2 Corinthians 12:9 – “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.”

As I prayed and read this, a singular thought formed a theme in my mind—”Justified by excuse.” What is that? Many, if not most, Christians quote this passage, but it is not quoted as a springboard to overcoming and transformation but as a justification or excuse for our failures.

Some use the excuse, “I’m only human.”  I say, “No, you are not!” Yes, you are human, but you are not only human! You are also “in” Christ and have the Spirit of God.   That means you are no longer only or merely human.  You have the supernatural in you.  You are an heir of God as His offspring.  He is God; He is in you.  The life you now live, you live by the faith of Christ.  You have God’s life in you, and His life is not only human.  You can do all things through Christ; mere humans cannot.

Galatians 2:19 says we are dead to the Law (flesh) but alive in and through Jesus.  The Law could not produce life, so we have the New Birth.  Now, through Jesus, we are both mortal and immortal. We are to be led by the Spirit, not flesh, religion, rules, or performance, but by faith.

Therefore, we should make no more excuses. 

• We are commanded to put on Christ, walk in the Spirit, and bring every thought captive to Jesus. 
• We are commanded to put on the whole armor of God and pulldown strongholds.  
• We are commanded to resist the devil, heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons, and set captives free.
• We are commanded to have the mind of Christ.  

Mere humans cannot do that!   Therefore, today would be a great day to begin being, professing, and expecting to be more than a conqueror.   You have the Promises, and you have the Power!   Guard your mind, heart, and tongue!   Be like Daniel 1:8 – Set in your heart to be what God says you are!  Expect your words to have power.   Expect your actions to be godly.  Expect the fulfillment of All the Promises in your life. 

You are not merely human; you are a child of God!  You are not subject to the constraints of mere mortals. You are linked to the immortal and supernatural.   Live like you believe it, and it will be yours.

May God be with you in all you do and demonstrate His power in you!

Ephesians 1:3 – “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing 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 he used the past tense, HAS.  It is done!   Then why do we not have them evident all the time?  They are done IN the heavenly places.  Where do we see ourselves?  Earthly places, right?

The Bible reveals that we have ALL or EVERY spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, but we operate in earthly places.   That is a problem.  So, how do we tap into what IS in the heavenly places while living in earthly places?

Here is a key:  Consciousness of the reality of those blessings is vital.  Having a modified or renewed mind is necessary.  

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

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

What is God’s Objective? 

• That the eyes of our hearts will be enlightened.   Did you realize that your heart has eyes?  
• That we become Enabled to Know the Hope of His calling. 

That is not the hope to be called.  It is not our calling but His!   Why did He come? 

• That we could Know the Riches of the Glory of His inheritance in the saints (us.)  What do we mean to provide for God? 
• That we could Know, See, and Embrace the Surpassing Greatness of His power toward us.  We are indwelt by diety!

Now, back to the blessings “in” heavenly places and how to access them.

Ephesians 1:20-23 reveals the place Jesus occupies in the heavenlies.  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.   But if you are where they are, you have them in reality.

We make spiritual things mysterious.  God says, “You have this and that; it is done.”  That is true 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.

• Therefore, we must change our understanding.  
• We must have our minds transformed and develop eyes in our hearts and minds through discipline to see, say, believe, and live what He says. 
• We must guard against stinkin’ thinkin’ and begin to think God’s thoughts.   They are in the Word.

In Christ, we have no lack except lack of sight.  The devil blinds our minds to cause us to think one-dimensional, 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 what we think and replace flawed earthly limited logic with God’s person, power, and promises.

Victory is ours; we need to Look for It! 

May God’s Love overshadow you and bring you into His presence so you can embrace your blessings in Him!

Genesis 22:14 – “Abraham named that place, ADONAI Yireh, —as it is said today, “On the mountain, ADONAI will provide.”

Do we quote this out of context?  Notice it says, “On the mountain, Adonai will provide.”   Where?   On the mountain of the Lord.  That mountain was the place of sacrifice, covenant, commitment, and obedience.   God may not provide anything, anywhere, and at any time, but He is Always the Provider on the mountain of sacrifice and obedience!

My point and thought is that God is not our supermarket, candy store, or genie.   He responds to commitment, sacrifice, covenant, and obedience.    If we abide in Him and His Word abides in us, we ask Anything, and He provides.   But it is not about us but our relationship with Him.  It is cooperation through obedience that brings the Kingdom to earth.

• Is it possible that we sometimes have more faith that something is not going to happen than that it is? 
• Do we expect our prayers not to be answered more than we believe that they will be? 
• Do we believe God? 

Jesus said that what He did we would do and even greater things.   He spoke to the winds and waves, do we?    He spoke to the fig tree, do we?   He spoke to demons and disease, do we?  He expected His words to come to pass, do we? Our position, which needs to become our condition in Him, is to believe Him totally. If He spoke to problems, we can, too, so let’s utilize and exercise the authority He has given us!

We believe theoretically and abstractly.     We see God out there, up there, or over there.  God is Here, There, and Everywhere!  We try to convince ourselves of what God said but have more faith that it will not happen than that it will. We allow self-condemnation to rob us of God’s provisions!

I am talking to myself.  I plead guilty, but I am trying to learn to trust completely. I want to develop an exercisable faith.  The key is to be filled with the Spirit, the Word, and the Presence of Jesus. Therefore, I pray, “Lord, help us to have more faith that what God says is present reality than faith that it is not.” Our goal is agreement with God, not what we can see.

May the LORD of all creation be with you and lead you to the place of daily victory you and He desire for you!

Proverbs 4:23 – “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

God’s primary focus is the heart.  Salvation requires believing from or with the heart; true worship is from the heart.

The woman at the well deflected the exposure of her lifestyle by bringing up the proper place to worship.  Jesus responded (John 4:23). Worship is not a location thing but a heart thing.   It is always the heart.

What we do, how we live, and how we think stem from the condition of the heart. The natural body cannot survive, thrive, and function without the heart (natural organ).  The same is true in the realm of the Spirit.   The heart (center of life) determines who and what we are.

The heart that receives Jesus embraces God’s mercy, and accepts God’s pardon is free! It is free from condemnation, free from self, and free to live by dying to self.   From the heart flows true life.  The most significant sign or evidence of being saved is love.

Loving God is a prerequisite for salvation.  Believing He is the Messiah is a prerequisite for loving Him.  If we love and embrace Him, we find it impossible not to love Him.

John 13:34-35 – “So I give you now a new commandment: Love each other just as much as I have loved you.  (Most get disqualified there). 35 For when you demonstrate the same love, I have for you by loving one another, everyone will know that you’re My true followers.”

Loving like Jesus requires a heart transplant or transformation.   As the heart is transformed, our outward view is radically modified.  We see people and things from heaven’s perspective.   We live on earth in the flesh and access heaven in the Spirit.  In a sense, we live in two realms or dimensions simultaneously.  Our feet are on earth, and our hearts are in heaven by the Holy Spirit.

The heart is God’s focus.  We are told to guard our hearts because the issues of life come from the heart.  It is never right to do wrong.  Not loving as Jesus loves is wrong.  If our heart condemns us or our conscience pricks us, we need to run to Him for heart surgery.

It is the heart! 

• We need to focus on having a right heart.  
• We need to examine our hearts continually. 
• We need to learn to recognize the symptoms of heart disease. 
• We need to be proactive in caring for the heart.
• Jesus living in our hearts prevents heart disease and heart failure.

I sense a dual message in this: Heed the tug of the Spirit, and God will heal the heart.

Today is Victory Day!  Reach for All that God has for you today!  He will not disappoint. 

May the Grace and Peace of God follow you everywhere you go and keep you safe and fulfilled.

John 19:22 – “Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

Pilate made an amazingly profound and prophetic statement when responding to criticism for placing an inscription on Jesus’ Cross: “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.”  He said, “What I have written, I have written.” 

We do that in life, and what we write by our lives will follow us into eternity, whether good or bad.  The only remedy is having our lives covered in the Blood of Jesus through the forgiveness of sins.  Otherwise, our writing will precede us to the Judgment, and we will give an account of every word and deed in this life.

Pilate, a Roman, did not respect nor accept Jesus or the God of Israel and mocked their religion and the trial of Jesus when he wrote his inscription. Still, the Father used it to bring glory and recognition to His Son. It inspired the followers of Jesus to continue the fight of faith and stand true, as evidenced by many accounts in both the Bible and history. 

Man may attempt to mock God, but in the end, God will not be mocked, and “what we write, we write.”  We reap what we sow.  We reap later than we sow.  We reap more than we sow, but we reap, nonetheless.

As we have gone through the season in which we recognize the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, we should remind ourselves of what He did and why He did it.  We should remind ourselves that our lives are not hidden from God and that while He sees all and knows all, He is also willing to FORGIVE ALL. 

Therefore, although you are writing the book of your life, know that if you stumble and fall, you have one to turn to who will gladly and graciously help you up and forgive you.  I am not preaching a “cheap grace” that allows you to do whatever and then ask forgiveness, but I am attempting to point you to the one who loves you enough to die for you and earnestly desires that you live under the shelter of His protective arms.  He desires that you embrace and walk in His Grace and Peace.

As you face each day, face it knowing that what you say and do today will follow you into eternity, so choose your words carefully and your actions with eternity in mind.  May God be with you and give you grace and peace on this day!

Isaiah 43:1-3 – “Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.  I’ve called your name.  You’re mine.  When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.  When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.  When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end—Because I am God, your personal God…”  The Message Bible

There is trouble on every hand, but God is Always present to keep, cover, guide, protect, and provide!   This is His day, and we are His and heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus, so it is our day, too!  Hallelujah!

I have heard the saying, “Between a rock and a hard place,” all my life.  I thought about that but in a different vein this morning.  What is the difference between a rock and our life?  That is probably so obvious that most would say, “What’s the point?” 

However, if you pick up a rock or place your hand on a bolder, you feel the rock and nothing more.  But if you place your hand on your neck or over your heart, you feel something.  You feel your heart beating inside your chest.  That is called life!

Rocks and much of God’s creation just exist; they do not have a life, but we have life in us because God breathed it into mankind at the creation of Adam.  We do not just exist; we live; well, we are supposed to.

Outside of knowing God, our mission in life is a continual pursuit of being all we can be.  If we embrace His life in us and allow the Holy Spirit to transform us, we become what He says we are, but if we pursue our own purposes, we will live our entire lives grasping for the wind. 

Many people view prosperity and success as what you have or do and see it as something external.  The Bible reveals that true prosperity and success begins on the inside, in the heart (the core of the being), and works its way to the extremities.   That is why John could pray that we would prosper and be in health even as our soul prospers.  It is the proper process.  Life is not in the abundance of possessions but by whom we are possessed.

We keep trying to make ourselves what God says we are through our own efforts and live frustrated lives of disappointment.  We keep trying to achieve what we deem success and live from one disappointment to the next.  We discover that things do not bring peace; only God does!  We must cease striving and relax and allow the Holy Spirit to live the Life of Christ through us.  Then, we find peace and can enjoy prosperity and success with no sorrow attached.

Today, the LORD wants to lift you up into His presence and transform you.  Even if you have been saved, you must be continually transformed from glory to glory.  We need to grow in the grace of God and learn to live the abundant life.  We are more than conquerors but live lives of defeat because we believe the lies of hell and fail to see ourselves as God says we are.  God is Truth, and He tells the Truth! 

Rejoice, today is your day to begin living the Kingdom Life!  Live expectantly! 

May the Lord of Creation help each of us move beyond our difficult spot and into His victory!

Genesis 22:14 – “Abraham named that place, ADONAI Yireh, —as it is said today, “On the mountain, ADONAI will provide.”

Do we quote this out of context?  Notice it says, “On the mountain, Adonai will provide.”  Where?  On the mountain of the Lord.  That mountain was the place of sacrifice, covenant, commitment, and obedience.   God may not provide anything, anywhere or anytime, but He is Always the Provider on the mountain of sacrifice and obedience!

My point and thought is that God is Not our supermarket, candy store, or genie.  He responds to commitment, sacrifice, covenant, and obedience.   If we abide in Him and His Word, we ask Anything, and He provides.

But it is not about us but our relationship with Him.  It is cooperation through obedience that brings the Kingdom to earth.

Let me ask some probing questions:

• Is it possible that we sometimes have more faith that something is not going to happen than that it is? 
• Do we expect our prayers not to be answered more than we believe that they will be? 
• Do we believe God? 
• Jesus said that what He did and even greater things we Would do. 
• He spoke to the winds and waves, do we? 
• He spoke to the fig tree, do we? 
• He spoke to demons and disease, do we? 
• He expected His words to come to pass, do we?

We sometimes tend to believe theoretically and abstractly.   We see God out there, up there, or over there.  God is here, there, and everywhere!   We try to convince ourselves of what God said but have more faith that it won’t happen than that it will.

In this devotional, I am talking to myself. I am guilty, but I am trying to learn to trust completely. I want to develop exercisable faith. The key is to be filled with the Spirit, the Word, and the Presence of Jesus.

My Prayer is, “Lord, help us to have more faith that what God says is present reality than faith that it is not.”  Agreement with God, not sight.  That is our goal.

May God enable us to ascend our Mountain of Provision and Live in His Presence!