THANKING GOD AT ALL TIMES

By Joseph Prince – Posted July 08, 2017

Hebrews 13:15

Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.

Lifting up your hands and thanking God is spontaneous and easy when you have just received a wonderful blessing: “God, I can’t thank You enough for this miracle!”

“Thank You Father, for answering my prayer!”

“Father, thank You for the windfall!”

Perhaps you came close to being in a fatal accident, but God plucked you out of danger just in time. Or your grandmother, an unbeliever for many years, finally received Jesus as her Savior and got healed of a long-term disease.

But there are times when you don’t feel like lifting up your hands to thank and praise God, yet you do it. Perhaps you feel very discouraged lately. Perhaps everything is going wrong for you and you feel like your life is in a mess. You can’t hold back the tears. Yet, you make a conscious decision to lift your hands and thank God for being in the situation with you. You open your mouth and begin to praise Him even though you really don’t feel like doing it.

In the midst of the trial that you are going through, you praise Him that He is your righteousness in spite of all the mistakes you have made. You thank Him that He is your Prince of Peace, and that His peace will arise in you and still the storms in your life.

My friend, God sees and appreciates such times when, despite feeling so discouraged, you offer a freewill thanksgiving offering to Him. In fact, your thanksgiving during such times is more highly prized by Him than your thanksgiving during those times when you are feeling joyful because you have just been blessed.

And when you choose to thank Him for His unfailing love, and His faithfulness to deliver, protect and provide for you even when you don’t see the blessings yet, before long, you will find yourself experiencing and enjoying the blessings! So lift your hands and praise the Lord, for He is good, and His mercy endures forever! (Psalm 106:1)

Thought For The Day

God sees and appreciates those times when, despite feeling so discouraged, you offer a freewill thanksgiving offering to Him.

The Favor Factor

By Joel Osteen – Posted 08, 2017

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE:

"Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me…"
(Nehemiah 2:18, NLT)

TODAY'S WORD:

There’s a popular talent show on television called “The X Factor.” The judges study the different contestants and try to figure out who has that indefinable “something” that makes them stand out. You can’t necessarily put your finger on it. It’s not just talent, looks or personality. There’s something about them that gives them an advantage. I’ve heard the judges say, “I don’t know what it is, but you’ve got it.” They call it the “X Factor.” 

In the same way, when God breathed His life into you, He put something in you to give you an advantage in this life. There is something about you that makes you stand out, something that draws opportunity, something that causes you to overcome obstacles, to accomplish dreams. Scripture calls it “the gracious hand of God.” It’s God’s favor. It’s His blessing. You can’t put your finger on it. It’s not just your talent, your education, your hard work. It’s Almighty God breathing in your direction. You could call it “the favor factor.” 

Today, remember, if you have received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then you’ve got it! Receive it by faith today and let His favor shine on your every step!

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Father, thank You for Your gracious hand upon my life. Thank You for loving me. Thank You for setting me free. Thank You for giving me the advantage for success. Today I choose You, I choose Your ways, and I choose Your favor in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Lessons From a Shepherd: One Lost Sheep

By DR. David Jeremiah – Posted July 08, 2017

What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?
Matthew 18:12

It’s called “slippage” in industry: Grain falls off trucks, manufactured parts don’t measure up, machines don’t run at peak efficiency, oil leaks out of car engines, and so on. In other words, there are no perfectly efficient systems on earth. Something, somewhere, is always falling through the cracks.

Recommended Reading: John 10:27-29

But slippage never occurs in salvation. Jesus used the familiar example of a flock of one hundred sheep. When the shepherd brought his sheep into the sheepfold for protection at night, he would count them one by one. If he counted only 99, what would the shepherd do, Jesus asked. One sheep of a hundred is only a one percent loss, it could be argued. Perhaps just the cost of doing business. But not to Jesus. A good shepherd would go into the mountains and find his missing sheep and bring him safely home. Not even one sheep will ever be lost (John 10:27-29).

If you belong to Jesus Christ by faith, you are one of His sheep. You can never be lost; He will seek you and find you to bring you safely back to the fold.

Thou didst seek us when we sought Thee not; didst seek us indeed that we might seek Thee. 
Augustine