Weapons Will Form Against You

Isaiah 54:15 says, 

“If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing;
    whoever attacks you will surrender to you.

16 “See, it is I who created the blacksmith
    who fans the coals into flame
    and forges a weapon fit for its work.
And it is I who have created the destroyer to wreak havoc;


17     no weapon forged against you will prevail,
    and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
    and this is their vindication from me,”
declares the Lord.”

Note that verse 17 says that no weapon forged against you will prevail. The verse does not say that there will be no weapons forged. In other words, you may see weapons that are designed to hurt you or distract you from God. You may hear about weapons that have been crafted specifically to cause you harm.

But, stand firm in our God’s promise. This verse is a promise from God that He will not let you be harmed by the weapons that the enemy forges against you.

The promise also says that you will refute every tongue that comes against you, every accusation, every lie. Not only will the enemy’s weapons that were built specifically to hurt you fail, so will the lies the enemy is trying to spread.

How does this promise work? Verse 17 says that these promises are for the servants of the Lord. These are not promises that God makes to every person, but only to those who serve Him. How does someone serve God? Ephesians 6:6 says, “. . .do the will of God with all your heart.”

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for the promise that You will never leave us or forsake us. Thank You for Your love. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

How To Harm Your Enemy

People in life can hurt you. Sometimes they do not like you and you have no idea why that is. When you are hurt or a loved one is hurt by someone, it is natural to want to get revenge or to ‘pay back’ the person who caused the hurt.

Jesus calls us to a different way of dealing with those who have caused hurt in our lives. He tells us to leave the revenge to God. Paul writes in Romans 12:19,

“Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.”

When someone has hurt us or our loved ones, we are to make space for God to deal with that person. Any revenge you may be thinking about is nothing compared to God’s vengeance.

 Romans 19:20 continues, “On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

If you simply must do something, serve them – feed them or give them something to drink. Pray for them. Doing an act of service will heap burning coals on their head, which does not sound pleasant at all. Instead of plotting revenge, serve them and let God take care of things.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for the promise that You will never leave us or forsake us. Thank You for full access to Your loving arms. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

The Biblical Ways to Fight the Enemy

James 4:7 through 8 says, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

Resisting the devil is one way to fight. What does resistance look like? The dictionary defines resistance as “the refusal to accept or comply with”. Refuse to allow the enemy to take a foothold in your thoughts. Every time a thought shows up that is not pleasing to God, resist it. Pray it away, do not consider it one second more.

1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

This is a promise from God that He will not let you be tempted to the point where you are not strong enough to resist the temptation. You are strong enough.

The promise also says that God will provide a way out. When temptation comes into your life, look for the way out. The way out is there the same time the temptation is. Your role is to take the way out that God provides. Do not spend one second in temptation, take the way out!

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for the promise that You will never leave us or forsake us. Thank You for Your love. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Until Death Do Us Part

Isn’t it wonderful to know that there is Someone Who will never leave you? He has always been by your side, is by your side and will always be by your side.

No matter how mean you act, how bad you think you are or how much you want Him to leave you alone, He is right there. Until death do you part.

“For that is what God is like. He is our God forever and ever, and he will guide us until we die.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭48‬:‭14‬ 

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for the promise that You will never leave us or forsake us. Thank You for full access to Your loving arms. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

The Potter’s Wheel

There are times that many of us ask what is the point to life? Or sometimes the question sounds more like why am I here? Am I missing out on what I am supposed to be doing? Am I spending the time that I have left wisely?

Isaiah 29:15-16 says, “What sorrow awaits those who try to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their evil deeds in the dark! “The Lord can’t see us,” they say.

“He doesn’t know what’s going on!”

16 How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it,    

“He didn’t make me”?

Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”?

Every day, the Potter’s wheel is shaping us. It’s like the Earth, a ball of dirt and water, as it spins we are being shaped by the hands of God. Sometimes we will feel clean and and sometimes we will feel muddy. We may feel like we are on a circular ride with no end. While we can focus on the spinning or the mud, instead, try to focus on God’s hands holding you. Yes, sometimes it is uncomfortable the way He is shaping us. His goal is to mold us to be more like His Son, Jesus. As humans, we are born full of sin and so the Father works on us throughout our lives to draw us closer to His thoughts and ways.

Isaiah 64:8 says, “And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.”

Trust God. Seek Him every day. When you hear Him speak, obey. We are the clay, He will shape us. We just need to be ready to be molded by His hands.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for the promise that You will never leave us or forsake us. Thank You for holding us in Your loving hands. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

How to Grow Wealth: Lesson 4

There are many people that want to get rich or grow wealth is another way to say it. Did you know that the Bible tells you how, step by step?

Lesson 4 is to give generously to God’s work.

Step 1 is to tithe (give ten percent to God’s Kingdom) of every dollar God gives you. Step 2 is to take care of your family, especially those in your household. Step 3 is pay off all debts you have, this can be financial or emotional debt. Step 4 is to give, and give generously.

To give generously may sound contradictory to building wealth. Much of the Bible is opposite of the way the world thinks. Read Luke 6:38, “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”

Wow, did you read that? The amount that you give will determine the amount that you get back. Be wise in your giving, research charities to ensure they are working to advance the love of God in this world. Listen for the Holy Spirit to prompt you, all that you have is His anyway. Giving does not mean just money, but time or things. So, give, generously – but only if you want that amount back.

As you are working on Step 4, never stop doing Steps 1, 2 and 3. God blesses obedience. You will get discouraged, the enemy will try to disrupt your Godly plans. Do not fall for those senseless thoughts, they are the same old tricks. You are stronger and wiser.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for His sacrifice that provides us access to the loving arms of our Father in heaven. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

How to Grow Wealth: Lesson 3

There are many people that want to get rich or grow wealth is another way to say it. Did you know that the Bible tells you how, step by step?

Lesson 3 is to pay off all debts.

Read Romans 8:13, “Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law.”

Step 1 is to tithe (give ten percent to God’s Kingdom) of every dollar God gives you. Step 2 is to take care of your family, especially those in your household. Step 3 is pay off all debts you may have. You may have financial debt or emotional debt.

If you have hurt someone, apologize. Pray for them to have peace and be blessed. Read Matthew 5:23 and 5:24, “So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.”

If the person is no longer in your life or has died, apologize out loud to them.

You may have financial debt. There are many ways to pay off debt and it depends on how much debt you have and what kind. But start. Just start somewhere. Set aside a dime a day, a dollar a day and then at the end of the month, send that money to the credit card company or whatever lender you have. If you can set aside more than a dollar a day – do it. Either pay off the smallest debt you have first if you want a quick result or tackle the biggest debt you have if that would be encouraging to you to see that balance decreasing.

Do not create new debt. Live on less money than God gives you. If you need help paying for food or shelter, ask for help. There is an app called FindHelp, it lists all the local programs based on your location that can assist with food, shelter, mental health services and more. There are also programs that are offered by local churches that can offer food or shelter. Asking for help may not be the easiest thing to do, but God will bless the steps you take to obey.

As you are working on Step 3, never stop doing Steps 1 and 2.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the blood of Jesus. Thank You for His sacrifice that provides us access to the loving arms of our Father in heaven. Help us to walk by faith and Your Word. Help us to be an example of Your love to everyone we encounter. Lord, help us to grow in You each day. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.