DIG for Monday the 28th of September…..you may not be able to play the harp, but you can worship…..Psalm 100 v 1 and 2

Worship is a useful tool against the enemy and as a means of rejoicing.

Anyone can worship and it can be done anywhere.

You do not need a worship band with good musicians and other believers; it can be a solo occupation done anywhere.

Yes, David used his musical skills to comfort Saul and release him from bondage (1 Samuel 16 v 23).

Most of us cannot play the harp, but we can make a joyful noise, we can serve the Lord and we can sing in His presence (Psalm 100 v 1 and 2).

Whether we worship or not is a choice.

Sitting by the sea watching the sunset (it was awesome last night up here in the north of Scotland) and gasping in amazement is an act of worship.

Singing along to your favourite cd (like Charlie and Jill LeBlanc’s “Simply Worship”) is an act of worship; I could easily be listening to something else at the moment, but I have chosen to listen to worship music.

Speaking out in tongues and in prayer is an act of worship.

Even sitting quietly in prayer and meditation, focussing on Jesus is an act of worship.

All the above are acts of will, and we have to choose to do them; we can all worship if we choose to.

And when we worship we are resisting the devil and submitting to God and is part of the process of seeing the devil flee from us (James 4 v 7).

Make a good choice this morning and make the choice to worship.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I can worship you whenever and wherever I want”.

Psalm 100 v 1 and 2…..Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing

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DIG for Sunday the 27th of September…..can we sometimes be too “spiritual”…..Acts 1 v 11

While reading the beginning of Acts this morning I was challenged again, as I was in church this week, about our actions with regards to social issues such as homelessness, poverty, immigration etc.

I preached from James 2 this week, looking at how we should give evidence of our beliefs through works of faith.

James asks what good is it speaking to and blessing a brother or sister if we do not fulfil their need for food or clothes (James 2 v 14 to 17).

If we do this James argues that our faith is dead!

A similar challenge came upon me as I read the fist part of verse Acts 1 v 11, where the disciples are gazing up into the sky, looking at where Jesus had gone.

I’ve heard the phrase, “he is so spiritually focussed he is no earthly good”; have you?

Now, I am not against praying for situations, but instead of asking God to deal with something or “sending labourers”, maybe the solution is for us to get off our backsides and do something practical?

People have what is known as a “hierarchy of needs”, where practical issues such as food, clothing and housing need to be dealt with first.
We obviously know that the most important issue for any human being is how they are with the Lord, however if we do not deal with their practical issues first how can we “get in” to deal with their spiritual issues?

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil with regards to illness and poverty; we, as His ambassadors on earth, have a responsibility for this too.

Sometimes we maybe look too much “towards heaven” instead of looking “towards earth” to see the issues that we should be dealing with.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil and thank you that I can play my part in this mission”

Acts 1 v 11…..Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven

DIG for Saturday the 26th of September…..you can be beautiful too…..Romans 12 v 2

While out walking this afternoon I was fortunate enough to see a couple of butterflies (I think they were Peacock butterflies) and they were stunningly beautiful.

Their wings seemed to glisten and shimmer in the sun, and the different colours on their wings were wonderful.

I though how beautiful they were, and my mind was then drawn back to the DIG yesterday.

This butterfly used to be a caterpillar but then through the process of metamorphosis it was changed, or transformed, to its winged version.

So instead of a caterpillar foraging on the ground munching on leaves it became a butterfly free to fly wherever it wanted sipping on the abundance that is sweet nectar.

What a marvellous picture of what can happen to us if we renew our minds through the Word of God.

We may have areas of our lives that are not very pretty at the moment, but if we were to be transformed we could end up soaring and flying, becoming beautiful in that area.

Transformation comes as we renew our mind through the Word of God (Romans 12 v 2).

For every dark and ugly situation in our lives at the moment we can find something in the Word that will renew our mind and see us transformed.

Ugly and horrid situations can be transformed into something of beauty, something of abundance, something that will glorify God.

Don’t give up today, whatever situation you find yourself in.

Instead of this, find the truth in the Word of God and renew your mind; be transformed.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for your Word, and thank you that I can renew my mind”.

Romans 12 v 2…..And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God

DIG for Friday the 25th of September…..we can be changed, we can be transformed…..Romans 12 v 2

Romans 12 v 2 is one of my favourite verses of Scripture.

This verse gives us THE model of change that God has ordained.

We cannot change through our own self-efforts; we cannot will ourselves to change for the better.

I am sure that there is something in each of our lives that we want to change.

Let me tell you that striving and trying to stop a damaging habit will not work.

If we keep focussing on something trying to stop we will enlarge that in our mind to the extent that we will keep doing it (remember as a man thinketh so is he).

Instead we should focus on the Lord and His Word so that we renew )or change our mind) in that area.

As we renew our mind we will be transformed, that is what the Word of God says (Romans 12 v 2).

Transformed comes from the Greek word “metamorfoo”, and means a complete change as in metamorphosis.

As we renew our mind to what the Word says about us (i.e. that we are righteous, healed, prosperous and at peace for example) we will be changed.

As we change our mind we change our life; that is the model for permanent change that we need to adhere to.

Will power, striving and trying will not see permanent change in our lives; mind renewal is the only thing that is guaranteed to being about lasting and permanent change.

And understanding, believing and trusting God’s Word is what brings about mind renewal.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for your Word and thank you for the process of mind renewal that means I can bring about change in my life”.

Romans 12 v 2…..And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God

DIG for Thursday the 24th of September…..building your ministry takes time…..Acts 1 v 8

I have been a pastor for about eight years now, and in a teaching ministry for about the same time, and I have to say that I think I am only just starting out in ministry.

Plans were being made to go and preach in India, however at the planning stage the Lord said, “No, not yet”.

Initially I thought why and maybe got a little bit disappointed, but the Lord led me to this verse in Acts.

We all have a “ministry” from the Lord and that is to preach the Gospel, but we also have our individual ministries.

Each ministry we have and undertake needs to “fit in” with Acts 1 v 8.

Jesus told the disciples to be witnesses, starting in Jerusalem, then Judea and then Samaria; this means at home, closer to home and then further away.

For me when the Lord led me to this verse, He was telling me that I needing to minister to people at home and closer to home before going much further apart (i.e. India).

Ministry is never an overnight success; it takes time and effort and always starts small.

We start small and we do not despise this, as we may need to stay small for longer than anticipated.

All the time in ministry, big or small, is a time of preparation and will benefit us (and those we minster to) in the long run.

If you are in ministry keep pressing on and pushing in, all ministry is valuable, big or small.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you have a plan and a purpose for my life and ministry, and have equipped me for that purpose”.

Acts 1 v 8…..But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth

DIG for Wednesday the 23rd of September……nobody knows, or can know, when He is coming back…..Acts 1 v 7

This week, this year, next year on this date; I’m sure you’ll find lots of predictions of when Jesus is coming back if you look.

Allow me to save you time and effort by saying don’t bother!

Yes, Jesus is coming back but no man knows when this is going to be.

There have been hundreds and hundreds of predictions already and every single one of them has been wrong, as Jesus has not returned.

People may try and tell you when He is coming back, but this is not for man to know.

There are things that God has told us and things that God has delegated to us but knowing when He will “restore the kingdom of Israel” is not one of them.

That is something that He has within His own power.

He has given us things to know and do; preaching the Gospel and healing people for example.

These things are in our power, and they are what we should be concentrating on instead of this seemingly endless debate about when the Second Coming of Jesus will be.

Don’t get hung up with that nonsense; get stuck into our real job on earth.

Get into spreading the Gospel, teaching about Jesus, setting people free from bondages including poverty and illness.

Don’t worry about when Jesus is coming back, that is not for you to know.

And consider very carefully if you should be listening to, or associating with, a man who says he knows the date of Jesus coming back!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you have a task for me to do, thank you that you have a plan and purpose for my life”.

Acts 1 v 7…..And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power

DIG for Tuesday the 22nd of September…..how are you thinking; like a lost person…..Romans 8 v 6

Thanks to Nunsy for the DIG today……

It is a wonderful truth that we have been given all the blessings of heaven to use in this life. We have been entrusted with the very power of God.

But if we’re not making use of what God has provided, we are as ineffectual as a lost person.

I’m not just talking about miracles. In fact, seeing miracles happen is easy peasy! I remember when we had a healing stall at our local market we saw loads of miracles!

Using the power of God for others is easy compared to applying the power of God to our own lives.

For example, how’s your thought life doing these days?

How are your fears, stress and worry levels?

Are the cares of this world continually overwhelming you bringing all sorts of anxiety?

Worry and stress happen when we have removed God from the situation.

They are the inability, or perhaps more accurately, the refusal to allow faith to dominate.

They happen when our minds are preoccupied in a way the removes God from a situation; as if He has removed His willingness, His ability and His power to intervene.

They happen because our minds are behaving like a lost person’s.

That’s called ‘Unbelief’ and it negates the power of God in our life (Mark 6 v 5 and 6).

Jesus said that the cares of this world have the potential to overwhelm the Word of God in our heart, and that they will make us unfruitful, which none of us want. (Mark 4:7,19)

As problems rise and fall like waves on the sea, which they will always do, we need to make a decision. Are we going to react as if there is no God, as if He doesn’t care, as if He doesn’t have the power, as if He hasn’t given US the power?

Or are we going to allow the Word of God to dominate those cares? To see those cares diminish as we release faith in all that God has said about Himself and about us? To declare to ourselves and to the situation all that God has promised us?

Speak this out today……”Thank you Lord for all that you have promised me. I’m looking forward to seeing victory over stress and worry as I allow Your Word to dominate my thinking”

Romans 8 v 6…..For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace

DIG for Monday the 21st of September…..nothing has told us to stop…..Acts 1 v 1 and 2

The Acts of the Apostles is a wonderful book, showing us how the early church spread the gospel, bringing healing, abundance, joy and peace.

We see the early church going into the world in the power of the Holy Spirit teaching and spreading the good news.

Luke, who wrote the Book of Acts, tells us that Jesus started this process (Acts 1 v 2).

He brought healing and salvation, He began to do this; in the Gospels we read what Jesus started to do and started to teach.

Luke then goes on to say that this task has passed onto the apostles (Acts 1 v 2).

In Acts we read how Peter and John, Philip and Paul (among others) carried on this “work” originating through Jesus.

People are saved, people are healed and people are set free from bondage.

And the great thing that I see when reading Acts, and indeed the rest of the Bible, is that this process has never stopped.

The Holy Spirit aided Jesus and aided the apostles.

He has not returned to Heaven yet, so He is still here to aid you to carry on from Jesus and the apostles.

We are living in the same “times” as the apostles, we are meant to do the same as them and carry on the work of Jesus.

Healing has not stopped, abundance has not ceased and the Holy Spirit has not left us!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the Holy Spirit and thank you that you want us to spread the Gospel, releasing salvation, healing and abundance”.

Acts 1 v 1 and 2…..The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments until the apostles whom he had chosen

DIG for Sunday the 20th of September…..the power of the Holy Spirit is essential…..Acts 1 v 7 and 8

I’ve been considering recently doing an in depth study in the Acts of the Apostles, and reading the start of this book today I recognised one essential requirement that is needed to operate in same power that we see there.

This requirement is the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Scripture is clear that baptism in the Holy Spirit is a separate experience from salvation (Acts 8 v 13 to 17).

Jesus tells us that we are to witness to the whole world, however we can only do this after we have received the Holy Spirit (Acts 1 v 7 and 8).

Once we have received the Holy Spirit then we will have the required power to carry out this mission.

Jesus had already told His apostles to wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit, so He must have felt that the baptism of the Holy Spirit was an essential pre-requisite.

If the first apostles had to be baptised in the Holy Spirit in order to witness in power, then I think we should as well.

Don’t let anyone tell you that Holy Spirit baptism is not for today; that’s a lie.

It is for today, and for every day until the Lord Jesus returns again.

Do you want to see people healed and set free and do you want to see people saved?

Then if you have not done so already ask the Lord for the baptism of the Holy Spirit and then believe that He has.

Then get out into the world!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the baptism of the Holy Spirit and for the power that we receive”.

Acts 1 v 7 and 8…..And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall witness unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth

DIG for Saturday the 19th of September…..the same message again and again…..Titus 3 v 8

As I was turning the pages of my Bible tonight I saw my underlining on Titus 3 v 8.

This is one of my most favourite Scriptures; my fellowship will say this is because I affirm constantly the same message, allegedly!

But then I looked at verse 7 to see what Paul was recommending Titus (and therefore other pastors) to affirm constantly.

Verse 7 talks about how we are justified, how we are made righteous, acquitted and declared innocent.

We are justified through grace.

Justification is a gift from God through the finished work of Jesus Christ.

This is a gift of grace through faith in what Jesus has done; it has nothing to do with what we have done or are doing.

And once we are justified we are made heirs and therefore entitled to our inheritance from the Lord.

This is something that every believer needs to be told all the time.

In other words we need to affirm this constantly.

And this affirmation leads to good results; it leads to good works!

Knowing that we are already made righteous through the finished work of Jesus Christ is what will lead to us living a more holy life.

Trying to keep the law is not how to move towards more holy actions.

And this is a message that I will affirm again and again and again!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have been justified and made righteous as a gift of grace through faith”.

Titus 3 v 8…..This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men