Category Archives: God
Benefits
2 Corinthians 4:7 “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” (emphasis added).
The truth is, we have been dropped and we have cracks. This fragile clay actually has cracks. But the beauty is that those cracks are needed so that the treasure in us can come out. Those cracks are needed so that the light can come out. Great power blesses the world through our brokenness. Read the rest of this entry
Remember & Relax
2 Corinthians 12:10 “…I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.” (MSG)
You are empowered to defeat discouragement when you Never Forget How Much God Loves You, when you Do Not Fake It, and when you Remember It Is Not About You. When someone praised me, I look up because it is not about me. It is about Him. Read the rest of this entry
His Story
2 Corinthians 4:5 “Our message is NOT about ourselves. It is about Jesus Christ as the Lord. We are merely your servants for Jesus’ sake.” (GW, emphasis added)
How do I defeat discouragement? Paul’s first secret is Never Forget How Much God Loves You. Paul’s second secret is Do Not Fake It. Paul’s third secret is Remember It Is Not About You. This is huge. Read the rest of this entry
Unique
Psalm 139:14 “I will offer You my grateful heart, for I am Your unique creation, filled with wonder and awe. You have approached even the smallest details with excellence; Your works are wonderful; I carry this knowledge deep within my soul” (Voice)
The truth is that most of us start off in life being original. But somewhere along the line, many people lose it. However, some of us are rebels, we do not want to be like anybody. From my childhood, I did not want to be like no body. I just wanted to be me. But not everybody is like that. Read the rest of this entry
Be You!
Luke 12:2 “You can’t keep your true self hidden forever; before long you’ll be exposed. You can’t hide behind a religious mask forever; sooner or later the mask will slip and your true face will be known.” (MSG)
Wearing a mask can be draining and discouraging. Even the nose mask that we had to wear for protection during the Coronavirus pandemic was uncomfortable. Yes, we tried to make it fashionable. But by the time you have had it on it all day, after a while what happens? Read the rest of this entry
In Truth
Philippians 4:8 “Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honourable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind. And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising him always.” (TPT)
The number one purpose for your life cannot be for you to love God. You cannot begin to love God if you do not know what it is for God to love you. And it is because our love for God is a response to God’s love for us. 1 John 4:19 “We love Him because He first loved us.” (NKJV). Read the rest of this entry
Receive It
Jeremiah 31:3 “The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you” (NKJV)
Yesterday we began to look at the first of Paul’s seven secrets to defeating discouragement contained in 2 Corinthians 4. And the first secret to defeating discouragement is Never Forget How Much God Loves You. When we focus on how merciful, loving, and kind God is to us, it drives away discouragement. Read the rest of this entry
Lovingkindness
Psalm 16:8 “I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.”
2 Corinthians 11:24-28 “Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have travelled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm. Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches.” Read the rest of this entry
Redirect
Psalm 42:5 “Why are you discouraged, my soul? Why are you so restless? Put your hope in God, because I will still praise him. He is my saviour and my God.” (GW)
I get asked quite often, ‘Pastor, how do I defeat discouragement?’ Discouragement can be a very tricky thing. If we do not tackle and overcome discouragement, it can actually be a huge setback. Read the rest of this entry
Deep Breaths
1 Kings 19:1-3 “…Ahab… told Jezebel everything Elijah had done. including the way he had killed all the prophets of Baal. So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: “May the gods strike me and even kill me if by this time tomorrow I have not killed you…” Elijah was afraid and fled for his life…”
The name Elijah means my God is my breath. How close is your breath? So, since God was with Elijah, what would have happened if he stood? Where will God be? Right there with him. Jezebel would not have been able to overpower him or even kill him because God is right there with him. Read the rest of this entry
