Above and Before…

Proverbs 4:7 “Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom!”

The journey of life can become busy and overwhelming at times. People rush everywhere trying to do everything they possibly can. Often rapid-fire decisions are made with little forethought. These often prove to be big mistakes that carry a great cost.

In life we need to slow down! Our verse lets us know that God’s way to a successful life is to get His Wisdom above and before everything. This means that God’s Wisdom must come before our plans, desires and schedules and must be placed above our emotions, circumstances and feelings.

Whenever we disregard Wisdom we are heading towards disaster without knowing it.

We can never rush Wisdom; it takes time and energy to gain it. Our bible is chocked full of Wisdom for us to live by. It is there so we can successfully navigate every part of life. The key to getting Wisdom is to slow down and take our time to read, ponder and apply God’s Word to our lives before we do something, not after.

Whenever we prioritize God’s Word in our life we are prioritizing Wisdom in our lives.

This week put God’s Wisdom above and before our personal wisdom. Let’s SLOW DOWN and allow Wisdom to seep into the very depths of our hearts. Allow Wisdom to become the foundation of every decision made. Before long our lives will be flourishing and we will be a people of Wisdom.

Wisdom

A Word Hidden…

Psalm 119:11 “Your word have I hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.”

Children love a game of hide and seek. As one child counts to 10 the others hide. Then the hunt begins to find them. There are often squeals and laughter as each child is found. The better hidden you are the less likely you are to lose the game.

Today’s verse gives us a very important key to building our future. It says we are to take the Word of God and store it in our heart. It is vital that God’s Word is the very center, the heart, of everything we do in life.

The more of God’s Word we store in our hearts means the less likely we are to sin. We will not miss, forfeit or lack the fullness that God has for us when we have His Word in our heart. It strengthens us to remain close to Him and ensures that we won’t easily be led astray.

Each week we post a fresh encouragement from the Bible. These are great words you can hide in your heart. You can visit this blog anytime and read our archives. Why not visit it whenever you feel you have a little extra room in your heart that needs to be filled by God’s Word.

Remember God instructs us because He loves us. Let’s respond to His love by taking His precious Word and storing it in our heart. It will allow our life to prosper like never before and ensure that we are equipped to win in our future!

Help Wanted…

1 Chronicles 16:11 “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”

Have you ever seen a sign in a window that says “Help Wanted” In reality this sign is offering more than just employment. It is signaling that someone has discovered that they can’t accomplish all they want by themselves.

You and I can be in a similar position when we look at life and think, “I don’t have the strength to accomplish all of this.” These are the times when we need to put out our “Help wanted” sign to God.

Our verse lets us know that He will respond. He will allow us to draw our strength from Him. Now there’s an amazing key hidden in this verse that will have you feeling strong more often than you feel weak. The key is to seek God’s face continually.

Now a face always looks forward. God’s face is the same. We find His face as we look towards our future. We will never find His face in our past. As we look for God in our future we are ensured that He will be our strength.

This week let God know that you need His help. Stop looking for Him in your past and resolutely seek Him in your future. As we do this strength will flow from heaven enabling us to flourish into the future. It’s not difficult; you just have to look in the right direction – to God in your future!

We love you and believe in you.

Cheerleaders…

1 Samuel 30:6 “But David encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord.”

We all love life when it’s going well. As people believe in and encourage us we advance easily. In these seasons we often feel that we could take on anything and win. On the other hand, when life is less encouraging, our progress can be a little more difficult to achieve.

David held a key to making progress through the less encouraging seasons of life. Our verse takes place when David was in distress and about to be stoned by his own people. It says that he “encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord.” In other words David became his own personal cheerleader of God in his life.

In some seasons we need to cheer ourselves on. Others may not notice what God has been doing for us but we do. These are the times when we open up our mouths and declare God’s goodness like David would. “Come on I know I can do it, I can overcome. God helped me slay the lion, slay the bear so now lets go slay this Goliath!”

We become a cheerleader of God in our life. As we cheer, others will start to join in. Before we know it there will be a whole team all cheering God together!

So take up the challenge and become your own personal cheerleader. Start declaring God’s goodness in your life. Keep cheering until a whole team of people surrounds you. You will be helping others as you help yourself. This is what the gospel is all about. Have the greatest week cheerleading yourself to success.

Real Truth…

John 8:32 “Then you will know the truth, and the TRUTH THAT YOU KNOW will set you free”

Often we see images in the press of the solid bars on prison cells or the sharp razor wire that incarcerates and separates people from freedom. We hear stories of brazen escapes by inmates and their subsequent recapture and return to prison. Freedom is something that we cherish and it is also something that God cherishes for his people.

This verse tells us that we each need to be set free. Many believers are unknowingly held captive every day of their lives. Their captivity is a cage formed by lies and deception caused by a lack of knowledge. The solution is simple: obtain the key that opens the prison cell. The key is simply to KNOW THE TRUTH from God’s Word.

It is important to understand that truth alone never brings freedom. It is the TRUTH THAT YOU KNOW that produces it. Jesus says we are able to know His truth and that is what sets us free. THE TRUTH THAT YOU KNOW SETS YOU FREE!

So, this week, join us as we continue in God’s Word together to KNOW TRUTH. Each day, set time aside to gain understanding from God’s Word. Let it disciple you into a new arena of freedom. Liberate yourself from the bondage of lies and deception and step up into a new-found freedom. The more you know the more you can grow so FLOURISH DAILY in His Word!

A New Start…

Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God…”

Happy New to you and your family!

Our year has ended and we have just begun 2012 together. Most people happily move forward putting the old year behind. Others find it a little more difficult. God wants us to keep a forward focus and continually let go of the past just like the Apostle Paul did.

You see the key to freedom is not letting your yesterday affect your today! God’s mercy is new every morning. So, no matter what happened last year in 2012, we can find a fresh place to begin.

Here is how it works: The first words of the Bible say, “In the beginning God…” When we give God priority and ownership in the beginning we can be assured He will cause us to reach our full potential – no matter how many twists and turns we face on our journey.

Begin 2012 with God as your priority and keep Him there because Jesus has already gone into 2012 to prepare the way for you! God wants to bring to pass His promises for our lives over the coming year.

So let’s begin with Jesus, stay with Jesus and end with Jesus. He is faithful to keep His word!