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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 12th

📖 I gave them your word; 
The godless world hated them because of it, 
Because they didn’t join the world’s ways, 
Just as I didn’t join the world’s ways. 
I’m not asking that you take them out of the world 
But that you guard them from the Evil One. 
They are no more defined by the world 
Than I am defined by the world. 
—John 17:14-18 The Message Bible

As believers, we were never meant to embrace the ideals of this world. We are told in Romans 12: 2, “to renew our minds”. We are to be Kingdom minded believers because we are not of this world just as Jesus wasn’t. We don’t embrace the world’s ways just like he didn’t. Jesus operated from a different place. He operated from the Kingdom of God. He spoke and acted differently. John the Baptist said, “he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth” (John 3:31). We are not of the earth (world), we have been born again. We have been translated out of the realm of darkness and translated into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son. We must conduct ourselves like ambassadors of heaven. We think differently. We talk differently. We were born into the earth, but we are not of the earth. We are no longer defined by the world, just as our Savior wasn’t. We are being conformed to His image, the very image of Christ (Romans 8:29). 

#Kingdomminded #vcccharlotte #different #devotional

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 11th

📖 When God made his promise to Abraham, he backed it all the way, putting his own reputation on the line. He said, “I promise that I’ll bless you with everything I have—bless and bless and bless!” Abraham stuck it out and got everything that had been promised to him. When people make promises, they guarantee them by appeal to some authority above them so that if there is any question that they’ll make good on the promise, the authority will back them up. When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee—God can’t break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. —Hebrews 6:13-18 The Message  

God wants us blessed! Isn’t that exciting? He desires that we prosper and be in health, even as our soul prospers. (III John 2) Many times we miss out on the Blessing because it seems like it is taking too long. Sometimes the devil may try to jump on our shoulders and whisper, “God won’t keep His Word this time”? The devil is a liar. God always keeps His Word. It is impossible for Him to lie. When you feel like giving up, think about Abraham. He stuck it out. He stuck it out and got everything that had been promised to him. We must be like Abraham. If we stick it out, we will get everything that we have been promised. Remember, God cannot break His Word.  

#blessings #vcccharlotte #Godspromises #devotional 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 10th

📖 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 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 9th

📖 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
—2 Timothy 4:7 NIV

Our goal in life should be to finish the race that God has set before us. Some Christians start off running well, and for various reasons, get off course. God wants us to finish the race he has already set up. There are lives God wants to touch through us no matter what stage of the race we may be in. We must keep our pace and not allow ourselves to get off course. Push through adversity as the Apostle Paul did in his life. Let’s endeavor to run the race that God has set before us, not what He set before someone else. In Acts 26:19 Paul said to King Agrippa “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision” We all have our parts to play so, like Apostle Paul, let’s be obedient and content with the vision God has blessed us with.

#vision #devotional #runtherace #verseoftheday #vcccharlotte

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 8th

📖 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

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 6th

📖 Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah. —Psalm 68:19 KJV

Have you received your benefits today? Every day, God wants to unleash His goodness on us. He desires us to be beneficiaries of His kindness. Every good gift and every perfect gift come from Him. As believers, every day is a good day. As children of God, we expect something good to happen to us. We should expect His favor. We should expect Him to supply our daily bread. The world expects gifts on certain days. They expect gifts on birthdays, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, etc. We should expect something good to happen to us every day because He loads us daily with benefits. God is good. 

#benefitspackage #Godisgood #devotional #dailybread

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 5th

📖 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

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 4th

📖 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 | September 3rd

📖 In the same way that nursing infants cry for milk, you must intensely crave the pure spiritual milk of God’s Word. For this “milk” will cause you to grow into maturity, fully nourished and strong for life- especially now that you have had a taste of the goodness of Yahweh and have experienced his kindness. —I Peter 2:2-3 The Passion Translation 

How intense is your desire for the Word of God? Do you crave it? Do you meditate on it day and night like God told Joshua to? In Psalm 1, the psalmist tells us that when we meditate on the Word of God day and night, we will be like the tree that is planted by the rivers of water and whatever we do will prosper. (v3) Can you imagine prospering in every area of life? We can understand why when we read the Scripture above. Our hunger for the Word will cause us to grow and become mature in the things of God. That maturity will allow us to make decisions in line with God’s Word, which will then cause us to prosper. It is the doer of the Word who is blessed. You cannot expect an immature Christian to be able to handle the blessings of God. Those blessings come upon us as we grow or “mature” in the things of God. God is not holding back on us; He is waiting on our maturation. He is watching our development and blessing us in proportion to our growth. You can experience more of the blessings of God, or you can stay the same. The choice is yours. God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. 

#growth #vcccharlotte #meditateontheWord #devotional 

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 2nd

📖 My Lord God in heaven has plenty of good and valuable things. Because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will give to you everything that you need. 
—Philippians 4:19 Easy English Bible

As believers we are to look to and depend on heaven’s resources. The mistake that many believers have made is that they look to their own resources and live a life that falls short of the life that God has for them. We are citizens of heaven. We are in the family of God. Because of these truths, we can access the good and valuable things that God has in store for us. God tells us that He has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:4). We receive from heaven, but the resources come through the earth. We have to take our eyes off the earth if we are going to receive from heaven. Heaven is our source. The earth is just the channel in which we receive from Heaven. Keep your eyes on God. Keep your eyes on His Word. God will give to you everything that you need when you put your trust in Him. 

#familyofGod #vcccharlotte #keepyoureyesonGod #devotional

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | September 1st

📖 Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever]. —Romans 8:6 AMPC

What type of mind do you have? Do you have a spiritual mind, or do you have a mind of the flesh? Do you make decisions only out of your intellect? Do you base your decision making on sense and reason without the Holy Spirit? That type of decision-making leads to death. God wants to be a part of every major decision that we make in our lives. He wants to lead and guide us. We can have peace when we know we are following the leadership of the Holy Spirit. We can have peace when we know we have heard the voice of God. When we have renewed our minds with the Word of God, and we act on the Word, we can have peace because we know that God is watching over His Word to perform it. We must continue to work on our minds. We must examine our way of thinking. We must make sure that our thinking is in line with the Word of God. 

#mindset #intellect #vcccharlotte #devotional #thinking

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 30th

📖 Then the two tribes of Joseph came to Joshua and asked, “Why have you given us only one portion of land when the Lord has given us such large populations?” 

“If the hill country of Ephraim is not large enough for you,” Joshua replied, “and if you are able to do it, you may clear out the forest land where the Perizzites and Rephaim live.” 

“Fine,” said the tribes of Joseph, “for the Canaanites in the lowlands around Beth-shean and the valley of Jezreel have iron chariots and are too strong for us.” 

“Then you shall have the mountain forests,” Joshua replied, “and since you are such a large, strong tribe you will surely be able to clear it all and live there. And I’m sure you can drive out the Canaanites from the valleys, too, even though they are strong and have iron chariots.” 
—Joshua 17:14-18 The Living Bible

The two tribes mentioned believed that they deserved more because of their large numbers. They were attempting to use their numbers as leverage to get more land. Joshua used their numbers to challenge them. He believed that they should take advantage of their numbers and use them to get more land if they really believed they needed more than what was given them. They were to use their numbers not only to take more ground, but also to drive out the inhabitants of the land. If we believe that there is more here for us, we must go get it. It is not just going to just fall in our lap. No one owes us anything. We owe it to ourselves to go out and take all that belongs to us. If what we have isn’t enough, we must be willing to take more ground. We must take responsibility for where we currently are, not make excuses. God has given us all the tools for victory, we must simply use them. 

#takewhatsours #responsibility #verseoftheday #vcccharlotte #strengthinnumbers

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 29th

📖 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 

This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 

And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands. 
—I Samuel 17: 45-47 KJV

When David faced Goliath, He did not brag about his skills with a slingshot. He did not talk about his experience with the shepherd’s staff. He did not refer to any earthly weapons. David leaned on God’s ability and not his own. David was coming in the Name of the Lord of hosts, not his own. He was not fighting to make a name for himself, he was fighting so that the earth would know that there is a God in Israel. David knew that the battle was not his but the Lord’s. We could learn a thing or two from David. When the devil attacks, we cannot rely on our intellect or our resources. We must fight with the resources of Heaven. We must fight spiritual battles with spiritual weapons. We fight with the Word of God, the Name of Jesus, and with the whole armor of God. We fight from a place of victory. We fight knowing that the battle is the Lord’s. When we fight the way David fought, we can expect to win the way that he won. The battle is not ours; the battle is the Lord’s. 

#spiritualwarfare #devotional #vcccharlotte #davidandgoliath

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 28th

📖 If you will seek God diligently and make your supplication to the Almighty, 

Then, if you are pure and upright, surely He will bestir Himself for you and make your righteous dwelling prosperous again. 

And though your beginning was small, your latter end would greatly increase. 
—Job 8: 5-7 AMPC  

God knows all the details of our lives. The Bible tells us that the “steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. (Psalm 37:23) When you are assured of this, you don’t mind starting at the bottom of the “corporate ladder”. You are willing to start off small. Zechariah 4:10 (The Message) asks a very good question: “Does anyone dare despise the day of small beginnings”? You learn a lot at the bottom. Starting at the bottom teaches you how to get to the top. One man said, “The path to the prize is greater than the prize itself”. Oh, how he was right. The lessons learned on the road to success are so valuable. They are lessons that you can pass on to the next generation. They are lessons that will help you next time you face a challenge in your life. God wants to take us from glory to glory, but it’s a process. Don’t run from the process, grow from the process. Embrace the journey, one step at a time. God’s way is always the best way. 

#thejourney #vcccharlotte #roadtosuccess #devotional  

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 27th

📖 So be very careful how you live, not being like those with no understanding, but live honorably with true wisdom, for we are living in evil times. Take full advantage of every day as you spend your life for His purposes. 
—Ephesians 5:15-16 The Passion Translation 

Despite living in evil times, we can still live a life in which we fulfill our God given purpose. Evil times are no excuse to fall short in accomplishing all that God desires for us to accomplish. We are to take full advantage of every day that we have. Every day that we are given is a day to get better. It is a day to get wiser. It is a day closer to the fulfillment of the will of God. We must be aware of every distraction and avoid them. We must avoid everything that will draw us away from fulfilling our purpose. Every believer should desire to hear, “Well done, thy good and faithful servant”. Examining how we live our lives and taking advantage of the days that we are given will bring us closer to hearing those wonderful words. 

#WillofGod #vcccharlotte #fulfillment #devotionals  

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 26th

📖 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. 

For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. 
—I Corinthians 3:18-19 KJV

The Word of God tells us to come out from among them (the world) and be separate. We are to be separate from the world because Satan is the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). We do not want to embrace the values or wisdom of this world. That is one reason the Bible tells us to renew our minds. God wants our thinking to be in line with His Word. God’s Word is His Wisdom. The Wisdom of God is foolishness to the world because God’s way of doing things goes against the ideals of the world. The wisdom of this world is “earthly, sensual, and devilish” (James 3:15). We should seek the wisdom that is from above because it is pure, peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy, and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy (James 3:17). God’s ways are higher than our ways, but so is His Wisdom. Let’s stay away from the wisdom of this world, and let's embrace the wisdom that comes from God. We always come out on top when
we do. 

#wisdom #vcccharlotte #kingdomlife #devotional #trustGod

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 25th

📖 They spent some time in Jericho. As Jesus was leaving town, trailed by his disciples and a parade of people, a blind beggar by the name of Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, was sitting alongside the road. When he heard that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by, he began to cry out, “Son of David, Jesus! Mercy, have mercy on me!” Many tried to hush him up, but he yelled all the louder, “Son of David! Mercy, have mercy on me!” 

Jesus stopped in his tracks. “Call him over.” They called him. “It’s your lucky day! Get up! He’s calling you to come!” Throwing off his coat, he was on his feet at once and came to Jesus. Jesus said, “What can I do for you?” The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “On your way,” said Jesus. “Your faith has saved and healed you.” In that very instant he recovered his sight and followed Jesus down the road. 
—Mark 10: 46-52 MSG 

What’s stopping you? Blind Bartimaeus would not allow anything to stop him from receiving from Jesus. He would not allow the people to shut him up. When they told him to shut up, he cried even louder. This could have been the only time He would have been in the presence of Jesus. He would not allow anything to stop him. Because of his persistence, Jesus stopped and asked for him. He had gotten Jesus’ attention. Bartimaeus received his sight that day. His faith had made him whole, but his faith also caught the attention of Jesus. Faith will always get the attention of God. Without faith it is impossible to please God. God is always pleased when we stand on His Word. He is pleased when we act on the Word. Bartimaeus believed that Jesus could heal him, and his actions showed that. If we want to receive from God, we must do the same thing. Our actions must demonstrate what we believe. 

#walkbyfaith #vcccharlotte #standontheWord #devotional

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 23rd

📖 I’m the least important of the apostles. I don’t deserve to be called an apostle, because I harassed God’s church.  I am what I am by God’s grace, and God’s grace hasn’t been for nothing. In fact, I have worked harder than all the others—that is, it wasn’t me but the grace of God that is with me. —I Corinthians 15:9-10 CEB

We are who we are by God’s grace. We are nothing apart from it. Paul had a revelation and a personal acquaintance with the grace of God. He acknowledged that he had severely persecuted the church. He felt that this made him the least of the apostles. He felt that he was not worthy of being called an apostle because of his past mistakes. We can all have a moment like this. If we don’t stay on top of ourselves, we can allow the past to lower our self-worth, but thank God for His grace! His grace makes us worthy. His grace is what allows us to move forward and to move on, free from condemnation. We must be like Paul; we cannot allow His grace to be in vain. We must press toward the mark. We must walk in the divine calling. We must strive to attain all that He has preordained for us to walk in. His grace cannot be for nothing. 

#God’sgrace #devotional #vcccharlotte #worthy #verseoftheday

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 22nd

📖 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. —James 1:5-8 NKJV

God wants us to believe in his love for us and his ability to provide our every need. Sometimes in life we ask God for things and then begin to doubt his ability or willingness to help us in our time of need. The Bible recounts a story of a man who was full of leprosy he fell on his face before Jesus and implored Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus then put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed and the leprosy left him. The leper did not understand that Jesus was willing to heal him. The same is true in our situation. God is willing to help in any area we might need it. We can put our trust in him knowing he sacrificed his only begotten Son so that we would have a chance at a new and prosperous life. Whatever we need in life we should ask God in faith knowing that he loves and cares for each one of us. 

#God’slove #faith #vcccharlotte #dailydevotional #willingness

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL | August 21st

📖 But all things are from God, Who through Jesus Christ reconciled us to Himself [received us into favor, brought us into harmony with Himself] and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation [that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him]. It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself, not counting up and holding against [men] their trespasses [but cancelling them], and committing to us the message of reconciliation (of the restoration to favor). So we are Christ’s ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us. We [as Christ’s personal representatives] beg you for His sake to lay hold of the divine favor [now offered you] and be reconciled to God. 
—2 Corinthians 5:18-20 AMPC  

As believers we are in the “people business”. We are ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are to go out to where the people are. People are hurting. They need deliverance and healing. They need prayer. Those who are hurting are all around us. They are on our jobs. They are in the marketplace. We are the sent ones. We are the ministers of reconciliation. We must show ourselves to be friendly. We must be approachable. Our desire should be to demonstrate the love of God to a hurting and dying world. People should be drawn to us because we are the light of the world and the salt of the earth. We are a city set on a hill that cannot be hidden.  This is not a time for the believer to be ashamed of the Gospel. Because we are righteous, we are to be bold as a lion. Don’t be afraid to let your light shine, someone is looking for it. Somebody needs it. We have what the world needs. 

#boldness #vcccharlotte #righteous #devotional 

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