Lifebit

If you can’t think of anything nice to say…

keep thinking.
Luke 6:31

Time For A Spiritual Check-up

"I am praying...your body is as healthy as...your soul." 3 John 2 TLB

We all know how important physical health is; here's a plan for keeping your soul in shape:

(a) Don't question your faith, question your doubts. We spend too much time dwelling on our misgivings, experiencing faith as an occasional flash-in-the-pan. God's promises are for 'believers.'

(b) Don't be a 'lone ranger.' It's no accident that the Old Testament contains the story of God's people, and that the Epistles were written to congregations. We grow as we relate - not isolate!

(c) Guard your thought life. If your "thinking is controlled by the sinful self, there is death. But if [it's] controlled by the Spirit, there is life and peace" (Ro 8:6 NCV). Practice mind management!

(d) Fall asleep and wake up immersed in gratitude. It'll transform your day. "In every thing give thanks!" (1Th 5:18).

(e) Ditch anything that distracts you from God. Toss the junk reading material, and if you've got the guts, throw in the TV!

(f) Always err on the side of mercy. Philip Yancey writes: "I marvel at the humility of a God who descends to live inside...his 'flawed' creatures...Do I show that same attitude towards people of whom I disapprove?"

(g) Be specific and don't revert to generalities when discussing your faith. Paul wasn't "ashamed of the Gospel" (Ro 1:16); neither should you be.

(h) Be gracious to the people who irk you. God chose them too! Sometimes it's easier to be gracious to non-believers than to uptight, moralistic Christians. But that just makes you a different kind of judgmental.

(i) Forgive those who've hurt you. Harboring hatred hinders healing, so bring your hurts to God.

Bishop Edward Earl Jenkins is the senior pastor and founder of the True Servant Worship & Praise Church located in Trenton, New Jersey. Bishop Jenkins earned his Bachelor of Theology degree from Eastern Bible College and has been preaching the unadulterated gospel for over twenty years. His unique method of preaching and teaching has opened many doors to allow him to touch the hearts of many lives near and far. Bishop Jenkins is the proud husband of Lady Sheila Jenkins and father of Travis, Jamal, Clarrisa and Dionna.

Don't Serve the Problem

"Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him." (Isaiah 55:7)

You can't win a victory as long as the problem is the biggest thing in your life!

The Lord woke me up to that fact a few years ago. At that time I was facing some difficulties in my ministry that seemed so big to me, I thought about them from morning till night. Even though I was standing against them, I was thinking more about those problems than about the scripture promises I was standing on.

Then I saw something in Matthew 6:24-25:

"Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life."

I'd read that scripture hundreds of times, but that day I saw something I'd never noticed before. I saw that immediately after Jesus said, "No man can serve two masters," He said, "Take no thought." Suddenly it hit me: We serve our thoughts!

That's why Isaiah 55 says for us to forsake our thoughts, and by the Word, take God's thoughts. That's why 2 Corinthians 10:5 says to cast out thoughts that challenge the Word and bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

Do you want deliverance from your problems today?

Then quit serving them! Quit allowing them to consume your thought life. And don't wait until circumstances change to do it. Instead, realize that circumstances won't ever change until you switch from wrong to right thinking.

I know that's not easy to do, especially in the midst of heavy darkness and trial. But you can do it if you'll do these three things:

First, remember you aren't alone. You have the Word (God's thoughts). You have the Holy Spirit to strengthen you and you have the mind of Christ.

Second, get around people who are full of faith. Instead of rehearsing your problem, let them do the talking. Make yourself listen. Join in with their faith and resist darkness.

Third, praise God. Do whatever it takes to make yourself praise. When you begin to praise, God's presence will turn back those worried thoughts and make them fall!

Your problems are not the biggest thing in your life. Jesus is. Serve Him with your thoughts and He will set you free!

Scripture Study: Isaiah 55

The Art of Confrontation

REF: Hosea 6:1 - 7:16

Hosea is not above speaking words of confrontation. He uses vivid imagery and colorful images to describe the evil behavior of his people. Look at his train of thought:

1. He clarifies the desired relationship he wishes to have (6:1-3)
2. He defines the unacceptable behavior (6:4-5)
3. He highlights his values and priorities (6:6)
4. He lists the conduct that illustrates his point (7:1-14)
5. He reminds the people of their training (7:15)
6. He declares the consequences (7:16)

For six more chapters Hosea continues to detail the people's unacceptable conduct. Then, in chapter 14, he offers words of restoration. The goal is always reconciliation, not excommunication.

When team members drift from goals, leaders owe it to them and to the organization to confront or clarify the situation. This is the only way to stay on track and to maintain respect from the team. Hosea has written the book on it!

Confrontation: It Comes with the Territory

REF: Ezekiel 23:36-39

God told Ezekiel to confront His people using colorful and striking imagery. "Oholah" and "Oholibah" are symbolic names for sinful Israel and Judah. God describes the sins they have committed and demands that Ezekiel confront the people with their rebellion.

At times a leader must confront sinful or destructive behavior in the ranks. No healthy leader enjoys confrontation, but no healthy leader avoids it, either. What can we learn from God and Ezekiel about confrontation?

1. Be compassionate. Ezekiel hurt as he recalled the sins of Israel.
2. Be forthright. Ezekiel spoke honestly and directly to the issue.
3. Be specific. Ezekiel didn't drop hints, but gave specifics about the problem.
4. Be clear. Ezekiel spoke simply about the consequences of such behavior.
5. Be redemptive. Ezekiel communicated for the purpose of restoring the people.
6. Be hopeful. Ezekiel ended with words of hope for the future.
   

How Do Leaders Confront?

REF: 1 Corinthians 5:1-2

Once Paul had identified the sin that plagued the church, as well as what should be done about it, he encouraged the leaders to confront this erring man. Most of us avoid confrontation; only a sadistic person likes it. So, how do we confront in a healthy and effective manner? Try to follow these steps:

1. Address the issue immediately and personally.
2. Confront with the right spirit.
3. Start on a positive note.
4. Outline the problem.
5. Encourage a response.
6. Show that you understand the other person's position.
7. Explain why the action is damaging.
8. Indicate the desired action.
9. Reiterate the positive strengths of the person.
10. Put the issue in the past.
    

Psalm 112:5

"Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice."

Divine Healing

Hebrews 13:8 - Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

One day, when I was working as a flight attendant, a male passenger stopped me and asked for a bag of ice. His face appeared distressed, and I could see that he was in pain. I asked him what was the matter, and he said that he had just had knee surgery and that he had run out of pain medicine. At that moment, I knew that God had put me in this man's path for a purpose. So I promptly walked into the galley, scooped a bunch of ice into a plastic bag, spun the top around and lifted it up to God. I asked God to take away the man's pain and to heal his knee expeditiously. Then I gave the makeshift ice pack to the man and continued to serve surrounding passengers.

I kept an eye on the man, and after I finished my service, I approached him again. I could tell from the look on his face that he was still hurting. Indeed, he confirmed that some of the pain was gone, but not all. He explained that he had experienced several injuries and surgeries on his knee from playing years of tennis.

As I stood in the aisle listening to this man's story, I felt a righteous indignation rise up in me. I simply could not stand to see him in pain. And I felt strongly compelled by the Holy Spirit to pray for this man. So I asked him if I might do so. I believe it was out of sheer desperation that he agreed. So he removed the ice pack, and I knelt in the aisle, right in first class, which was full of on looking passengers. I began to pray softly, out loud. I was uncomfortable with everyone staring, but I continued to pray because I knew I was to step up, be bold, share the heart of Jesus and do what Jesus would have done for this man according to the gospels.

When I finished praying, I looked up at the man, and I asked Him how his knee felt. He slowly opened his eyes and smiled carefully. Then a surprised look appeared across his face, and he said quietly, "All the pain is gone." He smiled big, and he asked me if it was magic. I shared with him it was the healing power of God and that the Father of the universe loved him with an everlasting love so great that He didn't want him to hurt anymore. The man's eyes began to well up with tears. And I asked him whether he knew Jesus. He replied that he was "a non-practicing Methodist." As I began to explain to him about having a personal relationship with Jesus, I wondered whether this man had anyone else to pray for him. Just the thought of the possibility that he might not broke my heart, and I was reminded, once again, that my higher purpose in my workplace was to reach out to others with the heart of Jesus.

What a perfect mission field our workplaces are! When we consider that fulltime workers spend at least 50% of their waking hours on the job, it makes sense that we Christians are to show up for more than a paycheck. The miracle of healing is one way Jesus demonstrated His love for others and boosted their faith throughout the gospels, and He still does today. Hebrews 13:8 tells us that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Healing opportunities abound, and they are not all physical. Sometimes they are emotional or spiritual.

Ask the Lord to show you who among you is in need of healing, and ask Him to enable you to meet that need through His healing power. You could find that the people He identifies may not have anyone else praying for them.

Margaret D. Mitchell is the founder of the God's Love at Work Foundation and speaks on sharing God's love in the workplace. Her book, "100 Passengers," is an inspirational testimony of her journey out of fear. For more information, visit www.margaretdmitchell.com.

Lifebit

Sometimes what you are doing speaks so loudly…

that what you are saying goes unheard.
1 John 3:8

Think on these...

If you think you are too small to make an impact,
try going to bed with a mosquito in the room.

Doubt sees the obstacles
Faith sees the way;
Doubt sees the blackest night
Faith sees the day;
Doubts dreads to take a step
Faith soars on high;
Doubt questions, “Who believes?”
Faith answers, “I”

Worldly Planning

2 Corinthians 1:17 - Or do I make my plans in a worldly manner so that in the same breath I say, "Yes, yes" and "No, no"?

The apostle Paul was discussing his plans to come to the church at Corinth. He was acknowledging the serious nature of his trip and informing the Corinthians that he did not flippantly come to this decision to visit them. It was a matter that had been given serious prayer, not one made in the spur of the moment.

Planning from God's view is a process. It isn't merely an exercise in reason and analysis. It requires entering into the mind of Christ together with our minds to determine which course to take. In the Old Testament, the priests wore breastplates with the urim and thummim in a pouch on their breasts. It was like a roll of dice that the priests were required to perform to know which direction they were to take on a matter. It was the ultimate release of all decisions into God's hand. God did not want the priests to rely on their own intellects for final decisions.

We have an uncanny ability to make decisions based on our own needs and wants. However, God desires that we seek Him to know His plans for us. David was a skilled warrior who never lost a battle. He consulted God on every decision. He knew the results of the battle rested in God's hand. So, if he was to gain victory, he had to know God's mind on the matter. Sometimes this requires more time given to the process in order to hear His voice. Sometimes it may even require fasting and prayer. Sometimes it may require input from other godly friends.

Are you a man or woman who makes decisions based on God's purposes for your life? Do you take every major decision and put it before the throne to determine God's mind on the matter? If so, you will avoid making decisions in a worldly manner.

7 Keys for Growing in the Garden of Friendship

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Fear Not!

2 Timothy 1:7 - For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

God calls each of us to engage in spiritual warfare at times. Whenever satan wants to come against one of God's children, he does so by trying to intimidate through fear.

Goliath's formidable size and arrogant boasting intimidated Saul and Israel's army. And because God's anointing had fallen from Saul, he was unable to respond with courage to Goliath's charge. Fear paralyzes and torments. That is why Saul could not respond.

The anointing had fallen on David, who was just a young boy, but mighty in spirit. David did not cower at the size or shouts of the giant Goliath. He saw Goliath through the eyes of God, who saw him as a mere speck. David had righteous indignation for an affront to the armies of the living God.

David did not weigh the risk of failure because his faith was resting totally in God. That is another important factor in overcoming fear-complete trust in God.

When the Lord began training me to confront fear, the training grounds were a groundless lawsuit, intimidations, and calamity that confronted my very existence. Learning that these were merely tactics of the enemy, designed to instill fear, allowed me to stand firm in God's power to overcome.

Do not fear sudden calamity if you are walking uprightly before God. It may be setting the stage for a great victory that will bring praise and honor to your heavenly Father. These battles are training grounds for greater victories to come.

Don't Let Your Faith Slip

Kenneth Copeland

"Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip." (Hebrews 2:1)

Something very serious has been happening to the Body of Christ. We've often let the things which we have heard, the message of faith and righteousness, slip.

I'm not just talking about those believers who've been so surrounded by religion that they've never heard about the power that's theirs in Christ Jesus. I'm talking about those of us who have heard the Word and have known the thrill of living by faith.

In my own life, for example, there were times when I'd pray for healing. I'd say all the right words, "Thank God, I believe I receive..." and all that. But inside I'd be thinking, "I wonder why God isn't healing me?"

You see, even though I'd said that I believed I was healed, I hadn't really. I'd staggered at the promise of God, believing what my body told me instead of the Word of God.

I don't care how long you've been a believer or how long you've been practicing the principles of faith. You can easily slip into unbelief about the promises of God. And, when you do, it will cost you dearly.

"But if slipping into unbelief is so easy," you may say, "how can we avoid it?"

Hebrews 4:11 tells us: "Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief."

We must labor! Not by working with our hands and feet or struggling to get God to do something, but by spending time in God's Word--hanging onto the promises of God by faith day after day. We must labor by hearkening to the Word and refusing to let it slip.

Don't get casual about the Word. Don't make the mistake of thinking, "Oh I know all that faith stuff. I know how to receive my healing." Don't slack off or one of these days the devil will catch you unprepared and steal you blind.

Instead, dig more deeply in the Word than ever. Labor! Be diligent to keep your faith from slipping--and you won't have to fall!

Scripture Study: Hebrews 10:23-39

Lifebit

Pray through the storm…

but keep rowing.
Mark 4:35

Think on these…

Do you want to be strong and carry out great exploits…Know God.

Live close enough to God that all else seems small in comparison.

The smallest good deed is better than the greatest of intention.

Don’t let what you can’t do…interfere with what you can do.

All that summer conceals, winter reveals.

Leave Behind the Past

Kenneth Copeland

"But this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14)

Spiritual bumps and bruises. Inner aches and pains that just don't seem to go away. Most all of us know what it's like to suffer from them but too few of us know just what to do about them.

We limp along, hoping somehow those hidden wounds will magically stop hurting, thinking that maybe (with a little extra sleep or an extra helping of dessert) that nagging sense of depression will finally disappear.

But does it ever happen that way? No!

I know. I've been there.

But thank God, I'm not there anymore. You see, over the past few years, I've faced some fierce spiritual battles. And I've found out those battles can leave you bruised and beat up on the inside just as surely as a fistfight can leave you bruised and beat up on the outside.

Before I was born again, I learned just how physically devastating a real slug-it-out kind of brawl could be. Yet as bad as I felt, a few days rest would take care of me.

The healing of a bruised and beaten spirit, however, doesn't come that easily. In fact, the passing of time often worsens this condition.

The reason is this: Instead of putting painful failures behind us, we often dwell on them until those failures become more real to us than the promises of God. We focus on them until we become bogged down in depression, frozen in our tracks by the fear that if we go on, we'll only fail again.

But there is a way out. If depression has put you into a spiritual nosedive, all you have to do to break out of it is to get your eyes off the past and onto your future--a future that's been guaranteed by Christ Jesus through the exceedingly great and precious promises in His Word.

Chances are, that won't come easily to you at first. Your mind has probably had years of practice in focusing on the past. Like an old horse that habitually heads for the barn, your thoughts will probably start galloping that direction every time you give them any slack.

So, don't give them that slack. Keep the reins tight. Purposely meditate on the Word of God. Replace thoughts of the past with scriptural promises about your future and be diligent about it. Then, instead of being a wounded soldier, you'll become the conquering warrior God made you to be.

Scripture Study: Philippians 3:12-21

A Legend in Your Own Mind

Gloria Copeland

"For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith." (Romans 12:3)

Do you want to know one of the secrets of staying in the will of God, of keeping yourself from getting off track?

Don't overestimate yourself!

Proverbs 16:18 says,

"Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall."

How many times have we seen that borne out! How many times do we see believers get into trouble because they get an overblown idea of themselves. They begin to think they're so smart that they have it all figured out.

Then, the next thing you know, they're thinking they have to straighten everyone else out. Instead of just letting Jesus be Head of the Church, they feel like they have to step in and do the job.

Once that happens, it's just a matter of time before they're flat on their faces in failure. Why? Because the Bible says God resists the proud! (1 Pet. 5:5).

Don't put yourself in a position where God has to resist you. Rate your own abilities soberly. Adopt an attitude of humility. Keep a watch on yourself, and when you catch yourself getting puffed up with your own greatness, repent and remember that every good thing you enjoy and every bit of success you've had has come by the grace of God and by His power.

Look back on your life and see how many times you could have lost what God had given you. See how many times, when you were floundering around making every mistake imaginable, His tender and precious mercy pulled you through.

Don't become a legend in your own mind. Instead, humble yourself beneath the mighty hand of God, and let God do the exalting--that prevents some very painful falls.

Scripture Study: 1 Peter 5:5-7; James 4:6-1

Avoiding Detours

Proverbs 3:5-6 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

I turned off the interstate to get gas for my car. I was returning from a speaking engagement and it was very late. As I turned onto the road, I looked for the entrance ramp to get back on the interstate. It was dark and I could not see any signs. I made a turn to the right that appeared to be the turn I needed to make. I could see the interstate was next to the road. As I continued down this road, the interstate was on my left. It soon became obvious it was not the entrance road but rather a frontage road. I assumed it would take me to the next interchange. However, the road soon turned away from the interstate. It grew darker and darker. The road became a dirt road. I realized I was not going to get to the interstate on this road. Being a bit frustrated that I had made the wrong turn, I turned around and went back, losing valuable time.

It is easy to make assumptions about the path we are on. If God's Spirit has not enlightened our reasoning, we are inclined to make the wrong choices. Our choices seem right at the time, but later we discover these choices have led us away from God because they were based on our own reasoning.

Acknowledge God in all your ways today. Lean completely on Him to reveal His direction for your life. If you do so, He will direct you to the desired destination He has for you.

Lifebit

The Lord is my Shepherd…

that’s all I want.
Psalm 42:1-2a