A Nugget from New Life Network
(by Dr. Larry Ollison)
Scripture for the Day (September 12, 2017)
For I know the thoughts (and plans) that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end (a hope and a future). (Jeremiah 29:11)
Your life can change. You can change. Things do not have to be the way they have always been. But as you well know, as long as you keep believing and saying what you’ve always believed and said, you will continue to have what you’ve always had. “Nothing is going to change until something changes.” God is the God of change. Even though He remains the same throughout eternity, He sent Jesus so that we would no longer have to be the way we’ve always been and so that things could be different.
There was a time when there was no hope. When things looked bad, things were bad. And the only hope for people was that somehow they could survive the attacks of the enemy. But because God loved us so much He sent His Son and through the birth, death, and resurrection of His Son, we now have hope. And we can have a life of victory (Isaiah 9:2).
Too many people are living their lives in just a day-to-day existence. Each day they do what they have to do. For many, the days are filled with loneliness, regret, pain, and suffering. But what is even worse is when victory is available, but it’s not known or accessed.
God has called men and women everywhere to preach the Good News. He wants the world to know that pain and suffering is not necessary. He wants the world to know that there is hope. He wants you to know that tomorrow can be better than today (Psalm 119:114).
I’ve been writing articles, devotionals, and books for many years. I have thousands of subscribers to my daily devotional. But I don’t write because I feel compelled to be writer. I am compelled by the Spirit of God to proclaim every single day of my life that there is hope for those who feel hopeless. There is no day off from this drive that God has put in me. And God has put millions of people on this earth with the same drive. The purpose is this. He wants to get His message out that there is hope.
So when things seem like there is no hope, just remember that if you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll continue to have what you’ve always had. “Nothing is going to change until something changes.” Today, you can decide to make a change. Today, draw a line in the sand and say, “What the devil stole from me, he will steal no more! I am turning to the source of my victory — which is Jesus Christ, the Son of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. If nothing is going to change until something changes, then I am going to change something today. I declare today I am going to change what I say.”
As I said earlier, even though God does not change (Malachi 3:6) and is consistent throughout eternity, He is the God of change and you can change. But just because you can change, it doesn’t mean you will change. Unless you change, everything will stay the same.
This is the time to stand up and say, “Enough is enough. I do not want my tomorrow to be like my yesterday. Today I choose to believe what God says and because I believe what God says, I will say what God says. God’s Word changes things. Because I am speaking and proclaiming God’s Word, my life will change. Instead of defeat, I will have victory. Instead of depression, I will have joy. Instead of death, I will have life. Instead of stress, I will have peace. My life will be full of the things of God because I choose to speak the Word of God.”
So, how do we know what to say? The answer is quite simple. God’s will and desire and His plan for us is found in the Holy Scriptures. His Word contains His promises to us. God said that we were to remind Him of His Word (Isaiah 43:26). That’s because His Word is not automatic. The promises are written, but we receive them when they are believed and spoken (Romans 10:17).
So today, make the commitment to change your vocabulary and speak the promise instead of the problem. Regardless of how dark your past has been, you will step into the light of God’s blessing.
