Decide and Conquer

12/5/07 Lord, grace us with the ability to make wise decisions and grant us the strength to follow through on them with determination and discipline. Amen

You can make no progress in your life unless you make the decision to do so. Deciding to be successful is the first step. You cannot consistently be successful in life unless you consciously decide what direction you want your life to take. The earlier you start on the path to success the easier it will be. Remember this when you disagree with your parents when they try and steer you in the right direction. Ultimately the decision will be yours, but your parents love you and only want what's best for you. They will never consciously steer you towards evil.

Once you make the decision, the hard work begins. After you've made your decisions you have to have the determination to follow through with them. Sometimes one path will lead to a more productive path that you never anticipated. But once you decide and commit to lifestyle that reflects your morals it will be easier to build upon those fundamentals and to make choices in the future based on the decisions you've made about how you want to live your life. Some things cannot be compromised.

Make Up Your Mind

"Now, thanks be unto God, which always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him." (2 Corinthians 2:14)

Make up your mind!
As you fight the good fight of faith today, remember this: Your mind is where the battle will take place. Whatever you allow to captivate your mind will rule your life. Will it be the Word of God or the lies of Satan?
The decision is yours. If you want the Word to reign, make up your mind now to resist the devil when he comes to plant doubts within you. Refuse to surrender to the circumstantial pressure he brings your way. Decide at the onset that you will not succumb to this trial. Dig your heels in and stand immovable upon the promises of God. When thoughts come that are contrary to God's will, cast them down. And above all, don't worry. Worrying is meditating the thoughts of Satan. When you recognize you are worrying, stop it immediately. Replace worried, fearful, and doubtful thoughts with the Word. Be assured, Satan will continually try to tell you that your situation is hopeless. He will persistently peddle doubt, defeat, and discouragement. But if you won't allow him to sell you his goods, his commission will be zero. If you don't buy his lies, he can't cause them to come to pass in your life. God has promised that He will always cause you to triumph in Christ. You are guaranteed victory over any adversity you face today. Make up your mind right now to be a winner and you'll spread the knowledge of victory in Christ everywhere you go.
By Kenneth Copeland
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The Best

8/21/07 Lord, you want the best for us. As your children, we deserve the best. Help us strive to be our best and accept the best that world has to offer us. Amen.

There is a saying "save the best for last". I much prefer the sentiment "eat dessert first, life is short". Always strive to be your best. Do your best. Accept the best of whatever is offered to you. There will always be some more "best" tomorrow. "Best" never runs out.

Shine

8/16/07 Lord thank you for making us unique and special in your eyes. Each of us is more precious than jewels. Help us polish ourselves and glimmer and glisten as examples of your glory. Amen.

God didn't create you to stay buried in a clump of dirt. Dust yourself off. Polish yourself and shine as bright as possible. Show your best facets and display yourself in the best setting possible. God made you because he wanted you and loves you. And he put you in the setting where he thought you'd shine the best. Learn the lessons that God sends your way. Become multifaceted. Sparkle!!!

Mind Over Matter

8/14/07 Lord, with your help we can do all things. Grant us discipline to live our lives according to your will. Show us how to rule over our minds and emotions. Amen.

Proverbs 25:29 Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.

Sometimes it's very easy to do the right thing. Other times it is difficult. When you find the latter to be true, reach out for support. Pray for strength. Remember, I am always there for you. When you find yourself weak come to me. There is strength in numbers. Together (and with God's help) we can do anything.

Be Not Afraid

8/12/07 Lord, let us not be fearful. Let us not be troubled. Let your peace be with us. Amen.

John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

Walk the Walk

8/9/07 Lord, help us be all that we can be. We need to be true to You and ourselves. We need to be who YOU want us to be, not who we THINK you want us to be. We can walk your walk and talk your talk if we only pray for your guidance. Amen.

You can do anything with God's help. Sometimes it's easier to go with the flow than to stand your ground. But all things are possible through Christ. Pray and find out what God wants from you. you may not always know why he's pointing you in a certain direction. Heck, you may not even realize that he is pointing you. But stay on the path that God puts you. Walk int he direction that God points you. And say whatever God instructs you to say.

The Mighty Oak

08/07/07 Lord, in you we are safe. Help us peel away the layers of deceit and deception that we wrap around ourselves in an attempt to protect ourselves from evil. Amen.

Once evil takes root in your life it grows and intertwines itself in your everyday activities whether you know it or not. It starts out so small that you may not even notice it , or worse yet, think that it is so small that it is inconsequential. That is how Satan works. He wants to get hold of you without you even knowing he's there. Evil grows like a big old oak tree. The larger it gets on the exterior, it gets even larger under the surface with roots set in so deep and intertwined. I envision a tree lawn with a big tree in it. The roots have over taken the whole area. Even if you chop down the tree, the roots remain. it's a big job to clean up the debris left behind by evil. It is best if you never let it set root in the first place. And it is easier to pluck it from your life while the roots are small. But with God as your gardener, you can remove the effects of evil from your life. It is just harder and takes longer if you fertilize it and let your tree grow.

The Blame Game

8/6/07 Lord, give us the strength to let go of past hurts. To release resentments. To quit placing blame. We give you all that troubles us and ask that you remove them from our beings and replace them with joyfulness. We ask this in confidence O Lord. Amen.

I've already addressed how it is good to express your feelings whether they are good or bad. Now I want you to know that it is not beneficial to hang on to those feelings. You need to allow yourself to feel new feelings. It's good to have memories of good times, but it's not so great to spend time on bad memories. Bad thoughts fester and turn into resentments. And resentments hold you back. Learn from the past. Learn from your mistakes. Leave the blame in the past. Replace the anger and hurt with love and joy.

Competition

Competition is good for motivational purposes. However, extreme competition is destructive. While you always want to strive to do your best, your competitive nature can undermine you. It can cause you to be so absorbed with the end result that you fail to appreciate the journey. And if you're not paying attention to what is currently going on, you may actually miss seeing something that would be more efficient that could get you the end results much less effortlessly. So always strive to do your very best, but don't loose track of simple pleasures along the way.

8/2/07 Lord, help us to be the very best we can be on whatever path you place us. Along the path show us all your blessings and remind us to take the time to enjoy them. Amen.

Refresh Yourself

8/1/07 Psalm 51:10 "Renew a right spirit within me."

When you know that what you've been doing isn't working, be willing to turn to God and ask for direction. He will show you the way if you'll only ask.

Tyrannosaurus Rex

7/31/07 The need to succeed can disguise itself as perfectionism. It is a survival mechanism to be successful. The caveman would not have survived if it had not been successful in bringing home a dinosaur for supper. He may have set out to bring home a Tyrannosaurus but was only able to find a Brachiosaurus. He made do with what he had. And sometimes that's what you need to do. Sometimes God answers your prayers with what you need and not necessarily with what you want. If God gives you a Brachiosaurus, make Brachiosaurus stew. Choose to be successful in whatever you do, but don't be crippled by the blinders of perfectionism. The true path to success may be down a path you don't suspect.

7/31/07 Lord, give us the strength to commit to living a successful life. But remind us that you are the author of what success in our lives should be. Amen.

Waste of Time

Bitterness and resentment are time wasters. I'm not telling you to ignore the causes of your being bitter and resentful. But the sooner you acknowledge the cause and deal with it (them) then you'll waste less time sulking and commiserating.

7/27/07 Lord, grant us the wisdom and patience to deal with everything that bothers us. Lead us to the path of freedom and forgiveness. Give us the knowledge we need to replenish our souls. Amen.

More to the story

There is usually more to every story. There is what meets the eye. There is your version and the version of everyone else in the story. And then there is the part that no one is telling you about. For that reason, you should not assume that you would live someone else's life differently. The best you can do for someone in crisis is to pray for them and stand by them. You can always ask if there is something they would like you to do for them. Or you can always ask them if there is anything they want to talk about. But don't rush them or judge them. Just love them. I will try my hardest to never judge you or your decisions. I will try to never push you in a direction that you don't care to travel. I will always listen to you. Pray with you. Support your decisions. And will do my best to never judge your choices. Because prayerfully you will make those choices based on the version of the story that you believe to be true.

7/15/07 Lord, grand us wisdom so that we make the right choices for ourselves. Help us to not push our thoughts and opinions on to others. Amen.

"please release me"

Let me go. Even after you practice forgiveness, it is sometimes hard to "forget" the transgression that you have forgiven. Forgiveness is a great place to start, but then you must work on releasing the transgression from your memory bank. True, you must learn from the past, but other than that, there is no real good reason to hang on to the baggage. It just weighs you down and may even hold you back from experiencing even greater things. So after you confront, pray and react, you need to release.

7/14/07 Lord, thank you for the many blessings in our lives. Even things that first appear to be curses are truly blessings if looked at from the right perspective. After we learn from our circumstances, help us loosen the grip that they hold on us. We ask this in your name, Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

"I've Got You Babe"

There's an old song by Sonny and Cher called "I've Got You Babe". It's about commitment, being able to depend on each other, trust, accountability. "I've got you and you've got me". That's the relationship that you have with God. "He's got you babe". He's got you no matter what. No matter what you say, think or do. You can depend on Him. Even when you can't trust yourself, you can trust God. And the only one that you are truly accountable to is God. The only one you can truly trust is God. The only one you can ultimately depend on is God. I will always do my best to be there for you, but I am only human and sometimes will fall short. And you too are only human and will occasionally fall short and disappoint yourself, But don't worry, God's got you.

7/13/07 Lord, even when we make poor choices you are there for us. Thank you for never giving up on us. Help us to never give up on ourselves. Amen.

Confrontation

The word confrontation is much like the word surrender. They both conjure up negative images, at least in my mind. With surrender, I automatically think of it as the total opposite of persistence. and i do believe that you must be persistent to succeed. To me, confrontation means argument and disagreement. But according to Webster, to confront is to face or to oppose boldly. so what i am suggesting to you is to always confront your demons. Acknowledge your flaws and look at your weaknesses. You cannot change anything until you first admit that there is something to change. So when your puzzle piece doesn't fit where you want it to go, acknowledge that it doesn't go where you are trying to put it. Look at it closely. Upon close scrutiny you will see the right way to put the piece in your puzzle. When other kids say mean things (they will, they're kids) confront their cruel words. Not necessarily with anger or words. But acknowledge what was said and decide to accept what they say and do something about it or totally disregard their words because after confronting them, you know that they are not true. Confront, Pray, Respond. CPR. Sometimes you will need to speak up and ask "What did you mean by that?" or tell them that they are wrong. Don't worry, if you pray about the situation (or any situation for that matter) God will show you how to respond. In Psalm 73, the psalmist asks God to guide him and afterward receive him to glory. You should do the same. If you follow God's guidance you shall have a favorable outcome.

7/12/07 Lord, guide us to confront our demons and respond to them according to your will. Amen.

Express Yourself

7/11/07 Lord, release our feelings of anger and resentment. Show us how to use this energy to glorify You. Replace them with love and hope. Amen.

Feelings are funny things. They are actually what make us human. We are not in control of what we feel. Our power comes from what we do because of these feelings. As young as you are, you feel them and respond to them. You feel love and respond by giving hugs and kisses and smiling. You feel anger and respond by screaming and crying. But you've already learned that you can respond in a much healthier way by expressing yourself through your art. By making long hard strokes or violently "dotting" the paper. When you feel happy you express yourself by twirling and dancing in addition to the smiles and laughter. When you are sad you pout and cry. I guess what I'm trying to tell you is that it is NEVER bad to acknowledge your feelings. As a matter of fact, it is probably the healthiest thing you can do. Pray and ask God what you should do about how you are feeling. Then be still. He will answer you. Sometimes the answer will be to ignore them. Other times it will be suitable for you to confront them. And if you can't sort it out, I will always be there to help you.

Giving

7/10/07 Lord, show us how to give of ourselves unselfishly. Teach us to separate our actions from our greed. Bring to us opportunities to glorify you through our words and actions. We pray to you Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Giving is more than tithing. Besides giving money, God expects you to give of yourself as well. That is why he gives each of us different talents. He does not expect us to use our talents for only our own benefit, but to glorify Him. That's the trick. How does He call you to do that? Some of us can sing and dance. Some of us can't. Some of us can cook and entertain. Some of us can't. Some of us can organize and manage. Some of us can't. Pray that God not only reveals your talents to you, but also shows you how to use them to glorify Him.

Living in the present

7/09/07 Lord, show us your plans for us. Open our ears and eyes so that we may live today as you have planned. Every minute and second that you have created is precious. Help us to not waste your blessing of time. Amen.

The past is relevant because that is one way we learn and grow. But God does not intend for us to remain stuck in the past. He wants us to make every moment count. and He doesn't intend for us to live in the future either. It is very tempting to place your happiness in the future. I will be happy when I'm a certain age, or make a certain amount of money or look a certain way. But in reality, you may never become that age or make that amount of money. You may never again face the opportunities that you are given today. The Lord does not expect you to live haphazardly either. Prayerfully take each step. But do what you can do today because you cannot change anything that has already occurred. Learn from it and do what you can today to either remedy it or build upon it. And don't wait for tomorrow to do what you can do today.

Approval

7/8/07 Lord, reveal to us the blessings that result from our devotion to you. Reward us with your approval. Remind us that your ways are different from the ways of the flesh and humankind. Amen.

From a very early point in your life you begin seeking approval from those around you. You want to be liked. First you want your parents' approval. Well, at least when you're not testing the waters of independence. But even then, you only want to push as far as you can and still be loved and feel safe. And after you feel that you have those relationships under control you seek approval from the rest of your family. Siblings, aunts and uncles, cousins and grandparents. But by the time you're able to read this, you will have figured out that it doesn't take a lot to get the approval of grandparents, well at least not this one. And as you get older, it will be important to be accepted by your peers. This is good as it will inspire you to try new things. But it will be bad as well. Sometimes you will be tempted to try things that you know aren't good for you. You will even try to convince yourself that your parents and family don't know what's best for you. That is the devil speaking to you. Remember that ultimately it is only God's approval that you need. Pray regularly. Know that God loves you. And remember that while it's nice to feel appreciated by friends and family, ultimately it is only yourself and God that you have to please.

PRAYER

Prayer has become increasingly meaningful in my life. I'm thankful that your parents take you to church and have taught you to pray. I pray via the internet everyday with your parents and my best friends. And I have decided to include you in our daily prayers as well, via this blog. I thank God daily for the blessing of you in my life.


7/6/07 Lord, help us untangle the complexities of our lives. Help us appreciate the simple pleasures and blessings that you shower us with. Let us wait upon you and bask in the glories of the happiness that you bring into our lives. Amen.

the blasted Fs

Feel. Forgive. Forget. You must first admit to yourself and God that you have feelings of anger, hate or ill will. Feeling is difficult enough without throwing in forgiveness. I hope you be will be raised to acknowledge all of your feelings whether or not they are "nice" feelings. I was raised to believe that it was bad to feel anger or hate. I don't think in the longrun that was conducive to a healthy lifestyle for me. It muted my senses. Caused me to make some wrong decisions. The feelings themselves are not evil, it is how you react to your feelings that count. It is a blessing to be able to forgive. If you ask for God's help, it is doable. I think forgetting is the toughest of the thre Fs. Thoughts have a way of creeping into your mind. And if you allow them to sit there they have a way of stirring up emotions that are not healthy if allowed to stagnate. I will always be there to help you sort out your feelings and guide you with God's help to put them in perspective. There will never be anything that you cannot discuss with me. With God's help we will be able to act appropriately and ask for the ability to forgive and the tenacity to forget.

here cumz da judge

It is extremely easy to pass judgment on yourself and others once you know what the outcome is. Some people refer to this as Monday morning quarterbacking. There's a common quatation that "hindsight is 20/20". Both mean that you would make a different decision if you knew what the outcome would be before you made a choice. And to further complicate matters, you don't know all the details of other people's lives. They may very well have made the best decision possible considering their circumstances. So it is wise to not cast judgment. Not on others, nor yourself. Instead, be truly compassionate and forgiving. Be there to console, not judge. Learn from your mistakes as well as from other people's errors. But judge not.

surrender

Surrender. I used to think of it as a flaw. A weakness. Giving up. Throwing in the towel. Well, it IS giving up. Surrender is giving it up to God. Admitting that you are not the one in control. Surrendering your will to God's may be on of the most difficult things you ever do. First, you must know God and believe He wants the best for you. Then you have to trust that he will show you how. and thirdly, you'll have to accept God's will over your own preferences. And finally you surrender, knowing that you are doing the right thing.

"Lord, when I surrendered myself to You, You showed me a way to not only survive, but to thrive."

When you find yourself in difficult situations, surrender and pray to God. Hopefully He will direct you to me as your guidance. Your confidant. And I will surrender myself when I ask Him to use me to show you the way.

respect begins at home

I've always felt that I respect other people's rights. And I always try to treat people respectfully. Somehow I think I come up short when it comes to respecting myself. It is not selfish to treat yourself good. As a matter of fact, God expects you to treat yourself good. God resides within you. You are a temple of God. If you don't do it for yourself, than you should surely respect yourself for God's sake. You should not over extend yourself. You should work at God's pace. He knows what He expects you to accomplish. Of course, you must remember to ask Him for guidance. And he gives you your whole being, including your body. You need to take care of God's property; physically, mentally and spiritually. He expects you to learn as much as you can and to use your wisdom wisely. Today I shall begin respecting myself as much as (if not more) than I do others. I hope to set a good example for you.

loyalty

Prov 18:24 Some friends bring ruin on us, but a true friend is more loyal than a brother.

You will meet many people during your lifetime. Only a few will be loyal to you. Never let those few go. I will always be loyal to you. Always. How will you know loyalty when you see it? For one thing, loyalty is forever developing and proving itself. Words alone are not proof of loyalty. Some people lie about being loyal. But for the most part people just don't understand what a commitment loyalty is. Will this friend stand by you even when you don't chose the most popular path? Defend you when others say unkind things? Will they believe your word over others? Of course you need to prove that you deserve their loyalty. Let your word always be true. Your actions always be kind. And your friendship pure. God will bless you with true and loyal friends if you seek them, nurture them and cherish them.

isolation

There is a fine line between being alone and being isolated. Being alone is not a bad thing. Sometimes it's good just to be alone so that you can hear God. Sometimes He speaks through the birds. And the smell of fresh honeysuckle. Sometimes it's the clear blue cloudless sky. Some of these things you do not get the full impact of when you are in a crowd. But if you don't interact with others, you are missing one of God's greatest blessings, companionship. He doesn't want you to be alone always. He wants you to learn from others as well as set an example for others. To glorify Him with others. If anyone ever tries to keep you to themselves and not share you and your blessings with others, turn and run. God wants you to use everything He's blessed you with. Some of it can be accomplished alone, but most of it will be accomplished in unison with others.

faith

Life isn't easy. And it doesn't get any easier as you get older. If anything it gets more complicated and confusing. I hope that you learn earlier in life than I did that all things are possible through faith. But not faith in yourself or others. Only faith in God will direct you along the right paths in your life. God has BIG plans for you. But right now, He is the only one who knows what they are. I pray everyday that God keeps you safe and enlightens you about His plans. I pray that your parents never force their dreams on you and allow you to develop your own. I have faith that they will guide you as God directs them. I have faith that God put me in your life so that I may be an integral part of your life and dreams and accomplishments. I have faith that God put you in my life so that you will be an integral part of my life and dreams and accomplishments. I have faith that we will make beautiful music together. Today. Tomorrow. Forever.

weep what you sow

While God is in control of the big picture, you make the daily decisions. Sometimes you just don't hear God. Other times you think you know better than God. Sometimes you just misunderstand. But one thing for sure, you weep what you sow when you make the wrong decisions. So consult God in all that you do. Listen real hard. Ask for clarification. God wants what is best for you. He loves you more than I do. And if you do make some bad choices (you will, you're human), go back to God. He understands and will help you through the consequences. And don't blame God. He didn't guide you into bad situations. You made those decisions yourself. You weep what you sow.

worthiness

Throughout my life I've been taught that I am not worthy. In some cases I think the lesson was supposed to be humility, but came across as that I'm not worthy of good things. But thru my faith I'm learning that is just not so. Jesus loves me just as I am. Who am I to not love myself as well? John 10:10 says "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly". God wants me to experience good things. In my life I have believed some wrong things and have allowed people into my life that did not promote good things for me. So this is what I want you to know at the tender age of two. Jesus loves you. And GG loves you. And all that you need to do to recceive this love is to be yourself. There are no conditions. You are valuable and worthy of love. Take care of yourself. And if anyone ever implies that you are not, don't believe them. Distance yourself from them. If they don't want only the best things for you, then THEY are the ones not worthy of YOU. I love you now and ALWAYS!!!

my inspiration

My inspiration turned two yesterday. You have had a very unusual start to your life. I'm glad you won't remember most of it. It has been chaotic at best. Devastating at worst. But when the going gets rough I think of the inspiration that God has put in my life. I will not give in. I will not crumble. I will not let evil creep into my life. I will be be strong so that you know that you can do anything if you put your mind to it. That no matter how many obstacles are put in your way, God will help you maneuver through them. He will light the path for you to follow.

I will smile. You make me smile.

I will reach out. Your hugs are healing.

I will be content. You are all I need.

I will strive to be my very best. I never want to disappoint you.

I love you. I hope to inspire you to be your very best as well.