​Love you all, praying for you.
 
I just love God’s Word.  It gives secret weapons.   One of these – A thankful heart.  Something like this doesn’t come naturally, it must be chosen repeatedly.   How thankful are you?  It’s a choice.  Have you ever noticed someone who is thankful.  First they live an awesome life.  Even if it sucks, they’re still thankful.  But more than that – it draws favor.  If someone is thankful  - you want to be around them.  They are just positive people.  They remind you of the blessings you have.  If they are thankful for you and the things you do for them, you want them as a friend, and you’re prone to do more.  You’ll also want to do everything you can for them.  A thankful heart draws favor like a magnet, whether from God or other people.  What does God say about thankful?  How important is it to God?  First what is it?  Thankful – grateful; impressed with a sense of kindness received, and ready to acknowledge it.  Grateful – having a sense of benefit; kindly disposed towards someone from whom a favor has been received.  Thankful is a sense of what you have received, and being drawn to acknowledge it with gratitude.  Gratitude, an emotion of the heart, excited by a favor or benefit received.  A sentiment of kindness or good towards a benefactor; thankfulness.  An agreeable emotion, consisting of or accompanied by good will to a benefactor, and a disposition to make a suitable return of benefits or services, or when no return can be made, with a desire to see that benefactor prosperous and happy.  Gratitude is a virtue of the highest excellence, as it implies a feeling and generous heart, and a proper sense of duty.  That’s Webster 1828.  What does God say?    I Thessalonians 5:18 – In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.  Ephesians 5:20 – Always give thanks to God, the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.   Hebrews 13:15 – Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God the sacrifice of praise, that is the fruit of our lips giving thanks.  What is the fruit of your lips? How thankful are you.  Are you thankful on purpose?  Do you purpose to be thankful!  Not doing it is dangerous.  God said the Israelites forgot to be thankful, and when they did, they started grumbling and complaining, it cost them the promised land.  Romans 1:21 talks of those who knew God but didn’t glorify him, and failed to be thankful, their minds became futile, and their hearts were darkened, thinking themselves wise, they became fools.  God has a different habit, life and future for you.   Colossians 2:6 – So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as your were taught and overflowing with thankfulness.   What do you overflow with? What comes out of your mouth constantly, without thinking.  What do you want to be – in light of what God has given you.  Psalms 92:1 – It is good to give thanks to the LORD and to sing praises to your name, O Most High.  To proclaim your love in the morning, and your faithfulness at night.  Praying that you will grow a thankful heart – it enters you in his presence.  If thankfulness overflows from you – you stay in his presence, you will draw his favor and the favor of others.  Praying that God grows in you a thankful heart, a heart of thanksgiving.  Psalms 140:13 – Surely the righteous will give thanks to your name, the upright will dwell in your presence.  Praying that you will overflow with a thankful heart, so you continually live in His presence.  Praying that you will review the PRISM Topic – Thankful, Thanksgiving, and Thankful 100 – one hundred things to be thankful for – that are not money or stuff.  If God commands us to be thankful, He has a purpose in it.  It draws you to Him, and it draws Him to you. 
 
Love you all,
dad

​Love you all, praying for you,  
(Praying that you will stay with me on this one.  His Word can change your life.)
 
 I just love God’s Word – it calls you out. And then, it gives you a way out!   If you are a Christian, and have given your life to Christ…  Have you ever struggled with sin in your life?  Are you right now?  What is sin?  Anything different than what God said  Any violation of God’s laws of how people should live and treat one another. Anything not holy, man’s way not God’s way.  Anything less than His Word, His will or His best.  That’s sin.  First things first.  Let’s just tell the truth.  Sin is not a struggle, it’s a choice.  You didn’t struggle with it, it wasn’t much of a struggle.  You just got tempted, and did it - again.  Like a bull with a ring through its nose, it didn’t take much, you have no power over it, it has power over you.  You choose sin, because you love sin, more than you love God.  You prefer the natural tendency of the flesh, the passions and the temporary pleasures of the world, more than the praise and blessing of God.  You’re not struggling with sin, you’re doing it, you’re choosing it.  And you don’t know exactly how to stop. 
 
Maybe it’s the sin that so easily besets you, or a whole list of new ones that you don’t know how to resist.  You’re hanging out with the wrong people, or in the wrong places, or feeding your eyes and mind with the things of the world, the influences of this sinful culture.  You’re not fixing your eyes on Jesus, renewing your mind with His Word, and moving your feet.  Rather than separating yourself from it, and feeding your spirit over your flesh, you’re indulging it and the results are predictable.  Like Paul said, Romans 7:15, 24-25 - The things I want to do, I don’t do, and the things I don’t want to do, those are the things I keep on doing...  What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our LORD!  Rom 6:11-18 – Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.  Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.  Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.  For sin will not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.  Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey – whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or slaves to obedience, which lead to righteousness?  (Bob Dylan was right, “Ya gotta serve somebody, it may be the devil or it may be the LORD, but ya gotta serve somebody.)  But thanks be to God that though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the teaching to which you are devoted.  You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness… Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness…  Paul shared that Jesus died so you could be free from sin, so it doesn’t control you anymore!  He goes on to ask.  In verse 20 – When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness - but what did that get you?  Those things result in death.  But now that you have set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. (And life more abundantly.)  For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our LORD.  So what is life?  Being a slave to obedience which leads to righteousness, rather than slaves to sin, which leads to death.  So how do you walk in victory over sin in your life?   
 
First, if you haven’t been saved yet, if you haven’t put your faith in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and committed to Him leading your life, you’re not really concerned with sin.  You are just living a life on the path that leads to destruction.  Doesn’t matter how good you think you are… You’re either ignorant of your sin, and the wages of it – which is death and eternal separation from God…  Or you have rationalized your sin – saying it’s not really sin (It is), or saying “God is ok with it” (He’s not), or I’m not that bad, not as bad as that person (Irrelevant),  Or you’ve just given up hope, I can’t stop it, so why fight it.  The Ostrich method of dealing with sin, burying your head in the sand, is what you’re going with.  But reality is, the sin problem you have is not about being good or bad.  God said there is no one good, not even one.  All have sinned and fallen short of the glory (the Holiness) of God – which disqualifies you from heaven.  That’s why He had to die for your sin.  You need a Savior!  Your problem is, one sin made you a sinner, unholy not holy, disqualified from heaven, no matter what else you do.  If you murder someone, you are a murderer.  Just cause you haven’t done it for over a week now, or love your Mom, doesn’t remove what you did.  Murderers don’t get into heaven, they are disqualified.  Whether murderers, liars, the lustful, the prideful, the greedy, if you stole something, or took the Name of the LORD in vain, slandered someone, caused division instead of unity.  But you haven’t done this just once, you’re got a record when it comes to sin, just like that life-long criminal and it ain’t pretty.  If you did just one sin, and only did it one time, you’re a sinner.  The Ten Commandments alone, much less the law of Moses, or the Commands of Christ – reveal you’re disqualified from Heaven, you have no chance to be in the Presence of a Holy God – completely pure, and without sin – the requirement of heaven.  The brightest light that anyone has ever seen, you can’t even look into it – He’s that pure and Holy.  You’re disqualified, your sin condemns you, not God.  He’s just the Judge – who died himself for you.  What will send you to hell is actually not just sin, it’s the rejection of Jesus, God himself, who died for you, your only chance, the only way, but you won’t choose Him.  You couldn’t pay for your sin anyway – you aren’t the sinless Lamb of God sent to take away the sin of all the world.  So you couldn’t even die for yourself, you are dead in your sin.  What you think about sin doesn’t matter.  The truth is - Sin separates you from Holy God – and if you die, you will be separated from Him for eternity in a place called hell.  You need a Savior, Jesus Christ, and you’ll be a new creature, forgiven, and reconciled to God in relationship with Him as His Son and Daughter.  You can do that right now.  A: Admit you’re a sinner, repent, think differently about it, it’s not ok!  Repent and turn to him,  B: Believe Jesus died in your place to cover your sin, that God raised Him from the dead, and then! C:  Commit your life to Him from this day forward, to live as He commands, and He’ll help you!  If you do that, you will be saved, you’ll live in heaven with Him, for all of eternity, He promised in His Word.  If you did that, please call me, I’d love to pray for you, and encourage you in your new life journey.   
 
But today’s daily huddle is for those who have already been Saved, but find themselves still struggling with the sin that wants them back…  Let’s say you got saved, maybe a year ago already.  You are now a new creation in Christ!  But the old life wants you back.  Leave sin in the past, or it will control you again.  The devil wants you to sin, even after you become a Christian – so it causes a wedge to come between you and God - so you will be separated in your relationship with God, under His correction, His wrath, or ultimately, His judgment.  The devil wants to entice you back onto the merry-go-round of guilt, so he can bring you to ruin, and steal the fruit that God has for your life, and keep you from the purpose He created you for. 
 
So if you’ve been choosing sin first, not God first, in some areas in your life… How do you overcome that sin nature that wants to control you – even after you have become a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ as your Savior?  How do you truly live by that salvation commitment to living life with Him as your LORD.  He’s not your LORD if you’re still stuck in sin, it’s still lording it over you.  If your sin nature is too strong, how do you resist the devil, so he flees from you, so you can leave sin behind, so you walk in the righteousness that God has for you.   This is not a formula, these are just some things that if you follow God’s Word in doing them, God will give you the power to overcome sin.  Your choice, but these will surely help you – to walk in victory – in that newness of life! 
 
Eleven Things To Overcome Sin  
 
.1 Salvation – without Jesus, you cannot escape sin, it owns you.  You are a slave to it. 
 
.2 Baptism of the Holy Spirit – it’s the power God promised to help you overcome sin (witness means martyr – dying to the old life, so you can live the new life in Christ).  It’s the power that helps you choose His Grace!  Your choice, but with the Filling of the Holy Spirit - you’ll have the power.  That’s why God said, “Don’t leave Jerusalem til you get.”
 
.3 The Fear of the LORD – Love what God loves, hate what God hates.  He hates sin.  People sin because there is no fear of God before their eyes, they love sin, more than they love God.  Learn the Fear of the LORD.  The Fear of the LORD is to turn from evil, fully obey, say nothing harmful, seek peace and pursue it.  See the Fear of the LORD packet.  If you learn the fear of the LORD, you’ll hate sin.  It will be repulsive to you.  You won’t go back. 
 
.4 A More Powerful Law!  The law of righteousness that now controls you is infinitely more powerful than the law of sin that used to control you.  You are the righteousness of God in Christ, you’re just still submitting your members to sin, instead of submitting them to Christ.  Adam sinned once, and it enslaved everyone after him.  That’s the law of sin that controlled you.   But Jesus didn’t just die for one sin, Adam’s sin - that’s controlled everybody all these years…  Jesus died once for every sin ever committed by every one ever!  So Righteousness could reign over you like sin used to. The law of sin that controlled you – came from just one sin.  The Law of Righteousness that controls you now if you let it - came from every sin ever - forgiven!  Past present and future, cancelled by the Blood of Jesus.  Paul said if the law of sin that came from one sin controlled you, how much more will the law of righteousness that came from ‘every sin forgiven’ now control you!  The Law of Righteousness from Jesus, is infinitely more powerful than the law of sin from Adam.  A trillion times stronger.  Every human sin forgiven, is way bigger than Adam’s one sin.  All you need to do is walk in His Law of Righteousness.  Submit your members to it.  Like a chain saw versus a hand saw.  Start the engine! 
 
.5 God’s Word – How can a young man cleanse His way by taking heed according to your Word.  Your word I have hid in my heart, so I won’t sin against you.  His Word brings victory over sin.  Ephesians 4:13 - It is God who works in you - both to will and to act according to his good purpose.  He even gives you the want to, the Grace to Choose Grace, the way out.  Soak in God’s Word, and your mind will be transformed.  PRISM and PRISM Topics will help you!  You will get the mind of Christ – which is righteousness, not the mind of man – which is slave to sin. 
 
.6 PiVAT Daily – Get God’s Plan for you today, and do it, and you won’t be walking down her street near her house!  You’ll be nowhere near there, you’re busy doing better things – that God planned for you today!  Sin isn’t one of them.  Learn to obey what He told you today, be faithful to obey His plans for you in this hour - and you’ll be distanced from anything that leads to sin. 
 
.7 Confess – confess your sin to God and He will forgive you, ( I John 1:9) and confess your sins one to another and pray for each other that you may be healed. (James 5:16)  If you choose wrong, and you confess and forsake it, God will forgive you.  But God also says, confess your sin to one another and pray for each other, that you may be healed.  Few Christians actually do this.  They’re embarrassed, they don’t want others to know what they did, and the devil tells them “better just keep this one to yourself.” Keep this in the dark, rather than bring it into the light.  Things in the dark usually remain undealt with, so they remain. 
 
.8 Daily Call – Exhort one another daily while it is called today, so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.  If you get hardened to it, you’ll go back.  You need a Daily Call – Hebrews 3:13.  Start obeying God’s plan for you, and transforming your mind with His Word, and overcoming (the devil and sin) by the blood of the Lamb and the Word of your testimony.  This is a tool that God prescribed to walk in the law of righteousness. Exhort one other daily.  Ask God who He wants you to walk with in a Daily Call.
 
.9 Resist – Choose Grace.  The next time temptation comes.  Choose Grace to say no to ungodliness.  You make that choice now, not in the heat of the moment.  David said, “I have inclined my heart to obey your word.” Decide now, commit to choose Grace now!  So you will when you need to.  Speak with your mouth, and move your feet.  Leave your coat behind if you have to.  Choose Grace.  The power God gives – to say no to sin.    
 
.10 Declare – David’s Declarations, Declare what you will do! Obey every time! And what will God do?  He’ll bring victory!   Psalms 101:2-3 - I will walk in my house with blameless heart, I will set before my eyes no unclean thing, the deeds of unfaithful men I hate, they will not cling to me.  David knew the power of God’s Word, and the power of his word in agreement – the power of declaration. 
 
.11 Intervals – In an area of your life, if it's un-surrendered, shorten the interval. If you can’t go a day without cussing, start with an hour.  Shorten the interval, Ask God for help this hour.  Let Jesus do the work, He’s already done it.  He’s done it for you!  Declare God’s Word, Your Obedience, His faithfulness, and Praise Him for delivering you!  You can declare by faith – He promised.  Then start filling your mouth with Praise, and truth and life.  If you’re praising, you’re not cussing.  Celebrate every hour the Victory God just gave you over sin.  Share your testimony!  Get some obedience momentum.  Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  He’ll come at you with the kitchen sink, but if you start getting that obedience momentum, He’ll back off – He doesn’t like taking the “L.”  He’ll try again later, but you’re ready, God’s Word is making you stronger!  God will help you see Him coming.  You’ll Choose Grace – cause the Law of Righteousness that now controls you is infinitely more powerful than the law of sin that once did.  You’ve got some momentum, you’ve got a testimony that you overcome with.  And more testimonies are coming!  Every day is a new victory.  It’s that law of righteousness that now controls you!
 
Note: If you ever fail to choose Grace to Say No to sin.  Confess immediately, To God and a friend.  And turn from it.  I John 1:9 – God will forgive you.  Get back on your horse – and obey this hour!  Shorten the interval to fifteen minutes of you have to.  Start a new string of obedience momentum.  Get busy with God’s plan for you today – just fully obey what He told you to do in this hour.  Thank Him for His mercy and forgiveness.  Soak in the Word that tells you what He did to free you, and cleanse you.  The Bible says He even forgives the guilt of your sin.  The devil will try to throw that back on you, decline, resist him.  That isn’t for you to carry anymore.  God forgave you, so the guilt the devil tries to put on you – is fake.  If you aren’t turning from sin, it’s not fake guilt, you’re guilty.  But if you confess, repent, and forsake it, God will forgive you for sure. Thank Him for it, and just choose grace in this hour. Celebrate every victory over sin. It’s a big deal!  God is faithful!  The Law of Righteousness now at work in you.  The Holy Spirit whom you are walking in. Pray in the Spirit, build yourself up in your most holy faith,  Speak God’s Word, Declare that you are choosing His Way out, and you will choose it the next time, and every time!  Move your feet, Get about your business what He told you to do in this hour, and praise Him for His mercy and grace – His victory in your life, that takes you from victory to victory, from glory to glory. 
 
If you have Jesus in you, the Holy Spirit filling you, you have a new law controlling you, the law of righteousness infinitely more powerful than the law of sin that once controlled you.  Submit your members to Christ, not sin, and do these things that His Word says.  And you will walk in victory over sin, in newness of life.  The fear of the LORD will be a shield for you.  Read the PRISM Topic – You’re not fearing God for nothing.  It will encourage you.  Learn the Fear of the LORD, and you’ll choose the grace that comes with that law of righteousness.  You will gain victory over sin, it will no longer control you, you are now controlled by a much higher power – the law of righteousness.  Far more powerful than the law of sin ever was.  Because of Jesus, your Savior and your LORD.  The One who gives you power to overcome.  Christ in you, the hope of glory!
 
Love you all,
dad

Love you all, praying for you,

​I just love God’s Word – it is so practical.  It is truth and life, and instruction for life.  God reveals practical ways to walk in His Word, so you walk in His success...  My prayer is that you will from this day forward, for the rest of your life – that you will use a PiVAT Journal - where you write down what God tells you.  Just download a 3-Day PiVAT Journal, from hearwelldone.org.  Or get a full month PiVAT Journal. (Text me, we’ll send you a printed one). or use any notebook for a PiVAT, PRISM and Conversations page.   Has God ever spoken to you?  Have you ever received a Word from God?  How important to you was it?  Do you remember what He said?  Did you write it down?  If not, you probably won’t remember.  The Bible says Samuel didn’t let one word from God fall to the ground.  He wrote it down – that’s how.  He came back to it, meditated on it, so He could be sure to obey it.  Samuel didn’t let one Word fall to the ground.  If God says something, how valuable is it to you?  You could live for a year, even a lifetime, on just one word from the LORD, but He wants to speak to you every day! Abraham lived 25 years on a promise, before the next time was recorded that God spoke to him.  If God speaks and you value it, then treasure it! Keep it in your mind and heart, and do it, repeatedly.  Some people say that verse means that the Israelites didn’t let one word from Samuel fall to the ground.  Hardly, the Israelites were a stiff-necked people. Samuel’s word wasn’t good enough for them, they wanted a king… This was talking about Samuel not letting one word from God fall to the ground.  A verse or so later, it said “And God continued to appear to Samuel at Shiloh.”  Why did He do that?  Because Samuel valued what He said. He wrote it down. So God gave him more.  Same thing with you.  Where is your Shiloh? Where God appears to you?  Interesting… Shiloh means tranquil, secure, successful, be happy, prosper, be in safety. Tranquil, Shiloh is that quiet place that God speaks to you. That place where you meet with God.  That place where God calls you to meet with Him.  For Jesus, it was often Gethsemane.  There are three quiet places where you can meet with God.  (Or more… He can appear to you anywhere at any time He chooses.)  But here are three quiet places you can go, to meet with Him - to hear His voice.  #1 PiVAT before dinner. Praying that quiet place is your never miss habit, the most important one of your life, by far.  It’s where you get His plans for you for tomorrow, so you can do them!  Otherwise, how would you know? It’s where you write down the testimony you overcome with – that He did so far today as you’re obeying.  It’s that place where you remember what He told you to do, so you can finish strong, share with your spouse, get counsel in the night season, and where you receive His plans for you for tomorrow - so you can hit the ground running in the good that He has planned for you.  To be a doer and not a hearer only, you need to first be a hearer.  The second quiet place you can go.  #2 PRISM time with Him.  Those five things you can do in God’s Word every day.  Where you transform your mind, learn to think like He thinks, where He can reveal his love for you, His confirmation of the plans He laid out for you, (Romans 12:1-2) instruction for your success today.  Hope and encouragement that you need, and a seed deposit into your spirit, so you can share with others the truth and life of His Word for them, at the divine appointments that God sets.  Those conversations God will bring you to today – to share the love of God for them, the life, wisdom, and hope of God, and the good that He has for them.  And the third quiet place you can go.  #3 His Presence.  Just sitting at His feet, stilling your mind and heart before him, listening to what He has to say, and being ok if He doesn’t say anything yet.  Just to be with Him.  It might be silent, it might be in the atmosphere of worship – The quiet place belongs to Him, so He’ll lead you – in what it looks like this time.  Praying that you, like Samuel will have a PiVAT Journal, where you write down what God told you.  So like Samuel, you will not let one word fall to the ground. 
 
Love you all,
dad

Love you all, praying for you.
 
I just love God’s Word.  It gives hope.  Have you ever lost hope, or felt like you were running short?  Maybe you’re under attack, have been struggling recently, or have been waiting a long time for God to answer, and it seems like He’s forgotten?  Maybe you’re facing a mountain, a great challenge, or just wondering if it’s all worth it?  A little discouraged, or even tempted to thrown in the towel altogether?  How do you get hope?  God has it, He gives it, He is the God of hope.  What is hope?  An expectancy.  A desire of something good, with an expectation of obtaining it, a belief that it is obtainable, the feeling that something wanted, can be had, or will turn out for the best.   So how do you get hope? 
 
Eleven Ways To Get Hope. 
 
#1  Set the LORD always before you – His Word with your mouth.  Psalm 16:8 – I have set the LORD always before me, because He is at my right hand, I will not be moved.  Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope. 
 
#2  Fix the eyes of your heart.  Speak His Word with your mouth to fill your heart.  Ephesians 1:18 – I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order to know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints and his incomparably great power for us who believe. 
 
#3 Chose joy about hope.  Romans 12:12 – Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.  Proverbs 10:28 – The hope of the righteous brings joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.  Psalm 146:5 – But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the LORD their God.  Rom 5:2 – Through whom we have gained access by faith in which we now stand.  And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. 
 
#4 Soak in His Word.  More Word, more hope.  Romans 15:4 – For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. Psalm 78:5 For he established a testimony in Jacob… That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God. 
 
#5  Believe that God is the God of hope, and pray in the Spirit.  Romans 15:13 – 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. 
 
#6  Put your hope in God.  With your mouth.  Learn to declare what you believe and what you will do.  Psalm 119:114 – You are my hiding place and my shield:  I have put my hope in your word.  Psalm 119:149 – Remember your word to your servant, for you have given me hope.  My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life.  Psalm 130:7  O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, because his love is constant, and He is always willing to save. 
 
#7 Tell yourself and Tell God  Psalm 71:14-15 – As for me, I will always have hope, I will praise you more and more.  My mouth will tell of your righteousness and of your salvation all day long, though I know not its measure.   Psalm 71:5  For you are my hope, O Lord God, you are my confidence from my youth.
 
#8 Choose Courage in hope.  Psalm 31:24 – Be of good courage, and he will strengthen your heart, all you who hope in the LORD. 
 
#9 Wait patiently. Fear God. Remember your testimony.  Psalm 33:17 – A horse is vain hope for deliverance, despite all its great strength it cannot save.  But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.  We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and shield.  In him our hearts rejoice for we trust in his holy name.  May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you.  Psalm 78:5,7 For he established a testimony in Jacob (fill in your name)… That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commands.  Lamentations 3:21 – Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope;  Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning.  Great is your faithfulness.  I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion therefore I will wait for him.  The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.
 
10 Decline discouragement, praise instead.  Psalm 42:5 – Why am I discouraged?  Why is my heart so sad?  I will put my hope in God!  I will praise him again and again, my Savior and my God.  Psalm 42:11 – Why are you in despair, O my soul?  And why have you become disturbed within me?  Hope in God, for I will still praise him, the help of my countenance and my God.  Psalm 43:5 – Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
 
11 Pray in the Spirit and learn the fear of the LORD.  Romans 8:24 – For in this hope we were saved.  But hope that is seen is no hope at all.  Who hopes for what he already has?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.  In the same way, The Spirit helps us in our weakness.  We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.  And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.    Psalm 147:11  The Lord delights in those who fear Him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. 
 
Praying for you today.  That your hope would not fade, but get stronger.  Praying that you will set the LORD always before you, that you will fix the eyes of your heart, and choose joy in hope.  Praying that you will soak in God’s Word, believe that He is the God of hope, and put your hope in God.  Praying that you will tell yourself, and tell God.  That you will choose courage regarding hope, so he can strengthen your heart.  Praying that you will wait patiently and remember your testimony, decline discouragement and choose praise instead.  That you will pray in the spirit, fear the LORD, and put your hope in his unfailing love.  
 
Love you all,
dad 

Love you all, praying for you. 
 
I just love God’s Word, it builds character.  What is character?  What marks you and defines you.  What you’re known for – that’s reputation, character is even broader than that.  Character is who you are and what you do when no one is looking, whether at peace or under pressure.  Your reputation eventually will match your character.  Reputation without matching character will eventually alter your reputation. Time will make sure they match.  When I was a kid, a popular candy was Now & Later’s - tangy flavors of little squares in a packet.  But in life, most things aren’t now and later, they start with - Now or Later.  First you decide that, and after you get good at the now, you will also get good at the later – as it just becomes the now, of a different time.  One of the great choices that reveal character is now or later.  What do you do now? and what do you leave til later?  God is a now God, he’s also a later God.  In life, timing is everything.  There is a time and season for everything under the sun, just as there is a time and procedure for every matter.  Jesus promised that he would return, that has not happened yet.  It will come later, suddenly in the twinkling of an eye, when people least expect it. It will be as it was in the days of Noah.  God’s promises are for later – in the fullness of time.  But what about the things that are right now?  When it comes to personal character and responsibility – what are you?  Are you a now person, or a later person?  Even the world has figured this out.  It might have been Benjamin Franklin who said, Do not put off til tomorrow what you can do today.  That is good counsel.  God is a now, God.  Today is the day of Salvation.  Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.  God hates a perverse tongue.  Perverse is not perverted, the latter address morality, the former address obedience.  Perverse means to delay instead of obey.  The first example of perversity in the Bible.  The serpent asked Eve, did God really say that?  When the resounding yes, returned, he then said, that’s because God knows that…  and he followed it with a half-truth – the strategy of deception.  God hates a perverse tongue – any words that put a delay in your obey.  Turning it over in your mind, until you justify doing what God didn’t say, or God said not to.  PiVAT before dinner – helps you get God’s plan for you for today.  Do it – before dinner.  But throughout the day, the Holy Spirit prompts you – He leads you and guides you.  When that happens, how quickly do you obey?  Is your character now or later?  Do you obey now? or later...  Not just big things… when something needs to be done, are you a person who does it now, or waits until later?  Whether the trash needs to be taken out, something needs to be done before tomorrow.  Do you do it now? or wait until this afternoon, or after dinner, and then - before you go to bed.  Do you ask God when?   Do you Do It Now?  Abraham was a now person.  Obedience is for now.  Praise is for now – when times are hard, when you’re going through something.  Abraham obeyed immediately, “Early in the morning, he saddled his donkey and took Isaac with him and started off for Mount Moriah.  He didn’t think about it, he didn’t gather opinions, He did it now.  Joseph’s character was now.  He didn’t wait around – he ran  - leaving his coat in her hand.  Boaz character was now.  Naomi told Ruth, Boaz?  Don’t worry, it will be done today, he will not rest until it is done.  Wow.  Is that what people say about you?  "Oh she’ll it do it now.  He’ll do it today, don’t worry..."  Did Naomi talk to him?  Is that what he told her.  No, she knew his character, there was no doubt as to what he would do.  Is that you?  Is your character that of Boaz?  What do people say you are – A now person, or a later person?  Proverbs said chapter 6:  Let no sleep come to your eyes – do it now, get out of debt (it’s a curse).  The Ethiopian Eunuch when He heard the gospel, said, is there anything stopping me from being baptized right now? Obeyers have the now gene, disobeyers have the later gene.  Herod kept John alive because he liked to listen to him. He was offended, but he knew it was the truth, he liked to hear it, he just didn’t obey it.   Festus told Paul – after being convicted of the truth, I’ll call for you at a later time.  God said the sluggard turns over on his bed, like a door turns on its hinges.  The sluggard has a later gene, not a now gene.  What about you? What has God told you to do?  He only tells you to do two things. What He wants you to do today, and what He wants you to do every day.  What is your character?  When do you praise?  Now or Later?  When do you obey, now or later?  When do you steward, work hard, share with others, give to those in need, encourage a brother, walk in daily relationship, get God’s plan for you?  What is your character?  Now or Later?  Praying that you will do PIVAT before dinner, to get God’s plan for you today.   And if you didn’t, that you would do it right now, its never to late to obey.  Most people need gene therapy, to replace the later gene with the now gene.  It just takes one decision at a time.  Just do it now.  Every time you obey right now, every time you do what needs done now instead of wait til later, you are growing in obedience and resisting the devil, walking in victory – and joy always comes with it.  Praying that your PRISM time with God would start with Praise the Word first thing in the morning.  Praying that you would do everything that God told you to do today.  My wife always has her clothes laid out the night before – so in the morning when it’s time for work – she is ready, not delayed.  What do you do now?  And what do you leave for later?  What is your character and therefore unavoidably your reputation?  Do you steward God’s things well?  Do you put it away before you do something else?  Or do you do something else before you put it away?  Is it finished?  Or is something always undone?  Do you hear and obey? Or hear and delay?  Praying that your character will be like Abraham – who did it now, like Joseph, and Boaz and Daniel, and Phineas, and Esther.  People of character are now people, not later.  Because if they are now, they will also be later.  They know what needs to be done now, they do it immediately, so later – they are free to do what God tells them.  If God speaks and you do it now, He can tell you something else.  If not, He can’t.  He’s still waiting on you to do what He told you.  Most things aren’t big things.  How many times did God tell Abraham to leave the Ur of the Chaldees, or sacrifice his son?  Not many.  If you’re faithful in the little, you’ll be faithful in the big.  Do you make your bed in the morning? Do you praise even before you see the answer?  Do you finish before resting, or rest before finishing?  What are you known for?  What is your character? Praying that every time people speak of you, it will be like Naomi spoke of Boaz.  “Oh, he won’t rest until it’s done.  He’s just like that”.  He’s just an obeyer, He’s just excellent, she’s just completely trustworthy, dependable, you can count on him, you can count on her.”  Now is the day of Salvation, now is the perfect time to obey, now is the time to move your feet, to say I will bless the LORD at all times, His praise will continually be in my mouth.  As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.  And we will start right now! Praying that you will always be instant in obedience, that you won’t delay anything God will say.  That your character and your reputation is now, not later.  So you are always ready for what God will say next so He can use you - to do what He wants to do! 
 
Love you all,
dad