Hi, Everyone.
I hope you had a good weekend. It's Monday--time to get going! First, though, let's complete Joshua 1:8.

Life Plan Devotion #123 [Success]

Joshua 1:8 "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success" (NKJV).

     What a wonderful Kingdom principle it is that when we line ourselves up with the Word of God, which is doing our part, God is faithful to do His part!
     Last time, we looked at the first of the two "God's part" clauses in the Joshua 1:8 promise, that if we immerse ourselves in God's Word, meditate on and obey it, God will covenant with us so that we will make our way prosperous.
     Today, let's look at the second "God's part" clause of Joshua 1:8, "...and then you will have good success" (NKJV). Let me remind you that this verse is the only verse in the early English version of the Bible which contains the word "success."
     When you compare this second "God's part" clause to the first "God's part" clause, you see a familiar phrase, "then you will," which we know means "at that time you will..." The use of the conjunction "and," linking the two "God's part" clauses, assures us that not only will God see to it that we "make [our] way prosperous," but He will also see to it that we "have good success."
     Let's look at the original Hebrew, for "have good success." The Hebrew word for "have" is hâyâh (haw-yaw’), which means "to exist, i.e. to be or become, come to pass (always emphatic): beacon, altogether be (become, accomplished, committed, like), break, cause, come (to pass), + follow, happen, have." Look at that list. To which word or phrase are you drawn? Circle it, for there is a reason you are drawn to it.
     The Hebrew word for "good" is râtsâh (raw-tsaw’), which means "to be pleased with, satisfied, acceptable, delight, enjoy, favourable, desire, (good) pleasure (own self, voluntary), will, as...(what) would." Do you see that you determine what is "good success" for your situation, and because you are in covenant relationship with God, He agrees with you?
     We have so many believers praying and merely asking God to help them pay their bills month by month. If they are in covenant relationship with God, that's exactly what He does for them. What will you believe God to do for you, for your family? Will you be content to accept that "good success" for you is merely food, clothing, and shelter? That's not a bad thing; it's "acceptable." Do you want to live an "acceptable" life, though, nothing more? Think about that. As lovingly as I can, I tell you that it is up to you, my dear brother/sister in Christ.
     The Hebrew word for "success" is sâkal (saw-kal’), which means "to be, make, act cir****pect and hence intelligent:--consider, expert, instruct, prosper, (deal) prudent (-ly), (give) skill (-ful), have good success, teach, (have, make to) understand (-ing), wisdom, (be, behave self, consider, make) wise (-ly), guide wittingly."
     So often we think of "success" as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Consider that "success" may be the "rainbow," the road on which you have chosen to travel. Line yourself up with the Word of God, and He promises to equip you for the journey. He'll help you have the intelligence, the wisdom and understanding, the guidance to make wise decisions and equip you with the skills to bring about what you decide is "good" and the "success" that you determine to make happen.
     If you do your part, God will do His part, and "...you will be wise and successful in everything" (NCV).

What this has to do with weight loss: What is "good success" for you, on your weight-loss journey? Is it the goal weight at the end or the day-by-day getting there? Focus on living daily by God's Word, and you will find that your weight-loss journey is positively affected. God will do His part, as you do yours.

Confession:
Because I line myself up with the Word of God, He covenants with me to assist me on the journey which I decide is "good success" for me and my family.

Blessings,
Mary

Hi, Everyone.
Today's devotion, from my personal journal dated May 5, 2007, is about living by the Spirit (being led by and walking with the Spirit) and how it is the key to not gratifying the flesh (not overeating).
As always, I do love hearing from each of you.

Flashback Friday Devotion #27 [Flesh & Spirit] 

     This morning the Lord and I were talking, and I asked Him to help me understand what I felt yesterday, why it was such a struggle, especially in the afternoon. I "heard" two words in my spirit:  "flesh" and "Spirit."
     I looked for a verse with both words in it, with my Concordance, and found Galatians 5:16, "...walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh."
     I know I need to walk in a way that honors the Lord. That is my desire. I recognize that involves a continual drinking of the Living Water, continuous fellowship with Christ, and a refusal to gratify the desires of the flesh. There is a conflict, though, between flesh and Spirit. I read Galatians 5:17, which says that "the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things you please."
     I asked the Lord, "So, am I bound to live the rest of my life with this inner struggle going on all the time? Will I experience victory one day and defeat the next? That's not abundant life!" He led me back to the words, "Walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh." I may still have the desires, but I am enabled through the Holy Spirit to not gratify them, if I am living by the Spirit, that is.
     I must commit myself to the guidance of the Word and the Holy Spirit. That, coupled with Grace, will show up in my walk, in my daily relationship with God, and even in my eating habits. Step by step. Step by step.
     My "fight" is not so much with overeating, but with maintaining my walk with the Lord. If I live by the Spirit, am led by the Spirit, and walk with the Spirit, it is a promise that I will NOT gratify my flesh, I will not overeat.

Today, lovingly consider how you're doing with living by the Spirit (being led by and walking with the Spirit). Choose to empty yourself of "self" and yield to the Holy Spirit, today.

I hope you have about 4 minutes to watch and listen to Jeremy Camp singing My Desire, a song about what it is like to desire to be emptied, yielded, filled, and used by the Holy Spirit. 
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=b65f4c0ccd295c c484e5

Blessings,
Mary

Trish I have to tell you that I am reading the book "The Shack". It has a whole chapter on being submissive. Jesus is telling this man ,that is so annoyed with God, about the relationship that Jesus, The Holy Spririt and God have and he tries to explain they submit to each other. I know that God has been working with me on this. I so can understand about being submissive to him. So when you talk about this and tell me your Pastor is talking about this, God so knows what we need. Your daughter, mother and son are in my prayers. I also understand about the relationships with mother, mine and my mom are not always good to each other. I will not only be praying for you but also that God will give you the wisdom to deal with these situations that He gives us. God bless you and I pray you grow stronger everyday.

In Christ

Karyn

Good Morning Everyone,
I have been AWOL for good reasons lately.  I am busy working at the psychiatric hospital.  I also was away for a few days, when my son took me to Cooperstown, NY to see the Baseball Hall of Fame.  We had such a good visit and trip.  I was so blessed by my time with him.  He is not walking with the Lord, but we had good talks and enjoyed our time together.  Please pray for his relationship with the Lord.  He is a good guy, just believes the Bible is fairy tales.  He did walk with the Lord in high school. 

My alcohol recovery is going okay.  I have over a month since my last drink.  I did have an emotional meltdown a few weeks ago, but I did not drink over it.  I would appreciate prayer for my mother.  She has cut me off and wants nothing to do with me.  We had a bad conflict and I said some stuff that I should not have concerning my childhood, and I apologized and she has not opened up communication with me since then.  She even cancelled plans to visit my daughter when the baby is born, because it would mean traveling with me. 

My pastor's sermons have been right in line with my 12 step recovery program.  A couple of weeks ago, the sermon was on forgiving others.  This week it was on the authority of God, and submitting to Jesus.  This lines up with steps three and four in my AA program.

Please pray for my daughter.  She is due to deliver a big baby boy around August 4th.  I will be traveling out there on or around the 31st of this month, to help her with Isabel and take care of them after she gives birth.

Have a great day.

Hugs,
Trish

Hi, Everyone.
I just want to say how grateful I am to have all of you in my life. I love each one of you, and you are often on my mind and in my prayers.

Life Plan Devotion #122 [Prosperous]

Joshua 1:8 "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous; and then you will have good success" (NKJV).

     We spent three days looking at the three "My part" clauses of the promise contained in Joshua 1:8. We know that before God can do His part, we must do our part. We discovered that our part involves immersing oneself in the Word of God, by reading, memorizing, reciting, studying, thinking, pondering, speaking, and meditating on it. Also, we discovered that we must act on what is in the Word of God. It is our guidebook, and we must heed and obey the principles contained in it. It is for our good.
     Today, we get to discover the first of two "God's part" clauses contained in the Joshua 1:8 promise. When we do our part, we line ourselves up with the Word of God, to receive "God's part." Joshua 1:8 states, "for then you will make your way prosperous..." (NKJV).
     Let's look at the Hebrew definitions for each of the main words in this first "God's part" clause. I won't include the Hebrew word for "then." Suffice it to say that it simply means "at that time or place." The word "you" is the subject of this clause, not "God."  Even though God promises to "make your way prosperous," He will not do it without you.
     Notice the wonderful helping verb "will." It does not say "might." When we do our part, according to God's Word, the result is always that the promise will happen. It may not happen right away, but it will happen!
     I almost didn't look up the Hebrew word for "make," but I felt the Spirit's nudging to do so, and I'm so glad I heeded. The Hebrew word for "make" is kârath (kaw-rath’), which means "to covenant (i.e., make an alliance); be freed." This is the reason why God breathed "you," not "I" (meaning God). God is a covenant God. He is all about partnering with us, rather than doing things on His own. Let's face it, often we wish God would just snap His fingers and make all our problems, especially our financial concerns, go away. He just does not work that way. He desires to work in and through us, and that is the covenant relationship. The absolutely astounding part of the definition of the Hebrew word for "make" is that the very second we covenant with God, we are "freed." In the spiritual realm, in the Kingdom of God, the second we covenant with God, our "way" is made "prosperous." It is loosed in Heaven, and it's on its way!
     The Hebrew word for "way" in Joshua 1:8 is derek (deh’-rek), and it means "a road; a course of life or mode of action, journey, manner, highway, pathway, whithersoever." I love that last word, whithersoever, because it means "whatever, whenever, wherever." You can't get more inclusive than that!
     "For then you will make your way prosperous..." (Joshua 1:8, NKJV). The Hebrew word for "prosperous" is tsâlêach (tsaw-lay’-akh), which means "to push forward:--break out, come mightily, go over, be good, be meet, be profitable; cause to, effect, make to, send prosperity." Look at that list. Which word describes how you want your "course of life or mode of action" to be "prosperous"? Perhaps you feel stuck, so prosperity for you right now would be "to push forward." Maybe your "manner" has been "okay." You do what you need to do every day, but you're ready for more. If that describes you, then prosperity for you would be to "break out." Based on what "prosperous" means, ask yourself the question, "What do I want God to do for me?"

What this has to do with weight loss: Have you been prosperous in your weight-loss journey? If the answer is "Yes, but not right now" or "No," you're not stuck there forever. What do you want God to do for you? Ask Him. Be specific. If you know that you line up with the "My part" of Joshua 1:8, God says to you, "then you will be prosperous" (TNIV). If you know that you don't line up with the "My part" of Joshua 1:8, do what you need to do to get there. You'll be glad you did.

After you have prayed your specific prosperity request, make it your confession, stating that because you line up with God's Word, it will happen. It's on its way!

Blessings,
Mary