...Blessed Life...
Monday, December 24, 2012
God So Loves You by Joseph Prince
God So Loves You by Joseph Prince
A bell is not a bell until you
ring it. A song is not a song until you sing it. Love is not love until you
give it. And God gave us His only beloved Son, Jesus Christ, some 2,000 years
ago, all because He loves you with every fiber of His being.
Every time you think of or
celebrate Christmas, remember this: Christmas is a sure sign from heaven that
God loves you. God so loved YOU (you can put your name here) that He gave you
Jesus. So you are loved, my friend. Every pain you feel in your heart, every
disappointment that you go through, every tear that falls, God knows all that
you are going through because He cares deeply about you.
Jesus said, “I have come that you
might have life, and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). Because the Lord so
loves you, He came and died to give you life more abundantly. He wants you
joyful and enjoying good success. Meditate on His immeasurable love for you
this Christmas season and begin to step into a greater measure of His abundant
life!
Monday, September 10, 2012
Daily Devotional - What Have You Been Saying?(by Pastor Prince/NCC)
Psalm 91:2
2 I will say of the Lord,
“He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust.” |
When a great storm arose as Jesus and His disciples were
in a boat
on the Sea of Galilee,
He did not say to His disciples, “The storm
is here to teach us courage.”
Instead, He took authority over the storm and
said, “Peace, be still!”
And there was a perfect calm. (Mark 4:39)
When He met the widow of Nain whose only son had died,
and on another
occasion, the two sisters whose brother Lazarus had died, He
didn’t tell them,
“God wanted to take him home.” No, He spoke to the dead
son:
“Young man, I say to you, arise.” (Luke 7:14) And standing outside
Lazarus’ tomb, He said,“Lazarus, come forth!” (John 11:43)
And both men came
back to life.
What have you been saying about your situation?
When you feel the pain in your body, don’t say of the
Lord,
“God wants me sick to teach me to trust Him more.” Instead, say,
“Lord
Jesus, I thank You that by Your stripes I am healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)
While trying to make ends meet, don’t say of the Lord,
“The Lord keeps me poor to keep me humble.” Instead, say,
“The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1)
And if you have an intimidating boss at work, don’t say,
“The Lord is my patience, I will endure.” Instead, say,
“The Lord is my
helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
(Hebrews 13:6)
We are living in the last days when there are terrorist
attacks
and deadly viruses lurking around, and the world is afraid.
But we
will not speak negative words and be fearful like the people of the world.
Instead, we will speak God’s Word and
reign over these things. Like the psalmist,
we will say of the Lord,
“He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I
will trust.”
So find out what God’s Word says about your situation,
believe it and declare it. And because God’s Word cannot return
to Him void
(Isaiah 55:11), you will see what you believe and confess come to pass!
|
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Believe First And You Will See by Pastor Prince (New Creation Church)
Matthew 8:13
13 … as you have believed, so let it be done for you…
You may have heard some people say, “How can I believe it when I don’t see it? If I can only see it or feel it, I may just believe that something is happening!”
The woman with the issue of blood who came to Jesus could have felt the same way. For 12 long years, she had gone from one doctor to another, trying every conceivable cure they could offer. She not only grew worse, but ended up losing all her money to those doctors and their “cures”.
Then, something happened to her when “she heard about Jesus”. (Mark 5:27) She started believing that He could and would heal her to the extent that she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” (Mark 5:28) Acting on her belief, she made her way to Jesus and touched His garment. Immediately, her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was healed of that affliction. Jesus, her true physician, also pronounced her healed.
Beloved, God wants you to know that when you believe Him, you will see your miracle. What you believe Him for, you will receive.
When a church member lost her wallet at a swimming pool, she prayed together with her husband, declaring their belief that God would restore the loss. One day later, not at the swimming pool but at her feet in the car, she found her wallet! She simply believed that God would restore her loss and she saw the restoration.
In another case, a lady who had skin cancer wore long sleeves all the time to conceal her condition from others. During one of our church camps, she went forward for prayer, believing God for her healing. After one of our pastors, Pastor Henry, prayed for her, she went back to her room, rolled up her sleeves and saw that all the cancerous scarring on her arms had disappeared! Her doctor later confirmed that she had been cured of skin cancer. She believed God for healing and saw it.
The world says, “Unless I can see it or feel it, I will not believe it.” But God says, “If you will believe it, you will feel it. Indeed, if you will believe it, you will see it!”
13 … as you have believed, so let it be done for you…
You may have heard some people say, “How can I believe it when I don’t see it? If I can only see it or feel it, I may just believe that something is happening!”
The woman with the issue of blood who came to Jesus could have felt the same way. For 12 long years, she had gone from one doctor to another, trying every conceivable cure they could offer. She not only grew worse, but ended up losing all her money to those doctors and their “cures”.
Then, something happened to her when “she heard about Jesus”. (Mark 5:27) She started believing that He could and would heal her to the extent that she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” (Mark 5:28) Acting on her belief, she made her way to Jesus and touched His garment. Immediately, her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was healed of that affliction. Jesus, her true physician, also pronounced her healed.
Beloved, God wants you to know that when you believe Him, you will see your miracle. What you believe Him for, you will receive.
When a church member lost her wallet at a swimming pool, she prayed together with her husband, declaring their belief that God would restore the loss. One day later, not at the swimming pool but at her feet in the car, she found her wallet! She simply believed that God would restore her loss and she saw the restoration.
In another case, a lady who had skin cancer wore long sleeves all the time to conceal her condition from others. During one of our church camps, she went forward for prayer, believing God for her healing. After one of our pastors, Pastor Henry, prayed for her, she went back to her room, rolled up her sleeves and saw that all the cancerous scarring on her arms had disappeared! Her doctor later confirmed that she had been cured of skin cancer. She believed God for healing and saw it.
The world says, “Unless I can see it or feel it, I will not believe it.” But God says, “If you will believe it, you will feel it. Indeed, if you will believe it, you will see it!”
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Daily Devotional - God Can Turn Your Evil Day Into Good Days (by Pastor Prince/NCC)
Esther 9:22
22… rest from their enemies… sorrow to joy… mourning to a holiday…
Today, many Jews still celebrate the feast of Purim. The name Purim is derived from “the lot” which a Gentile, Haman, cast concerning the fate of the Jews when they were in Persia under King Ahasuerus.
Haman, the villain in this story in the book of Esther, hated the Jews and sought to exterminate them. He got King Ahasuerus to allow him to issue a decree to annihilate all the Jews in one day — the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar. But God used Queen Esther and her uncle Mordecai, both Jews, to turn the tables on Haman and save the Jews.
Haman was hanged on the very gallows that he had constructed for Mordecai! Then, the king allowed Queen Esther and Mordecai to issue a counter-decree to allow all the Jews to defend themselves and destroy their enemies in one day — the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar!
So instead of the Jews being exterminated on that fateful day, their enemies were destroyed! God turned an evil day for the Jews into good days. He turned their mourning into rejoicing and gave them victory over their enemies.
My friend, God can do the same for you today. He only wants you to remain in your position of rest in Christ. You see, because of Jesus’ finished work at the cross, you are seated in heavenly places in Christ, far above every principality, and evil assault the devil can throw at you. (Ephesians 2:6) Just as Mordecai sat within the king’s gate, and refused to stand up and bow to Haman, let’s not “bow” to the devil by being persuaded to move from our position of rest in Christ. Don’t allow him to get you worried, frantic and doing things to save yourself.
Queen Esther was also in a position of rest before Haman was executed. (Esther 7) She was seated on a couch as Haman pleaded with her for his life. While doing so, he accidentally fell over the couch where the queen was. The king, thinking that Haman was assaulting his queen, sent him to the gallows!
Beloved, remain at rest in Christ’s finished work, and He will turn your evil day into days of rejoicing and feasting!
22… rest from their enemies… sorrow to joy… mourning to a holiday…
Today, many Jews still celebrate the feast of Purim. The name Purim is derived from “the lot” which a Gentile, Haman, cast concerning the fate of the Jews when they were in Persia under King Ahasuerus.
Haman, the villain in this story in the book of Esther, hated the Jews and sought to exterminate them. He got King Ahasuerus to allow him to issue a decree to annihilate all the Jews in one day — the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar. But God used Queen Esther and her uncle Mordecai, both Jews, to turn the tables on Haman and save the Jews.
Haman was hanged on the very gallows that he had constructed for Mordecai! Then, the king allowed Queen Esther and Mordecai to issue a counter-decree to allow all the Jews to defend themselves and destroy their enemies in one day — the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar!
So instead of the Jews being exterminated on that fateful day, their enemies were destroyed! God turned an evil day for the Jews into good days. He turned their mourning into rejoicing and gave them victory over their enemies.
My friend, God can do the same for you today. He only wants you to remain in your position of rest in Christ. You see, because of Jesus’ finished work at the cross, you are seated in heavenly places in Christ, far above every principality, and evil assault the devil can throw at you. (Ephesians 2:6) Just as Mordecai sat within the king’s gate, and refused to stand up and bow to Haman, let’s not “bow” to the devil by being persuaded to move from our position of rest in Christ. Don’t allow him to get you worried, frantic and doing things to save yourself.
Queen Esther was also in a position of rest before Haman was executed. (Esther 7) She was seated on a couch as Haman pleaded with her for his life. While doing so, he accidentally fell over the couch where the queen was. The king, thinking that Haman was assaulting his queen, sent him to the gallows!
Beloved, remain at rest in Christ’s finished work, and He will turn your evil day into days of rejoicing and feasting!
Friday, February 10, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
Daily Devotional - Boast In God’s Grace For You by Pastor Prince (NCC)
1 Corinthians 1:31 31… “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”
If someone asks you, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” you would probably tell him, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved,” wouldn’t you?
Well, a rich, young ruler asked Jesus the same question, but instead of telling him to believe in Him, Jesus gave him the law. (Mark 10:17–22)
Jesus saw that the young ruler lived his life taking pride in his ability to keep the law to earn salvation and the favor of God. But because of His love for the man, Jesus had to show him that those who live by the law must realize that their self-efforts cannot save them.
He therefore reminded him, “You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery… ‘Do not steal... ‘Honor your father and your mother.’” The young ruler showed that his trust was in his law-keeping when he replied, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.”
So Jesus had to tell him, “One thing you lack… sell whatever you have and give to the poor… and come… and follow Me.” When the young ruler heard that, he walked away sorrowful.
When we boast of having kept the law, it will always point out something we lack or have failed to obey. The law is so holy and perfect that if we don’t keep even one iota of it, it has no choice but to judge and curse us. (Galatians 3:10) That is what the law was designed to do.
God does not want us to boast in our abilities to keep the law. If we are to have confidence in anything at all, if we are to boast in anything at all, it is in the grace of God. Only His grace can completely keep, save, heal, deliver and bless us.
So let’s not boast in what we have done or are able to do, but boast in His grace for us — that He is our strength, health, favor, prosperity, wisdom, hope, salvation and glory. That is how we will see ourselves enjoying our inheritance of abundant life!
If someone asks you, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” you would probably tell him, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved,” wouldn’t you?
Well, a rich, young ruler asked Jesus the same question, but instead of telling him to believe in Him, Jesus gave him the law. (Mark 10:17–22)
Jesus saw that the young ruler lived his life taking pride in his ability to keep the law to earn salvation and the favor of God. But because of His love for the man, Jesus had to show him that those who live by the law must realize that their self-efforts cannot save them.
He therefore reminded him, “You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery… ‘Do not steal... ‘Honor your father and your mother.’” The young ruler showed that his trust was in his law-keeping when he replied, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.”
So Jesus had to tell him, “One thing you lack… sell whatever you have and give to the poor… and come… and follow Me.” When the young ruler heard that, he walked away sorrowful.
When we boast of having kept the law, it will always point out something we lack or have failed to obey. The law is so holy and perfect that if we don’t keep even one iota of it, it has no choice but to judge and curse us. (Galatians 3:10) That is what the law was designed to do.
God does not want us to boast in our abilities to keep the law. If we are to have confidence in anything at all, if we are to boast in anything at all, it is in the grace of God. Only His grace can completely keep, save, heal, deliver and bless us.
So let’s not boast in what we have done or are able to do, but boast in His grace for us — that He is our strength, health, favor, prosperity, wisdom, hope, salvation and glory. That is how we will see ourselves enjoying our inheritance of abundant life!
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