Tag: Soul

Posted on

Don’t Give Him the Satisfaction!

JULY 20

MATTHEW 6:22_if therefore thine eye be single…

When Jesus refers to the eye being single He does not mean a person with just one eye. Neither does He mean a person who has sight in only one eye. Jesus is teaching a principle here, not a lesson in physical science.

If you are a person who only has sight in one eye or if you’re totally blind – don’t you dare think you are in some way inferior. Thoughts of inferiority come from the devil – never from Jesus. As the Creator, Jesus understands the body, soul, and spirit. He understands the principles by which they operate. He created them to function together, with the spirit being the mainspring.

The devil has no understanding, or even knowledge of how Jesus’ principles of life work. He is the deceiver.  It doesn’t really matter to him how Jesus’ creation works, because he plans to deceive you into believing his lies and not the truth. He knows how to discourage. He knows how to intimidate. He knows how to tempt.

The devil wants to deceive you out of your hope. He knows if he can get your focus off of Jesus, and into a defeated, giving up, I-don’t-stand-a-chance attitude, he’s won a major battle in your life. Don’t give him the satisfaction!

Remember, light expels darkness.

PRAYER

Holy God of Heaven, Help me not to be discouraged by the devil’s lies. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ knows the devil’s lies—He helps me overcome!

Posted on

The Devil Hates Freedom

JULY 17

MATTHEW 6:20_where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal.

No one can steal your spiritual gifts. The devil will do everything he can to do just that. He wants to discredit all of the fruits of the Spirit. When you are having a bad day, and the fruits don’t appear to be producing – the devil targets your soul. He whispers in your mind, will, and emotions that you have no love, joy, peace, longsuffering (patience), gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, or temperance (self-control). He tries to convince you that you are too low on God’s list for Him to give you these gifts. You are not the only one he accuses of being unworthy of the kingdom. The devil targets all believers. 

The devil calls out all the demons in his deadly arsenal to attack you. He sends them to steal the virtues the Spirit bestows – lest you receive the fruit of freedom. The devil hates freedom. That’s why he hits you when you are down.

When your heart is broken, where is your joy?  When your future plans have fallen apart, where is your peace? When you feel God has deserted you, where is your faith? Times will come when you feel like this but …

The devil does not have the power to steal your treasures in heaven.    

PRAYER

Compassionate Jesus, I ask You to rebuke the devil when he taunts my soul. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ rebukes the devil—He will do it for me!

Posted on

Stuff Breaks

JULY 13

MATTHEW 6:19_where moth and rust doth corrupt…

Jesus doesn’t want you to be consumed by anything but His love. And He doesn’t want you to hoard that – He wants you to give it away!

The Creator understands body, soul (mind, will, emotions), and spirit. He understands how they work independently and together. Remember John Donne’s no man is an island phrase? Whatever God’s ultimate plan is for your life will involve people. Some may be family, some may be friends, some may only be acquaintances, and some you may never meet. But God wants to teach you how to love the people He brings your way. In order to love freely, your heart must be free. A heart bound by the love of wealth simply can’t give itself away in a 180 degree topsy-turvy fashion. 

Jesus gets a little graphic concerning possessions. They can rust. Moths can eat holes in them. Stuff breaks. It tears up. Earthly possessions are frail at best. Why would you let your heart get all wrapped up in stuff that breaks? 

Psalm 49:16-17 (KJV), “Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased; 17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.”

What is made in this life will remain in the earth.

PRAYER

God of All Truth, Free my heart to love You and Your people. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ wants people in my life—He teaches me to love!

Posted on

Free Me!

JULY 12

MATTHEW 6:19_Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth…

Aesop’s fable has some good advice. Jesus gives wise advice. Remember, Jesus teaches radical 180 degree creation principles. Look deeply into His teaching.

One way to study the Bible is to examine words. The key word to understand this verse is treasure. Merriam-Webster defines treasure as, wealth … stored up or hoarded. Jesus is not talking about preparation for future expenses. When you know your college tuition is due next month, don’t spend all your money this month. 

Another way to clarify the meaning is to examine I Timothy 6:9-10 (KJV), “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

The key words in verse 10 are, “For the love of…”

Great wealth, and the power which comes with it, has potential to consume the human soul.

Jesus wants you to live free, not in bondage to wealth.

PRAYER

God Who is my Treasure, I want You to be my treasure. I want to be consumed by You. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ wants me free from the love of money—Free me!

Posted on

Good-Versus-Evil

JUNE 19

MATTHEW 6:13_but deliver us from evil…

Because the world is full of evil does not mean good does not exist. Nor does it mean good does not prevail. Good prevails more than evil – it is just harder to see. Ultimately, it will prevail once and for all. In the meantime, you live with evil.

Every day is a good-versus-evil battle. The times when evil wins are difficult. Just to see some of the world’s evil on the News can be disturbing. It causes an oppressive spirit to hang heavy in your soul. You ask God how such things can happen. You wonder how humans reach such a level of degradation.

When there is evil in your personal life – you need hope.  

When you pray not to be led into temptation, add as Jesus did to be delivered from evil. The devil intends evil daily. That’s his intention. It does not mean he wins. God intends mercy daily. God holds all the cards. One card God holds which the devil can never get his hands on is found in Romans 8:28 (KJV), “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.“

Get to know this verse and praise God for it. This is why good prevails more than evil. God can take the devil’s evil and cause good for His people. The times when evil wins a battle are not the end of the war. Your hope is in this verse.

Somewhere in the long run, God’s compassion and power will use pain to make you a better person!              

PRAYER

God of Hope, Please deliver me from evil. I know evil is in the world, but I know You are greater than the world. I praise Your power that helps me! In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ can make good from the devil’s evil – He does it for me!