Daily Devotions

Posts tagged “TD Jakes

Your Home – A Place of Agreement

Have you watched the news lately? There seem to be squabbles and disagreement at every level of government, between nations, races and economic strata. There must be a place where men and women, boys and girls can go and experience the opposite of the stress of such an atmosphere. May your home be a place of agreement, where squabbles and disagreement can’t find dwelling places. May it be the place of “where two or three are gathered in my Name” (Matt.18:20) becomes the place of “all things are possible” (Mk.9:23).  (Ps.128:3, GNB) “Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in your home, and your children will be like young olive trees around your table.” We are praying you discover daily that your home is a place of productive agreement.
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The Word Cannot Stop Being Alive

The Word of God is alive and active and cannot stop being alive and active. May the redemptive, productive Word you heard days ago or even years ago be alive and active in you today, producing fruit unto righteousness, life to the glory of our Lord’s name. ”God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God’s Word. We can’t get away from it—no matter what.” (Heb.4:12-13, Msg)
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Fear and Infirmity

(Melissa Gabler) — Fear leads to stress and stress puts off a fragrance that the spirit of infirmity is looking for.  “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” (1Jn.4:18, NKJV)
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“What a Day Can Hold”

“What A Day Can Hold”

Melissa Gabler singing at Grace International Church. 

(Best enjoyed with headphones or earbuds)
http://martygabler.podomatic.com/entry/2015-05-11T22_38_33-07_00


What Father Wants by Holy Spirit Enabling

The Holy Spirit who anointed Jesus, now dwells in us and enables us to be God’s visible, tangible point of rule and authority on earth.  It is all by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are not just kings and priests so we can have titles. We are so, by the power of the Holy Spirit for the redemptive works of our Lord in the lives of those who are held in the bondage of fear (Heb.2:15). The Holy Spirit is the One who has the mind of the Father and He will guide us in those aspects of being kingly and priestly so that we may be what the Father wants us to be in those aspects.   “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty [emancipation from bondage, true freedom].” 2Cor.3:17, Amp)
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Safety and Acceptance in Your Home

May your home be the place of safety and acceptance you think of when you are out in the world and are mistreated and taken advantage of. May you return there safely and may it be your place of solace. “You will be sheltered,without fear of hurtful words or any other weapon. . . .   Your home will be secure, and your sheep will be safe.” (Job 5:21, 24, CEV)
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MAY IS FOR LIFTING UP HOLY HANDS IN PRAYER

The month of MAY IS FOR LIFTING UP HOLY HANDS IN PRAYER. (1Tim.2:8; Ps.63:4)
(Meme created by Melissa Gabler, Sterling Regard Photography.)


Kingdom of God in Evidence

(Kathy)  As I searched the scriptures, I found the Kingdom of God (or Kingdom of Heaven) could refer to three things: 1) The place where God dwells and reigns eternally, 2) God’s AUTHORITY & POWER ruling on earth, and 3) the company of people who have submitted their lives to God’s authority, both now and eternally.  Jesus preached and emphasized the second aspect, God’s AUTHORITY and POWER ruling on earth.  That is why He said to some as He healed them, “The Kingdom has come upon you.”  The Kingdom of God is in evidence wherever God’s AUTHORITY and POWER are manifested on earth.
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God’s Choice

When the elders of Israel became aware that it was time to put Josia on the throne (God’s government was put in place), God gave them a plan. They stood Josia in the temple and placed a crown upon his head (2K 11:12).  The people began to clap their hands and proclaim, “God save the king.” When Athaliah heard the celebration (Athaliah hates celebration which has not made her central), she ran into the temple and began to yell, “Treason!” No matter how deeply she stood in violation, she was convinced that change was treason on the part of others. Anything that was without her approval or anything that was in opposition to her plans was considered treason. The correct response to Athaliah was to accept God’s choice of government and to do it openly with all the proper leadership participating.
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The Government of God for all Generations

(Kathy GabIer) — I have prayed or read or quoted or sang the phrase, Thy Kingdom come, for years without really being aware of the magnitude of what I was saying.  In my early understanding, “Thy Kingdom come” was a reference to heaven and eternity only.  So it was like a salutation, a verbal salute, before beginning the actual prayer of “Thy will be done on earth as in heaven”.  I’m fairly sure a good percentage of the Church prays the Lord’s Prayer with a similar paradigm which boils down to this: may heaven be ours someday and meanwhile, “Thy will be done in things concerning the earth”.   However, there is a different understanding of the Kingdom of God in the light of  Psa 145:13:  “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your rule endures throughout all generations.”  Rather than a place and a future existence, the Kingdom is the rule of God, His power, His authority and His government and order in effect already, in fact, for all generations.
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May is for Lifting up Holy Hands in Prayer

The month of MAY IS FOR LIFTING UP HOLY HANDS IN PRAYER without wrath and doubting, which are contrary to faith, but praying “Thy will be done”, knowing that we are heard (1Jn.5:15).
“I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.” (1Tim.2:8, KJV)    “So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.” (Ps.63:4)

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Home Saved

May you carry in you the deep peace and knowledge that you are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb and may everyone in your home be saved and have that same peace.  “They replied, “Have faith in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved! This is also true for everyone who lives in your home.” (Acts 16:31, CEV)
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Yoke-Fellows

As the people of God assemble today may they be so focused on being yoke-fellows with those where God has set them in the Body of Christ that voices from the past and voices of faulty reasoning cannot reach them and call them away from their post.  “And I sent messengers to them, saying, I am doing a great work and cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave to come down to you?” (Neh.6:3, Amp)
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Our Daily Bread

(Kathy Gabler) — “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matt.6:11). . . This declaration is not a frugal request for bread crumbs to fight off hunger and poverty; rather it is an agreement with unlimited means for whatever is needed to walk out our purpose and bring glory to our Father.  He knows not only what we are to accomplish and steward in our day, but also in our lifetime, and He also knows the provision and timing of portions necessary to do so.  “Give us this day our daily bread” is deliberate agreement with our Father’s apportioning for life and purpose on a daily basis.  As sons we steward relationships, money, circumstances, business and mandates.  If we trust Father to apportion our daily provision, that provision will be neither limited nor wasteful, but I believe understanding this as a declaration of agreement will definitely blow our doors with the changes it brings to our lives.  That prayer is agreement with (1) Father’s economy, (2) Father’s accounting and (3) Father’s agenda.
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For Coming Generations

For the benefit of coming generations may the Lord help us to connect effectively with coming generations so that we may impart the values and principles of Holy Scripture.  ”And you shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you rise up.” (Deut.11:19, Amp)
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Higher Authority Than Our Fears

Most everyone would admit, at some point, that they are fearful. Many things can drive the fears that deplete our hopes and expectancies. But, everything you fear operates on the authority of a government that is inferior to the government and King of the Kingdom of God. (Lk.2:11b, The Voice) “…He is the promised Anointed One, the Supreme Authority!”  (Matt.4:23b, Msg) “[Jesus]… taught people the truth of God. God’s kingdom was His theme—that beginning right now they were under God’s government, a good government!”  (Rom.13:1a, Msg) “All governments are under God.”  (Col.2:10, GNT) “and you have been given full life in union with Him. He is supreme over every spiritual ruler and authority.”  We are praying you discover daily that you are fearlessly living under the rule and authority of God Almighty. 

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Sons/Daughters of God are Carriers

(Melissa Gabler) — We/YOU carry what our nation and the world needs, and you can change things from where you are at this moment. God used a remnant of people time and time again to make big changes. He’s God, a tiny dose of His power can turn this thing upside-down! Our new motto for the middle of 2018 and beyond: As goes the remnant, so goes the nation.
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Broader Concept of Prayer

(Kathy Gabler) — While the most common understanding of prayer is an appeal or petition, I think The Lord’s Prayer illustrates a broader concept of prayer.  I see it as a prayer of alignment with God’s Word and will and character, or a declaration of agreement with God’s order and principles and intent.  If I viewed The Lord’s Prayer only as a petition, it would seem to be a formal format of how to properly ask for basic necessities.   While there is nothing wrong with that, I think there is more life in it and more relationship demonstrated in His model prayer.  This prayer takes on more dimension when it comes from a motive and priority to pray as sons who know and reflect their Father.
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End of the World?

(Editorial by MG) Yet, another prediction of the end of the world and/or the coming of the Lord has been the titillating subject of conversations. This prediction set for April 23, 2018, was actually first made by a preacher in 1843, sort of like a re-run or a borrowed subject revisited. If it got attention in 1843, it is very likely that it will get attention again in 2018. The names of the predictors and their notoriety rocket to dizzying heights from which they fall, seemingly unscathed, until their next worthless prediction stirs the insecure masses yet once again.

Is the world (even the church) having to look to the sky for a sign of Jesus because there are no signs of Jesus coming forth from Christianity? It seems that people are continually looking up into the sky. If there were manifestations of the risen Christ continually taking place through “Christians”, how would there be time for people (Christians and non-Christians) to stand around looking up for a sign? I have heard Christians talk about how much hope it gives them to hear about signs in the cosmos and I hear about people praying to see those signs. Why not pray that Christians will start praying to see the redemptive power of the risen Christ manifested in our communities, in drug addicts, in diseased babies, in disillusioned and hopeless teenagers and the deliverance of the miserable thousands held captive in human-trafficking? Time might be better spent if each of us were to look into our mirror (instead of the sky) and ask, “Where is there any sign of the risen Christ?”.
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Looking Into the Sky for a Sign

News services are using their valuable air time and print space reporting on Christians declaring the end of the world. Christians have said time and time again throughout my lifetime (more than six decades) that no generation has seen things worse than they are now, and it is now the end of the world and the coming of the Lord. They have looked up into the sky and sought all manner of natural signs to confirm their suspicions (Gal.4:10). Yet, I find it interesting that not one time have I heard anyone say that no generation of Christians has ever been more like Jesus than this generation (even after all these years and all these centuries of church attendance and observing the stars and dispensational charts). Amos has a great suggestion: “SEEK HIM that maketh the seven stars and Orion… THE LORD IS HIS NAME:” (Amos 5:8) Could it be that Amos would rather have us take valuable time and effort we are using to seek signs and actually use it to SEEK The LORD?
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Recall God’s Promises

As the people of God assemble today, may they recall and rehearse for one another the promises of faithful God and may they hope in them anew and afresh.   “Remember [fervently] the word and promise to Your servant, in which You have caused me to hope. This is my comfort and consolation in my affliction: that Your word has revived me and given me life.” (Ps.119:49-50, Amp)
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God’s Original Warranty

(Melissa Gabler) — God Himself created the original warranty when Jesus took those stripes on His back (Isa. 53:5 & 1 Pe. 2:24). Yeah, that’s right, we have a never ending warranty on us, signed in blood. This warranty includes, “…all things that pertain unto life and godliness” (2 Pt. 1:3).  Whatever you are dealing with is covered in your “warranty”. It’s fixable!  The siege is over because the Lord has already lifted up a standard against it (Is. 59:19).  Our individual lives are about the greater good so go ahead and be healed right now! You are too important to be silenced by sickness, pain, or emotional turmoil.
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How do we Resolve Anger?

Kathy Gabler) — How do we CHANGE and resolve anger?  The first step is HONESTY.   WARNING: our religious mindsets can set us up for defeat, if we believe that being angry is a sin.  If that is the case, the accuser of the brethren delights in keeping us on the witness stand, denying that we are angry.   He has an open and shut case against us and sues for damages.  Sometimes the suit lasts a lifetime!  But the Spirit of God lovingly bids us to get off the witness stand and calls us to the Judge’s chambers to admit the anger.  This might scare everyone in the courtroom, but it will not frighten the Judge. For in the honesty and truth of the Judge’s chambers change begins. Anger and grief begin to let go of our emotions.
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Walking in the way That is Right

May you lift your head, get a deep breath, may your eyes clear and focus and may you walk in the way that is right and enjoy the favor of the Lord.   “For the Lord God is a sun and a safe-covering. The Lord gives favor and honor. He holds back nothing good from those who walk in the way that is right.” (Ps.84:11, NLV)
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