DAY 21: "Winning God's Way"

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 21: “Winning God’s Way”

Nobody wants to loose…….

-We hate loosing, we want to be on top, we want to be the best, we want our kids to be the smartest, prettiest, most talented and most successful. We want to live in the best, drive the best and be the best at all we do…. And the ones who say they don’t have in actuality just came to a conclusion that it’s not worth the effort because there will always be somebody better than you…..

-I’ve stopped being an Arkansas Razorback fan several times, JUST BRIEFLY,  because I hate to loose!!!!!!

-People have gone to extreme lengths just to win, just to be the best, risking life and limb.

-Taking harmful drugs to win, cheating to win, killing to win…. 

(in fact the Worlds first murder was over wanting to be the best, winning in the area of sacrifice.)

-God was pleased with Abel’s Sacrifice because it was in obedience to His Word and Law…

-God wasn’t pleased with Cain because his sacrifice was not what God required but what Cain wanted to do….

-God’s not looking for people who do it their own way, but that obey His Word!!!!

(Famous Words in our home to our kids) “Don’t do what you want to do, do what we say to do”

Cain was living life out of Selfish-Ambition, not Obedient-Sacrifice….

-The World teaches us to WIN at life with  Ambition not Obedience….

Philippians 2:3-4 “Let nothing be done through SELFISH-AMBITION or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. 4) Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

Galatians 5:26 “Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”

James 3:16 “For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.”

-The way the Word of God reads is that NOTHING GOOD comes out of the worlds way of WINNING……

-You can see it plain and clear in the latter years of a persons life… If they’ve stepped on, lied to and manipulated every person in their life to get ahead, they will be lonely, hateful, and confused at the end…  No matter the Worldly success they accomplished…..

1. We want to WIN God’s way, not the World’s way!!!!

-God wants you to WIN, He has gone to great lengths to assure that His Church doesn’t come in Last…. But is TRIUMPHANT OVER ALL THINGS!

Deuteronomy 28:12-14 (READ)

-God wants you on top, not on the bottom, He wants you to be the head and not the tail… God wants His people WINNING, and He says the Key to WINNING His way is how well you line up with His WORDS, not how ambitious you are!!!!!

In Matthew Chapter 4 The Devil was trying to tempt Jesus with Selfish-Ambition as a means of getting what He needed and wanted….

Verse 4 Jesus Says: “It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every WORD that proceeds from the mouth of God.”

-Jesus was telling the Devil, “Just because I have the ability to manipulate this situation to get what I need, I choose to obey the Word of God over selfish-ambition.”

-Yes, we have needs for life but if we choose to live our life trying to obtain worldly needs by worldly methods we’re not living the life that God intended. We’ll just be living the life that ambition produces!!

-We need to see every Word that comes from the Mouth of God as important as every drop of water that we need to drink in a day and every crumb of food that we need to eat….

Why is it that important????

II. Just like you are what you eat….You also are what you say!!!!

-The Words you consume will be the Words you speak and the Words you speak will be the life you create…..

Kenneth Hagin “Words make us or break us. Words heal us or make us sick. Words destroy us or make us full of life, happiness, and health. Our words-the words we spoke yesterday—made life what it is today…”

Jesus Himself said: “You shall have whatever you say you have…”

Mark 11:23 “….Whoever says to this mountain, be removed and cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says…..”

-You say that this only works with the positive things of God but I’m hear to tell you that doubt is just “FAITH IN REVERSE”…. Just like your words of Faith work if you believe it in your heart and speak it with your mouth… So does DOUBT!!!!!

Jesus said in Matthew 12:37 “By YOUR WORDS you will be justified, and BY YOUR WORDS you will be condemned.”

-It works both ways!!!! You can’t just say whatever you want and it not mean something to God, God takes WORDS seriously, He understands the power of Words because everything that He made, He made with Words….

Hebrews 11:3 “By faith we understand that the WORLDS were framed BY THE WORD of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible…”

Let’s go back and read Matthew 12 in the (AMP) “34) For out of the fullness (the overflow, the superabundance) of the heart the mouth speaks. 35) The good man from his inner good treasure flings forth good things, and the evil man out of his inner evil storehouse flings forth evil things. 36) But I tell you, on the day of judgement men will have to give account for every idle (inoperative, nonworking) word they speak. 37) For by your words you will be justified and acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned and sentenced.”

Proverbs 18:21 “Death and Life are in the power of the tongue.”

III. If you want to change your output in life, you have to change your input…

Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, acceptable, and perfect will of God.”

-If all you input is fear, worry, doubt, death, sickness, and words contrary to Who you are and what you have in Christ, then you will not be WINNING God’s way….

-If you want to WIN God’s way you are going to have to Win With Your Words!!!!

-What you say is directly connected to what you meditate and dwell on….

Philippians 4:8 “Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy- meditate on these things.”

Winning With Words is:

• Changing your input from the World to THE WORD

• Changing your Meditation from the World to THE WORD

• Produces a Change in your OUTPUT (What you say)

-You’ll be WINNING God’s way when you’re Saying what God Says…. 

Say what God Says:

• In your home                

• to your kids

• to your spouse

• on your job

• to your business

• When you’re sick

• When you’re broke

• WATCH YOUR MOUTH AND SAY WHAT GOD SAYS!!!

Day 20: "No Matter What, Stay Thankful!"

Today! 21 day Devotion By: H.R. Lister

Day 20: “No Matter What, Stay Thankful!”

• Overwhelming despair…

• Focusing on everything that’s not right…

• Only seeing what’s wrong…

• Never rejoicing in what’s good…

• Worried about who’s not supporting you, who’s not in your life…

• Only seeing what you don’t have, where you’re not in life thus far…

• You find yourself with nothing good to say, and your day consist of let down, failure, frustration and grumbling and complaining…..

You are in complete control of your joy and your despair…..

• a hopeless, critical, grumbling, mumbling, pitiful mindset is where Satan wants you… If he can bring you to this point mentally, he’ll control you spiritually, and destroy you physically!

Who wants to know how to stay out of this place and in a place of peace, love, joy, & contentment???

Here’s the key: THANKFULNESS!

Psalm 43:5 “Why are you in despair, my soul? Why are you disturbed within me? HOPE IN GOD, because I will praise him once again, since his presence saves me and he is my God.”

Phil.4:11-13 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

2 Cor. 4:8-9 “We are experiencing trouble on every side, BUT WE ARE NOT CRUSHED; we are perplexed, BUT NOT DRIVEN TO DESPAIR; we are persecuted, BUT NOT ABANDONED; we are knocked down, BUT NOT DESTROYED, always carrying around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our body….”

*Jesus not only Died for you, HE ALSO NOW LIVES FOR YOU!!!!!

1 John 4:4 “….GREATER IS HE WHO LIVES IN ME, THAN HE WHO IS IN THE WORLD!!!!”

Romans 8:11 “the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead now lives in us and is able to quicken our mortal bodies…”

-If we only knew and would realize that WE CAN THANK our way out of despair and  into JOY!! Out of Darkness into light, Out of bondage, into Freedom, Out of poverty and into plenty, Out of sickness and into health!!!!

-Or, you can gripe and complain your way out of abundance, into lack, out of heath into sickness, out of joy into depression!!!!

1 Samuel 30:6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.

-No matter what’s going on, even if it’s going really, really good…. You can always find something to gripe about!!!

-There are people living with no physical or financial lack that are depressed and not satisfied!!!!

-On the other hand, there are people sleeping on dirt floors that are full of joy and contentment!!!

-I’ve seen rich people that are depressed, poor people that are spoiled brats, skinny people that think their fat, pretty people that think they’re ugly, & rich people that think their poor!!!

-Happiness and contentment doesn’t come from a physical, emotional, educational or financial place!!!

-Happiness, Joy, peace, and contentment comes from a spiritual place and it’s accessed by THANKFULNESS!!!!

-No matter what state we are in, we can find something to THANK GOD for!!!

-No matter the circumstances we find our selves in, AS BELIEVERS, we never drop below the STATUS of “ETERNALLY SAVED!!!!” Heaven is our home, Jesus is our Lord, God is our Father and we are currently having a place prepared for our arrival, with no pain, nor sorrow, or discomfort of any kind!!!!

Paul in prison awaiting execution: Philippians 1:12-24 “ But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, 13) so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; 14) and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. 15) Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: 16) The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; 17) but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. 18) What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice. 19) For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20) according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21) For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22) But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. 23) For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. 24) Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you.

-Paul said, HE HAD A CHOICE!!! To die or live, to be depressed or rejoice!!!

-I’m convinced that he did have a choice… It was some time before that he and Silas found themselves in Prison at midnight…. AND THEY WORRIED, FEARED and COMPLAINED THEMSELVES OUT OF THAT SITUATION…… NO THAT’S NOT TRUE!!!

-THEY PRAISED AND THANKED, AND REJOICED THEIR WAY TO FREEDOM!!!!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “REJOICE ALWAYS!!!! 17) Pray without ceasing, 18) IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you….’

-If The Word of God says that Giving Thanks in every situation is the will of God for you, then that means, you’re out of the will of God when you complain about anything!!!

-It also means that complaining, gripping, worrying never fixes anything, but REJOICING, PRAYING and being THANKFUL brings the Will of God to pass in your life!!!!

-The Lord wants you free from worry, fear, anxiety, dissatisfaction, guilt, shame, condemnation, complaint and despair!!!!

1 Peter 5:5-7 “….God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 6) Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7) CASTING ALL OF YOUR CARE upon HIM, for HE CARES FOR YOU….”

Matthew 11:28-30  “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29) Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30) For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Homework: Every time you find yourself complaining or wanting to complain, Let thanks come from your lips instead!

You’ll confuse the Devil and spoil his plan of attack by meeting your hopeless situation with FAITH…

Complaining puts on a big show but gets nothing accomplished, Faith looks effortless but moves mountains!

Day 19: "Success after Failure

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 19: “Success after Failure”

How many of you love to fail?

I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say: I just love failing so much, I want to do it all the time!

But, how many of you have failed?

Sure, we’ve all failed at something…

Some failures are minor and some are major, meaning: Some carry heavier consequences than others…

Some failures affect something as minor as our mood that day and some can affect the entire future of our life and the lives of those around us…

“Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.” - Denis Waitley (Motivational Speaker)

“If an inventor fails 999 times, and succeeds once, he’s in. He treats his failures simply as practice shots.”

– Charles F. Kettering (Inventor, Founder of AC Delco, Head of research at GM from 1920-1947)

“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”

– Henry Ford

(One British Author wrote:) “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default.”

“Failure isn’t fatal, but failure to change might be.”

– John Wooden (UCLA Basketball coach, 10 championships in 12 yrs. with a streak of 7 in a row)

• I hate FAILING!!!! I never want to be called a failure or be associated with failures! I’ve seen enough failure in my life…

• Failed marriages, failed careers, failed relationships, failed sobriety, failed financial situations, failed ministries, failed churches, failed pastors and mentors…. I don’t like it and that attitude can really keep you from becoming who God has called you to be…

• THE FEAR OF FAILURE!!!!

-We can’t be scared to fail, or live in fear to the point we’re scared to step out in faith….

• So… What do we do when we have failed?

• How do you find success after failure?

 Someone we can look at in the Bible for encouragement is Peter…

One thing we know about Peter, HE WASN’T AFRAID TO FAIL… He did it quite regularly…

Peter’s Ups and Downs

• Dropped everything to follow Jesus (Left even His business)

• Repeatedly sticks his foot in his mouth and was even called SATAN by Jesus….

• Walks on water,,, and sinks….

• falls asleep while in prayer with Jesus…

• cuts off a guys ear

• Denies Jesus 3 times after Jesus said he would do it…

• Leaves the ministry, to go back to his former life of fishing

• repents and becomes the foremost leader in the New Testament Church! 

• Dies one of the most courageous deaths on record, being crucified upside down on the cross….

There were guys that showed much more trust, stability and loyalty than Peter did but when it came down to it, Jesus looked right past Peter’s failures and saw his heart and his purpose!

No matter your failures, God has placed specific gifts and callings on your life that do not go away just because of mistakes…

Romans 11:29 “For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.”

Depending on your failures and the consequences they carry, your life may look different and it may be with a different group of people doing a different thing. But God always sees the value in you and will always back up your gifts and callings where there is true repentance….

You can’t unscramble eggs, you can’t call back the bullet, sometimes you can’t heal the wounds our words cause in a person’s life…. But you can repent and let God start a new day and a new season in your life…

I hear people all the time with their regrets and wishing for yesterday…

I just want it to go back to the way it was…. It can never be the way it was because, for one: Yesterday is gone and two: Most of the time it wasn’t the way you thought it was in the first place…

Life is too short to waste one day in a failed attempt at life!

We must get up, repent and seek God for where we go from here…

• Maybe you’re an alcoholic, you don’t have to stay that way…

• Maybe you’ve had failed relationship after failed relationship…

• Maybe you’ve done and said things in your marriage that your spouse won’t forgive you for….

• Maybe you feel like you’ve failed in raising kids

• Maybe you’ve made bad financial decisions 

• Maybe you think you’re perfect and you have a failure to see reality…

If you’re still breathing, it’s not over!!!!

-You can’t help how people see you or the place that they hold you in society, but you can help how you see yourself, you can start to see yourself as God sees you and you can start to follow His plan for your life no matter the setbacks you may have had….

Psalm 103:12 “as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.”

Hebrews 8:12 “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.”

John 21:15-19  “ So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.” 16) He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.” 17) He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?”Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep. 18)  Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” 19) This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

The only question today is not how, what, when, and where… It’s really simple: “DO YOU LOVE JESUS?” If you do, drop all of the failures and follow after HIM!

Success after Failure comes to those who are willing to repent, accept forgiveness, and follow after Jesus!

Day 18: "Are You Satisfied?"

TODAY! 21 day Devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 18: “Are you Satisfied?”

Have you ever wondered if what you do matters? Makes a difference? Is working?

-You ever thought you where doing this parenting thing right and then your kid says or does something that makes you question everything?

-Have you ever been trying your absolute best in your marriage and relationships and it just seems to be going nowhere?

-In your finances... Taking all the tips, tried that tithing thing once or twice, tried out Dave Ramsey one pay period...

-In your relationship with God???? (you’ve tried praying, Worshipping, reading your Bible, and giving but nothing seems to be breaking through....)

-On your job....

- Doing the right things in life is a lot like going to the Gym, you can’t do it once or every once in a while and expect great results... (consistent precision, Slow and steady, Strategic purposeful living is what yields fruit!)

* I was talking to a Pastor Friend the other day and we where both giving glory to God for what is being done in and through our churches, and then he said: “but I would really like to see MORE FRUIT”... Then he began to recite where the church was when he came and where they where now and a smile came on his face because he realized that fruit was abounding...

-Why did he have a moment where he thought there wasn’t enough fruit?

- I believe it’s the positive traits of expectation, hope, faith, and vision for the future that is inside of each of us that Satan exploits to flip us into hopelessness and despair!

• -  Think about it! If you never hoped for better or cared if there was better, you’d never even try!

• -  The fact that you have a dissatisfaction inside of you about something, causes you to make a motion to change...

• -  Notice I said: Dissatisfaction and not Discontentment...

• -  It is possible and should be our aim to live content, yet not satisfied...
  What’s the Difference?
  Being satisfied is when you get/achieve what you want!
  Being content is being happy even if you don't get/achieve what you want!
  (example:) You can be riding a bike to work and desire to be driving a car, you are not satisfied with the bike, so you buy a car and you’re satisfied. But you can be content or happy, if you’re riding the Bike to work or driving a car...
  Hebrews 13:5 “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
  Covetousness “having or showing a great desire to possess something, typically something belonging to someone else.”

  • -  I believe a healthy dissatisfaction is the ability to honestly assess where you are and be able to see where you need to be....

  • -  That healthy desire to achieve the goal of being where you what to be is God given!

  • -  IT’S CALLED HOPE!

  • -  Faith is the action, the substance, the evidence that you have
    HOPE!
    Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the [b]evidence of things not seen.”

Satan loves to pervert our Hope with discontentment, covetousness, jealousy and envy...

The desires to build a God honoring and Successful life and the feelings of discontentment can be so similar at times that it’s easy to find yourself in a place of despair instead of HOPE!

How do we combat and fireproof our lives from discontentment?

2 things to check....

1) Motive 2) Method

Motive: Why do we want what we’re after?

-This takes serious maturity, you have to look yourself in the eyes, look down into your heart and ask yourself: “Why am I after what I’m after?”

Method: How am I going after what I want? or, What am I willing to do to get what I want????

-Your methods will always reveal your motives.... Contentment will keep your Motives and Methods pure, preventing you from

crossing the line of covetousness...

Ephesians 4:14-16 “that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

- It’s not about what you can take in life to satisfy your discontentment, it’s about what you can bring to the table that supplies growth to the Body of Christ and ultimately the mark you leave on this earth for the Kingdom of God!

- You’re raising those kids and grandkids for the Kingdom - You’re working that Job for the Kingdom

- You’re working on your marriage for the Kingdom

BECAUSE YOU MATTER, and YOU HAVE A SUPPLY that GROWS and BUILDS THE KINGDOM OF GOD!!!!

Day 17: "Love will be all that's Standing"

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R.Lister

Day 17: “Love will be all that’s Standing”

Galatians 5:6 “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through LOVE…”

NIV “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love…”

• Make no mistake about it, the most important component of your walk with God is your “LOVE WALK…”

Love will be the only thing standing in the end

1 Corinthians 13:8-13 “ Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9) For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10) But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. 11) When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12) For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. 13) And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

-In the end when you’re standing before God, your college education won’t be an issue. How many books you read, how much of the Bible you can quote, how many times you went to church, how many of the rules you kept, how big or small your house was, what you drove or wore…

-There will be one subject and one subject only on trial that day and it will be: “How did you Walk in Love..”

Luke 10:25-37 “ And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26) He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” 27) So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 28) And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” 29) But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30) Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31) Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32) Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. 33) But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion.34) So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.35) On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ 36 So which of these three do you think was a neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” 37) And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

• Much like the Lawyer, we’re not trying to find out how we can change our heart, we’re trying to justify our current behavior…

• The lawyer knew the right answer, but Jesus demonstrated through a parable that “What you know about the Word of God means nothing if it’s not practiced…”

• How did Jesus define “Who to Love” & “How to Love”?

• The Priest making his way to the temple wasn’t the one Jesus said was demonstrating love.

• The Levite following behind to go help the priest lead worship at the temple wasn’t His definition either…

• It was the ordinary man that took what he had, HAD COMPASSION on a stranger who was in the ditch and fixed him….

*As the Church we have the ability to “FIX PEOPLE” that are in the ditch, if we’ll find our compassion….

*It takes sacrifice of our resources, our time, and our pride….

Acts 3:1-10 “Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. 2 And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; 3 who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. 4 And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.” 5 So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. 6 Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” 7 And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. 8 So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God. 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God. 10 Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.”

Matthew 9:35-38 “Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. 36) But when He saw the multitudes, HE WAS MOVED WITH COMPASSION for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. 37) Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. 38) Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest…”

-The only way that THE CHURCH starts looking like “Jesus’ Bride”, will be when “COMPASSION” takes her over!

- if we’re not careful we can get caught up in ourselves and not be able to see the multitudes like Jesus sees them…

-We spend most of our time in the church getting things perfect for us and our families and being offended if it’s not the way we like it….

-Let’s be careful not to be the Church that lacks LOVE…. The church not in Love with Jesus and therefore  not in love with what He’s in Love with…”

Revelations 2:2-5 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil, and you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3) and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. 4) NEVERTHELESS I have this against you, that you have left your first LOVE. 5) Remember therefore form where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lamp stand from it’s place— unless you repent…”

NLT “"But I have this complaint against you. You don't love me or each other as you did at first!”

• Make no mistake about it, We will be judged on an individual level and as a Local Church on how we LOVED GOD WITH ALL, and OUR NEIGHBOR AS OURSELF…

-One thing I’ve noticed: “It’s hard to Love People and have Compassion if I’m hung up on how everything effects me…”

Love is hard and has to do hard things…. 

-Those things seemingly put us at the losing end of things…

-They do: You’re losing yourself, lowering yourself, denying yourself…

-That’s right where you need to be for God to use you the most effectively….

1Peter 5:6 “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time….”

Matthew 16:24-27“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “if anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25) For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26) For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 27) For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works…”

Day 16: "The Word of Life"

TODAY! 21 day Devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 16: “The Word of Life”

Proverbs 4:20-22 “My Son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. 21) Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; 22) For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.”

(Knox translation) “The Word will bring life and healing to his whole being.”

(Leeser translation) “to all his body a healing.”

(Rotherham translation) “To every part of one’s flesh they bring healing.”

This Word is alive and it brings life and health if you’ll hear it, believe it, and act on it!!!!

Hebrews 4:12 “The Word of God is living and powerful…”

 (NIV) “….The Word of God is ALIVE & ACTIVE!!!!!

What is the Word of God alive and active to do???? “THE WILL OF GOD!!!!”

What is the Will of God????

2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering toward us, NOT WILLING that any SHOULD PERISH but that all should come to REPENTANCE.”

Acts 11:18 “When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, "So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life."

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

“Jesus is the Word of God, and was the Will of God in Action here on the Earth…”

John 1:1-4 “In the beginning was THE WORD, and THE WORD was with God and THE WORD was God. 2) He was in the beginning with God. 3) All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4) IN HIM was LIFE, and the LIFE was the LIGHT OF MEN!!!!”

THE WORD IS LIFE!!!!!

THE WORD IS HEALTH AND HEALING….. TO ALL YOUR FLESH!!!!

-When we gather under the preaching and teaching of the Word, We are subjecting ourselves to LIFE! HEALTH, Healing, mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually!

Back to Proverbs 4:22 “For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.”

The Word health translated in the original Hebrew is “MEDICINE”

So the Word of God is Medicine to our flesh!!!

-It’s not enough to just believe that divine healing is available for you, just like it would do you no good to only believe that there is man made medicine available for your sickness!

-Most people make the mistake in that they believe the Word contains healing power, they believe it’s the will of God to heal and that it’s available for them…. But they never take their MEDICINE!!!!!

The Word of God is Life and Medicine to all those who “FIND THEM!”

Jeremiah 15:16 “YOUR WORDS were FOUND, and I ate them, and YOUR WORD was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart….”

Proverbs 3:1-2 “My Son, do not forget my law (my words), but let your heart keep my commands (my words), 2) FOR LENGTH OF DAYS AND LONG LIFE and peace they will add to you….

The Word has to be a part of You to work, it has to be IN YOU!!!!!

-It goes into our eyes and ears, we consume it and it drops into our hearts and then it’s pumped throughout our bodies, just like man-made medicine, it searches out sickness and disease and attacks it because it’s contrary to LIFE!!!!

Remember-Hebrews 4:12  “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

Exodus 15:26 “…I am the Lord who heals you.”

(Leeser) “…I the Lord am thy Physician…”

-If He’s our physician, what is the Medicine He’s prescribing???? HIS WORD, THE WORD THAT HEALS YOU, 

(When you find them,eat them, consume them!!! And Let it take effect!)

-Don’t just let the Medicine sit in your medicine cabinet and expect it to work!!!! TAKE YOUR MEDICINE!!!!!!

-God’s Word possesses in itself the capacity to Heal! It contains in and of itself Power to affect this physical world and our physical circumstance!!!

-In Genesis God “SAID” “Let there be LIGHT!!!!! and There Was!!!!!

-His Word (Medicine) Contains in and of itself Healing Power, Power to change sickness into health!!!

Psalm 107:19-20 “Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. 20) HE SENT HIS WORD and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.”

Matthew 8:5-10 (Speak the Word ONLY) ” Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6) saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” 7) And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8) The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9) For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10)  When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!

God always sends His Word to change things!!!!

-God wanted to create the universe, He sent His Word…..

-God wanted Light, He sent His Word….

-God wanted fish in the sea and birds in the air, He sent His word….

-God wanted beast in the field and all creeping things on the earth, He sent His word….

-God wanted a Man to love and bless, He sent His Word….

-God’s Man forsook Him, betrayed Him, brought death and destruction on himself and the World He created……and God sent HIS WORD!!!!!!!!

-And if you’re sick and in need of Health and Healing, GOD SENDS HIS WORD!!!! 

-FIND THEM, EAT THEM, Be a Consumer of THE WORD!!!!!!!

Isaiah 55:11 “So shall My WORD be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, and  it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

(KNOX) “So it is with THE WORD by these lips of mine once uttered; it will not come back, an empty echo, the way it went; ALL MY WILL it carried out……”

The Word (Jesus Christ) Carries out ALL THE WILL of God!!!!

-Jesus was the Will of God in Action!!!!

John 10:10 “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly!!!!!

Jesus is the Word and He has come that we may have LIFE and have it Abundantly!!!!!!

*The Word that Came Forth is Life, Health, Healing, Prosperity, in every area, in every dimension,(Heaven as well as on Earth)  in every realm (Spiritual as well as Physical)!!!!!!

Find the Word….. Eat the Word…… It’s LIFE AND HEALTH (medicine) TO ALL YOUR FLESH!!!

Day 15: "Faith to do the Extraordinary"

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 15: “Faith to do the Extraordinary”

We all have plans, we all have dreams…… Even if they’ve been long lost and forgotten, We have at times in our lives desired to do EXTRAORDINARY THINGS!!!!

-That is a God-given desire…. Our God is a God of the Extraordinary….. His life in us is where that vision and desire comes from….

-This is a desire that should not fade away over time but should grow stronger the longer we live!!!

Why do our dreams and our desires grow cold instead of come to pass?

-It’s got to do with our faith and our unwillingness to protect and nurture that God-given dream to focus on REALITY!!!!

-Reality is the #1 Killer of Faith…..   

Hebrews 11:1 “Now Faith is the substance of THINGS HOPED FOR, the evidence of THINGS NOT SEEN….”

Anyone who has ever done anything great for God, had to disregard REALITY and believe more in the UNSEEN, than the SEEN!

2 Corinthians 5:7 “For we walk by FAITH and not BY SIGHT….”

Abraham did extraordinary things for God and it was because of this He has been given the title “THE FATHER OF FAITH”…. He’s the Original BELIEVER…. He believed what God said even when He couldn’t see it for YEARS!!!!

Romans 4:16 “Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all”

There are so many lessons to learn from Abraham’s Faith…. 

-The ups and the downs of faith….

-Faith is a journey if you’re going to do extraordinary things for God…

-We have to learn to grow our faith past the point of just managing our household well. As Believers we have to begin to have Faith to do the Extraordinary as a Local Church and the collective Body of Christ!

-We’ve taught: Faith for Healing, Faith for Finances, Faith for Family Members, Jobs, and tough personal situations…. (We’re not making light of those things)

-But this is different, This is us believing God to use us to do things that are much bigger than us…Much bigger than the city and region we live in….

-We’re not talking about believable, common, run of the mill believing….. We’re talking about FAITH TO DO EXTRAORDINARY THINGS!!!!!

-We’ve got to stretch our FAITH, see our lives, and our local churches in a much more significant light!!!!

The young Virgin Mary was standing in a small town with a small town mentality, dreaming small dreams of marriage and a nice family with her fiancé Joseph when The Angel of the Lord came down and revealed the Most EXTRAORDINARY plan to ever happen to any person to ever live…. To be the Vessel and Natural Mother to the one and only Savior, Jesus Christ!!!!! God’s only son!!!

Mary’s Response: “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

The Angel’s Response: “WITH GOD NOTHING WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE!!!!!”

Then Mary said: “ Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word…”

-Faith isn’t mental power, or MAN POWER and pure determination….. Faith is a willingness to look in the face of nothingness and proclaim the promises of God!!!!

Jesus said in Matthew 19:26 “With men this is impossible, but with God ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE….”

• We have to prepare for Greatness, not reserve the mentality: “I’ll believe it when I see it….”

Faith to do the extraordinary starts in our prayer life: Praying out the desires of our Heart….

John 15:7  Jesus said: “If you abide in Me and my Words abide in you, YOU WILL ASK what YOU desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit….”

As a believer in a local church we should always be enlarging our Heart for greatness and building our Faith to do Extraordinary things, breaking out of the statistics, breaking the boundaries and ignoring the limits that we put on what God can do based on what we’ve seen people be able to do….

Isaiah 54:2-3 “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings; DO NOT SPARE; Lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes. 3) For you shall expand to the right and to the left….”

-We can’t stay here, you are never maintaining, You’re either growing or dying…. I refuse to settle, I refuse to die and I refuse to limit MY GOD!!!!!

The Kingdom of God needs believers that can see past the worldly circumstances around them and begin to call those things that aren’t as though they were! It all starts with you, what are you believing today? What extraordinary thing are you pursuing for the Kingdom of God?

Day 14: Decisions, Decisions

TODAY! 21 day Devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 14: Decisions, Decisions

-How many of you have ever made a bad decision? 

-How many of you had this gut feeling that you were about to make the bad decision before you made it?

(article excerpt)

Sometimes deep down, we’re aware that the choice we’re about to make isn’t the best decision. Yet, rather than change course, we offer excuses to justify what we’re about to do.

Instead of preventing ourselves from heading down the wrong path–or admitting we made a mistake–we defensively attempt to rationalize our behavior. Ultimately, we keep digging ourselves deeper.

Although it sounds a bit ridiculous, everyone behaves impulsively, gives into immediate gratification, or overlooks risk sometimes.

Here are 5 Statements that let you know you're about to make a bad decision…

1. “I Deserve to be Happy”…. This is a somewhat true statement… As an American, you have the right to pursue happiness, and as a Christian, Jesus paid for Joy unspeakable and full of glory, and peace that passes all understanding… But this statement is often made by someone in defense of a poor decision… Like being in a toxic relationship, or taking on more debt for their immediate satisfaction, and forfeiting long term happiness…

2. I’d rather beg for forgiveness than to ask for permission…. What you are saying, is that you are willing to purposely break the rules to get what you want to put off confrontation for a later date, where you will offer a fake apology….(this way of thinking is deceitful, rebellious, self-serving, and not a God quality in us, and will most certainly cause us to make bad decisions)

3. You only live once….  is a way of making light of taking a dangerous risk that is unnecessary… (it amazes me when someone dies doing something that was unnecessary and people say things like: “The good die young”, “God needed another angel”, “The Lord must have felt like it was his time”, “at least he died doing what he loved..”) (taking unnecessary risk for self gratification and pride is not only poor decision making, it's a poor use of the life that God gave you to use for His kingdom)

-There has to be a fine balance between risk and reward

4. I’m just being honest…. Most of the time this statement comes at the expense of someone else to fill the need in your life to prove a point or to take your opportunity to kick someone while they're down, to put yourself above another….

(article excerpt)

-Before delivering criticism or negative feedback, balance your desire to be direct with the other person’s right to be treated with respect. Whether you’re masking your insecurity by putting someone else down, or you’re lashing out because you’re upset, your disrespectful demeanor will speak more about your character than your claims of taking the moral high ground.

5. I don’t care what anyone thinks or (it’s not anyone's business, what I do)…. (I’m not talking about being a people pleaser, but you should be concerned about the type of person you are… This does not mean that everyone will agree with your decisions or that you should take a poll before you make a decision, but if the people who truly love you and are concerned about you, bring to your attention some of your poor decision making, you should be open and honest and not defensive…

-We can’t help the decisions that others make, but what we can do is watch in our own lives to see if these attitudes are present when we’re making decisions, so that we can make the right decisions….

How do we make the right decisions?

Joel 3:14 “Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision..”

-We know that this passage is a prophetic word about the coming great harvest but nevertheless, there are multitudes of people in a valley of decisions….

-We need to know how to make THE RIGHT DECISION!!!!

-There’s a right way and wrong way to make decisions…. Thank God we have some help in making decisions…

-Your decisions determine your direction in life…. And your direction determines your destiny…

-that’s not “super-spiritual, mystic talk….

-if you got out a map and made a decision to go to colorado from here, your direction would be north/west, and your destiny (destination) would be COLORADO!!!!!

-When you make a decision, it sets you on a course that arrives at a certain destination….

-Most people have adopted this mentality that if they’re a good person and they believe in Jesus, then their destiny in life will just turn out…. (no faith, no believing, no course of action on their part, except doing what “FEELS RIGHT”…)

Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, But the end is the way of death…”

-How many of you know that your “seemer” can be off!!!

-We need something more reliable than, “what seems right”….

-THANK GOD WE DO!!!!

John 16:13 “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”

-There is a way that seems right and there is a way that IS RIGHT!!!

-The way that seems right can accidentally be right from time to time…(a blind hog finds an acorn every once and a while)…

-That doesn’t mean we settle on it and make a doctrine out of it for everyone and in every situation….

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope…”

(AMP) “For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome…”

-God has a plan and a purpose for you, He knows what it is and He wants you to know what it is…

-He’s not hiding it from you, He’s hiding it IN HIM, for you!!!!

-Today’s Christian, needs to be able to OWN every decision He/She makes….

-to many people are relying on the next book, the next message, the next church to make their decisions for them…..

-People need to grow up, seek the counsel of the Most High, make their decision based on a clear conscience that they heard from God, confirmed it in His word, and then acted on that word….

James 1:5-8 “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6) but let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7) FOR LET NOT THAT MAN SUPPOSE that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8) he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways…”

-Many times we won’t ask in Faith, in fear that we won’t be able to handle what the Lord is telling us to do…

-we’re afraid that He’ll ask us to lay down something we enjoy….

-Instead we stay in “SUPPOSE”, we suppose that since we’re God’s kids, things are just going to work out…

-Being a Child of God only gives you access to the promises of God, you’ve got to make the decision to walk in the direction of His destination for your life!!!

-This is why prayer is so important to you doing the will of God….

The Apostle Paul Prayed:

Ephesians 1:17-18 “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18) the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling….”

Colossians 1:9 “I do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding….”

-this is why it’s so important to pray for your kids and grandkids, to call out their names, point to their pictures and proclaim that they know what the will of God for their life is and that they make the decision to go HIS DIRECTION!!!!

-The plan of God is not revealed to your five senses first… They are revealed to your spirit, by the Holy Spirit!!!!

Day 13: "What Love Is"

TODAY! 21 day Devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 13: “What Love Is”

Our God is Love (Love is God’s make up, His DNA, What He consists of)

-He’s not a program
-He’s not a cross
-He’s not a song
-He’s not a building
-He’s not a denomination
-He’s not black or white
-He’s not a democrat or a republican -Our God is Love!!!

1 John 4:8 “He who does not love , does not know God, for God is Love.”

Jesus said in John 13:34-35 “A New commandment I give unto you, That you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you also have love one to another.”

-Love should be the mark of “The Church”, The Body of Christ!
Ephesians 4:15 “Speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head-

Christ.”

Ephesians 1:22-23 “He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be the head over all things to the church, 23)which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”

-All things are subject and have to come under the Authority of the “FEET OF LOVE”!!!!!

-A Church or a Believer not walking in love is a church with no authority over Satan!!!

-The Church today is at war with a lot of things that would take care of themselves if they would wage a Love war instead of continuing to fight on battlegrounds we weren’t equipped to win on!

Colossians 3:12-14 “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering; 13) bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14) But ABOVE ALL THESE THINGS, PUT ON LOVE, which is the bond of perfection.”

LOVE’S GOT A BAD RAP…

-When we hear the word “LOVE”, 20 different people will get 20 different ideas but the Bible is not talking about “Natural Love”

-Sometimes what we call love is really one of a few ideas:

• Like
• Lust
• Agreement
• Kindred
• Strong Feelings (food, cars, houses, etc... I Love Pizza) • Emotions

-This is not the Love the Bible is speaking of as the “New Testament Law of Love”

-These types of “Natural Love” is Here today and gone tomorrow...., It only last until:

• You don’t like

• You’re unattracted

• You disagree

• You grow apart

• appetite changes

• You don’t “Feel like it”

The “New Testament Law of Love” that Jesus established and combined every law ever made by God or man into was “Agape” Love, or “The God Kind of Love”.

-This is eternal Love, not here today and Gone tomorrow.....

Matthew 22:37-40 “Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38) This is the first and great commandment. 39) And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40) On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

-It was this Love that compelled God to Sacrifice His Son for you and it was this love that compelled Jesus to fulfill God’s will to Go pay with His own life for our sins...

John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17) For God did not send His Son into the World to condemn the world, but that the World through Him might be saved.”

1John 3:16 “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us, And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

-How do you know if you’re walking in The God Kind of Love?

• It’s a sacrifice with no expectations..... No strings attached..... Pure motives...

1 Corinthians 13 defines the “God Kind of Love”, this is not only the Kind of Love we should be walking in but it’s also the Kind of Love that we’re living in because we’re children of God and God wouldn’t expect us to operate in this love if He wasn’t going to....

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (AMP) Love endures long and is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtily.
5 It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride); it is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly. Love (God’s love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong]. 6 It does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail. 7 Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. 8 Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end]. 

-We don’t have to agree on everything, we don’t have to like the same football team or hairstyle....We don’t have to be emotionally attached or be hang out together buddies, but we do have to Walk in the God Kind of Love towards each other, praying for one another, and believing for the best in every person.....

Paul Prayed for the Church at Philipi in Philippians 1:9-11 “And this I pray, that your Love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10) that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Jesus Christ, 11)being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

He Prayed for the Church at Colossi: “That your hearts may be encouraged, being knit together IN LOVE,....”

and for the Church at Ephesus: “That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded IN LOVE, 18) may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—19) to know the LOVE OF CHRIST, which surpasses knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of GOD!!!!”

-This is what I’m believing and declaring over my life, your life, my home, your home and Thel Church, that we are walking in The Love of God!!!!

-Love Never Fails!!!! It always wins!!!!

-No matter what happens and who does what, you’re always walking in the power of God when you’re walking in love!!!

-I’m convinced that there are people that are sick because they have unforgiveness in their heart... (Depressed, full of anxiety, and unsatisfied because they are either mad at God or people or both!!

- You have got to let go and Love...

- Love doesn’t mean you have to give in to their every demand, it just means you’re not holding them captive in your heart and that you only want what’s best for them....

-Would you lay that down today and declare that you walk in LOVE above all else?!

Day 12: In All Your Ways...

TODAY: 21 day Devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 12: “In all your ways…”

Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all your HEART, and lean not on your OWN UNDERSTANDING.....”

-You don’t trust God with your HEAD, you trust Him with your HEART!!!

 Romans 10:10 “for with the HEART man BELIEVES....”

-You don’t trust God with your mind, you think with your mind but you believe and trust with your heart!!!

- Trust with your heart, Lean not on your OWN UNDERSTANDING, your own thinking....

UNDERSTANDING: :a mental grasp :comprehension 

A:  the power of comprehending; especially: the capacity to apprehend general relations of particulars… 

B:  the power to make experience intelligible by applying concepts and categories….

A:  friendly or harmonious relationship

B: an agreement of opinion or feeling :adjustment of differences

C: a mutual agreement not formally entered into but in some degree binding on each side

-This is how we understand the World and the people in it but when it comes to God, we can’t trust, believe or follow with our understanding because He surpasses the ability of our natural comprehension!!!

Proverbs 3:6 “In ALL YOUR WAYS acknowledge Him and He will DIRECT YOUR PATHS!!!! ? In how many ways? ALL

We can’t go at life as a believer, imagining that we can handle part of it and God can take up our slack!!!

-Here’s our problem, we want to lean on our own understanding, go our own ways, and direct our own paths until there’s a problem on the path we picked!!!

IN ALL YOUR WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE HIM!!!!

-To acknowledge means to: Recognize that He’s there in every situation ready to lead you in the way you should go!!!

-Have you ever been on a trip with someone that didn’t know where they were going but said they did, but you really knew how to get there but they wouldn’t acknowledge you and your leading?

-Why would we ever question the Creator of the Universe’s ability to get us where we need to go?

-Most of the time it’s not our distrust that He knows what He’s doing, it’s our lack of faith that we could really be directed by Him....

-We’ve so trained ourselves to be led by the wrong thing that we have no practice obeying the leading of the Holy Spirit...

-We’re led by: 

-Pain

-Emotion

-Manipulative people (squeaky Wheel gets the grease)

-Lust & Greed (sexual, power, position, money)

-Social Pressures (How we look, (homes, cars clothes), Kids, (Their social pressures can

actually lead your house more than the Holy Spirit)

 -All these things are competing for your LIFE!!!!!

-The Lord won’t compete!!! He says: IN ALL YOUR WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE ME!!!! (Recognize that I’m the ONLY WAY, TRUTH, and THE LIFE!!!!

He says: If you’ll trust ME, acknowledge ME, I’LL direct your PATHS!!!!!

What Kind of Paths will the Lord direct us down?

-The Paths of sorrows???

-The Paths of sickness & poverty???

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think towards you says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, TO GIVE YOU A FUTURE AND A HOPE!!!”

-This is God’s heart towards us and His desire for us! Peace and not Evil, a GOOD HOPE and FUTURE!!!

 Proverbs 4:10-18 “Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, and the years of your life will be many. 11) I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths. 12) When you walk, your steps  will not be hindered, and when you run, you will not stumble. 13) Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go; keep her, for she is your life. 14) Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil. 15) Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass on. 16) For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; and their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall. 17) For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. 18) But the path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.”

-IF GOD IS DIRECTING YOUR PATH, ARE YOU GOING TO WIND UP IN THE RIGHT PLACE!?!?!?

Psalm 37:23,25 “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way... 25) I have been young, and now am old; Yet I’ve never seen the righteous forsaken, or his descendants begging bread...”

-As humans, this is where we’re all trying to get to... The good path, the path of blessing and peace... But we’re trying to get there on our own... By allowing God to just be added to our knowledge instead of acknowledging HE’S THE LEADER!!!

-He knows the way!!! He orders the steps, He leads and guides, we have to yield our minds and trust Him with our hearts and BE LED!!!!!!

John 16:13 “However, when He, THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, has come, He will GUIDE you into ALL TRUTH; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come...”

John 10:27-28 “My Sheep hear MY VOICE, and I know them, AND THEY FOLLOW ME. 28) And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”

Psalm 23 “THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD; I shall not want. 2) He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He LEADS ME beside the still waters. 3) He restores my soul; He LEADS ME in the PATHS of RIGHTEOUSNESS for His name’s sake. 4) Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for YOU ARE WITH ME; Your rod and Your staff they comfort me. 5) You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. 6) Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever...”

Give the Lord the final say in everything you do today. Let Him lead you into His plans and promises for your life.

Day 11: "Aggressive Faith"

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 11: Aggressive Faith

Luke 22:31-32 NKJV And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

• The Devil’s plan is to take you out! But FAITH will cause you to endure and stand!

This Word “SIFT” means to: (separate, break into pieces, shake, shatter & discourage…) “An inward agitation to try one’s faith to the verge of overthrow…”

• The Devil wants to drain, weaken, and wear down your faith through continual pressure, disappointments and discouragement.

• He wants us to back down from using our faith!

• He wants us to live in retreat!

There are times where it is NO TIME to have a laid-back, easy going attitude attitude! WE HAVE TO HAVE AN AGGRESSIVE FAITH IN THE HOUR WE’RE IN TODAY!

Question Yourself:

• Am I maintaining or pursuing?

• Am I dry docked or launching out into the deep”?

• Am I holding the fort down or taking new territory?

• Am I passive or Pressing?

• Am I Surviving or Thriving?

• Am I protecting what little I have or am I aggressively possessing all that is rightfully mine?

 A Strong Prayer Life will always produce an aggressive faith, which will produce a life that possesses the promises of God.

In contrast, a weak prayer life will always produce a weak and passive attitude towards pursuing the Promises of God! 

When your prayer life is weak, faith will be weak and you will become quiet and feel defeated on all sides.

 Hebrews 10:38-39 “Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.” 39) But we are not of those who drawback to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.”

John 5:4 “For whatever is born of God overcomes the World. And this is the victory that has overcome the World- OUR FAITH!!”

Jude 20 “But you beloved, building yourself up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit!”

PRAYER PRODUCES STRONG FAITH, STRONG FAITH PRODUCES THE PROMISES OF GOD MANIFESTING IN YOUR LIFE!!!!

• Don’t draw back, don’t simply accept the hand you’re dealt being passive in your attitude! Fight back, Fight the Good Fight of Faith and aggressively take new territory in prayer!

Day 10: "The need for a Praying Church"

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 10: “The Need for a Praying Church”

When the devil sees a man or woman who really believes in prayer, who knows how to pray, and who really does pray, and, above all, when he sees a whole church on its face before God in prayer, he trembles as much as he ever did, for he knows that his day in that church or community is at an end.

-R.A. Torrey (Evangelist/Pastor from the late 1800’s - early 1900’s)

-Prayer is the only thing that truly changes things here on the earth!

Read: Mark 9:14-29

The Lord is still in the healing business….

   -the saving business

   -the baptizing in the Holy Spirit business….

*Nothing is too hard for the Lord. Nothing is impossible with Him…

-We somehow think that some situations in life are impossible… too far gone for it to change!

But nothing is impossible with God and If we can believe that, then nothing will be impossible in our lives!

-Just like the boy’s father, we’ve got our mind on “What can YOU DO to help ME… not on WHAT CAN WE BELIEVE FOR!!!!”

-Jesus didn’t let the man sit there in unbelief! He said it’s not about what I can do, It’s about what YOU CAN BELIEVE!!!

-ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE!!!!

-We need to start fighting those thoughts in our heads that would say that things are IMPOSSIBLE and start proclaiming that ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD IF WE BELIEVE!!!

-We know that things changed in the New Testament and we know that the New Testament is a better covenant established on better promises…

-Meaning: If it was possible in the old testament, it’s even more so in the NEW! If God did it in the old, He just upgraded it in the NEW…

-People believed God for impossible things in the Old Testament and God did them….

-King Hezekiah believed that all things were possible with God!

Isaiah 38:1-6

-King Hezekiah reminded God of his pure heart towards him… Not that he’d always been perfect in action but that His Heart was always turned towards God…

-Your wrong actions can be covered under the blood, under the grace of God but the condition of your heart is what makes or breaks us with God…

*Remember the choosing of David as God’s King?

-God passed up all the sons that “Looked the Part” and Chose David for one simple reason… HEART!

1 Samuel 16:7 “But the Lord said to Samuel, Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart..”

-David had some MAJOR sin problems but he will forever be remembered as “THE MAN AFTER GOD’S OWN HEART…”

-Hezekiah knows this about God and he is reminding God, not about all the “GOOD THINGS” that he’s done but about his heart towards Him….

-In His hour of sickness, HE TURNED HIS FACE TOWARDS THE WALL AND CRIED OUT TO GOD!!!

-Notice that the Lord didn’t respond: “I’ve heard your prayers” only…. He also said: “I’ve seen your tears…”

Hezekiah was faced with an IMPOSSIBLE situation… “GOD HAD GIVEN HIM A DEATH SENTENCE!!!!”

If God Himself says you’re going to die…. You’re going to die!

Hezekiah was able to turn it around because He believed that God would hear him and honor his heart towards him!!! (GOD GAVE HIM A GUARANTEED 15yrs!!!!

Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that HE is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him…”

-As a church we have got to get back to this type of FAITH & BELIEVING!!!

-WITH GOD, NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!!!

-What are you believing God for? Is it something that would happen with or without God or is it something that is NATURALLY IMPOSSIBLE!!!!

-We’ve Got to set our sights on the IMPOSSIBLE if we want to see the miraculous power of God!

-Most of the time we’re like the Boy’s Father….”Im just here to see what you’re going to do Jesus”

-We need to be like Hezekiah! Believing God that He Hears our Prayers and Sees our tears and makes the IMPOSSIBLE THINGS POSSIBLE because of our BELIEVING!!!!

James 5:16 “…. the effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much…”

-I think we’ve become so smart and indoctrinated that we just spout off the prayer principles that we know but there is no heart or passion behind our prayers… We’re just going through the motions of prayer… Our hearts aren’t in it and therefore they never reach the ear of God….

Jesus said in Matthew 15:8-9 “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, But their HEART is far from Me… 9) and in vain they worship Me….”

-The Church is in need of people that will get desperate for God to answer prayers… Setting their face to the wall and crying out to God from their hearts for God to move in Impossible ways!!!!

-As long as we’re content with religion, we’ll never have revival!!!

There is a great NEED for a praying church!

I believe that before the multitudes turn to Jesus, the Church will have to bring prayer back to the forefront!

Day 9: "A Step Ahead"

TODAY! 21 day devotion by: H.R. Lister

Day 9: “A Step Ahead”

In Matthew 10:7, the Angel tells the two Mary’s while standing at an empty tomb where a dead Jesus once laid, “Go and tell His Disciples that HE IS RISEN from the dead, and indeed, HE IS GOING BEFORE YOU…”

JESUS IS ALWAYS A STEP AHEAD OF YOU!

Jesus is going before them, just as He’s always done… Showing the way… Leading, Guiding, and Encouraging.

Just like the presence of God went before Israel in the desert with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, Jesus goes before His disciples…

Jesus STILL GOES BEFORE HIS PEOPLE!

We are His people, you are His! And He still goes before you! Preparing a way, leading, guiding, encouraging.

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN GOOD TIMES:

    At the wedding in Cana of Galilee, Jesus’ first recorded miracle, Jesus rejoiced with the bride and groom and showed that God always saves the BEST for LAST.

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN TIMES OF LACK:

  Jesus’ feeding of the 4,000 and 5,000 tells us that is God’s economy there is always more than enough. He not only supplies the need but it’s supplied over and above what you ask or think.

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN SICKNESS:

  He took stripes on His back, (a brutal lashing that tore the flesh from His body and exposed His organs and bones), for OUR HEALING! The Scripture says: “Surely HE HAS taken our PAINS and BORE OUR SICKNESSES.”

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN CONFLICT:

  He knows exactly what its like to be rejected and hated, lied about and chastised. Betrayed by one of His own and almost completely deserted by friends and family…. (The Chastisement that was necessary for OUR PEACE, was upon HIM!) He has gone before us and paid for the effects that rejection and conflict can have on us. You don’t have to accept or take on the feelings of conflict and rejection. He has gone before us!

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN DOUBT:

  He welcomed Thomas with his doubts and put them to rest… He was patient with the disciples when they didn’t understand. Don’t go to unbelieving skeptics with your doubts about your faith. Go to Jesus, He is patient and kind. He will lead you and guide you into truth and communicate to you in only a way that you would understand. HE GOES BEFORE YOU! He knows what you’re going to ask before you ever even formulate the question. Let Him answer your doubts.

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN SORROW AND DEATH:

  He wept for Lazarus at the grave, then raised him to life. He mourned for a city that would not listen, wept tears of grief and sweat drops of blood at His impending death, Cried out in agony from the cross, and suffered in silence before His accusers. He endured these hardships of life so that He could be there for you when you experience these times. He is our great HIGH PRIEST who IS TOUCHED WITH THE FEELING OF OUR INFIRMITIES…

• JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN HEAVEN:

  His death and resurrection breaks the hold of physical death in this world! He is currently preparing a place for us! Ephesians 2:6 “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in Heavenly Places!”

  Before He went before us into Heaven, He went in our place to death, Hell and the Grave!

Ephesians 4:9-10 “Now this, He Ascended” - what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the Earth? 10) He who descended is also the one who ascended far above the Heavens, that He might fulfill all things…”

Colossians 2:14-15 “Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross… 15) Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them openly…”

JESUS GOES BEFORE US IN EVERY SITUATION!

If He’s gone before us in Death, Hell and the Grave, there is NO CIRCUMSTANCE you can’t weather and triumph over!!!

Romans 8: 11 “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you…”

Day 8: "The Life that Fear Builds"

today! 21 day Devotional by: H.R. Lister

Day 8:

The Life that Fear Builds

FEAR IS A REAL THING!

Fear controls all of our lives in one way or another…

Fear can control:

• Relationships (marriage, friendships, etc..)

• Travel

• Investments

• You doing the will of God for your life

• Promotion on your job

Fear is:

F- false

              E- evidence

              A- appearing

              R- real

Our minds have incredible abilities to imagine and take in information and form it into real evidence that causes us to run and hide in fear!

Think back to when you were a kid laying in bed at night and every noise or unexplainable shadow was a monster and your worst fears…

It’s no different now that you’re an adult. You just have different fears. (Going under financially, not being able to make your marriage work, losing your job, death, sickness, your kids not being successful in life…. The list goes on and on.)

Psalm 127:1-2 “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in VAIN who build it, unless the Lord guards the city, the watchmen stays awake in VAIN. 2) It is VAIN for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows, for so He gives His beloved sleep.”

The Amplified Bible says it this way: “To eat the bread of ANXIOUS TOIL…”

You can:

• Build it all you want

• Watch it all you want

• Stay up late worrying about it

• Wake up early toiling over it

BUT IF IT’S NOT GOD’S LIFE AND WILL YOU’RE LIVING OUT IT’S GOING BELLY UP NO MATTER WHAT!!!

If it’s God’s direction, there’s no fear, anxiety, or worry! He’ll finance it, He’ll show you how to work it, how to build it and how to be blessed in your work!

Psalm 127:2 (AMPLIFIED) “For He gives BLESSINGS to His BELOVED in SLEEP…”

Romans 8:28 (AMPLIFIED) “We are assured and know that (God being a partner in their labor) all things work together and are (fitting into a plan) for GOOD to those who LOVE GOD and are CALLED according to HIS DESIGN & PURPOSE.”

Most of the time we’re being driven by two fears working on us at the same time but from two different angles…

1. An UNHEALTHY fear of God (a lie from satan that says: “You’ve failed God and He’s not pleased with you”. Causing (Guilt, Shame and Condemnation, which are all symptoms of fear controlling your life)

2. Fear from this world's systems, and past experiences… (News, Politics, economy, the negative things you’ve experienced in life thus far)

Like a cattle dog yips and barks at the heels of livestock to guide them into the master’s desired location, Fears, are meant by the master of lies and deception “SATAN”, to pressure you and guide you into unproductive areas to steal, kill and destroy the plan and purpose of God for your life.

If we allow these fears to move us, it shapes our movements and paths in life. Unless we choose to disregard our fears and Walk by Faith, following instead the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. He always leads and guides into truth!

Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am Your God. I will strengthen you and help you, I will uphold you with my righteous hand.”

Isaiah 43:1 “But now, this is what the Lord says:.. “FEAR NOT, for I have Redeemed you, I have summoned you by name, you are mine…”

• As The Redeemed, we should never have a reason to FEAR!

Psalm 107: 1-2 “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. 2) LET THE REDEEMED OF THE LORD SAY SO, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy.

CONFESSION: “I am REDEEMED! I give thanks to God, for He is Good! God has not given me a spirit of fear, but one of power, love and a sound mind. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I WILL NOT FEAR, for you are with me, you protect me with your rod and staff and I am comforted. I humble myself under your mighty hand and you will lift me up. I leave all of my worries with you because you care for me. And I declare that I am FREE FROM ALL FEAR, WORRY and ANXIETY! And I am full of FAITH, LOVE, PEACE, and JOY!!!!

Day 7: "What are you Thinking"

Today! 21day devotional by: H.R. Lister

Day: 7

“What are YOU thinking?”

Proverbs 23:7 “As a man THINKS in his heart, so is he…”

We are the sumtotal of the thoughts we’ve entertained and acted on…

      -Everything you’ve ever done started with a thought…. Every motive, attitude, mood, action and reaction came from a thought that was pursued until manifestation.

The word translated “THINKS” here in Proverbs 23:7 is the Hebrew word: “Sha’ar” meaning: (to reason out, calculate, reckon, estimate, Literally to “act as a gate-keeper”)

a gate-keeper to where? (YOUR HEART)

So why is it so important to keep wrong thoughts out of your heart?

• Once you’ve embraced a thought in your heart, it becomes a BELIEF.

• Once you believe something in your heart, the Bible says: “Out of the abundance of the heart, the MOUTH SPEAKS.”

Jesus taught: “whatever you believe in your heart and speak with your mouth, YOU HAVE!

Your thought life is your first line of defense- (YOUR GATEKEEPER)

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 “for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of STRONGHOLDS…”

    We all have STRONGHOLDS, thought processes that cause us to do what we do, say what we say and re-act the way we re-act… They cause us to fear,  become unsettled,  and shy away from obeying the Word of God.

This word Stronghold in the scripture is defined as: (The argument and reasonings by which a disputant endeavors to fortify his opinion and defend it against his opponent.)

(YEAH, BUT)

Whatever you make excuses for is YOUR STRONGHOLD!

Your (YEAH, BUT) needs to be pulled down and replaced with: (AMEN, SO BE IT!)

Learning to confront and combat every thought with God’s Word is how you win the battle in your mind.

Can you imagine living life with no fear, no anxiety, no unsettledness, no stress, no anger… Just peace, joyfulness, walking in authority and control of your life???

      YOU CAN! The fight is in your mind and it’s already been won in Christ Jesus!

• Satan’s primary attack is in our minds and with our thoughts…

• Most Christians don’t even realize this and they take very little thought to guarding their minds.

• Most people (including christians) act as if what they feed themselves mentally has no effect on them.

• What goes into our eyes and ears is fuel for our thoughts.

• Music, TV, Movies, pictures, books, gossip, social media

• There is no way for you to feed yourself ungodly material day in and day out and  not have a major battle in your thought life.

*Hatred, unforgiveness, addiction, perversion, arguments, adultery, divorce, abuse (physical, mental, verbal, emotional, sexual), laziness, glutony, dishonor…

All of these negative traits are traits of the FALLEN man and can still be strong-holds in your mind, even after salvation…

Romans 1:28 “they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them up to a depraved mind…”

Once you receive salvation, you’ve been freed and can walk away from those strongholds and sin but you’re not immune from old thoughts coming back to talk you into old sins and lifestyles.

Ephesians 4:22-32 (NIV) “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, TO PUT OFF YOUR OLD SELF, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, 23) to be made new IN THE ATTITUDES of YOUR MINDS 24) and to PUT ON THE NEW SELF, created to be LIKE GOD in true RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HOLINESS.

• God empowered you with FREE RIGHTEOUSNESS, to be able to live RIGHTEOUSLY!

No one can take away your righteousness but you have to yield to the righteous nature now in you via the Holy Spirit, the NEW MAN…

Verse 25 “Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26) in your anger do not sin: do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27) and do not give the devil a foothold. 28) Anyone who has been stealing, must steal no longer, but must work doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need. 29) Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up others according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30) And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of Redemption. 31) GET RID OF ALL BITTERNESS, RAGE and ANGER, BRAWLING and SLANDER, along with every form of malice. 32) BE KIND and COMPASSIONATE to one another FORGIVING EACH OTHER, just as in Christ, GOD FORGAVE YOU…”

• YOU HAVE A MAJOR ROLE IN THE REMOVING OF STRONGHOLDS IN YOUR LIFE!! 

• You have to be on the offensive, take the fight to your wrong thoughts with the Word of God!

• You’ve got to devour your Bible like you devour TV, Music, and social media now.

• You’ve got to give your spirit ammunition and  stop supplying the enemy!

Psalm 91, is a great place to start!

• Renew your mind with the Word!

• Supply your thought life with the Word of God and be free from mental torment!

• With the Word and the Holy Spirit, you can win the Battle over your mind!

Day 6: "Just Don't Quit"

Today! 21 day Devotional by: H.R. Lister

Day 6:
”Just Don’t quit”

Psalm 27:13-14 “I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. 14) Wait on the Lord, be of good courage and He shall strengthen your heart, wait, I say, on the Lord.”

Isaiah 40:28-31 “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, The Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. 29) He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. 30) Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, 31) But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.”

Galatians 6:9 “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart…”

There are some great promises for those who simply won’t quit serving God!

It may seem like the most reasonable thing to do at the time but quitting is never the solution when it comes to the things of God. 

Unfortunately, I’ve known many people over my years as a Christian who quit… They gave up… It got too hard, they got sifted…

Being able to justify compromise in your life is never the green light to pursue backsliding in your faith..

“Backsliding”, that’s not a term you hear in the church much anymore… Although I’ve only truly been a part of the Church since the late 90’s, I was able to hear terms like: “Backsliding, compromise, hell, sin, ect…” Today, these terms are being deemed hateful, out of date and judgmental…

I believe this is one reason why we have so many good people simply quitting on their faith… They have justified themselves right out of the church and pursuing the will of God.

God has done too much for you to allow the enemy to convince you that there is nothing worth your continued pursuit of the plans and purposes of God…

Just don’t quit!!! Remind yourself of these scriptures today and renew your Christian resolution. Determine again today that you have decided to follow Jesus and you’re never turning back!

Day 5: "No one Deserves it"

TODAY 21 day Devotional by: H.R. Lister

 No one Deserves it… Day 5

One of the greatest mistakes we can make in life is to believe that we’re owed anything. To approach life as if entitled to the best of the best. To believe that just because someone else has something and we don’t that we deserve it just as much as they do. 

  I’m not saying this to bring disrespect to you or to discourage you in any way. I’m saying this to you so that you can keep your heart right and always remain grateful and thankful…

  We’ve all fallen for this trap of the enemy… Some of the greatest men of the Bible did also. Jeremiah was complaining about all that he had done for God, and how he had kept himself pure from the world and how miserable his life was and how he deserved better… How did God respond to his self-righteous complaining?

Jeremiah 15:19 “Therefore this is what the LORD says: “If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them.”

If you want to stay in a place of great honor and usefulness to the Kingdom, you have to continue to speak Worthy words and not worthless self-righteous, entitled words..

If you’ve found yourself in the trap of self-pitty and woe-is-me attitude, recognize that. Humble yourself, repent and be restored to the great place of service in the Kingdom of God…

1 Thessalonians 5:18 “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you..”

1 Peter 5:6 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,”

Galatians 6:9 “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”

Don’t allow Satan to make you feel mis-treated, entitled or deserving… It’s always a trap to rob you of the exaltation that only God can bring to your life. It’s aborts the great harvest you’re laboring for by causing you to lose heart.

Thankfulness and praise are the only defenses that guard us from developing an entitled mind-set.

Let’s practice that today. Don’t leave this place of prayer until you’ve repented from all selfishness, entitlement or self-righteousness… Now, replace those feelings and thoughts with Praise and Thanksgiving…

Confession: “I confess that I have everything I need in Christ Jesus. I seek after the Kingdom of God today and I believe that as I do that, everything that I need will be added to me. I am happy and feel overwhelmingly blessed for the life that I’ve been given and especially for the Eternal Life I’ve been given through the sacrifice you made for me on the cross. I deserved hell, I deserved eternal death, separated forever from you Father God. But you had mercy on me and you extended grace, your unmerited favor, towards me and sent your most precious possession as a sacrifice for me! I didn’t deserve it, but you did it any way. I didn’t deserve your love, but you loved me anyway. You welcomed me into your Kingdom anyway. I’m so thankful!!! I praise you and thank you that every promise and plan you have for me comes to pass in my life as it is in Heaven. In Jesus Name I pray, AMEN!

Day 4: "Keep Fighting"

Today!! DEVO

Day 4:   Keep Fighting!

The Apostle Paul wrote to Pastor Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith…”

I think some Christians have sold a bill of goods that when you become a Christian that you won’t suffer or have loss another day in your life and that’s not true…

The Fight that The Apostle Paul was speaking of was his entire Christian Life. Before Paul became a Christian he was a Pharisee, He was a Saducee, He was a persecutor of the Church. He hated Jesus and His followers. He saw them as a threat to Judaism and everything that he had ever been taught and believed in. Jesus and His followers, in Paul’s (Saul’s) opinion, needed to be eradicated from the earth and Paul (Saul) set out to do that. He was applauded by his fellow Jews for his leadership in destroying the Church. He said of himself that he was a Pharisee among Pharisees. He was the Smartest, he was the most perfect in keeping the law of Moses.. He probably had a pretty cushy life as a Pharisee. He had power and respect, he had security and wealth…

When Saul (Paul) was on the way to Damascus to continue his war on The Church, he was suddenly thrown from his donkey and blinded by a bright light. In that moment Saul called out, “Who are you Lord”... Obviously Saul had no idea who or what had just happened but he knew whatever power this was, he was going to give respect and honor by submitting to Lordship… The answer to Saul’s question came back, “I’m Jesus WHO YOU PERSECUTE”...

That day forever changed the Murderous Pharisee Saul into the Great Apostle Paul, the writer of ⅔’s of the New Testiment. The man credited with evangelizing the whole known world. 

You would think that a man that gave his life to Christ and that did all these amazing things would have lived an even easier life as a Christian than he ever did as a murderous pursecuter…

This was not the case… Paul suffered beatings, shipwrecks, imprisonments, loss of relationships, insults, mockings and ultimately a Martyrs death…

Paul’s Fight of faith was not without injury, his race wasn’t without obstacles.

Paul is actually awaiting his be-heading when he writes this passage of scripture to the Philippians. 

Philippians 1:12-24 “I want you to know brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, 13) so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; 14) and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. 15) Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: 16) The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; 17) but the later out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. 18) What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice. 19) For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20) according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now  also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21) For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22) But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. 23) For I am hard-pressed between two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. 24) Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you…”

Paul didn't see his struggles as what man could do to him. He struggled with weather or not he had done enough for the Kingdom of God!

Paul made a choice to stay and fight until his fight was won and his race was finished.

Your life as a Christian is not going to be void of struggle and obstacles but it can be void of the fear of it. You don’t have to be afraid of the things this life can throw at you. Only be concerned with your race, only be concerned with the GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH!

Keep Fighting! FINISH YOUR RACE STRONG!!!

Day 3: "Spiritual Focus"

Having an effective Prayer life has a lot to do with focus, SPIRITUAL FOCUS…

2 Corinthians 4:18 “So we fix our eyes NOT on what is SEEN, but what is UNSEEN, since what is SEEN is TEMPORARY, but what is UNSEEN is ETERNAL…”

The SEEN in our lives can distract our SPIRITUAL FOCUS…

Seen (our circumstances, what we see happening around us or to us)

Unseen (God, His presence, His power, His steadfast love)

2 Corinthians 5:7 “We walk by faith and not by SIGHT”

Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you, He will never leave you nor forsake you..”

Train yourself not to recognize the outward circumstance only… Do not dwell on it, do not allow it to take over your thoughts and create fear, worry and anxiety. Recognize the situation and then let faith take over. Re-focus on what the Word of God says. Re-focus by SPEAKING WITH YOUR MOUTH what God’s Word says about the situation.

Revelation 12:11 says that we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and THE WORD OF OUR TESTIMONY!!!

If we’re not careful we can allow the enemy to flood our thoughts with everything that is or could be going wrong in our lives and it will take over our prayer time and keep us in-effective. To stay effective in prayer we must maintain the right Focus. That focus has to be on the Work that Jesus did on through his death burial and resurrection, when He defeated Satan and took the Keys to death, Hell and the Grave!

Through Salvation that Victory has been transferred to you! You are just as victorious as Jesus. If you’ll keep your focus on what Jesus has already done instead of being distracted by the things going on around you, you can live in a place of Spiritual Focus and see things for what they really are.

Recognize in every situation that YOU ARE VICTORIOUS IN CHRIST!

SPEAK to the circumstances in your life, don’t bow down to them!

Day 2: "Walking in the Light"

Proverbs 4:18 “But the path of the just is as a shining light, that shines more and more unto the perfect day.”

(Amplified version) “But the path of the (uncompromisingly) Just and Righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines more and more (brighter and clearer) until it reaches its full strength and glory…”

-As a believer, the path should be getting brighter & brighter, more and more clear..

We read in our last devotion that Paul was praying for the church at Ephesus that: “the eyes of their understanding would be enlightened…”  Another translation of that scripture says that he was praying for the “eyes of their hearts would be flooded with light”

What light? 

Jesus said in John 8:12 “ I am THE LIGHT of the world...He who follows me shall not walk in darkness but have the LIGHT OF LIFE…”

The Gospel of John declares that JESUS IS THE WORD.

John 1:1-5, 14 “In the beginning was THE WORD, and THE WORD was with God, and THE WORD was God. 2) He was in the beginning with God. 3) All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4) In Him was LIFE, and the LIFE was the LIGHT of men. 5) And the LIGHT shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it…. 14) And the WORD became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Jesus is The Word and Jesus is The Light, so the light that should be growing in our life is the relationship we have with Jesus through THE WORD and THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Psalm 119:105 “Your WORD is a LAMP to my feet and a LIGHT to my path…

1 Peter 2:9 “You’ve been called out of darkness into His marvelous LIGHT…”

1 John 1:7 “Walk in the LIGHT, as He is in the LIGHT…”

As a Man or Woman of God, our pursuit should be the increase of LIGHT by leaving the darkness of lies and worldly pursuits and growing that relationship with The Word of God, The Light of God! It’s a growing light, it grows brighter and brighter, clearer and clearer unto a NEW DAY!

1 John 1:7 didn’t say, look at the light, stare at the light, talk about the light, debate the light…. It says to ‘WALK IN THE LIGHT’

Don’t just hear the word, don’t just have a general knowledge of the Bible… I challenge you to have an intimate Fellowship with The Word… The Word of God is not just a book, it is the ACTUAL PERSON OF THE SON OF GOD, JESUS CHRIST.