1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 23rd

📖 And it is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it. To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God. 
—Ecclesiastes 5:19 The New Living Translation   

Did you notice in this Scripture what a gift from God looks like? It doesn’t say that poverty and lack is a gift from God. It doesn’t say that sickness is a gift from God. Wealth and health are the examples given of what a gift from God looks like. This Scripture sounds like James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights”. God is a good God. All throughout the Word of God we see the Word of God portray God as a good Father who wants to bless His children with good things. He takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servants (Psalms 35:27). He gives us the power to get wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18). Jesus even told us that it was His Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom (Luke 12:32). Jesus also told us to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things (clothes, food, provision, etc.) will be added to us (Matthew 6:33). Let us never lose sight of this fact: God is a good God, and the devil is a bad devil.  

#giftfromGod #vcccharlotte #prosperity #devotional  

 

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 22nd

📖 Jesus answered him, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that unless a person is born again (anew, from above), he cannot ever see (know, be acquainted with, and experience) the kingdom of God. —John 3:3 AMPC

If one wants to be a bonafide child of God, that person must be born again. They simply must ask Jesus Christ to come into their heart and confess Him as Lord (Romans 10:9-10). It is quite simple. Works will not get you born-again. You can never work your way to Heaven. You can never earn your salvation; but you can simply receive what has already been done. Jesus has already paid the price for sin. Our works do not produce righteousness. Righteousness produces good works. If you haven’t done so already, receive Jesus Christ today! Don’t you want to spend eternity with God? 

#salvation #devotional #vcccharlotte #childofGod

1 Comment

Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 20th

📖 So, convinced by him, they took his advice; and summoning the apostles, they flogged them and sternly forbade them to speak in or about the name of Jesus, and allowed them to go. 

So they went out from the presence of the council (Sanhedrin), rejoicing that they were being counted worthy [dignified by the indignity] to suffer shame and be exposed to disgrace for [the sake of] His name. 

Yet [in spite of the threats] they never ceased for a single day, both in the temple area and at home, to teach and to proclaim the good news (Gospel) of Jesus [as] the Christ (the Messiah). 
—Acts 5:40-42 AMPC 

What would you do in this situation? Would you have cried the blues? Would you have complained? The apostles were doing the Lord’s work. They were healing the people and setting them free from demonic oppression. These men were beaten and told not to preach anymore in the Name of Jesus. The apostles were not a bunch of cowards. They were not pushovers. They were not moved by what happened to them. These men rejoiced even after they were flogged. They continued to teach and preach the Word of God after they were told not to. The apostles were committed to carrying out the Great Commission. They were committed to the cause of Christ. God should expect nothing less from us. We rejoice when we are persecuted. We live the life of a Christian, regardless of the cost. We are not moved by the threats of men. If God be for us, who can be against us? 

#committed #vcccharlotte #wearenotmoved #devotionals 

Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 19th

📖 John replied, “God in heaven appoints each man’s work.” —John 3:27 The Living Bible 

What type of business are you in? Isn’t this a common question? Upon meeting a stranger, one of the first things we want to know is what they do for a living. Instead of asking what they do for a living, maybe the question should be asked, “Are you doing the work that God has appointed you?” A person may be successful in their field of endeavor, but are they in the field that God has selected for them? Are they doing the work appointed by God or are they doing the work they appointed for themselves? People select their occupation for many different reasons. Some are in their field because of the income it pays. Some are in their field because of the benefits. We want to be where God wants us to be because God knows what is best for lives. True success is in being in the will of God. We should constantly examine our lives and make sure we are in line with God. We want to be doing the work appointed by the God in heaven. 

#truesuccess #vcccharlotte #theLord’swork #devotional #God’sbest

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 18th

📖 We were buried therefore with Him by the baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious [power] of the Father, so we too might [habitually] live and behave in newness of life. —Romans 6:4 AMPC

When we make Jesus the Lord of our lives, we become a new creation. Our past is buried; we have been raised and now have a new life with Christ. We can be like the apostle Paul and act as if we don’t have a past. Paul said that he had “wronged no man”, but he had. Before his encounter with Jesus, he was throwing Christians into prison and mistreating them. After his encounter with Jesus, all of that was buried with Christ. When he was raised in the newness of life, his past remained buried. We have had the same experience. We can now walk as if we have never sinned a day in our lives. 

#devotional #newcreation #liveforGod #vcccharlotte

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 17th

📖 Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever! My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also, O king, I have done no wrong before you.” —Daniel 6:21-22 NKJV

God will fight for you. When you stand up for Him, He will stand up for you. The king made a decree that violated Daniel’s beliefs. Daniel was a man of prayer, and prayer was a lifestyle for him. He would not allow the king’s decree to alter his lifestyle. He would not allow anything or anyone to come between his relationship with God. Not only was Daniel protected in the lion’s den, he was also promoted. The men who were behind the king’s decree were devoured by those same lions along with their families. We cannot be ashamed of the Gospel. We cannot be ashamed of who we are. When we stand up for God, He will stand up for us. When we honor Him, He will honor us.  

#standup #116 #Gospel #devotional

1 Comment

Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 16th

📖 For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life. 
—John 3:16 AMPC

As we celebrate what many call the “Christmas Holiday”, let us remember why Jesus came into the world. God sending His Son into the world was one of the greatest acts of love in the history of humanity. God could have left man in his sinful state. He did not have to redeem mankind, he chose to. Out of His intense love for us, He refused to allow us to stay in a position in which we would be dominated by Satan. God redeemed us into a place of royalty. He redeemed us into a place of sonship. He placed the results of the fall on Jesus, so that we could be free from poverty, lack, sickness, disease, and spiritual death. God sent His best. God so greatly loved and prized the world that He gave up something, He gave up His only begotten Son. Let us never take our salvation for granted. Let us always be grateful for Jesus. We must always be grateful that He came into the earth to set us free. We are no longer slaves, we are kings. We are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. The sin nature is gone, and now we are righteous. Jesus came so that we would not remain the same. 

#vcccharlotte #WeAreKings #devotional #Godslove

Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 15th

📖 For if you love those who love you, what reward can you have? Do not even the tax collectors do that?

And if you greet only your brethren, what more than others are you doing? Do not even the Gentiles (the heathen) do that? 

You, therefore, must be perfect [growing into complete maturity of godliness in mind and character, having reached the proper height of virtue and integrity], as your heavenly Father is perfect. 
—Matthew 5:46-48 AMPC

Do you really want to be like the Father? Do you really want to imitate Him? One way we can do that is by loving people the way He loves people. We can’t just love the people who love us. We must love the ones who mistreat us just as much as the ones who love and respect us. We must greet people with love even if they roll their eyes and act like they don’t want to speak to us. In verse forty-five, the Bible tells us that God makes “the sun to rise on the wicked and the good”. God is good to all. God pours His goodness out on everyone. If God can do it, so can we. We can be a blessing to everyone, the saved and the unsaved. We can treat everyone right, the saved and the unsaved. We can love everyone, the saved and the unsaved. We can be just like our Father. We can demonstrate His love to humanity. We can reach the proper height of virtue and integrity just like our Heavenly Father. 

#Godislove #vcccharlotte #Godisgood #devotional

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 13th

📖 I have seen slaves on horses, and princes walking like slaves on the earth. 
—Ecclesiastes 10:7 AMPC

As kings, we are to take our rightful place on the earth. Many believers are living below the standards that God has established for them. God expects us to be the head and not the tail. We are to be above only and not beneath. God sees us as His ambassadors and as kings and priests. Many are walking like slaves when they should be riding on the high places of the earth. We are no longer in the kingdom of darkness. We have been delivered into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son. We are to walk like it and to talk like it. The Bible even tells us that the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just (Proverbs 13:22). We are seated together with Christ in heavenly places. We have been given authority. So, let's not allow ourselves to be out of place. Let us seize what belongs to us. No matter how long it takes, we must be like Caleb and demand what has been promised to us. All things are ours! (I Corinthians 3:22). 

#kings #devotional #wisdom #iamvictory

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 12th

📖 I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. 

By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves]. 
—John 13:34-35 AMP

How are we supposed to be identified? It won’t be by how often we carry our bibles. It won’t be by our church attendance. People will know us as His disciples by our love walk. When we are walking in love with everyone, it shows in our daily interactions. The love walk should cause us to be kind and to treat people the way we desire to be treated. Going to church is the right thing to do. We are instructed to do so by the Word of God. Carrying our Bibles with us is a good thing as well. It reveals that we are not ashamed of the Gospel. But the bonafide proof of true discipleship is in how we treat our fellow man. The proof is in how we love our neighbor. 

#loveyourneighbor #disciplesofChrist #devotional #vcccharlotte #lovewalk

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 11th

📖 Jesus left Judea and started for Galilee again. This time he had to go through Samaria. —John 4:3-4 CEV 

The Jewish people avoided going through Samaria because they disliked the Samaritans. The Samaritans were considered a “half-breed” because they had mixed Jewish and gentile blood. Jesus had to go through Samaria. God loves everyone and wanted the Samaritans to know the Messiah. Jesus encountered a woman at the well and after telling her all of her “business”, she went and told the town about the man she met at the well. Because of the woman’s encounter with Jesus, many in the village believed in Jesus. We must follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit, even when it seems uncomfortable. We must follow God when it goes against our thinking. God is smarter than us, and He knows the outcome if we will simply obey. Let’s get into a rhythm of obedience. Let’s hear and do. We must hear from God and do what He wants us to do. 

#obedience #vcccharlotte #followGod #devotional  

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 10th

📖 Cast your burden on the Lord [releasing the weight of it] and He will sustain you; He will never allow the [consistently] righteous to be moved (made to slip, fall, or fail). 
—Psalm 55:22 AMPC

We all have issues in life, and things that may trouble us. However, when we face these situations, we must cast our burdens on the Lord. We were not created to carry burdens and cares. When things seem like they are too much for us, it is not on us to try to figure out a solution. We are to give our problems to God and allow Him to take care of it. God is smarter than us. He is wiser than us. He has the solution to every problem. God wants us to live our lives care-free. It’s His desire to sustain us. When we release the weight of our problems to Him, we can expect Him to sustain us. We can never be moved when we look to God. When we release our issues to God, we know that He will not fail us. He told us that He would never leave us nor forsake us. That means we can expect victory every time. He will not let us fall. 

#iamvictory #dailydevotional #castyourburdens #vcccharlotte

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 9th

📖 Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old unrenewed self] which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion; 

And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude], 

And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness. 
—Ephesians 4:22-24 AMPC 

When God sets us free; He expects us to stay free. We are to strip ourselves of our former nature and walk in the new nature that is on the inside of us. Our mindset should change. We should no longer think like the world. Our thinking should be in line with the Word of God. We should walk in holiness and consecrate our lives to God because He paid the ultimate price for us through the Blood of His Son. The very least we can do is to live for Him. We owe Him our lives. We should endeavor to increase our knowledge of God so that we can be transformed by the renewing of our mind. We increase our knowledge of Him, so that we can be transformed into His image. With all that God has done for us, why shouldn’t we live for Him. 

#liveforGod #renewyourmind #victory #devotional

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 8th

📖 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action]. —I John 1:9 AMPC

We have all missed the mark at some point. We all have said something we shouldn't have said and done things that we knew we should not have done. In short: we have all made mistakes and acted in ways in which we knew better. The good news is that God is a LOVING God. When we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive us and to cleanse us from all wrongdoing. God promises to forget our sins and to act like the sin has never taken place when there is true repentance. God looks at the heart, and He knows our flaws. He is faithful to us! God is true to His compassionate nature. He will never condemn us for our past. As we walk with Him, we know that our latter end will be greater than our former. 

#lovingGod #compassion #devotional #vcccharlotte

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 6th

📖 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

1 Comment

2 Comments

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 5th

📖 And so it was that he [Abraham], having waited long and endured patiently, realized and obtained [in the birth of Isaac as a pledge of what was to come] what God had promised him. —Hebrews 6:15 AMPC

God made a promise to Abraham when he was seventy-five years old. The “promised child” was born when Abraham was a hundred years old. Abraham waited twenty-five years until the promised child was born. Abraham could have been moved by time, but he wasn’t. Abraham believed God. Abraham believed that God was faithful to bring everything to pass. Abraham had experienced the Blessing of the Lord, and He knew that God would not lie to Him. Abraham reached the point where He believed that God would do what He said He would do. Many times, we are unwilling to wait on God. We may not know why things have taken a long time to manifest, but we know that God is faithful. We must endure patiently, knowing that God will come through. We must rest in the integrity of God. It is a divine truth that He cannot lie (John 3:33 Amplified Classic).   

#Godcannotlie #covenantGod #vcccharlotte #devotional

2 Comments

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 4th

📖 Whoever despises the word and counsel [of God] brings destruction upon himself, but he who [reverently] fears and respects the commandment [of God] is rewarded. —Proverbs 13:13 AMPC 

It is always in our best interest to develop a love and a respect for the Word of God. The Word of God has the solution to every potential problem that we may face. The Word of God is how we overcome. The Word of God is the Source of faith and faith is how we overcome the world. Jesus used the Word of God to overcome the wicked one. When he encountered the Satan in the wilderness, He said repeatedly, “It is written "and quoted from the Word of God. The devil wants you to despise the very weapon that will defeat him. He wants you to ignore the Word. He’s okay with you reading it every now and then, but he wants to keep you from being consistent. God’s Word is our weapon. We must embrace it and learn to delight in God’s Word. We cannot afford to neglect the Word of God. We cannot despise it. Doing those things will not only bring defeat, but it will also bring destruction to our lives. We cannot let that happen. God is depending on us. 

#WordofGod #vcccharlotte #Sourceoffaith #devotional 

1 Comment

2 Comments

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 3rd

📖 If we are faithless [do not believe and are untrue to Him], He remains true (faithful to His Word and His righteous character), for He cannot deny Himself. —2 Timothy 2:13 AMPC 

Thank God for His faithfulness. He is faithful to us when we aren’t. He stays faithful to His Word and His righteous character regardless of our actions. Now, that is not a license to sin (you’ll sin without a license). The Word of God tells us that wages of sin is death. If we miss the mark, He is still faithful to I John 1:9. When we confess our sins, He is still faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. His mercies are still new every morning. God is not ruled by His emotions. He has them, but He isn’t ruled by them. God will always have a righteous character because that is who He is. He is a righteous God. He is so faithful to His Word that He has exalted His Word above His Name. We should be grateful for His grace, but we should not abuse His grace. Let’s honor God with our lives by honoring His Word. He remains faithful to His Word and His righteous character because He cannot deny Himself. God is forever committed to us. 

#faithfulness #vcccharlotte #God’scharacter #devotional 

2 Comments

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 2nd

📖 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

1 Comment

1 Comment

DAILY DEVOTIONAL | December 1st

📖 Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining [against God] and questioning and doubting [among yourselves], 

That you may show yourselves to be blameless and guileless, innocent and uncontaminated, children of God without blemish (faultless, unrebukable) in the midst of a crooked and wicked generation [spiritually perverted and perverse], among whom you are seen as bright lights (stars or beacons shining out clearly) in the [dark] world, 
—Philippians 2:14-15 AMPC

As believers, one of our desires should be to represent the Kingdom more accurately. We should want to look more like an ambassador of heaven. One way that we can accomplish this is by refraining from complaining. As believers, we should have praise and thanksgiving on our lips at all times. We are positive and optimistic because we are people of faith. We walk by the Word and not by our feelings. Circumstances do not control us, the Word does. We don’t complain because the Word gives us control of our circumstances. Our faith in God gives us control. We should always have a smile on our faces because we know that we always triumph, regardless of the obstacle or the hindrance. The world will think that we are strange and peculiar, but that is fine. They will think that we are weird but let them think what they want. We are of a different kingdom. We are children of God. We are the light of the world, and we are the salt of the earth. Let us look like it and act like it. No complaining! 

#ambassadors #vcccharlotte #faith #devotional #childrenofGod

1 Comment