Tag: #godfocus

EPISODE 87–THE SAME GOD

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The title of today’s episode is: “THE SAME GOD”

The same God that created the world and created Adam and Eve is the same God that watches over us today. He loves us so much, that he tries over and over again to redeem us from our nature. We can depend on him because he doesn’t change.

The same God who sent plagues to Egypt also protected his people in Goshen. He is the God that sent down fire to prove He was God when Elijah prayed a simple prayer on Mt. Carmel. He is a miracle worker.

When His people were being forced to bow to a golden statue, three Hebrew men stood strong. They did not bow and were thrown into a fiery furnace as punishment. God protected those three men in the middle of the fire. He is still our protector in the middle of the fire. It doesn’t matter what we face, he is there to see that we are not overtaken.

The same God that kept Daniel safe in the lion’s den when he should have been devoured instantly. He has a way of turning around the desperate situations of life. We are safe placing our hope in him. Look at all the examples in the word. There is no good thing he will withhold from them that love him.

We can be comforted that because God doesn’t change that we have stability. We have assurance that we can depend on him. He is not like a lot of people that we know, one day they are one way. Then you see them a week later and they act differently. God can be relied on to always be the same. His word doesn’t change what was sin in bible times is still sin. He doesn’t make exceptions for us today.

The same power that raise Jesus from the dead, lives within us. God is all-powerful. There is nothing he will not do for his children. Maybe one thing, he will not allow us to continue in rebellion and sin. Being our God means He will be all we need our deliverer, healer, hope, peace, strength, savior, friend, father and our safe place to run when life gets tough. We will be fine in the storm because he holds us in his hand. No amount of war, financial instability, or famine can affect us if we fully and truly trust in him.

Look at Elijah, during a famine God sent him to a brook and sent ravens to bring him bread and meat. Then when the brook dried up, God sent him to a widow to perform a miracle for her, then God used that miracle to sustain him, her and her son.

There is no wonder why governments try to ban the bible. Because if we could get down on the inside of us who God is and who He is to us there will be no stopping his people. We will walk by faith and not by sight. We will walk by who we know God is and not by how circumstances look.

He is the same God that came to earth as a babe and suffered horrendous things for us, to redeem us and change our circumstances. He does not change. But we needed a big change, we needed to learn how to walk in the spirit and not by our fleshly nature.

Gal 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

All of the works of the flesh are about changing and not being stable. Living for self and being selfish. Not caring about others, but only what brings what we want at the time, for that moment. It is about acting in impulse. Then the next moment our flesh seeks some other sin to bring about that desire. None of this brings about stability.

Remember God is stability, he never changes. How can we have stability? Allow the fruit of the Spirit to grow in our lives.

Gal 5:22-23 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

The fruit of the Spirit is the character of God. Read the list again. Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. The more God’s fruit grows in our life the more stable we become.

It doesn’t matter what the world tries to throw at us. We can draw on the examples of His word and it will give us power and encouragement to keep going. We have to believe that His word is true, and we learn stability by studying his word.

When people change, it implies that they lose some of their original identity. As a child of God, who has been born again, we do change. We turn from our sin nature and turn toward learning to be more like God. We allow His Spirit to be our guide and not our impulses.

Since God is perfect, there is not any need for Him to change. This is why he is the same as he was before time was created. We can depend on Him because he is the same yesterday, today and forever more.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 85 — TIME TO UNITE

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Welcome to God Focus This Morning

The title of today’s episode is, “Time To Unite”

It is about time that the body of Christ realized we need to be united. We need to function as one body on the earth.

I Cor. 12:12-18 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 16 And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? 18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.

It says, because I’m not the hand, I’m not important. Because I’m not the foot, I’m not important. We’re all part of one body. We are the broken body of Christ. We all have a function. We are not supposed to be like everyone else. God made us unique for a purpose. I cannot walk in your calling, and you cannot walk in mine. We all have a job to do to gather the harvest.

Take a clock for example. It is one clock, but inside of that clock is all these different little gears and springs and screws. All these different little mechanisms actually make the clock do what the clock needs to do, which is tell time. Every gear is important. Every little screw, every little spring, every little thing that moves, and everything that’s supposed to stay stationary. Every bit of it is necessary for that clock to keep the correct time. It doesn’t matter if the clock is fully functional if it is not powered. We can have all our gears in order, and everything is where it belongs, but if the power is not there it will not work. But if we can get connected to our power source, we will function the way we were created. God is our power source. We need to let the power of God work in our lives. It is the source of accomplishing everything, we need to do in this earth.

Matt 18:12-14 12 How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? 13 And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. 14 Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.

So don’t feel like that because you’re not the preacher that you’re not important, or because you’re not the song leader, you’re not important. Every single person is important in the Kingdom of God. He left the ninety-nine to go get the one, and the one he came to get was you. The one he went to get was me. I’m so thankful that he left the ninety-nine to come and find me.

We are the body and in order for us to function and be a light to this world. We have got to have the power of God working in us individually as well as collectively. People are getting bored with church. I’ve felt that way before; there’s been times I just didn’t want to go. Because you knew what was going to happen before you left the house. It had become a routine, a programmed church service.

Worship should never be routine. Every time we come into the presence of God, we should allow him to do a work in us. The encounter should be what we need at that time, strength, peace, encouragement, boldness or deeper understanding. Being with the other believers should create an atmosphere where we all are growing. Because that’s where we all come together, and that’s where the power of God is concentrated. Because each one of us is supposed to bring him with us.

We cannot wait until church time to pray and worship. That should be what we do every day. Then on days we attend service it should not be any different, except we are with other believers. Many have fallen into the trap of compartmentalizing their lives. I understand, I have been there too. We have our Monday thru Friday routine of work, dinner, chores. Then comes our Saturday, this is the day we try to put everything else into, time with family, running errands, buying groceries and doing all the chores we didn’t get finished during the week. Then Sunday comes and we are exhausted, but we go to church because that is our routine.

God should never be our routine. He should never be our afterthought. He is supposed to be the center of our lives, yet somehow, he gets shoved to the back burner. Remember the clock will not work correctly without power. Neither will our lives. We need that connection to God, we need to feel His presence and power working in our lives.

In order for us to be the best gear or spring we were meant to be, we have to trust the clock maker. He will put us where we need to be, doing exactly what we were designed for all along. But He will not use us, if we don’t have that relationship and fellowship with Him. How can he lead us and guide us if we only give him an hour on Sunday? He has given us all the time we have, we should be willing to share some of it with him.

This is something to think about the next time the enemy tries to tell you that you don’t need to go to church because you are not important anyway. We are all important and needed. Remind satan that Jesus left the ninety-nine to come and find you. That makes you special in the eyes of the master clock maker. The one who controls all of time.

Until next time,

Be Bold, Be Brave and Keep Your God Focus

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EPISODE 84– SPIRITUAL EMERGENCY ROOM

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Welcome to God Focus This Morning

The title of today’s episode is, “Spiritual Emergency Room”

Prov. 25:11 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.

Prov. 25:12 As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.

Many think we are to go about screaming, “Repent, you are going to hell if you don’t.” But that will not work unless this person believes in God, heaven and hell. Most people not raised in church will not react to that approach.

People must build a relationship with the one they are trying to help. Praying for God’s timing is also crucial. Think about someone you don’t know telling you to “Repent or you are going to hell.” More than likely you would dismiss that person. But what if your brother, sister or close friend talked to you? It would be better received. Why? Because of the relationship. You know that your brother, sister or friend has your best interest at heart.

Our society is very untrusting of strangers. Sad to say they have seen enough fake preachers that are just out for monetary gain. Some would think you are trying to get them to repent so they will add to the numbers on the Sunday school attendance or to the offering plate.

The main thing is to have God’s timing. Learning to listen to that still small voice is the first step in being a good witness. If we can learn to hear God’s voice, he will give us the right words to say to people.

I have a friend who does street ministry. She doesn’t approach it like most people would by setting up a table and giving away tracts. When she wakes up every morning she asks God, “what do you want me to do today?” She will go where He sends her. Then she waits for the person that she feels drawn to, she approaches them and starts a conversation. As far as I know, she has never started with, “Repent, you are going to hell if you don’t.” Allowing the Spirit of God to lead, He gives her what to say.

Once someone has made a decision to follow Christ, we need to remember that they are a newborn babe in Christ. They are not instant, mature Christian, they are a baby. Just as babies need the bottle and not solid food. These newborns need the basics of God’s word or the milk. Learning to trust God and understand His word will help them to become the mature Christian.

It is not our place to interfere with the process, by overwhelming them with a bunch of rules. That is what religion does, it smothers out the spark of enthusiasm with legalism. We want to encourage people to let their light burn brightly.

When a baby is born, they have to learn to walk, talk and eat solid food. This Christian faith walk takes time to learn. It takes a lot of time for us to learn to walk by faith and not by sight.

We are all on a journey, down the same road. It is up to each of us to not leave stumbling blocks behind us, but road signs of encouragement. When life gets hard, Jesus is the one to turn to for encouragement and peace.

They need to understand the power of their words. Our words have the power to hurt or heal, build up or tear down. An encouraging word at just the right time can be just what someone needs to keep going. There is not one of us that is immune to being discouraged sometimes. We need to go out and do all we can to be a beacon of hope.

The church as a whole is failing these people, especially those who are different. I have a godly friend who was saved in the living room of a mutual friend. Many years ago this woman was involved in some dark things like witchcraft and she cut herself. She dressed in black and wore lots of dark eye make-up. She went to three different churches, each a different denomination, in her community. Each one told her to go home and change her clothes and get rid of the make-up and then come back.

That would be like someone going to the emergency room and them sending them home saying, “When you get that bleeding under control come back and we will look at you. If you go home and get your fever to break, then come back because we don’t want sick people here in this emergency room.” How crazy is that? The church should be a spiritual emergency room. Ready to spring into action with prayer if someone comes in who is obviously in crisis.

Sin is not pretty. Sinners are not always going to look like we think. But that doesn’t make them any less in God’s eyes. What would have happened to my friend if she had given up on God because she had been turned away from the churches. Thank God she had a praying grandma.

God has used this same woman to help countless troubled youth. She has authored books and blogs of encouragement. There are many people that God has used her to reach. She is an amazing prayer warrior and example of how to stay humble when people do not treat you with respect.

None of us have the ability to look at someone and know what they will become. Many may be on a bad path and we know if they do not turn around, it will lead to their destruction. But none of us knows what God can do with them if they will surrender to him. It is not our job to judge, but to show them Jesus and he will do the rest.

Which brings me full circle to our scripture verses above, a word fitly spoken is beautiful. The bible tells us to open our mouth and God will fill it. Only he can give us the right words to say to someone. It is all about the right words at the right time. If we pray for God encounters, he will create divine appointments for us to be able to let our light shine. He will give us the perfect thing to say that will uplift someone and not crush them.

Prov 16:24 Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.

Until next time,

Be Bold, Be Brave and Keep Your God Focus

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EPISODE 83–PROVISION

CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO VERSION: https://rumble.com/v4r86kb-god-focus-this-morning-episode-83-provision.html

WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: “PROVISION”

There are many examples in the word of God of how He is the provider of our needs. One example, that has been on my mind is the story of Abraham. God told him to take his son Isaac to the top of the mountain and sacrifice him. Abraham didn’t waiver in his faith. When he went, he took two servants with him, along with Isaac.

Genesis 22:5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

He told his servants that he and Isaac would return. This was Abraham calling things as not as though they were, he wanted to be able to return with Isaac. It took Abraham a long time to get Isaac. He didn’t waiver in his faith when God asked him to sacrifice his son. Isaac asked his father where the lamb was for the burnt offering.

Gen 22:8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

Abraham had faith that God would take care of the situation. But Abraham put his son Isaac on an altar and was going to do what God asked of him. But the angel of the Lord, stopped him. Then told him God had provided a ram.

Gen 22:13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

God provided a sacrifice. Notice the ram was caught by his horns. If he had been caught in the thicket any other way, he would have had blemishes and could not have been a sacrifice. When God provides, he doesn’t do a halfway job. He knows exactly what we need down to every detail.

Gen 22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.

Jehovahjireh is what Abraham named that place. We know Jehovah Jireh means the Lord will provide. We can always depend on God to provide for all of our needs.

There are many examples in the word of how God provided when there didn’t seem to be a way. When things get to the point where there is nothing we can do, the circumstances are set for a miracle. God lets us exhaust our options, then says, stand still and watch me move.

As children of God, we must have the same faith as Abraham. It doesn’t matter what we face, we need to know God is there to take care of us. He is Jehovah Jireh, our provider.

Phil 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

This verse is often used in the prosperity gospel. Although it can mean money, it doesn’t have to mean money. If we need healing, He is our healer. We all need to be saved from sin. He will be our savior if we let him. Whatever we have a need of he will take care of us.

I Kgs 17:1- And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. 2 And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, 3 Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. 4 And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.

I Kings 17 is the story of Elijah, God provided for his basic needs by warning him to go and hide by a brook. There was a drought an famine coming. God sent ravens to bring him bread and flesh. When the brook dried up God sent him to a widow woman.

Some of us today would have complained. Well, God said he would take care of me and sent me here, now he let the water dry up. But Elijah was obedient and went where God said and through a miracle, he was safe from famine. But God used him to sustain a widow woman and her son.

Sometimes, God calls us to leave our comfort zone, in order to help someone else. The woman was getting ready to fix her last morsel of bread for her and her son. But God had a plan, and through her obedience to the prophet, God caused her meal and oil to stay full until the drought was over.

She met Jehovah Jireh through the prophet Elijah. God worked two miracles for this woman through the prophet. One was that the meal and oil to sustain the three of them never ran out. The other was that God raised her son from the dead through Elijah’s prayers.

What do you need today? Do you believe that God can and will provide? If you learn to see him as Jehovah Jireh, he will provide your every need. Nothing is too big or small for God to care about. He provides out of his love for us.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 82 — FINDING FOCUS

CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/FaJ_ToJn0yk

Welcome to God Focus This Morning

The title of today’s episode, “Finding Focus”

I end every devotional with, Be Bold, Be Brave and Keep your God Focus. I have often explained that I feel it is my calling to encourage the believers in Christ to stay focused. As someone who has lost focus along the road of life, I can tell you that is when life truly gets dark.

I went through a time of severe depression. There was nothing anyone could say or do to make it better. I was stuck in a frame of mind without focus on God. Depression happens when we become obsessed with our inner workings, our emotions and failures. I was a very goal-oriented person with a plan. I woke up one day, at age twenty-eight, I felt like life was over because I was no where I planned to be at that stage of life.

Many factors played into my getting in the state of depression, but now I realize it was because I had lost my God Focus. We feel helpless often in life. I still have times that I feel like a situation leaves me little room for hope or optimism. However, now when I look at the things in life that would have sent me into a tailspin, I know where to go. I take my fears, worries, pain, disappointments, and uncertainties to Jesus. He is the only one that can pull us out of darkness.

We cannot ever allow our situations to become our entire focus. I understand when dealing with the issues of life that our minds will want to dwell on things. Especially, if you are hardwired to try to fix these issues. It is in these times that we need to put forth extra effort to get our focus right.

The word focus is defined as a focal point, center, an anchor or center of attention. If we make God our focal point or center we will be on the right path in life. Jesus is referred as the chief cornerstone. The cornerstone is the focal point or center of a building’s foundation. He is often referred to as our anchor.

I want to share some verses with you to encourage you to focus on God.

Prov 16:3 Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.

If we commit (whicn means to pledge or bind) our works to God he will establish our thoughts. Establish means to start something that will last a long time, to set something in a particular way.) If we can commit what we do and allow God to help us keep our thoughts focused we will be stable.

Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

It is easy to allow our mind to get stuck in a loop of worry or anxiety. We can transform our minds by our focus. Every time something comes to our thoughts, we can push it aside and make a conscience decision to focus our attention somewhere else; preferably on God. Praise and worship go a long way to changing our focus. In doing so we renew or come back to a place in God that we can find strength and courage. He gives us the strength to be bold and brave.

Romans 12:21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

Our enemy would like nothing better than for us to lose our focus on God. He does everything he can to distract our attention and get our focus on something else. If satan can, he will, draw us into the darkness of evil. But Paul is telling the Roman church not to allow evil to overtake them but to go out and overcome or overtake evil with good. This falls in line with the message of the gospel to show love to everyone even our enemies.

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

Have you ever said something and then wondered where it came from, it seems it came out of the blue. The word says out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. Whatever is in our heart will come out. This verse is telling us to not let any deceitful, shameful, evil come out of our mouth. God hates lies and complaining. Because these things gets our focus off of God and His truth. In other words there is not a focus on God when we allow these things to come out of our heart and mouth. Lack of focus will allow the enemy room to start growing these thing in us.

Prov 4:23-24 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. 24 Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.

Keeping our heart focused on God and the things He desires will help us to keep our words encouraging and not negative or disobedient. God encourages us to speak words that build up, encourage, strengthen others that is may help them to keep their focus set on God.

Prov 4:25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Eyes that look straight ahead and are not drawn to the right or the left we could say are laser focused. Keeping our eyes on this path that is set before us could also be considered focused. The things on the sides are mere distractions to take our minds off of God.

Prov 4:26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. There is that word established again, which means to set up something long term. If we ponder the path of our feet, we can get our God Focus, then our ways will be set up for the long term or the rest of our lives on this earth. As long as we can keep our focus on God.

The devil is a thief and a liar. He will try anything to get us to fall into a trap that causes us to lose our direction. Once we lose our focus, sometimes it is hard to get back on track. But nothing is impossible for our God. He is there, wanting to pick us up and set our feet on solid ground. He desires for us to be established in Him and His will for our lives. He loves us so much that he wants only the best for us. That best is a blessed life He has chosen for us.

Do not think if you are a child of God, you will not have hard times. There will be pain, heartache, disappointments, grief, illness and all the things that are a part of life. The difference in us dealing with these things and someone who doesn’t know God is, we have someone to run to when times are tough. He wants us to be bold and brave.

Prov 28:1 The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.

When I tell you to be bold and be brave, it is not just a slogan. Many great adventures await us in this life. We have to be bold and brave in order to be in a place that we can be used by God. Our Focus on Him is what it takes to bring focus to our own lives.

I encourage you today to dig into his word, find verses that encourage your heart. Write them on index cards and tape them to the bathroom mirror, the refrigerator door and places that you will see them often. Allow them to get into your heart. Then check your focus; are you laser-focused on what God has in store for you. Not allowing the things of life to distract you. If your heart is set and your focus is on God. You are ready to run this race with the patience it is going to take to reach the finish line.

Thanks for watching,

Until next time,

Be Bold, Be Brave And Keep Your God Focus

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EPISODE 80–ENDURANCE

CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/8OWe0R4-CVI

WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: “ENDURANCE”

We are in the battle of a lifetime. The church has not had to face such persecution and opposition for many, many years. We are in this to keep pressing forward and showing the world our faith. Jesus is on our side; we cannot lose.

Things may appear scary and if we look with our natural eyes, things do not look good. But we have to endure whatever is coming our way and stand strong in our faith.

Matthew 24:13 KJV: But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

We have to endure what is coming. As Children of God, we have to stand strong on our faith. We need to fight back with prayer. We can only win if we come together and pray for our nation, pray for the body of Christ.

James 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.

We find that James is encouraging endurance and patience. He is explaining how the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth. This is all about the harvest. It is saying, Jesus is waiting patiently for the precious fruit which is the souls that will come in during harvest time. Until he receive the early and latter rain.

The early rain was His Spirit that was poured out on the early church. The latter rain is when His Spirit is poured out on the earth for the final harvest of souls.

James 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

James is encouraging the believers to establish their hearts. In other words, we need to make sure that our heart is set on the things of God. We are to be determined and have a made-up mind that nothing will keep us from God. We have to have our minds set on the things of God.

The best way to establish our hearts is through prayer and studying the Word. Prayer for an understanding of God’s word.

James 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door. This means we are not to judge or complain against other believers. We need to get our hearts right if we have grudges against anyone we risk being judged by God.

James 5:10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. 11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.

We need to look to the prophets as our example of how to stand strong during affliction. Job is one of the best examples of enduring. He was patient and trusted God even in the midst of horrible loss and sickness. He kept his faith and trust when everyone told him to “curse God and die.” But he kept his faith and he was very blessed for endurance. Just like we will receive God’s blessings if we can stand strong and endure our fiery trials.

Think about a runner. They train long hours to build up lung capacity to run marathons. They have to be determined to finish the race strong. They build up their endurance by training.

We build up our endurance to run our spiritual race by training. Training our minds to guard our mouths. Train our minds to fight against negativity planted by the enemy. We are learning to walk by faith and not by sight.

Every time we pray, we add to our endurance. Ask God to help his people stand strong. Every time we dig deep into the word of God, we learn something to give us endurance to stand against the enemy.

2 Tim. 2:3-4 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

We are just passing through this life. It is not our destination; it is just somewhere the road goes through. We cannot allow the things of this life to distract us from doing the will of God.

Enduring means that we will come through the fiery trials of life without compromising or allowing our faith to waiver. It all comes down to knowing God’s will for our lives. Then not allowing anything to keep us from carrying out that will.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 79–GOD WILL DELIVER

CLICK HERE FOR THE VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/Jk2R3AO2pAE

WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: “GOD WILL DELIVER”

Psalm 91:11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

I mentioned this verse a few days ago in Episode 72 about Angels. God loves us so much that He created Angels to watch over us and protect us. Let that sink in and think about it the next time the enemy tries to tell you that you are not loved by God.

Psalm 91:13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. God gives us authority to overcome attacks of the enemy. The word says that satan is like a lion roaming to see who he can devour. We have power over the enemy. An adder is a type of poisonous snake, but God will render the poison of the enemy neutralized. The lion, adder and dragon are all representatives of satan’s attack. But God has given us power over the powers of the enemy and we can walk right over top of the enemy.

I want to take a moment to look at the word trample. Dictionary.com defines trample – step heavily and noisily; stamp. to tread heavily, roughly, or crushingly.

We will not tip toe past the enemy quietly in fear of getting attacked. But we will step heavily, roughly crushingly to destroy the attacks of the enemy.

Psalm 91:14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. God says because we set our love upon Him, He will deliver us. Oxford Dictionary defines set – as put or bring into a specified state. We need to show Him our love for Him. If we lavish him with our love, he will deliver us from the enemy.

He will place us on high, because we love Him enough to learn of Him. Because we know His name, the name of Jesus.

Psalm 91:15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. When we have been in the secret place and really know God, we can call upon Him and He will answer. He will deliver us from trouble.

Things in our country needs a God intervention. The only way that will happen is if His people, will get in the secret place and pray for God to forgive our nation for turning their back on Him. Ask for Him to deliver us out of the hand of the enemy.

Psalm 91:16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

This is the best way to sum up and end this chapter. God will give us a long life and give us peace. He will satisfy or meet our needs, desires and expectations. He will be there to show us his deliverance.

Over the past four days we have learned the key is alone time with God in the secret place. If we can build our relationship with Him in the secret place, there is nothing that can touch us. Because He hides us under his wings. He will protect us from attacks of the enemy. He will send angels to watch over us.

Until Next Time,

Be Bold, Be Brave and Keep Your God Focus

EPISODE 78 — THE REWARD OF THE WICKED

CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/On9uUvl31VM

WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: “THE REWARD OF THE WICKED”

This is day three of looking deeper into Psalm 91. It is full of encouragement and warning. Like most of the Psalms, it shows what will happen if you are righteous and what will happen if you choose a life of wickedness.

Psalm 91:6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

The word pestilence means disease, plague, pandemic. When this says the pestilence walketh in darkness, it doesn’t mean a disease that only attacks in the night. But it means it brings a spirit of darkness and no one knows where it will strike next, like evil in the night. It is meant to bring fear to everyone.

Destruction at noonday could be a reference to the heat of battle. Things wither under the heat of the sun at noonday. Things could die from the heat if they do not have water. In the heat of our battles, at noonday of our battles, we need God’s living water to sustain us when things are at their hottest. It is in the heat of the battle that one can become the most fatigued. But we will not be destroyed because God is with us.

Psalm 91:7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

During a pandemic, many could die but it will not come near the people who have been in the secret place with God. We cannot fear the attacks of the enemy. God will take care of his people who pray. Not just a five-minute prayer, but really get down to business and seek his face. Ask him for direction and peace in the middle of the battle.

Psalm 91:8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

Many places the word tells us what happens to the wicked if they do not repent. We were all wicked at some point, but we were smart enough to surrender to God’s plan for our life and repent.

Psalms 91:8 means that the things that come upon the wicked we will see, but it will not happen to us. Look at the Egyptians, they had all sorts of things happen to them, God sent the plagues to warn them, but they didn’t listen. They eventually ended up destroyed in the Red Sea. That was their reward for all they had done to God’s people.

The Children of Israel saw what happened to the wicked, but were all safe on dry land before the first drop of water rolled in on the wicked. He will always make a way of escape for his people. The reward of the wicked is destruction, if they will not listen to God and repent.

Psalm 91:9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; 10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

In the first video about Psalm 91:2, we learned that refuge meant safety, sheltered from pursuit, danger or trouble.

The word habitation means a place to live, home or dwelling. Psalms 91:9-10 means because we have made the Lord, who is our safety and shelter from the enemy, our dwelling place or home, the enemy will not win. No evil will overtake us and no plague will come near our dwelling or our home. Because we are under the protection of his wings.

When there is a lot of sickness like flu season or other viruses we need to look to God and remind him of Psalms 91. Pray for his protection. He will deliver His people, those who dwell with Him in the secret place.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 77 –AVOIDING SATAN’S SNARES

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: “AVOIDING SATAN’S SNARE”

Today, I am picking up where we left off on the video titled Secret Place. There is no better place to be than the secret place of God. He is our Father and he will take care of us.

Psalm 91:3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

A snare is a trap set to catch small animals. It consists of bait and a rope or cord that makes a noose. When an animal wanders in to eat the bait, the trap is sprung and they end up tied up. Sometimes, it will deploy a net that covers them so they cannot move.

Satan will try to lay snares for us. He knows what he is doing when he sets the traps. But the word says he will deliver us from the snare of the fowler. In other words, God will help us to resist the bait in the first place. If we do fall into temptation, he will help us to escape the snare of the enemy.

He will also deliver us from the noisome pestilence. But what exactly does that mean?

Oxford Dictionary defines noisome as being disagreeable, unpleasant or scandalous.

Oxford Dictionary defines pestilence- a plague such as bubonic plague, disease, infection, sickness, pandemic, contagion.

According to the dictionary, it means he will deliver us from an unpleasant sickness, disease, or pandemic. This is something we need to pray everyday. “Lord your word says you will deliver me from sickness, disease or pandemic.”

How did Jesus overcome Satan in the wilderness. He quoted scripture back at him. God like for us to pray the word back to him also. “Lord I am standing on your word, it says….”

Psalm 91:4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

When it says he will cover us with his feathers, I think of a mama bird hiding her babies under her wings to protect them from danger and storms. God will also hover over us and protect us from danger and storms of life. We can trust him to care for us and keep us safe, because He is our heavenly father.

His truth, which is the Bible, will be our shield and buckler. Both the shield and buckler are used for defense. Both are a form of stopping the attack of the enemy. Shields were normally large and soldiers would stand behind them to prevent being struck with an arrow.

A buckler is a smaller shield worn on the non-dominant arm of the soldier to protect them in hand to hand combat.

God’s truth is our defense against the attacks of the enemy. Again, we need to use the word to speak to the enemy. If he is attacking your health, quote scriptures about healing to him. Whatever battle we are facing, God has our defense within the pages of the bible.

This is why it is so important to know what is in the word. It is our link to God, our shield, our sword or weapon of attack when we need to go after the enemy. It is God’s love letter to us, and so much more.

Psalm 91:5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

This verse is all about attacks on our mind. Many people have problems in the night with fear. Fear will attack in the night when all is quiet. They will have all sorts of symptoms, but it boils down to the enemy trying to prevent peaceful rest. The what if’s we don’t know are greater than the things we know and have control over. All the unknowns can bring with them lots of levels of anxiety and fear. If the enemy can paralyze us with fear, we can not be effective witnesses. We have no reason to fear. God is with us.

Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. The word says we will be in perfect peace if we keep our mind on God.

Psalm 91:5 goes on to say, not for the arrow that flieth by day. These are attacks on our mind during the day. It is more of the same. The enemy will see if he can cause us to fall into fear, anxiety or worry. Those are arrows of his warfare coming against our mind.

The above verse said his word was our defense. We can use the word when a thought comes into our minds. We can dismiss it and pray against it. We can quote the word and stand strong against the enemy. His arrows of fear, anxiety, depression, worry and uncertainty can be quickly overcome if we learn to recognize it for what it is, an attack from the enemy.

So far in five verses of this chapter we have learned that we can dwell in a secret place with God. He will be our shield of protection from attacks of the enemy against our minds and bodies. He will deliver us from the traps of the enemy. But we have to dwell in the secret place, in order to be able to recognize the attacks and traps the enemy has set for us.

Take time to seek God, find your secret place in Him. So you can boldly stand against the attack of the enemy.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 76–SECRET PLACE

CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/umo7YLuBwxM

WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode is: “Secret Place”

I have been reading Psalms 91 over my home for a few weeks now. As I have been praying this chapter, I have come to know God in a deeper way. There have been things I wanted to know more about and began to research and study. I want to share what I have learned over the past few weeks. It is going to take a few devotionals to cover the whole chapter.

Psalm 91:1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

The secret place of the most High. Where is the secret place? A lot of Christians have a place that they like to go pray. It is a place they feel they can connect easier to God. But that is not what this verse means by the secret place.

The secret place is not a physical location as much as it is being in the presence of God. Quiet time with God getting to know Him intimately. He will reveal things to us as we grow our relationship with Him. It is all about getting to a certain level of His presence.

Take the way the temple was built, you had a courtyard, an outer court and an inner court. People would enter a gate into the courtyard. But this was only a general vicinity of where the king was on his throne. Some would be able to enter the outer court. This was closer to the king; one would know he was in court. One would have to petition to see the king. Only by invitation would you get to go into the inner court and speak with the king.

We as children of God acknowledge Him when we give thanks. We can talk about Him to our friends and family. This is being in the gate, into the courtyard. We know He exists, we acknowledge He is good.

The times we go to church and fellowship with other believers, could be considered the outer court. We are in the presence of the king. We can see Him and hear him.

If the service is an anointed one, then one may enter the inner court into the kings presence. Every layer is a step closer to really knowing the king. But only close friends and family enter the residence of the king. The place He dwells.

In order to be in the secret place with the king. We have to build a relationship. We need to petition Him to be able to know Him, intimately. Everyone and everything are gone from this place. This is that place deep inside of our spirit that we can really hear the voice of God. It is a place that only God remains to talk to us and with us. We can get to the place that we can be in his presence, in the secret place, quickly. Many would say if we are prayed up, which is a church phrase to say that you talk with God a lot. If we are prayed up we can enter his presence quickly in times of trouble. He will know our voice and hear our cries for help. The spirit flows quickly if we have the relationship. If we have been in the secret place.

The enemy will do all he can to keep us distracted and in the court yard or the outer court. These are places that ease the conscience that we know God. But it is more just knowledge of his existence.

At one point, during the times of Moses until Christ came, only the priest could enter into the actual presence of God. The holy of holies. Jesus broke down that barrier. Now we do not need any man to intercede on our behalf. We can come boldly to God and ask for forgiveness or whatever we need.

It is up to us, how much we want to invest, in the most important relationship of our lives. Do we want to be barely in the presence of the king? Do we want to be able to enter where He is and be alone with Him to share our worries, fears, uncertainty and make our requests known. In the times that he speaks to us and reveals things to us, we can say we are in the secret place of God Almighty. We will be under the shadow of God.

Psalm 91:2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Once we have been in the secret place with God, we have confidence to say He is my refuge and my fortress. Oxford dictionary defines refuge as a condition of being safe or sheltered from pursuit, danger or trouble.

Oxford dictionary defines a fortress, as a military stronghold, a person or thing not susceptible to outside influence or disturbance.

We can be safe and sheltered from the pursuit of the devil. Since God is our fortress, we will not be susceptible to outside influence. We will not be swayed by the temptation of the enemy if we dwell in the secret place in God’s presence.

If you don’t know God in that deep meaningful way. It is not too late to enter into the secret place and really, really, get to know Him in a deeper more meaningful way.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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