Victorious conquerors....or squashed grasshoppers

The Bible tells the story about twelve men sent to spy out the land God had promised to the Israelites
when they left Egyptian slavery. After forty days of wondering through the land, all of the men came
back with glowing reports about the fertility and produce they had seen. They described the land as " flowing with milk and honey "[Numbers 13:27]. In other words, the grass was so lush that the cows
couldn't help but produce milk in plentiful quantity, and the foliage was so thick that the honeybees
had plenty to work with. They brought back pomegranates, figs, and grapes  as prove of the land's bounty.
  Two of the men said, " Let's go now! Let's move in and occupy the land God has given us ! [Numbers 13:30]. This two men, Joshua and Caleb, focused on what God had promised to the Israelites and on what they believed God would do to enable them to conquer any obstacles ahead.
  The other ten spies had a different take. They focused on the people they had seen in the land and they said, in essence, " We can't fight against these people. They are stronger than we are -- in fact, they are giants."  We were in our sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight" [Numbers 13:33].
  Fear gripped them and they refused to cross over into the land God had told them would be theirs.
Instead, they wandered in a wilderness for forty years until every person (except) Joshua and Caleb died.
  Victorious conquerors or squashed grasshoppers.
Their fate lay in the way they saw themselves.
So , too does our future flow from the way we see ourselves. Our perception of ourselves is far more powerful then the circumstances of our life. How others see us doesn't  matter nearly as much as how we see ourselves.
  The majority of the Israelites saw themselves certainly wasn't the way God saw them. It wasn't the way Joshua and Caleb saw themselves. But they saw themselves as failures, and they failed.
  Joshua and Caleb saw themselves as successful, and they eventually succeeded. Joshua became the leader of the Israelites as they crossed the Jordan River forty years later to claim the land, defeating Jericho and other countless other cities. Caleb took possession of the hill country near Bethlehem and established roots in the region that continued until today ( Numbers 14:24, Joshua 1:1-11 - and 14:6-14). - Paula White

As we are about to enter a new year, we are promised a blessed year. Blessing in our home, finances, children , health and every area of our lives. Our fate can be a victorious  one, if we can allow ourselves to believe God's promises!

Is God Still With Us?

During this Christmas season, you’ve almost certainly been reminded of Immanuel, which means God is with us. Maybe you’ve heard about the God who made you, watches you, directs you, knows you . . . but the God who fights for you? Who blazes the trail ahead of you? Who defends you? Who collapses walls and defeats kings?
Did you know that God is fighting for you? That “with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles” (2 Chron. 32:8)? That “our God will fight for us” (Neh. 4:20)? That the Lord will “fight against those who fight against [you]” (Ps. 35:1)?
Did you catch that? Not only does God promise to be with us, but he promises to fight for us. For you.
God is standing with you. And he his fighting for you.
  He fights to comfort us and strengthen us, even in the shadow of pain and under the threat of evil. He fights to guide us and redeem us, even when we can’t see the light.

All we have to do  is turn to God to see him standing at our side, fighting for the victory!- Max Lucado

The simple truth about true love

The Bible teaches us that it’s God’s will for us to help hurting people. In John 13:34-35, Jesus says, “I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves]” (AMP). Matthew 22:37-38 says, “…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intellect). This is the…first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself” (AMP).
The love message is the power of the Gospel. It’s so simple: Love God and love your neighbor as you love yourself. We often think we need someone to love us, but what we really need is someone to love. And the world is desperate for real love, so it isn’t hard to find someone who needs to be loved.



We live in a society that drives people to selfishness. So much of the advertising we see and hear influences us to want more and more and to never be satisfied with what we have. But the more selfish and self-centered we are, the less power we have to do good and help others.
The good news is we have what we need in Christ to overcome a selfish, “What about me?!” mindset and lifestyle. We have the power of God’s love! It’s the answer to every dilemma and problem in our society today. And as Christians, our goal is to represent Christ in the world and show His love.

What Is True Love?

Love is not just a feeling, or a theory, or a nice word. It’s action—it’s the way you treat people, what you do for others. Love will always cost you something: time, energy, effort, money, giving up your pride, doing what’s right when you don’t feel like it, keeping a good attitude when you don’t get your way.

Loving the way God loves means you love when there’s nothing in it for you; it’s all about giving out and not expecting anything in return. We’re called to outreach, not in-reach. Real love is about dying to self and living to love others.
Before you can love others, you have to experience God’s love in your own life, because you can’t give away something you don’t have. Then you have to be willing to ask God to teach you to love the way He loves. When you do this, God will enable you to reach out and help someone else.

Make it your goal each day to pursue God’s love and then give it away. First Corinthians 14:1 (AMP) says to “eagerly pursue and seek to acquire [this] love [make it your aim, your great quest].” So go after it with all your might, and ask God to make you a blessing everywhere you go. You can do something to help someone. You can live to love, just like Jesus. -Joyce Meyer

In the midst

Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength”Nehemiah 8:10
How can anybody stay joyful in the midst of difficulties, yet that's exactly what the word of God says.
 Simply put, it’s the fruit of joy that strengthens us to go through whatever we have to deal with and make it to the end result. That’s why, as Christians, joy should be our normal mood.

Paul was determined to enjoy the journey no matter how many potholes were in the road. In Colossians 1:11, he wrote, “[We pray] that you may be invigorated and strengthened with all power according to the might of His glory, [to exercise] every kind of endurance and patience (perseverance and forbearance) with joy” (AMP). Our joy is a weapon. It gives us the ability to not only endure difficulties, but to enjoy life in the midst of them.

But what happens when you wake up in the morning feeling low, irritated, discouraged or frustrated—and you don’t know exactly why? There has to be a reason. Well, for every “fruit” there is a root. And if you don’t get to the root of a bad mood, you just start blaming everything and everybody for making you feel bad, and focusing only on all the things that are wrong rather than the good God is doing in your life.

Before you start thinking, “But you don’t understand how bad things have been and how much I’m hurting,” I want to remind you of an encouraging truth. God never tells us to do something He doesn’t give us the ability to do. Philippians 4:13 (AMP) says, “I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency].” The key is to always lean on Jesus for the ability and strength you need to do what you need to do.
We must spend daily time in God’s presence if we're going to live with the joy of the Lord. The more intimate our personal relationship with Him becomes, the better our fruit will be. Isaiah 40:31 (AMP) confirms it: “Those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.”
Now that should help us today face any obstacle and remain joyful:))