Philippians 3:13  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

Are you just surviving or do you still have a dream?  I have found that sometimes the struggles of everyday life can weigh us down so much that our dreams get lost along the way and we wake up one day and realize that all we are doing is surviving.  That isn’t what God has planned for any of us, He has plans, great plans for us sometimes we just need to be reminded of what those are.

What are your dreams?  Is there a dream that has weighed heavy on your heart for years that you have set aside because you don’t think it will ever come to pass or have you totally lost what that dream was?  It is difficult to press on toward what God has called you to if you have lost track of what that is.  I truly believe that one of Satan’s best tools is to get us so caught up in our everyday struggles that we no longer dream of what is to come, we find ourselves bouncing from one thing to the next, never really focused on the dream God has given us.  If we can just survive today and pay our bills that is enough.  How does that lifestyle benefit the kingdom?  A life without a dream is depressing and void of direction so it is time to figure it out!  Passion is driven by having a dream, without a vision for where you are headed or a dream to motivate, you where are you going?

Living life without a dream is like being on a boat that is just being moved about and directed by the waves and currents.  Without a destination in mind and no one navigating it, the boat gets beat up by every storm that comes along and there’s no real hope for the voyage because no one really knows where the boat is supposed to dock anyhow.  Hopelessness can take over easily if we don’t get a clear vision for what we are called to do.  We need to pray for God’s direction and if we aren’t sure what His vision for our life is we need to find it by praying and seeking Him on a daily basis and it may even take sitting down with your pastor or some other godly person in your life and leveling with them and saying, “I have no idea what I am called to do at this point in my life, I need help in finding that direction.”  God does have a plan for you even if it doesn’t seem evident right now and it is a great plan, try not to allow where you are right now affect your attitude about your future.  Nothing good will come from getting negative about it now.  Pray for God to give you a vision for what His dreams are for your life so you can develop the passion to persevere any storms that may come your way because you are so focused on your destination.  God never meant for any of us to just wander along just surviving, so let’s all pray for each other today that God will reveal to each person reading this today what His perfect will is and that He will give us victory over any discouragement that we may be dealing with today so we can have victory like never before.  Pray for the passion that is needed to accomplish great things for Him!  I pray that we all rise up with a fresh new passion for what we are all called to in His name!

Quote:  “When your goals are clearly defined and intelligently set, you have, in essence, taken a major step toward programming your left brain.  That frees your right brain to be it’s creative best.”  Zig Ziglar

Ephesians 6:16  In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one,

If you want to know how to have victory over the lies Satan is planting in your mind it is through faith!  As your faith increases in the promises of God Satan will struggle getting you to believe his lies.  Think about it for a minute:  if you believe that God can do anything and He is more powerful than the financial problems you have then Satan can’t tell you that you your circumstances will never change, he won’t be able to tell you that you will never lose the weight you want to lose, he won’t be able to tell you that you will never have a child, he won’t be able to tell you that you will never get married or that your marriage will never be good.  The victory over your thoughts about your life will come through having the faith that God has your back, He only desires good for you and He loves you, the more you believe that the easier it is to block what Satan has to say about you and your future.

Seek the promises of God in His word, dig into the scriptures to see what He has to say.  Spend time in prayer asking Him what you need to change in your life to be more like Him and to be more successful.  The first place to start if you aren’t doing it already is to spend time in your Bible and reading good Godly books that may deal with what you are struggling with.  As it says in Joshua 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.  For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”  Success comes from knowing Him and knowing the promises and direction He has given you.  We have to do our part and then God will do the rest.  We cannot just sit around waiting for victory, we have to go after it and the more we know God’s word the more confidence we will have to go after it.

Start today; choose to have faith, if you are lacking in the faith area pray like the man did in Mark 9:23-24, “And Jesus said to him, ‘If you can!  All things are possible for one who believes.’  Immediately the father of the child cried out, ‘I believe, help my unbelief!’” Jesus then answered His prayer.  If He would do that for Him, He will do it for you as well.  Don’t allow Satan to defeat you another day!  Take charge and rebuke him and pray for God to give you the faith you need day by day and you will begin to see God work in your life in ways you have never seen before.  “Without faith it is impossible to please Him!”

Quote:  “You can’t wait for inspiration.  You have to go after it with a club.”  Jack London

Ephesians 5:1-2   Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  And walk in love as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Until the virtues of Christ’s behavior come natural to us we need to be imitators of Him.  Do you walk in love every day?  I know I have my share of days when it seems as though some people must just get up in the morning with the intent to make everyone they run into that day miserable and of course I would just happen to be in their path and walking in love seems to be just about the furthest thing from my mind when that happens.  But if you notice according to this verse, it isn’t expected that you are always going to “feel” like it – it is a sacrifice.

If we truly want to grow up spiritually then we need to develop God’s attitude toward others.  I love the song by Brandon Heath, “Give Me Your Eyes.”  It talks about seeing others through God’s eyes so we will have the compassion for other people that He has.  How many people a a day do you think you pass that miss out on the simple blessings of God because you don’t even see them, simple courtesies, a smile and a “hello”, holding the door for someone with their hands full, helping an older person with a task you notice they are struggling with, being extra kind to the grumpy cashier or waitress.  People are hurting all around us and they need to see the love of Christ.  You may be the only “Jesus” they will ever see!

I would encourage you today to ask God to help you “see” others today and to recognize every opportunity to show someone His love today so they will feel His love and blessing on their lives, you may need to start at home.  Don’t waste a moment or opportunity you never know the affect your kindness may have on someone who is hurting!

Quote:  “All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.”  Helen Keller

Ephesians 3:20  Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever Amen.

Is your anticipation for what God is about to do in your life too low?  We need to be careful that we don’t try to limit God when we pray.  God is able to do far more than we can possibly think or ask so when your faith starts to waiver and your thinking is small stop for a minute and remember that “your thoughts are not His thoughts and your ways are not His ways.”  He sees and knows all and what He has planned for you today may be more than you could have imagined.

It says in Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”  Choose to believe today that God has a plan that is so much bigger than you could have imagined and when Satan tries to throw his lies at you just remind him that God is capable of doing by far more than even Satan can imagine.  Satan will do his best to try to discourage you the more you set your mind to have faith about your situation because he would rather hold you in bondage to your fears about your situation.  Every time those thoughts of discouragement and fear come into your mind, choose to block them and believe God’s word today for your situation.

Cling today to Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”  You may not quite know the plan yet but you can trust God that it is going to be far better than anything you could have thought of on your own.  Rejoice today and claim the victory knowing that truly the best is yet to come for you!  You haven’t even imagined what He has planned.  Ask Him today to begin a work in your heart and life to prepare you for what He has in store for you so you will be well equipped to serve Him at a whole new level.  Guard your heart and mind and do not allow Satan a foothold with lies and discouragement and fear, go forward in the confidence that God isn’t finished with your situation yet.  The best is yet to come!

Quote:  “Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”  Martin Luther King

Deuteronomy 6:6-7    “These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

We often wonder what is happening to today’s generation and every generation wonders the same thing about the one coming up but what gets done about it?

If you have children what do you do to help them know the word of God?  Do they see you read your Bible?  Do you read Bible stories to them?  Do you talk with them about doing what is right based on Bible principles?  Children learn what they live so even when children are adopted some of their behaviors are learned responses and if you have given birth to your children we know genetics can play a role in behaviors too but we can overcome any behavior by instilling what is right based on what God says.

If you don’t have children of your own yet I would encourage you to find the opportunity to be a godly influence in a child’s life that you know.  Maybe you have nieces or nephews or maybe you could work in the Sunday school at your church or maybe at a daycare.  The key is that every child needs at least one adult in their life that absolutely adores them and cares enough to teach them the word of God.

I was very fortunate to have Godly parents who were great at showing how important God’s word was to them.  I can remember them reading short devotionals to us after dinner every night whether we wanted it or not.  I always knew both of my parents read their Bibles every day because I saw them do it and as a result I find that it is something that I treasure and do myself.  My day seems lacking if I am not reading my Bible and I am not the woman I should be either if I miss.  Maybe you didn’t have parents that embedded that in your mind but there isn’t a good reason on earth to not start that habit in your own life today!

It may seem a little thing to allow your children to know that you read your Bible or it may seem to be a little thing to read a child Bible stories but they will remember.  Children learn by our example and they learn what they live.  The “do as I say not as I do” theory doesn’t work.  I read a book years ago the title is, “Children Are Wet Cement” and it was all about the importance of the impressions we make on their lives.  We can make a difference in this next generation but believe it or not it starts with us!  We can’t teach what we don’t know ourselves and live when it comes to children and teens!

Quote:  “Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they’ve never failed to imitate them.”  James Baldwin

Galatians 5:1  For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Today we remember all of those who have served and or gave there lives for the sake of freedom here in the United States.  I have always been very patriotic and I absolutely love America!  I truly thank God I was born here and I thank him for the freedoms we have!  Traveling to other countries with Bill has only served to make me even more grateful!

The price for freedom began on the cross!  Jesus paid the price of His life so we could be free from sin.  In this chapter Paul was trying to convince the Galatians to not allow themselves to go back to being under the bondage of all of the “laws” of the past but to live in the freedom that Christ gave them.  Today we don’t have to live under the bondage of sin either that Satan tries to convince us that we are slave to.  Satan will lie to you and do his best to convince you that you will never have victory but the victory is already yours all you have to do is claim it!  Jesus died to set you free from any sin that is holding you captive, give it to Him and take one day at a time, find a good program at a church that will walk you through the steps to victory like Celebrating Recovery or maybe all you need for what you are dealing with is a godly mentor.  Pray and ask God to guide you, He is all about your living in the freedom He died for!

Now, as Christians I would also like to encourage you to not take for granted the freedom the men and women have died for in this country!  We live in America where we can worship God as we choose – we are free!  Those men and women paid a dear price for our freedoms we need to be careful that we don’t lose those to another law or another government program, most of all we don’t want to lose them because we are apathetic!  Let’s honor those men and women today remembering the freedoms we have and choosing to stand when we need to stand, not taking for granted how fortunate we are to live here. We also need to remember those who live in other countries who are poor, we have a lot here including opportunity!  There are people starving in other countries where there are no options, they can’t just turn down a job at McDonalds because they are waiting for a job they feel they are more qualified for, there are no options and they live in land that isn’t workable to grow food.  “To whom much is given, much is required.”  Let’s make sure we are showing Jesus to those that God puts in our paths who have nothing whether here or abroad.

Let’s choose to serve God in any way we can to honor our freedoms here in the U.S. Let’s be grateful today for the freedom to worship as we choose.  Let’s choose to be grateful for Capitalism and those men and women who serve our country to protect all that we have!  Jesus paid a great price for our freedoms and I truly believe that He gave us this great country so we could serve Him on a whole new level!  Let’s choose to honor God in all that we do by taking any sin that is in our lives and leaving it at the foot of the cross and choosing day by day to leave it there so we can live the life of freedom He meant for us to live.  The chains of sin are off and you are free to enjoy your day today living in that victory that only He can give!  Enjoy all the freedoms you have today as you Celebrate and remember!

Quote:  “It’s all for nothing if you don’t have freedom!”  William Wallace

Hebrews 12:1   Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnessed, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.

I have noticed more and more of my friends are running marathons lately!  Most of us have had to experience the burn of either a long run or maybe even just a short run that we were not in shape for.  A marathon is a lot of work and anyone who runs them knows you cannot just train on a treadmill to run one, it takes getting your body adapted to running on the road.

Life can be the same way; we are running the race that God has set before us and as we begin it is a struggle to get in shape at times.  Life is full of obstacles that we have to overcome in order to run the race and there are some tests that we will face over and over until we pass.  You wouldn’t begin a running regimen when you are out of shape by going out and running 5 miles and God doesn’t start you out that way on your path to what He has called you to either.  There can be days or weeks or maybe even years where it seems as though you are facing the same spiritual battle over and over and over just as though you were running on a treadmill, if that is where you are ask God to show you what it is you need to learn from this experience to gain victory and move on!  If you quit now you will find yourself back in this same spot before you can move on so why not just persevere now and get past this hurdle in life and move forward in what God has called you to.

Once when my children were little we were visiting my parents and they had a treadmill that was a huge hit with them.  We taught them how to stand straddling the track and get it started then start walking on it.  Well Brian, my oldest, had just had his turn and Candace was bugging him to let her have a turn so he got off to let her have a turn but never turned the speed that he was going at down, (he was probably about 8 at the time which means she was about 3) needless to say I just happened to look in from the kitchen as Candace took one step on the treadmill and went flying off across the living room.  (she was ok, praise God, and I laughed so hard I cried because it was truly the craziest thing I had seen in a long time)  My point is this; you aren’t going to reach the level of maturity that you see in someone else until you have passed your tests and exercised your faith to get you there.  Marathons aren’t run by sitting on the couch, it takes work and determination and life is no different.  You will never accomplish all God has called you to if you can’t even take the time to read His word and discipline yourself to have the victory in your life He has called you to.

God has given  you all you need to have victory in your walk and your run with Him.  If you are struggling in an area of life you really need to ask Him what “exercises” you may need to do in order to have victory.  It may be something as simple as spending more time in His word, or maybe more time in prayer, maybe there is a good book out there that deals with what you are struggling with, maybe you need to confess to your mentor or accountability partner what you are struggling with so they can pray with you and support you.  God will always provide the way if you ask Him to.  He loves you and His ultimate goal for your life is for you to have victory!

So, I would encourage you today to let God take the weight of the world off your shoulders this morning, set aside that sin that wants to cling to you (take one day at a time) and begin running your race with Him today!  Take one day at a time, one step at a time, and you will be amazed at how far you have come in a very short period of time.

Quote:  “A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”  Chinese Proverb

1 Chronicles 4:9-10  Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez saying, “Because I bore him in pain.”  And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying,  ”Oh, that you would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that your hand would be with me, and that you would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!”  So God granted him what he requested.

If you notice, Jabez didn’t have such a good start, his Mom named him “a pain”.  His name literally means – he will cause pain!  Nice!  How would you like that?  Back in Bible times they new what their names meant, it was a big deal, so how would you like everyone to know that your lot in life was to cause pain?  Look at his response though, instead of being a pain, he was more honorable than his brothers, he chose to be a blessing.  We do have a choice in how we choose to respond to the lot in life we have been given. It is not always easy to rise above our circumstances but it is possible with God’s help.  Maybe you see someone else who is struggling who could use a helping hand of encouragement to help them rise above where they are and God is calling you to help draw them up.

Jabez not only chose to be a blessing he prayed and asked God to bless him in every way and also to help him to not cause pain and because of the attitude Jabez had God granted him his request!  There is nothing wrong with asking God to bless you indeed!  He wants you to ask to be blessed, but He also wants you to do it with the right attitude.  Don’t think you can just treat everyone else just any way you want and cause pain in their lives and then turn around and expect God to just be excited about blessing your behavior.  On the other hand as well, don’t hesitate to ask for God’s blessing on your life and if you have a problem with causing pain by gossiping, backstabbing, or some other form of just being mean ask him to help you!  He knows what we struggle with in our lives and he will bless you if you ask Him to help in those areas.  His goal is to help you realize all He created you to be.  If you haven’t read the book, “The Prayer of Jabez” by Bruce Wilkinson I would highly recommend it!

God wants to bless you and your family today, it is His hearts desire.  Are you in a position to be blessed, are you asking for His blessing?  God adores you and wants to bless you.

Quote:  “Our greatest danger in life is in permitting the urgent things to crowd out the important.” Charles E. Hummel

Psalm 16:8  I have set the Lord always before me:  because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

Don’t let your circumstances determine your attitude and feelings about your situation.  There are times in all of our lives when the present situation, whether in our relationships, finances, jobs, children etc., is really awful!  The key is not to look at the circumstances surrounding you at that point and allow them to change your outlook on the BIG picture!

If we set the Lord always before us and He is our focus then we can handle anything else that comes our way with the confidence that we are reacting right and making the right decisions based on Him, not what is going on around us.  The stronger our focus is on God the less likely we are to sin in an ugly situation.

When our focus is God, our love is stronger, our grace is stronger, our determination to do right is stronger so we can stand and not be moved in a direction we don’t really want to go.  It doesn’t mean you are a doormat, it means you are stronger!  Sometimes people mistake the concept of being Godly and merciful as being a weak (wimpy) person and really it is just the opposite!  The more Godly you are typically the more bold and confident you are because you have a better picture of who you are in Christ.  Your words are just seasoned with grace and wisdom not just emotions!

So let’s try it!  Focus on The Lord and let everything and everyone else fade into the background so He can set our priorities and He can set our attitudes about any situation and He can help us see all the potential and beauty locked up inside us just waiting to be released by fully knowing who we are in Christ.  Truly the only way to do that is to focus on Him!

Quote:  “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great!”  Joe Sabah