Ascend

Ascend TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.” (Psalm 24:3–5, NKJV) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria You were meant to rise high in heavenly places. You were meant to stand with God above the cares of this life. But notice that this verse tells us that in order to ascend, we have to make sure we have clean hands and a pure heart. How do we have clean hands and a pure heart? First of all, only Jesus can make us clean and new. Once we receive Him as our Lord and Savior, we have to choose every day to stand against the enemy and his attempts to bring us back down. It all happens in our thought life. We have to guard our thoughts by guarding what we allow to influence our thoughts. We can’t just watch any old thing on TV. We can’t just listen to any old conversation. We have to make sure that what we allow into our minds is pleasing to the Lord because what we allow into our minds will eventually affect our hearts. If we are going to ascend, we have to have higher thoughts; we have to have a higher way of living. Choose today to ascend in your thoughts so you can ascend in your life and receive the blessings the Lord has in store for you! A PRAYER FOR TODAY Father in heaven, today I choose higher thoughts. I choose higher living. Help me to guard my heart and mind so that I can live a life that is pleasing to You in Jesus’ name. Amen. PS...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V0rgrt1nTM#t=28

Don’t Waste Your Pain

BY RICK WARREN — SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

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“He comforts us when we are in trouble, so that we can share that same comfort with others in trouble. We share in the terrible sufferings of Christ, but also in the wonderful comfort he gives.” (2 Corinthians 1:4-5 CEV)

Your greatest ministry will flow out of your pain — not out of your strengths or your talents but out of the painful experiences of your life. It is your weaknesses that help other people in their need, not your strengths.

A great example of this is the apostle Paul. In 2 Corinthians 1, Paul says that he was in a time of his life when he was so discouraged that he was ready to kick the bucket. He despaired of life itself. He was ready to give up on life. He was ready to crawl in a corner and die. And Paul was probably the greatest Christian who ever lived except for Jesus!

But Paul was able to say this in 2 Corinthians 1:2-5: “I pray that God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you and will bless you with peace! Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! The Father is a merciful God, who always gives us comfort. He comforts us when we are in trouble, so that we can share that same comfort with others in trouble. We share in the terrible sufferings of Christ, but also in the wonderful comfort he gives” (CEV).

Who can be more sympathetic than somebody who has already been through what another person is going through right now? Who can better help the parent of a special needs child than a parent who raised a special needs child? Who can better help somebody going through a bankruptcy than somebody who has gone through it before? Who can better help somebody experiencing the heartbreak of divorce than somebody who remembers how terrible it felt? Who can better help somebody who’s been abused or molested than somebody who has been abused or molested?

Don’t waste your pain. If you hide it and hold it back, it doesn’t do any good. But if you’re honest with God and yourself and with other people, God can use the thing you hate the most in your life, that you’re most disappointed by, and that you wish had never happened. God says, “You can’t change what happened to you. But I can use it for your benefit and for my purposes. When you’re willing to share your brokenness, I can use it to help other people.”

Talk It Over

• What is the painful experience in your life that you want God to use for good in someone else’s life?
• Who do you need to forgive so that you can move on from your pain and release it for God to use in ministry?
• Who do you think you can share your experience with so that they can receive God’s comfort?