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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Two prayer principles
07 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘But when you pray.’
Matthew 6:6 NIV

When it comes to the importance of having a consistent prayer life, Jesus is our greatest example. Before He calmed the storm on Galilee, called His twelve disciples, or fed the multitudes with five loaves and two fish, He spent time alone in prayer. And you have been called to follow in His footsteps (see 1 Peter 2:21). In essence, our failures are often the result of our failure to pray.

Jesus gave His disciples two prayer principles that will work for you. First, He said, ‘When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father’ (Matthew 6:6 NIV). In other words, find a quiet place where you won’t be distracted. After all, you are meeting with God. As you spend time there, you will grow to love this place, and it will become your ‘secret place’ (Psalm 91:1 KJV).

Second, Jesus said, ‘When you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him’ (Matthew 6:7-8 NIV). The words ‘don’t babble’ may sound harsh. But what Jesus is saying to us is, ‘Focus; be with Me. Open your heart. Get real. Stand on My Word and believe Me for answers.’

After the church prayed all night for Peter to be delivered from prison, the Bible says ‘they were astonished’ when God did it (Acts 12:16 KJV). You might say, ‘That’s bad.’ Actually, that’s good! It means even though your faith may be weak, when you pray, God will answer you. So, keep praying and standing on His Word.

Isaiah 7-8, Galatians 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™
UCB Word For Today

Expect good things from God
08 SEPTEMBER 2024
‘Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you.’
Isaiah 30:18 NKJV

Your concept of God determines your confidence in approaching Him. Do you always view Him like an auditor, and your books don’t balance? Or do you view Him like a father who loves you at all times and wants to be good to you? When approaching God, many of us consult a mental scorecard to see whether we have more wins than losses, rights than wrongs, credits than demerits. If we feel like we’re not performing well, we avoid God or make Him our last resort. That’s a mistake because God sees you ‘in Christ’ (2 Corinthians 5:17), and therefore, you are always accepted and welcomed into His presence.

You say, ‘Does that mean I can live any way I please?’ No, ‘the Lord disciplines the one he loves’ (Hebrews 12:6 NIV). But His correction is not rejection; it’s proof that you are truly His redeemed child. Here is a Scripture you need to meditate on: ‘Therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favour, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!’ (Isaiah 30:18 AMPC).

Note God’s attitude towards you today: ‘The Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you.’ Keep that picture in mind, and begin to expect good things from God.

Luke 17:1-19, Psalms 91-93

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Do it in Christ’s strength, not your own
09 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me.’
Philippians 4:13 AMPC

One of the quickest ways to get discouraged is to try living the Christian life in your own strength. It’s like trying to lift yourself up by your own bootstraps; it cannot be done. Indeed, God designed it that way. Jesus said: ‘If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever – the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:15-17 NKJV).

God’s commandments are never too difficult for us to follow – if we do them through Christ’s indwelling strength. And you must learn to draw on that strength daily. He is in you and with you at all times to enable you to do what you cannot do and to do with ease what you would otherwise find hard to do without Him. Paul talked about the constant struggle between his flesh and his spirit. At times it drove him to despair. Then he gives us the key to victorious Christian living: ‘I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency]’ (Philippians 4:13 AMPC).

Learn from the light bulb; it cannot illuminate itself. But when it’s connected to an electrical power source, all that’s required is to flip a switch. So, do it in Christ’s strength, not your own.

Isaiah 9-10, Galatians 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Honour God in all you do
10 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked.’
Psalm 1:1 NIV

When Moses commanded Pharaoh to set God’s people free, Pharaoh offered him three compromises. First, he offered to let them go if they didn’t go too far away. Second, he offered to let them go provided they left their children in Egypt. Third, he offered to let them go provided they left their business interests in Egypt. In each case, Moses said no. And Satan will make you those same offers.

Put distance between yourself and the world. Refuse to let it have your children. Refuse to live by the world’s self-centred and often unethical business practices. You are called to love and minister to those around you but not to become like them. One of the great gifts that God has given us is the gift of free will. You can choose! If you want to enjoy God’s blessings, you need to make lifestyle choices that line up with His will and are consistent with the values of His Word, not choices reflecting the constantly eroding values of the world systems around you. The way to succeed in life is to stand on Bible principles.

Here are two Scriptures you need to meditate on and keep in mind: ‘The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow’ (Proverbs 10:22 NKJV). ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you’ (Matthew 6:33 KJV). Today pray, ‘Lord, I don’t want to live by the world’s standards. I put you first in my life because I know your ways are always best.’

Isaiah 11-13, Galatians 3

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Choose the right attitude
11 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘Think on these things…and the God of peace shall be with you.’
Philippians 4:8-9 KJV

One author writes: ‘Columbia researcher Sheena Iyengar has found that the average person makes about seventy conscious decisions every day. That’s 25,550 decisions a year. Over seventy years, that’s 1,788,500 decisions. Albert Camus said, “Life is a sum of all your choices.” You put all those 1,788,500 choices together, that’s who you are. Victor Frankl was a brilliant doctor whom the Nazis imprisoned in a concentration camp. They took away his livelihood, confiscated his possessions, mocked his dignity, and killed his family. They locked him in a cell with no way out…But he found a door that his guards did not know about: “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”

'He found that when his circumstances had closed every outer door to him, they revealed to him the doors that matter far more – the doors through which a soul can leave fear and enter into courage, leave hatred and enter into forgiveness, leave ignorance and enter into learning. He discovered that his guards were actually far more imprisoned – by cruelty and ignorance and foolish obedience to barbarism – than he was imprisoned by walls and barbed wire. Some people learn this and become free; some never see it and live their lives as prisoners.’

The difference is in the door you choose or the attitude you choose. That’s why Paul writes: ‘Whatsoever things are true…honest…just…pure…lovely…of good report…think on these things’ (v. 8). Today, choose the right attitude!

Isaiah 14-16, Galatians 4

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Open doors
12 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘A door was opened to me by the Lord.’
2 Corinthians 2:12 NKJV

A noted author states: ‘People who study entrepreneurs say they excel in something called “opportunity alertness.” They look at the same circumstances as everyone else, but they “notice, without search, opportunities that have hitherto been overlooked.” They are “alert, waiting, continually receptive to something that may turn up.”’

Paul was such a person. ‘I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, and a door was opened to me by the Lord’ (v. 12 NKJV). He practised ‘divine opportunity alertness’. And you can too. For Paul, walking through the doors God opened often led to hardship. But they also led to great achievement. Open doors don’t come with a meticulous set of instructions about precisely what you should do and exactly what will occur as a result. To discover what’s on the other side of the open door, you have to go through it. Will you experience fear? Any time you attempt the untried, unknown, and undone, you will experience fear. That’s when you need to remind yourself that whatever awaits you on the other side of that door, God will be there.

Here are two things you need to keep in mind. First, sometimes an open door doesn’t signify going to someplace new; it means recognising a new and previously undetected opportunity in an old place. Second, open doors never exist solely for the advantage of the people offered them. They are an opportunity to bless others (see Genesis 12:1-3). An open door never exists for your benefit alone. Has God opened a door for you? If He has, don’t hesitate or vacillate; walk through it.

Isaiah 17-19, Galatians 5

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

When you’re not certain, trust God
13 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘We walk by faith, not by sight.’
2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV

Close your eyes and try walking without sight, and you will get an idea of what it means to walk by faith. Faith in what? The unchanging character of God, goodness of God, love of God, and truth that He always has your best interests at heart. With God, information is given on a need-to-know basis. And God determines who needs to know what and when.

Here is an example of this: the early church needs to decide if God is calling them to include Gentiles. After much prayer, they send out this letter: ‘It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…’ (Acts 15:28 NIV). Really? Seemed good? The future of the entire human race is at stake, and the best you can do is ‘it seemed…’? Yet the church leaders were quite comfortable sending out this letter. Apparently, God’s will for His people was that they should not be told precisely what His will was, or at least not all the details. Presumably, He knew they would grow more if they had to think and discuss and hash it out rather than get a memo. Evidently, they didn’t require certainty. They were happy to settle for heartfelt obedience.

When Paul says we ‘walk’ by faith, he is referring to the slowest form of transportation known to man. He is also referring to a process that happens one step at a time. God has the satellite view; He sees your entire journey from beginning to end and plans each step. And He says, ‘Do what I have given you to do, and when you have done it, I will show you what I want you to do next.’

Isaiah 20-22, Galatians 6

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Anchors for your soul (1)
14 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘An angel of…God…stood beside me and said, “Do not be afraid.”’
Acts 27:23-24 NIV

While everyone else on board Paul’s ship was in a state of panic, he remained at peace. Why? Because of three great truths that serve as anchors for our souls, truths you can build your life on that will steady you in the storm. Let’s look at each.

First, anchored by the presence of God. In the midst of the storm, Paul announced, ‘Last night an angel of…God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul.”’ Life’s storms can never conceal us from God. Even when we don’t see Him, He sees us. We may feel He is a million miles away, but He is with us and is looking after us. God dispatched a personal emissary, an angel, to tell Paul, ‘I am with you. I see you in the stormy Mediterranean Sea in that little ship.’

The truth is, God is with you in the storm you’re going through today, and if you need assurance of His presence, meditate on these Scriptures and stand on them:

‘“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you’ (Isaiah 54:10 NIV).

“I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go…I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you’ (Genesis 28:15 NIV).

‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you’ (Hebrews 13:5 NIV).

So, anchor your soul to God’s Word today, and let nothing move you.

Isaiah 23-25, Ephesians 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

UCB Word For Today
Anchors for your soul (2)

15 SEPTEMBER 2024
‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar.’
Acts 27:24 NIV

Second, anchored by God’s plan and purpose. The second anchor in a time of crisis is found in Acts 27:24, where Paul quotes God’s angel: ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’ In other words, ‘You’re on board this ship because I have a purpose for your being here. And my eternal purpose for your life is greater than this temporary storm.’

Have you discovered your God-given purpose yet? You’re not here on earth simply to take up space; God has a specific plan for you. The storm you’re caught in right now is just a temporary setback. Absolutely nothing can change God’s plan for your life unless you choose to disobey Him. And yes, you can do that. But the Scriptures teach that no outside person or force can change God’s plan for your life or alter His divine purpose as long as you’re willing to say, ‘Lord, I want to do your will.’

As surely as God told Paul, ‘You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you,’ He is saying to you, ‘I will bring you through this storm.’ When you focus on your God-given purpose, He empowers you to overcome your problems. That’s why Paul wrote: ‘I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us’ (Philippians 3:13-14 NLT).

Luke 17:20-37, Psalms 94-96

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Anchors for your soul (3)
16 SEPTEMBER 2024

‘I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.’
Acts 27:25 NIV

Third, anchored by God’s promises. The third anchor that gives us confidence in a crisis is found in Paul’s words, ‘I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.’

If you have ever been betrayed by an unfaithful spouse, you may have lost trust in marriage. If you’re a victim of the mortgage crisis, you may have lost your home and your trust in the financial industry. If you voted for someone you believed had integrity only to discover they were in the pocket of special interest groups, you may have lost your trust in government. But never ever lose trust in the promises of God!

Look in the face of your storm today and sing the words of this famous hymn by Russell Carter: ‘Standing on the promises that cannot fail, when the howling winds of doubt and fear assail, by the living Word of God, I shall prevail, standing on the promises of God.’ You may lose your cargo, you may lose your ship, you may even go overboard – but you’re going to prevail because of God’s promises to you. As the old saying goes, ‘God said it, I believe it, and that settles it!’

If you’re in crisis today, here are some Bible promises you can stand on: ‘The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms’ (Deuteronomy 33:27 NIV). ‘You have given me your shield of victory. Your right hand supports me; your help has made me great’ (Psalm 18:35 NLT). ‘Even to your old age and grey hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you’ (Isaiah 46:4 NIVUK).

Isaiah 26-27, Ephesians 2