Video Bible Lesson - The Three Things We Can Give To God This Year by Greg Laurie

The Three Things We Can Give To God This Year 

by Greg Laurie

1/2 Hour of God’s Power with Scott Ralls

12/26/19

#Jesus, #Christian, #Bible, #Salvation, #Heaven, #God, #HolySpirit

The Confidence to Pray Bold Prayers

The Confidence to Pray Bold Prayers
KIA STEPHENS

“Then Peter said, ‘Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.’” Acts 3:6 (NIV)

Lying on my back staring up at the ceiling, a lone tear streamed from my eye and down the side of my face. I felt helpless, hopeless and overwhelmed by the plight of a close family member.

Everything in me wanted to just fix the problem: Make it stop.

Maybe if I had more money, I could change the outcome, I thought to myself. Money, however, would not solve the problem.

My loved one was dealing with the consequences of a long battle with substance abuse. The journey toward restoration and healing would be a long one. It had already spanned my entire life, and it was nowhere close to a resolution. As much as I wanted to apply a quick fix to the problem, I knew that would not provide the lasting help my family member needed.

What he needed was a life-transforming experience that could only come from the unchanging power of God. We see a similar situation in Acts 3 when Peter and John encountered a crippled man. They were traveling to the temple to pray when a man who’d been lame from birth asked them for money.

For many years, this man was placed at the temple gate to beg for his livelihood. He was in close proximity to the power, people and presence of God, and yet he limited his request to money. Peter took notice of him and said, “Look at us!” (Acts 3:4b, NIV). Then, seeing the man’s great need, Peter responded by saying, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk” (Acts 3:6b).

In the original Greek of the New Testament, the word “name” that Peter used means authority, and it speaks of one’s character. Peter staked the lame man’s healing on the authority and character of Jesus Christ. For some, this would have been a very risky move, but Peter knew Jesus intimately.

Peter knew the name Jesus was the Greek form of Joshua, which means the Lord saves. He knew Jesus was also known as “the Christ” or “Messiah” — which means Anointed One. He knew Jesus was Immanuel which means God is with us. As a result, Peter took the lame man by the right hand and immediately, he stood to his feet, his ankles became strong, and he began walking and praising God.

This life-transforming power is the same power available for us today. We can apply this power to the crippled circumstances in our lives.

Whether we’re dealing with a difficult marriage, a serious health concern, or a loved one battling an addiction, we can speak to those circumstances in the name of Jesus. Which begs the question, Why do we not see as many similar life transformations today?

It could be because we’ve lost faith in the name of Jesus. Maybe we’ve given His name a lesser value than that of power, doctors or money. Although there might be several reasons why we do not always see the same results Peter and John saw on that day, it doesn’t negate the reality that life-transforming power is found in the name of Jesus.

No matter how bleak, God invites us to pray bold prayers over all our crippling circumstances. God extends this invitation to every believer, including you and me. This is why I continue to pray and believe God for life transformation for my loved one. Just like Peter and John, we can stake our confidence in prayer on the authority and character of Jesus Christ.

Dear heavenly Father, thank You for giving us life-transforming power through Your Son Christ Jesus. Help me trust in the power of Your Name over every other name. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Psalm 20:7, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.” (NIV)

Luke 5:17, “One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.” (NIV)

Our Prince of Peace

Our Prince of Peace

By Dr. Charles Stanley

Isaiah 9:6

The Christmas rush is here. There are plans to make, gifts to buy, and parties to attend. Sometimes these activities leave us exhausted and cranky—instead of peace and joy, we may feel inner churning because there’s too much to do. Or perhaps this time of the year brings nothing but sad memories and loneliness. Unrealistic expectations and conflicts with loved ones often leave us depressed and discouraged.

How can Jesus be our Prince of Peace when our expectations and traditions fight against the tranquility we desire? To understand why Jesus was given this title, we must first understand what it means. First of all, God’s Son did not come to do away with all conflicts—not yet, anyway. One day He will return to earth and rule as King in an environment of external harmony, but that was not the purpose of His first coming. So while we’re on earth, we’ll have trouble (John 16:33).

When Christ left heaven to become a human baby, His goal was to bring us peace with God by reconciling us to the Father. His death on the cross paid our sin debt in full, and our relationship with God is restored. Now He offers us divine peace—an inner serenity that fills our hearts and minds no matter what is going on in our circumstances.

Is your life characterized by a quiet assurance that guards your heart and mind all day long (Phil. 4:6-7), or have stressful circumstances left you feeling depressed or agitated? Try setting aside time each day to fix your eyes upon Jesus. Then let Him heal your heart and calm your spirit.

5 Truths about God’s Blessing Over You

5 Truths about God’s Blessing Over YouBy Lisa Apello

“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26

The people of Israel had been camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai for almost a year after leaving Egypt. They had received God’s 10 commandments and his full law and built the tabernacle according to God’s precise instructions.

Now, on the cusp of moving toward the promised land and going into battle, God commanded the high priest Aaron to pronounce this blessing over the people. Because we hear these words recited so often, we can lose the awe that God would bless so extravagantly. Let’s dig out 5 truths in God’s blessing over you. 

1.God is the source of all blessing. Although often referred to as the priestly or Aaronic blessing, these words weren’t written by men. They are God’s words spoken through his priests to his people. God is a God who blesses. In fact, when God created Adam and Eve, the first thing He did was to bless them. {Gen 1:28} And the last thing Jesus did? He blessed his apostles. As Jesus was taken into heaven, he was blessing his apostles. {Luke 24:50-51}

While these words are often spoken as a prayer or petition, there is no “will you” or “may you” found here. God has proclaimed this blessing and has commanded that it be spoken over His people.

2. God blesses us personally. Six times, these verses repeat “you” and each time it is in the singular form. Rather than blessing Israel corporately in these verses, God of the universe blesses each one personally. In a crowd of more than 2 million, God saw each one. God sees you. God knows you intimately, cares for you individually and blesses you personally.

3. God bends down to benefit us.The Hebrew word for bless means to kneel down. Used metaphorically here, it shows that God bends down to give us Himself and with that, all of His benefits – His faithfulness, mercy, forgiveness, grace, love, comfort, joy, hope, guidance, redemption, adoption, acceptance and more. Ephesians 1:3 tells us we have every spiritual blessing through Jesus. Because God is infinite, we can never reach the end of His blessing.

4. God blesses as a father to his child. How can God lift His countenance upon us if He is in heaven and we are on earth? Doesn’t he look down upon us? These words are a picture of a father lifting his child in his arms above him. Just as that father lifts up his beaming face to that child, God shines His full pleasure, His full goodwill, and His full joy over you as His child.

5. God’s blessing brings peace.Who doesn’t want peace? But God’s peace is more than the absence of strife. The Hebrew word for peace, shalom, stems from the word which means restoration back to the original state. God’s peace means not just harmony, but completeness and wholeness, rest and welfare, soundness and safety.

Take heart today. In a world that is often hard and chaotic, God has bent down to bless you personally. God of infinite benefits gives them to you. And though the world may frown, God’s beaming countenance is upon you. Today, child, walk in the fullness of Your Father’s extravagant blessing.

A Prayer to Stop Worrying

A Prayer to Stop Worrying
By Rick Warren

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7 NLT, second edition).

It takes more than willpower to stop worrying. You already know that, because you’ve already tried it. You’ve thought, “I shouldn’t worry about this,” and yet you just keep on worrying about it.

Jesus says in Matthew 6:32, “People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things” (MSG). If you don’t have a relationship with God, you have every reason to worry. You’ve got to get to know God! As a believer, you have a heavenly Father who has promised to take care of you. You are God’s child, and children get special privileges. When you worry, God says, “You’re my child. Why are you acting like an orphan?”

Matthew 6:31-33 says, “Don’t worry at all about having enough food and clothing …. Your heavenly Father already knows perfectly well that you need them, and he will give them to you if you give him first place in your life and live as he wants you to” (TLB). Any time you take God out of the center of your life and put anything else there — no matter how good it is — you’re going to worry.

The Bible says, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will have its own worries. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:34 NCV). If you’re worrying about tomorrow, you can’t enjoy today. You miss today’s blessings. It’s OK to plan for tomorrow, but you have to live for today. Also, when you’re always worried about tomorrow, the future gets overwhelming. But God will give you the grace and strength you need when you get there. Right now, you only need enough power for today.

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7 NLT, second edition). How do you do that? One way is to memorize God’s promises in the Bible. They’re like an insurance policy for believers. When you know something’s covered, you don’t worry about it anymore. Another way is to pray. If you prayed as much as you worried, you’d have a lot less to worry about.

Pray this prayer today: “Dear Father, I admit that I often forget that you are with me. I often forget what you’re like. Would you please forgive me for that? I need to get to know you better. I need to get to know your Word and your promises better. Help me to put you first in every area of my life. Help me to live one day at a time. Help me to not worry about tomorrow but instead focus on what you’re doing in my life right now. I want to trust in your promise to take care of every one of my needs — financial, relational, physical, social, spiritual, and emotional. Help me to trust you more and worry less. I pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen.”