an opportunity to tell anyone what is happening in their lives, they frequently leave a service just as burdened as they were when they first walked through the church doors.

Have you ever been so burdened by the cares of life that you thought you might be crushed by the weight of it all? Did you wish someone would crawl under that load and help you carry it? Perhaps you can remember times when you cried out to God, Please send someone to help me with these things that I’m dealing with in my life right now!

In Galatians 6:2, the apostle Paul tells us, “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” Answer this question: When are we supposed to help bear someone else’s burden?

The word “burden” in this verse comes from the Greek word baros. It refers to a weight that is heavy or crushing. In fact, the word baros describes such a crushing weight that Paul used this same word in Second Corinthians 1:8 when he wrote about the terrible problems he and his traveling companions underwent in Asia. Paul wrote that these difficulties were of such a stressful nature that the men literally felt as if they were “pressed out of measure.” In Second Corinthians 5:4, he used the word baros once more when he said, “…[We] do groan, being burdened….” Again, this word refers to a load so heavy that it causes a person to feel that he is burdened or weighed down.

The word baros could refer to either a physical or a spiritual problem. For instance, this type of pressing burden could be a habitual sin that has plagued you and weighed you down year after year. Satan may try to use these kinds of weaknesses and faults to hinder or completely abort God’s plan for your life. That’s why it’s so important that these “burdens” be dealt with and defeated. If you are unable to do it alone, you need to seek the help of others to pull you through to a place of victory.

The point Paul is making here is that when a fellow believer is under a crushing weight — when he is under so much pressure that he feels like he’ll break if someone doesn’t get under that load and help him carry it — it is our Christian responsibility to help bear his burden, “…and so fulfil the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2).

In Galatians 6:2, the Greek expresses the following:

“When someone is burdened by crushing cares and difficult events in life that are too much for one person to carry all by himself, crawl up under that burden and help that person carry it, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

I want to encourage you today to be sensitive to the needs of others who are around you. When you go to church, go to work, or even spend time with your family and friends, ask the Holy Spirit to help you see when people are carrying too much by themselves. If you discern that they are burdened, go to them and ask, How can I pray for you today? What is happening in your life?

God may use you to bring real relief and freedom into someone’s situation. Perhaps just providing a listening ear is all that is needed to help that person get through his or her dilemma.

On the other hand, if an overwhelming problem, weakness, habit, or sin is pressing down on your life, you need to be humble enough to say, Hey, I need someone to pray with me! This is too much for me to do completely by myself! It may be difficult for you to open your heart and reveal your need, but it will be far more difficult for you to carry it alone until you eventually become emotionally devastated by that burden.

As brothers and sisters in the Lord, we need to do everything we can to step deeply into people’s lives in order to encourage and refresh them spiritually and to help them get through their problems. When we see someone struggling, we must be bold enough to ask that person how we can help! When we work together as a Body in this way, every need will be addressed and met!

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "Kids":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I REALLY LOVE today's "Daily Grace Inspiratsions" devotional by Joseph Prince!

Continue in God’s Grace

Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Galatians 3:3

How were you first impacted by Jesus? Was it through the law or was it His grace in your life that touched your heart? We all began our relationship with the Lord because we were impacted by His love and grace. Let us then continue in that grace.

Paul warned the Galatians against turning back to the law after beginning in grace. He said, “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace [unmerited favor] of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ” (Galatians 1:6–7).

Paul takes this very seriously. He calls any gospel apart from the gospel of grace (God's unmerited favor) a perversion. Attempting to be justified by the works of the Ten Commandments is a perversion of the gospel of Christ.

Paul asked the church in Galatia point-blank, “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh [self-effort]?" (Galatians 3:2–3).

Paul was saying to them, "You began by believing in His grace, why are you now depending on your works? That is foolishness! You should be continuing in His unmerited favor!” These are strong words by Paul.

Don’t start with grace and end up with the law. Don’t start with the new covenant, only to turn back to the old covenant! There are those who say that they are not justified by the law, but believe that they should keep the law for sanctification. My friend, both justification and sanctification come by our faith in Jesus' finished work alone.

When you are established in the new covenant of grace, you will experience a tremendous sense of confidence and security in Christ. When your confidence is in His unmerited favor and not your performance, you will not feel as if you are constantly jumping in and out of His favor and acceptance.

It is unfortunate that some believers have put themselves back under the old covenant without realizing it. Sometimes, they feel that God is on their side, but at other times, they feel that God is far away from them. Sometimes, they feel that God is satisfied with them, but at other times, they feel that God is angry with them.

All these feelings are based predominantly on their own evaluation of how they have performed, how they feel about themselves, and not how God sees them. Because there is no new covenant scriptural basis for such evaluations, they end up arbitrarily deciding if they are deserving of God’s blessings and favor in their lives or not, when in fact, they actually have access to His blessings all the time, simply because of Jesus and His finished work at the cross.

Today, think, talk and act knowing that it is not about you or your works—it is about Jesus and Him alone, and step out into His blessings for you!

AMEN! Here Brandon Lake with "Count 'Em":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Here is a very exciting promise for you from Kenneth E. Hagin's "Faith Food" devotional!

Joint-Heirs

The Spirit itself [Himself] beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ . . . . — ROMANS 8:16-17

Do you think the people who lived under the Old Covenant could be more blessed than those in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ?

Do you think the people who lived under the Old Covenant could be blessed financially, and be well and healed, but those in the Church couldn’t?

Do you think that the Church, the Body of Christ, the Body of the Son of God, the Body of the Beloved, would have to struggle through life poverty-stricken, emaciated, wasted away with starvation, sick and afflicted, singing, “Here I wander, like a beggar, through the heat and cold”?

Away with such ideas!

The Bible declares that we are joint-heirs with Christ! Sons of God! Children of God! In the Kingdom of God!

We’re not beggars! We’re new creatures.

We’re blessed above all people.

Confession: The Holy Spirit Himself bears witness with my spirit that I am a child of God. God is my very own Father. I am His very own child. And since I am His child, then I am His heir. I am an heir of God — the Creator of the universe — and I am a joint-heir with Jesus Christ!

AMEN! Get THAT inside of you and you will never live in FEAR again! Here is Brandon Lake with "God Is Not Against Me"?:

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share again from Jerry Savelle Ministries devotional.

Success Is Conditional

But be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. But he who … is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. James 1:22, 25 NKJV

Some of God’s promised blessings are conditional. This means you have to do something or meet a certain condition to qualify for the expected result. When you meet the conditions, your success is guaranteed; you cannot fail. Other blessings from God are unconditional. For example, His love is always offered to you unconditionally—regardless of who you are or what you do.

While God’s love is always given unconditionally, success is never guaranteed: it is conditional. Although success and prosperity have been promised to all of God’s people, they will not automatically come to pass in your life. You must meet the conditions.

You might say, “Brother Jerry, when you talk about conditions, are you talking about getting back under the Law?”

No, I’m not. But I am telling you that nowhere in the Word of God will you find any statement that even suggests you can do absolutely nothing and expect God to bless you. In fact the Bible says, “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep—so shall your poverty come on you like a prowler, and your need like an armed man” (Proverbs 6:10-11 NKJV).

Although God will sometimes pour out acts of grace in a person’s life, the only way to guarantee success is to learn God’s conditions for success, and then act on them. Here’s the one Scripture that gives us insight how to obtain success:

This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success. Joshua 1:8 AMPC

Confession: I make a quality decision today to meditate on the Word of God day and night, and to be a doer of the Word, not a hearer only. As I do this, I will become prosperous and have good success in everything I set my hand to do.

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "The Great I AM Can":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I LOVE today's "My Utmost For His Highest" devotional by Oswald Chambers!

“Out Of The Wreck I Rise”

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? — Romans 8:35

God does not keep a man immune from trouble; He says — “I will be with him in trouble.” It does not matter what actual troubles in the most extreme form get hold of a man’s life, not one of them can separate him from his relationship to God. We are “more than conquerors in all these things.” Paul is not talking of imaginary things, but of things that are desperately actual; and he says we are super-victors in the midst of them, not by our ingenuity, or by our courage, or by anything other than the fact that not one of them affects our relationship to God in Jesus Christ. Rightly or wrongly, we are where we are, exactly in the condition we are in. I am sorry for the Christian who has not something in his circumstances he wishes was not there.

“Shall tribulation…?” Tribulation is never a noble thing; but let tribulation be what it may — exhausting, galling, fatiguing, it is not able to separate us from the love of God. Never let cares or tribulations separate you from the fact that God loves you.

“Shall…anguish…?” — can God’s love hold when everything says that His love is a lie, and that there is no such thing as justice?

“Shall…famine…?” — can we not only believe in the love of God but be more than conquerors, even while we are being starved?

Either Jesus Christ is a deceiver and Paul is deluded, or some extraordinary thing happens to a man who holds on to the love of God when the odds are all against God’s character. Logic is silenced in the face of every one of these things. Only one thing can account for it — the love of God in Christ Jesus. “Out of the wreck I rise” every time.

AMEN! Here, in THIS life! And He has soo much more for us in the next! Here is Brandon Lake with "Turnaround":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I LOVE today's "Faith Food" devotional by Kenneth E. Hagin!

Covenant Blessing

And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil. — EXODUS 23:25-26

As long as Israel walked in the covenant, there was no sickness among them. There is no record of a premature death as long as they kept the covenant. No babies, no young people, no middle-aged people died. With sickness taken away from the midst of them, they lived their whole lives out without disease, and then they just fell asleep in death. When it was time for them to go, they would lay hands on their children, pronounce blessings upon them, gather their feet up into bed, give up the ghost, and go home.

What does that have to do with us? God is the same God now that He was then! The Bible says that He does not change. God was against sin in the Old Testament (Old Covenant), and God is against sin in the New Testament (New Covenant). God was against sickness in the Old Testament — and God is against sickness in the New Testament. God made provision for healing in the Old Testament — and God has made provision for healing in the New Testament!

Confession: I love and serve the Lord my God as a New Covenant believer. Jesus has taken sickness away from the midst of me. If He tarries His coming, the number of my days I will fulfill!

HALLELUJAH! Our GREAT GOD has already made provision for us to be WELL in every area of our lives! Let's find out what HE SAYS belongs to US as CHILDREN of the MOST HIGH GOD! Here is Brandon Lake with "Plans":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share this from Oswald Chambers' "My Utmost For His Highest" devotional!

His Ascension And Our Union

And it came to pass, while He blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. — Luke 24:51

We have no corresponding experience to the events in Our Lord’s life after the Transfiguration. From then onwards Our Lord’s life was altogether vicarious. Up to the time of the Transfiguration He had exhibited the normal perfect life of a man; from the Transfiguration onwards — Gethsemane, the Cross, the Resurrection — everything is unfamiliar to us. His Cross is the door by which every member of the human race can enter into the life of God; by His Resurrection He has the right to give eternal life to any man, and by His Ascension Our Lord enters heaven and keeps the door open for humanity.

On the Mount of Ascension the Transfiguration is completed. If Jesus had gone to heaven from the Mount of Transfiguration, He would have gone alone; He would have been nothing more to us than a glorious Figure. But He turned His back on the glory, and came down from the Mount to identify Himself with fallen humanity.

The Ascension is the consummation of the Transfiguration. Our Lord does now go back into His primal glory; but He does not go back simply as Son of God; He goes back to God as Son of Man as well as Son of God. There is now freedom of access for anyone straight to the very throne of God by the Ascension of the Son of Man. As Son of Man Jesus Christ deliberately limited omnipotence, omnipresence and omniscience in Himself. Now they are His in absolute full power. As Son of Man Jesus Christ has all power at the throne of God. He is King of kings and Lord of lords from the day of His Ascension until now.

HALLELUJAH! One day, soon and very soon, JESUS is going to change born again believers on the earth in the blink of an eye and call us up to join Him in the air! THEN we will celebrate in Heaven! Until then, HE is leading, guiding and directing us here by His Spirit to carry out HIS will and plan and purpose! Let's be about our Father's business while we still have time! Here is Brandon Lake with "This Is A Move":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Kenneth and Gloria Copeland's "From Faith To Faith" devotional!

Step Out of the Boat

And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water….

It’s easy to be so afraid of making a mistake that you never get around to stepping out on faith. You can spend all your time wondering, Is this faith? Or is it presumption? What if I exercise my faith for something and find out later I’ve missed God’s will?

Don’t worry. God can handle any mistake you can make. I know because I’ve made plenty of them. When I did, I’d just go to the Lord and He’d tell me, Stay on the Word, son. Together we’ll overcome this thing. And we always did.

If you act on the Word out of the sincerity of your heart and you steadfastly stay with the Word, Jesus will never let you down…no matter how many dumb mistakes you make. He proved that the night Peter jumped out of the boat in the middle of the lake.

Have you ever stopped to think about that incident? Peter hadn’t been praying or seeking God’s will before he did that. On impulse he just blurted out, “Lord, if it’s You, bid me come.”

What was Jesus supposed to say? He couldn’t very well say, “It’s not Me.” I suppose He could have said, “Wait a minute now. You don’t have the faith to get out here. You’d better stay in that boat or you’re going to drown for sure.”

But He didn’t say that to Peter–and He won’t say it to you. If you want to get out and walk by faith, He’ll get out there with you and pick you up when you start sinking. He’ll walk you back to the boat if He has to.

It’s better to risk being presumptuous than to waste your life in the boat of unbelief! If you have to, just dive into the water and say, “God, help me!”

Don’t let fear keep you from taking that step of faith. Come on, get out of the boat today!

AMEN! Here is Brooke Ligertwood with "Bless God":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share from "My Utmost for His Highest!".

The Habit Of Rising To The Occasion By Oswald Chambers

That ye may know what is the hope of His calling…. — Ephesians 1:18

Remember what you are saved for — that the Son of God might be manifested in your mortal flesh. Bend the whole energy of your powers to realize your election as a child of God; rise to the occasion every time.

You cannot do anything for your salvation, but you must do something to manifest it, you must work out what God has worked in. Are you working it out with your tongue, and your brain and your nerves? If you are still the same miserable crosspatch, set on your own way, then it is a lie to say that God has saved and sanctified you.

God is the Master Engineer, He allows the difficulties to come in order to see if you can vault over them properly — “By my God have I leaped over a wall.” God will never shield you from any of the requirements of a son or daughter of His. Peter says — “Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you.” Rise to the occasion; do the thing. It does not matter how it hurts as long as it gives God the chance to manifest Himself in your mortal flesh.

May God not find the whine in us any more, but may He find us full of spiritual pluck and athleticism, ready to face anything He brings. We have to exercise ourselves in order that the Son of God may be manifested in our mortal flesh. God never has museums. The only aim of the life is that the Son of God may be manifested, and all dictation to God vanishes. Our Lord never dictated to His Father, and we are not here to dictate to God; we are here to submit to His will so that He may work through us what He wants. When we realise this, He will make us broken bread and poured-out wine to feed and nourish others.

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "I Know A Name":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Joseph Prince's "Daily Grace Inspirations" devotional for today is POWERFUL!

Your Answer Is Found in a Person

O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! Romans 7:24–25

The flesh in us can produce a whole gamut of emotions and thoughts, from defeat, jealousy, greed, and lust to anger, inferiority, condemnation, and arrogance. As long as we are in this physical body, the flesh is active in us.

But we can rejoice because when Jesus died on the cross, the Word of God tells us that He “condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). All the negative thoughts and toxic emotions from the flesh have already been judged and punished at the cross. Today we can experience victory over the flesh through the power of the cross.

You can read all about the apostle Paul’s struggle with the flesh in Romans 7:18–19: “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice”.

Did you notice how many times the words “I,” “me,” and “my” are mentioned in just the two verses above? I’m sure you can identify with the apostle Paul here in his struggle with the flesh.

It’s the struggle we all face when we are occupied with ourselves and warring with the flesh within us. It’s a life of vexation, angst, defeat, and despair.

This is not where God wants you to live, my friend. A believer doesn’t live in Romans chapter 7. Through Christ Jesus, we should be living in Romans chapter 8. Let’s read on and discover how Paul broke free from this bondage of self.

Just a few verses later, Paul cries out, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24). The answer, my friend, is found in a person, and Paul tells us this person is Jesus: “I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25).

Only our beautiful Savior, Jesus Christ, can deliver us from the flesh. And in Christ we can step into the first verse of Romans chapter 8, which proclaims, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (NASB).

This is where we as new covenant believers ought to live. Not in the domain of constant struggle and despair, but in the domain of no condemnation and victory.

AMEN! WE choose whether or not we will LIVE in the WORD of GOD every day! Here is Brandon Lake with "God Is Not Against Me":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share again from Kenneth E. Hagin's "Faith Food" devotional.

Chastening

That he might sanctify and cleanse it [the Church] with the washing of water by the word. — EPHESIANS 5:26

“You’ve forgotten,” someone said to me.

“What did I forget?”

“In the Book of Hebrews it says, ‘ . . .whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth . . .’” (Hebrews 12:6).

“No, I didn’t forget. That verse is still in there. But it doesn’t say, ‘whom the Lord loveth He makes sick.’”

People put their own interpretation on verses. “Chasten” in the Greek means to child train, to educate. You train your children. You send them to school. But did you ever tell the teacher, “If Johnny doesn’t do right, knock his eye out,” or “If Johnny is disobedient, break his leg,” or “Give him cancer.” No! That isn’t the way you discipline or train a child! And that’s not the way God does it either!

Confession: I am trained by the Word and the Spirit of God. I am educated by the Word and the Spirit of God. I am disciplined by the Word and the Spirit of God. With the washing of water by the Word, I am cleansed!

AMEN! Remember, the Word of God is TRUTH and there are no contradictions! Here is UNITED with "Say The Word":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

God has given us many instructions in His Word in order for us to live a BLESSED Life of freedom and blessing! Here is 

Any

Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. — JAMES 5:14-15

“Is any sick among you?”

Among whom?

The Church!

Then it must be God’s will to heal “any” of the sick in the Church!

And it can’t be God’s will for “any” in the Church to be sick!

“But, Brother Hagin, you’ve forgotten,” one person said.

“Forgotten what?”

“The Bible says that if we suffer with Him, we’ll reign with Him.”

“No, I haven’t forgotten,” I explained. “Let’s read it again: ‘ . . . if . . . we suffer WITH HIM . . .’ (Romans 8:17). Suffer what: Pneumonia? Cancer? Tuberculosis? No! Jesus didn’t suffer from any of these things.

What did Jesus suffer? Persecution. And you will, too, if you live right. Especially if you preach divine healing, the gifts of the Spirit, and faith. I’ve suffered persecution for more than sixty-five years, but I haven’t suffered sickness and disease.

Confession: It is God’s will for the Church, His Body, to walk in divine health. It is God’s will for me to be well!

AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "That's The Power":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Joseph Prince's "Daily Grace Inspirations" devotional!

Build Your Faith Upon His Promises

“He shall deliver you in six troubles, yes, in seven no evil shall touch you. In famine He shall redeem you from death, and in war from the power of the sword. You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and you shall not be afraid of destruction when it comes. You shall laugh at destruction and famine.”  Job 5:19–22

I believe the Lord gave me the above portion of scripture to strengthen you. Let’s take a closer look at the first verse: “He shall deliver you in six troubles, yes, in seven no evil shall touch you.”

Now, I have read this verse a number of times before, but the Lord quickened this scripture in me, so let me share this fresh insight with you. I want to specially address those who have been greatly discouraged in the area of protection. Perhaps you have experienced a very difficult or even tragic event, or are going through a very challenging situation right now. Can I encourage you to build your faith upon His promises and not upon your experiences?

The Word of God says that in this world, we will have trouble (John 16:33). The fact that God declares in His Word that He will deliver us from troubles tells us that we will experience troubles. But God wants us to know that the more we hear preaching on Psalm 91, the more we quote it and remind ourselves of the Lord’s protection daily, the more our faith in His protection will grow.

Faith comes from “hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17 NASB). The more we hear, the more we believe! The more we claim and pray the prayer of protection, the more we will walk in its blessings. That is the intention of this book—to saturate you with the hearing and hearing of the Lord’s protection promises for your life until your faith is robust and overflowing.

My friend, deliverance from trouble is fantastic, but there is a promise that is even greater, and that is when you are at that place where “no evil shall touch you.” That’s my prayer for you and your loved ones.

While we live in dangerous times, we have an almighty God who watches over us. May we all increase and have a progressive revelation of the Lord’s protection in these last days. While none of us, myself included, are there yet, we are on a journey of faith, of walking fully in the promises of God’s protection.

Let’s give thanks to the Lord for His deliverance from all our troubles as we continue to believe we will come to the place where no evil will touch our loved ones and us!

AMEN! Here is Brandon Lake with "Tear Off The Roof":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Kenneth E.Hagin's "Faith Food" devotional!

Healing Is Good

How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. — ACTS 10:38

Who anointed Jesus of Nazareth? God did! And Jesus said, “. . . the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” (John 14:10). How did God do these works of healings through Jesus? By anointing Jesus with the Holy Spirit and with healing power.

What did Jesus do with the anointing that God anointed Him with? He went about doing good! And what was the good Jesus did? Healing!

Therefore, it was actually God healing the people when Jesus healed them, because it was God who had anointed Jesus. God is in the healing business! He’s not in the sickness business!

Who was it Jesus healed? All that were oppressed of the devil. All! ALL! Everyone healed under the ministry of Jesus were oppressed of the devil. (This doesn’t mean that everyone had an evil spirit, but it does mean that the devil is behind all sickness.)

Yet to hear some people talk — even ministers — they would lead you to believe that God and the devil had swapped jobs in the last 2,000 years, and God is putting sickness on people, and the devil is healing them. But no! The devil is the same devil he has always been. And God is the same God!

Confession: Satan is the oppressor, not God. Jesus is the Deliverer!

AMEN! Remember: GOD APPOINTED JESUS OF NAZARETH! GOD APPOINTED YOU to do the same! Here is Brandon Lake with "Count 'Em":

Shalom in Him!