Declaring Victory of Your Mind

More than a positive attitude, more than the "name it and claim it" mindset ushered in during the decade or so of prosperity preaching, is the idea that God wants us to actually believe in Him.

God wants you and I to believe in him and be convinced that He is who He says He is and can do what He says He can do. Again, God doesn't just want an intellectual nod but a sincere, core belief that He is able.

Yes, God does want us to think positive and believe for a brighter future but I have learned that you can't get there with out being truly convinced that Jesus loves you and in obedience to the Father came down from heaven to live an earthly life and ultimately die a horrific death for our sins while being blameless and having no sin.

When I think of what Jesus did for me and how much God the Father loved us that He gave us His only begotten son so that we would not spend our lives languishing in sin, doomed to an eternity in hell but Jesus came in the world to give us life and freedom from sin.

So what am I saying? I am saying that we must not only think positive or have a good attitude but believe and be convinced that God is on our side and is able to do anything but fail. We don't always understand His ways but He asks us to trust Him and believe.

Your mind is the battleground. Chose now what you will believe. Different thoughts may come into your mind but what do you believe and/or who do you believe? We must begin to believe we can. We must begin to believe that through the grace and mercy of God we are able. We must believe that God will make all grace abound towards us and give us the ultimate victory. One day, we will meet him in the air and hear those precious words "Well done, thou good and faithful servant". In one moment, everything we lost and everything we gained will be dissolved into a eternity of being with the Lord.

So let us begin to move beyond thinking to believe that our God is able; He is a deliverer, He is our provider and he will come through. We must now believe this and not just think it.

I Remember

I recently gave a talk about the future but spoke primarily of the past. I asked the audience to remember what God has done for them and others. Remember how the God of heaven, our Creator made a way for us and others throughout history. I asked them to remember how God has been merciful and demonstrated grace when we least warranted it (as if we can ever deserve grace) and how his mercy saw us through our darkest of hours.

I could quote common bible scriptures that speak to the goodness of the Lord but I am equally learning that it is something that we must imprint upon our hearts, minds, and souls. I must come to know that the Lord God, Jehovah, Yahweh, Elohim can provide for my needs and yours as well.

I don't know what tomorrow brings as I am not a prophet. However, I know that God is able. He has promised to always be there for me even when I don't feel or have the audacity to believe he's not there or doesn't care. I hope, have faith, and trust that my God will deliver me into a bright future.

Pain is a purifier and we must all be tried by it. Fiery trials are what remove the dross or impurities from silver and gold. No one takes pleasure in being tried but we can have confidence is knowing that God will deliver us and give us an expected end.

So I encourage you (and me) as you're going through your trial, time of testing, pressure cooker, or stressful situation to find one thing to be thankful for and say Hallelujah, Lord I love you! Thank you Jesus for giving your life so that I could have one. Thank you Holy Spirit for being my guide and comforter as I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Thank you God for making it possible for me to spend an eternity with Him where there will be no more dying, or crying, or trials, or evil things. God will make us new in Him and we will put off mortality for immortality and be forever with Him.

Again, as much as I or you could complain or could feel down trodden or depressed, let us lift up our hands and eyes and look to Jesus for our help. He will make a way some how.