"He was called God's friend."

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 17 "He was called God's friend." James 2: 23 (NIV) 23 "And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, and he was called God's friend." I don't have many friends; I have a couple whom I hold dear to my heart. We visit and chat and enjoy a cup of tea and eat cake. I was talking about things we don't want to discuss with our families because sometimes we need someone unbiased. I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and because I feel that I am God's child, I think that we are friends too. This makes the path straight for me to be able to speak to God about things in my own life and circumstances I cannot deal with. My friends always help me when times are tough, and I don't always have great solutions. As I sit here, I realize that God is there for me, He never leaves me, and He never forsakes me. Awesome Lord, what a privilege to be able to call You my friend God. Thank You. Prayer Lord God friends are challenging to find, and I believe You are my friend, thank You, Lord, for hearing me today. Thank You that I can confide in You and know that You have my best interest at heart. I love You, Lord God, in the Holy Name of Jesus Christ. Amen

Blessings or curses?

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 16 Blessings or curses? Deuteronomy 30:19 (AMP) 19 "I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore, you shall choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants." Our words have so much power I have heard it said: "You will have what you say." My daughter's favourite phrases. Here we see the Lord God speaking to Moses and in turn, Moses relays the message to the Israelites. God is faithful and always give each one of us the option to choose. Do you also go and weighs the pro's and con's or do you jump in and go with the flow? God is in the position to bless you and in abundance too. You need to watch your words, seek the blessings and live an abundant life. Our lives are blessed so that we may be a blessing to other people. Living a life of abundance means we need to think of the less fortunate. The Lord gives us wisdom and insight to make the right decision every day. Prayer O Lord God, I am so grateful for the opportunity in coming to You this morning. Lord God, I choose You, and I choose life, I want to have supernatural blessings in my life. So that my children and their children will receive the benefits, Lord as I declare this into my personal experience I believe Your promise will flow into my own life. In the Holy Name of Jesus Christ. Amen

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 15 Strengthen my marriage. 1 Corinthians 13: 7(NLT) 7 "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." The devil knows how to bring temptation into anyone's life. We all need to pray Lord, strengthen my marriage; it is so easy to fall prey to having affairs these days. People work long hours with really some great people at the office. Both wives and husbands can fall into the trap of having an office affair. Let's not focus on how office affairs or any other affairs start let us take a different view of our marriages. Remind yourself that your spouse is tired and has worked a long day coming home they don't want to argue or fight. They want to sit down to a lovely meal and warm conversation. You may be feeling drained, but don't ever give up on your marriage. Treat each other with respect always, love each other unconditionally, never give up on your wedding. If you have a disagreement or argument, make sure you sort it out before going to bed tonight. Kiss and make up, don't let it run over into the morning. Prayer Abba Father, please help us to never give up on love, and always stay hopeful. Help us to endure every circumstance in love and appreciate each other for who we are. Strengthen our marriage and protect each one of us in Jesus Holy Name. Amen

Then you will live a long, full life.

By Yvette van Niekerk

August 14 Then you will live a long, full life. Exodus 20: 12 (NLV) 12 "Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you." Relationships are tricky, moms and dads, children, brothers and sisters, and not forgetting friends and family. People tend to disappoint one. Why? I think it is because we are human and cannot perceive other people's feelings and emotions at the time. Sometimes we are just too sensitive and hurt by the actions and words of the people in our lives it causes us to rebel and acts out against the people we love. The people closest are the ones who offend and hurt us most. How can we change? Let's start with our relationships with our parents, moms, and dads. Let's get that part of our lives right and trust God to help us going forward. Let's live lives in the land the Lord our God has given us. Prayer O Lord God as we honour our parents today, we dedicate our moms and dads to Your Holy Hands. So many moms and dads are hurting and need You. Create Lord God humility in our hearts towards our parents and let us reconcile with our parents in the holy name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Do you have Idols in your lide?

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 13 Do you have Idols in your life? Psalm 115: 8 (NLT) 8 "And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them." O, my God, I am guilty of idolizing people; I am guilty of idolizing my children and my family. What can they do for me? Help me in times of need, but are they able to get me to heaven? No. We are all guilty of idolizing someone or something in our lives. The harsh reality is that God hates idols; God reminds us to trust in the Lord! The Lord is our helper and our shield. Take the time to think about the things and people you idolize repent of your sin and pray, asking the Lord God to forgive you. Turn back to God, remember God is the one who blesses you, God is your shield of protection, God is your helper, and God looks after you and your children and their children. We must trust and believe in the Lord our God; He is blessing each of us every day. Call on Him. Prayer Heavenly Father let us not fall into the trap of idolizing everything on earth and forgetting about the most important person in our carnal lives. You are so awesome, and we praise You, we idolize and worship You, Lord. Keep our hearts, minds and souls focused on You. In the Holy Name of Jesus, Amen

My Promises in the Bible

By Yvette van Niekerk

My Promises in the Bible “You shall not go out with haste.” Isaiah 52: 12 NKJV If you know me, you will know that I am someone that reacts immediately. I’m under pressure and will do the job now. Without even considering the outcome, fortunately, God is watching over me and I have come to a point in my life where I realise I need to take a breath. I need to stop my action right away and pray about what I’m about to do. If I take a moment to reflect and think about what God has in store for me, I can hear Him saying “Yvette, you shall not go out with haste … for the Lord will go before you, and … be your rear guard.” This has been a revelation to me lately. I am very impulsive and it has cost me dearly. I am standing on God’s promises for me today, He said: “Yvette, you shall not go out with haste.” I seem to make many wrong turns lately but God has been so merciful towards me that He reminds me: “Yvette, you can make your plans, but the Lord determines your steps.” Proverbs 16 verse 9. The truth is I don’t always allow God to overturn my decision and reroute my steps. I seem to have this stubborn streak and will bump my head a few times before I realise God is trying to reroute me. I forgot God can help me when I feel stressed out and my burdens are so much to bear. I need to remind myself God speaks to me through His word: “Yvette, give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” Psalm 55 verse 22. Prayer Dear Father God, today I have come to realise that nothing in my life is coincident. I also know that I should reprioritise my life in order to hear directly from You, through the Bible and Your Holy Spirit. Today I sacrifice my less important things and I want to tune into hearing Your voice. I know in my heart of hearts You are very important to me. I am drawing closer to You, please guard my mouth, help me to speak graciously and attractively as You have instructed me. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen

Our Safety

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 12 Our Safety. Isaiah 41: 10 (NLT) 10 "Do not be afraid, for I am with you, don't be discouraged, for I am Your God." As I sit here, I want to remind you of our awesome and wonderful God, perhaps you are feeling insecure and feel that your safety is at risk? Don't fear, and God said I am with you. I believe that God makes things happen in our lives to prevent us from going into a certain situation. Think about this, you are getting ready for work, and your child played with your car keys. It's getting late you and the kids are all running around the house looking for the keys, the spare key has been misplaced as well. After 15 minutes, you find the keys under the couch in the lounge. You take the children to school and off you go to the office. On your way to the office, you drive past a huge accident. You missed that accident by 25 minutes. Amazed you drive by and are on your way to the office. You think about the word for today "do not be afraid, for I am with you." You were so discouraged while you were looking for the car key and realize "for I am Your God." Prayer Awesome and wonderful God, O Lord God, thank You for keeping us safe and helping us to realize that You are watching over us, reminding us not to become discouraged. Thank You, Lord, for being our God, in Jesus name Amen

Unual Miracles

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 11 Unusual Miracles. Acts 19: 12 (NLT) 12 "When handkerchiefs or aprons that had merely touched his [Paul'sPaul's] skin was placed on sick people, they were healed of their diseases, and evil spirits were expelled." The Apostel Paul received God's power to perform the unusual miracle. Walking down the street passing some sick people and your handkerchief fall on the person. They are healed by this miraculous action. As Christians, we should pray and fast constantly so that the Holy Spirit can operate in our lives, humble ourselves and become vessels God can use. The healing and setting free of demons is something we can do when we are filled with God's Holy Spirit. The age we are living is so dynamic, and it's time we live out our God-given potential. What is missing? We need a refreshed new touching of God'sGod's Holy Spirit in our lives. Calling on You Holy Spirit, return to us please in Jesus Holy Name. Prayer Abba Father the lives we live needs a refreshing new touch of Your Holy Spirit, giving us the power that we need to perform unusual miracles. We pray Lord that You will search our hearts and souls and fill us anew with Your power, come to Holy Spirit we need You. In Jesus Christ's name, Amen.

I am confessing that I am not tactful anymore.

by Yvette van Niekerk

I am confessing that I am not tactful anymore. Colossians 4: 6 "Let your conversation be gracious and attractive." My policy is and will be "honesty is the best policy". I keep to this as one of my many creeds. Unfortunately, I have become mean-spirited, I am frustrated, irritated, disappointed and very angry at certain people. They seem to go out of their way to bait me, and I keep falling into their traps. This verse shook me today. I feel very convicted by the Word of God today, and I believe God is drawing my attention to this problem. There must be a remedy for someone like me. I lost the ability to speak kindly and listen to them as I am already on my guard. I believe I will have to focus on learning and developing a new conversational skill. I need to remove my emotions number one from the conversation so that I can listen. Then I need to focus on my sensitivity toward them and see if I can control my attitude. I keep on hearing just remember you are the adult and they are still young kids. Now how am I going to exhibit graciousness in my conversations towards them? Tricky, I need to practice being friendly and kind when I see them. Then I get hit over the head with a stick constantly by people telling me aren't supposed to be a Spirit-filled Christian, who is in control. It's easier said than done, I have been perpetuating the communication style of my family and it's hard to change it. According to my husband, I can tell the truth tactfully. Shamefully I am standing here with this problem and I read in John 1 verse 7 "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth come through Jesus Christ." What can I learn from the Lord Jesus Christ? The Lord Jesus Christ never allowed courtesy and kindness to prevent Him from telling the truth, and never in a mean-spirited way. I need to take a page out of the Lord Jesus Christ book today. What do you think I should do? The remedy I believe is to take a moment before I speak to the person and think of the response I want to give. I need to learn how to evaluate the impact my words will have on the situation. I do believe if I want to succeed I will have to consult with the Holy Spirit. I want the Holy Spirit to help me develop my emotional self going forward. Prayer Father God, Lord You, know my heart and what I am facing each day. I confess that I am guilty of having no tact and that I have become mean-spirited. It's clear by the way I treat people closest to me. I am sorry Lord. Lord because I am stubborn and full of myself, I am humbly asking that a guard be placed over my mouth. I also need clearness of mind so that I can think before I speak. Please Holy Spirit, You know I am trying to live a holy life and this is not the way forward. Lord, I surrender my life into Your hands today, I pray that You will place a guard over my mouth, and start teaching me to speak to people graciously and attractively. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen

Don’t Talk About It!

by Yvette van Niekerk

August 10 Don’t Talk About It! Romans 1: 29 (NLT) 29 “Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarrelling, deception, malicious behaviour, and gossip.” My mom and granny always reminded us never to say bad things about other people. My mom would always say, “If you don’t have anything good to say, keep quiet!” There are so many opinionated people living among us that they feel it is their right to air their views about all kinds of sins, friends and family are up to. These days’ people resort to so many different devices to spread gossip, talk about other people’s sins and failures. The sad part is no one keeps quiet anymore, and it’s the norm to spread other people’s sins. You may have made some mistakes and others have gone and told the whole world, so to speak. Shamefully it haunts you but pretending it’s okay, you laugh and carry on as usual. Let’s all stop talking about other people’s mistakes, and repent of the sins that are so hateful. Prayer O Lord, we are such selfish; self-centred people, we forget to read You scriptures and take it into our hearts. We laugh and spread malicious gossip about our family and friends, never worried about the consequences it brings. Humbly we pray to forgive us and help us to place guards in front of our mouths, in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen.

God loves a cheerful giver!

by Yvette van Niekerk

God loves a cheerful giver! 2 Corinthians 9: 6 - 8 "Remember this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. Each person should do as he has decided in his heart - not reluctantly or out of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work." I know when it comes to money many people think no way, I work hard for my money and I'm not giving it away. To support the church financially sounds darn right hard. I used to think I don't have money to give and I used to hold onto my cash. It was hard times and I just couldn't think of giving. But as I grow older I realised something. God gives me enough every day to get through to tomorrow. Why can't I give back to Him? I made a conscious decision in giving my tithe every time I receive money. Believe me, I don't have a stable income and I really do not have a lot of money. But I have seen how faithful God is by providing my every need. I think you just need to start somewhere, you know give a little and get into the spirit of trusting that God is going to supply according to your needs. I've heard that in church 80 percent of the people do support the work of the Pastor. Can you imagine if each person only gave R5 each time they attended the service. Let us say there are 100 churches goes in my church. This means that the church received R500 per month. If this continues the church receives R6,000 per year. It's not that much but keep in mind the church building needs to be maintained, the Pastor needs to have an income and other costs need to be covered. This money definitely would help the church. I believe once you've experienced the joy of giving to the Lord through your local church, I feel you will want to give as much as you can rather than worrying about how much you must give. Remember, God loves a cheerful giver. Come on, let us get started and support our churches financially. Prayer Thank You, Lord God, that I can give what I can and I enjoy giving because I know it's to honor You. I don't have any other means to honor You and this is my way of showing You I love You, Lord. My life isn't worth much especially without You. May our hearts be cheerful in giving and helping each other as well as the local church we attend. Bless each one of us and let the Holy Spirit imprint this in our hearts. We want to be cheerful givers to honor You Lord, God Almighty. In the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen