Tag: Strength

365 Days of Worship – Week 7 – Seeking

Are you seeking God’s presence continually? I hope you feel closer to God as you follow my daily worship focuses. As I meditate throughout the day on an attribute of God, I feel more in awe of our great God, my Father in heaven. Last week, I explained how to worship in reverence and awe. This week’s worship teaching is on how to seek God and why. Psalm 40:16 states, “But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation say continually, ‘Great is the LORD!’” Everyone who seeks God will have joy and hope because He is great.

As I pray for God to direct my thoughts, I realize that seeking something is a willful action to attain the thing you are seeking. In other words, you make time to attain what you seek for. If you are seeking to attain a PhD, you will take the time to study and do research. Or, if you lost something or want to find an item, you take time to search. How do you spend your time? When do you take time to seek God?

Seek God with all your heart and mind and repent of sin.

Deuteronomy 4:29 explains, “But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find him if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.” We will find God only when we take the time to search for him with all our heart and soul. Acts 17:27 tells us, “That they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.” Also, James 4: 8 tells us, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” Remember, God is perfect, and He hides His face from those who have sin in their lives (Ps. 66:18 and Is. 59:2). Therefore, we need to confess our sins daily, and God promises to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9). Ask God to search your heart and mind for any unloving way in you, then confess it and repent.

So how do we seek God? Here is what the Bible says.

  • Daniel sought God through prayer (Dan. 9:3).
  • Jehoshaphat sought God through fasting and prayer (2Chron. 20:3).
  • Isaiah says to seek God’s righteousness (Is. 51:1) Zephaniah said to seek God seek righteousness (do what is right) and humility (Zeph. 2:3).

Why should we seek the Lord?

Give Him thanks, call on His name, and tell others about Him.

Finally, Psalm 105:1-4 states, “Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! 2Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! 3Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice! 4Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!” Are you telling others about God and giving Him thanks? Do you sing to Him? I have a worship book that I pick a song from, to sing to God. Do you feel joy when you worship God? Are you seeking God’s presence continually? You can through continual prayer (Eph 6:18 and 1Thes. 5:17).

Throughout the day, worship God and rejoice in Him through the daily worship focuses this week. Rejoice in the greatness of our God!

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

WEEK 7 – February 12-18

Day 43-Feb. 12—Worship God’s paths of steadfast love and faithfulness.

All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies. –Psalm 25:10c

Day 44-Feb. 13—Worship God’s instruction and guidance.

Who is the man who fears the LORD? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose. 13His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land –Psalm 25:12-13 (Fear the Lord is to turn from evil; repent.)

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. –Psalm 32:8

Day 45-Feb. 14—Worship God’s light and salvation.

The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? –Psalm 27:1

Day 46-Feb. 15—Worship God’s beauty and being in His temple.

One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. –Psalm 27:4

Day 47-Feb. 16—Worship God’s shelter in the day of trouble.

For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock. –Psalm 27:5

Day 48-Feb. 17—Worship God, because we can trust Him.

The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. –Psalm 28:7

Day 49-Feb. 18—Worship God’s holy name and favor.

Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name. 5For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. –Psalm 30:4-5

All verses are from the English Standard Bible. To review the previous weeks, go to the 365 Days of Worship Page. This post is copyright protected.

HOW TO STAND FIRM AGAINST AN UNSEEN ENEMY

What does it mean to stand firm against an unseen enemy? Who is my unseen enemy? Ephesians 6:10-13 states, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” You cannot withstand against evil spirits in your own strength. Many of the girls in my County Jail Bible study say they are determined not to return to drugs and alcohol. But sadly, those who did not commit their lives to God and rely on Him for strength return several months later. The devil is always seeking to tempt us to depend on ourselves or an idol instead of God.

How We Have Strength To Stand Firm

Memorize Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” God strengthens those who abide in Him as a branch abides in the vine and receives strength from the vine. John 15:5 states, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” We stay connected to the Spirit of God (the vine) through praying, praising, and pondering scripture. To abide means to stand fast, remain, dwell, or remain attached to something. Abiding with God includes memorizing Scripture passages, praying about everything with thanksgiving, and loving Him and others by serving them (Gal. 5:13-14 and Deut. 11:13).

It is worth repeating; the devil’s strategy is to separate you from God, who is your strength. The devil used this strategy when he tempted both Eve and Jesus, and he hasn’t changed. Eve did not take the tempting thought captive to disobey God, and humanity is still suffering the consequences. Jesus was victorious over the devil’s lies by taking the tempting thoughts captive and using Scripture to defeat the devil. Because Jesus defeated the devil and did not sin, now we can enjoy the benefit of life through righteousness in Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:11).

The more Biblical truth you know, the stronger spiritually you will be. For example, Satan puts a deceptive thought into your mind that you are weak, and God won’t help you. What do you do? You can believe the lie and live a defeated life. Or you can command the lie to be gone from your mind in Jesus’ name and speak the truth that you can do all things through Christ, who is your strength (Philippians 4:13). I can’t possibly list all the lies the devil will put into your mind. But if you memorize the truths in God’s Word, you will recognize the lies of the enemy.

Examples of God’s Power in The Old Testament

Exodus 14:13 states, “And Moses said to the people, ‘Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.’” Fear causes you to run away to escape a threat. No matter what you are facing now or are going to face, God is bigger and can work a miracle in your life, but you must stand firm in His strength and on His truth.

Another great Old Testament example is the story of King Jehoshaphat, who was outnumbered by his enemy. He humbles himself before God and seeks His help. God tells Jehoshaphat in  2Choronicles 20:17, “You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow, go out against them, and the LORD will be with you.” I don’t know what battles you are facing or will face, but I know God is for you, not against you. I memorized Isaiah 41:10, which states, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” I spoke this truth out when I was going through a tremendous battle at a previous job. Reminding myself of God’s truth helps me stand firm against the unseen attacks of the unseen enemy.

How to Stand Firm

1Corinthians 16:13 states, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”  1Corinthians 1:24b also tells us to stand firm in our faith. We grow stronger in our faith when we read God’s Word (Rom. 10:17). You can’t stand firm against the unseen battles of temptations and deceptions without the knowledge of the truth. The belt of truth and the rest of the armor of God help you stand firm in your faith. Ephesians 6:13 states, “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” But you have to put it on every day through prayer. See the post called PUTTING ON THE ARMOR OF GOD PRAYER MODEL.

Galatians 5:1 states, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” The devil does not want us to be free from our passions, immoral and impure thoughts, greed, coveting, anger, etc. He wants to keep us in bondage to our sin, but we are to stand firm by submitting to God, not the devil’s temptations and lies. James 4:7 states, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Read my post HOW TO DESTROY THE DEVIL’S WORK IN YOUR LIFE to know how to stand up to the devil and make him run.

Conclusion

This following Scripture passage clarifies what the devil does and what we need to do not to get devoured. 1Peter 5:8-9a states, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.” Many Christians do not resist and are defeated by the unseen enemy. If you are a victim of the devil and allowed him to put you in bondage again, Jesus wants to set you free again, look up and pray for His help and strength to get out of the pit. Psalm 40:2 states, “He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.” Memorize all the Scripture verses in this post so you can remind yourself to be watchful and to resist the wrong thoughts the devil puts in your mind and stand firm in your faith.

All verses are from the English Standard Version. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family: hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website. 

My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.  

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts. 

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and what the truths are. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles.  

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, salvation for non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

Image by Lorraine Cormier from Pixabay

4 Aug – What Are You Eating? — Dayle’s Blog

Looking after our physical bodies and choosing wisely to put good things in them is what cause them to operate at their optimum strength and health. What we eat is so important to who we are and how well we live our lives. We can perhaps get away with eating badly or irregularly for a […]

Hi Friends,

I want to share a wonderful blog post by Dayle. I was encouraged and challenged, and I wanted to share it with you.

via 4 Aug – What Are You Eating? — Dayle’s Blog