Category Archives: Success

Scriptures About the Lord is My Helper

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Scriptures About the Lord is My Helper

The Bible declares that the Lord, God, is our helper. He is there to help us in times of need. That is a promise from scripture. It is part of who God is. It is one of his defining characteristics and traits. We are God’s children, and we have the one true and only God on our side to back us up and empower us. God loves us. He is for us, not against us, and he will help when we need it and when we call out to him. He is your helper and my helper!

There are times in our lives where we face trouble, when we need direction, or when we truly can’t do things on our own. We all need help from time to time. We will need help to do some of the things that God has called us to do. Sometimes that help can come from others, but other times we need help directly from God. It’s okay to ask for help, from others and from God! God will partner with us in the things that we face, big or small.

Therefore this week I’d like to share some scriptures to inform you and build your confidence in the fact that the Lord is your helper!

Scriptures about the Lord is my helper:

“By the God of your father who will help you, by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that crouches beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb.” Genesis 49:25 (ESV)

“Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song to God, and spoke, saying, Let us sing to the Lord, for he is very greatly glorified: horse and rider he has thrown into the sea. He was to me a helper and protector for salvation: this is my God and I will glorify him; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.” Exodus 15:1-2 (BST)

“There is no one like the God of Israel. He rides across the heavens to help you, across the skies in majestic splendor.” Deuteronomy 33:26 (NLT)

“Blessed are you, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword. Your enemies will cower before you, and you will tread on their heights.” Deuteronomy 33:29 (NIV)

“And the song was thus: O Lord, my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God; he shall be to me my guard, I will trust in him: he is my protector, and the horn of my salvation, my helper, and my sure refuge; thou shalt save me from the unjust man. I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, and I shall be saved from my enemies.” 2 Samuel 22:2-4 (BST)

“But You, LORD, do not be far away; You who are my help, hurry to my assistance.” Psalm 22:19 (NASB)

“Do not turn your back on me. Do not reject your servant in anger. You have always been my helper. Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me, O God of my salvation!” Psalm 27:9 (NLT)

“The LORD is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.” Psalm 28:7 (NLT)

“We put our hope in the LORD. He is our help and our shield.” Psalm 33:20 (NLT) Continue reading →

A Yearly Theme Instead of Resolutions

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A Yearly Theme Instead of Resolutions

It’s that time of year when many people set New Year’s Resolutions. Getting a fresh start and taking inventory or assessment (like we discussed last week) are not a bad idea. It’s good to take time to rejoice over victories and lessons learned while still seeking out areas needing growth and improvement. A time for personal inventory and new commitments can be important in your accountability to the Lord. We can see many examples throughout scripture where people set apart time for personal reflection.

However, as I’ve mentioned in previous years, I usually like to come up with a yearly theme or word instead of writing resolutions. I have found this to be a lot more powerful, effective, and productive both personally and especially spiritually. I originally got this idea from a Bible devotional that I read on my YouVersion Bible app, called “One Word That Will Change Your Life”. It was a quick, simple 4-day reading plan. This has changed how I usually approach the new year now, and my focus on a yearly theme tends to last all year as opposed to a fleeting, failing, or temporary resolution.

“Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD.” Lamentations 3:40 (NIV)

“So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do.” 2 Thessalonians 1:11 (NLT)

A time for personal inventory and new commitments can be important in your accountability to the Lord.

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Take Some of the Following Practical Steps to Pick a Yearly Theme and Then Focus on it Over the Year:

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Doing a 2020 Recap

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Doing a 2020 Recap

This past weekend our church did a service revolving around a 2020 recap. There were a few testimonials of people discussing what they’ve learned from 2020, how the year has been impactful for them, or what God had done for them over the past year. It got me to thinking… “How WOULD I recap this past year?”

One of our yearly Christmas traditions came to mind as I was thinking about this. Each year at Christmas we get each of our kids a Christmas ornament for that year. These ornaments usually reflect an event or milestone or memory from the year. This year as I was shopping for their ornament, I knew I wanted it to be 2020 related but not just referring to all of the COVID-19 stuff as so many of them were. I wanted it to reflect the many, many crazy events that took place during 2020—a kind of a 2020 recap on the ornament.

I ended up settling on a type of word cloud ornament. As I was reading through all of the items listed on the ornament, I found myself saying, “Oh yeah, I forgot about that.” It had things like Kobe Bryant’s death, the Australian fires, travel bans, birthday parades, virtual graduations, virtual meetings, distance learning, of course the whole Coronavirus pandemic themed things (quarantine, panic buying, toilet paper shortage, social distancing, face masks, front line heroes and essential workers, etc.), murder hornets, the Beirut explosion, and BLM protests. (It was missing the whole presidential election fiasco which was odd.) It did seem to sum up events of the year pretty well.

On a personal level

While this was a great 2020 recap of the year’s events, it still wasn’t a very personal reflection of the year. I thought about how my mom often does this in her Christmas or end-of-year letters where she summarizes the whole family’s yearly goings-on. So, I started to make a list (although not completely comprehensive)… Continue reading →

Be Thankful–Remember What God Has Done

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Be Thankful Remember What God Has Done

Be Thankful–Remember What God Has Done

“I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.” Psalm 9:1 (ESV) 

Thanksgiving seems to be a good time to reflect on what God has done for us, positive memories, blessings, and just things in general for which we’re thankful (for us U.S. folks anyhow!).  When my kids were younger, I used try to find some type of Thanksgiving craft-like activity each year to do this with them.

Sometimes we’d write down things we we’re thankful for on construction paper feathers and then glue the feathers to a paper turkey.  Sometimes we’d do the same thing on paper leaves and post leaves around as decoration, and we’d even made paper link chains before where each link listed an item of thanks (this encouraged them to think of more than just a few items in order to have a chain long enough to hang!).  Previously, I also posted several ways to try to stay thankful like this year round.

Thanksgiving is a good time to reflect on what God has done for us!

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Remember 3 things God has done

When I teach at Glory House I do an activity with them somewhat similar to these Thanksgiving activities (even when it’s not Thanksgiving time).  Unfortunately, I can’t take credit for the idea though!  I think I first heard this tip from one of our pastors at church years ago.  I was taught to write down 3 things that God has brought me through, brought me to or delivered me from. They could be what God has done through victories, ways God has come through for me or has been faithful to me, answered prayers, etc.  I was then told to keep this list handy and reflect on it or refer back to it when I’m going through a rough time when things seem hopeless or bleak.

The ladies love when we do this activity.  They also usually come up with more than three, but three things are typically pretty easy to come up with and recall.  It’s just a good way to remember what God has done.  It helps us to think positively and gives us the mindset “He did it before.  He’ll do it again.” or “He helped me with that.  He’ll help me with this too.”

Remember what God has done by finding a symbol

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Gratitude Prompts

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Gratitude Prompts

Everyone is into challenges these days. We see things going viral on social media because people are challenging others to do something. I recently saw something that said “gratitude challenge” where the person was challenging others to write down 3-5 things a day that they are thankful for and to do this for 30 days. She discussed some of the benefits she had personally received from this in her own life and wanted to encourage others to experience some of these same benefits. I’ve written previously about some of the benefits and ways of showing gratitude (previous posts here and here).

Gratitude has the ability to change our hearts and our outlook. Something happens when we can shift our mind off the negative things around us and intentionally focus on what we have to be thankful for. I’ve discovered that when I’m thankful, things around me seem brighter, and I focus less on what’s wrong and more on what’s good and right. Additionally, when we choose to see God’s provision, it makes it hard to be frustrated by all the ways we feel like we’re lacking something in the moment.

Thankful people tend to be happier people. Several years ago I read a good article about the benefits of gratitude. It stated that studies show that gratitude has the ability to make us healthier both physically and mentally, to enhance resiliency to stress, to increase levels of joy, pleasure and happiness, and to reap social benefits.[1]  In essence, people who can stay thankful year round are happy, healthy and prosperous people!

It is also God’s will for us to be thankful and have gratitude.

“Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NLT)

So maybe a gratitude challenge isn’t such a bad idea after all! We have to be intentional and CHOOSE to be grateful. It will take some purposeful and deliberate energy on our part. Sometimes it can be difficult, especially in the midst of hardship, to think of things to be thankful for. Therefore, here are some gratitude prompts to get you thinking about things you can be thankful for.

Thankful people tend to be happier people. Gratitude has the ability to change our hearts and our outlook.

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Take Some Practical Steps to be Thankful by Using These Gratitude Prompts:

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Who is on Your “Cabinet” of Advisers?

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Who is on Your Cabinet of Advisers? Do you have people you go to for advice, counsel, prayer, etc.? We all need reliable, honest people on our team to call on when we need.

Who is on Your “Cabinet” of Advisers?

Today is the Presidential election in the United States. The role of President is a pretty powerful role. However, to think that one possesses all of the knowledge, wisdom and power in oneself to live and make decisions without relying on the wisdom and help of others is foolish. This is one of the reasons why the U.S. President uses a Cabinet, a special group of advisers.

Article II, Section 2 of the U. S. Constitution states that the President “may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices” (art. 2, sec. 2, cl. 1.). To build the Cabinet, the President nominates heads of federal executive departments such as Secretary of State, Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of Defense, Attorney General, etc. Nominees are approved or confirmed by the Senate.

We need a Cabinet too

Just like it would be unwise for the President to think he needs no one, it would be foolish for us to try to do life alone. Especially when making big decisions, it’s always a good idea to consult others. Therefore, similar to the President, we too need a Cabinet of advisers. We need people in our lives that we can go to for their opinion on certain matters.

It’s not good to do life alone

God designed us as relational beings—we were NOT meant to do life alone!

The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him. (Genesis 2:18 NIV)

Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NLT)

Jesus was led alone to the wilderness to be tempted (Matthew 4:1). We are tempted more when alone. 

God designed us as relational beings—we were NOT meant to do life alone!

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It’s wise to seek advice

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Spiritual Alignment

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Spiritual Alignment

I had to go to the chiropractor not long ago for some minor problems I was having with my back and neck. With a few adjustments the chiropractor was able to get my spine back into alignment, eliminating my symptoms of pain and numbness. It made me think about how we can get out of alignment spiritually as well.

We might not be exactly where we need to be in our relationship with God, or perhaps we aren’t completely lined up with his instructions or teachings. Sometimes we’ll seem to notice that things feel just a little bit off or not right (like my back and neck did). We may even notice that we have drifted away slightly or don’t feel as passionate as we used to. There might be a sense of dryness or just going through the motions. We may feel spiritually unproductive or unfruitful.

When we are spiritually misaligned we can become spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and physically depleted. These may all be symptoms of spiritual misalignment just as my pain and numbness were symptoms of physical misalignment.

Staying connected to Jesus to maintain spiritual alignment

Around that same time that I went to the chiropractor, I had spent some time reading John 15 and noticed how it shows us one way we can stay IN spiritual alignment by abiding or remaining in Jesus and his love and by God’s word abiding in us.

Pastor Tony Evans said, “John 15 says that if you will abide in Him and His Word, and He abides in you, you can do anything. You can overcome anything. Your prayers will be answered because your prayers will be aligned to Him. Jesus doesn’t want you to just learn about Him, study some stories, post some Scripture and throw up some prayers. He wants a relationship with YOU. That’s the kingdom encounter you need to pursue. It’s called: abiding.”[1]

“1I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. 3You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. 4Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.

5“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. 6Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. 7But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! 8When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

9“I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. 10When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. 11I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 12This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. 13There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14You are my friends if you do what I command. 15I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. 

16You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. 17This is my command: Love each other.” John 15:1-17 (NLT)

Another analogy: Tires

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Don’t Be a Know-It-All—Humble Yourself

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Don’t Be a Know-It-All—Humble Yourself

As a teacher, I’ve had my fill of know-it-alls in my classes. So many people give the impression that they have nothing new to learn or have no room for improvement. Many often want to share what they know and tell their personal stories, as if graciously imparting their own wisdom onto the teacher and listeners. They are the expert in their eyes. There’s a lack of humility, and most of the time they don’t even know it.

I was praying for a difficult student one time. She was a bit of a know-it-all, frequently interrupting me and others to share her own insight and stories. It often seemed like it didn’t even occur to her that she might need to learn what was being taught. I realized that some of the things she was doing were things of which I have also been guilty. Isn’t interesting how we can see some of our own flaws pointed out in others? (See Practical Step #2 in this post) As I was praying for God to humble her I realized that I too need to be humbled. Boy was that humbling! 😉

However, praying “Humble me” can be a dangerous prayer! It can potentially invite in embarrassment, looking bad in front of others, having our wrongs being made evident, or being put in our place. This can be especially hard if you’re a people pleaser or care to much about what people think about you. We might know that we need to be humbled but might not be quite ready to go through the humbling process just yet!

Don’t avoid the need to be humbled in order to be a people-pleaser

Even though the humbling process might be difficult or even embarrassing at times, we shouldn’t avoid asking God to humble us (or humbling ourselves) because of how it might make us look. Self-image should not be a determining factor nor should attempts to please others. Our aim should always be to please God, even if there’s a cost.

“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10 (ESV)

“It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, but if you trust the LORD, you are safe.” Proverbs 29:25 (GNT)

“For they loved human praise more than the praise of God.” John 12:43 (NLT)

“You like to receive praise from one another, but you do not try to win praise from the one who alone is God; how, then, can you believe me?” John 5:44 (CEV)

“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” Colossians 3:23 (NLT)

Don’t be a know-it-all!

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