thoughts

God’s Word Is Pure

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Psalm 12:6 says, “The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.”

Yesterday I listened to a message on how prayer is to be our priority 

He said, “Prayer is the breath of dependence.”

He talked about the Welch revival. A group of folks were praying. A young deacon read Psalm 24

Then asked the Lord. “Are my hands clean? Are my thoughts pure?”

Our thought life is purified when we bring God’s pure word into our hearts

David wrote Psalm 26. Verse 2 is a prayer of dependence we can use. There is only One who knows the source of our thoughts 

It says, “Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my mind and my heart.” 

Prove means to test. Try means to refine. Our trials are designed to expose the hidden dross that will weaken our faith. 1 Peter 1:7

What Is Godliness? Part Three

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What has been withheld from you because you have acted independent of the Lord? We are called to exemplify Him in every aspect of our lives. Sin always leads us into ungodliness because we are acting without the Lord.

What do you lack? Psalm 34:9-10 says, “Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; but those who seek the Lord shall  not lack any good thing.”

The Hebrew word for lack means one who is impoverishing himself. How do you sabotage your relationship with the Lord? One way is to not set Him first. David wrote Psalm 16. Verse 8 says, “I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.”

Godliness is acknowledging the Lord every moment of our lives. That means to include Him through our thoughts first, which will translate into our actions. 

What Blocks Vitality?

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This is my online devotional that was posted today on The Life Project
For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.Psalm 32:3
Let’s pick up the context of David’s psalm. It started out as the blessedness of forgiven sin. Then it went into how David’s bones were affected by his unconfessed sin. I encourage you to think about your own life. How healthy are your bones?

Here is a verse from a new song the Holy Spirit gave me called “Rejoicing Bones”

When I thought about my circumstances I became gloomy inside.
My heart was getting heavy and my peace destroyed.
Then in Your Word You revealed the secret of health.
My bones are affected when my heart is in despair.

In verse four David revealed the effects of his unconfessed sin. It says, “For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.”

Picture this as a dry creek bed. There is no running water, no vegetation along the bank, no fish swimming, and no animals coming to drink.Psalm 32:5 (Amplified) explains God’s way. It says, “I acknowledge my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord (continually unfolding the past till all is told)—then You (instantly) forgave me the guilt and iniquity of my sin. Selah (pause, and calmly think of that)!” 

When we confess our sin, the Lord is quick to forgive us and to cleanse away the guilt and the shame that was blocking our vitality.

Lord, I am so grateful that my sinful thoughts are not hidden from you. Help me to always live in the present, being fully aware that you know what is in my heart. Since my bones are affected by my thoughts, help me to stay centered on you in every circumstance of my life.

Heart Maintenance~Part One

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Ephesians 4:29 says, ‘Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.” In my book, “Victorious Heart” chapter five is entitled “Honey-Laced Words.”

The chapter title is taken from Proverbs 14:24. It says, “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.” I looked up why a honeycomb was connected to bones. Copied from the internet. The inside of bones is structured like a honeycomb. This honeycomb mesh structure gives the bones their strength.

Buried unforgiveness will rot our bones. Here is a verse from a new song called Rejoicing Bones ~ When I thought about my circumstances I became gloomy inside.  My heart was getting heavy and my peace destroyed. Then in Your Word You revealed the secret of health. My bones are affected when my heart is in despair.

God’s Mercy ~ Part One

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I was memorizing Psalm 145:9. It says, “The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works.” I started to think about mercy. Psalm 103:10 says that mercy is not getting what we deserve.

Since God is merciful, that is a character quality He desires us to emulate. Colossians 3:12 says, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering.”

The Holy Spirit brought these two words to mind ~ recalcitrant child. I had to look it up to know what it meant and how to spell it. Recalcitrant means: obstinately uncooperative attitude towards authority or discipline.

Even in our attitude we are to represent Jesus. Our thoughts come from our heart. They precede all actions, which also display our attitude through our demeanor. The Lord knows when our heart is recalcitrant, and yet He is merciful because that is His nature.