GOD WORKS FOR YOUR GOOD

God Works for Your Good by Rick Warren

"We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NIV) God has a purpose for every season of your life — the lonely seasons, the sad seasons, the seasons of success, the seasons of waiting, and the seasons of grief. Romans 8:28 says, "We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (NIV). This is not a promise for everybody. All things do not work together for good for everybody in the world. They only work together for good for those who love God and trust him with their plans. This is one of the basic truths in the Bible. If you're a believer, nothing comes into your life that hasn't been filtered by your heavenly Father. Your life is not a random series of freak accidents and occurrences and circumstances. God never does anything by accident. He has an appointed time for everything in your life. Even the bad times? Yes. Don't misunderstand me. God does not have to plan all the problems in your life. He doesn't need to. You come up with them yourself! Bad times happen because of the bad decisions you make. And, they also happen because of bad decisions other people make, where you're an innocent victim. God doesn't have to plan bad things; he is not the author of evil. But God can draw good out of each event in your life. That means every single event, no matter how dark or shameful or how guilty or bitter you feel about it, God can bring good out of it. He can work for your good. The Bible doesn't say all things are good. Not all things in the world are good. There's a lot of bad. But it does say that all things work together for good for those who give God all the pieces and say, "Will you work good out of this?” God will do it. He has an appointed time for everything. Talk It Over In what situation do you need to ask God to work for your good? What is it that keeps you from asking God for his help?

ENGAGING THE POWER OF THE HOLY GHOST FOR CONQUEST: The Spirit Of Boldness.

Wed 16-10-2013
Topic:ENGAGING THE POWER OF THE HOLY GHOST FOR CONQUEST: The Spirit Of Boldness.

MINISTERING:BISHOP DAVID OYEDEPO.

The spirit of boldness is the cure for fear. 1 john 4:17-20, Job 3:24-25. Fear is the gateway to torment, Signs and wonders don't answer to confessions, signs and wonders answer to bold affirmative declearation, Acts 14:3, psalm 81:10-14. It is the Holy Ghost that empowers us for boldness, It take boldness to keep the enemies where they belongs, Psalm 18:43-45. Everytime we operate in boldness, we have provoke God's integrity to perform, Luke 21:15. Our spiritual authority is in our tongue.
HOW DOES THE HOLY GHOST EMPOWERS US FOR BOLDNESS.
(1) Through the spirit of wisdom and the knowledge of His power Proverbs 24:5, Ephesians 1:17-18.
(2) Through the spirit of Holiness, 28:1, romans 1:4
(3) Through empowering our tongue for supernatural boldness, Hebrews 4:16,.07:56

God Is Waiting for You to Ask

God Is Waiting for You to Ask by Rick Warren

“If you ... know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11 NIV) God is the source of everything. Everything you see in the world and everything you can’t see in the world and in the universe, God made. He’s the source of every good thing in the universe. As you depend on God as your source for everything, there are four truths you need to remember. First, everything is a gift from God. Nothing you have, have you earned. It’s all a gift of God’s grace. If God didn’t want to give it, you wouldn’t have it. The Bible tells us in James 1:17, “Every good and perfect gift is from above” (NIV). That’s why the Lord’s Prayer in this third phrase starts with the word “give.” “Give us this day our daily bread.” Why? Because it is a gift. You can’t earn it. Second, there’s nothing I need that God can’t provide. You don’t know what you’re going to need the rest of this year. But whatever it is, God has the power to supply it. The Bible says this in Philippians 4:19: “My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Glorious resources means as lavish as only God can lavish. God has unlimited resources. Third, God wants to give you everything you need. Matthew 7:11 says, “If you ... know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” God wants to meet your need. And, here’s the fourth thing: He’s waiting on you. If you have needs in your life that are not being met, it’s not God’s fault. You’re not waiting on God. He’s waiting on you! The problem is not that God doesn’t want to meet your need; the problem is that you never ask him for it. James 4:2 says, “You do not have because you do not ask God.” Talk It Over To whom are you looking to meet your needs? What have you been waiting to ask God for that you need? *** *** ***

Trust One Day at a Time

Trust One Day at a Time by Rick Warren “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.… Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” (Philippians 4:6, 8 NLT) God wants you to trust him one day at a time: “Give us this day our daily bread.” Not for next week. Not for next year. Not for next month. Just one day at a time. Philippians 4:6 and 8 show us that there are four things that you need to do to trust God on a daily basis: “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.… Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise” (NLT). Worry about nothing. Why is worry such a big deal? Because it’s not just a bad habit. It’s a flat out sin! But God keeps his promises, and you can trust that he will take care of you. “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:34). Pray about everything. Prayer can change things. Romans 8:32 says, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (NIV) God solved your biggest problem — getting into Heaven — when he sent Jesus to die for you. If God loved you enough to send Jesus to die for you, don’t you think he loves you enough to take care of all these other problems? Thank God in all things. No matter what happens, give thanks. The Bible doesn’t say, “For all things give thanks.” It says, “Inall things give thanks.” You don’t have to be thankful for bad things in your life. You should never be thankful for evil. You don’t have to be thankful for cancer or a car accident or war or abuse. But God says in everything give thanks. Why? Because you know that God’s going to take care of you. You know he’s going to meet your needs. You know he’s going to help you. Think about the right things. God gives us a list of things to think about, things that are true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and worthy of praise. Where do you find things that are pure and lovely to think about? At the movies? I don’t think so. On TV? No. You will only find pure and lovely and honorable thoughts in the Word of God. You need to read it, study it, memorize it, and fill your mind with it. Isaiah 26:3 says,“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” (NLT) Talk It Over Where do your thoughts turn most often? In what situation do you need to thank God today? *** *** ***

How to Assess Your Value - Daily Hope

How to Assess Your Value by Rick Warren “Come to the Lord, the living stone rejected by people as worthless but chosen by God as valuable.” (1 Peter 2:4 GW) God says that not only are you accepted, you're valuable. How much do you think you're worth? I'm not talking about your net worth; I'm talking about your self-worth. Don't ever confuse your valuables with your value as a person. You can be rich or poor, but it has nothing to do with your value as a person. There are two things that determine value in life: Value is what someone is willing to pay for something. Value depends on who has owned something in the past. Based on these two things, what's your value? Ask yourself, “Who owns me?” and “What was paid for me?” 1 Corinthians 7:23 says, "You have been bought and paid for by Christ, so you belong to him” (LB). You belong to God, and Jesus paid for you with his life. The cross proves your value. Nobody has ever paid a greater ransom price than God paid for you! You're acceptable, and you're valuable. Peter uses the imagery of a building project to illustrate our value. God is building this stone building that represents the Church, the family of God, and you're one of the stones. "Come to the Lord, the living Stone rejected by people as worthless” (1 Peter 2:4 GW). Jesus is the living stone. He was perfect, but some people still rejected him. Some of you may think, “If I could just be perfect, then I would be accepted.” No! Jesus was perfect, but even he wasn't accepted by everyone. But, he was “chosen by God as valuable.” God is building his Church, but it’s not found in temples or church buildings. God lives in people, and you are his spiritual house. Peter says that you're a living stone. When you give your life to Christ, you become a building block in God's great plan. Talk About It How should understanding a Christian’s value in God’s eyes change the way you treat yourself and other believers? What is the evidence in your life that you have grasped the freedom that comes from being ransomed by Jesus Christ?

Hold Up Your White Flag

Hold Up Your White Flag by Rick Warren

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV) Surrender means leaving the future to God. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (ESV). What area of your life is not surrendered to God? You’ve surrendered the kitchen and the living room. But what about the bedroom of your life? What about the closet of your life? What about the garage of your life? What area of your life is not surrendered? Some of you have not surrendered your sex life. You say, “I know God says sex is only for marriage, but I’m going to do it my way.” That’s why you’re under stress. Some of you have not surrendered your finances to God. “I know God says that I should give the first 10 percent back to him, but I can’t afford to tithe.” And that’s why you’re under stress. Some of you have not surrendered your relationships to God. “I know I should forgive that person who hurt me, but I’m not about to forgive them.” That’s why you’re under stress. Some of you have a secret sin that you have not surrendered to God. You have a habit that you have not surrendered to God. You have a hurt or a hang up that you have not surrendered to God. Some of you have never surrendered your life to Jesus Christ. You’ve never surrendered yourself to be baptized. You haven’t found a church family. Surrender is holding up the white flag and saying, “God, the war’s off. I’m not going to fight you any more. I want serenity, not stress.” Aren’t you tired of being at war with God? I would think so. Surrender is the ultimate expression of faith. Talk It Over What area of your life is not surrendered to God? What steps do you need to take today to surrender to God the thing that has caused you the most stress?