Pastor Stephen Dedman

Category: Encouragement

Give Me Peace

Encouragement

You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭26:3‬

In today’s verse we find a promise from God to those who trust in Him. There’s no doubt that we all need more peace in our lives today. Have you noticed when you’re nearest to God there is more peace and joy? 

That is because your trust is in Him. But how can we keep that “perfect peace” when we are faced with difficulties of life?

We need to rid ourselves of the fear and doubt that intrudes our minds which ultimately affects the way we think and act. 

Oswald Chambers said, “Your mind is the greatest gift God has given you and it ought to be devoted entirely to Him. You should seek to be ‘bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ…’ (2 Corinthians 10:5). This will be one of the greatest assets of your faith when a time of trial comes, because then your faith and the Spirit of God will work together.” 

If we place our minds on anything else we may experience temporary and imperfect peace, but God alone is the giver of perfect peace. God is the only One who can deliver on the promise of perfect peace. 

In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus calls us to build our lives on Him and to obey His words. The rain will fall, the floods will come, the winds will blow, but those who build on the foundation of Christ are like a house built on a rock that can withstand these storms. But those who put their trust in anything else other than Christ are like houses built on sand that can’t hold up and are washed away. I pray you place your mind on Christ and trust God who will provide you with peace that passes all understanding. (Philippians 4:7)

Pray

Lord, remove all doubt that I have. Give me peace that surpasses all understanding. Let my faith in You be greater than all my fears. 

Praise The Lord

Encouragement

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Psalm 150:6

It is estimated that the average person takes an average of 23,000 breaths a day. Every breath you take is important. If you were to stop breathing… death is near.

Breathing is not something you have to think about unless you are having a hard time breathing. Our lungs naturally inhale and exhale and most of the time we don’t even notice the action.

Here is the point of today’s message. We are given 23,000 opportunities to praise the Lord. We should praise God for every breath He gives us.

Let’s praise the Lord for every breath we take and with every breath let’s praise the Lord!

Do you praise the Lord 23,000 times a day? With the mindset of praising God for giving us our next breath we can. But don’t wait until you can’t breathe to be thankful for each breath.

Take a deep breath right now and consider what happens when your lungs fill with air (oxygen) and you exhale the converted air (carbon dioxide). The 3 to 5 seconds that it took to breathe in and breathe out is amazing. The oxygen you inhale contains vital nutrients for blood to carry nutrients throughout your body to live.

Interestingly enough, you exhale carbon dioxide that provides sufficient nutrients for plants to survive. And in return plants give off oxygen for humans to survive. God works in mysterious ways!

How many times you can praise the Lord today?

Pray

Lord, thank You for every breath I take. Thank You for the clean air that I breathe and the plants that provide oxygen for me to breathe. Help me to realize that every breath I take matters and is an opportunity to praise You.

Remember The Cross

Encouragement

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
1 Corinthians 1:18

Most all of our problems are due to sin. Some of our problems cause us great suffering. But sometimes our problems are so severe they can lead to death. 

We all have somewhat similar problems. However, some of us have more serious problems than others. But praise Jesus, there’s a great promise given to us from the Scriptures. 

The message of the cross is the power of God for us who are being saved. What that means is the cross that Jesus died on was a burden that Jesus overcame for you. It was for your sin, which causes problems. The cost has been paid. And it’s been paid in full. 

The next time you think about a problem you are facing just think about the cross. Think about the cross and the victory that Jesus had on the cross. 

The message of the cross is that Jesus defeated sin and conquered death. This means that Satan will not and cannot have any power over us as Christians. Jesus has all the power! 

Your problem is never too big for God. Don’t let your problems of this world get the best of you when God gave His best for you. 

Pray

Lord, there is no problem that I have that you can’t handle. Take my worries away. Take my burdens away. Let me focus on what you want me to be focused on today.