The Good News Blog

Follow Him Daily

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” -Luke 9:23, NIV

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Every day there are things that come against us, distractions that would try to pull us away from our faith in Christ. That’s why Jesus said that every day we have to make the choice to follow Him. Sometimes it’s easy to think, “Well, I go to church regularly” or “I read my Bible on Sundays.”

But really, the Christian life isn’t about how we live on the weekends, it’s how we live every single day. Are you spending time with Him, daily? Are you reaching out and putting others first, daily? Are you sowing seeds to help those in need, daily?

If you know you need to make some adjustments in your daily walk with

by Victoria Osteen

This weekend people all over the country will celebrate the people they love. I think about all the things people do to go out of their way on Valentine’s Day—cards, surprises, candy, presents. I wonder how it would affect people’s relationships if they celebrated the ones they love like this all the time.

I think it’s important that we learn to be comfortable with saying “I love you” as often as possible. We need to allow these words to flow freely in our homes to create an atmosphere of love. At the same time, we need to get comfortable with hearing those words spoken to us.

A young woman heard me speaking on this subject and wrote to tell me how much she appreciated my encouragement to embrace those words, “I love you.” “I really want to do that,” she wrote, “but I get so down on myself, and

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you’ ” -Exodus 3:14, NIV

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Have you thought about how big your God is today? Do you realize you have the Creator of the universe on your side? He’s the God who spoke the worlds into existence. He’s called the Great I Am.

He’s saying today, “I am everything you need. I am your strength. I am your wisdom. I am your protection. I am your provider. I am your way maker. I am your problem solver. I am your dream giver. I am your victory!”

David put it this way in Psalm 138, “Though I am surrounded by troubles, You will bring me safely through. Your fist is clenched against my enemies. Your power will save me.” Maybe you feel

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“…faith without works is dead” -James 2:20, NKJ

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Did you know that faith can be alive or faith can be dead? There are a lot of people who are missing out on the abundant life. They love God, but they aren’t overcoming their obstacles or accomplishing their God-given dreams simply because they are not putting any action behind their faith. Their faith is dead, and it isn’t activating God’s power.

What can you do today to keep your faith alive? It doesn’t have to be something big. Just simply obeying God and doing your best keeps your faith alive. When you go to work every day and give it 100%, you are demonstrating your faith.

Sometimes just putting a smile on your face when you feel discouraged, that’s putting action behind your faith. Just taking time to go to church—that’s faith that is alive. That’s faith

by Bo Sanchez

I’m a legendary artist. (Ahem.)

I’ve produced legendary artwork.

So legendary, in fact, no one remembers them.

Michaelangelo uses paint.

Leonardo da Vinci uses charcoal.

Me? I use my sons’ magic sketchpad.

Okay, it’s a toy.

But I love this toy.

My boys and I would sit on the couch and doodle for hours. Together, we’ve drawn literally thousands of sketches. We’ve created entire worlds and galaxies together. Roller coasters, spaceships, rockets, monsters, aliens—you name it, we drew it.

Here’s why I love this toy.

When I make a mistake, I don’t get angry. I don’t curse myself. I don’t condemn myself. I simply pull the eraser button and draw again.

Which is what we’re supposed to do in life.

I’ve met some people who think that just because they’ve made mistakes, just because they made bad choices, God won’t bless them anymore.

Hey, we’ve all made mistakes.

Perhaps you gave yourself to addictions. Perhaps you were a rebellious

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.” -Proverbs 29:25, NIV

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Fear is one of the enemy’s favorite tools to keep us from going forward in our lives. As soon as we make a decision to step out in faith and do what God is telling us to do, immediately the enemy will bring fear. He’ll put thoughts in your mind like, “What if I fail? What will others think? Maybe I don’t have what it takes.” He’ll do his best to use fear to try to convince you to shrink back and just stay right where you are.

The Bible tells us that fear is a spirit. It affects your emotions. But when you choose to put your trust in the Lord, no matter how you are feeling, you are combating fear.

Today, I

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all.” -Psalm 34:19, NKJ

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Aren’t you glad we serve a Deliverer today? You might feel afflicted today, but God is working to bring you out of that difficult situation. It may not be in the way you thought, but you have to trust that God has your best interest at heart.

Afflictions can take on many forms—a sickness or hardship, a temptation, a coworker or family member. There are so many things that can come against us, but God promises in His Word that no weapon formed against us shall prosper!

Those afflictions are only temporary. Stand in faith today believing that God is on your side. Remember, you and God are a majority. It doesn’t matter what your circumstances look like, get up every morning and say, “This is the

See The Lord

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” -Psalm 34:4, NIV

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

In this day and age, it seems that there are so many things that people are afraid of. I’m not just talking about phobias, but many people are afraid of the future, afraid they won’t get married, afraid they won’t find a better job, afraid of getting sick.

But the scripture gives us a simple remedy for all our fears and that is to seek the Lord. How do you seek the Lord? With a humble and open heart. By setting aside time each day to commune with Him. By focusing your thoughts on Him and His goodness.

Friend, no matter what fears may be plaguing your mind today, God wants to deliver you. He promises to keep us in perfect peace

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” -2 Timothy 1:7, NLT

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

So many people today are living with less than God’s best because they’ve allowed fear to stop them from pursuing their dreams. We have to remember that fear is not from God. It’s a lie from the enemy to paralyze us and steal our power.

Today’s verse tells what God has given us: power, love, and self-discipline or self-control. When you are confident in God’s promises, there’s nothing that can stop you. But when fear creeps in, you hesitate. You’re not as strong as you were before. You feel powerless.

Not only that, but it affects your love. Love prompts us to give, and when we are afraid, we tend to clench our fists and act selfishly. Fear also affects our self-discipline or self-control.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen.” -James 5:7, NLT

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

God has put dreams and desires in every person’s heart. But most of the time, there’s a season of waiting involved. Maybe you’re waiting for a relationship to improve; waiting to get married; waiting for a promotion; or waiting to overcome an illness. Much of life is spent waiting.

But there’s a right way to wait, and there’s a wrong way to wait. Too often, when things don’t happen on our timetable, we get down and discouraged or anxious and fretful. That’s because we’re not waiting the right way.

Notice that today’s verse doesn’t say if you wait, it says as you wait. The