Some time ago I was reading through 'The Message' and came across this verse which ends with the words, 'cultivate God-confidence'. Those that know their God shall be strong and carry out exploits, so says Daniel.  Knowing God creates confidence in Him.   That God confidence will make us very bold, even to the point where others may think that we're arrogant.  Those who are God confident are strong and do great things for Him.  How is this confidence cultivated? by knowing Him, through His Word.  The Word reveals Jesus to us.  When we believe His Word we become very bold.  God's Word is His covenant; God's Word cannot fail;  God's Word is living, effective and very powerful.  That makes us very confident.  Now we're not talking about confidence in ourselves or our own ability or might, but confidence in God and the Word.  We can only cultivate that confidence by getting to know God through His Word and fellowship with Him.  When you spend a lot of time with someone you get to know them.  When you first met your husband or wife you knew very little about them, when you got married you thought you knew them but as you began to live together and grow together you got to know them, so much so that you probably know how each other thinks. That was one of Paul's desires that he might know God and the power of His resurrection, let that be your desire at the start of this new month.  Cultivate that God confidence that comes from spending time with Him.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Philippians 3.7-15

Love is the greatest force and we need to develop and grow in the love of God in order for everything that is of the Spirit to function at its greatest potential.   Without love nothing works properly, our faith doesn't work, our prayers are hindered and the flesh gets the upper hand.  In order for the love of God to come to perfection or be matured in us we need to keep His word.  Whoever (that includes you and me) keeps His word, that's not just an acknowledgement of it or having a intellectual understanding of it.  It means to truly treasure it and that we see to it that we do and observe all that it tells us.  The Amplified Bible says that we should observe it 'in its entirety'.   In doing this the love of God is perfected, made complete and reaches it's maturity in us.  Jesus spoke to His disciples and told them 'If you love me, keep my commandments' and again 'If you keep my commandments you will abide (stay, continue and remain) in my love' (John 14.15; 15.10).  This is how we can know and be sure that we are in Him - the measure of our love for God is not how often we attend church, pray, read the Scriptures or do good works.  Although all these things proceed out of our love for God, the true measure of our love for Him is that we keep all His commandments.

Suggested Additional Reading:  1 John 2.1-14

I love these words from God, He says 'I AM THE LORD, I do not change'.  While reading the Word of God how many times have you caught yourself thinking ' WOW what an amazing God, if only..' . If there is one thing we need to know about God today it is this, He never changes, He's the same today as He was back then.  The miracles and signs that He wrought in the Bible, He can and will do today for those who put their faith in Him.  He is no respecter of persons, James tells us that the great Old Testament prophet Elijah was a man with the same nature that we have (James 5.17).  In other words he was just like you and what God did for him, He can do for you.  Elijah was supernaturally provided for in a time of famine and drought, he stood before kings, called fire down from heaven, at his word the heavens stopped giving rain and at his word it released the rain once again.  God is no different, He never changes, He is still the LORD.  Hebrews tells us that Jesus is 'the same yesterday, today and forever' (Hebrews 13.8).  If we want to see the miracles or be used the same as Abraham, Moses, Elijah and all the other great men and women of faith of the Bible, then we need to see to it that we act like them - in faith and obedience.  If we are not prepared to live a life of faith and obedience to God then we cannot expect God to work in our lives in the same way.  He never changes, unfortunately, all too often, we do.  In these days we need God to do the same as He did in Bible days, but He needs us to have the faith like Abraham, to be obedient like Moses and Elijah, and to have a heart for Him like David.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Hebrews 1.1-14

Jesus has paid redemption's price for you, He paid the ransom for your soul.  The salvation of your soul demanded an extremely high price but could not be satisfied with silver or gold.  What man values most was not sufficient to redeem a soul, the basis of man's wealth are but corruptible metals.  The price for your redemption could only be satisfied with the precious blood of the Christ.  Note how Peter writes that His blood was precious blood - just think about that for a while, precious blood.  How precious is the blood of Jesus to you, too many people, Christians included, don't value the blood as highly as they ought.  You hear their prayers, very often when they are at the Lord's table, 'I'm so unworthy'.  What that statement really means is, although those who say it will not admit to it, that 'I'm not worth it [the sacrifice]'.  How dare we even say such things, how dare we devalue the blood of Christ. The prodigal son had that attitude, 'I'm no longer worthy to be called your son'.  He had rehearsed other things to say but the father stopped him mid sentence.  He was his son, even though he had gone away from home and wasted his life, the father still counted him worthy of son-ship.  You are worth everything to God, so much so that Jesus gave His life for you.  Don't ever say again that your not worthy, you were worth the blood of Christ and your are considered worthy to be called His son.  Our son-ship is based on Father's grace not our performance.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Luke 15.11-32

We are exhorted in these few verses to rejoice always, to pray without ceasing and to give thanks to God in everything.  This verse goes on to tell us that these three things are God's will for you who are in Christ Jesus. God wants us to be continually rejoicing and giving Him thanks in everything.  Does this mean that if something unexpectedly happens to us like a car accident that we are to thank God for the accident? No, although I have heard people say 'well just thank God for it brother'.  Listen, God does not give sickness and disease, neither does He send poverty to you, He doesn't cause you to suffer the things that you may experience at times.  If these things don't come from Him, then why are we thanking Him for them?  We are not told to thank Him for them, but thank Him in them. In everything give thanks, I like the Amplified translation - Thank God in everything, no matter what the circumstances may be.  When we praise and give thanks to God it stills the devil in his tracks.  It throws him off course, he is expecting us to blame God in the bad times but if we praise Him instead, the devil doesn't know what to do.  There was a man in the Bible who suffered a great deal at the hands of the devil, his name was Job.  Everything he had was taken from him, yet he never blamed God once for any of it.  The Bible says that in everything that happened he did not charge God with wrong but rather he worshipped God (Job 1.20,22). No matter how hard he tried, the devil could not take his joy.  Look at what happened at the end of the book (Job 42.10), the Lord restored all that Job had lost, in fact it says God restored to him double what he had.  Why should we be thankful at all times and in every situation? - because if the devil cannot take your joy, then he won't be able to take your goods.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Job 1.1-22; Job 42.10-17

Who is like unto the Lord?  You can think of all the great men and women that have gone down in history, great leaders and politicians, great businessmen, reformers, scientists or preachers.   These men and women may have been great in their field and are remembered; but when it comes to God, none of these come near to His greatness, who is there like Him.  This statement was made when Moses and the Israelites were giving praise to God for His miraculous deliverance from Egypt.  They had seen the mighty hand of God in delivering them from the Pharaoh, He opened up the Red Sea for them, so that they could walk through on dry ground.  We live in multi-cultural world where different religions and faiths live side by side with each other.  Each worships their own gods, but there is no god like the Lord.  Moses praises God - Who is like unto Thee, O Lord, among the gods.  He is glorious in holiness, great and mighty in His holy place, the Lord is enthroned in Heaven as King forever.  He is fearful in praises - He is to be revered, worshipped and praised for who He is and for the wonders He has done and is doing.  Who is there like our God - there is none, how great is our God.  He is your God; Give Him praise; Honour Him;  Thank Him for His mighty acts - there is none like Him.

Suggested Additional Reading:  1 Chronicles 17.16-27

I have over the years used this Scripture in several sermons and messages and often quoted it.  If you are really going to be what God wants you to be, you need to take care of your roots. 'Take root downward', this is unseen and below the surface - time in prayer, study and communion with God is time wisely invested.  Paul teaches in Romans 11.16 that if the root is holy, so are the branches.  It may often appear that this 'time' is wasted, but truthfully it is essential and necessary.  In nature the crown of a tree or the glory of a flower is sustained by healthy roots, if you damage the roots it soon becomes evident above the surface, the flower fades, the tree withers.  Living clean in a dirty world means that the roots must be healthy (and holy).  'Bear fruit upward', in contrast, this is what is seen by all men.  This is where the invested time in caring for the roots pays dividends.  This is where you will 'bear fruit'.  The Father is glorified by you bearing much fruit, you are appointed to bear fruit and that fruit will be a direct result of abiding in Jesus - that abiding in Jesus is root care (John 15.1-16).  Your life depends on abiding with Jesus.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Jeremiah 17.1-8

The Apostle John was one of the eye-witnesses of the Lord Jesus.  He walked with Jesus, heard Him speak and saw the miracles. John was the disciple that lay on Jesus breast at the Passover meal and he stood at the foot of the cross as Jesus was hanging there.   In this epistle he writes that as an eyewitness he is well qualified to write about the things that he has heard and seen.  One of the main points he makes in the early part of this chapter is about Jesus - the Word of Life.  The Father revealed Him to the world so that we could have fellowship with Him.  Verse 3 shows us the heart of the Father - He created man for fellowship and with the exception of a few, He hadn't enjoyed that fellowship.  He sent Jesus so that we could enjoy fellowship with Him through Jesus.   Real life has God at the heart of it - Jesus came to give us this life, and this flows out of fellowship with the Father.  We mentioned yesterday that our life depends on abiding in Jesus.  John writes that he has written these things so that our joy may be full and complete.  When we say that we enjoy life, we are saying that we are 'in-joy' of life.  This life that comes from God has been made manifest that we may have joy, real joy.  Let the joy of the Lord be your strength today, the joy that comes from fellowship with God.

Suggested Additional Reading:  1 John 1.1-4

For several days Goliath had been tormenting and threatening the armies of Israel but no one dared face him until David came on the scene and agreed to go out against him.  Now faced with David he laughed and ridiculed him, 'Am I a dog that you to me with sticks... Come to me and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field'.  But David knew his covenant with God and he knew that Goliath did not have that covenant.  When faced with this giant, David started speaking the terms of the covenant to him.  He knew his covenant rights and he began to tell the giant how it was going to be. 'Today the Lord will deliver you into my hands, I will strike you and take your head from you and feed you to the birds'.  David was not intimidated by this giant because he knew his covenant.  You have a covenant from God that He has to honour - His Word.  Every word that He has spoken He will fulfill, so you can confidently speak it forth.  When you're faced with a giant of a situation you can face it head on with your covenant.  God has bound Himself by that covenant, when you speak it forth in faith, He has to honour it - His integrity is at stake.  My father has a saying - Don't tell God how big your problems are, tell your problems how big your God is.   Tell your problems how it is going to be, and it is based on the covenant - The Word of God.

Suggested Additional Reading:  1 Samuel 17.38-52

There are several Scriptures contained in this chapter that deal with the words that we speak.  Very often we place too little emphasis on our words. Any one that has been around me for some time will know that I choose my words very carefully, or if you have spent time hearing me teach or read these devotionals you will know that much emphasis is given to our words.  They are very important, Jesus taught in Matthew 12.36 that we will be judged by every idle [inoperative] word that we speak.  Our words build up or destroy, with them we bless or curse, they will bring life or death.  Another proverb (Proverbs 18.12) says that death and life are in the power of the tongue.  This verse has been a foundation verse for me since I was in secondary school and I am careful over the words that I speak.  Some people get frustrated with me because I take time to carefully frame my words, they say I'm indecisive, but I've seen first hand how the lives of people can be damaged because someone has run loose with their words in anger.  In the multitude of words sin is not lacking - when we speak many words it can do a lot of harm, especially if there is no guard on [not thinking carefully about] the words we say. Unless we learn to restrain our lips and only speak that which is good and edifying there is always an opportunity for us to get into sin, then, and before we realise what's happened, we've said an unkind word and offended a brother. Take time today to read through this chapter and see how often it mentions our words or our lips, then meditate on those verses.  

Suggested Additional Reading:  Proverbs 10.1-32; James 3.1-12

How often do we say that we found the Lord when speaking of our salvation experience.  Everyone knows what we mean but the actuality is that God found us.  He has saved us, delivered us and called us, He did it all, we did nothing towards it except receive it.  He did all that not because of anything that we had done, it wasn't because of any merit on our part; we didn't get His attention because of some good work we had performed.  He did it because of grace - the Bible says that it was 'according to His own purpose and grace'.  I like the Amplified translation, it says, 'because of and to further His own purpose and grace'.  God saved us, delivered us and called us because of and to further His own purpose and grace.  God has saved you for a purpose, His purpose; He has saved you by and for His grace (love and favour).  We don't often think of it like this - the purpose for which God has saved you is to be an extension of His grace in the earth.  It is God's purpose for you to manifest His grace (love and favour) wherever you go.  He started it in Jesus who 'went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed of the devil' (Acts 10.38) and has purposed that we continue what Jesus began.  That's why Paul could write in the previous verses 'do not be ashamed of the testimony of Jesus Christ' for God has given us a spirit 'of power and of love and of a sound mind'.  You are channel of the grace of God to all those around you.

Suggested Additional Reading:  2 Timothy 1-11

You are God and Your words are true - this is the bottom line when it comes to receiving the promises of His goodness.    For many Christians they have difficulties accepting that.  I believe one of the main reasons is that they cannot trust their own words.  What I mean by that is this:  We live in a society where our word is no longer our bond, we make promises and break them just as quickly.  We have 'get out' clauses written into our contracts and covenants.  We vow to take our spouses 'until death us do part' and then a few years on are running to the divorce courts.  We say stupid things like 'that scared me to death', then we try and justify our actions by saying something like 'I didn't mean it quite like that' or 'that's just a figure of speech'   So we can speak things and don't really mean them or have no intention of following them through.   We then transfer this attitude to the way we view the Word of God and the moment we do that we cut off our faith.  God cannot lie, He is God and His words are true.  I found a quotation the other day from Hudson Taylor: 'There is a living God. He has spoken in the Bible. He means what He says and will do all He has promised'.  Every good thing the Lord has promised, if you can find it in the Bible, He has to honour it.   It is possible that you can break your word, but God cannot break His - He is God and His words are true.  Meditate and get a revelation of that today, it will change your life.

Suggested Additional Reading:  2 Samuel 7.18-29

The closing words of the Book of Samuel tell us something very important about our giving to God.  We should not offer God that which costs us nothing.  David had to offer a sacrifice to God so that plague was removed from the land.  Araunah freely offered David the threshing floor, the bullock, and the wood for the offering but David would not accept it unless he paid the full market price.  A sacrifice must cost something for it to be a sacrifice.  There is a little story I heard which helps to explain this:   A farmer got up one morning and decided to have a cooked breakfast of bacon and egg, and headed into the farmyard to collect what was needed.  In the pens the pig and hen were talking together about life on the farm.  They got on to the subject of the farmer as they saw him walking through the farmyard.  The hen said to the pig, 'look here he comes, it must be time for his breakfast again, he likes my beautiful eggs'.  'That's alright for you to say that' replied the pig.  The hen was puzzled, 'what do you mean?'.  The pig began to answer the hen's question, 'well for you my friend it's just giving an offering, but for me it means total sacrifice'.  When Jesus sat by the offertory He noticed the rich dropping their large offerings in, then He saw a widow put in just two small coins. He commended the widow woman  because she sacrificed all that she had. The rich just offered what they could spare, their offering didn't really cost them anything.   Whatever and whenever we give to God - be it our time, effort, money, worship or life it  ought to be a sacrifice, it should cost us something.

Suggested Additional Reading:  2 Samuel 24. 14-25

"This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil" – Hebrews 6.19 (NKJV)

The writer of to the Hebrews says that hope is an anchor of the soul.  What is he referring to here?  Hope is defined as ‘confident expectation’ and he says that this is an anchor for our souls.  Anchors are used to fasten ships to the rocks in choppy waters or where it may not be wise to sail; the anchors are used to secure the ship until stability returns to the sea.  We are reminded of this in the Acts where Paul is sailing for Italy.  The sea became so rough that the Scripture tell us they dropped four anchors.  At the time of writing we are living in uncertain times, as far as the world is concerned, the world’s economy is down and they are talking about recession on a daily basis.  But, praise God, this hope we have as an anchor for our soul , this confident expectation that God will ‘show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel’ (vs17).  He has confirmed the promise with an oath and it is impossible for Him to lie – so we can have great strength and encouragement.  We can confidently expect God to keep His promise.  I like the Scripture about Paul, just before they dropped the anchors and prayed – Paul stood up and announced with every fibre of faith he had ‘I believe God that it will be just as it was told me.’  Do you believe God?  Well drop an anchor of faith and confidently expect God to keep his Word – it will be just as it was told you.  God has promised and confirmed it with an oath, so grasp that promise firmly and confidently expect God to deliver you from the situations and circumstances that you are in today.

Suggested Additional Reading:   Acts 27.9-38

I find it very hard to understand why many Christians, some that are really good and sincere believers, will fight tooth and nail over healing.  I guess it's because at some stage they themselves have not received healing or they know of someone that hasn't, and they convince themselves that it is not God's will to heal everybody.  You might hear them speaking words like 'Well God is all sovereign brother and you just never know what He will do, just leave it up to God, He knows best'.   That's just a cop-out, He does know what's best for you and that's healing.  Let's face it, we all know people that haven't received their healing but that experience must never cloud our faith in the Word.  The Bible says in this verse, and in many others, that Jesus healed everyone that came to Him with a need of healing.  Matthew 8.16, Matthew 12.15, Luke 6.19, and Acts 10.38 (to quote just a few) say that He healed them ALL, not just a few, not just those who had minor ailments or complaints, not just them that were of high standing in the community - He healed them ALL!  What does that word all mean if it doesn't mean everyone, every single person.  "But that was then Brother Peter, and that was Jesus.." - woah, hold it there.  He's the same Jesus now as He was back then, He never changes.  Hebrews tells us that He's 'the same yesterday [right back then in the Bible], today [right now] and forever [He will always be the same, He never changes]' (italics mine).  Healing never finished with the Apostles as some preach, if it did, then that makes God a liar and His Word futile because He said that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever.  Let's get back to believing His Word regardless of what we have experienced in the past.  Let's remind ourselves what we considered yesterday about being anchored to the rock.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Matthew 8.14-17;  Luke 9.1-11

It is better to trust in the Lord than to put any confidence in man.  This should be at the very heart of a person yet sadly so many people don't even acknowledge God.  Their confidence is in everything but God, they trust in their own strength and might, their money and wealth, their jobs, possessions, status.  You can always tell what a person trusts or where his confidence lies - Jesus told us how we would know, "where your treasure is there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6.21).  Your heart [your trust and confidence] will be where your treasure is.  If you treasure money, that's where your confidence is.  If you treasure your possessions, that's where your confidence will be.  At the heart of your life should be God, He wants to be at the very centre of your being.  He is your strength and might, He is your provider and financier, He is your status and position, He is your everything.  When He revealed Himself to Abraham it was as El-Shaddai, the Almighty God - this name is often translated as the 'All Sufficient One' which is close to its literal meaning.  The root of this name has to do with the breast, and God is everything that we will ever need, as the breast is everything that a baby needs. Just to underline and confirm that it is better to trust in God than in man, God saw to it that this verse was placed at the very heart of the Bible - go ahead and check some time, this verse is at the exact centre of the Bible.  The very heart of the Bible challenges us to put our faith and confidence in the very One who is able to supply all that we could ever want or need.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Psalm 118.1-14

What a great promise this is!  To hear some Christians talk you'd think that God had rescinded this promise.  They are constantly talking about what the devil's done to them, 'the devil's been attacking me today', 'he's been on my back all week'. Well today I have good news for you, the devil is as powerless today as he was the day Jesus stripped him of it on the cross, he is a loser and always will be.  'Don't talk like that Brother Peter, the devil will hear you', that's exactly what I want, let me say it again, 'the devil's a loser and always will be'.  This promise has never been rescinded, Jesus has given you the power to tread on him.  That's the only place the devil needs to be, as far as your concerned, under your foot.  You have no business letting him climb up on your back, keep him under the soles of your boots.  Any power the devil has over you is that which you surrender to him - when you get a revelation of that, he'll never be able to get the better of you again.  Jesus said that He has given you power, this word is exousia translated as authority and right.  God has given you the authority and right to tread on serpents and scorpions, these creatures are figurative of the devil and all demonic powers.  You have the right and authority to tread on them, you are the seed of Jesus and have the right to bruise his head.  You also have the authority over all the power of the enemy - this word power is dunamis and is translated as might or force. You have the God-given right and authority, power over all the might and force that the devil can muster.  As I said when you get a revelation of this 'nothing shall by any means hurt you'.  So when the enemy comes looking for you to tempt or trouble you, exercise that power over him, tread him down, wield the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.  He will flee from you because he's a loser and he knows it.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Genesis 3.1-16; Psalm 60.12

I felt it necessary to consider today something which I touched on yesterday.  In the devotion yesterday I mentioned about wielding the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  That comes from this verse where Paul tells us to take up the Sword as part of the armour.  Young's Literal Translation says: 'the sword of the Spirit, which is the saying of God'; Goodspeed says 'which is the voice of God' and Rotherham's translation says, 'which is what God hath spoken'.  I have added those other translations to help illustrate my next point.  To wield the Sword of the Spirit and cut the enemy down, you need to speak the Word of God.  The devil cannot read your mind, so it's useless thinking what the Word says, you need to speak it out so that he can hear.  Let's look at how Jesus used the Word when confronted with the devil.  When the devil came to Him in the wilderness, Jesus was just coming to the end of a forty-day fast and was hungry.  The devil tempted Him by saying 'If You're the Son of God, turn these stones into bread'.  Look how Jesus responded to that temptation, the Bible says that Jesus answered him saying.  Jesus spoke out loud, He didn't think it or mutter under His breath, He spoke it out loud.  What did He speak? Well again the Bible tells us, Jesus said 'It is written'.  He said that it is written in the Scriptures, or the Bible says.  Then Jesus quoted from the Word of God, He took up the sword and used it.  You will notice that Jesus did the same for each of the devil's temptations.  At the end of the temptations the Bible records these words: 'Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time'.  Look, it says the devil departed from Him. When you use the Sword of the Spirit to cut the devil down, he departs from you, he leaves you alone.  The Word of God will give you the victory over the enemy, so take it up and use it against him.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Luke 4.1-13

God has great plans for you and it is not to harm you, or destroy your confidence or self esteem.  The plans that God has for you are to prosper you, to give you hope and a future.  Maybe you've had some big plans in the past, they could be anything from a home in the country or by the sea to just being able to send your kids to university.  So you started to work towards them, you worked hard and saved your money. Now, maybe you've fulfilled those plans, or it may be that whenever you got enough money put aside that you had some unexpected expenses which drained the money and you had to start again.  It could even be that your plans are now nothing more than a distant memory, or just a dream.  Well God has a plan for you, a good plan, He thinks good thoughts towards you.  God's plan for you are to prosper you, the word translated prosper in this verse is the Hebrew word shalom, commonly translated peace.  But the peace of God isn't about quietness or tranquillity - it's a total welfare package that includes your prosperity, your health, your security, in fact the understanding of shalom is that you have all that you need and more for every part of your life.  If your worried and concerned over something , be it health, money, the children or other needs - then you're not at peace. God's plans for you is that you are at peace, that you have nothing that should worry or concern you.   God's plan of peace means that the kids are taken care of, your health is good, you have enough money to meet all your needs and do other things.  This isn't just a nice dream - this is God's plan for you.  He wants you to have hope and a blessed future, and we're not talking about heaven, this is about life here and now on the earth.  Stop fighting the will of God for your prosperity and peace and start thanking Him for it and receive it.

Suggested Additional Reading: Jeremiah 29.4-14

I love this psalm, even though it's the longest I like to read it often.  It contains many, many meditations about the Word; actually I call it 'The Word on the Word' - it is the Word of God about itself.  Some years back I was having trouble in a certain area and noticed that I always seemed to slip up and sin in the same area.  Even though I'd repent and ask God for forgiveness it seemed that I always fell at the same hurdle.  I went to the Lord about this, really to find out how I could gain victory over this thing.  The answer was so simple and one that I knew - The Word.  The psalmist asked the same thing earlier in this psalm 'How can a young man cleanse his way?' (v9) The answer was simple, 'By taking heed according to Your Word... Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against you' (vs9-11).  So I asked the Lord for a specific word from Scripture for my situation, and He revealed a verse to me.  God's Word will give us the victory over every sin and iniquitous act that we are tempted to do.  The word 'direct' here means to fix and establish, order and stand erect.  When our lives are ordered and directed by the Word of God sin will not have dominion over us.  We noted a few days back that Jesus used the written word to overcome the devil.  When He was tempted, He came against the devil with the Word.  As you meditate on the verses of this psalm, it soon becomes clear that there are many verses that say similar things.  Verse 105 says 'Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path' - the lamp and light are so you don't walk in darkness.  Why not take the time over the next few days just to read through this psalm, it's a long one but divided into twenty-two sections of eight verses each, so I suggest you read one or two of the sections then meditate on those verses before moving on.  Start right now with the first two sections.

Suggested Additional Reading: Psalm 119.1-16

Proverbs says 'Wisdom is the principal thing, therefore get wisdom'.  Having wisdom is far greater than having experience; because experience only reveals what has happened in the past, but wisdom reveals what is the best thing to do in a situation.  Have you heard people say something like, 'well brother, in my experience, it usually works this way' and because of that past experience they wrong decisions are made.  You should never make a decision based on past experiences whether they were good or bad experiences.  Wisdom makes the decision based on the Word of God rather than experience.  Just because something worked well for you in the past doesn't necessarily mean it is the right thing to do now.  Some years back I had been working for an employer on the night shift and so much wanted to get onto days.  A managerial job came up on days and I put in for it and a few days later I was called for an interview.  I was working one night thinking about this interview and what to say, the trigger for these thoughts was that I had learnt that somebody else better experienced and better qualified had also put in for the job.  As I was thinking about this, the Lord spoke to me and told me exactly what I must do. So I followed that wisdom and consequently got the job.  Later I was wanting to go for another job and without praying about it my past experience told me that I should do exactly the same as I had done previously, so I did and well, I didn't get the job.  This verse says that some men were disputing with Stephen but that they were not able to resist the wisdom and spirit by which he spoke.  Wisdom is irresistible:  There were a lot of murmurings going on in the church at that time about various things, but when you are full of the Holy Spirit and speak the wisdom of God men will not be able to resist what you are saying.  Thank God for your experiences but rather get wisdom - it's irresistible.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Acts 6.1-15

How many times has God spoken to you about something and you haven't really wanted to do it, afterwards you begin to bargain with God promising to do this and that.  All He wants from you is to do what He's asked you to do and yet you offer (sacrifice) other things.  God says that He desires mercy rather than sacrifice - the word here is chesed and is most often translated mercy or kindness, however another meaning of the word is faithfulness.  God wanted to bless His people, He had promised to come to them like rain and shower blessings upon them.  Yet they had transgressed the covenant, they weren't walking according to His word, they were doing exactly as they pleased rather than what God required of them and justifying their actions with sacrifices of burnt offerings.  In another Scripture it says 'to obey is better than sacrifice' (1 Samuel 15.22). God doesn't get pleasure in sacrifices but He does get pleasure when His children obey Him and walk in love and mercy, when they are faithful to do what He has called them to do.  Faithful children get the rewards of blessing.  The message for today is a simple one:  God desires faithfulness above all the sacrifices that we make, He desires that we obey Him and walk in love and mercy.  There are some of you that God has been speaking to about something, maybe in the area of giving, or ministry, or whatever - be faithful to God, listen to Him and be obedient, then He will rain His blessing on you.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Hosea 6.1-11

"Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak" – Matthew 26.41 (AV)

Jesus had asked the disciples to watch and pray with Him, He was in the Garden of Gethsemane and was facing the cross.  After He had found them sleeping instead of praying, He told them that watchful prayer would keep them from yielding to temptation.  The flesh is weak where the things of the Spirit are concerned; it needs to be brought into line.  How many times have you been in prayer, maybe in a church meeting or at home alone and you have found your mind wandering, then you bring it back to praying but soon it wanders off again and you’re thinking of everything else other than praying.  The flesh is weak to do what the Spirit wills.  The apostle Paul knew this and wrote in Romans 7 that he found himself doing the things that he didn’t want to do because of the weakness of the flesh.  That is why prayer needs to be more than just praying, it needs to be watchful prayer.  ‘Watch and pray’ Jesus said; the word watch means to be alert and vigilant, a watchman was a look out whose responsibility it was to raise the alarm if an enemy was approaching.  We need to keep alert to the schemes and strategies of the enemy and pray; else he will come and find us ‘sleeping’ where the things of God are concerned.  This type of prayer will prevent us from yielding to temptation and give us the victory.  Here’s something to consider: Had the disciples been watchful and in prayer, how would the rest of the chapter panned out?  Would Peter have drawn his sword? Would they have all deserted Jesus?  How will your life be affected if you watch and pray?

These are tremendous promises from God for those who are faithful to Him. The theme of the earlier verses is about fasting and in particular the type of fast the Lord expects from us.  He says that His people had fasted for all the wrong reasons and outlines to them what He expected, rather than make it a time of affliction and bondage, particularly for others, He said they should be setting people free and using their fasts as an opportunity to be a blessing.  He continues with this great promise.  The reference to light breaking forth is a reference to the glory of God (see Isaiah 60.1-2), He says the glory will arise like the break of a new day.  With that glory comes the manifestations of the blessing: healing, restoration, and new life shall come forth speedily.  I like that, many people try and explain away healing, or more specifically their failure to receive it, by saying that sometimes God takes time to do it;  This verse tells us that healing will spring forth speedily.  Your new life in God was received instantly, the moment you believed; your restoration is received instantly, so why not your healing?  Then another manifestation of the glory is that righteousness will go before you and bring you into peace and prosperity.  These manifestations of the glory are not received because of your righteousness, power or might, they are received based on the righteousness of God in you.  You are made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus,  your healing, prosperity and peace are based on who you are in Christ, not upon your performance.  The glory goes before you bringing you into peace and prosperity and the glory will be your rear guard.  It will follow after you and surround you, in other words the glory will be your protection.  It matters not where you are, or what the economy looks like, whether there is famine or lack in the land.  The glory of God will arise on you like the first light of a new day and bring you into the fullness of the blessing.  So go ahead and believe it, so you can receive it.

Suggested Additional Reading:  Isaiah 58.1-14

"Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away" – 1 Corinthians 13.8 (NKJV)

One of the great things about love is its permanency, it never comes to an end.  Love never fails, it lasts forever, it never fades out or becomes obsolete.  Have you noticed how quickly things become obsolete in the world particularly where technology is concerned.  Some time ago we had our car broken into and the cd/radio was stolen; it was a fairly new radio, and I missed this piece of equipment as I like to listen to Christian music or messages when I'm driving.  I received a call from the insurance company a couple of days later to enquire as to it's make and model and was surprised when they told me that this model had now been discontinued.  It wasn't that old and had become obsolete within a short time.  Praise God the insurance company came up with a much better model, capable of doing much more than the previous radio and I am very pleased with it.   In this verse we read that prophecies will come to an end, tongues will cease, knowledge it will vanish away but love never fails.  You will always be a winner when you choose to walk in love, love never fails.  God will do exceeding, abundantly above things in your life but only when you are rooted and grounded in love.  You see this verse in Ephesians 3.20 is often quoted and most people miss off the last part which says ".. according to the power that worketh in us".  The level of exceeding abundant things that God does for us, which go beyond what we ask or think, can only be manifest in us in accordance with the power at work within us.  That power, if your read the context of the previous verses, is the power of love - never failing love.

"And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them" – Acts 16.25 (AV)

I love this verse of Scripture - praise is the vehicle that brings God's blessing into any situation.  Paul and Silas had been arrested and thrown into prison for preaching the Gospel and delivering a young girl from a demon.  This was a cold and damp stony cell; they would have been chained up, it would not have been a pleasant situation.  Rather than bemoaning their lot, grumbling and complaining about the injustice of it all, they were praying and praising out loud so that the other prisoners heard them.  Then suddenly, don't you just love that word, God came into the cell; there was an earthquake and all the chains fell off all the prisoners. What was once a very unpleasant situation, a stormy circumstance, a troublesome trial had now been turned into an occasion for a testimony.  I believe the key to this victory was that Paul and Silas gave praise to God in the midst of the problem.  When they began to praise God showed up to bring them out.   This is not strange, God showed up when Jehoshaphat sent the singers into battle first.  The Bible says that as they began to sing the Lord sent ambushes among their enemies, God showed up and gave them a great victory.  The psalmist says that God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22.3).  When you begin to praise God in the midst of the problems you bring God into them and your victory is assured.

Suggested Additional Reading:   Acts 16.16-34

"Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad" – Proverbs 12.25 (NKJV)

Jesus told us not to worry and fear many times and there is a very good reason for that.  It wasn't to just add a few extra words into His messages, or to fill up some space on the pages of the Bible.  Worry and anxiety are both characteristics of fear.  John writes in his letter that fear involves torment (1 John 4.18) - fear torments a person that things will be worse than they really are and that torment causes fear to gain strength.  It is like a never ending circle they feed off each other until you are destroyed.  Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression; anxiety, worry and fear in your heart and mind causes depression [a man to be crushed with a burden].  It is a fact stated by Scripture and proved by the medical profession, that fear, worry, anxiety and stress (a modern day word for these things) are all major contributory factors for men contracting sicknesses and diseases.  Anxiety causes men to become depressed, oppressed, weighed down under the weight of burdens particularly those of sickness.  A similar verse found in Proverbs 15.13 says 'A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken'. This word broken means to be 'smitten, afflicted, stricken, broken and wounded'; Sorrow is that which is caused by anxiety and fear.  A good word (from God) and a merry heart cause the body to be healthy and healed.  Jacob when speaking of the possible loss of his son, could say that sorrow of heart would take him to the grave.  So do not worry, do not fear, your life really does depend on it.

Suggested Additional Reading:   Genesis 42.25-38

"Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God" –  2 Corinthians 3.5 (AV)

I like the last statement of this verse, it says ‘but our sufficiency is of God’.  At the time of writing this, the UK and the world is experiencing a number of economic problems, health problems, and political problems to name just three.  Listening to some of the analysts and specialists on the news programmes, they tell us that now is not a good time, there is no stability in the country, the ‘feel-good’ factor is not there.  These things that supposedly give the country stability are proving to be just not sufficient enough to maintain a good standard of living for the majority.  There is a growing trend for people to be self-sufficient; that means that they grow their own food, provide for themselves and they are not dependent on society.  Whilst this may appear to be a good way forward, it is not how God intended it to be.  The Scripture says ‘but our sufficiency is of God’, we are not to be self-sufficient but rather God-sufficient.  He is our sufficiency; He is all that we need.  If we try and be self-sufficient we arfe taking the place of God – we cannot save ourselves, we need God to cleanse us of our sins; and neither should we try and provide for ourselves.  He is the vine and we are the branches; He sustains our life; Without Him we are nothing and can do nothing.  When God appeared to Abraham, He revealed Himself as El Shaddai, the ‘All Sufficient One’, everything that we could ever need or want.  Take your eyes off the problems that the country and world is facing and get them on to El Shaddai.  He is your provider, financier and healer; He is your advocate and counsellor; He is your shepherd and guide.  In fact, He is all that you need and more.

Suggested Additional Reading:   John 15.1-7

"O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth" –  Isaiah 25.1 (NKJV)

What is going on in the world today might not be that great or inspiring.  When we hear that the economy is crashing, and of other problems affecting society, it’s no wonder that the ungodly have nothing to hope for.  This confession of faith that Isaiah makes is good for us all.  He says ‘O Lord, You are my God’ – this confession is more than just an expression of someone that the prophet worshipped. Yesterday we noted that God was known to Abraham as El Shaddai, all that he could ever need or want.  So Isaiah here is addressing all that God is – provider, healer, saviour, financier and more.  Someone needs to make this confession today: ‘O Lord, You are my God’.  Go ahead and do it right now, replace the word God with whatever you need Him to be: If you need healing, then say ‘O Lord, You are my Healer’.  If it’s money you need, confess Him as ‘You are my Financier and Provider’.  Then go on and praise Him and lift up His name,  ‘I will exalt You, I will praise Your name’.   Then believe that it is already done; Isaiah says, ‘For You have done wonderful things’, note he said that God has done it, not that He will do it.  This is a lesson of faith that we all need to remember: It is already done in Jesus name.  Next he says, ‘Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth’ – God’s Word is faithful and true, that’s the bottom line.  It matters not what the state of the world looks like, what the economy is doing or anything else that is going on;  the bottom line is God’s Word is faithful and true; He is your God and will see to it that His Word comes to pass in your life.

Suggested Additional Reading:   Isaiah 25.1-12

"But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint." – Isaiah 40.31 (NKJV)

This verse appears on many cards and posters and has been used to encourage many that are wearisome.  Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.  Jesus promised that those who came to Him weary and burdened would find rest.  Waiting on the Lord is something that we generally do not do as much as we ought to, as it involves time.  Waiting is not just a few minutes spent in the morning or evening; please understand that I’m not belittling those few moments spent with God, it is better to have those few moments than none at all.  But waiting involves time, and very often, lots of it.  Those who take the time to wait on the Lord find that their strength is renewed; they do find rest for their souls.  They will mount up with wings like eagles and soar high into the stratosphere of the Spirit, higher than any earthly realm, higher than every problem. That time of waiting gives them the strength they need to run their race without getting weary.  That time of waiting is a spiritual rest time, a time to recharge the batteries; notice how often Jesus withdrew by Himself to get alone with the Father.  That time of waiting on God gave Him the strength He needed to fulfil His Father’s will and ultimately face the cross without fainting or quitting.  If Jesus needed to spend that time waiting on the Lord, how much more should we.  Do you want to run your race without getting weary or quitting; then put some time aside to wait on the Lord.

Suggested Additional Reading:   Isaiah 40.25-31; Matthew 11.28

"Because they met not the children of Israel with bread and with water, but hired Balaam against them, that he should curse them: howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessing" – Nehemiah 13.2 (AV)

On their journey’s through the wilderness, God’s people had moved in next door to Moabite country and this caused the Moabites to be afraid.  So Balak tried to hire Balaam to come over and curse the people of God, fearing that they would overcome them and dispossess them from the land.   The story goes that Balaam refused to go because of the word of the Lord, but eventually disregarded God and gave in to Balak’s demands.  However, every time Balaam opened his mouth to bring a curse on the people of God, the Lord put words of blessing on His lips and he pronounced those instead.  God’s people were covenant people; they were under the covenant of Abraham.  The curse cannot touch covenant people – God turns the curse into blessing because He remembers the covenant.  Child of God, you are in covenant with Almighty God, not based on that old Abrahamic covenant but on the new covenant made with Jesus.  The old Abrahamic covenant was a covenant of blessing, but the new covenant is far better, built on better promises. The New Testament says ‘Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law…, that the blessing of Abraham [Abrahamic covenant] might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus [that’s you and me, believers in Jesus], that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith’ (Galatians 3.13-14).  The curse is threefold - death, poverty and sickness; and these cannot touch believers in Christ Jesus – It is your covenant right to receive life, prosperity and healing for our God turns the curse into a blessing.

Suggested Additional Reading:   Numbers 22.36 -23.30