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Friday, March 29, 2019

Hurdles


Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.
—Hebrews 12:1b-2a (NLT)


What do you think of a runner who gives up when faced with the first hurdle in a race? That hurdle lifts him upward and inspires him to greater determination. It doesn’t defeat him. What about your life in Jesus Christ? What is your reaction when you face hurdles? Do they lift you to greater heights of faith or overthrow you? Life always presents hurdles. It is what you do with those hurdles that destroy or build your faith. 

What is your hurdle at this moment? Keep your eyes on Jesus. He was able to finish His race. He never lost sight of the promise at the end.  He overcame the hurdles in His way―shame, ridicule, the cross. Nothing He faced defeated Him. When you meet your hurdles, remember the rejection that Jesus suffered. Remember His commitment to stay the course. He held out to the end of His race so you could have new life in Him.

Faith is the only way to run your race in Jesus Christ. It is the only way to live a successful life. Confidence grows when you choose to reap the advantage of spiritual exercise. When stretched you receive the most significant benefit. With physical activity, any pain you feel lessens, and mass muscle forms. With spiritual exercise, you believe more in what God reveals as truth instead of what you feel. You receive greater faith and His strength to overcome each obstacle. When you are sure you can’t jump another hurdle, the Holy Spirit becomes the second wind that spurs you on to greater heights. Just as a runner experiences well-being from his body producing endorphins, when life stretches you to the maximum, you receive spiritual endorphins from the Holy Spirit that bring peace. Hurdles inspire and don’t defeat you.

Will you move forward, facing and springing over each hurdle with greater spiritual growth? Or will you despair and hide and never discover the power He wishes to impart? Rise above your fears and stretch yourself to believe Him. Allow each hurdle in life to challenge you to lean on Him and discover His strength. Reject feelings of failure, and don't dwell on what the last hurdle did to you. Keep your eyes on Jesus. He began this work in you, and He will complete it. Abundant faith brings abundant life. Trust in His promise to carry you. Run your race by faith—trusting Him.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher


Thursday, March 28, 2019

Words Fitly Spoken


The wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.
—James 3:17 (NLT)


The wisdom that God imparts is gentle, pure, and peaceable. It yields to others and does not insist on its own way. His wisdom is full of grace because He is forgiving and merciful. Bringing forth a wealth of fruit in your life, it never creates something to make a point. It is always honest and sincere.

 Proverbs 10:8 reads:
—The wise in heart accept commands, but a chattering fool comes to ruin (NIV).
—A wise heart takes orders; an empty head will come unglued (MSG).
—The wise are glad to be instructed, but babbling fools fall flat on their faces (NLT). 

If you don't want to be a “chattering or babbling fool” or have an “empty head” or “come to ruin” or be “unglued” or “fall flat on your face," you will gladly allow the Holy Spirit to guide your life. Without His wisdom, you chatter with no purpose and have no peace. If you babble to hear yourself talk, you do not listen to listen to what someone else has to say. Your words have no power to impart hope and faith because they are full of what you consider wisdom instead of God's wisdom. You chatter on unaware of your emptiness and shallowness. 

God gives wisdom generously when asked from a single-minded and sincere heart. You receive it when you yield to the Holy Spirit instead of your own understanding. Only God’s wisdom brings out the best in your life. It results in the wealth of His fruit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—directing your thoughts and actions. Unlike a person that just chatters, His wisdom gives you the ability to speak the truth which makes a differencebrings hopeinstills peaceoffers greater faithand provides a fresh perspective.

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver,” Solomon advised (Proverbs 25:11, NKJV). This kind of wise word makes a difference. A friend once spoke of an opportunity that God had extended, and how she believed God was opening doors. Suddenly she mentioned her fear of failure. Someone said to her, “do you really believe that God sets you up for failure?” These were wise words that offered truth and a positive outlook. Neither does God set you up for failure. Daily ask for His wisdom, and always pray for your words to be filled with His wisdom and grace. Words which are fitly spoken consistently make a difference.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher


Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Stand in Grace


My purpose in writing is to encourage you and assure you that what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you. Stand firm in this grace.
—1 Peter 5:12b (NLT)

Do you know what it is like when you read your life’s calling written in someone else’s words?  I don’t know why I had never noticed this message in Peter’s words before, but now it encourages me. It is the message of my heart—for believers to know that the troubles they have are not meant to defeat but edify them. "I am writing," Peter says, "to God's chosen people who are living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia" (1 Peter 1:1, NLT).  Paul writes to encourage these believers that the hardships they experience living in foreign lands are genuinely a part of God's grace for them. They are not to give up, but to stand firm.

Do you feel you are living in a foreign and strange land? Well, you are. “This world is not our permanent home,” the writer to the Hebrews imparts. “We are looking forward to a home yet to come” (Hebrews 13:14, NLT). Yes, we are looking forward to that time one day when we shall live with Him, but for now, we live in a land where others often misunderstand our faith. "The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it," John writes, "but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of it” (John 5:19a, NLT). 

When you allow His grace to fill you with the unconditional love of Calvary, you are different than the world. When filled with His grace, you don’t strive to reach others. His love through you reaches them. Your heart bleeds and hurts for them. You become less so that he can be more in you. What you face in this world for His sake means life to someone else. His grace has the power to not only change you but to change someone else. Anything you experience—either from rejection or from a trial—are all opportunities to allow Him to love through you with the grace and truth of His Word.

“Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us,” the writer to the Hebrews advises. “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (Hebrews 12:1b-2a, NLT). Don’t give up. Let Jesus strengthen you. Keep your eyes on Him, and allow Him to mold your life. Run your race with perseverance. He will never stop cheering you on to the goal, and you will irrevocably inspire others to run it with you.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/stand-in-grace.html

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Living Word


For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
—Hebrews 4:12 (NIV)

Scripture has something to say about itself. What it reveals speaks clearly of its worthiness. The Word of God is alive. It breathes powerful truth and life into my tired, dry existence­—into my heart that breaks—into my mind upon which the enemy etches lies—into my dry bones which ache for His breath of life. It slices through doubt and speaks faith. It exposes the wrong attitudes and desires of my heart. It opens my mind to listen to His instruction and to trust His truth. It sets me free from a heart that judges and puts conditions on love.

The Word of God instructs that I not only believe what it says but that I also trust its message by applying it to my life. My life changes by its powerful message. I can trust God's Word for every moment of my life. Its very nature is timeless! It is unchanging, and just like Jesus Christ, it is the same yesterday, today, and forever. I can believe its direction for all the circumstances I face, and for the decisions I make. 

“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven,” the Word declares, “and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my Word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11, NIV). His Word has a purpose, and the Holy Spirit reveals it to me when I study and open my heart to its truth. 

In the beginning, the Word already existed! Its truth was witnessed and shared by those who God chose to reveal it. Not only does the Word breathe God’s truth, but its power is also absolute. I can stand on what it says. I can believe in its promises. As I study and seek His truth, God also breathes His revealed truth into me, changing the attitudes and desires of my heart.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher



Monday, March 25, 2019

Peace and Contentment


I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
— Philippians 4:12-13 (NIV)

Without God, we can never know true contentment and peace. Nothing in this hectic world can offer such peace―no possession, no person, no joyful anticipation. Only God promises spiritual contentment and peace, and that is something the world can never give. Paul wrote that he had learned to be content in every circumstance. Whether that circumstance was joyful and inspiring or hard and discouraging, Paul knew contentment and peace.
Paul's contentment came from a deeply personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He didn't want to be in prison, and he certainly didn't want to be dependent on others to provide for his needs. But, no matter what he faced, he was content. His eyes were not on what He was around him but upon His Savior. God gave him peace, and a purpose to fulfill. Fulfilling His mission strengthened Paul's faith in God's provision. His incarceration could not stop him from trusting God to meet all his needs. His chains could not keep him from writing of God's great goodness. He had learned the secret of being content in every circumstance.

Many times we cannot find contentment and peace in our circumstances. Struggling doesn't help. Being upset with God doesn't help. But there is a peace that passes our human understanding. When we know God as intimately as Paul, we can give Him all that rages, and take refuge in Him. Paul's life shows us that is it absolutely possible to have peace and contentment when we trust God. Paul knew who He was in Jesus, and because of that, He had an abiding relationship with Him.
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you,” Jesus said. “I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid (John 14:27, NIV). “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33, NIV). 
Jesus’ peace is not dependent upon what the world or circumstances offer. We may have trouble, but we do not need to fear. He has overcome whatever we face. When we seek to understand the gift of His righteousness for our sin and how He sees us through the eyes of grace, we begin to see everything differently. His grace is truth, and because of it, we have peace with God. When we realize that nothing is impossible because of His grace, we can boldly face whatever is to come with His peace and purpose. We can understand that nothing is impossible for Jesus. Just as Paul, we can rise to our calling—not in our own strength, but in His.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/peace-and-contentment.html

Friday, March 22, 2019

Believe and Receive


“Do I bring to the moment of birth and not give delivery?” says the Lord. “Do I close up the womb when I bring to delivery?” says your God.
—Isaiah 66:9 (NIV)

God is faithful to deliver what He promises. His provision is secured. Pain often seems harder before the birth of a promise, but there is freedom from its grip. God is faithful! Don’t give up! He doesn’t bring you right up to the birth of your promise, and then says, “forget it.” No! Your promise has developed for a long time, and the time of its birth is upon you. No matter how hard any pain or difficult your journey, His promise of delivery gives great hope. Anticipate your promise. God doesn’t bring to the point of delivery, and then close up the womb. Believe and receive!

©2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/believe-and-receive.html



Thursday, March 21, 2019

Give Thanks


Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. 
—Psalm 136:1 (NLT)


The love of God never ends. It faithfully endures forever. He doesn't withdraw it. He wouldn't, and He can't. His unconditional love, secured for you on Calvary, is infinite. If you feel alone, you aren’t. He is with you in your valley. If you wish to perceive His goodness in whatever situation you face, then give Him thanks. Thank Him for the answer you can’t see. Thank Him for the provision you don’t possess. Thank Him for His faithfulness when your valley screams otherwise. Praising Him in your valley secures greater faith to believe in the promise He imparted on the mountain. 


God doesn’t grade your performance. Just because your life isn't going great right now doesn't mean He doesn't love you. Praising Him in spite of your circumstances reveals your trust in His grace. Praise doesn't change God. But praise, just like prayer, changes you. Praising Him in your valley bestows a greater appreciation for the promise you heard on the mountain. It gives you strength to believe—to endure—to walk by faith.


Praise, in your most challenging situation, instills greater faith and inspires hope. So praise Him! Believe Him. Believe His faithful love endures forever!  And the problem you face, although a burden to the natural mind, won’t be perceived as one. Out of what you lack will flow His rivers of constant supply. You will know overwhelming joy when His promise rises to defeat the lie of your valley.


© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/give-thanks.html

Wednesday, March 20, 2019

Love Through Me

Love Through Me

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.
—Romans 12:10 (NIV)

Love. Be devoted. Have the compassion of Jesus. Honor the need of someone else as more significant than your own. Is this real in me? Even if I may hear how kind I am from other people, I always need to ask myself if it is true. “Love each other with genuine affection,” this verse reads in the New Living Testament, “and take delight in honoring each other.” The love of Jesus is unconditional and genuine. There was no agenda on Calvary. If I have no agenda, I find great joy and delight in what I can share.

“Create in me a pure heart, O God,” David cried, “and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10, NIV). Jesus, thank you for giving me your spirit and all the resources I need to live your love! Holy Spirit, draw out the very best in me. Examine the real motives of my heart! Create in me your love without judgment—your giving without expectation—your grace without payment. No one owes me, Lord. I can only look at myself. Only I can offer a heart without an agenda. That is my worship—my life not about me, but all about your love showered upon others. Love through me, Holy Spirit, love through me.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/love-through-me.html

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Have You Forgotten


Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 
—Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

Have you forgotten that I am here? Whatever you face I am with you. Look to me to take care of it all. Trust me. Lean on me. Rely on me. Let go of all your burdens and give them to me with thanksgiving—knowing that I will take care of all the concerns of your heart. You can be free in me. You can move on rejoicing that I have you and all of your worries in my care. It is time. You have tried far too long to fix what I only can fix. If you don't release everything to me, you will crash. Give me all your concerns, your fears, your torment, your hurt, your pain, and trust me to take care of each one the way I know is best. Only then will my amazing peace be yours, and continually guard your heart from fear and your mind from the destructive thoughts which have plagued you. Each time one springs to mind release it to me. Don’t claim it as your own. Claim me. You belong to me, and I take perfect care of what is my own.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/have-you-forgotten.html


Monday, March 18, 2019

Through His Eyes


May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
—Romans 15:13 (NIV)


Joy and peace. They flood our souls with freedom—our minds with eternal hope. They free us from doubt and fear and consistently build our faith. They come as the sweetest gift from Jesus, our Savior, who opened the door for us to have a new relationship with God. God is no longer our judge. He is our father who encourages us—who lovingly disciplines us—who draws us closer the more we trust in Him. 

Jesus’ love was not cheap. What He did on the cross was freely given. It did not cost us a thing, but it cost Him His life. God never withdraws His love. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. But often we, unconsciously and consciously, go through our days and withdraw from Him—having our own way—doing our own thing—forgetting Him. Jesus never forgets us. He sees us through His finished work of love on the cross—unblemished and always forgiven. When He convicts us with His love, joy and peace flee. Our hearts hurt because we are so aware of our failure. Jesus never died to condemn us. He died to save us. He continually draws us into spiritual fellowship with His love. 

We overflow with hope when we trust in Jesus. The Holy Spirit flows unhindered—building our faith—reassuring us in our father’s love. “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful,” penned the writer to the Hebrews. Yes, Jesus is faithful. Let us hold to Him without wavering. Jesus cannot deny His forgiveness of our sin. In one moment of the greatest love ever known. He took all our ugliness and gave us His righteousness. We could not earn it, and certainly never deserved it, but without hesitation, He gave us His blameless spirit and opened the arms of His father. When we fail, the spirit within us hurts, and His love convicts us. He draws us with loving kindness—not with condemnation—convincing us of His deep abiding love

Do you overflow with hope in your relationship with Jesus? Are you filled with His joy and peace or do you daily strive to achieve it? You can’t accomplish these. They are gifts of His Spirit. Perhaps you are always trying to earn His approval because you don't feel loved and accepted. You don’t have to win His acceptance. He already approves of you because of Calvary. It is not what you do for Him that makes a difference. It is who you are in Him. When you realize this, you give out of His love for you—not out of a need to win His approval. 

Seek to understand your identity in Jesus. When you know who He says you are, you will walk by faith and not by sight. You will know His Spirit encouraging and empowering you instead of the voice of the enemy trying to condemn you. You will overflow with the fruit of the Spirit—not from your own self-effort—but through the Holy Spirit producing love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in your life. 

Have you looked at Calvary through His eyes?  He says blessed are your eyes when you see what He sees. When you see your new life He gave you through His eyes, you understand the overwhelming, reckless love of God that set you free!

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/through-his-eyes.html






Friday, March 15, 2019

Confident Faith


But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.
—Jeremiah 17:7-8 NIV

…Jesus gives all you need for this journey of life! You are blessed! You receive His strength for whatever comes. You stand firm against the enemy's attempt to destroy your faith. Like the roots of a tree seeking water for life, you continuously pursue His Truth.  Once discovered this water, His Word, feeds your soul with all you need. Your roots in His Truth anchor you, and you live safely and securely in His will. His perfect love casts out any fear. You are like a tree planted by the water that continually receives nourishment. Faith secures you, and no circumstance creates fear. You regularly draw from His well of living water and thrive in His grace. No matter what happens, you remain pliable. No worry grows where faith has taken root. You store His living water in your heart so, in times of drought, you may draw from its supply. He remains in your supply as you stay in Him. He bears fruit in your life. Your life breathes joy and peace…

Doesn’t this sound amazing? Is this your perfect dream? To have a confident faith that withstands all which comes against it—to have a faith which fear cannot destroy? Do you wish to live such a life that continually speaks His peace, remains calm in all seasons, offers hope to others, and lives His love? The truth is this kind of faith is your promise. He lives in your born-again spirit. To understand what this means for your life, you choose to place your trust in Him and allow the Holy Spirit access to reveal what you have received and to mold your mind. You decide to know His Truth for your life and put down deep roots in His Word. You choose to apply it to my life. He is your focus in life—your priority. Nothing distracts you. You understand in the spirit of your mind that He has given you His very nature. He is no longer your judge. He is your father. He chose your long before you chose Him. Into every fiber of your being, His grace flows. You are strong because He is strong. No weapon that comes against you uproots your confident faith in Him. You realize that He has changed everything!  You no longer go to a God demanding righteousness. You go to a God who became your sin so you might have His righteousness for your own. There is no greater love.

©2018 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/confident-faith.html


Thursday, March 14, 2019

Attitude


Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
—Hebrews 13:8 (NLT)


         You discover when you are can’t walk without a walker how much you are dependent on your two arms and two legs! Moving is slow, and you can’t carry simple things like a cup of coffee. You wait on your husband to bring you water, food, and help you with simple activities of daily living. It bothers you that he is exhausted every evening, and doesn’t rest well. And you realize how absolutely dependent you are on each other at this time of life. You also realize that you are basically alone. It’s not deliberate on anyone’s part. Life is busy for everyone. You are aging. You learn to handle it the best that you can, and you attempt to learn lessons from the journey.

         Hardship can do one of two things. I know you have heard this before. But it is real. You can become bitter or better in the face of it. You can sit around feeling deserted and wallow in self-pity, or you can choose to make the most of a difficulty. The Holy Spirit empowers you with the ability to overcome your circumstance’s control of your emotions. With His strength, your attitude can turn from negative to positive. You can exercise His power to believe you are not a victim of life. You are victorious no matter what is faced. Joy and peace are not dependent on the attention of anyone else. You only need His. And you know His attention is constant, positive, uplifting, and encouraging. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

         Life happens. No matter what happens, God is your constant and sure foundation in this vacillating world. His perfect plan for your life always gives hope for your future—even when you are more advanced in years! Trust Him when the seasons of your life change. Learn His lesson in wherever circumstance life places you, and apply that lesson to your life. It makes the next circumstance easier to handle, because you have learned spiritual balance in a world that offers no solid foundation. The power of the Holy Spirit to handle change is always available. His power—His strength—His faithfulness—His consistency—His balance is yours to exercise daily. You can never ask too much of God. His provision is unending. Living by faith in Him provides abundance in all that life brings.  

         “See, I am doing a new thing!” the Lord proclaims. “Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise” (Isaiah 43:19-21). Whatever new thing lies ahead in your life–whatever change, He has made a way to provide exactly what is needed for your journey. He offers all the resources you need. You are His child, and He will not forsake you or leave you. Praise Him and accept His spiritual peace. It is His perfect gift for your life—to know that in whatever change occurs, He has a plan and purpose for your life—no matter what your age!

         I’m learning what the Grace of Jesus means in my life! My whole perspective of His love is like a newly discovered gem! I’m writing more to share His love! I’m dealing positively with the last feelings of grief that writing about my father brings up. I’m gaining upper body strength. My mind constantly thinks of ways I can make life a little easier. I’m healing not only physically, but emotionally and mentally. The Holy Spirit sends a friend to encourage me every day, and I’m able to encourage her in return. As long as I give I will receive. I won’t only be strengthened, but be strong for someone else.

         What is your circumstance? It doesn’t determine your life. Your attitude does. And with the incredible power of the Holy Spirit, nothing is impossible!


© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/attitude.html

        

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Convinced of Who I Am


Long ago a thought formed in your mind. Through the years it has grown until it now rules your life. The Holy Spirit has brought people to confirm what you believe is not real. But you have doubts about what they tell you. You are tired, but you still long to confront and to fight. Grasping at straws, you consider facing the person the lie is about. Perhaps, then the terror the lie has caused will end.

Then you remember a story from Mark. There was once a man who wanted more than anything else for his son to be free from a demon that terrorized him.

Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has this been going on?”

The father answered, “Ever since he was a little boy. Many times it pitches him into fire or the river to do away with him. If you can do anything, do it. Have a heart and help us!”

Jesus said, “If? There are no ‘ifs’ among believers. Anything can happen.”

No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, “Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!”  (Mark 9:21-24, MSG)

You are tired of being pitched and thrown around by this lie! You cry out to Jesus asking if He will help you. He tells you that there are no “ifs” when you believe Him—that anything is possible. No sooner than He speaks to you, your heart reaches out to Him. “Oh, Lord, I believe, but please help me with my doubts.” The Holy Spirit hears the honesty of your cry—the glaring need—the desperation to believe. He comes to you with His everlasting love. He draws you in His loving kindness.

“My, child, you confront this lie from inside yourself. A lie which has taken root is only confronted from within. Any lie that has taken hold of you has to be ripped out. You don't have the strength to confront the lie on your own strength. You don’t have that power. Confronting a lie on your own strength exhausts you. Striving in your own strength wears you out. Allow me to have access to your thoughts—to your mind—to be able to confront the lie. The only way I can bring my power and strength to confront this lie is for you to grow in your understanding of who I say you are—who I made you to be the moment you invited me into your life. Pray and cry out to me!”

“Holy Spirit, teach me, who I am. Show me who I am in you. When I understand your grace in my life, I will know that your power has convinced me of your righteousness in me. When I know who I am in you, no lie has any power in my heart—in my mind. No lie can live in me. I have an awareness of the gift of your blameless life growing within my mind. You are my Savior. I am whole. There is nothing I have to do—no confrontation that I make on my own. Jesus, confront this lie within me. Speak to it through my voice. Yes, you give me the authority to rebuke the enemy, but it is your power and your words that I speak that casts out this lie. It is your power that changes the way I think. Right now, Lord, I pray for you to start changing the way I think. I pray to have a revelation of what your grace has accomplished within me. I can then stand on you, my Rock. I will know without a doubt that this stupid lie is nothing but a wasted effort of the enemy. I am free in you, Jesus. Nothing comes against me. Nothing destroys me because I understand who I am. Lord, I know this isn’t instant, but this awareness of your strength is growing. I’m getting there. You have given me avenues to get there. You have sent help to encourage me in this change. I trust what you are doing in my life. Lord, if you want to know the truth, I haven’t trusted my myself very much, but I am going to trust you. I know, and I choose to believe when I am ready that I am going to have a full revelation of who I am in you. There will be no lie that can take root in my brain—in my heart or any part of me because I am fully the righteousness of God in you, Jesus. I know who I am by the power of your amazing grace. I believe, Jesus. Help me with any doubts.”

“Oh, child, just as I gave the demon in that young man, his marching orders, I will give your lie its marching orders. "'Out of him and stay out! My child belongs only to me!'" 


© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/convinced-of-who-i-am.html

                                                                                           

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Grace Grows


“Often, I struggle to believe, Lord, that you have forgiven me. The person I was before I accepted you into my heart died with you on Calvary. And the new person I am now rose with you to live a new life free from sin's condemnation. I'm free of who I was, but I don't feel it. I'm burdened every day with remembrances of my failures—with feelings that I can never be good enough. My mind sometimes spins trying to figure out what one more thing I can do to please you so I can believe you have forgiven me."

Child, there is nothing more for you to do please me! I loved you enough to give my life for you. The moment you accepted me in your heart, I took your sin. It is gone. You received my innocent life—my righteousness. I have accomplished the work to be free from sin. Each day since that moment I gave you my guiltless life, has been a spiritual journey to convince you of that fact. That is why I had Peter to tell you, “Don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. Without these qualities you can’t see what’s right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books" (2 Peter 1:5-9, MSG).

Child, did you hear what I had Peter say?  Without this spiritual growth, you will be oblivious to the fact that your sinful life is gone.  No debt. You owe nothing.  You are clean. You are free. You have no sin. There is not one thing that you have to "do" to please me!  "Be" who I have made you. Allow me to build understanding in your mind of who you are now until you believe. Yield to my Spirit.

The night before I died I told my disciples, “When a woman gives birth, she has a hard time, there’s no getting around it. But when the baby is born, there is joy in the birth. This new life in the world wipes out memory of the pain. The sadness you have right now is similar to that pain, but the coming joy is also similar. When I see you again, you’ll be full of joy, and it will be a joy no one can rob from you. You’ll no longer be so full of questions” (John 16:21-23, MSG)!

Your new life in me wipes out your memory of the pain! I don't condemn you with memories of sin, child! I convince you daily of my righteousness in you. That is spiritual growth in me!  When you understand who you are in me, you walk in the freedom that I imparted to you the moment you invited me into your life.

My grace nurtures your understanding! Grow in it! Contemplate the faith by which you were saved by allowing my Holy Spirit access to convince your mind of who you are—by allowing the loving discipline of my father to persuade you of your true identity in me. With these qualities Peter wrote about spiritually coming alive in you, each day will reward you as you mature. You will be more sensitive to my Spirit. You will know my voice. You will no longer have questions that create fear and rob you of my peace. You will have my joy that NO ONE can take from you! 

I want you convinced in the spirit of your mind who you are in my love. I yearn for you to have a revelation of what my Grace has done for you. When you look at my work on Calvary through my eyes, you will see. Come. Allow me to teach you.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/grace-grows.html



Monday, March 11, 2019

Accepted


For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.
—Galatians 5:4 (NLT)


Do you feel that God’s doesn’t love you, and you are struggling for His acceptance? Are you exhausted from striving for His approval?  So many Christians labor to feel loved by God, when, in fact, He has already loved them completely through His finished work of redemption on the Cross. “God made Christ,” Paul wrote, “who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NLT).

You can’t make yourself right with God by self-effort. Only the grace of Jesus—His offering for your sin—makes you righteousness. When you strive to win His acceptance and approval, you set yourself up to not feel loved by God. He becomes someone you can never please—someone who is just waiting for you to fail. How far it this from the truth! Jesus is your greatest supporter. He sees your potential through the work of the Holy Spirit in your life—not through your own efforts. When you don’t understand what Jesus accomplished for you on Calvary, you continually do as those who tried to keep the law. You strive to be good enough, and self-efforts to be perfect cut you off from Christ. You have fallen away from Jesus’ grace by striving to make yourself right with God. Jesus paid your debt on Calvary. You are free. You don’t and can’t make yourself righteous.

What about change? What about spiritual growth? Spiritual growth is essential, and you choose it. But you don't change yourself. The Holy Spirit transforms you. As you learn what Jesus accomplished for you on Calvary, you "put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:24, NLT). You received your new blameless nature when you asked Jesus into your heart. You didn't partially receive Jesus. Jesus didn't somewhat forgive you. Your new life takes place in the spirit of your mind. You learn the mind of Christ that you received. This is transformation. The fruit of the Holy Spirit flows naturally.  Nothing has to be worked up through self-effort. Peace and joy are the hallmarks of your life. 

Knowing who you are in Jesus is critical to understand the new person he has created in you. You have His nature—His blameless spirit. You don't need to fear punishment. He forgives you. When Jesus gave His life for you, God was no longer your judge. He became your "Abba", your daddy. God created each of us with a need to belong. He adopted you the day you asked Jesus into your heart. You belong to Him. He is your identity. He accepts you. He approves of you, or He wouldn’t have given His life for you. 

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/accepted.html

Friday, March 8, 2019

Comfort


Pain seems worse at night when the house is asleep. You don’t want to take a pain pill. You would rather ask for an icepack, but the one who has taken care of you all day is finally resting. How easy it would be to feel sorry for yourself. Can you hear the thoughts? You are a nuisance. Life revolves around you. Your husband has no freedom. Your doctor missed your real broken bone, and that is why the pain is so severe. The more these thoughts plague your mind, the more persistent the pain. 

You know the source of those thoughts, so you refuse to give them control. Instead of dwelling on the fear they attempt to dump into your mind, you mentally search for encouraging verses like Isaiah 26:3. “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”  And 2 Timothy 1:7. “God has not given you a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.”

Jesus becomes the center of your thoughts. As you continually contemplate the Word, the pain, still palpable and throbbing, slowly fades into the background. Two verses spring into your mind—2 Corinthians 1:3-4. “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.”

The Holy Spirit is with you. You almost fall asleep knowing that God is your source of comfort, and then in your sleepiness the reason He comforts you hits fully—so that you can comfort someone else! This pain—these weeks stretching into what seems eternity are not about you. They are about how your experiences can encourage others that God is also with them in their pain. They, too, are not alone.

The pain Jesus’ took on Calvary was not only about you. It was also about others. The Comforter is with you, and He is faithful. Share His love. Share His heart. When you comfort someone else, you, also, are comforted in return. And the healing of Calvary flows—reenergized and powerfully restoring your life. You finally fall asleep in Him.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/comfort.html



Thursday, March 7, 2019

Broken for Joy


“Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy” (Psalm 126:5, NLT).

How often have I looked at this verse about my prayers being just for others?  Yes, God promises that those prayers I cry for others will one day bring the promise of joy. It is also His promise to me. When I get to the point where I allow the Holy Spirit total access to my mind is the moment He can change the way I think and perceive life. Tears released in surrender can bring the joy of freedom from whatever lies have controlled my life. Jesus lives in my born-again spirit and wishes to control my thoughts and actions. Only the Holy Spirit knows where to take me on this journey of spiritual honesty—if I will allow.

Do I allow the Holy Spirit access to my mind? No mask I hold in place keeps Him from knowing me. Surrender is not about what He already knows, but what I truthfully allow Him access to change. I can quickly stop His ability to transform my mind by holding on tightly to lies of the enemy. Grudges halt His presence. Bad attitudes put up walls. Unforgiveness sparks anger at Him. Do I have a bad attitude that I haven’t released to Him? Do I hold a grudge that inhibits the flow of His love in my life? What holds back my surrender to His love? Permitting the Holy Spirit to grow me spiritually takes surrender. He calls me to live the righteousness He imparted at my salvation—not as an outward appearance for others to see, but from the changed heart that I received from Him. To have this most profound intimacy with Him means that I allow Him privilege to every part of me.

If I want to have and keep the intimate heart fellowship of His presence, each day I will allow Him to reveal my thoughts and attitudes. I may not like everything I hear, but it is in my surrender to the Holy Spirit that His grace transforms me. Brokenness by the Holy Spirit is not punishment. It is gentleness of the sweetest kind—His loving conviction of righteousness. What I plant in tears of surrender, brings forth a harvest of joy that is more than I can imagine.

“Give me back my joy again; you have broken me—now let me rejoice,” David prayed. There is no greater joy than allowing the Holy Spirit to break and mold my life gracefully. His brokenness for me on Calvary bought my freedom. In Jesus, I am healed. I am whole. I am free. Lord Jesus, help me to realize being broken and changed is not punishment. It is a joy that will last.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/broken-for-joy.html

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Trust Him


I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. —Romans 15:13 (NLT)


When faced with hardship and pain, life is hard. We often lose hope. Without hope, the loss of joy and peace is not far behind. You may try to stir up hope, but you soon discover you can never stir up hope that lasts. The only hope that lasts comes from God, who is the source of real hope.

When we trust God, He fills us with His hope and not the facsimile we try to work up in our minds. Trust grows when we spend time with Him, and seek to understand who He is and who He says we are. His Word is His truth, which encourages trust. It is the means to know Him intimately. When we allow His Word and His Spirit to transform our minds, then life with its problems, instead of robbing us of hope, encourages us that He always has something more significant for us. He has a plan. He has a purpose. His Word promises that if we follow Him instead of going our own way—if we hold on and not give up, we receive His promise. Understanding His truth encourages the hope He renders. And with that hope, trust sprouts deeper roots. With trust in Him, peace and joy carry us safely through what otherwise could destroy. Confidence gains ground, and it overflows in our lives flowing into the lives of others who are hungry for what we have found.

When Paul prayed this prayer for the Romans, he prayed through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit persistently seeks to pray from within our discouraged hearts. He continually offers the promise of His hope by trusting Him, instead of trusting our own strength. When trust in Him claims our moments, then we overflow with confident hope that never fails, but always believes in His promise.

“So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord,” the author of Hebrews imparts. “Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised” (Hebrews 10:35-36, NLT). Do we want to hope?  The Word makes it clear that trust in Him is the most crucial part of the equation. So isn’t it time now to trust Him? 

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/trust-him.html

Monday, March 4, 2019

Believe


If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
—James 1:5-8 (NIV)


What you believe forms your thoughts, your attitudes, and directs your actions. Faith in Jesus Christ is a life-changing powerful belief. Knowing who you are in Christ is a belief that reveals God’s truth for your life. Understanding the exchange of His righteousness for your sin is crucial to living a life filled with wisdom and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Being single-minded and focused on the gift of new life that Jesus has imparted to you, keeps you from dwelling on things that cause doubt. When you "get it" in your mind that your old life is gone, you have a revelation of what God's grace has accomplished for you. Worry over the past dissipates. Concern over failing God in the present and future also falls by the wayside. You know you are accepted and loved. You understand that there is nothing to do that wins His love for you. He has already loved you more than life itself.  

If you have received the righteousness of Jesus by faith, you are spiritually born again into His new nature. You don’t have two natures. The old nature was crucified on Calvary. Two minds are of two natures. You have either the mind of Christ (which perceives the supernatural truth of God), or you have a mind that is controlled by the flesh (which perceives what you feel, hear, touch and see). As the verse in James clearly states, you can’t have two minds. You will be unstable in all your ways. How can you receive wisdom from the Lord if two minds are battling within you? You can’t. You are tossed in different directions unable to be grounded in Jesus’ truth. Doubt and unbelief claim your thoughts. The enemy torments you with remembrances of the past and fears of the future. The belief in your new life in Jesus falters, and a cycle of two minds battling for control keeps you in a limbo of pain and fear.

Surrendering to the Holy Spirit’s transforming power is the only way to have a revealed knowledge of your new nature in Jesus Christ, and to crucify the mind of the flesh that doubts. The natural mind that says you have never been good enough to be loved by God surrenders to the spiritual mind that says there is nothing you have to do to win God's love. God sent His son to pay the price, and give you the freedom to approach His throne boldly. God always looks upon you with love—never with judgment or scorn. God sent His Son to love you—not condemn you—so that His righteousness could save you.

When you understand in your mind that your old nature no longer rules you—that Jesus has given you His nature—that you are the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ—you will be of one mind—the mind of Christ. No longer double-minded and unstable in your ways, you will walk in peace. Your thoughts will be grounded in His truth. Each day you will be convicted by His gift of righteousness. You will remain safe in the revelation of His grace. Wisdom will flow spirit to spirit. Joy will be incredible and full of His glory. His love will gush from your life like rivers of living water. Without finding any fault, God has given you all of Himself through His Son. The moment you BELIEVE you have received the mind of Christ is the moment you will know you are free—free to see with His eyes, hear with His ears, and understand with His precious mind. You will believe who He says you are.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2019/03/believe.html







Christ My Hope of Glory

  .   And now, Lord, for what do I expectantly wait? My hope [my confident expectation] is in You. —Psalms 39:7 (AMP)   I wait [patiently] f...