Daniel 10:1 – “Then he said to me, “Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words.”  NASB

The Idea of “Persistence” deeply impacted my consciousness as I read, prayed, and pondered the Word today.  The familiar account of Gabriel coming to Daniel is revelatory.

Daniel had been fasting and praying with no seeming breakthrough.   I have been there!  The heavens seemed lined with brass, and my prayers ascended no higher than my lips—no response from God. 

I have had times when I grew weary and concluded that it was not God’s will and changed focus.  Most of those times, I knew that was not the right approach.  I have also had times when I persisted and refused to quit.  God did what God does.  He dealt with me and my needs.

Gabriel made a powerful statement.   He said, “…from day one, WHEN you set your heart to know God’s purpose and understand, YOU WERE HEARD!” [Emphasis mine] The immediate thought would be, if I were heard on Day One, why has it taken three weeks for the answer to come? 

Gabriel explained the reality that sometimes prayers do not get an immediate answer, which is satanic opposition.  Had Daniel not persisted, Gabriel, the messenger, would not have come.

In Luke 11, Jesus reemphasized the Power of Persistence.  The parable of the need to feed a guest after normal hours provides revelation and encouragement for Persistence!  He said that even if the friend would not respond on the strength of friendship, he would due to persistence.

We cannot twist God’s arm of reluctance by Persistence.   But persistence solidifies the depth of need in our hearts and demonstrates an unwillingness to fail.

Luke 11:9-10 gives us the progression and value of Persistence.

• ASK – Have not because we ask not.
• SEEK—It is difficult to find what you are not looking for, and if you find it, how would you know it if you were not seeking it?
• KNOCK – The implementation is beating on the door, not just timidly or passively tapping on it. 
• URGENCY with PERSISTENCE overcomes doubt and fear and lays hold of the Promise.

Galatians 6:9 encourages us, “Be not weary in well-doing…  in due season harvest comes IF we persist.”

• How important is the matter to you?
• How important is being ONE with God to you?
• How important is knowing you are walking in God’s purposes to you?

The first factor should be God’s will.  Before we begin the prayer of persistence, we should pray the prayer of submission.  Knowing we are on solid ground biblically, then refuse to give up.

• If you fail, get up; next time, determine you will not give up. 
• If you are uncertain about your biblical footing in the request, Persist.
• If you are sure, Persist.
• If you discover you are asking outside His purposes, Repent.
• Then, seek His will and Persist.

The bottom line is always to be a person of unrelenting Persistence.

I encouraged you to make this declaration – “I Will Not Quit!”  You will be surprised at what happens in your heart and mind.  What is in your heart will soon be in your hand.

May the Lord watch over you and inspire you to persist as you pursue His purposes for your life and the Kingdom!

Hosea 4:12 – “My people ask counsel of their own imagination… “

Often in my daily reading, musing, praying, and pondering the Word I am reading, I hear intriguing whispers and challenges by the Holy Spirit. They are often just for me, but sometimes for others as well. Today, I heard and saw something that will captivate my thoughts for days as I attempt to unravel the incredible revelation I believe is contained within.

In Hosea 4:12 – “My people ask counsel of their own imagination…” He said that would lead to a spirit of whoredom (not sexual but spiritual) and would lead away from God.  Is the imagination bad?  Not at all, but if we focus on what we want to be the truth rather than what is truth, we will allow our imaginations to concoct scenarios and realities foreign to reality and God’s purposes for our lives. That is dangerous and can be deadly.

Hosea 10:7 reinforces that idea: “AND My people are inclined to backslide from Me; THOUGH they shall call to God, they will take counsel together, (the flesh again), AND none at all would exalt Him.”  If we make what we want to be truth and reality our guide, we will move farther and farther away from God.

The Bible speaks of calling those things that “be not” as though they were. Some seem to be attempting to call those things that are as though they are not. They have a desire, a preference, a wish, a hope (in the natural), and they allow their imaginations to create a world where what they want to be reality is reality.

In that condition, they become deceived and believe everything that supports what they want to be true. What we need to do is allow the Holy Spirit to enable us to use our imaginations to see what God says and what He is doing rather than creating a world we want that is not what He has purposed.

Imagination is good and an ability God gave us. Allowing the Holy Spirit to enable us to see God’s Purposes and Promises is valuable and rewarding. If we allow the self to create a world to satisfy our own fleshly desires or a world where what we want to be reality, then it is counterproductive and dangerous.

As believers, we have two choices—trust ourselves or trust God! We are God’s heirs and joint heirs with Jesus. He owns it all and has made us co-owners. Therefore, we can either live as if the bequeathal has transpired or as spiritual paupers. We can live in the false vision of deserving or not deserving and miss God’s incredible graciousness. Why not live as He declares, more than Conquerors?

Today, I am challenged to cease living as a beggar and try to earn God’s favor, live as an heir, and know that it is not what I deserve but His Grace and Goodness that provides for me. I Choose to Live victoriously and desire to Live with No Sense of Lack because He lacks nothing, and I am His.

May the God of Peace guard your hearts today and lead you to new places of victory!

Malachi 1:6-8 – “‘A son honors his father, and a servant his master. Then if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My respect?’ says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests who despise My name. But you say, ‘How have we despised Your name?’ ⁷ You are presenting defiled ^[i]food upon My altar. But you say, ‘How have we defiled You?’ In that you say, ‘The table of the Lord is to be despised.’ ⁸ But when you present the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and sick, is it not evil? Why not offer it to your governor? Would he be pleased with you? Or would he receive you kindly?” says the Lord of hosts.

In Malachi, God began by asking a chastening and challenging question: “A son honors his father, and a slave his master.”  Then, he came to the point. He took their own words and challenged them—and he still does today.

God said, “If, as you declare, I am your Father, where is the honor you should be giving me?”  He was not looking for words but the commitment of heart and obedience.   Words have power but can be empty if the heart is not in the words.  They continually said the words but kept back their hearts.

Next, He said, “You call me Lord (master); IF I am, then why don’t you have fear and respect for Me?”  They were dumbfounded.   After all, they attended church and said all the right things, wasn’t that what was required?

Defiled food on the altar.  What is that?   It is giving God second best and leftovers.  Spare Change (money and heart).  Tipping living.  They were allowing the profane to thrive and not shutting it out.  Feasting at tables, they should be overturned.   God accepts no offering that is not pure (whole-heart commitment).

In Malachi 2:17, God said, “You have wearied Me with your words.”  His statement is penetrating, “You say evil is good, and everybody and everything is okay.”  Calling evil good and good evil incurs God’s disfavor, not blessing.   

Chapter 3 reveals that the tithe is more than just the tithe. It is about obedience, commitment, love, faith, and revelation.  God invites us to put Him to the test and prove to ourselves and the world His faithfulness. Obedience in faith produces an open heaven.  The blessings promised are “until it is Beyond Enough.”  Beyond enough indicates abundance and even lavishness. 

Then, He promises that the devourer will be rebuked and restrained.   What you have and do is protected from corruption.   That means you have pure offerings that invoke more blessings and greater protection.   It becomes a perpetual cycle.  For His Glory.   Money is not the object; God is.  Fulfilling the purposes of God is.  The harvest is.  Functioning in power is.

Paul told Timothy to fight the good fight of faith through the personal prophecies he had received.  He later spoke of imparted gifts through the laying on of hands and prophecy.  We have a commission, and Malachi reveals a pathway to God’s person, provision, and power.  Timothy shows how to function in that.

I heard in my spirit: “Give Me Your Whole Self, all you are and have, and I will give you Myself, all that I am and have.  I will open heaven, and NOTHING will be impossible or withheld from you.”  What is our part?  Obedience and faith.   We must train ourselves to expect God’s promises to become realities Now!

GOD will not receive superficial offerings but will bless and multiply pure-hearted offerings.  Therefore, we need to speak to our problems.  We are to speak the Word of God to them.  Give God your best, and He will do the rest.

May the Lord of Hosts guard and guide you today in your new journey of Faith and Victory!

Jonah 4:1 – “But it greatly displeased Jonah, and he became angry.”

We may deny it, but many have been angry with or at God.   It may be latent and seething beneath the surface if it is there.  The account of Jonah is an example.   After he finally fulfilled God’s directive, Jonah got mad because God didn’t smash the Ninivites like a bug.  (Jonah 4:1) 

Jonah didn’t like what happened, so he went to sulk in seclusion.  Sometimes, isolating ourselves is a revelation that there is disappointment and even anger toward the Lord beneath the surface.  Why?   Often, we deem that He failed us or, in Jonah’s case, embarrassed him.  Jonah was upset that his prophecy had not happened.   It may result from desiring something and God not doing what we wanted, at least not like we wanted it done.

Jonah went to sulk, and God supernaturally grew a plant to shade him.   Then, to add insult to injury, God sent a worm and killed the plant.  Jonah became furious.  God asked, “Jonah, do you have good reason to be angry about the plant?” Jonah said, “You bet I do.  I have reason to be angry, even if it kills me.”

God used that as an object lesson to expose the root of his anger. 

Jonah 9:10-11 He laid it all out.  Jonah had compassion on a plant he had no investment in but not a city filled with people over 120,000 who were innocent.   God asked, “If the plant deserved compassion, shouldn’t people as well?”  In that, he was bringing Jonah to face the reality that his anger was because he didn’t get what he wanted when he wanted it and how he wanted it. 

We cling to our disappointments and let seething anger bubble beneath the surface.   If we realize that anger, hurt, pain, disappointment, and perpetual sorrow of the heart can be signs of latent anger toward God, we discover the doorway to freedom. 

God Never fails! His ways are higher than ours; sometimes, He acts or doesn’t act.  He knows what we don’t know.  He sees what we can’t see.  If we truly trust Him, rather than becoming angry, we would rejoice, knowing that even when we don’t know and can’t see, He is doing it for the overall good.

I frequently ask myself if there is any hidden anger in my heart toward God.  Are the disappointments roots of hidden bitterness?  Does the past bind me, or am I free to be who He has designed?  Do I truly trust Him, even when I disagree with Him?

My prayer for myself is, “Lord, purge all hidden or open anger from my heart.   Purge what I call disappointment but is anger from me.  Make me free to be who You called me to be.”  As Job said, “Even if You were to slay me, I will trust You.”

When all anger is gone, true freedom comes, new doors open, and new paths are revealed.   We get stuck because we hold on to hurts (anger).  Today is the day to become totally free.  This is for me, but embrace it if it resonates with you.

May the Lord be with you, enabling you to release any hidden anger and walk into His total freedom today!

Daniel 11

My prayers are for peace, power, prosperity, and revelation to be experienced daily.   I ask God to enable you to embrace life fully and move into the next phase of His plan for you.  That divine encounter will lead you deeper into the kingdom realm.  That joy will overflow your heart, and your eyes will see the miraculous and live the kingdom’s manifestation in a greater measure.  God’s plan and purpose is to free us from the torment of earthly cares.

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word, something from Daniel 11 gripped my heart.   Daniel 11 and the first part of 12 speak of the Antichrist and the rapture of God’s people going home. 

But that is not what gripped my heart.   Daniel 11:24 reveals something that transcends this time in the Last Days and speaks to any time.  In a time of tranquility (ease & calm), he will enter the richest parts of the realm…”  When we are at ease, we often let down our guard, and through subtlety, the enemy comes sneakily to capture and deceive.

He comes to the richest part or most treasured part or the part with the greatest potential and seeks to subvert God’s purpose and divert our attention.  We let down our guard in ease, success, productivity, and prosperity.  In difficulty, we tend to pray with focus and purpose.  In trouble, we either restore our confidence and focus on God or embrace “woe me.”

In tranquility, we forget about the enemy.  The most dangerous time spiritually is when we are at ease.  That is why we must always focus on God.  He must be kept in the forefront of our minds and hearts.

We are more than conquerors but easily defeated if we fail to be vigilant, armed, and equipped.

In times of ease, we tend to focus on ourselves. If we let down our guard and an attack comes, we panic. To avoid panic, we must remain vigilant in difficulty and in ease. Ease is for rest and refueling for the war, not to become idle.

Beware, your adversary, the devil, is a sneaky snake.  Resist him by focusing on God.  Give him no opportunity.   Our hearts will be filled with something.   It will be God or self.  Life is not about us. It is about the kingdom.  Nothing stays the same, and we move from one phase to the next.  Life is day by day, and each new day is to be lived to the fullest.  What we focus on consumes us, equipping us or opening us to deception.

Be victorious.  Be joyous.  Be focused.   It is your heritage!  May today’s victory be extravagant, and your peace be powerful!

Ephesians 1:3 – “ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,”

Here, the apostle Paul begins with a powerful, sometimes overlooked statement—a revelation that changes perspective. He said that the Father, through Jesus, “Has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.”

Notice that the tense is past tense, “has.” It is done.  Why do we not have them evident all the time?  They are done IN the heavenly places.  Where do we see ourselves?  In earthly places, right?

We have All or Every Spiritual Blessing in the heavenly places but operate in earthly places.   That is a problem.  How do we tap into what IS in the heavenly places while living in earthly places?  Having a consciousness of the reality of those blessings is vital.  Having a modified or renewed mind is necessary.  

We must think with God’s mind, which is only possible through the Holy Spirit.  We take our thoughts captive and focus on God through His Word, Covenant, and Promises.   We think of life, reality, and ourselves as He thinks.  It is not a natural occurrence.

Ephesians 1:17-22 demands deeper study.  God desires to give us the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation.   But more than just a gift, it is in His Full Knowledge!  Whoa, Nellie, who has that?

God’s desire for us is to have the eyes of our hearts enlightened.   The heart has eyes!  Next, let us know what the Hope of His calling is.   I do not hope to be called.  Not our calling but His!   Why Jesus came to earth.   Also, He desires that we know the Riches of the Glory of His inheritance in the saints (us). 

We must be aware of what we mean to God and what we provide for God!   We need to know, see, and embrace the Surpassing Greatness of His power toward us.  Deity indwells us!

Now, back to the blessings IN heavenly places and how to access them.

Ephesians 1:20-23 reveals the place Jesus occupies in the heavens.  We are in Him and made to sit with Him in the heavenly places.   (Ephesians 2:6).

If your blessings or possessions are in one place and you are in another, they are yours, theoretically, not experientially.   But if you are where they are, you have them in reality.

Our problem is that we make spiritual things super mysterious.  God says, “You have this and that; it is done.”  But only if we learn to access them.  We access them through agreement with God and understanding that we are in Christ, seated in the very place where the blessings are.

Let us allow the Holy Spirit to help us change our understanding.   Transform our minds and develop the spiritual eyes in our hearts and minds through discipline to see, say, believe, and live what He says.  Let us determine that we are going to guard against stinkin’ thinkin’ and begin to think God’s thoughts.   They are in the Word.

Remember that in Jesus, you have no lack except lack of sight. The devil blinds our minds and causes us to think one-dimensionally, but God wants us to tap into His realm and bring what is to where we are. Thy Kingdom come…

Today is the day to rethink our thinking and replace flawed, limited earthly logic with God’s person, power, and promises.

Victory is yours.  Look for it!  May God’s Best pursue you relentlessly today and every day!

Habakkuk 2:2 – “Then the LORD answered me and said, “Write down the vision and inscribe it clearly on tablets, so that one who reads it may run.”

What is your vision?  What is the vision of your heart?  What is your dream?  What has God birthed in you? Can you write it down?  Can you detail it clearly so those who read it can implement it?  Have you written it down?  That is a question I have asked myself: Can I?  I am not sure, but I can.  Have I?  It needs to be completed.

What is not articulated cannot be completed. God’s vision and purpose are never ambiguous. They are clear. The question for each one is, do we have a clear vision? Can we, or have we put it into words on paper as a guide and goal?

The spoken and written have power, drive purpose, and inspire faith.  Where there is no vision, there is disjointed and distracted living.  We get sidetracked unless we are focused.   It may take time and prayer to articulate the vision, but if it is God-given, It Cannot Die!

As we put into print our dreams, desires, and goals (Vision), the Holy Spirit and angels begin to work to bring the pieces together.   Too often, we live with unconnected visions that we do not understand ourselves, much less give a guide to others.

The Word of God is powerful.    It transforms, and assurance flows into our hearts through the Word of God, resulting in boldness and determination.  

Today and tomorrow or as long as it takes, Think the Vision.  Ask God to enable you to write it out not necessarily for sharing but for course setting, faith-building, and assurance.   It will become a lamp and light because it is God’s word to you.  His word(s) illuminate.

God’s plan for you requires you to participate in the process.  He will not make or allow you to be a puppet or stay a spiritual child.  He wants to give you the Kingdom and has made it available.   It only awaits your involvement and investment of your whole self.

God wants us to do what He has called, inspired, equipped, and is preparing us to do.   Pull Down Strongholds!  We have authority; it is time that we begin to use it.  We have the power of God in us; it is time for us to demonstrate it.  He designed us to be victorious, so Why Not Today?

I hope you will begin a new and exciting journey in Jesus today.  No weapon or enemy can stand.  They may come but without victory because You Are in Christ!

May God’s Best Be Yours Today and Overflow from Your Heart!

Zechariah 3:7 – “And the angel of Yahweh testified to Joshua, saying, 7 “Thus says Yahweh of hosts, ‘If you will walk in My ways and if you will keep the responsibility given by Me, then you will also render justice in My house and also keep My courts, and I will grant you access to walk among these who are standing here.”

In Zephaniah 3, we read about God being in our midst in His might and power, filled with love and singing to me.  Joyful singing from God to us.  Wow!

In Haggai, we read God’s warning about trusting our own abilities, pushing God to the back burner.  The call was to enable us to examine ourselves and our ways. 

In Zechariah, we see God’s pathway to His presence.  Return to Me so that I can return to you.

God says, “So that I may or can.”   He will not intrude or violate our will, but He will come where invited. God was revealing His heart, where He found a repentant people and promised to be a wall of fire around them, displaying His glory.

Something to capture in our hearts is revealed in Chapter 3.  Joshua was in the presence of God and angels, and the devil was there accusing him (remember Job).  Joshua, the priest, had on filthy clothes.  The angel gave him clean clothes (salvation).  “I have made your iniquity pass away from you and will clothe you in festal robes (like a wedding garment).”  They put a clean turban on his head. (Thoughts, mind transformed mind.  Every thought is captive.)

Zechariah 3:7 – “IF (that pesky little word) you will walk (live) in My ways and IF you will keep the Responsibility given by Me, THEN you will also render justice in My House AND Also keep my courts, AND I will grant you Access to walk among those standing here.”  [Emphasis mine]

Some questions loom large.

• Courts of God! 
• Walk among those standing here? 
• Where? 
• In the presence of God, angels, and those in the courts of God. 
• We are invited to come into God’s courts and presence with clean hands and pure hearts.  
• We have been granted authority and power.

What is our part? We are to walk in His ways and keep the responsibility (assignment) given to us. All else is counterproductive and unimportant. In that condition, we have open access to God’s courts and presence. There, we realize that we function not by might or power but by God’s Spirit.

What does this say to us now?  We have God’s promise of cleansing, peace, protection, and power.  Therefore, we can take authority in our own situation, family, environment, or surroundings.   Speak the Word.  Obey the voice of the Spirit of God.  Receive God’s grace and provision.  Stop limiting yourself and God.  Expect the promises to be realities; they are in God.

May God’s Grace guard your hearts and minds today and every day!

Joshua 24:15 – “And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Today, as I reflected on some humorous thoughts, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me some serious things.  But it was the moments of humor that led to some life reflections. 

For example, the George Jones song “Choices” caused me to reflect on the reality that it is a series of choices, and each of them has consequences.  I recalled some humorous events that arose out of some choices I made and my embarrassment.  I will not go into them; sorry, they are private!

Another came from the TV program Hee Haw, and the song they always sing is about “Bad Luck.”  The lyrics began: “Gloom, despair, agony on me Deep, dark depression, excessive misery.  If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all.  Gloom, despair, and agony on me.” 

That song was funny as they sang it, but reflecting on that mindset is profoundly saddening.  Yet, multitudes live in a measure of that mindset and expect the worst rather than anticipating the best of God. 

That mindset brings fear, and fear brings torment, imprisons, and paralyzes, robbing us of faith and hope.  But God’s Promises are sure, and God Never lies.  If He says it, He means it, and it breaks God’s heart when we doubt Him.  

Sadly, too many believe God theoretically but not experientially. Too many believe that God’s promises are for the select of the elect super saints, and they do not see themselves in that number. After all, we are only human, right? Right and wrong! Jesus said He has all authority and power, and He authorized us to walk in that authority and exercise that power—Why Not Now?

I urge you to determine that you are going to Trust the Word of God and the God of the Word.  Determine that you are going to think thoughts founded upon what God said.  Determine that even if you make a wrong choice, you will not give up and give in, but you will turn to Him and receive His restoration.

Remember that the only way the devil can win and we can be defeated is if we GIVE UP!  If we quit, we cannot win, so do not give up!  Simply, right?  Yes, it is because God has provided all we need to be who He says we are.  We have the Blood of Jesus, the Power of the Holy Spirit, the Truth of the Word, the Armor of God, and Authority!  Therefore, we are More Thank Conquerors; why not live like God is telling the truth?  Because He Is!

I sincerely pray that each of us will be able to see life differently today.  That we will be filled with hope and expectation.  That we will no longer talk down to ourselves and talk ourselves out of God’s promises but will embrace them and, with eager anticipation, face the day with hope, joy, and peace. 

This is the day of victory; receive it!  May the Blessings of the LORD be your covering today!