Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
-1 Corinthians 15:58


Employees of a large supermarket chain were challenged by a guest speaker to put their personal signature on the job. A few weeks later, the guest speaker received a call from 19-year-old Johnny, a bagger from the supermarket she had spoken at. He proudly told her he was Down syndrome and proceeded to tell his story.

"At first I didn't think I could do anything special for our customers because I'm just a bagger," said Johnny. "Then I got an idea! Every day I come home and find a thought for the day." He would print it out, sign the back, and put his thought for the day in every customer's bag and say "Thanks for shopping with us."

A month later, the store manager called the guest speaker to tell her about the transformation his store had gone through. Johnny's lane was three times longer than all the others—no one was willing to change; they all wanted his thought for the day. The whole store was filled with a wonderful spirit of service . . . and all because Johnny chose to make a difference.*

Flourish where you are, and make a difference in the world with what God has given you.

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The grass is always greener wherever you water it.
-Anonymous

Every Knee Shall Bow
by Max Lucado

". . . whoever believes in him shall not perish . . ."

How could a loving God send sinners to hell? He doesn't. They volunteer.

Once there, they don't want to leave. The hearts of damned fools never soften; their minds never change. "Men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory" (Rev. 16:9 NKJV). Contrary to the idea that hell prompts remorse, it doesn't. It intensifies blasphemy.

Remember the rich man in torment? He could see heaven but didn't request a transfer. He wanted Lazarus to descend to him. Why not ask if he could join Lazarus? The rich man complained of thirst, not of injustice. He wanted water for the body, not water for the soul. Even the longing for God is a gift from God, and where there is no more of God's goodness, there is no longing for him. Though every knee shall bow before God and every tongue confess his preeminence (Rom. 14:11), the hard-hearted will do so stubbornly and without worship. There will be no atheists in hell (Phil. 2:10--11), but there will be no God-seekers either.

But still we wonder, is the punishment fair? Such a penalty seems inconsistent with a God of love--overkill. A sinner's rebellion doesn't warrant an eternity of suffering, does it? Isn't God overreacting?

Who are we to challenge God? Only he knows the full story, the number of invitations the stubborn-hearted have refused and the slander they've spewed.

Accuse God of unfairness? He has wrapped caution tape on hell's porch and posted a million and one red flags outside the entrance. To descend its stairs, you'd have to cover your ears, blindfold your eyes, and, most of all, ignore the epic sacrifice of history: Christ, in God's hell on humanity's cross, crying out to the blackened sky, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matt. 27:46). The supreme surprise of hell is this: Christ went there so you won't have to.

"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."
(Romans 8:37)


The Bible calls us kings and priests (Rev. 1:6) and world overcomers (1 John 5:4). For many of us, those phrases are still becoming real. We're still learning who we really are.

If you'll look in 1 Chronicles, chapter 14, you'll see that David had a similar problem. He'd been anointed king by the prophet Samuel when he was just a teenager. He'd known for years that someday he'd rule over Israel. Yet somehow, it hadn't really sunk in.

But look what happens in verse 2: "And David perceived that the Lord had confirmed him king over Israel, for his kingdom was lifted up on high, because of his people Israel." Finally, it dawned on him! David perceived that the Lord had confirmed him king. I can just imagine David saying to himself, "I'm king. I'm actually king! I AM KING!" At that moment, being king ceased to be something David had only thought about. It became something he really was. He could see himself king.

What does that have to do with you and me? Much like David, you and I have been given a royal office. But it's not until we believe it that we can exercise the power or authority that goes with that office.

If you're sick, you can yell, "By His stripes I'm healed," 50 times a day. You can hope for healing. You can try to believe for healing till your hair turns gray. But if you don't really perceive yourself as whole and healthy in Christ Jesus, if you don't see yourself as "the healed" instead of "the sick," you won't get any supernatural help. Yet once that realization hits you that you are, in fact, "the healed," no one--not even the devil himself--will be able to keep you from getting well.

Step over the line from trying to believe to actually knowing by dwelling on the Word of God. Read it and think about it. Practice seeing yourself through the eyes of the Word until the reality of your royalty in Christ rises up in you!

" 'Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.' "
— Luke 12:21


There is a story in the Bible about a man named Esau who gave up everything for a little temporal pleasure. As the firstborn, Esau had been given the family birthright, which meant that he would one day be the spiritual leader of his family and would be in the ancestral line of the Messiah. But Esau didn't seem to care much about that.

One day, his brother Jacob came along and proposed a trade: Esau's birthright for some stew that Jacob was cooking. It sounded like a good deal to Esau at the time. Later, he realized how cheaply he had sold out. But it was too late.

Esau had no regard for spiritual things, and there are a lot of people like that today. They could care less about God until they are in a bind or until some tragedy hits. Then suddenly, miraculously, they have time for God. Then when the crisis is past, they return to their old ways.

Jesus spoke about a farmer whose crop had produced generously. The farmer decided to tear down his barns and build larger ones to store everything. That way, he could say to himself, "My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!" (Luke 12:19)

But God said, "You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get it all?" (Luke 12:20)

Are things on this earth more important to you than treasures in heaven? Everything you may hold dear will be left behind one day. And the only thing that will matter is what is waiting in heaven for you

"For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life."
— Galatians 6:8


A successful building contractor called in one of his employees, a skilled carpenter, and told him that he was putting him in charge of the next house the company was building. He instructed the carpenter to order all of the materials and oversee the entire process from the ground up.

The carpenter excitedly accepted his assignment. It was his first opportunity to actually oversee an entire building project. He studied the blueprints and checked every measurement.

Then he thought, "If I am really in charge, why can't I cut a few corners, use less expensive materials, and put the extra money in my pocket? Who would know the difference? After we paint the place, no one would be able to tell."

The carpenter set about with his scheme. He used second-grade lumber and ordered inexpensive concrete for the foundation. He put in cheap wiring. He cut every corner he possibly could, but reported the use of higher-quality building materials.

When the home was completed, he asked his boss to come and see it. His boss looked it over and said, "This is incredible. You did a fantastic job. You have been such a good and faithful worker and have been so honest all of these years that I am showing my gratitude by giving you this house."

We will reap what we sow. Just as we can't plant weeds and reap flowers, we can't sin and reap righteousness. There are reactions to our actions. Think about it: every day, we are either sowing to the Spirit or we are sowing to the flesh.

What kind of seeds will you sow today?

Conditional Obedience

"Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but followed the counsels and the dictates of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward." — Jeremiah 7:24


My dog practices selective listening. When he doesn't like what I am saying, he acts as though he doesn't understand me. If he is in my room at bedtime and I tell him to leave, he looks at me as if to say, "What?" It's as though his hearing is gone. On the other hand, he can be asleep behind closed doors, and if I go downstairs, open the cupboard, and pull out his leash, he suddenly has supersonic hearing. He is right there at my side.

When he likes what I want him to do, my dog hears and obeys me. But when he doesn't like what I want him to do, my dog doesn't hear and doesn't obey.

We can be the same with God. When God tells us to do something we like, we say, "Yes, Lord!" But when He tells us to stop doing something, we say, "God, I think you're cutting out on me. I'm not hearing you clearly."

Jesus said, "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you" (John 15:14). He didn't say, "You are My friends if you do the things that you personally agree with." God has told us in His Word how we are to live. It is not for us to pick and choose sections of the Bible we like and toss the rest aside.

If God tells you to do something, He says it for good reason, and you need to obey Him. If God says not to do something, He also says it for good reason. Even if you don't understand it, obey Him.

Five-foot-three is a popular size. That's how tall Sammy Davis Jr. and Judy Garland were, and Mahatma Gandhi, Nikita Khrushchev, Bo Derek, Mickey Rooney, and the Olsen twins. Voltaire was also 5'3", but the artist Prince didn't make the list. He's 5'2?". Pablo Picasso came in at 5'4", right up there with Mel Brooks, Michael J. Fox, and Queen Elizabeth.

Zacchaeus was short of stature, too, but his size was an asset. Because he was a "wee little man," he climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus, and there—out on a limb, so to speak—he came face-to-face with the Master. Jesus beckoned him down, walked with him to his house, and transformed him into a spiritual giant.

Most of us would like to change our appearance in some way. But Jesus said that no amount of worry would add a single cubit to our stature (Matthew 6:27). Don't be anxious or self-conscious about things you can't change about yourself. Let Jesus change the things that need changing, and trust Him with the rest. Remember—when you walk with Jesus, you're always walking tall.

Three Prophetic Blessings

1. The Right People
When God wants to bless you, He sends a person. There are two types of people: flesh people and faith people. It takes Godly discernment to distinguish between the two. God knows how to release the right people in your life!

2. The Right Plan
God has the perfect plan for your life. You are not an accident! One idea or plan from God can change your life. God never releases a miracle without first giving a plan.

3. The Right Place
When God calls you and saves you, He not only has the right people and the right plan, but He has the right place! God created places before He created people. And He has destined a place for you!

God will release His prophetic blessings to connect you with the right people, the right plan and the right place. Let God order your steps and direct your relationships!

"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him."
(John 14:21)


There's a dimension of living you can only experience when you make a decision to please the Father in every activity of your life. In that dimension, Jesus becomes real to you and manifests Himself to you.

Just after the turn of the century, God poured out His Spirit and started a revival on Azusa Street. It was an awesome time, a time when people's entire lives were turned inside out. Everything else in their world seemed to lose importance. Supernatural things were happening. God was manifesting Himself in their presence.

The people involved in that revival soon began to be known to the world as "holiness" people. They got that title because they were so obviously different from everyone else. They would let go of anything they thought didn't please God. They were so caught up in the power of the spiritual realm, they lost interest in natural things.

Few believers today even know what holiness means. Even fewer understand the outpouring of God that comes to those who dare to step into it.

Holiness simply means separated to God. It's what you do with your life day by day. It's ordering your conduct according to the Word of God and the prompting of the Spirit. Holiness is the habit of being one mind with God, of turning away from the ways of the world and living instead in agreement with Him. Holiness doesn't happen to anyone by accident. It requires a decision of the will. Make that decision today.

Love God with all your heart by keeping His commandments. He'll show His love to you by manifesting Himself to you in powerful new ways. He'll pour Himself out on you just like He did on those believers at Azusa Street and revival will truly begin in you.

A little girl used her mother's expensive gold wrapping paper to wrap a present; but money was tight, and the mother was upset that her daughter had wasted the paper. Nevertheless, the girl brought the gift to her mother and said, "This is for you." Though embarrassed by her earlier reaction, the mother became upset again when she saw the box was empty. "Don't you know that when you give someone a present, there's supposed to be something inside?" With tears in her eyes the girl said, "Oh Mama, it's not empty! I blew kisses into it until it was full." Crushed, the mother fell to her knees, wrapped her arms around her daughter and begged for her forgiveness. From that moment on, the mother kept the gold box by her bed to remember the unconditional love of her child.

God has given us an infinite amount of His unconditional love. Just as the gold box was a reminder of a child's love for her mother, the Word of God reminds us that our Savior loved us even unto death. Let us never forget this truth and always strive to love as God loves.

"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world."
(John 17:15-16)


Being peculiar. That's not something most of us work to achieve, is it? But, you know, we should.

God has called us to be peculiar--to stand out from the rest of the world as living proof of His power and His love (1 Pet. 2:9).

He doesn't, for example, want us to share the ailments of the world. He doesn't want us to share their sickness and poverty and failure. He's never wanted that for His people.

He gave us a physical illustration of that during the time the nation of Israel was held captive in Egypt. Pharaoh had refused to set the Israelites free, so God had allowed a thick darkness to cover the whole land. The darkness was so dreadful throughout Egypt that no one moved for three days.

"But," says Exodus 10:23, "all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings."

What a thrilling example of how God wants us to live. We should be glorifying God by the miraculously victorious lives we lead. We should constantly have people telling us, "I've heard how God healed you," or "I've heard how God prospered you and saved your children!"

So don't hold back. Put the Word of God to work in your life and dare to receive the rich blessings that belong to those who believe. Start using the Word to draw boundaries around your life, to paint spiritual warning signs for the devil. Signs that say:

Off Limits! According to God's Word, I don't belong to you anymore. My family doesn't belong to you. My health doesn't belong to you. My money doesn't belong to you. My ministry doesn't belong to you. I belong to a different kingdom. Now, back off in Jesus' Name!

Does that sound a little peculiar? Good. That's exactly what God has called you to be!