Many people fail at marriage because...

The Foundation of Love

By Joyce Meyer - Posted March 03, 2017

See what [an incredible] quality of love the Father has given (shown, bestowed on) us, that we should [be permitted to] be named and called and counted the children of God! And so we are! The reason that the world does not know (recognize, acknowledge) us is that it does not know (recognize, acknowledge) Him.
—1 John 3:1

Many people fail at marriage because they don't love themselves, and therefore they have nothing to give in the relationship. They spend most of their time trying to get from their spouses what only God can give them, which is a sense of their own worth and value.

In my case, although I didn't even know what love was, I married a boy of nineteen simply because I was afraid no one would ever want me. He had problems of his own and did not really know how to love me—so the pattern of pain in my life continued. I was repeatedly hurt in that relationship, which ended in divorce after five years.

Receiving the free gift of God's unconditional love is the beginning of our healing, and the foundation for our new life in Christ. We cannot love ourselves unless we realize how much God loves us, and if we don't love ourselves, we cannot love other people. We cannot maintain good, healthy relationships without this foundation of love in our lives.   

Lord, I am amazed that You love me and desire me to be Your child. I receive Your love today and choose to love myself. Amen.

  

Dream Beyond 

By Joel Osteen – Posted March 3, 2017

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE:

"I lift up my eyes to the mountains…"
Psalm 121:1, NIV

TODAY'S WORD:

So many people today are stuck in a rut. Not because they aren’t talented; not because they don’t have God’s favor, but because their vision is limited. They can’t see beyond their circumstances. They don’t see themselves accomplishing their dreams, being promoted or living healthier. They just see more of the same because it’s what they are focused on. What you see in your mind is what you’re going to move toward. 

The truth is, we all have vision. Every one of us has a picture in our mind of our self, our family and our future. The question is, what does your picture look like? Do you see yourself rising higher, overcoming obstacles, living an abundant life? Do you dare to dream beyond your circumstances? 

Today, why don’t you change your focus? Lift your eyes beyond your circumstances. Get a higher dream, a greater vision for your life. See yourself the way God sees you and move forward in the abundant life He has prepared for you!

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Father, today I choose to lift my eyes off of my circumstances and look to You. Show me Your ways that I may walk with You on the path to victory all the days of my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.

WHAT IS ON YOUR HEART?

 By Joseph Prince - Posted March 3, 2017

Hebrews 8:10

“…I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts…”

Many of us have been taught that we cannot trust our hearts. We quote verses like “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked…” (Jeremiah 17:9), not knowing that Jeremiah was referring to the man who had not received Jesus as his Lord and Savior.

I have had people come to me and say, “Pastor Prince, I don’t know what I should do with my life.”

“What is on your heart?” I asked one of them.

“I would love to work among children.”

“Then work among children!”

“But I am waiting on the Lord to tell me to do that.”

“Well, He has given you the desire, so go and work among children!”

“But the desire comes from my heart. How do I know if it is of God?”

My friend, once you are saved, you have a brand new heart (Ezekiel 36:26), and you can trust the promptings of your heart because God dwells in you and He leads you from within. And don’t worry because His promptings will never contradict His Word. It will lead you to good success.

Often, you find that when you follow your inner promptings, it is actually God who has put those desires in your mind and written them on your heart. I remember years ago when I approached one of our church leaders and told him, “I really think that you are called to be a full-time pastor.” It turned out to be a confirmation of what he already knew on the inside. You see, God was already leading him from within. Today, he is one of our full-time pastors.

If you enjoy something and desire to do it, then go for it! Go with the flow. God Himself says that He will guide us from within. Let’s not doubt Him. And don’t worry about the outcome. Your part is just to follow the flow. God’s part is to work in you both the willingness and the performance of it! (Philippians 2:13)

Beloved, because God has given you a new heart, He will write His desires on it. And as you fulfill these desires, you will bring forth fruit, and not wither and die. Whatever you do will prosper!

Thought For The Day

You can trust the promptings of your heart because God dwells in you, and He leads you from within.

Kindness Incarnate

By DR. David Jeremiah – Posted March 3, 2017

But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared.
Titus 3:4

Recommended Reading: Titus 2:11-13

The Greek word for kindness in Titus 3:4, chrestotes, has its origin in the smaller word, chre—“to lend.” It’s not hard to see how the idea of kindness evolved from the act of lending. When someone is in need we step forward and lend what aid we can. We might lend a neighbor our car or give them our daughter’s outgrown baby clothes for their new arrival. Both, whether temporary or permanent, are acts of kindness.

Need, giving, and kindness are linked together intimately by two verses: John 3:16 and Titus 3:4. The first verse we know well: God saw our need and gave us His Son as the remedy. But in the second verse, God’s Son is actually referred to as “the kindness . . . of God.” Jesus appearing on earth was not only evidence of kindness, He was kindness itself; He was kindness incarnate. Instead of judging the earth, God sent kindness Himself to earth to save us. In a day when it appears there is little kindness on earth, it is good to remember that God’s love was demonstrated by kindness. Not the kindness of His Son, but the kindness which is His Son.

Think of ways you can be kindness to someone in need today. You can appear in their life as kindness incarnate.

Kindness is a grace that all can understand.
J. C. Ryle

 Read-Thru-the-Bible: Deuteronomy 30 - 32