21 Days Devotionals Archive

Day 21

We all want our prayers answered. The number one reason why our prayers are not answered is, “We are not focused on the glory of God!” Think about the prayers in your life. Do you want to be happy in your marriage, or do you want God to be glorified in your marriage? Do you merely want your kids to be nice and not get in trouble, or do want God to be glorified in their lives? Do you simply want to get out of your financial mess and feel some relief, or do you want God to be glorified in your finances. 

Our motivation for prayer should not just be centered on ourselves so we can have what we need. God thrives when He can prove Himself. He wants to be glorified in and through us, and He wants to be glorified in the earth. God will share that glory with no one. He deserves nothing less than all the glory, all the honor, and all the praise. Glorifying God has to be the motive of our prayers, not just our relief. 

Fasting empowers us. God does not expect us to go through the challenges of life without His power. Prayer and fasting brings us to the place where we can power up. As you worship Him, plan to go into the future with His power and be intentional about using all of the resources that He has for you.

DAY 20

I have a very important question for you, “Do you know what God’s Word says about your situation?” Effective prayer is based on the Word of God.

Effective prayer is not based on our authority, but on the authority of God’s Word! We need to know the Word well enough to pray Word-based prayers. Prayer is not so much about getting what we want but aligning ourselves with what God wants. Matthew 6:33 clearly tells us what He wants. He wants us to seek Him first! Are you pleading for financial breakthrough? Then you need to be aligned with what God says about resources. Are you tithing? We have a part to play in the effectiveness of our prayers, and it has to do with alignment with God’s Word. 

Can you see how prayer is actually less about getting from God as it is about aligning ourselves with what God already wants to do. Many times, though, we can get so focused on our own comfort or our own preferences that we don’t even take the time to examine ourselves to see what God’s Word has to say about our situation. We have to align our prayers with the Word, and we may also need to align some aspects of our lives with His Word. 

Prayer and fasting is the preparation we go through to create the container that is ready for the new thing God wants to do in and through us. God’s new wine always changes us by expanding our faith, enlarging our purpose and bringing renewed vision. Pray that the Lord will expand your life to glorify Him, giving you boldness to step out and be used by Him.

DAY 19

Jesus told his disciples to pray in HIS name. Do you understand what that means? Jesus has given us His name to use! Just imagine if some billionaire gave you his credit cards and authorized you to use his bank account. You could use his name and his resources to get whatever you needed. Wow, that would be a blast! But here is the catch. You knew there had to be a catch right? Everything you did with his money needed to be in line with his tastes and values. To pray in Jesus’ name means to pray in alignment with His values.

God has given us total access to His incredible power and unlimited resources. When we pray in the name of Jesus, it has the same power as if Jesus were praying Himself. The difference between us and Jesus is that Jesus is always in complete alignment with His Father. That is why periodic seasons of fasting are so important. Fasting is the most effective way to really get in alignment with God. Thus the first step to praying prayers that avail much is praying in alignment with God’s will.  

We can come to the throne in such outrageous boldness because Jesus was outrageously righteous! When we pray, we can come to God in the authority of Jesus’ name, and we can be confident that we will find grace, mercy and perfectly timed help. Be bold in your prayers today!

It is important to remember, “Fasting is not an end in itself; it is a means by which we can worship the Lord and submit ourselves in humility to Him…{Fasting} invites God into the problem. Then in the strength of God, victory is possible.” – Elmer Towns

DAY 18

Making prayer a priority is important. Make sure you don’t turn it into work. If your motive is to seek God, to enjoy God, to pursue God, then pray away. Don’t let prayer turn into legalism. Legalism is when you think you have to pray each day without fail at the same time, for a certain amount of time, and according to a certain format. And if you don’t look out—God will be unhappy with you. Remember the primary purpose of prayer is relationship building as you draw near to God as you talk and listen to Him. 

Prayer can easily become about our performance rather than about knowing God. When that happens, prayer turns into a legalistic obligation, and the joy goes right out of it. Such a performance mentality actually sets you up for an inconsistent prayer life, because every time you fail to meet your standards, you will fall under condemnation, and instead of looking forward to your next prayer time, it will seem like a joyless burden. Instead of coming to the throne of God boldly and confidently, you will begin apologizing for missing your prayer time for a day or two or for cutting it short by a few minutes. It is important to keep our prayer times fresh. It is time to have an awakening in our prayer life.

DAY 17

It is so easy to get distracted by all the things going on in our lives. We can get wrapped up in all of the things that we have to do that we constantly find ourselves living in the fast lane of life. I suppose it is okay to be in the fast lane, as long as you are making regular rest stops to get alone with God. Even Jesus had to create space for His Father to fill. 

Both Moses and John the Baptist created space for the Father to fill. They were in the desert when they heard God’s voice. I’m not saying you have to get a machete and hack your way out in the wilderness or travel to some desert somewhere, but whether it’s in your car, your bedroom or whatever, get alone with God so you can hear the voice of your heavenly Father. 

Hearing from God doesn’t need to take a long time, but neither can it be rushed. You don’t have to pray and cry out to God for two hours a day every single day of the week to hear His voice. Reading your Bible doesn’t mean it has to be four chapters a day. We make this more complicated than it has to be. What you do need is a time that is set aside, a time for nothing but you and God, and you need to guard that time. Pick a place that works for you where you can really get alone with God and detach from the usual distractions. Come prepared to hear from Him, having things like your Bible, a pen, a highlighter, and a journal readily available. Have worship music within reach too. Keep your time with God fresh and new but also simple and sustainable. Find out what works for you and create space for God.

DAY 16

I find it very interesting: When God wanted to fill believers with the Holy Spirit, the most amazing filling of all, He didn’t ask them to think it all through and figure out how that was going to happen. He also didn’t force it upon them. He revealed what was in store for them and asked them to be ready, but then He asked them to create a space where it could happen. 

Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:3-4, 6, 17-18 how we can create space. In these verses He doesn’t say, “if.” He says “when” you do these things. He assumed that, as His children, we would want to create spaces in our lives for Him to fill with His rewards. When you give, pray, or fast, you are creating space for God to do amazing things in your life.

For many, week three feels like a breakthrough week. As your body has become used to less food, you are more than likely experiencing fewer hunger pangs. Since your body has detoxified, you are most likely also experiencing less achiness and headaches. Because your body is not using as much energy to digest food, it can devote more energy into the restorative processes. During the last week you may also find you are sleeping better too. Spiritually speaking, this week can be really powerful as you find yourself in your fast zone, and your mind has made the leap to focusing more on God. 

Make a choice to finish your fast strong, and ask God to help you keep your momentum (or even strengthen it) as your year goes on.

DAY 15

Prayer and fasting is about creating space for God, clearing a runway in our lives for God to land. When you want something new and exciting to happen in your life, then you have to create some space. An expectant mom goes to great lengths to create the perfect nursery space for her new little one. 

Think about that new thing that you want God to do in your life. Think about that problem that is blocking your path that you need God to remove. As much as God wants to do something amazing in your life, He is a filler, not a forcer. 

Too often we spend so much time and energy trying to figure out and anticipate every scenario. We want God to do this; we want God to do that. But all the while God is saying, “Just create a little space for Me, and I’ll come in and fill it.” By seeking God and by following Him fully, you are creating space for God to move. As you fast and as you pray, you are making room for God to do what only He can do. He is a filler, not a forcer.

Maybe you have tried to participate in this fast but have found yourself stumbling along the way. I want to encourage you to keep going. Don’t be discouraged by looking at the times you gave in to hunger or messed up. Be encouraged by this: when we draw near to God, He draws near to us. 

DAY 14

A great way to begin each day is by focusing on who God is! Today focus on the goodness, the greatness, and glory of God. Focusing daily on these three attributes of God gives us a complete picture or filter of grace. The Lord’s Prayer is a great prayer to help us think about the goodness, the greatness and glory of God. 

When we call God our Father, it reminds us that we are His children. He loves, cares for, and provides for His children. He is a great dad. But that’s not enough, is it? You can know that you are loved and that God is good, but you can still be going through hard times. So we not only need to focus on God’s goodness, but we also need to set our minds on how great God is. Our great God is in heaven. When we think about our God in heaven, it reminds us that he reigns and rules and is in control. He has all the power that we need to make it through tough times. Lastly we need to give God glory. When you “hallow” God’s name (or make it holy), it is a helpful reminder that life is not all about us.

When you get up in the morning, your number one priority should be to get in the right mindset for your day. First things first – simply focus on who God is! Focus on His goodness, greatness, glory, and ask Him to help you see everything else through that filter. Remember, it’s not about what you do, it’s about who God is.

DAY 13

The way we can grow in our love for God and others is by focusing on His love for us. God’s love is endless and it comes freely without any condition; He loves us no matter what we have or haven’t done. When you focus on God’s love, His joy and peace will follow. 

Your feelings will follow what you focus on. That’s why it’s so important to focus on the goodness of God through His Word. When you focus on your faults, you’ll end up feeling condemned. Make sure you don’t fall into the performance trap. If you perform well, then it can lead to pride. On the other hand, if you don’t perform well, the fruit is condemnation. Either way the fruit of having a performance-based relationship is a lose-lose situation. If we try to come to God based on our performance, guess what? It will never be good enough. None of us could ever be that good; only Jesus was able to do that. That’s why we have to focus on God’s love for us. 

Make sure you regularly meditate on verses that help you focus on God’s love. Today be intentional about focusing on God’s love for you and ask Him to give you a fresh revelation of how much He loves you.

Day 12

Grace is the foundation for a relationship with God. If we get grace wrong, then we pursue God in wrong ways. We don’t pray, fast, or read our Bibles to get God to love us more. It’s not possible for God to love us more than he loves us right now, and His love for us never changes. His love is not based on what we do, but it is based on what Jesus has done! Grace is undeserved favor.  

Some people think that telling people about God’s grace encourages people to sin. I contend that it will do just the opposite. Understanding the fullness of the goodness of God actually causes us to sin less. 

The way we love God more is by focusing on His love for us. We will live more holy on accident by focusing on the goodness of God than we will by focusing on all the “thou shalt's and “thou shalt not's.” I pray for a grace awakening in your life that you will realize how loved and accepted and forgiven you are by God. You can’t earn God’s love and grace; you have to accept it, receive it, believe it, and trust in it.

DAY 11

When we experience staleness in our relationship with God for whatever reason, surrendering again is the first step to rekindling the fire within! We need to start each day with complete surrender. Surrender is more of an ongoing process rather than just a one-time decision. Full surrender to God means no more going back and forth with one foot in the world and the other foot in God’s kingdom. Following Jesus is all or nothing.

The surrendered life is the best life. It’s really the only way to live as a believer. But to get there, you’ve got to go all out. This means total surrender. No more halfway stuff; you can’t be a part-time Christian. God wants you to be a full time follower of Jesus.

When you fully surrender to God, you are filled with His Spirit and are awakened to His presence in your life. God will energize you and give you a hunger for His Word.

DAY 10

The hardest decisions to make are usually not between what is good and bad. Usually the most difficult decisions are between what is good, better and best. It is so important to be able to clearly hear the voice of God when facing important decisions. Jesus regularly disconnected from the world to hear the voice of God. This awakening season is all about disconnecting from the world so that we can hear the voice of God. 

All sorts of things will try to crowd God out of your life. Jesus faced pressure from the crowds, and he had to choose between doing good and doing God’s will. The crowds constantly tugged on Jesus to heal them or to do another miracle. What might have happened if Jesus had listened to the voice of the crowds? He would have settled for a very good cause, healing, but missed his primary purpose to preach the kingdom of God to lost humanity. Jesus knew that with so much need everywhere, He had to hear the voice of His Father, or He would have mistakenly chosen what’s good instead of what’s God. That is exactly what will happen in our lives if we’re not tuned in to God and hearing His voice over the voice of the crowd.

DAY 9

The constant demand on our mind, the distractions, and the noise can weigh us down and put us in a spiritual fog. Life has a way of stacking on the pressure and pain, which causes our emotions to get out of whack. As we get tired and weighed down, our conscience can become desensitized, not really bothered by things that once convicted us. God’s voice is slowly muffled, and we begin to lose our passion for Him. The fire within dims, and we shift into autopilot, operating from a position of obligation or routine in our relationship with God, instead of one of affection and fervor. 

Fasting hits the reset button of our soul. To receive the new things God wants to bring into our lives, we have to periodically hit the reset button. This is what I call experiencing a newness of soul. What a powerful gift we have been given through fasting.

DAY 8

Fasting is one of the most powerful spiritual weapons believers can use. Maybe you’ve never done it before. There is a serious misconception that fasting is for serious, super Christians or only for times of crisis. Some even think fasting is only an Old Testament thing. Nothing could be further from the truth.  

Jesus said in Matthew 6:16, “When you fast.” He did not say IF you fast!
There is a closeness to God that you simply will not experience from prayer or personal devotions alone. You must fast. You get a revelation of God’s Word when you fast that you simply cannot get any other way. Disconnecting from the distractions of the world through fasting, and connecting into the power and presence of God through prayer, brings a supernatural freshness and newness to our souls.

DAY 7

Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.” — John 10:11

Trust the Shepherd’s leadership.

Most of us hate change; most of us resist change that could potentially cause our situation to become worse rather than better. But we eagerly change jobs when it means higher pay and more influence or we happily embrace moving into a bigger house in a better neighborhood; we tend to embrace change that guarantees a good outcome. So, it’s not change in general that we hate, it’s change that involves uncertainty; loss or letting go of the familiar. Sometimes, it is easier to stay in our comfortable and familiar pasture rather than follow the Good Shepherd into the new and greener pasture. Change is not easy and can be extremely uncomfortable, but when we are being led to a better place by someone who loves us, we need not fear the change. Even though change may cause us to walk through a moment of difficult darkness, we must remember that we are just passing through. Do not fear! Allow God’s perfect love for you to drive out fear and build your confidence. We can trust the leadership of the Good Shepherd. He will use His staff to comfort us and lead us out of the old and into the new.

There are times when we feel like we are circling a mountain with no change in site. Don’t lose heart! It was a common trait for sheep on the hillside of Israel to circle their way up the mountain, they were forming a path that kept taking them higher and higher. It may seem like you are going in circles, but as you follow the Shepherd along the path of righteousness, you will change and you will reach new heights. Just Keep following the Shepherd because He can be trusted.

Change is hard at first, messy in the middle, but worth it in the end!

DAY 6

We hear a lot about the glorious announcement of the angels to poor lowly shepherds, but have you ever thought about how much that one encounter with God himself changed those shepherds lives. First of all, I can not imagine much that shepherds would get very excited about, but God knows just how to shake us up. God likes to show up when we are simply going about our everyday boring responsibilities. I like to think God loves surprises. Realizing that God chose to announce to them the most exciting news the world has ever heard, they had to do something. First they ran to see Jesus for themselves. Then they shared all they had seen and heard with all who would listen, but that’s not all. They excitedly praised God all the way back to their flocks for all that had happened. I’m sure the sharing and praising didn’t end there. They were marked forever. The good news is Jesus is your Messiah, your Savior. Do you look forward to meeting him everyday in prayer and in his Word. Have you discovered a Lord so wonderful you can’t help sharing your joy with your friends? How can we ever stop praising God for all we see and hear him doing? I’m sure God has surprises in store for each and every one of us this year. In God’s eyes, they are all good surprises. Pray that God will give you eyes to see His goodness in all things, especially the unexpected. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Day 5

There is not much about Joseph in the Bible, but with a bit of inference we know he was a man of integrity. He always tried to do what was right and when given instruction by an angel, at least four times, he obeyed quickly, completely and in the right way. I’m sure he had questions but he didn’t waste time asking. And his obedience didn’t stop there. He didn’t wait around for the next angel for more instruction. He simply loved God and continued to do what he knew was right for his family every day. With four major unexpected shifts, Joseph’s life did not go in any way like he hoped and dreamed, but somehow he had the strength of character to respond in the right way every time. The more we obey like Joseph the more God will speak to us. If you feel like you cannot hear God, just pick up the Bible and read it out loud. Every word is God speaking to you. Train your ears to be sensitive to the word of God and obey like Joseph. The more we obey, the more sensitive we become to hearing God speak in every circumstance of our lives. It may not be what we expect to hear and it may be a major life shift but we can trust and “Know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.” (Romans 8:38)

Day 4

Mary, mother of Jesus, was likely only thirteen years old when the angel appeared with the announcement that not only changed her life forever but changed the whole world. She responded by believing every word spoken to her even though it must have been a very overwhelming experience. She obviously trusted God to completely take care of her and Jesus and Joseph. Then she simply invited God to do all he said he would do. What a mature response for such a young girl. She must have often thought deeply about all that God was doing in and for her, even before her encounter with the angel. Meditate on on her response of joy and gratefulness in Luke 1:46-56. Like Mary, let us ponder deeply on all that God is doing in us and for us. May we purposely determine to respond to every word God speaks to us this year by believing, trusting and inviting Him to do all He says He will do.

DAY 3

Shift might not involve a monumental change of course. It may be a call to evaluate where you are, strengthen what is there and continue on your present course with repentance if necessary, a renewed mind, fresh anointing and greater passion. He's leading us deeper so He can take us higher! That means going deeper in His Word, which contains layers and layers of truth and revelation we've not yet explored, and deeper into knowing His heart, exploring His emotions and becoming one with Him, so He can give us the thrill ride of eternity, partnering with Him in His kingdom. There are times when we experience a glorious thrill ride on this side of His coming, but many times the thrill is a deep, inner peace which causes us to smile when we lay our heads down at night, a peace that cannot be explained or understood. "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." (Luke 12:32). Ask God today for strategy on how to move deeper into truly knowing Him. Do you hear Him say, as He said to John in Rev. , "Come up here..."?

Day 2

Sometimes shift involves changing your position on the team. We must trust our coach (Holy Spirit). He has the Kingdom in mind and knows that in this new position we can best benefit the overall goal of the team. But this can be difficult, even distressing. We are comfortable, safe and secure at the position we've been playing. However, He sees something in us that we don't see in ourselves. Greater glory is on the horizon for us as we say "Yes" and begin to focus on and train for something new. Is God asking you to loosen your grip on the past, be willing to let go at His command and in His timing move out into newness? Fear, insecurity and pride are our fierce opponents and will try relentlessly to push us back into the familiar. But because we have trained, we conquer them. "Call to me, and I will answer you and tell you great and mighty things which you do not know." (Jer. 33;3). Call to Him now, listen and say, "YES, I will step out in confidence, trusting you all the way!”

Day 1

One of the greatest motivators in bringing us to a place of shift, to a place of leaving old, stale mindsets behind and embracing the new, is understanding that we are part of a much bigger picture, the Kingdom of God. There's something much bigger than me going on. I have an important position on the team, and as I follow the play book and listen to the coach, I will bless the Kingdom! That's what really matters. Shift will show! Shift involves "shining". Dan. 12: 3 says, "Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven..." Matt. 13:43 says, "The righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear." Ask for insight today and revelation of your part on the team. Ask for a greater kingdom perspective. What could that shift look like in your life? As you take your position in this exciting game of life, you will shine and help bring the team to victory!