Remain in Him

By Joel Osteen – Posted April 17, 2017

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE:

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing
John 15:5, NIV

TODAY'S WORD:

Have you ever thought about the relationship between the branch and the vine? We don’t use these kinds of word pictures very much anymore, but think about it—if the branch is not attached to the vine, it withers and dies. The very life of the branch depends on being attached to the vine. The same thing happens if we try to operate in this life without Jesus. Without Him, we can do nothing. We are cut from our life source. But when you remain in Him by daily connecting with Him through prayer, worship and study of the Word, then your life will be fruitful. You’ll walk in joy and blessing. 

I love that this verse says “much fruit,” which means you will have an abundant harvest in your life. God doesn’t want you to just barely get by. He wants to overwhelm you with His goodness. Remain in Him today. Choose to make Him top priority, and you’ll see His hand of blessing operating in every area of your life!

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Heavenly Father, thank You for being my source of life. Thank You for Your hand of blessing that is leading and guiding me. I choose to make You the number-one priority in my life. Let my heart hunger only for You today in Jesus’ name. Amen.

  

CALL IT FORTH!

By Joseph Prince – Posted April 17, 2017

Romans 4:17

…God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;

“Pastor Prince, I feel the pain in my body. How can I go around saying that Christ has redeemed me from this sickness? How can I say that by His stripes I am healed?”

Well, God’s way is to call those things that are not as though they are. And because you are made in God’s image, you can also call those things that are not as though they are!

When God wanted to make Abraham a father of many nations, what did He do? He changed the way Abraham talked. At that time, Abraham did not even have a single child from Sarah because she was barren. So how could he become a father of many nations?

God changed the way he talked. How? By changing his name from Abram to Abraham, which means “father of many nations”. (Genesis 17:5)

Just imagine: From then on, every time he met someone, he would say, “Hi, my name is Father Of Many Nations.” Every time dinner was ready, Sarah would call out to Abraham, “Darling…Father Of Many Nations…dinner is ready! Father Of Many Nations…” You can just hear their neighbors saying, “They want a child so much they have gone mad!” But God changed the way Abraham talked so that he called forth what God saw him already blessed with.

You know, when Jesus saw the man with a withered hand, He didn’t say, “My goodness! It is so withered!” He said, “Stretch out your hand!” (Matthew 12:13) He called forth what He wanted. He looked at the paralytic and said, “Rise, take up your bed and go home!” (Matthew 9:6) He didn’t see the way it was in the natural. He saw the way God meant it to be and He called it forth.

Genesis 1 tells us that in the beginning, there was darkness over the face of the whole earth. God saw the darkness and He said, “Light be!” And light was. God called forth what He wanted and it became so! If it had been me or you, we would probably have said, “Whoa! It is so dark!”

My friend, despite the pain, call forth your healing. It is pointless to state the obvious. So change the way you talk. See the way God meant it to be, and start calling forth your healing and wholeness!

Thought For The Day

God’s way is to call those things that are not as though they are.

Help Hurting People

By Joyce Meyer - Posted April 17, 2017

He who despises his neighbor sins [against God, his fellowman, and himself], but happy (blessed and fortunate) is he who is kind and merciful to the poor. 
—Proverbs 14:21 

Helping the poor and those who are less fortunate than we are is not only a nice thing to do, but according to the Bible, it is our responsibility. God cares deeply for the poor and needy and seems to have a special place in His heart for the widow and the orphan because they are alone and unable to meet all their needs. God gives us hearts of compassion, but when needs arise we can’t close our hearts—we need to open our hearts and our hands wide to help the poor. 

When we give to the poor, the Bible says that we lend to the Lord. Anything we give to help hurting people, God will always return many times over. Not only will He meet our needs, but our joy will increase as a result of giving in love. I urge you to share what you have with those who are less fortunate than you are. 

Power Thought: I am always merciful and generous to the poor.

Better Together

By DR. David Jeremiah – Posted April 17, 2017

Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one be warm alone?

Ecclesiastes 4:11

Recommended Reading: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

A study found that the stress hormone cortisol was significantly reduced when people shared their problems with others. Fifty-two college students were asked to make a speech while being taped by researchers. Those students who were allowed to discuss their fear of giving the speech with another student in the study had lower levels of cortisol before, during, and after the speech than students who didn’t share their feelings of fear.

In other words, as the saying goes, “A problem shared is a problem halved.” The researchers at the University of Southern California could have gained this insight without doing their study. Solomon went into detail about the benefits of living life in partnership with others (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). He summarized by saying, “And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” The best example of the synergy of partnerships is marriage, of course. But the principle applies in all of life’s relationships. We can do far more together than we can apart.

Be a partner in life! Couple your God-given gifts with those of others and see if it doesn’t make life sweeter.

A wall with loose bricks is not good. The bricks must be cemented together. 
Corrie ten Boom

THE REASON FOR THE RESURRECTION

By Joseph Prince – Posted April 16, 2017

Romans 4:25

Who (Jesus) was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

The Bible tells us that Christ was delivered up for our sins and raised from the dead for our justification. You may already know why Jesus died for our sins, but do you know the significance of God raising Him from the dead?

Let me give you an illustration to help you understand the significance of Jesus’ resurrection.

Let’s say that you are living in a foreign country. One day, you happen to break a major rule of the land. You appeal to the king for mercy. He says, “A rule is a rule. I cannot bend the rule for you. What will others say about my integrity? However, if you can find a substitute to take your punishment—three months in jail—I will allow it.”

By God’s grace, you find a willing substitute. He goes to prison on your behalf and you don’t see him for some time. Days, weeks and months pass by.

Now, how or when will you know that your crime has been fully paid for? When will you be able to rest easy regarding your crime? It is when you see your substitute walking free again! When you see him out of prison, you will know that the sentence has been fully served. You will know that you are now justified and no one can bring a charge against you for your old crime. No longer will you be afraid of the king or his guards coming after you because you know that the one who was punished in your place is now walking free.

Beloved, Jesus, your substitute, paid the debt you could not pay. On the cross, He bore the sins of your entire life. God put it all on Jesus and then He punished Jesus for every single one of those sins until He was fully satisfied. And because He was so pleased with what Jesus had done, He raised Him from the dead.

Today, Jesus’ tomb remains empty. He is not there for He has risen! His resurrection and empty tomb will forever be our assurance that we have been fully justified. You no longer have to be afraid of God judging you for your sins. His justice is on your side today!

Thought For The Day

Jesus’ resurrection and empty tomb will forever be our assurance that we have been fully justified!

Be Blessed

By Joyce Meyer - Posted April 16, 2017

Her children rise up and call her blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied); and her husband boasts of and praises her, [saying], Many daughters have done virtuously, nobly, and well [with the strength of character that is steadfast in goodness], but you excel them all.
—Proverbs 31:28-29

A virtuous and worthy wife [earnest and strong in character] is a crowning joy to her husband…(Proverbs 12:4). She enjoys the praise of her children and husband. They rise up to call her blessed. Her husband says that many daughters have been virtuous and noble but that she exceeds them all. In other words, he says that she is the best wife anyone could ever have. He applauds and celebrates her strength of character and goodness.

One year my birthday happened to be during one of our conferences, and my husband, Dave, stood up and read Proverbs 31 to me in front of a room filled with people. Then my children one by one rose up to say kind and edifying things to me. There is no better feeling than to spend years raising your children, and then have them tell you that they honor you, love you, and don’t believe they could have had a better mother. Or to have your husband say you are the best wife in the world. Those comments certainly were confidence boosters for me.

Lord, whether anyone ever gives me these commendations, I want to live my life in a way that brings joy and blessing to others. Build strength into my character. Amen.

Resurrection Power at Work

By Joel Osteen – Posted April 16, 2017

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE:

He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen
Matthew 28:6, NIV

TODAY'S WORD:

We have a reason to celebrate every day because we serve a God who is alive and filled with resurrection power! Not only did He resurrect Jesus from the dead, but He wants to extend His resurrection power to every area of your life, today! 

Maybe you have a dream to get out of debt, pay off your house or be free from that burden of lack, but it looks like it's impossible in the natural. Business is slow. The economy is down. You've gone as far as your education allows. But God is saying, "I'm not limited by those things. I've got resurrection power. I can give you one break that will thrust you to a new level. I can open up doors that no man can shut. I can bring talent out of you that you didn't know you had. I can cause people, for no reason, to go out of their way to want to be good to you." 

Your part is to keep believing today, knowing that He wants to bring you into supernatural increase. Remember, He is risen, He is alive, and He is faithful to His Word. Trust Him today and let His resurrection power work in your life!

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Father God, thank You for Your resurrection power at work in my life. Today, I give You my broken dreams, disappointments, failures and setbacks, trusting that You will breathe Your life into me. I trust that You have a good plan for my future, and You are leading me into total victory in Jesus' name. Amen!