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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 10th

📖 A [self-confident] fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to himself. 
—Proverbs 18:7 AMPC  

A fool will destroy his own life with his own words. Think about that for a second. We can choose our words, but we must choose our words carefully. Proverbs 13:2 AMPC, tells us that, “A good man eats good from the fruit of his mouth”. We determine how we eat based on our words. We determine the quality of life we live by the words we speak. If you don’t like the life you’re living, change the words that you are speaking. Death and life are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). It is in our best interest to speak words of life. Speak life over your children. Speak life over your health. Speak life over your finances. Don’t allow your lips to be a snare to yourself. Your words can bring ruin, or they can bring success; the choice is yours. 

#wordsoflife #vcccharlotte #speaklife #devotional 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 9th

📖 He took Peter with him and Zebedee’s two sons James and John, and began to be filled with anguish and despair. 

Then he told them, “My soul is crushed with horror and sadness to the point of death . . . stay here . . . stay awake with me.” 

He went forward a little, and fell face downward on the ground, and prayed, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup be taken away from me. But I want your will, not mine.” 
—Matthew 26:37-39 The Living Bible 

Jesus was committed to the will of God. Throughout His earthly ministry, He reminded people of His commitment. In John 4:34, “Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish His work”. Notice that Jesus wanted to finish the work that the Father had sent Him to do. Many believers get in trouble when they try to complete a work that God did not send them to do. In John 6:38, Jesus said, “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me”. Once again, it was about God’s will for His life. There can be times when we don’t want to walk in God's will for our lives. He may send us to a city we may not want to stay in. He may send us to a job we aren't very fond of. Whatever the case may be, we must get our will in line with God's will. God knows best and there are benefits to walking in the path that He has preordained for us. You may have to cry. You may have to pray. You may have to do what you need to do but get your will in line with God's. His plans are better than ours. He always has our best interest at heart. We must stay committed to the will of God for our lives. Our Father knows best. 

#willofGod #vcccharlotte #staycommitted #devotional  

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 8th

📖 Understand [this], my beloved brethren. Let every man be quick to hear [a ready listener], slow to speak, slow to take offense and to get angry. —James 1:19 AMPC 

The Bible tells us to live peaceably with all men (Romans 12:18). One way we can walk that out is by being a ready listener; and one that is slow to speak and slow to get angry. We should endeavor to hear everyone out and then take the time to think about what has been said to us. Once we have thought things through, we should be willing to speak on the matter and not take offense and get angry. Many times, disagreements take place when we speak too hastily, not taking the time to think it through. We must also work on being too quick to take offense. Sometimes the person who offended us did not mean to intentionally upset us. Sometimes we misinterpreted what was said and instead of thinking things through, we were quick to take offense. We must be people who walk in love and think the best of everyone. If we were quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to take offense and get angry, we could be people who can walk that out. 

#vcccharlotte #peace #devotional #love

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 7th

📖 So keep the words of this covenant and obey them, so that you may prosper and be successful in everything that you do. —Deuteronomy 29:9 AMP

The world has its ideas about what it takes to be successful. They have their ideologies, and they have their formulas. Some of their ideas have caused success, but it has not guaranteed success. When we operate by the Word of God, we can know that success is imminent. We can know that God is watching over His Word to perform it. We can know that God is not a man that He should lie. We follow the commandments of the Word of God out of our love and respect for God; and as we follow them, we know that God will honor our obedience. The Bible tells us that it is the doer of the Word that is blessed and not the hearer only (James 1:22). As we are doers of the Word, we can expect the Blessing of the Lord to come upon us and overtake us. It may take patience. It may take diligence, but eventually, we will walk in it if we don’t quit and give up. God’s Word works. 

#success #Godsword #devotional #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 5th

📖 Seek, inquire of and for the Lord, and crave Him and His strength (His might and inflexibility to temptation); seek and require His face and His presence [continually] evermore. 

[Earnestly] remember the marvelous deeds that He has done, His miracles and wonders, the judgments and sentences which He pronounced [upon His enemies, as in Egypt]. 

He is [earnestly] mindful of His covenant and forever it is imprinted on His heart, the word which He commanded and established to a thousand generations, 
—Psalm 105: 4-5, 8 AMPC 

We serve a covenant keeping God. He is a God of miracles. He is willing to do signs and wonders on our behalf in order to honor His covenant in our lives. That could be the reason the people were told to remember all the marvelous deeds that God had done on their behalf. He did it to honor His covenant. He did it out of His love for His people. We ought to seek the Lord. We should crave Him and His strength. Our relationship with God will enable us to believe and trust in God, especially when times get difficult. God is ever mindful of His covenant. He promised to never leave us nor forsake us. He even promised to reward those who diligently seek Him. Our expectations should go through the roof when we consider Who God is and what God can do. He is earnestly mindful of His covenant and ready to act on it on our behalf. What a privilege it is to be in the household of faith. 

#vcccharlotte #covenant #devotional #householdoffaith 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 4th

📖 May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob set you up on high [and defend you]; 

Send you help from the sanctuary and support, refresh, and strengthen you from Zion; 

Remember all your offerings and accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah [pause, and think of that]! 

May He grant you according to your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans. 

We will [shout in] triumph at your salvation and victory, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners. May the Lord fulfill all your petitions. 

Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with the saving strength of His right hand. 

Some trust in and boast of chariots and some of horses, but we will trust in and boast of the name of the Lord our God. 

They are bowed down and fallen, but we are risen and stand upright. 

O Lord, give victory; let the King answer us when we call.  
—Psalm 20 AMPC

Do you can see the benefit of serving God? God will answer you in the day of trouble. The Lord will defend you. The Lord will send you help, angelic help. God will grant your heart’s desire and fulfill your plans (when your plans line up with His will and plan). This is the testimony of David, but keep in mind David wasn’t a child of God. He was a man after God’s heart, but He did not have the standing of “son” the way that we do today. David functioned out of his relationship with God, and it worked in His favor. It will always work in our favor when we serve God, when we love Him with all our heart. Like David, we trust in Almighty God. We don’t put in our trust in horses and chariots. We don’t put our trust in the things of this world. Our trust is in God. Trusting God is the starting point to victory. We can expect to walk in victory when we seek trust in the Lord. God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6) 

#serveGod #vcccharlotte #trustingGod #devotional #walkinvictory 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 3rd

📖 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will imprint My laws upon their minds, even upon their innermost thoughts and understanding, and engrave them upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 

And it will nevermore be necessary for each one to teach his neighbor and his fellow citizen or each one his brother, saying, Know (perceive, have knowledge of, and get acquainted by experience with) the Lord, for all will know Me, from the smallest to the greatest of them. 

For I will be merciful and gracious toward their sins and I will remember their deeds of unrighteousness no more. 
—Hebrews 8:10-12 AMPC 

God is not keeping a record of your sins. When we confess them to Him, He doesn’t remember them anymore. Satan is the one keeping up with your sins. He is the one reminding you of them and endeavoring to bring condemnation to you. Don’t let him do it! God loves us. He wants us to remember His laws and His statutes. He wants His Word imprinted in our hearts so that He can be our God and a Father to us. God desires relationship. He wants us to know Him because He is good. He is good and His mercies endure forever. We serve a loving God. 

#Godislove #vcccharlotte #Helovesus #devotional  

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 2nd

📖 And Paul lived there for two full years [at his own expense] in his own rented lodging and welcomed all who came to him, preaching and proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness and boldness, unhindered and unrestrained. —Acts 28:30-31 AMP 

Look at the favor that Paul walked in. He was supposed to be in prison. Instead, he was living in a home and was able to receive visitors. He was preaching from this residence, and no one hindered him from doing it. God is no respecter of persons. We can walk in extravagant favor the way Paul did. God can open doors for us that will cause us to experience His favor in an extraordinary way. We don’t have to experience what the world experiences. We can excel and experience the best wherever we find ourselves. We are in the world, but we are not of the world. We can have heaven right here on earth. God’s favor will cause that to become a reality in our lives. 

#God’sfavor #vcccharlotte #thebest #devotional  

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 1st

📖 A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent. —Proverbs 28:20 KJV

There is a Scripture that asks, “a faithful man, who can find?” It’s hard to find faithful people, especially in today’s world. God says the faithful shall abound with blessings. The faithful ones are the committed ones, the ones you can always count on. The faithful are consistent. They are consistent in their attendance, their giving, and their effort. How can those types of people not be blessed? One should expect to flourish when they have a history of faithfulness to any organization. If man will take care of faithful, committed people, how much more would our Heavenly Father? 

#dedication #faithfulness #GoodGod #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 31st

📖 Where are the ones who honor the Lord? God will teach them which path to take. They will live a good life, and their descendants will possess the land. The Lord counsels those who honor him; he makes his covenant known to them. —Psalm 25:12-14 CEB

It pays to honor the Lord. The psalmist tells us that when we honor God, He will show us which path to take. God will lead us and guide us. When we honor God, we can count on living a good life. Our lives are to get better and better and go from glory to glory. God will not only counsel us, but He will give us insight into His covenant. He will give us revelations that others don’t have. God doesn’t share His secrets with everyone, but He will for those who honor Him with their lives. When we honor God, He honors us.  

#honorGod #devotional #vcccharlotte #goodGod

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 29th

📖 This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear.’

“This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us,

whom our fathers would not obey, but rejected. And in their hearts they turned back to Egypt,

saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’
—Acts 7:37-40 NKJV

We must protect our hearts. We must guard our minds. Despite seeing the miracles of God, the Israelites allowed their hearts to be turned back to Egypt. They did not remember the bondage. They did not remember the turmoil or the mistreatment. Instead of waiting on God’s plan to develop, they went back to what was familiar, even when the familiar wasn’t good for them. When we make Jesus the Lord of our lives, we must turn our backs on the world. Satan will attempt to lure us back. Satan will try to bring up all the fun you had, and he will do everything he can to get a foothold back into your life. We cannot allow that. We must stay the course and continue to walk with God. We cannot allow ourselves to be contaminated by the world. If we will stay in the Word and fellowship with God, that won’t happen. We must remember that we are pilgrims that are just passing through. Our citizenship is in heaven.

#Heavenbound #protectyourheart #devotional #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 28th

📖 Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. —Philippians 4:11-13 NKJV

It does not matter where we find ourselves in life, we are to be content. You may not be in the ideal house. You may not be driving your dream car on the way to your dream job, but God expects you to be content. Don’t confuse contentment with satisfaction. Wherever you may find yourself, realize that it is only for a season. God will take you from glory to glory. Paul learned the power of contentment. He knew how to be full and how to deal with hunger. He knew that through Christ, he can overcome every situation that was contrary to the Word of God. If he was in prison, he knew it was temporary. If he was shipwrecked, he knew it was temporary. He wrote to the Corinthian church that the things seen are temporary. (II Corinthians 4:18) No matter what we face in life, we face it knowing that we will win. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. 

#wewin #glorytoglory #devotional #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 27th

📖 The sky and the earth (the universe, the world) will pass away, but My words will not pass away. 

But take heed to yourselves and be on your guard, lest your hearts be overburdened and depressed (weighed down) with the giddiness and headache and nausea of self-indulgence, drunkenness, and worldly worries and cares pertaining to [the business of] this life, and [lest] that day come upon you suddenly like a trap or a noose; 

For it will come upon all who live upon the face of the entire earth. 

Keep awake then and watch at all times [be discreet, attentive, and ready], praying that you may have the full strength and ability and be accounted worthy to escape all these things [taken together] that will take place, and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man. 
—Luke 21: 33-36 AMPC

Jesus is giving us a warning that should cause every believer to be sober about the times we are living in. All of us have the potential to allow our hearts to be overburdened with the cares of this life. If we aren’t careful, we can lose sight of the things that are important and find ourselves in a backslidden condition. We must stay prayed up, alert and attentive. We cannot allow the things of this world to weigh us down to the point that we miss Heaven. Prayer is fellowshipping with our Heavenly Father. As we are consistent in our fellowship with Him, it helps us to stay focused and keep the proper perspective on things. It allows us to continue to set our eyes on things that are above. We must continue to seek first the kingdom of God and be about our Father’s business. As we do those things, it will help to keep things in perspective. Let’s keep our eyes on God. 

#theireyeswerewatchingGod #trustGod #devotional #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 26th

📖 Check up on yourselves. Are you really Christians? Do you pass the test? Do you feel Christ’s presence and power more and more within you? Or are you just pretending to be Christians when actually you aren’t at all? —2 Corinthians 13:5 The Living Bible 

As believers, we must stay on top of ourselves. We must examine ourselves to make sure that our relationship with God stays strong. The world is constantly trying to influence us. Whether it is on social media, television, or radio, we are constantly being told what to think and how to think. The world is constantly trying to fit us into a mold. We must resist. We don’t have to yield to the influence of the world. We don’t have to look like the world or talk like the world. There are times when a believer has to ask questions. Am I spiritually-minded? Are my views in line with the Word of God or are they more in line with the world? Am I still a Christian? We must pass the test. We must contend for the faith. Do a spiritual checkup: Are you still a Christian?  

#believers #vcccharlotte #faith #devotional 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 25th

📖 The ants are not a strong people, Yet they prepare their food in the summer; 
—Proverbs 30:25 AMP

The strength of the ant is in their ability to prepare. They don’t have an overseer. They don’t have anyone standing over them telling them that winter is coming. They are diligently preparing in the summer. The ants know that it's too late to prepare when winter comes. We must learn from the ant. We must prepare for opportunities that don’t yet exist. We have to be like Noah. Noah prepared an ark out of obedience when there was no evidence that a flood was coming. It’s hard to build a ship in the rain. If Noah had waited until it started raining, he would have perished with everyone else. It has been said that success is when preparation meets opportunity. Failure takes place when opportunity presents itself to the unprepared. Let’s not allow ourselves to be caught off guard when opportunity does arrive. Let’s be like the ant and STAY ready. 

#theant #beprepared #wisdom #verseoftheday #message

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 24th

📖 I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective and powerful because of your accurate knowledge of every good thing which is ours in Christ. —Philemon 1:6 AMP

We should have accurate knowledge of the Word of God. We have to study to show ourselves approved unto God (2 Timothy 2:15). We should be like those who heard Paul and Silas preach in Berea. They were considered nobler than the church of Thessalonica, because they had a ready mind and searched the Scriptures daily to see if what was being taught was accurate. When you have a working knowledge of the Word, it is hard to be deceived by false teachers or those who may misinterpret Scripture. When Satan attacked Jesus, He tried to present the Word inaccurately, but Jesus countered that with Scripture. Jesus overcame the devil through His knowledge of the Word of God. If we want to experience the same type of victory, we must do the same.  

#Thessalonians #devotional #Bibleknowledge #vcccharlotte 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 22nd

📖 Then he said, “There was once a man who had two sons. The younger said to his father, ‘Father, I want right now what’s coming to me.’ 

“So the father divided the property between them. It wasn’t long before the younger son packed his bags and left for a distant country. There, undisciplined and dissipated, he wasted everything he had. After he had gone through all his money, there was a bad famine all through that country and he began to feel it. He signed on with a citizen there who assigned him to his fields to slop the pigs. He was so hungry he would have eaten the corn-cobs in the pig slop, but no one would give him any. 

—Luke 15: 11-16 The Message   

Are you a short-term thinker or a long-term thinker? This young man was only concerned about the present moment. He was ready to go and spend his money and have a good time. He did not consider his future. He did not think about the possibility of famine. He did not think about investing his money. He was only thinking about himself. He had the mindset of eating, drinking, and being merry. We cannot have that type of mindset. We must consider our ways. We must examine our spending habits. Are you a healthy eater? Do you exercise regularly? The things you do today will affect your tomorrow. Don’t be like this young man. Let’s be long-term thinkers, and not just short-term. Your future depends on it.  

#thinker #vcccharlotte #future #devotional 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 21st

📖 I will not talk with you much more, for the prince (evil genius, ruler) of the world is coming. And he has no claim on Me. [He has nothing in common with Me; there is nothing in Me that belongs to him, and he has no power over Me.] —John 14:3 AMPC    

When we make Jesus Christ the lord of our lives, Satan no longer has any claim on us. He is the god (ruler) of this world, but he is no longer the ruler over our lives. There is nothing in us that belongs to him, and he has no power over us. When Satan continues to wreak havoc in our lives, many times it is because we are ignorant of God’s Word. We don’t realize that we are now his masters. He is subject to us because we have been given dominion over him. We are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. We have just as much dominion over the devil as Jesus. Let’s walk in a greater revelation of who we are and what belongs to us. We have been given the power to trample on serpents, scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt us. (Luke 10:19). 

#poweroverthedevil #vcccharlotte #devotional

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 20th

📖 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. 
—Psalms 100:1-5 NKJV

We serve a good God! He is so good to us that there is only one way to serve Him: with gladness. We should come before His presence with singing because He has redeemed us. He has sent Jesus so that we can have life and have it more abundantly. He is our protector. He is our Healer. He is our Strength. Every good gift and every perfect gift comes from Him. His mercies are new every morning, and when He forgives us of our sins, He forgets them. He is not holding them against us; He has cleansed us from them. There should be joy in our hearts every day because of what God has done for us and for what He is doing in our lives. Even when things aren’t going our way, we know that God will turn it around. He is on our side, and we are the sheep of His pasture. God loves us. We have so much to be grateful for! The Lord is good, and His mercies endure forever. 

#newmercies #devotional #GodisGood #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 19th

📖 Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like. 

But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action. 
—James 1: 22-25 The Message  

If we are going to experience the life that God has preordained for us, we must be doers of His Word and not hearers only. To experience the free life, there must be an obedient life. A life where we are committed to obeying the Word of God. The Word must be a part of us. We must take the time to read and meditate it so that we can know how we are supposed to live. Our lives become better when our ways line up with God's ways. Things become better when our thoughts are in line with God's thoughts. God's ways and His thoughts are found in His Word. We must see ourselves the way He sees us. The Word of God is our mirror. The Word of God is our standard for our self-esteem. Our value is not based on the world's perspective; it is based on God's. Let's not forget who we are. Let's be doers of the Word and not hearers only. 

#doersoftheWord #vcccharlotte #God’sperspective #devotional

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