Grace

2 Corinthians 12:9

God said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

The Power of Faith

Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real even if we do not see it. Faith is the reason we remember great people who lived in the past.

Hebrews 11:1-2

Faith and belief are two different things. Lots of people believe in God, but that belief makes no difference in their lives. Faith, however, acts on what it believes. Faith may look like a "leap" to those who don't want to risk putting their trust in something unseen. But through faith, what is unseen is far from unknown. As you actively respond to the Bible and God's Spirit, your faith continues to grow stronger. Your personal experience confirms that God is everything he says he is.

Hebrews 11:1-2 is the introduction to a section of Scripture known as the Hall of Faith. The list of ancients that follows includes people like Moses, Noah, and Abraham, people who are remembered for putting their beliefs to the test. The Jewish Christians this letter was written for complained that following God was too difficult for ordinary people. The truth found in these verses refutes that claim.

Faith in God is what sets ordinary people apart - like Moses, Noah, and Abraham - so they can do extraordinary things. Through simple trust and active obedience, faith makes unseen spiritual realities more visible. Faith is what makes them certain, which in Greek is legal term similar to our title deed that guarantees a possession will be yours in the future. You have God's guarantee that what he has promised will be yours. The faithfulness of that guarantee is what makes the foundation of your faith enough to step forward in confidence.

Faith follows four steps: (1) God speaks, (2) you hear, (3) you trust (4) you act. As you respect these steps day by day, you'll be writing your own unique chapter in the Hall of Faith.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God to guide you through your faith walk in life. Each day is new and brings opportunity for God's mercy and grace to reign on earth. As a follower of Jesus Christ you have stated with your "words" that you believe in God. That your heart desires to live eternally alongside our Father God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit in the kingdom of Heaven. God's love, his promise will lead us safely through the trials and tribulations of this world - He will guide our "actions" as we move in faith. Thank you Father God for one more day to declare that YOU are my Savior and I TRUST IN YOU. ~ MME Team

Wrestling with Evil

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age.

Ephesians 6:11-12

When wrestlers compete, they rely on both strength and strategy to overcome their opponent. Even before the match begins, a wrestler takes a moment to size up his opponent, looking for his opponent's potential vulnerabilities, while remaining fully aware of his own. The passage in Ephesians uses the image of a wrestling match to convey the ongoing struggle and preparation that standing strong against evil entails - and it reminds you to be sure that you are fighting the right opponent.

People may do evil things, but your battle is not with individuals. Your battle is with evil itself. The Ephesians were well-acquainted with principalities, powers, and rulers of darkness - different kinds of evil spirits. The society was heavily involved in sorcery and magic. Even those who chose not to follow God were aware there was some kind of spiritual battle going on behind the scenes of their everyday lives. Ephesians 6 provides readers with God's guidelines on how to effectively fight that battle.

Mixing metaphors between wrestling and fighting a battle, Ephesians 6 instructs you to cover yourself with God-given armor. This protective gear is described in more detail in subsequent verses, but it includes things such as truth, righteousness, God's Spirit, God's Word, and prayer. As you choose to don God's armor each day and remind yourself who your opponent really is, you'll find yourself well prepared to hold your ground against evil.

Being prepared to encounter evil and focusing on it are two different things. Stay focused on God. His Spirit will make you aware of any battles you need to face.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God for his guidance and strength in your personal spiritual fight against evil. It is not flesh to flesh, fist to fist battle that we prepare for but a spiritual battle against the enemy. God's truths are the armor he has given us to protect us through the journey. Let us not take it lightly that we need to prepare daily through prayer and time with scripture to feed our body, mind and spirit with all the goodness God provides us. Let us not be spiritually starved or else the enemy will take away our victory. ~ MME Team

Character Under Pressure

We... have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope.

Romans 5:3-4

Genuine diamonds are known for both their beauty and their strength. Though they begin as common carbon, constant pressure over an extended period of time creates something of rare value. The same is true for strength of character, which is just as rare and even more valuable. True character exhibits integrity through consistent moral excellence. Through the apostle Paul's words, God shares the secret of how this priceless character trait is developed. It takes place through an unexpected process - experiencing joy when you're suffering under pressure.

In several versions of the Bible, the word for suffering is translated "tribulations." This comes from the Latin word tribulum, which was taken from the name of a piece of farm equipment used during New Testament times. A tribulum was a heavy piece of timber with spikes in it that was drawn over newly picked grain. It separated the valuable grain form the worthless chaff. Tribulation, or suffering, does the same thing to your character. It sifts it, helping you sort out what's truly important in life from what's of little value.

As your character grows stronger, so does your hope. Experiencing firsthand how God can use difficult circumstances in a positive way solidifies your hope for the future as it strengthens your trust in him. This character-building process hones the resulting hope by persevering through difficulties. This is what allows you to find genuine joy, even in the middle of suffering.

A diamond has no choice in how it responds to pressue. You do. Choosing to focus on the hope that produces joy during hard times develops a character that's more like Jesus's own.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God and thank Him for free will and his great love that provides us strength for the journey; as we live and grow under the pressure of this earthly world. We thank Him for free will for it is this freedom that provides opportunity for each of us to grown personally in our one-to-one relationship with God. It is this freedom that reveals how GOOD God really is. That He provides us freedom to stumble and even fall in the pressure of living life while never leaving our side. At times He even carries us through the most difficult of trials and tribulations. He never leaves us, He sees everything we do ... and He still loves us enough to forgive us and grow our heart of worship through every prayer we say and every repentance. We thank you, Lord, for you are the GREAT I AM and you give us the promise of HOPE. ~ MME Team

Willing Surrender

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Ephesians 5:21

For many people, the idea of submitting themselves to someone else carries negative connotations. Submitting implies inferiority, subservience, or blink obedience. Nothing could be farther from God's truth. Submission as described in the Bible is a mutual commitment between two equals whose goal is to foster unity and cooperation. The ancient Greek word used in the Bible to describe submission is a military command telling troops to get in order according to their rank. By following this structure of authority, soldiers can work together more efficiently to accomplish their own individual duties. A company with too many generals and not enough privates has little chance of winning a war.

In the Bible, several verses ask wives to submit to their husbands, servants to submit to their masters, and citizens to submit to the government. Ephesians 5:2 lays the groundwork for them all. It makes absolutely clear that submission is expected of every follower of Jesus, not just a few specific groups of people. One way that Jesus showed his love was by willingly setting his rights aside to better serve others. Every time you follow his example, you honor him.

In daily life, submitting to one another looks a lot like respect, humility, and love. It means that demanding your own way, flaunting your authority, or nurturing a superiority complex are things of the past. It means that your life is beginning to look more like Jesus's.

Before mutual submission is evident in your actions, it needs to take root in your attitude. That process begins the moment you submit your own personal agenda for life to God's.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God for healing when it comes to how we view the act of submission. Ask Him to transform your broken heart that was created trying to please MAN with one of a heart centered on Him. Ask him for guidance and sustainability thus His work, His will, will become yours. In doing so submission transforms into an act of worship. When we worship our Lord we are healed and saved eternally. ~ MME Team

Free at Last

Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

John 8:31-32

In today's postmodern society, talking about truth can be tricky. If you want to discuss a truth, feel free. However, talking about the truth is a whole other matter. Talking about the truth would imply that what you're sharing is an absolute truth, something that is true for everyone - whether everyone personally believes it to be true or not.

That's the kind of truth Jesus was talking about to his Jewish audience in the temple treasury as recorded in the Gospel of John. The term Jesus used for truth was the same one used to describe a legal standard, a fact that would stand up in court. This fact was broader than just the truth about who Jesus was. The Jews who were listening already believed. The truth Jesus spoke of is the kind revealed over the course of a lifetime, as those who believe in him choose to obey his words.

In ancient Greek, know means more than "to make a mental note of." It means that you have tested your belief exponentially. By putting Jesus's teaching into practice, you can come to know the truth about God, life and yourself. This knowledge frees you from your chains you may not even  be aware are holding you back, such chains as pride, selfishness, and the temptation to do what is contrary to Jesus's words. Let God's truth lead you to true freedom today.

God's promise of freedom is linked to putting his words to the test. Get to know his words better by reading, meditating on, and praying  about at least one verse of Scripture each day.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God and give him thanks for the "truth" for it liberates and breaks all chains. In God we trust. ~ MME Team

A Brand-New Beginning

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, unless one is born again,  he cannot be in God's kingdom.

John 3:3

The people of Israel were much like people today. They were constantly seeking restoration. They wanted broken bodies whole. Broken relationships mended. Their broken nation restored to peace and prosperity. Their broken link to eternity reforged. Yet God did not settle for restoration. He sent Jesus to bring regeneration - a totally new life.

This new life is what Jesus was speaking about when he talked to Nicodemus, a Pharisee of rare character who was honestly seeking God's truth. At first Nicodemus misunderstood the whole concept, arguing that there was no possible way for a baby to reenter his mother's womb and be reborn. But the birth Jesus was speaking about was a spiritual rebirth, a radical reawakening to who you were created to be. The spiritual rebirth was a brand-new way of relating to life that is possible only through the gift of a totally new nature.

The "old" nature was focused on self. The "new" nature is focused on God. Like a newborn who is predisposed toward certain traits because of his DNA but nonetheless has to positively participate in the maturity you need to live a godly life. To mature in that life, you must choose to nurture your new nature. Nourish yourself with the Bible. Exercise your spiritual muscles by acting on what God asks you to do. Rest in God's promise that the past is gone and that you have been born again.

Use Jesus's words as a touchstone anytime you get discouraged about how long it takes to become spiritually mature. You have the right DNA. Adulthood is inevitable. It just take times to get there.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God to keep your eyes on the prize - the prize of eternal salvation. The process of spiritual maturity is a gift God has provided us on earth to condition us to what awaits us in heaven. Through each transformative trial and tribulation that we encounter God wants us to glorify Him in the process. He wants us to focus on pleasing Him more then ourselves. That means loving when it's unfair (when we are hurt). That means forgiving without regret (do not keep a score card) sure in the knowledge that God is in control and He will guide you through all turbulence that this earthly life might push towards you. Actions taken by a spiritual mature Christian heart will yield the peace and love on earth that which awaits us in heaven. ~ MME Team