Devotionals
Week of 6-6-2011
Everybody Believes Something
The truth is everybody believes something. What you believe affects what you receive in life. What I believe or perceive to be true I act as if it is true. What I believe to be true will put into motion the force & power of creation in our lives, until we create what we have believed. This is called the power of agreement. More about these statements in a moment, but first let's look at two passages of scriptures.
And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed, and has been tamed by the human race. But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. James 3:6‑10 NAS.
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live. Deut 30:19 KJV The words “Call to record” in this passage is a single Hebrew word that means to duplicate or repeat; to protest, testify (as by reiteration); intensively, to encompass, restore (as a sort of reduplication). Also the same Hebrew word is translated else where as: admonish, charge, earnestly, lift up, protest, call (take) to record, relieve, rob, solemnly, stand upright, testify, give warning, (bear, call to, give, take to) witness.
Since beliefs are so important, where do most of our beliefs come from? Beliefs come from “the files of information” you have in the storage cabinet of your mind. Let’s go back to the two earlier statements I made. What I believe or perceive to be true I act as if it is true. What I believe to be true will put into motion the force & power of creation in our lives, until we create what we’ve believed. There is another way I can say those two statements. Programming (beliefs) leads to thoughts. Thoughts lead to feelings. Feelings lead to actions. Actions lead to results. So the more important question is: What do you believe?
In reality there are only two kinds of beliefs: Godly Beliefs & Ungodly Beliefs. Godly Beliefs are all beliefs, decisions, attitudes, agreements, judgments, expectations, vows, and oaths that do agree with God, (His Word, His Nature, and His Character). Ungodly Beliefs are all beliefs, decisions, attitudes, agreements, judgments, expectations, vows, and oaths that do not agree with God (His Word, His Nature, and His Character). Unfortunately the major areas of our belief system are usually made up of Ungodly Beliefs. For example, what we believe about our right to exist, our purpose, our value, and the very source of our security – as well as what we believe about our relationships with other people and with God - is generally ungodly. Why?
To understand why many of our core beliefs are ungodly we have to ask the question: How are Ungodly Beliefs formed? Ungodly Beliefs are formed generally two ways: First, Ungodly Beliefs from Experiences of Hurt. The possibility of being hurt exists in every stage of life. These hurtful experiences add to the strength and intensity of our negative beliefs about us and others. They are often formed during our childhood years. For example, the child whose father misses all the ballgames, birthdays, etc. feels. “I’m not important because my dad doesn’t have time for me.” “Significant people in my life will not be there for me when I need them.” Even more serious ungodly beliefs can form when a child tries to intervene as his parents are fighting and the parents respond by saying: “We didn’t have all these problems until you were born, why don’t you just shut up.” “Things would be better if I hadn’t even been born. My life is a mistake.” “It’s better to keep my mouth shut and my feelings to myself.” As a result the child learns to “stuff” or “hide” their feelings.
Ungodly beliefs are formed through repetition of hurts. “They say the best way to learn something is through repetition.” Often we’re influenced by our families who repeat these statements like: “You’ll never amount to anything; you’re just a loser,” or peers, especially kids at school who call each other names.
Ungodly beliefs are formed in our adult years as well. Negative experiences occur during adult years that reinforce childhood hurts. The problems from business, marriage, and church, or the experience of accidents or tragedies can cause us to believe lies about ourselves, others, and God.
The second way ungodly beliefs are formed is from the Natural Mind. This is the unredeemed mind. To the natural mind concepts such as worldly success, popularity, & the self - made man appeal to our unredeemed mind. These Ungodly Beliefs of the natural mind encourage us to “be in charge,” “to do our own thing,” or even cult practices that teach us “to find our own reality.” Family Backgrounds play a Role. Just like families pass on china, furniture, rods & reels families also pass on ungodly beliefs. These ideas can range from life, politics, religion, prejudices, and relationships. Even unintentional teaching: Child comes home crying because the mean neighbor's kid hit them, the parent says, “There, there, don’t cry. It doesn’t hurt. You are just fine.” The ungodly belief that can be formed in the heart as a and carried into adulthood can sound like this, “It must not be OK for me to share my feelings. People who love me don’t except my real feelings. It’s not alright to cry.”
What are the results of ungodly beliefs? First, ungodly beliefs are dangerous because they affect all of our perceptions, all of our decisions, and all of our actions. Secondly, they affect our identity, how we perceive ourselves, how we relate to others, and to God. Thirdly, ungodly beliefs are like “spiritual termites” behind the scenes of our life eating away at the faith we have established in our hearts. Ungodly beliefs by definition is “Unbelief.” Ungodly beliefs hinder or block our faith in God and the truth of His promises. We hinder or shut off God’s ability to bless us. Fourthly, ungodly beliefs provide legal permission for demons to operate in our lives. Why? Because we are in agreement with the Devil - rather than God, we have ungodly beliefs.
It’s bad enough when we have ungodly beliefs and we encounter others with ungodly beliefs. But imagine what it’s like when you get a husband and wife together who have ungodly beliefs. The destruction is devastating!
How do we get free of ungodly beliefs? The “perfect” Ungodly Belief is one that appears to be absolutely true based on the facts of our experience and yet is absolutely false based on God’s Word. Many of the negative beliefs that we have about ourselves, others, and God result from the ungodly, hurtful ways we had been treated. Hurts are like an infected wound, and The Ungodly Beliefs are like the pus coming from it. We can wipe away the pus, but more will develop unless the wound is healed. The wound affects the heart, the pus affects the mind.
Here is a Sample of Ungodly Beliefs versus Godly Beliefs.
Ungodly Belief I will always be lonely.
Godly Belief with God’s help, I will begin to reach out to others and also to receive from them.
Ungodly Belief God heals others, that He doesn’t heal me.
Godly Belief God loves His children equally and desires Is best for each one. He desires to heal me. I choose to receive His healing.
Ungodly Belief I am alone in the world, and have no one who cares.
Godly Belief I am not alone in the world because God has given me Himself, My Wife or Husband, and My Family of God.
Click Here for Previous Devotionals
Monday
Read:James 3:6-10,
Deuteronomy 30:19
Meditate On: The truth is everybody believes something. What you believe affects what you receive in life. What I believe or perceive to be true I act as if it is true. What I believe to be true will put into motion the force & power of creation in our lives, until we create what we have believed. This is called the power of agreement. More about these statements in a moment, but first let's look at two passages of scriptures.
And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed, and has been tamed by the human race. But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. James 3:6-10 NAS.
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live. Deut 30:19 KJV The words “Call to record” in this passage is a single Hebrew word that means to duplicate or repeat; to protest, testify (as by reiteration); intensively, to encompass, restore (as a sort of reduplication). Also the same Hebrew word is translated else where as: admonish, charge, earnestly, lift up, protest, call (take) to record, relieve, rob, solemnly, stand upright, testify, give warning, (bear, call to, give, take to) witness.
Tuesday
Read: Proverbs 3:5, John 14:1
Meditate On: Since beliefs are so important, where do most of our beliefs come from? Beliefs come from “the files of information” you have in the storage cabinet of your mind. Let’s go back to the two earlier statements I made. What I believe or perceive to be true I act as if it is true. What I believe to be true will put into motion the force & power of creation in our lives, until we create what we’ve believed. There is another way I can say those two statements. Programming (beliefs) leads to thoughts. Thoughts lead to feelings. Feelings lead to actions. Actions lead to results. So the more important question is: What do you believe?
Wednesday
Read: Philemon 2:5, 1 Peter 4:1
Meditate On: In reality there are only two kinds of beliefs: Godly Beliefs & Ungodly Beliefs. Godly Beliefs are all beliefs, decisions, attitudes, agreements, judgments, expectations, vows, and oaths that do agree with God, (His Word, His Nature, and His Character). Ungodly Beliefs are all beliefs, decisions, attitudes, agreements, judgments, expectations, vows, and oaths that do not agree with God (His Word, His Nature, and His Character). Unfortunately the major areas of our belief system are usually made up of Ungodly Beliefs. For example, what we believe about our right to exist, our purpose, our value, and the very source of our security – as well as what we believe about our relationships with other people and with God - is generally ungodly. Why?
Thursday
Read: Isaiah 49:5, Jeremiah 1:5
Meditate On: To understand why many of our core beliefs are ungodly we have to ask the question: How are Ungodly Beliefs formed? Ungodly Beliefs are formed generally two ways: First, Ungodly Beliefs from Experiences of Hurt. The possibility of being hurt exists in every stage of life. These hurtful experiences add to the strength and intensity of our negative beliefs about us and others. They are often formed during our childhood years. For example, the child whose father misses all the ballgames, birthdays, etc. feels. “I’m not important because my dad doesn’t have time for me.” “Significant people in my life will not be there for me when I need them.” Even more serious ungodly beliefs can form when a child tries to intervene as his parents are fighting and the parents respond by saying: “We didn’t have all these problems until you were born, why don’t you just shut up.” “Things would be better if I hadn’t even been born. My life is a mistake.” “It’s better to keep my mouth shut and my feelings to myself.” As a result the child learns to “stuff” or “hide” their feelings.
Ungodly beliefs are formed through repetition of hurts. “They say the best way to learn something is through repetition.” Often we’re influenced by our families who repeat these statements like: “You’ll never amount to anything; you’re just a loser,” or peers, especially kids at school who call each other names.
Ungodly beliefs are formed in our adult years as well. Negative experiences occur during adult years that reinforce childhood hurts. The problems from business, marriage, and church, or the experience of accidents or tragedies can cause us to believe lies about ourselves, others, and God.
Friday
Read:: Luke 10:27, Colossians 2:18
Meditate On: The second way ungodly beliefs are formed is from the Natural Mind. This is the unredeemed mind. To the natural mind concepts such as worldly success, popularity, & the self - made man appeal to our unredeemed mind. These Ungodly Beliefs of the natural mind encourage us to “be in charge,” “to do our own thing,” or even cult practices that teach us “to find our own reality.” Family Backgrounds play a Role. Just like families pass on china, furniture, rods & reels families also pass on ungodly beliefs. These ideas can range from life, politics, religion, prejudices, and relationships. Even unintentional teaching: Child comes home crying because the mean neighbor's kid hit them, the parent says, “There, there, don’t cry. It doesn’t hurt. You are just fine.” The ungodly belief that can be formed in the heart as a and carried into adulthood can sound like this, “It must not be OK for me to share my feelings. People who love me don’t except my real feelings. It’s not alright to cry.”
Saturday
Read: James 4:7, I Peter 5:8
Meditate On: What are the results of ungodly beliefs? First, ungodly beliefs are dangerous because they affect all of our perceptions, all of our decisions, and all of our actions. Secondly, they affect our identity, how we perceive ourselves, how we relate to others, and to God. Thirdly, ungodly beliefs are like “spiritual termites” behind the scenes of our life eating away at the faith we have established in our hearts. Ungodly beliefs by definition is “Unbelief.” Ungodly beliefs hinder or block our faith in God and the truth of His promises. We hinder or shut off God’s ability to bless us. Fourthly, ungodly beliefs provide legal permission for demons to operate in our lives. Why? Because we are in agreement with the Devil - rather than God, we have ungodly beliefs.
It’s bad enough when we have ungodly beliefs and we encounter others with ungodly beliefs. But imagine what it’s like when you get a husband and wife together who have ungodly beliefs. The destruction is devastating!
Sunday
Read: Psalms 27:10, Psalms 103:3, Psalms 147:3
Meditate On: How do we get free of ungodly beliefs? The “perfect” Ungodly Belief is one that appears to be absolutely true based on the facts of our experience and yet is absolutely false based on God’s Word. Many of the negative beliefs that we have about ourselves, others, and God result from the ungodly, hurtful ways we had been treated. Hurts are like an infected wound, and The Ungodly Beliefs are like the pus coming from it. We can wipe away the pus, but more will develop unless the wound is healed. The wound affects the heart, the pus affects the mind.
Here is a Sample of Ungodly Beliefs versus Godly Beliefs.
Ungodly Belief I will always be lonely.
Godly Belief with God’s help, I will begin to reach out to others and also to receive from them.
Ungodly Belief God heals others, that He doesn’t heal me.
Godly Belief God loves His children equally and desires Is best for each one. He desires to heal me. I choose to receive His healing.
Ungodly Belief I am alone in the world, and have no one who cares.
Godly Belief I am not alone in the world because God has given me Himself, My Wife or Husband, and My Family of God.
Sermon Notes
{Downloadable PDF's}
12-5-10
Your True Identity: Redemption
12-29-10
There Is A Light In Goshen
(Darryl Baxter)
1-2-11
Naturally Supernatural
(Paul Metcalf)
1-9-11
Fueling the Supernatural
(Paul Metcalf)
Audio Sermon Downloads
12-5-10
Your True Identity: Redemption
12-15-10
Celebrating Jesus
(Nathan Ellison)
12-29-10
There Is A Light In Goshen
(Darryl Baxter)