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So Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has prevented me from having children. Go and sleep with my servant. Perhaps I can have children through her.” And Abram agreed with Sarai’s proposal. Genesis 16:2 In Genesis 15, God told Abraham that He was going to give him and Sarah a son. The problem was that they were already too old to have children in the natural. Years went by, and finally Sarah told Abraham to sleep with her maid. She watered down the promise and brought it down to the level she thought was possible, and Abraham went along with it. Instead of releasing their faith, believing for the extraordinary, they settled for what they thought was good enough. But the baby Ishmael was not the promised child. Too many times we take what God put in our heart, and instead of coming up to His level and believing for the impossible, we bring it down to what makes sense to us. Get ready for the fullness of what God said.

May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. Genesis 28:3 Sometimes people will try to convince you that you’re not supposed to be rich and prosperous. However, God wants you to have abundance so you can be a blessing to others. You have so much joy that you bring joy wherever you go. You have so many resources that you can help those around you. You’re going to overflow with creativity, with talent, with ideas. Overflow with great people in your life. Overflow with influence, with respect, with promotion. You may not have seen this yet, but God is about to do a new thing for you.

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe. John 20:27 After Jesus rose from the dead, Thomas initially doubted that it was true, but soon believed through Jesus meeting with him. What’s interesting is that Thomas doubted that one time, but he’s been labeled “Doubting Thomas.” You would think he had doubted and questioned his faith for his whole life, but this had been just a few days of his life. It’s easy to let one failure define who you are. If Thomas would have worn that label, he would never have fulfilled his destiny. Yet the Thomas took the gospel to India and made an incredible impact with his life. Are you wearing negative labels from the past? God’s mercies are new every morning. Receive that mercy and move on. Life is too short for you to let what happened in the past keep you from the great things God has in your future.

Past the first guard and then the second, they came to the iron gate that led into the city. It swung open before them on its own, and they were out on the street, free as the breeze. Acts 12:10 In Acts 12, King Herod had the apostle James killed and then put Peter in prison. Chained between two guards in the deepest part of the prison, Peter was to be brought to trial the following day. Meanwhile the church was praying for him through the night. Herod did everything he could to keep Peter in, but he didn’t realize that he couldn’t keep God out. In the middle of the night, an angel came and led Peter past guard after guard and through the final iron gate to freedom from what would have been the end of Peter. Similar to Peter, if you are facing any closed door in your life, it’s not going to be anything you do. Stay in peace. You and God are a majority.

As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked. 2 Kings 6:18 The king of Aram was so angry with the prophet Elisha that he sent an army to capture him. Elisha was only one man against an army, but he knew how to pray bold prayers. He had seen God open blind eyes, and now he prayed for the reverse. Not only were the soldiers struck blind, but Elisha led them into Samaria where the king of Israel captured them before their eyes were reopened. When you know that God is with you, you’ll see God do amazing things. He can protect you, guide you, and make things happen that you could never make happen. Just as with Elisha, you are so powerful and full of favor that even when the enemy does his best to defeat you, his best will never be enough. You cannot be defeated because you have the favor of God.

You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. Genesis 50:20 Joseph went through thirteen years of betrayal, slavery, false accusations, and imprisonment. He had many reasons to become bitter, but you never read that Joseph had a bad attitude. He understood the principle that everything he was experiencing was serving God’s plan, including the bad breaks and unfair things. After Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream and was made prime minister of Egypt, he even declared that the very harm his brothers meant for him was instrumental and necessary to getting him to the throne and his destiny of saving their lives. Are you upset about something that’s actually serving His plan? God will use people who are against you to move you into your purpose. God uses the bad breaks, the delays, the setbacks, and the injustices to move you into your destiny. The things you don’t like, and the things that are takin...

Then Moses said to them, “No one is to keep any of (the manna) until morning.” However, some of them…kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. Exodus 16: 19-20 When the Israelites were in the desert headed toward the Promised Land, God gave them a fresh supply of manna every morning. It only lasted for one day, but some didn’t listen and tried to hold on to the old manna, and it spoiled. When you hold on to old manna—friends who were right for a season, a job that you’re afraid to step away from—it spoils. It won’t feed you. You won’t grow. Maybe you’ve enjoyed a friendship for a time, but at some point, you realize you’ve outgrown the relationship. Or what used to challenge you about your career doesn’t challenge you anymore. You feel God telling you to stretch, to get out of your comfort zone, but you’re afraid. You wonder why you’re not passionate, why you’re not growing. It’s because that manna is old; it’s not feeding you. God has new b...

The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink ?” John 4:9 In John 4, Jesus surprised a Samaritan woman at a well when He offered to give her “living water,” meaning eternal life. Not only did Jewish men refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans, let alone a Samaritan woman, but this woman had a very bad reputation. Jesus had chosen to wait at the well for a woman who had been written off for her moral failures. He didn’t judge her or find fault. He spoke life into her. He lifted her. He valued her. She was the first person whom Jesus ever told He was the Messiah, and through her many Samaritans believed in Him. God has waited on all of us. Now He’s asking, “Will you wait on someone for Me? Will you wait on that friend who’s making bad choices? Will you call them, encourage them, let them know that you care? Will you wait on that neighbour wh...

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:24 In Mark 11, Jesus was hungry and walked over to a fig tree only to discover that it was barren. After He said, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again,” there was no evidence that what He said had happened. But the next morning “the disciples saw the fig tree had withered from the roots.” When Jesus spoke to the tree, the source was cut off in the roots. It had still looked alive, but it was just a matter of time before the outside caught up with the inside. When you pray, Jesus says you have to believe that God put the miracle in motion. You can’t wait for the evidence, and then you’ll start believing; you have to believe first. It’s just a matter of time, and you’ll see what God promised.

Look, he answered, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Daniel 3:25 When the three Hebrew teenagers were thrown into the fiery furnace because they wouldn’t bow to King Nebuchadnezzar’s golden idol, they were bound with cords. They should have been killed instantly, but when the king gazed into the furnace, he saw four unbound men, and one who looked like the Son of God. Your hands may be tied today—you’ve worked, prayed, believed, and done the right thing, but it seems like your dream is never going to work out. The good news is that God’s hands are not tied. He’s not limited by what’s limiting you. I believe that what’s restricted you in the past has lost its grip. It’s a new day. The fourth man has shown up. Like the Hebrew teenagers, you’re coming out, not bound. Your hands are not tied anymore. God is releasing you into new levels of your destiny.

…for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. 1 Corinthians 16:9 When you have a big future, the enemy is not going to roll out the red carpet and let you fulfil it. Paul recognized that a wide door of opportunity had opened for him, but he had many adversaries because of the favour that was on his life. The enemy recognized that Paul was a history maker, which is why he came against Paul so strongly. Many of the challenges you’ve faced—the things that didn’t seem fair, the obstacles that came out from nowhere, the people who turned on you—are because there are seeds of greatness in you. You may not see it yet, but the enemy sees it. Have a new perspective. Those difficulties are a sign that something amazing is in your future. There’s something in you that the enemy doesn’t want you to have. There’s an assignment God has for you that the enemy is trying to stop—an anointing, an empowerment, a favour that he...

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you !” John 20:19 One evening the disciples were huddled together in a room behind locked doors for fear of being arrested. They did everything they could to keep people out, but Jesus suddenly walked through the door. He didn’t unlock it, open it, or try to beat it down. He just came through it. God was showing us that closed doors can’t keep us from what He has for us. The good news is that God comes through doors. He’s not limited by what’s limiting us. We’re natural; He’s supernatural. Closed doors can’t stop you. God is going to walk right through it. He’s not going to let you miss your destiny.

As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked. 2 Kings 6:18 The king of Aram was so angry with the prophet Elisha that he sent an army to capture him. Elisha was only one man against an army, but he knew how to pray bold prayers. He had seen God open blind eyes, and now he prayed for the reverse. Not only were the soldiers struck blind, but Elisha led them into Samaria where the king of Israel captured them before their eyes were reopened. When you know that God is with you, you’ll see God do amazing things. He can protect you, guide you, and make things happen that you could never make happen. Just as with Elisha, you are so powerful and full of favor that even when the enemy does his best to defeat you, his best will never be enough. You cannot be defeated because you have the favor of God.

We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. Proverbs 16:9 God doesn’t always take us in a straight line. We make our plans going from A to B to C. But sometimes He’ll take you from A to C, then to B. Sometimes it’s going to look like you’re going backward. You have to trust Him when you don’t understand. You have to know that God makes the final determination about your steps. The test is for you to stay in faith, believing that God is still in control, that He’s working behind the scenes, that what He started He will finish. Some of the challenges you’re facing now don’t even have anything to do with today; they’re positioning you for something in your future. If you stay in faith when things don’t make sense, over time you’re going to see how God connects the dots, how it was all a part of His plan, strategically orchestrated.

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you ! John 20:19 In John 20, Jesus had just risen from the dead. One evening the disciples were huddled together in a room behind locked doors for fear of being arrested. They did everything they could to keep people out, but Jesus suddenly walked through the door. He didn’t unlock it, open it. He just came through it. God was showing us that closed doors can’t keep us from what He has for us. Forces of darkness may have locked the door, trying to keep us outside. The door is locked with a deadbolt. The good news is that God comes through doors. He’s not limited by what’s limiting us. We’re natural; He’s supernatural. Closed doors can’t stop us. God is going to walk right through it. He’s not going to let us miss our destiny.

For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7 In the Scripture, the life of a believer is compared to an eagle. It’s interesting that day after day, parent eagles sit on their eggs to keep them warm, unmoved by what’s not changing. They never feel the baby eaglets kick, and the eggs never grow any bigger. There’s no sign of life. But on day thirty-five, suddenly the eaglet starts pecking on the shell and is hatched. While we’re waiting for a promise from God to happen, some things have to develop in the dark, in secret. We have to believe when there’s no sign on the outside that what’s inside is really alive. That promise God gave us. Don’t let the circumstances fool you. Walk by faith and not by sight.

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. Matthew 4:1 When Jesus came up out of the water after His baptism, God spoke from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son.” It was a glorious moment, signalling the beginning of His ministry. You would think Jesus would immediately start teaching and healing, but instead He was led by the Spirit into the desert. If you had seen Jesus there, you could have thought it didn’t make sense. Why the silence? Why alone in the desert? There will be times when God takes you into a silent season, into things that you don’t understand—a door closes, a person walks away. You could be down on yourself thinking, “What did I do wrong, God? Quit being discouraged over what didn’t work out. Stay in faith. You’re in a time of testing. There’s something bigger that God has in your future. He’s leading you to the fullness of what He has in store.

“Go and tell Hazekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life.”’ Isaiah 38:5 When King Hezekiah was sick to the point of death, the prophet Isaiah, who spoke for God, said to him, “Put your house in order, for you will surely die.” He didn’t say he might die or that it didn’t look good. So what do you do when God says no? Rather than give up, Hezekiah started weeping and praying and asking God for mercy. God told Isaiah to go back and tell Hezekiah, “I’ve heard your prayer and seen your tears, and I will add fifteen years to your life.” Even when we feel as though God has said no, if we dare do as Hezekiah and ask God for a yes, God can reverse a no. Every circumstance may say, “Forget it. God said no. Just live with it.” Hezekiah’s attitude was, “God, I’m asking in Your great mercy to change Your mind and give me a yes.” Are you bold enough to ask for a yes, even though al...

If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. Luke 16:10 In 1 Samuel 17, when David was in the shepherds’ fields, his father told him to take a provision of food to his brothers who were serving on the battlefield. David could have said, “Samuel anointed me to be the next king, and now you want me to be an errand boy to brothers who disrespect me?” If David had been too proud to serve others, to do what seemed insignificant, he wouldn’t have faced Goliath. It was a test he had to pass. Had he not been faithful to do the small, he would have missed his destiny. If we are faithful in the small that God is asking us to do, He will trust us with more. Once we do the insignificant thing, the door will open to the big thing. We need to pass those tests.

“… don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat ? What will we drink ? What will we wear ?’ Matthew 6:31 In Matthew 6, Jesus was talking about worry. Jesus was saying, “You may feel worried. It may seem like it’s never going to happen. Don’t get trapped by your words.” In life, there are always two voices vying for your attention. You’ll hear a voice of defeat saying, “It’s never going to work out.” But if you listen carefully, you’ll hear the voice of faith saying, “God has a way.” When you verbalize that thought, you’re giving it the right to come to pass. You have to get in agreement with God. The voice of defeat may seem louder, but you can override it. You can take away all its power by choosing the voice of faith.