Psalm 4:3 – God Hears Us – The Lord Hears My Prayers

Psalm 4:3 – God Hears Us – The Lord Hears My Prayers

This Week’s Theme – God Hears Us

October 2, 2018

But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself him who is godly; The LORD will hear when I call to Him.

Psalm 4:3

Thought For Today

God has set apart those who have chosen Him, those who have chosen to live godly. To persecute God’s children is to harass God Himself. His children have an inheritance in heaven, and He pays attention when we call upon Him. If you had the ear of a king, wouldn’t that be amazing? Well, you have the ear of the King of Kings. He hears you when you call on Him.​

Ken Turner

Proverbs 27:17 – Friendship Is Like Iron Sharpening Iron

Proverbs 27:17 – Friendship Is Like Iron Sharpening Iron

This Week’s Theme – Friendship

September 20, 2018

As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

Proverbs 27:17

Thought For Today

Iron sharpens iron. The challenge today is to understand the power of relationships, especially in our conversations. Your willingness to be engaged in a lively discussion can have a profound impact on a friend. The influence to think Biblically, commit to holiness, and be more committed to Christ, are all outcomes of your willingness to be a communicator.

You can also have a profound influence on your friend’s life in wrong thinking through the words you speak.

In the same way, iron coming into contact with another piece iron can be a sharpening experience, your conversations with a friend can sharpen thinking for good or evil.​

Ken Turner

John 15:13 – Friendship Is Sacrificial

John 15:13 – Friendship Is Sacrificial

This Week’s Theme – Friendship

September 19, 2018

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

John 15:13

Thought For Today

Jesus said it is a great love when a man lays down his life for a friend. The most profound friendship requires sacrifice.

There are many stories of those who have given their lives for others, for the good of the cause, and for an outcome they believe in with conviction. You probably will never face the choice of sacrificing your life for a friend, but you will face the decision to be sacrificial in all your relationships.

You may make excuses. You may think your time is too valuable to be engaged with your friends. But has it occurred to you that Jesus life was worth 10,000 times more than yours or mine, but He sacrificed it for us?​

Ken Turner

Proverbs 18:24 – Friends Closer Than Brothers

Proverbs 18:24 – Friends Closer Than Brothers

This Week’s Theme – Friendship

September 17, 2018

A man who has friends must himself be friendly,
but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 18:24

Thought For Today

Would you like to have deeper friendships? I’m with you. It starts with intentional acts of friendship. Develop friendships by being open, honest, available, and concerned.

Make friendship a priority in life by investing in deeper relationships. Reach out, make a phone call, send a text to check in, write a note, plan to meet for lunch or dinner. Invest.

The reward of friendship is reaped in adversity. There will be friends in times of need that exceed all the bonds of natural relations. God can use a friend to lift you up in ways that transcend our own immediate family. The love of Christ in us creates a friendship bond among us. ​

Ken Turner

Romans 12:10 – Humility Leads to a Fulfilled Life

Romans 12:10 – Humility Leads to a Fulfilled Life

This Week’s Theme – Humility

September 14, 2018

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;

Romans 12:10

Thought For Today

Humility leads to a fulfiiled life. What is more fulfilling than living in a place where the ability to love and be loved is at it’s highest? To be “kindly affectionate with brotherly love” is to love those around you as if they are family.

Family love is different, it functions at a deeper level. A mother’s love for her child is unconditional, unrestrained and unlimited. It’s that type of love God wants us to experience and apply to our friendships. When we put away pride and competition in our friendships and become humble, the reward is a life filled with the joy of knowing we are loved and we are loving without restraint.​

Ken Turner

Proverbs 16:18-20 – Humility: Pride Leads to Collapse

Proverbs 16:18-20 – Humility: Pride Leads to Collapse

This Week’s Theme – Humility

September 13, 2018

Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, Than to divide the spoil with the proud.

Proverbs 16:18-19

Thought For Today

When pride creeps in, it tends to increase until eventually, it leads to a fall. And it ALWAYS ends with a collapse in our life. Whether it ends in repentance or ruin,  is based on our choices. When we do not address the sin of pride, it creates more distance in our spiritual life, leading us to believe we are somehow exempt from God’s plans and no longer need to regard Him and His place of authority in us.

This thinking doesn’t fit with today’s culture and mindset, but according to today’s verse, it’s better to be poor and humble than rich and proud. But whatever status you achieve in life, make humility a part of your DNA.​

Ken Turner

James 4:10 – Humble Yourself, Be Lifted Up

James 4:10 – Humble Yourself, Be Lifted Up

This Week’s Theme – Humility

September 12, 2018

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

James 4:10

Thought For Today

God promises to lift up the humble. He is looking so much more carefully at our spirit and our heart attitudes. He notices our outlook about the wickedness the world offers, and He wants us to be humiliated by it. He desires that we be humble about our spirituality. We humbly serve Him with a sincere desire to know Him more. If we are not close to God, it’s our fault, not His.

He will lift up the humble. He promises this to all believers. He will eventually deliver us from trouble, deliver us from suffering, deliver us from oppression, and ultimately fulfill His promise to be with Him for all eternity.​

Ken Turner

James 4:6 – Humility – God Gives Grace

James 4:6 – Humility – God Gives Grace

This Week’s Theme – Humility

September 11, 2018

But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”

James 4:6

Thought For Today

A person’s life can unravel quickly. One day things are going fine, and the next day it can seem as if everything is falling apart! There are two fundamental truths in James 4:6 that help in all of life’s circumstances.

First, God resists the proud. Even in times of struggle, people often maintain a spirit of pride with others and with God. He wants His children to become more transparent and less “full of yourself.” Transparency and humility allow you permission to admit you don’t know everything and you don’t have it all together. Now you can honestly and humbly admit you need Him.

Second, God gives grace to the humble. God rejects pride. The more your spirit matches your circumstances, the more grace God provides to carry you through. Humility sends the message that you need Him and are willing to rely on Him. Humility invites Him in. The more humility, the higher the invitation to God for His help, and He responds to those who are asking.​

Ken Turner

2 Chronicles 7:14 – Humility: Prayer and Repentance Bring Revival

2 Chronicles 7:14 – Humility: Prayer and Repentance Bring Revival

This Week’s Theme – Humility

September 10, 2018

If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14

Thought For Today

Healing is a powerful experience. If you’ve ever journeyed from pain to no pain, bitterness to forgiveness, guilty to forgiven, or barren to fruitful, the day you awaken as a new person, knowing you are whole again is like nothing you could have imagined.

If you want to experience God in your life to the fullest extent, with all His power and glory and presence, start by humbling yourself. If there is a spiritual roadblock in your life, stop pretending everything is okay. Humble yourself, pray, ask for forgiveness, repent (abandon the sin for good), and ask God to start the healing process today. God has more in store for you than you ever imagined, but your humility before Him is a key to unlocking His greatest plans.​

Ken Turner

Isaiah 30:21 – Acknowledging God: He Guides Us When We Feel Lost

Isaiah 30:21 – Acknowledging God: He Guides Us When We Feel Lost

This Week’s Theme – Acknowledging God

September 07, 2018

Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” Whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.

Isaiah 30:21

Thought For Today

It’s a noisy world. There are so many voices, so many influences, and so many opinions to consider.

A follower of Jesus Christ has this advantage, a voice spoken from behind you as if to whisper over your shoulder the wisdom you need. He says, “This is the way, walk in it.” He says it through His word, through a prick of your conscience, and even from a trustworthy, Godly friend.

When the road offers a fork to the left or right, He is there to guide you to take the correct turn. Acknowledge God by acknowledging His voice.​

Ken Turner

 

Proverbs 16:9 – Acknowledging God – He Guides Our Steps

Proverbs 16:9 – Acknowledging God – He Guides Our Steps

This Week’s Theme – Acknowledging God

September 06, 2018

A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.

Proverbs 16:9

Thought For Today

God has given each of us the ability to plan and accomplish. The logic and reason we possess is a part of God’s creative plan from the day we were born.

How sad would it be if we spent our life planning, creating, and accomplishing goals and tasks and neglected to invest any of our energy in our plan to grow closer to God? Make God’s glory the end goal and God’s will the thing that governs your life.

Be a “planning” creature of God, but be a “depending” creature on your journey. Always rely on Him to direct your steps within the plans you’ve made, even if those steps don’t make sense at the time.

Ken Turner

 

Colossians 3:17 – Acknowledge God: In All Things

Colossians 3:17 – Acknowledge God: In All Things

This Week’s Theme – Acknowledging God

September 05, 2018

And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians 3:17

Thought For Today

In all things, acknowledge God. We do what we do in His strength, according to His will, relying on His wisdom, and giving thanks for the privilege to serve Him and carry out His plans.

Ken Turner