⁹ Rise, you women who are at ease, hear my voice; you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech.

– Isaiah 32:9

In this verse, the prophet Isaiah told the women of Israel to rise from a status of complacency to the level of action. Women in the Bible were a vehicle for God to usher change in history. We can see how God used them in their ministry of motherhood, through examples like Eve, Sarah, Hannah, Deborah, Ruth, Mary etc. — women willing to serve God for His Glory.

I wholeheartedly believe God wants to use the women in our Church that choose to rise; women who will respond to God’s calling and bind it to the gifts and talents He has given them. I am praying with great expectation for this to become a reality because when a woman rises and takes her position, she activates the people around her. This includes her husband, her children, and the Church.

This week, the focus of our prayers will be toward those that were saved via the Nicky Cruz event. Let us pray that God will glorify Himself in their lives through Nicky’s testimony and the women of our Church.

MONDAY

Personal

Let us begin the week by praying for all the women in our lives: family, friends, etc.… We pray that God will either begin or continue to use them for His glory.

TUESDAY

Finances

It is important that we continue to pray for our financial health. Let us continue to pray for our financial health individually, as families, and as a Church. Pray that God prosper the Church for His glory.

WEDNESDAY

Family

Today, let us continue praying for the salvation of our family members. Let us pray that the family members who attended the Nicky Cruz event would be saved.

THURSDAY

Church

We should pray that God motivates the members of our Church to follow up with people who attended the Nicky Cruz event. Let us pray for the newly saved and that new relationships would be made in the Church. Ask God to use us to disciple the new believers.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Let us continue to pray for all of the leaders of our Church. In particular, let us ask God to help us develop and establish new leaders – especially women. Let us pray that leaders would rise up from among the women of our Church.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Another area to continue interceding is for our co-workers and or classmates. More specifically, let us pray that they may see the power of God working in our lives. It helps to pray out loud, speaking the names of the persons you want God to reach.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Finally, let us focus on praying for those that do not know the Lord and will be attending our Church on Sunday. Let us pray that their souls will be saved, according to the Will of God.

¹⁸ And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Matthew 28:18-20

¹⁵ And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. ¹⁶ He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

Mark 15:15-16

We often learn about the “Great Commission” in the gospel of Mark very early in our walk with Christ. When we get saved, Jesus commissions us in His word to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel.” We are on this earth with the purpose of being a testimony of what Jesus Christ did for us: He paid the price for our sins by shedding His blood on the cross.

He calls us to preach the gospel and make disciples of all those who believe. A disciple of Jesus Christ has a relationship with God, a relationship with other believers, and is a light unto unbelievers. We are on this earth to develop these relationships in our lives. As we grow in knowledge of Him and become more like Him, we are encouraged and in turn encourage other believers in their walk with Christ.

MONDAY

Personal

Why is it important to spend time with God in daily devotions? Paul answers this in 2 Corinthians 4:6: “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” God’s light shines in our hearts in the time we spend in the presence of God. Of course, this light only comes from knowing God through Christ.

TUESDAY

Finances

As per Sunday’s message, let’s set aside a time to pray for our financial health. Let’s also pray that God shows us how much we should offer to the Church, to assist in the preaching of the gospel – especially for the Nicky Cruz event!

WEDNESDAY

Family

As the Nicky Cruz event approaches, let’s pray for our family members that are not saved. Let’s make them the focus of our prayers and allow God to guide us in speaking to them.

THURSDAY

Church

Let’s also pray for our fellow congregants, asking God to grant them success in bringing others to Church. Once more, let’s focus especially on the Nicky Cruz event.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Beyond praying for the congregants of our Church, let’s pray for our Pastor Bobby Cruz Jr. We should ask God to continue to glorify Himself through our Pastor, using him as we transition from the hotel to the new building. We should also pray that God grants our Pastor wisdom for the Nicky Cruz event.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Intercessory prayer is a powerful tool. We should pray for the salvation of our coworkers and/or classmates. More specifically, let’s pray that they may see the power of God working in our lives. It helps to pray out loud, speaking the names of the persons you want God to reach. Try praying out loud for those you have invited to the Nicky Cruz event.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Finally, let’s continue to pray for the salvation of the lost souls around us. Pray for the Nicky Cruz event on May 21^st, asking God to show you who to pray for and invite. Use Facebook as a tool, make sure you acquire your tickets and share the event page on your Facebook. Whenever someone likes your post, please ask them to share the page as well. This will create a net to help bring in more people.

This past Sunday, we learned about prayer: the divinely authorized means to access the kingdom of heaven and to get that kingdom to intervene in the affairs of our earthly lives. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He said “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Prayer activates the promises and Will of God. God has promises and plans for your life in his hands. When we pray, we are asking God to open his hand and release something that is already ours.

MONDAY

Personal

One of the purposes of prayer is for us to develop a close, personal relationship with God. Prayer requires discipline, and it is important to find a time and place to develop this discipline. No one can do this for you. While going to a prayer service and praying with others may feel amazing, prayer boils down to your personal relationship with God. This naturally requires you to make time to pray to God on your own.

TUESDAY

Finances

In Philippians 4:19, the Bible teaches that:

“He will supply all our needs according to His riches in glory through Jesus Christ.”

God is our source, He will supply for all of our needs, and therefore we need only to ask and we shall receive. 

WEDNESDAY

Family

While prayer is part of our personal relationship with God, there is more to it than just praying for our own needs. Another aspect of prayer is asking God to provide for the material and spiritual needs of our families. In particular, we should always pray for the salvation of our relatives who aren’t saved.

THURSDAY

Church

Beyond praying for our biological family, we also need to pray for our spiritual family; our Church. Continue praying that God’s promises for our Church will come to pass. Also, focus on praying for the primary goal of our Church: “Leading persons to a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Another group to focus on in prayer consists of our government and spiritual leaders. In particular, we should focus on our government leaders this week. More specifically, pray that God will continue to open doors for our church to make an impact in our City of Doral, especially when we move into our new building.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Intercessory prayer is a powerful tool. We should pray for the salvation of our coworkers and/or classmates. More specifically, let’s pray that they may see the power of God working in our lives. It helps to pray out loud, speaking the names of the persons you want God to reach. Try praying out loud for those you have invited to the Nicky Cruz event.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Finally, let us continue to pray for the salvation of the lost souls around us. Pray that God would remove: the “scales” from their eyes that won’t allow them to see and the “wax” from their ears that won’t allow them to hear the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray for the Nicky Cruz event on May 21^st, asking God to show you who to pray for and invite. Use Facebook as a tool, make sure you acquire your tickets and share the event page on your Facebook. Whenever someone likes your post, please ask them to share the page as well. This will create a net to help bring in more people.

This past Sunday, we learned about The Sharing Choice: “recycling” our pain—sharing the testimony God has given us and our giving to others, so they may know the love and grace we have been given.

“God never wastes a hurt.”  All of the struggles we’ve been through and the pain we have suffered can serve as a tool to reach others in similar situations and God wants to use them in that way. His strength is most visible in us when we are weak:

“He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might, He increases strength“ Isaiah 40:29 

As we continue on this journey of allowing God to be first in our lives, we will come to see that everything we have is a gift from God. Our faith in Christ is the foundation for our recovery and healing.  Other people will be able to see Him through us as we share how He has worked and is working in our lives.

MONDAY

Personal

Over the course of the past 8 weeks, God has worked to heal us from the pain and struggles of our individual lives. Now that we are on the right track, He wants to strengthen us so that we can share with others. Let’s pray that God strengthens and prepares us from within, such that we will be ready. That is, ready to share with people currently going through similar situations, whom God will bring to us so that we can share our testimony.

TUESDAY

Finances

As part of our growth in Christ, let us continue to ask God to help us grow financially and show our faith by continuing to tithe, as per Malachi 3:10

WEDNESDAY

Family

Let us continue to pray that our testimony will lead our families to embrace the power of God, which transformed us.

THURSDAY

Church

Beyond praying for ourselves, let us pray for the others in our church who have also been transformed, such that they will be strengthened and reach more people for Christ.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Pray that God’s power manifests in the lives of our leaders, both in the Church and in the government.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

God wants to reach our co-workers and/or classmates. Generally, they are the people we interact most with. Let us pray for God’s power in our lives to be visible to them and that God gives us the opportunity to share our testimonies with them.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Finally, let us continue praying for God to give us grace in the eyes of the lost souls around us, such that they will become receptive to hearing our testimony and seeking God as we have.

The Nicky Cruz event on May 21^st is a powerful tool to reach all of the aforementioned groups for Christ. Ask God to show you who to pray for and invite to Church for the event. We are using Facebook as a tool to reach people for this event. You’ll want to make sure to get your tickets and share the event webpage with your friends on Facebook. Ask those who like your post about the page to share it as well. This will create a huge “net” to bring more people in.

We celebrated the resurrection of Jesus Christ this past Sunday. With regard to His resurrection, the apostle Paul wrote the following in I Corinthians 15:14-17:

¹⁴ And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. ¹⁵ We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. ¹⁶ For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. ¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.

Paul was making the case for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why did Paul do this? For the same reason that we believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior! It is because He is our hope for resurrection to eternal life in heaven. Without Him our faith is futile. For this reason, we share our faith with and pray for those who are without this hope in their hearts.
Jesus is the one and only Savior and He will save anyone who cries out to Him in repentance and faith. His cross and empty tomb made it possible for sinful man to have a personal relationship with Holy God. Surrendering your heart to Christ makes your relationship with Him personal, and that makes all the difference in the world. Let’s pray for the people we know that do not have a relationship with Him.

MONDAY

Personal

There are a couple of steps to reach people who do not have a relationship with Christ. You can begin by separating a time to pray for boldness and wisdom to speak to others about Christ. Then, you may break the ice in conversation by asking them if they went to Church on Resurrection Sunday.  If so, encourage them to continue going to Church.

TUESDAY

Finances

Your relationship with Christ should be so personal, in fact, that you bring Him into the area of your finances. This is a difficult concept for some to grasp. However, if you take some time to pray that God provide for your financial needs and those of the Church, you will begin to see Him act in this area of your life. As a part of this aspect of your relationship, you should develop the habit of tithing. The Word of God is very clear on this, in Malachi 3:10 He says:

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.

WEDNESDAY

Family

When you have a close relationship with someone, you typically introduce them to your family. You do so because this person is important and you would like your family to have a relationship this person as well. The same applies to your relationship with God. In order to make this introduction, you can begin by praying for your family members that are not saved, asking God to use you to invite them to Church. The upcoming Nicky Cruz event would be a great opportunity to do so.

THURSDAY

Church

In the same way that it is important for your family to build a relationship with God, it is important that others do so and join the Church as well. You should continue to pray for our growth in number of souls saved. In particular, we ask that you pray for this coming Sunday service, that all of the people who got saved on Resurrection Sunday return.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Our leaders in Church are also actively working to reach others for Christ. In order to support them in this endeavor, you should continue to pray for your Church leaders, asking God to continue anointing them for the works of ministry. This will help prepare them to equip the saints for the harvest of new souls that are coming.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Another key group to keep in your prayers are your co-workers and or classmates. Due to the interaction you have with them, you are in a key position to influence and guide them toward a relationship with Christ. Pray that God use you as a vessel for their salvation and allow Him to guide you in speaking to them about Christ.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

The Nicky Cruz event on May 21^st is a powerful tool to reach all of the aforementioned groups for Christ. Ask God to show you who to pray for and invite to Church for the event. We are using Facebook as a tool to reach people for this event. You’ll want to make sure to acquire your tickets and share the event webpage with your friends on Facebook. Ask those who like your post about the page to share it as well. This will create a huge “net” to bring more people in.

During last week’s message in Church, we learned about The Growth Choice:

“I reserve a daily time with God for Bible reading, self-examination, and prayer to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will.”

John Baker introduces this next choice simply writing, “In the last six chapters, you’ve been learning about coming out of the dark and exposing your problems to the light of God’s love. At whatever level, you’ve been able to accomplish this, God has been healing the hurts, hang-ups, and habits that have messed up your life. Many of you are already experiencing some of the amazing changes in your life” (Life’s Healing Choices, pg. 206).

Like any parent, we want our children to grow: physically, mentally, and spiritually. If we see they are not growing, we worry and take action to promote their growth. Here are some of the things we can do to help us grow in our walk with God:

1. I need to schedule a daily time with God.
2. I must fill my mind with Scripture.
3. Focus on my goal, not my habit.
4. I face and forsake my failures quickly.
5. I have to flee temptation, but I don’t have to fear it.
6. If I’m going to make it to the finish line, if I’m going to grow continuously, I must get involved in an ongoing support group.
7. Follow Christ to the finish line.

Each day this week, we are going to steer our prayer focus to specific areas of our lives in need of growth.

MONDAY

Personal

Separate a time to pray for individual growth. Have a pen and paper ready and ask God to give you direction in different areas in your life. I would have my Bible nearby and ask God to show you Scriptures relevant to the areas of growth needs.

TUESDAY

Finances

Pray for guidance that you may use your finances wisely and achieve financial growth.

WEDNESDAY

Family

Pray for your family that they have spiritual growth.

THURSDAY

Church

Continue to pray for our growth in number of persons in our Church and for the personal spiritual growth of our congregants with the Lord.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Pray for our leaders, that they will grow spiritually as well and be equipped to help the Church reach Gods vision and purpose.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Pray for your workplace and co-workers that your company will grow and prosper.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Pray for salvation of the lost souls that are around us, especially pray for the city of Doral that is growing at an exponential rate.

LOOKING AHEAD

Pray for the Nicky Cruz event on May 21st. Ask God to show you who to pray for and invite to Church. Use Facebook as a tool to reach out to others and keep yourselves informed. Make sure you acquire your tickets and share the event webpage with all of your Facebook friends. If someone likes your page, ask them to like and share the event page as well. That way, we can create a huge digital “net” to bring in those people God is leading us to.

We learned about The Relationship Choice last week in church: 

“I will evaluate all my relationships; offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me; and make amends for harm I’ve done to others (except when to do so would harm them or others).”

How forgiving should we be? Jesus told Peter the story of a man who owed his king a large sum of money. When the man was unable to pay, the king ordered that he be sold along with his family and possessions. The man begged the king to be patient and promised to pay it all. The king was moved with compassion and forgave the man’s debt. This same man later went to a fellow servant who owed him a small amount compared to what the man had owed the king. He grabbed him by the throat, demanding instant payment. This servant begged for mercy, but the man had him arrested until he could pay. Upon learning this, the king was enraged. He berated the man, telling him that he should have forgiven the small debt of his fellow servant just as the king forgave the large debt of the man. He then imprisoned the man until he could pay his debt. Jesus said:

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart” Matthew 18:35. 

This may sound harsh, however, not forgiving others in our hearts hinders our relationship with God and with others.

There are three things we should do when we pray this week:

1. Reveal the Hurt
2. Release the Offender
3. Replace our hurt with God’s Peace

This week, we should focus on specific areas in our lives where we need to forgive. Focus on the 3 R’s: Reveal, Release and Replace. As you pray, reveal the area in need of forgiveness, release the offending person, and then replace your hurt with God’s peace. May God grant us victory in this endeavor!

MONDAY

Personal

It is important to forgive, not just to release the debts of those who offend us, but also to free ourselves from the burden we carry by not forgiving. There is a true freedom that comes from forgiving. Yet, there are situations and circumstances that we fail to forgive others and even ourselves for. These past situations create strongholds because we carry burdens due to things we have not forgiven ourselves or others for. We should take time this Monday to make a mental list of those things, and take time to pray and forgive. 

TUESDAY

Finances

There are often financial mistakes we have made in the past that we are still paying for. Ask God to forgive these mistakes and guide you to the correct actions to restore your finances.

WEDNESDAY

Family

There may be members of our families that we have not forgiven. Take time to pray for them, release them of their debts, and reach out to them if possible.

THURSDAY

Church

Pray for our Church and its congregants, asking God to bring forgiveness and healing to the Church family. Let us pray that these messages will bear fruit in our lives.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Our leaders aren’t perfect; they make mistakes. Too often, we allow these mistakes to create roots of bitterness and disillusionment in us. Pray for our leaders within the Church, government, and work. Ask that God would forgive them and guide them moving forward.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Forgive those co-workers and/or classmates that hurt you. This isn’t just about forgiving them, but also about allowing your example to serve as a light, such that you can guide them to seek God. You cannot do this if you hold resentment toward them in your heart. Ask God to take away that resentment.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Pray for the salvation of the lost souls that surround us. Ask God that you would serve as a vessel to bring salvation, forgiveness, and healing to their souls.

We learned about “The Transformation Choice” in church last week and what a lesson that was. We needed to voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in our lives and humbly ask Him to remove our character defects. But now that you’ve realized what you want God to change or control, are you ready to let Him?

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2

John Baker dives deeper into these verses in his book. Let’s explore this scripture a little further together.

BIOLOGICAL — CHROMOSOMES

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice…”

We inherited some of our strengths, weaknesses, physical and emotional traits from our parents. We did not choose our parents, DNA or some of our tendencies toward addictions.  However, none of these inherited traits give us the right to some of the behaviors we have chosen. That’s why Paul urges us to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to God — we’re supposed to be willing.

“Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness.” Psalms 143:10

SOCIOLOGICAL — CIRCUMSTANCES

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world…”

Where we were raised — the environment we were in, what we saw, how those around us behaved — all contributed to our character. Again, we did not have the opportunity to choose how those around us behaved or what our parents taught us. These behaviors or experiences actually shaped some of our hurts, habits or hang-ups. Out of those reactions, coping skills or hurts, we stepped into certain habits or additions.

“Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.” 1 Peter 1:13-14

THEOLOGICAL — CHOICES

“But be transformed by the renewing of your mind…”

We can change the choices we have made that have driven us into hurts, habits or hang-ups. When we remove one of our old habits, we must be able to replace it with a good choice. Spend quiet time in His word, have some prayer time, volunteer at church — these choices have helped transform my mind into healthy habits.

MAKE THE CHOICE. He is ready to step in and give you your heart’s desire. Pray for one another this week as we go through this “transformation” process in our lives. As always, pray for yourself, your family, co-workers, Church, our leaders and new souls for Christ’s body. Each day this week, we are going to focus on specific areas of our lives that we want God to transform.

MONDAY

Personal

Set aside a time in prayer to ask God to help you transform your thought life. Once you can transform your thoughts, your actions will soon follow.  Align your thoughts with His and keep your mind set on Him throughout your entire day.

TUESDAY

Finances

Ask God to transform your thoughts about your finances. Remember that when we give to God first, He will take care of the rest.

WEDNESDAY

Family

Pray for your family members, especially those that are not saved. Present them to God and ask God to help transform their thoughts about Him.

THURSDAY

Church

Continue to pray for our Church and its congregants. Pray that God will use these messages to help transform their lives.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Pray for our nation. There continues to be divisiveness in our country. Pray for unity and that God uses our President to be the catalyst to bring us together and transform our nation under God.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Pray for the salvation of their souls and that God would use us as a testimony to bring them back to Christ.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

Pray for salvation of the lost souls that are around us. Pray that God would give you grace to be able to speak to these persons, and that He would open doors of opportunity to transform their thoughts and turn to Him for salvation.

In Sunday’s message at church, we learned about The Commitment Choice: choosing to commit all of my life to Christ’s care and control.

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV

What keeps us from committing ourselves completely to Christ’s care and control?

There are 5 barriers we face when trying to make the commitment to let go and let God. These are the things we need to bring to mind when we pray, asking for God’s help in putting these things aside and allowing Him to take complete control of our lives.

Pride

Pride creates the illusion that we can make it on our own. It leads us to believe that we can maintain control of our life. Pride keeps us from admitting our weaknesses and isolates us from healing.

¹²  “Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor”.

Proverbs 18:12 NIV

Guilt

Guilt makes us feel like we can’t run to God because we’ve messed up too many times. Psalm 40:12 God knows our worst moments, He was there with us through every mistake. There’s no sin He can’t or won’t forgive.

^{18 “}I have seen their ways, but I will heal them; I will guide them and restore comfort to Israel’s mourners,”

Isaiah 57:18 NIV

Fear

Fear is the opposite of faith and it always creeps up when we don’t surrender to God. The fear of shifting from our earthly securities to trusting God to sustain us is one of the largest barriers for any of us to overcome. We fear losing control but at some point we must choose who or what will control us.

Worry

Worry does not allow you to make the right decisions. It clouds your judgment and influences you towards doing for yourself instead of trusting in God’s plan.

^{6 “}being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”.

Phil. 1:6 NIV

Doubt

Doubt cancels faith, period.

^{31 “}Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why did you doubt?’”

Matthew 14:31 NIV

How do we commit all our life to Christ’s care and control?

Accept God’s Son as your Savior.

It all begins with surrender to Jesus. Most of us have already done this however, it is always good to recommit our lives and remember it’s all about Him.

^{31 “}They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household.’”

Acts 16:31 NLT

Accept God’s Word as your standard.

Jesus followers make God’s word their final authority. They identify specific needs in their life and then apply God’s truth to it over and over.

^{16 “}All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.”

2 Timothy 3:16 NLT

Accept God’s will as your strategy for living.

You’ll find joy in doing it.

^{8 “}I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart.”

Psalms 40:8 NLT

Accept God’s power as your strength.

God enables us to do it His way by equipping us for the journey ahead and giving us His strength to persevere.

^{13 “}For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”

Phil. 4:13 NLT

Each day this week, we are going to focus on praying for specific areas of our lives that we need to commit to God. As always, start the week with personal prayer for the surrender of our control to God. Pray for your family, friends, co-workers, and release them to God’s care. Continue to pray this week interceding for all those who you know need salvation.

The message in church this week was about The Hope Choice – Getting Help in making life’s healing choices. It is the choice to earnestly believe that God exists, that you matter to him, and that he has the power to help you change.

So where do you find the power to change?

“Have you never heard or understood? Don’t you know? That the Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of all the earth? He never grows faint or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. He gives power to those who are tired and worn out; he offers strength to the weak. Even youth will become exhausted, and young men will give up. But those who wait on the Lord will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and they will not faint.”

Isaiah 40:28-31

To have hope, you have to realize that the power to change is a gift from God. He gives you the power to change by giving you His power to change. It’s not that you will change for God. It’s that God will change you through his power. It’s about hoping in him. Each day this week, we will focus on praying for specific areas of our lives that we want God to change.

As always, start the week with personal prayer for change and God will help you recover. Pray that God help your family, friends, and co-workers to recognize the need for His help and His power to change. Pray for all those you know who need salvation. Take the challenge of inviting them to Church this week and allow God’s power to change them.