God Is Unchanging – 1 Corinthians 10

10:1 Don’t forget your ancestors, whose faith got them through their lives.

10:1 God goes before us.

10:1,3 God provides for us.

10:2-4 God is unchanging.

10:5-6 Learn from the struggles of those before you.

10:8 Do not engage in sexual immorality.

10:9 Do not test Christ.

10:10 Don’t complain.

10:12-13 “If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” NLT

10:14 Don’t worship idols.

10:16-17 “When we bless the cup at the Lord’s Table, aren’t we sharing in the blood of Christ? And when we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ? And though we are many, we all eat from one loaf of bread, showing that we are one body.” NLT

10:22-23 We have free will, but God wants us to choose wisely.

10:22 Don’t ever think you are stronger than God.

10:24 “Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others…” NLT

10:25-31 What you eat or don’t eat doesn’t matter to the Lord…it’s all His anyway.

10:31 Whatever you do, do it for God’s glory.

Change Your Mind, Change Your Life – Romans 12

I love Romans 12 because there is so much that we can apply to our everyday lives.

12:1 Be a living, holy, acceptable sacrifice to God.

12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” NKJV. So much has been written and preached about this verse. Don’t agree with everything in society. Change your mind so you can change your life and live in a way that pleases God.

12:3 Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest with yourself about yourself.

12:4 Everyone has value and something to contribute.

12:5 We all are a part of each other.

12:6-8 Use your gifts and talents to serve God.

12:9-10 Really love people.

12:11 Work hard.

12:11 Don’t be lazy.

12:11 Serve with gladness.

12:12 Be patient in trouble.

12:12 Keep praying in times of trouble.

12:13 Help those in need.

12:14 Bless those who persecute you. Pray that God will bless them. OUCH!!! That’s REALLY hard. I have to make that a goal for myself.

12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.” NKJV

12:16 “Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!” NLT

12:17 “Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.” NLT

12:18 “Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.” NLT

12:19 “Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord.” NLT

12:20 If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.” NLT

12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. NKJV

Going Through – Job 2

2:2 The enemy is watching when things are going well. This is why it’s important to be diligent in your faith.

2:4-7 You will be tested, but God will be with you.

2:9-10 It’s especially important to have a good support system when you’re going through trials.

2:10 “But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.” NLT

2:10 In good times and bad, our job is to remain faithful to God.

2:10 It’s easy to praise and worship God when things are good, but can we praise and worship when life is difficult?

2:11-13 Lack of support makes it harder and can cause us to make poor choices.

Friends…
2:11 Come and see about you when times are bad, not just in good times.
2:11 support you when you’re going through trials. Even when it’s difficult, a friend will walk those difficult journeys with you or sit in your mess with you.
2:12 Job’s friends didn’t mourn in front of him, they kept their negativity to themselves. They knew Job didn’t need that.
2:13 Friends don’t always have to talk, just being there can mean so much.

Change – Esther 9

9:20-22 Celebrate your deliverance.

9:22 Eventually, mourning turns into celebration, and sorrow turns into joy.

9:25 Treat everybody right, no matter what position they are in.

9:25 Keep your pride in check – you never know when circumstances with change.

9:27 Do things in order and at the appointed time.

God Restores – Esther 8

Times may be difficult, but God restores in His time.

When He restores, it’s complete and permanent.

God can change ANY situation.

8:1-10 Everyone is positioned in life for a purpose to be fulfilled in due season.

8:1-10 Those who are persecuted will not always be persecuted.

8:1-10 Those who have influence will not always have influence.

8:1-14 God protects His children.

8:15-17 When God delivers you, rescues you, protects you, CELEBRATE!

Don’t Rely On People – Esther 7

People’s attitudes toward you can change quickly.

Don’t rely on people to affirm you and secure position for you.

What Haman intended to kill Mordecai with ended up killing him.

What you do comes back to you.

Situations are not always as they seem.

Women have power to influence men.

No Condemnation – Romans 8

I love Romans 8 because it is so encouraging no matter what stage you are at in your journey with Christ.

8:1-2 Once you are saved, you don’t need to feel guilty about your past.

8:3-4 God saved us from our sinful nature by sacrificing His son, Jesus, so we would no longer be controlled by sin.

8:6 “So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.” NLT

8:8 “That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.” NLT

8:9 We are controlled by the Holy Spirit.

8:10 Christ lives within us, and the Holy Spirit gives us life.

8:12 Sinning is a choice.

8:13 Turn away from sin and live.

8:14-17 We belong to God.

8:17 “But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.” NLT

8:18 “Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.” NLT

8:23 We look forward to the time when we are released from sin and suffering.

8:25 “But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.” NLT

8:26 The Holy Spirit prays for us when we don’t know what to pray.
8:26 The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness.

8:28 “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” NLT
8:28 Everything happens for a reason that is in line with God’s purpose for our lives.

8:29 God knew us before we were born.

8:31 “What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” NLT

8:34 No one can condemn us because Jesus already paid for our sins.

8:35 No trial we go through can ever separate us from Christ’s love.

8:37-38 “No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” NLT

Cleared Of Sin – Romans 4

4:1-3, 5 Your faith in God is what makes you right with God – not doing good.

4:5 God forgives sinners.

4:7-8 “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.” NLT

4:13 “Clearly, God’s promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith.” NLT

4:16 “So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe.” NLT

4:17 “That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, “I have made you the father of many nations.” This happened because Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who creates new things out of nothing.” NLT

4:18 If God said it then believe it, even when you don’t see evidence – that’s FAITH.

4:20-21 God will do what He promises.

4:22 “And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous.” NLT

4:24 “for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.” NLT

4:25 “He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.” NLT

Change Places – Nehemiah 11

11:1-19 You may have to move away from bad influences in order to live your life in a way that honors God.

Weathering A Storm – Acts 27

Storms have a lot of parallels to life.
27:10-12 When smart people are advising you, listen.

27:13 Pay attention to what’s happening around you. Come up with a strategy for solving problems.

27:14 Be ready for change.

27:15 Sometimes you have to let go of a situation and let it run its course.
27:15 Be flexible.
27:15 Be prepared so when a storm comes, you’re able to adjust and get through it.

27:16-17 Sometimes you need help to withstand the hard times.
27;17 Sometimes changes have to be made to survive a storm.
27:17,20,22-25 No matter how bad things seem, Jesus is always with us.

27:18-19 Sometimes you need to get rid of stuff in order to survive the storm.

27:21 Listen to good advice.

27:29 Pray.

27:33-39 Take care of yourself during hard times.

27:30,32,40 Sometimes you just need to let go so you can move on and fulfill your destiny.

27:42-44 God will keep you in the midst of the evil plans of others.