The Good News Blog

Do You Want To Prosper? Serve!
by Bo Sanchez

I got this crazy list from a friend.

It’s title?

The 9 Ways To Pretend You’re Busy At Work.

Here are 6 of them…

1. Always walk with 3 folders in your hands, even if the folders are empty.

People with folders in their hands look like people going to meetings. People with nothing in their hands look like they’re doing nothing. And people with a newspaper in their hands look like they’re going to the toilet.

2. Always leave your entire cubicle messy.

Build huge piles of folders on your desk. Build stacks of books on the floor, even if you never read them. People around you will think you’re overworked.

3. Always look harassed.

This will give your bosses the impression that you’re really stressed out because of work.

4. Send important emails to your boss at wee hours of the morning.

Set your alarm

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“…choose for yourselves this day whom will you serve…” -Joshua 24:15, NIV

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Every day, we make thousands of choices. Some choices have more impact on our lives than others. Some require more thought. Some may even require the input of others. Making Jesus the Lord of your life is the best choice you could ever make!

However, once you do, you have the opportunity every day to make choices to support that choice. For example, are you choosing to serve the Lord with your attitude? Are you choosing to serve the Lord with your finances? Are you choosing to serve the Lord by what you say? What you watch on TV? What you listen to?

Today I encourage you to examine your thoughts and actions. Choose this day to serve Him in every area of your life. As you submit your ways to Him, He promises

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“You will also declare a thing, and it shall be established…” -Job 22:28, NKJ

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

In the Old Testament there was an Israelite woman who was about to give birth. She had just heard that the Ark of the Covenant that housed God’s presence had been stolen. She was so upset about it that she named her baby boy Ichabod, which means “the glory has departed.”

Notice what she did; she named her future by what was happening in her present. She could have just as easily named him “the glory will return,” but she was so focused on the negative, so caught up in where she was at that moment that she defined her future by it.

Friend, don’t ever name your future by your present day circumstances. You may have had some hard times in the past, but get that “Ichabod” spirit off of you. It

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 Dr. David Jeremiah

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” – 2 Corinthians 5:10

Every week there seems to be a new “awards” program on television, honoring celebrities, actors, or personalities in the entertainment world. Every sporting event leads to some kind of championship in which trophies are awarded. Many executives receive bonuses at the end of the year, some of which have recently created disparaging headlines.

None of those rewards or honors has any eternal value; but the Bible talks about awards that are eternal, crowns to be given out at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

The apostle Paul discussed this in Romans 14, saying we should get along with our brothers and sisters and not condemn those who have different opinions on non-essential matters,

The Enemy of Love: Bitterness
by Charles Stanley

The story of the prodigal son gives us a wonderful illustration of God’s love. Jesus told the Pharisees this parable to reveal how the Father cares for human beings and delights when an errant child returns home. However, the Pharisees were lovers of law, order, and the appearance of righteousness. They probably identified more with the angry sibling than with the prodigal or the father.

The older son had already allowed bitterness to take root as a result of his younger brother’s departure. Even so, he was apparently proud of his appearance as the “good son,” just as the Pharisees would have been (Matt. 23:27). Often forgotten in this story is the fact that there was an inheritance for the older brother too—the land he was working and the animals he tended would all one day be his. In other words, he

by Charles Stanley

The story of Gideon offers scriptural guidance for times when the odds are overwhelming and defeat seems imminent. No matter what your challenges are, the Lord is able to demonstrate His awesome power and deliver you.

God uses difficulty to build faith. Gideon was willing to believe God and go up against an army four times larger than his own. Trusting the Lord is a process which must be learned through experience.

At times God takes the people He uses and places them in impossible situations—in that way, they discover that He is faithful. We may prefer to acquire faith by reading a book, but the Lord knows that the best classroom is a place of utter helplessness.

God may require us to do what seems unreasonable. The Israelites were already outnumbered, but the Lord instructed Gideon to reduce the army to a mere 300 men. That made

By Bo Sanchez

You have lies in your mind.

These lies have stolen much of your joy and blessings.

Here’s the problem: You don’t know they’re lies.

My friend priest told me this hilarious story.

One day, a priest saw a group of kids surrounding a dog.

Curious, he came over and asked, “What are you doing?”

One kid said, “Father, we’re arguing as to who would own this stray dog. We all want him. So we decided that the one who can say the biggest lie would take home the dog.”

The priest shook his head and said, “That’s wrong! Do you know that lying is bad? It’s against the commandments of God. Do you know that when I was your age, I never told a single lie?”

For a moment, there was silence. All the kids looked very sad. The priest was happy. He felt his message hit home.

Finally, the smallest boy said, “Okay, no one can

The Levels of Life
by Dr. Charles Stanley

Living accommodations vary widely in the physical world, ranging from mansions to crude shelters. In the same way, the spiritual realm also has different levels.

In our passage today, the Lord reveals three ranks of spiritual life:

1. The Natural Man—Everyone who has not accepted Christ as his Savior is in this category. Many in this group are capable of good deeds, but since their sins remain unforgiven, they are separated from the Lord. Because the Holy Spirit does not dwell within them, they cannot understand the things of God.

2. The Spiritual Man—This group is composed of Christians who are filled with the Spirit and surrendered to His control. Though they’re not perfect, they are quick to recognize transgression, confess sin, and genuinely repent by turning back to God. Because the Holy Spirit is ruling in their lives, He is able

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“…time and chance happen to them all” -Ecclesiastes 9:11, NIV

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

When God laid out the plans for our lives, He lined up the right people, the right breaks, and the right opportunities that we needed to fulfill our destiny. The Scripture talks about how time and chance will come together for every person. In other words, there are moments of favor that God has already released into your future. If you’ll let that sink down into your heart today, it will change your whole outlook on your future.

So many people miss out on the good things because they allow fear to distract them and hold them back. They say, “What if I fail?” “What if they don’t like me?” “What if I make a mistake?” To that I say, “What if you succeed?” “What if they like you?” “What if you do it better than