Isaiah 40:10

See, the Lord GOD comes with strength, and His power establishes His rule. His reward is with Him, and His gifts accompany Him.

Revelation 22:12

“Look! I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me to repay each person according to what he has done.”

True success, which is God’s reward, comes with His presence. Please understand this foundational principle of our faith: Prosperity without the presence of God has the power to destroy you! Moses understood this principle well from his personal encounters with Yaweh. When the children of Israel grieved God in the wilderness, He gave them an offer to take the Promised Land without Him. Moses, however, would not move ahead without God, according to Exodus 33:15.

Now read verse 16 carefully to see the reason Moses would not move ahead of God to take the promise:

How will it be known that I and Your people have found favor in Your sight unless You go with us? I and Your people will be distinguished by this from all the other people on the face of the earth.

Jehoshaphat understood that true success comes from God. In addition to building a strong military defense for the nation, Jehoshaphat commissioned his very best men to teach the people the word of God so they would know the power of God’s presence. By teaching them the book of instruction, he created a spiritual defense for the people which would keep them from succumbing to the temptation of seeking prosperity on their own terms without God, as the northern kingdom had done. The result of Jehoshaphat’s educational system is found in 2 Chronicles 17:10:

The terror of the LORD was on all the kingdoms of the lands that surrounded Judah, so they didn’t fight against Jehoshaphat.

God’s presence dwelt with Judah and Jehoshaphat because they sought Him. The nation’s strong military defense and apparent spiritual defense cast the fear of God upon the surrounding nations as they recognized something different about them – something supernatural that claimed the nation as special and blessed by an Almighty God who ruled in their favor. Enemy nations dared not attack what they knew would destroy them!

Look back at Moses for a moment to see how his plea for God’s presence to follow the nation of Israel into the Promised Land progressed. God honored Moses’s request and cut a covenant with Him. Exodus 34:10 records the promise of this covenant:

And the LORD responded: “Look, I am making a covenant. I will perform wonders in the presence of all your people that have never been done in all the earth or in any nation. All the people you live among will see the LORD’s work, for what I am doing with you is awe-inspiring.

With God’s presence comes a reward that is so great it is awe-inspiring! Note Merriam Webster’s definition of awe:

An emotion variously combining dread, veneration, and wonder that is inspired by authority or by the sacred or sublime.

Awe is the term to which we most commonly refer as “the fear of God.” When people can see God at work in our lives and not our own flesh, we have been blessed with true success! The work God wants to do in my life and in yours is nothing less than awe-inspiring, but His presence must go with us! If we try to move into His promise for us in our own flesh or our own strength, a greater flesh will seek to destroy it. If we are moving forward in the power and presence of Almighty God, however, no demon in hell can stop it because of the reverential fear that accompanies us! We are most certainly distinguishable from the other people and nations around us when we operate in the presence of God!

Determine to seek the presence of God daily and not tempted by the desire of the flesh to move ahead of Him. God is doing an awe-inspiring work in you, and you want every bit of Him – not the thing He promises – to be your focus. His reward is with Him, and when you have Him, you have it all!

Have a blessed day!

1 Kings 20: 1-4

Now Ben-hadad king of Aram assembled his entire army. Thirty-two kings, along with horses and chariotry, were with him. He marched up, besieged Samaria, and fought against it. He sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel and said to him, “This is what Ben-hadad says: ‘Your silver and your gold are mine! And your best wives and children are mine as well!'” Then the king of Israel answered, “Just as you say, my lord king: I am yours, along with all that I have.”

This passage reveals how truly weak Ahab was as a man and a king. Instead of fighting to protect all that should have been precious to him, he was willing to give up the very best of the land upon attack. Ben-hadad saw that Ahab would not put up a fight, so he then decided to take everything.

When the enemy attacks you, how easily do you surrender? Hear me now: the Devil wants everything you hold dear, including your family, and he will take everything of value from you if you do not put up a fight! You have to defend your land, or it won’t be your land anymore!

Our weapons of warfare are outlined in Ephesians 6, but they are used through prayer. In prayer we seek God’s guidance and ask for His divine intervention. In prayer we declare His promises from His word to strike the enemy. In prayer we proclaim our faith and resist the Devil. In prayer we take every thought captive and align it with the word of God. In prayer we surrender to God what only He can do, and in prayer we gain our victory over the enemy.

When we don’t see an immediate answer to prayer, however, we can easily become discouraged. Giving up, however, is never the answer. We must continue to pray until we have the victory. Just because we don’t see anything happening doesn’t mean God isn’t working. In fact, He often conceals His best work from us and allows us to see it after He has finished. Unless God has given us an absolute, “No,” we are to continue to pray and trust Him to do what only He can do. If the Devil can convince us to give up the battle in prayer, he gains victory over us. Be diligent in your praying, and never surrender your God-given land to enemy defeat!

Thankfully, Ahab is not our defender. We belong to Christ, and Romans 8:34 tells us He is seated at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. Jesus prays for us continually! He doesn’t give up on us; let us not give up on Him. Get on your knees, and defend your land! God will give you the victory because no weapon formed against you shall prosper, according to Isaiah 54:17. Be a prayer warrior, and watch God give you the victory!

Have a blessed day!

Acts 16:31

So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.”

When Jesus touches a life, quite often it affects the entire household. God doesn’t just want to change one life; He wants to change families, communities, regions, and the entire world. He often starts, however, with just one individual. From there, His Spirit spreads like wildfire through the testimonies resulting from His presence.

We desperately need a revival in our nation that will spread. Perhaps, it will begin when people can see a change in lives that were once bound. A spark must start somewhere. Could your house or my house be the place? If we really want our children and loved ones to change and follow Christ, they must first see a change in us. Otherwise, they will see no need to do anything differently.

I challenge you today to simply believe on the Lord Jesus to make a difference in your life and in your family, and begin to act upon it. We can’t change others, but we can certainly change ourselves – our attitudes and our thinking. Commit yourself fully to Jesus, and ask Him to pursue your loved ones through the Holy Spirit. Since it is not His will that any should perish but all should have eternal life, you can count on Him to answer that for you. Believe that Jesus can and will make a difference in your household, and submit to Him. Ask for a revival to begin in your own family. Why wouldn’t God answer that prayer? Move from worry to worship, and see how different life can be.

Have a blessed day!

Psalm 68:1

God arises. His enemies scatter, and those who hate Him flee from His presence.

God will not keep silent in a situation forever. While it may look like the wicked have prevailed, God will rise up at some point, and His enemies will flee from His presence. Therefore, the best thing we can do is to remain in His presence.

To stop the onslaught of enemy attack, our greatest weapon is exalting God. When we make Him greater in our life than the bad things the Devil is doing, His enemies scatter. They cannot stand in His presence.

Let God arise in your life today. Praise Him and give Him your attention when the enemy hurls a dart at you. Magnify Him, and watch your enemies flee. He is greater. He is stronger. He is for you and not against you. He has promised that no weapon formed against you will prosper. He is your heavenly Father, and you are called according to His purpose. As the Message Bible states, “Up with God! Down with his enemies! Adversaries, run for the hills!” Don’t let the Devil have the best part of you or your day. Let God arise in your life, and the enemy will run for dear life!

Have a blessed day!

Matthew 19:29

And everyone who has left houses, brothers or sisters, father or mother, children or fields because of My name will receive 100 times more and will inherit eternal life.

Jesus had just met with the rich young ruler, who could not part with his possessions to follow Jesus. Afterward, Jesus explained to His disciples that it is hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. To this, Peter responded with a valid question: “Look, we have left everything and followed You. So what will there be for us?” Here we find the typical, “What is in it for me?” question.

Jesus assured Peter that anything we give up for His name sake will be returned to us 100 fold, and we will inherit eternal life. Basically, Jesus promised Peter that his loss or sacrifice to follow Him would be worth it. He never promised prosperity or financial gain; He merely explained that the benefits of following Him would be seen in this life and in the next. In fact, you don’t want to enter the next life without following Him.

While we can never enter the kingdom of heaven by our works, choosing to follow Christ will cost us something. Our decision will affect those around us. If Christ calls us into a deeper level of commitment, the decision to go further will affect those we love, too. We may have to leave the comfort of our little worlds to receive the bigger world He has waiting. We can stay in our comfort zones and groan for more, or we can dare to step out on faith and follow Him. Whatever we sacrifice will seem small in comparison to the reward He has waiting. When our life here is over, our decision to follow Him will realize even greater returns when we are granted eternal life with Him in heaven.

Peter sacrificed everything on earth to follow Christ, but Jesus promised He would sit on one of the 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel that is described in Revelation. The original apostles have a high ranking place in heaven, and their sacrifice on earth will seem very small in comparison. The key to making the required sacrifice to follow Jesus rests in seeing ourselves as small and seeing Him as much greater. When we realize just how insignificant our possessions and lives are here compared to eternity, any sacrifice required is worth it. We all need a glimpse of what God has waiting in store for us to be able to let go and follow Him. 

Begin to set your eyes on things eternal. Do you sense God calling you to give up something that seems great at the moment? If He is calling you to forsake it, He must have something 100 times better waiting for you. Even if you should fall in the process, He is able to pick you up and set you on the right track again. He is a God of restoration, and He will not leave you empty or void. To be saved means to be made whole, and His desire is to make you complete, not lacking anything. Whatever you give up for Him is worth it!

Have a blessed day!

Matthew 23:8-10

“But as for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’ because you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father, because you have one Father who is in heaven. And do not be called masters either, because you have one Master, the Messiah.

Jesus instructed His disciples to stay away from titles that would put them on a pedestal. We have one Teacher, the Holy Spirit, and we are all brothers and on equal footing as Christ followers. God is our heavenly Father, and we are not to look to anyone else to fill that role. While a pastor is a spiritual leader, he is never to replace the role of our heavenly Father. To do so places him on a pedestal, and he will eventually fall because he is imperfect, just as we are.

Jesus also warned of not allowing others to call us master. As Christians, we have one Master, who is Jesus the Messiah. He is our Lord, and we are not to expect others to serve us in the same way. We are called to serve those God gives us to lead and not to lord any title or position over them.

It can be very easy to place others on a pedestal to replace what only Jesus can be in our lives. Faith requires an object, but if we place that faith in another person, we will be disappointed. Looking to a pastor or another spiritual leader as God unfairly places too much responsibility on that leader. While our leaders are there to guide us, we are still responsible for our own spiritual growth and must work to develop our individual relationship with Jesus Christ. If we expect a leader to do that for us, we will become dependent upon the wrong object, and our faith will be shattered. A pastor or spiritual leader is as human as you are and subject to error. By the same token, you are subject to error as a part of our fallen nature, and no one should look to you as their god, either. None of us can handle God’s responsibility in another person’s life. We are all brothers in Christ, and we should remember that when we see a leader fall or err.

People will disappoint you, and you will disappoint others. We are to regard fellow Christians as our brothers and sisters in Christ and to pick each other up when we fall. Jesus will never fail you, and you can always trust His Lordship. Our faith must be firmly planted in Him, and our lives will grow from that faith.

Have a blessed day!

Zechariah 4:6-7

So he answered me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by strength or by might, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of Hosts. ‘What are you, great mountain?  Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain. And he will bring out the capstone, accompanied by shouts of: Grace, grace to it.'”

God had called His people out of exile to rebuild Jerusalem. Nehemiah was called to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, and Zerubbabel was to rebuild the temple. Opposition to the building from neighboring nations had ceased the rebuilding, and the people had lost vision and hope. God spoke to His prophet, Zechariah, to encourage the people to turn to Him.

Opposition stops human strength and power from moving forward, which is why we must rely upon God. His Spirit moves mountains and enables us to complete our mission. While He may give us a vision, we cannot complete it in our own strength. We complete it in His Spirit one faithful step at a time.

Consider the Message translation of this passage:

Then he said, “This is GOD’s Message to Zerubbabel: ‘You can’t force these things. They only come about through My Spirit,’ says GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies. ‘So, big mountain, who do you think you are? Next to Zerubbabel you’re nothing but a molehill. He’ll proceed to set the Cornerstone in place, accompanied by cheers: Yes! Yes! Do it!'”

We can’t force things to go God’s way. Nor can we force His vision to manifest. God will make a molehill of any mountain that stands in our way as we follow Him in obedience to our call. Verse 10 of this chapter warns us not to despise the day of small beginnings. What may appear small to us is huge when God is in it. His Spirit is with us, working out all things for our good and His glory. Eventually, what looked impossible in the natural is realized when we lay the final stone on a project or mission once believed to be impossible. One stone, one step, one day at a time in God’s presence and by God’s Spirit we realize victory.

Don’t despise your day of small things. God’s Spirit will move the mountains needed for your victory as you continue in obedience. Trust Him to do what you cannot, and remain faithful to your call. The God-of-Angel-Armies fights for you, and victory is yours if you don’t give up.

Have a blessed day!

Luke 11:28

He said, “Even more, those who hear the word of God and keep it are blessed!”

If Jesus said it, we certainly need to pay attention to it. In this verse, a woman in a crowd yelled to Jesus that the womb that bore Him and the one who nursed him was blessed. Jesus did not argue with the woman. He never showed signs of disrespect to His mother. He clarified her statement further by stating that even more blessed than His own mother was the one who heard the word of God and kept it. Not everyone could be His mother; that spot was taken by only one individual. Everyone, however, could hear the word of God and be blessed from it.

We often look at others and see their blessing. We might even wish we could have the same blessing but feel as if it is already taken or that we are disqualified by some reason. This woman saw Jesus’s mother as a blessed woman for having given birth to such a remarkable man. Jesus, however, made it very clear, that to be blessed, you didn’t have to be His mother; you simply needed to hear God’s word and obey it. Anyone has the potential to be blessed.

God has a blessing just for you, and you will find it by simply obeying His word. Mary received God’s word and submitted herself to it. You can do the same. Neither God’s word nor His blessings are exclusive. They are available to all. Stop feeling as if you have missed it somewhere or that you are disqualified. Those who hear the word of God and keep it are blessed! This includes you!

Have a blessed day!

2 Kings 6:16

Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them.”

Elisha’s servant had a vision problem. He woke up one morning and saw an army of horses and chariots surrounding the city and went into a panic from fear and anxiety. Elisha calmly informed him that God’s army was much bigger than the threatening army gathering around, and he then prayed for God to open his servant’s eyes so he could see the supporting troops.

Like Elisha’s servants, we are often blinded to the strength of God’s forces surrounding us, and we need spiritual clarity to see how He is fighting for us. Just as Paul prayed in Ephesians 1:18 that the eyes of our hearts be opened to God’s strength, so we need to pray when the enemy rushes in to threaten us. Our God is bigger than any problem we face, and we must rely upon His strength to fight our true battles.

Spiritual warfare must be fought with eyes open to the real enemy and the power of Almighty God to equip us and strengthen us for warfare. Unless we know we have power at our disposal, we may shrink back in fear and anxiety and allow the enemy to steal what is precious to us, including our peace. We must wake up and see the power of God surrounding us and know that He is in control.

Don’t be afraid today. Those who are with us outnumber those who are with them, and any threat that taunts you is no match for the strength of God that is with you. Pray that He will strengthen you and open your eyes to see that He is greater than your problem. May He be magnified in your life and in mine, and may the tactics of the enemy be shattered in His presence. Such is your inheritance in Christ Jesus.

Have a blessed day!

Genesis 12:1-2

The LORD said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land where I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.

Abram had nothing to offer God but his need. He had a void in his life, and he could not fill it on his own. He wanted a son, but his wife was barren. God chose to bless the void in his life by making him a great nation. Our lives change when God decides to bless the void.

God used Abram’s void to lead him to a new place. He used the void to develop a relationship with Abram and to gain his trust. He used the void to build a nation and ultimately a people for Himself. He used the void to bring promise and to deliver His own Son into the world to save us from our sins. God can certainly do great things when we give Him our void.

What could God do with the void in your life if He decided to bless it? Within every one of us there is a longing that we can’t fill on our own – an emptiness that needs to be satisfied. Such a void is the very tool God uses to work in our lives, and He promises to fill that void to overflowing if we will only follow Him. That journey begins at the cross and continues wherever the Holy Spirit leads us. Should we get off track, as Abraham did at times, His Spirit can still draw us back to the right path.

God still blesses the voids of life, and He still does great and wonderful things through His people. We fail when we try to fill that void on our own or with other means. Surrender your void to God today, and allow Him to bless you. Abram had nothing else to offer God, but the void was what He wanted. He wants yours, too. Give what you don’t have to receive what you can never achieve on your own. What a wonderful God we serve!

Have a blessed day!