Tag Archive for: thoughts

Focus or Force

John 6:13 There were only five barley loaves to start with, but twelve baskets were filled with the pieces of bread the people did not eat!  John 6:14 When the people saw this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!”

John 6:15 Jesus saw that they were ready to take him by force and make him king, so he went higher into the hills alone.

Jesus, once again, had performed a miracle. He recognized and met a deep need. No one had to ask or tell him about it. The truth was he was always looking for opportunities to meet needs because he was selfless. When the people saw what he was capable of they attempted to force him into “selfless” service. There are a few problems with people's mindset and approach. Let's address the issues with their mindset first. Selflessness is born from within rather than imposed by outside forces. They misunderstand the very nature of what they propose.

John 6:14 When the people saw this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!”

The people learn through miraculous demonstration that Jesus is capable and gifted in ways they did not realize previous to their experience. However, Jesus is not just discovering his abilities or gifts. His knowledge of his gifts compelled him to identify and meet their need. They assume that Jesus has not recognized his purpose and needs their direction to maximize his potential. That could not be further from the truth. His momentary act of service was not intended to be translated into a lifetime of activity. His purpose was greater than the action they observed. In fact, they had only witnessed a minor display of his power. As a result, Jesus pulls away from them and goes where he can breathe and reaffirm his purpose.

John 6:15 Jesus saw that they were ready to take him by force and make him king, so he went higher into the hills alone

The second issue is with the people's approach. They decide they are going to force Jesus to be what they want him to be. They are not interested in his thoughts about his purpose. Their actions are fundamentally driven by a desire to exploit Jesus' gifts under the guise of promoting selflessness. Jesus already demonstrated he was selfless. He met a need without being asked or requesting acknowledgment. His selflessness was not debatable. He is without a doubt the epitomy of selflessness. Manipulators always test to see if they can diminish a target's self-confidence and thereby gain control over them. The people assume he is unaware of his purpose and claim the right to direct his path. They unanimously take the position of authorities in his life and as such are not open to discussion. People with the right intentions are readily open to dialogue. The crowd Jesus faced intended to make Jesus do what they desired. There was no room for inquiry into Jesus' perceptions.

You may have experienced this subtle manipulation. People go even further and launch assaults on your character because you will not be puppeteered. Jesus did not allow himself to be manipulated and neither should you. Hold on to the clarity granted by your knowledge of your purpose. God designed you to fulfill his plan no one else's. Follow Jesus' example. Move to higher ground where people respect you and allow you to breathe. Sometimes, like Jesus, that might mean being alone for a time. Avoid manipulators. Attempts to derail you or tear you down are based on your good character and immeasurable worth. Don't let anyone keep you from your purpose or tarnish your self-perception.

The Heart is a Deceiver

My thoughts for today…
For much of my life, I’ve heard the expression “Follow your heart.” I’m guessing many of you have heard that same thing through the years. We have used that as a touchstone, a guiding light in the confusion of our lives. “What is your heart telling you?”, we ask when our friends are facing what may be a life-changing decision. “Listen to your heart – it always knows best.”
Famous people are often quoted on their insight into what the heart means to us, aside from its lifegiving job of getting blood around our body, that is.
Benjamin Franklin: “The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.”
William Shakespeare: “Go to your bosom; knock there, and ask your heart what it doth know…”
Edward George Earle Bulwer-Lytton: “A good heart is better than all the heads in the world.”
Blaise Pascal: “The heart has reasons that reason cannot know.”
So, that’s what we do. When we are faced with decisions, we ask our heart. And, we listen to whatever we think it is telling us.
But, have we been led astray? The Bible tells us, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Isaiah 17:9)
So, which is it? Are we to follow our heart or not?
Perhaps that is why we are told in Ezekiel that the Father says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26), because He, our Creator, knows the malignancy that can exist in our hearts.
The answer is clear. The Bible also tells us “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21), so it becomes imperative that, instead of trusting some internal organ, we trust in God and in His Word. Instead of looking inside for answers, we go to Him and seek His will.
In these times, and with the challenges we are soon to be facing (if we’re not already), it is crucial that we “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)
So, instead of following your heart today, I would ask each of you instead to “…guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” (Proverbs 4:23)

Susan Mouw

Conversation With God

“What is on your mind child?”

“Oh, I don’t know, I feel a lot of unresolved conflicts inside that produce stressful thinking and I can’t make them subside. I don’t want these destructive feelings destroying me or my day.”

“Well, you are on the right track by recognizing the problem, and wise to consider the choices you have to resolve it.”

“Yeah, I know. But it’s still a battle to redirect your adrenaline rushes onto something way more worthwhile, something that is life-giving instead of life-consuming. It’s like the bad news always invades my peace and stifles my ability to stabilize it back to normal. I feel I need to change this pattern.”

“What have done so far today to reverse these stressful thoughts?”

“In my mind, I want to sit down and immerse myself in your Word to start off my day, but in reality, I fall prone to distractions, as if my worrying will change the outcome. How foolish of me to obsess like this. It’s a glaring weakness I have. I even go so far and believe it’s in my nature to be taken captive, that I’ll always be predisposed towards anxiety, and that I will have to work harder to eradicate it than most people.”

“Are you sure about that? Last time I checked, the entire human race is still under siege, taken hostage by strongholds that can only be torn down by my Word, which, by the way, is the same for everyone – it has the same mighty working power for every set of circumstances, not just yours.”

“I know your words are truth Lord, and I vow right now to stop making excuses, and to exercise the authority you have given your followers to cast down these vein imaginations and make them obedient to your word. I am deciding right now, that after this conversation, I will put on my full armor and stand up tall, empowered in your truths, and confident I will succeed because you are on my side.”

“That’s my girl. See, we just needed a little refresher talk. I haven’t changed. I am the same Lord who walks with you through every trial you face. What makes the difference is when we walk together.”

“God, I will never not need you. Every waking moment I live and breathe is a reminder of my desperate need for you. I can’t move into the next second without your presence. Thank you for your steadfast unwavering love for me. I want you to be glorified in my life today. Thanks for standing by me as I pondered my dilemma on how to proceed from here.”

“Carry these words with you today and reflect on them often – He will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast on thee. That’s a promise. Hide it in your heart, and rejoice that you are free when you are close to me. It’s a part of my redemption plan for you child. I love you unconditionally. I will be interceding for you today.”

Transparency to the Extent of Vulnerability

This thought of becoming transparent has been coming to mind for a couple of days. It may sound hardcore but it’s very simple! If I had to rephrase it, it simply says: we need to become childlike, not childish!!

A child is open, innocent, trusts blindly, humble in nature, teachable, explorative, creative, inquisitive, joyful, playful, and not afraid to let out its true feelings & needs !! You get the real deal with a child, hence you see people melt when they are around a baby or a toddler.

Yeshua said: “Let the children come to Me and don’t stop them! For the kingdom of heaven is like these little children” his disciples were trying to shush the children!! That is such a graceful move of Yeshua, to have children play around and would not be disturbed by their chitchat!!

Most of the time, we as adults want kids to be in a separate room if we are having a meeting !! On the contrary, have we tried having them alongside and not be disturbed or irritated!! It’s a kind of challenge or a discipline we need to practice!! To not get ticked by immaturity or innocence!! That’s a journey I’m on .. and I feel it’s a long way to grow!! Try it!! Mothers have great patience!! Hats off to them!!

If only we could become like children, willing to trust our Heavenly Father completely to the extent that we would not be afraid to be silly, that would be another level of maturity! I say that because it’s a test to have blind faith in His plans towards us rather than trying to control everything around us. What do you think?

Thoughts are welcome

Love

Jeevz💕

I Know My Plans for You: My Heavenly Calendar

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11  

Just like a good father who plans activities for his family on certain days to go out together, bond, and have fun, God is like that. He is YOUR GOOD FATHER in Christ Jesus. He has good things on his agenda for you already planned, blessings in store, waiting to be unlocked in the context of a relationship with him.

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:10  

Knowing all this, and that God is Lord over my time, I started the practice of downloading God’s agenda for me. Little did I know that I’ve set myself up for ongoing amazements, surprises, and of discovering more and more the reality of the Lord and that He is Emmanuel, who indeed is God with me.

I printed the monthly calendars on an A4 size then I got home, excited to fill in the blanks with the God substance! I took the monthly calendar paper that just started, lifted a prayer asking God to rule and reign over it, and fill each day and hour with his goodness.

I asked the Lord to give me a title and verse for that month and so He did. Then I continued in prayer and looked at the blank days of that month before my eyes, and asked the Lord to highlight the days marked on his agenda for me. Slowly I began scanning each section and I marked the days I felt Holy Spirit was hovering on. After finishing my spiritual scanning, I stopped on each highlighted day and asked the Lord to give me a title for that day. He was faithful to download his headlines to me for each coming highlighted day that month.

That created a great expectation in me to see the fulfillment and the download of His goodness into His marked days. The days that weren’t highlighted didn’t mean they didn’t belong to the Lord. It is just that there are some specific days where the FATHER has planned something special for me.

“How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!” Psalms 139:17-18

If I write all my testimonies, the surprises, and the fulfillment of God’s agenda for me each month, I don’t think I will be able to keep this devotion short. But one of the remarkable things that happened to me that I can tell you about and I can't forget is this incident:

I live an hour away from my family, and it is rare for my mother to visit me and if she does, it must be on a weekend. On a Monday, Mom called me.  She said she was passing by. I was surprised, and I told her, “Sure, it is always joyful to see you.” That Monday afternoon, Mama came, cleaned my little house, filled my fridge with all kinds of foods that last for a month, brought some accessories and decorated my rooms, and gave me money. I felt FULL on so many levels. I was so filled with gratitude to God and to her.

After she left back to our small hometown where she lives, the night fell and I spent some time with the Lord before going to bed, as I usually do. I forgot that day to check my calendar to see if that Monday was highlighted by the Lord. I grabbed the calendar, looked at the day, and to my shock I’d written at the beginning of that month this little title for that Monday: “MAMA’s BLESSINGS”. OMG! … I went crazy!

Happy downloading of God’s agenda for yourself!

Tony Francis

Download My Heavenly Calendar

In the Present Moment with Jesus

By Nancy Johnson

Before I was saved, I went through 14 years of sickness and hopelessness that ended in critical care at the hospital. It all changed when I gave my heart to Jesus. He came bounding in and made me a brand new creation. Jesus told me: “Nancy, you are brand new, you have no reason to even consider the old identity or your past anymore. I can turn this thing around! I am a present God. Right now, my heart beats in your heart and my breath flows into your lungs. You are now living, moving, and having your being in Me.” (Acts 17:28)

A brand new life seemed impossible to me. But God! Every day He took me on an incredible journey. This meant He was with me in every moment. “Trust me,” He kept saying, “I can do this! Even though you are afraid to let me have your life, I can do it!” And I can tell you the past would torture me horribly, and so would the future. The only safe place for me was to lose myself in worship and to think the thoughts of God. And His thoughts were way out of my box. But I continually traded in my ashes for His beauty moment by moment.

Even though all of us live in a battleground, I believe we can live in the fullness of His life and more life. I believe through our hunger and desire for Him, we can constantly engage our powerful Savior. In our praises, we are saturated with Him. In our prayer, we are saturated with Him. It’s walking in awareness and focus. It’s a place where we are no longer conformed to this world but are transformed by the renewal of our minds. (Romans 12:1-2)

I believe God is telling us, as His sons and daughters, that we can trust Him to answer our prayers and to make our paths straight. The carnal mind constantly tries to create death (Romans 8:5-11). But we can renounce that and simply choose life. We can drop down out of our heads, and start to live out of the eternal love in our hearts. Love is powerful and timeless. When you engage with the heart of Jesus, you are in the NOW! It’s a choice to live a life with Love. In that sweet place where your heart is abiding in His, you forget all about your self.

My beautiful family, it’s only Him that we need after all. Right now and present.

By Nancy Johnson

Author of Ask for Your Miracle

engagingjesus.com

Keep The Weeds Out!!!

By Susanne Drawe
Cultivating a Heart After God Day 1
Gardening is a beautiful thing. I love how God made creation to be cultivated, His Life is never ending and it reminds me that I have that continual abundance of His Life in me! It is a beautiful reminder of His Love and Provision for us! But He also reminds us that Life still needs to be cultivated, grown and maintained. God created seed to be reproduced so we in the world can receive God’s best for us. As I work in our garden, He gently reminds me of Proverbs 4:23: Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. He reminds me of how vulnerable my heart is, and how precious it is to Him. As I am physically maintaining my garden on the outside, I am constantly searching for weeds in my own heart. Making sure there are no weeds of unforgiveness, out bursts of anger, bitterness, bad attitudes, bad thoughts that I have allowed to take or try to take root in my heart to keep me away from The Giver of Life. And as I go along my garden my Precious Lord reminds me of His Love, Grace, Mercy, His Blood, and His Word that can wash me clean. As I pick out the weeds of my heart, I am filled with gratefulness that He has His Word to take root in my heart. Ephesians 3:17: That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love. My heart overflows with joy knowing that when I set my thoughts on Him, His Word and Love for me that the washing of His Word is filling those weed holes of pain, sadness, unforgiveness, out bursts of anger, bitterness, thoughts of the enemy which produces wrong words and actions. He gently reminds me of Colossians 3:3: For you died (to this world), and your (new Life, who I am in Christ) life is hidden with Christ in God. Galatians 2:20 AMP: I have been crucified with Christ (that is, in Him I have shared His crucifixion); it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body I live by faith (by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting) in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me. I do not ignore or nullify The (Gracious Gift of the) Grace of God ( His amazing, unmerited favor), for if righteousness comes through (observing) the Law, then Christ died needlessly. (His suffering and death would have had no purpose whatsoever)!!!! He has made everything available for us to keep up with repentance and to continually have a beautiful relationship with The Father, Who gave His own Son for us. Glory to God ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

Eye Salve To SEE

When you want to see something in the natural, you turn your eyes to it, look at it and you see it. You understand what you saw when your brain processes it. Seeing is an understanding! Now in the spiritual, you see something not necessarily by looking at it but by turning your spirit toward it, by thinking about it, and by giving it your awareness.

Faith is the processor of what you look at in the spirit as the brain is the processor for your earthly eyes.

“By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen did not come from anything visible. Hebrews 11:3”

So in the spirit, you see something by turning your thoughts and awareness to it by faith but it’s the Holy Spirit who breathes life and SHOWS things to come. For example, right now you can do this activation, do you want to see into your future? By faith, turn your thoughts and awareness to this direction and look, wait to get understanding and revelation from Holy Spirit.

You can look by faith at anything, just anything!

What area do you need to look at in the spirit? YOU CAN SEE. And at the end, the greatest thing to look at is Jesus, the glory of God himself. You can see him, you can know him and you can interact with him. You can see your children in the spirit, it’s not spying, don’t be afraid because God will only show you what is allowed for you to see and know. Happy Seeing!

I will end by asking you how did prophet Elisha saw his servant Gehazi from a distance when he met Naaman the Assyrian to take stuff from him in private? Elisha told him “my heart was with you”! 2 Kings 5

Tony Francis

Blessed, Cursed then Blessed

From my book “Blessed in Christ” – How to live like a Christianaire! Purchase & download your digital copy today! Click here.

God called you blessed when he created you.

In Genesis chapter one, God made man in his image and likeness and commissioned him things to do. You are made in God's image and God is blessed, so you are blessed.

“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Genesis 1: 26-28

But before God blessed them to DO, he already blessed them to BE. Man was blessed because he was made after the image and likeness of God, Selah. It can’t get any better! The greatest blessing you can have is to be like the one who brought you into existence, God Almighty.

Before doing things with him and for him, before possessing substances, before having titles, names, and positions, your ultimate blessing resides in being made in God's image.

Now the devil was at the corner to steal the blessings of man and to distort his blessed image, and he did.

Adam lost it all including us because we were “in Adam”, same nature of him, and because of Adam mankind was cursed including the land itself. Sin, curse, and death entered the world through yielding to the temptation of doing it all without God. The devil succeeded and distanced us from God. We never wanted God!

Many including me used to ask: “why would I receive someone else’s fault, sin, and consequence?” and we become angry with Adam, after all, he is the reason of all the pain and mess in our world. Then we try hard and make it our quest to reach heaven for one thing, to slap Adam and spill all our anger on him.

My friend, the reason you and I would have received and lived in the death loop of someone else’s fault simply is because if we were to replace Adam, we would have done the same thing he did. God is merciful to you and me that he didn't chose us to be public pioneers in messing it all from the dawn of creation. Thank God your name and mine is not listed on the first pages of the bible as a lesson to remember forever! How about that? (Yeah you can praise him here).

For all men have fallen short and needed the Glory of God.

“The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the LORD said, “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth–men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air–for I am grieved that I have made them.”

Fast-forwarding to the good news. Our Lord Jesus Christ, the second and last Adam, the perfect man without a sin, wrinkle and blemish came and gave himself for our atonement and eternal sacrifice, redeemed us and cleansed us by his blood and reconciled us back to God.

THE Door was opened for us to come boldly before the throne of grace and mercy through Christ.

When God created man he said, “It is very good”. God will only put an “it is very good” stamp over what he makes. He will never say very good to our self-righteousness, failing religious attempts or to our “intelligent” strategies to build a tower to reach Heaven. It was so clear and LOUD when God said over Jesus Christ, the only Lamb of God, at the river of Jordan when John the Baptist baptized him “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased”.

The person and sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross is the only pleasing thing to God. Redeem your time and stop trying to look good for God. Just humble yourself, receive Jesus Christ in your heart and you will be stamped again “VERY GOOD”! Jesus is your righteousness. What a gift!

“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” Isaiah 64:6

All the animal sacrifices made in the Old Testament although required by God himself didn’t please him. They were only a temporary covering and shadow for what was coming, for who already came, Jesus Christ!

Our blessed Lord died for all, one sacrifice, one salvation for eternity! It is the gift of grace and righteousness offered by God to us because he loves us and wants us back because though sinners are loved by God they can't live in the abode of his holiness. Hallelujah, the high cost of pride was paid by THE humble ONE. The Justice and Mercy of God were fulfilled in Jesus on the cross.

God is just and merciful. He knows we are sinners who can't redeem themselves by themselves, so he sent his son as THE sacrifice, paid the price of sin with a severe judgment and unleashes his mercy over everyone who receives Christ and what he accomplished for us. On the cross, the justice and mercy of God hugged each other!

In Christ, you are blessed!

This is what I am going to walk you through in this book that I pray will impart revelation, faith and awareness of who you are in him and to help you position yourself to receive every good gift God has in store for you. He knows what he has planned for you, it is thoughts of peace to give you hope and a future but do you know it?

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2

I can’t list all the blessings of Christ to you that’s why you have your bible that speaks volumes! I will share some of it here to get you started so you can sail deeper with the Spirit later.

I want to whet your appetite!

Remember you are blessed first when you are Christ like and blessed with a real inheritance as well that God longs for you to know about, possess, enjoy and glorify him with it.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Ephesians 1:3

Toni Francis

From my book “Blessed in Christ” – How to live like a Christianaire! Purchase & download your digital copy today! Click here.

Long Lasting Success

Have you recently plugged your mobile in the charger and after some time it notified you with a green tick that the battery is successfully charged?
It is a happy scene because now you can use your smart phone powered up! I always make sure not to unplug my phone quickly until I am sure the battery is full. I want it to last long! Do you want your success to last long? Yes you do that’s why you are reading this secret tip! Before I tell you how your success can last long, you need to have success first! How to gain success?

God’s word reveals in Psalm 1 “He whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither, whatever they do PROSPERS.” Before applying this truth, you need to stop walking in the ways of the wicked, stop standing in the ways that sinners take and stop siting in the company of mockers. Turn away from all this, and connect yourself to success, to the word of God that never fails. God’s word never returns void unto him but always succeed for whatever it is sent to do. Jesus, the word of God, said in John 15: “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” Success doesn’t come from you but from connecting yourself to him, to his word and to REMAIN in it if you want a last longing one. Adam & Eve were successful and blessed in the Garden until the moment their relationship broke with God. If you are a backslider, I have good news for you, you can RECONNECT! What are you connecting yourself to? Don’t you know that you are connected directly to your thought life? Then make sure you connect your thought life to God’s thoughts to see success and fruitfulness!

When it comes to the word of God, learn these 3 powerful tools: Walk, Stand and Sit. Walking is like reading his word without stopping, standing is when you stop because you feel a certain word, a verse or an idea touching your heart, sitting is to meditate on it and suck all the glory and the nutrition out of it for your personal life and growth.

Glory to God
Tony Francis