Victory247

“Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God”  Genesis 6:9 (NIV)

When I was first married I tried to think of creative dates to take my new bride on. If I couldn’t think of anything, there was always going to a good movie. I remember her telling me that a great date for her would be to just go on a walk with me. Not only was that inexpensive, it made sense. She wanted to walk and talk, so we could get to know each other better.

Walking together is a very good time to get to know and learn from another. Going to a movie is merely watching other people on a screen. There is no real communication going on.

Walking with God is a way to say that we are acknowledging His presence as we stroll through our daily routine, while chatting with Him intermittently.

Also, there are times when we can actually get away and take a walk. Those can be great times to pour out our hearts, share concerns, ask for guidance, and talk to Him about others. Those walks are especially great times to listen to what He has to say to us.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, teach me how to truly walk with You. Teach me how to listen to You. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“Consider it joyful whenever you encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations. Be assured that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and patience”  James 1:2-3 (Amplified Bible)

Do we view trials, hard times and temptations as OBSTACLES in the way of our happiness. Or are they actually OPPORTUNITIES for our growth and development?

We are told to ‘consider it joyful’, a strange response to trials and temptations. We would rather all situations went very smoothly. We would rather that no one got in our way. But life is filled with disappointments and there will always be those who will be irritants to us. We cannot rule and order our lives, as we would have it.

If we did, we would become spoiled and pompous. Wanting all circumstances to yield to our gratification. Wanting everybody to bow and submit. Doesn’t happen that way. And so for our development, trials and temptations are necessary.

So the next time something goes wrong, ask the question, “Is this an OBSTACLE or an OPPORTUNITY?“.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, help me not to be angry at situations and people if they go against my expectation. Give me the strength to use and endure those “OPPORTUNTIES” so that I can grow and mature. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands He has rewarded me”  (Psalm 18:20 NIV)

As a young boy, I remember smelling the aroma of my mother’s home cooking drifting through our house. I would be watching Batman or Bugs Bunny anticipating that magical call of “come and get it, dinner is ready”. I would hop up and walk all the way over to the TV to turn it off (no remotes back then). Plopping down in my kitchen chair, salivating and stomach growling, the dreaded question was always asked; “Did you wash your hands?” 

I could have lied, and probably did at times, but the wine of the word “why” probably made her want to slug me. At the time it didn’t make sense to me. I wasn’t handling kryptonite, and Superman wasn’t eating with us anyway (though I have to admit, at times I did come to the table with my ‘towel-cape’ and the mighty man of steel’s pajamas).

Studies today show how important it is to wash our hands, not only before a meal, but throughout the day. Our hands are great tools, and pick up many types of germs that can bring illness. With God, staying “clean” is always for our own good. Many times we may not understand “why”, but if we ‘wash our hands’ through admitting our wrongs to Him, He can help us grab ahold of blessings that He longs to give us. Or if we ‘keep our hands clean’ by making good choices, even when others around us aren’t, He promises to reward us.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, give me the strength to make “right” choices, and the wisdom to admit my wrongs to You. Thank You for the ‘rewards’ that will follow. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“I am the good shepherd that lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep”  John 10:11-13

Jesus is talking about Himself being a “good shepherd”. A shepherd that truly cares about us. A shepherd that doesn’t only protect us, but one that wants to meet our needs because others can’t, and eventually won’t.

There are times that we feel that others don’t really care. We feel that way because they can’t. Sure they care to a point, but we can’t expect to get all our needs met by people. They can meet some needs, but people have a selfish bent, so ultimately it’s beyond human ability.

Then there are times that others expect us to meet all their needs. We can try, but it’s too heavy a task. We can’t completely care about others, and we can’t expect others to completely care about us. We are trapped in this selfish body that yearns to meet our own needs.

The famous old comedian, Rodney Dangerfield, made a living talking about others not caring. His catch phrase, “I get no respect”, became a household saying. He tells of the time he was drowning and yelling out, HELP! HELP! The lifeguard ran over and said, “Alright buddy, keep it down, you’re being too loud, keep it down”.  Or the time he told his wife that they need a home improvement loan. Then she gave him $1000 to move out. No respect.

The main idea behind today’s verse is not to avoid letting those around us help with emotional, physical, or even financial needs. But God wants our main “NEED-MEETING” source to be Him.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, I know You deeply care about me. Help me to tap into Your “NEED-MEETING” resources by taking the time to know You and ask You. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart”  2 Timothy 2:22 (NIV)

‘Flee’ doesn’t mean to just not partake in impure desires, it means to turn the other way and RUN! I heard a saying that rings in my head every time I’m watching a movie that maybe shows too much skin, or I’m hanging around with guys who are being dishonest and unethical. That saying is; “If you don’t want to sin, stay out of sin’s orchard”. It’s like when we are trying to lose weight, it’s not good to hang out at a Dairy Queen.

Partaking in the ‘evil desires of youth’ will destroy our hearts, character and peace. Instead, pursue God’s stuff and we will develop that inner fulfillment and joy.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, give me the strength to FLEE. Also, to be convinced that wrongful choices are never worth it. In Jesus’ Name. Amen

“Among all these soldiers there were seven hundred chosen men who were left-handed, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair and not miss”  Judges 20:16 (NIV)

These men were called upon to fight for the Israelite army. I guarantee that these soldiers didn’t “just happen” to be good at the sling shot. It must have taken years of training and practice. Today we expect things to come easily and quickly, with very little extra effort.

To be great at a craft or sport, we need this type of focus that is accompanied by lots of sweat, training and practice. We can ask God to build this into us.

But more importantly, we need to take the time to train our spiritual side. We need to study and think about the bible and it’s principles. Memorize it. Spend extra time talking to God(see “prayer tab” at victory247.org). Plead with God to get us out of harmful habits. Ask Him continually to give us strength to live well. Confess wrongs, then move forward…

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, help me to make the time to train in my craft, sport, occupation, and especially in my faith -walk with You. Thank You for the blessings that will result. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.” (NIV)

I’m not exactly sure what Paul meant by this verse, but I do have an understanding about ‘grace’.

‘Grace’ reminds me of the word “room”. Room to grow. Room to make mistakes, learn from them and start over. Room to sin, confess it and ask God to keep changing me. Helping me to put more and more distance between my wrongful actions or thoughts.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, thank You that You give me room. Help me to give grace to others. In Jesus’ Name. Amen

^” Let us not become weary in doing good,for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up”  Galatians 6:9 (NIV)

Today’s verse does not imply that doing good will give us immediate results. “At the proper time” could be hours or decades from now. So I guess our motivation is not to get a pat on the back for every good deed. We probably shouldn’t even expect our acts of kindness to be noticed. Then why should we “do good”?

“Doing good” impacts our very core. It shows God that we believe He is real and that it is worth it, even when we get nothing tangible in return. It gives Him an open door to our insides, our character, and our total being. Then God can have free reign to develop us from the inside out. It allows Him to do surgery on those flaws which hamper our social success.

When people around us aren’t “doing good” is when it gets tough. I recall an old saying my father always quoted to me; “when the going gets tough, the tough get going”. That told me I could separate myself from the pack by not giving up or giving in to mediocrity, especially when many around us are caving.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, I need Your strength to “do good” especially when those around me don’t care. Thank You that my faith grows every time I make the right choices. Also, thank You for all the blessings that will follow. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ”  Galatians 6:2 (NIV)

We all have our own set of hard times, issues, stresses, concerns…that tend to weigh us down. Those “burdens” can consume our day, and drain our insides. We then go into ‘burden-management mode’, trying to sort out which one to deal with next. We solve one, then two more emerge. Frustration leads to survival techniques like extreme drinking or other ‘turn-the-brain-off’ escapes.

If we can just get enough people hearing our problems, we can find relief…or not. Don’t get me wrong, talking to others is a very powerful sanity tool. But we don’t want to be that person who walks into the room and people avoid you because you are filled with self-absorbed sob stories year round.

I found something that helped to give a lot of relief to my personal burdens. I decided to make the time to look for the burden’s of others. Then try to meet some of their needs. It could be just a listening ear or a word of encouragement. I basically tried to apply today’s verse. It truly transformed my thinking and inner joy. The more I helped others, the more it allowed God to defuse my “stuff”.

There’s a saying I have heard, “burden shared, half the burden. Blessing shared, double the blessing”.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your relief when I take the time to help others. I need You to help me cope with burdens. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you”  Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV)

Some people really like who they are, and others feel bad about themselves. Then there are those who fluctuate between the two.

Everyone would probably admit that there are things about themselves that need changing. If they won’t admit that, then right there is something that needs adjusting.

New technology has helped me cover up one of my weaknesses, spelling. Spell check has saved me many embarrassments (even just now, the word ’embarrassments’ took me several tries, thanks to the red underline popping up). It’s amazing that I can highlight a whole paper or letter and all my miscues are brought to light. The computer gives me the option to “change” or “ignore” each misspelled word.

God places a new spirit in us when we accept Christ into our lives(see ‘Start the Victory’ a top victory247.org). Now we can communicate with Him throughout the day, praying in our heads. He can talk back to us through bible reading, sermons, devotions like this, others believers, and even in our thoughts.

He has given us a new heart and spirit that can enhance our whole being if we allow Him to. We can get direction and strength. But we also need to realize when things we do get a ‘red underline’, or when “change” pops up on our screen to click it.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, thank You for a new heart and spirit that can make me the best and most blessed I can be. Remind me to communicate with You continually, and not “ignore”. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.