FAVOUR

THE ART OF BEING A SHEEP

2026-08-13T16:54:46.167+01:00

'The Lord is my Shepherd; I lack nothing.' Psalm 23:1 NIV

Perhaps you memorised Psalm 23 as a child. The vivid visual images remain with us lifelong. Author Hannah Whitall Smith said, 'What we all need is just to get back into the nursery again, and take up our childish verses once more, and, while reading them with the intelligence of our grown-up years, to believe them with all our old childish faith.'

As adults we become jaded, losing the simple joy that stress-filled lives require. We need to remember these three things:

1) Who our shepherd is - 'The Lord'. He is the source of everything we will ever need, beginning with salvation. Jesus said: 'I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep' (John 10:11 NKJV).

2) What the shepherd's job is - protector and provider for the sheep. And He knows how to handle wayward, headstrong, vulnerable sheep and care for them. Long before Jesus came as our shepherd, the Father said, 'I will rescue [my flock] and no longer will they be mistreated...I will give you a shepherd from the family of my servant King David...All of you, both strong and weak, will have the same shepherd, and he will take good care of you' (Ezekiel 34:22-23 CEV).

3) What the sheep's job is - to trust the shepherd completely. Attempting to do His job will exhaust and defeat us. We must believe 'with all our old childish faith' that Jesus is a dependable, committed, and capable shepherd - and then act like we believe it.

Knowing that His goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives lifts our present worries and dispels all our future concerns.

YOU ARE A WONDER

2026-08-12T19:13:19.110+01:00

'I praise you because I am...wonderfully made.' Psalm 139:14 NIV

Despite your aches and pains, you are a living, breathing, walking, talking wonder. The Psalmist said, 'You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made' (vv. 13-14 NIV).

One author explains: 'Most of us take our eyesight for granted, but even the simplest of processes is divinely complex. The retina, for example, conducts close to ten billion calculations every second, and that is before an image even travels through the optic nerve to the visual cortex. The human nose can detect one-millionth of one milligram of garlic floating in the air and distinguish among ten thousand distinct odours. The hairs blanketing your body magnify the sensation of touch so that you can discern a thousandth of an ounce of pressure on the tip of a half-inch hair.' Amazing, isn't it? Trillions of chemical reactions are taking place in every cell of your body every second. You are inhaling oxygen, metabolising energy, digesting food, maintaining equilibrium, purifying toxins, producing hormones, exhaling carbon dioxide, repairing tissues, and circulating blood. As you read this, millions of electrical impulses are firing across billions of synaptic pathways, and you don't even think about it.

But you should praise God for the gift of life and the multitude of His blessings you enjoy. And you should do one more all-important thing: discover your life's purpose and dedicate yourself to fulfilling it. It has been said that the two most important days in a person's life are the day they're born, and the day they discover why they were born. Think about it.

BEING FRIENDS WITH GOD

2026-08-08T15:44:03.060+01:00

'I know you by name, and you have found favour with me.' Exodus 33:12 NIV

Moses talked with God like a friend, sharing what he felt and thought. And God wanted it that way. Here is how the conversation went: 'Moses said to the Lord, "You have been telling me, 'Lead these people,'...You have said, 'I know you by name, and you have found favour with me.''' Moses is mirroring back to God what God had previously said to him. Remember saying to your spouse or your best friend, 'You were the one who said...'? That's what Moses is doing here: reminding God of His own words. And God wants you to remember His Word and to speak it back to Him (see Isaiah 43:26).

Not because He needs to be reminded but because you do! And because His Word is the only Word that He is committed to fulfill (see Mathew 24:35). When you pray using God's Word, you are praying in His will, and you're guaranteed to get a hearing. So, learn and memorise Scriptures that touch on your needs and desires, and when you talk to God, recall them and pray them back to Him. For example, when you pray, 'Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours' (Mark 11:24 NIV), God will acknowledge it!

The more you learn of His will, the more your prayer time will conform to His will and the more you will feel aligned with Him. Keep your Bible handy when you talk to God so that He can direct your thoughts to the words He wants you to pray.

YOU CAN'T HAVE A TESTIMONY WITHOUT A TEST

2026-08-06T03:30:52.173+01:00

'I will...test them as gold is tested.' Zechariah 13:9 NASB

If you're being tested today, you're in good company! Job, the most righteous man on earth, was tested beyond what most of us will ever have to endure. And when he emerged, he told God, 'I heard about you from others; now I have seen you' (Job 42:5 CEV). In the heat of the furnace, you experience God up close and personal.

Shelia Schuller Coleman says, 'Some tests are intended to teach. We learn our most profound lessons when we're tested...Like what we're capable of...where we need to grow...and that there's still more to learn! When your faith is being tested, the last thing you're thinking about is learning a lesson...you just want to survive. But the lesson we learn from Job is that when we keep our faith in the most testing of times, we'll "come out as gold" (Job 23:10 NASB). Think about it: did you ever hear a testimony that wasn't about someone surviving a test? James says, "Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials" (James 1:2 NIV). When we suffer, when people say hateful things, when we lose our homes, when we encounter rifts in our family, when the doctor calls with a dire diagnosis - the last thing we feel is joy...if anyone could speak with authority on praising God in trials, it was Paul. He was beaten, thrown into jail, and run out of town. How does your week compare to his?

When you get through this test, you will have a testimony to God's strength and faithfulness, and be able to say, 'The Lord is my God.'

KEEP IT SIMPLE

2026-08-04T03:21:38.720+01:00

'I will give you shepherds...who will lead you with knowledge and understanding.' Jeremiah 3:15 NIV

Seeking to impress the congregation, a young seminary graduate incorporated the biggest words he could find into his Sunday-morning sermon. It was a disaster! Stepping down from the pulpit, he met an old preacher who said, Son, you spoke over their heads.' Irritated and defensive, the young seminarian said, 'Then why don't they stretch their necks?' To which the old preacher replied, 'Jesus said, "Feed my sheep," not my giraffes!'

Whether you're in a pulpit, a classroom, a board meeting, or talking to someone one-to-one over coffee, you must decide whether your goal is to impress people - or help them. God said, 'I will lead you with knowledge and understanding.' Your aim shouldn't be merely to communicate knowledge - but understanding. The measure of a good teacher isn't what he or she knows - it's what the student learns. Making things simple is a necessary skill if you want to connect with people. To put it in the words of Albert Einstein: 'If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it enough.'

If you're serious about trying to reach people, keep these four words firmly in mind:

1) Heart. To move someone, you must touch them on an emotional level.

2) Hope. By spelling out their potential and their possibilities, you will inspire them to try.

3) Help. Show them how to apply what you're saying tangibly.

4) Humour. By laughing at your mistakes, you let people know their problem isn't unique - and to someone who is struggling, that can be the best feeling in the world.

PICK THE RIGHT PEOPLE

2026-08-01T08:22:25.081+01:00

'These were...the mighty men whom David had,' 1 Chronicles 11:10 NKJV

Success in any endeavour calls for surrounding yourself with the right people. That's why you should always seek God's input in your relationships. Rehobam should have listened to the advice of his father Solomon's wise and experienced inner circle. Instead, he heeded the advice of those who agreed with his own opinion - and it proved fatal.

David, on the other hand, chose people who helped make him great. 'These were...the mighty men whom David had, who strengthened themselves with him in this kingdom, with all Israel' (v. 10 NKJV). Notice four important things here:

1) David built a strong inner circle before he needed it. He started building his team long before he needed it. He started building his team long before he was crowned.

2) He attracted people with varied gifts. He reached for them, rewarded them, and wasn't intimidated by those who had skills that differed from his. With the help of these 'mighty men', David felt ready for anything.

3) He cultivated loyalty. He drew people close to him, shared his life with them, and, in the end, they were willing to lay their lives on the line for him.

4) He delegated responsibility based on ability. Because he was secure in his own identity and calling, David wasn't afraid to delegate authority and responsibility to those around him. In the beginning, some of his mighty men were misfits, but he transformed this ragtag group into a winning team. (see 1 Samuel 22:1-2).

David made his inner circle great, and in turn his inner circle made him great. So the word is - pick the right people!

DON'T BURN OUT

2026-07-30T16:35:48.498+01:00

'Many claim to have unfailing love, but a faithful person who can find?' Proverbs 20:6 NIV

Pastor Rowland Croucher writes: 'The children had gone to school, my wife was off to work, and I did something I'd never done before. I turned the phone down, put a note on the door, and went back to bed. I was burned out. Within two months, I had resigned my ministry...Three out of four pastors report anger, depression, fear, and alienation. The reasons include...a disparity between idealistic expectations and hard reality...lack of boundaries...workaholism...feelings of incompetence...conflict between being a leader and being a servant at the same time..."playing it safe" to avoid upsetting powerful parishioners...and loneliness (pastors are less likely to have a close friend than almost anybody).'

Ministering in your own strength virtually guarantees you will end up as another statistic. Paul was able to go the distance and finish strong because he depended on God to give him the needed strength. One Bible teacher says avoiding burnout means

a) having a definite call on your life and a strong relationship with Jesus,

b) seeking His vision and being willing to do whatever He asks,

c) never losing sight of the people behind the work,

d) never taking your position for granted,

e) respecting the guy above you, and submitting willingly to authority,

f) knowing that you're fulfilling God's will and your reward is laid up in heaven,

g)having a servant's heart,

h) putting loyalty above personal feelings, and

i) never being too big to do small things, or too small to do big things.

Practice these principles, and you won't burn out.

KEEP YOUR HOPE ALIVE

2026-07-28T23:58:28.912+01:00

'Grab ...hope with both hands and never let go.' Hebrews 6:18 MSG

Does your situation look impossible? Are you getting ready to give up? Don't! Emilie Batisse was seventy-nine when she was injured in a hit-and-run accident and wasn't expected to live. When Norman Vincent Peale went to visit her, he noticed a row of brand-new poetry books that hadn't been opened. When he asked her about them, she said, 'I love poetry, but I haven't read those... I'm saving them for my old age.'

Mrs Batisse lived to read those books many times, and when she eventually died at ninety-one, she was planning a trip to Europe. Hope is wishing for something to come true; faith is believing it will happen. Hope is wanting something so desperately that, despite all evidence to the contrary, you keep believing God for it. And the remarkable thing is that the act of hoping produces a strength ot its own. When Cornell University conducted a study on the effects of hope, Dr Harold G. Wolff reported that people with hope can endure incredible burdens. One group comprised twenty-five thousand soldiers imprisoned during World War II. Subjected to forced labour, bad food, and filth, many died while others showed only slight damage. Interviews with survivors revealed a far-above-average ability to hope!

How were they able to keep their hope alive? By drawing pictures of the girls they planned to marry, designing their future homes, and organising business management seminars. Hope not only kept them well, it kept them alive! It's easy to see why Paul describes hope as 'an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past... appearances... to the very presence of God' (v.19).

GOOD IS GOOD - ALL THE TIME!

2026-07-25T03:39:12.042+01:00

'O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him'. Psalm 34:8

What you believe about God is crucial to the quality of your life, especially in difficult times. So, starting today, tell yourself, 'God is good- all the time,' and keep saying it until it gets down into your spirit. What does it mean to be 'good'? It means living up to the best and highest; His goodness is beyond question. If God is good - genuinely, practically, consistently good - then your cup of well-being, security, peace, confidence and joy should be overflowing!

A good God can't break His promise, abandon His children, or fail to love and provide for them. In every trial and circumstance, you can be sure He will treat you in the best possible way. When things seem to be falling apart, when you stumble confused in the dark, it's hard to see God's goodness or feel that things will get better. That's when you must draw on the faith God has deposited in you (see Romans 12:3), and by an act of your will, trust Him. A troubled parishoner once asked his pastor, 'Does the world look like a wreck to you too? He replied, 'Yes, like the wreck of a bursting seed! Without the "wreck" stage when its world appears to be falling apart, the acorn could never give birth to an oak tree.'

So, embrace God's will in your time of testing because it's 'good, and acceptable, and perfect' (Romans 12:2). Ultimately, you will 'see how good the Lord is' and that 'happy is the person who trusts him.'

'WILL THE REAL JESUS PLEASE STAND UP?'

2026-07-23T01:41:33.312+01:00

'By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.' John 13:35 KJV

Have you seen the poster depicting three men, each representing a different version of Jesus? The first looks like an uncouth mountain man, the second is tanned and athletic, the third is a slight, meek-mannered character. The caption underneath says, 'Will the real Jesus please stand up?' In John 13, the real Jesus stands up. He tells us what He is all about and what He wants us to be all about - and it's love!

In the upper room, Jesus recognised that His time was short. The cross was looming, Judas was about to betray Him, and He had to prepare His disciples to continue without Him. It's like asking a pastor, 'If you had one last sermon, what would it be?' Or asking a teacher, 'What great truth would you most like to convey to your students?' Or asking parents, 'If you could tell your kids only one thing, what would it be?' Jesus spells it out: 'I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you...By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another' (vv 34-35 KJV). Like a last will and testament, Jesus' final message is important not only because of its content but because of its tone and timing. It sums up His life and our responsibility to God and to others - to love them!

Now, since love isn't what you say but what you do - today go out and find practical ways to express God's love to those you meet. They will feel good, and you will too.

START LIVING ON PURPOSE

2026-07-21T17:21:32.633+01:00

"Those who help others are helped." Proverbs 11:25 MSG

One of the best ways to keep your life in balance and stay on track spiritually is to share what you know with others. The Bible says, 'Those who help others are helped.' As you pass along your insights, you will get more insights from God. Paul challenges Timothy, 'Now I want you to tell these same things to followers who can be trusted to tell others' (2 Timothy 2:2 CEV).

If you know people who haven't yet discovered their God-given purpose in life, it's your job to share with them what has been shared with you. For example, don't just read this devotional and keep it to yourself; share it with friends. The more you know, the more God expects you to use that knowledge to help others. That's how things are supposed to work in His Kingdom. James writes, 'Anyone who knows the right thing to do, but does not do it, is sinning' (James 4:17 NCV). In other words, increased knowledge brings increased responsibility. Passing along the purpose of life to others is more than just an obligation; it's one of our greatest privileges. Imagine how different the world would be if everyone knew their calling. That's why Paul writes, 'If you teach these things to other followers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus' (1 Timothy 4:6 CEV).

Not only does God want us to live out His purpose, but He also wants us to help others do the same. That is what assignment-centred living is all about. Regardless of your age, the rest of your life can be the best of your life if you will do this one thing - start living on purpose!

GOD CAN CANCEL YOUR PAST

2026-07-18T09:59:49.063+01:00

"He cancelled the record of the charges against us." Colossians 2:14 NLT

Jesus 'cancelled the record of the charges against us...by nailing it to the cross.' The word 'cancel' means to remove, to neutralise, to offset something. Have you ever got most of the way through a project and wished you could start over? Suppose you were painting the lounge, and you stepped back and looked at the colour on the sample chart. On the wall, however, it doesn't look the same. You wish you could redo it.

Many of us feel that way about life, as one author describes it: 'I've made so many mistakes. I wish I could just wipe them out and start over.' Failures, problems, bad decisions - we have all suffered from them. But some people can't let go of the past and, as a result, they let their past limit their present opportunities. They live in a constant state of regret, continually lamenting, "If only I hadn't done that" or "If only I had made these changes." They repeatedly second-guess themselves. And they are tormented by painful memories. "I blew it, and I'm going to be paying for it for the rest of my life." You may choose to carry guilt, but you don't have to! The moment you put your trust in Christ. He 'cancels the record' of your past. Actually, you no longer have a past; you only have a future! You can lay down, once and for all, your heavy load of guilt, old hurts, and memories of mistakes.

Jesus 'took it away by nailing it to the cross'. God has promised to 'blot out your sins...and will never think of them again' (Isaiah 43:25 NLT). You must too!

DON'T COMPETE, AND DON'T COMPARE

2026-07-16T08:46:20.284+01:00

"He alone decides which gift each person should have." 1 Corinthians 12:11 (NLT)

In Scripture, the church is never described as a democracy. Certainly, every person deserves equal treatment in terms of kindness, love, and respect; but as our God-given assignments differ, so do our gifts. 'It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have. ' Pay close attention to the words 'He alone decides.' Parents want to see all their children succeed in life. But they also need to recognise that just as children's individual talents differ, so do their unique destinies. That's why it's a mistake to compete with or compare yourself to somebody else.

The Bible says, 'God was validating it with gifts...as he saw fit' (Hebrews 2:4 MSG). Don't question and second-guess God; He knows what He is doing and never makes mistakes. Even among His twelve disciples, Jesus had an inner circle. He took Peter, James, and John up the Mount of Transfiguration and sent the others into town to work. He didn't feel obligated to take everybody up the mountain so nobody would feel slighted. Does that mean He loves one person more than another? No, the experience Peter, James, and John had on the mountaintop that day was part of their training for the assignment Jesus was calling them to.

There is a lesson here. You have to move beyond other people's opinion. God made you for a special purpose; He has a job for you that nobody else can do as well as you. When you know that something is right for you, do it and trust God to vindicate you in the eyes of others.

STAND IN FAITH

2026-07-14T20:10:38.495+01:00

"All things are possible to him who believes." Mark 9:23

One day a distraught father came to Jesus and said, 'My son...frequently...he falls into the fire and...the water...I brought him to your disciples, and they were not able to cure him' (Matthew 17:15-16). Notice, he never once said, 'Maybe my son inherited this problem from me' or 'Perhaps if I had raised him differently.' No, he dumped the responsibility onto the disciples, who were themselves in training. Whenever we're in trouble, we like to blame the pastor, the church, our spouse, our boss, our family, our looks, our social status, or find some other excuse. We're unable or unwilling to admit that we stuck our own hand in the fire or almost drowned by jumping in headfirst when we couldn't swim.

After Jesus healed the boy, His disciples asked Him, 'Why can't we do the things you do? (Mathew 17:19). That's like asking, 'Why isn't my situation changing?' when we haven't brought the problem to God, prayed about it, and trusted in His transformative power. Jesus replied, 'Because your faith is too small' (Mathew 17:20). Sometimes you need the kind of faith that makes you seem a little weird; the kind that doesn't care whether or not you fit in. That's the kind of faith that made Noah say, 'Even though there has never been rain and nobody in my generation believes, I'm still going to do what God said.' As a result, he came out on top! Paul writes, 'Having done all...stand' (Ephesians 6:13). Stand on what? Stand on what God has told you in His word, because ultimately, it's the thing that will work.

DON'T BE A MUDSLINGER

2026-07-11T16:12:38.385+01:00

"The slinger surrounded and attacked it." 2 Kings 3:25

In the Old Testament times, 'slingers' were people who defeated others by slinging stones, blocking their wells by throwing mud and rocks into them - wells of water that were essential to their survival. Today, mudslingers are people who make malicious attacks against others. Now chances are that you may have encountered some 'mudslingers' yourself, and even suffered at their hands. What should you do? Avoid them because they're dangerous. You can't mud wrestle with a pig without getting dirty. Not only will the pig win - he will enjoy the fight! And if you yourself have become a slinger, here is a portion of Scripture you would do well to read and keep in mind: "Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not." Isaiah 58:9-11.

Now there is a benefit package worth working for! So, guard your thoughts because they become your words. Guard your words because they become your actions. Guard your actions because they become your character. And guard your character because it determines the level of God's blessing in your life. So, here is the word: don't be a mudslinger.

SHEPHERD YOUR PEOPLE

2026-07-07T20:24:15.615+01:00

Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance,
which lives by itself in a forest, in fertile pasturelands (Micah 7:14).

You and I are called to be shepherds in the workplace. Your "staff" (vocation) represents your calling to your work life ministry. Moses’ staff represented his calling as a shepherd. God’s first words to Moses were: "Remove your shoes. For this is Holy ground." God came to Moses during his workday. His work became holy because God’s presence was there.
God used Moses’ staff to perform miracles and deliver the people of Israel from bondage. (Ex. 4:17). He is still issuing this same call today to you and I in the workplace. For most of us, this is where our inheritance lies. As we minister through our work life call, our inheritance will come as a result of letting God use our abilities. Paul tells us in Colossians 3:23,24: "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."
What makes our work holy is the motivation by which we do it. If we work to glorify God in it and serve others in the process, that is what makes it ministry. The word ministry and service are derived from the same Greek word, diakonia.
Those in the workplace are like a remnant of a wayward people in a forest awaiting harvest. It is a fertile pasture awaiting a shepherd who can lead them into a life of purpose and destiny. Will you be the instrument of God to shepherd His people out of bondage?
Ask the Lord to use your "staff" to perform miracles and to become a shepherd to those He has called you to lead. Why not start today?

LIVING FOR A CAUSE GREATER THAN YOURSELF

2026-06-30T16:35:26.741+01:00

"I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." - Philippians 4:13

In the thirteenth century, a man named William Wallace became the instrument of freedom from England's tyranny over Scotland. A very wicked king ruled England. A tragedy in the life of William Wallace launched him into living for this cause. Initially his cause was revenge, but soon his cause turned to something bigger than himself - freedom for a nation. When he challenged the commoners to fight for this freedom, they responded that the enemy was too great and that they might die on the battlefield. They also refused to fight for the nobles, the knights, and leaders who had a vested interest in gaining more land for themselves versus a pure cause of freedom. Wallace's response: "Yes, we might die. We will all die sooner or later. But we will die for a cause worth dying for. So that our children and their children might live in freedom." This story was popularized in the movie Brave Heart (Sherman Oaks, California: Paramount Pictures, 1995).
Today we find many Christian workplace believers living a status quo relationship with God that is more characterized as "business as usual" than a life demonstrating God's power. Our focus is often more concerned with improving our standard of living than improving the Kingdom of God through our circle of influence. While this takes place, millions upon millions die without the saving grace of Christ. Many other Christians die never experiencing the freedom in Christ that His blood paid for. God has called each of us to live for a cause greater than ourselves - a life that is dependent on His grace and power to achieve things we never thought possible through our lives. This is His plan for your life. The apostle Paul prayed that He might experience the power of the resurrection in his life. This power is available to you and me to live for a cause greater than ourselves. Ask God what He wants to achieve through your life today. And consider yourself dead already to the consequences of what that might mean for you.

COMING OUT OF EGYPT

2026-06-25T23:09:11.111+01:00

“But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness” (Rom. 6:17-18).

Becoming a new person in Christ is part of a life-long journey that begins at conversion. Before coming to Christ, we were living (in a metaphorical sense) in Egypt, in the land of bondage. Just as the people of Israel toiled as slaves in Egypt, we were slaves to sin and worldly ambition.

Before we came to Christ, we sweated and toiled to build our career and acquire material possessions. Work was our idol. Greed was our taskmaster. We may have had all the trappings of power in the business world – a corner office, a staff of our own, a key to the executive washroom – but we were living as a slave in the land of Egypt. We didn’t run our career; our career ran us.

Jesus once said, “No servant can serve two masters. You cannot serve both God and money” (Luke 16:13). In the original language, the word translated “money” was an Aramaic word, Mammon. This does not refer merely to money as a medium of exchange but also to a demonic spirit designed to promote a mind-set of ambition for riches, power, and worldly gain. The word is capitalized in the original text because the people of Jesus’ day thought of Mammon as a false god. Jesus was saying that those who spend their lives seeking worldly gain are idolaters. No one can serve two masters. No one can worship both the true God and a false god.

We cannot experience the grace that God gives to His children because we are too busy striving for riches and enslaved to Mammon. The only way we can be free is to turn away from Mammon and allow the one true God to transform us into a different person.

Ask yourself today if your life is best represented as Egypt or the Promised Land.

A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP

2026-06-23T18:22:19.172+01:00

"Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." - Matthew 10:39

Otto Koning was a missionary in New Guinea. He worked among a native tribe that had known only their village ways. One of those village ways was stealing from others. When Otto and his wife arrived and moved into a hut, the natives often came by to visit. The Konings would notice that after the natives left the missionaries' home, various household items had disappeared. They saw these items again when they went to preach in the natives' village.
The only fruit Otto could grow on the island was pineapples. Otto loved pineapples, and he took pride in the pineapples he was able to grow. However, whenever the pineapples began to ripen, the natives would steal them. Otto could never keep a ripe pineapple for himself. This was a frustration, and he became angry with the natives. All during the seven-year period in which this took place, Otto preached the gospel to these natives, but never had a conversion.
The more the natives stole, the angrier Otto became. Finally, one day, Otto had a German Shepherd dog flown in from another missionary to protect his pineapple garden after other frustrated efforts failed. This only further alienated the natives from him.
Otto took a furlough to the United States and attended a conference on personal rights. At this conference, he discovered that he was frustrated over this situation because he had taken personal ownership of his pineapple garden. After much soul searching, he gave his garden to God. Soon, the natives started having problems among their tribe. They discovered that Otto was the reason for their problems because he gave his garden to his God. The natives saw a correlation between what Otto had done and their own lives being affected by calamities in their village. When Otto gave his garden to God, he no longer got angry and was free from worry. The natives started bringing him fruit from the garden because they didn't want any more calamities to come into their village.
The light came on one day when a native said to Otto, "You must have become a Christian, Otto. You don't get angry anymore. We always wondered if we would ever meet a Christian." They had never associated Otto with the kind of person he was preaching about because his message did not line up with his life. Otto was broken in spirit when he realized he had been such a failure.
At the end of seven years, he witnessed his first conversion, and many began coming to Christ once he fully gave his garden to God. The fruit grew so abundant that Otto began exporting it and growing other types of fruit, such as bananas. His village became the most evangelized in the whole region, yet for seven years, he had not one convert.
Otto realized something each of us must realize: To gain your life, you must lose it, along with your possessions. It was only when he gave all his possessions to God that he became free from them. God measured back to him manifold once He had complete ownership.
Do you have some possessions that you need to give up to God today? Let God have all that you have. Become a steward, not an owner. You will be surprised at how well God can take care of His possessions.

Listening To The Father’s Heart

2026-06-21T16:44:25.343+01:00

"So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore, do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you". Matthew 6:28-33

Son, I marvel at the unbelief that many of my sons and daughters exhibit. They worry and fret over the smallest of matters. Can they not see how much order there is in the universe? Can they not see how the animal kingdom balances out life? Can they not see how the seas remain in their boundaries? Can they not understand how precisely I positioned the sun from the earth? Sometimes my creation cries out through storms and natural disasters, but even this is a part of the natural order of things that you cannot fully understand at this time. Worry is a fruit of unbelief. It says you don’t believe I am there. It says you must depend on yourself. Release all your cares to me. Rest in the knowledge that I am a Father who cares and will respond to your needs.

FAITH IS SPELLED R.I.S.K

2026-06-18T18:06:15.936+01:00

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!" (Matt 14:29-30).

Jesus told Peter to get out of the boat. There is always a risk when we attempt something never done before. Naysayers seem to come out of the woodwork. Why? Because it’s not their vision, it’s yours. Sometimes we fail the first time out. It’s a fact that most entrepreneurs fail before they are really successful.
"Success," said Winston Churchill, "is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." Everybody fails. It’s part of the process that leads us to maturity and success. Most successful entrepreneurs don’t think of their failures as defeats. They think of them as lessons.
If you hope to succeed, learn everything you can from your failures. In The Three Success Secrets of Shamgar, Orlando Magic executive Pat Williams observed, "Our experiences may not all be triumphs and successes, but so what? Failure is usually a far better teacher than success—if we are willing to learn the lessons. As Houston Astros pitcher Larry Dierker observed, ‘Experience is the best teacher, but a hard grader. She gives the test first, the lesson later.’"[1]
God never gets mired in our past failures. He is constantly viewing our lives with future success in mind. "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland" (Isa. 43:19). Someone once said, "When your memories are bigger than your dreams, you’re headed for the grave." God wants to give us new dreams that are bigger than anything that has ever happened to us in the past.
Don’t let past failures keep you from future successes.

[1] Pat Williams and Jay Strack, The Three Success Secrets of Shamgar (Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc., 2004), p. 103.

RECEIVING YOUR INHERITANCE

2026-06-16T17:59:29.506+01:00

“But the Danites had difficulty taking possession of their territory, so they went up and attacked Leshem, took it, put it to the sword and occupied it….” – Joshua 19:47

What is the spiritual inheritance God has reserved for you? When God told the Israelites they were going to receive the Promised Land, it was not given to them on a silver platter. In fact, they would encounter 39 battles in taking the land God promised to them. It took a joint effort between God and the Israelites to engage and battle the enemy that maintained control of the land.

God has given you and me a spiritual inheritance that must be won in the heavenlies. A dear friend and mentor once counseled me after watching my life over a period and said, “The Lord has given you a spiritual inheritance. That inheritance lies in relationships, and because it lies in relationships, that is the place the enemy has attacked you most. The enemy always attacks us in the area where we are to receive our inheritance. You must walk in faithfulness and obedience to His righteousness in how you deal with relationships.” These were words of wisdom that have since guided my path. The Lord has proven these words to be true.

What is the spiritual inheritance He has reserved for you? What areas of your inheritance must you take possession of? The enemy of your soul does not want you to take possession. Put on your armor and begin walking in obedience into the areas God has called you to possess.

FAITH VERSUS PRESUMPTION

2026-06-11T08:12:29.739+01:00

"So she said to Abram, 'The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.' Abram agreed to what Sarai said." - Genesis 16:2

Presumption is based on our own reasoning. Abraham and Sarah fell into presumption when they got too old to have children. God had promised a son to Abraham and Sarah - a son who would fulfill His promise to birth a nation. But Abraham and Sarah were past the normal age for childbearing. So, they concluded that God needed help to work out His plan.
Many workplace believers make the same mistake every day. We make assumptions about what we believe God is doing and wants us to do. However, before we really have full assurance that God has spoken to us on the matter and revealed His perfect action plan, we move forward with our steps to get it done. How do we protect ourselves from presumption? The Proverbs tell us that there is safety in a multitude of counselors (see Prov. 11:14 KJV). Submitting our decisions to others for confirmation protects each of us from the deceit of our own heart. This process will protect us from presumption and encourage us to move in faith. The next time you believe God is directing you toward a specific action, consult with your spouse first, then some close, spiritual friends who will take the time to prayerfully consider your request. If you don't have consensus, wait until you do before you move forward. God will move through this process to His desired will for the matter.

YOUR TESTIMONY

2026-06-09T10:12:54.181+01:00

"I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony." - John 3:11

Over the last several years, I have seen two distinct types of Christian workplace believers. One type enthusiastically teaches their Bible knowledge to others. These people, though they may be genuine in their motive, lack one essential ingredient to being effectively used by God - a testimony. The second type of people I have encountered has a genuine testimony of what God is doing and continues to do in their lives. This was the case in the early Church. Men and women were able to give powerful testimony of events and experiences that could only be explained as a work of God.
God desires to build a testimony in each of us. Each of us is one of God's chosen vessels to reflect His power in and through us. When others see this power reflected, they are impacted because they cannot explain that power. God desires to frame your life with experiences designed to reflect the character and nature of Christ. Sometimes these events can be very devastating, but they are designed to reveal His power in and through us.
Every one of us has a testimony. What would others say your testimony is today? Can others see God's work in your life? Is your testimony one of Bible knowledge only? Are things happening in your life that can only be explained as God? These can be problematic questions for each of us. Ask God to build a testimony of His life in and through you today.

FORGIVENESS ENSURES FREEDOM

2026-06-06T08:56:16.771+01:00

"See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many." - Hebrews 12:15

In business and life, the opportunity to harbor bitterness for a wrong suffered is great. We are given plenty of opportunities to grow bitter from relationships that bring hurt and pain. The writer of the Hebrews passage above admonishes us not to miss the grace of God so that we won't take up bitterness as a response to life's pain. He cautions us against this because he knows that a bitter root grows and grows until it eventually defiles many others through a wake of bitterness. If bitterness is allowed to take root, we become imprisoned by it. God's grace will no longer have as great an effect in our lives. We become ineffective, insensitive, and spiritually dead. We can even become physically ill from it. God does not live in bitterness. He lives in grace. He has provided grace for every person to walk in.
One day, I was challenged to deal with an individual who hurt me terribly. I was faced with a decision. Would I choose bitterness, or would I choose grace? Oh, how my natural tendency was to choose bitterness. But God provided the courage to choose grace. With that grace came freedom - a freedom to love and even accept the person who was the source of such pain.
This is the real place where Christ's power is most revealed. We cannot live without His supernatural grace. Are you in need of grace today? It is there for the receiving. It will take courage to accept it and walk in it. This will be your step to freedom.