Humble Yourself and Be Exalted

by Joyce Meyer

Therefore humble yourselves [demote, lower yourselves in your own estimation] under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt you.
1 Peter 5:6

The apostle Peter is a good example of a man who had to be humbled. In Matthew 26:31-35 we see that Peter thought more highly of himself than he should have. In this passage, we read that just before the crucifixion Jesus told His disciples they would all be offended and fall away from Him. In verse 33, Peter declared to the Lord that he would never do such a thing. In response, Jesus warned Peter that before that very night was over, his fears would cause him to deny Him three times; but Peter could not conceive that he would ever be that weak.

Peter really did not know himself, and many of us are the same way. We look at others and judge them, thinking, I would never do that. Then when we find ourselves in a similar situation, we do things we would have never believed possible. Peter needed to go through the experience of failing, of falling apart in the crisis hour. He had to see his weaknesses before he could bring them to the cross and find God's strength.

Yes, Peter failed miserably. He denied Jesus three times. He fell apart in a crucial time, but the end result was good. The experience humbled him and brought him to the place where God could use him greatly. God can only use humble men and women. We must humble ourselves and He will exalt us (see 1 Peter 5:6).

For more Daily Devotionas visit:  http://www.joycemeyer.org/Articles/Devotional.aspx

Why Can't I Fully Submit to God?

Satan is called the "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4), and due to Adam's sin, we are born on his team (Romans 5:12). John Bunyan pictured this conflict in his allegory The Holy War. Prince Emmanuel besieges the city of Mansoul to wrest it from the power of Diabolus. Unfortunately, the citizens of Mansoul are blindly committed to Diabolus and fight against Emmanuel, to their own detriment.

When we reach the age when we can make moral choices, we must choose whether to follow our own sinful inclinations or to seek God (seeJoshua 24:15). God promises that when we seek Him with all our hearts, we will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13). When we find Him, we have a choice to make: do we continue following our own inclinations, or do we surrender to His will?

Romans 6:13says that God demands that we surrender the totality of our selves; He wants the whole, not a part: “Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.” Jesus said that His followers must deny themselves (Mark 8:34)—another call to surrender.

The goal of the Christian life can be summed up byGalatians 2:20: "I have beencrucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Such a life of surrender is pleasing to God, results in the greatest human fulfillment, and will reap ultimate rewards in heaven (Luke 6:22-23).
Read more:http://www.gotquestions.org/surrender-to-God.html#ixzz3cBaiDwBP

Make it Happen

HOW TO BUILD A LIFE OF LOVE

       1. ___________________ how mature love acts and responds.

       2. ___________________ your day with a daily reminder to love.

       3. ___________________ what God says about love.

       4. ___________________ acting in unselfish, loving ways.

       5. ___________________ from other loving people.

      “Keep company with God and learn a life of love.  Observe how Christ loved us.  His love was not cautious but extravagant.  He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us.  Love like that.”       Eph. 5:2 (Mes)

      “In this life we have three lasting qualities: faith, hope, and love.  But the greatest of these is love!”     1 Cor 13:13 (Ph)

Exploring the Meaning

WHAT IS LOVE?

      o LOVE IS A ___________________

      “Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another”    2 John 1:6 (NLT)

      o LOVE IS A ___________________

      “Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it—because it does!”     1 Cor. 14:1a (Mes)

      o LOVE IS A ___________________

      “Let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.”   1 John 3:18 (LB)

     

      o LOVE IS A ___________________

      “ God is love.  If we keep on loving others, we will stay one in our hearts with God, and he will stay one with us.” 1 John 4:16 (CEV)

A Daily Prophetic Word - 6/3/2015

http://www.purposedriven.com/day16/

WHAT MATTERS MOST

All About Love: 1 Cor. 13

Rick Warren

 “There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest.  He asked himself,'What shall I do, for I don’t have space to store my goods?’  Then he said, 'Here’s what I’ll do: I’ll tear down my barns and build me larger ones!  Then I’ll say to myself, "I have so many good

things stored up for me - now rest, eat, drink, and be merry!”  But God said to him, 'You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and then to whom will all your things belong?’  Thus will it be for anyone who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich in what matters to God."               Luke 2:16-21 (NAB)

“If you are a follower of Christ Jesus ... All that matters is your faith that makes you love others.”  Gal. 5:6 (CEV)

A Daily Prophetic Word

#‎AGodlyWord‬ Working with the Holy Spirit I certainly remember lots of times in my life when people asked me why I was being so harsh. I didn't realize that I was. I just had a lot going on and felt pressured, so the pressure came through in harsh voice tones. That didn't excuse my bad behavior, but it was the root of the problem. I am very thankful I know the Word of God and have Him in my life to help and comfort me. But a lot of difficult people don't have that. I have had to work very hard with the Holy Spirit for the ability to act on God's Word when people are rude…instead of merely reacting with a behavior that matches or tops theirs. Jesus teaches us how to respond to those who treat us well and those who do not (see Luke 6:32–35). If you are in a situation that requires you to be with one of these hard-to-get-along-with people every day, I urge you to pray for them instead of reacting emotionally to them. Our prayers open a door for God to work through.

OBSTACLES TO PRAISE

Praise is both important and powerful. So why is it so difficult at times to praise God? The Bible explains that, even with the power of the indwelling Jesus, our hearts are still "more deceitful that all else" ( Jer. 17:9). We sometimes forget that we are always dependent on God to live victoriously in this life. Satan therefore tries to persuade us that we will eventually reach a point where we can "do it ourselves." The Scriptures are clear that Satan "prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" ( 1 Peter 5:8). Disguised as an "angel of light," the devil and his host seek subtly to subvert the praises the children of God owe to their heavenly Father. God, however, has given us grace in times of need, provided we humble ourselves ( Matt. 23:12; James 4:5-10). Praising God allows us to defeat the strategies of the enemy. As God's adopted children, we no longer have to remain slaves to sin ( Gal. 4:6-7). We have a powerful spiritual weapon in praise, and it is guaranteed to be effective ( II Cor. 10:4-5).