2Corinthians 6:4-10 (AMP)

But we commend ourselves in every way as [true] servants of God: through great endurance, in tribulation and suffering, in hardships and privations, in sore straits and calamities, In beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless watching, hunger; By innocence and purity, knowledge and spiritual insight, longsuffering and patience, kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in unfeigned love; By [speaking] the word of truth, in the power of God, with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand [to attack] and for the left hand [to defend]; Amid honor and dishonor; in defaming and evil report and in praise and good report. [We are branded] as deceivers (impostors), and [yet vindicated as] truthful and honest. [We are treated] as unknown and ignored [by the world], and [yet we are] well-known and recognized [by God and His people]; as dying, and yet here we are alive; as chastened by suffering and [yet] not killed; As grieved and mourning, yet [we are] always rejoicing; as poor [ourselves, yet] bestowing riches on many; as having nothing, and [yet in reality] possessing all things.

Honor defined:

• Strong moral character or strength, and adherence to ethical principles.

• Great respect and admiration.

• Personal dignity and integrity, that sometimes leads to recognition and glory.

In the above scriptures Paul talked about some weighty things. It is never pleasant to go through temptations, test or trials yet amid them our God will never leave us nor forsake us. Paul talked about honor and dishonor. Isn’t it amazing how a person can be honored by someone one hour and dishonored the very next minute by someone else. Honor can be toxic if it is not filtered through Christ. We must not seek to be honored by others because we set ourselves up for disappointment and discouragement. When we become distraught, depressed and confused because of a lack of honor from others this only reveals that we had our priorities all wrong. When we choose to look to human-kind for approval, acceptance and validation then we spiritually disarm ourselves and like Sampson find ourselves lying on the lap of the enemy, shaven and without power.

Jesus said, “I receive not honour from men” John 5:41.

Jesus was not a slave to the opinions of people. He was not moved off course by their approval or disapproval of Him. The scriptures said, “But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.” John 2:24-25

Jesus knew the corruptness of human nature. He knew that the nature of man was selfish. A person who is controlled by selfishness will not honor you without strings attached. The honor that they give is tainted and not genuine, it is false, a mere facade. There will be times when your good is evil spoken of. There will be times when people try to defame and smear your good name to try to dishonor you. There will be times when seemingly for no apparent reason people began to despise and reject you, casting you off to the side like a dried up piece of meat. Don’t take it personal, it’s just the devil working through them trying to get you to give up, cave in and quit. The devil has trapped and shipwrecked many a soul through dishonor. Dishonor can buckle a man or woman to their knees quicker than a Karate kick to the abdomen. Dishonor has its roots in betrayal. Betrayal can leave a person feeling violated, striped, exposed, and weak both spiritually and physically.

Jesus said, “How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?” John 5:44 Seeking the honor of men is a product of unbelief. Unbelief is a sign of spiritual weakness and retardation. We are not growing properly as Christians when we harbor unbelief. Faith in God is what we need to grow and flourish properly.

When we are dishonored by others, this is a demonic attack to try to ambush our faith. But be of good cheer, God did not leave His people without a defense against such a monster.

He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. Psalms 107:20

The word of God can equip you and fortify you against any attack of dishonor. The word of God in you will never back up in defeat, it will always pursue then conqueror and subdue your enemies. The word of God will establish you so that you will only seek the honor that comes from God; everything else is just a cheap imitation. The word of God will cause you to be unmovable, unshakable, and unbreakable. But in order for this to happen we must make the word of God a high priority in our lives. We must take the time to allow the Holy Spirit to download the word in our hearts. This does not just happen through brief methodical readings of the scripture. We must lock in and engage our spirit, soul and body in the word of God. We must submerge ourselves and take long soaks in the word of Life.

You are a vessel of honor don’t be disillusioned by the picture the devil is showing you in his mirror of deception. Square your shoulders back and walk tall, God will honor you before all. Keep the faith don’t give in, you win!

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2 Timothy 3:11-12

Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 

Whenever you take steps of obedience toward the plan and purposes God has for your life it won’t be long before persecution arises for the Word sake. Gods will for every born-again believer is that we grow and mature in His ways and accomplish His plan for our lives. However, God knows that when we pursue with the intent to do and follow through with His every instruction, mental, physical and spiritual assaults will come against His people. But, fear not, for Jesus foretold us that in this world we would have tribulation but be of good cheer He has already over come it and deprived it of power to harm us. God knew the things we would have to face in this earth so He saw to it that we would have everything we needed to win. God did not leave us without help as a matter of fact He did not leave us at all, He is with us in the person of the Holy Spirit who is the one that will abide with us forever.

Progress is good but not without challenges. The enemy will always challenge the believer’s authority to see if you will back down or not. He challenged Jesus’ authority in the wilderness during His earthly temptation. He also challenged Jesus during different seasons of His life and ministry, as recorded in the scriptures.

The word precipitate means to make something happen suddenly and quickly. This is our enemies strategy to try to catch us off guard and over take us with the element of surprise. However, he is defeated and we are not ignorant of his devices. We have an advantage over every trap and scheme of the enemy. We are not unarmed but rather fully equipped with the whole armor of God. We can withstand him, not in our own strength and ability but by our Heavenly Father’s grace, which is sufficient for us to win every battle and walk away from every fight victoriously triumphant.

Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Don’t be weary in well doing but make progress going full steam ahead. These test and trials are light afflictions and are not worthy of your focus and/or meditation. Rise up and shake the dust from this world off you and be the victorious king and/or priest God has called you to be. Take your place, run your race with all diligence and honor. Every step you take forward in the plan of God is a demonstration of resurrection power and life that glorifies God.

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John 10:4-5

And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. 

And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. 

The Bible says that there are so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification (1Corinthians 14:10).

God is not expecting you to listen to every voice in the earth and follow it. He made it simple for us. Jesus said “My sheep hear my voice and they follow me.”

This makes our choices easier. When we receive instruction from God, we don’t have to think twice about rather we will follow His instruction or someone else. Our answer should always be, “Yes Lord, I’ll obey you.”

Too many choices sometimes bring confusion to the hearer. We sometimes go through life asking everyone for their opinion about our situation and never stop to ask the one who knows–God.

Jesus said as His sheep we would flee from the voice of strangers because we know not their voice. Any voice that does not agree with God and His word should be considered strange and God has given us permission to flee from it. God is the only one who will go before us and always lead us in the right direction. So as the voices of this world clamor for your attention be confident and know that the Good Shepherd has all the instruction and direction you need for a safe journey through this earth. Follow Him.

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Hebrews 12:2-4

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

The next time you think that your problems and situations in life are unfair and unbearable, consider Jesus.

Such a wonderful example of true love and endurance. Every time I remember His sacrifice and what He did for us, it brings great joy, humility and an abundance of thankfulness.

Let us homor Him this passover by forgetting our troubles and rejoicing in His triumph!

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To have something in moderation is defined as: within reasonable limits and never to excess.

In today’s society most food is served in super sized portions. It is not unusual when buying a slice of pie to be served an enormous 3 serving size slice. People actually get upset when they are served a normal portion; they think they are being cheated.

Consider this, a normal portion size of meat should be 2-3oz/per meal. The visual of that would be the size of the palm of your hand or a deck of cards.

Proverbs 23:2 declares, And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.

The next time you are tempted to eat that 3rd serving of pie, consider practicing a little moderation or temperance.

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Many years ago there was a TV commercial that had a jiggle that said, “Wake up to Folgers in your cup.” The intent of the coffee manufacturer was to persuade people as soon as they woke up in the morning to fill up on their brand of coffee. They wanted their coffee to be the first thing on your mind when you opened your eyes every morning. I’m sure many were persuaded by the jiggles ever so friendly tone and homely approach. Many people across the United States woke up every morning and headed right for the kitchen and began their day with one or more cups of Folgers coffee. After many days, weeks, months and years of following this pattern of behavior many people are still practicing the same routine today. As a matter of fact they may even get upset if their daily routine of waking up to Folgers in their cup is interrupted or delayed. They become grumpy and irritable and sometimes downright hostile to others all because they did not fill their cup when they first woke up. Some people will even warn you not to talk or approach them until they have had their morning cup of choice. Now, I know you may be thinking that I am against coffee drinkers but I certainly am not, I am just making a point. If you are a morning coffee drinker be not offended :).

Cups are containers or vessels and only become useful when something is put in them. Cups can only give what they receive. Trash in, trash out. Gold in, gold out. When you put something into a cup it doesn’t change it into something else.

The scripture says in the 23rd Psalms that when God anoints our head with oil our cups run over. Oh my, what an awesome revelation! If you consider what God said here you can see the parallel. Man is being compared to a vessel or cup. The top of our head representing the mouth of the cup. God pours the oil in from the top into the rest of our being, just like you would fill a cup. Then He doesn’t stop pouring until you overflow with oil,and begin running over, Hallelujah! God did not create us to be empty vessels but overflowing wells! Isn’t it better to wake up overflowing with God in your cup everyday!

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Ecclesiastes 10:8

He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh a hedge, a serpent shall bite him. 

Hedge defined:

• a close-set row of bushes, usually with their branches intermingled, forming a barrier or boundary in a garden, lawn, or field

• a means of protection against something

The scripture declares that when a hedge is broken, a serpent will bite. This implies that the only way the serpent can bite is that the hedge or our means of protection is broken. The serpent in scripture most often speaks of things belonging to the kingdom of darkness, a.k.a. Satan and his demonic host.

As Christians, we must stay alert if we don’t want to be bitten by the serpent. The bite itself will initially cause localized swelling and pain, but this does not compare to the poison that was injected underneath the skin. This poison is deadly if left untreated without an antidote.

When we leave a breech in our spiritual hedge through offenses, neglect of personal time with God, not reading and meditating on His Word, and carnal attitudes and thoughts, we become vulnerable and easy prey for the enemy.

Let us keep our hedges solid and well maintained so we can live a life free of poison from the serpent’s bite.

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Matthew 26:6-13
Now when Jesus came back to Bethany and was in the house of Simon the leper, A woman came up to Him with an alabaster flask of very precious perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, For what purpose is all this waste? For this perfume might have been sold for a large sum and the money given to the poor. But Jesus, fully aware of this, said to them, Why do you bother the woman? She has done a noble (praiseworthy and beautiful) thing to Me. For you always have the poor among you, but you will not always have Me. In pouring this perfume on My body she has done something to prepare Me for My burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this good news (the Gospel) is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will be told also, in memory of her.
This woman honored God with her best. She could have went and bought some cheap perfume and pretended in front of the people to be doing something noble but her heart was not to impress those standing around, she wanted to honor God. Sometimes people do things to impress other people in an effort to sway their opinion of them or for some other selfish gain. Trying to impress people is empty labor; very hard work with little or no gain. This many times can lead to unnecessary emotional pain, frustration and disappointment. The truth is that it’s only when we please God can we have a fruitful and successful return on our investments. Human beings can never reward you like God can.

Jesus said, How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? (John 5:44)

Impress defined

•  to affect or please somebody greatly. To have a strong, usually favorable effect on the mind or feelings of somebody.

The woman who poured costly perfume on Jesus was focused on honoring God not people. She chose to hear from heaven and follow through with the instructions that filled her heart and mind. Honoring God has everything to do with following His plans and purposes. When we live a life that overflows with rich wisdom from God, it will always lead us to do the right things for the right reasons and be at the right place at the right time.
This woman obviously took to heart all that Jesus had been saying about His death, burial and resurrection and sought to honor Him in helping Him to prepare for His ultimate sacrifice.

Jesus is coming back soon just like He said. There are ways we who believe can honor Him and prepare for His soon arrival. Choose today and every day to honor Him with your best. He is worthy!

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On most keyboards and computer options, there is a delete button which gives a person the choice to erase what they see.

Delete defined:

• To score out or erase something that is printed or written.

This mean we can totally obliterate something from our files or disk just by the mere push of a button. When you delete something, there is no trace or memory of it. As a matter of fact, if that was the only copy of it, it would be hard to prove it even existed.

Hebrews 10:16-18 NLT

This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the Lord: 

I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds. Then he says, I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds. And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices.

God has deleted things from your past and mine. He has totally erased them from our history. The words “never again remember” have the same meaning as “delete”. God has erased the bad and downloaded the good. Oh, I’m so glad for that heavenly delete button, aren’t you? All the plans and strategies the devil plotted against me to destroy me were all deleted in an instant. The enemy thought he could destroy me because of my past sins, but glory to God they were all deleted in the blood of Jesus. There is no trace or memory of them, as a matter of fact, it’s as though they never existed. Hallelujah! Deleted by the blood! Deleted by the Blood!

The wonderful thing about this delete button is that it works on all the enemies weapons and destructive strategies. When he attempts to flood your mind with ungodly thoughts and imaginations, just go ahead an press that delete button. When he tries to put sickness and disease on your body just go ahead and push that button. When the enemy tries to thwart the plans and purposes of God in your life just go ahead an press the button. Our button represents the name of Jesus, the Word of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit. These all agree for your victory. So don’t hesitate to press your delete button and live free from the weights and sins sent by your enemy. Praise the Lord God Almighty!

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When you are online on a computer your status is considered active. This can apply in the spirit as well as in the natural. To be active is to be: lively, energetic, vigorous, full of life, on the go, full of zip and dynamic. When a person’s status is offline they are considered to be inactive. To be inactive is to be: motionless, stationary, unmoving, immobile, stopped, stilled or dormant.

What is your status, are you on or off, active or inactive?

Jeremiah 1:12 describes our God as being an active God, “Then said the Lord to me, You have seen well, for I am alert and active, watching over My word to perform it.”

God is not dormant or stopped, He is on the go doing His will and fulfilling His good pleasure. God is not asleep on the job, He is not only alert but He is active. God is always online, in step and right on time. God is never late but always ready and willing to participate in bringing His word to pass in our lives. The bible reveals that the word of God is active, operative and energizing.

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12 AMB)

As children of God we should be developing into looking just like Him. If God is active then we should be active or change whatever is inactive in our lives so that we can look more like Him. When I refer to God being active I don’t mean He is busy running all over the place from one thing to another, frantic and chaotic. No, God has purpose in everything He does. His activities are not driven or controlled by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and pride of life; they are not vain or selfish. God’s activeness is born out of love. Love never fails.

Looking like God means doing what we see Him do and saying what we hear Him say.

James 1:25 says, “But he who looks carefully into the faultless law, the [law] of liberty, and is faithful to it and perseveres in looking into it, being not a heedless listener who forgets but an active doer [who obeys], he shall be blessed in his doing (his life of obedience).”

We must be active doers of God’s word not just hearers. You can fool some of the people some of the time but you can never fool God. Being a hearer of God’s word only, will bear fruit of inactivity. It will be evident eventually that this person’s status was offline. Sometimes people will log on to their computers and appear to be online but in reality they have walked away from the computer and have become distracted by something else. Have you ever known someone who outwardly appeared to be actively doing the word of God and obeying His will but in reality they have spiritually walked away and are distracted by other things? We are considered active when we hear and do what we hear. We become active through practice and participation.

So what is your status, are you on or offline, active or inactive?

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