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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 22nd

📖 "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth." -Psalm 34:1 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

No matter what happens in life, praise should always be coming out of our mouths. We bless the Lord because He is good. We bless Him because every good thing in our lives came from Him. He is the Source of everything good in our lives. When things aren’t going well in our lives, praise will change it.

Praise will change the atmosphere. Praise will still the avenger (Satan). We always bless the Lord because even when things aren’t going as well, it is praise that will turn the tide. Praise will bring God on the scene because the Lord inhabits the praises of His people. Let's always bless the Lord. Let's please Him through our praise because praise is the highest form of faith, and without faith it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6).

#faithwalk #trustGod #praise #dailydevotional #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 21st

📖 "In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].” -Ephesians 6:10 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

Our strength comes from God. He is our ability. We are one with the Spirit of God. We have access to the life of God. Jesus said that He is the vine, and we are the branches. We are to get our life from Him because of our connection to Him. We have access to His wisdom, His might, His strength, His nature; and, we have access to everything that He is.

When you feel like you can’t go on, depend on His might. When you feel weak, depend on His strength. God will make up the difference and get you through when you feel like you can’t take another step. God’s ability is sufficient, and we are connected to that ability. Step outside of yourself, the answer is on the inside. Greater is He that is in you, than He that is in the world.

#strength #verseofthemonth #empowerment #vcccharlotte #Godlovesyou

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 20th

📖 "While ants are hardly a strong species, they work constantly to store up food during the summer” -Proverbs 30:25 Voice

A key to living a successful life is consistency. It's not just what you do occasionally. It's what you are willing to do on an everyday basis. If you want to lose weight, you must exercise consistently. You want to get closer to God, you must be consistent in your prayer life and in studying the Word of God. Daniel was consistent. Even after the king gave his decree, Daniel opened his window and prayed like he always did. Jesus went to the synagogue often because it was his custom. The ant will not starve in the winter because they are constantly storing up food because they understand that winter is coming. If we want to continue to experience greater levels of success, we must remain consistent in every area of our lives. You cannot go to another level without consistently changing. God never intended for you to stay the same.

#growingpains #motivation #discipline #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 19th

📖 "The strong spirit of a man sustains him in bodily pain or trouble, but a weak and broken spirit who can raise up or bear?” -Proverbs 18:14 Amplified Bible Classic Edition ⁠

We should always endeavor to keep our spirits strong. When the enemy comes against us, it is our spirit that sustains us during the attack. We strengthen our spirits by reading and meditating the Word of God and by praying in the spirit. When we pray in the spirit (or in other tongues) we are building ourselves up on our most holy faith. We are charging ourselves up similar to the way you charge a battery. ⁠

⁠The Apostle Paul stayed charged up. If you look at all the things that he endured, you will see why he prayed in tongues more than anyone in the church of Corinth (I Corinthians 14:18). He was stoned, whipped, imprisoned, beaten with rods, shipwrecked, just to name a few things, yet despite all those things, he finished his course. The enemy may come against us, but that doesn’t mean that he can win. As we keep our spirits strong, we can overcome anything he may try to bring our way. Our spirits will sustain us. ⁠⁠

#finishtherace #paul #dailydevotional #bible #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 18th

📖 "Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour. Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset—rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined], knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world." -I Peter 5:8-9 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

We only have one enemy. It isn’t a co-worker. It isn’t a family member. It isn’t someone in government. Our enemy is the devil, Satan. He is our adversary, and he walks around as a roaring lion, seeking to steal, kill, and destroy. We are instructed to resist him. We must be determined that he is not going to steal, kill, or destroy anything in our lives. We have been given authority over the wicked one, and when we resist him, he has no choice but to flee. No matter what the devil is attempting to do in your life, he cannot succeed if you stand against him with the Word of God. We not only have the Word of God, but we also have the name of Jesus and the Spirit of God on the inside of us. The Word of God tells us that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world (I John 4:4). We have the power and the ability to withstand and overcome any attack of the devil. Don’t allow him to convince you otherwise. He is not only a liar, but he is also defeated.

#resistthedevil #vcccharlotte #devotional #powerinthenameofJesus

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 17th

📖 "The steps of a [good] man are directed and established by the Lord when He delights in his way [and He busies Himself with his every step].” -Psalm 37:23 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

God has a plan for our lives. He not only has the plan, but He orders our steps for us to arrive at the place where He has preordained for us to be. God knows how to arrange events. When Samuel was to anoint Saul to be king over Israel, God told Samuel the day before that He was sending a man out of the land of Benjamin to be anointed king. Saul was looking for his father’s donkeys and that is why he was in the same area as Samuel, but Saul did not know that his steps were ordered by the Lord.

God sent him that way so that he could be anointed king over Israel. God has a way of making things happen in our lives when we allow Him to. We can believe that when we surrender our lives to God, He will order our steps and put us in the right place at the right time, so that we can experience the good life that He has preordained for us to live.

#goodlife #trustGod #dailydevotional #vcccharlotte #destiny

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 16th

📖 "Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit?” -2 Corinthians 13:5 Amplified Bible

Sometimes when we examine ourselves, we must make adjustments because we may not like where we are. We may have to remove friends. We may have to stop watching television or spend less time on our smartphones. We must adjust so that we don’t remain in a state of spiritual decline. We must examine ourselves, and if necessary, ask God to reveal to us areas where we may need to improve. Sometimes, we must remove distractions. We must examine our belief system. Do we believe the way we once did, or has our perspective changed to the point that we are thinking like the world. We must remove anything from our lives that may cause us to miss Heaven. We want our lives to go from faith to faith, from glory to glory. Our desire should be to have a deeper walk with God. As we continue to evaluate ourselves, we can open the door for that to happen and to walk in the benefits of diligently seeking Him. Our desire should be to know Christ and the power of His resurrection.

#honorGod #dailydevotional #introspection #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 15th

📖 "Then the [Holy] Spirit said to Philip, Go forward and join yourself to this chariot. Accordingly Philip, running up to him, heard [the man] reading the prophet Isaiah and asked, Do you really understand what you are reading?" -Acts 8:29-30 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

When God speaks to us, He expects us to move. Sometimes, depending on the instruction, we hesitate or question whether we should obey the instruction. We are all developing when it comes to hearing the voice of God and being led by the Spirit, but when we know that it’s God leading us, we must act. Sometimes it is for our own good, and sometimes it is in the best interest of someone else. When we know its God, we must run, like Philip did. We must always immediately obey when God is leading and guiding us. It never costs to obey God, but it always pays to. When you do, you are always glad that you did.

#FollowGod #obedience #dailydevotional #verseoftheday

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 14th

📖 "Those who obey the Lord are daily in his care, and what he has given them will be theirs forever. They won't be in trouble when times are bad, and they will have plenty when food is scarce." -Psalm 37:18-19 Contemporary English Version

God is our Source. It is His desire that He takes care of us. He takes pleasure in prospering us (Psalm 35:27). Every good gift and every perfect gift come from above (James 1:17). When we realize that God desires to take care of us and to bless us, it will take your mind off the negative circumstances.

God told the Israelites that they were to never to forget that it was the Lord their God who gave them the ability to get wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18). God is the one that had a promised land for His people. The promised land wasn’t their idea, it was God’s. God can bless us when the economy is good or bad and whether the stock market is doing well or not. He can feed us when there is scarcity in the land and when there is plenty. God knows where everything is. The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.

#trustGod #dailydevotional #vcccharalotte #JehovahJireh

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 13th

📖 "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship." -Exodus 31:1-5 King James Version

God has gifted us with talents and abilities. He has equipped us with these talents because there are things that He wants to accomplish through us. He anointed and equipped Bezaleel with all these talents so that he could assist with building the tabernacle and the furnishings within the tabernacle. What is interesting about this, is that God knew that he (Bezaleel) would be alive at this time so that he would be a part of erecting the tabernacle in the wilderness. God knew that the Israelites would be free from Egyptian bondage, and He knew what would need to be constructed while they were in the wilderness.

We serve an awesome God. God had the foresight to see what would take place in the future and then equipped people to be a part of what He was doing while He sent the people into the promised land. God has not changed. He still has knowledge of the future, and He is still equipping us. Once we recognize our talents and abilities, it is up to us to seek the Lord so that we can be where He has preordained for us to be. We can only experience fulfillment when we are where He wants us to be, doing what He has called us to do.

#purposedriven #followGod #talents #Godordained #dailydevotional

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 12th

📖 "A calm and undisturbed mind and heart are the life and health of the body, but envy, jealousy, and wrath are like rottenness of the bones." -Proverbs 14:30 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

The enemy wants you discouraged. Satan, our enemy, would love for you to stay frustrated, agitated, and discouraged. He wants you in fear. He wants you in a state of anxiety because he knows the effect it has on the body. Stress causes all kinds of sickness. It has led to heart attacks, strokes, and other ailments. God tells us in His Word to cast our cares on Him (I Peter 5:7). He tells us to cast our burden on the Lord, and He will sustain us (Psalm 55:22). God tells us these things so that we can remain calm. God wants us full of joy. The joy of the Lord is to be our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). God wants us to be carefree and full of joy not only because it is good for us emotionally, but because it is also good for us physically. Stay free from the cares and the worries of life and give them to the Lord. He wants you to be made whole: spirit, soul, and body.

#peaceofmind #calm #encouragement #bible #dailydevotional

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 11th

📖 "Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man whom You discipline and instruct, O Lord, and teach out of Your law, That You may give him power to keep himself calm in the days of adversity, until the [inevitable] pit of corruption is dug for the wicked. For the Lord will not cast off nor spurn His people, neither will He abandon His heritage." -Psalm 94:12-14 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

God has given us His Word to teach, discipline, and instruct us. When we read, study, and meditate on the Word of God, it causes faith to rise in our hearts. So, when adversity comes (and it comes to all of us), we can have peace in the midst of the storm because of the promises of God. His Word stabilizes us in the midst of any tumultuous circumstance that may come to disrupt our lives.

What a GOOD Father! He will never leave or forsake His children. When we trust in the Lord with all our hearts, we can rest assured that His way is the best. When we commit to being doers of the Word and not hearers only, we will be blessed in our deeds, because it is the doer that is blessed, not just the hearer only (James 1:25). So, rest. You don’t have to worry about a thing. Your Heavenly Father is active and watching over His Word to perform it. He is taking care of everything that concerns you. Rest in Him.

#rest #trustGod #psalm #dailydevotional #goodgoodfather

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 10th

📖 "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds [curing their pains and their sorrows]." -Psalm 147:3 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

God is not just a healer of the physical body; He is a healer of the soulish man as well. We are a tripartite being. We are a spirit. We have a soul. We live in a physical body. When you are born again, God doesn’t heal the spirit, your spirit is reborn. You become a new creature in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Our soul which is composed of our mind, will, and emotions, did not become new, but the mind can be renewed to the Word of God. Because our emotions are connected to our souls, sometimes healing is needed in our souls. When a loved one passes, we may need healing in our emotions. Regardless of why we may need healing in our emotional arena, God is more than capable and more than willing to heal us. He is the healer of the body and the soul.

#healerofthebrokenhearted #Godlovesyou #healer #emotions #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 9th

📖 "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 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

Notice what distinguishes us as a disciple of Christ. It is our decision to love people the way Jesus loves us. Jesus loves us, regardless of our issues. Regardless of our mistakes, Jesus loves us no matter what. Now He doesn’t approve of what we do, when its wrong, but He still loves us. The Father still loves us. We must get to a point in our lives where we love everyone and treat everyone with dignity and respect. The Bible tells us that the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost (Romans 5:5). We can love our enemies. We can love our relatives. We can love our co-workers. We can love everyone we encounter because God’s love is on the inside of us, and He would not ask us to do something we were not capable of doing. Let’s represent the kingdom of God, let’s love people with the love of God all day, every day. It may not be easy, but we can do it. We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13).

#disciple #devotional #Jesus #vccchaarlotte #lovewalk

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 8th

📖 "[For Abraham, human reason for] hope being gone, hoped in faith that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been promised, So [numberless] shall your descendants be. He did not weaken in faith when he considered the [utter] impotence of his own body, which was as good as dead because he was about a hundred years old, or [when he considered] the barrenness of Sarah’s [deadened] womb. No unbelief or distrust made him waver (doubtingly question) concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong and was empowered by faith as he gave praise and glory to God, Fully satisfied and assured that God was able and mighty to keep His word and to do what He had promised." -Romans 4:18-21 Amplified Bible Classic Edition

There are many people in the world without hope. They have been challenged financially, mentally, and physically, and they have no hope. They don’t see how their lives can get any better because of the difficulties that they face daily. As believers, we have hope. Even when it looks like we don’t have any hope, we can go to the Word of God and receive some. Abraham did not consider his circumstances when it came to believing God, he was convinced that God was able to keep His Word to Him. We can be the same way. We can ignore the circumstances and simply believe God’s Word because He cannot fail us. When we put our trust in the Word of God, we can have hope. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in the world, we can stay positive and have a cheerful countenance because we know that God is faithful to His promise. If He said it, He will do it. If He spoke it, He will bring it to pass.

#hope #devotional #encouragement #trustGod #verseoftheday

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 7th

📖 "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ." -Galatians 4:6-7 King James Version

Sometimes we can take things for granted. According to Scripture, we are not considered servants of God, but we are called “children” of God. The Bible tells us that God “has pleasure in the prosperity of his servant” (Psalm 35:27). If God takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servant, how much more His children? Children have more privileges than servants. Many have called themselves servants of the most High, and they are not necessarily wrong. In God’s eyes, He sees us as His children. It was always His will for us to be His children. Sin separated us from God, and it was not until after the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, that we were able to be called the children of God (after receiving Jesus as our Lord and Savior). Children have access to everything their parents have access to.

As children of God, we have access to everything that God has. As we grow in the knowledge of God, we also grow in our knowledge of our inheritance, and as we act on the Word of God, we experience the reality of what has been promised to us as children of God. We do not have to go without, we only must look to the Greater One within.

#childrenofGod #JesusChrist #devotional #inheritance #verseoftheday

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 6th

📖 "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” -I Corinthians 10:31 KJV 

God wants our lives to bring Him glory. It is His desire for us to walk in the Blessing so that it will attract people to Him. When you give God the glory for all that is being accomplished in your life, it will cause people to want to know more about the God you are giving glory to. That is one reason it is important to do everything to the glory of God. You cannot sin to the glory of God. It is hard to listen to the wrong kind of music to the glory of God. It is hard to watch the wrong type of movie to the glory of God. It is hard to do wrong and attribute it to God. That just simply isn’t going to happen.

Living a life that glorifies God will cause you to be more aware of your actions and the consequences of your actions. When your desire is to bring God glory, you will not want to do anything that will cause embarrassment to the kingdom of God. God desires for our lives to bring Him glory, so let’s not let Him down. He is counting on us to do so.

#forthegloryofGod #dailydevotional #motivation #ambassadorsofChrist

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 5th

📖 "The [uncompromisingly] righteous shall flourish like the palm tree [be long-lived, stately, upright, useful, and fruitful]; they shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon [majestic, stable, durable, and incorruptible]. Planted in the house of the Lord, they shall flourish in the courts of our God. [Growing in grace] they shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap [of spiritual vitality] and [rich in the] verdure [of trust, love, and contentment]. [They are living memorials] to show that the Lord is upright and faithful to His promises; He is my Rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.” -Psalm 92:12-15 Amplified Classic

God expects us to flourish as we get older. We are to bring Him glory by standing on His Word and demonstrating that He is faithful to His promises. The world will try to paint a different picture. The world will have you thinking that you are to become increasingly dependent on people as we get older because you cannot take care of yourself. The world will have you seeing yourself declining physically and becoming a burden on family members. God sees things differently. He sees you flourishing in every area of your life and becoming a living memorial of His goodness. Do not allow the world to tell you how you are supposed to age. God’s Word tells us that our lives are to get better and better as we get older. Stand for the promises of God and watch Him honor His Word in your life. God is not a man that He should lie. 

#trust #Godspromises #psalm #dailydevotional 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 4th

📖 "He will rescue you in six troubles; in seven nothing that is evil [for you] will touch you. In famine He will redeem you from death, and in war from the power of the sword. You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, neither shall you be afraid of destruction when it comes. At destruction and famine you shall laugh, neither shall you be afraid of the living creatures of the earth." -Job 5:19-22 Amplified Classic

This is a Scripture that shows us God’s desire to “keep” us regardless of what the enemy may try to bring against us. He will rescue us from all types of trouble. Our God will cause us to laugh at destruction and famine. He will keep us if we had to go to war, He will keep us from the power of the sword (or any weapon). God is our Deliverer and our Protector. As believers, we do not fear death, or destruction, or anything that is under the curse. Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, and He causes us to win in every situation and every circumstance when we stand on His Word. God took care of his people in the middle of famine, and He has protected His people in war. If He has done it in the past, He will do it now. He has not changed. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

#faithful #motivation #devotional #redeemer #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 3rd

📖 "Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour. Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset—rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined], knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world.” -I Peter 4:9-10 Amplified Classic

The devil is doing what he does best. He is going about as a roaring lion looking to steal, kill, and to destroy. The good news is that as believers, we have authority over the devil, and he cannot destroy us. Satan is the god of this world, and the whole world is under his influence (2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2). We have been separated and consecrated unto our God. We are in this world, but we are not of this world. Satan is not our Lord, and we can say what Jesus said: “He has nothing in me” (John 14:30). The devil is going to do what he does. So, as believers, let's do what we do as well. Let’s resist him and having done all to stand, let’s stand, knowing we have the victory.

#victory #devotional #vcccharlotte #roaringlion #sundayfunday

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