Life Church Blog

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. -Philippians 4:6

Thanksgiving isn’t just an annual feast every late Thursday in November. It should be a daily event. Regardless of circumstance. In NOTHING be anxious! Notice it doesn’t say to be thankful FOR everything because not everything is of God. Worrying is a form of fear. Fear is not of God. Thanksgiving is an attitude of the heart that presses THROUGH anything, expecting the goodness of God!

Action Step

This verse shows the order of things.
Step 1: Don’t worry.
Step 2: Pray about it.
Step 3: Thank God for the answer after you pray.
Step 4: DON’T WORRY, and give it to Jesus.

My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh. -Proverbs 4:20-22

God gives us promises in the Bible. Salvation and eternal life in Jesus Christ. Healing of our minds, bodies, emotions, and yes, even your pocketbook. God’s word says Jesus came to give us the abundant life. It’s important to CONSTANTLY meditate on what God says about you. Not what the news reports say. Or your neighbors who don’t know God say. Jesus IS the living word of God. If He says He is willing, then STAND ON IT. Jesus was once asked if He was willing to heal. He was. He Is. My God shall supply all my need!

Action Step

Meditate on the promises of God as it pertains to your needs and His promises and don’t let them depart from your eyes! Look up in a Bible concordance the topic God wants you to look at, and begin to thank Him for victory!

Death and life are in the power of the tongue. -Proverbs 18:21

Our words matter. Our words have power. Power to help and encourage. Power to destroy and discourage. James 3 tells us that our mouth MUST come under control. It means we have to SAY what God says, so that we DO what Jesus DID! As you continue to read the gospel of John, notice that it says Jesus IS the WORD made flesh. He spoke words of life. God’s words. What are you speaking? Measure them. Are they consistently negative? This proverb shows us that we get what we say.

Action Step

Take inventory of your mouth. Do curse words flow freely? Do you gossip about or belittle others with ease? Are you a critic’s critic? Ask God to highlight these negative tendencies WHEN they surface. REPLACE them with God’s words or keep the mouth shut!

So He (Jesus) said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.” -Mark 9:29

FASTING. That very word is enough for some to end the 40 Days journey right here. DON’T do that! Hear me out. Jesus embraced fasting as a spiritual discipline. Let’s not be legalistic. Fasting and prayer doesn’t magically move God to answer your prayer. It draws you closer to God and positions you to hear Him and infuse your prayer life with power. Jesus tells us there are strongholds in our life that need to be dealt with and fasting helps tune us in to God’s frequency.

Action Step

There are many types of fasts. A Daniel’s fast, based on Daniel in the Bible, is typically juice and veggies for a set period of days. A full-fast is no food for a set period of time. A partial fast may combine elements of both. For more on this, I recommend Jentezen Franklin’s website.

Pick what works for YOU during these 40 Days!

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” -Isaiah 6:8

When you say YES to God, you open the door to an adventure unlike any other. By getting rid of the little foxes, your awareness of His leading becomes MORE REAL. A desire to learn more about Jesus should follow. It starts with the Bible. His revealed word. The Bible shares with us incredible journeys people forged with Him over thousands of years. Many of them faced odds that were MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE. The prophet Isaiah probably felt that way. He was called to prophesy to Israel and he would need tremendous courage and power to speak up on God’s behalf because the news wasn’t always good. Saying YES to the Spirit of God won’t always be comfortable, but know this truth. Whatever God calls you to DO, He will authorize and empower you to do!

Action Step

The Gospel of John in the Bible unwraps Jesus in so many powerful ways! Over the next 36 days, I challenge you to read all 21 chapters. Start slowly, maybe a few verses a day at a time. Marinate on them. Once you grasp WHO is sending you and what HE can do, it’s easy to say YES!