#thoughtofvictory

As long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate.

-Galatians 4:1

It’s easy to make excuses in relationships. “I was rude to her because she was rude to me. I shouldn’t have said it, but I was so tired.” No, you have God’s grace to always treat others with love and not say hurtful things.

You can either feed your flesh and say and do what you feel, or you can feed your spirit and keep your mouth closed and do the right thing. The problem is that if you keep saying everything you want, you’ll stay a child. The Scripture says that even though you’re an heir of God with an incredible inheritance that belongs to you—joy, peace, favor, promotion, and abundance—if you remain a child, it won’t be released.

Sometimes we let small things keep us from the big things God has in store. In the big picture, it’s a small thing to tame your tongue. God is simply asking you to use your words and actions to bless and not curse, to build up and not tear down.

Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice.

-Isaiah 30:18

You may feel as though you were shortchanged in life—you didn’t have a good childhood, or you’re dealing with a health issue [especially in these uncertain times], or your boss hasn’t treated you fairly.

The good news is that God saw the hurt and knows what you’re owed. He’s keeping the records. He may not be able to give you another childhood or bring back a loved one, but He can make the rest of your life so rewarding, so fulfilling that you won’t think about what didn’t work out.

The hand you’ve been dealt may not be fair, but it’s not a surprise to God. In the dark places of your life, you have to keep reminding yourself that God is a God of justice. He knows exactly what’s going on. He already has a way to settle your case.

Every time you’re tempted to worry, just turn it around and thank Him that payback is on the way. Thank Him that you’re coming into a place of no loss.

I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions, and like a cloud, your sins. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.

-Isaiah 44:22

Imagine your mistakes and failures as a thick fog covering you. You can barely see anything in front of you. Then the sun comes out, and the fog disappears. It doesn’t move somewhere else; the sun evaporates it.

We all have times when we’re clouded by sin, mistakes, and poor choices, but when you ask God to forgive you, the Son comes out, shines His light, and causes that sin to disappear—it’s gone. Hebrews 10:17 says He will remember our sins no more. My challenge to you is, quit remembering what God has forgotten. Quit bringing up what’s already evaporated. If you keep dwelling on and reliving mistakes you’ve made, you’re causing that dark cloud to follow you everywhere you go. God evaporates it, and it’s sunny for a few hours. But then you start thinking about it again, reliving the guilt, and a new cloud forms.

You are redeemed and restored, so keep the Son out in your life and walk in His light.

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.

-Psalm 37:4

In Genesis 17, God called Abraham “the father of many nations.” At that time, Abraham didn’t have any children.

He and his wife, Sarah, were too old to have kids. Abraham could have thought, “God, my wife is barren. I’m childless. What are You talking about?” Here’s the principle: God calls you what you are before you become it; people call you what you are after it happens. There are promises, goals, and dreams that God has placed in your heart. You didn’t come up with them on your own. Those aren’t just your desires; God put them there.

The “secret petitions of your heart” are the things you dream about, that you haven’t told anyone. They seem too big, too far out. That’s your destiny calling. That’s God telling you what you can become. Don’t talk yourself out of it. God has spoken it. All He’s looking for is you to agree with Him.

Don’t hide your light! Let it shine for all; let your good deeds glow for all to see, so that they will praise your heavenly Father.

-Matthew 5:15

God has put gifts and talents in you. He’s given you dreams and goals that are unique to your life.

But it’s easy to let fear hold you back. What if I try and fail, what if people don’t accept me, what if I don’t have the talent? Too often we let the what-ifs talk us out of it. Many people are living with hidden dreams, talent, and potential. My message today is very simple: Quit hiding what God has given you.

When God breathed His life into you, He created you to shine, to make a difference, to leave your mark. Your gift isn’t just for you; it’s to share with the world. When we come to the end of life, nothing will be more disappointing than to think, What could I have become if I hadn’t let fear hold me back?

Life is short, so stir up what God put in you. This week, make the most of your talents, your dreams, your gifts. Don’t let fear hold you back.

...Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom...

-2 Corinthians 3:17

If you’re always thinking about something negative that happened yesterday, last month, last year, there’s no freedom there. That’s where the Spirit of the Lord was. This is a new day.

Quit living in what was and come over into what is. Right now there is freedom, joy, peace, and restoration for you. Right now there are new beginnings. Remaining upset and offended about what happened yesterday doesn’t bring freedom. Living in regret of what you should have done or what could have been doesn’t do anything productive. It’s time to drop it and move forward. You may be a product of your past, but you don’t have to be a prisoner of your past.

God already knew every hurt, every loss, and every mistake you would go through. The good news is that for every setback, He’s already arranged a comeback; for every disappointment, a new beginning; for every failure, restoration; for all the ashes, He has beauty. Live in freedom.

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

-Philippians 4:8

It’s interesting that our mind will naturally gravitate toward the negative. One study showed how positive and negative memories are handled by different parts of the brain. A negative memory takes up more space because there’s more to process. As a result, we will remember the negative more than the positive. For example, a person will remember losing fifty dollars more than they will remember gaining fifty dollars.

Knowing this, we have to be proactive with our thoughts. When negative memories come back to the movie screen of the mind, many people pull up a chair, get some popcorn and watch them all over again. No, the point is that’s not the only channel. There’s another movie playing on a channel that’s filled with your accomplishments and victories.

Instead of staying on that negative channel, switch over to your victory channel. You’re not going to move forward into the new things God has in store if you’re always replaying the negative things that have happened to you. Instead, learn to change the channel.

Meditate on victory and move forward in the victory and blessing God has in store for you!

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

-Colossians 3:12

Too often, when something doesn’t go the way we expect, we make the mistake of telling ourselves, “It’s not fair. It’s not right. When that changes, when it improves, then I’ll have a better attitude.” No, you’ve got to make the first move. You do your part and God will do His part. Quit worrying about God changing another person, and allow God to change you first.

Is there something you’re letting overwhelm you? Maybe you think it’s too much. Why don’t you get up every morning and make this simple declaration, “God, I want to thank You that I can handle anything that comes my way today. I can handle a difficult boss. I can handle getting stuck in traffic. I can handle my plans not working out. Lord, thank You that I’ll have a good attitude wherever I am.”

Decide ahead of time that you are going to stay in an attitude of faith and expectancy. Choose to clothe yourself with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Choose God’s ways and let Him order your steps all the days of your life.