Isaiah 65:16

Whoever is blessed in the land will be blessed by the God of truth, and whoever swears in the land will swear by the God of truth. For the former troubles will be forgotten and hidden from My sight.

When God blesses you, He blesses you so completely that your former troubles are forgotten.  There is so much new in which to rejoice that you can’t concentrate on the old. Only God can bring such a blessing. In this verse, Isaiah proclaims the same promise for Israel that God had already performed for Job. While Job was blameless, Israel had brought trouble on herself through rebellion. God’s promise of restoration for Israel after she repented, however, was the same as what He did for Job, whose latter years were greater than his former years.

Job suffered tremendous loss and hardship. His health deteriorated before him. All he had left were friends who thought he was being punished and a wife who encouraged him to curse God and die. No one had any hope for him. Job, however, submitted his suffering to God. If it were God’s will for him to suffer, so be it. There was nothing he could do about it anyway. If he had sinned, he didn’t know how. He just knew and acknowledged that God was in control. 

There may come times in our lives when we don’t understand the suffering we are called to endure. Friends may abandon us because they have no hope for us. Family members may encourage us to give up because they have already given up on us. We may have brought the calamity upon ourselves, but if we did we are not sure how. We have to submit such times to God, knowing that He is in control. There is a time limit on our suffering, even if it kills us.  One day, we will be free from it and will rejoice again. When God brings us through it and blesses us on the other end of it, that blessing will be so great that we will forget all about how terrible it was and know with all certainty that His hand was at work the entire time.  That blessing is worth the wait!

Place your hope in the God of truth today. Even if your suffering is the result of your own disobedience, God’s promise of restoration is the same for those who repent and turn back to Him. He sees every tear and pain you bear and has already declared the end. Rejoice in knowing that whatever He has for you, it is so great that you will forget your current hardship. He has not forgotten you nor forsaken you. He is working His glory in you!

Have a blessed day!

Galatians 5:1:

Christ has liberated us into freedom. Therefore stand firm and don’t submit again to the yoke of slavery.

Christ has broken the bondage the enemy as over us. That means we have the power to say, “No!” to the devil, and he will flee. The only way he can have power over us is if we voluntarily submit to him. We do that when we befriend him.

The devil is a master manipulator and deceiver. He will make sin attractive to us and convince us that the rewards are worth it, which is exactly what he did to Eve in the garden. When we buy into his lie and act upon it, we are caught in his trap and fall into slavery to commit that sin again. The devil doesn’t force anything on us. He just makes sin so appealing that we have a hard time rejecting him. He appeals to the weaknesses and voids in our lives and makes promises to fulfill them immediately. His appeals require no faith, no waiting, and no discipline. It is no wonder we make the mistake of befriending him at times.

In my women’s Bible study classes, I’ve talked about how God will confirm a word to us through repetition. Satan, however, will appeal to our weaknesses. I’ve jokingly explained that when I shop and find a necklace I like and look around to find the matching earrings, I often think God is speaking twice. That must be confirmation! If I find the bracelet to match, He must be saying, “Buy it now!”  When I enter a jewelry store I really like, it often feels to me like the Holy Spirit is all over that place! In reality, not every voice we hear is the voice of God. We must learn to distinguish God’s voice from the voice of temptation. Satan will always appeal to our emotions and provide a temporary fix that will leave us longing for more. God will never contradict His word and will give us a provision that permanently satisfies. 

What voice is speaking to you today? Is there a temptation lurking that promises temporary satisfaction? Christ has liberated you into freedom. Stand firm and don’t submit again to the yoke of slavery. Reject the devil, and he will flee from you. If we are ever going to live victorious lives, we must learn to distinguish temptation from God’s voice and be willing to hate evil enough to eradicate it from our lives. Don’t make friends with the devil. Run, Child!  Be free!

Have a blessed day!

Song of Songs 1:10-11

Your cheeks are beautiful with jewelry, your neck with its necklace. We will make gold jewelry for you, accented with silver.

That is my kind of man! We see here just how much Jesus adores His bride. He is so in love with her that He wants to give her the very best and adorn her with His finest. I’m convinced my love for jewelry and all that sparkles and shines is only priming me for heaven! 

You, dear one, are His bride. He is not only your Savior, He is in love with you. He wants only the best for you, and He is in the process now of fashioning gold jewelry for you, accented with silver. Keep in mind that gold and silver are refined in fire. They are the valuable results of a refining process. He does the jewelry making and presents us with the treasure. 

Every trial you endure should produce a beautiful adornment for you. The greater the process, the more valuable and attractive the necklace it will create. Learn to treasure the trials you survive, as they reveal God’s grace to you in new and profound ways. They serve as a part of your dress for Christ. 

If you feel the hardships of life have worn you down, realize that Jesus sees you in beautiful jewelry. He sees every token of affection He has given you. Wear them well, and don’t let bitterness or anger rob you of the beautiful jewels He is fashioning just for you. Get excited about what He is doing in your life right now. You will soon wear the treasure of your struggle when He reveals His glory in the midst of it! 

Have a blessed day!

Psalm 2:7-8

I will declare the LORD’s decree: He said to Me, “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.  Ask of Me, and I will make the nations Your inheritance and the ends of the earth Your possession.”

In Christ we have a heavenly Father who is able to give us far more than we can imagine. He has promised to give the nations to Christ as an inheritance and the ends of the earth as His possessions. His only instruction is to ask of Him. 

When we pray and ask for something in Jesus’s name, we are approaching Him with the righteousness of Christ and asking as God’s Son. He is not withholding anything from us as punishment or because He is mad at us. He has no problem giving us the nations as an inheritance or the ends of the earth as our possessions. Clinging to our own sin may send us down the wrong path to find it, but God desires to freely give it. Jesus is His beloved Son, and we are in Christ. That makes Him our Father, too. 

Make a decision to lay hold of everything God has for you as His child. What do you need?  Ask of Him. What desire is burning in your heart? Ask of Him. What would you change about your life if you could? Ask of Him. What would you like to see happen in your future? Ask of Him. The Father will do anything for the Son, who is Christ Jesus. You are hidden in Christ.  Ask of Him on the basis of what Christ has done for you, and watch how grace will operate when you dare to ask!

Have a blessed day!

John 20:21

Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you!  As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

Jesus was not sent by the Father to find happiness in this world.  He was sent to be a sacrifice for our sins. So the Father sends us. While Christ has already paid the price for our sins, we are still called to lay down our lives for others. Christ died for us so we could live for Him.  What will that mean for you?

I often hear people, even Christians, say, “I deserve to be happy.” This is usually stated to justify what someone wants to do. If it makes them happy, they should do it – right or wrong.  Such people serve the god of self, and self is never satisfied. You do not deserve to be happy.  What you deserve is hell, but Jesus paid the price so you would never have to experience such a place. You owe everything to Him, but all He wants is a sincere relationship with you.  When you have that, you will want to do whatever He tells you to do out of your love for Him. Jesus did not die to make you happy; He died to make you His! Otherwise, you would belong to the devil and would become his slave. If you really understood this, you’d be happy for the privilege of belonging to Jesus!

When we belong to Jesus, He grants us peace. We have peace in knowing we are doing the right thing and are in right relationship with Him. We no longer have to worry about paying for our own sins. We have the peace and freedom to walk in a right, loving relationship with Christ. As the Father sent Jesus, He sends us into the world. We are to tell His story and proclaim His love to the world. 

How are you telling His story? Is your portrayal of the gospel one of excitement? Do you find hope each day in the resurrected Christ? Have you gained victory over your enemy in anything? Do you live life expecting to find Jesus in every negative situation? Have you ever shared your faith with anyone? If not, the story of Jesus may be just a story to you. Seek Him, surrender to Him, and experience Him. He has already done everything just to be with you.  You will never know a greater love than that! 

Have a blessed day!

Judges 4:21

While he was sleeping from exhaustion, Heber’s wife Jael took a tent peg, grabbed a hammer, and went silently to Sisera. She hammered the peg into his temple and drove it into the ground, and he died.

Beware women warriors when they have had enough! Somewhere between “Come in, my lord,” and “While he was sleeping…”  Jael recognized Sisera for who he truly was – her enemy!  Perhaps, it was his bossing her around that did it. Personally, that doesn’t work well with me, either! Maybe it was his ordering her to lie about his existence in her tent. If she were an honest woman, this would have bothered her. Her own allegiance to Israel and seeing Sisera in desperation could have given her hope. Regardless of what it was that finally revealed the truth to her, she took an attitude against the devil and won! We must all come to the point where we hate him enough to be violent with him to destroy his influence in our lives! Compromise is costly!

Don’t minimize the risk that Jael took. As Heber’s wife, her entire existence was dependent upon her husband, who had made an allegiance with the evil ruler. Jael risked everything she knew of security in order to destroy the enemy in her life. Would Heber be angry? What would he do to her? How would her decision affect her marriage and her well-being? Jael hated her enemy more than she valued her own security. When we get to that point, we will no longer be ruled by threats of insecurity and dare to live in freedom. That, dear friend, is true women’s liberation!

This story is about more than just women in leadership. It is about overcoming insecurity in our lives, which is why I believe God used women as the heroes. While everyone deals with some type of insecurity, it seems women are plagued with it more. God, however, does not intend for us to live in insecurity and be dominated by it! His will is for us to live victorious lives in Christ. The key is to recognize our true enemy and to be violent with him. We cannot allow him to manipulate, intimidate, and dominate us. We are to fear God and not the devil.  If God is for us, who can stand against us? Once we get that revelation in our minds and in our hearts, we become forces with which to be reckoned, and the devil knows it. How long will we continue to listen to him and submit to his lies and his demands? When one mere tent-wife dared to face her own insecurity and fight against her real enemy, it freed an entire nation! Just think what could happen in your own life if you stopped listening to the devil and believing his lies and truly believed that God loves you and has good things planned for you! 

If you have invited the devil into your tent and are tired of his lies and his demands, look around your house for some tent pegs. Begin by opening God’s word and read what He has to say about you. Listen to Christian music, and meditate on Scripture throughout the day.  Connect with fellow believers who are strong in God’s word and uplift you. Determine to overcome those insecure thoughts that drain your hope and your dreams. Reject any thought that makes you feel unworthy, undeserving, or less-than in any way. Dare to believe in God’s goodness and refuse to give up until you see it! Your liberation is at hand!

Have a blessed day!

Judges 4:18-20:

Jael went out to greet Sisera and said to him,”Come in, my lord. Come in with me. Don’t be afraid.” So he went into her tent, and she covered him with a rug. He said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink for I am thirsty.” She opened a container of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him again. Then he said to her, “Stand at the entrance to the tent. If a man comes and asks you, ‘Is there a man here?’ say, ‘No.’

Jael went out to greet the enemy and invited him into her tent. It would have been inappropriate for Sisera to enter Jael’s tent uninvited, but she gave him the perfect place to hide. Many times, we do the same thing. While the enemy may be threatened and on the run, we just open the door and invite him in. He never has to even knock. Sisera wasn’t afraid of Jael because there were friendly relations between Jael’s husband and himself. When we make friends with the enemy, he isn’t afraid of us. He sees us as an ally, and he expects us to protect him, which is exactly what Jael did at first.

Seeing he was in danger of being exposed, Jael covered Sisera with a rug. When we fear our own sins are in danger of being exposed, we often try to cover them in some manner. We try to keep them out of sight or redirect attention to something else. We make intentional attempts to protect the sin we have befriended.

Once safely inside, Sisera began to make demands upon Jael. He asked for water to quench his thirst and ordered her to stand at the entrance to her tent and lie about his presence in her tent if confronted. Anytime we invite the enemy into our lives, he will quench his thirst on our resources and begin to make demands upon us. He will order us to deny his existence in our lives in order to protect his presence. 

Why do we voluntarily protect the enemy in our own lives? For most of us, we protect him because we have befriended him, and we don’t want him to leave. We’ve become dependent upon him in some regard, and we are afraid of losing the false security he give us. As long as we want him there, he will stay and continue to deplete our resources and order us around.  While we won’t take anything off of another individual, we often allow the enemy to give us a daily beating! It is time we become tired of his lies, his manipulation, his intimidation, and his domination, and order him out of our tent! Once you have invited the enemy into your house, you will never get rid of him unless you hate him enough to be violent with him! 

Where have you voluntarily invited the enemy into your life? Where have you been hiding him? Where is he making demands of you? It is time you take a close look at him and recognize him for who he truly is – your enemy and not your friend! He holds no real security for you, and he will completely deplete your resources. He is dependent upon you for survival, and you have the power to extinguish him. However, you must come to the point where you hate him enough to get rid of him. Take an attitude against the devil in your life, and watch what real power rises up in you! Tomorrow we will see what Jael did when she finally recognized the enemy for who he was.

Have a blessed day!

Judges 5:8-9

Israel chose new gods, then war was in the gates. Not a shield or spear was seen among 40,000 in Israel. My heart is with the leaders of Israel, with the volunteers of the people.  Praise the LORD!

Israel turned from God and chose new gods to follow. This brought war on the nation, and no one was able to defend Israel. God had always fought for Israel and given her victory.  Now that she had turned from Him, who would defend her? The result was 20 years of oppression. We allow oppression into our lives when we turn from God to follow other things, as well.

Israel did not even try to defend herself. She just seemed to let the enemy come right in and take whatever he wanted. When we lose hope, courage, and the willingness to fight, it is sure surrender to the enemy. Israel was defeated in their hearts and minds before they were ever defeated physically. Our own negative thinking will defeat us from within, as well. 

God’s heart is with the leaders of Israel and with the volunteers of the people. He is with those who are willing to fight against the lies of the devil! If God’s heart is with you, there is no battle you cannot win! You just have to be willing to fight the oppressive and negative thoughts the devil uses to try to convince you there is no hope. 

Before we ever see victory on the outside, we must believe victory is possible on the inside.  We must see ourselves as victorious individuals and not defeated individuals. As a man thinks within himself, so he is (Prov. 23:7). If you are ever going to achieve your dreams, overcome an obstacle, see victory, or overcome your enemy in any area, you must first believe you can by the grace of God, whose heart is with you. There is no problem too great for him. You may not be able to win in your own strength, but you certainly can with Him! Turn to Him and rely upon His strength in your situation today.  Dare to believe Him for a victory. His grace is sufficient for whatever need you may have. Don’t give up. Give it to God, and believe Him for victory.

Have a blessed day!

Judges 4:4-5

Deborah, a woman who was a prophet and the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. It was her custom to sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her for judgment.

Deborah means “bee.” I picture her as a queen bee, too! Bees are busy and diligent workers.  I can’t help but think of the Proverbs 31 woman when I think of Deborah. Without doubt, she was a trusted and respected woman in Israel. Lappidoth means “to shine, lamp, or flame.”  Like the husband of the Proverbs 31 woman, Lappidoth must have been a man who stood out as a leader. 

Deborah is the only woman judge and one of the few true women leaders we find in Scripture. This fact alone makes her a woman of interest. She held court underneath the palm of Deborah, indicating that they named the place after her. This place of leadership was located between Ramah, which means “seat of idolatry,” and Bethel, which means “house of prayer.” She judged in the hill country of Ephraim, which means “double fruit.” Indeed, when we rightfully judge between the seat of idolatry and the house of prayer, God will make us doubly fruitful!

The Israelites found themselves between the seat of idolatry and the house of prayer. Surely, there was much temptation to compromise. Perhaps, this was the reason they returned to evil, and God sold them into the hands of Jabin. Deborah was a woman God could use. She could recognize the idolatrous from the godly and make a right judgment. God placed her in leadership for this very reason. 

We often find ourselves caught between the world and the word. While the world tugs at us from one end, our Holy Spirit led conscience tugs at the other. Can we rightly judge which influence we should follow? Although compromise might appear to please many, our purpose is to please God. Know that when we rightly judge between our own seats of idolatry and the house of prayer, God will make us doubly fruitful, as well!

Determine today to follow the examples of the Proverbs 31 woman and Deborah. Stay busy and faithful to the task where God has called you. Do everything you do with excellence.  Correctly judge between the world and the word, and allow the word to influence your thoughts and your actions. You will find that you will be a woman God can use to do great things, and He will reward you with double fruit! 

Have a blessed day!

Judges 5:12

Awake!  Awake, Deborah! Awake! Awake, sing a song! Arise, Barak, and take hold of your captives, son of Abinoam!

God has promised us victory. He has already defeated Satan at the cross, and it is time we awaken to our senses to take hold of the captives God has placed at our feet. Our promise is for good and not evil, and we have reason to sing a new song of praise to Him! If you never expect much, that is exactly what you will get. If you think your life will never change, it won’t.  Now is time to believe God for His goodness and to proclaim victory, even if we don’t see it at first.

God commanded Barak to take hold of his captives, reminding him he is the son of Abinoam, which means “father of pleasantness.” God had good things planned for Barak’s future. He just needed to remind him who he was. God often shows us His victories by reminding us who and what we are – His children, purchased by the blood of His Son! By His grace, we are righteous with the righteousness of Christ. Arise, son of the father of pleasantness! Victory is yours because I have declared it! Take hold of the captives that I have laid at your feet!  

Where do you need to awaken to victory today? God has promised good things for your future, according to Jeremiah 29:11-13. It is time to start believing it and sing a new song of praise to God for what He is doing in your life. Take hold of the captives of negative, stinking thinking, and turn to a God who has defeated your enemy at the cross and guaranteed your success! All things are possible with Him! 

Have a blessed day!