RCCG Victory Temple Chantilly's Podcast

Are YOU feeling unqualified?.

"I replied, 'The God of heaven will help us succeed. We, his servants, will start rebuilding this wall.'" Ne 2:20 NLT

With its walls torn down, Jerusalem was defenseless against her enemies. So, Nehemiah assembled a team to rebuild the walls. He had no training for this job. He wasn't an architect or a builder. Jerusalem was far away, and he had never been there. Any way you look at it, he was unqualified for the job. 

That's a common denominator with many of the people God has used in a remarkable way. 

• Noah was a farmer, called to build a boat in the desert. 
• David was a shepherd, called to topple a Philistine champion. 
• Nehemiah was a cupbearer, called to rebuild Jerusalem's walls. 

When it comes to doing God's will, God-ordained passions are considerably more important than any human ability we can contribute. In fact, God often uses us at our point of greatest inability. That way He receives all the credit. 

But understand this: When God gives you a 

• "burden," or 
• a "passion," or 
• a "vision," 

you have a choice to make. Nehemiah already had a good job. Being the king's cupbearer was like being his right-hand man. He didn't simply enjoy job security, he enjoyed the perks and privileges of his position. He would have been comfortable staying right where he was. But if he had chosen to do that, he would have missed God's will, missed having a book named after him in the Bible, and you wouldn't be reading about him right now.  Are you feeling unqualified? 

• When God calls you, 
• He equips you, 
• resources you, 
• guides you, 
• and guarantees your success.

Are YOU feeling unqualified? When God calls you, He equips you.

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

"Lord, teach us to pray." Lk 11:1 NKJ

Demonstrating an uncommon level of honesty, a well-known pastor says: "Prayer is the biggest struggle I have... It's difficult to maintain a consistent prayer life, and especially difficult to sustain the conviction that it does any good at times." Prayer doesn't come naturally for the majority of us.

We know it's supposed to be a dialogue, but often it feels like a monologue. There is nothing worse than trying to talk with someone who won't talk back. We don't like to admit it, but often what we are really wondering about prayer is, "How can I pray so that God will give me what I want?" One little boy was asked if he said his prayers every night. He replied, "No, some nights I don't need anything." Prayer is not about the particular words you use or the length of time you spend praying. It's about getting acquainted. It's about building a relationship.

If you have something to talk to someone about, you may say, "We need to find somewhere we can talk." You want to make sure you're heard, and that you hear what the other person has to say. When you eliminate the noise of this world, you maximize your ability to hear God. It shows God you're taking your relationship with Him seriously. The psalmist said, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (Ps 91:1 NKJV). Do you have a "secret place" where you can be alone with God? It can be anywhere. But you need a place where you can go and show you mean business with God.

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

DEC. 3, 2024

Faithfulness.

"Well done, good and faithful servant." Mt 25:23 NKJV

Jesus begins the parable of the talents with these words: "For the kingdom of heaven is like" (v. 14 NKJV). And one of the strongest points He makes is the importance of being faithful. Whether God gives you five talents, two talents, or one talent, the thing that matters to Him is your faithfulness. "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord'" (v. 21 NKJV). 

You will notice that He did not say, "Well done, popular servant," or "brilliant servant," but

"faithful servant." Christ is talking about those who are often unnoticed but indispensable to His purposes. He is talking about those who blow no trumpets, wave no banners, and demand no applause. He is talking about those who show up day after day and use the talents God gives them, to do the job He has assigned to them. Unnoticed by men, but noticed and rewarded by God! "For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister" (Heb 6:10 NKJV).

These words describe those who shun the limelight and are happy to serve in the shadows. They describe those who not only start the race but run the race day after day, who don't stop until they reach the finish line. Others may not think that you make much of a difference, but God does. While others make much out of skill levels and success levels, God measures you by your faithfulness.

Faithfulness Unnoticed by men, but noticed by God

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

You choose: your calling or your comfort.

"When they came to Harran, they settled there." Ge 11:31 NIV

The Bible says, "Terah took his son Abram... and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Harran, they settled there" (v. 31 NIV). 

A Christian author writes: "Terah accompanied Abram for part of the journey to Canaan, but then he stopped...Terah and his family begin their story in Ur, the great center of wealth and education and the land of idols.

Then they continue on this road, which passes through the city of Harran and then down into Canaan…

For Terah, the father of Abram, the road ends in Harran. Now we know from other passages in the Bible that Harran was a city a lot like Ur. There was a lot of wealth there. There were idols there.What's going on? It may well be that... Terah thinks to himself, 'If I were to go any farther than this, I could lose everything I have. For sure, I would have to give up my idols. So he chooses comfort. 

But Abram chooses to say yes to his calling." That's a choice you will have to make too. And you will have to make it more than once. As your circumstances change, and the seasons of your life progress, you will have to decide whether to walk with God into the unknown or settle for the security of what you know. 

• Terah settled; 
• Abram moved on. 
• What are you going to do? 

You don't have to do anything to be worthy of God's love and grace; those are gifts. But to walk in God's blessing, you have to choose your calling over your comfort.

You choose: your calling or your comfort Walk with God—or settle.

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

Understanding righteousness.

"But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed." Ro 3:21 NKJV

You will go to heaven because you trusted in Christ's righteousness, not your own. You say,

"But isn't doing the right things important?" Absolutely. Your reward in heaven will be predicated upon what you do for God here on earth. But your salvation depends on trusting in Christ's performance, not your own. Satan knows this, and he will try to drive you back to performance-based Christian living. And when you fail, as you assuredly will, he will condemn you and tell you that you don't measure up and, therefore, you are unworthy of God's love and acceptance.  Notice what condemnation does: 

(1) It robs you of confidence before God. You are unable to claim His promises because you feel unworthy. Thirty-one times in Scripture, it says that we are "in Christ." That's one for every day of the month. So, each day, remind yourself that you are "in Christ," and because He is worthy, you are accepted. 

(2) It makes you irritable and unpleasant to be around. Addiction counselors describe this as being "squirrelly" or uneasy in your own skin. As a result, you begin to put out what you feel on the inside. What's the answer? Paul gives it to us: "Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight...But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed...even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe" (vv. 20-22 NKJV). 

Bottom line:Righteousness is credited to your account through faith, not works. Today you are loved and accepted "in Christ."

Understanding righteousness Confidence before God

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

NOV. 26, 2024

When God shows up.

"Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us... But if not..." Da 3:17-18 NKJV

When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego refused to bow before Nebuchadnezzar's ninety-foot golden god, he threatened them with a fiery furnace. Here is what they told him: "Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, 0 king. But if not...we do not serve your gods" (vv. 17-18 NKJV). When does God show up? When you say, "God is able to deliver me, but if not, I'm going to serve Him anyway." It's wonderful when God provides what we need. Yet, the faith that truly pleases God says, "But if not, I'm going to trust God anyway." 

Peter writes: "There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold-though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on  the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world" (1Pe 1:6-7 NLT). 

And one more thought: The Bible does not say that the three Hebrew children saw the fourth man who was with them in the fire; it says that Nebuchadnezzar did, and he described Him as "the Son of God" (Da 3:25 NKJV). So even when you don't know it, your faith, your life, and testimony are impacting those around you and bringing glory to God.

When God shows up "There is wonderful joy ahead."

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

"Our sufficiency is from God." 2Co 3:5 NKJV

Gideon's army of thirty-two thousand men is enormously outnumbered by the Midianites when God tells him, "You have too many men." He instructs Gideon to release anyone who is afraid, and Gideon loses two-thirds of his army. Now he has only ten thousand men.

Again the Lord says, "There are still too many men," and reduces Gideon's army to three hundred men. At that moment, the odds had to be a million to one. And it even gets better!

God directs Gideon to attack the Midianites with trumpets and pitchers. Now for the real kicker: Israel wins! Why did God do it like that? Because if Gideon had attacked with thirty-two thousand men and won, the Israelites would have thought that God didn't provide much help, and God would have received limited credit. But God is worthy of more. God desires and deserves complete credit. And when three hundred men defeat a massive army with trumpets and pitchers,

God receives all the glory (See Jdg 7). Why? The reason is a victory like that overcomes all odds. Too frequently, our prayers revolve around requesting God to increase our odds of winning. We would like everything in our favor. But maybe God wants the odds to oppose us so we can encounter a miracle of divine proportions. Faith is trusting God no matter how hopeless the odds are. Our impossible circumstances are chances to experience a new height of God's glory. Are you facing a situation that, humanly speaking, is beyond your ability to cope with it? Read this: "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God" (2Co 3:5 NKJV).

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

NOV. 20, 2024

You will be rewarded for it.

"The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Ro 8:18 NKJV

In 1857 David Livingstone gave this speech at Cambridge University: "People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa…..Away with the word in such a view and with such a thought! It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering, or danger now and then with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life may make us pause and cause the spirit to waver and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall be revealed in and for us. 

I never made a sacrifice." When you serve the Lord, you always get back more than you give up. And if you get back more than you give up, have you really sacrificed anything at all? "Then Peter began to say to Him, 'See, we have left all and followed You' So Jesus answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel's, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time-houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions-and in the age to come, eternal life'" (Mk 10:28-30 NKJV).

The only regrets you will have at the end of your life will be that you didn't seek and serve God more and seek and serve Him sooner.

You will be rewarded for it Seek and serve God more.

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

"His older son...was angry." Lk 15:25, 28 NKJV

The parable of the prodigal son is about two boys and their father's love for each. The younger one dishonored his father and ended up in a pigpen. When he returned home, he had lost everything—except his father's love.

So no matter who you are or what you have done-God loves you and wants you in His family. Jesus made an amazing statement: "When he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him" (v. 20 NKJV).

Ancient Hebrew culture thought running was an undignified act for older men. Men wore long flowing robes, and had to pull them up around their waist to run, exposing their undergarments. But the father didn't care about what people thought; he cared about his wayward son. 

Unfortunately, his older brother didn't feel that way. Do you understand why a lot of younger brothers are still out in the pigpen and don't want to enter the church? Because they're afraid older brothers will hit them with the mean hand of judgment instead of touching them with the welcoming hand of love. 

• The older brother desires punishment, but the father provides pardon. 
• The older brother requires guilt, but the father gives grace. 
• The older brother wants revenge, but the father wants reconciliation. 

Here is the good news: No matter how low you have fallen, know that as soon as you return, you will discover your heavenly Father facing you, extending open arms and a loving heart toward you.

Prodigal, come home! The welcoming hand of love

Share This Devotional

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

"By his divine power, God has given us everything we need." 2Pe 1:3 NLT

Following God means finishing what He has called you to do. Not everyone who starts out well finishes well. Occasionally we're shocked and saddened to learn that a leader has been brought down by a moral or a financial problem. Paul writes, "Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you" (Col 4:14).

Later, he writes, "Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world" (2Ti 4:10).

There are three forces arrayed against you, and they never let up: the world, the flesh, and the devil. The world will try to pour you into its mold, your fleshly nature will try to drag you down, and the devil will use every trick in the book to defeat you. Paul was aware of these three forces when he said,

"My life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus" (Ac 20:24 NLT). So, make up your mind to complete the assignment God has given you and enjoy every minute of it. How can you finish strong? "By his divine power, God has given us everything we need forliving a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God's promises" (2Pe

1:3-5 NLT).

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!