God Is Backward

by Mike Kendrick
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Success is not what you've done compared to what others have done. What is success?
Success is not what you’ve done compared to what others have done. Success is what you have done compared to what you were supposed to do. –Tony Evans

Have you noticed that God’s value system is radically different from ours?

In His kingdom, the first will be last and the last will be first (Matthew 20:16). To be great in His kingdom, we must become servants (Matthew 20:11). The proud will be humbled; the humble will be exalted (Matthew 23:12). Those who mourn are blessed (Matthew 5:4). Only when we are weak are we in a position to be experience His strength (2 Corinthians 12:9). And in order to truly live, we must die to ourselves (John 12:24).

There are many paradoxes like these in the Bible, so it shouldn’t surprise us that God doesn’t define success like we do. The world defines success as having a loaded bank account, receiving accolades, and having a fancy job title. Therefore, we admire movie stars, envy business tycoons, and worship star athletes.

Could it be that these people aren’t successful at all according to God’s definition?

God doesn’t consider the CEO of a Fortune 500 company a success just because of his position. A $120,000 Mercedes doesn’t impress Him. He doesn’t care if you make a name for yourself and are featured on Oprah. Instead, God says you are successful when you do with excellence what He has called you to do. Therefore, you can’t compare yourself to others to determine if you have been successful. Instead, God values your relationship with Him and the impact you make for Him.

Perhaps the best illustration of God’s perspective about success is His own Son. Jesus wasn’t born into a wealthy family with earthly fanfare; He was born in a stable among farm animals. His father was a hard-working carpenter in a small town. And, when Jesus chose his disciples, He didn’t select well-educated scholars, decorated military leaders, or astute businessmen. He chose common fishermen, a despised tax collector, and other ordinary guys. Even after His reputation grew and people wanted to crown Him as their leader, He chose the cross instead, a humiliating and disgraceful instrument of torture.

In spite of humble beginnings and a shameful death, Jesus was amazingly successful because He completed all that His Father sent Him to do (John 17:4). God’s value system is not at all like ours. God values humility and sacrifice, not wealth, fame, and beauty.

What are you doing to accomplish God’s purposes? Are you completing your God-given assignment? I encourage you to ask yourself each morning, “What will I do today to accomplish God’s plan? How will I move toward the mission He has given me?” Then you can experience true success.

Are You Using Your Sword?

by Revive Our Hearts
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In order to do battle with Satan's lies, dig into God's Word.
"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well" (Psalm 139:13–14).

"But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart'" (1 Samuel 16:7).

"The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord" (Psalm 45:11).

Suddenly I knew I had been lied to.

For years I struggled to accept my own beauty and value. I believed lies like "You have to be perfect in order to be loved," "Everyone else is thinner and more beautiful than you are," "Your value is tied to your weight," and "There's no such thing as too thin." It wasn't long before I started to dwell on those lies. Then I started to act. Before I knew it I was in bondage. And I didn't even know I had been lied to.

But that changed when I got serious about turning to God's Word for truth. When I read passages like the ones above and chose to accept them as truth, those lies suddenly lost their hold on my heart. God's Word became a spotlight pointing to areas that I'd been deceived.

This is the mystery spelled out by Hebrews 4:12: "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

God's Word is the sword we must use to defend ourselves against the lies told by the world and by the evil one. It is also the shovel we must use to uproot lies once they have taken root in our hearts. We cannot live lives committed to God's truth without loving and reading God's Word.

Many of you have told me that you also struggle in the areas of beauty and worth. My advice? Dig into God's Word. Others of you struggle with boy craziness or the need to have affirmation from a boy. Dig into God's Word. Some of you are wrestling with the consequences of past sins. Dig into God's Word. Some of you don't know where you've been deceived, but your lives are a mess and you sense that something isn't right. Dig into God's Word.

The Bible is so much more than a book. It is living and active. It is a sword that has the power to slice lies right out of our lives. Have you picked up your sword today?

Wear Your Helmet!

by Greg Laurie
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In Ephesians, Paul tells us to put on "the helmet of salvation." Guard your thoughts!
Paul tells us we are to take “the helmet of salvation” (Ephesians 6:17).
In a war, the two most sought-after and vulnerable targets on the ancient battlefield were the heart and head. With our heart and other vital organs ably protected by the breastplate of righteousness, the enemy will try to strike the head. One well-placed blow here and the battle is over.

What does it mean to wear the helmet of salvation?

It would seem to me that the apostle is telling us to watch our thoughts in general. Most temptation comes through the gateway of the mind and imagination.

This is why Paul tells us, “But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your mind may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3).

Smashing warped philosophies

When those “flaming arrows” of ungodly thoughts come, we need to have our guard up.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:5-6:

“We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity” (THE MESSAGE).

Watch your thoughts!

So watch what you allow into your thought life. Our minds, thoughts, and imaginations must be protected. Proverbs 23:7 reminds us, “As a man thinks, so is he.”

Satan recognizes the value of first getting a foothold in the realm of the thoughts and imagination, as this will “prepare the way” for that thought to translate into action! As it’s been said:

Sow a thought and reap an act.
Sow an act and reap a habit.
Sow a habit and reap a character.
Sow a character and reap a destiny.

So think “heavenly thoughts” today!

Take Up the Shield of Faith

by Brandon A. Cox
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Satan doesn’t get tired of stalking you with temptation and untruth. So take up your shield and stand strong in your faith!
Believing that victory is possible is the first step in achieving it. And for those who believe in Jesus, victory is not only possible, it’s certain. And the confidence that victory is certain is our greatest defense against the enemy who would seek to destroy us. Or as Paul put it…

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. - Ephesians 6:16 (NIV)

Satan doesn’t wear out. He doesn’t get tired of hounding God’s people, pestering us constantly with temptation and untruth. It is the shield of certainty that God has already won the war that will help us to knock down the arrows he hurls our way.

In Paul’s day, Roman soldiers on the front lines would carry an enormous wooden shield, covered in leather that had been soaked in water. When the enemy army shot its flaming arrows at the Roman line, those on the front would crouch down together and combine their shields to make a solid, thick wet wall that was not only impenetrable by the arrows, but also served to extinguish the flame.

This is faith. When we believe God’s truth about Himself, we carry a HUGE shield. And with that faith, we put out the flames of Satan’s arrows. When he whispers, “you’ll never measure up,” we can by faith proclaim but Jesus measured up for me. When he whispers, “God doesn’t really love you,” we can reply in faith God proved His love for me in that while I was yet a sinner, Jesus died for me. And so forth. Arrow after arrow will be deflected to the ground if we walk in the certainty of the victory that is ours.

So take up your shield and stand strong in your faith in the God who has already triumphed for you!

Dressed for Readiness

by Brenda Emmons
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We must recognize that God has a purpose for each of us every day, and we must open our hearts and minds to receive it. We must put on His will for our day and dress in complete obedience in carrying out His plan.
“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning” Luke 12:35

I rarely wake up already knowing what I am going to dress myself in for the day. It is one of the last things I think of and only when it is time to leave the house. There is no planning ahead… as a matter of fact I stand there in front of my clothes with a blank disinterested stare. I usually reach for the same thing based on its comfort…ease…and lack of needing ironing. We are told in our selected verse this morning to always be in a state of readiness when it comes to serving God. We must recognize that God has a purpose for each of us every day, and we must open our hearts and minds to receive it. We must put on His will for our day and dress in complete obedience in carrying out His plan. We must consider that the only way to accomplish all of this is to continue to stoke the fire within our hearts to keep the lamp burning. To reflect His light in our lives is to never let the lamp grow dim.

We are told in Psalm 119:105 that God’s word ‘is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.’ Through spending time learning what God has to say about every detail in our life we will be more ready to carry out His plan. His plan always includes reaching out to those who are less privileged than we are. His service always involves dealing with all people through the compassionate and gracious heart of God. He gave us the Holy Spirit as oil for our spiritual lamps so that our heart for others will never grow numb or dim. It is when we lose our focus on fellowship with the Trinity that we lose our focus on our responsibility for the burdened and the broken. If every one of us considered the spiritual garments required for service as much as we consider the earthly garments for pleasure stomachs would be fed and widows would be nurtured. Children would no longer be fatherless and churches would not be limited to walls. Our verse is small but has huge implications challenging us to look within ourselves, and become more intentional with our spiritual wardrobe and fellowship with the Flame

Wear the Breastplate of Righteousness

by Brandon A. Cox
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Satan aims for the heart. So guard yours by wearing the protective breastplate of righteousness and purity.
If you’re in enough battles, you’ll eventually suffer injuries, so you learn early on to protect the head and the heart as much as possible. In our spiritual battles, protecting the heart is less about avoiding emotional pain (which we can’t do if we’re going to counsel and serve hurting people) and more about avoiding unrighteousness, or to put it positively the way Paul did,

…with the breastplate of righteousness in place. - Ephesians 6:14 (NIV)

What is righteousness? The easiest way to grasp the concept is to imagine that which is pure and white, untouched by dirt or filth. Obviously, as sinners, we can’t go back and undo our consumption of unrighteous things anymore than we can take back our unrighteous deeds. What we can do is live as though purity defines us, because in Christ, purity does now define us as a result of the gracious work of God in us.

Satan aims for the heart. If he can harden it or divide it, he’s halfway to beating us in battle. So guard your heart by wearing the protective breastplate of righteousness and purity. If pornography or 50 shades of something or another currently shapes the desires and expectations of your heart, you’re completely vulnerable to utter ruin. If you harbor resentment or feast on gossip, you’re rendering your heart unable to show grace.

Watch the heart. Guard it closely. Wear the breastplate of righteousness. And if you think it’s too late… God performs spiritual heart transplants…

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. - Ezekiel 36:26-27 (NIV)

Cinching Up the Belt of Truth

by Pete Briscoe
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Pete Briscoe talks about the importance of truth and how it strengthens our very core.
“Who had deceived thee so often as thyself?” —Benjamin Franklin

Have you ever worn one of those weight-lifting belts and cinched it up nice and tight? It gives you a feeling of stability and strength. That’s what truth does. It strengthens us at our very core. Maybe that’s why the Bible calls us to put on the “belt of truth!”

But what is truth? Truth is reality—things as they really are as opposed to what they look like, as opposed to what they feel like, or sound like, or you wish they were like. That’s particularly important when we are talking about sincerely sensitive issues like heaven and hell. Yeah, it’s touchy, emotional stuff, so we need Truth as the undergirding reality that holds everything else up. Truth can also be found in a very special place. Jesus’ “high priestly” prayer reveals where:

“I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” —John 17:14-17 (emphasis mine)

First, we need to take time to know the truth. God has revealed His truth to us in Scripture. When you know the truth, lies are obvious. That comes through a lifelong discovery of truth in His Word.

Secondly, take your thoughts captive. This is the dynamic of getting Jesus involved. How? If we have a thought and wonder if it's a deception, we present it to Jesus and ask Him, “Jesus, I just had this thought. Is it a lie or Your truth? Open my eyes to Your truth.” And by His Spirit He will, and He will confirm it according to the principles of Scripture.

Thirdly, take your thoughts to community. One of the great joys of living in a community that believes the Bible is that we can sit down with one another and we can say, “Hey. Here’s what I’m thinking. Does it sound like a lie to you or does it sound like the truth?” And sometimes just by verbalizing it, before we’re even done saying it, we know it’s a lie. It’s obvious.

So where are you today? Is there someplace you are teetering between Truth and lies? Cinch up that belt of Truth!

Lord, I pray that You would strengthen me with Truth today. Bring to mind the Bible passage you want me to focus on. Strengthen me with it, protecting me against the lies of the enemy. I bring my thoughts to You now, to be taken captive by You. Thank You for the brothers and sisters around me who are honest and wise. Use them all to lead me in Your everlasting ways. Amen.