Thursday, April 12, 2012

Perfect Gift



It’s Yours
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God”
(Ephesians 2:8, NKJV)
TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria
If I stopped by your house and brought you a beautifully wrapped gift and set it in your living room, that gift would be yours. It’s in your home; I gave it to you. There’s nothing you could do to make it “more” yours or “less” yours. Now, you could see that present and be so excited. You could call your friends and tell them about it. You could even write me a thank you note; however, you really can’t enjoy the gift until you open it. It wouldn’t do you any good until you put it to use. In other words, you have to receive that gift before it affects your life.
Friend, it’s the same way with spiritual gifts. God has a package of grace, favor, mercy, forgiveness, blessing, joy, peace and so much more available to you. But you have to receive it by faith in order for it to affect your life. You can’t earn it. You can’t pay for it. You simply have to receive it by faith.
Today, if you’ve never received the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ, that’s the first gift to receive. Click here for more information. Then once you become a child of His, you can partake of His glorious inheritance. You can receive every spiritual gift and blessing He has in store for you!
— Joel & Victoria Osteen
By the Grace of God I Am What I Am
By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain . . . —1 Corinthians 15:10
The way we continually talk about our own inabilities is an insult to our Creator. To complain over our incompetence is to accuse God falsely of having overlooked us. Get into the habit of examining from God’s perspective those things that sound so humble to men. You will be amazed at how unbelievably inappropriate and disrespectful they are to Him. We say things such as, “Oh, I shouldn’t claim to be sanctified; I’m not a saint.” But to say that before God means, “No, Lord, it is impossible for You to save and sanctify me; there are opportunities I have not had and so many imperfections in my brain and body; no, Lord, it isn’t possible.” That may sound wonderfully humble to others, but before God it is an attitude of defiance.
Conversely, the things that sound humble before God may sound exactly the opposite to people. To say, “Thank God, I know I am saved and sanctified,” is in God’s eyes the purest expression of humility. It means you have so completely surrendered yourself to God that you know He is true. Never worry about whether what you say sounds humble before others or not. But always be humble before God, and allow Him to be your all in all.
There is only one relationship that really matters, and that is your personal relationship to your personal Redeemer and Lord. If you maintain that at all costs, letting everything else go, God will fulfill His purpose through your life. One individual life may be of priceless value to God’s purposes, and yours may be that life.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father God, I bless You today. Thank You for Your goodness and faithfulness in my life. I receive, by faith, every gift You have for me. Open the eyes of my heart that I may see all the good things You have in store for me in Jesus’ name. Amen.


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