We have a living God, a speaking God! One who loves us, His children, and He particularly loves to speak to us! He can speak to any one of us who love Him.

“In the Last Days I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh: your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams” (Acts 2:17).

You might be thinking, “I read the Bible every day, so I’m hearing from the Lord every day.” While it’s good to read the Bible, the recorded Word of the Lord, which is the foundation of our Christian faith, it’s wonderful to also hear straight from the Lord and “take heed to His sure word of prophecy, as to a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in our hearts” (2 Peter 1:19).

His Word says to “Stir up the gift of God which is in you” (2 Timothy 1:6). So, every day should be a new experience for us, a new listening to the Voice of the Lord. Why live only on yesterday�s spiritual food, when we can have fresh “manna from Heaven” (John 6:58) every day? Jesus still speaks today! Listen to what He told me on June 15, 2008:

I have the KEYS – simple keys to BREAKTHROUGH. It’s not complicated. You have to trust me on this. Just keep writing down what You hear me saying. I know what works and what doesn’t. I am the Alpha and Omega, so I see the end from the beginning. I have to show You before you can show others. What you shared at Soul Purpose Church today was good. Even though it seems that most people didn’t get it, seeds were planted. You have a generous heart. What you’re doing in secret, I will reward openly. That’s My word – that’s My promise.

BREAKTHROUGH RESOURCES

• #WFJ: THE MIRACLE OF CHRISTMAS IS CHRIST! (Dec 19, 2009)
• #WFJ: The $14,400 Miracles (Dec 12, 2009)
• #WFJ: The Spiritual Triangle Between Virginia, the U.K., and Italy (Dec 5, 2009)
• Opportunities to invest in yourself and the Kingdom of God (Nov 4, 2009)
• The Angel Breakthrough and the $14,400 Miracle (Sep 14, 2009)

Words from Jesus to R. Joseph Peck, “a pen in God’s hand, giving love a voice”

• #WFJ: Praise Me with your whole heart! (April 23, 2010)
• #WFJ: Rejoice Greatly (April 21, 2010)
• #WFJ: Keep my words, and treasure my commands within you (April 8)
• #WFJ: Thank you for your willingness to go a NEW DIRECTION (March 31, 2010)
• #WFJ: You are a COMMUNITY TRANSFORMATION SPECIALIST (March 14, 2010)
• #WFJ: Can A Nation Be Born In A Day? (March 3, 2010)
• #WFJ: I ALWAYS bless My Word (Feb 16, 2010)
• #WFJ: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard (Feb 15, 2010)
• #STJ: Open my eyes LORD that I may see (Feb 9, 2010)
• #WFJ: Thinking Big and Acting Small (humility) is the key to every highly successful business (Jan 22, 2010)
• #WFJ: VISION CASTING for the next decade (Jan 20, 2010)
• #WFJ: Randy, you have discovered the key to opening the door to anyone or any organization (Jan 19, 2010)
• #WFJ: My sheep are hungry for more of Me and My holy Word (Jan 18, 2010)
• #WTJ: I Stand Amazed In All Of Your Glory (Jan 17, 2010)
• #WFJ: I AM a warrior and My kingdom is spread by force (Jan 11, 2010)
• #WFJ: I AM married to Israel (Jan 9, 2010)
• #WFJ: INTIMACY is the keyword for this year and decade! (Jan 8, 2010)
• #WFJ: The fear of Me is a fountain of life (Jan 7, 2010)
• #WFJ: I AM the cup of the blood (Jan 5, 2010)
• #WFJ: I AM the liberty you seek through my Spirit (Jan 4, 2010)
• #WFJ: I have been guiding you each and every day of 2009 (Jan 1, 2010)
• #WFJ: Come Home My Children – I AM Throwing a Party! (Dec 25, 2009, Nancy Slocum)
• #WFJ: Cherish Julia. Honor her. Treat her as you would Me (Dec 23, 2009)
• #WFJ: I have been enlightening you (Dec 21 2009)
• #WFJ: Let Freedom Ring (Dec 18 2009)
• #WFJ: I AM a God of miracles (Dec 17 2009)
• #WFJ: What if I blessed you with something much better (Dec 16 2009)
• #WFJ: Randy, please tell me what you want for Christmas (Dec 15 2009)
• #WFJ: I have called you friends (Dec 12 2009)
• #WFJ: BE in Me and in My Word (Dec 5 2009)
• #WFJ: I AM the Alpha and the Omega (Dec 4 2009)
• #WFJ: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge (Dec 1 2009)
• #WFJ: Praying in My name, seeking My face with others births My Father’s visions (Nov 30 2009)
• #WFJ: I have shown you the Secrets of the Vine (Nov 29 2009)
• #WFJ: When My people start to tithe their time for Me (Nov 28 2009)
• #WFJ: Communion with Me is where the abundant life starts (Nov 27, 2009)
• #WFJ: Thank you for opening a gateway to heaven consistently (Nov 26, 2009)
• WFJ: Awake! Arise! (Nov 25, 2009)
• WFJ: Rest in Me! (Nov 21, 2009)
• WFJ: I AM your good Shepherd (Nov 20, 2009)
• WFJ: UNLEASH YOUR SPIRIT (Nov 18, 2009)
• WFJ: You are ready now! So am I! (Nov 15, 2009)
• WFJ: God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear Him (Nov 14, 2009)
• WFJ: You’re being a know-it-all is what’s getting in your way! (Nov 11, 2009)
• WFJ: Love always and blessings for God’s peace that passes all understanding! (Nov 5, 2009)
• WFJ: I live within you, deep within your heart of love (Oct 16, 2009)
• WFJ: In My presence is fullness of joy (Oct 13, 2009)
• WFJ: STILLNESS is a key to pressing in to Me (Oct 12, 2009)
• WFJ: Two Way Journaling – God’s SUPERNATURAL “HIGH”-WAY to His Heart (Nancy Slocum, Oct 8, 2009)
• WFJ: I AM Smiling Down Upon You (Oct 2, 2009)
• WFJ: Randy, write the vision down! (Utah, Sep 22, 2009)
• WFJ: The Dam Is Breaking (July 27, 2009)
• WFJ: I have specific instructions to give You each day (June 18, 2008)
• WFJ: I have the keys – simple keys to breakthrough (June 15, 2008)
• WFJ: I want you to dine with Me this morning and each day! (June 10, 2008)

Blessings to CHOOSE a LIFE of abundance!

Joseph

Joseph Peck, M.D.
“Blessed to be a blessing”
THE CONNECTOR and The Journal Guy
Breakthrough Life Coach
Creative Marketing and Communication Specialist

Empower 2000, Inc.
“Raising the Bar of Leadership to Empower People, Businesses, and Communities”
Changing Lives to Disciple Nations
www.empower2000.com
540-445-1GOD (540-445-1463)

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P.S. Sign up TODAY for my free E-course “30 Days To Breakthrough!” God wants to transform your life NOW!

P.S.S. Spiritual Journaling will transform your life!

UNCOMMON Journaling is the key
to unlock YOUR dreams!

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, (Ephesians 3:20)

Are you chasing the Wild Goose?
If not now, when?

I’m so excited. My spirit is jumping with joy. This week I’m on the verge of perhaps the greatest breakthrough of my life and I see breakthroughs happening all around me. I see the favor of God upon TEAM DESTINY and JIREH Marketing Members. I’ll be sharing about some of those this week and next. The keyword for this week is “WILD GOOSE.”

My prayer is that you will catch the Holy Spirit fever and choose to jump into His flowing river of living water. The Wild Goose chase has begun and we’re going after Him. Incidentally, Mark Batterson wrote a sequel to his “Chase The Lion” book called “Wild Goose Chase: Reclaim the Adventure of Pursuing God.”

In that book, Mark shares: “Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit –An Geadh-Glas, or ‘the Wild Goose.’ The name hints at mystery. Much like a wild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger, an air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious, I cannot think of a better description of what it’s like to follow the Spirit through life. I think the Celtic Christians were on to something….

Today, allow me to share an amazing God story about Dewey McDonnell that is unfolding quickly. For more than 3 years, Dewey McDonnell has played a lead role on our core team for Pray Culpeper. He was one of the first people to sign up to be on my intercessory prayer team for Your Daily Blessing when that was formally announced in November 2008.

When I asked people on my intercessory prayer team to submit their own prayer requests so I could pray about those, Dewey responded asking me to pray for 3 things. One of those was for multiplication of the Experiencing God LIFE groups that Pastor Mark Jenkins had helped ignite back in September 2008.

Little did I know that I would become part of one of those Experiencing God LIFE groups and that we would meet at Elizabeth Powell’s beautiful home, just one mile from where I live. As a result of the first meeting, the “Experiencing God Through Journaling” webinar series was birthed. Two days ago, I emailed Richard Blackaby to open a door to discuss partnering with Blackaby Ministries and Lifeway Christian Resources to launch “Experiencing God” webinars world-wide.

Because of my involvement with the “Experiencing God” LIFE group, I learned that Katherine McDonnell, Dewey’s daughter competing in the ACC Championship swim meet taking place on Feb 20-21.

On Sunday Feb 22, Dewey sent an email sharing that Katherine helped lead her University of Virginia (UVA) swim team to a second straight ACC Championship. Her IM medley team broke UVA’s all-time record. Katherine also place second overall in the 100m breaststroke and third in the 200m breaststroke, eclipsing her previous best times and qualifying her for the national meet in Dallas.

Prayer Power
Daddy, thank You for inviting me to take part in the Wild Goose chase. Thank you for the thrill and unpredictability in chasing Him. Please invite my followers to join in this chase of their lifetime. Jesus, you’re the best! It’s in Your precious and mighty name I pray. Amen and hallelujah!

Blessings of the Day
1) “Journaling For Breakthroughs” – FREE webinar at 3pm EST on Tuesday March 3. Lynne Lee, a certified life coach, avid journaler, and Web 2.0 authority from England. will be interviewing me. This is the inaugural Launch of Christian LIFE Coaching Cafe. This is the first time I am being interviewed over the web about journaling to hear God’s voice.

2) Highlights and breakthroughs for me during the past 3 weeks (see below)

Blessings to join the Wild Goose chase!

Breaking News
Culpeper gets hit by its first major snow storm of the year

Randy Peck’s update for his Relational Coaching Network (RCN) cell group meeting on Feb 26, 2009

1) What have you done or what is going on in your life in the areas we discussed in our last call?

• I’ve been working feverishly to prepare the way for mass marketing of my journaling e-book. Lynne Lee has helped to propel me forward.
• Jerry, Sharon, and I recorded 3 more Wellness webinars together in the process of creating a Wellness e-book and paid course
• I interviewed Deb Smith having her share her God story and vision to create an e-book to monetize her coaching business through an Information product.
• Julia and I are continuing with our Finance LIFE group on Saturday mornings led by Pastor Matt and benefiting greatly

2) What is new in your life since we last met that you’d like the others in the group to know?

• Lynne Lee is a mother of 5 in England, certified life coach, avid two-way journaler, and Web 2.0 authority. As a result of Lynne asking to interview me on her inaugural webinar for her new Christian Life Coaching on Mar 3, I had 2 long and extremely valuable online strategy sessions with her in the past 2 weeks. As a result of that, I opened a KickStart (1shoppingcart) account 2 days ago to not only sell products, but to manage all my contact lists and handle all my autoresponders. I now have my free ebook and $77 version available there for purchase. I have substantially improved my Lead Generation and Sales pages.
• I connected at the heart level with Debra Bosacki, an avid journaler for 29 years. As a result Jerry and I interviewed her on our “Experiencing God Through Journaling” webinar on Feb 24.Because of that, I discovered Xiosoft Audio. That has the best Sales page I have ever seen. Jesus told me to invite Debra to a Joint Venture opportunity to co-host weekly “Journaling Cafe” webinars at 3 pm EST on Thursdays starting in March.
• I emailed Mark Virkler Jerry and my “Summary proposal for Joint Venture between Christian Leadership University and JIREH Marketing”
•  Through Jack Stagman, I connected with Chauncey Hutter, one of the leading marketplace ministers in the state of Virginia
• I began helping Mike and Valerie Webb launch their marketing campaign via Web 2.0 for Great Outdoor Endeavors
• The LORD revealed His assignment for Marching Through Culpeper to Virginia Morton and me – “Bringing truth, understanding, and reconciliation”
• Through Twitter and my weekly webinars, I connected personally with Chicke Fitzgerald, perhaps the greatest connectors I have ever met

3) What’s a win or good thing that happened that you’d like to celebrate with us?

• Dewey McDonnell’s daughter, Katherine, helped lead her team to a second straight ACC championship in swimming. Her IM relay team won first place and broke the all-time ACC record. Katherine won second place in the 100m breast stroke and third place in the 200m breast stroke. Dewey is part of the core team for Pray Culpeper.
• Jesus told me to partner with Henry Blackaby, his son, and Lifeway Christina Resources to launch world-wide “Experiencing God Through Journaling” webinars! By combining online journaling, life coaching, and Web 2.0 with what they already are doing around the world, there will be Explosive Kingdom Impact.
• GW Dameron, pastor of City on a Hill Church in Culpeper, found a new job after being laid off in Nov 2008.

4. What’s something that you might like to bring to the group this week?

a) Need continued prayer to complete my “UNCOMMON Journaling For Breakthroughs” ebook. Completing this will release a log jam of ideas and opportunities that God has been waiting to birth.
b) UNCOMMON Favor for webinar interview by Lynne Lee on Tues March 3
c) Need lots of prayer for God’s favor to effectively market “Experiencing God Through Journaling” webinars. That might well turn out to be my bread and butter business opportunity.

Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament! Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness! (Psalm 150:1-2)

What are you thankful for God doing in the past week?
How will writing this down create more of an attitude of gratitude?

I’m excited. If I tried to share most of the things I’m thankful for that took place in the past week, I’d be writing until tomorrow. Fortunately for you (and me), I’m not going to do that. But here are some highlights.

On October 1, the first Wednesday of October (and the first day of the 4th quarter of the year), we had 8 people meet for our weekly Pray Culpeper gathering to pray for our community. This included 3 pastors. Thanks to Pastor G.W. Dameron, Pray Culpeper is now meeting again every Wednesday at Noon at Reformation Lutheran Church on South Main Street in Culpeper, across from the 7-11. According to Virginia Morton, Pastor Randy Orndorff has indicated he wants to start participating again after he gets back from his much needed vacation.

On Thursday October 2, I hosted the Week #1 Webinar for the UNCOMMON Social Marketing (Web 2.0) course. My goal was for 50 people to register, but to my amazement we had 83 people register by 5:55 pm (my favorite number) that day. I want to extend a special thanks to the Joseph R. Daniel Technology Center and Germanna Community College for promoting this on the home page of the GCC website.

On Saturday October 4, my wife competed in a triathlon at Lake Anna along with Dr. Sue Wilcox (my former anesthesia associate) and Leanne Rutkowski. Leanne is the wife of Dr. Bob Rutkowski, an orthopedist I worked with for 12 years. This was Leanne’s very first triathlon, albeit a team event with Sue.

During a local, group, century (100 kilometers or 100 miles) bicycle ride on October 4, Ron Nolley had a heart attack and apparently had to have CPR for 15 minutes before the rescue squad came and shocked his heart to get him back in rhythm. I was quite sad over that situation and prayed for Ron several days. Yesterday evening, I was glad to learn that Ron was able to undergo triple bypass surgery earlier in the day.

Also on October 4, Virginia Morton went to Richmond for a writer’s conference. We had prayed earlier in the week for her to have favor with Kurt Ellis, the writer of John Adams, a seven part TV mini-series that led all recent Emmy nominees with 23 nominations.

As God would have it, I ended up going to Young Life’s 2008 Hoe Down at the Daniel Technology Center on Saturday evening. That wasn’t even on my radar screen, but when Jon Monroe stopped over to pick up his laptop earlier in the day, he told me about it. I’ll share more about this event later this week, including photos.

On Sunday October 5, Soul Purpose Church hosted “Friend Day.” The results were impressive. Based on completed connection cards, at least 20 new visitors came and there were 9 salvation decisions. 39 people signed up for the Daily “Discovering Soul Purpose” email. Pastor Matt is feeling led to start his own daily email/blog.

Last night I got an email from Pastor Matt stating this coming Sunday he plans to recommend everyone try THE JOURNAL software we had recommended our UNCOMMON Journaling for Destiny course. Matt, as you may recall, was the very first person to sign up for our June course and he’s experienced the fruit.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, thank You that the gates of heaven are open right now. Thank You that You are rapidly changing the spiritual climate of our city and region. Thank You that Transformation Virginia is alive and well. Please encourage each of my readers in a special way this week. Thank You Jesus. Amen and hallelujah.

Link of the Day
Registration for Blogging and Email Marketing Webinar on Oct 9, 2008

Blessings to exalt the name of the LORD!

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:36)

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your enjoyment level of everyday life?
How do you keep track of what God is doing and has done?

The theme for last week’s devotionals was “Story.” Every day, God is writing a new page in the story of your life and the story of my life. After all, He is the God of HIStory. Journaling is a great way to record God’s story as it unfolds and to remember it later.

This past weekend, my wife and I went to Rocky Gap, Maryland for her to compete in an Xterra triathlon there on Sunday July 13. While sports have become a “god” for many Americans and sporting events often displace Sunday church activities, they also offer an opportunity to be a witness for Jesus in the marketplace – to go where the fish are instead of expecting the fish to come to us.

God has wired Julia (my wife) in such a way that she loves triathlons and does very well in them. Typically they take place on Sunday mornings so athletes can check-in the day before. I feel it’s important for me to support Julia in her endeavors just as I appreciate it when she supports me in mine.

These weekends getaways serve as mini-vacations for Julia and me. They allow us to rest, relax, and reflection and bring UNITY to our marriage. We get exposed to beautiful new places and many new people, which in turn helps birth new ideas. We appreciate the opportunity to be a light for Jesus for people who never go to church.

While I was walking from the Rocky Gap Resort hotel to the beach where the race was starting, I ran into Mike Sevier, who won the Culpeper Triathlon on May 18. When he called me by name that really surprised me until I remembered he now receives my daily devotional. Mike has a very mature Christian perspective and lots of neat stories to share. He reads a lot and has a hunger to grow and be all he can be.

While Julia was racing for 3 hours and 12 minutes, I had the chance to talk to lots of people and take lots of photos. I was blessed to have a 30 minute conversation with Ann Mickey. As director of Athlete Communications, she handles all the email and telephone correspondence for Xterra and knows many of the triathletes well. Ann shared lots of stories about them.

For example, one of the triathletes was a former champion strongman of the world. He intentionally lost 170# to be able to compete in triathlons. Another triathlete had a major injury to his left leg during the war in Iraq and lost his calf muscle. A spectator I met had traveled much of the world and speaks English, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, and a few other languages.

After meeting so many neat people and hearing their stories, I decided to bring my video camera to future triathlons to share the stories of athletes with you in short videos. Enjoy my photos from yesterday Xterra triathlon at today’s Link of the Day.

Last night before dinner, I decided to watch TBN for a short while. Joyce Meyers preached a great message titled “Enjoying Everyday Life.” That’s my philosophy – to enjoy God each and every day, regardless of the cards I am dealt. That is the “The Secret of Happiness” which is teaching series by Joyce.

As I share my life story with you as it unfolds, I hope and pray you are inspired to share your God story with other. Doing so is very powerful and will allow fresh streams of God’s living waters to flow through you.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, every day of life on this earth you give to us is a blessing. May we cherish each one and be a good steward of the short time allotted to us. Help each of us to see the beauty of You in the beauty of the world around us and then share that joy with others. Thank You Jesus. Amen and hallelujah!

Link of the Day
Photos from Xterra triathlon at Rocky Gap, Maryland

Blessings to enjoy everyday life!

But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. (1 Titus 5:8)

What have been highlights for you in each of the past decades?

Today is my 50th birthday. Ten years ago I had plans to retire by the time I was 50 and was well on my way financially toward that goal. But God had other plans. He jerked me out of Culpeper Hospital where I had worked for 12 years to free up my time to set me on a path of discovery. A year and a half later I committed my life to Jesus. Within a few years, my wife and two children were saved.

I was on my way to hell and didn’t know it. To Rev. Mark Jarvis, I am eternally grateful for sharing the Gospel message in a simple way I could understand. Now I plan to never retire. Retirement isn’t biblical – there’s not a single example in the Bible that endorses retirement. Until the day I die, I plan to share the good news of Jesus Christ.

Before dedicating my life to Jesus, I had very little prayer life and never prayed with a patient in my entire anesthesia career. Since then I prayed with hundreds of patients shortly before their surgery. In fact, many times I was called into the operating room by an anesthetist because a patient requested I pray for him/her just before being put to sleep.

What were some top highlights for each of the first 5 decades of my life?
1) Living in Italy with my family and Rosa when I was ages 1-5 and Germany when I was ages 11-15
2) Meeting Julia (my wife) at the University of Virginia in 1981 on her first day of classes there – the second greatest day of my life
3) Graduating from medical school (MCV) in 1983 and completing my anesthesia residency in 1986 opened wonderful doors of opportunity for me to serve society as a physician and provide for my family.
4) The birth of my children in 1985 and 1987
5) Committing my life to Jesus on Jan 6, 2001 – the greatest day of my life
6) Celebrating my parent’s 50th anniversary in 2003
7) Beginning Your Daily Blessing e-prayer devotional on July 1, 2006 to share my heart authentically to bless you and others

In conclusion, I’d like to give a special thanks to the people who sowed the most into my life:
1) My parents for training me up in the ways I should go
2) My wife for being my helpmate and my encourager
3) My two children for honoring their parents
4) My coaching buddies for 5 years – Mark Jarvis, Matt Gregory, Michael Stay
5) My coach and mentor for the past year – Jerry Graham

Prayer Power
Most gracious and loving Father, thank You for 50 years of abundant life. Thank You for the precious gift of a wonderful family and for the privilege of being an American. Thank You for my health, my friends, my home, my opportunities. My prayer is that I finish the race strong with my family and that through the web I may encourage millions of other families to be a blessing to millions more. Thy will be done. Thy Kingdom come. In Jesus name, I pray and give You glory, now and forever. Amen.

Link of the Day
2003 Christmas card with family photo and “Point of View” poem

Blessings to live life to the fullest for the King of kings!

You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11)

On a scale of 1-10, how would those closest to you rate your joy level?
How do you typically handle adverse circumstances?
How is God leading you to grow in the fruit of joy?

Yesterday’s devotional discussed the importance of embracing God’s glory. And wouldn’t you know it – God capped off my great day yesterday with the opportunity to witness with my wife the most spectacular lunar eclipse I have ever seen. The moon was big and bright and the sky was crystal clear.

A big part of embracing God’s glory daily is having good daily habits. One of my favorite morning habits is lying in bed after I wake up resting, reflecting, and then  listening to my scheduled iTunes playlist. Typically, I listen to a praise song, a track from the “I AM – 365 Names of God” CD, five Psalms, a chapter from Proverbs, a chapter from the Book of Acts, and one chapter from 3 different family prayer books.

This morning on the 21st day of February, I listened to Psalms 101-105 from The Bible Experience on CD. These first four verses of Psalm 101 jumped out at me, “ I will sing of mercy and justice; To You, O LORD, I will sing praises. I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.  I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; It shall not cling to me. A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness.”

After listening to the Bible, I listened to Chapter 21 of The Power of a Praying Parent titled “Inviting the Joy of the Lord.” Here are some excerpts from what Stormie Omartian had to say:

Sadly, many young people today suffer with depression. And the worst part is that they carry it with them into adulthood. It comes and goes, putting a pall over their lives, affecting their work, upsetting their relationships, ruining their health, and even affecting how they view God.

This doesn’t have to happen. No matter what kind of experiences a person has had, there is no need to live with depression or any other negative emotion. Don’t allow your child to be stuck with a sad, depressed, angry, moody, or difficult personality. Pray them out of it.

It’s easy to tell which people carry negative emotions inside and which ones have a spirit of joy. It’s especially obvious in children, because they don’t have the ability to hide their emotions the way we learn to do as adults.

Take a long look at your child. Is the common expression on his or her face one of peace, happiness, and joy? Or is it distress, frustration, dissatisfaction, anger, depression, or sadness? Does your child ever have a bad attitude for what seems to be no reason at all? Does your child ever seem down or moody and yet can’t explain why? Take charge of that situation before it becomes a habit. Negative emotions are habit-forming if we don’t put a stop to them by praying for our children to be overtaken by a spirit of joy.

Don’t think for a moment that by praying for the joy of the Lord to fill your child you are creating a shallow person without compassion for the sufferings of others. This will never happen. The joy of the Lord is rich and deep and causes anyone who walks in it to be likewise. That’s because joy doesn’t have anything to do with happy circumstances; it has to do with looking into the face of God and knowing He’s all we’ll ever need.

I’m not saying that your child should never have a negative emotion or show emotional pain. I’m saying that negative emotions should not be a way of life. I’m saying that we should look to the Lord because “He brought forth His people with joy” (Psalm 105:43). He will bring forth our children in like manner if we ask it of Him.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, we praise You as the God of great joy. You are the most joyful Being in the universe and You have created us in Your likeness. Let the spirit of joy rise up in our hearts and may we know the fullness of joy that is found only in Your presence. Help us to understand that true happiness and joy are found only in You. Thank You Jesus. Amen.

Link of the Day
Abundant Joy – by Jenna Robinson, BellaOnline’s Bible Basics Editor

Blessings to manifest the joy of the Lord in your life and relationships!

“Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3)

How can you unlock your inner child today to be excited and enthusiastic?

For the past two days, I’ve shared how to increase your leverage. Now let’s talk about a simple, yet powerful way, to get momentum. At getmomentumtv.com, Michael Cheney’s slogan is “helping you get what you want, every time, in no time.” Here are my notes from Michael’s power-packed video message about children:

Today we are going to talk about children, not having children, but learning from children. Why would you want to learn from children? Well, think about it. They are always smiling. They are always happy. They get up early. They want to stay up late. They learn stuff every single day. And they always have loads of energy.

Here are 4 tips (A, B, C, D) to unlock your inner child today to have more fun and get more done all at the same time.

1) Ask – Children asks loads of questions, thousands of questions every single day. I want you to do that today. Ask of yourself. Ask other people. Ask why things are working and why they aren’t working.

2) Be playful – Have fun today. Have a laugh. Don’t take things too seriously.

3) Curiosity – Be curious about the things around you. Learn something new today.

4) Don’t have fear – Children just don’t have any fear. Go through your life like a child with a sense of excitement and enthusiasm, not fear.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, thank you for Michael Cheney’s message about the blessing of children. Remind me daily to unlock my inner child by asking lots of questions, being playful (joyful), being curious, and fearing You alone. Thank You Jesus. Amen.

Link of the Day
Children – Episode #27 – 2 minute video by Michael Cheney

Blessings to unlock your inner child!

Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, (1 Peter 1:8)

What can I do to be lifted up when I feel discouraged?
Who can I encourage this week whose heart is heavy with sorrow?

In a span of just one week from Oct 22-29, I got poison ivy, my main computer hard drive crashed, and our dog died. Most people would call that a bad week. Yet I could see God doing extraordinary things through these unusual and unpleasant circumstances.

For example, my computer malfunction forced me to take a 4 day email sabbatical. My inability to schedule appointments through email completely cleared my schedule for October 25. God then used my availability to open a huge door for me to spend 4 quality hours with Ted Baehr, the head of Movie Guide [www.movieguide.org] and one of the most connected people in media in the world. Now Ted wants my help and to help me. And he has 3 million people on just one of his emails lists.

Ginger’s rapid deterioration and ultimate death rallied our whole family together and opened the doors for several of us to reflect on happy memories, what we did right, what we would have done differently, and what our own legacies will be.

When I die, I want to be remembered for extraordinary joy. I want many people to say I was the most joyful person they ever knew. Why? Because people are attracted to joy and my joy comes from Jesus. I want people to want what I have – a passionate relationship with Jesus. The second of the nine fruits of the spirit is “joy” and it comes right after “love” (Galations 5:22-23). I believe that next to love, joy is the most important fruit of the spirit. The Bible says “the joy of the Lord is my strength.”

In his October 30 devotional titled “Joy in Sorrow,” Bowie Curry wrote, “many American Christians seem to be confusing the quest for the American Dream of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” with seeking first Christ’s Kingdom of “righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit”. I can’t find any support from Scripture that God is particularly interested in His children finding happiness in this life but I find abundant affirmation that He does want us to experience His joy.

Perhaps there is someone reading this today who is grieving in the midst of some crushing sorrow. Be encouraged. The Comforter is coming! “Weeping may endure for a night”, said David, “but joy comes in the morning!” As surely as the night must give way to irresistible rays of dawn, your despair and sorrow must be swallowed up by the unfading hope and triumphant joy that is in Christ Jesus!”

For the rest of Bowie’s message, see today’s Link of the Day.

Prayer Power
Father, we thank You that there is a joy in Christ that can lift the heart out of the deepest despair. We pray for those who are mourning that they will find in You and unceasing wellspring of mercy and comfort. Father, let your joy be their strength. Comfort them so that they in turn may comfort others. Give them a foretaste of the joy and glory of the age to come when, “every tear will wiped away, death shall be no more, and neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore.” We ask this in Jesus’ Name, amen.

Link of the Day
Joy in Sorrow – devotional by Bowie Curry

Blessings to live a life full of extraordinary joy through Jesus!

There is coming an age when our circumstances will be eternally ideal but for now the prognosis is something akin to all Hell breaking loose! That would seem to be a grim forecast except that God has something far greater and more enduring for the present hour, His joy! Among the bouquet of God’s emotions, joy is certainly His rose; but all roses have thorns and the thorn of this rose is mourning!

Scriptures
Matthew 5:3 – And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

1 Peter 1:8
8Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,
 
Wells of Joy!
 Years ago I was visiting a friend in New York and had the privilege of staying in a room of an elderly saint who had recently gone on to be with the Lord. On her desk was a little sign that said simply, “The wells of joy are most often dug with the spade of sorrow.” She was a woman of uncommon joy that had endured more than her share of sorrow and suffering in this life. How was this possible? She had discovered the blessed comfort that God has for every one of his grieving, mourning children, “joy inexpressible and full of glory!” 
 
A Sight of Glory!
In the next few devotions, we want to consider the blessedness of sorrow and mourning as the pathway to enduring joy which the Bible says is our “strength” [fortress or defense].I vividly remember the second funeral I conducted in Fredericksburg. They had grown up together as childhood sweethearts and married at the age of 17. At the time of the husband’s death after a long bout with cancer, the couple had been married for over 65 years. I stood at the pulpit in the funeral home as a clueless young preacher wondering what I could say that could be of comfort to the grieving widow. As it turned out, I didn’t need to say anything. There on the front row sat the widow, tears streaming down her face. Her countenance was shining with what can only be described as a radiant glory! Her tears were not tears of sorrow but unspeakable joy! Thank God, for once I was speechless! A thousand well meaning sermons couldn’t have held a candle to the comfort that was expressed by the eternal joy of that grieving widow!
 
Joy Comes in the Morning!
Perhaps there is someone reading this today who is grieving in the midst of some crushing sorrow. Be encouraged. The Comforter is coming! “Weeping may endure for a night”, said David, “but joy comes in the morning!” As surely as the night must give way to irresistible rays of dawn, your despair and sorrow must be swallowed up by the unfading hope and triumphant joy that is in Christ Jesus!
 
We can be encouraged in the inevitable sorrows of this life by these words from 1 Peter 1:8,
 
“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.”
 
Prayer Power
Father, we thank You that there is a joy in Christ that can lift the heart out of the deepest despair. We pray for those who are mourning that they will find in You and unceasing wellspring of mercy and comfort. Father, let your joy be their strength. Comfort them so that they in turn may comfort others. Give them a foretaste of the joy and glory of the age to come when, “every tear will wiped away, death shall be no more, and neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore.” We ask this in Jesus’ Name, amen.
May God unite us in Prayer And Unity!
 
Bowie and Barbara Curry
PrayerNet of Fredericksburg

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)

Where is your joy on a scale of 1-10?

On Saturday August 4, I saw and heard Nick Vujicic for the first time. On TBN (Trinity Broadcast Network), Robert Schuller introduced Nick during a morning worship service at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove CA. Nick, just 24 years old, then shared his powerful testimony and preached the most inspiring sermon I have ever heard.

I highly recommend you visit today’s Link of the Day to learn more about Nick and his ministry. The website is outstanding. Nick may be the most inspiring man you will ever meet. Watch some of the online videos. They are all very  inspiring.

Nick was born in Australia in 1983 without any limbs and doctors have no medical explanation for this birth “defect”. No legs and no arms, just a little remnant of one foot. It’s absolutely amazing what Nick has learned to do with that. For a while, Nick’s loving parents prayed that God would restore Nick’s missing arms and legs, but eventually they came to realize that wasn’t in God’s plans.

In his early life, Nick struggled to believe that God could be a loving god when he was born the way he was. As you can imagine, he was faced with many challenges and obstacles, but Praise the Lord, God gave him the strength to have a burning desire to reach out and bring people to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Already in his short life, God has used Nick’s testimony to touch over a million hearts around the world!

Nick says “No matter who you are and what you are going through, God knows it and he’s going to pull you through.” 2 Corinthinas 12:9 says “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” There are times in our lives when things happen that we don’t understand. If God is a god of love, why does He allowing pain and suffering?

What do you do when you fall down in life? You get back up. You may think you can’t get back up when things seem impossible. Well, you’re right, you can’t do it on your own. But we don’t have do this thing called life on our own. God wants to help us on our journey. Talk to Him. Share your heart with Him. Pray “LORD, here I am, please help me.”

Who are you? Why are you here on earth? What do you think God owes you? Nick says the latter question is the #1 reason that paralyzes people from taking that step closer to God. God doesn’t owe you anything. Jesus already paid it all. It’s up to you to receive His free gift.

Nick says faith is a gift from God. Trust (in God), on the other hand, is a choice each of us must make. Guilt and fear are two of the most paralyzing things in our lives. It’s important to realize that when you accept Jesus as your Savior and LORD, all your sins are forgiven – past, present, and future. The Bible clearly states “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.” (Eph 2:8) No one earns their way to heaven.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, thank You for the inspiration and hope you are offering the world through Nick Vujicic and his testimony. Bless him LORD! Greatly multiply his ministry around the world through the web and social marketing. As people hear Nick share his testimony, may they choose to trust in You, no matter what their circumstances look like. May each of us choose a life without limits through faith in Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Link of the Day
LifeWithoutLimbs.org – 4 minute video except of Nick’s sermon at the Crystal Cathedral [http://www.lifewithoutlimbs.org/news_details.php?newsID=15 ]

www.hourofpower.org

Blessings to live a life without limits through faith in Jesus Christ!

“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” (John 15:11)

What can you do to add more joy to your life, while at the same time serving God?

Several of my devotionals in the past few weeks have dealt with TheCall Nashville that took place on 07-07-07. This morning I had my peer ACT (Accelerated Coach Training) teleclass. Normally, Adam Greer, Joel Harvey, and I meet over the phone on Monday mornings for 75 minutes, but because of Adam’s schedule, our meeting was bumped back three days.

Why was Adam not available to meet on Monday July 9? Because he drove all the way from Greenville SC to Nashville TN on Sunday July 8 and then stayed overnight. He did this because his 17 year-old son was leaving from Nashville on the 35 day road trip across much of the country following The Call.

At the start of today’s conversation, Joel asked Adam to share about his trip to Nashville. Adam was fired up. He shared examples of how he experienced young people totally sold-out commitment to God. The youth were having spontaneous moments of worship constantly, sometimes in groups of 10′s, 20′s, or 30′s. Sometimes these spontaneous moments of worship lasted 2 hours. Most of the youth on the tour are worship leaders in their churches. There were extreme amounts of prayer.

As is often the case, spiritual opposition occurred as these young people we’re doing something substantial for the LORD. On the night of 07-07-07 following the long event at the football stadium, the youth and their leaders were kicked out of their camp site because of “too much noise.” Actually, they were fervently worshiping God. The next day, a health inspector showed up at their dorm saying there were too many people (about 300) in that size building. That’s a good thing in the sense that many more people decided to go on this trip than initially anticipated.

Because of the larger than anticipated number of people going on this 35-day road trip, they had to raise $40,000 in just a few days to buy the buses to travel. It turned out it was cheaper to buy their own buses rather than renting buses with staff for this long of a trip. Now they have three tour buses, a full mobile stage, and two full equipment trucks.

Due to the bus situation, the tour group left Nashville today at 2 pm, one day behind schedule. However, it’s reassuring to know that God’s timetable is always perfect.

Now this intensity of worship is traveling across America and will build momentum. By the time they get to San Francisco, they expect to pick up more than 1,000 people to join them. GodTV is going on the tour with them to film parts of this. At each destination city, there is a ministry that is hosting them. There will be an evening worship event in each city.

The group will be in San Francisco Aug 5-11. There is already some negative publicity coming out of California, but God will use this to publicize what He is doing. I was surprised to learn that Nashville did not give publicity to TheCall on the actual date of the event.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, thank You for all the young worshipers who are totally sold out to You. May You increase both the quality and quantity of this kind of worship and spread this enthusiasm to each city and state the tour group visits. Thank You Jesus. May Your holy and precious name be exalted once again in America. Amen.

Link of the Day
Real Summer of Love [http://yourdailyblessing.com/blog/wp-admin/www.realsummeroflove.com] – website recommended by Adam Greer

Blessings for America to experience a real summer of love!