MIDWEEK RISE UP

Growing up I was consistently told that “hope is not a strategy.” This made no sense to me. I thought it was silly to say that it wasn’t because we’re told in 1 Corinthians 13:13 that the three things that will last forever are faith, hope and love. I kept my own “hope strategy” to myself and fought back on the premise I was repeatedly told.

Choosing hope will be more difficult at certain times than others. Sometimes the unexpected hits and it throws us off course and challenges our hope. In these trying times, you must remember that you’re wrapped in the loving arms of our God. He will catch you. He will carry you. He will lead and guide you. Remember that the Lord is our Shepherd who renews and restores our souls with hope.

In life, we will continually experience the unexpected but that’s the beauty of the promise of hope we have in Christ–we will not fail. View unshakeable hope as an adventure with God. Just you and Him in lockstep. Only God can take us into newness of life and opportunity. Only He can guide us into new places, experiences and opportunities beyond our feeble imaginings and wildest dreams.
We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠⁠⁠

Repentance is more than just sincere regret or remorse. It’s more than just discontinuing a sin. Though we are extended grace continuously, it’s essential that we check our hearts and make sure that we don’t use it as an opportunity to abuse God’s free and merciful gift. Just because you have the Holy Spirit inside you doesn’t give you permission to sin, ask for forgiveness and then keep committing the same sin over and over again. Stay close to God. Keep that path clear. Stay within the jet stream of His will. View repentance as the gift that it is. Even though we don’t deserve it, it’s God’s beautiful way of saying, “Come back to me, child. Here is the path back to me. I love you, you are forgiven, now go and sin no more.”

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠⁠⁠

In case you haven’t realized, we do not live in a world where everyone is wearing rose-colored glasses and basking in pure utopia. We live on a sinful, fallen earth and we know that the devil is the prince of this world. What God created for good, Satan wants to counterfeit and manipulate and use for evil. Don’t blame God for your “Why me?” moments. God may allow a storm to hit your life, just like Job, but He didn’t create it. None of us wants to endure pain and suffering but we are equipped to honor and glorify the Lord in the midst of it. We are enabled to clothe ourselves in the full armor of God. We have His Word, we have His Spirit, we have our salvation, and we have His promise that all that is wrong will one day be made right.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠⁠⁠

So many of us are afraid to be alone. We equate it with loneliness. We avoid it because silence is where our thoughts can sometimes be the loudest and our minds are where the enemy often tries to battle the hardest.

Throughout scripture, we read of God appearing to people in quiet places of solitude, giving leaders visions, or even speaking audibly.

If you find yourself alone in the quiet, it’s great to shift your mindset from selfish pursuits and to instead see it as a wonderful opportunity to enjoy a free moment alone with the Lord.

Prioritize time with God above all else. Praise Him and thank Him for all He has done. Offer Him the worship He is due. Ask Him to reveal what He is calling you to do in this season of life. Not last season. Not future seasons. But right now. Whether you’re standing on a mountain top or sitting in a valley. Seek Him fully. When you knock, you can be certain He’ll answer. He’s always ready for you to invite Him in.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠⁠⁠

Every choice a person makes either stirs hell up or brings heaven down. There are people who are burden-lifters and people who are burden-givers. Sometimes, a disagreement may not be over a positive versus negative viewpoint, rather, it might be over hard-headedness or hard-heartedness.

When handling disagreements and conflict, look toward Jesus and follow the example of His life. Don’t fight fire with fire. You should put on the full armor of God and you should fervently seek His wisdom. Allow God to refine you through conflict and to teach you healthier and holier ways of dealing with it. Do your best to handle disagreements like Christ. Your only responsibility is to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠⁠

Our primary mission field begins within our own homes and circles of friends and family. Oftentimes, this area of our lives is where we experience the most conflict. Without even realizing it, we can wrongly take things out on the people we love and feel secure with because we know their love is unconditional and we take it for granted. It's critically important to take a step back in these situations and remember: your spouse, your child, your friend is not the enemy. The enemy is the enemy. Allow God to rule over your actions and your words. Be intentional about these critical things, especially with those you love, whom God has entrusted to you. Those people are in your corner to help you and love you, not hurt you, and you need to steward those relationships in the same way.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠⁠

I want to embolden you today to release yourself from your burdens and the burdens of others. Fully relinquish your worries and lay them down at the feet of our loving Father. Once you set them there under His watchful care, don’t bend down to pick them back up.

Whatever the case may be, you must resist the urge to handle alone what God wants to shoulder with you. When you leave your burdens at his feet, leave them. Let them go and invite Him in. Put your fears, your burdens, your worries into the nail-scarred hands of our Savior. He is more than trustworthy and His love for you is beyond what you can comprehend.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠

Fasting releases us from the constant distractions surrounding us and the unworthy things vying for our attention. It helps us to be attune to God’s voice and to remember that we need to depend on Him every single moment of every single day. He is the one we must rely on for our spiritual, emotional and physical well-being. No other source can satisfy. John Piper explained it well when he wrote that, at its heart, fasting is “an intensification of prayer. It’s a physical exclamation point at the end of the sentence, ‘We hunger for you to come in power.’ It’s a cry with your body, ‘I really mean it, Lord! This much, I hunger for you.’ “

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠

It’s a challenge to define “holy fear” or the act of “fearing God'' in just a simple sentence or even paragraph for that matter.

It's so important to remember that the fear of the Lord does not drive us away from God’s presence–it’s the exact opposite. Holy fear is a wonderful, godly fear that lays a firm foundation for us as believers. It involves deep and abiding reverence–profound, adoring respect.

Holy fear is a gift of love and even protection, offered to us by a God who cares for us profoundly. Do you want to embrace holy fear? Live in awe of God. Respect and honor Him. Adore Him above anything and anyone else in the universe.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠

It’s so easy to get caught up trying to “fix” our circumstances, relationships or friendships instead of fixing our gaze on Jesus–the only one who can, and someday will, truly fix everything in this broken world. Stop rushing into situations in an attempt to “fix” everything. Instead, breathe, be still, and remember what I’ve reminded you of before: there’s a difference between being still and being stagnant. If you’re feeling discouraged or overwhelmed by a storm or valley in your life, remember that you’re a human with a limited capacity. Instead of putting pressure on yourself to achieve what only God can, seek Him wholeheartedly. Don’t try to climb your mountains alone. With open eyes and a thankful heart, surrender to our God who moves mountains.

We hope that you enjoy this episode.

God bless you and Go Rise Up!

Shop PROCLAIM:⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/shop⁠⁠⁠

Join BIBLEin365:⁠⁠⁠www.proclaim365.com/biblein365⁠