http://university.joycemeyer.org/week3/#day5
if you feel yourself down
if you need to be encouraged
if you need a really good Friend
seek God
He will never reject you
-No, in all these things we are more than conquerors throughout him who loved us.-
Romans 8:37
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by Joyce Meyer
One thing I’ve learned over the years is that the more intimate we are with Him, the more powerful our lives will be. That’s because we begin to resemble and act like those we spend time with. So, if we “hang out” with Christ, we will eventually become more like Christ. The trouble is many of us don’t spend a whole lot of time with Him.
It’s seems like so many people are afraid to make time to get to know Him, to study His character. Or we’re scared to seek wisdom and guidance from Him because of what we think He might tell us. It looks as if we’re terrified of simply being with Him. And so that kind of power—the kind that makes the devil nervous when we wake up in the morning—often doesn’t develop very much in our lives.
God’s Word tells us that the truth will make us free. And in the book of Psalms, it says thatDavid sought one thing of the Lord and basically, that was time with Him.
So, to develop intimacy that cultivates power with God, we have to face the truth that God reveals to us about ourselves. We must get a hold on our thoughts—thoughts about ourselves, our past or future, even thoughts about God. God loves us very much, but He is not willing to leave us in our mess. He is always ready and waiting to change us from the inside out.
It takes time for that to happen because we first need to be able to see the truth about ourselves, and many times, that is the hardest part of growing because we don’t like what we see. We may pray for God to change our circumstances, but we need to be able to face the fact that He wants to change us—regardless of the circumstances. So many times the Holy Spirit will reveal things that we just don’t want to see about ourselves. But remember, the truth will set us free! So don’t be afraid to change; be more afraid of staying the same!
But God is not mad at us. If you’re a parent just think of this: Can you love any of your children more than you do right now? Do you still want to see changes in their behavior? Well, it’s the same way with our heavenly Father. He loves us—period. He loves us now as much as He ever will. That will not change. But He still wants to see us grow and mature and experience the best He has planned for us.
God really does love us, and He always has our best interest in mind. The more we trust Him, the more we’ll want to spend time with Him. The more time we spend with Him, the more we change and the more His power develops in our lives. And the more powerful our lives are, the more nervous the devil will be when we open our eyes and get out of bed in the morning!
So, schedule a few private meetings with God. Talk to Him about your problems. Face the truth He reveals to you about yourself. Trust that He is always working for you to live an abundant, fruitful, powerful life!
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This article is taken from Joyce’s four-CD series, Let God Fight Your Battles.
by Joyce Meyer
You are God’s masterpiece. (Ephesians 2:10)
The dictionary defines a “masterpiece” as “a person’s greatest work of art,” or a “consummate example of skill or excellence.” Now, when God’s Word describes you as His masterpiece, what comes into your mind? Do you accept His assessment, or do you think, Well, He must be talking about someone else…if He really knew me, He wouldn’t think that!
Your personal identity—how you see yourself—is often shaped by your early experiences in life. Maybe your parents said things to you as a child that made you doubt your worth. Maybe you were rejected or abused. If so, I can relate to what you have been through, because I experienced every kind of rejection and abuse as I was growing up. I was sexually, verbally, emotionally and physically abused by my father from the time I can remember until I finally left home at the age of 18. I then carried those emotional wounds into my first marriage to a man who also treated me badly and eventually left me.
Even when I met and married Dave Meyer—a wonderful, loving man—I didn’t know how to give or receive love. I was controlling, manipulative, angry, critical, negative, overbearing and judgmental. All I had grown up with, I had become. My problems were deep inside me, caused by years of abuse, a wrong mindset and my wounded emotions.
Now, I was born-again during those years. I loved Jesus. I believed my sins were forgiven and that I would go to heaven when I died. But I had no victory, no peace, no joy in my life. I felt condemned all the time. The only time I didn’t hate myself was when I was working toward some personal goal I thought would provide me a sense of self-worth. I was worn-out, burned-out, frustrated, and miserable.
I had made the frustrating, tragic mistake of trying to find the kingdom of God, which is righteousness, peace and joy (see Romans 14:17), in things and other people. I didn’t realize the kingdom of God iswithin us, as the apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 1:27. My joy—and my identity—had to be found in Christ alone.
The Word says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV). But I had not yet taken hold of the “new creation reality.” I was living out of my own mind, will and emotions, which were all damaged. Jesus had paid the price for my total deliverance, but I had no idea how to receive His gracious gift.
One day as I was reading the Bible, I noticed this statement in 2 Corinthians 5:7: “For we walk by faith [we regulate our lives and conduct ourselves by our conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, with trust and holy fervor; thus we walk] not by sight or appearance” (AMP). The Holy Spirit stopped me and asked, “What do you believe, Joyce, about your relationship with God? Do you believe He loves you?” As I honestly began to search my heart and to study His Word on the subject, I concluded He did love me—but conditionally.
But the Bible teaches that God loves us perfectly or unconditionally. His perfect love is not based on our perfection or anything except Himself (see 1 John 4:8). He always loves us, but often we don’t receive His love because of guilt about our wrong behavior. We are supposed to be conscious and aware of God’s love and put faith in it. But I was unconscious and unaware of God’s love; therefore, I was not putting faith in His love for me. What a breakthrough! That was the beginning of my emotional healing. It has been a process, but today I can honestly say I am healed and content. I know in my heart that God loves me—and I also love myself.
Saturate your mind with the truth of God’s Word. It’s filled with reminders of His unconditional love for you. He says you are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). He says that nothing can separate you from His love (Romans 8:35). Don’t let the enemy steal your identity. You are God’s masterpiece.Believe it!
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God bless all of you
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
ROMANS 10:9
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The word is life, healing and health to all who find them
The word is life, healing and health to all who find them. (see Proverbs 4:20-22)
If you have an one hour of your time give it to God. We can do a lot of things while an one hour – work, do shopping, talk, argue, play with a child, hold the hand of our dying parent or grandparent, to bring a baby to this world, study, make love… we also can give an one hour to our Lord, give Him thank for everything He does for us and listen to His words which can fill our hearts, souls and strenghten us.
