All has been heard; the end of the matter is: Fear God [revere and worship Him, knowing that His is] and keep His commandments, for this is the whole of mean [the full, original purpose of His creation, ... the foundation of all happiness ...] and the whole [duty] for every man.
(Ecclesiastes 12:13)
The writer of Ecclesiastes was a man who literally tried everything to be happy. He restrained himself from no earthly pleasure. Anything his eyes desired, he took. He ate, drank, and made merry. He had tremendous knowledge, wisdom, and respect, yet he hated life. Everything began to appear useless to him. He tried to figure out what life was all about and became more and more confused.
Finally, he realized what his problem had been all along. He had not been obeying God's commandments. He was unhappy because of it and made the statement that the foundation of all happiness is obedience.
There are many, many, sad, grieved individuals walking around blaming their unhappy lives on people and circumstances, failing to realize the the reason for their dissatisfaction is their disobedience toward God.
I believe you want to be happy. The key to happiness is obeying God. Ecclesiastes 12:13 says that obedience is "the adjustment to all inharmonious circumstance." That means that anything out of order or harmony got that way through disobedience and only obedience can bring it back into harmony. Every time we obey God, something in our lives improves.
GOD'S WORD FOR YOU TODAY: Set you mind to obey God in all things and your joy will increase
Page 304
Hearing from God Each Morning
365 Daily Devotions
By: Joyce Meyer
Please all ways remember God loves you. Just go to Him any time and talk to God about any thing He is right there waiting to hear your voice call out to Him.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Monday, October 29, 2012
Fill Up Your Love Tank
May Christ through you faith [actually] dwell (settle down, abide, make His Permanent home) in your hearts! May you be rooted deep in love and founded securely on love.
(-Ephesians 3:17)
Each one of us is born with a "love tank," and if our tank is empty, we are in trouble. We need to start receiving love from the moment we are born and continue receiving it -and giving it out -until the day we die. Sometimes Satan manages to arrange things so that instead of receiving love, we receive abuse. If that abuse continues, we become love starved and warped, so that we are unable to maintain healthy relationships.
Many people develop addictive behaviors of different types. If they can't get good feelings from within themselves, they look for them on the outside. One of the things we must understand is that people have to have a certain number of good feelings. We are all created to have a good feelings about ourselves, We cannot go around hurting, being wounded, and feeling bad all the time. We are just not designed to live that way.
To find those good feelings, many people turn to sex, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, food, money, power, gambling, work, television, sports, and many other addictive things. They are simply trying to get those good feelings they are missing from within themselves and their relationships.
The good news is that whatever may have happened to us in the past, whatever we may have been deprived of, we can get it from the Lord. He is our Shepherd, so we shall not want (see Psalm 23:1). He has promised not to withhold any good thing from us (see Psalm 84:11).
If we did not get enough love when we were growing up, or if we are not getting enough love now, we don't have to go through the rest of our lives with an empty "love tank." Even if there is not one other human being on this earth who loves us, we are still loved by God, and we can become rooted and grounded in His love.
Page 302
New Day New You
36 Devotions for Enjoying Everyday Life
By: Joyce Meyer
#1 New York Times Bestselling author
Please always remember God loves you so very much, and He wants and needs you to just love Him back.
(-Ephesians 3:17)
Each one of us is born with a "love tank," and if our tank is empty, we are in trouble. We need to start receiving love from the moment we are born and continue receiving it -and giving it out -until the day we die. Sometimes Satan manages to arrange things so that instead of receiving love, we receive abuse. If that abuse continues, we become love starved and warped, so that we are unable to maintain healthy relationships.
Many people develop addictive behaviors of different types. If they can't get good feelings from within themselves, they look for them on the outside. One of the things we must understand is that people have to have a certain number of good feelings. We are all created to have a good feelings about ourselves, We cannot go around hurting, being wounded, and feeling bad all the time. We are just not designed to live that way.
To find those good feelings, many people turn to sex, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, food, money, power, gambling, work, television, sports, and many other addictive things. They are simply trying to get those good feelings they are missing from within themselves and their relationships.
The good news is that whatever may have happened to us in the past, whatever we may have been deprived of, we can get it from the Lord. He is our Shepherd, so we shall not want (see Psalm 23:1). He has promised not to withhold any good thing from us (see Psalm 84:11).
If we did not get enough love when we were growing up, or if we are not getting enough love now, we don't have to go through the rest of our lives with an empty "love tank." Even if there is not one other human being on this earth who loves us, we are still loved by God, and we can become rooted and grounded in His love.
Page 302
New Day New You
36 Devotions for Enjoying Everyday Life
By: Joyce Meyer
#1 New York Times Bestselling author
Please always remember God loves you so very much, and He wants and needs you to just love Him back.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].
(Ephesians 2:10)
Ephesians 2:10 tells us that we are God's own handiwork. He created us with His own hands. We human beings got messed up along the way, so we were re-created in Christ Jesus. We had to be born again spiritually so we could go ahead and do the good works that God preplanned for us before Satan tried to ruin us.
Just because you and I have made mistakes or have trouble in our lives, does not mean that God's plan has changed. It is still there. All we have to do is get back in it by trusting and obeying Him.
Life Point
Page 1932
The Everyday Life Bible
The power of God's Word for Everyday Living
Amplified Version
Featuring Notes And Commentary By
(Ephesians 2:10)
Ephesians 2:10 tells us that we are God's own handiwork. He created us with His own hands. We human beings got messed up along the way, so we were re-created in Christ Jesus. We had to be born again spiritually so we could go ahead and do the good works that God preplanned for us before Satan tried to ruin us.
Just because you and I have made mistakes or have trouble in our lives, does not mean that God's plan has changed. It is still there. All we have to do is get back in it by trusting and obeying Him.
Life Point
Page 1932
The Everyday Life Bible
The power of God's Word for Everyday Living
Amplified Version
Featuring Notes And Commentary By
Friday, October 26, 2012
Getting Past Your Past
For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.
(Jeremiah 29:11)
A lot of people let the past dictate their future. Don't do that! Get past your past. We all have a past, but we all have a future. The Bible teaches us in Ephesians 2:10 that we are re-created in Christ Jesus so we might do the good works He planned beforehand for us and live the good life He prearranged and made ready for us. The word re-created indicates we were created, messed up, and in need of repair.
In Jeremiah 18:1-4 we re of the potter who had to remake his vessel because it had been marred. That is a picture of us in the hands of the Lord, the Master Potter. We are said to be new creatures when we enter into a relationship with Christ. Old things pass away. We have an opportunity for a new beginning. We become new spiritual clay for the Holy Spirit to work with. God makes arrangements for each of us to have a fresh start, but we must be willing to let go of the past and go on. We make a way for the new by believing what god says about it.
Don't let your past failures leave you hopeless about your future success. Your future has no room in it for the failures of the past. As I have stated, just because you have failed at some things does not make you a failure. Whatever Satan has stolen through deception, God will restore doubled, if you are willing to press forward, forgetting the past. You have to let go in order to go on!
Page 300
New Day New You
366 Devotions for Enjoying Everyday Life
By: Joyce Meyer
#1 New York Times Bestselling author
(Jeremiah 29:11)
A lot of people let the past dictate their future. Don't do that! Get past your past. We all have a past, but we all have a future. The Bible teaches us in Ephesians 2:10 that we are re-created in Christ Jesus so we might do the good works He planned beforehand for us and live the good life He prearranged and made ready for us. The word re-created indicates we were created, messed up, and in need of repair.
In Jeremiah 18:1-4 we re of the potter who had to remake his vessel because it had been marred. That is a picture of us in the hands of the Lord, the Master Potter. We are said to be new creatures when we enter into a relationship with Christ. Old things pass away. We have an opportunity for a new beginning. We become new spiritual clay for the Holy Spirit to work with. God makes arrangements for each of us to have a fresh start, but we must be willing to let go of the past and go on. We make a way for the new by believing what god says about it.
Don't let your past failures leave you hopeless about your future success. Your future has no room in it for the failures of the past. As I have stated, just because you have failed at some things does not make you a failure. Whatever Satan has stolen through deception, God will restore doubled, if you are willing to press forward, forgetting the past. You have to let go in order to go on!
Page 300
New Day New You
366 Devotions for Enjoying Everyday Life
By: Joyce Meyer
#1 New York Times Bestselling author
THE EVERYDAY LIFE BIBLE AMPLIFIED VERSION
THE WORD which came to Jeremiah from the Lord:
Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.
Then I went down to the potter's house, and behold, he was working at the wheel.
And the vessel that he was making from clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he made it over, reworking it into another vessel as it seemed good to the potter to make it.
(Jeremiah 18:1-4)
In Jeremiah 18:1-4 we read of the potter who had to remake his vessel because it had been marred. That is a picture of us in the hands of the Lord, the Master Potter.
When we enter into a relationship with Christ, the Bible tells us that we become new creations (see II Corinthians 5:17). Old things have passed away, and we are given an opportunity for a new beginning. We become new spiritual clay for the Holy Spirit to work with. I believe that He is shaping you into a beautiful vessel, perfectly designed for the great purposes He has for your life.
Life Point
page 1177
The Everyday Life Bible
The Power of God's Word for Everyday Living
Amplified Version
Featuring Notes And Commentary By
Joyce Meyer
Please give yourself completely to the Lord, love Him with all you whole heart, trust in God, He will never lead you wrong. God loves you.
Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.
Then I went down to the potter's house, and behold, he was working at the wheel.
And the vessel that he was making from clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he made it over, reworking it into another vessel as it seemed good to the potter to make it.
(Jeremiah 18:1-4)
In Jeremiah 18:1-4 we read of the potter who had to remake his vessel because it had been marred. That is a picture of us in the hands of the Lord, the Master Potter.
When we enter into a relationship with Christ, the Bible tells us that we become new creations (see II Corinthians 5:17). Old things have passed away, and we are given an opportunity for a new beginning. We become new spiritual clay for the Holy Spirit to work with. I believe that He is shaping you into a beautiful vessel, perfectly designed for the great purposes He has for your life.
Life Point
page 1177
The Everyday Life Bible
The Power of God's Word for Everyday Living
Amplified Version
Featuring Notes And Commentary By
Joyce Meyer
Please give yourself completely to the Lord, love Him with all you whole heart, trust in God, He will never lead you wrong. God loves you.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
We All Work Together
As in one physical body we have many parts...and all of these parts do not have the same function or use, so we, numerous as we are, are one body in Christ (the Messiah) and individually we are parts one of another [mutually dependent on one another].
(Romans 12:4-5)
Today's verses teach us about the diversity of gifts given to individuals. We are all parts of one body in Christ, and He is the Head. In the physical realm, all body parts must relate to the head if everything is to be in good working order. The various parts of the physical body word together; they are not jealous or competitive. The hands help the feet put their shoes on. The feet take the body wherever it needs to go. The mouth does the talking for the rest of the body. There are many parts to the body; they don't all have the same function, but they all work together for one combined purpose. The spiritual body of Christ should work the same way. That is why the Holy Spirit used the example of the physical body when He inspired Paul to write the book of Romans.
When we attempt to function in any way other than the way God has created and assigned us to function, we end up with pressure in our lives. But when we do what God has designed us to do, we experience joy, satisfaction, and great reward. We need to work with the Holy Spirit to discover what our unique, customized destiny is, and then do everything we can do to fulfill it. When God has gifted or enabled you to do something you will be good at it, so find something you are good at and start doing it.
GOD'S WORD FOR YOU TODAY: If you want to be used by God, then find a need and meet it.
Page 296
hearing from GOD each morning
365 Daily Devotions
By: Joyce Meyer
And remember God loves you very much.
(Romans 12:4-5)
Today's verses teach us about the diversity of gifts given to individuals. We are all parts of one body in Christ, and He is the Head. In the physical realm, all body parts must relate to the head if everything is to be in good working order. The various parts of the physical body word together; they are not jealous or competitive. The hands help the feet put their shoes on. The feet take the body wherever it needs to go. The mouth does the talking for the rest of the body. There are many parts to the body; they don't all have the same function, but they all work together for one combined purpose. The spiritual body of Christ should work the same way. That is why the Holy Spirit used the example of the physical body when He inspired Paul to write the book of Romans.
When we attempt to function in any way other than the way God has created and assigned us to function, we end up with pressure in our lives. But when we do what God has designed us to do, we experience joy, satisfaction, and great reward. We need to work with the Holy Spirit to discover what our unique, customized destiny is, and then do everything we can do to fulfill it. When God has gifted or enabled you to do something you will be good at it, so find something you are good at and start doing it.
GOD'S WORD FOR YOU TODAY: If you want to be used by God, then find a need and meet it.
Page 296
hearing from GOD each morning
365 Daily Devotions
By: Joyce Meyer
And remember God loves you very much.
Friday, October 19, 2012
The Holy Spirit Is a Gentleman
To the end that through [their receiving] Christ Jesus, the blessing [promised] to Abraham might come upon the Gentiles, so that we through faith might [all] receive [the realization of ] the promise of the [Holy] Spirit.
(Galatians 3:14)
In this book, I have written a great deal about the Holy Spirit and about being filled with the Spirit, and I want to make sure you have an opportunity to know the Holy Spirit in this way as you journey through these pages.
The Holy Spirit is a gentleman. He will not force Himself into you life in His fullness uninvited. He will fill you, but only if you ask Him to do so. In Luke 11:13, Jesus promises that God will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. And James 4:2 tells us that the reason we do not have certain things is that we do not ask for them.
I encourage you to go boldly before God and daily ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit. Ask expecting to receive. Don't be double-minded or allow doubt to fill your heart, but ask in faith. Believe you receive, and thank God that He lives in you. God is not a man, that He should lie (see Numbers 23:19). He is faithful to fulfill His Word whenever anyone steps out on it in faith, so ask and receive that you joy might be full (see John 16:24).
Today's verse says that we receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Gifts cannot be forced on anyone; they must be offered by the giver and then received by those to whom they are offered. God makes the offer of His Spirit, so all you need to do is relax and receive by faith.
GOD'S WORD FOR YOU TODAY: Never be shy about asking and continuing to ask God to meet all of your needs.
Page 292
hearing from GOD each morning
365 Daily Devotions
By: Joyce Meyer
Please always say it to yourself and believe it by faith (God loves me and I love Him), (God loves me, God love me!, God love me and I love Him). Just say it all the time, plant it in your heart, and know in your heart that God loves you, and do not let any one of no body in this world tell you different.
(Galatians 3:14)
In this book, I have written a great deal about the Holy Spirit and about being filled with the Spirit, and I want to make sure you have an opportunity to know the Holy Spirit in this way as you journey through these pages.
The Holy Spirit is a gentleman. He will not force Himself into you life in His fullness uninvited. He will fill you, but only if you ask Him to do so. In Luke 11:13, Jesus promises that God will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. And James 4:2 tells us that the reason we do not have certain things is that we do not ask for them.
I encourage you to go boldly before God and daily ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit. Ask expecting to receive. Don't be double-minded or allow doubt to fill your heart, but ask in faith. Believe you receive, and thank God that He lives in you. God is not a man, that He should lie (see Numbers 23:19). He is faithful to fulfill His Word whenever anyone steps out on it in faith, so ask and receive that you joy might be full (see John 16:24).
Today's verse says that we receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Gifts cannot be forced on anyone; they must be offered by the giver and then received by those to whom they are offered. God makes the offer of His Spirit, so all you need to do is relax and receive by faith.
GOD'S WORD FOR YOU TODAY: Never be shy about asking and continuing to ask God to meet all of your needs.
Page 292
hearing from GOD each morning
365 Daily Devotions
By: Joyce Meyer
Please always say it to yourself and believe it by faith (God loves me and I love Him), (God loves me, God love me!, God love me and I love Him). Just say it all the time, plant it in your heart, and know in your heart that God loves you, and do not let any one of no body in this world tell you different.
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