God Is My Victory

2 Corinthians 2:14, "But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him."

Walking with God means walking in victory. Victory does not mean perfection, but it means not being mastered by any sin. I thank God for his patience and unfailing love.

Check out the following song. It's by Hillsong Worship. It's called Desert Song. It really blesses me every time I hear it. "God is my victory and He is here."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pGZ9Km-csk

His words.. My daily Bread

"I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread." Job 23:12b. The KJV says necessary food in place of daily bread.

A friend of mine made the statement on facebook that she was addicted to God's word. She said she was getting to the point where she wanted the word more than food. I know we can get this way. I was at this place in my life at one time, and I want to be there again. This comes by more study of the word and by spending time in God's presence. The more time I spend with Him, the more I want of Him and less of other things.

Lord, help me to treasure the words of Your mouth more than my daily bread. I praise You for Your word.

The Mind of the Spirit

Romans 8:6, The mind of the sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.

It's so amazing that Jesus came to bring life and peace. It is God's will for us to enjoy life. This does not mean that difficult times will not come, but even in that, THE MIND CONTROLLED BY THE SPIRIT IS LIFE AND PEACE!! When I guard my thoughts and don't entertain just anything that comes to mind, I have more peace. It's a battle, but God has given me what I need to fight it and win.

Taste and See..

Psalm 34:8-9, Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.

These scriptures were on my heart and mind today. The Lord is good. I want to completely develop a taste for the things that please him. When I take refuge in Him, nothing can enslave me. If my trust is in Him, he meets my needs and fulfills me. This keeps me from emotional eating. I am working on putting this into effect in my life.

Failure Isn't Final

I love something I heard John Hagee say, "Failure isn't final". When I eat too much, it's not too late to wait until I am truly hungry before I eat again. When I entertain thoughts that are not godly, I can change my thinking without having to feel condemned. I am thankful for that because I get off track. It's encouraging to know that God does not require me to beat myself up for several days before I can get back on track. My God is gracious and merciful!!

Romans 8:1-2, Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Lamentations 3:22-23, Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

I do not have to give up just because I failed. I love that about my God!!

No Discipline...

I woke up yesterday morning feeling a little frustrated. Some days, I have my eating under control. Other days, I give in to emotional eating. I checked my email and my mother had sent me a scripture to help me. She had no idea I was frustrated. God's timing is always perfect.

She has been reading a book called "Power Thoughts" by Joyce Meyer. I intend to read that after I am finished with the book I am reading now, "How To Succeed At Being Yourself" by Joyce Meyer. The scripture she sent me was Hebrews 12:11, For the time being no discipline brings joy, but seems grievous and painful; but afterwards it yields a peacable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

She also shared something she had read from "Power Thoughts". The following is a power thought: I AM DISCIPLINED AND SELF-CONTROLLED. To say that out loud was so powerful for me. It caused me to change the direction my mind was going in. It is so important that we resist negative thoughts at their onset. If we allow them to take up residence in our minds, we will soon have a stronghold that we have to deal with.

Thank God that in Christ I am disciplined and self controlled. God is so good!!
__________________
Allison Mitchell

God's Divine Power

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who has called us by His own glory and goodness (2 Peter 1:3).

Why do I try to overcome any sin on my own? This is a question I ask myself from time to time because I have tried and failed many times. The problem was that instead of looking to God's grace for help, I thought I could handle it without Him. What a mistake that was!! Instead of overcoming, I would get even more entangled in sin. The only way out is through Jesus Christ. I have to allow Him to work in me. That does not mean that I don't have work to do, but the work is much easier with Jesus leading me instead of me leading Him.

I am thankful that God's divine power has given me everything I need for overcoming any sin. If I have God, I have all I need. He is all-sufficient!!

Drawing From God's Strength

Be strong in the Lord (be empowered through your union with Him); draw your strength from Him (that strength which His boundless might provides.) Ephesians 6:10 Amplified Version.

This scripture speaks to me because the way to be strong in the Lord is to actually draw from His strength. The way to do that is through being united with Him.

My last post was July 2009. Obviously, I allowed things in my life to prevent me from posting anything. Recently, I felt led to start posting again. I still proclaim God's Delivering Power which is what I call my blogspot. Although I face temptation and even give in to it, God is still faithful. Also, I have found that when I devote time to posting to this blog or other online ministry, like Thin Within, I am more able to overcome. I think God is trying to tell me to get myself off my mind and think of helping others.

I can not walk in victory myself. I have to draw from God's strength, the strength His boundless might provides. To be strong in the Lord, I have to be united with Him. To be united with someone, you have to spend time with them. You have to know them. Focusing on my God takes the focus off me. Focusing on my God takes my focus off tempation and it no longer seems so overwhelming for me.

If you are facing a temptation that seems to completely overwhelm you, focus on Jesus Christ and draw from His power. You can walk in victory. You can be strong in the Lord.

Back After A Long Time

I have not posted any blogs in a while. Our house was flooded about two months ago. My aunt has been kind enough to let stay in an empty house that she has, but we are waiting on God to help us find a permanent place to stay. Waiting on God is one of the most difficult things to do, but strength will rise as we wait on the Lord (I quoted that from Everlasting God by Lincoln Brewster).

In the meantime, while I am waiting, I will still continue to worship my God and live for Him. He has a reason for my wait just as He has a reason for any wait you may be going through.

Praise As A Weapon

2 Chronicles 20:21, And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness as they went out before the army and were saying: Praise the Lord for His mercy endures forever.

If you really want to do damage to the enemy of your soul, praise to God works well!! Satan was once the praise and worship leader in heaven. Because of his pride, he wanted to exalt himself above God. This was a huge mistake. God cast Him down from heaven along with about 1/3 of the angels who had decided to take part in Satan's scheme. (See Isaiah 14:12-16 and Ezekiel 28:12-15)

Whenever Satan hears praise to God, it infuriates him. When you praise God, it reminds him of what he once was, and it reminds him that you now have his job.

In the above scripture, King Jehoshaphat's enemies were coming for him. His first reaction was fear. This is normal. He was a human being as we are. Then he began to seek the Lord. This is what we need to do when we are being attacked. After seeking God, he appointed singers to sing "Praise the Lord for His mercy endures forever." That's all they had to do. Can you imagine going into a battle only singing? When their enemies got closer and heard them singing praise, they became confused and slaughtered each other.

That's what happens to the demons who attack you when they hear you praising God, their plans are thwarted. There is power in praise. You have to speak it. Speak God's word and speak God's praise. Your enemy will be self-slaughtered.

If you read on in chapter 20 of 2 Chronicles, you will find that once the enemy was slaughtered, it took the people of Judah three days to gather the spoils. Once your enemy is defeated, he has to give back what he stole from you plus more. That is your right at a blood bought child of the Living God.

Don't complain. Don't be overcome by fear. Fight fear and all other enemies with praise.

God's Continual Gift

Peace is God's continual gift to us. It flows from His throne. It is available to us. I have to make the choice to accept His peace. The Israelites could only gather enough manna for one day. (Exodus 16:14-20). We can only gather enough peace for one day. The next day, we receive from God what we need for that day. It is a day by day process. This keeps us aware of our dependency on God. If He gave us permanent peace, we would become independent of Him. That is the last thing we need to do!!

From Jesus Calling, "As your awareness of your neediness increases so does your realization of My abundant sufficiency."

God is all-sufficient. Allow Him to fill you. Only He can satisfy.

Philippians 4

6.Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7.And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8.Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.
19.And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus

Death and Life

This is an appropriate time to talk about death and life. At this time of year we do our best to honor the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. (Although this should be a year-long celebration.)

Matthew 28
1.After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2.There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.
3.His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
4.The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5.The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.
6.He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
7.Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
8.So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.
9.Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.
10.Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me"

The women went to annoint Jesus' body. They thought he was dead. They went seeking for Him at the place of the dead. How many times do we do that? How many times do we seek for things in dead places? We won't find what we need in the dead places. We need to be in places where life is. Where is that? At the feet of Jesus. He is life. He is the resurrection and the life. He has the keys of death and hell. It is under His power now. It has no hold over us. Because of Jesus' victory over death, we are alive forever. Yes, this physical body will die, but we will live on.

When Jesus returns, our bodies will be resurrected and reunited with our souls and spirits. We are alive, and we will always be alive. Let's live for Christ because to live IS Christ. Hallelujah!!!

If we are dead in any way, it should be to sin. Jesus died and rose again so we could die to sin and bondage and come alive to His righteousness. We do not have to be bound to our sins. How awesome is that!!

1.What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?
2.By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
3.Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
4.We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
5.If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.
6.For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin--
7.because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.
8.Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.
9.For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.
10.The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
11.In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

If something is going to be dead in us, it must be our old nature, our sin nature; however, our new nature is alive in Jesus Christ.

Stop seeking what you need among things that are dead. Those things cannot fulfill you. Life in Christ is the only thing that brings true fulfillment.

I have posted a song by Travis Cottrell called Alive Forever Amen.

Enjoying Today

Matthew 6:34, Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I am a planner by nature. I like to have things worked out ahead of time. This is alright to a certain extent; but if I am not careful, it can become an idol.

God is teaching me to trust Him one day at a time. To enjoy each day. This is totally against my human nature, but it is in line with God's word. Trusting God is leaning on Him minute by minute, hour by hour, and day by day.

Too many times, I look to the future, when I need to enjoy the present. The following quote is from Joyce Meyer: "We can enjoy where we are at on the way to where we are going."

I have things right now that God has given me to enjoy. No, life is not perfect, but God is still sovereign.

From the devotional "Jesus Calling": "Trust Me one day at a time. This keeps you close to me, responsive to my will...Exert your will to trust me in all circumstances. Don't let your need to understand distract you from My presence. Don't get tangled up in worry-webs. Trust Me one day at a time."

Freedom In Christ

Galatians 5:1, It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Anyone who knows me or has read any of my blog entries knows that I have much to praise God for. He has set me free from some serious bondage. I praise Him for that; however, I have to remember that I must remain close to Christ and stay obedient so that I am not ensnared again by former strongholds. I have found that when I am not in the Word daily and sitting at His feet daily, my old person tries to come to life again. I do not want to go back to what I used to be. I have to make the choice to stand in the freedom Jesus has given me.

I love the song "In Your Freedom" by Hillsongs. Some of my favorite words to this song are as follows: "In your freedom I will live. In your freedom I will live. I offer devotion. I offer devotion. I love you, Lord. You rescued me. You are all that I want. You're all I need."

He has rescued me. He is all I need. He is all you need. If you are bound by any stronghold, He wants to rescue you. All you have to do is surrender to Him. If you are not saved, ask Him into your heart and life right now. Romans 10:9, That if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:13, Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

If anyone reading this blog wants prayer or someone to talk to, feel free to email me at allisonmitchell53@yahoo.com.

I have posted this song. I pray it blesses you as it has me.

I love this song. It's called "The More I Seek You". I have found that the more I seek my God, the more I find Him. His presence becomes more real all the time. No, I do not always FEEL Him, but I know He is always there. He cares about every aspect of my life.

His presence is a necessity in my life. I can do nothing without Him, but I can do all things with Him.
Isaiah 55:6 (NLT), Seek the Lord while you can find Him. Call on Him now while He is near.

1 Chronicles 16:11, Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always.

Psalm 27:8, My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, Lord, I will seek.

Deuteronomy 4:29, But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Because of what my Jesus did at the cross, we can go directly to God the Father. Hebrews 4:16, Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

I Want It All Back

There is a song by Tye Tribbett called "I Want It All Back". I love this song because it is very scriptural, and it reminds me that we need to take back those things that the enemy of our soul has stolen from us.

Ephesians 6:10-18: 10. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
11. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
12. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
14. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15. and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16.In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Sometimes it's difficult to remember that our battle is not with people. Our battle is with the enemy who uses people to come against us.

Matthew 11:12, From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.

Isaiah 59:19 tells us that when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift a standard against him.

As you grow closer to God, the attacks against you will become more agressive. It's important that we get off the defense and get on the offense as far as the enemy is concerned. Our only offensive weapon in the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18) is the sword of the Spirit. What is the Sword of the Spirit? We are told plainly that it is the Word of God. We have read and study the word and apply the truth of the Word to our lives.

Matthew 16:19, "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

Jesus has given us power over the enemy. We can take back our joy and our peace and the other things the forces of evil have stolen from us. Note that we must keep sin out of our lives to do this. I can't have cherished sin in my heart and expect to be able to overcome the enemy.

Luke 10: 19-20, "I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

Jesus reminds us that we have power over the enemy, but he also reminds us not to become arrogant. Remember He is the one this power comes from. The enemy can bring attacks, but it's up to you how much power you will let him have in your life.

Realize who you are in Christ and take back what the enemy has stolen from you. Jesus suffered and died and rose again so you could have that power.

Click on the following link to watch the video and listen to the song, "I Want It All Back.":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUtJgU7sdd0

Enjoying God's Presence Even In Adversity

From Jesus Calling: "Continue on this path with Me, enjoying My presence even in adversity...The One who goes ahead of you opening up the way is the same One who stays close and never lets go of your hand...I am everywhere at every time, ceaslessly working on your behalf."

I am learning to enjoy God's presence even in adversity. I have been through some adversity the last few weeks. The bank I am working for has been in the process of a merger, and I have had to work some long hours. The stress level at my job has been extremely high. I am so thankful that Jesus is with me through all of this. I am enjoying a weekend at home, and I am so looking forward to church this weekend.

I need Jesus so much. I cannot get through life without Him. He is my joy and my peace. He is so awesome. I praise Him for how He can bring peace and good things out of the worst of circumstances. He has done that over and over in my life.

Romans 8:28, And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him who have been called according to His purpose.

Psalm 37:3-4, Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Guard What God Has Given You

2 Timothy 1:6-7, For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.

God has given us all gifts or talents to be used to bring glory to Him. To know what your gift or calling is, you have to go before God and seek Him. Also, look at the things you enjoy doing. If you enjoy singing, maybe God wants you to sing. If you love to help people, maybe you are called into some type of helps ministry. This is just to name a few of the things we can do for the glory of God.

We have to fan these things into flame like the above scripture stated. We do this by dedicating our gifts or callings to God then using them. The more we use them for God's glory, the more He increases them.

I also like what verse 6 of the above scripture says. "God has not given us a spirit of timidity.." God will give us boldness that we need. He will give us power, but we must walk in love and self-discipline."

I have found that in sharing my struggles with overeating and sexual impurity that I have been able to help others who struggle. I praise God for this!! If you are overcoming a stronghold or have already overcome it, share with others (as God leads) what God is doing for you.

2 Timothy 1:14, Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you-guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

Whatever God has given us, we must guard it. The enemy will try to come and sidetrack us in someway. We must not allow him to take what God has given. Yes, the gifts and the callings of God are without repentance, but in order to use what we have to help others, we have to keep our hearts pure and our hands clean before God.

The enemy of my soul has tried to get me distracted from my focus on Christ just in the last several days. I noticed it (because of the Holy Spirit's prodding) and I have put my focus back where it needs to be. I am doing what I need to keep it there.

Let's guard the good deposit that God has entrusted us with, and let's lead others to freedom.

Trust and Thankfulness

I don't know if I have mentioned this or not, but I love my newest devotional "Jesus Calling". The lady who wrote this was under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit if ever anyone was.

Today's devotional talked about trust and thankfulness.

The following is from "Jesus Calling, February 21": "Trust and thankfulness will get you safely through this day. Trust protects you from worrying and obsessing. Thankfulness keeps you from criticizing and complaining: those sister sins that so easily entangle you."

I never had thought about these sins being like sisters, but they are. One leads to the other. They seem to feed from each other.

Many times I catch myself worrying and obesessing. This always leads to frustration which in turn causes me to criticize and complain. When I am frustrated, I often start finding something to take that frustration out on. I then become critical and negative. I have found that when I release my frustration to my God, I am free from the sins of criticizing and complaining. Those sins are so demeaning. We do not realize how they affect our witness for Christ.

I do not want to complain and remain. I want to praise and be raised. Complaining only causes us to have to stay in our trials and tests longer. I certainly don't want to stay in mine any longer than I have to. I want to learn what God wants to teach so that I can move on.

Pride In Thinking My Sin Is Too Great

Jeremiah 13:17, If you will not listen, my innermost being will weep in secret because of your pride.

Pride is so subtle. We can be walking in pride in an area and not even realize it. I pray for the Lord to keep pride from me.

In today's devotional of Breaking Free Day by Day, Beth Moore points out a way we can be walking in pride that I had never really thought of, but it is so profound that I want to share it.From Breaking Free Day by Day, "I have known people, for example, who thought they were too far gone to save- too wicked, too sinful. Such people would be shocked to hear that even this attitude is a form of pride as well. They think their sin or problem is bigger than God."

Ouch and amen!! Who do we think we are that our struggle with overeating or any other sin is beyond God's reach? I have been guilty of that type of thinking. It may be over my head, but it is under God's feet.