Encouraging Notes

We all know that we are supposed to be doers of God’s word and not just those who hear it. Here’s a principle that is important to keep in mind. When a person truly believes something, actions always follow! We all know Abraham as a man of faith, but what precisely was it that consummated and established his faith?

James 2:20-26 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

You will know when that which is called faith is real; actions always follow! If you get a chance, read Hebrews chapter eleven. It has many examples of people who believed God and therefore displayed notable actions. Faith is an unseen source so potent that it has the power to create significant change, even altering the course of history! As the body of Christ, what we believe will determine not only the personal outcome of our lives but the outcome of our world!

So, how do I get faith, you may ask. The word of God lets us know that “faith comes by hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ.” Romans 10:17 In other words, faith is a byproduct of God revealing his truth to you.

Romans 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Continuing in or being faithful in the word of God opens the door for the Holy Spirit to reveal God and his ways to you. The Holy Spirit is the one that causes you to know the truth. Knowing the truth is having an intimate connection with it. Knowing the truth is when the truth has transformed you, and you have become the truth. In other words, your life becomes a direct reflection of the truth.

It is so important not to merely read the word of God but to be careful to listen for the voice of his Holy Spirit speaking to you. When you hear him speak to you, obey! Without obedience, faith never becomes a reality – only a point of knowledge. When intimately knowing God becomes your sole purpose, faith will become your way of life!

It is time for the true faith of God to arise among us! It is time for wonderful and powerful heavenly actions to be released through you and me! Take time to listen for God’s voice today; he is speaking! As you open up your heart to him today, know that my prayer and declaration over you today is that you indeed have…

REAL FAITH!

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When a person has been swept off their feet by the person of their dreams, they are definitely not ashamed to be seen with them! Indeed, they are proud to show them off to the world! This is the difference between true and powerful Christianity and that which is not. Look at what Jesus says in the following Scriptures.

Mk 8:34-38 NIV Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

When someone is genuinely in love, they are never ashamed of the one they adore! If God is the love of our life, we will undoubtedly want to show him off to the rest of the world! For indeed, outside of him, there is no reason to live!

John 1:4 In him was life, and that life is the light of men!

John 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

To experience real life is to experience Christ! To experience real love is to experience Christ! You cannot be ashamed of your true love!

You might ask, So how do I love God like you talking about? The answer is in the simple reception of his love for you. 1 John 4:19 says, “We love him because he first loved us.”

A very provocative read in the Bible is found in Luke chapter 7:36-50, where a sinful woman comes to Jesus in the presence of a group of highly religious men and pours perfume on Jesus that was so costly that it would take a whole year’s wages to pay for it. She stayed at Jesus’ feet crying, washing his feet with her tears and wiping them with her hair. The self-righteous, religious men were indignant at the woman, but Jesus deeply loved her. To the self-righteous, religious leaders, Jesus explained, “her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.” Luke 7:47

The more you understand that you are forgiven of the enormous debt of sin you have accrued against God, the more you will fall in love with him! On top of that, the reality that you are at the center of God’s heart and outrageously loved, the more your soul will be replete with passionate love back towards him, and a deeper relationship with him will be your greatest longing! Oh yes! The one who has been forgiven much loves much!

Don’t ever forget that true love for God directly results from experiencing his unconditional love for you! “We love him because he first loved us.” 1Jn 4:19 I am praying for you today and asking God to fill you to overflowing with his love. I am praying that you will be able to say like the one who has been…

I AM UNASHAMED!

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There is a time and a season for everything under the sun. According to Ecc 3:1, everything in life has both a time and a season. God has given us a specific season in which we can serve him and live our life for him. Bishop TD Jakes once said, “One of the scariest thoughts I’ve ever had, is that of missing my time.” We must be determined not to miss our time! The best way to not miss our time is to seek and be intimate with the One who is the Author of time. The word of God implores us to seek the Lord while he may be found and to call on him while he is near.

Isaiah 55:6-7 Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. 7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. NIV

Do you know that God wants to bless you more than you want to be blessed? God literally longs to be gracious to you and to pour out his blessing and favor upon you!

Isaiah 30:18 Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore, he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!

I believe that much of the world is saying, “Will the real God, please stand.” The only way their cry will be answered is when those called by the name of Jesus choose to seek him with all their heart! When God’s people are willing to humble themselves, and pray, and seek the face of God, and turn from their own wicked ways, can God release the miracle of healing upon the people and the land!

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

You can be sure; God is longing for those who would seek him so that his forgiveness and healing could be released!

John 4:23-24 The Father seeks such as would worship him in spirit and in truth!

Will you seek him? Today is the day… Now is the time!

2 Corinthians 6:2 For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.

For him who has ears to hear, let him hear…

THE SEASON IS NOW!

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Have you ever wondered if you’re doing good enough to please God? When is your good enough, enough? Has it ever seemed confusing to you? In John chapter 6, the people in the story had grown up under the law of Moses and had consequently lived under its “never good enough” lifestyle of failure and discouragement. Look at what they asked Jesus and see how he responded.

John 6:28-29 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” NIV

They asked Jesus how to do all the “works” (plural) God required, and Jesus reduced all works into a single work, BELIEVE. His answer had nothing to do with the law but with faith in himself. The answer that Jesus gave him is still the answer today. God wants you and I to believe! There is nothing else needed. The righteous works that the law requires are a natural outcome of true faith in what Christ has done! The answer, therefore, is giving your best effort towards right believing instead of right doing.

Rom 1:17 For in the gospel, a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Gal 3:11-14 Clearly, no one is justified before God by the law because “The righteous will live by faith.” 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.” 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus so that by faith, we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

Believing alone is what enters us into the peace of God! The book of Hebrews implores us to make our greatest effort to enter into the rest that only faith can bring.

Hebrews 4:11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.

The disobedience the writer is speaking of here is the disobedience of unbelief. The children of Israel, because of fear, were unwilling to believe God and therefore did not go in and conquer the land God had promised them. This idea of the promised land wasn’t for them alone; it is also for you! You can be sure that God has a promise land for you also! And, just like the children of Israel, God is expecting you to believe him and conquer!

So what exactly is it that you need to put your faith in? Believe the good news that the shed blood of Jesus Christ pays for all your sin and that consequently, you now are perfect before God and eligible for all his favor and blessing! Once you surrender to the truth that you are completely righteous in God’s sight, then you will have the faith to believe that God’s grand plans for you will indeed happen! When you are fully convinced that you are perfectly loved by God and righteous in his sight, there will be no obstacle too big and no devil in hell that will be able to stand in the way of the wonderful things God has in store for you! Yes! Only believing can enter you into the place of favor with God, and yes, only BELIEVING can make you...

GOOD ENOUGH!

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Everyone will go through something extremely challenging at some point in their life. For most, it will seem like everything is falling apart, and they are heading for sure destruction, but be sure of this; God is in control and has an excellent plan for a great comeback!

Proverbs 24:16 Though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.

Jeremiah 29:11-12 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

There are those, who when going through hard times, believe that God has left them. That God would leave you is the furthest from the truth! Nobody wins the Olympics without putting their body through significant testing and trial! Because of the promises in the word of God, I can assure you; God has amazing things in store for you! The only caveat is – Will you believe him? Consider King David’s attitude when he was going through what seemed like the shadow of death itself.

Psalm 23:1-6 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters; he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Faith alone unlocks the door of God’s rich bounty that he longs to pour out on each of us! God does not allow life’s challenging circumstances to make you worse, but rather to make you better! You are supposed to go higher, not lower! Sure there are perplexing, dark valleys that we may have two go through, but God’s plan can never be thwarted! The only thing God needs is your faith!

1Peter 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tried with fire, might be found to praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.

Faith is what pleases God! Faith is the key to unlock the bounty of God’s blessing for you! I want to challenge and encourage you to step out and believe God today! No matter what you’re going through, God has something wonderful in store for you! Set your mind upon him and remember that it is not you, but rather your faith that is on trial! God is longing to bless you, and he is able to bless you! What he needs is for you to…

BELIEVE HIM NOW!

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I am always mesmerized by all the things God gave us in this natural world that parallels the spiritual world. Here’s one. Harvesting a great crop does not come by accident. Before harvest is possible, there must be a thorough tearing and pummeling of the ground until it is smooth, soft, and ready for planting.

It is interesting that God created us to manifest a bountiful harvest in our lives. But for a great harvest in your life, the soil of your heart must be thoroughly cultivated until soft and pliable so that the word of God can be planted and bring forth fruit.

Prov 20:4 A sluggard does not plow in season, so at harvest time, he looks but finds nothing.

Jeremiah 4:3-43 This is what the LORD says to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: “Plow up the hard ground of your hearts! Do not waste your good seed among thorns. 4 O people of Judah and Jerusalem, surrender your pride and power. Change your hearts before the LORD, or my anger will burn like an unquenchable fire because of all your sins.

The only way to have a harvest is to prepare for that harvest by plowing and sowing seed. The word of God is the implement that God uses for both plowing the soil of our hearts and planting the seed into our hearts. When we meditate upon God’s truth, it breaks up and dislodges old and wrong ways of thinking and opens us up to a new and better way. It is important to note that the cultivation of our hearts is not God’s job, rather hours. Only you can choose to change your mind. Only you can decide to set your thoughts on things above.

Col 3:1-2 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things

Phil 4:8 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

The word of God is the highest case law, and it declares God’s everlasting way of love. Meditating upon its truth brings freedom and breakthrough! Purposing to set your mind on the truth of God’s undeserved favor and kindness is one of the greatest ways to get the hard clumps of fear, pride, greed, idolatry, and all negativity out of the soil of your heart!

Rom 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

I hope you are fully aware that your current thought life will determine your future harvest! I am trusting that you are hearing this Encouraging Note loud and clear! I believe I’m writing this because God has a great harvest planned for your life! Your season is coming, and it is time to plow! May you, in faith, humbly go through the process of your heart being made right before God so that His incredible plan can be realized in you and through you!

Will you choose to let God’s loving thoughts rule your mind today? This is the preparation necessary for your great harvest, and it is called...

SPIRITUAL PLOWING

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