trusting God – Eyes Ever Upward

Today’s Encouragement 5/6/22

May 6, 2022 by Prudence Leave a Comment

I will lift up my eyes to the hills— From whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore (Psalm 121:1-8 NKJV).

Papa is a very present help in our time of need. He is always there and can always be counted on. He will never let us down. Where people may disappoint, He will not. There is nothing we face that He is not aware of and provisioning for; He never leaves nor forsake.

Whatever situation or circumstance we find ourselves in, we simply can turn to our Heavenly Father to help us through. When life wants us to drag our eyes down to what is in front of us, Papa is gently calling us to look to Him.

Stay focused on Papa no matter what and He will see you through. Look up!

Today’s Encouragement 5/4/22

May 4, 2022 by Prudence Leave a Comment

“But to the house of the Rechabites Jeremiah said, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father and kept all his precepts and done all that he commanded you, therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab the son of Rechab shall never lack a man to stand before me”” (Jeremiah 35:18-19 ESV).

The background on this was the God sent the prophet Jeremiah to the Rechabites and had him offer them wine with their conversation. The Rechabites refused to drink the wine because their father Jonadab had charged them to drink no wine, build no houses, nor grow crops or vineyards. This pleased God and he gave Jeremiah a word for Judah and Jerusalem that basically said He would bring disaster upon them because He had repeatedly told them to obey His commands and they did not listen. But for the Rechabites obedience to the command of their father, He told them they will always have a man who serves Him.

Obedience is key to living in abundance and peace. In the natural we have laws and rules we must follow in every area of our lives, and as we can see the Rechabites followed the instructions given by their earthly father. Yet, these bring spiritual reward! God has said obedience is better than sacrifice. Being mindful and doing what God has told us brings us the blessings He promises in His word.

Be obedient and be blessed!

Today’s Encouragement 5/3/22

May 3, 2022 by Prudence Leave a Comment

So that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith… But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith… And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise (Galatians 3:14, 25-26, 29 ESV).

As Believers in Jesus, we have been grafted into the family of God (see Romans 11), which means we have rights to the blessing of Abraham. We are heirs with Christ through faith to the promise. Abraham believed all that God promised him, even those things he could not see in that moment. He did not falter or waiver in his faith that God would fulfill those promises. His faith and complete trust that God would do what He said he would do prospered him and gave him favor with other nations surrounding him. God did not revoke His promises even when Abraham acted in his flesh and conceived Ishmael, or passed Sarah off as his sister. The promises made to Abraham were fulfilled.

As heirs to that promise in Christ, we can lay hold of it because it is also ours. Unless we behave and act in doubt that God will fulfill those promises in our life, God will not hold our mistakes and bad decisions against us. Even though we may not see how He will bring them to pass, we can stand assured that they will become evident in our lives. Look back and see all the faithfulness of God in your life, no matter how seeming small or large it was and know that just as He was faithful then, He will be faithful now and always.

You can wholeheartedly stand on what He has promised in His word. He will always fulfill it.

Today’s Encouragement 4/29/22

April 29, 2022 by Prudence Leave a Comment

For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory (2 Corinthians 1:20).

Scripture is filled with promises and Papa is a promise keeper. As His children, we inherit those promises, giving us rights to claim them.

Healing Promises:

But He was wounded for your transgressions, He was bruised for your iniquities: the chastisement of your peace was upon Him; and by His stripes you are healed. Isaiah 53:5 (NKJV)
Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: 3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Psalm 103:2-3 (NKJV)
And you shall serve the LORD your God, and He shall bless your bread, and your water; and He will take sickness away from the midst of you. Exodus 23:25 (NKJV)
He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. Psalm 107:20 (NASB)
He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. Jeremiah 17:14 (NASB)
The Lord will keep you free from every disease. He will not inflict on you the horrible diseases you knew in Egypt, but he will inflict them on all who hate you. Deuteronomy 7:15 (NIV)
Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. Proverbs 3:7-8 (NIV)

Identity Promises:

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (ESV)
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household. Ephesians 2:19 (NASB)
I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. John 15:15 (NLT)
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:12-13 (ESV)
Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Psalm 100:3 (NASB)

Love Promises:

I love those who love me. Those who seek me diligently will find me. Proverbs 8:17 (NKJV)
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:35-39 (NKJV)
I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. Jeremiah 31:3b (NIV)

Protection Promises:

I will never fail you. I will never abandon you. So we can say with confidence, The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me? Hebrews 13:5b-6 (NLT)
Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. Isaiah 41:10 (NLT)
The LORD watches over you — the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm — e will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Psalm 121:5-8 (NIV)
You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. Psalm 32:7 (NIV)
Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the LORD GOD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation. Isaiah 12:2 (NASB)
For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Psalm 27:5 (NIV)
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you make the Most High your dwelling – even the LORD, who is my refuge – then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Psalm 91 (NIV)

These are simply a handful of the promises He has given us in Scripture. Satan’s goal is to keep us from standing on these promises by continually putting our current circumstances in our face. We, however, do not walk by sight, but by faith. It takes faith and belief to walk in the promises, and it takes speaking them aloud to remind ourselves of them, and to remind Satan that our faith is not circumstantial.

We have the right to claim every promise we come across in Scripture. Find them, speak them, walk them out!

Today’s Encouragement 4/28/22

April 28, 2022 by Prudence Leave a Comment

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things (Philippians 4:8 ESV).

Think about what you think about. There is much negative and fearful news on the airwaves that permeates our thoughts and affects our responses. These thoughts will often come when we aren’t expecting them and are ever so helpful to get us off our faith track and on the fear expressway. Stop letting those thoughts drive!

Thoughts such as those are sent to cause worry, anxiety, rash and fear filled reactions and decisions. They scream in your ear “pay attention to me! No one can help! You are all alone! What if this…? What if that…?” Grab hold of those thoughts and shackle them to Christ which binds and silences them.

Think new thoughts. Where can you get new thoughts? The Word of God, his creation, worship, and fellowship are good places to start. Knowing who you are in Christ and knowing your inheritance in Him will shape your thoughts and strengthen your ability to hold negative thoughts captive. “But what about…?”, you say, well what about it? Bring it to the feet of Jesus in prayer. No matter what goes on around us, bring it to Jesus and ask for His thoughts on the matter.

The world will focus on the bad news, let us dig and find the good news, the celebration-worthy news and make sure we continually share the good news!