Choose the New

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

—Isaiah 43:18 (NIV).

Do you long to believe without wavering in God’s promise? You want to believe, and you don’t understand why you can’t believe it. Faith seems illusive. One moment you have peace, and the next moment fear returns with a vengeance. Jesus died and rose again to give you freedom in Him, but you struggle to hold on to it. The enemy lies, and you buy into it. Jesus has given you freedom, but you don’t experience it. 

 

Today’s Scripture instructs you to forget the former things. Don’t continually dwell on your failures or the enemy’s lies. “Forget” is a strong word. It means “being unable to call to mind, unable to summon up, or unable to picture.” Now that sounds amazing—not to even remember your fears or failures or lies. You can’t even summon up a mental picture because the person you were before Jesus is gone. Jesus forgets so why can’t you? You don’t have to continually think about the past. God will keep your mind in perfect peace when you dwell on Him. Perfect peace is resting in the freedom of who Jesus says you are—not the bondage of who you once were. Hope springs up when you don’t dwell on the former things. 

 

“See,” the Lord declares, “I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it” (Isaiah 43:19, NIV)? “See” is another strong word, and it means “to understand, realize, or perceive.” It does not mean to just glance and miss the depth of something. When you “see” God’s truth, you understand, realize, and perceive that God is doing a new thing. “Seeing” in this verse means you believe in the new thing even when nothing appears to have changed. You perceive God’s promise that the new life Jesus died to give you is REAL. You are freed by that perception. 

 

“I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland,” He promises. “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 43:20-21, NIV). ]

 

God makes a way for you. What you have perceived to be a wasteland in your life is gone. Lies are just lies and have no power when you choose to believe in the new life that Christ has given you. God created you to love and praise Him, and you belong to Him. Praise Him no matter your circumstance! He gives you everything you need to flourish. Believe in the freedom from the old, which has defined your life WAY too long. Choose to forget it and dwell on Jesus’ love for you. He wants you to perceive in your mind what you have received in your spirit. It is time for His new life to make a difference. Choose to recognize it!  Choose the new!

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Not About Me

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.  And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.

—Romans 8:1-2 (NLT)

I can live without crippling feelings of guilt and self-condemnation. Jesus paid the price for my past—my present—my future. I belong to Him. His life-giving Spirit has freed me from the power of sin. I have received His forgiveness! There is no penance I have to pay. His grace paid my debt once and for all. I owe nothing because of His grace. There is no greater love than His—that He would give His life for me. 

BUT…if I condemn myself, I give condemnation permission to rule my life. I tell Jesus that His grace wasn’t enough to forgive me. My focus is on me and not the love of Jesus. If I focus continually on myself, I don't experience any peace. Instead of reaching beyond my "woundedness" to be concerned for others, my life becomes all about my failures—my fears—my pain. We all fall down and make mistakes, but we get up, brush ourselves off, and keep on going because we are forgiven. 

“The power of condemnation, “Mark Rutland writes, “rests in the throne of idolatry, self-idolatry. If I condemn myself, and if I am a better, more righteous judge than God is, I am utterly condemned. The lie underneath condemnation, the lie that makes this toxin so fatal, is the lie that says, 'I cannot be forgiven because my sin is greater than the grace of God.’ That is quintessential idolatry. To think that my sin, my anything, is greater than the grace of God is to make an idol of my own wounded emotions” (Courage to Be Healed: Finding Hope to Restore Your Soul, Charisma House, 2019).

Yes, I can make an idol of my own wounded emotions. The lie that the enemy uses to wound me flourishes when I remain self-focused. The real lie, which gives power to my wounded emotions, is the one that says I’m not forgiven because my sin is greater than the loving grace of God. And that lie makes an idol of myself. 

Are we tired of wearing the "me" badge? Are we tired of making more of our failures than the grace that paid for them? Do we have the courage to be healed? We choose not to worship our wounded emotions and place them on a pedestal. Instead, we worship God, who, by the power of the Holy Spirit, guides us into all truth and teaches us that there is now NO condemnation in Jesus.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Through You

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. 

—Ephesians 3:20 (NLT)

“Now all glory to God, who is able to accomplish more than we might ask or think,” is often quoted. Do you notice the phrase in Ephesians 3:20 that was left out of this quote?  Sometimes this phrase is not included. However, when included, this phrase is powerful for the believer. It is life-changing to know that God, THROUGH HIS MIGHTY POWER AT WORK WITHIN US, is able to accomplish more than we might ask or think. God chooses to bring glory to Himself through us! His mighty work is accomplished through us by faith, and faith is where we soar in His purpose.

To some logical minds, stepping out in faith appears a risk. But to the trusting believer, stepping out in faith is the norm. When you know that God, through His mighty power at work within you can accomplish more than you think or ask, stepping out in faith is not a risk. You believe in what is greater than your reasoning can fathom. You trust beyond human limits because you know God is faithful to finish what He has promised.

You will have fear when you don’t trust that God is with you when you step out in faith. When you don’t believe in His never-ending faithfulness, you will not feel His love. If you live by fear, you will not have freedom in Jesus. You will not experience Him working through your life.

Never allow failure to hold you back or define who you are. Let go of what you consider the security of your safe little world. It is not safe at all. Your life can change in a heartbeat. The only security you have is Jesus, and you don’t know how secure He is until you step out in faith. Do you have hopes and dreams? Hopes and dreams can die if you are not willing to trust God. Most often, they call for stepping out in faith. When you step out into the depths of the unknown in Jesus, you stand firm in His power. 

What appears impossible is not. Through you, God can accomplish more than you think or ask.

Copyright © 2019

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Learn Who You Are

It is sad to be free and not know it. It makes little sense to live in defeat when you have received victory. But how many Christians live in bondage and defeat—longing for what Jesus has already given them? Until we allow the miracle of His grace to transform our minds, His freedom and victory will be what we manufacture. Peace will be circumstantial. Fear will arise without warning. Our masks will try to hide the turmoil. This turmoil is not what Jesus died to give us. Until we allow the Holy Spirit to change our understanding and perception of who we are in Christ, we will not live in the freedom and victory Jesus purchased with the gift of His life.

You don't have to fear. Life doesn't have to throw you. You can believe in the impossible. You can trust God for what you can't see. You can rest in His perfect peace. When that mask slips out of place, then not only are you more open with others but most importantly, you are open to the Holy Spirit. You start to experience His healing and His freedom. You believe He speaks to the mountains in your life, and they move.

Are you tired of the roller coaster of emotions? You no longer have to hold your breath waiting for what MIGHT happen next. His grace sets you FREE from NEEDING TO KNOW! His grace gives greater faith to believe that you have received EVERYTHING you need from God’s UNENDING SUPPLY. God is your healer. He is your provider. 

“May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord,” Peter declared (2 Peter 1:2, NLT). If you are tired of living in defeat when Jesus has given you victory, grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus’ promise of new life. The Word will renew your mind. It will increase your faith. You will receive more grace and peace.

“I pray that God, the source of hope,” Paul wrote, “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).

God is the source of HOPE, and He fills you COMPLETELY (NOT PARTIALLY) with JOY and PEACE when you TRUST HIM. Hope is from God, and when you trust (who God says He is and what He says He has done for you), then you OVERFLOW with CONFIDENT HOPE through the power the Holy Spirit gives you. If you want to live with CONFIDENT HOPE, ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you. 

You have received everything from God that you need by coming to know him. He called you through his marvelous glory and excellence. You have received His provision for complete peace—for overflowing hope—for amazing faith. You are not the old person you were before you believed in Jesus. You are new! Learn who you are!

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Press On

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.

—Philippians 3:12 (NLT)

Grace gives me the joy to press on. I don’t press on because it is required. I don’t press on to win Jesus’ love for me. He revealed His love on Calvary, and I received it when I believed in Him. I press on to receive the continued revelation of what He has done for me. Not pressing on would erode the peace of His presence. Not pressing on could even erect a wall to understanding the freedom He won for me.

He is perfect. I am not. As long as I live in this human body, I shall never reach absolute perfection. But that never keeps me from pressing on to know Him more. It never keeps me from this adventure of loving Him—this spiritual growth to understand what grace means in my life. I press on to grasp the depth of His love that first possessed me.  

The grace of Jesus is all that is perfect. When I allow—when I press on, His perfect grace does a work in me that I could never achieve. He gives me the desire to understand the gift of His life for mine. I press on to be transformed by the unfathomable depth of His grace—to possess that perfection—that flawlessness of love with which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 

Why do you press on? Are you continually striving to meet those requirements that only Jesus could meet?  Or do you seek to know better this precious Savior who gave His life for your freedom? 

God has written you the most excellent love letter—His Word. The Word is where you will learn His love for you. God wants you to understand what the power of His grace means in your life. You can never earn God's love, but you can wear yourself out trying to prove to Him that Jesus has made you righteous. You don't have to prove what He has done in you. Jesus is your proof. He approved of you when He died for you. 

You receive all Jesus has for you by faith. You press on because Jesus pressed on for you. You press on to grasp the revelation of His grace with which He first possessed you. You press on in His power. It is not your work. It is His.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Overflowing

Some roads in life are more comfortable than others; some are incredibly difficult. Exercising faith in God develops good character traits to make it successfully. Without the belief that God has good things for us, we face the prospect of failure. Faith is powerful and helps us walk positively through any circumstance. Hope helps us believe God’s promise for what we can’t see. 

“Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm,” the writer to the Hebrews penned, “for God can be trusted to keep his promise” (Hebrews 10:23, NLT).  We can trust God to keep His promise. 

^“By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life,” Peter wrote. “We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires” (2 Peter 1:3-4, NLT).

God has given us everything we need for His righteousness to live in us. AND we received "all of this" we need the day we believed in Him. We received Jesus by faith, and we also received everything we need to live in His power. God has also given us great and precious promises that enable us to share in His divine nature. But if we don’t know what we have been given we live defeated and powerless lives? How do we grow to understand what we have already received by coming to know Jesus? We exercise faith and allow the Holy Spirit to renew the way we think. We learn to see from God’s perspective instead of what we see in the natural. The full righteousness of God lives in us, but we can’t know what that means until we allow our faith to transform our understanding.

 “For this very reason,” Peter continued, “make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love (2 Peter 1:5-7, NLT). 

Make every effort to add to your faith. Not just attempt, and then when it gets too challenging, give up. You decide to add these virtues in your life, but GOD provides the power which fosters personal growth and results in spiritual understanding. You decide to grow. You decide to change. You decide to forgive. You decide to persevere. You decide to be patient. You decide to surrender to His hand and allow Him to mold your mind. HE empowers your choices, and carries you in His strength—your perception changes to His. You are transformed in the spirit of your mind. You receive the mind of Christ. Then peace is not just a dream. You discover it more quickly. Fear is defeated more easily. Walking the road of life is easier because your eyes are not on the road but God. 

Life will always present trials. Whatever you face will either spur you on or hold you back. Christ promises success, but you decide to believe what you have received. Without allowing the Truth of His Word to impact your mind, you will not understand the wonderful gift of righteousness He has given you. His promises are true, but if you don’t know them, you remain in bondage. Faith comes by hearing the Word. Knowledge of the Word sets you free. And faith gives wings to His promises.

         

“The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ,” Peter wrote in conclusion. “But those who fail to develop in this way are short-sighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins” (2 Peter 1:8-9, NLT).

Are you forgiven but don’t experience freedom from guilt and shame? Do you live in bondage to fear? Are you in bondage to who you were before you knew Jesus? Maybe you haven’t allowed the Holy Spirit to help you grow in spiritual understanding of what Jesus has actually done for you. Don’t remain short-sighted in your knowledge and understanding of the grace of Jesus. Make every effort, and HE will transform your understanding. The glass is no longer half-empty or even half-full. It is overflowing.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Holds Strong

Peace is absolute and complete trust in God. Doubt and fear have no power when you trust Him. He is your safe harbor where nothing can shake your faith. Circumstances may heave around you, but you know He is all you need. Nothing can touch that place of safe harbor in Him. 

Do you experience peace no matter what happens in your life? Jesus has given you the incredible gift of peace with God that anchors and gives you rest, but you can bury it with doubt and fear. God takes care of what you can’t. Choose to believe the miracle of the Cross. You have peaceful and complete access to your Abba Father. You can run into His arms. 

Face each day with praise for His faithfulness. Rebuke the lies of the enemy—for that is what they are. Lies. The enemy speaks condemnation—judgment—guilt—punishment, and imparts feelings that you must do something to pay for your failures. The Holy Spirit speaks life, hope, encouragement, and peace. Payment for your failures has already been paid by Jesus. Never doubt your Father. He who saved you will take care of you.

 “Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.” (Hebrews 10:23, NLT). Trust God to keep His promise. Without wavering, profess your hope, and let Jesus hold you. Speak your hope until the healing balm of His presence protects you from lies that bring fear. Repeat “all is well in Jesus” until the wound in your soul is healed. He is faithful. You will discover that God's anchor of peace holds strong.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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I Believe You

Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you. 

—Psalm 143:8 (NLT)

No matter what I face each day, Lord, the first thing I experience is your unfailing love for me each morning. The first thing I hear each morning is you, Lord, speaking above the troubling call of my day—encouraging me beyond any worry that attempts to claim my thoughts.

I hush the call of fear rising in my mind. This is my time with you and not with the voice of defeat that speaks before my day has even begun. I silence it for I am trusting you. I have chosen you, and I have placed my faith in you. Nothing will happen this day for which you have not made provision. I choose your strength today, and I shall find your joy that has been fired to be lasting and strong. 

“These trials will show that your faith is genuine,” Peter writes. “It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world” (1 Peter 1:7, NLT).

“When troubles of any kind come your way,” James also imparts, “consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing” (James 1:2-4, NLT).

No matter what happens today, Lord, I trust you. My faith in you will always be tested, but I believe no matter what circumstances say, you speak promise and peace. You are my endurance. I believe you heal. I believe you provide. In this storm, I rest in you. Fire me for your greatest joy. Form me for your highest purpose. Fill me with the overwhelming power of your grace. 

You say my faith is precious. I believe you.

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Release and Receive

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)

I don’t have to anxiously beg God to hear the need that weighs on my heart. He already knows I have it. He waits for me to release it. When I present my need to Him, believing and trusting in His answer above my own, He knows I have let go. In letting go, I grow stronger in faith to believe that He has already provided for whatever I need. God takes care of my life. I learn this truth when I entrust my life to His care. Just knowing that my Father loves me so much, gives my mind joy and peace. I don’t have to be anxious. He is my Abba Father.

 

The provision of my Father became available the day I asked Jesus into my heart. Healing became available the day I believed in Jesus. But I live with need and deal with illness. How do I receive what Jesus has made available to me in God’s supernatural realm? I receive by faith—by choosing to believe beyond what my natural mind perceives. I ask in faith. I praise Him with thanksgiving, knowing He will take care of what I can’t fix. God takes that mustard seed of faith I plant on His altar and brings forth a great harvest in my life. He hears every prayer; He carries every burden, and He supplies all my need. I have the assurance of His continual provision and healing. I have His constant and never-changing love.

 

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God,” John wrote. “If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him" (1 John 5:14, 15, NIV). 

You have confidence when you trust. Trust your Savior, who rescued you. He doesn’t let you go. You belong to Him. Your Father is NOT a God of condemnation! He speaks life to whatever need you have! With this in mind, approach God’s throne of grace with confident trust, believing that you will receive His mercy and find grace to help you in your time of need.

           His grace meets every need. Let it all go. See with His eyes, and believe. Rest in His peace. 

         

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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Only Grace Frees

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

—Deuteronomy 6:5-9 (NIV) 

Just as Moses told the Israelites that they are to teach His decrees to their children, we teach and share God’s Word. Unlike what Moses told the Israelites, we do not write the law on our doorframes and gates to tell us how to live. We have something that is too good to be true! The Grace of Jesus is written on our hearts, and the Holy Spirit guides us into all Truth. The law given to Moses could never change the human heart. It only exposed failure and need. Only Jesus, the son of God, could, once and for all the time, be the perfection that the law required. Jesus became our sin so that we might become His righteousness.

Jesus has fulfilled the law. He is the New Covenant. His perfect sacrifice for our sins has canceled the performance-based requirements of the Old Covenant. We no longer follow the law because it is required. We surrender to His love and live His Grace because He has changed everything. Jesus has given us the gift of His life. The law demands that our actions be righteous, and that is impossible. We have no righteousness to give. Only Jesus in us is righteous. Anything we do becomes self-righteousness. When we receive His Grace, we receive what we could never earn through work and performance. We receive by faith His righteousness. Receiving by faith is believing in who He has made you.

When we receive the Grace of Jesus by faith, His Truth changes us. And His Grace fills us with joy! Full of the wonder of His life we have received, we joyfully share what He has wrought in us. We speak the new life of the Spirit instead of the death of the law. “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant,” Paul wrote, “not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6, NIV).

“This is the covenant I will make with them after that time,” says the Lord. “I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds. Their sins and lawless acts, I will remember no more” (Hebrews 10:16-17, NIV).  Instead of being written upon the "doorframes” of our outer performance, His law is now written upon our hearts. The “outer” doorframes of the law have surrendered to the inner heart of His perfect sacrifice. Our sins are no more. 

When we allow His Grace to renew us daily, we discover His joy in giving as He gave His life for us. Obedience to the faith flows from our love for Him—from the Grace, which has made us new. We are one with our Savior who fulfilled the Old Covenant so we might receive His righteousness. And that is His Truth. Only Grace sets us free!

© 2019 Lynn Lacher

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