Tag Archive: blessings
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Palm Sunday marks the beginning of the Holy Week, leading up to Easter. During this time, write down some things that you will totally abstain from during Holy Week:
This is a ritual whereby many people give up something for a period of time in anticipation of a celebration of new beginnings.
Here are some things you can choose from, that you might consider giving up:
Intangible:
– Winning an argument
– Talking negatively about others
– Lamenting missed opportunities
– Resentment toward someone
– Anxiety about the future
– Focusing on your perceived weaknesses
– Repeating gossip
– Anger and resentment
– Un-forgiveness
– Hatred
– Jealousy
– Grudge
– Greed
– Fear
– Doubt
– etc.
Tangible:
– Favorite foods
– Drinks
– Meat
– Poultry
– Fast Food
– Favorite TV Shows
– Facebook
– Twitter
– Instagram
– Video Games
– Over-excessive Use of Cell Phones
– etc.
Holy Week is not about giving up something that you enjoy in an effort to somehow please God. You’re to also give up something that’s holding you back. The benefit of such a practice is that you give yourself time to create new habits which will enhance your soul’s expression and bring about great blessings, peace and joy.
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Dear Family and Friends,
We wish you a season filled with God’s peace and joy. May the true meaning of Christmas dwell in your heart. Jesus assures you that, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So, don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27, NLT).
Merry Christmas And A Happy New Year!!!
When you are chosen by God to pursue His mission and purpose, you may become isolated because families and friends may turn their backs on you, as you face the storms of life in preparation for your Kingdom assignments.
The Scripture warns that, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you (John 15:18-19 ESV).”
Do not look to please people, but look to please God, as you are a servant of Christ (Galatians 1:10). You do not have to answer to people, but you do have to give a personal account to God (Romans 14:12). Therefore, you cannot explain to God that others have prevented you from answering His call, as they were jealous of you or hated you because you were chosen.
Answering God’s call requires you to deny yourself and take up your cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23). As a result, you will endure trials and tribulations, as you follow God to fulfill the mandate of your calling. However, your obedience will bring blessings (Deuteronomy 28:1-2), and your reward will be sure (Proverbs 11:18).
Are you in a battle today, and it’s taking more than just a physical toll on you? Are you finding it difficult to find the words to tell the devil to be gone? Spiritual warfare is crippling, real, and troublesome, but Jesus has already won us the victory! Pray along with these words now and let the Lord break the chains of fear and bondage!
Jesus, sometimes I can almost sense the heaviness of pressure mounting and the ominous presence of darkness around me. I recognize my enemy is at work again. Whether he’s trying to discourage me to get sidetracked, to fall into temptation, to give up, or to take my eyes off you, he’s always hanging around.
I need your supernatural power, Lord, to stand strong and not surrender. Physical force won’t help, because you’ve said the weapons of our warfare are different from those in this world. As believers, ours are powerful and can demolish strongholds and lies. These supernatural weapons originate from you. By your precious name and blood, Jesus, I’m asking you to confuse Satan and cancel his attempts to shut me and my influence down. Help me not to become discouraged or to give in when heavy times of testing come.
When I’m tired and weak, you are strong, Lord, and you are my only source of help. I cannot fight without you. Teach me how to pray and to trust you to pull down those strongholds that keep me or others helpless. Guard me from isolation that leaves me exposed and vulnerable. I believe you destroyed the power of my enemy by your death and resurrection. But like a bad penny, my enemy keeps showing up, whispering lies, twisting the truth, and attempting to inflate my selfish pride. He never gives up.
I am declaring the devil and his demons liars today, Lord. Through the power of your precious name and blood, I agree with your Word and the truth that you are in me and that you are greater than my enemy who wants to rule the world. You, your Word, and prayer, Lord, are my secret weapons. I belong to you, and that fills me with a powerful God-confidence. I want to constantly dress in the spiritual armor you give me. Help me use it to defend others from Satan’s fiery darts as well. No one and nothing can snatch me away from your hand.
Strengthen my faith, Lord. Forgive my sins, so that I may be clean in your righteousness. Make me brave, so I can stand and fight the spiritual battles in my life and in our world. Give me your wisdom and discernment so I won’t be caught off guard. Together, Lord, we’ll win, because in truth, you already have.
In Jesus’s powerful name before which every knee shall bow, Amen!
Courtesy: Rebecca Barlow Jordan – Crosswalk
To those of you who have spoken into my life. To the ones who have helped and supported me, as I endured and overcame various trials and tribulations. To the ones who did not run away and leave me while I was riding out my storm, but instead have consistently encouraged and prayed for me. And to the ones who have helped me created cherished memories.
Luke 4:16-30 depicts the time where Jesus went back to Nazareth, the hometown where he was brought up. He went to the synagogue and began to read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (v. 18-19).”
Jesus spoke graciously, and all who were listening, marveled at the words coming out of his mouth. And they said, “Is not this Joseph’s son (v.22)?” Jesus knew what they were thinking, because they could not bring themselves to believe who God had called him to be. Therefore, Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown (v. 24).”
When they heard these things, all who were in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, he went away (v. 28-30).
Jesus went away unto others, who would have welcomed and received him, as he continued his ministry with his twelve disciples. This is so, because he could not do any mighty work in his hometown of Nazareth, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief (Mark 6:5). He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him (John 1:11).
Can you imagine the regret the Nazarenes must have experienced, when they heard how much Jesus’ fame had spread around the world, because of the mighty work that he was doing for God’s kingdom?
Jesus’ experience at Nazareth is typical today of people whom God has called to fulfill his purpose on this earth. People in your very own hometown, who may include family members and friends, may not want to recognize and respect you for the person God has called you to be. However, no matter how much they hate, criticize, or continue to be jealous of you, no one can prevent God from blessing and using you for his purpose and glory.
When God calls you, he anoints and equips you for his purpose; therefore, the devil and evil people cannot touch your anointing or do you any harm (Psalm 105:15). When people try to fight you; they are not fighting you, but they are fighting God, who has called, anointed, and equipped you for his purpose. With that being said, no one ever wins a fight with God.
If you need to leave Nazareth, in order to fulfill the purpose that God has called you for, by all means, leave! At the end of the day, you have an account to give to God (Romans 14:12).
Do you feel that you are facing the darkest time of your life right now? If so, who is facing it with you? Do you have the support of your family, friends or church folks? You may be going through various trials and tribulations, which may include anything from sicknesses, addictions, financial setbacks, barrenness, joblessness, hopelessness, demonic oppression, business failure, ministry failure, marriage problems, singleness, or you may have lost your salvation, because you are not where you are with God right now. Alternatively, you may also have never been saved, and struggling to find out who God really is, and if He exists, or even care about you. Whatever your circumstances are today, you will need to know that no matter what you are going through, there is a God who sits high on the throne. As a result, your tears are not going unnoticed today, as He loves and cares for you more than you ever can think of. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).
When the very people who you think should have your back, turn against you while you are facing your darkness, God never will. However, what you need to understand is this, “Weeping may last only for a night, but joy comes in the morning” (Psalms 30:5). With that being said, sometimes you have to face the darkness, before you can face the light. Notwithstanding, the very same people who disregarded you, and isolated you while you were facing your darkness alone, are the same people who will run back to you when your troubles are over, and you are now facing the light. God sometimes isolates you because of where He is taking you. He has a greater plan and purpose for your life that will bring Him greater glory, and elevates you to your destiny. Consequently, He has to place you in the darkness to see how you will handle yourself, and also for you to see who will go through the darkness with you. Some people will want to revel in your blessings when your tribulations are over, and you have passed your test, but they did not want to bear the burden with you. Therefore, God will use your darkness to let some fake and toxic people leave your life for good. You need to just ride through the darkness now, as your light is coming soon. However, remember that the people who left while you were going through your darkness, God does not want them to come with you in the light, as they weren’t good for you in the first place.
Accordingly, you may be walking through the valley of the shadow of death right now, but you should fear no evil, because God is with you. It is not what the devil or people decide will happen to your life, it is what God decides will happen. The devil or people will spread rumors and wish bad things for you, but they cannot override God’s purpose for your life. God is supreme over all the elements in the world, and no one cannot prevent God from blessing you, unless you allow them to. You need to hold your head up high today, and focus on where God is taking you. Additionally, you need to also understand that the same power that raised Christ from the dead (Romans 8:11) is the same power that can heal and deliver you today. He still have that power, as He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). God does not change; therefore, He can still do anything, because nothing is impossible for Him. So when people think it is over for you, God’s power will set you free from whatever you are facing today, if you only have a little faith to persevere through your darkness. He will justly reward you when He sees your faith and perseverance (Hebrews 11:6).
As stated, people today who are of the devil will rejoice and spread rumors, lies, and gossip when someone is going through their darkness, not understanding that God is getting ready to bless them in the light. However, because those people are of the devil, they don’t understand that what goes around also comes around. Their darkness is coming, as everyone has to go through tribulations (John 16:33), and hopefully when their darkness comes, they are able to handle it. Consequently, they too will need help and support, but if they did not provide it to others, they may find themselves isolated throughout their tribulations.
Let us pray one for another, and be supportive of each other, as today will be someone’s darkness, but tomorrow will be yours.
People who live in affluence for all of life (such as many people in North America and Western Europe) can easily become so accustomed to wealth, blessings, and prosperity that they can easily forget what blessings they actually have. However, if those possessions are taken away, those people will certainly look at life with a new perspective, realizing how much they really had.
You don’t realize how much you have until you don’t have it anymore.
God knows the importance of balance; that is, the importance of having both blessings and difficulties. There are several scriptures that speak about this balance. For example in 1 Peter 4:13, we are told: Rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. Notice how we participate both in suffering and in joy.
Similarly, in 2 Corinthians 1:7, Paul wrote this to the church in Corinth: And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. They experienced both suffering and comfort.
Don’t become too comfortable with what you have, because when you forget that the things you have are a blessing from God and when you start to assume that they are guaranteed possessions, it is quite possible that God will take them away from you in order to teach you that you need both blessings and difficulties, because one without the other is neither.
Contributed: Christ Notes
Enough Tribulations Peace & Deliverance Ministries 
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