Tim Hetzner – Daily Devotions

Pull Down Those Strongholds!

“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” (2 Corinthians 10:4)

When the Bible speaks of a stronghold, it’s referring to an area in your life that’s controlled by wrong thinking. And that stronghold will attract people who think the same way and feed off it. But there is good news. Not only will God reveal to you the strongholds in your life, He will show you the experiences that caused them.

Some of us worry obsessively about money because we grew up in hard times. As a result, we’re inclined to depend more on ourselves than on God. When it comes to money, we hide it, hoard it, or withhold it. And because we’re afraid to sow it, we miss the very harvest that would solve our problem.

‘So, how can I deal with my stronghold?’ you ask. Attack it with the Word of God. You don’t have to accept whatever comes into your mind; you have a choice! If a thought lines up with the Word of God, accept it – if it doesn’t, reject it. When Satan comes against you, don’t just sit there and say, ‘I wish he would leave me alone. I don’t feel like fighting today.’ If you do, he will ‘devour’ you! (See 1 Peter 5:8.) Paul describes your Bible as ‘the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God’ (Ephesians 6:17). Did you get that? The Holy Spirit within you will wield the sword of Scripture for you – provided you have done your job, which is to get the Word of God inside you.

Do you want to pull down the strongholds in your life? Reprogram your mind with the truths of God’s Word.

Prayer

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Are You Tired of Living in Defeat?

“You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.” (John 15:3)

God’s Word is like a prescription from your doctor. You don’t have to understand how the medication works – you just have to faithfully keep taking it. Something amazing happens when you feed regularly on God’s Word. Temptation begins to lose power, and overcoming strength begins to replace it. Each time a Scripture opens up and becomes real to you, your desire for God’s Word increases. But that means reading your Bible even when you don’t feel like it, or think you don’t have time to do it, or you don’t seem to be getting much out of it.

The Bible says: ‘As the rain and snow come down from heaven and stay upon the ground to water the earth, and cause the grain to grow and to produce seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry, so also is my Word…it always produces fruit. It shall accomplish all I want it to’ (Isaiah 55:10-11). You don’t have to have certain sensations to know that God’s Word is working in you. Indeed, Bible reading will keep you from sin, and sin will keep you from Bible reading. After his affair with Bathsheba, David wrote, ‘I have thought much about your words and stored them in my heart so that they would hold me back from sin’ (Psalm 119:11).

Jesus said, “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.” Are you tired of living in defeat? Then bathe your mind each day in God’s Word. Let it flow over you until every vestige of sin and carnality is washed away.

Prayer

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Do Not Doubt Your Salvation

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:13)

You would be surprised how many people have doubts about their salvation. So, let’s open God’s Word and settle the issue once and for all: ‘God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life…I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life’ (vv. 11-13). Are you trusting Jesus to save you instead of depending on your own good works? Then you’re saved! Jesus said, ‘He who believes in Me has everlasting life’ (John 6:47).

Doubts always arise when you go by your feelings instead of your Bible. Your feelings are like the weather; they constantly change. The devil will also try to tell you salvation is fine for other people, but it won’t work for you. The Bible says Satan is ‘a liar’ (John 8:44). Paul writes, ‘I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return’ (2 Timothy 1:12). The old-timers used to testify, ‘I thank God for His saving and keeping power.’ You’re not keeping your salvation; your Savior is keeping you!

So when your faith feels shaky, stop and pray:

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What You Will Do In Heaven

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.” (Revelation 21:1)

Perhaps the reason many of us are not as excited about heaven as we should be is because of what we have been told; that we will stand around playing harps, singing songs, and worshipping God forever. Think about it. When the singing and prayers in the average Sunday-morning service last longer than fifteen minutes, many get bored. So when we hear we will be doing this non-stop, twenty-four hours a day, forever in heaven, you understand why we can’t comprehend it or celebrate it. But there is more than one way of worshipping God.

Astronomers approximate the existence of hundreds of billions of galaxies, more than ten galaxies for each person alive today! So, you won’t run out of things to do in heaven, and it certainly won’t be boring. It has taken thousands of years for billions of humans to explore a single tiny planet, and we have barely scratched the surface. Exploring the marvels of the new heavens and the new earth will keep us intrigued forever. And our love for God will grow infinitely bigger as a result. So, we will never cease to worship Him.

Jesus told the woman at the well that God is looking for those who ‘worship…in the Spirit and in truth’ (John 4:23). If you worship out of ignorance, worship is empty. God doesn’t just want you to worship Him; He wants you to know who you are worshipping and why you are worshipping Him. Worship is twofold: ‘in the Spirit and in truth’. So, learning the truth about God will keep you busy, excited, satisfied, and fulfilled for all eternity.

Prayer

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Is Your Business Struggling?

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1)

When your business is failing, you can lose your sense of security, your peace of mind, and your ability to sleep. It even affects your family. If that’s where you are today, read these words: ‘God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.’ Clear your mind for a moment and think about this: everything you have belongs to God, including your business, right? He is the owner, and you’re the manager. So when trouble comes, you have the right (and the responsibility) to go to Him for help and expect Him to turn things around for you.

When nobody else was catching fish, Jesus told the disciples where to find a boatload of them. The Bible says that there is nothing too hard for God (see Jeremiah 32:27), and that includes the problem you’re facing and the situation you are in right now. The writer of Proverbs says, ‘Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take’ (Proverbs 3:5-6). And He can guide you through the advice of a friend who is succeeding where you’re failing: ‘Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success’ (Proverbs 15:22 NLT).

Sometimes this calls for changing your policies, products, or personnel – and that takes courage and commitment. But if you have built your business on a foundation of integrity, fairness, quality products, and good service, you have the right to go to God in times of trouble, ask for His help, and expect to receive it.

Prayer

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Respond with Love

“Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” (1 Peter 3:9)

Some of the negative people in your life lack intimate relationships. So, they keep others at arm’s length, rarely share their feelings, and are uncomfortable with those who do. They find it easier to condemn than to accept. Their hard-and-fast views make them inflexible. Often, these people can’t handle freedom. They need rules that limit their choices, and they only feel secure within their own boundaries. Understanding that will help you deal with them the right way, which is to ‘take the high road’.

Peter gives us the rules of that road. (Interestingly, this is now the older, mellower, more spiritual Peter, not the one who whipped out his sword and chopped off the ear of the high priest’s servant.) ‘Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing. For the Scriptures say, “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. The eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the LORD turns his face against those who do evil”’ (vv. 8-12).

So, the word for today is – don’t retaliate, respond with love.

Prayer

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Let God Remold You

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

What would you like to change about yourself? How would you change it? To ask it another way, what would your spouse or your best friend like you to change? Maybe that would be more enlightening. How would you end the sentence, ‘It’s just like me to…’? Always be late? Not stay on a diet? Say the wrong thing? Burst out in anger? Be sad? Jeremiah puts it this way: ‘Can a leopard take away its spots? Neither can you start doing good, for you have always done evil’ (Jeremiah 13:23).

You say, ‘I guess it’s hopeless.’ No, this is where God’s life-changing power comes into operation: ‘If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come’ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Once we surrender our lives to Christ, we’re not the same any longer; a new life has begun. That’s why the Bible calls it being ‘born again’. We immediately have a new nature, plus the indwelling Holy Spirit. A set of ‘spiritual batteries’ is included to supply the power! That makes all the difference.

Just as your first birth was the beginning of your life, so the new birth is the beginning of this new life. And it’s followed by a lifelong process depicted in Romans 12:2: ‘Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all his demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity’.

Prayer

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Changing How You Pray

“I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.” (Ephesians 1:16)

Bible prayers are powerful. They put things into perspective. For example, Paul prayed that God would give the Ephesians ‘the Spirit of wisdom and revelation…that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you…and his incomparably great power’ (vv.17-19). With this model in mind, JoHannah Reardon writes this:

1) Make your prayers God centered. The creator of the universe has given you the privilege of bringing your requests to Him. When you tell God how great He is, you’re filled with an expectancy that something great can happen because you’re talking to the One who can do anything.

2) Make them praise-filled. Paul starts by saying, ‘I have not stopped giving thanks for you.’ The key isn’t to focus on your troubles, but to thank God and praise Him because He knows what He is doing. Learn to say, ‘I don’t know why I’m having this problem, Lord, and I would love for You to change things. But if You don’t, I know You will use it for good in my life.’

3) Make them life-changing. Most of our prayers are asking God to change our circumstances. But maybe He wants to change you. That doesn’t mean He won’t ever intervene; He supplies needs, opens doors, and heals people in incredible ways every day. But when you spend years praying for something that never happens, it may be a clue you’re not praying the right way. Paul found joy in a prison cell, and when God opens your eyes, you will find joy in your situation too.

Prayer

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Hope for the Future

“There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” (Proverbs 23:18)

Are you surrounded by people whose mission is to inject ‘a dose of reality’ into your life? They continually point out how tough the economy is, how dismal the job market is, and how the sky is falling down. Jon Walker writes:

‘I remember my high school English teacher telling me not to apply to Cornell University because they wouldn’t accept me, and if they did, I wouldn’t be able to do the work…I almost didn’t apply, but a few days later, a former teacher said, “If you get in, go. You can do it.” His words made all the difference. I applied and was accepted…The world needs more optimists, encouragers, and inspirers to speak into the hearts of others and say, “I believe in you. Follow your passion and live your purpose. If you have the desire, you have the power to make it happen. Keep working hard. You’re improving and getting better. The economy is tough, but you can still grow your business. The job market isn’t great, but you’ll find the right job…Even if you fail, it will lead to something even better. You’re learning and growing.” The difference between success and failure is belief, and often that belief is instilled in us by someone who encouraged us.’

The Bible says, ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish [lack faith and focus]’ (Proverbs 29:18). Vision is a desire to move ahead; without it, you stay stuck where you are. It does not matter what anybody else thinks; God says, ‘There is…a future…for you,’ and when you look to Him, He will give you the strength to go forward.

Prayer

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Try to Be More Flexible

“But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” (James 3:17)

Flexible people are happy people. They experience a lot less stress than the rigid types who insist on things always being done a certain way. One of the reasons inflexibility is so stressful is that we have to achieve our goals through thinking human beings who often have their own ideas, ideas different from ours. If you’re not the type who is receptive to new ways of doing things because you view them as a personal rejection of your own ideas, ask Jesus the Great Physician to perform some corrective surgery on you.

The Pharisees were the epitome of perfectionism and inflexibility. When they accused Jesus of not keeping the Sabbath, He said, ‘The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath’ (Mark 2:27).

Question: How flexible are you? Are you so specific at home that your family stays on edge for fear of violating one of your endless preferences? Must the towels always be folded in a certain way? If plans need to be changed, does it send you into a tailspin, or do you stop and consider that God may have a different plan? Don’t try to justify your behavior by hiding under the cloak of ‘excellence’. Yes, you would like to see things done in the best manner possible; however, seek to understand when your behavior leaves the realm of being excellent and begins to border on being an inflexible perfectionist who not only creates stress for yourself but for others as well. The word for today is – relax. Bend a little. Try going with the flow.

Prayer

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