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“Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” —John 16:24 (ESV)

“What do you need? Ask Jesus!” By Jeff Wells

“The disciples had asked things of God, but they had not learned to ask in Jesus’s name. This was new for them. Followers of Jesus must learn to pray in Jesus’s name.

To pray in Jesus’s name does not mean to tack his name on to the end of a prayer, like a magic formula to make your prayer valid. Rather, to pray in Jesus’s name is to come to a holy God through the blood of Jesus, and it means we pray the same sorts of things that Jesus would pray.

To pray in Jesus’s name is to pray Christ-centered, Christ-focused, Christ-enthralled prayers. My will means nothing, Christ’s will mean everything. My glory means nothing, Christ’s glory means everything. When we pray this way, in the name of Jesus, then those prayers will be answered.

So ask. Ask freely. Ask without hesitation. Ask. This is Jesus’s repeated call to you: ask, ask, ask. Don’t get to heaven and find out you could have had so much more if only you had asked. “You do not have, because you do not ask.”

And why does Jesus want you to ask? For your joy. That’s how good God is; he is zealous to give you as much joy as you can hold. You must see God as wanting your deepest joy. C.S. Lewis wrote, “The ultimate purpose of God in all his work is to increase joy. Joy is the serious business of heaven.” Similarly, Dorothy Sayers remarked, “The greatest sin of the Christian is to be joyless.” And Julian of Norwich said, “The greatest honor we can give Almighty God is to live gladly because of the knowledge of His love.” God wants you to experience full joy.

So ask. Ask freely. Ask for the glory of Jesus, and the Father will grant it. He will grant it so that you have joy.”

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” —John 14:1‭, ‬27 (NKJV)

“Calm down, Jesus is here!” By Jeff Wells

“It is incredible how much the God of the universe wants us to have his peace. Or, to be more direct and personal: it is incredible how much the God of the universe wants you to have his peace.

We see this so strongly in John 14. It’s the eve of Jesus’s crucifixion. Jesus is leaving his disciples, and they are more than a little upset. They are heartsick and worried. They have left everything to follow Jesus, and now all their hopes and dreams have come crashing to the ground. Besides that, they are in considerable physical danger. They are very troubled.

Jesus cares. He cares deeply. His heart goes out to them, just like his heart goes out to you.

The chapter began with the tender words of Jesus saying, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1). Now, in verse 27, he again addresses their troubled souls. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

How strong and emphatic is the heart of Jesus that you rest in his peace. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.”

Jesus offers it. We only need to receive it. “Yes, Lord! I receive your peace. Flood me with your peace.”

When you are assailed by worry and fear, don’t take it. Say no, then choose to receive the peace of Jesus. “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” This is the heart of Jesus for you.”

“‘I have loved you with an everlasting love...’”

—Jeremiah 31:3

“Everlasting Father: God Loves You” By Laura Woodworth.

“From the beginning of time, the Everlasting Father has loved you with an everlasting love. The Son that was given – born to a virgin in a humble stable and laid in a straw-filled manger – was sent because God “so loved the world.” (John 3:16)

The holy child, the Son of God, was sent to earth so that you could live and not die. Jesus is the promised sacrificial lamb, “slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelations 13:8) so that the sin that would prevent you from entering God’s presence would be covered by his blood.

What love displayed!

Before the world began, you were on God’s mind! You are not alone. The lover of your soul is right there with you, beside you, loving you even before time began.

If you’re feeling unloved and alone, remember the baby in the manger and then remember his death on the cross. This is love. This is God’s love for you.”

“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” —John 14:6 (ESV)

“Jesus is the only choice you have” By Jeff Wells:

“Did Jesus ever say anything quite so astounding as this? Did he ever say anything so controversial? So difficult?

Who talks like this? Can you imagine any religious teacher, any political leader, any military leader, any great man saying this?

“I am the way.” Not just that I know the way or point to the way, but I am the way, the only way.

“I am the truth.” Not just that I know the truth or have the truth, but I am the truth. I embody truth. Truth is found in me.

“I am the life.” Not just a way to life or a source of life, but life itself. All life is found in me, and there is no life apart from me.

“No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus is not trying to be exclusive or narrow. It’s just the way it is. There is no other sacrifice for sin, no other source of life, no other way to God.

There is a striking scene in C.S. Lewis’s The Silver Chair:

“Are you not thirsty?” said the Lion.

“I’m dying of thirst,” said Jill.

“Then drink,” said the Lion.

“May I–could I–would you mind going away while I do?” said Jill.

The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. And as Jill gazed at its motionless bulk, she realized that she might as well have asked the whole mountain to move aside for her convenience.

The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic.

“Will you promise not to–do anything to me, if I do come?” said Jill.

“I make no promise,” said the Lion.

Jill was so thirsty now that, without noticing it, she had come a step nearer. “Do you eat girls?” she said.

“I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,” said the Lion. It didn’t say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it.

“I daren’t come and drink,” said Jill.

“Then you will die of thirst,” said the Lion.

“Oh dear!” said Jill, coming another step nearer. “I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.”

“There is no other stream,” said the Lion.”

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” —John 14:27 (NIV)

“Experiencing God's Peace” by YouVersion - Day 1 of 5

“What Is Peace? If you ask people what peace means, they’ll give you a variety of answers:

Peace and quiet

Tranquility

Freedom from disturbance

Lack of oppressive thoughts or feelings

Harmonious relationships

Time without war

Absence of hostility or harm

While those answers aren’t bad or wrong, they are usually from a viewpoint that doesn’t include God in the equation. The world’s peace is different from God’s peace. Worldly peace is temporary and dependent upon circumstances, and doesn’t provide the kind of peace Jesus is offering. When things are calm, we’re at peace. When our circumstances grow dim, we’re not at peace.

In John 14:27, Jesus doesn’t want our hearts to be troubled. Because although we concern ourselves with temporal struggles, He’s offering a permanent solution, which is His peace. It doesn’t matter how intelligent we are, how decorated our resumes are, how many inventions are credited to our names, or how smart, creative, and wise we are—we don’t know how to create peace.

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” —Romans 12:2 (NLT)

“Who controls your thoughts?” By Tony Evans (YouVersion Plan) - Day 1 of 3

“God looks at your future, while the enemy tries to keep you in your past.  God says, “You can, in spite of what has been done!” The enemy says, “You can’t, because of what you have done!” God will never define you by your past issues, but the enemy will try to confine you by them. Whether it is the good, bad, or ugly that dominates your life up until now, it is Satan’s goal to keep you chained there. 

Never let your yesterday keep you from your tomorrow. Learn from yesterday, but don’t live in it. Your victory comes through learning and then applying what you’ve learned. Becoming who God wants you to be starts with your thoughts.

Always remember that Satan’s number one strategy is to plant unhealthy thoughts in your mind, repeating them over and over until you start to think they are your own thoughts. When Satan told Eve she would be like God if she ate of the fruit, whose thought was that? That thought came straight from Satan himself. In fact, he’d had the same thought before, as we read in Isaiah 14:14: “I will make myself like the Most High.” It was Satan’s thought, but he planted it in Eve’s mind. 

“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith.” —1 Peter 5:8‭-‬9a (NLT)

So, be mindful of the devil. Don’t let him have free reign in your mind.  Who are you going to listen to?”

1. “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” —2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV)

2. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” —Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

3. “In conclusion, my friends, fill your minds with those things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honorable.” —Philippians 4:8 (GNT)

“Who controls your thoughts?” By Tony Evans (YouVersion Plan) Day 3 of 3

“One reason Satan’s strongholds are so powerful is that they become entrenched. This happens when Satan can get you to buy into the lie that your situation is hopeless. His goal is to get you to believe that by nature you are a drug addict or a manipulator or a negative person, that you are controlled by fear or shame, that nothing will ever change, and so on. Once you give in to and adopt this line of thinking, these fortresses become difficult to remove. Your behavior deteriorates even more since all of us act according to who we believe we are.

The only solution is to tear down these fortresses by “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). Reprogram your mind and release yourself from captivity. This is how you unleash your full potential and free yourself up to then help other men rise to do the same.

The solution is twofold but straightforward. First, identify Christ’s thoughts on a matter, and secondly, align your own thinking under the rule of His truth. Then the truth will set you free (John 8:32). In what areas of your life do you need to take your thoughts captive?”

“I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed.” —Malachi 3:6 (NLT)

“For I am the Lord, I do not change [but remain faithful to My covenant with you]; that is why you, O sons of Jacob, have not come to an end.” —Malachi 3:6 (AMP)

“God Will Never Change, But You Can!” By Joyce Meyer:

“Why is it that we find ourselves thinking, "Nothing will ever change... I'm always going to be like this... My situation will never change... He'll never change... She'll never change... I'm never going to be as good as so-and-so?"

The only thing that can never change is God. Everything else can change.

But if you have no hope of seeing change in your situation, change probably isn't going to come. You know, we endure so many things emotionally that we really wouldn't have to suffer if we would put our hope in God and stop looking at all of the circumstances we can't control.

Here's the good news: You can enjoy life if you decide to! But you must truly believe that it is God's will for you to experience continual joy. Then you must decide to enter into that joy, which is essential to your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health.

God doesn't change, but He can change you if you let Him.

Prayer Starter: God, sometimes I feel like my situations will never change, but I know that You can change them. I choose to receive Your joy and I trust You to change my life.”