Mornings With Jesus

“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.”
~Romans 12:2 (KJV)

“(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but
mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;)
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that
exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing
into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”
~II Corinthians 10:4-5 (KJV)

“Set your mind and keep focused habitually on the things
above [the heavenly things], not on things that are on the earth
[which have only temporal value]. For you died [to this world],
and your [new, real] life is hidden with Christ in God.”
~Colossians 3:2-3 (AMP)

As born-again believers, we have been redeemed from the curse
that still resides on this world.
That’s awesome news! However, the enemy wants to keep us
bound to our past mistakes, our past sins, and our past selves. The
way to overcome this is by renewing our minds to the Word of
God!

I am a new creation! “Old things have passed away, behold
all things have become new!” ~II Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which
are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh but after
the spirit!” ~Romans 8:1 (KJV)

When we speak the Word of God, it releases the power of God
in our lives! It reminds the enemy that we are no longer his. It
reminds us that we have been made new. It reminds the world that
we are different!

Simply speaking the Word, however, is not enough, we must
allow it to wash over us to the point that we don’t simply speak it
from rote memorization, but from a place of faith, of trust, of
knowing that we know that it works and that it is our sword!

Listen, the Bible is alive! It works. It is spirit and it is truth. It has
the power to change us from the inside out, to bring us into a
deeper, more intimate walk with the Lord. It has the power to mold
us into a force to be reckoned with!

When we are full of the Word of God, we have the power to cast
down wicked imaginations and everything that would dare exalt
itself against the knowledge of God!

We live in a world that is anti-Christ, anti-Bible, and anti-Jesus,
but can I tell you some more great news?! That doesn’t have to
faze us when our hope is not in what we can see but what we can’t
see! The Bible allows us to see the unseen, to have an eternal
perspective, to see as God sees, to love as God loves, and to hate as
God hates!

With the Bible as our sole guide, we can know Him more, and
we can become more like Him!
Be encouraged today, no matter what you are facing right now.

The Bible has the answers! Jesus is the answer!

The Bible says, “For in Him we live and move and exist
[that is, in Him we actually have our being], as even some of
your own poets have said, „For we also are His children.‟”
~Acts 17:28 (AMP)

In Him we are more than conquerors! In Him we are victorious!
In Him we have peace and joy!

He is for you!

God is Good!

“O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the
man that trusteth in him.” ~Psalms 34:8 (KJV)
Getting to know the Lord is one of the most awesome things!
The ―Good News‖ is this: We can get as close to God as we
want!

He designed it that way. He is not some uncaring, unfeeling,
tyrant in the air.

“For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to
sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations,
but One who has been tempted [knowing exactly how it feels to
be human] in every respect as we are, yet withou t [committing
any] sin. Therefore, let us [with privilege] approach the throne
of grace [that is, the throne of God’s gracious favor] with
confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy
[for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of
need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].”
~Hebrews 4:15-16 (AMP)

Learning to trust God will elevate our walk with Him in a
magnificent way. Knowing that He cares for us, that He wants the
best for us, that He desires to see us grow, prosper, and thrive, this
will cause us to want to serve Him, to want to tell others about Him!

Suddenly, life becomes a ―get to‖ and not a ―have to.‖

Listen, the Bible is our number one way to get to know Him
more. The more we not only read it, but adhere to it, obey it,
cherish it, desire it, the more we will see Jesus portrayed throughout
it and we will find that God has been there all along calling people
to Himself!

Calling us to Himself!

He is a good God!

I cannot stress this enough, because until we realize He is for us
and not against us, we are going to have a difficult time fully trusting
Him, fully surrendering to Him.

Today, I want to encourage you to think about all the things He
has done for you, in you, and through you! Write them down.

On our journey to know Him more, it’s imperative that we learn
to trust Him, trust His Word, and realize He is good—all the time.

Pure Heart, Pure Mind

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. ”
~Matthew 5:8 (KJV)

Ever heard someone say something like this ―You know, God
works in mysterious ways!‖

While this may sound good, it isn’t entirely true. Why? We serve
a God who wants us to be as close to Him as we can be! We serve a
God who longs to give us the inside scoop! Why? Because He loves
us!

All throughout the Old Testament, Christ can be seen. All
throughout the Old Testament, the Bible points to the coming
Christ, how He would suffer, die, and redeem us back to God.

Then, when Jesus showed up, He pointed to the same thing; how
He would suffer, die, and be raised from the dead, and how He
would ascend to Heaven, send the Holy Spirit, and so forth.

All throughout the scriptures, we find God wanting to let
mankind in on His plan, but we also find that oftentimes people
can’t see it, can’t perceive it. Why? Because they are blind to it,
focusing on other things instead.

Today I want to encourage you! I want you and me to see just
how good God is and how much He so desires to let us in on His
inner workings!

Check out these awesome passages:

“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard,
neither have entered into the heart of man, the things that
God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath
revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth
all things, yea the deep things of God. For what man
knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is
in him? Even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the
Spirit of God.
Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the
spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that
are freely given to us of God.
For who knoweth the mind of the Lord, that he may
instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. ”

~I Corinthians 2:9-12 & 16 (KJV)

I would encourage you to read the entirety of this passage a few
times over!

Listen, God isn’t the ―old man upstairs,‖ or some uncaring entity
out of touch with His creation! He is a good God, and He wants to
fellowship with us, letting us in on His plans on the earth! In fact,
many of His overall big-picture plans, He has already revealed to us
in the scriptures.

As for everyday life, He longs for us to walk with Him and talk
with Him! He wants us on the inside!
How do we do this?

Simply put, by having a pure heart.

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By
taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole
heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy
commandments.” ~Psalm 119:9-10 (KJV)

When we seek the Lord with all our hearts, we will find Him.
When we intentionally put Him first in our day, in our week, in our
home, in our business, in our everyday life, He will show up in a
mighty way, giving us insight that we never thought possible!
He will enable us to see and do things that we never thought
possible. We will be privy to His plans, His ways, and we will do
mighty things for Him and through Him!

“But what things were gain to me, these I have counted
loss for Christ.” ~Philippians 3:7 (NKJV)

We are living in some crazy times! Do you realize the Apostle
Paul was living during some crazy times as well? Do you realize that
ever since sin entered the world, crazy times have been prevalent?

Sin always brings death. Death always means separation,
separation from a loving Father. Therefore, wherever sin is allowed
to run rampant, so too, darkness is going to run rampant.

To try to counteract the effects of sin in any way other than with
the Word is futile. This is why it is so important that we as
Christians delve into the Word in these last days like never before!
We are living in a time of gross darkness and the only thing to
dispel it is the Word!

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my
path.” ~Psalm 119:105 (KJV)
The apostle Paul was an awesome man of God, but he knew that
without Christ, he was lost!

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but
this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind,
and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I
press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of
God in Christ Jesus.” ~Philippians 3:13-14 (KJV)

Listen, when life kicks our bucket, whatever’s on the inside, in
abundance, is going to spill out!
What do you want to spill out, you or the Word? I say we rise up
a standard in these last days and allow the Word to come out!

Why is this so important?

“But if our gospel he hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of
them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of
Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. ”
~II Corinthians 4:3-4 (KJV)

The enemy is working overtime to keep his followers blinded to
the Truth, to the Light!

There is no reasoning with sin. There is no reasoning with death.

There is no reasoning with darkness. There is One answer and One
alone: His name is Jesus!

It is imperative that we not only allow Him to have the throne of
our hearts always, but that we fill up on Him every day! There is a
real devil out there. He is a defeated foe. He is a conquered foe. But
he will still, as I once heard a pastor say, ―Eat your lunch and pop
the bag,‖ if we let him.

Let’s not let him! Let’s be full of the Word! Not only for
ourselves, but for a world that is lost, hurting, and blind! They need
Jesus, not vain philosophy. They need Jesus, not vain initiatives.
They need Jesus, not temporary fixes. They need Jesus, not
one-liners, memes, or gifs.

What do you say, fellow soul winner? Let this be our motto in
these last days, ―More Word, Less Me!‖

Have you ever had a toothache or some other great physical
pain?

At the moment, it feels like the most excruciating thing ever,
with no end in sight!

But eventually the pain subsides, and the memory of that pain
fades into oblivion.

The Bible says our life is but a vapor, here today and gone
tomorrow.
In short, life goes by so fast!

Taking advantage of the time we have, redeeming that time,
making the most of it, is so very important.

Recently, I was at an event where I was surrounded by amazing
friends & awesome food. It was a birthday party for the ages! After
getting home from the party, I told my wife, ―This is the kind of
party you wish you could just do all over again - the type of party
that doesn’t happen very often!‖

There will come a time when all we will have left is what we have
given away, what we have purposefully sowed into the people
around us.

The older I get, the more I have come to realize how much
relationships matter. People matter!

God designed it that way! We weren’t created to be alone or
isolated. We were designed to interact with one another, to connect,
to reach out, to be givers, to be like God!

It’s in this place of intimacy with the Lord where we can truly
flourish and shine bright!

Listen, toothaches are horrible, but the pain will fade. Birthday
parties are great, but they, too, end.

However, relationships can last a lifetime and the things we do
and say within those relationships can have an eternal impact!

Be thankful for the friends you have! The people in your life that
love you and truly care for you!

It can be so easy and tempting to focus only on what you don’t
have and miss all the wonderful blessings you do!

Be encouraged today. Birthday parties and toothaches produce
very different results, but both are just temporary. But the things we
do with and for the Lord, for others, will last for eternity!

“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him
that sent me, and to finish his work. ” ~John 4:34 (KJV)
It’s good to return to the basics, especially in our walk with the
Lord.

Oftentimes as Christians, we tend to want ―deep‖ things,
emotionally moving things. We want to ―feel‖ God moving all
around us.

Listen, God never changes!

That’s awesome news! We may not always feel Him or even
sense His presence, but He never changes.

How do we know that? The Bible tells me so!

In John 4, we find the disciples coming back from a food run in
a neighboring town, and they are surprised to find Jesus speaking
with a Samaritan woman. They are also surprised when they ask
Jesus if He has eaten already, because He tells them His food is to
do the will of the Father.

Looking only through their natural eyes, they didn’t understand
the awesome thing that had just occurred between Jesus and the
woman, nor did they realize the revival that was about to hit her
entire town.

Listen, the Bible keeps us grounded. It keeps us smack dab in the
will of God for our lives! It keeps us living with an eternal
perspective. It keeps us in a position to be able to minister to others,
to share the gospel with them.

The disciples missed an awesome opportunity to experience a mighty move of God simply because they didn’t understand that we are what we eat. 

Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 that man does not live on
bread alone, but on every Word that proceeds from the mouth of
God!

Sure, the disciples got to experience the revival because of Jesus
and what He did, but wouldn’t it be nice if we were the ones to
initiate the moves of God in people’s lives? Wouldn’t it be nice to
realize that Jesus said “Greater things than these shall you do,
because I go to the Father ”?

As born-again believers, we have the authority and power on the
inside to do mighty things in Jesus’ name!

“If I say, “I will not remember Him or speak His name
anymore,” Then my heart becomes a burning fire Shut up in my
bones. And I am weary of enduring and holding it in; I cannot
endure it [nor contain it any longer].” ~Jeremiah 20:9 (AMP)

We live in uncertain times.

We live in a time when evil is increasingly being called good, and
good is being called evil.
We live in a time when it is imperative that we cling to the Word
like never before!

We live in a time when the temptation to walk away, to give up
on God, on life, on people, on ourselves, on hope, is extremely ram-
pant.

We live in a body and possess a soul that is continually warring
against our spirit and the Word of God and, like Paul; we must
choose to die daily.

I want to encourage you, fellow saints, to stand strong! Don’t
give up! Don’t give in! You are not alone!

We all struggle with feelings of inadequacy, guilt, shame, pride,
jealousy, hurt, loss...

We struggle with sin.

Be encouraged today! The Word is alive, and it works! Let it burn
in you today and be encouraged.

Today is simply an encouragement - Don’t give up! Keep
fighting the good fight of faith! No matter what things look like in the natural, God is on your side. If you are a born-again, Jesus
follower, the very gates of Hell cannot stand against you!

Keep letting your light shine!

Let this be your heart’s cry today: ―Father, let your holy Word
burn in me today! Teach me to love the things you love and hate the
things you hate.‖

“Imitate me, just as I imitate Christ. ”
~I Corinthians 11:1 (AMP)

Something we enjoy doing as a family is playing video games,
specifically, platforming games, which involve much jumping, quick
thinking, and memorization.

Some of the levels get quite difficult because they require you to
memorize where certain things are.
One wrong move and it is game over.

One of the best ways to get past these levels is by watching each
other play, paying close attention to where to jump, when to jump, and
when and where not to.

I love Jesus!

In our walk with Him, He places people in our lives that we can
follow. If we are careful to pay attention to what they do, how they
handle certain situations, the habits they hold, and so forth, it will
greatly help us, providing special insight into certain situations, and
allowing us to gain victory in areas simply because we know what to
do and what not to do.

These people serve as God-given shortcuts!
The Bible serves as a major God-given shortcut. It is chock full
of people that have done both good and evil things from which we
can garner much wisdom, knowing what to do, and what not to do.

Listen, it’s important to realize, however, that God-given
shortcuts never involve compromise.

If the people in our lives are not emulating Jesus, we don’t need
to and shouldn’t follow them.

However, be thankful for the ones who are!

Be encouraged today! Take an assessment of the people in your
life right now. Who are the ones who are perhaps further ahead in
an area that you are struggling in? What can you learn from them?

Don’t worry; a close walk with Jesus will keep us away from
compromise.

We are not on this journey alone. We are the Body of Christ.

Who can you learn from today?

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‘Tuck Me In!’
(A dedication from the author to his mother, his Madre,

Jo Annette Lopez)
Several years ago, when I was a child, my mom used to come
into our room just before bed to tuck us, boys, in. There were
three of us.
We were adopted.
First, my older brother, then my younger brother and me two
years later.
Upon adopting us, it took some time for me to warm up to my
mom.
I carried way too much baggage from past trauma into this new
family.
But our parents loved us anyhow!
My mom would tell us all about Jesus, about the Bible, about
various issues and topics she felt were important.
She did this faithfully each night.
At the time, I didn’t appreciate it the way I should have.
Although I did get used to her doing it!
One night in particular, she came into the room like normal,
but I had already fallen asleep.
I awoke an hour or so later in a frantic state of confusion!
I hopped off the top bunk and ran into her room.
―You forgot to tuck me! Why didn’t you tuck me in?‖

6
I was crying by now and quite hurt thinking that she had forgotten
her nightly routine.
She hadn’t, however, and she escorted me back to my room and
graciously spent some time with me.
You see, up to this point, it was difficult between my mom and
me.
I had so much pent-up anger and emotions toward women from
my past and much of this caused my trust in her to come quite
slowly.
Our biological mom left us and never came back. We were placed
in the state’s foster care system.
One of the older girls, in the foster care system herself, sexually
abused me.
Needless to say, I had a lot of apprehension about women and
girls and therefore it took quite some time for me to warm up to my
new mom.
I called her by her first name for a while before finally calling her
mom.
Years later, during a heavily rebellious stage I walked through, I
reverted back to calling her by her name only and even added some
other far more derogatory statements!
I was a mess of a person and, sadly, I took out much of my anger
on her!
She was so gracious, however, and persistent!
She never backed down and no matter how many times I would
push against her, she would continually love on me, telling me about
Jesus, about the Bible, and about issues and topics she felt were
important.
She was a true woman of God!

7
I miss the times she used to come in and tuck us, boys, in.
Recently, this past Thanksgiving, she went home to be with the
Lord...
I had the honor of standing by her bedside with many other family
members as she took her final breaths.
She opened her eyes wide in her last moments as if she saw
something spectacular!
I believe she did.
I believe she saw Jesus!
I like to think that I was able to tuck her in one final time before
she drifted off to her eternal rest.
What an awesome woman of God she was! I am very thankful she
was so faithful, persistent, loving, and gracious towards me for all
those years.
More than 20 years ago, I was radically transformed in a jail cell,
and soon afterward our relationship was restored!
In recent years, I have taken to calling her Madre.
The last time we spoke in person, she met my family and me to
pick up some copies of the first devotional I wrote.
She just wanted to show her love and support and give some
copies out to some people she knew.
She was always doing that, encouraging me!
The last text message I received from her was her telling me how
proud she was

“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for
Me with all your heart.” ~Jeremiah 29:13 (NKJV)
Several years ago, my dad, brothers, and I were playing hide and
seek out on my grandma’s farm. It was getting dark and the places
to hide were vast and many.

After the count, we all scattered and went our separate ways. I
proceeded to scurry underneath the electric fence and circle back
around to where we started. I went inside the house, scooped myself
a heaping bowl of ice cream, sat down, and watched television!
Technically, we never said the house was off-limits, but I
certainly didn’t give anyone a fair chance to find me!

Aren’t you glad God doesn’t do that to us?
Granted, we do have to search for Him, and we do have to scour
the Bible at times for real treasures, but He isn’t sitting back eating
ice cream and laughing at us!

When it comes to seeking in our spiritual lives, this is what I like
to call the ―oomph factor.‖
It’s one thing to attend church once a week, listen to the pastor
rattle off his three points and a scripture, and then go home -
forgetting most of everything he talked about.

It’s something entirely different to get up in the morning and
have the kind of gusto mentioned in the Psalms, “As the deer
pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for you, O
God.” ~Psalm 42:1 (NKJV)
Or what about utilizing something I heard a pastor say, ―Bible before breakfast,‖ or emulating the heart and passion of Job, “I
have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have
treasured the words of His mouth More than my necessary
food.” ~Job 23:12 (NKJV)

Listen, the devil hides things from us - he is sneaky, conniving,
manipulative, and mean, but the Lord hides things for us! He wants
us to prosper in every area of life, but sometimes we have to show
some oomph if we want to see things come to pass in our lives.

In other words, He’s not going to do everything for us!
For example (and I have had to learn this the hard way and am
still learning it), God uses people to get things done. But if we
isolate ourselves continually from the very people God is trying to
use to bless us, how are we going to receive that blessing?

As another example, God likes to set up divine encounters where
we can be the answered prayer to someone else’s heart cry, but if we
are always worrying about ourselves, scurrying through crowds with
our heads down, self-consumed, how are we to be the answered
prayer? In essence, the Bible says, 
“Give and it shall be given...” ~Luke 6:38 

The Lord is trying to provide opportunities
for us to give, but when we are too ―busy,‖ we miss those chances...
Be encouraged today. God is not a one-stop shop! He has no
sign in His store that screams, ―You break it, you buy it!‖

No, He is full of compassion and He is okay with us failing,
falling, and faltering. The key is to never give up, get back up, and
seek Him with all your heart!

One last thing for today, here’s a quick test to see where your
oomph factor lies:

The Bible says, “A good man out of the good treasure of his
heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil
treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the
abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

~Luke 6:45 (NKJV)